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Daily Highlights: 10/9/09

Fri, 09 Oct 2009 13:18:02 GMT

Asian stock markets rose Friday on US gains, with resource and energy stocks leading.Bernanke says Fed ready to tighten monetary policy when economy improves.Dollar rises for first time in 5 days after Bernanke says Fed ready to 'tighten' policy.Initial Jobless claims in US decrease 33,000 to 10-month low of 521,000.Japan Machine Orders increased 0.5% in August, rebounding from record low.[More...]

Daily Highlights: Sept 9, 2009

Wed, 09 Sep 2009 13:26:10 GMT

Asian stocks fall on share sales; Alibaba slumps as Chairman pares stake.China looking at investing part of its $300B sovereign-wealth fund in US realty.China plans first offering of yuan sovereign debt outside mainland China, in Hong Kong.China's steel output rises 2% as state spending spurs demand.Euro rises toward 9-month high versus Dollar on speculation of recovery.[More...]

August 2009 Same-Store Sales Summary

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 17:55:11 GMT

Over 30 retailers reported monthly sales results for August over the past two days. While many areas of the economy have been showing relative improvement over the past few months, there have been few bright spots in retail. However, August results provide some hope that things are finally starting to turn around.[More...]

The Darker Light

Fri, 17 Jul 2009 02:58:09 GMT

Once again, we have that same old disconnect: Wall Street and Washington say that things are looking up, while most Americans continue to believe otherwise, as CNNMoney.com's Paul La Monica reveals in "The Economy Feels Better. Why Don't You?": Wall Street's celebrating "strong" earnings and the Fed thinks the recession may soon end. But consumers won't be confident until the housing woes are over. The economy seems to be getting better. That's what Wall Street is telling us. Stocks soared Wednesday thanks to a slew of decent earnings reports. That's also what C Street -- home of the Federal Reserve -- is telling us. In the minutes from the Fed's last meeting, [More...]

Loans Versus Bonds Relative Value: Week Of April 30

Mon, 04 May 2009 14:50:15 GMT

Just when we thought the heat-seeking short squeeze in credit land may be subsiding, three new bonds rip tighter: old shorter max-pain name Neiman Marcus, whose bonds tightened by 540 bps, Graham Packaging which ripped by 550 bps and Huntsman Int'l which tightened by 425 bps. As in the last week, the rolling equity squeeze in unique stocks and sectors has caused comparable squeezes in corresponding highly-shorted credits. Some odd names that stand out this week with respect to a disproportionate widening in loans and a tightening in bonds are: BE Aerospace, Centennial Communications, Constellation Brands, First Data Corp and Pantry, although the moves are marginal enough to be likely noise. [More...]

On Our Fraudulent Economy

Thu, 19 Feb 2009 19:37:00 GMT

This morning Rick Santelli went nuclear on the entire "fraudulent mortgage" game - the culmination of a series of rants that he has (correctly) launched over the last year. (As an aside, great minds must think alike, as we both had the "extra bathroom" thing in our morning rants!) You can view it here (can't embed as its a CNBS video clip) Here's the point folks, when you get down to it: The entire last two decades of so-called "Economic Growth" has been fueled by one fraud after another, starting with the Internet Bubble. This fraud has been systematic and the mainstream media has[More...]

Pondering Signet Jewelers As A Short

Fri, 06 Feb 2009 18:54:00 GMT

Since I missed Zale's (ZLC) journey to sub $1-ish (Jan 23: Where You Won't Shop in 2009), I am pondering Signet Jewelers (SIG) as a proxy. Very weird action today - it is up 14% based on a cost cutting report that happened yesterday - but the report happened in the morning. So the stock did not react yesterday but reacted today. (I assume short covering today) Signet Jewelers ([More...]

More Than Just Numbers - Jan 29 2009 12:33AM

Thu, 29 Jan 2009 04:27:00 GMT

In today's increasingly digital world, analysts spend a lot of time focusing on measurable details. They ask questions like "How long?" "How big?" and "How many?" and seek to draw all sorts of conclusions from the answers. But as we've often seen during the past two years, hard data doesn't necessarily tell the whole story. In fact, one reason why so many Wall Street "strategists" and economists missed the boat on the unfolding depression is because they gave short shrift to anecdotal reports and other evidence of widespread economic distress that could not be easily distilled into simple data points. That doesn't mean numbers don't matter, of course. As it happens, a report by the associate editor of TomDispatch.com, embedded within a post entitled Tomgram: Nick Turse, Desperate Times and Desperate[More...]

Enough Already; A New Fraud Everyday Hitting The Wires

Fri, 23 Jan 2009 21:01:00 GMT

It seems like everyday there is a new story about a hedge fund scam. First there was Bernie Madoff and his Ponzi scheme. A good number of his investors were from the most elite of country clubs, The Palm Beach Country Club. We are talking about a club where the monthly spending requirements are higher than 90 percent of the countries annual income. There was the less publicized case of George Theodule. Theodule is a Haitian immigrant and he was targeting other Haitian immigrants with a promise to double investors' money in only three months. According to the SEC, Theodule swindled investors out of $23.4 million. Then there is the case of Marcus Schrenker, the Indiana investment manager that tried to fake his own death by allowing his plane to run on autopilot for 200 miles. His plane crashed to the ground in the Florida panhandle within yards of a neighborhood of homes. He is being investigated for fraudulent activity in[More...]

It's Not Just Consumers Who Are Making Adjustments

Wed, 21 Jan 2009 03:44:00 GMT

Analysts and the media have focused plenty of attention on how overindebted and tapped out consumers are responding to deteriorating economic conditions. So far, there are clear signs that Americans are becoming more disciplined -- cutting back, saving, reusing, repairing and, overall, adjusting to a world where uncertainty is on the rise and there is much less to go around. But the reaction is not one-sided. Those on the other side of the counter are also seeing the writing on the wall -- better late than never, I guess -- and are starting to make structural adjustments of their own. In "Retailers Prepare for a New, Frugal Future," the Associated Press gives us the details.

"I think we'll see a slightly better year, although obviously still weaker than in an environment where employment is better," said Erika K. Maschmeyer, retail analyst in Robert W. Baird & Co.'s Chicago office.
[More...]

Price of MCS Computers Questioned

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 15:53:00 GMT

Oct. 16--A little bit of online detective work by a Memphis City Schools board member may raise questions about how millions of stimulus dollars are being spent in the city.
During a presentation Monday night on the $4.9 million of stimulus funding the district intends to spend for 3,957 new laptops and installation, board member Patrice Robinson typed in the series number of the laptops that the schools plan to buy on her own laptop and found the product for less.
The explanation, said Deputy Supt. Irving Hamer, is memory.

: iStockAnalyst.com Symbols Feed

Daily Highlights: 10/9/09

Daily Highlights: Sept 9, 2009

August 2009 Same-Store Sales Summary

The Darker Light

Loans Versus Bonds Relative Value: Week Of April 30

On Our Fraudulent Economy

Pondering Signet Jewelers As A Short

More Than Just Numbers - Jan 29 2009 12:33AM

Enough Already; A New Fraud Everyday Hitting The Wires

It's Not Just Consumers Who Are Making Adjustments

Price of MCS Computers Questioned

Hard Times Stoke Heating Bill Worries

MCS Loses Out on Funding: Lack of Local Match Money to Blame

Chancellor Agrees to Stay School Funding Decision Pending City's Appeal

Commissioners Court Approves Dirt Work for ESD 4

Stocks Sink to 12-Year Lows Over Bleak Economic Outlook

Horrible Stock Year Ends

Year in Review: Local Economy Endures Turbulent Year

MovieTickets.com and ROGUE Unveil Their Largest Prize Giveaway Ever: $100,000 or a Trip to Hawaii for the Next 10 Years

The Marcus Corporation Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal 2009 Results

The Marcus Corporation Revises Time for Fourth Quarter Conference Call

The Marcus Corporation Announces Fourth Quarter Conference Call

Grand Geneva Completes Multimillion Dollar Renovation

'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince' Sellouts Top 2,000, Film Becomes No. 2 Potter Film on MovieTickets.com Advance Ticket Sellers List

'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince' Surpasses 'Indiana Jones 4,' Enters MovieTickets.com Top-25 Advance Ticket Sellers List

The Marcus Corporation Declares Quarterly Dividend

'Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen' Makes History, Breaks Into MovieTickets.com's List of the Top-25 Pre-Sellers of All-Time

MovieTickets.com Offers Free 'Street Dreams' Download With Movie Ticket Purchase

Form 4 MARCUS CORP For: Nov 24 Filed by: GERSHOWITZ DIANE M (10K)

Form 4 SELIG ALLAN H For: Oct 14 (10K)

Form 4 MCKEITHAN DANIEL F JR For: Oct 14 (10K)

Form 4 MARCUS CORP For: Oct 14 Filed by: ERICSON JAMES D (10K)

Form 4 GERSHOWITZ DIANE M For: Oct 14 (10K)

Form 4 MARCUS CORP For: Oct 14 Filed by: MILSTEIN PHILIP L (10K)

Form 4 MARCUS CORP For: Oct 14 Filed by: HOEKSEMA TIMOTHY E (10K)

Form 4 HAASE BRONSON J For: Oct 14 (10K)

Form 4 NEIS DOUGLAS A For: Aug 25 (10K)

Form 4 OTTO WILLIAM J For: Aug 25 (10K)