FORM:NASDAQ News - A rehash of the last few days
Wednesday January 5, 5:21 pm Eastern Time
New year brings new hope to Canada JetForm investors
By Susan Taylor
OTTAWA, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Optimistic investors hopeful that 2000 will ring in a sales boost to embattled JetForm Corp. (Toronto:JFM.TO - news) (NasdaqNM:FORM - news) helped lift the software developer to a 22-percent gain on Wednesday amid a loss-laden market.
JetForm peaked at C$11.50 (US$7.93) on Wednesday before slipping back to close at C$9.95 on the Toronto Stock Exchange, a gain of C$1.80. On Nasdaq, the issue hit 8-1/4 before retreating to end at 6-15/16, a gain of 1-3/16.
Although that's well off the 52-week high of C$21.35 in Toronto, it is a 53 percent gain from the December 29 close of C$6.70.
The gains on Wednesday come despite JetForm's December 1 caution that its third quarter, which closes at the end of January, will fall behind its second-quarter loss of 4 Canadian cents per share. The firm has been in a tailspin as key customers devoted their technology budgets to Y2K repairs.
``I'm not quite sure we see the end of the tunnel yet. It's not to say it won't happen, but it's still speculation at this point because the company isn't seeing it yet,' said Brandon Osten, analyst at Sprott Securities Inc. in Toronto.
``I think there's a lot of assumptions going on.'
Analysts, puzzled by the strong stock showing in the absence of any news from the company, said investors may assume that JetForm's Y2K woes are a thing of the past.
Ottawa-based JetForm, which sells software that automates business form processing, was slammed in 1999 by a spending slowdown from its key government and financial customers.
Investors may expect that those sectors, which were fuelingtheir technology budgets into Year 2000 computer repairs, can now re-open their purse strings to suppliers such as JetForm.
``Over the coming months, you will see a resumption of business and I think JetForm clearly will be a beneficiary of that,' said Paul Bradley, analyst at Canaccord Capital Corp. in Toronto.
The recent share push may stem from retail rather than institutional investors due to the small size of the trades, he added. Retail investors hold about 50 percent of JetForm shares, followed by institutional investors with 40 percent, and management with 10 percent. |
