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CNNfn market movers
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March 3, 1999: 11:27 a.m. ET
Web brokers slip despite CSFB encouragement; Staffmark tumbles
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - The fickle eyes of Wall Street lit briefly on a number of smaller manufacturers and mergers Wednesday morning, with the Internet brokers forming one of the early focal points.
Shareholders rewarded software maker Intuit (INTU) for buying closely-held Computing Research for $200 million, pushing Intuit shares up 2-15/16 to 93-1/2. The company is a marketing partner of this Web site.
Electronics manufacturer Burr-Brown (BBRC) climbed 7/8 to 19-3/4 as Wall Street flocked to the stock's fresh "outperform" recommendation from Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, which had previously rated the stock "neutral."
Shares of Concentra Managed Care (CCMC) jumped 3-3/16 to 14-13/16 after agreeing to a $1.1 billion buyout offer from privately-held investors Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe.
Online computer store Cyberian Outpost (COOL) found investors applauding its advance announcement of leaping revenue in the current quarter, pushing shares up 6-1/2 to 22-5/8.
Money online
Shares of online brokers reeled, spinning on speculation that PaineWebber 's (PWJ) stake in Internet financial data provider Kingland Cos. Ltd. could herald the massive brokerage's arrival in the Web trading field.
E*Trade (EGRP) sank 1-1/8 to 46-5/8 and Ameritrade (AMTD) fell 11/16 to 45-15/16, retreating from the hint of renewed competition as investors ignored encouraging words from Credit Suisse First Boston analyst Bill Burnham.
Burnham said "higher-than-expected trading volumes" would cause both companies to earn more than previously expected in 1999. He now expects E*Trade to report a narrowing loss of 26 cents per share in the year, from his previous estimate of 28 cents, while Ameritrade might show a per-share profit of 21 cents instead of his previous estimate of a 5 cent loss.
Sins against capitalism
Staffmark (STAF) shares tumbled 4 to 8-7/16, falling in investor-imposed penance for the personnel company's confession of weak first-quarter profits ahead. Both Interstate/Johnson and Stephens Inc. downgraded the stock to "neutral."
Wall Street also chastised networker Microtest (MTST) for coming up short, knocking shares down 3/4 to 2-1/4 after the company reported a fourth-quarter loss of 12 cents per share while analysts had expected a 6 cent per-share loss.
Classroom builder Modtech Holdings (MODTD) fell 4-7/8 to 9-9/16 on similarly disappointing earnings in a "difficult" quarter. The company had previously warned investors that orders had slowed due to tardy passage of the California state budget, which in turn delayed allocation of about $25 million in funds. 
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