China’s Baidu stumbles in getting back to basics 27 Oct 2017 Investors wiped $10 bln from the web giant’s market value after it forecast disappointing sales for the rest of 2017. Baidu has cut costs and narrowed its focus to revitalise its scandal-hit search business. Unfortunately that has yet to translate into less volatile results.
Twitter’s credibility is for the birds 26 Oct 2017 Jack Dorsey’s social network had to restate user numbers for three years. Quarterly ad revenue fell a whopping 8 pct. However, a promise of coming profitability has put investors in a tizzy. Cutting costs is a start, but it’s going to take more to mend Twitter’s broken wings.
Infosys new-old saviour fails to make a splash 24 Oct 2017 Founder and returning Chairman Nandan Nilekani is throwing away revenue growth goals for India’s IT services group. He’s also putting past controversies over M&A and pay to rest. But details on a new strategy are light, a CEO search continues, and the board still needs a revamp.
Tencent’s books are less gripping than its games 24 Oct 2017 Publishing unit China Literature wants to list in Hong Kong at a value of up to $6.4 bln. Sales and earnings are taking off. But e-books are less lucrative than online games, with a smaller market and a shorter track record. This does not merit a valuation to match its parent.
Cisco buys more growth, but at unclear value 23 Oct 2017 The $170 bln networking giant’s $1.9 bln deal for collaboration-software outfit BroadSoft will help offset shrinking sales. The price, a 28 pct premium, looks rational. Cisco didn’t elaborate on synergies, though. Like its 200-plus other purchases, success will be tough to track.
Meituan orders up help to be China’s next web star 20 Oct 2017 The food-delivery to hotel-bookings startup raised $4 bln at a $30 bln valuation. Investors reckon Meituan-Dianping could be China’s next huge online platform. With scale benefits from offering many different services, and this warchest to fight off rivals, they could be right.
Qudian IPO feeds debt-hungry Chinese millennials 18 Oct 2017 The online lender backed by e-commerce giant Alibaba’s financial arm has priced its U.S. listing above expectations, says Reuters. It boasts fast growth, low defaults and - shockingly for tech - profitability. As young Chinese shoppers rack up debt, Qudian will keep earning.
Pearson’s improved report card could be erased 17 Oct 2017 The education publisher issued a slightly more optimistic forecast for operating profit and said its U.S. textbook business is unlikely to repeat its catastrophic 2016. But Pearson has misread its key market before. The shift to digital publishing still looks painful.
Beijing’s closer embrace is bad news for Big Tech 12 Oct 2017 China wants stakes and board seats at web giants like Tencent, the WSJ says. Beijing is already influential behind the scenes in technology, and given its tightening grip elsewhere, a power grab in this vital sector was all but inevitable. This will nonetheless cost investors.
HelloFresh IPO belongs in the deep-freeze 10 Oct 2017 The German meal-kit service is planning a float before proving it can turn a profit. That’s premature. The flame-out of U.S. rival Blue Apron’s IPO in June offers an unhappy precedent. Both firms could go stale if Amazon or traditional retailers launch an assault on the sector.
IKEA digital surrender raises flicker of IPO hope 10 Oct 2017 The Swedish furniture firm has grown through its warren-like stores and without needing external capital. Yet it now plans to sell through websites like Amazon to reach new customers. With competitive pressures growing, IKEA might also revisit its aversion to selling stock.
Server-farm growth fuels hot IPO mumbo jumbo 6 Oct 2017 Rocketing data-storage demand is creating winners – witness the 46 pct rise in Switch in its first day of trading. It also encourages silliness such as the company crediting its performance on CEO and “inventrepreneur” Rob Roy’s practice of “Switchful Thinking.”
Amazon’s delivery self-help may have AWS effect 5 Oct 2017 The e-commerce goliath's web needs led it to build something for itself that became a big and profitable business. Jeff Bezos is now testing a way to ship goods to save money, a venture that could threaten UPS and FedEx. Amazon's solutions are a growing problem for others.
Yahoo’s corpse keeps festering at Verizon 5 Oct 2017 Marni Walden, a possible candidate to lead the U.S. telco, is leaving. She was also in charge of buying the internet firm, which just tripled its tally of customer accounts exposed to an earlier hack. Even if the timing is coincidence, Yahoo’s troubles continue to cast a pall.
Europe faces bigger tax foe than Amazon and Apple 4 Oct 2017 The bloc’s antitrust chief ordered Luxembourg to collect 250 mln euros from the e-commerce giant. She is also pursuing Ireland over a 13 bln euro Apple case. The EU is winning the loophole battle. But a bigger war to level the global tax playing field may meet U.S. intransigence.
Two rights at Uber in danger of making a wrong 2 Oct 2017 Travis Kalanick's newly appointed directors add useful expertise to a flawed board. And the effort by incumbents to limit the ousted founder's power as part of a deal to raise capital from SoftBank also makes sense. Both stand to lose if they dig in too firmly against each other.
Expect buybacks but not M&A from China’s Sina 29 Sep 2017 An activist wants the $8 bln web group to consider a sale or a merger with subsidiary Weibo. The former would never get past boss Charles Chao, and the latter is a bad idea. But Chao could compromise by expanding the board, stepping up buybacks and handing out more Weibo shares.
Amazon European shopping talk is wishful thinking 28 Sep 2017 Supermarkets Carrefour and Sainsbury have been floated as potential targets following the e-commerce giant’s $13.7 bln purchase of Whole Foods. But CEO Jeff Bezos already owns the one grocer he really needs. Bid speculation only obscures the broader competitive pressures.
Hugh Hefner’s stamina outlasted the Playboy model 28 Sep 2017 The sexual revolution's great salesman has put down his smouldering pipe at 91. He built his pioneering magazine's blend of nudity and smarts into an empire with a logo recognised worldwide. But the internet, cultural change and competition saw his business age less gracefully.
Rocket Internet rejig exposes valuation mismatch 28 Sep 2017 The German tech investor is jettisoning half its stake in Delivery Hero for 660 mln euros. That’s welcome, but investors still don’t trust boss Oliver Samwer with the cash. Unless he pledges to return more of it to shareholders, Rocket’s stratospheric discount will persist.