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December 31, 2004

Red Sky

As has now become our tradition, we spend the week between Christmas and New Years some place other than our home in San Francisco. It gives us a chance to recharge our batteries and get ready to roll for the year ahead.

This year, we made it to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico for the first time. Cabo is located at the southern tip of the Baja Peninsula - 1000 miles south of San Diego and 10 degrees south of the Tropic of Cancer (a little perspective – Portland, Oregon is 1000 miles north of San Diego!). The Pacific Ocean is to the West and the Sea of Cortez is to the East.

Hernan Cortez discovered Cabo in 1537, searching for the Amazon Queen Cali and her fabled treasures. No Amazon Queen was to be found but the Sea of Cortez was littered with black pearls, the biggest and darkest found anywhere in the world.
Cabo today seems like a cross between Malibu and Palm Desert in the 1950`s. It´s what I expect Havana to look like but with mountains. Gorgeous natural beauty but huge poverty and the absence of much of the modern world.

Like the Galapagos Islands, there are numerous plants and animals that are only found here. Of the 110 types of cactus species found in Cabo, 80 are only found here. Twenty distinct types of whales, dolphins and porpoise are located here.

Cabo is a fisherman’s paradise with some of the best sport fishing found here in the world. Marlin, Yellow Fin Tuna, Mahi-Mahi and Dorado are abundant.
While not an avid angler, I figured “when in Rome…” so I arranged a guide to take my family deep sea fishing. The fundamentals of perhaps the world’s second oldest profession are as timeless as the world’s oldest (and our local guide was adept at combining the two).

To have good fishing, you need decent weather with the old marine mantra as the guide: Red sky at night - sailors delight. Red sky at morning - sailors take warning. We were fortunate to have a glorious red sky the night before our expedition and sure enough, the next day was picture perfect.

The second fundamental, you need to get up early as that’s when the fish are biting. You need a proper pole and proper bait. And then, most importantly, you need to fish where the fish are. You can do everything right, have great weather, the right equipment, the right lures, but all this is for naught if there aren’t any fish around.

As the sun sets on 2004, and looking to what kind of investment weather we are going to have for 2005, we see “Red Sky” much to our delight. Despite 2 1/4 years of a Bull market (the median Bull market lasts 2.5 years), valuations remain attractive with the SP 500 selling at 16.x 2005 estimates and the smaller cap SP600 selling at 17.3 with 2x the expected EPS growth. More representative for growth investors, the TEP Growth Index sells at a 2005 P/E of 22x with expected EPS growth of 35% and a P/E/G of 63% - compelling on both an absolute and relative basis. Fundamentals for growth companies are good and getting better with executives playing offense as opposed to defense for the first time in several years. Growth and innovation is being rewarded and taking a front seat once again.

From a supply/demand standpoint, there continues to be a significant demand imbalance for equities. Even with IPO activity picking up significantly last year, with 244 new issues - it was less than half of the average number of IPO’s during the 1990s. Cash inflows into equity mutual funds have been enormous, with $175 billion in 2004 and $338 billion since March 2003. Moreover, corporate stock buybacks and cash M&A transactions have created approximately a 4-to-1 demand imbalance for equities. At the end of the day, the stock market like all markets is a function of supply and demand and there is a “scarcity for stocks” and in particular for fast growing innovative companies.

So we think the “weather” is going to be good for growth stock investing in 2005. Moreover, we continue to believe that in searching for the fastest growing companies with the greatest potential, the “pond” to be fishing in is the smaller cap pond. Not only does the smaller cap pond have the most “fast swimming fish” but it remains the least expensive relative to growth opportunities. Where are the “fish going to be?”

Themes for 2005:
Unwired – Mobile Wireless Remains Hot! The inflection point for the wireless food chain is just now being achieved. The continuing proliferation of wireless technologies, widespread adoption in emerging markets and the integration of more features is driving rapid handset growth. As consumers increasingly rely upon their mobile devices as complete personal communications devices, the need for more bandwidth, capacity and capabilities will drive increasing growth for handset vendors and leading component suppliers, as well as for companies providing innovative wireless applications and services.

VoIP – Leveraging the IP network. Total U.S. business adoption of voice over IP has risen from just 3% in 2003 to 12% in 2004. Among larger businesses adoption ranges from 34% in middle-market enterprises to as high as 43% at large businesses. Consumer adoption continues to lag, with just 2% of households currently subscribing to a VoIP service. By 2010 however, household VoIP adoption is expected to reach 75%. Businesses have been quick to recognize the cost savings and enhanced services of VoIP, while consumers have only recently begun to be targeted by advertising. In 2005, VoIP deployments should broaden and deepen within businesses, as they recognize the initial cost savings and move to adopt more IP based services such video conferencing, then user-to-user video calls (leading to XoIP, “everything” over IP). Consumer adoption should meaningfully accelerate as greater consumer recognition of potentially lower communications bills materializes as well as nascent demand for new IP-based services develops.

Nanotechnology – Emergence of the “Mini Me” Economy. Nanotechnology is being driven by the needs of several industries to tackle growing technology bottlenecks. In microelectronics it will be the only way to get more storage, memory and computational capacity in less space using less power. Industrial markets are requiring stronger and lighter materials. Medical markets are looking to nanotechnology for the delivery of medicine and diagnosing diseases.

Biotech – Turning “data” into Medical Solutions. Biotechnology continues to make sizable strides in the understanding and nature of complex biological phenomena, resulting in medical treatments and solutions for some of the largest problems in medical ailments. This remains an emerging opportunity, though even today increasing numbers of biotech firms are achieving profitability which is leading to increased interest by the mainstream investment community.

On-demand Software – Empowering Users, Delivering ROI. On-demand software is enabling companies to leverage outsourced applications and “pay-as-you-go” to cost effectively deploy software throughout businesses. This model has already gained substantial traction in CRM and is now poised to tackle increasing numbers of critical functions within the enterprise.

Consolidation – Eliminating the “One Product Wonder.” The consolidation trend will continue, most visibly in the software sector following the Oracle-PeopleSoft clearance in 2004. There simply remains too many publicly traded “products” in the sector which should continue to consolidate around suites of solutions to meet today’s business demands.

Social Networking – Peer Power! Creative mass marketing and peer-to-peer social networks continue to be on fire. Friendster, MySpace and LinkedIn continue to demonstrate the power of “peer power” and are redefining how companies target attractive market segments.

New Media – “My Media!” New consumer digital markets are being created and catalyzed as broadband, powerful but cheap devices and innovative business models digitize the consumer. The iPod, iTunes and the explosion in digital consumer devices are driving this trend, in the process opening new opportunities in areas such as “podcasting” and “podvertising.” Blogs are creating an explosion in user created content, “citizen journalism” and communities built by users, for users. RSS feeds are bringing web content directly to users without having to surf the net and finally empowering the elusive “push power” of the Internet.

Education – The Knowledge Economy. Education companies should continue to flourish as the knowledge economy continues to develop. The pay gap between somebody who has a high school education and a college education has more than doubled over the past 20-years, yet only 25% of the U.S. adult population has a college degree or better. Online education offers a unique and huge opportunity to close this gap through easier access to furthering educational attainment.

Open Source – Bust it Open, Watch it Grow! Linux traction in servers and data centers continues to proliferate, as “linux-based” technologies lower costs, reduce security risks and add stability to computing. This year, open-source applications built on the LAMP stack (Linux, Apache, MySQL, Perl/Python/PHP) will further drive open-source adoption. Mozilla Firefox is leading the way in consumer usage of “open source” with more than 14 million downloads of the browser since November 9th, and taking an estimated 5% market share from Microsoft’s Internet Explorer in less than two months. The big surprise of next year could very well be the increased market share of open-source “office applications,” bringing open source desktop software to a “computer near you” as well as reinvigorate demand for Apple computers for those that “really want one but can’t because of work.”

China – The Waking of Billions of Opportunities. 1.3 billion reasons to be excited about prospects in China. The sleeping giant of Asia continues to make economic and social progress, rapidly creating a mass of purchasing power in the region. There will be growing pains, but the opportunity ahead remains massive across virtually all sectors.

2005 Fearless Predictions:
Best Performing Index: NASDAQ
Performance of Major Indices:
Dow: +10%
S&P 500: +15%
NASDAQ: +25%
Russell 2000: +20%
10-Year Note: 4.95%
Dollar versus the Euro: Up
Gold: Up $480
Oil: Down $30
Unemployment: 5.2%
GDP Growth: 3.6%
S&P 500 EPS Growth: 12%
Best Performing Sector: Technology
Worst Performing Sector: Energy
Super Bowl Winner: Indianapolis Colts over the Philadelphia Eagles
Rose Bowl Winner: Michigan over Texas
National Chamption: USC Trojans
Final Four: North Carolina, Illinois, Georgia Tech, Gonzaga
NBA Champion: Cleveland Cavaliers (over Phoenix Suns)
Stanley Cup Champion: No Cup
World Series Champion: Chicago Cubs beat Boston Red Sox in game 7
Masters Champion: Tiger
Hit Movie of the Year: "Sideways"
Most Oscars: “Aviator”
Best Actor: Johnny Depp
Best Actress: Emmy Rossum (Phantom of the Opera)
Best Animated Film: “The Incredibles”
Biggest Surprise of '05: Limp Bizkit 2005 Tour Sponsored by Viagra
Fastest Growing Economy: India
Time Magazine Person of the Year: Steve Jobs

Posted by Michael Moe at 11:04 AM | Comments (0)

December 20, 2004

Yet Another Dismal "Outlook"

The year is coming to a close, which means that it’s also the time of year when financial market pros muse about the year ahead and synthesize the outlooks into spot forecasts for the financial market averages. What is already apparent is that few are very optimistic, with the majority seeing the broader market rising less than 10% in 2005.

The most prominent theme is a “return to normal,” with ample doses of cautious optimism tempered by continuing concerns over high oil prices, a weakening dollar and the twin deficits. The only evidence of boldness comes in the form of those offering “advice” for how to “fix” the world’s problems.

What is lacking in most outlooks is any potential for what could go right. Instead, the focus remains on what has gone wrong and assessing tomorrow within that context. We thought rather than spend our time writing why we think the future is being overly discounted by today’s concerns we’d highlight some of the more interesting emerging trends occurring despite everything that has gone wrong this year and that should continue to positively impact “tomorrow.”

At the beginning of the 2004, who would have thought the iPod could propel Apple Computer back toward its all-time high? In the process, the iPod is spawning potential new growth opportunities in “Podcasting” and “Podvertising.” Who imagined that in the year following Google’s purchase of a weblog company – Blogger - the “blog” would be the most looked up word in 2004? Today, “social networks” and “citizen journalists” are driving the growth in the blog tools market, with these tools being created by real companies, which venture capitalists are putting real money into.

In the year ahead, emerging “blogosphere” opportunities are likely to arise in the media and publishing industries. Of course, with any disruptive method or technology introduced into the status quo of an industry, new “problems” will arise as well. Take for example how to define “freedom of the press” in a world of “citizen journalists” and open source news groups? (See Wikinews.org) Of course this will work both ways. (See the Sixty-First Minute) However, while many will fret over this emerging “problem,” some will no doubt see the entrepreneurial opportunity - just as Apple did with iTunes in response to the RIAA’s “problem” with the Napster business model.

Then there is “open source,” which made seemingly small, but potentially destabilizing inroads in 2004 by gaining more share in web servers and data centers. Within the government sector, cities ranging from Modesto to Munich have begun ditching the Evil Empire’s software, replacing it with open source technology, which in some cases even included the desktop!

In fact, it’s now possible to purchase a desktop or laptop that has been pre-loaded with a Linux OS from multiple major vendors, while legitimate Microsoft compatible “office” suites are just a free download away. As can be imagined, these changes are not being taken lightly at Microsoft, with key figures there increasingly assuming ambassadorial roles.

More recently, the 95% market share that Internet Explorer has enjoyed is proving susceptible to competition, reportedly losing 5% of its hold on the browser market just this year; with much of the loss being attributed to Mozilla’s recently introduced Firefox browser - officially released on November 9th and already registering more than 11 million downloads! And, Mozilla is still at it. On December 7th, they officially launched Thunderbird 1.0, an email client providing improved security, built-in intelligent spam filters, and a blog reader. Thunderbird is most likely poised to go after the Outlook Express market, and then…?

Voice over IP (VoIP) has continued to proliferate. It’s estimated that the adoption of VoIP by businesses has grown from 3 percent in 2003 to 12 percent in 2004, according to In-Stat/MDR. The consumer market has also shown progress this year, though remains relatively small. With ever increasing numbers of service providers and consumer education and marketing initiatives planned for the year ahead, it may be the year that consumer VoIP nears its first “tipping point.”

While there are notable issues to be concerned about, it has always been the case that perceived risks get more than their fair share of the weight when assessing the future. Perhaps it is because risks are predicated upon factors that are easily identifiable, whereas positive “surprises” are by definition, a surprise. In the world of equity investing, this is widely regarded as the “wall of worry” that investor sentiment is regularly up against, and yet consistently climbs.

Posted by Mat Johnson at 06:07 AM | Comments (0)

December 13, 2004

Two Minute Drill

What a difference a year makes.

Twelve months ago, with the market up for the first time in four years, we said investors were playing the “4 corner offense.” This was a strategy mastered by legendary University of North Carolina basketball coach Dean Smith, where the Tar Heels would run out the clock when they had a big lead. No shots, just don’t turn the ball over.

While not real exciting, this strategy was effective with many funds up 20-30% versus the S&P 500 being up 26.4% for 2003, and the Russell 2000 being up 45.4%. Even if you didn’t’ beat your benchmark, having a positive return was a big “W” in the moral victory column.

The “return of your money” as opposed to “return on your money” mindset carried over into the New Year, with investors avoiding making major offensive commitments. The external clouds of the war in Iraq, global terrorism, the Presidential election, and oil prices kept a lid on stock prices despite positive fundamentals and reasonable valuations.

Then in August, when conventional wisdom about the market’s demise reached its peak, smaller cap stocks in particular went on a tear, rising 22.3% since August 12th.

Now, with three weeks to go for the year, many funds are trying to play “catch up” and score points before the 2004 clock runs out. This effectively looks like a “two minute drill,” in which there is huge focus on groups that are showing leadership, new issues and secondary stocks.

Evidence of this phenomenon is that while market breadth was poor last week, companies making new highs versus new lows were over 7 to 1. Groups that are outperforming since August 12 include Next Generation Networking (52%), Online Marketing (+48%), Wireless (+43%), Infrastructure Management Software (+39%) and Media (+36%). Stocks within these groups that we like are: Tekelec (TKLC), AudioCodes (AUDC), Aptimus (APTM), aQuantive (AQNT), Opsware (OPSW) TIBCO Software (TIBX), Google (GOOG), and InterMix Media (MIX).

Conventional wisdom says the economy is slowing and interest rates are going up, as our weaker dollar is causing global uncertainties. Being fearful where others are greedy and greedy where others are fearful is part of the recipe for successful investing.

Accordingly, we remain very bullish on stocks in general, but in particular small cap growth stocks. The tenets of our positive stance include:

1) The weaker dollar is stimulating tremendous foreign demand for our products, accelerating growth. The megatrends of globalization, outsourcing and the Internet put a secular lid on inflation and interest rates.

2) There is a persistent imbalance for equities with $548 million of inflows into equity mutual funds last week and $160 billion year-to-date.

3) Despite outperformance from small caps – they remain cheap. The S&P 500 sells at a P/E of 16.1x while the small-cap S&P 600 sells at 16.8x, despite growing 2x faster. The TEP Growth Index, sells at 22x 2005 estimates and a P/E/G of just 52%.

Posted by Michael Moe at 08:45 AM | Comments (0)

A Portrait of 2004

At the beginning of 2004, just about everything that could go right, was. The equity market (S&P 500) was adding to its stellar 2003 performance by tacking on the all important “as goes January gain” of 1.7%, while NASDAQ posted a 3.1% January increase and the Russell 2000 jumped 4.3%.

Fourth quarter GDP had yet to be reported, but it would ultimately show growth of 4.2%, following the tax-refund induced 7.4% increase in the third quarter. Fourth quarter earnings were being reported nearly 25% above the prior year, following a 24% increase in the third quarter. Net inflows into equity mutual funds rose $43 billion in January ’04 – the largest increase since February 2000 – and job growth was finally reported rising, up 112K in January, versus just 1K in December and 57K in November. Moreover, core consumer inflation was rising just 1.1%, year-on-year, down from the “deflationary scare” rate of 2.3% in 2002 (yes, lower!), and long-term interest rates were hovering just above 4%.

Even market valuation seemed reasonable, with a trailing P/E of 21.8x, down from 30x at mid-year 2003. The market’s forward multiple was even more attractive at 18.1x earnings, on expected earnings growth at the time of 14%. This backdrop could not have been much more idyllic for investors. The economy, company earnings, investor demand for equities and job growth were all on the upswing, while valuation and inflation were on the decline. Not surprisingly, professional investor surveys reported that there were three “bulls” for every “bear,” while that same ratio in individual investor polls had risen to 5-1.

Of course, what was not expected at the time was that: crude oil would skyrocket to more than $55/bbl; the Fed would begin raising rates as early as it did; China would attempt a soft-landing; the U.S. dollar would continue it’s sharp decline in 2004; or the Presidential race would be as tight as the polls would later indicate. Every one of these developments introduced precisely what investors loathe most – uncertainty.

While each of these factors had their due turn being the reason for spoiling the market mood this year, it was the noxious combination that challenged the fair-weather outlooks and resilience of market bulls.

Faltering confidence proved to be a real factor for businesses. By mid-year many went back to playing defense, tightening supply chains and further milking their operations for cash flow. This resulted in a slowdown in the pace of both hiring and capital investment, as well as a renewed focus on paring inventories, which ultimately resulted in the summer “soft patch.”

Investors also began to lack confidence in the markets, with a looming earnings deceleration in the second half of the year, a much tighter Presidential election than was expected, as well as the second coming of higher oil prices. By August, these fears pushed the S&P 500 down more than -4% for the year, and -8% lower than the late January high. On NASDAQ, investor uncertainty resulted in a virtual pummeling, with the composite down -12.5% by mid-August, and nearly -19% from the January high.

Fast forward to the present, with just three weeks left in the year the S&P 500 is now up 6.8% year-to-date, while NASDAQ is up 6.2% and the Russell 2000 is up 13.5%. It’s as if the events that concerned investors during 2004 were mere fiction.

But, in fact they did occur. The economy has been slowed by higher oil prices, inflation is higher; the dollar is weaker; the Fed has raised rates 100 bps and counting; China’s growth is slowing and earnings growth has decelerated. Perhaps most notable of all, however, is that earnings for the year are on track to rise by 22%, or 8% better than was expected and despite all that did occur.

Consistent with our view of long-run equity performance, it was earnings growth that ultimately drove the market higher in 2004, while heightened investor concerns resulting from oil prices, interest rates and a weaker dollar played secondary roles.

Looking ahead, we find it difficult to imagine that what was supposed to go wrong for the economy and markets in 2004 is poised to work against investors in 2005. As we look at the less than ideal current backdrop, we see higher potential for things going right versus wrong, which includes 2005 earnings expectations being under-guessed for the third consecutive year.

Meanwhile, market valuation is lower than at the beginning of 2004, as the 22% rise in earnings has compressed market multiples against the single digit performance of the market. This leaves ample room for multiple expansion to provide investors with “double-play” returns on rising earnings and multiple expansion as today’s investor fears discounting what is already bad, unwind.

While there will certainly be risks in 2005 that are as unforeseen as those in 2004, there will also be growth opportunities, just there were this past year when it seemed all was going wrong. This coming year is poised to see benefits resulting from declining oil prices, a weaker dollar, increased hiring and business investment, and a hopeful conclusion to Fed rate increases – or precisely what investors are fearful of the status quo being today.

As these issues become more favorable to reducing investor risk-aversion, those companies participating in the most dynamic and rapidly growing markets stand to benefit most, as investors turn once again to discounting the future rather than the present.

Posted by Mat Johnson at 08:35 AM | Comments (0)

December 03, 2004

SOX Sucks

The Law of Unintended Consequences is that the actions of people – and especially governments – often have effects that are unanticipated or “unintended.” The mother of all examples is Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX). The unintended consequence of SOX is that it has put a huge tax on growth and innovation that is crippling business and the economic engine that propels America.

The Law of Unintended Consequences states that the actions of people – and especially governments – often have effects that are unanticipated or “unintended.”

For example, the U.S. government had imposed quotas on the import of steel in order to protect U.S. steel companies and workers from lower priced foreign competition. While the protectionism has more or less worked for steel companies, it has had the “unintended consequence” of making it more costly for U.S. car manufacturers to produce automobiles, thus putting them at a disadvantage to their foreign competitors.

Another example of the Law of Unintended Consequences is the basic tenet that hard work paradoxically leads to its own decline, through accumulation of wealth and possessions.

The English philosopher John Locke in 1692, as a forerunner to modern economics, urged the defeat of a parliamentary bill, which was to limit borrowing costs from 6% to 4%. His argument was that contrary to helping borrowers, as was the intent, it would actually have the “unintended consequence” of penalizing them.

His thesis was that people would find a way to circumvent the law with the cost borne by legitimate borrowers. To the extent obeyed, credit would be less available, and the redistribution of income would go to the wrong people.

The mother of all perverse examples of the Law of Unintended Consequences is being played out in the marketplace with the implementation of the Sarbanes-Oxley legislation (SOX). It is spearheaded by Ohio Republican Congressman Michael Oxley and Maryland Democratic Representative Paul Sarbanes. SOX was a reaction to the “slimy” corporate governance that had crept its way into Corporate America during the bubble, and was brought to center stage as $8 trillion of capital was being destroyed through the likes of Enron, Worldcom and Tyco, etc.

The public wanted blood and Congress was anxious to give it to them. A 97-0 vote in the Senate launched the SOX offensive to save the public from the horrible public company executives and give a gigantic boost to the Big 4 accounting firms that were left. (SOX has been called “the Accountants Full Employment Act” by some and the best thing that has happened to the accounting profession since green eye shades.)

The unintended consequence of SOX is that is has put a huge tax on growth and innovation that is crippling business and jeopardizes the economic engine that propels America.

In particular, smaller companies are most adversely impacted in that they are disproportionately impacted by SOX relative to larger companies for two main reasons: 1) There are certain fixed costs that cannot be avoided, with smaller companies having a smaller revenue base to spread them over; 2) Many larger companies already have gone through Six Sigma type quality control testing and/or massive IT infrastructure builds that help them meet the new compliance standards, whereas small companies have not.

Most small companies just don’t have the resources to deal with SOX and in particular section 404, which requires management to report on the internal controls of a company and for the auditor to make a judgment on that report. Sounds like motherhood and apple pie, right? The reality of this is companies are being required to “officially” evidence even the most basic tasks, some of which is like tracking individual receipts for petty cash, from the time they walk in the office to show process against some ambiguous goal. The horror stories companies are experiencing trying to deal with this are beyond belief and detrimental to shareholders.

Ludicrous!

The hard dollar cost is enormous – a recent Korn Ferry study indicates SOX has cost the Fortune 1000 over $5 million extra a year and that the added expense for smaller companies it’can easily be $2 million annually. While the Big 4 – KPMG, Price Waterhouse, Ernst & Young and Deloitte – are reaping billions as the beneficiary of SOX, it’s coming directly out of the pockets of shareholders who are paying for it.

In terms of market cap, if you put a 30x multiple on a high growth company, assuming it costs $2 million for SOX compliance, it results in a $60 million deduction in market value. If you put a 15x multiple on the Fortune 1000 and deduct the $5 billion they have paid for SOX, it’s $75 billion of market value vanished!!!

This said, the greatest cost comes from management and other employees time spent away from core competencies. It’s estimated by Corporate Executive Board that for smaller companies, CFO’s have spent 40% of their time on SOX – taking away from more value added activities. This tax on growth diminishes the time pursuing offensive activities such as M&A as well as heighten the risk of acquiring “non-compliant” targets. The tax on growth impacts spending on infrastructure to support growth such as CRM and ERP systems.

Being a director of a public company has little upside and lots of downside – not surprisingly, according to the Korn Ferry study, the percentage of respondents who declined board positions has gone from 13% to 29%. Additionally, cash compensation for directors has gone up 50%. Most disappointing, the role of director has shifted from how to grow the business to how the keep from being sued.

Going public, historically an attractive option for emerging private companies is viewed as the option of last resort by many of today’s hottest companies. The cost, the headaches, the liabilities all make whatever the benefits are look paltry. Even to get a Big 4 accounting firm to take you on as a client is a problem. And once you are a client, you get treated like a red-headed step child. In a “quadropoly,” there is not much incentive to spend time with the little guys. Small public companies are “hostage” to the system – they are getting poor and expensive service but can’t switch to a non-Big 4 firm for fear of investor retribution.

Sarbanes-Oxley needs to be revised. It’s flawed legislation with significant unintended consequences. It’s strangling growth and innovation and needs to go the way of the Atkins Diet - it seemed like a good way to lose some quick weight, but it’s proving the way to have a massive heart attack and die!

Posted by Michael Moe at 08:00 AM | Comments (0)