How Will the 2012 Presidential Election Affect Stocks?

Another even-numbered year rolls around, and this time its presidential election season. As it stands, it appears that either Barack Obama will be elected for a second term, or a Republican challenger, likely Mitt Romney, will be the next president of the United States.

So how will either outcome of the 2012 presidential race affect the stock market?

Divided Government in 2012

As it stands, it appears that the Republican party will take the US House and Senate, regardless of the outcome of the presidential election. Should Republicans win the House and or the Senate, it would lead to a lame duck presidency for Barack Obama, dividing government control between two parties.

Divided government has historically been very good for stocks. The reason is fairly obvious no one party controls the government and therefore very few major changes are expected in public policy. Obamas health care reform, which passed with Democratic majorities, for example, would likely not become law if Republicans had control of the House and Senate.

When it comes to stocks, investors like predictability.


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5 Tax Planning Tips to Use Now

Savings Accounts and Money Market Rates provided by 16 December 2011

Only a fraction of people prepare as much as they should for tax season. I was burned last year by not saving enough money to pay in April. Jackson Hewitt has decided to give us a few tips so that we are all better prepared.

  • Save more for retirement – By increasing retirement plan contributions, you can reduce your income for tax purposes. Taxpayers can contribute up to $16,500 to a 401(k), 403(b) or Federal Government Thrift Savings Plan; those over age 50 can contribute an additional $5,500.
  • Prepay January payments in December – Taking care of your January mortgage payment, 4th quarter state tax estimate, or winter semester tuition now lets you claim these payments on your 2011 tax return.
  • Get to the doctor – If you are holding off on a major medical procedure until after the holidays, stop procrastinating and make an appointment now to increase your 2011 medical expense deductions.
  • Give to charity – Giving cash and non-cash donations to charity can give back on your taxes. And vol


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How to Value a Dot Com Stock

One of the hardest parts of investing is valuing a company. Valuing a company requires that you know a lot about the business – you have to know enough to know the future income potential, risks, and the expected return you want from your investments.

This is only made more complicated when it comes time to value a dot com company – an online company. Recently, Yelp.com had an IPO and was valued at $1.3 billion, even though the company has never made money itself.

Valuing Unprofitable Companies

Most new companies that IPO on the stock market are new online companies that may or may not be profitable. In most dot com IPOs from 2011-2012, investors were required to place a value on a company that was not turning a profit. This makes valuing the companies really hard, since there’s no history of profits to tell you how much the company can make in the future.

In an ideal world, all internet companies would eventually turn profitable. Investors believe that the review site Yelp will be able to turn a profit when its advertising revenues increase, and its costs of business decrease. Histo


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Zynga Said to Demand Return of Stock Options

Savings Accounts and Money Market Rates provided by 11 November 2011 Popular online gaming company Zynga faces an unexpected scandal in advance of its upcoming initial public offering after The Wall Street Journal accused the company of forcing workers to return stock options.

Like many other technology startups, Zynga attracted higher quality employees by offering a company shares in place of higher wages. However, the company hoped to avoid a situation where early employees wound up with far more in stock than their work merited, so The Journal reports that the company began demanding some employees give up their rights to unvested stock or be fired.

The news source suggests that the practice could open up Zynga to potential lawsuits and also threatens an important foundation of Silicon Valley.

Fortune, however, portrays the practice differently, noting that Zynga makes a habit of offering under-performing employees an opportunity to step down in the company rather than being fired. If they were fired, they would lose the right to unvested stock regardless, but the lower position would not normally merit such compensation.
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Get All Your Queries Answered By Payday Loan Providers

Get All Your Queries Answered By Payday Loan Providers

Payday advance is a hassle free facility and it allows you to connect with a lender for a loan in your area. This application takes just a few minutes to process and is not very complicated. But there are people who have lots of queries in their minds regarding such loans. So it is better to try and contact the lenders for all queries regarding payday loans. The most common frequently asked questions of the borrowers are:

What is a payday loan?

Payday loan is a short-term loan as the borrowers are usually expected to pay back as soon as they get their next pay check. Such a loan is perfect for short duration emergency needs.

Who is qualified to apply for this loan?

This loan is for all those who are rejected by the credit card companies and banks. In short, everyone can apply to get payday loans.

What are the basic requirements?

The borrower must not be young and should at least be 18 years old, employed for the last 6 months before applying and must have a fixed monthly income.
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