Archive for November, 2009
Understanding the Gamble of Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) with its Interest-Only Mortgage Strategy
Wells Fargo’s (NYSE: WFC) decision to allow customers with option-adjustable rate mortgages to change them to interest-only loans has generated some consternation as to the wisdom of the strategy. While there are several elements to look at concerning the strategy, two basically stand out. First, there’s no doubt the major result Wells Fargo is looking [...]
TD Bank (NYSE: TD) Posts Record Results
TD Asset Management Inc., a subsidiary of TD Bank (NYSE:TD) and the manager of TD Mutual Funds, today reported long-term fund net sales totaling $624 million for the month, and money market fund net redemptions of $466 million. Assets invested in TD Mutual Funds totaled $53.2 billion as of the end of October. This represents [...]
Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), JP Morgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) Benefit from Zero-Interest-Rate Policies
Although all banks have benefit from the Federal Reserve’s zero-interest-rate policy, some banks have benefited much more than others, with Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), JP Morgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) near the top. Goldman Sachs is benefiting particularly well as a result of the zero-interest-rate environment because of the extremely low [...]
Citibank (NYSE: C) to Lay Off 175 Employees in Credit Card Business and Wealth Management Group
Citibank (NYSE: C) will be laying off approximately 100 employees and an additional 75 employees in Citi’s personal wealth management group this week, according to several sources. The most recent job cuts are part of a broader corporate restructuring effort at Citibank. As of the 2nd quarter of this year, Citibank had an official headcount [...]
JP Morgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) Had the “Most to Lose” and Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), Citibank (NYSE: C) and Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) Had the “Most To Gain” From Bailouts
Just over a year ago, the Bush administration pumped $125 billion in new capital into the nine largest U.S. banks in exchange for preferred shares and J.P Morgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) came out a “loser” out of the deal. At least, that’s the conclusion of two University of Chicago finance professors who say that Morgan [...]
Citibank (NYSE: C) to Sell Bellsystem24 Inc. To Bain Capital
Bain Capital has secured exclusive bidding rights with Citibank (NYSE: C) to purchase its Japanese telemarketing firm Bellsystem24 Inc. In a deal that could bring Citibank more than $1 billion in new capital to cash-strapped mega bank. Bain Capital, a U.S. private equity firm, will have exclusive negotiating rights until November 11th, according to several [...]
CIT Group (NYSE:CIT) Wins Concessions and Approval for Fast-Track Bankruptcy
In its bid to survive bankruptcy, CIT Group (NYSE: CIT) was granted unusual and unprecedented concessions, while also gaining approval for a fast-track bankruptcy, which is scheduled to be exited in December 2009. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Allan Gropper gave his approval for an interim $125 million loan from Bank of America (NYSE: BAC), part of [...]
HSBC Holdings (NYSE: HBC) Slashing Another 1,700 Jobs in UK
HSBC Holdings Plc (NYSE: HBC) continues to shrink its workforce, this time focusing its efforts on Britain, where they announced another 1,700 administrative jobs based in the U.K. will be cut, which represents over 4 percent of its workforce presence there. In a statement today, the company said jobs will be slashed in Southend, Sheffield [...]
MasterCard (NYSE: MA) Posts $452 Million Third-Quarter Profit On Cost Cuts, Revenue Growth
MasterCard Inc. (NYSE: MA) announced Tuesday that it returned to profitability in the third quarter, posting profit of $452.2 million or $3.45 a share. The result compares to a loss of $193.6 million or $1.48 a share in the same period a year ago. Excluding one-time charges, MasterCard posted third quarter earnings of 3.48 a [...]
Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) Seeks CEO, Location Negotiable
Bloomberg reported Tuesday morning that the Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) board of directors has expanded its search for the bank’s next CEO to include people who want to live and run the company from New York, not its current headquarters in Charlotte. Why is a firm that has been rooted in the Charlotte skyline [...]
British Chancellor Reveals Details of New Bailout for Royal Bank of Scotland (LON: RBS) and Lloyds Banking Group (LON: LYG)
There have been rumors that there would be a major shakeup in the Royal Bank of Scotland (LON: RBS) and Lloyds Banking Group (LON: LYG), and now British Chancellor, Alistair Darling, announced the decision to inject an additional £25.5 billion ($41.6 billion) and £5.7 billion ($9.3 billion) of taxpayer funds into the two banks respectively. [...]
Citibank (NYSE: C) Stock Price Hits 3 Month Low
Shares of Citibank (NYSE: C) dropped by 4% on Monday and fell below $4.00 by the end of the trading day. Citibank has been hammered with a number of negative news stories over the last couple of weeks that have caused its stock price to take quite a beating. The news item that pushed the [...]
Small Banks and Credit Unions Ramping Up Marketing Campaigns against Huge Banks like Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) and Bank of America (NYSE: BAC)
Sensing an unprecedented opportunity to gain market share against banking behemoths like Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) and Bank of America (NYSE: BAC), small banks and credit unions have been diligently pursuing American consumers who have become disgusted and tired of the bailouts and attitudes of big banks toward their customers. Consequently, many small banks and [...]
Editorial: Former Major Federal Banking Regulator Prof. Bill Black Says Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner Incompetent in CIT Group (NYSE: CIT) Bailout Deal – Government Also in Full Cover-up Mode
Taxpayers are out of $2.3 billion because of the incompetent and outrageous deal Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner made with CIT Group (NYSE: CIT) for receiving its bailout funds, according to William Black, professor at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, and former leading federal banking regulator. Black stated in an interview: “We put [...]
Federal Reserve Official Says Banks have More Real Estate Trouble Coming
The strong headwinds that are facing financial institutions in the United States will likely continue from some time, said a Federal Reserve official on Monday, suggesting that struggles in the commercial and residential real estate are far from over. Jon Greenlee, the Federal Reserve’s associate director of banking supervision and regulation said, “Two years into [...]
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