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Technology Stocks : How high will Microsoft fly? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Jill who wrote (32340)	11/6/1999 5:14:00 PM
From: Roger	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 74651

Last week I posted a note wishing / hoping that MSFT settle the case out of frustration at seeing this stock shackled by the DOJ case against it. I am surprised that they took their chances for so long when they could have settled. I mean just look at the action in the stock for the past 4-5 months - it is virtually in a range from 80-100 while the rest of the techs have gone up sharply. While this is a short term trend and not a long term, it is frustrating to see this stock beat earnings handily, come up with upbeat forecasts and yet go nowhere. Now, with the FOF against them, they will have to settle when their position is not so strong. If they had done so before, that may not have been the case. Case in point INTEL - who also had a case against them - but they settled quickly before this became a distraction for them. I sincerely hope MSFT settles this as quickly as possible now without taking their chances for an appeal. Every day that goes by increases uncertainty. Plus you also have to consider the impact of any lingering uncertainty on employee turnover - quality software people are in great demand and any uncertainty will lead to an increased # of people looking elsewhere. I am sure these guys have got pressure from shareholders, institutions and employees to settle ASAP. I hope that is the case.

To: Jill who wrote (32340)	11/6/1999 5:17:00 PM
From: art slott	Read Replies (4) \| Respond to of 74651

The perception by every legal professor i've seen is unanimous: Jackson did a fantastic job and the DOJ has gotten a total victory.

To: Jill who wrote (32340)	11/6/1999 6:47:00 PM
From: RTev	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 74651

Perception drives the market... I just read the New York Times package on the case. Yes. Very negative, indeed, especially the one that speculates on the effect of the FOF on MSFT price: nytimes.com (Need membership, of course.) David Readerman, an investment banker who studies the company, says he expects Microsoft's shares to drop early this week, though by no more than 10 percent. Still, a 10 percent decline in would erase $47 billion in the wealth of Microsoft shareholders. "It won't be a wipeout," said Mr. Readerman, a managing director at Thomas Weisel Partners in San Francisco. "Microsoft is still a great growth story. But not only the Department of Justice, but also now a federal judge feel that some of that growth was acquired improperly."