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Technology Stocks : Semi Equipment Analysis -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: robert b furman who wrote (30717)	5/29/2006 2:01:39 PM
From: Donald Wennerstrom	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 95405

For the record - an article on CMOS from Marketwatch << May 26, 2006 12:02:00 (ET) SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) - Credence Systems Corp. on Friday saw its shares plunge as much as 23% after the semiconductor-testing-equipment company said it would cease production on a next-generation flash-memory project. Credence (CMOS, Trade) fell $1.43, to trade at $4.97, in the wake of the late-Thursday announcement. The company said it would no longer work on the so-called Kalos III project for its customer, Intel Corp. (INTC, Trade). The company also reported a second-quarter loss of $14.2 million, or 14 cents a share, on revenue of $124.8 million. The loss included $19.4 million in charges on inventory write-downs, stock-based compensation and restructuring charges. Analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call had forecast Credence to earn 4 cents a share on $126.3 million in sales. For the year-earlier period, Credence reported a loss of $19.5 million, or 21 cents a share, on $118.2 million in revenue. The company also forecast a third-quarter loss of 9 cents to 11 cents a share, including a $12 million to $14 million charge as part of its restructuring, and revenue in a range of $125 million and $129 million. Analysts had expected the company to earn 8 cents a share on $135.7 million in revenue. Analysts at Merriman Curhan Ford & Co., American Technology Research and ThinkEquity Partners cut their ratings on Credence's stock. Merriman analyst David Duley said ending the flash-memory project is a big blow to Credence. He estimated the project could have added as much as $100 million annually to the company's sales. Duley cut his rating on Credence to neutral from buy. At American Technology, analyst Bill Ong lowered his rating on Credence to hold from buy. Ong said the company's long-term growth strategy appears uncertain. In a research note, Ong said that ending the Kalos flash-memory program "impacts the long-term growth direction for the company and limits the growth potential for the firm.">>