Semiconductor Equipment . . . Gartner said growth prospects for 2003 semiconductor capital equipment have "dimmed" due to slow order momentum and low second-quarter sales. Gartner now expects chip capital spending to total $29.7 billion, up 7.9 percent from 2002, but down slightly from earlier projections of $29.9 billion. "Ultra-conservatism is holding back spending on new equipment, at least for the wafer fab," said Gartner managing vice president Klaus-Dieter Rinnen. "As harsh as it might sound for capital equipment vendors, the cautious investment behavior might actually be for the better of the industry."
Ultratech Stepper downgraded at Needham to Hold from Buy based on valuation. The firm says that discussions with several industry contacts suggest that laser thermal processing technology (LTP) may suffer from integration challenges in the spike anneal application. The firm also believes that early developers of 65nm process technology such as Intel and IBM are not adopting LTP for their 65nm processes, confirming their belief that the argument for adopting LTP is not as compelling as the stock reflects.
Boxmakers . . . Hewlett-Packard and Disney signed a 10-year pact that includes providing consumer computing services for Disney's new Mission: Space exhibit at Epcot Center in Florida. Additionally, Morgan Stanley's Rebecca Runkle said H-P is in position for a strong fourth quarter due to a new set of consumer products.
The Wall Street Journal's "Heard on the Street" column suggests Apple's iTunes music store is not necessarily a moneymaker. When the company originally introduced the store to the public, Apple's shares quickly skyrocketed from a 52-week low of around $13 to more than $20. The article suggests a repeat performance may be in the works as the company introduces the product to a wider audience next week. Currently, the service is available to just 3% of computer users with the co readying a version of the service for the 90%-plus who work in a Windows-based environment. However, the article suggests the company earns less than a dime on each song it sells from the store. Needham's analyst states, "the Music Store doesn't represent a major income opportunity for Apple". The company believes the service is a "trojan horse" to incite interest in the company's iPod music player.
While there was no business update from Dell on its strategy conference call, COO Kevin Rollins was upbeat about Dell's growth prospects and competitive advantages that should enable the company to grow revenues to $60 billion by 2006 (2007). There was little new in the call today: COO Kevin Rollins highlighted Dell's structurally advantaged, low-cost model positions it well to grow share of wallet in existing markets and gain share in new large markets as they standardize. Rollins indicated if Dell were to achieve share in servers, storage, services and S&P similar to its 17%+ PC share, it would add $50 billion in annual revenues. Continue to like Dell as it remains the key beneficiary of major secular trends: 1) wireless and notebook mix shift; 2) shift from proprietary RISC/UNIX to Linux/Windows servers on low-cost hardware; and 3) growth in low-end/mid-range storage where Dell’s partnership with EMC should allow it to grow its presence – all areas where accelerating standardization plays into Dell’s model.
robblack.com
I think more of the threads normal contributors are posting on the AMAT no politics thread. In addition to a large number of thread participants having taken some profits earlier this year in hopes for a significant pullback we also have those who are still in cash.
Don, asked a while back for more input on how we all select stocks and got virtually no answers.
Perhaps more of us see this market as overvalued than we care to admit?
RtS |
