Wednesday Link Dump

What with getting up to speed on my new classes and the usual beginning of semester "big ball-o-crazy", I've been a bit pressed for time. So instead of posting at length, I thought I'd just put some links up to interesting stuff I've recently come across:

The AAO Weblog links to a great article on CFO.com titled "Is Spring-Loading Wrong? " It contains a phrase (at least to me)--“bullet-dodging.” This refers to the phenomenon where a firm delays the granting of options until after bad news has been revealed.

Barry Ritholtz of The Big Picture refers to brokers of exotic mortgage as "the new boiler rooms." In case you don't understand the reference, rent this movie.

Evangelical Outpost has their latest in their continuing Yak Shaving Razor series.

Vikas Bajaj from the New York Times reports on this interesting (to me, at least) combination of facts: default rates on mortgages are rising, but they're more popular than ever with investors.

And finally, from the Wall Street Journal (online subscription required), Peter McKay reports on recent insider trading indicators. He notes that the ratio of insider sales to insider purchases at large-cap companies is low by historical standards - a bullish indicator.

This should be enough to keep y'all busy. Enjoy.