Click Here to Go Directly to the Story
Register/Subscribe
Home

 
 


U.S. EDITION
Full Table of Contents
 Cover Story
Special Report
Up Front
Readers Report
Corrections & Clarifications
Books
Technology & You
Economic Viewpoint
Economic Trends
Business Outlook

News: Analysis & Commentary
In Business This Week
Washington Outlook
International Business
International Outlook
Legal Affairs
Media
The Corporation
Information Technology
Science & Technology

Developments to Watch
The Workplace
BusinessWeek Investor
The Barker Portfolio
Inside Wall Street
Figures of the Week
Editorials


INTERNATIONAL EDITIONS
International -- Asian Cover Story
International -- Letter From Bombay
International -- Spotlight on Scotland
International -- Readers Report
International -- Asian Business
International -- European Business
International -- Latin America
International -- Int'l Figures of the Week
International -- Editorials
ONLINE FEATURES Book Reviews BW Video Columnists Interactive Gallery Newsletters Past Covers Philanthropy Podcasts Special Reports BLOGS Auto Beat Bangalore Tigers Blogspotting Brand New Day Byte of the Apple Economics Unbound Eye on Asia Fine On Media Green Biz Hot Property Investing Insights Management IQ NEXT: Innovation NussbaumOnDesign Tech Beat Working Parents TECHNOLOGY J.D. Power Ratings Product Reviews Tech Stats Wildstrom: Tech Maven AUTOS Home Page Auto Reviews Classic Cars Car Care & Safety Hybrids INNOVATION
& DESIGN Home Page Architecture Brand Equity Auto Design Game Room SMALLBIZ Smart Answers Success Stories Today's Tip INVESTING Investing: Europe Annual Reports BW 50 S&P Picks & Pans Stock Screeners Free S&P Stock Report SCOREBOARDS Hot Growth 100 Mutual Funds Info Tech 100 S&P 500 B-SCHOOLS Undergrad Programs MBA Blogs MBA Profiles MBA Rankings Who's Hiring Grads


MARCH 12, 2001

INSIDE WALL STREET

Park Is Set to Bloom

 
By Mara Der Hovanesian
Mara Der Hovanesian

  STORY TOOLS
Printer-Friendly Version
E-Mail This Story

Related Items Chart: A Sustained Tech Falloff
INSIDE WALL STREET

 Park Is Set to Bloom

Getting Warmer at Thermo

Cendant: Ready to Climb Again?
Unlike most other computer component makers, Park Electrochemical (PKE ) is more swim than sink. Last year, the Lake Success (N.Y.) company, which makes resin and laminants for printed circuit boards, was turning away customers. Why? Lack of capacity. Its plants couldn't meet demand, so Park beefed up capacity in California and expanded factories in Singapore and France.

Now that Park's plants are up to speed, however, demand has skidded. An industry inventory buildup prompted Edward White of Lehman Brothers to tone down his estimates: He trimmed revenue forecasts for fiscal year 2002 and cut earnings estimates by 10 cents, to $2.85 a share. The stock has fallen, too, from a 52-week high of 50 in November to 29.50 on Feb 28.

Nevertheless, White is high on the stock and blames the price drop on an "unwarranted" sell-off. Park's plants are now set to produce higher-end products for wireless base stations and routers, instead of just laptops and cell phones, he notes. So far, results have exceeded Wall Street's forecasts: On Feb. 15, Park announced that earnings for the fourth quarter ended Feb. 27 would beat consensus estimates of 64 cents. This follows three quarters of exceeding its forecasts for earnings and operating margins.

A stock with a price-earnings ratio of 10, with cash earnings growing at 20%, fits the bill for Needham fund manager Peter Trapp. "This is good quality for a consistent earnings streak," says Trapp, who sees Park hitting 100 in two years. He bought Park a year ago at 14 1/2, and it's now a top-10 stock in Needham's $133 million Growth Fund. The fund is up 13% this year, after a 7.4% gain in 2000's erratic market. The fund's annualized five-year return is 35%-plus.


Gene Marcial is on vacation.


By Mara Der Hovanesian
Get BusinessWeek directly on your desktop with our RSS feeds.XML

Add BusinessWeek news to your Web site with our headline feed.

Click to buy an e-print or reprint of a BusinessWeek or BusinessWeek Online story or video.

To subscribe online to BusinessWeek magazine, please click here.

Learn more, go to the BusinessWeekOnline home page
Back to Top

MARCH
TODAY'S MOST POPULAR STORIES

  1. The Next Meltdown: Credit-Card Debt
  2. The Sky Falls on Wall Street
  3. The Stunning Collapse of Iceland
  4. Where Homes Are Selling Fastest
  5. Panic Resets Oil Prices

Get Free RSS Feed >>
  MARKET INFO
DJIA 8451.19 -128.00
S&P 500 899.22 -10.70
Nasdaq 1649.51 +4.39

Portfolio Service Update

Stock Lookup

Enter name or ticker



Copyright 2001 , by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy

Media Kit | Special Sections | MarketPlace | Knowledge Centers
McGraw-Hill Cos.