Sales & Marketing news

• $12 BILLION HEDGE FUND: The stock market has changed, and we're going to have to do things differently

  13-07-2017 22:35 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  The stock market has changed, and investors are going to have to sharpen their wits. 
  That's according to Dmitry Balyasny, the managing partner at billion hedge fund Balyasny Asset Management. The firm managed $12.6 billion in hedge fund assets at start of year according to the Hedge Fund Intelligence Billion Dollar Club ranking.
  He wrote in a letter to investors that the rise of passive investing and quant funds and a surge in hedge fund assets had made the stock market more effi
  
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• BITCOIN MINER: The rise of Ethereum could help some bitcoin miners

  13-07-2017 22:21 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Bitcoin mining gets more difficult over time, and so it now takes more electricity and money to mine for the cryptocurrency than ever before.
  The rise of ether, another cryptocurrency, and the appreciation of bitcoin could help maintain the profitability of bitcoin mining, despite increasing cost and difficulty.
  It's getting more difficult to mine bitcoins, but that doesn't mean miners are packing up their servers and seeking greener pastures. 
  The number of bitcoins available for mining h
  
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• STOCKS INCH HIGHER: Here's what you need to know

  13-07-2017 22:00 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Stocks closed little changed on Thursday ahead of the first set of earnings from the big Wall Street banks on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at a new high.
  Here's the scoreboard: 
  Dow: 21,553.09, +20.95, (0.10%)
  S&P 500: 2,447.83, +4.58, (0.19%)
  Nasdaq: 6,274.44, +13.27, (0.21%)
  Snap rallied 3% after getting an upgrade to "Buy" from Stifel. "Snap is what investors have long wanted (and many still want) Twitter to be; a thriving communications platform for
  
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• THE BOTTOM LINE: Historical crashes and where the market stands today

  13-07-2017 21:58 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  This week:
  A rough week for Blue Apron and Snap both of which went public in 2017. Blue Apron went public at the end of June, at $10 a share, and has been slowly declining since. This week, Northcoast Research published the first Wall Street price target for the stock at $2 a share. Snap gained 44% on its first day of trading in March but has since been coming down and closed below its $17 IPO price for the first time on Monday. Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Nowak downgraded the stock o
  
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• The revised Senate healthcare bill is already on the verge of imploding

  13-07-2017 21:32 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Skeptical Republican senators bristled at the newly updated version of the Senate healthcare bill released Thursday morning, putting its future in doubt.
  Almost immediately, two Republican senators came out against a procedural vote that would get the bill to the floor of the Senate, meaning Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and GOP leaders cannot afford to lose another vote.
  A third GOP defection would prevent the bill from even being considered by the broader Sena
  
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• Here's what you need to know about the US sanctions on Russia

  13-07-2017 21:20 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  The US has leveled multiple sets of sanctions on Russia in recent years.
  Most recently, the Senate voted 97-2 to pass a measure that would tighten sanctions on Russia, and would prevent the White House from unilaterally easing or removing sanctions imposed earlier by the Obama administration. However, the bill still needs to pass the House and be signed by US President Donald Trump to become law.
  But for now, in an effort to keep things clear, here are some of the basic facts on the main se
  
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• Artificial intelligence is going to change every aspect of your life — here's how to invest in it (NVDA, GOOGLE, INTC, QCOM)

  13-07-2017 20:37 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  You've probably heard of artificial intelligence by now. It's the technology powering Siri, driverless cars, and that creepy Facebook feature that automatically tags your friends when you upload photos.
  But what is AI, why are people talking about it now, and what will it mean for your everyday life? SunTrust recently released a report that breaks down how AI works, so let's tackle those questions one at a time.
  What is AI?
  AI is what people call computer programs that try to replicate how
  
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• Stock pickers are making a big comeback

  13-07-2017 20:17 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Stock pickers are having a big year. 
  In the first half of 2017, 54% of active managers outperformed their benchmark Russell 1000 index, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
  It was the first time the bank's data showed that more than half of managers beat their benchmarks in the first half of the year. At this pace, they're headed for their best year since 2007.
  This outperformance was driven by following the crowd: Active managers tended to have large positions in the popu
  
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• The new Senate healthcare bill contains a big sweetener for one particularly important senator

  13-07-2017 19:35 via feedproxy.google.com
  The text of the newest version of the Senate healthcare bill contains a provision aimed at one Republican holdout: Sen. Lisa Murkowski.
  The Alaska senator would see a guarantee of funding for her state to combat high premiums, in a clear attempt to win over the senator who has been vocal in opposition to various elements of the bill.
  The provision has to do with the state stability fund, a pot of money that would be given to states to help deal with high insurance premiums and enc
  
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• We're really going to need to make America great again once Trump is finished

  13-07-2017 19:10 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Whether Donald Trump’s presidency collapses under its own weight or goes on to last two terms, his administration is doing such sustained damage to America’s image and global leadership that it may be hard to repair any time soon.
  The United States has descended from being the world’s beacon of freedom and democracy, even a deeply flawed and often hypocritical one, to becoming a banana-republic laughing stock.
  As Trump lands in Paris for a high-profile meeting with the new Pres
  
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• Everything you need to know about MAGAnomics is in one classic episode of 'South Park'

  13-07-2017 18:59 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Perhaps you read the White House budget director's piece on MAGAnomics in Thursday's Wall Street Journal.
  In it, Mick Mulvaney outlines President Donald Trump's plan to get to 3% gross-domestic-product growth — what he believes is the natural state of the US economy.
  If you didn't read it, don't worry about it. You really only have to be familiar with a classic "South Park" episode to understand why Mulvaney's concepts don't work. The economic stuff we can fill in at the bottom of th
  
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• From acne to pregnancy, here's every 'preexisting condition' that could put your insurance at risk under the Senate's healthcare bill

  13-07-2017 18:28 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Republicans in the Senate released an updated version of the Better Care Reconciliation Act, their plan to overhaul the US healthcare system.
  Included in the revised bill is an amendment from Sen. Ted Cruz and Sen. Mike Lee that critics say could make plans with adequate coverage unaffordable to those who have certain medical conditions.The amendment would allow plans to exist that don't comply with two regulations set up under the Affordable Care Act: community rating and essenti
  
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• Republicans just released a new healthcare bill — here are all the changes

  13-07-2017 18:07 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Senate Republican leadership released the updated version of its healthcare bill on Thursday, but continued pushback from its own conference most likely puts the legislation in the same perilous position as previous iterations.
  The details of the bill outline a variety of edits but indicate that much of the original BCRA remains intact.
  Here's a rundown of the changes in the new version of the BCRA:
  Some of Obamacare's taxes are kept: The new version could preserve the 3.8% investment-income ta
  
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• One chart blows up Trump's promise that his budget will eliminate the deficit

  13-07-2017 18:05 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  The Congressional Budget Office has refuted the Trump administration's claims that it can cut taxes and spending and leave the US with a balanced budget.
  In an analysis of the budget released Thursday, the nonpartisan CBO said President Donald Trump's plan would shrink the deficit relative to the size of the overall economy, but it projects a budget deficit 10 years from now that's far larger than the Trump administration's estimates.
  The White House projects that the budget could tip into a sur
  
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• MORGAN STANLEY: Microsoft's huge growth has nothing to do with its fight against Apple (MSFT)

  13-07-2017 18:00 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  Microsoft has been battling Apple for decades in a fight to be the computer in your home or on your lap, but they have been quietly taking over an entirely different sector.
  Recently, Microsoft has been tackling the commercial cloud business, and it could pay off big time, according to a recent note to investors from Morgan Stanley.
  "We estimate the Commercial Cloud annualized revenue run rate increases to $17 billion in 4Q17, or 85% of Microsoft's FY18 $20 billion target," Keith Weiss, an
  
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• GOLDMAN SACHS: There's a fortune to be made analyzing sports stats

  13-07-2017 17:49 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  There's a fortune to be made crunching stats in a post-Moneyball world, and the potential for profit extends far beyond baseball, into everything from soccer to basketball.
  At the core of the story is what makes anything sports-related intriguing to so many people: an undying competitive spirit that has franchises — even full leagues — chasing any possible advantage. And in this case, that edge comes from statistically analyzing mountains of athlete data.
  For some context as to what'
  
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• Analyst urges Costco to buy Whole Foods in brutal open letter (COST)

  13-07-2017 17:49 via feedproxy.google.com
  
  A Barclays analyst wants Costco to face off against Amazon in its bid to acquire Whole Foods. 
  On Thursday, Barclays analyst Karen Short wrote in an open letter to Costco saying that it was time for the budget retailer to convince investors that it had a viable ecommerce strategy.
  While Short said that Barclays viewed Costco as a "best-in-class" retailer, investors, she wrote, have "bigger and longer term concerns" — namely, if Costco could keep up in an industry increasingly obs
  
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• BT Sport, The AA, Heineken: The Top 10 YouTube ads in June

  13-07-2017 16:12
  
  1. YouTube: Spotlight Use your #PowerToDecide
  YouTube has come top of its own list with this ad released around the General Election last month. The video urges young people to use their voice to vote on the 8 June, telling them they have the ‘power to decide’. The ad features a number of YouTube influencers including Adrian Bliss, Humza Productions and Mandeville Sisters to appeal to a younger generation. With ‘Watch what I can do’ by 7kingz playing as its soun
  
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• International news: McDonald’s shakes up US agency model, KFC launches a phone

  13-07-2017 13:05
  
  McDonald’s plots shake-up of US marketing model
  McDonald’s is planning a shake-up of its US marketing model as it looks to offer a more consistent marketing message and save on agency costs. According to a report in AdAge, the company wants to cut the number of creative agencies its franchisees work with. Currently, around 60 agencies do local work for its 200 franchise groups across the country, but McDonald’s wants to get that down to 10 or fewer.
  The report also suggests loc
  
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• Marketing and insight are teaming up to drive better business

  13-07-2017 12:11
  
  Collaboration between marketing and insight is helping both sides of the partnership make better decisions to devise stronger, more consumer focused campaigns that drive businesses forward.
  At online retailer Shop Direct the close relationship between marketing and insight is helping improve the company’s fundamental understanding of customer needs, attitudes and habits, both in and out of the retail environment, according to group marketing director Kenyatte Nelson.
  Over th
  
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• Marketing and insight have united to create a customer-centric culture at Forbes

  13-07-2017 12:08
  
  Marketing and insight are increasingly teaming up to promote a customer-centric culture based on meaningful data in a bid to better understand their customers’ needs.
  This is the experience at US publisher Forbes, which is focusing on rich engagement to drive its transition to a digital-first model.
  In the second instalment of Marketing Week’s ‘A Marketer’s Best Friend’ series, sponsored by Salesforce, Forbes CMO Tom Davis discusses how working with chief insig
  
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• WARC Media Awards: Tech judging panel announced

  13-07-2017 02:00
  
  LONDON: Senior executives from Target and Microsoft as well as from tech-inspired businesses like Blippar and Waze are joining the judging panel for the Effective Use of Tech category in the WARC Media Awards, announced today.The
  
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• Televisa overhauls ad sales

  13-07-2017 02:00
  
  MEXICO CITY: Grupo Televisa, Mexico's leading broadcaster, has announced it will review how it sells advertising after it saw ad sales slump for the second quarter in a row.Net sales overall – covering content, Sky, cable and other...
  
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• Shopping loses its attraction for Chinese tourists

  13-07-2017 02:00
  
  HONG KONG: The number of Chinese tourists travelling overseas continues to rise but their spending on product shopping is declining as theyseek out experiences instead, a new report says.
  
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• Medibank taps digital to right the ship

  13-07-2017 02:00
  
  MELBOURNE:Medibank, Australia's beleaguered health insurer, is betting on a digital transformation to change direction and rebuild brand loyalty.In 2016, Medibank single-handedly generated the greatest number of complaints to the Private Health...
  
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• Marketers struggle to adapt

  13-07-2017 02:00
  
  SAN JOSE, CA: Many marketers are struggling to adapt their content for different media destinations and geographical locations, according to research from the CMO Council, the executive network.Based on a poll of 150 marketers – conducted...
  
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• Cards overtake cash

  13-07-2017 02:00
  
  LONDON: Cards accounted for more than half of all retail transactions by volume in the UK last year, while debit card purchases have overtaken cash for the first time, according to a new survey.The latest annual
  
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• Bata targets the customer experience

  13-07-2017 02:00
  
  GURGAON: Bata, the shoe brand, believes that the customer experience is central to its future success and is investing accordingly in both offline and online channels."We recognise that a good customer experience turns a casual customer into a...
  
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• Ikea: We work as closely with our agencies as we do our furniture designers

  13-07-2017 01:01
  
  Ikea has unveiled a new integrated campaign aimed at helping Brits ‘relax into greatness’. Centered around the story of the ‘Lion Man’ as he recharges in his living room (predictably filled to the brim with Ikea furniture), the character is later revealed to be a father in a costume taking a break from his child’s birthday party.
  The integrated campaign, which was designed by Mother London, will run in both 60- and 20-second formats from the 15 July across press, TV
  
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