The Motley Fool, 7/17/97: The Evening News

HEROES

Telecommunications products, electrochemicals, and materials sciences company RAYCHEM <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: RYC)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: RYC)") end if %> surged $13 3/8 to $90 1/16 on reporting Q4 EPS of $1.34, up 28% year-over-year and above estimates of $1.23. Also moving the stock is a $300 million share buyback authorization and a Merrill Lynch upgrade to "near-term outperform" from "neutral." Raychem has been a stealth grower in communications markets, but really popped onto the radar today as the operating margin for the company busted open, rising 17% to 14.75% of sales. On a run-rate basis, the company is still selling at less than 125% of sales. With June 1998 EPS estimates of $5.56, one could compare the company's valuation to something like LUCENT <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: LU)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: LU)") end if %> and come away believing that Raychem is still pretty cheap. Those estimates assume zero earnings growth, too. Assuming 20% operating earnings growth with minimal taxes due to its tax loss carryforwards, the company could make $6.50 per share in 1998 and would be selling at 14 times that number.

Specialty semiconductor company PMC-SIERRA INC. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: PMCS)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: PMCS)") end if %> continues its comeback, picking up $3 9/16 to $32 1/2 after reporting Q2 EPS of $0.28 on 33% year-over-year revenue growth in its key networking chip business. Sequentially, the networking semiconductor business made similar gains. Analysts were expecting Q2 EPS of $0.22. Another comeback case in specialty semiconductors, CIRRUS LOGIC <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CRUS)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CRUS)") end if %> added $1 7/8 to $13 3/8 after reporting Q1 revenues of $202 million and EPS of $0.04, which beat estimates of $0.03. Similar to PMC-Sierra, Cirrus has narrowed its focus, in this case on controller chips for data storage and digital signal processors. Looking at March 1999 earnings estimates, it appears that analysts are modeling in much higher operating margins and modest sales growth or big sales growth and stagnant margins. Of course, combining higher margins with decent sales growth would be the preferred course for the company.

Following the completion of a Justice Department investigation of the company, Merrill Lynch raised its near-term rating on long-term care provider SUN HEALTHCARE GROUP <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: SHG)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: SHG)") end if %> to "outperform" from "neutral," sending that stock $2 higher to $22. Merger partner RETIREMENT CARE ASSOCIATES (NYS: RCA) rode along for a $7/8 gain to $13 5/16. With a potentially troubling cloud removed from the picture, some might want to fire up the spreadsheets and compare the valuations on Sun Healthcare-RCA with the recent deals that have taken place in the industry. Those include the acquisition of Integrated Living Communities by a Goldman Sachs partnership; GENESIS HEALTH VENTURES <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: GHV)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: GHV)") end if %> tender offer for MULTICARE COMPANIES <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: MUL)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: MUL)") end if %>; a three-way deal among LIVING CENTERS OF AMERICA <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: LCA)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: LCA)") end if %>, GRANCARE <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: GC)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: GC)") end if %>, and Apollo Management LP; and a LEHMAN BROTHERS <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: LEH)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: LEH)") end if %> investment in ARV ASSISTED LIVING <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ARVI)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ARVI)") end if %>.

Mergers and acquisitions du jour: Oil and gas exploration, production, and distribution company LOUISIANA LAND & EXPLORATION <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: LLX)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: LLX)") end if %> picked up $7 3/8 to $65 5/8 after striking an agreement to merge with BURLINGTON RESOURCES <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: BR)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: BR)") end if %>. Louisiana Land shareholders will receive 1.525 shares of Burlington Resources for each of their shares, valuing Louisiana Land north of $70 per share as of last night. Voice mail systems company OCTEL <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: OCTL)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: OCTL)") end if %> jumped $3 3/8 to $30 1/8 after agreeing to be acquired by LUCENT TECHNOLOGIES <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: LU)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: LU)") end if %> for $1.8 billion in cash, or $31 per share.

QUICK TAKES: Helpdesk software company CLARIFY INC. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CLFY)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CLFY)") end if %> rose $3 1/2 to $14 3/8 on reporting a 74% increase in revenues, a larger backlog, and EPS of $0.05, which fell short of the Zacks' mean estimate of $0.08 a share... WOOLWORTH CORP. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: Z)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: Z)") end if %> closed $2 1/2 higher at $27 9/16 after announcing that it will convert 100 of its five-and-dime stores into other of its specialty retail outlets, such as Foot Locker and Champs Sports. Four hundred other of its general retail stores will be closed, for which the company will take a $223 million charge... MIDCOM COMMUNICATIONS <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MCCI)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MCCI)") end if %> was boosted $1 1/2 to $7 7/16 after Morgan Stanley started coverage of the long-distance company with a "strong buy" rating... TECHNOLOGIES FAIRCHILD <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: STCH)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: STCH)") end if %> added $1 3/4 to $10 5/8 after Standard & Poor's announced yesterday that it put the company's debt rating on "CreditWatch with positive implications"... Construction and property management enterprise software company TIMBERLINE SOFTWARE CORP. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: TMBS)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: TMBS)") end if %> moved up $1 5/8 to $10 on busting out a 70% increase in Q2 EPS... Trucking company MARTEN TRANSPORT <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MRTN)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MRTN)") end if %> gained $2 3/4 to $17 3/4 on reporting Q2 EPS of $0.63... SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SBGI)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SBGI)") end if %> added $5 to $34 3/4 after the radio and TV broadcasting company announced yesterday that it will acquire for $650 million a number of smaller-market Big 4 television affiliates and a number of radio stations from HERITAGE MEDIA CORP. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: HTG)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: HTG)") end if %>... Flash memory storage semiconductor company SANDISK CORP. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SNDK)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SNDK)") end if %> gained $3 to $24 1/4 on reporting Q2 EPS of $0.15, beating the mean estimate of $0.09, and rising 7% year-over-year...

MORE TAKES: Real estate management, investment, and services company LASALLE PARTNERS <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: LAP)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: LAP)") end if %> jumped $5 13/16 from its IPO price of $23 to close at $28 13/16... ACUSON CORP. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: ACN)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: ACN)") end if %> was lifted $2 3/16 to $22 3/4 by an Alex. Brown rating upgrade to "strong buy" from "buy"... KINDER MORGAN ENERGY PARTNERS <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: ENP)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: ENP)") end if %> gained $4 13/16 to $57 1/4 after reporting a 107% increase in second quarter earnings and announcing that it will increase its partnership distributions by 59%... Drug company MERCK & CO INC. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: MRK)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: MRK)") end if %> gained $8 1/4 to $106 3/4 on reporting a 20% increase in Q2 revenues of $5.9 billion and EPS of $0.96, beating estimates of $0.95... CHIEFTAIN INTERNATIONAL <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(AMEX: CID)") else Response.Write("(AMEX: CID)") end if %> rose $1 3/4 to $23 5/8 on announcing results of gas exploration in the Gulf of Mexico... Call router manufacturer GEOTEL COMMUNICATIONS CORP. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: GEOC)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: GEOC)") end if %> gained $1 9/16 to $17 on a 96% rise in second quarter revenues and EPS of $0.07, which beat estimates of $0.04 a share... BRITISH STEEL <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: BST)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: BST)") end if %> moved $1 11/16 higher to $27 1/4 after announcing that it will step up its share buyback program, which it says will soften the effect of the reduced sales due to the strong British pound... Envelope manufacturer MAIL-WELL INC. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: MWL)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: MWL)") end if %> added $1 7/8 to $29 on sealing Q2 EPS of $0.35, beating estimates of $0.31.

GOATS

Specialty chemicals company GREAT LAKES CHEMICALS <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: GLK)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: GLK)") end if %> started the day intending to build shareholder value but finished the trading $5 5/8 lower at $48. The company announced that it will spin off its petroleum additives business, a little honey of a company that generates an EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) margin of 38% and requires very little capital investment. That company, Octel, will borrow $450 million to purchase 10.6% of its shares held by CHEVRON <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: CHV)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: CHV)") end if %> and throw $300 million in cash back at Great Lakes before the spin-off. Great Lakes, which generates EBIT margins of 12% and manufactures fine chemicals for a number of industries, will use the proceeds of today's action to increase its share repurchase authorization by 4 million shares. Problems? Both businesses need to grow their revenues.

Earnings reports losers today include ASPECT TELECOMMUNICATIONS <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ASPT)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ASPT)") end if %>, which was crunched for a $6 7/16 loss to $19 13/16 after the manufacturer of call-center equipment and software reported earnings of $0.24 per share, up 33% from year-ago results and ahead of estimates of $0.22 a share. Cutting down the shares was a Goldman Sachs rating downgrade to "market perform" from "market outperform." Wireless telecommunications chip maker TRIQUINT SEMICONDUCTOR <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: TQNT)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: TQNT)") end if %> took a beating, too, losing $9 1/8 to finish at $35. The company last night posted second quarter earnings of $0.25 per share, beating estimates of $0.24 a share. At about five times run-rate revenues and 44 times run-rate earnings as of yesterday, 23% revenue growth and 14% EPS growth just didn't cut the mustard, even though sequential growth numbers looked pretty attractive.

More earnings disappointments: Emergency cardiac defibrillator/pacemaker manufacturer PHYSIO-CONTROL INTERNATIONAL <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: PHYS)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: PHYS)") end if %> lost $3 1/2 to $12 1/2 after turning in Q2 revenues of $45 million, but with lower gross margins, which translated into a 23% decline in EPS of $0.17. Nevertheless, that met the mean estimate gathered from seven analysts. Disk drive maker WESTERN DIGITAL <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: WDC)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: WDC)") end if %> lost $5 7/8 from yesterday's close on the New York Stock Exchange to close at $39 1/8 after reporting Q4 EPS of $0.95, in line with the company's estimates but below the mean analysts' estimate of $0.96 a share. One Foolish wag commented that the analysts missed estimates while the company made them.

QUICK CUTS: XICOR INC. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: XICO)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: XICO)") end if %> skidded $1 3/16 to $6 9/16 after the maker of programmable memory devices reported a 34% drop in Q2 EPS, to $0.21... Electronic commerce software company HARBINGER CORP. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: HRBC)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: HRBC)") end if %> fell $4 3/4 to $31 1/4 before reporting earnings of $0.11 a share, beating estimates of $0.10 a share... Enterprise software developer LEGATO SYSTEMS <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: LGTO)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: LGTO)") end if %> dropped $2 3/4 to $20 7/8 after reporting Q2 earnings of $0.17 per share, up 31% from year ago levels... Trucking and logistics company CONSOLIDATED FREIGHTWAYS CORP. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CFWY)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CFWY)") end if %> fell $2 1/16 to $16 1/8 despite reporting Q2 EPS of $0.30 that rolled over estimates of $0.27... Medical device maker ENDOVASCULAR TECHNOLOGIES <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: EVTI)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: EVTI)") end if %> lost $1 1/8 to $10 1/8 on reporting a Q2 loss of $4.7 million, up from $3.2 million last year... Long-haul trucker COVENANT TRANSPORTATION <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CVTI)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CVTI)") end if %> slumped $1 7/8 to $17 1/4 even though the company was able to achieve higher freight rates, resulting in Q2 EPS of $0.40, beating estimates of $0.25 a share... METROMAIL CORP. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: ML)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: ML)") end if %> tumbled $4 3/8 to $20 after the database and direct marketing concern announced that sales, earnings, and operating cash flow would all come in below expectations in its fiscal second quarter... Cigar maker SWISHER INTERNATIONAL GROUP <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: SWR)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: SWR)") end if %> was smoked for a $3 3/8 loss to $14 3/8 on reporting 20% revenue growth and EPS of $0.31, missing estimates by a wafer-thin penny per share... RUBBERMAID <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: RBD)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: RBD)") end if %> lost $3 5/16 to $27 after reporting a 12% increase in sales but operating earnings that fell short of estimates... Test systems manufacturer GENRAD, INC. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: GEN)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: GEN)") end if %> lost $2 1/2 to $21 3/4 after reporting a 17% rise in Q2 EPS of $0.28, which beat the single estimate... Sunglasses maker OAKLEY <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: OO)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: OO)") end if %> lost $1 1/16 to $12 1/2 after reporting a 41% decline in Q2 EPS of $0.13, which missed estimates... DOLE FOOD <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: DOL)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: DOL)") end if %> fell $3 5/16 to $40 11/16 after being cut from Goldman Sachs' "recommended list" following its report of Q2 EPS of $1.17, up 11% year-over-year.

FOOL ON THE HILL
An Investment Opinion by Randy Befumo

Healthcare Examinations

Just as one major healthcare provider manages to crawl out from under the cloud of a federal probe, another one has been sucked right back into the quagmire. SUN HEALTHCARE GROUP <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: SHG)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: SHG)") end if %> powered ahead $2 to $22 after the Justice Department formally announced that its criminal division had completed its investigation of the company's billing practices. Simultaneously, COLUMBIA/HCA <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: COL)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: COL)") end if %> tumbled $15/16 to $33 1/4 after falling $4 15/16 yesterday as the feds stepped up their investigation into the hospital chain's marketing and billing practices. Could the recent rise of Sun augur the future of Columbia/HCA?

Sun's travails began in June of 1995 when the company revealed in a 10-Q filing with the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) that the Department of Health and Human Services had called in the Department of Justice to examine billing practices at its rehabilitation therapy unit. The investigation was prompted by three separate complaints to a federal investigator in Portland, Oregon. Sun claimed the whole dispute was just a misunderstanding, but this did not stop the FBI from raiding a Seattle nursing home in July of 1995 in search of records. Topping off all of the bad news was a shareholder lawsuit directed at the company claiming that these legal problems had not been properly disclosed to investors.

Until the investigation, Sun Healthcare Group had been a momentum stock, fueling its growth by acquiring smaller competitors in the nursing home and rehabilitation care arena. The company closed at a high of $28 1/8 in February of 1995 before Sun began to set, falling as low as $12 1/4 in June when the investigation was revealed. Piling insult on injury, the discussion of Medicare reform in Congress put a damper on shares of all of the nursing home providers and put Sun Healthcare as low as $9 1/8 in October of 1995. Although many of its nursing home brethren had recovered substantially from their October-November 1995 lows a year later, Sun was still mired in the $11 to $13 range it had tread for more than a year.

Contrast Sun's situation with that of the country's largest for-profit hospital company, COLUMBIA/HCA HEALTHCARE <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: COL)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: COL)") end if %>. On March 19, Columbia/HCA's El Paso, Texas operations, along with a number of physicians located in El Paso, were served federal search warrants for a broad range of records and documents. Three days later on March 21, FBI agents searched the company's facilities for a second day. In a conference call on March 31 designed to assuage shareholder fears, Columbia/HCA stated that although El Paso is an important market, its revenues represented less than 1.5% of the company's consolidated results and the market's profitability was slightly below the corporate average. Unfortunately the call did nothing to mollify the disturbed shareholders, many of whom were excited by an article that ran in the New York Times. The stock fell $3 7/8 to $33 5/8.

The New York Times piece raised the additional allegation that Columbia/HCA had been monkeying with the way it coded Medicare cases as a way to offer participating physicians, some of whom had ownership stakes in Columbia/HCA facilities, better reimbursement. In April, the patient referral issue came alive again when federal agents began to look into whether or not Columbia/HCA had improperly compensated physicians for referrals to hospital-owned home healthcare operations. As of yesterday, at least 37 search warrants had been served in Oklahoma, North Carolina, Utah, Florida, Texas and Georgia. Olsten Health Management, a wholly owned unit of OLSTEN CORP. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: OLS)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: OLS)") end if %> was also served, as the company manages Columbia/HCA's home health care operations. Olsten tumbled $1 to $20 5/8 today on the news.

The warrants issued so far have focused on records relating to two specific operations at Columbia/HCA: hospital laboratory billing and homecare operations. Although both of these are important, fast-growing businesses for Columbia/HCA, they hardly make up the bulk of the company's revenues. Given that the much ballyhooed Sun Healthcare investigation expired after a year and a half without any indictments being issued, investors might not want to take the potential consequences of this investigation quite as seriously as they are. The government investigation into ARCHER DANIELS-MIDLAND <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: ADM)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: ADM)") end if %> resulted in around $100 million in fines for fixing prices in a multi-billion dollar global market, so should the government come back with an indictment, the fine will probably not put the company out of business or substantially hamper profitability.

With the company now trading at 11.3 times its 1998 earnings estimates rather than the 15 to 16 multiple it has previously commanded due to the fact it was the largest in the industry, one might argue that the stock offers value in a market that many claim is devoid of just that. By way of comparison, number two TENET HEALTHCARE CORP. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: THC)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: THC)") end if %> currently trades at 16.5 times forward earnings estimates in spite of the fact that analysts are projecting that the two companies will enjoy virtually the same growth rate over the next year and a half. Before this investigation, Columbia/HCA last traded at this price level in May of 1995. The last major drop in Columbia occurred during the great "Healthcare scare," when the shares dropped 40% in February of 1993. Unless the current investigation outstrips past investigations by a large margin and puts all 285,000 voting employees of Columbia/HCA out of work, it is hard to see substantial downside from the low $30s.

CONFERENCE CALLS

CARLISLE COMPANIES <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: CSL)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: CSL)") end if %>
(800) 633-8284 code: 2956026
Replay through Friday at 4 p.m.

MICROSOFT <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MSFT)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MSFT)") end if %>
(800) 456-5304 (code: 1017) -- replay through 7/21
(402) 344-6835 (code: 1017) -- replay for international callers

IOMEGA CORP. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: IOM)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: IOM)") end if %>
(800) 633-8284 (code: 2854533) -- replay through 7/21

ASCEND COMMUNICATIONS <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ASND)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ASND)") end if %>
(800) 475-6701 (code: 348047) -- replay through 7/25

SUN MICROSYSTEMS <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SUNW)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SUNW)") end if %>
(800) 633-8284 (reservation # 2689889) -- replay through 7/20
(303) 248-1201 (reservation # 2689889) -- replay for international callers

360 COMMUNICATIONS <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: XO)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: XO)") end if %>
(402) 220-3014 -- replay through 7/23

HARLEY-DAVIDSON <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: HDI)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: HDI)") end if %>
(402) 222-9905 -- replay

ADVANTA CORP. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ADVNA)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ADVNA)") end if %>
(402) 222-9910 -- replay through 7/17 midnight

APPLIED DIGITAL ACCESS <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ADAX)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ADAX)") end if %>
(402) 220-6028 -- replay available through 7/25

07/18/97 (Friday)
TRIBUNE <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: TRB)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: TRB)") end if %>
1-800-633-8284 (code: 2941595) -- replay through 7/25

THIS WEEK'S CONFERENCE CALL SYNOPSES

INNOVEX <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: INVX)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: INVX)") end if %> Call
APPLE COMPUTER <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: AAPL)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: AAPL)") end if %> Call
SHAW GROUP <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: SGR)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: SGR)") end if %> Call
ASCEND <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ASND)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ASND)") end if %> Call
INTEL <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: INTC)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: INTC)") end if %> Call
SEAGATE <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: SEG)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: SEG)") end if %> Call

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A Foolish Library

For a change of pace, instead of using this space to plead with you to purchase some of our modest Foolish wares, allow us to shift the spotlight to some books not written by Fools. That's right -- if you're interested in reading some other perspectives on investing, but are just not sure where to begin, or which books might be too far from your Foolish center, head on over to FoolMart. There you'll find a host of titles which pass Foolish muster. Many were recommended by our own TMF Templr and are found on desks and shelves around Fool HQ. We've read 'em, we like 'em, and we recommend them to you, too. Included are titles by Peter Lynch, Mary Meeker, Michael O'Higgins, David Chilton, William J. O'Neill, and Chuck Carlson. The browsing is free, and the buying is easy!

Randy Befumo (TMF Templr), a Fool
Fool Plate Special

Dale Wettlaufer (TMF Ralegh), another Fool
Ups & Downs

Brian Bauer (TMF Hoops), and yet another Fool
Editing

Julia Wilson (TMF Delete), one more Fool
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