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Non-Tech : Any info about Iomega (IOM)? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Naggrachi who wrote (40511)	12/18/1997 2:09:00 PM
From: Spank	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 58324

From WSJ online: Iomega Down 9.4% On New Jaz Delay; 4Q Views Intact By Christopher Grimes NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Iomega Corp. (IOM) is postponing the release date of its new Jaz drive until next quarter, but analysts downplayed the delay as having little impact on the company's earnings. The new two-gigabite Jaz drives were originally expected to be released in the fourth quarter, but Iomega said Thursday morning that the product needed more testing and wouldn't be shipped until the first quarter. Iomega shares fell on the news, dropping 2 1/2, or 9.4%, to 24. Iomega has had product snafus in the past, including a product recall back in April, that may be causing it to be more careful in the testing process now, said Joseph Besecker, an analyst at Emerald Research. "They may have put this product out two years ago" without testing as extensively, Besecker said. "But then they were in a mode where they were being the aggressor. Now they're on top and they have to careful not to leave a door open for the people behind them." A company spokeswoman said the delay was based on an "internal quality testing" decision. "We would prefer not to ship a product before it's met all of our internal quality standards," said Susan Stillings, director of investor relations. "We had planned on revenue (from the two-gigabite drive) in the fourth quarter and we're disappointed that we didn't ship it." Still, Besecker said he hadn't worked any revenue from the new product into his estimates for Iomega's fourth quarter, and not much into his estimates for the first quarter. Neither had Howard Rosencrans, an analyst at HD Brous & Co.. Rosencrans said he expects Iomega to earn 34 cents a share in the fourth quarter. The mean estimate of analysts, according to First Call Inc., is 30 cents a share; in the fourth quarter of 1996, Iomega earned 19 cents a share. Among those pursuing Iomega in the removable storage business are Syquest Technology Inc. (SYQT) and Sony Corp. (SNE), which is said to be working on a competing product.