Best Energy Stocks Pick For 2013

President Obama made a speech where he announced a goal of cutting oil imports by a third over the next decade. He included a pledge to have federal agencies buy only alt-fuel vehicles by 2015 and a promise to expand U.S. oil exploration and production.
Transitioning half the cars and trucks in the U.S. to natural gas transportation over the next 5 to 10 years could reduce foreign oil imports by 5 million barrels every day.
So natural gas is an obvious play. Renewable/alternative fuels are other good choices.
Here are my four best picks that could make investors a bundle from  the President’s new policy:
Best Energy Stocks Pick For 2013#1—
Clean Energy Fuels (CLNE)
The company owns and/or supplies more than 200 natural gas fueling stations across the U.S. and Canada. It serves over 320 fleet customers operating over 20,000 natural gas vehicles. The customers can use Clean Energy’s fuel stations to tank up their vehicles with compressed natural gas (CNG) or liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Clean Energy Fuels also provides natural gas vehicle systems and conversions for taxis, limousines, vans, pick-up trucks, and shuttle buses through its BAF subsidiary in Texas. Clean Energy helps customers buy and finance natural gas vehicles and obtain government incentives.
The company buys CNG from local utilities and produces LNG at its two plants (in California and Texas) with a combined capacity of 260,000 gallons per day.
Clean Energy owns and operates an LNG liquefaction plant near Houston, Texas, which it calls the Pickens Plant, capable of producing up to 35 million gallons of LNG per year.
And investors who buy CLNE won’t be alone …
Founder and billionaire oilman T. Boone Pickens owns a sizeable chunk of Clean Energy.
Best Energy Stocks Pick For 2013 #2—
Westport Innovations (WPRT)
This company makes natural gas engines for forklifts, oilfield services engines, trucks and buses and automobiles. Its 50-50 joint venture Cummins Westport project builds natural gas vehicle engines for trucks and buses that could refill at the clean energy stations built by Clean Energy.
It made revenues of $154 million in the last year and isn’t close to profitability yet. But a concerted push toward natural-gas powered vehicles could change that.
WPRT is at the top of its 52-week range. So I’d wait for a pullback.
Best Energy Stocks Pick For 2013 #3—
Talisman Energy (TLM)
Talisman had 1.4 billion barrels of oil equivalent in reserves last year. It has material positions in three world-class, liquids-heavy shale plays in North America: The Marcellus shale (Pennsylvania), Montney shale (British Columbia) and Utica shale (Quebec). It is also expanding its Eagle Ford shale properties, in a 50-50 joint venture with Statoil.
The company also signed two $1.05 billion deals with Sasol of South Africa. This partnership is sketching out plans for a new multibillion-dollar facility near Edmonton that could process as much as a billion cubic feet of natural gas a day into 96,000 barrels of refined products through the Fischer-Tropsch process.
Fischer-Tropsch works by using heat and chemical catalysts to break down a substance like natural gas into its molecular basics and then rebuild those molecules into something else — such as diesel.
Why do that?
A barrel of oil contains roughly six times the energy content of a thousand cubic feet of gas. Since 6 thousand cubic feet of gas is worth about $24 (U.S.), and one barrel of oil is worth about $100, there is a tremendous profit margin if you can convert one to the other cost-effectively.
Best Energy Stocks Pick For 2013 #4—
PowerShares Wilderhill
Clean Energy Fund (PBW)
This is one of the largest alternative energy ETFs with over $500 million in assets. Large holdings include GT Solar, Yingli Green Energy, SunPower Corp., Trina Solar and more.

Top 10 High Dividend Growth Stocks for Long-Term Returns

Dividend growth stocks are one of the best-kept secrets in the investing world. After all, these are high-quality companies with strong competitive advantages that allow them to generate rising earnings over time. As a result, most of these companies generate so much in excess cash flow that they are able to pay a higher dividend over time without sacrificing long-term growth.
Companies that raise dividends at a high rate could easily generate double-digit yields on cost for investors who bought early and at the right time.
The following dividend champions have the highest consistent dividend growth rates:
Lowe’s (NYSE:LOW), together with its subsidiaries, operates as a home improvement retailer in the United States and Canada. The company has boosted distributions for 49 years in a row. Ten-year annual dividend growth rate: 27.6%. Yield: 2.8%. (analysis)
McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD), together with its subsidiaries, operates as a worldwide foodservice retailer. The company has increased distributions for 35 consecutive years. Ten-year annual dividend growth rate: 26.5% Yield: 2.8%. (analysis)
Raven Industries (NASDAQ:RAVN) manufactures various products for industrial, agricultural, construction and military/aerospace markets in the United States and internationally. The company has boosted distributions for 25 years in a row. Ten-year annual dividend growth rate: 18.2%. Yield: 1.5%.
Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) operates retail stores in various formats worldwide. The company has increased distributions for 37 consecutive years. Ten-year annual dividend growth rate: 17.8% Yield: 2.8%. (analysis)

Wells Fargo Doubles Recruiting; Starts a New Ad Campaign

Wells Fargo Advisors Recruited 545 veteran financial advisors in the first eight months of 2008 and has nearly doubled that figure in the same period of 2009, attracting 1,054 experienced FAs.
In addition, the majority -- 80 percent -- of those recruited in 2009 are from the wirehouses, the company says.
Last year, it recruited a total of 766 experienced financial advisors. If it is able to keep recruiting at the current pace, Wells Fargo Advisors could recruit about 1,500 veteran advisors or more.

"The first months of 2009 were extraordinary," says Chip Walker, who has been leading the firm's integration and recruiting efforts. "
There's been an incredible amount of dislocation of advisors in the wirehouse model," Walker says. That has to do with the fact that there "are so many advisors in the wirehouses," whereas, in the past, many of them were with regional firms, he explains.
In addition, many advisors have been "forced to look at their options," Walker adds. "We have had a lot of success recruiting experienced FAs from the wirehouses. There's no question about it."
The average industry length of service of recruited veteran FAs is now close to 16.5 years, he says, vs. about 13.5 in 2004. "The increase in the length of service has spiked dramatically in 2009," Walker explains. Average trailing-12-month fees and commissions have held up well, he adds, and have even increased in some of the brokerage's FA channels.
As of June 30, the Wells Fargo brokerage business included 15,500 financial advisors in the United States and Latin America and 6,100 licensed financial specialists with roughly $1 trillion in client assets. The firm's private client group has 11,600 financial advisors, and the bank group has about 2,800 financial advisors. Most of the remaining FAs are in the firm's independent group.
"We peel the onion," the recruiting executive says, when it comes to looking at potential recruits. Beyond fees and commissions, other factors the brokerage firm looks at include an advisor's ability to grow his or her business before the economic downturn and how well he or she held up during the crisis.
As for the firm's recruiting and sales practices, "We have a consistent, repeatable due diligence process," he explains, that emphasizes putting the client and the client's interests first.
Walker also says Wells Fargo Advisors, formed by Wells Fargo's purchase of Wachovia earlier this year, is now focused on growing as a good operator rather than as a good integrator.
"It's been over two years since we announced the merger with A.G. Edwards," he explains, "and in October, it will be exactly two years ago that the merger was finalized." Some rivals, Walker notes, "are just entering the integration phase."
Through the legacy A.G. Edwards training program, Wells Fargo Advisors is likely to hire 400-500 new advisors in 2010, according to the executive. "This is a great growth lever," Walker notes.
"We can compete with any firm out there," says Walker. "We have the scale and scope of products, services, technology and human capital. We are firmly positioned with a great corporate parent."
Its corporate parent, Wells Fargo, can help advisors grow their business by providing them with "a steady source of leads and referrals," he explains. Plus, the brokerage business has a strong regional culture.
"We feel very good when we look at the number of FAs that we're having conversations with and the responses we get to our multi-channel business model," explains Walker. The combined financial advisory businesses of Wells Fargo and Wachovia unveiled a new national advertising campaign in mid-September, after introducing the Wells Fargo Advisor brand in May.
"The new advertisements allow us to emphasize Wells Fargo Advisors' position as the financial advice arm of Wells Fargo, while reengaging with our clients and demonstrating how our union with Wells Fargo creates a brokerage firm that is even more qualified to help our clients achieve their life goals," says David Monday, executive director of marketing, innovation and growth.
The TV ads can be seen on Sunday morning talk shows, NFL football games and select cable television stations, including CNN, CNBC, Fox News, MSNBC, the Weather and Travel channels and ESPN. In addition, a sponsorship message will appear on select PBS programs. Print and online ads will also appear in various publications and on websites.

Stocks to Buy 2012 - Best Stock Picks 2012

elow is a list of my latest stock picks for 2012. These 2012 Stock Picks are my favorite stocks to buy and some of the stocks I will be trading personally. Last year, one of my top stock picks was Best Stock Picks 2012 Apple (AAPL) which I recommended at $330 per share. Apple stock recently hit $400 per share. Another one of my hot stocks to buy in 2011 was Hyperdynamics (HDY). HDY stock provided a huge gain in January and several more good rallies.

I feel 2012 will be a sideways year for stocks and the overall stock market. As you know, 2012 is an election year. Stocks could get volatile late in the year as investors position their portfolios accordingly. Check out my 2012 best stocks to buy list below.

Latest 2012 Stock Picks


Top Stock Gainers - 2012
#1 Top Stock Pick 2012 - ( Small Cap Stocks ) - Direxion Daily Small Cap Bull 3X Shares (TNA) - Direxion Daily Small Cap Bull 3X Shares (TNA) is my top stock pick for 2012. As we head into December 2011, I am fine tuning my stocks to buy given the fluid conditions we are seeing with the overall stock market and Europe. TNA is one of the most volatile ETF's you can buy but it is a play on the direction of the stock market. TNA is currently trading around $33.50, down $13 per share in just six trading days as Wall St. stresses out about the problems in Europe. Earnings here in the U.S have been strong and some can argue that the jitters we are seeing are just fluff. However, as we head into 2012, we are seeing some great stocks to buy and TNA falls into that category. I feel TNA can rally back to $48-$50 at some point in 2012 with the chance to go to $60. TNA will be my top stock to trade in 2012 given It's volatility. TNA has huge swings almost daily so you can trade it all day long. And, if you want to go short the market, try Direxion Daily Small Cap Bear 3X Shares (TZA). However, TZA is not a good long term stock to buy.

What is Direxion Daily Small Cap Bull 3X Shares (TNA)? The investment seeks daily investment results, before fees and expenses, of 300% of the price performance of the Russell 2000® Index. The fund will invest at least 80% of assets in securities that comprise the index. It will also utilize financial instruments that, in combination, provide leveraged and unleveraged exposure to the index. The fund is non-diversified. TNA fund holds a basket of stocks and bonds with the highest percentage being technology, industrials, financials, and healthcare.
If the stock market crashes, TNA will get crushed. However, I am predictiing the S&P 500 to return to 1250-1300 at some point in 2012 so TNA will be a 35-45% gainer from here. Not a bad return on your money!

Stocks to Buy 2012 - ( Technology - Mobile Phone Stocks ) - Stocks to Buy 2012 - Apple Inc. (AAPL) - Apple Inc. (AAPL) is my top large cap stock pick in 2012. The iPad 3 in expected to launch early 2012 and the iPhone 5 will hopefully arrive at the end of 2012. The passing of Steve Jobs and a key earnings miss has caused AAPL stock to sell off back into the low $360's. AAPL hit a high of $424 in late 2011. I am giving AAPL a $450 price target in 2012 which represents a 25% gain from the current stock price. AAPL will be a monster stock in 2012 as iPhones and iPads sell like crazy. There is even talk of an iTV device coming in late 2012 or early 2013. With the current stock price around $360, you can't go wrong buying AAPL stock today!

#3 Best Stock Pick 2012 - ( Rare Earth Stocks - Metals ) - MolyCorp (MCP) - MolyCorp (MCP) stock recently dropped to $26 so I decided to add this stock to my Top 2012 Stocks to Buy list. Molycorp (MCP) is by far very risky but has been thrown out with the bath water. Rare Earth stocks are out of favor right now due to the huge drops in mineral prices. However, the Mountain Pass mine will come online by mid 2012 which will allow Molycorp to start earning big money. Look for rare earth prices to stablize in early 2012 and this stock to start going back up. This is by far my boldest stock pick of 2012 and if I am right, MCP will again see $40-$45 at some point during the year.

Best Stocks For 2012 - Place Your Bid on eBay Stock Now

Best Stocks For 2012 - eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) — This online auctioneer is in reality a global commercial platform that is the largest of its kind. It owns Pay-Pal, Bill Me Later, Gmarket, GSI Commerce, Shopping .com and StubHub.
Its fourth-quarter 2011 earnings were considerably above analysts’ estimates. Currently,11 Wall Streetanalysts have a “strong buy” on Best Stocks For 2012 - EBAY, nine are a “buy,” and 13 are a “hold. There is only one who rates the stock “underperform.”
Yesterday, EBAY confirmed a major breakout through a compound top that has taken a full year to form. Heavy accumulation in the past month helped it flash a “golden cross,” a long-term buy signal. The breakout has a trading target of $41.

Best Stocks For 2012 - Don’t Put Any Stock in Denim

Jeans. Long ago, this word evoked the most pedestrian of images — blue, rugged, simple, cheap. But over the past few decades (and a few million acid washes and knee holes later), jeans became the stuff of high fashion, selling for exorbitant prices.
So it’s logical to think that the premier makers of high-end denim should be minting money, right? Well, not exactly. While jeans have demonstrated staying power as a fashion statement, some of the biggest names in denim are far from a long-term lock as an investment.

Best Stocks For 2012 - Guess

Of this group, Guess is the oldest and the largest. Guess was one of the premier jean brands of the 1980s, then fell by the wayside in the ’90s to Best Stocks For 2012 - Gap (NYSE:GPS), Calvin Klein and others. But since the aughts, Guess has been heading in the right direction in several areas.
Guess increased sex appeal in its ads to improve popularity. It diversified both its offerings, adding accessories and perfume, and its finances — Guess’ revenues outside the U.S. and Canada have gone from 20% of total revenues in 2005 to almost half last year. Earnings have increased an average of 28% annually in the past five years, debt is next to negligible and GES has been increasing its dividend since 2007, currently yielding 20 cents, or 2.5%.
However, Guess stock has fallen almost 30% since a November 2010 peak above $50. Its most recent quarterly earnings of 71 cents per share were down 5%, and analysts expect similar drops in earnings across the next couple quarters and FY 2012. The Street does expect GES earnings to grow 10% in FY13, but that still would far lag an industry-wide expectation of about 23%. Though it has a fair forward P/E of about 12, the growth concerns raise a red flag.

Best Stocks For 2012 - True Religion

True Religion, while still a bit diversified in its offerings, is a purer play on jeans. It’s also a worse one. True Religion is a much smaller operation than Guess, though similar in that it also sells its clothes through other retailers. Its jeans run in a range between $220 and $320, so it’s safe to call TRLG a luxury stock. And a look at its share price shows True Religion definitely is behaving like other luxury stocks — TRLG is up 70% in the past year.
What’s troubling is that True Religion’s stock movement doesn’t reflect the company’s performance. TRLG’s earnings growth on a quarterly basis has been extremely inconsistent during the past two years. Also, while its full-year 2011 adjusted earnings reported Thursday were up 1 cent per share from 2010, at $1.88, they’re still 4 cents shy of 2009 earnings. Q4 2011 adjusted earnings also were down 2 cents down from 2010 levels, and well short of Wall Street expectations — and True Religion stock was hammered for it Friday, losing 27% in a single day!
But even if you think of buying on the dip at around $28, TRLG still isn’t a that much of a bargain, trading around 12 times expected 2012 earnings. And with no dividend, there’s nothing convincing me to stick around and wait for better times.

Best Stocks For 2012 - Joe’s Jeans

I saved the worst for last. Joe’s Jeans is a tiny company that sells jeans in the $100-$200 range, as well as other clothes and accessories. And there’s not much good to say about it. Its fourth-quarter earnings were … whoops! We don’t know. JOEZ was tentatively slated to report on Thursday, but as of this writing, it didn’t show. What we do know is the company lost 3 cents per share in its previous quarter, and analysts expect Joe’s Jeans to break even for the year, then earn 3 cents per share in FY12.
But don’t bother. Joe’s Jeans is dangling off the Nasdaq cliff — JOEZ has traded below $1 since April, so the company was given a six-month delisting warning from the Nasdaq in June, then got a six-month extension in December. And at about 70 cents per share, the company is as close as it has been to a buck since August.
In other words? This stock is sunk. If you’re dead-set on playing Joe’s Jeans, be aware that it has very thin daily volume and has a microcap market size ($45 million). So even though it doesn’t trade on the pink sheets yet, it is for all intents and purposes a high-risk penny stock gamble — not an investment.