Investopedia: A Little Noise In Disney Earnings Shouldn't Matter Much

Even though Disney (NYSE:DIS) shares were basically flat for the past quarter (while the S&P 500 was up about 5% and some consumer indices were a little stronger), it's hard to overlook the 30%-plus gain over the past year. Along similar lines, while the company's core cable, international park, and movie business may have not done so well this quarter, Disney doesn't run itself on a quarter by quarter basis. With that, and the company's strong sports, movie, park, and IP franchises, it's hard not to like Disney as a company, even though the shares don't look particularly cheap.

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Investopedia: Pandora Goes Up To 11

Seeing the performance of internet stocks like Facebook (NYSE:FB) and Pandora (NYSE:P), I really need to remember to eat my own cooking and actually buy those stocks that I think are undervalued. Since my last writeup in December of 2012, Pandora shares have jumped over 150% as investor worries about monetizing mobile users and staving off competition have eased considerably. For better or worse, there's still enormous uncertainty about the eventual business model for Pandora – meaning that bears can credibly argue that Pandora is overpriced now just as bulls make the case that Pandora is still a buy.

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Investopedia: Disney Does It Again

As I said in my last write-up of Disney (NYSE:DIS), there's an element of predictable unpredictability to this company and that came through again this quarter. Like so many other consumer-oriented stocks, though, Disney has been on an absolute tear – more than doubling the performance of the S&P 500 over the past year. While I wouldn't worry about that if I were a long-term holder of Disney (and still planning on being one), valuation is making it appear as though there's a housing bubble for the House of the Mouse.

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Investopedia: Disney Has A Stable Of Horses To Ride

While the quality of global entertainment and media giant Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) is generally taken as a given, the company has always been a little more erratic in terms of margins, cash flows and returns on capital than most companies of its size and reputation. These variances are largely a byproduct of the nature of the business (particularly hit movies), but they can still create opportunities for investors. Disney seldom gets very cheap, and the company has multiple levers to improve results over the coming years. But investors should keep their eyes open for a chance to pick up shares should the stock stumble on transitory bad news.

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Investopedia: Yahoo! Still Has So Much To Do

There's still life in Yahoo! (Nasdaq:YHOO), but there's also still a long and difficult road ahead of the company. Marissa Mayer has been at the helm for only a short time and fundamental repositionings in strategy, culture, and so on do not happen overnight. While Yahoo! most definitely faces serious threats from the likes of Google (Nasdaq:GOOG) and Facebook (Nasdaq:FB), the company has assets and opportunities that still offer some hope.

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Investopedia: Bull Vs. Bear - A Deal For The Fiscal Cliff Won't Be Finalized Before The End Of December

Question: Is a deal for the fiscal cliff going to happen?

Bear's Response
When considering the question of the upcoming "fiscal cliff" (the expiration of various tax cuts and the simultaneous automatic cuts across a variety of federal budget items), I'm reminded of a famous quote from Winston Churchill, "Americans can always be counted on to do the right thing ... after they have exhausted all other possibilities." While I do believe Congress will have little choice but to find a compromise that undoes the growth-damaging combination of higher taxes and lower spending, it will not come until 2013.

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Investopedia: Bull Vs. Bear - Special Dividends Are A Good Thing

Question: Is early payment of dividends an effective way of avoiding the tax due to the fiscal cliff?

Bull's Response
There's really only one fundamental reason for publicly-traded companies to exist - to pool capital from shareholders, invest it in projects that generate positive net economic returns on that capital and return the capital to shareholders. Whatever legal moves a company can take to maximize the value of the capital they return to shareholders is, on balance, a good thing.

So too with the recent spate of special dividends and accelerate dividend payment schedules in light of the potential tax ramifications of the fiscal cliff.

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Investopedia: If You Can't Beat The Taxman, Outrun Him!

Economic theorists warn that fiddling too much with tax policy provides incentives for market participants to devote time and energy to managing their tax exposure, as opposed to going about the productive work that generates that taxable income. The last few weeks have suggested that those theorists are onto something, as a variety of companies make moves designed to end-run the upcoming changes in tax policies tied to the fiscal cliff.

Many companies, including Costco (Nasdaq:COST), have announced special dividends to be paid ahead of the year-end as a means of transferring more cash to shareholders before taxes on such distributions increase significantly. Now a host of companies are making slightly less dramatic, but still significant, changes to the timing of their dividend payments in order to avoid at least some of the effects of the fiscal cliff.

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Investopedia: Disney Buys Lucasfilm, But Is it A Trap?

For many Star Wars fans, the news that came out Tuesday evening read more like something from The Onion or a Halloween prank. The American media megalith Disney (NYSE:DIS) announced that, not only did it reach an agreement to acquire Lucasfilm from George Lucas for about $4.1 billion, but that a new Star Wars movie would be in theaters by 2015, with many more following thereafter. While this deal looks a little riskier than those for Pixar and Marvel, Disney has a habit of monetizing media franchises more successfully than analysts usually predict.

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Investopedia: Vivendi Needs Cooperation To Turn Around

There's only so much that any company can do on its own, particularly when a major part of its restructuring plans revolve around selling assets at fair prices. But that is the situation facing Vivendi (OTC:VIVEF) today; while there is indeed ample capacity for the company to improve internal operations and returns, it seems like a lot of value realization rests on finding buyers for various parts of the business. Although Vivendi does appear to be worth meaningfully more than today's market value, investors should underestimate the time and work it may take for that value to come to fruition.

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Investopedia: Another "Good Enough" Quarter For Disney

Media giant Disney (NYSE:DIS) did not have a perfect quarter, but it was good enough to get the job done. Media results were a little noisy, but solid revenue growth in parks and resorts coupled with good profitability in the studio made for a good bottom line result. As is often the case, Disney's stock is not especially cheap, but investors have long been willing to pay up for Disney's dominance and perceived full-cycle consistency.

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Seeking Alpha: Disney Winning The Rat Race

Disney (DIS) is one of those remarkable companies that seems to have an uncanny knack for figuring out what its customers want and then giving them even more of it. Sounds simple, I know, but not many companies have wracked up lifetime gains of nearly 47,000%. That said, Disney is a surprisingly volatile stock and brand value alone won't save investors who buy at the wrong times - investors who bought in 14 years ago are sitting on just 19% gains (excluding dividends) and looking up longingly at the S&P 500's returns over that time period.

With that in mind, Disney's solid performance in Q1 and strong stock may be a sign that new investors should cool their heels a bit before taking the plunge with new money.

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Disney Winning The Rat Race

Seeking Alpha: Summer Infant An Early Stage Growth Story

Although investment writers often seem to hate growth-by-acquisition roll-up stories, there's a reason that they keep popping up in the market – when executed properly, they can work very well. Investors can look at stories as varied as Danaher, BB&T, or Helen Of Troy (Nasdaq: HELE) and see a similar theme of success through repeated M&A activity.

It may be unfair to suggest that Summer Infant (Nasdaq: SUMR) has only grown by virtue of folding in smaller makers of kid-oriented products, but the fact remains that the company is what it is today because of deals. Looking out a few years, though, it's not too hard to see how Summer Infant can grow itself into a real contender next to Mattel's (NYSE: MAT) Fisher-Price or Newell Rubbermaid's (NYSE: NWL) Graco business. Consequently, the company's downward revision in Q4 results is upsetting, but not the end of the story.

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Summer Infant: An Early Stage Growth Story

Investopedia: A Look At Yahoo's Past, Present, and Future

Flogging the rumors of a Yahoo! (Nasdaq:YHOO) buyout is a well-rehearsed move among financial journalists, over the last year or so. Certainly this one-time internet darling still captures a lot of attention, as did the stories about Microsoft (Nasdaq:MSFT) or Alibaba possibly acquiring it. In all of the discussions of what might happen to Yahoo!, though, it seems like there is relatively little acknowledgment that the company have still have its own independent future. (For other acquisitions, see Biggest Merger and Acquisition Disasters.)


Although going head-to-head with Google (Nasdaq:GOOG) is unlikely to start producing great economic returns, and the company has certainly missed out on many high-potential business endeavors, there are still a few things that Yahoo! does well. They just may not be the things that people immediately think about as long-term business opportunities.

What Yahoo! Was
Most readers are pretty well-acquainted with what Yahoo! used to be and what brought it to fame and recognition. Yahoo! was one of the first useful search engines on the web and arguably one of the first viable internet businesses.


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Investopedia: Mattel - Steady, But Not On Sale

There are not too many companies out there that sell products that have been popular across multiple generations, but Mattel (Nasdaq:MAT) is one of them. In many respects, Mattel looks like an excellent company - it offers beloved brands, a strong return on capital and respectable margins. The question for shareholders, though, is whether management is willing to take the sort of risks that will be necessary to really improve growth, and make this more than a steady dividend play.

Solid Third Quarter Results  
On the whole, Mattel delivered neither a positive surprise nor a disappointment for the third quarter. Revenue rose about 9% as reported, with 7% growth when measured in constant currency. Domestic growth was a bit softer than international (6% versus 8%), but balanced all the same. Although the company's Fisher-Price business saw a little revenue erosion on a constant currency basis, the Barbie franchise saw 13% growth.


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Investopedia: Should Value Investors Check Into Marriott?

Hospitality is a tricky business. Treat people right, and your restaurants, hotels and resorts can become multi-generational destinations; think of Disney (NYSE:DIS) or the Four Seasons. At the same time, it's a brutal business - demanding customers, rampant competition and the vagaries of the economic cycle all put heavy demands on management. Marriott (NYSE:MAR) is clearly a long-term winner and a leader in the industry, but there is an incredible amount of noise in the market right now. 

A Pretty Comfy Third Quarter 

All things considered, Marriott delivered solid third quarter results. Revenue (net of reimbursements) rose almost 11%, with constant currency revenue per available room (RevPAR) about 7% globally. The RevPAR was pretty consistent both at home and abroad, and the company is seeing modestly positive occupancy trends (up 2%) despite rate increases.

Profitability is also coming in fairly well. Operating profits rose nearly 14% and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) climbed about 11% this quarter. On an adjusted basis, EBITA was up a more modest 9%, but still slightly more positive on balance than many analysts had expected. (For related reading, see A Clear Look At EBITDA.)

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Investopedia: Netflix And Creative Destruction

Few things are easier in business than sticking with what has always worked before. Unfortunately, that is often an open invitation to hungry new competitors to come in, eat your lunch, take your customers and leave you with the bill. To that end, while investors (not to mention customers) may be confused, frustrated or angry with Netflix's (Nasdaq:NFLX) latest moves, they may be exactly what the company has to do to remain a leader in the fast-developing media content business.


Old Wine in New Bottles
Netflix's latest move is to separate its traditional DVD-by-mail business from its newer streaming media business. Management is renaming the DVD business "Qwikster," adding video game rental to the service, and operating it as a wholly-owned subsidiary with its own management and customer service infrastructure.

The Netflix name will now be solely for the streaming business, and the two companies will run quite separately. There will be different websites and customers will see two charges on their credit card statement if they sign up for or keep both services.



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Investopedia: Can There Be Another Disney?

There is an idea out there that the increasing "democratization" of content and distribution will mean that the  age-old balance between artists and creative types and their corporate masters has changed forevermore. If that is true, investors should consider the possibility that there may never be another company quite like Disney (NYSE:DIS) with its ability to create enduring global and iconic brands.


Has Distribution Changed the Game?
There was a time that if someone wanted to be an actor, they had to accept and work within the "studio system." Major studios like Fox Film, Warner Brothers and Paramount signed up all of what they saw as the talented actors, directors and crew to long-term exclusive deals, and they likewise controlled the production studios, distribution networks, and in many cases the theater chains as well. To be in movies outside of the major studios meant being in low-budget "B movies" and perhaps never having people see your work. (For related reading, see Why Movies Cost So Much To Make.)

Much the same was true for artists in other media. While there were quite a lot of small publishing houses, authors who wanted to make a living had to work through established publishers like Scribner's or magazine publishers like Amazing Stories and Weird Tales - and these publishing outlets were increasingly acquired and consolidated through the 60s, 70s, and 80s. When it came to media like cartoons or comics, there was likewise a limited number of venues - if you couldn't get a job with Warner Brothers, Hanna-Barbera, or Marvel, you were likely limited to self-publishing and had to hustle hard to get anyone to notice your work.




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Investopedia: Corruption And Scandal Don't Make News Corp A Bargain

One of the golden rules of dealing with the media is to "control the message". Given the increasing furor over the conduct of News Corp (NYSE:NWS) in a phone-hacking scandal in the U.K. and the calls for the company to be prosecuted (or at least investigated) under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, News Corp is clearly failing in that regard. While some investors may be attracted to the stock given its declines in the wake of the scandal and the theory that it is too big to fail, caution may be the better part of valor today. (For a couple of strategies to over come this scandal, read Crisis Management Strategies For Business Owners.)

An Ugly Action Kills a Paper  
Even by the iffy standards of British tabloid journalism, News Corp's News of the World always walked a gray line when it came to scandal and controversy. Going a step way too far, though, several of the paper's employees have been accused of hacking into private citizen's phones and intercepting voice mails, including those of the families of dead soldiers and those who lost family members in the 2005 terrorist bombings. 


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Investopedia: Will Social Gaming Keep Electronic Arts Relevant?

The fad of the day is social and mobile gaming, and investors are more than a little fired up over the upcoming IPO of Zynga. While some people dread seeing notifications from games their friends are playing on platforms like Facebook, others cannot get enough of them and buy smartphones and tablets, in part on their ability to support gaming. Not wanting to get left behind, Electronic Arts (Nasdaq:ERTS) is making a major financial commitment to becoming a player in this space.


The Latest Deal
Electronic Arts announced Tuesday night that it would acquire PopCap Games, publisher of games like Plants vs. Zombies and Bejeweled, in a cash-and-stock deal. Electronic Arts will be paying $650 million in cash and $100 million in stock up front for the privately held Seattle-based game company. But scaled earn-outs could push the total deal price north of $1.3 billion if PopCap delivers cumulative two-year operating income of over $343 million.

Any way you slice it, this is a rich valuation on the fundamentals. PopCap does boast over 150 million installed games, but it produced about $100 million in revenue last year (though reportedly with a growth rate in the vicinity of 40%). To the extent that traditional game publishers like Electronic Arts, Activision Blizzard (Nasdaq:ATVI) or Take-Two (Nasdaq:TTWO) are comparables, the 7.5 times trailing sales that Electronic Arts is paying (just based upon upfront consideration) is about triple the going rate. 




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