Professor Elam
Accounting & Investing Info for San Antonio A & M
about
Category: Financial Acct
-
Wed Jan 18, 2012 Please read this article on THe Big Mac Index. It is a real world alterantive on valuing currencies in different countries. Introduced in the Economist in 1986, it cmpares the relative values ofa Big Mac in two countries. We will be sutdying derivatives this semester and this is an excellent way to frame…
-
Thursday Dec 1, 2011 MF Global proved it ain't over till its over, at least in terms of beating the FASB at its own game. Frankly I had a hard time following this one. And, if SARBOX required CEOs and CFOs to sign off on the statements, why isn't Corzine being prosecuted over this? As you…
-
Thursday Nov 24, 2011 Netflix provides the perfect example of why we study accounting. NFLX bought back $400 M of its own stock since 2010, a good deal of it at $228. Now it is issuing more stock and bonds to raise cash. Total debt is more than the market capitalization. NfLX foolishly bought its own…
-
Friday Nov 4, 2011 A Primary Dealer PD is one who is designated as an official dealer to re sell government debt in primary offerings. As such the PD can carry much more debt than a typical bank, this allows the inventory of government bonds. Zero Hedge makes the point that PDs are artificially lowering…
-
Tuesday Nov 1, 2011 Henry Blodgett details how Jon Corzine took MF Global under in just 18 months. Let's see for Jon that's out as Goldman CEO, out of his 33 year marriage, out as Governor of New Jersey after blowing all the Treasury there, and now out at MF Global. Note Henry uses a four letter…
-
Tuesday Oct 25, 2011 Our observations earlier this summer that Netflix was a high flier and due for a pullback have some spectacularly true. That dot at 78.10 is the latest quote. It seem NFLX is going to lose money for a while. The market has reacted accordinlgy. In three months the stock haas lost…
-
Monday Oct 24, 2011 Meredith Whitney has predicted trouble in the municipal bond market. It may well start in Rhode Island. Substitute Greece for RI in the article and it reads the same. This will be the end of the defined benefit pension plan in America. Notice that the problem is the inability to determine just…
-
Sunday Oct 16, 2011 There are plenty of study guides available. I suggest you write your own, that way you will learn the material. Staring at something someone else wrote is second best but… The Quickstudy Guides are available at Amazon. These are two page laminated quick reference. Schaums is listed on the syllabus and has books for…
-
Saturday Oct 8, 2011 Jean Shepherd's Chirstmmas Story has become the 'new classic' Christmas Video displacing Miracle on 334th Street and It's a Wonderful LIfe. The movie recounts Shepherd's youth in the mid West. The time is pre WW II and radio is the dominant technology. Ralphie responds to the Little Orphan Annie broadcast…
-
Monday Oct 3, 2011 Seems the five big banks here have 96% of the off exchange derivative exposure. This raises the question of who is the counter party and can they perform? If the Eurozone goes kaput, does the derivative risk do likewise? Another good question. I suspect the banks cannot tell you their real risk…
Professor Elam 