Articles by Richard Stoyeck on ArticleSnatch.com

Stock Research Margin debt has always been for the SUICIDAL

Thu, 26 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Millions of people use margin debt on a daily basis. Traditionally what this means is the following. You buy 1000 shares of IBM and let's say you pay a $100 per share. You owe the brokerage firm $100,000. This is the market value of your account if it is the only item in your account. If you are a cash customer, you write a check for $100,000 by settlement date, and you own the 1000 shares of IBM free and clear of any encumbrances. There is another way to go however. You can buy the $100,000 worth of IBM, and decide not to pay the full cost of the investment. Instead, you open a margin account with the brokerage firm, sign the appropriate documents and bingo, you can now buy that IBM by putting just 50% down, and the brokerage firm lends you the balance. They don't do it for free however. They charge you a fee on the borrowed funds. Depending upon how good a customer you are (frequency and size of trades), the interest rate charged will vary. In a sense margin debt is somewhat similar to how you bought your house. **End Summary** Topics: stock margin]]> buy on margin]]> margin accounts]]> stock brokerage margin]]> margin buying]]> buying on margin]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com Value Investing at StocksAtBottom.com/

Does Made in China, now mean what Made in Japan use to mean?

Fri, 20 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Until recently Zheng Xiaou was head of the State Food and Drugs Administration for China. He was arrested in May, and charged with being responsible for the sale of six different medicines manufactured in China. These same six medicines were fakes. The sales took place during Zheng's six years as the head of the department. One of the medicines was a gall bladder medication. It contained inappropriate ingredients. It was consequently established that several people (five) died as a result of using the pills. Unlike many other countries, a figure like Zheng Xiaou would be arrested, given a trial that would take five years, and then perhaps spend some time in prison. In China he was executed a couple of weeks ago, less than 2 months after his arrest. Zheng was convicted of taking over $800,000 in brides from eight different pharmaceutical companies. What's Happening Here? China is finding itself in the same position that Japan was in the 1970's. Back then, Japan was industrializing, and having massive quality control problems. This went on for years. There was a time that "Made in Japan" meant a product that was inexpensive (cheap) with terrible quality. **End Summary** Topics: china]]> made in china]]> china imports]]> china food imports]]> improts from china]]> food from chins]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com Value Investing at StocksAtBottom.com/

Stock Investing - Bank Of America, Morgan Stanley, UBS, and Bear Stearns Swept up in latest INSIDER

Fri, 20 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0400

In the biggest Insider Trader scandal in two decades, members of four prominent firms were implicated in the developing scandal. The firms included Bank of America (BAC.N), Morgan Stanley (MS.N), UBS (UBS.N), and Bear Stearns (BSC.N). To begin with, a little history is in order. Insider trading in this country is illegal; this is not the case in certain other countries. In some countries principally England, such trading is legal. Prior to the inauguration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt as President of the United States in 1933, insider trading was legal in this country also. In order to restore financial confidence in the American economic system after the massive impact of the Depression hit the country in the late 1920s, the newly elected President Roosevelt mandated the creation of the Securities Exchange Commission, part of the Commissions duties were now to reign in, and put an end to insider trading. Who did FDR appoint as the first SEC Commissioner Joseph Kennedy? Old Joe Kennedy was one of the notorious insider traders that took advantage of any and all information that came his way. **End Summary** Topics: ubs]]> bear stearns]]> morgan stanley]]> bank of america]]> insider trading]]> sec]]> hedge funks]]> adobe systems]]> stock]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyecks background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns, Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com Value Investing at StocksAtBottom.com/ez.html

Statin Drugs (Cholesterol Fighters) and New Side Effects Revealed?

Thu, 05 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0400

More than 40 million people in the United States take Statin Drugs every day. The purpose is to lower your LDL (BAD) Cholesterol. Statin drugs along with penicillin, and aspirin, may well be the three greatest drugs ever developed. These cholesterol fighting drugs have been known to lower your bad cholesterol by as much as 25% to 40% depending upon your unique body chemistry, and the actual dosage that you take. Statin drugs are the most profitable drugs manufactured by the major drug firms. The five principal drug companies and their respective statin drugs are: Name of Drug Company: Merck Generic Name: Zocor Brand Name: Simvastatin Name of Drug Company: Merck Generic Name: Mevacor Brand Name: Lovastatin Name of Drug Company: Pfizer Generic Name: Lipitor Brand Name: Atorvastatin Name of Drug Company: AstraZeneca Generic Name: Crestor Brand Name: Rosuvstatin Name of Drug Company: Kos Pharaceuticals Generic Name: Advicor Brand Name: Lovastatin Research has shown that half the people in this country who suffer heart attacks have NORMAL Cholesterol levels at the time of their attack. That's right; half the heart attack victims are NORMAL. **End Summary** Topics: statins]]> statin drugs]]> zocor]]> lipitor]]> crestor]]> advicor]]> lescol]]> merk]]> prizer]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com Value Investing at StocksAtBottom.com/ez.html

Stock Investing New Warren Buffett letter to Shareholders is a MODEL for the rest of us!!!!

Tue, 13 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Every year the master of stock investing, Warren Buffett takes the time to create a letter which usually runs about 20 plus pages in length. In the latest letter, he lays out for anyone to see, exactly why he is the premiere investor in the world today. Warren Buffett is the best at what he does because he understands what he is, and what he is not. In over a half century of investing, he has never bought a technology stock. The Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway believes if he cannot envision what a balance sheet of a company will look like in 10 years, he can't own it. Since you can't figure out a high tech company's balance sheet next year, how are you going to figure it out 10 years into the future? What Buffett had to Say Berkshire now has annual revenues approaching $100 billion, and 217,000 employees. "Size seems to make many organizations slow-thinking, resistant to change and smug." Buffett is questioning whether size is the right way to go. He does say that Berkshire has become the buyer of choice for many companies seeking to sell themselves. **End Summary** Topics: warren buffet]]> berkshire hathaway]]> private equity firm]]> washington post]]> sage of omaha]]> strategic buyer]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck"'s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns, Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com http://www.stocksatbottom.com/ez.html

Stock Investing Subprime Lender New CenturyÃ¢â¬Â Out of Control

Tue, 13 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0400

They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result. It's hard to believe, but subprime lender New Century which is experiencing potential bankruptcy type problems from its subprime lending portfolio decided that the way out of its problems was to make additional subprime loans. In other words, they wanted to loan their way out of the problem. The logic of the madmen making policy at New Century is that if you have a billion dollars in loans, and 1% defaults, than you have a problem with $10 million in loans. If however, you loan out another billion dollars quickly, and maybe, just maybe these new loans are okay, and how could they be, if the same fellows who made the problem loans are the same fellows making the NEW loans? You could theoretically now say that you have a $10 million problem with $2 billion outstanding rather than $1 billion outstanding, therefore your new default rate is Â½ of 1%, instead of 1%. Do you believe how some people think, and they wonder why the year-end bonus seems a little short? New Century's stock was $14. **End Summary** Topics: new century]]> hedge funds]]> greenlight capital]]> citigroup]]> morgan stanley]]> barclays bank]]> countrywide]]> option one]]> fremont]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck"'s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns, Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com http://www.stocksatbottom.com/ez.html

Stock Investing General Motors, Ford asleep at the SWITCH Now DaimlerChrysler hits the pillow to

Tue, 06 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Stock Investing has told us that it has been more than 25 years since Japan's automotive juggernaut served notice on Detroit that we are going to eat your automotive base for lunch. Each successive year since then, our domestic car manufacturers have given away market share to the Japanese. For General Motors, Ford and then Chrysler before the Daimler merger, the only question was how many car sales are we going to lose this year to the Japanese. Each of the Big Three must put together 3 to 5 year budgets in order to project their cash flow needs. Ford for the next three years in their budget process is showing continued market share erosion in each of the next three years. It is likely that both General Motors and DaimlerChrysler are acting out the same scenario. UAW Union Caving to Facts of Life Jerry Sullivan is the head of the largest UAW car worker's union at Ford. He has 36 years with Ford, and the last 10 years as head of UAW Local 600. Sullivan is urging his fellow workers to accept the present Ford buy-out agreement which is on the table for Ford workers to consider. **End Summary** Topics: general motors]]> ford]]> chrysler]]> uaw]]> subprime]]> general motors acceptance corp]]> gmac]]> countrywide financial corp]]> sec]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck"'s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns, Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com http://www.stocksatbottom.com/ez.html

Stock Investing Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, UBS, and Bear Stearns Swept up in latest INSIDER

Sat, 03 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0500

In the biggest Insider Trader scandal in two decades, members of four prominent firms were implicated in the developing scandal. The firms included Bank of America (BAC.N), Morgan Stanley (MS.N), UBS (UBS.N), and Bear Stearns (BSC.N). To begin with, a little history is in order. Insider trading in this country is illegal; this is not the case in certain other countries. In some countries principally England, such trading is legal. Prior to the inauguration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt as President of the United States in 1933, insider trading was legal in this country also. In order to restore financial confidence in the American economic system after the massive impact of the Depression hit the country in the late 1920's, the newly elected President Roosevelt mandated the creation of the Securities Exchange Commission, part of the Commission's duties were now to reign in, and put an end to insider trading. Who did FDR appoint as the first SEC Commissioner Joseph Kennedy? Old Joe Kennedy was one of the notorious insider traders that took advantage of any and all information that came his way. **End Summary** Topics: ubs]]> bear stearns]]> morgan stanley]]> bank of america]]> insider trading]]> sec]]> hedge funks]]> adobe systems]]> stock report]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns, Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com http://www.stocksatbottom.com/ez.html

Stock Investing Chrysler up for sale What is DaimlerChrysler thinking?

Fri, 23 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0500

DaimlerChrysler has basically thrown in the towel by hiring J.P. Morgan Chase to find a way for the luxury German auto maker to divest itself of the Chrysler automobile company here in America. We went back and took a look at our stock research on the original German purchase of Chrysler and wondered how we got from there to here. Chrysler was a stock pick of ours as far back as 1981 when Lee Iacocca brilliantly prevented bankruptcy, and turned the company around. When it comes to stock investing, you have to look behind the fluff, and figure out what's real. Our stock research shows that Chrysler is in the same boat as General Motors and Ford. All three companies in their internal budgets which is how they guide their companies through the next 12 months and beyond, have built into their plans continued degradation of their domestic automobile market share. This very simply means that they plan to continue to lose market share to the Japanese in each of the next three years. **End Summary** Topics: chrysler]]> daimler chrysler]]> stock research]]> stock pick]]> general motors]]> ford]]> toyota]]> honda nissan]]> acura]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns, Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com http://www.stocksatbottom.com/ez.html

Investing Tax Shelters EQUALS big fine for KPMG

Thu, 22 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0500

What happens when a world renowned accounting firm decides to market tax shelters to its elite clientele? The first thing that happens is that the client buys them because of the source. In this case the source is utterly reliable; KPMG is one of the oldest and biggest Public Accounting firms in the world. They number among their clients over 100 of the Fortune 500 companies. This includes General Electric with a $100 million per year in fees. Internationally, KPMG is just as big and powerful, with over 1600 partners. When the firm sneezes, the industry notices. Somebody else was noticing too They came to the conclusion that they could make a fortune by selling tax shelters to their client listing, and they were right. Clients leaped at the opportunity to take 3 to 1 and better write-offs from the schemes that KPMG came up with. The fees generated were mind-boggling, far more profitable than any other aspect to the accounting business. After all, once you put a tax deal together, your costs were fixed. If you could amortize the cost of a deal over more clients, there was that much more to be made for the firm. **End Summary** Topics: investing]]> tax shelters]]> kpmg]]> public accounting]]> fortune 500]]> general electric]]> at risk]]> irs]]> internal revenue service]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns, Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com http://www.stocksatbottom.com/ez.html

Investing Home Prices fall in majority of the biggest markets

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0500

If you have owned a home, or any piece of residential real estate including condos, and vacation homes than you are aware of the run up in prices that occurred for a five year period that ended more than a year ago. In terms of investing, owning a home for half a century has been a wonderful way to build wealth. It is one of the few investing methods where you could actually live in your investment, while it increased in value. Most investors are not aware that from World War II until last year, there was never a single year where home prices fell on a national level, until last year that is. Homeowners have counted on a steady annual increase in the price of the house they were living in to create a wealth effect. For many, it was their only source of forced savings. It was also a participation in the American dream owning your own home, and living in it. Studies are now available which show that at the end of last year, a number of housing markets declined. Actually, 149 different markets experienced the decline. **End Summary** Topics: investing]]> home prices]]> florida]]> vacancy rate]]> real estate]]> real estate market]]> gdp]]> interest rates]]> housing stocks]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com Value Investing at StocksAtBottom.com/ez.html

Stock Research Hedge Fund fraud leads to $160 million Bear Stearns Settlement

Tue, 20 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0500

It was announced recently that a Federal Bankruptcy court judge ordered Bear Stearns, one of America's top tier trading firms to pay $160 million to investors who lost money with a hedge fund that cleared through Bear Stearns. While doing stock research on publicly traded brokerage corporations, we came across the settlement. This spurred us on to thinking, what does this mean for the everyday investor, and what does it mean for stock research in general. Here's the real story. Hedge Fund's Asset Base SKYROCKETS Hedge funds have become a significant force in the investment world. At the beginning of the 1990's, hedge funds controlled less than $40 billion in assets, less than Warren Buffett's personal investment portfolio. Today there are more than 9000 hedge funds controlling in excess of $1.1 trillion dollars of assets. Hedge funds also use leverage, averaging some six times their asset base. This means the industry today controls investments of about $7 trillion dollars. These investments are on both the long and short side. The mutual fund industry can only go long, and never on margin, which means no leverage. Now leverage is a two-edge sword. **End Summary** Topics: hedge fund]]> bear stearns]]> warren buffett]]> prime broker]]> manhattan investment fund]]> michael berger]]> diversification]]> fund of funds]]> stock market trading]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns, Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com http://www.stocksatbottom.com/ez.html

Stock Investing Merck tries new tactic to sell Vaccination Drug FORCE girls to take it

Fri, 09 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Giant Merck, a major growth stock for 50 years has seen that growth slowing down along with Pfizer and the rest of the major drug companies. Merck has latched onto a new strategy to build sales again, but it's not just Merck and Pfizer that are suffering. The major pharmaceutical companies around the world are in a slowdown, and panic is starting to set into the executive suite. Some of these companies are now doing in the tens of billions of dollars per year in sales. The drug industry is the most profitable industry in the world today bar none. The returns on invested capital, and profit margins are extraordinary President Bush, and the then Republican Congress created the prescription drug program for seniors in an attempt to reverse the tide for these companies. The drug manufacturers have been a major contributor to the Republican Party for more than a decade. Both Merck, and Pfizer have begun downsizing their sales forces in response to the slow down. **End Summary** Topics: drug companies]]> big pharma]]> merck]]> pfizer]]> drug report]]> drug information]]> stock report]]> stock information]]> biotech]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com http://www.stocksatbottom.com

Stock Research - Amaranth Hedge Fund Collapse Friendly Banker becomes PREDATOR

Sat, 03 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0500

You might be familiar with Amaranth LLC, the giant hedge fund that collapsed last fall, after blowing up $6 billion of investors' money. It now comes out that the circumstances under which they self-destructed are worth studying. But first A METAPHOR What would happen if you had a pain in your chest, and you had tests taken at your doctor on a Monday who you have known and trusted for 30 years? He tells you that the results will tell you if you are going to live or die, no in between. You now visit the doctor on a Friday to discuss the results. The doctor says to you how would you like to bet on the results. You offer to bet $1 million that you are going to live. The doctor says, "I will take your bet myself." Would you still make the bet? The answer is no, of course you wouldn't because the doctor already knows the result. and you don't. It's like betting against the house in Las Vegas when the house already KNOWS how the results will turn out. **End Summary** Topics: hedge fund]]> jp morgan]]> amaranth]]> amaranth hedge fund]]> goldman sachs]]> clearing broker]]> prime broker]]> stock report]]> stock research]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com http://www.stocksatbottom.com

Stock Research Wall Street makes FORTUNE sweeping YOUR CASH

Wed, 31 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Years ago, I was a limited partner at Bear Stearns and Company in New York City. Once a year, we would have a partner's meeting, and I would attend as a matter of course. Now keep in mind that we were a trading firm, also a brokerage firm. Back then we didn't do nearly the amount of investment banking that is done by some of the majors such as Goldman, Merrill, and Lehman Brothers at the time. What was most interesting however is that we always referred to ourselves as "The Bank". It's a strange term when you consider that we were never licensed as a bank by the appropriate federal agencies. Nevertheless, on Wall Street when people were talking about their own specific firms, they always internally talked about "The Bank". The reason for this term is quite simple and appropriate. Years ago, if you wanted to know how much money a brokerage firm made all you had to do was calculate interest earned versus interest expense, and you basically had the bottom line, give or take a bit on a pretax basis. **End Summary** Topics: bear stears]]> goldman sachs]]> merrill lynch]]> lehman brothers]]> morgan stanley]]> citigroup]]> citi]]> charles schwab]]> general motors]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns, Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com

Stock Investing The REAL DEAL on Options Back Dating and what it means for Stock Investing

Fri, 26 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Just when you thought it was safe to write a check for stock investing, the options backdating scandal hits. Our problem as money managers is that much of the information that has been disseminated about options back dating, and stock investing is just pure WRONG. The purpose of this article is to clear the air, and inform you as some one in need of stock market information just what you need to know about this scandal. Let's begin. CEO's and senior management at any company whether it's Steve Jobs at Apple, or over 100 other companies in question receive their executive compensation in two forms. The first form is an outright salary grant. Let's say $5 million per year. No one is challenging that there have been any games with this part of the compensation package. The second form of payment is stock options of which there are many types. We are going to use the most common form of stock options which is a straight options grant. Let's create an example. **End Summary** Topics: option backdating]]> stock investing]]> apple]]> steve jobs]]> ceo compensatin]]> corporate compensation]]> stock research]]> stock investment]]> bill gates]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com

Stock Research Citigroup Sandy Wyle's decisions haunt current shareholders

Thu, 25 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Our stock research has come up with an interesting concept for you to focus on. Citigroup is in the press these days because its stock price has failed to keep up with that of its competitors including Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and JP Morgan Chase. The chairman of Wells Fargo, Richard Kovacevich is acknowledged to be the finest banking CEO in the business, but doesn't receive the press because no one can pronounce his name. Citigroup is up about 17% under the current CEO while cross-town rival J.P. Morgan Chase has gained more than 40%, and Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS) more than doubled. Reliable Goldman Sachs is up over 150%. Is anybody listening? You bet they are. Chuck Prince, who took over Citigroup after the departure of the fabulously successful Sandy Weill, is now getting excoriated by the financial press because Citigroup's stock price has seriously lagged that of its rivals noted above. When you're down, they kick dirt on you as the saying goes. The press has gone out of its way to jump all over the firing of Todd Thomson who ran Citigroup's wealth management division. **End Summary** Topics: citigroup]]> citi]]> c]]> citibank]]> bank of america]]> wells fargo]]> ubs]]> cnbc]]> jp morgan chase]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com

Stock Research NYSE's Home Depot rocks investors with CEO resignation Can Corporate culture surv

Wed, 17 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Our stock research has come up with an interesting play. As you know, Home Depot through its Board of Directors forced the resignation of General Electric trained CEO, Robert Nardelli, who had only been with Home Depot a couple of years. Somehow, Nardelli managed to get the Board to give him a $200 million severance package, which has Home Depot shareholders up in arms. How did a long-time General Electric guy like Nardelli screw up so bad that he was forced to resign, and not because he didn't deliver the numbers? Our stock research we believe has provided the answer. Many CEO's have what is called the cult of personality. They make the corporation about them. Sumner Redstone of Viacom is like this, as was Harold Geneen of ITT in the 1960's. Certainly Charles Revson, creator of Revlon was this way also. Nobody expected Nardelli to be the imperial CEO that he became very quickly once he was given the reins to Home Depot. There's an expression that people like to use. It's called, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" concept. Nardelli violated this cardinal rule of management. **End Summary** Topics: stock research]]> home depot]]> hd]]> lowe's]]> stock report]]> stock history]]> stock market trading]]> home depot stock]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com http://www.stocksatbottom.com

Stock Research Apple Computer rocks world with NEW PHONE

Sat, 13 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

It is extremely rare in the business world to find a corporation that starts a revolution, and then the very same company leads another revolution. Steve Jobs who runs Apple Computer successfully stood the computer world on its high legs, and then shook its foundation when he created with his associates the very first personal computer. Yes, there were others before him, but they were nothing in comparison to the Apple. The operating system that Apple uses is still acknowledged to be vastly superior to anything that giant Microsoft has ever come out with. Jobs did make one mistake however, and this mistake cost him his only opportunity to become the richest man in the world. Several decades ago, Apple had the opportunity to license the operating system to other personal computer manufacturers. Jobs made the mistake of believing that it was ABOUT THE HARDWARE. In reality, it was about the software. Apple never licensed the software, and Microsoft did, which allowed the inferior Microsoft system to become the industry standard, which it still remains today. **End Summary** Topics: apple computer]]> iphone]]> steve jobs]]> disney]]> pixar]]> blackberry]]> blackberry]]> motorola razor]]> motorola stock]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com. http://www.stocksatbottom.com

Stock Research Home Depot - Great Manager Blows HIMSELF UP

Fri, 12 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Stock Research and Home Depot are in the news again. This is a result of the firing of the CEO, Bob Nardelli, and what a story it is. You have to step back for a moment and think about any company's history that you are doing stock research on. You must have an understanding of the company's history. As a professional investor, when I think of a company's history, I am more concerned about corporate culture than just about anything else. History shows that a great corporate culture will produce great results. The opposite is true as well. I was involved with Home Depot in the beginning. I watched and almost participated in the original private placement for the company over 25 years ago. That's another $100 million I am never going to have. What made this company really go, were the two founders, Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blanc. They created an entrepreneurial store atmosphere where a lot of what went on rested in the hands of the store manager. For more than 20 years, the company had a spectacular run. It was one of the greatest stock market performances in modern history. **End Summary** Topics: stock research]]> home depot]]> hd]]> stock analysis]]> stock report]]> wall street]]> new york stock exchange]]> stock investing]]> stock history]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com http://www.stocksatbottom.com

Troop Surge in Iraq will deepen Quagmire

Sun, 07 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

It looks like President Bush is going to announce a "temporary increase" in the number of American troops serving in Iraq. The President is adding complexity to a series of wrong decisions he has made since the beginning of the invasion. It is difficult to imagine how a surge in American troops can fix a self-created problem? We have made the same mistake that five star General Douglas MacArthur warned about with regard to Asia, "Never get involved in a land war in Asia." Presidents Kennedy and Johnson didn't heed the advice, and the rest is history. Now once again, we have a President who has involved us voluntarily (the US was never attacked directly or indirectly by the evil Saddam Hussein) in a land war in an Arab country where suicide bombers are as common as a cup of coffee. The basis of General MacArthur's advice was that life is cheap in Asia. Our country will tire, and the public will to continue the effort will wane before the opposition will tire of losing lives. The same advice applies to the Middle East as it did to Asia. **End Summary** Topics: iraq]]> troops]]> asia]]> douglas macarthur]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com

President Bush and the GREAT MYTHS of Iraq

Thu, 07 Dec 2006 00:00:00 -0500

What a world we live in. Let's look at Iraq. We know the President said ostensibly that the reason for invading was to find weapons of mass destruction, and prevent Saddam Hussein from using them. His removal from office could create a new democratic Iraq. America invaded and found no weapons of mass destruction not even a hint of them. Now the media is basically reporting that we are involved in a Civil War in Iraq, and we are losing it. Somewhere in between the two ends of the story is the truth and you need to know it, so that you don't have to be inundated with bias from all sides of the media, both liberal and conservative. Let's go through the great myths of Iraq. Myth 1 Invading Iraq has helped us with the War on Terrorism Nonsense, there is no war on terrorism in Iraq. Osama Bin Laden attacked the two World Trade Center buildings in NYC more than five years ago. Hello, has anybody heard recently whether anybody is looking for Bin Laden anymore. If so who, what resources are being devoted to taking down this awful, hateful man? I suggest very little is being done. **End Summary** Topics: Iraq]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com

Stock Research Pfizer blows up its own Pipeline with Torcetrapib withdrawal

Tue, 05 Dec 2006 00:00:00 -0500

Stock research we call it. You want to talk about stock research. Let's talk about how Pfizer the world renowned drug company blew itself up over the weekend. We all know that the classes of drugs, known as the STATINS have meant billions to the bottom line of the major pharmaceutical drug companies. Remember we said billions to the bottom line, not just sales. Nothing is more profitable than a blockbuster drug to the bottom line. It's like printing money at the US Treasury, maybe better. For years Pfizer made billions off of Lipitor, which is a STATIN drug that lowers LDL bad Cholesterol. It works like this. We all eat crap loaded down with the wrong stuff. Let's admit it, we love it. We're overweight as a nation, and we don't like string beans and asparagus. We like pizza, and Big Macs, and don't forget the French fries. By the way, do you know the number one selling vegetable in the world is the potato, because you can make French fries out of them? What's number two you ask? **End Summary** Topics: pfizer]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns , Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com

Stock Research Eastman Kodak and the Power of Disruptive Technologies

Sun, 03 Dec 2006 00:00:00 -0500

It's simply amazing that ten years into the digital revolution, Eastman Kodak is trying to figure out what business they are in. For decades Kodak dominated the chemically based photographic process. You shoot a roll of film, and then you physically took the roll to a developer, and made a second trip to pick up the finished prints. Their only competition in the industry was the Japanese company, Fuji. The upstart would just eat away each year at Kodak's market, but never becoming a real threat to Kodak's dominance. Meanwhile from outside the industry, Polaroid back in the late 1950's invented a camera where the chemical based development of the pictures took place inside the camera. The picture was ready in about 60 seconds. Polaroid developed a wonderful business and made a fortune for both its shareholders and its genius creator, Dr. Edwin Land. What happened next was a business disaster, and Kodak should have learned from Polaroid's mistakes. Dr. Land came up with a moving picture development system. They poured hundreds of millions of dollars into a chemically based system. It would allow users to take moving pictures. **End Summary** Topics: kodak]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck"'s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns, Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com http://www.stocksatbottom.com

Mayor Bloomberg says, Shooting UnacceptableÃ¢â¬Â

Sat, 02 Dec 2006 00:00:00 -0500

Several days ago, an unfortunate shooting took place in New York City. A team of five undercover police officers were sitting in a van outside a strip club doing surveillance. There was an additional officer outside on foot in radio contact with the van. A gentleman of African American descent was celebrating his wedding which was supposed to be the next day with two of his friends. The three individuals left the club, got into their car and came under suspicion of the officer who was on foot and in plain clothes. The officer approached the car, wearing his badge. The driver of the car bolted. The officer thereupon radioed the five officers in the van that I think he has a gun. At that point, the car with the three individuals in it crashes into the van with the five cops, not once but twice. A hale of bullets, some fifty in all follow. One officer fired 31 times by himself. The driver of the vehicle, who was supposed to be married the next day, dies in the shooting, and his two companions were wounded. **End Summary** Topics: mayor bloomberg]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a limited partner at Bear Stearns, Senior VP at Lehman Brothers, Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG . Educated at Pace University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs Rockefeller Capital Partners and StocksAtBottom.com http://www.stocksatbottom.com