Ticker Talk

Internet brokerage trades rose more than 15% in January over December, giving firms a chance to break fourth-quarter volume records, according to analysts at Hambrecht & Quist and Putnam, Lovell, deGuardiola & Thornton. Still, sparked by concern about increased competition, Internet brokers’ share prices have declined, with the Bloomberg U.S. Internet financial services index down 12% last month and 61% since mid-April. . . . VerticalNet Inc. (VERT), a manager of Internet sites where businesses buy and sell goods, said after the close of trading Tuesday that it will split its stock 2-for-1 around March 31 for holders of record March 17. The stock rose $13.88 to close at $252.13 on Nasdaq. It is up 54% this year and more than 3,000% since its initial public offering last February.