Yahoo’s Value Is Worth Shouting About

Upstart Internet company Yahoo Inc. now has a market value that’s larger than many giants of U.S. industry, including Black & Decker, Rubbermaid and Maytag. The stock of Santa Clara-based Yahoo has risen fivefold in the last year, giving it a market capitalization of $5.25 billion. Shares soared $17.25 to close at $114.50 on Nasdaq, one day after it reported earnings that surprised even the most Internet-crazed investors. Yahoo’s rise shows that investors think the Internet will be an engine of economic growth, outstripping more traditional, staid industries. It’s now larger than 170 of the companies in the Standard & Poor’s 500 index.