oceandude

Microsoft / Yahoo: Dead? Dithering? Drunk?

If MS walks away Yahoo will be swamped with shareholder lawsuits, as they should be.

A Speculative Yahoo Options Play

The only flaw in your plan is assuming Yahoo management cares about the shareholders.

Yahoo's Jerry Yang Needs To Get On With It

So basically you want leadership out of Jerry Yang?

Good luck with that.

Microsoft Bides Its Time While Yahoo! Panics

Employees don't get severance if they leave for any reason. There are specific criteria that must be met, mainly around a change in job function or location.

A Beautiful Mind: Microsoft over Google

The article's idea is laughable. It assumes Microsoft can actually make *brand new* things that consumers want.

Could someone please tell me what great new stuff Microsoft has released in the last 10 years? Perpetual derivatives of Windows and Office don't count.

Eight Search Engine Stocks to Answer All of Your Questions

Why do you list current P/E for all of these except forward P/E for IACI?

Yahoo's Yang Sticks It to Shareholders and Employees

Wrong again. The severance is for everyone. The only difference is that you get more paid severance time the higher up you are.

Microsoft's Proxy Bid for Yahoo is a Bluff

But investors must also realize that the longer this drags out the less Yahoo is worth. MS wants Yahoo's engineers but these folks are certainly leaving steadily the longer this drags out. Plus Google must love this distraction (that reminds me - need to buy some Google).

I do agree that MS and Yahoo will offset each other for institutions owning both. It is logical then that they should vote towards whichever stock they have a bigger interest in. Own more Yahoo? Vote takeover. Own more Microsoft? Vote against. What are the numbers exactly?

Microsoft's Proxy Bid for Yahoo is a Bluff

No, I think this logic is flawed. No one is selling now because of the possibility of a higher deal, but if the proxy bid fails the stock will drop like a rock. Not only will Yahoo be sued but also those large institutional investors themselves.

It's simple. They can currently hold on and MAYBE get more. If MS is not bluffing about the proxy battle, worst case they vote pro-MS and get the $29/share. If they sell now, yes they get the same amount, but they lose the possibility of the few bucks a share MS might throw at Yang to save him face.

In other words, sell now: definitely $29/share. Hold and vote MS: definitely $29/share and maybe more. Why wouldn't you choose the latter?

Yahoo's Yang Sticks It to Shareholders and Employees

You've made two errors.

1. It's not "any good reason" like you say. The "good reason" must meet specific criteria defined by Yahoo, and these are not trivial.

2. It's really crappy that execs get longer severance than ordinary employees, but ALL employees get accelerated stock vesting. That's pretty nice and you didn't mention it.

Yahoo's Future: The Employee Perspective

You obviously don't know much about Yahoo culture. The phrase 'bleed purple and yellow' is thrown around pretty often. Despite a lot of folks leaving in the past couple years there are still many people who are quite loyal. And again: not all the engineers are in Silicon Valley! Not sure why I have to keep mentioning this.

Yahoo's Future: The Employee Perspective

I keep hearing remarks like: "Microsoft is not a Valley company."

That's funny in a search advertising context, since Yahoo's Search Advertising group isn't in the Valley either. They are in Burbank, CA (Southern Cal) -- the result of Yahoo's Overture acquisition.

Yahoo is in a no-win situation. All three major options are depressing to employees.

1. Microsoft buys Yahoo. Ick. "Real" engineers hate Microsoft.
2. All deals fall apart. Stock slides back to 18 or so. Shareholder lawsuits filed. Believe me, Yahoo employees don't care about the stock's "upside". They want the highest price for their options, now. Plus the lawsuits would be a huge distraction.
3. Outsource to Google. Basically this would be giving up. Not much worse for employee morale. And what happens to all the employees replaced by Google? Pink slips?

The News Corp. thing is okay, except it will probably massively overvalue MySpace. It's obvious to everyone under 25-30 that Facebook is far superior to MySpace. Frankly I think MySpace started it's decline in 2007. And what's so great about MySpace anyway? Google themselves complain about the advertising revenue from it.

Yahoo is simply in a very tough spot.

Stocks Furthest Above, Below Their 50-DMAs

title of first chart is wrong

Microsoft Should Call Yahoo's Bluff and Refuse to Raise Its Bid

I don't think MS will completely drop their offer. That would be an excellent negotiation tactic, but it will drag out the deal for quite a long time (since you also have to allow time for regulatory approval). Meanwhile Ballmer knows Google will keep chugging along.

I do agree that $34/share is a fair price. In the long run MS would be better off paying $34/share amicably than dragging out a boardroom war.

Microsoft Should Call Yahoo's Bluff and Refuse to Raise Its Bid

I don't get this "why would MS bid against themselves" argument.

Hasn't anyone ever tried to buy something that is NOT for sale? Say you go to a garage sale and the guy has something in his garage you want. It's not for sale. You make an offer anyway. It is refused. You up your offer. Are you bidding "against yourself"? NO! You are simply trying to buy something that does not have a sale price. How is this any different?