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Jubak Dividend Income Portfolio
Every income investor needs a healthy dose of dividend stocks.
Why bother? Why not just concentrate on bonds or CDs or whatever?
Because all the different income-producing assets available to income investors have characteristics that make them suited to one market and not another. You need all of these types of assets if you're going to generate maximum income with minimum risk as the market twists and turns.
For example: bonds are great when interest rates are falling. Buy early in that kind of market and you can just sit back and collect that initial high yield as well as the capital gains that are generated as the bonds appreciate in price with each drop in interest rates.
CDs, on the other hand, are a great way to lock in a yield with almost absolute safety when you'd like to avoid the risk of having to reinvest in an uncertain market or when interest rates are crashing.
Dividend stocks have one very special characteristic that sets them apart from bonds and CDs: companies raise dividends over time. Some companies raise them significantly from one quarter or year to the next. That makes a dividend-paying stock one of the best sources of income when interest rates start to rise.
Bonds will get killed in that environment because bond prices will fall so that yields on existing bonds keep pace with rising interest rates.
But because interest rates usually go up during periods when the economy is cooking, there's a very good chance that the company you own will be seeing rising profits. And that it will raise its dividend payout to share some of that with shareholders.
With a dividend stock you've got a chance that the yield you're collecting will keep up with rising market interest rates.
But wouldn't ya know it?
Just when dividend investing is getting to be more important—becoming in my opinion the key stock market strategy for the current market environment—it's also getting to be more difficult to execute with shifting tax rates and special dividends distorting the reported yield on many stocks.
I think there's really only one real choice—investors have to pull up their socks and work even harder at their dividend investing strategy. That's why with my January 11, 2013 post (http://jubakam.com/2013/01/a-new-improved-dividend-income-portfolio-and-three-dividend-picks/ or http://jubakpicks.com/2013/01/11/reformatting-my-dividend-income-portfolio-for-a-period-when-dividend-investing-gets-more-important-and-tougher-too/ depending on which of my sites you read) I revamped the format of the Dividend Income portfolio http://jubakam.com/portfolios/ that I've been running since October 2009. The changes aren't to the basic strategy. That's worked well, I think, and I'll give you some numbers later on so you can judge for yourself. No, the changes are designed to do two things: First, to let you and me track the performance of the portfolio more comprehensively and more easily compare it to the performance turned in by other strategies, and second, to generate a bigger and more frequent roster of dividend picks so that readers, especially readers who suddenly have a need to put more money to work in a dividend strategy, have more dividend choices to work with.
Why is dividend investing so important in this environment? I've laid out the reasons elsewhere but let me recapitulate here. Volatility will create repeated opportunities to capture yields of 5%–the "new normal" and "paranormal" target rate of return–or more as stock prices fall in the latest panic. By using that 5% dividend yield as a target for buys (and sells) dividend investors will avoid the worst of buying high (yields won't justify the buy) and selling low (yields will argue that this is a time to buy.) And unlike bond payouts, which are fixed by coupon, stock dividends can rise with time, giving investors some protection against inflation.
The challenge in dividend investing during this period is using dividend yield as a guide to buying and selling without becoming totally and exclusively focused on yield. What continues to matter most is total return. A 5% yield can get wiped out very easily by a relatively small drop in share price.
Going forward, I will continue to report on the cash thrown off by the portfolio—since I recognize that many investors are looking for ways to increase their current cash incomes. But I'm also going to report the total return on the portfolio—so you can compare this performance to other alternatives—and I'm going to assume that an investor will reinvest the cash from these dividend stocks back into other dividend stocks. That will give the portfolio—and investors who follow it—the advantage of compounding over time, one of the biggest strengths in any dividend income strategy.
What are some of the numbers on this portfolio? $29,477 in dividends received from October 2009 through December 31, 2013. On the original $100,000 investment in October 2009 that comes to a 29.5% payout on that initial investment over a period of 39 months. That's a compound annual growth rate of 8.27%.
And since we care about total return, how about capital gains or losses from the portfolio? The total equity price value of the portfolio came to $119,958 on December 31, 2012. That's a gain of $19,958 over 39 months on that initial $100,000 investment or a compound annual growth rate of 5.76%.
The total return on the portfolio for that period comes to $49,435 or a compound annual growth rate of 13.2%.
How does that compare to the total return on the Standard & Poor's 500 Stock Index for that 39-month period? In that period $100,000 invested in the S&P 500 would have grown to $141,468 with price appreciation and dividends included.) That's a total compounded annual rate of return of 11.26%.
That's an annual 2 percentage point advantage to my Dividend Income portfolio. That's significant, I'd argue, in the context of a low risk strategy.
View Sells
|Date Picked
|Price Then
|Price Now
|Today's Change
|Jubak's Gain/Loss
|Update July 21, 2016: Update July 21. After the close of the market yesterday, July 20, Qualcomm (QCOM), the biggest maker of chips that run mobile phones, reported net income of 97 cent a... more | Read Jim's Original Buy
|Market Vector Preferred Securities Ex-Financials ETF
|It's common these days for personal finance gurus, financial advisors, and, of course, mutual fund company CEOs to lament the proliferating flavors of ETFs (exchange traded funds.) And I'd agree... more
|Kinder Morgan
|Kinder Morgan's (KMI) decision to cut its dividend to 50 cents a share certainly wasn't popular with the market and especially not with the income investors who had stuck with... more
|Update : When Verizon (VZ) reported fourth quarter earnings on January 26, everything was in line. There were no real surprises. And that was disappointing to investors who were looking for signs... more | Read Jim's Original Buy
|Update August 17, 2016: Update August 17, 2016. New rules proposed by the Obama administration that would require up to a 25% reduction in carbon emissions from heavy-duty trucks over the next 10 years... more | Read Jim's Original Buy
|Exxon Mobile
|Update August 3, 2015: Update: August 3, 2015. Dividend income investors don't buy ExxonMobil (XOM) because it pays the highest dividend in the market or in the oil sector. They buy it—and I bought... more | Read Jim's Original Buy
|I added ConocoPhillips (COP) to my Dividend Income portfolio http://jubakpicks.com/jubak-dividend-income-portfolio/ on January 11 because what was then a relatively pessimistic view of growth in global economy had hit oil... more
|Targa Resources Partners
|Update November 17, 2015: The energy space, especially the energy income space, continues to reorganize itself through cuts in capital spending, the elimination of dividends, and the sale or reshuffling of assets. One of the... more | Read Jim's Original Buy
|Update October 13, 2015: Update: October 13 Back on October 9 on my JubakAM.com subscription site I wondered whether a continued drop in PC sales in the third quarter of 2015 might be setting... more | Read Jim's Original Buy
|Update June 4, 2013: I've had a number of readers email me to ask, "What happened to Seadrill's (SDRL) fourth quarter 2012 dividend? That dividend would normally have been paid out in January and... more | Read Jim's Original Buy
|Western Gas Partners
|When I posted my most recent update of my Dividend Income portfolio http://jubakpicks.com/2012/07/03/if-you-want-to-earn-more-dividend-income-youll-have-to-put-up-with-more-volatility-what-you-want-to-avoid-is-a-permanent-impairment-of-capital/ on July 3, I promised that I'd make the required changes to the online portfolio
|Westpac Banking
|Tomorrow, July 3, 2012, I'm going to do one of my periodic updates of my Dividend Income portfolio. Those updates are useful for several reasons: I get to think about... more
|General Electric
|Update June 27, 2015: Update: General Electric. Shares of General Electric (GE) rocketed higher today, April 10,climbing $2.84, or 11.02%, on news that the company would sell the real estate holdings of its GE... more | Read Jim's Original Buy
|Oneok Partners
|Update February 1, 2015: Update January 22: Yesterday I took a look a one energy sector dividend play—Hi-Crush Partners (HCLP)—and the so-far, so-good story on dividend payouts for this supplier of fracking sand during... more | Read Jim's Original Buy
Qualcomm: Now that's a surprise
July 21, 2016Update July 21. After the close of the market yesterday, July 20, Qualcomm (QCOM), the biggest maker of chips that run mobile phones, reported net income of 97 cent a share for the quarter that ended on June 26. That beat the 73 cents a share earned in June quarter of 2015. Excluding one time items earnings came to $1.16 a share. Wall Street analysts had forecast earnings, excluding items, of 97 cents. Revenue climbed to $6.04 billion, up 3.6% year over year. Now that might not seem much of an increase, but this quarter marks the first time in a year that the company hasn't reported a double-digit drop in revenue. Analysts were looking for revenue of $5.59 billion. Sure a big surprise since growth has pretty much disappeared for the makers of higher end smart phones, the part of the market that Qualcomm dominates.But this quarter Qualcomm saw an increase in licensing revenue from Chinese makers of chip sets for phones. But Qualcomm wasn't done with the surprises. The company raised guidance for the September quarter to $5.4 billion to $6.2 billion in revenue. Profit before items will be $1.05 to $1.15 a share, the company now forecasts. Wall Street had been looking for revenue of $5.72 billion and earnings of $1.08 a share for the quarter. Qualcomm has been one of the best performers in my Dividend Income portfolio, climbed 17.79% as of the close today, from my original purchase date of May 5, 2016. The shares were up 20% for 2016 to date as of today's close. That higher price per share unfortunately lowers the dividend yield but Qualcomm still yields 3.53%. The company raised its quarterly dividend from 48 cents a share to 53 cents share in April. The next dividend of 53 cents a share will be paid to shareholders of record as of August 31, 2016. I like the trend in the company's business and its ability to grow revenue, finally, during what isn't the easiest market for smart phones. And I like the growth in the company's dividend--to 53 cents a share now from a quarterly 42 cents a share in March 2015. I'm keeping Qualcomm in my Dividend Income portfolio.
Buy Market Vectors Preferred ETF
February 25th, 2016
It's common these days for personal finance gurus, financial advisors, and, of course, mutual fund company CEOs to lament the proliferating flavors of ETFs (exchange traded funds.) And I'd agree that we probably really don't need an ETF that gives the owner three-times downside leverage to the price of oil, or one that specializes in an index of cyber-security stocks, or yet another ETF that slices and dices emerging markets according to some catchy set of initials.
But last I looked nobody was holding a gun to my head to make me buy any of these alternatives. And I more often than not these days find myself appreciating the ability to fine-tune exposure to a sector using the "tweaks" of an ETF.
Which is exactly the case for ETFs that invest in preferred stocks. These are vehicles designed to appeal to dividend income investors since preferred shares pay higher rates of dividends than do common shares. And, theoretically, they are less risky than a portfolio of common shares since preferred dividends get paid first and are less liable to be slashed by a company looking to preserve cash.
I say "theoretically" since not all preferred dividends look equally safe these days–investors and analysts are nervous right now about bad debt and cash flow at some banks with big exposure to the energy sector. And a cut in dividend isn't the only potential source of risk to a portfolio of preferred stocks. For example, banks are big issuers of preferred shares and the financial sector has been one of the worst performers of 2016 what with the aforementioned risk of bad loans in the energy sector and the uncertain direction of the yield curve because of negative interest rates at most of the world's biggest central banks and a conviction that the U.S. Federal Reserve isn't going to raise interest rates in 2016 as expected earlier. Banks make more money when the yield curve sharpens. That was expected to take place in 2016; it hasn't yet; and looks disappointingly less likely, the market has concluded, this year.
All of which makes the difference between the iShares U.S. Preferred Stock ETF (PFF) and the Market Vectors Preferred Securities ex-Financials ETF (PFXF) so exactly to the point. If you think financials are ready for rebound, then the iShares Preferred ETF is your choice. About 62% of the fund's holdings are preferred shares in the financial sector and with a rebound you can expect to collect the ETF's 5.82% yield and some appreciation as the financial sector recovers. If, on the other hand, you think problems in the financial sector have further to run, your choice would be the Market Vectors Preferred ex-Financials ETF, because the ETF, as it's name says, eschews financials. The portfolio for this ETF holds preferred shares from the likes of Tyson Foods, ArcelorMittal, Alcoa, and United Technologies rather than the preferred shares from HSBC, Ally Financial, Barclays, Wells Fargo, and Citigroup that make up the top five holdings at iShares Preferred. The biggest sector weightings for the Market Vectors Preferred ETF are in real estate investment trusts (35%), electric utilities (26%) and telecom (10%.)
The yield on the Market Vectors ETF is a little higher at 5.97% versus 5.82% (as of January 31) and the risk, in my estimation, is a little lower. (Fees are slightly higher at Market Vectors at 0.53% versus 0.47%.) I added the Market Vectors Preferred Securities Ex-Financias ETF to my dividend income portfolio on February 23 at the closing price at day of $19.26.
Buy Kinder Morgan (KMI) for the cash flow
February 23rd, 2016
Kinder Morgan's (KMI) decision to cut its dividend to 50 cents a share certainly wasn't popular with the market and especially not with the income investors who had stuck with the company when it rolled its MLP (master limited partnership) Kinder Morgan Energy Partners into the Kinder Morgan general partner at the end of 2014. At the time of the consolidation Kinder Morgan had said it would pay a dividend of $2 a share in 2015 and projected a 10% annual increase in dividends through 2020. The December 8 announcement of a 75% cut to the dividend devastated the stock. Kinder Morgan shares are down roughly 50% from $32.68 back in October to a close at $17.42 on Tuesday, February 23.
But as painful as that drop has been, the dividend cut has positioned Kinder Morgan to be one not just one of the survivors but actually one of the few winners from the bust in the U.S. oil and gas sector. By cutting the dividend Kinder Morgan has moved into a position where it doesn't need to tap equity or debt markets–at the current high cost that the financial markets are charging energy companies to raise capital–in order to fund its planned capital spending budget for 2016. After paying the new lower dividend, the company projects cash flow of $3.6 billion in 2016, up from $1.2 billion in 2015. That's enough to fund the company's $3 billion plus in projected capital spending for 2016. And at this point it looks like the company will be able to fund its 2017 capital plan internally as well. (Kinder Morgan has a backlog of some $18 billion in capital spending projects it could invest in. In the current environment the company is high grading those projects, looking for those that provide the biggest return on investment. It's that dynamic plus the company's sizable cash flow that has led an investment manager–probably Ted Wechsler–at Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B) to buy about $460 million in shares of Kinder Morgan recently.)
The advantages of being able to invest using internal cash at a time when the cost of external capital is so high for energy companies and when market turmoil is resulting in delays in competing projects are obvious. The company projects that these investments plus returns on current assets will generate about 88 cents a unit in growth to 2020. That's a compound annual growth rate of about 7%, Credit Suisse calculates. That kind of growth would enable Kinder Morgan to restore some of the dividend it slashed in December, especially if sometime during that period financial markets cut the price that energy companies have to pay for external capital. At Tuesday's closing price of $17.42 Kinder Morgan showed a dividend yield of 2.88%. Not stunningly high but not a bad place to start if the company is able to increase dividend payouts after 2016 or 2017.
The big question, of course, for any investor is how accurate those cash flow projections are likely to be.
These projections look as solid as projections can be. About 90% of the 2016 earnings before depreciation and amortization projection is fee-based rather than price-based so Kinder Morgan's pipeline and storage system is relatively well buffered from the price of oil and natural gas. Of that 91% about 75% is take or pay–meaning Kinder Morgan gets paid whether the customer uses its pipelines or not–the rest is volume based. Of that volume-based 25%, about 80% is attributable to natural gas and refined product pipelines where, Credit Suisse believes, risk of volumes falling is relatively low. Kinder Morgan also looks relatively well protected from further deterioration in energy company balance sheets with 82% of its top 25 customers rated investment grade or better.
Kinder Morgan projects that a drop to $20 a barrel for West Texas Intermediate and to $1.75 per million BTUs for natural gas would result in only a $120 million hit to its budgeted dividend coverage.
Credit Suisse has a $20 one-year target price on Kinder Morgan. I think any gains in the price will depend on a turn in sentiment on energy stocks–and I'm not willing to call that yet. But cash flow does look very positive for dividend income investors.
Update Verizon (VZ)
When Verizon (VZ) reported fourth quarter earnings on January 26, everything was in line. There were no real surprises. And that was disappointing to investors who were looking for signs that a rising economy was lifting margins in Verizon's legacy landline business or who were hoping for some sign that Apple (AAPL) was going to strike a deal with Verizon to sell the iPhone. Didn't happen. So investors are stuck with the same old story. Which fortunately is pretty good despite its lack of surprises. Verizon reported fourth quarter 2009 earnings of 54 cents a share (matching Wall Street projections) and revenue of $27.09 billion (just short of the analyst consensus at $27.33) The company added 2.2 net wireless customers (that's before the effect of acquisitions) in the quarter. For the critical FiOS Internet and cable TV unit, the company added another 153,000 for each service. That brought total Internet customers to 3.4 million and total TV customers to 2.9 million. Looking a little deeper into the numbers Verizon strikes me as a second half of 2010 story. Right now the company is using higher handset subsidies to grow its smartphone business. Only 26% of Verizon's wireless customers own smartphones (versus 40% or more at AT&T (T), thanks to the iPhone). Smartphone owners use more higher-margin data and broadband services so increasing the percentage of customers with smartphones is crucial to driving margins higher. Of course, as AT&T's problems show, if you drive up the number of customers using these services, you'd better build out your network to handle the traffic. For Verizon that means higher capital spending on wireless in 2010. The company's legacy landline business is supposed to be the cash cow that supports these subsidies and the build out for smartphones and the FiOS Internet and cable businesses. But because of the economic slowdown, businesses have been cutting rather than adding lines. In addition the soft economy has meant slower growth in higher margin broadband and data services for the landline business. There's nothing here that a slightly stronger economy wouldn't fix, however, and the company's continued investment in wireless smartphone, FiOS, and landline data services will pay off in the future. The yield on February 15 was a very attractive 6.6%.
The trend toward tougher rules on emissions and fuel efficiency for trucks continues–with Cummins as a key beneficiary
August 17, 2016Update August 17, 2016. New rules proposed by the Obama administration that would require up to a 25% reduction in carbon emissions from heavy-duty trucks over the next 10 years are good news in the long run for Cummins (CMI.) The proposed rules are 10% tougher than the rules put forward for public comment last year. The rules mean that Cummins will eventually sell a lot more of its low emissions, high efficiency truck engines as truck makers and truck operators move to meet these standards. (The new standards won't be implemented, in all probability if Donald Trump wins the presidential election since he has promised a big reduction in government and especially environmental regulation. They will be implemented if Hillary Clinton wins. Figure the odds on victory by either candidate into your investment analysis.)
Exxon's dividend is up to 3.75% and latest quarterly report says dividend is safe even at current oil prices
August 3, 2015Update: August 3, 2015. Dividend income investors don't buy ExxonMobil (XOM) because it pays the highest dividend in the market or in the oil sector. They buy it—and I bought it for my Dividend Income portfolio on May 21, 2015—because it pays a relatively high, safe yield. How does that trade off look after a truly horrible second quarter earnings report delivered on July 31? Exxon shares fell by 4.6% after the company reported its worst quarterly profit since 2009. Earnings of $4.2 billion, or $1.00 a share, were down 52% from the $8.8 billion or $2.05 a share reported in the second quarter of 2014. As of the close on Friday, July 31, shares were down almost 13% for 2015 and 17% for the trailing 12 months. Shares were down 9.2% since I added Exxon to my Dividend Income portfolio. Actually the trade off still looks pretty good. Thanks to that punishing drop in share price Exxon's dividend yield as climbed to 3.68% from 3.35% at the time of my purchase. And despite the huge drop in earnings, Exxon doesn't look to be in any danger of turning cash flow negative or of having to cut its dividend. In fact on July 29, the company voted to maintain its quarterly dividend at 73 cents a share after raising its dividend to that level on February 6 from 69 cents a share. (The record date for Exxon's most recent dividend payout is August 13.) That's because even after seeing earnings cut in half Exxon earned $4.2 billion in the quarter. And the company's cash flow besides being really hefty shows plenty of room for reductions that don't touch the dividend. For example, cash flow, a more important measure than earnings for seeing if a company might need to cut its dividend, came to $8 billion in quarter that ended on March 31. Capital spending came to $6.8 billion. The company used another $1.8 billion to buy back shares and spent almost $3 billion on dividend payouts. For that quarter Exxon grew cash by a bit less than $600 million. Can you see how easy it would be to reduce cash outflows in order to preserve the dividend? How about reducing capital spending? Capital spending was down 12% in the first half of 2015 and was down 16% in the second quarter from the same periods in 2014. Or how about reducing stock buybacks in the quarter by $500 million from $1 billion? Exxon's ability to offset a crushing drop in oil prices with increased earnings from its refinery and distribution business also adds to the safety factor for this stock. What are called downstream earnings—that is earnings from refining oil and then selling it through gas stations--rose to $1.5 billion in the quarter from $831 million. That wasn't nearly enough to offset the $2 billion decline in earnings from the company's upstream business—oil production—but it sure doesn't hurt an oil company to have a sizeable business that makes more money as oil prices fall. Shares of ExxonMobil fell below $80 a share on Friday, July 31, to their lowest level since 2012. And there's certainly a good chance that shares will move lower in the current quarter since crude oil prices have moved lower than they were in the second quarter. Supply growth from OPEC and the end (probably) of sanctions against Iran are likely to increase supply in coming months. West Texas Intermediate, down to $47.12 a barrel on July 31, could retest lows from $40 to $45, although analyst projections still see West Texas Intermediate closing the year at $60 a barrel or better. But at $60 Exxon's dividend is safe and the company has room to defend the current dividend at $45 as long as the market doesn't get stuck at that level far into 2016. Morningstar currently has a one-year target price of $98 on the shares. Standard & Poor's is projecting $90. Me? I wouldn't mind seeing short-term dip that brought the yield up to 4% or more since, as I read Exxon's cash flow, the company has plenty of powder available the ability its dividend. (On Monday August 3, shares of ExxonMobil fell another 1.45% and the dividend yield climbed to 3.75%) Not something I'd say about a lot of companies in the oil and gas sector.
January 28th, 2013
I added ConocoPhillips (COP) to my Dividend Income portfolio http://jubakpicks.com/jubak-dividend-income-portfolio/ on January 11 because what was then a relatively pessimistic view of growth in global economy had hit oil prices and thus the stocks of oil companies. On January 11, ConocoPhillips shares paid a 4.51% dividend yield.
Since then sentiment on global economic growth has turned up and so have the prices of oil and oil stocks. Shares of ConocoPhillips are up 4.8% from the January 11 close to the close on January 25. That has reduced the yield to 4.32%.
I still like these shares as a dividend income play, however, even at this slightly higher price. Through a series of asset sales and the May spin off of its refining assets into a separate company, Phillips 66 (PSX), ConocoPhillips has turned itself into the biggest U.S.-based independent exploration and production company. With that comes big exposure to the U.S. onshore oil boom—ConocoPhillips has big holdings in the Permian Basin, in Eagle Ford and in the Williston Basin (which includes120 wells in the Bakken formation of North Dakota.) ConocoPhillips also has significant assets in Canada's oil sands, the Gulf of Mexico, Africa, and Asia.
ConocoPhillips does not look like it will grow reserves or production as quickly as some of the smaller, more concentrated U.S. independents such as Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD) or Denbury Resources (DNR). If you're looking for a pure price appreciation play, those stocks are a better bet.
But ConocoPhillips does have one feature that the shares of those smaller companies don't—a hefty dividend. Pioneer Natural Resources and Denbury Resources pay a dividend of 0.07% and 0%, respectively. I think ConocoPhillips offers investors the best combination of exposure to the U.S. oil boom and income.
Full disclosure: I don't own shares of any of the companies mentioned in this post in my personal portfolio. The mutual fund I manage, Jubak Global Equity Fund http://jubakfund.com/, may or may not now own positions in any stock mentioned in this post. The fund did not own shares of any stock mentioned in this post as of the end of September. For a full list of the stocks in the fund as of the end of September see the fund's portfolio at http://jubakfund.com/about-the-fund/holdings/
Targa Resources to acquire MLP Targa Resources Partners: OK deal but not a great deal
November 17, 2015The energy space, especially the energy income space, continues to reorganize itself through cuts in capital spending, the elimination of dividends, and the sale or reshuffling of assets. One of the latest involves an MLP (master limited partnership), Targa Resources Partners (NGLS) that I hold in both the 12-18 month Jubak Picks portfolio and in my dividend income portfolio. The general partner, Targa Resources (TRGP), has made an offer valued at $9 billion to buy the 91.2% of the master limited partnership that it doesn't own. The deal, the general partner has said would give the master limited partnership greater access to capital at a lower cost since it would no longer have to pay distribution rights to the general partner. Investors in the master limited partnership would lose many of their tax benefits but, the general partner has argued, would be able to defer taxes over time by recapturing depreciation of the joint company's pipelines and other system assets. The move makes sense in the short term since it will get Targa through the current rough patch in the energy sector. It looks like Targa Resources Partners is coming close to the limits on its debt covenants. That would limit the master limited partnerships ability to borrow to fund new projects. The deal isn't bad deal—the price amounted to an 18% premium to Targa Resources Partners unit price at the time it was announced. And if projections are correct, the combined company will show 15% dividend growth in 2016. But the deal isn't a great deal. When, earlier, Kinder Morgan (KMI) announced a buyout of its master limited partnership it included cash in compensation for the capital gains taxes the investors in the master limited partnership would have to pay to step up units in the MLP to shares in the parent company. At the moment, there are no comparable funds in the Targa deal. Kinder Morgan, with a project backlog of more than $20 billion, will also get more bang for the buck if it can, after the acquisition, raise more debt at a lower price. Targa has only $4 billion in potential projects so it will be able to put less capital to work. Besides any disgruntlement with the lack of cash kicker to help pay investors' taxes from the deal, there's some bad feeling since the company turned down a $15 billion bid earlier, calling it inadequate. And now the deal is priced at $9 billion. It's certainly possible to argue, and some investors are, that parent Targa is getting a bargain at the expense of holders of the master limited partnership. I'm inclined to sell on the deal but I'd like to get a better exit price. Units of Targa Resources Partners have rallied over the last few days, climbing 4.23% yesterday to $25.85 before declining in the oil sector sell off by 2.67% today. But the units still down significantly from the beginning of the month when they traded at $30.49 on November 2. I think that drop is a result of the general sell off in oil shares and in other energy stocks. I'd be inclined to wait a few more days to see if today's bounce gives you a more attractive exit point. The MLP has paid its quarterly 82.5 cent a unit quarterly dividend so all you're waiting for is to see if the upward trend runs for a while. If you're looking for an alternative, I think Kinder Morgan (KMI) offers more leverage to the upside on its bigger portfolio of projects. Kinder Morgan pays a yield of 6.55% to a yield of 12.01 on Targa Resources Partners. Which, of course, does tell you what the market thinks of the relative risk in the two situations.
Update Intel: Where's the growth?
October 13, 2015Update: October 13 Back on October 9 on my JubakAM.com subscription site I wondered whether a continued drop in PC sales in the third quarter of 2015 might be setting up Intel (INTC) for growth in 2016. Signs of a return to growth in any of Intel's business would move the stock out of my dividend income where its been since January 2013 (with a capital gain of 45.6%) and into my Jubak's Picks portfolio. But without some growth in earnings and revenue, the stock's (extremely safe) 3% dividend was the reason to own Intel. So any growth in the third quarter earnings announced after the close today, October 13? Not that I can see. Revenue of $14.47 billion was indeed $250 million above the Wall Street forecast, but still down 0.5% year over year. The Client Computing Group—otherwise known as the PC unit—saw revenue fall, as expected, by 7%. Data Center Group—the unit that makes chips for servers and cloud computing, did see revenue climb 12% year over year, but Intel took the shine off those results by projecting that growth in that business would decline to low-double digit rates against the 15% growth previously forecast. Revenue from the Internet of Things Group did glow 10% year over year, but with a total revenue of $581 million—versus $8.5 billion for the PC unit and 4.1 billion for the server and cloud group—the Internet of Things will be too small to drive growth at Intel for years to come. Besides the hard revenue and earnings numbers there are some disquieting softer news stories. Look inside Microsoft's (MSFT) new Lumia smartphones and you'll find a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor in the Lumia 950 and the Snapdragon 810 inside the bigger Lumia 950XL. Microsoft isn't going to sell a ton of Lumias but Intel's inability to break into its long-term WinTel partner's smartphones isn't a sign of progress in Intel's efforts to make up lost ground in mobile computer. The tech geek comments that I've read say Intel's chips, such as the Atom Z3590, continue to lag on graphics, imaging, communications integration, and memory bandwidth. And the company is still having trouble delivering promised features on time Second, troubling story reports that Qualcomm (QCOM) continues to press ahead with new chips for the server market. The newest product is a 24-core server using a design from Arm Holdings (ARMH.) That—Qualcomm and Arm—is a pretty potent combo. There's nothing here to endanger the dividend—Intel finished the quarter with $20.8 billion in cash and cash equivalents. But growth? Not yet visible.
Income investing stock pick Seadrill goes back to its normal dividend payout schedule this week
June 4, 2013I've had a number of readers email me to ask, "What happened to Seadrill's (SDRL) fourth quarter 2012 dividend? That dividend would normally have been paid out in January and it wasn't. Now that the stock is about to go ex-dividend for its first quarter dividend, let me straighten out the record for this stock that I own in both my Jubak's Picks http://jubakpicks.com/the-jubak-picks/ and Dividend Income http://jubakpicks.com/jubak-dividend-income-portfolio/ portfolios. In 2012 Seadrill combined the payment of its third quarter 2012 and fourth quarter 2012 dividends into one payment of $1.70 a share distributed on December 21. Normally the fourth quarter dividend would have been paid out in January 2013, but like a number of other companies Seadrill accelerated its last dividend payment to escape potential changes in tax rates in 2013. That meant, of course, that there was no dividend payout in January. That had the effect of making some shareholders worry that company had omitted a dividend or that this high yielding stock was changing its dividend policy. I hope the first quarter dividend of 88 cents a share, an increase from the 85 cents a share paid out in the third and fourth quarters of 2012, puts those worries to rest. The record date on the first quarter dividend is June 7 and the shares will begin trading ex-dividend on June 5. The payout date to shareholders of record is on or about June 20, 2013, the company has announced. At the 2:30 p.m. (New York time) price of $41.10, the projected yield on Seadrill's ADRs (American Depositary Receipts) comes to 8.6%. Full disclosure: I don't own shares of any of the companies mentioned in this post in my personal portfolio. When in 2010 I started the mutual fund I manage, Jubak Global Equity Fund http://jubakfund.com/ , I liquidated all my individual stock holdings and put the money into the fund. The fund did own shares of Seadrill as of the end of March. For a full list of the stocks in the fund as of the end of March see the fund's portfolio at http://jubakfund.com/about-the-fund/holdings/
Western Gas Partners
September 5th, 2012
When I posted my most recent update of my Dividend Income portfolio http://jubakpicks.com/2012/07/03/if-you-want-to-earn-more-dividend-income-youll-have-to-put-up-with-more-volatility-what-you-want-to-avoid-is-a-permanent-impairment-of-capital/ on July 3, I promised that I'd make the required changes to the online portfolio http://jubakpicks.com/jubak-dividend-income-portfolio/ within a couple of days.
Time sure flies when you're having fun.
Here it is early September and I'm just updating the portfolio now. My bad.
For those of you without perfect recall (or who have better things to stuff their brains with than changes in my portfolios) on July 3 I dropped Penn Virginia Resource Partners (PVR) from that portfolio http://jubakpicks.com/2012/09/05/catching-up-on-booking-on-my-july-3-sell-of-penn-virginia-resource-partners/ ).
And I added shares of Western Gas Partners (WES) with that July 3 post at $43.42.
My logic was pretty simple: Master Limited Partnerships like Western Gas Partners grow by raising money in the public markets (since they distribute most of their profits to unit holders) and then using that cash to buy new assets that throw off profits that can be added to distributions. What you like is to invest in a Master Limited Partnership that is able to raise cheap cash (thank you Ben Bernanke) and that has a steady supply of profitable assets to buy.
Raise cash. Buy. Repeat.
Works as long as the cash remains cheap and as long as the partnership doesn't run out of assets to buy.
The Federal Reserve has promised to take care of the first part of the formula by keeping rates low through 2014.
The new supply of new assets looks robust thanks to a continued stream of midstream pipelines and other assets available for purchase from Anadarko Petroleum (APC), which spun off Western Gas Partners in 2008. Credit Suisse projects a continued annual flow of approximately $500 million in dropdown acquisitions from Anadarko to Western Gas Partners. That should be enough, Credit Suisse estimates, to grow distributions to unit holders by 16% to 20% in 2012 and by 12.2% annually for the next five years.
Full disclosure: I don't own shares of any of the companies mentioned in this post in my personal portfolio. The mutual fund I manage, Jubak Global Equity Fund http://jubakfund.com/ , may or may not now own positions in any stock mentioned in this post. The fund did own shares of Western Gas Partners as of the end of March. For a full list of the stocks in the fund as of the end of March see the fund's portfolio at http://jubakfund.com/about-the-fund/holdings/
Westpac Banking
July 3rd, 2012
Tomorrow, July 3, 2012, I'm going to do one of my periodic updates of my Dividend Income portfolio. Those updates are useful for several reasons: I get to think about how dividends work in the current stock market, report on how the portfolio is doing, and make a few buys and sells.
And because they give me a chance to check up on my bookkeeping and see if the page that tracks this portfolio is up to date with the changes I've made in individual posts.
To my chagrin it isn't. In my last post on this portfolio on portfolio February 3 http://jubakpicks.com/2012/02/03/looking-for-higher-dividend-yields-and-dividend-growth-here-are-three-picks/#more-8475 I added three stocks to my dividend income portfolio http://jubakpicks.com/jubak-dividend-income-portfolio/ and dropped three.
The reason, I argued then, was that the growing popularity of dividend paying stocks at a time when income vehicles such as Treasuries and CDs pay almost nothing had created a glorious but still real problem for income investors. As investors flocked into dividend-paying shares, they drove up share prices. That was great for investors already fully invested, but for investors looking to get into new positions or for investors looking to put more cash into existing positions, it meant that yields were in constant danger of erosion. In this situation, income investors needed to look for stocks that paid higher yields now and that were also positioned—by their growing cash flows and by management disposition—to keep raising dividends. Look for those stocks, I advised, and beware dividend payers that didn't seem to be in a position to keep raising dividends.
And with that as background I tweaked this portfolio by adding General Electric (GE), Westpac Banking (WBK) and Kinder Morgan Partners (KMP) while dropping Potlatch (PCH), Merck (MRK) and Abbott Laboratories (ABT).
Well, at least that's what I said in that February 3 post but one buy and one sell from that date never made it onto the portfolio page. So tonight, I'm doing a little catch up. I never actually got the buy of Westpac Banking done on the portfolio page. I'm going to fix that with this post.
Australia's Westpac Banking pays its dividend twice a year—the last ex-dividend date was on May 14 and the next is in November. Each U.S. traded ADR represents five shares of the Australian bank so the 82-cent dividend payable to investors of record as of May 18 came to $4.10 for each ADR. That gives the ADR a 7.6% yield.
You should be ready for a little volatility in exchange for that dividend. Australian stocks in general dance to the tune of economic reports from China. When growth is projected to slow in China, Australia's stocks drop as investors anticipate a slowdown in Australia's exports of commodities to China. And exactly the opposite effect goes to work when optimism about China's economy is on the upswing.
In the long-term I also like the dividend from these shares because I think the Australian dollar will be one of the stronger currencies against a declining dollar. U.S.-based investors will get paid in a strengthening currency over time.
The ADRs traded at a split adjusted $22.90 on February 3.
Full disclosure: I don't own shares of any of the companies mentioned in this post in my personal portfolio. The mutual fund I manage, Jubak Global Equity Fund http://jubakfund.com/ , may or may not now own positions in any stock mentioned in this post. The fund did not own shares of any stock mentioned in this post as of the end of March. For a full list of the stocks in the fund as of the end of March see the fund's portfolio at http://jubakfund.com/about-the-fund/holdings/
Update General Electric
June 27, 2015Update: General Electric. Shares of General Electric (GE) rocketed higher today, April 10,climbing $2.84, or 11.02%, on news that the company would sell the real estate holdings of its GE Capital unit for $26.5 billion. The company's board has authorized a new share buyback program of up to $50 billion. If, after this news, anyone still cares about the April 17 release of first quarter earnings, the company confirmed guidance for operating earnings of $1.10 to $1.20 a share for its industrial business. It's not like the sale of assets belonging to GE Capital was unexpected. The company has made it clear that it intends to sell assets in its GE Capital unit and to reduce the operation to a financing business that supports the company's industrial units such as jet engines and railroad locomotives. But the speed of the move was more aggressive than expected and so was the decision to launch such a huge share repurchase program, partially funded by the asset sale. Most of the moves to shrink GE Capital to data have been much smaller incremental sales, such as the sale of the company's Australian and New Zealand consumer lending business. The deal announced today includes an agreement with Blackstone Group and Wells Fargo (WFC) that accounts for $23 billion in real estate assets. The remainder, General Electric said today, will come from ongoing talks with other potential buyers. General Electric has been a member of my Dividend Income portfolio since February 2, 2012. Appreciation to the close on April 10 is 47.6%. I think General Electric remains a stock to own in your portfolio. The reallocation of capital from the GE Capital unit to the company's industrial business means a potential doubling of return on investment since the industrial units aren't subject to the same reserve ratios as the financial business is. (Regulators decided that GE Capital was a systemically important financial company and that upped the capital the unit was required to keep in reserve.) The question at this point is how to characterize General Electric going forward. I had put the stock in my dividend income portfolio on the strength of a yield above 3% that looked like it was headed higher. Now, the company might be better characterized as investment in share price appreciation and as such maybe I should move it from the dividend portfolio to Jubak's Picks I'm going to wait for the conference call after the April 17 earnings report to see what the company says about its dividend policy going forward before I make that decision. I'll have a new target price after earnings as well.
Update ONEOK (OKS)
February 1, 2015Update January 22: Yesterday I took a look a one energy sector dividend play—Hi-Crush Partners (HCLP)—and the so-far, so-good story on dividend payouts for this supplier of fracking sand during the current plunge in oil prices. (See that post here http://jubakam.com/2015/01/fracking-sand-mlp-hi-crush-increases-its-payout-for-now/ ) Today I'm going to take a look at another energy sector dividend play—midstream pipeline master limited partnership ONEOK Partners (OKS). Like Hi-Crush, this MLP has been hit hard during the energy sector sell off, dropping from $59.44 on August 29 to $42.79 at the close on January 22. Like Hi-Crush, though, ONEOK has recently raised its quarterly payout, raising quarterly distributions per unit to 79 cents from 75 cents, a 5.3% increase, on January 15. But as reassuring as the ONEOK's decision to raise distributions may be, it's certainly not the end of the story for income investors. Part of the appeal of energy sector MLPs has certainly been their relatively high yields during a period when yields on many income vehicles are extremely meager. But another part of the appeal, an important part, has been the record of these MLPs in growing distributions every year. How likely is that going forward, especially in the near-term? For an income investor the answer to that question is more important than the current high 7.54% yield on these units since prospects for annual that distribution growth are a big factor in the market's decision of where to set the price of an MLP. ONEOK has two big advantages during the current energy rout. First, about 70% of the revenue from the MLP's pipeline network comes from fee-based contracts, according to Morningstar. In the near-term at least that gives the MLP's revenue stream significant shelter from shifts in the price of oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids. Which is a very good thing since the price of natural gas liquids, the raw materials for the chemical and other industries and the foces of ONEOK's network, has plunged along with oil. And for the same reason: Rising production from U.S. shale geologies has resulted in a significant surplus in supply. For example, the price of ethane, which makes up about 40% of ONEOK's natural gas liquid flows, tumbled to 17 cents a gallon in December from 27 cents a gallon in July 2014. Second, ONEOK's network of pipelines and processing plants reaches deep into underserved shale geologies such as North Dakota's Bakken. The company characterizes the areas it serves as the core of the core in the shale energy boom. Analysts estimate that because of the high productivity in these areas all-in break-even costs for production companies are around $45 a barrel for oil. These producers will be among the last in the shale sector to cut production. All this doesn't mean that ONEOK doesn't face challenges to reaching its target of 6% to 8% annual distribution growth. Some Wall Street analysts are predicting that distribution growth could slow to 3% or so—although that seems a very low-ball estimate given the recent 5.3% increase in the quarterly distribution. Other analysts are holding their projections in the neighborhood of 7% annual growth. It's this uncertainty that has sent the unit price down from $59 in August to $42 now. That same uncertainty has pushed the yield up to 7.54% currently. (The record date for the quarterly payout is January 30 with the payout itself on February 13.) I think the risk of a period of lower distribution growth is real—although I'm with those analysts who think that 6% to 8% target is still reasonable. We'll get a better sense of that when the MLP reports revenue and earnings on February 23. My read of the risk and reward on this income play is that I'd certainly hold here and that I'd recommend the units as a buy for income investors who can afford a bit of risk and who have the discipline to hold though any near-term price declines. Like Hi-Crush Partners, ONEOK is a member of my Dividend Income portfolio http://jubakam.com/portfolios


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Garrett Wilson did what every good pinch hitter does if they strike out: He went down swinging.
Wilson filled in for Tomasz Adamek on just two days' notice, and gave Vyacheslav "Czar" Glazkov hell for 10 rounds, though the lopsided scores wouldn't indicate it. The Ukrainian heavyweight took a unanimous decision by scores of 97-93, 98-92 and 99-91.
Glazkov (16-0-1, 11 KOs) most certainly deserved to win every round, but Wilson made him work for every second of them. In reality, "The Ultimate Warrior" only landed 75 punches all night according to CompuBox (to Glazkov's 238), but he swung for the fences on every one of them.
"I was preparing for Adamek, but he's a different opponent. He's small, and I had to change my game plan to deal with it," said Glazkov.
Throughout the night, Wilson stomped forward and uncorked haymakers that excited the live crowd at the Turning Stone Casino in Verona, N.Y., and had them chanting his name.
The vast majority of the punches fell short or were thrown high, but the tempo forced Glazkov into an uncomfortable fight. Nonetheless, "Czar" responded well and peppered Wilson with stinging jabs, sharp right hands, and plenty of left hooks to the body.
"Even if they said it was a loss, I think it was a little closer than they said it was. I was a little wild, I'll give you that. But I'll go back to the drawing board," said Wilson, 31, of Philadelphia.
The drawing board appears to include a whole lot more than previously thought.
"He will be back on the NBC Sports Network early next year, we've already told him that," said Main Events CEO Kathy Duva.
Wilson (13-7-1, 7 KOs) told RingTV.com that he is open to a return to cruiserweight providing he can find fights. Recent scheduled bouts with Troy Ross and Denton Daley fell through, leaving him skeptical about the viability of a career as a fighter below 200 pounds. If nothing else, he's proven he can take a shot from a full-fledged heavyweight if he wants to make the jump.
"I've been boxing Bryant Jennings, Steve Cunningham, Eddie Chambers, I've sparred with lots of heavyweights," said Wilson. "He hit me with one of his hardest punches, and I was still standing, so I was like, 'alright, I'm good, I can take it.'"
In the broadcast opener, lightweight prospect Karl Dargan cruised past Michael Brooks via unanimous decision. Scores were 98-92, 99-91 and 99-91.
Dargan (14-0, 7 KOs) was simply in another league in terms of skill, and never allowed Brooks in the fight at any point.
That wasn't for a lack of effort on Brooks' end, however. The Long Island native grunted, snorted and yelled at Dargan as he marched forward continuously throughout the fight. Unfortunately, Brooks (10-1-1, 2 KOs) wasn't able to deal with the lateral movement of Dargan, and was reduced to throwing haymakers that fell short as his opponent slipped and moved away.
Dargan showed a very accurate straight right hand and, on a few occasions, a beautiful counter uppercut along the ropes. Though he didn't show anything close to fight-ending power, his dominance of a fellow undefeated fighter was certainly impressive.
"It was another learning experience. You still haven't got to see the best of me yet," said Dargan. "I was trying to keep busy, keep a solid pace. Most guys in this weight division can't keep that pace."
According to CompuBox, Dargan outthrew Brooks 632 to 432 (slightly below the lightweight average), and outlanded him 178 to 96.
* * *
Early in the night, RING No. 7-rated light heavyweight Isaac Chilemba got back in the win column with a lopsided eight-round unanimous decision over Michael Gbenga, by scores of 80-72, 79-73 and 79-73.
Chilemba's leisurely bounce back after a loss to Tony Bellew in May was only briefly tumultuous, when Gbenga landed a big looping right hand that shook him at the end of Round 5. Otherwise, the South African calmly outmaneuvered and outboxed his opponent from the outside, countering Gbenga's wild rights with quick chopping ones of his own. In fact, after being hurt in the fifth, Chilemba (21-2-2, 9 KOs) outlanded Gbenga 68-20 overall, and 44-7 in terms of jabs, according to CompuBox.
Gbenga (16-10, 16 KOs) has chosen a rather difficult path of late, offering himself up for division stalwarts such as Chilemba and Andre Dirrell, prospects Badou Jack and Lennox Allen, and even cruiserweight contender Junior Makubu.
To kick off the evening, the still-assembling crowd in Verona watched as 2008 U.S. Olympian Quantis Graves received the first blemish on his pro record. Graves was in a six-round life and death battle with Sevdail Sherifi, of Albania, that resulted in a majority draw. Scores were 58-56 Graves and 57-57 twice.
When Graves was on the outside and utilizing his jab, he had plenty of success and appeared to buzz Sherifi (9-2-3, 8 KOs) on a few occasions. Unfortunately, his lack of persistence and possible stamina issues forced him to the inside where the scrappy Sherifi simply outworked him.
With the draw, the Texas cruiserweight prospect's record moves to 9-0-1, with four knockouts.

subset: commoncrawl


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A fast-moving wildfire has burned 60 homes and almost 40 square miles of grassland, timber and sagebrush across central Washington state.
The blaze started Monday afternoon and it is not contained. Fire commanders say after three weeks with no rain, the windy, hot weather isn't helping firefighting efforts.
So far, no injuries have been reported but more than 400 people have been evacuated. The fire has crept within six miles of Ellensburg, which is about 75 miles east of Seattle.
The Washington state fire is one of several blazes threating communities in the West. Crews in Northern California are making progress against an aggressive blaze in Lake County. It's grown to more than 9 square miles and has destroyed three buildings, but officials say it's in a remote area and they've lifted evacuation orders for the residents of about 500 homes.
A separate wildfire to the north has burned about 55 square miles and is threatening about 600 homes, prompting evacuation orders for communities in Plumas National Forest.


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See all customer testimonials
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Disclaimer: Content submitted by Ventrac Fans is not necessarily approved or endorsed by Venture Products Inc. Always consult your owner's manual for proper operating procedures.


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For the first time since entering U.S. market a decade ago, Dainese is exhibiting at Dealer Expo. It's sharing Booth 3619 with sister brand AGV. The company is looking for new dealers, especially those willing to open exclusive D-Stores in select cities.
But don't let the combined booth space confuse you. Parts Unlimited is still the exclusive distributor of AGV helmets, which in prior years has had a booth within the distributor's area. Parts reps will be on hand to take orders and answer questions.
Dainese continues to be dealer-direct. The company also owns two D-Stores of its own, one in Costa Mesa, Calif., the other in San Francisco (the largest in the world). There are about 160 Dainese dealers in the U.S., including a hundred Cycle Gear locations. The big retail chain carried the brand since it entered the U.S.
"This is a very important partnership, and it's still working well," says Roberto Sadowsky, VP of Operations for Dainese USA. Cycle Gear employees are well-trained at selling high-end gear, he adds.
Dainese hopes to replicate in the U.S and Canada the success it's had with exclusive stores in Europe.
"Because the people are trained by us, they're really skilled," Sadowsky claims. As far as the typical apparel salesperson goes, he says, "It's seldom that they're really skilled and can sell you something. Because of our production, our quality, we are on a different level, so we also need a different level of sales."
Dainese is proposing D-Stores to its dealers in several cities, with an emphasis on Chicago, Miami, New York, Seattle and Vancouver.
If you balk at investing in an entirely new store, Dainese also offers its "shop within a shop" concept. The company has several packages, but a dealer's initial order must be at least $5,000, allowing the products and POP materials to take up a significant space in the store.
Dealer margins range from 35 percent to 40 percent, and Dainese has a strict advertising policy. Because of the relatively small number of dealers, the company is able to enforce the minimum advertised prices. "We have a very tight relationship with our dealers," Sadowsky admits. "We don't have the control on AGV yet," he adds. "This is something that we are going start in 2010 on the price. This is a very important thing because we want to bring AGV to the same level as Dainese in terms of importance of brand."
Due to Dainese's made-to-order production plans, dealers also must pre-order by October a large percentage of their spring inventory. In Europe, for example, dealers pre-order 60 percent to 70 percent of their products, Sadowsky says.
Another advantage of stocking Dainese: The brand's prestige could rub off onto the dealership's own image, the company says.
Dainese's overall U.S. sales were flat last year. Even though same-store sales were down, the company added 20 to 25 dealers. Only a few dealers went out of business.
Some of Dainese's best dealers have strong e-commerce sites. "But it's a different way of selling on the Internet," Sadowsky warns. "They have a strong relationship with their consumers on the Internet. They also show videos about Dainese. They do product reviews. Some dealers open the jacket; they open the liner. They really disassemble the jacket to the show the quality. It's a high-end sale."
Look for Dainese advertising in consumer magazines. The company also continues to sponsor Valentino Rossi, Aaron Yates and Blake Young. Dainese continues to provide suits to the Kevin Schwantz Suzuki School, and is starting to sponsor Jason Pridmore's START Motorcycle School.
R&D Focus. Earlier this year, Dainese announced that it was laying off 80 employees at its plant in Molvena, Italy, and moving production of some of its racing suits to Tunisia in North Africa. Production of competitive suits as well as custom suits remains in Italy. The company now employs roughly 400 people.
Dainese says the changes were made to keep a strong balance sheet and ensure money for research and development. The Tunisia plant had already been producing products for years. "Tunisia is Northern Africa, but it's basically southern Europe because it's like an hour-and-a-half flight from Italy," Sadowsky says. "So it's really close. Our people from Molvena fly there every time there is a need."
Just a couple of weeks ago, the D-Store in Costa Mesa hosted the media to show off its 2010 products. New this year are modular Thorax protection systems made up of body panels that will reportedly disperse the energy of an impact. The lineup includes products for men and women.
New leather jackets include the Freddie Pelle and the Retro Pelle. A racing suit worn by Freddie Spencer inspired the former jacket. Both jackets have a "bubble liner" that reportedly does a better job at regulating temperatures.
A new AGV helmet is the T2, which is positioned below the top-of-the-line GP Tech and replaces the Ti Tech. Said to have improved ventilation, it comes in sizes XS-XXXL in a variety of solid colors and graphics. Giacomo Agostini, Angel Nieto and Barry Sheene replicas are also available. Other new products include a limited-edition "Donkey" Rossi GP Tech model, new Diesel half-helmets and AX-8 and MT-X off-road helmets worn by Travis Pastrana and Davi Millsaps.
Finally, after getting feedback from Rossi and other racers, Dainese has redesigned its "airbag system for motorcycles," the D-Air racing suit. Whereas the inflation system used to be outside the suit as a sort of hump that the racer could take off, the system is now integrated into the suit. Dainese claims to have reduced the suit's weight by 20 percent.
The D-Air could possibly go on sale in the United States some time in the next year, Sadowsky says. "It's a very complicated project in terms of customer service," he says, "because once you fall, you have to recharge it. We want to create the system in Europe and then export it here." – Arlo Redwine


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Source: HP
quote: If I had something that big it needs full Windows. Maybe that is just me.
quote: What does screen size have to do with it? Android can utilize just as much screen space as Windows, can run multiple windows at once, just like Windows. Hell if you want you can make the UI exactly like Windows. I would assume they're going to be running some UI scheme on top of Android that makes full use of the real estate.Also it seems like Android, not ChromeOS, is what you would really want anyway. It's got way more app support and with Android you can sign in to the Play Store and migrate your entire app catalog and all your contacts and settings from your phone to this device in one simple step.You're basically saying don't compete, hand Microsoft a complete monopoly. I don't get this coming from you of all people.This isn't the 2000's anymore people. The only reason to run Windows anymore is for gaming. Everything else can be done on something else.


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Hotels in Haapsalu
- Approximate price: Cheapest | Luxury
- Stars: 1 star | 5 stars
- First name: A-z | Z-a
- Central: More central | Less central
- Services: More services
- User evaluation: Best rated
- BestSelling: Most popular
Fra Mare Spa
Ranna Tee 2, 90403 Haapsalu, Estonia
Fra Mare Spa
Haapsalu, 1.4 km from the city centre. Ranna Tee 2 see on map
Property Location Located in Haapsalu, Fra Mare Thalasso Spa is convenient to Haapsalu Castle and Kuursaal. This 4-star hotel is within...
Property Location Located in Haapsalu, Fra Mare Thalasso Spa is convenient to Haapsalu Castle and Kuursaal. This 4-star hotel is within close proximity of Laanemaa Museum and Ungru Manor.Rooms Make yourself at home in one of the 115 guestrooms. Bathrooms have showers and hair dryers. Conveniences include phones and desks.Rec, Spa, Premium Amenities Pamper yourself with a visit to the spa, which offers massages and body treatments. You're sure to appreciate the recreational amenities, which include 1 indoor swimming pools, a sauna, and a fitness center. Additional features include complimentary wireless Internet access, concierge services, and gift shops/newsstands.Dining Enjoy a meal at a restaurant, or stay in and take advantage of the hotel's room service (during limited hours). Quench your thirst with your favorite drink at a bar/lounge.Business, Other Amenities Featured amenities include a business center, multilingual staff, and a library. This hotel has 2 meeting rooms available for events.
Accommodation facilities
- Bar/Café
- Business Centre
- Parking
- Hairdresser
- Restaurant
- Shops
Leisure facilities
- Gym
- Sauna
Baltic Promenaadi
Sadama, 22, 90502 Haapsalu, Estonia
Baltic Promenaadi
Haapsalu, 1.7 km from the city centre. Sadama, 22 see on map
Property Location With a stay at Baltic Hotel Promenaadi in Haapsalu, you'll be minutes from Kuursaal and Laanemaa Museum. This hotel is...
Property Location With a stay at Baltic Hotel Promenaadi in Haapsalu, you'll be minutes from Kuursaal and Laanemaa Museum. This hotel is within close proximity of Haapsalu Castle and Ungru Manor.Rooms Make yourself at home in one of the 35 guestrooms. Complimentary wireless Internet access is available to keep you connected. Conveniences include phones and desks, and you can also request irons/ironing boards.Rec, Spa, Premium Amenities Be sure to enjoy recreational amenities including a spa tub and a sauna. Additional amenities include complimentary wireless Internet access and tour/ticket assistance.Dining Enjoy a meal at a restaurant, or stay in and take advantage of the hotel's room service (during limited hours).Business, Other Amenities Featured amenities include a 24-hour front desk, multilingual staff, and laundry facilities.
Accommodation facilities
- Business Centre
- Garden/Terrace
- Laundry
- People with reduced mobility access
- Non-smoker Rooms
- Parking
- Restaurant
- 24 hr Room Service
Leisure facilities
- Sauna
Standard Room Services
- Telephone
Location: 2 Km. from the city centre and a few metres from the sea, in this town famous for its curative seamud. 1 Km. from the Episcopal Castle and 2 Km. from Railway Museum.
Vanalinna Hostel
Jaani 4, 90502 Haapsalu, Estonia
Vanalinna Hostel
Jaani 4 see on map
Vanalinna Hostel`s new economy rooms are in the heart of Haapsalu´s old town. We are located next Bishop´s Castle wall, 200 m from the...
Vanalinna Hostel`s new economy rooms are in the heart of Haapsalu´s old town. We are located next Bishop´s Castle wall, 200 m from the birdwatcher´s tower. The hotel is located only a short walk to restaurants and museums, directly across from the Old Town Square.
Haapsalu is a resort town on the West-Coast of Estonia. It was founded in the 13th century and has been well-known for centuries for its warm sea water, curative mud and peaceful atmosphere. The narrow streets with early XXth century wooden houses make the town centre a nice place to wander around. Most buildings were in a bad shape by the end of Soviet rule but most of them have now been restored.
The railway station, with its extremely long platform built for the czar's train, has also been restored.
The main sights in town are the medieval Episcopal Palace, the Promenade (Promenaad) and the Assembly Hall (Kuursaal, built in 1898), where you can take a picturesque walk along the seaside.
Accommodation facilities
- Bar/Café
- Parking
Leisure facilities
- Games Room
Sporthotell Tammik
Uuemoisa, Ehiajate, Haapsalu, Estonia
Sporthotell Tammik
Haapsalu, 2.7 km from the city centre. Uuemoisa, Ehiajate see on map
Visit HaapsaluEnjoy your stay in Haapsalu. Make your visit to Haapsalu an unforgettable experience by staying in the hotel you deserve. Still don´t know where to stay? At Destinia we offer you a wide variety of hotels in Haapsalu, Estonia, so you can choose the one that´s right for you, depending on your expectations and your budget. There are numerous hotels in Haapsalu that are ideal for a business trip, a family holiday, a weekend getaway or an outing with friends in Haapsalu. No matter the reason for your trip, at Destinia, you´ll find the greatest variety of hotels and hostels, always at the best prices, guaranteed. Are you looking for a deluxe hotel in Haapsalu city centre with a spa, Internet access or a pool? Perhaps a hotel that accepts pets or that has a child-care centre? We have that, too. Why not give our hotel finder a try? It´s quick, simple and the most effective way to find the best lodging in this part of Estonia. Whether you need a single-occupancy room, double-occupancy room or even a suite, with Destinia´s search engine, you´ll always find the best deals, so all you´ll have to worry about is packing your bags and enjoying your trip to Haapsalu.
Hotels by category
In Haapsalu we will have few clouds, light clothing is recommended as the temperatures will be warm throughout the day.
- Thursday
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- Saturday
Top Hotel Deals
Beach Hotels
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- Malaga
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- Ibiza
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- Cullera
- Chiclana de la Frontera
- San Sebastian
- Fuengirola
- Isla Cristina
- El Puerto de Santa Maria
- Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
- Corralejo


text:
I have a problem with printing on S4M with internal Print Server II.
I used to use S4M with HP Jet directs. On iSeries I usually configure
outques with "Remote printer queue" parameter set to RAW1 (2 or 3).
Now according to PSII manual I've set this parameter to 'portLF1'.
Unfortunatelly it doesn't work. I work on V5R4.
Does anybody has any experience with S4M with PSII and iSeries?


text:
Paddy Power has come clean this afternoon, admitting it DIDN'T cut down acres of Amazon rainforest for a World Cup advertising stunt.
The bookmaker sparked fury yesterday after tweeting an aerial picture which appeared to show hundreds of felled trees in the Brazilian jungle spelling out the words "C'MON ENGLAND PP".
Amid confusion over whether the image was real or not, hundreds of people took to Twitter to voice their outrage, with some branding the company an "absolute disgrace".
But on their website today the firm admitted the images were fake - and said they were actually trying to raise awareness of deforestation, with "our own little mischievous twist".
Writing on the company blog, Josh Powell said: "Not a single tree was harmed in the Amazon. Paddy Power admits it was a bit out of left field to raise awareness of deforestation by pretending to chop down the Amazon, but we've been twiddling our thumbs since the Premier League ended and had a bit of time on our hands before the World Cup kicked off in Brazil."
After quoting "shocking" figures from Greenpeace about the Amazon being destroyed at a rate of 122 football pitches every 90 minutes, the bookies ran through how it had helped "haul this issue into the public light".
Using 3D technology MODO, Paddy Power said it took three weeks for its "tech-savvy nerds" to create an image containing 1.5 million individual trees.
Once the job was done, the picture was tweeted out from Paddy Power's official account with the caption: "We're showing our support for Roy's boys!!"
But Twitter users were livid, or as the company put it on their website, "lost their minds at the thought of Paddy Power demolishing the Amazon". Mr Powell then went on to outline a series of angry tweets, adding that "to cap it all off, the online press stuck the boot in".
He said they finally came clean, but were "happy that we'd spiced up the weekend with a little bit of mischief, and managed to raise awareness of a very serious issue at the same time".
They rounded off the stunt with another fake picture with the words "We didn't give the Amazon a Brazilian" carved into the rainforest.
It's not the first time the company has been criticised over its PR material.
In March, the Advertising Standards Authority made it drop an ad for bets on the trial of Oscar Pistorius after it became the most complained-about campaign ever.
The advert showed the Paralympian mocked up as an Oscar statuette, and promised: "It's Oscar Time. Money Back If He Walks.
"We will refund all losing bets on the trial if he is found not guilty."


text:
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streetka1789Budding Enthusiast
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street ka
streetka1789 replied to creekchubpikie's topic in Ford Focus Clubhi its in the pass footwell. u need to remove the cover and pull down the fuse box, then you will find a cover with 3, 7mm screws and poss 1, 20 torx depending on weather u have a glove box cooler or not. once this panel is removed u will find the pollen filter, it will take a lot of persuasion to remove, double check all connections on fuse box on install hope this helps
streetka1789 posted a topic in Ford KA / StreetKA Clubhi i wonder if anyone knows of anywhere you can get aftermarket rear lights for a street ka please help!!!!!
streetka1789 replied to spiderka's topic in Ford KA / StreetKA Clubright hand side of the head just below rocker cover
streetka1789 replied to Hutch Hornet's topic in Ford KA / StreetKA Clubyes yes yes i have put one on mine and all you have to do is buy a breather filter and cut the hose down, otherwise it wont run right and will shoot oil verywhere hope this helps
streetka1789 replied to 1982robw's topic in Ford KA / StreetKA Clubhi i work for ford and they dont cover stonechips and it would only be coverd if you had full service history and all your body and paint check stampped up


text:
As I mentioned, I went to the opening of the Shu Uemura counter at Holt Renfrew in Montreal last week. The upscale makeup collection is nothing short of impressive. The Tokyo Lash Bar is my favourite part about the beauty counter. When you purchase a pair of flase lashes, a makeup artist will apply them for free so you can head out for the evening with them. Plus, they're reusable.
I walked away with a goodie bag that contained some of Shu Uemura's best products and I just love them. My first fave is the red Matte Cream Lipstick. I'm really into red lips this year but it's really hard to find a shade that suits my skin tone. I believe there's a red for everyone and mine is from Shu Uemura. It's a creamy lipstick and the shade isn't as intense as it looks. It lightly stains my lips with red for a totally sexy pout.
I also like the High Performance Balancing Cleansing Oil. I have dry/combination skin so I'm not sure how it would work for extra dry or oily skins, but I really like this product. It's an oil-based cleaner that hydrates the skin without leaving it with a greasy film. It really gives a deep feeling of clean.
If you're planning on heading downtown to check out the counter, pick yourself up the eylash curler while you're there. One word: AMAZING!
Check out my Facebook fan page!
Enter Beauty Booty 4-1-1's contest to win this luxe skin care product!
Follow me on Twitter: BeautyBooty411


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Find a Business in Hillsdale, Ontario.
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text: For the shop I'll always use a Commercial Solicitor when dealing with leases, however, we've just received our draft lease through for an office unit and I don't know whether to send this on to the Solicitor for review because he's quoting another £500 to look over it. The Lease is all written up, easy in easy out terms, 12 month contract but we can leave by handing in notice 3 months in advance (all written in the lease). Our liability is all non structural, we are responsible for damages to the windows on the office and the fire doors but the landlord is responsible for all structural items, underfloor structure, waste pipes, corridor lighting and heating, buildings insurance, 3rd party insurance. We pay a fixed quarterly fee for all of the costs based on our sq.ft of space etc. All of this is included in the draft lease sent from their solicitors. Do I need to send this on to the Solicitors and fork out another £500? or with it being easy in easy out and only 12 months, which we can afford to pay in one full amount today if we fancied it, is it less complex and can i save that money?


text:
russian nickname given to kids who look like SPOONS!
Spoon was getting to old of a nickname so we renamed him SPUTNIK!
by Gimp Hater July 02, 2007
Trending Now
Can you define these popular missing words?
Top Definition
A series of Russian artificial satellites sent into orbit during the late 1950s. Literally "fellow wanderer" in Russian. Sputnik I made history on October 4, 1957, by becoming the first man-made object put into orbit. Sputnik II would follow later, this time carrying Laika, the first dog in space.
Sputnik I amazed and terrified the American public: the small blipping dome made an orbit every ninety minutes, a symbol of Soviet space supremacy.
by what-the-shit December 13, 2003
shoving a potato in someones ass
We held him down and gave him a sputnik in front of the whole cafeteria
by Max April 10, 2003
A derogatory term for a Russian, derived from the first artificial satellite to be put into orbit on October 4, 1957, of the same name
I didn't realize John's real name was Vaughnya... Yeah he's a sputnik
by Randy M. November 05, 2006
The first of its kind and harbinger. A telltale event.
I was late to go through puberty and was a junior in high school when my first sputnik got airborne.
Didn't know what I was going to do with my life until landing that sputnik apprenticeship in accounting.
Didn't know what I was going to do with my life until landing that sputnik apprenticeship in accounting.
by dfmurban October 20, 2013
A derogatory name for hash, esp in Manchester. Mainly used when distinguishing Hashish from bud. Also shortened to sput.
Originated because like the Russian satellite of the same name, this is considered by many to be old technology
Originated because like the Russian satellite of the same name, this is considered by many to be old technology
What are you smoking? Is that sputnik?
by boxheadman September 10, 2007
A little piece of crap. Germans use it to refer to small quantities of brown vaginal discharge.
Even though I'm ovulating, I found a sputnik in my underwear.
by allan_greenspan February 02, 2008
A spark or flying ember from a campfire. Generally produced when you poke the fire.
When I threw a log into the campfire, several sputniks flew up and out.
by Fireman74 July 24, 2011


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Grades K-2
K-2 classrooms are full of activity as we lay the building blocks for the coming years through our studies, activities, and hands-on experiences. In addition to Christian education, which is the focus of our studies, students receive instruction in all core subject areas, as well as opportunities in Music, Art, Physical Education, and Technology. Some of the highlights include:
- Spelling Bee - Grades 1-2
- National Geography Week Competition
- Sci-Fest (Problem-Solving)
- Spanish - Rosetta Stone
- Music - Choir
- Learning Center for students with learning difficulties
- Assisting World Missions through Chapel Offerings
- Mitten and Scarf Donations
- Kids Against Hunger
Field Trips
- Southeastway Park
- Indianapolis Zoo
- Conner Prairie
- St. Francis Hospital
- Tuttle Orchard
- Expo Bowl
- Baseball in Education (Indians)
- Benjamin Harrison Home
- Children's Museum
On-Site Programs
- Picnic Day
- Spirit Week and Pep Assemblies
- Annual Box Car Race in May
- Thanksgiving Feast
- Pairing of Letters Q and U
Grades K-2 Staff
Mrs. Valerie Schultz
2nd Grade
Mrs. Valerie Schultz
Mrs. Schultz earned her B. A. from Concordia University in River Forest, Ill. She has taught at Lutheran schools Cleveland, OH, New Haven, MI, and at St. John. She also taught Art at Emmaus Lutheran School in Indianapolis. She is in her 23rd year of teaching and has been at St John since 1996.
Mrs. Schultz writes children's devotions for "My Devotions", published by Concordia Publishing House. She has also written Sunday School Curriculum for CPH.
She and her husband, Wayne, enjoy spending time with their sons, Matthew and Aaron, daughter, Emily, son-in-law Chris, daughter-in-law Amy, and grandson Hudson. She also enjoys traveling and sports.
Mrs. Sandy Pride
1st Grade
Mrs. Sandy Pride
Mrs. Pride earned her B.S. from Concordia University in Seward, NE, and an M.S. from Indiana University. She is in her 40th year of teaching and has been at St John since 1985.
She taught third grade for one year at St. John, and then moved to first grade where she has remained. She has served at St. John Lutheran School in Napoleon, Ohio, teaching a first and second grade combination. She has also taught at Emmaus Lutheran in Indianapolis, where she taught 5th grade, kindergarten, and second grade.
Mrs. Pride's husband, John, a teacher in Lutheran schools for many years, was called to glory in October of 2011. She has two daughters, two sons-in-law, and three grandchildren. She loves technology and trying out new trends in her classroom. She is a native of Nebraska and is very excited that the Cornhuskers are now part of the Big Ten. She reads, sews, and knits in her spare time.
Mrs. Cheryl Willig
Mrs. Cheryl Willig
Mrs. Willig earned her B.A. from Concordia University in River Forest, Ill. She has taught in Northville, MI, Mineola, NY, and two other Lutheran schools in Indianapolis. She is in her 31st year of teaching and has been at St John since 1992.
Mrs. Willig is married to Fred, who is also a Lutheran school teacher in Indianapolis. They have a son, a daughter, and a two grandsons.
She enjoys traveling, especially to Florida to visit her grandsons.
Mr. Zachary Dirr
K-4 Physical Education
Mr. Zachary Dirr
Mr. Dirr earned his B.A. in Health and Human Performance from Concordia University in Mequon, WI. This is his first year in teaching and his first year at St. John.
He is also a business owner in the health industry as a professional trainer. He specializes in a wide variety of services to help people live a more healthy lifestyle. He also volunteers his time for Club 3:16, an after-school fitness club at Zion Lutheran School in New Palestine.
Mr. Dirr is the oldest of three children in his family, has been a life-long resident of Indianapolis and is a proud Hoosier.