Any pair of trained eyes looking at the polls, can see massive inconsistencies.  But, if you really want to see what the smart money thinks, here is a great example!

Halliburton is selling Kellogg, Brown and Root [KBR].  KBR is the division that benefited from sweetheart deals in the Middle East Wars we have pursued!  This has been a gold mine.  And, reading his lips, if Bush gets elected, Iran and Syria, at the minimum, are on the attack list!

SOOOOO why Halliburton is selling KBR, its Golden Goose? Perhaps it is expecting a Kerry Victory.  If Kerry wins, KBR's value will collapse.


-- Modified on 9/28/2004 10:17:31 PM

KBR has never been a "golden goose" for Halliburton. The subsidary has been turning marginal profit margins over the last several years. Especially since they inhereted an asbestos settlement mess with the purchase of Dresser Industries in 1998.  KBR also filed for Chapter 11 protection back in December, long before Kerry was nominated. Most smart investors realise that it's not a money maker for Halliburton.

Here's the low-down from the Right-Wing, Warmongering, Neocon publication, Business Week:

[investors and analysts are betting that Halliburton will dump KBR within six months to a year. The unit is a poor fit with Halliburton's successful oil-services business, they say, and its weak performance explains why Halliburton trades at a significant discount to its peers. Says energy analyst Jason E. Putman at Victory Capital Management Inc., which holds some 2.3 million Halliburton shares: "KBR has become an albatross for them."

To many observers, shedding KBR should be a no-brainer. Its problems began long before the Iraq contracts made Halliburton a target of Bush Administration critics. KBR inherited the asbestos mess back in 1998, when Cheney bought Dresser Industries. As lawsuits piled up, KBR was forced to file a prepackaged bankruptcy last December. In July, Halliburton won court approval of its $4.2 billion asbestos settlement plan. The company now expects to emerge from reorganization in the fourth quarter with the asbestos headache gone.]

RLTW



-- Modified on 9/29/2004 7:09:28 AM

Too funny.  Someone seeks an item in the news and jumps to the conclusion they want to see.

All the more reason to re-elect bush and stay away from electing one of the John's (Edwards), who as an attorney has profited being a parisite on American Business.  My apologies to any attorneys who might read this.

Well Einstein, the subsidiary has become a liability to the parent company, thus weighing down the stock prices. Do you really need help understanding that? Or, are you just acting foolish for shits and grins.

Further more, Halliburton has not announced any plans to sell KBR. There is only speculation by market analysts due to the aforementioned facts.

RLTW

Mr. RLTW,

The news of divesture is hardly formally announced unless reaching very final stages ... Something to do with SEC rules regarding publicly traded companies, in really all cases.  

The tenet of my argument was why now … indeed you are right, DoD already had to denounce some of the actions of Halliburton, and the whole stock has done poorly.  But no one is denying the sweetheart deals, and any business executive would tell you, there is nothing like good revenue coming in.  

The gensis of our argument is, why now?  The market is not particularly, hot, not a good time to sell.

RLTW and I likely don't agree on much, but this is one of those times. Publicly traded companies, no matter how evil their intent, are allowed to make business decisions which are (at least theoretically) in the best interests of the shareholders. It's probably legit, since KBR did a fine job of jacking the American taxpayer in Afghanistan and Iraq, and they still have a hard time being profitable.

As some of you know, I hobby in Houston from time to time, which is where the evil Halliburton is HQ'd. Judging from the way the building and grounds are laid out, they must have really pissed off some people big time in the past-very secure and very well designed. Al Qaeda won't be running ops there any time soon (funny thing, how H-town, with it's large Arab population, you never hear a word about terrorism..hmmmmm)