BUCA owns and operates 51 full service, dinner only restaurants under the name BUCA di BEPPO, offering immigrant Southern Italian cuisine in a fun, energetic atmosphere that parodies the decor and ambiance of post-War Italian/American eateries. For the 39 weeks ended 9/24/00, sales rose 85% to $90M. Net income applic. to Common before extra. item totalled $3.9M vs. a loss of $1.4M. Results reflect the addition of new restaurants.

May 24, 2001

The love affair with restaurant stocks started in about August of last year and has shown no signs of letting up. Investors have been snatching up the casual dinning issues faster than deserts at an all you can eat buffet. As of April 1, 2001, Buca ran 58 restaurants under the name of BUCA di BEPPO. These eateries specialize in Southern Italian fare combined with a relaxed atmosphere. They are known for their large portions and amicable wait staff. For the 13 weeks ended April 1, 2001, sales increased 47% over the same period a year ago. The increase in sales was due to higher average checks and to the impact of new restaurants. Turning to the chart, BUCA notched a new high today on good volume of 560,000 shares. The stock's three-month average is 320,000 shares. Speaking of volume, we also noticed that volume started to spike in mid April, a sure sign that mutual funds and institutions are on the prowl. Looking at our favorite indicators, BUCA's MACD is positive and OBV is getting back towards its high. Traders might want to consider opening a new position in BUCA if the stock can either bounce off support at $24 or close above today's closing price of $25.15 on volume of at least 350,000 shares. Our initial stop is set at support of $21.30.

Picked on May 24th @ $25.15
Change Since Picked 0.00
Stop Loss @ $21.30

After all the damage that had been done to restaurant stocks last week, it was inevitable that sellers would come back into BUCA to take it lower. It now appears as if the stock is heading back to test resistance at $18.75. We were stopped out of BUCA on Wednesday at $21.30.

Picked on May 24th @ $25.15
Profit/Loss = -3.85 (-15%) (Stopped out Wednesday @ $21.30)
Best Profit = 0.00 (0%)

June 5, 2001

BUCA has been slowly but surely recovering from last Thursday's downdraft. The stock has put in three bullish hammer formations in a row so buyers may be stepping back into this restaurant play. However, BUCA did encounter resistance at its 5-dma of $22.85 on Tuesday so we will be watching this level closely to see that it doesn't create a problem going forward. Traders looking to get into BUCA should wait until the stock can break up through resistance at $24 before committing any capital to the stock.

Picked on May 24th @ $25.15
Change Since Picked -2.46
Stop Loss @ $21.30

June 3, 2001

On Friday, BUCA missed hitting our stop by a mere three cents. It was a good thing too because the stock proceeded to rally for the rest of the session. BUCA may spend some time stabilizing around the $23 level, so traders should hold off on initiating positions until BUCA can turn up the volume and its MACD can issue a buy signal.

Picked on May 24th @ $25.15
Change Since Picked -2.75
Stop Loss @ $21.30