Opinion

Bernstein and Barron’s Agree: Bank of America Poised for Gains

Barron’s business weekly said on Sunday that Bank of America Corp (NYSE: BAC)’s stock has a strong potential upside after declining in value since the recent peak in April, citing the company’s plans to end its reliance on fees and charges. The publication noted that investors have become much less bullish about the largest bank [...]

Ford’s Closure of Mercury Gets Little Reaction from Investors (NYSE: F)

Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F)’s anticipated closure of Mercury has not brought much attention from investors. Mercury has not had a unique identity during the last several years and ending the line now appears to be a timely and prudent move for the company. Market share for the Mercury line has dwindled to less than [...]

Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) Citigroup (NYSE:C), Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Slammed After Spain’s Debt Dowgraded

The Dow has given up its gains for the week, and financial stocks like Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) Citigroup (NYSE:C), Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) are all down on the downgrade of Spain’s debt by Fitch Ratings from its prior AAA rating to AA+. Spain had had a [...]

Analyst Says Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) Could Pay $621 Million to Settle SEC Fraud Suit

Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. analyst Brad Hintz said in a note to clients today that Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) could pay $621 million to make the SEC fraud charges against them go away. Hintz said the fine would be $250 million, and the other $371 million would be to reimburse investors in the trades. Personally, [...]

Is Citigroup (NYSE:C) Better Than a $4 Stock?

Even though Citigroup (NYSE:C) and others with vested interest in them would like to believe they’re better than a $4 stock, I don’t think at this time that is the case, and in the short term it is doubtful they’ll have much support beyond that. We could and probably will see them make occasionally upward [...]

Bill Ackman Acquires Citigroup 150 Million Citigroup (NYSE:C) Shares

Bill Ackman is a well-known activist investor, and manages Pershing Square Capital Management, a large hedge fund, announced yesterday at a conference that he has acquired about 150 million shares of Citigroup (NYSE:C) over the last several weeks. Citigroup is an ideal stock for speculators, traders and hedge funds, as the inherent volatility in the [...]

Citigroup (NYSE:C), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) Worst at Removing Debt Off Books

A report from the Wall Street Journal states that based on data gathered from the Federal Reserve, Citigroup (NYSE:C), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) and Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) are the worst offenders for removing debt from their books just before they report their quarterly earnings. Citigroup and the Federal Reserve had no comment on the story, [...]

Citigroup (NYSE:C) Bullish on Emerging Markets

Several Citigroup (NYSE:C) executives stated recently they’re very bullish on emerging markets, and valuations should be attractive based on a variety of factors related to growth. David Ratliff, MD & Head-Investor Sales (AsiaPac), said, using India as an example, that “the debate in India is whether the economy grows at 7-8% or 5-6% which is [...]

Citigroup (NYSE:C), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS), JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Being Forced to Lend to Failing ShoreBank?

Another political scandal is brewing in connection to the outrageous and controversial bailout of Chicago’s ShoreBank by Citigroup (NYSE:C), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS), JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM), Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) and GE Capital (NYSE:GE), where it’s thought so-called community bank with strong political connections, all the way up to Obama, is receiving bailout funds [...]

Is Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) Too Optimistic for Citigroup (NYSEC), J.P. Morgan (NYSE:JPM) and Bank of America (NYSE:BAC)?

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) upgraded Citigroup (NYSEC) from “neutral” to “buy,” while maintaining buy ratings on J.P. Morgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) and Bank of America (NYSE:BAC). In light of the current economic conditions, which are deteriorating in Europe and China, it does generate the question of whether the assessment of Goldman is far too optimistic. Much of [...]

Citigroup (NYSE:C): Perfect Storm for Double-dip Recession

Citigroup (NYSE:C) Michael Hart stated what everyone is thinking, and that is we’re approaching a perfect storm which could bring about a ‘double-dip’ recession. Hart said, “The eurozone sovereign crisis, a worldwide regulatory crackdown, fears of an economic slowdown in emerging markets and the possibility of a ‘double-dip’ provide the makings of a perfect storm.” [...]

JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM), Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) Could Get Crushed by New Derivative Regulations

If the proposed new government regulations on derivatives remains in the financial reform bill passed on Thursday, large financial institutions like JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM), Goldman (NYSE:GS), and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) could have earnings demolished by up to 20 percent, according to the banks. Assuming that’s close to being accurate, it’s going to be extremely challenging [...]

Is SEC Fraud Case Against Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) Just a Shakedown? $1 Billion Settlement Just a Rumor

News has been spreading that Goldman Sachs is close to reaching a $1 billion, or possibly higher, settlement with the SEC. That’s a total rumor, based on some people reading far more into a statement by Goldman CEO Lloyd Blankfein, when he said in an interview with the Economic Times concerning transactions the company made, [...]

Citigroup (NYSE:C), Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS), Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), Getting Crushed Under the Weight of Reality

The EU sovereign debt issue will remain on the table for some time with major financial institutions like Citigroup (NYSE:C),  Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS),  Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) and Bank of America (NYSE:BAC),  are getting hit hard today, as a number of factors have come together to shake investor confidence in the economy and the banking sector in [...]

Blood in the Streets for Citigroup (NYSE:C), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) and JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM)

As the European sovereign debt crisis continues to unfold, it is increasingly obvious from the width and depth of the irresponsibility of all involved, that banks like  Citigroup (NYSE:C), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) and JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM), which are getting hammered today, will suffer from the shoring up of the socialist, progressive, welfare [...]

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) Awarded Build America Bonds by Pennsylvania

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) and JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) are the recipients of Build America Bonds offered by the state of Pennsylvania, generating $1 billion for the commonwealth. The Bank of America part of the bonds are what is called ‘true interest cost,’ which was valued at $548.9 million. JPMorgan Chase received the tax-exempt part of [...]

Citigroup (NYSE:C) Says Concerns over EU Debt Moving from Costs to Growth

The initial concerns over the bailing out the irresponsible spending of countries in southern Europe were costs of doing so, but according to Citigroup (NYSE:C), that has now changed to how much effect it will have on growth. Coupled with problems of inflation emerging in China and how that may cut into demand for raw [...]

Citigroup (NYSE:C), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC),JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM), Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) and Morgan Stanley’s (NYSE:MS) Exposure to European Crisis

It hasn’t taken more than few days after the announcement that the European Union would be bailing out the socialist, welfare states of the region, when it is being increasingly realized that this is another way of saying we’re bailing out the banks again, including the largest ones from America – Citigroup (NYSE:C), Bank of America [...]

Richard Bove Downgrades UBS (NYSE:UBS) and Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) as Europe Deteriorates

Rochdale Securities banking analyst Richard Bove downgraded UBS (NYSE:UBS) and Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) from “Buy” to “Neutral,” based solely on the deteriorating economic situation in Europe. Both banks were downgraded because of the sovereign debt crisis and the exposure they have to it, but UBS was of more concern to Bove based on that it [...]

Citigroup (NYSE:C) Plunges Below $4 A Share on EU Sovereign Debt Crisis

The fallout from the decision to offer almost $1 trillion to the socialist, welfare nations of southern Europe is hitting stocks hard today, as Citigroup (NYSE:C) has fallen below $4 a share, and about 12 stocks are falling for every one stock that has risen. After the euphoria surrounding the bailout subsided, the market started [...]