Ill-Advised(?) Corporate Names — Exhibit A “Slack files to go public, revealing $400 million in revenue and $139 million in losses.” –Headline, CNBC.com (4/26/19). It’s hardly hurt workplace messaging company Slack, on track to go public later this year at a valuation that could approach $20 billion(!). But, you’d think the name “Slack” would invite...Read More
Share Price Heaven [Editor’s Note: The views expressed here are solely those of Ross Kaplan, and do not represent Edina Realty, Berkshire Hathaway (“Berkshire”), or any other entity referenced. Edina Realty is a subsidiary of Berkshire.] Before I got religion on Amazon, you could say I was an “Amazon atheist” (or at least, an “Amazon...Read More
“Learn More About Your Followers” = Spend Ad Dollars on Twitter To figure out how much Twitter is worth, you need to know how many “Twitterers” (“Tweeters?” “Twits?”) will bite on the company’s email invitation to learn “more about their followers” and “what resonates with their followers to drive better engagements” (whatever that means — both phrases are excerpts from...Read More
Putting a Premium on Potential — and Discounting the Present Any would-be stock market geniuses first have to wrestle with this seeming conundrum. Newly-public Twitter has negligible revenue (never mind earnings), but is valued at an astronomical $32 billion. The rationale? The revenue and earnings will come later. Meanwhile, Apple Computer’s $40 billion(!) in net...Read More
30% Commissions!?! Where Do I Sign Up? How do you get to be the world’s second most valuable company? “Insanely great” products, to be sure. But also out-of this-world margins and fat commissions. Like 30% on every iTune it sells online. 30%! Full-service Realtors, who charge a measly 6%-7%, can only dream about such lush...Read More
