Search results for James Dlugosch
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Posted
Oct 26 2009, 05:40 PM
by
James Dlugosch
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Perhaps the little guy is finally catching on to the games that Wall Street loves to play.
Last Thursday, Dole Foods (DOLE) priced its IPO at $12.50 per share, well below an expected range of $13-$15 a share. Based on that, you might have expected it to move higher when shares opened Friday morning.
But investors sensed something sour in this offering, and it wasn't the pineapple. Shares fizzled from the start and closed down fractionally; they sat at $12.20 at Monday's close. That's not a huge loss, but it's far from IPO glory. And it reflects the caution that all investors need to have right now
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Posted
Oct 22 2009, 05:45 PM
by
James Dlugosch
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Is the market turning into a raging bull?
One sure way to tell if a bull market is back is by examining the number of private companies lining up to become publicly-traded securities.
That number seems to be rising. Last week private equity giant The Blackstone Group (BX) announced that it would be selling many of its portfolio companies via the public market. Interestingly, it was the IPO of BX itself that signaled the end of the last bull market in 2007.
But IPOs are a dangerous game for investors. Companies often debut with a lot of hype and at too-high prices. Stocks shoot up, then fall back as insiders and private investors who hold shares start selling. It’s the little guy who chased down shares in the market that loses.
So, I have a better idea for you: buy shares of busted IPOs. Here's why, plus three failed IPOs to buy now.
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Posted
Oct 22 2009, 04:42 PM
by
James Dlugosch
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Yesterday I wrote about perks for jerks. Today, the little guy gets his due.
While the economy may not be producing jobs sufficient to relieve persistent unemployment, corporations are feeling good enough to reinstate 401k matches to those currently employed.
With times tight and layoffs mounting many corporations suspended 401k matching as a way to preserve capital. No matter that doing so would hurt the very people that corporations depended on for long-term success.
The Best Vanguard Funds for your 401k
This was a time for desperate measures. Or was it a way to keep the good times rolling for those at the top?
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Posted
Oct 21 2009, 04:59 PM
by
James Dlugosch
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
After all we have been through, the plush perks for bank CEOs and executives continue to grow unabated. Do they have no soul?
Apparently not. The government has bailed these guys out to the tune of $700 billion or more, yet the golf club memberships and personal use of corporate jets remains the order of the day.
Bing: Executive Compensation
Memo to the jerks: You cannot continue to behave this way without consequences.
A revolution is brewing, and anger is swelling. This kind of news will not help matters.
Instead of patting yourselves on the back for a job well done, you guys need to take a class on empathy. There are millions of Americans struggling without jobs. Many of those still with jobs find their paychecks barely get them by.
Apple still a Buy?
Is it really ok for you to be teeing it up at the finest club in town, yucking it up with your friends at shareholder and taxpayer expense
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Posted
Oct 14 2009, 01:45 PM
by
James Dlugosch
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
A lot of print magazines are closing their doors. But like a young teen with a secret stash, Alex Vaickus is holding onto his hard copies of Playboy.
Named the new president of Playboy Enterprises (PLA) last week, Vaickus boldly proclaimed that the print magazine would be cut “over my dead body."
Bing: More on Playboy stock
But that's bad news for Playboy shareholders because Vaickus, a 10-year-plus veteran of the company, has little hope of turning around the famous bunny unless he is willing to make bold changes
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Posted
Oct 05 2009, 02:02 PM
by
James Dlugosch
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
President Obama's shift in policy regarding missile defense in Europe marks the beginning of the end of the defense stock trade. For the entirety of the Bush administration defense stocks enjoyed a tailwind that provided fuel for significant gains.
Those winds are fading fast.
The trouble with diplomacy is that it replaces action or preemption with talk. Defense companies require action, thus the demise of preemptive foreign policy bodes ill for future profits.
Interestingly, the market has yet to realize the magnitude of the shift
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Posted
Oct 02 2009, 06:01 PM
by
James Dlugosch
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Perhaps it was wishful thinking to believe that global sentiment could change with a new president in Washington in less than a year. While we are taking positive steps to renew goodwill, we still have a long way to go.
The shocking headline that Chicago lost its bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympic Games and that Rio wins is a stunning blow for the wonder kid now in office. Obama, himself from Chicago, staked much on the International Olympic Committee decision, making his appeal in person.
Apparently nobody was buying – and Obama's domestic political opponents are now reveling in his defeat. All that is problematic for a country desperately attempting to restore its image around the globe.
Does it spell trouble on other fronts, including our portfolios? I think it does. The impact on multinational companies based in the US will be profound.
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Posted
Sep 29 2009, 04:13 PM
by
James Dlugosch
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
This morning I saw an interesting interview with Alan “Ace” Greenberg, former chief executive of Bear Stearns, on CNBC. Asked to comment on the views of JP Morgan (JPM) Chief Jamie Dimon, Greenberg demurred and backed the banking genius 100%.
“Whatever Jamie says, I agree,” he said. Bing: More on JP Morgan
You will not often find Wall Street executives reluctant to share opinions. These guys have strong egos, and Ace has one of the biggest. His deference to Dimon is very telling
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Posted
Sep 18 2009, 07:17 AM
by
James Dlugosch
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Does Chicken Little ever give up?
The supposed experts will tell you that one of the economic shoes to drop in the near future is massive credit card debt defaults. Persistent unemployment combined with already cash-strapped consumers mean the payments can't keep rolling in. Or so the argument goes.
The market disagrees, judging by the action in credit-card company stocks this year.
Bing: More on Credit Card Companies
I have been watching the action closely since the start of the year. You see, I was one of those experts who believed that credit card companies would be in big trouble during 2009.
I was so convinced of such an outcome that I was willing to speculate on the short side of the market with two names that I thought were particularly vulnerable. Both Capital One (COF) and American Express (AXP) were listed in my Top Stocks to Avoid in 2009
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Posted
Sep 16 2009, 02:24 PM
by
James Dlugosch
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
The economy is improving, but does that mean people will again go out and blow a few hundred dollars on designer jeans? I don't know about you, but I certainly will not.
Instead, I’m falling back onto old standby: The Gap (GPS).
Do you remember when Gap was cool? I do. I shopped at the GAP from the mid-1980s until the end of the 1990s. But I stopped shopping at The Gap at the turn of the millennium.
Bing: More on Retail Stocks
The timing was no coincidence; a lot of people did the same.. More choices, more niche brands and premium jeans retailers sprung up like weeds as the bull market wore on. The Gap got lost in the crowd, and its business suffered
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