Mr. Hargrave, your well deserved opinion is my point exactly.
Noone identifies ICOM with DSP. With respect to the "big cheeses", they are all networking equipment analysts miffed at the company because the SonetLynx multiplexer hasn't achieved the market distribution that division's management promised. On the day RH downgraded ICOM, a different analyst took TXN to their top buy. Figure that one out, by the way I figure it, DNA has wrapped themselves around the high-end application side of this chip. Name one research report discussing the potential of DSP, trust me, you won't find it -- its SonetLynx and CS4! Look for one analyst comment discussing DSP, the contract with TXN or the contracts with SCI -- you will find zero. Look through the company materials, ICOM has only marketed its network equipment. Troy, the DIR IR told me that he viewed this as a "complete IR failure" and plans to bring DSP to the forefront in the 1Q99.
I agree, the results will lead the stock price, however, we're not talking about whether SonetLynx gets a partner, we're talking about a DSP dynamo that is doing nothing but waiting on component availability from TXN! $1 million in 4Q98 when there are only about 500 high-end chips being made per month speaks for itself. IR says that DNA expects to due at least $5 million in DSP business in 1999. BULL****!! Of course they will, they just did $1 million and the chip isn't even out yet. No wonder he calls this an "IR failure". Someone needs to loosen his leash! Over the next 120 days, the investment community will begin to view ICOM in entirely different light.
The DSP is under an entirely different management team headed by the guy who invented the first commercial DSP twenty years ago at TXN. Since he came in early '96, they've grown the business from a 40 person engineering team supporting DSC Communications, to a 120 person powerhouse focusing on DSP, CTI, xDSL, etc. DNA has been very quiet while it has been establishing its strategies. Regardless of how badly the street feels about the networking equipment business, they will sit up in their chairs when this is brought to their attention. I can hear them now, "This the number one C6000 high-end software play and you get the rest for free!" Again, I challenge you to clear your head, look at this with nothing but the thought of DSP and you'll see why this story will turn on a dime in a matter of weeks.
Good Luck! |
