Bruce Mushial of StockTradersPress.com
July 14, 2000

Opening Remarks

Sage Host: Please welcome Bruce Mushial, senior technical analyst with StockTradersPress.com. For more information visit www.stocktraderspress.com. 

Bruce Mushial: Good morning. We're right in the heart of earnings season. In addition to commenting on individual stocks from both the fundamental and technical basis, if I could find the information, I'd be happy to share when specific companies will be releasing earnings.

The Chat

Question: Is the business-to-business (B2B) Internet sector a good place to invest considering Ariba, Inc.'s [ARBA] great earnings?

Bruce Mushial: Ariba has pulled up the market over the last couple of sessions. We've seen a lot of rotation in the market. At the moment, business-to-business and the Internet stocks are strong with this rather fickle market. What is strong one day may not be strong the next.

Question: What are your indicators telling you currently?

Bruce Mushial: In a general sense, I like the Nasdaq Composite Index [$COMPX] and small cap stocks. The large blue chip and New York Stock Exchange [$NYA.X] NYSE stocks may not perform as well as the Nasdaq.

Question: What should I do with WorldCom, Inc. [WCOM]? Buy, sell or hold?

Bruce Mushial: WorldCom has run up on takeover speculation. The stock is up from $37 to $48 in the last three weeks. Takeover stocks are quite volatile. I think WorldCom will probably rise for the next couple of days.

Question: What about AT&T Corp. [T]?

Bruce Mushial: AT&T was one of our long-term recommendations. Every one of our long-term recommendations is up, with some up substantially. AT&T has been flat and it's the worst performer of our long-term recommendations. The company is trying to remake itself. Probably a good long-term stock, near-term it probably will under perform the market.

Question: Do you feel that the technology sector will continue to lead the market for the foreseeable future?

Bruce Mushial: It looks as if money is now moving out of the blue chips and moving into the Internet and technology stocks. Essentially, [it is] the reverse of the defensive moves we saw in March and April.

Question: What is your opinion on Cirrus Logic, Inc. [CRUS]?

Bruce Mushial: Cirrus is a semiconductor stock. The stock has run up over the last week from $15 to $19. It probably will back off here near-term. Long-term, it's probably a strong buy at its next bottom, which will probably be within two weeks. Earnings are expected for Cirrus on July 21.

Question: What is your opinion of RF Micro Devices, Inc. [RFMD]?

RF Micro Devices was a recent Stock Traders Press recommendation. We hit target in just two days, and the stock continues to climb. One brokerage house put out a $120, 12-month target. The stock closed yesterday at $93.

Question: How high can Cisco Systems, Inc. [CSCO] go in six months?

Bruce Mushial: Cisco is at $65. Cisco's one of the technology blue chip stocks. As money moves into these stocks, individuals and fund managers will have to be buying Cisco. Over the next six months, we probably could see the stock at $100.

Question: Network Associates, Inc. [NETA] seems to be struggling at a time when some of the other security software makers are making great strides, i.e., Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. [CHKP]. As a market leader in some of the security products, I would expect more growth than what I'm seeing. Any ideas?

Bruce Mushial: I'm always concerned when stocks don't participate in a rally. Network Associates has risen nicely over the last two days, up from $20 to $23.50. My indicators show a long-term bottom. Industry analysts have some reservations on the stock. Current analysts have three strong buy, six buy and five hold recommendations. The company is profitable, and has modest earnings growth. Next earnings should be released on the July 18. Before buying it I would recommend researching why so many analysts have a hold rating.

Question: Is there a lot of selling into the tech rally by institutions?

Bruce Mushial: Some of the institutions are selling. The balance of institutions are adding to their positions, especially on small pullbacks.

Question: If you are familiar with S1 Corporation [SONE], can you explain the positive move today?

Bruce Mushial: I haven't had a chance to research today's news on the company. The stock is down like most technology stocks from its March highs. The stock was trading at $130 in early February and recently has been trading at $20 a share. Yesterday the stock moved up $7. It probably will move with the technology sector despite any individual pros and cons on the company.

Question: In your opinion, what caused the 8-1/2 [point] drop in Adept Technology, Inc. [ADTK]?

Adept Technology is a strong company. I'm not familiar with news items related to a price drop. It could be earnings related. Earnings on Adept Technology are expected July 20.

Closing Remarks

Sage Host: Thank you for joining us today, Bruce! We appreciate your insights!

Bruce Mushial: We'll do this again next week. Members can look at our Web site, www.stocktraderspress.com, to become more familiar with our firm. Have a great weekend.

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Thanks to SageCrystl for hosting this chat.

First Editor: SageGrits
Final Editor: SageTinsel

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