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Technology Stocks : Trimble Navigation -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Robert A. Sutherland who wrote (1932)	12/5/1997 12:58:00 PM
From: David	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3506

When you say Trimble is no longer a pure GPS play, what do you refer to? I realize their products are entering cars, telecommunications, agricultural equipment, etc., but always as the GPS element. And when you suggest that Trimble has to counter the merger, do you mean they need to cut gross margin, or pick up a small company themselves, or restructure? The market seems to like Trimble right now -- what do you think is missing?

To: Robert A. Sutherland who wrote (1932)	12/5/1997 6:50:00 PM
From: SKIP PAUL	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3506

>Wall Street tends to punish markets for individual company performance. Since Trimble was the only GPS pure play for quite a while (no longer pure) all GPS companies have been measured against them. They haven't performed.. as far as the shareholder is concerned.< Wall streets oversights are what makes great investment opportunities. I certainly don't subscribe to the efficient market theory. >Ashtech has been profitable at least since Boesenberg took over (1994, according to Orbital release).. can Trimble make that claim?< It certainly can. Between 1985 and Sept 1997 Trimble made $7,904,000 net Income, and $245,904,000 before R&D. Boesenbergs strategies produced good short term results but not so good in the long run as we are seeing this sellout to a company like Magellan for a pittance. If I was an Ashtech shareholder or employee I would be hopping mad. I dont want to minimise Boesenbergs efforts. He had a very difficult- job going up against Trimble. His odds for succeeding with that kind of strategy were very low. Robert, you seem to be lumping Orbital and Magellan together. There is a big difference between a wholly owned company and partially owned company. Orbital already has debt equity ratio of 52% and has a very capital intensive business with very little excess cash flow. I don't see them providing capital to Magellan.