Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Bull____

That's what Merrill Lynch provided investors a two weeks ago when it reported quarterly earnings. Last year Merrill Lynch created billions in garbage securities. And couldn't sell. So they created more. And couldn't sell those. But I suppose the employees wanted a bigger bonus pool. So they also bought "insurance" from schlock bond insurers to "guarantee" the bonds. And parked the securities on the firm's own books, no doubt booking a big "profit".

Now they sell the crappy paper for a huge loss and sell more stock. Uh ... how long has John Thain been running that firm ?

I never liked Merrill Lynch stock as an investment. That firm has some great assets and great people, but management has stunk for almost 30 years in my humble opinion. Some good people are underpaid and undersupported, while the "favored" get higher pay and support.

Investment banking is a great business - that is, doing underwriting for bonds and stock of real corporations; and doing merger and advisory business. Brokerage and asset managment is a fine business, too. But trading operations and self-dealing in creating securites that can't be sold, and compounding this by paying employees huge bonuses on paper that firm itself buys is sheer nonsense and reminiscent of the tales of Jim Fisk, Jay Gould and Daniel Drew of the Eire Railroad scandals of the post Civil War era.

Still, the housing market is bottoming now, in my humble opinion. "The Wall Street Journal's quarterly survey of housing data in 28 major metropolitan areas showed that the supply of homes listed for sale declined from a year earlier in 19 of them." The bottom might be bumpy, but I think it's here.

Survivors and long term winners are going to be the big commercial banks: BAC, JPM and C. They will gain market share as competitors die and will be able to raise prices. On a big drop, I will add to those positions as I think my thinking on the trajectory of this industry and economy is being confirmed slowly. I bought some shares in those three firms at the recent spike down, but not all I had wished.

PS: When I was trained in the securities business in investment banking, omission of material facts was a firing offense which could also have legal ramifications. How can past and present leaders of Merrill Lunch not be guilty of this ?

Books

I'm about 15% into a very good book suggested by an erudite reader: "The Tycoons" by Charles Morris. This book has descriptions of the economic and industrial development of the US in the 19th century. The focus is on Andrew Carnegie, Jay Gould, John D. Rockefeller and J. P. Morgan. This book is not the first I've read on the subject, so I can say that the author does a fine job and it's well-researched. I was particularly appreciative of his description of the early phases of the machine tools and mechanical engineering industries. I was taught merely 40+ years ago that Eli Whitney invented "interchangeable parts" as a core modern industrial system. But that was crap - a fairy tale. Whitney had political connections and "said" he would do it, but never accomplished that fact.

Truly, a man named John Hall created the first industrial system to manufacture interchangeable parts for a complex machine, viz. a rifle at first. Corruption and political favoristism impeded him for decades. But in the end he did it. This is one of the gold nuggets of information in this fine book.

Word of the Day

"Opprobrium" - noun [$10]
Opprobrium means 1. something that brings disgrace; 2. public disgrace or ill fame that follows from conduct considered grossly wrong or vicious.
Sentence: Stan O'Neal, the other executive leadership of Merrill for 25+ years and now John Thain must bear and share great opprobrium for running a truly fine securities company into the garbage bin. I do not think the firm can survive independently now.

63 comments:

Bud said...

i'm confused Bman......you are always pounding the 'rich and powerful'


but you are an admirer of jp morgan and andrew carnegie?? didn't they 'steal' at the expense of the common man??

Bunkerman said...

I don't admire all of what they did. Some, yes. This book does a good job in illustrating their ruthlessness and often despicable behavior.

And Teddy Roosevelt stopped their power grabs finally.

This is why limits on the ruling classes are important. This book helps one get facts to see this and shows why much libertarian ideology is nonsense without limits on the powerful.

But some of the corporate and managerial structures and systems created were quite revolutionary and helped the national economy and eventually has helped us all.

I still have 85% of the book to go, btw.

Bunkerman said...

also, seeing the competition of these powerful people and firms shows that competition and economies must be viewed dynamically, which must economic theory does not do well, particularly for world trade.

Bunkerman said...

another facet of the book is that it provids good, historical examples how the rich and powerful use government for increase their wealth and power - a theme that I often bring op in my commentary here.

Bud said...

WASHINGTON — Republican John McCain gained ground in a new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll that found Democrat Barack Obama's highly publicized foreign trip has not broadened confidence in his ability to be commander of the U.S. military.
The poll, taken Friday through Sunday, showed a surge since last month in likely Republican voters and suggested Obama's trip may have helped energize voters who favor McCain.


It also reflected a jump in support for the U.S. troop increase in Iraq and a country evenly divided between withdrawing troops with and without a timetable. McCain pushed for the extra troops, and Obama opposed them. Obama wants a timetable, and McCain doesn't.

Obama was ahead 47%-44% among registered voters, down from a 6-percentage point lead he had last month. McCain led 49%-45% among likely voters, reversing a 5-point Obama lead among that group. In both cases, the margin of error is +/—4 points.

Bunkerman said...

I don't think polls mean much in detail until September. But there is no doubt the election might be close and McCain is competitive.

mfl59 said...

well done Bunkerman...I read that book about a month ago...I thought is was better than "Robber Barons"....

Most people Ive met that work at MER think they are the greatest things since sliced bread...hubris indeed sir...

Bunkerman said...

the problem with extrapolating that Merrill markdown is that we know nothing about the paper.

Is it a super senior class of true first liens ?

Or a cluster f-up CDO^2 of BBB- classes ?

THe details are crucial.

And if its a synthetic CDO made of credti defaults swaps, one can't really take control of the mortgages and hit the new FHA bit.

True senior classes of first lien paper filled CDOs can take control of the CDO and hit that bid & likely get 100 cents on the dollar.

Bunkerman said...

btw, year over year home price drops mean zero.

We want to know the monthly and changes since around February.

mern said...

was thinking. we running a 500 billion deficit. which in my university of dayton mind, is like adding your credit card debt to your annual income, but i digress.

so we have a 13 trillion dollar economy. thats about 4% of GDP.

so if we back that out, is GDP (orgnanically) actually contracting?

beam me up bman, and show me where i am wrong. i need to see the light!

mern said...

y did the surge work?

more troops? nope

we finally started to bride the right people.

no matter how u slice it bush and the repubs r going down for the last 8 years of utter stupidity.

not the donkeys r better, but the elephants r going down, and goind down hard.

Bunkerman said...

well, if I apply your thinking to WW II, and the 1980s, there was a depression in boht periods.

It's just wrong.

A company that borrows money to grow is not losing money. The crux is what one gets for that money. If crap, bk. If good investments or people, then fine.

Spin-em said...

Oct Tet Offensive type attacks should send Big John packing for zona(not that I want that)but I can see it...

mern said...

in the 40's we had an industrial revolution.

this decade has just been what you said, CRAP!

A closely watched housing index shows home prices fell by the steepest rate ever in May, as the housing slump continued to deepen nationwide.

at bottom is surely at hand. i mean can we go below 0?

another house abandoned on coral springs dr. two doors down. so know we back to 1 house, abandoned. the neighbors across the street, and both next door neighbors look to be living with about 10 peeps in each house.

i set up a profile on myfacebook.com

been contacting people i havent spoken to in 20 yrs. check it out, its fun.

mark merolli.

and yes that is jerry next to me in the pic. LOL

Frosty said...

facebook indeed....can't get enough mern...I want 24/7 mern...replace that toy with a web cam.

Bud said...

Tuesday, July 29, 2008 Email to a FriendAdvertisement
The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Tuesday shows that Barack Obama’s Berlin bounce is gone. Obama now attracts 44% of the vote while John McCain earns 42%. When "leaners" are included, it’s Obama 47% and McCain 46%. Compared to a week ago, Obama has gained a single percentage point

Bud said...

i like to watch the polls.....cuz the national media has already inaugarated president obama


of course they also inaugarated presidents dukakis and kerry

mern said...

so what do we get for our 500 billion?

a new energy policy? NOPE

fiscal discipline? ROFL

better education? milk just came out of my nose.

better healthcare? thats not even funny.

what we got were a lot home for people in new orleans that for some reason sit in another state. in fact most relief efforts never made it close to new orleans.

the war in iraq where the bravest, youngest americans know the real battle is in afghanistan. as long as we pay the local lords off, there is no war. i guess that money is well spent.

oh and fed bailouts of huge fins, while frank raines plays golf.

CRAP indeed. 500 billion a yr, to crap.

LETS KEEP AMERICA ROLLING!

forget your debt, and spend spend spend becuase that is the america way. mush's epitah, along with "mission accomplished"

mern said...

when was kerry even given a chance.

the guy cant put a sentence together.

i have lint in my belly button with more character. he was done, before the convention.

mern said...

bud u voted for kerry, right?

and we know u voted for your boy from swathmore.

Bud said...

oil gettin pummelled....USO chart looks alot lower

the tank called it ....thanks jim!!!


oh wait....that may classify as a private email....never mind

Bud said...

"crude is goin to 200 dollars a barrell"


lmaooooooooooooooooo

Bud said...

hey bob.....aunt sally wants to know when you goin on your vacation

she knit you a sweater.......she knows you get a bit chilly at nite

Bud said...

dollar shorts gettin smacked

guys bettin against the US economy are gonna get sodomized this year

mfl59 said...

not private Buddy...just a $6k email...indeed

Bunkerman said...

Kerry was wayyy ahead of W right after the D convention.

Bud said...

Dear Sal,

Summer is a time for simple pleasures: family vacations, baseball games, and dinner out under the stars. At least it is if you aren't running for president!

It sure is nice having a little more time on my hands, and I'd love to spend some of it with you. Would you like to join me for dinner?

During the campaign, I had the chance a few times to grab meals with supporters, but they were always rushed thanks to the frenetic pace of the campaign. This is my first chance to sit down and spend some real one-on-one time with you. If you enter today, we could be having dinner together soon!

Join me for dinner. Make a contribution today.

My staff has been calling this my "retirement dinner" -- not because I'm retiring, of course, but because we're working on retiring the debt we owe to small vendors all over the country. And everyone who acts today will have the chance to join me -- along with a guest -- for a dinner to talk about whatever you'd like.

Let's go to dinner! Contribute now, and you and I could be enjoying a summer dinner together soon!

Join me for dinner. Make a contribution today.

Thank you so much for all your wonderful support.

All the best,

Hillary Rodham Clinton

Bud said...

dinner with hillary??


i would love that!!!! i will have to make a contribution now

mern said...

pay that debt for her!

someone has to.

in 2004 i just remember complete ambivalence about the election.

this time people r fired up.

in crackerville i see 10 obama stickers for every mccain.

and this is big mac country.

mern said...

But Merrill's move is ultimately "constructive" for the stock and potentially the financial sector as a whole, Harrison says, as it (perhaps) finally moves the industry closer to fully cutting its losses. (Oppenheimer's Meredith Whitney made a similar observation, saying “the hardest work” is now behind Merrill.)

Harrison was also encouraged by Singapore's Temasek agreeing to buy $3.4 billion of the new Merrill stock offering, although that too comes with a caveat; Merrill is paying the fund $2.5 billion to offset losses on its prior investments at $48 per share, meaning Temasek is 'only' putting up $900 million of new capital.

There has been no such "price protection" for average Merrill shareholders in the past year. But Harrison's view there's a silver lining in Merrill's latest moves is apparently shared by many, given the early action in the broader market Tuesday, despite this news and the latest record drop for housing prices.

Meanwhile, Merrill shares were down early Tuesday, although not as much as they fell Monday ahead of the news -- leading to suspicions that "somebody" was selling Merrill shares in anticipation of its grim announcement.


toddo and meredith constructive.

i never saw meredith before, shes pretty hot.

bud is a hot trannie mess.

bob is a fierce mess, but in a hot way.

bman is just fierce.

now what really freaks me out is that is a dude, on project runway. probably the best SNL bit of this yr, which suxed, in general.

mern said...

Obama is not expected to name his choice until closer to the Democratic National Convention in late August. On NBC's "Meet the Press" yesterday, the only name he would acknowledge as being on his short list is Clinton's.

sooooooooo bud. if your girl is on the ticket, who do u vote for?

i really dont care who wins, but if they r the ticket i will fall down and laff my ass off for a few days! (no way it happens, but if it does, i mite die of laughter)

Frosty said...

Bunky...dumped those WM puts...taking a free swing with the common.

Bunkerman said...

guess it's pretty obvious that $147 oil was all pension funds and speculators.

that demand decline data was visible six weeks ago.

Spin-em said...

Martha and her new Bania really spreading it on thick...USA,USA

Frosty said...

real buyers being patient with oil coal and natty indeed.

Frosty said...

Bunky is it legal to short fins?

Frosty said...

a bridge to no where...hardly...all roads lead to the grey bar hotel.

Bunkerman said...

Senator Ted Stevens indicted on criminal charges by US Grand Jury - Bloomberg

Hmmmm

Frosty said...

jinx

Bunkerman said...

It has always been legal to borrow real shares and sell the - shorting real shares is legal.

It has always been illegal to sell phantom virtual shares on the market, but finally that law and rules are being enforced.

Until now the shorting of virtual shares was given a few daysor more free ride.

Re oil stocks, good - I want more at lower prices. I just own starter positions now.

Bunkerman said...

earmarks & bribes.

Frosty said...

MLF59 mia...last seen with bob da barber...scissor hands wants to take a crack at stevens, Mav style.

mern said...

BETHLEHEM, Pa. -- Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Chris Clemons has been taken to a hospital after suffering dehydration.


Clemons left the field at Lehigh University in Bethlehem about two hours into practice on Tuesday morning.

About an hour after that, he was taken to a hospital in an ambulance. He was sitting up and alert as he was loaded into the ambulance.

The National Weather Service monitoring station in nearby Allentown is reporting temperatures around 80 degrees under sunny skies.


rofl, PIKER. friday i found out my old hs coach was pushed out not retired like i was told. i guess those 2 a days, running hills, sprints, aerobics, all with full contact games, became a no no lately.

the birds shud train down here.

this is real heat!

mfl59 said...

all Stevens wanted to do was make a few improvements to his home....whats the issue? lmaoooooooooooooooooooo

Spin-em said...

Come to philly bitter Manny perfect fit.......

Bud said...

i love what manny did......called theo's bluff....'go ahead .....trade me'


i'm sick of theo epstein and red sox management bashing manny every year......they guy is the best hitter the sox have ever had

ted williams??? gimme a f'ng break!!! the guy never won jack



go ahead theo you scumbag........trade manny


f'ng backstabbing dirtbag theo epstein

mfl59 said...

yes Ted Williams sure was a crappy hitter....well played sir...

Bud said...

if manny does get traded.....i hope he signs with the yankees in the off season


he'll bat 600 against the red sox

Bud said...

ever since i formed an alliance with the Bman......i haven't been able to say my favorite phrase


finally


spin wins today's contest

mfl59 said...

Bunkerman what is your favorite name in the natural gas space sir? DVN?

maverick said...

less than 1 month .........
COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Spin-em said...

Manny has been a yankee killer from Cleveland to Sox..open up the purse Hank..pay him 30 mil and sit him who cares...LOL

Frosty said...

Short-sellers to suffer further setback. Wall Street watchers believe the SEC will extend its short-selling limits beyond the current 19 companies now covered before Tuesday's expiration. An extension could be for 60 days or more, and could incorporate insurance, housing-industry and more financial stocks - or perhaps even be extended to all stocks. Until Friday, an extension was considered unlikely. Broadening the restrictions to all stocks would require an extensive implementation delay, and could be costly to comply with - especially for smaller firms.

RIP free markets 7-29-08

maverick said...

yes please come and invest in our free market,,,,we will tell when and how to trade..thank you sirs

Bunkerman said...

yes, DVN. It has gulf deepwater oil, too.

Bunkerman said...

killing illegal short selling might save our free markets.

Virtual shorts to be vaporized - hit with a phaser on "kill" - to the phantom zone

mern said...

ted stevens soon to join several in the "moral right", in the can.

tappa tappa tappa.

if he is lucky they put him with the other righties going to jail, aka the rocket.

republicans, especially in dc, just make me wanna puke.

rush is a perfect example. anyone who ever smoked grass goto jail, no get out free card. but wait, i take enuff little bluz to kill an elephant and ive had more relapses than jerry garcia, but since its me, i deserve rehab.

JUST BLOW BOTH PARTYS UP. send em to iran and afghanistan and push the glass button!

Bunkerman said...

added a bit to CCJ, FCX, RIG.

Bud said...

who does frosty think he is??


floyd norris.....paul gigot ??

sheeeesh........keep'em short and simple


PS......i sure hope frosty is back from vacation by august 11th. why?? that's ops expo week !!!


'80% positive wednesday'


pfffffffffffffffffffffffft

Frosty said...

BuddyBullyBull market busting at the seems...is it legal for spiddy to trade over 1260...must be an ops expo reverberation, with a month end kicker.

Bunkerman said...

hmmm if the SEC does the right thing, I have a fun word of the day for tomorrow.

Bud said...

big day for BAC


"great trade Bunkerman"

Mikey said...

thank you frosty, bunky and spinny for that $4 bank stock from friday...dont want to mush it...but you know which one it is