Despite a recent run up in IBM's shares, there is still room for more shareholder returns.

Not since Cisco Systems Inc. did a big debt offering earlier this year, has there been so much rampant speculation about what the networking giant will buy next.

Perot Systems, which was itself bought last month by Dell, acquires Chinese management and consulting group BearingPoint.

So word has it the Obama administration is going to have the antitrust folks scrutinize high-technology companies for various anticompetitive actions.

Accenture?s business model remains fully intact and will benefit during the next uptick in global activity.