Palm (NASDAQ: PALM) is dead. That has been written before, but now the company needs an official funeral mass. According to The New York Times, "Palm's chief executive, will announce the debut of a new smartphone primarily for business customers - the Treo Pro." The company also has several other handsets in development.

Palm is now up against smartphone products from much larger companies like Samsung and Nokia (NYSE: NOK). Not to mention the Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone.

In the last year, Palm had an operating loss of $105 million on a shrinking revenue base that fell to $1.32 billion. The company has $398 million in current and long-term debt.

Palm is not going to make it as an operating company, but it might be a good licensing entity. That would involve cutting almost all of the company's staff and licensing its brand and product designs to another company, perhaps Samsung or LG. The Palm name still carries some modest weight in the U.S.

Palm's revenue might drop to $100 million, but its costs would be negligible. It would, at least, make a profit, which is something that is out of the question with the company in its current form.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 24/7 Wall St.

Fold Palm; license the brand originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 20 Aug 2008 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Palm (NASDAQ: PALM), the failing smartphone company, has launched a new version of its Treo handset. According to The Wall Street Journal, the new version of the product has newest Windows Mobile operating system, a GPS system and WiFi capability. It will run on the fast Sprint (NYSE: S) 3G network.

The new product is unlikely to help Palm, which trades at $5.42, down from a 52-week high of $19.23. For starters, the Treo will compete with another Sprint product, the well-regarded Samsung Instinct. The Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) 3G iPhone is even more formidable competition. The fact that it sold one million units in its first three days on the market sucks a lot of demand for other products out of the market. And, why not throw in the RIM (NASDAQ: RIMM) BlackBerry.

Palm lost money last quarter. More importantly, the average price of its phones dropped sharply. Selling more handsets only helps so much when the yield-per-units is low.

The Treo may be a good product, but it comes into a crowded field that is already dominated by a few, very well-financed companies with more attractive offerings.

Why would anyone think Palm's shares would rally.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 24/7 Wall St.

Palm launches new Treo, company still done for originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 15 Jul 2008 10:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Many investors will say that the problems with the earnings report at Palm (NASDAQ: PALM) is that the company lost money and that revenue fell. That would be a naive view. The company's real trouble is that the amount it is getting per handset is falling sharply. Its newest product, the Centro, will not help because it is so inexpensive.

With the stock at $6, Palm's market cap is well below $1 billion. Its cash level has been falling and it only has about $250 million of liquid capital on its balance sheet.

Palm sold 968,000 handsets in the last quarter, up 29%. But revenue fell from $401 million to $296 million. That means that the yield-per-phone is so low that Palm may never be able to make money.

It the trend continues, Palm could be gone next year. According to Reuters, "slowing sales of older phones such as the Treo offset strong sales of its new, cheaper Centro phone."

That is a very, very bad trend.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com

Palm (PALM), nearly dead originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 27 Jun 2008 04:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"The more I look at Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) and its new iPhone, the more I consider it to be, perhaps, the most innovative and transformative company in mobile computing today," notes wireless sector expert Nikhil Hutheesing.

The editor of The Forbes Wireless Stock Watch explains, "Put simply, iPhone is a game-changing product, and we are now making the case for investors to buy the stock."

"When Apple first announced its move into the wireless PDA business - in January 2007 when it introduced its iPhone - there was skepticism over whether it would be able to grab market share from incumbents like Research In Motion, which makes the BlackBerry smartphone and Palm which makes Treo handhelds.

"Nobody is doubting Apple today. Steve Jobs' iPhone is in the hands of over four million people and it is now the number two smartphone in the business with a 28% market share. It has surpassed Palm and is nipping at the heels of RIMM's BlackBerry.

"Until recently, iPhone, like Apple's Mac has been a fairly 'closed' universe. It was a great consumer device but it had little presence among large corporate users, the so-called enterprise market. That all changed in March.

Continue reading Apple (AAPL): A 'game-changer'

Apple (AAPL): A 'game-changer' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 11 Apr 2008 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This post is part of our Hottest Products of 2007 feature. Also check out our other Hottest Products of 2007 posts and let us know which product you think is the greatest thing since sliced bread.

I was a reluctant BlackBerry purchaser earlier this year. Urged on by a change in email systems at work, I found I needed one to keep up with internal goings on. I planned to retain my trusty Treo 650 as my "main" handheld -- my one true smartphone -- and just use the BlackBerry occasionally as needed.

But oh, the lure of the "crackberry." I'm hooked! My old Treo 650 from Palm (NASDAQ: PALM) is starting to seem like R2D2 of Star Wars fame. It's still my trusted friend, but a little dated and not quite able to perform the heroics of my World Edition BlackBerry. Shares of Research In Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM), maker of the BlackBerry, have surged this year from $42 to $107 in good part on its success with the 8800 series.

Most important for me, the BlackBerry updates automatically and doesn't need to be synced with my computer -- if a meeting is rescheduled, I can find out en route. It is lightning fast, and emails are all there waiting for me when I have a minute to check -- even on the subway where I can't get a signal.

Continue reading Hottest Products of 2007: BlackBerry 8800 is smartest of the smartphones

Hottest Products of 2007: BlackBerry 8800 is smartest of the smartphones originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 24 Nov 2007 14:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Research In Motion (RIMM): Wrath of values

Research In Motion (RIMM): Wrath of values originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 02 Oct 2007 13:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Palm (PALM) rapidly turning into an aging tech dinosaur

Palm (PALM) rapidly turning into an aging tech dinosaur originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 21 Sep 2007 13:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Palm (PALM) picks up cash, Apple (AAPL) execs originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 13 Sep 2007 10:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

InterDigital (NASDAQ: IDCC) volatility elevated as IDCC rallies off lows on contract win.

IDCC, a designer, developer and provider of wireless technologies, is recently up nearly 13% or $2.75 to $23.96. IDCC signed a seven-year licensing agreement with AAPL on 9/6/07. IDCC has customer licensing agreements with LG, NEC, Sharp, Panasonic, NOK & Sony-Ericsson. IDCC call option volume of 5,379 contracts compares to put volume of 222 contracts. IDCC September option implied volatility of 65 is above its 26-week average of 42 according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional price fluctuations.

Palm (NASDAQ: PALM) October volatility elevated into early October EPS.

PALM is recently down $0.25 to $15.32. PALM is expected to announce EPS on 10/1. PALM is developing a new handset operating system for its Treo product line. The new operating system is expected to be out in late 2008. PALM announced a strategic recapitalization with Elevation Partners on 6/4/07. PALM option implied volatility of 47 is above its 26-week average of 38 according to Track Data, suggesting larger risk.

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts (NYSE: KKD) volatility elevated as KKD trades near historic lows.

KKD operates and franchises 300 doughnut shops with over $450 million in revenue. KKD is down over 27% $1.73 to $4.60. CIBC says, "downgrading to Sector Underperform from Sector Performer on Flagging sales and liquidity concerns." KKD call option volume of 682 contracts compares to put volume of 1,465 contracts. KKD October option implied volatility of 69 is above its 26-week average of 45 according to Track Data, suggesting larger risk.

Daily options Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.

Option update: Volatility elevated in KKD, PALM & IDCC originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 07 Sep 2007 14:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Palm's (PALM) Foleo pulled; financing in question originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 05 Sep 2007 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Gallery: Smartphones, Superphones

Continue reading Smartphones, superphones: iPhone, LG Prada, and Treo + Foleo compared

Smartphones, superphones: iPhone, LG Prada, and Treo + Foleo compared originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 05 Jun 2007 19:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Palm Foleo reviewed: How the Foleo scores in usefulness and coolness

Palm Foleo reviewed: How the Foleo scores in usefulness and coolness originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 05 Jun 2007 04:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) just recently launched its Google Calendar for mobile phone usage (as of last week). Sounds pretty boring, right? Well, to most of us, it is. Google, however, sees the future of where people will be getting information from, and it's not the PC. You see, there are quite a few more mobile phones on the planet these days than PCs, and in more markets (except the U.S., yet), customers are using those nice, color mobile screens and higher-speed cellular networks to check e-mail and browse information (not necessarily websites). As such, Google knows that getting its brand in front of customers in that arena is a key move to its future.

Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) has not sat still either. "Yahoo! Go" is now being downloaded to cellphones, Treos and BlackBerrys in large amounts, putting the entire Yahoo! portal in front of millions of wireless phone subscribers who still need Yahoo!'s services when away from a laptop or other PC. Similarly, Google Calendar for mobile phones is yet another example of the company making many of its products available for cellphone use.

This is significant because as Google customers begin using its services on those hundreds of millions of phones, Google's advertising finesse could, at some point, reap even more revenue from mobile customers. Google already is playing with mobile advertising and if it can recreate (even partially) the success of its online advertising in the mobile phone space, another mold will be broken. In fact, it will be interesting to see if the same kind of battle will shape up between Google and Yahoo! on the mobile phone screen as has happened on the PC screen.

Google delves deeper into mobile phone applications originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 29 May 2007 10:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This week's rumor round-up: Lam Research close to sale? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 25 May 2007 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Rumored Google Phone could impact entire market originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 18 Apr 2007 14:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iPhone - a day later - AAPL continues to climb originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 10 Jan 2007 12:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• The biggest impact was in the "smart phone" space, with Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) and Palm Inc. (NASDAQ: PALM) both getting killed yesterday. RiM dropped 7.85% and Palm dropped 5.69%, most likely because in less than two hours, Steve Jobs proved their phones weren't so smart after all.
• There was a smaller wake left in the traditional handset manufacturer space, with Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) and Motorola Inc. (NYSE: MOT) each dropping a little over 1%. I found this mildly surprising, as the trendy teen market that spends on phones like the Motorola RAZR would seem to me to be the most likely to rush out to buy the iPhone, regardless of its high price point.
• There was absolutely no effect in the telecommunications space. AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), which owns Cingular, rose a meager 13 cents on the news that it would be the exclusive carrier of the phone, and Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) also rose slightly despite getting left out. Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) went to hell yesterday, dropping over 11%, but that was due to an unrelated announcement regarding the company lowering guidance. The lack of movement in telecom signals to me the market's belief that Cingular's exclusivity deal will not last that long.
• Apple rival, Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) also wasn't affected, rising 3 cents on the day, most likely because if the Microsoft Zune couldn't compete with the current generation of iPods, the iPhone being far superior was irrelevant.

Apple iPhone causes wake throughout markets originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 10 Jan 2007 10:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Motorola Q
• Palm Treo 650
• Verizon Wireless XV6700
• Palm Treo 700p
• BlackBerry 8700

A cool source for IT information originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 04 Jan 2007 13:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Revenue for 3Q2007 was $835.1 million, up 26.8% from $658.5 million in the previous quarter
• Revenue was up 49% year-over-year from $560.6 million
• Approximately 875,000 BlackBerry subscriber accounts were added in the quarter. This means BlackBerry is adding customers at or higher rate than wireless voice providers
• At the end of the quarter, the total BlackBerry subscriber account base was approximately 7 million

RIM continues to plow ahead originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 22 Dec 2006 09:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.