Bull-Bear Archives

The Mosaic Company (MOS): It's a Spinning Wheel

What goes up, must come down. Spinning wheel goes round and round. Yes those great lyrics from the Blood Sweat and Tears classic, Spinning Wheel definitely apply today. We are indeed enduring blood, sweat and tears as the markets spin out of control to the downside. Where will it end is anybody's guess. One of the more interesting sectors to watch is the agriculture space. Fueled by intense speculation of world growth unabated accompanied by alternative energy dreams investors pushed... continue

by Kim Gerdes  |  10/10/08

Can Chesapeake Energy Fuel Profits

When oil was trading at $150 per barrel owning anything associated with crude was a no-brainer. Now with oil and other commodities in a free-fall does the same trade make sense? I posed that question to our InvestorPlace Blogs community specifically with respect to Chesapeake Energy Corp. (CHK). Given the drop in oil and the subsequent selling of oil stocks, does it make sense to own CHK? continue

by The Freshman  |  10/03/08  |  Stocks: ,

Chesapeake Energy - A possible double?

Submitted anonymously I owned Chesapeake Energy (CHK) for a while. I sold if half way into its recent run-up. To me, it seems a great company, but I don't read company reports much. I don't believe they are accurate. The issues I have in all companies, especially oil exploration, is credit availability. CHK is not so much an exploration company, but I feel their dividend should be more substantial considering their position in pipes and the stuff in production. They... continue

by The Freshman  |  09/29/08  |  Stocks: , , , ,

Bull/Bear Report - Short selling: Good or Bad?

Given all craziness in the market over the last two weeks, I thought it appropriate to change the focus of this column. Instead of examining a specific stock, I wanted to know how the community felt about short selling and the temporary ban thereof. Are short sellers to blame for creating this financial crisis? Is the temporary ban of some 800 stocks are good thing or a bad thing for the market? There are no easy answers to this question.... continue

by The Freshman  |  09/26/08

Bull/Bear Report: No "Bull" for Merrill Lynch

The craziness that was Lehman Brothers (LEH) and the subsequent collapse of Merrill Lynch (MER) resulted in my selection of MER as our stock of the week late in the day last Friday. With so much uncertainty in the market, I figured our InvestorPlace Blogs community could weigh in on where MER was heading. At a minimum I was hoping to gauge some sentiment on a difficult to value company in a very difficult situation. I had no idea how... continue

by The Freshman  |  09/19/08  |  Stocks: , , , ,

Bull/Bear Report -- Is Toll Brothers (TOL) A Profit Builder?

There is always an element of the bizarre in the stock market. What seems positive is viewed negatively and vice versa. It can be maddening. Lately we have been seeing more maddening activity than normal making it very difficult for investors to keep a Rational grip on their portfolios. One sector that has been trading in a crazy way this year is the homebuilding group. Can you believe that stocks in the sector are some of the best performing stocks... continue

by The Freshman  |  09/12/08  |  Stocks: , , , , ,

BIG Decision: Is BigLots a Buy or Sell?

Watching capitalism in all its states is fascinating. We have up markets, down markets and everything in between. No matter where we are at in the cycle we can always learn something. It really is a neat thing if you are an observer and student of the game. Of course we are more than just casual observers. We are the investors fighting to beat the market and the machinations thereof matter. During this current economic downturn we are seeing some... continue

by The Freshman  |  09/05/08  |  Stocks: , ,

Deere (DE) in the Headlights

Agriculture stocks have taken a late summer beating as commodity prices deflate across the board. The group that had previously been on the offensive has now become quite defensive as investors question the longevity of the recent rally. Longs have a right to be skeptical. We have seen any number of impressive bubbles ultimately end very badly. Will the same happen in agriculture? Given that much of the basis for the rise in food stocks was anticipation for ethanol demand,... continue

by The Freshman  |  08/29/08  |  Stocks: , , , , ,

The Bull/Bear Report - American International Group, Inc. (AIG)

Insurance and financial company American International Group, Inc. (AIG) took its turn at the credit crisis whipping post by recently reporting larger losses than expected. The bigger problem than the losses was the apparent lack of understanding of when and if the crisis will cause further damage to an already wounded balance sheet. At one point in its history AIG was the glamour boy in finance attracting some of the best and brightest minds to its shop. The company led... continue

by The Freshman  |  08/15/08  |  Stocks: ,

Bull/Bear Report: Should you put the brakes on GM?

There sure has been a ton of destruction in the market this year. A credit crisis, high oil prices, and a recession have conspired against stock values. It would appear that no sector is immune to the carnage although some are getting hit much harder than others. One space that has been absolutely crushed this year is the auto manufacturers with the American companies, General Motors (GM) and Ford (F) leading the way down. It should be no surprise given... continue

by Hillary Mark  |  08/08/08  |  Stocks: ,

Bull/Bear Report: Build a Bridge to Chicago Bridge and Iron (CBI)

They say what comes around goes around. Enjoying the fruits of an unprecedented global economic boom that resulted in historical rises in oil prices, Chicago Bridge and Iron (CBI) saw its business grow substantially over the last few years. Highly leveraged to the oil and gas industry (despite the name, CBI is not a bridge builder), CBI is a global engineering and construction firm that builds refineries, liquefied gas terminals, and pipelines. The company is involved in some of the... continue

by The Freshman  |  08/01/08  |  Stocks: , , , , ,

Why?

Shares of Citigroup are up another 3% on Monday, flowing Friday's better than 8% rise. My overriding question is why? Investors seem pleased that the banking and financial services giant lost less than Wll Street expected. The Street has not gotten anything right on the bank stocks all year so why being worng about Citigroup is a cause for optimism escapes me. The fact of the matter is that the report was simply awful. Is the fact that a company... continue

by Tim Melvin  |  07/21/08  |  Stocks: ,

Bull/Bear Report -- Is WYNN a Win?

Is it time to buy shares of battered casino stocks? Frankly, given the lure of gambling no matter what the economic conditions the question should have been more direct, why not buy casino stocks? Investors have forgotten that historically, casinos have done well in good times and bad. Gamblers can counted on just like any other addiction. Look at cigarettes and the massive taxes smokers pay for their vice for evidence of this. But this time around things may be... continue

by The Freshman  |  07/18/08  |  Stocks: , , ,

Not bad, Wells, not bad at all

That wasn't so bad at all. Wells Fargo reported earnings today and, unlike many other banks of late, it wasn't that bad. The bank reported total earnings of $1.8 billion ($.53 a share) down from $2.3 billion ($.67) a year ago. Revenues were up 16% year over year reaching a record $11.46 billion. They did take a #3 billion dollar credit provision in the quarter, with half of that provision being added to loan loss reserves. As anticipated most of... continue

by Tim Melvin  |  07/15/08  |  Stocks: ,

An end in sight?

It seems like it will never end. The situation in the banking industry just keeps getting worse. No matter how often pundits and prognosticators declare the bottom, the news keeps getting worse and the stocks continue to decline. Bank Indexes fell as much as 10% on Monday amidst the troubles at Fannie and Freddie. We have even had the first run on the bank in the US in decades as depositors clamored to withdrawal their money from IndyMac bank. The... continue

by Tim Melvin  |  07/15/08  |  Stocks: , , ,

Arch Coal: Friend or "Arch" Enemy

Is Arch Coal (ACI) a friend or arch enemy? Given a very sharp correction in the price of coal stocks in general earlier this month, I wanted to know if the dip represented a buying opportunity for investors. Despite my belief that the oil markets are bubbling over with froth, owning coal stocks may be an excellent way to hedge your bets if you will. If oil prices decline, coal usage can be expected to remain strong as demand for... continue

by The Freshman  |  07/11/08  |  Stocks: ,

Wells Fargo - Almost There

So far 2008 has not been a lot of fun for the management and shareholders of Wells Fargo (WFC).Shares in the bank trade at the lowest levels in 5 years and are less than a dollar off of 52 week lows. The bank has been hit by its large exposure to residential real estate, particularly the difficult California markets. Analysts have steadily downgraded the stock pointing out that continued consumer weakness is going to make it difficult for debts to... continue

by Tim Melvin  |  07/07/08  |  Stocks: ,

Bull/Bear Report -- Elan Pharmaceuticals - A miracle for patients and investors alike?

Psychology of the market is everything and right now that psychology is decidedly negative.  As such, stock values are depressed as participants toss the baby with the bathwater. Even the positive stories are seeing dampened enthusiasm.  Take our stock of the week, Elan Corp. plc (ELN).  The company announced success with an early trial of its Alzheimer drug, bapineuzumab, earlier in the month. Shares moved higher on the news, but not nearly what they would have done had there been... continue

by The Freshman  |  07/03/08  |  Stocks: ,

Bull/Bear Report : CASY - No general consensus on Casey General Stores

These weekly bull/bear articles have been a pleasant surprise for me. With each week's selection, I am always surprised to learn something new and informative that helps me determine valuation. I may not always agree with the opinions here, but that is exactly the point. In the case of this week's selection of Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) my valuation was solidified with some of the views expressed by bloggers. Specifically, it never dawned on me that convenience stores may... continue

by The Freshman  |  06/27/08  |  Stocks: ,