Intel says value of technology investments drops
NEW YORK, April 27 (Reuters) - Microchip powerhouse Intel
Corp's <INTC.O> investments in other technology companies were
hurt somewhat by recent stock market declines, the head of its
Intel Capital Investment Group operation said on Thursday.
"The portfolio went down some, but not very much," said
Leslie Vadasz, president of Intel Capital. "At the end of the
first quarter, we were at $10 billion and it has gone down, but
not as low as it was when we left the fourth quarter."
Intel's investments in more than 425 technology companies,
about a third of which are publicly traded, were valued at
about $8 billion at the end of the fourth quarter.
"So it is somewhere between $8 billion and $10 billion.
It's going to fluctuate," Vadasz said.
Vadasz added that Intel's investments in companies focused
on Internet infrastructure -- building the Web's backbone --
had helped the value of the company's investments to remain
relatively stable.
Compaq Computer Corp. <CPQ.N> on Tuesday said the value of
its investments in other technology companies had dropped by
more than half in the past three weeks. The value of Compaq's
investments dropped to $2.9 billion on April 24 from $6.1
billion on March 31.
Technology companies, such as Intel and Compaq, invest in
other technology companies to stay on top of emerging trends,
but the investments also beefed up company earnings during the
surge in technology share prices last year.
Some analysts have expressed concern that an extended
technology stocks downturn could change those pluses into
minuses.
((Nicole Volpe, Technology Desk, (212)-859-1897))
REUTERS
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