Almost half of financial firms reported being examined by regulators in the last 12 months, according to Smarsh’s 2017 Electronic Communications Compliance Survey, and examiners are looking more closely at firms’ communications.
However, although firms have increased their efforts to meet compliance requirements regarding electronic communications with clients, significant gaps remain, the report found.
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Energize your firms productivity with technology by joining the experts at Envestnet as they share how to increase profitability and gain a competitive edge with evaluation tips for selecting the best technology tools to integrate with your existing platforms.
For many, the New Year means new technology being implemented at the practice. One of the biggest challenges facing advisory firms today is getting the team on board with these new programs. Improper planning, skepticism and lack of commitment are just some of the factors that often plague such projects from the start. Without buy-in and adoption, firms cannot realize the full benefits of technology designed to increase efficiency and productivity.
latest news on stock market: Becton, Dickinson and Company(BDX)
Advisors’ Opinion:
- [By Lisa Levin]
C R Bard Inc (NYSE: BCR) shares were also up, gaining 20 percent to $304.08 after Becton Dickinson and Co (NYSE: BDX) announced plans to acquire the company for $24 billion.
- [By Ben Levisohn]
Becton Dickinson (BDX) tumbled to the bottom of the S&P 500 today after agreeing to pay $24 billion for C.R. Bard (BCR).
Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
Becton Dickinsondropped 4.4% to $177.07, while the S&P 500 rose 1.1% to 2,374.15. C.R. Bard jumped 20% to $302.41, making it the best performing stock in the S&P 500.
Leerink’sRichard Newitter andRavi Misra argue that “growth doesn’t come cheap.” They explain:
We had expected BDX’s M&A engine would eventually resume as the company moved into its third year post the 2015 CareFusion (CFN) acquisition; however, we do think the expectation was for tuck-in or mid-sized type transactions. This transaction is certainly on the bigger side, and will mark the largest in BDX’s history just as BDX wraps up year 2 post the CFN integration. Naturally this could raise some questions as to whether mgmt is “biting off more than it can chew.” But, size (and the hefty price tag) aside, the rationale is not entirely out of left field in our view. BCR will benefit BDX through a higher top-line & GM profile and provides several fast-growing product offerings in underpenetrated markets (i.e. PICCs, Lutonix/Drug Coated Balloons, targeted temperature mgmt). BCR’s Foley catheters and PICC products should complement BDX’s portfolio & strategy aimed at offering a single complete end- to-end medication management & safety solution to hospitals. Also, BCR’s emerging markets (EM) growth is accelerating, which should help BDX’s EM division, which has been experiencing slowing growth in recent years.
Becton Dickinson’s market capitalization fell to $37.7 billion today from $39.4 billion on Friday. It reported net income of $976 million on sales of $12.5 billion in 2016.
- [By Craig Jones]
On CNBC's Fast Money Halftime Report, Jon Najarian spoke about options trading in Becton Dickinson and Co (NYSE: BDX). He said there was a big volume in the January 175 calls. Over 11,000 contracts were traded early in the session. He followed the trade and he is going to be in Becton Dickinson for two weeks.
- [By Ben Levisohn]
C.R. Bard (BCR) soared to the top of the S&P 500 today after agreeing to be purchased for $24 billion by Becton Dickinson (BDX).
Getty Images
C.R. Bardgained 20% to $302.41 today, while the S&P 500 rose 1% to 2,374.15. Becton Dickinson dropped 4.4% to $177.07, making it the S&P 500′s biggest loser.
- [By Chris Lange]
The S&P 500 stock posting the largest daily percentage loss ahead of the close Thursday was Becton Dickinson and Co. (NYSE: BDX) which traded down 4.4% at $177.19. The stocks 52-week range is $157.60 to $186.40. Volume was 9.3 million versus the daily average of 833,000 shares.
- [By Money Morning News Team]
Becton Dickinson and Co. (NYSE: BDX) is a New Jersey-based developer and manufacturer of medical devices. The company’s products include various types of needles and syringe systems, infusion therapy products, and blood collection products. Its devices are used by healthcare organizations for research, laboratory operations, and health-related safety.
latest news on stock market: Equity Residential(EQR)
Advisors’ Opinion:
- [By Jim Powell]
Steve Halpern: Another real estate position that you own is Equity Residential (EQR), which is a real estate investment trust. What’s your outlook for that?
- [By WWW.MONEYSHOW.COM]
Equity Residential (EQR), one of the biggest companies or components of the S&P 500 real estate index, owns 315 high-quality apartment properties in top U.S. growth markets, including Boston, New York, Washington, Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California.
latest news on stock market: Panasonic Corporation (PCRFY)
Advisors’ Opinion:
- [By SEEKINGALPHA.COM]
Clean Technica reported on September 1 that “Sony is entering the EV battery manufacturing industry”. And “considering that electric vehicle batteries are going to be the main supply bottleneck for the upcoming auto market’s embrace of EVs, the entry of Sony into the field is very notable. Most of the other manufacturers (Panasonic (OTCPK:PCRFY), LG Chem (OTC:LGCLF), etc.) already have more or less all of their production capacity locked up for the coming years – meaning there’s not much left for the auto manufacturers that are running behind, thereby limiting potential EV sales for the firms in question. Sony’s (NYSE:SNE) entry into the field should open things up a bit more”. Certainly a good move by Sony and helpful for the EV companies that will find themselves in need of batteries, and limited availability, should EVs reach 10% by 2020.
- [By SEEKINGALPHA.COM]
SMMYY is a subsidiary of the Sumitomo Group. SMMYY is a major smelter and refiner of copper, nickel and gold in Japan, and has a 27.5% stake in the Ambatovy Nickel Project in Madagascar, along with Sherritt International and Korea Resources Corp. Feedstock for the refinery is nickel cobalt mixed sulphide from its Taganito and Coral Bay mines in the Philippines (noting the Philippines is a risky supply source at this time). Sumitomo supply Panasonic (OTCPK:PCRFY) who supply Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA); however, this can change. Generally, I like the stock; however, at this time, valuation looks full, trading on a 2017 PE of 32.8, and 2018 PE of 14.8. Good to buy after a pullback if that occurs.
- [By Ben Levisohn]
During the early stages of a new innovation, interdependent architectures and integrated companies best optimize performance and functionality. This trend has played out in computing and handsets, and we see the same trend playing out in EVs. We find Tesla and BYD1 , by far, the most vertically integrated players in EVs, with huge scale advantages. In addition, LG Chem, Panasonic (PCRFY), Samsung SDI, BYD, and CATL are clear scale leaders in batteries (CATL is not publicly traded. All but Samsung SDI and BYD are not covered by Bernstein.).
- [By SEEKINGALPHA.COM]
A Unilever vs. Panasonic (OTCPK:PCRFY) showdown seems to be something out of an alternative, weird universe. But that’s exactly what has been happening in the Asia-Pacific region, where Unilever is now a major seller of air and water purification devices. The acquisitions of Qinyuan and Pureit water purifiers, as well as the acquisition of Sweden-based Blueair in 2016, reflects Unilever’s latest growth strategy of reducing exposure to low-growth brands in favor of greater investments in higher-growth products with strong social and environmental credentials.
latest news on stock market: Emerson Electric Company(EMR)
Advisors’ Opinion:
- [By Ben Levisohn]
Industrial companies like Dover (DOV), Emerson Electric (EMR), Eaton (ETN), 3M (MMM) and Rockwell Automation (ROK) are calling for earnings growth to get better during the second half of the year. Bernstein’s Steven Winoker and team aren’t feeling as confident:
- [By Ben Levisohn]
Lower WACC has moved in lockstep with higher multiples and as the rate regime shifts, we see limited excuses for another leg absent material growth. EPS growth/visibility at a reasonable price will matter, with those that are not reflecting upside today seeing multiple expansion and safety stocks that are not safe reverting. With this backdrop, our top picks are Honeywell, Ingersoll-Rand, and Danaher, with a positive bias on Neutral-rated United Technologies, while we are most negative onGeneral Electric and Rockwell Automation (ROK), with a negative bias on N-rated $51.92 Emerson Electric (EMR)…
- [By Rising Dividend Investing]
Pent Up Demand Pushing Cyclical Stocks
We are coming out of a lengthy period of decreased spending in the wake of 2008-09, which has built pent up demand for automobiles, housing and capital expenditures. The average age of vehicles on the road has reached a record high of 11.4 years. Demand for new houses fell off dramatically since the Great Recession. The average U.S. home was built in 1974 and continues to age.
As people have chosen to fix rather than replace their vehicles and homes, we’ve seen the replacement-type industries do very well. Auto Retail’s second quarter sales and earnings per share were up 14.7% and 18.6%, respectively. Home improvement retail grew sales nearly 10% with earnings up 20% from second quarter 2012.
Adding to the pent up demand for housing is the number of young people living with their parents rather than buying or renting on their own. According to real-estate marketplace Trulia, the number of “missing households” (Americans who would currently be owning or renting a home if pre-recession economic trends had continued) was up to 2.4 million in March. More than half of these missing households are 18 to 34-year-olds.
This pent up demand extends beyond just the immediate products being bought by consumers. Businesses have held off replacing durable goods since the recession. All of this excess demand will have to be released at some point. Eventually, these homes and vehicles will exceed their useful life and need to be replaced. To meet the need for the excess demand, companies will not be able to hold off re-investing in new plant equipment.
We’ve seen the beginning of this demand in 2013 and believe there is more to come. The market is buying into this as well, as more growth and manufacturing oriented sectors – such as Consumer Discretionary and Industrials – have performed well over the near-term.
Share prices for stocks in the Industrial sectors are mo
