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December 6, 2022

Vivint Smart Home sold for $2.8B

NRG Energy to acquire Vivint Smart Home for $12 per share, or $2.8B cash

NRG Energy (NRG) and Vivint Smart Home (VVNT) announced they have entered into a definitive agreement under which NRG will acquire Vivint for $12 per share or $2.8B in an all-cash transaction with an implied multiple of 6.3x run-rate Enterprise Value to Adjusted EBITDA. The agreement has been unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies.

Vivint Smart Home engages in the sale, installation, servicing, and monitoring of smart home and security systems primarily in the United States and Canada. The company’s smart home platform includes cloud-enabled smart home operating systems; AI-driven smart home automation and assistance software; software-enabled smart home devices; and tech-enabled services to educate, manage, and support the smart home.

NRG Energy operates as an integrated power company in the United States.

NRG will acquire 100% of the outstanding equity of Vivint for a total transaction value of $5.2B, which consists of approximately $2.8B in cash and the assumption of $2.4B of debt (net of cash), which benefits from attractive terms and pricing.

This consideration represents a premium of approximately 33% to Vivint’s closing share price on December 5, 2022.

NRG’s capital allocation strategy will continue to opportunistically balance its growth, return of capital, and balance sheet objectives.

NRG intends to complete its existing $1 billion share repurchase program over the near term, of which $360 million was remaining as of November 30, 2022.

In 2023, NRG expects to use its excess free cash flow to fund the Vivint acquisition, reduce acquisition-related debt, and maintain its common stock dividend growth policy.

In 2024, the Company intends to return to its 50% return of capital / 50% growth capital allocation policy.

NRG remains highly committed to its dividend growth policy, which remains unchanged from previous guidance.

Management remains committed to maintaining its strong balance sheet and credit ratings.

The Company expects to achieve its investment grade credit metrics target of 2.50-2.75x Net Debt / Adjusted EBITDA by late 2025 to 2026 through the combination of debt reduction and growth.

The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2023 and is subject to customary closing conditions, including the expiration of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976. Upon completion of the transaction, NRG intends to maintain a significant presence in Utah.

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This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility.

March 8, 2022

Google buys Mandiant for $5.4B

Google to acquire Mandiant for $23.00 per share in cash

Alphabet’s Google (GOOGL) announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Mandiant (MNDT) for $23.00 per share, in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $5.4B, inclusive of Mandiant’s net cash.

Upon the close of the acquisition, Mandiant will join Google Cloud.

With the addition of Mandiant, Google Cloud will enhance offerings to deliver an end-to-end security operations suite with even greater capabilities to support customers across their cloud and on-premise environments.

The acquisition of Mandiant is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of Mandiant stockholder and regulatory approvals, and is expected to close later this year.

Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler analyst Thomas Champion said he thinks the deal makes strategic sense given Google’s move further into the Enterprise. The Mandiant acquisition should complement Google Cloud Platform’s current security offerings, which include BeyondCorp Enterprise and VirusTotal, said Champion, who reiterates his Overweight rating and $3,475 price target on Alphabet shares.

Wedbush

Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives notes that this deal is all about Mandiant being further integrated into Google Cloud with more cyber threats facing enterprises/governments on the transformational shift to cloud and Mandiant establishing itself as “the Navy Seals of cyber security” over the last decade, the analyst contends.

#Ives believes this deal will have a major ripple impact across the cyber security space as cloud stalwarts Amazon (AMZN) and Microsoft (MSFT) will now be pressured into M&A and further bulk up its cloud platforms.

The analyst thinks cyber names such as Varonis (VRNS), Tenable (TENB), CyberArk (CYBR), Qualys (QLYS), Rapid7 (RPD), SailPoint (SAIL), and Ping (PING) standout as potential M&A candidates in cyber security given these vendors laser focus on protecting next generation cloud workloads from cyberattacks.

MNDT is down 50 cents to $21.99.

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October 20, 2021

Flying Prescriptions Are Coming!

Walgreens to deploy Wing drone deliveries in Dallas-Fort Worth area

In a blog post by Alphabet’s (GOOG, GOOGL) Wing, the company said, ” Today we’re unveiling a new model for drone delivery that will allow us to expand into densely-populated metropolitan areas in the United States.

Wing will stage delivery drones at retail locations; ready to fly directly to customers.

The aircraft will arrive in small containers that serve as tiny hangars, allowing each store to quickly and easily deploy a small, dedicated fleet from its parking lot, on its roof, or in small spaces adjacent to the building.

When this model launches, Walgreens (WBA) will be the first U.S. retailer to use this new approach.

Walgreens team members will process orders and load packages onto the delivery drones, and Wing will oversee operation of the delivery service.

Our first lightweight, co-located operation will be set up at a Dallas-Fort Worth area Walgreens store in its parking lot, serving parts of the city of Frisco and town of Little Elm.

In addition to the Walgreens store, Wing has teamed up with Hillwood to prepare a separate drone delivery facility within Frisco Station, an urban, mixed-used development located in Frisco.

Hillwood has a long track record supporting forward-thinking, innovative transportation initiatives across the region, most notably at its Alliance Texas development and its designated Mobility Innovation Zone.

We look forward to working with Hillwood as we deploy a facility at Frisco Station that has all the usual delivery capabilities, but will be dedicated to exploring new use cases, community demonstrations, school field trips and public tours…

In preparation for this launch, we’ve been conducting test flights since June at Hillwood’s AllianceTexas Flight Test Center, a drone testing facility in Fort Worth.

We’ll begin a small number of practice flights next week in Frisco and Little Elm, and hope to set up delivery demonstrations to get feedback from the community in the coming weeks.

In the coming months, we expect to launch a commercial service there that would be the first of its kind in a major U.S. metro.”

Wing is a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc. that develops technology of drone-based delivery of freight. The company completed their first real-world deliveries in 2014. The company has operations in Australia, the United States, and Finland.

In July 2018, Project Wing graduated from Google X to become an independent Alphabet company. As of January 2019, Wing began delivering take-out food and beverages out of its test facility in Bonython, Australia as part of a pilot program. In April 2019 Wing became the first drone delivery company to receive an Air operator’s certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration to allow it to operate as an airline in the USA.

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October 28, 2020

Spotify reports tomorrow

What to watch in Spotify earnings report

Spotify (SPOT) is scheduled to report third quarter results before market open on Thursday, October 29, with a conference call scheduled for 8:00 am ET. What to watch:

1. USER METRICS: Spotify’s monthly active users, or MAUs, are a measure of its popularity and growth potential. In the second quarter, Spotify reported 299M MAUs, up 29% year-over-year and 5% quarter-over-quarter.

The company also reported 170M ad-supported MAUs, up 31% year-over-year and 4% quarter-over-quarter. In addition, the company reported that Premium Subscribers grew to 138M, up 27% year-over-year and 6% quarter-over-quarter.

Along with the report, the company said, “Early in the quarter, we observed some COVID related softness in several countries across our emerging regions. Parts of Latin America and Rest of World saw slower than expected growth in April and May as we saw lower intake, an increase in churn, and increases in payment failures from our Premium users.

Spotify is now available in Russia and most of Eastern Europe

Encouragingly, things rebounded significantly in June as we saw increased reactivations and a step down in churn. While we finished below forecast in aggregate across these regions, our strength in North America and other areas more than offset the slow start to the quarter.”

2. GUIDANCE: With its last report, Spotify guided to Q3 revenue of EUR1.85B-EUR2.05B. The company also forecast Q3 total MAUs of 312M-317M and total Premium Subscribers of 140M-144M.

3. INITIATIVES, PARTNERSHIPS: In July, Spotify launched in 13 new markets across Europe, including Russia and the Ukraine. The company also announced in July a podcast with former first lady Michelle Obama and the launch of video podcasts with select creators.

Additionally in July, Spotify signed a multi-year global license agreement with Universal Music Group, a Vivendi (VIVHY) company. In August, the company announced a multi-year deal with Riot Games, a subsidiary of Tencent (TCEHY), as its exclusive audio streaming partner for League of Legends events.

Spotify uses partnerships to expand its footprint

In September, the company launched virtual event listings on artist profiles and in the Concerts hub and also announced it was testing a new Polls feature for podcasts. Additionally in September, Spotify announced a multi-year first look partnership with Chernin Entertainment.

4. ANALYST VIEW: On Tuesday, Deutsche Bank analyst Lloyd Walmsley raised the firm’s price target on Spotify to $250 from $240 and kept a Hold rating on the shares. The analyst said he expects “solid” Q3 results for Spotify with strong monthly active user growth driven by new markets and podcast launches as well as improving churn.

Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley analyst Benjamin Swinburne raised the firm’s price target on Spotify to $300 from $275 and kept an Overweight rating on the shares.

Results from U.S. digital audio competitor Pandora last week were “encouraging” and suggest his current 5%-6% growth estimate for Spotify’s ad revenue could be conservative, Swinburne said. He also pointed to recent data that suggest Spotify is taking market share and evaluating price increases.

SPOT last traded at $276.70

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June 17, 2020

DOJ issues guideline for online content

DOJ issues recommendations for Section 230 reform

The Department of Justice has released a set of reform proposals to update the outdated immunity for online platforms under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996.

Responding to bipartisan concerns about the scope of 230 immunity, the department identified a set of concrete reform proposals to provide stronger incentives for online platforms to address illicit material on their services while continuing to foster innovation and free speech.

The department’s review of Section 230 over the last ten months arose in the context of its broader review of market-leading online platforms and their practices, which were announced in July 2019.

The department held a large public workshop and expert roundtable in February 2020, as well as dozens of listening sessions with industry, thought leaders, and policy makers, to gain a better understanding of the uses and problems surrounding Section 230.

The first category of recommendations is aimed at incentivizing platforms to address the growing amount of illicit content online, while preserving the core of Section 230’s immunity for defamation claims.

These reforms include a carve-out for bad actors who purposefully facilitate or solicit content that violates federal criminal law or are willfully blind to criminal content on their own services.

Additionally, the department recommends a case-specific carve out where a platform has actual knowledge that content violated federal criminal law and does not act on it within a reasonable time, or where a platform was provided with a court judgment that the content is unlawful, and does not take appropriate action.

A second category of proposed reforms is intended to clarify the text and revive the original purpose of the statute in order to promote free and open discourse online and encourage greater transparency between platforms and users.

One of these recommended reforms is to provide a statutory definition of “good faith” to clarify its original purpose.

The new statutory definition would limit immunity for content moderation decisions to those done in accordance with plain and particular terms of service and consistent with public representations. These measures would encourage platforms to be more transparent and accountable to their users.

The third category of recommendations would increase the ability of the government to protect citizens from unlawful conduct, by making it clear that Section 230 does not apply to civil enforcement actions brought by the federal government.

A fourth category of reform is to make clear that federal antitrust claims are not, and were never intended to be, covered by Section 230 immunity.

Over time, the avenues for engaging in both online commerce and speech have concentrated in the hands of a few key players.

It makes little sense to enable large online platforms (particularly dominant ones) to invoke Section 230 immunity in antitrust cases, where liability is based on harm to competition, not on third-party speech.

The action follows President Trump’s executive order seeking to weaken broad immunity enjoyed by Facebook (FB), Twitter (TWTR) and Google (GOOGL).

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January 2, 2020

RBC Capital’s predictions for 2020

Accelerating Netflix subs, Uber profitability among RBC’s top 10 surprise list

RBC Capital analyst Mark Mahaney compiled a broader research note titled “Top Ten Internet Surprises for 2020” list, in which he assigns a “reasonable chance” of 30% or more for the following to occur against the “average internet investor” expectations of the event being improbable.

Disney loss having minimal impact on Netflix subscribers. See Stockwinners.com Market Radar to read more — RBC expects subs accelerating in 2020, Stockwinners

1) Netflix (NFLX) subscriber additions may accelerate because the company will be comping 2019’s “material price increase and a dramatic slowdown in marketing spending.
2) Google’s (GOOGL) operating margins may be flat to up as its Google Cloud becomes a smaller margin drag and the company’s Other Bets division gets greater investment after the resignation of its founders.
3) Uber (UBER) and Lyft (LYFT) achieve EBITDA profitability thanks “insurance expense leverage, driver and rider subsidies rationalization, pricing actions, and growth leverage”.
4) Amazon’s (AMZN) profitability plummets as the company continues its “aggressive investment” in shipping and fulfillment, particularly internationally, while continuing the build-out of AWS salesforce.
5) Maturing growth rates and large cash piles may see Google, Facebook (FB), and Booking.com (BKNG) become dividend payers in the internet sector.
6) Spotify (SPOT) gross margins may expand as the company concludes its music label negotiations.

RBC Capital Markets is a global investment bank providing services in banking, finance and capital markets to corporations, institutional investors, asset managers and governments globally. Locations span 70 offices in 15 countries across North America, the UK, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.

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May 8, 2019

Zayo Group sold for $35 per share

Zayo Group to be acquired by Digital Colony, EQT in deal valued at $14.3B

Zayo Group Holdings (ZAYO) announced that it has signed a definitive merger agreement to be acquired by affiliates of Digital Colony Partners and the EQT Infrastructure IV fund.

Zayo sold for $14.3 billion, Stockwinners

The transaction would result in Zayo transitioning from a public company to a private company.

Zayo Group Holdings, Inc. provides bandwidth infrastructure solutions for the communications industry in the United States, Canada, and Europe.

Under the new ownership, the Zayo team would continue to execute the Company’s strategy and remain headquartered in Boulder, Colorado.

Under the terms of the agreement, which was unanimously approved by Zayo’s Board of Directors, shareholders will receive $35.00 in cash per share of Zayo’s common stock in a transaction valued at $14.3 billion, including the assumption of $5.9 billion of Zayo’s net debt obligations.

The offer price represents a 32% premium to the volume-weighted price average of the last six months of $26.44. Dan Caruso, Zayo’s Chairman and CEO, said, “Digital Colony and EQT share our vision that Zayo’s Fiber Fuels Global Innovation.

Both are experienced global investors in the communications infrastructure space, and they appreciate our extraordinary fiber infrastructure assets, our highly talented team and our strong customer base. I am confident this partnership with EQT and Digital Colony will empower Zayo to accelerate its growth and strengthen its industry leadership.”

“Following a comprehensive review of strategic alternatives, the Zayo Board of Directors concluded that the sale of Zayo to Digital Colony and EQT Infrastructure is in the best interest of Zayo and all its stakeholders,” said Yancey Spruill, Zayo’s Lead Independent Director. “

The transaction delivers immediate and substantial value to shareholders and will strengthen Zayo’s financial flexibility, enabling the company to increase investments and better position itself for long-term growth and profitability.”

The closing of the deal is subject to customary conditions, including regulatory clearance and Zayo shareholder approvals.

The transaction is expected to close in the first half of calendar 2020.

Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan are serving as financial advisors to Zayo Group in connection with the transaction and Skadden Arps is serving as legal counsel.

Morgan Stanley and Deutsche Bank are acting as financial advisors to Digital Colony and EQT Infrastructure, and Simpson Thacher is serving as legal advisor.

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April 14, 2019April 14, 2019

Alliance Data sells Epsilon for $4.4 billion

Publicis to acquire Epsilon for $4.40B in cash

Publicis (PUBGY) announced it has entered into an agreement with Alliance Data Systems (ADS) under which Publicis will acquire Alliance Data’s Epsilon business for a net purchase price of $3.95B after tax step-up – total cash consideration of $4.40B – and build a strategic partnership with Alliance Data remaining business.

The acquisition gives Publicis access to Epsilon’s data capabilities. The company says, for example, it has more than 250 million unique consumers identified in the U.S. The company says it can build on top of a client’s first-party data with its own assets, like behavioral and transactional data.

The Directoire, or Management Board, and the Conseil de Surveillance, or Supervisory Board, of Publicis have unanimously approved this transaction.

Alliance Data sells Epsilon for $4.4 billion, Stockwinners

Arthur Sadoun, Chairman and CEO of Publicis, said that, “Our clients are facing increasing pressure from the rise in consumer expectations, the mainstreaming of direct-to-consumer brands and new data regulations. The only response is to deliver personalized experiences at scale. They have to transform to meet this new market imperative.”

Edward Heffernan, Alliance Data Systems’ President and CEO, added that, “I’m pleased to say today’s announcement represents a trifecta win for Alliance Data, Epsilon and Publicis Groupe.

The announcement of this transaction represents the culmination of an extensive assessment of strategic options for our Epsilon business.

With this transaction, we have found what we believe to be the right home for Epsilon’s technology, data assets and associates.

Publicis Groupe will be the ideal cultural and strategic fit for Epsilon and its Conversant business, and will help drive Publicis Groupe’s own transformation in today’s data-driven digital world.

Furthermore, the unique relationships that have been cultivated between Epsilon and our other Alliance Data businesses will remain intact, and we look forward to working with Publicis Groupe to develop an even broader relationship promoting mutual and sustainable growth going forward.”

Under the terms of the agreed transaction, Publicis will acquire Epsilon for a cash consideration of $4.40B, representing a net purchase price of $3.95B after deducting the benefit of acquisition-related tax step-up.

This implies an 8.2-times multiple, based on a 2018 Adjusted EBITDA of $485M.

According to Publicis, the transaction will be double digit accretive to its headline EPS and free Cash Flow per share from year one.

Publicis also said that it “remains committed” to its 45% dividend payout ratio and will put on hold its share repurchase program in the context of this acquisition.

The transaction remains subject to customary approvals and is expected to close in Q3 2019.

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September 19, 2018

Online retailers fall on Amazon concerns

Online retailers slide as Amazon reportedly testing recommendation service

Online retailers fall on Amazon concerns

Shares of several retailers and online personal shopping services are slipping in afternoon trading after CNBC reported that Amazon (AMZN) is testing a new on-site recommendation service known as Scout.

WHAT’S NEW:

CNBC reported that Amazon is testing a new service called Scout, a shopping site for consumers who don’t know specifically what they want to buy but are willing to take some automated recommendations.

Scout asks shoppers to like or dislike a product and responds by showing other products based on user responses, according to CNBC.

Scout is currently available for home furniture, kitchen and dining products, women’s shoes, home decor, patio furniture, lighting and bedding, with more categories coming soon.

“This is a new way to shop, allowing customers to browse millions of items and quickly refine the selection based solely on visual attributes,” an Amazon spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “

Amazon uses imagery from across its robust selection to extract thousands of visual attributes for showing customers a variety of items so they can select their preferences as they go.”

WHAT’S NOTABLE

The CNBC report noted that Amazon is utilizing machine learning technology to address one of the major criticisms of its service, namely that it’s a great place to buy things but not a great place to browse.

While Amazon is easily the biggest U.S. e-commerce company, e-retailers such as Stitch Fix (SFIX) and Walmart’s (WMT) Bonobos provide a more personalized experience and have given social media services such as Instagram (FB) and Pinterest more room to use their large collections of data in turning their networks into fledgling commerce sites, CNBC said.

PRICE ACTION

Following the news, Wayfair (W) slipped 4.3%, Williams-Sonoma (WSM) fell 1.9%, Stitch Fix dropped nearly 9%, and Steven Madden (SHOO) slid 1.3%. Meanwhile, Amazon (AMZN) shares are 1.5% lower in Wednesday afternoon trading.

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July 17, 2018

Dropbox drops as Facebook mulls switch to Google

Dropbox drops as Facebook mulls switch to Google for cloud storage

Shares of Dropbox (DBX) fell in morning trading following a report that said Facebook (FB) is considering moving its cloud storage away from the file hosting service.

FACEBOOK CONSIDERING SWITCH

Facebook is considering switching to Google (GOOG, GOOGL) for email and productivity applications, The Information reported earlier, citing two people with knowledge of the discussions.

The move would be a setback for Microsoft (MSFT), whose applications Facebook currently uses. Facebook, which has about 27,000 employees, stopped using Google apps inside the company several years ago. Additionally, Facebook is also considering moving its cloud storage to Google from Dropbox, according to The Information.

WHAT’S NOTABLE

Last month, Dropbox announced a new chapter in the evolution of Magic Pocket, its custom-built storage infrastructure, saying it is deploying Shingled Magnetic Recording, or SMR, drive technology to increase overall storage density, reduce the company’s physical data center footprint and provide significant cost savings without sacrificing performance or reliability.

Dropbox said at the time that it expects to have a quarter of its Magic Pocket infrastructure on SMR drive capacity by 2019. In its debut earnings report, Dropbox reported revenue of $316.3M, up 28% from the year-ago period.

PRICE ACTION

Shares of Dropbox are down about 4% to $31.03 in morning trading following the report.

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June 14, 2018

Oracle lower after losing business to Amazon, Microsoft

Oracle slides as JPMorgan cuts rating on business lost to Amazon, Microsoft

Shares of Oracle (ORCL) are sliding after JPMorgan analyst Mark Murphy downgraded the stock to Neutral, citing negative results from a survey of Chief Information Officers about their spending.

The analyst noted that the survey showed spending contraction ahead as Oracle’s databases are being unplugged in favor of Microsoft (MSFT) and Amazon (AMZN) databases.

SURVEY SAYS

In a research note this morning, JPMorgan’s Murphy downgraded Oracle to Neutral from Overweight as specific metrics in the firm’s large-scale CIO survey have arced over into negative territory.

The analyst told investors that while Oracle’s shares have risen from the $30s into the high $40s in the last 2 years, the company’s fundamental performance has remained inconsistent. Citing his survey of 154 CIOs, Murphy noted that Oracle received the largest number of indications for planned spending contraction this year, materially more than the second-worst company, which was IBM (IBM) with 25 indications of spending contraction.

Further, while ranking the top 8 or 9 mega-vendors in terms of who will be most critical and indispensable to CIOs’ IT environment in the future, Oracle only received 6.5% of votes, down from 11% in previous surveys, the analyst highlighted.

At the same time, Murphy pointed out that Amazon AWS improved from 9.5% of votes last year to 14.9% of votes this year, creating the appearance of a “sucking sound” out of Oracle and into AWS.

The company also ranked number 8 in terms of association with Digital Transformation projects, disappointing relative to its scale and lagging behind the likes of SAP (SAP), IBM, and Cisco (CSCO), he added, noting that despite Oracle’s efforts to build a Cloud presence, it rated no better than SAP in terms of association with Cloud Computing plans, and is nowhere close to the leaders Microsoft, Amazon, and Google (GOOGL; GOOG) in this respect. Oracle was mentioned by only 2% of the CIOs as the platform that will be “most integral” to their cloud computing plans, Murphy said.

Overall, the analyst questions where Oracle’s business and stock are heading in the next couple of years if the largest-scale CIO survey shows Oracle now has negative spending intentions, is lagging in Digital Transformation projects, is trailing in Cloud Computing plans, its databases are being unplugged in favor of Microsoft and Amazon databases, its applications are being unplugged in favor of Salesforce (CRM) and Workday (WDAY) applications, and customers are weary of its unpopular commercial tactics.

Murphy also lowered his price target on Oracle’s shares to $53 from $55.

WHAT’S NOTABLE

In a research note of his own, Nomura Instinet analyst Christopher Eberle lowered his price target for Oracle to $60 from $64 ahead of the company’s fourth quarter results on June 19.

The analyst trimmed his estimates to account for currency and expectations for more modest revenue acceleration in fiscal 2019. He remains optimistic, however, on Oracle’s transition and model growth reacceleration as the year progresses. Eberle reiterated a Buy rating on the shares.

PRICE ACTION

In Wednesday’s trading, shares of Oracle dropped almost 5% to $46.14.

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April 21, 2018

Barron’s is bullish on GM and Delta

Barron’s, the weekly publication owned by the Wall Street Journal, in its latest issue mentions several names:

Stockwinners offers Barron’s review of stocks to buy

BULLISH MENTIONS:

Delta, GM look cheap, with growth potential – While a solid start to earnings season helped push share prices higher earlier this week, some remain deeply discounted, Jack Hough writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s. Despite Delta Air Lines’ (DAL) pessimistic valuation, consolidation has left only a handful of key players and the company faces less competition in key markets than some of its peers, the report adds. Additionally, Goodyear Tire (GT), General Motors (GM) and Lincoln National (LNC) also made the valuation cutoff, Hough says.

General Mills shares fall to ‘bargain territory.’ – General Mills (GIS) has fallen 27% so far this year and while the drop seems deserved because earnings growth has stalled, a closer look suggests sales trends are improving, thanks in part to new-product launches, Jack Hough writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s.

Cruise operators can offer ‘nice’ yields, solid dividend growth – Cruise operators, like Carnival (CCL), Royal Caribbean (RCL) and Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH), can offer nice yields and solid dividend growth, but economic downturns can pressure payouts, Lawrence Strauss writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s. Another option for investors looking for yield among cruise operators is Walt Disney (DIS), the report added. The entertainment company has a wide variety of holdings, and while its cruise business did not account for a large portion of its $55B of sales last year, it is not insignificant either.

Tech giants may make own custom chips to get edge on one another. – There has been a tension between the world’s largest tech companies- Alphabet (GOOG; GOOGL), Amazon (AMZN), Facebook (FB), Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), Baidu (BIDU), and Alibaba (BABA)-and the chip companies they rely on, especially Intel (INTC) and Nvidia (NVDA), Tiernan Ray writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s. While the giants buy massive quantities of Intel’s microprocessors, and Nvidia’s graphics chips, or GPUs, to power their data centers, they are also in an arms race to have the best artificial-intelligence-based machine-learning functions, the report noted, adding that there was always the possibility they may decide to buy fewer off-the-shelf parts and make their own custom chips to get an edge on one another.

MPL valuations look cheap – Master limited partnerships’ valuations appear cheap, and U.S. energy production is thriving, lifting cash flows for pipeline firms, Darren Fonda writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s. MLP, such as Enterprise Products Partners (EPD), Magellan Midstream Partners (MMP), MPLX (MPLX), Plains All American Pipeline (PAA), could reward investors with higher yields as cash flows rise, Fonda adds.

OTHER MENTIONS

Trump’s tweets politicize U.S. markets, Barron’s says – With President Donald Trump, both politics and business appear personal as he continues his tweets aimed at individual companies, Vito Racanelli writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s. Before and after the election, he consistently aimed arrows at Amazon.com (AMZN) and at the proposed acquisition of Time Warner (TWX) by AT&T (T), the report noted. The President is not alone in singling out companies, Racanelli points out, adding that Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton also took issue with Mylan’s (MYL) price increases for its EpiPen. Maybe it is a sign of the times, but the rise of powerful social-media platforms is the key enabling factor, the report said.

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April 8, 2018

Barron’s is bullish on Google

Barron’s, the weekly publication owned by the Wall Street Journal, in its latest issue mentions several names:

Stockwinners offers Barron’s review of stocks to buy, stocks to watch,

BULLISH MENTIONS:

Alphabet a ‘bargain’ in big tech – Alphabet (GOOG; GOOGL) has the world’s dominant search engine in Google, as well as valuable businesses like YouTube, the Android cellphone operating system, and Waymo autonomous vehicles, but investor are not giving the company enough credit partly because of worries that it, like Facebook (FB), will soon face greater government regulation, Andrew Bary writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s. Alphabet trades for almost 25 times projected 2018 earnings, but its effective P/E is lower because of nearly $100B in net cash and losses in its “other bets” businesses, he adds.

AI done right may give managers ‘an edge.’ – BlackRock (BLK), Vanguard, Fidelity, and T. Rowe Price (TROW), among others, have all invested time and money setting up tech centers in major cities, apart from their headquarters, as they compete for cost savings, Crystal Kim writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s. Artificial Intelligence, done right, could also give portfolio managers an edge, and better serve investors with a wider array of financial planning tools, the report adds.

IAC/InterActiveCorp sells at discount of assets value – Over the past two decades, Barry Diller’s IAC/InterActiveCorp (IAC) has generated a higher return than Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A, BRK.B), Jack Hough writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s. But the shares of IAC/InterActiveCop sell at a discount to the value of its assets, he notes.

Spotify stock could rise to five times sales. – Spotify Technology (SPOT) made its market debut las week and while its stock price could remain volatile in the months ahead, shares could “reasonably” rise to five times sales, Avi Salzman writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s.

BEARISH MENTIONS

Facebook bracing for Capitol Hill grilling – In a follow-up story, Barron’s notes that this week Facebook’s (FB) CEO Mark Zuckerberg will come to Washington to testify before an eager group of lawmakers. Congress has a chance to remind citizens of its watchdog role, the report noted, adding that while this week’s optics will no doubt be bad, the stock’s valuation already reflects much of the pain.

Smartphone growth sags as new models not compelling enough – People are holding onto their phones longer, on average, because what they are being offered in the new models just is not compelling enough, Tiernan Ray writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s. This does not bode well for traditional makers of chips for smartphones, including Skyworks (SWKS), Qorvo (QRVO), Qualcomm (QCOM), and Synaptics (SYNA), the report adds.

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March 28, 2018

Trump targets Amazon

Amazon slides as president said to take aim at tax treatment

Trump targets Amazon

Shares of Amazon (AMZN) are slipping this morning after Axios reported that President Donald Trump may want to go after the e-commerce giant rather than Facebook (FB) and has discussed changing the former’s tax treatment.

AFTER AMAZON, NOT FACEBOOK

According to a report by Axios, President Trump wants to go after tech giant Amazon rather than Facebook and has discussed changing the company’s tax treatment due to concerns about small retailers being put out of business.

Citing five sources familiar with the matter, the publication added that Trump has wondered if there is any way to go after Amazon with antitrust or competition law as he thinks the e-commerce giant has gotten a free ride from taxpayers and the Postal service and agrees the company is killing shopping malls and brick-and-mortar retailers.

“The whole post office thing, that’s very much a perception he has,” a source said. “It’s been explained to him in multiple meetings that his perception is inaccurate and that the post office actually makes a ton of money from Amazon.”

VICE-PRESIDENT CONCERNED OVER FACEBOOK, GOOGLE

Nonetheless, the same Axios’ article pointed out that Vice-President Mike Pence is concerned about Facebook and Google (GOOG; GOOGL).

While Pence is not yet pushing internally for any specific regulations, he views these companies as dangerously powerful and worries about their influence on media coverage as well as their control of the advertising industry and users’ personal info, a source told the publication.

FACEBOOK POLICY CHANGE

Facebook, embroiled recently in a scandal over the way it has handled users’ personal data, has announced a privacy policy change.

According to Erin Egan, VP and Chief Privacy Officer, Policy and Ashlie Beringer, VP and Deputy General Counsel at Facebook:

“We’ve heard loud and clear that privacy settings and other important tools are too hard to find and that we must do more to keep people informed. […] We’ve redesigned our entire settings menu on mobile devices from top to bottom to make things easier to find. […] We’re introducing Access Your Information – a secure way for people to access and manage their information, such as posts, reactions, comments, and things you’ve searched for.

You can go here to delete anything from your timeline or profile that you no longer want on Facebook. It’s also our responsibility to tell you how we collect and use your data in language that’s detailed, but also easy to understand. In the coming weeks, we’ll be proposing updates to Facebook’s terms of service that include our commitments to people.”

PRICE ACTION

In Wednesday’s trading, shares of Amazon have dropped nearly 5% to $1,426, while Facebook’s stock has gained over 1% to $153.99.

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February 17, 2018

Barron’s in bullish on Citi, bearish on GE

Barron’s, the weekly publication owned by the Wall Street Journal, in its latest issue mentions several names:

Stockwinners offers Barron’s review of stocks to buy, stocks to watch

BULLISH MENTIONS:

Hovnanian (HOV) stock too cheap to ignore- Hovnanian Enterprises offers an interesting speculative bet, because more than a decade’s worth of problems are reflected in the price, Brett Arends writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s. A successful resolution of its legal issues, a corporate turnaround, a takeover, or a continued recovery in the U.S. real estate market are all potential catalysts, he adds.

JPMorgan, Walmart cash flow yields exceed dividend yields – The cash flow yields of JPMorgan (JPM), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Walmart (WMT), Pfizer (PFE), Cisco (CSCO), AbbVie (ABBV), PepsiCo (PEP), 3M (MMM), Bristol-Myers (BMY), United Technologies (UTX), Texas Instruments (TXN) and Abbott Laboratories (ABT) exceed their dividend yields, a good signal for dividend coverage and growth, Lawrence Strauss writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s.

Alphabet, Citi well positioned for later stages of market rally – It is time for investors to think about how and when bull markets end, Jack Hough writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s. Groups to favor now include financials, which benefit from rising interest rates, and industrials, he notes, adding that technology still looks attractive. Alphabet (GOOG; GOOGL), Lam Research (LRCX), Citigroup (C), and Cummins (CMI) are all well positioned for the later stages of a long market rally, Hough contends.

Bears, bulls battle over Under Armour – In a follow-up story, Barron’s says that Under Armour (UA) reported fourth quarter revenue that beat Wall Street’s estimate, but is difficult to tell whether the revenue upside represents a turning point for the business. Bulls and bears both found something to support their arguments, as revenue increased but gross margin declined while inventories swelled and store count rose 22%, the report notes.

BEARISH MENTION:

General Electric stock could drop another 10% – General Electric (GE) lost $6B in 2017 after a series of charges and impairments, cut its dividend by 50%, and its accounting is under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission, but lately it has been attracting fresh attention from value-oriented investors, Andrew Bary writes in this week’s edition of Barron’s. Nonetheless, the stock is not a bargain and could drop another 10% or more, he contends

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