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

Description: Renewed access to financing must not divert the debt-troubled nation from implementing critical economic reforms.

Source: Fortune.com

Date: Apr 03, 2014

Link: http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2014/04/03/el-erian-caution-optimism-about-greeces-return-to-capital-markets/?iid=SF_F_River

Questions for discussion:

  • Summarize El-Erian’s assessment of investing in Greek debt and how the Greek government is managing that debt.
  • How would you categorize the risk associated with Greek debt today?

Posted by & filed under Company Analysis, Financial analysis, Industry Analysis.

Description: Barnes & Noble Inc.’s shares fell as much as 16% on Thursday after John Malone’s Liberty Media said it’s slashing its holdings in Barnes & Noble to about 1.7% from the 17% stake it held in 2011.

Source: Marketwatch.com

Date: Apr 03, 2014

Link: http://blogs.marketwatch.com/behindthestorefront/2014/04/03/liberty-medias-smaller-stake-in-barnes-noble-may-actually-be-a-good-thing-analysts/

Questions for discussion:

  • Why did the stock price fall dramatically upon the announcement?
  • Why is this announcement considered “good” from some points of view?
  • What is your assessment of the situation?

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

Description: It’s been four years since Disney purchased Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion. At the time, it wasn’t hailed as a brilliant move. Disney’s stock price sank on news of the deal. Superheroes were hot properties in Hollywood, but Disney was spending billions for a company that had years ago signed away the film rights to its most popular characters. Sony Pictures (SNE) controlled Spider-Man. Fox (FOX) controlled the X-Men, another fan favorite.

Source: Businessweek.com

Date: Apr 03, 2014

Link: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-04-03/kevin-feige-marvels-superhero-at-running-movie-franchises#r=hp-lst

Questions for Discussions:

  • Summarize the acquisition value of Marvel by Disney, thus far.
  • Do you think the acquisition price was fair?

Posted by & filed under Company Analysis, Financial analysis.

Description: BlackBerry shares have enjoyed a solid start to 2014. But the stock fell Thursday after being downgraded to a ‘sell.’ With lackluster quarterly results expected Friday, is time running out for John Chen to turn around the company?

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Mar 28, 2014

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/investing/2014/03/27/investing-the-buzz-blackberry-smartphone-apple-iphone-john-chen.cnnmoney/index.html

Questions for Discussions:

  • How should investors evaluate the stock today?
  • Do you think Blackberry is a potential takeover target because of BBM?
  • What are the new sources of cash for the company?

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

Description: King Digital, the creator of the insanely popular Candy Crush Saga game, is going public. CNN’s Samuel Burke speaks with subway riders on how addictive the game is.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Mar 24, 2014

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/technology/2014/03/24/candy-crush-ipo-kin-social-media-game-smartphone.cnnmoney/index.html 

Questions for Discussions:

  • How does Candy Crush generate revenue?
  • Do you think the company is a good investment?
  • What are the risks associated with this sort of investment?

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

Description: The bourbon bubble continues to expand, and a handful of multinationals strengthens its collective grip on the whiskey market.

Source: Fortune.com

Date: Mar 27, 2014

Link: http://features.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2014/03/27/tennessee-whiskey/?iid=SF_F_River

Questions for discussion:

  • Describe the competitive landscape in this industry.
  • Is it likely to be opened up by government legislation to greater competition as happened with craft beers?
  • How should investors treat the industry leaders and those interested in breaking into the industry with a craft whisky?

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

Description: The megarich are dominating U.S. megadeals. Seven of the 15 U.S. takeover bids worth more than $10 billion since January 2013 were initiated by firms founded and controlled by one of the 200 wealthiest men in the world, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Last month Facebook Inc. (FB)’s Mark Zuckerberg, who has a net worth of $27.1 billion, made a $19 billion offer for messaging service WhatsApp Inc., and this week agreed to buy virtual reality firm Oculus VR Inc. for at least $2 billion.

Source: Fortune.com

Date: Mar 28, 2014

Link: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-28/zuckerberg-to-buffett-show-rich-owners-dominating-big-m-a-deals.html

Questions for discussion:

  • What does this report suggest to investors wishing to better understand M&A thinking of acquiring firms?
  • Is there any insight for investing strategy?

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

Description: If you’ve tracked how much money you spent at coffee shops in the past few years, there’s a good chance it has gone up. The trend is reflected in rising same-store sales at Starbucks (SBUX) (8 percent in 2013) and Dunkin’ Donuts (DNKN) (3.4 percent). Even if you prefer a boutique coffee shop, it’s hard to deny that the “café scene”—particularly in corporate incarnations—is thriving in the U.S.

Source: Businessweek.com

Date: Mar 28, 2014

Link: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-03-28/big-caf-chains-are-the-fastest-growing-fast-food-restaurants

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does the financial data suggest to investors interested in these trends?
  • Do you think we are headed for saturation in the marketplace or limits to profit margin growth?

Posted by & filed under Company Analysis, Economic Analysis.

Description: Darden Restaurants wants to spin off struggling Red Lobster. But Olive Garden is not doing well either. The entire company is missing the restaurant stock rally this year.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Mar 21, 2014

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/investing/2014/03/21/investing-the-buzz-darden-restaurants-red-lobster-olive-garden-longhorn.cnnmoney/index.html

Questions for Discussions:

  • Why is Darden stock underperforming in comparison to other restaurants?
  • Is the sale of some assets likely to help the firm return greater value to stockholders?
  • What would you do with the assets of the firm?

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

Description: Rakuten CEO Hiroshi Mikitani explains why the $900 million purchase of messaging app Viber was a smart business move and how it will differ from Facebook’s Whatsapp.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Mar 21, 2014

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/technology/2014/03/21/ceo-rakuten-hiroshi-mikitani-japan-viper-app-ecommerce.cnnmoney/index.html

Questions for Discussions:

  • What is the basis for the acquisition price paid for Viber?
  • Do you believe it was a fair price?