MarketWatch Celebrates the 25th Anniversary of The Hulbert Financial Digest; Unique Publication Has Tracked the Performance of More Than 180 Stock and Mutual-Fund Investment Newsletters Over 25 Years in a Changing Market.

NEW YORK -- MarketWatch, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Dow Jones & Company, celebrates the 25th anniversary of The Hulbert Financial Digest (HFD)--the only publication providing tracking and analysis of all facets of investment newsletters' model portfolios. MarketWatch acquired HFD, its first paid subscription newsletter, in April 2002.

The Hulbert Financial Digest occupies a distinct niche in the world of business information, providing comprehensive analysis of investment newsletters, whose writers can move markets and are often described as the cowboys of investment analysis.

HFD tracks more than 180 stock and mutual-fund investment letters, offering the most comprehensive database in the industry. HFD is delivered online as well as in print. Readers also can subscribe to Hulbert Interactive, which gives users online access to HFD's extensive database.

"The Hulbert Financial Digest has tracked newsletters over the past 25 years as the investment environment, and newsletters themselves, have undergone tremendous change," said Mark Hulbert, editor and founder of The Hulbert Financial Digest. "The year we started, the Nasdaq Composite Index was at 157.8 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 867.92. And it was only a year or two prior to 1980 that individuals were allowed to even invest in money market funds. Today, many more people are participating in the market. They want to be more involved in managing investments and need someone to help them. As a result, we've seen a dramatic increase in the number of market newsletters we follow." (HFD tracks six times more newsletters today than it did at its debut.)

Mr. Hulbert continued, "Investment newsletters form an industry filled with remarkable personalities. Writers of market letters and their followings are passionately devoted to their investment approaches. The Hulbert Financial Digest cuts through the hype and singles out the newsletters whose portfolios are the best performers. Our newer product, Hulbert Interactive, also enables users to evaluate individual stocks and funds based on the collective ratings of all major newsletters."

During the past 25 years, HFD has tracked newsletters representing a full range of approaches, from The Elliot Wave Theorist to the Granville Market Letter. Many so-called hot newsletters have come and gone, while others have become investor mainstays. According to Mr. Hulbert, the top five newsletter performers that have achieved the greatest rate of return--not adjusted for risk--during the past 25 years are:

--The Prudent Speculator--17.9% gain (annualized).

--No-Load Fund X--14.6% gain.

--The Value Line Investment Survey--14.4% gain.

--The Chartist--12.4% gain.

--Dow Theory Forecasts--10.5% gain.

Mr. Hulbert said there is no one investment approach that guarantees a successful newsletter.

"People will ask what I've learned from watching newsletters over the past 25 years," he said. "Does market timing work? Growth investing? Value investing? My answer: Almost any decent approach will work. The key is to follow whatever approach that is chosen with patience and discipline."

In addition to the newsletter, Mr. Hulbert writes weekly investment columns for MarketWatch. He also has co-authored two books: "The Hulbert Guide to Financial Newsletters" (Dearborn, 1993), and "Interlock: The Untold Story of American Banks, Oil Interests, the Shah's Money, Debts and the Astounding Connections Between Them" (Richardson & Snyder, 1982).

For subscription information for HFD, please go to www.marketwatch.com\store.

About MarketWatch, Inc.

MarketWatch, Inc., is a wholly owned subsidiary of Dow Jones & Company and is a leading provider of business news, financial information and analytical tools. The Company operates two award-winning Web sites, MarketWatch.com and BigCharts.com, as well as the stock market simulation site, VirtualStockExchange.com. The Company produces the syndicated MarketWatch Weekend television program and provides radio updates every 30 minutes on the MarketWatch.com Radio Network. MarketWatch also offers subscription products for individual investors, including the Hulbert Financial Digest suite of products, Retirement Weekly and Herb Greenberg's RealityCheck. The Company's MarketWatch Information Services group is a leading licensor of market news, data, investment analysis tools and other online applications to financial services firms, media companies, wireless carriers and Internet service providers.