As earnings season continues to develop, we have seen a bit of divergence in favor of value stocks. Companies that have been out of favor, due to difficult short-term business conditions, and that have incredibly low valuations have outperformed glamor stocks that trade at high multiples, based on the perception of safety. It is essential...Read More

The story below is very interesting as Barnes & Noble has received two separate takeover offers from G Assset Management.  The idea behind the deals is to separate the unprofitable Nook business from the highly profitable bookstore business.  Barnes & Noble had some early success with its Nook reader and reached a compelling deal with...Read More

It seems that Microsoft insider Satya Nadella is the favorite to replace Steve Ballmer as the CEO.  Nadella’s broad set of experiences at Microsoft from Windows to the Cloud should position him to have a good understanding of the technological direction that the company needs to go in.  I also really respect that he has...Read More

In what I view as to not be a surprising development but a disappointing one for Microsoft shareholders, Ford (F) CEO Alan Mulally has announced that he won’t be taking the CEO position at Microsoft (MSFT).  Mulally could have come in with a fresh set of eyes and ideas to help Microsoft compete more effectively...Read More

To whom much is given, much is expected.  These words exemplify the reign of Steve Ballmer who took over one of the finest companies in the world at its peak.  Over the last decade, Microsoft has more than doubled its earnings, but this was largely due to its entrenched Windows and Office franchises.  Ballmer allowed...Read More

One of the hardest things to evaluate when investing in businesses is how management will allocate capital.  The best thing to do is look at management’s historical track record, but there is no perfect way to measure things.  Great capital allocation can make an average business a great investment if bought at the right price....Read More

The article below provides an interesting glimpse, comparing today’s Nasdaq to the bubble of the late 1990’s.  There is no doubt that conditions in the index aren’t anything near as frothy as during that period, particularly for the “old” technology stocks such as Cisco (CSCO), Microsoft (MSFT) and Intel (INTC).  Even newer stocks that are...Read More

Below is a link to our most recent article on Microsoft.  The purpose of the article is to foster discussion and thinking in to how Microsoft, which we view as an attractive stock at current prices, could position itself to win.  Winning is rather subjective, but I believe the company has the potential to be...Read More

The WSJ has an interesting article on the high stakes that Microsoft has in terms of Windows 8.  It appears that this version is going to be substantially different, which should offer significant risks and reward potential.  I believe there is a large market for non-Apple operating systems and Windows should be well positioned to...Read More

This is an interesting article on Lenovo’s practice of internally manufacturing as opposed to outsourcing.  Obviously being a Chinese company the decision is made bit easier than it is for companies like Dell or Hewlett-Packard which are based in the United States.  Currently the trend led by Apple is to take more control over the...Read More