Diana,
Don't forget that you're our real time quote source during times of turmoil and volatility. Invaluable...
A comment on the Rational source on Yahoo and their info. I won't invest on such information- this is just my personal opinion. If you understand the personalities of Paul Levy and Mike Devlin, I don't think you will see them exceed earnings for some time. They will meet estimates for atleast six quarters and, yes they are backlogging revs. Both are not in this for overnight success- they are x-military guys- #s 1 and 2 in their classes at the Air Force Academy and they are very long term on Rational. So, don't expect for them to come out with hot dog earnings- not their style.
Rational will gain value by showing their 2-4 yr strategy (the acquisitions) is working- not by blowing away quarterly numbers. Rumor over the past 3 months has it that the cellular company mentioned by the RATL employee is Ericcson and that is figured into market value today.
Bottomline is that Rational employees do read this thread, I know from personal experience, but I don't think any are stupid enough to be leaking info.
As for the sales force integration- I have heard from no fewer than 10 sources, internal and Rational Solutions Providers, that the integration was totally successful and that the sales force is firing on all cylinders. That is yet to be seen, but it sure appeared to be a tight ship at SD West.
Finally, RATLs problem appears to be resources- it is amazing the amount of recruiting and advertising they are trying to do in Silicon Valley. They are sponsoring a job fair with Bank of America- adds are running on the Classic Rock stations in the Bay Area- pretty humorous...
Steady growth, like what we've seen over the past 30 days, is what we want- this is not an Internet stock and not a company that is going to pay overnight dividends- but over the long haul, Levy, Devlin & Co. will deliver. |
