You can’t sell into this — unless the company’s prospects have changed. And you can’t go short — unless it makes real sense (e.g. IBM).
You can (and should) have faith and your Shopping List — of stocks you’d like to own if they get a bit cheaper. (More about that in a minute.)
And you should not watch the tape. Not good for your peace of mind.
Meantime, I missed Facebook, but my Google is doing well (after today’s deal with Lenovo). And I did nail Blackstone:
Blackstone’s fourth-quarter earnings more than double
NEW YORK, Jan 30 (Reuters) – Blackstone Group LP <BX.N>, the world’s largest publicly listed alternative asset manager, reported a 130-percent rise in fourth-quarter profit on Thursday, showing particularly strong gains in its real estate business.
Blackstone, whose investments include The Weather Channel, Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc <HLT.N> and SeaWorld Entertainment Inc <SEAS.N>, said economic net income – a metric of its profitability that takes into account the mark-to- market valuation of its portfolio – was $1.54 billion in the fourth quarter of 2013, compared with $670 million a year ago.
Distributable earnings, which show actual cash that is available to pay dividends, jumped 46 percent in the first quarter to $820.6 million.
Total assets under management were $265.8 billion as of the end of December, up 26 percent year-on-year. Fee-earning assets under management rose 18 percent to $198 billion.
Blackstone declared a quarterly dividend of 58 cents per common unit.
Qualcomm will bounce today after its fiscal first-quarter earnings exceeded expectations.
My Shopping List includes (some new and some more of)
ADSK, AMZN, BA, DTV, MA, NLY, T (yield is now 5.5%), WFM and perhaps some Delta and American Airlines.
In search of the perfect hearing aid (continued). The perfect hearing aid is a headphone or earbuds wired or wirelessly attached to a sound source — like a TV. I won’t watch TV without my Sennheiser headphones. The perfect hearing aid at a theater is the infrared one they lend you for free. I won’t go the theater without getting one of these for the performance.
After those recommendations, it’s pretty well downhill. The hearing aids you get from an audiologist are pricey ($5,000 to $6,000 a pair), sound tinny and are annoying. They amplify everything — from paper rustling to the sound your shoes make on the pavement. None of them discriminate between what you want to hear — your dinner companions — and what you don’t want to hear — the restaurant’s ambient noise. None of them. Trust me. This is despite what their marketing literature says.
Enter a bunch of entrepreneurs who make things called “personal sound amplifiers,:” which they sell on online for a fraction of what “real” hearing aids cost and typically offer a 30-day full money-back guarantee if you don’t like them.
I’ve tried a bunch of them. The best is the CS-10 from a company called Sound World Solutions. It’s a big clunky thing, deliberately designed to look like Bluetooth/cell phone answering and speaking device (which it also does). Leave it running and you have a functioning hearing aid.
The quality of what I hear with the CS-10 (catchy name?) is not the sound I get from Sennheiser headphones. But the CS-10 works. It does amplify sounds and, I can use it to watch TV or wear out to a restaurant.
The big news is that it costs $299, though you can probably get a 10% discount if you call them. I did.
The CS-10 doesn’t use throwaway batteries like the pricey high-end hearing aids. The teardrop behind the ear is a rechargeable battery, which you can recharge with a USB connection or using the equipment they supply. They supply two batteries, which is thoughtful.
My hearing is not shot. I can hear most things. The CS-10 is designed to help in difficult-to-hear places and it does that admirably. It has a remarkable number of settings for volume and frequency response, you can “customize” it the noise of the place you’re in. I only bought one (for my left ear), which works fine for me. I’ll probably keep it. It’s worth the money.
To see more, click here.
Homs, Syria’s. third largest city. This is what they’ve done with large parts of it. I can’t believe what Assad is doing to his own people.
For a bigger image of the mind-blowing devastation, click here.
On retirement. I do like his expression.
A real reason to beg.
How to get technical help.
Mujibar was trying to get a job in India.
The Personnel Manager said, ‘Mujibar, you have passed all the tests, except one.
It is a simple test of your English language skills. Unless you pass it, you cannot qualify for this job.’
Mujibar ‘I am ready.’
‘You must make a sentence using the words Yellow, Pink, and Green.’
Mujibar thought and said, ‘Mister manager, I am ready.’
‘Go ahead.’
Mujibar said, ‘The telephone goes green, green. I pink it up, and say, yellow, this is Mujibar.’
Mujibar now works at a call center for a major tech company. You have spoken to him.
Harry Newton who has recovered from his cold. His energy has returned with a bang. I’ll go kill on the tennis court this afternoon.
Have you noticed that no one listens any longer?
I should use this site for stock market info, but since Harry brings up world affairs and such I’ll comment.
Nobody should be surprised at the horrible destruction by a dictator bound to stay in office, and he will, in Syria. There is no leadership in Europe and the US is hiding somewhere on a golf course. Power hates a vacuum, so that leaves Iran and a third rate country called Russia…and they are leading the way, quite effectively, supporting Assad. And the window we had to change that was passed by a year or two ago. So now we’re talking, must be a teleprompter nearby, something we now do in place of action, and the game is over. Assad wins. Shame. And the worst is yet to come with a nuclear Iran. Stupid and dangerous.
Hope and change!
I hate to gloat but I’m feeling pretty good today about my Facebook IPO purchase. I was criticized on this site at the time of purchase; glad I could have the last laugh on you suckas – as usual. But enjoy your savings bonds and trying to sell the “air rights” over your buildings.
Thanks Mr Humble-what an a-hole.