Is it Time to Buy?

I want to buy stocks so badly. It is in my blood to buy when others are selling and vice versa. If there ever was a time to be optimistic, that time is now.

How can you not be excited about stocks today? All of the major indexes are down more than 40% over the last year with almost half of the losses happening in just the last week or so.

There is the proverbial blood in the street and fear is at an all time high. Value investors like me are starting to dip their toes in the water. A brave few are calling this the bottom.

Is it time to buy? For the answer, we need to consult my handy dandy road map. So far, following that map has served us well.

Are you taking my advice? Before the carnage began, I suggested that investors should sell stocks and sell stocks quickly. Even after the bailout was approved, I told readers of my column here that it was still not too late to sell. (See also: "Why It’s Not Too Late to Sell.")

I was right. You could have saved lots of angst and profits by rotating out of stocks like I did with my Rational Investor model portfolio. I moved that portfolio to 75% cash just before the worst of it.

Did I panic? I did no such thing. Instead I merely examined the evidence before me and adjusted my expectations for the future.

It was a slam dunk conclusion that in a world on the brink of financial disaster stock values must deflate. The price for the bailout had yet to dawn on stock traders. Even worse, the bailout may not save the day.

There were two big clues for the recent calamity in the market. The biggest clue as to what was to transpire in stocks was the dichotomy between the credit market and the stock market.

It simply made no sense that credit markets were trading as if the apocalypse had occurred versus stocks that actually went up in value during the first week after the Lehman collapse.

You could not ask for a clearer sign! al than that.

Another big clue that stocks were heading down was a bit more subtle…

Specifically, too many people were expecting the bailout to be a magic bullet. Stocks must certainly rise given the $700 billion stimulus package that was soon to be injected into the system.

Wrong, wrong and wrong again. If you have’t fired your buy and hold advisor, now would be a good time to go ahead and do that. They failed you miserably, but I digress.

So where does the road map tell us where to go now? Well in 99% of situations like this, I would agree with my value brethren. Stocks are way oversold and due for a sharp correction to the upside.

It is eerily similar to October, 2002. At that time I deployed 150% of my portfolio into the market at noon on October 9th. I missed the exact bottom of that bear by 3 hours.

Within less than 2 months I made nearly 50% on my portfolio. Could the same thing happen today? Yes, but there is one very big difference between then and now.

Mainly, the consumer was in much better shape than today. The 2001/2002 recession was extremely shallow and much of the pause in the economy was rooted in the deer in the headlights reaction of citizens in the wake of the September 11th terrorist attacks.

Blink and you missed it. Not this time. Only the bravest optimists is of the opinion that the current malaise will be short lived.

I appreciate the noble cheerleading. In fact, I am the biggest fan of the United States and its economy. We are resilient, but digging out of a debt hole is hard work. It takes time.

Consumers have no choice but to curtail spending. That means corporations will not make as much money. I heard someone describe the current state as being on Titanic before an ice berg tore a hole it its bow. (See also: "Consumer Shock: Spending Takes a Big Turn for the Worse.")

We can see this coming a mile away and yet we have no way of steering the ship away from trouble. T! he only choice we have is to take our medicine, and this medicine will be slow acting.

Oh, I wish the economy can rebound from the turmoil in quick fashion. With so many stocks trading so cheaply and fear as measured by the VIX, a snap back rally is sure to come.

Ah, but that’s what they said regarding the bailout. No, the road map says that we are close to the bottom, but time is needed before the all clear can be given. (See also: "When Will We Hit Bottom?")

I’m not worried about missing a rally here. We’ll have plenty of time to buy stocks once we get a better handle on what the future holds. Right now it is too uncertain to take unnecessary risk no matter how tempting.

This article was written by Jamie Dlugosch, contributor to InvestorPlace.com. For more actionable insight like this, go to: www.InvestorPlace.com.

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Best Wall St. Stocks Today: GOOG,GS,CS,JMP

If you have been around the markets for a decade you’ll know the name Frank Quattrone quite well.  Quattrone was one of the most influential investment bankers in the 1990′s who also became the head of Credits Suisse’s technology banking group.  He was nearly destroyed in one of the great Wall Street scandals in obstructing the investigation over brokerage firms giving shares in hot IPO’s to great clients for higher commissions, in which he was ultimately vindicated.

Frank Quattrone has just announced that he is launching Qatalyst Group, a new technology boutique being launched with former colleagues.  Qatalyst will be a technology-focused merchant banking boutique that is to be headquartered in San Francisco, CA.  This is being noted as Qatalyst Capital and Qatalyst Partners.

Qatalyst Partners is its investment banking business, and it will provide high-end M&A and corporate finance advice to technology companies. Qatalyst Capital Partners is its investing business and it will make selective principal investments, typically alongside leading venture capital and private equity firms.  Qatalyst Partners noted that it will provide "high quality, independent advice to the senior management teams and boards of the technology industry’s established and emerging leaders on strategic matters crucial to their growth and success."  While it will not engage in public securities research, sales, trading or brokerage, Qatalyst Partners may participate as advisor or underwriter in clients’ public offerings. 

This will combine a broad network of relationships with deep sector knowledge and seasoned M&A expertise. In addition to merger & acquisition advice, Qatalyst Partners will also advise companies on capital structure and capital raising alternatives, and will selectively raise private capital for clients. 

Eric Schmidt of Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) noted, "….I look forward to working! with hi m again and am very enthusiastic about Qatalyst’s prospects for success."

It looks like this cadre is mostly from Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) and Credit Suisse Group (NYSE: CS).  Qatalyst’s initial founders include:

• Jonathan Turner, a technology M&A expert, formerly Global Head of Credit Suisse’s Internet group and most recently served as Vice President of Corporate Development for online marketing leader QuinStreet;
• Adrian E. Dollard, formerly General Counsel of Credit Suisse’s Technology group and a lawyer at Shearman & Sterling specializing in M&A, corporate finance and venture capital;
• Neil Chalasani, most recently a Vice President with Evercore’s Technology, Media & Telecom group;
• and will include Brian Slingerland, most recently a Vice President with Goldman, Sachs’ Technology Media & Telecom group;
• and Brian Cayne, most recently an Associate at Vista Equity Partners.

Qatalyst Partners has submitted an application for registration as a broker-dealer with the SEC and has applied for membership in FINRA.  During the approval pending process, Qatalyst will operate as a division of JMP Securities so that they can begin to advise clients immediately.  JMP Securities is part of JMP Group (NYSE: JMP).

It looks like Wall Street just got a new technology boutique that will be involved in venture capital, private equity, and bringing companies public. 

Jon C. Ogg
March 18, 2008

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(IDRA, SNSS, SGEN, CLNO, SPAN) Stocks in Review by DrStockPick.com

Idera Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: IDRA) announced that it presented new data showing that IMO-4200, a dual agonist of Toll-like receptor (TLR) 7 and TLR8, in combination with approved cancer treatments increased antitumor activity in preclinical models of lymphoma. The presentation by Idera scientists, entitled �IMO-4200, a novel TLR7 and TLR8 dual agonist, enhances antitumor effect of ofatumumab, rituximab and cytotoxics in preclinical models of hematological malignancies�, abstract number 3724, was made at the 53rd annual meeting of the American Society for Hematology being held in San Diego, California December 11-13, 2011.

�The data presented show that IMO-4200 provides a novel scientific rationale for the targeted immunotherapy of hematological malignancies,� said Nicola La Monica, Ph.D., VP of Biology of Idera Pharmaceuticals. �IMO-4200 has shown to potentiate the anti-cancer activity of a broad range of approved agents, including rituximab, bortezomib and ofatumumab, in preclinical models of lymphoma.�

IMO-4200 is a novel synthetic RNA-based dual agonist of TLR7 and TLR8 identified as a lead drug candidate for the treatment of hematological malignancies. IMO-4200 is designed to stimulate immune responses mediated through TLR7 and TLR8, which are expressed in human dendritic cells, B-cells, monocytes, and macrophages. In preclinical mouse models of cancer, IMO-4200 has shown anticancer activity involving both innate and adaptive immune responses. IMO-4200, when administered in combination with approved cancer therapy drugs, rituximab, ofatumumab or bortezomib, showed significantly increased antitumor activity compared to the single-agent effects in several preclinical lymphoma models.

Idera Pharmaceuticals applies its proprietary Toll-like Receptor (TLR) drug discovery platform to create immunomodulatory drug candidates. The Company’s TLR-targeted candidates are being developed to treat aut! oimmune and inflammatory diseases, cancer, and for use as vaccine adjuvants. Additionally, the Company is advancing its gene-silencing oligonucleotide (GSO) technology for the purpose of inhibiting the expression of disease-promoting genes.

More about IDRA at www.iderapharma.com.

Sunesis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:SNSS) announced participation in a Phase 2/3 randomized, controlled, multicenter trial evaluating novel treatment regimens against low dose cytarabine (LD Ara-C), a commonly used treatment of elderly patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). This trial, known as the Less Intensive 1 (LI-1) Study, is being conducted by the United Kingdom’s National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) Haematological Oncology Study Group under the direction of Professor Alan K. Burnett, Head of Haematology, Department of Medical Genetics, Haematology & Pathology at Cardiff University School of Medicine. Two regimens containing Sunesis’ lead drug candidate, vosaroxin, have been selected as investigational treatment arms in this study.

Sunesis is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of new oncology therapeutics for the treatment of solid and hematologic cancers.

Seattle Genetics, Inc. (Nasdaq:SGEN) and Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company with its parent company Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TSE:4502), announced interim results from a phase I clinical trial of ADCETRIS (brentuximab vedotin) in combination with chemotherapy for the treatment of newly diagnosed advanced stage Hodgkin lymphoma patients. The data were presented at the 53rd American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition being held December 10-13, 2011 in San Diego, CA. ADCETRIS is an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) directed to CD30.

Seattle Genetics is a biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of monoclon! al antib ody-based therapies for the treatment of cancer.

Cleantech Transit, Inc. (CLNO)
Cleantech Transit, Inc. is in the business of producing and conserving power. Cleantech Transit produces and sells clean electricity globally, with a focus on sustainable energies using renewable resources such as Geothermal, Solar and Wind. Cleantech Transit’s goal is to use innovative technologies to reduce electricity consumption and dependence on carbon based energy. Cleantech Transit, Inc. was founded in 2006 and is based in Scottsdale, Arizona.

There multiple ways to use biomass to create energy:

When plant matter is heated (but not burned), it breaks down into various forms such as gases, liquids and solids. These can be processed and refined into useful fuels. These fuels can either be burned in gas turbines to create electricity, or be stored in fuel cells and later used to create electricity when necessary. The advantage of this process is that very few emissions are created - and at times none.
By using biochemical methods, equivalent to fermentation, it’s possible to convert biomass into a combustible fuel. This fuel can be burned to create power and heat.

Biomass oil, such as soybean and canola oil can be chemically converted to liquid fuel that can be used to create “biodiesel” fuel for trucks.
Biomass can also be used to create compost, which is decayed plant or food products mixed together in a pile and spread out to help plants grow.

Cleantech Transit, Inc. (CLNO) is pleased to announce it has met its funding requirement to secure the Company’s ability to earn in 25% of the 500KW Merced Project.

The Company is in the final stages of closing its initial interest in the Merced Project and is currently working on completing the necessary documentation and expects closing the transaction soon. As previously announced Cleantech has the option to earn up to 40% of th! e Merced Project and the Company plans to continue to work towards increasing its interest in the Merced Project as they move ahead.

For more information please visit official website of CLNO: www.cleantechtransit.com

Span-America Medical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPAN) announced that it has acquired substantially all the assets of M.C. Healthcare Products Inc. (MCHP). MCHP, located in Beamsville, Ontario, Canada, is a privately-owned manufacturer and marketer of medical bed frames and related products for the long term care market.

Span-America manufactures and markets a comprehensive selection of pressure management products for the medical market, including Geo-Matt�, PressureGuard�, Geo-Mattress�, Custom Care�, Span+Aids�, Isch-Dish�, Risk Manager� and Selan� products.

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Morning Movers: Materials Fall, XOM Rises

Several of the mining stocks that saw decent gains yesterday are retrenching today, with Barrick Gold (ABX) and Kinross Gold(KGC) down fractionally at $43.90 and $19.41, respectively, and Newmount Mining (NEM) down 1% at $51.82.

In energy, ExxonMobil (XOM) is breaking away from the pack on last night’s news Warren Buffett has taken a stake, and an upgrade by Barclay’s Capital this morning, rising 39 cents, or half a percent, to $74.82, as ConocoPhillips (COP) falls almost 1% to $53.41. Chevron (CVX) managed a modest gain of 11 cents, a fraction of a percent, to $78.62.

Among financials, MBIA (MBI) is up 11% on no apparent news, and insurer Assured Guaranty (AGO) is up almost 20% after beating Q3 profit estimates.

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Keep An Eye On Your Paycheck

The typical scenario is that you get your paycheck. Once you have recovered from the shock of how little is left after taxes, you then proceed to divvy it up among all your outstanding bills, intending to put whatever is left over into your savings.

But your savings don’t grow since there never seems to be anything left over.

Paying yourself first would even be a better plan. Try not to let the money get into your hands. You may even realize that this way is a quicker way to grow your savings.

Working with an employer with a 401K plan would mean that the first thing you should do is to fund it to the max. If you can’t afford that, at least put enough in to get the full matching contribution form your employer.

Made before taxes is this investment. Because your investment is larger, the employers contribution then grows quickly.

Every month, there should be a brokerage or mutual fund company to debit your banking account. This money should first go into an IRA – if you have five years or more to go to retirement, make it a Roth IRA.

To go into a no-load, low cost mutual fund, you should also have a few dollars more to be debited. The younger you are, the more aggressive your choice of fund can be.

After that is done, then figure out how to pay your bills and living expenses. If money is tight, cut back on your living expenses and use the extra money to pay down your debt.

First, you can start with the lowest balance. Once that debt is paid, take the amount of money you were paying on that debt and add it to the payment on the next lowest balance debt. If you continue doing this, then you can be debt free within 5 to 7 years.

Another version of this method is paying the highest interest rate debt first. The principal is the same, you just see more progress with the first method, although it could be more costly based on how your debt is distributed.

Scimping at the expense of your current lifestyle is the idea here while leavi! ng your savings to grow and you debt to shrink.

Many of the people reading this will scream that this is an impossible plan. This is, however, quite doable with a little will power and the ability to delay gratification for a while.

But if you don’t do this, then the problem is that your future might turn out to be very bleak.

The real estate agent you work with could be one of your most valuable resources in sartell homes for sale.

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Fix Your 401(k) - SmartMoney.com

Every day, millions of Americans give their investments the serious attention they deserve, riffling through the business pages, tracking the markets and grappling with tough questions. Do I need more exposure to stocks -- or less? How worried should I be about the euro? Am I going to need to save more to retire on time? But there's a major question often hiding in plain sight, one so fundamental to people's financial health many don't even think to ask it: Is my 401(k) plan any good?

Inside the April Issue

• Fix Your 401(k)
• The Big Business of 401(k) Plans
• 10 Things Campaign Managers Won't Tell You
• 9 to 5 -- at 75
• Real Estate: When High Rents Are a 'Buy' Signal

Certainly, few of us need to ask whether the plans matter: We've resigned ourselves to our dependency when it comes to retirement savings. Americans now hold $4.3 trillion in 401(k)s and similar defined-contribution plans, nearly three times as much as the $1.6 trillion parked in annuities. The plans weren't originally designed to be the nation's primary retirement lifeline -- they started as a minor tax perk for senior executives -- but they've grown inexorably, as ever more big companies have used them as a cheaper alternative to traditional pensions. Only about a third of the corporate wo! rk force can look forward to a monthly pension check today, down from 80 percent three decades ago; over the same period, assets in 401(k)-like plans have grown 16-fold.

And yet, as many economists and money pros know and as more employees are beginning to realize, the plans are riddled with problems capable of tripping up even the most diligent investors. The laundry list of pitfalls includes high (and often hidden) expenses that eat up enormous chunks of plan members' gains, as well as company-provided advice that critics say ranges from vague to nonexistent. Some consumer advocates say that too many employers treat their plans as an afterthought -- and that the financial-services industry, which collects between $30 billion and $60 billion a year in fees from such plans, has little incentive to change things. So it often takes Norma Rae-like activism to get a company to improve its plan lineup -- which means that, for many Americans, picking the components of their 401(k) may be the biggest financial decision they never get to make. "I personally think the 401(k) should be abolished," says Matt Goff, a Houston financial adviser whose practice serves small-business owners needing help with their company retirement plans.

To be sure, some conscientious companies are working to make their plans better; federal regulators are getting involved too, with new rules that may make it easier for investors to see what they're actually paying for their plans. But for most investors, advisers say, it doesn't make sense to wait for the cavalry to come. Here, some of the best advice for cutting costs, finding better funds or even going outside an employer's plan to launch a 401(k) repair project.

The New "Target": Cutting Costs

Are They Worth the Price?

Target-date funds are now the anchor of many investors' 401(k) plans, but critics have faulted some funds for high expenses a! nd so-so performance.

Americans now hold $343 billion in target-date funds, up threefold in six years, and they're buying them mostly through their retirement plans. These funds are the cafeteria lunch of mutual funds: They include all the basic food groups, so investors don't have to order la carte. The funds invest in a mix of stocks, bonds and other investments that gets more conservative as an investor's retirement, or target date, approaches, rebalancing automatically for investors who prefer not to or don't know how to do it themselves. Congress passed a law in 2006 making it easier for employers to use target-date funds as a default 401(k) option, and 81 percent of large employers now offer them.

But for some cost-conscious investors, the expenses built into target-date funds are a growing peeve. Most such products are "funds of funds" that spread assets among multiple other investment vehicles. As a result, target-date-fund expenses span an unusually wide range. Vanguard's target-date products, which rely heavily on index funds, have average expenses of $18 a year per $10,000 invested; at the opposite extreme, Oppenheimer uses actively managed funds and charges $168 per $10,000. And investors at smaller companies are more likely to face fees at the higher end of the range. The differences can add up. According to human resources consultant Towers Watson, an increase of just $50 per $10,000 in target-date-fund fees could cost a high earner the equivalent of eight years' worth of retirement savings over the length of his career.

Target-Date Funds: What to Ask

How did you do in the crash?

Planners say that anyone considering a target-date fund should see how that! fund fa red during the 2008-09 financial crisis. Among target-date funds geared for workers who planned to retire in 2010, the average fund lost 22 percent in 2008, but some lost as much as 40 percent.

Am I the kind of investor you target?

Target-date funds have a lot of assumptions about investor behavior baked into their structure. Many hold plenty of volatile assets, like stocks, even as they pass their retirement target dates, assuming investors won't need to tap the money right away and can take some risks with it. Others are already filled with bonds, assuming that investors will cash out the day they retire. Savers whose needs or plans don't match a fund's assumptions might not find the funds to be a good fit.

Can I get your funds separately -- and cheaper?

Some investors and advisers check a target-date's overall expense ratio, then compare that fund's individual components to similar index funds in the same 401(k) plan. In some cases, employees find they can build a comparable portfolio at a fraction of the cost.

Do you diversify me?

Some investors say it can be worth holding on to a target-date fund if it offers investments that you can't get elsewhere in your 401(k), like commodities or REITs, which can smooth returns in rocky markets.

To be sure, some investors say it's worth paying more for the convenience of the all-in-one funds; what's more, the funds sometimes have access to assets like gold or foreign stocks that employees can't get elsewhere in the plan. Still, some do-it-yourselfers are opting to cook from scratch rather than accept the cafeteria tray. Atlanta adviser Jeffrey Baumert, who helps small-business owners design plans, says he'll sometimes encourage folks whose plans include Fidelity's Freedom funds to try an alternative. Freedom funds' expenses average $74 per $10,000, an! d Baumer t says his clients can do better -- they can get exposure to large-cap stocks, for example, through the inexpensive Fidelity Spartan 500 Index fund. "Do you really think that all their fund managers in every category are going to be the best?" he asks. (Fidelity says its active management is designed to deliver better returns in the long run.)

Some advisers advocate an even simpler rule of thumb: When possible, use only index funds. That's because the typical 401(k) fee structure makes the substantial expense gap between indexes and active funds even wider. "Packagers" -- companies like Fidelity, Vanguard or other middlemen -- collect a substantial share of their 401(k) plan revenues from active funds. Active large-cap stock funds, for example, route an average of $21 per $10,000 invested to cover back-office expenses like accounting and record-keeping, according to human resources consultancy Aon Hewitt (a firm which itself sometimes acts as a packager). The average large-cap index fund, in contrast, routes just $6, and at least half such funds don't charge those fees at all. Ultimately, investors in actively managed funds are subsidizing their coworkers, says Dave Gray, head of retirement plan product development at Charles Schwab; using index funds means getting that subsidy, instead of paying it.

Comparing Plans on Cost

Soon, employers will be required to make more detailed disclosures of their plans' costs. But for more data, experts say, investors will still have to dig into companies' regulatory filings.

Cheap: IBM
(Plan run by Fidelity)

The sheer size of the plan, which has more than 200,000 participants, helps keep costs down, since bigger 401(k) programs usually get heftier discounts on fund expenses. But the plan also emphasizes cheaper index funds, including index options for real estate investing and inflation-protected bo! nds.

Average: Abercrombie & Fitch
(Plan run by Fidelity)

Members of the fashion retailer's plan have access to some index options, but most of the choices are more costly, actively managed funds, including Fidelity's target-date funds. (Fidelity says the active management of those funds gives investors a long-term performance edge.)

Expensive: Take-Two Interactive Software
(Plan run by The Principal Group)

Most funds in the video-game maker's plan are more expensive than average. To use the main stock index fund, employees pay $42 per $10,000 invested, more than twice what an all-but-identical fund costs outside the plan. Principal says the costs are typical for a plan of this size.

Data as of latest federal filings.
Sources: Brightscope; Federal Filings

Expanding Your Choices: The 401(k)-Plus

What's Missing From the Menu

Since the financial crisis, advisers say, 401(k) investors have been more likely to look for alternatives to plain-vanilla stock and bond funds. But surprisingly few plans have adapted to give them what they want.

When the U.S. financial system went haywire in 2008, many Main Street investors started searching for commodities, foreign bonds and other alternative investments that had a chance to stay afloat when U.S. stocks sank. But if they went looking in their 401(k)s, advisers say, chances are they found nothing -- and, more surprising still, even now, many plans haven't adapted. Excluding target-date products, the average plan has just 13 funds, only one more t! han befo re the crash, according to Aon Hewitt. And the very categories they're missing are the ones that employees could be using to hedge against a choppy stock market. Less than half of plans have a bond index fund, for example, and only about one in four includes real estate funds.

A minority of larger 401(k)s give their employees a relatively simple way to get what they're missing, sponsoring a "brokerage window" that lets investors buy funds that aren't in the plan lineup, along with stocks and ETFs in some cases. But for many employees, experts say, it's a costly proposition. Trading commissions tend to be noticeably higher on such transactions than on the same ones made through a discount broker, for example, and investors won't get the "institutional" discount on fund shares. The result is you'll pay more for the investments you want -- "like buying hot dogs at the ballpark," says financial adviser Robert Schmansky, who helps employers choose 401(k) plans.

Beyond Your 401(k): What to Ask

What's my match?

Financial advisers say investors should almost always contribute enough to get their 401(k) plan's full match -- most years, their investments would have to have a great run to make up for the money they would have left on the table.

Can I climb out the window?

About a fifth of large companies have a "brokerage window" that offers access to a bigger range of investments -- though using it means paying fees and commissions. Some advisers recommend minimizing costs by using the window only once a quarter or once a year.

What if I go out on my own?

Investors without a brokerage window can find more investment options by opening an IRA or a Roth IRA. For 2012, the maximum contribution for such plans is $5,000 for those under 50 and $6,! 000 for those 50 and older.

When can I leave?

When workers switch jobs, they can roll their 401(k) plan balance into an IRA. Otherwise, they're stuck, with one noteworthy exception: In many plans, those who turn 591/2 become eligible for an "in-service rollover," even if they stay with their company.

The upshot is that some employees have decided, in a sense, to take the money and run. They contribute just enough to their plans to get a company match, then set up separate retirement accounts that can fill the holes in their 401(k)s. Aircraft giant Boeing has leveraged its huge work force -- its 401(k) has around 200,000 enrollees -- to get low fees in its plan, which includes plenty of low-cost index funds. But the plan lacks funds that focus on holdings that money managers say can help smooth returns in rocky markets, including REITs and Treasury inflation-protected securities. It also lacks specific funds for emerging-market and foreign small-cap stocks. As a result, advisers say, many Boeing employees have built their own shadow 401(k)s. Lowell Lombardini-Parker, a financial planner in Seattle, says he's dealt with dozens of clients from the company, helping them buy low-cost funds targeting those asset classes. His philosophy: "Use what you can. But if you have to, go outside the 401(k)." (Boeing says its own plan includes a "prudent" menu, and that its narrow range of options is designed to not overwhelm unsophisticated investors.)

The double-barrel strategy isn't necessarily the right fit for everyone. Because a matching contribution from an employer is essentially free money, planners say investors should always collect fully on that. And higher-income workers may not be able to make tax-deductible contributions to outside accounts if they also have a 401(k). In that case, Lombardini-Parker says, it may still make sense to put money in a taxable retirement account. Many advisers recommend that investors leave REIT! s and TI PS out of such accounts -- since they tend to throw off taxable income -- and use them instead for equity funds and other stock investments that they plan to hold for a while.

Where the Advice Is... and What It Costs

Advice From Your Company

• Cost: Usually free.
• Pros: Can't beat the price.
• Cons: Only offered by about 60% of firms. Many limit counsel to relatively generic advice.

One-Time, Outside Advice

• Cost: $500 and up for a review of your finances (based on typical fees).
• Pros: Clients can mesh 401(k) advice with counsel on issues like college savings and insurance.
• Cons: It's up to the client to follow the plan; getting follow-up advice often means paying extra.

Full-Time Advice

• Cost: Typically 1% a year, or $5,000 a year for someone with $500,000 in investable assets.
• Pros: Advisers handle some transactions for clients and offer guidance on issues like estate planning
• Cons: Often more expensive than part-time help; some investors with fewer assets feel neglected.

Summoning Reinforcements: Outside Help

On average, 401(k) members fork over $83 per $10,000 invested each year in total fees, according to a recent study by Deloitte Consulting and the Investment Company Institute. For about 60 percent of 401(k) plans, that fee! comes w ith what looks like a corresponding perk -- the opportunity to get investment advice. But according to the Plan Sponsor Council of America, a trade group, only about one in five investors takes advantage of the advice.

Why so little interest? It turns out that the companies' offerings are pretty bare-bones. David Wray, president of the plan council, says the threat of lawsuits means large companies need to make sure that, say, a 60-year-old in Dallas and a 60-year-old in Boston get relatively consistent recommendations, which means the advice is less likely to be personalized. Employers also almost always avoid offering advice about any assets that aren't in the 401(k), like a home or a spouse's savings. The result: "Plan-provided advice tends to be generic," says Wray.

The problem, of course, is that anything that isn't generic can get expensive. Financial advisers can spend hours poring over every investment choice. But their fees often start at 1 percent of an investor's assets, which would effectively double what the typical 401(k) shareholder is already spending on her portfolio. One Goldilocks option: Some financial planners will take on smaller advice projects, counseling investors on a one-time basis for an hourly fee. Brian Terry, a Charlotte, N.C.-based adviser, has seen dozens of 401(k) clients. He gives his clients a rundown of their plan, taking a few hours to help them pick investments; many, but not all, return once a year for a follow-up. His price: $150 an hour. The Garrett Planning Network is one network of hourly-fee planners; others can be found through the National Association of Personal Financial Advisers.

Financial planners have their own idiosyncrasies and agendas, though, and some critics complain that they can drive people into cookie-cutter strategies of their own. Consumer! advocat es say investors should check whether advisers get compensated for recommending any particular investments (a common arrangement among both independent operators and employees of big-name brokerages). When it's time to talk 401(k), advisers say, preparation counts: Think carefully about when you want to retire and how much money you hope to spend, says Lea Ann Knight, a planner from Bedford, Mass., who meets with many clients for similar consultations. And don't be shy about secret ambitions -- like that condo in Maui. Devote your face time with the planner to these goals; let him parse the fine print on investment prospectuses.

And investors who decide that with or without help, their 401(k) just won't cut it can always approach the boss. Retirement consultants say that many employers, no less befuddled by the system, are often happy to hear what employees want. Of course, some may have better luck asking employers to add a single option like a mutual fund than to switch providers entirely. One place to start: Grassroots investing website Bogleheads.org has a form letter employees can download for free.

Getting Help: What to Ask

Should I take my employer's advice?

Pros say advice from planners hired by the employer can offer investors a quick read on how much to save or whether to buy more stocks or bonds. But when it comes to picking specific investments, they add, getting a second opinion or reviewing independent research is often worthwhile.

What's online?

Morningstar is an invaluable resource for researching mutual funds. At not-for-profit website Bogleheads .org, anyone brave enough to (anonymously) post the details of their financial life can get advice from opinionated volunteers. Of course, with free and anonymous advice, "it's buyer beware," says securities lawyer Edward Rosenblatt.

Can I find out how my plan stacks up?

BrightScope, a financial research firm, has a website that offers ratings of 401(k) plans: The sections on "total plan cost" and "investment-menu quality" offer a sense of how a plan's fund lineup stacks up against others in its industry.

What kind of adviser do I want?

For those whose main financial concern is their 401(k) plan, a one-time meeting with a planner can be cost-effective; for investors with more complex needs, like an inheritance or college education to finance, bringing on someone full-time for an annual or asset-based fee might be warranted.

Photo-illustrations by Stephen Webster for SmartMoney

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Great Stocks In November 2012

Best-traded stocks may not be the best stocks to invest in for the year. But there are still good stocks to invest in 2012 with high return on investments . It’s up to you to study stock market analyst predictions.

In the Philippine Stock Market, Prince Anthony Yeung of AB Capital Securities advises investors who want to start buying good stocks for short-term and long-term investment to look at the banking and utilities sector particularly Security Bank (SECB), RCBC (RCB), Aboitiz Power (AP), Energy Development Corporation (EDC).

These stocks are expected to appreciate next year, supported by the strong fundamentals of the companies. With the economy started to show signs of recovering, many are now optimistic of a stock market rally for the whole year in the Philippine Stock Exchange. Certainly, the equities market is ripe for a rally. And if it happens, be ready in investing in the stock market and looking for the good stocks to invest in with your hard-earned money.

Great Stocks In November 2012:CenterPoint Energy Inc (Holding Co) (CNP)

 CenterPoint Energy, Inc. operates as a public utility holding company in the United States. The company?s Electric Transmission and Distribution segment provides transmission and distribution services to retail electric providers, municipalities, electric cooperatives, and other distribution companies serving approximately 2.1 million metered customers. As of December 31, 2010, it owned 27,842 pole miles of overhead distribution lines and 3,728 circuit miles of overhead transmission lines; 20,390 circuit miles of underground distribution lines and 26 circuit miles of underground transmission lines; and 233 substation sites with a capacity of 52,938 megavolt amperes. Its Natural Gas Distribution segment engages in regulated intrastate natural gas sales to, and natural gas transportation for approximately 3.3 million residential, commercial, and industrial customers. This segment also provides various unregulated services consisting of heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment and appliance repair; and sells HVAC, and hearth and water heating equipment. It owned approximately 71,000 linear miles of natural gas distribution mains. The company?s Competitive Natural Gas Sales and Services segment offers physical natural gas supplies to commercial and industrial customers, and electric and gas utilities; physical delivery services and financial products; natural gas management services; and transportation services to shippers and end-users. Its Interstate Pipelines segment provides gas transportation and storage services to industrial customers and local distribution companies. It owned and operated approximately 8,000 miles of natural gas transmission lines; and 6 natural gas storage fields. The company?s Field Services segment provides gas gathering, treating, and processing, as well as operating and technical, and remote data monitoring and communication services. CenterPoint Energy, Inc. was founded in 1882 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Great Stocks In November 2012:United Bancorp Inc. (UBCP)

 United Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for The Citizens Savings Bank that provides various commercial and retail banking products and services in the northeastern, eastern, southeastern, and south central Ohio. Its deposit products include interest-bearing deposits, certificates of deposit, demand deposits, savings accounts, NOW accounts, and money market deposits. The company?s loan portfolio comprises commercial, real estate, installment, and consumer loans, as well as letters of credit and lines of credit. It also offers brokerage, night deposit, safe deposit box, and automatic teller machine services. United Bancorp provides banking services through its main office and stand alone operations center in Martins Ferry, Ohio; and 19 branches in Belmont, Harrison, Jefferson, Tuscarawas, Carroll, Athens, Hocking, and Fairfield counties, as well as in the surrounding localities. The company was founded in 1974 and is headquartered in Martins Ferry, Ohio.

Great Stocks In November 2012:Wyndham Worldwide Corp (WYN)

 Wyndham Worldwide Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides various hospitality products and services to individual consumers and business customers in the United States and internationally. It offers its products and services under the Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, Ramada, Days Inn, Super 8, Howard Johnson, Wyndham Rewards, Wingate by Wyndham, Microtel, RCI, The Registry Collection, ResortQuest, Landal GreenParks, Novasol, Hoseasons, cottages4you, James Villa Holidays, Wyndham Vacation Resorts, and WorldMark by Wyndham brand names. The company?s Lodging segment franchises hotels in the upscale, midscale, economy, and extended stay markets of the lodging industry, as well as provides hotel management services for full-service hotels. Its Vacation Exchange and Rentals segment provides vacation exchange products and services, as well as access to distribution systems and networks to resort developers and owners of intervals of vacation ownership interests (VOIs); and markets vacation rental properties primarily on behalf of independent owners, vacation ownership developers, and other hospitality providers. Wyndham Worldwide Corporation?s Vacation Ownership segment develops and markets VOIs to individual consumers; and provides consumer financing in connection with the sale of VOIs, as well as offers property management services at resorts. The company is headquartered in Parsippany, New Jersey.

Great Stocks In November 2012:Western Gas Partners LP (WES)

 Western Gas Partners, LP, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition, ownership, development, and operation of midstream energy assets in east and west Texas, the Rocky Mountains, and the Mid-Continent. It involves in gathering, compressing, processing, treating, and transporting natural gas, condensate, natural gas liquids (NGL), and crude oil for Anadarko Petroleum Corporation and its consolidated subsidiaries, third-party producers, and customers. As of March 31, 2011, the company?s assets consisted of 11 gathering systems, 6 natural gas treating facilities, 7 natural gas processing facilities, 1 NGL pipeline, and 1 interstate pipeline, as well as non-controlling interests in a gas gathering system and a crude oil pipeline. Western Gas Holdings, LLC serves as the general partner of Western Gas Partners, LP. The company was founded in 2007 and is based in the Woodlands, Texas. Western Gas Partners, LP is a subsidiary of Anadarko Petroleum Corporation.

Great Stocks In November 2012:Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL) (ELP)

 Companhia Paranaense de Energia ? Copel engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity for industrial, residential, commercial, and rural customers primarily in the State of Parana, Brazil. It owns and operates 18 power plants, including 17 hydroelectric power plants and 1 thermal power plant with an installed capacity of 4,550 MW; transmission system comprising 1,913 km of transmission lines and 30 substations; and distribution system, including 180,696 km of distribution lines and 350 substations. The company serves approximately 3,671,262 consumers. It also provides telecommunication and communication services consisting of broadband Internet, private networks IP/MPLS-VPN, videoconference, and hosting services to schools, banks, supermarkets, Internet providers, industries, public bodies, stores, and fixed and mobile telephone operators. In addition, company has 6,026 km of OPGW cables, installed between the main ring and urban radials, totaling 10, 054 km and reaching 226 cities Parana. Further, it distributes piped gas. The company was founded in 1954 and is headquartered in Curitiba, Brazil.

Great Stocks In November 2012:International Paper Company (IP)

 International Paper Company operates as a paper and packaging company with operations in North America, Europe, Latin America, Russia, Asia, and north Africa. The company's Industrial Packaging segment manufactures containerboards, including linerboard, medium, whitetop, recycled linerboard, recycled medium, and saturating kraft. Its Printing Papers segment produces printing and writing papers, such as uncoated and coated papers for use in copiers, desktop and laser printers, and digital imaging; market pulp for use in the manufacture of printing, writing, and specialty papers, as well as towel and tissue products, and filtration products; and uncoated bristols. The company's Consumer Packaging segment offers coated paperboard for various packaging and commercial printing end uses, such as food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, computer software, tobacco products, greeting cards, paperback book covers, lottery tickets, direct mail, and point-of-purchase advertising. This segment also produces cups, lids, food containers, and plates. Its Distribution segment distributes products and services to various customer markets, including commercial printers with printing papers and graphic pre-press, printing presses, and post press equipment; building services and away-from-home markets with facility supplies; and manufacturers with packaging supplies and equipment, as well as offers warehousing and delivery services. The company, through its joint venture with Ilim Holding S.A., operates a pulp and paper business in Russia. International Paper Company sells its paper, packaging products, and other products directly to end users and converters, as well as through agents, resellers, and paper distributors. The company was founded in 1898 and is based in Memphis, Tennessee.

Great Stocks In November 2012: (TELNY)

 Telenor ASA operates as a telecommunication company worldwide. It provides mobile communication, fixed line communication, and television (TV)-based services. The company?s mobile communication services include voice, data, Internet, content, and electronic commerce services, as well as customer equipment, such as telephone sets, mobile phones, smart phones, computers, and PABX?s. Its fixed line services comprise analogue PSTN, digital ISDN, broadband telephony, xDSL, Internet, and leased lines, as well as communication solutions. The company?s TV-based services consist of pay-TV services via satellite dish, cable TV-networks, satellite master antenna TV-networks systems, broadband access services to cable TV-subscribers, and broadcasting rights, as well as security solutions to pay-TV operators. It also provides consulting and information technology services; maritime and aircraft telecommunications services; Internet protocol services; and mobile marketing agency services, as well as manages two funds. The company has approximately 120 million mobile subscriptions. Telenor ASA was founded in 1885 and is headquartered in Fornebu, Norway.

Advisors' Opinion:

• By Richard Band At 2011-9-22

  Why would you want to own a telco in Norway? For one thing, as a hedge against the ruinous financial policies of the U.S. government. Thanks to prudent management of the country’s oil revenues, Norway has run a budget surplus every year since 1995. The Norwegian currency (krone), in which Telenor (OTC: TELNY) reports its profits (and pays its dividends), is sounder than both the euro and the U.S. dollar.

  But there’s more to this story. TELNY has expanded far beyond its Norwegian base, with mobile and broadband operations in Sweden, Denmark, central and eastern Europe, plus five Asian countries. As a result, little-known Telenor is one of Europe’s fastest-growing telecom businesses. Sales will likely pass $19 billion in 2011. Current yield: 4.2%. Dividends have nearly quadrupled over the past seven years. This year’s dividend amounts to only about half of TELNY’s estimated 2011 profits, so an increase of 10% or so seems probable when the board declares next year’s payout. Buy TELNY on a pullback below $49.

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Great Stocks 2012

Here’s nothing magical about the turning of a calendar page. Economies, businesses and markets just keep on doing what they were doing yesterday or last week, oblivious to our journey around the sun. In that sense, January 1 is no different to April 16 or September 23.

 

That said, each new year brings hopes of a new start. It represents the opportunity to reassess, to reset – and to make new year’s resolutions.

 

Fitness and weight loss often top the list, but investors should take the chance to reassess their portfolio to make sure they are holding the shares that present the best opportunities.

 

Here are best shares to hold that I think represent good value for investors at the beginning of 2012:

Great Stocks 2012:EarthLink Inc. (ELNK)

 EarthLink, Inc. provides communications services to individual and business customers in the United States. It operates in two segments, Consumer Services and Business Services. The Consumer Services segment offers Internet access and related value-added services. It provides dial-up Internet and narrowband access, broadband access, and voice-over-Internet-protocol services, as well as value-added services that include products for protection, communication, and performance, such as security products, premium email only, home networking, email storage, and Internet call waiting. This segment offer its products and services primarily through its call centers, search engine marketing, affinity marketing partners, resellers, and marketing alliances. The Business Services segment offers integrated communications services, such as secure IP-based networks, virtual private networks, Internet access, local telephone and long distance services, enhanced services, access trunks, private line services, asynchronous transfer mode/frame relay services, and mobile data and voice services, as well as installation, managed network, remote access, and disaster recovery services. It also provides wholesale services comprising broadband transport services, including private line, Ethernet private line, and wavelength services; local communications and local dial tone communications services; live and automated operator, and directory assistance services; and dedicated Internet access services and direct connectivity. In addition, this segment leases server space and provides Web hosting services that enable customers to build and maintain an online presence, including domain names, storage, mailboxes, software tools to build Web sites, e-commerce applications, and 24/7 customer support. This segment offers its services through direct sales, and independent dealers and sales agents. The company was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• By Vatalyst At 2! 011-10-2 2

  Shares are trading at $6.50 at the time of writing, as against their 52-week trading range of $6.04 to $9.29. Earnings per share for the last year were $0.45, and it paid a dividend of $0.20, yielding 3.10%.

  Earthlink has shown tremendous growth in its internet and telephonic connectivity markets lately. But is this growth soon to blow out? In a market that is dominated by the larger companies, At&T (T), Verizon (VZ), and even AOL (AOL), it is hard to see that these three will allow too much trampling on their markets by the far smaller Earthlink. Gross margins at At&T, Verizon, and Earthlink are similar at around 58%, and there is not much difference in the resultant operating margins, either (15.5%, 17.5%, and 18.5%, respectively). Dividends are twice covered by earnings at AT& T and Earthlink, and marginally covered by earnings at Verizon. If the sector develops into a price war, AT&T’s dividend of yield of 6%, and undemanding price to earnings ratio of 8.39 will be more attractive to investors, and easier to achieve. Switch from Earthlink into AT&T.

Great Stocks 2012:Union Pacific Corporation (UNP)

 Union Pacific Corporation, through its subsidiary, Union Pacific Railroad Company, provides rail transportation services in North America. It has approximately 31,953 route miles linking Pacific Coast and Gulf Coast ports with the Midwest and eastern United States gateways, and provides several corridors to Mexican gateways. The company offers freight transportation services for agricultural products, including whole grains and related commodities, food, beverage products, corn for ethanol products and its by-products, animal feeds, fruits and vegetables, frozen meat, and poultry products; and automotive products, such as imported and finished vehicles, and automotive parts and materials. It also provides transportation services for chemicals, such as industrial chemicals, plastics, and liquid petroleum products; energy products comprising coal and coke; industrial products, including lumber products, paper and consumer goods, furniture and appliances, and nonferrous and industrial minerals, as well as steel and construction products, such as rock, cement, and roofing materials; and intermodal containers. Union Pacific Corporation was founded in 1862 and is based in Omaha, Nebraska.

Advisors' Opinion:

• By Richard Young At 2012-2-22

  Click to EnlargeUnion Pacific (NYSE:UNP) has paid a dividend on its shares every year for 112 years. On Nov. 17, Union Pacific’s board announced a dividend increase of 26%. That was the second dividend increase of 2011, raising the quarterly dividend to 60 cents a share, up from 38 cents at the beginning of the year. Union Pacific is aiming to pay out more.

   

  Take a look at the long record of outperformance on my relative strength chart for UNP. Over the last five years, UNP has outperformed the S&P by over 150%.

Great Stocks 2012:Provident Energy Ltd. (PVX)

 Provident Energy Ltd. engages in the natural gas liquids (NGLs) infrastructure and marketing business in Canada and the United States. The company involves in the extraction, processing, storage, transportation, and marketing of NGLs, as well as offers these services to third party customers. It also provides fractionation, storage, NGL terminalling, loading, and offloading services. The company was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

Great Stocks 2012:Allete Inc. (ALE)

 ALLETE, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, primarily engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electric power in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Regulated Operations, and Investments and Other. The Regulated Operations segment engages in the retail and wholesale of rate-regulated electric, natural gas, and water services in northeastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin. As of December 31, 2009, this segment served approximately 144,000 retail customers and 16 municipalities in northeastern Minnesota; and 15,000 electric customers, 12,000 natural gas customers, and 10,000 water customers in northwestern Wisconsin. The Investments and Other segment engages in the coal mining operations in North Dakota; and real estate investment in Florida. Its developmental projects primarily include Town Center and Palm Coast Park located in the city of Palm Coast. This segment also holds 7,000 acres of land in Minnesota. ALLETE primarily serves the taconite, paper, pulp, wood products, and pipeline industries. The company was founded in 1906 and is headquartered in Duluth, Minnesota.

Great Stocks 2012:Avon Products Inc. (AVP)

 Avon Products Inc. manufactures and markets beauty and related products worldwide. Its product categories include color cosmetics, fragrances, skin care, and personal care; fashion jewelry, watches, apparel, footwear, and accessories; and gift and decorative products, housewares, entertainment and leisure, and children?s and nutritional products. Avon Products Inc. markets its products through direct selling and independent representatives, as well as through distributorships. The company was founded in 1886 and is based in New York, New York.

Great Stocks 2012:Express Inc. (EXPR)

 Express, Inc. operates specialty retail stores in the United States. The company?s stores offer apparel and accessories for women and men between 20 and 30 years old across various aspects of the lifestyles comprising work, casual, jeanswear, and going-out occasions. It also sells gift cards. As of January 29, 2011, the company operated 591 stores, including 547 dual-gender stores, 25 women?s stores, and 19 men?s stores located primarily in high-traffic shopping malls, lifestyle centers, and street locations in 47 states throughout the United States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. In addition, it operates seven Express stores in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates through its Development Agreement with Alshaya Trading Co.; and sells its products through e-commerce Website, express.com. The company was formerly known as Express Parent LLC and changed its name to Express, Inc. in May 2010. Express, Inc. was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.

Great Stocks 2012:Donaldson Company Inc. (DCI)

 Donaldson Company, Inc. engages in the manufacture and sale of filtration systems and replacement parts worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Engine Products and Industrial Products. The Engine Products segment offers air filtration systems, exhaust and emissions systems, liquid filtration systems, and replacement filters. This segment sells its products to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the construction, mining, agriculture, aerospace, defense, and truck markets, as well as to OEM dealer networks, independent distributors, private label accounts, and equipment fleets. The Industrial Products segment provides dust, fume, and mist collectors; compressed air purification systems; liquid filtration systems; air filtration systems for gas turbines; PTFE membranes and laminates; and specialized air filtration systems for various applications, such as computer hard disk drives. This segment sells its products to various industrial end-users, OEMs of gas-fired turbines, and OEMs and end-users requiring clean air and liquids. Donaldson Company, Inc. was founded in 1915 and is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Great Stocks 2012:Dreyfus Strategic Municipal Bond Fund Inc. (DSM)

 Dreyfus Strategic Municipal Bond Fund, Inc. operates as a diversified, closed-end management investment company in the United States. It primarily invests in long-term municipal investments. The Dreyfus Corporation serves as the investment advisor of the fund. Dreyfus Strategic Municipal Bond Fund was founded in 1989 and is based in New York City.

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Upbeat Stocks Highlights at NYSE PFE, S, SD, HL

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) opened at $18.95 and with a gain of 2.01% closed at $19.24. Company�s fifty days average price is $18.27 whereas it has a market capitalization $154.11 million.
The total of 49.86 million shares was transacted over last trading day.

Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE:S) opened at $4.32 and with a gain of 1.39% closed at $4.37. Company�s fifty days average price is $4.38 whereas it has a market capitalization $13.07 million.
The total of 27.73 million shares was transacted over last trading day.

SandRidge Energy Inc. (NYSE:SD) opened at $10.76 and with a gain of 2.66% closed at $10.81. Company�s fifty days average price is $7.66 whereas it has a market capitalization $4.37 million.
The total of 27.71 million shares was transacted over last trading day.

Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL) opened at $11.01 and with a decrease of 5.93% closed at $10.15. Company�s fifty days average price is $10.05 whereas it has a market capitalization $2.62 million.
The total of 26.49 million shares was transacted over last trading day.

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With Funds, How Important Is Family, Really? - SmartMoney.com

When it comes to mutual fund performance, investors often think of stars like value manager Bill Nygren or bond gurus like Michael Hasenstab and Jeffrey Gundlach. Such figures are the public faces of the mutual fund industry, for good or ill-filling investment conference halls, holding court on cable finance shows and facing shareholder wrath when they stumble. (Pimco's bond king Bill Gross, after his missed call on Treasury prices in 2011, even felt compelled to write a letter of apology to investors.)

Also See

• To Beat the S&P 500, Try the Other S&P 500
• 3 Retailers Betting Big on Shares
• Time to Leave Your Money Market Fund

But while the focus, both inside and outside the industry, has long been on the batting averages of individual sluggers, what about the teams they play for? Let's face it, for the typical investor, all those big-league clubs -- venerable names such as T. Rowe Price, Fidelity and Franklin Templeton -- meld into a blur. And yet look more closely at the numbers, and the actual performances of these and other major fund companies may surprise you.

Family pedigree, it would appear, doesn't count for much. Indeed, only two of the 10 largest mutual fund clans -- bond-focused Pimco and Vanguard, known primarily for its benchmark-hugging index funds -- managed to finish in the black for 2011. (Pimco's six dozen funds averaged a 3.6 percent return, despite Gross's admitted slipup.) The 10 giants, as a group, posted returns of negative 1 percent during the period, even as Standard & Poor's 500 returned about 2 percent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average returned more than 8 percent, including dividends. But the gap between the best-performing firm (Pimco) and t! he lagga rd (Dodge & Cox) wasn't small. An investor staking $10,000 with the former firm's funds would end up with $930 more than an investor who bet on the latter.

To be sure, the families' differing investment styles mean investors can learn only so much from rankings: Dodge & Cox's stock market focus probably hurt it vis- -vis Pimco last year. (Dodge & Cox declined to comment but said in its semiannual report for the stock fund that its "ability to stay the course" was a key factor behind its strong 10- and 20-year results.) Even so, there's a message to be gleaned, experts say. Fund firms do a disservice to investors when they suggest they can offer a fund that's best-in-class for every investing style and category, says Geoff Bobroff, an independent investment-industry consultant in East Greenwich, R.I. "There's a belief among fund families that they have to be everything to everybody" he says. "It's unrealistic."

Team Troubles

Fund Family	Assets Under Mgmt. (bil.)	2011 Return (%)
Vanguard	$1,429	1.5
Fidelity Investments	973	-3.5
American Funds	873	-0.3
Pimco	497	3.6
T. Rowe Price	349	-1.4
Franklin Templeton	348	-1.1
John Hancock	199	-3.4
Columbia	163	-2.0
Oppenheimer	143	-1.1
Dodge & Cox	113	-5.7

Assets as of 11/30/11.
Source: Morningstar

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Best Wall St. Stocks Today: THLD,ZOLT,GNW,STRI,IN

There are several stocks trading more heavily than usual this morning, and also experiencing large gains or drops in share prices. These include Threshold Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: THLD), Zoltek Cos. Inc. (NASDAQ: ZOLT), Genworth Financial Inc. (NYSE: GNW), STR Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: STRI), and Intermec Inc. (NYSE: IN).

After the first half hour of trading this morning, Threshold is up nearly 83% at $2.36. Volume is about 20 x the daily average of about 137,000 shares traded. The pharmaceuticals firm has announced a global development deal with Germany�s Merck. See our coverage here.

Zoltek is more than 45% at $13.75. Volume is about 7x the daily average of about 263,000 shares traded. The specialty fibers maker posted good earnings number and forecast continued growth in the market for wind turbines.

Genworth is up nearly 14% at $9.15. Volume is already nearly equal to the daily average of about 9.3 million shares traded. The financial services company reported better-than-expected earnings last night, and growth in its life insurance business.

STR Holdings is down nearly -17% at $9.42. Volume is already above the daily average of about 287,000 shares traded. The company manufactures materials used in solar PV modules, and lowered its fourth-quarter guidance this morning.

Intermec is down more than -11% at $7.77. Volume is already more than half the daily average of about 254,000 shares traded. The RFID products maker missed estimates and has lowered guidance.

The DJIA is up 1.26% at about 12,866, the Nasdaq Composite is up 1.36% at about 2,899, and the S&P 500 is up 1.29% at about 1,343. The unexpectedly buoyant employment report is driving the market this morning.

Paul Ausick

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Trading – Penny Stock Investing

Penny stock investing is one of those professions where your always on the edge of you seat, I imagine someone in the world series of poker feels the same way. Except we feel this every time we have money in a trade. In this market, investors can attain hυɡе gains quickly, but they can also lose all that profit in the blink of an eye. Sοmе who trade in the otcbb market make a living with this “wild west” style of trading. Others will lose their trading capital as they make poor choices on stocks.

Whеn investing in the penny stock market, уου′re buying low priced shares of a company hoping to make a big splash in the corporate world. Oftеn these companies have a product or thουɡht that mаkеѕ sense and investors can easily see whу the future of this company looks brіɡht. In the stock market, іt’s not all abo
! 17;t ; products and dreams though. Whеn buying penny stocks you need to look at the future outlook of the company from a business perspective.

If you bυу penny stocks with weak structure this could mean the loss of your whole investment. Thеrе are many ways to check the structure of a company in the penny stock market but with these smaller companies there are οftеn hidden issues that are not highlighted in the latest press releases. Thе first thing to look for when investing in penny stocks is the share structure of the company. Yου will also want to look at the balance sheet of the company as well as the history of the companies SEC filings. If the company is a pink sheet stock, then you will have no filings and the process becomes even more hard.

Share structure is a main issue when penny stock investing. If th&! #101; st ock is at a price you like and you notice that the float (hοw many shares are currently being traded in the market) is low this is a fаntаѕtіс sign. Yου are not fіnіѕhеԁ уеt though. Yου mυѕt look at the authorized shares (hοw many shares the company can add to the float without filing) if the authorized shares are much Ɩаrɡеr than the float then the company can add more shares to the market. Thіѕ becomes a give and plea conundrum. Wіth more give the price drops. Sometimes the price will drop dramatically.

Whеn trading these otcbb stocks, you mυѕt know that the company needs to survive. Thеу will dump the shares into the market to mаkе capital. Whеn the price becomes to low and the authorized shares are at the point where they are running out, the company can reverse split. Thеn you wil ! 8; lose many of your shares and the process ѕtаrtѕ again. If you bυу penny stocks, you also want to ensure the company ԁοеѕ not have a history of this behavior.

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Best Wall St. Stocks Today: SYMC,CSCO,INTC,AMTD,CTX,KBH,YUM

On today’s video from TheStreet.com, Cramer said he is sick of the Symantec (SYMC) story as "one that is coming" and he said it is only going to get worse. It reminds him of software companies that never came back from the 1990′s.  He said this is going to get worse and the company is just unable to execute and the online security space is uninvestable with Microsoft dominating the group.  Doug noted the same sort of idea on this today, which you can read here.

On Cisco Systems (CSCO) Cramer disagrees with the downgrades this morning, but the analysts were locking in gains from $18.00 and he respects that; but Comcast’s buildout is helping CSCO directly and Cramer said this 3% drop won’t drop back to $25.00 like everyone who wants to buy it again would hope for.

Intel (INTC) is one trapped by the $22.50 option strike price and he likes H-P instead of Intel because it is a Buyer of processors and chips rather than the one fighting with AMD.  Here is our earnings preview we did last week ahead of Intel earnings.

On TD Ameritrade (AMTD) Cramer said that the notion that retail is notback is wrong; and they are coming back in via E*trade and Amritrade.He thinks it will trade back but you can pull the trigger with it up 6%today.  On Centex (CTX) and KBHome (KBH) the landvalue writedowns are not as bas it sounds, but he doesn’t really likethem right now as a group.  It wasn’t clear how Cramer was going to note Yum! Brands (YUM), but hesaid he was working on that tie to Taco Bell weakness into YUM sharesfor his MAD MONEY show. 

There are many more calls and comments on his video segment if you wish to watch it further.

Here is the rest of the earnings release calendar for this week, as there are many.

Jon C. Ogg
January 16, 2007

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A quick option trade in Visa brings in some premium

A strategy idea for options trading investors.

TRADE COMMENTARY:

With the news that Visa (NYSE:V) will be able to charge a favorable fee structure, all uncertainty around the stock has been removed. The markets reacted euphorically, pushing the stock up more than 10%. There is no news that will likely be able to overcome this bullish sentiment in the near future. Therefore, we want to be sellers of this put spread. We would be buyers of the stock in the $77.5 — $82.5 range, so this allows us to collect some premium while waiting for the chance to buy the stock at a price we like. You never know what will happen in the stock market though, so this position keeps our risk fixed and manageable while allowing us to profit from both a neutral and bullish move.

Visa (NYSE: V)

DATE: July 1, 2011

STOCK/INDEX: V

STOCK PRICE: $84.25

OPTION PLAY: Bull Put Spread

SELL/STRIKE/MONTH/PRICE: July2 [Weekly] 82.5 Put @ $0.90

BUY/STRIKE/MONTH/PRICE:� July2 [Weekly] 77.5 Put @ $0.20

NET COST: 0.90 � 0.20 = $0.70 [Credit]

Premium Received � Premium Paid = Net Credit Received

BREAKEVEN: 82.5 � (0.90 – 0.20) = $81.80

Short Strike � (Premium Received – Premium Paid) = Breakeven

MAX PROFIT: 0.90 � 0.20 = $0.70

Premium Received � Premium Paid = Max Profit

MAX LOSS: (82.5 � 77.5) � (0.90 � 0.20) = $4.30

(Difference Between Strikes) � (Net Credit Received) = $4.30

Stutland Equities is a premier futures and options trading company on the Chicago Board Options Exchange. Founded in 2005 and headquartered in Chicago, Stutland Equities specializes in volatility arbitrage across multiple asset classes.

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Apollo Soars After Surprisingly Strong Earnings

Apollo Group (APOL) jumped 4% after the for-profit educator posted better than expected earnings results for the fiscal second quarter.

Apollo posted58 cents of EPS, 20 cents ahead of expectations. Revenue came in at $969.6 million versus expectations for $933.3 million. Overall degreed enrollment at the University of Phoenix fell 12%, but new enrollment rose 1%. The company also reiterated its 2012 guidance.

Apollo’s stock is significantly down over the past month after the company lowered its core earnings and enrollment guidance on Feb. 28, but today’s surprise should give the stock some positive momentum.

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DrStockPick.com Stock Report! 9/03/09, ARD, Q, GFGU, SPNG, BDCG, HBIO

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Thursday September 3, 2009

Arena Resources, Inc. (NYSE: ARD) announced today that the Board of Directors of Arena has approved an increase in the 2009 capital expenditure budget (”CAPEX”) to a total of $107 million. The previous 2009 CAPEX was $85 million. The additional funds are directly related to increased activity at the Company’s Fuhrman-Mascho property in Andrews County, Texas. Management is confident that at current commodity prices the 2009 CAPEX can be fully funded through internally generated operating cash flow.

Fulfillment Technologies, LLC. (FillTek) (www.filltek.com/) has chosen Qwest Communications (NYSE: Q) (www.qwest.com/business) for conferencing, domestic toll-free services, and enhanced call routing and management. A full-service provider of order fulfillment, customer care and information technology services, FillTek uses Qwest’s voice services to enhance effectiveness and significantly decrease costs at its Cincinnati contact center.

GetFugu, Inc. (OTCBB:GFGU), www.getfugu.com, announced today that it has executed its first Augmented Reality Link Agreement with advertising powerhouse SpongeTech Delivery Systems, Inc. (OTCBB:SPNG), for which it developed specially designed software, and from which it has booked $250,000 in revenue.

Bonds.com Group, Inc. (OTCBB: BDCG), the operator of a platform for the electronic trading of Fixed Income securities that focuses on increasing liquidity, competitive pricing and bringing transparency to the estimated $29 trillion Fixed Inco! me marke tplace, announced today that it has completed the first portion of an anticipated $5 million capital raise and also announced the appointment of industry veteran Mr. Edwin L. Knetzger III as Chairman of its Board of Directors. The funding was provided by Fund Holdings LLC, of which Mr. Knetzger is the Managing Member.

Harvard Bioscience, Inc. (Nasdaq:HBIO), a global developer, manufacturer, and marketer of a broad range of tools to advance life science research, today announced that it has acquired the business of Denville Scientific, Inc. through a purchase of substantially all of Denville’s assets and the assumption of certain of Denville’s liabilities.

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