Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) plans to solve one of the Internet’s most vexing problems — most people around the world have no access to it. The notion that Facebook can do this reflects the kind of arrogance the company and its executives have become know for.
The social network issued a press release that said:
Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, today announced the launch of internet.org, a global partnership with the goal of making internet access available to the next 5 billion people.
Zuckerberg certainly has�lined up an impressive set of partners:
The founding members of internet.org — Facebook, Ericsson, MediaTek, Nokia, Opera, Qualcomm and Samsung — will develop joint projects, share knowledge, and mobilize industry and governments to bring the world online.
Bringing the Internet to five billion people is akin to bringing them food, water or education. The logistics and expense defy even the financial power of companies like Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM) and the weak balance sheets of struggling corporations like Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK). The price to accomplish the goal would stretch into the hundreds of billions of dollars, given the nearly impossible task of creating an infrastructure to reach billions of people, let alone sharply cut the costs of what people who are poor or live in poor nations would pay.
Best Mid Cap Companies For 2015: Drew Industries Inc (DW)
Drew Industries Incorporated, incorporated on March 20, 1984, is a supplier of components for recreational vehicle (RVs) and manufactured housing. The Company operates in two segments: the RV products segment (RV Segment), and the manufactured housing products segment (MH Segment). The Company�� operations are conducted through its wholly owned subsidiaries, Lippert Components, Inc. and its subsidiaries (Lippert) and Kinro, Inc. and its subsidiaries (Kinro), each of which has operations in both the RV Segment and the MH Segment. During the year ended December 31, 2012, the RV Segment accounted for 87% of net sales and the MH segment accounted for 13% of net sales. On February 21, 2012, the Company acquired the business and certain assets of the United States RV entry door operation of Euramax International, Inc. In February 2014, the Company's wholly-owned subsidiary, Lippert Components, Inc has acquired Innovative Design Solutions, Inc. (IDS).
RV Segment
The Company through its wholly owned subsidiaries manufactures and markets a variety of products used in the production of RVs, including steel chassis for towable RVs, axles and suspension solutions for towable RVs, slide-out mechanisms and solutions, thermoformed bath, kitchen and other products, manual, electric and hydraulic stabilizer and lifting systems, aluminum windows and screens, chassis components, furniture and mattresses, entry, baggage, patio and ramp doors, entry steps, awnings, and other accessories. The Company also supplies certain of these products to the RV aftermarket, and to adjacent industries, including manufacturers of truck caps, buses and trailers used to haul boats, livestock, equipment and other cargo. Operations of the Company's RV Segment consist primarily of fabricating, welding, painting and assembling components into finished products. The Company's RV Segment operations are conducted at 23 manufacturing and warehouse facilities throughout the United States, located in proximity to the cus! tomers they serve. Of these facilities, six also conduct operations in the Company's MH Segment. It markets extruded aluminum parts to manufacturers in other industries. The Company's RV Segment products are sold primarily to manufacturers of RVs such as Thor Industries Forest River (a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, and other original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and to distributors of aftermarket products.
MH Segment
The Company through its wholly owned subsidiaries manufactures and markets a variety of products used in the production of manufactured homes and to modular housing and mobile office units, including vinyl and aluminum windows and screens, steel chassis, steel chassis parts, axles, thermoformed bath and kitchen products, steel and fiberglass entry doors, and aluminum and vinyl patio doors. The Company also supplies windows, doors, and thermoformed bath products as replacement parts to the manufactured housing aftermarket, and to adjacent industries. MH Segment customers manufacture both manufactured homes and modular homes, and certain of the products manufactured by the Company are suitable for both types of homes. Operations of the Company's MH Segment consist primarily of fabricating, welding, thermoforming, painting and assembling components into finished products. The Company's MH Segment operations are conducted at 13 manufacturing and warehouse facilities throughout the United States, located in proximity to the customers they serve. Of these facilities, six also conduct operations in the Company's RV Segment. The Company's manufactured housing products are sold primarily to producers of manufactured homes such as Clayton Homes, Cavco Industries, Inc., Champion Home Builders, Inc., Skyline Corporation, and other OEMs, and to distributors of aftermarket products.
The Company competes with Kober Corporation and Dexter Axle Company.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Grace L. Williams]
Shares of Winnebago have gained 4.4% to $28.47 today at 3pm. Thor Industries (THO), which also makes recreational vehicles, has ticked up 0.1% to $57.56, Drew Industries (DW) has risen 0.3% to $48.74, Arctic Cat (ACAT) has advanced 1% to $59.87 and Polaris Industries (PII) has fallen 0.3% to $132.08.
Top Logistics Companies To Watch For 2014: Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.(REGN)
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes pharmaceutical products for the treatment of serious medical conditions in the United States. The company?s commercial product includes ARCALYST (rilonacept) injection for subcutaneous use for the treatment of cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes, including familial cold auto-inflammatory syndrome and muckle-wells syndrome in adults and children. Its products under Phase III clinical development stage consist of VEGF Trap-Eye, an aflibercept ophthalmic solution developed using intraocular delivery for the treatment of serious eye diseases; ARCALYST for the prevention of gout flares in patients initiating uric acid-lowering treatment; and Aflibercept (VEGF Trap), which is developed in oncology. The company?s earlier stage clinical programs include various human antibodies, such as REGN727 for low-density lipoprotein cholesterol reduction, REGN88 for rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis; REGN668 for atopic dermatitis and asthma; REGN421 and REGN910 for oncology; REGN475 for the treatment of pain; and REGN728 and REGN846. It also conducts preclinical research programs in the areas of oncology and angiogenesis, ophthalmology, metabolic and related diseases, muscle diseases and disorders, inflammation and immune diseases, bone and cartilage, pain, cardiovascular diseases, and infectious diseases. The company distributes its products through third party service providers. It has strategic collaboration with sanofi-aventis Group to discover, develop, and commercialize human monoclonal antibodies; and Bayer HealthCare LLC to develop and commercialize VEGF Trap. Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was founded in 1988 and is based in Tarrytown, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Johanna Bennett]
Schoenebaum also writes that today�� study results bode well for other typed of cholesterol-lowering drugs now in R&D pipelines, namely the PCKSK9 inhibitors being developed by Amgen (AMGN), Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (REGN) and Pfizer (PFE).
Top Logistics Companies To Watch For 2014: Starbucks Corporation(SBUX)
Starbucks Corporation purchases and roasts whole bean coffees. It operates approximately 16,858 stores, including 8,833 company-operated stores and 8,025 licensed stores. The company offers approximately 30 blends and single-origin premium arabica coffees. It also provides handcrafted beverages, such as fresh-brewed coffee, hot and iced espresso beverages, coffee and non-coffee blended beverages, Vivanno smoothies, and Tazo teas; and merchandise products, including home espresso machines, coffee brewers and grinders, coffee mugs and accessories, packaged goods, music, books, and gift items. In addition, it offers fresh food items, which comprise baked pastries, sandwiches, salads, oatmeal, yogurt parfaits, and fruit cups. Further, it also provides VIA ready brew coffee, bottled frappuccino beverages, discoveries chilled cup coffee, doubleshot espresso drinks, iced coffee, whole bean coffee, and ice creams. The company?s brand portfolio includes Tazo tea, Ethos water, Seatt le?s Best Coffee, and Torrefazione Italia Coffee. Starbucks Corporation sells its products in approximately 50 countries worldwide. Starbucks Corporation was founded in 1971 and is based in Seattle, Washington.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Adam Levine-Weinberg]
A little more than a week ago, Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX ) found itself embroiled in a major scandal in China. A Starbucks location in Hong Kong's Bank of China Tower didn't have a water source in the store, so workers were brewing coffee with water taken from a tap in a nearby bathroom. As pictures revealed, this tap was just a few feet away from a urinal. While Starbucks obviously was not using water from a toilet to brew coffee, the story quickly became known worldwide as the "toilet water" scandal.
- [By jaggom]
There�� strong acceptance for SDDC (Software Defined Data Center) of VMware. NSX which is VMware�� network virtualization platform is being adopted by Global brands such as McKesson (MCK), Starbucks (SBUX), Medtronic (MDT), Best Buy (BBY), and China Telecom (CHA) to make their networks more agile and efficient.
- [By Chris Hill]
In 2012, the Germany-based�Benckiser Group�spent $1.3B to buy Peet's Coffee & Tea, as well as Caribou Coffee. On Friday, Benckiser announced that it's buying European coffee maker Master Blenders for�around�$10 billion. In the United States, Benckiser is closing 15% of Caribou locations, and�converting 20% of the stores into Peet's (NASDAQ: PEET ) . In this installment of Motley Fool Money, our analysts discuss whether Benckiser's big bet on coffee poses a threat to Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX ) .
- [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]
SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg/Getty Images Going strictly by its stock chart, PepsiCo (PEP) is on top of the world. The soft drink and salty snacks giant opened at a new high on Thursday after posting better-than-expected quarterly results. Revenue may have climbed just 2 percent to $17.2 billion, but core earnings per share improved 10 percent to $1.36, slightly exceeding analyst expectations. Most of the improvement is clearly taking place way down on the income statement. Triggering a lower effective tax rate and buying back shares are helping prop up bottom-line results, but PepsiCo has also made its own luck through $1 billion in productivity savings this year. However, despite all the cheering on Wall Street about a 3 percent uptick in organic revenue and PepsiCo beating Wall Street profit forecasts once again, things aren't perfect. The beverage giant's flagship soda business is in trouble. Pop Life There are plenty of moving parts at PepsiCo. Beyond soft drinks, this is the company behind Gatorade, Frito-Lay snacks, Tropicana juices and Quaker oatmeal. That diversity is serving PepsiCo well, because its soda business is in a funk. Carbonated soft drink sales volume declined 1.5 percent at PepsiCo in North America in its latest quarter relative to last year's third quarter. That's not a fluke: North American soda sales volume took a 2 percent year-over-year hit during the previous quarter. Folks just aren't chugging sodas the way they used to, and that's resulting in sluggish performance at PepsiCo and its arch-rival Coca-Cola (KO). Beverage Digest reports that overall soda volumes have fallen for nine consecutive years, but the momentum is starting to intensify. After volume slid 1.2 percent in 2012, the pace accelerated for a 3 percent drop in 2013. Diet sodas had been holding up well despite the wider trend, but even that segment has started to crumble as consumers grow wary about the potential health impacts of artificial sweeteners. Diet soft drink
Top Logistics Companies To Watch For 2014: AmerisourceBergen Corp (ABC)
AmerisourceBergen Corporation (AmerisourceBergen), incorporated on March 16, 2001, is a pharmaceutical services companies serving the United States, Canada, and selected global markets. Servicing both healthcare providers and pharmaceutical manufacturers in the pharmaceutical supply channel, the Company provides drug distribution and related services. The Company distributes a range of pharmaceuticals (including specialty pharmaceutical products), generic pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter healthcare products, home healthcare supplies and equipment, and related services to a range of healthcare providers located in the United States, Canada and selected global markets, including acute care hospitals and health systems, independent and chain retail pharmacies, mail order pharmacies, medical and dialysis clinics, physicians and physician group practices, long-term care and other alternate site pharmacies, and other customers. The Company also provides pharmacy services to certain specialty drug patients. In addition, the Company furnishes healthcare providers and pharmaceutical manufacturers with an assortment of related services, including pharmacy automation, inventories management, reimbursement and pharmaceutical consulting services, logistics services, and pharmacy management. The Company serves its customers (healthcare providers, pharmaceutical manufacturers, and specialty drug patients) through a network of distribution service centers and other operations in the United States, Canada, and global markets. In the Company's pharmaceutical distribution business, the Company is a source of supply of pharmaceutical and related products to its healthcare provider customers.
As of September 30, 2012, the Company's operations were comprised of the Pharmaceutical Distribution reportable segment and Other. Other consists of the AmerisourceBergen Consulting Services (ABCS) and World Courier operating segments. In September 2011, the Company acquired IntrinsiQ, LLC (IntrinsiQ) and Premier Source! . IntrinsiQ is a provider of informatics solutions, which help community oncologists make treatment decisions for their patients. Premier Source is a provider of consulting and reimbursement services to medical device, pharmaceutical, molecular diagnostic, and biotechnology manufacturers, as well as other health services companies. On November 1, 2011, the Company acquired TheraCom, LLC (TheraCom). TheraCom is a provider of commercialization support services to the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry, including reimbursement and patient access support services. On April 30, 2012, the Company acquired World Courier Group, Inc. (World Courier), which is a global specialty transportation and logistics provider for the biopharmaceutical industry.
Pharmaceutical Distribution Segment
The Pharmaceutical Distribution reportable segment is consisted of two operating segments, which include the operations of AmerisourceBergen Drug Corporation (ABDC) and AmerisourceBergen Specialty Group (ABSG). Servicing healthcare providers in the pharmaceutical supply channel, the Pharmaceutical Distribution segment's operations provide drug distribution and related services. ABDC distributes a offering of brand-name pharmaceuticals (including specialty pharmaceutical products) and generic pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter healthcare products, home healthcare supplies and equipment, and related services to a range of healthcare providers, including acute care hospitals and health systems, independent and chain retail pharmacies, mail order pharmacies, medical clinics, long-term care and other alternate site pharmacies, and other customers. ABDC also provides pharmacy management, staffing and other consulting services; scalable automated pharmacy dispensing equipment; medication and supply dispensing cabinets, and supply management software to a range of retail and institutional healthcare providers. In addition, ABDC delivers packaging solutions to institutional and retail healthcare providers.!
ABSG, through a range of operating businesses, provides pharmaceutical distribution and other services to physicians who specialize in a range of disease states, especially oncology, and to other healthcare providers, including dialysis clinics. ABSG also distributes plasma and other blood products, injectible pharmaceuticals and vaccines. In addition, ABSG provides third party logistics and other services for biotechnology and other pharmaceutical manufacturers. The Company's use of the term specialty and specialty pharmaceutical products refers to drugs used to treat complex diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, and multiple sclerosis. Specialty pharmaceutical products are part of complex treatment regimens for serious conditions and diseases, which require ongoing clinical monitoring.
Other
ABCS, through a number of operating businesses, provides commercialization support services, including reimbursement support programs, outcomes research, contract field staffing, patient assistance and copay assistance programs, adherence programs, risk mitigation services, and other market access programs to pharmaceutical and biotechnology manufacturers. World Courier, which operates in over 50 countries, is a specialty transportation and logistics provider for the biopharmaceutical industry. As of September 30, 2012, the Company committed to a plan to divest AndersonBrecon.
The Company competes with Cardinal Health, Inc., McKesson Corporation, FFF Enterprises, Henry Schein, Inc. and UPS Logistics.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Marc Bastow]
Pharmaceuticals company AmerisourceBergen (ABC) raised its dividend 12% to 23.5 cents per share, payable on Dec. 2 to shareholders of record as of Nov. 18.
ABC Dividend Yield:
Top Logistics Companies To Watch For 2014: BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Inc.(BCRX)
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biotechnology company, designs, optimizes, and develops small-molecule pharmaceuticals that block key enzymes involved in infectious diseases, cancer, and inflammatory diseases. It uses structure-based drug design, which incorporates multiple scientific disciplines, including biology, crystallography, medicinal chemistry, and computer to develop new therapeutic candidates. The company has three novel late-stage compounds in development, which include Peramivir, a neuraminidase inhibitor for the potential treatment of influenza; BCX4208, a purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) inhibitor for gout; and Forodesine, a PNP inhibitor for cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) and chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Peramivir is being developed under a contract from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority within the United States Department of Health and Human Services. Forodesine has been granted orphan drug status by the FDA for thr ee indications, which include T-cell non-Hodgkin?s lymphoma, including CTCL; CLL and related leukemias, including T-cell prolymphocytic leukemia, adult T-cell leukemia, and hairy cell leukemia; and for treatment of B-ALL. The FDA has also granted fast track status to the development of forodesine for the treatment of relapsed or refractory T-cell leukemia, and special protocol assessment from the FDA for forodesine to conduct a pivotal clinical trial in CTCL with an oral formulation. The company announced the initiation of a Phase 2b study of BCX4208 as add-on therapy in gout patients who have not responded to allopurinol therapy alone. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals utilizes crystallography and structure-based drug design to discover additional compounds and to progress others through pre-clinical and early development to address the unmet medical needs of patients and physicians. The company was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Durham, North Carolina.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Roberto Pedone]
Another under-$10 name in the bio therapeutic space that's starting to move within range of triggering a major breakout trade is BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (BCRX), which designs, optimizes and develops novel drugs that block key enzymes involved in cancer, viral infections and autoimmune diseases. This stock has been on fire so far in 2013, with shares up a whopping 380%.
If you take a look at the chart for BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, you'll notice that this stock recently formed a double bottom chart pattern at $6.07 to $6.24 a share. Following that bottom, shares of BCRX are now starting to spike higher right off its 50-day moving average of $6.50 a share. That spike is quickly pushing shares of BCRX within range of triggering a major breakout trade.
Market players should now look for long-biased trades in BCRX if it manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance levels at $6.88 to $6.89 a share, and then once it takes out more resistance at $7.56 to its 52-week high at $7.80 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above those levels with volume that hits near or above its three-month average action of 2.51 million shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then BCRX will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory above $7.80, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that breakout are $10 to $12 a share.
Traders can look to buy BCRX off weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below those key near-term support levels at $6.24 to $6.07 a share. One can also buy BCRX off strength once it clears those breakout levels with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage from your entry point.
- [By Matt Egan]
Other drug makers rallying on the Ebola headlines include BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (BCRX), Inovio Pharmaceuticals (INO) and Sarepta Therapeutics (SRPT).
- [By Sean Williams]
Perhaps no shareholders jumped for more joy over the past week than those of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: BCRX ) , whose shares shot up 88% this week on word of a positive early-stage clinical trial for BCX4161. In a different context, shares have now jumped 155% in just the past two weeks. The oral experimental drug, BCX4161, which is designed to treat a rare condition known as hereditary angioedema (HAE), was considered safe and well tolerated among patients, and the company anticipates moving on to mid-stage testing soon. However, as the Fools Brian Orelli was quick to point out, this data came from a subset of healthy volunteers, and there's little guarantee it will translate into success in future trials on patients that do suffer from HAE.
- [By Jon C. Ogg]
BioCryst�Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: BCRX) was started as Outperform with a $7 to $9 price target range at Wells Fargo.
Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. (NYSE: CP) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral and the price target was raised to $144 from $139 at Credit Suisse.
Top Logistics Companies To Watch For 2014: Southern Pacific Resource Corp (STPJF.PK)
Southern Pacific Resource Corp. (Southern Pacific) is engaged in the acquisition and development of heavy oil and bitumen producing properties, with a focus on thermal extraction in-situ oil sands projects in the Western Canadian sedimentary basin. Southern Pacific has two principal assets STP-McKay and STP-Senlac. The Company also holds additional oil sands leases in the McMurray and Peace River sub-basins in northeastern Alberta. The Company has 100% working interest in approximately 37,760 acres, of oil sands leases in McKay Block. Southern Pacific has its 100% working interest SAGD thermal heavy oil asset near Unity, Saskatchewan, STP-Senlac. In September 2013, the Company announced the closing of a disposition of non-core assets related to its Leismer property. Advisors' Opinion:- [By Stephan Dube]
Cold Lake's most notable producers:
Husky Energy (HUSK.PK), see article here.Pengrowth Energy Corporation (PGH), see article here.Southern Pacific Resource (STPJF.PK), see article here.Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ), see article here.Devon Energy (DVN), see article here.Imperial Oil (IMO), see article here.Baytex, see article here.Bonavista Energy (BNPUF.PK), see article here.Athabasca's most notable producers:
Top Logistics Companies To Watch For 2014: Darden Restaurants Inc (DRI)
Darden Restaurants, Inc. (Darden), incorporated in March 1995, is a company owned and full-service restaurant company. As of May 27, 2012, the Company operated through subsidiaries 1,994 restaurants in the United States and Canada. In the United States, it operated 1,961 restaurants in all 50 states, including 677 Red Lobster, 786 Olive Garden, 386 LongHorn Steakhouse, 46 The Capital Grille, 30 Bahama Breeze, 23 Seasons 52, eight Eddie V's Prime Seafood and three Wildfish Seafood Grille restaurants, and two test synergy restaurants, which house both a Red Lobster and Olive Garden restaurant in the same building. In Canada, the Company operated 33 restaurants, including 27 Red Lobster and six Olive Garden restaurants. Through subsidiaries, it owns and operates all of its restaurants in the United States and Canada, except for three restaurants located in Central Florida that is owned by joint ventures it manages. On November 14, 2011, it acquired eight Eddie V's Prime Seafood restaurants and three Wildfish Seafood Grille restaurants.
As of May 27, 2012, the Company had 28 restaurants outside the United States and Canada operated by independent third parties pursuant to area development and franchise agreements, including five LongHorn Steakhouse restaurants in Puerto Rico, 22 Red Lobster restaurants in Japan, and one Red Lobster restaurant in Dubai. During fiscal year ended May 27, 2012, it opened 89 net new restaurants in the United States and Canada.
Red Lobster
Red Lobster is a full-service dining seafood specialty restaurant operator in the United States. It offers a menu featuring fresh fish, shrimp, crab, lobster, scallops and other seafood. The menu includes a variety of specialty seafood and non-seafood entrees, appetizers and desserts. Red Lobster maintains different lunch and dinner menus and different menus across its trade areas.
Olive Garden
Olive Garden is a full service dining Italian restaurant operator in the United Stat! es. Olive Garden�� menu includes a range of authentic Italian foods featuring fresh ingredients and a wine list that includes a selection of wines imported from Italy. The menu includes flatbreads and other appetizers, soups, salad and garlic bread sticks, baked pastas, sauted specialties with chicken, seafood and fresh vegetables, grilled meats, and a variety of desserts. Olive Garden also uses coffee imported from Italy for its espresso and cappuccino.
LongHorn Steakhouse
LongHorn Steakhouse restaurants are full-service establishments serving both lunch and dinner. With locations in 35 states, primarily in the Eastern half of the United States, LongHorn Steakhouse restaurants feature a range of menu items, including signature fresh steaks, as well as salmon, shrimp, chicken, ribs, pork chops, burgers and prime rib.
The Capital Grille
The Capital Grille has locations in metropolitan cities in the United States. The Capital Grille offers seafood flown in daily and culinary specials created by its chefs. The restaurants feature a wine list offering over 350 selections, personalized service, and private dining rooms.
Bahama Breeze
Bahama Breeze restaurants bring guests the feeling of a Caribbean escape, offering the food, drinks and atmosphere found in the islands. The menu features Caribbean-inspired seafood, chicken and steaks, as well as signature specialty drinks. During fiscal 2012, it opened four Bahama Breeze restaurant.
Seasons 52
Seasons 52 is a grill and wine bar with seasonally inspired menus offering ingredients to meals that are lower in calories than comparable restaurant meals. It offers a wine list of more than 90 wines with approximately 60 available by the glass. As of May 27, 2012, there were 23 Seasons 52 restaurants in the United States.
Synergy restaurant
Synergy restaurant houses both a Red Lobster and Olive Garden restaurant in the same building, but ! with sepa! rate front doors, dining rooms and brand-specific menus. It opened a second synergy test location during fiscal 2012.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Mike Deane]
Before the opening bell on Friday morning, Darden Restaurants (DRI) reported its fourth�quarter results, posting higher revenues and lower earnings than last year’s fourth quarter.
DRI’s Earnings in Brief
Darden Restaurants�reported fourth�quarter revenues, including discontinued operations, of $2.32 billion, just above last year’s Q4 revenues of $2.3 billion. Net earnings for the quarter came in at $86.5 million, or 65 cents per share, which is down substantially from last year’s Q4 figure of $133.2 million, or $1.03 per share. DRI missed analysts’ estimates of 94 cents EPS on revenues of $2.33 billion.DRI Declares Dividend
Darden Restaurants did not announce a raise to its dividend, as was expected, and instead declared a dividend of 55 cents. The dividend is payable on August 1 to all shareholders of record as of�July 10.
Stock Performance
Darden stock was down $1.91, or 3.86%, in pre-market trading. YTD, the stock is down 7.13%.
DRI Dividend SnapshotAs of Market Close on June 19, 2014
Click here to see the complete history of DRI dividends.
- [By Demitrios Kalogeropoulos]
Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI ) just closed out a tough year. Sales at the company's flagship Red Lobster, Olive Garden, and LongHorn Steakhouse locations fell hard this past winter as value-minded customers flocked to cheaper alternatives.
- [By Jack Kramer and Nick Martell]
If you're like most of Wall Street, you're off crushing last-minute gift shopping (just get us some design-your-own custom whiskey). Because just after the market's biggest performance in months, the Dow� (DJINDICES: ^DJI ) eked out only a small 11-point gain Thursday as weekly jobless claims ticked up again.
1. Facebook shares slide after Zuckerberg stock dump
Cha-ching! Mark Zuckerberg took home $2.3 billion in cash Thursday after selling a small percentage of his stock in his blue online baby, Facebook (NASDAQ: FB ) . The company announced that $4 billion of shares would be sold in the public market, with the majority coming from the CEO himself. The stock slipped 1% because to investors, if Zuck thinks it's a good time to sell, why shouldn't they? #WhatWouldZuckDo� � $55/share is a good price to sell at and it's way better than $30 (fo' sho'). The company had earlier announced the stock sale in 2012, but postponed the plans due to the poor-performing stock. Remember back when FB was embarrassingly far below its $38 IPO price for months? A stock sale of this size would have been worse than mom catching glimpses of your buried "Sloppy Sophomores" photo album. � After a resurgence in online ad sales (particularly on mobile), investors trust FB again, boosting the stock up 105% in the past year. Zuckerberg will gain cash in exchange for losing some control of the voting shares of the company. But whether or not your sick of his hoodie, know that the future of the 'Book is firmly in his control since he will retain 62.8% of the voting power.
2. Red Lobster might get sold as sales plummet
Didn't order the bottomless uber-fried shrimp last night? Neither did most Americans. That's the problem for the owner of Red Lobster, Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI ) , which dropped 3.6% Thursday after a brutal tasting earnings report. Consumer traffic at Red Lobster was down 7.7% last quarter and sales have fallen - [By Dividends4Life]
Fair Value: In calculating fair value, I consider the NPV MMA Differential Fair Value along with these four calculations of fair value, see page 2 of the linked PDF for a detailed description:
1. Avg. High Yield Price
2. 20-Year DCF Price
3. Avg. P/E Price
4. Graham Number
CTBI is trading at a premium to all four valuations above. The stock is trading at a 53.5% premium to its calculated fair value of $29.43. CTBI did not earn any Stars in this section.
Dividend Analytical Data: In this section there are three possible Stars and three key metrics, see page 2 of the linked PDF for a detailed description:
1. Free Cash Flow Payout
2. Debt To Total Capital
3. Key Metrics
4. Dividend Growth Rate
5. Years of Div. Growth
6. Rolling 4-yr Div. > 15%
CTBI earned one Star in this section for 1.) above. A Star was earned since the Free Cash Flow payout ratio was less than 60% and there were no negative Free Cash Flows over the last 10 years. The company has paid a cash dividend to shareholders every year since 1988 and has increased its dividend payments for 33 consecutive years.
Dividend Income vs. MMA: Why would you assume the equity risk and invest in a dividend stock if you could earn a better return in a much less risky money market account (MMA) or Treasury bond? This section compares the earning ability of this stock with a high yield MMA. Two items are considered in this section, see page 2 of the linked PDF for a detailed description:
1. NPV MMA Diff.
2. Years to > MMA
The negative NPV MMA Diff. means that on a NPV basis the dividend earnings from an investment in CTBI would be less than a similar amount invested in MMA earning a 20-year average rate of 3.41%. If CTBI grows its dividend at 1.5% per year, it will never equal a MMA yielding an estimated 20-year average rate of 3.41%.
Memberships and Peers: CTBI is, a member of the Broad Dividend Achieve
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