Author Archive

  • Sysco’s Earnings
    , August 12th, 2008 at 11:17 am

    In terms of relative performance, these have been great times for the Buy List. Yesterday, Sysco (SYY) added 4% on good earnings news. Typically, this is one of the most stable large-cap stocks on Wall Street. For Q2, Sysco earned 55 cents a share, three cents more than estimates. Last year, Sysco netted 49 cents a share so the company is growing well.

  • Thank You NICK
    , August 12th, 2008 at 10:43 am

    I’m up 27% in three weeks since my last purchase of Nicholas Financial (NICK). It takes patience but the market is not efficient. The stock is still going for less than 80% of book.

  • From the NYT Corrections
    , August 11th, 2008 at 10:54 am

    August 11, 2008

    The Arts
    A listing of credits on April 28, 1960, with a theater review of “West Side Story” on its return to the Winter Garden theater, misstated the surname of the actor who played Action. He is George Liker, not Johnson. (Mr. Liker, who hopes to audition for a role in a Broadway revival of the show planned for February, brought the error to The Times’s attention last month. )

  • Gas Prices fall for 24 Straight Days
    , August 11th, 2008 at 10:45 am

    Supply and Demand continues to work its magic:

    Retail gasoline prices have fallen for the 24th straight day, a AAA survey of gas station sales showed.
    The national average price for a gallon of regular gas are down more than 7 percent from the record high of $4.114 on July 16, CNNMoney.com reported Sunday.
    Even with gas prices falling, Friday’s national average price is more than $1 higher than it was a year ago.
    In Alaska, the state with the highest prices, drivers pay an average of $4.63 a gallon, the AAA study found. Oklahoma and Missouri have the lowest gas prices, at $3.58 a gallon.
    Diesel, meanwhile, is up nearly 55 percent from last year’s levels. The national average price for diesel fuel fell Sunday to $4.557 a gallon.
    The AAA study is based on data from credit card swipes at 85,000 U.S. fuel stations.

  • Citigroup Trader “Dooced”
    , August 8th, 2008 at 1:08 pm

    Michael J. McCarthy aka “Large” has been fired from his job as a Citigroup trader for running his blog, Take A Report.

    “This employee was terminated for behavior that violated the firm’s code of conduct and policies,” Citigroup spokeswoman Danielle Romero-Apsilos said. McCarthy, a vice president, declined to comment on his departure from the New York-based bank. Financial industry regulatory records show he’s been at Citigroup for seven years, most recently trading shares of utility and power companies.
    “It’s a little over the top,” said Barry Ritholtz, director of equity research for New York-based Fusion IQ, who has looked at the site and has his own financial blog at www.bigpicture.typepad.com. “I can see why a conservative bank is not going to be happy with it. It’s funny as hell.”

  • My Buy List YTD
    , August 7th, 2008 at 10:47 pm

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    Through today, the Buy List is down -10.39% while the S&P 500 is down -13.78%. Neither figure includes dividends. The daily volatility of the Buy List is 7.17% greater than the S&P 500.

  • Analyst says Bed Bath & Beyond well positioned
    , August 7th, 2008 at 2:02 pm

    From the AP:

    An analyst said Thursday that Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. remains one of the “best operators” in its sector and will likely withstand the nation’s economic downturn better than many of its competitors.
    Oppenheimer & Co. analyst Vivian Ma told investors in a research note that the Union, N.J.-based specialty home retailer has no plans to cut back on reinvestments.
    “We believe that (Bed Bath & Beyond) remains one of the best operators in the home goods space and should continue to navigate the challenging consumer environment better than the competition,” Ma wrote.
    The analyst added that the retailer remains “very focused on superior execution to drive share gains.

  • Cramer on Jimmy Carter: “May He Rest in Peace”
    , August 6th, 2008 at 7:15 pm


    Listen around the 4:25 mark.
    For those of you who don’t remember, Jimmy Carter is the guy who defeated Gerald Ford.
    Via: WallBlog.)

  • Feel Good News Story of the Day
    , August 6th, 2008 at 12:29 pm

    Cancer survivor wins the CNBC Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge. Bonus points: He’s a member of two tribute bands, one for Queen and another for Led Zeppelin.

    About 10 weeks ago, a local man using the online name of CLASSICROCKER began e-mailing friends to update them on his participation in the CNBC.com Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge.
    CLASSICROCKER, known in real life as Edward Burke, had positioned himself for a possible cash prize.
    On Monday, CNBC made the official announcement — Burke, 54, had won the $500,000 Grand Prize, edging out David Lesser, a mechanic from Kent, Wash., and approximately 254,000 other people.
    “They kept us in the dark until the final announcement,” said Burke, a 1974 graduate of Chambersburg Area Senior High School and current Shippensburg resident. “It was suspenseful, but it was easier to take because we both knew we were going to win a quarter of a million at the very least.
    “My son, Chase, texted me and said he was crying tears of joy.”

  • Let’s Play “Spot the Problem”
    , August 6th, 2008 at 12:25 pm

    November 8, 2008

    Morgan Stanley takes $3.7bn hit

    December 20, 2007

    $9.4 Billion Write-Down at Morgan Stanley

    August 5, 2008

    Treasury hires Morgan Stanley to analyze Fannie, Freddie