Diogenes Decisions

I lost .19 on OTEX...but I'm still keeping it on watch and may buy again soon...thx...Doug

Not what I wanted to read, but I am sure you will make it up.

[IIC]

I hope OTEX works out for you (as it would then work out for me, too).
As for the link, I am currently using Dealbook 360’s platform etc and at the moment long GBP/SEK…and this is outrageous and sadly kinda fun.

I lost .19 on OTEX...but I'm still keeping it on watch and may buy again soon...thx...Doug

I hope OTEX works out for you (as it would then work out for me, too).
As for the link, I am currently using Dealbook 360’s platform etc and at the moment long GBP/SEK…and this is outrageous and sadly kinda fun.

[IIC]

Anyone have any interesting ideas about fx markets?

Not really...But I heard about this FWIW...

http://fxmarketspace.com/

[IIC]

Short term screen says:

OTEX
TNB
AVX


Longer term screen says:

PCCC
MS
TWX.

Anyone have any interesting ideas about fx markets?

Like that OTEX dio...would be nice to see a power move through 18 and a gap fill...Doug(IIC)

Short term screen says:

OTEX
TNB
AVX


Longer term screen says:

PCCC
MS
TWX.

Anyone have any interesting ideas about fx markets?

This has historically been an iffy PC direct seller that was for a long time based in southern New Hampshire, though probably most of their operations happen elsewhere. That is not a great (i.e., high profit margin) business anymore. I think I read this month that they had acquired a particular firm that seems to have juice selling into large corporate accounts. But that "juice" can only go so far and so long given the nature of the business. I watched that chart develop, but I don't trust it given the underlying business. There is obviously something more to the story that I don't know about, or maybe the market thinks it knows something and is about to get its head handed to it.

(snip)

What I gather from Value Line and MarketGrader.com is that PCCC has some growth potential in the short term (more so VL on this part) and is taking in some Government Contracts.

Ok, now back to my normal weekly scan:

BDC
TWX
HVT
PCCC
XRX
RFMD

PCCC - what gives?

This has historically been an iffy PC direct seller that was for a long time based in southern New Hampshire, though probably most of their operations happen elsewhere. That is not a great (i.e., high profit margin) business anymore. I think I read this month that they had acquired a particular firm that seems to have juice selling into large corporate accounts. But that "juice" can only go so far and so long given the nature of the business. I watched that chart develop, but I don't trust it given the underlying business. There is obviously something more to the story that I don't know about, or maybe the market thinks it knows something and is about to get its head handed to it.

Here is the article that I had read:

http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/060727/20060727005235.html

They had acquired Amherst Technologies in October 2005, which has since juiced up their sales. But, I mean, they're a freaking PC wholesaler!

Vegas wages - the high and the low

There are many low-wage jobs in Vegas, to be sure. And there is a surplus of cheap labor to be found here. But plenty of hotel and casino jobs, those that are "customer facing" and driven by tips, are fought over and actually have waiting lists (valet at the Mirage). See this article about the recent controversy at the Wynn resort, where blackjack dealers can make $100k per year from all the tips. The company is now requiring that the dealers "share" 20% with their supervisors. The casinos don't understand that there are plenty of enterprises in other cities where the managers make less than those they supervise.

http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2006/Sep-22-Fri-2006/business/9802481.html

This controversy is another sign that the consolidation of the casino business along the Strip is having ever more consequences. Imagine being a toilet paper sales rep trying to sell into the MGM Mirage corporation? They control about 40% of the rooms on the Strip. How many palms get greased to get that account?

When I first visited Vegas, I was impressed at how hard most of the hospitality-related workers are working. Just like what you find in Manhattan.

A couple of picks looking back over the week:

BEAS
AEOS

Over a month:

IIVI


Edit: This is not my normal scan.

PCCC is up more than 35% in one month, still going strong and near its high from the beginning of 2005. (My entry was $7.14). Any guesses on how much higher it's headed? Resistance around $12-13?

Wow, nice gain for you.

I do not consider resistance etc, so maybe one of the t.a. focused fellows have something to say about resistance etc?

[eliaskane]

Some picks looking back over the past week:

RFMD
PCCC
HD

PCCC is up more than 35% in one month, still going strong and near its high from the beginning of 2005. (My entry was $7.14). Any guesses on how much higher it's headed? Resistance around $12-13?

[IIC]

Strange that you would say that Park...Although as I recall you are from the East Coast...But Las Vegas is the "Land of Screwing Over The Low Wage Worker"

I just looked at Salary.com...The median base pay for a blackjack dealer in Las Vegas is $14,294yr...$6.85hr...w/ bonuses it says $29,767...seems like a pretty hard job for that kinda dough to me.

Seems like a trade off in Nevada...Don't pay the majority much of anything and we won't make them pay State taxes. Although I'd imagine that a lot of workers end up giving much of their income back to the casinos anyway after hours.

Even Casino Host's median is only $47,000...although I'd imagine Dave's is up in the 99th percentile

From: Energy Economist: Petroleum Report - September 14, 2006

"Petroleum Report


If you were writing headlines this week they would start with "falling Prices" and be followed by something like this:

* Refineries back to normal operation
* Gasoline shortage in switch to ethanol fails to materialize
* Iranian oil interruption highly unlikely
* Petroleum stocks well above normal

None of the above could be considered anything but bearish and all of them are true. Actually, they have been true for months, but the market is finally realizing that is the case. Perception drives the market.

It is typical for refinery utilization to drop in September or October for Fall maintenance. Refiners often use the lower demand periods of Fall and early Spring to minimize the stocks they need to maintain supply to the end users while the plants are down. This year could see fewer refiners doing major maintenance because many Gulf refiners did extensive repair following the hurricanes, others had to reconfigure their refineries to produce the RBOB for blending with ethanol and the lower sulfur diesel. If this happens it could result in even lower margins for refiners.

For the next few months the year-over-year comparisons and even comparisons to the five year averages will tend to overstate the this year's activity. Hurricanes in 2004 and 2005 resulted in much lower than normal levels of refinery utilization. When looking at the data it might be better to emphasize stocks relative to the high end of the five year range."