Who needs to pick stocks anymore when you can just buy QQQ ? <GGG>
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Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking Stock to Debut on Amex
Tomorrow
Unique Investment Offers Participation in the Nasdaq-100 Index
Through a Single Share
Options on Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking Stock Also to be Offered
NEW YORK, March 9 /PRNewswire/ -- The Nasdaq-Amex Market Group(SM) today announced it expects to begin
trading Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking Stock on March 10, 1999. Listed under the ticker symbol ''QQQ,'' Nasdaq-100 Index
Tracking Stock will trade on the American Stock Exchange® as part of its Index Share(TM) Marketplace.
Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking Stock represents ownership in the Nasdaq-100 Trust(SM), a unit investment trust designed to
closely track the price and yield performance of the Nasdaq-100 Index. For the first time, investors will be able to buy and sell
shares of a portfolio containing the stocks of the Nasdaq-100 Index®, which includes the largest non-financial companies on
the National Market tier of The Nasdaq Stock Market®.
Frank G. Zarb, chairman and chief executive officer of The Nasdaq-Amex Market Group and the National Association of
Securities Dealers, Inc., commented: ''The companies of Nasdaq are an engine of growth, creativity and job creation. They
represent some of the most dynamic and exciting businesses in the world. Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking Stock will give
investors easy access to the collective performance of some of the largest of these firms.''
The Amex® also plans to trade options on Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking Stock beginning March 10th, combining the ease of
trading equity options with the diversity of an index.
Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking Stock is unique because it enables investors to buy or sell shares in the collective performance of
the stocks comprising the Nasdaq-100 Index in a single transaction. Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking Stock differs from index
funds, however, in that it is priced and traded continuously throughout the trading day on the Amex like shares of common
stock. Most traditional index mutual funds can be purchased or redeemed only at the end of the trading day.
Launched in January 1985, The Nasdaq-100 Index tracks the collective performance of the largest non-financial companies
listed on the National Market tier of The Nasdaq Stock Market, including Microsoft, Intel, Dell Computer, Amgen, Bed Bath
& Beyond, Northwest Airlines, MCI WorldCom, Starbucks, Yahoo! and Amazon.com.
Year % Change in Nasdaq-100 Index*
1996 42.54%
1997 20.63%
1998 85.31%
1999
(through 3/5/99) 7.29%
*Past performance is not indicative of future results
Richard F. Syron, chairman and chief executive officer of the American Stock Exchange, commented: ''The introduction of the
Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking Stock is emblematic of what prompted Nasdaq and Amex to join forces in the first place. By
combining the performance of these Nasdaq companies and Amex's expertise and experience in developing the Index Share
Marketplace into a $15 billion product family, we have delivered on the promise of offering superior innovation at a low cost
to investors.''
Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking Stock is designed to be cost-efficient. It will be initially priced to approximate 1/20th the value of
the Nasdaq-100 Index. Costs associated with the product should be relatively low --.18%-- because the Nasdaq-100 Trust
portfolio will not be actively managed to try to outperform the Nasdaq-100 Index, only track it closely. Nasdaq-100 Index
Tracking Stock redemptions are done ''in kind,'' thus reducing the potential for high capital gains distributions. Shares of the
Trust will trade in minimum increments of 1/64th, or 1.56 cents. In contrast, most single stocks in the U.S. trade in increments
no smaller than 1/16th, or 6.25 cents.
The Amex pioneered Index Shares in 1993 with the introduction of SPDRs® based on the Standard & Poor's 500® Index.
The Index Share Marketplace presently includes 30 products representing ownership in various domestic and international
indexes. With $15.8 billion in assets and volume averaging 9.3 million shares per day at the end of 1998, Index Shares
redefined the way baskets of securities are traded.
The sponsor of the Nasdaq-100 Trust is Nasdaq-Amex Investment Product Services, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of The
Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc. The Trustee for the Nasdaq-100 Trust is The Bank of New York and the distributor is ALPS
Mutual Funds Services, Inc., a registered broker-dealer, member NASD. The Amex specialist unit for Nasdaq-100 Shares
will be Susquehanna Investment Group.
Options on Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking Stock will allow investors to fine- tune the performance of investments in
Nasdaq-100 Shares, using numerous strategies ranging from highly conservative to highly aggressive. Options can be used to
protect holdings, or to seek profits in an expected stock market move. The specialist book for options on Nasdaq-100 Index
Tracking Stock will be Bear Hunter, LLC and Kalb Voorhis & Co., LLC.
The Nasdaq-Amex Market Group(SM), which operates The Nasdaq Stock Market® and the American Stock Exchange®,
is a subsidiary of the National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. (NASD®), the largest securities-industry, self-regulatory
organization in the United States. The union of Nasdaq® and Amex® creates the world's first financial market that brings
together central auction specialist and multiple Market Maker systems. For more information about The Nasdaq-Amex
Market Group, visit the Nasdaq-Amex Web site at nasdaq-amex.com or the Nasdaq-Amex Newsroom(SM) at
nasdaq-amexnews.com.
While there is no assurance that the performance of the Nasdaq-100 Index® can be fully matched, Nasdaq-100 Shares(SM)
are designed to provide investment results that generally correspond to the performance of the Nasdaq-100 Index.
For more complete information about Nasdaq-100 Shares, including charges, expenses and potential risks, obtain a
prospectus from your broker, by calling 800-843-2639 or by visiting our Web site at www.nasdaq-100.com. Read it carefully
before your invest.
The sponsor of the Nasdaq-100 Trust(SM) , a unit investment trust, is Nasdaq-Amex Investment Product Services, Inc.
(''NAIPS''), a wholly owned subsidiary of The Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc. (''Nasdaq,'' and collectively with its affiliates
except NAIPS, the ''Corporations''). ALPS Mutual Funds Services, Inc., a registered broker-dealer, is distributor for the
Trust. Investment returns and principal value will fluctuate so that an investor's shares, when redeemed or sold, may be worth
more or less than the original cost.
''Nasdaq'' and related marks are trademarks or service marks of Nasdaq and have been licensed for use for certain purposes
by NAIPS. The Nasdaq-100 Index is composed and calculated by Nasdaq without regard to Nasdaq-100 Shares. The
Corporations make no warranty, express or implied, and bear no liability with respect to Nasdaq-100 Shares. The
Corporations make no warranty, express or implied, and bear no liability with respect to the Nasdaq-100 Index, its use or any
data included therein.
''Standard & Poor's®,'' ''S&P®,'' ''S&P 500®,'' ''Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts®,'' and ''SPDRs® are
trademarks of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. and have been licensed for use in connection with the listing and trading of
SPDRs on the Amex. SPDRs are not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by S&P, a division of The McGraw-Hill
Companies, Inc., and S&P makes no representation regarding the advisability of investing in these products.
SOURCE: The Nasdaq-Amex Market Group
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