More Than 380,000 Nonemployer Businesses Added to the U.S. Economy

The number of businesses without paid employees in the U.S. rose 1.7 percent to 22.5 million in 2011, according to a new report released today from the U.S. Census Bureau. 

This marked the second straight increase in nonemployer businesses, with all but two states (Louisiana and New Hampshire) posting gains from 2010 to 2011.

Today’s findings come from Nonemployer Statistics: 2011, an annual report on U.S. businesses without paid employees, classified in nearly 450 industries for the nation, states, counties and metropolitan areas.

Nonemployer Statistics covers businesses with no paid employees, annual business receipts of $1,000 or more ($1 or more in the construction industries) and subject to federal income taxes.

Businesses with paid employees were covered in County Business Patterns, which was released in April.

METROPOLITAN AREA EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT —APRIL 2013

Jobless rates were lower in April than a year earlier in 276 of the 372 metropolitan areas, higher in 78, and unchanged in 18.

Nonfarm payroll employment was up in 274 metropolitan areas over the year, down in 88, and unchanged in 10.

Read the full blown report

Original content +Bob DeMarco , All American Investor

Xilinx (XLNX) 2012 Review

Xilinx designs, develops and markets complementary metal-oxide-silicon programmable logic devices, including field programmable gate arrays and complex programmable logic devices and markets hardware devices and develops software design tools for programmable electronic technologies.

Steve Cook

The company has grown profits at a 10% pace over the last 10 years and has raised its dividend per share from $.20 in 2004 to $.64 in 2010. Return on equity has come in between 16% and 20% in the last five years. XLNX experienced a hiccup in 2009 due to the recession but recovered in 2010 year and should continue to make progress as a result of:

(1) benefiting from the global trend of programmable logic devices replacing application-specific integrated circuits,

(2) improvement in demand from its two principal markets,

(3) new products expected to open new markets,

Family Dollar Stores (FDO) 2012 Review

Family Dollar Stores operates a chain of 6,785 general retail discount merchandise stores in 44 states. It provides competitively priced goods to low and middle income consumers, including home products, apparel and accessories, seasonal goods and electronics. 

FDO has grown profits and dividends at an 11% pace over the last 10 years earning a 15-20% return on equity. The company successfully navigated its way through the recent recession and should continue to improve earnings as a result of:

(1) its strategy to upgrade its merchandising, marketing and store operations,

(2) aggressive price management and cost containment programs,

Altera Corp (ALTR) 2012 Review

Altera Corp.(ALTR) is a global leader in the design and manufacture of high density programmable logic devices (PLD) and associated computer aided engineering logic development tools. 

Its products are utilized in the telecommunications, data communications, computers and industrial applications. The company has grown profits at an 8% pace over the last 10 years and its dividend at a 13% rate since its initiation in 2007; in addition, it has earned a 20-25% return on equity. ALTR experienced an earnings decline in 2009 but rebounded sharply in 2010 and should continue to grow as a result of:

(1) ALTR has technological advantage over its principal PLD rival via a newly developed, high performance application specific integrated circuit,

(2) its new generation of products carry higher margins and should add to earnings growth as they become a larger portion of the sales mix,

(3) the rollout of the third generation mobile networks in Asia will add significantly to profit expansion.

@AllAmerInvest, The Trend of the Market Remains UP, Chart

The uptrend in the S & P 500 continues.

All American Investor

One thing you should notice when you look at the SP 500 chart below is the slope of the 40 day moving average (green line). The slope is trending up. It is the slope that is most important, not the absolute value of the moving average.

The market should now be able to take downside attacks. Expect the market to find good support if the market comes back to, or near the 40 day moving average. This is where you want to consider buying the market.

Obviously, the market is still vulnerable to event risk from Europe.

@AllAmerInvest Get Rich, Piracy, Cheaters, Surprise, Nutty Cramer

Questions and answers about the issues behind the controversial Internet anti-piracy bills

Online piracy costs U.S. copyright owners and producers billions of dollars every year, but legislation in Congress to block foreign Internet thieves and swindlers has met strong resistance from high-tech companies, spotlighted by Wikipedia’s protest blackout Wednesday, warning of a threat to Internet freedom.
Read More

What the Top 1% of Earners Majored In -- How to Get Rich
We got an interesting question from an academic adviser at a Texas university: could we tell what the top 1 percent of earners majored in?

U.S. Vows to Expand Insider Trading Probe as Fourth Ring Charged
The U.S. government vowed to continue its five-year investigation into insider trading on Wall Street as it charged a fourth ring of hedge-fund traders with using illegal information to make millions of dollars.

All American Investor

@AmerInvest, Stocks a Bit Lower on Euro, Chart

Stocks are a bit lower this morning on worries about the Euro

All American Investor

@AllAmerInvest, Obama’s Revolution, Voice Operated Smart TVs, Consumer Electronics Show, Stocks Up Size

Obama’s revolution in American strategy

While the media has focused on the Republican presidential primaries, offstage the greatest revolution in American foreign policy in a generation has occurred, with little discussion or debate surrounding its announcement last week by President Obama.
Read More

Voice-Operated Smart TVs May Spur Tech Profits
At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas opening today, LG and Lenovo will show TVs that allow users to search for shows and Web applications with natural-sounding voice commands. Samsung introduced three high-end models with so- called Smart Interaction technology, which builds in motion- sensing and voice-command software similar to Microsoft Corp. (MSFT)’s Kinect peripheral for the Xbox 360 video-game console.

The Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas opening today.


All American Investor

Staples (SPLS) 2011 Review

Staples (SPLS) is one of the largest office supply superstore chains in the US, Europe, Asia and South America (1900+ stores).

SPLS also sells its branded products in over 2400 grocery stores in the US. In the past five years, the company has grown profits at a 5% pace, earning a return of equity in the 12-18% area. In 2004, it initiated a dividend and has since more than tripled it (27% AR). While SPLS did not escape the impact of the recent economic down turn, it should resume its long term growth as a result of:

(1) as an industry leader, it is positioned to sustain above average growth due to better margins and its effective merchandizing skills,

(2) new products,

(3) new store expansion,

(4) improving same store sales by expanding its business technology and copy and print services,

@AllAmerInvest Stocks UP Size Thank You China, Obama, the Cure, Bonus Bucks Answers , More

Stocks up size, will the rally hold?

8 15 AM

Looks very good right now. Thank you China.

China steps on the economic accelerator
China is cutting the amount of money banks need to hold in reserve, freeing those funds to stimulate their economy.

The People's Bank of China said Wednesday it will lower its reserve requirement ratio for financial institutions by half a percentage point. It was the first such cut in the ratio since 2008, and a change in course after the ratio was raised five times this year.

@AllAmerInvest Avoidable Crisis, Euro Area Ending, Hot Gold, Bonus Bucks, Germany Plays Poker

An Avoidable Crisis

The financial crisis in Europe, seemingly never-ending, has now entered a potentially disastrous phase.

With interest rates on Italian and Spanish debt soaring, France looking shaky, and even Germany having trouble in the debt market, there’s a real possibility that the euro zone might just break apart—with dire consequences not just for Europe but also for the rest of us. Yet what’s easy to miss, amid the market tremors and the political brinksmanship, is that this is that rarest of problems—one that you really can solve just by throwing money at it.

Read more

Euro Area Is Coming to an End: Peter Boone and Simon Johnson

Since the global financial crisis of 2008, investors have focused on credit risk and rewarded Germany with low interest rates for its perceived frugality. But now markets will focus on currency risk. Inflation will accelerate and the euro may break up in a way that calls into question all euro-denominated obligations. This is the beginning of the end for the euro zone. Here's why.

Central Banks Ease Most Since 2009

All American Investor

CNBC Portfolio Challenge Bonus Bucks Answers for Monday

@AllAmerInvest Stock Cheats, Boeing Deal, Buffett Oil to China, Housing Muddle

All American Investor

Congress Trading Stock on Inside Information? (Video, Transcript)
Steve Kroft reports that members of Congress can legally trade stock based on non-public information from Capitol Hill.

Boeing's (BA) $18 billion deal is biggest ever
Boeing and Emirates Airlines have signed an $18 billion deal -- the largest deal in the aircraft manufacturer's history -- to supply the airline with 50 aircraft, with options to expand the deal even further.

CNBC Portfolio Challenge Bonus Bucks Answers for Monday, November 14, 2011

@AllAmerInvest MF Global You're Doinked, Bernanke Faces Perry, Bonus Bucks, Pony up for Italian Bonds, Roubini warns of catastrophe for Goldman Sachs

MF Global Assets Have Left The Building: How, When, Where

Unlike the shell game, there is no bean under the MF Global dixie cup. The mixed bag of marketable securities taken from customer segregated accounts, used most likely to meet margin calls and satisfy “important” customers closing accounts during the last days, will, in my opinion, never be seen again.

Jon Corzine looks happy

Read More

Bernanke shows Fed's independence with Texas trip
Three months ago, Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who is seeking the Republican presidential nod, had sent a veiled threat: Bernanke would be treated "ugly" in Texas if he continued to pursue ever-lower interest rates - a policy that Perry and some other critics say is akin to recklessly printing money.

All American Investor

CNBC Bonus Bucks Answers for Wednesday, November 9, 2011

@AllAmerInvest Silvio Berlusconi, CDS, Bonus Bucks, crisis intensifies, Warren Buffett, Carlos, Alzheimer's

World markets: Italy takes center stage

World markets were choppy Monday following speculation that Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi could be on the verge of resigning.
Read More

Thoughts on Investing from Jesse Livermore

Thoughts on Investing from Jesse Livermore

Jesse Livermore

Lesson Number One: Cut your losses quickly.

As soon as a trade is contemplated, a trader must know at what point in time he’ll be proven wrong and exit a position. If a trader doesn’t know his exit before he takes the entry, he might as well go to the racetrack or casino where at least the odds can be quantified.

Lesson Number Two:Confirm your judgment before going all in.

Confidence Falls Most Among High-Income Consumers

The Conference Board‘s consumer confidence index dropped to 39.8 in October, a level more commonly seen during recessions than recoveries that are more than two years old.

Economists had expected the index to rise slightly.

All American Investor

Another great interview with Marc Faber (must see)

@AllAmerInvest Qwikster Dead, China, Jobs Movie, Delta One, Poverty Stricken Muppet

China’s local governments dig deeper

So, China’s Golden Week was not as great for property sales as it usually is. Sales were down 32 per cent on the previous year in 20 major cities, Bloomberg tells us. Which has prompted a big fall for some property developers and financials, dragging down the Shanghai Composite and Hang Seng....
http://on.ft.com/nrdhzE

All American Investor

GOLDMAN SACHS: China's Golden Week Signals A Soft Landing
http://read.bi/q9EJhI

Netflix Backtracks − Abruptly Cancels Plan To Spin Off DVD Business
http://read.bi/oiRDq7

Apple Has 1,000 Engineers Working On Chips For The Post-PC Era
http://tcrn.ch/r9IRPf

Volcker’s ‘Delta one’ loophole
http://on.ft.com/puaSSp

@AllAmerInvest Reserve Currency, iPhone 4S, Good Story, Freak Out, Dexia, World Could End

What makes a reserve currency?

The issue now, says HSBC, is that many economies are beginning to question the use of the dollar in managing their own monetary systems. And, there are a lot of dollarised economies out there that could turn:

http://on.ft.com/pvjuPG

All American Investor

CNBC Portfolio Challenge Bonus Bucks Answers for Wednesday, October 5, 2011 http://bit.ly/qMOJoo

Get Ready For Long Lines, And Big Sales For iPhone 4S
http://read.bi/qK6naM