Some good upgrades today for the sem-equip universe.
From Briefing.com
<<Applied Materials (AMAT) 21.00 +0.25: Piper Jaffray raised their FY04 EPS est to $0.50 from $0.45 (above consensus of $0.46) based on their belief that the co's rev plan for 1H04 has solidified and that product improvement design efforts should provide an incremental boost to gross margins; firm believes that orders looming in 1H04 from Samsung, TSM, Renasas, Elpida, and Matsushita could provide incremental rev strength by mid-2004.
Cree (CREE) 19.88 -0.89: Upgraded to Buy at Needham. Firm is revising its rating to Buy from "under review" based on lowered risk after the former CEO dropped his securities-fraud claim and the special committee found no evidence of allegations. Firm introduces a price tgt of $23. (Briefing.com note: CREE is currently trading down 1.4% in reaction to a SoundView downgrade; see 07:23 comment).
Lam Research (LRCX) 27.08 +0.84: Adams Harkness initiated coverage of LRCX with a Buy rating and $36 target; firm believes that LRCX has gained significant share in the fast-growing dielectric etch mkt during this downturn, and early customer wins at this stage should lead to strong rev growth when volume orders start to flow; also, LRCX should enjoy tremendous leverage in the next upturn due to outsourcing.
Veeco Instruments (VECO) 23.10 +0.92: Upped to Buy at D.A. Davidson; tgt $30. Firm upgrades from Neutral based on view of an improving capital 2003 spending environment for thin film head manufacturers in 2004. While timing orders from thin-film head manufactures is challenging, firm believes that bookings acceleration could lead to earnings per share in excess of $1.25 by 2005 and provide upside to firm's 2004 est; says VECO remains attractively valued relative to peers in the metrology and process equipment markets, based on book value and price to forward sales and earnings; firm raises target from $21 to $30, a 35x multiple to its 2004 EPS estimate of $0.87.>>
Here is a downgrade for a SOX member as reported by Briefing.com.
<<Micron (MU) 12.54 -0.24: Banc of America Sec downgraded Buy to NEUTRAL. Believes ongoing weakness in DRAM spot prices as well as plentiful supply in that marketplace are strong negative indicators.>>
Speaking of the SOX, it closed in the "green" today, but just barely - up 0.46 points or 0.10 percent. It looks to me like it is "rolling over", but we shall see what happens over the next week or two.
Don |
