Proctor and Gamble - P&G Innovating and Growing Strong in a Tough Economy

Did you know that Proctor and Gamble - P&G makes all these cool products below that you use everyday in your house?

You betcha... from Duracell and Gillette to Crest, Charmin to Tide, Bounty to Iams - P&G is the world's largest consumer goods company. As a matter of fact, "three billion times a day, P&G brands touch the lives of people around the world." P&G has a bigger mission that they are trying to fulfill: "Provide branded products and services of superior quality and value that improve the lives of the world's consumers, now and for generations to come."

P&G is one of the Top 20 innovators of the Innovation Index.

P&G stock is doing relatively well compared to its peers and the major indexes. Here is a snapshot of how well P&G is holding up - only down a few percentage points in 1 year, whereas the markets are down more than 30 points:

Why is P&G doing so well?

One answer: Innovation. Innovation driving new business, innovation driving growth, innovative leadership by the CEO of P&G A.G. Lafley. Back in February 2008, I had talked about how P&G is a Smart Long Term Buy in a Turbulent Market. IIG has stayed long with P&G througout the year, and has been opportunistically adding positions in P&G as well. Another fact that most investors may not know about: Barclays Global Investors and Berkshire Hathaway (Warren Buffett's company) are the top two institutional holders of P&G.

How did P&G do in the latest quarter?

P&G announced net sales growth of nine percent for the July - September quarter to $22.0 billion. Organic sales were up five percent, delivering at the mid-point of the Company's four to six percent target range. Sales growth was led by strong growth in the Beauty, Fabric Care & Home Care and Baby Care & Family Care segments. Diluted net earnings per share increased 12 percent to $1.03 for the quarter.

"This quarter was yet another example of the strength of P&G's balanced brand and geographic portfolio," said Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer A.G. Lafley. "We continue focusing on leading innovation and improving productivity to deliver superior consumer and shareholder value. This focus on delighting consumers with trusted household and personal care products that consumers purchase weekly and use daily gives me continuing confidence P&G will deliver target growth over the long term, even in a challenging economic environment."

What is sexy, new and exciting that P&G is innovating?

P&G recently introduced Cascade Complete All-in-1 ActionPacs.

Cascade Complete All-in-1 ActionPacs "give you the confidence of a job done right. It breaks down, dissolves, and rinses away tough food particles without the need to pre-wash."

Here is what one highly satisfied P&G customer had to say about All-in-1 ActionPacs:

OMG this is the most amazing product

"I have an older dishwasher that came with the apartment I live in. You had to completely wash the dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. I was basically using it to drain the dishes. I saw this on T.V. and went to walmart and got it. All I can say is it is almost magical the way it cleans. I tested it on several hard to wash dishes, dried oatmeal, dried rice krispy cereal and my stainless steel pots and everything came out clean, no stuck on food, no hard water residue. thank you! thank you! thank you! what a time saver. I am disabled and one of the hardest things to do is standing over the sink washing dishes."
By beadjeannie. Reviewer from Fresno, CA August 14, 2008

Bottomline:

P&G is a great company with great leadership and employees, and highly satisfied customers. P&G will be around for the next 100 years. IIG - Innovation Index Group is long on P&G, and believes that P&G provides attractive buying opportunity at current price points. We believe that P&G will continue to grow another 10% to 15% even in this economy because of the breadth of its products, creativity and innovation, global marketshare, and delighted customers who will not buy another brand.

Innovation Index Reports

Introducing The Innovation Index
Annual Report 2007 - The Innovation Index gains 66%
Measuring Business Innovation Success
Innovation Index Group BUY Recommendations
Q1 2008 Report - Innovation Index ahead of S&P 500
Q2 2008 Report - Top Innovators Deliver
The Innovation Index Fund FAQ
Top 50 Innovative Companies in the world
Annual Report - Chapter One - Total Innovation Activity
Annual Report - Chapter Two - The Top Innovator
Annual Report - Chapter Three - The Innovation Insights
Innovation and Stock Performance Correlation
Future earnings guidance, A leading indicator
Smart Investing In Tough Economic Times
To Sell Or Not To Sell - You Decide
Creativity and Innovation Best Practices
Creativity and Innovation Case Studies

About the Innovation Index

The Innovation Index introduced in December 2006 is a weighted stock price index of the top 20 Innovators in North America.The Innovation Index returned 66% in 2007 based on performance model, and would have returned 174% over the previous five years (2002-2006) based on historical model*. This assumes equal investment in each stock of The Innovation Index as of December 31, 2001. An average of $100 invested in The Innovation Index on December 31, 2001 returned $454 as of December 31, 2007. By comparison, $100 invested in S&P 500 returned 28% or $129, $100 invested in NASDAQ returned 34% or $136, and $100 invested in the Dow Jones Index returned 30% or $131 through December 31, 2007. The Innovation Index beats the S & P 500, NASDAQ and Dow Jones Index by more than seven times over the past six years.

Alphabetical list of the Top 20 Innovators of The Innovation Index for 2008 and their stock ticker symbols:

3M Company - (NYSE: MMM)
Amazon.com, Inc. - (NASDAQ: AMZN)
America Movil - (NYSE: AMX)
Apple Inc. - (NASDAQ: AAPL)
AT&T Inc. - (NYSE: T)
Best Buy Co., Inc. - (NYSE: BBY)
Cisco Systems, Inc. - (NASDAQ: CSCO)
Costco Wholesale Corporation - (NASDAQ: COST)
eBay Inc. - (NASDAQ: EBAY)
General Electric Co. - (NYSE: GE)
Google Inc. - (NASDAQ: GOOG)
Hewlett-Packard Co. - (NYSE: HPQ)
Intel Corporation - (NASDAQ: INTC)
International Business Machines Corp. - (NYSE: IBM)
Merck & Co., Inc. - (NYSE: MRK)
McDonald's Corporation (NYSE: MCD)
Microsoft Corporation - (NASDAQ: MSFT)
NIKE, Inc. - (NYSE: NKE)
Research In Motion Limited - (NASDAQ: RIMM)
The Proctor & Gamble Company - (NYSE: PG)

The Innovation Index will analyze the positions and standings of the Top 20 Innovators at the end of each year. For 2008, there will be no further changes in The Innovation Index.

Disclaimer: The Innovation Index Group, Inc. invests in the stocks comprising The Innovation Index.
*Past Performance Does Not Guarantee Future Results

Innovator Apple grows strong on surging iPhone demand

Apple profits are up 26% on iPhone boom. Apple shares were up 14% in after hours after Apple announced the earnings report. IIG is in excellent shape with Apple!

The best part of Apple earnings: CEO Steve Jobs attended the earnings call (which is quite rare), and had this to say:

Earnings Call: Jobs Says iPhone Revs Total $4.6B, Making Apple The Third-Largest Handset Maker

Apple (NasdaqGS: AAPL - News) CEO Steve Jobs made a special guest appearance on the company's earnings call to brag about the iPhone's stellar fourth-quarter performance, and to give his two-cents on how the consumer-electronics and computer company will be affected by the economic crisis as we head into the holiday shopping season. First, Apple's CFO Peter Oppenheimer explained Apple's new practice going forward of reporting non-GAAP financial results. Because the iPhone and Apple TV may provide free updates in the future, they are forced to spread out revenues for the devices over their lifetimes. Going forward, Apple will also report a non-GAAP financial measure that allows people to see how well the iPhone and Apple sales are currently doing. Under this new form of reporting, Oppenheimer said adjusted sales totaled $11.7 billion, or about $3.8 billion higher than its reported revenue, and adjusted net income was $2.4 billion, jumping by $1.3 billion than reported net income. "We believe this adds transparency to our business, and is helpful to you." Oppenheimer said because of the uncertainty in the market, they are going to be prudent in predicting results for the September quarter. He said Apple is targeting revenue of $9 to $10 billion and earnings per share between $1.06 and $1.35.

In a rare appearance, Steve Jobs joined the conference call to provide his outlook on the economy and detail the iPhone's Q4 performance. Jobs: "There's some remarkable things happening at Apple, but now it's all being done in front of the back drop of the economic global slowdown." Notes from the call, as reported by PaidContent.org :

-- On iPhone growth: Using the non-GAAP figures, Jobs said in the past quarter, the iPhone business has grown to $4.6 billion, representing 39 percent of Apple's overall revenues. "Clearly, it's too big for Apple or investors to ignore. The non-GAAP results are truly stunning." He said adjusted sales for the quarter are 48 percent higher than GAAP sales, and adjusted net income is 115 percent higher than reported net income. "It's more than double than reported net income...If this isn't stunning than I don't know what is, and it's all because of the success of the iPhone 3G."

-- On volume: Jobs said by selling 6.9 million iPhones during the quarter, Apple was able to beat RIM (NasdaqGS: RIMM - News), which sold 6.1 million Blackberry devices. "Apple outsold RIM last quarter. This is a milestone," considering Apple has only been in the market for 15 months.

-- Ranking by revenues: Jobs now claims that by revenues, Apple is the third largest mobile phone supplier in the world. Nokia (NYSE: NOK - News), is No. 1 at $12.7 billion; Samsung is No. 2 at $5.98 billion; Apple is No. 3 at $4.6 billion; Sony (NYSE: SNE - News) Ericsson (NasdaqGS: ERIC - News) is No. 4 at $4.2 billion; LG (SEO: 066570), No. 5, at $3.4 billion; Motorola (NYSE: MOT - News), No. 6, at $3.2 billion and RIM, No. 7, at $2.1 billion. "It's pretty amazing," but Jobs cautioned that they were able to sell that many by increasing the number of countries to 51 from 6, and that it's unclear if they can sustain that pace.

-- On the App Store: Jobs said tomorrow they will achieve the 200 millionth download from the App store after being available for only 102 days. "This is one area where we have completely changed the value proposition for mobile devices...We've never seen anything like this." Today, the App store has roughly 5,500 apps, which are being distributed in 62 countries. "Competitors are scrambling to copy our app store."

-- On the economy: Jobs told analysts and press on the call that they believe they will do fine because they have have good customers, good products, good employees, and $25 billion in cash and zero debt. Jobs: We will increase our R&D investments because they created some of the best products in the last downturn. "It is an extraordinary opportunity for companies that have the cash."

Apple shipped 2,611,000 Macintosh(R) computers during the quarter, representing 21 percent unit growth and 17 percent revenue growth over the year-ago quarter. The Company sold 11,052,000 iPods during the quarter, representing eight percent unit growth and three percent revenue growth over the year-ago quarter. Quarterly iPhone units sold were 6,892,000 compared to 1,119,000 in the year-ago-quarter.

Bottomline:
Apple revenue are up 27% and earnings are up 27% from prior year. Gross margin was 34.7 percent, up from 33.6 percent in the year-ago quarter. International sales accounted for 41 percent of the quarter's revenue. Traditionally, the last quarter of the year is Apple's best quarter. Considering the current economic downturn, even with a 20% conservative revenue and earnings growth, Apple will deliver $11.5 billion in revenue, and $1.89 billion in earnings; however, Apple is only providing guidance of $9 billion to $10 billion in revenue, and a broad range in earnings. Apple is definitely "low-balling" the guidance because of the current economy. Apple iPhone is a money making machine, and the iPhone will have even a greater impact on the earnings and revenue for the next quarter owing to Apple's accounting. Expect Apple to deliver another strong quarter, unless the economy completely unbuckles. Innovation Index Group has a BUY rating on Apple, and has a 12 month price target in the range of $160 to $190.

Innovation Index Reports

• Introducing The Innovation Index
• Annual Report 2007 - The Innovation Index gains 66%
• Measuring Business Innovation Success
• Innovation Index Group BUY Recommendations
• Q1 2008 Report - Innovation Index ahead of S&P 500
• Q2 2008 Report - Top Innovators Deliver
• The Innovation Index Fund FAQ
• Top 50 Innovative Companies in the world
• Annual Report - Chapter One - Total Innovation Activity
• Annual Report - Chapter Two - The Top Innovator
• Annual Report - Chapter Three - The Innovation Insights
• Innovation and Stock Performance Correlation
• Future earnings guidance, A leading indicator
• Smart Investing In Tough Economic Times
• To Sell Or Not To Sell - You Decide
• Creativity and Innovation Best Practices
• Creativity and Innovation Case Studies

About The Innovation Index

The Innovation Index introduced in December 2006 is a weighted stock price index of the top 20 Innovators in North America.

The Innovation Index returned 66% in 2007 based on performance model, and would have returned 174% over the previous five years (2002-2006) based on historical model*. This assumes equal investment in each stock of The Innovation Index as of December 31, 2001. An average of $100 invested in The Innovation Index on December 31, 2001 returned $454 as of December 31, 2007. By comparison, $100 invested in S & P 500 returned 28% or $129, $100 invested in NASDAQ returned 34% or $136, and $100 invested in the Dow Jones Index returned 30% or $131 through December 31, 2007. The Innovation Index beats the S & P 500, NASDAQ and Dow Jones Index by more than seven times over the past six years.*

Alphabetical list of the Top 20 Innovators of The Innovation Index for 2008 and their stock ticker symbols:

3M Company - (NYSE: MMM)
Amazon.com, Inc. - (NASDAQ: AMZN)
America Movil - (NYSE: AMX)
Apple Inc. - (NASDAQ: AAPL)
AT&T Inc. - (NYSE: T)
Best Buy Co., Inc. - (NYSE: BBY)
Cisco Systems, Inc. - (NASDAQ: CSCO)
Costco Wholesale Corporation - (NASDAQ: COST)
eBay Inc. - (NASDAQ: EBAY)
General Electric Co. - (NYSE: GE)
Google Inc. - (NASDAQ: GOOG)
Hewlett-Packard Co. - (NYSE: HPQ)
Intel Corporation - (NASDAQ: INTC)
International Business Machines Corp. - (NYSE: IBM)
Merck & Co., Inc. - (NYSE: MRK)
McDonald's Corporation (NYSE: MCD)
Microsoft Corporation - (NASDAQ: MSFT)
NIKE, Inc. - (NYSE: NKE)
Research In Motion Limited - (NASDAQ: RIMM)
The Proctor & Gamble Company - (NYSE: PG)

The Innovation Index will analyze the positions and standings of the Top 20 Innovators at the end of each year. For 2008, there will be no further changes in The Innovation Index.

Disclaimer: The Innovation Index Group, Inc. invests in the stocks comprising The Innovation Index.
*Past Performance Does Not Guarantee Future Results

Innovator Google is still growing strong

Google delivered big this week!! And so did IBM earlier in the week. Apple is next and P&G to follow... our innovators are growing strong in tough economy. When the going gets tough, the tough get going! Google shares were up after earnings release!!

In a separate story, Warren Buffett came out telling everyone to BUY for the long-term:

Buffett's optimism is based primarily on the following:

• "Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful. And most certainly, fear is now widespread, gripping even seasoned investors."
• Cash is trash. "Today people who hold cash equivalents feel comfortable," he writes. "They shouldn't. They have opted for a terrible long-term asset, one that pays virtually nothing and is certain to depreciate in value."

Here is an analysis on Google and IBM:

Google Inc., owner of the most popular Internet search engine, advanced in Nasdaq trading after reporting profit that topped analysts' estimates, saying customers are still buying Web ads even as the economy slows. (Bloomberg reference)

While advertisers of home and auto loans cut back, makers of apparel and appliances kept spending, Chief Financial Officer Patrick Pichette said. Consumers continue to shop online, he said, with clicks on ads climbing 18 percent, near the previous quarter's 19 percent growth.

Google results, combined with better-than-anticipated reports from International Business Machines Corp. cheered investors after a decline in technology shares this month. Google showed resilience in a weakening economy, said Mark May, an analyst at Needham & Co. in New York.

``This really shows we need to give them the benefit of the doubt,'' said May, who recommends buying the shares (of Google). ``They should be able to weather the storm fairly well.''

Google's third-quarter net income rose 26 percent to $1.35 billion, or $4.24 a share, from $1.07 billion, or $3.38, a year earlier. Leaving out costs such as stock-based compensation, profit was $4.92 a share, beating the $4.75 average estimate of analysts in a Bloomberg survey.

Google, based in Mountain View, California, rose $18.03, or 5.1 percent, to $371.05 on the Nasdaq Stock Market at 9:50 a.m. New York time, after earlier reaching $378.97. The shares had dropped 49 percent this year before today.

Advertising Shift

Advertisers are cutting back on TV and print media spending in favor of ads that run alongside search listings. The Internet will account for 8.7 percent of the $284 billion in U.S. ad spending this year, up from 7.2 percent in 2007, according to Barclays Capital.

Excluding revenue passed on to partner sites, Google's sales expanded to $4.04 billion last quarter. Total revenue climbed 31 percent to $5.54 billion.

At least eight analysts had reduced their estimates for Google's third quarter this month after the global credit crisis erupted. That made it easier for the company to beat the average profit estimates yesterday.

``This was exactly the kind of shot in the arm that investors need,'' said Jeff Lindsay, an analyst with Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. in New York. ``People lost a lot of faith in the Internet, but this is exactly what the doctor ordered.''

New Contracts

IBM, based in Armonk, New York, said yesterday it signed $12.7 billion in contracts last quarter, topping the estimate of as much as $11 billion from Cowen & Co. analyst Louis Miscioscia. Winning contracts with the Royal Dutch Navy and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. boosted the total.

``Tech is going to continue to be challenged for a period of time,'' Miscioscia, who has a neutral rating on IBM shares, said in an interview. ``To put this in perspective, IBM is up $2 after market, not $10, after falling about $20 since Oct. 1.''

Google handled 63 percent of U.S. online searches in August, double the market share of Yahoo! Inc. and Microsoft Corp. combined. That dominance has helped the company command higher prices for ads, according to Yahoo, which is awaiting government approval of an agreement to let Google sell some ads on its sites.

Cutting Back

Still, Google has reduced expenses by slowing its hiring rate and spending less on travel and events, said co-founder Sergey Brin.

``We don't know exactly what the future holds. We've taken a conservative approach,'' Brin said in an interview. ``We view this as an opportunity to refine our company and sharpen it.''

Capital expenditures fell to $452 million, down 18 percent from a year earlier, as Google made more efficient use of its computing centers, Brin said. He said he couldn't forecast whether the costs would continue to fall.

The credit crisis may cost the Internet ad market $6.7 billion in lost sales through 2010, according to Collins Stewart Plc. Big and small businesses, from General Motors Corp. to Simplexity LLC, are reducing ad spending plans, while some financial companies, such as Wachovia Corp., have disappeared.

Slower Growth?

The reductions will push down growth in U.S. Internet ad spending to less than 20 percent next year for the first time since 2002, said Sandeep Aggarwal, a Collins Stewart analyst in San Francisco. Advertisers will scale back spending on newspapers and broadcast TV networks, his firm said this month.

``Advertisers stay with the Internet because it's the way to reach the key younger demographic and that's what advertisers are really after,'' Timothy Ghriskey, chief investment officer at Solaris Asset Management LLC, said in an interview from Bedford Hills, New York.

Google, which gets almost all its revenue from Internet searches, is developing ways to advertise with images and video. The company struck a deal this month to show full-length programs from CBS Corp. on its YouTube site, splitting ad revenue with the network.

``The economic situation is so fluid that we're all sort of in uncharted territory,'' Chief Executive Officer Eric Schmidt said yesterday on a conference call. ``We've always been in this for the long term, and we believe that's even more important today than ever.''

Bottomline:
Google perhaps has the best business model - best of both worlds - when times are tough, and the economy is recessionary, advertisers market on Google and other search engines because they offer better value, better tracking and tighter budget controls. On the other hand, when the economy does improve, more advertisers will market more on Google because they simply have more money to spend. The only question is the rate of growth. But if Google can maintain 20% or better earnings and revenue growth in these trying times, this is simply remarkable. Innovation Index Group is long on Google, and is setting a revised target of $500 in 12 months.

Innovation Index Reports

• Introducing The Innovation Index
• Annual Report 2007 - The Innovation Index gains 66%
• Measuring Business Innovation Success
• Innovation Index Group BUY Recommendations
• Q1 2008 Report - Innovation Index ahead of S&P 500
• Q2 2008 Report - Top Innovators Deliver
• The Innovation Index Fund FAQ
• Top 50 Innovative Companies in the world
• Annual Report - Chapter One - Total Innovation Activity
• Annual Report - Chapter Two - The Top Innovator
• Annual Report - Chapter Three - The Innovation Insights
• Innovation and Stock Performance Correlation
• Future earnings guidance, A leading indicator
• Smart Investing In Tough Economic Times
• To Sell Or Not To Sell - You Decide
• Creativity and Innovation Best Practices
• Creativity and Innovation Case Studies

About The Innovation Index

The Innovation Index introduced in December 2006 is a weighted stock price index of the top 20 Innovators in North America.

The Innovation Index returned 66% in 2007 based on performance model, and would have returned 174% over the previous five years (2002-2006) based on historical model*. This assumes equal investment in each stock of The Innovation Index as of December 31, 2001. An average of $100 invested in The Innovation Index on December 31, 2001 returned $454 as of December 31, 2007. By comparison, $100 invested in S & P 500 returned 28% or $129, $100 invested in NASDAQ returned 34% or $136, and $100 invested in the Dow Jones Index returned 30% or $131 through December 31, 2007. The Innovation Index beats the S & P 500, NASDAQ and Dow Jones Index by more than seven times over the past six years.*

Alphabetical list of the Top 20 Innovators of The Innovation Index for 2008 and their stock ticker symbols:

3M Company - (NYSE: MMM)
Amazon.com, Inc. - (NASDAQ: AMZN)
America Movil - (NYSE: AMX)
Apple Inc. - (NASDAQ: AAPL)
AT&T Inc. - (NYSE: T)
Best Buy Co., Inc. - (NYSE: BBY)
Cisco Systems, Inc. - (NASDAQ: CSCO)
Costco Wholesale Corporation - (NASDAQ: COST)
eBay Inc. - (NASDAQ: EBAY)
General Electric Co. - (NYSE: GE)
Google Inc. - (NASDAQ: GOOG)
Hewlett-Packard Co. - (NYSE: HPQ)
Intel Corporation - (NASDAQ: INTC)
International Business Machines Corp. - (NYSE: IBM)
Merck & Co., Inc. - (NYSE: MRK)
McDonald's Corporation (NYSE: MCD)
Microsoft Corporation - (NASDAQ: MSFT)
NIKE, Inc. - (NYSE: NKE)
Research In Motion Limited - (NASDAQ: RIMM)
The Proctor & Gamble Company - (NYSE: PG)

The Innovation Index will analyze the positions and standings of the Top 20 Innovators at the end of each year. For 2008, there will be no further changes in The Innovation Index.

Disclaimer: The Innovation Index Group, Inc. invests in the stocks comprising The Innovation Index.
*Past Performance Does Not Guarantee Future Results

References:

Bloomberg story reported by: Crayton Harrison in Dallas at tharrison5@bloomberg.net; Lauren Berry in New York at lberry4@bloomberg.net

Nike Delivers Outstanding 3Q Results - Growth In Innovative Products, Diversified Portfolio, Global Sales and Futures Orders

Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) delivered solid third quarter results, beating the high-end analyst expectations on both earnings and revenue. Sales revenue grew 16 percent to $4.5 billion, compared to $3.9 billion for the same period last year; earnings increased 35 percent to 92 cents per share versus 68 cents last year; net income rose 32 percent to $463.8 million compared to $350.8 million last year. Nike shares were up more than 4 percent in after hours.

Nike is one of the Top 20 Innovators of The Innovation Index. Innovation Index Group, Inc. rates Nike a BUY, and has a Q4, 2008 stock price target of $80.

Invest in The Innovation Index - Innovation Index Fund tracks The Innovation Index.

In the press release, Mark Parker, NIKE, Inc. President and Chief Executive Officer stated: "Our strong third quarter results, driven by sales gains across our diversified portfolio of categories, geographies, and brands, are a clear indication that our strategy is working and that we're on track to achieve our financial goals for this fiscal year and beyond."

Parker continued, "Over the past twelve months we've taken a number of important strategic steps to strengthen the performance and potential of our portfolio of products and brands, steps we believe create stronger platforms for growth and allow us to connect even deeper with consumers. More than ever, the consumer is at the epicenter of everything we do, and delivering the most innovative products and the most exciting consumer experiences is the key to our future growth."

Nike -> Most Innovative Products + Brands -> Most Exciting Consumer Experiences -> Tremendous Future Growth

Nike benefited from the exchange rate in the 3rd quarter that increased the revenue growth by 6 percent.

Future Outlook

The leading indicator on how well Nike will do in the 4th quarter is Futures Orders. Nike is well poised to repeat the revenue and earnings growth based on the future visibility:
The Company reported worldwide futures orders for athletic footwear and apparel, scheduled for delivery from March 2008 through July 2008, totaling $6.9 billion, 11 percent higher than such orders reported for the same period last year.

Global Growth

Nike reported 20 percent or higher sales growth in Asia-Pacific, Europe and the Americas region (excluding U.S.) from last year. Global orders of clothing and footwear through July increased 11 percent. China sales were up more than 50 percent as consumers bought shoes and clothing before this summer's Olympic Games. Nike has already reached $1 billion in sales in China, a year ahead of its original target, Parker said in the earnings release. U.S. revenues were up 5 percent compared to last year. The global consumer is buying more diversified Nike products - shoes, apparel, equipment - thereby creating a revenue surge.

Parker concluded, "Our focus on prime growth opportunities extends throughout our portfolio of brands. We are confident that our divestiture decisions are the right ones for Bauer Hockey, Starter, and Nike. Our most recent acquisition, Umbro, is a brand that has tremendous heritage and respect in global football. This acquisition represents an opportunity to create value for shareholders and consumers by applying our product, brand-building and operational capabilities to a business with enormous growth potential around the world." - Innovation through acquisition. Nike is not shy to grow its global brand by acquiring a strong brand and channeling it through Nike's innovative process.

Recent Innovations

Earlier in March, Nike extended its partnership with Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), another Top 20 Innovator, to the gym, by announcing Nike + iPod integration with gym equipments. Nike is poised to do well in this undertaking.

Nike also announced the Nike SPARQ Training, the company's "most comprehensive performance training launch ever, combining a relationship with SPARQ, high performance products, online experiences at nike.com, a new association with Velocity Sports Performance Centers, and a multi-media campaign called “My Better.”" The centerpiece of Nike’s efforts is SPARQ which stands for Speed, Power, Agility, Reaction and Quickness

These key innovations across a diversified portfolio of products, global distribution, and global growth will likely propel Nike's revenue and earnings growth through 2010.

Nike is one of the Top 20 Innovators of The Innovation Index. Innovation Index Group, Inc. rates Nike a BUY, and has a Q4, 2008 stock price target of $80.

Related Articles:

Nike (NYSE: NKE) and Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) working out at a Gym near you
Creativity And Innovation in Business Definitive Guide

About Innovation Index Group:

Innovation Index Group, Inc. is a new investment management company focused on systematically identifying, tracking and investing in the most innovative publicly traded companies in North America – collectively called the Innovation Index. We have developed the Innovation Index Fund, LLC as our first vehicle to invest in the Innovation Index. Over the past six years, the Innovation Index has generated a gross average annual return of 40%.*

Innovation Index Group, Inc. and Innovation Index Fund LLC are registered California Corporations, and member of the Irvine Chamber of Commerce in Orange County. Further, Innovation Index Fund LLC is a private placement investment partnership organized under the California state regulations.

The Innovation Index Reports:

Invest in The Innovation Index - Innovation Index Fund tracks The Innovation Index
The Innovation Index closes 2007 at 66% - 2007 Annual Report on the Innovation Index
Top 50 Innovative Companies in the world - 2007 Report on Top 50 Innovative Companies
Annual Report - Chapter One - Total Innovation Activity - 2006 Annual Report One
Annual Report - Chapter Two - The Top Innovator - 2006 Annual Report Two
Annual Report - Chapter Three - The Innovation Insights - 2006 Annual Report Insights
Innovation and Stock Performance Correlation - The Innovation Index and Stock Performance

About The Innovation Index

The Innovation Index introduced in December 2006 is a weighted stock price index of the top 20 Innovators in North America.

The Innovation Index returned 66% in 2007, and returned 174% over the previous five years (2002-2006). This assumes equal investment in each stock of The Innovation Index as of December 31, 2001. An average of $100 invested in The Innovation Index on December 31, 2001 returned $454 as of December 31, 2007. By comparison, $100 invested in S & P 500 returned 28% or $129, $100 invested in NASDAQ returned 34% or $136, and $100 invested in the Dow Jones Index returned 30% or $131 through December 31, 2007. The Innovation Index beats the S & P 500, NASDAQ and Dow Jones Index by more than seven times over the past six years.*

Alphabetical list of the Top 20 Innovators of The Innovation Index for 2008 and their stock ticker symbols:

3M Company - (NYSE: MMM)
Amazon.com, Inc. - (NASDAQ: AMZN)
America Movil - (NYSE: AMX)
Apple Inc. - (NASDAQ: AAPL)
AT&T Inc. - (NYSE: T)
Best Buy Co., Inc. - (NYSE: BBY)
Cisco Systems, Inc. - (NASDAQ: CSCO)
Costco Wholesale Corporation - (NASDAQ: COST)
eBay Inc. - (NASDAQ: EBAY)
General Electric Co. - (NYSE: GE)
Google Inc. - (NASDAQ: GOOG)
Hewlett-Packard Co. - (NYSE: HPQ)
Intel Corporation - (NYSE: INTC)
International Business Machines Corp. - (NYSE: IBM)
Merck & Co., Inc. - (NYSE: MRK)
McDonald's Corporation (NYSE: MCD)
Microsoft Corporation - (NASDAQ: MSFT)
NIKE, Inc. - (NYSE: NKE)
Research In Motion Limited - (NASDAQ: RIMM)
The Proctor & Gamble Company - (NYSE: PG)

The Innovation Index will analyze the positions and standings of the Top 20 Innovators at the end of each year. For 2008, there will be no further changes in The Innovation Index.

Disclaimer: The Innovation Index Group, Inc. invests in the stocks comprising The Innovation Index.
*Past Performance Does Not Guarantee Future Results