Ray Kroc did not start McDonald's (NYSE: MCD). But he was the one that had the vision and energy to turn it into a global powerhouse.

Back in 1977, Kroc wrote a book about his story, called Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald's. The title is appropriate. You see, he did not get involved in McDonald's until he was 52 (in 1954).

What I like about Kroc's book is that he has some simple advice for building a successful business. And, it's always a good idea to look at the fundamentals. So, here are some of the takeaways:

This post is one in a series on prominent company nicknames. See all 25, and share your thoughts and memories about Ford below in the comments.

I didn't grow up in one of those families that placed a high premium on American-made goods. If the Japanese can make it better, we'll buy it from them! was the general consensus. And those foreign autos served the Harrows well. My parents bought their 1984 Toyota Tercel when it was new, and that unattractive but reliable compact was part of the family through the beginning of my college career -- even surviving my first, hilarious attempts to operate a manual transmission. So, it wasn't until I moved in with my friend Debbie, as an adult, that I learned the details behind a particularly unflattering nickname for the Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F).

There are those who would joke that the letters in "FORD" stand for "Fix Or Repair Daily." I know from experience that if you make that particular wisecrack within Debbie's earshot, she probably won't crack a smile. Instead, you can almost see her wheels churning, as though she's trying to calculate the thousands she's already poured into her Ford Focus -- or maybe she's just trying to predict which part will break down next.

During the time we shared a mailbox, it was a not-out-of-the-ordinary occurrence for Debbie to receive recall notices bearing the familiar Ford logo. These repair-o-grams arrived with such frequency that the exact number now escapes my memory; when I questioned her via text message, she replied, "I have had six. Stupid car."

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Marriott International (MAR), VeriFone Holdings, Inc (PAY), Generex Biotechnology Corp (GNBT), Quality Systems, Inc (QSII) and Owens Corning (OC) were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Friedman Billings views Marriott International's (NYSE: MAR) relatively low-risk, capital efficient fee income model as an attractive investment opportunity and started shares with an Outperform rating.

• Wedbush believes VeriFone Holdings (NYSE: PAY) is on the highest quality names in the space given the company's superior growth, high margins and consistent execution and started shares with a Strong Buy rating.

• Rodman believes Generex Biotech's (NASDAQ: GNBT) oral insulin, Oral-lyn could be a significant player in the non-injectable insulin market and initiated shares with an Outperform rating.

• Quality Systems (NASDAQ: QSII) was initiated with a Market Weight rating at Thomas Weisel.

• Morgan Keegan started Owens Corning (NYSE: OC) with a Market Perform rating citing the slowdown in the North American housing market.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• William Blair started Cepheid (NASDAQ: CPHD) with an Outperform rating.

• Kaufman started Glu Mobile Inc (NASDAQ: GLUU) with a Buy rating.

• Fuel Tech Inc (NASDAQ: FTEK) was started with a Buy rating.

• Wedbush initiated shares of Hypercom Corp (NYSE: HYC) with a Hold rating.

• Archer Daniels Midland Co (NYSE: ADM) was initiated with an Accumulate rating at Buckingham.

Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).

MOST NOTEWORTHY: The interactive entertainment sector, CVS Corp (CVS) and two large retailers, J.C. Penney (JCP) & Federated Department Stores (FD), topped today's notable initiation list:

• AG Edwards initiated Electronic Arts Inc (NASDAQ: ERTS), Activision, Inc (NASDAQ: ATVI), THQ Inc (NASDAQ: THQI) with Buy ratings and Take-Two Interactive Software (NASDAQ: TTWO), Midway Games Inc (NYSE: MWY) and GameStop Corp (NYSE: GME) with Hold ratings. The firm believes the video game industry is well-positioned for above-average L-T growth based on positive demographic trends. In addition, AG Edwards expects overall U.S. video game industry retail dollar sales to grow by 39% in 2007.

• Elsewhere, Wachovia initiated CVS Corp (NYSE: CVS) with an Outperform rating. The firm believes CVS is well-positioned to take advantage of the fundamentals in the PBM business and find cost synergies from the merger.

• Thomas Weisel initiated both J.C. Penney (NYSE: JCP) and Federated Department Stores (NYSE: FD) with market Weight ratings. The firm believes JCP will have more modest margin expansion going forward and believes high expectations and valuation for FD will limit its outperformance in the near-term.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• ThinkEquity started DivX, Inc (NASDAQ: DIVX) with a Buy rating and $26 target.

• RBC initiated Trident Microsystems, Inc (NASDAQ: TRID) with a Sector Perform rating.

• UBS initiated Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (NASDAQ: TEVA) with a Buy rating.

• Pacific Growth started American Superconductor Corp (NASDAQ: AMSC) with a Neutral rating.

• Susquehanna started Quality Systems, Inc (NASDAQ: QSII) with a Positive rating.

Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).

The recalls at Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE:TM) have not dented the auto giant's reputation for quality. In the latest annual Consumer Reports survey of vehicle reliability [subscription required], Toyota did remarkably well. Again.

Of the 47 vehicles singled out for the best reliability, 38 were Japanese and 21 were from Toyota. Honda Motor Co. (NYSE:HMC) was next with 11. Only six were built by U.S. manufacturers. Of the 45 least reliable cars, half were from U.S.-based companies. Twelve came from General Motors Corp. (NYSE:GM).

Is anyone surprised that inventories at the Big Three are at troubling levels?

The news about both inventories and quality come at a particularly bad time for Chrysler. While DaimlerChrysler's (NYSE:DCX) Mercedes units does well, the parent company's results are dragged down by its U.S. unit.

The head of Chrysler, Tom LaSorda, may have to go [subscription required]. Slow sales and high inventories lead to an operating loss at the unit in Q3. And, Q4 could bring the same. Structural changes that might help costs cannot be put in place until next year. Mr. LaSorda could be blamed for not having made the expense savings earlier.

Firing management will probably not help the Detroit car companies. It may make boards feel better, but until the quality of the products improves, that "feel good" glow is just temporary.

Douglas McIntyre is a partner at 24/7 Wall St.

When Starbucks recorded a not-amazing same-store sales increase of just 4% for June, compared to a more typical comparable-store increase of 6% in the previous month, those more-caffeinated investors all held our collective breath (it's a short breath, you know, coffee has a way of making one's heart race and one's breath come shallow and fast). As Michael Canfield pointed out: could this mean Starbucks had become mature? Or was it, as Starbucks management posited, simply the impatience factor: customers tired of waiting in line for banana coconut frappuccinos?

It's a long-subscribed-to axiom that you can't have both quality and quantity. And in my opinion, Starbucks' quantity has finally increased to the point that its quality is problematic. A local one-time Starbucks manager who recently opened his own coffeeshop told me that he shook his head when his employer switched from the authentic but sometimes difficult-to-manage mechanical espresso machines to the simple, fast, industrial push-button variety. As a coffee aficionado, one who's spent her share of time behind a coffee counter, I can attest: Starbucks lattes are no longer almost as good as the ones from Gladstone Coffee down the street (they serve up locally-roasted beans from the fabu La Marzocco machine).