Toyota (TM): 100 MPG By 2015, Or Bust
Toyota’s (TM) new management means to use every tool at its disposal to bring down the amount of fuel its cars need to operate as the price of oil continues to rise. Katsuaki Watanabe, who…
All Work
Douglas A. McIntyre
Wal-Mart (WMT) Under Siege For Extravagant Ad Claim
Shoppers can save $700 billion a year shopping in Wal-Mart (WMT), according to the company. It actually can’t come up with facts to support that claim. Wal-Mart would have to know where people who did…
When The Banks Need Their TARP Funds Back
Deutsche Bank says that the commercial real estate market in America will not recover until 2017. Richard Parkus, Deutsche Bank head of Commercial Mortgage-backed Securities and Asset-Backed Securities Synthetics Research, told Reuters that values…
The Un-Detroiting Of America
The latest JD Power new vehicle survey, the Miss America pageant of the auto industry, showed the quality of US cars closing the gap with Japanese models to the point where the difference is…
Media Digest 6/23/2009
Reuters: Toyota’s (TM) new management has a rocky road. Reuters: A poll shows confidence in Obama’s economic plans drops. Reuters: Apple’s (AAPL) Jobs was at work. Reuters: Ford (F) and Nissan will get special…
Rambus Giving Some Up & Raising Cash (RMBS)
Rambus Inc. (NASDAQ: RMBS) is tempering some of its guidance, which may lend at least some additional credence that investors need to keep justifying higher prices on news that is only so-so or only…
A Reverse Stock Split in ETFs, More Likely To Come (MWN, FAS, FAZ)
Direxion issued a press release noting that it was conducting a one-for-two reverse stock split on for its triple-leverage ETF called the Direxion Daily Mid Cap Bear 3X Shares (NYSE: MWN). We have actually…
Lowering Mortgage Market Expectations
There is a study from the Mortgage Bankers Association showing that the outlook for the mortgage market in 2009 is going to be weaker than it previously expected. Not by a bit, either. The…
Medicare Winners Under New Healthcare Plans (MRK, PFE, AET, CI, CVH, HUM, UNH, WLP)
Everyone is trying to figure out who the winners and losers are likely to be under a watered-down healthcare program under the Obama administration and with a Democratic Congress. What is certain is that…
Significant Moving Average Tests For DJIA and S&P 500 (DIA, SPY, SDS)
We won’t go as far as to say that the DJIA and the S&P 500 are directly correlated even after the recent rebalance. However, there is one common notion on today’s weakness that has…
Gold Fields Drops Pursuit of New Capital (GFI)
Gold Fields Ltd. (NYSE: GFI) has just filed to withdraw a securities shelf registration statement. It lists circumstances in the securities markets, although that seems a tad odd when you consider that the market…
Solar Players Looking Again Like Leveraged Oil Trades (FSLR, STP, SPWRA, LDK, ENER, TAN, PBW, CSIQ)
Investing in solar and alternative energy stocks comes with many risks. We have often referred to many of these companies as being essentially nothing more than very leveraged speculative oil investments because when energy…
How Microsoft (MSFT) Makes It Back To $35
Microsoft traded at more than $35 in late 2007. It has not traded anywhere near that level since early 2008. Most analysts blame the poor reception for the company’s latest operating system, Vista, and…
Obama’s Regulatory Changes Are Hopeless
John Tamny of RealClearMarkets In a major speech last week in which he rolled out his vision for financial regulatory reform, President Barack Obama said he has “always been a strong believer in the…
If Apple’s Disclosure Practice Becomes Corporate America’s Norm… (AAPL)
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is holding up rather well when you consider the weekend news that Steve Jobs had a liver transplant. Unless you are Steve Jobs himself, the bad news isn’t that Jobs…
SIRIUS XM Unit Raises More Cash (SIRI)
SIRIUS XM Radio Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) has announced this morning that its XM Satellite Radio Inc. wholly owned indirect subsidiary is offering $350 million in principal amount of Senior Secured Notes. What is interesting…
Brighter Morning for Chip Stocks (INTC, MRVL, ALTR, PWER, TXN)
We are seeing a mixed lot of news in chip-land for semiconductor stocks this morning, but the news we have seen so far looks like it is getting the week off to a more…
Top 10 Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ACN, ASCA, KMX, DNDN, FRO, MEOH, PGR, VRSN, WAT)
These are the top ten analyst upgrades and downgrades we have seen from Wall Street early this Monday morning with more than two hours until the market opens: Accenture (ACN) Raised to Positive at…
Good News For GE (GE): Siemens See Stimulus Revenue
It should be considered significant good news for GE (GE) that Siemens (SI) says its revenue from global stimulus packages would be huge. According to Reuters, the conglomerate claims that it expects new orders…
What If Companies Don’t Hire People Back?
It is normal for businesses to hire people back after a recession. The improvement in employment usually lags GDP recovery, but the trend is part of a normal cycle that comes at the end…