Investing 2014:Problems and Prospects

My charitable trust has been buying IBM stock,said CNBC host Jim Cramer.I believe in their cloud business,even though the very big problem I have with IBM is that cloud has very low margins-that's why people go to the cloud.IBM is going from a high margin to a low margin business.*
Pfizer is trying to buy Astra Zeneca,although I have spent some time with cancer specialists who say Astra Zeneca's pipeline is a "me too" pipeline for cancer.We've been in a big M&A drought and these deals take out capacity.These deals will get done.*
The market won't be affected by Ukraine as long as Russia stays low key,but it's not like the turmoil has gone away.If Russia does something big,you're gonna see this market blip down.I'd like to see a pullback in this market.I don't like a parabolic move;I like a stairstep move.*
The soda business is a losing story.I think diet soda is gonna be the great unraveling before your eyes,predicted the expert investor Jim Cramer.*
Groupon says over 50% of all global transactions now occur on mobile.People spend and engage more on mobile.The company reported a better than expected loss in earnings and a beat on revenues.Tom Forte of Telsey Advisory Group has a buy rating on the stock and a price target of 17.00.You have to look at Facebook and Groupon as unique opportunities within a space,Mr.Forte said.*
Competitor moves do not affect our success,according to Zillow CEO Spencer Rascoff.Our audience and revenue are growing.We're a media company.We sell ads.We have 40-50% of audience share now.
The housing market is slowing somewhat.We predict it appreciating about 3% this year.It was quite hot at about 6%,but now it's warm.*
Groupon(GRPN),Zillow(Z),Pfizer(PFE),Facebook(FB),Astra Zeneca(AZN),International Business Machines(IBM)

News Notes:Citi's Internet Calls;Best Investment Banks 2013

The IMF has reduced its estimate of world growth to 3.1%,down from 3.3% in April.For 2014,it sees China growth at 8.2% and India at 6.2%. Citigroup has initiated coverage of major Internet stocks.LinkedIn,Netflix and Facebook are rated neutral. Facebook is a relatively young company going through a transition,said Citi analyst Mark May.Amazon,Google,eBay and AOL are buys.Yelp is a sell. Key Internet themes are the shift from PCs to mobile;the emergence of adtech;and the proliferation of data. The US-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue has begun,led by Secretary of State John Kerry.BMW sees China as its top 2013 market,based on its growth in small cities. GE Oil and Gas is establishing its global headquarters in London. Global Finance magazine has named its Best Investment Banks 2013.Global winners include J.P.Morgan,Best Investment Bank;Bank of America Merrill Lynch,Best in Emerging Markets;Qatar National Bank,Best in Frontier Markets;and Goldman Sachs,Best M&A Bank. Global Finance said J.P.Morgan grew market share across the board because of its loyal client base;a long term startegy of embracing regulatory reform;a legendary corporate lending legacy;and the integration of equity underwriting talent from Bear Stearns,which it acquired in 2008. It made a world-leading 465 billion dollars for its clients through 2,164 bond deals;and earned more than 5.6 billion in investment banking fees,the best in class. JP Morgan Chase(JPM),Amazon(AMZN),Goldman Sachs(GS)

Yahoo Embraces Arab World

Yahoo is moving into the Arab world in a big way.The company has purchased Maktoob,the Arabic version of Facebook.Maktoob is based in Jordan.Arab use of the Internet is up 1,000% since the year 2000.Maktoob reaches one out of three Arab users of the Internet.It is available in 22 Arabic countries with a total population of over 300 million people.
The acquisition of Maktoob is part of Yahoo's emerging markets strategy.Maktoob's vision is to be at the center of people's online lives.Less than 1% of Internet content is currently in Arabic.
Saudi Arabia is one of Maktoob's top two countries.Over five million Saudi women alone are active on Maktoob.