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Politics : Formerly About Applied Materials -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Jacob Snyder who wrote (25238)	10/13/1998 6:25:00 AM
From: FJB	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 70976

RE:8. accounts recievables increased due to "extended payment cycle from asian customers." Accounts receivable were down from $171M to $158M sequentially, this was one of the reasons their cash position improved. Q3 Report novellus.com Q4 Report novellus.com Some of those quotes are not accurate as well.

To: Jacob Snyder who wrote (25238)	10/13/1998 7:34:00 AM
From: KM	Respond to of 70976

Herb G on NVLS earnings: • Meanwhile, from the quality (or lack thereof) of earnings department: Yesterday's rally in semi equipment stocks appeared to be driven by Novellus (NVLS:Nasdaq) supposedly "beating" its estimates of 12 cents per share by reporting 22 cents. But maybe it was less than meets the eye. Consider that in an Oct. 9 earnings preview, Goldman Sachs estimated $100 million of revenues and orders of $115 million. The actual number: $106 million, with a book-to-bill ratio (the amount of orders booked to those actually billed) of less than one, "implying orders of less than $106 million, substantially lower than expected, with worse implications for the future," says one skeptical money manager. What's more, days sales outstanding of receivables leaped to 134 days on Sept. 30, from 108 days on June 30. "The company says this was due to stretching terms, primarily to Asian customers," our skeptic says. "This could be a SMALL problem." (No duh!) "If days sales outstanding had remained unchanged sequentially, accounts receivable would have been $30 million less than reported, implying sales would have been lower than reported. Quite a difference!" Novellus' stock zoomed 6 7/16 to 29 5/16 on the news. No need to let the facts get in the way of a good story. (No wisecracks!)