Even Dr. Edward Yardeni, Deutsche Morgan Grenfell's well-respected chief economist, has gotten in on the act.

FORBES: Y2K fear merchants

Companies studied by Corporate Insight included Vanguard, Bank of America, Edward Jones, Scottrade and Morgan Stanley.

FORBES: How Brokers Responded to the Market Plunge

Edward Yardeni, chief economist at Deutsche Morgan Grenfell, points out that the growth in firms' real sales per employee used to rise in step with productivity growth.

ECONOMIST: Back to the glory days?