06-07-2017, 10:30 PM
The days of easy money are over. And with the Federal Reserve expected to hike interest rates later this month, equity investors are seeking companies well-equipped to withstand tighter lending conditions. In other words, they want to buy stocks with strong balance sheets — ones with easy access to liquidity and minimal debt exposure. And they've already started.
Cash-rich companies are king in the stock market - Business Insider
Facebook Inc. and Snap Inc. could be sitting on a $16 billion revenue opportunity. In her annual internet trends report released Wednesday, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers partner Mary Meeker pointed to a gap in the monetization of mobile users in the U.S. Time spent on mobile had increased to 28% of total media consumption time in 2016, while advertising agencies were only allocating 21% of their spending there. Meeker thinks that is a huge opportunity waiting for online advertising platforms like Facebook, Snapchat parent Snap and Alphabet Inc.’s Google.
Facebook, Snap are sitting on a $16 billion opportunity - MarketWatch
The European Union is in an “existential crisis” and has to deal with “a multiplicity of accumulated problems” from both inside and outside the region, according to billionaire investor George Soros. Speaking at the Brussels Economic Forum on Thursday, the Hungarian-born financier struck a downbeat tone on the current state of the EU, warning the institution needs to completely reinvent itself.
Europe is surrounded by ‘hostile’ powers, including Trump’s U.S.: Soros - MarketWatch
The proximate cause for this push? The Waymo partnership with the No. 3 Distrupter on CNBC's annual list, Lyft, because it gives the company more access to miles driven, which is the key metric supporting Waymo's case as the dominant self-driving car. The way you measure the strength of your autonomous driving initiative is to see how often the car has to be disengaged because of issues. Waymo is far ahead of every other manufacturer, and the company's numbers are in evidence right on the California Department of Motor Vehicles website. That means it can be the prototype for all car manufacturers--and be Switzerland, if it wants to. I have been thinking that if Mark Fields, ex-CEO of Ford (F) , had hooked up with Waymo, as Fiat Chrysler (FCAU) is working with the company for minivans, he'd have kept his job. Now I love this report, but I take issue with one element of it--the idea that Waymo may be spun off into a separate company. I think that would be a big mistake, because the autonomous vehicle total addressable market is so much bigger than the search market is now. The latter is way too dependent on advertising--and advertising is considered a very cyclical business.
Investors Keep Getting It Wrong; Waymo Is Miles Ahead: Jim Cramer's View - Pg.7 - TheStreet
Since the early 1930s, a 30% reduction in the amount of food consumed per day has been linked to longer, more active lives in worms, flies, rats, mice, and monkeys. Across the animal kingdom, in other words, calorie restriction has proven the best remedy for the ravages of life. And it’s possible that humans have just as much to gain.
BBC - Future - The secret to a long and healthy life? Eat less