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Latest Comments132 Comments
How Wall Street Has Failed the Individual Investor
To:ted@maxoutsavings.c...
Subject:did you hear cramer?
Date:Monday, December 01, 2008 3:57:31 PM
Ted
Did you hear cramer
www.cnbc.com/id/158402...
before or after you wrote.
Insurance Companies
We have received a number of questions on the insurance companies’ financial problems. The problems with the insurance companies appear to be the result of selling annuity contracts with guarantees attached to them. Now that the stock market has plunged, some companies are in financial trouble and need to raise capital. When I listened to the Hartford Insurance 3rd quarter earnings conference call the other day, I was amazed at how many times Wall Street analysts used the words “do not understand” in regards to their finances and annuity problems. Subsequent to the conference all, the stock quickly sold off from $20 to under $10 per share then to under $5. This has resulted in the absurd situation of Hartford buying a very small bank in Florida for $10 million so they could qualify for the TARP government bailout money. Lincoln National Life and Genworth Financial Insurance Company quickly followed suit so they could get Federal bailout money as well.
We believe that some insurance company annuity guarantees will fail and customers will have losses. We believe that most of the problems in the insurance companies reside in the annuity units. Most insurance companies are regulated by the states. If we have a failure of an insurance company, state regulators will move in quickly to protect policy holders in other units such as life and property casualty. When AIG had problems recently, the Federal Reserve stepped in with a bailout of over $100 billion. If that had not occurred, the states would have stepped in to protect the policy holders of the insurance units from the mistakes made in the financial and derivatives units. The bottom line is that if your insurance company fails, the states will move in to protect the policy holders. Where annuities could have a problem is that the money could be restricted from withdrawal and any guarantees could be lost. If an insurance company fails, your assets with the life insurance firm could be guaranteed up to a maximum of $100,000 protection; this applies to the cash value. The guarantee does not include annuity guarantees with the policy. Therefore, only the present value of a variable annuity is protected and only up to $100,000.
Regards
www.prosefights.org/nm...
Follow the Mutual Funds: Solar Is Bottoming
www.prosefights.org/nm...
Let's do something about this.
Follow the Mutual Funds: Solar Is Bottoming
What is Scott's heat rate and capacity factor?
Please respond with numbers.
Follow the Mutual Funds: Solar Is Bottoming
What heat rate and capacity factor problems?
Schott's plant in Arizona is to produce receiver tubes for solar thermal power plants.
Solar thermal plants need cooling to condense steam back to liquid so it can be turned into steam again. This can be done with air or water cooling. "
Cite data please.
Follow the Mutual Funds: Solar Is Bottoming
"In addition to the benefits provided by tax incentives and other renewable energy requirements that are easing the expansion of the solar market, Schott has also benefitted from local government incentives to build the plant here. The state of New Mexico provided $1.9 million in job training funds in June, and the city of Albuquerque earlier this month approved $1 million in infrastructure improvements, including road work, for the company. "
Eclipse Aviation Chapter 11ed this past week.
"Eclipse Aviation, had built up more than $1 billion in debt owed to more than 5,000 creditors and shareholders during its 10 years of existence, triggering this week's filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, according to court documents. "
New Mexico is desperate for new business, other than new home construction which is unsustainable for water and energy shortage reasons.
Here's what happened to New Mexico's investment in Eclipse.
"The State Investment Council, which invested $19 million in Eclipse, is listed in the filing as having a total 2.7 percent stake in the jet maker. The percentage of ownership is big enough to rank New Mexico as the fourth biggest shareholder.
The investment council stands to lose about $13 million of that investment, while $5.6 million is reported to be secured debt and thus in line for at least some potential repayment. "
www.prosefights.org/nm...
Eclipse Aviation may have been a scam from the beginning. Solar is suspect too because of possible heat rate and capacity factor problems.
Commercial Real Estate Not Immune to Economic Woes
PRU, HIG, LNC ... apparently are invested in commerical real estate according to Cramer 11/13/08
www.cnbc.com/id/158402...
Sandia National Laboratories retirees are paid by PRU.
More New Mexico finanical news:
"Eclipse Aviation, had built up more than $1 billion in debt owed to more than 5,000 creditors and shareholders during its 10 years of existence, triggering this week's filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, according to court documents. ..."
www.prosefights.org/nm...
The Long and Winding Solar Road
How many megawatt HOURS?
"Bothwell also said the company is considering bids on a pair of renewable-energy projects, including a solar-trough project that would serve 16,667 to 30,303 households.
How many kilowatt hours is this?
In 2005, the average monthly residential electricity consumption was 938 kilowatt hours (kWh), according to the Energy Information Administration.
How many BTUs required to produce Bothwell's amount of electricity."
www.prosefights.org/pn...
Cramer's Mad Money - Obama's Google Search (11/24/08)
"Insurance Companies
We have received a number of questions on the insurance companies’ financial problems.? The problems with the insurance companies appear to be the result of selling annuity contracts with guarantees attached to them.? Now that the stock market has plunged, some companies are in financial trouble and need to raise capital.? When I listened to the Hartford Insurance 3rd quarter earnings conference call the other day, I was amazed at how many times Wall Street analysts used the words “do not understand” in regards to their finances and annuity problems.? Subsequent to the conference all, the stock quickly sold off from $20 to under $10 per share then to under $5.? This has resulted in the absurd situation of Hartford buying a very small bank in Florida for $10 million so they could qualify for the TARP government bailout money.? Lincoln National Life and Genworth Financial Insurance Company quickly followed suit so they could get Federal bailout money as well.?
We believe that some insurance company annuity guarantees will fail and customers will have losses.? We believe that most of the problems in the insurance companies reside in the annuity units.? Most insurance companies are regulated by the states.? If we have a failure of an insurance company, state regulators will move in quickly to protect policy holders in other units such as life and property casualty.? When AIG had problems recently, the Federal Reserve stepped in with a bailout of over $100 billion.? If that had not occurred, the states would have stepped in to protect the policy holders of the insurance units from the mistakes made in the financial and derivatives units.? The bottom line is that if your insurance company fails, the states will move in to protect the policy holders.? Where annuities could have a problem is that the money could be restricted from withdrawal and any guarantees could be lost.? If an insurance company fails, your assets with the life insurance firm could be guaranteed up to a maximum of $100,000 protection; this applies to the cash value.? The guarantee does not include annuity guarantees with the policy.? Therefore, only the present value of a variable annuity is protected and only up to $100,000."
Sandia National Laboratories buys annuities from Prudential for its retirees. Some at SNL are getting worried. Perhaps for some good reasons.
www.prosefights.org/nm...
There Are Still Many Shoes Left to Drop
"Insurance Companies
We have received a number of questions on the insurance companies’ financial problems. The problems with the insurance companies appear to be the result of selling annuity contracts with guarantees attached to them. Now that the stock market has plunged, some companies are in financial trouble and need to raise capital. When I listened to the Hartford Insurance 3rd quarter earnings conference call the other day, I was amazed at how many times Wall Street analysts used the words “do not understand” in regards to their finances and annuity problems. Subsequent to the conference all, the stock quickly sold off from $20 to under $10 per share then to under $5. This has resulted in the absurd situation of Hartford buying a very small bank in Florida for $10 million so they could qualify for the TARP government bailout money. Lincoln National Life and Genworth Financial Insurance Company quickly followed suit so they could get Federal bailout money as well.
We believe that some insurance company annuity guarantees will fail and customers will have losses. We believe that most of the problems in the insurance companies reside in the annuity units. Most insurance companies are regulated by the states. If we have a failure of an insurance company, state regulators will move in quickly to protect policy holders in other units such as life and property casualty. When AIG had problems recently, the Federal Reserve stepped in with a bailout of over $100 billion. If that had not occurred, the states would have stepped in to protect the policy holders of the insurance units from the mistakes made in the financial and derivatives units. The bottom line is that if your insurance company fails, the states will move in to protect the policy holders. Where annuities could have a problem is that the money could be restricted from withdrawal and any guarantees could be lost. If an insurance company fails, your assets with the life insurance firm could be guaranteed up to a maximum of $100,000 protection; this applies to the cash value. The guarantee does not include annuity guarantees with the policy. Therefore, only the present value of a variable annuity is protected and only up to $100,000."
Ted Geoca & KNTH 1070AM
MaxOut Savings Advisors, LLC
11/24/2008
The Week That Solar Was Left for Dead
www.prosefights.org/pn...
"Called "parabolic trough collectors," the plants use U-shaped mirrors to focus sunlight on a central pipe, heating a fluid that is then pumped through turbines to. generate electricity. "
We are interested in learning more about heat rate and capacity factors of alternate electric energy sources.
Cramer's Stop Trading! Zombie Stocks (11/21/08)
www.cnbc.com/id/158402...
Black Swans and Greenwashing Solar and Wind
Result was that I discovered that the laws of thermodynamics, heat rate, and capacity factor are important in evaluating power generation technologies.
Alternate energy sources appear weak on BTUs IN required to produce BTUs OUT which are required to generate electricity.
1 kilowatt hour = 3412.14163 BTUs, I read on Internet.
Coal, oil, and natural gas are hard to beat for BTU content.
Big suprise to me was how many BTUs per pound coal contains. About 8,800BTU/pound, even for low-grade subbituminous Powder River Basin coal.
From what was learned, electric shortages in the US may appear within the next several years.
See FOIL 9.
home.comcast.net/~bpayne37/pnmelectric...
Blood from a Stone and Oil from Shale
Energy Returned On Energy Invested [EROEI] may be more pertinent the EROI.
BTUs IN required for how many BTUs out.
Candian tar [not oil] sands projects are criticized for the amount of natural gas used.
Here's some figures copied from www.theoildrum.com/nod....
EROEI % net Representative Source
100:1 99 Early oil
50:1 98 Mid 20th century
33:1 97 Late 20th century
25:1 96 Turn of 21st
20:1 95 Century oil
15:1 93 Oil now?
10:1 90
9:1 89 Deep water oil?
8:1 88
7:1 86 Tar sands?
6:1 83
5:1 80 Polar oil?
4:1 75
3:1 67 Biodiesel
2:1 50
1.5:1 33 Oil shale?
1.33:1 25 Ethanol best
1.25:1 20
1.1:1 9
1:1 0
1:.7 -43 Ethanol worst
Cramer's Stop Trading! It's a Horrible Market (11/18/08)
Cramer's statements on PRU, HIG, ... have scared retirees who get monthly annuity checks.
www.bloggingstocks.com.../
The Pickens Plan Changes Its Strategy