Marketing Metrics for Essex Property Trust Essay Example for Free

Marketing Metrics for Essex Property Trust Essay Via analyzing and discussing the interrelated financial ratios over these three years, the performance and developing trend of Essex Property Trust Inc. Will be measured and understood. Moreover, this study illustrates what the two rivals BRE Properties and Brandywine Realty Trust’s positioning were in property industry. 1. 3 Methodology The companies’ official website has comprehensive information like histories and backgrounds of company, internal and external environment that influencing business running, every detail of financial data and even critical issues. Therefore, it is the most critical resource. In addition, there are other useful methods such as academic reports, journal articles, books and electronic database that provide theoretical knowledge’s about each metric. 1. 4 Limitations However this report has some vital limitations because it is based on the financial statements which reflected historical facts are open to human accruals, error, interpretation and estimation like refunds accounts and depreciation accounts. In order to attract more investors, the economic performance can be inflated by intentionally manipulating figures on inancial reports (Dennis, 2010). Furthermore, besides the financial factors in financial reports, other several elements including economic, social, and environment can also influence an enterprise’s financial position. Thus, due to ignorance of other factors, the financial position disclosed by accountants may be inaccurate. Last but not the least, the financial statement only took quantitative factors into account but fails to disclose information like integrity of management, prestige and reputation of the business with public, customer’s satisfaction, employees’ loyalty and efficiency, etc. hat also impacts business decision making (Dennis, 2010). 2. Real estate investment trust (REIT) Industry and company’s historical background George M. Marcus as the real estate entrepreneur formed Essex Property Corporation in 1971 and after 23years the company became Essex Property Trust, Inc. when it gained the portfolio of 16 multifamily communities. Essex is a self-managed and self-administered integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) in West Coast of America. In 1960, REITs created by congress is a type of real estate firm that provides opportunities for all Americans to invest in income-producing real estate not just for affluent. The method of this investment is similar to the bonds and stocks investments through mutual funds by many Americans (REIT, 2012). Essex develops, manages and acquires multifamily residential properties in the specific provinces like the San Francisco, Southern California and the Seattle metropolitan area and Essex relates to land and its appreciation on it like offices, apartments and hotels. Essex’s Property Portfolio so far Multi-family: [pic] Office: [pic] Retail: other unclassified [pic] Specialty: unclassified [pic] According to the above table charts published by Essex in March of 2013, there are 166 communities comprising 29,506 apartment units and total approximately 315,900 square feet of four commercial buildings which are located in major regions of California and Washington under the property portfolio. Besides the existing markets, Essex intended to evaluate some new markets by identifying new areas and developing new unconsolidated joint venture projects. . Conceptual framework Marketing metric can be defined as a measuring framework which quantifies a dynamic, trend, or characteristic and also can be used by practitioners in marketing monitoring and business planning to explain diagnose causes, phenomena, project the results of future events and share findings in order to justify marketing programs, decide on financial allocations and evaluate their marketing performance (Farris et al. 2010). It’s more effective to use a portfolio of metrics because it can assist managers with maintenance of productive focus on markets and customers and identification of weaknesses and strengths in both execution and strategies (Bazley et al. 2004). [pic] There are seven specific metrics adapt to measure Essex company’s performance and analyze competitors’ positions. According to the above figure, they are return on equity (ROE), Earnings before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization (EBITDA), year-on-year growth revenue, return on investment, profitability metrics, efficiency calculations and capital structure ratios. Gross profit margin, net profit margin and cash flow to sales ratio are three critical basic figures that will be used to measure entity’s profitability (Bazley et al. 2004). Then, in order to identify company’s business efficiency, Return on asset and asset turnover ratio will be calculated as well. Finally, there are three capital structure ratios including equity ratio, debt ratio and debt equity ratio(Mcdonald and Mouncey, 2009). The most vital reason to choose those metrics is that they can maximize the accuracy of measurement about an entity’s heath and estimation on the basis of other data. Moreover, they are also interrelated to each other (Birt et al. 2010). 4. Marketing metrics Briefly, The critical purposes of using following particular metrics are judging business performance, evaluating plans, quantifying market opportunities, identifying leverage points for improvement for Essex and recognizing its peers’ threats for the past three years and predict the trend in near future(Farris et al. 010). 4. 1 Earnings before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization (EBITDA) As an alternative for a cash-based profit measure, EBITDA can be also defined as the profit before interest, taxation and depreciation and amortization expense. Because it excludes financing and tax charge besides asset diminution, its main aim is to measure entity’s raw operating earnings compare and analyze prof itability between companies (Birt et al. 2010). Figures in US$ and ‘000 |2010 |2011 |2012 | |Essex |277,861 |338,679 |456,888 | |BRE |228,219 |255,066 |306,542 | |Brandywine |370,880 |379,556 |383,484 | Based on the above chart, it apparently illustrates that both of them tried to raise their EBITDA and therefore decline their operating cost. Among them, Essex had the most dramatic increasing trend in EBITDA by changing amount of US$179,027,000 during three years. 4. 2 Profitability metrics Under this category, there are three basic metrics: gross profit margin, net profit margin and cash flow to sales ratio to calculate entity’s profit. Gross profit margin refers to the percentage of sales revenue that results in gross profit which measures profitability in selling, producing and buying goods before other expenses are taken into account (Birt et al. 2010). Higher value means better likelihood of success to divide more satisfactory return to owners and cover more other expenses (Atrill et al. 2008). Net profit margin reveals the proportion of sales revenue results in profit before interest and tax (Birt et al. 2010). This ratio is the most appropriate measure of profit from trading operations which is before took any costs of servicing long-term finance into account (Atrill et al. 2008). Cash flow to sales ratio reflects a proportion of cash flow from operating activities compared to its net sales revenue can be used to measure an entity ability to convert its sales into cash. Higher value means more efficient productivity and creditworthiness and indicates the firm has more ability to grow (Business Dictionary, 2012).

The Impact of the Internet on Society Essay -- Technology Sociology

The Impact of the Internet on Society The Internet is, quite literally, a network of networks. It is comprised of ten thousands of interconnected networks spanning the globe. The computers that form the Internet range from huge mainframes in research establishments to modest PCs in people's homes and offices. Despite the recent hype, the Internet is not a new phenomenon. Its roots lie in a collection of computers that were linked together in the 1970s to form the US Department of Defense's communications systems. Fearing the consequences of nuclear attack, there was no central computer holding vast amounts of data, rather the information was dispersed across thousands of machines. A set of rules, of protocols, known as TCP/IP was developed to allow disparate devices to work together. The original network has long since been upgraded and expanded and TCP/IP is now a "de facto" standard. Millions of people worldwide are using the Internet to share information, make new associations and communicate. Individuals and businesses, from students and journalists, to consultants, programmers and corporate giants are all harnessing the power of the Internet. For many businesses the Internet is becoming integral to their operations. Imagine the ability to send and receive data: messages, notes, letters, documents, pictures, video, sound- just about any form of communication, as effortlessly as making a phone call. It is easy to understand why the Internet is rapidly becoming the corporate communications medium. Using the mouse on your computer, the familiar point-and-click functionality gives you access to electronic mail for sending and receiving data, and file transfer for copying files from one computer to another. Telnet services allow you to establish connections with systems on the other side of the world as if they were just next door. This flood of information is a beautiful thing and it can only open the minds of society. With the explosion of the World Wide Web, anyone could publish his or her ideas to the world. Before, in order to be heard one would have to go through publishers who were willing to invest in his ideas to get something put into print. With the advent of the Internet, anyone who has something to say can be heard by the world. By letting everyone speak their mind, this opens up all new ways of thinking to anyone who is willing to ... ...ia Internet." †¢ Libicky Martin. Sept.1997. Physics Today. "Information Warfare: A brief guide to defense Preparedness." †¢ Chidley Joe- Caragata Warren. May 1995. Maclean ¡Ã‚ ¦s. "Crime in Cybercity." †¢ Ricci Steven. Oct.1998. Professional counselor. "A Tangled Web." †¢ Belsie Laurent. Jul.1994. Christian Science Monitor. "The Dark Side of Cyberspace." †¢ Hayes Brian. Sept./Oct.1994. American scientist. "The world Wide Web" †¢ Elias Marilyn- Weise Elizabeth. Apr.1998. "Digital Drug." †¢ Birkerts Sven. Jul.1997. National Review. "The Net and the Self." †¢ Rogers Adams. Aug.1998. Newsweek. "Good Medicine on the Web." †¢ Mannix Margaret. Jun.1997. U.S. News & World Report. "Exposed Online." †¢ Levy Steven. Jul.1997. Newsweek. "On the Net, Anything Goes." †¢ Hellwege Jean. Jun.1997. Trial. "Privacy on the Internet." †¢ Laver Ross.Sept.1998. Maclean ¡Ã‚ ¦s. "The Sadness of Cyberspace." †¢ McAllester Matthew. Sept.1998. Newsday. "Identity Crisis." Websites †¢ http://www.privacy.org †¢ http://www.epic.org †¢ http://www.cnil.fr †¢ http://www2.echo.lu:legal/en/dataport/directiv/directiv.html †¢ http://www.usq.edu/au/dec The Impact of the Internet on Society Essay -- Technology Sociology The Impact of the Internet on Society The Internet is, quite literally, a network of networks. It is comprised of ten thousands of interconnected networks spanning the globe. The computers that form the Internet range from huge mainframes in research establishments to modest PCs in people's homes and offices. Despite the recent hype, the Internet is not a new phenomenon. Its roots lie in a collection of computers that were linked together in the 1970s to form the US Department of Defense's communications systems. Fearing the consequences of nuclear attack, there was no central computer holding vast amounts of data, rather the information was dispersed across thousands of machines. A set of rules, of protocols, known as TCP/IP was developed to allow disparate devices to work together. The original network has long since been upgraded and expanded and TCP/IP is now a "de facto" standard. Millions of people worldwide are using the Internet to share information, make new associations and communicate. Individuals and businesses, from students and journalists, to consultants, programmers and corporate giants are all harnessing the power of the Internet. For many businesses the Internet is becoming integral to their operations. Imagine the ability to send and receive data: messages, notes, letters, documents, pictures, video, sound- just about any form of communication, as effortlessly as making a phone call. It is easy to understand why the Internet is rapidly becoming the corporate communications medium. Using the mouse on your computer, the familiar point-and-click functionality gives you access to electronic mail for sending and receiving data, and file transfer for copying files from one computer to another. Telnet services allow you to establish connections with systems on the other side of the world as if they were just next door. This flood of information is a beautiful thing and it can only open the minds of society. With the explosion of the World Wide Web, anyone could publish his or her ideas to the world. Before, in order to be heard one would have to go through publishers who were willing to invest in his ideas to get something put into print. With the advent of the Internet, anyone who has something to say can be heard by the world. By letting everyone speak their mind, this opens up all new ways of thinking to anyone who is willing to ... ...ia Internet." †¢ Libicky Martin. Sept.1997. Physics Today. "Information Warfare: A brief guide to defense Preparedness." †¢ Chidley Joe- Caragata Warren. May 1995. Maclean ¡Ã‚ ¦s. "Crime in Cybercity." †¢ Ricci Steven. Oct.1998. Professional counselor. "A Tangled Web." †¢ Belsie Laurent. Jul.1994. Christian Science Monitor. "The Dark Side of Cyberspace." †¢ Hayes Brian. Sept./Oct.1994. American scientist. "The world Wide Web" †¢ Elias Marilyn- Weise Elizabeth. Apr.1998. "Digital Drug." †¢ Birkerts Sven. Jul.1997. National Review. "The Net and the Self." †¢ Rogers Adams. Aug.1998. Newsweek. "Good Medicine on the Web." †¢ Mannix Margaret. Jun.1997. U.S. News & World Report. "Exposed Online." †¢ Levy Steven. Jul.1997. Newsweek. "On the Net, Anything Goes." †¢ Hellwege Jean. Jun.1997. Trial. "Privacy on the Internet." †¢ Laver Ross.Sept.1998. Maclean ¡Ã‚ ¦s. "The Sadness of Cyberspace." †¢ McAllester Matthew. Sept.1998. Newsday. "Identity Crisis." Websites †¢ http://www.privacy.org †¢ http://www.epic.org †¢ http://www.cnil.fr †¢ http://www2.echo.lu:legal/en/dataport/directiv/directiv.html †¢ http://www.usq.edu/au/dec

Literary Lessons in Love Essay

If William Shakespeare’s work can be considered a foundation of literary achievement and theatrical excellence, the theme of love must be one of its fundamental cornerstones. In many Shakespearean plays, love is an effective theme that is carefully sculpted to yield the desired audience reaction or the required moral lesson, and can enhance both comedic and tragic works. Most significantly, the portrayal of love as a theme on stage is able to establish deep roots of meaning within the lives of the audience, drawing parallels between imaginary characters and the striking reality of human emotion. In the Olivier film version of Shakespeare’s King Lear, the director makes careful decisions about character portrayal, camera angles, and lighting to accentuate particularly significant examples of self-love, materialistic love, and parental love in drawing the conclusion that love, as exhibited by many characters in the opening act of his play, is thoroughly flawed. One of the most prominent situations supporting the director’s choice to demonstrate the imperfect pursuit of love in King Lear occurs when the ageing King, overwhelmed by his desire for flattery, decides to divide his expansive kingdom among his three daughters with the pursuit of self-love at heart. Lear asks his daughters, â€Å"Which of you shall we say doth love us most?† (1.1.46), and plans to give the greater portion of his kingdom to the daughter who showers him lovingly with the most bountiful praise. Loving himself so highly that he blinds himself from seeing the right way to make a decision, Lear exposes the fact that making unwise choices based on flattery and self-absorption is foolish. For example, the director of the film demonstrates the idea of Lear’s love for himself by portraying the daughters as Lear, himself, would view them following their differing declarations of love. Using costumes and makeup, the director depicts both Gonerill and Regan as elegant, mature women in colourful gowns, corresponding to their overly flattering claims of love for their father. However, Cordelia is dressed simply in white, and plainly shows her nervous emotions, corresponding to her honest and straightforward answer to Lear’s question. As a result of Lear’s uncontrollable love for his own reputation, he disowns his favourite daughter, Cordelia, stating harshly, â€Å"Better thou/ Hadst not been born than not t’have pleased me better.† (1.1.229-230) Lear’s other daughters, Gonerill and Regan, begin to believe that he is growing insane, and undermine their father by limiting the number of loyal knights that he will be allowed to keep at the castle. Clearly, Lear’s preoccupation with flawed self-love leads him to irreparable damage in his most meaningful relationships. In addition to Lear’s love of himself, Edmond’s love of material possessions contributes to the theme of defective love in this film of King Lear. Edmond, the illegitimate son of Gloucester, desires so strongly to become his father’s heir to gain material possessions that he resorts to lies and trickery. Edmond visits his father with a false letter, allegedly from his brother, Edgar, describing Edgar’s supposed plan to kill Gloucester in order to gain early access to his father’s assets. According to the letter, Edgar believes that, â€Å"this policy and reverence of age makes the/world bitter to the best of our times, keeps our fortunes from us/till our oldness cannot relish them.† (1.2.45-47) Edmond’s acquisitive desire likely originated from his shame as an illegitimate son, and demonstrates the imprudence of devising such cruel schemes as a result of loving material possessions. As a result of Edmond’s submission to a deep love of money, he sends his brother away out of mock fear for their father’s supposed rage, thus breaking the bonds of trust and love within the family. Edmond’s selfish plan rooted in materialistic love also causes Gloucester to turn against his own legitimate son, calling Edgar an â€Å"unnatural, detested, brutish villain.† (1.2.69) The director of the film chooses to portray Edmond’s disastrous pursuit of acquisitive love using a camera angle centred on Edmond throughout the soliloquy in which he details his selfish scheme. This camera shot represents Edmond’s egocentric mind frame, with his sights set only on his own financial satisfaction, and alludes to the fact that Edmond’s attention to love is terribly off-course. Finally, the exploration of familial love in the film illustrates Gloucester’s flawed ability to understand genuine parental love. It is evident that Gloucester’s love of his two sons, Edmond and Edgar, is both inconsiderate and distrustful. For example, in spite of the expectation that parents keep their children’s sensitive emotions and best interests at heart, Gloucester thoughtlessly discusses Edmond’s accidental conception in Edmond’s very presence. Avoiding the thought of his son’s possible embarrassment, Gloucester’s shameful claim of having, â€Å"so/often blushed to acknowledge [Edmond]† (1.1.8-9) proves him to be a bold and insensitive father. As a result of Edmond’s frustration and feeling of inferiority towards his legitimate brother, he devises the deceitful scheme that tears apart the family’s trust. Furthermore, Gloucester’s instant acceptance of his son Edgar as the author of Edmond’s false, vindictive letter further demonstrates his imperfect fatherly love, and proves him to be a gullible and distrustful parent. For example, Gloucester states spontaneously, as he skims the letter, â€Å"I’ll apprehend [Edgar]. /Abominable villain, where is he?† (1.2.70-71), jumping to conclusions and affirming that the letter must be Edgar’s, even before he even has a chance to confirm the situation with his accused son. The director of the film depicts Gloucester’s flawed familial love using a dark and shadowed lighting arrangement as the play begins, representing the dim, imperfect relationships within the family. This lighting arrangement also foreshadows the gloomy fragmentation of the family as a result of Gloucester’s flawed fatherly love and his tactlessness for Edmond’s feelings about his illegitimate conception. In conclusion, the theme of love as illustrated by Lear, Edmond, and Gloucester in the film portrays the message that human love is often selfish, insensitive, or otherwise flawed. This theme speaks to the very root of human behaviour, as much stress in daily life stems from the frustrations associated with fragile relationships of love. As is evident from the subsequent effects of each character’s defective love in this play, blindly misusing one’s power to love can easily harm other individuals, and may put one’s own happiness at stake. Not only are Shakespeare’s plays valuable as entertainment; they are vessels of moral education. By learning from these characters’ misunderstandings about love, humans have a chance to recognize faults and improve their own relationships. It may take little more than some basic literary lessons in love to raise human tolerance, to learn to appreciate one another, and to begin to make a difference in our world by l oving genuinely and selflessly.

Why do oil prices and Canadian dollars move together

Have you  noticed that the Canadian dollar and oil prices move together? In other words, if the price of crude oil goes down, the Canadian dollar also decreases (relative to the U.S. dollar). And if the price of crude oil goes up, the Canadian dollar is worth more. Theres an economic mechanism at play here. Read on to learn why the Canadian dollar and oil prices move in tandem. Supply and Demand Because oil is an internationally traded commodity and Canada is so small relative to the United States and the  European Union, price changes in oil are caused by international factors outside of Canada. The demand for both oil and gas is not  elastic  in the short run, so a rise in oil prices causes the dollar value of the oil sold to rise. (That is, while the quantity sold will decrease, the higher price will cause the total revenue to rise, not fall). As of January 2016, Canada exports around 3.4 million barrels of oil a day to the United States. As of January 2018, the  price of a barrel of oil  is about $60. Canadas daily oil sales, then, are about $204 million. Because of the magnitude of sales involved, any changes in the price of oil have an impact on the currency market. Higher oil prices drive up the Canadian dollar through one of two mechanisms, which have the same result. The difference is based  on whether the oil is priced in Canadian or American dollars—as it generally is—but the final impact is identical. For different reasons, when Canada sells a lot of oil to the U.S., which it does on a daily basis, the loonie (the Canadian dollar) rises. Ironically, the reason in both cases has to do with currency exchanges, and in particular, the value of the Canadian dollar relative to the U.S. dollar. The Oil is Priced in U.S. Dollars This is the most likely of the two scenarios. If this is the case, then when the price of oil rises, Canadian oil companies receive more U.S. dollars. Since they pay their employees (and taxes and many other expenses) in Canadian dollars, they need to exchange U.S. dollars for Canadian ones on foreign exchange markets. So when they have more U.S. dollars, they supply more U.S. dollars and create demand for more Canadian dollars. Thus, as discussed in Forex: The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Foreign Exchange Trading, and Making Money with Forex, the increase in the  supply of the U.S. dollar drives the price of the U.S. dollar down. Similarly, the increase in demand for the Canadian dollar drives the price of the Canadian dollar up. The Oil Is Priced in Canadian Dollars This is a less likely scenario but easier to explain. If oil is priced in Canadian dollars, and the Canadian dollar rises in value, then American companies need to buy more Canadian dollars on foreign exchange markets. So the demand for Canadian dollars rises along with the supply of U.S. dollars. This causes the price of Canadian dollars to rise and the supply of U.S. dollars to fall. Source Kaplan, James P. Forex: The Ultimate Beginners Guide to Foreign Exchange Trading, and Making Money with Forex. Paperback, CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, April 9, 2016.