StockWatch: Between the Bells with Amey Stone


Looking for stocks to stick under the family Miracle Tree? In this edition of StockWatch: Between the Bells, Amey Stone, business author and editor of BloggingStocks, shares a few stock plays for the holiday season.

Won't your little rocker be stoked if you take a stake in Activision (NASDAQ: ATVI)? The long-time video game maker has had monster success with its Guitar Hero franchise and should enjoy heavy Christmas sales of the latest volume, Guitar Hero III. For the fashionable in your family, Amey suggests Deckers Outdoors (NASDAQ: DECK), makers of the popular Ugg boots. Deckers' shares slipped a little at mid-month but are recently back on the rise.



Also parents, Amey suggests you stuff those stockings with savings bonds, and teach those kids the virtue of patience and how to appreciate appreciation.

Of course, Amey has her inner Grinch as well, and bears a sack full of bad news. With an ever-slowing economy and continuing crises in real estate and the credit markets, Amey calls this unquestionably a bear market. With belts tightened this holiday, she suggests you avoid Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), Sears (NASDAQ: SHLD) and other low-cost retailers, as well as chain discounters like Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR) and Family Dollar (NYSE: FDO). As an alternative, Amey recommends looking at upscale department store Nordstrom (NYSE: JWN); the higher-end buyers served by the luxury retailer are less likely to be impacted by rising oil and gas prices.

Amey also sees more bumps ahead for the financial sector, and echoes other StockWatch contributors that it's too soon to return to depressed financial players like Citigroup (NYSE: C) and JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM).

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IndexesChangePrice
DJIA-127.4512,763.01
NASDAQ-22.982,904.25
S&P 500-11.291,340.66

Last updated: February 10, 2012: 03:07 PM

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