I wonder what their opinion of us will be?>
Screaming Sectors
Nokia, wireless phone makers surge
Bullish comments to Wall Street trigger sharp advance
By Jeffry Bartash, CBS MarketWatch
Last Update: 5:28 PM ET Dec 6, 1999
Telecom Report
Movers & Shakers
Movers & Shakers • Stock Discussion • Sector Indexes • Market Snapshot
NEW YORK (CBS.MW) -- Shares of wireless phone makers Nokia,
Motorola and Ericcson swept higher Monday after a bullish Nokia
meeting with analysts Friday in which the company painted a picture of
exploding demand for wireless phones and an acceleration in revenue
growth.
In a meeting with Wall
Street analysts Friday,
Nokia said it now
expects worldwide
use of mobile phones
to reach 1 billion by
the end of 2002,
rather than at the end
of 2003, as it had
previously forecast.
As a result, Nokia said it expects revenue to grow 30 percent to 40
percent in 2000, above its former forecast of 25 percent to 35 percent.
That prompted a slew of brokerages to raise earnings estimates and stock
price targets on Nokia, the world's largest maker of wireless phones.
At Salomon Smith Barney, for instance, analyst
Alex Zena raised 2000 estimates to $2.90 a share
from $2.75 and 2001 estimates to $3.75 from
$3.42. He raised his price target to $225.
Nokia continues to stay in front of the competition
and has launched more mobile phones this year
than it did last year," Cena wrote to clients. "Nokia
is also well positioned to drive growth from
wireless data as well."
Shares of Nokia (NOK: news, msgs) surged 13
3/4 to 175 3/4.
The encouraging view of Nokia and the mobile
phone industry also boosted the stocks of key
rivals. Motorola (MOT: news, msgs) ballooned 9
5/8 to 133 5/8, while Ericsson swelled 4 5/16 to
59 5/16. Shares of Qualcomm rose 10 3/8 to 394
3/4.
In Motorola's case, Banc of America Securities analyst Mark McKechnie
told clients: "Nokia's recent bullish analyst meeting has increased our
confidence in our 2000 estimate of $3.20 a share for Motorola."
He upgraded his price target to $180 from $130. |
