JPMorgan Chase (JPM) is one the leading financial services company in the world and competes with Bank of America (BAC), Goldman Sachs (GS), Morgan Stanley (MS), Citigroup (C) and Deutsche Bank (DB). The company has provided $20 billion bridge loan to AT&T (T) in order to help it in its planned purchase of Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile USA unit. It is the largest unsecured loan that a bank has ever made to a client.

We have a price estimate of $48.87 on JPMorgan's stock, which is about 7% above the current market price.

Continue reading JPMorgan Makes a Big Bet with $20 Billion Loan to AT&T

JPMorgan Makes a Big Bet with $20 Billion Loan to AT&T originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 25 Mar 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Buyout Capacity for Private Equity Biz Still Growing

Buyout Capacity for Private Equity Biz Still Growing originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Up until the credit crisis, private equity firms had it made. They had plenty of leverage to play with and could load up their acquisition targets with it. So, they could realize a fantastic return on equity, mitigate their own risks, and show that they were the studs of the Street.

Then, all that went away. Credit markets dried up, and private equity companies lost their acquisition fuel. The numbers aren't as big as they used to be, but it looks like the private equity market is back in action.

Continue reading Private equity biz back in action

Private equity biz back in action originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

As I mentioned in my post about Blogher, AIM is where it's at for the sorts of people who use instant messenger programs to communicate. Not only do teenagers love the product, with all the spiraling viral effects that has for AOL, but I use it for work -- and many other businesses are becoming IM-savvy.

AIM, however, may have come to a bit of an innovation plateau -- the unit seems to be focusing on cuteness and personality rather than functionality. AOL needed to get working if the company wished to expand into the nether reaches of instant communication and electronic networking. Today's announcement of the company's acquisition of Userplane (for an undisclosed sum) underscored Time Warner's dual strategies in this market, which are (1) dominate and innovate and (2) do it by acquisition, whenever possible.

Userplane CEO Mike Jones says the company will remain a separate unit, and the company's venture capitalist lauds Userplane for having been cashflow positive "for a long time." Userplane brings a very strong position in the dating and social networking market, and it's oh-so-Web 2.0. According to TechCrunch, Userplane "uses Flash and Ajax to offer video, audio and text chat in the browser, in single or multiple chat rooms. Those video and audio chats can be recorded using the company's Webrecorder application."

Continue reading AOL acquires even more of IM market with Userplane

AOL acquires even more of IM market with Userplane originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 14 Aug 2006 15:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.