Thursday February 3, 10:25 pm Eastern Time
High-flying Canadian technology sector soars
By Susan Taylor
OTTAWA, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Investors added more air to the high-flying technology balloon on Thursday, sending the software sector soaring with gains of 4.26 percent accompanied by lifts in hardware and biotechnology on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE).
A far-flung group of technology firms led the market show, representing the top dozen net gain leaders on the Toronto bourse. Hardware firms added 2.38 percent on the exchange and biotechnology and pharmaceutical stocks gained 2.35 percent on Thursday.
Investors are reviving their red-hot love affair with technology stocks, a relationship switched to simmer in advance of the U.S. interest rate hike announcement on Wednesday by Federal Reserve Board chairman Alan Greenspan.
''The Greenspan dirge has been an overhang on the market through January,'' said Gerald Vincent, vice-president at Davis-Rea Investment Counsel in Toronto.
''The lifting of that...just may have put some buyers back in the fray and they're going to the leading sector.''
Market darling 724 Solutions Inc. (Toronto:SVN.TO - news)(NasdaqNM:SVNX - news), which debuted at C$26 a share last week, continued its lift-off and was the top net gain leader on the TSE on Thursday.
Shares in 724 Solutions added C$22.00 to close at C$130.00, a gain of 20 percent. 724 Solutions supplies software that allows financial institutions to provide online banking over digital mobile phones and computers.
''The majority of people seem to be continuing to chase future promise and future hopes in the high-tech sector -- and that's where you've got 724,'' said Fred Ketchen, director of equity trading at ScotiaMcLeod.
Certicom Corp. (Toronto:CIC.TO - news) came a close second to 724 Solutions, adding 19 percent to close at C$120.00, a gain of C$19.05. The security software and services firm was featured in a National Post newspaper column on Wednesday that suggested good buys in the tech sector.
''There's an ongoing balance between the forces of good and evil,'' said Duncan Stewart, fund manager at Tera Capital Corp. of the technology rally.
''The forces of evil keep saying 'technology is too expensive, it's an all-time high, quick -- rush out and buy resource stocks.' And the forces of good are saying...'the long-term growth in this economy is all coming from technology'.''
Biotechnology concerns also fared well on Thursday. Angiotech Pharmaceutical Inc. (Toronto:ANP.TO - news) staged a second day of gains, adding C$11.50 to end trade at C$57.00, a gain of 25.3 percent.
On Wednesday, shares in the company added more than 18 percent after encouraging results from a study on the firm's cardiac device.
MDSI Mobile Data Solutions Inc. (Toronto:MMD.TO - news) was one of the few firms that made gains on Thursday tied to fresh news. The Richmond, B.C.-based firm announced at $2.9 million US contract for its wireless software for workforce management.
MDSI added C$11.35, a 23.5 percent gain, to end trade at C$59.50, beating its previous 52-week high of C$49.00.
A string of other firms posted strong gains including blue chip JDS Uniphase Corp. JDSU.O>(Toronto:JDU.TO - news), an optical network gear supplier, which added C$10.05 to finish at C$310.05.
''It is a sector-wide rise,'' said Stewart. ''Some days people hate technology, other days they like it -- this is a liking-it day.''
Research In Motion Ltd. (NasdaqNM:RIMM - news)(Toronto:RIM.TO - news), which develops tiny e-mail pagers, picked up C$9.40 to end trade at C$131.30 and analysis software developer Cognos Inc. (Toronto:CSN.TO - news) gained C$9.00 to close at C$90.00.
''You're really just seeing a continuation of the enthusiasm that we've seen on so many trading days over the past months,'' said Vincent. ''It just reaffirms that technology is the leading sector in any market.''
($1=$1.44 Canadian) |
