Atmel Corporation (NDAQ:ATML) shares rose marginally yesterday after Daniel Loeb’s Third Point LLC disclosed a reduced stake in the company. The activist investor disclosed in a regulatory filing that it had sold large blocks of shares between 10/11/07 and 11/30/07 at prices ranging from $5.80 and $4.39. The move will likely mean a loss for Loeb, who had been purchasing shares at around $5.45 a piece.

The integrated circuit manufacturer recently announced in-line earnings of $16.6 million or 4 cents per share, compared to a gain of 3 cents per share a year earlier (excluding a one-time gain of $120 million). This drop, combined with other news, has led to a drop in the company’s stock of around 30% since the beginning of the year. This may have been one issue that led to the activist liquidating its stake in the company – to cover the losses from the position or others in its portfolio.

So, how does the Atmel’s future look? Well, the company’s top and bottom line growth in recent years seems to be slowing considerably. The company currently trades at a negative PE ratio (since it has experienced losses during the past four quarters) but should stand at around 15x earnings based on its historical EPS growth rate. Meanwhile, the company’s market cap of over $2 billion is over 40x its latest quarterly net income, meaning it is extremely overvalued.

In the end, this stock is a poor investment that Daniel Loeb’s Third Point appears to have given up on. In the past, Loeb has taken action to repair his investments and return them to profitability in order to reap healthy profits for his hedge fund. However, in this case it appears that even he is losing faith. Combined, these factors make ATML a stock worth watching!

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Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) shares moved up marginally after a fall Monday after the company announced the first positive sales trend after 12 straight months of decline. The automaker saw the greatest success from its redesigned Ford Escape, Ford Taurus X, and Mercury Mariner vehicles, which saw sales increase 199% compared with a year ago. Meanwhile, the new hybrid vehicles hit November sales records.

Ford also issued guidance in that was unchanged. In the first quarter of 2008, the company said it plans to produce 685,000 vehicles in North America compared to 740,000 during the first quarter of 2007. Sales for the fourth quarter of 2007, however, are expected to be unchanged from previous plans. This news surprised many industry analysts who had expected the company to announce results in line with other automakers who have been struggling with sales.

Ford also announced yesterday that a judge accepted the company’s deal to settle class action lawsuits on behalf of about 800,000 Ford Explorer owners whose vehicles low value because of their perceived rollover dangers. The settlement involves a payment of a $500 voucher to buy new Explorers or $300 vouchers to buy other Ford vehicles. This lawsuit has been in the works for several years and a settlement of the suit may remove a cloud that has been hovering over the company’s head for some time.

In the end, Ford appears to be on a turnaround track with sales starting to increase and a significant lawsuit under control. Combined, these factors make F a stock worth watching closely!

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Research in Motion (NDAQ:RIMM) may finally be feeling the effects of gravity after the company’s stock dropped another 8% yesterday on profit taking from many investors who are growing uncomfortable over the company’s earnings prospects. The stock made a huge run-up last year that took the stock up over 200%; however, shareholders are now taking some profits off the table as speculation circulates that the momentum may not be sustainable.

The mobile devices network has been in a state of flux since Apple launched its new iPhone and Verizon decided to open up its network to new devices and software. Such open systems may not help the Blackberry given the many new, competing products that have recently come to market. Verizon already markets the Motorola Q and Palm Treo – two of Blackberry’s largest competitors, and there is no way to predict how this may affect RIM.

Meanwhile, Google’s recent decision to provide open wireless device software through its service – codenamed Android – will likely allow competing device manufacturers to insert Blackberry-like features onto their own devices. Clearly, this is a reason for concern for the Blackberry as competition then becomes simply a matter of design instead of software. And finally, we already know that AT&T has been pushing the new Samsung Blackjack, which may end up taking a slice of the pie.

In the end, this new competition may prove to put a strain on Blackberry’s market dominance. Whether or not it will materially affect the company’s stock remains to be seen, but it is certainly a great reason to take some money off the table, which is what many people think is happening right now. Combined, these factors make RIMM a stock worth watching!

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