Google vs Amazon – Battle of the home.

Reply to this post           The time for Google to move is now. Amazon is far from standing still in its battle to win the smart home meaning that Google really needs to pull its finger out before it suffers a defeat not unlike that suffered by Betamax at the hands of VHS. Amazon is already...

Microsoft – S for school.

Reply to this post           Windows 10 S great for schools but not for the Surface Laptop.   For the education of children, Windows 10 S makes perfect sense but for college and everything else, I can’t see why anyone would want it. Microsoft held an education event this week where it launched a new version...

Facebook Q1 17 – Sleeping policeman

Reply to this post           Facebook’s growth story hits a temporary bump for 2017. Facebook reported good results but once again tried to temper enthusiasm with reality by saying that overall growth this year would slow materially. Q1 17A revenues / EPS were $8.03bn / $1.04 nicely beating consensus at $7.8bn / $0.86. Advertising revenue was...

  • Comments Off on Facebook Q1 17 – Sleeping policeman
  • 89

Apple FQ2 17– New normal

Reply to this post           These days, Apple looks like an industrial.  Apple reported reasonable results and in increasing both the dividend and the share buy-back program, ushered itself squarely into a new normal of pedestrian growth. FQ2 17A revenues / EPS were $52.9bn / $2.10 broadly in line with consensus at $52.9bn / $2.02. Gross...

Wearables – Holding pattern

Reply to this post           Wearables are sitting in a holding pattern.  Amazon, eBay and Google (Maps) have ceased supporting their apps on the Apple Watch, confirming my suspicions that while it may be novel to shop and navigate from the wrist, it is neither useful nor fun. I see this as yet another sign that...

Apple vs. Qualcomm – Proxy war

Reply to this post           Apple’s intransigence plays into Qualcomm’s hands.  Qualcomm has been forced to adjust its guidance for the coming quarter after being informed by Apple that it would not be receiving any royalties for the foreseeable future. According to Qualcomm (as Apple has made no statement), Apple has ceased payment as it finds...

MSFT / GOOG / AMZN – Law of large numbers.

Reply to this post           The big guys get bigger.  Microsoft Microsoft reported slightly disappointing results where the ageing Surface Pro line slightly marred another superb performance in the cloud with Azure and Office 365. FQ3 17 revenues / Adj-EPS were $23.56bn / $0.73 compared to consensus at $23.65bn / $0.70. Office 365 passed 100m corporate...

  • Comments Off on MSFT / GOOG / AMZN – Law of large numbers.
  • 114

Samsung Q1 17 – Roaring 40s

Reply to this post           Semis is a powerhouse with growth and margins in the 40s.   Samsung reported a superb set of results driven largely by semiconductors but announced that it would not be re-organising into a holding company much to the dismay of some activists. Q1 17 revenues / EBIT were KRW50.6tn / KRW9.9tn...

Yahoo – Fair fee.

Reply to this post           I don’t begrudge Marissa her 5% payoff. While it appears that Marissa Mayer is being paid $200m for years of failure, I think that she has recently enriched shareholders of Yahoo by over $4bn making a 5% pay off not as unreasonable as it looks. Marissa Mayer’s tenure at Yahoo has...

  • Comments Off on Yahoo – Fair fee.
  • 122

Juicero – Cautionary tale.

Reply to this post           A cautionary tale for budding entrepreneurs. While Juicero is no Theranos, it has got itself into a life-threatening mess that I suspect has come about solely because it got its business model wrong. Juicero is a Silicon Valley company that claims to offer the kind of juice purchased in a store...

  • Comments Off on Juicero – Cautionary tale.
  • 120