Filed under: Harrah’s Entertainment (HET)

Most mergers are driven by the notion, sometimes wildly mistaken, that the combination will bring both a competitive advantage. Some pairs of companies, however, seem so intuitively right for one another, no bottom-line considerations should be allowed to interfere with their matrimony. Like a presidential candidate and a lobbyist’s pocket, these two belong together.

I read recently that the average Las Vegas visitor leaves behind around $200 in gambling losses. However, in my flights back from Vegas I’ve noticed that many passengers still have their diamond rings, fine luggage and iPods, which tells me they haven’t been wrung completely dry.

For companies such as Harrah’s Entertainments (NYSE: HET), that’s just opportunity lost, so I have a suggestion for how Harrah’s could improve its take. Simply merge with EZCorp (NASDAQ: EZPW), operator of a chain of 82 EZPAWN pawn shops, which offer short-term credit to needy individuals based on personal property collateral, as well as 334 EZMoney stores offering pay advances.

Continue reading Mergers I’d like to see — Harrah’s (HET) and EZCorp (EZPW)

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Filed under: Earnings reports, Viacom (VIA), Verizon Communications (VZ)

The earnings season crunch continues next week, and among companies reporting are Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) and Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA).

When it reported second quarter results back in July, Verizon’s earnings were 58 cents per share, in line with Wall Street estimates, but six cents less than in the same period of the previous year. It was the first time since the second quarter of 2005 that Verizon failed to beat expectations. For the current quarter, analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial are expecting 62 cents per share, which is six cents less than a year ago.

The consensus recommendation on Verizon has shifted from buy to hold, though 12 of 31 analysts still consider it a buy or strong buy. Verizon’s share price has climbed this past quarter to a five-year high of $46.24 recently, but closed Friday at $45.60.

For more on the Vonage (NYSE: VG) settlement and other telco news that could influence Verizon’s results, check out BloggingStocks’ Verizon coverage.

Continue reading Earnings previews: Verizon (VZ) and Viacom (VIA)

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