May 2009

Market Recap: Paper Planes

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asNbeOBZaTs] The Reformed Broker, AKA Ted Stryker, here with today’s Market Recap… You know it was a snoozer of a day when the most interesting thing  can point out was the beating the airline sector took.  The latest data on air traffic showed a decline of 3.1 % in April, after an 11.1% decline in…

Dr. Doom on Hyperinflation

Many economists are scoffing at the potential for hyperinflation here in the United States as housing price declines, unemployment and auto sector weakness dominate the headlines. I don’t know if scoffing is the best idea right about now.  I have frequently been discussing the possibility of hyperinflation both with clients and here on TRB.  Earlier this month, I…

Mark Reiboldt on the Next Wave of Innovation

I’m new to the fold in terms of reading Mark Reiboldt‘s work on his site Mark to Market, but if this post is any indication of his regular insight and writing style, I’ll be back. Reiboldt put up a piece on why life sciences and health tech will be the next big wave of innovation and value…

Market Recap: In The Ayer

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fEI2ZHUs6o] The Reformed Broker, AKA Armand Hammer, here with today’s Market Recap… So North Korea tests a nuclear bomb and long range missile and the Case Shiller housing numbers, while backward-looking, are still apocalyptic.  How does the market react? EXPLOSION!   The Dow was up around 150 to 200 points all day, without any real…

Facebook Suckers in More "Investment" Cash

Is Facebook worth anywhere near $10 billion?  Nope!  Not even half.  They could go public tonight and possibly raise that much, but that valuation would only be temporary. Never mind that, a Russian company was the latest to get rooked by the social media hype machine… From Bloomberg: Facebook Inc., the world’s largest social-networking service, said it…

How Good is McDonalds? They're Selling Burgers in India.

McDonalds (MCD) is probably the best-run public restaurant chain in history.  They’ve always done well in terms of employee training, keeping costs low, marketing etc., but recently their big victories have been in overseas expansion.  McDonalds recently announced a big India expansion, which is mind-blowing when you consider the fact that India is a vegetarian country. …

Update: Ackman/ Target

William Ackman, the man behind Pershing Square‘s activist battle with Target (TGT), appeared on CNBC this morning and did a reasonably good job at explaining his reasons for his challenge to the company.  He did make some compelling arguments regarding the lackluster backgrounds of some of the existing board members and management’s own non-history of…

The Shareholder Bill of Rights: Better Late than Never

I’ll start off here with a caveat…I know that Chuck Schumer is pushing this bill because of the populist impression it gives, keeping in mind that some of his biggest fundraisers over the years have been pro-corporate entrenchment and traditional Wall Street interests.  I also know that this is the type of after-the-fall legislation that…

Why Ackman Can't Back Down from Target Fight

Barron’s writer Andrew Bary gave voice to a question that is probably on many analysts’ and investors’ minds…what exactly is Bill Ackman‘s beef with Target (TGT)?  The company has done just about everything right.  Pershing Square‘s Ackman is basically barking up the wrong tree and I think I know why.  He’s painted himself into a…

Hot Links: Ratings Agencies, Europeans and the Power of "No"

Hot Links for Weekend Reading… OMG you guys, I love it when you hear that famous people are friends, I like to come up with my own combinations and pretend they hang out…like Kevin James and Phillip Seymour Hoffman…ok, sorry…so Bill Gates and Warren Buffett and Oprah and Ted Turner and Mike Bloomberg and all…