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COPYRIGHT 2004 FDCH e-media
Original Source: THE MONEY GANG
ALI VELSHI, CNNfn ANCHOR, THE MONEY GANG: Welcome back.
Hey Greg.
GREG CLARKIN, CNNfn STOCKS EDITOR: Hey guys.
VELSHI: What is going on?
CLARKIN: Not to much. How is everything?
You know what today is?
VELSHI: What?
CLARKIN: The last day of the month. The last Friday of October.
VELSHI: My birthday, right.
PAT KIERNAN, CNNfn ANCHOR, THE MONEY GANG: It`s Ali`s birthday -
CLARKIN: Did you know it`s my birthday?
KIERNAN: The 75th anniversary of the big crash and we started the week for the Dow -
CLARKIN: Those events aren`t tied or linked at all.
VELSHI: No they are all unrelated things.
KIERNAN: The Dow started the week at 9757. Here`s where it is now.
VELSHI: It started the month at 10,080. Probably lower for the month, higher for the week. But you never know, still have 90 minutes left to go. Now about the Nasdaq?
CLARKIN: The Nasdaq started the week at 1915. Now we are looking at 1969. You know, not bad for the week.
KIERNAN: That`s been better.
CLARKIN: Yes.
We talked a lot about Merck [Company: Merck & Co. Inc.; Ticker: MRK ; URL: http://www.merck.com/] and Vioxx. These guys have a drug I believe it`s -
KIERNAN: It`s another of the Cox 2 inhibitors in the drug family.
CLARKIN: Yes.
KIERNAN: But this one doesn`t have negative test results that anyone`s aware of.
CLARKIN: And it was supposed to be or their planning on it being a successor to Vioxx. The FDA saying it needs more data before it will approve this drug. The move was somewhat expected. The stock actually had been trading a few pennies higher on the relief that the FDA didn`t have something more severe to say or you know, kill it entirely, you know the worst case scenario. But the stock, you know, little changed. The feeling is maybe they`ll give them the data that they need for it.
KIERNAN: This drug is in wide use. About 48 countries I think I read this morning.
VELSHI: Yes. Canada uses it too. It`s approved in Canada.
CLARKIN: There you go.
VELSHI: There you go. That`s a good start.
Clear Channel Communications [Company: Clear Channel Communications Inc.; Ticker: CCU ; URL: http://www.clearchannel.com/]. Pat, you are an old radio guy.
KIERNAN: Yes.
VELSHI: This is, of course, a radio giant. Also one of the world`s largest outdoor advertising companies coming in with results, Q3 results. Forty four cents a share. Forty three cents was the estimate. Year ago, came it at 38 cents. Revenue was up 4 percent to $2.6 billion. Why?
KIERNAN: Don`t know.
CLARKIN: Advertising.
VELSHI: Yes. Good one. Concerts.
CLARKIN: I was going to say these guys are big concert promoters.
KIERNAN: They`ll say at the end of the ad for the concert which typically runs on the radio on the Clear Channel Station .
VELSHI: Right, right, that`s exactly right.
KIERNAN: They`ll say promoted by Clear Channel entertainment or something like that.
VELSHI: Concerts have become larger than operations as a source of revenue.
CLARKIN: Wow. I think they actually have the venues themselves if I recall.
VELSHI: Radio? The radio revenue is actually flat. Hurt by weakness in advertising. Cars and telecom are big advertisers for them and there was some pull back in that. These guys are making money on concerts.
CLARKIN: You know all those guys playing in concerts have to stay somewhere.
VELSHI: And they choose Choice Hotels [Company: Choice Hotels International Inc.; Ticker: CHH; URL: http://www.choicehotels.com/], Greg.
CLARKIN: Comfort Inn -
KIERNAN: I thought they stated in those motor homes. Those fancy motor homes.
VELSHI: That`s` true actually.
(CROSSTALK)
CLARKIN: Sleep Inn. EconoLodge.
KIERNAN: Except for the end there -
VELSHI: A drop today?
CLARKIN: Yes. A little problem with cost, apparently. Costs are rising. They had a pretty good earnings report but they cited rising costs. J.P. Morgan downgraded, their looking at slower growth in 2005. Morgan is saying that the company is ahead of itself. In that case, you have to stop and let the company catch up to itself. And that`s what investors are doing today, down 15 percent.
KIERNAN: This is -- this is one of the charts that you get greedy on. Because -
VELSHI: Are you talking about the chart that we just had on?
KIERNAN: Yes.
VELSHI: The Choice Hotels?
KIERNAN: My point was it`s going up and up and up.
VELSHI: So you are thinking, why bust a good thing?
KIERNAN: Right. Then you get caught on something like this.
CLARKIN: Or 16 percent.
VELSHI: Interesting story, though.
CLARKIN: Look at that. From...
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