Planar Systems, Inc. (PLNR) - 500 Beiträge pro Seite

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Profile:Planar Systems, Inc. is a developer, manufacturer and marketer of high-performance electronic display systems. Its products range from display components to stand-alone display systems produced to address specific market applications in medical, industrial and commercial market segments. Display technologies featured in Planar`s products include electroluminescent flat-panel displays, active matrix liquid crystal displays, passive matrix liquid crystal displays and plasma display panels. The Company manufactures EL displays and sources other display components, electronics and most assembly from a global network of suppliers. Planar`s major customers include Philips Medical Systems, Siemens Medical, GE Medical Systems, DataScope Corporation, Eastman Kodak Company, Diebold Inc., Allen-Bradley and Cubic Corporation, as well as major channel partners, including Dell Inc. and CDW Corporation.

http://www.planar.com

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http://www.forbes.com/investmentnewsletters/2004/02/10/cz_mr…

Guru Picks
Gurus Spell Profits LCD
Matt Rand; data provided by Marketocracy, 02.10.04, 10:24 AM ET

NEW YORK - Gurus are betting that the three-week slide in technology shares is a time to go long. Although Marketocracy.com`s top pickers have lost 2.34% in the last two weeks, they`re still up 7.47% for the year, far ahead of the major indices.
The top two guru buys last week were manufacturers of electronic displays. Taiwan`s AU Optronics (nyse: AUO - news - people ), a top sell the previous week, makes thin-film transistor LCD panels for consumer electronics. The company announced at the end of January that its fourth-quarter 2003 profit was $227 million, up from a loss for the same quarter a year ago. On Feb. 10, the company has scheduled an earnings call to explain its growth. Although some gurus sold AUO, buyers were far more active, picking up shares at an average price of $14.64 on a midweek dip. The stock, which is now over $15, trades at ten times expected 2004 earnings.

The other electronic-display buy was Planar Systems (nasdaq: PLNR - news - people ) of Beaverton, Ore. The company produces electro-luminescent flat-panel displays, as well as plasma and LCDs, primarily for the medical industry. The stock is down about 30% for the year and now trades at just over 16 times last year`s earnings. It dropped from $25 down to the $17 range after announcing in early January that it would miss its fourth-quarter earnings projection of $0.28 per share, then subsequently announced earnings of $0.21 per share.

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PLANAR SYS (NasdaqNM:PLNR) Quote data by Reuters

After Hours (RTM/ECN): 12.66 -0.07 (-0.55%)



Reuters
UPDATE - Planar Systems reduces second-quarter outlook
Wednesday March 17, 6:22 pm ET


(Adds details)
LOS ANGELES, March 17 (Reuters) - Flat-panel display systems maker Planar Systems Inc. (NasdaqNM:PLNR - News) on Wednesday said it expects second-quarter results to fall short of expectations on higher-than-expected costs in the company`s medical business unit and shortfalls in its commercial business unit.

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Beaverton, Oregon-based Planar said those factors and an unusual item relating to an investment are expected to result in quarterly net income of 5 to 10 cents per share on sales of $55 million to $60 million for the quarter ending March 26.

The company said the higher medical segment costs were driven by a strategic initiative launched in February to increase price competitiveness, while the investment item stems from a valuation charge for its investment in Taiwanese manufacturing company TopVision Technology.

Analysts surveyed by Reuters Research, a unit of Reuters Group Plc, had been expecting earnings per share of 22 cents. Beaverton, Oregon-based Planar did not say what its prior expectation had been.

Shares of Planar Systems fell to $13.14 in after-hours trade on INET from a close of $15.25 on Nasdaq.

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Planar Expands Embedded Display Offerings to Solve Indoor and Outdoor Kiosk Challenges
Tuesday February 24, 8:02 am ET
European Retailer Auchan Selects Planar Displays for Supermarket Kiosks; Saves Customers Time and Money


BEAVERTON, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 24, 2004-- Planar Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq:PLNR - News), a worldwide leader in flat-panel display systems, is expanding its suite of embedded display solutions to fulfill ATM, retail and ticketing kiosk needs for challenging indoor and outdoor environments. Building on Planar`s 20 years of experience providing displays for a variety of demanding applications, the LA product line of indoor, open-frame monitors is ideally suited for today`s point-of-sale and point-of-purchase kiosks.
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In addition to the LA product line, Planar has added an automatic dimming feature to its LC15 display; a rugged, sunlight-readable, 15-inch LCD monitor optimized for outdoor use and indoor applications in high-ambient lighting conditions. Leading French retailer Auchan, which operates 320 supermarkets in 12 countries, recently installed Planar`s upgraded LC15 displays into outdoor kiosks for its new pilot project in France called "Chronodrive." With the addition of the enhanced LC15 and the LA products, Planar offers a complete range of embedded displays ideal for almost any environmental condition and kiosk application.

"This year, more than 70 percent of kiosks installed worldwide include touch-screens as businesses realize their benefits," said Francie Mendelsohn, president of Summit Research Associates, Inc. "With 20 years of experience installing displays in a variety of demanding environments, Planar is well-suited to fulfill the demand for touch-screens that is growing across a wide range of markets and applications."

The LA product family, based on the company`s award-winning desktop LCD monitors, includes 15-, 17- and 19-inch open-frame monitors with or without touch-screens. The monitors come with a full warranty and feature open-frame configuration and standardized design, lowering customers` engineering design costs, total cost of ownership and speeding time to market. Low power consumption extends the life of the displays and sturdy construction ensures reliability. The LA15 and LA17 offer 7-wire, long-life resistive touch-screens, and the LA19 offers a capacitive touch-screen with USB interface. Non-touch-screen models are also available.

Based on the LC15 first announced in June 2003, the enhanced LC15 is a 15-inch, high-bright monitor that can be dimmed from 1000 nits to as low as 250 nits, depending on the lighting requirements. It is perfect for outdoor applications where sunlight or high-ambient-light settings make viewing difficult. Auchan`s Chronodrive consists of a stocked warehouse and a special platform with interactive kiosk stations containing Planar`s new LC15 displays, enabling customers to drive up, order and pay using the touch-screen, and receive their selected goods delivered by Auchan employees. Auchan plans to implement many other Chronodrive stations in France and throughout Europe.

"The Chronodrive concept caters to our customers with busy lives, enabling them to save time and money, as well as shop in comfortable surroundings," said Martin Toulemonde, CEO of Chronodrive. "Planar provided us with a complete display solution for this project -- a reliable, rugged and high-performance display, excellent engineering support and quick turnaround. They are a unique development partner."

The new LA family and enhanced LC15 are available immediately for purchase directly from Planar, through the company`s online channel partners and a variety of distributors worldwide. Further details on each model and links to resellers can be found at www.planar.com.

Warranty Information

The LA and LC families of displays come with a standard one-year repair/replace policy. An extended warranty option is also available.

About Planar

Planar Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: PLNR - News) is one of the world`s most accomplished providers of flat-panel displays with more than 20 years expertise in flat-panel innovation. The company provides the most dependable display solutions for demanding applications in industrial, medical, commercial and consumer markets. Planar`s customers depend on its award-winning displays in mission-critical moments, from making split-second medical decisions to catching late-breaking headlines. Founded in 1983, Planar is a global company with headquarters in Oregon. For more information, please visit www.planar.com.



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Contact:
Planar Systems, Inc.
Linda Ferguson, 503-748-7280 (Media)
[e-mail]
or
Golin/Harris International
Jared Leavitt, 415-274-7913 (Media)
[e-mail]



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Source: Planar Systems, Inc.

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Planar Expands Retail Offerings with Dynamic Signage Content Management Software
Wednesday November 3, 4:17 pm ET
TransCore Selects Planar`s Retail-Ready Signage Solution for Network of 1,200 Dynamic Signs


BEAVERTON, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 3, 2004-- Planar Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLNR - News), a worldwide leader in flat-panel display systems, continues to expand its line of interactive marketing solutions for the retail environment with the Retail Signage Solution, a complete software platform that will manage large digital signage networks (DSNs) and enable targeted scheduling and distribution of content for DSNs and retailers.
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The company`s first product geared toward network and content management for the growing dynamic signage marketplace, the Planar Retail Signage Solution will allow DSNs and retailers to deliver audience-specific, rich-media content and advertisements in fast-paced retail environments where advertisers compete for consumers` attention.

TransCore, the largest provider of freight matching services in North America, has selected the Planar Retail Signage Solution to manage its nationwide network of 1,200 dynamic displays in travel plazas, convenience stores and retail outlets. With this solution, TransCore will elevate its current DSN to a platform that better serves advertisers by supporting rich-media content, advanced scheduling and targeting functionality, and modern network management with Internet connectivity.

"In the past, we manually controlled the unique content schedules for all 1,200 displays across the country, which was a time-consuming and often inefficient process," said Don Thornton, vice president and national director of freight business services at TransCore. "The Planar Retail Signage Solution significantly improves our old system by enabling us to sell, schedule, distribute and play targeted content across our network of displays using high-speed Internet. With the Planar Retail Signage Solution, we can deliver greater value to our customers."

Planar`s Retail Signage Solution allows DSN operators, like TransCore and large retailers, to present additional value to advertisers by ensuring the right content reaches the right audiences at the right time. The solution will have the ability to designate exactly when and where content is shown - on one display, on many displays or across the entire display network. For example, it enables TransCore to sell advertisements with a specified distribution, so that ads targeted toward Oregon consumers do not play in Florida. In a retail environment, the Planar Retail Signage Solution allows retailers to easily sell and schedule targeted advertisements by department, selling cosmetic or jewelry ads in women`s dressing rooms, and footwear or wallet ads in the men`s department.

The Platform: The Planar Retail-Ready Signage Solution Delivers Ease and Efficiency

Together, the software platform`s two major components - the server-side application and the player application - decrease the time and resources needed to manage large dynamic signage networks, saving retailers money while increasing the opportunity to secure advertising revenue. The server-side tools provide remote network-wide management and content scheduling, distribution, tracking and statistical analysis tools.

The player application software enables high-quality content, with autonomous features that ensure continuous playing, regardless of the status of the network connection. For the most complete solution, Planar hardware, such as LCDs, plasma displays and PCs, integrates seamlessly with the Planar Retail Signage Solution.

Planar`s Retail Signage Solution automates the scheduling and distribution of all content - from advertisements and news, to weather, alerts or other external feeds - through its integrated sales and scheduling tools. The user-friendly Windows-based application will provide a rich interface with near-real time distribution of uploaded content. A Web-based portal provides advertiser access to past and present campaign content and statistics, and the ability to plan future advertising.

"Planar is committed to providing real solutions which help retailers communicate more effectively with their customers," said Matt Harris, vice president of marketing and corporate development at Planar Systems. "TransCore`s selection of Planar`s Retail Signage Solution validates our ability to deliver on this promise."

The Planar Retail Signage Solution is currently under development and will be made available to TransCore in Q3 of calendar year 2005. A packaged version of the solution will be available to the general market thereafter. To learn more about Planar`s retail solutions, please visit www.planar.com.

About Planar

Planar Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: PLNR - News) is one of the world`s most accomplished providers of flat-panel displays with more than 20 years expertise in flat-panel innovation. The company provides the most dependable display solutions for demanding applications in industrial, medical, commercial, retail and hospitality markets. Planar`s customers depend on its award-winning displays in mission-critical moments, from making split-second medical decisions to catching late-breaking headlines. Founded in 1983, Planar is a global company with headquarters in Oregon. For more information, please visit www.planar.com.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Contact:
Planar Systems, Inc.
Linda Ferguson, 503-748-7280 (Media)
[e-mail]
Stewart Clark, 503-748-6984 (Investor)
[e-mail]
or
GolinHarris
Keith Wiley, 213-438-8823 (Media)
[e-mail]



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Source: Planar Systems, Inc.