July 2008
44 posts
Green in the Loop: 1908-2008 architecture walking... →
Tour by Echo Studios around Chicago’s Loop
Bill Miller rant
For years now I have punched up mutual fund tickers at 6pm as the daily numbers are revealed, and have never seen a manager turn in such as an abysmal performance. In the last 18 months Bill has completely trashed his longer-term performance record, and unless you cut him a check prior to 1996, you are probably not too happy with him.
-1440 Wall Street
Sean sent me a link to Bill...
KKR's other comps - The Curious Capitalist →
KKR’s portfolio companies have an aggregate $205b in revs and 850k+ employees.
Sector snapshot →
Where’s the strength?
joelaz:
Jason Collett - Charlyn, Angel of...
WatchHelicopter fishing
via 1440 Wall Street
A time for pruning | Economist.com →
The Economist on the state of hedge funds
Chicago to Mackinac Island Race
This year marks the 100th running of the Race. All 400+ boats will be carrying GPS transponders. This is the longest freshwater race in the world at 333 NM.
Click here for the tracking web site. I will be on a boat named American Flyer in the T10 section.
See you on the Island.
Yahoo! Stockholder Information →
Yahoo just launched a PR campaign against the Icahn proxy fight. Should be fun to watch.
Idoits Fiddle While Rome Burns
From The Big Picture:
There is a choice to be made: Either we regulate the Banks, or leave it to the vagaries of the free markets to punish those who trade with, or place their assets in the wrong institutions. But for God’s sake, do not give us the worst of both worlds — do not allow banks the freedom to make horrific but preventable mistakes (i.e., only lending money to those who...
Born To Be Your Man - Birdmonster
These guys...
“The years thunder by. The dreams of youth grow dim where they lie caked in dust...”
– Sterling Hayden (via Paul Kedrosky)
Bespoke Investment Group: Preferred Stocks Get... →
I’m not sure what constitutes the S&P Preferred index, but I have to imagine it’s heavily weighted in financials. Another angle showing risk being pulled from the market.
Pimco getting cautious on Euro →
This also means that US equity investors may not have the tailwind they’ve had over the past 8 years if they were exposed to Europe. Something to think about when looking at foreign portfolio allocations.
The difference between equity and debt
This quote from Mohamed El-Erian of PIMCO has been cited numerous times lately.
If you are a bond holder, you want to be ahead of a recapitalization. If you are an equity holder, you always want to come in after. When people have been pushing the financial sector, they haven’t made the distinction between what is is good for the bondholder and what is good for the equity holder.
The equity...
Fannie and Freddie
Concise summary from Infectious Greed:
As the Times points out tonight, most people have no idea the capital at risk here. A 10% decline, say, in Freddie/Fannie assets would be roughly the same — $150-billion — as another Iraq war.
By taking on the companies’ liabilities the U.S. government’s total obligations would soar from $9-trillion to $14-trillion, almost certainly...
Housing Legislation: Short help →
Good read from Accrued Interest on the pending housing bill
Yoonew ticket futures exchange →
Hedge your exposure to a Cubs World Series appearance
The End of Theory: The Data Deluge Makes the... →
Interesting thoughts, but I think the article is overly simplifying things. Also, I’m surprised they didn’t feature an application of this method in the financial markets.
WatchThe Pickens Plan
“We are big fans of fear, and in investing it is clearly better to be scared than...”
– Seth Klarman
What Will the 21st Century Look Like? →
Questioning the common belief that equities rise 8% (or whatever)/year. Buffet brought this up in his last annual letter. One might argue this is a futile effort, but I believe it deserves serious thought.
"By the way, is there anyone on board who knows... →
40% of fund managers who are buying structured products don’t have in-house specialists for analysis. Doesn’t surprise me!
The Grey Album →
Sweet
Honor Roll →
Morningstar is leveraging their mutual fund, ETF and stock research group to build an asset management business. One of the reasons I’m long MORN.
WunderMap Interactive Radar & Weather Stations →
For weather geeks only!
TED | Talks | List →
I could probably spend all day watching these. So many great ideas and topics.
Bringing Down Bear Stearns - vanityfair.com →
A great account of the Bear Stearns debacle. The author is of the opinion that it was orchestrated by short-sellers and/or Wall Street competitors. Either way, it was entertaining and enlightening.
