Wednesday, January 5, 2011

AIG Smackdown: Frontpoint's Steve Eisman vs. Fairholme's Bruce Berowitz (AIG)

If I were an AIG competitor I would be mighty unhappy that my prudent investing and operating behavior turned out to be a mug's game while my taxes were bailing out and then subsidizing AIG.
AIG took risks that were suicidal and the company should have gone down (and without the 100% payout to Goldman)
You have sat too long for any good you have been doing. 
Depart, I say, and let us have done with you. 
In the name of God, go!
-Oliver Cromwell to the Rump Parliament
20April1653


From Insider Monkey:
David Einhornpublicly came out against St Joe (JOE) a couple of months ago. Bruce Berkowitz already had a sizable position in St. Joe. It seems like Einhorn has won the first round. This is not the first time this year a notable hedge fund manager publicly criticized one of Berkowitz’s large holdings and took the opposite side.

In April, FrontPoint Partners’ Steve Eisman prepared a presentation about AIG, valuing the company at $7/share in his best case scenario. “AIG has no common shareholder equity remaining on its balance sheet”, Steve Eisman wrote in the presentation. “It would likely be insolvent if not for government support, in our opinion.”

In a better-case (yet unlikely) scenario, Steve Eismanestimated the value of AIG’s remaining businesses at $116 Billion. That would leave equity holders with a gain of roughly $7 Billion, or $7 a share, he said. The stock went down 5.3% after Eisman’s presentation, closing at $37.59....MORE
Previously:

AIG to Borrow from Treasury to Pay Fed as Part of Exit Plan
"AN INTERVIEW WITH BRUCE BERKOWITZ: Why the Fairholme founder finds AIG, Bank of America and Citi very attractive now." (AIG; BAC; C)
The AIG Deal: Stink, Stank, Stunk (AIG)
"After shorting subprime, Eisman says short AIG" (AIG)
Fairholm's Bruce Berkowitz: Banks worth a second look (BAC; C)
"Berkowitz’s Fairholme Increases Bet on AIG Recovery" as Some Analysts Question Results (AIG)
 "NYT Digs Further Into the AIG Backdoor Bailout" -CJR (AIG; GS)
More on the KBW Downgrade of AIG (and $6.00 price target) AIG
On Forcing all broker-dealers to go private (BAC; C; GS; JPM)
"At AIG, What Is Left to Sell?" (AIG)
 AIG Tangible Common Equity -$162.06 a Share, Analyst Says (AIG)
American International Group: AIG Reserves Deficient - Sanford Bernstein (AIG)
AIG Shares: Still Not Worth Anything.
American Intl Group: Downgraded to Underperform at Sanford Bernstein; $10 target (AIG)
"AIG Gets The Dreaded "Going Concern""
Credit Suisse Analysts on AIG: ‘Little to No Value for Common Equity’

And many more.