“Disclaimer: I own Microsoft stock,” Ben Brooks reports for The Brooks Report.
He’s employee number 30 and has been with Microsoft since mid-1980. In 2000, after nearly 20 years of service, Microsoft promoted Steve Ballmer to Chief Executive Officer,” Brooks writes.
“It seems rather obvious that Microsoft is on a downward trend, but is that accurate?” Brooks asks.
Let’s look at a chart…
Brooks writes, “In business school the first thing they teach you about CEO’s is: it is the CEO’s job to increase the shareholder value of the company. Since taking the position Ballmer has decreased shareholder value, as reflected by stock price, by -56.63%. That. Is. Not. Good.”
“I think it is appropriate at this time to start the countdown of how long Ballmer has left until he ‘steps down,'” Brooks writes. “This Skype deal should be the final nail in the coffin for the Ballmer era at Microsoft, yet I fear that employee number 30 may get a reprieve.”
MacDailyNews Take: We pray for it. Ballmer’s doing a great job!*
Brooks writes, “The scariest thought isn’t Ballmer remaining in power — it’s who his successor may be. My guess is that it is another long time employee (calling #40), but that would be a worse decision than letting Ballmer blow money on hookers and Skype.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: *Killing Microsoft.
Disclaimer: For all we know Ballmer T. Clown is a fine family man** and the only money he’s blowing is on Microsoft products and idiotic, panicked acquisitions.
**Besides brainwashing his kids to use Zunes.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Fhoxh” for the heads up.]
Guessing that the suspicion that the largest holder of M$ stock is actually M$ has nothing to do with Ballmer not being fired. What do you want him to do, fire himself?
“I Like our strategy. I like it a lot”
It’s interesting to compare the value of $100,000 invested in both Apple and Microsoft starting in 1990. As a point of reference, Steve Jobs returned to Apple in 2007. Bill Gates handed over the reigns to Steve Ballmer in 2000.
Apple stock on jan 1, 1990 adjusted for splits was $8.70 and on Dec 31, 1999 $25.70
$100,000 invested in 1990 at $8.70/share buys 11,494 sharees. That $100,000 investment grows to $295,402 on December 31, 1999.
Those same 11,494 shares held until today would be worth $4.25 Million.
____
Microsoft stock was worth 51 cents a share adjusted for splits on Jan 1, 1990. $100,000 invested would have bought 196,000 shares of stock.
Those 196,000 shares were worth $46.16 on December 31, 1999 or $9 Million.
Those same 196,000 shares are worth $27.24 today or $5.34 Million.
____
Now suppose you were an investing genius and held your Microsoft investment through Bill Gates tenure as CEO, and then switched to Apple stock on Jan 1 2000. You would have sold your Microsoft stock for $9 Million and used those funds to purchase about 350,000 shares of Apple. Those shares would now be worth $129.6 Million.
Suppose you didn’t have $100,000 and could only have afforded a $1000 investment in1990. That $1000 would now be worth $1,295,720
Now why didn’t I think of that at the time?
WWWHHHOOOOOOOSSSSHH !!! That’s the gigantic toilet bowl whooshing Bomber down the pipes with the rest of this dinosaur’s company……. glug… glug… glug….