In my Wall Street Survivor portfolio I had to clear some deadwood. GOL Linhaus Aereas Inteligentes SA ( GOL ) and Cytori Therapeutics ( CYTX ) just quit performing the way I wanted them to. Both have dropped below their 20, 50 and even 100 day moving averages, so they have no place in my momentum based portfolio.

I wanted a large more stable company for my portfolio so I used Barchart to screen the S&P 500 stocks having the highest relative strength and Time Warner Cable ( TWC ) was near the top of the list. It has been a long time since I looked at cable TV companies and thought of them as just a simple utility company where you take the number of subscribers times the monthly rate and there you have revenue. Things have changed.

I looked at my own TWC bill and discovered that I now have HDTV, Internet, phone, equipment rentals and some extra pay for view movies on the bill. My wife has been paying the bills so I didn't realize my old bill of $24.95 has grown to a base of $165.00 per month plus some extra movie charges. 15 years ago I hadn't imagined all the bundled services I'd be using. Not a simple revenue model anymore.

Since I' m a victim of their revenue model I wondered how the investing numbers looked.

The stock has enjoyed a 13.45% price increase in the last month and hit new highs in 9 of the last 20 trading session and was 4 for 5 recently. I looked at the technical indicators on Barchart and there were 13 out of 13 buy signals for a 100% technical buy rating.

Checking in with Wall Street, 15 buy and 9 hold recommendations have been released. They estimate level but slowly growing sales of 3.9% for both this year and next. They have a brighter prediction of increased earnings per share with an increase of 14.4% expected this year, followed by 13.5% next year and a 5 year annual EPS growth rate of 8.28% forecasted.

Investor sentiment on Motley Fool is high with the CAPS members voting 157 to 36 that the stock will out perform the market with the All Stars in agreement 53 to 5. Fool noted that the Wall Street columnists they follow have written favorable articles by a count of 17 to 0.

My stock replacement has:

Increasing price momentum with technical support on Barchart
A solid Wall Street backing with increases in earnings projected out for at least 5 years
Positive investor and Wall Street columnists sentiment.
The stock is selling around 53.72 with a 50 day moving average of 47.

I'm adding Time Warner Cable (TWC) to my Wall Street Survivor portfolio but before you consider adding the stock to your portfolio please do complete due diligence. Every investor and portfolio has unique needs.

Jim Van Meerten in an investor who writes on financial matters here and on
Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.comDisclosure: I do not hold a position in TWC at the time of publication

Comments: View Comments |  Wednesday March 31, 2010

Once in awhile on Financial Tides I like to look at the best of the best. Value Line has used this trading strategy for years and it seems to have worked well for them. Their theory is if you pick the most timely stocks in the most timely industries you should do better than the market. These days I have a different way of locating the best of the best.

I look at which sector ETF hit the most new highs in the last 20 trading sessions and then analyze the stocks in that sector. This month the Powershare Aerospace and Defense ETF (PPA) hit new highs in 15 of the last 20 trading session. After screening the stocks in that sector I see that Boeing (BA) and General Dynamics (GD) have had the greatest price appreciation over the last 5 trading sessions.

Are these stock worth adding to your portfolio? Let's see how they stack up on a side by side basis:

Boeing (BA) hit new highs in 10 of the last 20 trading sessions and appreciated 14.56% last month. It has a buy signal on 12 of 13 Barchart technical indicators for a 96% buy rating.

Analysts have 12 buy, 12 hold and 4 negative recommendations published. This year sales are estimated to be down 4.8% but up 6.6% next year. Earnings are expected to increase 116.0 % this year, 12.1% next year and 8.33% a year for the next 5.

On Motley Fool investor sentiment is that the stock will beat the market by a vote of 3,489 to 373 with the more experienced All Stars in agreement 917 to 53.

If I use the same criteria to evaluate General Dynamics (GD) I find:

GD hit new highs in 7 of the last 20 session with a 5.03% price increase last month. Barchart has 12 of 13 technical indicators signalling a buy for a 96% rating.

Analysts have 14 buy, 7 hold and 1 sell recommendation published. Sales are expected to increase 6.1% this year and 3.9% next year. Earnings are estimated to increase 5.6% this year followed by 7.3% next year and maintain a 7.8% per year growth for the next 5 years.

On Motley Fool the CAPS members think the stock will out perform the market by a vote of 1168 to 51 with the All Stars in agreement 327 to 12.

Both companies have:

1 - Recent price momentum
2 - Positive analysts recommendations
3 - Investor sentiment that the stock will beat the market

The numbers of the 2 companies are not really that much different but there seems to be 3 times as many investors willing to commit to BA than to GD.

I'm not making a recommendation either way but I thought I'd like to share with you an alternate way to find the best of the best:

1 - Start out with what you think is currently the strongest performing Sector ETF
2 - Look for the best individual stocks in the sector
3 - Decide to go with the sector or the individual stock

I'd like to hear your ideas on this approach. Please do your own complete due diligence to make sure you are comfortable with your selections.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who writes on financial matters here and on http://financialtides.blogspot.comFinancial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeertn@gmail.com

Disclosure: I do not own any of the stocks mentioned.

Comments: View Comments |  Tuesday March 30, 2010

On Financial Tides I start every weekend by taking a reflective moment to clear my head of all the hype and use Barchart to see where the market really ended up. I use the Value Line Index as my proxy for the market and although it was up 3 days and down 2 we ended up .82% for the week. Let's review my other yard sticks.

Value Line Index -- Contains 1700 stock giving a much broader view that the S&P 500 or narrower Dow 30 -- Very slight gain.

1 - Index up for the week .82%
2 - Index closed above its 20, 30 and 50 day moving average
3 - Buy signals from 10 of the 13 Barchart technical indicators for an overall buy rating of 80%

Barchart Market Momentum -- The percentage of stocks closing above their 50 day moving averages for various time frames -- Above 50% for all 3 time frames

1 - 20 DMA -- 63.45% closed above -- 73.78% last week
2 - 50 DMA -- 79.14% closed above -- 79.85% last week
3 - 100 DMA -- 78.88% closed above -- 80.63% last week

The ratio of stocks hitting new highs to new lows for various time frames -- 1.0+ bullish, 1.0 neutral, less than .99 bearish -- Still bullish for all 3 time frames

1 - 20 day ratio of new highs/new lows -- 631/548 = 1.15
2 - 65 day ratio of new highs/new lows -- 431/147 = 2.93
3 - 100 day ratio of new highs/new lows -- 396/96 = 4.13

Summary -- Although the week was a roller coaster reacting to all sorts of news and non-news we still ended up and ended solid. I see no reason to panic and will continue to cull stocks that have lost their momentum and feel safe to replace them and not accumulate cash.

Wall Street Survivor results: Month to date the S&P was up 4.48% and Vad the Skeptical Capitalists is in first palce with me a distant 7th.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who uses the tools on Barchart to find interesting stocks and evaluate the market on Financial Tides. Please send any comments to JimVanMeerten@gmail.com.

Disclosure: I do not own positions in the stocks discussed in my Financial Tides blogs.

Comments: View Comments |  Saturday March 27, 2010

For my Financial Tides portfolios I was using Barchart to screen for some new stocks and on the top of my screens came 2 hotels: Host Hotels & Resorts (HST) and Starwoods Hotels & Resorts (HOT). If I'm on Bing and trying to make a travel reservation I have to pick one or the other but how about when I'm investing? How do I choose?

Let's take them one at a time with my normal analysis:

Host Hotel's & Resorts (HST) had a price appreciation in the last 30 days of 27.32%. It hit new highs on 17 of the last 20 trading sessions and was 4 for 5 recently. On Barchart 13 of the 13 technical indicators signal buy for a 100% technical rating.

The analysts like it and have 5 buy and 9 hold recommendations published, Although they look for sales to decrease by .4% this year they look for a 6.0% increase next year. They predict nice earnings increases of 9.8% this year, 30.4% next year and 7.5% per year for the next 5 years.

Investor sentiment over on Motley Fool shows the CAPS members think the stock will out perform the market by a vote of 141 to 39 with the All Stars in agreement with a vote of 78 to 7.

Now how about Starwoods Hotels & Resorts (HOT) :

HOT had a price appreciation in the last 30 days of 19.06%, It hit new highs in 12 of the last 20 trading sessions and was 4 for 5 recently. On Barchart 12 of the 13 technical indicators signal a buy for a 96% technical rating.

The analysts like this one too with 10 buy recommendations and 9 holds published. They think sales will increase by .7% this year followed by a 6.2% increase next year. Although earnings are expected to be down this year by 36.6% a turn around is forecasted for next year of 58.5% and a 5 year compounded growth rate of 1.52% after that.

Investor sentiment is high with the Fools CAPS members thinking it will out perform the market by a vote of 226 to 114 with the All Star in similar agreement by a 65 to 21 vote.

HST is trading around 14.82 with a 50 day moving average of 12 and HOT is trading around 45.11 with a 50 day moving average of 39.

They both have:

1 - Recent price momentum and similar scores on Barchart's technical indicators

2 - Analysts have buy recommendations on both and predict increasing sales and earnings

3 - Both have positive investor sentiment

An idea just hit me: I can only stay at one hotel at a time but there isn't any reason I can't split my stock purchases between the 2. Since most of us are trading of less than $9.95 per trade anyway I'll just split the amount I wanted to buy in two and buy them both.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com.Disclosure: I have no positions is the stocks mentioned above.

Comments: View Comments |  Thursday March 25, 2010

On Financial Tides I use Barchart to screen of interesting stocks for my readers to review. Today an S&P 500 stock that popped up was one I've followed before -- Titanium Metals Corp (TIE). I had a friend that bought this one several years ago, played it correctly and retired in his 40's.

Titanium Metals Corporation (TIE) is an integrated producer of titanium sponge, melted and mill products. They are the only integrated producer with major titanium production facilities in both the United States and Europe.

The stock has enjoyed a 42.15% price increase in the last 30 days and has hit new highs in 14 of the last 20 trading sessions. It's 4 for 5 recently. Barchart's 13 technical indicators all have a buy signal for a 100% Barchart buy rating.

The analysts have recognized that recently the recession hasn't been kind to TIE and they feel sales this year will be down this year by 3.3% and earnings down 10.5%. They look for the stock to recover as the recession subsides and predict sales increase of 20.6% next year coupled with a whopping 194.1% EPS turnaround. That increase EPS growth is expected to last for at least 5 years by 12.5% per year.

For a stock covered by so few Wall Street analyst this stock has extremely high investor sentiment with the Motley Fool CAPS members thinking the stock will out perform the market by a vote of 2442 to 85 and the All Stars are in agreement 867 to 10.

If the economy turns as predicted this stock has:

1 - Recent price momentum

2 - Wall Street predicting a turnaround of sales and earnings

3 - Extremely high investor sentiment

The stock is around 16.56 today with a 50 day moving average of 13.

Please do your own due diligence to see if this metals play belongs in your portfolio. This is as much a commodities play and it is a stock play. You would be wise to protect yourself with stop losses.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who uses Barchart tools to find interesting stocks for
Financial Tides readers. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com
Disclosure: I do not own positions in TIE at the time of publication

Comments: View Comments |  Wednesday March 24, 2010

On Financial Tides I started looking for a good S&P 500 stock to review. I use Barchart to screen for the S&P 500 stock with the best relative price strength and good old Du Pont (DD) rose up near the top of the list.

E.I. DuPont de Nemours (DD) is involved in science and technology in a range of disciplines including high-performance materials, specialty chemicals, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology. The company operates globally through strategic business units. Within the strategic business units, businesses manufacture and sell a wide range of products to many different markets, including the transportation, textile, construction, automotive, agricultural and hybrid seeds, nutrition and health, pharmaceuticals, packaging and electronics markets.

The stock hit new highs in of the 12 last 20 trading sessions and was 4 for 5 recently. The last 30 days has shown a 13.30% increase in price. Barchart's technical indicators have 13 out of 13 indicators signaling a buy signal for an overall 100% Barchart rating.

There is a very large Wall Street analysts following with 5 buy and 10 hold recommendations. The analysts consensus is of an increase in sales of 13.1% this year and 6.3% next year. They
predict that earnings increases of 15.3% this year and 14.5% next year are possible. They estimate that the EPS growth will be 8.5% a year for at least the next 5 years.

Over on Motley Fool the CAPS members think the stock will outperform the market by a vote of 1388 to 93 with the All Stars in agreement 409 to 15. The Wall Street journalist Fool follows are also favorable 17 to 1.

You might want to keep your powder dry with this one:

1 - Recent and consistent price momentum
2 - Large Wall Street following with predicted increases in sales and earnings
3 - Very positive investor sentiment

The stock can be purchased around 38.50 and has a 50 day moving average at 34.

As always do your due diligence to see if this is a risk you'd like to assume.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who uses Barchart tools to find interesting stocks to review on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com

Disclosure: I hold no position in DD at the time of publication.

Comments: View Comments |  Wednesday March 24, 2010

On Financial Tides I look for the stocks that are moving now on Barchart then use a disciplined screening process to decide what to buy. Today my screening has found Conagra Foods - CAG.

From their press release: "ConAgra Foods has transformed itself into an industry-leading, branded, and value-added food company. ConAgra Foods recently announced its realignment from three operating channels to two, with the previous ConAgra Foodservice merging with ConAgra Food Ingredients to form ConAgra Foods Commercial Products. These two primary business segments, Consumer Foods and Commercial Products, make us the right kind of food company to satisfy the needs of customers and consumers." That's their hype what are the facts?

The stock has hit new highs on 16 of the last 2o trading sessions and is 4 for 5 recently. Over the last 30 days the price is up 7.26%. 11 of 13 of the Barchart technical indicators signal buy for an 80% Barchart buy rating.

The stock has a large Wall Street following with 4 buy, 7 hold and no sell recommendations. Sales are estimated to be down 1.9% this year but are expected to be up 3.0% next year. Earnings look more promising and are estimated to be up 15.1% this year, 9.7% next year and maintain a 5 year compounded EPS growth of 11.7 in the future.

Investor sentiment over on Motley Fool is high with the CAPS members thinking the stock will out perform the market by a vote of 552 to 67 with the All Stars in agreement 193 to 11. The Wall Street columnists Fool follows are also positive 6 to 0.

What does CAG have going for it?:

1 - Positive and consistent price momentum

2 - A Wall Street following looking for increased sales and earnings

3 - Positive investor sentiment

The stock can be purchased around 26.41 and has a 50 day moving average of 24.

Before you think about adding to your portfolio always do your own due diligence and see if it agrees with your investment parameters.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who uses Barchart tools and writes about financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com.

Disclosure: I hold no position in CAG at the time of publication.

Comments: View Comments |  Tuesday March 23, 2010

I was just watching the President sign the health care bill and I was watching the stock market action in the margins. What is all the fear about? Why are people afraid of change?

Over the past few weeks as I listened to my favorite stations, congressmen and commentators I sensed that there was a lot of fear and anxiety in their voices. In spite of all their protests and the protests they were covering the bill passed anyway. I started to ask myself how could something pass that it seemed everyone was against and then it hit me. Maybe I was listening to the wrong people. I stepped back to see what was happening.

I don't think there is anyone, rich or poor, Democratic or Republican that really wants someone to die or stay sick because they haven't got the financial means to purchase the services or drugs that will save their life or ease their pain. Americans are just too carrying to let that happen. Things will be different and we shouldn't fear that. But how will I change my plan?

In the past change meant innovation and opportunity. Those who can up with the new solutions usually reaped great rewards. Why should the future be any different than the past?

I'm looking forward to change. I've got to realize that some of the industries and stocks I may presently own may not adapt and change with the times. Hasn't that been the way it has always been?

Change has been forced upon us and the status quo has been upset. So what? Will I run through the streets in panic and yell: " The sky is falling, the sky is falling!" My plan for the future will be the same one I've had in the past.

I'm going to make sure my stop losses are in place on the positions that I presently own and I'm going to keep looking for the companies and people that are the innovators and are positioning themselves to take advantage of the new opportunities that will come in the future.

Don't you think you should do the same?

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com

Comments: View Comments |  Tuesday March 23, 2010

Financial Tides observed one of the fastest rising S&P 400 stocks. Federal Signal Corporation - FSS is a manufacturer and worldwide supplier of safety, signaling and communications equipment, hazardous area lighting, fire rescue products, street sweeping and vacuum loader vehicles, parking control equipment, custom on-premise signage, carbide cutting tools, precision punches and related die components.

The stock has risen in 13 of the last 20 trading sessions and was 3 for 5 recently. In the last 30 days the stock has appreciated 30.45%. Barchart's 13 technical indicators give out 12 buy signals for a 96% buy rating.

Analysts have out 2 buy recommendations and are predicting an increase in sales of 4.0% this year and 8.2% nest year. Improving earnings are estimated to be increases of 52.8% this year, 34.5% next year and over 10% for the next 5 years.

Investor sentiment over on Motley Fool is high with CAPS members thinking the stock will out perform the market 46 to 12 and they find agreement from the All Stars by a vote of 16 to 1.

The stock has:

1 - Recent upward price momentum
2 - Analysts predicting increase in both sales and earnings
3 - A positive investor sentiment

The stock is trading around 9.26 with a 50 day moving average at 7.50.

Before you consider adding FSS to your portfolio please do your own due diligence.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who uses Barchart tools and writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.comDisclosure: No position in FSS at the time of publication

Comments: View Comments |  Monday March 22, 2010

Financial Tides found one of the fastest rising S&P 500 stocks -- Dr Pepper Snappel Group -- DPS. The company is one of the largest beverage companies in the Americas. They manufacture, market and distribute more than 50 brands of carbonated soft drinks, juices, ready to drink teas, mixers and other premium beverages across the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean.

Recently the stock has gotten a 96% buy rating on Barchart by having a buy signal on 12 of Barchart's 13 technical indicators. The stock has had a price appreciation on 13 of the last 20 trading sessions and was 3 for 5 recently. The stock has enjoyed a 28.59% price appreciation in the last 30 days.

Analysts like this stock too with 9 buy recommendations and no sell signals. They expect sales to increase 4.3% this year and 3.0% next year. Good growth in earnings per share are predicted to be 18.3% increase this year, 11.2% increase next year and a continued increase of 9% per year for at least 5 years.

Investor sentiment is high over on Motley Fool with the Fool CAPS members voting that the stock will out perform the market by a vote of 309 to 23 with the All Stars in agreement 134 to 11. The Wall Street columnists Fool follows like it 8 to 1.

The stock enjoys:

1 - Recent and consistent price appreciation
2 - Positive Wall Street sales and earnings estimates
3 - Very positive investor sentiment

The stock is selling around 36.60 with a 50 day moving average of 30.

As always before adding any stock to your portfolio, please do your due diligence and make sure there is a proper place in your portfolio before you press the buy button.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who uses Barchart screening tools and writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leaved a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com

Disclosure: I hold no position in DPS at the time of publication

Comments: View Comments |  Monday March 22, 2010

Financial Tides found one of the fastest rising S&P 500 stocks -- Dr Pepper Snappel Group -- DPS. The company is one of the largest beverage companies in the Americas. They manufacture, market and distribute more than 50 brands of carbonated soft drinks, juices, ready to drink teas, mixers and other premium beverages across the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean.

Recently the stock has gotten a 96% buy rating on Barchart by having a buy signal on 12 of Barchart's 13 technical indicators. The stock has had a price appreciation on 13 of the last 20 trading sessions and was 3 for 5 recently. The stock has enjoyed a 28.59% price appreciation in the last 30 days.

Analysts like this stock too with 9 buy recommendations and no sell signals. They expect sales to increase 4.3% this year and 3.0% next year. Good growth in earnings per share are predicted to be 18.3% increase this year, 11.2% increase next year and a continued increase of 9% per year for at least 5 years.

Investor sentiment is high over on Motley Fool with the Fool CAPS members voting that the stock will out perform the market by a vote of 309 to 23 with the All Stars in agreement 134 to 11. The Wall Street columnists Fool follows like it 8 to 1.

The stock enjoys:

1 - Recent and consistent price appreciation
2 - Positive Wall Street sales and earnings estimates
3 - Very positive investor sentiment

The stock is selling around 36.60 with a 50 day moving average of 30.

As always before adding any stock to your portfolio, please do your due diligence and make sure there is a proper place in your portfolio before you press the buy button.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who uses Barchart screening tools and writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leaved a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com

Disclosure: I hold no position in DPS at the time of publication

Comments: View Comments |  Monday March 22, 2010

Each week-end on Financial Tides I like to leave all the hype, adverbs and adjectives behind and let the numbers on Barchart give the feel of what the market really did. I use the Value Line Index as my stock market proxy and it was down .11% for the week but still up 6.77% for the month to date. With 3 trading days left in the month it will be interesting to see where we close. Let's look at my 3 yard sticks.

Value Line Index -- The Index contains 1700 stocks which is much broader than the S&P 500 or the much narrower Dow 30 -- Still looks good

1 - The Index closed Friday above its 20, 50 and 100 day moving averages
2 - The Barchart technical indicators still rate the stock as a 72% buy with 10 buy, 2 hold and only 1 sell signal

Barchart Market Momentum -- Contains approximately 6000 stocks -- The percentage of stocks trading above their daily moving averages for various time frames -- Still appears positive

1 - 20 DMA -- 73.85% closed above this week -- 85.33% last week -- 74.42% last month
2 - 50 DMA -- 79.73% closed above this week -- 82.66% last week -- 61.08% last month
3 - 100 DMA -- 80.31% closed above this week -- 81.51% last week -- 67.11% last month

The ratio of stock hitting new highs to new lows for various time frames -- 1.00+ bullish, 1.00 neutral, less than .99 bearish - We are bullish for all 3 time frames

1 - 20 day ratio of new highs/new lows -- 1155/445 = 2.60
2 - 65 day ratio of new highs/ new lows -- 743/159 = 4.67
3 - 100 day ratio of new highs/new lows -- 667/105 = 6.35

Summary -- Overall the week was neutral but the 3 yard sticks show the market still has strength. This week I will continue to cull stocks dropping below their 50 day moving averages and feel confident with the strategy of replacing them with stocks hitting new highs.

Wall Street Survivor results -- The participants on Top Stocks have a friendly competition on Wall Street Survivor. The S&P was up 3.96% month to date and 3 of the competitors were able to beat the bench mark, Vad the Skeptical Capitalist leads the way with a return of 8.40 month to date and I'm in 6th place with a loss of .71%. Three days of trading left for me to break even.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com

Disclosure: I do not hold positions in the stocks in my model portfolios.

Comments: View Comments |  Sunday March 21, 2010

Well another week has passed and on Financial Tides it's time to step back and take an objective view of what happened in the market during the past week. As always I use Barchart to screen my data and I keep the same 3 yard sticks so my view stays consistent. Let's see where we are.

Value Line Index -- Contains 1700 stocks so it much broader than the S&P 500 or the much narrower Dow 30 -- We were up by 1.63% for the week, 6.89% for March following 4.65% increase in February -- Very positive

1 - The Index closed Friday above its 20, 50 & 100 daily moving average

2 - Barchart's 13 technical indicators showed 12 of 13 buy signals and 1 hold

Barchart Market Momentum -- Contains approximately 6000 stocks - The percentage of stocks closing above their DMA for various time frames -- Above 50% for all 3 time frames

1 - 20 DMA -- 85.38% closed above -- 86.76% last week

2 - 50 DMA -- 82.69% closed above -- 82.82% last week

3 - 100 DMA -- 81.67% closed above -- 81.38% last week

Ratio of stock hitting new highs to new lows for various time frames -- 1.0+ bullish, 1.0 neutral, below .99 bearish -- Very bullish for all 3 time frames

1 - 20 day ratio of new highs/new lows -- 2274/227 = 10.02

2 - 50 day ratio of new highs/new lows -- 1239/102 = 12..15

3 - 100 day ratio of new highs/new lows -- 1129/79 = 14.29

Summary -- The market appears to be rising on all 3 yard sticks. Unless something really drastic happens I'll just continue with my standard method of culling stocks that fail to maintain a price above their 50 day moving averages and feel confident that the market will continue to rise and I'll replace them with new selections.

Wall Street Survivor results -- The 8 analysts that post stock selections to Top Stocks have a friendly competition going over on Wall Street Survivor. Month to date the S&P 500 is up 3.07% and 5 of the 8 analysts beat that mark. Our Skeptical Capitalist Vad managed to increase his gain by 7.87% and I'm in the 5th position with a gain of 3.18%. Maybe next week.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com.

Disclosure: I hold no positions in the stocks in my Wall Street Survivor portfolio

Comments: View Comments |  Saturday March 13, 2010

On Financial Tides I always try to find the stocks that are having positive price momentum. For the last month Boeing (BA) has had a 17.07% price increase, the best of any Dow component. The Boeing Company is one of the world's major aerospace firms. The company operates in three principal segments: commercial airplanes; military aircraft and missiles; and space and communications.

During the last 20 trading sessions BA has had a price appreciation on 11 days and has been 4 for 5 this week. Barcharts's technical indicators have 12 of 13 buy signals with just one hold for a 96% weighted buy rating.

Analysts are high on the stock with 10 buy recommendations and 11 holds. Although this may be a loss year in sales, increases in earning are expected to show a 117.1% improvement. Next year sales are expected to increase by 4.6% coupled with a 7.4% increase in earnings per share. Wall Street is expecting a 5 year compounded growth of EPS of 8.5%.

Investor sentiment as measured on Motley Fool is very positive. The CAPS members feel the stock will out perform the market by a vote of 3438 to 363 with the All Stars in agreement 887 to 55. The Fool Wall Street journalists are positive also 25 to 3.

Please do your own due diligence to see if BA belongs in your portfolio. It has a positive price momentum, Wall Street buy recommendations and a very broad and positive investor following.

Boeing (BA) trades around 70 with a 50 day moving average of 61.75.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.comDisclosure: no positions in BA at the time of publication

Comments: View Comments |  Friday March 12, 2010

On Financial Tides I'm always looking for new opportunities. Today, Ship Financial International LTD. (SFL ) fits that profile. Ship Finance is a major ship owning company. Including new buildings, Ship Finance owns a fleet consisting of vessels, including crude oil tankers (VLCC and Suezmax), oil/bulk/ore vessels, container vessels, dry bulk carriers, jack-up drilling rigs and seismic vessels. The fleet is one of the largest in the world and most of the vessels are employed on medium or long-term charters.

The company came up on my sonar when it had 18 days of price appreciation in the last 20 trading sessions and was 5 for 5 recently. There has been a 35.21% price appreciation in the last month and Barchart's technical indicators have 12 of the 13 signaling buy with a hold on the last one; that's a 96% technical buy signal.

Analysts think that this year the stock will have a 21.4% increase in sales and a 14.5% increase in earnings per share. They also have 7 buy and 2 hold recommendations published with no under perform or sell calls.

Investor sentiment is high on Motley Fool with the CAPS members voting 441 to 19 that the stock will out perform the market with the All Stars in agreement 134 to 3. The Wall Street columnists Fool follows also agree 4 to 0.

Please do your own due diligence to see it there is a place for this stock in your portfolio. This triple hitter has positive price momentum, good analysts recommendations and positive investor sentiment.

The stock is selling around 19 with a 50 day moving average at 15.50.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.comDisclosure: no positions in SFL at the time of publication

Comments: View Comments |  Friday March 12, 2010

On Financial Tides, I always begin to look for stocks by using Barchart to screen for stocks hitting the most frequent new highs and then look over the top 10. Today one of the standouts is United States Steel Corporation (X). I guess X marks the spot. X manufacturers and sells steel and coke products with plants in Indiana, Pennsylvania, Alabama and of all places the Slovak Republic.

On Barchart the stock has had price appreciation on 11 of the last 20 trading sessions and is 3 for 5 recently. The stock has enjoyed a 27.76% price appreciation in the last 30 days and has a buy signal on 11 of Barchart's 13 technical indicators with holds on the remaining 2.

Analysts predict great things with an estimated 51.96% increase in sales this year and a 16.4% increase next year. Coming from a loss they look for a 101.9% increase in earnings per share this year and a whopping 2366.7% increase next year -- remember that is coming off a loss. The 5 year compounded EPS increase is expected to be 10% per year. They have 6 buy and 6 hold recommendations out there.

Investor sentiment is high based on a Motley Fools CAPs member vote of 1862 to 144 that the stock will beat the market this year. The All Stars agree 632 to 28. The Wall Street columnists Fool follows like it 12 to 1.

The stock is firing on all 3 cylinders:

1 - Positive price momentum

2 - Analysts predicting increased sales and earnings

3-A positive investor sentiment with a large following

Please do your own due diligence to see if the stock deserves a place in your portfolio. The stock trades around 61 and the 50 day moving average is slightly below 55.

Jim Van Meerten writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com

Disclosure: No positions in X at the time of publication

Comments: View Comments |  Friday March 12, 2010

On my blog, Financial Tides, I try to teach you that you need to take a disciplined and rational approach to managing your portfolio. My approach is very simple, I don't charge for using my system and updates are free and can be read on multiple sites. I want you to take charge of your own future. Use Internet tools and your own rational thoughts, you take charge!

The system can be summarized as follows:

1 - Find stocks that are consistently hitting new highs

2 - Look for analysts reports that estimate increasing revenues and earnings

3 - Use other free Internet sites to poll investor sentiment

4 - Always protect yourself from the unknown by using stop losses, either actual or mental

Last Fall I wrote reviews of 2 stocks, their names are not important. I pointed out that although the stocks were having consistent price appreciation, I could not find positive analysts reports or a large investor following. I cautioned that investing in these stock was highly speculative and any purchase should be protected by the use of stop losses.

Sure enough in just a few days the stocks collapsed and I became the target of cyber attacks by some short sellers. Let me explain why.

There are several groups of short sellers who identify stocks that are having upward momentum for no reason at all. They then short those stocks, alerts their paid subscribers to short the stocks and post negative reports across the Internet investing bulletin boards until the stock collapses. They close their short positions and then brag about how smart they are.

The last step is to cyber attack anyone as a stock manipulator, who pointed out that the upward price momentum was unwarranted before they where able to put their short sell scheme into place.

I will not be silenced by the Howard Sterns and Jerry Springers of the financial world. I will continue to point out stocks enjoying price increases for unknown reasons. You should continue to protect yourself from short sellers raiding your portfolio's value by the intelligent use of stop losses.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com

Comments: View Comments |  Thursday March 11, 2010

As I do every weekend on Financial Tides, I use Barchart to filter out all the noise I've read all week long and step back for an objective, by the numbers view of what the market really did and how strong it reacted to all the hype from who knows where. Wouldn't life be simpler if all that counted was growth in GDP and individual companies' sales and earnings growth? I guess we'll all just have to adjust to the talking heads and the hot air out of Washington. Let's start as usual with the Value Line Index, then the Barchart market momentum and finally the ratio of stocks hitting new high to new lows.

Value Line Index -- I use this Index because it contains 1700 stocks making it much broader than the S&P 500 or much narrower Dow 30 -- The Index was up for the week by 5.18%

1 - The Index plotted above its 20, 50 and 100 day moving averages -- positive trend

2 - Barchart's technical indicators rate the Index an 88% buy with 12 of 13 indicators on buy signals

Barchart market momentum indicator -- usually contains around 6000 stocks --the percentage of stocks trading above their daily moving averages for various time frames -- also a nice upward trend

1 - 20 DMA -- 88.28% traded above compared to 73.15% last week and 20.48% last month
2 - 50 DMA -- 79.46% traded above compared to 58.91% last week and 36.99% last month
3 - 100 DMA -- 79.44% traded above compared to 66.08% last week and 46.12% last month

Ratio of stocks hitting new highs to stocks hitting new lows for various time frames -- 1.0+ bullish, 1.0 neutral and below .99 bearish -- this week looked good

1 - 20 day ratio of stocks hitting new highs to new lows -- 3059/196 = 15.61

2 - 65 day ratio of stocks hitting new highs to new lows -- 1131/85 = 16.43

3 - 100 day ratio of stocks hitting new highs to new lows -- 1121/542 = 2.07

Summary -- The market looked pretty strong for the week. I trimmed a lot of stocks from my various portfolios especially those that didn't respond to the change in the market; mostly those that didn't maintain a priced above their 50 day moving averages. Unless something drastic happens I'll replace those this week with confidence.

Wall Street Survivor results -- The S&P 500 has gone up 2.06% month to date and 6 of our 8 contestants beat that. Month to date Vad -- The Sceptical Capitalist gained 6.36% and I 'm in second with 4.67% gain. Ahh -- maybe next week.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com.

Disclosure: I do not hold any positions in the stocks in my Wall Street Survivor portfolio.

Comments: View Comments |  Saturday March 6, 2010

I had a little extra buying power in my Wall Street Survivor portfolio so I went on the hunt for a new stock to add to that portfolio. As always I start on Barchart and screen for the stocks that in the last 20 trading sessions had price appreciations on at least 50% of those days. After taking the top 10 and doing some additional filtering I came upon Kratos Defense and Security Solutions (KTOS).

Since 9/11 I've noticed a great change in the environment in the US. I have to go through check points and security screenings that I never thought would happen. Even when I go to athletic events at public middle schools and high schools, I must open up everything and be wanded with a metal detector. When I go to local city and school board meetings I have to sign in, produce an ID and be screened by a metal detector. As I walk the downtown streets of Charlotte now instead of counting the number of Volkswagen beetles I find myself looking up and seeing how many security cameras I can find. It's almost like the only thing that they got wrong in the book 1984 was the date.

I'm not trying to make you uncomfortable but I'm trying to show you that this is a company that seems to be positioned to come up with solutions to what has become an ever consuming concern -- security.

They have 2 major divisions. The largest Kratos Governmental Solutions provides weapons systems advice to the US government plus state and municipal governments. One of their largest customers is the Department of Defense and they also advice those little armies we never had -- police SWAT teams. The second major division, the Public Safety and Security Division advises retail, health care, educational and municipal governmental entities on all the types of security concerns they might have. Now that you know the stock's story how about the numbers?

Barchart's technical indicators give a buy signal on 12 of the 13 indicators of an overall 96% buy rating. The stock has appreciated in 16 of the last 20 sessions and is 5 for 5 recently. The last 30 days has seen a 28.41% price appreciation.

Brokerage analysts predict that although they might only grow revenue by about 4.5% next year they should have an increase in earnings per share of 127.4% due to coming off a loss this year. They are looking of a 42% 5 year compounded growth rate in EPS. Not too shabby, they follow that up with 2 buy recommendations.

I like to know what the investor sentiment is so I usually go over to Motley Fool CAPS to see how their members are voting. The CAPS members think the stock will our perform the market by a vote of 96 to 2 with the All Stars voting 31 to 1. The Wall Street columnist Fool follow have positive articles 2 to 0.

Since the stock has a compelling story, positive technical momentum and a positive investor sentiment I'm adding Kratos Defense and Security Solutions (KTOS) to my Wall Street Survivor portfolio with all the appropriate mental stop orders around the 50 day moving average.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com

Disclosure: I have no position in KTOS at the time of publication

Comments: View Comments |  Thursday March 4, 2010

On my blog Financial Tides I like to start out the day by screening on Barchart for some stocks I might consider buying that day. I look for stocks that have been having recent price appreciation, are projected to have increases in sales and earnings and have some positive investor sentiment. I then take that list and research further. I'll start sharing that list with you each morning.

Cooper Companies Inc (COO) -- through its principal subsidiaries, develops, manufactures and markets healthcare products. CooperVision markets a range of contact lenses to correct visual defects, specializing in toric lenses that correct astigmatism. The company also markets conventional toric and spherical lenses and lenses for patients with more complex vision disorders. CooperSurgical markets diagnostic products, surgical instruments and accessories to the women's healthcare market.

Price appreciation on 16 of 20 trading session, 5 for 5 recently with a 14.41% return for he month -- a 96% buy rating on Barchart's technical indicators.

Analysts look for a 4.9% sales increase with a 12.5% EPS growth -- 5 years compounded EPS growth of 14% and 5 buy recommendations

Investor sentiment on Motley Fool has the CAPS members voting to outperform the market 43 to 33, All Stars voting 12 to 17 and Wall Street columnists 4 to 3

Abiomed (ABMD) -- a developer, manufacturer and marketer of medical products designed to safely and effectively assist or replace the pumping function of the failing heart. The company currently manufactures and sells the BVS-5000, a temporary heart assist device, which is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the temporary treatment of all patients with failing but potentially recoverable hearts. The company is also engaged in research and development relating to other devices to support the pumping function of the heart.

15 price increases in 20 sessions and 5 for 5 recently plus a 30.76% monthly return -- a Barchart technical indicator buy rating of 80%.

Analysts predict a 18.7% increase in sales coupled with a 32.4% EPS growth. 5 year compounded EPS growth of 22.3% expected. 2 analysts have issued buy recommendations,

Investor sentiment on Motley Fool has a CAPS vote to out perform the market of 62 to 33 with the All Stars in agreement 19 to 14. The Wall Street columnists are split 4 to 3

Compass Diversified Holdings (CODI) -- was formed to acquire and manage a group of middle market businesses that are headquartered in North America. CODI provides public investors with an opportunity to participate in the ownership and growth of companies which have historically been owned by private equity firms, wealthy individuals or families. CODI's disciplined approach to its target market provides opportunities to methodically purchase attractive businesses at values that are accretive to its shareholders. For sellers of businesses, CODI's unique structure allows CODI to acquire businesses efficiently with no financing contingencies and, following acquisition, to provide its companies with substantial access to growth capital.

15 increases in price in 20 sessions and 5 for 5 recently. The monthly return of 21.93% has brought it a Barchart technical indicator buy rating of 96%

Analysts think a 6.4% increase in sales will bring a 43.0% increase in EPS. They predict a 12.5% 5 year compounded growth rate in EPS . They have 4 buy recommendations out there.

Investor Sentiment on Motley Fool brings a vote of 209 to 5 from the CAPS members that the stock will outperform the market followed by an All Star vote of 84 to 1, The Wall Street columnist like it 5 to 0

Newstar Financial (NEWS) -- is a specialized commercial finance company focused on meeting the complex financing needs of companies and private investors in the middle markets. The Company specializes in providing senior secured debt financing for the acquisition or recapitalization of mid-sized companies and commercial real estate. NewStar originates loans directly through a team of experienced, senior bankers organized around key industry and market segments. The Company targets 'hold' positions of up to $20 million and selectively underwrites or arranges larger transactions for syndication to other lenders. NewStar is headquartered in Boston, MA and has regional offices in Darien, CT, Chicago, IL, San Diego, CA, and Charleston, SC.

The stock has enjoyed 15 days of increases in 20 sessions and is 5 for 5 recently. A monthly increase of 21.93% has brought a 96% Barchart technical buy rating.

Analysts have the sales increase predicted of 9.2% and a whopping 392.3% EPS improvement coming of a loss. Estimates of a 15% 5 year compounded growth of EPS is their estimate. The 2 buy recommendations are followed by a hold.

Motley Fool CAPS members vote to out perform the market 46 to 19 with the All Stars voting 23 to 4. The Wall Street columnists are 3 to 0

Actel Corp (ACTL) --designs, develops, and markets field programmable gate array and associated development system software and programming hardware. Their product line consist of ten families of antifuse-based FPGAs; Designer Series Development System, DeskTOP, and CoreHDL software; SiliconExplorer debugging and diagnostic tools; Activator and Silicon Sculptor device programmers; and sockets.

15 price increases in 20 sessions plus 4 for 5 recently. The monthly return of 25.45% brings it an 80% Barchart technical buy rating.

Analysts only have a 15% compounded 5 year EPS growth estimate with 1 buy recommendation posted.

Motley Fool CAPS members think the stock will outperform the market by a 35 to 13 vote with the All Stars at 9 to 5. Wall Street columnist have only 1 buy out there.

Well, that's the list for today. Start with these and go through whatever due diligence you fell comfortable using. Be careful.

Jim Van Meerten is an investor who writes on financial matters here and on Financial Tides. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com

Comments: View Comments |  Wednesday March 3, 2010