Slimming EDS Draws Mixed Reviews

And like Frisch, Djurdjevic suspects that second-half numbers could look even worse. He says the company is banking heavily on new customer bookings -- a recent weak spot -- for the remainder of the year.

He's also convinced that news of the pending layoffs will simply add to the company's challenges.

"In the services business, your people are your assets," Djurdjevic explained. "So [Jordan] is reducing his chances for future growth. ... He doesn't seem to understand what business he is in."

For its part, EDS offered some defense of Jordan's performance.

"The transformation is moving forward," Lightfoot told TheStreet.com on Friday. "We have always said this would be a multiyear transformation. We have a plan -- and we are very focused on sticking to that plan."

Lightfoot went on to describe cost-cutting as a "major plank" in Jordan's strategy. EDS tapped Jordan as its CEO based in part on his past leadership of manufacturing giant Westinghouse Electric, which under his watch morphed into a media company named for its big broadcast asset, CBS, that he subsequently sold to Viacom (VIA Quote). However, Jordan's turnaround plan at EDS has yet to pan out. The company continues to lose huge sums on old contracts while struggling to attract new customers.

Frisch, for one, is clearly worried. He says the company seems to lack "a clear path to achieving material, sustainable margin expansion and cash flow growth."

He therefore recommends selling the company's stock. But investors aren't listening. Instead, they drove EDS shares up 1.4% to $19.79 -- a four-month high -- after Wednesday's reports of pending layoffs.

The jump came just one day after Bernstein analyst Rod Bourgeois reiterated his outperform rating on the stock. Unlike most, Bourgeois expects EDS to start delivering more good news than bad. He says that key negatives, including the company's junk credit rating and "poor business mix," are already priced into the stock. But he suspects that a series of positive catalysts -- including the potential for "meaningfully improved earnings" from the company's core business -- are being overlooked by the market.