He characterizes Phoenix Technology (PTEC), the largest supplier of basic operating-system software for PCs, as an "emerging growth stock" that could earn 60 cents a share in 2009, compared with 25 cents in the last 12 months

At close to $16, Phoenix stock trades at 80 times projected earnings for the September 2009 fiscal year, and about 6 times revenues. But Schneiderman observes that none of the new initiatives are yet in the estimates. The analyst says that Phoenix aims to grow the BIOS business to $100 million by 2011, from around $70 million this year. He suggests that the segment deserves a stock-market value of about $300 million. The company's remaining market cap is around $140 million -- the option value of the other three businesses. Schneiderman's take is that if any of those new areas gain traction, the stock could be worth more, maybe a lot more. Down the road, he envisions $200 million in revenue, with a stock at five times revenue. In other words, he sees Phoenix rising from the ashes, back to a billion-dollar valuation.

A consortium including Ramius Capital Group and Starboard Value & Opportunity Master Fund sent a letter to the computer-software maker, nominating three candidates for election to the company's board of directors at the 2007 annual meeting. The Ramius/Starboard group said it intends to nominate John Mutch, Philip Moyer and Jeffrey Smith. The investors said they continue to believe the company's shares are undervalued, and that they're still interested in acquiring the company. Ramius and its affiliates own 3,502,941 shares (13.8%).