More on COMS from Briefing:
3COM CORP (COMS) 25 5/8 -1 1/16. Is it just us, or should analysts also be concerned that 3Com has been reluctant to issue an official date for its Q4 earnings release? Although our Tech Earnings Calendar indicates that the networking products company is scheduled to report quarterly results after the close of trading today, we are by no means certain that we will hear anything out of COMS this afternoon. The process of updating the Tech Earnings Calendar entails calling each of the companies listed to verify the date and time of day of their earnings release. However, COMS is refusing to divulge that information to us this quarter. What's more, the one analyst whom we could find that claimed to know the day of the earnings report is now backing away from that date. This is the second consecutive quarter that the company has been less-than-forthcoming about its quarter. Going into 3Coms' Q3 report, analysts suddenly began to sharply reduce estimates, although the company hadn't officially released an earnings warning. Apparently, 3Com guided estimates lower behind closed doors, in the process failing to disseminate the information to individual investors. So, while on March 15 one may have seen a DLJ upgrade of COMS from "market perform" to "buy," that person may not have been aware that at the same time DLJ was slashing estimates. That's right, only three weeks before the company was due to report Q3 results, DLJ was upgrading the stock, yet lowering estimates for the quarter by more than 50%. (By the way, the company's Q3 earnings were actually much worse than anyone expected, yet one firm had the temerity to upgrade the stock that day, while also cutting estimates, citing better-than-expected revenues. Since then, the stock has tumbled 30%). When it comes to COMS, it would seem that the analyst community has simply gone mad and is taking the individuals who follow their investment device right down the drain with the them.
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