The Yahoo Annual Meeting

Me and Marissa Mayer, CEO of Yahoo!

I have attended a lot of annual shareholder meetings over the last several years when they are located within a reasonable driving distance, including the meetings for Apple (AAPL), Disney (DIS), and Twitter (TWTR). Today, I attended the Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) annual meeting today, held at the Santa Clara Marriott in Santa Clara, California. I have been a shareholder of Yahoo! for many years.

One of the first things I noticed when driving into the parking lot was a bunch of protestors. I'm not exactly sure what they were protesting since the signs said something about Yahoo! and whales and ivory, which Yahoo! has nothing to do with.

There were almost 100 attendees at the meeting. After the introductions and formal business, Marissa Mayer, the CEO, first showed a video then went over the company's status, progress, and future. She first talked about how the company had over 400 feature launches and 30 major launches. She pointed out that there was an 8% increase year-over-year in GAAP revenues, and a 45% increase in Mavens (Mobile Video Native Social) GAAP revenues. The number of mobile users is in excess of 600 million, tripling the number from 2012.

Some of the goals she discussed were:
1. Play to Strengths to Increase User Engagement
2.  Drive Mavens Revenue Growth
3. Simplify the Business to Improve Execution
4. Efficiently Align Resources

The company is selling off over 4,000 non-strategic patents, exiting six offices around the world, and reducing workforce by 15% by the end of 2016.

Mayer mentioned that Yahoo! now has 1 billion users, one of only three companies to reach this level, the other two being Facebook (FB) and Google (GOOGL).

The meeting ended with a question and answer session.

You can see the entire annual meeting here:



Disclosure: Author owns YHOO, AAPL, DIS, and TWTR,

Snorting Chocolate is the Latest Party Drug: Will Chocolate Stocks Get High?

Last month, an article appeared on Ozy discussing how young Western Europeans are now using a popular drug called cacao. This is more commonly known as chocolate. Partiers are taking it in powdered pill form, in drinks, and snorting it. Of course, it is 100% legal.

Will chocolate replace ecstasy and cocaine for party goers? If it does, there are several ways to invest in the chocolate industry.

Based on the free list of candy and chocolate stocks at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com, there are a dozen candy related stocks available to investors, and almost all of them sell chocolate.

One of the most famous chocolate companies is the Hershey Company (HSY), the largest chocolate manufacturer in North America. The stock trades at 49.3 times trailing earnings and 24.6 times forward earnings. Earnings for the latest quarter were down 6.1% on a 5.6% drop in revenues. The company pays a yield of 2.4%.

Another popular chocolate company is Nestle (NSRGY), the largest food company in the world. It sells all types of food and beverages, so chocolate is only a small part of the business. The stock trades at 25.7 times trailing earnings and 22.5 times forward earnings. Earnings tanked by 53.7% for the latest quarter.

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (RMCF) is one of the few chocolate companies that appears to be growing, in terms of earnings. The stock has a price to earnings ratio of 14 and pays a mouth watering yield of 4.9%. Earnings were up an amazing 76.1% on relatively flat revenues.

To access a free list of all the chocolate and candy companies, go to WallStreetNewsNetwork.com. Hopefully one of these companies will give you a tasty return for your portfolio.

Disclosure: Author didn't own any of the above at the time the article was written.

By Stockerblog.com

A Book I Just Finished Reading: Irrationally Yours by Dan Ariely

I just finished the book Irrationally Yours: On Missing Socks, Pickup Lines, and Other Existential Puzzles by Dan Ariely. You may have heard of or read some of Ariely's other books, such as Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions or The Honest Truth About Dishonesty: How We Lie to Everyone--Especially Ourselves.

This latest book is a compilation of mostly questions and answers that he has posted in the Wall Street Journal, about everything from financial advisors to investing to social networks to decision making to just about everything else you can think of.

Ariely inserts a lot of humor throughout the book. I especially like the recommended suggestion he posted at the end of the chapter on choosing a wine at a restaurant. The chapter on choosing a plane flight, called "On Riding Your Dryer to Tucson", was hilarious. The choosing the best bathroom stall was great also.

By the way, each chapter is one page long, so this is a very easy read.  Great for plane flights, beaches, and poolsides.

I highly recommend you get a copy of Irrationally Yours for your education, enlightenment, and entertainment.

The Effect of Brexit on LSE's merger with Deutsche Börse

by John Colley, Professor of Practice in the Strategy and International Business Group of Warwick Business School

The rationale for the merger has undoubtedly changed and perhaps the boards of LSE and Deutsche Börse would do well to reconsider the rationale for the deal. Shareholders vote shortly on the merger and it must be anything but clear what they are voting for.

"As for the staff of both exchanges their future positions remain uncertain. During bid and integration periods research identifies that staff uncertainty results in substantial reductions in efficiency.

This almost invariably results in lost market share and many of the better staff leaving. In short, during protracted bid and integration periods the business deteriorates rapidly. 

A difficult decision awaits the respective boards. Do they get on with it and risk political reversal and associated damage or do they call off the deal until the smoke clears? The latter course may bring renewed US interest for the LSE as it would be 'in play'. 

Perhaps the directors of both the LSE and Deutsche Börse are in too much of a hurry to press on with the 'merger of equals' before the smoke clears over Brexit. The consequences of Brexit are anything but clear as yet. UK political leadership is in turmoil. Threats are being issued by politicians Europe wide and businesses in the City and elsewhere that jobs will move to the EU.

The LSE/Deutsche Börse merger was always going to have to achieve political and competition authority assent before proceeding. The German authorities would never allow control to pass to London, while similarly the UK would not allow the reverse.

The compromise was a London head office and a Deutsche Börse CEO. Hence the billing of a 'merger of equals' and virtually no information provided as to where the initial batch of 1250 redundancies would fall. Frankfurt must now see its chance of becoming the dominant financial centre in Europe as trading is switched from London. While the EU will want to see the trading housed within its own boundaries with Paris and Frankfurt scrapping it out.

10 Ways to Survive an Upcoming Catastrophe

Check out the mail that I've received in just the last few days. This is just a small sample of what I receive on a regular basis. Look at the headlines:

"Does this chart foretell the end of Western Civilization?"
"America's Day of Reckoning"
"Bloodbath 2016"

Many investors are worried about the fallout from Brexit. Many investors are worried about who is going to win the election, and what will happen to the economy. as a result Many investors fear both the leading Republican and Democratic candidates. Many investors are worried that the stock market has been rising for too long. So is a major catastrophe just around the corner? If so, what's a person to do?

If you are really concerned, there are certain supplies that you can stock up on, that can help out in the event that there is a real catastrophe. Imagine no electricity, natural gas, heat, Internet, or water. Here is a list of items that you should consider stocking up on.

1. LifeStraw Personal Water Filter
These water filters are great. This straw filters out virtually all bacteria and almost all parasites, without the use of chlorine, iodine, or any toxic chemicals.

2. Chainmate CM-24SSP 24-Inch Survival Pocket Chain Saw With Pouch
This lightweight and portable saw with carbon steel teeth can cut through wood fast.

3. Emergency Mylar Thermal Blankets
I like to keep one of these in the glove compartment of all my vehicles. These waterproof rescue blankets reflects 90% of body heat.

4. Jackie Portable Extra-large Head Windproof Waterproof Matches
The best feature about these matches is that they can light during a rainstorm and windstorm.

5. Emergency Power USB Hand Crank SOS Phone Charger
If there is still cellphone service, you could find this very useful.

6. Survival Seed Vault Non-GMO Hardy Heirloom Seeds
You will need to grow your own vegetables for food. These non-GMO non-hybrid vegetable seeds are in a can for long term storage, with 20 varieties of vegetables.

7. Cyalume SnapLight Green Light Sticks
I really like these. They can stay lit for up to 12 hours. These are not the cheap party light sticks, they are high quality sticks made in the US.

8. Multi Tool Set
This has a wrench, pliers, knife, two hexagonal sockets, and three screwdriver bits.

9. Mountain House Just In Case Freeze Dried Food Bucket
To survive, you have to have food. This bucket contains 12 pouches (29 servings) of freeze dried food, including beef stroganoff, chicken teriyaki, beef stew, lasagna, noodles and chicken, and granola with blueberries.

10. Survival Hacks: Over 200 Ways to Use Everyday Items for Wilderness Survival
Finally, how about a survival guide. This is currently the highest rated survival book on Amazon.

Hopefully, you will order these resources but never need them. Think of the cost as cheap insurance.

Get Free Tickets to the San Francisco Money Show

If you have never attended the Money Show before, you should really attend. The San Francisco Money show will be held at the Marriott Marquis in San Francisco on August 23, 24, and 25, 2016. It doesn't matter if you are a novice investor or an expert, you will get a lot out of attending the show.

The price is right and you will be exposed to over 70 financial experts, and more than 160 high­-quality educational workshops and keynote presentations. Here is a list of just a few of the numerous speakers that will be there:

Doug Fabian
Arthur Laffer
David Phillips
George Gilder
The Winklevoss Brothers
Michael Murphy
Mark Skousen
Marilyn Cohen

In excess of 100 financial product and service companies will be showcasing in the exhibit hall. In addition, you can meet and network with many other investors and traders.

To register for free, or if you just want to get more information, click on the following link:

San Francisco Money Show

PS I will be one of the speakers there.

Stock Earnings Report Announcements for the Upcoming Week

Looking for some interesting moves in some stocks this week? Check out the companies that will be reporting earnings this week.

If earnings exceed analysts' expectations, the stocks can shoot up. If the numbers underperform, the stock can tank. Then again, occasionally, stocks don't move the way you would have expected.

Anyway, many traders use earnings plays for trading strategies. Also, option traders look for high implied volatility of stocks for for option selling strategies.

Here are many of the stocks reporting earnings this week:

Monday

NG

Tuesday

CCL

IHS

NKE

Wednesday

GIS

MON

PIR

Thursday

CAG
DRI
PAYX
STZ
MU

Friday

none

If you like interesting stock lists like this, be sure to check out many of the free stock lists at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com.

Stocks Going Ex Dividend the Fifth Week of June

Here is our latest update on the stock trading technique called 'Buying Dividends,' also commonly referred to as 'Dividend Capture.' This is the process of buying stocks before the ex dividend date and selling the stock shortly after the ex date at about the same price, yet still being entitled to the dividend. This technique generally works only in bull markets, and can work in flat or choppy markets, but you need to avoid the technique during bear markets.

In order to be entitled to the dividend, you have to buy the stock before the ex-dividend date, and you can't sell the stock until after the ex date. The actual dividend may not be paid for another few weeks. WallStreetNewsNetwork.com has compiled a downloadable and sortable list of the stocks going ex dividend in the near future. The list contains many dividend paying companies, lots with market caps over $500 million, and yields over 2%. Here are a few examples showing the stock symbol, the ex-dividend date, and the yield.

Agrium	AGU	6/28/2016	3.9%
Axis Capital Holdings	AXS	6/28/2016	2.6%
Beasley Broadcast Group	BBGI	6/28/2016	3.7%
B&G Foods	BGS	6/28/2016	3.9%
Cameco Corp	CCJ	6/28/2016	3.4%
Cypress Semiconductor	CY	6/28/2016	4.4%
Deere & Co.	DE	6/28/2016	3.0%
Dow Chemical	DOW	6/28/2016	3.5%
Diversicare Healthcare	DVCR	6/28/2016	2.7%
Edison International	EIX	6/28/2016	2.7%

The additional ex-dividend stocks can be found at wsnn.com. (If you have been to the website before, and the latest link doesn't show up, you may have to empty your cache.) If you like dividend stocks, you should check out some of the other high yield stock lists at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com or WSNN.com. Most of the lists are free. 

Dividend definitions:

Declaration date: the day that the company declares that there is going to be an upcoming dividend.

Ex-dividend date: the day on which if you buy the stock, you would not be entitled to that particular dividend; or the first day on which a shareholder can sell the shares and still be entitled to the dividend.

Monthly Dividend Stock List
Record date: the day when you must be on the company's books as a shareholder to receive the dividend. The ex-dividend date is normally set for stocks at two business days before the record date.

Payment date: the day on which the dividend payment is actually made, which can be as long at two months after the ex date.

Book now available: Buying Dividends Revised and Expanded

Book now available: Stock Market Trivia Makes a Great Gift!

Don't forget to reconfirm the ex-dividend date with the company before implementing this technique.

Disclosure: Author did not own any of the above at the time the article was written.

By Stockerblog.com

Stock Earnings Report Announcements for this Week

Looking for some interesting moves in some stocks this week? Check out the companies that will be reporting earnings this week.

If earnings exceed analysts' expectations, the stocks can shoot up. If the numbers underperform, the stock can tank. Then again, occasionally, stocks don't move the way you would have expected.

Anyway, many traders use earnings plays for trading strategies. Also, option traders look for high implied volatility of stocks for for option selling strategies.

Here are many of the stocks reporting earnings this week:

Monday

none

Tuesday

KMX

LEN

ADBE

FDX

KBH

LZB

Wednesday

WGO

BKS

BBBY

RHT

Thursday

CAN

BBRY

SNX

Friday

FINL

If you like interesting stock lists like this, be sure to check out many of the free stock lists at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com.

Stocks Going Ex Dividend the Fourth Week of June

Here is our latest update on the stock trading technique called 'Buying Dividends,' also commonly referred to as 'Dividend Capture.' This is the process of buying stocks before the ex dividend date and selling the stock shortly after the ex date at about the same price, yet still being entitled to the dividend. This technique generally works only in bull markets, and can work in flat or choppy markets, but you need to avoid the technique during bear markets.

In order to be entitled to the dividend, you have to buy the stock before the ex-dividend date, and you can't sell the stock until after the ex date. The actual dividend may not be paid for another few weeks. WallStreetNewsNetwork.com has compiled a downloadable and sortable list of the stocks going ex dividend in the near future. The list contains many dividend paying companies, lots with market caps over $500 million, and yields over 2%. Here are a few examples showing the stock symbol, the ex-dividend date, and the yield.

Cincinnati Financial	CINF	6/20/2016	2.8%
Computer Task Group, Inc.	CTG	6/20/2016	4.5%
FS Investment Corporation	FSIC	6/20/2016	10.1%
Ituran Location & Control Ltd	ITRN	6/20/2016	3.3%
KAR Auction Services Inc	KAR	6/20/2016	2.8%
LTC Properties  REIT	LTC	6/20/2016	4.7%
Las Vegas Sands	LVS	6/20/2016	6.3%

The additional ex-dividend stocks can be found at wsnn.com. (If you have been to the website before, and the latest link doesn't show up, you may have to empty your cache.) If you like dividend stocks, you should check out some of the other high yield stock lists at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com or WSNN.com. Most of the lists are free. 

Dividend definitions:

Declaration date: the day that the company declares that there is going to be an upcoming dividend.

Ex-dividend date: the day on which if you buy the stock, you would not be entitled to that particular dividend; or the first day on which a shareholder can sell the shares and still be entitled to the dividend.

Monthly Dividend Stock List
Record date: the day when you must be on the company's books as a shareholder to receive the dividend. The ex-dividend date is normally set for stocks at two business days before the record date.

Payment date: the day on which the dividend payment is actually made, which can be as long at two months after the ex date.

Book now available: Buying Dividends Revised and Expanded

Book now available: Stock Market Trivia Makes a Great Gift!

Don't forget to reconfirm the ex-dividend date with the company before implementing this technique.

Disclosure: Author did not own any of the above at the time the article was written.

By Stockerblog.com

Stock Earnings Reports for the Upcoming Week

Looking for some interesting moves in some stocks this week? Check out the companies that will be reporting earnings this week.

If earnings exceed analysts' expectations, the stocks can shoot up. If the numbers underperform, the stock can tank. Then again, occasionally, stocks don't move the way you would have expected.

Anyway, many traders use earnings plays for trading strategies. Also, option traders look for high implied volatility of stocks for for option selling strategies.

Here are many of the stocks reporting earnings this week:

Monday

SAIC

Tuesday

BOBE

Wednesday

CTRP
JBL

Thursday

KR

RAD

FNSR

Friday

NONE

If you like interesting stock lists like this, be sure to check out many of the free stock lists at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com.

Stocks Going Ex Dividend the Third Week of June

Here is our latest update on the stock trading technique called 'Buying Dividends,' also commonly referred to as 'Dividend Capture.' This is the process of buying stocks before the ex dividend date and selling the stock shortly after the ex date at about the same price, yet still being entitled to the dividend. This technique generally works only in bull markets, and can work in flat or choppy markets, but you need to avoid the technique during bear markets.

In order to be entitled to the dividend, you have to buy the stock before the ex-dividend date, and you can't sell the stock until after the ex date. The actual dividend may not be paid for another few weeks. WallStreetNewsNetwork.com has compiled a downloadable and sortable list of the stocks going ex dividend in the near future. The list contains many dividend paying companies, lots with market caps over $500 million, and yields over 2%. Here are a few examples showing the stock symbol, the ex-dividend date, and the yield.

Community Bank	CBU	6/13/2016	3.1%
Corporate Executive Board	CEB	6/13/2016	2.6%
C&F Financial Corp	CFFI	6/13/2016	2.9%
Community Trust Bancorp	CTBI	6/13/2016	3.5%
Cenovus Energy Inc.	CVE	6/13/2016	3.2%
FBL Financial Group	FFG	6/13/2016	2.7%
Frontier Communications	FTR	6/13/2016	8.1%
GATX Corp	GMT	6/13/2016	3.5%
Hercules Technology Growth Capital	HTGY	6/13/2016	6.9%
Huntsman Corp	HUN	6/13/2016	3.3%
Communications Systems	JCS	6/13/2016	9.3%

The additional ex-dividend stocks can be found at wsnn.com. (If you have been to the website before, and the latest link doesn't show up, you may have to empty your cache.) If you like dividend stocks, you should check out some of the other high yield stock lists at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com or WSNN.com. Most of the lists are free. 

Dividend definitions:

Declaration date: the day that the company declares that there is going to be an upcoming dividend.

Ex-dividend date: the day on which if you buy the stock, you would not be entitled to that particular dividend; or the first day on which a shareholder can sell the shares and still be entitled to the dividend.

Monthly Dividend Stock List
Record date: the day when you must be on the company's books as a shareholder to receive the dividend. The ex-dividend date is normally set for stocks at two business days before the record date.

Payment date: the day on which the dividend payment is actually made, which can be as long at two months after the ex date.

Book now available: Buying Dividends Revised and Expanded

Book now available: Stock Market Trivia Makes a Great Gift!

Don't forget to reconfirm the ex-dividend date with the company before implementing this technique.

Disclosure: Author did not own any of the above at the time the article was written.

By Stockerblog.com

How You Can Have a Power Lunch with Warren Buffett

How would you like to have a Power Lunch with Warren Buffett, head of Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA) (BRKB). On top of that, you can bring seven of your friends.

An auction is being held on eBay (EBAY) for this luncheon. The bidding began June 5, 2016 and will close on June 10, 2016 at 7:30 pm PDT. Buffett will join the winning bidder and up to seven friends at the Smith & Wollensky restaurant in New York City on a date agreed upon by both parties.

All of the proceeds from the winning bid will benefit GLIDE, a leading social service institution working to alleviate human suffering and poverty in the San Francisco Bay Area.

The opening bid was $25,000. If you are interested in bidding, you must pre-qualify. The current bid at the time this article was written is $200,100.

To see what the latest bid is, to pre-qualify, and to bid, go here. 

Stock Earnings Reports for this Week

Looking for some interesting moves in some stocks this week? Check out the companies that will be reporting earnings this week.

If earnings exceed analysts' expectations, the stocks can shoot up. If the numbers underperform, the stock can tank. Then again, occasionally, stocks don't move the way you would have expected.

Anyway, many traders use earnings plays for trading strategies. Also, option traders look for high implied volatility of stocks for for option selling strategies.

Here are many of the stocks reporting earnings this week:

Monday

CASY
THO
UNFI

Tuesday

HDS
MIK
NAV
VRX
PAY
VRNT

Wednesday

LULU
ABM
RH

Thursday

SJM
MTN
HRB

Friday

NONE

If you like interesting stock lists like this, be sure to check out many of the free stock lists at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com.

How to Invest Like a Billionaire

Have you ever wondered how the richest people in the world became so rich? In many cases, it is due to one stock, often for a company they founded. If the stock made them rich, why not you?

On March 21 of this year, Forbes Magazine came out with the 2015 Billionaires Edition, which contains a list of the richest people on the planet.

Although, many of these billionaires may own stocks in several companies, there is usually only one company that put them on the billionaire map. The following is a list of the richest people and the stock that made them rich.

Bill Gates

1. Bill Gates, Microsoft (MSFT)

2. Amancio Ortega, Inditex (ITX.MC)

3. Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA)

4. Carlos Slim Helu, América Móvil (AMX) (AMOV)

5. Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com (AMZN)

6. Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook (FB)

Warren Buffett

7. Larry Ellison, Oracle (ORCL)

8. Michael Bloomberg, Bloomberg L.P. (private)

9. and 10. Charles & David Koch, Koch Industries (private)

11. Liliane Bettencourt, L'Oreal (LRLCY)

12. and 13. Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google (GOOG) (GOOGL)

14. Bernard Arnault, LVMH (LVMUY) (LVMHF)

If you like interesting stock lists like this, make sure to check out many of the free lists at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com.


Book now available: Buying Dividends Revised and Expanded

Book now available: Stock Market Trivia Makes a Great Gift!

Stocks Going Ex Dividend the Second Week of June

Here is our latest update on the stock trading technique called 'Buying Dividends,' also commonly referred to as 'Dividend Capture.' This is the process of buying stocks before the ex dividend date and selling the stock shortly after the ex date at about the same price, yet still being entitled to the dividend. This technique generally works only in bull markets, and can work in flat or choppy markets, but you need to avoid the technique during bear markets.

In order to be entitled to the dividend, you have to buy the stock before the ex-dividend date, and you can't sell the stock until after the ex date. The actual dividend may not be paid for another few weeks. WallStreetNewsNetwork.com has compiled a downloadable and sortable list of the stocks going ex dividend in the near future. The list contains many dividend paying companies, lots with market caps over $500 million, and yields over 2%. Here are a few examples showing the stock symbol, the ex-dividend date, and the yield.

Ameren Corp	AEE	6/6/2016	3.6%
Cinemark Holdings	CNK	6/6/2016	3.0%
Easterly Government Prop.	DEA	6/6/2016	4.9%
First American Financial	FAF	6/6/2016	2.7%
Guess, Inc.	GES	6/6/2016	5.8%
Greenhill & Co.	GHL	6/6/2016	8.9%
GameStop	GME	6/6/2016	4.9%

The additional ex-dividend stocks can be found at wsnn.com. (If you have been to the website before, and the latest link doesn't show up, you may have to empty your cache.) If you like dividend stocks, you should check out some of the other high yield stock lists at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com or WSNN.com. Most of the lists are free. 

Dividend definitions:

Declaration date: the day that the company declares that there is going to be an upcoming dividend.

Ex-dividend date: the day on which if you buy the stock, you would not be entitled to that particular dividend; or the first day on which a shareholder can sell the shares and still be entitled to the dividend.

Monthly Dividend Stock List
Record date: the day when you must be on the company's books as a shareholder to receive the dividend. The ex-dividend date is normally set for stocks at two business days before the record date.

Payment date: the day on which the dividend payment is actually made, which can be as long at two months after the ex date.

Book now available: Buying Dividends Revised and Expanded

Book now available: Stock Market Trivia Makes a Great Gift!

Don't forget to reconfirm the ex-dividend date with the company before implementing this technique.

Disclosure: Author did not own any of the above at the time the article was written.

By Stockerblog.com