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Non-Tech : E*Trade (NYSE:ET) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Robert Giambrone who wrote (3308)	7/19/1998 4:50:00 PM
From: Spytrdr	Respond to of 13953

E*Trade now is rated # 2 among online brokers gomez.com

To: Robert Giambrone who wrote (3308)	7/19/1998 5:38:00 PM
From: Spytrdr	Respond to of 13953

July 16, 1998 9:22 AM DOW JONES NEWS SERVICE MECKLERMEDIA INTERNET ANALYST: NET STOCKS NEED NEW CRITERIA ÿ NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Internet stocks shouldn't be valued using outdated criteria, according to Steve Harmon, Internet specialist with Mecklermedia Corp. (MECK). "People are valuing (Internet) companies on a past-looking basis, looking in the rear-view mirror at the horse-and-carriage era, and trying to apply those tools to a whole new information age," Harmon said in an interview on CNBC Thursday morning. "Valuing a digital asset is different than valuing an analog asset," Harmon said. "I think that would support some of the valuations out there." He said that while Wall Street is focused on earnings, many of these Internet companies need to take short-term losses in order to make long-term profits. "Earnings count and you see a lot of losses today and a lot of companies are taking hits for posting losses, (but) one way to look at losses is as an investment in the future," Harmon said. "If you look at how they are deploying their capital, deploying their talent and their assets, that's more important today in many ways than trying to post earnings for the sake of making Wall Street happy," he said. Harmon said he likes E*Trade Group Inc. (EGRP). - By Victor Ozols; 201-938-5394

To: Robert Giambrone who wrote (3308)	7/19/1998 10:54:00 PM
From: Spytrdr	Respond to of 13953

July 14, 1998 Softbank Targets Internet Brokerage by:Julio Gomez I am writing this article from a beach in Nantucket -- my yearly pilgrimage to tan myself brown as a raisin. Here is a story I think you will appreciate. I get a lot of phone calls. Few of which, though, are as interesting and foretelling as the one I got last week from Mr. Masayoshi Son, the CEO of Softbank. Calling from his car phone in Japan, Mr. Son wanted to know the precise differences between the Scorecard's top rated brokers: DLJdirect and ETRADE. We discussed the industry at length. Soon after the call, Mr. Son acted by quickly purchasing $400 million of ETRADE (EGRP). He got a 27.2% ownership steal at an undervalued $25.56 per share. The Bottom Line: Here's what's driving Softbank: * The Japanese "Big Bang." The deregulation of Japanese financial markets has created a considerable opportunity for a strong online player to emerge. ETRADE already had plans to open up in Japan, Softbank's investment will greatly accelerate things. ETRADE is undervalued. ETRADE was a bargain at $25.56, especially in light of the bloated valuations of other e-commerce providers, such as Amazon (AMZN). Many of these companies have significantly less potential than ETRADE, one of the stronger Internet brokers. Softbank continues to shift its focus away from the slowing PC revolution. Softbank, always attune to emerging trends, made the astute decision to invest early in e-commerce and Internet navigation. It continued its run of smart investments by choosing to invest in another key infrastructure industry: Internet brokerage. Here is a message to all potential investors in Internet brokerage firms: You ain't seen nothing yet!

To: Robert Giambrone who wrote (3308)	7/19/1998 11:55:00 PM
From: Spytrdr	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13953

Wednesday, July 15, 1998 Selling information to the investor A new campaign from ETrade suggests that for online investors, it's not price alone that matters. Michael Brush moneydaily.com Remember that ubiquitous ad campaign from Ameritrade (NASDAQ: AMTD) a few months back? Well, brace yourself. Another campaign is on the way, this time trumpeting ETrade (NASDAQ: EGRP), an Ameritrade rival. And at stake this time may be more than the growth of ETrade accounts. Analysts say the campaign for the new "Destination ETrade" service will also provide a chance to see whether online investors care more about cheap trades or the content to help them make decisions. "ETrade's marketing was dormant while Ameritrade spent a lot of money asking people if price mattered," says Keith Benjamin, an analyst with BancAmerica Robertson Stephens, which will provide equity research for the site. "The conclusion was that price did not matter, because they did not generate a lot of accounts." Although Ameritrade spent more than twice as much on advertising, Benjamin says, it did not bring in that many more accounts than ETrade. Flush with cash because of a recent deal with Softbank, the largest software distributor in Japan, ETrade will pick up its own efforts to tout its proprietary content. "We think that will be more compelling than just price," Benjamin says. ETrade will spend about $9.8 million and $11.5 million on marketing in the third and fourth quarters, he says. The campaign will be part of ETrade's stab at making itself the financial portal of choice for online investors. "It is trying to be your financial dashboard," says Benjamin. "There really is no definitive brand yet in this arena for the average investor who wants to go online and find out everything they want to know about stocks and mutual funds. The closest thing might be My Yahoo! or America Online (NYSE: AOL)." One of the products that may set Destination ETrade apart is equity research from Robertson Stephens, which specializes in growth oriented stocks in fields like retail and technology. This joint venture stands out because many brokerages have been reluctant to offer their research online, for fear it would cannibalize the rest of their retail brokerage business. There will also be chat rooms with analysts from Robertson Stephens, says Phil Leigh, an analyst with Raymond James & Associates. Some investors will get access to shares in initial public offerings. Destination ETrade will also offer upgraded technology, a change many ETrade users say has been sorely needed, even though ETrade has denied there are any problems with its system. What does all this mean for ETrade's stock price? First, don't be put off by the fact that analysts have been cutting estimates recently. They say they are doing so to account for the fact that ETrade will be focusing more on brand marketing in the near term than on earnings. Aside from Destination ETrade, analysts cite the following positive factors. * ETrade has a war chest. The $400 million injection from Softbank -- in exchange for a 27% stake -- helps set ETrade off from most of its competitors, when it comes to rescues, says Leigh. The deal brings ETrade's cash position up to about $600 million. Softbank knows how to pick Internet winners. Leigh points out that Softbank has already teamed up with companies Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO), Geocities, and Ziff Davis (NYSE: ZD), which have been successful in staking out territory on the Net. Softbank also runs the Comdex computer show, known as "Woodstock for geeks." * ETrade seems undervalued. Leigh notes that ETrade has a price to book value ratio of about 3, whereas the average for the group is around 3.8. * Other revenue sources may develop. Benjamin expects additional upside revenue from international licensing fees, joint ventures and subscriber fees for some products being offered by ETrade. The key factor, of course, will be the response to the ad campaign. Benjamin expects to see some account growth by September or October. At that point, he says, the stock will start moving up, as investors conclude there will be follow through. If he is right, that would make the pullback in ETrade shares this week a good buying opportunity. The next step will be to wait until the end of the year and see whether the campaign actually builds brand momentum and makes E*Trade a financial portal -- not exactly an easy task in the competitive world of on-line trading. Send your comments to Michael Brush