Micron Warns of Earnings Shortfall

Micron Electronics Inc., the No. 3 direct seller of personal computers, said its fiscal second-quarter revenue and earnings will be lower than expected. The company, majority owned by memory-chip maker Micron Technology Inc., blamed the shortfall on customers deferring purchases in anticipation of Intel Corp.’s new Pentium III chips, which were introduced last week, and on falling prices of its products. Analysts had forecast earnings of 14 cents a share. The company made the warning after the close of trading.