Net site will allow stock trading in dollars, not shares.

Bellevue-based Netstock.com next month is set to launch the first Web site that allows people to invest any dollar-based amount in the top 200 to 300 companies on the Nasdaq Stock Market and New York Stock Exchange. Trading on the Web site, called Sharebuilder, is scheduled to start Nov. 12. The cost is to be $2 a transaction. The site is located at:http://www.sharebuilder.com Netstock, which offered its first online stock trading in late 1996, has focused primarily on dividend-reinvestment and direct-stock plans. A dividend-reinvestment plan requires investors to own at least one share in a company before they can buy partial shares. In the mid-1990s, direct-stock plans were introduced in which investors could purchase any dollar-based amount after they registered with the company. Roughly 510 companies have direct-stock plans, though some of the big players, including America Online, Starbucks or Microsoft, are not among them. Investors can purchase stock from those companies on Sharebuilder, plus invest in companies such as Dell Computer, IBM, General Electric and AT&T. Dan Burke, a senior analyst with Lincoln, Mass.-based Gomez Advisors, said the investment Web site is geared toward a small percentage of the marketplace. "I don_t see it upturning the Schwabs or E+Trades of the world,"he said. "But it_s going to fit a very specific and targeted group of self-directed investors."Brian Ratzliff, Netstock_s vice president of marketing, said the company is not trying to compete with traditional and online brokers. "About 80 percent of our customer base will already have brokerage accounts," he said. "They_re looking at direct-stock plans as a diversification tool to buy holdings." With a $2 transaction fee ($1 a transaction for children under 18), Ratzliff said, Netstock is counting on generating revenues by building a large base of steady investors. Sharebuilder also intends to add other options in the future such as 401(k) plans and mutual funds, he said. Ratzliff said the investment model empowers the small investor. For instance, a person who invested $100 a month, starting 10 years ago ($12,000 total), would be worth $80,000 if he or she bought IBM, $330,000 if it was Microsoft, or $800,000 for AOL, which has only been public for seven years. Processing takes place once a week and investors receive a consolidated online statement.