The Ticker A Look Back At The Past Week On Wall Street

Sat., Jan. 9, 1999

By Oliver Staley olivers@spokesman.com

WHAT’S HOT

Telecommunication stocks were the among the most active this week, following the buzz generated by the potential sale of Air Touch. Coveted for its wide cellular phone distribution in the United States and Asia, San Francisco-based Air Touch found itself in the middle of a bidding war and its stock responded, climbing from $70.50 Monday to a weekly high of $81.94 before closing the week at $79. Among the suitors were British telecom provider Vodafone Group and Bell Atlantic, which climbed from $54.25 to $56.63 over the week.

WHAT’S NOT

A number of retailers’ stock price slumped following a disappointing Christmas shopping season. Borders Group, the book and music seller, fell $5.06 Thursday and finished the week down $6 at $19.63 following news that it would not meet its quarterly target. Suffering similar fates were J.C. Penney and Stage Stores, two clothing retailers that also are likely to fall short of fourth-quarter earnings estimates. Penney’s fell $3.63 Thursday and finished the week down $5, while Stage dipped from $9.25 to $8.38, hitting a weekly low of $6.88.

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