DJIA: 8956.50 -76.73 (-0.85%) S&P 500: 1109.55 -11.84 (-1.06%) Nasdaq : 1798.71 -30.43 (-1.66%) Value Line ndx 973.04 -10.71 (-1.09%) 30-Year Bond 104 1/32 -6/32 5.84% Yield
In an industry undergoing rapid consolidation, consumer finance company Beneficial Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: BNL)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: BNL)") end if %> jumped $7 7/16 to $137 15/16 after announcing it will be acquired by competitor Household International <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: HI)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: HI)") end if %> in a pooling-of-interests transaction valued at $150 per Beneficial share, or a total of more than $8.6 billion. Beneficial shareholders will receive 1.0222 shares of Household common stock for each Beneficial share. Beneficial first announced it was exploring a possible sale or merger in mid-February in an effort to boost the value of its stock. The company has been dogged by shareholders because its stock has significantly underperformed those of other financial companies. In late January, the company reported a fourth quarter loss of $0.25 a share and said it anticipated slower growth this year. All this had set the stage for someone to buy the company. Household will have its hands full upgrading Beneficial's outdated computer system and centralizing its now scattered collection business.
Consumer products manufacturer Sara Lee Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: SLE)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: SLE)") end if %> served up a $15/16 gain to $62 15/16 after hitting a 52-week high of $63 9/16 during the day on announcing it will sell its international cut tobacco business to U.K. company Imperial Tobacco Group PLC for $1.08 billion in cash. The cash will go a long way toward carrying out the company's three-year plan announced last September to cut costs and sell some manufacturing businesses in an effort to sharpen the company's focus and raise $3 billion to buy back 15% of its outstanding shares. The idea is to divest itself of low-profit operations such as its mills and farm out some of its manufacturing work to other companies. The company would then focus on marketing name brands, including Sara Lee cakes, Coach handbags, Jimmy Dean sausages, Champion active wear, L'eggs panty hose, and the Wonderbra. Sara Lee is following the path paved by fellow packaged goods companies Heinz <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: HNZ)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: HNZ)") end if %> and Campbell Soup Co. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: CPB)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: CPB)") end if %>, which respectively stopped making tomato paste and raising chicken for soups. For its part, Sara Lee announced the sale of nine U.S. yarn and textile plants in January and last month bought a coffee roasting company and a lingerie business.
QUICK TAKES: Quick-service sandwich restaurant chain Schlotzsky's Inc. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: BUNZ)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: BUNZ)") end if %> recovered $2 1/4 to $17 1/4 after announcing late yesterday that it will restate 1997 results, reducing earnings to about $0.71 per share from $0.82... Splash Technology Holdings <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SPLH)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SPLH)") end if %> made a splash today, gaining $2 1/16 to $17 7/8 after announcing yesterday that Xerox Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: XRX)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: XRX)") end if %> has chosen the color print server company as its exclusive global partner in developing a Xerox-branded embedded controller for its next-generation color copier scheduled for release in 1999... Drug maker Eli Lilly & Co. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: LLY)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: LLY)") end if %> rose for a second day, adding $2 3/4 to $63 7/8 as good news on Zeneca Group's <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: ZEN)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: ZEN)") end if %> breast cancer drug tamoxifen boosted hopes for Lilly's chemically similar osteoporosis drug, Evista. Furman Selz upgraded its rating on the company to "buy" from "hold."
DuPont <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: DD)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: DD)") end if %> jumped $4 5/8 to $72 5/16 after the chemistry, energy, and life sciences company announced a reorganization of its chemicals and specialties businesses, making the "Life Sciences businesses, which include agricultural products, pharmaceuticals, and biotechnology... the centerpiece of DuPont in the future"... Graphite and carbon electrode manufacturer UCAR International <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: UCR)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: UCR)") end if %> gained $2 5/16 to $35 1/8 after announcing that it has entered into a plea agreement with the Department of Justice in which the company will plead guilty to a one-count charge that it violated antitrust laws in the sale of graphite electrodes. The company will pay a non-interest bearing fine of $110 million over a six-year period.
Dispatch Management Services <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: DMSC)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: DMSC)") end if %> climbed $1 1/4 to $21 1/8 after announcing it has agreed to acquire several other companies with aggregate revenues of about $15 million... CIENA Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CIEN)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CIEN)") end if %>, which makes systems that expand the capacity of fiber optic networks, rose $3 11/16 to $42 after announcing that Digital Teleport Inc. has awarded the company a $13 million contract to supply its MultiWave 4000 dense wavelength division multiplexing system for deployment in Digital Teleport's network... Consumer and commercial financial services company ContiFinancial Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: CFN)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: CFN)") end if %> added on $2 15/16 to $33 3/4 after announcing it has acquired a 75% interest in Keystone Mortgage Partners L.L.C., which will combine the management and resources of its recently acquired Keystone Capital Group and Keystone Mortgage Investments.
Cherokee Inc. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CHKE)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CHKE)") end if %> gained $1 3/8 to $9 13/16 after announcing a cash dividend of $0.50 per share to be distributed on May 1 to shareholders of record on the close of business on April 17... First Data Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: FDC)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: FDC)") end if %> gained $7/8 to $32 1/8 after Bear Stearns raised its rating on the data processing company to "buy" from "attractive." Analyst James Kissane said the company's stock has more or less hit bottom, and earnings for the remainder of the year should improve... Britain's Thorn PLC <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: THRNY)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: THRNY)") end if %> surged $4 to $14 7/8 after the consumer electronics and rental company said efforts to sell its U.S. stores have attracted a buyer who might acquire the whole company. The company is trying to sell its U.S. operations, which include 1,400 stores operating under the names Rent-A-Center, REMCO, and U Can-Rent.
Zero Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: ZRO)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: ZRO)") end if %>, which serves the system packaging, thermal management, and engineered case requirements of the telecommunications, instrumentation and data processing markets, jumped $2 1/2 to $31 3/8 following the announcement that it will be acquired by Applied Power <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: APW)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: APW)") end if %> in a pooling-of-interest transaction valued at $32.46 per share, or $427.4 million... Drug maker Nymox Pharmaceutical <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: NYMXF)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: NYMXF)") end if %> advanced $1 3/8 to $7 3/8 after announcing that an independent multicenter follow-up study of dementia patients has verified the accuracy of the Nymox AD7C-NTP test as an aid to physicians in the diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease... Music instrument and equipment retailer Guitar Center <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: GTRC)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: GTRC)") end if %> strummed up $1 1/4 to $26 1/4 after reporting Q1 sales of $85.2 million, 42.5% more than year-ago numbers. The sharp increase resulted from a successful promotional period, introduction of its Preferred Player credit card, and the effect of Easter falling into the Q2 versus Q1 in 1997.
Real estate investment and marketing company Kennedy-Wilson Inc. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: KWIC)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: KWIC)") end if %> jumped another $9 1/2 to $50 1/2 after yesterday announcing its exclusive contract to market a 3,000-acre parcel of land on Hawaii's Kohala Coast that previously sold for $45 million. Today the company announced it has acquired an office tower in West Los Angeles, which it plans to convert into a grade "A" building from grade "B"... Education software and services company SCT Education Systems, a division of Systems & Computer Technology <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SCTC)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SCTC)") end if %>, announced that its Q2 license fee revenue increased more than 90% and total revenue rose more than 50% over the same prior-year period. Systems & Computer Technology rose $3 31/32 to $45 1/8.
Software solutions company Peregrine Systems <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: PRGN)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: PRGN)") end if %> gained $1 11/16 to $20 3/16 after announcing the launch of its Connections Partner Alliance to team up with other technology companies to offer better service. The company recently signed such an agreement with IBB, part of IBM Germany Global Services.
Health and life insurer Conseco Inc. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: CNC)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: CNC)") end if %> dropped $8 3/8 to $49 3/8 after agreeing to acquire manufactured home mortgage and specialty finance company Green Tree Financial Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: GNT)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: GNT)") end if %> in a stock swap valued at $7.6 billion. Under the deal, each Green Tree share will be converted into 0.9165 of a share of Conseco stock. The purchase price values Green Tree at $52.93 per share, a staggering 83% premium to its closing price of $29 per share yesterday. Conseco expects the merger will be accretive to earnings "immediately" and will cement the company's "middle America" consumer franchise by opening up "new, higher-growth markets." The First Call mean EPS estimate for Green Tree's fiscal 1998 earnings is $2.47, a 15% increase over the $2.15 earned a year ago. However, CIBC Oppenheimer analyst Steven Eisman said on CNBC today that the company's 1997 earnings were closer to $1.00 to $1.10 per share adjusting earnings to an accrual accounting basis rather than Green Tree's preferred gain-on-sale method. If this is the case, then Conseco is actually buying Green Tree at around 50 times trailing earnings, rather than the 17.7 times EPS (before reserve additions) of $2.99 and 24.6 times net EPS at which the deal values Green Tree.
Printed circuit board manufacturer Hadco Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: HDCO)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: HDCO)") end if %> slumped $3 11/32 to $37 after pre-announcing fiscal Q2 EPS of $0.50, below the downwardly revised Street estimate of $0.82. The company expects the charges associated with its purchase of Continental Circuits and facilities consolidation will total $69 to $71 million. Additionally, the firm said Q2 bookings are lower than expected due to a slowdown in the broader electronics industry and customer product and inventory changes. Looking further down the road, the firm feels Q3 results could also be hurt by the slowdown, which has decreased its order activity, bringing backlog down to $124 million on April 3 from $133 million at the end of the fiscal 1997 first quarter. Though disappointed, analyst Keith Dunne of BA Robertson Stephens retained his "buy" rating on the stock since the company sells at less than 6 times enterprise value per share to estimated 1998 cash flow per share, a "significant discount to private acquisitions transacted over the last 18 months."
Several semiconductor manufacturers fell on apprehension today that chip sales may continue their current downtrend into the historically important summer months. Linear Technology Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: LLTC)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: LLTC)") end if %> lost $4 1/8 to $65 13/16, Semtech Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SMTC)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SMTC)") end if %> slid $1 1/4 to $23 1/8, Analog Devices <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: ADI)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: ADI)") end if %> slumped $1 1/4 to $33 11/16, National Semiconductor <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: NSM)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: NSM)") end if %> slipped $1 1/4 to $22 7/16, Integrated Circuit Systems <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ICST)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: ICST)") end if %> dropped $1 5/32 to $19 1/4, and Micrel Inc. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MCRL)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MCRL)") end if %> sank $2 7/16 to $35 1/4. BancAmerica Robertson Stephens analyst Arun Veerappan said in a research report that the Asian financial crisis, bloated inventories, and sagging PC sales could slow chip orders in the June quarter and "dampen the outlook somewhat." More bad news came from Motorola <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: MOT)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: MOT)") end if %>, which dropped $6 3/8 to $53 1/2 on announcing that fallout from Asia reduced demand for its processors and helped slash its fiscal Q1 EPS in half to $0.23 from $0.47 a year ago. The firm sees the trend continuing for "several more quarters," indicating more rough days ahead for chip makers.
QUICK CUTS: Software giant Microsoft <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MSFT)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: MSFT)") end if %> dropped $2 11/16 to $87 1/4 as Bloomberg News said the company will meet with antitrust officials at the Department of Justice in an attempt to avoid a new antitrust probe by the Feds, according to "people familiar with the situation"... Computer Learning Centers <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CLCX)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CLCX)") end if %> slid $4 5/8 to $13 after the computer and information technology education company was told by Illinois regulators to suspend its marketing and student enrollment activities at its Schaumberg campus in the state, pending a review of alleged "deficiencies" at the facility. Some of the alleged deficiencies cited are similar to the charges levied by the state's Attorney General on March 10, the firm said.
Manufacturing measurement devices maker CyberOptics Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CYBE)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: CYBE)") end if %> tanked $1 7/8 to $25 1/8 after being downgraded to "hold" from "buy" at Furman Selz... Restaurant operator Ruby Tuesday <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: RI)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: RI)") end if %> was stoned $2 1/16 to $33 11/16 after Wheat First Union lowered its rating on the stock to "hold" from "outperform"... Consumer services giant Cendant Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: CD)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: CD)") end if %> lost $2 to $39 3/8 after extending its tender offer for the outstanding shares of American Bankers Insurance Group <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: ABI)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: ABI)") end if %> until May 6 in order to complete the merger's approval process by regulators... Hotel and gaming company Hilton Hotels Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: HLT)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: HLT)") end if %> declined $1 to $31 5/8 after the SEC delayed the firm's sale of 24 million shares held in a charitable remainder trust controlled by its chairman, Barron Hilton, in order to review the registration statement for the offering.
Electronic audio systems maker Andrea Electronics Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(AMEX: AND)") else Response.Write("(AMEX: AND)") end if %> fell $1 3/8 to $23 1/2 after agreeing to buy Israeli digital signal processing (DSP) technology company Lamar Signal Processing Ltd. for $3 million in cash and 1.8 million shares... British drug maker Zeneca Group PLC <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: ZEN)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: ZEN)") end if %> was down $7 5/16 to $139 11/16 after rising 7.5% to $147 1/2 per share yesterday on a positive article relating to its breast cancer treatment tamoxifen. The company's American depositary shares are scheduled to split three-for-one after the close today... Competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC) GST Telecommunications <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(AMEX: GST)") else Response.Write("(AMEX: GST)") end if %> lost $1 1/16 to $14 7/8 as the company said it would jump off the American Stock Exchange and climb aboard the Nasdaq starting April 14 under the ticker "GSTX."
Senior citizen living facility operator Assisted Living Concepts <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(AMEX: ALF)") else Response.Write("(AMEX: ALF)") end if %> sank $1 1/4 to $20 1/8. The company said it will sell $75 million of 5-year convertible debentures to fund acquisitions and general corporate purposes... Semiconductor chemical mechanical planarization systems maker Integrated Process Equipment Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: IPEC)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: IPEC)") end if %> dropped $1 3/4 to $18 5/8 after saying it expects a fiscal Q3 loss of $0.13 to $0.15 per share due to the ongoing Asian financial crisis. The Street had been expecting earnings of $0.06 per share for the quarter... Salomon Smith Barney and Commercial Credit parent Travelers Group <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: TRV)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: TRV)") end if %> gave back $4 5/8 to $68 3/8 after a disgruntled shareholder sued the company to stop its recently announced merger with commercial bank Citicorp <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: CCI)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: CCI)") end if %> because she believes the deal does not properly value Travelers' shares. Citicorp also slipped $15 3/16 to $165 5/16.
Interactive entertainment software firm Acclaim Entertainment <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: AKLM)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: AKLM)") end if %> lost $15/32 to $6 25/32 after reporting a fiscal Q2 loss of $0.02 per share, which was not quite as bad as the I/B/E/S mean estimate of a $0.04 loss for the quarter... Sun Microsystems <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SUNW)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: SUNW)") end if %> was burned for $1 1/4 to $39 1/8 after Morgan Stanley Dean Witter downgraded the workstations, servers, and software company to "outperform" from "strong buy"... Protein Design Labs <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: PDLI)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: PDLI)") end if %> tanked $2 11/16 to $33 5/8 after the developer of protein-based anti-viral treatments was downgraded to "neutral" from "buy" at Lehman Brothers.
RJR Nabisco Holdings Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: RN)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: RN)") end if %>, maker of Oreo cookies and Camel cigarettes, slid $1/2 to $28 15/16 after the Supreme Court rejected an eleventh hour attempt by major tobacco companies to keep 39,000 potentially damaging documents out of court and ordered the files be turned over to authorities in Minnesota for use in its $1.7 billion smoking liability lawsuit. Philip Morris <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: MO)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: MO)") end if %> fell $1 13/16 to $37 9/16, Loews Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: LTR)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: LTR)") end if %> dropped $1 to $102 3/4, and UST Inc. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: UST)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: UST)") end if %> slipped $9/16 to $28 7/8.
FOOL
ON THE HILL
An Investment Opinion
by
Dale Wettlaufer
Citigroup Aftermath
In the wake of Travelers Group <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: TRV)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: TRV)") end if %> and Citicorp's <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: CCI)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: CCI)") end if %> agreement to merge and form the first universal bank in the U.S. since the Glass-Steagall Act broke up the House of Morgan and Citicorp's forerunner, National City Bank, market players are handicapping the possibilities of other transactions throughout the financial services sector.
One of the hottest stocks yesterday was that of Merrill Lynch & Co. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: MER)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: MER)") end if %>, which jumped $10 to $96 5/8 on a strong daylong move. Merrill has taken the stance that it will go it alone, but the market is hedging its bets on this one, as talk of a possible deal with Chase Manhattan <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: CMB)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: CMB)") end if %> had driven up Merrill shares from around $70 to the mid-$80s before the Citigroup announcement. Talk of these super-mergers begs the question, "What is a bank and what is a financial services company?"
In the introduction to his epic and prerequisite The Bankers, Martin Mayer quotes Citicorp CEO John Reed as saying he expected banking to evolve into nothing more than "a little bit of application code in a smart network." If that's a metaphor, it's quite a bummer to think of each lending officer and teller or even middle market rainmaker as just a piece of replicable code inside a global financial services network. On the literal level, of course, it's true. Consumer banking in the late 20th century is going toward comprehensive financial relationships with consumers. The better that fixed costs of doing business with each consumer, such as information discovery when originating a loan, can be spread over a larger revenue base or cut down drastically, the better profit model emerges from relationship banking.
How about relationships where credit risks are severely reduced, though? Is Charles Schwab <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: SCH)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: SCH)") end if %> a bank? If you have an asset management account with your broker, then it acts very much like a universal bank. You can write checks on an account where cash is swept daily into a money market fund; you can debit Visa transactions from the account; you can credit transactions against your account with a 30-day grace period on that same account; and you can do all of this with the backing of your financial assets and a 9% credit card rate to boot. That's because you're engaging in collateralized borrowing, where you don't put your assets in jeopardy if you're using the capabilities of the account sensibly. Rather than borrowing, if you pay off the credit balance in the grace period the broker or bank handling this account is really just providing transaction facilitation.
The bank or brokerage isn't exposing itself to counter-party, or credit, risk, which is healthy for its income statement and balance sheet, and you're not paying a high interest rate on your credit card. Acting as an intermediary, the bank or broker receives fees for cash advances at ATMs and merchant transaction/credit card processing and earns interest income on lending out the securities in the account. This business model is lighter than the capital intensive business of traditional banking. Merrill Lynch does much of this sort of lighter business, but weighs it down with some very capital intensive activities, which we'll look at in tomorrow's Fool on the Hill.
Please see the Motley Fool's Conference Calls page for call information and links to synopses.
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Yi-Hsin Chang (TMF Puck), a Fool
Brian Graney (TMF Panic), Fool Two
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