In the Air But Grounded

Last December 28 AirAsia Flight 8501 left Surabaya in Indonesia bound for Singapore with 162 passengers and crew on board. An hour from takeoff the plane disappeared from radar, and five days later searchers found the wreck in the Java Sea. There were no survivors....

Men’s Wearhouse Plays Defense

On September 18, 2013 men’s clothing retailer Jos. A. Bank (ticker JOSB) made a $2.3 billion unsolicited offer to acquire larger rival Men’s Wearhouse (ticker MW). JOSB was seeking to take advantage of MW during a vulnerable time for the company. The MW Board of...

5 New Year’s Resolutions for Credit Analysts

1) I will think like an equity analyst.  In order to properly assess the credit risk of a company, you must understand what management is thinking.  Since management works for the owners of the company, not its creditors, you must think like an owner.  Is there a...

My Favorite Bank Ethics Story

The Background: I was a vice president at a global bank, responsible for a diverse group of clients in North America.  One of my clients was considering a major reorganization of its business and restructuring of its balance sheet, and it hired my bank as financial...

Decaffeinating Green Mountain

Last October, David Einhorn, head of Greenlight Capital, a hedge fund famous for taking short positions in Lehman Brothers’ shares before Lehman failed, attacked Green Mountain Coffee Roasters’ in a presentation at an investors’ conference. It was a...