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Politics : Idea Of The Day -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: IQBAL LATIF who wrote (27426)	7/8/1999 4:29:00 AM
From: IQBAL LATIF	Respond to of 50167

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) -- Yahoo shares jumped more than 3 percent in after-hours trading after the Santa Clara, Calif.-based search engine posted a second-quarter per-share operating profit of 11 cents. That was 3 cents above the consensus estimate compiled by earnings research firm First Call and matched the so-called "whisper number" that represents Wall Street's most optimistic guess for profit. Yahoo stayed true to form, topping Wall Street's profit expectations for a ninth straight quarter as sales at the Net giant rocketed 156 percent and operating earnings matched analysts' best estimate. "This would qualify as a blowout quarter," said Shelton Swei of Sapphire, a Manhattan-based hedge fund. "We continue to build Yahoo into the place for anyone to get connected worldwide," said Yahoo Chief Executive Tim Koogle, who addressed analysts on a conference call after the earnings release. "As always, you can expect us to continue to manage our business and aggressively grow it," said Koogle. Yahoo tops estimate Yahoo reported a second-quarter loss of $15 million, including merger-related costs. Excluding merger-related charges from three acquisitions, operating income was $28.2 million, or 11 cents a share, compared with a penny a year ago and 7 cents in the first quarter of this year. The number also topped consensus estimates of 8 cents and matched the more bullish "whisper number" of 10 to 11 cents a share. Analysts' speculation gives rise to so-called whisper numbers, but the analysts generally don't wish to be held to these unofficial estimates. Yahoo's quarterly sales rocketed to $115.2 million from $45 million in the same period a year ago. Just under 10 percent of sales came from abroad. Revenue grew by 24 percent from the previous quarter. Yahoo shares react Yahoo also topped the whisper number in the previous quarter and has beaten earnings expectations in the past eight quarters by as little as a penny and as much as 3 cents a share. Shares of Yahoo jumped in after-hours trading Wednesday to 172. In the regular trading session, Yahoo lost 8 1/6, or 4.6 percent, to 167 1/16 as investors predicted Yahoo's stock would come under pressure following the report. Yahoo's stock tends to hit a top right before its earnings announcements and give back some gains in the following two weeks. James Preissler, an Internet analyst at PaineWebber, pointed out in a note to clients that Yahoo's stock lost 36 percent following its fourth-quarter report last year and 22 percent after the first-quarter earnings release this year. But a pullback even of that magnitude would be minimal for investors who rode the stock from a low of 117 in mid-June to Tuesday's highs of 189 1/2.

To: IQBAL LATIF who wrote (27426)	7/8/1999 5:41:00 AM
From: IQBAL LATIF	Respond to of 50167

Strategic Alliances Pump Up Valuations By Dean Tomasula Looking for a play in Internet stocks? Analysts and investment banks contributing research to Multex.com have identified the most followed companies this week in The Internet Analyst's universe of 150 stocks: AMERICA ONLINE (AOL): Dain Rauscher Wessels said AMERICA ONLINE's recent announcement that it would form a strategic alliance with low-cost PC manufacturer eMachines and offer a $400 rebate toward a PC purchase, in exchange for a three-year CompuServe subscription, signal's the firm's move toward a cellular subscription model that offers free hardware for service. The brokerage rated the company's shares a STRONG BUY-AGGRESSIVE and has a price target of $165 on the stock. The brokerage also said the alliance between the two companies will help AMERICA ONLINE fend off competition from companies such as DELL COMPUTER (DELL) and GATEWAY 2000 (GTW), which are entering the market through mergers with Internet Service Providers. The deal also is expected to be the first of many similar ones for AMERICA ONLINE, Dain Rauscher Wessels said. Shares of AMERICA ONLINE were trading at $123.31 at mid-day July 6. The brokerage forecasts EPS of $0.33 for FY99 and EPS of $0,56 for FY00. There were 85 new reports added to the Multex.com database last week about AMERICA ONLINE. In June, reports about the company were accessed 800 times. PHONE.COM (PHCM): USbancorp Piper Jaffray on July 6 initiated coverage of PHONE.COM with a STRONG BUY-AGGRESSIVE rating and an 18-month price target of $84. The company, which provides software that enables users to access the Internet on wireless phones, has solid business relationships with more than 23 leading wireless telecommunications providers, the brokerage said. These relationships cover more than one-third of the world's wireless subscriber base. USbancorp Piper Jaffray forecasts a loss of $3.35 per share for FY99, and a loss of $1.10 for FY00. Shares of PHONE.COM were trading at $74.87 at mid-day July 6. LYCOS (LCOS): Dain Rauscher Wessels said the recent announcement by LYCOS that it would enter into a five-year e-commerce agreement with BANK ONE (ONE) subsidiary WingspanBank.com reflects the largest deal to date for the newly formed Internet bank. The agreement, which could potentially generate up to $135 million for LYCOS, convinced the brokerage to rate the company's shares a STRONG BUY-AGGRESSIVE, with a price target of $155. The brokerage forecasts a loss of $0.11 per share for FY99 and EPS of $0.35 for FY00. The company's shares were trading at $105.87 at mid-day July 6. There were 23 new reports about LYCOS added to our database last week. In June, reports about the company were accessed 355 times. I2 TECHNOLOGIES (ITWO): Dain Rauscher rates the shares of I2 TECHNOLOGIES a STRONG BUY-AGGRESSIVE, and recently raised its price target on the company's stock to $67

To: IQBAL LATIF who wrote (27426)	7/8/1999 5:52:00 AM
From: IQBAL LATIF	Respond to of 50167

Nice prospects to go long on DOT beyond 682.. prospects include ELNK BRCM PHCM LCOS..fwiw

To: IQBAL LATIF who wrote (27426)	7/13/1999 9:28:00 AM
From: IQBAL LATIF	Respond to of 50167

Merrill Lynch Rocked --MER dip is a chance to establish positions if BKX maintain 792 only... 7.30 a.m. ET (1130 GMT) July 13, 1999 By Beth Piskora NEW YORK — Merrill Lynch President and Chief Operating Officer Herb Allison unexpectedly resigned Monday, raising questions about the firm's long-term strategy and management succession. Allison, 55, was named president and chief operating officer 2 years ago, and was widely believed to be the heir apparent to Merrill Chairman David Komansky. Indeed, when Allison was elevated to the president's post, Komansky said the appointment should put to rest questions about succession. Allison didn't elaborate on any plans, saying in a statement that "the time is right" for retirement, although Wall Street wags began speculating that Allison may not agree with Merrill Lynch's business strategy. The nation's biggest brokerage recently admitted that its anti-online trading stance was wrong and said that it would allow customers to trade stocks for as little as $29.95 on the Internet. "Once we made the decision to move ahead with Internet trading, we were of one mind and moving in lock step with our plans," said Merrill Lynch spokesman, dismissing speculation that Allison resigned because of disagreement with the strategy. Indeed, Allison was not a vocal opponent of the switch, as was another Merrill executive, Lanny Steffans, who is slated to inherit some of Allison's duties, though not his title, remaining vice chairman. Another vice chairman, Stephen Hammerman, will also take on some of Allison's responsibilities. Komansky, 60, said Monday that the firm had no immediate plans to name a new president and successor to himself. He has long maintained that he would work until he turned 65. Because Merrill did not promote from within its own ranks to the post of president, some investors began speculating that it is preparing to merge with another large financial services firm — perhaps Chase Manhattan Corp. — and to find its next leader from within the merged company's executive ranks. "Merrill is going through some big changes, and there's going to be some bloodshed," said Peter Cohan, president of Peter S. Cohan & Associates, an investment consulting firm. Cohan added that speculation about a merger between Merrill and Chase keeps resurfacing, and that such a deal makes sense, especially after last year's megamerger between Citicorp and Travelers Group. "David Komansky has very consistently stated our position, which is that Merrill will remain independent until such time that a combination would add more value to our shareholders than we can provide on our own," said a Merrill spokesman. A Chase spokesman had no comment. If the speculation proves true, Chase Chairman and CEO Walter Shipley or one of his top deputies could be the next Merrill chairman. Within Merrill itself, one top candidate for the president's slot is Steffans, who was considered for the chairmanship itself but passed over in favor of Komansky three years ago. Still, the lack of a clear executive succession plan could unnerve shareholders Tuesday, even as Merrill plans to report strong earnings, expected to be 11 percent higher than in the second quarter last year.