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Strategies & Market Trends : Zeev's Turnips - No Politics -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: LTK007 who wrote (19601)	1/8/2002 8:33:00 AM
From: LTK007	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 99280

Alcoa earnings 1cent above estimate,but revenues flat but annouce also they are targetting to cut 1billion dollars in cost for 2003.Max

To: LTK007 who wrote (19601)	1/8/2002 8:44:24 AM
From: puborectalis	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 99280

Tech chiefs' net worth takes a hit By Larry Dignan Staff Writer, CNET News.com January 8, 2002, 4:00 a.m. PT news analysis Oracle's Larry Ellison and Sun Microsystems' Scott McNealy were among the tech CEO's whose net worth took the steepest declines during last year's bear market. Ellison's net worth sank more than $21 billion, or 52 percent, to $19 billion in 2001, and McNealy's fell to $685 million, or 55.9 percent, according to CNET's CEO Wealth Meter, which ranks tech chieftains daily based only on their cash and options compensation. Given those losses, it's no surprise that Ellison and McNealy can't keep themselves from taking jabs at nemesis Microsoft, which saw its shares jump 53 percent in 2001. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer had a good year as the software giant emerged from ongoing antitrust problems in good shape, and launched its Xbox video game console and Windows XP operating system. Ballmer's net worth climbed to $15.87 billion for the year. While Ellison and McNealy may have to refrain from thumping their chests over their net worth, they won't be heading to the soup kitchen anytime soon, either. Both have more zeros in their net worth than most folks can comprehend. Ellison lost $21 billion in 2001 and was still worth $19 billion on New Year's Eve. McNealy was worth $685 million at the end of the year, down from $1.5 billion at the end of 2000. Last year's tech stock turbulence put Ellison well behind in a race to be the sector's richest man. In March of 2000, Ellison closed in on the net worth of Forbes 400 king and former Microsoft CEO Bill Gates. Indeed, Ellison's $53 billion briefly overtook Gates' $51.75 billion in April 2000. Since then, the companies' shares have taken divergent paths. Because Gates also has passed the CEO title to Ballmer, he is no longer included in the Wealth Meter rankings. Should the tech sector shed a tear for the likes of Ellison? "Absolutely not," said David Hilal, an analyst at Friedman Billings Ramsey. "I can only CEO winners and losers These are some of the tech CEOs that saw the biggest changes to their net worth, as measured by the percentage change in holdings and absolute dollar change. Winners Gregory Fischbach, Acclaim Entertainment, 1,442%, up $35 million Richard Braddock, Priceline.com, 343%, up $37 million Margaret Whitman, eBay, 102.7%, up $219 million Michael Dell, Dell Computer, 55.87%, up $3 billion Steve Ballmer, Microsoft, 53%, up $5.5 billion Losers Daniel Smith, Sycamore Networks, -85.6%, down $675 million Scott McNealy, Sun Microsystems, -55.9%, down $867 million Ted Waitt, Gateway, -55.3%, down $364 million Larry Ellison, Oracle -52.5%, down $21 billion Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com, -30.5%, down $544 million Source: CNET Investor imagine, but I'd bet there isn't much difference between $20 billion and $40 billion. "Besides, Ellison is bullish on the company so he has to view this as a temporary thing," Hilal said. Indeed, CEO net worth generally closely mirrors tech stock prices, which are prone to severe swings. And given that the intersection between the tech sector and Wall Street was littered with train wrecks in 2001, it's not surprising that CEOs lost a few zeros. The winners However, there were winners--even if some of them were just bouncing back from serious falls in 2000. In absolute dollar terms, Ballmer, Dell Computer CEO Michael Dell and eBay CEO Meg Whitman had the best years. Michael Dell's holdings were worth $8.4 billion on Dec. 31, up $3 billion for the year. Whitman, who has been selling shares of late, ended the year with holdings valued at $433 million. In percentage terms, Acclaim Entertainment CEO Gregory Fischbach came out on top. He saw his net worth jump 1,442 percent to $38 million as the company's shares surged from 34 cents at the end of 2000 to $5.30 by Dec. 31. Digital River Chief Executive Joel Ronning's net worth gained 570 percent in 2001 to end the year at $20 million. Network Associates CEO George Samenuk also didn't have a bad year, up 517 percent. Among the percentage winners, CEOs from companies related to video games fared well. Richard Braddock, CEO of online travel company Priceline.com, saw his net worth jump 343 percent to $47.6 million as the company's shares recovered from $1.31 to $5.82 in 2001. Braddock helped turn Priceline around by focusing it on the travel market, a move that helped the company turn a net profit. It's conceivable that the winners in 2001 could continue to see their net worth gain in 2002. Digital River's Ronning said the company remains on the acquisition path, snapping up the customers of FreeMerchant.com on Friday. If Digital River can boost its earnings throughout 2002, Ronning may continue to benefit. "As the company goes, so does the management," he said. And analysts expect that security--Network Associates' home turf--will remain hot. Network Associates is seeing a payoff from focusing on corporate companies while its dot-com effort, McAfee.com, targets consumers and small businesses. The losers Aside from Ellison and McNealy, there were a few other familiar names on the CEO Wealth Meter loser list. Amazon.com CEO Jeff Bezos saw his net worth fall more than 30 percent as the e-tailing giant withstood a turbulent year as Wall Street questioned the company's profit prospects and "short" investors, who bet a stock will fall, targeted shares. Despite the decline in his net worth, Bezos ended 2001 with holdings worth $1.2 billion. It was also a tough year for telecommunications executives. Sycamore Networks CEO Daniel Smith started 2002 worth $113.4 million, down from $788.3 million a year ago. Gateway CEO Ted Waitt saw his net worth fall $364.4 million, or about 55 percent, to $294.5 million in 2001 as the company cut roughly 25 percent of its workers, shed its international operations, and shuttered 10 percent of its Country stores. The company tried to keep pace with rivals like Dell and find its niche in an increasingly competitive PC market. "This past year has been tumultuous for Gateway," said Gerard Klauer Mattison analyst David Bailey. "Unless Gateway can reinvigorate its small business initiative, continued pricing pressure (primarily from Dell) and tepid consumer demand will limit the company's revenue and earnings at least through the middle of 2002."

To: LTK007 who wrote (19601)	1/8/2002 8:46:26 AM
From: puborectalis	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 99280

Fed's Santomero Says U.S. Economy to Recover `Around Mid-2002' By Brendan Murray and Monee Fields-White Washington, Jan. 8 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. economy will recover from recession by midyear, more slowly than some analysts expect, because rising unemployment may curtail consumer spending, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia President Anthony Santomero said. Still, he suggested the economy may not need additional stimulus from lower interest rates. ``The roadblock can be stated simply: Consumers must be employed to spend,'' Santomero said in the text of a speech to the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce. ``Softness in the labor markets could put pressure on consumer spending and affect confidence going forward.'' Santomero is a voting member of the Fed's policy making Open Market Committee, which is next scheduled to meet Jan. 30. The economy, in recession since March, contracted 1.3 percent in the third quarter last year and probably shrank from October to December, he said. A rebound won't come until ``around mid-2002 -- a few months later than the median forecast predicts,'' he said. While inventory reduction is ``well along,'' it may take longer than expected for companies to reduce stockpiles enough that they need increase production to meet demand. Business investment will also be slow to revive, he said. ``I do not anticipate a recovery in business investment spending until the second half of 2002, but it must at least stabilize and not be a drag on economic growth,'' Santomero said. `Cautious' on Rate Cuts The Fed may not need to lower interest rates again, Santomero suggested. The central bankers made 11 ``rapid-fire cuts'' in interest rates last year, taking the benchmark overnight bank lending rate to a 40-year low of 1.75 percent. Those moves take time to boost the economy, he said. Fed policy ``actions taken today will alter economic performance in the second half of 2002 at the earliest, so caution must be the watchword in the months ahead,'' he said. The effects of the September terrorist attacks linger, he said. Retail sales in the fourth quarter likely be ``lower than hoped, still reflecting the shock of 9/11,'' he said. Santomero cited about $200 billion in government spending and tax cuts as a potential lift to the economy because it represents 2 percent of gross domestic product. ``The stimulus associated with greater government spending and lower taxes should have a significant positive impact on the economy,'' he said.