Few investments are driven by psychology and fear as much as gold. Concerns about ruinous inflation, global tensions or economic instability can send investors out of stocks and right into the seemingly safe harbor of gold. Is the fear trade back on? A double-digit rebound in gold prices since the year began has led some investors to wonder if gold is poised for a great 2014 after a dismal slump in 2013 when gold prices fell more than $400 an ounce. Junior gold miners have fared even better: The Market Vectors Junior Gold Miner ETF (NYSE: GDXJ) is up roughly… Read More

Few investments are driven by psychology and fear as much as gold. Concerns about ruinous inflation, global tensions or economic instability can send investors out of stocks and right into the seemingly safe harbor of gold. Is the fear trade back on? A double-digit rebound in gold prices since the year began has led some investors to wonder if gold is poised for a great 2014 after a dismal slump in 2013 when gold prices fell more than $400 an ounce. Junior gold miners have fared even better: The Market Vectors Junior Gold Miner ETF (NYSE: GDXJ) is up roughly 35% in the past three months. #-ad_banner-#Much of the impetus for an upward move in gold prices was the building tensions in Ukraine, which led to concerns about potential military escalation. It’s now apparent that financial sanctions, and not a deepening of a war posture, will characterize the hardening Russia/European Union relationship, and the risk factor is slowly receding. Also, concerns had arisen that a slowing Chinese economy might create higher global uncertainty. China’s economy is slowing, but the Chinese government will restore stability if necessary by increasing stimulus spending. Yet the key reasons behind gold’s… Read More

Alternative energy remains a major theme among investors and society as a whole. From an investing standpoint, solar energy, in particular, offers active investors and traders a number of liquid stocks to participate in. #-ad_banner-#Last week, First Solar (Nasdaq: FSLR), a leading designer and manufacturer of solar modules, staged a massive rally after the company gave positive guidance for the current fiscal year, as well as for 2015 and 2016. The forecast was better than analysts expected and also took investors by surprise, which led the stock to rally more than 35% on the week to levels last seen in… Read More

Alternative energy remains a major theme among investors and society as a whole. From an investing standpoint, solar energy, in particular, offers active investors and traders a number of liquid stocks to participate in. #-ad_banner-#Last week, First Solar (Nasdaq: FSLR), a leading designer and manufacturer of solar modules, staged a massive rally after the company gave positive guidance for the current fiscal year, as well as for 2015 and 2016. The forecast was better than analysts expected and also took investors by surprise, which led the stock to rally more than 35% on the week to levels last seen in 2011. But not all companies in the space — and not all solar stocks — are created equal. In stark contrast to FSLR, SolarCity (Nasdaq: SCTY), which offers solar energy systems, dropped close to 12% last week thanks to an unsatisfactory earnings report. One stock that I routinely go to for calculated trades is SunEdison (NYSE: SUNE), a manufacturer of semiconductors and solar energy technology. On March 20, SunEdison announced a series of transactions that are scheduled to take place concurrent with the initial public offering of its semiconductor division, SunEdison Semiconductor (SSL), splitting it off from its more lucrative… Read More

Wall Street can be a strange place. People often imagine “the Street” as a Mecca of stock analysis and investment decisions where the best and brightest economic minds pour over all available data — zeroing on any high-potential opportunities pitched their way. Most outsiders assume the money-making drive overwhelms all else — that these seasoned investors would never let trivial things like anger or jealousy stop them from jumping on a great stock and riding it to a huge gain. But, in fact, this happens all the time. Even the most brilliant and professional investors sometimes give great companies the… Read More

Wall Street can be a strange place. People often imagine “the Street” as a Mecca of stock analysis and investment decisions where the best and brightest economic minds pour over all available data — zeroing on any high-potential opportunities pitched their way. Most outsiders assume the money-making drive overwhelms all else — that these seasoned investors would never let trivial things like anger or jealousy stop them from jumping on a great stock and riding it to a huge gain. But, in fact, this happens all the time. Even the most brilliant and professional investors sometimes give great companies the cold shoulder for reasons that have nothing to do with corporate or economic fundamentals. #-ad_banner-#Let me tell you a story about how it happened to me. A few years ago I helped found a prospective gold project in South America. My partners and I identified an excellent mining development site — it eventually became one of the top 3% of projects in the world in terms of gold ounces held. After securing a purchase agreement on the project, we set to work structuring a corporation to develop it, hiring staff and getting drilling rigs on the property. Then we found… Read More

Last summer, I wrote about an odd disconnect between rising oil prices and a strong U.S. dollar. Since then, that disconnect has dissipated. The dollar has appreciated about 6% to 7%, and inversely, the price of West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) has fallen at about the same rate. Two of my recommendations, Valero (NYSE: VLO) and Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX), have gone up an average of 32%. The third recommendation was integrated Brazilian oil producer Petroleo Brasilero (NYSE: PBR),aka Petrobras. Since then, the stock has fallen 26%. Do I still like it? More than ever. Another BRIC Faces… Read More

Last summer, I wrote about an odd disconnect between rising oil prices and a strong U.S. dollar. Since then, that disconnect has dissipated. The dollar has appreciated about 6% to 7%, and inversely, the price of West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) has fallen at about the same rate. Two of my recommendations, Valero (NYSE: VLO) and Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX), have gone up an average of 32%. The third recommendation was integrated Brazilian oil producer Petroleo Brasilero (NYSE: PBR),aka Petrobras. Since then, the stock has fallen 26%. Do I still like it? More than ever. Another BRIC Faces Adversity Not long ago, Brazil and its fellow BRIC nations were the world’s fastest-growing emerging-market economies. Now? Not so much. Each country has its own challenges. Brazil, in particular, is facing unemployment, a weak currency, inflation, and pockets of social unrest. The currency weakness is one factor affecting Petrobras’ stock price. Others include below-forecast oil production and low domestic fuel prices. But the low stock price doesn’t tell the whole story. Petrobras is one of the world’s largest oil and gas companies in all aspects of exploration, production, refining, transportation and marketing (thus the moniker “vertically integrated” oil company). Read More

The price of copper is under assault. The iPath DJ-UBS Copper TR Sub-Idx ETN (NYSE: JJC) is down more than 13% this year, with half that drop coming in the past week. JJC now trades well below its short-term 50-day moving average, as well as its long-term 200-day moving average. #-ad_banner-#Yet despite the drop in copper prices, I think traders can look at the sector’s slide as a buying opportunity. Copper is the industrial metal that’s said to have a Ph.D. in economics. In fact, it is sometimes referred to as “Dr. Copper.” This is because the price… Read More

The price of copper is under assault. The iPath DJ-UBS Copper TR Sub-Idx ETN (NYSE: JJC) is down more than 13% this year, with half that drop coming in the past week. JJC now trades well below its short-term 50-day moving average, as well as its long-term 200-day moving average. #-ad_banner-#Yet despite the drop in copper prices, I think traders can look at the sector’s slide as a buying opportunity. Copper is the industrial metal that’s said to have a Ph.D. in economics. In fact, it is sometimes referred to as “Dr. Copper.” This is because the price of copper usually reflects the overall trend in the global economy. While this “copper indicator” has proven to have a lot of merit over the years, like most economists, copper also gets it wrong — frequently. Recently, the price of copper is thought to have dropped due to weak economic data out of China. China is the biggest consumer of copper, with the nation accounting for about 40% of global demand. Certainly, China’s infrastructure buildout has been the biggest driver for the industrial metal during the past decade. And recent data from the Asian giant does show a slump in… Read More

Imagine walking into a casino and taking a seat at the nearest roulette table. You set down a $100 bill, receive four green $25 chips, and proceed to stack them all on red. If the ball lands on a red number, you instantly double your money. If not, you lose it all and walk away with nothing. The croupier gives the wheel a spin, lets the ball fly, and waves his hand over the table to signal no more bets. The adrenaline starts pumping as you watch the ball bounce from slot to slot, finally settling on… 20 black. Your… Read More

Imagine walking into a casino and taking a seat at the nearest roulette table. You set down a $100 bill, receive four green $25 chips, and proceed to stack them all on red. If the ball lands on a red number, you instantly double your money. If not, you lose it all and walk away with nothing. The croupier gives the wheel a spin, lets the ball fly, and waves his hand over the table to signal no more bets. The adrenaline starts pumping as you watch the ball bounce from slot to slot, finally settling on… 20 black. Your chips are unceremoniously scooped up. That was fast. #-ad_banner-#But wait. This is no ordinary roulette wheel. The dealer decides to reimburse you for your play and gives you $40 back. Emboldened, you pocket the chips and lay down another Ben Franklin on the table for a second spin. This time Lady Luck smiles on you. The ball lands on 5 red. The dealer doubles your bet and pushes $100 toward you. But once again, he gives you an extra $40 bonus just for playing. The laws of mathematics say this is a “can’t-lose” proposition. Guess wrong, and you still get… Read More

Successful short-term trading is a learnable skill. It takes a combination of a keen eye to identify changing fundamentals within the market or company and the ability to read price. By “reading price,” I mean the aptitude to study price changes on a spread sheet or chart in order to make an educated guess as to whether the price trend will continue or reverse.   #-ad_banner-#In addition, the ability to handle losses while not deviating from your trading plan is a key factor in short-term trading success. Using the above factors as a guide, I identified FuelCell Energy (NASDAQ: FCEL)… Read More

Successful short-term trading is a learnable skill. It takes a combination of a keen eye to identify changing fundamentals within the market or company and the ability to read price. By “reading price,” I mean the aptitude to study price changes on a spread sheet or chart in order to make an educated guess as to whether the price trend will continue or reverse.   #-ad_banner-#In addition, the ability to handle losses while not deviating from your trading plan is a key factor in short-term trading success. Using the above factors as a guide, I identified FuelCell Energy (NASDAQ: FCEL) as a very likely candidate for substantial short-term profits. Let’s take a closer look at this innovative company. FuelCell Energy is a Danbury, Conn.-based manufacturer and distributor of stationary fuel cell power plants. In other words, the company makes large batteries and markets them to electric utilities, independent power producers, and the education, health care and hospitality industries, among a variety of other sectors. FCEL boasts a market cap of around $640 million, revenue of nearly $188 million in the past 12 months, and just under $68 million in cash.   Things appear to be improving for the company, which… Read More

It’s been hard to miss the rally in precious metals this year. While the broader market took it on the chin midway through January, gold and silver prices were finding support. And as equities have had to fight to return to their 2014 highs, gold and silver prices have actually made new highs for the year. #-ad_banner-#The fact that gold and silver have been dropping for roughly two years helps to make the case for a sustained rally in precious metals. After such a long decline, we may have finally reached the point where a meaningful amount of “true believers”… Read More

It’s been hard to miss the rally in precious metals this year. While the broader market took it on the chin midway through January, gold and silver prices were finding support. And as equities have had to fight to return to their 2014 highs, gold and silver prices have actually made new highs for the year. #-ad_banner-#The fact that gold and silver have been dropping for roughly two years helps to make the case for a sustained rally in precious metals. After such a long decline, we may have finally reached the point where a meaningful amount of “true believers” have finally become frustrated enough to throw in the towel. With the last remaining “weak holders” shaken out, sellers may be in short supply, allowing gold and silver buyers to push prices higher for months to come. It also helps that demand for precious metals from China has been on the rise, with the World Gold Council recently reporting that China’s gold purchases have now surpassed those of India. In particular, a surge in physical bar and coin demand from China may indicate that gold purchases represent investments and hedges against inflation rather than simply demand for jewelry from affluent… Read More

When it comes to green investing, the playbook is constantly being rewritten. #-ad_banner-#Solar and wind stocks were all the rage in the past decade before getting hammered in 2011 and 2012. They rebounded smartly in 2013, especially solar stocks, even as falling natural gas prices led some to think that solar would remain uncompetitive. Even fuel cell stocks, which were once deeply out of favor, have surged higher lately (as I noted earlier this month). To be sure, such dramatic slumps and rebounds mean that investors need to have a strong stomach for wind, solar and fuel cell stocks. These… Read More

When it comes to green investing, the playbook is constantly being rewritten. #-ad_banner-#Solar and wind stocks were all the rage in the past decade before getting hammered in 2011 and 2012. They rebounded smartly in 2013, especially solar stocks, even as falling natural gas prices led some to think that solar would remain uncompetitive. Even fuel cell stocks, which were once deeply out of favor, have surged higher lately (as I noted earlier this month). To be sure, such dramatic slumps and rebounds mean that investors need to have a strong stomach for wind, solar and fuel cell stocks. These high-beta investments could quickly fall out of favor, especially if the market pulls back and investors avoid speculative stocks. That’s why I also like to focus on clean energy stocks that have solid and sustainable business models. Such firms aren’t making a bet that their clean energy technology will prevail — instead, they are simply harnessing other firm’s technologies to build cost-saving solutions for enterprises. Profiting By Playing It Safe No firm better epitomizes the “play it safe” approach to clean energy than Spain’s Abengoa (Nasdaq: ABNG). Back in December, I wrote that Abengoa is a world leader in… Read More

Among Wall Street’s greats, Carl Icahn is in a league of his own. #-ad_banner-#With the power to sway a stock’s price in 140 characters or less — see Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) 9% increase last August after he announced a position via Twitter), the legendary activist investor is a forced to be reckoned with. The “Icahn effect” can lead to sentiment-driven price gains after he announces a position as investors scramble to follow his moves. Thanks to big returns from Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX) and Herbalife (NYSE: HLF) in the past few years, Icahn’s net worth has skyrocketed to north of $20… Read More

Among Wall Street’s greats, Carl Icahn is in a league of his own. #-ad_banner-#With the power to sway a stock’s price in 140 characters or less — see Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) 9% increase last August after he announced a position via Twitter), the legendary activist investor is a forced to be reckoned with. The “Icahn effect” can lead to sentiment-driven price gains after he announces a position as investors scramble to follow his moves. Thanks to big returns from Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX) and Herbalife (NYSE: HLF) in the past few years, Icahn’s net worth has skyrocketed to north of $20 billion. He is looking to pad that number with his 12.5% stake in medical imaging company Hologic (Nasdaq: HOLX), disclosed last October. Could Hologic be Icahn’s next big winner, or will it continue its current trend of going nowhere fast? Hologic manufacturers and supplies diagnostic systems and tests, predominantly X-ray bone densitometers and ultrasound bone analyzers. These tests have large implications for women’s health care, specifically in the diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis and cancer. Despite its promising intentions, Hologic has failed to turn a profit in five of the past six years. Most recently, the company reported a loss… Read More