Dell, Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) has the potential for increased sales due to several new retail partnerships, according to Goldman Sachs analyst Laura Conigliaro. As such, the analyst is taking a much rosier view of the short-term gain potential for the computer maker, which caused shares to spike 3% in yesterday's trading. Okay, that makes sense.But does consumer exposure equal automatic sales? Perhaps, perhaps not. Just judging by the law of averages, Dell will sell more PCs as more Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) and Staples, Inc. (NYSE: SPLS) shelves are stocked with its lower-price PC products. But, the competition is not going away either -- Dell will be sitting side by side with names like Compaq, Acer and Gateway (just to name a few). Is Dell's brand name so strong that it believes sales will just occur? Nope -- the company will have to fight for each one.
Conigliaro did say that Dell's earnings have "a number of opportunities to move higher," and that most of those opportunities are not currently priced into the stock. I agree with that, but opportunities and reality can turn out quite differently. 2008 will be a retail banner year for Dell, but I have doubts that 2007 will be of any significant boost, even with the holiday season approaching rapidly. Dell's name just has not been out there very long (at retail, of course). And, in retail, branding is the largest key to success. Well, outside of pricing.
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