Case 2: Investing Information

Mandy Hackley, MLS

May 14, 2009Maryland Library Association

Ocean City, MD

Bob CratchitMy patron, Bob Cratchit, is looking for a

new job. He wants to thoroughly research his next employer. Where can he start his research?

What resources can he trust as being valid?

The Annual Report!Bob decides to start by looking at his future

company’s annual report. The annual report can usually be found on the company web site.

The company web site is also a great way to see how the company markets itself.

The annual report includes:◦ Stock reports◦ Ratios◦ The company’s vision

Starbucks!

Highlights from the Annual ReportSTARBUCKS MISSION STATEMENT AND

GUIDING PRINCIPLES To establish Starbucks as the premier purveyor of

the finest coffee in the world while maintaining our uncompromising principles as we grow.

Provide a great work environment and treat each other with respect and dignity. Bob loves this as his last employer wasn’t always kind!

Develop enthusiastically satisfied customers all of the time.

Contribute positively to our communities and our environment.

Recognize that profitability is essential to our future success.

What Has Bob Learned from the Annual Report? Starbucks is a publicly owned company Because it is publicly owned it is sold on a stock

exchange and all of its financial information is public knowledge.

Starbucks is sold on the Nasdaq exchange SBUX is Starbucks’ ticker symbol. Starbucks values their employees.

Now we will turn to a third party for information about Starbucks.

Big Charts.comWhat is Big Charts.com?

◦ BigCharts is the world's most comprehensive and easy-to-use investment research Web site, providing access to professional-level research tools such as interactive charts, quotes, industry analysis and intraday stock screeners, as well as market news and commentary.

Taken from Bigcharts.com on May 10, 2009

It gets better….Big Charts.com is maintained by MarketWatch,

Inc., which is a service of Dow Jones and Company .

Dow Jones publishes the Wall Street Journal which many business people love!

So we know Big Charts is a reliable source but what can it do? It can draw charts that compare

companies to the top 500 public companies according to Standard and Poor’s

Big Charts can also give you up to 5 years of data regarding your company’s stock price.

Here we see that Starbucks isn’t doing so bad…..

Big Charts also provides industry information.

Any guesses as to the best and worst

industries according to Big Charts?

??????????????

Best Industry: Forestry and Paper

Worst Industry:Mortgage Finance

retrieved 5/13/09

Let’s talk briefly about a book.Standard and Poor’s Industry

Surveys give detailed information about particular industries.

For the restaurant industry it covers:◦ Current Environment◦ Industry Trends◦ Industry Operations◦ Ratios and Statistics◦ Industry Terms◦ Comparative Company Analysis

S&P Industry Surveys are updated frequently in the book format. There is also an online version.

S&P Industry Surveys

If your public library does not have the survey books it might be worth it to see if a library close to you does. Perhaps, your patron won’t mind taking a short trip?

Especially, if he is like my patron , Bob, and making a career switch from book keeper to barista!

Value Line..

is called “The Most Trusted Name in Investment

Research” because that is just what it is!

Value Line is very popular for investment clubs.Perhaps you have seen these

people in your library?

You don’t have to know everything about VL but you might want to know this:Ranking: VL ranks all stocks on a

scale of 1-5. 1 is highest and 5 is lowest!

Analysis: This part of VL is a narrative about your stock. Here a commentator will analyze the future of your stock. This is a highly valued aspect of VL

What does the VL narrative look like? Well, isn’t exactly a Danielle Steel novel but there it is on the bottom of the

page. Click here to see this page on the web.

More to know about Value Line..Historical Data: Here you can see

how your stock sold in the past.Ratios: The most popular ratio is the

Price/Earning ratio.◦What is a P/E ratio?

The most common measure of how expensive a stock is. The P/E ratio is equal to a stock's market capitalization divided by its after-tax earnings over a 12-month period. From Investorwords.com

Hmmmm?I, myself just like to know where I can find the P/E not how I would figure out

the P/E!

Value Line University

Value Line has wonderful help pages on their site.

So be a wise owl and visit VL university!

What happened to Bob?

In the end Bob decided that Scrooge would have to see the

ghosts of Christmas past without his help and he went off to work

at Starbucks!!