Message-ID: <29721003.1075856483521.JavaMail.evans@thyme> Date: Fri, 15 Sep 2000 09:47:00 -0700 (PDT) From: vince.kaminski@enron.com To: vkaminski@aol.com Subject: Fwd: The Quantum Bridge Question: How Far Can Optical Mania Go? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ANSI_X3.4-1968 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable X-From: Vince J Kaminski X-To: vkaminski@aol.com X-cc: X-bcc: X-Folder: \Vincent_Kaminski_Jun2001_3\Notes Folders\Sent X-Origin: Kaminski-V X-FileName: vkamins.nsf ---------------------- Forwarded by Vince J Kaminski/HOU/ECT on 09/15/2000= =20 04:51 PM --------------------------- VKaminski@aol.com on 09/12/2000 12:32:40 AM To: vkamins@enron.com cc: =20 Subject: Fwd: The Quantum Bridge Question: How Far Can Optical Mania Go? 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X-Mailer: Unknown MIME-Version: 1.0 X-MIME-Autoconverted: from 8bit to quoted-printable by mailman.enron.com id= =20 e8C5Wis16864 RealMoney.com's MIDDAY UPDATE September 11, 2000 http://www.realmoney.com ______________________________________________________________________ Advertisement Online Banking - Special Offer Get a free subscription to RealMoney.com =01) the best financial insights and commentary from TheStreet.com =01) when you open a qualifying account with Membership B@nking(sm) from American Express Centurion Bank. Consider it a quick return on investment =01) from the official bank of TheStreet.com. Click here for details http://home.americanexpress.com/banking/bdp/street.asp ______________________________________________________________________ If you would like to be removed from our bulletin mailing list, or would like to select which of our bulletins you receive, please go to the following URL: http://www.thestreet.com/p/upc/bulletin.jhtml ______________________________________________________________________ Market Data as of 9/11/00, 11:30 AM ET: o Dow Jones Industrial Average: 11,258.76 up 38.11, 0.34% o Nasdaq Composite Index: 3,991.02 up 12.61, 0.32% o S&P 500: 1,501.97 up 7.47, 0.50% o TSC Internet: 820.94 up 12.03, 1.49% o Russell 2000: 537.80 up 2.10, 0.39% o 30-Year Treasury: 107 15/32 down 11/32, yield 5.715% ______________________________________________________________________ In Today's Bulletin: o Herb on TheStreet: Taking a Closer Look at the Honey Well Telecom: The Quantum Bridge Question: How Far Can Optical Mania Go? The maker of networking gear is preparing for an IPO. Will the market hold up long enough for this niche play? http://www.thestreet.com/tech/telecom/1073106.html ____________________________________ Wrong! Dispatches from the Front: Currency Pain Will Be Commencing Shortly International tech companies and giant pharma names begin feeling the sting of a weak euro. http://www.thestreet.com/p/comment/wrong/1072941.html ____________________________________ Brokerages/Wall Street: MarketXT Making Move Into Institutional Trading Having picked up top talent from competitor Instinet, the off-Wall Street underdog is aiming high. http://www.thestreet.com/stocks/brokerages/1072717.html ____________________________________ Global Portfolio: Readers Find a Way to Play the Old Sod The mailbag holds a closed-end fund focusing on Ireland, while others look to the eurozone. http://www.thestreet.com/int/tradewinds/1072925.html ____________________________________ Mutual Funds: 10 Questions With MFS Utilities Fund Manager Maura Shaughnessy The skipper sees more growth despite big price run-ups. http://www.thestreet.com/funds/funds/1068363.html ____________________________________ Asia/Pacific: Nikkei Indices' Components Will Change http://www.thestreet.com/int/asia/1072972.html ______________________________________________________________________ Advertisement Chicago Mercantile Exchange The Chicago Mercantile Exchangec introduces the Fortune e-50TM Index Futures, the purest way to take advantage of the Internet economy. This electronically traded contract includes only dot-com superstars and companies that make the Internet run. http://www.CME.com/fe50 ______________________________________________________________________ Herb on TheStreet: Taking a Closer Look at the Honey Well By Herb Greenberg Senior Columnist 9/11/00 6:30 AM ET An item in one of last week's Hotlines questioned whether a key "tell" toward a possible preannouncement from Honeywell (HON:NYSE) was an earnings warning from Invensys, a British controls and automation company. Invensys is a Honeywell competitor, and Honeywell fans had been looking at the company's controls group for signs of strength this quarter. Got a bunch of angry email, in response, telling me I must be a kook (or actually, something much worse ) because just a few weeks ago Honeywell said it was comfortable with earnings estimates of 76 cents per share, which would be a pleasant 10% gain. True, but this is, after all, the same Honeywell that in June gave expectations of one thing for second-quarter revenues, only to amend that a few weeks later with a lower number. And this is, after all, the same Honeywell that several quarters ago said it would take no more big charges, and then turned around and took a whole bunch of new charges. Will the same thing happen this time round? Hard to say, and as of Friday all a Honeywell spokesman would say to me was: "We're sticking with our guidance." On earnings, that is. Interestingly (and subtly) Honeywell didn't say anything about revenues in its recent update, and the spokesman said there will be no revenue guidance now, either. Stung once, too smart to be stung twice, I guess. But that also highlights that Honeywell has entered the quarter with negative revenue momentum, which is not what Wall Street wants to see. Earnings can meet estimates lots of different ways (an item here back in March showed how half of Honeywell's 20% earnings gain came from pension income) but revenue represents business in the raw. So, why worry now? According to one longtime Honeywell watcher, who prefers to go incognito (so he can protect his relationship with the company, in which he still holds a small stake), events that could further effect this quarter's earnings and revenues include the sharp rise in oil prices -- the same rise in oil prices that last week helped clobber DuPont (DD:NYSE), which warned of lower earnings (thanks, in part, to oil). Honeywell also disclosed that problems with brakes it makes for buses will shave 2 cents per share off earnings. The warning came after the earnings reassurance a couple of weeks ago, but was included in the recent forecast. It's unclear, however, how the problems will affect brake sales (and therefore revenues), going forward. Oh, and Honeywell is laying off 5% of its workforce. (A supposed growth company firing people?!) Then there are more charges, lots of charges -- but the 76 cent per share number excludes them. What's more, analysts are just starting to take a close look at the company now that they're back from summer vacation. At least one analyst who has tried to get some sign of how things are going was told the company hasn't seen the August numbers yet, which means there still could be reasons for concern. All of that said, Honeywell has been doing loads to improve itself, but our longtime Honeywell watcher, who is looking for the right time to hop back in, doesn't think there'll be signs of a solid rebound until next summer. At the earliest. Short Positions o From reader John Lee: "How's this for an inflation indicator? Down here in our cafeteria today we were confronted by a sign that indicated the cafeteria was raising prices "to cover rising food and labor costs..." But inflation is nearly nonexistent, right? Right (he said, sarcastically). Wouldn't be surprised to see a few fast-food chains that missed earnings last quarter, because of rising costs, bite the bullet and raise prices, too. (A dime or a quarter isn't going to drive customers away; but a dime here at one place and a quarter there at another would certainly lead to higher prices across the board. Or so you'd think!) o Stupid poll?!: That's what some folks thought of Friday's poll which asked whether you should pay more attention to a company, friendly analysts or unfriendly analysts. (Unfriendly won by a landslide.) Several readers, however, wish I'd had a fourth alternative: All of the above. Says reader Bridget Magnus: "I think that if a person is going to make a realistic, informed decision about a company it is a good idea to listen to all three of those sources (the company, friendly analysts, and unfriendly analysts). Putting them together will give a potential investor a much clearer picture of what is (or isn't) going on." Great point! Which brings us to today's poll: Feel free to send emails to my sidekick Mark Martinez with any reason why you think the way you do. Cramer has pretty strong opinions about this. And speaking of JJC, don't forget that he and I will be going head-to-head at RealMoney.com's "Cramer Live" conference in San Francisco later this month. Click here for more info. o Bye, George: Marketing columnist George Lazarus of The Chicago Tribune died Friday while commuting on the train to work. He was 68 and he still wrote a daily column. He was a former colleague and I'd like to think, a friend, whom I didn't keep in touch with nearly enough. George wrote the textbook on how to be a hard-working, daily, news-oriented columnist. You could see just how hard he worked when he walked through the office at the end of every day, looking exhausted, as he handed the finished copy into his editor. His salutation to me, when he saw me was always, "Hey, scoop." Coming from the scoop, that was an honor. Hey, George. -30- Herb Greenberg writes daily for TheStreet.com. In keeping with TSC's editorial policy, he doesn't own or short individual stocks, though he owns stock in TheStreet.com. He also doesn't invest in hedge funds or other private investment partnerships. He welcomes your feedback and invites you to send any to Herb Greenberg. Greenberg also writes a monthly column for Fortune. Mark Martinez assisted with the reporting of this column. ______________________________________________________________________ TheStreet.com Tips Now available James J. Cramer Live! - The Video Learn the incredibly valuable lessons that can make you money, as presented by James J. Cramer in New York City at a paid event on August 7, 2000. $79.95 for RealMoney.com subscribers Shipping and Handling included Running time: 2 hours 24 minutes. The program: -Bottom Fishing for Non-Anglers: How to spot companies primed to move off the bottom. -James J. Cramer and William Fleckenstein, of Fleckenstein Capital Partners, debate trading versus investing. -Cramer=01,s Top 15 stocks now, and five to avoid, plus audience Q & A. To order go to: http://www.thestreet.com/tsc/subscribe/video_index.html ______________________________________________________________________ Copyright Notice Except for making one printed copy of this or any other materials, files or documents available from, accessible through or published by TheStreet.com Inc. for your personal use (or downloading for the same limited purpose), these may not be reproduced, republished, broadcast or otherwise distributed without prior written permission of TheStreet.com Inc. 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