Excite lives up to name on Wall St.

Internet search engine Excite had a respectable if not outstanding first day of trading yesterday, making it the second Internet company this week facing intense competition in a fledgling product niche to gain millions on Wall Street this week.

Two days after rival Lycos went public, Excite opened yesterday with 2 million shares of common stock at $17 each and closed at $20 per share. The company's initial offering price was significantly higher than analysts' estimates of $12 to $14.

Lycos, meanwhile, fell to $18 per share yesterday. Lycos had started out at $16 on its Wall Street debut Tuesday and closed the day at $21.94.

Excite, which has 10.7 million shares outstanding, filed its registration statement for an IPO with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 11. The offering is being managed by Robertson, Stephens & Co. and Furman Selz.

The stock market is closed today for Good Friday. A third search engine, Yahoo, is expected to go public next week.

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