When Security First Network Bank announced it would ditch the online
banking biz for the banking software biz, Wall Street scratched its head.
But in the past week investors kicked and scratched themselves to push up
SFNB shares more than 30%.
The simple math says there may be more opportunity in licensing its
financial software so banks can set up Web shops than collecting accounts.
Security First’s trials and tribulations in building that bank, however,
led it to create the software. Software First?
Excite’s (NASDAQ:XCIT) upside since January 27 came largely as
pundits look for an alternative to the high-flying Yahoo! (NASDAQ:YHOO).
Similarly, Mindspring (NASDAQ:MSPG), which provides dialup access, ran on
the belief that AOL is not made of Teflon forever.
Einstein’s theory of relativity has Versant (NASDAQ:VSNT) in the plus side,
up 26% to $8.13 per share. But VSNT traded double digits, upper $20s last
year, so it’s relative indeed. Will it return from whence it came or has
Oracle (NASDAQ:ORCL) convinced everyone it’s the wizard of ahs?
RealNetwork (NASDAQ:RNWK) may be in real trouble as an emerging battle with
Microsoft looms. Still, in our view there’s at least three businesses in
Real’s basket: videocast, audiocast, and software. The former two–if they
created networks–could be undiscovered value under RNWK’s hood. We’ll
see if Rob Glaser can hotwire those.
Have a look at our stat fest of movers, shakers, tremblers, and tumblers
for theweek of January 27-February 3:
The Internet Stock Index Ups & Downs
ISDEX ® | Ticker | 03-Feb-98 | % change | Point change | % change |
Internet Stock Index | symbol | close | from | from | from |
©1998 Mecklermedia | 27-Jan-98 | 27-Jan-98 | 31-Dec-97 | ||
ISDEX Geometric Average | 112.83 | 8.2% | 8.52 | 13.0% | |
ISDEX Price Wtd. Composite | 902.16 | 8.5% | 70.88 | 10.5% | |
NASDAQ | 1,666.34 | 5.5% | 87.44 | 6.1% | |
DJIA | 8,160.35 | 4.4% | 345.34 | 3.2% | |
Security First Net Bank | SFNB | $9.63 | 31% | $2.25 | 33% |
Excite | XCIT | $49.19 | 29% | $11.09 | 64% |
Raptor | RAPT | $15.19 | 27% | $3.19 | 15% |
Versant Object Technologies | VSNT | $8.13 | 26% | $1.69 | -41% |
E*TRADE | EGRP | $24.75 | 24% | $4.84 | 8% |
CKS Group | CKSG | $17.06 | 22% | $3.06 | 21% |
Forefront | FFGI | $10.94 | 22% | $1.94 | 40% |
Mindspring | MSPG | $38.75 | 18% | $5.94 | 15% |
Sportsline USA | SPLN | $24.38 | 15% | $3.19 | 127% |
USWeb | USWB | $13.63 | 14% | $1.69 | 45% |
CMG Info | CMGI | $36.75 | 11% | $3.63 | 21% |
Security Dynamics | SDTI | $35.56 | 9% | $3.06 | -1% |
America Online | AOL | $99.75 | 9% | $8.44 | 10% |
Concentric | CNCX | $10.81 | 9% | $0.91 | 22% |
Onsale | ONSL | $26.94 | 9% | $2.13 | 50% |
Amazon.Com | AMZN | $61.81 | 8% | $4.81 | 3% |
Spyglass | SPYG | $5.81 | 8% | $0.44 | 18% |
Yahoo! | YHOO | $64.84 | 8% | $4.78 | -6% |
Netscape | NSCP | $18.19 | 8% | $1.31 | -25% |
Earthlink Network | ELNK | $33.00 | 7% | $2.13 | 28% |
Lycos | LCOS | $41.00 | 7% | $2.53 | -1% |
CNET | CNWK | $32.88 | 6% | $1.88 | 11% |
VocalTec | VOCLF | $20.00 | 5% | $1.00 | -2% |
@Home Network | ATHM | $24.38 | 5% | $1.06 | -3% |
PSINet | PSIX | $7.50 | 4% | $0.31 | 46% |
CheckPoint Software | CHKPF | $36.13 | 4% | $1.38 | -11% |
Open Text | OTEXF | $12.00 | 1% | $0.13 | -10% |
Open Market | OMKT | $10.19 | -1% | -$0.06 | 6% |
Infoseek | SEEK | $11.94 | -1% | -$0.09 | 11% |
Trusted Information Systems | TISX | $9.94 | -2% | -$0.19 | -1% |
Mecklermedia | MECK | $26.38 | -3% | -$0.88 | 6% |
CyberCash | CYCH | $10.50 | -5% | -$0.50 | -17% |
Network Solutions | NSOL | $18.13 | -9% | -$1.69 | 38% |
RealNetworks | RNWK | $15.00 | -10% | -$1.63 | 8% |
N2K | NTKI | $21.13 | -12% | -$2.88 | 44% |
TOTAL | 902.16 | 8.5% | 70.88 | 10.5% | |
SIMPLE AVERAGE | 25.78 | 8.5% | 2.03 | 10.5% |
registration. In
case anyone forgot, this is the firm in the process of acquiring MCI for
more than $37 billion. Once merged it will control more than 50% of current
Internet backbone traffic. But high-speed networks may be on the horizon.
Cable coaxial. Will acquisitive WorldCom be overleveraged if new wires are
needed?
that rolls its AOL France and (pending) CompuServe France into a larger
online service with 200,000 users. The venture combines Bertelsmann, Canal+
and Cegetel Internet services under the AOL banner.
shows that Netscape’s “Netcenter” was the most popular site visited by
business Internet users. Says 2.6 million members signed up on free
service. Media company in the making?
December, 1997 revenue jumps to $8.6 million from $5.6 million 4Q96. Loss
reaches $2
million vs. earnings of $696k 4Q96. Annual revenue is $29 million vs. $18
million with annual losses of $2.3 million or $0.26 loss per share vs.
earnings in 1996 of $1.4 million or $0.18 EPS.
(NYSE:AOL) as the $1.3 billion deal finally goes through. WorldCom spun off
CompuServe’s consumer accounts to AOL while it keeps the network side.
Former 80% CompuServe shareholder H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) now owns 3% of WCOM.
probably due to its high asking price, acquires another Web community
company, Tripod, for $58 million stock. Our analysis shows the deal values
Tripod’s 1.5 million “members” at $38.67 each or 58 cents per monthly page
view.
$23.3 million revenue for its first quarter ending Dec. 31 vs. $17.4
million for the same period last year. Net income reaches $3.1 million vs.
$2.1 million, or $0.36 vs. $0.25, respectively.