Daily Archives

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Mid caps

Dollar General can’t stop, won’t stop!

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I don’t care how much money I make… because I will never stop shopping at Dollar General. However, that is a moot point because I don’t make a lot. But even as the economy strengthens, consumers aren’t going to fancier retailers – they are remaining loyal to DG.

 

Wall Street THOUGHT… that people would stop going to Dollar General because of low unemployment, increasing paychecks, and the overall confidence in the economy. Consumers were expected to upgrade to Target and Walmart – you know, depending on how “well” they were doing. However, we are finding that the economic “come up” hasn’t been equal for all.

 

So, not everyone is doing well… and there are plenty of low to middle-income customers for Dollar General to cater to. But don’t give all the credit to the poor people (just kidding), the company has done some good things on their own, such as opening stores where the big box retailers aren’t. The company has also remodeled stores and added ‘queue lines’ to encourage impulse buys – candy, nail clippers, pet food. You name it; it is probably somewhere in the queue line.

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Blue Chip

Apple presents the same old, same old…

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How will Apple top the iPhone X… answer: they will not. However, the tech giant could prove me wrong on September 12th when the company announces the latest iPhones and newest gadgets. Although, many people are anticipating the same device with different colors – so we’ll see.

 

More options for you… which could include new colors, sizes, and price points (in case you don’t want to drop $1,000 on a phone). We may also see the new iOS operating system and fresh takes on the Apple Watch and Air Pods. You know – just enough of a change so that your costly technology becomes old news.

 

Apple is so predictable… or at least they have been in previous years. Every other year there is a significant update and in-between we see less exciting minor updates to existing products. And Tim Cook gets up on stage and tells you how great his company is. Last year was the exception – it was also Apple’s 10-year anniversary, so they had to do something. This year you can expect nothing new and a Tim Cook monologue – enjoy.

Blue Chip

Walmart was praying for Toys ‘R’ Us downfall

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Well someone needs to fill the void… that we all have in our hearts from the downfall of Toys ‘R’ Us. Walmart would like to be that void-filler, and they will be expanding their toy selection significantly. Not a bad idea either, considering this is the first holiday season we’ve seen without Toys ‘R’ Us in a long time. More interestingly, the now-defunct toy giant has left behind $7 billion in sales.

 

They are dead serious… Walmart announced that they will be increasing their toy selection by 30% in some stores and by 40% online. The expansion will include hundreds of exclusive brands and even in-store demos for specific toys. In short, Walmart is making sure that they have the biggest and the baddest toy selection you have ever seen.

 

Walmart isn’t the only one… that has realized the opportunity. JCPenney and Kohl’s will be enhancing their toy selection, and Party City will open somewhere around 50 pop up toy shops. However, a larger problem for Walmart could come against familiar foes Target and Amazon, as both are eyeing the same market. Ah, what a great time to be a six-year-old.

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Miscellaneous

Here’s what Vodafone just dropped (hint: it’s not a call)

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Vodafone actually dropped… $8 billion on a merger with TPG, a major fixed-line broadband provider. The deal will help Vodafone be more competitive in Australia’s telecom market during a time where the country attempts to move to faster mobile networks.

 

More 5G talk… and the merger will position Vodafone to invest in 5G technology and offer faster service. Vodafone is one of the world’s most significant wireless network providers, and TPG plans to begin building a mobile network to go along with their fixed-line services. Together, the companies will be bidding on part of Australia’s 5G wireless spectrum.

 

Investors clearly liked it… because shares of TPG skyrocketed by 16% and Hutchinson Australia Telecommunications (who holds a stake in Vodafone Australia) skyrocketed even more by 52%. Together, the two will attempt to conquer the shifts in technology and consumer demand occurring in the “Land Down Under.”

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