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CNNfn market movers
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March 15, 1999: 11:27 a.m. ET
Abortive mergers do nothing to help SPR and Chancellor, but Metamor gains
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Investors dazed by merger fever Monday may have been disheartened by a crowd of fresh earnings warnings lurking just beneath the glitter.
Among the day's contributions to the ever-growing sea of profit warnings, skin-care company Usana (USNA) tumbled 1-1/8 to 8-5/8 after alerting shareholders to disappointing profits ahead. Analysts had expected the company to earn 18 cents per share in the current quarter, but Usana now says it will miss that estimate by 2-3 cents per share.
Also in the warning track, Healthcare Recoveries (HCRI) tumbled 3-25/32 to 4-7/8 after news of a potentially lucrative contract with Oxford Health Plans (OXHP) did little to distract shareholders from the company's warning that current-quarter profits will fall as much as 30 percent short.
Technology consultant SPR (SPRI) blamed the millennium bug for its forecast of an operating loss ahead, pushing shares down 5-5/32, more than half their value, to 4-11/32.
The company said its corporate customers were concentrating on the Y2K bug, in which computing systems may malfunction after reading the year 2000 as "00" on Jan. 1, and as a result current-quarter revenues had been light.
"The impact of Y2K spending among our corporate client base, and the preoccupation of users and end users with testing newly-compliant systems, is causing them to delay decisions related to the services that SPR provides," said Chairman and CEO Rob Figliulo, who added that the problem had affected "all providers in the industry."
In addition, SPR said the industry conditions had caused it to terminate its pending merger with Houston-based competitor Metamor Worldwide (MMWW).
For its part, Metamor expressed confidence in meeting Wall Street earnings estimates. Shares climbed 2-5/16 to 16-7/16.
Bearish buyout buzz
Chancellor Media (AMFM) also saw the downside of calling a merger quits, sliding 3-5/16 to 41-1/16 after the billboards-and-broadcasting company backed away from a merger with privately-held LIN TV and said it will strengthen its Internet presence.
Fellow broadcaster Paxson Communications (PAX), owner of the fledgling PAX TV broadcast network, added 1/2 to 9-7/8. The company recently shook up its executive suite, while new facilities partner Gentner Communications (GTNR) added to the bullish sentiment by affirming the company as "an influential player in the broadcast industry."
"It is great to see PAX TV experiencing such tremendous growth in its first year of operation," said Steve Olsen, a Gentner division head. Gentner said last week that it will supply Paxson with automated engineering equipment as part of its upgrade of broadcasting stations.
Back on the merger side, telecom manufacturer Ciena (CIEN) was an early loser in the day's $31 billion in buyout activity, sinking 1-7/8 to 24-15/16 after telling Wall Street it will buy two closely-held sector-mates for $980 million. 
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