Looking at the Internet stock market on a month-to-month basis this year, it’s no surprise that investors’ nerves are jangled and their confidence frayed. It has been a rollicking ride through the first two quarters.
This is perfectly illustrated in the numbers generated by internet.com’s Internet Stock Index, which is down 13.5% through June 30. There have been double-digit swings in four of the six months of trading through June. Here’s how the ISDEX has performed each month through Q2:
| January | -5.4% |
| February | +21.9% |
| March | -3.2% |
| April | -19.3% |
| May | -18.2% |
| June | +17.4% |
Even placid-looking March was full of tumult, with a mid-month crash wiping out a 12% run-up in the first week of trading.
Turning to individual ISDEX stocks, only a dozen of the 50 index members have gained through two quarters. Meanwhile, 20 ISDEX stocks have lost at least 50% of their value this year.
The challenge for Internet investors as the second half of the year gets under way is to sift through the rubble and separate the winners from the wannabes. With a number of market leaders among its ranks, I expect the ISDEX to post solid gains for Q3 and Q4. I also give it a decent shot to fully erase this year’s losses and finish in the black.
Here’s how the current ISDEX members performed through the first two quarters of 2000:
| Juniper Networks | +157% |
| Check Point | +113% |
| Broadcom | +61% |
| ISS Group | +39% |
| Inktomi | +33% |
| Portal Software | +24% |
| Verio | +20% |
| Cisco Systems | +19% |
| Ariba | +11% |
| i2 Technologies | +7% |
| Exodus | +4% |
| Infospace | +3% |
| Vignette | -4% |
| Verisign | -8% |
| BroadVision | -10% |
| RSA Security | -11% |
| eBay | -13% |
| RealNetworks | -16% |
| PSINet | -19% |
| priceline.com | -20% |
| Net2Phone | -22% |
| America Online | -31% |
| Lycos | -32% |
| E*Trade Group | -37% |
| Go2Net | -42% |
| Earthlink | -42% |
| Yahoo! | -43% |
| Ameritrade | -46% |
| Scient | -49% |
| Allaire | -50% |
| Amazon.com | -52% |
| Excite/At Home | -52% |
| StarMedia Network | -53% |
| VerticalNet | -55% |
| CNET Networks | -57% |
| MP3.com | -58% |
| Ticketmaster Online | -59% |
| Healtheon/WebMD | -61% |
| SportsLine.com | -66% |
| marchFirst | -66% |
| CMGI | -67% |
| Open Market | -69% |
| S1 Corp. | -70% |
| DoubleClick | -70% |
| 24/7Media | -72% |
| iXL Enterprises | -74% |
| GoTo.com | -74% |
| eToys | -76% |
| Intraware | -80% |