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To: Jorge who wrote (14596)	10/10/1998 2:04:00 PM
From: Glenn D. Rudolph	Respond to of 27307

From Briefing.Com on Friday 10-9-98: **************************************** "...Support at 100 held, however, suggesting stock will rebound smartly as soon as market tone improves." **************************************** <<...will rebound smartly...>> (Yeah, baby, come to Papa)...Wouldn't want to be short when THIS happens. George, I would not want to be short on a rebound either. That goes without saying. It is just that Briefing.com does not do my thinking for me. I anticipate the stock to drop. It is not a big deal either way. My positions gives me a profit as long as YHOO is between 98 and 132 on close this Friday. I can lower the the bottom price by selling some long shares and leaving naked calls. The otpion premium is so high that is it close to impossible to not make money on YHOO no matter what it does. I am not out to make a killing, just a few thousand each month will work for one stock. Glenn

To: Jorge who wrote (14596)	10/11/1998 10:01:00 PM
From: Glenn D. Rudolph	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 27307

MonEmailbag: What It Means to Do Your Homework By Herb Greenberg Senior Columnist 10/10/98 12:18 AM ET First up this week are William and Heather Morel, who wonder what this column means when it admonishes investors to do their homework. "Do you mean look over the SEC filings and charts and info on, say, Microsoft Investor and ValueLine and S&P?" (Yes, absolutely.) "Look at the estimates? Are they useful?" (Not if you're a long-term investor. Instead, if you're in it for more than a month or quarter, pay attention to the direction of sales and earnings. And keep an eye on the balance sheet to make sure rising earnings aren't the result of overzealous numbers uncrunchers.) "Look at analyst reports? Can one trust them?" (Not for an unbiased opinion on whether you should buy a stock. But they can be a serious heads-up if they're urging caution. And they can be unmatched for details and background on the company and/or its industry.) "Or do you mean phone the company?" (A waste of time for the typical small investor for anything other than finding factual information.) "Or phone customers?" (By all means, if you can get them to open up.) "Or phone competitors?" (Again, great in practice but you're not likely to get far. That's why it's best to stick with companies and industries you know from personal experience.) Bottom line: Stock research can be time-consuming and tough. Just make sure you read any report that comes from the company and pay attention to the financials and management commentary in the quarterly SEC filings for any sign of trouble. Be especially leery of the world challenge. It's always a euphemism for trouble. Message Center Memo to Lee Huber and everyone else (and there are a lot of you) who want to know what trading curbs are, when they're triggered, etc.: Don't confuse curbs with trading halts, which cause trading of all stocks on the major exchanges and Nasdaq to stop after stocks fall by certain amounts. Curbs refer to index arbitrage, or program trading, on the stocks that make up the S&P 500. They're designed to reduce volatility. They go into effect when the Dow Jones Industrial Average moves 50 or more points from the previous day's close. At that point, buy and sell orders must meet what's known as an index arbitrage tick test (not the kind of tick that spreads Lyme Disease). In down markets, sell orders may be executed only on a plus or zero-plus tick; in up markets, buy orders may be executed only on a minus or zero-minus tick. The curbs stay in effect for the rest of the day, unless the Dow moves back with 25 points of the previous day's close. Memo to James Gilbert, who wants to know how long a stock can be shorted before it must be bought back: Forever, unless you happen to own a heavily shorted stock that gets caught up in one of those nasty squeezes created when the rightful owner of the shares you borrowed wants them back. Downright nasty when that happens. Memo to Mike Radigan, who wants to know whether a company is required to make any special filing with the SEC, like any other insider, when it does a buyback of its own stocks: Nope. The best you can hope for, according to David Fried of the Buyback Letter, is a special notation or mention in the CEO's quarterly letter to shareholders. You can also calculate it yourself by looking at the number of shares outstanding each quarter, and looking for shrinkage. The company may also spell it out in the category that explains how it used its capital. Memo to Inaki Aguirre, who wants to know what a clearing broker is: According to the well-written glossary at the International Finance & Commodities Institute Web site (risk.ifci.ch/glossary.htm), a clearing broker "is the member of a stock or commodities exchange authorized to deal directly with the clearing corporation when settling a trade executed on the exchange floor or through an electronic order matching system. Parties to every trade exchange names or other information identifying their clearing member. The clearing member is responsible for any collateral or cash exchanges with the clearing corporation, carries the position, and is responsible for its ultimate settlement or disposition. Most investors find it convenient to deal with a limited number of clearing brokers. If they want the services of a larger number of executing brokers, they will ask the executing brokers to 'give up' the trade to a clearing broker and the executing and clearing brokers will share the commission." Much better than the definition on the American Stock Exchange's Web site. Memo to Casey C., who wonders how an online day trader independently confirm the safety and Securities Investor Protection Corp., or SIPC, status of his online account: The same way any investor would -- by checking with the NASD's hotline (1-800-289-9999) or through its Web site (www.nasdr.com/2002.htm) for any disciplinary action and other background information. It's available at brokerage firms as well as brokers. Regarding SIPC: Call the organization at 202-371-8300. Memo to Eddie (no last name given), who wants to know the minimum requirements for a company's continued listing on the New York and American stock exchanges, as well as on Nasdaq: Best bet for full details is to check the Web sites for each: www.nasdaq.com, www.amex.com and www.NYSE.com. Have a question you think would work for the MonEmailbag? Shoot it my way at MonEmailbag@thestreet.com. Include your full name and, please, no questions about personal financial circumstances or brokerage disputes. And answers can't be guaranteed. Thanks to TSC's Kim Fraser, as usual, for the research.