Hi TP!
The Dell meeting this week is supposed to be positive! Hang in there on this ride. It has been a Monday for me at least! Here is the Bloomberg article about the meeting this week! :)Leigh
quote.bloomberg.com
Dell Computer Seen Focusing on Server Business at Meeting
By Loren Steffy
Round Rock, April 3 (Bloomberg) -- Dell Computer Corp., the
biggest seller of personal computers in the U.S., is expected to
focus on its burgeoning sales of machines that power Internet
sites when the company meets with analysts Thursday in New York.
Analysts predict the meeting, the first with new Chief
Financial Officer James Schneider, will include an improved
forecast for corporate PC sales and announcements of new Internet-
related products. Chairman Michael Dell and vice chairmen Kevin
Rollins and James Vanderslice also will speak.
Dell is the second-biggest seller of servers that run on
Microsoft Corp.'s Windows operating system, trailing rival Compaq
Computer Corp. Servers, storage systems and workstations
constitute one of Dell's fastest growing businesses, with sales
rising 55 percent in the fiscal fourth quarter ended Jan. 28.
``You're seeing server growth accelerate,' said Prudential
Securities analyst Kimberly Alexy, who rates Dell ``strong buy.'
Analysts have said for several weeks they expect Dell to
unveil a new line of ``appliance servers,' machines that power
Web sites and manage Internet traffic, yet are cheaper and easier
to set up than conventional servers now sold by companies such as
Compaq and Sun Microsystems Inc. The new machines are designed for
small businesses that are moving onto the Internet.
The Round Rock, Texas-based company declined to comment on
specific products, though it scheduled a press briefing Wednesday
to discuss its Internet strategy and new models.
Slowing PC Sales
Dell is targeting more profitable areas of the computer
market to offset slowing PC sales. In January, Dell predicted
sales would grow 30 percent in each quarter of this year compared
with the same periods a year ago. From 1996 through 1998, when
Dell was the best-performing stock in the Standard & Poor's 500
Index, sales rose 50 percent or more each quarter.
The January forecast was the second straight quarter in which
Dell surprised investors with warnings about slowing sales.
Analysts are looking for the company to use Thursday's meeting to
rebuild its image with the financial community.
``They've lost credibility on the street,' said Dan Niles,
an analyst with Robertson Stephens & Co. in San Francisco who
rates Dell a ``strong buy.'
Analysts expect Dell to forecast improving sales for
corporate PCs as Year 2000 concerns, which slowed sales late last
year, have eased.
``After four months of hardly any buying in corporate PCs,
we're starting to see orders pick up,' Alexy said. ``That really
sets them up well for the rest of the year.'
Dell shares rose 9/16 to 54 1/2 in midafternoon trading. The
shares climbed to a record close of 58 1/8 on March 22, up 63
percent from Feb. 9, when they traded at their lowest level since
June.
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