SanDisk Gets Ready For 200 Million Tablets By 2014

SanDisk estimates that tablet sales will increase from 17 million units in 2010 to nearly 205 million units by 2014 driven by the rising popularity of device, increasing capabilities and increased adoption by individuals as well as businesses alike.

Source: http://blogs.forbes.com/greatspeculations/2011/03/25/sandisk-gets-ready-for-200-million-tablets-by-2014/

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Which Beverage Makers Will Quench Japan's Thirst for Bottled Water?

Residents of Tokyo are stockpiling bottled water as fears of radioactive contamination of Japanese tap water mount. And as fast as water is flying off store shelves, investors are moving even faster to snap up shares in beverage companies that may potentially benefit from an uptick in sales.

Industry and Wall Street analysts, however, say that only a handful of companies are likely to be able to quench the thirst either of the Japanese or of investors. Bottled water is heavy and expensive to ship, and once it reaches retail outlets, it's usually sold at prices below those of carbonated drinks or alcoholic beverages. Companies able to source their water and bottle it in Japan or in nearby countries have the best shot at benefiting from the higher demand.

The contamination issue traces back to containment failures at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, 170 miles northeast of the capital. The run on bottled water in began when the Japanese government reported finding traces of radioactive iodine from Fukushima in tap water in Tokyo, though the government noted at the time that the levels were within an acceptable range. Fears escalated Wednesday when authorities warned residents of the affected areas and Tokyo that infants under 1 year old should not be given tap water because the levels were twice what was considered safe for babies to drink. Infants are particularly vulnerable to radioactive iodine, which can cause thyroid cancer, the Associated Press notes.

Facing a severe shortage of bottled water, the government said it was considering importing bottled water to supplement the nation's existing supply, according to a New York Times report.

A 10% Jump in Sales
?

A substantial increase in bottled water consumption is expected this year in Japan, which traditionally has seen only minor yearly increases, if any at all, says Philippe Chan, an Asia manager for beverage market researcher Canadean Ltd.

"We now expect to see an 8% to 10% increase in volume for bottled water for the next three to four months and, if this situation continues through the end of the year, volume may go up 10% to 12%," Chan said, who is based in Hong Kong. "Bottled water in Japan has been flat over the last few years. It's a mature market and, at best, it's gone up 1% or 2%, unless it has exceptionally hot weather."

Prior to the catastrophic 9.0 earthquake and tsunami, Canadean estimated that bottled water sales in Japan would be flat or decline this year compared to 2010, when an estimated 2.4 billion liters of bottled water were sold there.

Switching to Other Drinks

"The news about the water appears to be a net positive for beverage manufacturers," said Philip Gorham, a Morningstar analyst, via email. "The affected area is still quite small, so the disruption to infrastructure and distribution is limited, while the benefit of increased sales of bottled water could be large and more widespread."

He noted that consumers may turn to other beverages, such as bottled juices, soda or teas, as water becomes more scarce and concerns about drinking the tap water linger. And those products carry a higher profit margin, which would benefit beverage companies with a presence in Japan.

As the AP and other media outlets have pointed out, however, radioactive iodine doesn't stay radioactive for long. Its half-life -- the time it take for half of it to break down into harmless elements -- is just eight days.

The Fall and Rise of Beverage Stocks

Kirin Holdings, Japan's largest beverage maker, saw its shares take a hit in the days immediately following the disaster as companies struggled to assess the damage to their operations and distribution. But as information emerged about the radioisotopes in tap water, Kirin and other major Japanese beverage suppliers saw their shares rebound. Since hitting a low point of 962 yen on March 15, Kirin's shares have risen 11.8% to close at 1,076 yen Friday on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

Over the same period, Asahi Breweries shares have climbed 9.3% to close at 1,436 yen. And Coca-Cola West has soared 25.7% to close at 1,494 yen -- slightly higher than its shares were trading before the earthquake. Kirin and Asahi are approaching the trading levels they saw just before the disaster.

U.S.-based Coca-Cola (KO) shares, meanwhile, are up 5.6% since March 16 in intra-day trading. Wall Street analysts note that while Coca-Cola derives 9% of its global beverage sales from Japan and 13% of its operating income from the country, the company is not likely to see its sales in Japan surge as a result of the disaster.

"Japan is a small part of Coca-Cola's business. It's not that large a piece to their revenue pie," says one analyst at a major Wall Street firm, noting that while the company may benefit from greater sales to the country, the additional costs to export bottled water and other beverages from its company-owned bottling plants in China and the Philippines may not help its bottom line.

How Long Before the Water is Safe?

Coca-Cola is the only major foreign beverage company in Japan that sources its water from within the country. PepsiCo (PEP), uses a partner to manufacture and distribute its drinks in Japan, and Unilever (ULVR) also does not produce water products in the country, Chan says. These three companies control nearly 30% the market for non-alcoholic beverages in the country, with the remainder controlled by Japanese beverage companies.

Coca-Cola and other beverage makers are donating money and beverages to the affected areas of Japan. That doesn't add to corporate coffers directly, but the goodwill it may generate among residents of Japan may provide a financial benefit down the road.

"A lot of companies donate water, but there will also be an influx of sales," says Gary Hemphill, managing director of the research firm Beverage Marketing Corp. "With Hurricane Katrina, we saw a spike in sales for a specified time of a month, or two or three and then it reverts back to its previous levels. The difference is if a safe water supply can't be guaranteed, then that will dictate whether water sales stay at an elevated level for a period of time or return to pre-disaster levels."

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Source: http://www.dailyfinance.com/story/company-news/japan-radiation-contamination-bottled-water-beverage-makers-stocks-iodine/19891285/

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Apple Spreads iPad Wealth Across Supply Chain, Especially In Korea

LG supplies display and touchscreen interface components for the iPad 2 that cost around $127. Based on our estimate of 20 million iPad 2 units sold in 2011, we arrive at the estimate of $2.5 billion in revenues for LG Display from the iPad 2 in 2011. We estimate that Samsung will earn around $1.6 billion from the iPad 2 in 2011. Although LG and Samsung find it difficult to compete directly against Apple, they stand to gain the most from iPad 2's success.

Source: http://blogs.forbes.com/greatspeculations/2011/03/25/apple-spreads-ipad-wealth-across-supply-chain-especially-in-korea/

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HP: Skating to Where the Puck Will Be

During Hewlett-Packard's (NYSE: HPQ  ) recent investor summit, CFO Cathie Lesjak said the company is "skating to where the puck will be" -- a strategy she felt investors weren't giving due credit.

With a P/E ratio of 10.9, I agree that investors are giving HP short shrift, especially given the rational plan the company outlined at its investor day. HP is working to position itself "where the puck will be." Unfortunately, competitors are heading the same direction -- and some are in front of HP. Add in the uncertainty of a new CEO and a disappointing earnings outlook in February, and it's no wonder that HP is trading at a "show me" multiple.

That said, HP is so big that it doesn't have to get to the puck first. But while it's not in a winner-take-all situation, HP will still have to contend with IBM (NYSE: IBM  ) , which is in the same weight class, closer to the puck, and better at anticipating where it will next appear.

In the technology industry, smaller, faster and more nimble players are often closest to the puck. HP plans to continue buying such companies; so do IBM and others. Fortunately, small high-tech companies often want to be bought by goliaths such as HP, IBM, Dell (Nasdaq: DELL  ) , and Oracle (Nasdaq: ORCL  ) . All the goliaths hope that these acquisitions will boost revenue growth and fend off threats as their businesses increasingly converge on one another. Obtaining new technology capabilities is a key means of getting them closer to the puck.

But corporate acquisitions often fall short of projections, and I'm still not certain that HP can approach Cisco's or IBM's lofty success rates. The TouchPad tablet that sprang from HP's purchase of Palm last year is a compelling product, with potential to be a serious contender in the tablet wars. However, it's very late to the party, and HP lacks the marketing savvy of tablet leader Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL  ) .

Foolish takeaway
HP is heading the right direction, and the stock currently trades at a low P/E ratio. But the company lags many of its rivals in their collective quest to snag that elusive puck. However promising its plan, HP may need several quarters of good news before its stock will begin to perform.

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Source: http://feeds.fool.com/~r/usmf/foolwatch/~3/kbxlU4KVjhM/hp-skating-to-where-the-puck-will-be.aspx

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Jon Jones Beats Shogun Via TKO At UFC 128

It only took three years and three rounds for Jon Jones to achieve his destiny. Three years later after making his MMA debut, Jon Bones Jones is the new UFC light heavyweight champion. Jon Jones vs. Mauricio Shogun Rua at UFC 128 ended with a new champion and a huge UFC star!

Jones dominated Rua for three rounds and looked more like the veteran champion than the young challenger. Jones confused Rua early with his unorthodox style and closed the distance for most of the fight. Jones nailed Rua early in the fight and the champion never recovered. Rua looked wobbly for the rest of the fight and didn't have any answers for the MMA prodigy.

Jon Bones Jones ended the fight in the third round after dropping Shogun with a barrage of knees. Rua escaped an onslaught of elbows and strikes on the ground, got to his feet, but had nothing left to answer the challenger. Jones went in for the kill  and became the youngest world champion in UFC history in round 3 at 2:37.

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/businessinsider/~3/NW6ac4WCIx4/jon-jones-beats-shogun-via-tko-at-ufc-128-2011-3

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Meet The $39 Billion Men Behind JPMorgan's Massive AT&T Deal (JPM, T, CLWR, S)

andy o'brien

JPMorgan leapt past the competition as an advisor to AT&T in the (probably) impending $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile, to take first place in the M&A league tables.

They'll get a monster fee for advising AT&T on what to do. And the bank has so much confidence in the success of the deal that it is also putting up $20 billion.

According to Jes Staley, head of JP's investment bank, while in "transaction like this... it's a long cc: list," there a couple of people who made the bonanza possible.

"The first call on the AT&T (T) deal came into our senior telecom banker, Kurt Simon," Staley told Fortune. "We also have a terrific syndicated loan group -- led by Andy O'Brien -- that stepped up when they needed to."

So let's meet the $39 billion men.

Kurt Simon: The Telecom Talent

Simon was promoted to co-head JP Morgan's technology, media and telecommunications unit in 2009; he was in charge of the telecom investment-banking team at the time.

When he was elevated, he told the WSJ, "We want to build on our existing strengths to become the No. 1 technology-media-telecommunications franchise on the West Coast." Box, ticked.

According to a Top 50 Rainmaker's list by Evercore,

Simon is well-known to many of the communication industry's biggest players, who call him regularly to help them cut through market interference. Having banked the telecom space for 13 years, he still radiates ideas and energy. Just ask Clearwire Corp, which, with Simon's help, raised $600 million in its March IPO, the year's second-largest telecom listing.

Other deals he's been involved on include R.H. Donnelly's $10 billion buyout of Dex Media; the $12 billion sale of Embarq Corp to CenturyTel in 2008;  the $27.5 billion leveraged sale of Alltel to TPG Capital and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners; and a succession of transactions for Nextel including its $35 billion merger with Sprint.

He is said to be a protege of Goldman Sachs banker Jack Levy, and earned a B.A. in economics and public policy from Duke University. After college, he joined Merrill as an analyst for two years before heading off to Wharton to gain an MBA, The Deal reported. He returned to Merrill in 1994 after stints at Salomon Brothers and Lehman Brothers, where he rose to head of telecom M&A. He moved to JP Morgan in 2002. 

He's been both a Democratic and Republican donor.

Andy O'Brien: The Ruler Of Restructuring

O'Brien has been with JP Morgan for more than 25 years -- he began his career with Manufacturers Hanover Trust, which, through a series of mergers, became a part of JP Morgan.

He's a managing director and Co-Head of Syndicated and Leveraged Finance for the firm. That means he oversees loan syndication, high yield bonds and restructuring practices. He's also on the firm's Balance Sheet Committee.

Prior to his current role, O'Brien also headed loan syndications, headed U.S. loan sales and lead the firm's European Media Group. He earned his undergraduate degree from the College of the Holy Cross, and got an MBA from Columbia.

A Marathon Not A Sprint

In Evercore's Top 50 Dealmaker list, the article asked "How to become a rainmaker in this space?" about Kurt Simon. The answer? "Simon shows it's often a matter of long-distance connections. His relationship with Alltel dates back to 1994, when he was third-year associate at Merrill Lynch he maintained those ties when he went to JP Morgan..."

That reinforces exactly what Jes Staley told Fortune about the deal, when asked why suddenly JP Morgan's M&A unit had excelled this year after having come fourth in the league tables last year.

"The reaction to a deal of this size is like the athlete that runs the big race with the TV cameras rolling. But that athlete has been training for years to be in the position to take the race," he said.

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/businessinsider/~3/lJq0WwkPH7c/kurt-simon-andy-obrien-jp-morgan-att-deal-39-billion-2011-3

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Final Q4 GDP Comes In Pretty Much In Line With Expectations

americaHeadline: 3.1% (annually for Q4)

Expectations: +3%

Analysis: Projections for Q4 GDP were lowered to a positive 2.8% at last revision. In Q3 2010, GDP was at a positive 2.6%.

This isn't much of a beat, but it's not another negative revision, so it's good news.

Markets are barely reacting to this, which indicates that this was pretty much as expected.

Don't miss: 8 shocks Citi believe will hit the world economy >

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/businessinsider/~3/RgeusPL4Avc/final-q4-gdp-2011-3

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Estee Lauder Needs More Beauty Cream To Make Its Stock Look Attractive

The skin care market is currently pegged at around $97 billion, and we expect this market to cross $130 billion by the end of Trefis forecast period. Estee Lauder for now has a small share of close to 7%, but the opportunity to grow is limitless.

Source: http://blogs.forbes.com/greatspeculations/2011/03/24/estee-lauder-needs-more-beauty-cream-to-make-its-stock-look-attractive/

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Debt Consolidation Reviews ? What You Need To Do Before Picking Debt Consolidation Companies

Debt Consolidation Reviews – What You Want To Do Before Picking Debt Consolidation Firms Are you in the procedure of researching debt consolidation organizations? Do you want to know what you ought to demand from the debt consolidation company you pick? There are many steps that need to be implemented long just before you sign [...]

Source: http://www.legaldebthelponline.com/2011/03/24/debt-consolidation-reviews-what-you-need-to-do-before-picking-debt-consolidation-companies/

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