Comments for Value Stock Guide

Comment on $JPM is Just a Symptom of Wider Corporate Governance Issue – Why Do Shareholders Matter Less and Less? by ShaileshKumar

ShaileshKumar — Mon, 14 May 2012 23:04:50 +0000

@John Hunter John, well put. I think it is a travesty that the shareholders are left with too little influence and the institutional investors often do not consider shareholder representation as part of their fiduciary duty. Management needs to get the idea that they report to the shareholders and other stakeholders drilled into them.

Comment on $JPM is Just a Symptom of Wider Corporate Governance Issue – Why Do Shareholders Matter Less and Less? by John Hunter

John Hunter — Mon, 14 May 2012 06:45:48 +0000

I have been outraged for quite some time by actions of corporate leaders taking from the corporation what they don’t deserve. Sadly their are very few investment options to avoid insiders dipping buckets into the treasury and using it for their personal desires. Most of the time this is done within the bounds of the law (sometimes it isn’t). But when you want to invest in stocks sadly it is a matter of only excluding the most abusive executives from consideration (which includes any large financial institution I looked at so I never invested in them in the last 15 years.

They act like cleptocrate dictators – taking from what is owed to others because they can get away with it – not because it is somehow deserved. I have written about this over the years

2005: http://management.curiouscatblog.net/2005/12/04/excessive-executive-pay/
2006: http://management.curiouscatblog.net/2006/06/22/more-on-obscene-ceo-pay/
2008: http://management.curiouscatblog.net/2008/10/22/ceos-plundering-corporate-coffers/
2009: http://management.curiouscatblog.net/2009/04/06/another-year-of-ceos-taking-hugely-excessive-pay/

The issue of shareholders finally getting tired of being ripped off by the executives of their companies reminds me of the statement by Martin Niemoeller “First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out – because I was not a communist… Then they came for me — and there was no one left to speak out for me.”

The executives taking what they don’t deserve isn’t quite as severe as societies not speaking up as liberty is taken away by police states but the process is similar. Most of the people running our companies have no business doing so. They don’t have the moral fiber to do so properly. They have systemically denied reasonable pay to employees, denied reasonable customer service to customers, denied to pay taxes owed (fleecing foolish tax authorities)… It is not wonder when their main focus seems to be how to fleece those they should be providing value to, that they turn on the owners and fleece them as they run out of others to fleece.

Comment on Want to Invest in Commodities? Consider Producers Instead by Self Directed Investing For Retirement Carnival – Socialism is Winning

Self Directed Investing For Retirement Carnival – Socialism is Winning — Tue, 08 May 2012 11:50:35 +0000

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Comment on This Just In… Newspapers are NOT Dying. And Other Tidbits from Berkshire Shareholder Meeting by ShaileshKumar

ShaileshKumar — Mon, 07 May 2012 02:17:52 +0000

@MMarquit Looks like you were spared the worst of the downturn. Wonder how the Vegas market is now. Wasn’t it one of the hardest hit along with FL? @CYCash, thoughts?

Comment on This Just In… Newspapers are NOT Dying. And Other Tidbits from Berkshire Shareholder Meeting by MMarquit

MMarquit — Mon, 07 May 2012 01:52:12 +0000

If I sell right now, I’d probably have to take a $10,000 – $15,000 hit. But, still, it’s not so bad as a lot of other areas. The market where I live didn’t crash hard like many others.

Comment on This Just In… Newspapers are NOT Dying. And Other Tidbits from Berkshire Shareholder Meeting by ShaileshKumar

ShaileshKumar — Mon, 07 May 2012 01:42:51 +0000

@GlenCraig Michigan was hard hit. It seems the market has stabilized in the last 6 months. I hear that investors are out in great numbers now. Hoping it is just a matter or time that the current inventory will be soaked up so the prices will start moving up.

Comment on This Just In… Newspapers are NOT Dying. And Other Tidbits from Berkshire Shareholder Meeting by GlenCraig

GlenCraig — Mon, 07 May 2012 00:49:40 +0000

Real estate is still tough around me. Though to be honest, I couldn’t say how much of that is economy vs homeowners not doing what they need to see.

Comment on This Just In… Newspapers are NOT Dying. And Other Tidbits from Berkshire Shareholder Meeting by AAAMPblog

AAAMPblog — Sun, 06 May 2012 01:38:17 +0000

@arohan Thanks for the update.

Comment on Want to Invest in Commodities? Consider Producers Instead by Happy Hour: Booze Will Save The Post Office & $50K To Happiness • Novel Investor

Fri, 04 May 2012 17:58:36 +0000

[...] the best performers. This article offers up a few things to consider when researching stocks.Want to Invest in Commodities? Consider Producers Instead - Offers some interesting insights on commodity investments from a value investing point of [...]

Comment on Westell Technologies ($WSTL) Stock is Trading Close to Its Cash Value by ShaileshKumar

ShaileshKumar — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 00:11:28 +0000

They could certainly do that. Hopefully their OSP profits can make up for any balance sheet erosion that might happen if this turns out to be the case. It is good to keep an eye on the stock.