HOW TO BUY INTO APPLE'S STOCK SURGE


As we all wait for the iPad 3 (HD) to hit the streets in March, investors are watching as Apple stock (NASDAQ:AAPL) continues to hit new high notes.
The price of Apple's stock closed near $536 today and will likely continue its upward swing as major investors take advantage of the frenzy and its momentum.
While the stock is pricey for the small investor it may be wise to take a position in the voice recognition technology that drives SIRI for the iPhone. Nuance (NASDAQ:NUAN) is the company that drives that technology for Apple and a host of other companies. It's priced at about $27 a share and is a multi-billion dollar company in its own right.
Nuance is also rumored to be a potential acquisition target by Apple, IBM or Microsoft.
I tracked both Apple and Nuance stock for the last 5 years. The chart below reflects the almost parallel trajectory for both stocks, noting that Nuance (red) lags behind Apple movement by about a week.

Click to enlarge
Note: These are my own observations which may or may not be predictive of future stock prices. As a matter of record I maintain positions in both Apple and Nuance as of this writing.

IS IT TOO LATE?


Have we gone too far to trust the house of cards in whose hands we place our private lives?
Yesterday I was given to understand that banks are now scanning Facebook pages to qualify you for a loan. If they sense your activities through postings, comments and photos are questionable as a loan risk, you just might not get that loan or a great rate.

It is now standard practice for HR departments to do the same when applying for a job.

Unfortunately, what happens online stays online … forever. Online actions have consequences that can haunt from cradle to grave and beyond. The need to connect and share with “friends” is often so intense that it’s easy (especially for younger generations) to lose sight of what can become devastating consequences.

Cyber bullying has become all too common thanks to the Internet flaming and spreading hurtful posts faster than they can be stopped. The trend needs to be arrested before more kids follow in the footsteps of those we already lost.

The social networks have a responsibility to protect their user base on many levels. It’s unfortunate that the business of collecting our data (most often in circumventing ways) completely overshadows the need to protect us. Week after week we read that Google, Facebook, Twitter, Apple, Verizon and others have overstepped privacy concerns in an effort to track our online movements and locations.

It will not stop. Data of every size, shape and form has become the currency of choice for all online services. The stakes are too high. Witness the current explosion of Big Data and Cloud computing companies chased by VCs like it was during the pre-bubble days. VCs are tripping over themselves to share the spoils.

In 1984, Big Brother was too far off to be a concern. Today, what we read in 1984 was child’s play.


FROM THE MOUTHS OF BABES



It is often said that we can all learn much from children. Their naivety and wonder of the world that surrounds them can be contagious if we allow it.

The video that follows speaks volumes to the impact brand marketing has on the innocent.

I believe you'll enjoy it and begin to think a bit differently about your own world.