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You know that buying a stock makes you part owner of a company, theoretically with millions of other people. But, while ownership has its privileges (at minimum you get a neat stock certificate and an invitation to the annual meeting), being an owner doesn't necessarily pay. Sure, you make money if the stock goes up, but only if you sell, and you can, in theory, lose all the value of your investment if the stock tanks.
Enter the dividend. Here, you get money simply from holding the stock. Companies pay a yield, which is expressed in a percentage based on the stock's price. For example, if a stock trades at $10, and pays a 10% annual yield, your dividend payment would be a $1. (Usually, companies break out the payments quarterly, so, using our example, you¿d get, well, a quarter each quarter.)
Companies that pay dividends fall into a few categories. First, you've got your big, stable companies that generate enough cash that it makes sense to throw some back to shareholders. Next, there are businesses, like real estate investment trusts, that are in the business of sitting back and receiving cash, then distributing it to holders. And, then there are companies that need to dangle a high dividend yield like a carrot to ease investor fears. Cigarette-maker Altria has been doing this for years.
Simply because a company pays a dividend doesn't make it a good investment. After all, you may want to take a chance on a growth stock that can move higher in price than dividend payers are known to do. But, you can¿t beat the safety of knowing that, even if a stock doesn't move in a year, you¿re at least making something off your investment.
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Monday, May 19, 2008
Sprint Nextel Found To Infringe Location Privacy Patents, Announces Dovel & Luner LLP
Comtex
LOS ANGELES, May 19, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) ----Dovel & Luner LLP today announced that a Los Angeles jury has found Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) liable for infringing two patents owned by California company Enovsys LLC. The jury returned its verdict late Friday, May 16, 2008, and awarded Enovsys past damages of $2.78 million.
The patents relate to a privacy system used to protect and manage the disclosure of the precise location of a user's cell phone (e.g., the phone's GPS position). Enovsys had alleged that Sprint Nextel's wireless networks use the patents in managing location-based services provided by the nation's third largest wireless carrier. Testimony at trial showed that Sprint Nextel is the market leader in the growing field of location services and saw a 50% increase in related revenues in 2007 over the prior year.
Inventors Mundi Fomukong and Denzil Chesney applied for the first of the patents in 1997, several years before location services were first offered for cell phones. Enovsys is an intellectual property holding company privately held by inventor Fomukong.
"We appreciate the jury's service in this case and feel they came to a just result. Their verdict will ensure that the Enovsys patents are respected by Sprint and others for the remaining nine years of their term," said Jeff Eichmann, of Dovel & Luner LLP, who represented Enovsys along with Greg Dovel.
SOURCE: Dovel & Luner LLP
Dovel & Luner LLP Greg Dovel or Jeff Eichmann, 310-656-7066
Copyright Business Wire 2008 ********************************************************************** As of Thursday, 05-15-2008 23:59, the latest Comtex SmarTrend� Alert, an automated pattern recognition system, indicated an UPTREND on 04-23-2008 for S @ $7.39. For more information on SmarTrend, contact your market data provider or go to www.mysmartrend.com SmarTrend is a registered trademark of Comtex News Network, Inc. Copyright � 2004-2008 Comtex News Network, Inc. All rights reserved.
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