CFBX Community First Bankshares (MM)

Standard & Poor's Announces Changes to S&P Indices NEW YORK, Oct. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Standard & Poor's will make the following changes to the S&P 500 and S&P SmallCap 600 Indices: * Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings (NYSE:LH) will replace SouthTrust Corp. (NASDAQ:SOTR) in the S&P 500 after the close of trading on a date to be announced. SouthTrust is being acquired by fellow S&P 500 constituent Wachovia Corp. (NYSE:WB) in a deal is still subject to shareholder approval. * CIT Group Inc. (NYSE:CIT) will replace AT&T Wireless Services Inc. (NYSE:AWE) in the S&P 500 after the close of trading on a date to be announced. AT&T Wireless is being acquired by Cingular Wireless in a transaction still subject to final approvals. * S&P REIT Composite constituent Parkway Properties Inc. (NYSE:PKY) will replace Community First Bankshares Inc. (NASDAQ:CFBX) in the S&P SmallCap 600 after the close of trading on Friday, October 29. Community First is being acquired by BancWest Corp. in a deal expected to close on or about that date. Standard & Poor's will monitor these transactions, and post any relevant updates on its website: http://www.standardandpoors.com/. Laboratory Corp. of America is a clinical laboratory organization that offers clinical tests through a national network of laboratories. Headquartered in Burlington, NC, the company will be added to the S&P 500 GICS (Global Industry Classification Standard) Health Care Services Sub-Industry Index. CIT Group is a diversified finance company engaged in vendor, equipment, commercial, consumer and structured financing as well as leasing activities. Headquartered in Livingston, NJ, the company will be added to the S&P 500 GICS Specialized Finance Sub-Industry Index. Parkway Properties is a real estate investment trust specializing in the operations, acquisition, ownership, management, and leasing of office properties. Headquartered in Jackson, MS, the company will be added to the S&P SmallCap 600 GICS Real Estate Investment Trusts Sub-Industry Index. Following is a summary of the changes: S&P 500 INDEX - TBA COMPANY GICS ECONOMIC SECTOR GICS SUB-INDUSTRY ADDED Laboratory Health Care Health Care Services Corp. of America Holdings CIT Group Financials Specialized Finance DELETED SouthTrust Financials Regional Banks AT&T Wireless Telecommunication Wireless Services Telecommunication Services S&P SMALLCAP 600 INDEX - October 29, 2004 COMPANY GICS ECONOMIC SECTOR GICS SUB-INDUSTRY ADDED Parkway Financials Real Estate Properties Investment Trusts DELETED Community Financials Regional Banks First Bankshares 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. 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, data and valuations. With 5000 employees located in 20 countries, 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 280 offices in 40 countries. Sales in 2003 were $4.8 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 +1-212-438-3907 Web site: http://www.standardandpoors.com/ http://www.mcgraw-hill.com/

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