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Technology Stocks : Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Stock Farmer who wrote (38345)	7/14/2000 10:09:27 PM
From: The Phoenix	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 77397

John, I think you're missing the point. There is no cliff. It's more like ... assume we're horses and there are two fields of grass. Sometimes one field has greener and sweeter grass than the other but both are very good fields. Now, some horses are satisfied with the less sweet field because it's always been good - no droughts never a problem.. sometimes the field is very sweet indeed. This would be like the CSCO field. Other horses feed on a different field. Today this particular field is very sweet but this field too has had some rough times - perhaps a little rougher than CSCO field... still it's hard to argue about it now because the grass is very sweet indeed. This would be the NT field. Now there are some really smart horses that straddle both fields and feed off each. Should one field falter they are still in a good position to enjoy sweet grass - of course we all know that the fields are in such close proximity that should one falter badly it's likely the other field will also be damaged. So, there is no cliff or "the sky is falling". Both fields are sweet and are producing nice grass. It's up to the horse to chose what to do.. feed off one or both. What's really stupid is the horse in the sweet field yelling over to the horses in the historically stable field (which by the way is still producing very nice grass) that the field is dead and that they should get out of the field. That horse would be well adised to shut up and eat some grass. OG

To: Stock Farmer who wrote (38345)	7/15/2000 3:41:42 AM
From: Uncle Frank	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 77397

That was a very reasonable presentation, John, and gave me pause. It made me question why I have my networking dollars concentrated in Cisco and ignored Nortel, which has performed splendidly. Here's what I came up with: * Cisco has an unusually secure position in the networking sector because of its deep penetration and proprietary software. * All their products integrate easily with one another, which is a huge advantage for a user. Accordingly, they don't need to assume undue risk innovating new technology; they can enter at a later date and still garnish outstanding market share. Consider that no IT manager will be criticized for selecting Cisco. * They have the process for making acquisitions immediately accretive down to a science, and have a work environment and a reward program that allows them to retain key employees afterwards. * Their topline growth has been outstanding for a large cap company, and their earnings are very predictable. This makes them the darling of the mutual funds, institutions, and analysts, who support their price during weak periods. * Based on personal experience, they have high caliber, committed, and focused employees. Due to Cisco's training programs, all of them are keenly aware of the mission, their role in it, and the need for timely execution. * John Chambers. As a result of the above, I see Cisco as an extremely stable investment, and feel comfortable employing the leverage of moderately bullish directional LEAPS. This allows me to achieve outstanding returns in a low risk environment. As far as NT is concerned, they have pulled off some fantastic feats in optical networking. But the bulk of their enterprise is directed towards old economy markets, and they just aren't growing the top line fast enough to capture my interest. I recognize that my preference is influenced to a large degree by my investment window and size of my portfolio. At this stage of my career, I feel it is wise to have a significant percentage of my investments in low risk/reward ratio vehicles. By that standard, Cisco is in a league of its own. But that's jmho. Regards, uf