Golf Site Scores Hole in One

Leading the list is a relatively new company, Book4golf.com (ASE - BFG) which gained 47% for the week. The company provides golf course information on 17,000 courses and lets you book tee-off times online. The Ontario based company reached a deal with Yorkton Securities last week to broker an $11.7 million placement. It was also a big hit at a recent PGA International Trade Show in Las Vegas where reporters from the Golf Channel and FOX Sports stopped by to talk to company executives. This is the second consecutive week of double digit gains for Book4golf.com.

Encryption specialist Certicom (TSE - CIC) jumped over 38% as our second place finisher. The stock traded at just $18.90 on Oct. 29 and has made significant gains since then. It makes encryption software and hardware for Internet and wireless communication. Earlier this month the company signed major contracts with companies in New Jersey and Singapore. One of its clients is the high-flying Verisign which has skyrocketed almost ten-fold in the last year.

Certicom has achieved 30% revenue growth for each of the last five quarters and some analysts are recommending the stock as a speculative buy. One is Pat McKeough who just started following the company with the October issue of Stock Pickers Digest. He notes that Certicom's technology is more efficient than rival RSA. Security that requires a 1024 bit system with RSA needs only 160 bits with Certicom. This gives Certicom an edge in mobile and remote computing including the new palm size computers. 3Com's PalmPilot uses Certicom's technology.

McKeough recommended Certicom at $17. It remained a buy after it jumped to $27. He hasn't commented on it yet since this week's surge in price. But investors should be aware that in 1998 Certicom surged to a high of $41.50 before collapsing to $8.10. And there is concern among some analysts that rival RSA's patents expire next year which could cause downward pricing pressure and contracting margins. RSA and Certicom are the only two providers of financial transaction encryption technology certified by the American National Standard Institute.

Oh yes, early backers of Certicom include Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen and Motorola Corporation. Didn't Paul Allen figure into Sierra Wireless's spectacular rise as we reported last week?

Other large gainers for the week include Infowave Software (TSE - IW), up 38% and also a double digit gainer the week before. The company has two divisions, imaging and wireless. Its imaging software enables Apple computers to interface with PC computers. Sales skyrocketed on the success of the i-Mac, the world's best selling personal computer. Its wireless software lets users access Microsoft exchange on their pagers.

The stock has been a favorite of the Inner Circle's Bill Ridley who noted in late October that its wireless division is still in its infancy. The company, he says, "has formed a solid foundation with some strong alliances and partnerships" and he sees a bright future as the wireless market explodes over the next two years.

There's just too many big gainers this week to go into any detail on the rest. So here's just a few brief recaps on some.

Online intelligence specialist Axia NetMedia (TSE - AXX) is up 34% on First Quarter Report (period ending Sept. 30, 1999) of 108% increase in revenue and 92% increase in profits. It's the second consecutive week of double digit gains for Axia.

Internet professional services company Cyberplex (T - CX) is up 32.5% on announcement of a strategic alliance with Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), a $5 billion Fortune 500 company. Again, a second week of major gains for Cyberplex.

Wireless pager maker Research in Motion (TSE - RIM) is up 31.5% on rumours of a deal with Dell Computers.

And bookseller Chapters is up 31% on the ruling by the Competition Bureau that Chapters subsidiary Pegasus Wholesale Inc., "does not contravene the Competition Act."

Sierra Wireless, Micro Tempus and Corel all posted strong gains of over 20% for the second week running.

On the downside, Electric Mail is in its second week of double digit declines and is now trading below a dollar a share.