Bank technology stocks could not protect themselves from the ill winds that blew through Wall Street last week.
The issues suffered amid growing concern about the Russian and Latin American economies, coupled with the ongoing predicament in Asia.
For the week, the Nasdaq index, nearly one-third of which consists of technology stocks, fell 8.7%, to 1639.8, or 19% below its July 21 high. Goldman, Sachs & Co.'s index of U.S.-traded technology companies, which lists many companies selling to banks, dropped 8.5%, to 168.38.
"There is a wicked downdraft in the market," said James Marks, analyst at Deutsche Securities in New York. The shares of many bank vendors- particularly electronic commerce companies-had been performing well before the general downturn, he said.
Checkfree Corp., which recently reduced revenue expectations, fell 17%, to $9.09. It was trading at $23.75 on Aug. 11. First Data Corp., close to a three-year low, slid 8%, to $22.8125. SEI Corp. dropped 9%, to $68.50; Sterling Commerce, 13%, to $35.25.
Open Solutions Inc., a Glastonbury, Conn., bank software developer, postponed its initial public offering until the market's volatility settles.
News in the bank technology field included an announcement by Carreker- Antinori Inc., a Dallas software vendor and consulting firm, that second- quarter revenue rose 26%, to $13.7 million. Net income was $1.7 million, up 41%. Earnings of 10 cents per share exceeded the Wall Street consensus estimate by a penny.
Terry Gage, chief financial officer, said Carreker-Antinori, primarily a software developer, has seen an increase in the number of deals that include higher-margin consulting services. Its stock fell 29% last week to close at $5.75 Friday.
National Data Corp. chairman and chief executive officer Robert A. Yellowlees issued a cryptic statement saying the company would not make any statement regarding its earnings.
Atlanta-based National Data sells credit card and health-care-related processing services. Its stock had been under pressure in recent weeks amid rumors that the Securities and Exchange Commission may look into its accounting treatment of acquisitions, said Gregory Gould, analyst at Goldman Sachs.
"This is such an edgy market," he said. "We've seen a number of companies trading down on rumors that something might happen, and they have been proven false."
National Data fell 6%, to $36.50.
Alltel Corp., the Little Rock, Ark.-based outsourcer and telecommunications company, and ITC Group Inc. were chosen by Old Kent Mortgage Services Inc. to manage customer-service telephone lines after hours.
Alltel shares rose 10%, to $45.6875, fueled by favorable reports from equity analysts. Inaugurating coverage, Morgan Stanley, Dean Witter & Co. rated Alltel a "strong buy," and Salomon Smith Barney gave it a "buy" rating.
Intelidata Technologies Corp. has licensed its home banking software to Summit Bancorp., Princeton, N.J. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Intelidata shares have languished for more than a year because of weakness in its caller identification business, which has since been divested. It set its sights entirely on the home banking industry, using mainframe-based software called Interpose. Its stock fell 6 cents, to $1.
