Davis Q

The Ten Most Promising Net Cash Stocks

Research123 is on the right track. ATHX is a pharma company in Phase I trials, meaning that it has to not only finish this round of trials but make it through two more before it can start generating revenue. This process could take years, which at an operating cash burn of $15mm a year and $28mm of cash equivalents (2008 10K) it doesn't have. The stock trades at such a discount because of the risk that the company will run out of money before the drug gets to market, the drug fails trials, and/or additional capital raising is not successful.

From an investment standpoint, I'd want the company to either liquidate and distribute the cash or get to market quickly/license the drug. For my taste, the probability of either happening is just too low. If they get into trouble, instead of liquidating, they might just offer more stock, debt, or attract private investors. These possibilities would effectively if not actually wipe out common.

Every Design Decision Has Tradeoffs - Even the iPhone

I was very excited to see this product debut, but ultimately was dissapointed by its lack of 3G services. Apple has always prided itself on cutting edge design, and while they have hit the mark with the ultra-slim form factor and sleek touchscreen, they've sold themselves short by leaving out high speed data. True, HSDPA is not online yet, but they could have chosen another provider who supports EV-DO. I use my phone on an EDGE network and am soon canceling the internet service because it is so painfully slow. For a phone which carries a fully graphics enabled web browser, the iPhone needs high speed data. Sure, they will sell as many of these as they can make on the merit of their brand and aesthetic design, but I think we're going to hear a lot of complaints about the slow data speeds.