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Technology Stocks : Westell WSTL -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: PeterR1700 who wrote (9419)	2/21/1998 11:30:00 PM
From: PiedPiper	Read Replies (4) \| Respond to of 21342

Hey somebody gets it! I know there's a lotta of long-termers out there, witness the extraordinary valuation of this one. Reminds me of the biotech days of 1991!!! I mean the thought of a market cap of 500m for a company with flat-to-declining sales of 90m and questionable prospects in the ADSL business with losses from operations in the 18m range (-20% profit margin ---YIKES). (I must apologize for my inaccuracy on numbers here for I am without my trusty AR so look for me to be about 80-90% accurate). The best reason I can come up for this valuation is that people believe in WSTL to be a player in the xDSL world (x = A only here cuz they don't do x = H) I hate to get too long-winded on the chat because I don't want to bore anyone with useless conversation-- in normal conversation in my field or in my home I've been interrupted at least a dozen times (I type slow) by now. So I close on a couple of thoughts for those who care to see where I am going for this post (I don't believe the chat will be TOO loud here in a year or so). 1.) Cost cutting in a high-tech company developing a visionary product (ADSL used to be visionary to WSTL some years ago) is a serious concern mostly because it scares the best talent first -- They go bye-bye. I bought Software Publishing some years ago on a turnaround (they were only a bit less than WSTL like $8) thinking the cost-cutting would produce profits then new products would come and up-up and away. It didn't work, the talent left and the co. went on a precipitous decline. 2.) The valuation of the T1 business is a question to some, in a buyout I guess. Who wants this business? growth is minimal, non- existent or less. Well, a company in the same region TLTN has a very similar business. What's their mktcap, price to sales, etc.? I've done the numbers and can't reach 'em but it ain't pretty...sooooo that leaves us with .... 3.) ADSL-- hmmm. Those contracts --GTE, BT , BA. The deal with DSC & LU. Profits anyone? Well no, but..., that's the answer. And those biotechs have no profits , but our cancer drug or our heart disease studies have shown that ... And as far as I know we can still die from them both--ADSL & Biotech that is. I know this is very harsh to say to some(many?) and I do not want to offend anyone for I would like to continue to elaborate as needed. WHoaa this is way too long-winded ----- SORRY, but it is Saturday.