Z-Tel leads stock drop by area companies

By Times staff writer

© St. Petersburg Times, published May 24, 2000

Among Tampa Bay companies, shares of Z-Tel Technologies Inc. led area decliners in Tuesday's stock market fall, losing more than 25 percent of its value. The stock was the day's eighth-biggest losing stock on the Nasdaq.

Shares in the Tampa-based provider of telephone and Internet services have declined 46 percent from Monday's opening price of $25 to Tuesday's close of $13.56. While Z-Tel did not return a call seeking comment, analysts maintain a strong rating on the company. Z-Tel went public on Dec. 16 at $17 a share, but individual investors had to buy the stock at its opening day price of $32. For those investors, more than half their stock's value has disappeared.

Shares of some other Tampa Bay area companies were hit Tuesday, but not so severely. St. Petersburg's Danka Business Systems PLC, Clearwater's Digital Lightwave Inc. and Tampa's Intermedia Communications Inc. all lost about 10 percent of their value Tuesday. And two of the area's biggest tech companies -- St. Petersburg's Jabil Circuit Inc. and Clearwater's Tech Data Corp. -- saw their shares drop 7 percent.

Other companies managed to remain fairly stable, including Tampa-based Outback Steakhouse Inc. and TECO Energy Inc., and St. Petersburg's Primex Technologies Inc. and Republic Bancshares Inc. And shares of a few companies, such as Clearwater's Lincare Holdings Inc., have managed to edge up this week.

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