VeriSign shares rise; Net sector strong
Stock to replace Reebok in S&P 500 Index in February
By Scott Banerjee, MarketWatch
Last Update: 10:12 AM ET Jan 26, 2006
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- VeriSign Inc. shares jumped more than 5% Thursday morning as the company, which reports earnings after the market close, will join the S&P 500 Index beginning in February.
Meanwhile, Internet issues showed broad-based strength as The Dow Jones Internet Index (DJI_DJINET) was up 1.1% to 96.18 to 96.16, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index ($COMPQ) gained 15.66 points to 2,276.23.
VeriSign (VRSN) shares last traded up 6% to $22.40. The company will replace Reebok International Ltd. (RBK) in the S&P 500 after the close of trading on Jan. 31. VeriSign also reports its fourth-quarter results after the market close, and is expected to earn 26 cents a share on sales of $391 million, according to consensus estimates from Thomson First Call.
Among the sector's bellwethers, shares of eBay Inc. (EBAY) shares rose 1.6%, while Yahoo Inc. (YHOO) shares rose 1.5%.
InfoSpace Inc. (INSP) saw its shares fall 1.4% after reporting earnings late Wednesday. The company reported fourth-quarter sales that rose 9% from the same period last year, and booked a tax benefit that helped the company's profits more than double. See full story. |
