squawk

41 Comments

    • ON: Mon Oct 6th 10:29 AM
      Commented on:
      Lehman's Lies
      Agree with above post. If fraud is as now claimed, these execs should be prosecuted for criminal violation of federal securities laws.
      View article »
    • ON: Sat Oct 4th 13:06 PM
      Commented on:
      Steve Jobs' Fake Heart Attack, Courtesy of CNN
      RE: "Apple can also learn a lesson from this. The stock would not have dropped so much if there wasn’t already a deep level of concern for Steve Jobs’ health and if the market knew who might take over in case of an emergency."

      Erick, having read a # of your posts the past few months, it is clear that you have a tendency to see only the negative regarding AAPL, the company as well as the stock. So anything negative you have to say regarding AAPL cannot be taken as anything of value. But in reference to the above quote from your post, it is now also clear that you are a complete moron.

      One lesson to be learned, clearly, is how stupid CNN is/was to sponsor a blog over which it has not control. Another lesson to learn in similiar vein, is that Seeking Alpha to remove from their bloggers morons like you that more often than not, post inaccurate information (i.e. 3G iPhone inventories @ a NYC Apple store), inaccurate analysis with a clear intent to taint the company & the stock. In my view you are not that much afar from johntw . . . or are you in-fact johntw? Wouldn't suprise me the least . . . because that's how you paint yourself on this blog.

      View article »
    • ON: Tue Sep 30th 12:25 PM
      Commented on:
      The Great Bank Rush of 2008: What's the Money For?
      MichaelZZ:

      RE: "The only reason for Goldman Sachs to take a desperate (GS also gave Mr. Buffett 43,000,000 warrants to purchases GS common @ $115 per share) action was because it knew it was experiencing an EC impairment and needed to raise additional EC:


      Goldman did the deal with Buffett because it needed to bring the firm into regulatory compliance after converting to a bank holding company. As an investment bank, its leverage was capped at 40:1; as a bank holding company the cap is 12:1. Given Goldman's balance sheet & market conditions, the best strategy was to raise its equity capital rather than reduce the debt on its books. For every $1 of equity raised, it was able to cover $12 of debt on its books. 'Nuff said. Otherwise, good, well thought out post.
      View article »
    • ON: Sun Sep 21st 13:29 PM
      Commented on:
      Morgan Stanley: Exploding the Short-Seller Myth
      web: re: "The uptick rule is not feasible contrary to Jim Cramer's rantings .Trades happen much faster now and AIG traded over a billion shares the other day . This is not 1988"

      Explain your thinking . . . if there is any. If shorts are attempting to drive down a stock THEN the uptick rule WILL slow down the trading so a more orderly market for the stock can occur, whether it be down or up.
      View article »
    • ON: Fri Sep 19th 15:23 PM
      Commented on:
      Paulson Between the Lines
      Funny. Thanks for the straight talk on Paulson-speak.
      View article »
    • ON: Mon Sep 15th 17:33 PM
      Commented on:
      eBay Is a Losing Bid - Barron's
      As a buyer, I avoid eBay today at all cost. Agree with others, it used to be fun, but today the site is simply not "user" friendly. With the advent powerful search tools, eBay should realize it no longer holds a monopoly on auction sites, or a venue for online sellers to sell their wares.

      It's interesting to read about sellers' complaint, because as a seller, it's my perception that eBay has traditionally favored sellers or buyers in disputes. I avoid PayPal for that reason. My credit card company is going to much more objective than an eBay-owned PayPal in any dispute.

      To the sellers here, if you are unhappy with eBay, then hit'em where it hurts. Leave the site. Set up shop elsewhere. I have nothing against trustworthy online sellers. It's eBay, that IMHO, is not sufficiently vigilent to root out fraud & unscrupulous buyers AND sellers from its website.

      Bottom line, eBay has just gotten too big to be effective. It needs to be cut down to size.
      View article »
    • ON: Fri Sep 12th 05:39 AM
      Commented on:
      Are Text Messaging Prices the Biggest Wireless Issue?
      Agree with Senator's request. 100% increase is ridiculous. Costs to deliver SMS should be going down, not up. It is clear that per text message pricing is going up to slowly push subscribers onto a "volume discount" prepaid plan.

      $30/mo is a lot to ask a subscriber who does not use text messaging as a means to communicate, nor subscribes to a frequent alert system. Notwithstanding that subscriber is likely to get a few alerts per month, which amount does not substantiate subscribing to a prepaid text message plan. Instead the sub is "squeezed" a few bucks for essentially a service is worth 1/10 of what is charged.

      Bottom line, it is clear the carriers want all subscribers to subscribe to a prepaid SMS plan, figuring by "slowing" increasing the price per message, will force unwilling subs onto such a prepaid plan.

      All this, IMHO, is analogous to how cable companies keep on adding channels that customers do not want to program packages to substantiate ever increasing prices for cable (or satellite), and to build their cable-owned channels that would not make a dime but for market ownership of the distribution channel.

      My question to Senator Kohl, why limit your request to the wireless carriers? Why not ask the MSOs the same thing? Why be "penny-wise & dollar foolish?"
      View article »
    • ON: Thu Sep 11th 20:43 PM
      Commented on:
      Apple Investors: Fasten Your Seatbelts, Put On Helmets
      Zack,

      In response to:

      "The late session bounce was apparently caused in part by a published report that the Wall Street Journal cited, that there were a number of companies kicking the tires of Lehman, including BofA. But after the market close BofA said they weren't interested, and GS backed off too. The bump may have been assisted by Oil hitting a nearly 6 month low, and short covering on beaten down sectors. . . I'm not so sure how much credence to put into this bounce,"

      how do you explain the stock trading up $.50 - $.70/share after hours?
      View article »
    • ON: Wed Sep 10th 10:39 AM
      Commented on:
      Did Apple Cave or Did NBC Bend?
      Generally agree with comments here. Neither side "caved in." Negotiations seek to achieve a "win-win" for each party, & it's apparent that each side achieved a win. To take a more cynical view of business negotiation as only "win-lose" (i.e. a "cave in") shows a lack of understanding or appreciation for the negotiation process, nor the attributes of an informed journalist.
      View article »
    • ON: Tue Sep 9th 11:38 AM
      Commented on:
      Palin, On the Ongoing Financial Crisis
      What's your point other than to slam Palin? You're quick to criticize, but are apparently too weak to provide any analysis to support your comment, so you leave to posters.

      Fannie & Freddie have been way too expensive to the American taxpayer. You had execs reaping $15MM paycheck while being asleep at the wheel. Now you have the US Gov'ts bailout. How can you not agree Palin's statement on that point?

      Are they too big? Well, that comment may be interpreted in a number of ways. The mortgage market is huge, and FNA & FRE played an important function in providing low cost mortgage financing to US homebuyers. How big should FNA & FRE be? Dunno. But I think Palin's comment w/r/t size was more focused on cost than any other metric. JMO.
      View article »
    • ON: Tue Sep 9th 11:07 AM
      Commented on:
      Six Reasons Why Apple's Still a Buy
      Pretty much agree with most of your thoughts, however, the market will choose to believe what it wants. Agree with your premise that the "slowing demand" for handsets from manufacturers such as NOK, LG & Samsung may in-fact be due to the iPhone. Stated this hypothesis myself last week over at Silicon Investor. It's just a theory, but a believable one. Bottom line, we can't believe just one analyst's interpretaiton of the numbers. Stats are often subject to more than one interpretation.
      View article »
    • ON: Tue Sep 9th 10:05 AM
      Commented on:
      Apple: Major Bounce or Major Breakdown?
      Agree with prior comments. If anything, AAPL is not a "sell on news" stock but rather "sell on rumor." At least, that's been my experience. Hence, the author's article cannot be given much credence.
      View article »
    • ON: Sat Aug 30th 15:15 PM
      Commented on:
      Why Apple Stock Is Poised To Go Flat - At Best
      John,

      Overall, your arguments are at best weak. Impression I got as I read what you had to say, was that you recently liquidated your holdings in AAPL, & hence felt a need to express your rationalization for doing so. Do you feel a bit better now?

      The argument I find most hollow is the one about decreasing margins. Margins are not decreasing because of increasing costs, nor an inability to maintain existing price points. Rather, the decrease in margins is core to an intentional strategy to expand AAPL's market share, where in the past, many consumers have shied away from AAPL computer products because their relatively high price compared to competing Windows-based PC products.

      I've never owned an AAPL iMac, but have continually purchased PC after PC . . . because of the business-accepted Windows-based OS. That is changing. I first considered an iMac when I deciding upon my last purchase. I went for a PC again . . . because I felt the iMac was too high priced . . . about 3X the cost of my Dell PC. Today, with AAPL's increasingly influence among consumers . . . & small business customers, the iMac et al become increasingly attractive. Lowering the price point of these products will only lead to increasing demand for AAPL products. The executives at AAPL clearly know this. Apparently, you do not.
      View article »
    • ON: Thu Aug 28th 18:56 PM
      Commented on:
      Has Jim Cramer Crossed the Line with Sirius XM?
      All I can say, Brandon, is you are definitely clueless about what is violative of security laws regarding spreading false rumors

      First, you claim that Cramer's assertion that the merger came too late to salvage the Xmas shopping season is a statement of opinion, not fact. Second, you later claim that Cramer's "lie that Sirius XM has somehow 'missed' the 2009 OEM model year, " will also land him in court, is also statement of opinion. "Somehow?"

      Clearly, you're long SIRI & wish to do nothing but lash out at anyone you believe responsible for the stock's recent poor performance (i.e. shorts). Unfortunately, your arguments are neither legally sound nor persuasive.

      If you can't stand the heat or cold of the market, my rec is stay on the sidelines.

      View article »
    • ON: Wed Aug 27th 11:45 AM
      Commented on:
      Apple Investors: Capital Preservation First, Maximum Profits Second
      Zack, nice to read that you're the first to admit that you talk out of both sides of your both. Inference to be drawn is that you really have no idea what you spoo on this blog on a daily basis. More likely, it appears to be some cathartic release for you to rationalize you constantly changing position in AAPL. It would be one thing to take a long term position & share with us your rationale, but it's a completely different thing to explain yourself on such a short term basis, as such thinking makes a market.

      Bottom line, you're such a small fish that what you have to say is of absolutely no value nor consequence. Spare us unless you have to share your longer term views of the stock. TIA.
      View article »
Contribute an Article Become a Seeking Alpha Contributor