Equity valuation of the BMW Group

The present dissertation aims to value the BMW group, which currently owns three different and physically powerful brands: BMW, Mini and Rolls Royce. There is still much deliberation among analysts about which valuation method is the most accurate, but almost all investors agree that the Discounted Cash Flow is one of the best models to use. Therefore, the BMW group will be valued with this method, as well as with a relative valuation which is extremely important fundamentally as a complementary tool for the DCF. The Dividend Discount Model was also used in order to value the price per share based on the present value of future dividends. The results obtained with these methodologies will be compared with the ones of an investment bank – JP Morgan, published in 2013. This has been done in order to understand the main differences on the valuation and to provide a way of checking its strength. Therefore, given the exceptional period that the BMW group is undergoing, we find that the current value of BMW is in fact undervalued and that there is a high probability that the current share price of the company will rise

MsmX as model for functional studies of Multitask ATPases from pathogenic bacteria

The ABC-type transporters constitute one of the largest and most diverse transporter superfamilies characterized by a highly conserved ATP-binding cassette, and are widespread among all domains of life. Recent studies, performed in our laboratory demonstrated that MsmX ATPase from Bacillus subtilis interacts with several distinct ABC sugar importers thus, unlike other NBDs MsmX was shown to be multitask serving as energy-generating component to several sugar importers. Sharing of an ATPase among carbohydrate ABC transporters in both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria seems to be a common strategy for adaption and survival and may represent novel therapeutic approaches for targeting since ABC importers are exclusive to prokaryotes. To characterize multipurpose ATPases and to assess their intra- and interspecies interchangeability, we fine-tuned a genetic system in B. subtilis for controlled ectopic gene expression. The functionality of distinct multitask ATPases alleles was determined by their ability to complement the role of MsmX in a B. subtilis msmX-null mutant. Moreover, this genetic system allowed the determination of intracellular accumulation of the tested ATPases by Western-Blot analysis. The results show that an ATPase from B. thuringiensis was able to fulfill the role of MsmX in its absence, while another ATPase from B. subtilis YurJ was only able to partially play MsmX role. In addition to intra- and interspecies interchangeability of Bacillus ATPases, we found that ATPases from Streptococcus pneumoniae and Staphylococcus aureus were also able to complement to a certain degree the B. subtilis MsmX function in vivo. In contrast ATPases from the Gram-negative bacterium Escherichia coli were not functional in B. subtilis. Furthermore, all the tested ATPases accumulate in the cells. Our study shows that B. subtilis can be use as model for the study of bacterial multitask ATPases. Furthermore, it provides a genetic tool for the characterization of this phenomenon in bacterial carbohydrate transport and particularly in bacterial pathogen

Medir o agenda-setting nos comentários dos leitores às eleições legislativas de 2015

O presente estudo propõe o uso dos comentários dos leitores como objeto para medir os fenómenos de agenda-setting. A análise de frequência de palavras é o método escolhido para operacionalizar a avaliação do agenda-setting. O método proposto foi testado numa amostra de 741 artigos e 52.064 comentários do jornal Expresso, que englobam um período de cinco semanas entre 4 de setembro e 10 de outubro de 2015. A análise de frequência de palavras permitiu não só avaliar quais os temas abordados pelo jornal que mais ecoaram nos comentários, mas também estudar o processo inverso, ou seja, quais os temas abordados pelos comentadores que foram sub-representados nas notícias.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Food consumption and nutritional knowledge in athletes: a systematic literature review

Sports nutrition involves the application of nutritional principles to improve the performance of individuals who practice some sporting modality. The nutritional knowledge of the athlete is relevant, to acquire competences in the correct choice of food, in order to meet the daily energy needs. METHODS The objective of the systematic review is to evaluate the food consumption of athletes and their nutritional knowledge. The bibliographic research was carried out in the databases PubMed And Science Direct, According to the guidelines PRISMA and Collaboration Cochrane (Galvão, Pansani, & Harrad, 2015) for the period between 2008-2018. After applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 12 articles were selected from a total of 1130 articles. RESULTS The inadequacy of energy (Praz, Granges, Burtin, & Kayser, 2015) consumption and the carbohydrate (Coutinho, Porto, & Pierucci, 2016) intake deficit was 50% (n = 6) of the articles analyzed. Regarding protein (M. Sousa et al., 2016) and total saturated fat consumption, 25% (n = 3), showed excessive consumption according to recommendations. In the micronutrient intake there was a deficit of vitamins and minerals in 42% (n = 5) of the articles. In the water intake, the prevalence of inadequacy was 33% (n = 4). Regarding food frequency, there was a low intake of fruits and vegetables, at least 42% (n = 5) of the articles and cereals in 33% (n = 4). About nutritional knowledge, the articles that evaluate it (n = 3): 67% (n = 2) have investigated that the Average nutritional knowledge index was higher than 50% (Alaunyte, Perry, & Aubrey, 2015), verifying a statistically significant association between food consumption and nutritional knowledge (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS The obtained results allowed the observation that most of the athletes do not have an adequate diet for their respective sport practice. It is imperative to reinforce research on the nutritional knowledge of athletes.The authors thank to FCT-Portugal and the ERDF through the program PT2020, the funding granted to CIMO (UID /AGR/00690/2013).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Acidentes de trabalho e a sua descaraterização. Um especial enfoque em torno das problemáticas derivadas da pandemia Covid 19

Face à elevada sinistralidade laboral, o legislador português, à semelhança de outros ordenamentos jurídicos, preocupou-se em tutelar o trabalhador, vítima de acidente de trabalho e os seus familiares, conferindo-lhes o direito à reparação pelos danos emergentes do infortúnio laboral, nos termos do artigo 2.º da Lei n.º 98/2009, de 4 de setembro. Contudo, a entidade empregadora fica excluída do dever de reparação desses mesmos danos, nas situações previstas nos artigos 14.º e seguintes do referido diploma. A adaptação a uma nova realidade provocada pela pandemia SARS-CoV-2, constitui um enorme desafio no mundo laboral, que levanta algumas querelas quanto à sua qualificação do ponto de vista conceptual. Esta dissertação tem o objetivo de clarificar algumas nuances que surgem no debate do conceito de acidente de trabalho e nas causas de exclusão da responsabilidade do empregador, com recurso à diminuta doutrina nacional e às posições jurisprudenciais controversas. A metodologia adotada consistiu numa cautelosa e exaustiva pesquisa bibliográfica e documental, cuja consulta e recolha de informações foi feita em manuais e obras publicadas, revistas, publicações periódicas, artigos científicos, monografias, dissertações e palestras. Este estudo confirma que ainda existe uma longa trajetória a percorrer para desenvolver um regime jurídico que consiga suprir as necessidades do trabalhador, cuja importância se verifica pelo número significativo de litígios nos tribunais de trabalho

Optimized routing for people with permanent or temporary mobility disability: a case study in Viana do Castelo

Nowadays, it is already common to have apps to assist citizens in their mobility within a city. However, apps are usually designed for the general citizen and do not include the specificity of people with reduced mobility, temporarily or permanently, such as visually impaired people, autistic people, people in wheelchairs, among others segments. This paper illustrates a case study carried out in the city of Viana do Castelo, in Portugal, where the streets of the historic center of the city were classified in a Geographic Information System (GIS) by the City Council together with the institutions that represent each one of the considered segments. Based on this classification, the Viana+Acessivel app was developed, which is about to be made available free of charge to all citizens, and which recommends to each user the optimum route from a source to a destination, taking into account his segment. For example, visually impaired people should avoid streets where emergency vehicles can circulate and autistic people should preferably avoid streets with loud noises, among other conditions. The A -Star Algorithm and Dijkstra Algorithm were used in the app to identify the optimum route. A comparative study was made concluding that both strategies identify the optimum route and A -Star method obtains the optimum solution in a faster time. An evaluation of the app was also made in terms of its effectiveness and usability.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio