Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Formerly About Applied Materials -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: advocatedevil who wrote (58866)	1/15/2002 11:12:06 PM
From: StanX Long	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 70976

Goodbye, Mr. Chip Equipment By Tish Williams Senior Writer 01/15/2002 08:26 PM EST thestreet.com Intel (INTC:Nasdaq - news - commentary - research - analysis) served up some indigestion to investors after Tuesday's market close, announcing it would hack off 25% of its capital-spending plans for 2002. The chip giant consumes a large portion of the entire market for chip equipment, and news that it plans to curb its appetite caught chip-equipment investors off-guard. Intel spent $7.3 billion in 2001, but will trim that back to $5.7 billion in 2002. Applied Materials (AMAT:Nasdaq - news - commentary - research - analysis) fell 6.5% in the hour following the announcement, while smaller competitors Novellus Systems (NVLS:Nasdaq - news - commentary - research - analysis) and KLA-Tencor (KLAC:Nasdaq - news - commentary - research - analysis) lost 6% apiece. Despite hard times in the chip business, and even tougher ones for the companies that stock the manufacturing facilities of those chip companies, Applied Materials' stock has run up 59% since Oct. 1. Novellus shares climbed 55% in that same time period, while KLA-Tencor shot up 80%. This comes as investors are waving goodbye to the worst chip year in memory, in the hope that better days are coming soon. Intel's capex plans have been the subject of heated speculation for months, as pundits have tossed around projections as dire as a 40% cut to the chipmaker's spending outlay. That proved too drastic, but in recent weeks, as good news about holiday PC purchases rolled in from Advanced Micro Devices (AMD:NYSE - news - commentary - research - analysis), Intel and Compaq (CPQ:NYSE - news - commentary - research - analysis), Wall Street began to lean toward a milder Intel cut.