"Street Critique"-Kevin Depew, Executive Editor minyanville.com
Wednesday, June 04, 2008PAUL KANGAS: Tonight's "Street Critique" guest is looking at technology staples, but not the Apples, Intels and Dells of the world. He's Kevin Depew, executive editor at the financial information web site minyanville.com and Kevin, welcome back the NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT.
KEVIN DEPEW, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, MINYANVILLE.COM: Thank you, Paul. Pleasure to be here.
KANGAS: First, give us your thoughts on the current market environment. What are you seeing as we head into the summer?
DEPEW: What we've seen in that energy and basic materials have been the market leaders, but I think those groups have started to top out and peak a little bit. The leadership is changing now and going more toward certain areas of technology.
KANGAS: Let's move on to those tech staples individually. First of all, what's your view that makes a company a tech staple or a bellwether in the group?
DEPEW: Right. Well, one of the themes that I've had for 2008 is that there are consumer discretionary stocks that you want to avoid and consumer staple stocks that you want to be involved in. The same thing applies with technology. I don't want to be involved in anything, the iPods of the world, those consumer discretionary tech plays. I want to be involved in technology staple plays, the companies that produce technology that we need.
KANGAS: OK. Fair enough. Now let's get to those names and ticker symbols. Your first pick is Corning, symbol GLW, the maker of flat panel TV screens, right?
DEPEW: That's right. With NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT demographics, I'm, sure that a lot of viewers out there are watching us on an LCD TV. That screen was likely made by Corning. Now the interesting thing that Corning said in their investor conference a month ago was that in the 30 years, despite three recessions, TV sales don't go down. So apparently people need their TVs. That's a technology that people need.
KANGAS: Truly a staple.
DEPEW: That's right.
KANGAS: How about another name Kevin?
DEPEW: Perkinelmer, symbol PKI, Perkinelmer is a company that's involved in health sciences, genetic screening. They do neonatal screening, medical imaging, all things to help early detection of diseases and problems. That's a growing field and they're well positioned to provide again technology that we need.
KANGAS: Now finally you like Monsanto as a tech staple, MON on the big board. It's a fertilizer and seed company. That doesn't sound too techie to me. Explain if you would.
DEPEW: You're right. The reason I chose this as a technology company is because Monsanto is involved in genomics and engineering seeds to make them yield more crops. And if they can yield more and we feed more people with food inflation being such a problem, India and China growing, their population eating more food, that's a company that's right in that field.
KANGAS: The stock, as we saw by the chart that was just displayed, has gone almost through the roof. That doesn't scare you at all? DEPEW: Well, it's gone up quite a bit, but I think there's still room. I would want to buy it on a pull-back, Paul.
KANGAS: I understand. Kevin do you own any of those stocks mentioned or have any other disclosures to make?
DEPEW: I own Corning.
KANGAS: You own those two?
DEPEW: Just Corning.
KANGAS: Just Corning, OK, all right, very good. It's great to see you once again, Kevin.
DEPEW: Thanks, Paul.
KANGAS: My guest, Kevin Depew, executive editor at minyanville.com.
