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lol lets just hope Fagens math is correct this time....eom
OT: saw this guys analogy on a stock board about people not knowing if they should buy more of their stock when they are scared because the market over all is bad....I thought it was funny and very true,,,
When $10 bills go on sale for $9, because there are a lot of people selling them for $9, and you know that, after the weekend you can take them to the bank and deposit them, what do you do?
a. buy all they are offering
b. figure all those people selling are smarter than you, and
therefore maybe a $10 bill is only really worth $9
c. figure that it is too good to be true, so it must be a counterfeit $10
as in less shipments like last Q4???if thats a fact then we are in serious trouble this Quarter........
it still amazes me how long this company can go without news........especially with 3G growing all around us.....
Yes I agree, volume way to low for any news leak IMO.....we are just on the Nasdaq wave I suppose..........Ill take it though...........
Yes it sure seems that we are a no news company. Howards "many in economic discussions" is not bearing much fruit to this point. I am really starting to wonder what goes on inside corporate headquarters, on a daily basis. I get a scary picture in my mind of the executive body sitting around making paper airplanes and shooting baskets with crumpled up pieces of paper in the office............bored out of their minds....
All kidding aside, they had better start getting these deals done. Heck they still havent accomplished the 2nd chip partner they talked about years ago now. something has got to give here........I wish at least we could marry another company to help deliver a complete WCDMA solution. Nokia dropped the ball and as far as my opinion is concerned I hope our other licensees put them to shame with gaining market share, as I think they have a horse sh$^ way of doing business. They really tried to give it to us after they signed a contract. I hope the arb panel tells them to pack sand and honor their obligations.
who would have ever though that 2004 would be our most frustrating year in all of this..........this was supposed to be sit back and watch the earnings come in.........damn...the business world is so fragile
ok, help me out here......why is it that our signed licensees are setting records for earnings and are all increasing them everyday, yet that is not translating into positive movement for us??...is it something Im not seeing??..is our burn rate way to high even though we just cleaned house??..is it our analysts not doing their job??...............anyone?
I know this is not telecom however it involves Samsung. Its nice to see at least Japan is enforcing its patent laws against companies who are infringing
Japan OKs halt on Samsung panels
TOKYO (CBS.MW) - Japanese customs authorities on Wednesday granted Fujitsu's request to halt imports of Samsung Electronics' plasma display panels (PDPs), a customs official said.
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The import ban took effect Wednesday and could last as long as two years, said Katsuji Mizuo in the intellectual property unit of Japan's Customs and Tariffs bureau.
Early this month, Fujitsu (FJTSY: news, chart, profile) (JP:6702: news, chart, profile) filed suits in Tokyo and Los Angeles, seeking compensation for past alleged patent infringement and a court order against future importation and sales of infringing PDPs manufactured by Samsung Electronics (SSNGY: news, chart, profile) unit Samsung SDI. See full story.
The ban is aimed at protecting Fujitsu from additional damage from the alleged patent infringement until a Japanese court rules on the patent suit or Fujitsu drops its claims, Mizuo said.
Samsung SDI was not immediately available for comment on Wednesday's action.
Earlier this month, a Samsung SDI spokesman in Seoul said the company considered Fujitsu's suit to be a countermeasure to a suit Samsung filed against Fujitsu in California in early March. That suit challenged the Japanese company's claim to hold patents on eight PDP technologies.
Lisa Twaronite is Asia Bureau Chief for CBS MarketWatch, based in Tokyo. Reporter Shusaku Hattori contributed to this report.
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, Apr 19, 2004 (CCNMatthews via COMTEX) -- Sierra
Wireless, Inc. (NASDAQ: SWIR, TSX: SW) is reporting better than expected first
quarter results, including revenue of $41.6 million, a profit of $4.6 million
and positive cash flow from operations. These results are being released earlier
than the previous schedule of April 22, 2004.
Our results are reported in US dollars and are prepared in accordance with
United States generally accepted accounting principles.
"Once again, our revenues were up significantly, reflecting growing demand for
our AirCard, Embedded Module and Mobile product lines, with notable strength in
North American markets", said David Sutcliffe, Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer. "Investment continues in market development and new products including
the Voq Professional Phone and the AirCard 775 for EDGE networks. We continue to
focus on profitable growth."
Results for the first quarter of 2004, relative to company guidance provided on
January 28, 2004 and, for certain measures, updated on April 1, 2004:
First quarter revenue for 2004 of $41.6 million was consistent with our guidance
of revenues greater than $40.0 million. Gross margin was 40.3%, better than our
guidance range of 39.0% to 40.0%. Our net earnings of $4.6 million, or diluted
earnings per share of $0.18, exceeded our guidance of net earnings greater than
$3.0 million, or diluted earnings per share of greater than $0.12. Our cash flow
from operations was positive $5.3 million, consistent with our guidance of
significantly positive cash flow.
Results for the first quarter of 2004, compared to the first quarter of 2003:
Revenue for the first quarter of 2004 increased by 107% to $41.6 million, from
$20.1 million for the same period in 2003. Gross margin improved to 40.3% from
39.4%. Operating expenses were $11.6 million in the first quarter of 2004,
compared to $7.6 million for the same period in 2003. Net earnings for the first
quarter of 2004 were $4.6 million, or diluted earnings per share of $0.18,
compared to net earnings of $0.4 million, or diluted earnings per share of
$0.02, in the first quarter of 2003.
During the first quarter of 2004, we signed a second agreement with the
Government of Canada's Technology Partnerships Canada ("TPC") under which we are
eligible to receive conditionally repayable research and development funding up
to Cdn. $9.5 million. The agreement is effective for development work, relating
to third generation wireless technologies, commencing April 2003. Funding of
$1.4 million was recognized as a reduction of research and development expense
in the first quarter of 2004, of which $1.1 million relates to the period from
April 1, 2003 to December 31, 2003.
Operating expenses for the first quarter of 2004 were $12.9 million, excluding
TPC funding related to 2003 of $1.1 million and an additional Metricom recovery
of $0.2 million. Net earnings for the first quarter of 2004, excluding these
amounts, were $3.3 million, or diluted earnings per share of $0.13. Our results
for the first quarter of 2004 also included a foreign exchange loss of
approximately $0.3 million.
Our revenue increased in the first quarter of 2004, compared to the first
quarter of 2003 due primarily to an increase in sales of embedded module and
AirCard products. Our margin improved in the first quarter of 2004 primarily due
to increased volume and product mix. Our operating expenses increased in the
first quarter of 2004, compared to the first quarter of 2003 due primarily to
the acquisition of AirPrime, Inc., which was completed in August 2003, and costs
related to the development of new products, including EDGE and the Voq
professional phone.
Results for the first quarter of 2004, compared to the fourth quarter of 2003:
Revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2004 amounted to $41.6 million,
compared to $34.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2003, an increase of 20%.
Gross margins were $16.8 million or 40.3% in the first quarter of 2004, compared
to $14.2 million or 41.1% in the fourth quarter of 2003. Operating expenses were
$11.6 million in 2004, compared to $13.0 million in the previous quarter.
Operating expenses, excluding the TPC funding related to 2003 and the additional
Metricom recovery, were $12.9 million in the first quarter of 2004, compared to
$12.1 million, excluding integration costs, in the fourth quarter of 2003.
Net earnings were $4.6 million for the three months ended March 31, 2004,
compared to net earnings of $1.9 million for the three months ended December 31,
2003. Excluding TPC funding related to 2003 and the Metricom recovery, net
earnings for the first quarter of 2004 were $3.3 million, or diluted earnings
per share of $0.13, compared to net earnings in Q4 2003 of $2.8 million,
excluding integration costs, or diluted earnings per share of $0.12.
First Quarter Highlights Included:
Progress on products for CDMA 2000 networks and channels:
- We have provided next generation wireless technology to the Harris County
Sheriff's Office in Texas that is outfitting approximately 600 patrol vehicles
and 300 detectives with a high-speed mobile solution powered by the Sierra
Wireless AirCard(R) 555.
- The Sierra Wireless MP 555 GPS rugged wireless modem has been certified by
Sprint for operation on the enhanced Sprint Nationwide PCS Network. We will work
with Sprint to market and sell the MP 555 GPS in-vehicle mobile solution,
primarily targeting public safety and utility departments.
- We added the Sierra Wireless AirCard 555R to our product line for the China
market. Operating on CDMA 1X networks, the AirCard 555R will provide mobile
professionals with wireless data access and will be distributed by Beijing
Putian Taili Telecom.
- Verizon Wireless, Citrix Systems, Inc., and Zumasys, Inc., announced that
Continental Laboratory Products is the first customer to roll out a mobile
access solution combining Citrix(R) MetaFrame(R) Presentation Server and Verizon
Wireless' BroadbandAccess high-speed wireless service. Currently available in
San Diego and Washington D.C., Verizon Wireless plans to make BroadbandAccess
service available throughout additional portions of its network beginning later
this year.
Progress on products for GSM/GPRS/EDGE networks and channels:
- We announced the commercial availability of the Sierra Wireless AirCard 750 PC
Card, a wireless wide area PC Card, for O2 customers in the United Kingdom. This
best in class product offers the highest GPRS throughput on the market today and
a superior network interface for fast and reliable mobile computing.
- Together with Analog Devices, Inc. (ADI) and TTPCom, we announced that we will
bring wireless EDGE (Emerging Data rates for Global Evolution) capabilities to
laptop computers and personal digital assistants. We have selected ADI's
Blackfin SoftFone for EDGE Platform and TTPCom's protocol stack software, to
power our new Sierra Wireless AirCard 775 PC Card for the EDGE network.
- We have selected QUALCOMM's MSM6250(TM) Mobile Station Modem(TM) (MSM(TM))
chipset and system software for our multimode third-generation (3G) wireless
products. With the MSM6250 chipset, we will provide the WCDMA (UMTS) market with
a high-quality, high-speed wireless connectivity solution using a proven chipset
technology.
- We announced the introduction of the Sierra Wireless AirCard 775 PC Card and
the Sierra Wireless MP 775 GPS modem for EDGE networks. The AirCard 775 wireless
wide area network (WWAN) card will provide mobile users with faster data rates,
reaching speeds up to three times faster than on GPRS networks, offering an
enhanced user experience and increased productivity. The MP 775 GPS rugged
vehicle-mount modem is the next generation mobile product that provides
in-vehicle data solutions while operating over EDGE and GSM/GPRS networks. The
AirCard 775 and MP 775 are expected to be commercially available in the second
half of 2004.
- We announced the availability of an upgrade program for current Sierra
Wireless MP 750 GPS rugged wireless modem customers to the next generation
Sierra Wireless MP 775 GPS modem for use on the AT&T Wireless EDGE network.
Built for demanding environments and worldwide connectivity, the MP 775 GPS
rugged wireless modem provides an in-vehicle mobile solution with data
transmission speeds averaging between 100-130 kbps, up to three times faster
than currently available with GPRS. The product upgrade is expected to be
available for $399 in the third quarter of 2004.
Progress on the Voq Professional Phone(TM):
- The new Voq Professional Phone, a pocketable Microsoft Windows Mobile(TM)
based SmartPhone developed by Sierra Wireless, is expected to be commercially
available in selected countries in the second quarter of 2004.
- We signed an agreement with KPN to launch and sell the Voq Professional Phone
and the VoqMail Professional Edition product to customers in the Netherlands.
- We signed an agreement with THBBury to provide industry leading car
accessories for the new Voq Professional Phone through THBBury distribution
channels in Europe and North America.
- We announced agreements with key European distributors to sell the Voq
Professional Phone and the VoqMail Professional Edition to customers in Austria,
Belgium, Germany, Holland, Italy, Luxemburg, the Nordics, Switzerland, and
Spain.
Financial Guidance
We are providing our guidance for the second quarter of 2004 that reflects our
current business indicators and expectations. Inherent in this guidance are risk
factors that are described in detail in our regulatory filings. All figures are
estimates based on management's current beliefs and assumptions and are subject
to change. Our actual results could differ materially from those presented
below.
Q2 2004 Guidance
----------------
Revenue $48 - $50 million
Gross margin 39% - 40%
Operating expenses $14.3 - $14.8 million
Net earnings $4.0 - $4.3 million
Diluted earnings per share $0.15 - $0.16
Cash flow from operations Positive
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and
uncertainties. These forward-looking statements relate to, among other things,
plans and timing for the introduction or enhancement of our services and
products, statements about future market conditions, supply conditions, channel
and end customer demand conditions, revenues, gross margins, operating expenses,
profits, and other expectations, intentions, and plans contained in this press
release that are not historical fact. Our expectations regarding future revenues
and earnings depend upon our ability to develop, manufacture, and supply
products that we do not produce today and that meet defined specifications. When
used in this press release, the words "plan", "expect", "believe", and similar
expressions generally identify forward-looking statements. These statements
reflect our current expectations. They are subject to a number of risks and
uncertainties, including, but not limited to, changes in technology and changes
in the wireless data communications market. In light of the many risks and
uncertainties surrounding the wireless data communications market, you should
understand that we cannot assure you that the forward-looking statements
contained in this press release will be realized.
About Sierra Wireless
Sierra Wireless is a leader in delivering highly differentiated wireless
solutions that enable our customers to improve their productivity and lifestyle.
Sierra Wireless develops and markets AirCard, the industry-leading wireless PC
card line for portable computers; embedded modules for OEM wireless
applications; the MP line of rugged vehicle-mounted connectivity solutions and
Voq, a line of professional phones with easy-to-use, secure software solutions
for mobile professionals. For more information on Sierra Wireless, visit our web
site at www.sierrawireless.com. For more information on Voq professional phones,
visit our web site at www.voq.com.
"AirCard" and "Voq" are trademarks of Sierra Wireless, Inc. Other product or
service names mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
Conference Call and Instant Replay
We will host a conference call to review our results on
April 19, 2004 at 10:00 AM PDT, 1:00 PM EDT. To participate in this
conference call, please dial the following toll free number
approximately five minutes prior to the commencement of the call:
1-800-346-5998 Passcode: Not required
or
1-416-641-6683 Passcode: Not required
Should you be unable to participate, Instant Replay will be available
for seven business days following the conference call by dialing:
1-800-558-5253 Passcode: 21186081
or
1-416-626-4100 Passcode: 21186081
We look forward to having you participate in our call.
SIERRA WIRELESS, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS AND DEFICIT
(Expressed in thousands of United States dollars, except per share
amounts)
(Prepared in accordance with United States generally accepted
accounting principles (GAAP))
(Unaudited)
Three months ended March 31, 2004 2003
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Revenue $ 41,641 $ 20,150
Cost of goods sold 24,839 12,210
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Gross margin 16,802 7,940
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Expenses
Sales and marketing 4,173 2,729
Research and development, net 4,739 2,749
Administration 2,064 1,617
Amortization 636 553
---------------------------------------------------------------------
11,612 7,648
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Earnings from operations 5,190 292
Other income 84 104
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Earnings before income taxes 5,274 396
Income tax expense 704 35
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Net earnings 4,570 361
Deficit, beginning of period (71,309) (73,564)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Deficit, end of period $ (66,739) $ (73,203)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Earnings per share for the period
Basic $ 0.18 $ 0.02
Diluted $ 0.18 $ 0.02
---------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Weighted average number of shares (in thousands)
Basic 24,986 16,355
Diluted 26,027 16,718
---------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------
SIERRA WIRELESS, INC.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(Expressed in thousands of United States dollars)
(Prepared in accordance with United States GAAP)
March 31, December 31,
2004 2003
---------------------------------------------------------------------
(Unaudited) (Audited)
Assets
Current assets
Cash and cash equivalents $ 62,601 $ 70,358
Short-term investments 20,369 14,760
Accounts receivable 22,652 21,566
Inventories 2,096 1,511
Prepaid expenses 1,956 2,223
---------------------------------------------------------------------
109,674 110,418
Long-term investments 32,331 24,639
Fixed assets 6,551 5,985
Intangible assets 15,354 14,620
Goodwill 20,022 19,706
Deferred income taxes 500 500
---------------------------------------------------------------------
$ 184,432 $ 175,868
---------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity
Current liabilities
Accounts payable $ 2,634 $ 5,966
Accrued liabilities 26,558 22,221
Deferred revenue and credits 250 399
Current portion of long-term obligations 1,328 1,328
Current portion of obligations
under capital lease 87 141
---------------------------------------------------------------------
30,857 30,055
Long-term obligations 1,935 2,266
Shareholders' equity
Share capital 217,241 214,047
Warrants 1,538 1,538
Deficit (66,739) (71,309)
Accumulated other comprehensive income (400) (729)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
151,640 143,547
---------------------------------------------------------------------
$ 184,432 $ 175,868
---------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------
SIERRA WIRELESS, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(Expressed in thousands of United States dollars)
(Prepared in accordance with United States GAAP)
(Unaudited)
Three months ended March 31, 2004 2003
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net earnings for the period $ 4,570 $ 361
Adjustments to reconcile net earnings to net
cash provided by operating activities
Amortization 1,630 1,338
Loss on disposal (14) -
Accrued warrants - 168
Changes in operating assets and liabilities
Accounts receivable (998) 3,725
Inventories (585) (815)
Prepaid expenses 267 6
Accounts payable (3,332) 564
Accrued liabilities 3,922 (1,589)
Deferred revenue (149) 104
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Net cash provided by operating activities 5,311 3,862
Cash flows from investing activities:
Purchase of fixed assets (1,503) (143)
Increase in intangible assets (1,246) (602)
Purchase of long-term investments (17,011) -
Proceeds on disposal of long-term investments 3,217 -
Purchase of short-term investments (7,226) -
Proceeds on maturity of
short-term investments 7,892 -
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Net cash used in investing activities (15,877) (745)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Issue of common shares 3,194 41
Repayment of long-term obligations (385) (456)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Net cash provided by (used in)
financing activities 2,809 (415)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Net increase (decrease) in cash
and cash equivalents (7,757) 2,702
Cash and cash equivalents,
beginning of period 70,358 34,841
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Cash and cash equivalents, end of period $ 62,601 $ 37,543
---------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------
CONTACT: Sierra Wireless, Inc.
David G. McLennan
Chief Financial Officer
(604) 231-1185
Email: dmclennan@sierrawireless.com
Website: www.sierrawireless.com
Copyright (C) 2004, CCNMatthews. All rights reserved.
NEWS RELEASE TRANSMITTED BY CCNMatthews
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: CMT - Communications Technology
SUBJECT CODE: ERN - EARNINGS
DJIA 10,481.00 43.10
Nasdaq 2,031.82 11.39
S&P 500 1,138.85 3.03
30 Yr Bond 5.22 0.01
10 Yr Bond 4.41 0.04
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Can you give me one good reason how and why that benefits you at this point??.....if your at confident to get them back cheaper, than I feel you made a very bad decision.........you should not trade on emotion, it will get you every time............
Sure ...like business relationships cant be done over different continents and over telephones?....please....also there is a thing called the airplane that brings people closer............................
This is interesting...can you say Anti-Trust?..
Apr 14, 2004 (The San Diego Union-Tribune - Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News
via COMTEX) -- Maxim Integrated Products filed an antitrust lawsuit yesterday
against Qualcomm, saying the San Diego wireless technology company is thwarting
competition by misusing its patents.
The claim continues a long-running legal battle between the two companies.
In December 2002, Qualcomm filed a patent-infringement suit against Maxim, a
Sunnyvale-based maker of integrated circuits, claiming that some of the
company's products infringe on some of Qualcomm's patents.
Qualcomm owns key patents for a wireless technology standard called code
division multiple access, or CDMA. The company makes its money from the sale of
CDMA cell phone chips and by charging a royalty any time CDMA is used in a
wireless phone.
Chuck Rigg, Maxim's vice president and general counsel, said Qualcomm contends
that its technology licenses prohibit cell phone makers from buying periphery
equipment from companies such as Maxim, which sells receivers and transceivers
for CDMA phones.
A Qualcomm spokeswoman declined to comment on the matter.
Rigg said a summary judgment hearing on whether Qualcomm's licensing deals
prevent phone makers from buying equipment from other companies is scheduled for
the end of this month.
While Rigg said Qualcomm's CDMA patents are valid, he said the company is
abusing the patents by preventing other companies from selling equipment to
cell-phone makers.
"Qualcomm doesn't like us selling these periphery parts to their customers," he
said.
To see more of The San Diego Union-Tribune, or to subscribe to the newspaper,
go to http://www.uniontrib.com
(c) 2004, The San Diego Union-Tribune. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune
Business News.
Nextel Does Broadband
By Dave Mock
April 14, 2004
Mobile broadband junkies just got another shot of endorphins from Nextel Communications (Nasdaq: NXTL) today with the announcement of a commercial launch of its wireless broadband trial. The broadband wireless service has been offered to select customers on a trial basis in the Raleigh-Durham, N.C., area for the past few months, and the company was obviously pleased with the results.
Consistent with its roots, Nextel embraced an alternative technology from privately held Flarion Technologies to deliver speedy bits to its mobile customers. The technology, called Flash-OFDM, was developed by some creative minds at Lucent (NYSE: LU) and is also being tested by many international carriers.
The announcement comes as several U.S. competitors are also rolling ahead with wireless broadband initiatives. AT&T Wireless (NYSE: AWE) announced the first national broadband wireless network, though, data speeds, averaging around 100 kbps, are not on par with other offerings. Verizon Wireless -- part of parent Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) -- announced a push to offer its much faster BroadbandAccess service nationwide. Also, competition from Wi-Fi hot spots, such as a recent deal to light up McDonald's (NYSE: MCD), attempts to lure laptop- and PDA-toting consumers.
Nextel is also upping the ante on competing offerings -- its technology claims typical downstream speeds (from the Internet to the user) of a whopping 1.5 Mbps. That's about three times faster than Verizon's Qualcomm (Nasdaq: QCOM)-powered service and 15 times faster than AT&T Wireless' EDGE technology.
More importantly, however, is that the typical uplink speed Nextel claims is 375 kbps, far faster than the 40 to 60 kbps offered even by Verizon. The uplink speed can make a big difference to users who transfer large files or email attachments while mobile, or who use applications such as video conferencing. Competing offerings that are weak in the uplink speeds struggle with large uploads and bit-intensive peer-to-peer communication applications.
If and when Nextel goes nationwide with the service, it will offer yet another option for consumers and business customers. The competition will also help drop prices further -- $80 per month is currently the norm for unlimited wireless broadband. However, Nextel has differentiated itself with a multitiered pricing scheme that ranges from $35 to $75 per month. On cheaper plans, users opt for slower speeds or limits on total data consumption.
With free and paid Wi-Fi also expanding, reasonably priced broadband wireless services may not be too far off for mainstream American consumers.
http://www.fool.com/news/mft/2004/mft04041411.htm?source=eptyholnk303100&logvisit=y&npu=y&am...
xdx: thanks , that makes sense.......eom
Ok, so we gain one and lose one today........is a suspension of coverage the same as dropped coverage??..if not, why a suspension??...does this mean he is tired of modeling IDCC because of no guidance..?...what would be the purpose of suspending coverage after you just wrote a positive spin on the last license agreement with Sierra??....these Wall Street guys just boggle my mind sometimes
and why the heck does a ridiculous service like Zacks make a news wire to most sites with a sell, but an investment house does not with a buy??.....
New Intel Chips Upgrade Cell Phone Capabilities
Apr 13, 2004 (The Arizona Daily Star - Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News via
COMTEX) -- Intel Corp. engineers in Chandler have designed a next generation
line of microprocessors for advanced cell phones and wireless personal digital
assistants that will give them new capabilities such as 3-D game playing and
full motion video conferencing.
The new processors will also enable wireless devices to perform two tasks
simultaneously such as running an MP3 audio clip while the user plays a video
game, said Intel spokesman Mark Miller.
The new chips, designated the PXA27x family of processors, are designed to
provide the computing power needed to perform complex tasks that are being made
possible by new wireless technologies such as wi-fi and third generation cell
networks, the company said.
"As various forms of wireless broadband access become increasingly available,
mobile devices must have plenty of performance balanced with low power
capabilities to ... handle all that the Internet has to offer," said Sean
Maloney, general manager of Intel Communications Group.
Although the new chips will be available to cell phone and PDA makers this
quarter, they may not appear in consumer products until late this year for the
holiday shopping season, Miller said.
"The actual device makers will decide what they want to include in their
products," he said. "What we have done is increase the computing power of these
devices. We are introducing the horsepower to allow the creative and
applications community to do these things."
The latest processor line will operate at up to 624 megahertz, which was about
the capability of processors used in desktop computers five or six years ago. By
comparison, many high-end cell phones today operate at about 200 megahertz,
Miller said.
The new family of processors, formerly code-named "Bulverde," is based on XScale
technology that was developed in Chandler. The latest chips use the newest
generation of that technology, which also was developed in Chandler, Miller
said.
"The core technology was done several years ago, but the core team is still
working on the next generation," he said. "Every new generation involves some
tweaking and improvements."
Among the capabilities the new processors will provide to wireless hand-held
devices is smooth-playing video, eliminating jerky motions that result from an
insufficient processing speed.
And the quality of still photographs will be greatly enhanced with up to four or
more megapixels of image quality.
By Ed Taylor
I wish the Bod would put up money to buy on the open market so they can sweat along with us nobody's....its just not fair to be able to get yours at the discounted prices all the time............JMHO
market should run a little...Job report exploded for March....
Reuters
U.S. stocks set to surge after jobs data
Friday April 2, 8:57 am ET
By Elizabeth Lazarowitz
(Adds reaction to payrolls data, updates futures)
NEW YORK, April 2 (Reuters) - Stocks are poised to vault higher at Friday's open after a surprisingly strong report on the U.S. job market reassured investors that the economic recovery is on track.
ADVERTISEMENT
The government's monthly employment report showed jobs grew at their fastest pace in nearly four years, offering comfort that the jobs market has finally made a break higher.
About 308,000 jobs were created in March, according to the Labor Department, far outstripping economists' forecasts for a gain of about 103,000. The unemployment rate ticked up to 5.7 percent from the 2-year low of 5.6 percent seen in January and February.
"The change in nonfarm payrolls was a very strong indication that the economy continues to rebound," said Tim Ghriskey, chief investment officer at Solaris Asset Management. "This should result in better economic growth, better corporate earnings and, therefore, stock prices."
Stock futures roared higher after the report was released. The Standard & Poor's 500 June futures rose 8.40 points to 1,142 after the data, while Nasdaq 100 index futures for the same month rose 20 points to 1,478.50.
The jobs report comes after gains by the stock market on Thursday, buoyed by positive economic reports showing a strong pickup in U.S. manufacturing activity and an unexpected decline in weekly jobless claims.
On Thursday the Dow Jones industrial average (^DJI - News) ended up 15.63 points, or 0.15 percent, at 10,373.33. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index (CBOE:^SPX - News) rose 5.96 points, or 0.53 percent, to 1,132.17. The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index (NasdaqSC:^IXIC - News) gained 20.78 points, or 1.04 percent, to 2,015.00.
European stocks added to their gains in the wake of the strong U.S. data. Japan's Nikkei average (^N225 - News) closed at a 22-month high on growing confidence in the country's economic recovery.
Stocks to watch on Friday include computer and electronics seller Gateway Inc. (NYSE:GTW - News), which said on Thursday it would close its 188 stores and eliminate about 2,500 retail positions. Its shares rose after the bell on Thursday.
XM Satellite Radio (NasdaqNM:XMSR - News) shares jumped after the bell after it said it added 320,000 subscribers in the first quarter of 2004, bringing its total subscriber roles to 1.68 million.
Will Qualcomm's Earnings Momentum Slow?
04.01.04, 9:30 AM ET
Banc of America Securities downgraded Qualcomm (nasdaq: QCOM - news - people ) to "neutral" from "buy" and also cut earnings estimates and the 12-month target price. Banc of America said that although handset fundamentals "remain positive," the momentum will slow after the March quarter and could lead to "multiple contraction" on moderating earnings-per-share growth. The research firm cut the fiscal 2004 earnings estimate to $1.78 per share from $1.80 and cut the fiscal 2005 earnings estimate to $1.88 per share from $1.95. Banc of America cut Qualcomm's target price to $60 from $72. Banc of America said "Qualcomm is in a uniquely strong position in the wireless market," but is looking for "an acceleration of 3G or new CDMA 450 builds to get more optimistic on the stock." Elsewhere in the wireless equipment sector, Banc of America's two top picks are Cisco Systems (nasdaq: CSCO - news - people ) and UTStarcom (nasdaq: UTSI - news - people ), both rated at "buy" with target prices of $32 and $47. The firm's two least favorites are Ericsson (nasdaq: ERICY - news - people ) and Lucent Technologies (nyse: LU - news - people ), rated at "sell" and "neutral," respectively, with target prices of $18 and $4.
OT: where did this clown come from?
wow, one born every minute........do you think Donald Trump would let him on his show The Apprentice??...lol
Infineon CEO Schumacher resigns
German DRAM maker has no immediate comment
By Emily Church, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 11:19 AM ET March 25, 2004
LONDON (CBS.MW) - Shares of German memory chipmaker Infineon Technologies reversed gains Thursday after the company announced its chief executive had resigned.
NEWS FOR IFX
CEO resignation at Infineon is a 'complete surprise'
Techs drive Europe rebound, Swiss Re, Inditex lift
Siltronic pulls IPO, citing market conditions
More news for IFX
Infineon (IFX: news, chart, profile) (DE:623100: news, chart, profile) offered no comment on why Ulrich Schumacher had resigned "with immediate effect" following a Supervisory Board meeting.
A spokesman said the company would have a comment at a later time.
"This is a complete surprise," said a French analyst. "Everyone is waiting. This shows a lack of transparency."
Shares of German chipmaker Infineon Technologies were last down 1.97 percent at 10.93 euros in Frankfurt.
Chairman Max Dietrich Kley was appointed Chairman of the Management Board, or CEO, for a period of not more than one year, a statement to the German stock exchange read.
Schumacher had been at the helm of the memory chipmaker since April 1999, since its spin-off from German conglomerate Siemens AG (SI: news, chart, profile). At Siemens, he was the head of semiconductors.
Infineon competes with Micron Technologies (MU: news, chart, profile) of the U.S. as well as other Asian chipmakers.
Emily Church is London bureau chief of CBS.MarketWatch.com.
OT: for laughs read this...we can all relate to this
If you bought $1000 of Nortel stock a year ago, it would now be worth $49
With Enron, you would have $16.50 left of the original $1,000.
With WorldCom, you would have less than $5 left.
Now, if you bought $1,000 worth of Coors Light (the beer, not the
stock) over the past year, drank all the beer, then turned in the cans for
the aluminum recycling price, you would have $214.
...........Ironic..........
T-Mobile J-Kay.........
http://www.handspring.com/products/communicators/treo600_overview.jhtml
Treo 600 Shipping Dates Updated, T-Mobile Release
Posted By: Ryan on Thursday, January 29, 2004 11:12:20 AM
palmOne has updated the estimated shipping and release dates for the Treo 600 on a number of networks. In addition, the company has also posted info on the GSM T-Mobile release. Since it's introduction, the Treo 600 has been in high demand with orders for the hot smartphone far exceeding the current supply.
T-Mobile Treo 600
palmOne will begin taking pre-orders for the GSM Treo 600 for the T-Mobile network beginning in mid-February. The company expects to start shipping T-Mobile orders in early March.
The estimated ship dates for AT&T and Cingular have both been updated as well. Depending on your carrier and time of order, most Treo's will begin shipping sometime in February. The company now expects to ship certain orders placed after January 28th as soon as one week from the order date. The shipping & ordering page is the place to check for the most recent info by carrier.
palmOne starts Shipping T-Mobile Treo 600
Posted By: Ryan on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 1:06:41 PM
Reader reports have come in that palmOne has begun to ship the Treo 600 to customers that had pre-ordered. The initial shipments are going out early, as previous estimates cited a early march shipping date.
Users that pre-order the device have begin to receive email notifications that the device has now shipped. The Treo 600 can now be ordered immediately online from palmOne.com, and through direct T-Mobile business sales channels and select value-added resellers. The Treo 600 smartphone will be available to new T-Mobile customers at an estimated U.S. street price of $499 when purchased with a service contract.
Through March 2, 2004, palmOne is offering all Treo 180, 270 and 300 owners the ability to upgrade to a Treo 600 smartphone for only $399, exclusively at palmOne.com. The device is now also available on the AT&T, Cingular and Sprint networks.
http://www.palminfocenter.com/view_story.asp?ID=6583
Lucent, Nortel Win Verizon Wireless Deals
Monday March 22, 12:47 pm ET
By Ben Klayman
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Telecommunications equipment makers Lucent Technologies Inc. (NYSE:LU - News) and Nortel Networks Corp. (Toronto:NT.TO - News) on Monday announced deals worth $692 million to provide Verizon Wireless with equipment to support its new high-speed wireless Internet service.
Verizon Wireless said Lucent's three-year deal will be worth more than $525 million in the first two years, while Nortel's two-year agreement will be worth $167 million.
"Some investors might have been speculating that Lucent has lost some of its market share within the Verizon Wireless account, but today's contract awards should put that speculation to rest," Lehman Brothers analyst Steve Levy wrote in a research note.
He added that the contract does not include a renewal of the basic supply agreement between Verizon Wireless and Lucent, something he believes should be signed by the end of this month and be worth billions of dollars over three years.
Monday's agreements are part of a plan that Verizon Wireless announced in January to spend $1 billion on upgrading its networks over the next two years, including building a high-speed wireless Internet data network that will be available in major U.S. cities this year.
Verizon Wireless is owned by Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - News) and Vodafone Group Plc (London:VOD.L - News).
The network, which will use third-generation or "3G" technology, will be fast enough to allow consumers to download video and music as well as send video messages. The United States trails Asia and Europe in 3G deployment, but U.S. carriers did not take on heavy debt to deploy 3G as their European peers did.
Lucent officials said Verizon Wireless' new network will pressure other wireless carriers to boost spending on their high-speed wireless networks.
"An operator can't afford to wait now. You can't be third or fourth to get out there in the market," John Marinho, a vice president in Lucent's wireless business, said at the U.S. wireless industry's major trade show in Atlanta.
He said Lucent is talking with other wireless carriers regarding high-speed products, including AT&T Wireless Services Inc. (NYSE:AWE - News)
The average revenue per high-speed wireless Internet customer is $40 per month, and that is on top of what they already spend on wireless, Marinho said. Lucent expects eventually about a quarter of traffic on wireless networks will come from high-speed data based on the industry's experience in South Korea, he added.
Lucent said its deal with Verizon Wireless is "supplemental" to its existing supply agreements with the largest U.S. wireless operator. Under the new deal, Lucent will upgrade its existing base stations with Verizon Wireless, as well as provide other equipment and services.
Nortel will upgrade Verizon Wireless' existing base stations and provide new base stations, modules and other services.
Verizon Wireless said a third supplier was selected, but chose to remain anonymous. Verizon Wireless did not specify the size of the third supplier's deal, but said it does not get the rest of the $1 billion budgeted for the high-speed network.
Bear Stearns analyst Wojtek Uzdelewicz said Lucent seems to have picked up business with Verizon Wireless at the expense of Motorola Inc. (NYSE:MOT - News) He estimated Motorola traditionally supplied 15 percent of Verizon Wireless' wireless equipment for its CDMA network, compared with Lucent's 60 percent and Nortel's 25 percent.
He said Motorola did not participate in Verizon Wireless' high-speed Internet service trials last year and will not have a meaningful role in the roll-out of that technology. "This could lead to further erosion of Motorola's presence at Verizon," Uzdelewicz said in a research report. (Additional reporting by Jeffrey Hodgson in Toronto and Justin Hyde in Atlanta)
IDCC needs to go after companies like Palm One......they are GSM and currently supply T-Mobile etc...........
Tech Stocks : K.C. Swanson
PalmOne Blows Past Estimates
By K.C. Swanson
TheStreet.com Staff Reporter
3/22/2004 5:44 PM EST
PalmOne (PLMO:Nasdaq - news - research) shares jumped in after-hours trading Monday as the handheld-device maker roundly beat Wall Street expectations for the third quarter of fiscal 2004 and guided well above the consensus estimate for the quarter now underway.
After the bell, PalmOne shares were recently up $1.58, or 11.4%, to $15.42. In regular trading, the stock traded down 70 cents, or 4.8%, to $13.84.
In PalmOne's first full quarter of operations as a standalone entity, following its spin off from Palm, it reported $242.5 million in revenue for the quarter ending Feb. 29, up 22.6% from last year's levels. Chief Executive Officer Todd Bradley said the company had seen "excellent demand" for its Treo smartphone.
Net loss was $9.3 million, or 20 cents a share, compared with a net loss of $172.3 million, or $5.93 per share, a year earlier. The current year's loss included restructuring charges of $4.5 million and amortization of intangible assets and stock-based compensation of $5.4 million. Excluding those charges, net income amounted to a penny per share.
On a pro forma basis, analysts were expecting a loss of 33 cents a share on $211.5 million in revenue, according to First Call.
PalmOne's average selling price of $233 in the just-ended quarter grew 38% from the average price of $169 for the same quarter a year ago. Gross margin rose to 28.9% from 23.8% a year ago.
In the quarter ended in February, the company drew 72% of sales from handhelds and 28% from so-called smartphones.
PalmOne guided for revenue of $245 million to $255 million, well above the consensus estimate for $227.3 million. That forecast assumes handheld revenue of $175 million to $180 million and Treo smartphone-related revenue of $70 million to $75 million. Chief Financial Officer Judy Bruner predicted the company will be "close to breakeven or modestly profitable on a [generally accepted accounting principles] basis."
Management should have their own futures as well as the shareholders in mind, cause if this thing crashes, they could be an easy buyout target. Of course the last Corporation I worked for that got bought out, the excecutives all got major Golden Parachutes. My opinion is that they do have to worry though, because the uglier this gets, a lot of shareholders would probably be happy with $35-40.......no matter what management recommended against............JMHO
Interesting here about Lucent....seems to me they should be thinking about licensing....
Schwab Soundview boosts Lucent
Sees positive news coming out of CTIA industry show
By Susan Lerner, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 4:12 PM ET March 19, 2004
NEW YORK (CBS.MW) -- Schwab Soundview got bullish Friday on Lucent Technologies, upgrading the telecommunications-equipment company amid improving fundamentals in its optical and wireless businesses and management changes at its Mobility Solutions Group.
"We see several encouraging signs that Lucent is getting its house in order and is beginning to show traction in key end markets," analyst Matt Hoffman wrote in a research note as he upgraded the stock to "outperform" from "neutral."
Hoffman accordingly revised higher his price target on the shares (LU: news, chart, profile) to $5 from $3.50 and raised his revenue and earnings estimates.
For the second quarter of fiscal 2004 ending in March, Hoffman now expects Lucent to show earnings of 2 cents a share on revenue of $2.21 billion, up from flat earnings and revenue of $2.14 billion.
For all of fiscal 2004, he raised his outlook to earnings of 11 cents a share on revenue of $9.01 billion from the 10 cents on $8.82 billion that he previously forecast.
And for fiscal 2005, Hoffman now sees earnings of 15 cents a share on revenue of $9.54 billion, up from a prior projection of 9 cents on revenue of $9.18 billion.
"While Lucent is a high-risk stock, we believe our 2004 to 2006 estimates have the potential to rise substantially if market conditions continue to improve on their current trajectory," Hoffman said.
Murray Hill, N.J.-based Lucent's shares ended Friday's session down 6 cents, or 1.5 percent, at $3.98.
Hoffman told clients that he believes the company's shortcomings in UMTS, a wireless technology standard adopted widely in Europe, and in VoIP, or voice over Internet protocol, are discounted in the shares at current levels and that he's increasingly confident of long-term improvement in both areas.
His longest standing gripe about Lucent, he said, has been its weak position in UMTS -- the fastest-growing sector of the wireless equipment market at the moment -- but he believes the appointment earlier this month of Cindy Christy to head the Mobility business is a positive.
"After speaking with several people close to Lucent, we believe the appointment of Christy will allow the company to attack the remaining UMTS opportunities with less baggage," Hoffman said.
Right now, he noted, Lucent does virtually no business in Western Europe on the Mobility front, so any win would be incremental. But he stressed it would be 2005 before those wins are realized.
In addition to the Mobility management changes, Hoffman is positive on higher expectations for Lucent's EV-DO product; the increased probability of UMTS wins in the United States; the likelihood of traction for its CDMA 450 technology later this year; and a slight improvement in "the still sick" Integrated Network Solutions business.
Hoffman expects positive announcements, especially surrounding wins in CDMA 1X EV-DO technology, are on their way as the Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association, or CTIA, show gets underway in Atlanta on Monday.
Susan Lerner is a reporter for CBS.MarketWatch.co
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/yhoo/story.asp?source=blq/yhoo&siteid=yhoo&dist=yhoo&gui...
Well even though Sierra is not Goliath yet...we can sure see the potential from every company that signs and adds to the bottom line. Analysts have already jumped on the signings with updated reports...now if we could just land a big fish like Lucent and avoid court, what a report that would bring. I would say immediate price changes from all our analysts with much higher price targets.
Ill take any big fish right now, Siemens, Lucy, Nokia, Mot, Qualcomm...............man it sure would be like a miracle came upon us.................lol
Truthfully, the way this news release came out with little details....I'll bet Merrit called from Canada and confirmed the deal........maybe they just wanted to get the news out A.S.A.P. .....along with no 8-K, maybe we will get the details tomorrow about any pre-payment. If we didnt get a pre-payment would that signify a new thought process from IDCC?.....just get them paying any way possible........?....I'll take that game plan any day...............just get'em signed.
Sierra Wireless Adds the AirCard® 555R (RUIM) CDMA 1X PC Card to Product Line and Signs Agreement for China Market
Beijing Putian Taili Telecom signs agreement with Sierra Wireless to distribute AirCard® products in China, wirelessly connecting mobile professionals to real time information
Beijing, China and Vancouver, British Columbia - March 15, 2004 - Sierra Wireless (NASDAQ: SWIR - TSX: SW) announced today the addition of the AirCard 555R, a wide area wireless PC Card with Removable User Identity Module (RUIM) support to its award winning product line for the China market. Operating on CDMA 1X networks, the AirCard 555R will provide mobile professionals with wireless data access at speeds up to 153.6 kbps. The AirCard 555R will be distributed by Beijing Putian Taili Telecom, a leading reseller in China, and product availability is scheduled for the second quarter of 2004. Beijing Putian Taili Telecom will also distribute the Sierra Wireless AirCard 750 GSM/GPRS wide area network PC Card in China.
Putian Taili, headquartered in Beijing, has an established nationwide marketing and after sales network in over 100 cities, with 28 branches and 75 district sales offices, specializing in the marketing and service of mobile terminal products. With well-established distribution channels, Beijing Putian Taili will work with wireless network operators in China to distribute the AirCard product line.
“We continue to see strong growth and demand in the Asia-Pacific region for wireless data products and Sierra Wireless is committed to expanding our AirCard product portfolio in China,” said Jason Cohenour, Senior Vice President Global Sales for Sierra Wireless. “By working with Beijing Putian Taili Telecom, Sierra Wireless can offer its customers more ways to stay wirelessly connected, ensuring them complete access to information.”
“Our partnership with Sierra Wireless will enable us to meet customers’ increasing demands for reliable wireless data solutions,” said Sheng FuJun, Assistant President of Beijing Putian Taili Telecom. “Sierra Wireless has a reputation for quality and innovation and we want our customers to receive the best products the market has to offer.”
About the size of a credit card, the AirCard 555R PC Card, designed specifically for the China market, is a complete communications solution offering both wireless data and voice functionality. The removable RUIM chip offers customers the flexibility to transfer account information (stored on the RUIM chip) from device to device easily and efficiently. When inserted into a PC card slot, the AirCard 555R will allow mobile professionals the flexibility to work outside the office while using a notebook, Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) or other handheld device and receive reliable, high-speed, wireless access to email, data, corporate applications and the Internet. For more information on the AirCard 555R please visit http://www.sierrawireless.com/ProductsOrdering/AC555R
LOL....the natives are now a little less restless..!!!! I'll try this again tomorrow.....you never know!
HOWARD GOLDBERG: TELL BILL MERRITT to throw us a life line for God's sake !!!!!!!
These economic discussions better provide fruit by ASM........or it could look like an old Frankenstien movie with all the shareholders surrounding the castle with torches............
Such as "In God We Trust"
A letter written to Secretary Salmon Chase by Rev.Watkinson from Penn read:
Dear Sir: You are about to submit your annual report to the Congress respecting the affairs of the national finances.
One fact touching our currency has hitherto been seriously overlooked. I mean the recognition of the Almighty God in some form on our coins.
You are probably a Christian. What if our Republic were not shattered beyond reconstruction? Would not the antiquaries of succeeding centuries rightly reason from our past that we were a heathen nation? What I propose is that instead of the goddess of liberty we shall have next inside the 13 stars a ring inscribed with the words PERPETUAL UNION; within the ring the allseeing eye, crowned with a halo; beneath this eye the American flag, bearing in its field stars equal to the number of the States united; in the folds of the bars the words GOD, LIBERTY, LAW.
This would make a beautiful coin, to which no possible citizen could object. This would relieve us from the ignominy of heathenism. This would place us openly under the Divine protection we have personally claimed. From my hearth I have felt our national shame in disowning God as not the least of our present national disasters.
To you first I address a subject that must be agitated.
I think the reason they revised the Sharp Deal has to do with the Licensee who did the about face and we couldnt get signed before the end of 2003. I have a feeling that IDCC really wants this license as it is a major player and the only way to make it right was to go to sharp and give them the deal that the other licensee was willing to sign........all my opinion and we shall soon see if it materializes
Market reaction kills me.....I know we had a hiccup quarter but where in Gods name does that translate into $6 a share loss?.
In comparison to the entire year we did great! This crap is ridiculous
InterDigital Communications Corp. - King of Prussia, Pa.
4th Quar Dec. 31:
---------------- 2003 -- 2002
Revenue -------------- $24,683,000- $27,091,000
Net income--------------- 1,083,000- 5,748,000
Avg shrs (diluted) ------------- 58,786,000 - 57,919,000
Shr earns
Net income --- ------- .02 - .10
Year:-
Revenue -------------- 114,574,000- 87,895,000
Net income------------ 34,332,000- 2,375,000
Avg shrs (diluted) ------------ 59,840,000 - 56,099,000
Shr earns---
Net income ----------- .58- .04
Bulldzr: I agree 100%....we can cheerlead all we want but the bottom line is that we have announced another dragout lawsuit instead of a licensee.....I am very dissappointed in this company again. I continue to ask myself why I bother, we all say it shall come, but what good is that if its another decade. Some folks here have waited 15 years and still are............I have seen many other companies pass us by like we are standing still.
All my opinion but I am wearing thin.......
would that include folks who bought at $3 and sold when it spiked to $142...........??
Fujitsu, NEC swing to profit in Q3
Toshiba net losses widen but operating income jumps
By Allen Wan & Osamu Tsukimori
Last Update: 2:34 AM ET Jan. 29, 2004
TOKYO (CBS.MW) - Japanese technology giants Fujitsu and NEC on Thursday swung back to profits in the third quarter on the back of booming sales of digital consumer electronics and cell phones, but rival Toshiba saw net losses widen as PC sales remained in the doldrums.
Fujitsu
Fujitsu posted a net profit of 7.6 billion yen ($71.7 million) in the quarter, compared with a 24.9 billion yen loss in the year-ago period.
It also reported an operating profit of 10.1 billion yen, compared with a loss of 13.1 billion yen.
The company returned to a profit due to robust demand for servers and storage systems overcame declining revenues from its PC business.
Fujitsu's sales jumped 5 percent to 10.68 trillion yen in the quarter from 10.18 trillion yen in the same quarter last year.
Shares of Fujitsu (FJTSY: news, chart, profile) fell 0.6 percent to 684 yen in Tokyo ahead of the news.
NEC
NEC Corp. also returned to profit in the third quarter due to booming demand for its cellphone handsets as well as a strong performance for its electronics unit.
NEC (NIPNY: news, chart, profile), the country's biggest maker of telecom equipment, reported a net profit of 11.17 billion yen ($105 million) in the three months to Dec. 30, compared with a loss of 4.56 billion yen in the year-ago quarter.
It also reported a 9.2 percent gain in quarterly operating profits to 33.58 billion yen from 23.26 billion yen last year.
Sales climbed to 1.17 trillion yen in the quarter from last year's 1.07 trillion yen.
Shares of NEC ended up 0.1 percent at 837 yen.
Toshiba
However, rival Toshiba Corp. (TOSHF: news, chart, profile) reported wider net losses in the third quarter due to a higher tax burden and falling PC sales but operating income soared more than fivefold on the back of booming sales of semiconductors.
The Japanese electronics giant said net losses grew to 9.25 billion yen ($87.1 million) in the October-December period from a net loss of 6.89 billion yen in the same period a year earlier.
Operating profits, meanwhile, soared to 14.03 billion yen in the quarter from 2.43 billion yen.
Quarterly sales climbed to 1.32 trillion yen from 1.31 trillion yen.
Shares ended down 0.2 percent at 446 yen.
Their mostly upbeat results came on the heels of Sony's (SNE: news, chart, profile) mixed showing late Wednesday as the consumer electronics giant reported a 20-percent decline in operating profits due to a slump for its game and movie businesses but sales hit a quarterly record due to a recovery for its key electronics business. Read Sony report.
Analysts' forecasts
Lehman Brothers analyst Satoru Oyama said in a recent note he expected Fujitsu to break even on an operating basis for the October-December period, after posting a 13.1 billion yen ($123.4 million) loss in the year-ago quarter.
He expected sales of 1.05 trillion yen, up 3.2 percent from the year-ago levels, thanks to the recovery in the company's electronics device business.
JP Morgan analyst Yoshiharu Izumi, meanwhile, expected Fujitsu to turn an operating profit of 4.5 billion yen on sales of 1.13 trillion yen.
For NEC, Oyama expected the PC and electronics giant to double operating profits to 45 billion yen on sales of 1.08 trillion yen, up 1.1 percent from the year-ago period.
"The network solutions business is merely doing very well, thanks to a bottoming out of communications infrastructure demand and an increase in overseas demand for cell phones," Oyama said in a note.
Lehman's Oyama expected Toshiba's operating profits to rise more than fourfold to 11 billion yen from 2.4 billion yen in the year-ago quarter, despite a 1.1 percent sales decline to 1.13 trillion yen.
Oyama expected good results for Toshiba's PC and electronics device businesses.
Allen Wan is the Asia bureau chief for CBS MarketWatch, based in Tokyo.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/yhoo/story.asp?guid=%7BC268527C-4159-4353-8D43-62C9FF6BF9D1%7D&s...
Eight signs we're too bullish
Mania reappearing as long-term memory fades
By Chris Pummer, CBS MarketWatch
Last Update: 12:01 AM ET Jan. 26, 2004
Investors seem to be reentering a state of mania after our prolonged depression. Hibernating bears evolved quickly into unpenned bulls that now are both giddy and disoriented with their release into pasture.
The results of a CBS MarketWatch reader poll two weeks ago, asking where the Dow will end 2004, also confirm the diagnosis. Of 2,650 respondents, only 4 percent expected the index to end the year below 10,000, and just 18 percent saw it closing below 11,500. Nearly half expected it to blow past its record high and finish above 12,500, a 20 percent or better gain for the year.
There's a degree of schizophrenia to investors' elevated mood, as a new Charles Schwab investor survey attests. Eighty-two percent described themselves as "optimistic," yet 60 percent also described themselves as "cautious." The horns of a dilemma, indeed.
We're not necessarily headed to slaughter. A formula the Federal Reserve is said to use to measure the stock market's value suggests the S&P 500 could rise 10 percent this year and still be undervalued, even if the 10-year Treasury yield jumps to 4.75 percent by year's end.
"Typically, stocks don't go into a bear market until they're well overvalued compared to fixed income," says Richard Geist, head of the Institute of Psychology and Investing. "My guess is we're going to hit some kind of pullback, or trade sideways for several months, and then continue upward."
Still, there are abundant signs that many investors are throwing caution to the wind. Here are 10 gathered from members of CBS MarketWatch's editorial staff:
1) Mutual fund scandal - what mutual fund scandal?
The fund-industry corruption is more pervasive than the corporate misdeeds revealed in 2001, but since stocks rebounded last year, investors have been selfishly forgiving. The fund fleecers violated a broader public trust than the corporate criminals, but may get off easy as we celebrate the 30 percent bump in our 401(k) stock-funds.
2) Lookie what I found!
During the bear market, most investors would sooner smack themselves in the head than open their quarterly account statements, knowing mounting losses documented within would make them do just that. Now we're going online, many of us daily, to check the rising value of our assets, as soaring traffic on portfolio-trackers attests. At this rate, the return of widespread day trading isn't far off.
3) Ogling Google
The popular online search-engine's expected stock offering has many investors foaming at the mouth. How soon we forget the calamity that awaited buyers of the most popular IPOs of the late 1990s. VA Software (LNUX: news, chart, profile), which gained a record 700 percent in its first day of trading, closed at $240 on Day One after hitting $330, fell to $135 in just over a month, and is now trading in the $4 range. In that light, do you really want a piece of Google?
4) See a penny, pick it up
Penny stocks are a sucker's bet, yet traffic on online message boards focused on under-$5 stocks is exploding. The self-delusion extends even to market pundits, some of who are recommending stocks just because their share price is lower than a competitors'. Investing 101 Revisited, and what a shame it bears repeating: Cheap stocks are cheap for good reason.
5) A pot smoker's appetite for risk
Stoners will eat anything left in the refrigerator and perceive it's delicious - even old relish on mold-scraped toast. Investors are showing similar signs of a suddenly ravenous appetite for risk, as measured by their growing lack of concern for market volatility. Even global mutual-fund managers are nervier than they've been in three years, as a Merrill Lynch survey shows.
6) Privatize Social Security - What a brilliant idea!
Presidential candidate Bush promoted letting Americans invest part of their Social Security accounts in stocks -- until the market's collapse proved how stupid even the smartest of us can be. The fact that President Bush refloated the proposal in his State of the Union address shows how short his advisors think our memories are.
7) This time things are different
On Jan. 22, shares of NetFlix (NFLX: news, chart, profile) rose $11.86 to $77.66 after the online DVD-rental company announced a big fourth-quarter earnings gain and 2-for-1 stock split. It's now trading at a stratospheric price-earnings ratio of 370, up 700 percent in a year, with a total stock value of nearly $2 billion. This for what's essentially a mail-order firm whose business model could easily be usurped by Wal-Mart or Blockbusters, or supplanted by the next generation of video delivery.
8) Three words: Chinese Internet stocks
China has been all the rage among international investors. The Jan. 13 initial stock offering of China Green Holdings, a produce supplier mainly for the Japanese market, was 1,600 times oversubscribed. Then there's recent explosive gains in Chinese Internet stocks. The meaning of the words "dot-bomb" must get lost in translation.
Chris Pummer is an assistant managing editor for CBS MarketWatch in San Francisco.
What the heck do you know about hockey???....you never talk hockey with me????