Stock Market Performance of Listed Companies

Western Union

The stock fell 10.7% in the month to settle at $24.7 on 30 September 2008. On 09 September 2008, the company announced that it has formed an alliance with Digicel, a leading telecom operator in the Caribbean to enable Diaspora communities living in the US to purchase Digicel phone credit from Western Union agent locations for their relatives in the Caribbean.

MoneyGram International Inc.

The stock declined 16.5% in the month to close at $1.4 on 30 September 2008. On 05 September 2008, the company announced that it has entered into an agreement with Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited. This agreement is expected to enable Bangladeshi expatriates to send their money via MoneyGram quickly and at low costs.

First Cash Financial Services Inc

The stock was down 19.1% in the month to close at $15.0 on 30 September 2008. On 30 September 2008, the company announced that it will cease buy-here/payhere automotive operations of Auto Master and concentrate on its core operations that include pawn and consumer lending in the US and Mexico. The company plans to launch 50-55 new shops by 2008 end, and about 70-80 new shops by 2009 in Mexico. While in the US, the company does not intend to set up any new shops till 2009 end.

Global Payments Inc.

The stock closed at $44.9 on 30 September 2008 down 6.9% from its close of $48.2 on 29 August 2008. On 28 September 2008, the company stated that its joint venture with The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited (HSBC) would be launching a mobile payment service through General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) called Global MobilePay™. This service would enable merchants to accept mobile card payments from anywhere in the Asia-Pacific region.

Coinstar Inc.

The stock slipped 2.8% in the month to settle at $32.0 on 30 September 2008. On 18 September 2008, the company announced that it has entered into an agreement with Pendum LLC, a leading provider of ATM maintenance and armoured service in the US. According to the agreement, Pendum would provide additional coin transportation services to about 900 Coinstar units in the US.

Diebold Inc.

The stock fell 16.5% in the month to settle at $33.1 on 30 September 2008. The company raised 2008 EPS non-GAAP guidance from the range of $2.25-$2.30 per share to $2.40-2.45 per share on 30 September 2008. This was due to better-than-expected cost-reduction initiatives, increased profitability from its voting and lottery businesses in Brazil, sustained demand for its solutions in global financial markets and in anticipation of lower effective tax rate.

Metavante Technologies, Inc.

The stock retreated 18.5% in the month to close at $19.3 on 30 September 2008. On 18 September 2008, the company announced that it has signed an agreement with Panini, a company engaged in the manufacture of scanners and item processing systems for checks and documents. According to the agreement, Panini's Vision X™ will be offered by Metavante to its banking clients for remote deposit and branch image capture.