This year’s proxy season is showing signs of greater activism by shareholders. The proxy advisory service Institutional Shareholder Services is projecting that there could be as many as 17 contests for the election of directors, which is slightly up from last year. The difference is that the contests are much bigger and include six at… Read more »
Posts Tagged: Profit Margin
Survey Shows that Out-of-Network Providers Are Billing Consumers up to Several Thousand Percent more than the Government would pay for similar Medicare Services
According to a new study from the Center for Policy and Research, the nation must address the soaring cost of medical care that continues to rise at an unsustainable rate. For consumers who choose to seek care out-of-network, their survey shows that the charges billed by some out-of-network providers can exceed several hundred or several… Read more »
Product Chasing a Market – Fuzz Phobia
When Veet hair removal cream came to China in 2005, sales were sluggish. It turned out that Chinese women did not worry about being too hairy. So the company selling the product promoted a new marketing plan with ads that equate hair-free skin with health, confidence, and “shining glory.” Questions: 1. How fast are sales… Read more »
It Beats Earning $20 an Hour?
Flipping houses earned a bad reputation during the housing bubble, when speculators bought and sold millions of homes in search of easy profits. But as the real estate market is showing signs of life, the practice is gaining popularity again. Questions: 1. Which areas of the country have seen the most flipping action and why?… Read more »
The Unveiling of the Future?
Apple’s iPad Mini will likely be unveiled at a special event on October 23. The device is expected to ship with a 7.85-inch screen and costs about half of what the current starting price for an iPad. Questions: 1. According to both articles, what have iPad sales to the K-12 market been doing to PC… Read more »
The Cost Disease
Much of our political debate is fueled by the rise in the cost of healthcare, education, and other necessary services. Interestingly, the new book “The Cost Disease” is based on the work of William Baumol, who as a young economist in the 1960s promoted the idea tagged “Baumol’s Disease,” which explains that our current predicament… Read more »
Coming to a store near you: What are the cost and benefits of good health?
Hy-Vee is the only grocery chain in the country that posts a registered dietitian in almost every one of its 235 stores. In rural areas, some of its more than 190 dietitians serve a cluster of stores. By doing this it capitalizes on growing consumer awareness of the role food plays in health and wellness… Read more »
Interesting Educational Strategy
At U.S. colleges, like NYU and Northeastern, some freshmen are beginning their studies abroad during their first and even second semesters. According to Bloomberg, the strategy is one used by universities to enroll larger classes and get more tuition dollars. How? The universities use the students and their tuitions to fill the beds of midyear… Read more »
Spreading money on your skin
What are the most often prescribed drugs written for by dermatologists? They include generic creams and ointments that are used to treat skin rashes, scabies, and athlete’s foot. So aren’t generics suppose to be inexpensive. Unfortunately, not any more’; significant price increases in these generics are stumping doctors and patients. In a world of prescription… Read more »
Labor Department Violations
On Tuesday, the Labor Department announced that it had levied a $34,000 fine on C. J.’s Seafood for safety violations. This is the company that supplies crawfish to WalMart. In addition, the agency also ordered C. J.’s to pay $214,000 for wage and hour violations. Questions: 1. Where is the company based? 2. Specifically, how… Read more »