New data shows millennials love what Wall Street's biggest banks have to offer them (MS, UBS) | ||
| | ||
Millennials prefer to get their financial advice in person more than any other age group. That's according to a Salesforce.com report. Also according to the report, millennials prefer getting advice in person to any other form of communication. The news is good for big banks, like UBS and Morgan Stanley, which think they can fend off a stampede of startups looking to chip into their prized wealth management and asset management businesses. The news is bad for startups, lik Betterment and Motif Investing, in New York and in the Bay Area that have crashed the personal finance space, set on chipping into a multi-trillion dollar industry. Have a look at the graphic from Salesforce's '2015 Wealth Management for Connected Investors' report, below, which illustrates by age group how each prefers to get advice and make investment decisions:
For a little additional context, here's the color-coded chart Salesforce used to illustrate the survey (in case you don't believe it):
Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: This simple exercise will work out every muscle in your body  | ||
| |
iPhone 6 sales are continuing to smash expectations (AAPL) | ||
| | ||
The iPhone 6 is continuing to sell extremely well. Apple's latest smartphone has already gifted the company the most profitable quarter of any company ever. Now, UBS is estimating the Q2 2015 sales will be even higher than anyone was expecting. In a new research note, UBS says it believes Apple will see demand of around 51.1 million units, compared to consensus Street estimates of 45 million. The financial services company points to a "continued surge" in China as partly behind this success — Apple recently dethroned Xiaomi as the number one smartphone company in the country. The UBS figure comes from its "Evidence Lab" wing, which has previously been accurate in its predictions compared to the street. Here's a graph showing UBS Evidence Lab's historical numbers compared to street estimates and actual iPhone sales:
The UBS estimate also bears out a previous prediction from Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster. Munster wrote last month in a research note that the iPhone 6 is "fundamentally different" from previous product cycles, and even after its record-breaking sales and profits, people may be underestimating just how well it will sell. He thinks that in calendar year 2016, we may see potential iPhone sales in excess of 250 million. The iPhone is continuing to see strong growth in European countries, according to data from Kantar Worldpanel, as Apple focuses on persuading "switchers" to dump Android in favour of iOS. And in China, Samsung — Apple's chief high-end Android competitor — has all but imploded, its market share plummeting by more than 50% in just a year. Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Size Matters — A Guide To The iPhone 6 Plus For The Regular Guy  | ||
| |
The number of people watching shows on BBC iPlayer has dropped for the first time | ||
| | ||
It looks as though BBC iPlayer is struggling to stay relevant as new figures show a drop-off in interest in the UK. There were only 230 million requests to watch TV shows through iPlayer in March, a 7% drop compared to the same month last year. Overall, the service only grew by 2% year on year, marking its slowest growth so far, the Financial Times reported. "Top Gear" was still going strong throughout most of March, so its cancellation probably isn't the reason for the drop in figures. A sceptic at the BBC might be worried about the fall in popularity, especially considering one of its biggest costcutting measures in recent months has been to shut down BBC Three as a broadcast channel and move its programmes over to iPlayer. But this is the first time we've seen such a blip, and it may not relate to a larger slump in figures. Earlier this week the BBC announced that it was shutting down its Global iPlayer – the subscription service that allows viewers outside the UK to access most of the BBC's programming. The BBC has said previously that fierce competition from Hulu, Netflix and Amazon reduced the growth of the service overseas. However, a BBC statement went on to say that it was "developing plans to launch new digital services across multiple devices", so the closure of the Global iPlayer could be part of planned development, rather than a sign of failure. In fact, overseas access to BBC programmes will also be provided by other broadcasters, and the company could make more money by selling on its content bit by bit. Netflix chief executive Reed Hastings is actually a big iPlayer fan, and believes the service will eventually become the core of the BBC, the FT report added. "The BBC will be the iPlayer," he said. "They will name it the BBC Player". The BBC's new technology chief Matthew Postgate has also promised to make the BBC more "internet centric". Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Stunning video captures Vietnam like you never seen it before  | ||
| |
This company just raised a $40 million funding round and now it believes it can take on Oracle and Salesforce (CRM, ORCL) | ||
| | ||
Percolate, a four-year-old enterprise that creates software for marketers to manage their campaigns and departments, just raised $40 million in series C financing. Now Percolate thinks it has the muscle to take on huge enterprise software companies like Salesforce, Oracle, and Adobe to become the "system of record" for marketing. Those larger companies may have their own branded marketing clouds, but Percolate says they are more focused on the delivery of messages to consumers, rather than the entire day-to-day for a marketer. Percolate CEO and co-founder Noah Brier told Business Insider: "We have ambitions to build a very large-scale enterprise software company. Our point of view is that the biggest enterprise software companies in the world, the biggest SaaS [Software as a Service] enterprises, own the entire piece of the enterprise. But we are bringing software to marketing for the first time, that process of managing marketing ... what Salesforce did for the sales process, Percolate is doing for managing the marketing process." Percolate's latest funding round brings its total funding to date to $74.5 million. The most recent round was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, with additional participation from existing investors Sequoia Capital, GGV Capital, First Round Capital, and Lerer Hippeau Ventures. Brier won't reveal revenue figures, or whether the company is making a profit — "we are totally focused on growth right now" — but it's fair to say Percolate probably has a long way to go if it really wants to play in a league with the likes of Oracle, Adobe, and Salesforce in terms of revenue and valuation. Salesforce, for example, is valued at $44 billion. It is winning on one measure, however. Percolate is one of the best-performing social relationship platforms, according to Forrester.
What makes Percolate interesting to investors (and Forrester) is that it focuses on an area that the legacy software companies don't, Brier says. He adds: "The chief marketing officer is the only member of the c-suite that does not have a system of record they can turn to at the board meeting to show what they have been doing for the last three months since the last board meeting. Salesforce and Oracle certainly recognize [the importance of marketing software] but they are very focused on the delivery of messages, not the workflow, and collaboration tools, and the pieces that are fundamental." Nevertheless, recent news that Salesforce is subject to an acquisition bid from an unknown buyer has had a positive effect on Percolate. Brier believes it shows the market the incredible scale and margins software companies offer investors, and proves entrepreneur Mark Andreessen's famous view that "software is eating the world." Brier added: "I think [the Salesforce acquisition news] is great for our business and is further proof that software is the future. I think it would be a pretty incredible thing [if Salesforce's sale] actually happened. I, like many other people, would be slightly surprised if it does because of the size. But I also think it would be a pretty incredible move for any one of those companies that have been rumored to have the guts and the ability to pull off a purchase like that." Companies rumored to be in the running for Salesforce include Microsoft, Google, Oracle, and IBM. Percolate plans to invest its latest financing into global expansion, including opening a second product office in San Francisco, increasing its worldwide headcount from 200 to 300, and exploring acquisitions. SEE ALSO: Adobe gives all of its employees a $1,000 gift card with basically no strings attached Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Here's how much Mark Cuban sleeps to be on top of his game  | ||
| |
-1.png)
The one thing Bill Gates understood immediately but Steve Jobs took 20 years to realize | ||
| | ||
According to "Strategy Rules," a book written by two prominent business-school professors, David Yoffie and Michael Cusumano, Gates' ability to quickly grasp the value of an "industry-spanning platform rather than merely products" was what made Microsoft a dominant PC player within a few years. In fact, Gates understood it from the get-go, while it took Apple's Steve Jobs over two decades to realize it, the book's authors write. "Bill Gates got it immediately," Yoffie said, according to The New York Times. "It took Andy Grove 10 years to figure it out, and 20 years for Steve Jobs.” Gates had this in mind when he built the Windows operating system, where third-party developers were allowed to create software applications on top of it. By doing so, Windows was able to build a massive software ecosystem that helped it dominate the PC market for years. Andy Grove, the former Intel CEO, also saw this coming, and he soon built microprocessors that were used across multiple industries. Jobs, on the other hand, was always focused on building beautiful products that didn't necessarily have a big set of partners supporting them as Microsoft did. It wasn't until 2003 when Jobs realized this and released iTunes for Windows so PC users could start using Apple's iPod on their computers. Even the first iPhone wasn't going to have a store for third-party applications, but other execs at Apple persuaded Jobs to open up the iPhone operating system so outside developers could build their own applications on top of it in 2008. "Jobs was always a product first, platform second kind of guy. But he figured it out eventually," Yoffie said. The authors point out the same thinking applies to the tech leaders of the next generation as well: Google's Larry Page, Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon's Jeff Bezos, and Tencent's Huateng Ma all have a deep understanding of "platform thinking," they said. SEE ALSO: These 15 tech company logos have changed drastically since they started Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Watch Microsoft's Insane Holographic Computer In Action  | ||
| |
Bill Gates may have been late to the smartphone game, but there's one thing he understood way faster than some of his peers: the importance of a platform and ecosystem. Here come producer prices ... | ||
| | ||
The latest report on producer prices is set for release at the bottom of the hour. Expectations are for prices for final demand to rise 0.1% in April, while prices are expected to decline 0.8% compared to last year. Excluding food and energy, prices are expected to rise 0.1% compared to the prior month and rise 1.1% against the prior year. We'll be back with the live numbers when they drop. Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Here's how Floyd Mayweather spends his millions  | ||
| |
Here come initial jobless claims ... | ||
| | ||
At 8:30 a.m. ET, we'll get the latest tally on initial jobless claims. Economists are expecting that jobless claims rose to 273,000 from 265,000 the prior week, according to Bloomberg. The data last week showed that jobless claims were near a 15-year low. The four-week average of initial claims dropped to 279,500 last week, the lowest level since May 6, 2000. Also last week, we got the jobs report for April, which showed the US economy added 223,000 jobs, a rebound from a weak March, while the unemployment rate fell to 5.4% from 5.5%. We'll be back with the numbers once they cross ... Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: 7 clichés you should never use in a job interview  | ||
| |
One analyst calls Shake Shack's first quarter 'historically impressive' (SHAK, CMG) | ||
| | ||
Shake Shack's first quarter earnings crushed expectations. On Wednesday night, the company reported revenue and same-store sales that beat expectations, while also turning an unexpected profit during the quarter. And following these results, analysts at Stifel called the company's quarter a "historically impressive 'beat and raise.'" ("Beat and raise" is analyst-speak for a quarter in which a company beats Wall Street expectations and gives an outlook for future quarters that also beats current estimates.) The firm, however, said that all of Shake Shack's value is currently reflected in the stock price, and Stifel has a "Hold" rating and no price target on the stock. Stifel added that, "We continue to believe SHAK is the industry’s best 'how company' within today’s 'how economy' as its Enlightened Hospitality culture delivers privileged access to employees, real estate, and suppliers." Also following the report, analysts at Jefferies got close (but didn't quite do it!) to making the comparison to the hottest fast-food chain on the market, Chipotle. Jefferies, which maintained a "Hold" rating on Shake Shack but raised its price target on the stock to $60 from $40, said the company is, "not the next Chipotle yet," but said the quarter was still "pretty darn impressive." In its note, Jefferies said some of the things going for the stock right now include the return of crinkle cut fries, hype around the company's IPO, and the new, higher-priced "Shackmeister" burger. In pre-market trade on Thursday, Shake Shack shares were up more than 8%. SEE ALSO: The Chinese version of Shake Shack is coming to America Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: 70 people were injured while filming this movie with 100 untamed lions  | ||
| |
The surprising reason 'Shark Tank' investor Robert Herjavec started his own company | ||
| | ||
Produced by Joe Avella & Rich Feloni Follow BI Video: On Facebook Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
| |
New data shows millennials love what Wall Street's biggest banks have to offer them (MS, UBS) | ||
| | ||
Millennials prefer to get their financial advice in person more than any other age group. That's according to a Salesforce.com report. Also according to the report, millennials prefer getting advice in person to any other form of communication. The news is good for big banks, like UBS and Morgan Stanley, which think they can fend off a stampede of startups looking to chip into their prized wealth management and asset management businesses. The news is bad for startups, lik Betterment and Motif Investing, in New York and in the Bay Area that have crashed the personal finance space, set on chipping into a multi-trillion dollar industry. Have a look at the graphic from Salesforce's '2015 Wealth Management for Connected Investors' report, below, which illustrates by age group how each prefers to get advice and make investment decisions:
For a little additional context, here's the color-coded chart Salesforce used to illustrate the survey (in case you don't believe it):
Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: JAMES ALTUCHER: Why investing in a 401(k) is a complete waste of money  | ||
| |
Chinese company sends 12,000 on Thai holiday | ||
| | ||
Bangkok (AFP) - A Chinese company is sending more than 12,000 people on a holiday to Thailand, tourism officials said Thursday, with one resort hosting a series of back-to-back banquets catering to thousands of guests at a time. Thailand's tourism body said the enormous group of holidaymakers was one of the largest they had accommodated from a company in China, where employees and customers are often rewarded for meeting targets. "It will be a challenge but it's one we relish," Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudhya, the executive director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand's public relations wing, told AFP. The 12,700 tourists are being sent by Infinitus China, a direct sales company, and began arriving in Thailand on 10 May, Chattan said. They will travel in groups of 2-3,000 at a time and will make a six-day trip to Bangkok and the nearby seaside town of Pattaya, he added. Those arriving include both employees of the firm as well as freelance sales staff and regular customers. The visit comes less than a week after France received more than 6,000 Chinese holidaymakers from a single Chinese firm that booked 4,760 rooms in 79 four-and five-star hotels. Itthiphol Kunplome, Pattaya's mayor, confirmed that the first batch of nearly 3,000 employees had begun arriving in his city. "We are ready to welcome them and ready to facilitate their activities while they are in Pattaya," he told AFP. A tour guide involved in the colossal task of organising 400 coach trips to ferry the groups said 300 colleagues would be on hand until the last holidaymaker leaves on 23 May. "The company chose Thailand because they were impressed with our beaches, temples, cultural performances and fruits," he told AFP, asking not to be named. Chattan said all the guests would attend one of a series of giant banquets at the Royal Cliff Hotel in Pattaya. A planning schedule seen by AFP shows the hotel intends to host four nights of giant banquets, the largest of which will feed 3,935. Tourism is one of Thailand's largest earners, usually accounting for around 10 percent of GDP, and China sends the largest number of tourists. But the industry has taken a hit thanks to ongoing political instability and a significant drop in Russian arrivals following the rouble's depreciation. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
| |
iPhone 6 sales are continuing to smash expectations (AAPL) | ||
| | ||
The iPhone 6 is continuing to sell extremely well. Apple's latest smartphone has already gifted the company the most profitable quarter of any company ever. Now, UBS is estimating the Q2 2015 sales will be even higher than anyone was expecting. In a new research note, UBS says it believes Apple will see demand of around 51.1 million units, compared to consensus Street estimates of 45 million. The financial services company points to a "continued surge" in China as partly behind this success — Apple recently dethroned Xiaomi as the number one smartphone company in the country. The UBS figure comes from its "Evidence Lab" wing, which has previously been accurate in its predictions compared to the street. Here's a graph showing UBS Evidence Lab's historical numbers compared to street estimates and actual iPhone sales:
The UBS estimate also bears out a previous prediction from Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster. Munster wrote last month in a research note that the iPhone 6 is "fundamentally different" from previous product cycles, and even after its record-breaking sales and profits, people may be underestimating just how well it will sell. He thinks that in calendar year 2016, we may see potential iPhone sales in excess of 250 million. The iPhone is continuing to see strong growth in European countries, according to data from Kantar Worldpanel, as Apple focuses on persuading "switchers" to dump Android in favour of iOS. And in China, Samsung — Apple's chief high-end Android competitor — has all but imploded, its market share plummeting by more than 50% in just a year. Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Size Matters — A Guide To The iPhone 6 Plus For The Regular Guy  | ||
| |
The number of people watching shows on BBC iPlayer has dropped for the first time | ||
| | ||
It looks as though BBC iPlayer is struggling to stay relevant as new figures show a drop-off in interest in the UK. There were only 230 million requests to watch TV shows through iPlayer in March, a 7% drop compared to the same month last year. Overall, the service only grew by 2% year on year, marking its slowest growth so far, the Financial Times reported. "Top Gear" was still going strong throughout most of March, so its cancellation probably isn't the reason for the drop in figures. A sceptic at the BBC might be worried about the fall in popularity, especially considering one of its biggest costcutting measures in recent months has been to shut down BBC Three as a broadcast channel and move its programmes over to iPlayer. But this is the first time we've seen such a blip, and it may not relate to a larger slump in figures. Earlier this week the BBC announced that it was shutting down its Global iPlayer – the subscription service that allows viewers outside the UK to access most of the BBC's programming. The BBC has said previously that fierce competition from Hulu, Netflix and Amazon reduced the growth of the service overseas. However, a BBC statement went on to say that it was "developing plans to launch new digital services across multiple devices", so the closure of the Global iPlayer could be part of planned development, rather than a sign of failure. In fact, overseas access to BBC programmes will also be provided by other broadcasters, and the company could make more money by selling on its content bit by bit. Netflix chief executive Reed Hastings is actually a big iPlayer fan, and believes the service will eventually become the core of the BBC, the FT report added. "The BBC will be the iPlayer," he said. "They will name it the BBC Player". The BBC's new technology chief Matthew Postgate has also promised to make the BBC more "internet centric". Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Stunning video captures Vietnam like you never seen it before  | ||
| |
This company just raised a $40 million funding round and now it believes it can take on Oracle and Salesforce (CRM, ORCL) | ||
| | ||
Percolate, a four-year-old enterprise that creates software for marketers to manage their campaigns and departments, just raised $40 million in series C financing. Now Percolate thinks it has the muscle to take on huge enterprise software companies like Salesforce, Oracle, and Adobe to become the "system of record" for marketing. Those larger companies may have their own branded marketing clouds, but Percolate says they are more focused on the delivery of messages to consumers, rather than the entire day-to-day for a marketer. Percolate CEO and co-founder Noah Brier told Business Insider: "We have ambitions to build a very large-scale enterprise software company. Our point of view is that the biggest enterprise software companies in the world, the biggest SaaS [Software as a Service] enterprises, own the entire piece of the enterprise. But we are bringing software to marketing for the first time, that process of managing marketing ... what Salesforce did for the sales process, Percolate is doing for managing the marketing process." Percolate's latest funding round brings its total funding to date to $74.5 million. The most recent round was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, with additional participation from existing investors Sequoia Capital, GGV Capital, First Round Capital, and Lerer Hippeau Ventures. Brier won't reveal revenue figures, or whether the company is making a profit — "we are totally focused on growth right now" — but it's fair to say Percolate probably has a long way to go if it really wants to play in a league with the likes of Oracle, Adobe, and Salesforce in terms of revenue and valuation. Salesforce, for example, is valued at $44 billion. It is winning on one measure, however. Percolate is one of the best-performing social relationship platforms, according to Forrester.
What makes Percolate interesting to investors (and Forrester) is that it focuses on an area that the legacy software companies don't, Brier says. He adds: "The chief marketing officer is the only member of the c-suite that does not have a system of record they can turn to at the board meeting to show what they have been doing for the last three months since the last board meeting. Salesforce and Oracle certainly recognize [the importance of marketing software] but they are very focused on the delivery of messages, not the workflow, and collaboration tools, and the pieces that are fundamental." Nevertheless, recent news that Salesforce is subject to an acquisition bid from an unknown buyer has had a positive effect on Percolate. Brier believes it shows the market the incredible scale and margins software companies offer investors, and proves entrepreneur Mark Andreessen's famous view that "software is eating the world." Brier added: "I think [the Salesforce acquisition news] is great for our business and is further proof that software is the future. I think it would be a pretty incredible thing [if Salesforce's sale] actually happened. I, like many other people, would be slightly surprised if it does because of the size. But I also think it would be a pretty incredible move for any one of those companies that have been rumored to have the guts and the ability to pull off a purchase like that." Companies rumored to be in the running for Salesforce include Microsoft, Google, Oracle, and IBM. Percolate plans to invest its latest financing into global expansion, including opening a second product office in San Francisco, increasing its worldwide headcount from 200 to 300, and exploring acquisitions. SEE ALSO: Adobe gives all of its employees a $1,000 gift card with basically no strings attached Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Here's how much Mark Cuban sleeps to be on top of his game  | ||
| |
This analyst note destroys BrewDog's 'punk' stock offering: 'it is difficult to see how investors will make a financial return on this deal' | ||
| | ||
Popular Scottish craft brewery BrewDog looks like Europe's most expensive brewery — and research firm All Street reckons you shouldn't invest in it. Naturally, BrewDog — which is selling "equity for punks" in its investment fundraiser — doesn't see it that way. BrewDog is currently crowdfunding £25 million to put toward growth and has already raised £5 million in just 20 days. The funding drive puts a £305 million price tag on the Punk IPA maker and, at £47.50 a share, means it is valued at an eye-watering 115 times earnings. All Street, a startup that produces research on crowdfunding, points out that this probably makes it Europe's most aggressively valued brewer. For comparison, Heineken trades on 27.08 times earnings, Carlsberg is valued at 21.47 times earnings, Budweiser and Stella maker AB InBev is worth 21.83 times what it makes in profit, and Peroni brewer SABMiller is at 24.46 times earnings. BrewDog, which also operates a chain of bars around the world, argues its growth story makes it worth it the hefty price tag, comparing the business to US burger chain Shake Shack. BrewDog's sales grew by 64% last year and 70% the year before that.
All Street isn't convinced this growth rate will continue, given that BrewDog doesn't give financial forecasts in its prospectus. They believe BrewDog could be being overly optimistic and reckon investors will struggle to make any money investing in the business at this valuation. All Street's founder and CEO Emanuela Vartolomei said: “BrewDog has performed exceptionally well. It is a strong company with sustainability at its heart and a talented workforce. "However, it is difficult to see how investors will make a financial return on this deal given the high valuation of £305 million. No financial forecast has been disclosed so there is very little clarity as to how the company will hit the revenue targets required to generate a risk adjusted return for investors."
Founder James Watt told Business Insider: "All investment opportunities attract a host of contrasting opinions from the supposed experts. "Opinions are partial and do not give justice to the whole story and so I would respond by advertising that the Brewdog offer for subscription to issue B shares at a price of £47.50 each is made in accordance with a Prospectus which has been Approved by the Financial Conduct Authority in accordance with the Prospectus Rules. "There are loads of details in our share prospectus and we would recommend anyone interested going to www.brewdog.com/equityforpunks to download the prospectus to find out more about the opportunity to own part of BrewDog rather than relying on what All Street or, for an alternative view, what the Motley Fool might say who offered a different opinion to that of All Street." Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
| |
BrewDog disagrees. 