Date updated:01-10-2009
Our go-to group of investment experts sees tough times for the economy -- but good fortune for stockpickers.

-
AMZN
Amazon.com - $116.83
- -0.48%
- $N/A
Witmer: I have stocks at five times earnings, and then there is Amazon.com [AMZN] at around 40 times earnings. Amazon has an attractive business, but not that attractive.

-
KALU
Kaiser Aluminum C - $33.84
- 0.00%
- $N/A
Q: Do they supply parts for corporate jets? Witmer: They do, although this business is small. There are a lot of orders outstanding from airlines, and a lot of planes getting built are using a lot more product from Kaiser. The company will be in the sweet spot for years to come. Let's say they make $5 a share and trade for 10 times earnings. Add back the value of the tax assets and you get a target price of more than $60. Kaiser has a market capitalization of $500 million. Their rolling mill alone, not including other assets, would cost $1.5 billion to replace. The company is selling at a huge discount to replacement value.

-
AYE
Allegheny Energy - $20.89
- -0.48%
- $21.11
Witmer: Allegheny had a lot of trouble getting this transmission line through. In the end, the unions talked to the governors of the states involved about the jobs it would create. In 2011 the electricity Allegheny generates in Pennsylvania will start selling at market rates, which accounts for the large range of my earnings estimates for that year. The stock could trade for a minimum of 10 to 11 times earnings at that point, giving us a two-year target of 50 to 60 a share. The dividend yield is a relatively modest 1.7%, but the company should be able to increase it. Most of Allegheny's production will move to market rate, except in West Virginia. In Pennsylvania they get 7 cents per kilowatt hour, which is very low. In New York utilities get 13 to 14 cents. They cut a deal years ago to bring rates up to market over time, and the benefits are finally kicking in. They are installing the scrubbers this year. After that, in 2010, the cash starts coming in.

-
AIZ
Assurant Inc - $30.16
- -2.46%
- $31.06
Q: What are the other business lines? Witmer: It issues warranty-service contracts on appliances, consumer electronics and the like, another attractive business. It also has a nice employee-benefit business, which focuses on helping small and mid-sized businesses provide insurance for employees. It has a health-insurance business for individuals and small businesses. Trailing earnings per share is more than $6, so the stock trades for less than five times earnings. Even if you take out what may be excess earnings from the home-insurance business, which we estimate would bring earnings down to $4.25, the stock trades for seven times earnings. But the high level of earnings could persist for many years. Plus, Assurant has other growth initiatives, such as the auto business, and some international opportunities. Book value was more than $31 a share as of Sept. 30, after taking write-downs on the portfolio. Assurant traded above 70 per share in the past, but 50 is a reasonable target in the next year or so.

-
DFS
Discover Fin Svcs - $12.76
- 0.00%
- $N/A
Q: What are they going to report this year? Witmer: There is noise in the numbers, and they are building reserves. They could earn $1.70 to $2 a share, excluding one-time stuff. As the U.S. consumer continues righting his balance sheet, Discover will trade closer to 15 to 20 a share.

-
MSFT
Microsoft Corpora - $27.72
- -1.07%
- $27.96
MacAllaster: How would you compare Google [GOOG] to Microsoft? Hickey: Google's stock went from 700 to 300. Even so, I would rather own Microsoft. The stock could go back up to 30 within a year, though it depends if the market makes a bottom in the fall.

-
GOOG
Google Inc. - $533.47
- +0.41%
- $532.385
MacAllaster: How would you compare Google [GOOG] to Microsoft? Hickey: Google's stock went from 700 to 300. Even so, I would rather own Microsoft. The stock could go back up to 30 within a year, though it depends if the market makes a bottom in the fall.

-
GOOG
Google Inc. - $533.47
- +0.41%
- $532.385
MacAllaster: How would you compare Google [GOOG] to Microsoft? Hickey: Google's stock went from 700 to 300. Even so, I would rather own Microsoft. The stock could go back up to 30 within a year, though it depends if the market makes a bottom in the fall.
- Barron's 2009 Roundtable Picks's Blog
- No Blogs Found
- Top Professional Portfolios
- 1. Fidelity Contrafund - ...
- 2. Bernard L. Madoff Inve...
- 3. Argus Management
- 4. Calamos Advisors
- 5. Charlie Munger
- show all
- Top Do-It-Yourself Portfolios
- » jgroov Portfolio 1
- » ben johnson
- » my holdings
- » SC TRADE OF THE DAY
- » kudos
- show all
- Most Viewed Portfolios
- » Warren Buffett
- » George Soros
- » T. Boone Pickens - BP Cap...
- » Carl Icahn
- » Renaissance Technologies
- show all
By Jonas Elmerraji Posted on Feb. 9, 2010 With stocks continuing to underwhelm in yesterday’s trading session, the attention is turning toward trading. After all, tec...
By Roberto Pedone Posted on Feb. 8, 2010 Good Buys For Bad Times: This Barron’s article says with the U.S. economy expected to grow by only 3% in 2010, investors shou...
Posted on Feb. 8, 2010 Finance Professor Scott Rothbort will be answering questions on Stockpickr Answers on Monday, Feb. 8. Ask away! Regardless of why a stock is in...
By Jonas Elmerraji Posted on Feb. 8, 2010 Finance Professor Scott Rothbort will be answering questions on Stockpickr Answers on Monday, Feb. 8. Ask away! Investor an...
A. While I am sure there are various
reasons for a sell off of any particular
stock, there are two things worth
mentioning:
1. Day traders: One of the rules common
to day trading is to be all cash at the
end of the day. As a result, many day
traders cash out of their trading
positions toward the end of the day so
they are ready to go back to the battle
the following morning.
2. I do not know that this would be the
last 30 minutes, but margin calls could
potentially cause some selling if it is
needed to make up any shortage in the
margin (in other words, if you are
required to hold 15% and you could
borrow 85% the value of a security, and
the stock price change during the day
made it to where you were borrowing 90%,
then some shares would need to be sold
to make up the difference).
I hope that helps... I am sure others
can shed far more light than I.
William
A. The only one I own : SLX,
too hard pick a winner out all of them
Analyst Downgrades and EPS estimate changes for Feb. 9, 2010. more
Below is a list of some of the companies that have their ex-dividend date Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2010. What is the ex-dividend date? According to Dividends.com: The ex-... more
TheStreet Ratings provides exclusive stock, ETF and mutual fund ratings and commentary based on award-winning, proprietary tools. Its safety first approach to investing aim... more













Comments not available