Is Twitter Finally Getting Something Right? Ford’s Got a Truckin’ Big Problem; Wall Street’s Got Beef with Chipotle’s Labor

I’ll tweet to that…

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Rumor has it that Twitter is finally, actually, seriously going to do something about sexual harassment and other hideous actions and behaviors that take place on the micro-blogging platform. The new policy changes are aimed at bullies and other highly offensive, odious excuses for human beings. But just what kind of consequences can offenders expect and how quickly can they expect them? Glad you asked. Accounts owned by the offenders will get shut down. Immediately. And forever. Posters of non-consensual nudity, including, “upskirt imagery, creep shots and hidden camera content” are out too.  Posters of “hate symbols, violent groups, and tweets that glorifies violence” can also expect some new rules that they will definitely not like.  What’s also new and necessary is that Twitter wants to figure out how bystanders get to report abuses. Just don’t expect these changes to happen overnight. In fact, it could be weeks before those policy changes take effect. Besides, Twitter’s still busy being investigated by Congress and testifying about Russia’s Twitter role in the 2016 presidential election. It seems that the 201 profile names Twitter provided to the Senate last week just weren’t enough to convince Senator Warner that Twitter was being sincere in its efforts to cooperate. But perhaps its karma for the way the micro-blogging site suspended actress Rose McGowan after bravely calling out the nefarious actions of the monster we call Harvey Weinstein.

Have you driven a Ford lately?

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There’s nothing like a recall to completely mess with your most profitable line of trucks. Ford Motor Co. is now taking a brutal hit over its very popular, number one selling F Series trucks. In fact, the aforementioned truck is the best-selling vehicle in the U.S. Apparently the doors on some 1.3 million F-150’s and Super-Duty trucks are posing a $267 million problem because if they are not fully latched they may not open or seem closed. To be fair, no accidents or injuries related to this particular issue have been reported. Yet, anyway.  The recall was inconveniently announced just weeks after Ford’s newly installed CEO unveiled a plan to cut $14 billion worth of costs. Ford plans to officially notify its customers next month but has not yet mentioned when the parts necessary to repair the trucks would be available. But Ford presumably anticipated this particular challenge since it already has some unwanted experience in this dreaded arena, with this latest fiasco bringing its recall total to 5 million vehicles.

No perks?

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As the saying goes, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” Which brings us to Chipotle, the beleaguered fast-food chain who apparently pays its employees too much – no, that is not a typo – and because of it is suffering Wall Street’s fiscal wrath. Don’t shoot the messenger here. Analysts at Bank of America Merrill Lynch just downgraded the restaurant chain from neutral to underperform because the amount of money spent on labor needs to be cut. Back in 2006, Chipotle’s average weekly hours were 34.6 for part-time and full-time employees. That was its high point. But in 2016 that number dropped significantly to 21.7. The company already did a lot of scaling back and needs to do more. However, according to analysts, there doesn’t seem to be any decent way to achieve this and still come out on top – and in the green. Shares naturally dropped by about 2% today and are down 12% for the year.

 

Google’s Tax Troubles Continue in Madrid; Will Oreo Scoop Up Hershey?; Pier 1 Not Feeling the Outdoor Love

Mucho dinero…

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It was just another day in the life of Google as authorities raided its offices, this time in Madrid, Spain. At issue, yet again, is the search engine giant’s corporate tax practices in Europe and the looming question as to whether or not Google, and other big corporations like it, are steering their profits legitimately, in order to score a reduced tax rate. Spanish authorities are investigating the search engine giant to see if it has been in engaging in the  dark art we know as tax evasion. Back in May, France investigated Google for “aggravated financial fraud” and “organized money laundering” which both sound awfully sinister. France is hoping to get $1 billion from its investigation. Even Italy’s authorities are in on the action and looking to see if Google underpaid its taxes there as well.  Google already forked over $175 million in back taxes to British authorities, whose politicians are still whining because they feel that the amount was too low. Expect more post-Brexit griping. Naturally, Google and its peers are calling out their innocence and are adamant that they comply fully with tax rules. But, at any rate, the investigations still seem far from over.

Yummm…

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The mood is sweet on Wall Street with talk of a Hershey takeover from Oreo maker Mondelez International. Given that there’s a trend to cut back on the amount of sugar people have been consuming, the timing seemed opportune for a buyout of a company that makes the world’s most beloved -in my opinion, anyway – chocolate bar. Mondelez, which also makes Cadbury chocolates, is currently the second largest confection manufacturer in the world. If the buyout goes its way, it will become the number one sweets maker, as 90% of Hershey’s revenue comes from North America. Shares of Hershey shot up 22% on the tasty news, hitting a record high of $117.79. Shares of Mondelez also went up, just not as much. Hershey’s market value is about $21 billion, give or take. But in order for the buyout to go forward, the Hershey Trust would have to give its blessing. After all, it controls 81% of Hershey stock and voting rights. However if you’re looking for some hostile action, might I suggest you look elsewhere. Mondelez already pledged to not shed any jobs and to keep the illustrious Hershey name intact.

Missed it…

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It’s looking like a long walk off a short Pier 1 as revenue for the home store chain came in at a disappointing $418.4 million. That number might seem impressive, except that it wasn’t to analysts, who were expecting revenue closer to $420 million. The company lost $6 million in profits and 7 cents a share when predictions were for a 5 cent per share loss. If those figures weren’t depressing enough, then consider that last year at this time, Pier 1 took in revenue of $436.9 million with a $7 million profit and an 8 cents per share gain. Shares of the company are now 50% less than what they were a year ago. The big area to disappoint was outdoor furniture. Darn you, outdoor furniture. That category was supposed to bring in some boffo results, but instead proved to be a real downer. The table top category did nicely. Just not nice enough. Taking a page from Chipotle, the company will now attempt to march out a rewards program and even add a gift registry. Which is weird, because I assumed the company already had a gift registry. I even went to check just now and wouldn’t you know it? It doesn’t. In any case, the company is forging ahead with plans to close 20 stores, while it already shuttered 8 this past quarter. Pier 1 did, however, open another three stores, presumably in more economically hospitable areas.

It’s All About the Brexit; Gearing Up for Some Star Spangled Traveling; Chipotle Wants to Reward You

The British are leaving, the British are leaving…

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The Brexit vote continues to cause trouble and it probably will be awhile before it stops. Janet Yellen has canceled her appearance at a bank conference in Portugal that was organized by the European Central Bank. The Fed chief was supposed to speak on a panel with the Bank of England’s Governor Mark Carney and ECB president Mario Draghi. Carney now has more pressing matters to attend to, as does Draghi, who is now heading to Brussels for a summit with EU leaders to brief them on the impact of the Brexit vote and hash out a response to the U.K. referendum. The S&P yanked its AAA credit rating on the UK since the index feels that “this outcome is a seminal event, and will lead to a less predictable, stable, and effective policy framework in the U.K.” Ouch. On Friday, the pound plunged to its biggest one day drop EVER, as Barclays Plc and the Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc had their shares halted as a result of the plunge. Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew doesn’t get the feeling that there is a financial crisis brewing. Well, at least he said as much on CNBC recently. And if Jack Lew says it, then it’s good enough for me. I think. However, analysts aren’t as optimistic about the British economy and think the “Brexit” vote just might put the UK in a recession, besides dealing a major blow to European economic growth. Those analysts feel that the U.S. will also take a hit or two as well, but without any recession drama. And in case you were counting on a rate hike anytime soon, don’t. The Brexit vote put the kibosh on it and that’s not necessarily a good thing.

Brake for it…

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According to AAA, 43 million Americans are expected to travel this holiday weekend, beginning Thursday, June 30 thru Monday July fourth. That number is 5 million more than the amount of travelers on Memorial Day weekend and 1.2% more than the amount of travelers from last year’s holiday weekend. 84% of those traveling – 36.3 million, if you please – will be doing it by car, and if the the thought of heavy traffic congestion makes your skin crawl, then you can thank low gas prices for the increased congestion. The national average price for a gallon of gas is coming in at just $2.31, its lowest price since 2005 and 17% and 47 cents lower than it was last year at this time. But at least the traveling and the money being spent on those trips is good for economic growth. Americans saved a whopping $20 billion on gas spending this year so what better way to make up for it than by getting out on the road and commuting at least 50 miles from their homes. On a darker note, because of the increased traffic, the National Safety Council is expecting 450 auto-related deaths and 53,600 car-related injuries. But at least airfares will be lower and maybe even a safer way to travel this holiday weekend.

Muy caliente…

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Chipotle is biting the jalapeno-laced bullet and will now be offering up a rewards program. Yeah, that’s news. Before it’s food bore the makings of e. coli, salmonella and norovirus, Chipotle was a veritable rewards program snob, refusing to implement one. But I guess a slew of food-safety scandals and the fact that shares of the company have lost more than a third of their value since October gave the fast-food chain a fresh – no pun intended – perspective on its economics. Hence, we are now introduced to the Chiptopia Summer Rewards Program. It’s not clear if Wall Street feels this move is strategic as Chipotle does as the stock went down today almost 3%, closing at 388.78.The rewards program will begin July 1 and run until September. However, should the rewards program prove rewarding for Chipotle and actually help it reclaim any of the glory it lost last year as a result of its rash of food safety issues, then expect the rewards program to stay put. But diners beware as this loyalty program is not like other loyalty programs that require you to accrue points or spend a certain amount of money. Instead, Chiptopia rewards its customers by the amount of visits that they make in a given month. There are three levels customers can reach: mild, medium and hot. I will spare you the sordid and complicated details. However, in order to get those points customers will always need to purchase an entree with their order. Should they achieve the illustrious “hot,” status having visited Chipotle  eleven times – in one month -, then they get to enjoy three free burritos, which by the way, will count towards more rewards.

Rate Hike? What Rate Hike?; Chipotle’s Rocky Road to Recovery; McCormick’s Spicy Good Earnings

Easy does it?

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Well, if you’re looking for the Fed to raise rates, don’t hold your breath. Despite the fact that the Fed’s next meeting is planned for April 26th and 27th, experts think a move like that probably wont happen before July. It was initially believed that there would be four rate hikes over the course of the year, after the Fed raised the rates for the first time in nine years back in December. But now it looks like there will be just two.  Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen is still promising a gradual pace of rate increases, but even she admits that the economic climate just isn’t quite impressing these days. The Central Bank is paying very close attention to all the annoying economic issues going on in the world, like the global economic slump, the very very low oil prices and a relatively volatile stock market. Of course, it wouldn’t be right not to mention China’s own economic downturn.  Plus the Fed’s not too stoked about the rate of inflation, which has been holding steady at about 1% when its target is closer to a 2% rate. Add to that weak consumer spending and you’ve got a Fed that’s not looking to stir any fiscal trouble. Hence, the Fed has assured the country that it plans to “proceed cautiously” in its rate hike plans, which is awfully considerate, according to some people, anyway.

Burned burrito…

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Free burritos or not, Chiptole’s road to fiscal recovery is looking very far off.  Wedbush Securities analyst Nick Setyan came out with a new report that says he doesn’t expect the fast food chain to recover before 2018 – calling it “the best case-scenario” – and even lowered Chipotle’s price target from $450 – $400. Ouch. Before the food safety crisis, each Chipotle restaurant was pulling down $2.5 million in sales on average. But that’s not expected to happen again for quite some time, especially given the fact that Chipotle’s operating costs are only going to get higher and higher because of its more comprehensive and stringent food safety measures. And even though the company sent out coupons for nine million free burritos, with another 21 million free burrito vouchers en route, Chipotle will still eat a $62 million tab for that, as a burrito typically costs $7.10. But hey, whatever it takes to try and erase the ugliness of E. Coli and norovirus outbreaks, right? Even with all those vouchers being sent out, the company only expects that a quarter of them will actually get redeemed. Naturally, news of the report sent shares south when the stock is already down 37% since August. Shares of Chipotle closed today at 460.10.

Spice spice baby…

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Of all the companies to report earnings lately, this one’s pretty…spicy. Yes. I had to go there. McCormick & Co. just released its first quarter results and considering that the company’s products aren’t items typically used in bulk, the $13 billion company pulled in some very impressive figures. In the process, McCormick & Co. even managed to raise its 2016 outlook, and unlike other major food producers that have been struggling to keep up with a health/organic revolution,  McCormick hasn’t faced quite the same challenges. In fact, its stock is up around 28% in the last twelve months with a little help from some recent acquisitions. The spice-maker was expecting to earn between $3.65 to $3.72 per share. But now it’s looking like it’ll pick up between $3.68 and $3.75 per share for the year. Incidentally, despite China’s economic downturn, the country still managed to give McCormick some boffo growth. Perhaps there’s a correlation between economic stress and and a desire for spicy food? Hmm. Will have to explore that one…In any case, McCormick picked up a profit of $93.4 million on $1.03 billion in revenue and adding 73 cents per share. Analysts only expected 69 cents on $1.03 billion in revenue while the year before the company took in a profit of $70.5 million on $1.01 billion in revenue with 55 cents added per share. And if that’s not enough, McCormick also scored a new 52 week high today of 99.90.

Economy Cools on Coal; Saving Chipotle One Burrito at a Time; Morgan Stanley Made a Mistake and Admits It!

Hot or coal?

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Feel free to play it naughty this year as Santa may not be able to scrounge up some coal to put in your stocking anyway. That’s because Peabody Energy, the largest American coal miner, might just be going bust, joining a slew of other coal companies. The company announced that it will be delaying a $71 million interest payment that’s due this week – and that, my friends, often signals that a company could be on the brink of filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Not that this would come as any great surprise since the stock lost over 95% of its value in the last twelve months and today tanked over 40%. Two years ago the company’s stock hit a high of $299.10. Now it’s barely hanging on as it closed at $2.20 today. The fact is that the global economy is slow enough to wreak havoc on major industries, in this case, coal. Only 33% of power came from coal in 2015. The coal industry has had to contend with stricter environmental standards that have put a major crimp in production. With natural gas being used more and more, seeing as how its cheaper and less polluting, several other coal companies have already gone under. And while nobody is crying over less pollution, it does mean that thousands of people will be out of jobs. Tens of thousands. As for Peabody Energy, the company has thirty days to make that $71 million or face default.

Burritos for all….

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It appears all is not lost at Chipotle as the food joint managed to recoup about 30% of its sales with the help of some free food – burritos, in fact. There is a lot of irony at work here. According to Chipotle CFO Jack Hartung, “Free burritos—turns out it works. It brings people into the restaurants.” It’s a good thing something is bringing folks back into the restaurants after that ugly E.Coli outbreak that sent millions of customers scrambling as far away from the restaurants as possible. As part of the company’s turnaround plan, Chipotle sent out coupons for free burritos to about 7 million customers. Then it decided that maybe sending out 21 million more coupons might not be such a bad idea. It wasn’t since 5.3 million customers already downloaded the first coupon and then, 2.5 million actually walked into a Chipotle, picked up their free burrito and, presumably, purchased a couple of other items off the menu as well. Hey, once you get ’em in the door…In any case, this quarter marked the first time that Chipotle actually forecasted a quarterly loss. Ever. Naturally, the company is still reeling from the losses over the outbreak. However, it’s also expecting to incur some heavy expenses for marketing and, of course, free burritos.

Um, about that price target…

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Wall Street insiders made a mistake and they are actually admitting it. Analysts at Morgan Stanley used to just love LinkedIn and thought the world of the platform. But that love has waned and thus the brokerage has downgraded the stock, savagely slashing the price target from $190 to $125. After all, LinkedIn’s earnings didn’t impress. Far from it, in fact, and the stock has gone down a whopping 54% in just the last three months. Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Nowak eloquently said of LinkedIn, “With its current product offering, LinkedIn isn’t likely to be as big of a platform as we previously thought.” That was harsh, I tell you. And just like that, shares of the company went down on all because the brokerages had a fiscal change of heart.

Google Exec’s Royal Pay Day; Why Chipotle Wouldn’t Serve Lunch Today; Yelping Early on Earnings

Does that include the corporate jet?

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Sundar Pichai may not just yet be a household name – something that strikes me as totally weird – but remember that name. He is, after all, one of the highest paid CEO’s of a publicly traded company, and he just scored a record $199 million Google (GOOG) stock award  – the highest ever…for a Google exec. This not-so-minor tidbit was revealed following a February 3 regulatory filing where Pichai disclosed that he received…wait for it…a whopping 273,328 class C shares of Google. Google, by the way, closed today at 682.74. You do the math. Those shares are set to vest quarterly – as long as Pichai manages to last at Google through 2019. And why wouldn’t he. With his last stock award worth about $250 million, Pichai’s Google stake stands at a staggering $650 million. Although, to be fair, tech stocks did take a hit today, with shares of Google parent company Alphabet falling – if only just by 2%. But I suspect Pichai will still come out on top. So perhaps you might want to check Google’s job board. Diane Greene, who heads Google’s cloud business, snagged $42.8 million, while Google CFO Ruth Porat will be taking home $38.3 million in equity.

Muy bien…

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You, like so very many others, probably didn’t get your Chipotle lunch fix today. And that’s not a bad thing. Stores were closed for the better part of the day as approximately 50,000 Chipotle employees gathered in 400 locations, ranging from movie theaters to conference centers, to discuss the Denver-based company’s food safety problems that have been plaguing sales at its 1,971 eateries. Chipotle CEO Monty Moran’s big plan for today’s gathering was to go over new procedures for food safety. That was probably a really great idea since an E. coli outbreak in October and a norovirus in December caused the company to temporarily shutter 43 locations, not to mention incur some brutal fiscal declines.To be fair, Chipotle’s 30% sales decrease are nothing compared to what happened to all those people who got sick. The fact that a Federal Grand jury issued a subpoena for a criminal investigation only adds insult to fiscal injury. But at least the CDC said that the outbreaks seem to be over. I’ll believe it when I hear that CDC employees themselves start ordering Chipotle’s legendary burritos. But if you don’t need those kind of assurances and are ready to chow down on a late lunch/early dinner of soft flour tacos, then bon appetite! Chipotle re-opened at 3:00 pm today.

Early reviews are in…

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Yelp’s earnings were released today –  a bit too early, mind you –  and brought with it the news that Yelp CFO Rob Krolik, who joined the company in 2011, will be stepping down. He will either stay on board until the company can find a suitable replacement or until December 15. Whichever comes first. Weird, I know. In any case, Yelp posted revenues of $153.7 million, handily beating estimates of $152.3 million, and also gained 11 cent per share even though analysts expected the company to report a loss of 3 cents per share. Shares of the company, incidentally, were down in the afternoon. Go figure. If you have yet to post an opinion/review to Yelp, rest assured that there were still 95 million other people who did it for you, letting you know the all the good, bad and ugly about our country’s countless dining establish, both fine and otherwise. Yelp’s been on a fierce mission to battle the competition out there by diversifying its restaurant bookings, offering event management and even doing payments. That’s in a addition to the company’s plans for expansion beyond the U.S. And Yelp has no time to waste as shares of its stock have been going down since March of 2014, when the company hits its high of $97.25.

 

 

Comcast: Streaming Video is so Last Year; Holy-Moly Guacamole, Chipotle is Losing Dinero; The Ultimate Biz Perks List

Who-lu?

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If online streaming video services are phasing out cable, you’d never know it judging by Comcast’s latest earnings. The company actually picked up 89,000 new subscribers – more than any other quarter in the last eight years. It was a particularly remarkable feat considering that last year at this time, the largest U.S. cable operator in the country only gained 6,000 subscribers. This means that for the year, Comcast only lost 36,000 subscribers. And yeah, that’s really good news. It’s really good because in 2014 Comcast lost over 194,000 subscribers. Time Warner Cable also announced it had picked up new subscribers. But Comcast did so well that it decided to raise it’s dividend by 10% to $1.10 – which was awfully generous of them. The nation’s leading high-speed internet operator managed to give a decent beating to analysts expectations earning $19.25 billion in revenue- an 8.5% increase over last year – instead of the projected $18.76 billion.  Comcast’s profits were up 5.2%, coming in at $2 billion, and adding 81 cents per share – just a teeny tiny penny below predictions. Oh well, maybe next time. Knowing that it’s future is/was on the line, Comcast has been trying to stay relevant in an age where streaming online video is all the rage. The company has been whipping out its fiscal A-game, offering better customer service, set-top box enhancements and smaller, more enticing bundles for current and prospective subscribers. Apparently it’s working.

The plot thickens…

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Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the fiscal Chipotle waters, along comes a subpoena, courtesy of a federal criminal probe stemming from a noro-virus outbreak in sunny California. Chipotle now needs to cough up documents going all the way back to January of 2013 and that’s not all. While Chipotle thought the worst was behind it, following the incredibly brutal E.Coli outbreak in some of its restaurants, the company announced that this year will be muy mal for investors. With huge marketing efforts in the wings, along with Herculean efforts to become the gold standard in food safety, Chipotle should be able to stay afloat. But it wont be pretty. The company’s fourth quarter earnings were pretty dismal with sales down more than a third and a whopping $10 billion shaved off its market cap. Apple and Alphabet  it is not. And with any bad news on Wall Street, particularly where there’s a subpoena involved, shares tumbled almost 3% and closed at 461.92.

Very perk-y…

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Glassdoor has served up yet another list to remind you just how badly you need to find a new place to work. This time, the company is ranking other companies according to how friggin’ awesome their employee perks are. For instance, does your current place of employment offer you “Yay Days”? Didn’t think so. But, if you score a position at REI, you get two of ’em – that’s two paid days off to spend on an outdoor activity. Does your boss currently give you $500 to use towards travel? Didn’t think so again. In which case, you ought to check Airbnb’s job board because that company gives you that much money towards travel every quarter so long as that cash is used on Airbnb accommodations (otherwise, no dice).  Burton, purveyor of fine snowboards and accompanying gear, gives its employees season passes to the local slopes. Then there’s software provider Epic Systems that generously gives its employees a four-week paid sabbatical every five years. If you want to feel even worse about where you work, visit Glassdoor for the rest of the list top ranking companies and the amazing perks they offer.

 

 

Where Have All the PC’s Gone?; Chipotle Ready for Big Return; Lego’s New Policy is Awesome

Click away…

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PC’s did not have a very merry Christmas. Or fiscal quarter for that matter. In fact, this marks the fifth consecutive quarter of disappointing PC sales. For the fourth quarter, those sales tanked by a very un-jolly 8.3%. We’re talking Lenovo, HP and Dell. But it was Acer that did the absolute worst with a 15% decline for all of 2015. Shipments of PC’s, for the first time since 2008, fell under 300 million to a very disappointing 276.2 million, more than a 10% decline since 2014. There’s just too much competition from tablet and smartphones that consumers don’t feel the need the rush to upgrade their machines. However, analysts seem to think that sales will pick up later in the year as Windows 10 gets commercialized. The one bright spot, according to the International Data Corporation, were “detachable” PC’s that seem to be all the rage right now. That segment of the industry posted some impressive growth. But then it gets weird. You see Apple, seen as a premium brand in the United States and Europe, actually saw growth – 3% for the quarter and 6% for the year – selling 20.7 million machines. It’s weird, if only because Lenovo, HP and Dell still sold more computers separately than Apple did. So it’s all a matter of perspective, I suppose.

All wrapped up?

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All is not lost for Chipotle after analysts decided that the chain has the potential to get its mojo back. Apparently, none of those analysts suffered from any food-borne illnesses from eating at Chipotle. That may or may not have had to do with why shares of the company rose the most today in more than 5 months. In fact, despite the fact that Chipotle is still slightly reeling from its relatively recent food safety crisis, the chain has plans to open up more than a couple of hundred new restaurants in the coming year. Execs say that the company is implementing new food safety protocols and believe it will make Chipotle an industry leader when it comes to food safety. Go Chipotle! The restaurant chain took a heady 15% sales hit in the fourth quarter following a multi-state E.Coli outbreak at several of its locations. As a result, the company expects to see negative sales posted until at least 2017.  However, shares today went up as high as $432.30 Bear in mind that the company experienced a major 40% slump from the high it hit back in August to the tune of $757. 77 and lost about $10 billion of its market value. There are currently several lawsuits against the chain over its past food-safety practices. But hey, good news: Chipotle execs say that the CDC is just about done with its own investigation into the food chain. Yay. Just don’t confuse that with the separate federal investigation of Chipotle following a norovirus outbreak in California.

Everything is awesome…

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Chinese artist Ai Weiwei will now get to play with all the Lego his political artwork requires. The fuss all started when Weiwei requested a large bulk order for some artwork. It was intended for an exhibition in Australia featuring 20 portraits of pro-freedom figures – to be done in Lego. But Lego wouldn’t allow him to order the amount of bricks needed for the “art” because, at the time, Lego’s policy stipulated that it did not endorse the use of its plastic bricks for projects that carry a “political agenda.” Never mind that my own father is convinced that The Lego Movie had a major political agenda subtly woven into the script. But we’ll leave it at that. In any case, when Ai Weiwei aired his grievance with the toymaker, supporters in several countries began sending in their own Lego stockpiles to the artist. Weiwei ended up using plastic bricks from a Chinese company that were similar to Legos and considerably cheaper too. Lego decided to change its policy and will officially forego asking details about such projects. However, artists must clearly display that Lego does not support or endorse the theme, message  or politics of the Lego artwork in question. Voila!

Staple’D: FTC Wants to Quash Merger; Keurig Coffee Wants Privacy; Chipotle Earnings Not Coming Up Fresh

Deja vu…

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Nothing like a pesky lawsuit to put a crimp in your $6.3 billion proposed takeover plans. Which is exactly what happened to Staples Inc. when the FTC voted unanimously, in a 4-0 vote, to try and put the kibosh on the office supply retailer’s’ attempted takeover of Office Depot by filing a suit to block the deal. The deal, which was expected to generate $39 billion in revenue, has the FTC concerned that the merger would create just one mammoth national office supply retailer that would yield too much power to raise prices, whether it be private consumers or commercial entities, many of which have big vendor contracts. This is not the first time that Staples has tried to pick up Office Depot. Back in 1997, the company attempted to do the same thing but was blocked from doing so even back then. Because the office supply marketplace has changed so much, given the availability of office supplies via e-commerce, Staples was certain this time there would be no issue. Besides, in 2012 the FTC approved a merger between Office Depot and Office Max merged on the basis that there was enough competition from Amazon, Wal-Mart and other outfits that allowed for a healthy amount of competition. Instead, of a merger today, however,  shares of Staples Inc. fell 14%, the most in 18 months, while shares of Office Depot fell 18% on news of the FTC lawsuit.

Perky…

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Big news in the single-serve coffee pod marketplace – yeah that’s a real thing: Keuring Green Mountain Inc. is going private to the tune of $13.9 billion and getting $92 per share. For real. In fact, that price is a 78% premium over Friday’s closing price. For real again. So what would make a company like that want to go private? Well it was an offer the coffee maker couldn’t refuse. That’s part of it anyway. The company posted some disappointing numbers and is down 60% just this year. Besides the ever-increasing competition in the single-serve pod market, Keuring also struck out with its KOLD product. Enter German company JAB who wants to be the numero uno North American coffee purveyor. And why not? It’s a $6.1 billion industry there alone and makes $15 billion globally. Did I mention that North America drinks up a big 40% of that global market share? JAB already picked up Peet’s Coffee and Tea and Caribou Coffee as it attempts to compete with Nestle. So far, JAB has the upper hand. By a lot. Indeed, news of the deal sent Keurig stock up 74%, which is especially good for Coca Cola since it owns 25.87 million shares, a 17.4% stake that adds up to about $2.4 billion. That’s even more good news for Coke since that’s how much it can expect to get from JAB for its shares. Of course, with any major deal, it is subject to shareholder approval. But assuming the deal’s approved, it will likely close by April.

No más

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Even millenials can’t help Chipotle with this one. The fresh-food restaurant chain saw its shares hit its lowest point in eighteen months, all the way down to $515 per share. Never mind that the stock is currently trading at around $543 a share. But I digress. Much of that slide can be blamed on the e. coli outbreak that had the chain closing a number of its locations since most of the 52 people who picked up the virus said they had eaten at Chipotle. The company is expecting a drop in same store sales between 8% – 11% for its fourth quarter. Chipotle also now expects earnings per share from $2.45 – $2.88. That’s especially brutal when you consider that analysts were expecting about $4.06 to be added, not to mention the fact that at this time last year the company pulled in $3.85 per share. The stock has been on a downward slide since news of the e. coli outbreak was first reported back in October. The stock has fallen 22% since then and is down 18% for the year.

A Dow-ner of a Day on Wall Street; On Rate Hikes and Coffee; Chipotle’s Latest Effort Is Calorie-Free

All fall down…

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Fewer things are uglier than a 1,089 point plunge on the dow. And that’s just how Monday started off, within the first few minutes of trading. By closing, however, the market was down only 588 points. Phew. Apparently the market is correcting itself, so the drops shouldn’t be too alarming. Also don’t look too much into last week’s 1,000 point drop. At least that’s what the experts are saying. The term “correction” is meant to reassure us. So are you reassured now? But correction or not, overnight there was a big sell-off in China that brought about a very unsightly 8.5% hit to the Shanghai Composite Index which the Chinese media is very unaffectionately calling “Black Monday.” Yes. It’s that bad. And worse since the repercussions of this hit are spreading through Europe, and yes, even our shores. Feel free to cringe now. The world’s second biggest economy is slowing a little too much for our liking. Countries that depend on China to buy its commodes and luxury goods companies that have enjoyed selling to the Chinese are  now freaking out and revising their outlooks. Although, Apple CEO Tim Cook graciously pointed out, much to the delight of Wall Street, that the Chinese are, in fact, still buying, albeit, at a slower pace and that Apple actually had a record few weeks in China. Well, lucky Apple.

As for that rate hike…

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Whether you see it as a good thing or bad thing, plans for Janet Yellen and the Fed to hike rates in September just might have hit a wall thanks to the financial turmoil rocking the world as of late. Sell-offs, swings and losses (oh my!) just might have done the trick to put the kibosh on the Federal Reserve’s intention to raise rates next month, at least according to investors, who probably know a thing or two about that. In fact, that hike is now looking like it will take place around March. It’s all sort of ironic since the Fed seemed almost non-plussed about China’s fiscal comings and goings because the U.S. economy was the hogging the spotlight for the way it’s been picking up speed lately. Oh well. Guess that thinking caught up with the Fed. Incidentally, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz, always at the forefront of the cause du jour, sent out an email advising employees to be sensitive to investors who seem a bit edgy, not from caffeine withdrawal, but rather from the volatile global market situation. He writes: “be very sensitive to the pressures our customers may be feeling, and do everything we can to individually and collectively exceed their expectations.” Can I get a kumbaya?

Scrumptious…

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Chipotle’s got a plan. But this one has nothing to do with adding to its millennial-appealing menu. That part seems to be covered. It seems that a stronger economy, an increased demand for restaurant dining and a minimum wage increase across states and companies has put quite the crimp in the talent pool for Chipotle employees, resulting in fewer applicants and not enough workers to dish out the aforementioned millennial-appealing fare. To combat that, Chipotle is launching a “National Career Day” where on September 9, the Denver-based chain plans on hiring some 4,000 new employees. The company is hoping to attract talent with this latest initiative, throwing around terms like “six-figure salaries” for high-performers to earn (far) down the road. Chipotle’s already part of the the Starbuck’s led 100,000 Opportunities Initiative. Starbucks, McDonald’s, Wendy’s and a slew of other companies have all been offering up all kinds of new interesting perks to attract a greater talent pool, from college reimbursement to more paid vacation. Al things I can certainly appreciate. Chipotle already employs about 60,000 people and on September 9 the company will likely increase its workforce by 7%. All you have to do is register at http://www.nationalcareerday.com. All U.S. Chipotle restaurants will conduct interviews between 8 and 11 am and if you land a gig, look forward to making more than $10 per hour to start.