The End of the Worst Week in Stock Market History

It's really no way to be catchy with the headline this time. The fact is, the Dow dropped 40 percent in the last week, after 8 days of declines. This morning, it broke 8000, dipping for a hot minute into the 7,000's, which is a mid-1990's level.

General Motors (GM) and US Steel (X) have collapsed like accordions, just like they did in great depression of 1929. The commercial paper markets are locked, frozen like tundra. Oil has cracked below that 90's dollar range, Bush made a speech to comfort investors, which was followed by at 400 point dip. And it still may not be a bottom.

Paulsen spoke again around after the market close at around 6pm, giving assurances that he has reached out to other nations to find a way to get credit moving again around the planet. He was much more at ease this time, as if he had just returned from a week in that resort at which those those guys from AIG treated themselves. What can you do in times that are almost Too Bad To Be True (TBTBT)? As you know, The Yield Hoe does not stop in good times or bad, particularly since bad times bring so many more opportunities for those who can raise the cash to tuck away for the day the rain goes way.

Of course, more people are likely to be concerned with paying a mortgage in rainy days like these, but for those looking for somewhere safer to park cash or proceeds from moves to cash, there are more that a few spots to get a high yield.

Corporate bond that could be bargains, if you think people will continue to use phones, parents will sacrifice for toys, and Rite Aid will still make money selling aspirins, even if their operations and their stock tends to give you a headache (these columns won't line up, but bare with):

Issue

Price

Coupon(%)

Maturity

YTM(%)

Current Yield(%)

Fitch

Callable

ALLTEL CO

91.57

6.500

1-Nov-2013

8.278

7.099

A

No

TOYS R US I

94.12

8.750

1-Sep-2021

9.518

9.296

B

No

RITE AID CORP

86.00

7.700

15-Feb-2027

9.266

8.953

CCC

No

Now, let's turn our attention to the "eye of hell", or Television.

Himax Semiconductors of Taiwan (HIMX) make components for those giant TVs everyone seems to need. Yes, it's the subject of a downgrade by Agrus to Hold 'em if you got em from Buy. But in spite of the big brains at Argus, there are some impressive numbers underpinning HIMX, including it's Price to Sales ratio, it's PE, it's PEG and more of all, its yield.

It' gets 99 million in operating cash flow, and it has-- hold it, hold it, hold it, okay: No Debt!

Have at "looksee" at HIMX ratios:

P/E (ttm):	3.23
EPS (ttm):	0.72
Div & Yield:	0.55 (22.50%)

PEG Ratio (5 yr expected): 0.21

That sure seems like a lot of growth for it's low P/E. Risk factors? Consumer demand destruction as they can no longer afford to buy those big flat screen TVs that HIMX makes (along with GLW). But, there again, will people pony up for a big TV if they stay home much more than the roaring 90s-00's? Hey, I'm not Colombo, but we can try.

The theory is that demand drops, prices on these flat screens drop and demand kicks back about the time consumer credit is restored. So if consumers are nested up, on smaller budgets, a big TV may be just the hearth they look to that will bring folks together. Or maybe demand drops off, sales slow and HIMX cuts it's 22% dividend in half, which is still not bad. It's your call.


Now, for those who know, here's the gentile reminder of William DeVaughn's "Diamond in the Back" circa 1974 when there was a big market crash and those oil shocks that some of us splitting wood with Dad on Saturday mornings for the new wood burning stove: