High-end wealth management firm Aspiriant got a facelift this week with the launch of a new website that stands apart from the density and verbosity more typical of the advisory website genre.
Most striking, perhaps, is not what is present on the site but rather what is missing.
“We weren’t trying to provide too much information," Aspiriant’s director of business development Cammie Doder told ThinkAdvisor in a phone interview from her San Francisco office. "We love overdelivering to clients, and we had to pull back.”
Doder, who oversaw the site’s rollout — a process that started more than a year ago with what she calls a “brand audit” — says that restraint meant dispensing with the overly analytical approach that is a staple of financial advisor websites.
“What really gives our clients comfort is tying the analytics with the emotional side of wealth management,” she says.
The seven-city elite firm, whose average client has $8 million under management, sought to communicate that with a generous sprinkling of illustrations — such as the tender embrace of a woman and her dog that is meant to convey a client experience whose thoughtfulness and meticulousness stems from an overarching quality of caring.
Top 5 Up And Coming Companies For 2014: Crown Media Holdings Inc.(CRWN)
Crown Media Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiary, Crown Media United States, LLC, owns, operates, and distributes pay television networks for adults and families primarily in the United States. The company operates and distributes Hallmark Channel network to approximately 87 million subscribers through approximately 5,369 cable, satellite, and other pay television distribution systems; and Hallmark Movie Channel network to approximately 45 million subscribers through approximately 2,680 cable, satellite, and other pay television distribution systems. Its networks offers a range of entertainment programming, including television series, movies, miniseries, theatricals, romances, literary classics, and contemporary stories. The company was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Studio City, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Equities Lab]
The stocks that currently pass the stock screen in order of market cap are Frontier Communications Corp , Crown Media Holdings (CRWN), Vonage Holding (VG), MCG Capital Corp (MCGC), 1-800-FLOWERS.COM (FLWS), MTR Gaming Corporation (MNTG), Alaska Communications (ALSK), and Enzon Pharmaceuticals (ENZN).
Top 5 Up And Coming Companies For 2014: Ascena Retail Group Inc.(ASNA)
Ascena Retail Group, Inc. operates as a specialty retailer of apparel for women and tween girls in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Canada. The company operates its stores under the dressbarn, maurices, and Justice brand names. Its dressbarn and maurices stores offer casual and career fashion apparel and accessories; and Justice stores provide apparel, accessories, footwear, and intimates, as well as lifestyle products, such as bedroom furnishings and electronics primarily for tween girls. As of March 01, 2012, Ascena Retail Group operated approximately 2,500 stores. The company was formerly known as Dress Barn, Inc. and changed its name to Ascena Retail Group, Inc. in January 2011. Ascena Retail Group, Inc. was founded in 1962 and is based in Suffern, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Pratik Thacker]
Investing in specialty retail companies hasn't been rewarding for investors as of late. Industry players are finding it difficult to increase sales. As investors are losing interest in specialty retailers, industry players such as Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF ) , Aeropostale (NYSE: ARO ) and Ascena Retail Group (NASDAQ: ASNA ) have been witnessing stock price declines since the beginning of the year.
5 Best Growth Stocks To Buy For 2014: ReachLocal Inc.(RLOC)
ReachLocal, Inc. provides a suite of online marketing and reporting solutions to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) primarily in the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, India, the Netherlands, Germany, and Japan. The company?s products include ReachSearch, a search engine marketing product; ReachDisplay, a display advertising and remarketing product; ReachCast, a solution that builds and optimizes Web presence for the purpose of driving online search discovery, powering reputation management, and managing social media marketing; and remarketing and retargeting products. It also provides a suite of digital marketing solutions comprising TotalTrack, TotalLiveChat, TotalVideoNow, and TotalBannerNow to address specific marketing needs, such as lead optimization, online analytics, and digital creative solutions. The company serves clients in various industry verticals, such as home repair and improvement, automobile sales and repair, medical and health services, legal services, and retail and personal services. It delivers its solutions through a combination of its proprietary ReachLocal Platform and direct sales force of Internet marketing consultants, as well as through select third-party agencies and resellers. ReachLocal, Inc. was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Woodland Hills, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Jeremy Bowman]
What: Shares of ReachLocal (NASDAQ: RLOC ) were moving the wrong way today, falling as much as 19% after providing disappointing guidance in its quarterly report.
Top 5 Up And Coming Companies For 2014: Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc (ARCO)
Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc., incorporated on December 9, 2010, is a McDonald�� franchisee. As of December 31, 2010, the Company operated or franchised 1,755 McDonald��-branded restaurants, which represented 6.7% of McDonald�� total franchised restaurants globally. It operates McDonald��-branded restaurants under two different operating formats, Company-operated restaurants and franchised restaurants. As of December 31, 2010, of its 1,755 McDonald��-branded restaurants in the territories, 1,292 (or 74%) were Company-operated restaurants and 463 (or 26%) were franchised restaurants. It generates revenues from two sources: sales by Company-operated restaurants and revenues from franchised restaurants, which consist of rental income, which is based on the greater of a flat fee or a percentage of sales reported by franchised restaurants. As of December 31, 2010, it owned the land for 510 of its restaurants (totaling approximately 1.2 million square meters) and the buildings for all but 12 of its restaurants. It divides its operations into four geographical divisions: Brazil; the Caribbean division, consisting of Aruba, Curacao, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands of St. Croix and St. Thomas; North Latin America division (NOLAD), consisting of Costa Rica, Mexico and Panama, and South Latin America division (SLAD), consisting of Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. As of December 31, 2010, 35.1% of its restaurants were located in Brazil, 29.7% in SLAD, 27.1% in NOLAD and 8.1% in the Caribbean division. The Company conducts its business through its indirect, wholly owned subsidiary Arcos Dorados B.V.
Company-Operated and Franchised Restaurants
The Company operates its McDonald��-branded restaurants under two basic structures: Company-operated restaurants operated by the Company and franchised restaurants operated by franchisees. Under both operating alternatives the real estate location may ! either be owned or leased by the Company. It owns, fully manages and operates the Company-operated restaurants and retains any operating profits generated by such restaurants, after paying operating expenses and the franchise and other fees owed to McDonald�� under the Master Franchise Agreements (MFAs). In Company-operated restaurants, it assumes the capital expenditures for the building and equipment of the restaurant and, if it owns the real estate location, for the land as well. Under its franchise arrangements, franchisees provide a portion of the capital required by initially investing in the equipment, signs, seating and decor of their restaurants, and by reinvesting in the business over time. It is required by the MFAs to own the real estate or to secure long-term leases for franchised restaurant sites. It subsequently leases or subleases the property to franchisees.
In exchange for the lease and services, franchisees pay a monthly rent to the Company, based on the greater of a fixed rent or a certain percentage of gross sales. In addition to this monthly rent, it collects the monthly continuing franchise fee, which generally is 5% of the United States dollar equivalent of the restaurant�� gross sales, and pays these fees to McDonald�� pursuant to the MFAs. However, if a franchisee fails to pay its monthly continuing franchise fee, it remains liable for payment in full of these fees to McDonald��. As of December 31, 2010, it was engaged in several joint ventures, which collectively owned 24 restaurants, in Argentina, Chile and Colombia.
Restaurant Categories
The Company classifies its restaurants into one of four categories: freestanding, food court, in-store and mall stores. Freestanding restaurants are the type of restaurant, which have ample indoor seating and include a drive-through area. Food court restaurants are located in malls and consist of a front counter and kitchen and do not have their own seating area. In-store restaurants are part ! of a larg! er building and resemble freestanding restaurants, except for the lack of a drive-through area. Mall stores are located in malls like food court restaurants, but have their own seating areas. As of December 31, 2010, 808 (or 46.2%) of its restaurants were freestanding, 359 (or 20.5%) were food court, 265 (or 15.1%) were in-stores and 319 (or 18.2%) were mall stores. In addition, it has four non-traditional stores, such as food carts.
Reimaging
As of December 31, 2010, the Company had completed the reimaging of 308 of 1,569 restaurants. Many of the reimaging projects include the addition of McCafe locations to the restaurant. It has developed system-wide guidelines for the interior and exterior design of reimaged restaurants.
McCafe Locations and Dessert Centers
McCafe locations are stylish, separate areas within restaurants where customers can purchase a range of customizable beverages, including lattes, cappuccinos, mochas, hot and iced premium coffees and hot chocolate. As of December 31, 2010, there were 267 McCafe locations in the Territories, of which 12% were operated by franchisees. Argentina, with 71 locations, has McCafe locations, followed by Brazil, with 67 locations. In addition to McCafe locations, it has Dessert Centers. Dessert Centers operate from existing restaurants, but depend on them for supplies and operational support. As of December 31, 2010, there were 1,306 Dessert Centers in the Territories.
Product Offerings
The Company�� menus feature three tiers of products: affordable entry-level options, such as its Big Pleasures, Small Prices or Combo del Dia (Daily Extra Value Meal) offerings, core menu options, such as the Big Mac, Happy Meal and Quarter Pounder, and premium options, such as Big Tasty or Angus premium hamburgers and chicken sandwiches and low-calorie or low-sodium products, which are marketed through common platforms rather than as individual items. These platforms can be based on the ty! pe of pro! ducts, such as beef, chicken, salads or desserts, or on the type of customer targeted, such as the children�� menu.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Rich Duprey]
Latin American McDonald's franchisee�Arcos Dorados (NYSE: ARCO ) announced today its second-quarter dividend of $0.0596�per share on its Class A and Class B stock, slightly lower than the steady rate of $0.0597 per share it's paid since 2011.
- [By Geoffrey Seiler]
Analyst John Ivankoe took Arcos Dorados (ARCO) from neutral to overweight and increased his target from $13 to $14. It is the first time the analyst has had a positive view on the stock since it IPO'd.
Top 5 Up And Coming Companies For 2014: China Life Insurance Company Limited(LFC)
China Life Insurance Company Limited provides life, annuities, accident, and health insurance products in China. Its individual life insurance and annuity products consist of whole life and term life insurance, endowment insurance, and annuities. The company also engages in the writing of life insurance business. In addition, it offers group life insurance products, including group annuity products, and group whole life and term life insurance products to enterprises and institutions, as well as universal life products. Further, the company provides short-term insurance products comprising short-term accident insurance and short-term health insurance products; accident insurance products, such as individual accident insurance and group accident insurance; and health insurance products, including defined health benefit plans, medical expense reimbursement plans, and disease specific plans. It distributes its products through its direct sales representatives and exclusive ag ents, as well as through intermediaries comprising insurance agencies and insurance brokerage companies, non-dedicated agencies, bancassurance arrangements, travel agencies, and hotels and airline sales counters. The company was founded in 1949 and is based in Beijing, China. China Life Insurance Company Limited is a subsidiary of China Life Insurance (Group) Company.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By MARKETWATCH]
LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Chinese stocks advanced early Monday, with strong gains for insurers helping support the market. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index (HK:HSI) improved by 0.5% to 22,816.23, with the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index up 0.9%, while the Shanghai Composite (CN:SHCOMP) added 0.3%. China Life Insurance Co. (HK:2628) (LFC) added 2.5% in Hong Kong and 1.6% in Shanghai after swinging to a quarterly profit, while strong earnings for rival Ping An Insurance Group Co. (HK:2318) (PNGAY) (CN:601318) sent its shares up 2.2% in Hong Kong and 1.7% in Shanghai. Among other Hong Kong-listed financials, China Construction Bank Corp. (HK:939) (CICHF) (CN:601939) rose 1.1% despite posting earnings that trailed average expectations, while China Merchants Bank Co. (HK:3968) (CIHHF) (CN:600036) climbed 1.3% ahead of its own quarterly report due later in the day. Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science & Technology Co. (HK:1157) (ZLIOF) shot 7.8% higher after a Chinese journalist admitted to taking bribes to write reports damaging to the company. News reports had accused the major contruction-machinery firm of acc
- [By John Udovich]
China is set to ease the one child policy, something that could benefit Chinese stocks in general but be especially beneficial to insurance stocks like China Life Insurance Company Ltd (NYSE: LFC) and CNinsure Inc (NASDAQ: CISG) plus health care stocks like Mindray Medical International Ltd�(NYSE: MR) and Concord Medical Services Hldg Ltd (NYSE: CCM). First, let�� be clear that China is NOT abolishing the one child policy as the changes will merely�allow married couples to have two children if one spouse is an only child plus it will be up to China�� 34 province-level administrations to revise�their laws and put the new policy into effect. Moreover, China�� family-planning bureaucracy employs more than 500,000 full-time workers and six million part-time workers all the way down to the village level to�collect billions of dollars in fines and these bureaucrats have fought for years against policy changes���meaning they could throw up roadblocks if not placated. With that said, the insurance and health care sectors are two sectors with publicly Chinese stocks that look set to�take advantage of the coming changes.
- [By Rich Smith]
China Life Insurance Company (NYSE: LFC ) has a new chief financial officer, announcing yesterday that on March 27, its board of directors picked Yang Zheng to serve as its new CFO. His appointment became effective April 26.
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