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UbiquiTel debut a dud
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June 7, 2000: 6:05 p.m. ET
Stock price of provider of Sprint wireless services dips on debut
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - UbiquiTel Inc., a provider of Sprint wireless personal communication services, dropped nearly 4 percent after its initial public offering, signifying a slowdown in the once mighty wireless IPO market.
UbiquiTel, of Bala Cynwyd, Pa., opened below its offer price at 7-31/32 and closed down 5/16, or 3.9 percent, at 7-11/16.
Analysts said the wireless IPO market is still trying to digest the deal from AT&T Wireless (AWE: Research, Estimates), the largest IPO ever that on April 27 raised $10.6 billion. AWE is also trading as a so-called "broken deal," or an IPO that is trading below its pricing figure. In Wednesday trading, AT&T Wireless fell 1/2 to stand at 28.
"The AT&T deal was a turning point," said Corey Ostman, co-chief executive of Alert-Ipo.com, a research Web site in Los Angeles. "The market can't absorb any more wireless deals. There have been so many wireless deals gone public it's like 'Guys, take a break.'"
 UbiquiTel is the latest in a series of unspectacular IPOs. On May 19, US Unwired (UNWR: Research, Estimates) opened and remained nearly flat in its market debut, closing at 11-1/16 after pricing eight million shares at $11 each. In Wednesday trading, US Unwired stock rose 1/4 to 13 on Nasdaq.
UbiquiTel (UPCS: Research, Estimates) raised $100 million after pricing 12.5 million shares at $8 each through underwriters led by Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette. The deal was cut to 14.5 million shares at $8-to-$10 from the originally filed $12-to-$14 a share.
As an affiliate of Sprint (PCS: Research, Estimates), the company provides digital and PCS services under the Sprint and Sprint PCS brand name to four midsize and smaller markets in the western and midwestern United States. Its coverage includes portions of California, Nevada, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Utah, Indiana, and Kentucky, servicing about 9,000 subscribers.
For the three months ended March 31, the company reported losses of $953,000 on revenue of $69,000. 
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Sprint PCS
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