Tag Archives: Capitalist Times

Capitalist Times: Take Your Head Out of the Cloud

The most recent issue of Capitalist Times Premium has my latest article, Take Your Head Out of the Cloud. The piece reviews the evolution of the cloud environment and identifies a corresponding stock investment opportunity due to a market overcorrection.

On the one hand, there’s the public cloud, where a company’s data is stored and computing run by a third-party company at another site. On the other hand, there’s the private cloud, which is the new name for a company buying, running, and using its own data centers with its own staff.

Don’t drink the Kool-Aid: Companies still do this, and they do it a lot. Analysts at JPMorgan & Chase (NYSE: JPM) estimate that only 5 percent of current data center spending is for the public cloud.

In the past, several cloud providers have tried to win the massive private cloud market by shoving their capabilities into other people’s data centers. This hasn’t worked too well, with Azure and Oracle’s Corp’s (NYSE: ORCL) now quietly hushed-away efforts being the most visible ones.

I also wrote an October update article for CTP‘s model portfolio that focused on recent tech M&A activity.

Capitalist Times: Maturing Gracefully

Maturing Gracefully is my latest Capitallist Times contribution, and examines the mobile technology space. It’s both a review of the past, as well as way to think about the next big change in the connected market, machine learning and Internet of Things.

The internet of things involves the connection of a growing number of consumer products and capital equipment to the cloud for automation and data collection. You may be familiar with the connected home, where residents can monitor and control lights, thermostats, smoke detectors, security systems, locks and other features remotely, via their smartphones.

Discussions of this phenomenon often focus on sensors and the data they generate. But how systems learn from the information collected and communicate to the sensors is arguably more important. The internet of things doesn’t exist purely for monitoring functionality; these systems aim to identify subtle but meaningful patterns and respond with smart, automated actions.

Capitalist Times Contribution: Digital Dividends

My latest Capitalist Times contribution was published about a month ago. Digital Dividends looks within the technology sector for non-traditional dividend paying stocks, meaning skip the semis and steady old-time software companies.

Income-seeking investors tend to gravitate toward utility stocks, master limited partnerships and real estate investment trusts—groups that generate reliable cash flow to support generous dividends.

Despite a reputation for volatile revenue and cutthroat competition that requires constant research and development to stay ahead of the curve, the technology sector is home to more than a few dividend-paying companies worthy of your consideration.