Now this is funny, really funny. Mike D., what the hell is "macro psychology"? I wonder if its related to Intel's "internal content resources"? I also wonder if Intel and Dell use the same PR person?
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The Night Watch: Dell Drops Sharply on Warning; Intel Follows
By Diane Hess
Staff Reporter
10/4/00 8:30 PM ET
(Updated from 6:34 p.m. EDT)
Imagine, for a moment, an after-hours trading session without a heap of profit warnings -- one in which investors do not gang up on companies that confess financial shortfalls.
Dream on.
Just as investors began to warm to technology stocks -- the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 2% today, having dropped 3.2% yesterday -- a large-cap company sent shivers through the marketplace.
After the closing bell, personal computer manufacturer Dell (DELL:Nasdaq - news) warned that third-quarter revenue growth is currently falling 3 percentage points below expectations, citing weak demand in Europe.
"There has been some macro-psychology at play with the weak euro," Reuters reported CEO Michael Dell as saying. Addressing the company's fall analyst meeting in Round Rock, Texas, Dell claimed that "people have been significantly less inclined to make expenditures in terms of technology." (TSC discussed Dell's news in a separate story.)
The boxmaker said that it didn't see any problems meeting third-quarter earnings estimates, but that fourth-quarter results could be "one cent to two cents below company targets." With a whopping 1.2 million shares in play, Dell dropped $1.81, or 6.4%, to $26.38 on Instinet. The PC manufacturer decreased $2.44, or 8.7%, to $25.75 on Island, with volume of 652,283.
On the heels of Dell's announcement, Intel's (INTC:Nasdaq - news) stock saw increased activity. The world's largest computer chipmaker alerted investors to a revenue shortfall two weeks ago and has been punished by investors since that time. Intel lost 50 cents, or 1%, to $41.50 on Instinet, with volume of 1.2 million shares. On Island, the semiconductor stock shed 69 cents, or 1.64%, to $41.31, with 232,325 shares in motion.
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