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Non-Tech : Philip Morris - A Stock For Wealth Or Poverty (MO) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Theo Karantsalis who wrote (5050)	11/5/1999 8:16:00 AM
From: Wowzer	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 6439

In the weeks Business Week: BUSINESSWEEK INVESTOR -- INSIDE WALL STREET Beaten Down: Mattel and Philip Morris Andrew Bischel's approach is the opposite of Gillam's. Bischel, president of Spare, Kaplan, Bischel & Associates in San Francisco, is a value investor: He keeps an eye out for companies he thinks have been unfairly penalized by the Street, some of which he calls ''bottom of the barrel''--excessively beaten-down outfits that are set to rebound. One stock that handily fits this category is Mattel (MAT). The world's top toymaker sent the Street reeling on Oct. 4, when it announced it would miss third-quarter profit forecasts by up to 55%, largely because of a revenue shortfall at its recently acquired Learning Co. Fund managers would like to send Mattel CEO Jill Barad to the corner--or worse. Meanwhile, they have dumped shares, sending the stock to $14, down from $20 last month--and $40 last year. Bischel, who is buying shares, feels the Street has overreacted. ''Barbie alone is worth $11 to $12 a share,'' he says. And on Nov. 2, Carnegie Investment Management offered to buy 3% of the company for $14.35 a share. Bischel says Mattel could hit $20 the first half of 2000. Bischel is also buying Philip Morris (MO), which he terms ''incredibly beaten up and downtrodden.'' The shares have been falling as its legal woes mount, particularly a tobacco class action in Florida. ''The prospect of punitive damages has scared everybody to death,'' he says. Bischel believes the market has exaggerated the legal risks and that the ''prospects for a favorable outcome have not been taken into account.'' He thinks other products, such as Kraft and Miller beer, remain strong. True, he expects little good news during the remainder of the year. But ''if you look into 2000, a lot of good things can happen.'' Bischel feels that the legal pressures will start to lift at about that time, and that Morris shares, now at 23, stand a good chance of climbing back into the 40s next year. By GARY WEISS