Personal Finance

Starting a Business

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There are just 3 scenarios that allow you to get away without doing the dreaded payroll every week or every month: if you are a sole trader, or a partnership, or you just don’t plan to pay the people who work for you! Payroll is a complex issue. Not only do you have to deal … Read more

EZ IPO Profits

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People have been following the debt-ceiling debate for the past few weeks, but my attention was elsewhere.  It’s fascinating what information garners headlines while others get brushed aside.

Four mainstreet brands have had initial public offerings within the past two weeks.  I also looked at two other, recent name-brand offers for the purpose of this article.

  • Teavana (TEA) on July 28th
  • Dunkin’ Brands (DNKN) on July 27th
  • Zillow (Z) on July 20th
  • Skull Candy (SKUL) on July 20th
  • Pandora (P) on June 15th

and of course…

  • LinkedIn (LNKD) on May 19th

The first day action on these offerings was perplexing to say the least.  From the pricing range – to the adjusted price- to the open, these stocks seemed to jump by leaps and bounds.  Outside of Skull Candy, every other company came out of the gate 25% higher (or more) than the final IPO price.

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Making Small Businesses More Efficient

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The recent global financial crash and subsequent recession have undoubtedly had an impact on many small businesses. Typically with fewer cash reserves than larger corporations, a lot of small companies felt the pressure of the recession and many of them did not survive it. This means that, during the recovery, it’s more important than ever that small businesses work … Read more

Ignoring the Fine Print Can Cost You (Big Time)

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Thanks to the Credit CARD Act, consumers are supposed to be more protected when using their credit cards.  Part of the legislation included provisions for more disclosure, and therefore notification, of any changes.  Since the bill was approved, you’ve probably seen a lot more letters in the mail from your credit card companies. Keeping up … Read more