Carol Bartz Assumes Command at Yahoo

Yesterday's Wall Street Journal carried a very flattering, supportive article describing a more favorable reaction by most interested parties to Carol Bartz' elevation to CEO of Yahoo than prior pieces had been.

The Journal piece noted,



"In a call with analysts Tuesday, Ms. Bartz said, "I don't expect it's going to take an extraordinary amount of time" to examine Yahoo's strategic options, but she indicated she is unwilling to cave in to outside pressure to act. "More than anything, let's give this company some frickin' breathing room. It's been too crazy -- everybody on the outside deciding what Yahoo should do, shouldn't do, what's best for them. That's going to stop." "

You have to love Bartz' attitude. Somehow, you just envision dozens of investment bankers, analysts and related onlookers collectively shutting up and watching while Bartz sorts out the ailing company's fortunes in the next month.

For what it's worth, per my earlier Bartz-focused post, I found my 2006 Yahoo chart comparing GE and Autodesk. Then updated it to the present.

Bartz served as CEO of the cad/cam company from 1192-2006.

As mediocre as GE looked back in 2006 compared to Autodesk, it's even worse now, not even outperforming the S&P.

By viewing the slopes of the price curves, even allowing for GE's dividend, you can see that Bartz outperformed Immelt and, over her tenure, significantly outperformed the S&P. To a degree, I believe, that would work out to a higher rate per annum than Welch's, but I'll have to go to my Compustat data to confirm that.

In any case, Bartz is already taking charge and making it clear she'll be the one running Yahoo and doing the talking. And more than likely, her counterparts elsewhere realize the days of pushing the hapless internet company around are over.