Although Amgen is the world’s largest biotechnology company, they have not been in the anti-cancer drug market until now. Amgen, like other drug makers, is trying to refresh aging product lines through the acquisition. Questions: 1. What is the ranking of this takeover of biotechnology firms, in terms of historic purchases? What are examples of… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Cost Accounting
The Reinvention of Pawn Shops
The pawnshop industry is growing. In 2007, there were approximately 6,400 pawn shops nation-wide. Now there are over 10,000. The expansion in pawnshops is fed, in part, by the increased number of Americans with tarnished credit which often bars them from the mainstream financial system. This article explains some of the niche services now offered… Read more »
Donald Trump is in the News Again!
New York Attorney General, Eric Schneiderman, has sued Donald Trump for $40 million as a result of what he terms a fraudulent educational program through “Trump University.” The program promised to make students rich but instead steered them into expensive and useless seminars. They also failed to deliver promised apprenticeships. Questions: 1. Instead of meeting… Read more »
Beware of rising rates
This video offers advice for you on when to lock in low interest rates and pay off credit card debt. Questions: 1. Why does the bond market have so much affect on your life? 2. Why would you want to be as aggressive as you can to pay down credit card debt? 3. Why are… Read more »
Deutsche Bank Shrinks its Balance Sheet
Deutsche Bank said it would significantly shrink its balance sheet to comply with stricter leverage rules as the lender missed analysts’ expectations in the second quarter. Questions: 1. What are some of the factors on why the bank is shrinking its balance sheet? Be specific. 2. Why have Deutsche Bank’s profits fallen recently? 3. Explain… Read more »
Here we go again!
In a release on July 30, 2013, JP Morgan has agreed to pay a $410 penalty over allegations it manipulated U.S. electricity markets. According to the official release, JP Morgan Ventures Energy Corporation is alleged to have manipulated the electricity market through the company’s bidding activities in California and the Midwest during the period from… Read more »
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall – Who is the Most Expensive of Them All?
It is hard to fathom but the newest British royal boy who was born in fanciest hospital ward in Britain cost $15,000. However, that is nothing compared to the average U.S. birth, where new parents are billed $30,000 and eventually pay $18,000. Questions: 1. What drives the high pregnancy health costs in the U.S. as… Read more »
Ring-around-the-Rosy
Did you know that you are paying a fraction of a cent every time you open a can of soda (or other canned beverages)? Why? It is because Goldman Sachs and other financial players have maneuvered the price of aluminum. Each day, a fleet of trucks shuffles 1,500-pound bars of aluminum among 27 warehouses in… Read more »
Where are the Controls?: Corporate Ethical Breaches Identified by Auditors
According to a 2011 internal audit, executives at the British drug maker GlaxoSmithKline were warned about critical problems with the way the company conducted research at its drug development center in China. Potential financial risk and regulatory action are likely due to the sales practices that are currently at the center of a bribery and… Read more »
Cooking Empire Crumbles
Questions: 1. Do you think that the businesses were right in dropping Ms. Deen’s licensing and merchandise endorsements? 2. Discuss the millions of dollars Ms. Deen will lose in terms of what financial statements and accounts affected. Be as specific as possible. 3. How did the whole Paula Deen incident start and what is the… Read more »