8 Companies That
May Disappear in 2008
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Jacques Boissinot, AP
Time to Say Goodbye?
There are several iconic U.S. companies that may well not exist at the end of 2008. Not all will go out of business. Some may simply be auctioned off in pieces. Others may be bought.
Click through our gallery to see which well-known companies 24/7 Wall St. predicts probably won't make it through this year.
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Next: MotorolaRelated Links
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Tim Boyle, Getty Images
Motorola
24/7 Wall St.'s Take on MOT
MOT's share price was over $25 in late 2006. It is now below $13. The company's handset business may well be bought by Samsung and its enterprise telecom and home set-top business to companies could be acquired by Cisco and Nortel. A tech-oriented private equity firm might also buy the set-top box unit. As an independent company, MOT has no future.
Next: SearsRelated Links
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Sears Holdings
24/7 Wall St.'s Take on SHLD
SHLD company has a 52-week high of $195 and now trades at $103. Sears has now reported a string of bad earnings. Reports have recently appeared that Eddie Lampert may spin-off the company's real estate and break the firm into several operating units, each of which would have more operating autonomy. The CEO has been pushed out in favor of a "temp". That sounds like the prelude to an auction.
Next: CitigroupRelated Links:
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Travis Lindquist, Getty Images
Citigroup
24/7 Wall St.'s Take on C
With a recession and more financial company write-offs coming, Citi will have to get smaller by selling one or two of its valuable businesses. The global wealth management business had $3.5 billion in revenue in Q4 and $523 million in net income. Citi's market cap is only $140 billion now. Its consumer units could be worth more than that on their own.
Next: FordRelated Links:
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Wieck
Ford Motor Co.
24/7 Wall St.'s Take on F
Ford has a market cap of $13 billion against annual sales of $173 billion. If sales fall further, cuts won't make up the difference forever. The Ford family, which has de facto control of the company, will have to look at selling the car operations to a large Asian or European auto company. That would allow for a consolidation of production, marketing and R&D. Bottom line -- billions of dollars in annual savings.
Next: Yahoo!Related Links:
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Justin Sullivan, Getty Images
Yahoo!
24/7 Wall St.'s Take on YHOO Yahoo! was not going to make it as a standalone, especially after Q4 earnings. There has been speculation that the company might be sold to Microsoft and the world's largest software company has made a $31 per share offer. Microsoft could take out 3,000 or 4,000 people and add as much as $100 million in operating income per quarter.
Next: AMDRelated Links:
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AMD
24/7 Wall St.'s Take on AMD
It's the second largest provider of chips & processors for servers and PC's. Its larger rival, Intel, has over three-quarters of the market. A price war has hurt AMD's gross margins. The firm bought graphic chip company ATI and now has over $5 billion in debt. Shares were over $40 less than two years ago and now trade at a little over $7. AMD needs a larger owner with a wider global chip business and better balance sheet. Next: SprintRelated Links:
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Getty Images
Sprint
24/7 Wall St.'s Take on S
Sprint should never have merged with NexTel, but it is a little too late for that to be fixed now. It traded above $23 about a year ago and recently fell to close to $8. While AT&T and Verizon post enviable wireless numbers, Sprint struggles to keep current subscribers. Sprint is cutting bodies but Wall St. has no confidence that fewer people and these modest savings will turn around the company.
Next: QwestRelated Links:
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Jack Dempsey, AP
Qwest
24/7 Wall St.'s Take on Q
(Q) is the last of the Baby Bells standing from the break-up of the old AT&T. It is the dominant phone company in 14 states. Its shares have fallen from a 52-week high of $10.45 to just below $6. It has no wireless operations. That is what is driving the market valuation of rivals AT&T and Verizon. Qwest also does not have the balance sheet to upgrade all of its infrastructure to fiber like Verizon is doing.
Next: More DeparturesRelated Links:
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Abbot Genser, HBO
More on AOL:
Top Departures of 2007
When Tony Soprano and crew said goodbye to the airwaves in June after an eight-year run, it marked the end of one of the greatest TV shows in history. Its departure is just one of the many things you won't see in the coming year.
You won't see these in 2008
Next: As Seen on TVRelated Links:
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As Seen on TV Products
You've seen the commercials and seen the products in your favorite stores. You may even own some of them, but how well do they actually work?
Check out our ratings.
Next: World's Rarest ItemsRelated Links:
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Rarest Items in the World
Luxist.com takes a peek inside the world of the uncommon and elusive. From wine, coins and jewels to jeans, pets and food -- they reveal the world's rarest items in each of 18 categories.
You Don't Own These!
Next: More Money & FinanceRelated Links:
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