They are strategically doing the right things, but the valuation is hard to justify.

They're certainly looking to expand their wallet share to have a more important role with clients beyond stock trading. If they could acquire some loan- generating capacity, that would make sense.

No doubt Purcell has been under a lot of pressure as the stock has underperformed and the company has underperformed its peers.

It will be a bit of a challenge for management, in that they probably don't want to sound too optimistic; it's generally in their best interest to keep expectations moderate. At the same time, they don't want to sound too bearish on 2005.

The first quarter is seasonally always the strongest, but coming off the huge year we had in '03, people figured it (fixed income) would be fine, but nothing great. But it's done much better than expected, and that's important for these banks.

It will be a bit of a challenge for management, in that they probably don't want to sound too optimistic; it's generally in their best interest to keep expectations moderate, ... At the same time, they don't want to sound too bearish on 2005.