Saturday, August 29, 2015

9/25/15 Ten business lessons learned from the recent Burning Man festival

  http://www.dowjonesmonitor.com/
by Dan Kolber
Post No. 3,320

The following article appears in the September 25 - October 1, 2015 issue of Atlanta Business Chronicle page 35A.  It is also available at www.BizJournals.com but the entire article is only available for subscribers. All rights reserved.

SEPTEMBER 25 - OCTOBER 1, 2015      ATLANTA BUSINESS CHRONICLE            35A

LEGAL STRATEGIES                                      Dan Kolber is an Atlanta attorney and owner of
                                                                          Intellivest Securities Research Inc.
                                                            DAN@KOLBER.COM

FIRED UP
Ten business lessons learned from the recent Burning Man festival

I went to Burning Man this month, joining a sold-out crowd of 70,000 people who paid $390 to spend the week before Labor Day in the Black Rock Desert near Reno, Nev., where temperatures ranged from 38 to 105 degrees.  Burning Man is an art festival of sorts but it is also the world's biggest week-long party.

My bus from Reno was stuck in a 60-mile traffic jam but was able to bypass the main entrance gate on opening day.  No. 3 of the event's Ten Principles is "radical self-reliance" so only tea, coffee, lemonade and ice are sold at Burning Man, but no water.  I schlepped in 10 gallons of water, my tiny tent, a bike and food.

On the second ay I biked out a mile to the main entrance gate to see why it took so long to enter.  Here's why:  Everyone was ordered to leave their vehicle while it was searched for trespassers. I thought this police action and lack of trust inconsistent with Principle No. 7 -"Civic Responsibility" and said so to one of the supervisors at the gate.

"Why are you asking so many questions?" she asked me.

"I'm thinking of writing a column for my local business newspaper," I said proudly.

"Then you must leave this area immediately and report to the Media Mecca at Center Camp so they can register you," she said.

More blah, blah from her at which point I sort of lost it and siad the "F" word as in: "Sounds a bit fascist to me."

Fearing ejection, I retreated to the main camp, where I found a sympathetic ear from two of the minds behind the Black Rock Beacon, the "Black Rock City's saltiest independent newspaper."  Mitchell A. Martin, who in the "default world" is an editor for Bloomberg News, and Ron "Rockstar" Garmon, former arts editor for L.A. CitriBeat.

Here atre 10 business lessons I learned from Burning Man:

1.  A good product needs no marketing or advertising.  Burning Man has sold out the past five years and does neither.

2.  The U.S. government can be a good business partner.  Burning Man operates pursuant to a lease and permit from the U.S. Bureau of Land Manageement.  According to The Beacon, 3 percent of the gross ticket sales goes to the BLM.

3.  The use of a not-for-profit structure can be a good public relations ploy but means very little in terms of giving up control or economic benefits.  Although claiming to be nonprofit, individuals still own the real value of Burning Man - its intellectual property.

4.  Ticket prices can be secretly manipulated via the Internet.  While condemning scalping, an event organizer could sell tickets at inflated prices via consolidators.

5.  Increasingly, the value of a company will be in the brand and not a particular product.  Buring Man will need to adapt in order to survivie.

6.  Increasingly, consuermers are expecting goods and services to have a societal benefit.  Part of Burning Man's success is its aiblity to build a community through its Ten Principles.

7.  Increasingly, hierarchical structrures are being flattened.  Despite my confronation with an authority figure at Burning Man, others in power there openly shared my  belief that there shold be transparency at the event.

8.  Burning Man is a great place to plug into the language and ideas of some of the best minds of global movers and shakers.

9.  Buring Man is a great place to network for clients and jobs.

10.  If you really want to get off the grid and recharge your creative juices, attend Burning Man soon.  The founder, Larry Harvey, according to The Beacon, intends to find a new venue.


Friday, August 28, 2015

8/28/15 Fri. pm Dow Closes at 16643.01 down 11.76 or 0.07%

  http://www.dowjonesmonitor.com/
by Dan Kolber

Post No. 3,318 The following is brought to you by Intellivest Securities Research, Inc. Toward the end of this Blog is a list of the Dow 30 current CEOs, and a  recent ranking of the Dow 30 components by market capitalization  and a summary of recent Dow 30 components'  SEC filings.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed Friday at  16643.01 down 11.76 or 0.07% from Thursday's close of 16654.77. For the week the Dow was up 183.26 or 1.11$ from last week's close of 16459.75.  Of the 30   Dow components   13  gained  and  17  declined.  The  biggest gainer dollar-wise and percentage-wise was Chevron up $2.79 or 3.59%.  The  biggest decliner dollar-wise was Goldman Sachs down $1.46  and percentage-wise was Pfizer down 1.8%. 

As of the open of  the market on Friday the current divisor for the Dow Jones Industrial Average found at page C6 of Friday's  Wall St. Journal is 0.14967727343149.  Friday's trailing P/E   ratio is 15.94 up  from yesterday's   trailing P/E ratio of  15.59 (last year it was 16.23).  Today's P/E estimate is 15.57 unchanged from Thursday's P/E estimate of 15.57 (year ago it was 15.05) and  today's dividend yield is  2.56 down  from yesterday's dividend yield of  2.62 (last year it was 2.21). The Dow's all-time high was 18312.39 on May 19,  2015. The 12 year low close for the Dow was on March 9, 2009 when it fell to 6,547.05.

Friday's closing Dow Jones Industrial Average numerator is 2491.08 down 1.76 from Thursday's closing average numerator of 2492.84.   This is the sum of all 30 closing prices. A short cut to the Dow numerator is to multiply the closing Dow by the Divisor. Now, if you divide the Dow numerator change for today by the divisor (0.14967727343149) you get the change in today's Dow. A dollar increase or decrease in a Dow stock results in a $5.08  change in the Dow Index.

The average closing price (the closing numerator divided by 30) of  Friday's Dow Jones Industrial Average was $83.04 down 5 cents  from  Thursday's closing average of $83.09.  The median closing price of  Friday's Dow Jones Industrial Average was $76.32 (CAT/AXP) up5 cents  from  Thursday's median closing price of $76.27 (CVX/CAT).  The lowest volume was Travelers and the highest volume was Apple.

If  Friday   morning before the market opened you had purchased 100 shares of each of the Dow Jones Industrial Average 30 shares (assuming you could buy fractional shares and assuming no transaction costs or dividends) and sold at the close you would have lost  $176  ($249,284 - $249,108).

8/28/15 Fri. 4:445 pm MarketWatch by  Anora Mahmudova & Barbara Kollmeyer says U.S. stocks wrapped up one of the most tumultuous weeks of trading in recent memory with modest weekly gains after closing little changed on Friday. The main indexes spent most of Friday’s session diving in and out of negative territory, as investors seemed undecided on how to interpret comments from Federal Reserve officials, which followed the pattern of trading for the week. Fed Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer indicated suggested that the central bank might move toward raising interest rates this year, but didn’t specify the month. Fisher and other Fed officials are meeting at Jackson Hole.“The prospect of a rate hike in September is a mixed blessing. On the one hand, it would signal the economy is growing adequately, on the other hand it will add to the strength of the dollar and have an impact on overseas revenues,” said Albert Brenner, director of asset allocation strategy at People’s United Wealth Management.Hand-wringing around when the Fed will hike rates has been one of the driving forces of stock-market uncertainty, along with China’s troubled economy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -0.07%  which suffered a 1,000 point loss in a matter of minutes on Monday, traded in a 120-point range on Friday, and closed down 11.76 points, or less than 0.1% at 16,643.01. The blue-chip index gained 1.1% over the week. The S&P 500 SPX, +0.06%  closed about a point higher at 1,988.87. Most of the gains came from a rally in the energy sector, thanks to a big jump in oil prices. The benchmark index recorded a 0.9% weekly gain. The Nasdaq Composite COMP, +0.32%  ended the day up 15.62 points, or 0.3% at 4,828.32 and rose 2.6% over the week.Earlier in the session, market reaction to consumer spending and inflation, both of which ticked up less than expected, was largely muted. Inflation, which has remained below the Federal Reserve’s target, is likely to influence policy makers’s decision over the rate increases this year.

Friday's Closing Dow Numbers:

Symbol Last Sale Change % Change Share Volume Market
AXP▼ NYSE
AAPL▲ NASDAQ-GS
BA▲ NYSE
CAT▲ NYSE
CVX▲ NYSE
CSCO▼ NASDAQ-GS
KO▲ NYSE
DIS▲ NYSE
DD▼ NYSE
XOM▲ NYSE
GE▲ NYSE
GS▼ NYSE
HD▼ NYSE
INTC▲ NASDAQ-GS
IBM▼ NYSE
JPM▼ NYSE
JNJ▼ NYSE
MCD▼ NYSE
MRK▲ NYSE
MSFT▲ NASDAQ-GS
NKE▼ NYSE
PFE▼ NYSE
PG▼ NYSE
MMM▲ NYSE
TRV▼ NYSE
UTX▼ NYSE
UNH▼ NYSE
VZ▼ DualListed
V▲ NYSE
WMT▼ NYSE
************
The following are excerpts from Friday morning's Blog:

A  read of the print editions of  Friday's  Wall Street Journal,   Financial Times, Investor's Business Daily, New York Times, USA Today,  Atlanta Journal & Constitution  & Daily Report (Ga. - carries Bloomberg) yielded the following stories about Dow Jones Industrial Average 30 component companies and the Dow with stories about the Dow aggregated first and then items about Dow Jones Industrial Average 30 companies presented alphabetically, followed by a separate table of Dow component's symbol and Thursday's  closing   stock prices and related data in alphabetical order.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average: The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed Thursday at  16654.77 up 369.26 or 2.27% from Wednesday's close of 16285.51. For the year the Dow is down 6.55%.  Of the 30   Dow components    all 30 gained  and   none declined.  The  biggest gainer dollar-wise was  Goldman Sachs up $4.81 and percentage-wise was Chevron up 6.23%. 

IBD pB3 "Stocks rally in last hour: big gains, lower volume" by Paul Whitfield says Thursday's action was up in declining vol while the current outlook is market in correction.

AJC pA9 "US stocks rise sharply; Chinese market surges" by Alex Velga, AP says US stocks rallied for the 2nd straight day and the Dow recouped almost 1,000 points in the last 2 days.

Thursday's closing Dow Jones Industrial Average numerator is 2492.84 up  55.27 from Wednesday's closing average numerator of 2437.57.   This is the sum of all 30 closing prices. A short cut to the Dow numerator is to multiply the closing Dow by the Divisor. Now, if you divide the Dow numerator change for today by the divisor (0.14967727343149) you get the change in today's Dow. A dollar increase or decrease in a Dow stock results in a $5.08  change in the Dow Index.

The average closing price (the closing numerator divided by 30) of  Thursday's Dow Jones Industrial Average was $83.09 up $1.84  from  Wednesday's closing average of $81.25.  The median closing price of  Thursday's Dow Jones Industrial Average was $76.27 (CAT/AXP) up $2.82  from  Wednesday's median closing price of $73.45 (CVX/CAT).  The lowest volume was Travelers and the highest volume was Apple.

If  Thursday   morning before the market opened you had purchased 100 shares of each of the Dow Jones Industrial Average 30 shares (assuming you could buy fractional shares and assuming no transaction costs or dividends) and sold at the close you would have gained  $5,527  ($249,284 - $243,757).

8/27/15 Thurs. 5:05 pm MarketWatch by  Anora Mahmudova & Wallace Witkowski says U.S. stocks rallied to close near their intraday highs for a second straight session Thursday, as China showed signs that measures to stabilize its economy and stock market may be taking hold. In afternoon trade, stocks made a dramatic turn lower but stormed back in the final hour of trading, repeating a pattern of roller-coaster activity that has come to be a trademark of the past several sessions. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +2.27%  rose 369.26 points, or 2.3%, to close at 16,654.77, with all 30 members of the blue-chip index trading higher. Earlier, the Dow was up by as many as 381 points. The S&P 500 SPX, +2.43%  finished up 47.15 points, or 2.4% to 1,987.66, after posting a 49-point gain. All 10 of the index’s main sectors traded higher. The Nasdaq Composite COMP, +2.45%  climbed 115.17 points, or 2.5% at 4,812.71, after being up by as many as 121 points.As a result, for the week, the Dow is up 1.2%, the S&P is 0.9% higher, and the Nasdaq is up 2.3%. The implied volatility on the S&P 500—the so-called “fear index”—as measured by the CBOE Volatility Index VIX, -13.92% fell 14% to 26.10.A larger-than-expected upward revision to U.S. gross domestic product data, showing that U.S. economy grew at a faster 3.7% in the second quarter, helped lift the spirits of investors that have been unsettled by a spate of volatility. Weekly data on jobless claims, which pointed to continued strength in the labor market, added to the optimism.“Today’s revision means the U.S. economy is growing faster and [the] consumer spending portion points to a stronger growth in the second half of the year. With this kind of growth, we expect $135 earnings per share by the end of 2016,” said Phil Orlando, chief equity strategist and senior portfolio manager at Federated Investors. That translates to a 35% rise in the S&P 500 from its current level by the end of 2016, according to Orlando.Global equity markets rallied following a 5.3% surge in the Shanghai Composite SHCOMP, +5.34%  overnight, snapping a losing streak that wiped out nearly a quarter of its value in a week. That jump cheered investors world-wide, as fears about China have been blamed for much of the recent intense selling around the globe.

Friday's Dow News followed by Thursday's Closing Dow Numbers:

American Express:

Apple:  WSJ pB6 "Data show solid debut for Apple's new watch" by Daisuke Wakabayashi says Apple sold more watches in their  first quarter of availability than it did iPad or iPhones - 3.6 mil.

AJC pA10 "Apple announces new product event sept. 9" says Apple has introduced a new iPhone model every year around this time and it is being vague about what it will say on 9/9 in San Fran.

Boeing: IBD pA1 "Boieng tanker woes raise bomber doubt" by Gillian Rich says it is a tossup as to who will win the contract to replace the Air Force's Boeing B-52s for the $80 bil contract between Boeing or Northrop Grumman.

Caterpillar:

Chevron:

Cisco:

Coke:

Disney:

DuPont:

Exxon:  WSJ pB6 "Oil explorers look to pare costs" by Selina Williams says Exxon cut its capital and exploration expenditure by 16% in 2Q this year vs. prior year.

GE:

Goldman Sachs:

Home Depot:

Intel:

IBM:

JPMorgan:

Johnson & Johnson:

McDonald's: WSJ pA1 "Ruling clears way for unions" by Melanie Trottman, IBD pA1 "Labor board widens employer liability for subcontractors" by Jed Graham say  in Browning-Ferris Industries of California Inc. and Leadpoint Business Services the NLRB revised its joint employer standard for determining when one company shares responsibility for employees hired by another.  Now McDonald's cold be held responsible for violations at franchised restaurants.

WSJ pB4 "McDonald's, Tyson drop a supplier" by Jacob Bunge says they cut ties with a Tennessee poultry farm that allegedly mistreated chickens.

Merck:

Microsoft:

Nike:

Pfizer:

Procter & Gamble:

3M:

Travelers:

United Technologies:

UnitedHealth:

Verizon:

Visa:

Walmart: AJC pA10 "Walmart gets early start on layaway plan" says it is starting 2 weeks earlier than last year.

AJC pA10  "Walmart ends assault rifle sales" by NYT News service, as previously reported.

Thursday's Closing Dow Numbers:

Symbol Last Sale Change % Change Share Volume Market
AXP▲ NYSE
AAPL▲ NASDAQ-GS
BA▲ NYSE
CAT▲ NYSE
CVX▲ NYSE
CSCO▲ NASDAQ-GS
KO▲ NYSE
DIS▲ NYSE
DD▲ NYSE
XOM▲ NYSE
GE▲ NYSE
GS▲ NYSE
HD▲ NYSE
INTC▲ NASDAQ-GS
IBM▲ NYSE
JPM▲ NYSE
JNJ▲ NYSE
MCD▲ NYSE
MRK▲ NYSE
MSFT▲ NASDAQ-GS
NKE▲ NYSE
PFE▲ NYSE
PG▲ NYSE
MMM▲ NYSE
TRV▲ NYSE
UTX▲ NYSE
UNH▲ NYSE
VZ▲ DualListed
V▲ NYSE
WMT▲ NYSE
********************
Here are the current CEOs of the Dow 30 Companies:

Apple: Tim Cook (Cupertino, CA)

American Express AXP Kenneth I. Chenault (NY, NY)

Boeing BA Dennis A. Muilenburg (Chicago, Ill)

Caterpillar CAT Douglas Oberhelman (Peoria, Ill.)

Chevron CVX John Watson (San Ramon, CA)

Cisco CSCO Charles H.  "Chuck"  Robbins

Coca Cola KO Muhtar Kent (Atlanta, GA)

Disney DIS Robert Iger (Burbank, CA)

DuPont DD Ellen Kullman (Wilmington, DE)

ExxonMobil XOM Rex W. Tillerson (Irving, Tx)

GE Jeffrey R. Immelt (Fairfield, CT)

Goldman Sachs GS Lloyd Blankfein (NY, NY)

Home Depot HD Craig Menear (Atlanta, GA)

Intel INTC Brian M. Krzanich (Santa Clara, CA)

IBM Virginia M. Rometty (Armonk, NY)

JPMorgan Chase JPM Jamie Dimon (NY, NY)

Johnson & Johnson JNJ Alex Gorsky (New Brunswick, NJ)

McDonald's MCD Steve Easterbrook (Oak Brook, Ill)

Merck MRK Kenneth Frazier (Kenilworth, N.J.)

Microsoft MSFT Satya Nadella (Redmond, WA)

Nike NKE Mark Parker (Beaverton, OR)

Pfizer PFE Ian Read (NY, NY)

Procter & Gamble PG A. G. Lafley (Cincinnati, OH) (//David S. Taylor replaces 11/1)

3M MMM Inge Thulin (St. Paul, MN)

Travelers TRV Jay S. Fishman (NY, NY) (Alan D. Schnitzer replaces Fishman 12/1).

UnitedHealth UNC Stephen Hemsley (Minnetonka, MN)

United Technologies UTX Greg Hayes (Hartford, CT)

Verizon VZ Lowell McAdam (NY, NY)

Visa V Charles W. Scharf (San Francisco, CA)

Wal-Mart WMT Doug McMillon (Bentonville, ARK)
***************************
Here are the Dow Jones Industrial Average 30 as of 8/4/15  ranked in order of market capitalization in billions:

1. Apple AAPL $653.76
2. Microsoft MSFT 381.6
3. Exxon Mobil XOM 322.66
4. Johnson & Johnson JNJ 276.75
5. GE 260.97
6. JPMorgan Chase JPM 254.03
7. Wal-Mart WMT 232.68
8. Pfizer PFE 222.35
9. Disney DIS 206.48
10.  Procter & Gamble PG 205.94   
11.  Verizon VZ 189.76
12. Visa V 183.12
13. Coke KO 182.41
14. Merck MRK 165.84
15. Chevron CVX 160.24
16. IBM 155.55
17.  Home Depot HD 152.67    
18. Cisco CSCO 142.56
19.  Intel INTC 138.19
20. UnitedHealth UNH 115.05
21.Nike NKE 99.02
22. Boeing BA 97.53  
23. McDonald' s MCD 95.03               
24. 3M MMM 93.96 
25. Goldman Sachs GS 92.6
26. United Technologies UTX 88.2
27. American Express AXP 75.87
28. DuPont DD 49.46
29. Caterpillar CAT 46.24
30. Travelers TRV 33.18
****************************************
Here are the latest 8K, 10Q & 10K & Proxy & certain other SEC filings as of 8/4/15  for the prior 90 day period:

Symbol & Co. Name/Date of Filing/Form Filed/ Comments

American Express AXP:
7/29/15 10Q & 7/22/15 8K re: 2Q ended 6/30/15
7/15/15 8K re: delinq & write off stats for 3 mos. ended 6/30/15
6/15/15 8K re: delinq. & write off stats. for 3 mos. ended 5/31/15
5/29/15 8K re: death of Pres. Edward P. Gilligan
5/15/15 8K re: delinq. & write-off stats for 3 mos. thru 4/30/15
5/11/15 8K re: Voting results of annual mtg of shareholders

Apple AAPL:
8/3/15 Form 8-A re: Registration of Notes & 7/31/15 Issuance of the notes
7/27/15 & 7/24/15 Prospectus re: 3.05% Notes due '29 & 3.65 Notes due '42
7/22/15 10Q & 7/21 & 6/10 8Ks re: 3 Qtr. results ended 6/27/15
5/13/15 8K re: issuance of notes

Boeing BA:
7/22/15 10Q & 7/22/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30/15
7/17/15 8K re: charge to earnings due to KC-46 Tanker program
6/23/15 8K re: replacement of CEO W. James McNerney, Jr. with Dennis A. Muilenberg eff. 7/1/15 & amendment to bylaws to increase directors from 10 to 11

Caterpillar CAT:
7/31/15 10Q & 7/23/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30/15
7/222/15 8K re: OEM sales figures for June
6/18/15 re: OEM sales figures for May
6/12/15 8K re: voting results of annual stockholder meeting of 6/10.
6/10/15 8K re: quarterly cash div. of 77 cents per share payable 8/20 for record holders on 7/20
6/1/15; 5/28/15; & 5/22/15 Proxy material
5/20/15 8K re: April retail stats

Chevron CVX:
7/31/15 8K re: 2Q results
6/2/15 8K re: voting results of annual stockholder meeting on 5/27
5/11/15 & 4/9/15 Proxy material
5/7/15 10Q & 5/1/15 8K re: 1Q results ended 3/31/15

Cisco CSCO:
7/29/15 8K/A election of Charles H. Robbins to replace John T. Chambers as CEO eff. 7/26/15
6/18/15 8K & 6/12/15 8K & 6/10/15 8K re: issuance and closing of notes offering
6/1/15 8K re: termination of execs Robert w. Lloyd, Pres. Dev. & sales & Gary B. Moore, Pres/COO
5/20/15 10Q & 5/13/15 8K re: 3Q results ended 4/25/15
5/4/15 8K re: election of Charles H. Robbins CEO eff 7/26/15

Coke KO:
7/29/15 10Q & 7/22/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 7/3/15

Disney DIS:
8/4/15 10Q & 8/4/15 8K re: 3Q results ended 6/27
6/26/15 8K/A resignation of CFO James A. Rasulo eff. 6/30
6/2/15 8K re: resignation of CFO James A. Rasulo
5/15/15 10Q & 5/5/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 3/28/15

DuPont DD:
7/28/15 10Q & 7/28/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
7/8/15 8K re: completion of spin off of Chemours
6/9/15 8K/A & 6/2/15 8K/A re: voting results of 5/13/15 Annual Meeting of Stockholders
6/1/15 8K re: change of reg. agent in Delaware
5/19/15 8K & 5/13/15 8K & 5/12/15 8K & 4/23/15 8K re: sale of notes by subsidiary, Chemours & spin-off of Chemours to shareholders.
April & March, 2015 numerous Proxy materials re: Trian's proposal to add Directors

ExxonMobil XOM:
7/31/15 8K re: 2Q results
6/1/15 8K re: results of voting of 5/27/15 Annual Shareholders Meeting
5/14/15; 4/21/15; & 4/14/15 Proxy materials
5/6/15 10Q & 4/30/15 8K re: 1Q results ended 3/31/15

GE:
7/30/15 10Q & 7/17/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
7/6/15 8K re: sale of assets of GECC over next 24 months to concentrate on industrial businesses
6/10/15 8K re: modified metrics for long term performance goals
5/28/15 8K & 5/27/15 8K re: issuance of notes
5/15/15 10Q & 4/17/15 8K re: 1Q ended 3/31/15

Goldman Sachs GS:
8/3/15 10Q & 7/16/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
5/22/15 8K re: issuance of notes
5/22/15 8K re: amendmt to stock incentive plan
5/12/15 re: issuance of notes
5/5/15 10Q & 4/16/15 8K re: 1Q ended 3/31/15

Home Depot HD:
6/2/15 8K re: issuance of notes
5/27/15 10Q & 5/19/15 8K re: 1Q ended 5/3/15
5/26/15 8K re: voting results from 5/21 Shareholders Mtg

Intel INTC:
7/29/15 8K re: issuance of notes
7/27/15 10Q & 7/15/15 8K re: 2Q ended 6/27
7/2/15 8K re: retirement of Renee J. James as Pres. effective 1/16
6/5/15 & 4/6/15 8Ks re: change of organizational structure & change of reporting fin'l info
6/1/15 8K re: purchase of Altera Corp
5/27/15 8K re: voting results of 5/21 Stockholder Mtg
5/14/15 8K re: FD disclosures re: Annual Mtg

IBM:
8/4/15 8K re: issuance of notes
7/28/15 10Q & 7/21 & 7/20 8Ks re: 2Q results ended 6/30
5/1/15 8K re: voting results of 4/28 Stockholder Mtg

JPMorgan Chase JPM:
8/3/15 10Q & 7/14/15 2 8Ks re: 2Q results ended 6/30
7/29/15 8K re: issuance of pref stock
7/21/15 8K re: issuance of notes
6/16/15 8K re: redemption of notes
6/4/15 8K re: issuance of preferred stock
5/22/15 8K re: results of voting of 5/19 shareholder mtg
5/20/15 & 5/14/15 8Ks re: settlement with U.S. Dept of Justice  & Fed. Res. re: foreign exchange charges and guilty plea to violation of fed antitrust law & payment of $550 mil fine
5/6/15 & 4/3/15 8Ks re: redemption of Bear Stearns notes
5/5/15 10Q & 4/14/15 8Ks re: 1Q ended 3/31

Johnson & Johnson JNJ:
7/31/15 10Q & 7/14/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/28
6/9/15 8K re: election of Dr. Mary Beckerle, CEO of Hunstsman Cancer Inst. to Board
5/21/15 8K re: retirement of Controller Stephen J. Cosgrove and replaced by Ronald a. Kapusta

McDonald's MCD:
7/23/15 8K re: 2Q & 6 month results ended 6/30
7/21/15 8K re: exec comp awards
7/17/15 8K re: cash dividend of 85 cents payable 9/16 to record holders on 9/1
6/8/15 8K re: May sales
5/27/15 8K re: voting results from 5/21/15 Shareholder meeting
5/26/15 8K re: issuance of notes
5/11/15 8K re: April sales
5/11/15 Proxy
5/7/15 10Q & 4/22/15 8K re: 1Q ended 3/31/15
5/4/15 8K re: restructuring and turn around plans

Merck MRK:
7/28/15 8K e: election to Board of Pamela J. Craig & Paul B. Rothman, MD
7/28/15 2Q results
7/24/15 8K re: retirement of General Counsel Bruce Kuhlik
5/28/15 & 5/26/15 8Ks re: voting results of 5/26/15 shareholder mtg
5/7/15 10Q & 4/28/15 8K re: 1Q ended 3/31/15

Microsoft MSFT:
7/31/15 10K for FY ended 6/30/15
7/21/15 8K re: 4Q results
7/8/15 8K re: restructuring of phone hardware business and termination of 7,80 employees

Nike NKE:
7/27/15 & 7/20/15 Prelim. Proxy re: Annual Meeting of Shareholders on 9/17/15 at 10 am at Tiger Woods Conf. center, Beaverton, Oregon
7/6/15 8K re: election of Chris Abston as Corp. controller
6/30/15 8K re: election of Travis A. Knight, son of Philip H. Knight, as Director
6/29/15 8K re: 4Q Conference Call
6/25/15 8K re: 4Q ended 5/31
6/18/15 8K re: retirement from Board of Douglas G. Houser & Orin C. Smith

Pfizer PFE:
7/28/15 8K 2Q results
6/25/15 8K re: election to Board of Joseph J. Echevarria
5/14/15 8K re: resignation of director Marc Tessier-Lavigne
5/7/15 10Q & 4/28/15 8K re: 1Q ended 3/29

Procter & Gamble PG:
7/30/15 8K re: 4Q results
7/30/15 8K re: FY '15 results
7/29/15 8K re: replacement of CEO A.G. Lafley by David Taylor effective 11/1/15
7/14/15 8K re: quarterly div of .6629 cents payable 8/17 to record holders on 7/4
7/9/15 8K re: sale of 43 beauty brands to Coty
6/12/15 amendment to Code of Regulations
5/7/15 8K re: issuance of notes

3M MMM:
8/4/15 8K & 6/24/15 8K re: completion of acquisition of Capital Safety from KKR for $2.5 bil
7/30/15 10Q & 7/23/15 8K re: 2Q ended 6/30
5/18/15 8K re: issuance of notes
5/13/15 8K re: results of voting from 5/12 stockholder meeting

Travelers TRV:
7/21/15 10Q & 7/21/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
5/22/15 8K re: voting results of 5/20/15 shareholders meeting

United Technologies UTX:
7/27/15 8K re: retirement of Geraud Damis as CEO of UTC Building & Industrial Services eff. 1/16
7/24/15 10Q & 7/21/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
7/20/15 8K & 6/15/15 8K re: sale of Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. to Lockheed Martin
5/22/15 8K re: issuance of notes
5/4/15 8K re: remarketing of notes

UnitedHealth Group UNH:
7/31/15 8K re: presentation at InvestMNt Conf on 8/5
7/29/15 10Q & 7/16/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
7/23/15 8K re: purchase of Catamaran Corp.
7/23/15 8K re: issuance of notes
7/1/15 8K re: reincorporation from Minn. to Delaware
6/5/15 8K re: amendment to stock incentive plan
5/26/15 FD disclosure re: NYC 5/28 Bernstein's Conference
5/6/15 10Q & 4/16/15 8K re: 1Q ended 3/31/15

Verizon Communications Inc. VZ:
7/28/15 10Q & 7/21/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
6/8/15 8K re: amendment of bylaws re: annual mtg of stockholders
5/13/15 8K re: retirement of Randal s. Milch, VP
5/12/15 8K re: Verizon to buy AOL for $4.4 bil

Visa V:
7/23/15 10Q & 7/23/15 8K re: 3Q results ended 6/30
7/22/15 8K re: dividend of 12 cents payable 9/1 to record holders on 8/14
6/12/15 8K re: election to Board of Lloyd A. Carney
6/10/15 8K re: presentation at William Blair 35th Annual growth Stock Conference
4/30/15 10Q & 4/30/15 8K re: 2Q ended 3/31
4/23/15 8K re: 12 cents a share dividend payable 6/2 to record holders of 5/15
4/14/15 8K re: resignation of Antonio Lucio, EVP and Chief Brand Officer

WalMart WMT:
6/8/15 8K re: voting results of 6/5 shareholder meeting
6/5/15 10Q & 5/19 8K re: 1Q ended 4/30/15

That's All for Now

8/28/15 Fri. am NLRB Ruling Clears Way for Unions at McDonald's & Others

  http://www.dowjonesmonitor.com/
by Dan Kolber

Post No. 3,317 The following is brought to you by Intellivest Securities Research, Inc. Toward the end of this Blog is a list of the Dow 30 current CEOs, and a  recent ranking of the Dow 30 components by market capitalization  and a summary of recent Dow 30 components'  SEC filings.

A  read of the print editions of  Friday's  Wall Street Journal,   Financial Times, Investor's Business Daily, New York Times, USA Today,  Atlanta Journal & Constitution  & Daily Report (Ga. - carries Bloomberg) yielded the following stories about Dow Jones Industrial Average 30 component companies and the Dow with stories about the Dow aggregated first and then items about Dow Jones Industrial Average 30 companies presented alphabetically, followed by a separate table of Dow component's symbol and Thursday's  closing   stock prices and related data in alphabetical order.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average: The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed Thursday at  16654.77 up 369.26 or 2.27% from Wednesday's close of 16285.51. For the year the Dow is down 6.55%.  Of the 30   Dow components    all 30 gained  and   none declined.  The  biggest gainer dollar-wise was  Goldman Sachs up $4.81 and percentage-wise was Chevron up 6.23%. 

IBD pB3 "Stocks rally in last hour: big gains, lower volume" by Paul Whitfield says Thursday's action was up in declining vol while the current outlook is market in correction.

AJC pA9 "US stocks rise sharply; Chinese market surges" by Alex Velga, AP says US stocks rallied for the 2nd straight day and the Dow recouped almost 1,000 points in the last 2 days.

As of the open of  the market on Friday the current divisor for the Dow Jones Industrial Average found at page C6 of Friday's  Wall St. Journal is 0.14967727343149.  Friday's trailing P/E   ratio is 15.94 up  from yesterday's   trailing P/E ratio of  15.59 (last year it was 16.23).  Today's P/E estimate is 15.57 unchanged from Thursday's P/E estimate of 15.57 (year ago it was 15.05) and  today's dividend yield is  2.56 down  from yesterday's dividend yield of  2.62 (last year it was 2.21). The Dow's all-time high was 18312.39 on May 19,  2015. The 12 year low close for the Dow was on March 9, 2009 when it fell to 6,547.05.

Thursday's closing Dow Jones Industrial Average numerator is 2492.84 up  55.27 from Wednesday's closing average numerator of 2437.57.   This is the sum of all 30 closing prices. A short cut to the Dow numerator is to multiply the closing Dow by the Divisor. Now, if you divide the Dow numerator change for today by the divisor (0.14967727343149) you get the change in today's Dow. A dollar increase or decrease in a Dow stock results in a $5.08  change in the Dow Index.

The average closing price (the closing numerator divided by 30) of  Thursday's Dow Jones Industrial Average was $83.09 up $1.84  from  Wednesday's closing average of $81.25.  The median closing price of  Thursday's Dow Jones Industrial Average was $76.27 (CAT/AXP) up $2.82  from  Wednesday's median closing price of $73.45 (CVX/CAT).  The lowest volume was Travelers and the highest volume was Apple.

If  Thursday   morning before the market opened you had purchased 100 shares of each of the Dow Jones Industrial Average 30 shares (assuming you could buy fractional shares and assuming no transaction costs or dividends) and sold at the close you would have gained  $5,527  ($249,284 - $243,757).

8/27/15 Thurs. 5:05 pm MarketWatch by  Anora Mahmudova & Wallace Witkowski says U.S. stocks rallied to close near their intraday highs for a second straight session Thursday, as China showed signs that measures to stabilize its economy and stock market may be taking hold. In afternoon trade, stocks made a dramatic turn lower but stormed back in the final hour of trading, repeating a pattern of roller-coaster activity that has come to be a trademark of the past several sessions. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +2.27%  rose 369.26 points, or 2.3%, to close at 16,654.77, with all 30 members of the blue-chip index trading higher. Earlier, the Dow was up by as many as 381 points. The S&P 500 SPX, +2.43%  finished up 47.15 points, or 2.4% to 1,987.66, after posting a 49-point gain. All 10 of the index’s main sectors traded higher. The Nasdaq Composite COMP, +2.45%  climbed 115.17 points, or 2.5% at 4,812.71, after being up by as many as 121 points.As a result, for the week, the Dow is up 1.2%, the S&P is 0.9% higher, and the Nasdaq is up 2.3%. The implied volatility on the S&P 500—the so-called “fear index”—as measured by the CBOE Volatility Index VIX, -13.92% fell 14% to 26.10.A larger-than-expected upward revision to U.S. gross domestic product data, showing that U.S. economy grew at a faster 3.7% in the second quarter, helped lift the spirits of investors that have been unsettled by a spate of volatility. Weekly data on jobless claims, which pointed to continued strength in the labor market, added to the optimism.“Today’s revision means the U.S. economy is growing faster and [the] consumer spending portion points to a stronger growth in the second half of the year. With this kind of growth, we expect $135 earnings per share by the end of 2016,” said Phil Orlando, chief equity strategist and senior portfolio manager at Federated Investors. That translates to a 35% rise in the S&P 500 from its current level by the end of 2016, according to Orlando.Global equity markets rallied following a 5.3% surge in the Shanghai Composite SHCOMP, +5.34%  overnight, snapping a losing streak that wiped out nearly a quarter of its value in a week. That jump cheered investors world-wide, as fears about China have been blamed for much of the recent intense selling around the globe.

Friday's Dow News followed by Thursday's Closing Dow Numbers:

American Express:

Apple:  WSJ pB6 "Data show solid debut for Apple's new watch" by Daisuke Wakabayashi says Apple sold more watches in their  first quarter of availability than it did iPad or iPhones - 3.6 mil.

AJC pA10 "Apple announces new product event sept. 9" says Apple has introduced a new iPhone model every year around this time and it is being vague about what it will say on 9/9 in San Fran.

Boeing: IBD pA1 "Boieng tanker woes raise bomber doubt" by Gillian Rich says it is a tossup as to who will win the contract to replace the Air Force's Boeing B-52s for the $80 bil contract between Boeing or Northrop Grumman.

Caterpillar:

Chevron:

Cisco:

Coke:

Disney:

DuPont:

Exxon:  WSJ pB6 "Oil explorers look to pare costs" by Selina Williams says Exxon cut its capital and exploration expenditure by 16% in 2Q this year vs. prior year.

GE:

Goldman Sachs:

Home Depot:

Intel:

IBM:

JPMorgan:

Johnson & Johnson:

McDonald's: WSJ pA1 "Ruling clears way for unions" by Melanie Trottman, IBD pA1 "Labor board widens employer liability for subcontractors" by Jed Graham say  in Browning-Ferris Industries of California Inc. and Leadpoint Business Services the NLRB revised its joint employer standard for determining when one company shares responsibility for employees hired by another.  Now McDonald's cold be held responsible for violations at franchised restaurants.

WSJ pB4 "McDonald's, Tyson drop a supplier" by Jacob Bunge says they cut ties with a Tennessee poultry farm that allegedly mistreated chickens.

Merck:

Microsoft:

Nike:

Pfizer:

Procter & Gamble:

3M:

Travelers:

United Technologies:

UnitedHealth:

Verizon:

Visa:

Walmart: AJC pA10 "Walmart gets early start on layaway plan" says it is starting 2 weeks earlier than last year.

AJC pA10  "Walmart ends assault rifle sales" by NYT News service, as previously reported.

Thursday's Closing Dow Numbers:

Symbol Last Sale Change % Change Share Volume Market
AXP▲ NYSE
AAPL▲ NASDAQ-GS
BA▲ NYSE
CAT▲ NYSE
CVX▲ NYSE
CSCO▲ NASDAQ-GS
KO▲ NYSE
DIS▲ NYSE
DD▲ NYSE
XOM▲ NYSE
GE▲ NYSE
GS▲ NYSE
HD▲ NYSE
INTC▲ NASDAQ-GS
IBM▲ NYSE
JPM▲ NYSE
JNJ▲ NYSE
MCD▲ NYSE
MRK▲ NYSE
MSFT▲ NASDAQ-GS
NKE▲ NYSE
PFE▲ NYSE
PG▲ NYSE
MMM▲ NYSE
TRV▲ NYSE
UTX▲ NYSE
UNH▲ NYSE
VZ▲ DualListed
V▲ NYSE
WMT▲ NYSE
********************
Here are the current CEOs of the Dow 30 Companies:

Apple: Tim Cook (Cupertino, CA)

American Express AXP Kenneth I. Chenault (NY, NY)

Boeing BA Dennis A. Muilenburg (Chicago, Ill)

Caterpillar CAT Douglas Oberhelman (Peoria, Ill.)

Chevron CVX John Watson (San Ramon, CA)

Cisco CSCO Charles H.  "Chuck"  Robbins

Coca Cola KO Muhtar Kent (Atlanta, GA)

Disney DIS Robert Iger (Burbank, CA)

DuPont DD Ellen Kullman (Wilmington, DE)

ExxonMobil XOM Rex W. Tillerson (Irving, Tx)

GE Jeffrey R. Immelt (Fairfield, CT)

Goldman Sachs GS Lloyd Blankfein (NY, NY)

Home Depot HD Craig Menear (Atlanta, GA)

Intel INTC Brian M. Krzanich (Santa Clara, CA)

IBM Virginia M. Rometty (Armonk, NY)

JPMorgan Chase JPM Jamie Dimon (NY, NY)

Johnson & Johnson JNJ Alex Gorsky (New Brunswick, NJ)

McDonald's MCD Steve Easterbrook (Oak Brook, Ill)

Merck MRK Kenneth Frazier (Kenilworth, N.J.)

Microsoft MSFT Satya Nadella (Redmond, WA)

Nike NKE Mark Parker (Beaverton, OR)

Pfizer PFE Ian Read (NY, NY)

Procter & Gamble PG A. G. Lafley (Cincinnati, OH) (//David S. Taylor replaces 11/1)

3M MMM Inge Thulin (St. Paul, MN)

Travelers TRV Jay S. Fishman (NY, NY) (Alan D. Schnitzer replaces Fishman 12/1).

UnitedHealth UNC Stephen Hemsley (Minnetonka, MN)

United Technologies UTX Greg Hayes (Hartford, CT)

Verizon VZ Lowell McAdam (NY, NY)

Visa V Charles W. Scharf (San Francisco, CA)

Wal-Mart WMT Doug McMillon (Bentonville, ARK)
***************************
Here are the Dow Jones Industrial Average 30 as of 8/4/15  ranked in order of market capitalization in billions:

1. Apple AAPL $653.76
2. Microsoft MSFT 381.6
3. Exxon Mobil XOM 322.66
4. Johnson & Johnson JNJ 276.75
5. GE 260.97
6. JPMorgan Chase JPM 254.03
7. Wal-Mart WMT 232.68
8. Pfizer PFE 222.35
9. Disney DIS 206.48
10.  Procter & Gamble PG 205.94   
11.  Verizon VZ 189.76
12. Visa V 183.12
13. Coke KO 182.41
14. Merck MRK 165.84
15. Chevron CVX 160.24
16. IBM 155.55
17.  Home Depot HD 152.67    
18. Cisco CSCO 142.56
19.  Intel INTC 138.19
20. UnitedHealth UNH 115.05
21.Nike NKE 99.02
22. Boeing BA 97.53  
23. McDonald' s MCD 95.03               
24. 3M MMM 93.96 
25. Goldman Sachs GS 92.6
26. United Technologies UTX 88.2
27. American Express AXP 75.87
28. DuPont DD 49.46
29. Caterpillar CAT 46.24
30. Travelers TRV 33.18
****************************************
Here are the latest 8K, 10Q & 10K & Proxy & certain other SEC filings as of 8/4/15  for the prior 90 day period:

Symbol & Co. Name/Date of Filing/Form Filed/ Comments

American Express AXP:
7/29/15 10Q & 7/22/15 8K re: 2Q ended 6/30/15
7/15/15 8K re: delinq & write off stats for 3 mos. ended 6/30/15
6/15/15 8K re: delinq. & write off stats. for 3 mos. ended 5/31/15
5/29/15 8K re: death of Pres. Edward P. Gilligan
5/15/15 8K re: delinq. & write-off stats for 3 mos. thru 4/30/15
5/11/15 8K re: Voting results of annual mtg of shareholders

Apple AAPL:
8/3/15 Form 8-A re: Registration of Notes & 7/31/15 Issuance of the notes
7/27/15 & 7/24/15 Prospectus re: 3.05% Notes due '29 & 3.65 Notes due '42
7/22/15 10Q & 7/21 & 6/10 8Ks re: 3 Qtr. results ended 6/27/15
5/13/15 8K re: issuance of notes

Boeing BA:
7/22/15 10Q & 7/22/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30/15
7/17/15 8K re: charge to earnings due to KC-46 Tanker program
6/23/15 8K re: replacement of CEO W. James McNerney, Jr. with Dennis A. Muilenberg eff. 7/1/15 & amendment to bylaws to increase directors from 10 to 11

Caterpillar CAT:
7/31/15 10Q & 7/23/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30/15
7/222/15 8K re: OEM sales figures for June
6/18/15 re: OEM sales figures for May
6/12/15 8K re: voting results of annual stockholder meeting of 6/10.
6/10/15 8K re: quarterly cash div. of 77 cents per share payable 8/20 for record holders on 7/20
6/1/15; 5/28/15; & 5/22/15 Proxy material
5/20/15 8K re: April retail stats

Chevron CVX:
7/31/15 8K re: 2Q results
6/2/15 8K re: voting results of annual stockholder meeting on 5/27
5/11/15 & 4/9/15 Proxy material
5/7/15 10Q & 5/1/15 8K re: 1Q results ended 3/31/15

Cisco CSCO:
7/29/15 8K/A election of Charles H. Robbins to replace John T. Chambers as CEO eff. 7/26/15
6/18/15 8K & 6/12/15 8K & 6/10/15 8K re: issuance and closing of notes offering
6/1/15 8K re: termination of execs Robert w. Lloyd, Pres. Dev. & sales & Gary B. Moore, Pres/COO
5/20/15 10Q & 5/13/15 8K re: 3Q results ended 4/25/15
5/4/15 8K re: election of Charles H. Robbins CEO eff 7/26/15

Coke KO:
7/29/15 10Q & 7/22/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 7/3/15

Disney DIS:
8/4/15 10Q & 8/4/15 8K re: 3Q results ended 6/27
6/26/15 8K/A resignation of CFO James A. Rasulo eff. 6/30
6/2/15 8K re: resignation of CFO James A. Rasulo
5/15/15 10Q & 5/5/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 3/28/15

DuPont DD:
7/28/15 10Q & 7/28/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
7/8/15 8K re: completion of spin off of Chemours
6/9/15 8K/A & 6/2/15 8K/A re: voting results of 5/13/15 Annual Meeting of Stockholders
6/1/15 8K re: change of reg. agent in Delaware
5/19/15 8K & 5/13/15 8K & 5/12/15 8K & 4/23/15 8K re: sale of notes by subsidiary, Chemours & spin-off of Chemours to shareholders.
April & March, 2015 numerous Proxy materials re: Trian's proposal to add Directors

ExxonMobil XOM:
7/31/15 8K re: 2Q results
6/1/15 8K re: results of voting of 5/27/15 Annual Shareholders Meeting
5/14/15; 4/21/15; & 4/14/15 Proxy materials
5/6/15 10Q & 4/30/15 8K re: 1Q results ended 3/31/15

GE:
7/30/15 10Q & 7/17/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
7/6/15 8K re: sale of assets of GECC over next 24 months to concentrate on industrial businesses
6/10/15 8K re: modified metrics for long term performance goals
5/28/15 8K & 5/27/15 8K re: issuance of notes
5/15/15 10Q & 4/17/15 8K re: 1Q ended 3/31/15

Goldman Sachs GS:
8/3/15 10Q & 7/16/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
5/22/15 8K re: issuance of notes
5/22/15 8K re: amendmt to stock incentive plan
5/12/15 re: issuance of notes
5/5/15 10Q & 4/16/15 8K re: 1Q ended 3/31/15

Home Depot HD:
6/2/15 8K re: issuance of notes
5/27/15 10Q & 5/19/15 8K re: 1Q ended 5/3/15
5/26/15 8K re: voting results from 5/21 Shareholders Mtg

Intel INTC:
7/29/15 8K re: issuance of notes
7/27/15 10Q & 7/15/15 8K re: 2Q ended 6/27
7/2/15 8K re: retirement of Renee J. James as Pres. effective 1/16
6/5/15 & 4/6/15 8Ks re: change of organizational structure & change of reporting fin'l info
6/1/15 8K re: purchase of Altera Corp
5/27/15 8K re: voting results of 5/21 Stockholder Mtg
5/14/15 8K re: FD disclosures re: Annual Mtg

IBM:
8/4/15 8K re: issuance of notes
7/28/15 10Q & 7/21 & 7/20 8Ks re: 2Q results ended 6/30
5/1/15 8K re: voting results of 4/28 Stockholder Mtg

JPMorgan Chase JPM:
8/3/15 10Q & 7/14/15 2 8Ks re: 2Q results ended 6/30
7/29/15 8K re: issuance of pref stock
7/21/15 8K re: issuance of notes
6/16/15 8K re: redemption of notes
6/4/15 8K re: issuance of preferred stock
5/22/15 8K re: results of voting of 5/19 shareholder mtg
5/20/15 & 5/14/15 8Ks re: settlement with U.S. Dept of Justice  & Fed. Res. re: foreign exchange charges and guilty plea to violation of fed antitrust law & payment of $550 mil fine
5/6/15 & 4/3/15 8Ks re: redemption of Bear Stearns notes
5/5/15 10Q & 4/14/15 8Ks re: 1Q ended 3/31

Johnson & Johnson JNJ:
7/31/15 10Q & 7/14/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/28
6/9/15 8K re: election of Dr. Mary Beckerle, CEO of Hunstsman Cancer Inst. to Board
5/21/15 8K re: retirement of Controller Stephen J. Cosgrove and replaced by Ronald a. Kapusta

McDonald's MCD:
7/23/15 8K re: 2Q & 6 month results ended 6/30
7/21/15 8K re: exec comp awards
7/17/15 8K re: cash dividend of 85 cents payable 9/16 to record holders on 9/1
6/8/15 8K re: May sales
5/27/15 8K re: voting results from 5/21/15 Shareholder meeting
5/26/15 8K re: issuance of notes
5/11/15 8K re: April sales
5/11/15 Proxy
5/7/15 10Q & 4/22/15 8K re: 1Q ended 3/31/15
5/4/15 8K re: restructuring and turn around plans

Merck MRK:
7/28/15 8K e: election to Board of Pamela J. Craig & Paul B. Rothman, MD
7/28/15 2Q results
7/24/15 8K re: retirement of General Counsel Bruce Kuhlik
5/28/15 & 5/26/15 8Ks re: voting results of 5/26/15 shareholder mtg
5/7/15 10Q & 4/28/15 8K re: 1Q ended 3/31/15

Microsoft MSFT:
7/31/15 10K for FY ended 6/30/15
7/21/15 8K re: 4Q results
7/8/15 8K re: restructuring of phone hardware business and termination of 7,80 employees

Nike NKE:
7/27/15 & 7/20/15 Prelim. Proxy re: Annual Meeting of Shareholders on 9/17/15 at 10 am at Tiger Woods Conf. center, Beaverton, Oregon
7/6/15 8K re: election of Chris Abston as Corp. controller
6/30/15 8K re: election of Travis A. Knight, son of Philip H. Knight, as Director
6/29/15 8K re: 4Q Conference Call
6/25/15 8K re: 4Q ended 5/31
6/18/15 8K re: retirement from Board of Douglas G. Houser & Orin C. Smith

Pfizer PFE:
7/28/15 8K 2Q results
6/25/15 8K re: election to Board of Joseph J. Echevarria
5/14/15 8K re: resignation of director Marc Tessier-Lavigne
5/7/15 10Q & 4/28/15 8K re: 1Q ended 3/29

Procter & Gamble PG:
7/30/15 8K re: 4Q results
7/30/15 8K re: FY '15 results
7/29/15 8K re: replacement of CEO A.G. Lafley by David Taylor effective 11/1/15
7/14/15 8K re: quarterly div of .6629 cents payable 8/17 to record holders on 7/4
7/9/15 8K re: sale of 43 beauty brands to Coty
6/12/15 amendment to Code of Regulations
5/7/15 8K re: issuance of notes

3M MMM:
8/4/15 8K & 6/24/15 8K re: completion of acquisition of Capital Safety from KKR for $2.5 bil
7/30/15 10Q & 7/23/15 8K re: 2Q ended 6/30
5/18/15 8K re: issuance of notes
5/13/15 8K re: results of voting from 5/12 stockholder meeting

Travelers TRV:
7/21/15 10Q & 7/21/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
5/22/15 8K re: voting results of 5/20/15 shareholders meeting

United Technologies UTX:
7/27/15 8K re: retirement of Geraud Damis as CEO of UTC Building & Industrial Services eff. 1/16
7/24/15 10Q & 7/21/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
7/20/15 8K & 6/15/15 8K re: sale of Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. to Lockheed Martin
5/22/15 8K re: issuance of notes
5/4/15 8K re: remarketing of notes

UnitedHealth Group UNH:
7/31/15 8K re: presentation at InvestMNt Conf on 8/5
7/29/15 10Q & 7/16/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
7/23/15 8K re: purchase of Catamaran Corp.
7/23/15 8K re: issuance of notes
7/1/15 8K re: reincorporation from Minn. to Delaware
6/5/15 8K re: amendment to stock incentive plan
5/26/15 FD disclosure re: NYC 5/28 Bernstein's Conference
5/6/15 10Q & 4/16/15 8K re: 1Q ended 3/31/15

Verizon Communications Inc. VZ:
7/28/15 10Q & 7/21/15 8K re: 2Q results ended 6/30
6/8/15 8K re: amendment of bylaws re: annual mtg of stockholders
5/13/15 8K re: retirement of Randal s. Milch, VP
5/12/15 8K re: Verizon to buy AOL for $4.4 bil

Visa V:
7/23/15 10Q & 7/23/15 8K re: 3Q results ended 6/30
7/22/15 8K re: dividend of 12 cents payable 9/1 to record holders on 8/14
6/12/15 8K re: election to Board of Lloyd A. Carney
6/10/15 8K re: presentation at William Blair 35th Annual growth Stock Conference
4/30/15 10Q & 4/30/15 8K re: 2Q ended 3/31
4/23/15 8K re: 12 cents a share dividend payable 6/2 to record holders of 5/15
4/14/15 8K re: resignation of Antonio Lucio, EVP and Chief Brand Officer

WalMart WMT:
6/8/15 8K re: voting results of 6/5 shareholder meeting
6/5/15 10Q & 5/19 8K re: 1Q ended 4/30/15

That's All for Now