Investor's Business Daily articles from November 2002

Investor's Business Daily archives from November 2002

How To Reset The Base Count.(A)(INVESTOR'S CORNER)
November 1, 2002... Byline: DAVID SAITO-CHUNG Readers often ask: How do you reset the base count for a stock? All investors can benefit by nailing down this concept. Why? Knowing how to count bases helps you hone your selling skills and pick new winners....

GDP Grew 3.1% In Q3, But Factory Data Point To A Slowdown In Q4; Chicago Purchasers See Red; Growth from torrid sales of autos may not hold up; business spending rises.(A)
November 1, 2002... Byline: CHRISTINA WISE The nation's economy grew 3.1% in the third quarter, the Commerce Department said Thursday, but that momentum appears to be all but gone a month into the fourth quarter. Auto sales were a big factor pushing...

Now Playing: Theaters In A Box Bring Top Hits To Family Rooms; More households opting for systems that deliver near-cinema experience.(A)(TRENDS & INNOVATIONS)
November 1, 2002... Byline: PATRICK SEITZ Jeffrey Polon doesn't like going to movie theaters much anymore. Noisy crowds, ringing cell phones, seat back kicking and overhyped films that don't live up to their billing are among the turnoffs. The experience...

IBD'S TOP 10.(A)
November 1, 2002... Q3 GDP Expanded At 3.1% Pace 1That was less than the 3.6% annual rate expected. Consumer spending stayed strong, rising at a 4.2% pace, thanks to surging auto sales. Business investment, seen as crucial to a sustained recovery, rose for...

AFTER THE CLOSE.(TO THE POINT)
November 1, 2002... BRISTOL-MYERS and ImClone Systems said they're talking with the FDA about the development program for Erbitux in treating colorectal cancer. STARBUCKS' Oct. same-store sales grew 10%. The coffee retailer opened 94 stores in the four weeks...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
November 1, 2002... POLLUTION SERVICES Trash hauler's Q3 profit met views Waste Management made 38 cents a share vs. last year's 5 cents, including charges. Revenue was flat at $2.9 bil. The trash hauler expects '02 profit within analysts' views for...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
November 1, 2002... MEDIA DOJ sues to block Dish-DirecTV The Justice Dept. and 23 states went to court to block EchoStar Communications' buy of Hughes Electronics and its DirecTV unit, which would create the largest U.S. pay-TV service. The DOJ said the...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
November 1, 2002... MEDICAL Aetna profits but loses members The HMO earned 73 cents a share in Q3, reversing last year's 38-cent loss and beating raised views by 3 cents. Revenue fell 22% to $4.83 bil. Aetna said membership slid 21% to 13.9 mil after...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
November 1, 2002... RETAIL Albertson's dives on Q3 warning It expects 47-49 cents a share as same-store sales drop 2%. Analysts forecast an 18% rise to 52 cents. Albertson's also cut Q4 goals. The warning fueled fears about Wal-Mart's growing dominance....

Scioscia At A Glance.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)
November 1, 2002... Scioscia At A Glance Born: 1958 in Darby, Pa. Education: Graduated from high school. Achievements: ** Played for Los Angeles Dodgers, 1980-92. ** Member of two world championship teams, 1981 and 1988. ** Served as a...

THE ECONOMY.(TO THE POINT)
November 1, 2002... Fed alters way it lends to banks Under rules that take effect Jan. 9, short-term loans to banks will no longer be at the discount rate, now a half point below the 1.75% fed funds target. Banks in sound condition will borrow at a primary...

IN BRIEF.(TO THE POINT)
November 1, 2002... BellSouth will take a $114 mil charge against its Q3 results following a Supreme Court ruling that the local phone firm must refund late-payment fees it charged customers. Coinstar earned 38 cents in Q3, 22% above views and 81% above last...

NATION.(TO THE POINT)
November 1, 2002... Rival ties Jeb Bush to INS policy Fla. Gov. Jeb Bush's Democratic challenger, Bill McBride, and hundreds of Haitian-Americans urged lawmakers to help over 200 Haitians still held two days after they were televised jumping from a crowded...

WORLD.(TO THE POINT)
November 1, 2002... Al-Qaida signals higher activity Western spies detect a resumption of the intense communication among Islamic activists seen in the months before 9-11, a senior Western intelligence source told Reuters. The source said al-Qaida regained...

TRENDS & INNOVATIONS.(TO THE POINT)
November 1, 2002... Software piracy up slightly in '01 The Business Software Alliance estimates that one in four applications installed on U.S. PCs in '01 were illegal copies, up 1% from 2000. That cost software firms $118 mil and put 111,000 out of work, it...

TRENDS & INNOVATIONS.(TO THE POINT)
November 1, 2002... ** The U.S. syphilis rate rose in '01 for the first time in a decade, jumping to 2.2 cases per 100,000 people from 2.1 the prior year. Government doctors say gay and bisexual men aren't practicing safe sex. ** Medicine-enriched clothes...

BE PERSISTENT AND WORK HARD Building Your Brand.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)(IBD'S 10 SECRETS TO SUCCESS)
November 1, 2002... Byline: Cord Cooper 5 Companies that succeed in the long run know the secret of branding -- setting their products apart in customers' minds. Firms that turn ho-hum brands into white-hot sellers use proven guidelines, business...

Mike Scioscia Manages To Win Championship Planning: His people skills lifted Anaheim's Angels over them all.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)
November 1, 2002... Byline: MICHAEL MINK For Mike Scioscia, baseball has three principles. He compromises on none of them. When he was named the Anaheim Angels' manager before the 2000 season, Scioscia was just 41 and had managed at only the minor league...

Sales Data Are Driver In Decisions About Production, Marketing WD-40 uses sales data to determine whether to acquire a product line.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)(MANAGING A SUCCESSFUL COMPANY)
November 1, 2002... Byline: MARILYN MUCH Well before Garry Ridge paid $47 million for Heartland Corp. in June, the chief executive of WD-40 Co. made sure he knew the sales prospects for each brand he was about to buy. Ridge, who's been at the helm of the...

Dot-Com Veterans Mix Coffee, Wireless Access; Self-Funded Company; Founders take it slowly this time, making sure the demand is out there.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
November 1, 2002... Byline: KATHARINE STALTER Latte. Scone. Wireless connection. You might find yourself ordering all three next time you visit your favorite Los Angeles coffee shop. L.A.-based start-up Cafe.com wants cafe patrons to get wired from...

HP Numbers Drag Down PDA Industry.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
November 1, 2002... Byline: PATRICK SEITZ The handheld computer market didn't stabilize last quarter as initially thought. Instead of growing at an anemic 0.9%, worldwide unit shipments actually fell 2.4% year over year, according to revised figures from...

Offshore Technology Services Make Best Of Weak Economy; Farming Out Projects To India; Outsourcing trend may get boost from economic slump as firms continue cost cuts.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
November 1, 2002... Byline: J. BONASIA The U.S. economy remains decidedly cool, but at least one sector is heating up -- outsourcing offshore of information technology services. Droves of large companies are contracting with offshore firms to cut IT costs...

Sports Sites Lure Advertisers; Reversing Downtrend; But ad rates much lower than during boom times when top sites raked it in.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
November 1, 2002... Byline: PETE BARLAS Consumers and advertisers are playing ball on the Web. Sports-related Internet sites are drawing fans in record numbers. They're also pulling off a rare feat in this economy: They're getting advertisers to join in....

Microsoft: Maker Of . . . Routers? PC Mice?; Home Unit Ranges Far; Home products leader focusing on broadband in latest computer era.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)(Q & A)
November 1, 2002... Byline: NICK TURNER Lisa Brummel keeps watch over a large territory. As head of Microsoft Corp.'s home products division, she's responsible for everything from the Natural Keyboard to the Encarta encyclopedia. The unit's products...

TRACTOR SUPPLY CO. Nashville, Tennessee; Making Big-City Profit With Rural Customers.(THE NEW AMERICA)
November 1, 2002... Byline: KIRK SHINKLE With $1.2 billion in expected sales this year, Tractor Supply Co.'s business isn't exactly chicken feed. But chicken feed is a good example of what's behind that number. The Nashville, Tenn.-based retailer has...

COMMERCE BANCORP INC. Cherry Hill, New Jersey; This Manhattan Project Is Heavy On Service.(THE NEW AMERICA)
November 1, 2002... Byline: MARILYN MUCH Vernon Hill admits to being a little nervous when he staked his claim in the Big Apple 18 months ago. After all, he's chairman of a regional bank holding firm -- New Jersey-based Commerce Bancorp Inc. -- that was...

KEY FUND HOLDINGS.(MUTUAL FUNDS)
November 1, 2002... Key Fund Holdings / John Nuveen was a top 10 holding and Biosite was a new buy of Pimco Emerging Companies Fund in the latest reporting period. John Nuveen's stock peaked at 31.50 on May 16. It pulled back and has formed a 24-week base, and is...

Japan's Lost Chance.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)
November 1, 2002... Japan: The Japanese government's new "anti-deflation" plan was eagerly awaited around the world. Well, the waiting is over, and it was hardly worth the trouble. On the surface, Japan doesn't seem to be in such bad shape. People still go to...

Radio Free Islam.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)
November 1, 2002... Foreign affairs: The U.S. is sending a message to the Muslim world that America isn't so bad. Meantime, malicious lies undercut any good will attempt we make. This week, a series of State Department-produced documentaries began airing in...

Iraq War Not As Big An Issue As Some Feared In Election.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(NATIONAL ISSUE)
November 1, 2002... Byline: SEAN HIGGINS David Mygren came all the way from Queens, N.Y., to join the 100,000 or so anti-war protestors in the nation's capital Saturday. He said he hoped the event would help people "vote their consciences." So what would...

THE REAL MOST ACTIVE NYSE Stocks Slump As Hospitals Fizzle.(MAKING MONEY)
November 1, 2002... Byline: CRAIG SHAW NYSE stocks lost ground Thursday as GDP growth and factory data came in below estimates. The S&P 500 fell 0.6%, the Dow 0.4%. Heavier trade meant another distribution day, the fifth in eight sessions for the benchmark...

Spending Hike Propels Government Tech Firm.(B)(NYSE STOCKS IN THE NEWS)
November 1, 2002... Byline: Craig Shaw Caci International on Wednesday broke out of a long base tracing back to the first week of January. The stock gave back some of those gains Thursday, but held above its pivot on lighter trade. The Arlington,...

THE REAL MOST ACTIVE Computer-Related Shares Show More Strength.(B)
November 1, 2002... Byline: DAVID SAITO-CHUNG The Nasdaq edged up 0.2% on slightly higher trade Thursday. Computer-related shares showed signs of newfound strength. Infosys Technologies moved up 1.11 to 71.55 on heavy volume. A monster stock from the...

Security Software Firm Shows Vibrant Growth.(B)(NASDAQ STOCKS IN THE NEWS)
November 1, 2002... Byline: David Saito-Chung Symantec is near the top of a seven-month base, which itself lies on top of a two-year price structure. The company makes virus detection and firewall software for PCs for the office and home markets. Earnings...

Tech, Telecom Led Funds In October; But Tech Is Still Pricey; Short-sellers covering their positions tossed fuel on an emerging rally.(MUTUAL FUNDS)(INVESTMENT TRENDS)
November 1, 2002... Byline: PAUL KATZEFF Mutual fund returns in October were a flashback to the late 1990s and early 2000. Last month's performance scorecard was led by those stalwarts of the last bull market: telecom funds and their kissing cousins,...

Expect Deeper Handles At End Of Bear Markets.(A)(INVESTOR'S CORNER)
November 4, 2002... Byline: CRAIG SHAW Along with showing the proper slope and position, a sound handle should be shallow. The only exception comes when a nasty bear drags down leading stocks, producing exaggerated bases. A proper handle forms in the...

Proposed Settlement In Microsoft Antitrust Wins Judge's Key Nod; Ashcroft: Consumer Victory; Company, Justice Dept. pass big hurdle in case vs. nine dissenting states.(A)
November 4, 2002... Byline: Patrick Seitz and Nick Turner A federal judge Friday agreed with most provisions of an antitrust settlement between Microsoft and the Justice Department, signaling the possible end of the landmark case against the world's largest...

Payrolls Dip, Jobless Rate Rises To 5.7% As Softness Continues In Manufacturing; "No Real Momentum There'; Weak data may push Fed to cut interest rates again when it meets this week.(A)
November 4, 2002... Byline: CHRISTINA WISE Unemployment ticked up to 5.7% in October from 5.6% in September as the recovery remained on shaky ground. While the jobless rate was a bit better than the 5.8% expected by economists, that didn't change the...

IBD'S TOP 10.(A)
November 4, 2002... Microsoft Deal Largely Accepted 1U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly OK'd most aspects of the software giant's antitrust settlement with the Justice Dept. She largely rejected nine states' demands for stiffer penalties. Microsoft...

AFTER THE CLOSE.(TO THE POINT)
November 4, 2002... MICRON TECHNOLOGY filed a countervailing duty case against DRAM chips made in South Korea over multibillion dollar bailouts and loan subsidies given to firms there. NYSE CHAIRMAN Richard Grasso expects a deal between Wall Street and...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
November 4, 2002... BUSINESS PRACTICES Firms manipulate price, avoid tax Tax losses from export-import price manipulation rose 18% to $53 bil from '00, said a study by two U.S. finance professors. Firms use "transfer pricing" to move income from the U.S....

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
November 4, 2002... ACCOUNTING SEC widens ex-FBI director probe The agency, already reviewing William Webster's selection as head of a new accounting oversight board, will also probe his work on the audit panel of Web firm U.S. Technologies, which was...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
November 4, 2002... DIVERSIFIED Lancaster Q1 profit missed views The maker of food, glassware, candles and auto gear earned 56 cents, up a penny from last year but 8 cents below views. Lancaster Colony blamed weak demand. Sales rose 4% to $275.8 mil on...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
November 4, 2002... MEDICAL Drug firms to sell generic Prilosec Andrx and Germany's Merck will let Schwarz Pharma sell a generic of AstraZeneca's $6 bil a year Prilosec heartburn drug in the U.S. A judge ruled Oct. 11 that only Schwarz didn't infringe...

THE ECONOMY.(TO THE POINT)
November 4, 2002... Housing more affordable in Q3 Thanks to lower mortgage rates and higher incomes, a typical household had 135.3% of the income needed to buy a home, the National Association of Realtors said. That's up from 132.4% in Q2 and 133.1% a year...

IN BRIEF.(TO THE POINT)
November 4, 2002... Morgan Stanley may have to write down more than $1 bil in assets since the investment bank has been unable to sell its aircraft leasing unit after trying for over a year, sources said. Sears is selling its 24% stake, or 8.42 mil shares, in...

NATION.(TO THE POINT)
November 4, 2002... Al-Qaida still has teeth, FBI says FBI Director Robert Mueller said the terror network has been disrupted, but is still capable of carrying out coordinated, mass casualty attacks overseas or in the U.S. Though dispersed from Afghanistan,...

WORLD.(TO THE POINT)
November 4, 2002... It's back to drawing board on Iraq A U.N. Security Council vote will be delayed beyond this week as the Bush administration, in a bid for French and Russian support, revises its resolution calling for arms inspections, Iraqi disarmament...

TRENDS & INNOVATIONS.(TO THE POINT)
November 4, 2002... Half of plant species endangered The estimate, published in this month's Nature, is much higher than those of earlier studies that don't include plants in tropical areas such as Ecuador and Colombia. The study blamed global warming and...

TRENDS & INNOVATIONS.(TO THE POINT)
November 4, 2002... ** Cars will use 13% more copper over the next four years, at least in Europe, thanks to the growing number of electronics in them, says the International Copper Association. ** Infants are more likely to die from Sudden Infant Death...

LEARN TO ANALYZE DETAILS Hone Your Presentation.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)(IBD'S 10 SECRETS TO SUCCESS)
November 4, 2002... Byline: Robin Grugal 6 Being a persuasive speaker requires much preparation. But many of us get so caught up in our material and choice of words that we overlook such things as stage setup and room temperature -- details that could...

Fenn At a Glance.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)
November 4, 2002... Fenn At a Glance Born: 1917 in New York City. Education: B.A. in chemistry from Berea College. Ph.D. in chemistry from Yale University. Achievements: ** Worked in industrial research and development at Monsanto, Sharples...

Living Well Through Chemistry; Innovate To Succeed: Fenn does esoteric research to build a better tomorrow.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)
November 4, 2002... Byline: MARILYN ALVA John Fenn gets bored quickly if tasks aren't challenging enough. Even decades ago as a child, he found the experiments in the chemistry set his parents gave him one Christmas "very dull." He preferred poring...

B2B's Alive But Keeping Private; Private Networks Reign; Firms rack up B2B sales, but large, public systems have fallen out of favor.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
November 4, 2002... Byline: MURRAY COLEMAN Three years ago, business to business seemed like the next big wave. But when big names like Ariba Inc. and Commerce One Inc. fell, so did most of the industry. At least that's the generally accepted view....

TECHBITS.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
November 4, 2002... Byline: Mike Angell and Doug Tsuruoka Verizon Set To Spend $5 Billion On Network For Data Services Networking and telecom gear makers finally may get some good news Monday. Verizon Communications Intl. is set to announce a new...

Online CD Sales Fall; Analysts Blame Rise Of File-Swapping Sites; Services Offer Songs For Free; But other factors could be at play as well, such as lack of music trend, hot artists.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
November 4, 2002... Byline: PETE BARLAS Online music sales have struck a sour note. Sales of compact discs and tapes over the Web have dropped 25% this year, says a study to be released Monday. And the trend shows no sign of slowing. Through the...

With AT&T Unit, Comcast Goes Back To Basics; Losing Basic-Service Subs; AT&T Broadband merger will create a cable giant with "a sense of urgency'.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)
November 4, 2002... Byline: REINHARDT KRAUSE After Comcast Corp. closes its deal to buy AT&T Corp.'s cable TV business, the merged company plans to go back to the basics. Basic subscribers, that is. In 2002, AT&T Broadband has lost more than 430,000...

SBC Wages Bitter Fight On "Sharing' Rules; Lobbying Lawmakers; Local Bell makes case that it must lease lines at unfairly low prices.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)(Q & A)
November 4, 2002... Byline: REINHARDT KRAUSE There aren't any known volcanoes in San Antonio. Rather, it's the local phone company based there that's spewing fire and brimstone these days. SBC Communications Inc., which dominates local service in parts of...

RENAISSANCE RE HOLDINGS Pembroke, Bermuda; Reinsurer Fattens Up On Favorable Trends.(THE NEW AMERICA)
November 4, 2002... Byline: M. SUSAN BASAS In the insurance industry, an appetite for the right risk at the right time can send business soaring. That's what RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. discovered in the past year. The Bermuda-based reinsurance firm...

COVENTRY HEALTH CARE INC. Bethesda, Maryland; Buyouts Drive Growth At Health Plan Operator.(THE NEW AMERICA)
November 4, 2002... Byline: GLORIA LAU Hospitals and employers across the U.S. are selling off their HMOs, and that's just fine by the folks at Coventry Health Care Inc. It runs a hodgepodge of health plans under a range of names, including Coventry,...

KEY FUND HOLDINGS.(MUTUAL FUNDS)
November 4, 2002... Key Fund Holdings / AAON was a top buy of Royce Low-Priced Stock Fund in its latest reporting period. Earnings rallied 20% in the September quarter after falling 4% in the June quarter. Analysts see net rising 10% this year and 17% next year....

Small Caps Led Performance In Week; Value Lapped Growth; Battered tech portfolios rose 3.07%, while utility funds rebounded 2.67%.(MUTUAL FUNDS)
November 4, 2002... Byline: DAN MOREAU A modest rally in the market during the week of Oct. 24-31 gave most funds a shot in the arm. Small-cap value funds led stock fund performance in the week, gaining 1.28%, according to Lipper Inc. data. Small-cap...

Back To Business.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)
November 4, 2002... Microsoft: A federal judge has approved most of the software maker's settlement with government antitrust crusaders. The ruling leaves the company closer to the day it can again concentrate fully on what it does best. A year has passed...

Bulls At The Gate?(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)
November 4, 2002... Political Economy: Friday's Microsoft decision and Wednesday's Fed meeting aren't the only new wrinkles that could have a big impact on the stock market. There's also an election coming up. We'll try to stay as clinical as we can here,...

LETTERS.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)
November 4, 2002... Leave Europe To The Europeans "Europe's Superstate" (Editorial, Wednesday) was definitely one-sided and ignored the difficult lessons of history. In an area smaller than the U.S., religious and national wars devastated Europe over 20...

Bad State Fiscal Performance Not Hitting Governors' Races.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(NATIONAL ISSUE)
November 4, 2002... Byline: JOSEPH GUINTO California's Gray Davis got an F for his fiscal performance last year. Florida's Jeb Bush got an A. So why is Davis handily winning his re-election bid while Bush has struggled? Well, perhaps voters don't pay...

THE REAL MOST ACTIVE Strong Gains Marred By Decline In Trade.(MAKING MONEY)
November 4, 2002... Byline: CRAIG SHAW NYSE stocks closed strong Friday as weak jobs and manufacturing data boosted rate-cut hopes, but volume lagged. The S&P 500 climbed 1.7% and the Dow industrials 1.4% on lighter trade. For the week, the S&P rose 0.4% and...

Mail-Order Business Boosts Caremark Rx.(B)(NYSE STOCKS IN THE NEWS)
November 4, 2002... Byline: Craig Shaw Caremark Rx is shaping a 26-week base after peaking at 21.95 on May 1. It's back above its 50- and 200-day averages, trading 16% off its high. The employee prescription benefit plan manager said Oct. 24 that...

Hospital Software Firm Grows Conservatively.(B)(NASDAQ STOCKS IN THE NEWS)
November 4, 2002... Byline: David Saito-Chung Computer Programs & Systems debuted on the Nasdaq in May at $17 a share and made its way to a high of 25.25, up 49%. The stock is now working on an eight-week base. The Mobile, Ala.-based firm's software helps...

THE REAL MOST ACTIVE Retailers Show Spunk As Nasdaq Ends Week Up.(B)
November 4, 2002... Byline: DAVID SAITO-CHUNG The Nasdaq rallied 2.3% Friday, closing at the session's high on heavier trade for its fourth straight up week. Pixar jumped 1.92 to a 52-week high of 52.95 on twice its average volume over the past 50...

NO TIME, NO PROBLEM.(THE SMART INVESTOR)
November 4, 2002... In just 15 minutes a day, IBD keeps you on top of the market. Scan Internet & Technology and The New America for promising companies. Then turn to the NYSE and Nasdaq Where The Big Money's Flowing. Focus on the boldfaced market-leading stocks....

Leadership Qualities Help Ward Off Trouble.(THE SMART INVESTOR)(IBD INVESTOR PROFILE)
November 4, 2002... Byline: MARILYN ALVA In his first six years in the stock market, Richard Cronin followed his broker's advice. His broker told him he should hold a stock at least two years before re-evaluating his position. But that policy didn't work...

Strong Profit Fueled Biomet's Mighty Run.(THE SMART INVESTOR)(WINNING WAYS)
November 4, 2002... Byline: KEN HOOVER The crash of Oct. 19, 1987, took 20.47% off the Dow Jones industrial average that day. It caused so much damage that it took months for stocks to form sound new bases. One of the first to do so was Biomet, a fast-growing...

Some Handles Feature Shakeouts.(A)(INVESTOR'S CORNER)
November 5, 2002... Byline: JONAH KERI As we learn every year on Halloween, everyone likes a little scare sometimes. Investors should likewise embrace a little spookiness, especially if it leads to smiles later. So what ghoulish event in a stock that...

Nasdaq Sustains Rally With A 2.6% Advance As Trading Accelerates; Despite Late Profit-Taking; Volume goes over 2.3 bil; Microsoft helps as traders relish antitrust settlement.(A)
November 5, 2002... Byline: DAVID SAITO-CHUNG The Nasdaq leapt to its best levels in two months in heavy trade Monday even as late selling trimmed gains in other key indexes. Continuing the rally that began Oct. 10, the tech-filled composite index surged...

Will Democrats' Stimulus Plans Be The Clincher At Polls Today?; Economy Is Top Issue; But their top proposals, as well as GOP's ideas, may not fly with voters.(A)(ECONOMY IN PERSPECTIVE)
November 5, 2002... Byline: JOSEPH GUINTO James Brent would rather not comment on the economics of recent economic plans offered by Democrats. Mostly because he's a political scientist at San Jose State University and not an economist. Partly it's because...

IBD'S TOP 10.(A)
November 5, 2002... Techs Lead Stocks Higher Again 1The Nasdaq surged 2.6% on sharply heavier volume. It was up as much as 4.4% until the last hour of trade. Internet, software, networking and chip stocks all paced the rally. The S&P 500 gained 0.8%, the Dow...

AFTER THE CLOSE.(TO THE POINT)
November 5, 2002... PIXAR earned 87 cents in Q3, 13 cents over views and up 625% vs. last year, due to strong "Monsters, Inc." DVD sales. It sees Q4 profit in line with views. APPLIED MATERIALS will ax 11% of its work force, or 1,750 jobs, as the chip slump...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
November 5, 2002... REGULATION SEC to hold credit rater hearings It expects top officials from major credit-rating agencies, as well as Ford and GM, to take part in public hearings Nov. 15 and Nov. 21 about the agencies' role in financial markets. Credit...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
November 5, 2002... TECHNOLOGY Flat IT spending through '03 seen A survey by Gartner and SoundView suggests U.S. corporate IT budgets will drop 0.03% next year, dampening hopes of a rebound. But some high-priority areas are set to grow: software...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
November 5, 2002... MEDICAL Anthem earnings rose 33% in Q3 The HMO earned $1.05 a share, 6 cents over views. Revenue grew 38% to $3.5 bil. Membership surged 40% to 11 mil, boosted by its buy of rival Trigon Healthcare. Anthem raised its Q4 view to...

BUSINESS BRIEFS.(TO THE POINT)
November 5, 2002... TELECOM Examiner report slams WorldCom The bankrupt telecom illegally finagled financial results beyond the $7.68 bil already being restated, said the court-appointed examiner probing its records. In a 118-page filing, former U.S....

Lee At A Glance.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)
November 5, 2002... Lee At A Glance Born: 1807 in Stratford, Va. Died: 1870 in Lexington, Va. Education: Graduated from West Point in 1829. Achievements: ** Served as superintendent of West Point, 1852-55. ** Considered one of the...

Tech group honors IBD founder.(TO THE POINT)
November 5, 2002... The AeA, the biggest high-tech trade group in the U.S., with 3,500 firms, recognized William O'Neil for key contributions to tech investing, including publishing IBD. "While we believe the market has probably hit bottom, we think based on...