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Why NFLX is down this AM.

Posted by Jeff T. - Equities Trader on March 8, 2011 9:14am

HedgeFundLIVE- NFLX is down this morning on news that Facebook will be offering movies through a partnership with Warner Bros. 

Here’s the Article from All Thing’s Digital:

Every digital heavyweight is making a play for your living room. Apple, Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, Google, Microsoft, everyone. With one odd exception: Facebook.

Now that’s over. The social media giant is taking its first step to connect you with movies and TV shows, while collecting a fee in the process. It’s going to let users rent movies directly from the site, using Facebook Credits to pay for the transaction.

First up is “The Dark Knight”, from Time Warner’s Warner Bros.. It will cost 30 credits, or $3, for a 48-hour rental, via an app the studio has built for the site. More movies, along with the ability to purchase the titles outright, are coming.

Warner Bros. describes the rental as a test, but there’s no reason this shouldn’t work. Facebook has 600 million registered users, and courtesy of Zynga and other social games, a big chunk of them are already using the site’s virtual currency. Easy to connect the dots here.

Just as important: While other video sites are trying to figure out how to add social “hooks” into their experience, Facebook doesn’t have that problem. It is the social hook.

The only odd thing about this combination is that it’s taken this long to come about. Facebook is either the 2nd or 6th-biggest video site in the U.S., depending on who’s counting. And that’s without the benefit of any Hollywood hook-up at all: Just the clips you and your pals put up.

So just imagine what could happen if Mark Zuckerberg and the big studios decide they’re really serious about making this thing work.

Support Levels are as follows:

200

197.85

193.35

187.50

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Posted in Trader Thoughts | Tagged hulu, NFLX, Support | 1 Comment (RSS)

Apps- The big business

Posted by Justin V. on March 7, 2011 10:29pm

HedgeFundLive.com

With the amount of smartphones exceeding the amount of personal computers by 2014, the mobile apps industry will grow exponentially. We live in a society where

apps, facebook, apple, smartphones, techcrunch

Is there an app for that?

technology is essential. There is an app for just about every aspect of life. You are able to utilize your phone as a remote for your car.  You can play games or catch up on the news.  Although this is a very competitive industry, it is fairly easy to enter. All that is really required is an idea, a computer, and a programer and you can create an “app”.  As I read techcrunch daily, I constantly hear about start-up app companies receiving seed money from venture capitalists or being bought out by big tech companies.  Companies like Facebook and Apple provide a platform for the app world, allowing these companies to reach their consumers, which are in excess of 500 million.  About 81% of apps downloaded today are free.  The way they are able to generate revenue is through advertising. The app industry is said to be a $15.1 billion industry.  16% of it, or $5.2 billion, comes from advertising.  It is said that by 2014 that 30% of the revenues will come from advertising.  Any company who advertises is taking note of this.  They are creating ads for the apps allowing them to reach a wider customer base.

 

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Posted in Business | Tagged Apple, apps, personal computers, revenue, smartphones, techcrunch | Leave a Comment (RSS)

SEC closing in the pvt stock trading probe

Posted by Isuru W. - Rutgers MQF on March 4, 2011 2:45pm

Stocks of Facebook aren’t available to public yet but it hasn’t stopped from the rich getting their share of it from exchanges such as SecondMarket and SharePost. Security Exchange Commission is taking a closer look at “pre-IPO” trading within these exchanges and three investment funds that specialize in buying up shares. These markets are less regulated by the SEC compared to the NYSE, NASDAQ and AMEX.

http://money.cnn.com/2011/02/27/technology/secondary_market/index.htm

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Posted in Stock Market | Tagged AMEX, NASDAQ, nyse, pre IPO, SEC | Leave a Comment (RSS)

Google vs FaceBook does not exist.

Posted by Punit T. - Rutgers ASI on March 3, 2011 9:48am

Does anyone every wonder about the future of Google? Whenever I think of Google I think about the technological powerhouse it is and how it is the most dominant force on the internet. Things have changed drastically over the past two years. The dominance of Google has declined due to FaceBook’s increase in users. The popularity of FaceBook is seen as the largest threat of Google but I strongly disagree. Google is a search engine which is fundamentally different than a social network like facebook. Another strong point of Google which people seem to overlook is the fact that Google owns YouTube. YouTube alone generates more viewers and users than FaceBook. Let me be clear, I’m not stating that buying FaceBook stock is bad idea (when they do their IPO ) but rather Google will also gain from Facebook’s increase because Google as a search engine has become a more integrated aspect of the web experience for many users, and as more people use FaceBook there will also be more people using Google. There are just my thoughts, whats your view on this?

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Posted in Technology, Uncategorized | Tagged google | Leave a Comment (RSS)

6 Reactions to Qaddaffi and Current Libyan events

Posted by Kandace M. on February 27, 2011 10:59am

hedgefundlive.com

As our office sat and listened to Gadaffi’s live speech on the CNN LIVE channel today, it was pointed out that stations such as Bloomberg and CNBC (who are usually very current with Breaking News) were not reporting on it. Why?

Muammar Gaddafi

It seems as if technology, entertainment and pop-culture take some precedence over non-US events relating directly or indirectly to the stock market, nowadays. And with no help from media and news stations, which are responsible for driving a lot of American thoughts, people - especially young adults- may not realize the importance of World Events such as this until it is too late.

Below are my 6 interpretations of the average American’s reaction to the recent Quadaffi/Libyan events:

  1. Uhhh…Ka-Daf-fi?…Didn’t he shut down access to Facebook and Twitter in Egypt? I thought he’s already agreed to step down from office in September?
  2. I want to follow the news, but wish I knew the proper spelling of Gaddaffi’s name to type into Goggle search on my iPad. Is it Khaddafy, Qadaffi, or Gadhafi….?? How important can he really be if reporters don’t spell his name right? By the way, do you think he knows when the iPad 2 is coming out?
  3. My favorite basketball player, Carmelo Anthony, just got signed by the Knicks, for God’s sake! Why should I care about some damn foreign Tyrant!
  4. Justin Beiber’s new haircut and pop-culture is far more important than world events. Did you hear about how he surprised his girlfriend by filling her entire apartment with fresh flowers? It wasn’t even done as an apology for something he’d done wrong or a gift for Valentine’s day! Isn’t he sweet! Where’s my remote? I think I DVR’ed the Grammy’s.
  5. You want MY thoughts on the Italian Stock Exchange closing today and Rising Oil Prices?!?!..Who cares?..I’m NOT Italian! I’m not going to Italy any time soon! AND I drive a HYBRID…that’ll show all you suckers!

    Justin Bieber and Marc Schwartz have recently cut their hair, not together but similar Cuts

  6. As though we don’t have enough going on in this country, now we have to focus on more negative news in outside countries?!?!…Where’s Justin Beiber when you need him?

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Posted in Economy | Tagged Apple, basketball, Carmelo Anthony, Egypt, Gadaffi, Gadhafi, google, grammys, Hosni Mubarak, Hybrid, iPad, iPad 2, iPad2, Italian Stock Exchange, Italy, Justin Bieber, Justin Bieber cuts his hair, Justin Bieber's Hair, Khaddafy, knicks, Muammar Gaddafi, Mubarak, Oil, oil prices, Qadaffi, twitter | 1 Comment (RSS)

Facebook (and I guess Google) Should Finish What They Started in the Middle East

Posted by ivanbRoesky on February 23, 2011 6:30pm

Are Google and Facebook more responsible for Egypt and Tunisia?

Shimon Peres, Israel’s current President, is for all intents and purposes, to me, a Gever; a term that can be loosely defined as the Modern Hebrew language equivalent of Dude.  The man has seen some stuff.  He joined the Haganah alongside other founding fathers of the Israeli state and played an integral role in securing arms for Israel’s independence war in 1948.  Throughout his political career he has served as Transportation Minister, Defense Minister, Foreign Minister, and Prime Minister.  On the first of a 4-day visit to Spain, Peres spoke to Spanish Parliament.  In his speech he addressed the unrest in Egypt and Libya that continues to spread across the Middle East region.  He mentioned that he sees these uprisings as “opportunities for peace”, and said that “we believe the biggest guarantee of peace is having democratic neighbors…”.

What I found most interesting was Peres’s message to large technology companies.  He alluded to the fact that these companies, e.g. Facebook, Google, Microsoft, have hefty coffers full of cash ready to be deployed.  Peres noted that “these companies have the means and they can help…aid is currently directed mainly at sick people in poorer countries, [but] it’s better to cure the state and let it treat its own ills.”  In the realistic department these comments probably come in at about a 4 on a scale of 1 to 10, but in the idealistic department they’re more like a 9.  Imagine if for-profit companies actually spent their hard-earned money on foreign aid the way leading governments of the world do.  Back when Google IPO’d they made a big hullabaloo about their “Do No Evil” motto – they wanted to ensure that everyone got a fair chance to participate in their stock offering and presumably a fair chance in life as well.  The Founders of Facebook probably feel similarly.  I’m not sure what their motto is, but it’s probably something that evokes thoughts of democracy.  So do these technology giants have a responsibility to the people who use their services?  If Facebook enables a dictator’s demise, should they participate in the process of establishing a fair successor?  These are big questions, but I do like where Shimon Peres was going.  Every once in a while the world needs to be reminded that there is a fairly successful Middle Eastern democracy situated in the middle of all this turmoil; it’s called Israel.

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Posted in geopolitical | Tagged Egypt, Gaddafi, google, israel, libya, middle east, peres, shimon peres, stock market, tunisia | Leave a Comment (RSS)

Is technology getting too creepy?

Posted by Kascey F. on February 10, 2011 10:41am

Everyone loves the new additions and progression of technology that has happened over the last couple years. Facebook, twitter, BBM, all of Apple’s new gadgets, etc only to name a few. With me, I wasn’t too excited for the Blackberry, it was only a year ago that I jumped on the Blackberry bandwagon but now I’m addicted. I love the BBM app where my friends and I constantly IM each other back and forth and can see if the message was read or delivered. At first I thought of it as a confirmation that the message was delivered but then I started to question, wait why isn’t she answering.. she just read the message. That’s where the creepiness/ stalkerish part I am talking about comes into play.

Now, there is Ichat and for PC users Skype. It’s the most convenient application to talk and see your friends or family that may be over seas or in another state. Going to school in Florida, I definitely took advantage of it. But now, there is the app on iPhones or Itouch’s called “FaceTime”. This takes stalkerish to a new level. Wherever you are, you can click start and video chat with any other FaceTime user. It can be convienent, for example, you can show your facetimer where your sitting at a concert or game; or creepy. Let’s say your boyfriend doesn’t believe where you are, he can just FaceTime you and get the actual answer.

Get you that Iphone4, FaceTime


This advancement of technology, I feel, is taking the actual interaction with people out of the equation. There have been studies done that show teenagers and college students are so involved with their laptop and technology they forget how to interact with people in person. Even the Catholic church is following the trend by allowing confessions via IPhone. Kind of absurd…

Today with the release of the IPhone for Verizon many are switching over for the better service and overly simplified phone. Apple expects to sell one million more in this quarter and it is going to be interesting to see how this effects other technology companies. Even rappers like Fabolous are talking about the IPhone. Yesterday, HP unvelied their palm based, pre3 which will compete with the IPad while Lenovo has talks about coming out with the LePhone and LePad. Let’s see how this all unfolds..

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Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged AAPL, Fabolous, HPQ, LNVGY, PC, rap, RIMM, skype, TECHNOLOGY, twitter | Leave a Comment (RSS)

Egypt’s craziness

Posted by Kascey F. on February 1, 2011 11:50am

Some people say the world is ending in 2012.. and I’m starting to get concerned that it’s coming true. With this craziness in Egypt, Australia, and other parts of the world hopefully it won’t slowly head towards the US. To start, banks were and are still closed. Horrible timing for workers, since this is the last two weeks of the month which is when most workers get paid. With no money, civilians can not afford food which is adding an edge of desperation to the protest. Even though some are losing a meal a day, any are saying they’d, “rather live hungry than die in fear.” American and international companies, like Coca-Cola, General Motors and German owned Volkswagen are closing plants and pulling workers out of Egypt.

Between curfews, checkpoints of armed civilians and fears of looting, transportation has emerged as a major problem. Many distributors of major companies are not letting their trucks nationwide on the road. As I watch CNBC, many importers in the Suez Canal are avoiding Egyptian ports at all costs. Tourists are flying away leading the capital to fly away as well. With that said, the stock market’s been down 17% since Jan 24.

As of last night, there has been a start to a more peaceful protest. The six day old uprising has entered a new stage when an Egyptian uniformed spokesperson declared on government television it will not use force on protesters. Meanwhile one of Mubarak’s trusted adviser offered to talk with opposition. Because of those statements and the weakened economy, Mubarak’s tightened grip over the country is slowly loosening.

Many Americans take freedom for granted.  Free elections, is the main demand Egyptians want with the departure of Mubarak. Facebook, a social networking site where opinions are stated, had a big part of this protest in Egypt. Young political organizations called on the network for a day of protest which was inspired by an outlash of other Arabs in Tunisia. The thought that what you say can be censored by the government is un-imaginable to any one in the US so it is positive to see civilians in Egypt are finally taking a stand to get Mubarak out of their country’s government, let’s just hope it stays as peaceful as possible.

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Posted in Business, Economy, Stock Market, Trader Thoughts, Uncategorized | Tagged America, arabs, Australia, banks, business, civilians, cnbc, coca cola, Egypt, exports, fear, finance, general motors, Government, hungry, imports, Mubarak, Oil, peace, protest, stock market, suez canal, volkswagen, workers | Leave a Comment (RSS)

Deal and Related News

Posted by Dean M. - Executive Principal on January 23, 2011 9:18pm

· SLE – PE group led by Apollo submits offer for SLE according to Reuters but an expected offer by JBS has yet to be made.  Details of the Apollo bid weren’t available – Reuters

· TUI AG may soon purchase more shares in TUI Travel; There are plans to float (TUI AG’s) Hapag-Lloyd within the next three months, and TUI is likely to buy TUI Travel shares within another 3-4 months after that – Reuters

· ITT – the stock may have another 20% upside – Barron’s

· SRX – Serco, the services company in the UK, has made a $2B offer for SRA Int’l (SRX); an initial offer was rebuffed by SRX but Serco is believed to be working on a new better proposal.  London Telegraph.

· China’s ICBC moves into the US – ICBC struck a deal to buy a majority stake in Bank of East Asia’s US subsidiary; the deal would for the first time give a Beijing-controlled institution a US retail presence.  Bank of East Asia has about 13 total branches in the US.  The deal is said to be worth $100MM.  US regulators still need to bless the transaction.  WSJ

· Facebook – the co announced after the close Fri that it had raised $1B from investors and another $500MM from Goldman and Digital Sky; the $1.5B fund raising valued the company at $50B; the demand was there for the company to raise up to $5B; Facebook said it would release financial information by Apr ’12.  WSJ

· Facebook – why the company is a bargain at $50B; the co is a natural monopoly similar to GOOG – WSJ

· Prada – the company may decide to proceed w/an IPO by the end of the month – Independent

· Lone Star is in talks with other lenders to take control of Japan’s Tokyo Star Bank for the second time – WSJ

· E.ON – Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing is poised to make a GBP3.5B bid for E.ON’s electricity distribution network in the UK – Reuters

· CDEL – Citadel Broadcasting is discussed in the NYT in an article which alleges that mgmt may not have had the shareholder’s best interests in mind when it turned down a takeout offer from Cumulus – NYT

· WMG –the co decided to bring in Goldman and explore strategic options after one of its largest shareholders, Thomas H. Lee Partners, announced plans to sell its stake in the company.  WMG may look to sell its Warner/Chappell publishing business in order to raise cash and retire debt on the recorded music side, a move that would help pave the way for an EMI bid – NY Post.

· China Unicom/Telefonica announced strengthened strategic ties; Telefonia to buy $500MM worth of Unicom shares and Unicom will buy same amount of TEF stock at EU17.16/shr – Reuters

· Riversdale – Indian state-run companies may decide next week to counter Rio Tinto’s A$3.9B bid for Riversdale – Bloomberg

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Posted in Deals, Stock Market, Trader Thoughts, Uncategorized | Tagged CDEL, China Unicom, E.ON, ICBC, ITT, Lone Star, Prada, Riversdale, SLE, SRX, TUI AG, WMG | Leave a Comment (RSS)

Twitter, Facebook & Other Social Networking Sites Help the Government

Posted by Kandace M. on January 20, 2011 5:46pm

As I listened to the radio on my way to work today, which I rarely do, I couldn’t help but feel surprised at the praises being made

Twitter Facebook Social Networking

 about social networking sites such as Facebook, and especially Twitter, from no one other than the Mayor of Newark, NJ.  

According to Cory Booker, Twitter helps him stay current with the people of his community. He says he’s had incidents where people complained to him directly on Twitter and Facebook about their issues with the city, allowing him to respond to them

 quickly and easily. There was one incident in particular where a lady sent him a message on one of the social sites complaining about the lack of proper snow removal on her street. The Mayor, in turn, contacted 4-1-1 to get the phone number of the complaining woman and called her. After getting her address, he then sent his team to go out and plow her street.

Mr. Booker continually talked about how he and his team incorporate Twitter and Facebook in his work affairs on a day-to-day basis, especially to handle crisis.  According to him, Newark would be in a worse condition without it. He is known for receiving a message via Twitter on his cellphone and turning around to grab his Blackberry and contact his staff to handle a bad situation if need be.

This is confirmation that sites like Twitter, originally created to connect ordinary, mainstream people with Celebrities and Athletes, and Facebook, are now being adopted by Government officials and their problem solving teams.

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Posted in America | Tagged Cory Booker, New Jersey, Newark, Social Networking Sites, twitter | 1 Comment (RSS)