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Technology Stocks : eBay - Superb Internet Business Model -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Robert Rose who wrote (1145)	12/19/1998 11:25:00 AM
From: Robert Rose	Respond to of 7772

December 19, 1998, published in the Online New York Times EBay Stock Moves Higher By REUTERS ALO ALTO, Calif. -- The Internet auction site Ebay Inc. was the biggest gainer on the Nasdaq on Friday, bringing its gains to more than $66 a share in the past week alone, and the relentless surge even has the experts confounded. Although many have a bullish outlook for EBay, which is one of the few Internet businesses turning a profit, they said they still saw some risk in the company's business model, and could not identify any fresh developments that might trigger the stock's recent ascent. EBay shares, which were up more than $21 a share at one point Friday, finished $13.94 higher at $252.25. EBay made its initial public offering in September at $18 a share. "The model gets stronger as the company grows," said Derek Brown, and analyst with Volpe Brown Whelan. "The more buyers who come to the site, the more sellers come, and the company gets a fee from all the sellers. "But I do think there is still a risk," added Brown, who said he was unsure why investors did not seem to be factoring in the potential downside. Even within the select group of e-commerce stocks, which have generally had a strong run this holiday shopping season, EBay has had particularly strong momentum. And there has been no slowdown despite recent problems with its service. The company's online auction service crashed a few times over the past month, which some sellers say caused them to lose money. And Newsweek magazine reported EBay has declined to reimburse buyers who were duped by one seller out of as much as $100,000 in a transaction carried out throught the site. EBay declined to comment on its stock price and the Newsweek report.