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Markets & Stocks
Software, telcos top techs
March 11, 1999: 5:16 p.m. ET

Microsoft has investors guessing; Oracle off before beating the Street
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - A tame mood prevailed for most technology sector stocks Thursday, as telecom and software companies climbed atop the list of most-active issues.
     Leaving Wall Street guessing was Microsoft (MSFT), after the software giant scheduled a conference call for 5 p.m. ET to discuss how it plans to account for Office 2000, an upcoming version of its software suite.
     Microsoft recently had said it would offer coupons for a free upgrade to Office 2000 for customers who bought the older version of the product, Office 97, during the current quarter.
     Microsoft also is expected to give an update on its business during the current quarter. The shares edged up 1/16 to 161-7/16 amidst the ambiguity.
     Rival Oracle (ORCL), shed 1-1/16 to 36-7/8. After the bell on Thursday, the database management software company reported fiscal third-quarter net earnings of 20 cents a share, a penny better than analysts had expected.
     On the top of investors' minds was Bottomline Technologies (EPAY), exploding up 7-7/8 to 37-5/8, after a host of investment banks opened coverage on the stock with a "buy" rating.
     Shares of Bottomline, a provider of software used to make corporate payments, hit as high as 47-1/4 in Thursday trading.
     In the first initial public offering of an Indian firm on Wall Street was Infosys Technologies (INFY), rising to 46-7/8, up 38 percent, after its American depositary receipts priced at $34.
     On the upswing after recent troubles was 3Com (COMS), rallying 1-1/2 to 26-1/8, after the telecommunications and Palm Pilot maker and Microsoft announced an alliance to develop a line of home networking products.
    
Telecom players on the move

     Elsewhere in a cyberspace alliance was SBC Communications (SBC), rising 1-5/8 to 53-5/16, after saying it would offer high-speed Internet access to members of America Online (AOL) in seven states by the end of 1999.
     Shares of AOL, which has a similar deal with Bell Atlantic (BEL) added 15/16 to 55-1/16. Among other Baby Bells, Ameritech (AIT), which is working toward a merger with SBC, added 2-1/4 to 66-1/2. U.S. West (USW) shed 13/16 to 54-15/16; BellSouth (BLS) edged up 1/16 to 46-1/16.
    
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     Elsewhere in the telecom sector, Wall Street was looking mighty somber about Brightpoint (CELL), plunging 7-1/16, or 54 percent, to 6 after the cell-phone distributor warned its fiscal first quarter and full-year results may fall short of expectations due to problems in Asia and Latin America.
     With nearly 33 million shares changing hands, Brightpoint was the second most-active stock on the Nasdaq.
     After Brightpoint's warning, rival CellStar (CLST) said Thursday that it expects at least to meet analysts' operating earnings targets of 17 cents a share in its fiscal first quarter. But it didn't help, as CellStar shares fell 1-11/16 to 11.
     In the relatively quiet Internet space, Internet America (GEEK) blasted up 7-1/8 to 35-5/8.
     Ameri-First Securities set a $48 price target on the Texas-based Internet service provider and said it expects the ISP's subscriber base to double in 1999 and again in 2000.Back to top

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Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.