Ascend Commun -3: Montgomery Cuts '97 Net View To $1.36/Shr
Dow Jones News Service via Dow Jones
Tobia, the Montgomery analyst, lowered his earnings estimate for the third
quarter to 35 cents from 36 cents a share. He trimmed his 1997 earnings view to
$1.36 a share from $1.40, and his 1998 projection to $1.90 a share from $2.10.
In the year-ago third quarter, Ascend earned 20 cents a share, including
charges, and 1996 full earnings were 89 cents a share, including charges.
Tobia said the July results raised concerns because the company "reportedly
exited the June quarter with substantial backlog position for the" 56K modems
for the TNT line. He said that production volumes for this modem started
shipping in mid-July, which led him to expect a generally stronger first month.
"The result is particularly concerning given the fact that the company is
entering the seasonally softest month of the year - August," he said.
Tobia suggested that reasons for the lower-than-expected results included the
fact that the company had to push to make the previous quarter and thereby
worked down its pipeline of business for early July. Another reason could be
that the 56K modem for TNT has been delayed for Europe.
He also said the GRF router has been tracking below expectations as well, even
though it has a performance advantage over Cisco Systems Inc.'s (CSCO) 7500
series router.
Even if the September quarter numbers are achievable, "this weak start to the
quarter will certainly lead to a back-end loaded September quarter and reduced
visibility," Tobia said.
(END) DOW JONES NEWS 08-11-97
04:31 PM
-0- 4 31 PM EDT 08-11-97
:TICKER: ASND
:SUBJECT: TLCM ACOM ERNP CA COMP
Copyright (c) 1997 Dow Jones and Company, Inc.
Received by NewsEDGE/LAN: 8/11/97 3:29 PM |
