Arm is off to a good start

Article Excerpt

ARM HOLDINGS PLC ADR $53 is a hold. This U.K.-based company (Nasdaq symbol ARM; Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 1.1 billion; Market cap: $58.3 billion; No dividend paid; Takeover Rating Target: Lowest; www.arm.com) is a leading designer of energy-efficient chips that power mobile devices. It licences its designs to other chipmakers instead of operating its own foundries. Parent company SoftBank Group Corp. of Japan recently completed an initial public offering of 95.5 million American Depositary Receipts of shares of Arm at $51.00 a share; each ADR represents one common share. SoftBank still owns about 90% of Arm. The stock jumped to $69 just after the IPO, but has dropped back since. Arm also faces a number of challenges, like slowing consumer spending on mobile devices and restrictions on the transfer of chip technology to China (that country currently accounts for 25% of its revenue). Arm Holdings plc is a hold. hold…