While most investors are fretting the markets recent contraction, you can be quite confident that "my pal Warren" has a smile on his face, as does Peter Lynch, Ken Heebner, Bill Miller, Bruce Berkowitz, and any number of fellow value investors that know now may be a time of opportunity. That is because they have the experience and understanding to pounce when they have a chance to buy things cheap.

This is the fourth installment of my series to discover just that: cheap stocks. If you would like to get on board from the beginning then review the initial post which screened for stocks with lower than market average P/E ratios, see Serious Money: Market Looks Cheap to Me -- 35 Stocks. In the second installment, I looked at yield and PEG ratios: Serious Money: Still Cheap Market -- 35 Stocks + Yields & Growth. Then I moved on to the the P/S and P/CF metrics in Serious Money: Cheapest Stocks Yet -- From 35 to 26, cutting nine stocks.

Yesterday Hasbro, Inc. (HAS) reported 2009 fourth quarter and full-year results.

For the fourth quarter 2009, the Company reported net revenues of $1.38 billion, an increase of $144.1 million or 12%, compared to $1.23 billion a year ago. 2009 fourth quarter revenues grew 7% excluding a $55.4 million positive impact of foreign exchange. The Company reported net earnings for the quarter of $165.6 million or $1.09 per diluted share, an increase of $72.0 million or 77%, compared to $93.6 million or $0.62 per diluted share in 2008.

The strong results in a bad year support my contention that today's stock market, even in these uncertain times, does have plenty of bargains.

Last Thursday, MEMC Electronic Materials (WFR) announced that CEO Ahmad Chatila won't be accepting a $500,000 bonus for 2009. Instead, the money will go to retraining 450 workers that will be laid off from two plant closings. This story somehow has flown under the radar and did not get the attention it deserves.

Like many companies last year, MEMC did not meet its performance targets for 2009. And still no different than many other companies, it, too, decided to award more than $600,000 in bonuses, using "discretionary authority." These bonuses were awarded "in consideration of achievement of individual performance objectives."

It sometimes is a small, unpredicted event that moves markets. Today it was Jean-Claude Trichet, the president of the European Central Bank. He unexpectedly left a meeting in Australia to attend special meeting of European leaders to address the region's economy.

That was the trigger that shot off a turnaround in world markets. Stocks and commodities are trading higher in anticipation that the Greek sovereign debt problem will be dealt with. The U.S. market, just opened, did it with a bang as the Dow industrials more than recovered its triple digit loss from Monday to be back above the 10,000 mark.

American Airlines (AMR) has become about as low-rent as one could imagine. I can stomach paying to check bags and for snacks. To me, it makes sense, as they provide important revenue streams and strike me as products and services for which it's possible to charge with little disruption to the passenger experience.

But, as of May 1, 2010, the airline will be charging $8 for a blanket and inflatable neck pillow on flights lasting more than two hours – including flights to Hawaii, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America. But, for your trouble, American will toss in a $10 coupon towards a purchase of more than $30 from Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY).

Of course, on flights lasting less than two hours, American's policy is BYO. If you want to stay warm, cram your own blanket into your carry-on.

CVS Caremark (CVS), which competes with Walgreen (WAG), Rite Aid (RAD), and Wal-Mart (WMT), posted fourth-quarter data on Monday. Sales increased 7%, and adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations (excluding, in addition, a penny per share relating to a tax benefit) came in at 78 cents -- good for a growth rate of over 11%. That bottom-line performance matched analyst projections, according to our earnings preview.

As we all know, matching expectations is sometimes the death of a stock. The market has no conscience when it comes to mercilessly punishing an equity for not going beyond the call of the analysts. However, CVS actually did pretty well yesterday, rising 5% by the end of the session; the move was backed by healthy volume.

U.S. stock futures advanced Tuesday, a day after the Dow Jones Industrial Average finished below the 10,000 mark for the first time since early November. With investors encouraged by signs the EU could bail out Greece, bargain hunters searched for deals following the selloff.

U.S. stocks dropped Monday for the third time in four sessions, with the S&P 500 falling 0.9% and the Dow industrials falling over 100 points, or 1%. Concerns about European debt weighed on Wall Street as was the outlook for the U.S. economy, especially in light of reports that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will begin laying the groundwork for credit tightening later in the year.

So, on Friday I took a look at the potential of some Super Bowl advertisements, which leaves today to digest the commercials and say who we thought had the best commercial.

First things first, congratulations New Orleans -- what a win. Second of all, I need to make an editorial comment before I reveal my thoughts on the best commercial: what's up with all the guys in their underwear? I saw enough tighty whities in the span of two minutes during the first half to last the rest of my life. I know one thing, I am not going to go to CareerBuilder.com or wear Dockers thanks to the visage of pasty white men in their underwear standing at the water cooler or singing about pants.

One of the world's preeminent economists and former central bankers had some good news and not-so-good news for investors.

Speaking on NBC's Meet The Press on Sunday, Former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said, "The recession is over. It bottomed back in the middle of the year."

However, Greenspan added that, as many economists agree, the economic recovery will have to continue for some time to absorb the slack in the labor force to lower the U.S. unemployment rate significantly.

This is a fascinating story -- a behind-the-scenes scenario that is the stuff of conspiracies.

During the housing bubble, a huge number of questionable mortgages were created in what is called the subprime market. Many of the home buyers had shaky credit and, eventually, fell into foreclosure. Goldman Sachs (GS) held some of these securities but wanted protection against default. Where do you buy such insurance? American International Group (AIG), of course.

Under the terms of the insurance, Goldman was entitled to collect payments if the securities fell below certain agreed-upon values. You guessed it. When the housing bubble started to burst, Goldman demanded $2 billion from AIG to cover its losses.

Even though the economy is still sluggish, things are much better than a year ago, when it looked like the global financial system was about to fall apart. In fact, it may be a good idea to expand your business.

Keep in mind that during times of big change, there are also big opportunities. However, to take advantage of these, you really need to go beyond your own abilities. In other words, you need to think about hiring.

Unfortunately, the hiring process is scary and complicated -- with many rules and risks. But an excellent new book can help out: Hire Your First Employee (get your free copy). Actually, I had a chance to talk to the author, Rhonda Abrams.

Quarterly reports continue to roll out this week, with results due from Allstate Corp. (ALL), Coca-Cola Co. (KO), Marriott International Inc. (MAR), Molson Coors Brewing Co. (TAP), New York Times Co. (NYT), Pepsico Inc. (PEP), Sprint Nextel Corp. (S), Viacom (VIA), Walt Disney Co. (DIS) and many others. Here's a look at a few of the companies that analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect to be the biggest earnings gainers this week.

Analysts are looking for Coinstar Inc. (CSTR), which distributes coin-counting, DVD-rental, and other self-service kiosks, to report that its fourth-quarter earnings more than doubled from a year ago to $0.32 per share. Revenue for the three months that ended in December is expected to have jumped 26.1% to $329.2 million. The analysts' forecast for the full year calls for earnings of $0.94 per share (+46.8%) on $1.2 billion in revenue (+25.9%). Coinstar has beat earnings estimates in the past three quarters, by as much as six cents per share.

Investors and traders are in a quandary, trying to figure out if the economy is, indeed, improving.

One measure of growth is consumer spending. Consumer spending accounts for 70% of GDP, and it is the engine that has kept the economy growing over the past decade.

Well, consumer credit has fallen for eleven straight months. The recession has taken a harsh toll on the consumer. We have about 17 million people out of work. These persons certainly are spending only for basic necessities.

Toyota Motors (TM) has a problem. Accelerators on eight models of its cars can stick, causing the car to race forward. It's a dangerous problem, and many owners are afraid to drive their Camrys. This is the world's largest car company with one of the largest car recalls in history. Dealers are closed down for several weeks. New cars aren't being sold. And it's not only the drivers and dealers that are nervous. So are investors.

As a complete contrast, look at Ford (F). It announced a 25% increase in sales in January, selling 116,534 cars and trucks in one month, up from 93,506 same period last year. And most importantly, it was the new cars that lead the way, not SUV's or trucks. Cars were up 43% with SUVs ahead by 8%. Crossovers (the new station wagons, mini SUVs) increased by 20%, and trucks went ahead by 14%.

There have been no problems selling big-ticket ads for this weekend's broadcast of Super Bowl XLIV. And with good reason -- this has been one of the best years for football on television, with viewership up across the board. The recent NFC and AFC championship games were the NFL's largest combined audience for the two championship games since January 1982.

With all those eyeballs, the real winners could turn out to be the companies with the most aggressive (and the most memorable) advertising spots.