IBM: FLASH-IN-A-PAN APPLE BOOST, FOLLOWED BY REALITY HIT

“A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS”

Sorry. Couldn’t resist. Here’s my “thousand word”-piece about IBM…

Here’s also a Yahoo video report which aptly summarizes the state of affairs at IBM. I was actually quite amused to see some of the terms I have been using for the last 18 years in reference to Big Blues – such as “financial engineering” and “stock buybacks” – finally make their way into the mainstream of business consciousness.

Maybe that’s what it takes… retire, and maybe the people will take notice of their subconsciousness. 🙂

IBM (IBM) – Shares are down after Big Blue reported it’s standard quarter of mediocrity. The company hasn’t posted revenue growth in two years and it failed to do so again last night. IBM’s greatest core competency is repurchasing its own shares. Since 2010 it’s reduced its share count by more than 25% and paid out billions in dividends. Hows that working out for investors? In the last two years IBM is less than flat while the S&P 500 has risen more than 40%. Financial engineering is nice but it’s not a substitute for actual growth. (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/ibm-s-weak-q2–volatility-settles-down-and-wwe-ticks-higher-162713152.html)

Sorry, gotta run. Running late for my “farmer’s yoga.” Have a great weekend!