Description:Â With firms like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley reporting weak results for last year, Wall Street is having to confront doubts about itself. Source: NYTimes.com Date: 01/19/2012 Link:Â http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/01/19/the-new-normal-on-wall-st-smaller-and-restrained/?ref=business Questions for discussion: Summarize the key points presented in the report. Do you agree with these assessments? Is this a good or bad scenario, in… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Management Issues
Sir Richard enters the business of banking
Description: Virgin Group’s Sir Richard Branson on his new foray into the banking business with takeover of the ill-fated British bank,Northern Rock. http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2012/01/10/n_branson_virgin_money.cnnmoney/ Questions for discussion:  Do you think this bank will be managed differently because of the connection to Branson and the Virgin brand? Do you think this bank will perform any differently –… Read more »
Can anyone save Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?
Description: It has been more than three years since then Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson fired his famous metaphorical bazooka and the federal government seized control of mortgage agencies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Source: Fortune.com  Date: 01/11/2012 Link: http://money.cnn.com/2012/01/11/news/economy/thebuzz/index.htm?iid=HP_River Questions for discussion: According to the report, what are the reasons for ongoing problems at… Read more »
Investing in a bi-polar world
Description: Blackrock’s Chief Equity Strategist Bob Doll discusses the Europe debt crisis, U.S. corporate earnings and the social unrest. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: 01/06/2012 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/markets/2012/01/05/mkts_ss_blackrock_doll_2012.cnnmoney/ Questions for discussion: Summarize the arguments presented by Bob Doll concerning the global economy. Do you agree that with his assessments? How would you approach investing today?
Here comes the big profit lie
Description:Â Wall Street expects corporate miracles in 2012, and that means trouble. Source: Fortune.com Date: 01/06/2012 Link:Â http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2012/01/06/profit-expectations-unrealistic/?iid=SF_F_LN Questions for discussion: Summarize the arguments presented in this critique of Wall Street. Do you agree with this assessment? Is there anything to be done by regulators?
Investors flee gold and hedge funds
Description: TrimTabs CEO Charles Biderman says money flowed out of gold and hedge funds and into bonds and bank savings accounts in 2011. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: 12/29/2011 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2011/12/28/n_trimtabs_ceo.cnnmoney/ Questions for discussion: Summarize the arguments presented by Charles Biderman concerning investor behavior and the economy. Do you agree with his assessments? How… Read more »
Zynga in same boat as other 2011 tech IPOs
Description: (MarketWatch) — As we expected, Zynga has so far not been a stock you wanted to buy on its first trading day, not if you were hoping to make a quick buck. Source: Marketwatch.com Date: 12/30/2011 Link: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/zynga-in-same-boat-as-other-2011-tech-ipos-2011-12-30?dist=beforebell Questions for discussion: Summarize the highlights that explain the stock price movements in this report. Do… Read more »
10 worst business predictions of 2011
Description: From a muni meltdown to a recovery in bank stocks to a Yahoo turnaround, we were told a bunch of things would happen this year that didn’t even come close. Source: Fortune.com  Date: 12/30/2011 Link: http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2011/news/economy/1112/gallery.worst-predictions-2011.fortune/index.html Questions for discussion: Which prediction seems particularly weak, given 20-20 hindsight today? What does this report suggest… Read more »
BofA’s ‘Three-Ring Circus’ Posts Worst Showing in Dow Average
Description: Bank of America Corp. is on track to be this year’s worst performer in the Dow Jones Industrial Average as concern about mounting mortgage losses and a global economic slowdown weighed on the second-biggest U.S. lender. Source: Businessweek.com Date: 12/30/2011 Link: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-12-30/bofa-s-three-ring-circus-posts-worst-showing-in-dow-average.html Questions for discussion: Summarize the key points presented in the report. Is… Read more »
Google Backing Israel Entrepreneurs Amid Funding Gap
Description: The Google Inc. (GOOG) executive with his bright yellow vest was impossible to miss in the middle of the Israeli startup owners seeking cash in a rusty boathouse at Tel Aviv’s Jaffa port. Source: Bloomberg.com Date: 12/29/2011 Link: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-12-29/google-backs-israeli-startups-as-local-financing-hits-12-year-low-tech.html Questions for discussion: Describe the way in which venture capital investors find Israeli start-ups. What… Read more »
