Hummingbird Communications Ltd.
Dow Jones Newswires -- October 16, 1998
Analyst Says Hummingbird Rise Could Be On Acquisition
Rumor
By Lori McLeod
TORONTO (Dow Jones)--Hummingbird Communications Ltd.'s (HUMCF) share price increase Friday
may be the result of speculation the company is planning to announce an acquisition, Paul Bradley, an
analyst with Canaccord Capital Corp., told Dow Jones.
In Toronto, Hummingbird shares are up 1.60, or 5.3%, to 32.00 on 87,000 shares.
Last year, Hummingbird announced its purchase of Andyne Computing Ltd., a Kingston, Ont. business
intelligence software maker, close to the release of its fourth-quarter results, Bradley said.
Hummingbird is scheduled to announce its fourth-quarter results on Oct. 20, and Bradley said people may
be expecting news of another acquisition at that time. He didn't elaborate.
Bradley said he's expecting Hummingbird to meet the First Call mean estimate for its fourth quarter of 56
U.S. cents a diluted share, although he said the results "could come in a little higher." Last year,
Hummingbird reported fourth-quarter earnings of 65 U.S. cents a diluted share.
Bradley also said he expects Hummingbird to report earnings of about 58 U.S. cents a diluted share in the
first quarter of fiscal 1999, and US$2.40 a share for all of fiscal 1999.
Bradley said he has a 12-month price target of C$55.00 for Hummingbird.
Recent announcements about new products in Hummingbird's business intelligence area may be adding to
people's positive feelings about the company, Bradley added.
Bradley said the company has "squeezed every drop of growth" out of its traditional connectivity software
business, and that he's looking at Hummingbird's business intelligence unit as its new growth engine.
-By Lori McLeod; 416-943-7800 |
