Monday, April 30, 2012
Sunday, April 29, 2012
The Limerick of Finance for 04/29/12
Bribes for business in China run wild
Officials took cash and just smiled
That's how deals are done
And permissions are won
Penalties for this conduct aren't mild
Officials took cash and just smiled
That's how deals are done
And permissions are won
Penalties for this conduct aren't mild
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Friday, April 27, 2012
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Updating the Alpha-D for April 2012
Here's my quick update. My covered calls on FXI and GDX expired unexercised. I renewed them. My short puts under GDX hit their strike price and were exercised; I'm now the proud owner of more GDX. I'm trying to keep my gold (GDX) allocation at about 7% of my net worth.
A couple of my California muni bonds are maturing soon and a couple more mature later this summer. I will not replace them with more munis. Like I've said before, things related to hard assets and forex are probably more suitable for me as asset protection tools.
I still have plenty of cash. I am watching the renewed recessions in Spain and the UK with interest, wondering when their troubles will trigger the end of both the eurozone and the global equity bull market.
A couple of my California muni bonds are maturing soon and a couple more mature later this summer. I will not replace them with more munis. Like I've said before, things related to hard assets and forex are probably more suitable for me as asset protection tools.
I still have plenty of cash. I am watching the renewed recessions in Spain and the UK with interest, wondering when their troubles will trigger the end of both the eurozone and the global equity bull market.
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Monday, April 23, 2012
Sunday, April 22, 2012
The Limerick of Finance for 04/22/12
When Wal-Mart went to Mexico
It paid for permission to grow
But a bribe isn't smart
If the check's from Wal-Mart
"Hasta la vista, amigo!"
It paid for permission to grow
But a bribe isn't smart
If the check's from Wal-Mart
"Hasta la vista, amigo!"
Machinist Union Strike Bodes Poorly For Lockheed
The machinist union at Lockheed Martin has voted to strike. The company's offer to line out the defined benefit pension for new hires was a red line the union couldn't cross. That's too bad, because the future of defense companies like Lockheed depends very much on keeping pension liabilities down in the face of declining defense budgets.
This particular strike will very likely cause a work stoppage at the primary assembly facility for the F-35 fighter, Lockheed's bet-the-company cash cow for the next three decades. This troubled program somehow survived a Nunn-McCurdy breach that should have caused dramatic changes to the platform. The plane has already cost at least 50% more than originally planned and now work will be delayed for weeks by this strike.
Multirole fighters were affordable when their structural engineering and avionics were simpler. Reconfiguring multiple systems several times for the same airframe, including for a VSTOL version, has not proven to be the cost-saving procurement method originally promised. No one at DOD seems to care. That's too bad, because the federal government's eventual budget cliff-dive will render it unable to pay for its most coveted legacy weapon systems or backstop the losses of its prime contractors. The striking machinists need a plan B.
Full disclosure: No position in LMT at this time.
This particular strike will very likely cause a work stoppage at the primary assembly facility for the F-35 fighter, Lockheed's bet-the-company cash cow for the next three decades. This troubled program somehow survived a Nunn-McCurdy breach that should have caused dramatic changes to the platform. The plane has already cost at least 50% more than originally planned and now work will be delayed for weeks by this strike.
Multirole fighters were affordable when their structural engineering and avionics were simpler. Reconfiguring multiple systems several times for the same airframe, including for a VSTOL version, has not proven to be the cost-saving procurement method originally promised. No one at DOD seems to care. That's too bad, because the federal government's eventual budget cliff-dive will render it unable to pay for its most coveted legacy weapon systems or backstop the losses of its prime contractors. The striking machinists need a plan B.
Full disclosure: No position in LMT at this time.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Friday, April 20, 2012
Stevia First (STVF) Needs To Make Money First
The Chuck Hughes Microcap Report sent me a teaser for Stevia First (STVF). The name rang a bell, so I checked my archives to see if I'd blogged about this one before. It turns out that I had written about a similarly-named company back in December 2011. I don't repeat myself but sometimes I rhyme. This one's different, but with similar enough prospects.
Stevia First started as something called Legend Mining. The very last thing Legend Mining did before changing its name to Stevia First was lease an office from their CEO's wife, according to their Oct. 11, 2011 8-K. I shouldn't have to tell you that they achieved zero success as a mining company, but their 2011 annual report tells you so anyway. They're not achieving any success selling stevia sweetener either; they've had no revenue since changing their corporate mission, they've depleted their cash, and they've increased their liabilities.
The management team of Stevia First looks kind of familiar. They are the living connections between OncoSec Medical (which I analyzed last month), Inovio Pharmaceuticals, and Stevia First. None of these firms are making any money. I would like to hear this crew explain how they will succeed across the entire spectrum of their endeavors. I won't hold my breath.
Interestingly enough, Chuck Hughes also pumps the similarly-named stock I checked out last December. He can have it, along with all the stevia he can swallow.
Full disclosure: No positions at all in STVF or any other companies mentioned, thankfully.
Stevia First started as something called Legend Mining. The very last thing Legend Mining did before changing its name to Stevia First was lease an office from their CEO's wife, according to their Oct. 11, 2011 8-K. I shouldn't have to tell you that they achieved zero success as a mining company, but their 2011 annual report tells you so anyway. They're not achieving any success selling stevia sweetener either; they've had no revenue since changing their corporate mission, they've depleted their cash, and they've increased their liabilities.
The management team of Stevia First looks kind of familiar. They are the living connections between OncoSec Medical (which I analyzed last month), Inovio Pharmaceuticals, and Stevia First. None of these firms are making any money. I would like to hear this crew explain how they will succeed across the entire spectrum of their endeavors. I won't hold my breath.
Interestingly enough, Chuck Hughes also pumps the similarly-named stock I checked out last December. He can have it, along with all the stevia he can swallow.
Full disclosure: No positions at all in STVF or any other companies mentioned, thankfully.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
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