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Thursday, January 22, 1998 Wednesday, Iomega closed at $13 3/16, up $9/16 (+4.46%). TODAY'S RECAP: Posters on the message board continued to focus on Iomega's upcoming ad campaign during the Superbowl; costs, production and strategy were debated in terms of IOM's impending 4Q earnings conference call. A few other subjects were raised, including notebook drives, SyQuest and Iomega's presence in the business sector. Enjoy! INDEX: Use the Search or Find feature of your word processor to locate the article number (Find: 1++, 3++, etc.) - or use AOL's Edit>>Find in Top Window Feature. If Find in Top Window is dimmed, just click on some text, anything, in the IOM Today window and try again.
1++ Kirpoprik addresses SparQ concerns, analyst coverage and likes and
dislikes.
Recap written and posts compiled by TMF Weekly. _______________________________ And now, the Best of the Board...Started 9:01pm ET 1/20/98. 1+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subject: Re: Coverage from Soundview (an insult) Personally I'm thrilled with the new coverage by Soundview. (Name), what do you want? For him to say IOM is a screaming steal and in six months it should be at 24? I don't get it. The SparQ (in my opinion) coming out of seemingly nowhere took a lot of the wind out of IOM's sails and IOM's tumbled slowly downward from roughly 16 to 12. (That's certainly not the only thing that has brought IOM down, but it's a big little thing AND if Syquest comes along and says "Oh, by the way, did you know we were able to ramp up and sold 200,000 SparQs and not just 50,000?"...it'll be a bigger little thing.) Well we're at 12 and a 1/2 and here's a new analyst (something we've all but gotten down on our knees and cried out for after running around screaming and pulling out our hair) and a couple of people are carping that it's not good enough. I for one say it is great. Here the analyst is beginning additional positive coverage for IOM, he basically says 15¢ is on target (low in my opinion, quite low in my hopeful opinion), he says the stock is worth 16 1/2 in only six months (and not by the end of 98), which, yes, is (in my opinion) conservative---but geez it gives him room to upgrade or reiterate his buy when Clik! comes on the scene in about six months or when more OEMs jump on board or even when IOM shows great numbers this quarter. He is sticking his neck out! Not far at all in my opinion, but get real, it is out there. He's putting it out 2 and a 1/2 days before earnings. IOM is seemingly very solid. However, in technology nothing stands still and IOM has to keep up what it has done before. And what it has done before has been just about magnificent. What don't I like? - the stock split...too soon after all of the others - the price of Jaz compared to SparQ and maybe Orb if it gets here...maybe it'll come down some, maybe Syquest is selling at a minimum profit margin and will go under, or maybe something else -ZipPlus at $199 under MAP...who would buy it??? Well it's obvious that quite a few people will so I'm glad I wasn't in charge of setting the price (I think). -long time necessary to bring Clik! to fruition What do I like? -millions and millions of Zips out there (and yes I bought one--but it was in the third quarter) -the Ditto Professional with huge backups which I expect to buy sometime during the first or second quarter -the Superbowl advertising...had to think about it first and was glad Dale helped to put it in perspective with the related tie-ins at IOM's website What do I love? -Buz potential -RecordIt connection -Clik! potential (YES!) with the caveat that I worry some about reduction in flash prices before IOM can get Clik! everywhere -recent developments: new analyst (YEA! YEA!), CNBC ".com" episode, Bermuda and Dell give-aways and most obvious 4th quarter EPS prospects 2+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subject: Production, production, production Iomega starting a major ad campaign with the Super Bowl can only mean one thing to me. . . ...production capacity is now sufficiently ramped up, inclusive of licensees. It would be inconceivable to me to start such a campaign, and I presume it is a major one if they are starting it at the Super Bowl, without having the capacity (and inventory) to handle a surge. From Day 1, production has been the single biggest problem that this company has had. Perhaps, and I can only hope, that this is a harbinger of watching a youngster turn into a thoroughbred. With fingers crossed, 3+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subject: Personal Experience I went to a Pro Copy store to get some photos transferred to disk so I could load them on a computer. They had a big sign in the window saying IOMEGA READY. In talking to the photo processor he stated that they went with Iomega over Syquest because Iomega had a much wider base of users and the syquest drive they used to have broke twice in a short time so they never fixed it the 3rd time. while standing there waiting a customer called and I heard the employee explaining that they only had Iom drives for transfers and not syquest. the caler apparently had a syq drive and was asking if they could transfer things from it. They found out that SYQ was not available so I am hoping they will come to their senses and Buy a Zip so they can do the transfers. An interesting experience to say the least! 4+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subject: Re: OR Tech Abandons Desktop Mkt << Mass production by April? Ok, Iomega has sewn up the desktop market, and now they've got about three months to wrap up the notebooks. The backward compatibility "advantage" of the LS-120 is more pronounced on the notebook platform, IMO, than the desktop, but I still think they don't stand a chance of beating Zip in the notebooks. Zip's got a headstart, the brand, and is "highly-referencing" with 11+ million desktop Zips. >> I agree. I love my notebook Zip 15mm for Tosh Tecra 730, but according to a long ago OR?? press release and mentioned a lot by HYPEMENOT, the slim ls-120 is supposed to sell at ??, was it $149.00, a far cry from Zip VST $329-$349, and CNF$299.00 that I paid. So I wouldn't write off the slim LS-120 totally yet. The Imation earnings/conf. call may provide some clues here, but indeed this is the LS-120's last gasp to survive. Didn't someone(KE??) say that beta's of the slim 12.7mm laptop Zip had been sent to OEM's for evaluation??? Anyone remember??? 5+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subject: clik!ing in Quallcom Jeanie, I was thinking along the same lines. Iomega folks hand out clik!ers out in front of the entrance turnstyles. I hadn't figured out how to get everyone in the stadium to start clik!ing on cue. It took your post to complete my scenario. But, I was trying to imagine what it would be like to have everyone in Quallcom stadium clik!ing at the same time.....would definately be maddening.....but, I'm sure folks would remember the event. I can just imagine some of the sportscaster commentary. Leading up to halftime (a curious bunch of clik!s sporadically in front of the announcing booth) sportscaster 1 to sportscaster 2: Hey, Dave.....what's that weird clik!ing noise? 2 to 1: Dunno....you don't think the Goodyear blimp is having engine problems, do ya? 1 to 2: I can't figure it out....I keep hearing these clik!s.....and the quarterbacks seem annoyed. 2 to 1: Well, maybe it will all stop by halftime. Then, comes Jeanie's scenario with the pompoms and flashing i(wonderful idea). And, right on cue, everyone starts clik!ing, and the deafening clik!ing drowns out all other sounds. 1 to 2: Hey, Dave....I get it.....everyone is clik!ing those little clik!ers. 2 to 1: Oh, yeah....I just got one.....Wanna hear me clik! it?.....LOL And, the message is sent to a football stadium full of participants and a TV audience of millions worldwide. Oh, well, I can dream, can't I? 6+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subject: Re: Production, production, production TMF Turk: << Iomega starting a major ad campaign with the Super Bowl can only mean one thing to me. . .production capacity is now sufficiently ramped up, inclusive of licensees. >> Eric, I hope your right, but we must also consider the fact that the 1st quarter is traditionally a slow quarter as far as retail sales are concerned. The ads may actually be to spur more retail purchases of Iomega products during the 1st Qtr. I tend to believe that Iomeag is attempting through the use of advertising to balance demand with their current production capacity and that the ads are in no way and indication of a new increase in production capacity. If they did $600 Million 4th Qtr. 97 then they should be able to do the same 1st Qtr. 98 with no increase in production. I don't think anyone believes IOM will do anywhere near $600 million 1st Qtr. 98 so what will IOM do with all the extra production capacity? Answer: Advertise and sell as much as you possibly can during a seasonally slow quarter. I don't have 1st Qtr. projected numbers at hand but am sure that they are significantly lower than 4th Qtr 97's numbers. I don't believe that you intended to imply that 1st quarter would produce more Revenue than 4th quarter 97 but it could have been interperted that way. I personally believe that Iomega has more than enough production in place to satisfy demand for the 1st quarter. I also believe that the capacity they had during 3rd Qtr. 97 was and is enough to satisfy 1st Qtr. 98 demand. That's why I see the need for advertising. I don't see the ads as being the result of new production capacity. The ads IMHO are a result of an excess amount of production capacity for the 1st Qtr. 98. It's not a bad thing, it's just a seasonal thing. _______________________________ End Report. Posts covered through 9:00pm ET 1/21/98. _______________________________
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