Davidson 99 Index Finishes Another Exceptional Year; Regional Index Continues to Outperform Dow Jones, S&P Indices.

GREAT FALLS, Mont. -- D.A. Davidson & Co., the largest full-service investment firm based in the Northwest, today announced that the Davidson 99 Regional Stock Index gained 7.2 percent for 2005, outperforming both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 by 7.8 and 4.2 percentage points, respectively.

This marks the second consecutive year that the Davidson 99, made up of 99 stocks from companies in the Northwest and Rocky Mountain regions, has outperformed the nation's leading indices. Since the Davidson 99 was launched January 1, 2004, the index has risen 28.8 percent.

"A significant number of Davidson 99 regional companies posted strong gains during the quarter as investors focused primarily on technology and telecommunications companies that struggled earlier in the year, and basic materials companies that delivered substantially better-than-expected earnings," said Fred Dickson, D.A. Davidson's chief market strategist. "We continue to see solid performance by the Davidson 99 Regional Index -- evidence that the diversified economic base in the Northwest quadrant of the country continues to be strong and growing faster than the national economy."

For the year, the Davidson 99 company with the greatest percentage gain is aQuantive, Inc., an internet applications company, up 182 percent. The worst performer was Cray Inc. with a 71 percent drop. Cray was hurt by company-specific factors, Dickson said. Nineteen stocks gained more than 25 percent for the year, while fourteen stocks lost more than 25 percent.

Ten stocks in the Davidson 99 ended the last quarter of 2005 with gains of more than 25 percent. One Davidson 99 stock dropped more than 25 percent in the final quarter.

The Davidson 99 was launched January 1, 2004. It is comprised of 99 stocks from companies operating within seven Northwest and Rocky Mountain states, including Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. The securities were selected based on market capitalization, importance within their sectors and importance in the states they represent. All 10 major market sectors are represented, showing the diversification of the region's companies.

The Davidson 99 Regional Index is published daily at www.dadavidson.com, along with commentary from D.A. Davidson's Private Client Research Team. The index is price-weighted, or calculated in the same manner as the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the world's most widely followed stock index. The closing price of each index component is determined daily at the markets' close, and the values are summed and compared with the value set on Dec. 31, 2003, then adjusted for stock splits and mergers. The index was set to a base value of 100 on Dec. 31, 2003.

About D.A. Davidson & Co.

Founded in 1935, D.A. Davidson & Co. is an independently owned, full-service investment firm based in Montana. D.A. Davidson & Co. is owned by Davidson Companies, one of the nation's leading financial services holding companies. Also part of Davidson Companies are Davidson Trust Co., a wealth management and trust company; Davidson Investment Advisors, a professional money management firm; Kirkpatrick Pettis Capital Management, Inc., a registered investment adviser providing fixed income services; and Davidson Travel, a full-service travel agency.

Shares in the Davidson 99 Regional Stock Index cannot be bought or sold, and companies included in the index may or may not be covered by D.A. Davidson's research team. Information regarding the national indices referred above can be obtained at www.dadavidson.com or by contacting a local D.A. Davidson office.