A friend of mine, having heard me rant several times about the impending doom of Blockbuster(BBI), sent me an article from everyone’s favorite source of fake news, The Onion. The article, entitled “Struggling Blockbuster Eliminates Rental Fees,” contemplates a desperate attempt by Blockbuster to retain customers by eliminating all charges and even paying customers...
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Monthly Archives: September 2006
Blockbusted
Hewlett Packard Still Too Dangerous To Own
In an earlier post, I warned that Hewlett Packard(HPQ) should be sold it as it had only gone up in the face of increasingly bad news. More than a week later, the stock has finally begun to descend(down $1.91 to $34.87 on 9/21), but with the news continuing to get worse and clear questions...
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The Eighty Cent Dollar
Like all investors, I’m always looking for a chance to buy a dollar for eighty cents. Rarely though, have I found a company where the value is as easy to understand as is the case with Cadus Corporation(KDUS). Cadus is a tiny company with a market cap of only $19.7 million at today(9/21/06)’s close...
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Yet well I ken the banks where Amaranths blow [up]
There’s an old scam where an enterprising prognosticator sends out many thousands of his newsletters unsolicited. Being a friendly chap, our prognosticating protagonist personalizes his newsletters. Choosing a binary event, perhaps a football game, or the direction of a particular stock index that week, he predicts for half of his recipients one outcome. Ever...
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Big Day for First Marblehead
Wow! I have to admit, when I wrote my piece on First Marblehead (FMD) late last night, the stock was at $52.35, and while I expected it to go up today, it has blown past my most optimistic guess of where it would go. As I write this, the stock has just passed through...
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First Marblehead’s Latest Securitization- More Cash Up Front
First Marblehead(FMD) is one of those stocks that people either love(First Marblehead: A Bull’s Thorough Defense) or hate(First Marblehead Proves Us Right). Count me in the love category. The company announced today updated details on its upcoming securitization of student loans. The total loan volume being securitized has increased to an estimated $1.84 billion...
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Lifetime Brands- In your kitchen, should they be in your portfolio?
You may not have heard of Lifetime Brands(LCUT), but you almost certainly own one of their products. The company owns or licenses a broad array of brands including Farberware, Sabatier, Hoffritz, Pfaltzgraff, KitchenAid and Cuisinart. Lifetime is the largest supplier of cutting boards, silicone bakeware, and pantryware, the second largest supplier of household cutlery...
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Hewlett Packard: Over-Dunn or Dunn Over?
For nearly a week the scandal at Hewlett-Packard(HPQ) has dominated the headlines. Each day has brought progressively worse news. What began as news that George Keyworth had been identified as the source of a leak and would not stand reelection, quickly escalated with the revelation that investigators hired by board Chairwoman Patricia Dunn had...
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Festival of Stocks #1
George at Fat Pitch Financials has begun a blog carnival called Festival Of Stocks. The first edition is currently up and our post on Consolidated Tomoka has been selected as Editor’s Choice. There is much other worthwhile reading featured, and all are encouraged to visit.
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Warehouse Club Membership Fees and Why You Should Buy BJ’S Wholesale
Rob Zenilman has a recent post on SeekingAlpha on warehouse club membership fees. Though the post is titled “Are Warehouse Stores Too Dependant On Membership Fee Income?” this post merely shows that this is the case, but doesn’t suggest any conclusion. I would maintain that not only is this desirable, it is an integral...
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