The Setup

This blog is about sports and stocks.
The one thing that really gets me going with this blog more than talking sports and fantasy football is stock pattern investing.

One of my watch list stocks (HOGS) had some really great setups over this past week.


















I first took notice of this stock as it made its initial break out and was forming a new resistance level close to $18. The first pattern is an ascending triangle patter that shows a rising strength pattern of continuously lows ascending to a common point of resistance. As it reached the breakout point, a good rise in volume (the lower bar graph) provided good momentum to sustain the upward trend.

The stock then leveled off around $20 and showed a good "resting" pattern and never really dipped below the $20 support level. The only question was, what would it do next?

















Well, towards the end of the day on Wednesday, the stock showed yet again an increase in volume and momentum and broke above the $20.50 resistance level. This upward pattern continued into an amazing 3 tier or (step) pattern. When this happens, and it does not always work out, but when it does a sudden spike upward in price happens after the 3rd tier. Almost always followed by a pull back down until a new support level is reached. In this case, at least for Thursday, it appeared to be around $21.00.

The pattern was actually looking like it would form either a "W" pattern or double bottom pattern, and I was actually a little worried that it did dip below $21 momentarily. But, the stock recovered nicely and as is characteristic of a possible new break out experienced a sudden spike in activity at the end of the day and burst up to $22.00 for a brief moment before the close of the market and a final daily close just below $21.50.

It will be really interesting to see what it does next. Will it continue it's rise to form yet another ascending triangle patter and potentially yet another larger 3rd tier pattern?

Or will it cool off for a while before testing new levels of resistance and support?

Of course I will watch this stock for the rest of the month, but for now I am really psyched that all these patterns happened and that my investment ideas worked as well as they did.

See, I place a buy limit order for when HOGS reached $18.00 per share and then a sell limit order of $21.60 for a nice 20% gain.

Not bad for a weeks worth of investing.

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Stock Watch

OK, so I lost a little ground to the standard averages this past month.

July Starting Linup = 4%
July Bench = 2%

DOW = 7%
NASDAQ = 7%




But for the year to date, I am still ahead about 13%. Though good, its not nearly as much as I would like.

So lets see how well I do with my August Watch Lists.

August Starting Lineup Watch List

CSKI - China Sky One Medical Inc
AFAM - Almost Family Inc
CEU - China Education Alliance Inc
CMFO - China Marine Food Group Ltd
GFRE - Gulf Resources Inc
MFW - M & F Worldwide Corp.
CAST - ChinaCast Education Corp
CECO - Career Education Corp
JGBO - Jiangbo Pharmaceuticals Inc
KWR - Quaker Chemical Corp

August Bench Watch List

MSFT - MICROSOFT CORP
SIHI - SinoHub Inc
TJX - TJX COS INC
UIS - Unisys Corp
UTA - Universal Travel Group
XLNX - Xilinx Inc
ARNA - Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc
IDSA - Industrial Services of America Inc
MDF - Metropolitan Health Networks
VSEC - VSE Corp

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Time for a time out?

I could just take my year to date investment gains and just sit on the side lines.









After all , my goal was something like 24% return, and I have reached that already.









And for anybody else currently in the stock market, pulling out now and holding on to cash may not be a bad idea.

From European Debt crisis, to Gulf Gooo, to Failed fail safes, and circumventing reporting and documentation guidelines, the stock market certainly looks scary right about now.




Unfortunately, the current state of the world economy and the stock market , corporate America, and most everything in general reminds me that everyone seems to to be behaving like a bunch of monkeys. Namely these monkeys.










And that is never a good situation.

But I still have a couple stock ideas that just might pan out so I think I will at least keep my feet in the mix and make sure that I have those stop loss orders in place to protect my investments.

I am currently invested in two companies, volatile Bio Pharm KERX and a weapons company RGR. Both KERX and RGR were setting up for an upswing before the whole bottom of the stock market, and the Greek Debt crisis caught hold of everybodys attention. Since then neither has broken upwards but neither has significantly fallen, yet.

Two stocks which report this week are ARO and CPWM.

ARO is a good strong company that I expect to give a decent quarterly report, however, recent data and retail sales statistics indicate that although the retail sector is no longer going down, it may still have a long way to go before it truly goes back up. CPWM has also weathered the recent turmoil well and could be ready to go back up with a good report.

Of course, this is all dependent on IF the markets don’t panic again and continue the downward trends.

With consumer and investor confidence low, and mixed recession ending data being reported, these are all really big IF’s.

So, stand by for a bumpy ride.

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Picks and Pans

My stock watch lists had a lot of speculative stocks this month, more than usual. Speculative stocks are riskier investments and their price fluctuations are usually more volatile. My results so far reflect just that.

Here are a couple examples:

EMAN
This company produces diodes and other optic and electronic parts that are necessary for the latest and greatest tech/AV craze – 3D! Its stock was on a rocket ride recently and like many fast flyers ran out of fuel and fell almost as quickly.

GENT
A Biotech/Pharm company that has posted good profits and expects positive cash flow for 2010; which is always a good thing. They are also looking for FDA approval to market products in the US.


















Looking at the patterns, GENT (although more volatile in price fluctuations) is actually the stronger pattern. GENT was in a good pendant (or triangle) pattern with progressively increasing high price points and (higher) low price points.

At the beginning of the month, EMAN, was still performing strong with good momentum, money flow and relative strength. But as you can see, that trend broke. Rather suddenly.

Unfortunately I invested in both.
Fortunately I had a stop loss (sell point) set on EMAN which limited my losses.
Unfortunately, (because I have a real job and am not a day trader and needed to wait for funds to clear) the stop loss did not kick in right away and I was a couple days later than I would have liked.
Fortunately GENT was still in its strong pattern and I was able to recoup most of my losses.

So, the end result is…

My first investment of GENT is up well over 30%.
My attempt at a quick hit on EMAN resulted in about a 17% loss.
My reinvestment added back into GENT recovered most of that 17% back.

End result, about 15% profit for the first 2 weeks of April. Not bad, could have been better, but could have been a lot worse.

It is hard to tell, but it looks as though GENT might be leveling off now in strength and price patterns so, I’m taking my profits and looking for another stock play to round out my 2nd half of April investing.

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Recovery and Speculation...

OK, so I've recovered from insanity, sort of...

At least I've restored my blog theme back to the way it was.

So, in that respect, I've recovered.

However, my April watch lists seem to be quite speculative and perhaps investing in some of this is slightly crazy but here we go with the Fumbled Returns April Watch Lists.

Starting Lineup

QDEL - Quidel Corp
This is one from last years pandemic list and has shown some good strengthening in price lately.
ARQL - ArQule Inc
This is a bio tech company which has turned itself around and is showing promise.
ATSG - Air Transport Services Group Inc
An airline company that seems to be bucking the trend and showing profit.
EMAN - eMagin Corp
I hate 3D. But this company produces diodes and other optic and electronic parts that are necessary for the latest and greatest tech/AV craze. And as a result, its stock has been on a real rocket ride. Best of all, if this craze does take off, there is very little institutional money in this stock. Once they discover it, watch out!
GENT - Gentium SpA
Another Biotech/Pharm company that has posted good profits and expects positive cash flow for 2010; which is always a good thing.
IDSA - Industrial Services of America Inc
Recycled metals. Either an industry on the rebound or companies are targets for acquisitions (a competitor NGA was recently bought out). Either way, speculation wise, these are positive influences for a stock.
MFLX - Multi-Fineline Electronix Inc
This is actually one of my few pattern plays in that MFLX looks like it might be setting up for a breakout from a cup and handle pattern.
ZQK - Quiksilver Inc
A retail distributor that has more than profited from the rebound in the retail market and hopes that the economy has/is starting a recovery.
AAPL - Apple
ipad fever. Thats it.
FDO - Family Dollar
Recovery in the retail market along with continued unemployment and reduced wages are both positives for this retailer.

Bench

LINC - Lincoln Educational Services Corp
A stock that has fallen about 10% from recent 52week highs. Worth watching for a possible continuation of a rebound.
AFAM - Almost Family Inc
A left over from last month which has a good balance sheet and continued interest as a result of the Obamacare legislation.
COCO - Corinthian Colleges Inc.
A good well run educational company which stands to profit so long as folks are willing to return to school for added marketability in this troubled economy.
ENDP - Endo Pharmaceuticals Holdings Inc
Speculation drove this stock up. A less than stellar quarterly report knocked it back down, but, it has bounced off of the low support level and all those speculators look like they are willing to keep this stock afloat.
IDCC - InterDigital Inc
A digital communications company whose stock has truly leveled off. Good news will drive it up. Bad news will pull it back down. I just can't decide which will happen first. Worth a watch but until definitive news, maybe pick one of my other listed stocks.
POZN - POZEN Inc
Another biotech/pharm company with FDA report due by the end of the month. Speculation and a good report will do wonders for this stock.
SNTA - Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp
Another speculative biotech/pharm company which is actually able to come close to profitability.
SNTS - Santarus Inc
Ditto.
ARO - Aeropostale
Wow! not another biotech/pharm company. Rather a well run retailer, with a recent good quarterly report, and a recovering economy. All positive signs.
GME - Game Stop
Between a good bounce off of record low price, speculations of a possible take over and the prospects of a recovering economy; this stock shot up well over 25% last month. Perhaps the hype, like the economic recovery, is not over.

Last month I hit two good quarterly reports (always a risky proposition during reporting season and a possible recession) and got lucky. FDO 12.5% and then ARO 10% netted me a +20% gain for March.

There are some carry overs from last months list(s) such as FDO, ARO, COCO, GME, AFAM; but lots of new speculative additions. Normally I hesitate to have too many eggs in one basket (biotech/pharm) but then again, I am never one to shy away from opportunity.

We shall see how things pan out for April.

Hope everyone had a great and joyous Easter weekend.

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Triangles and W's

This months watch lists have posted some classic ascending Triangle and "w" patterns with good results.

An ascending triangle pattern is characterized as a resting phase for the stock.

A trend line can be drawn connecting multiple or flat highs during this time, which should be horizontal to indicate some resistance above current prices. A second trend line is an ascending or rising trend line which connects multiple higher lows during this period, completing the ascending triangle pattern.

A breakout should occur about 2/3 of the way into the triangle, and happens when the overhead resistance is penetrated to the upside and buyers rush in to accumulate shares.


A "w" pattern is often known as a "double bottom" pattern. Here the pattern shows like a W with the middle part significantly lower that the beginning drop and ending rise before a brief holding pattern.

So how have my March watch list done?

The starting lineup is up 8%
The bench is up 5%

Here are the summaries:

STARTING LINEUP

EXPW – has maintained its strong climb and with the economy (though getting better) still putting the pinch on finances and jobs, pawn shops will continue to see good business.

GHM – had shown slow but steady rise in price and strength since falling off of yearly high points. An announcement of large contract orders sent the stock price back up towards the previous high price points and top resistance. It will be interesting to see what sort of pattern takes hold from here on out.

AAPL – When Apple hit the 210 mark at the beginning of the month there were plenty of folks saying that the stock was in a level trading pattern (with lateral swings in price between 10 and 20 points) and was due to dip back down 10 -20 points. I saw another example of a “W” pattern taking place similar to the stock points last June – July and as early as last December where the stock showed enough strength to break upwards. With the anticipation of the iPad I figured there might be potential for some “hype”. I’m not saying I was right, but… They were wrong.

AFAM – is still showing the potential for an upward break if it can maintain the second half of this current “W” pattern. Of course this is a big if but it deserves watching closely.

CAH – Has shown progressively higher “low” points and seems to be wanting to level off a bit. With all the buzz about health care going on, it will be interesting to see how this and AFAM react if a bill is approved.

FDO – This stock I held on to from last month and my patience paid off with a good quarterly report which sent the stock up earlier this month. I then sold for a 12.5% gain and still liking the retail outlook reinvested my monies in a stock listed on my “bench” list.

HQS – has shown good recovery after, like GHM, falling off of a high price resistance point. It has gone up 15% in the past month or so and continues to show strength. So what could go wrong? Monday evenings quarterly report for one thing. If you are a gambler and think they will beat estimates, a good report should be enough to send this stock into a breakout pattern past resistance. If they do not beat estimates, it could easily fall below resistance once again.

LHCG – Yup, you guessed it another “w” pattern and up over 8% for the month so far.

MFW – is showing a very similar patter that GHM had with sequentially higher lows, just not nearly as strong. It will be interesting to see if something happens to cause a break out like GHM.

RGR – a weak report from Smith and Wesson might be a good thing for this stock since it had been on a good run recently. This recent pull back might be a good opportunity to buy some more if you already own this stock.

BENCH

LLY – is showing the signs of a classic cup and handle pattern and could be poised for a break out in the next few weeks.

ARO – This is the stock I purchased after FDO and anybody holding this stock was nicely rewarded with both the anticipation of a good quarterly report AND actually getting a good quarterly report. With a run of nearly 20% for the month and about half of it post reporting gains, it just may be time to take the short term profits. The only reason not too is the fact that ARO also boosted its forecast for the next quarter, which is always a good sign. The keys to getting in on this ahead of time were, listening to other news reports that the retail sector shook off all the February snows and actually had a good month, an increase in volume and money flow into the stock, and my teenage daughter and her friends habitually always visiting this store, even in tough economic times.

COCO – my predication of cooling off of the big February run seems to be panning out on this one.

GME – This “falling knife” has actually benefited from a couple things. One being a bit of a ‘bounce’ effect often seen after a big drop in price, historical low pricing, and a suspicious take-over rumor. Boy I love hype but this might be very unsubstantiated hype with not a lot of supporting energy. But it was nice to see this stock bounce back up nicely, at least for a short while.

GXDX – Did I mention that good quarterly reports help move stocks up in price? Well the one this company posted at the end of February has helped fuel a March run.

HRL – and speaking of good reports, this stock had one last month but has been trading really flat for this month. Looks like investors and the market are not sure about which direction to take this stock. Still keep it on your watch list but wait for a more definitive pattern to develop.

ISSI – With falling relative strength. Money flow, and MACD, things are not look up for this stock.

LANC – see above.

MAT – This one has cooled a bit from its run up from, you guessed it, a previously good quarterly report. It may be setting up to challenge upper level resistance.

STRL – Is another stock challenging high point resistance but so far has not managed a breakout.

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Topping 50

Almost every month, MSN Money publishes their top 50 stocks to invest in based on their screener. In all fairness, their screener is pretty good. MSN Money's StockScouter tool was created in 2001 to help investors assess individual stocks' likelihood of outperforming the broader market.

Jon Markman, a contributing author to MSN Money, collaborated with the company to devise strategies for putting the tool to work.

One of Markman's strategies involves investing an equal amount of money in each of the stocks in the computer-generated portfolio at the start of the month, selling them at the end of the month, then beginning the process again the next month. For investors who prefer to handle fewer stocks, Markman recommends using the strategy with the top 10 stocks on the list.

An investor who followed Markman's 10-stock strategy since it was launched would have realized a gain of 453% through Feb. 28, according to Gradient Analytics, for an annual average return of 22%. Over the same period, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index ($INX) lost 8.8%.

Well, last Monday, MSN Money published their Top 50 Stocks for March. In the article they talk about one of the stocks which showed up on my previous month watch list. Dr Pepper Snapple Group (DPS).

Recently, Pepsi agreed to pay $900 million for the rights to sell the Dr Pepper Snapple beverages bottled and distributed by the two big Pepsi bottlers that it recently acquired. Shares of Dr Pepper Snapple spiked 11% to $32.02 on Feb. 25 on news of the Coca-Cola deal and the company's solid fourth-quarter earnings report.

That is all well and good, but hind sight is always 20/20. Yes Dr. Pepper is still and decent investment but it would have been nice to have had it on a February watch list... Like Mine!

Every now and then, I keep track of MSN's monthly top 50 just to see how they do compared to my watch lists.

I think I will see how they do compared to mine for March.

Also, every now and then, patience pays off. Another stock from my February Watch Lists, Family Dollar (FDO) has been doing OK but has not really shown the "Pop" that I was looking for in the expected breakout... Until yesterday.

Yesterday, like other retail news, Family Dollar announce a nearly 4% increase in sales for Snowy February and increased their second quarter outlook. This news pushed the stock up 8%. Not too shabby. Lets see if it can keep the momentum going.

Until later...

Be Good. Do Well. Have Fun.

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Stock up

Well February was a much better month for both resolutions and stock investments.

First, my 2010 RAP (Resolution Assessment Page)is looking much better with lots of smiley faces. Check it out.

Both of my February watch lists soundly beat all the averages!

February Starting Lineup +11%
February Bench +6%
DOW +2%
NASDAQ +4%

You will notice below that some stocks from my February watch lists have carried over to my March watch lists as well.

I have also included some riskier or questionable choices as well. They may be well suited for a longer investment as I will explain later.

Here is my March Starting Lineup:

EZPW Ezcorp Inc
This company lends or provides credit services to individuals to meet their short-term cash needs. It offers pawn loans, which are non recourse loans collateralized by tangible personal property, including jewelry, consumer electronics, tools, sporting goods, and musical instruments.

As of September 30, 2009, it operated a total of 910 locations consisting of 369 the U.S. pawnshops, 62 pawnshops in Mexico, 477 the U.S. short-term loan stores, and 2 short-term loan stores in Canada.

In today's economy this stock has seen nothing but strong growth lately.

GHM Graham Corp
Is one that has been on my stock lists before but not recently due to selling pressure and uncertainty with the economy and exchange rates. But they do have a good pipeline of contracts lined up and the stock is now sitting at a more attractive buy point.

AAPL Apple Inc
This one is self explanatory but, believe it or not, not a stock I often put on my lists and even more seldom buy except on big price drops. It showed up on my screens this time and seems to be holding a good support level and has shown signs of gathering strength lately.

AFAM Almost Family Inc
Together with its subsidiaries, provides home health services in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Visiting Nurse and Personal Care.

Lately the stock has fallen off a bit and upon closer examination might be setting up nicely into the last stage of a "W" pattern.

CAH Cardinal Health Inc
This is a carry over from my previous months watch list and it has once again made my screening lists.

Lately the stock has experience a bit of an uptick in money flowing into the stock and is looking to break past the $34 resistance point. This could be setting up for a breakout if it is successful.

FDO Family Dollar Stores Inc
Another carry over from last month and continues its slow but steady rise above its break out point. With favorable reports from similar stores such as the Dollar Tree, there just may be more fuel for this slow but steady stock to rise further.

HQS HQ Sustainable Maritime Industries Inc
Yes, another carry over that is also experiencing money flowing into the stock. It has not quite taken off like one may have expected, mostly due to other economic factors, but this stock is still worth a spot on the watch list.

LHCG LHC Group Inc
provides post-acute health care services primarily to Medicare beneficiaries in rural markets in the United States.

This is another stock, which if it holds above its low support level, looks like it too could be entering the last part of a "W" pattern or a modified double bottom pattern.

MFW M & F Worldwide Corp.
together with its subsidiaries, provides check and check-related products, marketing, and contact center services to financial and commercial institutions, as well as directly to individual consumers in North America and internationally.

I was reluctant to put this one my watch list even though it made it past my screens simply because my natural instinct is that this type of service and product is not as in demand now a days as it used to be. But judging by the fact it has been and continues to be profitable, it is clear this stock deserves another look.

RGR Sturm Ruger & Co Inc.
engages in the design, manufacture, and sale of firearms in the United States. The company offers its products under the ‘Ruger’ name and trademark.

This stock has recently pulled back off of yearly highs and may be ready to go back up. This is another one which has looked stronger lately with a modest price increase and influx of money.

Listed below is my March Bench watch list.

This list, as you may recall me saying earlier, has some less favorable and riskier stocks which might be better investments for the long haul rather than the short term.

LLY Eli Lilly and Co
Another stock I usually do not invest in but this time it did make my screens and seems to be setting up a decent support base.

ARO Aeropostale Inc.
If you are willing to bet on the retail market, this stock seems to be in a decent holding pattern. Look for a bit of a dip in price so long as it does not go below $33.

COCO Corinthian Colleges Inc.
One of my decent winners from last month, and I still like this stock. I just think it is due for a bit of a cool off and pull back. But, I've been wrong before, so who knows.

GME GameStop Corp.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Never catch a falling knife. Which is exactly why this stock should not be on my list. However, it is approaching both 2 and 5 year support lows!

If anything, there might be a bit of a bounce back up but this stock is at a point that it is almost intriguing to watch but not quite ready to invest in yet.

GXDX Genoptix Inc
provides specialized laboratory service that focus on delivering diagnostic services in the United States. Its services include COMPASS service offering, in which the company’s hematopathologists determine the appropriate diagnostic tests to be performed, and then integrates patient history and previous and current test results into a comprehensive diagnostic report; and CHART service offering, in which the hematologists and oncologists receives a detailed assessment of a patient's disease progression over time.

With that said, another company that is new to my screens and I have put as a watch. It too, has recently fallen off of high points and has shown a slight but steady increase in strength.

HRL Hormel Foods Corp
This stock has had a good, but sudden, increase in stock price. I prefer to wait and see if it establishes itself into a good pattern or instead continues to fall back down, especially below the $40 level.

ISSI Integrated Silicon Solution Inc
A semiconductor company, designs and markets integrated circuits for digital consumer electronics, networking, mobile communications, automotive electronics, and industrial markets.

Another stock worth watching to see if it establishes a good support level or falls back down after its recent run up.

LANC Lancaster Colony Corp
engages in the manufacture and marketing of consumer products in the United States. The company operates in the following segments: Specialty Foods, and Glassware and Candles.

Again, recently it 52 week highs, repeatedly, and I rather it to fall back instead of continue upwards, but like the others, worth watching.

MAT Mattel Inc.
Has had a good financial report and seems to be leveling off nicely. Even with its recent run up in price, this stock is relatively inexpensive to its peers and continues to be profitable. Definitely worth a watch.

STRL Sterling Construction Co Inc
a heavy civil construction company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the building, reconstruction, and repair of transportation and water infrastructure in Texas and Nevada. Its transportation infrastructure projects include highways, roads, bridges, and light rail; and water infrastructure projects comprise water, waste water, and storm drainage systems.

This stock looks like it is trying to establish slow but steadily increasing low points in its stock price. Meaning it may be ready to start another upward trend.

They report this month on the 16th.

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Looking to Break Out

As I sit here watching

Yet MORE snow fall...

My children home from school for the 7th + day 8th + in a row!
They just canceled school for Tuesday!
That's it, I want to move someplace where either, they do not ever get snow, or where they know how to plow it and clear the Roads!!!

We never had this problem when I lived in upstate NY or New England.

Sheesh...

Watching The Olympics on TV...

I am looking for a break out from this routine.

And a break out stock pattern to help boost my returns...

So lets take a look at how my February watch lists have done so far.

Starting Line Up
















UNP - Appears to be gaining strength since the beginning of the month and looking like a better buy.

CEPH - This is an intriguing stock pattern that is looking more and more like a cup and handle pattern. Could be a good break out candidate.

ODSY - has recovered nicely off of its recent pull back and reports later this week.

HQS - Looking like it has settled above low resistance and is trying to reverse trend back upwards. This last 2nd low point is higher than previous low point.

ROST - Another stock looking to post sequentially higher lows.


Bench
















CHE - has recovered nicely since it recent pull back from earlier highs. Reports Tuesday . A good report could be all this needs to break out upwards through top end.

FDO - My current holding - waiting for it to break out up past resistance . It has started this break out pattern buy I am wondering how strong of a pattern it will be.

SSYS - Recovering nicely off of pull back and is looking like another stock with a good upwards cup pattern

POWL - is sliding back down towards previous low point. May be setting up a good double bottom reverse or W pattern.

SHE - Has had a whopping turn around and break out back up. This is still a good but volatile stock. I am wishing now that I had the courage to bet that it would not loose its 50 day moving average support level. Which it has not broken once in the past six months.

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From Caps to COCO

I should probably be writing this about the Caps who had a fantastic January with 10 wins in a row and enter February as hot as they have ever been.

But more on that later with another post.


And yes I am with COCO but in terms of this post, it means I've selected COCO as one of my stocks to watch!








It is February 1st and time for another set of watch lists.

Starting Lineup:

UNP
Union Pacific Corp
Yes, the railroad company. Recently drop down past support levels. Look to see if it bounces back up before/when it hits the 200 day average.

DPS
Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc
Company has held its own through this down turn and recently has had an increase of money flow into the stock.

CEPH
Cephalon Inc
Has been doing quite well since its last quarterly report and appears to be cooling off slightly. The cautious investor might want to wait until after the 11th report date before investing.

COCO
Corinthian Colleges Inc.
There is a theory out there that education stocks might benefit from unemployed people and those looking to keep jobs taking more classes to get an edge up on the competition and look more valuable to corporations. This is certainly a mixed bag field where one can invest in companies like this and Devry or in other 'service' and 'product' types such as Blackboard.

ODSY
Odyssey Healthcare Inc
A decently run health care company that continues to expand and has had two decent quarters in a row. Recent sell off has made it a more attractive buy.

LINC
Lincoln Educational Services Corp
I almost put this on the bench but it is currently at low support price levels and money flow has stopped bleeding out of the stock. This might just be worth a long shot especially if investors start putting money back in.

MMR
McMoRan Exploration Co
An oil and gas exploration company that just recently posted really good returns, which was surprising. I has leveled off a bit from its sudden run. Deserves a close watch.

HQS
HQ Sustainable Maritime Industries Inc
This china marine food company has had a really volatile up and down run in price lately and quite frankly might be setting up into a late stage of a head and shoulders pattern, which is not good. Probably one of my riskier starting lineup picks.

ROST
Ross Stores Inc
I think this clothing and retail store is on a comeback and will continue a choppy ride up in price. Look to buy on the dips.

SOHU
Sohu.com Inc
A china news, and entertainment company that reports first thing Monday morning. Has had a really steep sell off lately and is approaching an attractive buy in point. Now if I only had a crystal ball to tell me if the report is going to be good or bad.

Bench

CAH
Cardinal Health Inc

MFLX
Multi-Fineline Electronix Inc

CHE
Chemed Corp

IDCC
InterDigital Inc

FDO
Family Dollar Stores Inc

EVK
Ever Glory International Group Inc

SSYS
Stratasys Inc

TRV
Travelers Companies Inc

POWL
Powell Industries Inc

SHE
Shengkai Innovations Inc

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Setup

OK so now that my Fantasy Football season is over, I can turn more attention to stocks.

Because the chance to play the stock market is never over.

So, how have my December Stocks done so far?



















Well, I have done OK, not great but OK. It looks like I had one really good winner and overall matched up against the indexes just fine.

The DOW is up 1%
The NASDAQ is up 2%


But I did not invest in any of these...



Instead I invested in a pick from last month which remained in my ever watch full eye.
















IAX specializes in absorbent materials and products for the pet industry. Basically Kitty Litter and Beds/Pillows. It is a small company with high insider ownership and low industry ownership and low availability of outstanding shares.

All of this adds up to a bit of a greater risk and, quite frankly it was a bit of a risk to invest in this stock. What attracted me to this stock was the fact that it was small, profitable, at an attractive price, and had an interesting "step" setup pattern.

This setup can have great potential if all the pieces are in play. Such as good relative strength, money flow, and volume. Trouble was this was not 100% true. Look at Mid April, Late May and Mid August stats for Money Flow and Relative Strength. Each time there was a pick up of activity prior to the price jump and maintained during each rise. This time I did not see this pick up, but I did see that the price was maintaining strength above the 50day moving average.

So I took a chance.

As it turned out, I was lucky. IAX agreed to be bought out by Kinderhook Industry which specializes in buyouts and acquisitions of Value Companies and Good Management Teams. This obviously was good news for the stock which shot up nearly 20%.

SOLD!.

So, Which stocks look like they have favorable setups now?

Lets start with the chanciest and end with perhaps the safest.

FLR

















FLR is basically an engineering and construction company which specializes in the energy field. As you can see by the chart, the stock has been falling quite a bit lately. And normally one is wise to listen to the old saying about trying to catch a falling knife...

But... This is actually a well run company with a good pipeline of contracts. I believe much of this fall in price is due to the scary condition of the energy exploration industry overall.

So why do I consider this a setup? Well, for two reasons.

Recently Jim Cramer shouted a Buy! Buy! Buy! on this stock and the Commonwealth of Kentucky issued a draft air permit for Kentucky NewGas, a planned coal-to-natural-gas facility that will take about four years and 1,200 jobs to build.

Rumor has it FLR is/will be a big player in this. And we can add a third reason...
Saudi Arabian Mining Co (Maaden) 1211.SE has received four bids for an $1 billion contract to build an alumina refinery. Guess who is a big part of this bid?

Now for the full discloser. I HATE JIM CRAMER!!!

In fact I would probably do the opposite of anything he says. But...

I love buts conditional clauses...

His Buy Buy Buy shout out seemed to generate a 7% gain in this stock over night. Couple this with the two contract announcements... Coincidence ? Perhaps. But maybe something is about to turn around and maybe there is just enough hype to go along with this increase in contracts to fuel this bounce.

Now for a less risky setup...

AGX

















This diversified company focuses on either acquiring or financing other companies that provide products and services to growth industries.

Currently their subsidiaries include:

Gemma Power Systems LLC (www.gemmapower.com), a leading power plant designer and builder with expertise in engineering, design, procurement and construction.

Southern Maryland Cable, Inc. (www.smcinc.biz) , provides inside premise wiring services to the federal government.

Vitarich Laboratories (www.vitarichlabs.com) is a farm to market, vertically integrated private label manufacturer that manufactures, packages, and distributes premium nutraceutical products, including nutritional and whole food dietary supplements and other personal healthcare products.

AGX stock has recently maintained a good support line at $12.00 and has seen good relative strength and money flow at the same time. As long as it maintains the $12.00 support level, it could provide a good chance to reverse its pattern and start climbing back up the charts.

And Finally...

MSFT

Everybody knows Microsoft.
















Microsoft is currently hitting up against highs either at or near $30.00
If you look at the chart, the stock is well above the 50day moving average, (a good sign) has established a cooling off period after a good run without loosing price, ( another decent sign) and if you look at the pattern, each hit at the top is followed by a dip. Now, what is important here is that each of the low points are higher than the previous. This can often signal what is called a breakout past resistance.

Of course, it could fail in its breakout and go back down to it previous (26 -28) range before moving back up. But with the anticipation of the holiday season and new releases, it may be a safe bet that folks are thinking that good ol' Microsoft stands a chance to make a buck or two and positively reflect this is the price of the stock.

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