NDC Ndchealth Corp

NEW YORK, Jan. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Standard & Poor's will make the following changes to the S&P 500 and S&P SmallCap 600 indices: * Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) will be added to the S&P 500 after the close of trading on Wednesday, January 4. Estee Lauder will take the place of S&P 500 constituent Mercury Interactive Corp. (Nasdq: MERQE), which will be removed from the index after today's close of trading. Mercury Interactive's stock will be delisted from the NASDAQ National Market, and will begin trading on the Pink Sheets, effective as of the open of trading tomorrow, January 4. * Per-Se Technologies Inc. (Nasdq: PSTI) will replace NDCHealth Corp. (NYSE:NDC) in the S&P SmallCap 600 after the close of trading on Friday, January 6. Per-Se is acquiring NDCHealth in a deal expected to close on or about that date, pending final approvals. Standard & Poor's will monitor these transactions, and post any relevant updates on its website: http://www.standardandpoors.com/. Estee Lauder manufactures and markets skin care, makeup and fragrance products. Headquartered in New York, NY, the company will be added to the S&P 500 GICS (Global Industry Classification Standard) Personal Products Sub-Industry index. Per-Se Technologies provides integrated business management outsourcing services and software solutions focused on the administrative functions of the healthcare industry. Headquartered in Alpharetta, GA, the company will be added to the S&P SmallCap 600 Health Care Services Sub-Industry index. Following is a summary of the changes: S&P 500 INDEX - January 3, 2006 COMPANY GICS ECONOMIC SECTOR GICS SUB-INDUSTRY DELETED Mercury Interactive Information Technology Application Software S&P 500 INDEX - January 4, 2006 COMPANY GICS ECONOMIC SECTOR GICS SUB-INDUSTRY ADDED Estee Lauder Consumer Staples Personal Products S&P SMALLCAP 600 INDEX - January 6, 2006 COMPANY GICS ECONOMIC SECTOR GICS SUB-INDUSTRY ADDED Per-Se Technologies Health Care Health Care Services DELETED NDCHealth Health Care Health Care Services Additions to and deletions from an S&P equity index do not in any way reflect an opinion on the investment merits of the companies concerned. About Standard & Poor's Standard & Poor's, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE:MHP), is the world's foremost provider of independent credit ratings, indices, risk evaluation, investment research and data. With approximately 6,300 employees located in 20 countries and markets, Standard & Poor's is an essential part of the world's financial infrastructure and has played a leading role for more than 140 years in providing investors with the independent benchmarks they need to feel more confident about their investment and financial decisions. For more information, visit http://www.standardandpoors.com/. Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies is a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets through leading brands such as Standard & Poor's, BusinessWeek and McGraw-Hill Education. The Corporation has more than 290 offices in 37 countries. Sales in 2004 were $5.3 billion. Additional information is available at http://www.mcgraw-hill.com/. DATASOURCE: Standard & Poor's CONTACT: David M. Blitzer, Ph.D. Managing Director & Chairman of the Index Committee (212) 438-3907 Web site: http://www.standardandpoors.com/ http://www.mcgraw-hill.com/

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