Oct 12, 1998 -- Monday Oct 13, 1998 -- Tuesday Oct 14, 1998 -- Wednesday Oct 15, 1998 -- Thursday Oct 16, 1998 -- Friday (Daily)
------------------------------
Nasdaq issues also soared with the broader market, outperforming both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index. The Nasdaq Composite Index picked up 70.04 points, or 4.55% to 1611.01, the fourth-largest one-day gain and the seventh-greatest percentage upswing for the technology- and small-cap-heavy index. The surprise Fed move helps the stock market, especially smaller growth companies, says Satya Pradhuman, director of small-cap research for Merrill Lynch in New York. "This will create a more favorable backdrop" for small-cap stocks, Mr. Pradhuman says. "The fact that they've taken action means we're closer to a floor in the relative performance of small-cap stocks." Mr. Pradhuman said small-cap growth companies on Standard & Poor's 600 small-stock index outperformed value companies and may continue to do so, thanks to the Fed's rate cut. Reno Air posted a gain of 1 1/4, or 31%, to 5 1/4. The Reno, Nev., air carrier announced third-quarter net of 78 cents a diluted share, compared with net of 39 cents a diluted share in the prior year and above the consensus view of analysts. The company also said it sees a profit for the full year, despite a large reported loss in the first quarter. Oct 19, 1998 -- Monday
---------------------
A few months ago, most companies that had grown large enough, fast enough to be IPO candidates were simply too costly for private-equity investors, large venture-capital and leveraged-buyout funds that like to purchase all or parts of companies at a discount. But the companies that didn't get their IPOs done by midsummer have had to shelve those plans amid the general flight from risky and relatively illiquid assets. So far this year, 160 companies planning to sell shares to the public for the first time have pulled back amid a badly battered market for small-cap stocks. In the third quarter alone, a record 79 IPO hopefuls postponed or withdrew their plans, says Securities Data Co., a New York data provider. That leaves private funds. Investment bankers now are shopping their former IPO candidates to private equity investors, who have a lot of spare money. Leveraged-buyout funds have raised about $85 billion in funds that they haven't invested yet, says Thomas Galvin, equity strategist at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette. In a recent report titled "Private Eyes," Mr. Galvin wrote: "If there is an eager group of investors today, it is primarily the private equity investors. . . . One can expect LBO funds to re-emerge and stir up depressed public market valuations." About 40 IPO candidates are looking for private financing as alternatives to their public offerings, traders say. Another 20 or so IPO candidates, like Tropicana and barnesandnoble.com, have turned to business combinations within their own industry. And companies that don't need the money right away will shy away from private financiers, such as Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, Blackstone Group and Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, which often bring strict ownership requirements and tight price guidelines. Those that are negotiating probably won't reach agreements for another month or more. Oct 20, 1998 -- Tuesday
-----------------------
The overall Nasdaq market was also solidly higher, and while it posted sharper gains than the broad market and blue-chip stocks, the overall Nasdaq market lagged behind the small-cap group. The Russell 2000 index of small-capitalization stocks rose 9.57, or 2.79%, to 352.45, and the Nasdaq Composite Index, at 1648.73, jumped 27.78, or 1.71%. Both indexes ended at their highest levels since Sept. 30. Ciena, a Savage, Md., telecommunications-equipment maker, shot up by 2 13/16, or 30%, to 12 1/8. The chief executive of Tellabs made comments on CNBC that indicated the two companies may try to revive their failed merger. "I would not say that [Ciena] does not" interest Tellabs, said Michael Birck. A spokesman for Ciena declined to comment. Ciena, beaten to small-cap size, is still well below its 52-week high of 92 3/8. Tellabs, a large-cap stock, rose 2 15/16, or 6.5%, to 47 7/8. October 21, 1998 -- Wednesday
-----------------------------

October 22, 1998 -- Thursday
----------------------------
The tech group got a big boost from industry heavyweights Microsoft and International Business Machines, large-cap stocks that reported their quarterly earnings late Tuesday. Both came in ahead of expectations, providing some optimism about earnings for the rest of the sector, which comprises a big chunk of the small-cap arena. The Russell 2000 index, a widely watched barometer of small-cap performance, improved 1.63, or 0.45%, to 359.94, closing with its sixth straight advance. Small-stock investors have to go back to the beginning of February to find six or more straight days of Russell 2000 gains. (The index rose 10 consecutive trading sessions from Feb. 2 to Feb. 13.) The Nasdaq Composite index gained 35.56, or 2.17%, to 1674.75 on national market volume of 796.3 million shares and total volume of 831.5 million shares, compared with 1.05 billion and 1.08 billion, respectively, on Tuesday, which was the third busiest session on Nasdaq ever.

October 23, 1998 -- Friday (Small)
--------------------------
The Russell 2000 small-cap index has posted gains on nine of the past 10 sessions, before which it had set four straight 52-week lows. The Nasdaq Composite Index has been up on eight of the past 10 trading days, after having set back-to-back 52-week lows. Clarify, a San Jose, Calif., software concern, leapt 3 9/16, or 43%, to 11 15/16. The company reported third-quarter earnings of nine cents a share, which was up from its one-cent-a-share year-earlier profit and exceeded analysts' projections. BT Alex. Brown and Adams Harkness both raised their ratings on Clarify. Avid Technology jumped 5 5/16, or 38%, to 19 5/16. The Tewksbury, Mass., provider of digital audio and video tools to the entertainment industry reported thirdquarter operating income of 30 cents a share, which was four cents below its year-earlier profit, but which sharply exceeded analysts' projections of a four-cent profit. Pipe Jaffray raised its rating on Avid to "buy" from "neutral."

Oct 26, 1998 -- Monday (small)
------------------------------
"It's quite a break from recent history," says Elizabeth Mackay, chief investment strategist at Bear Stearns. According to a recent report written by Ms. Mackay, small companies accounted for 78% of share-repurchase announcements during the third quarter, jumping from just 9% in the second quarter and 28% in the first quarter. Since July, about 950 smallcap companies have announced share-repurchasing plans, more than the total for the first half of the year. Share buybacks represent "an excellent indication of management's confidence," says Charles S. Cruice, president of Greenville Capital Management, an asset-management firm in Rockland, Del. In a letter to investors earlier this month, Mr. Cruice noted that five companies in its portfolio-health-care companies C.R. Bard and Assisted Living Concepts, hotel owner Prime Hospitality, shoe company Wolverine World Wide and electronics-design concern Synopsys-had bought back shares in recent months. "A higher percentage is buying back shares than I've seen any time in the last 10 years," says Mr. Cruice, a small-cap manager. The buying goes against normal practice for most small companies. Usually, growth companies are reluctant to buy back shares, since that amounts to an admission that they can't invest the cash more profitably in their own businesses, says Pamela Milunovich, portfolio manager of Salomon Brothers Small Cap Growth Fund. Nevertheless, Ms. Milunovich says she is "encouraging even growthy stocks to buy back shares because it puts a floor under the stock price." Several companies Ms. Milunovich talked with eventually announced share-buyback plans, including watch-maker Fossil, hospital manager Universal Health Services, and Matthews International, a maker of mausoleums and bronze memorials.

October 27, 1998 -- Tuesday (Small)
-----------------------------------
The overall Nasdaq market posted sharper gains than the small-cap market, reflecting the strength of its large-cap technology components. In addition to benefiting from the continuing rally in the technology sector, small-cap stocks were bolstered by the strength of financial-services stocks, which make up the largest industry group in the Russell 2000 small-cap index. Big Board-traded National Media, a Philadelphia infomercial concern, jumped 13/16, or 19%, to 5. National Media received shareholder approval for a transaction under which Stephen C. Lehman and his management team will acquire operational control of the company. National Media shareholders approved the sale of $20 million of newly issued shares of Series E convertible-preferred stock to an investment group led by Mr. Lehman, which comes in addition to the group's prior purchase of $10 million of Series D convertible-preferred stock in August. October 28, 1998 -- Wednesday (Small)
-------------------------------------
Yesterday's drop in the Russell 2000 small-cap index snapped a string of nine consecutive gains. The Russell 2000 fell 0.57, or 0.15%, to 371.50, after being up as much as 4.69, and the Nasdaq Composite Index, at 1717.63, dropped 7.35, or 0.43%, after posting an intraday gain of 28.53. FTI Consulting dropped 1 5/8, or 25%, to 4 13/16. The Annapolis, Md., provider of litigation-support services posted third-quarter earnings of eight cents a share, down from its year-earlier profit of 20 cents a share. Commercial Bank of New York fell 3 1/8, or 20%, to 12 5/8 after posting a third-quarter loss of six cents a share, compared with its year-earlier profit of 45 cents a share. The loss in the latest period included a writedown of 38 cents a share related to Russian and Ukrainian investments. October 29, 1998 -- Thursday (Small)
------------------------------------
October 30, 1998 -- Friday (Small)
----------------------------------