Global Investing Roundups Thursday, August 7th, 2008
Aug 7th, 2008 | By William Patalon III | Category: International InvestingFreddie Mac’s Grim Quarter; Sprint Swings to 2Q Loss; Time Warner Could Dump AOL; Lonmin Rejects Xstrata Offer; Ambac Posts Record Net Profit; Playboy Stripped of Earnings; Oil Prices Continue Slide
- Freddie Mac (FRE) yesterday (Wednesday) posted a second-quarter loss that was more than three-times larger than Wall Street expected, The Associated Press reported. Freddie lost $821 million, or $1.63 a share, for the quarter that ended June 30, compared with a profit of $729 million, or 96 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Revenue fell to $1.69 billion from $2.34 billion. Stock analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expected a loss of just 53 cents a share.
- Sprint Nextel Corp. (S) reported a $344 million loss yesterday (Wednesday), compared with a profit of $19 million a year ago. Revenue fell 11% to $9.06 billion. Sprint ended the quarter with just under 52 million customers, down from 54 million customers a year ago.
- Time Warner Inc.’s (TWX) second-quarter earnings fell 26% on declining subscriber fees at its AOL online unit and lower ad revenue at the Time publishing business, The Associated Press reported. Time Warner said net income fell to $792 million, or 22 cents per share, from $1.07 billion, or 28 cents per share, a year ago. The media conglomerate also took legal and tax steps that make it possible to split its AOL online business and sell it in parts.
- Mining giant Xstrata PLC (PINK: XSRAF) launched a $10 billion takeover bid for the world’s third-biggest platinum producer Lonmin PLC (OTC: LNMIY) yesterday (Wednesday), though Lonmin swiftly rejected the bid. “This is an opportunistic and entirely unwelcome attempt to acquire Lonmin at a price which undervalues its unique assets,” the company said.
- Bond insurer Ambac Financial Group Inc. (ABK) said yesterday (Wednesday) that net income rose to a record $823.1 million, or $2.80 a share, from $173 million, or $1.67 a share, a year earlier.
- Playboy Enterprises Inc. (PLA) yesterday (Wednesday) reported a second-quarter loss of $2.1 million, or 6 cents per share, compared to a profit of $1.9 million, or 6 cents per share, in the second quarter of 2007. Revenue dropped 14% to $73.4 million from $85.7 million in the year-ago period, The Associated Press reported.
- Oil prices fell below $118 a barrel yesterday (Wednesday) – $30 below their July 11 high. Light, sweet crude for September delivery settled 59 cents lower at $118.58 a barrel, after earlier falling as low as $117.11.
Source: Global Investing Roundups Thursday, August 7th, 2008
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William (Bill) Patalon III is the Managing Editor and Senior Research Analyst for Money Morning, and is also the Managing Editor for The Money Map Report. Patalon's work has appeared in Kiplinger's personal finance magazine, USA Today, and The South China Morning Post, among other publications.
