Companies featured in the current edition of the newsletter: ACTC, CETG, CVM, ENZ, FMTI, GNBT, HJHO, HYTM, ILNS, ICLK, ITUI, LPHC, SWYV, XCR
There was blood on Wall Street last week as the major averages plunged further in a historic collapse. The Dow lost an astonishing 1,874 points for the week, or 18.2%, and is now down 36.3% for 2008. The Nasdaq did not do much better with a loss of nearly 298 points for the week to push its year-to-date loss to 37.8%. The S&P dropped 200 points, resulting in a 2008 loss to date of 38.8%, and the Russell 2000 lost almost 97 points for the week, extending its yearly loss to 31.8%.
It was the worst week for the Dow in its 112-year history and the worst week for the S&P since 1933, while the Nasdaq’s 15.3% loss was its worst since April 2000 when the dot-com bubble burst. The week started off on a bearish note on Monday with stocks plunged across the world on global financial and economic concerns. Tuesday marked another ugly session for the market as a weak outlook from Bank of America and cautious comments from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke at the annual meeting of the National Association for Business Economics overshadowed a Federal Reserve plan to improve liquidity in short-term corporate borrowing. Wednesday marked yet another volatile session as global economic concerns took a further toll on the markets despite a coordinated 50 basis point interest rate cut by the Fed, ECB and other European central banks. The move to cut interest rates came as global equities tumbled due to tight credit markets and economic worries. Britain announced a plan on Wednesday to bailout its banking system, which included a pledge of $87 billion in direct support for eight major banks. This news followed Monday’s announcement that Germany’s government stepped in to prevent the collapse of property lender Hypo Real Estate.
Heavy selling pressure continued on Thursday as it pushed the Dow well below 9,000 even after Dow component IBM pre-announced earnings that beat analyst expectation and Central Banks in South Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan all moved to cut target interest rates, just one day after the Fed and other major central banks slashed interest rates in a coordinated effort. Friday brought another volatile session for the market as twice during the day the Dow fell under 8,000 and twice it bounced back, before settling with a modest loss of 128 points in the final minutes. The blue-chip index moved more than 1,000 points during the session – from a low of nearly 700 points to a gain of more than 300 – before falling back again. It was the first 1,000-point swing for the Dow. Such erratic trading behavior has caused some traders to call Friday’s action a selling climax. Meanwhile, the volatility index, commonly known as the VIX, rose to an all-time high of 76.94 on Friday, before retreating to below 70.
The global credit crisis that has made banks in the United States and elsewhere unwilling to lend to each other remains the largest concern for the market. The crunch has threatened many businesses because they can’t get short-term financing to fund daily operations. The crunch has also resulted in fewer customers getting approved for mortgages, car loans and credit cards. In addition, many investors have lost confidence in markets, government solutions to fix the problems, and corporate management skill. The three-month London interbank offered rate, or Libor, rose to 4.82% Friday. It was the highest level all year and was up from 2.82% just one month ago. Higher Libor rates indicate aversion to lending and to risk generally. The commercial paper market, which many U.S. companies rely on for short-term borrowing, has been under pressure as investors flocked to the safety of Treasuries and away from money market funds. As a result, many companies found it difficult to issue commercial paper, or had to pay a high cost. In an attempt to bring down the cost of commercial paper costs and improve liquidity, the Fed created a Commercial Paper Funding Facility last week, which will provide a liquidity backstop for the strained commercial paper market. The Fed will purchase three-month unsecured and asset-backed commercial paper from eligible issuers. The Fed said it has no limit to how much commercial paper it can buy. The bond market is closed on Monday for Columbus Day.
As this letter is being written, the European Commission is gathering to forge a joint solution across the continent that would provide support for the beleaguered financial sector. One of the ideas under consideration would be governments guaranteeing interbank loans in order to unfreeze credit markets locked up by fear and uncertainty among lending institutions. Such broads guarantees could follow the lead of Britain, which also has moved toward partial bank nationalization, another idea that could be taken up by the summit of 15 heads of countries that use the euro currency. Treasury Secretary Paulson said late Friday that the government would consider buying stakes directly in financial institutions, following Britain’s lead last week.
What should investors look for this week? Earnings season is in full swing, beginning with Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) and Pepsico (NYSE: PEP) announcing results before the opening bell on Tuesday, followed by Intel (NASDAQ: INTC), Genentech Inc. (NYSE: DNA), and CSX Corporation (NYSE: CSX) after the close. Wednesday morning before the opening, Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC), Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO), Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL), Abbott Labs (NYSE: ABT), Charles Schwab (NASDAQ: SCHW), and Blackrock (NYSE: BLK) are due to report, with AMR Corp. (NYSE: AMR) expected to report during the day, and eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY), Kinder Morgan Energy Partners (NYSE: KMP), and Crown Holdings (NYSE: CCK) releasing earnings after the bell. Thursday morning before the opening, Citigroup (NYSE: C), Bank of New York (NYSE: BK), Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK), Baxter (NYSE: BAX), United Tech (NYSE: UTX), Textron (NYSE: TXT), Danaher (NYSE: DHR), Harley-Davidson (NYSE: HOG), Hershey Foods (NYSE: HSY), Nucor (NYSE: NUE), Illinois Tool Works (NYSE: ITW), Reliance Steel (NYSE: RS), PPG Industries (NYSE: PPG), Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV), and Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL) will report earnings, followed by Google (NASDAQ: GOOG), American Movil SA (NYSE: AMX), Stryker (NYSE: SYK), Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE: AMD), Wipro (NYSE: WIT), Mohawk Industries (NYSE: MHL), and Capital One (NYSE: COF) after the closing bell. Before the opening of business on Friday, expect announcements from Honeywell (NYSE: HON), Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB), Genuine Parts (NYSE: GPC), and V.F. Corporation (NYSE: VFC).
The economic calendar kicks off with the Treasury budget for September being released at 2:00 p.m. on Monday afternoon. Investors should remember that the bond market s will be closed on Monday in observation of Columbus Day. On Wednesday morning at 8:30 a.m., expect PPI and Core PPI for September, along with the September Retail Sales and the NY Empire State Index for October. Business Inventories for August will be announced at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, followed by weekly Crude Inventories at 10:35 a.m. and the Fed’s Beige Book at 2:00 p.m. On Thursday, September CPI and Core CPI, along with weekly Initial Jobless Claims will all be released at 8:30 a.m. Also on Thursday, Net Foreign Purchases for August are expected at 9:00 a.m. and Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization for September at 9:15 a.m. Finally, the October Philadelphia Fed report will be released at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday. On Friday, September Housing Starts and Building Permits will be release at 8:30 a.m., followed by the Preliminary Michigan Sentiment Index for October at 10:00 a.m.
The conference schedule will be light this week. Natixis Bleichroeder’s two-day 2nd Annual Hidden Gems Conference takes place in New York beginning on Monday. The two-day Wachovia Consumer Growth Conference will kick-off Tuesday in New York. Lazard Capital Markets will host its two-day Alternative Energy Conference beginning Tuesday in San Diego. Canaccord Adams Healthy Living Conference will take place in Boston on Wednesday. Also on Wednesday, Argyle Executive Leadership in Retail and Consumer Products Forum will take place in New York.
Earnings Preview: Enzo Biochem (NYSE: ENZ) is scheduled to announce fiscal forth quarter and year-end results for the fiscal year ended July 31, 2008 on Tuesday after the market closes and will host a conference call on Wednesday morning. Investors are likely to focus on the growth at the company’s Life Sciences business, as there will be another quarter to assess the impact of the acquisition of Axxora Life Sciences. For the nine months ended April 30, 2008, the company reported revenue of $56.6 million, an increase of 62% helped by the acquisition of Axxora and strength in the company’s Clinical Labs business. The company continues to build its life sciences business organically and through acquisition. With more than $96 million in cash as of the end of April, 2008, the company has the financial flexibility to continue to grow its Life Sciences division, where revenue rose to $7 million in its third fiscal quarter ended April, 2008 compared to just $0.9 million in the year-earlier period. The company is also expected to provide updates on Alequel, its immune regulation approach for the treatment of Crohn’s disease currently in Phase IIb trials, and Optiquel, its proprietary drug candidate for the treatment of uveitis, While the company’s stock has decreased 40% in value just last week, such a sharp decline appears to be more attributable to liquidations by small-cap hedge funds than any specific developments at Enzo. The stock ended the week at $6.01, down $4.09.
CEL-SCI Corporation (AMEX: CVM), a company that engages in the research and development of drugs and vaccines used in the treatment of cancer, took delivery of a new manufacturing facility for its lead drug Multikine. This dedicated facility will produce the Multikine that will be used for CEL-SCI’s pivotal Phase III clinical trial for first-line therapy of previously untreated head and neck cancer patients, and subsequently for sale following approval of the drug. The facility, which cost about $22 million to build, is state of the art and commercial ready. As it stands today, the facility can produce about $600 million worth of drug per year. Within one year it can be built out to product almost $2 billion worth of drug per year. Having its own Multikine dedicated manufacturing facility gives CEL-SCI control and eliminates a great deal of risk from the product development. The company is developing Multikine for approval as a first line indication in head and neck cancer. To that end, CEL-SCI’s upcoming Phase III clinical trial is an 800 patient clinical study designed to demonstrate that administration of its cancer drug Multikine to head and neck cancer patients before they receive any conventional cancer treatment will increase their survival. Head and neck cancer is one of the world’s widest-spread cancers affecting about 650,000 people per year. Furthermore, the company has entered into an agreement with the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center (NIHCC) to investigate the molecular basis of changes to the tumor microenvironment caused by Multikine. Pursuant to the agreement, CEL-SCI will provide tumor samples of Multikine treated and untreated matched control patients to the NIHCC, which will then use the latest molecular genomic microarray technology to look for molecular genomic differences in the tumor microenvironment in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. Should these pre-clinical experiments find significant differences between the Multikine treated and untreated patients, a formal collaboration between CEL-SCI and the NIHCC may be developed in order to expand the study to include patients from the aforementioned global Phase III clinical trial. Shares lost 8 cents last week to close at $0.35.
Healthcare services company Hythiam, Inc. (NASDAQ: HYTM) said last week in a regulatory filing that the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008, which was signed into law by President Bush and mandates parity coverage for addiction and mental health services, could create additional business opportunities. The legislation requires that health insurance plans offering mental health and substance dependence coverage provide such coverage on an economic and treatment limitation basis not more restrictive than coverage provided for other medical services the plans offer. This measure places substance dependence on equal terms with all other health conditions. With improved coverage, health plan members will have more access to services they need. Managed Behavioral Health Organizations and integrated Managed Care Organizations pay for the vast majority of mental health and substance dependence treatment services. According to the company, “both organizations will likely experience an overall rise in costs for members struggling with substance dependence as this law becomes effective. The increased costs will be most acute for members who recur frequently throughout the health plan system and whose substance dependence increases the cost of any co-existing disorders. These members are typically defined as high-utilizers of health plan services and incur substantial annual claims costs. Health plans, however, realize that unchanged and standard approaches to substance dependence will raise costs without improving clinical or economic outcomes. As a result, health plans and employers will have heightened interest in seeking more clinically and cost effective treatment alternatives that help guide members into recovery and reduce repeated utilization of health services.” Hythiam, through its disease management offering Catasys, could benefit. Shares ended the week at $1.10, down 40 cents.
Forbes Medi-Tech Inc. (NASDAQ: FMTI), a life sciences company focused on evidence-based nutritional solutions, continues to expand the number of product lines containing its proprietary cholesterol-lowering ingredient, Reducol, as it announced that a new innovative frozen fudge bar containing Reducol will be showcased at the 2008 National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Convention in San Diego this week. At only 100 calories, the frozen fudge bar will contain a full daily dose of Reducol. The samples of the frozen novelty are being produced by Mister Cookie Face, a privately-owned company based in New Jersey, which specializes in the manufacture of premium ice cream novelties. The National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Convention will introduce the innovative frozen novelty to approximately 1,200 of the industry’s top decision-makers in both branded and private-label products. Shares lost 7 cents last week, closing at $0.39
Medical device company Xcorporeal, Inc. (AMEX: XCR) appointed Kelly J. McCrann as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. McCrann is a senior healthcare executive with extensive experience in board governance, strategic leadership, profit and loss management and strategic transactions. He was recently Senior Vice President of DaVita (NYSE: DVA), a leading provider of kidney care services in the United States, where he was responsible for all home-based renal replacement therapies for the United States’ second largest kidney dialysis provider. Shares ended the week at $0.37, down 10 cents.
Drug delivery company Generex Biotechnology Corporation (NASDAQ: GNBT) filed an annual report for its fiscal year ended July 31, 2008. While revenue for fiscal 2008 was only $128,000, investors should remember that the company’s flagship oral insulin product, Generex Oral-lyn, is currently not available in the major global markets. However, the fact that Oral-lyn is currently in Phase III clinical trials in the United States, Canada and Europe could allow the company to enter new markets if the product is approved. Since the trial’s initiation in March 2008, over 200 patients have been enrolled in 74 clinical sites around the world, including sites in the United States, Canada, Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, Russia and Ukraine. Generex also anticipates that the commercial launch of Oral-lyn in India, which is expected before the end of this year, will provide the company with meaningful revenues in fiscal 2009. Investors should also remember that Generex is actively seeking marketing partners in other parts of the world, as illustrated by the company’s product licensing and distribution agreement signed with Dong Sung Pharm just 2 months ago for the distribution and sale of Generex Oral-lyn in South Korea. The stock ended the week at $0.29, down 7 cents.
Advanced Cell Technology, Inc. (OTC: ACTC), a developer of stem cell-based treatments, received a $500,000 funding commitment from an institutional investor via a definitive agreement to sell one-year 7% convertible debentures over the next 90 days. The company will use the proceeds for working capital, general corporate purposes and to continue the development of its most advanced clinical programs in retinal disease and the manufacturing of red blood cells. The company also continues to look for funding for a Phase II trial for its Myoblast program, an autogolous adult stem cell therapy for the treatment of heart disease, which has successfully completed four Phase I clinical trials and has clearance from the FDA to begin Phase II trials. Shares ended the week at $0.02, down 1 cent.
Capital City Energy Group, Inc. (OTCBB: CETG), a diversified oil and natural gas company with three separate divisions, announced that its working interest in the Powder River Basin (in Niobrara County, Wyoming) produced a record 1,509 barrels of oil in July. Capital City owns Net Revenue Interests ranging from 68-79% in these four wells. These properties reflect the company’s acquisition strategy to acquire interests in low-risk oil and gas producing assets to generate strong cash flow. Capital City Energy Group continues to seek ways to add to its asset base in this prolific area. Just last month, the company announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Avanti Energy Partners, will complete plans for a five-well natural gas drilling program in the Clinton Sandstone in the Appalachian Basin in the fourth quarter of 2008 and commence drilling in the first quarter of 2009. The stock closed at $1.70, down 11 cents.
Halcyon Jets Holdings, Inc. (OTCBB: HJHO), a broker of private jet services, continues to expand the recognition of its brand name and the recent appearance on the season finale of VH1’s hit series I Want to Work for Diddy is sure to add to that effect. For the final episode, the contestants must pack Diddy’s travel bags, which consist of 50 individual pieces of luggage, to prepare for an overseas trip on a Halcyon coordinated private jet. Despite limited advertising, the company has generated very impressive revenue growth as it previously reported record revenue of $13.9 million for its second fiscal quarter ended July 31, 2008, compared to $1.4 million in the year earlier period. Shares gave up 3 cents last week, closing at $0.12.
interCLICK, Inc. (OTCBB: ICLK), the fastest growing advertising network in the US according to comScore, has moved its headquarters to accommodate aggressive business expansion. The company has also hired three new senior executives for its recently-opened offices in San Francisco and Chicago, exemplifying the company’s national breadth and presence. Chris Yorro and Troy Nelson will be sales directors in the San Francisco office, while Laura Driscoll will serve as director of advertising sales in Chicago. Ms. Driscoll was formerly Midwest sales manager at Monster Worldwide, where she was responsible for display advertising sales for Monster properties such as Monster.com, Tickle.com, Bebo.com and Hi5.com. Prior to joining interCLICK, Mr. Yorro and Mr. Nelson were both strategic account managers for IAC Advertising, and also served as key account executives at Yahoo. Shares were unchanged last week, closing at $1.50.
Intellect Neurosciences, Inc. (OTCBB: ILNS), a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of disease-modifying therapeutic agents for the treatment and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease and other disorders, has entered into an Option Agreement with an un-named top-tier global pharmaceutical company regarding the right to purchase a license to certain of ILNS’s patents and patent applications related to antibodies and methods of treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. Under the terms of this Option Agreement, Intellect Neurosciences is entitled to a fee upon the execution of the agreement, as well as potential milestone payments and royalties from future drug sales, from the licensee. Investors should take notice that this new Option Agreement follows ILNS’s recent license agreement with Wyeth and Elan as the company has recently received its first milestone payment under the Wyeth/Elan agreement and may be entitled to additional payments from Wyeth and Elan in the future. This second agreement with a top-tier global pharmaceutical company further validates the company’s innovative patent portfolio relating to the use of antibodies to combat Alzheimer’s disease. The stock ended the week at $0.30, down 4 cents.
Seaway Valley Capital Corporation (OTCBB: SWYV), a diversified holding company, provided an update report to its shareholders in which it reviewed recent business activities as well as certain goals for the near future. Seaway continues to move ahead with converting the three remaining WiseBuys stores to the Hackett’s brand as well as adding new Hackett’s locations. Hackett’s has also initiated and will continue to cultivate direct relationships with manufacturers whereby it can cut out the middle-man wholesalers and purchase its merchandise at greater discounts that both drive profitability and higher sales. Additionally, the company continues acquisition discussions with a regional retailer that achieved calendar 2007 revenues of over $15 million. Should this transaction be completed in the future, it would greatly expand the Hackett’s brand. Sackets Harbor Brewing Company, another Seaway portfolio company, continues to experience remarkable growth and interest in its products. Sackets Harbor has recently received inquiries from major distributors with large geographic footprints, and management anticipates consummating at least one major distribution agreement in the coming months. Such a distribution agreement would greatly expand the potential market for the company’s beers. Other portfolio companies, Alteri Bakery and Seaway Restaurant Group, continue to make progress in streamlining operations and expand their businesses. Alteri recently won contracts to provide baked goods to a number of local schools, while Seaway Restaurant Group continues discussions with various parties for potential development of its most popular proprietary restaurant concepts: Good Fello’s Brick Oven Pizza and Wine Bar and The 1812 Brewpub. Seaway has also co-founded an agricultural venture, North Country Farms, to locally produce flour in the northern New York region. North Country Farms shall initiate its activities by milling wheat from local crops in an effort to create value in a market defined by volatile crop, food and transportation costs. At full capacity, the flour mill would be constructed to annually mill approximately 85,000 bushels of wheat with output of approximately four million pounds of white and whole wheat flour. On the corporate front, over the next several months, Seaway’s senior management team will be seeking to align itself with a financial party with a long-term investment horizon. If the company is successful in raising significant long term capital, it will be able to recapitalize its capital structure by at least partially eliminating current debt which has contributed to shareholder dilution and inhibited creation of long-term shareholder value. While creative financing was necessary in the past, management believes that Seaway has now reached a critical mass with assets of over $32 million and expected 2008 revenues well in excess of $20 million, whereby it should be able to establish a more stable, longer-term base to grow shareholder value. Shares closed unchanged at less than $0.01.
On the Wires: i2Telecom International, Inc. (OTCBB: ITUI) announced that Tim McGeehan has been appointed to its Board of Directors, increasing the number of board members to seven. Mr. McGeehan spent the past 19 years at Best Buy, where he reached the title of Executive Vice President of Retail Sales in charge of mobile phone sales at 850 retail locations. Additionally, i2Telecom also appointed Tom Murphy to its Advisory Board. Mr. Murphy previously spent 22 years with Sprint where he held the position of Vice President, Consumer Sales and Sales Operations, responsible for all consumer sales operations. Seaway Valley Capital Corporation (OTCBB: SWYV) has retained Brian Hill to advise the company on the operations of its restaurant, lodging, and brewing holdings. Mr. Hill, who previously served as Chairman of the Board of the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, will primarily work with Seaway Restaurant Group and Sackets Harbor Brewing Company. Mr. Hill has owned and operated both independent and franchised system restaurants for over 22 years, with experience across various concepts including fine dining, quick serve, and family eateries.
SPECIAL SITUATION:
LocatePLUS Holdings Corporation (OTC: LPHC) $0.025
In our complex world, the fundamental importance of information is widely acknowledged. Government agencies, law enforcement and legal professionals, as well as corporate users are increasingly faced with the real need to learn about the individuals they deal with internally and externally everyday. And while there are a number of public information databases available at the federal, state, and local levels, these data sources are rarely integrated in a consistent and easy-to-use manner. As a result, searching segregated public records can be a time consuming and frustrating task. Using a public records information provider such as LocatePLUS can save the user considerable time and money in opportunity costs.
LocatePLUS offers a variety of solutions aimed at providing both public and private sectors with public information via its proprietary data integration solutions. The majority of the company’s current revenue as well as future potential growth originate from its online database, known simply as LocatePLUS, that is accessible through the Internet. This product contains searchable and cross-referenced public information on individuals throughout the United States, including individuals’ names, addresses, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, prior residences, and, in certain circumstances, real estate holdings, recorded bankruptcies, liens, judgments, driver’s license information and motor vehicle records. Clearly such information is of great value to law enforcement professionals searching for subjects, fugitives, or witnesses. Furthermore, this product can greatly aid legal and private investigator professionals in their searches for witnesses, personal assets and criminal histories. Other target markets include various government agencies, collections and repossession agencies, and bail bondsman.
LocatePLUS is also planning for the future when personal searches may become more complicated than simply searching by an individual’s name or Social Security Number. In 2004, the company formed a new subsidiary Metrigenics to develop new ways to integrate biometrics with data. Metrigenics has finished first stage testing on matching DNA to facial characteristics and expects to have first stage products within twelve months. In addition to Metrigenics, the company has several other subsidiaries engaged in information and data technology. For instance, LPHC’s Certifion subsidiary provides self-screening for users of online resume and online dating services and has filed for patent protection for both of these services. It is once again easy to see how this is a valuable service as individuals become more concerned about identity theft. Similarly, the company’s Dataphant subsidiary has information on virtually every land-based phone number in the United States and approximately 30% of the cell phone numbers in the United States. Additionally, since 1996, the company has been selling a CD-ROM-based product, under the Worldwide Information brand, which enables users to search certain motor vehicle records and driver’s license information in multiple states.
LocatePLUS offers a significant advantage, compared to its competitors, in its ability to tie-in the data obtained from multiple data sources associated with a single individual to produce a single report. The LocatePLUS system uses a proprietary methodology to associate data in a manner that generally results in a matching of data entries across diverse data sources, allowing users to obtain a single, comprehensive data report about an individual, even when there is no single element that ties data entries together, such as a Social Security number. This comprehensive data report is itself linked to other data potentially relevant to a business or government agency researching an individual, such as names and addresses of possible acquaintances, relatives and neighbors of that individual. Another advantage that LocatePLUS has is its un-listed and cell phone data which no other competitor has.
A quick glance at LocatePLUS’s recent financial results reveals that the company is committed to reducing its costs whilst still growing its revenue. While LocatePLUS increased its total revenue by only a modest 1.4% during the first six month of 2008 (to slightly above $4.2 million), its costs and expenses were decreased by a very meaningful 15.9%. Such cost cutting measures resulted in the company posting an operating profit of approximately $48,000 for the first half of 2008. A further look into the financials reveals that the only thing standing in the way of LocatePLUS reaching overall profitability is the interest expense of $368,000 incurred during the six-month ended June 30th, 2008. Should the company succeed in recapitalizing its debt with equity, and it becomes easy to see why the management team is very excited about the future for LocatePLUS as the company is at a point in time when it can leverage its operating efficiencies and show significant growth, earnings, and appreciation in shareholder value while providing a much needed service in our information-driven age.