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» SteveT - Fun at the Foundry
By BILL ALPERT
ASIA'S SEMICONDUCTOR FOUNDRIES WILL PLAY key parts in delivering this year's hot chips. My kid has been calling Best Buy every day in search of the sold-out Xbox 360 console from Microsoft. The IBM-designed processors for that product are being made by Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing, of Singapore, which is also producing the chic processors of Advanced Micro Devices. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing also makes Xbox chips, and will benefit from the just-announced pushout of the Sony PlayStation3's arrival to November. TSMC's Taiwanese rival United Microelectronics Corp. is in the midst of a restructuring, but UMC could see added sales later this year if it succeeds in turning on an advanced manufacturing process for the handset chips of Texas Instruments.
Popular products like these chips should lift factory utilization at the foundries to about 95% by the third quarter of this year, from the seasonally soft level of 91% in this first quarter, predicts Merrill Lynch analyst Daniel Heyler in a Friday note.
Heyler sees modest upside for the shares of TSMC, whose American depositary receipts (ticker: TSM) have weakened this year to a recent 9.58. He's also got a Buy rating on Chartered (ADR: CHRT), with hopes of some 15% upside from the ADR's recent level of 8.70. He'd also be a buyer of UMC (ADR: UMC), especially if the firm's turnaround takes shape in the June quarter.
It only takes a nudge to move a thinly-traded Internet security, as was shown earlier this year when one of TV's stock market celebrities called Rediff.com India (REDF) the "Google of the Ganges." The American depositary shares of the Mumbai-based online business quickly doubled to a peak near $34, before settling back to 25.04.
You can check out one of Rediff.com's overcrowded Websites at www.rediff.com1 -- where "settled young Brahmins" advertise for fair-skinned brides -- but be prepared for a bunch of pop-up ads. December quarter revenues totaled $5 million, with the online contribution amounting to $3.2 million...other revenues came from selling newspapers in the U.S. Earnings were all of 1.23 cents a share.
I wonder how much longer Rediff.com will remain the Google of the Ganges, now that Google has come to India. The search engine giant (GOOG) only arrived in October, but by January Google's India Website already drew more unique visitors than Rediff's, according to market researcher Media Metrix. Yahoo! (YHOO) is also growing fast in international markets like India.
With Rediff.com falling behind its competitors, you might be wondering whether its shares merit a multiple of 35 times its annualized sales of last quarter, and about 500 times earnings per share.
E-mail: william.alpert@barrons.com
URL for this article:
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB1142...
-- posted by SteveT
» SteveT - Applied Materials Raises Dividend
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/060322/applied_m...
Wednesday March 22, 9:42 am ET
Applied Materials Raises Quarterly Dividend 3 Cents, Set to Complete Stock Buyback Program
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) -- Applied Materials Inc., a maker of semiconductor equipment, said Wednesday it was raising its quarterly dividend 3 cents to 4 cents per share.
The dividend is payable on June 8 to stockholders of record on May 18.
Applied Materials also approved a stock buyback program of up to $5 billion over three years ending March 2009. In fiscal 2005 to the fiscal first quarter of 2006, the company repurchased about 128 million shares at an average price of $17.22 per share, or about $2.2 billion. With the new stock repurchase program, the Board concluded the $4 billion program authorized in March 2005.
As of Jan. 29, the company had about 1.59 billion shares outstanding.
Shares of Applied Materials rose 7 cents to $17.58 on the Nasdaq.
-- posted by SteveT
» SteveT - Splinter on Bloomberg
Yesterday Applied Materials CEO Mike Splinter did a short interview with Matt Nesto. It was a mostly a promotional fluff piece with no new shocking revelations. Splinter was well prepared and focused to deliver the message he intended to get out.
They started by reviewing the stock buy back plan and dividend increase and said it shows confidence in the ability to generate cash and a strong balance sheet. They have enough cash to see them through any difficulties, make acquisitions or any capital needs that arise. The past year or so they have done a few small technology oriented acquisitions that help expand the core business worldwide. He looks at acquisition as a tactic to feed their overall strategy.
Next they moved on to how analysts view the services business. Nesto said the analyst community has given the addition of services a rather lukewarm reception as a way to grow revenues. Splinter diplomatically said the services business is a little difficult to understand. He pointed out in the past few years it has grown nicely to the mid twenties from the mid teens as a percentage of revenue. It includes so many things such as software, equipment add-ons, spare parts, fixing, cleaning and coating along with wafer reclaim. All are profitable and they will continue to look for areas that expand their reach into services. Originally the margins were lower than the core business and that is why Mike believes some analysts are concerned it hurts profitability. Splinter thinks they have proven this is not the case. Services do produce excellent gross margins and outstanding operating profits on the bottom line. He went on to say services may grow a little faster than Cap Ex. They are not doing service in lieu of Capital Equipment but in addition to.
Nesto brought up revenues have been down 3 of 4 Quarters and 4 of the last 5 years. Last week Splinter told investors they would out grow the market and outperform in terms of profits. How will they accomplish this? The conversion to 300mm from 200mm caused Cap Ex to get more efficient, allowing their customers to spend less. Now 85% of AMAT sales is 300mm. 300mm is more complex causing increased capital spending (By this I am assuming Average Selling Prices are higher). Also AMAT products are accessing the memory segment, which they have been traditionally weak. He thinks they gain significant strength in memory. They are also aiding to increase Moore’s law speed by enhancing performance of transistors and lithography.
-- posted by SteveT
» SteveT - No Waffling on Wafer Starts
INVESTORS' SOAPBOX AM | Online Exclusive
Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co.
1001 19th St. N.
Arlington, Va. 22209
(Tel) (703) 312-9500
FOLLOWING EARNINGS REPORTS this week by Micron Technology and Advanced Micro Devices, with both raising calendar 2006 capital-expenditure budgets, we are increasing our capex model to nearly $56 billion (up 13.2% year over year) from $55 billion (up 11.5% year over year).
Although the bear argument hinges on comparing calendar 2006 with calendar 2004, where overall equipment bookings began to roll over in the third quarter, we believe the recent capex increases support our argument of a flattish bookings environment in the second half of 2006, if not higher.
We believe the current wafer starts are expected to keep overall utilization rates at 85% or more -- and, therefore, the increased capex for calendar 2006 will not cause any drop in utilization rates anytime soon. We note that calendar 2003 wafer starts were up 13% year over year before running into the inventory buildout of first half of 2004 (where, in first-half 2004, wafer starts were up 9% compared to second-half 2003).
This compares to a calendar 2005 wafer-start increase of only 7% (with first-half 2006 wafer starts estimated to be up 3% compared to second-half 2005). Net/net, we find the commentary by Micron and AMD, as well as an earnings report by Lam Research, as positive for the [semiconductor-capital-equipment group], with Applied Materials benefiting the most from increased capex (by Micron/AMD) while ChipMos Technologies (Bermuda) benefits from strong second-quarter 2006 guidance by Spansion (AMD's old NOR Flash biz).
We continue to highlight the current risk/reward profile, which implies 20% downside risk, compared to upside in the range from 80% to 100%, depending on whether one is using calendar 2006 or calendar 2007 estimates. Although calendar 2006 revenue/earnings per share are estimated to be, on average, 20% to 30% higher than in calendar 2004, we note that valuations are currently lower than the peak of calendar 2004. Thus, although we expect continued choppiness in the near term, we believe investors' attention will shift back to valuations as a flattish second-half 2006 bookings scenario gains more support among investors.
--Mehdi Hosseini
The opinions contained in Investors' Soapbox in no way represent those of Barron's Online or Dow Jones & Company, Inc. The opinions expressed are those of the newsletter's writer(s).
To be considered for this feature, please send material to Soapbox@barrons.com1
Comments? E-mail us at online.editors@barrons.com
URL for this article:
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB1144...
-- posted by SteveT
» Beartoes - Hello everyone,
Hello everyone,I used to work for AMAT. Good Co. but some of the people are just plain idiots. But any way, I would like to throw my 2 cents in on AMAT as an investment.
I will put up all the chart that I talk about at the end so the print does not change and the format will look good. So here goes...
Long term AMAT is in a very serious downtrend. Just looking at the 2 pt chart it is easy to see. With the bearish Resistance line running from from 6/00 to current, you can see that it will take a print on the chart of 26 to give a new buy signal and a break of the BRL. We certainly are a long way from that point, so lets take a look at the intermediate term.
Here we will explore the .5 chart. As you can see we are still in a downtrend from the beginning of this year. AMAT tried to break out in 1/06 from a big base back to 2004. But it failed. I think that can be explained using the RS chart (this chart will also be at the end of the text). So looking at the .5 chart a print of 19.5 will exhibit what is called a bearish signal reversal. That would be a worth while point to enter. Weekly Momentum is also negative. Let move on to the short term.
Here I am going to use the .25 chart and as you can see it is still pretty ugly for AMAT. It is currently sitting on a double bottom at 16.25 and a print of 16 would put AMAT at its last little bit of support from 11/05. A print of 15.75 would not be a good thing for all the AMAT fans out there. The bearish price objective is 13.25 and if the above support is broken we could definitely see the objective.
So all in all AMAT stinks. Looking at the Relative Strength chart of AMAT vs SPX equal weight index we also see extreme weakness reflected in the last column of O's. Right now it is on a sell in a column of O's which is the worst it can get and says that AMAT is going to under perform the market, with not much help in site. The RS is getting weaker by the day which does not bode well for AMAT. As I had mentioned earlier, I think the break out in 1/06 failed was due to the fact the RS was still under performing. If you look at the .5 chart and the column of X's just to the right of the 8 in 2004 was 17.5 (high) and the break out in 1/06 was 21. As you can see the break in 1/06 is higher than the column of X's in 04, but looking at the RS chart, it is opposite. The column of X's to the right of the 9 in 04 is higher than the breakout of 1/06 and that would tell me that that we are still under performing. I would want to see the break in 1/06 be higher than the 9/04 and that would let me know that now we are outperforming the market and doing better compared to 9/04 time-frame. That is just my opinion on why I would not have bought the breakout in Jan. of this year.
There are a lot better Semi stock's out there than AMAT.
Here are the chart listed above.
2 Pt. chart
Bearish Price Obj: N/A Reward to Risk 0.00 Performance64 |||||||||||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |64
62 |||||||||||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |62|
60 |||||||||||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |60|
58 |||||||||||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |58|
56 |||||||||||| | | |X| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |56|
54 |||||||||||| |X| |X|O| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |54|
52 |||||||||||| |X|O|X|O| | |X| | | | | | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |52|
50 |||||||||||| |X|O|4|O|X| |X|O| | |•| | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |50|
48 ||||||||||3| |X|O|X|O|X|O|X|O| | |X|•| | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |48|
46 ||||||||||X|O|X|O|X|O|X|O|X|5|X| |X|O|•| ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |46|
44 ||||||||||X|O|X|O| |O|X|O| |O|X|O|6|O|9|•||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |44|
42 ||||||||||X|O| | | |O|X| | |O|X|O|X|7|X|O|•| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |42|
40 ||||||||||X| | | | |O| | | |O| |O|X|O|X|O|||•| | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |40|
38 ||||||||||2| | | | | | | | | | |O|X|O|X|O||| |•| | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |38|
36 ||||||||||X| | | | | | | | | | |O| |O|X|O||| | |•| | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |36|
34 ||||||||||1| | | | | | | | | | | | |8|•|O||| | | |•| ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |34|
32 ||||||||||X| | | | | | | | | | | | |•| |O||| | | | |•||| ||||| | | | | | | | |32|
30 ||||||||||C| | | | | | | | | | | |•| | |O||| | | | | |•| ||||| | | | | | | | |30|
28 ||||||||||X| | | | | | | | | | |•| | | |A||| | | |X| |||•||||| | | | | | | | |28|
26 ||||||||||X| | | | | | | | | |•| | | | |O|X| |X| |X|O|3| |•||| | | | | | | | |26|
24 ||||||||||B| | | | | | | | |•| | | | | |O|1|O|X|O|X|O|1|O|B|•| | | | | | | | |24|
22 ||||||||||A| | | | | | | |•| | | | | | |O|X|O|X|O|X|7|C|O|X|O| | | | | | | | |22|
20 ||||||||||9| | | | | | |•| | | | | | | |B|X|3| |4| |O|B|6|8|O| | | | | | |TOp|20|
18 ||||||X|||6| | | | | |•| | | | | | | | |C||| | | | |9|X|7|7|5| | | | | | | | |18|
16 ||||||X|O|X| | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | |O|X|O|X|7| | | | | | |Med|16|
14 ||8|||5|O|X| | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | |O|||O|X||| | | | | | |BOt|14|
12 ||7|O|1|6|1| | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | |||9||||| | | | | | | | |12|
10 ||X|O|X|O|X| |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |10|
8 ||5|1|X|O|X|•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |8|
6 ||2|7|||9|•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |6|
4 ||X|||•|•||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |4|
2 ||X|•||||||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |2|
0 O|•||||||||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | ||| ||||| | | | | | | | |0|
-- 8|9|9|9|9|9| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |0| | | | | |0| |0|0| | | | | | | |
-- 5|4|6|7|8|9| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |1| | | | | |2| |3|4| | | | | | | | | |
-- |/| | | |/| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
-- |9| | | |0| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
-- |5| | | |0| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
.5 chart
Bearish Price Obj: 14.50 Bearish Reward to Risk 0.73 Performance29 | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 29|
28 | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 28| |
27 | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 27| |
26 | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 26| |
25 | | | | | |X| ||| |•| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 25| |
24 | | | | | |B|O|1| |2|•| | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 24| |
23 | | | | | |X|O|X|O|X|O|•| | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 23| |
22 | | | |X| |X|C|X|O|X|O| |•| | | | | | | ||| | | | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | 22| |
21 | | | |X|O|X|O|||O| |O| | |•| | | | | | ||| | | | | | |X|•|•| | | | | | | | | | 21| |
20.0 | | | |X|O|A| ||| | |3| | | |•| | | | | ||| | | | | | |X|O|X|•| | | | | | | TOp|20.0|
19.5 | |X| |X|9|X| ||| | |4|X| |X| |•| | | | ||| | | | | | |1|O|X|O|•| | | | | | | | 19.5|
19.0 | |X|O|X|O|X| ||| | |O|X|O|X|O| |•| | | ||| | | | | | |C|O|X|O|5|•| | | | | | | 19.0|
18.5 | |X|O|X|O| | ||| |•|O|X|O|X|O| | |•| | |||•| |X| | | |X|2| |O|X|O| | | | | | | 18.5|
18.0 | |X|8| | | | |||•| |5| |6| |7| | | |•|C|||X|•|X|O|X| |X| | |3|X|O| | | | | | | 18.0|
17.5 X| |X| | | | | |•| | | | | | |O|X| |A| |X|O|X|O|7|O|X|O|X| |•|O| |O| | | | | Med|17.5|
17.0 X|O|7| | | | |•||| | | | | | |O|9|O|X|O|B|O|2|O|6|9|X|O|X|•| | | |O| | | | | | | 17.0|
16.5 X|O|X| | | |•| ||| | | | | | |O|X|O|X|O|X|1|X|3|X|A|X|O|•| | | | |O| | | | | | | 16.5|
16.0 6|O|X| | |•| | ||| | | | | | |O|X|O| |O|X|O|X|O|5|B| |•||| | | | | | | | | | | | 16.0|
15.5 X|O| | |•| | | ||| | | | | | |8| | | |O|•|O| |4|X| |•| ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 15.5|
15.0 X| | |•| | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | |•| ||| |O|X|•| | ||| | | | | | | | | | BOt|15.0|
14.5 X| |•| | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| |O|•| | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 14.5|
14.0 X|•| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| |•| | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 14.0|
13.5 •| | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 13.5|
13.0 | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 13.0|
12.5 | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 12.5|
12.0 | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 12.0|
11.5 | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | 11.5|
0 0 0
4 5 6.25 chart
Bearish Price Obj: 13.25 Bearish Reward to Risk 3.78 Performance22.00 | | | | | | | | || | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 22.00
21.75 | | | | | | | | || | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 21.75|
21.50 | | | | | | | | || | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 21.50|
21.25 | | | | | | | | || | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 21.25|
21.00 | | | | | | | | ||X| | | | | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 21.00|
20.75 | | | | | | | | ||X|O| | | | | | |X|•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 20.75|
20.50 | | | | | | | | ||X|O| | | | |X| |X|O|•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | TOp|20.50|
20.25 | | | | | | | | ||X|O|X| | | |X|O|X|O| |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 20.25|
20.00 | | | | | | | | ||X|O|X|O|X| |X|O|X|O| | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 20.00|
19.75 | | | | | | | | ||X|O|X|O|X|O|X|O| |O| | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 19.75|
19.50 | | | | | | | | ||X|O| |O|X|O|X| | |O| | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 19.50|
19.25 | | | | | | | X|||X| | |O|X|O|X| | |O| | | | | |•| | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | 19.25|
19.00 | | | | | | | X|O|X| | |O|X|O|X| |•|O|3| | | | | |•| | | |X|•| | | | | | | | | 19.00|
18.75 | | | | | | | C|O|X| | |O| |2|X|•| |O|X|O| | | | |X|•|•| |X|O|•| | | | | | | | 18.75|
18.50 •|•| | | | | |X|O|X| | | | |O|•| | |O|X|O|X| |X| |X|O|X|•|X|O| |•| | | | | | | 18.50|
18.25 O|X|•| | | | |X|O|X| | | | |•| | | |O| |O|X|O|4|O|X|O|X|O|X|O| | | | | | | | | 18.25|
18.00 O|X|O|•| |X| |X|O|X| | | |•| | | | | | |O|X|O|X|O|X|O|X|O|X|O| | | | | | | | | 18.00|
17.75 9|X|O| |•|X|O|X|1| | | |•| | | | | | | |O| |O|X|O|X|O| |5|•|O| | | | | | | Med|17.75|
17.50 O| |O|A| |X|O|X||| | |•| | | | | | | | | | |O| |O| | | |•| |O| | | | | | | | | 17.50|
17.25 | | O|X|O|X|O|X||| |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |O|6| | | | | | | | 17.25|
17.00 | | O|X|O|X|O|X|||•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |O|X|O| | | | | | | 17.00|
16.75 | | O|•|O|X|O|X|•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |O|X|O| | | | | | | 16.75|
16.50 | •|•| |O|X|O|•||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |O|X|O| | | | | | | 16.50|
16.25 •| | | |O|X|•| ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |O| |O| | | | | | | 16.25|
16.00 | | | | B|•| | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 16.00|
15.75 | | | | •| | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 15.75|
15.50 | | | | | | | | || | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 15.50|
15.25 | | | | | | | | || | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 15.25|
15.00 | | | | | | | | || | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | BOt|15.00|
14.75 | | | | | | | | || | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 14.75|
0
6Relative Strength of AMAT vs. SPX equal weight index
2.225 | | | | 2.225
2.155 | | | | 2.155
2.087 | | | | 2.087
2.021 | | | | 2.021
1.957 | X | | | 1.957
1.896 | B O | | | 1.896
1.836 | X O | | | 1.836
1.778 | X X C 1 | | 1.778
1.722 | 8 O A O X O | | 1.722
1.668 | X O X O X O | | 1.668
1.616 | X 9 X O | O | | 1.616
1.565 | X O | O | | 1.565
1.516 | X | 2 | | 1.516
1.468 | 7 | 3 | | 1.468
1.422 | X | 4 | | 1.422
1.377 O X | O | | 1.377
1.334 O | 5 | | 1.334
1.292 | | 6 | | 1.292
1.251 | | 7 X | | 1.251
1.212 | | O X O X 1.212
1.173 | | 8 X O 1 O 1.173
1.136 | | 9 A 2 8 C O 1.136
1.101 | | B X O 6 O X 2 1.101
1.066 | | 1 X O X O X O 1.066
1.033 | | O 4 X B | 3 1.033
1.000 | | | O | O 1.000
0.969 | | | | 5 0.969
0.938 | | | | 0.938
0.909 | | | | 0.909
0.880 | | | | 0.880
0.852 | | | | 0.852
0.825 | | | | 0.825
----- 0 0 0 0
----- 3 4 5 6Talk to you again soon,
-- posted by Beartoes
» stocktiger - Novellus
Not an expert on Semi Equip but noticed NVLS was actually going up a little this week when AMAT, LRCX, KLAC were not. With the SOX getting hammered, NASDAQ pummelled, I thought this was quite extrordinary. Hmmmm!From past experience in Fabs I think BearToes would perhaps agree that Equip Mfgs pretty much track Wafer Fabs performance so NVLS must be managing their business a tad better than the others.
Just my 2 cents, I could be wrong.
-- posted by stocktiger
» Beartoes - NVLS is another ugly chart.
NVLS is another ugly chart. RS is also negative. Not a very pretty picture. If you are looking for a semi stock try DIOD. Much better chart and RS is Positive. This is not a solicatation to buy or sell. Just MHO.Here are the charts.
NVLS
Bullish Price Obj: 49.00 Bullish Reward to Risk 6.16 Performance
49 | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 49|
48 | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 48| |
47 | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 47| |
46 | | | ||| | | | | | | | | |•| ||| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 46| |
45 | | | ||| | | | | | | | | |X|•|•| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 45| |
44 | | | ||| | | | | | | | | |X|O|X|•| | | | | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 44| |
43 | | | ||| | | | | | | | | |X|O|1|O|•| | | | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 43| |
42 | | | ||| | | | | | | | | |B|O|X|O| |•| | | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 42| |
41 | | | ||| | | | | | | |X| |X|C|X|O| | |•| | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 41| |
40 | | | ||| | | |X| |X| |X|O|X|O|X|O| | | |•| | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 40| |
39 | | | ||| | | |X|O|7|O|X|O|X|O|X|O| | | | |•| | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 39| |
38 | |C| ||| | | |X|O|X|O|X|9|X|O|||O| | | | | |•| | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 38| |
37 | |X|O||| | | |X|O|X|O|X|O|A| |||O| | | | | | |•| | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 37| |
36 •| |X|O||| | | |X|O| |O|X|O|X| |||O| | | | | | | |•| ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 36| |
35 X|•|X|O|X| | | |6| | |O|X|O|X| |||O|X| |X| | | | | |•||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 35| |
34 X|O|X|O|X|O| | |X| | |8| |O| | |•|O|X|O|X|O| | | | | |•| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 34| |
33 B|O|X|O|X|O| | |X| | | | | | |•|||O|X|O|4|O|X| | | | |||•| | | ||| | | | | | | | 33| |
32 X|O|X|O|X|O| | |X| | | | | |•| |||2| |O|X|O|5|O| | | ||| |•| | ||| | | | | | | | 32| |
31 X|O| |O|1|O| | |X| | | | |•| | ||| | |3|X|O|X|O| | | ||| | |•| ||| | | | | | | | 31| |
30 X| | |O|X|O|X| |5| | | |•| | | ||| | |O|X|O|X|6| | | |||X| | |•|X| | | | | | | | 30| |
29 X| | |O|X|O|X|O|X| | |•| | | | ||| | |O| |O| |7| | |C|||X|O|X| |X|O| | | | | | | 29| |
28 X| | |O|||O|X|O|X| |•| | | | | ||| | | | | | |O|A| |X|O|2|O|7|O|X|O| | | | | TOp|28| |
27 X| | | |||3|X|4|X|•| | | | | | ||| | | | | | |O|X|O|B|O|X|3|X|O|1|2| | | | | | | 27| |
26 X| | | |||O|X|O|•| | | | | | | ||| | | | | | |O|X|O|X|1|X|4|5|9|C|3| | | | | | | 26| |
25 X| | | |||O|•|•| | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | |8|X|O|X|O| |O|X|O|X|O| | | | | | | 25| |
24 X| | | |||•| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | |O|X|O| ||| |O|X|A|B|O| | | | | Med|24| |
23 X| | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | |9| | | ||| |O| |O|X|5| | | | | | | 23| |
22 X| | |•||| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | |O|X|•| | | | | | | 22| |
21 X| |•| ||| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | |O|•| | | | | | | | 21| |
20.0 X|•| | ||| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | |•||| | | | | | BOt|20.0|
19.5 •| | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 19.5|
19.0 | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 19.0|
18.5 | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 18.5|
18.0 | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 18.0|
17.5 | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | ||| | | | | | | | 17.5|
0 0 0 0
3 4 5 6
NVLS Relative strength vs SPXEWI
3.956 | | | | 3.956
3.832 | | | | 3.832
3.711 | | | | 3.711
3.594 | | | | 3.594
3.481 | X | | | 3.481
3.371 | X B O | | 3.371
3.265 O X O X O | | 3.265
3.163 O X O A C | | 3.163
3.063 7 X 9 X O | | 3.063
2.967 8 O X 1 | | 2.967
2.873 | O O | | 2.873
2.783 | O | | 2.783
2.695 | O | | 2.695
2.610 | O | | 2.610
2.528 | O | | 2.528
2.449 | O | | 2.449
2.372 | O X | | 2.372
2.297 | 2 X O | | 2.297
2.225 | 3 X O | | 2.225
2.155 | 4 X 6 | | 2.155
2.087 | 5 O | | 2.087
2.021 | | 7 | | 2.021
1.957 | | O A | | 1.957
1.896 | | 8 X O X | 1.896
1.836 | | O X O 2 O | 1.836
1.778 | | 9 X O X O 7 | 1.778
1.722 | | O 1 X 4 X O X 1.722
1.668 | | O O X O X O 1.668
1.616 | | | O 9 X O 1.616
1.565 | | | O 1 2 1.565
1.516 | | | A C O 1.516
1.468 | | | O X 3 1.468
1.422 | | | O X O 1.422
1.377 | | | O | O 1.377
1.334 | | | | 5 1.334
1.292 | | | | 1.292
----- 0 0 0 0
----- 3 4 5 6DIOD
Bearish Price Obj: 28.00 Bearish Reward to Risk 2.66 Performance
47 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 47|
46 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | TOp|46| |
45 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 45| |
44 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 44| |
43 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | |X| |X| | | | | | | | | | | | 43| |
42 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | |4|O|X|O| | | | | | | | | | | 42| |
41 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | |X|O|X|O| | | | | | | | | | | 41| |
40 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | |3| |X|5| |O| | | | | | | | | | | 40| |
39 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| |X| |X|O|X| | |O|X| | | | | | | | | | 39| |
38 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| |2|O|X|O|X| | |O|X|O| | | | | | | Med|38| |
37 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| |X|O|X|O|X| | |O|X|O|X| | | | | | | | 37| |
36 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| |X|O| |O| | | |O| |O|6|O| | | | | | | 36| |
35 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X| |X| |X| | | | | | | | |O|X|O| | | | | | | 35| |
34 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X|O|1|O|X| | | | | | | | |O|X|O| | | | | | | 34| |
33 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X|O|X|O|X| | | | | | | | |O|X|•| | | | | | | 33| |
32 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X|O|X|O| | | | | | | | | |O|•| | | | | | | | 32| |
31 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X|O||| | | | | | | | | |•|•| | | | | | | | | 31| |
30 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X| ||| | | | | | | | |•| | | | | | | | | BOt|30| |
29 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X| ||| | | | | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | 29| |
28 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |C| ||| | | | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | 28| |
27 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X| ||| | | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | 27| |
26 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | |9| |B| ||| | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 26| |
25 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | |X|O|X| ||| | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 25| |
24 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | |X|O|X| ||| | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 24| |
23 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | |7|A| | ||| |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 23| |
22 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | |X| |X| | | |||•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 22| |
21 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | |X|O|X| | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 21| |
20.0 | |•||| | | | | | | | |5| |X|O|X| | |•||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 20.0|
19.5 X| |B|•| | | | | | | | |X|O|X|6| | |•| ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 19.5|
19.0 X|O|X|O|•| | | | | |4| |X|O|X| | |•| | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 19.0|
18.5 X|O|X|O| |•|•| | | |X|O|X|O| | |•| | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 18.5|
18.0 X|O|X|O| | |X|•|X| |X|O|X| | |•| | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 18.0|
17.5 |O| |O| | |X|O|3|O|X|O|X| |•| | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 17.5|
17.0 | | |O| | |X|O|X|O|X|O|X|•| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 17.0|
16.5 | | |O| | |X|O|X|O|X|O|•| | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 16.5|
16.0 | | |O| | |X|O| |O| |•| | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 16.0|
15.5 | | |C| | |X| | | |•| | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 15.5|
15.0 | |•|O|X| |2| | |•| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 15.0|
14.5 |•| |O|X|O|X| |•| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 14.5|
14.0 •| | |1|X|O|X|•| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 14.0|
13.5 | | |O|X|O|•| | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 13.5|
13.0 | | |O|•|•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 13.0|
12.5 | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 12.5|
12.0 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 12.0|
11.5 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 11.5|
11.0 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 11.0|
10.5 | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 10.5|
0 0
5 6DIOD relative strength vs SPXEWI
2.695 | | | | 2.695
2.610 | | | | 2.610
2.528 | | | | 2.528
2.449 | | | 5 2.449
2.372 | | | 4 O 2.372
2.297 | | | X O 2.297
2.225 | | | 3 O 2.225
2.155 | | | 2 O 2.155
2.087 | | | 1 O 6 2.087
2.021 | | | X O X 2.021
1.957 | | | X O X 1.957
1.896 | | | X O 1.896
1.836 | | | X 1.836
1.778 | | | X 1.778
1.722 | | | X 1.722
1.668 | | | C 1.668
1.616 | | | B 1.616
1.565 | | | X 1.565
1.516 | | | X 1.516
1.468 | | | X 1.468
1.422 | | | X 7 1.422
1.377 | | | X O X 1.377
1.334 | | X | 5 O X 1.334
1.292 | | X O X 6 | 1.292
1.251 | | A O X | 1.251
1.212 | | X B 4 | 1.212
1.173 | X X X O 3 | 1.173
1.136 | X O X X O 8 X O X | 1.136
1.101 | X O X O 4 O X O X O X | 1.101
1.066 | X X O X O X O X O X C X | 1.066
1.033 | X O 1 2 O X 5 X O X O X | 1.033
1.000 | X O X 3 7 X O X O X 2 | 1.000
0.969 | X O X O X O X O X O X | 0.969
0.938 | X C | O X 9 X 1 X O X | 0.938
0.909 X X | O X O O X O | 0.909
0.880 X O B | O X O | 0.880
0.852 X O X X | O | | 0.852
0.825 7 O A O X | | | 0.825
0.799 X O 9 O X | | | 0.799
0.774 X 8 X O | | | 0.774
0.750 X O X | | | 0.750
0.726 | O X | | | 0.726
0.703 | O | | | 0.703
0.681 | | | | 0.681
0.660 | | | | 0.660
0.639 | | | | 0.639
0.619 | | | | 0.619
0.599 | | | | 0.599
----- 0 0 0 0
----- 3 4 5 6
As you can see from the charts DIOD looks much better and should out perform the market. Use 30 as a stop loss.
Have a good weekend
-- posted by Beartoes
» Beartoes - DIOD has taken off
In response to NVLS is another ugly chart. posted by Beartoes:I posted the DIOD info on 6/9 and since then the stock is starting to take off. Is is to late to catch the ride. I don't think so. With another good day today in DIOD the default RS chart is going to flip back to X's for sure.
Price objective is 53 so there is still plenty of room for another 25% gain in this stock. So what does DIOD do:
Diodes, Inc.'s product focus is on subminiature surface-mount discrete devices, analog power management ICs and Hall-effect sensors all of which are widely used in end-user equipment such as TV/Satellite set top boxes, portable DVD players, datacom devices, ADSL modems, power supplies, medical devices, wireless notebooks, flat panel displays, digital cameras, mobile handsets, DC to DC conversion, Wireless 802.11 LAN access points, brushless DC motor fans, and automotive applications.
Looks to me like they are in the sweet spot for the semi manufactures.
Here is the most current chart:
47 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 47|
46 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | TOp|46| |
45 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 45| |
44 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 44| |
43 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | |X| |X| | | | | | | | | | | | | 43| |
42 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | |4|O|X|O| | | | | | | | | | | | 42| |
41 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | |X|O|X|O| | | | | | | | | | | | 41| |
40 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | |3| |X|5| |O| | | | |X| | | | | | | 40| |
39 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| |X| |X|O|X| | |O|X| | | |X| | | | | | | 39| |
38 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| |2|O|X|O|X| | |O|X|O| | |X| | | | | Med|38| |
37 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| |X|O|X|O|X| | |O|X|O|X| |X| | | | | | | 37| |
36 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| |X|O| |O| | | |O| |O|6|O|X| | | | | | | 36| |
35 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X| |X| |X| | | | | | | | |O|X|O|X| | | | | | | 35| |
34 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X|O|1|O|X| | | | | | | | |O|X|O|•| | | | | | | 34| |
33 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X|O|X|O|X| | | | | | | | |O|X|•| | | | | | | | 33| |
32 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X|O|X|O| | | | | | | | | |O|•| | | | | | | | | 32| |
31 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X|O||| | | | | | | | | |•|•| | | | | | | | | | 31| |
30 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X| ||| | | | | | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | BOt|30| |
29 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X| ||| | | | | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | 29| |
28 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |C| ||| | | | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | 28| |
27 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |X| ||| | | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 27| |
26 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | |9| |B| ||| | | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 26| |
25 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | |X|O|X| ||| | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 25| |
24 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | |X|O|X| ||| | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 24| |
23 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | |7|A| | ||| |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 23| |
22 | ||| | | | | | | | | | |X| |X| | | |||•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 22| |
21 | ||| | | | | | | | | | |X|O|X| | | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 21| |
20.0 |•||| | | | | | | | |5| |X|O|X| | |•||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 20.0|
19.5 |B|•| | | | | | | | |X|O|X|6| | |•| ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 19.5|
19.0 O|X|O|•| | | | | |4| |X|O|X| | |•| | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 19.0|
18.5 O|X|O| |•|•| | | |X|O|X|O| | |•| | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 18.5|
18.0 O|X|O| | |X|•|X| |X|O|X| | |•| | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 18.0|
17.5 O| |O| | |X|O|3|O|X|O|X| |•| | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 17.5|
17.0 | |O| | |X|O|X|O|X|O|X|•| | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 17.0|
16.5 | |O| | |X|O|X|O|X|O|•| | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 16.5|
16.0 | |O| | |X|O| |O| |•| | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 16.0|
15.5 | |C| | |X| | | |•| | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 15.5|
15.0 |•|O|X| |2| | |•| | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 15.0|
14.5 •| |O|X|O|X| |•| | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 14.5|
14.0 | |1|X|O|X|•| | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 14.0|
13.5 | |O|X|O|•| | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 13.5|
13.0 | |O|•|•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 13.0|
12.5 | |•| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 12.5|
12.0 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 12.0|
11.5 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 11.5|
11.0 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 11.0|
10.5 | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ||| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 10.5|
0 0
5 6
So looking at the post of 6/9 you would be up about $6 bucks. That's not too bad. I sure like it.
beartoes
-- posted by Beartoes
» SteveT - Applied in Demand
Wednesday, June 21, 2006Applied Materials (AMAT: Nasdaq)
By Prudential Equity Group ($16.31, June 20, 2006)
WE ARE UPGRADING Applied Materials to Overweight from Neutral Weight in conjunction with our information technology/semiconductor-capital-equipment sector upgrade.
[Applied Materials makes machines that manufacture semiconductor chips and also has operations in nanomanufacturing technology.]
After a dismal market share in 2005, we think Applied Materials has stabilized conditions among their key product lines and should start to see some net share gain. We think etch [the process of etching chips onto wafers] remains very weak, but we see better momentum for PDC [process diagnostics and control] products and thin films for lithography applications.
Good growth opportunities in noncore businesses. We think Applied Materials has good growth properties for their flat-panel products and global service offerings. We expect the industry will continue to operate at high utilization rates, thus increasing the need for spare parts and maintenance contracts.
More leverage starting to develop in the business model. Applied Materials has taken strong actions to improve their earnings leverage including better operating expense control and share buyback. We think they are better equipped to maintain their leverage even as order rates cool off.
Applied Materials shares are currently trading at 12.6 times our calendar 2007 earnings-per-share estimate of $1.29. Our $21 price target represents 16 times our 2007 EPS estimate, which is a slight premium to the 15 times multiple we set for the group. We think Applied Materials' core business should trade at or slightly below the group median, but we give a slightly higher multiple based on the earnings potential for the flat-panel and service businesses.
Applied Materials saw a significant share decline in 2005 based on Dataquest estimates. Applied Materials' system revenue declined 24.9% versus the entire sector (back-end and front-end), which declined 10.7%. Although some of the data could be different due to the close of Applied Materials' fiscal year, it is clear that they did not gain share.
We think momentum in their product portfolio has bottomed and we should start to see some net share gain going forward. We think etch will still be a very difficult hill to climb but PDC products and thin film products for lithography applications should show strong growth. Applied Materials has a dominant position in thin films used to control reflections during the lithography step, and as the industry transitions to more ArF [argon fluoride scanners are used in imaging technology] layers, we think the applications for these films will increase. We think they are also starting to gain some traction for transistor level applications (strain engineering), which could be more widely used at the 65 nanometer node.
Applied Materials continues to maintain a strong position for thin film deposition for flat panel applications. Their acquisition of Applied Films should enhance their position going forward. In our view, the service business should mirror industry utilization rates. As long as utilization rates remain robust, Applied Materials' spare parts division and other service offerings should grow at an above-average rate. Applied Materials has the largest installed base in the world, and we see a large opportunity for the deployment/refurbishment of used tools and the optimization of existing fabs (chip-fabrication plants).
-- Ben Pang
The companies mentioned in Hot Research are subjects of research reports issued recently by investment firms. Their opinions in no way represent those of Barron's Online or Dow Jones & Company, Inc. Share prices at the time the report was issued and the date of the report are in parentheses.
To be considered for this feature, please send material to Research@barrons.com
Comments? E-mail us at online.editors@barrons.com
URL for this article:
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB1150...
-- posted by SteveT
» codfish - LRCX
Saw that LRCX is up today $2 on analyst upgrade, so I looked at analyst recs for the stock over the past year. There were 7 consecutive downgrades of the stock by different analysts when the stock was trading in the high 20's and low 30's.Shows what those morons know!!! Hopefully the morons at UBS guessed right today and the stock will take off to all-time highs. I've got my "ATM card" out, and ready to make some cash withdrawals.........
-- posted by codfish
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