Amazon Inc. [stckqut]AMZN[/stckqut] announced recently that its Prime Now one and two-hour delivery service adds wine and beer to its product offerings available for superfast delivery in Cincinnati and Columbus. The company adds hundreds of alcohol-related products to its inventory from popular name brands such as Chateau Ste. Michelle, Bud Light and Veuve Clicquot as well as local favorites like Great Lakes Brewing Company, Rhinegeist and MadTree Brewing.

“We are excited to continue expanding our product offerings and we know customers will love getting wine and beer delivered right to their door in one hour or less,” said Stephenie Landry, vice president of Prime Now worldwide. “Whether you run out of wine at your dinner party or need more chilled champagne for mimosas at a family brunch, Prime Now can save customers time with superfast delivery so they can skip a trip to the store.”

Customers in Prime Now eligible neighborhoods can use the one and two-hour delivery service to order wine and beer along with tens of thousands of other daily essentials. Customers can enter their ZIP code in the Prime Now app or on primenow.com to see if the service is available or can request to be notified when the service becomes available in their area.

Through Prime Now, Prime members can get free two-hour delivery and one-hour delivery is $7.99. Prime members can download the Prime Now app, available on iOS and Android devices, or visit www.primenow.com to place orders and track the status of their delivery in real time. Learn more about Amazon Prime Now at www.primenow.com.

Source: Amazon – Press Room – Press Release

NVIDIA Corporation [stckqut]NVDA[/stckqut] isn’t going anywhere. In fact, as the CEO said in the latest earnings call, it is the fastest growing technology company in the world. But there’s more to that statement — a lot more.

First, when we talk about growth here, sometimes we reflect upon companies where growth is coming while earnings are forsaken. That is not the case at all with Nvidia.

NVIDIA Corporation has hit $6.9 billion in revenue, up 38% year-over-year. But, this gets much bigger. These are numbers for the last quarter, compared the same quarter one year ago:

  • Gaming revenue was $1.35 billion up from $810 million for 66% growth.
  • Data center revenue was $296 million up from $97 million for 205% growth.
  • Automotive revenue was $128 million up from $93 million for 38% growth.

Amazon and Microsoft, the two largest cloud players, openly offer Nvidia GPU powered machines to their clients, and the conversion so barely (barely) at the beginning.

In just the last quarter, Nvidia announced:

  • Collaborated with Microsoft to accelerate AI with a GPU-accelerated Microsoft Cognitive Toolkit available on the Microsoft Azure cloud and NVIDIA DGX-1™.
  • Partnered with the National Cancer Institute and the U.S. Department of Energy to build CANDLE, an AI framework that will advance cancer research.
  • Unveiled the NVIDIA DGX SATURNV AI supercomputer, powered by 124 Pascal-powered DGX-1 server nodes, which is the world’s most efficient supercomputer.
  • Partnered with Audi, to put advanced AI cars on the road by 2020.
  • Partnered with Mercedes-Benz, to bring a NVIDIA AI-powered car to the market.
  • Partnered with Bosch, the world’s largest automotive supplier, to bring self-driving systems to production vehicles
  • Partnered with Germany’s ZF, to create a self-driving system for cars, trucks and commercial vehicles based on the NVIDIA DRIVE™ PX 2 AI car computer.
  • Partnered with Europe’s HERE, to develop HERE HD Live Map into a real-time, high-definition mapping solution for autonomous vehicles.
  • Partnered with Japan’s ZENRIN, to develop a cloud-to-car HD map solution for self-driving cars.

Barron’s notes that the firm provides processors to more than 50 automakers working toward driver-less cars.

Nvidia’s net income was $1.67 billion in the last year, up 171% year-over-year. For perspective, Amazon’s net income over the last year was $2.4 billion.

Here are some more facts for you to consider, whichever direction you go with Nvidia. This is last quarter’s earnings results highlights:

  • Growth was driven primarily by Datacenter tripling with a rapid adoption of AI worldwide.
  • AI is transforming industries worldwide. The first adopters were hyperscale companies like Microsoft, Facebook, and Google, which use deep learning to provide billions to customers with AI services that utilize image recognition and voice processing.

The next area of growth will occur as enterprises in such fields as healthcare, retail, transportation, and finance embrace deep learning on GPUs.

  • Microsoft announced that its GPU-accelerated Microsoft Cognitive Toolkit is available both in Azure cloud and on premises with our DGX-1 AI supercomputer
  • Growth for the quarter and fiscal year was broad based with record revenue in each of our four platforms, Gaming, Professional Visualization, Datacenter and Automotive.
  • Q4 Gaming revenue was a record $1.35 billion, rising 66% year-on-year and up 8% from Q3
  • GRID, graphics, virtualization business doubled year-on-year, driven by strong growth in the education, automotive, and energy sectors.
  • With NVIDIAs powering the market’s only self-driving cars and partnerships with leading automakers, Tier 1 suppliers, and mapping companies, we feel very confident in our position as the transportation industry moves to autonomous vehicles.
  • Gross margins were at record levels.
  • GAAP operating income was $733 million, and non-GAAP operating income was $809 million, both more than doubled from a year earlier.

Source: What to do about NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA)

retirement photo Those who are saving won’t have nearly enough. The average 50-year-old, for example, has just $43,797 saved up for retirement. That won’t go very far, as the projected medical treatment costs alone for a couple over 65 with an average 20-year retirement are expected to reach $215,000. With statistics like that, most Americans will struggle just to make ends meet in their retirement.

Despite these alarming numbers, it’s quite easy to comfortably retire in America. In fact, by following three simple steps, many Americans can not only retire eventually, but maybe even retire early.

Stop wasting money so that you can retire!

Credit card interest really adds up. For example, the average American carries nearly $4,878 in credit card debt, while the average APR on a credit card with a balance is 12.73%. That means that the average American is forking over $620.95 per year in credit card interest payments alone.

It must be a top priority to pay off your credit card balance as soon as possible. After it is paid off, avoid carrying a credit card balance in the future except in emergencies. This effort will free up hundreds of dollars each year that could be invested and earning interest for an early retirement instead of earning interest for the credit card company.

Live by the simple rule, do I need to spend the money or is there a way for me to not spend the money. This leads us to the next topic.

Live below your means so that you can retire

It goes without saying, but anyone who hopes to retire needs to spend less than they make.

The first step is knowing what comes in and what goes out. Tracking software like Quicken or Mint.com, or even an Excel spreadsheet, is a must. From there it will be easier to determine where too much money is being spent.

Then comes the hard part: determining where to make cuts. It could mean cutting the cord on cable and relying on cheaper entertainment options. Perhaps you should pack a lunch for work instead of buying lunch. It might even mean not upgrading smartphones each time a new model comes out or holding on to the car for one more year.

Then there are the superfluous purchases we make without realizing the cost. For example, ordering soda or alcohol at a restaurant can cost us anywhere from a couple of bucks to $10-15, but water is free. Avoiding these purchases except on special occasions can add up to big savings over time.

For example, one $2.50 drink purchase each week adds up to $130 over the course of a year. If that money were invested in a tax-deferred retirement account earning 7% per year, it would add up to more than $13,000 after 30 years. That’s just one of many ways to save money so you can enjoy a better retirement.

Living below your means isn’t about depriving yourself and living on Ramen noodles. It’s about having enough margin in your budget that you don’t live from paycheck to paycheck, and you have money left over to put toward retirement.

Invest the excess so that you can retire in luxury

You can only get so far on the road to early retirement by slashing costs. At some point, you need to put these savings to work. That’s where investing comes into play.

Start putting that saved money into an index fund tied to the S&P500. Once you have invested about $10,000 in that index fund, you should start to break up your portfolio to being 35% index funds and 65% direct investments in great companies. I publish a list of great companies on this site – it is my Watch List.

As you build up your portfolio, you will want to learn how to make your money work even harder than just an index fund. I suggest reading my book, The Confident Investor. You can purchase my book wherever books are sold such as Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Books A Million. It is available in e-book formats for Nook, Kindle, and iPad.

You should also download and read my Retire in Luxury whitepaper.

Photo by 401(K) 2013

stock market crash photo

 

Just because we’re experiencing our first stock market correction since 2011 doesn’t mean it’s time to panic. Here are six things you should be aware of when it comes to stock corrections.

1. Stock market corrections happen often

The first thing you should know is that stock market corrections happen — and fairly often. The U.S. economy naturally peaks and troughs over time, and in response the stock market will also have its peaks and troughs.

2. Stock market corrections rarely last long

In a broader context, while a stock market correction is an inevitable part of stock ownership, corrections last for a shorter period of time than bull markets.

3. We can’t predict what’ll cause a stock market correction

A stock market correction may be inevitable, but one thing they aren’t is predictable.

4. Stock market corrections only matter if you’re a short-term trader

Another important point you should realize is that stock market corrections really aren’t an issue if you remain focused on the long-term with retirement as your goal. The only people who should be worried when corrections roll around are those who’ve geared their trading around the short-term, or those who’ve heavily leveraged their account with the use of margin.

5. They’re a great time to buy high-quality stocks at a bargain

For the long-term investor, a stock market correction is often a great time to pick up high-quality companies at an attractive valuation.

6. They’re also a good reminder to reassess what you own

Lastly, a stock market correction is a good reminder for long-term investors to reassess their holdings.

This post is based on the great content written in 6 Things You Should Know About a Stock Market Correction, you should go there to read more about this subject.

stock market crash photo

Photo by AZRainman

Photo by wsilver