Responding to persistent rumors over the Thanksgiving weekend ofa possible profit warning, Enron COO Jeffrey Skilling has deniedproblems with earnings for any of the myriad energy andcommunications businesses for North America’s largest buyer andseller of natural gas and electricity. Enron’s stock did fall lastweek, however, as did other energy stocks.

“All of our businesses are performing extremely well and we arevery comfortable with consensus analyst earnings estimates of $0.35per share in the fourth quarter of 2000, and $1.65 for the fullyear 2001,” said Skilling in a prepared statement. FirstCall/Thomson Financial analysts had forecast earnings per share of$.03 in the fourth quarter and $1.66 in 2001.

The day before Thanksgiving, Enron spokesman Mark Palmer saidthat the company decided to uncharacteristically respond to rumorsafter hearing “persistent” talk that the company was going to “putout a profit warning.” Palmer said he did not know how the rumorstarted. He said the rumor did not start in Internet chat rooms,but rather, the company began getting telephone calls fromanalysts.

“We’ve never said anything but that we’re comfortable withanalysts’ expectations,” Palmer said.

CEO Ken Lay said recently that he was aware of criticism thatthe Houston-based company appeared to lack any focus because it wasmoving in so many directions. He called the concern “legitimate,”and said “it’s something we talk about internally. We need to becareful we don’t take on too many new markets at one time. We needto prove that we can do what we say we’re going to do,” such as thebroadband market.

In the Internet chat rooms, Enron shareholders seemed delightedwith the rise and short-term fall of the stock, with one sharingthe news that he had traded in some of his child’s college fund toobtain more Enron shares while the price was lower. Someshareholders said they expected the fourth quarter earnings to riseeven higher, then fall back in 2001.

Carolyn Davis, Houston

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