Trading in Storage Technology Corp shares was is delayed because of an order imbalance on the New York Stock Exchange yesterday morning after the company indicated that shipment schedules for its Iceberg disk array had slipped. The shares finally opened sharply down at 42.50 compared with 56.25 overnight. It now appears likely that the company will install only one Iceberg at its own data centre – by the end of the current quarter, and begin installing three other systems at outside sites early in the third quarter. The company still says that its goal of shipping enough systems to recognise $50m in revenue in the second half of the year remains reasonable, as the original projection included some cushion for delays. The company’s first quarter results (see page seven) were also below analysts’ expectations, primarily because of currency translations and a shortfall in revenue from the XL/Datacomp acquisition, which chipped in only $50m, far short of the year-ago figure of about $80m, because of the E model AS/400 pause. It told analysts that full-year forecasts of $3 to $3.50 a share still seem within reason.
