E-Mailbag Monday: PECO II, Ameritrade, Professional Services Automation

What looks good for the IPO market this week?

Reply: I like PECO II.
The company was founded in 1988 and at that time, purchased key technologies
and a manufacturing facility from ITT. Now PECO II is a leader in power systems
for the fiber optic marketplace. PECO II’s technology deals with such things as
power surges, spikes and brownouts.

As the fiber optics market surges, so does PECO II. For the first six months
of 2000, revenues were $74.2 million, which was up 101.9 percent from the
same period a year ago. What’s more, the sales backlog was $25.9 million.
Net income was $9.5 million.

The lead underwriter is Robertson Stephens and the price range is $14-$16
(the company intends to issue 5 million shares). The proposed ticker symbol
is PIII.

Ameritrade: CEO Gets Out

What’s your opinion on Ameritrade?

Reply: As you know, the CEO resigned this week. He had been at that
post for less than two months. This is not necessarily indicative
that the company is in trouble. After all, there can be many reasons for a
departure.

Actually, I think the sector is quite undervalued. And if these valuations
persist, there is likely to be consolidation.

However, if I were to purchase stocks in the online brokerage sector, I
would focus not on Ameritrade but instead on E*TRADE and Schwab .

Professional Services Automation: Buzzword and IPO

What is professional services automation?

Reply: Professional Services Automation (PSA) is a recent field.
Basically, this is technology that helps companies manage and integrate IT
services. This involves such things as project management, relationship
management (such as with contractors), resource management and so on.

There is an IPO this week, called ChangePoint, which
is a developer of PSA technologies.

The lead underwriter is Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette and the price range is
$8-$10 (the company plans to issue 5 million shares). The proposed ticker
symbol is CPNT.