@ VIC Leon Cooperman: Omega Advisors

Leon Cooperman presented on “The Investing Climate and All-Weather Stocks”

Climate:
* Thinks we have “leadership by crisis” in the US
* Thinks the Fed is not out of options and is being very creative
* Sees the rate of decline in housing falling
* S&P 500 (ex. financials) with a yield higher than 10 yr. notes is at 13%, an all-time high.
* Corporate America is very liquid, cash to debt at 30 yr. high.
* Expects dividends to grow rather than cash being used for stock repurchases.
* Companies have “pissed away cash” on buybacks the last year buying stock at high prices
* The average recession lasts 10 months and the S&P returns 30% from trough to end.
* Never could anyone have predicted AIG (AIG), Bear Sterns (BSC), Merrill Lynch (MER), Wachovia (WB) and Washington Mutual (WM) would be gone in the same year.
* “America is on sale”

Cooperman recommended the following inter-related companies:

Why?

What did Mr. Cooperman think the upside was?

On a personal note, Mr. Cooperman was a great speaker, who had the whole audience engaged and involved (as well as laughing out loud several times). His speech was one of the highlights of the conference.

This idea is one I am going to look into much closer as they have a great business in a very necessary field and sell at a huge discount AND, have unbelievable yields at current levels.

I think Mr. Cooperman, for me, had the most actionable idea of the conference..

Disclosure (“none” means no position):None……yet
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