"Global Crossing (NASDAQ: GLBC) was started in 1997 to build a worldwide fiber optic cable network, with the strategy, 'if you build it, they will come'," says George Putnam, adding, "But as the telecom bubble burst around 2000, nobody came."

Now, in his always-excellent The Turnaround Letter, the advisor suggests, "We think the current stock price gives you the opportunity to buy into a very valuable communications network at a tiny fraction of its original cost."

"The new stock went as high as 36 shortly after it began trading after its bankruptcy. When it later dropped in price, several high-profile investors accumulated sizable positions.

"The steel stocks tend to go through boom and bust cycles depending on global economic activity; they have been pummeled over the last year, as the global economy slowed," notes turnaround expert George Putnam.

In his The Turnaround Letter, he explains, "But the news about steel is not all bad." Indeed, he believes some steel companies are poised for a turnaround. Here's his review of 6 leading steel production companies.

"Weakness in two big steel consuming industries, autos and construction, has been particularly troublesome for the steelmakers.

"However, there is evidence that steel inventories are gradually being worked off to low levels. There are also signs that economic activity in China, which is a huge consumer of steel, will not fall off as far as some economists initially feared.

"If you are looking for maximum rebound potential, you have to go lower down on the quality spectrum; it is typically the lower quality and lower priced stocks that will have the largest gains when the market rebounds," says turnaround expert George Putnam.

In his industry-leading service focused on distressed companies, The Turnround Letter, he looks at a package of 10 stocks recently trading below $5 per share while also offering "bundles of cash."

Here's his review:

"As the tech industry has matured, some technology companies are beginning to devote some of their cash flow to dividends," explains George Putnam, who notes, "This helps reduce downside volatility and offers some positive return when the stock prices lag."

In his industry-leading The Turnaround Letter, the advisor highlights some dividend-paying tech stocks; here a look at three of those picks.

"Many tech stocks have underperformed for the last couple of years as capital spending on technology products has been weak. The sector will eventually rebound, but the timing is far from certain.

"A conservative way to play the industry is to focus on technology stocks that pay dividends. That way you at least get paid something while you wait for the rebound. The following technology stocks pay decent dividends, many of them higher than the average 2.1% dividend paid by the stocks in the S&P 500 Index.

"Over the last couple of months it has seemed like the only investors willing to put money into U.S. and European financial companies were big Asian and Middle Eastern institutions, many of them government sponsored," observes George Putnam.

"Should you follow in their footsteps?" asks the editor of The Turnaround Letter. Here is his review.

"There may be good reason to do so. These foreign institutions are staffed by smart people who do their homework, have long time horizons and they like companies with strong brands or market positions." Here, he looks at fivefiancal frms that have received cash infusions from sovereign funds.

"Some of these investors have scored big wins in the past. For example, Prince Alaweed bin Talal of the Saudi royal family bailed out Citigroup once before. He injected new equity into the bank in late 1990 during the last real estate related financial crisis. He bought close to the absolute bottom, and even today his Citi stock is worth many times what he paid for it.

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 stock for 2008 is Motorola (NYSE: MOT)," says George Putnam, editor of The Turnaround Letter. "There is a lot more to Motorola than its latest cell phone.

"The company has continually delivered innovative engineering, and it has a diverse product line, a strong global distribution network and a powerful brand name. Beyond cell phones, Motorola's other divisions have leading positions in a number of high-growth markets including set-top boxes, RFID and Wi-Max.

"We believe it won't be long before these products are joined by a new cell phone that will capture the fancy of both consumers and investors.

"Motorola has a very solid balance sheet with $7.6 billion in cash and relatively little debt. The company has been aggressively repurchasing stock, and it has paid a dividend for 240 consecutive quarters, a rarity for a technology company."

"While the stock has rebounded a bit from its August lows, we view this as a great opportunity to buy Amgen (NASDAQ: AMGN), one of the premier names in a key industry," says George Putnam.

In his The Turnaround Letter, he explains, "An interesting list of value investors, including David Dreman and Bill Miller, have accumulated the stock. We recommend joining them." Here is his review.

"Deriving its name from Applied Molecular Genetics, Amgen began in the early 1980s developing products based on advances in recombinant DNA and molecular biology. The company's Epogen and Neupogen products became the biotech industry's first two blockbuster therapies.

"Today, Amgen is the world's largest biotechnology company. From its IPO in 1984, the stock went on a 16-year run from a split adjusted $0.08 to over $80 by late 2000! But Amgen's revenue growth rate slowed following the turn of the century, and investors began lowering the premium they were willing to pay for the stock.

"More recently, investors were spooked by regulatory questions about two of the company's key drugs Epogen ($2.5 billion in 2006 sales) and Aranesp ($4.1 billion). As a result, in August the stock dropped below 50 for the first time since early 2003.