S&P Warns of More Financial Pitfalls Ahead

Ockham Research Staff @ December 19, 2008 # One Comment


A sweeping downgrade of financials by credit rating agency S&P was one of the major stories of the day. Or on second thought, what does this tell us that we did not already know, and so far the market has not even noticed.

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Salaries and Traditional Bonuses Are On the Retreat

Ockham Research Staff @ December 18, 2008 # 2 Comments


As many companies are cutting staff expenses across the board, Credit Suisse has come up with a clever method of accomplishing two goals at once. For starters, the company will give their employees a bonus the amount of which will not be known for quite some time, and the company is reducing its exposure to risky debt. Interesting idea, I wonder how the CS employees feel about it.

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Goldman’s Results Foretell Trouble for Morgan Stanley

Ockham Research Staff @ December 16, 2008 # No Comment Yet


Goldman reported a wider than expected loss for their recent quarter, but the marketplace has brushed that aside and bid up the price more than 11 percent. We are concerned that Morgan Stanley might not get the same treatment if they are to slip up tomorrow.

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Study: The Analysts Aren’t Wearing Any Clothes

Ockham Research Staff @ December 15, 2008 # One Comment


A recent study suggests what we have been trying to explain for quite a while now, that in addition to lacking credibility, Wall Street Research ratings appear to not perform very well either. We think this fascinating study is worth a read for both individual and institutional investors.

More on this topic (What's this?) Read more on Investment Banks at Wikinvest

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What a Difference a Year Makes!

Ockham Research Staff @ December 9, 2008 # One Comment


A bit of perspective from our email inbox.

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DeVry Thrives as Unemployment Spreads

Ockham Research Staff @ November 21, 2008 # 4 Comments


DeVry is an interesting stock in this recessionary environment. The company is showing strong growth from an influx of unemployed people looking to improve their skills in order to reenter the workforce. However, we would hold off on buying right now until the stock drops into the mid 40’s. There are many more undervalued stocks in this market.

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Analysts and Research Still Evolving

Ockham Research Staff @ November 14, 2008 # No Comment Yet


The Wall Street research analysts are still declining, both in number and in coverage, and there is no reason to believe that they will be saved. The term “bailout” isn’t used when referring to these analysts, and it appears to us that this is due to the changing requirements for research. Goldman Sachs just let 13 more analysts go, and from what we can see, it appears this trend will continue until anaysts can reconcile the “why” with the “when”.

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American Express: Worth the Risk?

Ockham Research Staff @ November 13, 2008 # No Comment Yet


American Express is the latest company to have become a bank holding company in order to receive special “bail out” money from the Fed. While this does make the odds of failure much less, does this make the company a suitable investment?

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Our Favorite Leading Indicator: Warren Buffett

Ockham Research Staff @ October 17, 2008 # 3 Comments


We are posting an Op-Ed from today’s NYT from Warren Buffett. He, like us, believes that conventional wisdom is an oxymoron.

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Buffett: The Pied Piper of Financials

Ockham Research Staff @ September 24, 2008 # 2 Comments


Warren Buffett has thrown his chips in and he is betting on the Goldman Sachs to reemerge as a leader in the financial sector. With assistance from the government’s rescue plan, Buffett hopes that Goldman’s proven management can once again restore the confidence that is so lacking in financials right now.

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