Friday, June 29, 2018

For Capital Gazette journalists, the focus is on getting out Saturday's paper

The surviving staff members of the Capital Gazette are gathering on Friday to figure out what to do now.

Against all odds, the paper still came out on Friday, hours after a man gunned down five employees in Annapolis, Maryland.

The coming days are likely to be even more difficult, several staff members told CNN. Some of the adrenaline has worn off. The grieving process has just begun. But the deadlines just keep coming.

The Capital is a seven-day-a-week paper, and the immediate priority is Saturday's edition.

Some staff met in person Friday morning, and others joined via conference call, to discuss next steps.

Step one: Finding workspace. The gunshot-riddled office is inoperable. But the paper has help. It is part of The Baltimore Sun Media Group, which is owned by Tronc, so the staff is working from the offices of the Sun on Friday, a Tronc spokesman confirmed.

Counselors and other support services are on hand at the Sun.

The recovery effort is being led by Capital Gazette editor in chief Rick Hutzell. He was on vacation when the shooting took place, so he rushed back to Annapolis on Thursday afternoon.

"From the first moment, he was determined to publish this morning," columnist Terry Smith said on "New Day."

Hutzell was quoted in Friday's edition saying "we are heartbroken, devastated. Our colleagues and friends are gone."

Annapolis shooting: A day newsrooms have feared

Baltimore Sun Media Group publisher Trif Alatzas and other executives are also deeply involved. Some Tronc executives flew to Maryland to help.

The Sun handles production and other back-end functions for Capital Gazette. After the attack, the Sun replicated its breaking news story on the Gazette's website and relayed information from Phil Davis, a reporter who survived the shooting inside the newsroom.

Staffers who weren't at the office raced to the scene. Reporters Chase Cook, Josh McKerrow and Pat Furgurson worked on the next day's paper from the back of a pickup truck in a nearby parking garage.

"We covered the press conferences and worked alongside our colleagues at The Baltimore Sun to confirm what we heard," Cook told CNN.

That cooperative spirit is expected to continue in the days ahead.

The Capital Gazette may need reinforcements from the Sun, since several veteran editors and reporters are among the dead.

Smith said the shooter was "very deliberate" in "going to the left and down the row of editors' offices" in the newsroom.

One of the five victims was editorial page editor Gerald Fischman. Friday's opinion page was left blank in commemoration of the victims.

A small message on the page read, "Tomorrow this page will return to its steady purpose of offering our readers informed opinions about the world around them, that they might be better citizens."

Read our latest "Reliable Sources" newsletter: "The newsroom shooter exploited journalism's open doors"

Wednesday, June 20, 2018

NetApp Inc. (NTAP) Shares Bought by Profund Advisors LLC

Profund Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ:NTAP) by 14.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,660 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,193 shares during the period. Profund Advisors LLC’s holdings in NetApp were worth $596,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in shares of NetApp by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 20,465,300 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $1,262,508,000 after purchasing an additional 182,734 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its stake in shares of NetApp by 10.3% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 13,381,688 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $825,516,000 after purchasing an additional 1,254,548 shares during the last quarter. Investec Asset Management LTD purchased a new stake in shares of NetApp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $290,829,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of NetApp by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,322,669 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $239,131,000 after purchasing an additional 260,763 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of NetApp by 488.7% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,537,659 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $218,239,000 after purchasing an additional 2,936,713 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.87% of the company’s stock.

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In other news, CEO George Kurian sold 30,253 shares of NetApp stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.52, for a total transaction of $2,042,682.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Matthew K. Fawcett sold 16,188 shares of NetApp stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.42, for a total transaction of $1,139,958.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 55,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,933,379.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 142,386 shares of company stock valued at $9,956,870 over the last ninety days. 0.47% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Shares of NetApp opened at $76.98 on Monday, MarketBeat reports. The company has a quick ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. NetApp Inc. has a one year low of $37.55 and a one year high of $77.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.75, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.25.

NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 23rd. The data storage provider reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.04. NetApp had a net margin of 1.29% and a return on equity of 33.87%. The firm had revenue of $1.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.60 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.86 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. equities analysts expect that NetApp Inc. will post 3.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is an increase from NetApp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 5th. NetApp’s payout ratio is currently 26.76%.

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on NTAP shares. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of NetApp from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 28th. Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of NetApp from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $76.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 17th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of NetApp to $80.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday. William Blair upgraded shares of NetApp from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 17th. Finally, Argus lifted their price objective on shares of NetApp to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. The stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $66.46.

NetApp Profile

NetApp, Inc provides software, systems, and services to manage and store computer data worldwide. It offers flash; flash arrays that support data management; hybrid arrays to deploy the speed of flash storage; hybrid cloud; ONTAP cloud storage data management service; NetApp cloud sync hybrid data management Software as a Service; NetApp private storage for cloud; and AltaVault cloud-integrated solutions.

Institutional Ownership by Quarter for NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP)

Saturday, June 16, 2018

Zacks Investment Research Lowers Domino’s Pizza (DPZ) to Hold

Domino’s Pizza (NYSE:DPZ) was downgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

According to Zacks, “Domino's shares have outpaced the industry in a year’s time owing to better-than-expected results in seven out of the trailing eight quarters. In first-quarter 2018, the company’s earnings and revenues not only surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate but also surged sharply on a year-over-year basis. Notably, the first quarter marked the company’s respective 28th and 97th consecutive quarter of positive same-store sales domestically and internationally. Meanwhile, we believe that Domino's solid brand positioning might continue to boost sales in the upcoming quarters. Also, efforts to accelerate its presence in the high-growth international markets bode well. Moving ahead, Domino's initiatives on the digital front, increased store counts, focus on re-imaging and other sales-boosting strategies are expected to help sustain the momentum. However, higher costs and negative currency translation are likely to hurt profits.”

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DPZ has been the topic of several other reports. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Domino’s Pizza from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. ValuEngine raised shares of Domino’s Pizza from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 11th. Mizuho reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $275.00 price target on shares of Domino’s Pizza in a research note on Friday, April 27th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Domino’s Pizza from $217.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Maxim Group upped their price target on shares of Domino’s Pizza from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 26th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Domino’s Pizza currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $256.57.

Shares of NYSE:DPZ opened at $277.34 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of -1.12, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.39. Domino’s Pizza has a 12-month low of $166.74 and a 12-month high of $277.36. The firm has a market cap of $11.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.94, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.35.

Domino’s Pizza (NYSE:DPZ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 26th. The restaurant operator reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.23. Domino’s Pizza had a net margin of 10.32% and a negative return on equity of 11.97%. The company had revenue of $785.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $688.15 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.26 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 25.8% on a year-over-year basis. sell-side analysts forecast that Domino’s Pizza will post 8.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Domino’s Pizza declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, February 20th that allows the company to buyback $750.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the restaurant operator to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

In other Domino’s Pizza news, insider J Patrick Doyle sold 20,842 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.42, for a total transaction of $5,511,041.64. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 24,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,523,241.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 3.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Synovus Financial Corp increased its position in Domino’s Pizza by 23.8% during the fourth quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 1,281 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $241,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its position in Domino’s Pizza by 41.8% during the fourth quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 2,879 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $544,000 after buying an additional 848 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its position in Domino’s Pizza by 83.2% during the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,573,333 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $297,297,000 after buying an additional 714,414 shares during the last quarter. Waratah Capital Advisors Ltd. acquired a new position in Domino’s Pizza during the fourth quarter worth $1,591,000. Finally, Bank of Hawaii increased its position in Domino’s Pizza by 34.3% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Hawaii now owns 4,290 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $811,000 after buying an additional 1,095 shares during the last quarter. 99.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Domino’s Pizza

Domino's Pizza, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a pizza delivery company in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Domestic Stores, International Franchise, and Supply Chain. The company offers pizzas under the Domino's Pizza brand name through company-owned and franchised Domino's Pizza stores.

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Analyst Recommendations for Domino`s Pizza (NYSE:DPZ)

Friday, June 1, 2018

The Rookie Mistakes That Bankrupt New Restaurants

Many people dream of opening restaurants and bringing their visions to life. But with relatively high failure rates, owning a restaurant can be a precarious prospect, especially if you're coming in with little to no experience. It's estimated that 60% of new restaurants fail within their first year of business, while 80% close down within five years. If you don't want to fall victim to a similar fate, here are some rookie mistakes you'll need to avoid at all costs.

1. Choosing the wrong location

Your restaurant's success hinges on customers, so if you open in a remote location with absolutely no foot traffic, you may have a hard time getting people in the door. But entering an already-saturated market can hurt you just as much. If you open your business in a hip, trendy neighborhood loaded with eateries, you may have a hard time distinguishing your restaurant from the pack.

Restaurant interior

IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES.

Before you open a restaurant, research your location options extensively, and pinpoint the advantages and drawbacks of setting up shop in different areas. For example, an up-and-coming neighborhood might seem like the ideal spot at first, but if it comes with extremely limited parking and unbearable levels of traffic, that's an instant barrier for potential customers to overcome. Similarly, make sure your restaurant aligns with the neighborhood you're choosing. A high-end eatery probably won't thrive in a low-to-middle-income area that's mostly populated by families with children.

2. Not having enough working capital

Running a restaurant requires a certain amount of up-front cash. In addition to covering your general overhead, like rent and electricity, you'll need to maintain a solid inventory to ensure you're able to make good on your menu. You should also allow for the fact that business might be slow to ramp up, and that you'll need money to tide yourself over until sales begin to climb.

How much working capital is enough to get started? It'll depend on the specific costs you're dealing with, but as a general rule, it's smart to have enough cash on hand to run your establishment for three to six months. Create a detailed list of your business expenses, from cutlery to payroll, and don't jump the gun on opening until you've secured the funding you need to kick things off with confidence.

3. Not being aware of your food costs

One of the easiest ways to guarantee that your restaurant will fail is to be clueless about your food costs and how they correlate to the prices you put on your menu. Most restaurants charge a 300% markup on food to stay afloat, which means if a meal costs you $10 to make, you should ideally be commanding $40 for it. That's why you, as a restaurant owner, should have a hand in every single food order that's placed on behalf of your business -- at least initially. This way, you'll know what you're spending and will be better positioned to price your menu accordingly.

4. Spotty service

Your restaurant might serve up the best food within a 100-mile radius, but if your service is abysmal, you're going to turn customers off. And once that happens, you can count on them telling their friends and announcing that information to the world. In this day and age, you're really just a couple of bad online reviews away from a bankruptcy filing, so make sure your staff is adequately trained on the importance of solid service. This means doing trial runs with your hosts, testing your servers to see if they know your menu inside and out, and ensuring that your kitchen is being run efficiently.

Owning a restaurant can be both a fulfilling and profitable experience. It can also be a disaster if you go in unprepared. If you're new to the restaurant industry, one of the best things you can do, in addition to avoiding the above mistakes, is enlist the help of a mentor who's done this before. Getting the inside scoop on someone else's real-world successes and failures is just about the best education you can receive as a rookie restaurant owner, so don't hesitate to seek out that invaluable guidance.