NCR shares get cool reception

Investors yawned at the debut today of NCR (NCR)on the New York Stock Exchange, a move that finalized the server and database maker's spin-off from AT&T (T ).

NCR's stock closed at 33-3/4 a share, up 1 / 4 from its roll-out price this morning.

The stock reached only as high as 34- 1 /8 a share in trading today, far below 1996 averages for initial public offering performance on the first day of trading.

"The average IPO went up an average of 15 percent in its first day of trading in 1996," said Richard Peterson, an IPO analyst with Securities Data.

He noted, however, that NCR began trading on a day when the market was down 60 points.

"Investors may be staying on the sidelines to see how the company performs and what analysts' comments will be," Peterson said.

AT&T distributed 101.4 million shares of NCR common stock to AT&T shareholders as part of the NCR spin-off, an element of AT&T's strategic restructuring that was announced in September 1995.