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Technology Stocks : Compaq -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Night Writer who wrote (89300)	1/26/2001 11:24:55 PM
From: Captain Jack	Respond to of 97611

Well,, I'll hold some cash but vthink we will see a POP on 1/2 even though it may not sustain. A couple points on a couple issues in a few days will be fine-- Nothing I'm buying now is meant to be held as the mkt may not have the legs until Q3... or later... just watching and trading..... and holding very little-- mostly OLD GE, IBM, MST,etc,,,

To: Night Writer who wrote (89300)	1/27/2001 8:52:03 AM
From: hlpinout	Respond to of 97611

Compaq Execs See High-Margin Growth For Web Devices Updated: Friday, January 26, 2001 03:48 PM ET Email this article to a friend! Printer-friendly version By Bob Sechler Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES HOUSTON, Texas (Dow Jones)--A new era of high-margin growth is dawning in the personal computer industry as "boring beige boxes" make way for all manner of Internet-ready, portable devices, Compaq Computer Corp. (CPQ, news, msgs) executives forecast Friday. The market for such devices will be larger than that of the traditional PC market by 2004, Compaq Vice President Mike Winkler predicted, speaking during the company's financial meeting for Wall Street analysts and major investors. Last year, Compaq unveiled a host of new consumer products for accessing the Internet, receiving wireless e-mail and playing digital music. Winkler made clear that those are the types of devices Compaq sees driving profitability in the consumer PC market, although he also stressed that the company will continue to be a player in the market for more traditional PCs. Still, he and Compaq Chief Executive Michael Capellas reiterated comments earlier this week that they won't be drawn into a PC price war. Dell Computer Corp. (DELL, news, msgs) captured some market share in the fourth quarter by sharply lowering prices. "Revenue for its own sake is a worthless thing in the PC market," Winkler said. "We are aiming for profitable growth." Later, in an interview with Dow Jones Newswires, Winkler said PC demand has been a "pleasant surprise" within the last two weeks. "We have set very low expectations, and I will say (demand) is better than those low expectations," Winkler said. Compaq previously projected overall sales growth in the first half of 2001 at an anemic 3% to 5% above 2000 levels, citing slowing consumer confidence and an overall downturn in the economy. But early signals are that demand may be improving as consumers gain confidence action is being taken to ward off a recession, Winkler said. "People may be getting less worried," he said. "Maybe consumer spending will reignite." Still, he cautioned that it remains early in the quarter, so "the jury is still out." CEO Capellas also emphasized during the analyst meeting that he's still forecasting a general slowdown for the first half of 2001, particularly in the consumer and PC markets. The company didn't change any of the 2001 financial guidance it provided earlier this week after reporting fourth-quarter results, although executives described their forecasts as conservative, particularly in the first half. For the full year, Compaq has projected sales growth at 6% to 8% from 2000 levels. It expects earnings per share for the year to come in at $1.14 to $1.19 a share, excluding items, compared with 95 cents a share in 2000. Chief Financial Officer Jesse Greene said revenue for the company's high-margin enterprise computing division, which includes servers and storage devices, should grow by 13% to 15% in 2001. Revenue from global services is expected to grow 6% to 8%, and revenue from its "access" divisions, which include consumer and commercial PCs, should grow 3% to 5%, he said. Compaq executives made clear that they're banking on their higher-margin enterprise computing products to drive profits in 2001, echoing a growth strategy they've outlined previously. The company will capture market share for servers and other enterprise products in 2001, CEO Capellas vowed, although he declined to identify specific competitors he thought were vulnerable. "There's no question" Compaq will capture market share this year, he said. Compaq also will attempt to beef up sales of products and services to small- and medium-sized businesses in 2001, a segment where Capellas acknowledged the company has "underperformed" in the past. Compaq has a 12% market share in the segment, substantially below its better-than-20% share of corporate sales. The levels of PC inventory at retailers and dealers also should decline during the year, the company said. Excess inventory is a concern for Wall Street analysts and investors because it is considered a drag on sales. Compaq executives predicted inventory declines during 2001, saying there's a chance Compaq could finish the year with about two weeks of unsold PCs at sales outlets. The fourth quarter ended with closer to four weeks of unsold PCs, a figure executives said they were comfortable with but would like to see fall. Overall, Capellas characterized 2000 as a year in which Compaq established a solid base for the future despite difficult market conditions. He said the company increased sales 10% and increased its margins "despite the fact we had a pretty tough pricing environment." Analysts gave the company credit for making significant progress during the year and putting in place a strategy that appears to be solid. But some said the firm must prove it can pull it off. "They're focusing on faster-growing, higher-margin businesses, and that's a positive," said David Bailey, an analyst with Gerard Klauer Mattison & Co. who has a neutral rating on Compaq. "Clearly, they're better positioned than they were a year ago. But I think it's going to be a challenge." -By Bob Sechler; Dow Jones Newswires; 512-236-9637

To: Night Writer who wrote (89300)	1/28/2001 9:26:27 AM
From: Captain Jack	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 97611

N W -- now we have world financial leaders begging AG for 1/2 point- check the article,,, (REUTERS) DAVOS-Leaders urge Fed to save world from recession DAVOS-Leaders urge Fed to save world from recession By David Crossland DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Global business and finance leaders gathered at the Davos World Economic Forum summit are pinning their hopes on aggressive interest rate cuts in the United States to save the world from recession. But they hold out little hope that Japan, the world's second largest economy, can make a quick recovery from its slowdown as its interest rates are already at zero and public debt is too high to allow further big fiscal stimulus packages. One top International Monetary Fund official said the IMF was preparing to lower its world growth forecast for 2001 to around 3.5 percent from 4.2 percent. Days before the Federal Reserve's FOMC policy-making council meets on January 30-31, economists, finance officials and business chiefs said they were confident the Federal Reserve will keep cutting interest rates. Lower borrowing costs, combined with planned tax cuts by the new U.S. administration, would help revive U.S. growth from mid-2001, they said. "Another half-point cut would be the best policy at the next FOMC meeting," said Robert Mundell, an economist who won the Nobel Prize for Economics in 1999. French Finance Minister Laurent Fabius said he saw plenty of scope for more U.S. cuts, while IMF deputy head Stanley Fischer said the Fed had room to cut rates by as much as five points if necessary without stoking inflation. "Not that I think that will be necessary," Fischer added. The threat of world recession and the prospect of anti-globalisation protests spoilt the usually cosy atmosphere at the annual meeting of the world's business and political elite in this Swiss ski resort. Hundreds of police and kilometres of barbed wire surrounding the conference centre added to the sense of gloom and clashed with the Forum's lofty theme this year, "Bridging the Divides." In the event, protestors and police fought each other in Zurich. PLEAS GO OUT TO FED, OPEC Delegates also urged OPEC oil producing nations to help prevent a repeat of the oil price surge last year that helped bring economic growth in the U.S. to a screeching halt. German Finance Minister Hans Eichel said on Saturday if oil prices stabilised at levels seen in recent weeks it would be a "big plus" for the world economy. "I'm sure OPEC is aware of its responsibilities," Eichel said. OPEC's response appeared reassuring. Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said he expected OPEC would succeed in maintaining the price of OPEC oil around $25. OPEC, which cut oil output by five percent this month to help support prices, aims to keep the price in a range of $22 to $28. The Fed is now widely expected to deliver a half-point cut at its upcoming meeting, the second cut this month after it lowered its Fed funds rate on overnight lending by half a point to 6.0 percent on January 3. Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan stoked rate cut expectations last week when he said U.S. growth may have slowed to near zero. Fischer, echoing other analysts at the Forum, said the world was still far from the kind of recession seen in the early 1980s and 1990s. ECB STEADY FOR NOW, BUT LESS HAWKISH Fischer stopped short of urging the European Central Bank to cut interest rates, saying that despite a slowdown in European growth during the second half of 2000, its economic position looked "pretty strong." He added: "Inflation will be restrained by the stronger euro and by lower energy prices, and wage growth remains moderate, so there is scope for interest rate cuts if activity weakens or the euro appreciates markedly." ECB officials have made clear they will not cut interest rates for the time being but acknowledged price pressures in the euro zone are easing, fuelling speculation of a cut over the next six months. DOUBTS ABOUT JAPAN Fischer said Japanese GDP may have contracted slightly in the final quarter of 2000 after a sharp slowdown in the previous two quarters. The main weapon left to Japan was restructuring of the economy, particularly banks, corporate debt and corporations, although the turnaround would not be rapid, he said. Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori told the Forum on Saturday that the 1990s had been "a lost decade" for Japan in which its citizens lost an estimated 1,000 trillion yen ($8.55 trillion) through falling equity and land prices alone, an amount twice that of Japan's GDP.