Following on form our previous article hear are a few more things you should take into account in relation to Mergers & Investments.
a) Market Extension Merger is between the companies selling same product but in different markets. This merger enhances the market for the two companies since they now act as one sole company.
b) Product Extension Merger is like the one between an eminent company making motor parts and another that makes their own cars. So, the companies involved here sell different but more or less the same product in the same market. This merger promotes the sale of both the companies significantly.
c) Conglomeration is a merger where the concerned companies have nothing in common to sell.
There are various reasons behind merger of companies. Like
1) Synergy factor prompts the merger of most of the companies. The synergy in business pertains to the cost saving and revenue enhancement. The companies after merger decrease the staff keeping only the skilled labor, work with a single managing director, CEO etc. So there is good outlay saving. Moreover the economy of the sale i.e. the purchasing power of the company booms after merger.
2) To increase the output and rule the market- many mergers are made with the intention to oust the competition and jointly rule the market. This presupposes healthy relations between the competing companies.
3) Mergers also take place when a company is not able to perform well due to some or the other cause like the lack of required investment in the form of capital, tremendous competition etc. In such a situation this company can merge with one its parent company or any other company that has faith in the prior goodwill of the declining company and in its potential to grow and enhance. So companies also merge in order to overcome their internal inconsistencies.
4) Many a mergers besides economically are also politically driven.
5) Acquisitions which imply taking over of one stronger company with the other weaker one are also at times veiled by the name of merger.
However, the directors who plan to merge their companies should actually contemplate over it, keeping in mind all the possible pros and cons. They must seek advice from neutral financial consultants who do are more inclined towards the welfare of the company and not their own. Their own benefit is also hidden in a merger since the wages of the employees increase with the advancement due to merger. So it is recommended to take advice from all those who are the well wishers of the company before taking any concrete step in this direction.
For more any questions relating to asset management if they could be directed to Nigel Walter Chairman of Connaught asset management.
Are you one of those who are forever on a hunt for quick tips on investment? If so, then it is very likely that the term offshore investment has been tossed at you more often than not.
What is offshore investment? Offshore investment is a way of making one’s money grow by investing in various ventures abroad that is outside your own country of residence.
Why venture into offshore investment? The most popular reason cited for investing in foreign waters is to evade the tax enforcements in one’s own country. Most people who reside in high-tax areas like US, UK, Canada or Japan see domestic investments as a futile exercise because of the heavy tax penalties that one has to pay. While tax is the driving force behind majority of offshore investments, there are others who invest into foreign lands with the intention of earning huge returns and not of evading taxes.
A survey by YouGov revealed that as much as 55% of adult Britons were seriously considering settling in another country. Two factors can be attributed to have triggered this feeling among Britons. The first being, the ever worsening pension situation in the country, which has prompted several Britons to look elsewhere for their retirement savings. The second of course being the universal dream of owning a holiday home in an exotic country.
What options are available under offshore investment? United Nations Conference on Trade and Development or UNCTAD reveals that foreign investments have seen a recent shift towards services in all regions of the world. Besides the most popular overseas call centres, other services including water, electricity and business services have also started seeing a lot of money being poured into them.
Besides these, property has always been a hot market for investments. As a potential investor you can also look into more traditional options like funds and savings plan.
Beware Investor! No matter what your reason is behind investing or what scheme you are putting your money into, the catch phrase always is Caveat emptor! Or beware! As an investor you are solely responsible for your investment and so before taking the plunge you must assess your own risk tolerance.
Seek.uk
Nidhi
http://www.seek.uk.com
One of the things people are always asking me is how can I find a good stock. The answer I give does not please them. I say, “You are not qualified to pick stock. You don’t know how so don’t try. Put your money in a no-load mutual fund that is going up”.
The next cry is, “I don’t want to buy mutual funds. What do I do?”
OK, so I’ll tell you. It is easy. You will have to do less than an hour of work. None of that Wall Street mythology about research which is all horse hockey. The way Wall Street does research is worthless. And don’t listen to any broker. Advice from a broker is a eulogy for your money.
They want you to look at the company prospectus. This document isn’t worth the paper it is printed on. It was not written for the investor; it was written to pass inspection by some Dilbert lawyer in Washington to see that it meets all the regulations. You can take a prospectus of a very good company and one of a company that has gone bankrupt and you will see they are almost identical. Throw them away.
Read the Annual Report. Another bit of smoke and mirrors. The title should tell you - Annual. Much of what is in it is a year old. Worthless. And let’s hope it doesn’t have a case of Enronitis.
Get a report from Morningstar. They know all about every financial statistic for a company that you can think of. You might even find out how many sugar lumps the CEO has in his coffee, but there is one thing you won’t learn. If you buy this company’s stock will it go up? What I am saying is that all the conventional wisdom methods of doing research are worthless. So what do you do?
On the Internet you can find a list of the best performing mutual funds. Go to www.smartmoney.com or www.yahoo/finance.com . There are other places also, but these 2 are very good. List the top 5 mutual funds (write down their symbols). Now go to www.bigcharts.com .
Put in the symbol for one of the funds. A chart will come up giving you a picture of the price performance of that fund. If it is going up at a 25-degree angle or more it means the fund manager is doing a good job of picking stocks. At the top of the chart picture there is a legend for Morningstar. Click on that. The new page will show near the bottom the major holdings of this fund. Again you need to get the symbols for his top 5 stocks and look at the chart picture for each one. If that stock is going up in a nice steady price over a period of time of 6 months or longer you have found a winner. Do this with several funds until you have found some stocks you like.
You have let a professional stock picker do all the work for you and now can piggyback his expertise at no cost. Please remember that when that stock turns down you want to sell it. You may be able to ride one up, but you can never tell when it will turn into another Enron. Always be ready to sell.
Al Thomas’ book, “If It Doesn’t Go Up, Don’t Buy
It!” has helped thousands of people make money
and keep their profits with his simple 2-step
method. Read the first chapter at
http://www.mutualfundmagic.com
and discover why he’s the man that Wall Street
does not want you to know.
Copyright 2005
When developing a plan for your finances, the toughest question often is: “Where do I begin?” Before investing in stocks and bonds or buying life insurance, before implementing any change or making any decisions, you first need to analyze and understand your entire financial picture. Two documents allow you to do just that. A Balance Sheet and a Cash Flow Statement enable you to take an in-depth look at your current financial situation and make better decisions about the future. With a little work, you can develop these two tools and be on your way to a solid plan for your finances.
Balance Sheet
A balance sheet is a snapshot of your personal finances at one point in time. It contains two main elements: what you own (assets), and what you owe (liabilities). Your net worth is expressed as: Net Worth = Assets - Liabilities. That is, what you own minus what you owe.
A balance sheet clearly lists all assets and liabilities. Examples of assets include: house, investments such as stocks and bonds, savings and checking accounts, 401(k), IRAs, business interests, artwork, and jewelry, among others. Liabilities include mortgage balances, credit cards, education loans, and any other debt. Once you have created a list of everything you own and everything you owe, simply subtract the sum of the assets from the sum of the liabilities- this is your net worth.
The ultimate goal of most investors is to increase their net worth. The balance sheet is a very useful tool to identify strengths and weaknesses in your current finances, as well as to determine your goals for the future. Someone with a disproportionate amount of liabilities might set a goal to eliminate this debt. On the other hand, someone with a positive net worth (more assets than liabilities) might plan to save and invest towards retirement, college, or another goal.
Cash Flow Statement
After analyzing your balance sheet and determining your goals, you need to decide how to fund these goals. A well formulated plan is one not only with realistic goals, but also a sensible means of achieving them. That is, having goals is good, but you must be able to pay for them. Using a cash flow statement will enable you to determine how to pay for your goals.
A cash flow statement is a detailed look at all money coming in and going out over a period of time. It illustrates what you earn (revenue) and what you spend (expenses). Your net cash flow is expressed as: Net Cash Flow = Revenue - Expenses. That is, what you earn minus what you spend.
Some examples of revenue include: salary and wages, self-employment earnings, dividends, interest, and other investment income. Expenses may include: mortgage payments, rent payments, insurance costs, utilities, clothing, food, child care, alimony or child support, travel, entertainment, loan payments, education costs, taxes, charitable contributions, gifts, and gasoline. After listing all you earn and everything you spend, you can calculate your net cash flow by simply subtracting expenses from revenue.
By analyzing your cash flow statement, you can more easily cut expenses and identify excess net cash to use towards your goals. Generally, someone with negative net cash flow should first concentrate on cutting expenses to achieve positive cash flow before attempting to save or invest towards any future goals. Once positive net cash flow is achieved, excess money can be used directly for funding and achieving your goals.
In developing a balance sheet and a cash flow statement, it is important to remember one general rule-of-thumb- Quality in - Quality out. The more detail and care you put into your planning documents, the more effective they will be. A plan is only as good as the effort you put forth when creating it.
About The Author: Jonathan Citrin provides financial goal planning services. Go to http://articles.citringroup.com for hundreds of educational articles about Personal Finance, Retirement Planning, Investment Planning, and College Savings.
