Lloyd’s of London is to test whether Apple iPads could replace the traditional paper slips containing all the information on bespoke policies sold at the 300-year-old insurance market
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Lloyd’s brokers weigh up iPads
One year ago the official unemployment rate was 9.7%. Today it is 9.6%. One year ago U-6 unemployment was 16.8%. Today U-6 is 16.7% click on chart for sharper image For more details on the jobs report, please see Jobs Decrease by 54,000, Rise by 60,000 Excluding Census; Unemployment Rises Slightly to 9.6%; A Look Beneath the Surface For all the trillions of dollars in stimulus and additional trillions of dollars in bank bailouts and trillions of dollars of expansion of the Fed’s …
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Reflections on the "Recovery"
(From HearaldTribune.com) In the ’60s and ’70s, people talked about urban renewal. Older cities, especially industrial centers, were beginning to show their age and sparkling new suburbs with fancy shopping malls were attracting people and dollars. Planners talked about reinventing the American city. But none of that effort or talk or action can compare with what is happening in New Orleans today. In many ways, it is a new place emerging like a phoenix from the disaster that struck five years ago this week. Few have to be reminded that it was Hurricane Katrina that blew through the city on its way to destruction along the northern Gulf Coast on Aug. 29, 2005. When dawn broke on Aug. 30, water flowed through breaks in the levees and flood walls, covering more than 80 percent of New Orleans. Read more.
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Diversity of talent works magic in a revitalized New Orleans
So they did it all for us, for “the people” – and the backers of Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac who egged them on. Where does “lowering loan standards” turn into outright fraud? Has that simply become part of “the market”? …
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Does Our Economy Really Have to Run on Fraud? « Aletho News
(From StrategyOne.net) September 3, 2010 (New York, NY) — Most American workers are satisfied with their jobs, but nearly two in three have strong doubts about being able to eventually stop working and retire, according to a recent StrategyOne public opinion survey of 1,043 Americans, including 613 who work either full-or part-time. The vast majority of 613 employed Americans who were surveyed describe themselves as satisfied with their jobs (82%) and report they get satisfaction from their work (80%).
This morning the BLS reported a decrease of 64,000 jobs. However, that reflects a decrease of 114,000 temporary census workers. Excluding the census effect, government lost 7,000 jobs. Were the trend to continue, this would be a good thing because Firing Public Union Workers Creates Real Jobs. Unfortunately, politicians and Keynesian clown economists will not see it that way. Indeed there is a $26 billion bill giving money to the states to keep bureaucrats employed. This is unfortunate …
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Jobs Decrease by 54,000, Rise by 60,000 Excluding Census; Unemployment Rises Slightly to 9.6%; A Look Beneath the Surface
A compensatory fee not only compensates Fannie Mae for damages but also emphasizes the importance placed on a particular aspect of the servicer’s performance,” the GSE stated in its servicing guide. Fannie also updated the allowable …
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FANNIE MAE goes after Servicers for Foreclosure Delays |
(NO, not as some scam where I secretly am part of the deal except for the right to continue my tenancy at fair rent)… I’m just not sure how it’s in the bank’s interest to forcibly evict me, my tenants and her 12 year-old daughter (and …
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Fannie to Crack Down on Foreclosure Delays « naked capitalism
HAMP Is The Biggest Bait And Switch Scam In US History! BofA Might Be Just An Evil Puppet. . By John Wright What’s Really Going on? . “The bottom line is Freddie & Fannie are the Godfathers of the HAMP program and the mortgage industry.
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What's really going On?
One might think that a salary of $111,000 negotiating contracts for teachers was more than ample pay, especially when teachers themselves have been forced to make contract concessions. Yet, One would be wrong. Greedy negotiators walked off the job even though 80% of the workers make over $111,000 a year. The Columbus Dispatch reports Teachers union has labor trouble of its own Ohio’s largest teachers union is having labor problems of its own. Labor-relations consultants, who help local …
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Mush for Brains in California; Ohio Union Negotiators Picket Union Teachers in Contract Dispute; Oregon Nickeled to Death by Bus Union
So who is short selling Medifast (NYSE:MED) stock? I’m not, but apparently plenty of other people are . (No, Medifast, I have no idea who it is, nor do I care who it is. That’s your problem. Not mine.) As my readers already know, Medifast is on the hunt for anyone who would dare to say something less than flattering about the company. I’m being sued, along with others, for having a low opinion of Medifast’s Take Shape For Life (TSFL) division . Shame on me for voicing my negative opinion of a multi-level marketing scheme, and Medifast will MAKE ME PAY for daring to oppose them. I am happy to report, however, that I’m not the only one who questions Medifast’s business model. Last week an article was posted at Fool.com about the amount of short selling activity around Medifast . Short selling is a bet that a company’s stock price will fall, and some like short selling overvalued companies. It was reported that Medifast has a current short interest of 18.8%, which is said to be high. More than a 5% short interest is often said to be a warning sign that there is something wrong at a company. The writer of the article looked at Medifast’s current ratio, and deemed it very strong. He found that Medifast’s free cash flow has been trailing earnings, but did not deem this a problem with this company. Finally, the author looked at the company’s PEG ratio and determined that it is within line with the company’s expected growth. What could explain the high instance of shorting Medifast, then? The author says it’s possible investors feel the company is overestimating its growth potential. In general, the author also says that financial “…red flags like accelerating revenue recognition, aggressive acquisitions to hide underlying financial weakness, and changes in reporting methods can only be spotted by carefully analyzing the notes companies bury deep in their filings.” In the case of Medifast, its growth is almost solely because of growth in the multi-level marketing Take Shape for Life division. Could this be the problem hidden in the financials? I believe so. Aggressive growth in MLMs is difficult to sustain because it requires a constant stream of recruiting of new distributors into the system. Medifast has a questionable product with limited appeal. It is a super low calorie plan , made up of mostly powdered foods… just add water! Sure, diet foods are in high demand, but I don’t think Medifast has one that is all that attractive to most consumers. MLMs use the product as the hook to bring in distributors, although in my research, I have found that the products in MLMs are usually of marginal quality and they truly take a back seat to the sale of the opportunity. (i.e. MLMs are selling the recruiting aspect much more than they’re really trying to sell a product to third-party consumers.) The predicted growth of the company is closely tied to the ability of TSFL to continue to recruit new coaches at a continued high rate. I don’t think that’s going to happen.
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Who is short selling Medifast stock?