Tuesday's Tech Winners & Losers

Shares of Atmel(ATML Quote) were among technology's losers Tuesday, dropping 14% after the chipmaker postponed the release of its second-quarter results amid a review into its past stock-option grants.

Atmel said it won't release its second-quarter results until the independent investigation of its option practices and timing has been completed. The company, which planned to release earnings Tuesday, said it doesn't expect to complete the option investigation by the Aug. 14 extended due date for quarterly report filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Shares were trading down 69 cents to $4.13.

Shares of Agere Systems(AGR Quote) jumped 23% after the chipmaker posted better-than-expected third-quarter earnings. For the period ended June 30, the company earned $47 million, or 27 cents a share, on revenue of $382 million. Excluding items, Agere earned $37 million, or 22 cents a share. Analysts anticipated earnings of 16 cents a share on revenue of $399.9 million. A year earlier, the company posted adjusted earnings of $43 million, or 23 cents a share, on revenue of $433 million. ...