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Apple no longer hedge fund favorite, replaced by AIG, Google

For three years in a row, Apple was the most popular stock among hedge fund managers, but according to new data from Goldman Sachs, it's on the decline.

Goldman Sachs' data, which was obtained and reported on by AppleInsider, indicates that insurance giant AIG was the most popular hedge fund pick last year, with 80 funds holding its shares. Google came in second place with 73 funds. Apple, which had previously led the space, is down to 67 funds.

Apple's declining popularity among hedge fund managers might have something to do with its ability to deliver returns. According … Read more

Apple's iPad Mini 'in stock' in several countries' online stores

Supply has finally caught up with demand for Apple's iPad Mini.

Rather than days long lag time for the device, the company's online stores in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and other countries are now showing that all models of the iPad Mini are "in stock" and ready to ship.

Apple's 7-inch tablet went on sale last fall. Its thin and light design is more book-like than the larger iPad, while its cameras, storage capacities, optional LTE antenna, and general functionality are said to offer a full iPad experience.

Since the tablet's launch, the … Read more

Google stock hits new record, closes above $800

Google's stock closed at an all-time high of $806.85 today, becoming the first tech firm to pass the $800 mark and signaling that Wall Street approves of the company's rumored move into retail stores.

The stock has jumped 14 percent since the start of the year, more than double the Nasdaq's 6.4 percent gain. Its record high comes amid a report, since echoed by the Wall Street Journal, that Google planned to open retail stores to showcase its hardware products. The stores could open by the end of the year, according to the original report … Read more

The 404 1,210: Where where we survive on ramen and taxes (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- How a movie changed one man's vision forever.

- Google's stock breaks $800 for the first time.

- Report: OfficeMax, Office Depot discussing merger.

- Microsoft moves Outlook.com out of preview.

- Dow 14,000: Stocks near new crest.

- Middle class remains stuck.

- Free File: Do your Federal taxes for free!… Read more

iStockphoto founder re-enters the market with Stocksy

Bruce Livingstone, who founded microstock powerhouse iStockphoto more than a decade ago and left it in 2009, is trying again with a new stock-art sales venture called Stocksy.

And he's doing it at a time when iStock is, if not necessarily vulnerable, the target of criticisms that it's out of touch with the army of photographers who contribute the imagery it licenses. To succeed, a microstock needs lots of customers licensing its photos, videos, and other works, and it needs a lot of contributors supplying a steady stream of fresh material.

It's these contributors Livingstone appears to … Read more

Apple stock drop blamed on huge hedge funds

Hedge funds that drove up the price of Apple's stock were also responsible for driving it down, Reuters reported yesterday.

After reaching a high of $705 in September, shares of Apple started getting battered in the fourth quarter.

The stock was especially hit hard after Apple revealed its fiscal first-quarter results last month, numbers that disappointed Wall Street. The company achieved record revenues. But some analysts and investors worried that higher competition and lower profit margins mean that Apple's best days are behind it.

As a result, many of the hedge funds with huge positions in Apple dumped … Read more

Eric Schmidt cashing out 42 percent of his Google stock

Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt is planning on selling off about 42 percent of his stock in the search giant, according to documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Today, Marketwatch reported on the expected sale, suggesting that Schmidt -- currently Google's chairman -- will try to net as much as $2.51 billion from the sale of the stock. To date, he owns as much as 2.3 percent of Google's stock, and has 8.2 percent of the company's voting power.

Schmidt currently owns 7.6 million shares of Google's Class A stock, … Read more

Nasdaq said to be settling with SEC over Facebook's IPO flop

Dozens of lawsuits and investigations emerged after Facebook's initial public offering on the Nasdaq Stock Market last year. One investigation, initiated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, focused on technical errors in Nasdaq's system that inadvertently delayed trading that first day.

Now, word has it that Nasdaq may be able to settle the debacle with the federal regulators, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Sources familiar with the matter have told the Journal that Nasdaq has been in preliminary settlement talks with the SEC. If the two sides do make a deal, it will most likely … Read more

Google shares hit all-time high

It's not a bad day to be Google.

The search giant's shares soared to an all-time high today amid hopes it will soon resolve its European antitrust issues.

Google reportedly handed a settlement proposal to the European Commission yesterday, just making the deadline to respond to an inquiry into possible antitrust issues.

The EU's probe was opened in 2010 when European regulators asked the company to explain how it ranked search results and advertising after complaints of anticompetitive behavior from European businesses. Google has been trying to settle the case since it started as it faces a … Read more