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ISSUE 17
16 May 2007
INVESTED 2007
THIS REPORTER WILL BE THERE -- WILL YOU?
There is but a fortnight left in which to procure your registration for InvestEd 2007 (August 17-19, Orange County, CA) at the exceptionally low rate of $369 (though StockCentral Members receive an additional $10 off, because frankly, they're worth it). On June 1, the privilege of commiserating with your fellow investors whilst hob-nobbing with investing glitterati like Mark Robertson, Doug Gerlach, and Matt Willms will escalate in cost to $399.
Now, this reporter has been called a fool many times, but never on account of paying more than was necessary (just ask his lady friend). Certainly, now is the time to take advantage of this advantageous Early Bird pricing, and were it not for his trust omnibus Press Pass, this reporter would be filling out the online registration form at this very moment.
You can discuss InvestEd 2007 in its community forum, and view corporate presenters, class schedules, and event details at the official InvestEd 2007 website.
FINANCIAL FIRESIDE CHATS
CLUB TREASURER WORKSHOP WITH GENE ROOKS
Who is buried in Grant's Tomb? What is the air speed velocity of a coconut-laden swallow? How many licks does it take to get to the tootsie roll center of a Tootsie Pop? How long can the Milwaukee Brewers possibly remain in first place in the NL Central?
These are all good questions. Unfortunately, none of them have anything to do with investing (unless you use seed your portfolio with gambling winnings from prop bets and sports books). For a relevant Q&A session, the StockCentral Community turns to its own Gene Rooks, a long-time educator and renowned accounting expert.
Gene will be taking your investment club questions for the next several weeks until her Club Treasurer's Workshop begins on June 4 in The Classroom. Submit your questions, and mark your calendars.
THE COFFEE CONUNDRUM
IS STARBUCKS A BUY?
This reporter has a nagging addiction to caffeine, mostly because he believed that taking up a vice would make him more appealing to potential Mrs. Gazette Reporters. This backfired entirely, as he's left with nothing but yellow teeth, a $20/week habit, and a table for one.
But, so what? Millions of Americans start their day with a hot cuppa. This reporter's weapon of choice is Starbucks (SBUX), and he is not alone.
The Seattle coffee chain has fostered some recent discussion on StockCentral, both because of its recent price descent into a potential buy zone and as a gauge for investing morality. Routinely a 10 according to Take Stock, SBUX has always battled a negative perception that may be entirely unwarranted. Nick Caccavo explains:
"They are the largest buyer of Fair Trade coffee in North America and represent 10% of total Fair Trade coffee in the world. Fair Trade coffee makes up 3.7% of SBUX coffee (an increase from 1% when they began selling FT coffee). Accordingly, if SBUX purchased 100% of the Fair Trade coffee in the world, it could only hope to have 37% of its coffee be Fair Trade, a minority of their total sales. The bottom line is that while SBUX may not be the best company in the world morally, it certainly isn't bad enough for the morally conscious investor not to buy."
Interesting, no? What's more, if you had been trolling through the SBUX forum last month, you would have picked up this golden egg from Jason Ramage:
"All that needs to happen, in my opinion, is gas to go over $3/gallon, prompting worries on Wall Street that consumer discretionary spending will fall. Weak consumer spending is the Achilles heel of Starbucks and I won't be surprised at all to see this stock fall at least to $25, especially if spending is weak and the company misses estimates. Of course, that'll be good news for me, because I'll be buying Starbucks below $25... and backing up the truck below $20."
What happened? Gas hit $3/gallon across the land, and SBUX dropped to $28, and is still falling. Kudos to Mssr. Ramage.
Is it time to back up the truck? Does Starbucks enter into your Social Investing mindset? Sound off in the SBUX forum.
WELL, WE KNOW HE AT LEAST SHOWED UP FOR HIS ECON 101 EXAM
"If you were putting your money into a lot of stock, you would want to know everything about that stock before you put it in."
- BRANDON MERIWEATHER,
University of Miami alum & 2007 1st round pick of the New England Patriots
Triple-Whip Half-Caff Mocha Lattes;
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