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.

High Dividend Stocks For 2011

Go Global for Bigger Dividends, Growth

How is a prudent, conscientious person supposed to retire these days? The mutual fund industry tells you to invest in their low-dividend (or no-dividend) funds and hope the capital gains will be enough to carry you through. As we’ve seen in the past decade, though, the gains don’t always materialize when you need them. What then?
High-dividend stocks. Rather than buying an index fund yielding only 1.8%, you should choose carefully among high-dividend stocks. And while there are dividend stocks on our own shores that may fit the bill, investors who are willing to look beyond our borders can find generous yields with greater growth potential.
Here are seven top global dividend stocks to buy:

High Dividend Stocks For 2011#1 – Cellcom Israel (CEL)

Recommended by: Richard Band, Editor, Profitable Investing
Cellcom Israel (NYSE: CEL), Israel’s largest wireless carrier with 34% of the market, just declared its first quarterly dividend for 2011 — the equivalent of 85.7 cents (U.S.) per share. Annualized, that works out to a super-sweet yield of almost 11%!
CEL hands over virtually all its profits to shareholders as dividends, so there’s a chance the company may have to trim the payout in future quarters if business hits a speed bump. On the other hand, this “pay it all out” policy (similar to the approach taken by most U.S. master-limited partnerships) imposes rigorous capital allocation discipline on management. In short, Cellcom execs don’t waste money.
Buy dividend stock CEL on a pullback below $33.

High Dividend Stocks For 2011 #2 – Aberdeen Chile Fund (CH)

Recommended by: Bryan Perry, Editor, Cash Machine
One of my mega-themes for 2011 (and beyond) is the emergence of certain South American countries toward becoming developed nations. At the forefront of this movement, most would argue for Brazil, but within the past year, it has become evident that Chile might be the first to become a comparable neighbor to that of its northern counterparts, the United States and Canada.
Because many of the companies that thrive in the Chilean economy are not listed here in the United States, I find it suitable to embrace the Chilean investment theme with the purchase of the Aberdeen Chile Fund (AMEX: CH), a closed-end fund that has been a star performer in 2010. CH traded ex-dividend on March 29, and after hitting $23, it is now trading back down to support near $21 where a good entry point can be established while locking in a 9.61% dividend yield. Shares of CH should make their way back to $26. Buy CH up to $22.

High Dividend Stocks For 2011#3 – Telkom Indonesia (TLK)

Recommended by: Richard Band, Editor, Profitable Investing
The mantra here is “free cash flow.” In recent years, Telkom Indonesia (NYSE: TLK), the dominant provider of both fixed-line and wireless communications in sprawling Indonesia, has poured huge sums into upgrading its networks. Now the company has the luxury of throttling back a bit.
Starting in 2011, each sales dollar (rupiah, actually) will generate more profit — along with a surge of cash that can be distributed to shareholders. I predict, in fact, that Indonesia’s largest telco will boost its dividend more than 30% by 2013 (from a 2010 base). That’s the kind of growth you want in retirement! Current yield, based on my estimate of 2011 dividends, is 4.8%. Buy TLK up to $36.

High Dividend Stocks For 2011 #4 – ING Asia Pacific High Dividend Equity Income Fund (IAE)

Recommended by: Bryan Perry, Editor, Cash Machine
We are witnessing the re-acceleration of the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) following a period of consolidated growth. The BRICs are enjoying renewed gross domestic product (GDP) expansion in the first quarter of 2011, especially China, and revving up for a strong year following a full six-month correction.
Pacific Rim countries will lead the way, making the ING Asia Pacific High Dividend Equity Income Fund (NYSE: IAE) an attractive buy after trading ex-dividend on April 1. With the stock sitting right on its 200-day moving average at $18.50, sporting a current dividend yield of 9.12%, it’s timely to pick up some shares. Buy IAE under $21.

High Dividend Stocks For 2011 #5 – CPFL Energia S.A. (CPL)

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Recommended by: Louis Navellier, Global Growth
It is a well-known fact that electricity consumption grows faster than the rate of growth of the economy. This is because as people build their wealth, they consume more. They buy bigger houses, they get more appliances and technology and such. Also, as industries enter a growth phase, they tend to use more power.
Because of the above characteristics, electric utilities in emerging markets are the first to see their businesses flourish. Brazil’s CPFL Energia S.A. (NYSE: CPL) distributes electricity to 6.4 million customers in about 570 communities, primarily in the states of Sao Paulo and Rio Grande do Sul. CPFL Energia also owns hydroelectric power plants and trades wholesale power in the open market and offers energy management services. Management estimates show that the company provides about 13% of Brazil’s electricity.
The company currently has a 6.9% dividend yield and should also benefit from a strong “currency tailwind” from the Brazilian real. The Brazilian real is a very strong currency as the central bank there maintains the highest real interest rates among major emerging economies. The shares offer a rare combination of both a high dividend yield and high growth rates, which makes them a great buy. Currently trading around $88, buy CPL on a pullback.

High Dividend Stocks For 2011 #6 – Telenor (TELNY)

Recommended by: Richard Band, Editor, Profitable Investing
Why would you want to own a telco in Norway? For one thing, as a hedge against the ruinous financial policies of the U.S. government. Thanks to prudent management of the country’s oil revenues, Norway has run a budget surplus every year since 1995. The Norwegian currency (krone), in which Telenor (OTC: TELNY) reports its profits (and pays its dividends), is sounder than both the euro and the U.S. dollar.
But there’s more to this story. TELNY has expanded far beyond its Norwegian base, with mobile and broadband operations in Sweden, Denmark, central and eastern Europe, plus five Asian countries. As a result, little-known Telenor is one of Europe’s fastest-growing telecom businesses. Sales will likely pass $19 billion in 2011. Current yield: 4.2%. Dividends have nearly quadrupled over the past seven years. This year’s dividend amounts to only about half of TELNY’s estimated 2011 profits, so an increase of 10% or so seems probable when the board declares next year’s payout. Buy TELNY on a pullback below $49.

High Dividend Stocks For 2011 #7 – SeaDrill (SDRL)

Recommended by: Bryan Perry, Editor, Cash Machine
SeaDrill Ltd. (NYSE: SDRL) is a unique opportunity for income investors seeking a pure play on deep-water drilling outside the post-BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The company was formed in 2005, and owns the most state-of-the-art drilling equipment in the entire industry that commands premium day rates. It is in big demand with utilization rates running near100% as big oil deposits become harder to find without going deep.
These guys operate all over the world in 15 countries on four continents, owning 54 rigs with exposure to only one rig in the Gulf of Mexico. Most of their drilling activity is off the coast of Norway and South Asia, so it has no exposure to the now unstable Middle East. However, news of ARAMCO in Saudi Arabia upping drilling production is hugely positive news for the oil and gas drilling sector. It confirms the belief that the worldwide drilling rig count will rise as well as day rates for the balance of 2011.
Shares of SeaDrill stand to trade significantly higher than its current price of $36.50, while paying a dividend yield of 7.5%. Buy SDRL under $40.

Best Energy Stocks To Buy in 2012

nergy stocks are the main beneficiary of rising oil prices. Their stock prices have been in an uptrend and this has been forcing short sellers to cover. We compiled the list of energy companies that are targeted by short sellers, but have been seeing a decline in short interest.
The companies in this list have at least 1% open interest and a minimum 8% decline in short interest over the past month. These stocks also have at least $1 Billion in market cap.
Best Energy Stocks To Buy:

Company	Ticker	Short Interest (%)	Decline in Short Interest	Market Cap
OCEANEERING INTERNATIONAL	(OII)	3.7	-23.6%	$4.7B
SWIFT ENERGY CO	(SFY)	6.8	-20.9%	$1.8B
S M ENERGY CO	(SM)	4.6	-18.1%	$4.6B
STONE ENERGY CORP	(SGY)	7.0	-17.4%	$1.4B
PRIDE INTERNATIONAL INC DEL	(PDE)	1.3	-17.3%	$7.6B
PATTERSON U T I ENERGY INC	(PTEN)	7.6	-16.1%	$4.3B
NATIONAL OILWELL VARCO INC	(NOV)	1.6	-15.7%	$33.4B
FOREST OIL CORP	(FST)	5.2	-15.6%	$4.1B
FRONTIER OIL CORP	(FTO)	6.4	-15.1%	$2.9B
HOLLY CORP	(HOC)	6.1	-14.6%	$3.1B
E Q T CORP	(EQT)	3.1	-14.0%	$7.1B
ARCH COAL INC	(ACI)	5.8	-13.5%	$5.5B
HESS CORP	(HES)	1.0	-13.3%	$27.7B
BERRY PETROLEUM CO	(BRY)	8.9	-12.6%	$2.5B
PATRIOT COAL CORP	(PCX)	8.4	-12.6%	$2.2B
PLAINS EXPLORATION & PROD CO	(PXP)	4.5	-11.9%	$5.0B
SOUTHERN UNION CO NEW	(SUG)	1.1	-10.9%	$3.6B
MCMORAN EXPLORATION CO	(MMR)	6.5	-10.6%	$2.7B
ATLAS PIPELINE HOLDINGS L P	(AHD)	7.8	-9.5%	$1.1B
MASSEY ENERGY CO	(MEE)	9.7	-9.4%	$6.5B
OASIS PETROLEUM INC	(OAS)	4.6	-8.8%	$2.8B
CHEVRON CORP NEW	(CVX)	1.1	-8.6%	$211.2B
RESOLUTE ENERGY CORP	(REN)	11.4	-8.6%	$1.0B
PENN VIRGINIA RESOURCE PTNRS L P	(PVR)	3.1	-8.3%	$1.5B
WEATHERFORD INTL LTD NEW	(WFT)	3.6	-8.1%	$15.5B

The Best Energy Stocks To Buy in this list, Oceaneering International, is one of the largest holdings in Ken Fisher’s portfolio. T. Boone Pickens and Jim Simons are also bullish about OII. Boone Pickens also has MMR, PXP, WFT, and NOV in his portfolio. George Soros, Jim Simons, and Steve Cohen are among the hedge fund managers with Swift Energy holdings, which saw more than 20% decline in short interest over the past month.
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.

5 Famous Pharma Stocks to Sell Now

There’s a lot of talk about the recently passed health-care reforms in the wake of the election, and some investors are wondering if provisions of the legislation could be rolled back. I won’t pretend to know what’s going to happen in Washington in the future, but I can tell you that no matter what happens to the so-called “Obamacare” initiative, a number of health-care stocks are in dire straits — and no amount of politicking is going to help them.
Specifically, I’m talking about a group of battered drug makers that have seen poor earnings performances lately and are up against looming patent expirations and fierce competition in emerging markets.
Here are five famous pharmaceutical stocks that you should sell immediately:

Abbott Laboratories (ABT)

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) is engaged in the discovery, development, manufacture and sale of a variety of health-care products.  Since January, ABT stock has dropped 6.6%, compared to gains of 9.5% and 9.3% for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones, respectively. While the stock regained slightly in September, ABT has lost 3.5% since October.  While ABT has outperformed earnings estimates for four consecutive quarters, it has been by only one cent each quarter.  Abbott stock currently trades at $50.45.

Sanofi-Aventis S.A. ADS (SNY)

Sanofi-Aventis (NYSE: SNY) is also involved with the research, development, manufacture and marketing of health-care products.  The company is known for its pharmaceuticals, including vaccines, as well as its animal health-care products.  Year-to-date, SNY stock has slid 9.4%.  Additionally, Sanofi-Aventis has missed earnings estimates two of the last three quarters.  While the stock has regained slightly in the last few months, it is still down from its 52-week high of $41.59, with a current price of $35.62

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (TEVA)

Global pharmaceutical company Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (NASDAQ: TEVA) produces and markets a wide range of generic drugs.  Its major products are Copaxone for multiple sclerosis and Azilect for Parkinson’s disease.  Since January, TEVA is down 9.6%, compared to gains by the broader markets.  After a productive September, TEVA has dropped 3.7% since the start of October.  Trading at $50.80, TEVA is only a few dollars removed from its 52-week low of $46.99.

GlaxoSmithKline PLC ADS (GSK)

GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) works with vaccines, over-the-counter medications and various other health-care consumer products.  The company’s main products deal with the following: respiratory system, central nervous system, cardiovascular and urogenital, metabolic, anti-bacterials, oncology and emesis, dermatalogicals and vaccines.  GSK stock is down 4.1% in 2010, despite seeing gains in September and October.  Additionally, GSK reported a quarterly earnings drop of 3.5% in its last income statement, which certainly has disappointed shareholders.

Pfizer Inc. (PFE)

Research-based, global pharmaceutical company Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) rounds out the list of big pharma stocks to sell. Year-to-date, Pfizer has watched its stock decrease 6.5%, compared to gains by the broader markets.  Analysts aren’t buying into Pfizer, as they have downgraded their earnings estimates to 47 cents a share this quarter after and actual EPS of 54 cents a share last quarter.  A quarterly earnings decline of nearly 70% is another reason why Pfizer is a stock worth selling.
As of this writing, Louis Navellier did not own a position in any of the stocks named here

4 Best Mutual Funds at Vanguard Now

In the mutual fund industry, Vanguard founder Jack Bogle is a legend.  After college, he got a job at Wellington Management Company and quickly rose up the ranks, becoming the company’s chairman.  However, he was eventually fired because of a bad merger. But this turned out to be fortuitous since he started the mutual fund giant Vanguard in 1974.
His laser-like focus at Vanguard was on the interests on investors.  To this end, he developed low-cost mutual funds that focused on indexing.  Hey, why should investors spend high amounts on fees when many portfolio managers underperform the market?
Now, thanks to this legacy, Vanguard is a mutual fund investing powerhouse.  There are $1.4 trillion in assets, with 160 U.S. funds and 50 international funds.  And while many are strong, there are some that are standouts above the rest. Let’s take a look:

Vanguard International Growth (VWIGX)

Started in the early 1980s, the Vanguard International Growth Fund (MUTF: VWIGX) now has $18.8 billion in assets.  The portfolio is diversified across the world, with 11.58% in the Americas, 53.81% in Europe and 34.61% in Asia.  There is also 21.11% in emerging markets.
The Vanguard fund is composed of a variety of best-of-breed international money managers, from firms like Schroder Investment Management, Baillie Gifford and M&G Investment Management.   The general approach is to focus on high quality companies with strong growth prospects.
As should be no surprise, the expense ratio is only 0.49% and the turnover is 44%. Top holdings now include Baidu (NASDAQ: BIDU), Petrobras (NYSE: PBR) and SAP AG (NYSE: SAP).

Vanguard Small Cap Growth Index (VSGIX)

The MSCI U.S. Small Cap 1750 Index tracks the performance of a diverse set of small capitalization stocks in the US.  It is widely followed and a good barometer of the category.
If you want to invest based on this index, then a good mutual fund choice is the Vanguard Small Cap Growth Index Fund (MUTF: VSGIX), which has $8.8 billion in assets.  True, there has been volatility — which is to be expected.  Although, the index has a good amount of mid-cap stocks, which helps with the swings.
For the past three years, the average annual return was 10.33%. Top holdings include JDS Uniphase (NASDAQ: JDSU), Informatica (NASDAQ: INFA)  and Brigham Exploration Company (NASDAQ: BEXP).

Best Energy Stocks Pick For 2012

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 2012#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 2012 #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 2012 #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 2012 #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.

Chapter 7 Or 13 on Personal Bankruptcy in 2012

Bankruptcy laws in the United States are made to ensure the interests of the borrower are safeguarded, and are formed by the federal government and addressed accordingly by various US Bankruptcy Courts, and it is believed that each year as many as one million Americans go bankrupt and are found filing for bankruptcy. Most of these individuals that file for bankruptcy do so under different personal bankruptcy laws that include chapter thirteen and also chapter 7, and in a few instances, they can even qualify for chapter twelve, especially if they are anglers or farmers and business is owned by the family.

Filing Under Chapter Seven

You can file personal bankruptcy and at the same time do so under chapter seven in which case it is necessary for you to provide a list of all your assets to the court and also have to assign a trustee who will liquidate items in order to pay off creditors. Furthermore, filing personal bankruptcy is allowed once in seven years and the cost of filing personal bankruptcy is approximately three hundred dollars which goes towards filing fee.

If you plan on filing personal bankruptcy under chapter thirteen, it will help in reducing your debt though unlike chapter seven, does not cancel out your debt. And, chapter thirteen personal bankruptcies also means having to set out a plan for repayment with creditors and courts and assigning trustee who will make monthly payments after paying them the money. The trustee will receive payments from you and apportion them to various creditors, and an advantage to using chapter thirteen for filing personal bankruptcy is that unlike in chapter seven, under this chapter you may hold on to everything that would have been lost under chapter seven.

However, both these types of personal bankruptcy allows the debtor to rid him or herself of debts, though remember when filing chapter thirteen bankruptcy, you need to have debt that is not more than two hundred fifty thousand dollars and that such debt is uns! ecured, while debts that are secured should not exceed seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars.

The bottom line is that before filing for personal bankruptcy, makes sure to know what the ramifications of different chapters are and in most instances it may be better to file for chapter thirteen instead of chapter seven as the latter shows that you are a person that does not pay your debts.

Marathon Petroleum Corp (NYSE: MPC) May Soon Be the World¡¯s Richest Refiner

There's an oil price trend that's giving some oil refining companies a huge competitive edge.

Specifically I'm referring to Marathon Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: MPC).

You see, production from North Dakota's Bakken oil shale formation - the largest known reserve of light sweet crude in North America - is soaring. It went from a mere 3,000 barrels a day in 2005 to 225,000 in 2010, and could hit 350,000 barrels a day by 2035, according to the Energy Information Administration.

Currently, there aren't many ways to ship oil out of the basin, and supply in the region is outpacing refining capacity. That's helped keep the price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude lower than the price of Brent crude in London, with the spread now around $17.

Since U.S. East Coast refineries usually source Brent-priced crude oil, their input costs have skyrocketed. This is one of the reasons major integrated oil companies have shed their refining capacities.

But Midwest refineries have been able to save money by running WTI-priced oil, getting crude at significantly cheaper prices than globally sourced locations.

With the Bakken formation ramping up production in coming years to meet growing demand, the region's refineries will continue to enjoy low input costs. It also means refineries that have access to Bakken oil will have a steady supply that's cheaper than their competitors.

This is why Marathon Petroleum Corp., the largest Midwest refiner, is a "Buy." (**)

Marathon Petroleum Corp.

Ohio-based Marathon Petroleum Corp. was formed July 1, 2011 when Marathon Oil Corp. (NYSE: MRO) spun off its highly profitable refinery and gas station business. It's the fifth largest petroleum refiner in the United States, with its six refineries offering a combined capacity of 1,142,000 barrels of oil per day.

G! ary R. H eminger, Marathon's new chief executive officer, said his company has built a strong enough refining position in the Midwest to ward off competition. He doesn't expect new pipelines and rail yard capacity bringing oil from the Bakken to the Gulf Coast to soften his competitive edge. The oil still needs a high-volume consumer and his refineries are the most obvious choice.

"If you look at Midwest refineries, we already have plenty of pipeline capacity into our plants," Heminger said at the Reuters Global Energy and Climate Summit. "It really comes back to (West Texas Intermediate) and lighter-type crudes that are in and around Cushing [Oklahoma, where WTI is priced]. They're looking for a home."

Marathon also will profit from its operations beyond the Midwest.

It's negotiating with pipeline companies to use its Texas refinery to process more crude from the new Eagle Ford Shale. The new Eagle Ford is unconventional shale oil that's extremely light, and can be mixed with another cheap blend - a heavy, sour crude - to make a more expensive finished product.

Marathon's Detroit refinery is undergoing a $2.2 billion overhaul that'll let it process heavy Canadian crude, which currently is priced even cheaper than WTI.

Marathon also has a profitable retail footprint. It operates 5,100 Marathon-branded gas stations in 18 states and 1,350 Speedway-branded convenience stores in seven states. It has more than 9,600 miles of pipelines into and out of its facilities.

The new refining company has a market cap of $13.3 billion with an enterprise value of $14.6 billion once net cash and debt is taken into consideration. The company reported $66.8 billion in revenue over the last trailing 12 months.

Third quarter earnings released Nov. 1 showed a 309% increase in net income from 2010's third quarter to $1.13 billion. Earnings per diluted share rose to $3.16 from $0.77 last year. Marathon also announced Oct. 26 a 25% div! idend in crease, for a yield of 2.6%.

The company has historical price/earnings (P/E) ratio of 7.2 over the last 12 months with an estimated forward P/E ratio of 5.6.

Its stock has soared more than 17% in the past month, closing yesterday (Wednesday) at $37.02.

Action to Take: Buy Marathon Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: MPC) (**).

It's time to buy Marathon Petroleum Corp. as it positions itself to profit from low input costs and high refining capacity.

I would buy half of our position now at market price, with an eye toward selling naked puts contracts for the other half of the position. This would give you a chance to be exposed to the upside move while increasing the overall cash yield on your first-half position.

(**) Special Note of Disclosure: Jack Barnes has no interest in Marathon Petroleum Corporation. (NYSE: MPC).

China Wants Its Money Back in 2012

Late word is that the China Development Bank may pass on putting $2 billion into Citigroup (C) as was planned. According to The Wall Street Journal the Chinese government may be blocking the deal.
As China puts more and more money into US government debt and invests in troubled financial institutions it would be well to remember that one of its earlier deals, an investment in BlackStone (BX), turned out to be about as bad as an investment could get. Shares in the firm have gone from $38 to $20.
China wants it money back. Maybe then it will put in some more.
Douglas A. McIntyre

A broad band of support at S&P 500 1,124 to 1,225 will likely slow the decline

A fall in the euro sent equity and commodity markets into a downward spiral yesterday. Sentiment against the euro strengthened following Germany��s stand that its government is against raising the lending limit for a euro zone bailout.
In response, Italy��s 10-year bond yield rose 7%-plus, and Spain and France saw their bond yields jump as well. The U.S. dollar rose, of course, and the rise was accentuated by a series of better-than-expected economic reports.
Commodities fell sharply in response to the stronger dollar. The CRB Index fell 3.4%, and gold settled at $1,587.70 an ounce, down 4.6%, and silver lost 7.6%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 11,823, off 1.1%, the S&P 500 ended at 1,212, down 1.13%, and the Nasdaq closed at 2,539, down 1.55%. The NYSE traded 928 million shares, and the Nasdaq crossed 512 million. Decliners were ahead of advancers on the Big Board by 3-to-1 and on the Nasdaq by 2-to-1.
Yesterday, every major index violated its near-term support as the dollar rocketed to new highs.
The breakdown of the S&P 500 is significant because it confirmed the failure of the index to break higher at its bearish resistance line (June/July, October and November highs); it turned down from its 200-day moving average — a confirmation that the long-term bear market is intact; and it crushed the near-term support provided by the conjunction of the 20-day and 50-day moving averages.
The question is: How low will it go?
The answer may surprise you: Not very far, at least initially. There is a broad band of support at 1,124 to 1,225 that will more than likely slow the decline, and the uptrend line of a major trading triangle rests at 1,175.
Additionally, the Fibonacci numbers off of the November low to the December are: 50% = 1,212 (yesterday��s close), 61.8% = 1,200.
Finally, we are approaching the holiday period when trading traditionally slows and volume falls until we enter the New Year.
! Yesterda y��s higher close in the PowerShares DB US Dollar Index Bullish Fund (NYSE:UUP) confirmed the bull market in the U.S. dollar, and that conclusion is backed by the MACD buy signal. But volume on the breakout is not as high as the average volume of the October sell-off.
Conclusion: The most followed indices have broken from major support levels, indicating that the bear market is intact and that prices should head modestly lower.
But European politicians are no less nimble than our own. When our credit markets were in jeopardy (not that they still aren��t), the Feds sprang TARP, then QE1 and QE2 while dropping interest rates to near zero. And each move was immediately greeted with a rebound in stocks.
The Europeans have followed the same pattern and will, in desperation, scramble to turn an outgoing tide with each attempt triggering a rally in equities. Thus, shorts should expect violent rebounds. Take profits when you can. (Check out my colleague John Jagerson who turned a 67% profit overnight last week.) And protect positions with stop-loss orders.
The trend is down, but expect more volatility and less predictability.

Alamos Gold PT Trimmed At CIBC Reflecting Higher Costs in 2012

CIBC World Markets Inc. cut its price target on Alamos Gold Inc. (TSX:AGI.TO) to $23.00 from $24.00, reflecting higher costs for 2013 estimates.
Barry Cooper, an analyst at CIBC, cut his 2012 EPS estimates for thecompany to US$1.33 from US$1.47 and 2013 estimates to US$1.72 fromUS1.77.
Production in the fourth quarter was essentially in line with ourexpectations of 43,000 ounces, Cooper said. The 46,500 ounces producedincluded 3,000 ounces of non-commercial production from the Escondidazone.
Cooper wrote that the start up of the mill associated with Escondidaore will be a major milestone for the operation. The boost will comefrom both grades and costs and partially offset total cash costs thatare expected to be approaching $600/oz for the heap leach operationalone, he said.
"Grades are expected to be down 23% at the Mulatos pit year-over-yearand follow a previous decline of 18% in 2011. This should be a lowpoint relative to the reserve grade, although higher gold prices will beaffecting reserve figures for AGI as well as others as low gradesbecome economical," Cooper said.
"Throughput for Mulatos may prove difficult to achieve given the17,500 TPD avg that has been forecast. About 500 TPD will come from milltailings, but to avg 17,000 TPD for the main crusher facility may beaggressive," Cooper wrote. "We think that there could be a cushion inthe grade estimate that could help."
The stock is currently trading 0.12% lower at $17.31. The shares havebeen trading in the 52-week range between $13.26 and $20.15.
{$end}

Lehman Forced to Revise Bankruptcy Exit Plan

After some creditors rejected Lehman Brothers' Chapter 11 proposals, the company revised its plan to exit bankruptcy, filing a new plan in New York, Bloomberg reported Wednesday.
The plan didn't list a voting deadline for creditors or propose a date for the confirmation hearing, Bloomberg reports. Lehman will start soliciting votes for the plan after the summer, and final court approval may be near the end of the year.
Lehman plans to raise $61 billion by selling assets and reducing allowable claims to $322 billion, Bloomberg reports. The average Lehman creditor would receive 18.6 cents on the dollar, and senior bondholders would receive 21.4 cents. Creditors with general unsecured claims would receive a 19.8% return, according to Bloomberg.
Derivatives creditors, which include Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank and Bank of America, would get 22.3 cents, Bloomberg reports. As of the third quarter of 2010, Lehman had settled over 45% of derivatives transactions made by the Lehman Brother Special Financing unit. When Lehman filed for bankruptcy it was involved in 1.2 million derivatives transactions.
Hedge fund Paulson & Co. and other creditors with large claims against Lehman Brothers argued that Lehman's original plan "created conflict among creditors of Lehman's units," and offered their own plan in December, Bloomberg reports. In that plan, bondholders received 24.5 cents, and derivatives creditors received 25.7 cents. The group, which includes the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, PIMCO and Canyon Partners LLC, a Los Angeles-based $19 billion hedge fund, hold $80 billion in claims against Lehman, Bloomberg writes.
Lehman's revised plan incorporates elements of the Paulson plan and offers bondholders more money than the original plan, which proposed giving creditors 17 cents. If the Paulson group opposes the revised plan, their payout will be reduced to the original amount, Bloomberg reports.
“We think this is the fairest way to deal with all the legal issues,” Lehman President John Suckow told Bloomberg by phone Wednesday. “We’re hoping to get people to rally around this plan in coming weeks and months.”
At the end of 2010, Lehman held $24 billion in cash and $37 billion in real estate, private equity and other assets, Bloomberg writes.

5 Undervalued Recession-Proof Stocks

Markets were crushed Thursday on signs of slowing growth in China and Germany and a gloomy economic outlook from the Federal Reserve, reported CNBC. In response, investors fled to the safety of the U.S. dollar and government bonds.
The U.S dollar climbed 1.36%, which pushed down U.S crude oil prices by more than 5%. Gold dropped nearly $50/ounce and European stocks fell 4% to a two-year low, "dragging an index of global equities to a one-year trough." This was all before 11 a.m.
Market volatility isn't going anywhere, and more cloudy days may still be ahead for the global economy.
So how can you prepare yourself for more market losses?
For ideas, we went back into time, and identified a list of stocks that outperformed the market during each of the last three big market downturns over the last decade (Oct. 1, 2007 to March 2, 2009, April 19, 2010 to June 28, 2010, and July 18, 2011 to the present).
In addition, all of these stocks appear to be undervalued, when comparing levered free cash flow to enterprise value.
Considering the track record of these companies during downturns, are they being underestimated by the market?
List sorted by each stock's average alpha relative to the S&P 500 during the three downturns over the last decade. (Click here to access free, interactive tools to analyze these ideas.)
1. Arch Capital Group (Nasdaq: ACGL  ) : Provides insurance and reinsurance products worldwide. Between Oct. 1, 2007 and March 2, 2009: Price changed from $25.16 to $17.52, a price return of -30.37% (alpha of 24.33%). Between April 19, 2010 to June 28, 2010: Price changed from $25.29 to $25.47, a price return of 0.71% (alpha of 10.98%). Between July 18, 2011 and Sept. 18, 2011: Price changed from $32.32 to $33.65, a price return of 4.12% (alpha of 10.97%). [Average Alpha: 15.43%] Levered free cash flow at $527.50M vs. enterprise value at $4.15B (implies an LFCF/EV ratio at 12.71%).
2. Mea dowbrook Insurance Group (NYSE: MIG  ) : Operates as a specialty commercial insurance underwriter and insurance administration services company in the United States. Between Oct. 1, 2007 and March2, 2009: Price changed from $8.72 to $5.58, a price return of -36.01% (alpha of 18.69%). Between April 19, 2010 to June 28, 2010: Price changed from $7.97 to $8.77, a price return of 10.04% (alpha of 20.3%). Between July 18, 2011 and Sept. 18, 2011: Price changed from $9.49 to $9.51, a price return of 0.21% (alpha of 7.06%). [Average Alpha: 15.35%] Levered free cash flow at $53.57M vs. enterprise value at $527.85M (implies an LFCF/EV ratio at 10.15%).
3. Synopsys (Nasdaq: SNPS  ) : Provides technology solutions used to develop electronics and electronic systems worldwide. Between Oct. 1, 2007 and March 2, 2009: Price changed from $27.47 to $17.94, a price return of -34.69% (alpha of 20.01%). Between April 19, 2010 to June 28, 2010: Price changed from $23.03 to $21.96, a price return of -4.65% (alpha of 5.62%). Between July 18, 2011 and Sept. 18, 2011: Price changed from $24.15 to $25.99, a price return of 7.62% (alpha of 14.47%). [Average Alpha: 13.37%] Levered free cash flow at $294.70M vs. enterprise value at $2.56B (implies an LFCF/EV ratio at 11.51%).
4. MKS Instruments (Nasdaq: MKSI  ) : Provides instruments, subsystems, and process control solutions that measure, control, power, monitor, and analyze parameters of manufacturing processes worldwide. Between Oct. 1, 2007 and March 2, 2009: Price changed from $19.35 to $11.75, a price return of -39.28% (alpha of 15.42%). Between April 19, 2010 to June 28, 2010: Price changed from $20.7 to $20.26, a price return of -2.13% (alpha of 8.14%). Between July 18, 2011 and Sept. 18, 2011: Price changed from $24.86 to $24.65, a price return of -0.84% (alpha of 6.01%). [Average Alpha: 9.86%] Levered fr! ee cash flow at $128.07M vs. enterprise value at $707.26M (implies an LFCF/EV ratio at 18.11%).
5. Fresh Del Monte Produce (NYSE: FDP  ) : Produces, transports, sources, markets, and distributes fresh and fresh-cut fruit and vegetables worldwide. Between Oct. 1, 2007 and March 2, 2009: Price changed from $28.97 to $17.88, a price return of -38.28% (alpha of 16.42%). Between April 19, 2010 to June 28, 2010: Price changed from $20.89 to $20.84, a price return of -0.24% (alpha of 10.03%). Between July 18, 2011 and Sept. 18, 2011: Price changed from $26.19 to $23.8, a price return of -9.13% (alpha of -2.28%). [Average Alpha: 8.06%] Levered free cash flow at $167.94M vs. enterprise value at $1.43B (implies an LFCF/EV ratio at 11.74%).
Interactive chart: Press Play to compare changes in analyst ratings over the last two years for the stocks mentioned above. Analyst ratings sourced from Zacks Investment Research.

Oracle Flies Past Targets & Taking Share (ORCL, SAP, IBM)

Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL) just posted earnings.  Its GAAP EPS was $0.25 but non-GAAP was $0.31 EPS on revenues of $5.3 Billion.  First Call had estimates at $0.27 non-GAAP EPS on revenues of $5.04 Billion.  Look at these metrics individually:

• software license revenues up 35%, the strongest growth of any quarter in ten years,
• software license sales up 38%
• applications new license sales grew 63% compared to SAP’s new license sales growth rate of 15%

QUOTES FROM OFFICERS:

• Charles Phillips, president, said, "We like our growth strategy of expanding beyond ERP into high-end industry specific vertical software in contrast to SAP’s strategy of moving down market to sell ERP systems to small companies."
• CEO Larry Ellison said, "Our database and middleware new license sales grew 28% in Q2. We continue to take market share from IBM in both product categories."

While the earnings guidance is not yet out, this last quarter was a phenomenal report and it is really hard to call anything bad so far.  When it offers guidance, First call has next quarter’s estimates at $0.29 EPS and $5.19 Billion in revenues and it has fiscal May 2008 shows estimates at $1.22 EPS on almost $21.5 Billion.
Oracle’s stock closed down 2.3% at $20.76 today, and shares are at $21.70 in after-hours trading.  The 52-week trading range is $15.97 to $23.00.
Jon C. Ogg
December 19, 2007
Jon Ogg can be reached at jonogg@247wallst.com; he produces the SPECIAL SITUATION newsletter and he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

Looking for a Fixer-Upper? Try Home Center Stocks

This is not the best of times to be in retail in general, or home-related retail in particular, but it may be the moment for investors to look at hardware store stocks.
Let's look at the hardware big boxes, where there is plenty of room for improvement in the market. Just in mid-November, Home Depot CEO Frank Blake was telling analysts: "Inventories remain high, pricing is under pressure and credit is still difficult."
That pretty much sums it all up for hardware stores. All the plastic, copper, and lumber you need for pipes, wiring, and two-by-fours is having commodity price pressures. And that means margin pressure. At the same time, the hardware chains are having to invest in improving store facilities after taking costs out to balance their books earlier in the recession.
Neither Home Depot (NYSE: HD  ) nor Lowe's (NYSE: LOW  ) is baking a housing recovery into its 2012 estimates, so if housing were to surprise even slightly on the upside, the effect on their stocks could be noticeable.
Housing: still in the doghouse
The biggest snag for home center chains has been simply that the housing slump has lasted longer than expected, leaving them no room for error. At first, they cut costs and moved focus from selling to construction pros to pushing moderately priced stuff such as paint and flooring to DIY homeowners fixing the homes they couldn't sell.
But by the end of 2011, they had made real structural changes, closing stores and investing in technology to make store operations more efficient. That meant higher capital expense at a time when inventory costs were also under pressure.
In Lowe's case, it added a fair amount of expenses as part of its latest restructuring, which included overhauling inventory and closing stores. The latest move was buying online retailer ATG at the end of the year. Like many retailers, Lowe's needed a ha! ndle on e-commerce and decided to buy instead of build.
However, there is good news as well. COO Robert Hull indicated Lowe's is expected to crank out about $2.1 billion in free cash flow during the next fiscal year. Lowe's managers also said they've laid out a five-year plan to get them to 2015 with no expectation of a "frothy housing market."
Lowe's is where Home Depot was a couple of years ago, trying to fix stores and boost sales, and its stock has been driven down by those issues, which gives it a bit more upside potential. Fool Austin Smith likes Lowe's over Home Depot as a better shareholder value for buying back far more of its shares.
And Home Depot has burned through quite a bit of upside potential already. It was one of the best performers in the Dow in 2011, as The Fool pointed out recently. It hit its 52-week high recently, and as fellow Fool Dan Caplinger mentioned, it's expensive and investing in it requires faith in the housing recovery, so the short-term upside is slim.
But Home Depot has been paying dividends regularly and accelerated its share repurchase plan last year. If you're a value investor, there are worse places to be in retail than a sector leader who pays regular dividends.
It's up to you whether you want to back the favorite or the scrappy upstart. But keep in mind, the U.S. is not Japan -- retail is not facing a lost decade. Housing and consumer spending will pick up, because Americans are shoppers and homeowners by nature. Saturday morning at the hardware store is not a ritual in danger of extinction.
So if you are hoping for a real retail recovery, invest in Home Depot, Lowe's, or even Orchard Supply Hardware -- these days, it beats putting your money on stocks of clothing chains or bookstores -- but keep a long horizon.
If you're interested in the Dow's top stocks on your quest for great dividend-paying stocks, The Motley Fool has compiled a special free report outlining our 11 favorite dependable dividend-paying stocks.! It's ca lled "Secure Your Future With 11 Rock-Solid Dividend Stocks." You can access your free copy today! Just click here to discover the winners we've picked.

EXOU Exousia Continues Supplier Relationship with China United Engineering Corporation(DrStockPick.com News Report!)

EXOU, Exousia Advanced Materials Inc, EXOU.OB
DrStockPick News Report!

Dr Stock Pick HOT News & Alerts!

Exousia Continues Supplier Relationship with China United Engineering Corporation

Thursday August 13, 2009
DrStockPick News Report!
Exousia Continues Supplier Relationship with China United Engineering Corporation
Fifth Order Represents CUC’s Continued Confidence in Exousia as a Supplier
SUGAR LAND, Texas /CRWENEWSwire/ Exousia Advanced Materials, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: EXOU), a company that manufactures advanced industrial coatings for worldwide infrastructure applications and engineered composites for eco-friendly wood substitutes, proudly announces its fifth order from China United Engineering Corporation (CUC) for industrial coatings. Exousia Chairman & CEO, J. Wayne Rodrigue, explained, “The significance of this order is that it represents the ongoing cycle of business that Exousia is striving to achieve. Every day, we gain momentum as our order flow increases at our now established plant in China.”
CUC is a large-scale engineering, design, and construction enterprise headquartered in Hangzhou, China. CUC engages in numerous project categories including general contracting, infrastructure and industrial projects. “We look forward to expanding our relationship with CUC and to Exousia’s future growth throughout China,” conclud! ed Mr. R odrigue.
About China United Engineering Corporation
China United Engineering Corporation (CUC) is a large-scale scientific and technological enterprise headquartered in Hangzhou in China’s central region. CUC engages in numerous project categories including general contracting, infrastructure and industrial projects. More information on CUC can be found at http://en.chinacuc.com.
About Exousia Advanced Materials, Inc.
Exousia manufactures advanced resins, engineered particles, high-performance coatings and structural products. Exousia products enhance strength, durability, cost effectiveness and performance for a wide range of manufacturing, commercial and construction applications. The Company serves both domestic and international markets. Additional information on Exousia can be found at http://www.exousiacorp.com.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Statements released by Exousia Advanced Materials, Inc. that are not purely historical are forward-looking within the meaning of the “Safe Harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding the company’s expectations, hopes, intentions, and strategies for the future. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainties that may affect the company’s business prospects and performance. The company’s actual results could differ materially from those in such forward-looking statements. Risk factors include but are not limited to general economic, competitive, governmental and technological factors as discussed in the company’s filings with the SEC on Forms 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K. The company does not undertake any responsibility to update the forward-looking statements contained in this release.
Source: Exousia Advanced Materials, Inc.

Keep a close eye on EXOU today, do your homework, and like always BE READY for the ACTION!

Duke Energy Corporation posted a Year Record Price - NYSE:DUK

Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) achieved its new price of $20.89 where it was opened at $20.95 up 0.37 points or +1.81% by closing at $20.86. DUK transacted shares during the day were over 10.20 million shares however it has an average volume of 14.63 million shares.
DUK has a market capitalization $47.80 billion and an enterprise value at $45.53 billion. Trailing twelve months price to sales ratio of the stock was 1.91 while price to book ratio in most recent quarter was 1.20. In profitability ratios, net profit margin in past twelve months appeared at 12.89% whereas operating profit margin for the same period at 20.61%.
The company made a return on asset of 3.11% in past twelve months and return on equity of 8.21% for similar period. In the period of trailing 12 months it generated revenue amounted to $14.31 billion gaining $10.76 revenue per share. Its year over year, quarterly growth of revenue was 0.50% holding -29.60% quarterly earnings growth.
According to preceding quarter balance sheet results, the company had $2.18 billion cash in hand making cash per share at 1.64. The total of $20.11 billion debt was there putting a total debt to equity ratio 87.83. Moreover its current ratio according to same quarter results was 1.23 and book value per share was 17.11.
Looking at the trading information, the stock price history displayed that its S&P500 52 Week Change illustrated 1.19% where the stock current price exhibited up beat from its 50 day moving average price $20.46 and remained above from its 200 Day Moving Average price $19.30.
DUK holds 1.33 billion outstanding shares with 1.33 billion floating shares where insider possessed 0.25% and institutions kept 47.70%.

Searing Heat for Sears Stock (SHLD)

I recently wrote that consumer behavior was changing dramatically in the face of rising oil prices.  Demand is down and interest in smaller, more fuel efficient vehicles is growing. The great thing about capitalism is that if we fail to change our ways, markets will do it for us. What is just beginning to happen with oil and consumer behavior is happening on the corporate level dealing with a slowing economy.
That is to say, competition for a share of the consumer dollar is fiercer than at any other time in recent history. Corporations that adapt to the new field of play will survive.  Those that don’t won’t.

Let’s take a look at stock pick Walmart (WMT).  For most of the new millennium, WMT was getting taken to the cleaners by sleek rival Target (TGT).
Seen mostly as a bargain bin basement with little knack for style, WMT had trouble prying extra dollars away from the consumer.  TGT had little trouble increasing dollars spent at its stores as they focused on luxury brands and style at low prices.
That worked great in an expanding economy, but what happens when that growth disappears? (For more on Target’s recent share decline you’ll want to read, “Why are Target Shares Off Target?”)
We are seeing the results before our very eyes.  All of a sudden that bargain basement doesn’t look so bad with oil prices hitting $135 per barrel!
In fact, the ChangeWave Alliance has been showing tremendous strength for both Wal-Mart and Cosco since late February. For more details, check out Paul Carton’s recent article, “World Takeover By Wal-Mart and Costco (COST).”
Behavior is changing, and that change is benefiting WMT as they remain focused on pushing lower pr! ices to its consumers.
Target is not faring as well. Those little extra spending sprees by its customers are no longer the norm and as a result TGT results have been less than stellar. TGT will have to find a new formula that will work given the current and expected conditions moving forward.
With the game still being played, it will be interesting to see how things pan out for both companies.
One company that is not faring so well in the current environment is… Sears Holding (SHLD).  The star child of private equity guru, Eddie Lampert, SHLD has not fared well with the collapse in economic activity. Highly leveraged to the homebuilding cycle, sales of its large consumer items like dishwashers, refrigerators and laundry machines dropped hard as new home sales fell.
As a result of the slowing sales, shares of SHLD have lost more than $100 per share in just the last year alone.  What had been a former high flyer enjoying the benefits of monetizing real estate holdings is now simply a retail stock playing in a very difficult field under very difficult circumstances.
Does Eddie Lampert have it in him to change behavior in a way that generates positive results for shareholders? I’m not so sure. While Mr. Lampert has the skills as a financier, does he have what it takes to adapt to intense competition?
I would be worried if I were a SHLD shareholder. Just today, the company announced that it had lost $56 million in the first quarter coming fall short of Wall Street estimates.  Sales dropped 6% as the company blamed higher fuel and food costs for its woes.
The blame game is a natural reaction, but I think SHLD needs to look hard in the mirror.  There are retailers that are adapting well to the current environment and even those that may have had trouble in the early stages adjusting strat! egy in a way that is already showing results.
That is not happening at Sears.
Where we go from here is anyone’s guess.  I can give Lampert a free pass in the short term, but there needs to be a plan for going forward.
The bottom line: will the company better manage inventories improving its mix of products to enhance sales even in this difficult market?  If they do, SHLD will bounce back big. If not, it will be more pain for shareholders.
One market that is still growing and growing fast is China. And more importantly, competition is not nearly as fierce as it is in the United States. Check out Robert Hsu’s China Strategy letter for the companies that can be expected to prosper in that environment.
Jamie Dlugosch
Executive Editor, InvestorPlace

Join China Strategy risk-free today, and Robert Hsu bring you the latest news and developments from China. He’ll tell you how to profit from this extraordinary global opportunity and which companies and industries to avoid. Be among the first to know which companies to buy and when by joining China Strategytoday. Don’t miss out!

Polo Ralph Lauren Corporation (RL) Closes 2.73% Higher

Shares of Polo Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE: RL) jumped more than 3% in today's trading. The stock reached a high of $89.26 in trading, and closed 2.73% higher at $88.12. Volume was up from daily average of 1.01 million to 5.58 million.
Earlier today, Polo Ralph Lauren reported its fourth quarter and fiscal 2010 results. The company reported fourth-quarter net income of $114 million, or $1.13 per share, up from $45 million, or $0.44 per share reported in the fourth quarter of previous year. For fiscal 2010, the company reported net income of $480 million, or $4.73 per share, up from $406 million, or $4.01 per share reported in fiscal 2009. Revenue increased 9% to $1.3 billion in the fourth quarter. For the full fiscal year, revenue fell 1% to $5 billion. The decline has been mainly due to lower global wholesale shipment volumes. In the fourth quarter the company opened three directly operated freestanding stores, while it closed two directly operated freestanding stores. It also took over 16 freestanding stores and 75 concession shop locations in Asia.
Commenting on the results, Ralph Lauren, the company's chairman and CEO, said that in fiscal 2010, the company saw tremendous growth????????? and progress. Lauren said that the successful takeover Asian operations, development of accessories products and opening of several luxury stores were the highlights of fiscal 2010. With more than $1.2 billion in cash and investments on its balance sheet, the company is planning to accelerate investments in growth initiatives during fiscal 2011.
But where will this growth come from? The U.S. market is only just recovering. Consumer spending, the backbone of the U.S. economy, is seeing a rebound. But, it is still way below the pre-crisis levels. Europe is even worse. With all the troubles that the continent has been growing through, it looks like a recovery is a long way off. This leaves the company with just the Asian markets. In fiscal 2010, the company took contro! l of the Asian operations and this gives a signal that it is ready to focus more on these markets. This is a step in the right direction.
The stock has seen a lot of price fluctuations in the past year. It has a 52-week range of $48.07-$95.59. The stock has a beta of 1.60. Currently, the stock is trading above its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
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