Not So Fast With The Countrywide Settlement [View article]
Paulson had a gun to their head during the financial crisis. The whole economy would else have crashed. The legal claims being sought against BAC if all were obtained would be greater than the National debt. This included all the homeowners, all the stock holders, all the tax payers and all the kids on the block that operate lemonaid stands, LOL. The trick is to figure out what amounts are going to be paid out. This continues to come in extremely less than what the headlines are. Many claims are being settled out of court. The recent conference call - it was mentioned the end result is impossible to estimate exactly. But, keeping your eye on the Q reports, it seems that less is being set aside and more is being reported as earnings. As time goes by there are fewer and fewer new law suits. And, the time of limitations to make Federal claims has expired. In addition, there is a natural death rate for those people who potentially have been harmed and have not steped forward.
On MBIA - their bonds are still performing and haven't missed an interest payment. BAC has a chunck in their asset portfolio.
The stock holder litigation re: Merrill ended up with only pennies on the dollar for the amount sought where the effort to do the paperwork was not worth the effort to make a claim.
A Few More Reasons To Be Skeptical About Bank Of America's Management [View article]
I agree with Tim, the current management is not the problem its the continuation of the legacy issues. The public perception (including investors) is that the mortgage problems are not going away and litigation continues. These legacy issues are taking time to go away and will never be completely gone but the drag on earnings will decrease. As these claims get settled and with the current management increasing employee efficiency, closing unprofitable branches and emphasizing customer service - we will see a strong turn around. As far as strength from increased stockholder returns, BAC has more potential than its peers. They have yet to increase their dividend. When that happens it will be a pivotal event.
Looking at the max chart comparison on Yahoo. AAPL used to be a hot stock and yes it is now cool. The same thing happened to INTC. INTC has based and has been trading in a more narrow range in recent years after suffering the same collapse that AAPL is going through right now.
I sold both to wait out the current correction hitting the whole market with tech stocks suffering the most it seems. I'd wait to buy AAPL again untill I see several years of basing at a more conservative support level on the chart.
Don't Ignore The Positive Trends Underlying Bank Of America's Results [View article]
Downside stock performance has been inordinate. But did management anticipate this in the desire to do the stock buy-back at lower prices? This was unclear during the conference call. It would be interesting to see if they anticipated this decline and took advantage of it. If they didn't, I certainly have - but not to any benefit as yet.
Bank Of America: Buy A Dollar For Around 85 Cents [View article]
All correct but the stock was down and continued down today. I doubled up on my position yesterday and added today along with a buy in my "B" warrant position and I'm not that bullish on the market.
Litigation expenses are feared to be hidden - what is needed is a comparison to what is the original law suit and what was the settlement. The actual settlements I believe are below what has been originally sought. When this settles down - we may see extra ordinary gains from these set asides coming back to the balance sheet as cash.
As I type this, traders on CNBC are saying BAC is a buy!
Bank Of America: You'll Pay Up When The Consensus Gets Cheery [View article]
Excellent run down on current situation and prospects. The market reaction is binary, not quantitative, and it was wrong yesterday. I added to my position during this decline and now have it in the loss category of my portfolio.
The market yesterday was like a herd of sheep running off a cliff - following the first seller then adding to it. I'd expect some further recovery today with the market seeming to put in a sharp down day following a recovery day of recent. Overall the whole market is in "correction" mode. Many are selling to raise cash to be in a better position when the bull market continues.
Verizon: Are Big Gains Ahead For The Big Red V? [View article]
VZ is certainly a core holding for me. Recent year's performance has been lack luster compared to my average holding but the risk is lower, financial ratios continue conservative and I like their dividend payout. Growth is in the bag with the recent acquistion of expanded coverage and band width. This bandwidth asset is going to be more valuable in the future than oil and certainly gold in today's market. Download speeds and increased usage will provide the increased revenue/customer.
Gold did in the market today from margin and forced selling to cover mark to market calls. Next - increased margin requirements because of volatility. Some gold bugs also trade stocks - that put margin pressure on equities. Then to end the day we had a terrorist attack - did that save gold?
Cash is king - at least that's what the gold bugs must think now after they have to pony more cash up into their accounts.
As my old man used to say "Don't give up the ship. - sell it!"
3 Healthcare REITs For Dividend Investors [View article]
Great article Todd and very timely. I have LTC - its the third best performing stock in my IRA portfolio providing over a 70% annual rate of appreciation and dividend return. This has an average acquisition date back in October. I have one other that is also starting to pick up some steam ENSG. I'm dumping tech right now but this sector may be a good target for additional exposure as much as a lot of upside has already occurred.
On the theme of baby boomer business - another good pick for me has been WGO. After releasing excellent earning progress, the stock has been in a correction mode. You may want to take a look it - you article will get my click for sure!
Why Caterpillar Shares Could Drop To $50 And Still Be Fairly Valued [View article]
I'm surprised that there is no technical comment about the stock.
The Howk's technical case for it to drop further but shows a chart that indicates it already is down to a support level low. The chart he displays clearly shows higher highs and higher lows. Selling at a short term low is not the way to go, IMHO. Speculators may find this a good solid short-term low to start buying again. Shorting at this level where most of the fundamental worry has been already discounted in the stock price would be too risky. I'd say a short at this level would be more risky than a long. If it should breakdown further - a momentum player may see this as a complete disaster. Fundamentally the housing sector is picking up steam and this would stimulate other economic activity. Housing is connected to municipal services that the taxes on additional housing will pay for. More housing more foundations and utility connections to be made along with more street improvements, utility right of way construction, streets and roads.
North Carolina's Supreme Court overturns a decision by state regulators that allowed Duke Energy (DUK) to increase rates for customers, finding the state utilities board didn't fully analyze the issue before approving a 7.2% rate hike in 2012, which provided DUK a guaranteed 10.5% rate of return on equity. DUK believes the increases will be upheld upon review. [View news story]
All part of the political dance going on. The rate increase is badly needed and on the average monthly bill is very manageable. Jim Rogers will do an excellent job in explaining the balance that has to be maintained to make sure the state has adequate power capacity for the hot summer coming up and many more to come and pursue the path to renewable energy sources and maintaining the retirement rate for coal plants.
Good rundown on the positives and mentioning some of the negatives but the main problem remains: PR, perception by the public, mortgage litigation, the stockholder suits and all the other litigation that hopefully is coming to an end. But now, we have this Elizabeth Warren ranting. A new sideshow where this "do gooder" is getting too much exposure and championed by the liberal zanies with BAC a target of continued venom.
What needs to be done to counter this new attack on the financial sector is to show how well the bank has saved many hundreds if not thousands of homeowners by mortgage modifications allowing them to stay in their homes and lower their payments. Championing those who extended themselves on the credit dole to buy boats pulled by Escalades and allowing them to sue the banks is simply not the way to go. This permanently puts the foreclosed homeowner into a category of a poor credit risk never again to be extended a loan by any financial institution.
Warren has to be shown that putting people into permanent welfare situation is simply not the way to go and to allow the banks to work with their customers for an optimum solution for all parties. We need to turn welfare recipients into tax payers and good bank customers. She should be told to turn off the viper tongue and champion a healthy financial sector to service the economic recovery
Johnson & Johnson: 3 Things You Need To Know Before Buying At Current Levels [View article]
Interest rates are at historically low levels. JNJ's dividend is providing a healthy current return over that of a "risk-free" investment in Treasury securities. Investors hungry for yield are buying stocks to provide a better return. Especially for those like myself who are plagued by bond and preferred calls pouring lots of cash into portfolios. This cash has to be reinvested. JNJ is a dividend grower - this makes it very attractive.
I believe that valuing a stock price with historic norms where investment returns from bonds have been 2-3 times higher is not the way to go. The market is still undervaluing JNJ is if the low interest rates continue for more than 2 years. Two more years of low rates are in the bag because I doubt that you will see any increase in rates before mid-term elections.
I see no need to reduce my JNJ holdings at this time. I need the income to pay my bills.
Not So Fast With The Countrywide Settlement [View article]
On MBIA - their bonds are still performing and haven't missed an interest payment. BAC has a chunck in their asset portfolio.
The stock holder litigation re: Merrill ended up with only pennies on the dollar for the amount sought where the effort to do the paperwork was not worth the effort to make a claim.
A Few More Reasons To Be Skeptical About Bank Of America's Management [View article]
Intel Takes Back The Crown [View article]
I sold both to wait out the current correction hitting the whole market with tech stocks suffering the most it seems. I'd wait to buy AAPL again untill I see several years of basing at a more conservative support level on the chart.
http://yhoo.it/XOHnip;range=my;compare=aapl...
Don't Ignore The Positive Trends Underlying Bank Of America's Results [View article]
Bank Of America: Buy A Dollar For Around 85 Cents [View article]
Litigation expenses are feared to be hidden - what is needed is a comparison to what is the original law suit and what was the settlement. The actual settlements I believe are below what has been originally sought. When this settles down - we may see extra ordinary gains from these set asides coming back to the balance sheet as cash.
As I type this, traders on CNBC are saying BAC is a buy!
Bank Of America: You'll Pay Up When The Consensus Gets Cheery [View article]
The market yesterday was like a herd of sheep running off a cliff - following the first seller then adding to it. I'd expect some further recovery today with the market seeming to put in a sharp down day following a recovery day of recent. Overall the whole market is in "correction" mode. Many are selling to raise cash to be in a better position when the bull market continues.
Verizon: Are Big Gains Ahead For The Big Red V? [View article]
Gold: Not Really A Safe Haven? [View article]
Cash is king - at least that's what the gold bugs must think now after they have to pony more cash up into their accounts.
As my old man used to say "Don't give up the ship. - sell it!"
3 Healthcare REITs For Dividend Investors [View article]
On the theme of baby boomer business - another good pick for me has been WGO. After releasing excellent earning progress, the stock has been in a correction mode. You may want to take a look it - you article will get my click for sure!
Intel Just Made A Huge Decision [View article]
Why Caterpillar Shares Could Drop To $50 And Still Be Fairly Valued [View article]
The Howk's technical case for it to drop further but shows a chart that indicates it already is down to a support level low. The chart he displays clearly shows higher highs and higher lows. Selling at a short term low is not the way to go, IMHO. Speculators may find this a good solid short-term low to start buying again. Shorting at this level where most of the fundamental worry has been already discounted in the stock price would be too risky. I'd say a short at this level would be more risky than a long. If it should breakdown further - a momentum player may see this as a complete disaster. Fundamentally the housing sector is picking up steam and this would stimulate other economic activity. Housing is connected to municipal services that the taxes on additional housing will pay for. More housing more foundations and utility connections to be made along with more street improvements, utility right of way construction, streets and roads.
Why Caterpillar Shares Could Drop To $50 And Still Be Fairly Valued [View article]
North Carolina's Supreme Court overturns a decision by state regulators that allowed Duke Energy (DUK) to increase rates for customers, finding the state utilities board didn't fully analyze the issue before approving a 7.2% rate hike in 2012, which provided DUK a guaranteed 10.5% rate of return on equity. DUK believes the increases will be upheld upon review. [View news story]
5 Reasons To Buy Bank Of America [View article]
What needs to be done to counter this new attack on the financial sector is to show how well the bank has saved many hundreds if not thousands of homeowners by mortgage modifications allowing them to stay in their homes and lower their payments. Championing those who extended themselves on the credit dole to buy boats pulled by Escalades and allowing them to sue the banks is simply not the way to go. This permanently puts the foreclosed homeowner into a category of a poor credit risk never again to be extended a loan by any financial institution.
Warren has to be shown that putting people into permanent welfare situation is simply not the way to go and to allow the banks to work with their customers for an optimum solution for all parties. We need to turn welfare recipients into tax payers and good bank customers. She should be told to turn off the viper tongue and champion a healthy financial sector to service the economic recovery
Johnson & Johnson: 3 Things You Need To Know Before Buying At Current Levels [View article]
I believe that valuing a stock price with historic norms where investment returns from bonds have been 2-3 times higher is not the way to go. The market is still undervaluing JNJ is if the low interest rates continue for more than 2 years. Two more years of low rates are in the bag because I doubt that you will see any increase in rates before mid-term elections.
I see no need to reduce my JNJ holdings at this time. I need the income to pay my bills.