Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) Cut to Market Perform at Leerink Swann.
Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMLN) Raised to Outperform at Baird.
Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE: NLY) Started as Overweight at JPMorgan.
Brookfield Asset Management (NYSE: BAM) Cut estimates at Credit Suisse.
The Greenbrier Companies (NYSE: GBX) named Value stock of the day at Zacks.
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (NASDAQ: GMCR) Cut to Hold at Argus.
Hershey Co. (NYSE: HSY) Cut to Hold at Argus.
Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) Reiterated Neutral with $59 target at Credit Suisse.
Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE: M) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
Spirit AeroSystems Holdings (NYSE: SPR) Added to US 1 List at BofA/ML.
Teekay Corporation (NYSE: TK) Cut estimates at Credit Suisse.
Tower Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: TWGP) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Also read the top analyst calls of the last week.

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Paulson & Co. Inc. had some changes. 

One change Paulson did not make was in the SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE: GLD).  That may have been lightened up since the March 31 date as some rumors indicated, but that 13F filing showed that the March 31 position was called as 31.5 million shares worth some $4.4 billion as of March 31.

Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) is a new position of 25 million shares worth just over $1 billion for Paulson.  Transocean Ltd. (NYSE: RIG) was listed 24.5 million shares versus only about 7.2 million shares the previous quarter.

Soros Fund Management LLC cut gold and banks.

SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE: GLD) was slashed down to a mere 49,400 shares worth $6.9 million at the end of March 31, 2011.  If that is not a massive gold exit, what is?

The big bank position cuts came in.  Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) was slashed down massively to 29,400 shares, as if Soros just didn’t get the sales in before the close on that day.  Soros cut stakes in J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) and in Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC).  JPMorgan was 624,600 shares worth $28.7 million and Wells Fargo was just over 3.5 million shares worth $111.1 million as of March 31.  The exception in banks was a larger stake in Citigroup, Inc. (NYSE: C) listed as 2.938 million shares worth some $129.8 million.  Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) was down to 230,433 shares worth $80.3 million for Soros, but there are some 210,000 shares worth of call options and some 280,000 shares worth of Put options listed.  SOme elimination positions that no longer appear are Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT).

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway was the smallest changes ever, mainly because Buffett kept new positions confidential with the SEC. 

Mastercard Inc. (NYSE: MA) was the only new Berkshire Hathaway position and it was too small to even matter for Berkshire Hathaway.

Bruce Berkowitz of Fairholme Captal Management made some key changes.

Berkowitz appears to have trimmed American International Group Inc. (NYSE: AIG) slightly and that is listed as almost 44.2 million shares but there are many warrants listed.  Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (NYSE: BAM) was announced as a new position of 27,500,000 shares worth some $892 million.  Bruce Berkowitz must also be on the move in Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) as he bought more than 35.8 million shares worth some $614 million as of March 31.  Sears Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ: SHLD) was also a gain of about 1.4 million shares to a higher count of more than 16.3 million shares worth some $1.35 billion.

Berkowitz slashed eliminated his entire stake in General Growth Properties (NYSE: GGP).  That had previously been more than 100 million shares worth more than $1.7 billion.  He also eliminated General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE), down from almost 16 million shares previously noted.

Carl Icahn’s changes are not as numerous on the surface and some appear to have been known. 

Dynegy Inc. (NYSE: DYN) was up to more than 14.4 million shares, but that figure may be more now.  Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) appears as a new position with 1.02 million shares worth some $54.5 million shares.  SOuthern Union Co. (NYSE: SUG) was listed as a new position for Icahn as well, but this was only 186,154 shares worth some $5.328 million.

David Einhorn’s Greenlight Capital also made some key Changes.

Greenlight gave a green light to new positions in Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) at about 6 million shares worth over $172 million and 3.275 million shares of CVS Caremark Corporation (NYSE: CVS) worth more than $110 million.  General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) was also a new position of more than 3.5 million shares worth more than $100 million.  

 *********

Again, keep in mind that these are just some of the whale watching trades that took place in the first quarter of this year.  There were too many to focus on individually and we wanted to focus on some of the more apparent trades that were in identifiable names for the investing public.

JON C. OGG

Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE: AMD) Reiterated Buy and $12 price target at Gleacher & Co.
Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (NYSE: BAM) Started as Outperform with $38 target at Credit Suisse.
Genzyme Corporation (NASDAQ: GENZ) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.
Kinross Gold Corporation (NYSE: KGC) Cut to Hold at TD.
NetApp, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) Cut to Hold at Canaccord Genuity; Cut to Neutral at Piper Jaffray; Cut to Hold at Citigroup.
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) Cut to Hold at Citigroup.
Orbitz Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: OWW) Cut to Underweight at Piper Jaffray.
Pan American Silver Corp. (NASDAQ: PAAS) Cut to Hold at TD.
Sara Lee Corporation (NYSE: SLE) Cut to Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Shutterfly, Inc. (NASDAQ: SFLY) Cut to Neutral at Zacks.
Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. (NYSE: SWK) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. (NYSE: HOT) Reiterated Buy and raised target to $74 at Argus.

You can join our free daily email distribution list to hear more about analyst upgrades and downgrades, top day trader and active trader alerts, dividend trends, news on Buffett and other investment gurus, IPOs, secondary offerings, private equity, and more.

JON C. OGG

The company said that two of the six pacts were in Canada and four were in the United States, and the entire clean power equivalent is some 170,000 homes in North America. The size is impressive with 565 megawatts rated capacity over all six pacts:

• 44 units of its 2.3-MW rated wind turbines for Kruger Energy’s Chatham wind farm
• 22 wind turbines for the Gosfield wind farm, owned by Brookfield Renewable Power Fund, which is also part of Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (NYSE: BAM).
• 66 wind turbines for the Competitive Power Ventures for the Keenan II wind farm in Oklahoma;
• 44 wind turbines to Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE: DUK) for its Top of the World project in Wyoming;
• 26 wind turbines to Cannon Power Group’s Windy Flats Extension wind farm in Washington State;
• 44 wind turbines to Pattern Energy for its Hatchet Ridge project in California.

General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) is so large that wind alone won’t drive its stock, but it has recently made an acquisition and has been a very active leader in the wind power sector.  Zoltek Companies Inc. (NASDAQ: ZOLT) makes carbon fibers for wind turbines and other key infrastructure, and it had noted how delays and push-outs in the sector has been a large drag on earnings in recent quarters. And Broadwind Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ: BWEN) manufactures and sells high precision gears for wind turbines. All have recovered substantially off of lows, but none are anywhere close to where they were back when wind was very viable and growing.

Siemens did note in the release that the support from administrations in the U.S. and Canada is having a positive effect in wind power, and specifically noted, “We are confident that the industry will get back on its growth track soon.” Siemens cannot be alone in seeing this, not with a combined tally of that many orders.  Maybe with traditional fossil fuel energy prices well above the floor and with the recession ending this will translate into near-term and future contract award wins for the other wind players as well.

JON C. OGG
OCTOBER 13, 2009

DIP financing is for companies which are seeking protection from creditors with capital to continue to operate their business while they complete their reorganization process.  This further notes that the fund will target mid-market and larger-scale opportunities where a minimum of C$20 million in financing is required.

This new fund will be providing financing for companies under a restructuring and is meant to help the viable viable enterprises emerge from the current recession in a strong competitive position.

In a deal announced last week, Brookfield said that the consortium would invest in equity and debt in undervalued real estate companies or real estate portfolios where value can be created in a variety of ways, including financial and operational restructuring, strategic direction or sponsorship, portfolio repositioning, redevelopment or other active asset management. It also noted that the investments would be targeted at corporate property restructurings with a minimum US$500 million equity commitment, and pursued on a global basis, but with a focus on North America, Europe and Australasia.

Also in last week’s consortium announcement, Brookfield said that other investors each contributed US$300 million to US$1 billion into the consortium, but Brookfield said that it allocated US$1 billion.

Brookfield Asset Management shares are down 0.9% at $20.00 today, and the 52-week trading range is $11.21 to $33.11.  About two years ago Jim Cramer said that Brookfield Asset management could be the next Berkshire Hathaway.  At that time, shares were close to $39.00.

JON C. OGG
AUGUST 19, 2009

• Brookfield Asset Management (BAM) Started as Buy at TD.
• Cephalon (CEPH) Started as Buy at Piper Jaffray.
• Cypress Bioscience (CYPB) Started as Buy at Piper Jaffray.
• FuelCell Energy (FCEL) Started as Overweight at Thomas Weisel.
• Kroger (KR) Raised to Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan.
• Safeway (SWY) Raised to Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan.
• Xenoport (XNPT) Started as Buy at Piper Jaffray.

Jon C. Ogg
December 16, 2008

• Ambac (ABK), M B I A Inc. (MBI), and Security Capital Assurance (SCA) were downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Banc of America (that was real timely).
• Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) raised to Buy from Neutral at UBS.
• Brookfield Asset Management (BAM) raised to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.
• Double Hull Tankers (DHT) raised to Buy from Hold at Citigroup.
• GFI Group (GFIG) raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.
• Philps Electronics (PHG) downgraded to Underweight from Overweight at Lehman.
• Priceline.com (PCLN) raised to Buy from Hold at Citigroup.
• Research in Motion (RIMM) raised to Outperform at Oppenheimer.
• Staples (SPLS) raised to Buy from Neutral at UBS.
• Wrigley (WWY) raised to Overweight from Neutral at JPMorgan.

Jon C. Ogg
January 18, 2008

Here were Cramer’s TOP 9 STOCKS FOR 2007, with a call broken down for each one.  Borat would say HI FIVE on some and NOT SO NICE on others, as would be expected.  Cramer’s 14,582 year-end DJIA target…..Friday’s close was 13,365.87……although we did hit 14,279.96 on OCT11, 2007.  Cramer also gave a batch of price targets on most of theDJIA components:

• Batch 1 (AA, MO, AIG, AXP, BA, T)
• Batch 2 (CAT, C, KO, DD, XOM, GE)
• Batch 3 (MMM, GM, HPQ, HON, HD, INTC, AMD, SHLD)

Cramer’s Stock Picks FOR 5-YEARS OUT:

• Cramer’s First Pick For Five Years Out: First Solar (FSLR, SPWR)
• Cramer’s Second Pick For Five Years Out: MedcoHealth (MHS)
• Cramer’s Third Pick For Five Years Out: Transocean (RIG)

SOME LISTS: His list of recession proof stocks compared to ours.  We are updating our
Defensive Stocks For The First Half Of 2008" currently.  Cramer gave a huge list of companies he expects to benefit from the alternative energy traders (SGR, FWLT, BWA, OMG, FSLR, FTEK, WFR, TTEK, ZOLT, BP, SPWR, CY, CPST, ITRI)… Jim Cramer pondered which US companies China would want to acquire, about 3 months before sovereign funds started buying into US companies.  Cramer’s mortgage winners and losers…… Here were his MAJOR BULL MARKET STOCK PICKS(MHS, CVS, AGN, CELG, GENZ, CEPH, RIG, HAL, EMR, CAT, CMI, UTX, KO,PEP, CL, GS, SKS, VFC, UNP, CSX, BA), some of which are DJIAcomponents.  Cramer produced a "MUST OWN" list of stocks, many of whichare up significantly and some are down (WHR, BDK, ATI, BGC, HON, ASD, JCI, MDR, FWLT, CAT, TEX, DE, QCOM)

Cramer spent lots of time on International stocks that most US investors might not cover on their own.  He made a big call on Mercadolibre (MELI) (also BIDU, GOOG) with some emphasis on buying immediately, right before it made a huge run up.  Cramer’s Hidden Video Game Investment Perfect World (PWRD, ATVI, ERTS, VIA) was one he said could run more than 50% for 2008.  Cramer made 5 TOP CHINESE PICKS (CEO, CHL, SSW, FMCN, BIDU, GMR).  We’ll see in 2008 if any of his Canadian OIL TRUSTS get acquired in 2008 (BTE, CNE, PGH, PVX, PWE, AAV, GDI).  Cramer also went over his top picks from Europe for American investors (TOT, SI, ABB, PHG, BF)

ON TECHNOLOGY:  Cramer’s NEW HORSEMEN OF TECH…. will the list change in 2008???  Did Cramer Say $1,000.00 on Google, Or Is It $600.00? That was in May 2007.  Cramer Gave Monster Price targets to Baidu.com (BIDU, GOOG).. will these targets change in 2008? Cramer was very positive on all the GPS stocks,although we’d expect that Cramer will change his tune in 2008 now thatthe holiday madness is behind us (GRMN, UA, CROX, NVT, TRMB, SIRF).

Would it be fair not to include the Barron’s attack on Cramer from summer for those of you that criticize his every word?

ON WARREN BUFFETT…. Cramer noted that BROOKFIELD ASSET MANAGEMENT in Canada may be the next Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK/A) NYSE: BAM). Cramer reviewed 10 Warren Buffett stocks for analysis and then reviewed 10 More Warren Buffett stocks:

• Stock Tickers: BRK/A, BNI, KO, PG, WMT, USG, AXP, WFC, MCO, JNJ, COP
• Stock Tickers: BRK/A, UNP, USB, MTB, ASD, NSC, WLP, UNH, IR, HRB

Will his buyout of ALCOA (AA) prediction come true in 2008??? Cramer gave a list of stocks that had bought back so much stock that they might be taking themselves private.

Join our free email distribution list for other Cramer calls or for updates we send out regarding IPO’s, spin-offs, restructuring, reorganization, activist investors and more.

Happy New Years from the 247WallSt.com team!

Jon C. Ogg
December 31, 2007

This one got quite a recent following after Jim Cramer labeled it as potentially the ‘next Berkshire Hathaway’ recently at the end of June.  Since then shares have slid with the weak markets.  Shares are actually now in the lower-half of the $27.08 to $43.82 trading range of the last 52-weeks.  Maybe Warren Buffett is jealous.

The company on July 31 already said it would spin-off 60% of its infrastructure unit called Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. It will spin the stake off to holders of its Class A stock.  Brookfield will retain an approximate 40% equity interest in Brookfield Infrastructure and will manage its operations under a long-term management agreement.  Brookfield Infrastructure intends to seek a listing for its units on the New York Stock Exchange.

Brookfield will implement the spin-off by way of a special dividend currently estimated to be approximately US$1.00 per Brookfield Class A Share, or approximately $600 million in aggregate for 60% of the issued and outstanding interests in Brookfield Infrastructure.  Merrill Lynch & Co. and Citigroup are acting as financial advisors in connection with the spin-off.

According to the company: Brookfield Infrastructure will serve as the primary vehicle through which Brookfield will own and operate certain infrastructure assets on a global basis. Brookfield Infrastructure will focus on high quality, long-life assets that generate stable cash flows, require relatively minimal maintenance capital expenditures and, by virtue of barriers to entry and other characteristics, tend to appreciate in value over time. Its initial operations will consist of electricity transmission systems and timberlands, but Brookfield Infrastructure will seek acquisition opportunities in other sectors with similar attributes and where Brookfield’s operations oriented approach can be deployed to add value.

Jon C. Ogg
August 2, 2007

Jon Ogg can be reached at jonogg@247wallst.com; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

Based on information received from members and member organizations,short interest increased to 12,950,726,148 from 12,467,283,409 as ofJune 15, 2007.

CONGLOMERATE (TICKER)        JULY      JUNE      CHANGE
General Electric (GE)                     59.15M   59.90M    -1.26%
3M Co. (MMM)                                  8.57M      9.95M      -13%
United Tech (UTX)                          9.13M      7.87M     +15%   
Textron (TXT)                                    1.26M     1.52M       -16%
Brookfield Asset Mgmt. (BAM)       1.49M     1.00M      +49%   
Philips (PHG)                                    946K      995K         -5%
Siemens (SI)                                     623K      1.02M       -39%

Jon C. Ogg
July 20, 2007

Jon Ogg can be reached at jonogg@247wallst.com; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.