On Wednesday, regulators said that the US thrift industry had earned its first profit since the third quarter of 2007, but the number of troubled institutions continued to rise. Profit for the period ended June 30, 2009 was $4 million, compared to a loss of $1.62 billion sequentially and $5.4 billion in the prior-year quarter. The small profit for the quarter mainly came from higher net interest margins, lower provisions for loan losses and better fees.

Although results for the quarter showed some improvement, overall performance of the industry remained uneven. Troubled assets at thrifts accounted for 3.52% of the industry's assets, up from 3.35% in the previous quarter. However, total value of troubled assets fell to $38.6 billion from $41 billion in the earlier quarter.

"Problem thrifts" on the agency's list are those which have significantly low capital reserves and other deficiencies. Their number rose to 40 from

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For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – August 25, 2009 – Zacks Equity Research highlights Transcept Pharmaceuticals (TSPT) as the Bull of the Day and Nabors Industries (NBR) the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Guaranty Financial Group Inc. (GFG), Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) and BB&T Corporation (BBT).

Full analysis of all these stocks is available at http://at.zacks.com/?id=2676

Here is a synopsis of all five stocks:

Bull of the Day:

We recently initiated coverage of Transcept Pharmaceuticals (TSPT) with an Outperform rating and $12 price target. We think Intermezzo is a product that can fill a much needed void for insomnia patients with chronic nocturnal awakenings.

An FDA decision on the pending new drug application is expected in late October 2009. We think approval is a high likelihood event at that time.

With the commercialization

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President Obama’s recent budget trimming efforts show just how absurdly bloated the US government is. Obama is making a big deal about trimming the federal budget by $100 million – the so-called “$100 million savings challenge.” His cabinet outdid themselves. They responded with a plan to save $102 million – or 0.006% of the deficit!

When are these guys going to stop treating the rest of us like idiots? The amount saved covers just a few hours of interest on the federal debt!

To put all this nonsense in context, imagine your family budget. Let’s say your total income is $100,000 a year. But you have over $1,000,000 in outstanding debt. That means you have so much debt that your monthly interest payments take half of your gross income. That amount is growing every year. And you’re not putting a penny towards the principle.

That’s the government’s situation – they’re bankrupt. So what do

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President Obama "unveiled" his regulatory reform plan today. Most of the details of the plan had already been revealed earlier and the "near-final" draft was released by the Administration last evening.

The administration has focused on five key areas for reform, which we have highlighted below along with the important actions proposed in those areas:

1) Promoting Robust Supervision and Regulation

Raising capital and liquidity requirements Supervision by the Fed for all "too big to fail" firms Establishing a council of regulators for better coordination New National Supervisor to supervise all federally chartered banks Registration of hedge funds with the SEC Enhanced oversight of insurers2) Establish Comprehensive Regulation and Supervision of Financial Markets Enhanced regulation of securitization markets Stronger regulation of credit-rating agencies ...

President Obama "unveiled" his regulatory reform plan today. Most of the details of the plan had already been revealed earlier and the "near-final" draft was released by the Administration last evening.

The administration has focused on five key areas for reform, which we have highlighted below along with the important actions proposed in those areas:

1) Promoting Robust Supervision and Regulation

Raising capital and liquidity requirements Supervision by the Fed for all "too big to fail" firms Establishing a council of regulators for better coordination New National Supervisor to supervise all federally chartered banks Registration of hedge funds with the SEC Enhanced oversight of insurers2) Establish Comprehensive Regulation and Supervision of Financial Markets Enhanced regulation of securitization markets Stronger regulation of credit-rating agencies ...

By Shah Gilani
Contributing Editor
Money Morning

[Editor’s Note: Is it a new bull market, or just a bear-market rally that’s going to separate investors from the last of their cash? For the shrewdest investors, it may not matter. A new offer from Money Morning is a two-way win for investors: Noted commentator Peter D. Schiff’s new book – “The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets” – shows investors how to profit no matter which way the market moves, while our monthly newsletter, The Money Map Report, provides ongoing analysis of the global financial markets and some of the best profit plays you’ll find anywhere – including such markets as Taiwan and China. To find out how to get both, check out our newest offer.

To read a related story on how the long-term dismantling of U.S. banking regulations set …

[Editor’s Note: Is it a new bull market, or just a bear-market rally that’s going to separate investors from the last of their cash? For the shrewdest investors, it may not matter. A new offerfrom Money Morning is a two-way win for investors: Noted commentator Peter D. Schiff’s new book – “Little Book of Bull Moves in a Bear Market” – shows investors how to profit no matter which way the market moves, while our monthly newsletter, The Money Map Report, provides ongoing analysis of the global financial markets and some of the best profit plays you’ll find anywhere – including such markets as Taiwan and China. To find out how to get both, check out our newest offer.

To read a related story on how the long-term dismantling of U.S. banking regulations set the stage for the …

Clearly the cobbled-together oversight from various federal agencies was ineffective to contain the current financial crisis that all but swallowed the U.S. last year -- institutions such as but not limited to Citigroup (C), Bank of America (BAC), JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and AIG (AIG) -- and it remains in fairly close proximity to do so again.Several weeks ago, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner sent to Congress a proposal to potentially to overall the current supervision of financial markets. While much is still up in the air, it is now expected as early as mid-June 2009 that the Obama Administration will make a formal recommendation to Congress for the creation of a single banking regulator to oversee the entire sector. It would be hoped that if such a proposal were sent to Congress it woud be finalized by the end of the year to ...

Boy, the government is smart. We bet even the great illusionist David Copperfield couldn’t have pulled of a trick quite as intricate, quite as convincing.

Since their March lows, bank stocks, as measured by the Philadelphia Bank Index (BKX), have risen 126%. But aren’t these the same banks that investors sold off in panic back in September of 2008? And don’t they still have the same toxic assets rotting on their books?

The answer, bizarrely, is yes. Nothing has changed at the banks except investors’ perception of them. Of course, the banks, aided and abetted by the Department of the Treasury, the Financial Accounting Standards Board, the Fed and the other failed regulators at the FDIC and the Office of Thrift Supervision in charge of the fudge tests, have sprinkled as much fairy dust in faces of investors as they can get away with.

Starting with a ‘leaked’ memo proclaiming a return

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Highlights include American International Group, Inc. (AIG), Citigroup, Inc. (C), JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM), Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) and Bank of America Corp. (BAC).This morning, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke gave a speech on the topic of financial regulation and the lessons learned from the recent disaster. Here is a key section of the speech, with my thoughts interspersed: 

"Looking forward, I believe a more macroprudential approach to supervision--one that supplements the supervision of individual institutions to address risks to the financial system as a whole--could help to enhance overall financial stability. Our regulatory system must include the capacity to monitor, assess, and, if necessary, address potential systemic risks within the financial system. Elements of a macroprudential agenda include:   

"monitoring large or rapidly increasing exposures--such as to subprime mortgages--across firms and markets, rather than only at the level of individual firms ...