Image by: Perpetual Tourist
By Michael Sarter
It’s always a great asset to stay knowledgeable about the stock market. Companies we might not know or see in our every day lives could be gaining momentum in the market under our noses. With all the responsibilities we have in maintaining our accounts, paying close attention to the markets can distract us.
However, the tricky thing about stocks is that they’re changing by the second, literally. When a stock goes up, investors put more money. When a stock stays stable, investors often get timid and pull money away, unless the company gives a reason for them to stay invested. The saying “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” doesn’t work in the market.
Ford & GM
According to TrueCar, Ford’s market is predicted to increase as compared to last year from 15.5% to 17.2%. GM is expected to stay flat at 18.5%. However, staying flat might be the best thing for GM at the moment. Why? Because they are planning to give a whole new makeover to 90% of it’s vehicles by 2016. Investors are hopeful for it’s potential growth so they’re waiting to see what turns out. The anticipation for their remodeled cars alone can be enough reason for you to invest.
Ford is producing more profits than GM simply because of how organized they are with the company. According to expert Daniel Miller of the Motley Fool, GM has a leg up on Ford when it comes to their product. The luxury Cadillac line brings home higher profit margins than standard cars which is why Ford is attempting to turn its Lincoln line to a more luxurious brand to gain more returns, but it still has a lot of work to do before then.
Apple & Intel
According to Canaccord Genuity, headsets are the key to most technological markets. Apple and Samsung took 100% of the industry’s worldwide profits so far in 2013. Apple with 57% profits and Samsung trucking along at 43%. However, Apple took only 8% of the global handset market share.
Intel has taken charge because of it’s leadership. Because of it’s tremendous success, the company has more money to spend on their personal research and business growth, not to mention their manufacturing alone is enough to create a whole Science Fiction franchise. It’s entire market capitalization is $118.4 billion dollars. Compare that to it’s closest competitor Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. with a measly $2.9 billion – talk about a monopoly.
The track record that both of these companies have in investments have been way above average for nearly a decade. Apple has 33% returns while Intel stands at 17.2%.
What Makes These Companies Successful?
Quality is key. In regards to Apple and Intel, these companies benefit greatly from consumer loyalty, brand recognition and most importantly, the worldwide usage of their technology! Quality equipment will always be an advantage.
We all have heard stories from the “Mac-heads” that nothing can compare to Apple’s service – it almost made me switch over. However, this is why they can charge more. The secret to Apple’s success in the market is the “versions” they come out with. When you have the latest iPhone, you immediately want the NEXT upgraded version when it comes out – it’ll only cost you $500. The new versions of their technology is always going to attract die hard fans.
Just like Harry Potter fans will stand in the pouring rain opening weekend, Mac-heads will set up shop outside the Mac store for the latest version of whatever Mac puts out. See how quality will always bring you results? A mistake a lot of companies make is to go less than 100% during their manufacturing because they think by making equipment that will last 2 – 3 years tops, it will create more purchases when they stop working. Wrong!
By having a brilliant product, you will create more loyalty when the next “version”, “upgrade”, or anything like it gets put on the shelves. This was the thought process of Steve Jobs, and it’s the right one.