Free Essays on Gods Will For You And Me Vs. Pied Beauty

it makes you feel or it makes you think. To say that sentimentality cannot have a place in a good poem would seem to be an unnecessarily close-minded point of view.... Free Essays on Gods Will For You And Me Vs. Pied Beauty Free Essays on Gods Will For You And Me Vs. Pied Beauty The poems God’s Will for You and Me and Pied Beauty both deal with an individual’s feelings towards God. The writers use feelings of praise towards god, however they express their emotions in very different ways. I believe that the writer of God’s Will for You and Me did a better job than the writer of Pied Beauty. According to Perrine, Pied Beauty is a bad poem. The poem Pied Beauty seems to be very didactic. The writer is trying to preach to you to praise God because of things such as the beauty of nature. The writer is putting forth the idea that all things are subject to change and that no matter how they change there is beauty to be found. However the poem seems to have words strung together that interfere with both the pattern and picture painted in the mind of the reader. It also seems to be choppy or unorganized. However, the writer of God’s Will for You and Me uses words that express the true meaning of the poem. Not only does this poem flow well in the way that any rearrangement would be harmful to the poem but the writer is also very clear in the idea he is trying to get across. I believe that this is a truly good poem. Even though the writer is again trying to express his feelings towards God, he doesn’t seem to preach. He appears to be expressing his own feelings rather than telling the reader how they should feel. For the most part I can see Perrine’s point of view on what makes a poem either a good or a bad poem. However, I do not agree with his views on sentimentality. I believe that one of the key criteria for a good poem is that it grabs you either on an emotional or on an intellectual level. In other words it makes you feel or it makes you think. To say that sentimentality cannot have a place in a good poem would seem to be an unnecessarily close-minded point of view....

Example Sentences of the Verb Know

Example Sentences of the Verb Know This page provides example sentences of the verb Know in all tenses including active and passive forms, as well as conditional and modal forms. Base Form know / Past Simple knew / Past Participle known / Gerund knowing Present Simple He knows a lot of people in Paris. Present Simple Passive The President is known to be in trouble. Present Continuous None Present Continuous Passive None Present Perfect They have known each other for years. Present Perfect Passive The facts in the case have been known since last year. Present Perfect Continuous None Past Simple She knew it was time to leave. Past Simple Passive The story was known by all in the room. Past Continuous None Past Continuous Passive None Past Perfect They had known about the problem before they told him. Past Perfect Passive The problem had been known about by all before they told him. Past Perfect Continuous None Future (will) She will know its you. Future (will) passive You will be known by everybody in the room. Future (going to) She is going to know the answer soon. Future (going to) passive The answer is going to be known at the end of the lesson. Future Continuous None Future Perfect They will have known Jack for twenty years by the end of this month. Future Possibility She might know the answer. Real Conditional If she knows the answer, she will tell you. Unreal Conditional If she knew the answer, she would tell you. Past Unreal Conditional If she had known the answer, she would have told you. Present Modal Andy should know the answer. Past Modal Andy should have known the answer. Quiz: Conjugate with Know Use the verb to know to conjugate the following sentences. Quiz answers are below. In some cases, more than one answer may be correct. They _____ about the problem before they told him.The President _____ to be in trouble.The facts in the case _____ since last year.They _____ Jack for twenty years by the end of this month.If she _____ the answer, she will tell you.The story _____ by all in the room at the trial yesterday.They _____ each other for years.He _____ a lot of people in Paris.If she _____ the answer, she would have told you.She _____ its you. Quiz Answers had knownis knownhave been knownwill have knownknowswas knownhave knownknowshad knownwill know

World History and Cultures Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

World History and Cultures - Essay Example Writing is one of the most important inventions mankind has devised throughout history as without it, history isn’t possible. Oral traditions have long been lauded as having certain significance in carrying forward the ideologies of a given group of people, but, as can be simply proven among even small groups, oral history is not intended to be nor can it be entirely accurate. The story changes with the teller and the facts become blurred with myth. In addition, it can only be preserved for as long as there are people around interested in learning the stories and lore enough to be able to pass it down to the next generation, and a next generation interested in sitting around to hear it. The concept of the written word offers a similar mixture of truth and lies, but offers a means of preserving the history and traditions of a people. The earliest writing, the Sumarian cuneiform, is believed to have developed as a necessary means of keeping business accounts. â€Å"Some time in the late fourth millennium BC, the complexity of trade and administration in the early cities of Mesopotamia reached a point at which it outstripped the power of memory of the governing elite. To record transactions in a dependable, permanent form became essential† (Robinson, 1995, p. 11). However, many scholars do not consider these early forms of pictographs true writing. â€Å"Writing only started when an organized system of signs or symbols was created that could be used to clearly record and fix all that the writer was thinking, feeling, and capable of expressing† (Ouaknin,1999, p. 18). This definition seems too broad, though, as many poets and writers will attest that there simply aren’t available words to express all that they are ‘thinking, feeling and capable of expressing’. This form of pictorial record-keeping did seem to have a relatively standard format among merchants and was capable of conveying at least some of the ideas of the writers. It can also be

Business law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Business law - Essay Example The issue in respect of this question requires an analysis of invitation to treat, unilateral offer, offer, acceptance, rejection and past consideration. Each of these elements would be discussed and an evaluation in line with the facts would be made. An offer has been defined as an expression of willingness by one party known as the offeror, to contract or be bound on stated terms, provided that such terms are accepted by the party to whom the offer is made that is the offeree. The courts have distinguished between an offer and an invitation to treat, this is because the latter is merely an expression of willingness by one party to enter into negotiations and so is not unconditional and there is a lack of intention. Invitation to treat has been defined as an expression of willingness of a party to enter into negotiations with another with the hope that a contract would be reached at the end of such negotiations. (Fisher v Bell)1. As for advertisements, it has been strictly said to b e an invitation to treat (Partridge v Crittenden)2, however, the courts have interpreted advertisements in a manner which allows for certain exceptions to be created and the main reasons for that has been cited to be intention to be bound and certainty (Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Co.)3. Further, the advertisement of an auction sale is generally only an invitation to treat (Harris v Nickerson)4. The opinions as to when an offer is made have differed. The next issue that would be looked into is acceptance which is defined an unequivocal assent to the terms that has been proposed by the offeror. The general rule for the acceptance of an offer is that the offer should be accepted unconditionally and must be communicated to the offeror. ( Holwell Securities v. Hughes5) . However, there are a number of exceptions to the rule of communication of acceptance and one of them is the highly criticised postal rule. The rule has been criticised because of the adoption it took despite the vario us option that were available to it. In Adams v Lindsell6 it was held that the acceptance takes place when the offeree posts the letter of acceptance. Instantaneous modes of communication has lately been scrutinized by the courts (Lord Wilberforce in Brinkibon Ltd. v Stahag Stahl GmbH), the courts have been supportive of the fact that communication should be made to the offeree and he must have knowledge of that in respect of instantaneous mode of communication. As far as the advertisement that has been placed by Mary is concerned it can be said that it is clearly an invitation to treat and cannot in any way be construed to be a unilateral offer as there is no intention in that respect. In respect of the information that she provided to Rose it was merely an invitation to treat whereby she discussed that she would reduce price and so there was no offer in that respect. In respect of the message that had been left by Rose of the 800 pound, it can be said that that was an offer which had been made by Rose. As far as acceptance was concerned, Mary did try to make the acceptance, but the problem that arises in that respect is the fact that there had been a problem in respect of the instantaneous mode of communication and so the communication did not take place and therefore the acceptance is not effective. In the case of Matthew it can be said that he did not make an offer was it was conditional upon him receiving the payment from his father and therefore does not satisfy the criteria for a valid offer to be existent. In respect of silence constituting to be acceptance it has been an accepted phenomena that silence cannot constitute to be acceptance. (Felthouse v. Bendley)7 . Considering the decision on silence, the act of John leaving the cheque and silence of Mary would not lead to an acceptance. Furthermore, the actions of Mary destroying the cheque also go against the notion of acceptance by conduct and therefore no acceptance has taken place. As far as past c onsideration is concerned, the courts have clearly laid down the fact

Good human development indicators and globalization in Kerala Essay Example for Free

Good human development indicators and globalization in Kerala Essay Introduction Thesis: Globalization has caused more problems than advantages to the state of Kerala Much has been written about globalization and its effects on our world. In fact, no corner of the modern world, except in some extreme cases, has escaped the good and bad effects of globalization. On the brighter side globalization involves an increased openness in the international business relations, an integration of markets on a worldwide basis, and a movement toward a borderless world. The sources of globalization are varied and include the technological advances and liberalization of trade policies brought into force over the past decades. Of all the effects of globalization, the chief source effect is the technological advances that have significantly lowered the costs of transportation and communication and dramatically lowered the costs of data processing and information storage and retrieval. Electronic mail, the Internet, and the World Wide Web are some of the manifestations of this new technology. While these are the more evident aspect of globalization, the meeting of minds across the constraints of culture and language has also become a reality The impact of globalization and internationalism on society is also huge. Today everybody talks about the ‘global village’ and nations on either side of the globe are just hours away from each other. Cities are expanding by the hour and the new technologies that are impacting us are creating a unified world culture; what many would like to call as the brave new world. In retrospect, is this new culture based on bravery or untamed consumerism? World cultures are being annihilated by the wave of crass consumerism and scant regard for values. The populations of today have lesser family values and more internal strife, which threatens to tear apart social order. Violence due to the lack of family and supportive values are reducing a whole generation to waste. People are being tempted to think beyond their means, and the end result is that the family has become the casualty. Today we have individualistic aspirations and the feeling of I is strongest in people. The stress on We is almost non-existent. Economically also, there is a terrible imbalance in the world. We see a few nations that are well off economically and the majority does not have enough even to feed their people. We see increased migrations from poor populations to rich economies. Lack of economic power compels these migrants to be dominated by the rich and the influential. One of the many advantages of globalization is the fact that cultures across the world could interact with each other and help each other in integrating with each other. It is only natural that such interactions and the inculcation of modern ideas and interaction will bring about so many changes that come into conflict with the existing norms and belief systems of a society. In fact, the ability to assimilate productive changes and the capacity to discard beliefs that are detrimental to the interest of the society are the essential qualities of a good social order. If a society allows itself to be dominated by beliefs that are not in tune with the needs and aspirations of the changing times, one cannot say that it is a progressive society. On the other hand, it must also be said that a society that is open to change without considering the detrimental effects that such a change can make in the long run will not add quality to that society. Hence, ideally there needs to be a balance between age old ideas that form the foundation of the society on which modern progressive ideas needs to be implemented The position of Kerala in the world scenario The tiny state of Kerala, which is located in the southern most end of India, has a place of its own in the global map of developed regions. In many respects, this tiny spec of land and its population has been able to assimilate the good values of globalization while mostly rejecting its evils even though the undesirable effects of globalization are for everyone to see in the state. The so-called ‘Kerala Model of Development’ was a few years before a role model in developing and shaping a society. (Devi, Lakshmy K R, (2002). Education, Health and Women’s Empowerment – Kerala’s Experience in Linking the Triad). Kerala has demonstrated that social development is not always linked to economic superiority. Many human development indicators in Kerala are in par or above international standards and all of them cannot be attributed to globalization, which is a relatively new happening in India. For example, Kerala’s infant mortality rate comes close to Ireland, which leads the world in this respect (Richard, Douthwaite. (2002). Kerala and Quality of Life – Interesting Richard Douthwaite Article). Similarly, life expectancy is much higher than some of the advanced nations of the world. There are many other factors, both social and political that has helped the state achieve a level of human development indicators that matches the best nations in the world. Progressive redistribution measures like land reforms, and a wide network of the public distribution system has helped the state lay a strong foundation of social upliftment (Franke, Richard W and Chasin, Barbara H. (1995). Kerala State: A Social Justice Model). Similarly, welfare oriented policies of the state government, especially with regard to education and minimum wage, and the role of a socially engaged population has also helped the state to achieve a place of its own in the global scenario. (Akash, K apur. (1998). Poor but Prosperous. Jean, Dreze and Amartya, Sen. (2002). India: Development and Participation). It should also be noted that Kerala, which has only a fraction of the buying power of most advanced nations, has been able to devise a culture that utilizes its resources in an efficient manner. The one single factor that has made Kerala such a success story is perhaps the level of education that Keralites enjoy. With a 100 percent literacy rate and a high level of women literacy, it is not a surprise that Kerala has been able to assimilate the good effects of social and individual development. (Antrobus, P. and Christiansen-Ruffman, L. (1999). Women Organizing Locally and Globally: Development Strategies, Feminist Perspectives. Lourdes, Beneria and Gita, Sen. (1997). Accumulation, Reproduction and Women’s Role in Economic Development: Boserup Revisited). Effects of globalization in Kerala It must be said that globalization has affected Kerala in both good and bad ways. Even though Kerala has been able to resist some of the destructive effects of globalization, it is not immune to the thrust that globalization has been having on the state. The most important aspect of globalization is that the state has become a hotspot for consumerist tendencies. Evidences indicate that the state is more a consumer than a producer. Agriculture is almost dead in the once thriving green belt of India and over exploitation of resource is the norm of the society. With a high percentage of Non Resident Indians who are responsible for one of the largest foreign remittances in the world, it is not surprising that the economy of the state is more and more dependent on its citizens working abroad than within it . In the job sector, the state has not been able to provide the required levels of employment to its youth and this has in turn affected the social milieu of the state. The increasing social unrest is often attributed to dissatisfied informed youngsters who wants to match their facilities in par with the modern world, but do not have the means to do so. Â  Criticism has also been raised on intellectual property rights and other similar issues, which are also a fallout of globalization. The western world is in a hurry to patent many processes and medicines, especially the indigenous system of medicine in Kerala called Ayurveda, in spite of the fact that these systems have been transferred across many generations in the state. Recently, farmers in Kerala protested against WTO practices that prevented them from conducting their traditional farming practices. All this indicates that the process of globalization in not smooth in the country and that there is much resistance to change from within the state. The potential of Kerala in the new world Experts opine that Kerala, with its unique resources, both natural and human, have certain potentialities to match the increasing effects of globalization. (Nair, A. Balakrishan. (1994). The Government and Politics of Kerala. Structure, Dynamics and Development). The core difference between a manufacturing industry and a service-oriented industry is not only restricted to the way in which business is carried out, but also extends to various dimensions such as its organizational culture. Companies that have made a transition from a predominantly manufacturing-industry attitude to a service-industry attitude have had to adjust to the phenomenal changes in attitude and culture that goes along with the change. Perhaps, the most important factor that comes into play is how human resources are attuned to respond to the challenges posed by such transitions. Companies that have undergone the transition can provide knowledge on the change to companies that are planning for such a change. A service oriented organization has to create, manage and advance its cultural values in order to cope up with the specific challenges that are posed to it by factor such as location and local culture. It is in this context that cultural values in Kerala attain significance with regard to service-oriented institutions. Within the past two decade, Kerala has increasingly cemented its position as one of the ‘must-see’ tourist locations in India. Kerala, which was rather obscure to the foreign tourist and even to the Indian traveler, shot into fame only about 10-20 years ago because of a concerted effort by the state government and private operators. The state, which had, and still has, a lot of unexploited tourism potential is one of the most popular destinations in the world and each year an ever increasing number of people are flocking into this state to relish its beauty and rich varied culture. Tourism, which has developed into an industry status in the state has attained the status because of globalization. It is believed that tourism is one of the most prominent symbols of globalization in the state. In terms of other factors that encourage business, a survey by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) (Kerala government policy. (2006)), which covered 18 states in India, indicates that Kerala stands 13th as far as its investment climate is concerned. However, Kerala ranks first in law and order and education, and ranks high as far as affluence and social sector are concerned. All this indicates without doubt that Kerala has all the potential to attract foreign investment. However, recent event shows that that consumer debt is increasing since the past decade or so. More advertisements that speak about debt consolidation and take-over of existing debts are a definite indicator of the amount of debts that the average consumer owes to different credit companies in the country. Debts in the farm sector, which has been the worst hit industry because of globalization, is increasing and recently Kerala reported many deaths due to poverty and debts. Many experts believe that bad credit management happens because people are carried away by the features that are offered by modern financial institutions. (Pillai, P. Gopinadan. (1999). Left Movement and Agrarian Relations in Kerala). Kerala’s stature with regard to globalization Detractors of globalization argue that much has changed in the state that had been a model of development to the world. Today, reports show that the economy of the state is in tatters and that the advantages that the state had in terms of social equality and distribution has been whiled away. Advantages that the natives had gained as an agrarian and self-reliant economy had been wasted in favor of consumerist attitudes. Social and political indicators point to the fact that the state has undergone a sea change in terms of development and expansion. Today, Kerala is a tourist hub and is developing in a manner that is similar to other third world tourist destinations such as Thailand and Singapore. The social system has broken down and people are no more connected to each other as a few decades before. Kerala is unique politically because it had instilled one of the first democratically elected communist regimes in India. It must be said that the spirit of the communist ideology is fairly deep rooted in the state. The ideologies of the pioneers of the communism in the state are also largely responsible for the social improvements that the state has so far witnessed. The communists in Kerala, as in other parts of the world are strictly against globalization and capitalist motives in the state. They argue that globalization takes away a lion’s share of autonomy and that the effects of globalization will further deepen the divide between the deprived and the affluent classes. The loss of autonomy, especially in the farm sector, as evidenced by the recent global against the WTO regimes lends credence to the argument of the communists in Kerala. The communist ideology that globalization, which they infer as hegemony of capitalist nations over poor countries, will deepen the divided between the poor and the affluent is also true to some extent considering the fact that open market policies and regulations, which are by products of globalization will remove a lot of protection that investors used to enjoy previously. Other challenges in maintaining social welfare in Kerala Ironically, economic factors are one of the major facts that could affect social welfare in the state of Kerala. Without the flow of money that critics attribute as the ill effects of globalization, social order in Kerala will be very much affected and governments will find it difficult to maintain social order in the state. For example, many experts have mentioned that Kerala in its zeal to maintain its position with regard to health and education has incurred huge deficits that cannot be easily solved without the advantages of globalization. Similarly, the ageing population of Kerala will cause productivity to drop in the near future and it will become mandatory to attract and retain young blood in the state to take care of its own resources and guide development in the state. Globalization has also helped to rectify some of the past mistakes of the leftist governments who were also responsible for driving the winds of change in the society. Conclusion The state of Kerala has been able to so far select the advantages derived from globalization and reject most of the bad effects it might bring to a country’s overall economy. However, it will not be long before the state will start succumbing to pure market-oriented practices that can destroy the carefully created social advantages the state enjoys today. The advantages that the state enjoys today as a model state is not a fallout of globalization, but were achieved even much before foreign investors invested in independent India. The general degradation of quality in many aspects of social life and the huge cultural changes that the state is going through can be directly attributed to globalization. Hence, it is imperative that globalization is accepted in it right perspective and applied in order to ensure that the state maintains its inherent advantages while becoming a global role model in many more spheres. The state has much to offer in terms of both its rich cultural heritage and highly proficient workforce but if it doesn’t stride in the right path, the negative effects of globalization might hamper its economical and social progress. Work Cited Devi, Lakshmy K R, (2002). Education, Health and Women’s Empowerment – Kerala’s Experience in Linking the Triad. Department of Economics: University of Calicut. Franke, Richard W and Chasin, Barbara H. (1995). Kerala State: A Social Justice Model. Multinational Monitor. India: Open for Business. 2 Mar. 2007 http://multinationalmonitor.org/hyper/mm0795.08.html. Akash, Kapur. (1998). Poor but Prosperous. The Atlantic Online. 2 Mar. 2007 http://www.theatlantic.com/issues/98sep/Kerala.htm. Antrobus, P. and Christiansen-Ruffman, L. (1999). Women Organizing Locally and Globally: Development Strategies, Feminist Perspectives . London New York: Zed Books. Lourdes, Beneria and Gita, Sen. (1997). Accumulation, Reproduction and Women’s Role in Economic Development: Boserup Revisited. Nova Scotia: Fernwood Publishing Company Ltd. Jean, Dreze and Amartya, Sen. (2002). India: Development and Participation. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Ester, Boserup. (1970). Women’s Role in Economic Development. London: Unwin Ltd. Richard, Douthwaite. (2002). Kerala and Quality of Life – Interesting Richard Douthwaite Article. 2 Mar. 2007 http://legalminds.lp.findlaw.com/list/ecol-econ/msg03825.html. Gemma, Cairo. (2001). State and Society Relationships in Kerala: Explaining the Kerala Experience. Asia Survey. 41 (4): 669-692. Nair, A. Balakrishan. (1994). The Government and Politics of Kerala. Structure, Dynamics and Development. Thiruvanthapuram: Indira Publications. Kerala government policy. 2 Mar. 2007 http://www.kerala.gov.in/annualprofile/ind.htm. Pillai, P. Gopinadan. (1999). Left Movement and Agrarian Relations in Kerala. The Eastern Anthropologist. 15 (3): 237-246.

Invisible Man Essay: Puppet or Puppeteer? :: Invisible Man Essays

Invisible Man: Puppet or Puppeteer? Â   Â   One could argue that we are all merely puppets, or dolls, doomed to dance by invisible strings - never realizing who pulls the strings. Ralph Ellison's novel, The Invisible Man is fraught with images of dolls as if to constantly reminded the reader that no one is in complete control of their life. Â   The first example of doll imagery comes very early in the novel with the Battle Royal scene. The nude, blonde woman is described as having hair "that was yellow like that of a circus kewpie doll" (19). Ellison draws a very strong connection between the plight of the Negro man and the white woman. The fact that they are both shown as puppets or dolls in the work is no coincidence. The woman and the African are merely show pieces for the white men in the novel. Â   Tod Clifton's dancing Sambo dolls are the most striking example of doll imagery. This small tissue paper doll has the capability to completely change the Invisible Man. When he sees that the powerful and enigmatic Clifton is the one hawking the abominable dolls, the narrator is so filled with humiliation and rage that he spits upon the dancing figure. But what is it that has caused this surging of fury? It is Tod Clifton and not the narrator who has degraded himself to such a base level. However, it is our narrator's sudden comprehension of his own situation that causes his wrath. The line "For a second our eyes met and he gave me a contemptuous smile" (433) illustrates this moment of realization for our narrator. It shows the reader that Tod Clifton was aware of his position as a puppet all along and chooses to enlighten the narrator at this particular point in the novel. Â   The Invisible Man recognizes that all his life he's been a slave and a puppet to others. Whether those others were Bledsoe, his grandfather, or the brotherhood is irrelevant, but there has always been and imperceptible string attached to him governing everything he does. Not only a string but his own physical characteristics echo those of the grotesque Sambo dolls. Â   It's cardboard hands were clenched into fists. The fingers outlined in orange paint, and I noticed that it had two faces, one on either side of the disks of cardboard, and both grinning.

Financial Statement Analysis of Amazon.Com

Financial Statement Analysis of Amazon. com, Inc. Introduction The purpose of this essay is to perform financial statement analysis on Amazon. com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN ). We start with an introduction of Amazon and its industry. We then evaluate the company’s financial position, liquidity, operating capability and financial flexibility using different ratios. To evaluate the financial performance of Amazon. com, Inc we disclose recurring NICO and do full ROE disaggregation. Amazon. com’s stock price increased from $44. 29 per share at the end of fiscal year 2004 to $134. 2 per share at the end of fiscal year 2009. Earnings per share increased from $0. 63 to $2. 06. The stock closed at $118. 87 on 02/01/2010. Recommendation Amazon. com is a fast growing E-Commerce company. Although facing the recent U. S. and global economic down turn and intense competitions from various industries, its sales increased 28% in 2009, diluted earnings per share increased 31%. Based on our a nalysis, we project the company to continue maintain the high growth rate. We project the two year target price range of Amazon’s stock to be $193 to $209. The stock is currently undervalued. Consequently, our recommendation of Amazon. com is BUY. Industry Analysis Amazon. com, Inc. is an American-based multinational electronic commerce company. Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, Amazon was founded in 1994. As one of the largest online retailers in the world, Amazon claims to offer â€Å"Earth’s Biggest Selection†. In addition to online retailing, Amazon also offers programs that enables seller to sell their products on Amazon. com and to fulfill orders through Amazon. It earns fixed fees and revenue share fees etc. hough those transactions. Amazon turned its first profit in the fourth quarter of 2001 and maintained high growth rate since then. We believe that the below are the key factors important to the future success of Amazon. com: * Successful in efforts to expand into international market segments – Amazon needs to further expand internationally to maintain its sustainable growth. * Successful in optimizin g fulfillment process and operating its fulfillment centers – Amazon needs to continue to expand and optimize the operation of its fulfillment centers. Successful in finding new revenue streams – Amazon needs to seek new ways to diversify revenue generation and drive its overall growth. * Manage growth effectively – Amazon’s global expansion increases the complexity of the business. Financial position, liquidity, operating capability and financial flexibility Financing structure of Amazon. com Table 1 summarizes how Amazon. com was financed as of each of the last 6 fiscal year ends. As of December 31:(in millions) | | | | | | | 2009| 2008| 2007| 2006| 2005| 2004| Operating liabilities| $ 8,447 | $ 5,233 | $4,006 | $ 2,685 | $1,929 | $ 1,620 | Financing liabilities| 109 | 409 | 1,282 | 1,247 | 1,521 | 1,855 | Equity| 5,257 | 2,672 | 1,197 | 431 | 246 | (227)| Total Assets| $13,813 | $ 8,314 | $6,485 | $ 4,363 | $3,696 | $ 3,248 | | | | Table 1| | | | Amazon’s fixed assets additions steadily increased between fiscal year 2004 and 2009. Its possession of marketable securities increased each year other than 2007, which was due to the anticipation of an acquisition in 2008. At the same time, Amazon. om has been aggressively paying off its long term debt. Its debt continues to decrease between 2004 and 2009. The debt to total assets ratio dropped from 57% in 2004 to only 1% in 2009. Between 2006 and 2008, Amazon repurchased total 17 million shares of common stocks. Overall, Amazon. com shows good financing structure and operating capability over the past five years. Buy decreasing its debt level, Amazon’s management team shows well ou t looking of the company. Liquidity Three liquidity ratios of Amazon in the past 5 years are presented in table 2. The liquidity ratios of Amazon’s competitor, Ebay, are also presented for 2008 and 2009. The three liquidity ratios show Amazon has very good liquidity, which means it could easily satisfy current liabilities with current assets. Comparing to Amazon, Ebay is even more liquid as it could satisfy its short term liabilities purely by cash and cash equivalents. | | Amazon. com| |   | eBay| | | 2009| 2008| 2007| 2006| 2005| 2004| 2009| 2008| Current Ratio (to one)| 1. 33| 1. 30| 1. 39| 1. 33| 1. 52| 1. 57| 2. 32| 1. 70| Quick Ratio (to one)| 1. 04| 1. 00| 1. 07| 0. 99| 1. 22| 1. 27| 2. 32| 1. 70| Cash Ratio (Acid Ratio) (to one)| 0. 86| 0. 79| 0. 84| 0. 80| 1. 04| 1. 10| 1. 10| 0. 86| | | Table 2| | | | | | Financial Flexibility Financial flexibility (Solvency and leverage) is a company’s ability to adapt to unforeseen events and opportunities. Leverage means using debt (or other third party funds) to increase earnings for the owners. Table 3 presents some financial flexibility and leverage ratios of Amazon. com from 2005 to 2009 and for Ebay from 2008 to 2009. Amazon. com is a fast growing company and in the fiscal year ended 2004, they had a negative total equity, which could skew the ratios. Therefore, we did not present the ratios in 2004. From table 3 we can see that at the end of fiscal year 2009, both Amazon. om and eBay have high financial flexibility due to low or even zero long-term debt. Their usages of leverages are both low. Although a company should try to use leverage to increase earnings for the owner, in the current economical environment, have low or zero long-term debt is actually an advantage, which means they don’t need to rely on creditors to maintain their high growth rate. Overall, Amazon. com has good operating capability, high liquidity and high financial flexibility. One thing to note is that in the current economy environment, while a lot of companies are seeking for credit yet they could not find it, Amazon. om is using cash to paying off its debt. This shows that the company’s operation is healthy and the management team is confident about the future growth of the company. | | Amazon. com|   | | eBay| | 2009| 2008| 2007| 2006| 2005| 2009| 2008| Financial Leverage| 2. 8| 3. 8| 6. 7| 11. 9| 365. 5| 1. 4| | Debt to Assets| 1%| 5%| 20%| 29%| 41%| 0%| 0%| Debt to Equity| 2%| 15%| 107%| 289%| 618%| 0%| 0%| Debt to Capital| 2%| 13%| 52%| 74%| 86%| 0%| 0%| Liabilities to Equity| 1. 63| 2. 11| 4. 42| 9. 12| 14. 02| 0. 34| 0. 41| Liabilities to Assets| 62%| 68%| 82%| 90%| 93%| 25%| 29%| | | | Table 3| | | | Operations and Profitability As shown in Table 4, we reconciled Amazon’s NICO as reported to â€Å"recurring NICO† for 2004 – 2009. The diluted net earnings per common share – as reported and â€Å"recurring NICO† per common share are included too. We also included similar reconciliation for Ebay’s fiscal year 2009. Table 5 shows the complete disaggregation of profit margin and return on equity. From the ROE disaggregation we can see that between 2004 and 2009, Amazon. com maintained a gross profit margin between 22% and 24% and operating margin between 3. 6% and 6. 4%. Especially, since 2007, its operating margin stabilized at around 4. % with a slight increase in 2009. Its profit margin steadily increased 0. 2% each year from 3. 3% to 3. 7%. Amazon. com’s ROE decreased over the years due to their pay back of most of their debt. Overall, Amazon. com maintained stable operating efficiency in recent years. At the same time, its overall profit efficiency is in a sli ght uptrend. Amazon. com has negative operating cycle, which means Amazon doesn’t pay its suppliers until after it receives the payment of the sales. Therefore, Amazon doesn’t need to hold much inventory while it can hold the money for a longer period of time. This is the advantage of the online retailing. Its operating cycle decreased from -27. 58 days in 2006 days to -37. 16 days in 2009, which shows improved operating efficiency over the years. Amazon. com’s operating margin and profit margin both were pretty stable with a slight increase in 2009. We expect its profitability continue to maintain at the same level or slightly increase. Amazon. com’s operating cycle and Asset Turn Over Rate both continue to drop in the past three years (annual rate around 20% and 5% separately), which shows its improvement in operating efficiency. We expect Amazon. com continue to improve its operating efficiency. Table 4 Table 5 Business and Investment Risks As a result of our analysis, we discovered the following business and investment risks that could result in downgrading of Amazon’s stock. Intense competition – Amazon’s business is intensely competitive. It has many competitors in different industries, including retail, e-commerce services, digital content and digital media devices, and web services. The intense competition has corresponding negative impact on prices, which in turn would hurt profit margins. For example, to compete with Apple, Amazon has to lower the price of its Ebook reader – Kindle. Weakening of the U. S. or global economies — A softening of demand caused by a weakening of the U. S. or global economies may result in decreased revenue or growth. Taxation Risks – Currently, Amazon doesn’t collect sales or other taxes on shipments of most of its goods into most states in the U. S. This situation could change in the future due to regulation changes. This could decrease its ability to compete with traditional retailers. Growth Potential and Recommendation As a fast growing company, Amazon. com has a diluted recurring NICO per common share CAGR of 27% over the past five years. The diluted recurring NICO per common share increased 35% in 2009. The sustainable growth rate in 2009 was 23%. We expect Amazon to continue to maintain its growth rate. Therefore, we project the future growth rates of Amazon to be between 25% and 30%. The two year target diluted recurring NICO per common share would be between $3. 22 and $3. 48. We project Amazon’s P/E ration will be around 60. Therefore, the two year target price range for Amazon would be $193 to $209. The closing price of Amazon. com on 02/01/2010 was $118. 87. As the result of the above analysis, our recommendation of Amazon. com is BUY.