Where did Apple’s missing market value go?
By Richard Beales
The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.
Mr Market has slashed Apple’s market value by $260 billion in six months. Meanwhile, the combined worth of a wide group of smartphone and tablet rivals has added less than half that. If investors think Apple is fading, the competing Android complex could be worth far more – to someone.
Apple’s halo loses shine in investor fight
By Richard Beales
The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.
No one looks too good in Apple’s fight with David Einhorn. The Greenlight Capital founder scored a legal point, but better governance wasn’t his main objective. Apple comes off amateurish. The California Public Employees’ Retirement System, despite worthy shareholder-friendly aims, seems careless. The Securities and Exchange Commission also missed a trick.
Apple and Einhorn could both use cleaner design
By Richard Beales
The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.
Apple and David Einhorn could both use some of the iPhone maker’s famed simplicity. The $430 billion technology company has combined three governance fixes better considered separately. Also a bit unwieldy is an idea from the boss of hedge fund firm Greenlight Capital to unlock value at Apple. A sleeker approach makes more sense.
Warning: it’s not just the hacks being hacked
By Richard Beales
NEW YORK, Feb 5 (Reuters Breakingviews) – The hacks have
been hacked. The New York Times (NYT.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the Wall Street Journal
and other media outlets have revealed network intrusions –
seemingly from China. They think the hacking is related to their
investigations of the Beijing regime. But news paranoia is only
a small part of a big story.
Defenses are necessary because electronic spying is
everywhere. The United States government does it for
geopolitical reasons and there’s plenty of evidence pointing to
industrial espionage by entities linked to the Chinese
government. Other governments, unscrupulous rivals and criminals
all see electronic opportunities.
JPMorgan flaws should ring alarms everywhere
By Richard Beales and Martin Hutchinson
The authors are Reuters Breakingviews columnists. The opinions expressed are their own.
JPMorgan was supposed to be among the best managers of bank risk in the world. This week it published an internal report into the failings which led to $6.2 billion of trading losses at its chief investment office in 2012. If the mix revealed – conflicting mandates, discredited theory, inadequate checks and primitive technology – is really as good as it gets, financial watchdogs and investors everywhere should worry. There are plenty of lessons for regulators and bank executives who want things done right.
Draft obit for 2020: 2-and-20 fee structures
(The authors are Reuters Breakingviews columnists. The opinions
expressed are their own.)
By Neil Unmack and Richard Beales
LONDON/NEW YORK, Dec 28 (Reuters Breakingviews) -
( Anticipated publication around 2020.)
The most surprising thing about the demise of two-and-20
hedge fund fees is how long it took. Neither losses in the 2008
credit crunch nor the feeble returns during the ensuing
seven-year euro zone crisis did much to bring down the
archetypal fee structure: 2 percent management fee and 20
percent of gains. Now, though, it can finally be
said: two-and-20 is dead.
Central bank independence at risk in 2013
By Richard Beales
The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.
The Federal Reserve will celebrate its centennial in 2013. Though independence for the U.S. lender of last resort and its peers elsewhere has historically come and gone, in recent decades it has become an article of faith. But these days, faith in central banking is far from rock solid.
SolarCity IPO valuation approaches earth
By Richard Beales
The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.
SolarCity’s underwriters have come down closer to earth. The U.S. solar panel installer slashed its expected initial public offering price by more than 40 percent at the last moment to $8 a share. The old price of $14 at the middle of the range, equating to some six times expected 2012 revenue, always looked starry-eyed. The new price merely requires optimism.
SAC investors set to stew alongside founder Cohen
By Richard Beales
The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.
SAC Capital investors are set to stew alongside Steve Cohen. The Securities and Exchange Commission may take civil action against the $14 billion hedge fund firm that bears Cohen’s initials. Those with money at SAC need to weigh the risk. The law moves slowly, but so does the redemption process – it would take investors months to withdraw cash.
Ben Bernanke is no holiday price Grinch
(The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions
expressed are his own.)
By Richard Beales
NEW YORK, Nov 26 (Reuters Breakingviews) – Easy money isn’t
making this year’s holiday festivities too pricey. The cost of
the “Twelve Days of Christmas” gifts, excluding swans, is up a
below-average 2.6 percent. A Thanksgiving meal was under 1
percent more expensive in 2012, against a modest 2.2 percent
rise in U.S. consumer prices in the year to October. Federal
Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s policies aren’t bringing
inflation that could dim the spirit of the season.
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