Well, my beloved APC cratered after guiding lower
during their conference call, and they dropped
out of the first tier.  Here's the latest 
numbers:
John

                 The Motley Fool's Rule Maker Ranker
                                Version 2.0 -- Last Updated April 19, 1999

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Financial AnalysiCompany Being Evaluated                        Competitor #1   Competitor #2  Competitor #3

                 American Power Conversions                   Emerson Electric       SPX      <Fill in Name>
                 Current Period Year-ago PeriodYear-over-Year  Current Period  Current Period Current Period
                     7/2/00         6/27/99       Growth           6/30/00         6/30/00        <Date>
Income Statement . . .
  Sales                 365,745        315,462     15.9%             4,041,800        695,100
  Cost of Goods S       201,344        176,909     13.8%             2,605,100        461,800
  Net Income             57,600         42,814     34.5%               373,700         48,500
  Shares Outstand       201,040        195,177     3.0%

Balance Sheet . . .
  Cash & Equivale       382,665        271,819     40.8%               402,500         30,000
  Current Assets        907,286        753,093     20.5%             5,664,200      1,012,200
  Short-term Debt             0          1,008    -100.0%            3,353,600        117,900
  Current Liabili       209,215        191,913     9.0%              6,015,300        752,700
  Long-term Debt              0              0    No Debt            1,752,900      1,090,300
                                                                              1              1              0Competitors
Margins & Ratios . . .
  Gross Margins            44.9%          43.9%     1.0                   35.5%          33.6%                     34.6%
  Net Margins              15.7%          13.6%     2.2                    9.2%           7.0%                      8.1%
  Cash-to-Debt          No Debt!         269.66Eliminated Debt             0.08           0.02                      0.07
  Net Cash              382665.0       270811.0    41.3%             -4704000.0     -1178200.0                -2941100.0
  Fool Flow Ratio           2.51           2.52    -0.5%                   1.98           1.55                      1.76


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Ranking Rule Makers

1) Brand          Points (0-1)                                3) Financial Dire Points (0-3)
Familiarity                    1                              Sales Growth                   3
Openness                       1                              Gross Margins                  3
Optimism                       1                              Net Margins                    3
Legitimacy                     1                              Shares Outstandin              2
Inevitability                  1                              Cash-to-Debt                   3
Solitariness                   1                              Fool Flow Ratio                1
Humor                          1                              Expansion Potenti              3
  Subtotal                     7                                Subtotal                    18

2) Financial Loca Points (0-2)                                4) Monopoly Statu Points (0-4)
Mass Market Habit              0                              Gross Margins                  4
Gross Margins                  1                              Net Margins                    4
Net Margins                    2                              Net Cash                       4
Cash-to-Debt                   2                              Fool Flow Ratio                0
Fool Flow Ratio                0                              Convenience                    4
Your Interest                  2                                Subtotal                    16
  Subtotal                     7
                                                              5) Your  Enjoymen              1

                   Total Score               49 Second Tier

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