12.04.2017

Dollar General - The Rural Customers' Wal-Mart



How Dollar General Became Rural America's Store Of Choice




Not an investor but intrigued -  DG quote / M / WMT / K 

Posted by Jim Peet at 12/04/2017 05:19:00 PM 3 comments

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12.03.2017

The CVS Aetna merger



CVS is buying Aetna for $69 billion

Excerpt:

Pharmacy chain CVS Health (CVS) is acquiring health insurance giant Aetna (AET) in a $69 billion deal that could reshape American health care.

“This combination brings together the expertise of two great companies to remake the consumer health care experience,”CVS CEO Larry Merlo said. “With the analytics of Aetna and CVS Health’s human touch, we will create a health care platform built around individuals.”

“Together with CVS Health, we will better understand our members’ health goals, guide them through the health care system and help them achieve their best health,” Aetna CEO Mark Bertolini said.

Aetna shareholders will receive approximately $207 per share, $145 per share in cash and 0.8378 CVS shares for each share of Aetna.

Comment: We have both in an IRA

Posted by Jim Peet at 12/03/2017 06:58:00 PM 0 comments

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11.22.2017

Bull Market Apogee Predicted - 2,863





Bank of America sees end of bull market coming in 2018

Excerpt:

Here's how it will happen:
  • Bank of America Merrill Lynch predicts "capitulation" for the bull market in 2018, with the S&P 500 peaking at 2,863.
  • Strategist Michael Hartnett said the firm is prepared to "downgrade risk aggressively" once it sees the triggers in place.
  • A shift from passive to active in investor allocations would be one of the signs that the rally is about over.

Comment: Sounds plausible. 2,863 is 10% above today's level. Chart top is from the data below.



   Milestone     Date Achieved 
1,6145/3/13
1,7078/1/13
1,805 11/22/13
1,901 5/23/14
2,000 8/26/14
2,100 2/17/15
2,203 11/22/16
2,308 2/9/17
2,402 5/15/17
2,500 9/15/17
2,594 11/22/17
2,863 8/15/18 (??)

Posted by Jim Peet at 11/22/2017 01:57:00 PM 5 comments

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Unitarianism: "But there’s nothing in there"



Unitarian Humour

Lisa: “What flavours do you have?”

Rev. Lovejoy: “Well, chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, and our new Unitarian flavour ice cream.”

Lisa: “I’ll have that” (Rev hands her an empty bowl)

Lisa: “But there’s nothing in there.”

Rev: “Eeeexactly.”
Comment: Yet some people love it

Posted by Jim Peet at 11/22/2017 11:01:00 AM 0 comments

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Tesla's ca$h burn rate




Tesla’s Burning Through Nearly Half a Million Dollars Every Hour

Excerpt:

Over the past 12 months, the electric-car maker has been burning money at a clip of about $8,000 a minute (or $480,000 an hour), Bloomberg data show. At this pace, the company is on track to exhaust its current cash pile on Monday, Aug. 6. (At 2:17 a.m. New York time, if you really want to be precise.)

To be fair, few Tesla watchers expect the cash burn to continue at quite such a breakneck pace, and the company itself says it’s ramping up output of its all-important Model 3, which will bring money in the door. Investors don’t seem concerned. Tesla shares rose almost 3 percent to $317.81 Tuesday, giving it a market capitalization of $53 billion. Ford Motor Co. is worth $48 billion.
Comment: See Electric Cars the Future? Not so Fast!
If electric cars are ever to displace gasoline engines without government putting its thumb on the scale, they must not only keep innovating but outrun fossil fuels where productivity also keeps advancing.

Electric cars have come a long way. They are no longer ugly, impossibly expensive and impractical, thanks to technological advances that have slashed battery storage from $1,000 per kilowatt-hour in 2010 to $273 per kwh last year, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

Nonetheless, that means a 75 kwh battery (about what you need for 250 miles of range) still adds about $20,000 to a car’s cost. So how do the cars sell? Public largess helps a lot.

The federal government offers a tax credit of up to $7,500 each for the first 200,000 electric or plug-in hybrid cars a manufacturer sells. Throw in state tax credits, subsidies for recharging infrastructure, relief from gasoline taxes, preferential lanes and parking spots and government fleet purchases, and taxpayers help pay for every electric car on the road.

What happens when the credits go away? When Hong Kong slashed a tax break worth roughly $55,000 for a Tesla in April, its sales ground to a halt. In Georgia, electric vehicle sales plummeted 80% the month after a $5,000 tax credit was repealed.


Posted by Jim Peet at 11/22/2017 07:45:00 AM 1 comments

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11.16.2017

You might be a One Percenter



Are You in the Top One Percent of the World?

Excerpt:

Ranking by Income

According to the Global Rich List, a website that brings awareness to worldwide income disparities, an income of $32,400 a year will allow you to make the cut. $32,400 amounts to roughly:
  • 30,250 Euros
  • 2 million Indian rupees, or
  • 223,000 Chinese yuan
So if you’re an accountant, a registered nurse or even an elementary school teacher, congratulations. The average wage for any of these careers falls well within the top 1% worldwide.

Ranking by Wealth

The threshold is significantly higher if you look at the top percentile by wealth instead of income. To reach that status, you’d have to possess $770,000 in net worth, which includes everything from the equity in your home to the value of your investments. That’s equal to roughly:
  • 720,000 Euros
  • 49.8 million Indian rupees or
  • 5.3 million Chinese yuan
Comment: This surprised me

Posted by Jim Peet at 11/16/2017 11:23:00 AM 3 comments

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11.09.2017

39 Radiation Treatments


Beginning a week from today, the 39 radiation treatments will commence: Weekdays only with 3 holidays off. 

I had the targeting CAT scan today. They molded a custom form for my feet and legs and I have three "dot" tattoos at my hip level that the machine can triangulate on for targeting. 

It all starts next week at Methodist Hospital in Saint Louis Park. Each radiation treatment is just about 15 minutes, but I have travel, checkin, dressing down etc., so I think each day may be about 2 hours. 

Kathee will go with me with the exception of two days a week when she babysits our grandkids. Thanks for your prayers for me. 

If all goes well, blood work in late January will show the cancer to be in remission. 

I hope to keep a normal schedule but the doctor tells me I may be extra tired. 

I am going to try to witness to one person everyday. Today I gave a gospel of John to a receptionist. So perhaps pray that God would enable this opportunity as well. 


Date
Day
Time
16-Nov
Thursday
Completed
17-Nov
Friday
Completed
20-Nov
Monday
Completed
21-Nov
Tuesday
Completed
22-Nov
Wednesdayy
Completed
23-Nov
Thursday
Thanksgiving
24-Nov
Friday
Completed
27-Nov
Monday
Completed
28-Nov
Tuesday
Completed
29-Nov
Wednesdayy
Completed
30-Nov
Thursday
Completed
1-Dec
Friday
Machine Down
4-Dec
Monday
Completed
5-Dec
Tuesday
Completed
6-Dec
Wednesdayy
Completed
7-Dec
Thursday
Completed
8-Dec
Friday
Completed
11-Dec
Monday
Completed
12-Dec
Tuesday
Completed
13-Dec
Wednesdayy
Completed
14-Dec
Thursday
Completed
15-Dec
Friday
Completed
18-Dec
Monday
Completed
19-Dec
Tuesday
Completed
20-Dec
Wednesdayy
Completed
21-Dec
Thursday
Completed
22-Dec
Friday
Completed
25-Dec
Monday
Christmas
26-Dec
Tuesday
Completed
27-Dec
Wednesdayy
Completed
28-Dec
Thursday
Completed
29-Dec
Friday
Completed
1-Jan
Monday
New Years
2-Jan
Tuesday
Completed
3-Jan
Wednesdayy
Completed
4-Jan
Thursday
Completed
5-Jan
Friday
Completed
8-Jan
Monday
Completed
9-Jan
Tuesday
Completed
10-Jan
Wednesdayy
Completed
11-Jan
Thursday
Completed
12-Jan
Friday
Completed
15-Jan
Monday
Completed

The delivery device is a Varian TrueBeam












Update:

Posted by Jim Peet at 11/09/2017 12:19:00 PM 56 comments

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10.31.2017

Proof that the Reformation still matters

Comment: Not a fake Tweet: Related: Ten doctrines which render Rome outside of Christ

Posted by Jim Peet at 10/31/2017 06:01:00 PM 2 comments

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10.27.2017

Understanding Fraud Alerts, Credit Freezes, & Credit Locks






What’s the Difference Between a Fraud Alert, Credit Freeze, & Credit Lock?

The addresses:

Equifax
P.O. Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374
www.equifax.com
888-766-0008





Experian
P.O. Box 9554
Allen, TX 75013
www.experian.com
888-397-3742


TransUnion
PO BOX 2000
Chester PA 19016
www.transunion.com
800-680-7289


The sample letter for a Credit Freeze 

Posted by Jim Peet at 10/27/2017 04:44:00 PM 0 comments

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