I couldn't have predicted the business would be worth so much. I could see that we would have this sort of market share, but I didn't realise the numbers would be so large.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
Certainly there are bubble-like valuations of certain companies, but I don't think anyone out there believes that we're going to go back to doing business the way we used to do business.
There's a certain degree of speculation that goes into valuations. In so far as the market supports a valuation, everyone who gets a great one deserves it, but they should also be cautious because that speculation is temporary. I saw Yahoo go from $100 billion to $10 billion. It's not a long-term measure.
We have the fact we sell out every week to 67,500 and hopefully 75,000 in the future. We have a lot of assets.
And our size: The company this year is going to be close to $50 billion, so if that's the case and you can continue to grow that fast, I would rather put my energies to solving customer problems and growing our business than worrying about integrating and laying people off.
Clearly as you move to being a public company, probably even more than growth, there is a huge value based on predictability.
If we take care of the business and keep our eye on the goal line, the stock price will take care of itself.
One hundred percent of our earnings are reinvested in the company, and a great deal of that goes to research.
We expect all our businesses to have a positive impact on our top and bottom lines. Profitability is very important to us or we wouldn't be in this business.
I myself saw Yahoo become a $100 billion company and then become a $10 billion company, so you always have to look at valuations with a grain of salt and understand it is a point-in-time measure.
I have started many companies now worth more than $100 million. So I know a little about business.
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