In Brief

By Anamaria Wilson

HIGH ON TECH? Fidelity Magellan's closely watched portfolio manager, Bob Stansky, seems to keep changing his mind about tech stocks. Last week newspapers reported that he upped his position in techs from 21% to 27% after just recently trimming it. But did he? The shift may say more about the tech sector's appreciation than it does about Stansky's strategy. The lesson: look before you leap after the headlines.

PROTECTION PLAN Putnam Investments is offering insurance on its mutual funds against a stock slump and your untimely death. If you should expire when the market is down, your beneficiaries will still receive a decent payout. Let's say that at 67 you have a $100,000 investment, and in a year it grows to $150,000. For a 0.3% fee, you can each year lock in at the current account value so that if the stock drops, say to $120,000 the following year--and you drop--your heirs will still get $150,000. If you're under age 60, however, the cost may outweigh the rewards of just being patient.

HIGHS AND LOWS Here's some news: PC prices are up, and you're not getting more for your money. Did somebody suspend Moore's law? Don't PC prices always go down? Gravity has been reversed, at least temporarily, in PC pricing. Supply constraints, increased demand and a chip shortage tied to last year's earthquakes in Taiwan have kept prices up. But don't run out to buy that PC to beat the next hike. With Y2K problems no longer a threat and production back on track, prices should head down in a few months.

--By Anamaria Wilson