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---------------------- Forwarded by Sara Shackleton/HOU/ECT on 12/20/99 05:=
24=20 PM --------------------------- "SmartPortfolio.Com" <admin_update@smartportfolio.com< on 12/20/99 05:05:58= PM Please respond to "SmartPortfolio.Com" <admin_update@smartportfolio.com< To: Sara Shackleton/HOU/ECT@ECT cc: =20 Subject: SmartPortfolio.Com Update: Nasdaq Strong, Dow Weak Before Fed Meet= s The following is a FREE service brought to you by SmartPortfolio.Com, located on the Web at http://www.smartportfolio.com <A HREF=3D"http://www.smartportfolio.com"<AOL users click here</A< Update December 20, 1999 Monday's Market Update: Nasdaq Strong, Dow Weak Before Fed Meets 1. Monday's Market Action 2. Internet and Tech Stocks 3. Notable Earnings Announcements 4. Notable Upgrades and Downgrades 5. Stock Splits 6. IPO Commentary 7. IPO Calendar ************************Advertisement**************************** DoubleClick Splits 2:1 -- Soars to 220 in After-Hours Trading! Didn't know that DoubleClick (Nasdaq:DCLK) was going to announce a stock split? Readers of the Smart!Splits Report were informed of this possibility over the past several weeks. To learn more about the next upcoming stock split and how you can profit in today's market, subscribe to the Smart!Splits Report by visiting: http://www.smartportfolio.com/freetrials <A HREF=3D"http://www.smartportfolio.com/freetrials"<AOL users click here</A< ***************************************************************** *HOLIDAY GIFT IDEA*: Send one or more Smart!Reports (Internet Report, IPO Report, and Stock Splits Report) to a friend or loved one by going to: http://www.smartportfolio.com/gifts <A HREF=3D"http://www.smartportfolio.com/gifts"<AOL users click here</A< 1. Monday's Market Action $ Change % Change Close Dow Industrials -113.16 -1.01% 11144.27 S&P 500 -2.94 -0.21% 1418.09 Nasdaq +30.81 +0.82% 3783.87 Internet Stock Index +8.44 +1.03% 828.66 The Nasdaq surged to another record high while the Dow pulled back from early gains in moderate trading volume. Investor focus shifted to Tuesday's meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee, which is the Fed's interest rate policy-making body. Although few market watchers expect the Fed to raise rates at the meeting given uneasiness over the Year 2000 issue, speculation has grown that the Fed may change its "bias" or predisposition towards future interest rate hikes. General Electric (NYSE:GE) shares rose 1 13/16 (+1.19%) to 153 11/16 on continuing momentum from the company's announcement on Friday of a 3- for-1 stock split, a 17% increase in its quarterly dividend to 41 cents per share, and an expansion of its share repurchase program, In addition to the GE stock split announced on Friday, several prominent companies announced splits last week and today, including Oracle Corp. (Nasdaq:ORCL) 2-for-1, Red Hat (Nasdaq:RHAT) 2-for-1, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co. (NYSE:MWD) 2-for-1, Check Point Software (Nasdaq:CHKP) 2-for-1, Novellus Systems (Nasdaq:NVLS) 3-for-1, and CMGI (Nasdaq:CMGI). Novellus Systems shareholders were excited today--the stock closed up 33.36% (up 28 18/32) to 113 9/16! Our Smart!Splits Report forecasted the GE, Oracle, and CMGI splits. Each week this Report analyzes potential and announced stock splits. To subscribe to a FREE 2-week trial to the Smart!Splits Report, please visit: http://www.smartportfolio.com/freetrial <A HREF=3D"http://www.smartportfolio.com/freetrial"<AOL users click here</A< Merger mania hit the drug sector again today with news that drug giant Pharmacia & Upjohn (NYSE:PNU) and life sciences company Monsanto (NYSE:MTC) will combine in a "merger of equals" transaction. Investors in both companies reacted negatively to the news, as shares of Monsanto closed down 5 1/8 (-12.28%) to 36 5/8 and shares of Pharmacia & Upjohn closed down 3 1/8 (-6.22%) at 47 1/8. Monsanto shareholders were particularly disappointed because they have been pushing for an acquisition involving Monsanto, or at least its agribusiness division, for some time, but given the merger of equals nature of this transaction, they will not receive a significant premium for their shares. Other drug stocks ended mixed, with Merck (NYSE:MRK) edging up 3/16 (+0.28%) to 66 3/4, Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) down 7/16 (-1.32%) to 32 13/16, and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) down 3 (-3.16%) to 91 7/8. 2. Internet and Tech Stocks For a FREE trial to SmartPortfolio.Com's in-depth analysis of selected Internet stocks, please visit: http://www.smartportfolio.com/freetrial <A HREF=3D"http://www.smartportfolio.com/freetrial"<AOL users click here</A< As further evidence that the Internet has revolutionized not only the business world but also society in general, Time magazine named Jeff Bezos, the founder, CEO and Chairman of Amazon.com (Nasdaq:AMZN), as its Man of the Year for 1999. Shares of the leading Internet "e- tailer" closed up 2 15/16 (+3.12%) to 97 on the news. Cisco Systems (Nasdaq:CSCO) shares rose 3 9/16 (+3.57%) to 103 1/4 on news the leading networking company formed a fiber optics strategic alliance with Italy's tire and cable maker Pirelli. The deal calls on Cisco to make investments in several Pirelli divisions. Shares of TheStreet.com (Nasdaq:TSCM) surged 13.94% (up 2 3/16) to 17 7/8 on news the online financial news and commentary provider reached a 2-year marketing agreement with America Online (NYSE:AOL) that will provide financial news and live events from TheStreet.com to AOL sites. AOL shares closed up 1 5/8 (+1.91%) to 86 5/8. EarthWeb (Nasdaq:EWBX) shares jumped 10.98% (up 4 1/2) to 45 1/2 on news its dice.com site, a leading nationwide job site for Information Technology (IT) professionals, landed a series of partnerships to bolster its online IT position listings. The partners include Amazon.com (Nasdaq:AMZN), ExciteAthome (Nasdaq:ATHM), MCI Worldcom (Nasdaq:WCOM), PeopleSoft (Nasdaq:PSFT), Staples (Nasdaq:SPLS), and Yahoo! (Nasdaq:YHOO). Other big movers in the tech sector included VeriSign (Nasdaq:VRSN), up 14.65% (up 19 3/16) to 150 1/8 after announcing two strategic acquisitions; business-to-business (B2B) company Ariba (Nasdaq:ARBA), which traded on a post-split basis for the first time today and closed up 5 5/16 (+4.15%) to 133 3/8; B2B firm Commerce One (Nasdaq:CMRC), bouncing back 17 3/4 (+4.38%) to 423 today; B2B incubator Internet Capital Group (Nasdaq:ICGE), up 18.09% (up 22) to 143 5/8 on heavy volume; Internet start-up incubator CMGI (Nasdaq:CMGI), up 10 3/8 (+4.90%) to 222 3/16; and Webstakes.com (Nasdaq:IWIN), an Internet promotion solutions company, up 39.46% (up 7 1/4) to 25 5/8. Leading Internet and tech stocks performed as follows: Company $ Change % Change Close Amazon (Nasdaq:AMZN) +2 15/16 +3.12% 97 America Online (NYSE:AOL) +2 +2.35% 87 Cisco (Nasdaq:CSCO) +3 9/16 +3.57% 103 1/4 CMGI (Nasdaq:CMGI) +10 3/8 +4.90% 222 3/16 Commerce One (Nasdaq:CMRC) +17 3/4 +4.38% 423 Dell (Nasdaq:DELL) +2 1/8 +4.66% 47 11/16 Ebay (Nasdaq:EBAY) -1 5/16 -0.87% 149 1/16 Exodus (Nasdaq:EXDS) -4 9/16 -5.49% 78 1/2 Excite@Home (Nasdaq:ATHM) -1 5/8 -3.39% 46 1/4 ETRADE (Nasdaq:EGRP) -1 1/8 -3.74% 28 15/16 Intel (Nasdaq:INTC) -1 -1.22% 81 1/16 Lucent (NYSE:LU) +1 207/256 +2.25% 82 79/256 Microsoft (Nasdaq:MSFT) -2 1/2 -2.17% 112 3/4 Oracle (Nasdaq:ORCL) +5 5/8 +6.20% 96 5/16 Qualcomm (Nasdaq:QCOM) +11 13/16 +2.60% 466 13/16 Qwest (Nasdaq:QWST) -1 -2.40% 40 11/16 Yahoo (Nasdaq:YHOO) +19 1/2 +5.57% 369 1/2 3. Notable Earnings Announcements For a calendar of recent and upcoming earnings announcements, visit: http://www.smartportfolio.com/earnings.asp <A HREF=3D"http://www.smartportfolio.com/earnings.asp"<AOL users click here</A< Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co. (NYSE:MWD) announced fourth quarter earnings of $2.84 per share, far exceeding First Call consensus estimates of $1.96 per share. In addition to the earnings announcement, the firm announced a 2-for-1 stock split for shareholders of record on January 12, 2000 and increased its dividend to 40 cents per share from 24 cents. Shares of the #2 U.S. brokerage firm ended higher by 1 7/16 (+1.12%) to 129 1/2. Another brokerage firm, A.G. Edwards (NYSE:AGE), reported third quarter earnings of 86 cents per share, which is significantly higher than First Call consensus estimates of 81 cents. A.G. Edwards shares closed up 3/4 (+2.71%) to 28 3/8. Other leading brokerage firms ended higher, with Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) up 1 11/16 (+2.10%) to 81 7/8 ahead of its scheduled earnings announcement on Tuesday, Lehman Brothers (NYSE:LEH) up 2 1/8 (+2.62%) to 83 3/16, and Merrill Lynch (NYSE:MER) up 5/16 (+0.40%) to 77 15/16. Red Hat (Nasdaq:RHAT) shares jumped 15 1/16 (+5.96%) to 267 15/16 despite its announcement of a larger than expected loss in its fiscal third quarter. Red Hat's loss of 5 cents per share was one cent lower than First Call consensus estimates. In addition, the developer and distributor of Linux, an open-source operating system that competes with Microsoft Windows, announced a 2-for-1 stock split for shareholders of record as of December 27, 1999. 4. Notable Upgrades and Downgrades For full coverage of today's upgrades, downgrades and coverage initiations, please click on the appropriate links below. -- Upgrades - http://www.smartportfolio.com/upgrades.asp <A HREF=3D"http://www.smartportfolio.com/upgrades.asp"<AOL users click here</A< Dell Computer (Nasdaq:DELL) was upgraded by J.P. Morgan to buy from market perform. Dell shares jumped 2 1/8 (+4.66%) to 47 11/16. Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co. (Nasdaq:MSDW) raised its rating on LTX Corp. (Nasdaq:LTXX) to outperform from strong buy. Shares of the red hot semiconductor-equipment maker shot up 2 1/8 (+11.81%) to 20 1/8. Among other chip equipment makers Monday, Lam Research Corp. (Nasdaq:LRCX) rallied 16 15/16 (+18.91%) to 106, Applied Materials (Nasdaq:AMAT) rose 5 9/16 (+ 5.02%) to 116 5/16 and Novellus Systems (Nasdaq:NVLS) jumped 28 25/26 (+33.33%) to 113 9/16 after announcing a 3-for-1 stock split. Bear Stearns raised its ratings on several aluminum companies, including Alcan Aluminum (NYSE:AL), which was upgraded to attractive from neutral, and Century Aluminum (Nasdaq:CENX), which was upgraded to buy from neutral. Shares of Alcan fell 3/4 (-1.95%) to 37 11/16, while shares of Century fell 1/4 (-1.96%) to 12 1/2. Paine Webber upped its ratings on several department stores on speculation that the department store sector could see a wave of mergers. Saks, Inc. (NYSE:SKS) was upgraded to attractive from neutral and May (NYSE:MAY) was upgraded to buy from neutral. Shares of Saks jumped 1/4 (+1.61%) to 15 13/16 and shares of May slipped 1/2 (-1.63%) to 30 1/4. -- Downgrades - http://www.smartportfolio.com/downgrades.asp <A HREF=3D"http://www.smartportfolio.com/downgrades.asp"<AOL users click here</A< Aetna (NYSE:AET) was downgraded by Merrill Lynch to near-term neutral from near-term accumulate. Shares of the insurer slipped 1 3/4 (- 3.40%) to 49 3/4. Monsanto (NYSE:MTC) was downgraded by Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette to market perform from buy on news of the planned merger of the chemicals and pharmaceuticals firm with the American-Swedish drug group Pharmacia & Upjohn Inc. (NYSE:PNU) -=0F- see related story above. Merrill Lynch cut its near-term rating on Lason (Nasdaq:LSON) to neutral from buy. Shares of the provider of information management services took a beating in today's trading after the company warned analysts that its fourth quarter results will be weaker than expected. Shares closed down 11 7/8 (-50.94%) to 11 7/16. -- Coverage Initiation http://www.smartportfolio.com/initiated.asp <A HREF=3D"http://www.smartportfolio.com/initiated.asp"<AOL users click here</A< Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette initiated coverage of Digital Impact (Nasdaq:DIGI) with a buy rating. Shares of the Internet direct marketer closed up 7 (+15.64%) at 51 3/4. ABN AMRO initiated coverage on United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) with a hold rating saying that the current stock price for the world's largest package delivery company offers modest upside potential in the next six to nine months. Shares of UPS jumped 1 5/16 (+1.97%) to 67 15/16. Coverage of GetThere.com (Nasdaq:GTHR) was initiated by Bear Stearns (with an attractive rating) and DLJ (with a buy rating). Shares of the leading provider of Internet-based solutions for business-to-business travel procurement and travel suppliers closed down 4 (-11.35%) to 31 1/4 on its report of strong financial results for the third fiscal quarter. 5. Stock Splits To obtain the latest information on stock splits, please visit: http://www.smartportfolio.com/splits <A HREF=3D"http://www.smartportfolio.com/splits"<AOL users click here</A< This chart shows the companies that will split their shares during the next 5 business days. The "Pay" column shows the payable date. The "Ex" column refers to the ex-date, the date on which the stock begins to trade at its split-adjusted price. The ratio refers to the number of split shares stockholders will receive (a 2:1 ratio means that stockholders will receive one additional share for each share they already hold). Company Pay Ex Ratio Burr-Brown (Nasdaq:BBRC) 12/20 12/21 3:2 First Midwest Banc (Nasdaq:FMBI) 12/20 12/21 3:2 IDEC Pharm (Nasdaq:IDPH) 12/20 12/21 2:1 Mercury Computer (Nasdaq:MRCY) 12/20 12/21 2:1 Network Appliance (Nasdaq:NTAP) 12/20 12/21 2:1 viaLink (Nasdaq:IQIQ) 12/20 12/21 2:1 Celestica (NYSE:CLS) 12/21 12/22 2:1 Maxim Integrated (Nasdaq:MXIM) 12/21 12/22 2:1 Unify Corp. (Nasdaq:UNFY) 12/21 12/22 2:1 Commerce One (Nasdaq:CMRC) 12/23 12/27 3:1 6. IPO Commentary The IPO market will take a break until the end of the year as only a handful of IPOs are expected to come to market. Once the New Year begins, expect to see the IPO market light up again, likely in the second and third weeks of January. For further information on IPOs expected to outperform in the next millenium, please go to http://www.smartportfolio.com/freetrial <A HREF=3D"http://www.smartportfolio.com/freetrial"<AOL users click here.</A< 8. IPO Calendar For a calendar of upcoming IPOs and extensive information concerning the IPO market, please visit: http://www.smartportfolio.com/ipo <A HREF=3D"http://www.smartportfolio.com/ipo"<AOL users click here.</A< ************************Advertisement**************************** CMGI, Oracle, and GE Higher Monday After Split Announcements! Did you miss out on the recent CMGI, GE, or Oracle split=20 announcements? Subscribers to the Smart!Splits Report were informed of the likelihood of the splits well before these shares moved higher. So for important information that you can trade on today, subscribe to the Smart!Reports by visiting: http://www.smartportfolio.com/freetrials <A HREF=3D"http://www.smartportfolio.com/freetrials"<AOL users click here</A< ***************************************************************** *********************************************************** PLEASE GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK If you have any additional information that you would like us to include in our newsletter, any additional functionality added to our website, or any other comments in general, please let us know by clicking on the following link: http://www.smartportfolio.com/feedback *********************************************************** *********************************************************** ADVERTISE IN OUR NEWSLETTER Want to target an attractive demographic representing wealthy, astute, Internet-inclined investors? 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