Investor's Business Daily articles from July 2005

Investor's Business Daily archives from July 2005

Fed Kicks Up Rates, Signals More Ahead With Economy Fine; 9th Straight Hike To 3.25%; Stocks, bond yields drop as upbeat policy-makers depress Wall St.'s mood.(A)
July 1, 2005... Byline: KIRK SHINKLE Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan and his plan for "measured" interest rate hikes celebrated a one-year anniversary Thursday. It included the kind of sentiment one would expect from a long-term relationship: optimism,...

BofA's $35 Bil Buy Of Card Firm MBNA Will Create Biggest Credit Card Issuer; Cross-Selling, Cost Cuts Eyed; Not done with Fleet buy, Bank of America pays up, again, to keep expanding.(A)
July 1, 2005... Byline: LAURA MANDARO Bank of America agreed to buy credit card issuer MBNA Corp. for $35 billion, creating the largest U.S. card company and marking a sudden end to the once staunchly independent MBNA. The deal, pulled together in...

IBD'S TOP 10.(A)
July 1, 2005... Fed Raises Rates, More To Come 1As expected, the FOMC raised interest rates by a quarter-point for a 9th straight meeting, to 3.25%. And policy-makers gave no sign they're ready to pause. They said in their post-meeting statement rates...

AFTER THE CLOSE.(TO THE POINT)
July 1, 2005... PIXAR cut its Q2 profit outlook from 15 cents a share to 10 cents, citing a need to be "more cautious" about home video sales in the wake of Dreamworks' plummet upon overestimating home video sales and saying recent sales data were below Disney...

BUSINESS BRIEFS/IN BRIEF.(TO THE POINT)
July 1, 2005... BEVERAGES Constellation Q1 sales up 18.6% The world's No. 1 wine firm earned 30 cents a share ex items in Q1, in line with views and a 36.3% rise over the year-ago profit. Net sales rose to $1.10 bil, helped by Constellation Brands'...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
July 1, 2005... TECHNOLOGY Diebold cuts jobs, Q2 outlook The ATM and electronic voting machine maker fell 11% to 45.11, its lowest since Oct. '04, after it steered its Q2 forecast below views of 64 cents to 54-57 cents ex items. It also said it would...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
July 1, 2005... GAMING Alliance Gaming files patent suit The casino operator alleges that Shuffle Master breached a confidentiality agreement regarding its gambling table monitoring technology, and that Shuffle Master's "MD2 Shuffler" encroached on...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
July 1, 2005... ENERGY CNOOC unfazed by Chevron vote The head of the Chinese state-owned oil firm said the company will press on with its $18.5 bil bid for Unocal, despite a scheduled shareholder vote on Chevron's $16.4 bil offer, favored by Unocal's...

THE ECONOMY.(TO THE POINT)
July 1, 2005... Mortgage rates dipping lower The average interest rate on a 30-year mortgage dropped to 5.53% this week from 5.57% last week, lending giant Freddie Mac said. The average rate on a 15-year mortgage fell to 5.12% from 5.16%. A year ago the...

TRENDS/INNOVATIONS.(TO THE POINT)
July 1, 2005... Portland leads travel traffic jams The biggest bottleneck during the holiday weekend is likely to be outside the Oregon city, the American Highway Users Alliance said. Coming in second: Interstate 64 in Virginia's Tidewater region....

NATION.(TO THE POINT)
July 1, 2005... House panel backs trade accord Lawmakers voted 24-11 in favor of the U.S.-Central American Free Trade Agreement, or CAFTA, which would remove trade barriers between the U.S., Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and the...

WORLD.(TO THE POINT)
July 1, 2005... Iran boss may have held hostages President Bush said "many questions" have been raised by allegations of former U.S. hostages that Iran's president-elect, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, was one of their captors in 1979-81. Five ex-hostages said...

There's Always A Challenge 'Round The Next Bend Work Hard:John D. MacArthur's drive to keep making money set the stage for one of the country's biggest charities.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)(BEST OF LEADERS & SUCCESS)
July 1, 2005... Byline: AMY REEVES To John D. MacArthur, there was only one direction to go in--up. MacArthur (1897-1978) was born to a poor but very ambitious family. His father was a Scottish immigrant and lay preacher who sired a brood of...

BE HONEST AND DEPENDABLE Stick To Your Principles.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)(IBD'S 10 SECRETS TO SUCCESS)
July 1, 2005... Byline: Steve Watkins 10 What happens when integrity is your watchword, but nobody seems to care? Up until the last few months, that was the problem FFF Enterprises had. Patrick Schmidt founded FFF, a Temecula, Calif.-based...

Father Of The Free Market; Break New Ground: Adam Smith's ideas charted the path to wealth for millions.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)
July 1, 2005... Byline: DONNA HOWELL The word "capitalism" rarely evokes the image of a kindly soul who puts others before himself. Yet that's exactly the route taken by Adam Smith -- the man known as the father of capitalism and economics. And it was...

Microsemi Foresees Bright Future For Its New Human Eye-like Chip; Light-sensing chip could be used in car rearview mirrors and PC displays.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
July 1, 2005... Byline: JAMES DETAR Machines are about to get a bit more like people. Microsemi is rolling out a new microchip that's designed to act just like a human eye. It senses light in the same way as the eye's rods and cones, the company says....

Son Seeks To Repeat Father's Success In The Changing Of Guard At Qualcomm; Paul Jacobs Faces Challenges; New CEO strives to boost wireless firm's 3G market share amid slowing growth.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
July 1, 2005... Byline: MIKE ANGELL Paul Jacobs last week stood on the field at Qualcomm Stadium, home of the San Diego Chargers football team, before some 9,000 employees of the stadium's namesake. The employees were celebrating a lot of company...

Jacobs Gave Jacobs Managing Blueprint; A Cartoon's Reminder; Making handsets wasn't in cards for Qualcomm, but CEO learned lesson.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)(Q & A)
July 1, 2005... Byline: MIKE ANGELL Five years ago, new Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs headed the company unit that made cell phones. He keeps a cartoon of one phone model, the QPhone, pinned above his desk. The cartoon shows the QPhone cracking open, with...

TEMPUR-PEDIC INTERNATIONAL INC. Lexington, Kentucky; Mattress Maker Spreads The Word Through Aggressive Marketing.(THE NEW AMERICA)
July 1, 2005... Byline: MARILYN MUCH Marketers shell out big bucks on advertising to make consumers aware of their brands. In 2004, U.S. ad spending for all media rose 9.8% from the prior year to $141.1 billion, according to TNS Media...

Pimco Is Taking New Index For A Spin; Weaned Off Market Cap; Fund holdings weighted by sales, other factors; rivals voice skepticism.(MUTUAL FUNDS)(INVESTMENT TRENDS)
July 1, 2005... Byline: KEN HOOVER On the theory there's a better way to build an index fund, Pimco is launching two new funds that Pimco founder and Managing Director Bill Gross thinks can outperform traditional indexes over the long run. ...

Stock Market's Choppiness Yields Less-Common Bases.(YOUR WEEKLY REVIEW)
July 1, 2005... Byline: JUAN CARLOS ARANCIBIA The market's rally since late April is showing investors a different face. Among the dozens of breakouts in recent weeks, plenty have emerged from less-common chart patterns, namely cups without handles....

Shifting To Neutral.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)(Editorial)
July 1, 2005... Monetary Policy: Another Fed meeting, another rate hike. At some point, the Fed will get rates to the magic "neutral" level it says it wants. But how will we know? This is more than an idle question. Policy-makers have lifted interest...

Class-Action Crime?(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)(Editorial)
July 1, 2005... Law: An indictment turns a spotlight on the unseemly business of plaintiff-shopping. Some supposed knights in shining armor may end up with a few dents. It's too early to tell what the criminal justice system will do to Milberg Weiss...

LETTERS.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2005... Our Forsaken Heritage Regarding "Supreme Being" (Editorial, Wednesday): The Supreme Court's decision to outlaw the mere display of the Ten Commandments in a government building is misguided. Our nation was founded on the principle of...

THE REAL MOST ACTIVE Dow, S&P 500 Stocks Down In Heavier Volume.(MAKING MONEY)
July 1, 2005... Byline: KATHARINE STALTER Dow industrials finished Thursday's session 1% lower while the S&P 500 dropped 0.7%. Volume was higher. The Federal Open Market Committee's interest rate hike spurred an afternoon of downside action. ...

Analyze, Profit From IBD's Market Charts.(GENERAL MARKET & SECTORS)
July 1, 2005... Analyzing the price and volume changes in the major market averages each day is essential to successful investing. They reveal major tops and bottoms in the stock market. Most stocks follow the general market's trend. They tend to rise...

Berry Petroleum Gets $500 Mil Credit Line.(B)(NYSE STOCKS IN THE NEWS)
July 1, 2005... Byline: Katharine Stalter Berry Petroleum has been shaping a third-stage base for nearly four months. On March 8, it reached a high of 66.11, having run up more than 100% since September, when it cleared its 32.08 buy point in low volume....

THE REAL MOST ACTIVE Nasdaq 100 Falls 0.7%, Ends Below 50-Day Line.(B)
July 1, 2005... Byline: JUAN CARLOS ARANCIBIA The Nasdaq Thursday fell sharply on heavier volume, losing 0.6% while the Nasdaq 100 gave up 0.7% to close back below its 50-day moving average. Internet Security Systems fell 83 cents to 20.29, below its...

Take Your Profits When A Stock Starts To Plunge Off Its Summit.(B)(INVESTOR'S CORNER)
July 1, 2005... Byline: JONAH KERI One of the toughest tasks for an investor is buying a winning stock at the right time and holding it for big gains. It takes skill, patience and a steady hand to do it properly. A triple-digit percentage winner can...

NASDAQ STOCKS IN THE NEWS.(B)
July 1, 2005... PER-SE TECHNOLOGIES INC (PSTI)Grp 54o$21.02 21.6M Shares91 Comp. Rating90 EPSRS 93ROE 0% PROVIDES REVENUE CYCLE MANAGEMENT PRIMARILY FOR PHYSICIAN PRACTICES/GROUPS AND HOSPITALS. +174% Ann. EPS Gro PE 21 Avg. D. Vol 351,000 Debt...

NASDAQ STOCKS IN THE NEWS.(B)
July 1, 2005... CONCUR TECHNOLOGIES INC (CNQR)Grp 115o$10.53 26.3M Shares81 Comp. Rating74 EPSRS 77ROE 11% PROVIDES INTRANET-BASED EXPENSE MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS WHICH EXTEND AUTOMATION TO EMPLOYEES THROUGHOUT THE ENTERPRISE. ... Ann. EPS Gro PE 88...

NASDAQ STOCKS IN THE NEWS.(B)
July 1, 2005... DIGITAL RIVER INC (DRIV)Grp 171o$31.75 31.1M Shares67 Comp. Rating99 EPSRS 34ROE 27% PROVIDES ELECTRONIC COMMERCE OUTSOURCING SOLUTIONS TO SOFTWARE PUBLISHERS, ONLINE RETAILERS AND OTHER MARKETS. +141% Ann. EPS Gro PE 22 Avg. D....

NASDAQ STOCKS IN THE NEWS.(B)
July 1, 2005... ADVISORY BOARD COMPANY (ABCO)Grp 54$48.78 15.7M Shares98 Comp. Rating93 EPSRS 88ROE 19% RESEARCHES AND ANALYZES STRATEGIC, OPERATIONAL AND MANAGEMENT ISSUES FOR COMPANIES IN THE HEALTHCARE INDUSTRY. +29% Ann. EPS Gro PE 38 Avg....

NASDAQ STOCKS IN THE NEWS.(B)
July 1, 2005... ASSET ACCEPTANCE CAPITAL (AACC)Grp 102o$25.91 7.8M Shares98 Comp. Rating89 EPSRS 93ROE 35% PURCHASES AND COLLECTS DEFAULTED OR CHARGED-OFF ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLES PORTFOLIOS FROM CONSUMER CREDIT ORIGINATORS. +35% Ann. EPS Gro PE 19...

NASDAQ STOCKS IN THE NEWS.(B)
July 1, 2005... CENTER FINANCIAL CORP CA (CLFC)Grp 128$24.83 11.1M Shares97 Comp. Rating98 EPSRS 93ROE 18% HOLDING COMPANY FOR CENTER BANK SERVING SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA THROUGH 12 FULL-SERVICE BRANCH OFFICES. +23% Ann. EPS Gro PE 24 Avg. Daily Vol...

Concur Turning Profit After Years Of Struggle.(B)(NASDAQ STOCKS IN THE NEWS)
July 1, 2005... Byline: Juan Carlos Arancibia Concur Technologies is building the right side of a long base stretching back 8 1/2 months. The pattern undercut the previous base, making this a first-stage base. The Redmond, Wash.-based company...

O'Connor To Retire From Highest Court; First Exit In 11 Years; The Supremes' Swing Voter; Partisans gear up quickly for huge summer battle over the court's direction.(A)
July 5, 2005... Byline: SEAN HIGGINS Sandra Day O'Connor, the first woman on the Supreme Court and a swing vote on key issues, announced her resignation Friday. Political groups on the right and left immediately began mobilizing for a knockdown,...

MARKET TOOL BAR.(A)
July 5, 2005... S&P 500 INDEX 1194.44 +3.11 (+0.3%) ISM report boosts big caps to wkly gain DOW JONES IND. 10,303.44 +28.47 (+0.3%) Exxon, GM and 3M help Dow notch gain NYSE VOL. (MIL) 1,248 -467...

Factory Activity Picked Up Pace In June; ISM index's rise was first in 7 mos. as orders jump; bond yields back over 4%.(A)
July 5, 2005... Byline: KIRK SHINKLE Nationwide factory activity rose for the first time in seven months during June as new orders spiked despite record energy costs. The Institute for Supply Management on Friday said its U.S. manufacturing index rose...

IBD'S TOP 10.(A)
July 5, 2005... Justice O'Connor Steps Down 1Sandra Day O'Connor, 75, the first woman on the Supreme Court and a moderate who often controlled the outcome on abortion, affirmative action and other issues, announced her retirement after 24 years. O'Connor,...

AFTER THE CLOSE.(TO THE POINT)
July 5, 2005... INTERDIGITAL jumped 21% after it won a final award in an international arbitration with Nokia. Wireless tech firm InterDigital estimates mobile phone maker Nokia owes it $232 mil to $252 mil in royalties. JOHNSON & JOHNSON infringed on 2...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
July 5, 2005... SECURITY Taser sues USA Today for libel The stun gun maker accused Gannett, the publisher of USA Today, of libel for a June 3 article that Taser said overstates the electrical output of one of its stun guns. The firm's stock has...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
July 5, 2005... TECHNOLOGY Microsoft to pay IBM $875 mil IBM will get $775 mil in cash and $75 mil in software credits from the software giant to settle claims stemming from a U.S. antitrust case vs. Microsoft. When a federal judge in '00 ruled...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
July 5, 2005... MEDICAL Pfizer drops HIV therapy effort The drug firm will not continue developing its capravirine drug, saying that 2 midstage trials showed that capravirine didn't boost the effectiveness of standard triple-drug HIV therapies in...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
July 5, 2005... DIVERSIFIED 3M plans $1.7 bil repatriation The industrial conglomerate rose 1% to 73 after it disclosed it'll reinvest some of its foreign earnings in the U.S. The move will cost 3M $75 mil in Q2. 3M lowered its outlook from...

THE ECONOMY.(TO THE POINT)
July 5, 2005... U.S. growth prospects brighten The Economic Cycle Research Institute's U.S. leading index rose to 133.7 in the week ended June 24 from 133.4 in the prior week. The 4-week annualized growth rate rose to 0.8%. That's up from 0.2% in the...

BUSINESS BRIEFS/IN BRIEF.(TO THE POINT)
July 5, 2005... ENERGY House worried about China bid Saying the offer by a Chinese state-owned oil company to buy Calif.-based Unocal could threaten national security, lawmakers voted 398-15 to ask President Bush to make a thorough review of the...

NATION.(TO THE POINT)
July 5, 2005... Minn. shut down; 9,000 jobless Lawmakers couldn't agree on a measure to keep state operations funded amid a budget impasse, putting 9,000 state employees out of work. Unlike many states, it has no law that keeps money flowing if a new...

WORLD.(TO THE POINT)
July 5, 2005... Bomb kills 11 soldiers in Russia Authorities believe a radio-controlled bomb caused a blast that killed Russian troops riding in a truck in the capital of the Muslim Dagestan region bordering Chechnya. 28 people were hurt. In the past 10...

TRENDS & INNOVATIONS.(TO THE POINT)
July 5, 2005... Schools may test Internet skills The Educational Testing Service is working with colleges to develop the Information and Communication Technology Literacy Assessment. The test evaluates locating and verifying reliable information online and...

TRENDS & INNOVATIONS.(TO THE POINT)
July 5, 2005... ** The British government is targeting young adult smokers with a new ad campaign positing that smoking makes men impotent and women ugly. It cites a study that states smoking increased the risk of erectile dysfunction among men in their 30s...

Wake Up To Opportunity.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)(IBD'S 10 SECRETS TO SUCCESS)
July 5, 2005... Byline: Amy Alexander 2 Cynthia McKay's home-based gift basket business that she launched in 1992 was healthy, but she kept getting a niggling sense that it could be something more. "I needed a new direction in order to expand," she...

She Saw A Need And Filled It Venture Philanthropy: Donna Berber puts her money where her hope is.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)
July 5, 2005... Byline: JAMES DETAR In the mid-1980s, war, drought and famine stalked the people of Ethiopia. TV programs showed swollen-bellied, dying children. Donna Berber, then 25 and newly married, watched the horrific images. "I sat there and,...

IBM Makes The First Cell Sale To Non-PlayStation Customer; Fancy Eight-Core Chip; Mercury Computer will use chip in its complex wares in defense, health.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
July 5, 2005... Byline: JAMES DETAR IBM says its Cell chip isn't just a plaything or a PlayStation thing. In February, IBM, Sony and Toshiba jointly revealed details of the Cell chip, which they've been developing nearly five years. At that time,...

Clarissa On Schedule To Join Space Shuttle As Nonhuman Aide; But Not Like "2001' Flick's HAL; Clarissa speech-recognition software will let computers tell astronauts what to do.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
July 5, 2005... Byline: BRIAN DEAGON It's not red-eyed HAL -- the seeing, talking computer in "2001: A Space Odyssey" -- but she's the closest thing to it in the real world. Sometime later this year, the International Space Station will receive...

Web Tailored To Clothes Designers -- You; Custom-Made Options; Polo, Nike, Lands' End, others let shoppers take matters into own hands.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
July 5, 2005... Byline: LISA SCHMEISER Clothing made expressly to a customer's tastes and contours used to be the province of ladies who lunched -- and had the money to pay for personalized items. Now anyone with a tape measure and Internet access can...

SunGard Ready To Be On Guard When Data Simply Must Be Available.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)(Q & A)
July 5, 2005... Byline: J. BONASIA The March announcement that SunGard Data Systems would be bought by an investment group for $11.3 billion marked the largest private buyout of a high-tech firm in history. The parties expect to complete the sale in the...

VCA ANTECH Los Angeles, California; Hey Pet Owner, Has Your Furry Friend Had Its Yearly Exam Yet?(THE NEW AMERICA)
July 5, 2005... Byline: MARILYN MUCH At a time when Americans seem more health conscious than ever, they're also paying more attention to the wellness of their pets. U.S. sales of pet care services rose 6.4% to $16.1 billion in 2003, according to the...

EXECUTIVE BRIEFING.(MANAGING FOR SUCCESS)
July 5, 2005... PENSIONS Firms Freeze, End Pension Plans In '04 The rate at which large companies froze or terminated their defined benefit pension plans accelerated sharply last year even as the average funding level for plans continued to...

Use Creativity To Outpace Rivals.(MANAGING FOR SUCCESS)(REAL SOLUTIONS)
July 5, 2005... Byline: Morey Stettner When Phil Romano spoke at a grocery-industry convention in Phoenix a few years ago, he began by saying, "Look at my tie." As he scanned his audience, he noticed that his flashy clothing contrasted with their drab...

Focus On The Client, Not Office Decor.(MANAGING FOR SUCCESS)(REAL SOLUTIONS)
July 5, 2005... Byline: Morey Stettner For executives abandoning corporate careers to set up shop as consultants, here are three rules: conserve cash, avoid discounting your services and treat clients like gold. "There's a profound difference between...

Making Her Entrepreneurial Mark; Pinnacle Technical Resources' Nina Vaca says Latino business owners are making progress.(MANAGING FOR SUCCESS)
July 5, 2005... Byline: DOUG TSURUOKA Nina Vaca is a myth buster, especially when it comes to the stereotype that Latinos lack English proficiency or other skills needed to succeed as small-business owners. "Those days are way over," said Vaca, the...

MED BRIEFS.(HEALTH & MEDICINE)
July 5, 2005... FDA OKs Daily Dialysis System Closely held NxStage Medical won Food and Drug Administration approval to sell System One, the smallest hemodialysis system on the market. Large dialysis providers like DaVita also offer at-home dialysis, but...

Insomnia Drug Helps Depressives Have Sweet Dreams; New Data Offer Hope; Combo of Lunesta with antidepressants helps both ailments, firm says.(HEALTH & MEDICINE)
July 5, 2005... Byline: AMY REEVES Most people who've suffered bouts of depression or anxiety can tell you: It's never worse than at 3 in the morning. Sleep trouble is a common symptom of mood disorders like depression. For Sepracor, maker of the new...

More Employees Getting Buffed Up On Company's Tab; Rebates For Healthy Habits; In an era of rising health costs, it can be a good investment for employers.(HEALTH & MEDICINE)
July 5, 2005... Byline: GLORIA LAU Susan Mallett, an administrative assistant at IBM's Cambridge, Mass., office, lost 30 pounds in the past four years without changing her diet. She credits a company exercise incentive. In 2001, IBM started offering...

Want To Get Rich? Bust Rocks; HealthTronics; Austin, Texas healthtronics.com.(HEALTH & MEDICINE)
July 5, 2005... Byline: Gloria Lau Nearly 10% of Americans develop kidney stones in middle age. Many of their urologists turn to a procedure called lithotripsy. Doctors use lithotripters to send shock waves that break kidney stones into tiny sand-like...

Market-Leading Medical Stocks.(HEALTH & MEDICINE)
July 5, 2005... 1Quality SystemsComputer SftwrQSII47.38-22.969996A135030.836 It develops computer-based practice management, medical records and e-business applications for medical and dental practices. 2Dialysis Corp. Of AmericaOutpnt/Home...

Safeguarding Your Realty Investment; Keep An Eye On Bubble; Avoid underestimating costs in figuring out if property is affordable.(FUNDS & PERSONAL FINANCE)
July 5, 2005... Byline: PAUL KATZEFF Investment real estate is hot. So hot that the National Association of Realtors felt compelled to start measuring it last year. It found 23% of homes were bought by investors, rather than people shopping for a...

La La Pelosi.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)(Editorial)
July 5, 2005... War On Terror: Saying that Saddam Hussein had no role in the operational planning for 9-11 is like saying that Adolf Hitler had no role in the operational planning for the attack on Pearl Harbor. And the point is? References to 9-11...

Making The Right Choice.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)(Editorial)
July 5, 2005... Supreme Court: With the retirement of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, attention turns to what kind of person President Bush should pick to replace her. But Bush has already said what he wants, and quite explicitly. O'Connor's departure, while...

The Beat Goes On.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)(Editorial)
July 5, 2005... Media: Who'd have thought that just before we celebrated America's birthday, and just after President Bush asked for support, we'd hear that the founders were terrorists and Bush ought to be impeached? Iranian President-elect Mahmood...

A Dose Of Reality.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)(Editorial)
July 5, 2005... Drug Costs: The idea that Americans could save big money by importing price-controlled medicine was taken too seriously by people who should know better. Canada last week sent a message to Congress, AARP, state and local governments and...

LETTERS.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(Letter to the Editor)
July 5, 2005... A Threat To U.S. Sovereignty Regarding " Preventing War" (Editorial, June 28): Your support of CAFTA is misplaced. If you desire free trade, CAFTA is not it -- it is managed trade instead. If you desire managed trade, CAFTA obtains that by...

Who's Who In Consumer Electronics Retailers Stocks ranked by a combined EPS and Relative Strength.(INDUSTRY SNAPSHOT)
July 5, 2005... 1GameStopGME879732.71710.81945.83644.228115.4 Grapevine, Texas. Operates 1,801 video game stores in the U.S. and 25 in Ireland. 2Best BuyBBY918968.5522496280725017.212225.3 Richfield, Minn. Operates 668 Best Buy and 20 Magnolia...

Retailers Getting Good Signals; High-definition TV, other gee-whiz gear give boost to electronics chains.(INDUSTRY SNAPSHOT)(CONSUMER ELECTRONICS RETAILERS)
July 5, 2005... Byline: PATRICK SEITZ Hot new products like digital TVs, notebook computers and video games have been a real boon for consumer electronics chains. Some retailers, such as Best Buy and GameStop, are benefiting more than others. The...

Best Buy Sees Growth By Studying Shoppers; 'Customer-centric' tack; helps chain boost sales in a competitive market.(INDUSTRY SNAPSHOT)(Q & A)
July 5, 2005... Byline: PATRICK SEITZ Best Buy executives credit much of their company's recent success to a new strategy: They're shifting from a product focus to a customer focus. The Richfield, Minn.-based company is zeroing in on the needs of its...

IBD 100.(THE IBD 100)
July 5, 2005... 1Google Inc291.3999998+89+143+109+9342354D Chairman sells shares last week, common insider activity for a leading stock. 2Meritage Homes79.01999997+51+61+82+30291119B Builder continues pullback after May new-home sales rose less...

Look For Bullish Pullbacks After Leaders Break Out.(THE IBD 100)(INSIDE THE 100)
July 5, 2005... Byline: JONAH KERI Halfway through 2005, the major market indexes have made little headway, frustrating investors hungry for gains. The action of individual stocks may seem equally frustrating, as stocks break out of bases, then turn...

Micros Makes Payment Easier; Hotels, Restaurants Use Its Point-of-Sale Systems.(THE IBD 100)
July 5, 2005... Byline: Nancy Gondo If the name Micros Systems sounds vaguely familiar but you don't know why, take a look at the register the next time you go up to the cashier to pay at a restaurant, hotel or store. Chances are you've seen the...

Growing Beyond Los Angeles; Center Financial Caters To Korean Americans.(THE IBD 100)
July 5, 2005... Byline: Jonah Keri Center Financial has carved a profitable niche in the competitive California banking market. The firm got its start as a full-service commercial bank, founded in 1986 in Los Angeles. The bank offers a full suite of...

IBD 100.(THE IBD 100)
July 5, 2005... 21Urban Outfitters57.50999894+47+60+40+36261834D Hip and trendy stores cater to college students and young adults age 18 to 30. 22SS&C Technologies32.03999796+34+32+24+43173230C Financial software firm buys rival Financial Models...

IBD 100.(THE IBD 100)
July 5, 2005... 41Itron Inc44.34959498+68+256+250+781185C Meter-reading systems maker to outfit Idaho utility w/mobile work force solution. 42Sun Hydraulics37.04989498+53+140+32+36191239A Hydraulic cartridge valve firm grows pretax margins, ROE...

IBD 100.(THE IBD 100)
July 5, 2005... 81Statoil20.75989691+13+53..+3731251.. Will sell stake in Danish petrochemicals comany for $1.2 bil. 82Oil State Intl25.04989690+64+127+54+6310941C Houston oilfield svcs firm's sales growth accelerated last 4 quarters. ...

Analyze, Profit From IBD's Market Charts.(GENERAL MARKET & SECTORS)
July 5, 2005... Analyzing the price and volume changes in the major market averages each day is essential to successful investing. They reveal major tops and bottoms in the stock market. Most stocks follow the general market's trend. They tend to rise...