Bartle Doo Article Archives

Global Colocation Solutions Provider CyrusOne Launches Service Advantage Platform

April 18, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

From: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2013/04/18/global-colocation-solutions-provider-cyrusone-laun/

Filed under: Investing

Global Colocation Solutions Provider CyrusOne Launches Service Advantage Platform

Offers self-service capability for customers and enables enhanced facility, IT, and network services management

DALLAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Global colocation solutions provider CyrusOne (NAS: CONE) has launched the CyrusOne Service Advantage program, which unifies CyrusOne’s global organization—including employees and customers—behind a single IT service management (ITSM) platform that enables anytime, anywhere management of employee and equipment resources and services.

Customer requests for assistance and services will route from the online CyrusOne Service Advantage portal to the appropriate internal teams for follow-up. Similarly, CyrusOne employees can use the service to request IT department assistance, order new equipment, or prepare for employee onboarding.

The Service Advantage program seamlessly manages CyrusOne’s back-office operations, which includes architecture for incident, change management workflows. The goal is to use the online portal to bring better efficiency and improved customer relationships across multiple regions.

CyrusOne has partnered with BMC Software to commission the software as a service (SaaS) version of its Remedy-on-Demand platform, which was introduced globally earlier this year.

“We are pleased to have one ubiquitous platform to manage our facilities, IT, and network services work across our customer base,” said Michael Duckett, chief operations officer, CyrusOne. “The BMC platform offers a self-service capability that empowers customers to open their own tickets, request services from facilities, and track the status of these items online.”

“Sharing a system for both customer and employee needs will improve our reporting capabilities and drive opportunities for process improvement throughout our organization,” said Chris Opat, vice president, corporate IT systems, CyrusOne. “We are also pleased that CyrusOne technician Randy Abercrombie, who works in the Hamilton, Ohio, data center, coined the ‘CyrusOne Service Advantage’ name.”

Best-in-Class Facilities and Networks

CyrusOne specializes in highly reliable enterprise data center colocation, engineering facilities with the highest power redundancy (2N architecture), and power-density infrastructure required to deliver excellent availability. In March, the company launched in Texas the first statewide Internet Exchange (IX) in the country, connecting all major sites in Austin, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. The CyrusOne Texas IX enables customers to connect to their own enterprise-owned facilities, and to third-party facilities, within a metro and city-to-city to seamlessly engage the full ecosystem of business partners, content providers, networks,

Tutor Perini Joint Venture Selected for $985 Million California High-Speed Rail Design-Build Contrac

April 17, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

From: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2013/04/17/tutor-perini-joint-venture-selected-for-985-millio/

Filed under: Investing

Tutor Perini Joint Venture Selected for $985 Million California High-Speed Rail Design-Build Contract

SYLMAR, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Tutor Perini Corporation (NYS: TPC) , a leading civil and building construction company, today announced that its joint venture’s bid, valued at approximately $985 million, was recently identified by the California High-Speed Rail Authority (Authority) as the “apparent best value” for the design and construction of the initial Madera to Fresno segment of the California high-speed rail system. The Authority’s Board of Directors is expected to approve the design-build contract for this project in the coming weeks. Once the contract is awarded, Tutor Perini‘s portion of the contract value will be added to the Company’s backlog.

Tutor Perini is the managing partner of the joint venture team, which includes Zachry Construction Corporation of San Antonio, Texas and Parsons Corporation of Pasadena, California. Initial work on this project is planned to begin by July 2013. The project is anticipated to create more than 1,000 construction jobs per year over its four-year duration.

Ron Tutor, Chairman and CEO of Tutor Perini, said, “We are very pleased to be selected for the design and construction of the nation’s first high-speed rail project. Our team brings expert resources and a long history of successfully completed mega-scale rail and transit projects. This project will lay the groundwork for California’s new modern transportation infrastructure while providing a much-needed economic boost to the Central Valley.”

For more information about the California High-Speed Rail project, visit www.cahighspeedrail.ca.gov.

About Tutor Perini Corporation

Tutor Perini Corporation is a leading civil and building construction company offering diversified general contracting and design-build services to private clients and public agencies throughout the world. We have provided construction services since 1894 and have established a strong reputation within our markets by executing large complex projects on time and within budget while adhering to strict quality control measures. For more about Tutor Perini, please visit www.tutorperini.com.

About Zachry Construction Corporation

Rooted in 85 years of experience, Zachry Construction Corporation was formed in 2008 in a realignment of the Zachry family enterprise. The company’s legacy includes more than 5,500 public and private sector projects across the country and around the world. From the Dallas “High Five” Interchange to the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, Zachry Construction Corporation

Global Colocation Solutions Provider CyrusOne Sponsors InnoTech San Antonio

April 17, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

From: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2013/04/17/global-colocation-solutions-provider-cyrusone-spon/

Filed under: Investing

Global Colocation Solutions Provider CyrusOne Sponsors InnoTech San Antonio

DALLAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Global colocation solutions provider CyrusOne (NAS: CONE) today announced participation at InnoTech San Antonio, the Business & Technology Innovation Conference & Exposition. CyrusOne is a gold-level sponsor of the 10^th Annual North San Antonio Chamber of Commerce CIO Panel, in addition to having a booth (#104) at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center. Tom Bosse, vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary at CyrusOne, is also scheduled to speak at InnoTech.

“We are pleased to be involved in this impressive event that attracts a full spectrum of CIOs, IT directors, managers and business owners dedicated to technology and business innovation,” said Scott Brueggeman, chief marketing officer, CyrusOne. “We welcome the opportunity to learn from participants while showcasing our state-of-the-art data center solutions and sharing insights about the benefits that our data centers offer to businesses of all sizes.”

CyrusOne’s Tom Bosse will add legal insight from a data center perspective to the panel discussion, “Legal Aspects of the Cloud and SaaS.” The session, which will delve into legal issues surrounding a move to the cloud and/or software-as-a-service (SaaS) models, is scheduled from 2:10 p.m. to 3 p.m. in Room 001A of the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center.

In its sixth year, InnoTech San Antonio is the region’s largest business-to-business technology event, assembling the leading business and technology executives in the region for a day of answering IT issues, sharing real-world case studies, and showcasing the latest products and solutions to support business.

Best-in-Class Facilities and Networks

CyrusOne specializes in highly reliable enterprisedata center colocation, engineering facilities with the highest power redundancy (2N architecture), and power-density infrastructure required to deliver excellent availability. In March, the company launched in Texas the first statewide Internet Exchange (IX) in the country, connecting all major sites in Austin, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. The CyrusOne Texas IX enables customers to connect to their own enterprise-owned facilities, and to third-party facilities, within a metro and city-to-city to seamlessly engage the full ecosystem of business partners, content providers, networks, carriers, Internet service providers, and Ethernet buyers and sellers.

CyrusOne has designed 24 carrier-neutral colocation facilities across the United States, Europe, and Asia that give customers the flexibility and scale to perfectly match their specific growth needs. The data center provider is renowned for exceptional and personalized customer service and for building enduring

Articles of Interest

Lakers Beat Spurs Without Kobe Bryant, 91-86 (VIDEO)

April 15, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

By The Huffington Post News Editors

LOS ANGELES — An empty chair sat in front of Kobe Bryant‘s locker Sunday night, and the Los Angeles Lakers realized they would have to fill it together.

With their playoff hopes likely on the line against powerful San Antonio, the Lakers cobbled together a group effort that kept them in the hunt.

Can Toyota's New Tundra Challenge the Ford F-150 and Chevy Silverado?

April 14, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

By Adam Levine-Weinberg, The Motley Fool

Filed under: Investing

Back in February, Toyota Motor unveiled the third generation of its Tundra full-size pickup, which will make its debut in September for the 2014 model year. Let’s take a look at how it might stack up against similar offerings from the big names in Detroit.

While Toyota has become a force to be reckoned with in the U.S. car market over the past few decades, it’s had much more trouble breaking into the full-size pickup segment. Ford has been the segment leader for a long time with its F-150 pickup, and General Motors is a strong second with its Chevy Silverado. (If you include the Silverado’s twin, the GMC Sierra, GM‘s total market share in the segment is similar to Ford’s.) Chrysler Group lags well behind Ford and GM in terms of market share, but its Ram pickups still have the No. 3 market share spot locked up.

The new Tundra makes some modest performance improvements over the previous version, but the interior redesign is far more impressive. However, truck owners are known for being very loyal to their favorite brands, so Toyota faces an uphill battle to grow its market share. Nevertheless, I believe Toyota may offer significant discounts to drive higher volume. In today’s price-conscious world, this strategy could be successful and drive a significant market-share increase for Toyota, at the expense of the Detroit Three.

Tundra’s long road
The full-size pickup segment offers very high margins compared with the auto industry as a whole, which explains why Japanese automakers have tried to break into this business. Toyota opened a new manufacturing plant in San Antonio to produce the second-generation Tundra back in 2007 and hoped to sell 200,000 per year. It was favorably reviewed, won the Motor Trend “Truck of the Year” award, and nearly met its sales goal in 2007. However, the collapse of the housing market shortly thereafter drastically reduced sales; last year, Toyota sold barely 100,000 Tundras. By contrast, Ford sold more than 645,000 F-Series trucks in 2012.

Clearly, the loyalty of longtime Ford, Chevy/GMC, and Dodge/Ram truck owners puts a limit on the Tundra’s market share. Still, Toyota did gain substantial market share back in 2007 when the last-generation Tundra hit the market. Furthermore, while Toyota hasn’t provided a specific sales goal, executives have said they expect the Tundra’s sales growth to outpace overall segment growth this year, even though the new Tundra won’t hit the market until the fall.

Going for luxury
The main area where Toyota has made significant improvements over the previous generation is in the luxury pickup segment. Toyota is offering many more upscale options on the 2014 Tundra, including two different premium grades — the Platinum and 1794 edition. The fastest-growing segment of the pickup market has been for luxury trucks retailing for $40,000 or more, but Toyota hasn’t previously offered that level of luxury. With the new high-end Tundra models, Toyota is using high-quality leather and

From: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2013/04/14/can-toyotas-new-tundra-challenge-the-ford-f-150-an/

Science & Technology

Long UFO Over Yellowstone Park, Wyoming back in 2008, MUFOM Report.

April 14, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

By ScottCWaring

Date of sighting: 7-18-2008

Location of sighting: Yellowstone, Wyoming, USA

Date submitted: 4-10-2013

Source: MUFON Case #46723

Eyewitness states:

Our family was on the way to Colter Bay RV park. My nephew was taking pictures of the beautiful Grand Teton Mountains. He noticed object on camera screen. He showed me the camera and I instructed him to continue taking pictures. We never heard or saw anything visual in the sky. All we had was the actual photograph of an object. On the way home, we stopeed in Roswell. We showed it to the museum. They asked when it was taking and stated they had sightings at that same time. They gave us Mufon in San Antonio paperwork. Time passed and we did not think much of the incident.

From: http://www.ufosightingsdaily.com/2013/04/long-ufo-over-yellowstone-park-wyoming.html

News, Politics, Government

Trial to start in Zetas cartel racehorse case

April 13, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

One of Mexico‘s most powerful and violent drug cartels intended a racehorse-buying operation to be a clandestine means of laundering its illegal proceeds in the United States, prosecutors say.

But the millions of dollars spent — sometimes in the form of duffel bags stuffed with cash — on horses named with names such as Number One Cartel and Mr. Ease Cartel, it wasn’t long before authorities learned of the alleged scheme and reined it in.

The federal investigation resulted in indictments last year against 18 individuals. Now, at least four of the accused in the money laundering scheme, including the brother of two of the top leaders of the Zetas drug cartel, are set to go on trial Monday in an Austin federal courtroom.

The trial, which could last up to six weeks, is expected to offer insight into the internal workings of the Zetas, as well as highlight what some cartel experts say was a rookie mistake by an organized crime outfit: drawing attention to yourself.

“It’s just sort of flashy, ostentatious behavior that is not smart if you are involved in organized crime,” Howard Campbell, a professor of anthropology at the University of Texas at El Paso who has studied drug cartels, said of the racehorse-buying operation’s high profile.

Federal authorities have accused Miguel Angel Trevino Morales, believed to now be the leader of the Zetas drug operation, of setting up the horse operation that his younger brother, Jose Trevino Morales, ran from a sprawling ranch near Lexington, Okla. The operation spent millions of dollars buying horses in California, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas, prosecutors said.

Authorities allege Jose Trevino Morales and his wife, who had lived in North Texas before moving to Oklahoma, did not have the means to support the ranch operation, which bought, trained, bred and raced quarter horses throughout the Southwest, and that drug money paid for everything.

Neighbors said those who worked with the ranch spent lots of cash, bought land and made improvements at a time when others in the industry were struggling financially.

Workers at the Ruidoso Downs Race Track and Casino in New Mexico said Jose Trevino Morales‘ stables were known as the “Zetas’ stables.”

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Antonio, which is handling the case, declined to comment

From: http://feeds.foxnews.com/~r/foxnews/national/~3/stmmW-fgX1g/

Midday Report: Blackstone-Owned SeaWorld Readies IPO

April 9, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

By DailyFinance Staff

Filed under: Market News

Getty Images

SeaWorld looks to make a big splash on Wall Street: The theme park operator is going public, probably launching its initial public offering this month.

It will offer 20 million shares, expecting to price them between $24-27 apiece.

The company operates 11 theme parks. There are the three SeaWorlds, located in Orlando, San Diego and San Antonio, and it also owns Busch Gardens, Sesame Place and several other water-themed parks.

Its kingdom includes 67,000 animals, the most famous of which are the Shamu killer whales.

The company is owned by Blackstone Group (BX), the world’s largest private-equity firm. It bought SeaWorld in 2009 from Anheuser-Busch (BUD) for $2.7 billion.

The initial pricing numbers value SeaWorld at about $5 billion dollars.

Blackstone opted for the IPO instead of selling SeaWorld. Both Apollo Global (APO) and Onex Corp. (OCX) had reportedly offered to buy the company.

And the theme park business has been profitable. SeaWorld’s earnings surged to more than $77 million dollars last year, up from $19 million in 2011. Revenue rose 7 percent to $1.4 billion.

The IPO is expected to raise about $500 million. Half will go to Blackstone, half to SeaWorld. It will use the money to reduce debt. Blackstone will continue to be the majority shareholder.

And theme park stocks have been doing quite well. Six Flags (SIX) has soared 60 percent over the past year and Cedar Fair (FUN) has gained 41 percent.

Blackstone launched a successful IPO last month: Pinnacle Foods (PF). It’s the maker of Duncan Hines, Birds Eye and other well-known brands. Its stock has jumped 20 percent since it was launched late last month.

But there are risks. SeaWorld notes in its SEC filing that economic conditions can hurt attendance, which declined in 2009 and 2010 due to the global economic crisis.

In addition, SeaWorld also noted the risks of featuring animals. In February 2010, a trainer was killed by a whale during a performance.

But SeaWorld is a popular and profitable brand that will probably draw a fair amount of interest when it debuts here at the NYSE.

-Produced by Drew Trachtenberg

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AmREIT Announces First Quarter 2013 Earnings Release Date and Conference Call Information

April 8, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

Filed under: Investing

AmREIT Announces First Quarter 2013 Earnings Release Date and Conference Call Information

HOUSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)– AmREIT, Inc., a Houston based real estate company that has elected to be taxed as a real estate investment trust, will announce its first quarter 2013 earnings in a press release to be issued on Tuesday, May 7, 2013 after the market closes.

The conference call for the first quarter earnings will take place on Wednesday, May 8, 2013, at 11:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). To participate in the conference call, please call 1-888-317-6016 approximately 10 minutes before the scheduled start time. The conference call will be recorded and a replay of the call will be available via webcast shortly after the call concludes.

The conference call will be webcast live at www.amreit.com and can be accessed under the Investors tab of the Company’s website. The complete earnings release and supplemental data package will be located in the Investor Relations section of the website on the quarterly earnings page.

A telephonic replay of the conference call will be available for 14 days following the conference call. To access the telephonic replay of the conference call, dial 1-877-344-7529 and enter passcode 10027417.

About AmREIT, Inc.

AmREIT believes it has one of the highest quality grocery and drugstore anchored retail portfolios in the REIT sector. AmREIT’s 28-year old established platform has localized acquisition, operation and redevelopment expertise in the most densely populated and affluent submarkets of five of the top markets in the US: Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Austin and Atlanta. Texas is one of the best performing economies in the country and 91% of AmREIT’s income is generated by its properties that are located in this market. AmREIT’s core portfolio was 96.7% occupied as of December 31, 2012, and its top five tenants included Kroger, Landry’s, CVS/Pharmacy, H-E-B and Publix. AmREIT has access to an acquisition pipeline through its value add joint ventures, including three leading institutional investors who partner with the company as local experts. AmREIT’s shares are traded on the NYSE under the symbol “AMRE.” For more information, please visit www.amreit.com .

AmREIT, Inc.
Chad C. Braun, 713-850-1400
cbraun@amreit.com

KEYWORDS: United States North America Texas

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS:

The article AmREIT Announces First …read more

Retrophin Sponsors Seventh International NBIA Disorders Association Family Conference

April 8, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

Filed under: Investing

Retrophin Sponsors Seventh International NBIA Disorders Association Family Conference

Overview of RE-024 for PKAN presented

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Retrophin, Inc. (OTCQB: RTRX), a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of orphan drugs for the treatment of rare and life-threatening diseases for which there are currently no viable patient options, today announced that it sponsored the Seventh International NBIA Disorders Association Family Conference, which was held April 4-7 in San Antonio, TX.

“We are proud to have been part of this important conference that brought together patients with neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation disorders, their families, and the medical community,” said Martin Shkreli, founder and chief executive officer of Retrophin. “It was a wonderful opportunity for us to spend time with children who have PKAN, a devastating ultra-orphan pediatric disease for which our preclinical studies of RE-024 have shown positive results. We look forward to presenting detailed findings at an upcoming scientific meeting.”

On Saturday, April 6, Suzanne Jackowski, PhD, principal investigator of the preclinical studies, presented an overview of RE-024 for PKAN. The presentation is available at www.retrophin.com.

PKAN is an inherited, progressive and fatal neurodegenerative disease. Symptoms of PKAN vary but often include ataxia, dystonia, and a general failure to thrive. Onset usually occurs before 10 years of age and typically results in premature death. While the exact incidence of PKAN is uncertain, it is estimated to affect one to three per million people worldwide. There is currently no FDA approved treatment for PKAN. ^{1, 2}

¹ National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/nbia/nbia.htm

² Genetics Home Reference: http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/pantothenate-kinase-associated-neurodegeneration

About Retrophin

Retrophin is a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of orphan drugs for the treatment of rare and life-threatening diseases for which there are currently no viable patient options. The Company is currently focused on several catastrophic diseases affecting children, including Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), Pantothenate Kinase-Associated Neurodegeneration (PKAN), Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and others. Retrophin’s lead compound, RE-021, is scheduled to begin enrollment in a potentially pivotal Phase 2 clinical trial for FSGS during the first half of 2013.

U.S. Global Finalizes Strategic Investment in Toronto-Based Galileo Global Equity Advisors Inc. whic

April 4, 2013 Bartle Doo Leave a comment

Filed under: Investing

U.S. Global Finalizes Strategic Investment in Toronto-Based Galileo Global Equity Advisors Inc. which Manages Approximately CA$320 Million in Assets

SAN ANTONIO–(BUSINESS WIRE)– U.S. Global Investors, Inc. (Nasdaq: GROW), a boutique registered investment adviser specializing in natural resources and emerging markets, announced today that the company has completed its agreement to purchase 50 percent of the issued and outstanding shares of Toronto-based Galileo Global Equity Advisors Inc. (Galileo).

Effective March 31, 2013, Galileo’s President, CEO and Chief Investment Officer Michael Waring and U.S. Global each own 50 percent of the outstanding shares of Galileo. Waring continues to have overall responsibility for the investment management activities of Galileo, including management of the Galileo Mutual Funds.

U.S. Global’s CEO and Chief Investment Officer Frank Holmes said, “I’m pleased to be partnering with Galileo, as U.S. Global continues to deploy capital resources to make accretive acquisitions as well as repurchase GROW shares on down days.”

As previously disclosed, U.S. Global has been repurchasing outstanding common stock on the open market on down days using an algorithm, following the rules and regulations that restrict the amounts and times when shares can be purchased. The company will reflect the total buyback purchases from the open market with its upcoming 10-Q filing.

About Galileo Global Equity Advisors Inc.

Founded in 2000 by Michael Waring, Galileo delivers investment advisory and portfolio management services to institutional clients including pension funds, high net worth individuals, corporations and trusts. It also manages the Galileo Mutual Funds (www.galileofunds.ca), which are represented across Canada by independent financial advisors. Galileo currently manages approximately 320 million Canadian dollars in mutual fund assets.

About U.S. Global Investors, Inc.

U.S. Global Investors, Inc. (www.usfunds.com) is a registered investment adviser that focuses on profitable niche markets around the world. Headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, the company provides advisory, transfer agency and other services to U.S. Global Investors Funds and other clients.

With an average of $1.68 billion in assets under management in the quarter ended December 31, 2012, U.S. Global Investors manages domestic and offshore funds …read more