Business News
« Previous EntriesThe “Why” Behind the Madoff Fraud
Friday, March 13th, 2009Okay, I finally got to read a little as to WHY Madoff did what he did. From today’s Wall Street Journal ($):
Mr. Madoff did shed some light on why he started the fraud and whether he knew he would get caught. He said when the fraud started in the early 1990s, he felt “compelled” [...]
Be Careful if You Use Dividend Yields As Your Guide for Valuation
Friday, March 6th, 2009Wells Fargo just announced that they are slashing their quarterly dividend by 85%! EIGHTY-FIVE PERCENT! What used to be an annual dividend of $1.36 is now $.20. Based on Wells Fargo’s current stock price of $8.58, the dividend yield went from 15.9% to 2.3%.
To put it in perspective, if you had 1,000 [...]
Let’s Talk About TALF
Wednesday, March 4th, 2009If I’m understanding this correctly, we’re going to fix our economy by going back down the same road that got us into this mess in the first place. That’s the impression I’m getting from the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF) that was detailed in today’s Wall Street Journal ($). According to the [...]
SEC Accusing Stanford Financial Group of Fraud
Tuesday, February 17th, 2009This one hits close to home as the Stanford Financial Group is located in Houston.
The SEC has registered a complaint against Stanford Financial Group (StanfordFinancial.com), alleging massive fraud. You can read the PDF of the complaint here. If the SEC’s complaint is to be believed, Stanford Financial Group is evil. Read the [...]
Madoff’s Client List Revealed
Thursday, February 5th, 2009From the Wall Street Journal: Madoff Client List is Disclosed in Filing:
Some notable names appear on the list, including Fred Wilpon, owner of the New York Mets baseball team. It isn’t clear how many of the clients listed had money at the firm at the time of Mr. Madoff’s arrest on Dec. 11.
Other high-profile names [...]
The “Flight of Talent” Argument Really Cracks Me Up
Thursday, February 5th, 2009The Obama administration has placed limits on executive pay.
The opposition’s argument is that such limits will cause a flight of talent away from these firms, which brings up an interesting thought:
Imagine how bad things could have gotten if we would’ve had less talented executives running things!
I can’t say that I’m in favor of mandating limits [...]
Circuit City Unplugged
Friday, January 16th, 2009I just read that Circuit City is closing all their remaining stores.
It’s sad actually. They JUST finished building a brand new store on the parking lot of our local mall. Now that brand-new building will sit vacant for who knows how long. It’s gonna sit there right in the middle of the [...]
Rick Wagoner on Why GM Deserves “Support”
Wednesday, November 19th, 2008Reading Assignment: Why GM Deserves Support by Rick Wagoner
If I understand his editorial correctly, GM should be bailed out because:
1. They are going to build cars that are efficient, that will help reduce our dependence on foreign oil.
2. They have plants all over the U. S.
3. The health of domestic auto business [...]
Goldman Top Executives to Forgo 2008 Bonuses
Monday, November 17th, 2008I like this move. Goldman’s reasoning for giving up the bonuses for top executives:
“While the firm has distinguished itself through many aspects of the crisis, we cannot ignore the fact that we are part of an industry that is directly associated with the ongoing economic distress,” the firm spokesman said late Sunday.
Source: Goldman Chiefs [...]
Question of the Day - Bailing Out Auto Makers
Friday, November 14th, 2008Here’s today’s question of the day:
Should the government offer a bailout package to American auto makers?
First off, I’d be interested to hear Jeremy’s thoughts on this question as both of his parents work for GM.
My opinion:
Unless things change drastically, I have serious doubts that a bailout would even work in the long run. American [...]