Google hit another new all time high closing the regular trading session at $707 and after hours at $707.57.
Archive for October, 2007
SEC interested in Goldman’s latest results; did they cheat their way to big profits?
On October - 31 - 2007
A couple of weeks ago we noted that a Fortune Magazine article wondered if Goldman Sachs’ recent positive quarterly results were artificially inflated. This morning’s New York Post suggests that SEC may be taking a look at how Goldman came to report such positive results when their peers were getting crushed….
The Securities & Exchange Commission is
looking into whether Goldman Sachs cheated its way to enormous profits – even as
the rest of the financial industry was suffering through a massive downturn.One person who discussed the matter with
the SEC says the investigator seemed curious as to whether the investment
banking side of Goldman’s business could have tipped off the trading side of
that brokerage firm to the extent of the problems that would soon be encountered
by Bear and others.And there also seemed to be a philosophical discussion as to whether that would
constitute insider trading even if there was such a leak. The SEC doesn’t
comment on any investigation it might be undertaking. My sense is that the SEC’s
interest is preliminary.
SEC Eyes Goldman Sach’s Good Fortune – New York Post
Tags: Credit Crunch, Goldman Sachs
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Burned Bear Stearns hedge fund investors are biting back
On October - 30 - 2007
A group of investors who lost millions of dollars in one of the two hedge funds that imploded last summer are taking matters into their own hands:
The investors hope to replace Bear with an
independent administrator that could look for evidence of mismanagement to be
used in legal actions.The investors have called meetings at Bear’s offices in New York and London at
which they hope to unseat the bank.They need to get a majority of investors to turn up or to send in proxies to
vote in favour.“It is hard to see why investors would not support this course of action,”
said one person close to the initiative. But efforts have been hampered by
Bear’s refusal to provide them with a list of investors.Some of the investors, who lost hundreds of millions of dollars when the fund
imploded, have hired law firm Reed Smith to handle the campaign. Reed Smith has
proxies for more than 25 per cent of the investors, according to someone
familiar with the campaign.
Bear hedge fund investors seek control – Financial Times
Tags: Bear Stearns, Credit Crunch, Hedge funds
Unsubstantiated rumors: Chatter is spreading that Goldman may have to take a derivatives based writedown…
On October - 30 - 2007
Och-Ziff agrees to sell 9.9% of itself to a Dubai fund
On October - 30 - 2007
Och-Ziff has a new investor. Dubai International Capital is buying 9.9% of the hedge fund for around $1.25 billion when it goes public.
The deal, by which DIC will take 31.8m
shares in Och-Ziff, came after the hedge fund run by Daniel Och, a former
Goldman Sachs executive, slashed its proposed valuation by about 40 per cent as
the credit squeeze diminished investor appetite for the listing.At Och-Ziff’s implied valuation of $12.5bn, the hedge fund would be trading at
about 13 times expected earnings. Och-Ziff said it expects to price its offering
at between $30 and $33 a share.According to a report on sovereign wealth funds published this month by Standard
Chartered, the global bank, DIC invests between $3bn and $4bn a year in
buy-outs, stakes in public companies and private equity funds.
Och-Ziff to sell 9.9% stake to Dubai fund – Financial Times
Tags: Hedge funds, IPO, Och Ziff
Done deal: Stan O’Neal “retires”
On October - 30 - 2007
Retired. Yah, right. Whatever.
The press release is below. The rumors about leadership seem to have been off. Larry Fink’s name isn’t mentioned. There will be two co-presidents, including Ahmass Fakahany who was rumored earlier today to be out of the firm. Alberto Cribiore, currently on the Merrill board, will serve asinterim
non-executive chairman
This paragraph from the release strikes us as particularly amusing given the what’s transpired over the last few days:
“We would like to thank Stan for the contribution he has made leading a major transformation of Merrill Lynch into a global and diversified company with enormous potential ahead of it,” said Mr.
Cribiore. “His commitment to the company, its clients, shareholders and employees has never wavered and the company will reap tremendous benefits in the future from his work.”
The discussion on CNBC is centering around whether civil war will now break out within Mother Merrill….
Tags: Merrill Lynch, Revolving Door
Pink slip wielding grim reaper visits Bear and Bank of America
On October - 30 - 2007
The grim reaper’s job cut ax has fallen yet again at both Bear Stearns and Bank of America. Bear is cutting 300 jobs:
The cuts will be made in “various business
units at all levels of the organization,” the New York-based firm said in an
e-mailed statement today. It didn’t specify the units affected.Bear Stearns announced two previous rounds of job cuts this year affecting 600 people at mortgage units. The new reduction targets the core of the investment bank, such as bond trading.
We here that some of the option guys at Bear were cut as well.
Bank of America also started letting people go this morning, on its way to ultimately letting around 3000 go companywide. 45-50 were reportedly let go on the mortgage desk, but we hear that the cuts were also being starting in other areas. Up to 700 wholesale mortgage positions are said to be getting the ax, with cuts also coming in corporate and investment banking. In addition, the bank’s base and precious metals desk in both London and New York are said to be winding down:
Tags: Bank of America, Bear Stearns, Credit Crunch, Revolving Door
Stan O’Neal drama: Shakespeare, anyone?; CFO Edwards said to offer to quit; Will Merrill someday rue Stan’s departure?….
On October - 30 - 2007
- David Weider compares the Stan O’Neal drama to Shakespeare
- Merrill CEO Edwards is said to have offered to quit
- The Wall Street Journal discusses O’Neal’s last big deal at Merrill — negotiating the terms of his own exit, which could be worth upwards of $160 million including accumulated equity, retirement benefits and deferred compensation
- Why Merrill could someday "rue O’Neal’s premature departure" – A comment by the FT’s Abigail Hofman
Tags: Merrill Lynch, Revolving Door
- Is a Fed rate cut a sure thing?
- UBS reports worse than expected results and give gloomy guidance
- Countrywide may be in for more writedowns
- NYSE forms partnership to reclaim lost block trading
- JP Morgan goes hunting for deals in Japan
- After Oracle pulls its $17 bid, BEA Systems is still looking for someone to
pay $21
Who’s who on the Robin Hood Foundation board of directors and how did they get there?
On October - 29 - 2007
New York Magazine’s new Money Issue (actually the cover is titled "Dirty Money" for the likes of the David Glass Insider ring and "Lords of Dopetown" stories) focuses on the Robin Hood Foundation and it’s board of 29 directors in one of its pieces ("Do-Good Money"). How do you get on the board? You either have lots and lots and lots of money like the hedge fund managers (Steve Cohen, Glenn Dubin, Danny Och, Paul Tudor Jones, etc.) or banking/ other big money firm moguls (Lloyd Blankfein, Alan Schwartz, Richard Fuld, Jeff Immelt, Ken Langone) be very famous with connections so that you can help raise lot and lots of money (Gwyneth Paltrow, Diane Sawyer, Tom Brokaw).
In addition to the privilege of being among
the anointed, membership does have its costs. The board, which now numbers 29,
underwrites the entire administration of the foundation, so that 100 percent of
donations goes to the charities Robin Hood supports; in 2007, the foundation
will spend $138 million on anti-poverty efforts. The full board meets four times
a year—usually near a program it funds, not in a Wall Street boardroom—and
additional committee meetings mean that every member has at least half a dozen
commitments in total. It has a rotating chair, currently occupied by Bob
Pittman, and exceedingly low turnover. In the nineteen years since Robin Hood
was founded, only four members have stepped down: Lachlan Murdoch, George Soros
sidekick Stanley Druckenmiller, Ted Forstmann, and Jann Wenner. (John F. Kennedy
Jr. was also a member.) Gifts from board members last year totaled $35 million;
the figures cited on the following pages reflect only that money given through
family foundations and may not represent the full amount of each member’s
giving.
Here are descriptions of some of the big money board members:
Tags: Dick Fuld, Hedge funds, Highbridge, Ken Langone, Lloyd Blankfein, Och Ziff, Paul Tudor Jones, Philanthropy, SAC Capital
Take your cash and shove it: Apple no longer accepting credit cards for iPhones and imposes a 2 per person limit
On October - 29 - 2007
Apple made moves to tighten the screws on sales of its iPhones. Now if you want them, you can’t pay cash, and you’re limited to two units per person.
"Customer response to the iPhone has
been off the charts, and limiting iPhone sales to two per customer helps us
ensure that there are enough iPhones for people who are shopping for themselves
or buying a gift," Kerris said. "We’re requiring a credit or debit
card for payment to discourage unauthorized resellers."Apple thinks some people already have
purchased multiple iPhones to resell, including those looking to modify, or
"unlock," the phones so they work on networks other than Apple’s
carrier partner in the United States, AT&T.Apple estimates that buyers of 250,000 of
the iPhones sold so far intended to unlock them, Apple’s chief operating officer
Tim Cook said in a conference call with analysts this week.
Just two iPhones a buyer – AP via Mercury News
Tags: Apple
Uncategorized
Deutsche Bank’s Mike Mayo comments on Stan O’Neal’s imminent departure
On October - 29 - 2007
Mike Mayo, the Deutsche Bank analyst whose tough questions directed at
Merrill CEO Stan O’Neal set off a firestorm during the earnings conference call
put out a note in reaction to his likely departure:
Tags: Deutsche Bank, Merrill Lynch, Revolving Door
Today’s obligatory NY Post Jeffrey Epstein item focuses on the Caribbean….
On October - 29 - 2007
However, this one tame in comparison to the she-male lawsuit headlines that we’ve seen over the past days….
Sources say the former math teacher, who
owns the lush, tropical island of Little St. James, off the coast of St. Thomas,
regularly ferried boatloads of young women there.Sources also say Epstein enjoys a warm
relationship with USVI Gov. John P. deJongh Jr. "Epstein has donated as
much as $1 million to the governor’s election campaign," said our source.
In addition, Epstein, who runs the charitable J. Epstein Virgin Islands
Foundation, employs deJongh’s wife, Cecile, as its director. He also pays for
the education of the governor’s children at the exclusive Antilles School on St.
Thomas."There is concern that the deJonghs will now be associated with a sexual
predator," our insider said.
Epsteins Tropic Isle Of Babes – New York Post Page Six
Tags: Jeffrey Epstein, Lawsuit
Awaiting the big announcement, this morning’s Stan O’Neal headlines
On October - 29 - 2007
- Oil sets new record bounding over $93
-
UBS says earnings (or rather lack thereof) will be in the SFr600-SFr800m ($516m-$688m)
range - Bovespa Holdings rockets up 52% on its first day of trading stunning traders
- Sub-prime mortgage defaults up last month
- Ford family less likely to sell their interests?
- Red Sox sweep the Rockies to win the World Series
Former Merrill CEO Dan Tully says the losses are ’sickening’
On October - 28 - 2007
Former Merill Lynch Chairman Dan Tully, who retired in 1997, is the first former Merrill CEO to kick Stan O’Neal when he’s down. According to Bloomberg:
Tully, who served as chairman for four
years before retiring a decade ago, said in an interview yesterday that he has
spoken with current and former employees of New York-based Merrill who share his
views. He declined to comment on whether O’Neal should be replaced, saying the
board must decide. The Wall Street Journal, citing a person briefed on the
discussions, said on its Web site today that O’Neal has decided to leave the
firm.“With the help of God this too shall pass, and the firm will continue to do
extraordinarily well, but without the excessive risk that apparently was
taken,” Tully, 75, said in a telephone interview from his home in Florida.
“This company is bigger than any one of us, and it is a tremendous franchise.”“I’ve been in touch with many, many of our
fellow employees and ex-employees and they’re sick, everyone is sick about it,
as I am too,” Tully said. “It’s awful. You hate like hell to see the firm, the
headlines in the New York Times and Barron’s today. It’s sickening.”
Tags: Credit Crunch, Merrill Lynch, Revolving Door
The WSJ says that Stan’s decided to leave
On October - 28 - 2007
"According to a person familiar with the matter" Stan O’Neal "has decided" to resign with an announcement later today or tomorrow. Obviously with a little bit of arm twisting from the board.
Dan Tully, former CEO, has offered to lend a hand while they search for a successor:
Mr. Tully said he and other former Merrill
executives would be willing to step in to lead the firm temporarily during a
one- to two-month search for a new CEO "to right the ship and show that
Mother Merrill is alive and well." He said the losses were
"awful," and said he and other Merrill alumni had expressed their
unhappiness "behind the scenes."
Merrill Chief O’Neal Decides To Leave Firm, Source Says – Wall Street Journal
Tags: Credit Crunch, Merrill Lynch, Revolving Door
Sounds like it’s curtains for Stan O’Neal as Merrill board is said to have reached a consensus
On October - 28 - 2007
In what has turned out to be one of the quickest plunges from grace from a Wall Street CEO position, Stan O’Neal is said to be even closer to being out at Merrill Lynch. The New York Times reported that the board has reached a consensus that he can’t remain in his position.
Details remain to be worked out, including who will take over and what the timing of Mr. O’Neal’s departure will be. But brewing unhappiness within the firm and expressions of discontent that have been conveyed to the board from Merrill Lynch employees suggest how serious the situation is and how quickly the board may feel the need to move.
Laurence D. Fink, chairman and chief executive of BlackRock, was described as a leading candidate to replace Mr. O’Neal.
There is no sign than any formal approach has been made, according to people briefed on the negotiations. But people inside the firm and out of it see him as the favored candidate, noting his experience at building a successful asset management business. He has support among what is considered the old guard of what is often called “Mother Merrill.”
Merrill Lynch Reported Ready to Dismiss Head – New York Times
Tags: Credit Crunch, Merrill Lynch, Revolving Door
Stan O’Neal: greed could have been good; Merrill Lynch board of directors meets: Should he stay or should he go?
On October - 26 - 2007
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It could be a long weekend for Merrill Lynch CEO Stan
O’Neal. The Wall Street Journal reported that the Merrill board of
directors met on Friday in an unscheduled meeting to deliberate on his fate which could be decided before the weekend is over.
So why did O’Neal make that call to Wachovia that’s become so controversial?
Could it be a case of greed? (Like that would be a first on Wall Street!)
Sounds like it had to do with what he’d make if the Merrill merged and then
O’Neal left. According to the company’s proxy, he’d be eligible to receive
upwards of $200 million in severance and accelerated stock awards. He’d
get much less if he were to resign on his own or if he were forced out, the
latter sounding more and more likely.
So who’s in the running for O’Neal’s job if he is shown the exit? According to the WSJ:
Those in the running for Mr.
O’Neal’s job include Laurence Fink, chief executive of money manager BlackRock
Inc., and Gregory Fleming, Merrill’s co-president. There could also be some
power-sharing arrangement involving the two men. Bob McCann, head of Merrill’s
huge brokerage arm, is also considered a candidate for a top job, according to
Wall Street executives.
Tags: Credit Crunch, Merrill Lynch, Revolving Door
Stan O’Neal getting the boot: Merrill Lynch stock is mighty perky on the prospect….
On October - 26 - 2007
Charlie Gasparino: Stan O’Neal conceded to friends that he’s probably out at Merrill
On October - 26 - 2007
The New York Times reported this morning that Merrill Lynch CEO Stan O’Neal is in hot water and could be out of his job for approaching Wachovia about a merger without the board of directors’ knowledge or approval. Since CEO’s engage in trial balloon discussions all the time, that sounds pretty odd. But there are plenty of other reasons for O’Neal to lose his job. As Charlie Gasparino mentioned in an early morning CNBC report there are three reasons he could be out — and a preliminary conversation with Wachovia isn’t one of them : "the whole firm hates him" and his slash and burn style; "he took on risk" and "that strategy turned out to be a bad one".
Now, in a more recent report from Gasparino, he’s saying that he’s heard that Stan O’Neal has conceded to privately to friends that he’s probably out at Merrill, and it could happen by Monday…..
Merrill’s Chief Is Said to Consider a Bid to Merge - New York Times
More news on Merrill, with CNBC’s Charlie Gasparino - CNBC
Tags: CNBC, Credit Crunch, Merrill Lynch, Revolving Door
- Countrywide stock price jumps on earnings
- Sao Paolo stock exchange Bovespa holding raised $3.7 billion in their IPO
-
Deutsche Bank CEO sees stability returning to markets and is
"upbeat" for banks in the next year - Motorola’s sucky results prompt Icahn to again call for its split up
- BEA Systems puts a price tag on itself at a price it knew Oracle would refuse
- Baidu, "China’s Google" beats expectations but guidance disappoints
- Vonage settles their patent dispute with Verizon
- Oil hits $92 as supply fears
Microsoft wows the crowd with stellar results
On October - 25 - 2007
Microsoft soared to levels not seen since 2002 after its earnings trounced analyst estimates and it upped guidance for the year. The stock closed the regular trading session at $31.99 and rocketed to $35.57 at the close of the after hours session…..
Poker for the really adventurous
On October - 25 - 2007
Work hard, play hard: Many on Wall Street love a good game of poker. And at least a few Wall Street thrill seekers love pushing the limits with extreme sports. These aussies have combined the two: Extremepoker
Tags: Poker
