Ideiasnet - Alternatives against the American crisis.

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil, March 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- This article, reprinted with permission by Ideiasnet (Bovepsa: IDNT3), was originally published in Exame Magazine - 911 Edition, pg. 47, on 02/13/2008.

Best shares for 2008

Exame (one of the most important economic Brazilian magazines) has combined suggestions by 21 market analysts with a statistical study conducted by consulting company Economatica, to choose the five most promising sectors and the 20 best shares for the year.

                  Alternatives against the American crisis.

        Companies selling to the domestic market are good alternatives

A way to protect your investments from the American crisis is to invest in shares of sectors that do not depend on the performance of international economies. An alternative are companies that sell to the domestic market, such as retailers and e-commerce portals. "These companies benefit from the Brazilian GDP growth, which is inserting a new range of consumers into the market", says Martha Dubugras, partner at Paraty Resources Management, in Rio de Janeiro. However, one must be selective to get a return from investing in such shares. Despite the positive projections, not all companies in this industry are good investment alternatives. Analysts recommend companies with material expansion plans and a consistent track record of results. "Some sectors, such as the clothing industry, have let investors down in the past, as they did not deliver the results they promised", says Alan Cardoso, analyst for Corretora Prosper, in Rio de Janeiro.

Today, the best options in the market are business in three segments: Technology, E-Commerce and Retail (see table). The most promising one in terms of appreciation is Ideiasnet, a holding company that invests in 18 technology companies - forecasted appreciation of 120%. The risk, however, is high. The company recorded losses of R$868 thousand in the 3Q07, deriving from new acquisitions, and must increase profitability in order to deliver good results to shareholders. Another company that is seen positively by analysts is the e-commerce portal B2W that has been profiting from the continuous expansion in Internet sales.

How to profit from Brazil's brisker GDP growth

According to analysts, the companies listed below are the ones that will profit the most from Brazil's stronger economic growth, given their concrete expansion plans.

                   IDEIASNET              B2W                 Lojas Renner
                    (IDNT3)              (BTOW3)                (LREN3)
                   Tecnology           e-Commerce                Retail

    Upside(1)         120%                 73%                    55%
    Why it is a   Holding that       Benefits from the      Company is
    good option   invests in 18      expansion in           expected to post
                  technology         e-Commerce in Brazil,  stronger sales
                  companies will     since it is the        this year. Its
                  gain from the      industry's main        weak results in
                  strong growth      representative on the  2007 had an
                  in online sales    stock exchange         adverse affect on
                  and in computer                           the share price,
                  and related sales                         which is now
                                                            inexpensive
    Risk             High                 High                  Average

    Beware if... earnings do not     Sales do not post      Sales do not
                 rise next quarter   growth in the first    accelerate by
                                     half of the year       March

    Price-
    Earnings
    Ratio(2)
    of Company     -198.4(3)               36.6                  32.9

    Price-
    Earnings
    Ratio(2)
    of Industry      17.2                  49.8                  49.8

    (1) Over the next 12 months in relation to the closing price as of
        01/23/2008. See target prices listed on the EXAME Portal.
    (2) Ratio showing the number of years investors would have to wait to get
        their money back receiving only dividends. The higher the ratio, the
        more expensive the stock.
    (3) The ratio is negative because the company posted a loss in the third
        quarter.
    Sources: analysts, CME and Economatica.