Management commentary

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Topline The late artist Ernie Barnes’ estate signed a deal with two New York galleries for representation and announced a major show coming in 2023 Thursday, a week after Barnes’ most well-known painting, “ The Sugar Shack ,” sold for a groundbreaking $15.3 million at auction including fees, 80 times higher than expected. Key Facts Andrew Kreps and Ortuzar Projects, two New York galleries that collaborated last year on a show that included “The Sugar Shack,” announced Thursday they had inked a deal to represent Barnes’ estate and were planning a show dedicated to Barnes slated for next year, according to ArtNews. Barnes–who played professional football for five years before turning to art full time–has long been an influential cultural figure, especially within the Black community , with “The Sugar Shack” appearing in the closing credits of Good Times, the first family sitcom to feature a two Black … [Read more...] about How A Hedge Fund Manager’s $15 Million Bid Turned Artist Ernie Barnes Into A Hot Commodity

Key Takeaways Analysts estimate adjusted EPS of $0.87 vs. $1.32 in Q1 FY 2022. The number of customers contributing over $100,000 in 12-month trailing revenue is expected to rise YOY, but at a sharply slower pace than previous quarters. Revenue is expected to grow, but at a decelerating pace. Zoom Video Communications Inc. ( ZM ), which offers a video-first communications platform, saw its popularity soar during the past two years amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Earnings and revenue skyrocketed. But the company's growth has decelerated sharply in recent quarters as employees have begun to return to their offices. In this new environment, Zoom's biggest challenge is how to retain its base of large corporate customers, who are crucial to producing a steady, reliable revenue stream. Investors will be watching closely at how Zoom management plans to address these challenges when the company reports earnings on May 23, 2022 for Q1 FY 2023. The company's 2022 fiscal … [Read more...] about Zoom Q1 FY2023 Earnings Report Preview: What to Look For

Attempts to unionize Amazon.com, Inc. ( AMZN ) workers at two large facilities in the Staten Island borough of New York City have produced mixed results, with workers at one voting for unionization and those at the other voting against. The latter results were announced on May 2, 2022. Meanwhile, Amazon is asking the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to invalidate the vote in favor of the union, alleging various electoral irregularities. The Amazon Labor Union (ALU) won by a vote of 2,654 (55%) in favor out of 4,785 ballots counted at the JFK8 warehouse. However, the union lost by a margin of 618 (62%) against out of 998 votes counted at the adjacent LDJ5 sorting facility. The former site employs more than 8,000 people, while the latter has approximately 1,633 eligible voters. Key Takeaways After winning a vote to organize workers at an Amazon.com facility in Staten Island, New York, the same union lost a vote at an adjacent facility. Amazon had worked … [Read more...] about Amazon (AMZN) Union Gets Split Decision in NYC

Stock investors who expect to rake in big profits on the soaring shares of Uber Technologies and Lyft when they go public should think again, according to a detailed analysis by industry expert Joseph Vitale. Deloitte’s global automotive practice leader, whose group delivers consulting, risk management, and other services to auto makers, suppliers, dealers, and car rental companies, and also advises governments, is not one of the wave of sell-side analysts waiting to market the two ride-hailing stocks. 4 Reasons to Be Cautious About Uber and Lyft Uber and Lyft are actually worsening the urban congestion problem. Ride hailing will become less convenient for consumers as congestion increases. Ride hailing isn’t as economically traffic-efficient as taxis. Ride sharing has declined among the heaviest users. Unicorns Valued at $120B and $19B The public debuts of America’s two leading ride-hailing rivals are among the most anticipated in 2019, as the volume of IPOs … [Read more...] about Read This Before Investing in Uber and Lyft IPOs

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (May 20): Messrs CAS Malaysia PLT has resigned as Practice Note 17 (PN 17) China Automobile Parts Holdings Ltd’s (CAP) external auditors with immediate effect. In a filing on Friday (May 20), CAP said it accepted CAS Malaysia’s resignation as its auditors after a notice of resignation dated May 19 was received by the group on Friday. CAP said it “is not aware of any other matters that need to be brought to the attention of the shareholders” of the group, adding that it will appoint new auditors in due course. CAS Malaysia was first appointed as CAP’s external auditor on July 24, 2020, according to prior filings. In October last year, the Securities Commission reprimanded CAP’s former group executive chairperson Wang Yunyun and its former managing director Li Guo Qing, and former non-independent non-executive vice-chairman Ong Juan Tee for allowing the submission and authorising the issuance of CAP’s prospectus that contained financial … [Read more...] about China Automobile Parts’ external auditor resigns in less than 2 years after appointment

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (May 20): Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) is now 99% completed, with the remaining 1% comprising major infrastructure works which are nearing completion, master developer of the financial district TRX City Sdn Bhd said. “Although we were constrained by the Movement Control Order (MCO) resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, we managed to continue developing TRX and the successfully completed buildings today are Menara Prudential and HSBC Bank,” TRX City chief executive officer Datuk Azmar Talib told the media at the Hari Raya open house at Raintree Plaza, TRX here on Friday. “As for the Affin Bank building, we have obtained a Certificate of Completion and Compliance (CCC) and it will be ready for occupation in the third quarter of this year," he said. Azmar said although TRX City is the master developer, the development of the individual plots depend on the respective land owners. On TRX’s retail updates, Azmar said its main commercial (area) will be … [Read more...] about CEO: TRX infrastructure 99% completed

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (May 20): SC Estate Builder Bhd (SCBuild) has received a requisition from three shareholders, who collectively hold at least 10% of the company's shares, to call for an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to remove 11 existing directors. In a bourse filing on Friday (May 20), SCBuild said it had received the notice of requisition for the EGM from Seik Yee Kok, Seik Thye Kong and Tan Bee Yook, who are seeking to remove the company's chairman, managing director and chief executive officer Loh Boon Ginn, Loh Shy Tyug, Loh Shy Ming, Kuay Jeaneve, Chee Jun Ann, Kuay Jen Nie, Josipinna Pudun, Loo Tze Ming, Soo Ting Hooi, Chan Wei Xi, Datuk Bijaya Indera Syed Unan Mashri Syed Abdullah and any director appointed between May 13 and the EGM. At the same time, the trio are seeking to appoint six new directors namely Abd Gani Yusof, Rosman Hussin, Johari Yazid, Keithson Neoh Tze Thow, Koh Lay Keem and Cheong Peck Kuan on SCBuild's board. "The company is … [Read more...] about SC Estate Builder gets EGM requisition to remove 11 directors

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (May 20): Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB), which received the visit of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) president Salvatore Sciacchitano at the KL International Airport (KLIA) on Friday (May 20), has echoed the Malaysian government’s commitment towards ensuring a holistic and sustainable aviation industry recovery. “All our efforts in the last two years and moving forward plans are geared towards sustainability,” managing director Datuk Iskandar Mahmood said in a statement. He said on top of ensuring safety in the new normal for passengers, the airport operator has been collaborating with various stakeholders to promote travel and tourism to Malaysia. “It also includes expanding network connectivity by incentivising airlines to either resume operations or introduce new routes, as well as implementing safe and seamless airport processes,” he said. He said MAHB is also embarking on its efforts in various digitalisation … [Read more...] about MAHB echoes government’s commitment to ensure holistic, sustainable aviation industry recovery

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (May 20): LGMS Bhd aims to raise RM45.7 million via its initial public offering (IPO) on the ACE Market of Bursa Malaysia. In a statement on Friday (May 20), the independent professional cybersecurity firm said at the IPO price of 50 sen per share, LGMS will have a market capitalisation of RM228 million upon listing and raise gross proceeds of up to RM45.7 million. LGMS has earmarked RM38.2 million for business expansion including the purchase of a new office with larger space (for RM18 million), workforce expansion (RM6.5 million), capital expenditure (RM6 million) and strategic regional expansion (RM7.698 million) into fast-growing markets such as Singapore, Vietnam and Cambodia. It added that the remaining RM7.5 million is to be used for working capital purposes as well as the defrayment of listing expenses. According to its IPO prospectus, the IPO entails a public issue of 91.395 million shares, and an offer for sale of 45.6 million … [Read more...] about LGMS to raise RM45.7m via ACE-Market listing

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (May 20): Mondelēz International, manufacturer of Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate and OREO biscuits, has taken various measures to mitigate the effects of global cost-push inflation to ensure that its products remain affordable and of the same high quality, said managing director for Malaysia and Singapore Narmeen Khan. This is particularly with respect to transportation, packaging, edible oils, and dairy, as well as supply-chain bottlenecks, she told Bernama . Narmeen, who assumed the position in February 2022, said Mondelēz is not excluded from experiencing inflation across markets, including in Malaysia. "Due to the steep increase in costs across the entire value chain, particularly in commodities, logistics, and packaging, product repricing is one of the considerations, but as previously disclosed, we are taking proactive measures in 2022 to reshape our portfolio, with a focus on core products and best-selling items. "Other considerations … [Read more...] about Mondelez International to keep Cadbury chocs and biscuits affordable