It sure might seem like there can't be many things more boring than budgeting and spreadsheets -- so a budget spreadsheet sounds extra-deadly, no? But hold on -- don't be too hasty. Just as taxes can be slightly interesting, an excellent spreadsheet can actually keep your attention for a bit, too. Especially if it's all about some of your favorite subjects: You! And money!
The thought of budgeting may have you wanting to run for the hills, but it doesn't have to mean keeping detailed records of every penny you ever spend for the rest of your life. It can take many forms, including perhaps just spending a few hours once a year or so, tracking all your sources of income and all the ways you spent it.
But why?
Understanding why you should budget can help you get yourself to do it. The main benefit of budgeting is that it will give you a relatively clear picture of your financial habits and situation. You might know that you need to rein in your spending and might be wincing at the thought of losing your cable TV or stopping your tennis lessons or having to pass up your daily Venti coffee with two pumps hazelnut, two pumps vanilla, two pumps caramel, five Equals, and extra cream.
10 Best Information Technology Stocks To Buy Right Now: Jinpan International Limited(JST)
Jinpan International Limited engages in the design and manufacture of cast resin transformers for voltage distribution equipment. Its cast resin transformers allow high voltage transmissions of electricity to be distributed to various locations in lower, more usable voltages. The company provides medium voltage cast resin transformers for various end uses and applications, including industrial, infrastructure, and municipal projects, such as factories, real estate developments, airports, and subway systems. It also offers switchgears, which enable operators of a power distribution network to switch equipment in and out of the network; line reactors that limit current, filter waveforms, and attenuate electrical noise and harmonics associated with the inverter and driver output of wind powered turbines; and unit substations, which are integrated assemblies comprising high voltage switchgear, a transformer, a low voltage switchgear, a power meter, and a power factor compensat ion device interconnected with cables or buss bars. The company?s unit substations function as miniature power distribution stations and are used in applications related to the construction and maintenance of city power networks. Jinpan International sells its products in the People?s Republic of China, the United States, and Europe. The company was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Haikou, the People's Republic of China.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By CRWE]
Jinpan International Ltd (Nasdaq:JST), a leading designer, manufacturer, and distributor of cast resin dry type transformers, recently reported that its subsidiary Hainan Jinpan Electric Co. Ltd. successfully developed a 40,000KVA / 35KV cast resin dry type power transformer. The Company has shipped the transformer to the customer’s site in China’s Anhui province for installation in a transformer substation that will deliver power to gas liquification systems.
Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: Hawaiian Holdings Inc.(HA)
Hawaiian Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiary, Hawaiian Airlines, Inc., engages in the scheduled air transportation of passengers and cargo. It offers daily service on transpacific routes between Hawaii and Los Angeles, Oakland, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, and San Jose, California; Las Vegas, Nevada; Phoenix, Arizona; Portland, Oregon; and Seattle, Washington, as well as daily service on its inter island routes among the four islands of the State of Hawaii. The company also provides scheduled service on its Pacific routes between Hawaii and Pago Pago, American Samoa; Papeete, Tahiti; Sydney, Australia; Manila, Philippines; Tokyo, Japan; and Seoul, South Korea, as well as other ad hoc charters. As of December 31, 2010, its fleet consisted of 15 Boeing 717-200 aircraft for its interisland routes; 18 Boeing 767-300; and 3 Airbus A330-200 aircrafts for its transpacific, Pacific, and charter routes. Hawaiian Holdings, Inc. was founded in 1929 and is headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Michele Lerner, The Motley Fool]
Alan Diaz/APAmerican Airlines did better at staying on schedule last year than it did in 2012, when it accused pilots of a work slowdown. DALLAS -- A big drop in customer complaints helped U.S. airlines post their best ratings ever even though more flights were late and more bags were mishandled, according to a report released Monday by university researchers. Virgin America topped the ratings, and three regional airlines scored at the bottom. Among the four biggest airlines, Delta Air Lines (DAL) ranked best followed by Southwest (LUV), American (AAL) and United (UAL), according to researchers from Wichita State University and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. The researchers have graded airlines since 1991 on government figures for on-time performance, mishandled bags, bumping passengers, and complaints filed with the U.S. Department of Transportation. Their key findings: On-Time Performance: Airlines operated 78.4 percent of their flights on time in 2013, down from 81.8 percent in 2012. Best: Hawaiian Airlines (HA); worst: American Eagle. Only two airlines improved: American Airlines and United. Bag Handling: The rate of lost, stolen or delayed bags rose 5 percent. Best: Virgin America; worst: American Eagle. Bumping: The rate of bumping passengers from flights fell 8 percent. Best: JetBlue Airways (JBLU); worst: SkyWest (SKYW). Complaints: Consumer complaints to the government dropped 15 percent in 2013 after rising 20 percent the year before. Best: Southwest Airlines; worst: Frontier (RJET). One of the report's authors, Wichita State business professor Dean Headley, credited the drop in complaints partly to United Airlines. The company suffered several computer-network outages and grounded hundreds of flights in 2012 when it combined the United and Continental computer networks after a merger, but "got their act together" in 2013, he said. Headley said the drop in complaints might also reflect "a certain amount of resignation" that "it's neve
Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: The Hackett Group Inc.(HCKT)
The Hackett Group, Inc. operates as a strategic advisory and technology consulting firm primarily in the United States and western Europe. The company offers executive advisory programs, benchmarking, business transformation, and technology consulting services, as well as shared services, offshoring, and outsourcing advice. Its executive advisory programs consists of advisor inquiry, an inquiry service used by clients for access to fact-based advice on proven approaches and methods to increase the effectiveness of selling, general, and administrative processes (SG&A); best practice research, a research that provides insights into the proven approaches in use at organizations; peer interaction program comprising member-led Webcasts, annual Best Practice Conferences, annual Member Forums, membership performance surveys, and client-submitted content; and best practice intelligence center, an online, searchable repository of practices, performance metrics, conference presentat ions, and associated research. The company?s bench marking services conduct studies in the areas of SG&A, finance, human resources, information technology, procurement, enterprise performance management, shared service centers, and working capital management. These services are used by clients to establish priorities, generate organizational consensus, align compensation to establish performance goals, and develop the required business case for business and technology investments. Its business transformation programs help clients to develop coordinated strategy for achieving performance improvements across the enterprise; and Hackett Technology Solutions help clients choose and deploy the software applications that meet their needs and objectives. The company was formerly known as Answerthink, Inc. and changed its name to The Hackett Group, Inc. in January 2008. The Hackett Group, Inc. was founded in 1991 and is headquartered in Miami, Florida.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By ValueArtifex]
One such situation currently in the process of unfolding this month is a Dutch Tender by The Hackett Group (HCKT). I will briefly discuss the underlying business, what exactly a Dutch Auction (or in this case, a Tender) is, what options investors have when approaching this situation and how it could play out.
Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings(AAWW)
Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, Inc. provides air cargo and outsourced aircraft operating solutions worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance, and Insurance (ACMI); Air Mobility Command (AMC) Charter; Commercial Charter; and Dry Leasing. The ACMI segment offers aircraft that is crewed, maintained, and insured by the company for lease. The AMC Charter segment provides full planeload charter flights to the U.S. military. The Commercial Charter segment provides planeload of capacity charter services to charter brokers, freight forwarders, direct shippers, and airlines. The Dry Leasing segment provides for the leasing of aircraft and/or engines to customers. The company operates a fleet of Boeing 747 freighters. Its customers include airlines, express delivery providers, freight forwarders, the U.S. military, and charter brokers. It operates in Asia, the Middle-East, Australia, Europe, South America, Africa, and North America. As of Decem ber 31, 2009, the company operated a fleet of 747-400 freighter aircraft. Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings was founded in 1992 and is based in Purchase, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Anders Bylund]
Jet chartering service Atlas Air Worldwide (NASDAQ: AAWW ) started a poison pill in 2009 "during a period of turmoil," only to cancel it a year later when the risk of hostile takeover attempts had waned. Shares of Atlas have fallen 20% since the cancellation, while the S&P 500 surged 66% higher, but Atlas is most certainly an independent company today.
- [By Ben Levisohn]
UPS’s (UPS) big miss got the attention today–sending its shares down 1%–but that’s nothing compared to what’s happened to Atlas Air Worldwide (AAWW).
- [By Ben Levisohn]
Atlas Air Worldwide (AAWW) has plunged 21% to $38.63 following its announcement that it would earn less this year than it had previously expected.
Oshkosh has dropped 12% to $46.25 after it reported a profit of 49 cents a share, missing forecasts for 590 cents, as sales of military vehicles plunged.
Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: Transocean Inc.(RIG)
Transocean Ltd. provides offshore contract drilling services for oil and gas wells worldwide. It offers deepwater and harsh environment drilling, oil and gas drilling management, and drilling engineering and drilling project management services. The company also offers well and logistics services. In addition, it engages in oil and gas exploration, development, and production activities primarily in the United States offshore Louisiana and Texas, and in the United Kingdom sector of the North Sea. As of February 10, 2011, the company owned, had partial ownership interests in, and operated 138 mobile offshore drilling units, including 47 high-specification floaters, 25 midwater floaters, 9 high-specification jackups, 54 standard jackups, and 3 other rigs, as well as 1 ultra-deepwater floater and 3 high-specification jackups under construction. Transocean Ltd. was founded in 1953 and is based in Zug, Switzerland.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By George Acs]
I'm a little ambivalent about adding additional shares of Transocean (RIG) to my two existing lots. Just a few days earlier I felt reasonably assured that the $47 lot would be assigned. At that time I was already thinking of re-purchasing shares in order to capture the upcoming dividend. Also in the Icahn stable of companies in his radar scope, Transocean hasn't fared quite as well as others, and has not yet increased its dividend as Icahn suggested, although its change has come to its executive offices. Together with Halliburton (HAL) and British Petroleum (BP), Transocean is one of the "Evil Troika" that consistently offers a good place to park money owing to its narrow trading range, option premiums and dividend payout.
- [By David Smith]
On the drillers' side, there's also Transocean (NYSE: RIG ) the biggest of the lot, which trades at a forward P/E below nine times, probably nearing an end to its Deepwater Horizon litigation. The company's board of directors is also in the sights of activist Carl Icahn, a state of affairs that is unlikely to eventuate badly for shareholders. In any event, despite -- or perhaps because of -- that attention, the same board has proposed the initiation of a $2.24 per-share dividend, enough for a yield topping 4%.
- [By Tyler Crowe and Aimee Duffy]
It has been a long process cleaning up the 1,100 miles of coastline that was contaminated during the spill. BP and rig operator Transocean (NYSE: RIG ) combined have spent almost $20 billion in litigation and cleanup costs. In this video, Fool.com contributors Tyler Crowe and Aimee Duffy look at how BP, Transocean, and the third party involved in Macondo spill, Halliburton (NYSE: HAL ) have fared after the spill.
Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: Kulicke and Soffa Industries Inc.(KLIC)
Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. designs, manufactures, and sells capital equipment and expendable tools used to assemble semiconductor devices, including integrated circuits, high and low powered discrete devices, light-emitting diodes, and power modules. It also services, maintains, repairs, and upgrades its equipment. The company operates in two segments, Equipment and Expendable Tools. The Equipment segment manufactures and sells a line of ball bonders, heavy wire wedge bonders, stud bumpers, and die bonders. Its Ball bonders are used to connect very fine wires, primarily made of gold or copper, between the bond pads of the semiconductor device or die, and the leads on its package; Heavy wire wedge bonders are used in the power semiconductor and automotive power module markets; and Die bonders are used to attach a die to the substrate or lead frame, which will house the semiconductor device. This segment?s Stud bumpers mechanically apply bumps to die, while still in the wafer format, for some variants of the flip chip assembly process. The Expendable Tools segment manufactures and sells various expendable tools for a range of semiconductor packaging applications. Its products include capillaries, bonding wedges, and saw blades. The company?s customers primarily comprise semiconductor device manufacturers, outsourced semiconductor assembly and test providers, other electronics manufacturers, and automotive electronics suppliers in the United States and the Asia/Pacific region. Kulicke and Soffa Industries sells its products through manufacturers? representatives and distributors. The company was founded in 1951 and is headquartered in Singapore.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Brian Pacampara]
Based on the aggregated intelligence of 180,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, chip equipment maker Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ: KLIC ) has earned a coveted five-star ranking.
Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: YRC Worldwide Inc.(YRCW)
YRC Worldwide Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides various transportation services worldwide. The company?s YRC National Transportation unit offers a range of services for the transportation of industrial, commercial, and retail goods, such as apparel, appliances, automotive parts, chemicals, food, furniture, glass, machinery, metal, metal products, non-bulk petroleum products, rubber, textiles, wood, and other manufactured products. It serves manufacturing, wholesale, retail, and government customers. As of December 31, 2009, it had 11704 owned tractors, 1239 leased tractors, 50083 owned trailers, and 3244 leased trailers. Its YRC Regional Transportation unit?s service portfolio includes regional delivery, which comprises next-day local area delivery and second-day services, consolidation/distribution services, protect-from-freezing and hazardous materials handling, and various specialized offerings; expedited delivery, that comprises day-definite, hour-definite, and time definite capabilities; inter-regional delivery; cross-border delivery; and operation of my.yrcregional.com and NewPenn.com, which are e-commerce Websites offering online resources to manage transportation activity. The company?s YRC Logistics units? service portfolio consists of distribution services that include flow through and pool distribution, dedicated warehousing, and value-added services; global services, which comprise international freight forwarding, customs brokerage, and value-added services; and transportation services, such as truckload brokerage, domestic freight forwarding, and transportation management. Its YRC Truckload unit provides customized truckload services on regional and national level through the use of company and team-based drivers. The company was founded in 1924 and is headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Sean Williams]
Raise the yellow caution flag
In spite of trucking company YRC Worldwide's (NASDAQ: YRCW ) share price doubling last week following the company's first quarterly profit in six years (that's right...�six years), shares are still down a mind-boggling 99.9928% over the past decade. Somehow avoiding bankruptcy a few years back by diluting existing shareholders into oblivion, YRC has investors now thinking the company may be on the mend. However, its history makes me�believe otherwise. - [By Jon C. Ogg]
YRC Worldwide Inc. (NASDAQ: YRCW) remains an entity that is at-risk by our count. The trucking company managed to swing back to a loss on worse than expected earnings, in-part blaming a shortage of drivers and also higher expenses. You would think that lower gasoline prices would be helping matters, but this turnaround just cannot seem to turn around. Shares were down some 20% on Wednesday after earnings, and the drop on Friday was another 6% down to $7.41. The overall drop from Monday’s close of $10.64 was just over 30%. With a wide loss expected in 2013 and another loss expected in 2014, combined with spotty revenue expectations, is it fair to worry about this company’s future?
- [By Lauren Pollock]
Among the companies with shares expected to actively trade in Friday’s session are Alcoa Inc.(AA), Sears Holdings Corp.(SHLD) and YRC Worldwide Inc.(YRCW)
- [By Wallace Witkowski]
Shares of trucking company YRC Worldwide Inc. (YRCW) �dropped more than 15% to $13.30 on moderate volume after the Teamsters union had rejected a company contract extension.
No comments:
Post a Comment