UTEK, Inc. develops, manufactures, and markets photolithography equipment designed to reduce the cost of manufacturing integrated circuits and thin-film heads for disk drives. For the FY ended 12/31/00, net sales rose 30% to $146.7M. Net income before acct. change totalled $9.7M, vs. a loss of $4.2M. Revenues reflect increased demand for the Company%s products in Asia Pacific and U.S. market. Earnings also reflect $16M in gain on sale of land.

February 1, 2001

Somebody forgot to tell this semiconductor equipment company about the industry slowdown. The stock is in a straight uptrend while many of it competitors are just now starting to recoup their year-end losses. UTEK's industry bucking trend is supported by some excellent fundamentals. Last week, UTEK reported profits of $0.25, which beat estimates by four pennies. The strong report was driven by new product releases during the quarter. UTEK is one of the very few momentum stock plays in the technology universe. Traders love to buy technology stocks, and if you want to buy one that is making new highs, you do not have to look any farther than UTEK. There is excellent trend line support just above $28.00. Today's low print of $30.38 should provide the initial support. Technical indicators look very good and confirm UTEK's momentum status. The MACD is trending higher and the OBV and Money Flow are really taking off. Today's new high was accompanied by volume of 1.2 million shares, which was 500,000 shares above the norm.

Picked on February 1st @ $32.88
Change since picked +0.00
Stop Loss @ $28.00

February 15, 2001

Shares of UTEK have moved right along with the two-day NASDAQ (COMPX) rally. UTEK made a new high yesterday due to the strong earnings release from fellow semiconductor equipment company Applied Materials (Nasdaq:AMAT). There was a follow through to another new high today, as technology stocks were the stars of the show. On Tuesday, we suggested that the powerful relative strength that UTEK is exhibiting should cause the stock to rally if the NASDAQ could post a positive day or two. This scenario clearly came to fruition. The two-day rally has allowed us to raise our trailing stop to $33.50, which should enable us to lock in some profits. Now that UTEK has closed comfortably above $34.50, it may have enough momentum to eventually challenge the all time high of $47.50, which was established back in September 1995. The MACD, which gave us a scare earlier this week, appears to be resuming its upward course. In addition, the Money Flow and OBV are extremely strong. If the stock trades above $38.25 on midday volume over 600,000 shares tomorrow, momentum traders could be given another reason to add to their positions. With that said, a little profit taking may come later in the day because the RSI is now indicating an overbought condition. Nevertheless, the longer-term trend is quite solid.

Picked on February 1st @ $32.88
Change since picked +4.62
Stop Loss @ $33.50

February 13, 2001

Many technology firms have been struggling with inventory buildups that have hurt new sales. UTEK apparently has been immune from these problems. UTEK announced today that it had received an order for several of its wafer steppers (used in the manufacture of semiconductors) from Taiwan's Megic Corp., which should help earnings. In fact, earnings growth is not a problem for UTEK and its share price reflects this fact. The broader stock market’s collapsed following Greenspan's testimony and yet UTEK squeaked out another new high of $34.84. The powerful relative strength that UTEK is exhibiting gives us the confidence that the stock will trade higher if the NASDAQ can just muster a positive move. If UTEK trades above $35.00 on midday volume of over 500,000 shares, a more substantial rally may ensue. A close above the $34.50 resistance established in September 1997, would also be a bullish signal. The MACD, which had threatened to issue a sell signal, is still positive. OBV and Money Flow continue to be outstanding. We urge caution if UTEK slips below Friday's low of $31.88.

Picked on February 1st @ $32.88
Change since picked +1.43
Stop Loss @ $28.00

February 11, 2001

Shares of UTEK have been in a powerful ascent so far this year. UTEK rose along with many other semiconductor shares in January, but unlike the rest of the chips, UTEK has managed to hold on and actually climb higher in February. On January 25th, this semiconductor equipment manufacturer reported solid profits of $0.25/share, which was four cents ahead of consensus estimates. Due to strong industry acceptance of UTEK’s two new products, 2001 earnings are expected to surge over 300% to $1.17/share. These strong fundamentals have given momentum traders a reason to push up the share price. Last week saw UTEK run into resistance at $34.00. September 1997 saw the stock peak at $34.50, which provides additional resistance. A good entry point could arise when the stock trades to $34.75 on strong volume of a million shares. If this happens, the stock will likely continue its rally and eventually test its all time high of $47.50. If we see a little market pressure in the early going on Monday, UTEK may be a good buy, as long as it stays above trendline support of $31.50. The MACD is starting to slow down and is threatening to issue a sell signal. Be very cautious if this indicator turns negative. On the plus side, Money Flow and OBV are outstanding. These indicators confirm that smart money is chasing good earnings this year. Our stop remains at $28.00 to protect against a reversal.

Picked on February 1st @ $32.88
Change since picked +0.50
Stop Loss @ $28.00