Big game, big deductions for businesses

Posted by & filed under Company Analysis, Management Issues.

Description: New York City will get a $550 million economic boost from next weekend’s Super Bowl and corporations will get big deductions for their lavish spending.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Jan 24, 2014

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2014/01/24/big-game-big-spending-big-tax-breaks.cnnmoney/index.html

Questions for Discussions:

  • What are the benefits to corporations that send employees or clients to the Super Bowl?
  • Is there anything ethically wrong with the tax treatment of this activity, in your opinion?

Railroads look at liquefied natural gas to power locomotives

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

Description: The diesel-burning locomotive, the workhorse of American railroads since World War II, will soon begin burning natural gas — a potentially historic shift that could cut fuel costs, reduce pollution and strengthen the advantage railroads hold over trucks in long-haul shipping.

Source: Star-telegram.com

Date: Jan 25, 2014

Link: http://www.star-telegram.com/2014/01/25/5511561/railroads-look-at-liqufied-natural.html?rh=1#storylink=cpy

Questions for Discussions:

  • Do you think a wholesale shift over to gas is feasible for the industry?
  • What are the financial pros and cons?
  • What would a major adoption of gas mean for the gas and transportation industries?
  • How would this affect investing and commodity prices of fuels in North America?

Starbucks Just Sold $1.4 Billion in Gift Cards. What Did It Do With That Cash?

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

Description: Starbucks (SBUX) is slowly adding a shot of banking to its grande coffee empire. As customers pour money into its gift cards and its mobile-payment app, the Seattle-based company is booking a tidy profit simply by holding onto customers’ cash.

Source: Businessweek.com

Date: Jan 24, 2014

Link: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-01-24/starbucks-just-sold-1-dot-4-billion-in-gift-cards-dot-what-did-it-do-with-that-cash#r=hpt-ls

Questions for Discussions:

  • How does this strategy affect cash flow and other financial issues at the company?
  • Are there any risks inherent in holding so much cash advances?

Into the Bitcoin Mines

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

Description: On the flat lava plain of Reykjanesbaer, Iceland, near the Arctic Circle, you can find the mines of Bitcoin.

Source: NYTimes.com

Date: Dec 21, 2013

Link: http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2013/12/21/into-the-bitcoin-mines/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0

Questions for Discussions:

  • Explain the way Bitcoin is “mined” and how the rate of creation is controlled.
  • How does this compare to the way a normal currency is handled by a central bank?
  • Should anyone be interested in mining bitcoin?
  • Should central banks be concerned?

Intel outlook is not too chipper

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

 

Description: Shares of Intel tumbled on disappointing earnings and weak guidance. Investors want the semiconductor maker to do more in mobile and lessen its reliance on the slow-growth PC market.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Jan 17, 2014

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/investing/2014/01/17/investing-the-buzz-intel-chip-microprocessor-arm-holdings-mobile-pc.cnnmoney/index.html

Questions for Discussions:

  • Why are chip stocks not performing particularly well at this time?
  • Do you believe they are being overlooked by investors or that this orientation is validated by the financials?

 

Train stocks go off the rails

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

Description: Shares of railroad giant CSX are down sharply due to lower coal shipments, a sign that the recent tear in transportation stocks may be nearing an end.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Jan 16, 2014

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/investing/2014/01/16/investing-the-buzz-csx-railroad-transportation-norfolk-southern-union-pacific.cnnmoney/index.html

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does this report say about rail stocks in general and CSX in particular?
  • Do you believe investors should remain cautious about rails stocks if energy continues its shift towards more pipeline distribution systems for oil and gas?

 

Security Expert: Business Owners Should Never Bank Online

Posted by & filed under Industry Analysis, Management Issues.

Description: Security blogger Brian Krebs knows a thing or two about the risks of cybercrimes. The security blogger who broke the news of the Target (TGT) and Neiman Marcus data breaches spends his days investigating the cybercriminal underground and, as we reported in the recent issue of the magazine, has been the target of all sorts of digital, and at times physical, assaults. He’s got surveillance cameras around his home, keeps a shotgun in his office, and has thought through how best to protect his own bank accounts.

Source: Businessweek.com

Date: Jan 07, 2014

Link: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-01-17/want-to-keep-your-business-safe-drive-to-the-bank#r=hp-lst

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does this report say about online security issues and how managers should deal with them?
  • How do you think managers will respond?
  • What does this report suggest about issues facing the banking industry?

 

Yahoo’s Asian Lifeline

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

Description: Yahoo’s core business has been eroding. It’s lost ground in display advertising and in online search, and the Wall Street consensus is that its revenue declined last year.

Source: NYTimes.com

Date: Jan 18, 2014

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/19/technology/yahoos-asian-lifeline.html?ref=technology

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does the report say about how investors are approaching investing in Yahoo?
  • Do you agree with this analysis?
  • Do you think Yahoo is correctly valued?
  • What advice would you present to investors?

 

Stocks: Talk of a market bubble is the real bubble

Posted by & filed under Economic Analysis, Growth & Valuation, Market Analysis.

Description: Bitcoin may be a bubble. Twitter (TWTR) may be a bubble. Talking incessantly about how cold it is (“It’s frickin freezing in here Mr. Bigglesworth!”) may be a bubble. But the broader stock market? That is not a bubble.

Source: CNNMoney.com

Date: Jan 07, 2014

Link: http://buzz.money.cnn.com/2014/01/07/bubble/

Questions for Discussions:

  • Explain the meaning of the title.
  • Do you agree with the analysis presented in the article?

The $20 book that companies are betting could save them $100,000 or more

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

Description: CBS, Michael Dell, and others are giving David Agus’s A Short Guide to a Long Life to their employees to encourage good health.

Source: Fortune.com

Date: Jan 17, 2014

Link: http://features.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2014/01/17/the-20-book-that-companies-are-betting-could-save-100000-or-more/?iid=SF_F_River

Questions for Discussions:

  • What is the message to managers and employees?
  • What are the cost and benefits contributions to cash flow and cost controls?
  • How should management encourage employee compliance in wellness programs through financial means?