"In the financial world it tends to be misleading to state, "There
is no free lunch." Rather the more meaningful comment is,
"Somebody has to pay for lunch.""  - Martin Whitman


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

Make Benjamin Graham proud
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20070601.RNUMBERCRUNCH01/TPStory/Business
"Today we'll get some help from Bob Tattersall, executive vice-president of
Howson Tattersall Investment Counsel, and Benjamin Graham, the dean of
value investing. Mr. Tattersall suggests a value screen based on what Mr.
Graham calls net current asset value. Mr. Graham defined this screen as
working capital minus all obligations, including preferred stock."

Turtles in Omaha
http://www.leggmason.com/funds/knowledge/mauboussin/TurtlesOmaha.pdf
"Most of us frame the success or failure of a financial proposition in
terms of the price. For instance, if you buy a stock at $30, any price above
that level is mentally successful; any price below it is mentally
unsuccessful. What investors often fail to consider is that change in wealth is not
a function of how often you're right, it's a function of how much money
you make when you're right versus how much you lose when you're wrong. You
need to consider both frequency and magnitude to understand investment
results. Faith illustrates this point by sharing 20 years of results for a
trading system. Over that time span, the system generated about 5,600
trades, or around 250 a year. Of those trades, a shade over two-thirds lost
money, making the success ratio less than one-third. But the winning trades
earned 2.2 times the losing trades on average, netting a substantial overall
profit."

It feels good to be good
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/27/AR2007052701056.html
"The results were showing that when the volunteers placed the interests of
others before their own, the generosity activated a primitive part of the
brain that usually lights up in response to food or sex. Altruism, the
experiment suggested, was not a superior moral faculty that suppresses basic
selfish urges but rather was basic to the brain, hard-wired and
pleasurable."

Value investors zig when others zag
http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/financialpost/story.html?id=97048345-a206-4943-9c37-9e5dadf8bd33
"Value investing should be a breeze, in theory. "We like to buy a dollar
for 50c," is the rallying cry of this breed, by which they mean they like to
buy undervalued assets before the market catches on to the deals and
drives them back up to a buck or, ideally, a lot more. Trouble is, it is not
easy to spot these undervalued dollars because they are not exactly
advertised like products on a Wal-Mart shelf. Benjamin Graham, author of The
Intelligent Investor, widely considered the Bible of value investing, knew a
50c dollar when he saw one."

Sidekick has sage advice of his own
http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/financialpost/story.html?id=ad18b806-6c2e-4a17-bd3f-7dea32ee96ba
"There are two great shareholder meetings in May: the love-in at Omaha at
which Warren Buffett, the legendary head of Berkshire Hathaway Inc.,
entertains and explains his investment philosophy; and a session in Pasadena,
Calif., at which Charlie Munger, Buffett's 83-year old sidekick (he is
vice-chairman at Berkshire), regales the troops from Wesco Financial Corp., an
80.1%-owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway. Munger is Wesco's chairman."

Top 20 questions from 2007's meeting
http://www.jvbruni.com/Berkshire%202007annualmeeting.pdf
"The measurement of volatility: it's nice, it's mathematical, and wrong.
Volatility is not risk. Those who have written about risk don't know how to
measure risk. Past volatility does not measure risk. When farm prices
crashed, [farm price] volatility went up, but a farm priced at $600 per acre
that was formerly $2,000 per acre isn't riskier because it's more volatile.
[Measures like] beta let people who teach finance use the math they've
learned. That's nonsense. Risk comes from not knowing what you're doing.
Dexter Shoes was a terrible mistake. I was wrong about the business, but not
because shoe prices were volatile. If you understand the business you own,
you're not taking risk. Volatility is useful for people who want a career
in teaching. I cannot recall a case where we lost a lot of money due to
volatility. The whole concept of volatility as a measure of risk has
developed in my lifetime and isn't any use to us."

Fairfax braces for meltdown
http://www.thestar.com/columnists/article/217898
"Prem Watsa says investors around the world are not being paid enough for
the inherent risk in stocks, bonds and real estate. The chair of Fairfax
Financial Holdings Ltd. is not crying poor for successful capitalists like
himself, though. He is sounding a warning call to investors, big and small.
The renowned but recently embattled sleuth of under-valued assets . an
acolyte of Depression-era investment theorist Benjamin Graham . has acted on
his concern to protect his stable of general insurance and re-insurance
companies."


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
National Bank of Canada (NA)                    5   4   4   3   5    5
Bank of Montreal (BMO)                          4   4   3   3   5    5
BCE (BCE)                                       3   3   3   5   5    5
Transalta (TA)                                  1   4   3   4   5    5
TransCanada (TRP)                               3   4   2   4   5    5
Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS)                       4   3   3   2   5    5
Enbridge (ENB)                                  3   3   5   3   5    5
Royal Bank (RY)                                 4   2   3   2   5    5
CIBC (CM)                                       5   3   4   2   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
============================================== === === === === === =====
National Bank of Canada (NA)                    5   4   4   3   5   2.9
Teck Cominco Limited (TCK.B)                    5   5   4   5   4   3.7
Bank of Montreal (BMO)                          4   4   3   3   5   3.8
Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS)                       4   3   3   2   5   4.1
CIBC (CM)                                       5   3   4   2   4   4.2
Biovail (BVF)                                   2   2   1   5   5   4.4
Royal Bank (RY)                                 4   2   3   2   5   4.6
BCE (BCE)                                       3   3   3   5   5   4.7
TransCanada (TRP)                               3   4   2   4   5   5.2
Sun Life (SLF)                                  4   5   4   1   4   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   61.32  35.46
Lundin Mining Corporation (LUN)                 5   5   0   14.02   6.65
More Info: http://www.stingyinvestor.com/SI/strategy/graham.shtml 

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


Books for Stingy Investors

What Works On Wall Street
by James O'Shaughnessy

Historical stock data is what O'Shaughnessy's book is all about.
If you want to know how straightforward stock selection
techniques have done, pick up What Works on Wall Street and you'll find
out. O'Shaughnessy's book is a must have reference for any
serious student of the market.
Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/ASIN/0071452257/


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 



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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.