My thinking is, any improvement toward profitability will sent the stock flying. Also with earnings being reported look for CNBC to finally give ONSL some press maybe even a CEO interview. The only reason this stock is cheap now is lack of press coverage.
Check this out from zdnet:
SPECIAL REPORT
THURSDAY, JULY 16, 1998
Profits Still Elude Most
Online Retailers
Larry Dignan, Editor
Inter@ctive Investor
So what's the bottom line for e-tailers? Unfortunately
there isn't one. But Wall Street is patiently waiting.
"Profits are not overwhelmingly important now," said
Anthony Blenk, an analyst with Everen Securities.
"People are looking out two or three years."
Like other Internet companies, online retailers are busy
grabbing market share, building the brand and building
a base of revenue. That means profits will have to wait
to catch up to lofty stock valuations. Analysts are
guessing Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) will break
even in the year 2000 and start raking in the real bucks
in 2001. Other leading e-tailers such as CDNow
(Nasdaq: CDNW) will be firmly in the black by then too.
The first e-tailer to see profits is Onsale Inc. (Nasdaq:ONSL). Analysts say Onsale will be the first e-tailer to
be profitable - hitting the black in 1999. In fact, Onsale
(chart) has a unique distinction among Internet
companies: It was profitable back in 1996 -- a year
before it went public.
Keith Benjamin, an analyst at BancAmerica Robertson
Stephens, estimates e-tailers will show rapid profit
growth once they break even. Benjamin predicts
Onsale will have earnings of 13 cents a share in 1999,
with profits jumping to 91 cents a share by 2001.
Preview Travel Inc. (Nasdaq: PVTL) will become
profitable in 2001, with profits of 92 cents a share for
the year. |
