(DOW JONES) DJN: =DJ Compaq Up -3: Shift To Big Caps, Other Issues Cited
While Friday's overall tech rally may have been fueled by an easing of
interest rate concerns, some gainers also were aided by company-specific
issues.
Compaq, for instance, was up more than many competitors because of a
perception that it had become oversold, analysts said.
Compaq "is just retracing some of the higher points where it has been in the
past," said Frost Securities Inc. analyst Cody Acree. "It sold off in the
last tech sell-off, and it looks very attractive."
While Compaq climbed above 6%, rivals such as Dell Computer Corp. (DELL) and
Hewlett-Packard Co. (HWP) were up only 4.3% and 2.9%, respectively.
"It's possible that there was a sense that Compaq had dropped below what
might be a reasonable level for buyers," which spurred its inordinately
large climb amid the overall tech rally, said Mark Specker of Wit Soundview
Technology Group.
Texas Instruments, meanwhile, climbed on the heels of an upbeat meeting with
analysts Thursday at its Dallas headquarters. Some analysts raised their
earnings targets for the company Friday as a result of the meeting.
"Management now believes it is possible for operating margins to exceed 25%
by year-end," Credit Suisse First Boston Corp. analyst Charlie Glavin said
in a research note. Glavin raised his 2000 earnings estimate for Texas
Instruments to $2.51 a share from $2.45.
Bellwether software firms Microsoft and Oracle also were up, moves Warburg
Dillon Read LLC analyst Andrew Roskill attributed partly to a shift back to
big-cap technology issues by investors who had appeared to favor smaller and
lesser-known tech stocks over the last few sessions.
According to reports, Microsoft also said Thursday that sales of its new
Windows 2000 operating system were going well.
Despite Microsoft's much-anticipated launch of Windows 2000 in mid-February,
the software giant's shares have been battered in recent weeks, largely
because of the company's ongoing legal woes.
Microsoft shares, which flirted with 120 in the last week of December,
slipped below 90 Tuesday before gaining some ground in Thursday's session.
Recently, the stock was trading up 4 9/16 at 97 15/16.
"There's definitely been a shift (Friday) back towards the large-cap tech
gorillas," Roskill said.
Oracle, however, was merely renewing a recent surge. The company recently
was up 4 7/16 at 72 7/8 after setting a split-adjusted 52-week high of 76
1/2 on Monday.
-Bob Sechler; Dow Jones Newswires; 512-236-9637
-Marcelo Prince contributed to this story.
(END) DOW JONES NEWS 03-03-00
03:24 PM
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