Was Facebook a set up for Morgan Stanley?

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Description:  Did Morgan Stanley’s mutual-fund bet on Facebook Inc.’s initial public offering backfire or was it a set-up that burned investors in those funds? Source: Marketwatch.com Date: Aug 24, 2012 Link:  http://www.marketwatch.com/story/was-facebook-a-set-up-for-morgan-stanley-2012-08-24?link=MW_story_investinginsight Questions for Discussions: What are the arguments presented in the video report? Do you think  it was a set-up?

Weak Sales and a Large Write-Down Give H.P. a Loss

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Description:  The pressure is building for Meg Whitman to make a miracle happen. Source: NYTimes.com Date: Aug 22, 2012 Link:  http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/23/technology/weak-sales-hurt-hp-in-quarter.html Questions for Discussions: Summarize the financial condition at HP and the industry in general. What can management do to affect change in a positive direction? Would you be an investor today?

Worst may not be over for Facebook

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Description: Facebook shares hit a new low Thursday after insiders were given the chance to sell. But the stock still looks overvalued and risky. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: Aug 17, 2012 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/investing/2012/08/17/investing-bz-facebook.cnnmoney/ Questions for Discussions: Summarize commentary in this report about the valuation and forecast for Facebook stock. How would you go… Read more »

Bored traders share merger gossip

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Description: Rumors of the acquisitions of Electronic Arts and Coinstar by private equity firms helped traders beat the dog days of summer. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: Aug 16, 2012 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/markets/2012/08/16/investing-bz-EA-Coinstar.cnnmoney/ Questions for Discussions: What are the factors that contributed to the speculation reported in this video? Do you think these reasons are… Read more »

In the Calm of Summer, Stocks Climb Gingerly

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Description: Stocks approached their highest levels of the year on Friday in the wake of some mildly encouraging economic data, closing out their sixth-straight positive week. Source: NYTimes.com Date: Aug 17, 2012 Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/18/business/daily-stock-market-activity.html?ref=business Questions for Discussions: Summarize the summer activity in stock markets. Do you agree with the explanations provided for this behavior? Where… Read more »

Facebook, Zynga and Groupon unlock pain

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Description:  Investors in once-hot social media stocks such as Facebook, Zynga and Groupon have gotten some painful lessons on the effects of supply and demand, which analysts say may hurt other Web firms contemplating an initial public offering. Source: Marketwatch.com Date: Aug 17, 2012 Link:  http://www.marketwatch.com/story/facebook-zynga-and-groupon-unlock-pain-2012-08-17 Questions for Discussions: What does the report say about… Read more »

Happy Fifth Birthday, Financial Crisis

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Description: WSJ’s Matt Phillips stops by Mean Street to mark five years since the global credit crunch which sent the global economy into a tailspin. (Photo: Reuters) Source: Marketwatch.com – video report Date: Aug 09, 2012 Link: http://live.wsj.com/video/happy-fifth-birthday-financial-crisis/2F60CB68-CE72-4D21-B7AF-099008A6D84C.html Questions for Discussions: Summarize the history of the financial crisis as reported. What do you think was… Read more »

The Market’s Facebook Freakout

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Description: It’s the dog days of summer, and Facebook’s (FB) stock price is locked in the kennel. Investors are obsessing over everything that’s wrong with the social network. Mark Zuckerberg hasn’t figured out how to make money on smartphones. Several million of its nearly 1 billion active accounts are duplicates, according to the company, and… Read more »

Yahoo’s Mayer sends a strange signal

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Description: By saying in a regulatory filing that investors may not get cash back from the Alibaba transaction, Yahoo Inc.’s new chief executive sends the company’s shares lower after hours and stirs up chatter about a major M&A deal. Source: Marketwatch.com Date: Aug 09, 2012 Link: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/yahoos-mayer-sends-a-strange-signal-2012-08-09 Questions for Discussions: Summarize the activity surrounding Yahoo!… Read more »

Biggest dividend-paying stocks are still the best

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Description:  Large-cap growth shares guide investors through rocky market Source: Marketwatch.com Date: Aug 10, 2012 Link:  http://www.marketwatch.com/story/biggest-dividend-paying-stocks-are-still-the-best-2012-08-10?dist=afterbell Questions for Discussions: What does the report say about dividend paying stocks and their size? What are the advantages to investors?