"You are neither right nor wrong because people agree with you."  - Benjamin Graham


Stingy Links
http://www.stingyinvestor.com/SI/articles/articlearchive.shtml

Couple learn the high price of easy credit
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/19/us/19debt.html?_r=1&hp=&oref=slogin&pagewanted=all
"Americans spent one in seven of their take-home dollars on debt payments
last year, up from one in nine in 1980. Experts say few consumers are able
to calculate the true costs of such payments."

Buffett reveals stakes in two railroads
http://money.cnn.com/2007/05/15/news/companies/bc.berkshire.reut/index.htm
"Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. on Tuesday revealed stakes in
Norfolk Southern Corp. and Union Pacific Corp. - five weeks after the
billionaire said he had invested in three railroad companies but wouldn't
disclose the names of two. In filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission, Berkshire also disclosed a 979,700 share stake in WellPoint Inc.,
the largest U.S. health insurer by membership. The stake was valued at
$79.5 million as of March 31, Berkshire said."

The poverty business
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_21/b4035001.htm
"In recent years, a range of businesses have made financing more readily
available to even the riskiest of borrowers. Greater access to credit has
put cars, computers, credit cards, and even homes within reach for many more
of the working poor. But this remaking of the marketplace for low-income
consumers has a dark side: Innovative and zealous firms have lured
unsophisticated shoppers by the hundreds of thousands into a thicket of debt from
which many never emerge."

The darker side of shareholder democracy
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2007/05/28/100034249/index.htm?postversion=2007051605
"In truth, shareholder democracy still isn't remotely like democracy as
most people think of it. New research shows how twisted it really is and
suggests why it could even be the source of the next big business scandal. The
research comes from Yair Listokin, an associate professor at Yale Law
School, who studied shareholder voting on proposals put forward by
management. Those are critical votes, concerning mostly executive compensation but
also merger approvals and other large matters. A majority vote is generally
required, and much is riding on the outcome. When Listokin collected data
on thousands of such votes, he discovered an amazing thing: On
hard-fought issues with significant shareholder opposition, management frequently
wins by tiny margins - just a couple of percentage points or even less - but
almost never loses by tiny margins. "

Where are the shareholders' mansions?
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=970413
"We study real estate purchases by major company CEOs, compiling a database
of the principal residences of nearly every top executive in the Standard
& Poor's 500 index. When a CEO buys real estate, future company
performance is inversely related to the CEO's liquidation of company shares and
options for financing the transaction. We also find that, regardless of the
source of finance, future company performance deteriorates when CEOs
acquire extremely large or costly mansions and estates. We therefore interpret
large home acquisitions as signals of CEO entrenchment. Our research also
provides useful insights for calibrating utility based models of executive
compensation and for understanding patterns of Veblenian conspicuous
consumption."

We don't quite know what we are talking about
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=970480
"Finance professionals, who are regularly exposed to notions of volatility,
seem to confuse mean absolute deviation with standard deviation, causing
an underestimation of 25% with theoretical Gaussian variables. In some fat
tailed markets the underestimation can be up to 90%. The mental
substitution of the two measures is consequential for decision making and the
perception of market variability."

Live from Omaha
http://www.fool.com/investing/value/2007/05/04/live-from-omaha-the-berkshire-hathaway-meeting.aspx
"This year's meeting takes place tomorrow in Omaha's Qwest Center, and
investors from all walks of life will gather to pepper Warren Buffett and his
business partner Charlie Munger with questions on a whole host of topics.
... If you can't make it to the big event, fear not! The Fool has sent
yours truly to the land of steaks and corn to join the other 20,000-plus
attendees and keep you abreast of the happenings. On Saturday, keep your eyes
on Fool.com to read my live coverage."

Patient Capital Q1 2007
http://www.patientcapital.com/newsletters/newsletter-2007-03.pdf
"Charts 2 and 3 show the Dividend Yields of the TSX and the S & P 500 over
long time frames. The dividend yield is our preferred aggregate market
valuation method. Cash dividends paid to shareholders are real; there are no
debates about methodology and quality of earnings when compared to the
Price/Earnings ratio nor relevance when discussing the market's Price/Book
ratio. As my accounting professor used to say "if it doesn't jingle it
doesn't count!""

Manager frets over the market
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/13/business/yourmoney/13klar.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1
"Earning 22 percent on your investments while holding half of your
portfolio in cash is no easy trick, but last year Seth A. Klarman pulled it off,
and it was not the first time."


S&P/TSX60 Value Screens
http://www.stingyinvestor.com/SI/strategy.shtml 

High Dividend Yield Stocks                     P/E P/B P/S P/C P/D Yield*
============================================== === === === === === ======
Biovail (BVF)                                   2   2   1   5   5    5
Bank of Montreal (BMO)                          5   4   3   3   5    5
BCE (BCE)                                       3   3   4   5   5    5
Transalta (TA)                                  1   4   3   4   5    5
TransCanada (TRP)                               3   4   2   3   5    5
National Bank of Canada (NA)                    5   4   4   3   5    5
Enbridge (ENB)                                  3   3   5   3   5    5
Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS)                       4   3   3   2   5    5
Royal Bank (RY)                                 4   2   3   2   5    5
Toronto Dominion Bank (TD)                      3   4   3   3   4    4
More Info: http://www.stingyinvestor.com/SI/strategy/dogs.shtml 

Value Ratio Stocks                             P/E P/B P/S P/C P/D  VR
============================================== === === === === === =====
Bank of Montreal (BMO)                          5   4   3   3   5   3.3
National Bank of Canada (NA)                    5   4   4   3   5   3.5
Teck Cominco Limited (TCK.B)                    5   5   4   5   4   3.6
Biovail (BVF)                                   2   2   1   5   5   4.3
BCE (BCE)                                       3   3   4   5   5   4.4
CIBC (CM)                                       5   3   3   2   4   4.5
Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS)                       4   3   3   2   5   4.6
Royal Bank (RY)                                 4   2   3   2   5   5.0
Toronto Dominion Bank (TD)                      3   4   3   3   4   5.2
TransCanada (TRP)                               3   4   2   3   5   5.4
More Info: http://www.stingyinvestor.com/SI/strategy/valueratio.shtml 

Graham Stocks                                  P/E P/B P/D   G$   dG$(%)
============================================== === === === ====== ======
Teck Cominco Limited (TCK.B)                    5   5   4   61.35  36.33
Magna Cl.A (MG.A)                               3   5   3   90.30   0.38
More Info: http://www.stingyinvestor.com/SI/strategy/graham.shtml 

*Notes: http://www.stingyinvestor.com/SI/strategy/notes.shtml 


Books for Stingy Investors

The Aggressive Conservative Investor
by Martin Whitman & Martin Shubik

Originally published in 1979, this value classic is once again in
bookstores with a new introduction but most of the tome remains
unchanged. Aside from providing a glimpse into investing in the
late 1970s, much of Whitman's basic moneymaking approach, which
focuses on balance sheet values, continues to apply today. A
great book for more seasoned investors but it might be a little
heavy for some.
Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/ASIN/0471768057/


Stock Research From Dan Hallett & Associates

The Rothery Report
http://www.stingyinvestor.com/SI/store.shtml 

The Rothery Report provides research on select deep-value stocks in
North America. Discover overlooked and undervalued stocks in quarterly
investment reports which provide detailed analysis of Canadian and
U.S. stocks.  Weekly email news and additional updates keep
subscribers informed about new opportunities and developments.

Rothery Report Performance (03/31/2001 to 03/31/2007)
  Average Capital Gain    Average Holding Period
    Sold Stocks: 75.5%      Sold Stocks: 2.1 Years
    All Stocks: 51.5%       All Stocks: 2.3 Years

Special Bonus Reports: Top Smaller Stocks 2007
http://www.stingyinvestor.com/SI/store/TopSmallStocks.shtml

Learn More
http://www.stingyinvestor.com/SI/store.shtml

Subscribe Today
http://www.stingyinvestor.com/SI/store/order.shtml 



If you'd like to suggest The Stingy News to a friend, please point them to:
http://www.stingyinvestor.com/cgi-bin/email.cgi

Please visit the StingyInvestor website at
http://www.stingyinvestor.com
To (un)subscribe please use our email centre at
http://www.stingyinvestor.com/cgi-bin/email.cgi
Email comments or questions to
info@stingyinvestor.com
Refer to legal & conflict of interest disclaimers at
http://www.stingyinvestor.com/SI/legal.shtml 

ISSN 1499-2795 Copyright Dan Hallett and Associates Inc., 2007.
All rights reserved. The securities mentioned in this report are not
appropriate for all investors. Consult your professional investment
advisor before making any investment decision.  While all reasonable
effort is made to ensure the accuracy of information and data
contained herein, accuracy can not be guaranteed. Past performance is
not a good predictor of future performance.  Results are not
guaranteed and we assume no liability whatsoever for any material
losses that may occur.  No compensation for suggesting particular
securities or financial advisors is solicited or accepted.  The
information in this newsletter, and in its related website, is not
intended to be, nor does it constitute, financial advice or
recommendations.  Investing in stocks can be risky and may result in
substantial losses.  A Dan Hallett and Associates Inc.(DH&A)
publication.  DH&A is registered as Investment Counsel in the province
of Ontario. DH&A, or related-parties may have an interest in the
securities mentioned.