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Should Companies Retain "Strategic" Cash?

Harvard Business Review

Politicians have claimed that retaining cash balances is hurting the global economy—even characterizing the practice as unpatriotic —and many investors have argued that excess cash rightfully should be returned to shareholders through dividend payments or share repurchases. Arguments for Strategic Cash. It can: Save Taxes.

Company 13
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Even for Companies, the U.S. Is Split Between Haves and Have-Nots

Harvard Business Review

Companies in the top one-fifth of profitability earn, in aggregate, about 70 times more economic profit (accounting profit less cost of capital) than those in the middle three-fifths combined, according to McKinsey’s database of 3,000 large, publicly listed, nonfinancial U.S. companies have enjoyed supernormal rates of return.

ROIC 8
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The Comprehensive Business Case for Sustainability

Harvard Business Review

Fostering innovation. Investing in sustainability is not only a risk management tool; it can also drive innovation. Nike embedded sustainability into its innovation process and created the $1 billion-plus Flyknit line, which uses a specialized yarn system, requiring minimal labor and generating large profit margins.