UNITED ONLINE HAS NUMBER FOR SUCCESS.Byline: Evan Pondel Staff Writer WESTLAKE VILLAGE - Shares of United Online Inc. were downgraded Tuesday, evidence that the Internet service provider's stock performance might be too strong for Wall Street. Investment group First Albany downgraded the company to ``buy'' from ``strong buy.'' The Albany, N.Y.-based firm cited a 48 percent upswing Upswing An upward turn in a security's price after a period of falling prices. in the stock since early February - a sign that United shares might not hold those gains in the months to come. Youssef Squali, analyst with First Albany, did not return phone calls seeking comment. Though he did say in a research note that today's third- quarter results should be robust. ``And we would be aggressive buyers of the stock either on a pullback Pullback A falling back of a price from its peak. This type of price movement might be seen as a brief reversal of the prevailing upward trend, signaling a slight pause in upward momentum. or if guidance were raised above our high-end estimates,'' according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Squali's research note. Analysts polled by First Call expect third-quarter earnings per share in the range of 20 cents to 23 cents. United shares declined 36 cents to close at $20.60 Tuesday on the Nasdaq market. The company reported a net loss of $7.3 million, or 19 cents a share, in the third-quarter period ended March 31, 2002. At the time, Mark Goldston, chairman and chief executive officer, was touting touting the making of personal representations by a veterinarian to persons who are not clients in an attempt to solicit their business. the company's ``powerful new national advertising campaign.'' Those efforts appear to have paid off. Richard Klugman, an analyst with Jefferies & Company, Inc., in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , certainly noticed United Online's performance. He began covering the company two weeks ago. ``I thought they had an interesting story,'' Klugman said. ``They are growing when everyone else is sinking.'' To meet demand, the company recently introduced a speedier Internet access See how to access the Internet. product and service for Macintosh users that costs $9.95 per month for dial-up users; the company has ended its eight-year PC-only play. And the faster dial-up Internet service, offered through United's subsidiary Juno Online Services Juno client software icon Juno is an Internet service provider based in the United States. It is a subsidiary of United Online, which also owns NetZero and Bluelight Internet Services. , costs $14.95 per month. Klugman said it's the value that keeps consumers surfing with United Online, which had about 5 million subscribers as of December 2002. ``And I think you'll see a continuation of their strength in the marketplace.'' But the Web survivor is not without competition. EarthLink Inc. has not only pushed its way into the broadband arena, the company offers a product much like United's for $29 a month. American Online has also recently unveiled its high-speed product and the company said it plans to focus on providing broadband services See broadband and broadband service provider. . ``But in the end, United still has lower cost structure, and that's important right now,'' Klugman said. CAPTION(S): chart Chart: HIGH-SPEED CONNECTION SOURCE: Staff Research Daily News |
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