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Technology Stocks : Dell Technologies Inc. -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: MichaelW who wrote (37455)	4/10/1998 12:37:00 PM
From: Eddie Kim	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 176387

>>I don't think PC makers are making money on the sub-$1000 systems. I don't know about all companies, but I do know that Compaq makes money on these machines. Just don't know how much. Nevertheless, Compaq's overall revenue margins went up last year to 27.%5 even while selling these sub-$1000 machines.. I wouldn't call them obsolete machines either. You can buy a 233 MMX for less than $1000. That's still a pretty good machine. -Eddie

To: MichaelW who wrote (37455)	4/10/1998 12:54:00 PM
From: rudedog	Read Replies (5) \| Respond to of 176387

I did not interpret the MSD remarks yesterday as universally bullish. Dell seems to be trying to reposition themselves. If everything is great and they are minting money, why take a risk when the competition is on the ropes? There has been extensive analysis on the sub-1K computers on this thread but at least in CPQ's case the consumer sub-1K machines make good margins, better than the previous generation of presario systems, because of large reductions in component costs. CPQ is also moving aggressively into the next lower category, WinCE systems in a variety of categories ranging from sub-sub notebooks to handhelds. Dell is apparently ignoring this segment. Dell seems to be narrowing its focus and market position rather than broadening it. This commits them to a strategy that makes them less nimble in the event of a market shift. They are publicly distancing themselves from a fast-growing market segment. I think a little digging would show that other of Dell's suppliers are seeing order slowdowns - I will try to get real info and I hope others will do the same. Let's try and get the information to make solid investment decisions, not put our heads in the sand. There is no sensible reason to look at these trends and say that somehow this is all great news for Dell. There may be good explanations for all of this, I have a lot of respect for Dell's management. But I am starting to see more spin control than substance. I would be a lot more comfortable with information that points the other way - ' Intel says orders up with Dell', or 'Samsung says DRAM orders rising' or any solid data that says Dell is continuing to execute to plan. Remember, Dell has to do more than just beat everyone else - they need to do about 3 times as well. No, I haven't sold my Dell position yet! but getting concerned...