Annaly Capital Management, Inc (NLY) does not believe in providing its executives with excessive perquisites and other fringe benefits. Consistent with its pay-for-performance mandate, the m-REIT provides few executive fringe benefits, save for health and welfare benefits, such as group medical, group life and long-term disability coverage.

As stated in the company’s annual proxy:

We believe that our executives should be able to provide for their retirement needs from the total annual compensation they earn based on our performance. Accordingly, other than an employer matching contribution, which is the same that we provide all of our employees, we do not offer our executives any nonqualified pension plans, supplemental executive retirement plans, deferred compensation plans or other forms of compensation for retirement.

It is fascinating to watch the PR machine(s) thrown into overdrive, pumping up the legend of the moment. Oppenheimer & Co banking analyst, Meredith Whitney, is the toast of Wall Street. Ms. Whitney, ahead of the herd, bravely went out on a limb, issuing a downgrade on Citigroup (C) in an Oct. 31 report, predicting the bank would be hard hit by the subprime market meltdown. I say 'bravely,' for her dire predictions shook the financial giant to the core and brought upon her death threats!

"No one had the moxie to put in print what I put in print,'' said Whitney in an interview recently.

Railcar freight volume in the U.S. totaled 363.6 billion ton-miles in this year's first 11 weeks, up 2.3% from last year—despite weather-related volume shortfalls in January. Survey data suggests that rising diesel fuel prices—i.e. higher freight surcharges—are adversely affecting trucking volumes, shifting shipper freight demand to rail from trucking because of higher total transportation costs in the latter.

As freight demand rebounds (ahead of the broader economy), Burlington Northern (NYSE:BNI), Norfolk Southern Co (NYSE:NSC), and other rail transport companies are expanding capacity on rail infrastructure to meet the expected growing demand.

On April 26, 2006, interventional medical device maker Boston Scientific (BSX) acquired Guidant Corp—the then second-largest maker of implantable cardiac defibrillators [ICD] and pacemakers (behind Medtronic) for $27.3 billion.

Instrumental in negotiating the deal to purchase Guidant was Peter M. Nicholas, co-founder of BSX. Messer. Nicholas retired in May 2005, but retained title as Chairman of the Board, the dais from which he lobbied other directors and major shareholders to sign off on the Guidant deal.

Every day, Alcoa Inc (AA) mines 86,300 tons of bauxite, refines 41,000 tons of alumina, and smelts 9,575 tons of aluminum, worldwide, from Iceland to Australia. This upstream business model remains highly profitable, with fiscal 2007 income from operations up 19 percent Y/Y to $2.6 billion, or $2.95 a share, on $30.7 billion in revenue.

Growth, however, does not come without external costs. EPA fines in the United States for wastewater runoff pollutants, accusations of increased greenhouse gases, claims that its emissions are making nearby residents sick (cancers and respiratory illnesses)—the world's largest aluminum producer is under increasing attack from environmental activists that it is leaving toxic footprints wherever it treads.

Despite another quarter of red ink, Martin Petersen, Chief Financial Officer of Raser Technologies, Inc (RZ), which is looking to develop geothermal assets as an alternative energy source, said the Company "made tremendous progress in achieving [our] goals during the year, setting the stage for a productive and exciting 2008."

President Patrick Schwartz, crowed, too, about "significant relationships and agreements [that we] completed this past year," including a signed license agreement with Wilson Auto Electric Ltd. Of Canada, in which Wilson will have the right to incorporate Raser’s Symetron™ technology into truck and automotive alternators.

According to a proxy statement filed last week with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Life Time Fitness (LTM) reimbursed its founder and chief executive, Bahram Akradi, $31,777 for his cell phone plan and home Internet connectivity.

In an internal memo released Wednesday, Citigroup Inc (C) Chief Executive Vikram Pandit called the bank "well capitalized," and characterized most of its major units as "dynamic and thriving businesses."

Thursday morning, the largest U.S. bank said it aims to cut its home loan exposure by $45 billion, or by about 20 percent, over the next year.

Dell Inc (DELL) said Thursday that its fourth-quarter profit dropped 6.4 percent, to $679 million or 31 cents per share, in the quarter ended February 1, 2007 (including several one-time expenses totaling 7 cents per share and gains of 4 cents per share).

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial had predicted a profit of 36 cents per share. A year ago, the No. 2 PC Maker earned $726 million, or 32 cents per share.

China Solar & Clean Energy Solutions, Inc. (CSOL.OB) provides solar hot water heaters and coal fired residential boilers in the People’s Republic of China [PRC], primarily in rural areas.

Going forward, given prospects for alternative energy solutions in the PRC and existing demand for China Solar’s products, the Company believes that a CAGR of 70% per annum is attainable for the next several years.

In October 2006, Plato Learning, Inc. (TUTR), a provider of computer-based and e-learning instruction for kindergarten through adult learners, switched its revenue model from dependence on a one-time perpetual software license model to a fee-based subscription model, the PLATO Learning Environment.

Despite weak sales in the casual U.S. footwear retail space, Crocs Inc (CROX) posted strong fourth-quarter net income of 45 cents a share on an 84% rise in sales of $224.8 million. Nonetheless, shares of the maker of colorful plastic shoes tumbled nearly 13 percent in after-market trading to $28.05 a share after on Tuesday only backing its previous 2008 guidance, slightly below average Wall Street estimates.

Crocs Inc. expects to earn about $2.70 per share for the year on $1.16 billion in revenue. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial estimated profit of $2.71 per share on $1.18 billion in revenue, on average.

In order to operate legally in China, offshore entities need to sidestep substantial uncertainties regarding the proper interpretation and adherence to current laws and regulations of the PRC, including foreign ownership restrictions.

Investing in shares of the common stock of China Wind Systems (CWSI.OB), a provider of industrial equipment for use in the textile and energy related industries in the People’s Republic of China [PRC], represents the complexity and the high degree of risk found in most small-capitalization companies doing business—and based—in China.

On its January 31 earnings conference call, Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY), surprised Wall Street by reporting an unexpected fourth-quarter impairment charge of $275 million on the company's investments in auction rate securities [ARS].

As of December 31, 2007, the drug manufacturer had approximately $811 million of principal invested in ARS. The Company's investments in ARS represented interests in collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) supported by pools of residential and commercial mortgages or credit cards, insurance securitizations and other structured credits, including corporate bonds. Some of the underlying collateral for the ARS held by the company consisted of sub-prime mortgages, too!

Shares of The Children's Place Retail Stores Inc. (PLCE) surged 19.69%, or $3.50 a share, in trading Thursday after the Company said it was approached by its former Chief Executive Officer, Ezra Dabah, regarding a potential $578 million buyout of the children's apparel retailer.

According to a regulatory filing, Ezra Dabah, who beneficially owns 17.2% of the common stock, requested that the Board authorize Mr. Dabah to enter into agreements with Golden Gate Private Equity Inc. for the purpose of making a proposal to acquire the company's outstanding shares at $24.00 a share in cash.

On January 30, China Finance Online Corporation (JRJC), an online financial data and stock market analytics provider to Chinese investors, said it expected to record a non-cash impairment charge (in the fourth-quarter of 2007) against its minority interest in mobile gaming services provider, Moloon International Inc.

Excluding the impact of the investment impairment against Moloon, China Finance Online expects adjusted earnings to be in the range of US$3.0 million to US$3.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2007, on estimated net revenues in the range of US$8.7 to US$9.0 million.

The bankruptcies of record retailers (bye-bye Tower Records and Musicland) and wholesalers, the growth of new formats for recorded music distribution (legal downloading of digital music using the Internet), the maturation of the CD format, and digital piracy are factors which continue to negatively impact the operating results at Warner Music Group (WMG). The company generates more than 80 percent of its annual revenue from recorded music, split 90/10—physical (such as CDs, cassettes, LPs and DVDs) and digital (such as downloads and ringtones) formats, respectively. The remainder sales are generated from music publishing.

Aiming to effectively address the continued development of digital distribution channels along with the decline of industry-wide CD sales, Warner Music, home to acts such as Faith Hill, Green Day, Led Zeppelin, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and R.E.M, announced a re-alignment plan in its second-quarter of fiscal year 2007. New business initiatives included cost-structure savings (i.e. layoffs) and the evolution from a traditional record and songs-based business to a music-based content provider (across online and mobile platforms).

Shares in Motorola, Inc. (MOT) plunged 19 percent on Wednesday, after the struggling cell-phone maker released dismal results for the 4Q:07 and said it was taking longer than expected for a recovery in demand for its mobile devices.

Shareholder activist Carl Icahn beneficially owns about 3.3% of shares outstanding (as of September 30, 2007 filing)—much of it acquired at prices between $17.73 and $19.80 a share. The billionaire financier has consistently criticized the management of Motorola for its poor financial performance and unsuccessfully ran for a seat on its board in May 2007. He is rumored to be agitating for a break-up, according to traders.

The common approach to monitoring related-party transactions has been (i) disclosure of potential conflicts of interest in regulatory filings and (ii) financial governance by ‘independent’ directors on the board, representing the outside shareholder interests. Nonetheless, despite the intended transparency, these ‘best practice’ principles do little to stop insiders from enriching themselves at the expense of ordinary stockholders.

Charles Liang and his spouse, Chiu-Chu (Sara) Liu Liang, who co-founded Super Micro Computer (SMCI), and are currently the Chief Executive Office/ Chairman of the Board and Vice President of Operations/Treasurer, respectively, of this provider of high-performance servers and workstation solutions, continue to financially enrich themselves and their families through stakes in related-party transactions, according to a proxy statement filed last week with the Securities and Exchange Commission.