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To: Bipin Prasad who wrote (37602)8/18/1998 3:10:00 PM
From: Lee Lichterman III  Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 53903
 
MUEI - DELL announces earnings after the close today. MUEI is emulating DELL's model and has Michael Dell's right hand man as the new CEO so it can really happen this time now that the other putz is gone. Therefor if DELL reports good numbers and has a good CC call tonight, that will bode well for MUEI. All the box makers are up but MUEI is the closest one to being able to reproduce DELL's BTO program. This new CEO started at DELL when it was almost the same size as MUEI is now. Therefor he has a "been there, done that, have the T-shirt" ability that CPQ, GTW, IBM don't have.

Unfortunately I waited too long to get on board this time but I have a feeling this rally won't last too long so I'll be there next time <ggg>



To: Bipin Prasad who wrote (37602)8/18/1998 3:14:00 PM
From: Trey McAtee  Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 53903
 
insook--

i'll be honest. i hate MUEI, and i dont understand why people even bother with it. of all the PC OEMs, this one has been the worst.

you have a lot of negatives on it from the long side. MU still holds a lot, so you could see increased supply which isnt good. all in all, i will let it do its own thing. i would recommend staying out of it. just stick with CPQ<G>.

on the semi equip cos....you are thinking short right? i havent looked at an options chain on AMAT yet, but intend to as soon as i get a moment. it appears that the sector really isnt going to recover in the near term, so i think people are buying in the face of what could be a very bad time ahead.

i look forward to comparing notes with you and others on this. i dont think the big semi DT is over yet, it just still looks too bloody. anyone out there have any thoughts...long or short?

on the fed...maybe sept or oct. i am looking for a big downturn in the dow during that time, and the psychological effect on the economy may be enough to make the fed ease rates. i think that will be what causes the market to stabilize, and then the assault on dow10k begins.

i'll tell you when we are buying puts on the dow. right now we are buying calls.

good luck to all,
trey



To: Bipin Prasad who wrote (37602)8/18/1998 3:20:00 PM
From: Kathleen capps  Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 53903
 
Insook,

All I could find -- doesn't seem like it's the kind of news that would move markets.

MICRON ELECTRONICS UNVEILS CORPORATE GROWTH STRATEGY; AIMS TO
<Picture>
Win New Customers in the Mid Market Who Need New Tools to Get Ahead in the New Economy

Business Editors

SUN VALLEY, Idaho--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 18, 1998--

Kathleen



To: Bipin Prasad who wrote (37602)8/18/1998 3:25:00 PM
From: Kathleen capps  Respond to of 53903
 
InSook,

2,600,000 shares and normal is 800K for MUEI. Somebody is telling a few friends about something.

You know, months go by without a mention of Lehi in the press, then suddenly the past week or so, a whole bunch of stories. MU is placing those PR stories for a reason. Now what are they up to???

Would a rise in MUEI help MU sell more debt?

Kathleen



To: Bipin Prasad who wrote (37602)8/18/1998 5:27:00 PM
From: Kathleen capps  Read Replies (2) | Respond to of 53903
 
InSook,

WSJ today had article about Chip Equip Co's: (for personal use only)

Tech Stocks Main
Chip-Gear Makers Advance
Despite Analysts' Skepticism

By NICK WINGFIELD

SAN FRANCISCO -- Investors rallied around the stocks of leading semiconductor equipment firms Monday on signs of improved memory-chip pricing and microprocessor shortages, but Wall Street analysts cautioned that the sector isn't close to recovering from its slump.

Shares of Novellus Systems led the upswing, jumping 3 5/16, or 9.1%, to close at 39 11/16, in active trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Two other leading equipment companies also saw gains: Applied Materials rose 2 1/8, or 6.8%, to 33 1/4, and KLA-Tencor edged up 3, or 11%, to 31 1/8, both in active Nasdaq trading.

Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 27.85 to 1818.04, while Morgan Stanley's high-tech 35 index gained 12.17 to 596.61.

Although analysts said little has changed concerning the prospects of equipment makers, they said investors are likely reacting to encouraging evidence that the companies' customers, the semiconductor makers, are seeing some improvement in business. Last week, Micron Technology, a manufacturer of dynamic random-access memory chips, saw its shares surge nearly 10% after analysts said prices for DRAMs were beginning to increase. The DRAM market has been plagued by a severe glut, which has driven down prices on chips to bargain-basement levels.

Analysts said another piece of news from last week could be energizing the stocks of Novellus and others: Intel -- the world's leading maker of microprocessors, the chips that supply the brains for personal computers -- said it's running low on supplies of certain models of its Pentium II line of microprocessors. Analysts cautioned at the time that the shortage of chips, which run at 266 megahertz and 300 megahertz speeds, doesn't necessarily indicate a huge upswing in demand for its products. Still, investors appeared to interpret the news as a favorable sign that Intel is recovering from a chip oversupply -- and that equipment suppliers may also benefit.

Michael O'Brien, an analyst at Soundview Financial Group, said investors in equipment firms are typically on the lookout for positive news from the semiconductor business so they can invest early in the companies before their fundamentals change. But Mr. O'Brien doubted whether the news from Intel or Micron represented a returned to sustained growth in the semiconductor business.

"I think people are going to have a false reality," said Mr. O'Brien, adding that the news from Intel and Micron probably represented a short-lived spike in demand due to the back-to-school selling season. "If it lasts, then it is good news."

Novellus, for one, isn't predicting a recovery anytime soon: Last week, the San Jose, Calif., firm said in a quarterly filing with the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission that it expects net sales for the third and fourth quarters to be approximately 25% lower than its second-quarter net sales of $142.8 million.

That means net sales for the remaining two quarters of the year will be approximately $107 million. The company reported net sales of $155.1 million third of 1997 and $162.8 million for the fourth quarter.

Brett Hodess, an analyst at NationsBank Montgomery Securities Inc., said that equipment firms haven't seen the last of their revenue declines, but he added that the rate of revenue decline was likely to slow substantially in the coming quarters. "We haven't hit bottom yet," Mr. Hodess said.

Mr. O'Brien, for his part, predicts equipment firms will see improvements in orders for its products in the second quarter of 1999 and revenue growth in the second half of 1999.