This column is for investors willing to take more risk and potentially receive more reward.  The stocks mentioned in this column are not recommended to buy or sell.  They're brought to your attention so you can investigate them further to determine if they fit your risk profile.  Most of the stocks will have less than $1 billion of market capitalization, have more volatility than other stocks, and oftentimes no earnings.  And some will have tremendous stories.

November 21, 2008 - 3Par Inc. (PAR-AMEX) together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development, marketing,and sale of information storage solutions in the United States, Europe,and Asia. Its products include InServ Storage Servers, which support a range of open systems-based servers, including various implementationsof UNIX, Windows, and Linux; and the 3PAR InForm Suite, a proprietarysoftware platform that provides the core intelligence for each of its InServ Storage Servers.

It serves large to medium enterprises, business-oriented service providers, consumer-oriented Internet/Web 2.0 companies, and government entities. The company markets and sells its products primarily through its direct sales force, as well as indirect resellers. 3PAR, Inc. was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Fremont, California.

Here's what caught my eye: Sales in 2007 were $66.2 million (fiscal year ends in March). Then in 2008, they jumped to $118 million. Clearly, what 3Par is selling, customers are buying.

Earnings have yet to be positive with a 19 cent loss in 2008. But 2009, analysts predict a profit of 7 cents a share, followed by an average estimate of 22 cents a share in 2010. There are 9 analysts covering this small company, and the range of earnings for 2010 is between 13 cents and 30 cents a share.

On November 11, the company reported its second quarter results. Some of the highlights: revenues jumped to $45.1 million, 61% higher than the same quarter a year ago and 5% higher than the previous quarter. Gross margins were 65.2%. Net income was $520,000 on a non-GAAP basis excluding stock-based compensation expenses. That put non-GAAP earnings at 1 cent a share, achieved even with negative currency effects and large reductions in net interest income. GAAP earnings including expenses related to stock options was a negative 2 cents a share.

A new T-class InServ storage server started shipping in September, a server that reinforced 3PAR's leadership position as the fastest storage array in the industry as determined by the Storage Performance Council under its SPC-1 benchmark. The T-class delivers about 2 to 3 times the performance of the S-class platform it replaces.

For the full transcript of the second quarter earnings call, click here.

More numbers: There's $108 million in cash. That's $1.78 per share. There is no long term debt. Current ratio is 2.81 (current assets divided by current liabilities.) The 52 week range on the stock saw a high of $15.40, hit on December 13 of 2007, and a low of $4.25, touched on October 9. Insiders own 53.13% of the stock while institutions have 21%. There are no dividends.

Sales are ramping at 3PAR. Earnings are about to go positive. If the economy doesn't shut down totally, the company should continue to prosper as it updates its servers and offers new products. Dig a little deeper into this one if you're looking for an up and coming tech stock and feeling particularly aggressive.

Company Web site: www.3par.com

- Ted Allrich