SmallCap

Paychex, ADP - Payroll companies Ebay - did you mention them already

Pot, meet Kettle, Kettle, meet pot.

I started watching it but never got to the end of it, I woke up with my face on my keyboard. I am sure it was an interesting video though. thanks for posting it. SmallCap

I am reminded of an old proverb Nothing is as bad as it first appears nor are things ever as good as they first seem. But human emotions will still have their rollercoaster rides aided by some selling fear and others selling hope First few days of reports on 9/11 they gave numbers of the casualties in the range of 6-10K I agree I both expect and hope that this won't be quite the disaster that the media is making it out to be.

Seems like a very interesting strategy. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-01/mason-hawkins-swaps-dell-shares-for-options-to-add-leverage-to-longleaf.html?cmpid=yhoo SmallCap

One of my checklists on companies that I buy into is the question of would I like to buy the entire company at this price and be stuck with it for the next 10-20 years. So I thought it would be an interesting topic to think about what companies would you most like to buy up all the shares at the current price thereby taking the company private totally owned by you. A couple of points on how you chose: 1. don't pick one because of the market cap, I know you would love to buy all of apple but what I am looking for are the companies that you think are the most undervalued and or poorly managed and I would expect most of them to be in the small cap area. 2. I know it is fantasy to think of taking them private at the current price but that is why it is a question on a message board. 3. These could be companies that you would like to take with current management in place or it could be a company that you feel you could add a great deal of value to it. The kind of companies I am looking for is companies like Sees Candies which which although it hardly moves the needle now has been one of the most profitable companies in all of WEB's portfolio as opposed to Burlington northern which is a huge acquisition and has been hugely profitable but at a lower ROI. So dream away what company would you like to own?

has it ever been that clear that at some point in time you could definitively say that right now we are in a hard market? The reason I ask is because I have heard the term thrown around and some have claimed that we are in a hard market now. The term Hard market and soft market are beginning to sound like the terms overvalued market and undervalued market where there are lots of opinions but it is never clear except in retrospect. Will it be clear and apparent and not just an opinion when we are in a hard vs soft market and will it be able to be recognized at the time or only in retrospect? Hard and soft are relative terms just like over and undervalued.

Thanks for posting this. I have never been completely comfortable with his suggested solutions but his analysis of the situation is very enlightening.

maybe it is just me and my lack of understanding but I don't understand the question.

That makes sense, I guess bmichaud uses his portable device a lot. by the way does anyone know of a good application for a android phone for accessing this website where I wouldn't have to use the browser?

Ok makes sense, except that I can't find the cell phone icon in that list.

I think this was a great question that deserves some thought I have been asking the same type of question when it comes to green technology. I have no interest in investing in the companies that make green technologies because I have no idea and am not smart enough to figure out which ones are the best and will come out on top but so far I haven't been smart enough to figure out what companies and business models will flourish if all the green tech comes into being. SmallCap

I have been seeing the little cell phone icon showing up on different posts in particular posts from bmichaud and wondered what it meant?

Remember that each state has completely different rules about how the entire process is done. be careful taking anyones word for how it is done because while it may be the case in their state the state that you buy them in is completely different. also just so you know only about 20 states do take liens at all each with different processes, time frames and rates. So chose your state and learn about that one.

I have invested in them in the past and very profitably. unfortunately my home state of Michigan no longer sells them. Best book on the topic is the 16 % solution by moskowitz. the appendix information in the back of the book is dated but you can update that yourself. If you can't find the book let me know and I will let you borrow mine. SmallCap

Have any of you looked into Covestor? Do any of you have a portfolio out there? Do you follow (with money or without) any portfolios out there? What are your thoughts on the model? SmallCap

I would really like some advice. I am a smalltime investor who invests in interesting situations and smallcap stocks where I study them for years. But I have a father in law who looks to me for his financial advice. I manage his small investment accounts for him. but here is the problem, he is a Gov Employee and his largest account is in the gov thrift program which is like a 401K, you get to chose your mix of investments. the fund options are as follows C - the S&P 500 S - the Russel 2000 I - a mainstream international stock index that I can't remember right now. B - Corporate bond fund following the general index G - Government bond fund and that is it. From what I know you can't even keep it none invested or invested in cash, your money must be in a combination of those funds. He has plans to retire in less then 5 years. Now I hate this type of thing because I never liked investing in the "Market" I always liked investing in undervalued things that I could understand. So my question involves macro predictions about the direction of the market and I hate even saying those words. So please feel free help me out and voice your opinion on this topic and I will take every suggestion with a grain of salt. I have reservations about any of the stock funds because of the incredible bull market that we have ridden on and I am finding less and less undervalued items in that market and am beginning to feel that the market as a whole is over valued. Also do the the closeness of his retirement I am worried about the volatility. So I don't like the stock funds. The bond funds on the other hand, their yields are nothing even remotely exciting. and while I can't predict the movement of interest rates I don't see them dropping much more. I see them staying where they are at unexciting levels or going up which would hit the bond funds really badly. Never in my investing career have I ever disliked bond funds more then I do now. So there is my quandary, where should I put his money? Please voice your opinion. SmallCap

Hey look, the sun rose in the East!

I know that the value is there in pre 1982 pennies and in nickels but the problem is how to get the value out. what is the catalyst that will extract the value out of this opportunity, or is it a very obvious and interesting value trap?

This acquisition was originally talked about in this thread. http://cornerofberkshireandfairfax.ca/forum/index.php?topic=3230.0 Cheers

Target is my wifes favorite store. She just loves shopping there. She isn't really into Walmart but loves Target. You can look forward to some good stores up there.

That was a beautiful letter, thanks for posting it. A very entertaining read and I don't think they are exaggerating at all.

Good topic and shold be a good discution. just one small point based on one of your statements. This is why I am not sure that there will ever be a significant opportunity in Muni bonds. Or you might say that the real opportunity will be if the federal government decides not to bail them out. Then you might have a great opportunity.

Eric, what kind of rental income could you get on a 323K home in HH and do you have any idea what the RE taxes and insurance would be? SmallCap

Nerds Rule!!!! Merry Christmas All.