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Chartered Semi, Intraware, to lead Friday's movers

3 min read

Expect the following technology stocks to be among Friday's most actively traded issues: Chartered Semiconductor, Intraware, Liberate Technologies and Research in Motion.

  • Chartered Semiconductor (Nasdaq: CHRT)

    Chartered shares should move higher after it said late Thursday it will report better-than-expected sales and earnings in its second quarter.

    Company officials credited the upside surprise to a combination of accelerated productivity improvements in manufacturing operations, a higher average selling price due to better mix and enhanced pricing, and higher wafer shipments.

    Its shares closed off 5 1/16 to 84 1/8 ahead of the announcement.

    It now expects its second-quarter sales to improve 10 percent from the $238.4 million it recorded in the first quarter while net income should improve between 4 percent to 5 percent.

    Last quarter, it posted a profit of $37.8 million, or 29 cents a share, after preannouncing better-than-expected sales.

    The Singapore-based chip foundry watched its shares move up to a 52-week high of 113 in March after falling to a low of 28 7/8 in October.

    Analysts are expecting it to earn 22 cents a share in the second quarter.

  • Intraware (Nasdaq: ITRA)

    Intraware should be worth watching Friday after it topped analysts' estimates in its first quarter and announced it had received $25 million in financing.

    It posted a loss of $10.1 million, or 40 cents a share, on sales of $41.5 million.

    First Call Corp. consensus expected it to lose 45 cents a share in the quarter.

    Its shares closed off 1 3/8 to 18 7/16.

    The $41.5 million in sales marks a 150 percent jump from the year-ago quarter when it lost $4.6 million, or 20 cents a share, on sales of $16.5 million.

    Intraware also announced that it landed $25 million in financing from a group of institutional investors including Marshall Capital, an affiliate of Credit Suisse First Boston. Under the terms of the financing agreements, the company will issue three classes of preferred stock that will be convertible into the company's common stock at a 120 percent premium to the average closing bid price for the common stock during three separate month-long pricing periods beginning July 5.

    Last quarter, Intraware topped analysts' estimates when it lost $11.2 million, or 45 cents a share, on sales of $36.1 million.

  • Liberate Technologies (Nasdaq: LBRT)

    Liberate figures to perk up Friday after it beat Street estimates in its fourth quarter, losing $11.4 million, or 13 cents a share, on sales of $9.1 million.

    Analysts surveyed by First Call Corp. predicted Liberate would lose 20 cents a share in the quarter.

    Ahead of the earnings report, Liberate closed off 1 45/64 to 23 55/64.

    The $9.1 million in sales marks a 78 percent improvement from the year-ago quarter when it lost $9.5 million, or 16 cents a share, on sales of $5.1 million.

    Including all charges, Liberate posted a loss of $37 million, or 41 cents a share, in the quarter.

    For the year, Liberate lost $80.8 million, or $1.14 a share, on sales of $28 million, a 62 percent jump from fiscal 1999 when it lost $43.3 million, or 52 cents a share, on sales of $17.3 million.

  • Research in Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM)

    Research in Motion should see some action Friday after it met lowered analysts' estimates in its first quarter.

    In the quarter, it earned $388,000, or breakeven on a per-share basis, on sales of $27.1 million.

    First quarter revenue increased to $27.1 million, up 5 percent sequentially and up 67 percent year-over-year. About half of the company's revenue came from the BlackBerry wireless e-mail service, 25 percent from the sale of wireless handheld devices, and the remainder from software and radio modems.

    Its shares closed off 3 15/16 to 38 7/8 ahead of the earnings report.

  • SBC Communications Inc. (NYSE:SBC)

    Regulators expect to grant the company approval to offer long-distance services in Texas, making it the second regional Bell phone firm be granted entry into the $80 billion long-distance market, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

    Only Bell Atlantic Corp.(NYSE: BEL), the New York-based phone provider, has been granted entry into the long-distance market, in New York state.

    SBC's entry suggests the gates are open for other Bells seeking long-distance entry, the newspaper reported.