NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Technology stocks ended the day lower Thursday, following a decline in the telecom sector.

According to preliminary reports, the Nasdaq composite lost 23.44 to 2,119.01. Philadelphia semiconductor index dipped 7.86 to 532.85 while the Amex technology index slid 8.83 to 761.04.

Lucent Technologies Inc. (LU: Research, Estimates) was the most actively traded stock on the New York Stock Exchange, closing 8.4 percent lower to $4.05, following a ratings downgrade.

Smith Barney Citigroup cut its rating on Lucent's shares to "sell," a day after the telecom equipment maker posted its second straight quarterly profit, which also topped analysts' expectations.

Analyst Alex Henderson said in a research note that he believes traditional wireline suppliers have seen their stock prices rise beyond their fundamentals in the last month and are due for a correction.

He also cited the company's lack of significant operating leverage going forward and its stretched valuation as reasons for the downgrade.

Nortel Networks Corp. shares fell on news that it was negotiating with contract electronics manufacturer Flextronics International (FLEX: Research, Estimates) to divest manufacturing operations in Canada, Brazil, Northern Ireland and France, a move that could affect 7 percent of its workforce.

If a deal materializes, Flextronics would manage more than $2 billion of Nortel's annual cost of sales and take over more than $500 million of Nortel's manufacturing and inventory assets. In return Nortel would get more than $500 million in cash, over nine months.

Nortel (NT: Research, Estimates) shares ended slightly more than 7 percent lower to $6.34 on the NYSE.

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AT&T Wireless (AWE: Research, Estimates) posted a narrower quarter loss than in the year-ago quarter before the bell, but missed analysts expectations. The news earned it a spot as the one of the NYSE's volume leaders, its shares falling nearly 4 percent to $10.56.

The wireless carrier posted a fourth-quarter net loss of $84 million, or 3 cents a share, compared with a loss of $131 million, or 5 cents a share, in the same quarter last year. Analysts surveyed by Reuters Research expected AT&T Wireless to earn 1 cent per share.

One bright spot for the Dow, however, was Eastman Kodak Co., which said it would cut as many as 15,000 jobs and take charges of up to $1.7 billion over the next three years as it shifts toward digital products and away from the waning film market.

The camera maker also said it earned $19 million, or 7 cents a share, down sharply from $113 million, or 39 cents a share, a year earlier.

Excluding one-time items, Kodak earned $199 million, or 70 cents a share. Analysts on average had expected 52 cents a share, according to Reuters Research.

Kodak (EK: Research, Estimates) shares roared 12.7 percent to $30.95 on the NYSE.

On the Nasdaq, Sandisk (SNDK: Research, Estimates) fell slightly more than 14 percent to $59.75 after the company warned that tough pricing in the flash memory card market will hurt its gross margins in the year ahead.

Shares of fiber-optic maker JDS Uniphase Corp. (JDSU: Research, Estimates) received a boost last week from a rosy forecast by Juniper Networks, but pulled back nearly 8 percent to $4.95 by the end of the trading session. Its shares topped the Nasdaq's most-active list.  

--from staff and wire reports