Dissecting Western Sizzlin’ Corporation
You’ve got Berkshire; the king, the original, the Mecca. Investing in Berkshire Hathaway over the last 40 years has been like injecting rocket fuel into your portfolio, generating 20%+ returns since 1965 and, in the process, minting millionaires and loyal followers. However, nowadays Berkshire is getting so large that, by the laws of statistics, its [...]
Primus Investor Presentation Out
Just a quick note for you guys today: Primus (PRS) presented at a Lehman Brothers Investor Conference this morning and they have posted the webcast from the event, along with their supplemental Powerpoint (32 slides), on their Investor Relations Page.
If my last post on the company interested you at all, I’d highly recommend you read [...]
Primus Guaranty: Prime Value
Since all of my readers know how successful my past forays into financial institutions have been, I’d like to introduce you to another today, a company called Primus Guaranty (PRS). Primus’ main line of business is selling credit default swaps (CDS) to institutions needing to hedge their corporate bond portfolios, and their market value [...]
Jaclyn, Inc.: Success
I just wanted to give everyone a quick update on the Jaclyn transaction. My shares were taken from me this morning, and “submitted for cashout” to JLN. According to my broker, they are merely waiting on a cash out date, which should be sometime in the next few weeks.
I bought in at [...]
First Marblehead Update
First Marblehead released their earnings for their FY 08 3Q (their fiscal years run summer to summer) on Thursday. As I expected, the numbers were not pretty, but I actually saw some things I like in there, and their balance sheet remains viable. Read my original take on First Marblehead here.
Here’s the Deal
First, [...]
Jaclyn: Arbitrage for the Little Guys
Arbitrage is as time-old as any market “technique” out there. When we talk about arbitrage spreads, we are speaking of two companies merging, a large tender offer, or other “workout” situations with a defined shareholder payout and a (relatively) defined time period. There are also defined reasons why our investment won’t work out. [...]
The First Marblehead Problem
Today I’ll talk a bit about another big investing mistake (remember I mentioned that I invested in AHM before its bankruptcy) I’ve made, recently, that I still hold today. I figure I’ll get my mistakes out of the way early, that way you all know what an idiot I am and that you should [...]
