GLG News by Valuation Specialists

       The debacle in subprime bonds was side stepped by some investors. They were able to spot warning signs while others ignored or missed them. A lot of this information was in plain sight. Others could have found the same red flags, if only they knew what to look for

1. Quantitative investing could worsen market volatility. 2. Fiduciaries have a responsibility to assess trading risks. Automated trading strategies could make it more difficult to carry out their duties. 3. Some banks and hedge funds are experiencing losses due to "quant" trading.

1. Proper valuation (and related risk management) cannot ignore model risk. 2. Model risk, or "model error" means different things to different people. 3. Complex models require an understanding of the dynamic behavior of input variables such as default or recovery rates.

1. Plan sponsors are responsible for prudent investment decision-making. 2. There is concern that some plan sponsors may not be doing enough to vet credit risk and the quality of supporting collateral.

1. Valuation drives a plethora of urgent financial activities - risk management, re-balancing, fee assessment and strategic asset allocation. 2. Bad valuation numbers lead to bad decisions. 3. Institutional investors and their service providers are likely to find themselves struggling to justify their...

PENSION TENSION BLUES will make you laugh and cry at the same time. It draws serious attention to the pension crisis.

1. Someone has to clearly "own" the valuation process check responsibility or pension fiduciaries could be exposed to tremendous liability for poor decision-making. 2. Smoothing makes it difficult, perhaps impossible, to gauge a hedge fund's risk and return profile. 3. Pension funds critically depend...

1. Increasingly, pension-related lawsuits allege fiduciary breach. 2. Pension decisions are fast migrating to the C-level and boardroom. Questions about fiduciary liability abound. 3. How much information is minimally required to discharge proper fiduciary responsibilities? 4. What is the boundary between...

The new contract for Airbus, which would include material from Issoire and Ravenswood, helps maintain the value of those facilities, but would not impact the Alcoa valulation.  If Alcoa were successful, these 2 facilities would have to be sold due to anti-trust issues. Since other likely Alcan...

Airbus deal has no impact on Alcoa valuation Other likely buyers don't want these plants