There have been many lessons to learn from the "Great Recession." But while the message is often clear, we can't always muster the courage, discipline or consensus to act on these lessons.

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is about to enter its second season -- the playoffs. And for a Laker fan in Los Angeles, there is much to look forward to. However, the current NBA collective bargaining agreement will end and we will have to witness another battle between the billionaires and the millionaires.

Why can't the NBA learn from other businesses that have successfully maneuvered through economic turmoil to achieve profitability?

Continue reading Chasing Value: The NBA Should Learn from Others

Chasing Value: The NBA Should Learn from Others originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 13:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Even though we can anticipate billions of dollars in claims there still are buying opportunites.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Insurance Stock Review -- Part 3

Chasing Value: Insurance Stock Review -- Part 3 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 28 Mar 2011 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The other shoe hit the fan Wednesday when Newcastle Investments (NCT), one of my up-and-down picks for the year announced the pricing for a 15 million common share stock offering -- six bucks! -- considerably lower than the 52-week high of $8.85 the stock reached last month.

NCT closed Wednesday March 23 at $6.02.

In making this move, management seeks to raise $85.6million for future investments and operations. This is the management that guided the company back from the grave. I know, since I bought in at 60 cents. But with 62 million shares outstanding, the 25% dilution is a huge move. What are they thinking?

Continue reading Chasing Value: Newcastle Shares Drop to Offering Level

Chasing Value: Newcastle Shares Drop to Offering Level originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 24 Mar 2011 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading GM Announces Surprise CFO Resignation

GM Announces Surprise CFO Resignation originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

When dealing with large companies, have you ever felt you were living through a scene from a Seinfeld episode?

In January Wells Fargo (WFC) completed a majority of its integration with Wachovia, and I fear it will take years working out the bugs in the system. I say this because I am a major client, shareholder and trader dealing with the company on numerous levels, and the past few weeks would be comedic if not so infuriating.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Wells Fargo, a Seinfeld Episode?

Chasing Value: Wells Fargo, a Seinfeld Episode? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Homeowners Choice Earnings, Another Great Quarter

Chasing Value: Homeowners Choice Earnings, Another Great Quarter originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 09 Mar 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) is sitting on $38 billion in cash. Buffett sent a 26-page letter to investors on Saturday, describing his forthcoming goals for this year. Some highlights of the letter are reported in Reuters.

First off, like many other large corporations Berkshire Hathaway has been hoarding cash. Now, Buffett feels that it's time to invest his bundle. He is actively searching for big deals. Reuters quotes him as saying: "Our elephant gun has been reloaded, and my trigger finger is itchy."

Continue reading Buffett's 'Trigger Finger Is Itchy' for Deals

Buffett's 'Trigger Finger Is Itchy' for Deals originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 01 Mar 2011 10:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

We've oft heard the saying: "We must reinvent ourselves." This is the new mantra at eBay. According to chief executive John Donahoe: "Clearly, I hope you see that we are starting to play offense."

EBay (EBAY) has long been a dominant player in the e-commerce industry. Started in 1995, it has brought together buyers and sellers in an auction format. Now, 16 years later and highly successful, the company finds a new competitor in Amazon.com (AMZN), which is grabbing market share. In the meantime, eBay has acquired Paypal, as a wholly owned subsidiary. Paypal, an online payment service, helped to propel eBay's business transactions.

Continue reading A Makeover for eBay

A Makeover for eBay originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 11 Feb 2011 12:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Capital One Reports Strong Q4 Results, Shares Slide

Capital One Reports Strong Q4 Results, Shares Slide originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 20 Jan 2011 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Citigroup, Inc. (C) could have done better. Revenue from bond trading took a big hit. John Gerspach, Chief Financial Officer acknowledged that fixed income was weak and needs fixing.

Citi's profit was $1.3 billion compared with the year earlier loss of $7.6 billion. Revenue more than tripled to $18.4 billion from $5.4 billion a year ago. However it fell 11% from the third quarter. Citi has been aggressive in hiring more bankers causing expenses to rise. Earnings per share were four cents compared with a loss of 33 cents a year ago, as reported in the Wall Street Journal.

Continue reading Citigroup's Earnings Dragged Down by Bond Traders

Citigroup's Earnings Dragged Down by Bond Traders originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 18 Jan 2011 16:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"By now, everyone probably knows that Apple (AAPL) CEO Steve Jobs will be taking another medical leave of absence," says Geoffrey Seiler.

The editor of BullMarket.com explains, "We'd use the weakness in Apple shares to accumulate the stock. The last time Job took medical leave was in 2009 when the stock was trading in the mid $80s.

"Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook will take over the day-to-day operations while Jobs is on leave. Cook previously filled in for Jobs in 2004 when Jobs was battling pancreatic cancer and in 2009 when Jobs was recovering from a liver transplant.

Continue reading Apple (AAPL): Time to Accumulate

Apple (AAPL): Time to Accumulate originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 18 Jan 2011 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

So it looks like COO Tim Cook will be in charge again over at Apple (AAPL). CEO Steve Jobs said Monday that he is taking another medical leave of absence, leaving responsibility for day-to-day decisions to Cook.

This is the third time Cook took up the reins, the first in 2004 when Jobs recovered from surgery for pancreatic cancer, and again in January through June of 2009 when Jobs had a liver transplant. Many people consider Cook to be Jobs's logical successor.

Continue reading Steve Jobs Takes Another Medical Leave

Steve Jobs Takes Another Medical Leave originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 17 Jan 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD - option chain) stock is trading lower today after the company announced the resignation of CEO Dirk Meyer, naming Thomas Seifert interim CEO. Investors are surprised by this announcement, since Meyer took over AMD when the company was floundering and has since stabilized AMD. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on AMD.

This morning, AMD opened at $8.77. So far today the stock has hit a high of $8.80 and a low of $8.35. As of 12:25, AMD is trading at $8.49, down $0.70 (-7.6%). The chart for AMD looks neutral and S&P gives AMD a neutral 3 STARS (out of 5) hold ranking.

Continue reading AMD CEO Steps Aside Suddenly

AMD CEO Steps Aside Suddenly originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 11 Jan 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

I have already gone on record this year saying that financial companies and insurance stocks are going to continue to rebound. In my previous two posts Chasing Value: 2011 Stock Picks -- 5 of 11 and Chasing Value: 2011 Stock Picks -- 6, 7, 8, 9, I included several financial institutions. Today I add an insurance company.

The industry got whacked hard for many reasons. For one, it makes a significant amount of profit by investing its float, and like every other investor, the industry lost a pile of money in the financial crisis. It was embroiled more directly than some industries, as several insurers are affiliated with banks. Finally the housing crisis meant disruption to payment streams by homeowners who were delinquent on more than their mortgages.

Continue reading Chasing Value: 2011 Stock Picks -- 10 and 11

Chasing Value: 2011 Stock Picks -- 10 and 11 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 10 Jan 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Sources close to the social network Linkedln say it is planning to go public, as reported in Reuters. It has filed statements with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Owner Jeff Weiner told Reuters that he has selected Morgan Stanley (MS), Bank of America (BAC) and JP Morgan (JPM) as book runners. Book runners take the original stock offering and then resell it to retail clients.

Linkedln is a fast growing social networking site with 85 million viewers. Financial information is not available. Company revenues come from advertising. A source close to the company values it at about $2.2 billion.

Continue reading Social Network Linkedln to Go Public in 2011

Social Network Linkedln to Go Public in 2011 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 06 Jan 2011 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Las Vegas Sands (LVS) gapped higher out of the gate Monday morning, as traders cheered the latest round of data from Macau. Casino revenues in the popular gambling destination rose 58% in 2010 to a record 188.34 billion patacas, or roughly $23.51 billion, according to the Macau Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau.

Revenue for the month of December ballooned 66.4% to an all-time monthly high of 18.883 billion patacas, or approximately $2.36 billion.

Continue reading Las Vegas Sands Catches a Lift from Rising Macau Revenues

Las Vegas Sands Catches a Lift from Rising Macau Revenues originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 03 Jan 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

When searching for a mutual fund, what do you look for? Obviously, you want solid performance over time. Many funds are flashy but only shine for a year or two then fall by the wayside.

The Wall Street Journal features two no-load funds that have topped their peers. What sets them apart is that they don't follow the crowd. They do intensive research and filter out all but a few holdings. They are not index traders.

Continue reading Two Funds That Beat 99% of Competitors

Two Funds That Beat 99% of Competitors originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 03 Jan 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Athletic footwear and accessory giant Nike Inc. (NKE) sold off in after-hours trading as investors reacted to weaker-than-expected future orders, despite posting better-than-expected earnings and revenues during the quarter.

Quarterly earnings were up 22% from the same period last year to $0.94 per share, versus analyst estimates for $0.88. Revenues were up 10% during the quarter to $4.84 billion, compared to Wall Street estimates for $4.80 billion.

Continue reading Nike Sells Off on Weak Future Orders

Nike Sells Off on Weak Future Orders originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 22 Dec 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

It was September 29 when I last wrote about GameStop (GME) in Chasing Value: Are GameStop's Days Numbered? At that time I strongly believed "The demise of GameStop is not imminent -- but it's inevitable." My opinion of this outlet for new and used video games has indeed changed since that time.

I now believe even more fervently that GameStop the gamer is a goner. If you own it, you are playing a game of chicken to see if you make a few bucks with GME as it bounces up and down before it sinks. A word of caution is in order: timing the market as a strategy is a losing proposition the majority of the time.

Continue reading Chasing Value: GameStop's Demise Not Imminent, Just Inevitable

Chasing Value: GameStop's Demise Not Imminent, Just Inevitable originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 17 Dec 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Share of Oracle Corporation (ORCL) are up sharply in after hours trading following this afternoon's fiscal second quarter earnings report.

As we noted in our earnings preview earlier today, analysts had been expecting to see Oracle report Q2 earnings of $0.46 per share. Actual earnings came in above expectations at $0.51 per share, excluding special items.

Continue reading Oracle Shares Soar Following Strong Earnings Report

Oracle Shares Soar Following Strong Earnings Report originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.