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Technology Stocks : Alcatel Telecom (ALA) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Yeadon who wrote (182)	9/17/1998 10:23:00 PM
From: dougjn	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 285

I have not been following Ala closely lately, but here is my take, from having followed it very closely until I sold. Ala was being elevated to a sort of GE status in the European pantheon. It's growth rate, overall, really wasn't that great, aside from some restructuring near term benefits. But it was perceived to have an improving growth rate, given its telecom equip focus, and intent to divest its non telecom assets. Further, if anything, leading and great should be disproportionately valued, is, if anything, a stronger mantra in Europe than the U.S. The culture of the come from below entrepreneurial tech upstart is almost unknown there. (SAP notwithstanding.) So, a disappointment in a big, and it was thought, emergingly faster growing and more tech oriented, European behemoth was very unsettling. For the European markets in general. I think it will be a while before Ala strongly rebounds. Though some rebound for a while here (dead cat?) is not unlikely. I sold when I got a near double at 44 because I thought it's PE was way, way, way exceeding its growth rate. Although I knew Europeans like reliable and big even more than we do, I still wasn't comfortable at rarified levels, without intimate knowledge. So I sold. Doug