Liste Newsletter

Index Performances
EPITEX, EPITA’S INDEX, Nov. 12, 2003: 88.23 Combined share value in EPITEX: $571.12 (EPITEX set at 100 on Aug. 31, 2001)

News

MARKET FOCUS

U.S. equities snapped a three-session losing streak on Wednesday, as IT stocks powered a rally amid trust.

Oracle rallied amid reports its $7.3-billion hostile bid for rival PeopleSoft is unlikely to get the blessing of the Justice Department.

Network equipment giant Cisco Systems added 3 percent after announcing its planned acquisition of Latitude Communications> for $80 million.

In the hardware segment, IBM vaulted $90 a share after its CEO gave a bullish outlook for IT spending. Dell advanced ahead of its quarterly results due out on Thursday.

Chipmaker giant Intel was another bright spot, basking in a recent broker’s upgrade to “overweight,” on anticipation of a strong fourth quarter.

Bucking the winning was Microsoft, as the software giant heads for hearings on possible anti-trust violations with European regulators.

OUTLOOK

Investors will continue to focus on the Nasdaq Composite index, which is still facing a major technical hurdle around the 2,000 level, last seen in June 2002.

Also, weekly claims for unemployment benefits will remain in the spotlight on Thursday for signs of further improvement in the jobs market. Claims have moved further away from the 400,000 level that signals a contraction in the labor market.

THE NUMBERS

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 111 points, or 1.1 percent, to 9,848. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 42 points, or 2.2 percent, to 1,942, while the Nasdaq-100 index of large-capitalization tech and biotech stocks ended up 2.4 percent at 1,443.

Profile

Applied Materials, the world’s largest supplier of wafer fabrication solutions to the semiconductor industry, reported net sales of $1.22 billion in the latest quarter, down 16 percent from $1.45 billion in the year-ago quarter.

Net income was $15 million, or one cent a share, compared to profits of $147 million, or nine cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding restructuring charges, Applied Materials would have reported net income of $95 million, or six cents.

New orders of $1.28 billion were up 21 percent from $1.05 billion sequentially, but down 18 percent from $1.56 billion a year ago. Backlog at the last quarter-end was $2.50 billion.

By region, new orders came from Japan, 25 percent; North America, 19 percent; Southeast Asia and China, 17 percent; Taiwan, 15 percent; Europe, 13 percent, and Korea 11 percent.

Applied Materials said it retained its market leadership position in copper, low k and CMP technologies, which are important for the next generation of chip manufacturing.

Applied Materials’ Producer Black Diamond CVD system helped launch a new era in chip making, becoming the first low k solution used in production by multiple chipmakers for fabricating faster, lower power chips.

New systems for copper electroplating, dielectric etch, CMP and defect inspection were also introduced, providing breakthrough technology to customers for new chip development.

In the dynamic flat panel display market, Applied Materials' market-leading AKT CVD equipment business increased its product portfolio to help customers build ever-larger glass substrates.

“We believe that we are in the early stages of an industry uptrend. Stronger end-user demand for devices such as wireless PCs and communications products is driving the semiconductor manufacturers’ need for Applied Materials’ industry-leading copper, low k, and 300mm solutions,” said Mike Splinter, president and CEO of Applied Materials.