American Capital Agency (AGNC): Q1 "comprehensive" EPS of -$1.57 may not be comparable to profit estimate of $1.08. Shares -1.8% AH. (PR) [View news story]
Kind of what you expect from this "governmental" company - muddy water
Performance Comparison Of Selected MLPs [View article]
MLPs are a mixed investment instrument.
While you may be satisfied only with yield, others take a broader view. An MLP with a growing service franchise may need to invest in expanded facilities. Likewise, older MLP may have higher maintanence costs, both of which reduce cash available for distributions. In a case like PAA, growth contributes to share appreciation, and yield is a combination of share value increase and unit distributions.
Likewise, the MPL distribution is not necessarily a dividend, and may reflect allowable K1 costs like depreciation.
Not to put to fine a point, you may be at the point of measuring "manure with a micrometer"
Encana Sheds Some Light On Canada's Answer To The Eagle Ford Shale [View article]
might you be so kind as to name some of the smaller firms you nare interested in in the Duvernay play. I am looking for small firms i can buy a hold for several years
What Makes For A Market Leading Return In Biotechnology? [View article]
to what extent will the new stock/warrant issue be dilutive? since the new issue is being priced at a discount to market, is this a bad sign, or in the mid range will these consideration wash out?
3 Reasons TravelCenters Of America Could Triple [View article]
Good article. Your insight and passion show through. I was curious, given the level of your treatment, the the TA venture with CLNE was not featured more prominently. Surely, being first to market with a national distribution of LNG for long haul truckers, given progress at WPRT and CMI, is a plus
Does A Scalable Business Plan Work For Vringo? [View article]
I am an investor in VRNG. Like many others, the plan to monetize patents was a key feature in my decision to buy. Since the entry price is cheap, the potential gains from cases like GOOGLE suggested the kind of risk reward that I look for in my speculative buys.
Since buying shares, the value has deteriorated significantly. This leads me re-examine the investing premise.
When can we expect to see the GOOGLE running royalty start to show in VRNG's financials. Are these royalties at substantial risk?
What is management's posture toward distributions, special dividends, buy backs, or other means to reward early investors? Should we be concerned that these windfalls will be used to enrich managers and legal contractors at the expense of shareholders? Some kind of formal company policy statement would help clarify this point.
How is VRNG managing and compensating its legal contractors. How do we know if we are getting the right legal talent, and how do we make sure that these costs are aligned with shareholder interests.
My guess is the VRNG will pay off in the long run, but given price performance, management needs to do more to cement shareholder value.
ANY INVESTMENT in Gazprom should reflect the corruption risk associated with Russian state monoplys and their corporate descendents. Arrogance by the Russian thugs, which appear to have the backing of the Putin regime, have cost western investors billions. Is it really different this time? Keep in mind the famous Peanuts cartoon in which Lucy repeatedly cons Charlie Brown into place kicking a football, only to pull the ball away at the last minute, leaving Charlie flat on his ass.
As A Frustrated Owner Of Vringo Stock, What Should I Do? [View article]
I am long on VRNG, but wary of the lack of clarity regarding VRNG' mangement philosophy regarding shareholder value. I want to know more about the cost of legal services and how they reduce VRNG revenue from on-going law suits. I also want clarity in the form of a corporate statement of policy on return of shareholder value.
Shareholder value can be severely eroded by way of excessive management compensation nd bonuses. Shareholder value could be enhanced through:
1. Significant share buybacks from litigation awards - why not set a target of 50M shares down from 113M - or at least refraining from dilutive new offerings;
2. Announcing a corporate policy on management and litigation cost managemen that clearly aligns management's in terest with shareholders;
3. Establishing a policy of issuing special dividends to refect lump sum receipts from tie to time.
In a nutshell, I am wary that management, whose business model is heavily weighted toward litigation, might apply a similiar approach to its shareholders. I am lookng for signs that we are all on the same page going forward.
As A Frustrated Owner Of Vringo Stock, What Should I Do? [View article]
I am going to stay long on VRNG, but I do want to know about the efficiency of their business model. Legal costs aren't cheap and there is always a temptation of managers to award themselves at the expense of share holders. I feel the company needs to set some clarifications on the intention to return value to share holders. This might be in the form of guidance on how they manage and compensate legal services and corporate policy on increasing shareholder value, either by re-investment and expansion of the model, significant buybacks of pubic float (targeting 50M shares instead of 113M as revenue from the Google win start to flow) or special dividends - which might be appropriate in future wins produce significant lump sum income, or some combination.
The risk, as I see it, is that a business whose bread and butter is litigation might well turn this philosophy against shareholders.
Apple: Of Cults And Cool, Hype And Sheep [View article]
i see the issue as one of cracks in apples preceived infallability. clearly, the stock enjoys a legacy infallibility premium. current management has become more corporate, as evidenced by the rush to market the new i-phone before it was throughly tested. mr jobs would let blood flow over the mistakes and current management appears far too tolerant.
getting back to th infallibility premium, its terribly hard to recover - kinda like restoring virginity - especially in a sector that has become much more aggressively competitive.
i would not be surprised to see shares in the low $500 range in the near future.
I have a challenge for you. As America approaches the “Fiscal Cliff”, severe stress is likely to occur within the economy. What will crack and what will hold. What should the independent investor with investable assets in the $500K to $1M do to position for the cliff. What should we be moving out of and what should we be accumulating. I suspect the there is a place for the VIX ETF, but it is really such a blunt instrument. As a member of the blogging community, please take up this challenge in an upcoming article of series of articles. I sure they will generate the lifeblood of Seeking Alpha – hits.
Plug Power: Driving To Be A Profitable Fuel Cell Company [View article]
How much can you pull this horse? It is stuck in the one range and doesn't seem to have the energy to break through. Should they be looking at a Westport Innovations business model, attaching their proprietary technology to a strong product driver, while keeping their focus on new and better technology. A partner with MTW or Cummins would give them access to a stronger and deeper sales and operations bench.
Will Frontier Communications Go To Zero? [View article]
So, with the appropriate haircut for existing holders of frontier equity, would it be a good fit with any of the growing second tier telecoms, like CTL or WIN
I have been holding a small stake in PLUG as part of the speculative tranche in my portfolio. I think the stock has room and the juice to move, but not that quickly. I would like to see someone in addition to Mitch talking about this security, but as a side bet on American manufacturing, one could do worse.
American Capital Agency (AGNC): Q1 "comprehensive" EPS of -$1.57 may not be comparable to profit estimate of $1.08. Shares -1.8% AH. (PR) [View news story]
Performance Comparison Of Selected MLPs [View article]
While you may be satisfied only with yield, others take a broader view. An MLP with a growing service franchise may need to invest in expanded facilities. Likewise, older MLP may have higher maintanence costs, both of which reduce cash available for distributions. In a case like PAA, growth contributes to share appreciation, and yield is a combination of share value increase and unit distributions.
Likewise, the MPL distribution is not necessarily a dividend, and may reflect allowable K1 costs like depreciation.
Not to put to fine a point, you may be at the point of measuring "manure with a micrometer"
Encana Sheds Some Light On Canada's Answer To The Eagle Ford Shale [View article]
What Makes For A Market Leading Return In Biotechnology? [View article]
3 Reasons TravelCenters Of America Could Triple [View article]
Does A Scalable Business Plan Work For Vringo? [View article]
Since buying shares, the value has deteriorated significantly. This leads me re-examine the investing premise.
When can we expect to see the GOOGLE running royalty start to show in VRNG's financials. Are these royalties at substantial risk?
What is management's posture toward distributions, special dividends, buy backs, or other means to reward early investors? Should we be concerned that these windfalls will be used to enrich managers and legal contractors at the expense of shareholders? Some kind of formal company policy statement would help clarify this point.
How is VRNG managing and compensating its legal contractors. How do we know if we are getting the right legal talent, and how do we make sure that these costs are aligned with shareholder interests.
My guess is the VRNG will pay off in the long run, but given price performance, management needs to do more to cement shareholder value.
Why Gazprom Is A Steal [View article]
As A Frustrated Owner Of Vringo Stock, What Should I Do? [View article]
Shareholder value can be severely eroded by way of excessive management compensation nd bonuses. Shareholder value could be enhanced through:
1. Significant share buybacks from litigation awards - why not set a target of 50M shares down from 113M - or at least refraining from dilutive new offerings;
2. Announcing a corporate policy on management and litigation cost managemen that clearly aligns management's in terest with shareholders;
3. Establishing a policy of issuing special dividends to refect lump sum receipts from tie to time.
In a nutshell, I am wary that management, whose business model is heavily weighted toward litigation, might apply a similiar approach to its shareholders. I am lookng for signs that we are all on the same page going forward.
As A Frustrated Owner Of Vringo Stock, What Should I Do? [View article]
The risk, as I see it, is that a business whose bread and butter is litigation might well turn this philosophy against shareholders.
For now, I plan to stay long, but remain wary
Apple: Of Cults And Cool, Hype And Sheep [View article]
getting back to th infallibility premium, its terribly hard to recover - kinda like restoring virginity - especially in a sector that has become much more aggressively competitive.
i would not be surprised to see shares in the low $500 range in the near future.
Brady Corp: Dividend Stock Analysis [View article]
Plug Power: Driving To Be A Profitable Fuel Cell Company [View article]
Will Frontier Communications Go To Zero? [View article]
Why Plug Power Could Double [View article]
VIX - Options Volatility Sonar: Thursday Recap [View article]
thanks