APOL Apollo Education Grp., Inc.

MORNING UPDATE: Man Securities issues alerts for BRCD, GT, OPWV, APOL, and BBBY CHICAGO, Dec. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Man Securities issues the following Morning Update at 8:30 AM EST with new PriceWatch Alerts for key stocks. (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20020214/MANSECLOGO ) Before the open... PriceWatch Alerts for BRCD, GT, OPWV, APOL, and BBBY, Market Overview, Today's Economic Calendar, and the Quote Of The Day. QUOTE OF THE DAY "The deficit is clearly going to be the centerpiece issue for the second term, it's the linchpin of the second-term economic policy." -- John Snow, Treasury Secretary. New PriceWatch Alerts for BRCD, GT, OPWV, APOL, and BBBY... PRICEWATCH ALERTS - HIGH RETURN COVERED CALL OPTIONS ----------- -- Brocade Communications Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:BRCD) Last Price 7.60 - APR 6.00 CALL OPTION@ $1.85 -> 4.3 % Return assigned* -- Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (NYSE:GT) Last Price 14.23 - APR 12.50 CALL OPTION@ $2.40 -> 5.7 % Return assigned* -- Openwave Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:OPWV) Last Price 16.11 - JAN 15.00 CALL OPTION@ $1.75 -> 4.5 % Return assigned* -- Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ:APOL) Last Price 85.33 - JAN 85.00 CALL OPTION@ $4.20 -> 4.8 % Return assigned* -- Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ:BBBY) Last Price 40.33 - FEB 40.00 CALL OPTION@ $2.05 -> 4.5 % Return assigned* * To learn more about how to use these alerts and for our FREE report, "The 18 Warning Signs That Tell You When To Dump A Stock ", go to: http://www.investorsobserver.com/mu18 (Note: You may need to copy the link above into your browser then press the [ENTER] key) ** For the FREE report, "Is Your Investment Portfolio Disaster Proof? - Insights, Stocks, And Strategies." go to: http://www.investorsobserver.com/FREEDP NOTE: All stocks and options shown are examples only. These are not recommendations to buy or sell any security. NEWS LEADERS AND LAGGARDS So far today Gateway Inc. and Cypress Semiconductor lead the list of companies with the most news stories while Ceragon Networks Ltd. and CancerVax are showing a spike in news. Qualcomm Inc., Sprint FON Group., and Nextel Communications Inc. have the highest srtIndex scores to top the list of companies with positive news while Bearingpoint Inc. and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. lead the list of companies with negative news reports. Verizon Communications has popped up with a high positive news sraIndex score. To learn more about how our patent pending SmartReadMX technology continuously reads business news and identifies the best potential investment opportunities to keep you ahead of the pack go to: http://gowssp.com/go/mu MARKET OVERVIEW Overseas markets are painting a mixed picture, with European markets positive and Asian markets decidedly in the red. The FTSE is currently up 0.10% supported by the banks and telecom sectors. In Asian markets, the Nikkei is down 0.29% after putting in a three day rally. The Hang Seng lost 0.38% percent on fears that the much awaited $3 billion IPO may be delayed again. It's a different story on the BSE Sensex as it appears that there's not a bear in sight, with the index continuing to set new highs with rallies in the telecom, auto and pharmaceutical sectors. At 8:30 a.m., the weekly jobless claims will be released and it is expected to come in at 340,000 claims. Also at 8:30 a.m., the third-quarter's current account deficit should come in at minus 171.0 billion. Expect this one to move the gold and currency markets. Scheduled for the same time slot, we should see November housing starts come in at 1.98 million. Be prepared for the investing week ahead with Bernie Schaeffer's FREE Monday Morning Outlook. For more details and to sign up, go to: http://www.investorsobserver.com/freemo DYNAMIC MARKET OPPORTUNITIES US$48.1 billion sounds like a pretty gigantic number. But that figure was actually the smallest amount in a year by which foreigners increased their holdings of US assets in October. According to Commerce Department figures, the US$48.1 billion in October pales in comparison to the US$67.5 jump in foreign holdings in September. No doubt many were put off by the "twin deficits" (budget and trade) that has sent the dollar into a nosedive recently. This seems to agree with what Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan told the European Banking Congress back on November 19 - that foreigners may eventually get weary of the US deficits and look for more lucrative investments elsewhere. That could include places like the UK, Australia and New Zealand, whose currencies are enjoying a hearty run, as well as emerging markets like Brazil and Malaysia. A chunk of the decline in new foreign holdings came from Asia, with the Japanese following a US$1.9 billion reduction in September with a US$5.1 billion decline in October. China also reduced its net purchases. Coming from Asia's two biggest players, that's not good - especially considering the US needs to attract about US$1.8 billion in investment each day in order to sustain the value of the dollar. Fortunately, overall Treasury purchases jumped by US$18.3 billion, while demand for US corporate bonds remained strong, with a US$19.2 billion rise. Receive incisive economic/market commentary, profitable advice and access to a network of leading investment exports. Simply follow this link: http://www.investorsobserver.com/agora2 TODAY'S ECONOMIC CALENDAR 8:30 a.m.: Initial Jobless Claims for the week ended December 11 (last plus 8,000) 8:30 a.m.: November Housing Starts (last plus 6.4 percent) 8:30 a.m.: Current Account for third-quarter (last minus $166.2 billion) 10:00 a.m.: DJ-BTM Business Barometer for the week ended December 11 (last minus 0.4 percent) 12:00 p.m.: December Philadelphia Fed Business Index (last 20.7) 4:30 p.m.: Money Supply for the week ended December 11 Motley Fool Investing Alert for 2005 - "The Case Against Mutual Funds" - New FREE report details a more successful way for you to invest your money. http://www.investorsobserver.com/phillips Man Securities is one of the world's leading option order execution firms. Man's in-house broker team offers a level of personal service and experience unavailable from no-frills discount brokers. To improve your understanding of option pricing get Man's FREE "Margin/Option Wizard software at: http://www.investorsobserver.com/mancd. Member CBOE/NASD/SPIC. This Morning Update was prepared with data and information provided by: InvestorsObserver.com - Better Strategies for Making Money -> For Investors With a Sense of Humor. Only $1 for your first month plus seven free bonuses worth over $420, see: http://www.investorsobserver.com/must 247profits.com: You'll get exclusive financial commentary, access to a global network of experts and undiscovered stock alerts. Register NOW for the FREE 247profits e-Dispatch. Go to: http://www.investorsobserver.com/agora Schaeffer's Investment Research - Sign up for your FREE e-weekly, Monday Morning Outlook, Bernie Schaeffer's look ahead at the markets. Sign Up Now http://www.investorsobserver.com/freemo PowerOptionsPlus - The Best Way To Find, Compare, Analyze, and Make Money On Options Investments. For a 14-Day FREE trial and 5 FREE bonuses go to: http://www.poweroptionsplus.com/ Motley Fool Stock Advisor - Free Investing Alert for 2005 Learn why funds virtually force you to own BAD investments. Plus, why fund investors are virtually assured of MISSING OUT on Wall Street's big winners. http://www.investorsobserver.com/phillips All stocks and options shown are examples only. These are not recommendations to buy or sell any security and they do not represent in any way a positive or negative outlook for any security. Potential returns do not take into account your trade size, brokerage commissions or taxes which will affect actual investment returns. Stocks and options involve risk and are not suitable for all investors and investing in options carries substantial risk. Prior to buying or selling options, a person must receive a copy of Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options available from Sharon at 800-837-6212 or at http://www.cboe.com/Resources/Intro.asp. Privacy policy available upon request. http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20020214/MANSECLOGO http://photoarchive.ap.org/ DATASOURCE: Man Securities CONTACT: John Gannon of Man Securities, +1-800-837-6212 Web site: http://www.mansecurities.com/mu.html

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