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Technology Stocks : Applied Materials No-Politics Thread (AMAT) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: pompsander who wrote (2945)	9/6/2002 2:25:02 PM
From: Kayaker	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 25522

AMAT calls for Jan at 15 I shorted the Jan 10 puts yesterday for 1.20. Seems reasonable I hope. A 13.6% return if AMAT ends up above 10, or I'll be put the shares at a net of 8.80 if it's below 10.

To: pompsander who wrote (2945)	9/6/2002 3:40:36 PM
From: Proud_Infidel	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 25522

Soon people will keep using their cell phones beyond 6 months! Back to schoolers make do with old PCs By Reuters September 6, 2002, 11:23 AM PT Students appear to be carrying old PCs to school this year, computer and microchip makers say, confirming glum expectations in the technology industry and stoking fears holiday sales might also falter. The back-to-school shopping season is a short and usually sweet period for personal computer sellers, and after more than a year of sluggish sales, a boost is sorely needed. Intel, which makes the microchips that power most PCs, said Thursday that sales were trending toward the low end of normal seasonal levels. Michael Capellas, president of Hewlett-Packard, the No. 1 PC maker, has said repeatedly that the season began late and was light. "Back to school was a little softer than we expected. Normally we see about a 50 percent rise in demand, but this year it was only about 35 percent," Capellas told investors Thursday at a conference hosted by Salomon Smith Barney. But Intel Chief Operating Officer Paul Otellini said retailers might be feeling the brunt of slow back-to-school sales compared with direct sellers, a group led by No. 2 PC seller Dell Computer. "I think it is going to be less than people expected, but I don't think it's going to be as poor as looking only at retail (sales) would indicate," Otellini said in a conference call. Dell said last month that consumer sales were strong. Gateway, the No. 4 U.S. seller, which focuses on direct sales to consumers and has been losing market share, had forecast a "decent" back-to-school bump. Consumers and businesses during the economic slowdown have shown little inclination to shell out for new computers that do not offer significant improvements, analysts say. "After Windows 95 was released, PCs have not changed so much," Gartner analyst Mika Kitagawa said. Retailers have also spent heavily on back-to-school promotions and discounts, an expensive tactic that managed to bring in some buyers in July but didn't stop an eventual fade in sales, said Stephen Baker, who tracks retail sales on a weekly basis with NPD Techworld. "We haven't been able to keep the ball rolling," Baker said. For desktops, August sales probably lagged those in the same period last year, while notebook sales might turn out to be about steady, he said. The roughly eight weeks of back-to-school sales count for about a fifth of annual PC sales, and they could also set the tone for the holidays, Baker said. "If you have a lousy back-to-school, you are depressed and it tends to dampen your expectations for Christmas." National Semiconductor, which makes chips for flat-panel computer displays, cell phones and other devices, said consumers might be depressed as well. "The back-to-school impact seemed minimal at best," said Brian Halla, National's chief executive, on a conference call with analysts Wednesday. "We are therefore hesitant to pin our hopes on a robust Christmas market."