This post is part of Japan: A Special Report for Investors.

"Although some people may think it inappropriate, our job is to make readers aware of opportunities as they occur," says Glenn Rogers.

The contributing editor to Internet Wealth Builder explains, "Invariably, every major crisis creates such opportunities although they may only be suitable for aggressive investors. This one is no different.

"The question is: where to begin? Usually the best place to start is by looking at some of the securities that were hardest hit by the big sell-off that followed the disaster.

Continue reading Japan: Opportunities from Crisis

Japan: Opportunities from Crisis originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 25 Mar 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• Parker-Hannifin (PH) to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.
• JDSU (JDSU) to buy from hold at Citigroup.
• Noble Corp. (NE) to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan.
• Cerner (CERN) to buy from hold at Auriga.
• Cintas (CTAS) to outperform from neutral at RW Baird.
• American States Water (AWR) to buy from hold at Brean Murray.
• National Semiconductor (NSM) and Texas Instruments (TXN) to positive from neutral at Susquehanna.
• Lululemon (LULU) to buy from hold at ThinkEquity.
• DuPont Fabros (DFT) to top pick from outperform at RBC Capital.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: CERN, DFT, LVS, NE, NSM, OPEN, PH, QCOM, SHAW, TXN ...

Analyst Calls: CERN, DFT, LVS, NE, NSM, OPEN, PH, QCOM, SHAW, TXN ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 14 Mar 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"The global nuclear power industry is in the early stages of a multiyear growth spurt similar to what the industry experienced in the late 1970s and '80s," says energy sector expert Elliott Gue.

The editor of The Energy Strategist explains, "The nuclear renaissance will generate tremendous wealth for investors over the next few years. Two stocks that will benefit are Cameco (CCJ) and Shaw Group (SHAW).

"The nuclear power industry benefits from both a lack of dependence on imports as well as costs that don't vary excessively with commodity prices.

Continue reading Cameco (CCJ) and Shaw Group (SHAW): Top Nuclear Power Plays

Cameco (CCJ) and Shaw Group (SHAW): Top Nuclear Power Plays originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 13 Oct 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"Industrials stocks focus on the manufacturing, transport and construction of physical goods and heavy infrastructure," says Elliott Gue.

The contributing editor to Personal Finance explains, "The best in the sector share one key trait: powerful leverage to a global economic recovery led by growth in the emerging markets and renewed spending on basic infrastructure across the developed world. The S&P 500 Industrials has outperformed the broader market by 20% during the past year."

Continue reading ABB (ABB) and Shaw (SHAW): Industrial Gains

ABB (ABB) and Shaw (SHAW): Industrial Gains originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage on BloggingStocks:

• Ark Restaurants Corp. (ARKR) shares declined after Q4 earnings fell short of consensus expectations.
• Azz Inc. (AZZ) Q3 net income fell more than expected but the company reaffirmed its earnings outlook.
• Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (BBBY) reported strong Q3 results, sending shares to a new 52-week high.
• Best Buy Inc. (BBY) declined to lift its earnings forecast despite strong December sales, send shares lower.
• Constellation Brands Inc. (STZ) lower Q3 earnings topped expectations and revenue declined as well.

Continue reading Earnings Highlights: Bed Bath & Beyond, Constellation Brands, Family Dollar, Lennar, Sonic ...

Earnings Highlights: Bed Bath & Beyond, Constellation Brands, Family Dollar, Lennar, Sonic ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 09 Jan 2010 11:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Shaw Group Q1 Earnings Beat Estimates

Shaw Group Q1 Earnings Beat Estimates originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 07 Jan 2010 13:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The market giveth and the market taketh away -- all in the same day. I was looking at how Shaw Group (NYSE: SGR) performed on Thursday. The company, an engineering firm that provides services relating to the energy and environmental industry for both the government and the private sector, was up 5.6% at the close of trading yesterday, powered by superb volume. But, in the after-hours session, it went down nearly 6.4%.

And, yes, the sell-off was on the back of an earnings report. For the third quarter, Shaw Group made 57 cents per share, excluding its acquisition of Westinghouse. The company made 67 cents per share in last year's similar quarter, also adjusted for the acquisition. Net sales were essentially flat.

Continue reading Shaw Group reports flat sales in Q3, misses estimates

Shaw Group reports flat sales in Q3, misses estimates originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 10 Jul 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

A new earnings reporting season kicks off this coming week with the quarterly report from Alcoa, the first Dow Jones industrial to report. But investors looking for early signs about the first quarter will be disappointed in what they see from the aluminum producer, assuming that analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters are neither too optimistic or too pessimistic about those results.

Continue reading The week in preview: Alcoa kicks off a new earnings season

The week in preview: Alcoa kicks off a new earnings season originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 05 Apr 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This post is part of a special report, A Dozen Ways to Play an Obama Building Boom.

"One theme that already seems likely to dominate the playbook for the Obama team is 'infrastructure plus' -- encompassing alternative energy, the environment, and health care," says Patrick DeSouza.

The contributing editor to Steven Leeb's The Complete Investor explains, "These priorities will translate into tremendous opportunities for well-situated firms in these areas." Here are some ideas:

"The Obama Administration is likely to link infrastructure with specific policy priorities such as alternative energies and environmental protection.

"In this way, it can launch public work ventures that create jobs while simultaneously fulfilling campaign promises to tackle climate change and resource degradation. Companies with crossover appeal-a foot in both infrastructure and environmental businesses- are the ones to look at.

"Fluor (NYSE: FLR) and General Electric (NYSE: GE) -- which are already holdings in our growth model portfolio -- both fit this bill, with diversified product lines that range from large-scale infrastructure engineering projects to alternative energy infrastructure to renewable power.

Continue reading Obama team targets infrastructure

Obama team targets infrastructure originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 19 Dec 2008 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

From TheStreet.com Network

• Warren Buffett Proves He's Human
• Detroit Pleads for $25B in Federal Aid

Continue reading Cramer on BloggingStocks: Shaw is actually cheap

Cramer on BloggingStocks: Shaw is actually cheap originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 09:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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.

"John McCain has said that nuclear power must be part of a plan to address climate change and reduce our dependence on foreign oil; to benefit from this plan, buy Shaw Group (NYSE: SGR), which constructs and maintains nuclear power plants," says Paul Tracy in his Street Authority Market Advisor.

"Today, nearly half of U.S. electricity is created via conventional coal-fired plants. This made sense for us for decades -- coal is so cheap and plentiful here that the United States is often referred to as the Saudi Arabia of coal.

"However, in the past few years, the tide of public sentiment has shifted against the energy source. Primarily this is due to the emissions created by burning coal for electricity.

"In addition to the well known release of carbon dioxide, coal emissions also contain traces of mercury. On top of that, the rise of China and other emerging markets has led to higher costs for coal.

"So with a public that is increasingly interested in alternative sources of electricity and a president who is committed to increasing nuclear power usage, the companies that build and maintain nuclear plants sit in the perfect position to benefit.

"In particular, I think Louisiana-based Shaw Group is a stock to watch. SGR's largest end market is the construction and maintenance of power plants, including both plants fired by fossil fuels and nuclear facilities.

"The company also owns a 20% stake in Westinghouse Electric, one of the world's leading designers and builders of nuclear power plants.

Continue reading McCain stock: Shaw Group (SGR) goes nuclear

McCain stock: Shaw Group (SGR) goes nuclear originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 11 Oct 2008 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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.

Which stocks would benefit from a victory by either Senator John McCain or Senator Barack Obama? To help investors sort through the sectors and stocks best positioned to benefit in a post-election environment, we posed this question to some of the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

Importantly, this is not a partisan report; each participating advisor has provided a favorite stock for both candidates, focused not on political preferences but unbiased stock analysis. Below we feature those stocks and ETFs that the advisors believe will be the winners depending on which candidate prevails.

McCain Stocks:

Roger Conrad - Comcast (NYSE: CCW)
Gregg Early - Elbit Systems (NASDAQ: ESLT)
Elliott Gue - Paladin Resources (Toronto: PDN)
Doug Fabian - Market Vectors Nuclear Energy (NYSE: NLR)
Vivian Lewis - Barclays (NYSE: BCS)
Bill Martin - CGG Veritas (NYSE: CGV)'
Yiannis Mostrous - Lonking Holdings (OTC: CIMHF)
Carla Pasternak - Eaton Vance Tax-Advantaged Dividend Income Fund (NYSE: EVT)
Nate Pile - SPDR Gold Trust (NYSE: GLD)
John Reese - General Dynamics (NYSE: GD)
Nathan Slaughter - USEC (NYSE: USU)
Paul Tracy - Shaw Group (NYSE: SGR)
Kelley Wright - CenturyTel (NYSE: CTL)
Tom Vass - Molex (NASDAQ: MOLX)
Martin Hutchinson - Northrop Grumman (NYSE: NOC), Merck & Co. (NYSE: MRK), EOG Resources (NYSE: EOG)

Obama Stocks:

Roger Conrad - SunPower (NASDAQ: SPWR)
Gregg Early - AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV)
Elliott Gue - SunPower (NASDAQ: SPWR)
Doug Fabian - Industrial Select Sector SPDR (NYSE: XLI)
Vivian Lewis - Cosan (NYSE: CZZ)
Bill Martin - Geron (NASDAQ: GERN)
Yiannis Mostrous - Dr. Reddy's (NYSE: RDY)
Carla Pasternak - Kinder Morgan Energy Partners (NYSE: KMP)
Nate Pile - Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL)
John Reese - American Eagle (NYSE: AEO)
Nathan Slaughter - Fluor (NYSE: FLR)
Paul Tracy - Market Vectors Global Alternative Energy (NYSE: GEX)
Kelley Wright - Cardinal Health (NYSE: CAH)
Tom Vass - Ingersoll Rand (NYSE: IR)
Martin Hutchinson - Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX), First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR)

Election bets: Advisors vote on McCain and Obama stocks originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 03 Oct 2008 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading For Shaw Group, the developing world is a lucrative world

For Shaw Group, the developing world is a lucrative world originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 14 May 2008 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Here are a few highlights of this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Acuity Brands Inc. (NYSE: AYI) missed estimates due to restructuring after the spin-off of Zep Inc.
• Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) easily beat earnings estimates, due to the impeding sale of some businesses.
• American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP) warned that it would take a charge against fourth quarter earnings.
• Apollo Group (NASDAQ: APOL) posted a solid quarter on student enrollment and retention.
• AZZ Inc. (NYSE: AZZ) beat earnings expectations and offered revised guidance.
• Capital One Financial Corp. (NYSE: COF) lowered its fourth quarter and full year earnings forecast.
• Constellation Brands Inc. (NYSE: STZ) third quarter profit rose on growth in the domestic wine business.
• EI DuPont de Nemours & Co. (NYSE: DD) lifted its outlook on strength in agriculture and nutrition business.
• Family Dollar Stores (NYSE: FDO) earnings were in line with estimates, despite lower same-store sales.
• Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. (NYSE: GAP) posted a strong quarter, helped by the sale of Metro Inc.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Alcoa, KB Home, Capital One, Family Dollar, and others

Earnings highlights: Alcoa, KB Home, Capital One, Family Dollar, and others originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 12 Jan 2008 14:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• JP Morgan upgraded shares of Vodafone Group (NYSE: VOD) to Overweight from Neutral, as they believe the company is benefiting from increased data sales.
  
• Citrix Systems (NASDAQ: CTXS) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Friedman Billings. The firm's checks indicate that its clear communication strategy and a stronger technology platform behind the Enterprise and Platinum editions is spurring top line growth.
  
• Baird upgraded shares of STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM) to Outperform from Neutral based on new product cycle, multiple design wins, valuation, and strong Q4 guidance.
  
• Cantor upgraded shares of Symmetricom (NASDAQ: SYMM) to Buy from Hold as they find the valuation compelling and are comfortable with Q1 estimates.
  
• Calyon Securities upgraded Smith International (NYSE: SII) to Add from Neutral following its Q3 report and guidance.

• Shaw Group (NYSE: SGR) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Goldman Sachs.
  
• RBC Capital upgraded QLogic Corporation (NASDAQ: QLGC) to Outperform from Sector Perform.
  
• Credit Suisse upgraded Amgen (NASDAQ: AMGN) and Weatherford (NYSE: WFT) to Outperform from Neutral.

Analyst upgrades: VOD, CTXS, STM, SYMM and SII originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 24 Oct 2007 10:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"In any industry, one of the most sure-footed means of keeping profits steady is to own the suppliers of production means -- the old 'invest in the picks and shovels' approach," explains Neil George in Personal Finance.

He says, "For refiners, it means pipe, compressors, and the other bits used to crack crude into further profitable products." Here, he looks at a trio of favorites: Dresser-Rand Group Inc. (NYSE: DRC), Shaw Group Inc. (NYSE: SGR), and Tenaris (NYSE: TS).

"Dresser Rand is a leading global producer of highly specialized compressors and turbines, nearly 95% of which are used in the energy business. Compressors are used extensively in refineries; they're a crucial part of equipment used to process heavy and sour crude oils. The reactions used to process these more-complex crudes require generating extreme pressure and temperature.

"Dresser's products are also used to process Canadian oil sands. Dresser is also involved in some high-tech deepwater equipment work. The company has designed a subsea compressor and separator for Norway's Statoil.

"This equipment literally sits on the seafloor; the compressor helps to separate gas from oil and transport these commodities by subsea pipeline to distant floating production platforms.

Continue reading Best energy ideas: Oil service 'picks and shovels'

Best energy ideas: Oil service 'picks and shovels' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 20 Oct 2007 09:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

What are the best energy investments for long-term investors? To answer this question, I surveyed 20 of the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors to find their current favorite ideas in the energy sector.

Interestingly, the advisors see the best opportunities in areas well beyond traditional oil firms; indeed, no one included in this report chose a major integrated oil company. Rather, the advisors have shown a preference for various oil services sectors, non-oil energy sources, and developing alternative technologies.

Some focus on areas such as deep-sea operations with Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (NYSE: DO), Transocean Inc. (NYSE: RIG) and Oceaneering International (NYSE: OII), while others look toward oil shippers such as Nordic American Tanker Shipping (NYSE: NAT) and refiners such as Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE: VLO).

Others chose companies that make specific products needed by the oil & gas industries such as NATCO Group Inc. (NYSE: NTG), which makes a wide range of oil & gas processing systems; Dresser-Rand Group Inc. (NYSE: DRC), a maker of control systems; Gardner Denver Inc. (NYSE: GDI), which makes compressor and fluid transfer systems; Tenaris (NYSE: TS), a maker of pipes and tublar products and Schlumberger Ltd. (NYSE: SLB), the largest and most diversified of the oil services companies.

Continue reading Best energy ideas: Favorites from the newsletter advisors

Best energy ideas: Favorites from the newsletter advisors originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 19 Oct 2007 13:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Engineering problems are rarely solved by approaching them from one direction only. That's why many firms and government agencies prefer to do business with engineering outfits big enough to bring expertise from a wide variety of disciplines to bear on their projects. There is a company in Baton Rouge with the size and diversity needed to handle the complex jobs.

The Shaw Group (NYSE: SGR) provides engineering, design, construction, and maintenance services to a variety of industrial markets. Clients include power generators (structural steel & engineering services), chemical manufacturers (research & development), government agencies (infrastructure construction) and general industrial concerns (environmental remediation services). Shaw also manufactures and distributes an extensive line of pipes and pipe fittings. The firm operates from nearly 200 locations around the world and employs 25,000.

Management pleased investors last week when it reported Q3 EPS of 60 cents (ex-items) and revenues of $1.6 billion. The Street had been looking for 34 cents and $1.54 billion. The stock popped on the news and then moved into a bullish "pennant" consolidation pattern. Prices frequently exit pennants moving in the same direction they were traveling when they entered them. In this case, that would be to the upside.

Brokers recommend the issue with four "strong buys," one "buy," five "holds" and two "sells." Analysts expect a 20% average annual growth rate through the next five years. The SGR Price to Sales ratio (1.09), Price to Free Cash Flow ratio (14.64), Sales Growth rate (30.54%) and EPS Growth rate (252.94%) compare favorably with industry, sector and S&P 500 averages. Institutions hold about 95 percent of the outstanding shares. The stock is used in calculating the S&P SmallCap 600 Index. Over the past 52 weeks, it has traded between $25.54 and $71.77. A stop-loss of $59.90 looks good here.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com.

Shaw Group (SGR) shares trade in bullish pennant originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 17 Oct 2007 15:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

On tonight's MAD MONEY on CNBC, Jim Cramer discussed where the "Wild Bull Markets" are that you want to be in for the rest of the year. He has six bull markets and he thinks this full year will be in bull market mode for these sectors and stocks.

1) Agriculture: The subsidies bring in $55 billion in revenues to large farm companies alone. His three picks in this are Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE), Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON), and Sociedad Quimeca y minea (NYSE: SQM).

2) Machinery: His pick is Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT).

3) Infrastructure, perhaps the most wild bull market: the two cheapest after the big runs are Foster Wheeler (NASDAQ: FWLT) and McDermott Intl. (NYSE: MDR).

4) Aerospace: Cramer's pick is Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) and he now thinks it will pass $100.

5) Oil & Gas, which were down hard today: Halliburton Co. (NYSE: HAL) is his number one service and driller; in Oil Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS.A).

6) Minerals, where the mergers are nuts: The buy for the things the Chinese use is Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold (NYSE: FCX) for copper and gold that could see its 9-times earnings go to 12-times.

Continue reading Jim Cramer's big list: 'Wild Bull Market' picks

Jim Cramer's big list: 'Wild Bull Market' picks originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 29 May 2007 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.