For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – July 17, 2009 – Zacks.com announces the latest Industry Outlook. Today’s outlook from Zacks Equity Research analyst Abdul Saleh discusses the Software sector. Highlighted stocks include: SAP (SAP), Fiserv (FISV), Intuit (INTU), Digital River (DRIV) and VeriSign Automotive (VRSN).

Here is the latest on the Software sector:

While most software companies are implementing a series of internal cost-cutting measures, these are steps that companies typically take in an economic downturn -- a hiring freeze, no non-essential travel, and so on. Generally speaking, a downturn is when investment in IT is most critical because these investments can make operations more efficient. This idea is one reason why we think that the tech sector would weather a downturn better than other parts of the economy.

Software giant SAP (SAP) is apparently not halting

...

Outlook Global markets appear to be shaking off the recent unprecedented withering of the financial system and are looking for an upturn. But is it sustainable or is it a short-term event? So far, a string of drastic actions by the Federal Reserve and both the Bush and Obama administrations has yet to turn around a bunker mentality. Banks fear lending money to each other and to their customers. Businesses are reluctant to hire and boost capital investments. Consumers have hunkered down. All the economy's problems are feeding off each other, creating a vicious cycle that Washington policymakers are finding difficult to break. Even if the turmoil gripping Wall Street were to let up and badly shaken confidence in the banking system were fully restored, a "broader economic recovery will not happen right away." Obviously, the technology industry is not immune to the current economic ...

Swine Flu Worries Diminished for Cruise LinesShares of Carnival Corp. (CCL, CUK) traded higher yesterday, after the company announced that the financial impact from the swine flu outbreak may be less substantial than some investors had anticipated.Last month, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, or CDC, issued a recommendation against non-essential travel to Mexico. In response, Carnival modified its cruise itineraries to avoid Mexican ports. The CDC lifted its recommendation on May 15, enabling cruise ships to return to normally scheduled itineraries.Yesterday, Carnival announced that it expects the modifications to its cruise itineraries to negatively impact earnings by approximately $0.05 per share for the six-week period ended June 15.Further, the company expects that the potential exists for additional financial impact beyond the June 15 date for a financial impact of up to an additional $0.05 per share.We ...