Davidson 99 Northwest Stock Index to Measure Regional Economy; New Stock Index Illustrates Economic Performance of Greater Northwest and Northern Rocky Mountain Regions.

Business Editors

GREAT FALLS, Mont.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 12, 2004

D.A. Davidson & Co., the largest full-service investment firm based in the greater Northwest and northern Rocky Mountains, today announced it has created a new stock index designed to reflect the broad performance of companies based in these regions. The "Davidson 99 Regional Stock Index" is comprised of 99 stocks from companies operating within seven states in the greater Northwest and Rocky Mountain regions, including Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

"We are pleased to be able to provide investors, media and analysts with a unique and comprehensive measure of how these regions are performing in the marketplace," said Ian B. Davidson, chairman of Davidson Companies and D.A. Davidson & Co. "As a leading investment firm in the region, we believe that this newly created index, which covers broader trends than most local stock indices, will help to more accurately represent these regions and their economic viability."

The securities included in the index were selected based on the companies' market capitalization, importance within their sectors and importance within the states they represent. Approximately 20 percent of the index weighting comes from industrial goods producers, basic materials companies and energy companies, three sectors that are considered important economic drivers in the greater Northwest region. Other major sector contributors to the index include consumer stocks (20 percent), financial institutions (16 percent) and technology stocks (15 percent). Of the 99 companies included in the index, 41 are representative of Washington, 20 of Oregon, 12 of Utah, 11 of Colorado, nine of Idaho, four of Montana and two of Wyoming.

"Interestingly, over the past year, the Davidson 99 Regional Index outperformed the Dow Jones Industrial Average by nearly 20 percent, pointing to a stronger economic base in these regions than generally recognized by individual investors," said Fred Dickson, senior vice president and chief market strategist for D.A. Davidson. "Moving forward, it will be interesting to monitor this index's performance as a measure of how the broader economy is faring in these regions."

The closing price for the Davidson 99 Regional Index will be published daily at www.dadavidson.com, along with commentary from D.A. Davidson's Retail Investment Strategy Team on the performance of the Index and consequent implications regarding the economic health of these regions. 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 component in the index is determined daily after 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 is set to a base value of 100 on Dec. 31, 2003(Note).

About D.A. Davidson & Co.

Founded in 1935, D.A. Davidson & Co. is an independently owned, full-service investment firm with offices in eight states. D.A. Davidson & Co. is owned by Davidson Companies, a financial services holding company based in Great Falls, Montana. Also part of Davidson Companies are Davidson Trust Co., a wealth management and trust operation; Davidson Investment Advisors, a professional money management firm; and Davidson Travel, a full-service travel agency.

NOTE: Shares in the Davidson 99 Regional Stock Index cannot be bought or sold, and the companies included in the index may or may not be covered by Davidson Companies' research team.