"Among contrarians, one advisors stands out among all others: David Dreman," notes John Reese, editor of the Validea newsletter.

His advisory service selects stocks based on the strategies of time-tested investors, he reviews Dreman's approach and offers one stock that matches the contrarian's investment profile -- specialty metals firm, Allegheny Technologies (NYSE: ATI).

"Dreman, perhaps more than any other guru I follow, is a student of investor psychology. And at the core of his research is the belief that investors tend to overvalue the 'best' stocks -- those 'hot' stocks everyone seems to be buying -- and undervalue the 'worst' stocks -- those that people are avoiding like the plague.

"In addition, he also believed that the market was driven largely by how investors reacted to 'surprises', frequent events that include earnings reports that exceed or fall short of expectations, government actions, or news about new products.

"And, he believed that analysts were more often than not wrong about their earnings forecasts, which leads to a lot of these surprises. By taking a contrarian approach -- i.e. targeting out-of-favor stocks and avoiding in-favor stocks -- Dreman found you could make a killing.

"To find out-of-favor potential turnarounds, he compared a stock's price to four fundamentals: earnings, cash flow, book value, and dividend yield. Because Dreman took advantage of the overreactions of others, he found that one of the best times to invest was during a crisis.

"Allegheny Technologies is a diversified specialty metals producer; its metals are selected for use in environments that demand metals having hardness, toughness, strength, resistance to heat, corrosion or abrasion, or a combination of these characteristics.

Continue reading Allegheny Technologies (ATI): A 'Dreman style' contrarian buy

Allegheny Technologies (ATI): A 'Dreman style' contrarian buy originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 25 Nov 2008 14:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Allegheny Technologies (NYSE: ATI) produces specialty metals. Products include titanium and titanium alloys, nickel-based alloys and superalloys, stainless and specialty steels, tungsten materials, zirconium, hafnium and niobium. The steels, the nickel alloys and the titanium alloys are offered as plate, sheet, engineered strip, precision rolled strip, and grain-oriented electrical products. The company also offers forgings and castings. Its biggest customers are in the aerospace, chemical process, and oil and gas industries.

Investors were pleased earlier in the week, when Allegheny issued upside EPS guidance for Q2. Management said it expected $1.65-$1.67, up from its earlier view that earnings would be somewhat higher than the $1.40 per share of Q1. The Street had been looking for $1.53. The CEO noted that the firm's risk management programs were reducing the impact of volatile input costs.

Continue reading Allegheny Technologies (ATI): Price defines bullish 'flag' formation

Allegheny Technologies (ATI): Price defines bullish 'flag' formation originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 17 Jul 2008 13:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

After hitting a one-year high of $119.7 last April, the stock hit a one-year low of $59.00 in January. ATI opened this morning at $79.00. So far today the stock has hit a low of $79.00 and a high of $84.22. As of 1:15, ATI is trading at $83.39, up $3.39 (4.3%). The chart for ATI looks bullish and steady, while S&P gives the stock a neutral 3 Stars (out of 5) Hold rating.

Continue reading Allegheny Tech (ATI) jumps on takeover rumors

Allegheny Tech (ATI) jumps on takeover rumors originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 08 Apr 2008 14:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Deutsche Bank upgraded China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (NYSE: SNP) to Buy from Hold on valuation following the recent sell-off.
• ThinkEquity upgraded Syniverse Holdings Inc (NYSE: SVR) to Buy from Accumulate citing growth from further price reductions and adoption of new technologies that will drive transaction volumes.
• Allegheny Technologies Incorporated (NYSE: ATI) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Goldman.The firm upgraded Allegheny based on valuation, low stainless steel inventories, and nickel price stabilization.

• Napster Inc (NASDAQ: NAPS) was upgraded to Outperform from Peer Perform at Bear Stearns.
• Goldman raised Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) to Neutral from Sell.
• Johnson Controls Inc (NYSE: JCI) was upgrade to Buy from Add at Calyon.

Analyst upgrades: SNP, SVR and ATI originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 11 Feb 2008 09:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Allegheny Tech (ATI) plunges after cutting forecast originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 12 Oct 2007 11:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"At first glance, the upcoming Airbus A380 and the Boeing 787 Dreamliner planes look much like existing commercial models - but nothing could be further from the truth," says energy and resource industry expert Elliott Gue.

In Personal Finance, the editor notes, "Both are 20% to 30% more fuel efficient than any planes currently flying, due largely to lightweight composite materials."

Composites, he notes, are formed from two dissimilar materials -- usually a reinforcing fiber and an adhesive epoxy or resin, with carbon-fiber composite being the most commonly used in aircraft construction.

And it's not just airplanes that use these advanced materials; Gue observes, "Wind-power blades, oil rigs and sporting equipment all use high-strength, space-age materials. That spells soaring demand and solid growth for a handful of companies involved in their manufacture."

For those looking to invest in the "composite" industry, the advisor offers a trio of ideas. First is Hexcel (NYSE: HXL), the world's largest producer of "prepregs" for the aerospace industry. Prepregs, he explains, are woven carbon-fiber sheets that when chilled remain flexible and can be bent to shape or pressed into molds.

Gue says, "Outside aerospace, the wind power industry is fast becoming Hexcel's most important source of revenues. In fact, wind power is the company's fastest-growing major source of revenue; Hexcel projects at least mid-teens growth from that line this year.

Continue reading Flying high: Investing in 'composite' metals

Flying high: Investing in 'composite' metals originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 24 May 2007 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Stock futures are mixed in early morning trade, pointing to a similar start for the S&P 500 and a lower start for the Nasdaq.

A few economic reports are due out today that could affect trading while homebuilder Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE:TOL) said when reporting financial results this morning that it appears the housing slump has bottomed out.

Economic data will begin pouring when at 8:30 a.m. Eastern, third-quarter productivity and unit labor costs will be revised up to 0.5% gain from a flat initial reading. At 10:00 a.m., October factory orders will be reported with an expected 4% decline. The November Institute of Supply Management survey is also due at that time and is expected to decline to 55.5% from 57.1%.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index reached a new 52-week high yesterday with Bank of New York (NYSE:BK) stock surging 12% to close at $39.75 and Allegheny Technologies Inc. (NYSE: ATI) stocks gaining nearly 7% percent, to finish at $93.92. LSI Logic Corp. (NYSE:LSI) shares on the other hand, fell nearly 14%, to close at $9.12.

Today also, New York City is set to vote on the blanket ban on trans fat use in all restaurants, eateries and bakeries.

Companies making the headlines today:

Luxury home builder Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE:TOL) reported its fourth-quarter financial results. Profit was lower, down by 44%. Earnings fell to $173.8 million, or $1.07 per share, beating analyst forecast by a penny.

Ford Motor Co. (NYSE:F) will offer about $3 billion 30-year unsecured senior convertible notes. Ford will also sell its climate control business to Valeo SA, a French automotive supply company, contingent on agreements with the UAW. Ford shares are down more than 1.5% in pre-market.

Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. (NASDAQ:SIRI) lowered its year-end 2006 subscriber forecast late last night, due to lower sales since Thanksgiving than the company had anticipated. SIRI stocks are down nearly 6.5% in pre-market.

Reckson Associates Realty Corp. (NYSE:RA) turned down a $4.3 billion takeover proposal from the investor Carl Icahn, preferring a similar takeover proposal from S.L. Green Realty (NYSE:SLG).

Before the bell 12-5-06: Futures mixed before start originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 05 Dec 2006 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.