This is AGNC over the past five years.
Pretty stable?
I read AGNC’s 2011 annual report. I prefer reading their stuff more than NLY’s, because AGNC is more down to earth. AGNC had several neat charts:
AGNC is currently yielding 18.14% — an amazingly high return, which reflects the strong (though declining diividend payout) and the fact there’s little growth in the traditional listed corporate security sense. 90% of its earnings must be paid out in a dividend — and of course, the mortgage REITs (like AGNC) atract a lot of bad ink on all the financial blogs. Before you do anything read AGNC’s 2011 annual report — or at least the introductory pages.ONe sentence that blew me away: “During 2011, the 10-year U.S. Treasury rate fell from 3.30% to 1.88%.”
For the full annual report, click here. When I buy stock in a company, I buy the management. This one has done a perfectly fine job of managing their company in very volatile times. I’m buying some more AGNC on the next small pullback.
I don’t like what’s happening with Google shares. Larry and Sergey have sold many of their shares. But they still want to retain control. Hence they now have separate classes of shares. One for control for them. One one for the rest of us. I like their search business. But they are violating their own motto about doing no evil. I suspect with the split the shares will go up. Item: my local pizza guy things Google and Apple are “too expensive.” He prefers to lose money on cheaper shares, like ERF and TBT. I don’t make this up.
New trends in food. Can you fail in food?Here are some new popiular trends I see in New York. This is the first of what will be a chain.
This is what you get for $4.35. Two bits of bread. One large meatball. Lots of tomato sauce. It was delicious.
Just off Park Avenue in the fifties lives:
Surrounding BlackRock is a battalion of food trucks, some of which include:
Morris sells the best grilled cheese sandwiches in New York City.
More computer tricks:
+ Get two identical decent networked printers. when one is jammed, switch to the other. Gets your work and your fingers clean.
+ Uninstall (i.e. remove) software you’re not using, and don’t install software you may never use. Install new software on an old test machine. 90% of the time, you won’t like the new software.
+ Don’t let your machine upgrade software. It will become bloatware and slow. It does make sense to upgrade your operating system and your anti-virus software.
+ don’t open any attachments — even from your friends — without checking with them first.
The cheapest way to communicate to and from overseas.
+ Carry a laptop, an iPhone, or an iPad. Load it with Skype. Hook up on WiFi. Call using Skype to Skype. It’s totally free.
+ Carry an unlocked GSM phone and buy a local SIM card.
+ Unlock your Verizon world phone or AT&T iPhone and insert a local GSM SIM card. Both AT&T and Verizon will unlock their phones if you ask them and you have used the phone long enough.
+ Your Verizon or AT&T phone will work overseas. You have to arrange the calling before you leave. It’s not cheap. But you will be reachable in emergencies. No one said you had to gossip from overseas as you do here.
+ Use email over WiFi.
+ Use your phone’s SMS messaging. But this can add up also. Or use this web site: TxtDrop.com, which is free.
The latest Borowitz Report:
April 12, 2012
Charles Manson Denied Parole, Effectively Ending His Bid for Republican Presidential Nomination
Clears Path for Romney
KINGS COUNTY, CA (The Borowitz Report) – Serial killer Charles Manson was denied parole yesterday, effectively ending his bid for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination.
With Mr. Manson no longer a contender, the path appears to be clear for former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney to become the party’s nominee.
Perhaps in recognition of this development, Mr. Romney unveiled a new campaign slogan today: “Sorry, But You Have No Other Choices Now.”
As for the rest of the GOP field, former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum suspended his campaign this week, saying that he wanted “to spend more time with the voices in my head.”
And former House Speaker Newt Gingrich wrote a $500 check on an account that had no money in it, in the first sign that he might be qualified to be President.
Elsewhere, a Fox News spokesman blasted a mole who had previously worked for the network: “At Fox News we have zero tolerance for someone who tells the truth.”
My favorite New Yorker cover. Tells everything you wanted to know about the “joys” of travel.
Harry Newton who wonders if Claritin is not the magic (short-term) “cure” for hayfever and its horrid symptoms. The thing I have transforms itself each day — from coughing to sneezing to aches and pains. I pray the Claritin will finally kick in today. The culprit — New York City n the springtime. Taken yesterday.
Meantime, I watch a few moments of CNBC’s interview with Senator Bob Corker and I wonder which planet these people came from. They give new meaning to the old definition of Washington, D.C. as being eight square miles surrounded by reality.
But the best news remains my children. Here are son Michael and daughter-in-law Anne in their new Portland, Oregon kitchen. They both are exhausted — him from handmowing the four square inches of lawn they have and her from sweeping up Winnie’ shedding hair. Winnie is a 85 lb yellow lab.
I was a friend of one of Manson’s victims and am truly horrifled to find this garbage on a financial website. You dropped the ball on this one, newton. Send ur sick jokes to a site that does that. I come here for bad financial advice.
Harry, for much faster relief use Flonase or something to that effect. It works within hours. I don't like the smell too much, but the relief is worth it.
As for the lawn…he's a smart man. I have a third of an acre to mow and I can't stand it. I paid someone once to do it. $60. The 4 inch version would have been much more cost effective.
Hi Harry,
You haven't talked a whole lot about Whole Foodss in quite a while (and the stock keeps going up)… Are you still there?
I dropped the ball on Whole Foods. I'm picking up the ball.now.
Harry, we love you, but be a mensch, it's the left, not Romney supporters who are pro-Palestinian and increasingly antisemitic.
Harry – Michael n Anne, My freinds would chase their yellow lab around the house and vacuum all the hair….it was a major chore all over the floors, furniture and themselves. Now, they just vacuum the dog – problem managed.
Which one of the following 3 makes absolutely no sense to you: (1) Charles Manson = Nazi = Fascism = conservative Republican…or (2) Ayn Rand = Objectivism = laissez-faire capitalism = limited government = conservative Republican…and finely we have (3) Harry Newton = liberal Democrat = fool…
What camera are you using for the photo from NYC?
Apple iPhone 4 — the older one.
Harry
The Manson thing is funny. Come on my fellow Republicans, grow a thicker skin. I have a serious question for you. I need to park about $20,000 or so of one of my sons money somewhere while is deployed overseas until late 2013. He is 20 and I am afraid the money is going to burn a hole in his pocket. I don't want to take chances with it but a CD stinks. Any suggestions?
Philip
A handful of the low-cost Vanguard stock funds.
Actually, NOT Vanguard… your son is eligible to become a member of USAA. If he has not done it yet, it only takes moment. The USAA service is without peer and they have a wide variety of things from insurance and banking to special ways they help military families move. Like Vanguard, the funds are all noload. You can choose any type of investment vehicle you like within USAA including individual equity accounts, but he should become a member and stay a member for life. It's well worth it.
I agree 100% with Frank Derfler. USAA is great for members of our military. Join up instantly.
Thanks Frank and Harry. We have discussed USAA before. I am going to see him tomorrow and I want to get the ball rolling.
Harry, use a neti pot. It does help. And do you have jokes that don't attack conservatives?
Hey…give Harry a break…what can you expect of a guy that has lived in NYC for over 30 years? Besides…I think he is learning to be a capitalist, very, very slowly.
Lucky, a bit more polite would be be in order. By the way, I've made a living being a “capitalist” since I was 11.
So, send me some jokes that attack liberals. Do the math. I write five columns a week. Some days I'll have several cartoons and several jokes. Figure at least 20 “jokes” a week. I don't write all the jokes. I don't have the time. This column is meant to focus on investments and I spend a lot of time researching them. I invite you and everyone else to send me some jokes. I don't care whom they “attack.” All I care is they're funny. OK? Start sending.
Harry — the humor sensor in most Conservatives is jammed and clogged by the crap spewing from the mainstream media. The obvious bias of the NYT, WaPo, LATimes, MSNBC, NBC, etc is frustrating and demoralizing. In your blog you have an open forum and many of us identify with you. When you borrow humor that attacks our base, we use the open channel to fire back as if against all attacks combined.
In his “Rules for Radicals” (the playbook of the Obama Administration) Saul Alinsky says: 5. “Ridicule is man's most potent weapon. It is almost impossible to counteract ridicule. Also it infuriates the opposition, which then reacts to your advantage.”
Harry, Alinsky is correct on all counts. We Conservatives are vulnerable and sensitive to this tactic. You are getting the cumulative sum of all media frustration kicking back at you. I'm sorry and I apologize for all of us now and in the future, but it will be that way for a looooong time.
Anyone who doesn't watch or read at least 4 media sources and “average out” the information is begging to be misled in some way. The media are incapable of reporting a factual story accurately, so it's impossible to expect accuracy when the reporting is based on opinion.
American politics has become nothing more that one party automatically and mindlessly contradicting the other. Public (read: Media) image is everything. How can you expect to have dynamic and effective leadership when the simplest verbal slip loses you your job?Democrats and conservatives will continue to look like idiots until they at least attempt bi-partisanship on the issues critical to the country (and world)
What a country needs every once in a while is a benevolent dictator.
Stephen, I agree with every word you say. I will point out, however, that the definition of “benevolent” is likely to lead to insurrection.
But, sir, when was it NOT this way? Read some history and you'll see that the election of 1800 was probably the meanest and most polarized the country was to experience until they did it again in 1860. I suppose that one could claim there was some politeness for a period after WWII, but that was the abnormal time. “Normal” is pretty nasty!
You're probably right. However the media contribution was probably limited to a few broadsheet papers and they only spoke to the literate.
Although I'm not sure the literacy rate has improved, we now have TV to keep the propaganda coming…
I've got 4 liberal jokes for you Harry, sick jokes but jokes none the less:
1. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo
2. California Governor Jerry Brown
3. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel
4. President Barack Obama
Harry I find your humor regarding Charles Manson to the republican party to be incredibly stupid. Don't you have better things to do?
Read it carefully. It's from the Borowitz Report. I didn't write it. I di think it's was funny, in a ghoulish way.