TECH STOCKS: 30-Month High For The NasdaqTECH STOCKS: 30-Month High For The Nasdaq

The Nasdaq index hit a 30-month high Wednesday, in part thanks to news of some big deals. Nextel, for instance, rose 19.3%, or 92 cents, to $5.68, after Verizon announced plans to use its IP-telephony hardware.

Intel rose 3.3%, or $1.09, after its stock was upgraded by Bernstein Research. Oracle rose 2.7%, or 37 cents, to $13.97; Apple rose 2.3%, or 50 cents, to $22.59; and Cisco rose 2%, or 50 cents, to $25.56.

At the closing bell, the Nasdaq index was at its highest point since August 2001, having risen 1%, or 20.31 points, to 2,077.68. Our information 100 rose .5%, or 1.7 points, to 332.69. Less tech-heavy indexes didn't fare as well. The S&P 500 rose .2%, or 2.66 points, to 1,126.33; and the Dow fell .1%, or 9.63 points, to 10,529.03.

The Nasdaq-100 tracking stock, which we use to get a better idea of how tech stocks generally fared, rose .9%, or 34 cents, to $37.68, on volume of 69.2 million shares.