Value Investing Congress

Hedge-fund manager Leon Cooperman said Tuesday that most of the damage from the credit crisis has already been inflicted on the stock market. Cooperman, the manager Omega Advisors Inc. who's been trading for more than 40 years, said the current financial markets are the most difficult he's ever seen. Still, he said, signs of a bottom in the equity market are beginning to form.  "The bulk of the damage is done," Cooperman said during a speech at the Value Investing Congress in New York.

Steve Tananbaum, GoldenTree Asset Mgm, just told the audience at the Value Investing Congress he likes Liberty Global (Nasdaq: LBTYA). LBTYA at 36.50 equates to 7.0x 2008E EBITDA Business growing EBITDA 15% annually. Stock at discount to underlying NAV; growing NAV 30% annually. 8x 2008E EBITDA with buybacks = $50 (+37%)
Cash flow growing at 15%

Liberty Global, Inc. (LGI) is an international broadband communications provider of video, voice and Internet access services.

Speaking at the annual Value Investing Congress in New York City, Whitney Tilson & Glenn Tongue of T2 Partners recommended Resource America (Nasdaq: REXI) today at the Value Investing Congress.

Resource America, Inc. is a specialized asset management company that generates and administers investment opportunities for the Company and for outside investors in the financial fund management, real estate and commercial finance sectors.

At the Value Investing Congress, activist investor William Ackman, founder of hedge fund Pershing Square Capital, said he loves Target (NYSE: TGT) and he called the stock "extrodinarily cheap." Ackman said he now has a larger position in the retailer.

In a July 13D filing, Pershing Square controlled a 9.6% stake in Target, mostly through options. His latest filing showed Ackman owned about 3.5 million common shares of Target, or about 0.42% of the stock.

Speaking at the annual Value Investing Congress in New York City, Tom Brown of Second Curve Capital, is pitching First Marblehead (NYSE: FMD) at the Value Investing Congress in New York. He says First Marblehead is a 20% grower, has a PE 6, P/E/G of 0.2 and should be a three bagger in two years.

The First Marblehead Corporation provides outsourcing services for private education lending in the United States.

At the Value Investing Congress meeting in New York, Spencer Capital's Ken Shubin Stein favorite idea is Winn-Dixie. Winn-Dixie has a strong balance sheet, cheap, safe, acquisition target (southeast portion of the US only area that has not been consolidated). Good risk-reward opportunity. He also thinks that Winn-Dixie's management team, including CEO, Peter Lynch, will prove itself.

Ken says Winn Dixie is trading below liquidation value.

Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. is a food retailer operating primarily under the Winn-Dixie and Winn-Dixie Marketplace banners.

Activist investor William Ackman said he increased his company's stake in Target Corp., the second- biggest U.S. discount chain.Ackman, whose Pershing Square Capital Management LP lobbied McDonald's Corp. and Ceridian Corp. to boost share prices, said that Minneapolis-based Target is 'probably the best retailer in the world.'

'We have enormous respect for management,' Ackman,said at the Value Investing Congress in New York. 'They are doing exactly the right things.'

At the Value Investing Congress meeting in New York, Mohnish Pabrai told why he likes Pinnacle Airlines (Nasdaq: PNCL). Pabrai owns 14-16% of Pinnacle Airlines.

Pabrai's notes on Pinnacle Airlines: No fuel price risk, no ticket price risk. No impact of passenger load factors.
Pinnacle is a capital leasing company.Pinnacle is the lowest cost operator. New deal with Northwest that allows them to fly airplanes with 76 seats versus 50 seats before.

David Einhorn, founder of successful hedge fund Greenlight Capital, said at the Value Investing Congress in New York why he does not like Lehman Brothers . He noted if Lehman announces a write-down then investors should be surprised because at the Merrill Lynch conference last week, Lehman said everything was fine.

Right after the quarter, the Chief Risk Officer left the company. The difference between 1998 and now, was in 1998 their were real underlying assets.

Rick Pzena, whose firm, Pzena Investment Management, recently went public, says the mortgage purchaser is still severely undervalued.

Speaking at the annual Value Investing Congress in New York City, Pzena labeled Freddie "the single cheapest stock that I've come across in my career." This isn't because Pzena is bullish on the U.S. housing market (he's not), but because he says Freddie has been unfairly tarnished by the subprime brush that is has afflicted so many mortgage lenders.