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Dollar Bulls Power-up With ETF Index Call Options Ahead Of FOMC

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:32:05 GMT

Today's tickers: UUP, NWL, HNZ, EWZ, UNH, OSTK & STEC[More...]

Market Closing : Mixed Finish Halts S&P 500 Win Streak At Six

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:25:00 GMT

Stock averages end narrowly mixed, snapping the S&P 500's six-session win streak. Consolidation is expected. The Dow touched a high of 9,931 yesterday, falling just short of the 10,000 mark, a level not seen in a year and a key psychological level that some strategists are expecting to trigger at least a modest correction.[More...]

Our Outlook for Health-Care Stocks

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 22:55:00 GMT

The key development on the health-care reform front occurred just before the end of the third quarter. The long-anticipated proposal from the Senate Finance Committee finally materialized and, as is typical of any proposal that attempts to take a centrist approach, was greeted with a barrage of criticism from both ends of the political spectrum.[More...]

Daily Credit Summary: September 28 - Divergent Dullness

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 21:55:10 GMT

Spreads were tighter in the US as all the indices improved (though were unable to break Friday's tights and closed wider than Thursday's close). IG trades only 8.1bps tight (rich) to its 50d moving average, which is a Z-Score of -0.7s.d. At 105bps, IG has closed tighter on only 8 days so far this year (192 trading days). The last five days have seen IG converging to its 50d moving average.[More...]

Rationing? I Have To Disagree

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 15:49:00 GMT

In yesterday’s Wall Street Journal, Martin Feldstein, Ronald Reagan’s top economist and a Harvard professor, claims the current health care proposals are all about rationing.? I have to disagree. Excerpts from his article are below, along with my critique. "Although administration officials are eager to deny it, rationing health care is central to President Barack Obama's health plan. The Obama strategy is to reduce health costs by rationing the services that we and future generations of patients will receive. "The White House Council of Economic Advisers issued a report in June explaining the Obama Administration's goal of reducing projected health spending by 30% over the next two decades. That reduction would be achieved by eliminating 'high cost, low-value treatments' by 'implementing a set of performance measures that all providers[More...]

Berkshire’s (NYSE: BRK.A) Back, So What’s Warren Buffett Buying Now?

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 15:18:27 GMT

As shares of Berhshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK.A, BRK.B) plunged over the past year, it became fashionable to ask whether or not Warren Buffett had lost his touch.[More...]

Today's Playbook On Health Insurance Stocks, Post- Public Option

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 13:13:00 GMT

In an astute political move, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sibelius on Sunday said that providing citizens with the option of government-run insurance is not essential to the Obama administration's overhaul of U.S. health care. Evidently, the administration has caved on this very important issue, leaving the door open for private health insurance companies to move forward with creative products and profits for shareholders. Of course the devil will be in the details, but at fist glance Team Obama will expand health using cooperatives similar to the public/private scheme in the domestic utility industry. Here are potential winners for investors to explore. Beware using the insurance index ETFs as your vehicle, as the health care sub-sector is in play now, not all insurance stocks. Aetna (AET) $28.28/$12.3b market cap/ 0.14% American Independence Corp. (AMIC) $4.75/$40.4m market cap/0% [More...]

Berkshire Hathaway’s portfolio changes for 2Q 2009

Sat, 15 Aug 2009 17:53:08 GMT

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B) just posted its 13-F filing with the SEC, which lists changes in its stock positions. Buffett initiated a new position in medical technology company Becton[More...]

'Blue-Dogging' Health Care

Tue, 28 Jul 2009 19:44:06 GMT

One of the traits that people prize most in dogs is loyalty. However, the question then becomes loyalty to whom or what? In the case of the "Blue Dog Caucus," the group of Congressional Democrats that has emerged as the major player in health care reform, it appears that its loyalty is first and foremost to its big campaign contributors -- the health insurance firms and the drug companies. The general claim that they make is that they are worried about the fiscal consequences of health care reform, but when it comes to specifics, they are most opposed to the very elements of the reform package that are most likely to be successful in driving down the overall cost. It is easy to figure out why the GOP is united in opposition to the primary plans being debated in Congress. (Some members of the GOP have proposed an alternate plan, but, overall, the party’s bottom line on the plans currently being considered by[More...]

The Timeless Question: To Sell Or Not To Sell

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:48:00 GMT

I received a question from a subscriber earlier this week that resonated with another question I received from a subscriber shortly after I sold one-half of our position in Indian mining company Sterl...[More...]

Health insurers weather storms heading into 2010

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:50:00 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS - Rising unemployment, swine flu and the threat of health care reform all ganged up on managed care companies in the third quarter and could hurt their performance heading into 2010.
But most of the large publicly traded health insurers reported better-than-expected profit growth for the latest period, and analysts still see strong core businesses beneath the challenges facing the industry.
"I would say they're holding their own in a very, very bad situation," BMO Capital Markets analyst Dave Shove said.

: iStockAnalyst.com Symbols Feed

Dollar Bulls Power-up With ETF Index Call Options Ahead Of FOMC

Market Closing : Mixed Finish Halts S&P 500 Win Streak At Six

Our Outlook for Health-Care Stocks

Daily Credit Summary: September 28 - Divergent Dullness

Rationing? I Have To Disagree

Berkshire’s (NYSE: BRK.A) Back, So What’s Warren Buffett Buying Now?

Today's Playbook On Health Insurance Stocks, Post- Public Option

Berkshire Hathaway’s portfolio changes for 2Q 2009

'Blue-Dogging' Health Care

The Timeless Question: To Sell Or Not To Sell

Health insurers weather storms heading into 2010

Aetna says 3Q profit grows, cost controls improve

Aetna 3Q profit grows, but costs hurt performance

WellPoint 3Q Profit Slips 11 Percent, Top Estimates

Insurer WellPoint's 3Q profit, enrollment tumble

Insurer WellPoint's 3Q profit falls 11 percent

UB Will Help Develop Database of Rates for Out-of-Network Care

Group Formed to Create Replacement for UnitedHealth Database: A New York Nonprofit Will Put Together a New List of Medical Prices, Replacing the Disputed One Owned By UnitedHealth Group.

NY AG: Consumers can soon access health cost info

Earnings reports to give picture of job market

Health Net Reports Third Quarter 2009 Adjusted1 Net Income of $69.6 Million, or $0.67 Per Diluted Share

RidgewaterEquity.Com Free Fundamental Sector &Amp; Market Research on IM, SYY, UNH, TRA, CMO and TXT

UnitedHealth Group Reports Third Quarter Results

UnitedHealth Group Named to Dow Jones Sustainability North America and World Indexes for 11th Consecutive Year

Prescription Solutions Modernizes Consumer Website With New Content and Tools, Including Real-Time Drug Pricing for Medicare Part D Members

Unison Health Plan of the Capital Area Teams with Community Health Centers

AmeriChoice of New Jersey Teams with Community Health Centers

UnitedHealthcare Teams with Community Health Centers

AmeriChoice of Pennsylvania Teams with Community Health Centers

Unison Health Plan of Ohio Teams with Community Health Centers

Form 4 Walsh Christopher James For: Oct 29 (10K)

Form 4 WILENSKY GAIL R For: Oct 01 (10K)

Form 4 Shine Kenneth Irwin For: Oct 01 (10K)

Form 4 RENWICK GLENN M For: Oct 01 (10K)

Form 4 DARRETTA ROBERT J For: Oct 01 (10K)

Form 4/A UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INC For: Jun 02 Filed by: BURKE RICHARD T (10K)

Form 4 UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INC For: Sep 18 Filed by: BURKE RICHARD T (10K)

Form 4 UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INC For: Sep 16 Filed by: BURKE RICHARD T (10K)

Form 4 UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INC For: Aug 26 Filed by: LEATHERDALE DOUGLAS W (10K)

Form 4 UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INC For: Aug 13 Filed by: BALLARD WILLIAM C JR (10K)