She's a Savvy Investor

Posts Tagged ‘good’


Posted on April 8, 2012 - by

Second Is Just Not Good Enough

Consider this a case study in why investing in the second best anything can be a bad idea. In the war for processor chip dominance it seems that Advanced Micro Devices  is always playing second fiddle to someone. Years ago, I remember hearing how AMD was going to take on Intel  and take the throne as chip king. Today AMD is in the position of fighting Intel in the desktop and server markets, while both companies are being taken to the woodshed by the more mobile focused ARM Holdings . In most industries like in sports, people remember champions, the guy who finished second is forgotten. With this in mind, it never pays to count out the underdog, however that underdog better have a good plan.

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Posted on March 30, 2012 - by

FedEx Needs More Than Just a Good Quarter

FedEx’s third-quarter figures were decent despite a shaky international business outlook.

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Posted on February 23, 2012 - by

Is J&J a Good Buy?

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Posted on December 2, 2011 - by

A very good week

PERHAPS it’s time to dial back some of the gloom. This week gave us positive news on two fronts. First, the underlying American economy seems to be in reasonably good shape. Second, the biggest risks hanging over the economy—policy errors in America and Europe—receded just a bit. It is not time to declare the all clear. This recovery, having disappointed so many times before, probably will again at some point.

But for now, let’s look at  the positive case. America’s Bureau of Labour Statistics reported today that non-farm employment grew 120,000 in November from October and the unemployment rate plunged to 8.6% from 9%, its lowest level since the latter stages of the recession in early 2009. The job growth was a tad below the Wall-Street consensus of 125,000 and well short of what the ADP survey on Wednesday had hinted. But the BLS also revised up previous months: non-farm employment grew 100,000 instead of 80,000 in October, and it advanced a whopping 210,000 in September, up from the previous estimate of 158,000. The fact that revisions lately have been positive is suggestive of an economy re-acclerating from its summer swoon. 

Not surprisingly, government employment remains a drag: it fell 20,000, while private payrolls advanced 140,000. Within the private sector, manufacturing was flat and construction declined. Retail was up sharply, by 50,000, which suggests retailers are anticipating a robust holiday season. 

The drop in the unemployment rate was welcome, but a bit deceptive. America’s employment report is based on two separate surveys: one of employer payrolls, which yielded the 120,000 gain; and a separate one of households, according to which employment rose 278,000. It’s the latter survey that’s used to determine the unemployment rate. The unemployment rate declined not just because of this strong employment growth but because the number of people looking for work declined: the labour force contracted and as a share of the working age population (the participation rate), it fell to a disturbingly low 64%. That we have not seen the unemployed flood back into the labour force in response to better economic data is troubling, but should not overshadow the overall picture of health. 

Today’s report is no anomaly; it comes on the heels of a run of good data that suggests the American economy so far is defying the recessionary tug from Europe. The survey of  purchasing managers point to an expanding factory sector, pending home sales are picking up, and anecdotal evidence points to a strong start to holiday shopping.

What’s behind this? I think the best explanation is that a decent recovery would have begun a year ago but for a run of bad luck: the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, the run up in oil prices following the Arab Spring, and the political brinkmanshp in America over the debt ceiling and in Europe over its sovereign-debt crisis.

If we can avoid those pitfalls in the coming 12 months, there’s a decent chance the economy can hold on to its current momentum: enough for a year of 2.5%, even 3% growth, but not enough for a barnburner; there is still too much public and private deleveraging to go. What could interfere with this scenario? As usual, the problem is politics. America is facing automatic fiscal tightening in January unless several stimulus measures, including a 2% payroll-tax cut and extended unemployment insurance benefits are extended. There’s good news on that front. Though Republicans blocked Senate Democrats on Thursday from passing an expanded version of the payroll-tax cut, they have signaled a willingness to pass some version of it eventually, as long as it’s not paid for by raising taxes on millionaires. The administration continues to make rhetorical hay out of the Republicans’ positions, but officials have carefully left the door open to a compromise: either allowing the deficit to rise in the short term or paying for it with relatively innocuous measures such as selling radio spectrum. Even resolving that will leave some austerity in the pipeline, but it’s manageable.

Europe remains a bigger problem. There again the news has turned positive this week. Political leaders have begun exploring moves towards tighter fiscal union and budget monitoring that doesn’t require the cumbersome process of having every member of the euro zone approve a treaty change. On Thursday Mario Draghi, the European Central Bank president, signaled support for that path and tantalised markets with the prospect that “other elements might follow”—taken as a euphemism for more aggressive bond buying. Peripheral bond yields have come down sharply this week in response.

This is all very encouraging, but must all be taken with plenty of caution. Politicians on both sides of the Atlantic have too often said they would pursue the necessary actions, but failed to ovecome their profound philosophical differences on how to get there. The meeting of European Union leaders on December 9th is critical. Until then, enjoy your weekend for a change.

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Posted on October 7, 2011 - by

Does anyone know how long it would take to identify a city in India with good infrastructure?

In other words, does anyone know how long it would take to research, visit and choose a city in India in which to do business in based on that cities infrastructure? I am doing a case study on Intel doing business in India, but I was unsure how long this process would take.


Posted on September 9, 2011 - by

Good enough

THE press is wall-to-wall coverage of President Obama’s jobs speech (and that includes us), so I may as well chime in with my thoughts on the matter. I don’t know about the politics. Mr Obama seemed to frame his jobs plan in a savvy fashion, and there seems to be at least some openness to passage of parts of the plan among Republicans in Congress. I’m not sure he could have crafted the bill in a more passable fashion.

On the merits, there is plenty of room for quibbling, and there will be quite a bit of quibbling. On the whole, there is much to like. The size seems right, though we’ll have to see what kinds of offsetting cuts emerge from the super committee. If we assume that offsetting cuts are pushed beyond 2012, then the bill erases the 2%-of-GDP fiscal drag on growth currently baked into the budget cake. Over the next year, the federal government would be a small positive in the GDP figures rather than a large negative. Given the leeway bond markets are giving the American government and the dire state of the economy, not to mention the progress Washington has made trimming the medium-term spending outlook, a fiscal policy stance that is at least neutral seems like a no-brainer.

Maintaining the present payroll-tax cut and unemployment insurance is similarly a no-brainer. Increased focus on the structure of benefits and the plight of the long-term unemployed is a very welcome sign. The plan would probably have been better had it devoted the money pegged for new employee-side payroll cuts to more of those sorts of policies. 

The public investment portion of the bill isn’t likely to be as job intensive. It’s still a good idea, however. America has significant infrastructure investment needs, and now—with labour and capital cheap—is a very good time to make them. Stimulus aside, the economy could use a much larger dose of infrastructure investment. With Congress divided over a long-term transportation law, the jobs plan is as good a place as any to move some spending forward.

It’s not a perfect plan, but nothing that emerges from Washington is. It’s not going to magically generate strong growth; the Fed’s upcoming meetings are more important. It is a package of sensible steps presented in a sensible way. Were Congress to fall into a momentary stupor and pass the bill as is, the American economy would clearly be better for it (though not obviously 2m jobs better). Americans should hope that most of it gets through Congress and on to the president’s desk.

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Posted on May 28, 2011 - by

what would be a good case study or topic for a title company,?

its for a business class project, so if anybody has some good topics let me know, my last two topics were strategies of corporation, and corporate social responsibility, just to give you ideas of what im looking for, also what kinds of problems do title companies face in the next 2 years


Posted on April 26, 2011 - by

Where can I find good case studies for teaching SWOT analysis?

I am looking for a case study of a business that is designed for SWOT analysis to be conducted on it, not a case study about a firm conducting a SWOT analysis, or one that provides the answers, I want the students to conduct it themselves after reading teh case study


Posted on April 4, 2011 - by

Anyone know of a good case study on extranets and their use as a marketing/sales tool?

Would prefer a case study or example of their use in the technology business.


Posted on March 21, 2011 - by

A case study question: is this good business ethics?

Case Study: You’re a large nat’l non-profit org who needs a puppet made for library gigs of your computer animated PBS character. A custom puppet will cost five thousand $$. But library gigs means low budget.

So you hold a contest with a month deadline. You offer four hundred $$ as a prize for the best puppet. Email it to Puppeteers’ groups & teachers’ groups. Promise to put a pic of the winner up & do a newsletter & website article about them.

You specify it exactly…stating that all puppets submitted must match those specs. Implying that this contest can’t be won if the entries don’t measure up. From your specs: the materials could run a hundred $$ or more. Time involved for an amateur = a min of 40 hrs
Thus:
-The winner gets reimbursed for materials & paid $7.50 an hour for labor requiring considerable skill
-All losers get nothing, loose $$ in materials/time & end up with a puppet they can’t use or sell (copyrighted)
-You get a puppet for $4,500 off.

Ethical?
One of the answers made me go back and look–there are no provisions for returning the loosing puppets listed. Also, submitting the puppet is required…not just a picture.

I find the responses below facinating. Very different in fact from the responses on a list for professional puppeteers.
Here’s a few quote from a puppeteer:
“…the blatant ways that “charitable” organizations think nothing of ripping off professional puppeteers “for the kids…” How many of us have faced that obnoxious person in our careers who didn’t want to pay for a puppet show; something they considered frivolous, and instead of admitting that they didn’t want to pay, asked you to work free, “for the kids…” As if you didn’t care about the kids if you charged a living wage?”

“the sad thing is it only shows how little people think of puppeteers skills, value or intelligence…”