Checkpoint schlägt Erwartungen ! - 500 Beiträge pro Seite

[Blofeld]

Checkpoint Software meldet soeben für das 4.Quartal einen Gewinn von $ 0.46 statt erwarteter $ 0.38 .

Gleichzeitig wird ein 3:2 Aktiensplit bekanntgegeben.

Tja, auf CHKP ist eben Verlass !!

[magoo]

BW0198 JAN 18,2001 7:06 PACIFIC 10:06 EASTERN



( BW)(CA-CHECK-POINT-SOFTWARE)(CHKP) Check Point Software Technologies Reports Another Record Quarter and Fiscal Year; Company Announces a Three-For-Two Stock Split

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--January 18, 2001--Check Point Software Technologies (Nasdaq:CHKP), the worldwide leader in securing the Internet, today announced record financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2000.
Net income for Q4 2000 was $81.0 million or $0.46 per share (diluted), an increase of 172% and 171% over Q4 1999, respectively. Both net income and EPS for Q4 2000 increased by 31% over the Company`s Q3 2000 results. Strong demand for Check Point products brought total revenues for Q4 2000 to $140.4 million, an increase of 107% over Q4 1999 and 21% higher than in Q3 2000.
Net income for the year was $221.2 million or $1.26 per share (diluted), compared to net income of $95.8 million or $0.58 per share (diluted) during fiscal year 1999. This represents an increase of 131% and 117% in net income and EPS respectively. Revenues for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2000 increased 94 % to $425.3 million, as compared to $219.6 million for fiscal year 1999.
During Q4 2000 the company continued to generate cash, resulting in net cash flow of $113.3 million. Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) for Q4 2000 was 49 days, the lowest for 2000. Total cash and interest bearing investments were $656 million as of December 31, 2000.
"Demand for best-of-breed Internet security solutions remained strong last year, which is a continued acknowledgement of the importance of security as an essential piece of Internet business and infrastructure," said Gil Shwed, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Check Point Software Technologies. "The industry has recognized Check Point`s Secure Virtual Network (SVN) architecture as the platform of choice, and customers around the globe are turning to us for our world-class security solutions."
Mr. Shwed continued: "Our core enterprise business increased and remained strong, and we continued to see consistent sales growth through the managed service provider (MSP) channel, driven by a growing customer desire to outsource security management. We saw continued growth in the security appliance sector, and we took the first step in building a strong security solution base for the rapidly growing small and medium business market."

Highlights from 2000 include:


-- VPN and Firewall Market Leadership - expanded clear market leadership, with 52% worldwide VPN solutions market share, according to Gartner Group and 41% worldwide firewall software market share, according to IDC.
-- VPN Performance -- announced new levels of record-setting VPN performance through partnering with industry leaders such as Intel and Broadcom to develop and deliver multi-gigabit security solutions.
-- eBusiness Security - expanded Check Point`s Secure Virtual Network (SVN) architecture with the introduction of SVN Phase II, which provides the first comprehensive Internet security infrastructure integrating network security with B2B applications.
-- Check Point Everywhere - executed on our vision of providing Check Point`s solutions to new types of customers. Expanded into small and enterprise branch office markets with the introduction of VPN-1/FireWall-1 SmallOffice, a comprehensive Internet security software solution that fully integrates into a variety of low-cost appliances. Check Point`s first partners to ship this integrated offering are Ramp Networks (acquired by Nokia) and Intrusion.com. Also, strengthened our leadership with Nokia in the integrated VPN Appliance sector and announced the Check Point Certified Appliance Program with industry-leading partners IBM, Compaq, Alcatel, Alteon and others.
-- Expanded Partnerships - expanded the Open Platform for Security (OPSEC) program, adding over 70 new partners this year and bringing the total partners to 270. Our partner alliance program also continued to grow by approximately 50% for the year bringing the total number of partners to over 1500.
-- Managed Service Provider (MSP) Growth - strengthened partnerships with leading telcos/MSPs. Announced Provider-1(R) 2000 security management solution for ISPs and SiteManager-1 SmallOffice, a product designed to significantly lower a service provider`s cost of overall ownership and deployment for managed VPN and firewall services to small and medium businesses.
-- Nasdaq 100 - Check Point was recently added to the Nasdaq-100 Index, representing the largest domestic and international issues listed on The Nasdaq Stock Market(R).
-- Industry Accolades - Network Computing magazine awarded Check Point`s FireWall-1 "Product of the Year". Check Point was also named an "E-business 50" company by USA Today, and among "The Standard 100", an annual listing of the most important and influential companies of the Internet Economy, by The Industry Standard magazine. Additionally, Check Point FireWall-1 was named "One of the 10 Most Important Products of the Decade" by Network Computing magazine.

Check Point also announced today that the company`s board of directors has approved a three-for-two stock split, to be effected in the form of a stock dividend. The record date for the stock split is expected to be on February 1, 2001, payment date is expected to be on February 12, 2001, and post-split trading is expected to commence on February 13, 2001.
"In the past year we successfully strengthened our position as the leading Internet security provider, broadened our reach into new customer segments, and added premier industry partners," continued Mr. Shwed. "Over the years, Check Point has introduced revolutionary technologies for Internet security. In 2001, we intend to strengthen that by introducing and delivering the next generation of Internet security."

Safe Harbor Statement

Statements in this press release, which are not purely historical, are forward-looking statements, including any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Because such statements deal with future events, they are subject to various risks and uncertainties and actual results could differ materially from the company`s current expectations. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to: the impact on revenues of economic uncertainties and weaknesses in geographic regions of the world; the inclusion of network security functionality in third-party hardware or system software; any unforeseen developmental or technological difficulties with regard to our products; changes in the competitive landscape including new competitors and/or the impact of competitive pricing and products; timely availability and customer acceptance of new and existing products, and other factors and risks discussed in our Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 1999, which has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company assumes no obligation to update information concerning its expectations.

About Check Point Software Technologies

Check Point Software Technologies is the worldwide leader in securing the Internet. The company`s Secure Virtual Network (SVN) architecture provides the infrastructure that enables secure and reliable Internet communications. SVN secures business-to-business (B2B) communications between networks, systems, applications and users across the Internet, Intranets and extranets. Check Point`s Open Platform for Security (OPSEC) provides the framework for integration and interoperability with "best-of-breed" solutions from over 270 leading industry partners. For more information, please call us at [phone] or [phone] or visit us on the Web at http://www.checkpoint.com.

Note to Editors: (c)1999 Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved. Check Point, the Check Point logo, FireWall-1, FloodGate-1, INSPECT, IQ Engine, Meta IP, Open Security Extension, OPSEC, Provider-1, User-to-Address Mapping, VPN-1, VPN-1 Accelerator Card, VPN-1 Appliance, VPN-1 Certificate Manager, VPN-1 Gateway, VPN-1 SecuRemote, VPN-1 SecureServer, Secure Virtual Network and ConnectControl are trademarks or registered trademarks of Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. or its affiliates. All other product names mentioned herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. The products described in this document are protected by U.S. Patent No. 5,606,668 and 5,835,726 and may be protected by other U.S. Patents, foreign patents, or pending applications.





CHECK POINT SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGIES LTD.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS

(In thousands, except per share amount)

Three Months Ended
December 31,
1999 2000
(unaudited)

Net revenues $67,945 $140,435
Cost of revenues 6,567 10,208
Gross profit 61,378 130,227

Operating expenses:
Research and development, net 5,635 9,131
Sales and marketing 21,499 29,585
General and administrative 3,603 5,614
Total operating expenses 30,737 44,330

Operating income 30,641 85,897
Financial income, net 3,832 9,442
Capital gain 0 0
Income before income taxes 34,473 95,339
Income taxes 4,652 14,320

Net income 29,821 81,019

Earnings per share (Basic) $0.20 $0.52
Number of shares used in computing
earnings per share (Basic) 151,440 156,908

Earnings per share (Fully diluted) $0.17 $0.46
Number of shares used in computing
earnings per share (Fully diluted) 171,136 175,988


Year Ended
December 31,
1999 2000
(audited)

Net revenues $219,567 $425,283
Cost of revenues 22,423 35,265
Gross profit 197,144 390,018

Operating expenses:
Research and development, net 18,923 30,309
Sales and marketing 68,229 110,003
General and administrative 13,069 20,409
Total operating expenses 100,221 160,721

Operating income 96,923 229,297
Financial income, net 12,770 29,147
Capital gain 192 0
Income before income taxes 109,885 258,444
Income taxes 14,104 37,231

Net income 95,781 221,213

Earnings per share (Basic) $0.64 $1.43
Number of shares used in computing
earnings per share (Basic) 148,620 155,074


Earnings per share (Fully diluted) $0.58 $1.26
Number of shares used in computing
earnings per share (Fully diluted) 164,304 175,010



CHECK POINT SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGIES LTD.
SELECTED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET DATA

(In thousands)

ASSETS

December 31,
1999
(audited)
Current assets:
Cash & cash equivalents, short term deposits
and marketable securities(a) $242,490
Trade receivables, net 47,639
Other receivables and prepaid expenses 9,287
Total current assets 299,416

Long term investments in marketable secrities
and bank deposits(a) 82,282
Other investments 602
Long term prepaid expenses 1,145
Net property and equipment 9,694

Deferred income taxes 1,207

$394,346

(a) Total cash and cash equivalents and other
interest bearing investments $325,026



December 31,
2000
(audited)
Current assets:
Cash & cash equivalents, short term deposits
and marketable securities(a) $438,390
Trade receivables, net 84,381
Other receivables and prepaid expenses 17,637
Total current assets 540,408

Long term investments in marketable securities
and bank deposits(a) 217,562
Other investments 1,747
Long term prepaid expenses 765
Net property and equipment 11,638

Deferred income taxes 5,519

(a) Total cash and cash equivalents and other
interest bearing investments $655,952


LIABILITIES AND
SHAREHOLDERS` EQUITY


December 31, December 31,
1999 2000
(audited) (audited)

Deferred revenues $55,999 $121,202
Trade payables and other
accrued liabilities 45,213 105,988
Total current liabilities 101,212 227,190

Accrued severance pay 626 1,166

Share capital 234 482
Additional paid-in capital 67,230 102,544
Retained earnings 225,044 446,257
Total shareholders` equity 292,508 549,283

$394,346 $777,639





--30--crd/sf*

CONTACT: Check Point Software Technologies
Eyal Desheh, [phone] or 650-628-2050 (IR)
[e-mail]
or
Molly Ford, 650/628-2060 (Media Relations)
[e-mail]

KEYWORD: CALIFORNIA
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: E-COMMERCE INTERNET NETWORKING SOFTWARE EARNINGS

[FGV]

CHKP wird es allen zeigen

[Toborg]

By Mike Tarsala, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 10:10 AM ET Jan 31, 2001

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SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) - Who dares to disagree that the software companies that can slash Corporate America`s business costs will reap the biggest stock rewards of 2001?
Not Wall Street analysts, it seems. They`re still steering investors to a handful of software names they say are on the "must have" list for information-technology managers. Those companies include sales software maker Siebel, storage expert Veritas, transaction-processing applications company BEA Systems, and security wonk Check Point Software. See MarketWatch`s Mike Tarsala report.

Only one of the 21 analysts who cover Siebel (SEBL: news, msgs) , BEA (BEAS: news, msgs) and Check Point (CHKP: news, msgs) give any of the stocks less than a "buy" rating, according to Zack`s Investment Research. Just two in 20 who cover Veritas (VRTS: news, msgs) give it less than a "buy."

Fundamentally, there are obvious reasons to love all four stocks. Each of the Wall Street darlings is a leader in its respective market. Each should return revenue growth rates at or above 50 percent in 2001. Earnings? FuhGet about it. We`re talking about per-share profit growth near 40 percent for Siebel to as much as 118 percent for BEA this year.

But investors may want to take the analysts` software picks at their own peril, according to some money managers and investment gurus. Whatever the analysts say, it`s not time to buy, according to the experts whose firms don`t profit directly from stock sales to individual investors.

"They`re outstanding companies, but they`ve already had such strong moves, and the price-to-earnings ratios are still up there," said Bill O`Neil, long-time investor and founder of Investor`s Business Daily. "It`s hard to see them suddenly taking off and leading the market."

There seems to be little added safety in the super software stocks, as their abnormally high prices could make them among the first shares that tank if recession threats get worse. The market`s proven in the past 10 months that it won`t spare valuable stocks such as Oracle (ORCL: news, msgs) and Sun Microsystems (SUNW: news, msgs) if the companies hint at slower growth rates.

Judging the expense of Siebel and the other stocks is in many respects a matter of opinion. But investors consider most software issues with price-to-earnings ratios above 100 to be expensive, says Kay Doremus with Banc of America Capital Management. While Check Point`s PE ratio comes in under the threshold, the rest don`t: Siebel has a PE of 102, Veritas has a PE of 115, and BEA`s PE is a whopping 284.

The other multiple commonly used is a company`s PE/Growth ratio, which also factors in earnings growth. The average software PE/G ratio is in a range from 1.5 to 2, Doremus says. But Check Point`s is 1.7, Veritas and BEA come in at 2.4, and Siebel`s stock is an even more pricey 2.7.

It`s true that the best stocks in every industry trade at a premium. There`s a price to pay for stellar growth, and current shareholders are among those that say Siebel and the rest can justify their cost.

O`Neil recommended so-called expensive stocks including Cisco Systems (CSCO: news, msgs) throughout the 1990s, while others passed on it. He said that his investment company`s made money on stocks that trade with earnings multiples as high as 300.

So what of Siebel`s multiples? The company seemingly should be on fund managers` A-list, right?

Siebel breezed through its December quarter with a two-fold sales increase. Pro-forma earnings that quarter increased 176 percent to $106 million from $39.2 million. The company`s operating margin in the quarter increased to 27.2 percent, up from 20.2 percent in the year-ago quarter.

Long-term, Siebel`s appears to be a poster child for all software companies. Its core market opportunity should grow to $12 billion in 2004 from $4.6 billion last year, according to International Data Corp. The company is expected to increase revenue 50 percent over the next three years. And Siebel continues to gain market share against hostile competitors.

All the others -- Veritas, BEA and Check Point -- also live up to their incredibly high growth rate standards. Veritas also is expected to increase revenue 50 percent for three years. BEA is expected to increase sales about 40 percent over the same period. Check Point can count on similar high growth rates.

But the question investors are asking increasingly is if the software companies can come through with expectations over multiple years. In light of overall tech market conditions, a growth rate hiccup in the near future could mean hell to pay for shareholders.

"These guys are totally off on their own," said Larry Seibert of Barrett Associates, who controls about $2 billion of investments for private client accounts.

There`s a right time and a wrong time to pony up for pricey stocks, according to O`Neil. Now isn`t the time, when it comes to software. He uses technical analysis, or stock price charting, as one of many factors to pick winners. And as of now, the charts are telling him to stay away from software.

Investors should buy strong-growing stocks that break out of a narrow trading range over week-long periods, O`Neil contends. But most software concerns, including Siebel, BEA, Veritas and Check Point, have yet to settle into a base trading range that will allow them to run up. Siebel has ranged from $100 a share to less than $50 a share in the past two months, and now trades near $71. BEA`s shares range from about $81 to $41 over the same period, and now trade near $68. Veritas and Check Point`s prices also showed volatility recently.

What`s more, it`s important to track money rotation, he contends. The big money is going to financial stocks and a handful of old economy names that recently have been overlooked. Software is out, -- at least for now.

There`s a lot to be said for stocks that hold up in times of adversity. For that, Siebel and the rest get credit. The question is whether the stocks can keep going without a growth-related slip.

And if they do slip, is the overall tech economy worse off than the stock-touting analysts now are saying?

[Toborg]

Check Point Software sehr bullish Datum : 01.02.2001
Zeit :15:45


Goldman Sachs sähe die Aktie der Check Point Software (WKN 901638) "sehr
bullish" und bekräftigten ihr "Recommended-List-Rating".
Die Analysten stuften das von Check Point prognostizierte Wachstum von 50%
für 2001 als konservativ ein. Das Internet-Sicherheits-Unternehmen stehe
erst am Anfang seines Wachstums, und werde auch in Zukunft seinen
Vorsprung zur Konkurrenz ausbauen dank seiner überragenden Technik, der
beeindruckenden Partnerschaften und seiner Sicherheitslösungen.

Der Erfolg von Check Point sei es innovative Produkte sehr schnell zu
entwickeln und so bestmöglichst auf die Marktnachfrage zu reagieren. Dem
Management traue man auch weiterhin zu die "richtige Vision" im
Netzwerk-Sicherheits-Bereich zu haben und so könne man auch durch eine
frühe und schnelle Positionierung seiner Produkte auch in Zukunft
überzeugen - Recommended List.