Posted on Friday, April 3, 2009 - by Henry Walter
Kodak Pension Fund
Preliminary information (based on the writer’s individual research) indicates that as of December 31, 2008, the value of Kodak’s pension fund was down 29% from last year. The fair value of plan assets on 12/31/07 was $7.1 billion and on 12/31/08 was $5.0 billion.

In spite of the drop in the value of the plan’s assets, Kodak U.S. plans were over funded by $496 million at the end of 2008. Whether they remain over funded depends on how the financial markets perform in 2009. As we write this on March 28th, 2009, the S&P 500 is off 9.7% year-to-date, so it is likely that the fair value of the plan’s assets as of that date is less than $5.0 billion.

Here is a summary of the status of the pension fund subject to confirmation when the EK Annual Report is published:



According to Pensions & Investments, a trade publication (www.pionline.com), and based on company filings with the SEC (10K etc.), Eastman Kodak will “reassess” the asset allocation of its U.S. defined benefits plans and conduct an asset-liability study early in the year. The committee that oversees the plan met in the fourth quarter of 2008 to re-evaluate “certain portfolio positions relative to current market conditions”.

The bottom line is that it appears that the pensions of retirees and future retirees continue to be fully protected, at least for now. A prolonged recession or a depression could change things, but the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is still in business as a safety net, and it is highly unlikely that Congress would not step forward should PBGC run out of money to rescue pension funds in trouble. Currently, the PBGC’s annual maximum benefit is $54,000 for a single life annuity beginning at age 65.

For questions or additional information on this blog entry, please contact us.

Posted on Wednesday, April 1, 2009 - by Henry Walter
Long Term Care Seminars
To our friends and clients:

In recent weeks we have received many requests for information on the topic of Long Term Care Insurance. Do I want it? Do I need it? How important is it? While we would love to be able to provide a single, satisfactory answer to each of these and other similar questions, we know that things are never quite as simple as they seem.

With that in mind, we have created a series of informational workshops to address the critical issues involved in deciding whether long term care insurance should be a part of your overall financial plan. After you have had a chance to consider the important questions, you should be much better prepared to provide your own answers.

If you have found yourselves wondering about long term care issues in these stressful economic and financial times, this may be just the right opportunity for you to get answers to your questions, and up-to-date information on concerns that matter to you. Please join us.

Long Term Care - Informational Workshops

When: Thursday, April 30, 2009 1:00 p.m.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009 9:00 a.m.

Where: Ensemble Financial Services
179 Sully’s Trail (first floor meeting room)
Pittsford, NY 14534

Discussion Topics:

● Cost of care – The actual costs both locally and nationally of long-term health care services.

● Medicare – How it works, when it will pay for my long-term care needs.

● Medicaid – What are the new rules governing spend down requirements?
How do I qualify? Does it affect my level of care?

● Asset Transfers – To children or a trust? Does it make sense for me?
What are the recent changes to the law?

• Long-Term Care Insurance – What it covers. How to design a plan that best meets my needs. What to look for in an insurance company. How to evaluate various policies and contract
provisions.

• New Tax Law – Tax-deductibility of LTC insurance. NYS Tax credits.

Please respond by email to seminars@highfallsadvisors.com or call Bonnie Cordy at 585-935-5300 Ext. 111 to reserve your seat.

For questions or additional information on this blog entry, please contact us.

Posted on Friday, March 6, 2009 - by Henry Walter
Why is Bill Gates Accumulating Eastman Kodak Stock?
Posted February 23, 2009 – by Henry Walter

We don’t know. You would have to ask Bill himself or Michael Larson, the Business Manager of Cascade. But there is plenty of speculation.

There are actually two investment vehicles involved.

According to Bloomberg (02-21-09), Cascade Investment LLC, owned by Gates, bought 7.95 million shares of Kodak recently. Separately, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation boosted its shareholdings of EK to 5.55 million. So combined, Gates owns 13.5 million shares making him the fourth-largest shareholder in Kodak.

According to Morningstar (02-22-09), the largest holders are

Legg Mason Capital Management* …………..47.3 million shares
Brandes Investment Partners, LP ……………..24.38 million shares
Franklin Mutual Advisers ……………………. 17.08 million shares

*Bill Miller of Legg Mason, has been a perennial bull on EK, and Legg Mason Value Trust, which he manages, set a record of beating the S&P 500 15 years in a row from 1991 to 2005. Since then, his performance has been less than stellar.

Going back to the “Why?”, the message boards on the Web are having fun with this. It could be nothing more than the stock hit an all-time low and Gates’ investment people see value. If you ran a screen of undervalued stocks, with financial parameters indicating the chance of survival are good, EK would probably be on the list. And there is always the possibility EK will be bought out at a premium.

In the scheme of things, this is not a big deal for the Gates investment organization. At $4 a share, the total value of the holdings in EK is $54 million. The Gates Foundation has assets of $9 billion and Cascade $4 billion. Hopefully, for those long EK, Gates could add to his holdings.

We did hear that several employees and retirees thought EK was a good speculation below $4 and had either bought or were thinking of buying very small positions. Kodak’s all-time high was near $95 in early 1997, and its all-time low, thus far, $3.37 last week. Analysts tracked by MarketWatch have the following recommendations: Buy 0, Overweight 0, Hold 1, Underweight 1, and Sell 4. We’d take Gates over the analysts.

The information provided is not specific financial advice or a recommendation to buy or sell. We must review your profile, needs and accounts specifically to determine what is right for you.

For questions or additional information on this blog entry, please contact us.