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Nintendo is worth almost as much as Sony
Nintendo has surpassed the enormous electronics firm (and unfortunate 3DO M2 owner) Matsushita to take second place in market value for electronics firms. Nintendo's market value (the value of all of its shares) is currently at 6.30 trillion yen ($51 billion), which is not that far off from first-place Sony's 6.64 trillion yen.The really remarkable thing for us is that Sony and Matsushita make all sorts of things, like computers and radios, and their revenues are currently over eight times those of Nintendo. Nintendo just makes video games and their shares are eclipsing Matsushita's.
BenQ faces insider trading probe as CFO gets locked up
If you thought the BenQ Mobile saga ended when Taiwan severed ties with the former Siemens unit and prepared to slice it up and serve it cold, you ain't seen nothin' yet. It's no secret that the struggling handset maker had been losing money ever since the handover, but apparently some company insiders may have used their knowledge of the impending bankruptcy filing to get out while the getting was still good -- selling shares of BenQ prior to the announcement and the inevitable consequences. So far 13 executives have been caught up in the sting -- including CFO and senior VP Eric Yu, who is still being "detained" along with six others in lieu of what is probably well over $100,000 bail -- and although Chairman K.Y. Lee hasn't yet been named as a person of interest, Taiwanese investors were still shaken enough to push BenQ shares down almost 7% to their lowest level in ten years. In a typical response during times of scrutiny, the company itself publicly pledged its cooperation, but with all the top dogs behind bars, we're not sure if anyone will still be around to provide the relevant documents. Either way, you should hold on tight to all that BenQ gear you've been collecting over the years, just in case, you know, they happen to become collectibles.[Thanks, Reg]
Japanese government sells its Nintendo stock
Wait, what? It turns out that the Japanese seat of power actually owned around 1.4% of Nintendo's stock, coming in at a pricey $557 million dollars ... turns out they made quite a profit, seeing as how Nintendo's stock has gone up 43% in the past six months alone.The unfortunate consequence of this action, however, is that Nintendo's stock value dropped by 2.7% to 32,950 yen per share. Before the Sony fanboys doom-sayers come out in full force, however, it should be noted that our sister site Joystiq notes that the government sold the shares as per Nintendo's request; the gaming giant actually wanted to increase the number of individual share-holders.Should you go buy some NTDOY stock? If you're business-savvy, why not? Nintendo's been on a roll financially, and it can't hurt to revel in some of their success.
Estimated 1.8 Million Macs sold during Q4 '06
Forget about iPods, for a moment. MacDailyNews reports that Apple sold a healthy 1.8 million Macs during the "holiday quarter" ending 2006 and of that number, about 1.1 million units were laptops. This apparently beat Apple's "already aggressive targets", with strong sales at the Apple store. Due to these strong sales Goldman Sachs estimates the fiscal 2007 per share earnings at $2.85, slightly higher than the "Street consensus" of $2.76. Let's pause for a moment for a hearty fanboy squee at the news of Apple's further progress towards total world domination. And, oh yes, the iPod sold very nicely too.
Liberty Media exchanges shares of News Corp. for DirecTV
While DirecTV tends to garner a lot of negative attention, all the fuss apparently doesn't bother Liberty Media's CEO John Malone, as the firm has recently signed a deal to swap its 16.3-percent stake in News Corp. for "shares of DirecTV, three regional sports networks and $550 million in cash." Liberty, who already controls several other TV networks such as Starz, is hoping to jump back to the forefront of television by assuming News Corp.'s three seats on DirecTV's board of directors. Interestingly, Malone stated that the new investment would "create financial, operating, and strategic flexibility," which could eventually freshen up the previously stale merger talks between DirecTV and Echostar -- but considering Liberty Media still won't have a controlling stake in the company, we're not holding our collective breath.
Apple shares reach year's best
MarketWatch is reporting that Apple's shares reached a 52-week high of $87.95 today, apparently fueled by furious rumors of - you guessed it - an iPhone. I'm sure the report that Hon Hai received a manufacturing order from Apple for just such a device isn't doing anything to stop people from losing their investing sense either. If the iPhone is really going to happen, the word on the street hasn't changed from "the first half of next year" yet, unless you consider this latest momument to craptastic journalism from AppleInsider about a second iChat-based iPhone already in the works (seriously guys: try drawing the line somewhere - for once).As usual, you'll hear more as soon as we do.[via MacMinute]
TUAW Moneywatch: Apple Shares hit high
Macworld UK reports that Apple shares reached a new 52-week high. Between holiday iPod sales predictions and iPhone rumors, Apple stocks are performing strongly. Some analysts expect Apple to sell up to 15 million iPods during the Christmas sales season. That's (quickly doing math) a lot of iPods to shift out the door. Share prices were up $1.56 yesterday to $85.61. Apple's market capital stands at over $73 billion. Eagle-eye reader Steve points out that both Yahoo and Google say the APPL high is actually 86.40.
More Atari trouble: Infogrames shares suspended
Newly appointed Atari CEO, David Pierce, must have been dangerously close to spilling his herbal tea this morning after reading a BBC news report regarding the suspension of Infogrames shares. If you recall, Infogrames is the French company that purchased the seemingly cursed Atari name back in 2001 -- bad news for them means bad news for Atari. Of course, Mr. Pierce's described reaction to the news is entirely fabricated. It seems ludicrous to suggest that he learned of the share woes through a website, much less that he accessed it through the sole computer which hadn't been repossessed yet. Though we jest, Atari's continuing string of financial pitfalls is no laughing matter (especially not for them). The company and its owner are clearly in strong need of some bankable intellectual property that goes beyond Dragon Ball Z and repackaged classics. Will the next generation of consoles give them a big break and the hit they need? In this industry, anything is possible. [Thanks, Jose.]
Nasdaq warns Apple of non-compliance
Following reports of possible stock option improprieties by Apple executives and continuing internal and external investigations of these concerns, Apple has announced that it will delay the filing of its Q3 quarterly earnings reports until it is satisfied that the issues have been properly accounted for and addressed. Delay of the filing puts Apple out of compliance with Nasdaq regulations, and continued non-compliance without taking proper measures are grounds for Nasdaq to cease listing of Apple shares. Apple has said it's stock will remain listed pending a hearing and decision by the Nasdaq listing qualifications board. Despite these issues, perhaps because Apple itself–and not a third party, uncovered the irregularities, Apple stock has remained fairly stable.
Infinium founder charged with using "impending Phantom launch" to inflate and sell stock
Timothy Roberts, the founder and former CEO of Infinium Labs, the company that promised us the Phantom (which came in at second on Wired's list of vaporware products of '06), has been accused by the Securities and Exchange Commission of artificially inflating stock and selling it on at a $422,500 profit. The SEC alleges that Roberts hired a promoter to send junk faxes to investors citing the Phantom's imminent launch, when in fact the console had postponed the launch due to insufficient funds. According to the SEC, Roberts then sold 1.3 million shares from the company -- without any disclosure -- and secretly paid the promoter he had hired. These two actions, unfortunately for Roberts, are against the law: the SEC has asked a court to force Roberts to surrender the cash, pay a penalty and to prohibit him from ever becoming a CEO again.Meanwhile, the company -- sans Roberts -- has blown through $63 million without producing the Phantom and has lost another CEO yet still claims to be relevant and capable of launching The Phantom along with a useless lap-based keyboard accessory. Someone put the company out of its misery. Pretty please?[Thanks, Neal]
Apple's stock looks down, loses balance
Well, it was bound to happen: Apple's stock, after years of joyously ascending in a fashion worthy of the New Testament, has finally reacquainted itself with the wonders of gravity and the venerable cliché, "What goes up must come down." The share price fell over 5% today, closing at $67.30 -- a two-month low for the company whose stock was kicked out of Willy Wonka's factory for sneaking a sip -- or, as the situation would suggest, a chug -- of the infamous Fizzy Lifting Drink. Sources cite the recent surge of iPod/iTunes-related lawsuits, a fear that Intel Mac adoption would be slower than expected, and the belief that Apple's market value was just a teensy bit inflated as the reasons for the drop. But some analysts -- like our favorite Gene Munster -- say Wall Street's worries are unfounded, and believe Apple will keep its years-long momentum on track.Personally, I just see this as an excellent buying opportunity. Apple will only sell more Macs and more iPods, despite what they say about expectations -- and aiming low but hitting high is always better than aiming high and shooting your foot.[via MacObserver]
