Olive Garden: Unlimited Breadsticks, Unlimited Problems

"When you're here, you're family," is the slogan that Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI  ) used to promote its Olive Garden casual dining chain for more than a decade before moving to a new marketing mantra in 2012. It's probably for the best, since Darden's own family is in for a bit of a shake-up. 

Chairman and CEO Clarence Otis is stepping down after a decade at the helm. He'll be gone by the end of the year. It's not really a surprise: Fending off activist investors while dealing with the restaurateur's recent sluggish performance will turn any executive chair into a hot seat. However, watching the stock open higher on Tuesday morning on the news that broke after market close on Monday is a bit of a shock.

Source: Olive Garden.

Darden's problems go beyond simply replacing its CEO. Olive Garden has rattled off four consecutive quarters of negative comps, while Darden as a whole has missed Wall Street's profit targets in four of the past five quarters. Investors may want to blame the CEO -- turning him away like stale breadsticks -- but there's a larger trend working against Italian casual dining chains that goes beyond the person calling the shots. 

If the stock is rallying on the prospects for an executive shuffle resulting in an outright sale of Darden, the market may be sorely disappointed in the end result. After all, Darden on Monday completed the sale of Red Lobster -- a concept that was faring worse than Olive Garden -- and activists are angry that it didn't get enough for the struggling seafood chain. Why would Olive Garden command a much loftier market premium? It's not as if Red Lobster was a secret pocket listing. It had been trying to publicly smoke out a suitor for months.

Given that casual dining has been out of favor with investors outside of a handful of market darlings, it's hard to fathom Darden as a buyout candidate. Darden does have some promising younger concepts in its portfolio, but it can't turn Seasons 52 or Yard House into needle-moving companies without selling Olive Garden in another fire sale. Either way, now with Red Lobster gone, Olive Garden contributed 57% of Darden's revenue in its most recent quarter. Darden won't reward investors until it fixes Olive Garden.

It is good to see Darden announce that it will separate the CEO and chairman positions, but simply doubling up on Otis' former tasks will not make Olive Garden relevant again. We've been through enough menu changes and decor remodels to know that it's not going to shake its role as a punchline when someone wants to poke fun at a mass marketer of Italian cuisine. 

When you're here you are family. The rub is that you're a dysfunctional family.

More from The Motley Fool: Warren Buffett Tells You How to Turn $40 Into $10 Million

2 Important Observations From Facebook, Inc.’s Second-Quarter Earnings

Given Facebook's  (NASDAQ: FB  ) post-earnings gain, and its new all-time stock high, it's clear that the company struck gold in the second quarter. While investors can focus on an array of different data points, two key observations should be at the height of investors' focus, which conveniently involve BlackBerry (NASDAQ: BBRY  ) and Google (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) (NASDAQ: GOOGL  ) .

The value of advertising
Facebook had a flawless quarter, with revenue of $2.9 billion on growth of nearly 61% year over year. Meanwhile, its net earnings soared 100%, further driving the company's already-impressive profit margin of 21.5%.

Nonetheless, certain metrics are naturally more important to shareholders than others, which include daily active users, which were up 19% overall and 39% on mobile. This metric is important, as it shows that engagement remains strong, which is important for advertisers.

With that said, after a slight decline in average revenue per user, or ARPU, during the first quarter, Facebook saw its worldwide and U.S. and Canadian ARPUs rise 12% and 10%, respectively, quarter over quarter, with the latter reaching $6.44 and the former at $2.24.

Therefore, with more than 1.3 billion users, and the integration of new advertising products like video, Facebook's upside in this arena has never been higher. Plus, there's a good chance that the company's ARPU in the U.S. and Canada isn't even close to reaching its peak.

Specifically, the firm KPCB estimates that Google's U.S. ARPU reached $45 last quarter, which was up $3 year over year. As most know, Google creates the majority of its revenue from advertising, and with nearly $16 billion in the second quarter, the company still saw paid clicks rise 25% year over year.

Therefore, with Facebook having a larger platform, exceptional engagement, and great success with new advertising products, investors should feel almost assured that Facebook has more to gain than Google. In fact, given these reasons, Facebook might even reach an ARPU of $45 one day.

The messaging payment speculation is a reality
Hiring PayPal chief David Marcus to run messages never made sense for Facebook. Yet, his hire last month fueled speculation that Facebook is, in fact, in the later stages of rolling out a payment processing service, of sorts, like PayPal.

This has been a belief for quite some time, and with 1.3 billion users, 30 million small business pages, and over one million advertisers, the initial belief was that such a service could be a major revenue-producer if utilized correctly.

Nonetheless, with mobile growing fast, and now accounting for 25% of Internet traffic, investors have begun to speculate that Marcus will lead the company's plan to incorporate payment processing with messaging. This idea first rose following BlackBerry's last quarterly conference call.

In that call, BlackBerry CEO, John Chen, discussed monetizing the 100 million BBM, or Messenger, users it expects to have at year's end. Chen called mobile payments "the next big thing" and disclosed that BlackBerry already has contracts signed for a per-transaction business model with its popular Messenger application.

With that said, Marcus heading Facebook's messaging business now makes sense, and the only difference between Facebook and BlackBerry's messaging applications is that the former has well over 200 million users already, not including WhatsApp. Albeit, Zuckerberg surprisingly discussed this topic, acknowledging that payments will be integrated with Messenger, making it an important observation in the company's long-term plan.

Foolish thoughts
When you consider what's creating a buzz for Facebook investors right now, including payments, mobile, advertising, and the buy button, it appears that these four things will ultimately come together and play an enormous role in the next era of Facebook, both on PCs and mobile.

Therefore, if advertisements, both on PCs and mobile, include items for sell with the option to buy that can ultimately be processed using Facebook's own system, investors can see how the payment processing initiative can be very lucrative and how the company's ARPU could most certainly soar as advertisers see more value in the platform. Hence, Facebook may look pricey at $75, but in looking ahead, the company is making the right moves to drive long-term growth.

Risk-free for 30 days: The Motley Fool's flagship service
Tom and David Gardner founded The Motley Fool over 20 years ago with the goal of helping the world invest...better. Their flagship service, Stock Advisor, has helped thousands of investors take control of their financial lives and beat the market. Click here to sign up today.

 

Want to Live to 100? 4 Things You Need to Know

If you’re planning on being one of the 1 million centenarians projected to be living in the U.S. in 2050, you might want to take your lifestyle cues from Stamatis Moraitis, a Greek veteran of World War II.

Diagnosed with lung cancer while living in the U.S. in the 1960s, Moraitis forewent chemotherapy and drugs and, still more, the entire Western diet and lifestyle and moved to the Greek island of Ikaria, his birthplace.

Living the simple life of the Ikarians, who reach the age of 90 at two-and-a-half times the rate of Americans, Moraitis lived another 45 years cancer-free — outliving his doctors, who gave him just nine months to live.

A new report titled “The Four Keys to Longevity” produced by BMO Wealth Institute for clients of BMO Harris Financial Advisors cites a study of these long-living Ikarians, combined with its own survey of 1,000 Americans on aging, to present a view of what might constitute successful longevity.

The first of those keys, what BMO calls the “master key,” is the body. Observing that “stress factors such as daily schedules don’t exist on Ikaria” and that “vigorous activities [are] never considered exercise,” the BMO report finds that most Americans (89%) have taken steps to help them live longer.

The most common initiative is healthy eating (53%), though Americans may have a way to go before reaching the Ikarian diet of “fresh vegetables, fruits, herbs, spices and local honey, which are all products of weekly harvests that every citizen contributes to and benefits from.”

The second key, which BMO dubs “the fundamental key,” is the mind. BMO’s survey found that “the loss of mental ability was the biggest concern that respondents had about living to 100 and beyond.”

The report cited research that aerobic exercise and not smoking were related to cognitive function and stressed the importance of maintaining an active mind through memory, reasoning and speed-of-processing training, as well as engagement in social networks through work or volunteer activities.

The third key, dubbed “the key to enjoying life” in the BMO report, is social. Citing research that found “retirement to be associated with a significant increase in clinical depression and a decline in self-assessed health,” the report looked at social connectedness as a means to avoiding these risks.

Survey respondents expressed a number activities they desired in retirement to achieve this aim, with spending more time on hobbies leading the pack (62%), followed by taking on a part-time job (25%).

The BMO report cited as a demonstration of the link between work and longevity the example of the Italian wine-growing region of Chianti:

“While the elders may leave the more taxing jobs to the youngsters, they never fully retire. The older members of the family continue to walk the rows of vines to make sure the grapes are in good condition and participate in tastings to ensure the quality of the wine, and they remain involved in important business decisions. Many locals claim it’s their ongoing daily involvement that is responsible for their exceptionally long and healthy lives.”

While social connections foster health and happiness, the report cites University of Chicago research indicating that its absence is related to “increases in stress, hardening of the arteries and inflammation in the body” as well as diminution of “the brain’s executive function, learning and memory.”

Survey respondents cited a number social activities they expect during retirement, led by spending their time with family (57%). Asked what the most important factors for an ideal retirement lifestyle, staying in contact with family again was the most cited (36%), followed by financial security (23%).

And indeed, financial security is the report’s fourth key to longevity, what it calls the “key to success.” The report noted that women valued this lifestyle factor more than men (27% vs. 19%), suggesting that women’s higher relative longevity might be the reason.

Other variables in the importance placed on finances are age and wealth. Those who have higher levels of either are more concerned about financial security, the report finds.

Survey respondents expected to spend, on average, $5,822 a year on out-of-pocket health costs — a figure the report says squares with an independent study from the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI). Crunching the numbers based on Medicare reimbursement rates and expected out-of-pocket costs, EBRI estimates that a 65-year-old couple would need $283,000 to fund 25 years worth of future health care expenses (not including long-term care).

The BMO report stresses the value of a financial advisor in assuring this fourth component of well-being in old age and says only a minority of Americans have availed themselves of the opportunity (with just one-third of pre-retirees having a retirement plan.)

The survey found that respondents with greater confidence in their future financial security were more likely to have a financial plan (27% of them did) versus those lacking that confidence, just 8% of whom have a plan.

The report concludes that “the need for all of us to have a better overall plan when it comes to the four key components of longevity” are among the “lessons to learn from the resiliency found in the people of Ikaria.”

---

Australia’s Dramatic Rise in Productivity

Sometimes it's easy to miss significant news when central bankers drone on about the economy. To be sure, the media carefully dissects official statements on monetary policy, parsing each sentence for subtle changes from previous announcements.

But lengthier remarks, such as speeches and testimonies, include numerous observations about the economy, not all of which lend themselves to glib headlines.

Indeed, as Sydney Morning Herald contributing editor Michael Pascoe recently observed, most of the news regarding Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Governor Glenn Stevens' speech before the Econometric Society Australasian Meeting and the Australian Conference of Economists in early July focused on his remarks about jawboning. In fact, we covered that aspect ourselves.

But as Pascoe notes, Stevens' speech also contained a kernel of good news about the economy that went largely unnoticed amid all the commentaries about the exchange rate: Australia's labor productivity is rising.

In his speech, Stevens said, " … the environment seems likely to be one in which a number of sectors are making serious efforts to contain costs and lift productivity."

Furthermore, he continued, "Perhaps more fundamentally, a better trend for productivity, if we can sustain it–and especially if it can be further improved–would be a reliable basis for optimism about the longer-run prospects for the economy and our living standards."

Overall labor productivity has grown at a pace of 2.0 percent per annum over the past three calendar years, a huge jump in contrast to the 0.9 percent annual rate that prevailed over the preceding six-year period ending in 2010.

Prior to that earlier period, Australia's labor productivity averaged around 2.1 percent annual growth over the long term, so the recent improvement is essentially a reversion to historic levels.

And the increase in produc! tivity has occurred despite stagnating wage growth, as the rate of inflation outpaces increases in real wages.

Of course, the resource sector is driving these gains, but even excluding mining and utilities, productivity is growing at a 1.6 percent annualized pace, compared with 1.0 percent over the prior period.

As Pascoe wrote in a previous report, the excesses that were tolerated during the commodities boom must now give way to cost-cutting and greater efficiency. So with mining investment on the wane, the resource sector is keen to wring greater productivity from existing assets.

At the same time, a substantial portion of the increase in productivity could be resulting from the natural evolution of the business cycle. Projects that were initiated during the boom are moving from their construction phase to their production phase.

Coupled with the high productivity that naturally results from the capital-intensive mining sector, overall productivity is likely to continue at a high pace at least for the next few years.

That's underscored by a recent presentation from Harvard economist Dale Jorgenson, as recounted by Morgans economist Michael Knox.

In analyzing the sources of economic growth among the G7, Jorgenson observed that Canada, a country similarly rich in resources, underwent a fall in productivity during its own resource sector boom.

Why did this occur? According to Jorgenson, it all comes down to how the national accounts are calculated. Although new construction increases the long-term productive capacity of the mining sector, it will create the appearance of a lag in productivity until these projects come on line.

As such, Jorgenson believes that now that Australia's mining sector is entering its production phase, the country will see a dramatic recovery in total productivity.

And that optimistic outlook is certainly something to keep in mind as we process the typically dour takes from Jorgenson's fellow practitioners of the so-call! ed dismal! science.

U.S. Records $71 Billion Budget Surplus in June

J. Scott Applewhite/AP WASHINGTON -- The U.S. government ran a monthly budget surplus in June, putting it on course to record the lowest annual deficit since 2008. The Treasury Department said Friday that its June surplus totaled $71 billion, following a $130 billion deficit in May. The government also ran a surplus in June 2013, bolstered by dividends from Fannie Mae, the mortgage giant under federal conservatorship for the past six years. For the first nine months of this budget year, the deficit totals $366 billion, down 28 percent from the same period in 2013. Tax receipts are up 8 percent compared to the prior year-to-date, while spending has increased 1 percent. The Congressional Budget Office is forecasting a deficit of $492 billion for the full budget year ending Sept. 30. That would be the narrowest gap since 2008. In 2008, the government recorded a deficit of $458.6 billion, which was the record high for deficits up to that time. But with the outbreak of the recession, deficits soared to unprecedented levels, exceeding $1 trillion for four consecutive years. Tax revenues fell during that period, while government boosted spending in an attempt to stabilize the financial system and provide relief to people who had lost jobs. The yearly deficit peaked at $1.4 trillion in 2009 during the worst of the financial crisis. It gradually fell from there, plunging to $680.2 billion last year. Over the next decade, CBO is projecting that the deficits will total $7.6 trillion. The deficit will fall to $469 billion in 2015 before rising again and topping $1 trillion annually starting in 2023, according to the CBO. Spending on the government's major benefit programs, including Social Security and Medicare, will drive those increases as more baby boomers retire. Republicans have accused President Barack Obama of failing to propose significant cost cuts to reduce soaring entitlement costs. Democrats counter that Republicans would rather impose sharp cuts on needed government programs than impose higher taxes on the wealthy. Neither side is expected to make major concessions in this congressional election year. But the budget wars of the past three years have subsided at least for a brief time. An agreement was reached in December on the broad outlines for spending over the next two years. The agreement will allow Washington to avoid the gridlock that culminated in October's 16-day partial shutdown of the government. The budget cease-fire also includes legislation that will suspend the government's borrowing limit through March 15 of next year. That puts off another battle over raising the debt ceiling until a new Congress takes office in January.

5 Summer Scams to Avoid

Getty Images The warmer weather offers fraudsters new opportunities to get people to part with their money or personal information. Just because it's summer doesn't mean scammers are taking a break. In fact, there are several cons that surface during the warmer months. Here are five scams that are common in the summer and steps you can take to avoid them. Disaster-relief scams. If the hurricane that's headed toward the North Carolina coast -- Hurricane Arthur -- does hit land and cause destruction, there's a good chance con artists will use it as an opportunity to take advantage of people. A variety of scams pop up after most major disasters, says Adam Levin, founder of Identity Theft 911 and Credit.com. For example, after Superstorm Sandy hit the East Coast in 2012, fraudulent charities and relief efforts surfaced along with several other cons aimed at taking advantage of disaster victims. If this summer's storm season does result in disasters, don't give to charities that spring up to deal with them. Instead, check CharityNavigator.org for a list of legitimate organizations that have experience providing disaster relief. Travel scams. There are several travel-related scams, but two of the most common are free cruise and vacation rental scams, says Eva Velasquez, president and CEO of Identity Theft Resource Center. Victims of the cruise scam typically are contacted by phone, e-mail or text message and offered a free cruise that actually isn't free. People have to pay a variety of fees to book the cruise and, in the process, have to give up a lot of personal information -- which is then sold, Velasquez says. If you want to take a cruise, skip the free offers and, instead, follow these five steps to get a cruise deal.

Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ): Going to $40 Says FBR capital

On an otherwise red day, Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:CSIQ) is bobbing higher, up nearly 1% as we type. The alternative energy company is the beneficiary to two positive news items to start the post 4th of July trading week.

First, CSIQ announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Canadian Solar Solutions Inc., on Monday, June 30, completed the sale of the 10 MW AC Val Caron solar power plant ("Val Caron") valued at over C$60 million to One West Holdings Ltd., an affiliate of Concord Green Energy ("Concord"). The Val Caron 10 MW AC solar power plant is located in the city of Greater Sudbury, Ontario.

[Related -Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ) Q1 Earnings Preview: Sun Usually Doesn't Shine]

It is the first of five planed solar project sales to Concord Green Energy, says Dr. Shawn Qu, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Canadian Solar.

Piggy backing on the sale news, FBR Capital upgraded Canadian Solar to an "Outperform" recommendation from "Market Perform" while maintaining their $40 price-target, which is potential upside to target of 29.24% as of this keystroke.

FBR made the call because the analyst believes the market is undervaluing the company's diverse project pipeline.

Canadian Solar Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells solar wafers, cells, and solar module products worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Module and Project. Its products include various solar modules that are used in residential, commercial, and industrial solar power generation systems.

[Related -Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ) Q4 Earnings Preview: What To Watch?]

On a price-to-sales (P/S) basis, FBR Capital has a point. Canadian Solar is under-priced relative to its peer group. The average sun stock trades at 2.79 times sales while CSIQ trades at 0.87 times revenue.

Since 2009, investors have been willing to pay an average of 0.53 times sales for CSIQ with a range of 0.05 to 2.44. So, the "green" energy maker might be undervalued relative to peers the current price is well above the norm on a P/S basis.

For 2015, the street sees sales of $3.35 billion. At CSIQ's five-year average P/S ratio, the stock would price out at $33.73. It looks a lot better with the industry average at $177.56. To hit $40 requires a P/S ratio of 1.59, which could be a little rich.

From a chart-watcher's perspective, $35 looks like a better target is it would complete a triangle pattern. Get above $35 and $40 does offer resistance, but a run at the 52-week high of $44.50 is just as likely post -$35 as $40. That being said, the recent run-up has not been confirmed by rising volume, which means Canadian Solar could slip if sellers show up in moderate strength. 

Rent-A-Center Shares Fall On Downbeat Forecast; Lorillard Surges

Related BZSUM Markets Mostly Lower; Wells Fargo Posts In-Line Profit #PreMarket Primer: Friday, July 11: European Banks May Not Be Out Of The Woods Yet

Midway through trading Friday, the Dow traded down 0.20 percent to 16,880.71 while the NASDAQ gained 0.06 percent to 4,399.03. The S&P also fell, dropping 0.14 percent to 1,961.93.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Telecommunications services shares gained around 0.25 percent in today’s trading. Top gainers in the sector included NQ Mobile (NYSE: NQ), Allot Communications (NASDAQ: ALLT), and SK Telecom Co (NYSE: SKM).

In trading on Friday, energy shares were relative laggards, down on the day by about 0.40 percent. Top losers in the sector included Callon Petroleum Company (NYSE: CPE), down 5 percent, and Tesco (NASDAQ: TESO), off 3.9 percent.

Top Headline

Wells Fargo & Co (NYSE: WFC) reported a gain in its second-quarter profit.

Wells Fargo’s quarterly profit surged to $5.7 billion, or $1.01 per share, from a year-ago profit of $5.5 billion, or $0.98 per share.

Its revenue declined 3.4% to $21.1 billion from $21.4 billion. However, analysts were expecting a profit of $1.01 per share on revenue of $20.84 billion.

Equities Trading UP

ChannelAdvisor (NYSE: ECOM) shares shot up 5.14 percent to $24.35. Deutsche Bank upgraded Channel Advisor from Hold to Buy. ChannelAdvisor is expected to release its Q2 financial results on August 4, 2014.

Shares of Lorillard (NYSE: LO) got a boost, shooting up 3.85 percent to $65.52. Lorillard confirmed that Lorillard and Reynolds American (NYSE: RAI) are engaged in discussions regarding RAI's potential acquisition of Lorillard. Cowen & Company initiated coverage on Lorillard with a Underperform rating.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) shares were also up, gaining 4.17 percent to $341.61. Amazon.com’s June same-store sales grew 34 percent, according to the e-commerce market research shop ChannelAdvisor.

Equities Trading DOWN

Shares of Kofax (NASDAQ: KFX) were down 9.83 percent to $7.29 after the company reported selected preliminary unaudited results for FY14. Kofax expected FY14 sales of $295.0 million to $298.0 million.

Rent-A-Center (NASDAQ: RCII) shares tumbled 11.22 percent to $25.80 after the company issued a downbeat guidance for the second quarter. The company expected adjusted earnings of $0.36 to $0.38 per share on revenue of around $773 million.

MGIC Investment (NYSE: MTG) was down, falling 10.50 percent to $8.27 following the FHFA proposal. The company released monthly operating statistics for June.

Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded down 1.42 percent to $101.47, while gold traded down 0.16 percent to $1,337.10.

Silver traded down 0.01 percent Friday to $21.51, while copper fell 0.14 percent to $3.26.

Eurozone

European shares were mostly higher today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 rose 0.14 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index surged 0.05 percent, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index climbed 0.62 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX rose 0.07 percent and the French CAC 40 climbed 0.35 percent while UK shares gained 0.07 percent.

Economics

The US Treasury monthly budget report for June will be released at 2:00 p.m. ET.

Posted-In: Earnings News Guidance Upgrades Eurozone Futures Commodities M&A

© 2014 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

  Most Popular Morgan Stanley Issues 2015 'Vintage Values' Stock List Jefferies Comments On The Return Of Apple Products To Costco Stores 6 Signs The Momentum Meltdown May Have Resumed International Game May Get $4 Billion Cash Offer From Italian Lotto Operator CryoLife Appoints Pat Mackin as President And CEO Molycorp Hits All-Time Lows On Takeover Concerns Related Articles (ALLT + AMZN) Rent-A-Center Shares Fall On Downbeat Forecast; Lorillard Surges Markets Mostly Lower; Wells Fargo Posts In-Line Profit #PreMarket Primer: Friday, July 11: European Banks May Not Be Out Of The Woods Yet ChannelAdvisor Says Amazon June Comps Up 34%, eBay Up 12% Stocks Close Lower On Economic Concerns In Europe FTC Sues Amazon For Millions In Unauthorized Charges Incurred By Children

Cambiar Investors: 2014 International/Global Equity SMA Manager of the Year

This is part of a series of extended profiles of the 2014 Separately Managed Account Managers of the Year. Briefer profiles and an overview of the 10th annual SMA Managers of the Year can be found in Investment Advisor's July 2014 cover story. Additional reporting and video interviews of the winning managers can be found on our 2014 SMA Managers of the Year home page.

When it comes to the global financial markets, Jennifer Dunne, portfolio manager and senior investment analyst for Denver-based Cambiar Investors’ International ADR strategy, winner of the SMA Manager of the Year in the international or global equity category, believes that the only true constant is change.

That’s why the name “Cambiar,” which in Spanish means “to change,” is a perfect fit for a firm that since the 1970s has been investing successfully in the international markets and continues to deliver consistent and superior returns to its clients over different market cycles. It does so by strictly adhering to a single investment discipline that’s centered on looking worldwide for high-quality companies that offer relative value.

“We’re looking for compressed valuations—for companies that are trading in the lower quartile of their long-term historical range—but we’re also looking for high-quality companies,” Dunne said.

That means Cambiar seeks out companies with strong management teams that don’t have high debt loads; that have strong balance sheets; that are not undercapitalized; and that have stellar business models that can consistently get them through different market cycles.

There are companies that fit those criteria throughout the world, of course, but the world is also a vast place, so it’s Cambiar’s choice to divide the globe up among the members of its investment team by sector, rather than geography.

“This approach lets us do a deep dive and makes us truly aware of companies’ competitive advantages regardless of their geographic domicile or capitalization,” Dunne said.

This approach also best utilizes the experience and skills of each member on the team, including President and CIO Brian Barish, and leverages Cambiar’s collective intellectual property to its fullest. It’s also the most effective way, Dunne said, to find companies across the globe that fit that high-quality/relative-value equation, and get a sense of their potential in the long term.

Energy is Dunne’s area of expertise, and she has about 15 or 20 names on which she focuses. From that list, she said, “I can whittle things down further to see which ones are high-quality and where value is compressed, and those will go into the portfolio.”

The international portfolio only has about 40 or 50 names in it at any one time, and it has a 50% turnover, which means the team is looking for about 20 new names a year.

“That’s just a handful of names for an analyst to find around the world and allows for each analyst to have an in-depth understanding of those names and of the sectors they follow,” Dunne said.

The firm is benchmark-agnostic and because it runs such concentrated portfolios, runs a 50% upside target for its holdings. Individual positions are weighted at 2% (they’re sold when a stock reaches its price target), although an analyst can introduce a new holding at a 3% weighting.

However, when it comes to the downside, Cambiar holds its staff to extremely strict standards.

Any portfolio holding that falls below Cambiar’s 20% downside target will be the subject of an intense, detailed discussion on whether or not it should remain in the portfolio. During that discussion, if an analyst can make a strong enough case to keep the holding despite its poor performance, then the firm may well keep it.

But “you only get one chance to bring an underperformer back to portfolio weight. You just get the one shot and then we must see that it performs,” Dunne said.

This is a tight and tough discipline to abide by, she said, but every Cambiar team member nevertheless is willing to play by the same rules, “and no one asks for an exception.”

That’s mainly due to the fact that Cambiar is a 100% employee-owned firm, and almost everyone is a partner in the company.

“We’re all paid to buy equity in the firm, and this aligns our interests directly with those of our clients,” Dunne said.

Regardless of their vested interests in the company, though, the Cambiar team also knows their stuff, so it’s fair to say that their margin of error is probably negligible.

“We may be based in Denver, but we travel a great deal because we believe it’s important that as international investors we get on the road and out into the world,” Dunne said. “We think it’s important to meet with companies on their own turf. These meetings are extremely fruitful.”

---

This is the first in a series of extended profiles of the 2014 Separately Managed Account Managers of the Year. Briefer profiles and an overview of the 10th annual SMA Managers of the Year can be found in Investment Advisor's July 2014 cover story. Additional reporting and video interviews of the winning managers can be found on our 2014 SMA Managers of the Year home page.

3 Stocks Under $10 Moving Higher

DELAFIELD, Wis. (Stockpickr) -- At Stockpickr, we track daily portfolios of stocks that are the biggest percentage gainers and the biggest percentage losers.

>>5 Stocks Set to Soar on Bullish Earnings

Stocks that are making large moves like these are favorites among short-term traders because they can jump into these names and try to capture some of that massive volatility. Stocks that are making big-percentage moves either up or down are usually in play because their sector is becoming attractive or they have a major fundamental catalyst such as a recent earnings release. Sometimes stocks making big moves have been hit with an analyst upgrade or an analyst downgrade.

Regardless of the reason behind it, when a stock makes a large-percentage move, it is often just the start of a new major trend -- a trend that can lead to huge profits. If you time your trade correctly, combining technical indicators with fundamental trends, discipline and sound money management, you will be well on your way to investment success.

>>5 Tech Stocks to Trade for Gains This Week

With that in mind, let's take a closer look at a several stocks under $10 that are making large moves to the upside.

McEwen Mining

McEwen Mining (MUX) explores for, develops, produces, and sells precious and base metals in Argentina, Mexico, and the U.S. This stock closed up 3.5% to $2.90 Tuesday's trading session.

Tuesday's Range: $2.75-$2.90

52-Week Range: $1.70-$3.74

Tuesday's Volume: 3.72 million

Three-Month Average Volume: 2.35 million

From a technical perspective, MUX spiked notably higher here right above some near-term support at $2.70 to $2.60 with strong upside volume flows. This stock has been basing and consolidating for the last few weeks, with shares moving between around $2.60 on the downside and $3.08 on the upside. This spike higher on Tuesday is starting to push shares of MUX within range of triggering a big breakout trade above the upper-end of its recent sideways trading chart pattern. That trade will hit if MUX manages to take out some key near-term overhead resistance levels at $2.94 to $3.08 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in MUX as long as it's trending above some near-term support levels at $2.70 to $2.60 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 2.35 million shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then MUX will set up to re-test or possibly take out its 52-week high at $3.74.

Great Panther Silver

Great Panther Silver (GPL), a silver mining and exploration company, is engaged in the mining of mineral properties in Mexico. This stock closed up 7.4% to $1.30 in Tuesday's trading session.

Tuesday's Range: $1.21-$1.33

52-Week Range: $0.66-$1.38

Tuesday's Volume: 2.87 million

Three-Month Average Volume: 524,626

From a technical perspective, GPL ripped higher here and broke out above some near-term overhead resistance at $1.28 with monster upside volume. This big spike higher on Tuesday is quickly pushing shares of GPL within range of triggering another big breakout trade. That trade will hit if GPL manages to take out some key overhead resistance levels at $1.33 to its 52-week high at $1.38 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in GPL as long as it's trending above Tuesday's intraday low of $1.21 or above more support at $1.17 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 524,626 shares. If that breakout gets set off soon, then GPL will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that breakout are its next major overhead resistance levels at $1.43 to $1.60, or even $1.73 to $1.80.

Ventrus Biosciences

Ventrus Biosciences (VTUS), a development-stage specialty pharmaceutical company, focuses on the late-stage development and commercialization of gastrointestinal products in the U.S. This stock closed up 1.9% to $1.33 in Tuesday's trading session.

Tuesday's Range: $1.28-$1.33

52-Week Range: $0.85-$4.69

Tuesday's Volume: 233,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 704,318

From a technical perspective, VTUS jumped modestly higher here right above some near-term support at $1.28 and above its 50-day moving average of $1.21 with lighter-than-average volume. This spike higher on Tuesday is starting to push shares of VTUS within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade. That trade will hit if VTUS manages to take out some near-term overhead resistance levels at $1.35 to $1.37 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in VTUS as long as it's trending above some key near-term support levels at $1.28 or above its 50-day moving average at $1.21 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 704,318 shares. If that breakout gets underway soon, then VTUS will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $1.45 to $1.54, or even $1.66. Any high-volume move above $1.66 to just over $1.75 will then give VTUS a chance to re-fill some of its previous gap-down-day zone from February that started around $4.50.

To see more stocks that are making notable moves higher, check out the Stocks Under $10 Moving Higher portfolio on Stockpickr.

-- Written by Roberto Pedone in Delafield, Wis.

RELATED LINKS:

>>4 Stocks Rising on Big Volume

>>3 Big Stocks on Traders' Radars

>>5 Blue-Chip Stocks to Trade for Summer Gains

Follow Stockpickr on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

At the time of publication, author had no positions in stocks mentioned.

Roberto Pedone, based out of Delafield, Wis., is an independent trader who focuses on technical analysis for small- and large-cap stocks, options, futures, commodities and currencies. Roberto studied international business at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, and he spent a year overseas studying business in Lubeck, Germany. His work has appeared on financial outlets including

CNBC.com and Forbes.com.

You can follow Pedone on Twitter at www.twitter.com/zerosum24 or @zerosum24.

U.S. Consumer Credit Rose by $19.6 Billion in May

Elise Amendola/AP WASHINGTON -- U.S. consumer credit rose in May, a sign that easy monetary policy was providing substantial support for the economy. Total consumer credit increased by $19.6 billion to $3.19 trillion, the Federal Reserve said on Tuesday. That meant consumer debt was growing at a 7.4 percent annual rate. Analysts polled by Reuters expected an increase of $20 billion in the month. Non-revolving credit, which includes auto loans as well as student loans made by the government, drove the increase, rising by $17.8 billion. Revolving credit, which mostly measures credit card use, increased by $1.8 billion.

6 Capital Markets Stocks to Buy Now

Popular Posts: Hottest Technology Stocks Now – IGTE GTAT PRLB BBRY8 Biotechnology Stocks to Buy NowHottest Healthcare Stocks Now – MNKD INO ACAD INCY Recent Posts: Hottest Technology Stocks Now – INVN SMI SPIL BBRY Biggest Movers in Services Stocks Now – TLK EJ RAD XRS Biggest Movers in Basic Materials Stocks Now – SCCO SID CENX GGB View All Posts 6 Capital Markets Stocks to Buy Now

Six capital markets stocks are moving up in their overall rating this week, according to the Portfolio Grader database. Every one of these is graded an “A” (“strong buy”) or “B” overall (“buy”).

This week, THL Credit () is showing good progress as the company’s rating jumps from a B (“buy”) last week to an A (“strong buy”). THL Credit is a management investment company that invests mainly in private subordinated debt, also known as mezzanine debt. In Portfolio Grader’s specific subcategory of Sales Growth, TCRD also gets an A. .

The rating of Ares Capital Corporation () moves up this week, rising from a B to an A. Ares Capital is a specialty finance company that invests mainly in first- and second-lien senior loans and mezzanine debt, which in some cases includes equity components like warrants. .

Cowen Group, Inc. Class A () is making progress this week as its rating of C (“hold”) from last week increases to a B (“buy”) rating this week. Cowen Group is a publicly owned asset management holding company. .

BGC Partners, Inc. Class A’s () ratings are looking better this week, moving up to an A from last week’s B. BGC Partners is a global inter-dealer broker that specializes in the brokering of OTC financial instruments and related derivative products. .

This is a strong week for TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation (). The company’s rating climbs to A from the previous week’s B. TD Ameritrade provides securities brokerage services and technology-based financial services to retail investors, traders, financial planners, institutions and business partners. .

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. () shows solid improvement this week. The company’s rating rises from a B to an A. LPL Financial Holdings offers technology, brokerage and investment advisory services through business relationships with all types of financial advisors. .

Louis Navellier’s proprietary Portfolio Grader stock ranking system assesses roughly 5,000 companies every week based on a number of fundamental and quantitative measures. Stocks are given a letter grade based on their results — with A being “strong buy,” and F being “strong sell.” Explore the tool here.

Byron Wein Sees New Industrial Revolution

Market Commentary

by Byron Wien

The Smartest Man in Europe Sees a New Industrial Revolution

People often ask me if I have a mentor, someone who has influenced my thinking over my career. I have had many, but over the past thirty years I have learned a great deal about investing from the person I have come to refer to as The Smartest Man in Europe. The most important lessons he taught me were (1) that the primary force behind good performance is recognizing important changes before or just as they are starting to happen, and (2) when something significant is happening, put a lot of money behind it. Concentrate on the big ideas; don't over-diversify.

The Smartest Man earned his title over the years by recognizing important shifts early. He saw the rise and fall of Japan in the 1980s and he was early in recognizing the investment significance of the reforms Deng Xiaoping was putting in place in China. He saw opportunities and then risks in emerging markets and technology in the 1990s and he was among the first in my sphere to see the coming of the break-up of the former Soviet Union and its meaning for investors. He has a mercantile background and hundreds of years ago his ancestors sold food, supplies and weather protection to travelers along the Silk Road. He grew up hearing talk of investment opportunities around the dinner table. He received a European education and, after an apprenticeship in New York, returned home to take advantage of the post-war recovery taking place there. I have written annually about his views since 2001.

"There is a new industrial revolution taking place around the world based on innovation. It is centered in California but there are pockets of it elsewhere in the United States and in a few places abroad. There are creative new companies being formed every day. Investors underestimate the significance of this change. It is not only in Internet-based technology, but also in biotechnology. Over the next few years you will see blockbuster products being approved for cancer and heart disease. Alzheimer's and Parkinson's are proving harder to deal with. In information technology the primary beneficiaries will be Google, Facebook, Salesforce.com, Microsoft, Amazon, LinkedIn and a few others, but not Twitter, which I view as a company feeding off the primary companies driving the change. These new companies are making IBM a corporate leader of the past. The drivers are changing the way manufacturing is being done, inventories and transportation are being handled and all forms of communication are taking place. The earnings for these companies are open-ended. In biotechnology the new products will extend life and reduce invasive surgery, and who can say how much that is worth? This is all very exciting and should be the focus of every investor's attention. You can invest in an industrial or consumer company where the earnings are growing 5%–10% annually, but these companies based on technological breakthroughs should do much better than that, and their valuations are still reasonable, in my opinion.

"Overall I see the United States growing at about 2% in real terms. To grow at 3% you would need another building boom and I don't see that happening anytime soon. The use of robotics will improve the productivity of industrial companies and profit margins will stay high, but it will be hard to bring down the unemployment rate. Technology is good news for the world because everything can be done more efficiently, but the bad news is that this means it takes fewer workers to perform the services or make the goods, and the only way to create jobs is through faster growth, which is hard to achieve in a mature economy. Take the banking industry, for example. Thousands of jobs have been lost there and the staff reductions aren't over. We have to learn to live with a higher level of unemployment and there are social and political issues associated with that.

"There is a further problem in that the broader use of technology has made the skills necessary to get and hold a good job more demanding. You will need a fine education and even then it will be tough to find a satisfying job. Many young people are not working in the areas they were trained for. Those who are employed in their desired field will find their wages going up very slowly. As for the inequality problem, I am not hopeful. It has been a part of society since the beginning of time, and now that business is increasingly knowledge-based, it is likely that the problem will get worse and I don't think much can be done about it.

"The broad market will probably not have a major move over the intermediate term, but the innovators will do well. From time to time there will be surges in certain sectors. The homebuilders had their day, now energy and oil service stocks are doing better, but the secular move higher will be accomplished by the innovators. Everyone is worried about interest rates increasing, but that is not likely to happen. Rates may go up slightly in the developed countries from present low levels, but there is so much money looking for a safe place to wait until the outlook becomes clearer that I don't expect yields on quality sovereign or corporate debt to move substantially above present levels.

"Germany is a curse. Europe needs more money to stimulate its growth. Europe is out of the deflationary recession that was caused by the austerity programs that Germany supported, but it is only growing at 1% now. It needs a dose of quantitative easing to grow faster, but Mario Draghi, the head of the European Central Bank (ECB), refuses to provide it. He has been encouraged by his German advisers to be wary of inflation, but more people in Europe are worried about deflation than inflation. The inflation rate in Europe is less than 2%. Monetary easing would be good for the economies across the continent. A few weeks ago the ECB announced some minor accommodative steps, but they were insufficient to have any profound impact. There is one circumstance that could cause the ECB to ease monetary policy in a major way and that would be if the economy of Germany starts to slow down. I think that is likely to happen in the next year, and then you could see Angela Merkel prevailing on Mario Draghi to liberalize monetary policy.

"As for the other countries in Europe: I think François Hollande will be re-elected in France. I do see Europe shifting somewhat to the right politically, but I don't think France will elect a far right candidate. It is basically a socialist country and probably will remain so. I have some renewed hope for Italy. They have a new reform-minded prime minister there and he is determined to restore growth to the economy. He hopes to do this by reducing regulation and removing the barriers that prevent workers from entering certain trades, thereby increasing labor mobility. I hope his program will work. Spain is clearly coming out of its housing collapse–induced recession. The industrial economy is doing well, foreign capital is coming back and sun-seekers are returning to the resort areas. Tourists are also going to Greece; hotel bookings there are up 45%. Portugal is benefiting from the economic recovery in Spain. Of them all France is the most unpredictable. The United Kingdom is surprising us by doing so well, but it is primarily because of the housing boom taking place there. Eventually the Bank of England will have to raise interest rates to slow housing down and that will have a dampening effect on the whole economy. The big real estate boom in London is fueled mainly by Russian and Middle East buyers, as everyone knows.

"One of the problems of Europe beyond its economic woes is that it has limited power politically. It fears Russia and would like to have imposed tougher sanctions on the country, but its economic interests would have suffered a negative impact if they did that. So it stood by and watched Russia take aggressive action in Ukraine and annex Crimea. Putin is only held back from going further in trying to reassemble parts of the former Soviet Union by the awareness that if there is widespread bloodshed there, the world could turn on him. If he were patient, he might get what he wants without a fight. Ukraine is going to need $30 billion to sustain itself over the next two years. It is unlikely that the West is going to put up that kind of money to support a country they didn't care all that much about in the first place. But Putin will put up the money because it is in his direct interest to do so. In the current world, money may be more important than military power in achieving geopolitical objectives. People are tired of fighting and losing lives for other people's causes.

"The United States is an example of that. It is weary of the wars it has been waging in the Middle East for a decade or more with little to show for it in terms of establishing democracies there. The U.S. was naïve to think it could establish democracies in areas that are so strongly tribal in nature. The probable solution for Iraq is that it will be broken into three parts – Kurdish, Shiite and Sunni. The country could only be run as a single entity by a strongman, as Saddam Hussein was and Malaki is not. We see that in Egypt where el-Sisi has virtually destroyed the Muslim Brotherhood that previously was in power. Afghanistan is a lost country. Al-Qaeda is setting up cells there and I don't think the U.S. can stop it.

"I also am not hopeful the Israelis and the Palestinians can achieve a peace accord anytime soon. The hawks are in control on both sides. The Palestinians want all of their territory back, the closing of the settlements and the right of return in order to recognize Israel and the Israelis are not likely to agree to that, so the stalemate is probably going to continue. Israel is one of those places where technology innovation is vibrant. Much of the creative work is coming from people whose basic education took place in Russia. With all of its problems Russia still has the best public education system in the world. You hear a lot about the oligarchs, but the society there is based on status – your education, your job – more than money. The Russian economy is suffering because Putin spent so much on defense and didn't diversify the economy beyond energy.

"I am optimistic that there will be some agreement which will result in Iran pulling back from its nuclear weapons development program. There are too many young people in that country who know what is happening elsewhere in the world and they want to be part of it. The clerics cannot hold them back indefinitely. The sanctions are hurting and everyone but the very top leadership wants them removed. The real story in Iran and throughout the Arab world is that 70% of the population is under 30 and these younger people want change and the prospect of a better life. If the sanctions were lifted there would be enormous foreign direct investment in Iran and a huge boom. I don't have much hope for Syria. Al-Assad and his oppressive regime are there to stay. The northeast could be broken off and become a part of Iraq, however.

"Eventually I see oil production in the Middle East returning to pre-conflict levels and even moving higher. I agree with you, however, that increased production will not be enough to meet the demands of the developing world – especially India and China – and I see oil prices heading somewhat higher. As for gold, it has now been established as an asset class although it is not one embraced in Europe and the United States. It is a part of almost all institutional platforms in India and many other places in Asia. I think it has formed a base here at current levels, but I don't know when it will move substantially higher. I think at least a small amount of gold should be in all portfolios.

"I think the election of Modi in India without a run-off is a very positive development. He appears to be a real reformer, which is what the country needs, but he has to deliver. The market may have already discounted a good part of what he is likely to achieve. I visited China this year and my conclusion is that the size and the diversity of the country present a challenge to how central government rules the country. As a result, the regional authorities have a lot of power and it is hard for Beijing to know if they are always performing in accordance with the intentions of the central government. It is true that China has ascended to the position of second largest economy in the world but that is because of the size of the population, not its per capita income. I don't expect a hard landing, however, because they have enough control over the economy to avoid that. Still, I presently have no investments there. I also visited Japan and I am impressed by what is happening in their economy now. The people need to have more confidence that Shinzo Abe's policies are working. I am making some investments in Japan.

"As for the rest of the world, I am pretty bored. I think Indonesia is basically a commodities rather than industrial market and if commodities do well, so will the country's equities, but I can't predict commodity prices. In Latin America I am bullish on Argentina; Brazil will recover, but it is too early to invest now.

"Everyone seems to be disturbed by the lack of volatility in the market, but volatility is the product of excesses and there are few excesses now. The U.S. stock market is fairly valued, the economy is healing and the U.S. bond market has settled down to a new low-yield level. The Middle East is not likely to blow up. Despite all of this, a lot of people are afraid and because of that the market should to go higher. Europeans are under-invested. Saving the European Union and the euro preoccupied investors over the past two years. As the economy strengthens, there will be more structural change – a banking union and more fiscal convergence in Europe.

"Some final thoughts:

• In the future only creativity will be rewarded and the rewards will be big. California is a magical place for creativity. The rest of the world is an average place.

• The art market is reflective of the inequality problem. It is the most unregulated market in the world. Prices may be topping soon because of wealth taxes.

• After 2012 and 2013, it is proving much harder to make money in equities.

• There is a big boom coming in Myanmar even though the military is still in power.

• Hillary Clinton will win the 2016 election."

We had a lively discussion on almost every point but we were more in agreement than in past years. That, however, may be a worrisome sign. Half-way through his ninth decade The Smartest Man in Europe is still as informed and opinionated as ever. He should be an inspiration to all of us.

http://www.blackstone.com/news-views/market-commentary/blog-detail/byron's-market-commentary/2014/07/02/the-smartest-man-in-europe-sees-a-new-industrial-revolution

Currently 0.00/51 Saturday, July 5, 2014 Alcoa Now Aims for the Sky Aluminum group Alcoa Inc (AA) announced on Thursday a $2.85 billion deal to buy a company that makes jet engine parts, largely out of nickel-based alloys and titanium. The Pittsburgh-based aluminum company said Thursday it would buy Firth Rixson Ltd. from private-equity firm Oak Hill Capital Partners LP for $2.35 billion in cash and $500 million in common shares. Alcoa agreed to pay as much as an additional $150 million, depending on the Sheffield, England, manufacturer's performance through 2020. The company has operations all over the world and engages primarily in mining bauxite, refining it into alumina and manufacturing complex metal goods such as aircraft fuselages and truck wheels. As massive oversupply weighs on the price of less-processed aluminum, the company has been pushing to expand its higher-margin aerospace and automotive businesses. A global glut in capacity has pushed down aluminum prices in recent years, hurting Alcoa's earnings. Goldman, Sachs & Co. also welcomed the deal. "We see this proposed acquisition as potentially transformational for Alcoa, giving it the capability to become a major player in the aerospace jet-engine market," it said in a press release. With roots in the 19th century steel industry of Sheffield, England, Firth Rixson has operations in the United Kingdom, United States, continental Europe and China. While aerospace is the biggest part of its business, it also has power generation, oil and gas, and mining segments. It expects the takeover to raise its aerospace revenue by 20 percent, to some $4.8 billion a year. It sees no impact on earnings in the first year, and gains in the second year. The deal value includes $2.35 billion in cash and $500 million of stock. There may also be a payment of as much as $150 million based on Firth Rixson's performance. Alcoa's financial advisers were Greenhill & Co and Morgan Stanley, and its legal adviser was Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. Firth Rixson was advised by Citigroup Inc and Lazard Ltd, as well as law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. Alcoa also said in a press release that it had received senior debt and mezzanine financing from Morgan Stanley. Alcoa's shares rose 39 cents to 2.7% at $14.94 on Thursday on NYSE. This comes after the company was ousted from the Dow Jones International Average in September. Alcoa projected 7% annual growth in the market for commercial jets through 2019. Firth Rixson sales are forecast to rise more than 12% a year through that period with most of its revenue coming from the sale of its aerospace products. The company is projected to add $1.6 billion in revenue and $350 million in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization in 2016, Alcoa said. The Firth Rixson purchase, which is expected to be completed by year-end, would accelerate Alcoa's growth in engineered products, Morningstar's Mr. Lane said. Oak Hill bought Firth Rixson in 2007 for the equivalent of about $2 billion from a group of investment funds. The deal might prove to be beneficial as it shows some hope for better returns on investment. Currently 0.00/512345 Rating: 0.0/5 (0 votes) Subscribe via Email Subscribe RSS Comments Please leave your comment: More GuruFocus Links Latest Guru Picks Value Strategies Warren Buffett Portfolio Ben Graham Net-Net Real Time Picks Buffett-Munger Screener Aggregated Portfolio Undervalued Predictable ETFs, Options Low P/S Companies Insider Trends 10-Year Financials 52-Week Lows Interactive Charts Model Portfolios DCF Calculator RSS Feed Monthly Newsletters The All-In-One Screener Portfolio Tracking Tool MORE GURUFOCUS LINKS Latest Guru Picks Value Strategies Warren Buffett Portfolio Ben Graham Net-Net Real Time Picks Buffett-Munger Screener Aggregated Portfolio Undervalued Predictable ETFs, Options Low P/S Companies Insider Trends 10-Year Financials 52-Week Lows Interactive Charts Model Portfolios DCF Calculator RSS Feed Monthly Newsletters The All-In-One Screener Portfolio Tracking Tool AA STOCK PRICE CHART 14.98 (1y: +89%) $(function(){var seriesOptions=[],yAxisOptions=[],name='AA',display='';Highcharts.setOptions({global:{useUTC:true}});var d=new Date();$current_day=d.getDay();if($current_day==5||$current_day==0||$current_day==6){day=4;}else{day=7;} seriesOptions[0]={id:name,animation:false,color:'#4572A7',lineWidth:1,name:name.toUpperCase()+' stock price',threshold:null,data:[[1373259600000,7.92],[1373346000000,7.91],[1373432400000,7.92],[1373518800000,8.1],[1373605200000,8.1],[1373864400000,8.17],[1373950800000,8.11],[1374037200000,8.19],[1374123600000,8.21],[1374210000000,8.07],[1374469200000,8.12],[1374555600000,8.14],[1374642000000,8.05],[1374728400000,8.03],[1374814800000,8.07],[1375074000000,8.04],[1375160400000,8.03],[1375246800000,7.95],[1375333200000,7.95],[1375419600000,7.97],[1375678800000,8],[1375765200000,7.91],[1375851600000,7.79],[1375938000000,7.91],[1376024400000,8.22],[1376283600000,8.26],[1376370000000,8.15],[1376456400000,8.16],[1376542800000,8.16],[1376629200000,8.12],[1376888400000,7.94],[1376974800000,8],[1377061200000,7.84],[1377147600000,8.03],[1377234000000,8.05],[1377493200000,8.06],[1377579600000,7.915],[1377666000000,7.93],[1377752400000,7.81],[1377838800000,7.7],[1378184400000,7.72],[1378270800000,7.84],[1378357200000,7.87],[1378443600000,7.92],[1378702800000,8.08],[1378789200000,8.055],[1378875600000,8.19],[1378962000000,8.16],[1379048400000,8.08],[1379307600000,8.1],[1379394000000,8.26],[1379480400000,8.555],[1379566800000,8.44],[1379653200000,8.29],[1379912400000,8.28],[1379998800000,8.3],[1380085200000,8.33],[1380171600000,8.27],[1380258000000,8.2],[1380517200000,8.12],[1380603600000,8.17],[1380690000000,8.02],[1380776400000,7.86],[1380862800000,7.96],[1381122000000,7.97],[1381208400000,7.94],[1381294800000,8.1],[1381381200000,8.35],[1381467600000,8.32],[1381726800000,8.45],[1381813200000,8.38],[1381899600000,8.53],[1381986000000,8.59],[1382072400000,8.63],[1382331600000,8.6],[1382418000000,9.36],[1382504400000,9.27],[1382590800000,9.25],[1382677200000,9.24],[1382936400000,9.56],[1383022800000,9.54],[1383109200000,9.46],[1383195600000,9.27],[1383282000000,9.27],[1383544800000,9.92],[1383631200000,9.78],[1383717600000,9.66],[1383804000000,8.95],[1383890400000,9.06],[1384149600000,9.03],[1384236000000,8.92],[13843224! 00000,8.99],[1384408800000,8.98],[1384495200000,9.03],[1384754400000,8.95],[1384840800000,9.13],[1384927200000,9.05],[1385013600000,9.12],[1385100000000,9.24],[1385359200000,9.59],[1385445600000,9.65],[1385532000000,9.64],[1385704800000,9.61],[1385964000000,9.55],[1386050400000,9.42],[1386136800000,9.36],[1386223200000,9.35],[1386309600000,9.36],[1386568800000,9.48],[1386655200000,9.56],[1386741600000,9.34],[1386828000000,9.37],[1386914400000,9.51],[1387173600000,9.57],[1387260000000,9.7],[1387346400000,9.83],[1387432800000,9.97],[1387519200000,9.94],[1387778400000,10.13],[1387864800000,10.36],[1388037600000,10.43],[1388124000000,10.69],[1388383200000,10.53],[1388469600000,10.63],[1388642400000,10.53],[1388728800000,10.57],[1388988000000,10.53],[1389074400000,10.54],[1389160800000,10.83],[1389247200000,10.69],[1389333600000,10.11],[1389592800000,10.1],[1389679200000,10.32],[1389765600000,10.59],[1389852000000,11.04],[1389938400000,11.36],[1390284000000,12.13],[1390370400000,12.22],[1390456800000,12.07],[1390543200000,11.44],[1390802400000,11.64],[1390888800000,11.85],[1390975200000,11.99],[1391061600000,11.95],[1391148000000,11.51],[1391407200000,11.23],[139149 Friday, July 4, 2014 Coach: On the Right Track, Still Not Time to Buy Coach (COH) is the worst performing stock in the S&P 500 this year–and Credit Suisse doesn’t see much hope for its shares despite the beaten down luxury retailer making all the right moves. Credit Suisse analysts Christian Buss and Phan Le share their hopes and fears for Coach: We now believe that Coach is on the right track following introduction of its brand transformation initiative, but remain concerned with respect to shares, given our view that earnings power will be delayed into late FY16 at the earliest. We are impressed by Coach’s plans to: 1) close 70 underperforming stores; 2) roll out a new store design concept and devote more resources to flagships; 3) create brand presence in department stores; 4) focus and intensify its marketing message; 5) reduce flash sale events (to 3 per month from 3 per week); and 6) improve product and seasonal flow in the outlet channel. We view these initiatives as necessary for long-term brand survival among increasing competition but expect returns to be delayed in late FY16, suggesting a multiple discount relative to peers remains in order… Outlet And Full Price Store Balance Still A Cause For Concern. We believe Coach’s outlet business has reached a saturation point, likely weakening brand image in North America and adding to the deterioration of full price sales. Coach reiterated they believe they have the right mix of outlet versus full price stores and plan to close a moderate net total of 5 outlets in FY15 (opening 10 duel gender outlets while closing 2 locations and consolidating 13 men’s outlet locations into women’s stores). While they are invested in improving product (less logos and more leather) and limiting promotions to increase average transaction dollars, we view the surplus of outlet locations as dilutive to the brand and remain cautious on this strategy going forward… We reiterate our Neutral rating, lower our FY15 EPS estimate to $2.05 from $2.84, and our TP to $30 from $39. Shares of Coach have gained 0.3% to $35.18 at 12:46 p.m. today. Wednesday, July 2, 2014 Jamie Dimon diagnosed with cancer NEW YORK (CNNMoney) JPMorgan Chase boss Jamie Dimon said Tuesday that he has been diagnosed with a curable throat cancer, but will remain working while undergoing treatment. The prognosis from doctors is "excellent" and it was caught quickly, he wrote in a memo to colleagues and shareholders. Dimon, 58, will receive radiation and chemotherapy treatment over the next eight weeks at Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital in New York. Although he will curtail his traveling, the bank CEO expects to be actively working during that period. He made the announcement just before he was about to leave on a previously scheduled trip to five European countries, said spokesman Joe Evangelisti. That trip is now canceled. "I feel very good now and will let all of you know if my health situation changes," Dimon wrote. Dimon previously was president of Citigroup, then chairman and CEO of Bank One Corporation. He joined JPMorgan (JPM) in 2004 through a merger and was named CEO and president in 2006. He successfully steered the bank through the economic downturn.   Dimon defends banking in Davos He was criticized for his handling of the $6 billion London Whale trading loss. The bank had to pay about $1 billion in fines to U.S. and UK regulators for not properly overseeing its traders related to that loss. JPMorgan also reached a massive $13 billion settlement last fall over allegations it, and two banks it purchased, misrepresented mortgage-backed securities, which played a major role in triggering the crisis. Dimon saw a pay cut in 2012 because of that issue, but his pay was bumped up again last year. He received $18.5 million worth of restricted stock on top of his $1.5 million base salary. --CNNMoney's Poppy Harlow contributed to this report Subscribe to: Posts (Atom) Blog Archive ►  2019 (31) ►  March (15) ►  February (16) ►  2018 (17) ►  August (2) ►  July (7) ►  June (2) ►  May (6) ►  2015 (82) ►  July (2) ►  June (9) ►  May (11) ►  April (5) ►  March (9) ►  February (17) ►  January (29) ▼  2014 (202) ►  December (16) ►  November (4) ►  October (10) ►  September (5) ►  August (13) ▼  July (16) Olive Garden: Unlimited Breadsticks, Unlimited Pro... 2 Important Observations From Facebook, Inc.’s S... Want to Live to 100? 4 Things You Need to Know Australia’s Dramatic Rise in Productivity U.S. Records $71 Billion Budget Surplus in June 5 Summer Scams to Avoid Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ): Going to $40 Says FBR ... Rent-A-Center Shares Fall On Downbeat Forecast; Lo... Cambiar Investors: 2014 International/Global Equit... 3 Stocks Under $10 Moving Higher U.S. Consumer Credit Rose by $19.6 Billion in May 6 Capital Markets Stocks to Buy Now Byron Wein Sees New Industrial Revolution Alcoa Now Aims for the Sky Coach: On the Right Track, Still Not Time to Buy Jamie Dimon diagnosed with cancer ►  June (38) ►  May (20) ►  April (24) ►  March (23) ►  February (14) ►  January (19) ►  2013 (234) ►  December (23) ►  November (23) ►  October (25) ►  September (16) ►  August (18) ►  July (34) ►  June (35) ►  May (36) ►  April (24) About Me gostocks View my complete profile Simple theme. Powered by Blogger.