NEW SPLIT CANDIDATE PLAYS

PLXS - Plexus Corporation $81.00 (+9.37)

As omnisciently observed by the late and great John Lennon, "Reality leaves a lot to the imagination." We think the legendary Beatle would have agreed the pseudo-converse is true, as well. At least in the electronics manufacturing services industry where imagination leaves a lot of work to become reality. On that note, we introduce our first Split Candidate Play on product realization company Plexus Corporation. Plexus is a contractual developer of products for OEMs in the communications, industrial controls, medical, transportation, computer, and computer peripherals industries. The Company recently received two prestigious Service Excellence Awards by Technology Forecasters, Inc. and Circuits Assembly Magazine that recognized their superior technology and responsiveness. Wall Street has acknowledged the Company, as well, with the past 3 analyst opinions on PLXS initiated at or upgraded to Strong Buys. Last month, Plexus came out with earnings of $0.49 per share, which was 4 cents ahead of street expectations and 44.1 percent superior to the year-ago quarter earnings of $0.34. This was the third consecutive street-beating quarter earnings report. Other recent news includes the completion of the OEM caterer's acquisition of privately held Agility Inc. With 60 million PLXS shares authorized for issuance and 15.2 million outstanding, the Company has more than enough stock to initiate a 2:1 split. Short of an unforeseen Board of Directors meeting, we see the nearest trigger event for a split announcement to be the next earnings release on July 19th. Being that the last split announcement, which came with Plexus' July 1997 earnings release, saw a 59% pre-announcement run-up from mid-May of that year, we believe the timing for an entry could be ideal. Another plus is the demonstrated relative strength with PLXS's sustained outperformance of its tech-kindred; a great asset in this volatile market. Moreover, technical indicators are suggesting favorable performance to come. PLXS made a clean break out of its ascending triangle Friday, instantaneously bursting through uncharted resistance of $80 and setting a new high at $81.75. These two undeniably bullish signs are fortified with the fact that the stock held above this level to close at $81.00 after a late day rally, in opposition of the broader market's sell off. Ultimately, Friday's session saw the price up +3.12 on almost 2X the ADV of 247 thousand. Since the stock is at its new all-time high, no natural resistance exists; we look for new continued highs on good volume and strong momentum. Established and psychological support is at the previous resistance level of $80 and further at the 5-day DMA of $78. A bounce off $78 or a break above $82 on heavy volume could offer good entry points. Should the stock plunge in a "yellow submarine" below $78 on Monday's open, however, we won't enter a position. Otherwise, a suggested stop is $75.00. We are unsure of our exit point at this time; however, we will be watching closely and will keep you apprised.

Picked on May 14th @ $81.00 Change since picked +0.00

SEBL - Siebel Systems, Inc. $129.00 (-4.44)

Run Siebel, run! We reinitiate a Split Candidate Play on Siebel Systems in hopes that it will soon launch a split run with the coming of a shareholder meeting early next month. On April 16th, we dropped our most recent play of the global eBusiness application software supplier when it violated our stop of $95.00. The following trading day the stock plunged to flirt with its 200-dma, then at about $75. This level provided buoyancy that has allowed SEBL to restore itself 54% on a trend of upward mobility that appears unlikely to cease anytime soon. Bolstering this conviction is Thursday's test of established resistance at the 50-dma and Friday's perseverance to re-pass and hold the level through the close. Siebel is the market leader in enterprise-class sales, marketing and customer service applications, with e-commerce products that enable Web-based customer relationship solutions. There are currently about 194.6 million SEBL shares outstanding and 800 million authorized, plenty for implementation of the company's fourth 2:1 split. Last month's Q1 financial release posted earnings at 19 cents a share, a 90% improvement upon the year-ago quarter and four cents better than analysts predicted. Other news released recently includes the incorporation of SEBL to the S&P 500 and the addition of new customers British Telecom, Home Shopping Network and Merck & Co. Siebel also made a deal with IBM whereby the Company will use their software in its call centers. Superior relative strength has been displayed in the comparison of the -22% YTD descent of the GSTI Software Index and SEBL's appreciation of +52%. This brings the stock to $129 with the amassment of +3.13 in Friday's session, a price level with which the stock has arduously struggled in the recent past. Because of this, we are not entirely certain it will prove to be a legitimate breakout. More concern is introduced in consideration of the lack of trading that occurred, with less than half of the average shares changing hands on Friday. We remain optimistic, however, because of the late session volume ascent and the mid-march rally that saw SEBL ride through $175 from a comparable posture. Even though we don't necessarily expect a remigration to this height right away, we do see a flight to the $145 range as entirely feasible, this being the next natural level of resistance beyond $130. If the stock does continue to rise, it will have broken from the ascending triangle forming from early April, a highly bullish indicator. Additional potential is suggested by the split history, in that Siebel shares appreciated 87% between the last split announcement and its execution. Look for possible entries on a break above the hindering $130 mark or a bounce off of the 5, 10 and 50-dma levels of $127 when combined with strong volume and broader market strength. In absence of these events, a play may not be initiated. Intraday support has been established at $125 and we are placing our stop a bit deeper at the 20-dma of $120. We are looking for a split announcement surrounding the upcoming shareholder meeting on June 7th.

Picked on May 14th @ $129.00 Change since picked 0.00

SPLIT RUN PLAY UPDATES

AAPL - Apple Computer $107.63 (-5.50)

Apple Computer makes personal computers and related personal computing and communicating solutions for the education, creative, consumer and business market segments. On Friday, shares of AAPL were trading up thanks to a positive earnings report from Dell (DELL). The stock hit an intra-day high of $110.50 but pulled back late in the day as the NASDAQ rally faded. Volume was light and AAPL hit resistance at the 10-dma so we are a little concerned about the staying power of Friday's move. However, volume tends to be light on Fridays. The 2:1 stock split is payable on 6/20 so there is plenty of time to get in. For now, AAPL has light support at the 5-dma, currently at $105, with psychological support at the century mark. Set hard a little below $100 ($98 or so) to limit losses. Since the split is still over one month away, we will drop this play if AAPL closes below $100. Resistance is now the 10-dma at $111 and then the 20-dma at $117. Look for a bounce off of $105 or a move above $111 on volume greater than 2 million by midday to start new plays. Confirm market direction and sector momentum before opening new positions. Plan to exit if the stock closes below $100. If support holds, we recommend and exit by 6/19.

Picked on May 11th @ $102.81 Change since picked +4.81

AVX - AVX Corporation $85.63 (-11.62)

Sometimes it's the little things that matter most. Little things yield big results when it comes to electronic components for AVX Corporation. The company, based in South Carolina, is a leading provider of a wide range of passive electronic components and related products. Some of their products include ceramic capacitors, which are used to store and regulate electric energy. Their little components are used in common items like cellular phones, notebook computers, pagers and printers. We recently added AVX in advance of their first stock split scheduled for June 2nd. After nicely beating earnings in April, the company announced a split and promptly hit a new high of $100 on May 2nd. Further gains were quickly short-circuited as AVX, like many of its brethren, got pummeled in the recent tech sell-off. Down but not out, on Thursday the stock closed at its 50-dma at $82 on good volume. Friday the market rallied on the heels of a tamer than expected PPI report and AVX followed suit, trading as high as $87.18 (the 5-dma) intra-day. When the dust had settled for the day, AVX closed with a gain of just over $3.00 on slightly lower than average volume of 309K shares. Support now stands at the 50-dma at $82 with the next vertical challenge to be met at $87 (the 5-dma) and then the 20-dma at $92. Piggyback on momentum in the broader markets and good volume in the stock when opening a new position. Also consider waiting for the results of the FOMC on Tuesday before jumping into this play. We will have a stop in place at $80 and will be out if the stock closes below this level.

Picked on May 11th @ $82.43 Change since picked +3.20

EMC - EMC Corporation $127.50 (-10.50)

EMC Corp. is a worldwide supplier of intelligent enterprise storage and retrieval technology for open system, mainframe and midrange computing environments. They also provide software-based capabilities such as enhanced backup/restore, business continuance, data movement and disaster recovery. McDATA Corporation, a subsidiary of EMC, makes high performance fibre channel information switching products used in the EMC enterprise storage network. On Friday, EMC, IBM Corporation (IBM), Data General Patent Holdings LLC, and two former executives of Data General Corporation agreed to dismiss all claims and counterclaims in settlement of a patent dispute involving patent infringement allegations by Data General and IBM that began in 1994 and a dispute arising out of EMC's acquisition of Data General in 1999. As part of the agreement, EMC and IBM have agreed to extend their patent cross-license agreement and further agreed to a five-year moratorium on patent infringement lawsuits. In addition, IBM is making a payment as part of the agreement. The news took shares of EMC up to an intra-day high of $133 before hitting resistance and falling back on average volume. EMC announced a 2:1 stock split on 5/3 with a payable date of 6/2 so there is still some time left on this play. In the meantime, support is up to $123 with stronger support at $120. Place hard stops under $120 as protection against another momentum reversal. We will drop EMC as a play if it breaches $120. There is resistance at $130 and then the 10-dma at $132. Initiate new positions on a bounce off of $123 or a move through $130. Start new plays on volume greater than 3.5 million by noon, only in a rising market. Look for an exit no later than 6/1, or if the stock falls below $120.

Picked on May 11th @ $125.50 Change since picked +2.00

MRVC - MRV Communications Inc. $54.19 (-9.47)

"Darling, you look MRVelous". A familiar compliment made by comedian Bill Crystal during many of his routines; but what about MRV Communications, are things marvelous? Let's take a look and see. MRV Communications designs, manufactures and sells computer networking products, primarily Ethernet local area network switches, hubs and related equipment, and fiber optic components for voice, video and data transmission. Over the past two years, MRV adopted a business model of creating and managing several start-up companies as well as forming independent business units such as Luminent, in order to take them public. Okay, truth be known, the company reported a loss of <.21> cents in the most recent quarter, down from a loss of only <.03> cents last year. On the flip side, good news abounds despite the red numbers. This year the company won for the third year in a row, the COMNET award for the best LAN and Internetworking product for the Fiber Driver Gigabit Multimode Extender. Since then they have completed an acquisition of a company in Israel called Jolt Ltd., which will expand their global presence. In March, the company announced their 3rd stock split pending shareholder approval in May. Last Thursday, investors gave MRVC the thumbs-up to proceed with the split scheduled for a paydate of May 26th. Take a peek at the chart and you'll see what looks like Mr. Toad's wild ride at Disney. What was a $200 dollar a share wanna-be in March, is now a fifty-something stock. But before you send the jury out for deliberation, consider that MRVC's technology enables the rapid transmission of data over the Internet and is closely linked within leading sectors like the semiconductors. From a technical venue, the stock is parked right at the 50-dma. Granted, our faith will be smaller than a mustard seed if the stock falls any more. But if the current base is firm, then MRVC could be poised to move higher and a split run may begin. Friday's volume was well below average at 727K shares; we'd like to see an increase back over 1.7 million shares. The next points of resistance will be the 20-dma at $58 and then the 10-dma at $60. Consider waiting for Sir Alan's decision at the FOMC meeting on Tuesday to see what direction the markets will take. We will have a stop in place at $49 to limit any further loss.

Picked on May 11th @ $56.25 Change since picked -2.06

SPLIT CANDIDATE PLAY UPDATES

ADI - Analog Devices, Inc. $61.75 (-7.19)

We are not looking for too much from ADI, but a recovery of last week's loss seems very possible. An interest rate hike tends to result in broad based rallies for technology stocks because these companies tend to have very little and in most cases no exposure to interest rates. Weakness before Fed announcements has usually resulted in bounce back rallies. On top of that rally possibility; ADI will be reporting what will probably be another solid quarter on Wednesday. Estimates are for a profit of $0.24, almost doubling their profits for the same period a year ago. The stock has already split 2:1 this year, so another split seems unlikely. Having said that, the Company does have a history of being a bit split happy, having enacted some rather strange 4:3 and 5:4 splits over the years, so you never know. ADI bounced sharply after testing April's low print at $54 last week. It is possible that ADI has seen its lows for the year and it will be able to move higher and recapture some of its correction losses. The 10-DMA provided resistance on Friday at $65.75. A quick move and close above that level could be a trigger event for some of you to initiate a position. The 50-DMA is all the way up at $74 and it is rolling over, so it should provide some more solid resistance. We believe you should protect yourself by stopping this position if the stock closes below the 5-DMA at $60. The MACD is still pretty negative but RSI is turning up. This is really just a bounce play for us, as we will be exiting this position by Tuesday's close before the Wednesday earnings release.

Picked on May 9th @ $60.69 Change since picked +1.06

AFFX - Affymetrix $140.22 (-15.84)

Affymetrix is a leader in the field of DNA chip technology. Their GeneChip system is used to identify, analyze and manage complex genetic information. The company markets its products to biotechnology companies, pharmaceuticals and academic research centers. Shares of AFFX moved higher on Friday, trading as high as $148 but pulled back late in the day as the NASDAQ retreated. Volume was on the light side and the afternoon pullback has made us a little cautious. On the positive side, AFFX stayed above its 20-dma and closed above its 5-dma. On 6/8, the Company is holding its Annual Shareholder Meeting at which time the shareholders will vote on an increase in the number of authorized shares. We are hoping for a split announcement out of the meeting. Until then, there is light support at $140 with stronger support at the 5-dma, now at $137. Set hard stops under $137, as we will drop AFFX if it trades below the 5-dma. Resistance is Friday's high of $148 and then $154. Use a bounce off of $140 or a move above $148 on volume greater than 500,000 by midday to start new plays. Confirm market direction and sector momentum before opening new positions. We recommend an exit if the stock falls below $137 or in the session following a split announcement.

Picked on May 7th @ $156.06 Change since picked -15.84

ALTR - Altera $84.06 (-15.57)

It was an up and down week for the embattled chip stocks and ALTR traded along with the group. Despite coughing up all of its progress on Friday, ALTR seems poised to attempt a rally back to at least $100 after establishing a short-term base at $80 last week. One of the factors that could help ALTR is a favorable valuation comparison to their main competitor in the programmable logic device industry, XLNX. These chips are fast becoming the favorite components of many different electronic products. Fast growth and a positive balance sheet should enable ALTR to trade a little bit better than technology stocks as a whole. The stock is trading at a price that is a bit higher than the price a year ago when the stock split 2:1. There was a shareholder vote last week to increase the number of authorized shares so a split is now definitely possible. The April earnings release saw ALTR post a solid profit of $0.36, which was two cents ahead of estimates. Look for ALTR to continue to benefit from the trend to invest in fast growing AND profitable companies. The 50-DMA offered some pretty stiff resistance for ALTR on Friday as the stock rallied right to it at $90, only to fall back after failing to trade above it. Momentum traders may want to wait and see if ALTR can close above $90 before going long. Support is last week's double bottom at $80, and we will be exiting this play at $79.88 if that support fails to hold. Day traders may be interested in making plays in this $80-$90 range. The MACD is negative but it could be at the bottom of its range and OBV has slipped so we would really like to see rallies accompanied by good volume to increase our confidence. We will be exiting this position if we get a split announcement.

Picked on May 11th @ $85.19 Change since picked -1.13

BBOX - Black Box Corporation $72.63 (-3.25)

How is Black Box (BBOX) able to distinguish itself from other direct marketers in its highly competitive field? The answer: great technical support for its customers. Complementing its private label brand, BBOX provides it products with more than 600 technical support professionals, available by phone (free of charge), 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. Furthermore, inventory management systems enable it to ship 95% of orders on the day that the orders are received. Such dedication to customer follow-up has helped the company expand its market share and the stock has followed course. Currently, the shares were able to finish off the week by breaking sharply through resistance at the 50-dma ($71.41). We're looking to take profits for advances to resistance at $75 and $80. If volume can remain strong (156K shares or better) at $75, then look to take profits at $80. As for support, we'll look for $70 to be strong. Look to open new positions as prices reverse sharply off support, followed by good volume. Use trailing stops to lock in gains. We'll be using support and resistance for our buy and sell signals since we have no news on an approaching BoD meeting and earnings are not due until August.

Picked on May 11th @ $69.81 Change since picked +2.81

CHKP - Check Point Software Technologies $163.50 (-23.44)

Like hurricanes, we seem to be giving cute non-threatening names to computer viruses. "Melissa" and this month's "Love Bug" sure do not sound too bad but they are extremely dangerous and the reality of their existence and the inevitability of more to come are what drives CHKP's very solid Internet and Network protection software business. Last week we predicted that the short-term excitement over the "Love Bug" was probably waning and that CHKP had a good shot of falling back to the lower end of its range. Sure enough it did. One nice thing is that CHKP was one of the first tech stocks to spring right back and this rally is likely to continue next week due to investors penchant for buying the bad news of a Fed rate hike as well as the usual expiration week counter trend rally. You don't think the boys in Chicago are going to let all of those puts expire deep in the money next week do you? CHKP enjoyed a high profile news release last week when IBM chose CHKP's software to provide the security for IBM's new line of servers. CHKP's consolidation is being technically characterized by higher lows. Although the stock has not been able to crack above the high end of resistance at $200 over the past couple of rallies, the stock does seem to have enough strength to eventually do so. A move above the 10-DMA residing just above $173 could give the stock enough momentum to move straight to the 50-DMA at $191.50, not a bad trade. It would take a very strong overall market rally to get the stock to trade much higher than that. We do not see that happening anytime soon. The MACD is trying to turn up but OBV is getting weaker. Like so many of our plays, we would really like to see positive volume really pick up to help sustain any upside moves. If we do head lower we will exit this position if the stock closes below $160. Otherwise we will exit this position if there is a split announcement.

Picked on April 27th @ $179.00 Change since picked -15.50

CIEN - CIENA Corporation $137.25 (-0.31)

CIENA Corporation provides optical networking equipment for tele- and data-communications service providers worldwide. The Company offers optical transport, intelligent switching and multi-service delivery systems giving service providers the ability to manage and deliver high-bandwidth services to their customers. CIEN continued to climb on Friday, hitting an intra-day high of $139.75 before pulling back to close the day with a $7.81 gain on light volume. The stock is gaining momentum going into their earnings report, scheduled for 5/18 after the bell. We are hoping for a split announcement with the report. Going forward, support is now the 10-dma at $131 with additional support at the 5-dma, currently at $128.50. Set hard stops at $128.50 to lock in gains. We will drop CIEN if it trades below lower support. There is resistance at $140 and then just above the 5/2 high at $144. Initiate new positions on a bounce off of $131 or move above $140 on volume greater than 4 million by midday. Confirm market momentum and sector direction before starting new plays. Plan to exit if the stock falls below $128.50. If the stock continues to move higher, look for an exit in front of earnings on 5/18.

Picked on May 9th @ $120.44 Change since picked +16.81

CPN - Calpine Corporation $106.00 (+7.25)

Risking it all on an aggressive growth strategy has paid huge dividends for CPN, whose return on investment was over 400% in 1999. To reaffirm its strong commitment to future growth, CPN has made public that it plans to expand its production capacity by more than six fold through 2004. This strong growth policy has helped the company's bottom line to surge and the stock has followed. The shares, which have been in a long uptrend, remained mostly in a consolidation range this week ($107 to $102). A close above the top of this range ($107), when followed by better than average volume (880K or better), will likely signal an advance to resistance at $110. If good volume can assist a break through this level, then we'll look to open potential plays, as we expect the stock to advance to its next level of resistance at $120. As for support, the middle of the consolidation range ($104-$105), bolstered by the 5-dma ($104.88) should provide us with a good intra-day brace. Due to market volatility, we'll be placing a stop at $103.88 to protect against a meltdown. Use trailing stops to lock in profits or limit losses. If the stock does not get stopped out, we'll plan on holding through the shareholder's meeting (5/18).

Picked on May 7th @ $98.75 Change since picked +7.25

FLEX - Flextronics International $53.25 (-1.25)

Expanding in one of the fastest growing industries on the market, FLEX is well positioned to profit from the rapidly advancing telecom sector. Already deriving a large portion of its revenues from this group, analysts expect additional outsourcing contracts to remain strong as the telecom sector grows. The company's history of strong growth, which has provided a stream of steady revenues, has helped FLEX become a good stock for momentum plays. As for the week, shares continued a recovery from Wednesday's bounce off the 200-dma. After running as high as $55.50 on an intra-day basis, shares closed just lower to finish off at $53.25 on Friday. Still being able to close well above the half-century mark (previously resistance), we'll now look to $60, bolstered by the 30-dma of $59.72 for our next major resistance test. Just higher, strong volume (4.0m shares or better) might push the stock to its 50-dma ($63.27) for additional resistance. As for support, we'll now look to the half-century mark, reinforced by the 5-dma ($50.75) to provide a net against further declines. However, given the high volatility in tech-related issues, we'll plan on placing a stop for declines through $49.50. Use trailing stops to lock in gains. With a pending BoD meeting, we'll be using support and resistance for our buys and sells.

Picked on May 9th @ $50.63 Change since picked +2.63

ITWO - I2 Technology $108.56 (-8.50)

Unlike so many other tech stocks, ITWO was able to hold on to most of its gains on Friday and this portends a relative market outperformance for this stock if the bounce rally in the NASDAQ continues this week. The booming worldwide electronics trade plays right into the winning hand of ITWO, because the Company provides the vast majority of supply chain management software for the Electronics Industry. ITWO expanded its horizons last week as the Company was chosen to help form a new company that will operate an electronic marketplace for the $505 billion Convenience Store and Petroleum Marketing Industry. Beef jerky inventory online? Cool, they will never run out of this writer's favorite market watching snack! A split announcement seems a ways off because the last two splits were announced in conjunction with their earnings report and the next one is not due until July. We will have to be content with the improving technicals. Curiously, Friday's trading range was almost perfectly bounded by the 5-DMA average on the downside and the 10-DMA on the upside. The stock closed below the 10-DMA and any rally on Monday could take the stock very quickly to recent highs at $118.50. The MACD remains positive and could signal some more upside potential. Money Flow and OBV are obviously weak during these low volume days but they look to be picking up, which is another good sign for some possible continued advances for the stock. To protect against a market selloff, we will be exiting this position at $101.88 if the drops below the 5-DMA. We will also exit this position in the unlikely event of a split announcement.

Picked on May 9th @ $104.13 Change since picked +4.43

JDSU - JDS Uniphase $86.00 (-7.81)

One of the biggest stories of the past few years in the Telecommunications Industry has been the construction of vast fiber optic networks around the world and JDSU makes the equipment that makes these new communications lines work. This fact makes JDSU a leader of the group and the Company is becoming as well known as Lucent or Nortel Networks in the fiber optic world. After a huge run along with the other major momentum stocks, JDSU has suffered a loss of that momentum and has severely corrected. We believe that JDSU will emerge as one of the survivors due to being a leader in one of the fastest growing tech sectors and because of owning some pretty solid fundamentals. Last quarter, JDSU showed a profit of $0.11, which was a penny ahead of estimates and a full 6 cents ahead of the same quarter a year ago. A split is always possible, but using history as a guide, it would seem that JDSU is a more likely split candidate at higher levels. JDSU has been stuck in a trading range between $75 and $108 during the correction. It appears that a short-term bottom was reached last week and the NASDAQ is poised to stage an options expiration and Fed rate hike counter rally next week. If the rally continues look for JDSU to test those short-term highs above $100 next week. The RSI has been hovering in oversold territory for six weeks and a rally back over $100 would only take this indicator into neutral ground. The OBV is still very weak, so we would really like to see this rally accompanied by some solid volume to help ensure that the move could last awhile. Resistance starts at Friday's high of $91.13 followed by $100. There is some very good short-term support at $80, which may prove to be a good entry point if there is some early weakness on Monday. If the stock does not bounce at that price we suggest stopping out at $79.88. Otherwise, we will be exiting this position if we get a split announcement.

Picked on May 11th @ $86.50 Change since picked -0.50

ORCL - Oracle $74.19 (-2.62)

Perhaps the best way to invest in the Internet revolution is to build positions in the well-established giants of the technology world instead of the new kids on the block. ORCL has grown from a data base management software company to becoming a complete business software solutions company including the ability to handle nearly all of its client's Internet software needs. In the short term, ORCL may benefit from a potential split announcement. Last week there was a vote to increase the number of authorized shares to 11 billion from 4 billion. This will give the company plenty of shares to enact splits. Over the past few years, ORCL has exhibited a pattern of announcing splits when the stock is roughly trading in the $50 area. Comfortably above that price now, a split could be forthcoming. There is also an earnings report to look forward to on June 13th. Estimates are for $0.26, which would show a continuation of some outstanding recent profits for the Company. This week could shape up to be a positive one for tech leaders. We have seen several rallies around the previous FOMC meetings, especially if there had been a decent round of selling in the week before the meeting. Perhaps the most important moving average to keep an eye on is the 50-day, which currently resides just under $78 and could provide some resistance. A close above the 50-DMA and ORCL could be off and running. The RSI is slightly positive and there is plenty of room to the upside before the stock could be considered overbought. Unfortunately the MACD is still pretty negative and we would need a rally over a few days before this indicator would signal a buy. There is some support at the 5-DMA at $71.75. If things get ugly for some reason next week, we suggest exiting this position if the stock drops below $67. We will be exiting this position before the earnings or after a split announcement.

Picked on May 11th @ $72.38 Change since picked +1.81

SEPR - Sepracor Incorporated $102.25 (-1.00)

A biotech boom that transcended across the entire sector seems to be having lasting effects on SEPR. Much of this strength can be attributed to SEPR's strong ICE base and current development of more than 20 major drugs. In addition, SEPR plans to market these ICE drugs directly through its own specialized sales force. This should provide a boost to future profit margins and help the company turn earnings positive by next year, analysts expect. As for this week, shares finished off the week with a strong intra-day advance to $106.13 on Friday. However, volume came in weak on the day (280K) and suggests that upward momentum may be losing some of its steam. With support still intact at the century mark, we're recommending that stops be in place for closes below $100. On the upside, we'll continue to look for initial resistance to be met at $110 and further up at $120. If better than average volume (1.0m shares or better) can accompany an advance through resistance, then we'll look to open positions. Remember to incorporate trailing stops to minimize losses or protect profits. If we don't get stopped out, then we'll plan on holding through the shareholder's meeting on 5/24, for a split announcement to follow.

Picked on May 7th @ $103.25 Change since picked -1.00

SUNW - Sun Microsystems $81.50 (-9.00)

Sun Microsystems, Inc. is a worldwide provider of network computing products, services and support solutions. The Company sells scalable computer systems, high-speed microprocessors and high performance software for operating network computing equipment and storage products used for commercial and technical applications. On Friday, shares of SUNW were upgraded to outperform from market perform at Sanford Bernstein. The upgrade, positive earnings results from Dell (DELL) and friendly economic numbers lifted the stock to an intra-day high of $83.13. However, the NASDAQ pulled back late in the day, taking SUNW along with it. The Company is scheduled to announce earnings in July and we are looking for split shortly after their next BoD meeting or with the July earnings release. They already have enough shares for a split so a split could come at any time, but the Company likes to announce splits at BoD meetings. On the technical side, support is the 5-dma, now at $80 with stronger support at $75. Place stops at $75 to limit losses. There is light resistance at $84 and then $90. Open new positions on a bounce off of $80 or a move above $84. Look for volume of at least 9 million and a rising market before starting new plays. We recommend an exit in the session following a split announcement.

Picked on May 9th @ $82.13 Change since picked -0.63

VSH - Vishay Intertechnology $85.19 (+3.94)

Yeah, We Bad! Bragging rights can be bestowed to a company when they can claim to be the largest manufacturer in the U.S. and Europe. And so it is with Vishay Intertechnology who makes passive electronic components and is a leading producer of discrete semiconductor components. All of these components are vital to the operation of electronic circuits and can be found in computers, telephones, TVs, automobiles, household appliances, medical equipment, satellites and military and aerospace equipment. You are likely to find Vishay components in electronic products made by every U.S. or European manufacturer and by many Asian manufacturers. So what does that mean to you and me? Well, VSH kicked down the door on earnings in April, reporting profits 100% higher than the same quarter the year prior. Investor liked that, taking the stock to a new high of $87.50 just days later. Then, being mindful that debt hurts your bottom line, the company announced another public offering of its stock. The Money raised from the 5,800,000 shares, priced at around $73.00, will be used to repay some debt from its revolving credit plan. So, if you like companies that are making money and reducing debt, then you'll love the fact that on Thursday they announced they would exceed next quarter's earnings estimate of .95 cents, previously projected by analysts. All this positive energy proved good for the stock Friday as it traded up all day, coming within 2 bucks of the recent high. Volume was "rockin" again at 2.3 million shares or twice the average. Next Thursday, May 18th, the company is meeting to vote on increasing shares and possibly announce their 26th stock split, yes 26th! Support will now be the 10-dma at $77.50 and resistance will be the old high at $87.50. Continued good volume and market momentum should take VSH to new highs soon. Confirm the direction or the market before opening a new position. Consider waiting for the Fed Chairman's address at the FOMC meeting on Tuesday before jumping on board. We will have our stop in place at $79.88.

Picked on May 11th @ $74.88 Change since picked +10.31

SPLIT RUN PLAY DROPS

CMOS - Credence Systems Corporation $133.38 (-15.38)

Friday's sharp intra-day advance to $142.00 provided us with an excellent opportunity to capture profits with our trailing stop. However, the sharp decline that preceded the intra-day advance was followed by strong volume and may suggest that momentum could be shifting directions. Based upon these developments we believe the likelihood for further weakness is good and so we're choosing to close our positions for now. The semiconductor sector is known for its strong momentum plays and we'll keep you posted on additional opportunities as they occur.

Picked on May 9th @ $127.44 Profit/Loss = +5.94 (+5%) Best Profit = +14.56 (+11%)

PWAV - Powerwave Technologies Inc. $184.50 (-10.50)

A strong finish from Powerwave Technologies as we exit this play ahead of the paydate per our normal policy. PWAV rallied nicely today after the market swallowed the PPI numbers with a smile. Right from the opening the stock traded higher, hitting $206.06 within the first hour of trading. Then as the day wore on, profit takers arrived closing the stock down on the day. Friday's volume almost doubled at 1.4 million shares. Monday is the paydate for the 3:1 split so if you are still in this play, consider exiting before Tuesday. Not only is Tuesday the ex-date for the split, but also the awaited FOMC meeting. We will watch PWAV in the future and will advise you of any potential opportunities. This is the first split for PWAV.

Picked on May 9th @ $183.25 Profit/Loss = +1.25 (+1%) Best Profit = +22.81 (+12%)

SPLIT CANDIDATE PLAY DROPS

BRCD - Brocade Communication Systems $106.88 (-29.19)

Providing us a quick advance to end the week, BRCD climbed as high as $116 on Friday, before running into resistance near its 110-dma of $116.42. Though the run-up came on good daily volume (5.4m), much of it originated as selling after prices hit resistance. Recent weakness in the stock this week leads us to believe that the sharp drop from Friday's intraday resistance may cause shares to resume their slide. As such, we'll be dropping the shares for now to wait for better opportunities as they develop.

Picked on April 27th @ $115.00 Profit/Loss = -8.12 (-7%) Best Profit = +21.50 (+19%)

INCY - Incyte Pharmaceuticals $68.75 (-22.19)

Incyte tried to rally early in the morning but was met with the usual resistance that we have been seeing all week. Despite the two biotech conferences and kind economic data, INCY could not break it downward trend. Therefore, we are dropping this play as there are better fish to fry. We recommend setting tight stops under $68 and looking for an exit on Monday.

Picked on May 7th @ $90.94 Profit/Loss = -22.19 (-24%) Best Profit = +3.06 (+3%)