.bodytext {float: left; } .floatimg-left-hort { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right: 10px; width:300px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-caption-hort { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:300px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-vert { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right:15px; width:200px;} .floatimg-left-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; font-size: 10px; width:200px;} .floatimg-right-hort { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px;} .floatimg-right-caption-hort { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px; font-size: 10px; } .floatimg-right-vert { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px;} .floatimg-right-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; font-size: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; border-top-style: double; border-top-color: black; border-bottom-style: double; border-bottom-color: black;} .floatimgright-sidebar p { line-height: 115%; text-indent: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar h4 { font-variant:small-caps; } .pullquote { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 150px; background: url(http://www.dmbusinessdaily.com/DAILY/editorial/extras/closequote.gif) no-repeat bottom right !important ; line-height: 150%; font-size: 125%; border-top: 1px solid; border-bottom: 1px solid;} .floatvidleft { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatvidright { float:right; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} Dear Mr. Berko:

Dear D.N.:

Barnes & Noble Inc. (BKS-$35.16) is a very poor choice. You don’t want BKS in your portfolio because future revenue gains will be niggardly due to competition from video games, the Internet, TV and a declining literacy rate. Many Americans between ages 10 and 40 are infected with a genetic intellectual deficit.

Revenue growth for BKS is suffering, and the books that sell best are of the Harry Potter genre, which are basically bubble gum for the mind. Meanwhile, heavy discounting to attract buyers and competition from Amazon has crippled earnings. Net profit margins are getting squeezed, and BKS expects to report lower 2007 earnings of $1.75 per share compared with earnings of $2.18 in 2006. SunTrust, Prudential, Matrix Research and Stifel Nicholas each rate BKS a “buy.” Even so, stay away from BKS.

Advanced Life Sciences Holdings Inc. (ADLS-$1.59) is among the multitude of tiny, inconspicuous biopharma companies that focus on small-molecular therapeutics in the field of oncology, inflammation and infectious diseases. ADLS has licensing agreements with the University of Illinois, Baxter Labs, Argonne National Laboratory and Abbot Labs and has recently signed pacts with Novartis, Medimmune and Medirex. Meanwhile, ADLS’s Cethromycin was just given an “Orphan Drug” designation, granting ADLS seven years of marketing exclusivity. Cethromycin is a treatment for anthrax and “community acquired pneumonia,” and the U.S. Army Research Institute of Infectious Disease is collaborating with ADLS. There are only 28 million shares out, and I think Cethromycin plus some of ADLS’s R&D efforts will produce dividends. I’m comfortable owning the stock as a wild speculation but sell it if it reaches the $5.50-$6 level.

The National Bank of Greece SA (NBG-$12.46) is the largest bank in that archival country. Earnings have grown fourfold, from 24 cents a share in 2003 to an expected 97 cents a share this year on a 70 percent increase in revenues to $5.7 billion. NBG’s 27 cent dividend, which may be raised to 33 cents later this year, yields 2.2 percent. NBG has been growing at 25 percent a year, compared with 10 percent for European banks, and appears to be a compelling opportunity to participate in booming Southeastern Asia.

The bank has a huge cash position of $17 billion, or $7.25 a share, boosts a 29 percent profit margin and offers a 23 percent return on equity. Management has been actively making careful acquisitions in Bulgaria, Turkey, Romania and Serbia and has profitable operations in Egypt, the United Kingdom and Cyprus. NBG has 570 branches, 1,400 ATMs and does everything that Citibank or Bank of America does but does it better in Europe and Southeastern Asia, because that’s closer to its home turf. Recent quarterly earnings were up 52 percent, a result of strong economic demand in Turkey and Romania, and earnings for the following quarters may zoom too because of the strong business environment in Southeastern Europe. I would be a buyer of this classy bank in a heartbeat.

Yes, it’s becoming difficult to find cheap issues in this market. I’m not comfortable pre-empting future columns, but if you continue reading, I’m sure there will be some attractive issues that may interest you.

Please address your financial questions to Malcolm Berko, P.O. Box 1416, Boca Raton, Fla. 33429 or e-mail him at malber@adelphia.net.© Copley News Service © Copley News Service