Palm is one of those companies I always root for because I’ve happily used its products for years and I admire its pioneering spirit and history. But that’s not reason enough to like the stock, and the developments of the last few days paint a dismal picture. UBS analyst Maynard Um on Monday dropped his rating to sell and chopped his price target nearly in half to $5 a share. That follows Thursday’s announcement Palm is one of those companies I always root for because I’ve happily used its products for years and I admire its pioneering spirit and history. But that’s not reason enough to like the stock, and the developments of the last few days paint a dismal picture. UBS analyst Maynard Um on Monday dropped his rating to sell and chopped his price target nearly in half to $5 a share. That follows Thursday’s announcement by the company that it has blown its second-quarter. Read, ‘em, as they, say and weep, if you own Palm, that is: Palm will post a net loss of 8 cents to 10 cents a share, compared to the 4 cent-profit expected by Wall Street. Sales will come in at $345 million to $350 million, compared to the guidance of $380 million issued when the company announced first-quarter results in early October. Palm also said it was disappointed that it didn’t get certification on a new product, probably a handset for Verizon, although that’s not confirmed. What else could go wrong? Oh yeah, warranty repairs are up. And in one of those twists that sometimes baffle people who don’t follow the industry closely, the company said sales of the Centro are better than expected; but that’s bad news because the low-priced smart phone hurts the margin mix. Longer term, Palm is getting its butt kicked by Apples’s iPhone and RIM’s Blackberry. It’s not at all clear what it can do to regain some momentum in the marketplace. If I were an IT pro, I’d worry that the company is going to be taken out, making enterprise support that much more difficult. As you’d imagine the stock is really getting hit. It’s off another 2.5% today to $5.60 a share, and has now lost 15% of its value since Thursday. Indeed, the stock has been this low since 2004. My heart says, “Go, Palm,” but my investor’s brain says it may be time to wash your hands of Palm. I welcome your comments, tips and suggestions. Reach me at bill.snyder@sbcglobal.net. Technology Industry