Posts Tagged ‘aig’

Are stocks like Citi, BOA, AIG, and GE good buys right now?

Why would you, as an independent investor, consider buying stocks like Citi, BOA, AIG, and GE? Of course their current stock values have never been lower. Well the only way is up, right? The management decks have been swept clean of the bad decision-making debris. The so-called toxic assets are guaranteed by the taxpayer through federal government bailout billions.

• Citi or more properly Citigroup inc. of Park Avenue New York is one of America’s biggest banking corporations. The only way to judge whether this stock is a good buy in terms of current stock value and the direction it will move is to research. Turn to the Internet and your broker for real time information.

• BOA or the Bank of America (BAC is it’s stock market code) was a highly valued stock in 2006 with a peak stock market valuation of $53 per share. Today you can buy a share for around $6. Is the only way up or are their assets now so bad that the only alternative is bankruptcy?

• AIG or American International Group had a peak share value of over $73 at the end of 2006. Today the current stock value is under $1. A good buy? Public perception counts for a lot when it comes to current stock value and the outrageous bonus payments made to the failing employees of AIG may be enough to ensure that the only way is out for AIG. Out of private ownership and into government hands.

• GE or General Electric Corporation is not in the financial sector of the New York Stock Exchange. It is what is known as a ‘general industrial’ stock but its current stock value is on the slide as with all stocks. 10% down against its peak.

Current stock value of any company is a two-sided coin. On the stock market side it is about financial ratios such as assets to liabilities, debt to capital, profit to turnover and dividends to investment.

On the other side of the current stock value coin are you, the buyer and your motivation for buying stocks. Do you want the stocks for pure speculation purposes? Are you looking for a quick kill or are you aiming for longer-term earnings above the rate of inflation perhaps or as an income in retirement. These stocks are uncertain when it comes to short-term profit but they are backed by the government and your tax dollars, to survive long into the future. So they are a better buy for the long-term earnings.

Who does the bailout plan help or hurt?

Most people lament the fact a bailout plan will help “Wall Street,” but forget about the innocent working class that will lose their jobs if we don’t accept it. How many jobs will be lost immediately if we do nothing in the form of federal aid you ask? This is an extremely difficult question to answer because there is a wide spectrum of industries in which lack of a bailout will directly and severely impact:

Insurance companies (More will soon follow AIG with a ripple affect – in the US alone there are nearly 10,000 jobs at AIG to be lost, – worldwide there are nearly 100,000 jobs within AIG alone)… keep in mind AIG is only the start, multiple industries that sell products to AIG will be impacted as well. Worldwide impact from Insurance company related failures would leave at minimum 100,000 people worldwide without a job temporarily – and hundreds of thousands more would lose there jobs who’s companies are tied to these larger corporations.

Savings and Loan Companies and various other Banks (last time something like this happened in the early 80′s, something like 1600 Savings and Loans went under):

Just yesterday Washington Mutual collapsed and was sucked up by JP Morgan chase who estimated they will close 10% of WaMu’s branch offices. With some estimated 50,000 employees at WaMu, 5,000 are nearly guaranteed to lose their job in the next year – not to mention those industries and businesses that lose their business. Just think about local business around branch offices for example, that will be directly affected as their business customers disappear. IndyMac is another huge S&L that fell in July, which was the largest in the LA area, lost numerous jobs.

As credit markets tighten across the country and world, there will be a significant drop in the need for personal bankers along down the line.

Investment Companies such as Bear Sterns that recently crumbled whom had nearly 14,000 employees before being sucked into JP Morgan Chase, will certainly lose a number of jobs. Not to mention the thousands of people whom lost jobs as a result of the failures at Lehman Brothers, Northern Rock, and Merrill Lynch & Co.

Mortgage companies Hundreds of thousands of job lost in the mortgage and associated industries like construction, brokerage, and various other related jobs. Take Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as another example, lucky for the employees at these businesses, they’ve already been saved by a Federal bailout.

The list could go on and on and on. One things for sure, a bailout wouldn’t necessarily benefit just the Wallstreet guys, it will likely affect your neighbors. On the other hand, one could argue similar bailouts in the Savings and Loan crisis of the 80′s may have attributed to these collapses today, as the executives knew how the federal government handled similar situations in the past – why wouldn’t they risk everything for humongous bonuses and salaries, when there are few repercussions?

Are you lost as to what the Bailout plan really is? I have written something yesterday that will help you.