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Wells Fargo Stores Mortgage Revenue Ahead of Refinancing Boom’s End

Wells Fargo has been a big winner in the mortgage market lately, but the decision to forego third-quarter profits on home loans shows the bank knows the party won’t last. The country’s largest mortgage banker kept $9.8 billion worth of new conforming mortgages on its books this past quarter rather than selling them to investors. […]

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Citi shares climb after bank announces 11,000 job cuts

Citigroup is cutting costs like it’s going out of style. The third-biggest bank by assets announced it will chop 11,000 jobs, or about 4 percent of its workforce, today to boost profitability and scale-down the once-heralded financial supermarket. After former CEO Vikram Pandit left in mid-October, Citigroup (C) realigned focus toward operations and efficiency. Mike […]

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Why are Apple Shares Sliding?

Apple shares fell sharply Wednesday, leaving investors and traders searching for the reasons for the fall.  Shares in Apple (AAPL.O) closed down 6.43 percent, dragging down the NASDAQ index along with it. The NASDAQ Composite index closed down 0.06 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average index closed up 0.64 percent, while the S&P 500 index closed up 0.16 percent on Wednesday. Some […]

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BlackBerry U.S. Market Shares Drop; RIMM Plummets

It’s no news that Research in Motion [RIMM] and its BlackBerry platform has been struggling to compete against Apple’s iPhones and Google’s Androids. But according to a new report released by Kantar Worldpanel ComTech on Tuesday, BlackBerry has hit a new low. Its market shares have shrunk to 1.6 percent in the U.S., ultimately sending […]

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Analysts upgrade Facebook, stock reaches four-month high

Facebook has had a rough year. Since going public at $38 a share on May 18, the social networking company’s stock price has fallen about 12 points or 31 percent. But earlier this week, Facebook’s (FB) stock price rose more than 8 percent after some analysts upgraded their recommendations on the stock. By midday trading […]

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Oil, Gold Inch Down on Fiscal Cliff Worries

Oil and gold prices fell Wednesday as the fiscal cliff nears and a decision on Greek debt is still impending. Light crude (CLC1) was down 1 percent or 87 cents at $86.31 per barrel in mid-day trading. Crude oil futures (CLF13.NYM) for January delivery were down 1.20 percent at $86.13 a barrel on the New […]

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Costco Analysts Round-Up

Costco Wholesale Co. (COST) stock rose by 5.3 percent as of 1 p.m. Wednesday, after the bulk retailer announced that it will increase its dividend by $3 billion, or $7 a share, and same-sale store sales that beat analysts expectations. This is the second time Costco increased its dividend this year prior to the “fiscal […]

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Black Friday Retail Stock Gains Sputter

Black Friday is one of the most important shopping days of the year for retailers. But investors weren’t bowled over by the weekend’s sales. Stocks for many major retailers got a boost during shortened trading on Friday, but by Monday, most had pared their gains. Walmart was a big winner on Black Friday. The retailer […]

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Mortgage refis to help big banks

By Ken Christensen

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Explain it to me: Credit Rating Agencies and their role after the Crisis

On Monday, an Australian court held Standard & Poor’s liable for losses that one investor suffered because it rated toxic bonds as investment grade. Credit rating agencies like Standard and Poor’s are increasingly facing wrath from regulators, financial institutions and investors. The blame game started since 2008, when investors witnessed the worst in financial markets. […]

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