Questions on Technology Stocks

I wanted to post my high level thoughts on three technology stocks that I was asked to consider.

Applied Micro Devices (NYSE: AMD) - I am nervous about this stock because they’ve never been able to get over the hump. I tempted to call them a dog with fleas. There is reason to be concerned as the Board of Directors (BOD) canned the CEO because they thought he wasn't built for the next wave in the PC industry… tablets. It is mind boggling that the CEO may not steer the company in the right direction. How hard is the chip sector to understand, smaller devices (phones, tablets, netbooks) is the direction to go.

URB Recommendation – Pass on this pup



Coinstar (NASDAQ: CSTR) - I have really liked this stock for quite a few years now. This one qualifies as one that got away because I liked it back when it was in the $20 range. I won’t take any credit because a friend who is very loyal to Motley Fool uncovered this gem awhile back and has held ever since. Not many realize they are the brains behind Redbox, which everyone seems to be familiar with. There stock recently fell (roughly 25%), I believe out of concern that the company was being squeezed on their margins.

URB Recommendation – Need more research to identify buying opportunity


Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) – I learned from my Napster days if it’s so simple and convenient for people to adopt, then it will be a hit. And Netflix definitely qualifies for this category. I have not used the service but they took off and never looked back. This story definitely qualifies as one that I left get away and I’ve been watching closely. I don’t necessarily like what I see at this point: Plump valuation, hedge funds taking the opposite position, and new competitors popping up everyday. I see this now as a crowded space. They are facing new competition from Hulu, Apple TV, Google TV, DVR's, Redbox, etc.

URB Warning – The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) recently quit, which is strange?!?! Also, when the hedge funds came out shorting and talking bad about the company…the CEO responded….ODD, as CEO don’t you have anything better to do?!?!?

URB Recommendation – More tempted to short this stock, but don’t feel bad about doing nuthin!