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Technology Stocks : ASML Holding NV -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Juniper who wrote (501)	11/20/1998 11:23:00 AM
From: Ritz	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 42385

At the wavelengths postulated for EUV (about 13nm) there are no transparent materials that could be utilized as refracting lenses. It would need to be comprised entirely of reflective optics. -Ritz

To: Juniper who wrote (501)	12/31/1998 11:10:00 AM
From: Jim Oravetz	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 42385

From the WSJ($) site: Dow Jones Newswires Europe Stock Focus: ASML's Bad Luck Unlikely To End Soon By HELEEN DE GRAAF Dow Jones Newswires AMSTERDAM -- Shares of Dutch wafer stepper maker ASM Lithography NV (ASMLF) were among the worst performers on the Amsterdam stock market in 1998, and the bad times aren't likely to end soon. Barring a sudden recovery of the semiconductor market, investors would do well to stay away or look at the stock as a very long-term investment, analysts said. ASML's shares have been under pressure ever since the start of the crisis in Asia, home to many of its customers, which caused a slump in the semiconductor business. ASM Lithography develops, manufactures, and services advanced photolithography projection systems, the so-called wafer steppers, which are key for the making of semiconductors. ASML supplies integrated circuit manufacturers. Since the end of 1997, ASML's shares have dropped NLG9.10, or 14%, to Wednesday's close of NLG57.40. The shares reached a year-closing high of NLG100.10 in March and a low of NLG24.00 in October. In comparison, the AEX benchmark index, in which ASML has been included since late February, has gained 272.71 points, or 30%, to 1186.38 points from the the end of 1997. "The performance of the stock has been very whimsical," analyst Jan Coen Balt with Effectenbank Stroeve said, adding that he doesn't see the stock as a very good investment. "The profits of investing in ASML don't offset the risks," Balt said, pointing to the uncertainty of the company's profits. ASML has warned that 1998 net profit is likely to be significantly below 1997's NLG329 million. The company also said that profits in the second half of the year could fall to around the break-even point as a volatile market and the subsequent decrease in capacity expansion hit its main customers. The company's main customers are in crisis-stricken South Korea, who in 1997 were responsible for 25% of ASML's sales. Many analysts expect the company to again post profits around break-even in the first half of 1999. The bleak profit outlook, the strong fluctuations and the ongoing slump in the semiconductor industry also don't warrant the current share price of around NLG57.00. The stock rose in November and December as investors started to speculate about a recovery in the global semiconductor market. Analysts in Amsterdam, though admitting that events in that market are hard to predict, said the price gained too much. "Looking at the profit developments expected for 1999, that level (around NLG57.00) is too much," Balt said. His colleagues agreed. "A level of below the NLG40 would be more realistic," said Daan Muusers with Friesland Bank Securities in Amsterdam, adding he believed shares have a current "fair value" of around NLG30.00. "There is some recovery on a monthly basis (in the semiconductor sector), but not on an annual basis," said Marco Schram with Delta Lloyd Bank. "The (downturn) cycle should last three to four years and we are only in the second year. There aren't many signs that there's a structural recovery," Schram added. But despite all the gloom, analysts said that ASML, the third-largest wafer maker in the world, should be the first to profit when the recovery comes along. The company is widely credited with having some of the most advanced technology in the wafer stepper business. As its main competitors, such as Nikkon Corp. (J.NIK) and Canon Inc. (CANNY) of Japan, are at the center of the Asian crisis, analysts said that ASML has positioned itself well to increase its market share from the current 25%. "If the market recovers, ASML is well-positioned to profit," Balt with Stroeve said, pointing to the advanced technology of the company. But analysts noted that they don't expects Asian companies to start increasing capacity and ordering wafer steppers before late 1999. -By Heleen de Graaf; 31/20/626/0770; hdegraaf@ap.org