Tag Archives: technology

Here’s How PayPal Hooked Rising E-Tail Startup Jet.com

PayPal ( PYPL ) subsidiary Braintree managed to nab e-tail startup Jet.com, a rising  Amazon.com ( AMZN ) rival, as a client because of its security features, pricing and service, a Jet.com executive said. Katie Finnegan, head of corporate development, told IBD that payments firm Braintree is “very startup friendly” and that the PayPal company has a “clear development roadmap.” “These were all purely commercial impulses,” Finnegan said, who added that Braintree was willing to implement security features that Jet.com was interested in. “ I think they’ve  been a good partner that has supported us as we’ve grown pretty exponentially since launch,” she said. Privately held Jet.com had a number of payments services options besides Braintree, including developing its own payments technology, which is the route Amazon.com has taken. Square ( SQ ), a digital cash register and payments processor, recently announced that it was adding functionality that would allow nearly any website to use it to process payments. Square’s clients are mostly small and midsize companies. New Jersey-based Jet.com raised $350 million in a Series B funding round that closed in November. The company has more than 3.5 million registered users as of January. The company declined to disclose sales figures. PayPal stock is down more than 2.5%, near 38, in afternoon trading on the stock market today . Shares are below a 40.03 entry and an earlier entry at 38.62.

Google Picture Brightens, Thanks To Larger-Screen Smartphones

Fast growth for YouTube and mobile search — along with expected positive benefits from the wider adoption of large-screen smartphones — netted a price-target boost for Alphabet ( GOOGL ) and its Google subsidiary on Thursday. Morgan Stanley raised its price target on Alphabet stock to 900 from 880. Smartphones with big screens — such as Apple ‘s ( AAPL ) iPhone 6S Plus and Google Android Galaxy Note 5 by Samsung — will have a positive impact on Google’s revenue, wrote Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Nowak in a research report. “Indeed, the growing mix of large-screen smartphones combined with our agency conversations (are) indicating that these screens are monetizing higher,”  Nowak wrote. He says such ads are getting 20% to 35% higher costs per click, which is how much Google is paid each time someone clicks an ad. He says larger-screen smartphones could boost Google’s search revenue by 3%. Ahead of the Alphabet’s Q1 earnings release, “we see Google websites growing the fastest (they have) in over four years, driven by accelerating mobile search and YouTube,” wrote Nowak. Alphabet is slated to post Q1 earnings after the market close on April 21. Alphabet stock was down more than 1% in afternoon trading in the stock market today , near 758. Alphabet stock is forming a cup-with-handle base, with a 777.41 buy point. Morgan Stanley boosted its 2016 and 2017 revenue estimates for Alphabet by 1%, to $88.3 billion and $129 billion, respectively. It raised its 2016 EPS ex items estimate 4% to $35.99, and its 2017 estimate 3% to $43.49. “We are now 2% ahead of Street Q1 2016 revenue and non-GAAP EPS, and 1% ahead of full-year 2016 revenue, and 4% ahead of full-year 2016 non-GAAP EPS,” said Nowak. “We see accelerating top line, expanding core Google, non-GAAP EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) margins, and positive revisions driving Google higher.” The number of minutes spent on YouTube minutes is estimated to grow 42% year over year in Q1, Nowak said, vs. a 23% rise in Q4 2015.

Silicon Motion Jumps As Preliminary Q1 Revenue Exceeds Estimates

Silicon Motion Technology ( SIMO ) stock hit a record high Thursday after the company said first-quarter revenue would come in higher than expected. The Taiwan-based provider of flash-chip storage devices used in consumer products said revenue is expected to be 14% to 15% higher than the previous quarter. It’s prior guidance was in the range of a 2.5% decrease to a 2.5% increase. The consensus estimate, prior to the improved guidance, is for Silicon Motion to report revenue of $99 million, up 1% sequentially and up 23% year over year, which would be the eighth quarter in a row of double-digit gains. The consensus on earnings per share is 56 cents, up 17%, according to analysts polled by Thomson Reuters. Silicon Motion also said its gross profit margin is expected to be in the upper half of its original guidance range of 49% to 51%. Silicon Motion stock was up 4%, near 39.50, in afternoon trading on the stock market today . Shares rose as much as 6.4% earlier, hitting an all-time high of 40.27. Silicon Motion has an IBD Composite Rating of 99, the highest possible, and broke out of a cup-with-handle base at 34.08 last month. That leaves the stock 16% extended. The company is scheduled to release full Q1 earnings after the market close April 27. The majority of Silicon Motion products are integrated in consumer electronic devices. A significant portion of revenue is from customers that use the products in removable and embedded solid state storage solutions for smartphones, tablets, digital cameras, notebooks and desktop PCs. Its customers include Samsung and SK Hynix. Competitors in the mobile storage market include Marvell Technology ( MRVL ). On Tuesday, husband and wife co-founders Sehat Sutardja and Weili Dai resigned under pressure as CEO and president, as the company in March completed a review by its audit committee that found sales staff was under significant pressure from management to meet revenue goals. The company has delayed the filing of its 10-K statement, and Nasdaq has put the company on notice of possible delisting. Marvell stock jumped 13% on Tuesday on that news, but was down a fraction, near 10.80, Thursday afternoon.