Easter Kills Wal-Mart (WMT), Stock Dives
Wal-Mart’s (WMT) same-store sales were light, by a lot. For the four weeks of March, revenue was actually down 2% to $36.2 billion. International sales killed results by dropping 15% to $8.1 billion.
All Work
Douglas A. McIntyre
Early Bird Analyst Calls (BBBY, BBT, FHN, LCAPA, OIIM, RF, STI, UHS)
These are some of the early bird analyst upgrades and downgrades we have seen on Wall Street this Thursday morning ahead of the long weekend: Bed Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ: BBBY) Cut to Neutral…
TARP Revisit: Were Life Insurers On the Brink? (MET, PRU, HIG, LNC, GNW, AIG)
There is one question that keeps making the rounds after the news of yesterday’s TARP bailout money inclusion being offered to life insurers. Are these really close to falling into the abyss, all over…
No Auto Industry Recession In China (GM)(TM)(HMC)
If only US car companies could do all of their business in China. The economy there must be better than has been reported. In March, a record 1.1 million light vehicles left showrooms. That…
Acer Heats Up PC Wars
Acer has decided that the way to get share from competitors and increase sales in a recession is to go down market and sell PCs at prices that will draw in even financially taxed consumers.…
Morgan Stanley (MS): Why Investors Don’t Understand Financial Stocks
The Wall Street Journal reports that Morgan Stanley (MS) lost money in the first quarter. The reason appears to be a perverse accounting rule, not unlike those that have plagued bank financial reporting for several quarters. According…
Nintendo Strikes Back
Nintendo executives are almost certainly upset that the Sony (SNE) PlayStation outsold the company’s Wii gaming system in Japan last month. The Wii has held a large margin in unit sales for several quarters.…
Having A Wake At The Car Show
The press is upset that the car companies will not put on their usual splendid displays at the New York International Auto Show. There will not be a big collection of V8 thunder cruisers,…
The Lost Decade May Only Last Three Months
Depending on the source, Japan’s mythic “Lost Decade” lasted from 1989 to 2003, or sometime later if the exact bottom of the real estate market in the Asian nation is taken into account. Because…
Media Digest 4/9/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg
According to Reuters, the government’s auto task force will meet with GM (GM) to push ahead its restructuring. Reuters writes that US banks may still need aid. Reuters writes that Morgan Stanley’s (MS) Q1…
Asia Markets And Europe Open 4/9/2009
Markets in Asia were higher. The Nikkei rose 3.7% to 8,916. The Hang Seng was up 2.6% to 14,847. The Shanghai Composite rose 1.4% t0 2,380. At the open in Europe, the FTSE was…
Buffett & Berkshire: Downgraded By Their Own Kin (BRK-A, MCO)
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A) and its subsidiaries had already been on credit watch elsewhere, but there is a very interesting credit ratings downgrade that just took place. Moody’s has stripped Warren Buffett’s Berkshire…
Nortel Unit Interest: Adding Insult To Injury (NTRLQ, NOK, SI)
Nortel Networks Corp. (OTC: NRTLQ) may be adding some insult to serious injury. Shares surged today, by a huge percentage basis on merely a few cents move, after the WSJ reported yesterday that a…
AsiaInfo Keeps CITIC & PacificInfo Shares Off Market (ASIA)
AsiaInfo Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASIA) filed to withdraw a filing that would have allowed two large insider holders to sell shares. It is a bit complicated, but the long and short of it is…
Bank Of America (BAC) Fights Oppenheimer Over Need For Money
Bank of America (BAC) CEO Ken Lewis has based what is left of his reputation on the fact that the firm does not need another dime in government money. As a matter of fact,…
FOMC Minutes, Mostly Spin Material
The minutes of the FOMC’ March 17 to March 18 meeting are out, and the long and short of the matter is that the FOMC’s decision to add massive liquidity was based upon a…
Does Micron Really Need Cash? (MU)
Micron Technology, Inc. (NYSE: MU) is trading lower ahead of a proposed secondary offering to raise cash. Last night, the company announced that it intends to offer common stock and convertible senior notes for…
Exxon/Russia: Approving Sakhalin Budget (XOM)
Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) has reportedly received approval from the Russian government for its proposed budget for the Sakhalin-I project. Exxon owns 30% of the joint venture that is developing the oil and gas…
MLB Network Hits a Home Run
How baseball learned from football’s mistake and pulled off the biggest cable launch ever. By Paul Smalera for The Big Money For the past couple of weeks, Comcast (CMCSA) cable customers have been receiving…
A Silver Lining in Lower Wholesale Inventories
February’s Wholesale Inventory data from the U.S. Commerce Department shows a continued trend of wholesale product inventories being pruned yet again. The reading came in at -1.5% for February, compared to estimates of only…