SteveTheHawk

'AAA' Rated Companies: And Then There Were Six

Hmmmm, we may have to make that 4 or 5. I think BRK is losing its AAA rating, at least from Fitch.

JNJ Still Solid - Buffett or No Buffett

My major purchase of JNJ was at $56. In that it represents a decent chunk of my portfolio, it would not be prudent to buy more and make it overweight. I am however holding out for $45. If it hits that mark, I may very well decide to ignore prudent and buy some more.

S&P 500 Buy and Sell Ratings

Analyst - Schmanalyst. Too many buy/hold ratings and never enough sell ratings.

Decline in Procter & Gamble Is Overdone

In normal times, I would say you were correct. Considering the overall state of affairs, I have so many doubts that viewing any stock as cheap is difficult.

The Three Riskiest Banks - American Banker

Charlie.... dont' be such a twit. Only a moron would click on your apparent spam link. An even bigger moron would click on a link concealed with TinyUrl address.

Analysts on Tim Hortons' Growth Potential

Just a personal observation..... I think Tim Horton's is just generally lousy, especially their donuts. Several of their stores have sprung up around me in the last couple years. They were mobbed at first (the "new" thing"), but it appears that traffic dropped off significantly once the novelty wore off. I don't go there at all and when driving by their locations, the number of vehicles is far less than it used to be.

I know that doesn't qualify as an investment analysis, but it seems that at least in my local market, THI is not doing that well. Some of their local stores don't seem to be doing well at all.

When to Sell Dividend Stocks

I've never owned C or GM stock (thankfully), but I have had BAC in my portfolio at times. The last time I sold at about $38 because I suspected a dividend cut. I suspect yet another is coming down the pipe. Credibility issues or not, BAC may not have a choice.

I'm not yet anxious to own this stock again. I think there are a lot of trolls hiding under the bridge still. I may consider taking a very small position, but likely not. I don't think they are out of the woods yet.

High-Income Shoppers Slashed Spending Most Over The Holidays

Very true 68127. In addition, many of them are probably freaking out over the drop in value of their McMansion and 401K. They no longer feel warm and fuzzy about their finances.

Expect Retail Bankruptcies in January

I don't carry a balance on my credit cards, and the credit limit on one of my cards was just raised, for unknown reasons. I have had no credit limit reductions and it seems that my line of lenders is trying their best to get me to borrow and spend. Even my HELOC vendor is in regular contact and is apparently concerned that I haven't borrowed any money in some time.

Our household is not overly affluent, but we do have top-notch credit scores. From my small corner of the world it seems then that many who are seeing reduced access to credit probably need that reduction.

My wife and I are blessed with jobs (and pensions) and I truly feel for those who through no fault of their own are in poor financial condition. The fact is though that many people have been riding the fantasy credit bus for too long. The retailers and lenders have been there for them, driving the buses. That reality is coming home to roost is not a surprise. Retailers are going to feel the reality pinch for some time. The abuse of credit has created a surplus of retailers. Certainly, some will close but the strong will survive to sell another day. In the meantime, we will get along just fine without the large flat-screen TV.

Here Comes a Consumer Killer

Absolutely true. Overall, the consumer is, or soon will be, tapped out. Those living on the financial edge will continue with large card balances, and some will become insolvent. Those who are more fortunate will work to pay their balance each month. Personally, our household has not paid dime one in credit card interest in the last 15 years and we will do our best to keep it that way. The card issuers are going to be left trying to gouge the less fortunate for every dime they can get. None of this speaks well for the economy.

My guess for a decent turn in the economy is a good year or two. Consumers need time to get a grip on their finances and that won't happen overnight.

A Look at Buckle: Fundamentals Don't Matter Anymore

I agree that fundamentals are taking a back seat in decision making when it comes to investing. When fear is rampant, little else matters. I think we are at the point of searching for bad. The market seeks out, and sometimes invents, reasons to sell.

Anyone looking to make money in this market has to become something of a trader. "Investing" doesn't make much sense unless you want to wait a good five years in hopes of making money. Stocks dropping and/or rising 10-30% in a given day indicates that this is a trader's market.

And by the way, in your first paragraph about Buckle, you said "The market could care less about any positive news". I assume you meant to say "COULDN'T".

Can You See Apple Under $60?

Considering the current economic climate, I don't see Apple as being undervalued at all. Even with the huge drop in price, it still has a PE of 15. I don't see their sales momentum continuing at its current pace. What will drive the price up though is the restoration of faith in the credit and stock markets. Who knows if/when that will happen? I wouldn't buy it at 190 and I wouldn't buy it at 140. The Pollyanna's screamed that it would never see $100.00 again. Yeah....right. In normal times, I would jump all over Apple stock at the current price. These days..... I'm not exactly excited about it. Maybe I'll buy some.... maybe I won't.

Ten High Yield, Below Book Stocks

You have some serious risk lurking in pretty much all of these stocks. Many will continue crashing as the economy sinks further. In addition, Genworth (GNW) is dead meat in my view. They have suspended their dividend payout and their stock is down about 90% on a 52wk basis. Thanks, but I think I'll take a pass.

Markets Upbeat After Obama Victory

Upbeat?? I'm not seeing it. Where? I think we may have already slipped past Obam-aphoria and are back to the reality of a very nasty global economy. Then again, it could just be the initial burst of selling by Republican investors who are convinced the world has ended.

5 Reasons to Ignore Buffett

I don't know if your statements about Buffett are completely accurate, but I don't really care either. I agree with the essence of your article and not too long ago I said as much over on Motley Fool (they just love to quote Buffett there). Basically, my point was that Buffett lives in a different investing galaxy than pretty much everyone else. Most people can't afford the risks that Buffett can and nobody can make the kind of deals that he can, due to his enormous resources.

If my portfolio drops by 50%, the required 100% climb just to reach break even will make for a long wait. I'm already down about 20% and I'm fairly confident that I'll lose more if I keep buying stocks. For the last year I've listened to the pollyanna's proclaim that stocks are "on sale". In short order, the stock that was on sale was an additional 20-50% down. And still, we wait for other shoes to drop, which they almost certainly will. Warren can do what Warren wants. He has so much money, it just doesn't matter to him. As for me, keeping what I have is priority one.