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CNNfn market movers
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March 15, 1999: 2:12 p.m. ET
Brokers make great strides but profit warnings keep Usana, Meritage subdued
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Bull or bear, some of Monday's big beneficiaries of Wall Street's push toward Dow 10,000 were the brokers themselves, with Internet and discount brokers in particular rallying in celebration of high trading volumes and fees.
Charles Schwab (SCH) climbed 2-15/16 to 86-15/16 after the company, the world's largest discount broker, said higher trading activity would lead it to report surprisingly good profits for the current quarter.
Financial Service Analytics securities analyst Michael Flanagan said Schwab's good fortune is "almost directly related" to its Internet stock trading, but warned that the surging activity was unlikely to last.
"Day traders have been trading at a frantic pace as the Dow approached 10,000," he said. "This level and volume cannot be expected to last."
In the meantime, other e-brokers rose on Schwab's slipstream. E*Trade (EGRP) climbed 2-9/16 to 53-3/8 and Ameritrade (AMTD) jumped 2-11/16 to 52-3/8, while National Discount Brokers (NDB) added 2-3/16 to 25-15/16.
The losing side of the Street
Among the day's contributions to the ever-growing sea of profit warnings, construction firm Meritage (MTH) blamed slow real-estate closings in Arizona for an upcoming earnings shortfall, plunging 1-1/2 to 11-3/16. However, the company noted that profits in succeeding quarters will be higher than earlier expected as the properties finally sell.
Also in the warning track, skin-care company Usana (USNA) tumbled 13/16 to 8-15/16 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.
Healthcare Recoveries (HCRI) sank 4-11/32 to 4-5/16. News of a potentially lucrative contract with Oxford Health Plans (OXHP) did little to distract shareholders from the insurance-collection company's warning that current-quarter profits will fall as much as 30 percent short.
Losing in the ratings game, freight broker Expeditors International of Washington (EXPD) slid 7/8 to 50-5/8 after BT Alex. Brown knocked its "buy" rating to "market perform," while MedPartners (MDM) extended its losses, tumbling 1-9/16 to 3-1/4 after USB Piper Jaffray took away its "strong buy" recommendation on that stock.
The session's most dramatic downturn came from technology consultant SPR (SPRI), which fell 4-9/16, nearly half its value, to 4-15/16 after the company blamed the millennium bug for its forecast of an operating loss ahead.
One-time SPR merger partner Metamor Worldwide (MMWW) expressed confidence in meeting Wall Street earnings estimates and was rewarded, with shares climbing 2-3/8 to 16-1/2.
Buyouts for both bulls and bears
Like SPR, Chancellor Media (AMFM) saw the downside of calling a merger quits, sliding 9/16 to 43-15/16 after the billboards-and-broadcasting company backed away from a merger with privately-held LIN TV.
Telecom manufacturer Ciena (CIEN) was another loser in the day's $31 billion merger morning, sinking 1-7/8 to 24-15/16 after telling Wall Street it will buy two closely-held sector-mates for $980 million.
On the bullish side, Haskel International (HSKL) surged 2-5/8 to 11-11/16 after accepting a $72.8 million buyout offer from a private investment firm, while Internet portal Go2Net (GNET) leapt 14-3/8 to 101-3/8 thanks to a $600 million takeover play from Microsoft (MSFT) co-founder Paul Allen's Vulcan Ventures.
Amid smaller Internet team-ups, shares of fax-to-email company eFax (EFAX) climbed 7-3/16 to 19-15/16 after the company joined a service alliance with Web page provider Xoom.com (XMCM). The agreement, which will give Xoom members free Internet fax access, helped push Xoom shares up 2-1/2 to 69-1/2. 
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