Obama stock: Alternative profits from 'New Energy' policy

Posted Oct 11th 2008 4:00PM by Steven Halpern
Filed under: Mutual Funds, Green Stocks

This post is part of a series in which TheStockAdvisors.com asked financial experts to name their top stock pick if McCain or if Obama wins the election.

"An Obama presidency would likely mean more to the alternative energy industry than any other factor to date; to benefit from an Obama victory, we would buy Market Vectors Global Alternative Energy (NYSE: GEX)," says Paul Tracy, editor of The Street Authority Market Advisor.

"Obama's 'New Energy for America' plan will aim to put 1 million plug-in hybrid cars on the roads by 2015, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050 and ensure 25% of our electricity comes from renewable sources by 2025.

"Obviously, to enact such a bold plan would take a massive investment and mean billions for companies involved in the still-fledgling alternative energy field.

"And while investors can certainly pick and choose between individual companies with exposure to the sector, several ETFs have popped up that offer broad exposure to the industry. In particular, I like Market Vectors Global Alternative Energy.

"With this ETF, shareholders have a healthy stake in hydroelectric power generators, solar cells, as well as some exposure to gasoline alternatives such as ethanol and fuel cells.

"GEX shies away from micro-cap companies with unproven business models and loads up on larger, more-established players -- more than half of its assets are invested in companies with market caps of $6 billion or greater.

"The fund is also more geographically diversified than many competitive offerings, with roughly 70% of the portfolio invested overseas.

"That foreign exposure will likely give GEX an edge, considering the United States is still behind the alternative energy curve in some respects compared to many countries throughout Europe and Asia.

"With Obama touting the need for alternative energies in our economy, investing in the sector is one of the closest 'sure things' in the investment world should he be elected.

"But rather than trying to decipher which company is best suited to outperform, investing in a fund like GEX allows you to simply profit from the entire sector."

Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com offers a daily look at the latest market commentary and favorite stock picks and investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

Tags: alternative energy, AlternativeEnergy, Barack Obama, BarackObama, GEX, Market Vectors Global Alternative Energy, MarketVectorsGlobalAlternativeEnergy, Obama

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

10-11-2008 @ 4:27PM

Jason said...

There are approxiamtely 250 million registered cars in the U.S. It's going to take Obama 7 years to put 1 million hybrids on the roads? 7 years to affect .4% of the car population? Change you can believe in...HA! He won't even be in office more than 4 if he gets elected.

10-11-2008 @ 5:55PM

Mike Sanders said...

I'm still undecided... I was LONG McCain, to start, then I went LONG on Obama, but since Obama has been rising so quickly, I believe him to be overvalued, at this point. Being a contrarian, I sold everything that I had in Obama, on Friday. Obama could still keep rising, but I sense a bubble... I'm not ready to SHORT Obama, but I did pick up a little McCain, Friday afternoon. I intend to cautiously accumulate McCain, in the coming week... If I see a double-top in Obama's polling, I may go SHORT on Obama (this is risky, since if Obama would happen to win by a landslide, I could be wiped out!). I'll probably hold McCain, going into the week prior to the election, then pick up a small position in Obama, just to hedge myself. If things become too volitile, I may just go to cash, and sit out this election.

11-07-2008 @ 7:41PM

James Hardy said...

It’s precisely these kinds of “heretical” approaches that we live for. Not dismiss it because on the face it appears to be a gross violation of laws of physics.

My imagination is big enough to allow for the possibility that the influx of energy is probably taking place in the electromagnetic set-up. Tesla was creating a system that would transmit unlimited power unlimited distances. If someone may have come up with a receiver apparatus that somehow harnesses some kind of natural electromagnetic force, we should be standing at full attention.

We should not be too concerned about what the academic community might think of us, thereby shying away from association with something like this. This is what being part of a “two steps ahead” group is about. Yes, it narrows our audience and reach, but it also puts us in a position to birddog the true breakthrough, which more likely than not will come across as heretical.

11-07-2008 @ 7:44PM