Posts for Ticker ‘Leh’

Learning From Lehman’s Fuld: How To Answer Oversight Questions On Compensation (LEH, LEHMQ)

Fuld_imageRichard Fuld, Chairman & CEO of what is left of Lehman Brothers Holdings (LEHMQ) is currently testifying before the House Oversight Committee.  Fuld’s answers and demeanor today may offer some valuable lessons for future CEO’s and executives who have to testify in front of oversight committees when their companies are failing or are in trouble.

We do not really subscribe to the notion that executive compensation is the major issue in troubled institutions nor do we subscribe to the notion that executives should generally be slammed over their compensation packages.  Even if our markets are arguably no longer purely free markets, we are not yet in the world of pay caps. 

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Posted on: October 6, 2008 – 12:57 pm in Brokerage Firms, Compensation, Law, ,

Why Washington Mutual (WM) Does Not Matter

WamuWashington Mutual (WM) failed yesterday and most of its assets where sold to JP Morgan (JPM). The price was $1.8 billion. JPM will have to write down $31 billion in bad loans, but, since Jamie Dimon is now the king of the banking world, he should be able to raise the capital to cover that. In the meantime, he has picked up $307 billion in assets.

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Posted on: September 26, 2008 – 4:16 am in Banking, , ,

Media Digest 9/23/2008 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

NewspaperAccording to Reuters, Wilbur Ross say the bailout package does not address the core of problem which is mortgage payments.

Reuters writes that the National Retail Federation says that this will be the worst holiday season in at least six years.

Reuters reports that the head of Caterpillar (CAT) says that the financial crisis has not hurt the company’s financial arm.

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Posted on: September 23, 2008 – 2:51 am in Press Digest, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Media Digest 9/22/2008 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

NewspaperAccording to Reuters, Goldman Sachs (GS) and Morgan Stanley (MS) will give up their investment banking status and become bank holding companies to have access to the government’s proposed $700 billion bailout fund.

Reuters reports that Nomura reached a deal to buy Lehman’s (LEH) Asia assets.

Reuters says that tax-exempt funds will have access to the Treasury’s new rescue facility.

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Posted on: September 22, 2008 – 3:00 am in Banking, , , , , , , ,

Media Digest 9/18/2008 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

NewspaperAccording to Reuters, Citigroup (C) is considering buying Washington Mutual (WM).

Reuters reports that US markets rallied on word of a potential plan for the government to take over the toxic assets of banks.

Reuters reports that a possible merger of Wachovia (WB) and Morgan Stanley (MS) raises questions because of liabilities on the big bank’s balance sheet.

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Posted on: September 19, 2008 – 2:53 am in Press Digest, , , , , , , , ,

Media Digest 9/18/2008 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

NewspaperAccording to Reuters, Morgan Stanley (MS) is in merger talks with several firms.

Reuters says HSBC (HBC) may be a possible buyer for Morgan Stanley.

Reuters reports that Washington Mutual (WM) is being auctioned off.

Reuters reports that the Fed is not likely to change rates this year.

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Posted on: September 18, 2008 – 2:54 am in Press Digest, , , , , , , , ,

AIG Saved: Two Sets Of Rules Becomes No Rules At All

Aig_2Hank Paulson and Ben Bernanke proved that they were not anarchists, willing to risk the financial system burning itself into a pile of ashes. Zeus-like, the Fed will bail out AIG (AIG) at the same time it failed the shareholders, employees, and some customers at Lehman Brothers (LEH).

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Posted on: September 17, 2008 – 4:38 am in Financial Stocks, , ,

Fed Saves AIG’s (AIG) Bacon, Makes Two Sets Of Rules

AigThe Fed rescued AIG (AIG), loaning the company $85 billion for two years in exchange for a 79.9% interest in the company.

After allowing Lehman (LEH) to fail, the new arrangement with AIG raises questions of who lives and who dies on Wall St.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Posted on: September 17, 2008 – 2:59 am in Economy, ,

Media Digest 9/17/2008 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

NewspaperAccording to Reuters, the federal government bailed out AIG (AIG) The Fed will loan the insurance company $85 billion for two years in exchange for a 79.9% stake.

Reuters says that Barclays (BCS) bought the US unit of Lehman (LEH).

Reuters reports that the Fed held interest rates steady.

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Posted on: September 17, 2008 – 2:55 am in Press Digest, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

AIG’s (AIG) Last Hours, Paulson The Anarchist

Aig_2No one could quite get to the crash victim, and now it seems certain AIG (AIG) will not make it out of the wreck.

After staging a rally during the day, AIG’s shares closed down 21% at $3.75. After hours the stock fell another 49% to $1.95.

AIG’s fate hinged on the chance that the government would put a single dime into a rescue effort. Hank Greenburg, AIG’s former CEO and an 83-year-old gentleman who was pushed out the door, said he might make an offer. It was never more than a rant, a little bit of revenge to point out that he was right. If the company had kept him on, none of this would have happened. Old School irony.

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Posted on: September 16, 2008 – 5:52 pm in Financial Stocks, , , , ,

Lehman Rains On Solar Stocks Too (LEH, ESLR, JASO)

Solar_panel_picThe bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers (NYSE:LEH) and the ongoing counterparty risk scenario isn’t just applicable to financial stocks.  This is going to hit a couple of solar stocks pretty hard today. Evergreen Solar (NASDAQ:ESLR) looks to be taking the bigger hit, but JA Solar (NASDAQ:JASO) will also feel the pain.

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Posted on: September 16, 2008 – 8:25 am in Alternative Energy, Brokerage Firms, , ,

Media Digest 9/16/2008 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

NewspaperAccording to Reuters, the markets will now turn their attention to AIG (AIG) which is struggling to survive.

Reuters report that the Fed will probably hold interest rates steady and signal a cut for later in the year.

Reuters reports that AIG got help from New York state that allowed it to transfer some money from its operating divisions to the parent.

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Posted on: September 16, 2008 – 2:42 am in Press Digest, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

A Relentless Day For Bad News: Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) To Cut 25,000

PcAfter a savage day in which one Wall St. firm closed and another was sold, perhaps there might have been an evening’s respite.

Lehman (LEH) has more than 25,000 employees, 20,000 of which could be out of work. Merrill Lynch (MER) has a staff of more than 60,000. A significant number of them will be pushed aside as the company merges with Bank of America (BAC).

The axe also fell today on many of the poor souls who work at Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) and EDS, which H-P recently bought.

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Posted on: September 15, 2008 – 4:47 pm in PC Companies, , , , , ,

The 52-Week Low Club 9/15/2008 (LEH)(AIG)(ACLS)(ESLR)(GE)

Sad_clownLehman (LEH) is bankrupt. Its stock plunged to $.15 from $67.73.

AIG (AIG) fears that it will be the next to fail. It drops to $3.50 from a 52-week high of $70.13.

Axcelis Technologies’ (ACLS) buyout plan by Sumitomo Heavy Industries is killed. The stock plunges to $1.25 from 52-week high of $6.04.

Evergreen Solar (ESLR) declines as falling oil prices are hurting alternative energy. The stock sells off to $4.47 from a 52-week high of $18.85

GE (GE) falls on concerns about GE Capital. It drops to $23.01 from 52-week high of $42.15

Douglas A. McIntrye

Posted on: September 15, 2008 – 2:55 pm in HI/LOW, , , , ,

AIG (AIG) Down 70%, Ready To Fold

Aig_2AIG (AIG) plans to sell its auto insurance unit, annuity operations, and aircraft leasing division. It sounds a lot like Lehman’s (LEH) plan to spin-off its commercial real estate pool and sell a majority interest in its asset management unit.

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Posted on: September 15, 2008 – 10:30 am in Financial Stocks, , , ,

Major Financials Crushing Their Own Stocks (MER, BAC, LEH, AIG, C, WM, MS, GS)

Covering financial stocks this morning looks a bit like an assassination happening live on television.  Futures are being pulled sharply lower by the financial stocks melting down.  We are going to skip the individual news explanations as much of the trend now really boils down to just where these are opening up and trading at with the reduced financial models on Wall Street.  S&P Futures are down over 44 points on last look.  As you will see below, every major financial stock except one is gapping down:

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Posted on: September 15, 2008 – 8:05 am in Banking, Brokerage Firms, Financial Stocks, , , , , , , ,

Can AIG (AIG) Pay Back $40 Billion? Not Likely

AigAIG (AIG) may lose over $20 billion for the trailing four quarters ending with the current period. It says the unprecedented credit crisis bought on by the failure of Lehman (LEH) requires it to ask outside investors and the Fed for $40 billion.

One plan would involve private equity firms. According to The Wall Street Journal Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and TPG offered to inject capital into AIG if the Fed agreed to provide the insurer with a bridge loan until its restructuring plan was completed.

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Posted on: September 15, 2008 – 5:10 am in Financial Stocks, ,

A Farmer’s And Truck Driver’s Guide To Lehman’s (LEH) Failure

Lehman_logoLehman (LEH) says it will go into Chapter 11. Richard Fuld, the company’s CEO, will almost certainly end up being loathed more than the heads of Drexel, Long-Term Capital Management, or any of the firms that failed in the S&L crisis. His mark as a symbol of Wall St.’s monumental greed and stupidity will live long after he is gone.

Outside New York and the global financial community, Fuld has less name recognition than the giant panda, Yang Yang, in the Atlanta zoo.

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Posted on: September 15, 2008 – 4:04 am in Brokerage Firms,

US Financials Trading in Europe: Huge Sell-Off, LEH Down 84%

Shares of Lehman (LEH) were off 84% in European trading.

Bank of America (BAC) was down 14%.

UBS (UBS) shares fell 7% at the open.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Posted on: September 15, 2008 – 2:48 am in International Markets, , ,

Media Digest 9/15/2008 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

Newspaper

According to Reuters, Lehman (LEH) will seek Chapter 11 protection.

Reuters reports that Bank of America (BAC) will buy Merrill Lynch (MER) for $50 billion.

Reuters reports that AIG (AIG) is facing a liquidity crisis and has asked to borrow $40 billion from the Fed.

Reuters writes that ten large banks have set up a $70 billion borrowiing facility.

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Posted on: September 15, 2008 – 2:27 am in Press Digest, , , , , , , , , , , , ,