A SPECIAL REPORT: HOT STOCKS

High-Tech Hope

Since its sizzling initial public offering in March, the stock of Xylan, a Calabasas maker of computer networking switches, has zoomed to $68 a share from $26. . . . What’s behind Xylan’s appeal? Its super-fast switches let computers “talk” to each other more efficiently--and that’s critical to telecommunications firms, universities, hospitals and other businesses that move massive amounts of data.

Chip Shot

Xylan isn’t the only technology company on a roll. Plasma & Materials Technologies, a Chatsworth supplier of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, is riding high on the burgeoning demand for computer chips to run everything from powerful computers to cars and refrigerators. . . . Investors have driven PMT’s stock up more than 60% this year to $18.25 a share; they’re betting that the company’s systems will be chosen by chip makers for their next-generation products.

Name Game

Can a new name portend a reversal of fortune? Ask StreamLogic, formerly known as Micropolis. The Chatsworth company last month sold its flagging computer disk-drive business, changed its name, and announced plans to focus on software and subsystems to store and manage video and data. . . . That was a very smart move. Its stock has nearly tripled to $7 a share.