davemcc3300

Slump's Over? Vegas Employment and Housing Looking Up

Is there a good statistician out there who could run a multi-factor coefficient of correlation between Las Vegas home sales and employment and U.S. GDP or the S&P 500?

Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News

"Making things", says axelrod. I agree 100%. See what our "service" economy has done for us: left us dependent on the rest of the world. We are witnessing the USA slumping into second place. Who's in FIRST? No single country. We'll see more international alliances, with USA being just one of the players.

Should we shovel taxpayer money into losers like GM? Or how about a multi-time loser like Chrysler? Helloooo ...? Is it just that some flag-wavers want Toyota to fail? Guess what: businesses that do things the smart way will ALWAYS be succcessful.

And when you look at the flag-wavers very closely you see that the little buttons on their collars aren't American flags, they're "Vote Union" or the UAW or Steelworkers -- the unions that bullied management into sucking their employers into fundamentally and internationally uncompetitive postures.

What do we do now? Buy the best cars at the best price = value. Need steel? Go to Nucor -- a new breed of corporation -- not US Steel. Want to build good North American businesses? Let the private sector, including the investment bankers of the future, make the investment decisions. NOT the government!

It might take Americans another 4 years -- with the lemmings putting Obama into the presidency -- until we learn that we can't spend money we don't have, import things that take too much fuel to get to us, buy twice the house we need to live in, subsidize weak industries, vote union representation to talk to management or look to anybody else but ourselves to provide faithfully for us.

We Americans are self-satisfied, slow learners.

Which reminds me: where are the engineers and scientists that will help us recover? Maybe some will be graduating in 4 years.

Dave

Intuitive Surgical: Medical Device Stocks Look Oversold - But Not Recession Proof

Johnson has a valid point about "groupie" stocks. Another name for this is "story" stock. I've owned two of these and ended up getting my hat handed to me with my head in it: NutraCea (NTRZ) and Headwaters (HW). Like ISRG, both are fine companies with great "stories" that I fell in love with, and got into so "early" that the smart investors in the stocks turned out to be the ones who sold when the price was high.

I think ISRG is worth buying, but I put it in the "story" -- or "groupie" or "gotta love" -- stocks that just aren't good enough at the fundamentals yet ... or maybe just haven't been discovered by level-headed investors yet.

ISRG buyers beware.

Dave

Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News

Wish we had a 5-star rating system for both the articles and the comments!

Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News

BHI's numbers aren't showing in the share price. It will be a big winner when the recovery comes. (I've owned BHI in past, continue to watch it, but don't own shares right now.) But so will all the oil services and infrastructure players.

Sugar Futures Drop; Fundamental Picture Currently Ignored

Keith: name a few of your "prospects" for us.

Me? I like BUF, EXM, NE, AHR, and MDR ... and I'm taking a hosing!

Friday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets

David, I'm another fan that uses your work to distill what has happened. I hunger for some of your recommendations tho. You're old enough and sharp enough to have gut feelings worth airing.

But if you don't tell us how/where to focus our investments in the future, I'll still love you and study your wonderful charts.

Another Dave

Two Ideas to Capitalize on Distressed Sellers

I'm a HGT victim too. In last 4 mo, HGT is -45% vs S&P -33%. PBT is a better performer with a -29% drop. When market and oil prices recover, both will outperform market. Dividends for next 3 months probably lower, reflecting NG and oil income.

I like MWA, but see it falling more. A good infrastructure play ..if that's where government money goes (which might be pretty tight for another 2 years).

Only things I own that are working are KO and ABX (until today).

I'm holding. Selling at these levels validate the stupidity of the usual stockholder. Their panic is outdone only by institutions trying to scrape up cash in this negative environment.

Dave

Crazy P/E Ratios

Yikes: These low-PE company look like some of the best investments out there right now ... including WB.

California: Canary in the Economic Coal Mine

Dr. Jackpot: you're spot on about CA too. You should apply for Sec of Treasury!

Economic Indicators Signal a Major Collapse Ahead

Dr. Jackpot's spot on: a real action plan.

36 Opportunities for the Beginning of the Bull

Glad my Coke (KO) and gold (ABX) made the list. KO has not suffered the hosing the rest of my portfolio has taken. Maybe your other picks are safe havens ...or safer. Best move, if you had foreseen a 33% one-year S&P dive, would have been to move to cash last October and stay there. Can't fault anyone who went "all in" a week ago. America's on sale!

Taking a Risk - With 20% Yields

ACAS and EXM are excellent investments with little downside risk and nice payout while you wait for the stock to return. I also like AHR.

Why I Got Gold Wrong

TERN's article-rating question needs to be answered "Soon!"

Tuesday Outlook: Commodities, Emerging Markets

I've never had a Vanguard order fail to execute. What do you suppose happened?