Chesapeake Sells Again

On Thursday, Plains All American (NYSE: PAA  ) announced that it will acquire Chesapeake Energy's (NYSE: CHK  ) crude oil and condensate gathering assets in the Eagle Ford shale. On a typical day, I would use this space to wax poetic on Plains' growth strategy, touting management's vision and the quality of the assets it's picking up -- throughput capacity of 50,000 barrels per day and 450,000 barrels of storage capacity -- but I've been doing that a lot lately, so today is all about Chesapeake.

Peanuts, popcorn, natural gas acreage
Desperate times call for desperate measures, and Chesapeake's balance sheet is a case in point. At the beginning of 2012, the company announced that it planned to sell approximately $12 billion in assets over the course of the year to meet a budget shortfall.

Here are the major asset deals the company has initiated this year:

• $125 million in the Plains deal.
• A $6.9 billion sale of its Permian Basin assets to Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS-A  ) and Chevron (NYSE: CVX  ) .
• A $2.6 billion sale, announced earlier this week, of most of its remaining midstream assets to Access Midstream Partners (NYSE: ACMP  ) , part of a larger $4.88 billion deal announced in June.

If the Plains deal closes by the end of the year as expected, Chesapeake will have reaped $10.8 billion this year from jettisoning assets, with another $425 million set to close early next year -- prompting at least one cynical investment writer to cry out, "What's left?"

Chesapeake's work isn't done yet. The company's debt load is such that it will have to sell another $4 billion in assets next year to plug its budget gap. Chesapeake has long employed a strategy of buying up incredible amounts of acreage early, before a play has proved itself. Sometimes, as is the case in the Eagle Ford, it pays off. Other times, in the case of its assets in Michigan, its investment doesn't quite pan out. Regardless, Chesapeake certainly has plenty of acreage to sell, and it shouldn't struggle to make $4 billion worth of asset sales next year.

Foolish takeaway
Chesapeake has been absolutely crushed by poor management and the bottom-dwelling price of natural gas. The price of gas will rebound eventually, and the company's share price may follow. Investors looking for an underdog natural gas play should consider it, but those keen on finding companies with good corporate governance should continue to look elsewhere.

Despite selling off its assets, Chesapeake is still producing a lot of natural gas. The growing production of natural gas from hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling is flooding the North American market and resulting in record-low prices for natural gas. Enterprise Products Partners, with its superior integrated asset base, can profit from the massive bottlenecks in takeaway capacity by taking on large-scale projects. To find out if Enterprise Products Partners is a buy or a sell today, click here now to check out The Motley Fool's brand new premium research report on the company.

Top Stocks To Buy For 12/15/2012-5

Microsoft Corporation NASDAQ:MSFT increased 0.52% closed at $26.95, its overall trading volume was 58.59 million shares during the last session. The trailing twelve month return on investment remained 34.75% while its earning per share reached $2.33.

 

Logitech International SA (USA) NASDAQ:LOGI gained 12.20% closed at $21.89, its total trading volume during the last session was 12.51 million shares. The trailing twelve month return on investment remained 12.34% while its earning per share reached $0.80.

 

Adobe Systems Incorporated NASDAQ:ADBE advanced 0.68% closed at $29.49, its overall trading volume during the last session was 6.31 million shares. The trailing twelve month return on investment remained 7.69% while its earning per share reached $0.90.

 

Linear Technology Corporation NASDAQ:LLTC reported the gain of 0.38% closed at $32.83, its total trading volume was 3.31 million shares during the last session. The trailing twelve month return on investment remained 35.91% while its earning per share reached $1.91.

 

CA, Inc. NASDAQ:CA increased 0.12% closed at $23.61, its overall trading volume was 3.06 million shares during the last session. The trailing twelve month return on investment remained 9.90% while its earning per share reached $1.54.

 

Can Molycorp Sail Straight With a New Captain?

After a consistent slide in its stock price that was finally reversed in mid-November, shares of Molycorp (NYSE: MCP  ) are back under pressure. The company announced on Tuesday that CEO Mark Smith was unexpectedly leaving the company. Reuters reports that various analysts see the move as a positive for the company, particularly given the pending SEC investigation that is looking into the accuracy of some of the company's financial disclosures. Clearly the market has not agreed, having taken the stock down nearly 10% since the announcement. The only thing investors like less than uncertainty is... an SEC investigation that questions the integrity and trustworthiness of management.

Ultimately, while the sell-off may prove to be an attractive buying opportunity, the stock should be considered a highly speculative play that is best considered with a very long-term view. Molycorp carries a beta of 3.84 relative to the S&P 500, meaning that it is nearly four times as volatile. While I still like the long view for Molycorp, and rare-earth producers as a whole, this stock is not for the faint of heart.

The state of the rare earth
Molycorp, along with competitors like Avalon Rare Metals (NYSEMKT: AVL  ) , Rare Element Resources (NYSEMKT: REE  ) , and Australia's Lynas Corp., faces supply and demand issues and significant involvement from China, the world's largest producer of rare-earth materials. JPMorgan analyst Michael Gambardella commented in a note to clients: "We remain very concerned about what will happen as new supplies from Molycorp and Lynas totaling 57k tonnes hit up against a ROW (rest of the world) demand estimated at 40k tonnes in 2011."

The interplay between world supply and demand is a subject of concern given the importance of some of these materials to many products. Ed Crooks of the Financial Times explains: "Rare earth metals such as neodymium and praseodymium are essential for many products and industrial processes, from smartphones to cruise missiles. China's control of world supply � it has accounted for about 95 per cent of global output � has fueled concerns about its dominance and excitement about the prospects for rival suppliers such as Colorado-based Molycorp."

The China question
As more supply begins to come online from other producers, it is difficult to predict how China will respond. A catalytic event that occurred at the end of November was the announcement by China that it would begin offering subsidies to its domestic rare-earth producers. The news helped to drive the price of Molycorp from the $8 range to over $11 per share. The Chinese move, an effort to help stabilize prices, was reported by AFP: "Rare earth miners would receive a subsidy of 1,000 yuan ($160) for every tonne of rare earth oxides they produced, while smelters would get 1,500 yuan ($240) per tonne, China's finance ministry said in a statement."

Over the past several months, the Chinese government has made clear that it intends to target illegal mining operations as well as attempt to stabilize prices. Many remain of the belief that Chinese mismanagement of these resources has led to demand destruction�as a result of sustained high prices. Where some consumers of these materials have continued to look for alternative sources of supply, others have sought redesign options to minimize reliance�on these substances.

The way forward
The first order of business for the newly appointed interim CEO Constantine Karayannopoulos will be securing additional financing to help it complete its Mountain Pass project. The operation remains in phase 1 and is already significantly over budget and past initial deadlines. While the company specifically denied that there was a connection between the SEC investigation and Smith's departure, the involvement of a more trusted steward should ultimately bode well for Molycorp.

Adam Graf, an analyst at Dalman Rose, gave an explanation of the management change in a note sent to his clients: "Mr Smith's departure is tied to Molycorp's recent weaker-than-expected performance, driven in part by falling rare earth oxide price, but also by disappointing operating results, unexpected additional capital expenditures and aggressive acquisitions." While the company was very reserved in making any comment, the reality of the departure may well have involved each of the above reasons.

Moving forward, it is hard to believe that demand for these materials will completely dry up. Given their broad industrial applications, it is more likely that global supply and demand equilibrium well settle over the next few years. As operators like Molycorp come online outside of China, some of these issues should resolve themselves. If the company's new CEO, a tested industry veteran, is able to weather the immediate storm, which I believe he can, the company will come out alright. In the meantime, the stock is likely to be volatile and not ideal as more than a long-term speculative play.

Looking for more commodities-based ideas? Download The Motley Fool's special free report, "The Tiny Gold Stock Digging Up Massive Profits." Our analysts have uncovered a little-known gold miner they believe is poised for greatness; find out which company it is and why its future looks bright -- for free!

Verizon’s Deal with Coinstar Good Hedge Against the Future, Says Wells

Wells Fargo’s Jennifer Fritzsche in a brief note to clients reflects on Coinstar‘s (CSTR) announcement today that its on-demand Internet video service with Verizon Communications‘s (VZ), called “Redbox Instant by Verizon,” has inked agreements with content providers such as Warner Bros. and with device makers such as Samsung Electronics (005930KS), and will be offered in beta for $8 per month.

The service will also give customers “credits” to use for physical DVD rentals at Redbox Kiosks, the company said, for an additional $1 per month.

Fritzsche, who has an Outperform rating on Verizon, and does not formally cover Coinstar, writes that “While we do not expect this business to be material to revenue, Redbox Instant positions VZ in case the OTT [over the top] market expands and takes share from the traditional cable / IPTV market in the future, in our view.”

Verizon shares today are up 33 cents, or 0.7%, at $44.77. Coinstar stock is up $1.33, or 2.6%, at $52.14. Coinstar competitor Netflix (NFLX) is up $5.20, or 6%, at $91.28 after Morgan Stanley‘s Scott Devitt reiterated an Overweight rating on the shares and raised his price target to $105 from $80, writing that the recent Walt Disney (DIS) content deal should boost Netflix’s future negotiations with content providers.

PPG Industries to Buy AkzoNobel Paint Unit for $1.05 Billion

PPG Industries (NYSE: PPG  ) announced today it has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase the North American architectural coatings business of AkzoNobel, an Amsterdam-based paints and chemical producer.

The boards of both PPG and AkzoNobel have approved the deal, valued at $1.05 billion, and it is expected to close in the second quarter of 2013. The transaction must still gain regulatory approval.

PPG Industries CEO Charles Bunch was quoted as saying, "This acquisition continues the accelerated pace of our business portfolio transformation through further expansion of our coatings businesses." AkzoNobel's North American business generated revenues of approximately $1.5 billion in 2011. PPG expects the acquisition will generate approximately $160 million in net operating earnings over the next three years, as much as $90 million in the first year.

AkzoNobel's North American architectural coatings business operates more than 300 company stores in the United States, about 240 in Canada and about 50 in the Caribbean.

PPG also announced it intends to reinitiate its share buyback program, anticipating it will spend between $500 million and $750 million for share repurchases during 2013.

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This "Coca-Cola Killer" is a Great Holiday Growth Stock to Own

A little anecdotal evidence goes a long way.

It's one thing to see the numbers on the page. It's another thing to be out in the marketplace and actually see what a company is doing.

This kind of boots-on-the-ground reconnaissance is one of the best ways to find what I call The Next Big Thing.

In the past few months, I've been all over the country -- in more airports than I can count. And, as I always do, I've made it a point to take a look around. And what I see, increasingly, is store displays for the SodaStream, manufactured by SodaStream (Nasdaq: SODA).

This $730 million Israeli company -- which has outpaced the S&P 500 during the past six months -- makes specialized machines and supplies that let people make custom soft drinks at home.

I first told my Game-Changing Stocks readers about SodaStream a little over a year ago. At the time, the product was only available on a limited basis and was not being advertised. Today, it's in practically every major retailer (including Wal-Mart, Target and BestBuy) and you might even see a commercial or two on TV for the product. 

Back in March I explained how, if you're looking for a solid growth stock, you should forget about Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) and think about buying SodaStream instead -- especially after a recent drop in the share price. I was a little early in my call (the stock dropped a little further before rebounding back above where I recommended them), yet I still think this stock has legs.  

Unsurprisingly, these machines are flying off the shelves -- especially ahead of the holiday season. As a diabetic, I like that the device has a variety of sugar-free options. For families that drink a lot of soda, the stuff is actually cost-effective when compared with name brands like Coca-Cola and Pepsi (NYSE: PEP) after the cost of the machine has been recouped. These savings can be significant -- or at least perceived as appreciable -- which might push a consumer into the roughly $100 purchase.

I predict that SodaStream will be a big hit this holiday season, based on the retail footprint that I've noted in a wide range of stores. The shares are up about 5% since I last recommended them, and they look very appealing today. The company is likely to see a majority of its sales in the holiday fourth quarter, and if these results exceed expectations, there is a good chance that it will emerge as a big winner in the first quarter 2013.

SodaStream's topline grew nicely from 2010 to 2011, and its bottom line nearly doubled, as it pushed more product through the fixed cost of maintaining an international sales channel. So far this year, results have been strong. And the company has no debt.

3 Oil and Gas Shares Rising Fast

Oil prices have remained range bound this week, and Brent crude for January delivery has gained just 0.8% to $107.36 per barrel since Monday, while WTI crude was up by 0.3% on the week at $86.15 per barrel shortly after U.S. markets opened on Friday. U.S. natural gas prices have weakened once more, and gas for January delivery was down by 5.9% on the week at $3.29/mmbtu shortly after U.S. markets opened on Friday.

Many investors prefer to invest in commodity ETFs rather than directly in futures, and holders of the�United States Oil Fund� (NYSEMKT: USO  ) have seen their shares gain a modest 0.1% so far this week, leaving them trading at $31.56 shortly after the open on Friday. Falling natural gas prices have pared 7.1% from the�United States Natural Gas Fund� (NYSEMKT: UNG  ) so far this week, leaving the stock trading at $18.76 shortly after U.S. markets opened on Friday.

The nature of oil and gas companies' businesses means that they can succeed or fail regardless of oil prices. This week's risers have all outperformed the price of oil by a big margin in recent months.

Gulfsands Petroleum� (LSE: GPX  ) has soared 24% to 98 pence this week. The company, which owns substantial oil production assets in Syria, has not released any news but has become a direct play on the chances of an orderly resolution to the civil war in Syria. Gulfsands' operations in Syria have been suspended for most of 2012, but the company has $100 million in cash so can afford to wait for the situation to resolve, assuming its Syrian installations remain intact.

Tullow Oil's (LSE: TLW  ) share price has recovered 3.5% to 1,119 pence since Wednesday, after falling heavily following two disappointing drilling updates over the last fortnight. Tullow's reputation has been built around high-impact exploration success and its run of poor results has disappointed investors. However, the FTSE 100 (UKX) company has also acquired some new North Sea prospects and its share price is now 17% lower than three months ago, presenting a possible buying opportunity for investors who believe the company's story is intact.

Rockhopper Exploration� (LSE: RKH  ) has climbed 6.3% to 158 pence this week, suggesting that investors are beginning to look at this stock in a new light. The company's half-yearly report, published today, emphasizes the progress that has been made this year. Rockhopper remains the only Falkland explorer to have found oil and now has a strong partner,�Premier Oil, to develop this find. Rockhopper also has $231 million cash in hand to appraise further exploration prospects.

Oil and gas shares are always volatile, and this week's winners could be next week's losers. To learn more about�how to select oil and gas shares with the potential�to deliver outstanding multi-bagging profits, I strongly recommend you download the latest special free report from the Motley Fool,�"How to Unearth Great Oil & Gas Shares." It's completely free and includes suggestions that could help you to pick winning shares and minimize your risks. Hurry though, this new report will only be available for a limited time -- so�click here to download it today.

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ARUN, CSCO, PKT Talk About WiFi, SDN, DPI, Says Stifel

Stifel Nicolaus networking analyst Sanjiv Wadhwani today offered up some thoughts from his road trip through Silicon Valley meeting with Aruba Networks (ARUN), Cisco Systems (CSCO), and Procera Networks (PKT), the latter two of which he rates Buy, while Aruba is a Hold.

Aruba said that wireless LAN products are getting more priority in CIO discussions at companies, in part because of the trend to “bring your own device,” and Wadhwani describes the company’s positioning there:

The company believes that it is likely to see an acceleration in overall WLAN demand. Second, ClearPass is a Trojan horse and is used as a product to �get a foot in the door�. Currently, 25% of ClearPass sales are to non-Aruba customers. Around 80% of these customers are considering Aruba hardware. For every $1 in ClearPass sales, an additional $3 of other Aruba product sales can be sold. Management believes ClearPass is superior to Cisco�s competing identity services engine (ISE) because the ISE has a very basic guest access featureandClearPass has better onboarding of devices. Overall, ClearPass has a strong pipeline, with the ability to install limiting near-term sales.

Aruba also took time to dump on competitor Meraki – “Meraki’s hardware has little value-add and is not as robust in serving large numbers of users — and “mainstream” adoption of the “802.11ac” standard for short-range, broadband WiFi won’t gain traction for a couple years because of its price premium, Aruba believe.

With Cisco, Wadhwani was focused on the phenomenon of “software-defined networking,” which some have said could hurt traditional networking equipment sales and others have said is at this point mere hype.

“Instead of commoditizing its hardware, Cisco believes that SDNs will create more value
for Cisco’s ASICs, operating systems and software-based services,” writes Wadhwani.

The details of SDN, as Cisco sees it, are as follows:

Cisco’s products adhere to the company’s Open Programmable Environment for Networking or Cisco OPEN. Cisco OPEN is intended to open up the network with APIs at layers other than just the data and control plane. Cisco’s SDN architecture harvests network intelligence from the infrastructure, delivers it to an analytics engine which then churns it into orchestration routines for policies, which are then programmed back into the network infrastructure. Cisco says this architecture will apply to all flavors of SDNs – from direct APIs between applications and the network; to controllers governing OpenFlow-enabled devices and other agents; to virtual overlays between applications and the physical and virtual network. The company believes that its strategy of providing software upgrades to its existing switches to make them “SDN ready” is the right strategy. In line with Cisco’s goal of changing the charging mechanism for software, the company is likely to charge for additional licenses on hardware for certain protocols and new class of applications like traffic steering and network slicing. Cisco believes that SDNs will remain a L2-3 technology with L4-7 services likely to ride on top of the infrastructure.

Gold Flat; Wheat, Corn Rise

Prices for wheat, corn and soybeans rose Friday as traders worried that the devastating drought of the summer could be repeated next year.

Wheat for March delivery rose 5.5 cents to $8.14 a bushel. March corn rose 10.5 cents, or 1.5 percent, to $7.3075 a bushel. January soybeans rose 19.5 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $14.96 a bushel.

Prices for all three agricultural�commodities�spiked over the summer as crops were damaged by a long drought throughout the Midwest.

On Friday, Alan Knuckman, chief market strategist at Optionshop in Chicago, noted the unusual lack of snow there so far this season. That's troublesome, Knuckman said, because the snow is needed to help replenish the soil's moisture. The dearth of snow could signal a second straight dry season.

"Now, as it looks, the drought problem could be a recurring theme," Knuckman said in an interview. In a research note, he warned of "another potential price shock of possibly epic proportions" in agriculture.

Metals were mixed.

Gold for February delivery was virtually flat, rising 20 cents to $1,697 per ounce. March silver declined slightly, losing 5.6 cents to $32.299 per ounce.

However, metals used most often for industrial purposes rose. They were likely influenced by a report that said manufacturing in China is picking up. Also, U.S. data showed that the nation's factories have rebounded from Superstorm Sandy.

March copper rose 2.3 cents to $3.683 per pound. January platinum inched up $1.70 to $1,614.50 an ounce. March palladium had the biggest jump, rising $10.40, or 1.5 percent, $702.05 an ounce.

The price of oil also rose on the positive report on Chinese manufacturing.

Benchmark crude gained 84 cents to $86.73 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, used to set prices for international varieties of oil, rose $1.23 to $109.14 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange in London.

Other energy contracts were mixed. Heating oil rose 3.7 cents to $2.9807 a gallon. Natural gas lost 3.3 cents to $3.3140 per 1,000 cubic feet. Wholesale gasoline added 6 cents to $2.6621 a gallon.

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Baird Bullish On Restaurants As Demand Trends Strong

Robert W. Baird�s David Tarantino has a note out today about the firm�s November restaurant survey, which showed modest comparative sale improvement month-over-month, and he maintained outperform ratings on Panera Bread (PNRA), Buffalo Wild Wings (BWLD), Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG), Chuy�s Holdings (CHUY), Yum Brands (YUM), Ignite Restaurant Group (IRG) and McDonald�s (MCD).

Tarantino writes that last month�s data points to slightly improved trends for demand; while restaurants face some difficult comparison in the coming months related to weather, he writes that �we think most chains are on track to reach estimates and believe that the underlying demand trend (ex-weather) can remain healthy into 2013.�

Here are highlights of the data:

Overall, 29 chains (51% of sales-weighted sample) noted better trends in November than in October, while 15 chains (34%) indicated slower comps.

The sequential improvement from October was driven largely by better performance for casual dining (comps up 1.5%+ after down slightly in October), directionally consistent with the rebound seen for the Knapp-Track benchmark (November +0.7% after October -0.9%). We were not overly surprised to see casual dining rebound, given our view that trends in recent months were dampened by some transitory factors (election cycle, Olympics).

Fast-casual comps were near +6-7%, remaining healthy and near- to modestly better than the strong level seen in October.

The majority of chains (53%) indicated that comps were roughly consistent throughout the month.

However, Tarantino notes that the coming months could be difficult for restaurants, as they face average comp deceleration of 50-100 basis points, given weather benefits in 2011.

Nonetheless, the 2013 outlook is bright: On a combined basis, the restaurants surveyed are expecting comps to grow2.5% to 3.0% for the year. This includes average pricing of just under 2%, as restaurants are planning to pass cost pressures onto consumers�despite this, margins are still projected to be largely flat year-over-year.

On average, survey respondents are planning slightly more pricing in 2013 (relative to 2012) to offset cost pressures; restaurant-level margins are projected roughly flat versus 2012 figures.

�Outside of [the weather] issue, our proprietary traffic model suggests underlying trends can hold up well (assuming possible tax hikes are isolated on the highest-income consumers), supporting the earnings growth outlook for companies that possess visible top-line drivers,� he concludes.

A Top Stock — For Novices and Pros

I often receive emails asking me how one begins investing—and specifically, if you were to follow my advice at Blue Chip Growth. So let me give you my thoughts on the best way to allocate $50,000. Whether you have more or less to invest, the principles remain the same.

First things first. Before you start buying, I want you to think about how much risk you can stomach. Are you comfortable owning aggressive stocks with lots of potential but high volatility? Or do you like to own more conservative stocks that may not give you the explosive returns, but are much more stable?

Everyone’s risk tolerance is different, and in order to accommodate us all, I’ve organized the Blue Chip Growth Buy List into three different risk categories. I usually recommend investors follow my 60/30/10 mix, which means 60% of your portfolio in Conservative stocks, 30% in Moderate stocks and 10% in Aggressive stocks. If you equally weight all the stocks on the Blue Chip Growth Buy List, you will naturally fall within my recommended 60/30/10 mix.

Of course, you can always adjust your portfolios to match your risk profile. I want you to do what’s best for you.

I also recommend that you always start with my Top 5 stocks, which I share with my readers every month, and which are among the strongest stocks on the market as identified by my proprietary ranking system. And always remember to diversify among various industry groups and by risk.

Something else to keep in mind—you should never pay more than 1% commissions when buying and selling stocks. For instance, if your average commission is $50 per trade, you should only buy 10 stocks; with $25 per trade, you should buy 20 stocks and so on.

And if you have a Bank of America account, you might have noticed when you use their ATMs that they are offering “free trades” for accounts with at least $25,000. Full-service brokers also offer wrap accounts (i.e., fixed percentage fee accounts) with free trading. The bottom line is, thanks to new lower transaction costs, thorough diversification is now more possible than ever before!

If you do decide to join Blue Chip Growth, you’ll notice that there are some high-priced stocks in there. Please don’t be afraid to buy just a handful of shares. The important point I want you to understand is that it doesn’t require a large portfolio to be a successful investor.

As I often tell my subscribers, your best defense is a strong offensive of fundamentally superior stocks. That’s why I’m obsessed with making sure that the Blue Chip stocks post much stronger sales and earnings results than the S&P 500. These efforts have served us incredibly well through the years, as we’ve trounced the S&P 500 by more than $3-to-$1!

So there you have a few important points to consider as you get started investing. Now, let’s move on to specifics. I’d like to tell you about one of my newest buys I just recommended in my Blue Chip Growth service—it also happens to make my coveted Top 5 list for the month!

Buy This “Boring” Utility Stock

Now, you might be asking yourself why a utility stock should have you excited to buy. Well, things have changed my friends. Utility stocks are boring no more. These companies are being awarded rate increases left and right. Why?

Well, the stricter emission controls that President Bush signed off on are fast approaching, and utilities are going back to their public utility commissions to ask for higher rates to comply with them.

These new stricter emission controls naturally favor utilities with hydroelectric and nuclear power, since they effectively have no emissions. That’s why several of my new buys have interests in nuclear and hydroelectric power, and all of them should see rate increases as the President’s emission controls are implemented.

The stock I want to tell you about now plays right into this trend. It provides electricity to 4.5 million customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, three states that are encouraging competition among utilities.

The company’s domestic power plants have a total generating capacity of more than 13,940 megawatts, most of which is coal-fired. To complement its coal-fired power plants, the company also operates lower-emission nuclear power plants. Its subsidiary also trades energy commodities in deregulated markets throughout the U.S.

The company recently reported that its first-quarter earnings rose 37.3% due to higher sales and reduced operating costs. The company earned 92 cents per share compared with 67 cents per share in the year-ago period. Sales rose 9.6% to $2.97 billion. These results were 6% better than analyst expectations.

And the story gets even better. Due to the company’s 14.4 million share repurchase in March and 10.6 million share repurchase last August, its buybacks effectively bolstered earnings by 3 cents per share.

Like most utilities, I look for this company to try to boost its nuclear power generation capacity and continue to reduce emissions on its coal-fired plants through more sophisticated technology (called “scrubber” technology). This translates into more rate increases, and thus more pricing power. And when you add in a nice 2.8% dividend, this stock should be at the top of your buy list today!

“>Get the name of this stock now—plus all of the other top stocks on Louis Navellier’s Blue Chip Growth Buy List today. “>Join Blue Chip Growth today and you’ll get full access to Louis’s complete Buy List, his forecast for the second half of 2007 PLUS access to PortfolioGrader Pro—his exclusive online stock-rating system for nearly 5,000 stocks! Louis’s recommendations in Blue Chip Growth gained over 188.37% from 1998 through 2006. It’s your turn to profit from his newest recommendations! “>Click here to get started now.

A Little Diversity Goes a Long Way

Medtronic (NYSE: MDT  ) doesn't have all its eggs in one basket. Its top-selling segment dropped 5% and its second-best selling segment came in flat -- the two making up a combined 33% of sales -- but the medical-device maker still managed to increase total revenue by 6% in its second fiscal quarter.

First the bad news: Defibrillator sales remain weak. The year-over-year decline isn't surprising; the weaker economy puts a drag on procedures as patients reconsider the cost-benefit analysis for procedures that are less than life-threatening. Still, there's always an opportunity to take market share from Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX  ) and St. Jude Medical (NYSE: STJ  ) , to make up for the general market contraction.

Core spinal products, Medtronic's second-best selling group, remains weak with flat sales. Biologics used in spinal procedures were down nearly 4%. Blame it on the economy again, plus its struggling bone-fusion biologic Infuse, which fell 16% as doctors continue to question its efficacy/safety profile.

Sales of Physio-Control were flat, but that's meaningless at this point since Medtronic announced an agreement to sell the segment to Bain Capital. By my calculations, the segment wasn't contributing much to the bottom line.

The good news is that almost everything else was up. The cardiovascular segment was up 12% -- there's an opportunity there with Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ  ) leaving the drug-eluting-stent market -- neuromodulation was up 9%, diabetes products rose 13%, and surgical technologies jumped 22%. Individually, none of them is a substantially large part of total revenue, but with all of them near or exceeding double-digit growth, they can counteract the stagnation of the larger segments.

Now just imagine what Medtronic could do if it can get its large units back on the growth track.

Looking for a little diversity in your portfolio? Consider these 11 Rock-Solid Dividend Stocks.

How Fast Is the Cash at Advanced Analogic Technologies?

It takes money to make money. Most investors know that, but with business media so focused on the "how much," very few investors bother to ask, "How fast?"

When judging a company's prospects, how quickly it turns cash outflows into cash inflows can be just as important as how much profit it's booking in the accounting fantasy world we call "earnings." This is one of the first metrics I check when I'm hunting for the market's best stocks. Today, we'll see how it applies to Advanced Analogic Technologies (Nasdaq: AATI  ) .

Let's break this down
In this series, we measure how swiftly a company turns cash into goods or services and back into cash. We'll use a quick, relatively foolproof tool known as the cash conversion cycle, or CCC for short.

Why does the CCC matter? The less time it takes a firm to convert outgoing cash into incoming cash, the more powerful and flexible its profit engine is. The less money tied up in inventory and accounts receivable, the more available to grow the company, pay investors, or both.

To calculate the cash conversion cycle, add days inventory outstanding to days sales outstanding, then subtract days payable outstanding. Like golf, the lower your score here, the better.

Here's the CCC for Advanced Analogic Technologies, alongside the comparable figures from a few competitors and peers.

Company	TTM Revenue	TTM CCC
Advanced Analogic Technologies	$91	�58
Maxim Integrated Products (Nasdaq: MXIM  )	$2,482	�91
Linear Technology (Nasdaq: LLTC  )	$1,425	�105
Intersil (Nasdaq: ISIL  )	$789	�109

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Dollar amounts in millions. Data is current as of last fully reported fiscal quarter. TTM = trailing 12 months.

For younger, fast-growth companies, the CCC can give you valuable insight into the sustainability of that growth. A company that's taking longer to make cash may need to tap financing to keep its momentum. For older, mature companies, the CCC can tell you how well the company is managed. Firms that begin to lose control of the CCC may be losing their clout with their suppliers (who might be demanding stricter payment terms) and customers (who might be demanding more generous terms). This can sometimes be an important signal of future distress -- one most investors are likely to miss.

While I find peer comparisons useful, I'm most interested in comparing a company's CCC to its prior performance. Here's where I believe all investors need to become trend-watchers. Sure, there may be legitimate reasons for an increase in the CCC, but all things being equal, I want to see this number stay steady or move downward over time.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Dollar amounts in millions. FY = fiscal year. TTM = trailing 12 months.

Because of the seasonality in some businesses, the CCC for the TTM period may not be strictly comparable to the fiscal-year periods shown in the chart. Even the steadiest-looking businesses on an annual basis will experience some quarterly fluctuations in the CCC. To get an understanding of the usual ebb and flow at Advanced Analogic Technologies, consult the quarterly period chart below.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Dollar amounts in millions. FQ = fiscal quarter.

On a 12-month basis, the trend at Advanced Analogic Technologies looks good. At 57.6 days, it is 6.0 days better than the five-year average of 63.6 days. The biggest contributor to that improvement was DPO, which improved 37.9 days compared to the five-year average. That was partially offset by a 19.1-day increase in DSO.

Considering the numbers on a quarterly basis, the CCC trend at Advanced Analogic Technologies looks OK. At 67.3 days, it is 12.1 days worse than the average of the past eight quarters. Investors will want to keep an eye on this for the future to make sure it doesn't stray too far in the wrong direction. With quarterly CCC doing worse than average and the latest 12-month CCC coming in better, Advanced Analogic Technologies gets a mixed review in this cash-conversion checkup.

Though the CCC can take a little work to calculate, it's definitely worth watching every quarter. You'll be better informed about potential problems, and you'll improve your odds of finding the underappreciated home run stocks that provide the market's best returns.

To stay on top of the CCC for your favorite companies, just use the handy links below to add companies to your free watchlist.

• Add Advanced Analogic Technologies to My Watchlist.
• Add Maxim Integrated Products to My Watchlist.
• Add Linear Technology to My Watchlist.
• Add Intersil to My Watchlist.

Apple, Cree, Intel: After-Hours Trading

A surprising miss from Apple(AAPL) sent shares of the iconic company lower in after-hours action on Tuesday but the iPhone maker was by no means alone in drawing heavy trading interest after the closing bell.

Apple reported fiscal fourth-quarter earnings of $6.62 billion, or $7.05 per share, on revenue of $28.27 billion for its quarter ended Sept. 24. The average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters was for a profit of $7.39 a share in the September-ended period on revenue of $29.69 billion.

See if (AAPL) is in our portfolio

A shortfall in iPhone sales were responsible for the less-than-expected profit as consumers held off on purchases ahead of the company's next generation model, which turned out to be the iPhone 4S, rather than iPhone 5. Apple unveiled the iPhone 4S on Oct. 4, after the quarter's end, but the anticipation in the months ahead of the formal announcement was palpable and it apparently took a bite out of anticipated sales. Apple said iPhone unit sales totaled 17.07 million in the quarter. Select estimates among analysts, who are almost uniformly bullish on the stock, included 20.4 million units from BMO Capital, and a view of the Street estimate at 19.8 million units from Jefferies. The stock was last quoted at $395.19, down 6.4%, on volume of nearly 7 million, according to Nasdaq.com. Cree Shares of Cree(CREE) slumped in late trades on Tuesday after the Durham, N.C. maker of LED lighting components came in a penny shy of the consensus view with its latest quarterly profit and gave a disappointing earnings outlook for the current quarter. Durham, N.C.-based Cree sees non-GAAP earnings of 25 to 28 cents a share for the three months ending Dec. 25 with revenue projected between $300 million and $320 million. The current average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters is for a profit of 33 cents a share in the December quarter on revenue of $310 million. The stock fell 4.6% to $26.50 in late trades with volume below 500,000. Based on Tuesday's regular session close at $27.78, the shares were already down more than 50% so far in 2011.

1 2 Next › Last »

Intel

Dow component Intel(INTC) blew past Wall Street's earnings estimate with its fiscal third-quarter results, sending shares almost 4% higher in the extended session.

The no. 1 chip maker posted adjusted earnings of $3.7 billion, or 69 cents a share, for the three months ended Sept. 30 with revenue totaling $14.3 billion, up 30% from last year's equivalent total. The average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters was for earnings of 61 cents a share in the September-ended period on revenue of $13.88 billion.The stock was last quoted at $24.30, up 90 cents, on after-hours volume of 10.7 million, according to Nasdaq.com. For the fourth quarter, Intel forecast revenue of $14.7 billion, plus or minus $500 million, which exceeds the current consensus view of $14.3 billion. It sees non-GAAP gross margins at 66% for the fourth quarter ending in December. Other stocks seeing trading interest late Tuesday included Yahoo!(YHOO), which rose more than 2% after beating profit expectations for its fiscal third quarter; Juniper Networks(JNPR), which was down just a penny with more than 1.7 million shares changing hands as its third-quarter report met lowered expectations and its fourth-quarter outlook underwhelmed; Intuitive Surgical(ISRG), which rose more than 7% to $411.50 on volume of more than 100,000 after the maker of the da Vinci robotic surgery system crushed Wall Street's consensus view for its third quarter by growing profits more than 40% on a year-over-year basis; and Hawaiian Holdings(HA), which leapt 11.6% to $5.49 on volume of more than 135,000 after the parent company of Hawaiian Airlines posted earnings of $25.6 million, or 50 cents a share, for the September-ended period. -->To submit a news tip, send an email to: tips@thestreet.com

>To order reprints of this article, click here: Reprints « First ‹ Previous 1 2

Taking Stock Market at Face Value

On a simple price/earnings multiple, stocks look cheap. But things aren't so simple.

The S&P 500 now trades at 15.5 times the past year's earnings, under generally accepted accounting principles. That compares to an average price/earnings multiple of 17.8 since 1950. By that metric, the stock market is about 15% below where it should be. Load up your boots.

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Many stock-market cognoscenti are disdainful of comparing stock prices to the past year's earnings, however. Profits are highly cyclical: If earnings turn out to be at their peak, stocks can have low P/Es and be overvalued. So taking cues from Yale economist Robert Shiller (who took his from Benjamin Graham and David Dodd), they compare prices to earnings over the past 10 years. Do that, and stocks don't look cheap at all.

The S&P 500 trades at 22.3 times the past decade's average, inflation-adjusted annual earnings. That compares to an average level of 18.7 since 1950. So stocks are 19% higher than they should be. Sell.

But while comparing stocks to their past 10 years' earnings might normally be a fine idea, at the moment it is a bit problematic. The earnings collapse that followed the 2008 financial crisis was the worst in U.S. history. The earnings collapse in the early 2000s following the bursting of the dot-com bubble also affects the numbers. When it happened, it was the worst since the 1930s.

Both earnings collapses were consequences not just of downshifts in the economy but large write-offs associated with the accounting scandals that followed the dot-com bust and the mountain of debt that went bad after the housing bust. They may have had less to with the underlying profitability of companies in the S&P 500 than with those companies' past excesses.

Top Stocks For 4/3/2012-18

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Power3 Medical Products, Inc. (OTCBB: PWRM), a leader in neurodegenerative disease and cancer biomarkers and diagnostic tests, announces further international recognition of validity as the company�s President and CSO, Dr. Ira Goldknopf, will deliver an invited Keynote address and chair a session on �Biomarkers and Diagnostics in Personalized Medicine (Track 6-4),� at the BIT Life Sciences 2nd International Congress and Expo of Molecular Diagnostics in Beijing, China, November 19-21, 2009. The Theme of the meeting is �New Leadership of Personalized Medicine.�

Motorcar Parts of America, Inc. (Nasdaq:MPAA) today reported results for its 2010 fiscal second quarter, supported by increased demand for alternator and starter replacements and the benefits of a gain from the recent acquisition of Reliance Automotive.

Unitrin, Inc. (NYSE: UTR) announced today that its Board of Directors has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share payable on November 30, 2009 to its shareholders of record as of November 13, 2009.

MAXIMUS (NYSE:MMS), a leading provider of government services, will issue a press release with its financial results for the three months and fiscal year ended September 30, 2009, at 6:30 a.m. (ET) on Thursday, November 12, 2009, and will host a conference call the same day at 9:00 a.m. (ET).

Pennichuck Corporation (NASDAQ: PNNW) today announced that the Company’s Board of Directors declared a quarterly dividend of $0.175 per share payable on December 1, 2009 to shareholders of record as of November 16, 2009. This quarterly dividend remains unchanged from the previous quarter and results in an annualized dividend rate of $0.70 per share.

J. C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE: JCP) today announced the launch of its Christmas gift program, bringing the “Joy of Giving(TM)” to life for its customers across America whether they shop JCPenney in store, on jcp.com or via catalog. The Company’s gift assortment this season reflects the enormous strides JCPenney has made to step up its style, while maintaining its signature quality and prices that make sense for today’s budgets.

Has KB Home Become the Perfect Stock?

Every investor would love to stumble upon the perfect stock. But will you ever really find a stock that provides everything you could possibly want?

One thing's for sure: You'll never discover truly great investments unless you actively look for them. Let's discuss the ideal qualities of a perfect stock, then decide if KB Home (NYSE: KBH  ) fits the bill.

The quest for perfection
Stocks that look great based on one factor may prove horrible elsewhere, making due diligence a crucial part of your investing research. The best stocks excel in many different areas, including these important factors:

• Growth. Expanding businesses show healthy revenue growth. While past growth is no guarantee that revenue will keep rising, it's certainly a better sign than a stagnant top line.
• Margins. Higher sales mean nothing if a company can't produce profits from them. Strong margins ensure that company can turn revenue into profit.
• Balance sheet. At debt-laden companies, banks and bondholders compete with shareholders for management's attention. Companies with strong balance sheets don't have to worry about the distraction of debt.
• Money-making opportunities. Return on equity helps measure how well a company is finding opportunities to turn its resources into profitable business endeavors.
• Valuation. You can't afford to pay too much for even the best companies. By using normalized figures, you can see how a stock's simple earnings multiple fits into a longer-term context.
• Dividends. For tangible proof of profits, a check to shareholders every three months can't be beat. Companies with solid dividends and strong commitments to increasing payouts treat shareholders well.

With those factors in mind, let's take a closer look at KB Home.

Factor	What We Want to See	Actual	Pass or Fail?
Growth	5-Year Annual Revenue Growth > 15%	(32.5%)	Fail
�	1-Year Revenue Growth > 12%	(17.2%)	Fail
Margins	Gross Margin > 35%	17.3%	Fail
�	Net Margin > 15%	(13.6%)	Fail
Balance Sheet	Debt to Equity < 50%	357.7%	Fail
�	Current Ratio > 1.3	6.88	Pass
Opportunities	Return on Equity > 15%	(33.3%)	Fail
Valuation	Normalized P/E < 20	NM	NM
Dividends	Current Yield > 2%	2.2%	Pass
�	5-Year Dividend Growth > 10%	(24.2%)	Fail
�	�	�	�
�	Total Score	�	2 out of 9

Source: S&P Capital IQ. NM = not meaningful due to negative earnings. Total score = number of passes.

Since we looked at KB Home last year, the company has gained a point. Despite its dividend rising above 2%, however, the homebuilder has a long way to go to get back to its former glory.

Home prices have struggled for years, and even recent figures show big declines in most cities around the country. Clearly, that has had an impact throughout the economy, especially for homebuilders.

But after years of record-low housing starts, some signs are appearing that suggest the glut in new homes may finally be starting to dissipate. New orders are starting to pour in, with Lennar (NYSE: LEN  ) seeing 20% growth in new orders. Even higher-end homebuilder Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL  ) posted an 8% gain, while KB Home saw orders jump 38%.

Backlog units are also on the rise, with KB Home sporting a 22% rise. Competitors Beazer Homes (NYSE: BZH  ) and Standard Pacific (NYSE: SPF  ) had even bigger jumps in backlogs, at 84% and 40%, respectively.

Still, KB Home and its peers have a long way to go before they can return to their heyday. KB Home's revenue stands at just 15% of its 2006 peak, and it's obviously a long way from profitability.

To improve its score, KB Home needs to take things one step at a time. Once revenue hits bottom, the company can start focusing on getting its margins up, and then turn its attention to its balance sheet. The housing boom of the 2000s may never return, but KB Home could still survive in better shape than it's been in during the recession.

Keep searching
No stock is a sure thing, but some stocks are a lot closer to perfect than others. By looking for the perfect stock, you'll go a long way toward improving your investing prowess and learning how to separate the best investments from the rest.

KB Home may not be a perfect stock, but we've got some ideas you may like better. Let me invite you to learn about three smart long-term stock plays in the Fool's latest special report. It's yours for the taking and is absolutely free, but don't miss out -- click here and read it today.

Click here to add KB Home to My Watchlist, which can find all of our Foolish analysis on it and all your other stocks.

10 Lessons from the Markets

Barry Ritholtz posted this list that came from James Montier who used to be at Soc Gen but is now at GMO.

Markets Aren’t Efficient
Relative Performance is a Dangerous Game
This Time is Never Different
Valuation Matters (in the Long Run)
Wait for the “Fat” Pitch
Sentiment Matters
Leverage Can’t Turn a Bad Investment Good
Beware of Over Quantification
There is No Substitute for Skepticism
The Benefits of Cheap Insurance

Some of these are probably more useful than others.

Markets Aren't Efficient is a good one. I would tweak it to say that markets are efficient except for when they aren't. I recently read something that said people rely on markets to be rational (perhaps a synonym for efficient) when they themselves are irrational. Markets do tend to be rational most of the time but occasionally they go off the rails which can lead to great upside like 1998 and 1999, and sometimes it can go the other way like in 2008 when some stocks went to single digits when there was no justification to go that low (though some stocks were justified in dropping that low).

This Time Is Never Different is useful, too. Many people really thought the financial world was ending, and there was genuine fear that the Great Depression was back and so on. Amusingly I was "too bearish" and then I wasn't "bearish enough." A point I tried to make repeatedly is that while the details were unique the human failings behind the details were not. People are (collectively) greedy. They misuse leverage, don't appreciate the risk they take and often react by selling low. You saw this ten years ago and you will see it again, guaranteed.

What sticks out for you?

4 out of 5 fund managers can be wrong

Don�t miss these top money and investing features:

• When to give your fund manager the axe

• Why stocks will beat bonds over the next 20 years

• Low-volatility ETFs can carry a high price

• Why Europe stocks are too cheap to ignore

• Investing in funds is like owning NFL team

The stock market hasn�t given much in the past year, and neither have mutual-fund managers.

Diversified U.S. stock funds lost almost 3% in 2011, while the Standard & Poor�s 500-stock index SPX �was flat on a price level and up about 2% counting dividends.

The year was especially tough on large-cap- and midcap-stock fund skippers. Just one-in-five large-cap managers were able to outperform the Russell 1000 benchmark, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Just one of every 10 large-cap-growth managers beat the bogey.

A similar fate befell midcap-stock funds; only one-in-four such managers outdid the index.

Small-cap stock fund managers had much better results. About 60% of both small-cap-core and small-cap-value funds beat the Russell 2000 benchmark. But 55% of their small-cap growth counterparts lagged.

Now it�s true that a majority of fund managers fail to beat a benchmark index in any given year. That�s precisely why investors shouldn�t be hasty to sell a fund after a lousy 12 months.

It�s tempting to dump a poor-performer, but one year really isn�t long enough to judge. If all that�s disappointed you about the fund is short-term performance, while fees, research, investment style and other fundamentals haven�t changed, then don�t convict the manager � instead, stick with your convictions.

If the fund trails for a second consecutive year, or becomes more volatile, then it�s time for a �hold or fold� moment. Owning a fund for at least three years is ideal, as it reflects a market cycle.

To be sure, don�t make an investment and then forget it for a couple of years. In this volatile and unpredictable market especially, frequent review is wise. Investors need to hold fund managers and investment advisers accountable, so stay informed about what they�re doing with your money and why.

It�s just that acting out of frustration and anger won�t get you far. As my mother (and maybe yours) would say: �Don�t cut off your nose to spite your face.�

� Jonathan Burton, Money & Investing Editor

Dell Announces Android-Based Streak Tablet; June U.K. Launch

Dell (DELL) this morning officially announced Streak, a 5-inch Android-based tablet that is going after the same market as the Apple (AAPL) iPod, although it has a much smaller screen. (In fact, it might be more of a competitor for the iPod Touch than the iPad.) The Streak will launch in the U.K. in June with partner O2. The tablet will launch in the U.S. later this summer, the company said.

Dell said the device has built-in WiFi, 3G and Bluetooth connectivity; it runs on a 1 GHz Qualcomm (QCOM) Snapdragon processor. The device also has a 5 MP autofocus camera.

Pricing was not announced.

Dell is down 35 cents, or 2.6%, to $13.09.

Top Stocks For 2012-2-24-16

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Most Active NYSE Stocks

Symbol	Company	Last	Chng.	%Chng.	Volume
C	Citigroup Inc	$4.70	+0.13	+2.84%	465,383,335
CIT	CIT Group Inc	$2.21	+0.54	+32.34%	326,140,847
SPY	SPDR S&P 500 ETF	$106.23	-0.10	-0.09%	119,533,033
BAC	Bank Of America Corporation	$17.21	-0.01	-0.06%	115,198,641
XLF	Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF	$15.06	-0.02	-0.13%	91,331,939
GE	General Electric Co	$16.73	-0.03	-0.18%	73,816,397
XRX	Xerox Corp	$7.93	+0.25	+3.26%	73,013,432
FAZ	Direxion Shs Etf Tr	$20.24	+0.10	+0.50%	67,163,001
PFE	Pfizer Inc	$16.79	+0.22	+1.33%	60,028,229
S	Sprint Nextel Corp	$4.04	+0.12	+3.06%	55,337,400
DYN	Dynegy Inc	$2.57	+0.18	+7.53%	45,682,159
F	Ford Motor Co	$7.48	-0.01	-0.13%	41,649,895
FNM	Fannie Mae	$1.57	-0.03	-1.96%	39,376,547
UNG	United States Natural Gas ETF	$11.85	+0.06	+0.51%	38,153,439
MU	Micron Technology Inc	$8.38	-0.06	-0.71%	36,813,047

Most Active AMEX Stocks

Symbol	Company	Last	Chng.	%Chng.	Volume
CVM	CEL-SCI Corporation	$1.76	unch	unch	6,212,500
PTN	Palatin Technologies Inc	$0.34	+0.01	+2.97%	3,982,092
EGO	Eldorado Gold Corporation	$11.03	+0.33	+3.08%	3,953,713
SNR	Sunair Services Corp	$2.70	+0.86	+46.42%	3,116,308
AGT	Apollo Gold Corporation	$0.50	-0.01	-1.96%	2,452,525
GSS	Golden Star Resources Ltd.	$3.38	+0.20	+6.32%	2,439,305
RTK	Rentech Inc	$1.71	-0.02	-1.16%	2,270,278
NGD	New Gold Inc.	$3.62	+0.25	+7.42%	2,137,501
RGN	RegeneRx Biopharmaceuticals Inc	$1.12	+0.30	+36.59%	1,985,614
ANX	Adventrx Pharmaceuticals Inc	$0.15	+0.00	+1.53%	1,984,261
GHCWS	Global Consumer Acqst Corp	$0.70	unch	unch	1,932,674
HEB	Hemispherx BioPharma Inc	$2.03	-0.03	-1.22%	1,871,630
NG	NovaGold Resources Inc	$4.95	+0.18	+3.77%	1,855,797
BQI	Oilsands Quest Inc	$1.13	+0.03	+2.73%	1,760,143
EST	Enterprise Acquisition Corp	$9.90	-0.01	-0.12%	1,644,300

Most Active NASDAQ Stocks

Symbol	Company	Last	Chng.	%Chng.	Volume
QQQQ	PowerShares QQQ	$42.26	-0.15	-0.35%	93,776,664
ETFC	ETrade Financial Corp	$1.81	-0.01	-0.55%	61,180,922
SQNM	Sequenom Inc	$3.41	-2.28	-40.07%	56,479,272
HBAN	Huntington Bancshares Inc	$4.44	+0.24	+5.71%	37,407,152
SIRI	Sirius XM Radio Inc	$0.62	+0.02	+3.28%	36,667,776
INTC	Intel Corporation	$19.50	-0.24	-1.22%	36,067,945
CSCO	Cisco Systems Inc	$23.30	-0.31	-1.31%	35,641,493
RIMM	Research in Motion Limited	$67.77	+1.33	+2.00%	34,546,211
DRYS	DryShips Inc	$6.83	+0.45	+7.05%	30,921,164
MSFT	Microsoft Corporation	$25.76	-0.07	-0.26%	30,590,332
DSCO	Discovery Laboratories Inc	$1.12	+0.12	+12.20%	26,795,876
CMCSA	Comcast Corp New	$17.40	+0.36	+2.11%	25,528,162
DELL	Dell Inc	$15.20	-0.47	-3.00%	24,358,307
YHOO	Yahoo! Inc	$17.46	-0.01	-0.06%	23,269,813
ORCL	Oracle Corporation	$21.14	-0.03	-0.14%	20,588,653
TSFG	South Financial Group Inc	$1.51	+0.11	+7.86%	17,441,027
FITB	Fifth Third Bancorp	$9.97	+0.14	+1.37%	15,619,606
BPOP	Popular Inc	$2.77	+0.11	+4.14%	15,375,740

Most Active OTC BB Stocks

Symbol	Company	Last	Chng.	%Chng.	Volume
CBAI	Cord Blood Amer Inc	$0.01	+0.00	+58.18%	1,111,785,657
SWVL	Seaway Vy Cap Corp	$0.00	+0.00	+100.00%	394,645,477
INBG	International Bldg Techs Grp	$0.00	+0.00	+100.00%	291,360,263
WLSI	Wellstar Intl Inc	$0.00	unch	unch	289,902,651
SMWF	Seamless Corp	$0.00	-0.00	-50.00%	270,312,680
UNDT	Universal Detection Technolo	$0.01	+0.00	+32.39%	138,160,006
ECGA	Encompass Group Affiliates I	$0.00	unch	unch	110,195,720
AGEL	Angel Acquisition Corp	$0.00	unch	unch	90,336,790
ARTI	Artfest International Inc	$0.00	+0.00	+33.33%	89,786,676
CMGR	Camelot Entmt Group Inc	$0.00	unch	unch	72,009,177
MOBI	Mobiclear Inc	$0.00	-0.00	-21.74%	44,097,579
CYBL	Cyberlux Corp	$0.00	-0.00	-14.29%	36,376,625
MMGP	Mm2 Group Inc	$0.00	+0.00	+33.33%	32,912,000
NEOM	NeoMedia Technologies Inc	$0.01	-0.00	-12.36%	28,182,161
IDOI	Ido Security Inc	$0.01	-0.00	-3.77%	22,593,940
GERS	Greenshift Corporation New	$0.00	-0.00	-8.33%	20,524,226
ESYM	Ecosystem Corporation	$0.00	+0.00	+6.25%	15,087,407

Top Stocks For 2011-12-19-10

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Thursday July 30, 2009

Most Net Price Increase NYSE� Stocks

Symbol	Company	Last	Chng.	%Chng.	Volume
BRKA	Berkshire Hathaway Inc	$96,795.00	+1,545.00	+1.62%	1,181
BRKB	Berkshire Hathaway Inc	$3,183.00	+62.00	+1.99%	67,321
MBK	Morgan Stanley	$26.38	+13.19	+100.00%	738
WPO	Washington Post Co (The)	$419.10	+11.17	+2.74%	43,724
WFCPRL	Wells Fargo & Co	$833.00	+11.00	+1.34%	18,794
RTP	Rio Tinto PLC	$161.54	+9.46	+6.22%	1,046,837
BACPRL	Bank of America Corp 7.25 PC PFD	$829.00	+9.00	+1.10%	3,587
FLS	Flowserve Corp	$80.72	+8.53	+11.82%	2,879,387
GGC	Georgia Gulf Corp	$15.47	+8.25	+114.27%	2,643,492
FFH	Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited	$290.10	+7.97	+2.82%	32,567
DRN	Direxion Shs Etf Tr	$78.75	+7.56	+10.62%	46,908
EDC	Direxion Shs Etf Tr	$106.00	+7.35	+7.45%	731,792
BEN	Franklin Resources Inc	$87.52	+7.10	+8.83%	3,473,371
WLLPRA	Whiting Pete Corp New	$121.03	+5.57	+4.83%	34,050
MA	Mastercard Inc	$194.11	+5.56	+2.95%	6,790,458

Most Net Price Increase NASDAQ� Stocks

Symbol	Company	Last	Chng.	%Chng.	Volume
UTHR	United Therapeutics Corp	$95.59	+10.07	+11.78%	4,581,933
GOOG	Google Inc	$445.64	+9.40	+2.15%	3,172,239
MYLNP	Mylan Inc	$873.54	+8.55	+0.99%	10,012
CME	CME Group Inc	$276.79	+7.55	+2.80%	986,813
BIDU	Baidu Inc	$351.80	+7.29	+2.12%	1,759,314
ISRL	Isramco Inc	$140.50	+6.72	+5.02%	923
NWLI	National Western Life Co	$134.17	+6.02	+4.70%	8,430
MANT	Mantech International Corp	$51.01	+6.01	+13.36%	1,387,476
AMSC	American Superconductor Corp	$32.13	+5.85	+22.26%	7,111,479
WYNN	Wynn Resorts Ltd	$50.15	+5.84	+13.18%	9,924,740
FSLR	First Solar Inc	$173.55	+5.56	+3.31%	4,859,534
HBANP	Huntington Bancshares Inc	$735.01	+5.03	+0.69%	379
PCLN	Priceline.com Inc	$126.94	+4.39	+3.58%	1,164,640
USNA	USANA Health Sciences Inc	$34.99	+4.15	+13.46%	132,818
ATRI	ATRION Corp	$134.99	+3.86	+2.94%	16,927

Most Net Price Increase AMEX� Stocks

Symbol	Company	Last	Chng.	%Chng.	Volume
SEB	Seaboard Corp	$1,095.00	+20.00	+1.86%	595
WSC	Wesco Financial Corp	$304.40	+4.90	+1.64%	2,049
BHB	Bar Harbor Bankshares	$34.95	+2.20	+6.72%	3,222
ZNWS	Zion Oil & Gas Inc	$6.95	+1.95	+39.00%	100
PPWPR	Pacificorp	$84.01	+1.51	+1.84%	260
SA	Seabridge Gold Inc.	$28.78	+1.31	+4.77%	143,335
AFP	United Capital Corp	$24.50	+1.28	+5.51%	5,450
NEN	New England Realty Associates LP	$51.00	+1.20	+2.41%	200
BKR	Michael Baker Corp	$42.80	+1.10	+2.64%	20,199
WSOB	Watsco Inc	$52.30	+1.09	+2.13%	100
AAPR	Alcoa Inc	$60.00	+1.00	+1.69%	350
MCF	Contango Oil & Gas Co	$46.92	+0.99	+2.16%	60,325
TSH	Teche Holding Co	$33.95	+0.95	+2.88%	13,488
GHQU	Ghl Acquisition Corp	$11.45	+0.90	+8.53%	1,800
TIS	Orchids Paper Products Co	$22.56	+0.86	+3.96%	71,402

Most Net Price Increase OTC BB� Stocks

Symbol	Company	Last	Chng.	%Chng.	Volume
FCBN	First Ctzns Bancorp Inc S C	$350.00	+35.00	+11.11%	40
FBAK	First National Bk Alaska	$1,685.00	+35.00	+2.12%	719
SBFC	Southeastern Bank Finl Corp	$15.50	+3.45	+28.63%	400
MDPWL	Midamerican Energy Co	$84.50	+2.50	+3.05%	400
BVBC	Blue Vy Ban Corp	$10.50	+2.50	+31.25%	100
PBNK	Pinnacle Bank Gilroy Calif	$7.00	+2.00	+40.00%	134
FMFG	Farmers & Merchants Bk Md	$21.50	+1.75	+8.86%	450
OZOM	Ozone Man Inc	$6.25	+1.25	+25.00%	3,600
PFCI	Pacific Comm Bk California	$5.25	+1.25	+31.25%	900
HCBN	Hcb Finl Corp	$11.75	+1.25	+11.90%	1,700
SUWG	Sunway Global Inc	$5.00	+1.13	+29.20%	900
DIMC	Dimeco Inc	$37.50	+1.10	+3.02%	200
EGRKH	Entergy Ark Inc	$66.00	+1.00	+1.54%	100
HUVL	Hudson Valley Holding Corp	$43.00	+1.00	+2.38%	1,746
CABK	California Cmnty Bk Escondi	$7.00	+1.00	+16.67%	500
WGLCO	Washington Gas Lt Co	$72.00	+1.00	+1.41%	400