The Best- and the Worst-Performing Stocks of First Quarter 2001

03/30/01 - 06:52 PM EST

CSCO (Action Alerts PLUS PICK) INTC MSFT

Dan Bernstein

No matter how you slice it, it was an ugly first quarter.

However, there were some winners -- big ones, in fact. The list below shows the best of the best on both the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq. The general theme among the Big Board winners is retail, while a few beaten-down old tech stocks turned it around during this first quarter on the Nasdaq.

The Best of Both Worlds The top 15 performers on the Big Board and the Nasdaq for the first quarter 2001 with a minimum market capitalization of $1 billion*
NYSE		Nasdaq
Company Name	Quarterly Return	Company Name	Quarterly Return
Rite Aid	191.4%	Earthlink	132.3%
Service Corp. Int'l	148	Nvidia	111
Arch Coal	115.6	Network Associates	85.1
Advanced Micro Devices	104.9	Lam Research	77.6
Massey Energy	97	Efficient Networks	75.2
Dillard's	85.1	Electronic For Imaging	74
Kmart	81.6	Informix	65.3
Blockbuster	75.5	Compuware	56.5
Abercrombie & Fitch	64.3	Dell Computer	54.5
Visx	58.9	Radio One	52
Owens-Illinois	52.6	Apple Computer	51.5
Cendant	50.6	ASE Test	42.6
Toys 'R Us	49.6	Worldcom	36.2
Freeport-MCM	49	Semtech	34.8
Autonation	48.3	Electronic Arts	31.7
*Through March 29.

A list of the losers is practically synonymous with tech, on both the Big Board and the Nasdaq.

The Worst of Both Worlds The bottom 15 performers on the Big Board and the Nasdaq for the first quarter 2001 with a minimum market capitalization of $1 billion*
NYSE		Nasdaq
Applera - App Biosystems	-71.6%	Ariba	-85.1%
Corning	-62.2	TIBCO Software	-83.1
Nortel Networks	-57.9	Brocade Communications	-78.9
EMC	-55.4	Applied Micro Circuits	-77.3
C-Mac Industries	-53.6	Emulex	-76.8
Perkinelmer	-52.9	Webmethods	-75.5
Celestica	-49.3	Network Appliance	-74.6
Amer Tower	-49.2	i2 Technologies	-74.4
Entravision Communications	-48.3	Handspring	-74.3
Primedia	-47.6	Research in Motion	-73.8
Computer Sciences	-46.8	Sycamore Networks	-73.4
Waters	-46.6	Corvis	-72.7
Charles Schwab	-46.1	Palm	-71.7
Agilent Technologies	-45.2	Redback Networks	-70.5
Solectron	-44.8	Interwoven	-70
Genentech	-40.7	Qlogic	-69.7
*Through COB 3/29/01. Minimum market cap of $1 billion.

A look at the performance of the 15 biggest stocks according to market capitalization reveals that 11 of the giants were underwater for the first period of 2001.

The Big Ones*
Company Name	Market Cap ($ billions)	Quarterly Return*
General Electric	410.2	-13.6%
Microsoft	295.5	27.7
Exxon Mobil	272.2	-9.9
Pfizer	252.3	-13.1
Wal-Mart	226.1	-4.7
Citigroup	224.5	-12.5
BP Amoco	183.3	1.6
American International Group	181.8	-20.8
GlaxoSmithKline	179.6	-8.4
Intel	178.8	-12.2
AOL Time Warner	176.3	17.1
Merck	171.1	-20.7
IBM	166.7	11.8
Vodafone Group	165.7	-22.1
SBC Communications	147.2	-8.9
*returns through 3/29/01

Lastly, it's worth your time -- if you can stomach the pain -- to examine the performance of various sectors. Every S&P sector is in negative territory for the first quarter.

Sector Blues*
S&P Sector	Q1 2001 Return
Consumer Discretionary	-0.4%
Telecom	-1.4
Materials	-6.5
Energy	-8.8
Utilities	-9.6
Consumer Staples	-11.4
Industrials	-11.8
Financials	-12.1
Healthcare	-15.8
Infotech	-26.2
S&P 500 Index	-13.1
Source: Standard & Poor's *returns through 3/29/01