Most Recent Funding at Mazuma Capital

Cash Hoards are Shrinking at S&P 500 for the First Time since '09 as Obama Continues to Woo CEOs

According to Bloomberg Corporate America is putting its cash hoard back to work.
In the first decline since mid-2009, Standard & Poor’s 500 companies reduced cash and short-term investments to $2.4 trillion from a record $2.46 trillion, according to data Bloomberg compiled from their most recent quarterly reports. Capital spending increased $22.3 billion, the biggest quarter- to-quarter jump since the end of 2004, to $142.8 billion, the highest level in two years.
Budgets are rising for new plants, distribution centers and stores from S&P bellwethers Cisco Systems Inc., General Electric Co. and Coca-Cola Co. While some of the money is being spent abroad, company officials say they are opening the purse strings at home now too. A rebound in economic demand, President Barack Obama’s efforts this year to court business leaders, and Republican gains in Congress have helped build confidence to invest and start adding jobs, executives and investors said.
U.S. companies’ accumulated record cash last year after they slashed spending shut factories and fired workers in 2008 and 2009 to cope with the worst recession since the 1930s.
The dearth of investment took a toll on jobs, with the unemployment rate averaging 9.6 percent in 2010. An increase in spending this year may help lower the rate to 9.2 percent, the average estimate of 87 economists in a Bloomberg poll.

Political Climate

Companies held their cash partly on concern that health- care mandates and increased financial regulation would add costs to their bottom line.  Business confidence has improved and is contributing to some increased risk appetite. The economy last year grew 2.9 percent after shrinking 2.6 percent in 2009.

Profit, Not Presidents

Obama backed a compromise to extend tax breaks that were set to expire in December and a measure to accelerate equipment depreciation. He has countered executives’ criticism with a call to lower corporate taxes, freeze federal spending and review “outdated and unnecessary” regulations. In return, at a Feb. 7 speech to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, he asked companies to invest and create more jobs at home.

 ‘Good for the Economy’

The Bloomberg data examined the most recent quarterly figures reported by S&P 500 companies, regardless of the specific calendar period. About 75 percent have reported so far in the current cycle, and final totals may change. The S&P 500 increased 12.8 percent in 2010, compared with 11 percent for the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2011-02-16/cash-hoards-shrink-at-s-p-500-for-first-time-since-09-as-obama-woos-ceos.html

Lease accounting: boards now take stock of responses

In two meetings over recent weeks, the accounting standard setters have started to consider how to finalize the new leasing standard. The Boards, (International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and the US Financial  Accounting Standards Board (FASB), received reports from their staffs on the pattern of response to the exposure draft (ED) in the recent consultation, and subsequent meetings with stakeholders. 

For additional information Visit http://mazumacapital.com

U.S. manufacturers see emerging market boost

(Reuters) - Strong demand from big emerging markets, particularly China and India, is boosting U.S. manufacturers' prospects for 2011, a pair of top executives said on Tuesday.

Leasing- A Smart Option for New and Used Equipment

In need of new equipment, but not ready to use all your capital to purchase it? 
Leasing is a GREAT solution.  Why you ask?

Not only does leasing help you conserve your cash, it also ensures that you don't wind up paying for equipment that becomes obsolete or unsuited for your needs. And think about this: if you need the equipment only for a short time or special project, leasing saves you the hassle of having to be both a buyer and, then later, a seller. 
Mazuma Capital will work on crafting a lease to help minimize your federal income tax liability, maximize your accounting objectives and customize cash-flow solutions to your budget.  Our Associate Structuring Group has expertise in all these areas and will help guide you to the best structure for your situation.

• Tax oriented leases “true or guideline” leases
• Non-tax oriented leases
• Loan, conditional sales contracts, balloon, and other purchase option structures
• Operating leases
• Lease facilities
• Sale & lease back options
• Step up/step down leases
• Seasonal leases
• Differed payment options
• Bundled lease products
• Non-tax operating leases, and other tax/GAAP products

From technology and medical equipment to renewable energies, leasing is a great option. There's no limit to the type of equipment available for leasing. Even a one-person operation can lease equipment. Unlike loans, leases do not require a down payment. You're required to pay for the use of the equipment during the lease term. You may also be responsible for routine maintenance and other costs as well. When the lease expires, the equipment goes back to the leasing company, you can opt to purchase however you choose to complete your obligation.
Lease payments are considered an expense that you deduct from your business income, just like any other expense.

Flexibility is another leasing feature. If customers or the competition demand that you always have the latest technology, a short-term lease can help you get what you need and keep your cash in other uses. Another plus is that most leasing companies offer lease-to-own plans if you determine that purchasing the equipment is in the best interests of your business.
The Equipment Leasing and Financing Association, a trade group of leasing companies and financial services companies, has a special section that explains the basics of leasing at its website, elfaonline.org. You'll also find guidance on leasing options and benefits, loan/lease differences, leasing terminology.

Mazuma Capital is a national direct lender, financing $100K-$10MM transactions. 
Mazuma Capital offers amazing vendor services and broker programs as well. 
Contact Mazuma at info@mazumacapital.com 801-816-0800

Mazuma Capital’s Lee Leaves for the Senate

http://www.worldleasingnews.com/news/mazuma-capital%E2%80%99s-lee-leaves-for-the-senate/

Employment & Capital Spending Outlooks Strengthen

January 2011 survey conducted by the National Association for Business Economics (NABE) confirms that the underpinnings of the U.S. economy continue to strengthen. The survey notes that U.S. companies' employment outlook improved to a 12-year high this quarter. On capital spending, 62% of respondents said they planned to boost capital spending, up from 48% last quarter.

Shawn DuBravac, chief economist of the Consumer Electronics Association said, "The number of firms expressing positive hiring plans is at a level not seen in over a decade - a sign of improving labor-market dynamics. Supporting these hiring plans, industry demand continues to move higher, and profit margins are expanding." DuBracac added, "Firms are increasing their plans for future capital spending. A majority of respondents anticipate no increase or decrease in investment spending or employment in response to new tax policies, suggesting business decisions are being driven by the fundamentals of an improving economy."

Survey highlights included the following:

·  Expectations for economic growth have improved significantly. Over the last quarter, NABE panelists have become more optimistic. A majority (62%) assumes real GDP growth of 2% to 3% in 2011, and one in five panelists is building business plans based on an outlook of 3% to 4% economic growth.

·  Employment continues to improve, with 34% of firms reporting larger workforces compared to only 13% a year ago. The share of firms cutting jobs shrank, from an average of 13% over the past three quarters to 6% currently. The current NRI is the highest level it has been since 1998. The hiring outlook for the next six months also looks more robust - 42% of respondents indicated their firms will be increasing employment, up from 39% last quarter and 29% in January 2010. The employment outlook NRI hit a 12-year high.

·  The share of firms increasing their capital spending from the previous quarter rose slightly from the prior survey to 38%, while only 6% of panelists reported cutbacks in their firms. Expectations for future capital spending improved significantly, with 62% of respondents reporting higher planned expenditures, up from 48% last quarter.

·  As for the expected impacts of the proposed 2011 tax package, more than half (53%) of the panelists, especially those from the goods-producing sector, anticipate a favorable impact on their firm's sales. In contrast, a majority of the respondents (60%) said they do not anticipate any increase or decrease in investment spending or employment in response to new tax policies.

Finding "Real" Value

With the economy up in the air and the unknown looming upon the leasing industry, we have seen many leasing companies, brokers and funding sources rise and fall throughout the past few years. Most originators, who have found success over the last few years and more specifically over the past year, have gravitated to a specific niche or limited their efforts to a few industries. Vendors and end-users want to conduct business with financial partners who understand their specific industries, their specific challenges, and are able to speak their language. Brokers who try to be all things to all potential customers become experts in nothing and spend more time chasing miss-matched transactions than they spend funding transactions which are properly aligned with their capabilities. Originators who are focused are able to provide greater value to their stakeholders and are able to increase their personal incomes more quickly. There are no better or worse industries to focus one’s energies, the important factors are to choose an industry which you have an interest in, which you can develop funding capabilities and an industry which you have a passion to penetrate on multiple levels.
“Real” value is derived from knowledge and an originator’s ability to transform knowledge into quantified results. Every broker’s primary function is to prospect and to deliver superior services to his/her stakeholders. Superior service cannot be delivered unless the originator has knowledge which is otherwise in limited supply. Therefore, it must be an ongoing process to improve your knowledge in relationship to every aspect of the leasing/financing process. Some of the greatest attractions for entrepreneurs to enter our industry are the dynamics, the flexibility, and the creativity of our business. Along with these factors comes the responsibility of originators to embrace change; to be pro-active in innovating and providing new solutions to new challenges. The strongest brokers embrace a higher level of knowledge; they no longer chase transactions with the lowest common denominators, but are able to attract stronger vendors, stronger funders and stronger credit clients because of their ability to add “real” value to every transaction.
The future is bright for the best brokers and originators. The market craves expertise, knowledge and value-added services. Funders, vendors and end-users need our services now more than ever. Success will not be delivered to those originators who are not pro-active. However, for those originators who are willing to deliver superior service and are willing to aggressively pursue new relationships by providing “real” value, 2011 will provide an abundance of new opportunities.

Mazuma Capital  is committed to our client's success.  Our unique capabilities and innovative product offerings provide solutions accelerating financial growth.  Servicing rising companies, established companies, brokers and vendors, Mazuma continues to secure its position as the middle-market industry leader.

Source: World Leasing News

Banks In Need of Additional Reform

Economists are concerned that recent reform will not be enough to prevent the need for more bailouts.  In recent months, regulators around the world have taken steps to ensure that banks will be able to weather tough times. New international rules will require big global banks to hold more equity to protect their depositors and other creditors. In the U.S., lawmakers have adopted measures intended to mitigate risk at big banks and keep close tabs on potential threats throughout the financial system.

Over the past few days, though, economists here offered many reasons why the recent banking reforms fall short. Among their concerns: The new capital requirements aren't tough or simple enough, there is too much uncertainty about how governments will deal with distress at the biggest lenders. It seems that there has been little done to prevent the kind of crisis that could occur if trouble broke out at many smaller institutions, such as hedge funds.

Recent history suggests that a capital requirement of 7% won't be enough to fend off bailouts. Many banks that required government support during the latest crisis, including the Citigroup and Royal Bank of Scotland, whom both had capital levels exceeding 7% just before trouble hit in the third quarter of 2007.

Another issue is banks' excessive reliance on short-term borrowing to finance their activities. Tougher rules could push more financial activity away from banks into other areas that don't face the same regulations. The so-called shadow banking sector, which includes everything from hedge funds to derivative markets, already plays a larger role in credit markets than traditional banking.

New financial rules in the U.S. provide regulators with more power to oversee the shadow banking sector, and shed light on it by creating incentives to shift more derivatives trades into places where they can be monitored. But regulators have yet to work out exactly how they will identify dangerous situations in which many players have become exposed to similar risks.

Source: WSJ.com

*The capital equipment leasing sector offers attractive alternatives for those seeking finance options.  With tax incentives still available and many options to fit the financial goals of customers, leasing is something that is worth looking into for businesses of all sizes.  The economy has not been kind to businesses over the past few years.  There are many once profitable companies who are finding it harder and harder to secure financing, and banks can't look at the external factors that have left a mark on businesses. When seeking financing for new/used equipment many businesses look to Mazuma Capital.  A lease originator, Mazuma Capital is a funding source that works for businesses, promotes growth and profitability.

2011 Looking Bright For U.S. Company Growth and Purchases

Companies are looking to expand and that means new equipment purchases in the near future.  This outlook is bright coming off of two tough years in the equipment leasing industry.  Slow growth combined with economic uncertainty was not a good combination for the leasing industry.  There seems to be a bright light at the end of this tunnel. Forecasts seem promising and the tax benefits for companies to buy are enticing.

Investment by U.S. companies in equipment and software in the third quarter was up 15% from a year earlier to $1.08 trillion, nearly matching prerecession levels, government data show.
Corporations received more incentives to invest Dec. 17, when President Obama signed into law a tax compromise reached by Congress that, among other things, lets companies deduct from taxable income 100% of certain types of investments in 2011.

It seems that big U.S. companies have cleaned up their balance sheets and, appear to be flush with cash.  These U.S. companies are open to using the cash in 2011 on factories, stores and even hiring. Companies worked hard the last few years and especially in 2010 to preserve cash, and are slowly coming around to spending it.  According to Bloomberg Business U.S. companies are turning around and starting to feel comfortable with the economic outlook.

The maker of specialty glass and ceramics is investing $300 million to expand its research and development center near its headquarters in Corning, N.Y., adding about 100 researchers and Ph.D.s. It also is spending $800 million on a liquid-crystal display factory in China and building more LCD capacity in Taiwan.

Engine maker Cummins Inc., meantime, plans to add about 2,500 U.S. jobs in 2011, many requiring engineering or other technical skills. In 2010, Cummins raised its U.S. employment by only 185 people. The company has about 14,800 U.S. employees.

At the end of the third quarter, cash held by 419 nonfinancial companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 list was up 49% from three years ago—before the start of the recession—while total debt was up a more modest 14%, according to an analysis by The Wall Street Journal.
The good news: The improvement in just the past year was even more pronounced: cash was up 10.6% from the 2009 level, while debt grew 2%.

Profits are higher, too, after companies slashed their work forces and closed less-efficient operations. Total U.S. corporate profits in 2010's third quarter rose 26% from a year earlier to $1.64 trillion, the highest in four years, according to government data.

With this stronger foundation, coupled with new confidence about the global economy, corporations are looking to expand.  Continued growth in the mining and energy businesses around the world is expected to fuel a wide range of U.S. companies. IT spending seems to be on everyones mind and will head up the priority spending list this new year.

Source:

Standard & Poors Capital IQ

Bloomberg Business

Wall Street Journal