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(979) 775-5700
6B
Wednesday, September 4, 2002
nat
THE BATTa
Push for research oi
Wall Street is biased
Kolu
ni<
read the fine print.
THE
CLASSIFIEDS
CALL 845-0569
TO PLACE YOUR AD
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2011 A Villa Maria • Bryan, TX 77802
NEW YORK (AP) —What’s it going to take to
make Wall Street research unbiased?
Don’t expect it to come just from cutting the tics
between investment bankers and stock analy sis.
Companies have to stop punishing analysts
who give their firms even the slightest negame
review, and big institutions can’t complain over
sell ratings that analysts put on stock holdings
they have.
There’s still a long way to go
until stock research comes clean,
and that won’t happen until it’s no
longer tainted by outside influ
ences.
“The bottom line: You still
have to have some kind of cyni
cism when you read investment
research,” said Kent Womack,
associate professor of finance at
the Tuck School of Business at
Dartmouth University.
Times have sure changed for
stock analysts. During the stock
market’s boom, they had star
power. They were on television
and magazine covers. W'e knew their name
faces.
But the good times burst with the market
ble. Today, analysts’credibility is in shai
they're under fire for serious conflicts o
Too many gave rosy recommend
companies they covered so their firms coi
lucrative investment banking business
merger deals and stock offerings. And the
itive review's often came despite the fact t
businesses were crumbling, prompting unknow
ing investors to hold on when they should has
gotten out.
Merrill Lynch agreed to pay a $100 million fin
in May after its analysts were found to base puF
licly promoted stocks that they privately bat!
mouthed. Other firms are under investigation ft
the same.
With so much focus on the questionable rel.
tionship between bankers and analysts, new
lations are in place that forbids contact bet
the two sides. Now. they can’t talk busine
negative re<
No one
review, and
come out a;
64
We have had
some very angry
responses from
companies that we
have issued sell
ratings.
cto
LM !<
lhat analysts how are free to say what ihe\
Not even clo
Big chan
con
s. their
’s bub-
nbles anti
interest,
it ions of
ould w in
>s to dc
pos
it the
M.
en
L
dcC
»iiu-
any exchange of information must gt
compliance officer.
But don’t think that’s cured all the
. and
through a
problems.
*hii
:es are still needed. For m,
outinue to lash oul al analysts»■
Dinmcmlations on their stocks
in corporate America likes.
.ompanies otten chastise analsy.
ainst them.
While securities
hibiis companies from .
any news to analysis s
mftinning the general
analysts still chat ofter
corporate officers about:
thing from finances and
lions to legislation and ere
So when analysts gr
t, it s like a door slamr;
nr face.
n»c> can’t get any qir-
swered and aren’t imit
.its to factories or datrbl
niers. which help doc &
[o how a business is J||
mg any mstiiutional dr-,
hues and meet stithtog; ; r
e key to pleasing custocr
some very angry' nr\>
.it we have issued sellnts
I. director of reser
e\. which offers very is |
g sen ices. “Conipanic
lunish analysts who hr
mpnmiises their (the am.
tappened to Gerard L
•tires Logsdon when he: |
npaiiy Station Casino Us
c. he cited increasing cw:
and construction disnc
the downgrade,
ss. research director
.• rating change wasn’t 3{r
any ’s lop executives. *
immunicate with manage
”C
won’t
don’t !
•rtain
Welcome to college and financial freedom.
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iVf open a checking account
IB get a credit card
^ start credit history
Tomorrow:
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STU62-1C-08505500-AD Model/CA
St
Pr
Texa.s
least haf
are somt
mer Pre?
ing to T1
In a
students
appearec
such as'
buck" (#
urns’’ (#
dents” H
“1 thii
best cart
chemistr
tradition:
superior.
Station a
don’t ha>
nnpanies arc so sensitive ihi
he analyst to any gaihcnrp
calls relumed." McGowan^
NEWS IN BRItf
Champion skate
donate talent in
NEW YORK (AP) - *
Kerrigan and other cha'
skaters have offered theiM-
for a fund-raiser at M*-
Square Garden to raise sc
ship money and honor a
fighter lost in the ter
attacks.
The Sept. 20 event -1»
"Stars, Stripes & Skates
feature Olympic gold me-
Viktor Petrenko, silver me:
Kerrigan, bronze mefi
Timothy Goebel, and the
time U.S. national champic
team of Naomi Lang and-
Tchernyshev.
"I always got so miucn
from other people,” Kec
told The Associated Press
telephone interview frorr
home near Boston. N°*
know why I skated my s'
life — so that maybe I c 311
somebody else. You don
there alone." . ..
Melissa lelpi organize
event to recognize her <
Jonathan, whose body^
pulled from the debris °
World Trade Center on Dec
She and her friend, Tara c
got the idea from their chi
memories of skating m
Neck, N.Y., on Long Island.
Judge blocks sale
Napster to invest
SAN FRANCISCO (AP)/
Delaware bankruptcy F
Tuesday blocked the sat
Napster to its chief i nve '
Bertelsmann AG, killing 3 •
that might have revived 1
song-swapping service
legitimate business.
Judge Peter J. Walsh issue
ruling in Wilmington, Del.
Bertelsmann had soU 8.,
purchase the remains o
defunct Napster networ
an additional $8 milli 01 ! 1 ,
sinking $85 million int°
company to keep ^ a
Napster has been off l |n
more than a year. J
Copyright-infringemen
suits by several major f
labels effectively c ^ eSf [I1 -
Napster. Those record co !
nies also vigorously objed
the sale of the comp 311 "
Fii
J
Three-
gettinj
and h
Cal
pre
Catholii
side Hastir
Playboy’s
who were
Big 12.”
Mem be
protested i
tributing
patrons. It
Mary Beth
dents featu
chatted wii
featured ii
informatio
was not at
cultural joi
The pro
raphy is hi
ber of St. I
“The p
women am
[ develop a 1
Student
I Playboy si
! first ament
“Just as
! exercise ft