ValuePlays

Did not see this anywhere in the MSM (mainstream media) last week but Democratic Presidential advisers are taking positions with an anti Wal-Mart (WMT) group. Surprised?

Wakeupwalmart.com has hired Meghan Scott, who previously worked on John Edwards’s presidential campaign is expected to be named “deputy campaign manager” of the organization and will be assisted by Nick Baldick, Jeremy Van Ess and Richie Ros. “Who are those guys?” you ask. Baldick was the national campaign manager for John Edwards’s presidential campaign in 2003 and early 2004. Van Ess worked on the presidential campaigns of John Kerry and Edwards and was chief speechwriter for Harry Reid, the current Senate majority leader. Ross ran the 2005 California gubernatorial campaign of Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante. Apparently hiring people from losing political organizations is a recipe for success now? What no one from Jimmy Carter’s camp was available?

The organization, Wakeupwalmart, ironically was started by the United Food & Commercial Workers Union in 2005 when efforts by the Union to organize Wal-Mart workers failed. People who actually work at Wal-Mart have no affiliation with it. It oddly enough has no current plans to attempt to organize workers at Target (TGT), Kohl’s (KSS) or Macy’s (M) despite workers at those organizations faring no better (and in some areas worse) than Wal-Mart employees in term of wages or benefits.

It would seem their “outrage” at “suffering workers” is limited to those workers at politically appealing targets, not necessarily workers being taken advantage of. Are there any lower paid workers than those at fast food locations? Where are the commercials alerting us to the plight of those “disadvantaged” folks? I am sure those at Wakeup find it odd and it is apparently the reason that their efforts have failed when you consider a new Wal-Mart in Livonia, Michigan that will employee 530 workers recently had 5,000 people apply for these abhorrent, underpaid, undesirable, slave labor positions. Who is kidding who?

Said Ms. Scott, “We are going to fight to ensure that Wal-Mart becomes a responsible organization,” she said. If only she looked at her own organization first.

Do Democrats really wonder why they get the “anti-business” tag?? Do they really?

So, Barron’s did a piece on Mr. Cramer this weekend and the jist of it was that it was not a flattering portrayal. Some blogs have rushed to Cramer’s defense but before you buy into their reasoning, check their motives.

First, as is my standing policy I will not name folks but readers who do their homework can come to their own conclusions.

Now, Cramer. As I have said here countless times I am not a fan of his bi-polar trading style and when you constantly shout to people how great you are, you then become a rather loud target. That being said, when he talks about the market and it’s machinations, there are not very many folks better. I wish he would stick to that but it probably would not be very much of a show and rating are what CNBC wants. Also, he recent rant and then love fest with Bernanke over rates may go down and the most embarrassing episode in TV history, although I doubt he sees it.

The Barron’s piece. I think that Cramer’s show is purposely vague enough so that the picks cannot be tracked and if they are, there is enough ambiguity there allow to for a defense. Barron’s had a well written piece that did the best job I have seen to date tracking his picks. I will neither say they are right or wrong because of the reason I gave before, the show is just too ambiguous to really say. The piece was very well done though.

The defenders…

Some blogs have rushed to attack Barron’s and defend Cramer, why?

One defense is the conspiracy theory. Barron’s is owned by Dow Jones (DJ) which was just purchased by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. (NWS). The infantile theory says that with Murdoch starting a business news channel soon, (the rumor has been around for a few years now) Barron’s writers and editors, wanting to “get in good” with him attacked CNBC’s star. What, are they serious? Why make the attack now? Why not wait until the channel was actually announced and being launched? Any effect an attack would have now will dissipate and be forgotten by the time the channel actual debuts. Also, does anyone really think that Murdoch built the multi billion dollar empire he has by being duped by such transparent sucking up if that is what it was?

Do people out there honestly think Murdoch spent $5 billion for Dow Jones and does not know the players there? He just woke up one morning and decided to make a go of it because he had some extra cash in his wallet ? This whole line of thinking is really pretty sad and should eliminate whatever comes after it in a Cramer defense because if the writer of it actually believes it, any other reasoning they may have on the subject is probably equally as flawed. This reasoning is about as likely as Sam Giancana and the Chicago Mafia actually killing Kennedy. What is much more likely is that Cramer’s antics the past few weeks have people looking to knock him down a peg or two.

The “show is educational” defense. Yes it is. But, when you dance around and tell people to “buy” and “sell”, you now are giving investing advice and when those people are calling because they do not know the answer and are asking you for it, you cannot fall back on the “do your homework” excuse. If they could, they would not be calling you. What would you tell your broker (if you have one) if he said that to you? If you want it to be purely educational, stop telling people what to do.

So, why the defenders? Ass kissing, pure and simple. The most influential site out there today for driving traffic to your stock blog is James Altucher’s “Daily Blog Watch”. “Blog Watch” is part of….. drum roll please….James Cramer’s, The Street.com. A defense of Cramer is an attempt to “get you in good” with the folks there, get your blog listed there more and drive more traffic to you. Politics, Simple.

When it comes to the Cramer thing in the blogsphere, take everything written with a huge grain of salt. Much of it is very intertwined and what may appear as an honest defense of Cramer is more likely an attempt to defend a friend or endear oneself to an influential site.

Now, neither of those are bad things, but let’s try to be honest about our motives, can we? If we are doing either one of those, lets “disclose” it. If we have a relationship with Cramer or The Street.com or Mr. Altucher, tell people so they are able to put your “defense” in the proper framework.

If we disclose our stock affiliations when we write about them, ought we not disclose the other ones we write about?

Here are Friday’s results and Monday’s picks

MONDAY’S PICKS

Jeff Macke said Whole Foods Market (WFMI) is a buy. Open $44.30

Karen Finerman liked Trinity Industries (TRN) for the railroads. Open $33.27

Guy Adami preferred Deere & Co (DE).Open $124.61

Pete Najarian recommended Citigroup (C) as a big bank. Open $48.81

FRIDAY’S RESULTS

Jeff Macke likes General Motors (GM) because he thinks the stock has bottomed. Open $30.77 CLOSE $30.55 Loss $.22

Pete Najarian likes Thornburg Mortgage (TMA) and suggests it might be a takeover target. Open $12.38 CLOSE $15.04 Gain $2.66

Guy Adami prefers Network Appliance (NTAP) because he feels this name has performed well in a difficult tape. Open $25.27 CLOSE $25.98 Gain $.61

Eric Bolling recommends buying the Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) because he thinks the financials have bottomed. Open $33.15 CLOSE $34.50 Gain $1.25

Since my tracking began on 6/21 (1-1 means one up pick and one down pick and no results from my vacation week)

Adami= 16-12 Gain $27.15
Bolling= 10-11 Loss $14.01
John Najarian= 13-3 Gain $15.54
Macke= 20-16 Gain $3.24
Pete Najarian= 12-7 Gain $24.98
Seymore= 3-2 Loss $.49
Finerman= 2-2 Gain $.88
Gilbert= 1-0 Gain $.29

Here are the notable increases for the week ending Friday.

1- Tower Group (TWGP)= 100%

2- The Andersons (ANDE) = 64%

3- Martin Marietta (MLM)= 26%

4- Tiffany & Co. (TIF)= 25%

5- Parker Hanniffan (PH)= 21% (also announced a 3 for 2 stock split)

Here are the largest aggregate insider purchases by dollar amount for the week ending yesterday.

1- RPC (RES)= $19,236,000

2- Equity One (EQY)= $12,157,000

3- Lion Gate Entertainment (LGF)= $4,677,000

4- Panera Bread (PNRA)= $3,595,000

5- Chesapeake Energy (CHK)= $3,344,000

6- Barnes & Noble (BKS)= $3,264,000

230 point up days make for a very short 52 week low list. My condolences if you made this one.

XNL Xethanol Corp
FOOD Vaughan Foods Inc
PWX Providence and Worcester Railroad
ALOY Alloy Inc
ARII American Railcar Inds Inc
CLZR Candela Laser Corporation
CGM Congoleum Corporation
HSOA Home Solutions Amer Inc
HEPH Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals

Has Maria gotten a new prescription from her doctor?

Am I the only one wondering what has gotten in CNBC’s Maria Bartiromo? Almost overnight she has gone from serious newscaster to a giddy pre-pubescent teenager at her first dance giggling and wiggling all over the place. I keep waiting for Dylan Rattigan to backhand her and tell her to get her shit together.

The skeptic in me thinks she got wind of the poll that the NY Post (I think it was them) ran that showed she painfully lagged the much younger Erin Burnett in popularity on the network. It would seem the “Money Honey” was old news and viewers en-mass were drawn to Burnett’s more playful banter with her co-hosts. Bartiromo, who is no dummy and broke ground in this medium must have decided that was the way to go and now is about as irritating as a human being can be. She is either off her Ritalin or is taking something quite effective at putting a whole lot of jump in her step.

Trying to watch her as she hops all over the place is like watching Paula Abdul during American Idol and unfortunately for Bartiromo, she is just about as coherent. While not a huge fan of Ratigan, I actually feel sorry for him. When she gets going now he just gets a blank stare on his face like a Labrador being read “War and Peace” as he wonders who the hell he pissed off to get this choice assignment. He looks like he is almost wishing to get assaulted by a bystander so he can get off camera with her. Poor bastard.

The real shame of it all? There was nothing wrong with Bartiromo to begin with. I For one appreciated her style and enjoyed her segments. Now, I keep hoping for a blackout when she is on. I swear to god if I hear her giggle one more time at absolutely nothing I am going to have a stroke.

It is painful watching someone fight the inevitable aging we all go through. she is not handling this well at all. Maria, go back to what you did before.

At least then you had your dignity…

How did the FTC lose this one? How?

First, bringing the suit to stop the Whole Food (WFMI) and Wild Oats (OATS) merger on “anti-trust” grounds was moronic especially when you consider the #1 “organic food” seller in the US after the merger is complete will not be the combined entity but will still be Wal-Mart (WMT). But, they filed it anyway so let’s go from there.

Then we had Whole Foods CEO John Mackey in what can only be described as an acid induced rant saying in an email to his board that the merger would help Whole Foods eliminate “almost forever” the threat that a rival could enter the organic space. He then went on to say the merger would allow for Whole Foods increase prices to customers and pressure suppliers (local farms) to lower costs. they email went even further to say that buying Wild Oats would help the company avoid “nasty price wars” in a number of markets and the deal would help deter a big chain such as Kroger from creating a competing natural-foods powerhouse.

Then, as if that was not enough. Mackey decided to join a Yahoo message board and continue the rants. He trashed Wild Oats in an attempt to lower it’s share price before the merger was announced. The posts are currently under investigation by the SEC and I would be suprised if he was not formally admonished for them.

In short, we have the CEO of a company in internal emails saying a proposed merger would help them raise consumer prices, pressure suppliers and eliminate potential competition. Isn’t that exactly what the FTC had to prove? How could they lose this one? To top it off, the FTC itself is currently under investigation because internal documents they released that should have had redacted information about Whole Foods “trade secrets” turn out to be, well, not redacted.

Not only will the FTC lose a case that Mackey handed them on a silver platter but they will end up getting sued and lose again in the process.

Whoever lead the charge on this one should be encouraged “to pursue other opportunities”.

Bernanke moved today and unlike the chorus of calls for a Fed Funds Rate cut we have heard, he moved both to calm markets and keep rates steady.

Saying, “Financial market conditions have deteriorated, and tighter credit conditions and increased uncertainty have the potential to restrain economic growth going forward. In these circumstances, although recent data suggest that the economy has continued to expand at a moderate pace, the Federal Open Market Committee judges that the downside risks to growth have increased appreciably. The Committee is monitoring the situation and is prepared to act as needed to mitigate the adverse effects on the economy arising from the disruptions in financial markets.”

Then they said “To promote the restoration of orderly conditions in financial markets, the Federal Reserve Board approved temporary changes to its primary credit discount window facility. The Board approved a 50 basis point reduction in the primary credit rate to 5-3/4 percent, to narrow the spread between the primary credit rate and the Federal Open Market Committee’s target federal funds rate to 50 basis points. The Board is also announcing a change to the Reserve Banks’ usual practices to allow the provision of term financing for as long as 30 days, renewable by the borrower. These changes will remain in place until the Federal Reserve determines that market liquidity has improved materially. These changes are designed to provide depositories with greater assurance about the cost and availability of funding. The Federal Reserve will continue to accept a broad range of collateral for discount window loans, including home mortgages and related assets. Existing collateral margins will be maintained.”

What didn’t they do? Lower the Fed target rate so Bernanke keep pressure on inflation. What he DID do was lower the borrowing rate for banks so that currently tight credit markets will loosen. Lenders like Washington Mutual (WM), Countrywide (CFC) and Thornburg Mortgage (TMA) will now have the systemic liquidity they need to continue loaning and functioning.

The move is also significant because it signals to the market that the Fed will not bail out poor lending practices but will prevent the market from seizing due to it and will protect the innocent from being swept away by the turmoil.

Now there are plenty of folks out there saying “he listened to us and lowered rates” but the reality is just the opposite. Nobody called for this particular move and if anything, those folks calling for Bernanke to resist a Fed Funds rate cut are in the correct camp. He did not give in the the market and this is good. What is even better is that the market now can be assured he will move to prevent the “crash” everyone feared was inevitable but will not, and this is even more important, subsidize idiocy.

I have been saying since he was appointed based on his past statements and actions that he will go down ad the best Fed leader of my generation. Today’s action makes that case even stronger.

UPGRADES

CSK Auto CAO Kevin Dann Hold » Buy
Washington Mutual WM Punk, Ziegel & Co Mkt Perform » Buy
Ultrapertol ULTR UBS Neutral » Buy
Network Appliance NTAP AG Edwards Hold » Buy
Network Appliance NTAP Caris & Company Above Average » Buy
Navigant Consult NCI Piper Jaffray Market Perform » Outperform
Ansoft ANST Boenning & Scattergood Market Perform » Market Outperform
Terra Industries TRA Matrix Research Hold » Strong Buy

DOWNGRADES

Woodward Governor WGOV Matrix Research Buy » Hold
Acusphere ACUS Susquehanna Financial Positive » Neutral
Dover Downs Gaming DDE KeyBanc Capital Mkts / McDonald Buy » Hold
Meruelo Maddux MMPI UBS Neutral » Sell