Stocks Wobbled after Home Prices Data

U.S. stocks wavered between small gains and losses at the open on Tuesday, as investors took in a rise in home
prices and awaited a new reading on consumer confidence. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately fell 3.72 points,
or 0.02%, to 15,397.66. The S&P 500 dipped 1.09 points, or 0.06%, to 1,700.75. The Nasdaq Composite rose 5.62
points, or 0.15%, to 3,770.91.

U.S. single-family home prices rose in July albeit at a slightly slower pace. The S&P/Case Shiller composite index
of 20 metropolitan areas rose 0.6 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis, compared to economists’ forecasts for a
0.8 percent gain. Prices rose 0.9 percent in June.

Lennar Corp (LEN), the No. 3 U.S. homebuilder, reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit as it sold more
homes at higher prices, indicating the U.S. housing recovery is firmly on track. Net income rose to $120.7 million,
or 54 cents per share, in the third quarter from $87.1 million, or 40 cents per share, a year earlier. Total
revenue rose 46 percent to $1.60 billion.

KB Home’s (KBH) fiscal third-quarter profit soared from a year earlier as the home builder reported double-digit
revenue growth in each of its homebuilding regions and selling prices increased. For the quarter ended Aug. 31, KB
Home reported a profit of $27.3 million, or 30 cents a share, compared with a year-earlier profit of $3.26 million,
or four cents a share. Revenue rose 29% to $548.9 million.

Looking to learn from the past, social media company Twitter will list on the New York Stock Exchange in an IPO
estimated to net around $1.5 billion, sources close to the situation have said.

Chrysler Group LLC was forced to file paperwork for an IPO by its second-biggest shareholder on Monday, escalating
a spat with main owner Fiat SpA (Milan:F.MI – News) which said it could scale back its commitment to the U.S.
automaker.

Applied Materials Inc (AMAT), the world’s biggest producer of chipmaking equipment, will buy rival Tokyo Electron
Ltd in an all-share deal, creating a company with a combined stock market value of $29 billion, the two said on
Tuesday.