Active Investor Update

Kass: Recent Done Deals Are Dumb Deals

 

These blog posts originally appeared on RealMoney Silver on Oct. 2.

M&A Environment Still a Bit Polluted -- 7:56 a.m. EDT

Yesterday, I underscored the reality of the First Data loan sale by Credit Suisse (CS) and Citigroup (C).

Yesterday, Nokia (NOK) agreed to acquire Navteq (NVT). Today, Toronto-Dominion (TD) has agreed to acquire Commerce Bank (CBH).

Importantly, the Navteq acquisition was actually a takeunder (a takeover where the target is offered a price less than its current share price), and the Commerce acquisition was agreed to at only a modest premium.

Meanwhile, both the Harman (HAR) and Acxiom (ACXM) deals have been called off. Nevertheless, the media is waxing enthusiastically that the deal game is back.

By contrast, it seems to me that these data points indicate a market that is being priced for perfection and a leveraged loan market that is still problematic.

But that's me.


Citigroup Sees Weakness in PC Space -- 10:27 a.m. EDT

Citigroup (C) has an interesting comment this morning on personal computer components.

The brokerage sees some potentially weak data for the fourth quarter with Hewlett-Packard (HPQ), Dell (DELL) and Acer canceling some orders. As well, Taiwan notebook shipment forecasts are below normal seasonality, with order books looking soft for the holiday selling season.

I had previously mentioned that August semiconductor equipment orders were weak in Japan.


Is Relative Value at Home or Abroad? -- 9:23 a.m. EDT

Here is an interesting table, courtesy of John Mauldin, underscoring the lagging performance of the non-export, domestic, housing-centric sectors vis-à-vis the weak-dollar, export beneficiaries.

Source: John Mauldin's "Outside the Box"

According to the savvy Mauldin, the export beneficiaries are roughly 60% weighted in the S&P 500.

One has to wonder where the relative value lies today given the almost universal view that large-cap, weak-dollar plays have so conspicuously outperformed.

>To order reprints of this article, click here: Reprints

At time of publication, Kass and/or his funds were short Hewlett-Packard, although holdings can change at any time.

Doug Kass is founder and president of Seabreeze Partners Management, Inc., and the general partner and investment manager of Seabreeze Partners Short LP and Seabreeze Partners Short Offshore Fund, Ltd.

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