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Technology Stocks : John, Mike & Tom's Wild World of Stocks -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: wlheatmoon who wrote (348)	2/23/2000 11:31:00 AM
From: John Pitera	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2850

PUMA announced 2 for 1 split today and the earnings are coming tomorrow. from the Jan 7th post on this thread Puma Technology {PUMA} With the shift in paradigms that is currently underway in the software industry brought about by the open code revolution and the advent of web-based software and applications as a viable alternative to the Microsoft empire, Puma Technology, Inc. is poised to benefit from its foresight and development of software products for the next generation of connectivity that is on the horizon. This shift of power in the software industry coupled with the growing feasibility and predominance of small, powerful hand-held devices (made possible by advancements in integrated circuit technology) that may access data, networks, LANs and even the Internet remotely finds PUMA in the right place at the right time. Wireless connections made possible by Qualcomm's CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) technology coupled with advanced microwave transmission techniques will allow access to data through this new generation of computing devices. If PUMA has its way, their software and applications will be an integral part of this convergence of technologies. PUMA is a leading developer of products for the new era of wireless interconnectivity. Their products offer local, LAN, and remote data synchronization between the new generation of hand-held devices and both PC and server-based applications. PUMA also offers an infrared-based wireless solution that enables connectivity for file exchange and printing within close quarters free of cables or lines. The company offers software developer's kits which enable hardware and software manufacturers to establish compatibility with PUMA's products in the early stages of product development. This ensures that PUMA will be viable software option for end users of new products. This licensing of development kits is an important component of the PUMA business model which ensures PUMA a position of predominance within the new arena of small hand-held computing and communications devices. The company offers products for a long list of OEMs and software platforms including: 3Com's Palm Pilot, Windows CE devices, Nokia, Sharp, Texas Instruments, REX, Hewlett Packard Palm Top, AT&T, Orchestrate, SDK, and Lotus Notes. The company also boasts business relationships throughout a broad spectrum of industries with business associates like Amazon.com, Qualcomm, Sprint, GE, Goldman Sachs, Cisco Systems, United Technologies, Anderson Consulting, and Baan. Puma Technology, Inc. 2550 N. First St., Ste. 500 San Jose, CA 95131 Phone: 408-321-7650 Fax: 408-433-2212 Puma Technology specializes in being in sync. Its flagship Intellisync software lets users access, exchange, and synchronize data stored on different types of computing devices, including notebook and handheld computers, personal electronic organizers, and smart phones and pagers. Puma's TranXit software uses wireless infrared connectivity technology for file exchanges and printing. Its Satellite Forms software creates and deploys applications for handheld devices. The company sells to OEMs (68% of sales) directly and through distributors such as Ingram Micro and Tech Data. Toshiba accounts for almost 20% of sales. Puma has agreed to acquire Internet infrastructure software provider NetMind Technologies. pumatech.com Top Competitors: E-Sync \| Geoworks \| LXE

To: wlheatmoon who wrote (348)	2/23/2000 12:23:00 PM
From: John Pitera	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2850

MRVC, HLIT, SFA get big Mention from saturday's Barron's -------------- Q: Surely this isn't your only fiberoptic play. A: You're right. Another name we like is MRV Communications, a technological leader in all sorts of fiberoptic products such as hubs, routers and switches to enhance the performance of broadband networks. These are next-generation products in hot demand. Q: The company has everything, seemingly, but earnings. A: Actually, it should break into the black once 1999 results are announced this week. MRV could earn a couple of cents a share. But look at the revenue growth. Its fiberoptic division alone could be producing $200 million in revenues in 2001, versus an anticipated $70 million this year. Applying a 15 multiple to those 2001 revenues, which is conservative these days, would yield a potential market valuation for this division of $3 billion. At around 78, the stock of the entire company is only worth $2.4 billion today. By our sum-of-the-parts calculation, MRV should be valued at $160-$200 a share. And just to make sure that this isn't lost on the stock market, MRV is expected to bring five of its subsidiaries public between now and early 2001. The stock is an easy double in the next year and a half if the story works. A lot will depend on the market, though. MRV is the largest position in our portfolio. Q: What else strikes your fancy? A: Scientific Atlanta. The company has been around a lot longer than some of our tech plays. But we like its potential, given the prospects for cable TV set-top boxes. The financial numbers are already starting to improve sharply. The December quarter came in at four cents above the expected 32 cents a share. Revenues were up 20% from the year-ago quarter's and 7% from the previous quarter's. Order backlogs stood at $463.8 million, handily beating the previous record of $372.7 million set in the June quarter. At around 104, the stock has been selling at slightly more than 50 times the $2 a share we think the company could earn in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2001. : What's next on your Hit Parade? A: How about Harmonic? It's a leading supplier of fiberoptic transmission systems used to enhance bandwidth, improve signal quality and provide two-way communication for cable television, satellite and wireless networks. This company is beautifully positioned to benefit from the increases in bandwidth all the way up to the home. Again, we saw a significant earnings surprise in the fourth quarter of 1999 when the company reported 28 cents a share, versus a consensus forecast of 23 cents. This was an increase of 40% over the previous quarter and some 800% over the year-ago quarter. Q: The stock, at around 126, is trading at over 150 times year-ago earnings. A: True. But looking ahead, Harmonic should earn about a buck in 2000 and maybe $1.40-$1.50 the following year. The earnings estimates will ultimately go a lot higher and bring the earnings multiple down. So much capital spending is going into the build-out of the last mile and expansion of bandwidth. Sure, this stock could drop 20% or 30% at any time. Yet over the next three to five years, it's an easy double or triple. who is this masked equity portfolio manager?? The Driehaus Rules A star momentum player keeps swinging for the fences An Interview With Richard Driehaus ~ Richard Driehaus is something of an anomaly. Though well into middle age and a veteran of the bloody bear market of 1973-74, he's never lost his fancy for high-risk growth stocks. Most money managers profess to be trying to hit scratch singles or doubles. Not this guy. He swings for the fences on every trip to the plate. And in the main, his long-ball style has served him well. After bouncing around among several brokerage firms running special accounts, the Chicago native founded his own firm in 1979. Among other things, he became the lead broker for America Century's celebrated Ultra, Select and Growth funds, exchanging his growth-stock picks for commissions. The outsized performance of those funds during the 'Eighties was, in great part, a result of their covert relationship with Driehaus, if the truth be known. Driehaus also began running small and mid-cap portfolios for various institutional investors. Today, Driehaus Capital Management, which operates out of an old mansion in the Windy City, has some $6 billion under management, almost evenly spread between the institutional portfolios and a stable of five international mutual funds, led by $3 billion Driehaus International Growth. The performance of this complex has been remarkable. (Because many of the funds are designed for institutions, rather than individuals, they don't all show up in the listings run by Barron's and other publications.) International Growth has shown an average annual total return of 23% since inception in 1990, and sports a five-year growth rate of 31.8%. The domestic portfolios lagged for a time in the mid-1990s when big became beautiful and momentum investing went out of style. But since the October stock-market lows of 1998, Big Mo has come back with a vengeance. Last year, $1.8 billion Driehaus MidCap rose an astounding 222.4%, and $1.1 billion Driehaus Small Cap climbed 196.6%. The results boosted the two portfolios' 10-year annual average returns to 34.7% and 32.9%, respectively. Read on to see what this member of Barron's all-century mutual-fund team has to say about the current U.S. stock market and where he's placing his bets. -Jonathan R. Laing ---------- JP