Bullish comments from Morgan Stanley Dean Witter’s Mary Meeker and a number of deals were getting Internet stocks off to a solid start Monday.
At noon Eastern, internet.com’s Internet Stock Index had gained 9.66, or 1.18 percent, to 829.88, the Nasdaq Composite had jumped 33.75 to 3,786.81 after briefly crossing 3,800 earlier in the session, and the Dow Jones industrial average was off 48.40 to 11,209.03.
Gainers included Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) up 4 to 98-1/16. Meeker, in an interview with Barron’s, predicted stronger-than-expected holiday shopping would benefit the e-tail giant. She said the company’s sales could approach $1 billion.
CMGI Inc. (CMGI) had jumped 9-5/8 to 221-7/16. The Internet incubator’s AltaVista portal has filed to raise up to $300 million in an initial public offering. CMGI also filed with the SEC to sell up to $1 billion in securities.
Verisign Inc. (VRSN) rocketed 15-1/16 to 146. The Internet security company Monday purchased Signio Inc. and Thawte Consulting for $1.3 billion in stock. The company said the acquisitions will enhance its security and e-commerce offerings.
Juno Online Services Inc. (JWEB) had gained 4-3/4 to 21-1/8. The free e-mail pioneer Monday rolled out a free Internet access offering.
InterVU Inc. (ITVU) had zoomed up 30-1/2 to 118-1/2. Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) Monday invested $30 million in the company, which works with businesses to help them stream audio and video over the Internet.
Modem Media.Poppe Tyson Inc. (MMPT) was unchanged at 65-3/4. The company Monday bought privately-held vivid studios, an Internet consulting firm which works with start-ups, for $64 million in stock and cash.
On2.com Inc. (ONT) was up 5-5/8 to 34-5/8. The content aggregator teamed with Time Warner Inc.’s (TWX) Road Runner unit to provide entertainment content to cable modem subscribers.
This will be a holiday-shortened week for U.S. markets. All U.S. markets will be closed on Friday in observance of Christmas, with a full trading schedule resuming Dec. 27.
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