‘Fickle’ millennials blamed for Chipotle’s downward spiral

Posted by & filed under Company Analysis, Financial analysis, Governments & Regulators, Growth & Valuation, Industry Analysis, Management Issues.

Description: Chipotle downgrade to rare underperform rating at Jefferies, which cited weak February trends and rising marketing costs Source: MarketWatch.com Date: Mar 18, 2016 Link: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/chipotle-stock-drops-after-rare-bearish-call-at-jefferies-2016-03-17 Questions for Discussions: Why has Chipotle stock been down-graded by this analyst? Do you agree with the assessment and predictions for recovery?

The Lone Analyst Who Said Sell Valeant When Hedge Funds Piled In

Posted by & filed under Company Analysis, Financial analysis, Governments & Regulators, Growth & Valuation.

Description: In July 2014, Dimitry Khmelnitsky advised investors to sell Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. and then watched the stock double in a year. “It was very painful,” Khmelnitsky, an analyst at Veritas Investment Research Corp., said in an telephone interview from his office in Toronto. “What I felt was pain.” Source: Bloomberg.com – video report Date:… Read more »

This investor thinks big banks are doomed

Posted by & filed under Financial analysis, Growth & Valuation, Industry Analysis.

Description: Bond king Bill Gross is not known for his sunny outlook for the markets. But he took his pessimism to a new level in his latest monthly outlook. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: Mar 03, 2016 Link: http://money.cnn.com/2016/03/03/investing/bill-gross-janus-banks-stocks/index.html?iid=hp-stack-dom Questions for discussion: Summarize the bank problems as argued in the report. What do you… Read more »

Fitbit’s Game Plan For Making Your Company Healthy

Posted by & filed under Company Analysis, Financial analysis, Growth & Valuation, Management Issues.

Description: Given how things often go in Silicon Valley, Fitbit shouldn’t be here. It started selling wearable activity trackers when other hardware startups struggled for funding. Source: Forbes.com Date: Jan 08, 2016 Link: http://www.forbes.com/sites/parmyolson/2016/01/08/fitbit-wearables-corporate-wellness/ Questions for Discussions: Summarize the reasons for the firm’s financial success. How secure is the connection with corporate wellness? Should the… Read more »

What’s Zuckerberg Worth Without 99% of His Fortune?

Posted by & filed under Financial analysis, Financial Planning, Management Issues.

Description: Mark Zuckerberg’s plan to donate 99 percent of his Facebook stock is setting new philanthropy standards. He’s starting young, and he’s structuring his Chan Zuckerberg Initiative as a limited liability corporation — meaning it can do more than just give to charity. Bloomberg’s Caleb Melby breaks down the estimated $45 billion gift. (Source: Bloomberg)… Read more »

The Longer-Term Approach of Activist Investors

Posted by & filed under Financial analysis, Growth & Valuation.

Description: Bruce Goldfarb, Okapi Partners president and chief executive officer, discusses the longer-term approach of activist investors with Bloomberg’s Alix Steel and Keri Geiger on “Bloomberg ‹GO›.” (Source: Bloomberg) Source: Bloomberg.com – video report Date: Nov 27, 2015 Link: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2015-11-27/the-longer-term-approach-of-activist-investors Questions for discussion: What does Bruce Goldfarb suggest is happening in investing circles? What advice… Read more »

Black Friday: Deep Dive Into Consumer Retail Trends

Posted by & filed under Financial analysis, Financial Planning, Management Issues.

Description: Matthew Shay, president and chief executive officer at National Retail Federation, and Bloomberg Gadfly columnist Shelly Banjo discuss consumer trends of this holiday shopping season and the negative impact of weather on recent retail sales. They speak on “Bloomberg ‹GO›.” (Banjo is a Bloomberg Gadfly columnist. The opinions expressed are her own.) (Source: Bloomberg)… Read more »