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DOW, CVAT: Two Companies Profiting From The 'Fuel Of The Future'

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 20:52:13 GMT

by Louise Harris, Investment U Research You don’t have to look far to find one of today’s big economic and market buzz phrases: Green investing. From green clothing websites, to CNN headlines heralding biofuel, companies are trying their best to capitalize on growing consumer sensitivity to the environment.[More...]

Can Sequenom (SQNM) Make It Back Into Investors's Good Graces?

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 16:20:51 GMT

Still keeping my eye on the Sequenom (SQNM) - but the whole idea with this name was to avoid the small cap "biotech" bipolar experience (either a huge win or a huge loss). Unfortunately, this is what this has now turned to, a coin flip. Probably the most bizarre disclosure I've ever been associated with, and I've seen many off the wall things in my years in the market. Per CBSMarketwatch Shares of beleaguered biotech Sequenom Inc. got a much-needed boost last week in the form of a somewhat favorable report issued by Lazard Capital Markets, but is the stock really that seaworthy?Sequenom jumped nearly 15% on May 27, after Lazard analyst Sean Lavin upgraded the stock, now trading in the $3 range, to hold from sell, saying he[More...]

Earn Good Grades With Blackboard, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBBB)

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 14:36:00 GMT

Over the past decade there has been a noticeable shift within the field of education and a strong push for continued integration of technology in education. The newly-elected administration understands this world-wide shift and understands America is currently behind the curve as far as education is concerned. To combat this, the administration is concentrating its efforts on increasing the quality of America’s education, resources for required for this education, and technology in the classroom.[More...]

At What Point Is It A Bull Market?

Wed, 18 Mar 2009 17:48:00 GMT

At What Point is it a Bull Market? by Investment U Research Team While optimism seems to have returned, albeit reluctantly, to the markets, there is no telling whether it will stick around. The question that many are asking us, is at what point are we going to be in a new bull market? Technically, the answer is simple – based on the March 9 close of the S&P 500 at 676.53, we’ll need to hit 811.81. A “technical”[More...]

“Sharks” Starting to Wake Up

Thu, 12 Mar 2009 15:42:00 GMT

“Sharks” Starting to Wake Up by Investment U Research Team On Tuesday, in the midst of one of the largest rallies this year, one of the biggest items we stumbled across almost went unnoticed. The data miners at Bespoke discovered that the stocks in the S&P 500 that have done the worst since January 6, did the best overall during Tuesday’s climb. Stocks that did the best averaged a 4.39% increase while the worst performers added 18.3%. We’ve been discussing the once-in-a-lifetime discounts on the market[More...]

Take Two Interactive (TTWO) Still Recession Proof?

Mon, 23 Feb 2009 18:02:00 GMT

Take Two Interactive (TTWO) Still Recession Proof? Last week, Rockstar Games, a division of Take Two Interactive Software (Nasdaq: TTWO), released its first add-on to its blockbuster Vice City franchise. The interesting thing about this addition is that it’s can be purchased only through Microsoft’s (Nasdaq: MSFT) Xbox 360 live marketplace. For those of[More...]

Bet On The Chip Leaders… Intel (INTC)

Tue, 10 Feb 2009 15:28:00 GMT

Bet on the Chip Leaders… Intel (INTC) There is a maxim which states companies that spend more on development and advertising during economic downturns, rise become leaders when then markets turn around. And it’s true. Much of the reason behind this is that prices plummet during downturns: business investment – of any kind – can be done incredibly cheap compared to “normal” periods. Being a buyer when everyone else is selling has a simple benefit – you get great deals. Intel Corporation (Nasdaq: INTC) has been one of the most public in its business investments. Today it’s detailing how [More...]

Current Stock Prices: Why Trillions of Dollars on the Sidelines Maybe A Good Thing

Thu, 05 Feb 2009 17:28:00 GMT

Current Stock Prices: Why Trillions of Dollars on the Sidelines Maybe A Good Thing by Alexander Green, Oxford Club Investment Director You can’t blame most market investors for being nervous… The stock market has done a belly flop. Real estate keeps tumbling. The economy remains weak. Jobless claims recently hit a 26-year high. Investors have pulled tens of billions of dollars out of stocks and plunked it in the bank. We are optimistic, nonetheless. Why? Because the bad news is already reflected[More...]

Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Loves the Senate

Tue, 27 Jan 2009 23:02:00 GMT

Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Loves the Senate Yesterday, the Senate voted to push back the cut-off date for digital television until June. Unfortunately, the delay won’t leave some consumers in the dark. Television stations will have the option to delay the conversion, or proceed as planned on Feb. 17 – meaning they can shut down their antenna as soon as they want. Either way, the result will be that same eventually. And it’s a positive one for digital television outlets. In fact, we were discussing the impact of the digital television conversion just last week. [More...]

Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) Braces For 'Nuclear Winter'

Mon, 26 Jan 2009 20:41:00 GMT

Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) Braces for “Nuclear Winter” The numbers of newly laid-off employees this week are staggering: 19,500 at Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT), 2,000 at General Motors (NYSE: GM), 8,000 at Pfizer (NYSE: PFE), 5,000 at Microsoft (Nasdaq: [More...]

Blackboard Connect Keeps Schools, Universities on Track for Back to School in the Face of Hurricane Season

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 12:56:00 GMT

Blackboard Inc. , a global leader in education technology, today announced two new client agreements that extend Blackboard Connect services to the Caribbean for the first time. Inter-American University in Puerto Rico and the American University of Antigua will now be able to send urgent news and important information - within minutes - to students and staff to keep them safe and informed.[More...]

Blackboard Strengthens Data and Application Security for Campus Commerce and Card Platform

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 12:56:00 GMT

Blackboard Inc. , a global leader in education technology, today announced the general availability of Release 3.5 of Blackboard Transact), a milestone effort that strengthens data and application security for campus commerce and card programs and enables institutions to confidently process credit card transactions while meeting new industry standards well ahead of the deadline for compliance.[More...]

Blackboard Inc. Reports Second Quarter Revenue of $92.1 Million

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 20:51:00 GMT

WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Blackboard Inc. today announced financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2009 and updated guidance for the third quarter and the full year of 2009.
Included in the second quarter 2009 GAAP net loss and non-GAAP net income is a $3.5 million one-time charge related to the reversal of a 2008 patent judgment.
Also included in the results for the second quarter of 2009 is a $1.1 million benefit to other income (GAAP and Non-GAAP) from a gain on investment in a common stock warrant held by the Company.

[More...]

Blackboard Inc. Reports Second Quarter Revenue of $92.1 Million ; - Revenue Increases 22 Percent Year-Over-Year -; - Company Raises Revenue, Non-GAAP Earnings and Cash Flow Guidance -

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 15:54:00 GMT

WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Blackboard Inc. (Nasdaq: BBBB) today announced financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2009 and updated guidance for the third quarter and the full year of 2009.
Included in the second quarter 2009 GAAP net loss and non-GAAP net income is a $3.5 million one-time charge related to the reversal of a 2008 patent judgment.
Also included in the results for the second quarter of 2009 is a $1.1 million benefit to other income (GAAP and Non-GAAP) from a gain on investment in a common stock warrant held by the Company.

[More...]

Blackboard Adds Lecture Capture Technology to Blackboard Learn Platform

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 21:11:00 GMT

Blackboard Inc. , a global leader in education technology, today announced the general availability of Echo360 lecture capture as an integrated offering within the Blackboard Learn) platform. With the partnership, instructors at thousands of institutions working with Blackboard can provide a customized, on-demand learning experience that complements the traditional classroom setting and gives students greater control over their education.The personal capture solution from Echo360 gives instructors simple tools to record, edit and publish lectures, tutorials, learning modules and course content directly to the Blackboard Learn platform with a click of the mouse. Students can then access lectures and other course materials online at any time, whether they are in a student union, dorm room, on vacation or on the road. 'Lecture capture has become make or break for our students to access their education,' said Loren Farr, Coordinator of Media and Distance Learning, Tulsa Community College. 'Students would have trouble attaining their degree if not for the flexibility to review or see streaming lecture materials on their own time.'Lecture capture technology enables full motion playback of the entire lecture -- including supporting course visuals and materials -- on a personal computer or mobile device. Students can learn at their own pace by viewing lectures from start to finish, pausing at challenging sections or jumping directly to particular segments within the lecture. 'The classroom experience is no longer limited to the classroom,' said Michael Chasen, President and CEO of Blackboard. 'Our clients have told us that Echo360 lecture capture and the Blackboard Learn platform are highly synergistic. Together, we are creating new learning opportunities by putting the core elements of the educational process online.' Colleges and universities working with Blackboard in the United States and Canada will receive a limited number of licenses for personal lecture capture at no cost. The service offered through the Blackboard partnership with Echo360 works with any Webcam-enabled personal computer and does not require any additional investments in software or hardware infrastructure.'We're witnessing a fundamental change in the delivery of education -- we make it possible to extend learning anytime, anywhere at an affordable cost,' said Fred Singer, Echo360 Chief Executive Officer. 'This partnership allows faculty and students to quickly and easily experience the powerful benefits of Echo360 lecture capture through the platform most familiar to them: Blackboard.' Access to the technology is currently available as a Blackboard Building Block) download from Blackboard's client Web site, Behind the Blackboard. For more information about lecture capture within Blackboard Learn, please visit http://www.blackboard.com/echo360. About Blackboard Inc.Blackboard Inc. is a global leader in enterprise technology and innovative solutions that improve the experience of millions of students and learners around the world every day. Blackboard's solutions allow thousands of higher education, K-12, professional, corporate, and government organizations to extend teaching and learning online, facilitate campus commerce and security, and communicate more effectively with their communities. Founded in 1997, Blackboard is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.About Echo360 Echo360 envisions an opportunity for every student to be freed from traditional barriers to learning with an on-demand education experience. Full-time, part-time, distance, continuing, and online all describe today's student living in a 24/7 world. On-demand media and education converge at the newly-formed Echo360, helping colleges and universities engage students on the students' terms with full and unbounded access to classroom-based content via multiplatform replay. Developed in partnership with the University of Western Australia, Echo360 means scalable and affordable lecture capture solutions that can provide institutions of all sizes with universal availability of lecture content. Any statements in this press release about future expectations, plans and prospects for Blackboard and other statements containing the words 'believes,' 'anticipates,' 'plans,' 'expects,' 'will,' and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including the factors discussed in the 'Risk Factors' section of our Form 10-Q filed on May 7, 2009 with the SEC. In addition, the forward-looking statements included in this press release represent the Company's views as of July 23, 2009. The Company anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause the Company's views to change. However, while the Company may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, the Company specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the Company's views as of any date subsequent to July 23, 2009.[More...]

Blackboard Launches Solution for Enhanced Student Identity Verification

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:58:00 GMT

Blackboard Inc. , a global leader in education technology, today announced the general availability of an integrated solution for enhanced student identity verification, powered by technology from Acxiom) Corporation, a global leader in interactive marketing and risk mitigation services.The Acxiom Identify-X) service allows colleges and universities to deploy an enhanced verification program that integrates seamlessly with the Blackboard Learn) platform and does not interrupt the learning process. Instructors can control when, where and how frequently they verify student identity while maintaining the integrity and privacy of student information. The service does not require institutions to purchase any additional hardware or software. 'While we have researched and evaluated other alternatives, we have found this solution to exceed expectations in our identity verification initiative for our continually growing population of distance learning students,' said Steve Clark, Distance Learning Technology Coordinator for Athens State University. 'This technology more than meets the requirements set by the Higher Education Opportunity Act in authenticating student identities, and its feasibility and ease of use would vastly increase our faculty's confidence in conducting assessments online.'Institutions will receive a limited number of free verifications based on their total student enrollment and Blackboard license. Most institutions choose not to verify every student for every assessment; instead, random verification of test takers ensures that the process does not become predictable, burdensome or cost prohibitive. The process does not require the release of student information, thereby avoiding any potential issues with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act . 'We are excited to include a range of industry-leading technologies - from student identity verification to instant messaging and plagiarism prevention - to offer institutions a more powerful e-learning platform,' said Matthew Small, Blackboard's Chief Business Officer. 'And while the Blackboard platform already offers security protection through end user authentication, this solution allows institutions to further strengthen their identity verification efforts.'After students login to the Blackboard) platform and access a course assessment, Acxiom's technology, which has been used widely to authenticate online banking transactions, will periodically and randomly present real-time challenge questions that only the enrolled student will know how to answer. The likelihood of students being required to verify their identity may be determined by instructors at the course level or system administrators at the institutional level.Access to Identify-X technology is currently available to postsecondary institutions in the United States at no cost as a Blackboard Building Block) or PowerLink download from Blackboard's client Web site, Behind the Blackboard. The technology is also available to ANGEL Learning clients.For more information about student verification with Blackboard Learn, please visit http://www.blackboard.com/acxiom. About Blackboard Inc.Blackboard Inc. is a global leader in enterprise technology and innovative solutions that improve the experience of millions of students and learners around the world every day. Blackboard's solutions allow thousands of higher education, K-12, professional, corporate, and government organizations to extend teaching and learning online, facilitate campus commerce and security, and communicate more effectively with their communities. Founded in 1997, Blackboard is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.About AcxiomA global leader in interactive marketing services, Acxiom connects clients with their customers through deep consumer insight, powering effective and profitable marketing initiatives and business decisions. Our consultative approach spans multiple industries and incorporates decades of experience in consumer data and analytics, information technology, data integration and consulting solutions for effective marketing across digital, Internet, email, mobile and direct mail channels. Founded in 1969, Acxiom is headquartered in Little Rock, Ark., and serves clients around the world from locations in the United States, Europe and Asia-Pacific. For more information about Acxiom, visit www.acxiom.com. Any statements in this press release about future expectations, plans and prospects for Blackboard and other statements containing the words 'believes,' 'anticipates,' 'plans,' 'expects,' 'will,' and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including the factors discussed in the 'Risk Factors' section of our Form 10-Q filed on May 7, 2009 with the SEC. In addition, the forward-looking statements included in this press release represent the Company's views as of July 23, 2009. The Company anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause the Company's views to change. However, while the Company may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, the Company specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the Company's views as of any date subsequent to July 23, 2009.Acxiom and Identify-X are registered trademarks of Acxiom Corporation.[More...]

Blackboard Inc. Schedules Second Quarter of 2009 Conference Call

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 22:17:00 GMT

Blackboard Inc. announced today that it will issue a press release concerning its financial results for the second quarter of 2009 at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 5, 2009. Following the press release, Blackboard management will host a conference call beginning at 4:30 p.m. Eastern to discuss its results. Blackboard Conference Call Details:[More...]

Blackboard and Vanderbilt University Partner on iTunes U Integration for Blackboard Learn

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 20:06:00 GMT

Blackboard Inc. , a global leader in education technology, today announced that it has partnered with Vanderbilt University Library to make their integration for Apple's iTunesU application available to the Blackboard client community, providing a popular tool to other institutions looking to support the use of multimedia content in courses.Vanderbilt has created free, open source access to its recently upgraded iTunes U integration, developed in collaboration with a group of other campuses and consultants from Blackboard and Apple. The integration enables faculty and students to access audio, video and other multimedia content from iTunes U within their existing courses and with their existing logins through the Blackboard Learn) platform. At Vanderbilt, 'public' resources on iTunes U also include campus news, music, sports and special events. All of the content can be downloaded and played on personal computers as well as mobile devices.A similar application for iTunes U was developed by The College at Brockport, State University of New York and is freely available to all ANGEL Learning institutions .'We found that an increasing number of faculty wanted to use multimedia in their classes - everything from capturing lectures to developing and sharing multimedia presentations for students,' said Cindy Franco, Online Access to Knowledge Manager at Vanderbilt. 'We looked at a number of solutions but they all had limitations. Working with iTunes U gave us an efficient way to share content within our existing system and tied to our courses so faculty and students can use it easily.'The announcement was made at BbWorld), the annual meeting of Blackboard's user and developer communities, and coincides with the launch of the Blackboard's Extensions) Web site. At the site, the new iTunes U integration joins hundreds of free, paid and open source applications built by Blackboard developers, institutions and third parties to extend and enhance the Blackboard platform, as well as a wealth of digital content and multimedia resources made available by Blackboard's content partners. Blackboard clients can now access all active extensions through one portal, allowing users to customize and enhance their learning platform and find solutions to unique problems. 'The Vanderbilt and Brockport applications are representative of the wide range of innovations and developments unique to our community that help Blackboard and ANGEL institutions go farther, faster,' said Ray Henderson, President of Blackboard Learn. 'These efforts started because of a specific campus need, but can now support teachers and students worldwide in their efforts to enrich the learning experience with multimedia content.'While interest in multimedia content has grown dramatically, resources to organize and access that content easily and effectively have become more important. The integrations developed by Vanderbilt and Brockport give institutions the ability to more effectively manage and create access to multimedia content developed by instructors and students, as well as more than 175,000 other educational audio and video files on iTunes. Implementing and using the applications require no additional investment of resources or staff. 'We started this integration to meet the need of students and teachers to have access to multimedia content that was being created to expand the traditional course curriculum,' said Brendan Post, Learning Systems Team Leader at Brockport. 'Interest grew beyond our campus, which validated for us the importance of being part of a larger community. We hope this effort will enable collaboration between institutions to broaden our content offerings in the near future.'For more information about Blackboard Extensions, please visit http://www.blackboardextensions.com. About Blackboard Inc. Blackboard Inc. is a global leader in enterprise technology and innovative solutions that improve the experience of millions of students and learners around the world every day. Blackboard's solutions allow thousands of higher education, K-12, professional, corporate, and government organizations to extend teaching and learning online, facilitate campus commerce and security, and communicate more effectively with their communities. Founded in 1997, Blackboard is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.Any statements in this press release about future expectations, plans and prospects for Blackboard and other statements containing the words 'believes,' 'anticipates,' 'plans,' 'expects,' 'will,' and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including the factors discussed in the 'Risk Factors' section of our Form 10-Q filed on May 7, 2009 with the SEC. In addition, the forward-looking statements included in this press release represent the Company's views as of July 15, 2009. The Company anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause the Company's views to change. However, while the Company may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, the Company specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the Company's views as of any date subsequent to July 15, 2009.iTunes is a registered trademark of Apple Inc.[More...]

Blackboard Partners with NBC News to Bring News Archives & Digital Content to Clients

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 12:57:00 GMT

Blackboard Inc. , a global leader in education technology, announced today that it has partnered with NBC Learn, the educational arm of NBC News to offer colleges, universities and K-12 schools and districts the ability to enhance instruction with a vast repository of digital news and supplemental content developed for educational use.Under the agreement, Blackboard and NBC News will work together to support the use of news content by K-12 and postsecondary institutions in the United States. The partnership will enable instructors and students to access audio, video and other news content within their e-learning platform to strengthen the learning experience.With the partnership, NBC News becomes a Principal Partner in the new Blackboard Content Network), which offers expanded opportunities for content providers to work with Blackboard and support its user community.'This partnership is an important opportunity to support institutions with a digital content strategy that gives teachers and learners valuable tools and resources that enhance the learning experience,' said Michael Chasen, President and CEO of Blackboard. 'We're pleased to join with NBC News in this effort to leverage digital content to help students and educators develop a deeper understanding of a wide range of subjects and disciplines.'The NBC News Archives on Demand offering will enable educators to more meaningfully engage students in a wide range of courses with thousands of video resources that span across subject areas including some of the most important moments in history. The NBC News archives begins with the introduction of television broadcast including presidential elections ranging from Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 to Barack Obama in 2008, Neil Armstrong's first steps on the moon, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the difference in environmental conditions during different times in the earth's history.The archives also offers relevant current event resources on history as it is being made every day, through additional primary source content, original audio, video and third-party content such as the Washington Post's newspaper articles, and current material from NBC News' leading media properties including 'NBC Nightly News' and 'Meet the Press.' With these resources, educators can add to their instruction the latest on current events including the first few months of the Obama Administration and the 111 Congress, to the global response to the economic crisis and efforts to address the global warming challenge.'By making the rich resources of NBC News available to educators and students we are bridging the divide between traditional teaching methods and the interactive media culture in which today's students reside,' said Steve Capus, President of NBC News. 'It's often been said that journalists help write the first drafts of history. Now, through our instantly updated NBC News archives, history can come alive in the classroom.'For more information about the Blackboard Content Network, please visit http://www.blackboard.com/contentnetwork. For more information about Blackboard Learn, please visit www.blackboard.com/learn.About Blackboard Inc.Blackboard Inc. is a global leader in enterprise technology and innovative solutions that improve the experience of millions of students and learners around the world every day. Blackboard's solutions allow thousands of higher education, K-12, professional, corporate, and government organizations to extend teaching and learning online, facilitate campus commerce and security, and communicate more effectively with their communities. Founded in 1997, Blackboard is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.About NBC NewsNBC News has been a leading source of global news and information for more than 75 years, first on radio, and today via broadcast and cable television, the Internet, radio and cell phones. Operating around the clock with bureaus in key cities in the United States and overseas, NBC News provides immediate coverage and in-depth reporting of major events to a worldwide audience.Any statements in this press release about future expectations, plans and prospects for Blackboard and other statements containing the words 'believes,' 'anticipates,' 'plans,' 'expects,' 'will,' and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including the factors discussed in the 'Risk Factors' section of our Form 10-Q filed on May 7, 2009 with the SEC. In addition, the forward-looking statements included in this press release represent the Company's views as of July 15, 2009. The Company anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause the Company's views to change. However, while the Company may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, the Company specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the Company's views as of any date subsequent to July 15, 2009.[More...]