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An analyst who covers ATM manufacturers today reduced 2008 and 2009 earnings estimates for NCR Corp. and Diebold Inc., two of the world's largest ATM manufacturers, because global sales are expected to decelerate even faster than anticipated because of the worldwide recession. "It's not in every market, but in the U.S., small and regional banks are more cautious and not spending. In emerging markets, like Russia, it's harder to predict how much the banks will spend purchasing ATMs because of the economic turmoil there," Gil Luria, an analyst with Wedbush Morgan Securities in Los Angeles, tells ATM&Debit News, a CardLine sister publication. Luria cut ratings for Dayton, Ohio-based NCR, the world's largest ATM manufacturer based on 2007 shipments, from "strong buy" to "buy." Luria also cut NCR's 12-month stock price target to $18 per share from $25. NCR's stock price closed Thursday at $13.32 per share. In addition, Luria reduced NCR's 2008 earnings per share to $1.67 from $1.73, and 2009 earnings per share estimate to $1.79 from $1.90. Canton, Ohio-based Diebold, the world's third-largest ATM manufacturer based on 2007 shipments, kept its "buy" rating, but Luria cut the manufacturer's 12-month share price target to $34 from $37. Diebold stock price closed Thursday at $25.49 per share. Luria reduced Diebold's 2008 earnings per share to $2.58 from $2.63 and 2009 earnings per share estimates to $2.64 from $2.76. Luria made his assessments after interviewing attendees at the BAI Retail Delivery Conference &Expo this week in Orlando. In the last two to three weeks, ATM manufacturers have experienced a noticeable deterioration in ATM placements, Luria says.
