Here's is my quick form strategy for investing during an Obama presidency:
Health care stocks should perform well under an Obama administration. It has been made clear that within the next four years our healthcare system shall be taking on a radical new form. There is certain to be a massive infusion of new money into the sector. I would hasten to clarify that pharmaceutical stocks might not be the angle that you want to play here. I would lean more towards hospitals and long-term care providers. Check out this analysis from Kiplinger, to get yourself started.
Next, I'd be looking at infrastructure plays. I'd focus on materials, procurement, and construction, as they relate to roads, tunnels and bridges. This play will be more dangerous in the near term, as these types of expenditures will be more dependent on governmental budgetary processes, rather than executive edict. Jim Cramer recently offered some input about infrastructure. You might want to check out his suggestions. Then, you can find information about building an infrastructure position at TheStreet.com. Additionally, here's a great list of infrastructure companies which has been provided by Seeking Alpha.
To me, perhaps the most important investment angle to play through the next administration will be alternative energy stocks. I expect that there will be a great deal of money moving in there. Ethanol is said to be a sure thing. I myself am not so positive about that. Oh, we can be sure that there will be plenty of ethanol to go around. However, I don't see much financial return in it at the investor's level. I lean towards solar plays, and to a lesser degree, I like wind power. You can get a good feel for alternative energy direction by reviewing The Pickens Plan. There is no shortage of companies to invest in if you're looking for alternative energy plays. You can easily start your stock picking hunt by checking out the companies which are included in the Wilderhill Clean Energy Index.
As always, stock portfolio success begins with good research. Hopefully, I've given you some quality leads to get started with. When all is said and done, history clearly shows that the markets flourish under administrations controlled by the democrats. Let's hope to God that this time around won't be the exception.
Finally, a plan that isn't elegant and dreamed up by a Federal Reserve that doesn't want to do anything but behind-the-scenes liquidity injections that have failed miserably and auction facilities that have done nothing.
Now, we just let the government own big stakes in banks in return for money and a pledge that they won't hoard it but lend it.
The European plan is simple: Give money to the banks, take shares back, and start the process over. If you graft that on the American plan to allow banks to sell bad real estate loans then you get a fighting chance to stabilize the system.
This scheme is a heck of a lot better than all of the little things that Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has wanted to do to keep banks in business, and it also gives the banks a bridge before TARP kicks in.
Of course, it is pure socialism, so I suspect that somehow our government will screw it up in the name of laissez-faire free-market principles. But we are way too far along to quibble. I also expect that it will be perceived as a bank bailout, to which I say, again, "So what? We have spent more than a trillion dollars trying to avoid one and that hasn't worked."
I've been critical of allegedly steroid-pumping baseball player turned options trader turn TheStreet.com pundit Lenny Dykstra for awhile. I recently asked "Do you really want to take options trading advice from a guy who got his job as an investment guru at least in part because he sent Jim Cramer's sister a signed poster?"
Now Forbes is making a startling accusation: "Yet a close look at Dykstra's portfolio raises doubts about whether the baseball All-Star turned TheStreet.com (NASDAQ: TSCM) guru has been picking many of those stocks or relying on a seasoned stand-in."
The juicy dirt comes from a lawsuit filed against the former slugger by Doubldown Media, a publisher that had been collaborating with Dykstra on a newslettter: "At Dykstra's insistence, Doubledown began negotiations to pay Richard Suttmeier, a stock analyst, to provide Dykstra with research assistance for the Dykstra Report and who, upon information and belief learned subsequently, provided Dykstra lists of recommended stocks daily."
David Einhorn has one of the better money management track records of anyone in the business and has also made headlines with his efforts to expose alleged fraud at Allied Capital (NYSE: ALD). If you haven't read his book on that company, it's probably the best investment title of the year.
Einhorn recently sat down for an interview with TheStreet.com (you can watch it below). He's long Target (NYSE: TGT) and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) but is still short some of the badly beaten down financial stocks and credit rating agencies. He's bearish on stocks that are trading at high multiples in anticipation of a second-half recovery, something he is "not so sure about."
CNet's Web sites include News.com, TV.com, Mp3.com, MySimon and GameSpot. And CBS expects to use CNet to tap into the Internet advertising market. This deal raises the question of whether any CBS competitors will decide to get into the game of buying Internet content companies.
Here are three possible targets:
TheStreet.com (NASDAQ: TSCM) - This provider of business, investment and ratings content has $65 million in sales and a market cap of $236 million.
TechTarget (NASDAQ: TTGT) - This provider of online content for buyers and sellers of corporate information technology (IT) products has $95 million in sales and a $531 million market cap.
WebMD Health Corp (NASDAQ: WBMD) - This provider health information services to consumers, physicians and other healthcare professionals, employers and health plans has $332 million in sales and it's market capitalization is $1.7 billion
I think traditional media companies buying Internet ones could become a trend. It would only take two more such deals to make it one.
I'm puzzled by a lot of things about the market, but the ascent of former Major League Baseball All-Star Lenny Dykstra to the throne of options trading pundit is pretty interesting.
He writes regularly for TheStreet.com (NASDAQ: TSCM), with a focus on the trading of deep in the money calls, one of the less risky options trading strategies out there. A 2006 look at his background in Fortune summed his market experience up this way: "After his mutual funds tanked, Lenny Dykstra leaned on some heavy hitters to transform him from an ex-major leaguer to a minor-league stock picker. At the time, he was talking to the reporter about a stock he owned called Lipid Sciences (NASDAQ: LIPD), which has steadily declined in value since that article. It was the only stock he owned.
Outside of his columns and appearances on CNBC, Mr. Dykstra's media attention has been less than positive. His name appears 28 times in the Mitchell Report on steroid use in baseball, but he declined to speak with Mitchell's team. In an affidavit, for Major Leaguer and steroid user Jason Grimsley accused Dykstra of using steroids.
'Tis the season to celebrate the spirit of giving and how better to do that than to give you a great stock pick – financial information provider TheStreet.com (NASDAQ: TSCM). This is my first pick in a series of picks that will highlight companies that are redefining their respective niches and, more importantly, whose stocks are breaking out to new highs.
Everybody's familiar with TheStreet.com; if you're into the stock market, you've definitely read, heard or watched co-founder Jim Cramer by now – he's even here on BloggingStocks. TheStreet.com has many other commentators, too, but c'mon, this is basically a one man show – and therein lies the risk. Then there's the potential for a bear market, which (as CNBC, owned by General Electric (NYSE: GE) has learned over the years) crushes profits. Wait a minute; I'm positive on this company, right? Yes. Here's the good news: this company has a lot going for it.
Revenue and profit growth have been steady in the mid-20% range, and the stock is fairly valued for that range. But TheStreet.com is also shifting its focus to take advantage of the interactive nature of the internet. In the coming months, it'll be launching a redesigned TheStreet.com (apparently, it's not even search engine optimized!), along with a new site, MainStreet.com. It also has been on an acquisition spree, buying Stockpickr.com (an interactive stock idea community with 125,000+ users) and Corsis (web marketing). Further acquisitions are guaranteed considering just last month the company more than doubled its near $40 million war chest by selling a minority stake to a private equity firm.
TheStreet.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSCM): A volatile market must have helped this company. Shares jumped to $16.23 against a 52-week low of $8.20.
ShengdaTech, Inc. (NASDAQ: SDTH): Got approval for a critical patent. Jumped to $10.56 from 52-low of $3.55.
C.R. Bard, Inc (NYSE: BCR): This company predicted a strong 2008 at an analysts meeting. Traded up to $91.65 from a 52-week low of $76.61.
Archer Daniels Midland Company (NYSE: ADM): Archer moved up on news that the government would make offer incentives to biotech companies. Rose to $41.70 from a 52-week low of $30.20.
Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.
But there is one phenomenal property here: AOL's Advertising.com platform showed an entire reach of 159,204,000. That is roughly an 87% reach of the estimated 182+ million users in the U.S. measured by comScore.
The thing to watch is that ALL ratings and measurement companies give different data. comScore's data is based on a global cross-section of more than 2 million consumers who have given comScore permission to confidentially capture their browsing and transaction behavior. That means there can always be some slippage and mis-measurements, but this still gives a decent ballpark figure of web usage and web reach.
If you look at the data, this also bodes well for Jim Cramer & Co. over at TheStreet.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSCM). The financial web site owner showed a 125% gain in unique visitors with a 125% gain to more than 8.9 million unique visitors.
Nutritional and personal care products developer USANA Health Sciences (NASDAQ: USNA) has been upgraded to a buy from a hold. Its revenue increased by 16.9% in the third quarter compared with the same period last year. Earnings improved to 70 cents a share from 55 cents per share over the same timeframe.
The company's return on equity improved to 184.53% in the third quarter compared with 78.97%, a signal of significant strength within the corporation. This return on equity greatly exceeds that of both the industry average and the S&P 500. USANA Health had been rated a hold since August 2007.
All of that is true and, as investors, we all know that a company that can earn high returns on equity is a wonderful thing indeed. If you don't believe me, take a look at the writings of Peter Lynch, Warren Buffett, Bill Miller, and just about any other great investor.
But at some point, a high return on equity becomes a red flag for fraud and/or an unsustainable business model. Can a company's management/business model be so amazing that the company can earn returns many times greater than industry peers or that market as a whole -- without any particularly important patents or competitive advantages to speak of? Does TheStreet.com really think that a ROE of 184.53% is sustainable? Are Dave Wentz and Gil Fuller (Usana's President and CFO, respectively) really more than eight times as good at deploying capital as Warren Buffett?
Moody's Corporation (NYSE: MCO) is considering issuing assessments of how complex financial instruments would behave in a liquidity crisis, which could be issued in addition to traditional ratings, reported the Financial Times (subscription required).
OTHER PAPERS:
The Reserve Bank of India may block Citigroup Inc's (NYSE: C) proposal to buy an additional 3% stake in India's National Stock Exchange, reported the Business Standard.
WEBSITES:
TheStreet.com reported that Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) will deliver a faster, third-generation version of the iPhone in Q1 of next year, according to sources.
TheStreet.com also reported that Apple is planning to make more iPhones than previously planned in its first quarter ending December 31, according to a source.
This post is part of our Money Face-Offs feature. Let us know who you think comes out ahead in this head-to-head match-up, and check out our other Money Face-Off posts.
Worlds apart, Cramer and Orman speak to totally different classes of investors. Jim Cramer is the fast-talking showman talking primarily about stocks and Suze Orman is a slow-talking educator preferring funds. While Cramer likes to jump around playing with bells and whistles, Orman is making sure she speaks clearly and enunciates to her audience so they can understand and follow along.
The biggest difference between the two gurus is that Orman is interested in what you do with 90% of your assets and Cramer is only interested in the 10% Mad Money. Orman talks about getting people started on actually thinking about their personal finances and financial well-being. Cramer is interested in the sport of investing. He gets a rush from the whole subject. Orman is in no rush and much more sedate. Clearly Orman offers far more sound advice in the form of broad investing principles you can live by year in and year out with a minimal amount of work. That said, watching her is like going to your history and geography class. Valuable information, but not the highest form of entertainment. Cramer is a stock trader, and that fact by itself has proven to be harmful to most investors, even professionals. But his investment broadcasts are more like visiting the sports book in Las Vegas with 100 games in play at the same time.
When I hear Jim Cramer speak lately in interviews it is a forgone conclusion that he anticipates that either he will quit due to burnout when it is no longer fun, or he will simply sputter away after pushing his show so far off the edge of zaniness that there remains nothing left to do and viewers move on to something else. He oftens mentions that it can't last forever. And it certainly can't stay fresh forever. This is not an obituary for his CNBC show. Only the recognition that all things must end and Cramer brings it up all too often.
He could never do four decades like Louis Rukeyser, who was America's most popular economic commentator. This when Cramer was just opening his eyes and knew nothing of the world of finance.
I admire Cramer's work ethic and his candor in calling it like he see's it on "Mad Money" and in interviews. Cramer is real. There will be no other. He has done such a good job being real that often it is not what he says anymore, it's just him, like the stand up comic that is on a role and is funny no matter he says. Its just him. It seems to me that not only is Cramer a "what you see is what you get" kind of guy, but who he is permeates everything he does. He could never be a 'buy and hold' guy. He is a 'trader' through and through. He needs the action. It's a sport and he needs the rush.
Shares of Gateway Inc. (NYSE: GTW) soared on Monday when the company agreed to be acquired by Acer for $1.90 per share. The stock closed at $1.85 on Tuesday, a spread of a little less than 3% below the expected closing price.
According to TheStreet.com, there may be more to come. Senior writer Alexei Oreskovic cites an unnamed source who claims that the deal has an out for Gateway if it can find a superior offer, and Chinese Lenovo would appear to be a possible contender.
While the Acer deal presented a huge premium over the stock's most recent closing price prior to the announcement -- more than 50% -- it's actually lower than the stock was trading as recently as May. Even with the deal, there are still a lot of shareholders underwater, and that could spark a shareholder rebellion of sorts. Gateway is in the early stages of a turnaround, and I know many investors had a long-term target much higher than $1.90.
Shares of Gateway, at their current price, may represent a low-risk speculative opportunity. The worst-case scenario (barring something really bizarre) is that you can tender the shares for $1.90 when the deal closes. If another bidder emerges, there could be tremendous upside.
Here's is my quick form strategy for investing during an Obama presidency:
Finally, a plan that isn't elegant and dreamed up by a Federal Reserve that doesn't want to do anything but behind-the-scenes liquidity injections that have failed miserably and auction facilities that have done nothing. 
I'm puzzled by a lot of things about the market, but the ascent of former Major League Baseball All-Star Lenny Dykstra to the throne of options trading pundit is pretty interesting.
TheStreet.com
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Worlds apart, Cramer and Orman speak to totally different classes of investors. Jim Cramer is the fast-talking showman talking primarily about stocks and Suze Orman is a slow-talking educator preferring funds. While Cramer likes to jump around playing with bells and whistles, Orman is making sure she speaks clearly and enunciates to her audience so they can understand and follow along.
Shares of 
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Closing Bell: Torch Passing on a Friday Rally
