Continue reading Serious Money: Five more high yield, safe, diversified stocks -- Part 2

Serious Money: Five more high yield, safe, diversified stocks -- Part 2 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 14 Jul 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Serious Money: Six stocks paying over 6% yields: VZ, DUK, MO, KMP, BWP, NLY

Serious Money: Six stocks paying over 6% yields: VZ, DUK, MO, KMP, BWP, NLY originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The stock market has enjoyed a strong rally the past ten weeks, even with a few very minor setbacks. If you were in the market, you enjoyed it too.

It is more likely that the market will become somewhat volatile for the rest of the year rather than continue to rise substantially, barring some outlier. For this reason I have been emphasizing to our readers that they focus their attention on creating a watchlist of stocks they would like to acquire, potentially at great discount for the long haul.

I started this recent series last week with Serious Money: Keep your eyes on UPS and FDX, focusing on large cap stocks certain to make it through these difficult times.

Continue reading Serious Money: Duke Energy & Southern 'Power-Full'

Serious Money: Duke Energy & Southern 'Power-Full' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 21 May 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading After the rally comes the tally

After the rally comes the tally originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 11 May 2009 14:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• The books of Fannie Mae -- Federal National Mortgage Association (NYSE: FNM) -- and Freddie Mac -- Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (NYSE: FRE) -- are being examined by the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to review their financial condition, according to the Wall Street Journal.
• The Wall Street Journal also reported that the Chevy Volt, an electric car from General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM), is slated to roll out in two years and it received a major boost from 36 utilities that operate in 40 states who agreed to work together to make the plug-in vehicle possible. Among the utilities are American Electric Power Company Inc (NYSE: AEP), Consolidated Edison Inc (NYSE: ED), Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE: DUK), and Edison International (NYSE: EIX).
• Struggling mortgage lender Paragon is reportedly in talks with The Blackstone Group LP (NYSE: BX) about a potential takeover by Blackstone, the Financial Times reported.

• The New York Times reported that TiVo Inc (NASDAQ: TIVO) will today introduce a "product purchase" feature in partnership with Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN). Under TiVo's plan, the television remote control will be turned into a tool for buying products that are advertised and promoted on talk shows and commercials.

Newspaper wrap-up: Fed, Office of the Comptroller scrutinize Fannie, Freddie books originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 22 Jul 2008 08:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

I have not decided who I am voting for yet. Or maybe it would be more accurate to say I have decided on multiple occasions only to become undecided again. While some will see me as fickle, or worse, others may be in the same boat.

I am also continuing to think about what difference any of the candidates can make on the economy, and based on these musings, where to invest. My current belief is that none of them will have a profound impact on our economy.

There are no financial wizards among them. Here is the shocker though: I like all three candidates, or at least can find some good in each of them. Each of them is a fighter, and I believe each one of them brings certain skill sets to the job. There are also things about each candidate that are inescapably negative. Clinton has so much baggage, Zsa Zsa Gabor would be jealous. Obama does not have the experience and he has a degree of arrogance (right sweetie); McCain is an old stick-in-the-mud who, as a long-time senator, has spent more hours with lobbyists than almost anybody, though he is pretending otherwise.

Where does this leave me from an investment perspective? My first choice, for stability with moderate growth and dividends, remains the defense sector. I wrote Defense sector rolls over S&P 500 for 8th straight year a while back and I still think that it is the most secure. Here's why:

A) None of the candidates will want to appear soft on defense when we are at war, and all three have made threatening remarks in some country's direction to make sure the electorate knows that.

B) The War in Afghanistan and Iraq rages on, and even the most optimist view is that a draw-down will take years.

C) Even if all war ceased immediately, the upgrading and replenishment of the hardware will cost billions of dollars and most of the defense contractors have that in their backlogs now. Chasing Value: General Dynamics & Raytheon -- The defense does not rest

Continue reading Investing in Everyone: Defense, Food, Power, Clinton, Obama, and McCain

Investing in Everyone: Defense, Food, Power, Clinton, Obama, and McCain originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 27 May 2008 19:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Duke Energy (DUK) lifted by Q1 earnings

Duke Energy (DUK) lifted by Q1 earnings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 02 May 2008 14:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

For 25 years, Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, has surveyed the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is one of 100+ ideas in the Best Stocks for 2008 report.

"My favorite conservative recommendation for 2008 is Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK)," says Roger Conrad, editor of The Utility Forecaster.

"Like most electric utilities, Duke Energy faces a capital spending challenge in coming years, as it ramps up output to meet exploding future demand and meets new regulations on carbon dioxide. Unlike most, however, it's well positioned not only to meet the new rules but to profit from them.

"Duke's nuclear power plants have long been among the best-run in the industry. To them, the company has added a wind developer this year as well. But the real opportunity could well be in coal. In November, Duke won Indiana regulators' approval to build a 630 megawatt integrated gasification combined cycle plant (IGCC).

"By converting that state's coal to clean-burning gas, the plant will produce four times the electricity of the Edwardsville coal plant it will replace and 45% less carbon dioxide (CO2) per megawatt hour. That's not including the potential addition of CO2 capture technology.

Continue reading Best Stocks for 2008: Duke Energy (DUK) for investors of 'all stripes'

Best Stocks for 2008: Duke Energy (DUK) for investors of 'all stripes' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 19 Dec 2007 14:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The more questions you have these days about the investment world, and the more concerned you are about economy over the next few years, the more you should have some of your assets in electric utilities. Regardless if our nation makes a push toward nuclear, solar, or wind power or does nothing at all, electric utilities will remain the big players. Year in and year out they have a stable customer base, pay a higher dividend yield and have a much higher level of predictability than almost any other investment class.

Another factor that is likely to contribute to the growth of electric utilities is the push toward electric "plug-in" cars. I have not done any analysis as to how this will affect global warming, the price of gas, the quality of air, or total national energy consumption, but those issues aside, if we change even 25% of the nation's automobiles to all-electric over the next ten years, that is a lot of growth.

Historically, the Dow Jones Utilities Average has beaten the pants off the Dow Jones Industrial Average for total return. There are short periods of time when the Industrials jump past the Utilities, but over the long haul, investors have done much better with what seems like the less attention-grabbing, boring old utilities. Choosing boring stocks remind you of anyone? Yes, "My Pal Warren" has been buying these boring stocks over the last decade (adding to his others in chocolate, underwear, ice cream and insurance) and you can see the results in the five-year chart comparing the two Dow indices.

Continue reading Serious Money: Electric utilities are the place to be

Serious Money: Electric utilities are the place to be originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 20 Nov 2007 14:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Long-term trends look good for Duke Energy originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 14 Nov 2007 18:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This year has been a stock picker's market extraordinaire! This month's review provides ample evidence of this, as you'll note that Google (NASDAQ: GOOG), which I included for fun because of its popularity, beat all else as a portfolio of one. The average of my seven picks came in second, beating James Cramer's average based on his nine picks. Both Cramer and I beat each of the three indices I am tracking, and therefore beat the average as well, with the largest and most stable, the Standard & Poor's 500 coming in last.

Of course, this could easily change given recent market volatility. A sharp downturn in the market could reverse our fortunes. A lot can happen in the remaining two months -- I take nothing for granted.

While Google shined brightly this year, Cramer and I have each made one pick that shined brighter. Cramer's best, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) has gone into orbit this year on the wings of the iPhone, iPod, and growing Mac sales. Benefiting from rising oil prices, shortages in China and the Chinese government allowing a 10% price hike, my PetroChina ADR (NYSE: PTR) has rocketed, becoming the second-largest capitalized company in the world. PTR has done this even in the shadow of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A) selling its shares and Warren Buffett questioning the huge appreciation of the Chinese stock market and stocks overall.

Continue reading Chasing down 007 picks: AAPL +135%, PTR +85%, GOOG +53%, & VLO +36%

Chasing down 007 picks: AAPL +135%, PTR +85%, GOOG +53%, & VLO +36% originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 02 Nov 2007 14:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

No surprise the volatile James Cramer of TheStreet.com carries the burden of having made the best and worst picks for the year among those I've been tracking monthly. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), the best performer among all the stocks and indices in this review, has saved his rear throughout the year. In general, it has been a good year for energy and tech stocks. It has been a poor year for the financial sector, and as of August, for most of the Wall Street investment firms.

August had some gut wrenching moments but finished on a positive note. Still, the Dow Jones Industrial Average's 14,000 level has not been seen since the financial sector gave the bears something to grouse about. The housing market and subprime loans continue to worry the market, but no help is expected in the form of rate cut from the Federal Reserve.

Crude oil prices have been up slightly, but down at the pump even through the busy Labor Day weekend and even with continued turmoil in Iraq. All the speculation about a Dow 15,000...16,000...17,000 has come and gone and I have not read about such silliness lately.

Continue reading Chasing down 007 picks: GOOG tops, Cramer scrapes by indices

Chasing down 007 picks: GOOG tops, Cramer scrapes by indices originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 04 Sep 2007 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Duke Energy (DUK) earnings lower but still beat estimates originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 07 Aug 2007 12:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In January, Spectra Energy, the natural gas operator, will be going its own way as a separate company. Management believes this will be a catalyst to increase shareholder value. It has been reported in Barron's and elsewhere that senior managers holds a lot of stock themselves, so they have plenty of incentive to make this deal work. (Read the Company Profile).

I cannot say that DUK is cheap. It closed yesterday at $33.17, near its 52 week high of $34.50 and its P/E is 17.46 -- about average for large cap stocks, but high for a utility. The other metrics are also average, but there is plenty here to at least justify putting it on investors' watch list to facilitate picking some up on an off day or week. Come this time next year, I think it will be higher. Remember that utility companies have a captive audience -- I mean customer -- so there is some downside protection.

Duke Energy: Vote for this boring stock for 2007 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 28 Dec 2006 04:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Each year Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, surveys the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is part of his 24th annual Top Picks Report.

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK) is the top conservative investment for 2007 from Todd Salamone, editor of Equity WealthBuilder. He observes, "With the Dow utility average trading at all-time highs amid a low interest rate environment, it is amazing that utility stocks have received little attention.

"Meanwhile, Duke is a strong name in the sector. Not only does it offer strong capital appreciation potential, but the 3.87% yield rates among the top dividend yields in the group.

"In January 2007, the company plans on spinning off its natural gas operations into a new, publicly traded company called Spectra Energy. The move is designed to unlock value in both the natural-gas operation and the electric utility, with the streamlined businesses expected to operate more efficiently. This spin-off, therefore, is a positive catalyst for the upcoming year.

"From a technical perspective, DUK has become a relative-strength leader, outperforming the Dow Jones Utility Average since October 2005. Turning to DUK's sentiment backdrop, an earnings miss in early November 2006 did little to derail the shares.

Continue reading Top Picks 2007: Wealthbuilder energized over Duke

Top Picks 2007: Wealthbuilder energized over Duke originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 22 Dec 2006 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Today's notable initiations include NetFlix (NFLX) and Diamond Foods (DMND):

• Bank of America started NetFlix Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) with a Sell rating and $24 target, as they expect increasing subscriber acquisition costs and decreasing average revenue per subscriber to be challenging for the long-term;
• Diamond Foods Inc. (NASDAQ:DMND) was initiated with a Buy rating and $23 target at Oppenheimer, as the firm believes Diamond Foods has a solid core business and sees healthy growth with the Emerald products division.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• JB Hunt Transort Services Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) was initiated with a Hold rating at McDonald.
• Duke Energy Corp. Holding Co. (NYSE:DUK) was initiated with a Hold rating and $35 target at Deutsche Bank, citing valuation.
• JP Morgan initiated shares of International Coal Group Inc. (NYSE:ICO) with an Underweight rating, citing difficult business conditions for Central Appalachian coal miners.
• Rochdale initiated Cypress Semiconductor Inc. (NYSE:CY) with a Buy rating and $21 target; the firm believes new business, operating efficiencies and the SunPower (SPWR) investment will improve profitability in 2007.

Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).

Analyst initiations 12-14-06: NetFlix with Sell originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 14 Dec 2006 10:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Home Depot (HD) and Lowe's (LOW) led a modest downgrade list Monday, as the Dow and Nasdaq moved higher in early trading.

• UBS Investment downgraded to Reduce From Neutral both Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW), target lowered to $24 from $30, and Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD), target to $32 from $37, citing further weakness n the U.S. housing market.
• Bernstein downgraded both Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) to Underperform from Market Perform, target is $17; and National Semiconductor Corp. (NYSE:NSM), to Market Perform from Market Perform, target is $26, citing concerns over demand and inventory build in the sector.

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• BMO Capital downgraded Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) to Market Perform from Outperform, following Q3 results and due to the company's outlook.
• Finally, Matrix downgraded Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM), citing increased costs and valuation.

Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).

Analyst downgrades 11-6-06: Lowe's, Home Depot and Intel get downgraded originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 06 Nov 2006 10:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.