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HRBR I'm hopeful on this one as well
IVFH - Excellent valuemind! I, unfortunately, took my loss on this one before the end of the year lol. But glad you did well. I just don't see any reason for the pop. Seems like tons of stocks are getting run by some sort of organized groups or high frequency traders or whatever. Oddball stocks just pop for no reason on huge volume, and then go back to normal a day or two later.
IVFH - What the heck is going on with this one today? I don't see any news. I guess just another crazy runner.
Etrade - Got your message. Yeah, I'm trying to make it work too. But man, it really changes things for me not having Strategy Scanner. Previously, they took away Trading Ladder with no warning, I used that a ton also. Like you say, I think all the brokers are gonna make sure we can only trade like 6 stocks so the market keeps going up. lol. But I think Morgan Stanley will just continue to destroy Etrade. Feel bad for the employees who can see what's going on but have to keep their jobs.
LMBHW Warrant Terms? Can someone refresh my memory on the strike price here? I think it's $11.50 for one whole share,expiring 7/20. Is that correct?
ODT - Looks like trying to break out. Big insider buy from CEO
Etrade -- Morgan Stanley continues to destroy Etrade. This morning, got notice that they are eliminating a second tool that I use all the time, Strategy Scanner, in ETPro.
A full-service broker buying out a discounter just has trouble written all over it.
ODT - CEO made insider buy of big dollar value. Anybody familiar with this one? Cancer therapeutics, recent positive Phase 3 results. Chart looks ready for possible breakout.
Etrade - I'm logged in to ETPro with no problem thus far
I made no mention of a real estate developer, so yours is a completely different example.
But taking your hypothetical, there is already a way to deal with such an example -- the developer could and should be sued for fraud.
It's interesting to note that your example assumes the developer is a bad guy and any sort of regulatory body are these selfless public servants who are going to save the day for the little guy.
Almost any regulation can be used for predatory or protectionist purposes as well, not just altruistic purposes.
I'd contend that a far more realistic scenario is the real estate developer befriends (or already knows) the regulator and encourages the regulator (thru flattery and/or bribery) to condemn the neighborhood as too dangerous for the average buyer, and that only licensed real estate developers (who are experts and know how to factor in all the risks) should be allowed to buy in the area. (All to protect the little guy from himself, of course.) Property values plunge, the developer gets to buyout everybody on the cheap and he makes many times the profit he would have if the free market had been allowed to continue.
In fact a similar sort of scenario is happening with increasing regularity thru eminent domain proceedings. Eminent domain sounds great in theory -- supposed to be used when a govt project such as a school or a road for example needs to be built, the govt can take your property for "the better good" of the community as long as they compensate you. Used to be used this way and the main argument was usually just about the fair market value of compensation. But increasingly, eminent domain is being used unfairly to benefit big businesses and/or developers. A big drug company wants to build it's new plant right where your property is, and we (the city council) have determined it's in the best interest of the community, therefore, we're going to force you to sell the land your family has owned for 100 years, even though you don't want to sell.
It's always good to keep in mind that bad guys WANT power centralized. They WANT regulators. Far easier to bribe a few people than 200 individual homeowners. Corruption essentially becomes unprofitable in a truly free market. I think one should always consider that the people claiming to be protecting you may be the very ones helping you to get fleeced.
And whereas it's attainable to sue a private party for fraud, good luck trying to sue the govt for corruption or malfeasance or whatever, and getting a favorable decision from a govt court, with a govt judge, who gets paid a govt salary, from the very same govt you are suing.
PATI There are a few of these every year where as hweb pointed out you have to know a little-known rule and it seems like it should be changed because reading the press release it SEEMS very clear. But the ex-div date is actually one day after the payment date. In this case Dec 31
Nasdaq site has it listed correctly:
https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/stocks/pati
The lines are not clearly spelled out, they are being changed in the middle of the game. Big difference.
Real estate is a specialized industry with rules and regulations too.
Couldn't disagree more. One person's definition of "better good" is another person's tyranny.
If one had factored in all the risks and knowingly purchased a home in a bad neighborhood because you expect a turnaround, how fair is it for the govt (or a broker) to say, "we've identified this as a high crime area, so for the better good we will no longer allow anyone to buy homes in this area. As your gracious overlords, however, we will allow you to sell."
Yeah, but just our individual choice of what to invest in is being shut down. I can decide the level of risk for myself. I don't need mommy govt or mommy broker telling me what I can and can't do. That's what bothers me.
Schwab clamping down on CE Stocks as well? Saw on another board that Schwab customers were sent an email that they will soon only be allowing liquidating trades on Caveat Emptor stocks as well. Can any Schwab customers confirm this?
I was afraid of this when trades went "free". We are no longer the customer, we are the product.
Dang, they're shutting us down everywhere
OT: Opinion on Etrade. I've been with them a long time and have always loved them. But since they got bought by Morgan Stanley, things have started to slide.
-Without any notice, they took away one tool that I used a lot in EtradePro every day. No "we'll be discontinuing this tool in 3 months", nothing. Just logged in one day and it wasn't there. I called in thinking it was a software glitch. Cust service used to be great, this time they just said nope we eliminated it. I was like, "with no notice?!!" Person I got was very snarky and said I'm sure you can figure something out as far as what else to use. Never got that attitude before the Morgan Stanley buyout.
-When I log in to ETPRO it now has a permanent message saying because of heavy call volume you may have to wait on the phone. Never used to have that.
-They've eliminated the buying of Caveat Emptor pink sheet stocks and the rumor is they may not allow the purchase of many more pinkies soon. (This was the reason I moved most money away from Ameritrade -- they wouldn't let me trade what I wanted.)
-I've been thru a number of brokerage buyouts, and they don't usually go well. I don't have high hopes for what a full service broker will do when buying out a discounter.
-In the bigger picture, I fear that "free" trades my end up being very expensive because we are no longer the customer. The brokers' customer is now the people/companies who are paying the brokers for order flow. Brokers may very well cater to them from now on.
And again this is coming from someone who loved Etrade until this buyout. It's not looking good thus far.
FRHC - Yeah when I glanced at the Q, I can't say I would have invested in a company headquartered in Kazakhstan and doing lots of biz in the other stans, but it's darn fun to look at that chart
FRHC Man, that's a darn nice stock chart. I don't even remember it being mentioned back then
ISNS I can't find any news anywhere either. Not sure what is going on
TZPC is even more annoying. Pull up a chart. (Similar story to RSCF.)
I was looking at it when it was $.05, that's right five cents.
It then went to over $39 and is currently in the mid-$20 range.
I had nada. As Maxwell Smart used to say, "Missed it by that much."
Thank you, Sir.
Just one final note on this. Found a note about the buyout of RJT by TD Waterhouse years ago. It's exactly how I recall it, and exactly what I fear for Etrade:
https://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=3193768
Hmm, now I'm really stumped. No, not market buys. Just FYI I've been trading for decades, not a newbie. Have had Ameritrade account for a long, long time, then had some other accounts at TD waterhouse (I think it was) that came over to Ameritrade, and then before that, the best broker I've ever had was a little outfit called RJT that got bought out by waterhouse. So I go way back.
But these days I almost never place orders at TD ameritrade. It just got so frustrating. Do all this research, have your spot picked out on a chart where you want to buy, then go to place an order and it says you can't. I just gave up with them. Still hold a few small positions there, but haven't placed an order in probably more than a year. But thks for the offer.
TDA - nope, no margin, nothing flaky. I wonder if you and Ernie are having better experience thru the thinkorswim side of things. Are you using that as well Ernie? Maybe that's the difference
Really? I was continually denied with TDA. At one point I even told them I'd sign whatever sort of disclaimer they wanted in order to be able to buy anything I wanted. But of course they wouldn't do that. You've seriously never had any problems buying pinks, or greys or skull and crossbones? That's interesting, because that would seem to indicate they're treating different customers differently. I'd love to get into the group that has no buying restrictions on anything.
For what it's worth, TD Ameritrade was who I moved from becuz they constantly prevented customers from buying small pink tickers, or they'd make you call in every order. It got absurd. Plus, Schwab is buying TD, so it'll all be the same soon. I've been meaning to open a Schwab as well and will soon. Etrade used to be fantastic for my style, but it's been downhill since the merger. Been thru many mergers and buyouts with various brokerage accounts over the years and almost never had things get "better" after the buyout lol.
Yeah, I agree. I've been worried about Etrade ever since the Morgan Stanley buyout. MS is a full-service broker and doesn't really understand running an online discounter. Used to be able to get etrade on the phone very quickly with xlnt customer service. Now when I log in to ETPro there's a permanent message saying we're experiencing heavy call volume, expect delays. That never used to be there. I hope some of the Etrade people go off and start another discount brokerage.
OT: Sad to hear Walter Williams has passed. One of the great economists and defenders of individual liberty:
Sad to hear of the passing of Walter E. Williams. A brilliant man who inspired me. My favorite quote from him: pic.twitter.com/uTpLkJkzED
— Natalie F Danelishen (@Chesschick01) December 2, 2020
IDTA This was a nice one, otc. Unfortunately I didn't get any, as I was sitting on the bid. But a great alert. There are good ones out there.
OT: Rawnoc - This guy was an absolute scumbag to me. He was pumping SPIN years ago, which seemed like a clear fraud to me. When I posted the factual negatives on the SPIN board, he went into name-calling mode, sent me death threats and horribly profane private messages. He eventually banned me from the spin board. Guy was an absolute jerk. I don't know if he was a fraudster, but it certainly wouldn't surprise me if he were.
Projections! Projections!
The above was taken from a 2016 stock promotion:
https://tinyurl.com/y2zxff8u
AAT V I wasn't even going to look at it until/unless they corrected their 24 consecutive quarter PR. They did, so I'm looking at it this morning. Oy vey, it ain't good. Now it kind of all makes sense.
-CEO, CFO, and Pres are all the same guy
Latest filing includes this gem under Short Term Loans-Related Party:
"Another loan is a revolving loan from the principle owner where funds are loaned and paid back on an as-needed basis (depending on cash flow). Currently, the Company has been profitable for the last several years and cash flow has been sufficient to have the loan balance paid below zero, so that now a receivable exists as of September 30, 2020. The balance in years past has exceeded over $1,000,000 (payable) and is now fluctuating around $1,500,000 (receivable) based on the cash flow needs of the business."
-Description of the business eerily similar to a promoted public company from 10 years ago run by the same CEO:
https://tinyurl.com/y6txtmw2
-Service providers being paid in shares, including stock promoters
-Accounting services (paid in shares) are being provided by this guy: https://www.sec.gov/litigation/admin/34-44064.htm When I looked up his cpa license status in Utah it shows "Withdrawn"
-Corporate Advisory Services (paid in shares) being provided by this former atty:
http://members.calbar.ca.gov/fal/Licensee/Detail/130448
https://www.sec.gov/litigation/admin/2017/34-82106.pdf
https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-10th-circuit/1851613.html
https://tinyurl.com/yxsp2x3u
-Second largest stockholder is Bryant Cragun of the ZiaSun fiasco:
https://www.siliconinvestor.com/subject.aspx?subjectid=23565
Cragun and the CEO have worked together before on at least one public company:
https://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=67390407
I agree. Don't like that at all.
I actually wrote to them and politely informed them of what seemed like an error and suggested they go back and review the last 6 years in case there were other instances and then issue a correcting press release.
CEO got back to me within a day. To me, that's a good sign.
I view it as basically like a mental typo. Since Q4's are not broken out, but usually just part of the 10-K, it's easy enuf to look back at the 10-k showing a profit and say, yep, another profit. I've done it before myself when reviewing filings.
I'm quite impressed with mgt that will admit to mistakes and not be embarrassed by it. (Warren Buffett does it all the time.) We're all human, easy enough to do, but to leave it uncorrected would raise lots of questions and not be appropriate.
So kudos to them.
LMB - Brian Pratt is the longtime former CEO and Pres of Dallas based Primoris Services [Nasdaq: PRIM], which is also a construction infrastructure and engineering firm similar to LMB. I view that as a positive sign becuz he's knowledgeable about the industry . But he's also a guy who's probably worth $400m, so if he can't buy the whole thing maybe he just wants to move on to something else. My guess is he would have bought the company, then tweaked some things operationally to improve earnings, and then brought it public again in a few years to make really big money. (Hopefully LMB mgt is going to make those types of changes)
But with Pratt's kind of wealth, it may be more of a distraction if he can't buy the whole thing.
I would guess the Jets win comes first, which I expect in the first quarter of 2023.
SRRE with a big bid
Anything can happen. Price could go up before it collapses. The O/S is 6m, but the A/S is 500m. Do the arithmetic on those convertibles and there are hundreds of millions of shares coming
The latest quarterly provides the answer, imo.
Go to p.20, "Note 8. Notes Payable" and you'll see the absurd prices for the notes to be converted into shares. Plug it into a calculator and you'll be appalled:
https://backend.otcmarkets.com/otcapi/company/financial-report/255257/content