57.5% Return on Stock Performance by Sterling Financial For Year-End 2001; Company Featured in Business Week.

Business & Biotech Editors

BOCA RATON, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 28, 2002

Sterling Financial Investment Group, a Boca Raton-based investment banking company and one of the nation's premier minority owned (Hispanic) financial services organizations with 56 offices in 10 countries that specializes in the healthcare and biotech sectors, reports that its combined average return on stock performance recommendations for the year-ended 2001 was 57.5%.(a) This follows a 93.8% return for 2000.

Of the 52 companies covered by Sterling Research, 60% were "shorts." Sterling Financial issued 21 "buy" and 31 "sell" recommendations. Sterling's "buy" recommendations yielded a 30.7% return, while its "sell" recommendations resulted in a 75.6% return -- combined average, 57.5%. By comparison, the Biotech Index for 2001 ended down 5.0%; the 2001 Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 7.1%, the Nasdaq composite was down 21% and the S&P 500 down 13%.

Sterling's "tell it like it is" attitude caught the attention of Business Week magazine. In the January 28, 2002, issue of Business Week, Sterling Financial is featured in an article about Andrx (ADRX), entitled "Andrx: Is Wall Street Blinded by Love?"

Sterling's Research Department is led by Robert Wasserman, named by the Wall Street Journal in 2000 as the nation's top healthcare analyst, and its Institutional Equity Sales Department is led by Steven Kirsch, who joined Sterling two years ago and who was formerly a Senior Managing Director of Bear Stearns Corp. and one of their youngest partners. Sterling's Chief Market Strategist, John Curry, in March 2000 made national financial news headlines when he accurately called the NASDAQ market sell off on CNBC. On a daily basis Curry's market research is followed by more than 100 foreign and domestic banks, dealerships, hedge funds and insurance companies, and the fixed income trading desk transacts over $4 billion per month in fixed income securities.

To learn more about Sterling Financial Investment Group visit the company's website: http://www.mysterling.com.

(a) The above calculations of return are based upon the assumption of equal dollar purchases or sales of the securities recommended for purchase or sale on the date of such recommendations and the closing of such position on the date of withdrawal of the recommendation, or if the recommendation was not withdrawn the position being maintained until December 31st. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. For a list of all Sterling Financial recommendations contact Jeff Mustard at 954/801-8263 or email [e-mail].