More Videos
- YouTube Could Become Networks' "OurTube"
- What Are Investors Missing? How About Everything!
- That Microsoft, Yahoo Talk is Back!
- Apple As Wall Street Whipping Boy
- AMD Prepares 'Big' Announcement
- Apple's Big Mo: "Losses" Are Only Real When They Are Realized
- EBay Fails to Think Outside The Box
- Latest Jobs' Health Rumor: It's NOT True He Had Heart Attack
- Your Apple Feedback Continues
- Apple And Street Need To Do Better Job With Each Other
- Bowyer: Mark To Market Still Lives (Unfortunately)
- Mad Mail: Why Not Shut the Market Down?
- Lightning Round OT: AFLAC, Valero and More
- Lightning Round: Chesapeake, Corning, J&J and More
- Cramer: What’s the Worst-Case Scenario?
- Game Plan: The Crash of '87 Scenario
- Cramer’s Double Secret Borrow-Binge Plan
- Your First Move For Monday October 13th
- History In The Making
- Three Dairy Firms Apologize for China Milk Scandal
- Santander in Talks to Acquire Sovereign: Source
- World Holds Its Breath as Bank Bailouts Take Shape
- Asian Markets Regain Footing, But Investors Are Cautious
- 'Chihuahua' Bites Crowe, DiCaprio at Box Office
- GM Held Talks With Ford Before Turning to Chrysler
- Markets to Fall 20% More at Most: IMF Economist
- G.M. and Chrysler Explore Merger
- Stock Market Crisis: Nation's Mayors Sound Off
Text Size 
Alcoa [AA
Loading...
()
]may have kicked off earnings season last week, but this week, the biggest names in the tech sector take center stage: Intel and IBM tomorrow: eBay Wednesday; Microsoft and Google [GOOG
Loading...
()
]on Thursday. There are others of course, but these four will steal the lion's share of attention.
For Intel[INTC
Loading...
()
] tomorrow, analysts expect a pretty solid second quarter for the world's largest chipmaker. The company is wiping the microprocessor floor with rival Advanced Micro Devices [AMD
Loading...
()
](set to report Thursday, but pre-announcing more staggering charges and what appears to be a deepening financial morass last week). Intel unveiled its latest laptop chips today, code-named Montevina, but essentially Centrino II. Low-power, HDTV on your laptop, WiMax on board. Cool stuff that shows innovation and Moore's Law are both still alive and well in Santa Clara, Calif. Intel will also celebrate its 40th anniversary on Thursday.
Analysts are looking for 25 cents on $9.32 billion. The other key metric: gross margins. The Street expects 56 percent, and fairly lackluster guidance--both already baked into shares.
As we get closer through the week, I'll go deeper into each of these issues, but one thing seems clear; one trend seems to apply to all these specific names, except maybe eBay[EBAY
Loading...
()
]: when this recover in the economy takes hold, these are the names that will likely enjoy the dividends first. We've already seen an uptick in PC growth, good for both Intel and Microsoft. IBM [IBM
Loading...
()
]has been soaring for much of the year because worries about a collapse in enterprise spending might have been overblown.
rlated content and posts |
And that's good for Microsoft [MSFT
Loading...
()
]as well, even though it faces continuing challenges with Vista, already well-documented, as has the company's ongoing takeover saga with Yahoo[YHOO
Loading...
()
]. Color on both is expected Thursday on the conference call, if not before.
As far as eBay is concerned: I'm still concerned over the shifting market place that seems to give Amazon.com [AMZN
Loading...
()
]a leg up; and while recession worries have shoppers continuing to bargain-hunt, Amazon and its pack-and-ship model still seems more compelling than eBay's hodge-podge of auctions. Still, PayPal still seems strong, and if eBay can increase margins and show some growth in Gross Merchandise Volume and listings, that could be a surprising boost to shares. Otherwise, eBay runs the risk of dead money, at least for awhile.
And of course, we'll have complete coverage all week long, here, and on the air. Check back soon!
Questions? Comments?
Del.icio.us
Digg It