Instead, the exchange had a much better company in mind, one whose technology is stronger and more efficient. And one whose technology is “crash-proof”.

You see, the NYSE simply can’t run on a program like Microsoft Windows. Why? According to this company’s President and CEO Jim Whitehurst, “It crashes too often.”

That’s why the New York Stock Exchange selected Red Hat, Inc. (NYSE: RHT). Headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, Red Hat is the largest provider of Linux software and is the most recognized open brand source in the world.

The company serves global enterprises with technology and services made possible by the open source model. Why open source? Because it is inevitable.

You see, all software is written with source code. With open source software, the code is protected by a special license that ensures everyone has access to that code. That means no one company can fully own it. Microsoft programs are not created using open source, meaning that only the company has access to the codes in products like Word and Powerpoint.

Open source returns control to the customer. You can see the code, change it, learn from it. Bugs are more quickly found and fixed. And when customers don’t like how one vendor is serving them, they can choose another without overhauling their infrastructure. No more technology lock-in. No more monopolies.

Red Hat’s serves customers in every major business arena, and even local, state, and federal governments. Its customers include the New York Stock Exchange, McKesson, Charles Schwab, Merril Lynch, Credit Suisse, and Dreamworks.

And Red Hat’s results show how profitable their open source methodology can be. In its latest quarter, the company reported a 20% jump in earnings, handily beating Wall Street’s expectations. And we expect the same result when the company releases its fourth-quarter earnings on March 25.

Red Hat has a dominant market position as the high-quality, low-cost provider of IT infrastructure solutions. Its balance sheet is growing even stronger with significantly higher operating cash flow than last quarter.

And management is taking advantage of these market conditions by repurchasing two million shares of common stock. RHT has the momentum heading into this earnings release to top the street again.

Source: Red Hat, Inc. (NYSE: RHT): Stock of the Day

• Red Hat Inc. (RHT) yesterday (Thursday) announced it had purchased privately held software company Qumranet Inc. for $107 million in cash. The Raleigh-based software distrubutor expects the purchase to knock 5 to 6 cents off of its annual earnings per share, The Associated Press reported. Red Hat expects the deal to add $20 million in revenue by the next fiscal year.

• Homebuilder Toll Brothers Inc. (TOL) admitted to concerns about the New York City condo market, which has been one of the last holdouts of the current U.S. housing recession. “It has felt some of the storm that’s come to the residential real estate market in the country,” Chief Executive Bob Toll said during the company’s third-quarter conference call, Reuters reported.

• The dollar increased to its strongest level against the euro this year, trading at $1.432. The euro has declined over 7% versus the dollar in the last three months. The rally was in part fueled by the European Central Bank’s decision to hold interest rates steady at 4.25% at yesterday’s (Thursday’s) monetary policy meeting, Reuters reported.

• Shares of consumer goods maker Unilever PLC (ADR: UL) increased 5% yesterday (Thursday), bucking the overall trend of the market, on news that industry veteran Paul Polman had been selected as the new chief executive officer. Unilever ADR shares gained $1.31 to close at $27.85.

• Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco President Janet Yellen said an interest-rate reduction was not out of the question as the risks to economic growth remain “substantial” and will likely moderate inflation, Bloomberg News reported. The current rate “does not imply a highly accommodative policy stance,” because credit conditions are “probably more restrictive” now than when the Fed started its aggressive easing campaign, Yellen said while speaking in Salt Lake City.

• The Boeing Co.’s (BA) more than 27,000 electricians, riveters, painters and others covered by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers voted to strike in order to oppose management’s latest contract offer due to perceived threats to job security and increased costs for healthcare coverage. Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire and a Federal government mediator stepped in to ask for an additional 48 hours of continued negotiations, The Washington Post reported.

Source: Global Investing Roundups Friday, September 5th, 2008