FedEx Executive Richard Smith Owes Much of His Wealth to His Father
Richard W. Smith is a high-ranking executive at FedEx. He's the son of FedEx's founder and makes at least $1.5 million annually.
Company & Industry Overviews
How GoDaddy Became the Go-To Domain Registrar on the Internet
GoDaddy is a domain registrar that became known for its racy commercials of the 2010s. Who owns the company and how did it become successful?
What Drugs Does AstraZeneca Make?
AstraZeneca is a leading biopharmaceutical company that focuses on developing drugs to treat cancer, heart disease, and COPD. What drugs does the company make?
Lululemon Founder Chip Wilson Has Taken a Backseat But He's Still a Big Stakeholder
Chip Wilson, founder and former CEO of Lululemon Athletica, is no longer on its board but retains shares of the company.
Who Owns CD Projekt RED?
CD Projekt RED is a Polish video-game company owned largely by its co-founders, Michał Kiciński and Marcin Iwiński.
Costco Isn't Owned by China, Has Solid U.S. Roots
Over the years, Costco has opened locations around the world. However, the company's origins are closer to home than you may realize.
DoorDash's Profit Model Relies on Shaving Off Restaurants' Razor-Thin Margins
Often, DoorDash orders have zero delivery fees — so how does the app make money? Here's the cost restaurants pay to opt in to DoorDash's stream.
Smart Speakers: How Google’s Market Has Transformed
Alphabet (GOOGL) has several branches, and Google is the branch that looks after its smart speaker business.
Gauging the Bullish-Bearish Sentiment on Aphria
The short interest position on a stock is one quick way to gauge the bullish and bearish sentiment on a stock.
How Microsoft Could Benefit from Trump’s Policies
Microsoft’s cash and short-term investment balance of $136.9 billion was on the top of the list for the fourth straight quarter.
Why Competition Is Heating up for NVIDIA in the AI Space
Many companies are shifting their focus toward AI, which has been increasing the competition for NVIDIA (NVDA).
Hurricane Harvey Impacted Energy MLPs
Hurricane Harvey hit the US Gulf Coast last week. The US Gulf Coast is a major destination for US refineries and energy infrastructure.
Will Walmart and Target’s Digital Initiatives Hurt Costco?
Costco’s top line has grown at an average rate of 11.9% in the past five quarters. On average, the company’s adjusted EPS increased 17.9%.
Why IBM’s Earnings Could Fall Going Forward
International Business Machines (IBM) reported its 2Q17 results on Tuesday, July 18. The company reported falling quarterly profits and sales yet again.
S&P 500’s Top Losses: Why Biogen Declined
Biogen, which is an American multinational biotechnology company, was the S&P 500’s top loss on June 18.
Oracle’s Position in the Marketing Cloud Space versus Peers
Over past couple of years, Oracle, SAP (SAP), and Salesforce (CRM) have aggressively turned to acquisitions in order to strengthen their footholds in the marketing cloud space.
Why Ford’s Lincoln Sales Fell 6% in China in October
In the previous part of this series, we looked at the second-largest US automaker, Ford’s (F), sales in China in October. The company’s weakening Chinese sales are likely to continue.
EU Fine Had a Huge Impact on Alphabet’s Profitability
Facebook’s net profit was $3.9 billion in 2Q17, up from $2.3 billion in the corresponding quarter a year earlier.
Why Is Morgan Stanley Optimistic about Apple?
According to a report from Apple Insider, Morgan Stanley expects Apple to offset the threat of longer replacement cycles with the iPhone Xs.
Why the Microsoft–Amazon Cloud Competition Could Spike in 2019
Microsoft, Amazon, and other vendors are pursuing a $278.3 billion revenue opportunity in the global public cloud market, according to the latest Gartner estimates.
Why Is Twitter Investing in Original Shows and Programming?
Last month, Twitter (TWTR) announced it would partner with 30 companies to bring original shows to its platform.
How Did US Financial Markets Fare in October 2015?
The S&P 500 index, tracked by the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) and the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV), rose 8.3% in October.
What Investors Should Know about Dominion Energy’s Dividends
Dominion Energy’s (D) payout ratio (the percentage of profit that it gave away in the form of dividends) was 81% in 2016, which is higher than the industry average and slightly on the lower side of its five-year payout average of 85%.
Analyzing Short Interest Trends in Oasis Petroleum
Oasis Petroleum’s short interest ratio on September 13, 2016, was ~19.4%. Its short interest ratio on June 30, 2016, was 16.1%.
Why Does Comcast Expect Programming Costs to Rise in Fiscal 2016?
On March 8, 2016, the Wall Street Journal reported that Comcast and the YES Network were locked in a dispute regarding the carriage fee for the YES Network.
Evaluating Leverage Levels of Major Railroads after Q1 2018
As of March 31, Genesee & Wyoming (GWR) had a net debt-to-forward-EBITDA multiple of 3.2x, which was much higher than the industry average of 2.1x.
Analyzing Denbury Resources’ 1Q16 Earnings Call
For 1Q16, Denbury Resources (DNR) reported an adjusted EBITDA of ~$105 million with an EBITDA margin of ~40%. Its EBITDA margin is only ~20% lower.
Inside the Market’s View of Corporate Tax Cuts
Are markets upbeat on potential tax reforms? The markets (SPY) (IVV) surged last week with the announcement of a phenomenal update on the corporate tax cut. The S&P and Nasdaq Comp gained ~2% in the week ended February 10, 2017. The Trump administration’s proposed tax cut is likely to boost the economy, though analysts have […]
How Spark Therapeutics Is Positioned in 2018
Spark Therapeutics generated revenues of $25.18 million in the second quarter of 2018 compared to $1.48 million in Q2 2017.
HollyFrontier Stock Has Recovered 5.5% in 2019
HollyFrontier (HFC) stock has risen 5.5% since January 2. The stock has risen less than its peers Marathon Petroleum (MPC) and Valero (VLO).
AK Steel Could Face Challenges in Meeting Its Goals
AK Steel is working towards stable margins throughout the business cycle. AK Steel has deliberately lowered its exposure to spot markets (X) (CLF).
FOXA’s Views on Streaming Platforms: Advertising Opportunity?
Due to the coverage of the US presidential elections this year, 21st Century Fox (FOXA) expects substantial advertising revenue from Fox News.
Industrial and Auto: Texas Instruments’ Future Growth Drivers
Texas Instruments (TXN) is the bellwether of the economy since it caters to most major end markets.
Why Microsoft Isn’t the Only Threat to Amazon’s Cloud Dominance
In late 2016, Oracle (ORCL) launched the second generation of its IaaS (infrastructure-as-a-service) offering, Oracle Bare Metal Cloud.
Will Dish’s Sling TV Remain Successful?
As Millennials increasingly move to OTT (over-the-top) services, pay-TV companies like Dish Network (DISH) are also focusing on OTT services.
Merck Expects Modest Revenue Growth in Fiscal 2016
Merck provided revenue guidance of $39.7 billion–$40.2 billion in 2016. It expects negative foreign exchange fluctuations to reduce its fiscal 2016 revenue.
Lattice Semiconductor’s Earnings Hit by Weaker Smartphone Sales
On a non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) basis, Lattice Semiconductor’s revenue fell 8% quarter-over-quarter to $101.3 million in fiscal 4Q15.
It Was a Festive Holiday Season for Signet Jewelers
On January 7, 2016, Signet Jewelers (SIG), the world’s largest retailer of diamond jewelry, announced its broad-based success in the holiday season with revenue of $1.9 billion.
Tesla Motors Rose Due to Increased Orders for the Model 3 Sedan
Tesla Motors (TSLA) has a market cap of $31.5 billion. It rose by 4.0% and closed at $246.99 per share on April 4, 2016.
Understanding Arch Coal’s Financial Position
Arch Coal’s leverage On June 30, 2017, the book value of Arch Coal’s (ARCH) long-term debt was about $315.6 million, of which ~$297 million is due for payment in 2024. Arch Coal’s leverage, which is its net debt divided by EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization), has increased since the acquisition of International […]
Why Twitter Stock Rose 7.3% on March 14
Social media giant Twitter (TWTR) saw its stock price surge 7.3% on March 14, 2018.
Why Time Warner Intends to Pull Its HBO Programming from Amazon
Time Warner announced at its fiscal 1Q17 earnings call that it most likely won’t extend its agreement with Amazon beyond 2018.
Trading at a Discount, Netflix Has Mixed Recommendations
Of the 44 analysts covering Netflix, 23 have given it a “buy” recommendation, seven have given it a “sell” recommendation, and 14 have given it a “hold” recommendation.
Why YouTube’s Revamp of Its Red Service Is a Positive Move
Cobra Kai, a spin-off of Karate Kid that stars Ralph Macchio and William Zabka, is part of YouTube Red’s lineup of original content.
Teva Pharmaceutical: Earnings Trends and Recent Developments
Teva Pharmaceutical’s net income and diluted EPS in the first nine months of 2018 amounted to $541.0 million and $0.53, respectively.
Analyzing HollyFrontier’s Refining Margin in 2018
HollyFrontier’s refining segment is critical for its overall earnings. The refining segment’s adjusted EBITDA rose 127% to $1.7 billion in 2018.
Verizon Aims Higher with Yahoo Acquisition
After 11 long months of uncertainty and many negotiations, Verizon (VZ) has completed its $4.5 billion acquisition of Yahoo’s core Internet assets. Let’s look at what’s in store for the US telecom space.
Why BTIG Is Bullish on PayPal
PayPal (PYPL) could have bright prospects despite the competitive threat it faces from Square and Apple in the online payment market, according to equity research firm BTIG.
Can GM’s Stock Sustain Its Year-to-Date Rise in December?
General Motors has delivered a return of 6.9% year-to-date as of December 16, 2016. This return was much lower than the 10.5% return of the S&P 500 Index.
US Stock Indices Plunge after Oil Prices Rebound
The three US equity indices that we review in this weekly series fell from December 8 to December 15, 2015, after a rebound in oil prices.