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In even more good news for Apple today, The Online Investor has named Apple the "Stock of the Day." Citing all the things that hard-core Mac users know by heart, The Online Investor says:
There have been very few corporate turnarounds that equal Apple Computer. Given up for busted in the beginning of 1997, the company hired a new CEO and hoped for the best. The best didn't happen. That CEO was fired, and the original bad boy of computing came back to lead his company to newfound glory. Can Apple stay polished or is there reason for new concerns?
Here are some quick, positive facts that give investors reasons to believe this is a new company with a real profit motive (based on the last quarter's reported financials):
- Cash is at $21.56 a share before debt, $20.10 after debt.
- It has one day of inventory in stock.
- Management has authorized a $500 million stock buy back.
- Operating earnings were up 36% over last year's same quarter to $0.69 per share.
- Unit sales grew 40% on a year over year basis with actual units totaling 905,000.
- Gross margin increased to 27%.
- In the analysts call, management felt revenues would reach $2 billion dollars in the fourth calendar quarter, the first time since the same period in 1996.
- Morgan, Stanley is bumping its Fiscal 2000 earnings per share to $3.04 from its original estimate of $2.87, based on the latest information from management. Consensus estimate from First Call calls for $2.89.
To give some break down of the numbers: - iMac, the hot new, candy colored computer, represented 33% of revenues and was up 45% on a quarter to quarter comparison, and the computer represented 54% of all units shipped by Apple.
- PowerMac G3 represented 37% of sales and 37% of units shipped, both numbers flat or down on a quarter to quarter and year to year comparison.
- PowerBook brought in 11% of the revenues, down 27% on a year to year comparison.
- Server sales accounted for 2% of sales which was up 34% year over year.
- Displays and imaging products had 7% and 2% of revenues.
- Service, software and other products did 8% of the sales.
There is a lot more good, favorable information in this article and we recommend that everyone read it.
For more of our coverage of Apple's stock, check out our Apple Stock Watch Special Report.
The Mac Observer Spin: It's great to see the mainstream echo what we have been saying for many months. More to the point, it is good to see that our ongoing analysis is shared by those outside the Mac world. The bottom line is that the markets are falling in line behind Apple, and this is based on sound financial reasoning, rather than the driving Mac passions that fuel the Mac faithful.
The Online Investor
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