Continue reading Chasing Value: EZcorp Still Besting Apple

Chasing Value: EZcorp Still Besting Apple originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 05 Apr 2011 14:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Some Very Sirius Numbers

Chasing Value: Some Very Sirius Numbers originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 29 Mar 2011 14:50:00 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 Chasing Value: EZCorp Still a Bargain

Chasing Value: EZCorp Still a Bargain originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 22 Mar 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Do you have any interest in insurance companies amidst the turmoil, disaster and current crises in Japan? A crises that followed so closely on the heals of the destruction of the New Zealand city of ChristChurch by a 6.3 magnitude earthquake. Perhaps you think this is even a poorer idea than catching that proverbial falling knife we are always hearing about when stock prices are collapsing.

Certainly there will be billions of dollars in claims. On the other hand, perhaps the burden will be spread around the globe to reinsurer's such that none is struck too hard and this is a buying opportunity. After all, when the dust settles, insurers will cry for mercy, and in particular, rate increases. It is also likely those that never saw the need for insurance have been awakened and demand will increase.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Insurance Stock Review -- Part 2

Chasing Value: Insurance Stock Review -- Part 2 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 18 Mar 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Insured Profits or a Mountain of Risk?

Chasing Value: Insured Profits or a Mountain of Risk? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 14 Mar 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Chinese government released trade data that portrays a $7.3 billion deficit. Is that believable or just convenient amid the international pressure to raise the value of their currency? We can hardly believe what comes out of Washington, so data coming out of China has to be quite suspect.

I'm sure they retained qualified independent auditors to ascertain the validity of the figures -- yeah right ...

Continue reading Chasing Value: A Chinese Trade Deficit?

Chasing Value: A Chinese Trade Deficit? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 11 Mar 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This is the fourth update to my ranting eight months ago that acquiring six of the most hated, and most highly traded stocks with constant negative headlines would outperform the overall market. The theory has born fruit as the toxic stocks are ahead and the difference is increasing over time.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Toxic Stock Update #4 -- BAC, BP, C, GE, GS, RIG

Chasing Value: Toxic Stock Update #4 -- BAC, BP, C, GE, GS, RIG originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 11 Mar 2011 15:00:00 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.

This morning before the market opened, Newcastle Investments (NCT), one of my 2011 stock picks (see Chasing Value: 2011 Picks Dust the S&P) reported earnings that stomped all over analysts estimates. The company reported that in the fourth quarter of 2010, income applicable to common stockholders ("GAAP income") was $197 million, or $3.18 per diluted share, compared to $17 million, or $0.31 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of 2009.

For the full year 2010, GAAP income was $657 million, or $10.96 per diluted share, compared to a loss applicable to common stockholders ("GAAP loss") of $223 million, or $4.23 per diluted share, in 2009.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Newcastle Earnings Shatter Estimates

Chasing Value: Newcastle Earnings Shatter Estimates originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 01 Mar 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Looked at Boeing, Then Looked Away

Chasing Value: Looked at Boeing, Then Looked Away originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 28 Feb 2011 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Two weeks ago I decided to sell my shares of E*Trade (ETFC) after concluding it did not fit my investment criteria. It was one of my successful picks for 2010 and I made money having sold puts establishing a base price of $13.50. It closed Friday February 25 at $15.89.

I might not have chosen to post about this except for news that Ken Griffin's hedge fund Citadel Investment Group plans to sell much of its stake in E*Trade Financial. The largest shareholder selling out is news. Citadel will still hold valuable warrants, giving it the option of taking a very large position again, but for now there seems to be a change of heart for them as well.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Time to Sell E*Trade?

Chasing Value: Time to Sell E*Trade? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 27 Feb 2011 13:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Chasing Value: 2011 Picks Dust the S&P

Chasing Value: 2011 Picks Dust the S&P originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 01 Feb 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The market is getting gently hammered today, but that only presents more opportunities from my perspective.

I am in Ixtapa, Mexico, nearing the conclusion of my first ever week long rest during a 35 year working career ... and counting. In some ways I am hoping to mold my future working environment from seashore to shining seashore -- all around the world -- taking advantage of modern technology. I am thinking of it as "have beach (+Internet), will travel."

Continue reading Chasing Value: Profiting from Ixtapa -- Buffett, Gold, Oil, Options and More

Chasing Value: Profiting from Ixtapa -- Buffett, Gold, Oil, Options and More originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 28 Jan 2011 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Last year, Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) was included in my stock picks for 2010 and it lost 4.9%. I gave some consideration to keeping it in the mix this year but thought more highly of other stocks in 2011, so I cast it off.

The turning of a calendar page is arbitrary and investments have only modest correlation to it in most instances. However, two weeks into the year ADM is already up, closing Wednesday at $32.56.

Corn prices have been rising and when last I checked futures were up another 1.47% in early morning trading.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Corn Soaring, ADM Boring, Investors Snoring

Chasing Value: Corn Soaring, ADM Boring, Investors Snoring originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 13 Jan 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Chasing Value: How to Find Value Stocks -- Part 2

Chasing Value: How to Find Value Stocks -- Part 2 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

On Friday I had the opportunity to present an investment strategy I developed over the past few years to a major asset manager interested in learning the intricacies. Among the questions he asked, one that comes up often, is how do I go about finding particular stocks that I think might be of value.

The answer of course is not so simple, because like any other type of discovery they come about in a variety of ways. Sometimes it begins with a story, as it did in December 2008 when I included EZCorp (EZPW) among my 2009 stock picks (and 2010 and 2011). In this case I was pondering what was going to be safe, and perhaps even in growing demand during a year of financial turmoil and high unemployment. The answer was pawn shops and cash-advance stores.

Continue reading Chasing Value: How to Find Value Stocks -- Part 1

Chasing Value: How to Find Value Stocks -- Part 1 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 10 Jan 2011 11:00:00 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.