Continue reading Warren Buffett Stocks Up on Tesco

Warren Buffett Stocks Up on Tesco originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 10:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Well, here's the thing: Migros has been a smashing success. How is that possible? Here's a tiny bank in a supermarket. Its primary role is to service store customers. The bank does not pay top bankers any bonuses. Nor does it engage in high-risk international investments.

Instead, it has a simple (some people might call it outmoded) business model. It collects deposits from customers and then turns them into low-risk loans. With this approach, Migros deposits surged SFr 2.6 billion to SFr 24 billion, even as customers, worried about fallout from the financial crisis, were pulling their money out of leading Swiss banks like UBS AG (NYSE: UBS).

Continue reading Why is the small Migros Bank growing so fast?

Why is the small Migros Bank growing so fast? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 06 Apr 2009 15:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Now that it is clear that Wal-Mart's (NYSE:WMT) international operations are growing much faster than its US division, the company is searching for new frontiers. Revenue overseas is growing at a rate better than 20%

Wal-Mart has had trouble in some countries. Its operation in Japan continues to loss money and it has pulled out of Korea and Germany.

Now, the world's largest retailer is looking to Russia and eastern Europe for more growth. According to the FT, Wal-Mart "firmly signaled its intention to expand into Russia and eastern Europe, announcing that it had recruited Stephan Fanderl, a German retail executive, to explore opportunities in the region."

It will be at least a couple of years before the market can gauge whether Wal-Mart can have success in the region. It has to compete with other companies like big European retail chain Tesco. The Wal-Mart model clearly does not work in all cultures.

A break-down of Wal-Mat's track record overseas is telling. It problems in Germany, Japan, and Korea have been more than off-set by successes in China and Mexico. To some extent that may mean that countries with lower median incomes are better markets for the company. Russia and Eastern Europe are a mixed bag. Parts of Russia have done very well financially. Eastern Europe is still in a stage of economic development.

Wal-Mart may be expanding outside the US, but its success is hardly assured.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Wal-Mart (WMT) looks to Russia originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Deutsche Bank downgraded shares of Riverbed Technology (NASDAQ: RVBD) to Hold from Buy after it negatively preannounced to reflect economic conditions and the company's lack of visibility.
  
• Credit Suisse said shares of Sirius Satellite (NASDAQ: SIRI) are trading near fair value and that shares will probably trade in a range between mid-$2s to $3 in 2008. Shares were downgraded to Neutral from Outperform.
  
• JP Morgan lowered ASML Holdings (NASDAQ: ASML) to Neutral from Overweight as they believe chip manufacturing equipment orders are suffering from the weak DRAM memory market.

• Dell (NASDAQ: DELL) was cut at Goldman to Neutral from Buy.
  
• Tesco PLC (OTC: TSCDY) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Societe Generale.
• RBC Capital cut Radware (NASDAQ: RDWR) to Sector Perform from Outperform.

Analyst downgrades: RVBD, SIRI and ASML originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 04 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Rodman initiated Targeted Genetics Corporation (NASDAQ: TGEN) with a Market Perform rating, citing lack of key near-term drivers and the absence of definitive proof-of-concept data for its lead arthritis program.
• ING assumed Tesco Plc (OTC: TSCDY) with a Buy rating, citing the company's growing international business.
• Piper initiated The9 Limited (NASDAQ: NCTY) with a Neutral rating and $21 target, citing limited visibility around the company's FY08 and FY09 game releases and a higher risk profile than peers.

• Baird initiated Gladstone Capital Corporation (NASDAQ: GLAD) with a Neutral rating and $19 target.
• Goldman initiated Brazilian banks with an Attractive view, starting Banco Bradesco SA (NYSE: BBD) with a Buy rating, Banco Itau Holding Financeira SA (NYSE: ITU) with a Neutral rating and Unibanco-Uniao de Bancos Brasileiros (NYSE: UBB) with a Sell rating.

Analyst initiations: TGEN, TSCDY and NCTY originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 11 Feb 2008 10:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Dell and Tesco announce European retail agreement originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 03 Jan 2008 12:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• EMC Corporation (NYSE: EMC) was upgraded to Outperform from Peer Perform at Bear Stearns on valuation. Shares were also upgraded to Buy from Hold at Citigroup after coming off restriction to reflect the long-term benefits of virtualization and valuation.
  
• Tesco (OTC: TSCDY) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Citigroup on valuation and the company's growth prospects.
  
• SL Green Realty Corporation (NYSE: SLG) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Keybanc based on valuation. The firm views concerns regarding NYC office demand as overblown.
  
• Cowen expects FY07 to be a tough year for Ariba Inc (NASDAQ: ARBA) as benefits from the on-demand subscription model are realized. The firm upgraded shares to Outperform from Market Perform.
  
• Motorola Inc (NYSE: MOT) was upgraded to Outperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital citing firming trends in its handset division.

• Jefferies upgraded Optium Corporation (NASDAQ: OPTM) to Buy from Hold.
  
• JP Morgan upgraded Susster Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ: SUSS) to Overweight from Neutral.
  
• Thomas Weisel upgraded Vishay Intertechnology (NYSE: VSH) to Overweight from Market Weight.
  
• Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE: RCL) was upgraded to Strong Buy from Outperform at Raymond James.

Analyst upgrades: EMC, TSCDY, SLG, ARBA and MOT originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 24 Sep 2007 10:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Welcome to the 26th installment of The Wal-Mart Weekly, a column dedicated to bringing you insight, wit, facts, results, opinions and just a bit of everything else when it comes down to a very hot topic these days: Wal-Mart. Last week we wondered whether Always Low Prices was just a myth in today's competitive climate.

This past week, I discussed Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) Stores, Inc.'s entry into the non-protected digital music file download business. With the retailer selling non-protected songs from its website for a maximum of $0.94, will this action dent into Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL)'s iTunes market share? Who knows at this point.

Wal-Mart has been in the news quite a bit this past week in regards to a European competitor entering a market Wal-Mart is already in (just not in a big way) -- California. Tesco (LSE: TSCO) said it will be opening smaller-concept stores soon that feature the opposite of the big-box retail feeling of the standard 100,000-square-foot Wal-Mart Supercenter. Tesco's stores will average about 10,000 square feet. What will Wal-Mart do in response?

Continue reading The Wal-Mart (WMT) Weekly: Smaller stores to come?

The Wal-Mart (WMT) Weekly: Smaller stores to come? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 31 Aug 2007 07:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Wal-Mart fears Tesco's potential

Wal-Mart fears Tesco's potential originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 27 Aug 2007 16:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Wal-Mart (WMT) needs more than Supercenters to grow

Wal-Mart (WMT) needs more than Supercenters to grow originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 27 Aug 2007 13:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Friedman Billings downgraded dELiA's Inc (NASDAQ: DLIA) to Market Perform from Outperform citing the difficult near-term environment.

• Deutsche Bank would use Hearst-Argyle TV's (NYSE: HTV) tender offer for the remaining shares of HTV at $23.50 as an opportunity to sell shares and cut the stock to Hold from Buy.

• Merrill cut Safeway (NYSE: SWY) shares to Sell from Neutral citing the slowing California economy and the potential threat from Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) entering the California market with its new Tesco (OTC: TSCDY) format...

• Vimicro (NASDAQ: VIMC) was cut to Underweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.

• BB&T downgraded Green Bankshares (NASDAQ: GRNB) to Hold from Buy.

• Citigroup downgraded Samsung to Hold and Hynix Semiconductor to Sell.

Analyst downgrades 8-27-07: DLIA, HTV and SWY originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 27 Aug 2007 10:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Shareholders of British grocer Tesco are none-too-pleased with the proposed bonus package for Sir Terry Leahy, which would pay him as much as £11.5 million, or $23.1 million, in addition to his regular salary. 17% of shareholders declined to support the pay package. According to TimesOnline, "Sir Terry, who received £4.62 million in cash and shares last year, would pocket up to 2.5 million shares under the New Business Incentive Plan if Tesco cracks the US market. The shares would gradually vest between 2011 and 2014. The scheme only applies to the chief executive."

Now there's an incentive for global expansion!

While the pay package certainly seems excessive, it's a relative pittance compared to the amount that Tesco is wagering on a successful foray into key U.S. markets including Las Vegas and Phoenix. The company will be investing over half-a-billion dollars per year in the effort, so why not offer Sir Terry a big chunk of change if all goes well?

Compared to some of the pay packages CEOs here are receiving, it just doesn't seem that bad. The gradual vesting of the restricted stock means he will only stand to get really really rich if the company grows well. If it does, shareholders will have little to complain about.

Shareholders in a rage over Tesco chief's pay package originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 02 Jul 2007 11:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Before the bell 6-19-07: Investors await housing data; Yahoo! in focus originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 19 Jun 2007 07:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Wal-Mart looking at smaller stores? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 04 May 2007 16:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Socially conscious investors may want to grab a copy of this week's (April 2, 2007) edition of FORTUNE magazine, which is all about the greening of corporate America. No longer can companies merely not pollute: The double bottom line of both economic profitability and social responsibility demands that companies re-engineer themselves and their products to be as environmentally friendly as possible.

Companies that are ahead of the game will prosper. Companies that lag behind in environmentalism will be punished by investors as well as the media. The article "Green is Good" summarizes the green activities of 10 well known companies that stand to reap rewards for their environmentally sensitive manufacturing and operational practices. Companies taking the lead towards a low-carbon economy are:

Continue reading Companies going green to make the green

Companies going green to make the green originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 04 Apr 2007 20:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

On Tuesday, Safeway Inc. (NYSE:SWY) announced that it would expand its O Organics line into affordable baby food and food for children, as well as introducing Eating Right, a new brand for consumers in search of healthier fare. The move is part of larger effort to to attract consumers from both price-focused competitors like Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) and high-end chains such as Whole Foods (NASDAQ:WFMI), as well as in anticipation of the entry of British giant Tesco into U.S. markets, such as southern California, where it will compete with Safeway's Vons stores.

The O Organics line was launched a year ago, and it is featured in Safeway chains such as Dominick's. The line already includes coffee, milk, cereal, and produce, and has reached more than $150 million in sales. Eating Right products will feature icons that make it easy for consumers to make the choices that are right for them.

This is all part of Safeway's ongoing efforts to update its stores to a so-called Lifestyle format. It has already updated 43% of its 1,700 stores, and expects to have updated 94% of stores to the Lifestyle format by 2009.

A Credit Suisse analyst has upgraded Safeway to Neutral from Underperform based on its strong outlook for 2007.

Safeway's ongoing transformation continues with more organics originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 13 Dec 2006 17:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Wal-Mart way behind Tesco in Britain originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 12 Dec 2006 11:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) beat Britain's Tesco PLC to a deal with India's Bharti and will be operating stores as part of a joint venture with Bharti in India. Right now India's retail industry is estimated to total about $300 billion, but is expect to grow to $427 billion by 2010 and $637 billion by 2015. "This joint venture is a winning combination. Wal-Mart's logistics skill and Bharti's execution capability will create a potent force in the Indian market," Gajendra Nagpal, director at Unicorn Investments, told Reuters.

The two companies will start opening stores in India in 2007. Bharti's Chairman, Sunil Mittal, says he expects to have several hundred stores across India in four to five years. Well, we know how quickly Wal-Mart stores go up here, so there's no reason to doubt that estimate.

Bharti did not disclose the financial terms of the deal, but industry sources estimate the initial investment to be around $100 million with an increase up to $1.46 billion as the joint venture grows. No doubt the best chance for growth at Wal-Mart is overseas. India and China are the two hottest growth markets. This deal will lock Wal-Mart into a great spot to take advantage of India's booming economy. Wonder if it will mean any new jobs for U.S. citizens?

Wal-Mart wins India Deal -- great for Wal-Mart, and for you? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 27 Nov 2006 08:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

India's Bharti close to choosing a retail partner -- perhaps Wal-Mart originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 10 Oct 2006 11:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Tesco, a large global retailer based in the UK, reported a 23% jump in first-half profit as customers continued to run into its stores for just about everything they could need. Tesco's net profit was about $1.48 billion. Sales in its home market of Britain gained a healthy 10.2% as good weather and growth in the number of shoppers contributed to the above-average rise.

In an interesting twist, Tesco CEO Terry Leahy indicated on a conference call that the strongest growth Tesco experienced came from its range of higher-quality prepared foods -- known as "Finest" in Tesco-speak. The "Finest" line of high-quality prepared foods grew at four times the rate of the rest of the business, which begs a question: Are British consumers fed up with standard, processed foods and are they opting for gourmet-style prepared foods instead?

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT), the world's largest retailer (but not of food), just started introducing more premium food lines into its product mix along with organic food offerings, much to the dismay of many (potentially including me). The trend seen by Tesco may be indicative of consumers that wish to eat better (and possibly healthier) and willingness to pay the price for it. Will consumers in the U.S. follow this same trend, or will our eyes always be transfixed on the price sign?

Wal-Mart competitor Tesco reports 23% profit bump originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 03 Oct 2006 15:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.