The Micro Cap Opportunity
Proven Strategies for the Astute Micro Cap & Nano Cap Stock Speculator
04/28/2008
The MCO Daily - Before the Bell for Tuesday, April 29, 2008
The Micro Cap Opportunity 'Daily'On the Radar: BIHC, PRPM, COPI, UTUC, DCGN, BKHM
This morning's top Micro Cap trading ideas include, BIH Corp. (OTCPK: BIHC), Propalms, Inc. (OTCPK: PRPM), Compliance Systems Corp. (OTCBB: COPI), Utah Uranium Corp. (OTCBB: UTUC), deCODE Genetics, Inc. (NASD: DCGN), Bookham, Inc. (NASD: BKHM).
BIH CORP. (OTCPK: BIHC)
Up 0.00% Yesterday
Detailed Quote: http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=BIHC.PK
Baron International is now a 100% wholly owned subsidiary of BIH Corporation, and we will maintain this pace with any other acquisitions going forward," said Cris Galo, President & CEO of BIH Corporation.
Recent BIHC News:
April 28, 2008 - BIH Corporation Investor Update: Share Structure
BIH Corporation (PINKSHEETS: BIHC) today announced an Investor Update regarding the Company's Share Structure.
The Company has received a multitude of inquiries regarding its Share Structure and in response the following is an exact and official outline of the Company's Capitalization:
Authorized Shares: 180,000,000 Common Shares Outstanding Shares: 87,586,348 Common Shares Restricted Shares: 63,000,000 Common Shares (In Managements Control
And Restricted for Two Years)
Public Float: 24,586,348 Common Shares PROPALMS, INC. (OTCPK: PRPM)
Up 7.41% Yesterday
Detailed Quote: http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=PRPM.PK
Propalms TSE, the complete Server-Based Management solution that extends Microsoft Terminal Services 2000/2003, offers features such as Application Publishing, Seamless Windows, Resource-based Load balancing, and Web-based management consoles.
Recent PRPM News:
April 28, 2008 - Propalms, Inc. to Exhibit Propalms TSE to Over 2,000 Attendees At 2008 Microsoft Launch Wave Event in Atlanta
Propalms, Inc. (Pink Sheets:PRPM) is pleased to announce that the Company will be exhibiting its TSE product at the 2008 Microsoft Launch Wave Event at the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta on April 29, 2008. This launch is a series of events that the Company was invited to join to celebrate Microsoft's new Windows Server 2008, Visual Studio 2008 and SQL Server 2008.
Microsoft estimates that the Atlanta event will reach over 2,000 attendees and the audience will primarily be made up of Technical Decision Makers, Business Decision Makers, IT Professionals, Developers and Database Administrators, amongst others. Propalms will be exhibiting its TSE software in the Microsoft Partner Pavilion. Propalms previously participated at the Microsoft Launch Wave Events in Los Angeles and Dallas, which resulted in positive results for the Company.
"As we attend additional Microsoft Launch Wave Events, we are able to make valuable connections within the industry that will benefit the Company significantly. It is an honor to be a part of the largest outreach to IT Professionals and Developers in Microsoft history and we look forward to exhibiting at future events," stated Owen Dukes, CEO of Propalms, Inc.
To find out more about the 2008 Microsoft Launch Wave Event in Atlanta, please visit: http://www.microsoft.com/heroeshappenhere/events/Atlanta/default.mspx.
Propalms will be hosting a Nationwide Teleconference on May 1, 2008 at 4:15 p.m. EST to update shareholders and the financial community on recent developments. There is expected to be a high demand for the call-in lines for this Nationwide Teleconference and space will be limited. Please call 1-866-THE-APPL(E) today to reserve your place and receive the information that will enable you to participate in the conference.
COMPLIANCE SYSTEMS CORP. (OTCBB: COPI)
Up 63.87% Yesterday
Detailed Quote: http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=COPI.OB
Compliance Systems Corporation (www.callcompliance.com), located in Glen Cove, NY, is a developer of technology-based compliance solutions for the teleservices industry.
Recent COPI News:
April 28, 2008 - Compliance Systems Corporation Hires Microsoft Compliance Expert as VP of Sales
Call Compliance Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Compliance Systems Corporation (OTCBB: COPI), a telecom service company focused on providing compliance technologies and methodologies to the teleservices industry, announced today that it has retained Bernard Goulet, the former National Manager of Regulatory Affairs for FrontBridge Communications (since acquired by Microsoft), as Vice President of Sales.
Mr. Goulet brings to his new role over twenty years of executive sales experience in the technology and financial service industries, most recently with Microsoft Inc. as the Central Region, Unified Communications Services, Partner Account Manager. Having recently experienced success in 2005 with the acquisition of FrontBridge by Microsoft, as VP of Sales Mr. Goulet will focus on bringing Call Compliance's message of regulatory compliance to the Fortune 500 world. The Company's patented TeleBlock(R) solution protects companies from potential liabilities associated with the violation of stringent Do Not Call regulations.
"We enthusiastically welcome Bernie to our team," said Dean Garfinkel, Chief Executive Officer of Compliance Systems Corporation. "We wholeheartedly believe his experience at Microsoft, coupled with his comprehensive knowledge of regulatory compliance and aggressive-industry sales experience, will play an integral role in the growth of our business."
"Bernie's compliance expertise and work ethic helped pique Microsoft's interest in FrontBridge Technologies, eventually catalyzing its acquisition. We are confident of Bernie's abilities and believe he will be instrumental to the execution of our growth strategy, bringing tremendous contributions toward management's commitment to increasing shareholder value," continued Mr. Garfinkel.
About Bernard Goulet
Bernard Goulet was with Microsoft Inc. from 2004 to 2008, where he served as Microsoft's Central Region Partner Account Manager and was responsible for regional relationship management between Microsoft and top-tier partners such as AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and CDW. In this role, Mr. Goulet provided compliance expertise at industry seminars, tradeshows, and partner training sessions across the U.S. and Canada. He was recruited by FrontBridge Technologies in 2004 (later acquired by Microsoft in 2005), and served as the National Manager of Regulatory Affairs for the company until transferred to Microsoft. Mr. Goulet acted as an in-house compliance expert, with a specific concentration on Sarbanes Oxley compliance for publicly traded companies, NASD 3010 and SEC 17a-4 for Broker/Dealers, NASD member firms, registered investment advisors.
Mr. Goulet was a National Account Manager for Global Crossing, a leading telecommunications solutions provider, where he was part of the Financial Services Sales team, that provided connectivity to domestic and international securities exchanges for clients such as Cantor Fitzgerald, Bear Stearns, and Trust Company of the West.
Mr. Goulet has extensive sales and technology experience in the financial services industry. His twenty-year career began on the Chicago Board of Options Exchange in 1987, and he worked as a Series 7 licensed stockbroker conducting institutional sales for Bridge Information Systems Inc. While at Bridge, his customers included Fidelity Management & Research, American Century Investment Management and many other top tier financial services companies.
UTAH URANIUM CORP. (OTCBB: UTUC)
Up 14.00% Yesterday
Detailed Quote: http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=UTUC.OB
Utah Uranium Corporation is a Moab, Utah-based junior exploration and development company focused on the acquisition of highly sought after Fertilizer and Energy related opportunities in addition to cash-flow investments.
Recent UTUC News:
April 28, 2008 - Utah Uranium Corp. Acquires Alberta Potash Property
Utah Uranium Corp. (the "Company") (OTCBB: UTUC) is pleased to announce the acquisition of the Ernestina Lake Potash property, located in the Province of Alberta, Canada. In total, the Company has acquired 192,000 contiguous hectares (474,400 acres) of potash claims, located in east-central Alberta, adjoining the Saskatchewan provincial border.
According to an overview of work conducted by Royal American Petroleums Ltd. in 1966 filed with the Alberta Geological Survey in Mineral Assessment Report (19660009): "The geological strata and basinal effects in the Vermilion area are closely related to the potash-rich areas of Esterhazy, Saskatoon and Unity."
A detailed study of this portion of Alberta showed the presence of a substantial quantity of carnallite and possible sylvite in the Vermillion area in the East Central Plains of Alberta. Literature made available from the Alberta Conservation Board, corroborates this potash occurrence in Alberta.
The potash minerals are found in the Prairie Evaporite section of the Middle Devonian Elk Point Basin. The carnallite and the pinkish potash mineral lie on top of a thick 400 foot section of common salt (halite). A thickness of twelve feet of carnallite was reported to be present and the pinkish and greyish mineral, in all probability sylvite, occurs through the first 80 feet of the Prairie Evaporite. Potash occurs over the upper 150 feet at Esterhazy and in the Saskatoon area.
The potash minerals are of the same composition and depositional sequence and depth as the potash at Unity, Saskatchewan, the location of Canada's first Potash Mine. A possible potash bed occurs at 2600 feet in the Prairie Evaporite which could be an extension of the Unity deposit. The lower deposits are separate but occur at 3500 feet similar to the Saskatoon deposits.
The Company intends to perform additional research on the property, including preparation of a modern 43-101 report on the existing nature of the deposit and the potential extent of the mineralization.
DECODE GENETICS, INC. (NASD: DCGN) Up 16.90% Yesterday
Detailed Quote: http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=DCGN
deCODE is a biopharmaceutical company applying its discoveries in human genetics to the development of drugs and diagnostics for common diseases. deCODE is a global leader in gene discovery -- our population approach and resources have enabled us to isolate key genes contributing to major public health challenges from cardiovascular disease to cancer, genes that are providing us with drug targets rooted in the basic biology of disease. deCODE is also leveraging its expertise in human genetics and integrated drug discovery and development capabilities to offer innovative products and services in DNA-based diagnostics, bioinformatics, genotyping, structural biology, drug discovery and clinical development. deCODE is delivering on the promise of the new genetics(SM). Visit us on the web at www.decode.com; on our diagnostics website at www.decodediagnostics.com; and, for our pioneering personal genome analysis service, at www.decodeme.com.
Recent DCGN News:
April 28, 2008 - deCODE Discovers Fourth Major Set of Common Genetic Variants Linked to Risk of Estrogen Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer
Scientists from deCODE genetics (Nasdaq: DCGN) today report the discovery of two common single-letter variants (SNPs) on chromosome 5 of the human genome that are associated with risk of estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancer. More than 60% of the general population carry at least one copy of the risk variant of the most important SNP, called rs4415084, and women who have inherited the variant from both parents are at approximately 50% greater risk of developing ER+ breast cancer than women who have not inherited the variant. The second variant is located nearby and occurs only in tandem with the first, adding slight risk of the disease. Although these variants confer modest risk, they are so common that they are estimated to account for approximately 11% of breast cancers overall. The paper, 'Common variants on chromosome 5p12 confer susceptibility to estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer,' is published today in the online edition of Nature genetics, at www.nature.com/ng.
With this latest discovery, the genetic factors underpinning a very significant proportion of inherited risk of ER+ breast cancer have now been elucidated. Common variants previously discovered by deCODE on chromosomes 2q35 and 16q12 are together involved in an estimated 25% of ER+ breast cancers. The analysis in today's paper also reveals that a fourth known set of variants, located on chromosome 10q26 and accounting for approximately 16% of breast cancers, appear to confer risk exclusively of ER+ tumors. deCODE is applying these variants as the basis for a DNA-based reference laboratory risk-assessment test the company plans to launch in the coming months. Such a test will allow for the identification of women who may benefit from regular screening with standard as well as new, high-resolution technologies. The American Cancer Society now recommends that women who are at a 20-50% above- average risk of breast cancer should consider undergoing annual magnetic- resonance imaging (MRI) scans as well as mammograms.
"Within the past two years we have identified specific sequence variants that underlie much of the inherited risk of the common forms of breast cancer, the most frequently diagnosed cancer in women. And we have now reached a long awaited tipping point in this progress: the ability to identify, through a simple genetic test, a large proportion of women who are at a clinically- meaningful risk of the disease. The rationale for such testing is all the more compelling in ER+ cancers, since drugs such as tamoxifen have been shown to be successful in preventing as well as treating these cancers, and other drugs now in development may prove to be safe as long-term prophylactic therapy as well. deCODE's pioneering work in this field has also demonstrated that ER+ and ER- breast cancer appear to have distinct genetic bases, a phenomenon which may open the way to a better understanding of the nature, treatment and prevention of breast cancer in general. One of the most pressing next steps in this research is to analyze these results in large cohorts of women of non- European descent," said Kari Stefansson, CEO of deCODE.
deCODE made today's discovery through the analysis of genotypic data from a total of nearly 40,000 patients and control subjects from five countries. The deCODE team analyzed both genome-wide data on some 300,000 SNPs, supplemented by data on a much smaller number of SNPs on chromosome 5p12.
BOOKHAM, INC. (NASD: BKHM)
Up 8.15% Yesterday
Detailed Quote: http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=BKHM
Bookham, Inc. is a leading provider of high performance optical products, spanning from components to advanced subsystems. The company designs and manufactures a broad range of solutions tailored for the telecommunications optical infrastructure and selected markets, including industrial, life sciences, semiconductor, and scientific. The Company utilizes proprietary core technologies and a vertically integrated manufacturing organization to provide its customers with cost-effective and innovative devices, as well as flexible, scalable product delivery. Bookham is a global company, headquartered in San Jose, Calif., with leading edge chip fabrication facilities in the UK and Switzerland, and manufacturing sites in the USA and China.
Bookham and all other Bookham, Inc. product names and slogans are trademarks or registered trademarks of Bookham, Inc. in the USA or other countries.
Recent BKHM News:
April 28, 2008 - Bookham Third Quarter Fiscal Year 2008 Financial Results Represent Strong Year-Over-Year Improvement
Bookham, Inc. (Nasdaq: BKHM), a leading provider of optical components, modules and subsystems, today announced financial results for its third quarter of fiscal year 2008, ended March 29, 2008.
Third Quarter Fiscal 2008 GAAP Results
Revenue for the third quarter of fiscal 2008 was $59.7 million, an increase of 33 percent from $45.0 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2007 and 1 percent over the second quarter of fiscal 2008.
Gross margin in the third fiscal quarter was 22 percent, up 12 percentage points from 10 percent in the same quarter last year and down 1 percentage point from last quarter. Third quarter fiscal 2008 net loss of $5.4 million, or a net loss of $0.05 per share, compares with a net loss of $24.3 million, or a net loss of $0.35 per share, in the third quarter last year, and a net loss of $5.2 million, or a net loss of $0.06 per share, last quarter.
Cash, cash equivalents, short term investments and restricted cash at the end of March 2008 were $54.7 million, compared with $64.7 million at the end of the December 2007.
Third Quarter Fiscal 2008 Non-GAAP Results
Adjusted EBITDA for the third fiscal quarter was negative $1.1 million, an improvement of approximately $13.0 million when compared with negative Adjusted EBITDA of $14.1 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2007. Adjusted EBITDA in the second quarter of fiscal 2008 was positive $0.3 million.
Non-GAAP gross margin of 23 percent, which excludes stock compensation of $380,000, represents an increase of 12 percentage points from 11 percent in the third quarter of fiscal 2007. Non-GAAP gross margin last quarter was 24 percent.
Third quarter fiscal 2008 non-GAAP net loss of $3.4 million, or $0.03 per share, compares with a non-GAAP net loss of $18.7 million, or net loss of $0.27 per share, in the third quarter of fiscal 2007 and a non-GAAP net loss of $1.1 million, or a net loss of $0.01 per share, in the prior quarter. A reconciliation table of non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP measures is included in the financial tables section of this release and further discussion of these measures is also included later in this release.
Non-cash stock and option-based compensation for the third quarters of fiscal 2008 and fiscal 2007, and the second quarter of fiscal 2008, were $1.2 million, $1.3 million and $2.7 million, respectively. Included in the second quarter fiscal 2008 results were $1.5 million of expense related to performance based vesting of stock.
"The year-over-year financial improvement is very significant and the result of the initiatives implemented last year to increase revenue and lower costs. Increased revenue came mostly from strategic products that are important to our long-term success. These include tunable products, 980nm pumps, and high power lasers. Also, the cost reduction measures we put in place have yielded approximately $9 million in quarterly infrastructure savings from the December 2006 quarter levels and have reduced product costs," said Alain Couder, president and CEO of Bookham Inc. "Our outlook for the remainder of calendar 2008 is positive. We continue to see increasing demand for our newer telecom products, and we are reducing our non-telecom product manufacturing overheads through leveraging our low-cost Shenzhen manufacturing facility. These cost improvements should translate into better margin results. We believe that continued revenue growth, margin improvement on our new products, and overhead cost management during the second half of 2008 will result in a transition to positive cash flow from operations before the end of the calendar year."
Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2008 Outlook
For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2008, ending June 28, 2008, excluding restructuring and other non-recurring charges, the Company expects:
-- Revenue in the range of $58 million to $63 million -- Non-GAAP gross margin between 21 percent and 25 percent -- Adjusted EBITDA of negative $3 million to positive $1 million The forecasts provided are based on current
expectations. These statements are forward looking, and actual results may
differ materially. Please see the Safe Harbor statement in this release for a
description of certain important risk factors that could cause actual results
to differ, and refer to Bookham's most recent annual and quarterly reports on
file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for a more complete
description of the risks. Furthermore, our outlook excludes items that may be
required by GAAP such as restructuring and related costs, acquisition or
disposal related costs, expenses or income from certain legal actions,
settlements and related costs outside our normal course of business,
impairments of goodwill and other long-lived assets for which the likelihood
and amounts are not determinable at this time, extraordinary items, as well as
the expensing of stock options and restricted stock grants under SFAS 123R. Conference Call
Bookham is scheduled to hold a conference call to discuss its third quarter fiscal 2008 financial results today at 4:30 p.m. ET/1:30 p.m. PT. To access the call, dial (480) 629-9039. A live webcast of the call will also be available in the Investors section of the Company's website at http://www.bookham.com. A replay of the conference call will be available through May 5, 2008. To access the replay, dial (303) 590-3030. The passcode for the replay is 3866805.
