tracking image #BusinessWeek: INVESTOR BusinessWeek magazine: The most-read source of global business news SEARCH SITE ____________________ Submit Advanced Search BusinessWeek Channels : BW Magazine, Daily Briefing, Investing, Asia, Europe, Technology, Autos, Innovation, Small Business, B-Schools and Careers Friday, October 20, 2006 =Subscribers Only Markets Stocks Funds Sectors Economy & Bonds Europe Investing Columns Glossary Newsletter Sign-Up PREMIUM CONTENT MBA Insider BW MAGAZINE Get Four Free Issues Register Subscribe Customer Service ONLINE FEATURES Book Reviews BW Video Columnists Interactive Gallery Newsletters Past Covers Philanthropy Podcasts Special Reports BLOGS Auto Beat Bangalore Tigers Blogspotting Brand New Day Byte of the Apple Deal Flow Economics Unbound Fine On Media Hot Property Investing Insights New Tech in Asia NussbaumOnDesign Tech Beat Working Parents TECHNOLOGY J.D. Power Ratings Product Reviews Tech Stats Wildstrom: Tech Maven AUTOS Home Page Auto Reviews Classic Cars Car Care & Safety Hybrids INNOVATION & DESIGN Home Page Architecture Brand Equity Auto Design Game Room SMALLBIZ Smart Answers Success Stories Today's Tip INVESTING Investing: Europe Annual Reports BW 50 S&P Picks & Pans Stock Screeners Free S&P Stock Report SCOREBOARDS Hot Growth 100 Mutual Funds Info Tech 100 S&P 500 B-SCHOOLS Undergrad Programs MBA Blogs MBA Profiles MBA Rankings Who's Hiring Grads BW EXTRAS BW Digital BW Mobile BW Online Alerts Dashboard Widgets Podcasts RSS RSS Feeds RSS Reprints/ Permissions Conferences Research Services Investing [sandp.gif] HIGH & LOW Has Korn/Ferry Hit the Ceiling? The employee-search outfit's stock hit its highest level since 2001, but some analysts think the climb may be nearing an end STOCKS IN THE NEWS Slower Housing Puts a Dent in Caterpillar Long a Wall Street darling and economic bellwether, the equipment maker sees a leaner 2007 and its shares plummet Friday STOCKS IN THE NEWS Pricing Worries Hit SanDisk Analysts fear a price war is brewing for the memory product maker, sending the stock down MARKET SNAPSHOT Stocks Drift amid Caterpillar, Google The Dow again closed above 12,000 despite Caterpillar's reduced full-year forecast. Earnings from Google, Merck, and 3M topped analyst estimates S&P STOCK PICKS AND PANS o From S&P S&P Cuts VeriSign to Strong Sell Analyst Scott Kessler cited the company's third quarter. Plus: opinions on United Health Services, VF Corp, and more FEATURED SPECIAL REPORT >> Investing Survival Guide: Preparing for Aging Parents Slide Shows Gadgets That Keep an Eye on Seniors Gadgets That Keep an Eye on Seniors Life Expectancy: The Best and Worst Places Life Expectancy: The Best and Worst Places Tip Sheet Tip Sheet: Making Eldercare Less Stressful Making Eldercare Less Stressful Making Your Parents' Golden Years Shine Dealing with the vicissitudes of old age can be challenging. But there's lots you can do, including Rule No. 1: Be prepared Strategies for the "Sandwich Generation" Caught between responsibilities for older parentsand kids? Here are tips from financial pros on how not to get squeezed Eldercare: Making the Best Choice Planning for Long-Term Care Getting Your Parents' Finances in Order "License To Steal" From Seniors READER COMMENTS > MORE SPECIAL REPORTS > MARKET MOVERS o From S&P Caterpillar Disappoints Market With Quarterly Results Merck posts weaker earnings; plus more stocks in the news Friday STOCK SCREENS o From S&P Where S&P Bucks Conventional Wisdom This week's screen hunts for stocks with high S&P ratings--and a big thumbs down from Wall Street THE WEEK AHEAD Vital Signs: Sit Back and Relax With the economy slowing as expected, the Fed will probably keep rates steady Wednesday. Also on tap: third-quarter gross domestic product and new and existing home sales S&P RATINGS NEWS o From S&P S&P Delivers a Downgrade, Italian-Style The rating agency cut its long-term sovereign rating on Italy to A+, citing the country's "inadequate" response to fiscal imbalances [bw_rule.gif] HEADLINES FROM October 19 STOCKS IN THE NEWS Dell Loses Its PC Lead Investors sold the stock Thursday on news that rival HP shipped more PCs in the third quarter STOCKS IN THE NEWS Street Spanks AMD on Profit Worries The shares tumbled Thursday after the chipmaker reported that profit margins slid in the third quarter STOCKS IN THE NEWS Street Turns Sour on Hershey Shares Investors sold the candy maker's stock after it announced lower-than-expected third quarter sales growth S&P STOCK PICKS AND PANS o From S&P S&P Cuts Lilly to Hold Plus: Analyst opinions on Bank of America, Juniper Networks, and more NEWS ANALYSIS An ETF Ventures Into Private Equity But the planned PowerShares Listed Private Equity Portfolio raises some red flags for individual investors [bw_rule.gif] HEADLINES FROM October 18 FIVE FOR THE MONEY Hungry for High Yields Investors aiming for retirement can earn market-beating returns from preferred stocks. But they're volatile, so weigh the risks carefully INVESTING The Ties UnitedHealth Failed to Disclose For years, the health insurer didn't tell investors about personal and financial links between its former CEO and the "independent" director in charge of compensation ECONOMIC FOCUS -- FROM ACTION ECONOMICS Inflation Fears and Housing The latest economic data show good news in rising housing starts and falling energy prices. But inflation trends remain worrisome TOP NEWS The Merc and the CBOT: Together at Last After several attempts, the two exchanges have finally ironed out a merger agreement. Will shareholders and regulators sign off? SAM STOVALL'S SECTOR WATCH o From S&P Waste Services: Cash from Trash? With volumes growing and price hikes sticking, S&P is upbeat about the industry. Its top pick: Republic Services S&P STOCK PICKS AND PANS o From S&P S&P Cuts Boston Scientific to Strong Sell Plus: Analyst opinions on Novartis, St. Jude Medical, and Restoration Hardware STOCKS IN THE NEWS Wall Street Sweetens View on IBM Analysts upped forecasts on the tech giant after it reported double-digit earnings growth for the third quarter STOCKS IN THE NEWS A Harsh Lesson for Apollo Group The for-profit education company's stock plunged Wednesday after it reported further slowing in enrollment growth STOCKS IN THE NEWS Stanley Steams Ahead in IPO The information technology services company is benefiting from increased government security spending STOCKS IN THE NEWS Investors Shrug Off JP Morgan's Solid Showing Shares declined Wednesday despite the financial giant's better-than-expected profit. One analyst expressed caution on increasing credit pressure [bw_rule.gif] HEADLINES FROM October 17 FUND INVESTOR : FUND INSIGHT o From S&P Hedge Funds: Still Risky Business In the wake of Amaranth, S&P finds that certain investment practices still could undermine the new controls put on funds S&P STOCK PICKS AND PANS o From S&P S&P Cuts Corning to Sell Plus: Analyst opinions on Johnson & Johnson, U.S. Bancorp, Office Depot, and more STOCKS IN THE NEWS Icahn Takes a Seat at Lear Shares of the struggling auto parts oufit surged Tuesday after the billionaire investor bought $200 million of its stock STOCKS IN THE NEWS Callaway Golf Lands in the Rough Investors dumped the shares Tuesday after the company announced subpar sales for Top-Flite and Hogan products STOCKS IN THE NEWS Lilly Boosts Its Bet on Cialis The Big Pharma stalwart's $2.1 billion purchase of biotech ICOS will give it full ownership of the erectile-dysfunction drug [bw_rule.gif] HEADLINES FROM October 16 NEWS ANALYSIS High Hopes Abound for High Tech There's plenty of optimism for heavyweights, including Apple, Motorola, and Google, as earnings season gets into full swing STOCK SCREENS o From S&P Eight High-Quality Dividend Plays S&P points out that quality does count. They screened for stability, growth, and dividends to provide this list of superior issues STOCKS IN THE NEWS Intel Gains ahead of Earnings Report Investors bid the shares higher Monday amid press reports of upbeat forecasts by company execs STOCKS IN THE NEWS Investors Tickled By Mattel's Results The shares gained Monday after the company said quarterly earnings were goosed by sales the new T.M.X. Elmo and other products S&P STOCK PICKS AND PANS o From S&P S&P Boosts Pulte Homes Also: Analyst opinions on JLG Industries, Liz Claiborne, China Life Insurance, and more [bw_rule.gif] HEADLINES FROM October 15 INVESTING SURVIVAL GUIDE Preparing for Aging Parents Dealing with the vicissitudes of old age can be challenging. But there's lots you can do, including Rule No. 1: Be prepared BW MALL SPONSORED LINKS * Invest in Futures and Commodities Online Find a trusted investment broker for Futures and Commodities trading. Get real-time market news, data and quotes with dedicated client service. Open your account and start trading today. * Costa Rica Real Estate at Pre-Development Pricing For a very limited time, pre-development pricing is being offered on oversized estate home sites on the Central Pacific Coast of Costa Rica with spectacular ocean, mountain and river views. Register to receive your free information package and DVD. * 3 Stealth Stocks Ready to Soar Sleep Easy with this Free Stock Report from the legendary advisor Dennis Slothower. Discover 3 undervalued companies with strong fundamentals, but are being ignored by Wall St. * Learn to Trade CBOT Ag Products Sign up for this NEW book from the CBOT "An Introduction To Trading CBOT Agricultural Futures and Options". Learn the online trading of Agricultural products side-by-side with the floor traders. * Electronic Grain Futures Grain Futures have gone electronic. Finally a bumper crop for day traders. Sign up today and test drive the real time grains demo! Buy a link now! Interactive Report [0928_stockreport.gif] Buy, Sell or Hold? Our new enhanced reports from S&P make it easy to get key info and recommendations Report for: Google MUTUAL FUNDS Find The Best Funds We did the work, and you get the results: Our Mutual Fund Scoreboard is all you need Investing: Europe [euro_invest2.jpg] Insights on Europe More investing news and analysis provided by BusinessWeek, Standard & Poor's, and others S&P Insights S&P STOCK REPORT Altria Group Today's FREE S&P Stock Report STOCK SCREENS Where S&P Bucks Conventional Wisdom This week's screen hunts for stocks with high S&P ratings--and a big thumbs down from Wall Street FOCUS STOCK . Wachovia: Bigger and Still Sound Following recent acquisitions, Wachovia is the fourth-largest bank in the U.S. S&P sees an undervalued leader with a solid future S&P COLUMNS Mark Arbeter Industry in Focus Tech Knowledge INSIDE WALL STREET A Legg Up Soon Hare-Pressed at Presstek Sonus: Far from the Biotech Doldrums BW VIDEO [c99c4178a43bf79d16bf2c79207ddbc8b8d3a640.jpg] Recession on the Horizon? An inverted yield curve and other trends in the economy and stock market are signaling a recession sometime in 2007, according to Hugh Moore. His advice: stay defensive o More Video Views [bw_rule.gif] Advertising | Special Sections | MarketPlace | Knowledge Centers Terms of Use | Privacy Notice | Ethics Code | Contact Us McGraw-Hill Cos. Copyright 2000- 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved. TODAY'S MOST POPULAR STORIES 1. A Superhero Suit for Athletes 2. What the Boss Drives 3. The Best B-Schools Of 2006 4. Is That a Virtuous Cycle at Cisco? 5. Where Housing Prices Will Fall the Most Get Free RSS Feed >> MARKET INFO DJIA 12002.37 -9.40 S&P 500 1368.60 +1.64 Nasdaq 2342.30 +1.36 ____________________ go Stocks Drift amid Caterpillar, Google Create / Check Portfolio Launch Popup Ticker