Happy Monday!

I know we’ve been gone for a week, and I sincerely apologize to those who may have perished due to the heartbreak of not seeing us last week. We are so back, so get ready to dive into this week’s episode.

In this week’s rundown:

• Biden Alliteration: Buybacks might be no more… higher taxes?

• Visa: I like to use Mastercard to spend money, so why not use Visa to make it?

• Levels: Can you ever really have enough job hunt resources?

• Muck Time: Where’d Josh eat this week?

Career Compass

Market Changes

Good Morning, and welcome to this week's finance section. Last week, there was no D&D because I forgot to write my section, which led to our smart, charming, funny, and talented president firing me. However, it’s a new week, and I decided to rehire myself, so here’s the latest. 

Biden Says Bing Bong to Buybacks: This year, public companies lined their pockets and had an almost record-setting year of shares bought back at 815 Billion. With predicted expected earnings for next year hovering around 2022’s record of 950 billion, Biden wants to increase corporate tax on buybacks from 1% to 4%. The economic justification for this policy would be incentivizing companies to use their extra profits to reinvest into economy-boosting practices like expansions, new hires, etc, instead of share buybacks. 

Pfizer bets on curing cancer: OK, that was mostly bait, but it’s kind of true. Over the past few months, Pfizer has unveiled its pivot to oncology and respective drugs to build back its success after the plummet in demand for COVID-19 products last year. It’s coming at a time of need for the company after it recently cut 4 billion dollars of its spending budget by reducing its staff and certain R&D projects. Pfizer’s share price dropped nearly 40% in 2023, so this pivot is essential to restoring investor confidence. 

Copping Carbon: Big Oil, in pursuing ways to produce energy at net zero emissions, has been investigating carbon capture and storage(CSS) over the past few years. The practice would allow carbon dioxide extraction from high-emitting facilities like factories/energy production and then storage or repurposing without affecting the environment. Unfortunately, this is far from being implemented, as engineers find it difficult to create systems that can do this efficiently. Compared to “pushing water uphill,” it’s safe to see that we won't see CSS as the sole solution to net zero anytime soon, but it could help our efforts in the future. 

Apple Car did not Car: Apple has been rumoured to have had an electric vehicle in design for many years but recently announced that it will cancel its plans to move forward with the project. After 1 Billion dollars invested, partnerships with Volkswagen, and many leaked designs/mockups; consumers were disappointed that the project was canned. However, Apple is focusing on other projects, such as developing the vision pro and its new AI, instead of putting resources into an industry where competitors are so far ahead. 

Market Updates:

• S&P 500: +7.42%

• NASDAQ: +7.15

• Dow Jones: +2.74

• Sak:+80,000% (we are so up) 

• Bonds: -2%

MF’n DND

VISAAAA

This week, we will talk about how to spend money on the way you spent money: Visa. Their recent performance on top of Danelfin AI's (AIAIAIAIAIAI - this means it is awesome and never wrong) bullish outlook is about to elevate your investment game.

Visa's Market Prediction: A Golden BUY Signal

Our financial crystal ball (courtesy of Danelfin AI) has spoken, and it's up for Mastercard. With an AI Score that's through the roof (9/10, folks!), Visa stands tall with a BUY rating. Why, you ask? Because this behemoth of the payments world has an over 41% chance of outshining the S&P 500 in the next quarter. That's a juicy +8.49% over the average Joe stock.

Visa Buy Signals: A Track Record of Triumphs

Looking back to October 2023, Visa's BUY signals lit up charts in green, symbolizing money moves. Expect a +5.03% price path within a 90% confidence interval (you should know this one) in the coming months. With 1219 BUY signals since January 2017 and a stellar 76.78% win rate, Visa's not just playing the game; it's setting the rules.

Visa's Trading Blueprint

• Entry Price: Buckle up at $283.

• Time Horizon: 3 months of thrill.

• Stop Loss: $272

• Take Profit: Aim for the stars at $319, or bail if the AI Score falls.

Why Visa, Though?

Top 10 alpha signals are in Visa’s corner, particularly its chart pattern over the last 180 days, where they have outperformed the market in 57.09% of the cases. This is a solid market outperformance marker, putting Visa in the 99th percentile.

Visa isn't just another company; it's the heart of the global payments system. With VisaNet at its core, it clears, authorizes, and settles transactions faster than you can swipe. Founded in 1958 and headquartered in San Francisco, Visa's narrative is one of relentless pursuit of payment perfection.

Academic Alley

Levels.fyi

Finding a job is the most mind-numbing, torturing experience I have had in the last little while. Thankfully, those who have been around slightly longer than us have had the same struggles and are trying their best to give us a helping hand. I was recently put onto levels this week (shoutout Tej), and it’s one of the more comprehensive job sites I’ve taken a look at.

Their interface speaks for itself. They have tons of data on different positions and fields, and it is easily the coolest way to compare salaries and compensation for different companies and positions within the company. Here’s their rundown on what they do:

Introducing the most powerful way to search for a job. We've designed our Jobs page from the ground up to make it easy for you to find interesting roles. Some highlights:

💰  TC Estimates - Levels.fyi Total Compensation (TC) estimates inline

🔍  Powerful filters - Including total compensation, level, benefits (ex. 401k, maternity leave, etc.), company size and several more!

⬇️  Relevant sorting - Sort by pay, relevance or date

🏢 Company grouping - Jobs grouped by company to simplify your application process

✋ No spam - No agencies or other job posting spam

✍️  Summaries - Company summaries to find work you're passionate about

Click the link above and take a look when you have a chance! They’ve done a really good job on building this project, and I am looking forward to the many, many, many, many hours I will be spending here in the near future.

STUDENT LIFE

Real Estate Run-Down

After spending hours and hours learning how to value stocks, bonds, and long-term investments for my 298 midterms, I'm so glad I can turn my attention back to my favourite asset: Real Estate! So, where does the value come from in real estate, and how do you know if you're sitting on a surprisingly valuable piece of land?

Real Estate Appraisal

Realtors use 3 main approaches to valuing real estate in BC:

1. Direct Comparison Approach: This approach is extremely simple: Take a property similar in utility and function and adjust for minor differences until you feel that you've reached an accurate valuation.

2. The Cost Approach: (Site Value + Cost of Improvements—Depreciation = Market Value). Site value is the raw market value of the land without any improvements, such as buildings, landscaping, fencing, etc. Depreciation is the slow decay of value due to multiple factors, such as wear/tear, inflation, and outdated practices.

3. Income/Investments Approach: This approach is most frequently applied to income-producing properties. Like the Direct Comparison Approach, it involves finding the net operating income, which in turn gives your yield on investment. Your property's value can be based on properties with similar yields.

Joey’s Pick of The Week

• 1 Bed

• 1 Bath

• $1950/month

• 500sqft bedroom

I know what you're thinking...and yes, it's expensive. Hear me out; this is arguably one of the nicest places you'll find on campus regarding quality of living. It's so new that Google Maps still shows an incomplete house. You get all utilities included for the hefty rent, plus the added benefit of living 30 seconds from the Bus Loop on foot. You won't understand the price until you look at the pictures because it is NEW. Not to mention, the sheer amount of space you get in the living room is absurd. Personally, I could probably stack ten dudes in there and live pretty comfortably, but maybe that's just me.

Social Ledger: Get Sipping

This week, we have a big day coming up. For the college student, this day hits the closest to the long-lost joy of Christmas morning as a child. You know exactly which day I’m referencing. I’m talking about the day in which it’s not only acceptable but encouraged to stumble out of a bar at 3:30 PM in the afternoon on a quest for a new disposable vape before throwing up all twelve pints of beer you’ve consumed over the last four hours. This is what we rational business students refer to as “living the dream.” If this sounds like a dream you’d like to live (which it should be, in moderation, of course), then look no further than the D&D team favourite, PORTSIDE. This isn’t the first or second time we’ve written about this place, but that’s for good reason. I’m personally thrilled to see what my favourite Friday night spot looks like in the middle of the afternoon. During their St. Patty’s Day Darty, you can catch a full Irish vibe from 3:00 PM - 2:00 AM at this Gastown classic. If you’re planning on being anywhere else this day, hmmmm. Don’t.

TLDR:

• Who? → Irishmen, irishwomen, PBR enthusiasts

• What? → St. Patty’s Day - Portside Style

• When? → Sunday, March 17, 3:00 PM - 2:00 AM

• Where? → The Portside Pub, 7 Alexander Street

• Why? → Never Ask This Question Again

• How? (much) → $10000000004.72

Social Ledger: Non-Sipping

A little unorthodox, perhaps, but I figure there’s no harm in following the trend of class-less business students partaking in classy activities to stroke their precious little egos. This time around, as an homage to the fine arts with which today’s students are so closely attuned, I present Candlelight Concerts by Fever Events to you. This unique offering of classical music experience spans across several global venues, including Kerrisdale Presbyterian Church in Vancouver! At each location, multiple classical twists on modern musical staples are available over the weeks. This week, we have Candlelight offerings of tributes to Taylor Swift, The Beatles, Nirvana, and Rihanna. Yes, you can indulge in the pure tranquillity of this atmosphere while listening to a rendition of something that sounds like a Mozart cover of Rihanna’s “Love on the Brain.” Have you heard of anything more romantic? Anyways, check out a picture of this. Crazy times we live in.

TLDR:

• Who? → You and the gyal on a lil sumn classy ;)

• What? → Candlelight Classical Tribute Concerts:

• When? → 

  Taylor Swift

  • March 14, 9:30 PM

  The Beatles

  • March 15, 7:30 PM, 9:30 PM

  Nirvana

  • March 16, 7:30 PM

  Rihanna

  • March 16, 9:30 PM

• Where? → Kerrisdale Presbyterian Church, 2733 W 41st Ave

• Why? → For the aesthetic story post

• How? (much) → $50-80/ticket

Social Ledger: Good Eats

Sushi Abroad

I’m a sucker for good sushi. I also happen to be a sucker for good sushi that’s delivered to me on a cool mini-sushi train while I polish off my previous roll. If this resonates with you, I implore you to check out Sushi Aboard. Located on Denman Street in Downtown Vancouver. This restaurant offers an immersive experience beyond the high quality of its food. Here’s how this works. You get a cool iPad thing to order sushi on. You order sushi on it. As quickly as a minute later, the sushi bullet train comes darting by the side of your table, stopping for you to take your food before picking up its next delivery. It’s creative. It’s innovative. It’s immersive. It’s…genius? I don’t know why I was so enamoured with this setup, but it’s unlike anything I’ve experienced before at a sushi restaurant, or any restaurant for that matter, and puts all the other sushi robots that walk around to shame. The food is affordable for what you get, and you fill up much quicker than you initially anticipate. In my humble opinion, the quality is about what you expect when you go out to any other sit-down sushi restaurant in Vancouver, which is “good.” This place stands out by delivering experience, and at the end of the day, is that not what we’re all looking for?

Josh’s Official Rating: 4.5/5 Big Man Ting’s

TLDR:

Who? → Your girlfriend will love this (assuming she is a rational-minded person who enjoys sushi and also finds the prospect of a sushi delivery train alluring)

What? → Sushi Aboard

When? →

Sunday: 12:00 PM - 8:45 PM

Monday: Closed

Tuesday - Thursday: 12:00 PM - 2:30 PM, 4:30 PM - 8:45 PM

Friday - Saturday: 12:00 PM - 9:15 PM

Where? → 1047 Denman St

Why? → It’s sushi delivered to you on a train…any other stupid questions?

How? (much) → $20-$30/person

WRAPPING UP

Andddddd - we are done!

Sorry we missed u guys last week. Hopefully you missed us too ^_^

Please send your hate mail below.

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