Stocks Slip; Brokers Bounce

Stocks are heading for a soft open ahead of the index of leading economic
indicators which is due out at 10:00 AM ET. Estimates look for a 0.1% increase in the
index.

The Dow futures are down 25 points, and the Nasdaq futures are down 13.50
points.

The S&Ps look to open 4.80 points lower while the yield on the 10-year
Treasury has edged up to 5.83%.

Wednesday Action

After soaring 24% to 84 on Tuesday, DLJ
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DLJ |
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is trading above 85 on
Instinet following news that CS First Boston will buy the broker/dealer for $90
per share. The DLJ deal will likely power interest in the broker/dealer group
again Wednesday.

Liberate Technologies
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gained 4 1/8 to 24 7/16 on Tuesday and is looking for
a higher open Wednesday following news that BellSouth
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will use
Liberate’s software for its interactive television product. Liberate is
currently trading up to 26 1/4 in pre-market activity.

Geron Corp.
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GERN |
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PowerRating)
is trading sharply higher after news Tuesday that it
has discovered an enzyme that could potentially be used to fight cancer. Geron
closed Tuesday up 5/16 to 28 7/8 and is currently trading up to 37 1/4 in
pre-market activity.

Tuesday Follow-up

Comverse Technology
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CMVT |
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PowerRating)
earned 36 cents per share for its second
quarter, beating First Call/Thomson Financial estimates by 2 cents. Comverse
closed Tuesday at 89 11/16 and is trading down slightly to 89 5/8 in pre-market
activity.

Amazon
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PowerRating)
gained 1/2 to 39 5/8 on Tuesday after announcing an online
marketing alliance with AOL
(
AOL |
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PowerRating)
. Amazon is currently trading up to 42 1/8
in Wednesday pre-market activity.

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