======================================================================
LAS VEGAS, Nov. 17 (Reuters) - Compaq Corp Chief Financial
Officer Earl Mason on Monday said the company is comfortable
with analysts' earnings estimates of $0.82 a share for the
fourth quarter, and he does not see any impact on earnings from
the Asian currency crisis.
Mason also said Compaq's sales in Europe are growing faster
than previously expected and are up from the third quarter,
when its European revenues grew four times faster than the
market rate.
"We are growing faster than that now," Mason told Reuters
at the Comdex computer trade show here.
Mason said Compaq has hedged currency so that it does not
expect any negative impact from the Asian currency crisis in
the quarter. He added that while Compaq continues to make
products in its Singapore and Chinese plants, it sells more of
those products -- made in Asia -- into European markets,
Compaq CEO Eckhard Pfeiffer told reporters after his
keynote speech at Comdex that his goal is to reach company
revenues of $50 billion by the year 2000.
"Over one year ago, we set a $40 billion goal," Pfeiffer
said, adding that now with the company's acquisition of Tandem
Computers Inc, he expects even more revenues.
He reiterated his prediction that Compaq will be one of the
top three computer makers in the world. |
