By Benjamin Pimentel, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Shares of 3-D printer makers
slipped Thursday after Hewlett-Packard sent a strong signal that it
would be entering that market.
H-P (HPQ) Chief Executive Meg Whitman said at the Palo Alto,
Calif.-based company's annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday that
the tech giant is planning to enter the 3-D printer market in June.
Shares of H-P rallied earlier in the session, but the stock shed
0.4% to close at $31.48.
H-P's plan was based on technological advances the company had
achieved.
"H-P Labs has been working hard to introduce 3-D Printing
technology that overcomes the two biggest problems with the current
technology in the marketplace: speed and quality," a company
spokesman told MarketWatch.
RBC Capital analyst Amit Daryanni said in a note to clients that
he expects H-P to "leverage its existing printing-head technology
and distribution channel to become a formidable player in this
market over time."
He also argued that "H-P's enthusiasm and increased involvement
in the 3-D printing space should provide fundamental support" for
other 3-D printer companies, led by 3-D Systems Corp. and
Stratasys, saying the move "validates the viability of 3-D printing
technology."
"We do not envision increased competition among industry players
once H-P introduces 3-D printing products and potentially other
ancillary 3-D products and services, as we see a growing 3-D
[market] and increased opportunities for all 3-D market
participants," he added.
However, shares of 3-D printer stocks were in the red
Thursday.
ExOne (XONE) shares fell 10% to close at $39.40 after the
company posted a disappointing outlook. Other 3-D printer stocks
also slipped, including 3-D Systems Corp., (DDD) which was down
more than 3% to close at $60.48, and Stratasys (SSYS), which was
off 1.6% to close at $114.33.
Other major tech shares were also down. Amazon.com (AMZN) was
off 1.1% to close at $368.97, while Apple Inc. (AAPL) gave up half
a percentage point to close at $528.70.
On the upside, shares of Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) were ahead by
2.7% to close at $40.33, while Cisco Systems (CSCO) rose 1% to
close at $21.83 and LinkedIn (LNKD) was up 1.2% to close at
$204.42.
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