Microsoft (MSFT) Rallies into Close, Rumors Ensue

Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) staged a late-day rally Tuesday on strong volume. The stock jumped about 1.2 percent just minutes before the market close. Shares finished the session up 2.38 percent to $25.80.

While the move is not likely based on any fundamental news, traders are speculating on a couple possibilities:

• Steve Ballmer's out as CEO (unlikely); or
  
  
• Microsoft won a patent for 'Internet spying.' What that means in layman terms is "data associated with a request to establish a communication is modified to cause the communication to be established via a path that includes a recording agent." Click here for that report.

Either way, about 20 million shares traded hands in the last 10 minutes of the day.

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