From Briefing.com: 10:02 ISM Services 58.6 vs 60.8 consensus
10:00 Factory Orders -1.4 vs -1.5% consensus
9:31AM Nanophase Tech announces new patent (NANX) 10.75 +0.64: Co announces that it was issued U.S. patent 6,669,823 on Dec 30, which protects the co's plasma nanoparticle processes to prepare nanocrystalline materials with highly controlled surface chemistry. The patented process applies to both of the co's technologies: the PVS process and the new NanoArc technology.
9:11AM Therma-Wave reduces guidance (TWAV) 6.20: Excl;uding one-time revenue from closure of joint venture, company now sees Q3 (Dec) revenues to increase 5-7% from Q2 levels, reduced from previous company guidance of 10-15% growth. Company reported $14 mln in Q2, 5-7% growth equates to $14.7-14.98 mln, Reuters single analyst consensus is $15.75 mln.
8:48AM Telular Corp reports a $25.3 mln 'surge' in new orders from Latin American customers (WRLS) 6.65: Co reports that since Sept1, 2003 it has received purchase orders totaling $25.3 mln for business with Latin American wireless network operators in Argentina, Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Puerto Rico and Venezuela. Company reported that it shipped $9.5 mln of the orders in the fourth calendar quarter of 2003.
8:36AM August Tech expects to exceed Q4 rev guidance (AUGT) 20.47: Co expects to report Q4 revenues of $14 mln, exceeding previous guidance, Reuters Research consensus is $12.7 mln and Y03 revenues of $40 mln, Reuters consensus is $39 mln.
8:35AM Varian Semi guides Q1 outlook higher (VSEA) 46.08: Co raises its previous outlook for Q1, expects to report EPS of $0.11 (previously Breakeven to $0.08), Reuters Research consensus is $0.06 and expects Q1 revenues to be $100 mln (previously $83-93 mln), Reuters consensus is $89 mln.
8:32AM SUNW estimates raised at Merrill Lynch 4.70: Merrill Lynch raises Sun Micro estimates after positive field checks and to reflect a sequential currency boost of 220 bps. Firm's DecQ rev est goes to $2.85 bln from $2.74 bln (Reuters consensus $2.748 bln); firm's loss est goes to -$0.03 from -$0.04 (consensus -$0.04). Merrill's checks, though not complete, suggest Sun Micro experienced a strong qtr close; says after three yrs of postponement, it appears co's installed base is beginning to upgrade.
8:11AM Semitool provides Q1 bookings guidance of $40 mln (SMTL) 11.29: Co announces its gross bookings for Q1 will be approx $40 million, double that of the fourth quarter of fiscal 2003. The increase can be attributed to stronger orders from all geographic areas: North America, Europe and Asia.
7:56AM U.S. inquiry into IBM Korea tied to bribery case (IBM) 93.05: The Wall Street Journal reports IBM's South Korean unit has sparked inquiries by the U.S. Justice Dept and the S.E.C. in light of a bribery and bid-rigging scandal. IBM said it has fired three executives of IBM Korea last week, just before they were indicted over the weekend along with 45 other individuals and companies. The case centers on the sale of IBM computers and services to Korean government agencies and state businesses.
7:52AM NT upgraded at Soundview 4.62: Soundview upgrades Nortel to Outperform from Neutral, names the stock their top pick (replacing Nokia), and raises their target to $6 from $2.50; firm believes that NT's 2004 1X EV-DO revenue prospects in the United States have brightened, as they are hearing from multiple industry contacts that Verizon is closing in on a decision to deploy high-speed 1X EV-DO technology nationwide; firm also says NT's European 3G W-CDMA market share is increasing, and they think that NT's improved market position should lead to revenue growth slightly ahead of their above-consensus 6% YoY wireless infrastructure industry forecast. Firm also raises their target on Neutral-rated Lucent to $3.50 from $2.75.
7:43AM Apple Computer expected to introduce a cheaper iPod (AAPL) 22.17: The Wall Street Journal reports Apple Computer is expected to introduce a new iPod that costs much less than its current $299 entry-level model. Analysts believe Apple could price the new iPod as low as $200. The co declined to comment on any new products it may be introducing this week, expected to be announced at the MacWorld conference in San Francisco.
7:33AM KVH Industries guides below consensus (KVHI) 22.85: Sees Q4 (Dec) loss of $0.11-0.14 vs Reuters consensus of $0.02 profit, sees revenues of $15.6-15.9, consensus $18.22 mln. Company cites "continued delays in the military procurement process" for shortfall.
7:33AM Komag guides Q4 above consensus (KOMG) 15.24: Company issues upside preannouncement for Q4 (Dec), sees revenues in excess of $117 mln, consensus $111 mln, says this "could result in diluted earnings per share in excess of $0.60" in Q4, consensus estimate is $0.29, although this may not be comparable, as operating results include $1 mln one-time gain.
7:26AM STMicroelectronics targets DVD-recorder market (STM) 27.96: Co announces it is sampling the STm8000, a single-chip, audio-video full-duplex codec for the DVD and HDD recorder market. The STm8000 architecture brings audio/video encoding to DVD or HDD recording products and includes state-of-the-art DVD player features. The co cites Techno System Research saying this market will grow dramatically over the next few years, from around 4.5 mln units in 2003 to 12M units in 2004 and 18M units in 2005.
7:22AM Arris Group guides higher (ARRS) 7.59: Company issues upside preannouncement for Q4 (Dec), sees $0.01-0.06 profit vs Reuters consensus of a loss of $0.04, now sees revenues of $126-129 mln, consensus $113.4 mln.
7:13AM VSEA upgraded at Lehman 46.08: Lehman upgrades Varian Semi to Overweight from Equal-Weight and raises their target to $58 from $48; firm believes that a capacity-driven capex recovery in the near-term should drive demand for VSEA`s products higher, which should result in positive revisions to consensus FY04 EPS ests; in the intermediate-term, VSEA`s differentiated product strategy should lead to share gains.
7:10AM BRCD upgraded at Lehman 6.31: Lehman upgrades Brocade to Overweight from Equal-Weight and raises their target to $7.50 from $6, as firm believes that sentiment is overly pessimistic, revenues are poised to accelerate, margins should expand, and a number of catalysts (new product cycle, increased mgmt visibility) should emerge to drive the stock higher.
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