| Author | Message | ||
     Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 454 Registered: 10-2003 |
Big pop in SCON, apparently due to an 8K filing. http://biz.yahoo.com/e/060911/scon8-k.html As pointed out by one poster on the Yaqhoo SCON board, the agreement described simply says Cingular can buy SCON products at predetermined prices, not that they will or that the prices are or will be competetive with other suppliers. More a matter of deciding the SCON products meet spec than that they are gotta-have technology, as I understand it. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 388 Registered: 10-2003 |
I was trying to pick the bottom on SCON and waited a bit too long. They came out 7/18 with an announcement of a conference call 8/10 to discuss their 2nd quarter and the herd turned north almost immediately. It seems unlikely they have will have any great news to report so I expect a decline after the conference call. Perhaps the current run-up is being driven by the news that they can still afford to hire accounting staff to prepare the quarterly report??? | ||
| Treesloth Registered Member Username: Treesloth Post Number: 1008 Registered: 07-2005 |
A lock, a sausage, a head???? Zot, 1 less spammer. (Message edited by admin on July 08, 2006) | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 281 Registered: 10-2003 |
The first quarter conference call will be Thursday, May 4, 2006 at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time. The stock has risen recently, possibly in response to the announcement of the conference call (it's nice just to know there WAS a first quarter for the company, everything considering, it leaves room for optimism I guess). | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 271 Registered: 10-2003 |
They came out today with an announcement that their reverse split officially made NASDAQ happy and the stock won't be delisted. Also, the symbol will revert to SCON from SCOND on April 10. This is a more propitious announcement that the one the other day about the trade show, but there was no big reaction. Mayhap it was predictable. My gut tells me the coast is clear for flat to upward movement through May, when they might give earnings guidance for the first quarter which I suspect will be neutral to positive. I don't expect o see prices ~3.25 again soon. Not sure whether to act on my gut, though. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 270 Registered: 10-2003 |
SCON (actually "SCOND" using the current symbol) is up from around 3.20 to 3.95-4.18 yesterday and today, a big jump (as much as 30%) on what appears minimal news out yesterday that they will be attending a trade show in Vegas. I'm pretty sure they attend trade shows routingely, so it's far from clear why such an announcement merits such a jump, but this is a profoundly news-driven stock and clearly enough this tidbit of information has motivated a rather substantial move in the share price. What they need to do, of course, is to sell more product and learn how to produce that product at whatever sales volume they can achieve. One might suppose that was simple enough, but of course it's not. I am not sure but I think maybe at one point they had PhD's hand-polishing the little refrigeration pumps they use in their units according to their description of the process, not what I would consider a low-cost production strategy. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 259 Registered: 10-2003 |
Hmm, I suppose if they found a new CFO before May they might announce that. Not sure which way that would kick the stock price. Tentatively the May announcement will probably give them a kick north to one extent or another if the current trend in business continues in the vein of the last quarter. Of course the very departure of the CFO is a warning flag. I attribute their long time under-performance to poor salesmanship rather than financial shenanigans, but who really knows? Is a micro-Enron lurking in the wings? Certainly in the absence of succeeding in business they have had to put a "good face" on things for a long time and it's conceivable they crossed the line somewhere along the way in doing so. Unti now they have seemed squeeky clean to me (not that I'm a really competent judge). | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 258 Registered: 10-2003 |
One entertaining side effect of the reverse split and the associted symbol change (SCON --> SCOND) is that it wiped out the Yahoo message board for the stock. I never much liked that message board, it had all the worst aspects of Yahoo boards and reading it was like swimming in a sewer. The board was extremely active despite the nature of most of the communications on it, and it's absence may affect how rumors about the stock propagate and how the stock is traded. At this point I'm trying to figure out when the next new announcement will likely be. Last year there were a bunch of SEC filings in April related to to proxys and the May 2005 Annual Meeting. I think the first news that impacted stock price was May 5 when they "pre-announced" earnings for the first quarter. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 255 Registered: 10-2003 |
They did the 1-for-10 reverse split Monday and the stock price cratered, bouncing off of 3.21/share (0.32/"old" share) or there abouts by the end of Monday now back to ~3.90. I considers it an ill omen, matey. Aargh! (dunno why I suddenly feel the yen to talk like a pirate) | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 241 Registered: 10-2003 |
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060302/lath089.html?.v=42 They announced earnings today, with a call schedule for after market close. Also, they announced a one-for-ten reverse stock split and the departure of the CFO. The share price is off on the news, more or less the kind of thing I anticipated. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 232 Registered: 10-2003 |
I dumped most of my remaining SCON yesterday, retaining only a 1000-share token position. Essentially I am pretty sure the impact of their earnings report/apology will, with all it's usual overoptimism, not be able to overcome the impact of being de-listed and/or forced to do a reverse split. I may beef up my position if events in March drive it down far enough to tempt me. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 192 Registered: 10-2003 |
Two thirds of the SCON I picked up in December at 0.42 I dumped at 0.61, effectively taking the remaining shares as profit. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 182 Registered: 10-2003 |
PH - yeah, "disingenuous" is the word all right. They have shown no talent for making a profit so far, the "cost" of what they sell is typically more than the revenues and then they add on an administrative expense. How the heck they get the cost of goods up so high I don't know for sure, but I suspect that they hire PhD's to do the work of Joe Sixpack on the assembly line and then pay them as though their brains rather than their hands were being bought. They started out as a research contractor and have yet to master management of low cost manufacturing. However, I think the profitless history of the venture is priced in and speculation among traders runs towards possible future profitability and widespread acceptance of the product, total speculation of course, the stuff dreams are made of (and seasoned with that sexy word "superconductor"). In the end, any optimistic news drives the stock price, disengenuous or not. I'm wrestling with the question of whether greedy investors will drive the price up in advance of the ACTUAL earnings announcement which I expect some time in February - remember that the driver for the present move is a pre-announcement, the first shoe of two. So, the question has to be will there be a pre-earnings run-up in February, and will the potential (probable) delisting scheduled for March 4, 2006, get the spotlight instead of optimistic speculation ahead of the actual earnings announcement. At this point the volume surge after the preannouncement has faded but erosion of price is not yet evident. I think I'll let it ride until next week and see what happens. (Message edited by super on January 13, 2006) (Message edited by super on January 13, 2006) | ||
| Public_heel Moderator Username: Public_heel Post Number: 1813 Registered: 12-2003 |
Super - Might be a good idea to sell while they're only talking about revenues. Given their history of having expense rise to overcome revenue, the fact that they aren't even mentioning expenses seems at least a little disingenuous... | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 181 Registered: 10-2003 |
Posted the following on the Yahoo SCON forum today: Welcome, bears and shorts, to the place of pain! I usually don't bother gloating, but having loaded up at $0.42 in December I simply couldn't resist. I love it when a plan comes together! In the past, rallys in this stock have run roughly 7 trading days, giving this one a couple more to go. I figure to decide Friday whether or not to sell what I bought in December. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 174 Registered: 10-2003 |
The stock price got a nice bump today when they came out with a preannouncement of encouraging revenues. I might be happier if they used the "P-word" (profit) but it's the general sort of scenario I was hoping for when I picked up those shares at $.42 last month. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 166 Registered: 10-2003 |
Well, I picked up some aditional shares near the December low at 0.42. Time will tell if this was a self-destructive maneuver. Hypothetically they might move closer to profitability this year. The alternative of course is implosion after a along history of unprofitability, perhaps preceded by delisting and disinclination of the perpetual suggardaddy contingent to plow more money into a one trick pony with no track record of drawing audiences to it's perpetually lame performances. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 129 Registered: 10-2003 |
Well, the quarterly earnings were not impressive but at least the losses went down a little. If they could get out of their "the more you sell the more you lose" business model it would be nice. As usual, the conference call was full of glowing expectations and rueful regrets and excuses. My connection crapped out halfway through the question-and-answer and I didn't bother to reconnect. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 128 Registered: 10-2003 |
Earnings announcement and conference call today after close of business. Wish I knew what the numbers would be. Folks seem to be gambling on the up side in recent days, but I suspect they know as little as I do. (Message edited by super on November 02, 2005) | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 119 Registered: 10-2003 |
They came out today with an announcement of an earnings call on November 2 after hours: Link Volume seems to have picked up a little and the price is up a bit. I have the nasty suspicion that if they had anything encouraging to announce they would have done it in early October - the last couple of quarters they did pre-announce revenues that were relatively encouraging and their silence this time around is a matter of concern. Heaven knows they've been sued in the past for being optimistic and or gullible when they revealed a purchase agreement from AT&T Wireless that subsequently got canceled, so one has to assume they may be cautious or reticent or both. Since the stock is news-driven I expect some price change Nov 2 and 3. Which way is the question. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 107 Registered: 10-2003 |
Link Superconductor Technologies Inc. Common Stock to be Traded on the NASDAQ Capital Market Beginning October 5th Tuesday October 4, 8:00 am ET SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Oct. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Superconductor Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq: SCON - News; STI), a leading provider of high performance infrastructure products for wireless voice and data applications, today announced that The NASDAQ Stock Market accepted STI's application to transfer its common stock listing from the NASDAQ National Market System to the NASDAQ Capital Market. Effective with the open of business on October 5, 2005, STI's common stock will trade on the Nasdaq Capital Market under its current symbol "SCON." There will be no change in the way STI shares are traded as a result of the listing transfer, and the transfer will not have any effect on shareholders' ability to purchase and sell their common stock. STI is transferring its listing from the National Market System to the Capital Market to secure additional time for regaining compliance with The NASDAQ Stock Market's minimum stock price requirement. The NASDAQ Stock Market has a continued listing requirement of $1.00 per share for both its National Market System and the Capital Market. In April 2005, The NASDAQ Stock Market notified STI that its stock price failed to meet the minimum price requirement and provided STI with 180 days (until October 3, 2005) to regain compliance. Since STI's stock price did not recover by the original deadline and it continues to meet all other listing requirements, STI chose to transfer its listing to the NASDAQ Capital Market and will be granted an additional 180-day grace period (until March 4, 2006) to regain compliance with the minimum price requirement. (Message edited by super on October 04, 2005) | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 106 Registered: 10-2003 |
SCON now seems to be in a pre-earnings selloff of sorts. As I indicated previously, I expect an earnings pre-announcement sometime this around October 7th. Also they could be transferred to the NASDAQ smallcap market shortly before or after the pre-announcement. If the preannouncement is strongly negative there could be quite a selloff due to a double whammy effect, but I'm inclined to expect a neutral to mildly positive pre-announcement. That could lead to a nifty whipsaw in the chart. A risky speculation for sure, though. Any way, heads up, SCON is gonna do SOMETHING I think. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 83 Registered: 10-2003 |
SCON's bollinger range has narrowed way down, a traditional sign that something is likely to happen (heaven only knows what). The volume seems relatively healthy compared to slack periods in the past, and the came out on the 7th of September with an announcement about extending some sort of agreement with one customer, suggesting they are having some success solidifying business relationships under their relatively new management with the increased emphasis on sales. THey are still running below a dollar, though, so presimably the prospect of de-listing from the NASDAQ still looms and is imminent. The 8K announcing the delisting warning can be found here: http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/895665/000127528705001198/st2379.txt (If I read it right they will probably be transferred to the NASDAQ small cap market on October 3 the way things are going.) I would expect that there may be a price glitch around October 3 based on that SEC filing. They also tend to pre-announce revenues a week or so after the end of the quarter (see http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/895665/000127528705002451/sc3034ex991.txt for example) so they may do that in early October after they get listed on the small cap (assuming that happens). What all this means I have no idea, but since this is very much a news-driven stock and news is in the offing I would say the bollinger lines are probably right - something will happen, sooner or later. What remains to be seen. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 44 Registered: 10-2003 |
SCON had a big trading day yesterday, apparently related to a private placement priced at $0.73/share (with options at a higher price thrown in as party favors). I think this priate placement was priced higher than the last, possibly due to the party favors. Historically they have done this repeatedly, financing their continuing operations with private placement money in the absence of any ability to make a profit and stay afloat by other means. I think the previous CEO was addicted to this business plan and really couldn't imagine any other way of running the company (or need for one). The fact that they price the private placements well below market is an aggravation. The alternative, of course, would be to sell stuff for more than it costs to make. That they have yet to demonstrate an ability to do, unless you count the use of stock options as party favors as a clever marketing ploy. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 38 Registered: 10-2003 |
It has been my hope that this outfit would solve it's long-standing problem with achieving market penetration now that the new CEO has the helm. I have seen at least one development phase company transition to profit when a new CEO came in and installed an effective sales force. Brilliant PhD types are fine for developing new products, but not necessarily for selling them in profitable quantities. So, today they announced earnings (no big surprises as I se it after the pre-announement last month), and as usual the CEO chose the occasion to make pronouncements. Quoth the CEO: "Our sales organization is taking action to be more effective in the marketplace, which resulted in a 67 percent increase in our commercial product revenue in the second quarter compared to the prior year's quarter. Strong sales and the benefits of our restructuring efforts drove a significant improvement in our bottom line," stated Jeff Quiram, STI's president and chief executive officer. "We were also successful in managing our inventory levels, reducing the amount by $2.6 million in the quarter. And, we reduced our operating cash burn to $32,000. We are making continual progress in our strategy to become a one-stop shop for wireless operators' sensitivity and interference needs. Our solutions not only improve network performance, but also lower installation and operating expenses for wireless carriers who are deploying new voice and data services." I am encouraged by the words "Our sales organization is taking action..." - it's not the kind of thing the previous CEO would have said. | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 36 Registered: 10-2003 |
I'm not sure, could be a pre-earnings run-up or some obscure boost from something strange elsewhere. I don't see any news stories to explain it, but it's a pattern that has happened before - big moves on high volume which are impossible to predict. My strategy is to hold a modest position at all times, increase it when the stuff is in the dumper, reduce it when it skyrockets and begins to fall back. | ||
| Public_heel Moderator Username: Public_heel Post Number: 192 Registered: 12-2003 |
Super - Any idea what caused the big surge over the last couple of days? | ||
| Super Moderator Username: Super Post Number: 35 Registered: 10-2003 |
I added SCON to the topics list because I just made money on it again today (chortle chortle) and have done so before more than once. It's a bit of a flakey outfit, and scheduled for de-listing by NASDAQ for it's pathetic low price of recent months, but I figure what the heck, it can't be worse than VASO or ABHH. Caveat emptor and all that, at one point this stuff was on the GTZ list, but it has persistently resisted death despite all the gloom sayers and someday it might even manage to turn a profit. On the plus side they had a management change a while back and I think the new CEO has the fear of god in him. On the minus side they have a long history as a money pit and seem to be very much a one-trick pony. One thing for sure, they ARE volatile. As I said, I've taken some nice profits in the past trading this stuff. I've always played long. Your mileage may vary. |
