Broadcom Priced to Sell?

Smart companies buy their stock when it's cheap, and sell it when it's not.

Which makes you think about Broadcom (NASDAQ:BRCM). The company recently filed a shelf registration to raise up to $750 million through the sale of common stock, preferred stock, debt, or any combination of the three. Up to 30 million additional shares can be issued to make acquisitions, though Broadcom doesn't necessarily have plans to do so.

This is not unlike the situation at Research In Motion (NASDAQ:RIMM). Earlier this month, the force behind BlackBerry said it would raise capital it didn't necessarily need, taking advantage of a fantastic run-up in its stock price. A few weeks back, XM Satellite Radio (NASDAQ:XMSR) also said it would take advantage of its stock price by raising cash to reduce convertible debt.

So, what brings Broadcom to the table? A stock that has tripled over the past year and shot up another 6% to $43 yesterday. The latest move came as the company announced a strong quarter in which it reversed a GAAP loss on record revenues of $479.1 million, and forecast 10% sequential revenue growth for the coming quarter. That's far better than analysts had expected.

Broadcom also confirmed that it now controls 78% of the 802.11g wireless LAN market, selling to the likes of Dell (NASDAQ:DELL), Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ), Cisco's (NASDAQ:CSCO) Linksys, and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT). The company also provides products enabled by Bluetooth, cell-phone, and satellite set-top box applications, among others.

To be sure, opening the door to a foray into the capital markets implies that Broadcom is pleased with its stock price, but not necessarily extreme overvaluation. And, as we have argued before, selling high-priced shares can actually benefit shareholders -- all the more so if the capital is put to good use down the road.

Pure value investors might take this opportunity to bail. For those in it for the long haul, given the company's exceptional growth and business performance, Broadcom may still be worth holding.

Give us your take on the Broadcom discussion board. Jeff Hwang can be reached at [email protected].