Internet Leaders March Higher As Nasdaq Continues Record Pace

A wealth of positive news from Internet leaders translated into more good news for the Nasdaq Composite as the tech-heavy index set another record. Blue chips didn’t have as good a day, as they lost half their gains in afternoon trading.

internet.com’s Internet Stock Index gained 7.16, or 1.25 percent, to 579.32, the Nasdaq Composite closed up 27.59 to 3,056.16 and the Dow Jones industrial average climbed 30.51 to 10,639.57.

Sector leaders dominated the news, with America Online Inc. (AOL) up 4-7/8 to 143-7/8. Jamie Kiggen of Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette reiterated AOL as his top pick.

eBay Inc. (EBAY) gained 2-15/16 to 130 after Friedman Billings Ramsey & Co. initiated coverage with a “buy” and set a $180 price target. Also, eBay executives recently filed to sell $243 million in stock.

eBay Thursday also started refusing access to servers from AuctionWatch.com. The company’s universal search scans a number of auction sites to enable users to find the lowest possible prices.

Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) lost 2-3/4 to 63-1/16. The company Thursday settled a legal dispute with woman-oriented bookstore Amazon Bookstore Cooperative. The two will work together to ensure customers don’t confuse their two sites.

Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) added 1-1/2 to 182-1/8. The company said Thursday it is looking to make more acquisitions in Asia.

Among other leaders, the screamer was Network Solutions Inc. (NSOL) which jumped 13-5/8 to 138-3/8. The rise comes as its domain registration competitors are trying to persuade the Internet Corp. for Assigned Names and Numbers to modify the agreement laying out competition principles.

Also, James Pettit of Hambrecht & Quist reiterated his “buy” on the stock and said he was placing it on his focus list.

TMP Worldwide Inc. (TMPW) jumped 11-9/16 to 81-7/16. Nancy Moyer of CE Unterberg Towbin reiterated her “strong buy.”

Other gainers included E*Trade Group Inc. (EGRP), which jumped 5-3/16 to 31-3/8, iVillage (IVIL) added 3-1/16 to 26-1/2 and Exodus Communications (EXDS) added 3-1/8 to 83-3/4.

Critical Path (CPTH) jumped 13-1/2 to 65. In its second acquisition this week, the Internet messaging company bought The DocSpace Co. The DocSpace provides Web-based file storage and collaboration.

The big negative turnaround story was Vignette Corp. (VIGN). After hitting 196-3/4 earlier in the session, shares ended off 1-3/4 to 171-1/4. The company announced a 2-for-1 stock split effective Nov. 15.

Scient Corp. (SCNT) also fell off significantly, lost 1-3/16 to 125-1/4 after hitting 142. The Web consulting firm also announced a 2-for-1 stock split effective Dec. 3.

Covad (COVD) gained 5/8 to 44-13/16 and Northpoint Communications (NPNT) gained 2-9/16 to 28-5/8. The Digital Subscriber Line providers Thursday reached deals with Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) that will make Yahoo! the portal for their broadband services.

Covad also announced plans to sell 13 million shares at $43 in a secondary offering. Of the total, about 11.7 million will be offered by the company and 1.3 million by company insiders.

Finally, in IPO news, Tickets.com Inc. (TIXX) jumped 6-3/4 to 19-1/4 on its first day of trading. The company, which sells tickets to sporting events and concerts online, sold 6.7 million shares at $12.50 each on Wednesday.


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