So much of fixed income investing is about your willingness to walk out the yield plank – how far out, for how much risk? This graphic from Michael Cembalest of JPMorgan makes that point nicely, showing the kinds of risks, both in terms of issuer and duration, you must take right now to get beyond nominal pre-tax income.
Sooner or later, the economy's going to turn a corner. Some think it won't be until 2010 or even 2011, since unemployment seems certain to rise for the foreseeable future and fall only slowly after it finally peaks. Others are more optimistic, pointing to evidence of an imminent turnaround. Merrill Lynch, for instance, declared in a recent research note that "the recession is over."
Whenever it happens, a recovery is likely to be sporadic and uneven. Industries that have held up over the last 18 months, like healthcare, education, pharmaceuticals, energy, telecom, and some high-tech...
Michael Mauer, head of Citi's (C) leveraged syndicate has left the TARP-laden firm to join hedge fund Icahn Associates. Mauer, who was hired in 2001, had previously worked at JP Morgan (JPM) where he ran the syndicated loan business before the JPM-Chase merger. Mauer's departure comes as Icahn's hedge fund is focusing more on distressed debt opportunities.
Icahn associates, which has returned 4.1% in the first quarter of 2009, and 2% since inception in November 2004, disclosed that its...
Two years ago it was said that you if had a direct line to the CIO of CalPERS, one of the nation's largest public pension funds, and specifically to its Alternative Investment Management group, you had it made. None of that Goldman Sachs partners being masters of the universe garbage - this was the real deal.
Say you needed $100 million for fund XYZ - you simply dialed that one number in Sacramento, and if you made it past the secretary, you were golden. Of course, this worked best if your name started with Leon and ended...
Luxury hotels have taken a beating this year in the wake of Wall Street's bailout by the U.S. government. Financial and other firms are canceling meetings and corporate conferences so as not to appear to be spending excessively. Hotel executives are not optimistic for the luxury segment in 2009 either.
Not long ago we heard gossip that and then anecdotal evidence that visitors and gamblers are not coming to Vegas like they used to.
People don't have gambling bucks and money to loose when all aspects of "the wealth effect (remember that one?)" have dried up. And folks from Los Angeles are finding the drive too expensive with $5-a-gallon gasoline.
In the bad old days, there was Prohibition of Alcohol, which was blamed for all manners of Sins and Moral decay. To some degree that was true, as Alcoholism is a very serious problem/illness and does severely impact those closely associated with it. Even to this day Alcoholics Anonymous is probably one of the most consistently growing organizations worldwide.
There is a new "Daemon Rum" on the Horizon though. This Daemon is much more powerful than the old one and has slowly worked it way through society to the point where it is considered a good neighbor and beneficial...
Last weekend I attended some festivities for a friend's birthday that included dinner at the Landmark Buffet at the Ameristar Casino and Hotel (ASCA) in St. Charles, Missouri. Along with spending some time with good friends, I was also especially interested to see how busy the casino was on a Friday night.
If you simply looked at the stock prices of the major casino companies in the United States, you would have predicted the place would be empty. Gaming stocks have...
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