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| UPDATED: 2006-05-31 |
 Ballmer To Meet Analysts, Big Investors 
By: David Utter 2006-05-31 Microsoft's CEO Steve Ballmer will make an unprecedented trip to New York and Boston to meet with industry analysts and institutional investors to hear their views on the company.  Ballmer will find out directly from the influential people in the world of high finance just what they want from Microsoft (MSFT). But that's an easy question to answer â€" they want money.
Some of those big investors would like to see Microsoft repurchase as much as $100 billion of its outstanding stock from the market, a Bloomberg report said. They have complained mightily ever since Ballmer announced Microsoft planned to spend more on developing new products and acquiring companies that fit the company's long-term strategy. The CEO will have a couple of opportunities to sell his critics on his plans for Microsoft. In New York, Bloomberg said Ballmer will address the Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. Strategic Decisions Conference, and meet with that company's software analyst Charles Di Bona. Moving on to Boston, Ballmer will speak at a Goldman Sachs client luncheon before meeting with UBS AG's Heather Bellini and Goldman Sachs' Rick Sherlund. The two private meetings will bring Ballmer face to face with the top three software analysts in the industry according to Institutional Investor magazine, the report said. Currently, the company is near the close of a $30 billion stock repurchase, of which roughly $6 billion remains to be spent. Institutional investors want more. Pennant Capital Management's Alan Fournier suggested a $100 billion buyback, which would consume Microsoft's cash pile and have the company take on significant debt. Microsoft brought in $39.7 billion in revenue in fiscal 2005, and $10.9 billion in its first quarter for 2006. Those numbers along with a stock price that has been flat or near all-time lows for over three years have spurred the increased buyback talk. What all of those critics have in common is the perception that Microsoft is massively undervalued in the market and needs to address that. Over the next couple of days, they will find out if Ballmer is listening. The Google-chasing strategy Microsoft has been engaged in means its earnings will drop as spending increases. But Microsoft's core products, particularly Windows and Office, bring in the revenue. The buyback advocates see that revenue as being sufficient for Microsoft to give up the extra cash and accept some debt to enhance the value of its stock. Unless Ballmer plans to readily agree to those calls, he's likely to be faulted for not listening to his well-heeled critics. --- Tags: Microsoft, Steve Ballmer Add to  Del.icio.us |  Digg |  Yahoo! My Web |  Furl
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View All Articles by David Utter About the Author: David Utter is a staff writer for InternetFinancialNews and WebProNews covering technology and business. |
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