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Technology Stocks : CRUS, good buy? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Terrapin who wrote (5044)	2/17/1998 11:27:00 PM
From: JOHN N.	Respond to of 8193

John; I believe that an investor who owns such a large block of stock has the right to be on the board and vote his shares regarding corporate decisions. He has great influence in regard to decisions that affect major corporate policy. For that matter, he can initiate changes in top management and hold them accountable for performance, etc. I believe that he has quite a bit of power if he chooses to use it. Small players like the rest of us have only one recourse for dissatisfaction; sell the stock. This is not true for such a large investor. Fund managers such as those at Fidelity or Merrill Lynch are known to put great pressure on management at times to perform based on their large block holdings. Perhaps we should all E-mail Mr. Teo that we would support him in any actions that he might have in mind that would benefit shareholders. Perhaps he would let us know what he intends to do with CRUS, if anything. Another item crossed my mind when Richard presented the most recent list of Teo purchases in the 10-12 price range. That is, what price would this stock have drifted down to if Teo was not buying (or even selling) during this time. This is a bit of a chilling thought. And by the way, when is CRUS going to start buying back its own stock? Isn't 10 a low enough price for them?

To: Terrapin who wrote (5044)	2/18/1998 10:29:00 AM
From: Calvin Scott	Read Replies (4) \| Respond to of 8193

John, The MMs of the world (IMO) pay little or no attention to a share holder like Teo. The coalitions usually are between the company and its B of D and the institutions. They carry all the weight and can drive a company such as Cirrus in just about any direction that they want. I am not suggesting that Mr. Teo has no influence, certainly he has some. But, unless he has a coalition with one of the major MMs holding 15% - 20% or more of the shares, he is reduced to a small voice. The fact of the matter is that since Cirrus went public in 1989, the money managers have controlled this company. Sure, when it CRUS went south at the beginning of 1997 some of the institutions unloaded but not in any significant amount. Share holders like you and me account for less then 5% of the total outstanding shares. So, in direct answer to your question as to "what can this guy actually do with the amount that he holds?". The answer is little to nothing unless....he has a coalition with one of the major institutions. Even if he has a good relationship when it comes to his holdings in CRUS, the MMs are not going to allow him to extend his influence. Probably the other way around, they will ask him to become part of their block in voting on board issues, etc. I would guess that in 99% of all voting actions, the MMs go along and vote with the board. Like them or not, when CRUS got into trouble, they (the board) dealt with it. Suhas is gone, Srinivasin is gone, they brought in Tom Kelly, not Hackworth. Then Kelly brought in his guys. I believe we are seeing a decent turn around of this company and because they are now focused on their "core" areas we, the stockholders, will not see Mr. Teo influence anything. At least as long as the existing management team stays the course. I am sure I made these points as clear as mud. Calvin Scott