By Jonas ElmerrajiPosted on Dec. 21, 2009 End-of-the-year economic data continues to push stocks as investors weigh in on just how well the economy rebounded in 2009. That fact could play out well for investors who are long the market right now as sentiment sways away from moving stocks lower ahead of the holidays -- particularly after a lackluster week ending Dec. 18.Expect the market to move bizarrely this week. The market is scheduled to close early on Dec. 24 and remain closed all day on Christmas day, so Wall Street vacations could play into volume irregularities. All told, that shouldn’t affect our Rocket Stock plays too much.Our weekly Rocket Stocks list, which takes a look at beaten-down stocks with near-term g...

  By Roberto PedonePosted on Dec. 20, 2009Big Bank Buys: This Barron’s article says four big banks look attractive with earnings set to rise sharply in the coming years. Among the stocks mentioned are Bank of America (BAC), Citigroup (C) and JPMorgan Chase (JPM).Tech Fund Manager: Barron’s talks with Michael Lippert, portfolio manager of the $170 million technology-focused Baron iOpportunity Fund (BIOPX). Lippert hunts for companies that are high-growth, that are doing something really innovative, that have barriers around their business, and that are capturing market share and getting stronger. Among the stocks in his portfolio are Apple (AAPL), Qualcomm (QCOM) and Equinix (EQIX).Bullish and Bearish: Ea...

  By Jonas ElmerrajiPosted on Dec. 18, 2009Another set of companies announced dividends last week, scrambling either to get cash to shareholders before the year’s end or to be among the first payouts of the New Year. But of those announcements, the ones to watch were the companies that actually increased their regular payouts to shareholders, despite an economy that’s anything but healed going into 2010. Dividend increases are a big deal for any company and an even bigger deal in this economy, where management has to decide whether to prioritize balance sheet liquidity or sharing profits with shareholders. And that’s not all. Historically, companies that pay dividends materially outperform th...

  By Roberto PedonePosted on Dec. 18, 2009 According to Jim Cramer, investing in U.S. Treasuries isn’t prudent; it’s downright reckless. On Wednesday’s “Mad Moneyâ€� TV show, he said money flow data is showing that investors are pouring capital into low-yielding bond funds over stock funds.Plus, some key brokerages, such as Knight Capital (NITE), TD Ameritrade (AMTD) and Charles Schwab (SCHW), have reported declines in business. Cramer explained that this means investors are scared of stocks at current levels and are fleeing for the safety of bonds. He told viewers that this is the wrong move because bonds offer no upside, and there are plenty of high-dividend-paying stocks that make for a better al...

  By Jonas ElmerrajiPosted on Dec. 17, 2009Just because all eyes are on a handful of high-volume stocks doesn’t mean that their volatile short-term movements are going to make any sense. Even when the news isn’t there to trigger a stock to jump, volatile issues can move wildly on a daily basis. Turning to technical analysis cues can give us a glimpse of why some of the biggest names on Wall Street are moving. And if there’s a play to be made, we’ll take it.Technical analysis uses a stock’s price movements to determine where shares are headed in the future. Technical charts are used every day by proprietary trading floors, the street’s biggest financial firms and individual investor...

  By Roberto PedonePosted on Dec. 17, 2009The traders of CNBC’s “Fast Moneyâ€� are starting to see some cracks developing in the markets. On Tuesday’s “Fast Moneyâ€� TV show, Guy Adami told viewers that the financial sector is starting to lose its leadership standing in the markets. He pointed out that Goldman Sachs Group (GS), JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Morgan Stanley (MS) are all trading off their 52-week highs. Adami thinks the leadership names in the finical space may be trying to tell us something.Tim Seymour agreed with Adami but he also mentioned that the markets have still traded in a bullish fashion, with the S&P 500 closing above the 1,100 level which had been prior resistance....

  Posted on Dec. 16, 2009 Regardless of why a stock is in the news, it never hurts to hear what a professional investor has to say about it. The key is to gather as much information as you can in order to make the most informed investment decisions you can. As Jim Cramer often reminds, investors must do their homework. So what has Cramer had to say lately about today's headline-makers? At Stockpickr, we've combed through his recent RealMoney blog posts, "Mad Money" TV show recaps and "Stop Trading!" segments to find out what he thinks about some of today's newsworthy stocks. IBM (IBM): IBM will buy Texas-based software maker Lombardi, the latest in a string of M&A activity for IBM. On Dec. 9's "...

  By Jonas ElmerrajiPosted on Dec. 16, 2009As real estate begins to recover across the country, a prime short-squeeze opportunity is emerging for investors who aren’t afraid of buying up shares of beleaguered real estate stocks. Real estate investment trusts, homebuilders, resort chains and other companies with huge real estate holdings saw their shares fall in the wake of 2008’s property bubble as one of their biggest balance sheet items shrank in value due to declining market conditions. But as the world credit markets release themselves and property-buying picks back up, real estate markets are beginning to recover across much of the country. We’re far from a complete recovery to be sure, but we’re...

  Posted on Dec. 15, 2009 Regardless of why a stock is in the news, it never hurts to hear what a professional investor has to say about it. The key is to gather as much information as you can in order to make the most informed investment decisions you can. As Jim Cramer (read an excerpt from his new book here) often reminds, investors must do their homework. So what has Cramer had to say lately about today's headline-makers? At Stockpickr, we've combed through his recent RealMoney blog posts, "Mad Money" TV show recaps and "Stop Trading!" segments to find out what he thinks about some of today's newsworthy stocks. Boeing (BA): Boeing's 787 Dreamliner finally flew today, after a two-and-a-half-year wait. Boein...

  By Jonas ElmerrajiPosted on Dec. 15, 2009While this week may be news heavy with Dubai, TARP repayments and more economic updates hitting newswires and share prices nonstop, that doesn’t mean that you should eschew the technical plays. Disciplined traders can turn technicals into trading profits on a consistent basis, even in the worst of markets.Technical analysis is a way for investors to quantify qualitative factors such as investor psychology based on a stock’s chart patterns and trends. Once the domain of cloistered trading teams on Wall Street, technicals can help top traders make consistently profitable trades and can aid fundamental investors in better planning their stock execution.But all too often inv...

  Not a Stockpickr member? Join the community today -- for free.NEW YORK (Stockpickr) -- Regardless of why a stock is in the news, it never hurts to hear what a professional investor has to say about it. The key is to gather as much information as you can in order to make the most informed investment decisions you can. As Jim Cramer often reminds, investors must do their homework. So what has Cramer had to say lately about today's headline-makers? At Stockpickr, we've combed through his recent RealMoney blog posts, "Mad Money" TV show recaps and "Stop Trading!" segments to find out what he thinks about some of today's newsworthy stocks. Best Buy (BBY): Citigroup analyst Kate McShane expects Best Buy, which is o...

  Check out Jim Cramer's Diversified Dividend Portfolio and read an excerpt from his new book, "Getting Back to Even".By Roberto PedonePosted on Dec. 14, 2009Buy American Giants: This Barron’s article says investors who are looking to boost their exposure to overseas markets might want to consider buying U.S. multinationals. Among the stocks mentioned are Research In Motion (RIMM), Caterpillar (CAT), Qualcomm (QCOM) and Nike (NKE).Long-Short Hedge Fund Manager: Barron’s talks with Douglas A. Kass, president and founder of Seabreeze Partners Management. Kass runs a long-short hedge fund that looks for overvalued and undervalued stocks. Currently, the fund has assets of $100 million and a gross year-to-d...

  Check out Jim Cramer's Diversified Dividend Portfolio and read an excerpt from his new book, "Getting Back to Even".By Jonas ElmerrajiPosted on Dec. 14, 2009, at 8:45 a.m. ESTStocks are pointed higher this morning after a $10 billion bailout from Abu Dhabi eased concerns about Dubai’s debt crisis. The move saves private government interest Dubai World from defaulting on a bond issue set to expire today, and it reassures investors who were considering investment in the emirate. While we have yet to make any Dubai plays in our weekly Rocket Stocks list, which takes a look at beaten-down stocks with near-term growth catalysts and long-term growth potential, we can take advantage of the uptick Dubai’s re...

  By Roberto PedonePosted on Dec. 11, 1009According to Jim Cramer, oil’s drop is starting to crush some stocks. He said investors are getting killed if they own some of the names in the oil complex, such as Exxon Mobil (XOM) and Schlumberger (SLB). Cramer advised investors to take down their exposure to the oil space, because oil needed to hold $75 to keep moving these stocks higher.He explained that a break below $75 could cause a lot of oil to go from ship to shore, which won’t help the sector. Cramer said the major issue with oil is that portfolio managers are starting to sell these stocks to protect their big gains. He thinks these managers will dump their positions and take the oil sector down another peg if oil...