There may not seem to be many similarities between the Biden White House and the 45th President, Donald J. Trump. At least superficially, the current White House Resident, Joseph R. “Joe” Biden (D) and the deposed President Trump (R) seem to have some common points on antitrust. While apparent mouthpieces for the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) routinely ignore legal concerns such as antitrust and possible the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) violations, the seemingly increasing bipartisan interest in that antitrust realm merit a response to several questions. Among them? If an antitrust and/or RICO suit hit one or more MHI member brands that are publicly traded, how much of an initial hit could occur on their stock valuation? The experiences of Meta/Facebook – combined with lessons from Cavco Industries (CVCO) may shed light. Additionally, information from a law firm via JDSupra could yield insights on why antitrust chatter is increasing.
This week, Meta/Facebook took a big hit on their stocks. While some media focused on the performance metrics, there have been reports that part of the issue on investor’s list of concerns are “antitrust regulation.” A few recent headlines paint the picture.
Meta’s Value Dropped $230 Billion After Earnings Showed …
https://news.yahoo.com/metas-value-dropped-230-billion-193451423.html
Feb 03, 2022 · The stock plummet comes as the company faces a slew of challenges over antitrust regulation and misinformation. Last month, Zuckerberg received blowback for a secret …
Meta’s market value plunges by $230 billion in one day …
https://www.theverge.com/2022/2/3/22916007/…
5 hours ago · Meta reported the first-ever quarterly drop in Facebook’s daily active users, and the next morning, its stock price dropped by about 25 percent. The company lost more than $200 …
Mark Zuckerberg’s $31 billion loss after Meta’s terrible …
https://fortune.com › 2022/02/04 › mark-zuckerberg-3…
4 hours ago — The silver lining in Mark Zuckerberg’s $31 billion loss after Meta’s terrible earnings? It helps his blame-it-on-TikTok antitrust defense. …
Meta’s real antitrust problems are only beginning – The …
https://www.theverge.com/22879623/meta-facebook…
Jan 12, 2022 · Meta’s first five VR app acquisitions went through without a hitch because they were too small to trigger a cursory review by U.S. antitrust regulators. But those regulators are …
In two days, Facebook lost some 26 percent of their market valuation.
Now, this MHProNews analysis and commentary will compare that to what the SEC said on 9.3.2021 in a media statement, “After news of the SEC investigation and the Skyline trading came out, Cavco’s share price decreased by 23%.”
Additionally, a raft of shareholders probes emerged, which may well have resulted in settlements covered by non-disclosure agreements. Furthermore, with the SEC litigation underway, there are reasons to think that another hit on Cavco could loom once that case is litigated, new revelations emerge, or if the matter settled.
Antitrust advocate Matt Stoller, author of Goliath and the Substack Big newsletter, recently said “Mergers Ruin Everything Bad merger policy is why wealth and power is so consolidated in America.” On the left and right, antitrust concerns appear to be rising. It isn’t just about the tech giants, although they often get their fair share of the attention.
With that backdrop, Cooley LLP (lawfirm) via JDSupra had the following to say this week on antitrust related topics. While several points are significant, note this one and consider its possible ramifications for manufactured housing firms that often happen to be MHI members: “the DOJ and the FTC said the objective is to “strengthen enforcement against illegal mergers” and combat “mounting concerns” that “many industries across the economy are becoming more concentrated and less competitive.”
US Antitrust Enforcers Take Next Steps to Strengthen Merger Enforcement
To strengthen enforcement, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) are undertaking a review of the Horizontal Merger Guidelines, last revised by the Obama administration in 2010, and the Vertical Merger Guidelines, issued in 2020 by the Trump administration.
The Biden DOJ and FTC on January 18, 2022, jointly issued a request for information (RFI), soliciting public comment on revisions to “modernize” the analytical framework used to assess mergers. Comments are due March 21, after which the agencies have said they will publish proposed guidelines for further comment, with a goal of finalizing new guidelines before the end of 2022.
This process follows President Joe Biden’s July 2021 issuance of an executive order, which called on the antitrust agencies to evaluate whether the Horizontal and Vertical Merger Guidelines required revision.
In announcing the RFI, the DOJ and the FTC said the objective is to “strengthen enforcement against illegal mergers” and combat “mounting concerns” that “many industries across the economy are becoming more concentrated and less competitive.”
This joint effort is the latest example of the antitrust agencies’ efforts to aggressively enforce antitrust law, announce enforcement principles and influence the courts when they challenge mergers in court.
Role of the merger guidelines
Both sets of guidelines lay out how the antitrust agencies will approach merger enforcement. As the current Horizontal Merger Guidelines put it, the guidelines “outline the principal analytical techniques, practices, and the enforcement policy of the [DOJ] and [FTC] with respect to mergers and acquisitions.” Historically, they have been important in influencing merger case law, and federal courts have often cited the guidelines in ruling on merger challenges.
The current Horizontal Merger Guidelines were last published in 2010 jointly by the DOJ and the FTC. The current Vertical Merger Guidelines were published jointly in 2020, but the FTC withdrew from those guidelines in September 2021. While the DOJ did not withdraw at the same time, DOJ Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter has said that “too much has been made of the purported divergence between the DOJ and the FTC on the treatment of vertical mergers.” He also said that the Antitrust Division “shares the FTC’s substantive concerns” that the guidelines overstate potential efficiencies and fail to identify important relevant theories of harm.
What might change?
The RFI seeks public comments on 15 categories of questions which, according to Kanter, are an attempt to “understand why so many industries have too few competitors, and to think carefully about how to ensure our merger enforcement tools are fit for purpose in the modern economy.”
Kanter and FTC Chair Lina Khan homed in on specific categories of interest in their public statements announcing the review. Kanter highlighted a desire to explore whether the “framing of horizontal versus vertical analysis” implicitly limits the agencies to analyzing transactions in a “two-dimensional view” that may not reflect complex markets. He also indicated the agencies will be looking at tools that may be used to assess potential harms from mergers aside from “market definition.”
Khan questioned whether the guidelines are “adequately attentive to the range of business strategies and incentives that might drive acquisitions,” including “data aggregation strategies” and “roll-up plays by private equity firms.” She also questioned whether the current guidelines take into account harm to competition in labor markets, which is an enforcement priority for the Biden administration.
Of particular interest, the agencies are focusing on aspects of what they have said are “unique aspects of digital markets,” highlighting characteristics such as zero-price products, multisided markets and data aggregation, while asking questions about the impact of network effects and interoperability.
The agencies will also be examining:
- The adequacy of the presumptions in the merger guidelines regarding unlawful transactions, suggesting they may strengthen presumptions based on concentration, which currently are really just a starting point for analysis.
- The need to develop a formalized process for divestitures and other remedies that are not currently addressed by the guidelines.
- The weight efficiencies should have on merger review, suggesting the DOJ and FTC are likely to downplay efficiencies.
The FTC’s Republican commissioners, Noah Phillips and Christine Wilson, issued a statement welcoming review and lauding the benefits of administrability, predictability and credibility that guidelines offer, but suggested skepticism, noting that some questions the agencies are raising “appear to be premised on debatable assumptions” and that “much of the legal authority cited … is nearly or more than half a century old.” They suggested that asking for examples of mergers that “made it more difficult for rivals to compete with the merged firm” may equate harm to competitors with harm to competition, which would conflict with the oft-cited mantra that antitrust law protects “competition, not competitors.”
Guidelines review follows 2021 procedural changes to merger review
The announcement that the agencies intend to revise the guidelines follows efforts over the past year to amp up the merger review process. Noteworthy developments to the merger review process over the past year include:
- “Temporary” suspension of early termination:Since February 2021, the antitrust enforcers have suspended granting early termination for transactions subject to Hart-Scott-Rodino Act (HSR) filings.
- Rescinded 1995 policy statement:In July 2021, the FTC rescinded a 1995 Clinton administration Policy Statement on Prior Approval and Prior Notice Provisions. The FTC is now requiring prior approval and prior notice provisions for mergers subject to consent decrees, though the scope of such approvals remains unclear.
- Warning letters following expiration of the HSR waiting period:The FTC began sending letters to merging companies in August 2021 warning that the agency’s decision not to issue second requests to investigate a transaction does not indicate approval and that consummation of the transaction would be at the parties’ “own risk.” These letters also indicate that the FTC’s investigation would continue, though few if any investigations have in fact continued after the transactions subject to such letters have been consummated.
Looking forward
The RFI and statements by the antitrust enforcers reflect a desire to update the merger guidelines to “accurately reflect modern market realities,” and to equip the DOJ and FTC to aggressively enforce antitrust law. Revisions to the guidelines are likely to alter merger review and lead to challenges on new theories of harm. How significant those changes will be, and whether courts would be willing to adopt substantial changes in merger case law, remains to be seen. ##
https://www.cooley.com/news/insight/2022/2022-02-01-us-antitrust-enforcers-take-next-steps
Additional Information, More MHProNews Analysis and Commentary
Certainly, manufactured housing appears to fit the description by the DOJ and the FTC that their objective is to “strengthen enforcement against illegal mergers” and combat “mounting concerns” that “many industries across the economy are becoming more concentrated and less competitive.”
Will MHI weigh in on antitrust concerns in manufactured housing? If not, why not? After all, MHI has a formal antitrust statement. Can they publicly answer if they are not properly enforcing their own stated standards?
Note to those who are tired of apparent antitrust and market-manipulation in manufactured housing. While antitrust law is a specialized realm, there is no requirement for a statement to the RFI cited above in JDSupra to check each or any of the feds desired formatted questions. That applies to MHI, or any member of the industry that has been concerned about possible antitrust issues in manufactured housing. As a disclosure, this writer for MHProNews has made statement that ignored aspects of specific questions by an agency, which have nevertheless resulted in their being published – and arguably – impactful. The download for that statement is linked here.
https://www.fhfa.gov/Media/Documents/Kovach-statement.pdf
To learn more about these topics, see the linked and related reports that follow. Our Daily Business News market report will follow those links.
Next up is our daily business news recap of yesterday evening’s market report, related left-right headlines, and manufactured housing connected equities.
The Business Daily Manufactured Home Industry Connected Stock Market Updates. Plus, Market Moving Left (CNN) – Right (Newsmax) Headlines Snapshot. While the layout of this daily business report has been evolving over time, several elements of the basic concepts used previously are still the same. For instance. The headlines that follow below can be reviewed at a glance to save time while providing insights across the left-right media divide. Additionally, those headlines often provide clues as to possible ‘market-moving’ news items.
Market Indicator Closing Summaries – Yahoo Finance Closing Tickers on MHProNews…
Headlines from left-of-center CNN Business – from the evening of 2.3.2022
- Facebook plunges
- In this Friday, Oct. 25, 2019, file photo, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg speaks about “News Tab” at the Paley Center, in New York.
- Meta shares closed down 26%, marking the worst trading day in its history as a public company
- Facebook drags stocks into the red
- Where are the users? Why Facebook’s stock is imploding
- Amazon is raising the price of annual Prime memberships to $139
- US oil prices hit $90 a barrel for the first time since 2014
- America’s economic recovery is about to go into reverse
- The big reason the US and UK are facing such a massive labor shortage
- Democrats call for Biden officials to limit US natural gas exports
- Melinda French Gates won’t give bulk of her wealth to Gates Foundation
- Tesla owners are more Republican than you’d think
- Watch this sneak peek of 2022 Super Bowl commercials
- Equity-rich homeowners are ‘sitting pretty’ amid sky high real estate prices
- What it takes to make money flipping homes in a crazy real estate market
- Here’s who has left Spotify because of Joe Rogan
- Former Tesla worker sues company alleging abuse ‘reminiscent of the Jim Crow Era’
- SHARE YOUR STORY Have you had a tough time finding a job for months? Tell us
- Content by Capital One Shopping
- Before You Renew Amazon Prime, Read This
- The 40 millionth Ford Motor F-series pickup truck moves down the assembly line at the Dearborn Truck Plant in Dearborn, Michigan, U.S., January 26, 2022. Picture taken January 26, 2022. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook
- Ford earnings hurt by chip shortage
- Wag, a dog walking startup, is to go public through a merger deal.
- Wag, a dog-walking startup that once raised $300 million from a single investor, is going public through a SPAC
- Shoppers browse candy at Hershey’s Chocolate World in Hershey, Pennsylvania, on Nov. 11, 2021.
- Everything Hershey makes is going to get more expensive
- ECONOMY
- Business store are seen with Hiring signs today on February 01, 2022 at Adams Morgan neighborhood in Washington DC, USA.
- America lost 301,000 private-sector jobs in January, ADP says
- The US national debt surpasses $30 trillion
- A record number of Americans quit their jobs in 2021
- Why grocery prices keep surging
- ‘Significant’ risk of the US economy shrinking this quarter, BofA warns
- FAST FOOD
- Exclusive: Wendy’s unveils its first new breakfast item in two years
- Taco Bell favorite Mountain Dew Baja Blast is going boozy
- KFC blasted by China for ‘causing unnecessary food waste’
- McDonald’s is bringing back a sweet treat after five years
- Arby’s new sandwich is so spicy it comes with a free shake
Headlines from right-of-center Newsmax – evening of 2.3.2022
- RNC Moves Closer to Censuring Reps. Cheney, Kinzinger
- Ukraine in Crisis
- Russia Planned Fake Video to Gain Support for Ukraine Invasion
- Ukraine Calls for EU, US to Release Sanction Plans to Deter Russia
- Poland to Lobby for Permanent Rotational US Troop Increase
- NATO Chief Wary of Russian Troop Buildup in Belarus
- Psaki: WH to Stop Using ‘Imminent’ to Describe Potential Invasion
- US Threatens to Cut Off Chip Supply to Russia if It Invades Ukraine
- US Moving 3,000 Troops in Russia-Ukraine Crisis
- More Ukraine in Crisis
- Newsmax TV
- Cammack: Mayorkas Must Go
- Rand Paul: Time to Stress COVID Therapeutics | video
- Grothman: Border Crisis Remains No. 1 Issue | video
- Braun: Putin ‘Smells Weak US Hand’ in Ukraine Crisis | video
- Mast: Sending Troops to Ukraine Is ‘Not the Right Gamble’ | video
- Hinson: Biden Admin ‘Turning Blind Eye’ to Americans’ Pain | video
- Keller: Border Hearings Needed ‘to Bring Accountability’ | video
- More Newsmax TV
- Newsfront
- Dem-Led Va. Panel Kills Youngkin Ed Bills, Including CRT Restriction
- A Virginia Senate committee on Thursday killed key pieces of education legislation sought by GOP Gov. Glenn Youngkin…. [Full Story]
- UK: Senior Aides Quit in New Blow to Embattled Boris Johnson
- Four of Boris Johnson’s most senior staff quit on Thursday, [Full Story]
- Mast to Newsmax: Planned Russian False Flag Attack ‘Strategy in Preparation for War’
- Mast to Newsmax: Planned Russian False Flag Attack ‘Strategy in Preparation for War’
- Russia is inventing ways to “justify a potential attack on Ukraine” [Full Story] | video
- GOP Senators Say Tucker Carlson Wrong on Ukraine
- Republican senators say they are not moved by Fox News host Tucker [Full Story]
- Palin Resumes Court Battle With Times After COVID Illness
- Sarah Palin’s libel suit against The New York Times went to trial [Full Story]
- CNN ‘Dying Death of 1,000 Cuts’ After String of Scandals
- On Groundhog Day, CNN emerged as a shadow of its former self, with [Full Story] | Platinum Article
- More Nations Ease Coronavirus Restrictions, Hoping the Worst Has Passed
- Late-night partying at clubs. Elbow-to-elbow seating in movie [Full Story]
- Related
- WHO Sees Pause, Even End of Pandemic in Europe
- Omicron Subvariant BA.2 Harder to Identify, Spreading: WHO
- Reschenthaler to Newsmax: Army Vax Mandate a ‘Nonviolent Purge’ of Conservatives |video
- US Army to Discharge Soldiers Who Refuse COVID-19 Vaccine
- Britain Approves Novavax COVID Vaccine as Fifth in Country
- Israel to Launch ‘Game Changing’ Laser Missile System by 2023
- Israel is one step closer to building a highly advanced Star [Full Story] | Platinum Article
- Winter Storm Wreaks Havoc Across Wide Swath of Nation
- A massive winter storm swept across the central and Northeast United [Full Story]
- States Seek to Protect Election Workers Amid Growing Threats
- Lawmakers in a handful of states are seeking greater protections for [Full Story]
- Susan Sarandon Slammed for Sharing Post Comparing NYPD Cops at Funeral to Fascism
- Susan Sarandon has come under fire after sharing a message to Twitter [Full Story]
- Maryland County Now Wants School Cops After Shooting
- Officials in Maryland’s Montgomery County, who defunded school police [Full Story]
- Zucker, Gollust Exploited Cozy Ties With Andrew Cuomo
- Former CNN president Jeff Zucker and senior executive Allison Gollust [Full Story]
- IRS Forced to Reassign Employees to Handle Tax Return Backlog
- The IRS is reassigning agency workers with prior experience in [Full Story]
- Gizzi: RNC Weighs Censuring Reps. Cheney, Kinzinger
- Members of the Republican National Committee (RNC) moved closer to a [Full Story]
- Pelosi on Jan. 6 Testimony: ‘If They Asked Me, I Would’
- The Jan. 6 Select Committee has not requested documents or testimony [Full Story] | video
- Cardinal Wants Catholic Teaching on Gays Changed
- Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, president of the Commission of the [Full Story]
- Biden: ISIS Leader Died in ‘Act of Desperate Cowardice’ During US Raid on Syria
- The leader of the violent Islamic State group was killed during an [Full Story]
- Related
- Rubio: Biden ‘Made the Right Decision’ on Syria Raid
- ISIS Leader Killed in US Raid in Syria Remains Murky Figure
- Civilians Reported Killed in US Raid
- Mother of Former Miss USA Cheslie Kryst Says Late Daughter had Depression
- Former Miss USA winner Cheslie Kryst battled with depression right up [Full Story]
- Virginia AG Joins Loudoun County Parents’ Mask Mandate Lawsuit
- Virginia’s new Attorney General Jason Miyares is joining the lawsuit [Full Story]
- Report: Russia Planned Fake Video to Gain Support for Ukraine Invasion
- Russia planned to release a fake video to build support for invading [Full Story]
- Trump Rips ‘Partisan Sleazebags’ in Jan. 6 Committee
- Former President Donald Trump on Thursday released multiple [Full Story]
- San Francisco Police Severs Agreement With DA Over Police Shooting Investigations
- The San Francisco police department will no longer work with the [Full Story]
- NYC Mayor Adams Defends Dinner Date With Andrew Cuomo
- New York City Mayor Eric Adams defended on Thursday his dinner date [Full Story]
- Pelosi: Athletes Should Not Anger ‘Ruthless’ Chinese Government at Olympics
- S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Thursday that the United [Full Story]
- Trump: ‘Horrible Ratings’ Reason Zucker’s Out at CNN
- Former President Donald Trump on Thursday repeated his claim that [Full Story]
- Conservative Groups Release Ad Pinning School Closures, Mask Mandates on Democrats
- Two conservative groups released a television ad Thursday morning [Full Story]
- Jobless Claims Fall for Second Straight Week
- Fewer Americans applied for unemployment benefits for the second week [Full Story]
- China Developing Hypersonic 7,000-mph Plane
- A Chinese company is developing a hypersonic plane capable of flying [Full Story]
- Donald Trump: ‘We Have to End the Mandates’
- Former President Donald Trump said all mandates related to COVID-19 [Full Story]
- Ukraine Calls for EU, US to Release Sanction Plans to Deter Russia
- The European Union should reveal planned sanctions against Russia to [Full Story]
- New All-natural “Lung Cleaning” Device is Going Viral in United States
- Swing Shift: Wall Street’s Gyrations No Cause for Surprise
- What a wild ride. The stock market hasn’t been this crazy since…a couple years ago. Yes, stocks have swerved scarily this year as Wall Street comes to grips with a Federal Reserve no longer doing everything it can to prop up markets…. [Full Story]
- Amazon Holiday Quarter Profit Doubles to $14 Billion
- Stocks Fall as Facebook Parent Company Meta Plummets 26 Percent
- Ford Expects 2022 Operating Profit to Rise as Much as 25 Percent
- AmEx, BNY Mellon Employees to Return to the Office in March
- More Finance
- Health
- Money Can Bring You Happiness, If You Buy This
- Money can’t buy happiness, right? Well researchers say that it depends on how you spend it. A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that people who spend money to buy time instead of material goods, are happier overall. “Despite…… [Full Story]
- In World First, S.Africa’s Afrigen Makes mRNA COVID Vaccine Using Moderna Data
- Chewing Sugar-Free Gum in Pregnancy May Lower Risk for Premature Delivery
- Preliminary Research Suggests Pap Test Could Detect Ovarian, More Cancers
- US to Cover Cost of Over-the-Counter COVID Tests Through Medicare
Manufactured Housing Industry Investments Connected Equities Closing Tickers
Some of these firms invest in manufactured housing, or are otherwise connected, but may do other forms of investing or business activities too.
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- NOTE: The chart below includes the Canadian stock, ECN, which purchased Triad Financial Services, a manufactured home industry lender
- NOTE: Drew changed its name and trading symbol at the end of 2016 to Lippert (LCII).
- NOTE: Deer Valley was largely taken private, say company insiders in a message to MHProNews on 12.15.2020, but there are still some outstanding shares of the stock from the days when it was a publicly traded firm. Thus, there is still periodic activity on DVLY.
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https://www.manufacturedhomepronews.com/steve-lawler-deer-valley-corporation-dvc-otcmkts-dvly-announces-merger-plus-manufactured-home-investing-stock-updates/ 
https://www.manufacturedhomepronews.com/nobility-homes-financial-position-very-strong-sales-strong-but-challenges-including-lending-and-others-examined-plus-manufactured-housing-stocks-update/ - 2022 dawns …Berkshire Hathaway is the parent company to Clayton Homes, 21st Mortgage, Vanderbilt Mortgage and other factory built housing industry suppliers.
· LCI Industries, Patrick, UFPI, and LP each are suppliers to the manufactured housing industry, among others.
· AMG, CG, and TAVFX have investments in manufactured housing related businesses. For insights from third-parties and clients about our publisher, click here.
Enjoy these ‘blast from the past’ comments.MHProNews. MHProNews – previously a.k.a. MHMSM.com – has celebrated our 11th year of publishing, and is starting our 12th year of serving the industry as the runaway most-read trade media.
- 2022 dawns …Berkshire Hathaway is the parent company to Clayton Homes, 21st Mortgage, Vanderbilt Mortgage and other factory built housing industry suppliers.
Sample Kudos over the years…
It is now 11+ years and counting…
Learn more about our evolutionary journey as the industry’s leading trade media, at the report linked below.
· For expert manufactured housing business development or other professional services, click here.
· To sign up in seconds for our industry leading emailed headline news updates, click here.
Disclosure. MHProNews holds no positions in the stocks in this report.
That’s a wrap on this installment of “News Through the Lens of Manufactured Homes and Factory-Built Housing” © where “We Provide, You Decide.” © (Affordable housing, manufactured homes, stock, investing, data, metrics, reports, fact-checks, analysis, and commentary. Third-party images or content are provided under fair use guidelines for media.) (See Related Reports, further below. Text/image boxes often are hot-linked to other reports that can be access by clicking on them.)
By L.A. “Tony” Kovach – for MHProNews.
Tony earned a journalism scholarship along with numerous awards in history. There have been several awards and honors and also recognition in manufactured housing. For example, he earned the prestigious Lottinville Award in history from the University of Oklahoma, where he studied history and business management. He’s a managing member and co-founder of LifeStyle Factory Homes, LLC, the parent company to MHProNews, and MHLivingNews.com. This article reflects the LLC’s and/or the writer’s position and may or may not reflect the views of sponsors or supporters.
