More Choppiness on Tap for Stocks

With 89% of stocks ending lower on Monday, the U.S. stock market was arguably oversold. Stocks tried to rally back on Tuesday, but trading was choppy at best in the morning -- rising on a report showing an uptick in home prices and then falling on disappointing consumer confidence -- and in the end, equities finished just modestly higher.    The Dow gained 32 points, closing off of session highs, the Nasdaq gained 18 points and the S&P 500 tacked on 6.

Homebuilders led stocks higher with big gains in companies like Pulte Group (NYSE:PHM) and Lennar (NYSE:LEN). Investors temporarily cheered the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index, showing that home prices in major cities across the U.S. rose 1.3% from March to April.   Today, investors get another look at the housing market as the National Association of Realtors releases its Pending Home Sales Index for May.

Meanwhile, a judge ordered Samsung to stop selling its Galaxy 10.1 tablet while the court considers Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) claim it illegally copied the design of the iPad. The judge ruled that Apple and Samsung’s tablets are “virtually indistinguishable” and Apple would be “irreparably harmed” if Galaxy 10.1 sales continued.

Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) is expected to introduce its own tablet at its Google I/O developers conference in San Francisco later today. The tablet, called Nexus 7, is not being billed as an “iPad killer,” but rather a good starting point to showcase the features of the Android operating system. The price is expected to be about half that of Apple’s popular iPad, and boast a 7-inch display and docking connector. Taiwan’s Asus is reportedly manufacturing the device.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last week introduced its own line of tablet computers, marking a major strategic shift for the software giant.