Business and Financial News

Citi Investment Research & Analysis analyst Kate McShane reiterated her Buy rating for shares of Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc (NYSE: DKS), with a price target of $34 per share.

McShane wrote that she expects Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc shares to benefit from continued excellent merchandise execution, improved gross margins, and their valuation relative to growth rate.

The Citi Investment Research & Analysis analyst wrote, “we acknowledge competition is increasing & DKS may not benefit as greatly from store closures/bankruptcies; however, we believe DKS will reap outsized benefits in the improving consumer spending backdroup that has lead to greater competition on: prudent strategic & mkt expenses (driving traffic/differentiation), a unique shopping experience w/ proactive execution in key growth areas (toning, golf tech., core balance, apparel tech.), exclusive brands (Nike ACG, Umbro) & con’t successful execution vs. S

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The consumer price index (CPI) has increased again, which means that inflation may cause people financial worries.

According to Moneyfacts, this means that a person needs have an account paying 4.63 per cent in order to break even, with only 20 options to choose from for the basic rate tax payer.

Darren Cook, spokesman for the organisation, noted that the rise in inflation will make it hard for individuals to make any return from their income.

“A spiralling inflation rate, which could be aggravated by the predicted rise in VAT can only point towards a bank base rate increase sooner rather than later,” he added.

Mr Cook stated that the dual effects of tax and inflation will leave many of these people struggling to cope.

Mike Fosberry, president of the Personal Finance Society, recently remarked that the human element of the recession is set to continue as individuals face up to debt concerns.

At least 21 locations are to benefit from the funding, which is being made available through a new scheme called Save. Full Article…

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Western Australian Premier Colin Barnett has been busy slamming Canberra’s new mining tax and he is set to dodge claims of being two-faced when he delivers the state budget tomorrow minus mining royalty increases.

He had been expected to slug the two mining giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto with royalty rate increases but that has been put on hold while negotiations continue.

Mr Barnett has been a vocal critic of the federal government’s 40 per cent tax on mining company super profits, saying it will reduce mining investments and curb economic growth and jobs in WA.

Australia’s lone Liberal premier copped flak from Prime Minister Kevin Rudd for opposing the federal tax while preparing to boost mining royalties for his own state.

Mr Barnett says his planned extra royalty take from BHP and Rio Tinto is a completely different matter from the super profits tax.

The new rate will simply take them onto the industry standard of 5.625 per cent and off a concessional rate they’ve enjoyed for many years for pioneering iron ore extraction in the state, he said.

“These negotiations with BHP and Rio have not been finalised, I hope they will be by June 30,” Mr Barnett told reporters today.

“I only put things into the budget when they are set in concrete. Full Article…

It was refreshing to watch Betty White host Saturday Night Live a couple of weeks ago.  It’s been a while since I watched the show just because the writing has been a bit sluggish, and the current set of actors don’t seem to keep pace very well.

With Betty White came a host of former SNL stars to save the day (and give her a comedic backdrop) for her brilliance.  The really great thing about it all was her age and experience served as an asset to the show.  One could tell both the writing and acting stepped up a notch for this grande dame of the small screen.

In your projects, are you tapping the experience of the ages?  It’s interesting to talk to the “old guard” of project management vs. som

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