The Best (And Worst) Channel Stocks Of Q1

Best (And Worst) Channel Stocks in Q1

For the most part, channel stocks enjoyed a strong showing on Wall Street in the first quarter. Of 13 companies tracked by CRN, seven saw their stock prices increase by more than 10 percent, while only three saw their share prices decline during that period. By comparison, the Dow Jones increased 8.1 percent in the first quarter, while Nasdaq was up 19.7 percent. Here's a look at the best—and worst—channel stocks of the quarter.

PC Connection

Mar. 30, 2012: $8.22
Dec. 31, 2011: $11.09
Change: -25.9%

PC Connection shares had peaked at $12.73 on Feb. 2, but fell more than $2 per share the next day after the company reported its fourth-quarter and fiscal year financial results. That week, the Merrimack, N.H.-based company also named a new CFO.

PC Mall

Mar. 30, 2012: $6.02
Dec. 31, 2011: $6.28
Change: -4.1%

PC Mall fluctuated between $5.50 and $6.50 per share in the first quarter. It last fell below $6 on March 2 but reached that mark again toward the end of the month. Still, shares were off slightly compared to the beginning of the year.

Two executives, including President and CEO Frank Khulusi, think the stock is a bargain. They made share purchases in March.

Sapient

Mar. 30, 2012: $12.45
Dec. 31, 2011: $12.60
Change: -1.2%

While other channel companies enjoyed a strong showing on Wall Street in the first quarter, Sapient was not one of them. Its shares fell 1.2 percent after gaining 4 percent in 2011.

Ingram Micro

Mar. 30, 2012: $18.56
Dec. 31, 2011: $18.18
Change: 2.1%

Ingram Micro shares closed the quarter up two percent, but the distributor's stock had closed as high as $19.72 on Feb. 8. During the first quarter, Ingram Micro hired a former VAR to head its Advanced Computing sales.

ScanSource

Mar. 30, 2012: $37.32
Dec. 31, 2011: $36.00
Change: 3.7%

ScanSource shares closed as low as $35.75 on March 6 but gained nearly $2 in the last three weeks of the quarter. In January, the distributor posted record sales for its second fiscal quarter, but its share price barely registered the news.

Tech Data

Mar. 30, 2012: $54.26
Dec. 31, 2011: $49.41
Change: 9.8%

Tech Data shares closed at $57.44 on Feb. 27, but shares fell more than $3 the next day after reporting financials that included a big charge for exiting its Brazilian and Colombian operations. Still, the distributor's shares increased almost 10 percent for the quarter.

Arrow Electronics

Mar. 30, 2012: $41.97
Dec. 31, 2011: $37.41
Change: 12.2%

Shares of Arrow jumped $3.25 on Jan. 18, the day the distributor acquired Tech Turn, an asset disposal specialist. Shares fell below $40 briefly in early March but gained $2 back before the end of the quarter.

Agilysys

Mar. 30, 2012: $8.99
Dec. 31, 2011: $7.95
Change: 13.1%

Agilysys shares gained more than $1 on March 13, and remained over the $9 mark until the last day of the quarter. The company's shares closed the quarter up 13 percent after being CRN's No. 1 channel stock for 2011.

Avnet

Mar. 30, 2012: $36.39
Dec. 31, 2011: $31.09
Change: 17.0%

Avnet shares jumped more than $2 on Jan. 18, and then gained another couple bucks the rest of the quarter. The distributor acquired two VARs in the quarter, most recently Ascendant Technology.

GTSI

Mar. 30, 2012: $5.03
Dec. 31, 2011: $4.16
Change: 20.9%

GTSI shares enjoyed a slow, steady climb during the quarter, crossing the $5 mark on March 22. The federal solution provider's performance offset a disappointing 2011 on Wall Street.

Accenture

Mar. 30, 2012: $64.50
Dec. 31, 2011: $53.23
Change: 21.2%

Like GTSI, Accenture shares enjoyed a long, steady climb in the quarter, closing at $57.34 at the end of January, $59.54 at the end of February, and then $64.50 at the end of March. During the quarter, Accenture appointed an offset new group chief executive of the company’s technology growth platform.

Synnex

Mar. 30, 2012: $38.14
Dec. 31, 2011: $30.46
Change: 25.2%

If the first quarter had ended March 27, Synnex would have challenged for the top spot on this list. Unfortunately, it didn't, and Synnex shares fell almost $5 in the last week of March after reporting financials that included lower-than expected revenue.

Insight Enterprises

Mar. 30, 2012: $21.93
Dec. 31, 2011: $15.29
Change: 43.4%

Insight Enterprises earns the distinction of the top-performing channel stock of the first quarter. Shares of Insight jumped $3 per share on Valentine's Day after reporting strong financials and launched its first cloud-based solution a day later.