Paul Ausick

Recent Articles

Merger Growing in the Fertilizer Business? (MOS, POT, SYT, MON, IPI, BHP, MOO)

By Paul Ausick

Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS) is reported to be in talks with Mexico's Grupo Fertinal SA de CV about acquiring the Mexican fertilizer maker. The deal could be worth as much as $1 billion. Agriculture stocks including Potash Corp. (NYSE: POT), Syngenta AG (NYSE: SYT), Monsanto Corp. (NYSE: MON) and Intrepid Potash, Inc. (NYSE: IPI) are all down dramatically from the commodity boom of 2008, and the fertilizer sector appears to be searching for a new bottom. This means mergers or buyouts could be in the works for the ag stocks and fertilizer sector.

Afghanistan Mineral Deposits Said to be Worth $1 Trillion (FCX, RTP, NEM, VALE, BBL)

By Paul Ausick

According to The New York Times, the US has "discovered nearly $1 trillion in untapped mineral deposits in Afghanistan." These mining resources include metals such as copper and gold, as well as lithium which is used in cell phones, laptops and hybrid vehicle batteries. The mining find in Afghanistan is huge, and is being closely watched by the biggest names in mining like Freeport McMoRan (FCX), Rio Tinto (RTP), Newmont (NEM), Vale (VALE) and BHP Billiton (BHP).

Dell Reserves $100 Million to Settle SEC Case (DELL, INTC, AMD)

By Paul Ausick

After the markets closed yesterday, Dell Computer Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) announced that the company had recorded a $100 million liability in its first fiscal quarter of 2011, ended April 30, 2010, "to establish a reserve for the potential settlement by the company of the previously reported SEC investigation." The investigation began in 2005 and is believed to be tied to an investigation into anti-competitive practices by Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC). The SEC action against Intel alleges that the chip maker broke anti-trust laws by offering large cash rebates to computer makers that used its processors. The alleged rebates were supposedly paid to stem computer maker purchases of chips from Intel rival Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE: AMD).

Obama Invites BP Chairman Svanberg to the Woodshed

By Paul Ausick

In a brief three-paragraph letter to Carl-Henric Svanberg, chairman of BP plc (NYSE: BP), Coast Guard Admiral Todd Allen has requested that Svanberg and other "appropriate officials" of BP attend a meeting with top US officials, including President Obama, on June 16th. Allen's letter pointedly did not mention BP's CEO Tony Hayward, who is scheduled to appear in Washington on June 15th to testify in front of the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee.

Mobile Advertising Latest Battleground for Apple, Google (AAPL, GOOG, MSFT, RIMM, HPQ)

By Paul Ausick

Apple's new rules for advertising on its iAd network appear to cut out other mobile advertising networks such as the AdMob network recently acquired by Google Inc.

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