First and foremost we wanted to wish you a healthy, happy, and what we hope will be a lucrative new year. 2011 has not been without its challenges, but as a firm we are pleased that we continued to provide our clients with action oriented, thought-provoking, highly differentiated...
READ MORE >In the 5-months since we originally introduced MLHR as a short idea, the stock has declined (-18.3%) compared to a (-5.2%) sell-off in the S&P 500 over the same time frame. The sell-off in MLHR shares over the...
READ MORE >It used to be something that operators in the for-profit postsecondary education space could joke about with investors. When asked what would represent the biggest competitive threat to their enrollment growth prospects, 5-years ago...
READ MORE >We are closing out our long idea on IPSU with a 63% loss. Our views on the relatively positive fundamentals in the US sugar markets (widening refined sugar spreads) the asset value inherent in the company, and the cash flow potential of the business once normalized...
READ MORE >THQI reduced its holiday quarter revenue guidance by 25% last night; the company did not provide an update on its EPS or cash flow expectations. In an ironic twist, all signs suggest that THQI’s core...
READ MORE >In the four months since we first introduced WWE as a long idea, the stock has increased approximately 7.3% compared to a 0.4% gain for the S&P 500 over the same time frame. The stock has witnessed better price action of late from a...
READ MORE >Even in the context of a market that has been characterized by huge price swings and “whip-saw” action, IPSU’s stock has distinguished itself in terms of volatility. It seems almost impossible to...
READ MORE >We’ve been watching our screens this morning in bewilderment at the stock price action in THQI. Make no mistake, Saints Row the Third is the most important title in the history of the company. ...
READ MORE >In many respects, WPO’s 3Q11 earnings results represent a complete validation of our short thesis on WPO shares. At a time when it appears most bulls on the stock own it based on some theoretical breakup value, two unalienable truths remain clear: 1) WPO management has no...
READ MORE >If we have learned anything about THQI over the past 30-months since we originally started recommending the stock as a long idea it’s that shares can turn on a dime. Even though the stock now trades more than 40% below where we...
READ MORE >In the lengthy report we published on OPEN on Monday (backed by a survey of 110-120 restaurant owners) we outlined a number key issues that we expected to become discounted in the stock over the next...
READ MORE >In the 7+ months since we introduced OPEN as a short idea, we have been in a position where the stock has gained more than 40% against us and now trades more than 40% below where we initiated our...
READ MORE >We remain as enthusiastic as ever about the share appreciation prospects for BCO. In the 2-years since we first introduced the BCO as an investment idea the stock has barely budged even though the company is on track to generate EBITDA...
READ MORE >As we anticipated, BGG reported 1Q12 results that were well above consensus expectations. The magnitude of revenue upside was larger than we expected, but the company’s loss per share was roughly inline with our forecast. ...
READ MORE >ESI reported inline revenues and a healthy 3Q11 EPS beat. New student starts and total enrollments were both better than our expectations, but still showed weakening trends on a 2-year stacked basis. There are some in the sell-side...
READ MORE >The performance of BGG shares this year have been nothing short of “head scratching”. We recognize that the spring/summer selling season for outdoor power equipment proved to be a disappointment and the company’s initial guidance for FY12 was below our...
READ MORE >What a difference a few months can make. To put the performance of the publicly traded for-profit postsecondary education companies in perspective for the past few months, we thought it might be...
READ MORE >In an article on Insidehighered.com today entitled “Hitting Hard at Fraud”, more details on the extent of online fraud rings in higher education have emerged. As a reminder, two weeks ago, the Department of...
READ MORE >Earlier today PAA Research hosted a conference call with Deanne Loonin of the National Consumer Law Center, one of the best known and most influential non-profit consumer advocacy organizations in the...
READ MORE >PAA Research will host a conference call TODAY at 2:30PM ET with Deanne Loonin of the National Consumer Law Center, one of the best known and most influential non-profit consumer advocacy...
READ MORE >PAA Research will host a conference call at 2:30PM ET Wednesday October 5th with Deanne Loonin of the National Consumer Law Center, one of the best known and most influential non-profit consumer...
READ MORE >Earlier this week, the Department of Education’s Office of Inspector General published an investigative program advisory report on “Online Education Fraud Rings”. The report was sent to Federal Student Aid (FSA) and...
READ MORE >PAA Research will host a conference call at 2:30PM ET Wednesday October 5th with Deanne Loonin of the National Consumer Law Center, one of the best known and most influential non-profit consumer...
READ MORE >On Friday, WPO management hosted its bi-annual shareholder day. If ever we had any doubts about our long term secular short case for WPO shares, they were all but removed following a series of management presentations. Based on the tenor and...
READ MORE >OPEN shares traded off sharply today in response to GOOG’s announcement that it had acquired Zagat, a worldwide publisher of ratings and reviews of restaurants and other businesses. The Zagat restaurant surveys, launched more than 30 years...
READ MORE >Approximately 5-6 weeks ago, we published an industry report on the for-profit postsecondary education industry entitled “12 Reasons Why We Remain Bearish; Observations from Our Proprietary Paid Search Analysis”. The subject matter of the report is somewhat self-explanatory. Now that...
READ MORE >We are 24-hours away from what might be the single most important earnings release and conference call in the history of Corinthian Colleges, Inc. The (-50.7%) decline in COCO shares over the past month, even in the context of the broader market decline has been nothing short of...
READ MORE >For the first time in a long time, TTC reported quarterly results that fell short of expectations. While some investment firms and analysts are willing to look past the company’s “product rework” expense in the quarter as a “one-time” item, we...
READ MORE >Admittedly, BGG’s 4Q11 results and initial FY12 EPS guidance were well below our expectations. Our channel checks indicated that sell through of outdoor power equipment weakened from 1Q11 to 2Q11 and that trends in June and July were modestly worse...
READ MORE >We have been recommending a pair trade: long BGG/short TTC for approximately 9-12 months. Thus far the trade has not been a winner, generating a modest (-3.0%) loss compared to a relatively healthy...
READ MORE >SELL
$50
LONG
$110
SELL/SHORT
$230
SELL/SHORT
$55
LONG
$70
SELL/SHORT
$4
SELL/SHORT
$45
SHORT
$18
SELL/SHORT
$5
SELL/SHORT
$42
LONG
$75
SELL/SHORT
$50
SELL/SHORT
$50
LONG
$5.50
SHORT
$50
SHORT
$28
LONG
$65
LONG
$37
PAIR TRADE
$10
PAIR TRADE
$30
LONG
$35
SHORT
$35
SELL/SHORT
$10
SHORT
$101
SHORT
$15
SHORT
$0
SHORT
$9
SHORT
$0
PAIR - LONG BGG/SHORT TTC
25%
SHORT
$14.00
SHORT
$22
SHORT
$15
SHORT
$20
SHORT
$31
SHORT
$35
SHORT
$30
PAIR - LONG KNL/SHORT MLHR
25%
SHORT
$100
LONG
$8
LONG
$20
SHORT
$22
PAIR - LONG CSGP/SHORT LOOP
40%
LONG
$35
SHORT
$275
SHORT
$0