Apple (Nasdaq:AAPL), Flextronics (Nasdaq:FLEX) Look Good in Asia

Commenting on ODM barometer sales for November in Asia, Ticonderoga Securities said they rose for the month, but aren't meeting expectations yet. Apple Inc. (Nasdaq:AAPL) and Flextronics (Nasdaq:FLEX) were cited as two companies positioned strong in certain segments of the market

Ticonderoga said, "November ODM Barometer Sales Rise 2%, But Below Average. In November, unconsolidated sales for the ODM Barometer increased by 1.8% M/M but below the five-year average November sales increase of 3.6% for the group. Keep in mind, this represents the sixth consecutive month of below-average performance. The ODM Barometer is a basket of 13 leading Taiwan-based ODM companies, which we believe provide a read into sales trends in the technology world and are competitors to the North American EMS providers for certain programs. These 13 ODM companies were operating at an annualized revenue run rate of approximately US$134 billion during November.

"Except for Apple, PC and Notebooks Show Poorly During China Trip. During our China Technology Tour to China and Taiwan over the last two weeks, we thought the commentary around the PC and notebook market was weak, with further signs of order cuts recently. Additionally, the transition to the Huron River platform from Calpella during 4Q10 and 1Q11 appears to be negatively impacting demand trends. However, the one standout during our trip was Apple with the recent launch of the new MacBook Air that was sold out (i.e., the 11-inch model) at certain resellers in China, and we sensed overall strong demand for the company's existing notebook and PC lineup in the supply chain. As such, we believe Apple has the potential to deliver upside in its Mac businesses during the December quarter. Within our EMS coverage universe, the most important competitor to the leading Taiwan ODMs and Hon Hai Precision is Flextronics, which is expecting to ramp its notebook business."

Apple closed Tuesday at $320.29, down $1.38, or 0.43 percent. Flextronics closed at $7.80, up $0.09, or 1.10 percent.