2002
www.nortelnetworks.com
Friday Oct 4, 2002 cbc NORTEL SHAKES UP EXECUTIVE SUITES
Struggling to get back to profitability, Nortel Networks
has announced changes in its executive ranks and said it will divide its
largest business unit into two separate divisions. Nortel said the moves
will help the company streamline its operations.
Tuesday Sep 10, 2002 cbc
JOHN ROTH SELLS LAST OF NORTEL SHARES
Former Nortel CEO John Roth has sold the last of his Nortel shares,
according to documents filed with the Ontario Securities Commission.
See Also W-N: Nortel chart/T-NT page |
2 year chart | (T-NT | US;NT Quote) | Globe | NYTimes | CA:NT news | a Voice
& Wed #977 with Larry Macdonald's Book on Nortel
 |
(CP/HO)
Nortel's new CEO, Frank Dunn, said Wednesday that he's focused on slimming down the company to return to profitability, not on consolidating the telecommunications equipment industry. (CP/HO)
|
7/Oct/2001 Latest Nortel job cuts bite into highly skilled workers: R&D at risk?![[Version en français]](//www.wednesday-night.com/images/fr.gif)
TORONTO (CP) - Canada won't be unscathed by the latest job cuts at Nortel Networks, and Nortel employees remaining to be laid off after previous downsizings are likely highly skilled professionals - whose departure raises questions about the company's research capabilities.
"Many of those people will be talented researchers, scientists and engineers and others who won't be around to help Nortel take advantage of the boom that we will see down the road in both wireless and fibre-optic technologies," said David Ellis of Omnia Communications in Toronto.
Fri 10/12/01 In less than a year, the name Nortel Networks has become
synonymous with massive failure. It isn't hard to find people
willing to explain how it happened. In some ways, the
explanation is simple: In a time when business was booming and
capital was easy to get, Nortel expanded at a phenomenal pace.
Like others of its ilk, it bought other companies for inflated
prices using its highly valued stock, while also building new
plants and ramping up for what was expected to be a long run of
high demand.
Carol spotted the first twinges of pain in the Nortel camp:
That this demand disappeared along with easy capital is perfect
hindsight. A company ramping up for 30% annual growth suddenly
stumbled into a deep hole of 30% declining growth. All those new
product lines, all that new plant capacity, all those employees
were suddenly costly and meaningless. Nortel also faced "Juniperization" from Ciena:
Like other industry giants - Lucent Technologies and Motorola
come to mind - Nortel seems determine to take its bad medicine
in one large gulp. The company has backed out of major product
arenas, including access gear and much of the Operation and
Support System infrastructure, to focus on where it believes
money can be made.
When the heavy stuff came down, Nortel began playing musical
chairs:
If there is any silver lining left for the Canadian
manufacturer, it is this: Nortel still knows what it takes to
deliver services over networks. This week, the company set about
proving that, following the massive job cuts and $3.9 billion
quarterly loss announced the previous week with a string of
announcements all built around Internet Protocol-based services.
The first of these highlighted Nortel's Intelligent Internet
strategy, but what followed was perhaps more impressive: A
series of customer wins, culminating with the announcement of a
contract with Qwest Communications to build a packet-based
network that will ultimately replace Qwest's circuit network for
carrying all traffic, including voice. Qwest will use Nortel's
new softswitch, the Succession Communication Server 2000. Who won the musical chairs? Been there, Dunn that:
This is the first major good news out of Nortel in some time,
and it could well explain how the company views its strengths
going forward.
"We believe all the technology and intelligence exists to help
build IP services, but all these pieces need to be packaged,
both for service providers and for enterprises," says Mark
Tharby, vice president of Intelligent Internet and a veteran of
Nortel ATM product development who recently came back into data
services from an 18-month sojourn into wireless. "The issue of
creating services and service platforms needs to be looked at
holistically, from both sides." We recently speculated on what would happen if Nortel or Lucent
bought the farm:
Nortel's Intelligent Internet product suite will combine its
Passport switch, a layer 2/3 unit with the Alteon Web-switching
technology the company acquired to create content-aware
switching that manages traffic at layers 4-7. Also part of the
package is the Shasta subscriber-management and services-
provisioning software. Shasta has comptetitors:
But what will matter more than the specific parts is the success
of the integration story. Making the transition to new services
simpler is certainly a compelling value proposition. Service
providers need a way of selling data services beyond basic
access, since even high-speed access has been commoditized.
Enterprise customers need a means to provide many of these same
services internally and to better use the bandwidth that is
available to them.
Tharby says Nortel has acknowledged these issues and is working
directly to address them. There are other pieces to the "new"
Nortel puzzle to be announced in coming weeks as well.
"This isn't just a marketing exercise; we've reorganized our R&D
around an integrated-solutions story," Tharby emphasizes.
It's significant to note that Nortel has reinvented itself more
than once in the past dozen years, with mixed results. The
company tried to jump on the Sonet bandwagon way back in 1989,
when Sonet was new, by announcing a sweeping product strategy -
if memory serves, it had a goofy name like FiberWorld - but
found itself out of step with how service provider customers
wanted to introduce this amazing new technology, which was in
smaller network rings at lower speeds.
It was called "FiberWorld." In this 1997 letter to
shareholders, Nortel credited that "vision" with "enabling the
explosion of data communications that triggered the growth of
the Internet." Put Nortel on the pile with Al Gore:
After a few years of misdirection, the company bounced back with
the industry's first OC-192 product and captured a significant
segment of the market before competitors had time to respond.
The company was late to wireless but managed to leapfrog
competitors' products in catching up. The same strategy failed
in the DSL arena -- Nortel's OneMeg Modem may have been a better
mousetrap, but it came along as industry players were seeking
standards. Here's the skinny on the Qwest deal:
The Intelligent Internet seems to play to Nortel's strengths,
which means its success is likely to come down to execution.
Assuming there are enough bright people left within the company
who are not thoroughly demoralized by what has happened thus far
in 2001, this one could fly.
Fri 9/7/01 NORTEL FACES 12-MONTH "DROUGHT" AHEAD: ROTH
Nortel Networks has at least another 12 months of "drought" ahead of it,
the company's CEO John Roth told a Calgary business gathering on Friday.
cbc.ca/cgi-bin/view?/news/2001/09/07/nortel_010907
Wednesday-night.com/chart/T-NT.htm
Tue 8/21/01 Canadian Core Guided Portfolio - Removing Nortel Networks
We have removed Nortel Networks from the Canadian Core Guided Portfolio. Our decision to remove the Company at this point in time is based on the issue of suitability. The fact is that Nortel Networks no longer meets the criteria we set forth for companies in the Core Portfolio. Those criteria include consistent and visible earnings growth, certain other financial performance thresholds, a positive rating from both our fundamental and quantitative analysts. The outlook for Nortel over the next six to 12 months is uncertain. The magnitude of the downturn in spending by telecommunications carriers on networking equipment is unprecedented and is expected to continue into 2002. As a result of current market conditions, Nortel has been forced to reduce its headcount by almost one- third, written-off inventories, and has reported staggering financial losses. We do not anticipate that Nortel will return to profitability until the first half of 2002. Despite our earlier reservations and decision not to remove Nortel from the Portfolio, the Core Portfolio has continued to outperform the market by a considerable margin. That is itself a testament to the portfolio approach, which ensures proper diversification and a reduction in overall portfolio risk. Year-to-date, the Canadian Core Guided Portfolio is down approximately 7% versus a 16% decline for the TSE 300. Since inception (September 15, 1999), the Canadian Core Portfolio is up 36% versus a gain of 6% for the TSE 300. We have not identified a suitable replacement for Nortel in the Core Portfolio at this time. - Portfolio Advisory Group
Wednesday-night.com/chart/T-NT.htm
Fri 8/10/01 7:00 PM NORTEL LOSES TITLE AS CANADA'S BIGGEST COMPANY
Nortel Networks, once so dominant on the Canadian business scene that it
was more than 10 times bigger than the next largest company, was
surpassed for a time by Royal Bank Friday as the largest firm in Canada.
cbc.ca/cgi-bin/view?/news/2001/08/10/nortel100801
Wed 6/27/01 FORMER EMPLOYEES SUE NORTEL OVER PENSIONS
A group of disgruntled former employees of Nortel Networks have launched
a class action lawsuit against the company.
montreal.cbc.ca/cgi-bin/templates/view.cgi?/news/2001/06/27/nortelmtl010627
Wed 4/4/01 On the involuntary side, Nortel will axe 15,000 jobs in an
effort to reduce operating expenses resulting from the economic
downturn. Although those departures have gotten most of the
press coverage, a number of high-profile executives recently
have fallen on their own pink slips, so to speak.
Worried that these layoffs will affect service and support?
Go to a Nortel users' group, like this one for the Meridien PBX:
www.innmug.org/flash.html and www.innmug.org/information/nortel.html
The most recent to exit was Don Smith, the president of the
company's optical-networking business.
Fri 3/30/01 Bear crashes executives' stock-option party
By: DON MACDONALD
The nasty backlash over the pay package of Nortel Networks CEO John Roth is a signal that obscene stock-option plans for top executives might be following dot-coms, rocketing IPOs and merger mania into the history books of the great bull market of the 1990s.
For Nortel, the optics couldn't be worse: Roth cashes in $123.5 million in stock options and then presides over the devastating collapse of the company's share price and the elimination of 15,000 jobs.
March 19,2001 With the war of words escalating between the two optical powerhouses, it’s time for a reality check
In recent weeks the optical networking industry has witnessed both a coronation and a public flogging. Since disclosing earnings on consecutive days in February, Ciena, which reported phenomenal numbers, and Nortel Networks, which turned in dismal ones, have become poster companies for everything that's good and bad in the optical networking arena.
www.theneteconomy.com/article.asp?section=3&article_id=031901_net_4
Wed Mar 14 2001 NORTEL CEO ROTH MADE $100 MILLION US IN 2000
Nortel shareholders may have seen the value of their holdings shrink
dramatically last year. But Nortel CEO John Roth made out just fine,
pocketing about $100 million US, thanks to lucrative stock options of $88 million US .
cbc.ca/cgi-bin/view?/news/2001/03/14/nortel010314
Tue 3/13/01 7:00 PMROTH GIVEN $6 MILLION US BONUS LAST YEAR
Here's something for Canadians to consider while they're filling out
their tax returns: John Roth, the head of Nortel Networks, was paid a $6
million US bonus in 2000. Roth was paid "almost $6 million" in "short-term incentive compensation" in 2000, up $1.8 million from 1999, the Globe and Mail reported Tuesday. In 1999, Roth was paid $7.2 million in total, including $2.2 million from cashing in stock options. ..he cashed in stock options worth more than $80 million.
cbc.ca/cgi-bin/view?/news/2001/03/13/roth_010313
SCI-TECH-Notes.htm
|
22 November 2000
Nortel
It all began when Nortel Networks Corp.(NT/TSE) hired several thousand engineers and scientists in the 1960s to staff its embryonic research laboratories in the Ottawa area. Some of those professionals subsequently left the labs to set up businesses nearby, contributing to the formation of a cluster of technology companies now known as Silicon Valley North.
In the 1970s and 1980s, the Nortel labs unleashed new technologies that revolutionized the switching of calls on telephone networks. In the 1990s, the Nortel labs and an offshoot, JDS Uniphase Corp. (JDU/TSE), played a major role in the construction of the Internet. Other Ottawa-area companies were also involved in creating the New Economy.
What put Nortel and JDS Uniphase at the heart of the Internet revolution was their expertise in fibre-optic transmission systems. Possessing several thousand times more capacity than copper-based systems, their broadband pipes and parts better accommodated the explosion of Internet traffic on telephone networks.
The two Canadian powerhouses have emerged, in fact, as world leaders in fibre optics. Nortel launched optical networks based on 10-gigabit lasers back in 1996, a feat that nearest rival, Lucent Technologies Inc., only managed to replicate several years later. JDS Uniphase has become the dominant supplier of optical components to Nortel, Lucent and other optical-networking companies.
While rivals struggle to catch up, the fibre-optic giants in Silicon Valley North continue to leap ahead. For example, Nortel ran field trials for 20-gigabit systems in 1999 and demonstrated a 40-gigabit system at a recent trade show. The capabilities of Nortel's optical products are doubling every nine months.
Technology gurus such as George Gilder believe Nortel and JDS Uniphase have the potential to be the Intels and Microsofts of this decade. He and other analysts believe fibre-optic devices are now at the start of a lengthy growth trajectory, similar to where integrated circuits were in the early 1980s.
If Nortel and JDS Uniphase continue on their torrid growth paths, shareholders are in for the rides of their lives. Gains in the range of 10,000% to 30,000% are possible over the next seven to 10 years if the historical returns on Intel and Microsoft stock are any guide.
Shares in other technology companies in the Ottawa area may not have as much potential, but they are nevertheless tied to the New Economy and are positioned to deliver attractive gains over the long run. Some noteworthy examples are:
Cognos Inc. (CSN/TSE), a dominant provider of business-intelligence software now leading the way from the client-server environment to the Web.
Entrust Technologies Inc. (ENTU/Nasdaq), whose market-leading Internet security products are positioned to ride the boom in e-commerce.
GSI Lumonics Inc. (LSI/TSE), a dominant supplier of laser-based manufacturing systems -- somewhat reminiscent of JDS Uniphase in its niche.
Appreciation in the shares of New Economy companies will not be a straight line upward. Indeed, most are faltering in the second and third quarters of 2000 on fears their rich market valuations are vulnerable to an earnings slowdown -- a distinct possibility given the drag of six increases in the Federal Reserve discount rate over the past 18 months.
By the time the Federal Reserve is ready to loosen, the wave of euphoria, already ebbing, may have turned into a pool of pessimism. Market valuations could by then be more reasonable, presenting an opportunity for long-term investors to buy at good prices.
Larry MacDonald is a technology columnist and author of Nortel Networks: How Vision and Innovation Created a Network Giant. He can be reached at; mccolumn@yahoo.com
20/Dec/2000 Wireless Web a mess
By: LARRY MACDONALD
We marvel at the spider's web - so elegant and precise is the endeavour. The same cannot be said, alas, of the wireless Web.
Rather, the effort to connect a plethora of cell phones, handhelds, pagers and other mobile devices to the Internet resembles more the melee that follows the trampling of an ant hill.
22/Nov/2000 Web to go: carry the Net with you
By: LARRY MACDONALD
The fall Comdex technology fair is the largest annual trade show in North America, a status it easily maintained last week when over 200,000 attendees gathered to discover the "next big thing" among the countless new gadgets displayed by 2,300 companies in booths spread over one million square feet of floor space.
Las Vegas cabbies, as in years past, complained that the Comdex group, mostly young men, were poor tippers on their trips to the exhibits, gaming tables and Sherri's Ranch.
21/Nov/2000 Nortel Networks (NT - $55.10) Recommendation: 1-Strong Buy Target: $122.00
Do see our [NT] Nortel chart & notes
2/Nov/2000 Nortel reassures investors
Canadian tech giant, Nortel said it expects to grow in the range of 40
per cent in both revenues and earnings per share for this year.
cbc.ca/cgi-bin/view?/news/2000/11/01/nortel001101
26/Oct/2000 ORDERS TO SELL NORTEL FLOOD TSE
Shares of Nortel Networks are trading at a hectic pace on the Toronto
Stock Exchange, as a mass sell-off of the telecommunications giant
continued for a second straight day.
cbc.ca/cgi-bin/view?/news/2000/10/26/nortelnews001026
Nortel stabilizes as TSE struggles to keep up
Nortel shares slipped slightly lower Thursday in heavy trading that was
complicated by yet another trading halt in Nortel stock at the Toronto
Stock Exchange.
cbc.ca/cgi-bin/view?/news/2000/10/26/nortel2001026
25/Oct/2000
Canada's favourite stock tumbles
Poor results spark Nortel selloff: Millions of Canadians hit by high-tech firm's $66-billion loss and
Optical gear slows: Roth still bullish on capital spending by traffic carriers Michael Lewis Financial Post
Nortel Networks (NT-$96.10cdn) Recommendation: 1-Strong Buy Target: $122.00 cdn
We are reducing our one-year share price target to C$122.00 from C$136.00 but maintaining our positive stance and 1-Strong Buy recommendation for Nortel (NT-TSE). NT reported Q3/00 EPS of US$0.18 versus our estimate (and consensus estimate) of US$0.17 but revenues for the quarter were slightly lower than expected as sales from NT's optical business line did not grow compared with the second quarter. NT cited two reasons for the decline in optical sales: 1) NT's customers had built an excess inventory of OC 192 equipment in Q2/00 and therefore did not require as much product in Q3/00 (we view this situation as temporary); and 2) there appears to be a bottleneck in the installation of new systems at customers' networks caused by the high tech labour shortage in the U.S. Overall, we do not believe there is any shortage of demand for Nortel's OC 192 product line and that this business remains incredibly healthy. NT's wireless segment generated very strong results with year-to-date EPS growth of 35%. We also believe that this decline in sales does not signal a broader problem with NT. Our bullish stance is based on the fact that NT's business fundamentals continue to be very strong. - G. Papageorgiou.
24/Oct/2000 Nortel Networks (NT-$67.34us $102.00cdn) Recommendation: 1-Strong Buy Target: $90us $136.00 cdn
We maintain our 1-Strong Buy recommendation and price targets of C$136.00 (one-year) and C$160.00 (two-year) for Nortel (NT-TSE) ahead of the company's release of third quarter financial results after the close of trading today. We expect Nortel to meet or exceed our (and consensus) estimate of U$0.17. Reasons for our positive view include: 1) strong quarterly results from at Corning (a supplier to Nortel) driven by robust demand for optical networking technologies; 2) better than expected results from Applied Micro Circuits (20% of its revenue goes to NT) which saw revenue growth of 31%; 3) further capacity expansions at NT's optical carrier plant in Montreal; and 4) continued rapid growth in the overall optical networking market. We also believe that NT is continuing to garner market share from Lucent (LU-NYSE) for sales of NT's fastest growing product, the OC-192. We expect Nortel's future business strategy to deliver on a next generation product (OC-768) by the summer of 2001. We believe the premium multiple that Nortel's shares currently trade at versus its competitors is warranted by the strong business strategy and higher EPS growth expectations from NT. - G. Papageorgiou
NORTEL PROFITS BEAT ESTIMATES BUT SALES DISAPPOINT
Nortel has reported profits of $574 million US or 18 cents US a share
for the third quarter, beating analysts' estimates by a penny. But the
revenue figures disappointed and the stock was hammered in extended
hours trading.
cbc.ca/cgi-bin/view?/news/2000/10/24/nortelteaser001024
2/Oct/2000 Nortel Networks (NT-$59.65us $90.35cdn) Recommendation: 1-Strong Buy Target: $90us $136.00cdn
We reiterate our 1-Strong Buy recommendation and one/two-year target prices of C$136.00/C$159.00 following the announcement that NT has obtained a contract with London-based Cable and Wireless to plan, design, implement and operate a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) backbone network for the Company. The contract is worth $1.4 billion over a ten-year period. We recognize this as a significant contract in size but more importantly in terms of trend. The shift in business strategy to transmit voice data over IP has been dominated by CISCO Systems so NT's gaining this contract is a testiment to its ability to compete in this high growth area. Our 1-Strong Buy recommendation is supported by: 1) Growth: we expect NT to experience tremendous revenue growth in optical product line over the next two years; 2) EPS Forecast: we believe there is potential upside for the consensus EPS forecast in 2000 and 2001; 3) Business Strategy: NT is well positioned regarding concerns about Telco capex and financing; 4) Product Strength: we believe that overall, NT has the best product portfolio in the industry, especially in optics; 5) Expansion: we expect NT to further build its positions in other product areas (terrestrial transmission and router markets). Continue to Buy. - Portfolio Advisory Group.
Thursday, September 28, 2000 Nortel Networks (NT-$58.58cdn $88.70cdn) Recommendation: 1-Strong Buy Target: $90us $136.00cdn
We are reinitiating coverage of NT with a 1-Strong Buy recommendation and one-year target price of C$136.00. Five reasons to buy NT include: 1) strong revenue growth forecast (35% growth forecast through 2001 driven by optical sales, wireless, access and switching business segments) ); 2) upside potential to consensus forecasts (we believe the Company's revenue and EPS forecasts are conservative); 3) its strong position r/e concerns on telecom capex (supported by superior, higher speed, more efficient products and better customer financing position versus competitors); 4) superior product strength (overall breadth of products for core infrastructure plus rising market share of optics business to 43%); and 5) potential expansion (we expect NT to use its strength in optics to strengthen its position in other product areas). We are using a combination of 75x target multiple on forward EPS (high but supported by its position as industry leader) plus a DCF model to arrive at our one-year target price of C$136.00. While the fundamentals for NT are strong, the Portfolio Advisory Group notes that recent stock price volatility warrants a cautious approach to adding to positions currently and would wait for an indication of stability prior to aggressively purchasing NT. - G. Papageorgiou.
Tuesday, September 12, 2000 Nortel Networks (NT US$68.00 Cdn$103) Recommendation: n.a. Target: n.a.
Nortel Networks has seen its share price decline 17.5% in the past five trading sessions as profit concerns in the technology sector and technical factors have triggered weakness in the stock on increasing volume. Yesterday witnessed significant intraday volatility with a $8.85 spread between the day's high and low prices. Although Nortel's long-term upward trend is intact, the recent weakness in the stock warrants attention. We would wait for Nortel to hold support at $100 before buying. If Nortel were to break $100, we see the next level of support at $91 per share. Nortel rallied 50% between June and the end of July and the recent weakness may be part of a consolidation of those gains. - Portfolio Advisory Group SM
Sept 6, Wednesday-Night said SELL at $85us or $128.62cdn
Nortel pushes US$100B merger Wants Corning's lines:
Also on horizon: US$1.9B expansion, plus 9,600 new jobs
a combination that would eclipse the US$47.4-billion union
of rival fibre-optic parts makers JDS Uniphase and SDL Inc.
announced two weeks ago
see also Tuesday, July 25, 2000 Can two cultures
go happily into one strand of fibre?
David Olive, Senior Writer National Post
|
 |
 |
Web Search |
|
|
|
|
click for quote window & menu.
then if it gets lost click PopQuote... in Windows 'Quick Launch' bar
© 1997 by David T. Nicholson
Please phone (514)934-0023 for a human
or e-mail us your thoughts.
33 Rosemount Ave
Westmount
Que H3Y 3G6
Canada
