Tag Archives: Pitney Bowes

Pitney Bowes Selected by The Cooperative Purchasing Network to Provide Managed Print Services

By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

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Pitney Bowes Selected by The Cooperative Purchasing Network to Provide Managed Print Services

STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYS: PBI) today announced that its Management Services business unit was awarded a new contract by The Cooperative Purchasing Network (TCPN) in Houston. Under the authority of the Texas Region 4 Education Service Center (ESC), the lead agency responsible for the bid, Pitney Bowes Management Services was awarded a contract for Managed Print Services (MPS). Under this contract, state and local government agencies in Texas and other states are able to purchase MPS solutions from Pitney Bowes using a significantly streamlined procurement process.

TCPN is a national purchasing cooperative that contracts on behalf of K-12 schools, higher education institutions, local governments and non-profit organizations in all 50 states. Established to help public entities operate more economically, TCPN leverages its collective membership to bid and award contracts, freeing its individual members from having to negotiate on their own.

“We are excited to partner with TCPN as they expand their portfolio of offerings to their stakeholders at various levels of government,” said Tim Healy, vice president, Commercial & Public Sector, Pitney Bowes Management Services. “Pitney Bowes is a leading provider of innovative managed print services and has the resources at the ready to help clients customize solutions to address their unique needs, streamline business processes, and achieve dramatic cost savings.”

This contract offers TCPN‘s 30,000-plus active government and nonprofit members pre-negotiated pricing for Managed Print Services that leverage the network’s buying power to deliver lower costs without the challenge of a local bid process, which is often costly and time consuming.

TCPN is pleased to partner with Pitney Bowes on a managed print solutions offering. The Pitney Bowes portfolio of solutions will enable public sector agencies to better leverage their print spend, to deliver cost savings while receiving the highest levels of quality,” said Chris Penny, vice president, Sales, TCPN.

About The Cooperative Purchasing Network

TCPN (tcpn.org) is a national governmental purchasing cooperative that competitively bids and awards contracts to national vendors in accordance with purchasing procedures mandated by state procurement laws and regulations. TCPN contracts are available for use and benefit public and private schools, colleges and universities, cities, counties, nonprofits, and all government entities that commonly purchase products and services including facilities, furniture office supplies and equipment, security systems, and technology. As a national cooperative, …read more

Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Pitney Bowes Reorganizing Operations; Shearer, Wright Named to Senior Roles

By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

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Pitney Bowes Reorganizing Operations; Shearer, Wright Named to Senior Roles

New Leadership for Mailing, Software Businesses

STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYS: PBI) today announced it is planning to reorganize its business operations and is making two leadership appointments in newly-constituted SMB Mailing and Software businesses. Mark Shearer is joining the company as Executive Vice President and President, Pitney Bowes SMB Mailing Solutions and Mark Wright is joining as Executive Vice President and President, Pitney Bowes Software Solutions. These appointments are a continuation of the reorganization of business operations that began with the previously-announced establishment of the Global Client Services organization and the appointment of Kevin Connolly last month.

Mark Shearer, newly-appointed EVP and President, Pitney Bowes SMB Mailing Solutions (Photo: Business Wire)

Shearer and Wright will join the company on April 15, and both will report directly to President and CEO Marc Lautenbach.

As president of Pitney Bowes SMB Mailing Solutions, Shearer takes on the leadership of an organization that will be focused on mailing products and technologies worldwide in the small and medium sized marketplace. Pitney Bowes has been a world leader in this business for 93 years. Shearer’s role is to drive an ever-improving client experience to this marketplace, to move best products and practices rapidly across national borders and markets, and to simplify the ways in which clients can interact with the company in the future.

Shearer had a 30-year career at IBM, where he held a broad range of general management, business and product strategy, and marketing senior leadership positions. He led both startup and mature businesses, with deep experience in the SMB space, and excelled at leading complex global organizations. Notable accomplishments at IBM included leading IBM‘s first pre-defined services package for small and medium size clients, leading worldwide sales relationships with large financial institutions and creating growth with telecom and media clients in Asia Pacific. He also held senior roles in marketing, which included the successful re-launch of the IBM mainframe, leading the $2B IBM System I business, and, in his last role at IBM, serving as VP of Marketing and Strategy for IBM‘s $20B hardware businesses.

As President of Pitney Bowes Software, Wright will take over an expanded portfolio that will bring into one organization a broader spectrum of the company’s software offerings. In addition to …read more

Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

The S&P 500's 5 Most Hated Stocks

By Sean Williams, The Motley Fool

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The first quarter officially came to a close last weekend and ended on a perfect note for the broad-based S&P 500 — at an all-time record high. Economic data has been slowly improving on the jobs front, as well as many other sectors of the economy, suggesting that the S&P 500’s 10% rally in the first quarter may be sustainable.

However, quite a few skeptics still don’t see the market‘s gains as sustainable. The actions of these skeptics can be seen in these five most hated S&P 500 companies:

Company

Short Interest as a % of Shares Outstanding

GameStop

34.78%

Pitney Bowes

29.57%

J.C. Penney

27.76%

U.S. Steel

25.71%

Safeway

23.75%

Source: S&P Capital IQ.

What I propose we do is simple: Let’s have a look at why investors might be betting against these five companies, and then we’ll determine whether or not their pessimism is warranted.

GameStop
Why are investors shorting GameStop?

  • The contempt for GameStop begins with the cyclical nature of the video game industry. GameStop, which is a retail outlet for video games, consoles, and other gaming accessories, has had its margins come under serious pressure as digital outlets for downloading and playing games have emerged and taken revenue away from its brick-and-mortar locations. Further, we haven’t seen any new gaming consoles in years, which has tempered gamers’ desire to spend freely in GameStop’s stores.

Is this short interest deserved?

  • I believe this pessimism is undeserved for a number of reasons. First, we have a slew of new gaming consoles due out in the second half of this year that are likely to spur GameStop’s sales. Second, GameStop has remained healthfully cash-flow positive despite the industry’s cyclical nature. A tight lid on costs, as well as a focus on enhancing digital offerings, actually resulted in the company’s highest gross margin in a decade in 2012. Finally, GameStop’s 4% yield asserts that short-sellers are barking up the wrong tree.

Pitney Bowes
Why are investors shorting Pitney Bowes?

  • Pitney Bowes, known best for its postage meters and other mail-related software, has struggled with the proliferation of Internet-based postage purchases and declining physical mail volumes. The company is attempting to reorganize its business to focus more on cloud-based and service-oriented models, but it also has to contend with more than $4 billion in net debt on its balance sheet.

Is this short interest deserved?

  • I would tentatively say yes, based on the business model alone. It’s will be difficult for Pitney Bowes to dissociate itself from its legacy postage-meter business and move into an enterprise-based cloud platform. Then again, Pitney Bowes‘ only lifeline has been its insistence on keeping its dividend firm at $1.50 a year. That’s good enough for a 10.1% yield, but it negates much chance that the company will pay down its enormous debt load.

J.C. Penney
Why are investors shorting J.C. Penney?

Can Pitney Bowes Remain a Top Dividend Stock?

By Dan Caplinger, The Motley Fool

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Investors have always been interested in stocks that pay dividends, but lately low interest rates on bonds and other fixed-income investments have made solid dividend payers even more valuable. For years, Pitney Bowes was among the most promising dividend stocks in the market, as one of the few exclusive companies to make the list of Dividend Aristocrats. In order to become a member of this elite group, a company must have raised its dividend payouts to shareholders every single year for at least a quarter-century. Only a few dozen stocks manage to make the cut, and those that do tend to stay there for a long time.

With the company having had to make a massive shift to its business model in recent years in order to adapt to changing industry conditions, Pitney Bowes made many investors extremely nervous about whether it could remain among its Dividend Aristocrat peers. Last year, it finally got taken off the Dividend Aristocrats list, but not because it stopped increasing its payouts. Rather, it failed to meet Standard & Poor’s minimum market capitalization requirement of $3 billion. Let’s take a closer look at Pitney Bowes to see whether it can sustain its long streak of rewarding dividend payouts to investors.

Dividend Stats on Pitney Bowes

 

 

Current Quarterly Dividend Per Share

$0.375

Current Yield

10.1%

Number of Consecutive Years With Dividend Increases

30 years

Payout Ratio

68%

Last Increase

February 2012

Source: Yahoo! Finance. Last increase refers to ex-dividend date.

The latest on Pitney Bowes
Pitney Bowes was once the undisputed giant in the global mail-services industry. With huge market share in sales of its postage meters and other business mailing essentials, it was an integral part of how both large and small businesses reached out to their customers.

Lately, though, the company has realized that the writing was on the wall for its legacy mailing business. As more delivery services went online, upstart Stamps.com and Newell Rubbermaid‘s Endicia took away some of Pitney Bowes‘ dominant position in the industry.

In response, Pitney Bowes has turned to a dramatic restructuring, moving in the direction of broader-based business services, with a focus on business analytics and data management. That’s an extremely crowded industry, but it also has a lot more growth opportunities than its legacy business. With the rise of the Big Data initiative, Pitney Bowes has plenty of room to use assets like its geocoding software to open doors to new customers.

Looking at its most recent dividends, Pitney Bowes has been getting by on just token payout increases for a long time now:

Source: PBI Dividend data by YCharts.

Pitney Bowes has also been finding other uses for its free cash. Just last week, it said that it had accepted about $400 million in tendered notes from bondholders to retire debt due in the next three years. That may …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Joe Schmitt Appointed Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Pitney Bowes

By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

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Joe Schmitt Appointed Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Pitney Bowes

STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYS: PBI) today announced the appointment of Joe Schmitt to the position of Vice President and Chief Information Officer. Schmitt was also elected an officer of the company. He will report to Kevin Connolly, Vice President, Global Client Services.

Schmitt succeeds Greg Buoncontri, who recently retired from Pitney Bowes. In his new role, Schmitt will lead information technology strategies and teams worldwide. He will have a particular focus on developing and deploying an innovative information and IT infrastructure for the company, including all data and technical service centers, communications networks (both voice and data), and enterprise software applications.

“Joe has all the qualities you look for in a strong CIO,” said Connolly. “He’s experienced, strategic, has a global perspective, and is an energetic agent for positive change. He is a great addition to our leadership team.”

Schmitt previously held Chief Information Officer positions at Steward Health Care System and Cerberus Capital Management. He started his career with Accenture, the global management consulting and technology services firm, and then spent twelve years in roles of increasing responsibility at General Electric.

Schmitt graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with Bachelor of Science degrees in economics and industrial management.

About Pitney Bowes

Pitney Bowes provides technology solutions for small, mid-size and large firms that help them connect with customers to build loyalty and grow revenue. The company’s solutions for financial services, healthcare, legal, nonprofit, public sector and retail organizations are delivered on open platforms to best organize, analyze and apply both public and proprietary data to two-way customer communications. Pitney Bowes is the only firm that includes direct mail, transactional mail, call centers and in-store technologies in its solution mix along with digital channels such as the Web, email, live chat and mobile applications. Pitney Bowes has approximately USD $5 billion in annual revenue and 27,000 employees worldwide. Pitney Bowes: Every connection is a new opportunity™. www.pb.com

Pitney Bowes
Matthew Broder, 203-351-6347
Vice President, External Communications
matthew.broder@pb.com

KEYWORDS:   United States  North America  Connecticut

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS:

The article Joe …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Pitney Bowes Names Kevin Connolly Vice President, Global Client Services

By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

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Pitney Bowes Names Kevin Connolly Vice President, Global Client Services

STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYS: PBI) today announced the appointment of Kevin Connolly to the new position of Vice President, Global Client Services. Connolly will report directly to President and CEO Marc Lautenbach.

Kevin Connolly, Vice President, Global Client Services, Pitney Bowes Inc. (Photo: Business Wire)

In this role, Connolly will direct the operations of a broad range of Pitney Bowes activities in different geographic locations. These include the company’s call centers, supply chain, and information technology groups globally, and the client field service business in North America and Europe.

“Kevin’s responsibility is to build a cross-functional global enterprise group that can strengthen our client experience,” said Lautenbach. “We have all the pieces in place to build a more integrated, technology-focused business infrastructure that will deliver meaningful client benefits. It is an exciting journey and Kevin is well-positioned to lead it.”

Connolly rejoins Pitney Bowes after a one-year retirement, and brings three decades of company experience to his new role. He came to Pitney Bowes in 1982 and progressed steadily through roles of increasing responsibility across manufacturing, engineering, client service, and supply chain activities in multiple business units of Pitney Bowes. His most recent role was vice president of strategic transformation.

Connolly is a graduate of the United States Military Academy and a highly-decorated Army veteran. He holds a Master’s degree in management from the University of Arkansas.

About Pitney Bowes

Pitney Bowes provides technology solutions for small, mid-size and large firms that help them connect with customers to build loyalty and grow revenue. The company’s solutions for financial services, healthcare, legal, nonprofit, public sector and retail organizations are delivered on open platforms to best organize, analyze and apply both public and proprietary data to two-way customer communications. Pitney Bowes is the only firm that includes direct mail, transactional mail, call centers and in-store technologies in its solution mix along with digital channels such as the Web, email, live chat and mobile applications. Pitney Bowes has approximately USD $5 billion in annual revenue and 27,000 employees worldwide. Pitney Bowes: Every connection is a new opportunity™. www.pb.com

Debbie Salce Named Treasurer at Pitney Bowes

By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

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Debbie Salce Named Treasurer at Pitney Bowes

STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYS: PBI) announced today the appointment of Debbie Salce to the position of Vice President and Treasurer, reporting to Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Michael Monahan. Salce was also elected an officer of the company. Salce succeeds Helen Shan, who will leave Pitney Bowes for Marsh & McClennan Companies, Inc., (NYS: MMC) on March 31.

As Treasurer, Salce will have global responsibility for all Treasury operations, including capital markets, cash management, foreign exchange risk management, pensions, and insurance management.

“Debbie takes on her leadership role as a fully-tested veteran finance executive,” said Monahan. “She is an exceptional business leader who brings deep knowledge of our company and a wealth of professional experience to the position of Treasurer.”

Salce joined Pitney Bowes in 2001 as Director of Capital Markets. She has held roles of increasing responsibility since then, including Vice President and Assistant Treasurer, and Vice President for Enterprise Performance Management. Before joining Pitney Bowes, Salce worked as an investment banker for seven years with Morgan Stanley, Bear Stearns and Citigroup.

Salce holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Political Science from the University of Connecticut, and an MBA from the Graduate School of Business at Columbia University in New York.

About Pitney Bowes

Pitney Bowes provides technology solutions for small, mid-size and large firms that help them connect with customers to build loyalty and grow revenue. The company’s solutions for financial services, healthcare, legal, nonprofit, public sector and retail organizations are delivered on open platforms to best organize, analyze and apply both public and proprietary data to two-way customer communications. Pitney Bowes is the only firm that includes direct mail, transactional mail, call centers and in-store technologies in its solution mix along with digital channels such as the Web, email, live chat and mobile applications. Pitney Bowes has approximately USD $5 billion in annual revenue and 27,000 employees worldwide. Pitney Bowes: Every connection is a new opportunity™. www.pb.com

Pitney Bowes
Matthew Broder, 203-351-6347
Vice President, External Communications
matthew.broder@pb.com

KEYWORDS:   United States  North …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Pitney Bowes Announces Final Results of Cash Tender Offers for Notes

By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

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Pitney Bowes Announces Final Results of Cash Tender Offers for Notes

STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYS: PBI) (the “Company,” “us” or “Pitney Bowes”) today announced the final results for its previously announced cash tender offers (the “Offers”) for its 4.875% Medium-Term Notes due 2014 (the “2014 Notes”), 5.000% Notes due 2015 (the “2015 Notes”) and 4.750% Medium-Term Notes due 2016 (the “2016 Notes” and, together with the 2014 Notes and the 2015 Notes, the “Notes”).

The Company had previously accepted for purchase $148,446,000 principal amount of the 2014 Notes, $124,496,000 principal amount of the 2015 Notes and $128,814,000 principal amount of the 2016 Notes, which had been validly tendered and not validly withdrawn in the Offers as of 5:00 p.m. (New York City time) on March 11, 2013 (the “Early Tender Time”). Payment for all Notes accepted for purchase thereby was made on March 12, 2013 (the “Early Settlement Date”).

As of the expiration of the Offers at 11:59 p.m. (New York City time) on March 25, 2013 (the “Expiration Time”), $150,430,000 principal amount of the 2014 Notes, of which $1,984,000 were tendered after the Early Tender Time (the “Later Tender 2014 Notes”), $125,121,000 principal amount of the 2015 Notes, of which $625,000 were tendered after the Early Tender Time (the “Later Tender 2015 Notes”), and $129,086,000 principal amount of the 2016 Notes, of which $272,000 were tendered after the Early Tender Time (the “Later Tender 2016 Notes” and, together with the Later Tender 2014 Notes and the Later Tender 2015 Notes, the “Later Tender Notes”), were validly tendered and not validly withdrawn in the Offers.

The Offers were made pursuant to an Offer to Purchase, dated February 26, 2013 (the “Offer to Purchase”) and related Letter of Transmittal, dated February 26, 2013 (the “Letter of Transmittal”), which set forth a description of the terms and conditions of the Offers.

Subject to the terms and conditions of the Offers, the Company will accept for purchase all of the Later Tender Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn pursuant to the Offers at or prior to the Expiration Time. Payment for the Later Tender Notes accepted for purchase is expected to be made on March 26, 2013 (the “Final Settlement Date”).

Holders of the Later Tender Notes that were validly tendered and not validly withdrawn pursuant to the Offers at or prior to the Expiration Time will receive the “Tender Offer Consideration” (listed in the table below). In addition, holders of such Later Tender …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

How the S&P's Top Dividend Stocks Have Fared in 2013

By Dan Caplinger, The Motley Fool

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Many income-seeking investors look for stocks that will maximize their current income from dividends. The popular “Dogs of the Dow” strategy has become popular in part because of its simplicity, and even though it hasn’t always resulted in better returns than the overall Dow, it nevertheless places the emphasis on dividends that many investors value.

But there’s no magic to restricting your use of high-dividend stocks to the Dow. Today, let’s look at the stocks within the S&P 500 that had the highest yields as of the beginning of 2013 to see how they’ve fared so far this year.

Some big winners …
The S&P 500 stock with the highest yield has also been one of its best performers this year. Pitney Bowes has risen 45% since starting out the year with a dividend yield of more than 14%, doing a good job of reversing a share-price plunge of more than 40% during 2012 as it struggled to find a viable transition beyond its once-dominant postal-meter business. Yet when Pitney Bowes announced earnings in late January, it managed to limit revenue losses to just 1%, topping estimates and sending the stock soaring. Still, in the long run, it will need to succeed with its broader enterprise-communications strategy if it wants to sustain its high payout, which even now still yields 10%.

But the biggest gainer among top-yielding S&P stocks has been Best Buy , which is up 94% year to date. The company started off January with positive holiday sales news, and even though the big-box electronics retailer reduced its free cash flow projections, shares started moving higher. Since then, the bull run has gained steam, as Best Buy announced full quarterly results in early March and gave initiatives that it hopes will end the practice of showrooming that has hurt the company so much in the past. As optimism about the stock has built, investors have relied less on the idea that co-founder Richard Schulze would take Best Buy private and instead have jumped onto the turnaround bandwagon.

 … and losers
But not all of the S&P’s big dividend payers have fared as well. Cliffs Natural Resources came into 2013 with a 6.5% dividend yield, but that payout didn’t survive the company’s quarterly earnings report. Because of rock-bottom iron ore and metallurgical coal prices and weak demand for the key ingredients for steel production, as well as operational problems that have forced reduced expectations from its key mines, Cliffs had to cut its dividend by more than 75%. As a result, the stock has plunged 46% so far this year, and its forward dividend yield has dropped to below 3%.

The other big dividend cut among the top S&P yielders came from CenturyLink , which had a 7.5% dividend yield at the beginning of the year and has fallen by 9% since then. The high-yielding rural-focused telecom company reduced its dividend …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

2 Big Dividends to Avoid (and 1 to Embrace)

By Demitrios Kalogeropoulos, The Motley Fool

PBI Revenue TTM Chart

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With yields on ultra-safe debt stuck in the gutter, many investors are reaching for higher income through dividend-paying stocks. That’s a fine strategy — as long as you’re comfortable with the extra risks involved.

To minimize those risks, you won’t want to reach too high. Dividend yields that are more than about 4%, for example, are usually worth extra research. You’ll also want to screen for dividends that are backed up by strong earnings and sales growth. Ideally, those dividends will have a good chance of rising — or at least staying put.

Later in this article I’ll analyze one dividend stock that I think meets that test. But first let’s take a look at two heavy-yielders that don’t.

Pitney Bowes : 9.8% yield
This global mail services company is in retreat. Pitney Bowes has seen its shares crater by more than 50% over the past five years as mail volumes tanked. But because its dividend has actually crept up over that time, the stock‘s yield is now reaching toward the double digits. Does that mean it’s time for dividend investors to rejoice?

Not so fast.

Yes, that dividend may not look alarming when compared with the company’s earnings. The payout last year was 68% of net income, which is high, but about the same as it was in 2008.

Pitney Bowes‘ revenue tells a different story, though. Sales have plunged by 20% over the last five years. And while the company has been able to squeeze more profits out of every shrinking sales dollar, that trend can’t continue for much longer without risking the dividend.

PBI Revenue TTM data by YCharts.

New CEO Marc Lautenbach has his hands full as he looks to turn this business around. Last quarter’s sales drop of just 1% was a step in the right direction. But however that turnaround progresses, it’s clear that Pitney Bowes will end up a very different company from the dividend aristocrat it had been for so long.

Garmin : 5.4% yield
GPS and navigation device maker Garmin is in much the same boat. The company’s sales and profits are both down about 25% since 2008, helping push the stock lower by 40%. And yet the company’s dividend payment has more than doubled over that time. As a result of those twin forces, Garmin’s yield is impressive at more than 5%.

But Garmin’s revenue slide seems far from over. Sales were down 16% last quarter as four out of Garmin’s five business segments turned in weaker results. The company’s automotive segment led with a 25% drop in sales, while the fitness group was the only one that managed a gain.

Despite those challenges, management insists that it is “committed to an attractive dividend yield.” Yes, Garmin has some room to maintain its current payout. But while the yield might be attractive, the payout ratio isn’t. In 2008, Garmin paid out a comfortable 28% of net income. Last year that ratio rose to nearly 70% of …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Some Hefty Dividend Payers to Consider

By Selena Maranjian, The Motley Fool

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Exchange-traded funds offer a convenient way to invest in sectors or niches that interest you. If you’d like to add some big dividend payers to your portfolio, the Global X SuperDividend ETF could save you a lot of trouble. Instead of trying to figure out which companies will perform best, you can use this ETF to invest in lots of them simultaneously.

The basics
ETFs often sport lower expense ratios than their mutual fund cousins. The Global X ETF‘s expense ratio — its annual fee — is 0.58%. It recently yielded close to 7%, a considerable payout.

This ETF is too young to have a meaningful track record to assess. As with most investments, of course, we can’t expect outstanding performances in every quarter or year. Investors with conviction need to wait for their holdings to deliver.

Why dividends?
The power of dividend investing is often underappreciated. They can be powerful portfolio supporters, providing income even during market downturns. Consider parking them in an IRA, too, to postpone or avoid taxes on dividends.

More than a handful of dividend payers had strong performances over the past year. Diversified REIT Starwood Property Trust surged 44%, for example. It specializes in commercial mortgages and debt, and recently posted a surprisingly good earnings report. The company has been boosting its volume, originating and purchasing more than $1 billion in debt in its recent fourth quarter. It yields 6.2%.

Mortgage REIT Chimera Investment gained 25% and yields a whopping 11.3%. It has been profiting by taking on more risk than many of its brethren, but it generated a lot of concern in the investment community due to accounting irregularities and its not filing reports on time. My colleague John Maxfield has reviewed some just-released information and finds issues of “competence and not integrity,” which doesn’t exactly inspire confidence. Some have wondered whether Annaly Capital Management might fold Chimera into itself, as it already owns a chunk of the company.

Other companies didn’t do as well last year, but could see their fortunes change in the coming years. Pitney Bowes shed 6% — and yields 9.5%. While you may just think of it as a postage-meter business threatened by the growth of digital communications, the company actually has other less-threatened and higher-margin businesses, such as providing geocoding software to Facebook and others. It posted estimate-topping quarterly results in January and its single-digit P/E ratio is enticing, but it does carry some risks and considerable debt, and its hefty dividend may end up reduced. The stock is heavily shorted as well.

Penn West Petroleum sank 40%, and yields 9.4%. While that might make your heart beat fast, know that the company is paying out about three times more than its earning per share. Penn West, which drills for both oil and gas, has been …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Pitney Bowes and GrayHair Software Collaborate on New Suite of Solutions for Presort Mailers

By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

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Pitney Bowes and GrayHair Software Collaborate on New Suite of Solutions for Presort Mailers

New Technology Expands Pitney Bowes’s Portfolio of Solutions for Intelligent Mail Barcode Application, Savings and Increased Visibility

STAMFORD, Conn. & MT LAUREL, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYS: PBI) and GrayHair Software, Inc., a leader in innovative services for business mailers, announced they are collaborating on a new suite of solutions for Pitney Bowes‘s Presort Services customers. Pitney Bowes will offer GrayHair Software’s new MailTrak with Commingle® solutions for those customers seeking alternative options for Intelligent Mail® barcode (IMb™) application, mail tracking, deeper postal discounts, and greater visibility to their mailings. This new technology expands Pitney Bowes‘s current portfolio of solutions to help with IMb compliance and mail tracking in the U.S.

The MailTrak with Commingle solution will be offered in four variations. The first-tier is designed for mailers who want to add the IMb to meet the USPS’s Full Service requirements. The second tier adds a mail tracking option to assist mailers in moving to Full Service compliance. Tier 3, called Comply, provides the ability to meet Move Update compliance. Finally, Comply Plus extends the solution to include GrayHair’s Universal Address database and provide complete address quality compliance.

In addition to these solutions, the two companies are developing a new service that will allow Pitney Bowes customers to gain increased visibility to their mail pieces during the presorting and delivery process. This new service will be available in Q2 2013.

“Our collaboration with GrayHair will make it easier for Pitney Bowes to meet the customized needs of our Presort Services clients,” said Jim Perkins, Senior Vice President, Pitney Bowes Presort Services. “This new suite of solutions will help our clients with a variety of issues including the upcoming Full Service IMb deadline to increasing the visibility to their mail pieces.”

“As the largest user of the IMb Tracing program with over one billion scans monthly, we are delighted to be teaming up with Pitney Bowes to help provide a suite of solutions that can help their customers solve today’s mailing challenges and put a more definitive and complete collection of mailing data into one easy-to-view report,” said Raymond Chin, GrayHair’s Vice President of Product Management and Marketing. “These solutions will help mailers who are concerned about the 2014 USPS® Full Service IMb requirements, while offering services to support the efficient processing for …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Pitney Bowes White Paper Explores Advantages of Print Management Outsourcing

By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

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Pitney Bowes White Paper Explores Advantages of Print Management Outsourcing

Print Management Solutions Deliver Significant Cost Savings While Enhancing Marketing Effectiveness, Mitigating Risk and Ensuring Compliance

STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Pitney Bowes (NYS: PBI) today released a white paper, The Power of Print Outsourcing,” that provides insight on how organizations can optimize their marketing communications through print management outsourcing. Print management outsourcing includes consulting services that optimize print production and distribution, coordinate print with communications across all channels, and leverage print spending to generate significant savings.

“Although there is a dramatic shift to digital communications, print continues to be a critical part of the marketing mix,” said Patrick Fogarty, vice president, Marketing Lifecycle Solutions, Pitney Bowes. “Chief Marketing Officers agree that reaching customers and prospects effectively requires a flexible multi-channel communications strategy. There is significant opportunity to better leverage an enterprise’s print spend to drive more effective communications through supply chain and distribution optimization and integration across all channels. Print management outsourcing can save clients up to 30 percent, while enhancing quality, reducing risk and ensuring compliance.”

The white paper explores why marketers are increasingly turning to outsourcing solutions for improved print management, the ways in which print management outsourcing can drive improvements in customer communications management overall, and the key factors for consideration in selecting a print outsourcing or, more accurately, a print management services provider.

To learn more about print management outsourcing services or to download a complimentary copy of “The Power of Print Outsourcing,” visit http://www.pb.com/Management-Services/news-and-resources/white-papers.shtml.

Pitney Bowes Management Services designs, implements and operates innovative communication, document and mail management solutions that help companies around the world drive business process efficiencies, increase productivity, reduce costs and improve customer satisfaction. Pitney Bowes was recently ranked as one of the world’s top outsourcing providers by the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals® (IAOP®).

About Pitney Bowes

Pitney Bowes provides technology solutions for small, mid-size and large firms that help them connect with customers to build loyalty and grow revenue. The company’s solutions for financial services, insurance, healthcare, telecommunications, legal, public sector and retail organizations are delivered on open platforms to best organize, analyze and apply both public and proprietary data to two-way customer communications. Pitney Bowes …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Pitney Bowes Announces Reference Yield, Total Consideration and Tender Offer Consideration for Cash

By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

Filed under:

Pitney Bowes Announces Reference Yield, Total Consideration and Tender Offer Consideration for Cash Tender Offers for Notes

STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYS: PBI) (the “Company,” “us” or “Pitney Bowes“) today announced the Reference Yield, Total Consideration and Tender Offer Consideration (each as defined below) for its previously announced cash tender offers (the “Offers”) for its 4.875% Medium-Term Notes due 2014 (the “2014 Notes”), 5.000% Notes due 2015 (the “2015 Notes”) and 4.750% Medium-Term Notes due 2016 (the “2016 Notes” and, together with the 2014 Notes and the 2015 Notes, the “Notes”).

The Offers are being made pursuant to an Offer to Purchase, dated February 26, 2013 (the “Offer to Purchase”) and related Letter of Transmittal, dated February 26, 2013 (the “Letter of Transmittal”) which set forth a description of the terms and conditions of the Offers.

The consideration to be paid in each of the Offers has been determined in the manner described in the Offer to Purchase by reference to a fixed spread over the yield to maturity (the “Reference Yield“) of the applicable U.S. Treasury Security specified in the table below and on the cover page of the Offer to Purchase in the column entitled “Reference U.S. Treasury Security.” Holders who validly tender and do not validly withdraw Notes at or prior to the Early Tender Time (as defined below) that are accepted for purchase will receive the applicable “Total Consideration” listed in the table below, which includes an early tender payment of $30 per $1,000 principal amount of Notes accepted for purchase (the “Early Tender Premium“). Holders who validly tender after the Early Tender Time but at or prior to the Expiration Time (as defined below) that are accepted for purchase will receive the Total Consideration listed in the table below minus the Early Tender Premium (the “Tender Offer Consideration”). In addition, in each case holders will receive accrued and unpaid interest on their Notes up to, but excluding, the applicable settlement date.

Pitney Bowes to Focus on Simplifying the Complex for Mailers at 2013 National Postal Forum

By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

Filed under:

Pitney Bowes to Focus on Simplifying the Complex for Mailers at 2013 National Postal Forum

STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– At the upcoming 2013 National Postal Forum, Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYS: PBI) will showcase its latest technologies and services that help mailers simplify the complex challenges they face in doing business. The Forum runs from March 17-20, 2013 at Moscone Center West in San Francisco, California. Pitney Bowes will exhibit at Booth #728.

The Forum is the largest annual gathering of mailing industry executives and companies. The 2013 event will take place against the backdrop of ongoing changes in the mailing industry landscape, and the U.S. Postal Service‘s recent move to require all mail to include an Intelligent Mail® barcode in order to qualify for automation pricing.

In considering the upcoming convention, Pitney Bowes President and CEO Marc Lautenbach said, “There is a tremendous amount of change across the industry, and National Postal Forum is the perfect time for mailers to come together to discuss important topics and explore opportunities to enhance their communications, build stronger client relationships and grow their businesses.”

At Pitney Bowes‘s booth, large, enterprise organizations will see innovative solutions including:

  • New DFWorks® Full Service IMb® Postal Manifesting software, for operations that presort mail before printing, and SortEngine™ Full Service IMb® Sorter Operations Software, for operations that sort finished mailpieces, can help mailers meet the USPS’s Full Service IMb® submission requirements with dynamic manifest, pallet and tray tag creation.
  • A range of mail services solutions including First-Class Mail® and Direct Mail Solutions for Standard Mail® can help organizations reduce mailing costs, increase direct mail response rates, and meet postal compliance such as the new Intelligent Mail® Barcode requirements.
  • White Paper Factory™ Solutions can eliminate preprinted forms and envelopes, streamline print and mail processes, and lower operational and postage costs, while adding greater value to each mailpiece.
  • SendSuite® Live, the first scalable, web-based shipping management solution designed for the desktop, mailroom, or warehouse, can help customers simplify the shipping process, eliminate the confusion of managing shipping costs, provide visibility into their shipping operation, and enable greater efficiencies by integrating into e-commerce platforms.

…read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Here's What Tiger Global, a Hedge Fund Pioneer, Has Been Buying

By Selena Maranjian, The Motley Fool

Filed under:

Every quarter, many money managers have to disclose what they’ve bought and sold, via “13F” filings. Their latest moves can shine a bright light on smart stock picks.

Today let’s look at Tiger Global Management, founded by Julian Robertson in 1980. Robertson, a hedge fund pioneer, reportedly racked up average annual gains of more than 30% in the 1980s and 1990s, and today his fund mainly manages his own money. His style is to go both long and short on stocks, explaining: “Our mandate is to find the 200 best companies in the world and invest in them, and find the 200 worst companies in the world and go short on them. If the 200 best don’t do better than the 200 worst, you should probably be in another business.”

The company’s reportable stock portfolio totaled $5.4 billion in value as of Dec. 31 and contained just a few dozen stocks. Indeed, the top 10 holdings make up about 62% of the overall portfolio’s value.

Interesting developments
So what does Tiger Global‘s latest quarterly 13F filing tell us? Here are a few interesting details.

The biggest new holdings are Starz and FleetCor Technologies. Other new holdings of interest include First Solar . The company has struggled, along with many peers, but bulls have high hopes for its projects in emerging markets such as India and note that it’s one of the lowest-cost installers and has a stronger balance sheet than its rivals. My colleague Travis Hoium thinks the company would do well to shift some attention from serving utilities to residential and commercial work, and that it might even change its financial structure.

Among holdings in which Tiger Global Management increased its stake were 3D Systems and Pitney Bowes . Three-dimensional-printing specialist 3D Systems recently disappointed investors with a strong quarter that just wasn’t as strong as many had hoped. Some worry about cutbacks in military or industrial spending, but there’s also a promising consumer market. Meanwhile, the recent price drop spells opportunity to some.

Long known for its postage-meter business, Pitney Bowes yields a whopping 11.5%. It has been challenged by the growth of electronic communications over mailed communications. On the plus side, though, Pitney Bowes is involved in other less-threatened  and higher-margin businesses as well, such as providing geocoding software to Facebook and others. The company recently posted estimate-topping quarterly results, and its single-digit P/E ratio is enticing, but it does carry some risks and considerable debt, and its hefty dividend may end up reduced.

Tiger Global Management reduced its stake in lots of companies, including Frontier Communications . Frontier offers a tantalizing 9.8% dividend yield, but it’s experiencing shrinking cash flow, steep interest expenses, and revenue drops in its data and Internet services. My colleague Rick Munarriz reminds us that steep yields bear close watching. Indeed, Frontier is paying out more than it’s making.

Finally, Tiger Global‘s biggest closed positions included …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Marsh & McLennan Companies Appoints Helen Shan Treasurer

By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

Filed under:

Marsh & McLennan Companies Appoints Helen Shan Treasurer

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYS: MMC) , a global professional services firm providing advice and solutions in risk, strategy, and human capital, announced today that Helen Shan will join the Company as Vice President and Treasurer.

Ms. Shan’s appointment is effective April 15. In her new role, she will oversee all areas of the Company’s global treasury organization, including capital management, pensions, investments, and cash management. She will report directly to Chief Financial Officer J. Michael Bischoff.

Ms. Shan joins Marsh & McLennan Companies from Pitney Bowes, where she began as Vice President and Treasurer in 2005 and assumed the additional role of Vice President, Finance, along with responsibility for Corporate Development and Investor Relations, in 2010. Prior to Pitney Bowes, she spent 11 years at JPMorgan Securities, where she served in a variety of roles, including Managing Director, Diversified Industries. Ms. Shan began her career as a Quantitative Analyst/Controller at Salomon Brothers.

“Helen is a proven leader whose deep experience and broad financial expertise make her well suited to implement the Company’s long-term growth and capital allocation strategies,” said Mr. Bischoff. “We look forward to her contributions as a key member of the finance team.”

Ms. Shan holds an MBA from Johnson at Cornell University and dual undergraduate degrees from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business and School of Applied Science and Engineering.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

MARSH & McLENNAN COMPANIES (NYS: MMC) is a global professional services firm offering clients advice and solutions in the areas of risk, strategy, and human capital. Marsh is a global leader in insurance broking and risk management; Guy Carpenter is a global leader in providing risk and reinsurance intermediary services; Mercer is a global leader in talent, health, retirement, and investment consulting; and Oliver Wyman is a global leader in management consulting. Marsh & McLennan Companies’ approximately 54,000 colleagues worldwide provide analysis, advice, and transactional capabilities to clients in more than 100 countries. The Company prides itself on being a responsible corporate citizen and making a positive impact in the communities in which it operates. Visit www.mmc.com for more information.

…read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

The 25 Highest-Yielding Dividend Stocks in March

By Dan Dzombak, The Motley Fool

Filed under:

Dividend investing is popular again. Investors have taken to heart Jeremy Siegel’s studies, which show that higher-yielding stocks tend to offer greater returns over time than low- or no-yield stocks.

The highest dividend yields can be very tantalizing. As long as a stock yielding 15% doesn’t lose value, you’ll make 15% in one year! In more cases than not, however, an astronomical yield is a bad sign for a stock. Since dividend yields and stock prices move in opposite directions, a high yield usually means that investors have begun to worry about the business and driven down its stock price.

However, certain types of companies such as REITs have to pay out most of their income as dividends, so their yields will be higher than “normal.” Dividends are not guaranteed; you need to make sure that a business is generating enough cash to pay its dividend, or your investment could be disastrous.

I ran a screen for the highest-yielding stocks, the only limitation I’ve set this time is that the dividend stocks must have a market cap greater than $500 million and must be a corporation, so no REITs or MLPs.

Here are the top 25 highest-yielding stocks the screen produced:

 

Company Name

Market Cap (millions)

Dividend Yield

1

Boise

$860.3

13.80%

2

SeaDrill

$17,629.6

12.00%

3

Windstream

$5,125.4

11.50%

4

Pitney Bowes

$2,750.4

11.10%

5

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock

$580.3

10.40%

6

R.R. Donnelley & Sons

$1,900.8

10.10%

7

Vector Group

$1,442.9

10.10%

8

Wynn Resorts

$11,700.5

9.87%

9

Ship Finance International

$1,410.9

9.53%

10

Frontier Communications

$4,092.9

9.52%

11

Consolidated Communications

$664.2

9.39%

12

National Presto Industries

$521.8

8.65%

13

PDL BioPharma

$977.1

8.60%

14

SouFun Holdings

$1,992.7

8.51%

15

First Financial Bancorp

$896.4

7.90%

16

New York Community Bancorp

$5,909.6

7.41%

17

Werner Enterprises

$1,704.1

7.40%

18

Linn

$1,349.4

7.37%

19

Costamare

$1,214.0

7.05%

20

Capitol Federal Financial

$1,813.3

6.89%

21

HCA

$16,386.9

6.82%

22

VimpelCom

$19,611.6

6.77%

23

United Online

$549.6

6.77%

24

Exelon

$26,881.8

6.70%

25

Giant Interactive

$1,550.4

6.69%

Source: S&P Capital IQ.

These stocks are a good place to start your research, but they’re not formal recommendations.

Let’s take a look at the top 3:

Boise is first with a trailing yield of 13.8%. Boise does not pay a regular dividend; 2012 was the third year in a …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Pitney Bowes Helps Healthcare Providers Avoid Fines by Improving Hospital Discharge Communications

By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

Filed under:

Pitney Bowes Helps Healthcare Providers Avoid Fines by Improving Hospital Discharge Communications

STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYS: PBI) is helping healthcare providers reduce costly and unnecessary hospital readmissions and avoid fines mandated by the Affordable Care Act. The federal law established a readmissions reduction program that is designed to improve care transitions and reduce readmissions by assessing penalties for hospitals that readmit patients who have been discharged within the previous 30 days.

A February 2013 study by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation reported that 20 percent of Medicare patients are readmitted to hospitals within 30 days of discharge. This is driven in part by the fact that 80 percent of hospitals and primary care physicians lack direct post-discharge contact with patients to identify risks and offer a chance for intervention.

By using a collaborative communications system as part of patient discharge plans, providers have a way of controlling and ultimately, reducing the number of hospital readmissions.

The Pitney Bowes Healthpoint 360 Collaborate solution is designed to trigger communications before – and after – the patient discharge process, and it is scalable to hundreds of thousands of patients as they move through the healthcare continuum. Healthpoint 360 Collaborate ensures that all information is accurate and up-to-date, allowing providers to anticipate member needs and next steps for superior follow-up response. This enables healthcare companies to prioritize and personalize member communications across key channels, including contact centers, intelligent voice response phone calls (IVRs), physical mail, email, web portals, social media and mobile.

Healthpoint 360 Collaborate is an end-to-end communications platform that can be implemented modularly. It complements existing investments in care management software and EHR technology, allowing providers to realize greater value from legacy systems. It is also available as a hosted SaaS application.

About Pitney Bowes

Pitney Bowes provides technology solutions for small, mid-size and large firms that help them connect with customers to build loyalty and grow revenue. The company’s solutions for financial services, insurance, healthcare, telecommunications, legal, public sector and retail organizations are delivered on open platforms to best organize, analyze and apply both public and proprietary data to two-way customer communications. Pitney Bowes is the only firm that includes direct mail, transactional mail, call centers and in-store technologies in its solution mix along with digital channels such as the Web, email, live chat and mobile …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Digital River Picks New CEO

By Rich Smith, The Motley Fool

Filed under:

On Friday, e-commerce facilitator Digital River announced that it has poached CA Technologies Executive Vice President David C. Dobson to become its new chief executive officer.

Dobson, a 19-year veteran of IBM , as well as an employee at Corel and Pitney Bowes before moving to CA, replaces DR Chairman Thomas Madison, who had served as interim CEO since company founder and longtime CEO Joel Ronning announced his resignation back in November. Ronning’s resignation preceded a DR report of falling revenues and a third-quarter loss.

Exiting the company he began, Ronning took with him a cash severance of $867,576 along with accelerated vesting of stock awards, together comprising a golden parachute worth $4 million. As for his replacement, Digital River has not yet said what Dobson’s compensation package will be.

The article Digital River Picks New CEO originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Rich Smith has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of IBM. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools don’t all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Copyright © 1995 – 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance