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Technology Stocks : COMS & the Ghost of USRX w/ other STUFF -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Jeffery E. Forrest who wrote (13124)	2/26/1998 2:46:00 PM
From: Moonray	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 22053

Online Stock Trades Account for 17% of Retail Business in 1997 New York, Feb. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Trades made by individuals over personal computers accounted for 17 percent of all buy and sell orders in the U.S. last year, according to a study by Minneapolis-based brokerage firm Piper Jaffray Inc. So-called online brokerage accounts more than doubled their share of total retail transactions last year, analyst Bill Burnham wrote in a report to clients. In the fourth quarter, online trading generated an average 153,000 trades per day, up 60 percent from a year earlier. Online investing, which requires a personal computer and a modem, lets investors place their bets electronically with a broker at any time of day and at lower commission costs than over the phone. ''Discount brokerages' best customers are demanding online trading,'' said Julio Gomez, president of Gomez Advisors, a Boston-based consulting firm to online brokerages. Gomez said there are currently 3 million online accounts, up from about 2.5 million at the end of 1997. He said new accounts are growing at a rate of 50 percent to 75 percent annually and online traders typically double their business when they switch from telephone to computer. Part of the reason for the increased activity is the low cost of trading online, analysts said. An investor who sells 100 shares of a $20 stock at the market price through Merrill Lynch & Co. would pay between $50 and $70, depending on the size of the account and the length of the client's relationship with the broker. The same trade through AmeriTrade Holdings Corp.'s online brokerage would cost $8. To be sure, computer trading doesn't mean faster execution than placing an order with a professional broker or sales representative by telephone. Still, that hasn't deterred investors from trading online. ''Online trading had a blow-out year in 1997,'' wrote Burnham, who was unavailable for comment. ''With all of the activity around banking services, international expansion and consolidation, it looks like 1998 is going to be another wild year.'' o~~~ O

To: Jeffery E. Forrest who wrote (13124)	2/26/1998 2:51:00 PM
From: David Lawrence	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 22053

Jeff, No crashes. I have other "bottom window" indicators too. I'm waiting to see if the LMA and SMA cross before shorting CPQ. Still sitting on a horrible loss in APM. :-( Those shorts will have to become buyers at some point. My JNJ "put it away and forget about it" stock has been doing really well. It's always good for the portfolio when your largest holding keeps making new highs. Oil service sectors are finally having a decent day, at least so far.

To: Jeffery E. Forrest who wrote (13124)	2/26/1998 2:53:00 PM
From: Moonray	Respond to of 22053

SEC Alleges Investors Lost $5 Mln in Internet Investment Scam Los Angeles, Feb. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Four California men allegedly defrauded hundreds of investors out of more than $5 million in a scam that used a bogus endorsement on an Internet site from former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, regulators said. The defendants sold securities in Medical Advantage Inc., a weight loss clinic operator, and Lamelli Inc., developer of a drug detoxification system, the Securities and Exchange Commission said in its civil fraud suit. Twenty salesmen allegedly lured investors by promising 12 percent interest and their investment back in 120 to 180 days. The securities were hawked from the defendants' high- pressure sales room, Intellinet Publishing Inc., in Canoga Park, California, officials said. The defendants allegedly falsely claimed endorsements by Koop and newscaster Tom Brokaw for Medical Advantage. David A. Colvin, 54, of Chatsworth, owns Intellinet and masterminded the fraud, the SEC said. He allegedly used most of the investors' money for expenses and other business ventures. Wall Street Research, a company owned by Colvin, distributed what appeared to be an independent ''buy'' recommendation for Medical Advantage. It didn't disclose his ownership, the SEC said. ''Wall Street Research had a New York telephone number that actually rang in Colvin's office in California,'' said SEC attorney Ron Wood. At the SEC's request, a federal court in Los Angeles froze the assets of Intellinet and the other defendants, and appointed a receiver to take control of their assets. The defendants, in addition to Colvin, include: Job Kjell Hovik, of Carlsbad, chairman of Medical Advantage, Lamar Ellis of Pomona who operated Lamelli and John Larson, also known as John St. John, of Los Angeles, Intellinet's sales manager. They weren't immediately available for comment. Among the alleged false claims: o Medical Advantage and Lamelli were going to become publicly traded companies in 120 to 180 days. In fact, they aren't publicly traded. o Lamelli claimed on its Internet site to have built and leased 250 detoxification units, and expected revenue of $37 million in the first quarter of 1998. In fact, the SEC alleged, Lamelli has neither built any detoxification units nor produced any revenue. Also named as defendants were Medical Advantage, Lamelli, and Wall Street Research Co. o~~~ O