On March 9, 2009, the tech-heavy Nasdaq hit 1268.64, its lowest point in seven years. In afternoon trading Friday, the index was at 2718.80. The sort of share value increases that tech companies experienced since the market bottom of two years ago is hard to maintain, and growth of IT stocks, on average, has flattened out somewhat recently.

But IT sector financial news this week shows that corporate demand for IT and consumer demand for mobile devices remains high.

A jump in IBM shares, to a record level, was just one marker of confidence in corporate IT. Analysts met with IBM management Tuesday and issued a raft of upbeat reports about what they heard.

At least four analysts upgraded their recommendations or price targets, and as a result IBM shares surged by $3.58 to close at a record US$165.86 Wednesday. IBM's high-end services business and its emphasis on high-margin software and hardware has impressed market watchers.

"We get the sense IBM has rejuvenated pride in its massive $6 billion annual research and development spend, in contrast to more standards/commodity-reliant competitors, seeing continued opportunities toward ever-higher margin mix," said Robert Cirha, in a Caris & Co. research note.