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Politics : Ask Michael Burke -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Bonnie Bear who wrote (45099)	1/30/1999 11:46:00 PM
From: Earlie	Read Replies (4) \| Respond to of 132070

BB; With respect to the MU article, There were a few items that were passed to our favourite reporter, but that could not be used, probably due to space constraints. Here are a few of them. - The mbit shipments should have been way up, due to the additional product emanating from the TXN plants. - The tiny line in the 10-Q that was used by the company to mask the reason for the mbit shipment problem was "back-end constraints". i.e. MU had poor yields at test, (as it has in the past). I cannot understand how any analyst can project big numbers, given this situation. - Both INTC and TXN can sell their stock in April. No doubt both will do so and quickly. Around $2.0 billion worth of stock represents a big "overhang". - The company will spend close to $1.0 billion to upgrade the TXN plants. There goes the cash. Not much choice in the matter. Those plants are well off the current "edge of technology" which means their products are sold even more below cost than are Micron's products. - Micron has a "must buy" contractual arrangement with the TXN plants,....just what the doctor ordered. Micron has to buy the memory products irrespective of market conditions, so long as they meet spec. Huge albatross. Better build some chip storage silos out there in Boise. - Debt is huge. $1.5 billion. Interest bill will exceed $100.0 million per annum. Now how does this get paid Mr Niles? - Operating loss was $573.0 million for past 4 quarters. (I remember suggesting that the company would lose $100.0 million per quarter and having my head bitten off). - MU sells 72% of products to PC industry,.....where conditions are, uh,.... a bit slack to say the least. Who will buy the chips? - Hyundai et al are on a yield improvement binge. The glut this year is already assured and even more product is a given. Price wars will continue - Stock outstanding now at quarter billion shares, company doesn't and can't make any money, buckets of debt, but a bargain at $75. If this thing traded on the VSE it would be priced at $0.35 given its fundamentals. (g) Best, Earlie