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Technology Stocks : Peritus Software Services (PTUS) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Big Dog who wrote (1408)	7/2/1998 1:53:00 PM
From: Big Dog	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1960

Today, Briefing.com did a piece on the collapse of SEEC, which mentions PTUS: SEEC (SEEC) 6 5/8 --5 5/8 "Next quarter for sure." The patience of Y2K investors gets thinner as they have to listen to this refrain yet again. SEEC, a pure Y2K tools companies, warned today in a press release that earnings and revenues will be below estimates because of "deferral of sales resulting from unanticipated delays in decision making by end-user customers." President Ravi Koka said "Surprisingly, many companies still demonstrate a lack of urgency in addressing their Y2K problems." This same story has been told by nearly every Y2K tools vendor every quarter for a year. The Y2K problem, which is very real, was supposed to bring a tidal wave of spending to the pure Y2K companies, but the spending just hasn't materialized. Investors took it in stride better a year ago (SEEC traded at 37 back in September), but now patience is wearing thin. After all, we are only 18 months away, from the deadline. Briefing first warned readers to stay away from the Y2K software companies in the fall of 1997, and stick with system integration companies (Keane (KEA), Information Management Resources (IMRS), Complete Business Solutions (CBSL), etc.). Our reasoning was based entirely on looking for the revenue growth, which wasn't apparent then, and still isn't. Not one of the pure Y2K companies has exceeded revenue expectations for four straight quarters (Peritus (PTUS), SEEC, or Data Dimensions (DDIM)). The lesson in Y2K may be that it is harder to make money off of a disaster than it appears. Meanwhile, the Y2K diehards are still hanging on, believing that the disaster, and its accompanying revenue bonanza are just around the corner. Better be next quarter, for sure, or investors in Y2K tools companies will look more and more like Linus, faithfully waiting for the Great Pumpkin.