Are you feeling lucky?

Okay, so you have some extra cash to gamble with. You have all that cash on the sidelines and you want to take a speculative shot at some big gains. Forget Vegas and go straight to the theme parks. SIX FLAGS to be precise. Stock is trading in the pennies, earnings are around the corner, November 10. Understood, Six Flags (SIX) has not been able to secure funding, thus the massive over sell in this stock. But here I ask you this simple question. Do you really believe the crap tables will double your $5,000 gamble? Don't even mention those slot machines... Here's a stock where it could race to zero and you lose everything. Or, you can actually make some quick money here with earnings. As it trades today, a few thousand dollars can make you some big gains with a slight jump. Take the stock today, it was up 14%, or just $0.04. Did you also happen to see who the major holders in this stock are? Daniel Snyder, owns the NFL's Washington Redskins. Mark Shapiro, where have you been the past ten years if this name doesn't ring a bell? Even Bill Gates, Mr. PC himself has dove into this stock. It's a gamble... But don't you just love the rush!!! One last thing if you're diving in... Make sure to trade this stock and not invest it!

AIG running out of time to be saved!

Maurice "Hank" Greenberg, the former American International Group Inc chief executive, says the terms and conditions surrounding a government rescue loan are pushing the insurer closer to collapse with each day. "Time is clearly running out," said Greenberg in a letter on Thursday to current Chief Executive Edward Liddy that was filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. "The current federal government loan to AIG is effectively nationalizing the company," Greenberg said of a heavily fee-laden $85 billion loan that saved AIG from bankruptcy. The company has to repay it over the next two years with the sale of assets. Greenberg warned that U.S. taxpayers, more than 100,000 employees and millions of investors in the company could be hurt. AIG had no comment.

ABB- Strong execution lifts Q3 net income 26%

Here's some positive news coming out of the earnings call of one of our favorite stocks, ABB.

Double-digit growth in revenues, EBIT, net income and cash flow. EBIT up 25% despite ca. $100-mill. impact from hedging valuation. Orders stronger in product businesses; lower large systems orders. On target to deliver in line with 2008 growth guidance.

Zurich, Switzerland, October 23, 2008 - ABB reported double-digit increases in revenues, earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT), net income and cash flow in the third quarter of 2008 as the company continued to improve its operational performance.

EBIT grew 25 percent to $1.3 billion, including a net expense of approximately $100 million, equivalent to roughly one percentage point of EBIT margin, resulting from the mark-to-market treatment of hedging transactions.

Net income rose 26 percent to $927 million and cash from operations increased to $1.1 billion.

Revenues grew 22 percent (local currencies: 16 percent) on the successful execution of the strong order backlog.

Orders received increased 7 percent (local currencies: 1 percent) to $8.9 billion. Orders for power equipment showed continued robust growth in all regions and orders for industrial automation products also increased at a double-digit pace in most markets. Large project orders declined significantly, reflecting in part a comparison with a very strong quarter a year ago. In addition, customers’ decisions on a number of industrial and infrastructure investments have been delayed as a result of the recent market uncertainty.

“Our solid revenue, earnings and cash flow growth in the third quarter demonstrate our ability to successfully execute across all of our businesses,” said Joe Hogan, ABB's chief executive officer. “We continue to benefit from long-term trends to expand and upgrade power infrastructure, improve industrial productivity and lower environmental impact.

“It’s too early to say how the recent financial-market turmoil will impact our markets in the short term but our operational strength and flexibility, leading technology, competitive cost base and solid balance sheet put us in a good position to meet a tougher market. We are on target to deliver on our 2008 growth guidance.”

Outlook
Over the long-term, demand for the refurbishment and expansion of power transmission and distribution infrastructure is expected to remain strong in all regions. Demand for high-efficiency industrial automation systems and equipment that improves customer productivity and reduces environmental impacts, is expected to fuel future growth in automation activities.

However, the recent turbulence in the global banking sector and credit markets makes near-term forecasts difficult. The effect of recent developments on global macroeconomic growth in general, and on utility and industrial investments in particular, cannot yet be determined.

For the full-year 2008, ABB confirms its guidance of 15-20 percent growth for power-related activities and clearly above 10 percent growth in its automation activities.

Small Cap for the long haul...

Clean Energy Fuels (CLNE). Clean Energy Fuels provides natural gas as an alternative fuel to over 275 fleet customers in the United States and Canada. T. Boone Pickens is CLNE’s largest shareholder and he is joined by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. In addition to natural gas, CLNE is also pioneering options in wind power, which could be an interesting play as T. Boone Pickens passionately attempts to blaze a trail in this sector. After three years of losing money, Clean Energy is expected to post a profit in 2009 of 0.28 cents a share.

Alert: Oil Earnings & Fed Rates

Oil Earnings: Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Royal Dutch Shell and BP are all scheduled to report earnings this week, in the wake of last week's drop in crude-oil futures to $64.15.

Fed Meets: The Federal Reserve will meet Tuesday and Wednesday to discuss interest-rate cutes.

The Franchise 16, according to J.P. Morgan

J.P. Morgan analysts recommended 16 stocks, that they believe will be able to outperform a weakening global economy over the next 12 to 18 months.

Shares of companies that possess substantial financial resources, a profitable business model, and rank high in terms of cash return to shareholders are featured on the select group, collectively called "The Franchise 16," the analysts said in a note titled "Stocks to Own Beyond the Market Turmoil."

3M Co (MMM)
Baxter International Inc (BAX)
Colgate-Palmolive Co (CL)
CA Inc (CA)
Devon Energy Corp (DVN)
General Mills Inc (GIS)
Gilead Sciences Inc (GILD)
Google Inc (GOOG)
Hewlett-Packard Co (HPQ)
McDonald's Corp (MCD)
Merck & Co Inc (MRK)
Monsanto Co (MON)
Nucor Corp (NUE)
Philip Morris International (PM)
Union Pacific Corp (UNP)
Visa Inc (V)

Creepy Crush on CNBC's Erin Burnett.

Even in a Bear Market, Chris Matthew finds time play "Hardball" with the "wonderful and fabulous," as she is affectionatly know on CNBC, Erin Burnett.

Dow 5000?

The search for a bottom in our market likely will continue through the rest of the year and into 2009, as signs continue to emerge that a turning point, or a bottom, is not yet upon us. Market analysts have been racing to call a market bottom in recent weeks as stocks have shed more than 30 percent of it's value from the highs of a year ago. It certainly looks like we have a ways to go. Do you even remember Dow 13,000? I remember it like it was just yesterday. Erin Burnett sat at the anchor desk counting down the points until it turned to beautiful 13,000. Now, we can only hope the countdown doesn't continue the opposite direction to 5,000.

Here's something to look at during this crisis... The Vix. The Chicago Board Options Exchange's Volatility Index (VIX 67.49) skyrocketed past 80 last week, more than double the normal sign for a high level of market panic. The current recession may just be worse than originally feared by many.

Stocks to consider...

ABB, XTO, CLNE, MTZ, TRN, PWR, BWEN.OB

As the Bear continues to roar and bring down great stocks. I can't help but think about how many investors will end up benefiting in the long run. ABB, XTO Energy, Maztek, Trinity, Quanta Services and Broadwine Energy are just some stocks that have been hammered by Wall Street. Keep in mind, all the above companies have outstanding backlogs, great fundamentals and are all trading as clearance items on a rack at your favorite department store.

Take TRN, Trinity Industries Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides various products and services for the industrial, energy, transportation, and construction sectors primarily in the United States. The company trades at a 4.85 P/E, and a multiple of 3.93. This stock has enormous growth potential, which again, is a Wall Street favorite. Last but not least, the stock yields 1.50%. Not to shabby.

You must take action now!

So how is your portfolio doing these days? Be honest, when was the last time you took a peek in there? There is no need to worry if retirement is at least 5 years out. After all, the market will bounce eventually, right? If history is any guide, and when it comes to markets, it usually is ,the stock market will recover over time. It may take several years, and it may get even worse before it gets better, but eventually, America's mighty engine of economic growth will reassert itself. When that happens, investors will be willing to pay up to buy some of that growth, and stock prices will start to rise in a sustainable way. Meanwhile, here we are down in the dumps. And if you've been holding stocks during the ride down, you've probably taken some significant losses. Things might even be as bad as you fear. But the recent market fall has created pain and opportunity in equal measure!

Here's a few things to keep in mind when thinking about your portfolio during times like these:

1. Make a plan! Review your holdings and add to positions in order to lower your cost average. Search stocks like oil and energy. Most stocks in this sector have been beaten despite being great companies. This is the time to buy broken stocks of great companies!
2. Do your homework! Find growth, value, or dividend stocks by market cap. Sites like yahoo finance run screeners to assist you in finding such stocks. Invest in high yielding stocks to boost your portfolio during hard times like these.
3. Keep investing! Don't leave the game. Most importantly, keep contributing to your 401k. Remember, buy low and sell high. What a better time to increase that 401k contribution than now.

Bernanke, Buffett endorsing Obama?

Ben Bernanke apparently wants four more years as Federal Reserve Chairman. At least that's a reasonable conclusion after Mr. Bernanke all but submitted his job application to Barack Obama yesterday by endorsing the Democratic version of fiscal "stimulus." Mr. Bernanke certainly knows that Mr. Obama and Democrats on Capitol Hill are talking about some $300 billion in new "stimulus" spending, while President Bush and Republicans are resisting.

Obama's brain trust also includes the Oracle himself, Obama is frequently on the phone with billionaire CEO Warren Buffett: "One of my favorite people," says Obama, "he's just completely down-to-earth and as smart as they come." What does all this translate to? Is Wall-Street actually turning to the Dems? As you already know, Buffett is a critic of the financial industry and of tax breaks for the rich. As does Obama, he has already mentioned taxing our capital gains if elected. Wall Street needs to start endorsing the McCain-Palin ticket. However, Obama continues to expand his double digit lead in the election and now carries Bernanke and Buffett as supporters.

Do you YAHOO!???

Now that Jerry Yang is planning to cut 10% of Yahoo's work force, he might want to contemplate saving a bit more money by firing some of his advisers. Not only did the Yahoo CEO end up turning down Microsoft's $33-a-share offer for his company, a price that now feels like a distant memory. Yahoo! reported a 64 percent drop in third quarter net income to $54 million, or 4 cents a share, compared to $151 million, or 11 cents a share in the same period last year. CEO Jerry Yang said, “The steps we are taking this quarter should deliver both near-term benefits to operating cash flow, and substantially enhance the nimbleness and flexibility with which we compete over the long term.” Ahh.... No Jerry. Google and Microsoft are not coming back with offers. You will never again see the light of day in the $30 range for your stock.

U.S. is the Saudi Arabia of wind power...

TRN, PWR, CLNE

T. Boone Pickens, I am with you. Studies from around the world show that the Great Plains States are home to the greatest wind energy potential in the world. The Department of Energy reports that 20% of America's electricity can come from wind. North Dakota alone has the potential to provide power for more that a quarter of the country!

Today's wind turbines stand up to 410 feet tall, with blades that stretch 148 feet in length. The blades collect the wind's kinetic energy. In one year, a 3-megawatt wind turbine produces as much energy as 12,000 barrels of imported oil. Wind power currently accounts for 48 billion kWh of electricity a year in the United States — enough to serve more than 4.5 million households. That is still only about 1% of current demand, but the potential of wind is much greater. A 2005 Standford student found that there is enough wind power worldwide to satisfy global demand 7 times over, even if only 20% of wind power could be captured.

Ben Bernanke go away please!

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke warned this week that even if financial markets were to stabilize, the economy would not quickly snap back to good health. Really? Is this what we want to hear, or even need to hear at this point in time? What a joke! Look around you Ben, it's 1930 and you have no clue. Wait, Jim Cramer said it best a year ago... "THEY KNOW NOTHING!!!!!!!"

President Bush: Credit thaw, going to take awhile.

President Bush announced today that the government's drastic economic rescue effort will eventually pay off, but it will take awhile before it does. The economy didn't falter overnight said President Bush just before the market opened this morning. Financial and credit problems have dragged on for more than a year and took a wild turn for the worse last month. The U.S. and world economy now faces a painful and very long recession. The Dow Jones Industrials have swung widely recently slashing a trillion dollars of wealth in one day. The Dow then piles some of it back on the very next day. This seesawed action between positive and negative territory has continued since on a daily basis. Unemployment now at 6.1%, is expected to rise to 7.5% by 2009. Americans are feeling the pinch, as paychecks shrink and savings disappear. To make matters worse, economic slowdowns overseas are expected to crimp demand for U.S. exports, which has been a main force keeping the economy barely afloat.

Live from New York, Sarah Palin?

Oh my, Republican vice president candidate Sarah Palin has agreed to appear on this week's SNL. We all know that the show has featured a popular parody of the Alaska Governor by cast member Tina Fey. The show will be hosted by actor Josh Brolin, who plays President Bush in director Oliver Stone's new movie, "W." John McCain once hosted SNL and Barack Obama once appeared on the show himself.

Jim Cramer's Report Card

There is actually a website that has tracked Jim Cramer's actual stock picking performance since day one! For full disclosure, I am a big Jim Cramer fan and proud member of Cramerica. Although, I do not follow his stock advice. I love the guy for the enthusiasm he creates for the stock market. Cramer's love of the game really peaked my interest in the market years ago. He makes finance fun with his skits and unbelievable humor even in days when the market tanks.

Jim Cramer's "Mad Money"Buy Recommendations PERFORMANCE SCOREBOARD

Since Site Inception - 7/28/05 to 10/13/08

TOTAL: 1564 WINNERS: 631 LOSERS: 931 UNCH: 2

Total Portfolio Performance: -5.95%

DOW -12.31% S&P 500 -19.33% NASDAQ -16.11%

Okay so I'm not a whale..... So what?

My last name sure isn't Buffet, Soros, Cramer or even Icahn. My portfolio does not resemble that of a whale.... not yet anyway. But here are my list of stocks that you should be aggressively picking up while they continue to be on sale. Nevermind sale, they are on clearance, they are BOGO, buy one get one. You get my point? No.. okay, they are el cheapo, the store manager is trying to give them away with a manager's special. Seriously, start buying!

• CHK , KBR, ABB, TRN, PWR, AAPL, XTO, SLB

Inside a whale's portfolio...

The Oracle, Warren Buffet:
KO, WFC, AXP, PG, BNI, JNJ, MCO, USB, BUD, COP, WPO, WMT, USG, UNP, BAC, NKE, DJ, WLP, COST, GE, UNH, CMCSK, KMX, IRM, STI, LOW, TMK, GCI, SNY, HD, WBC, UPS, NSC, IR, CDCO.OB

Ken Heebner:
BTU, CNX, HAL, HES, NBR, SU, CMI, TS, NOV, F, WFT, ACI, DVN, SLB, CLF, FCX, SLG, AAUK, KIM

George Soros:
PBR, POT, COP, HES, SPY, CNX, MON, HAL, WMT, SD, FCX, CENX, WFT, KR, SLB, NOV, IRF, MDR, PTEN

Whale Watching: T. Boone Pickens

CHK, DVN, TS, EOG, BPZ, WFT, XTO, HAL, TLM, SGR, SLB, CVX, OXY, RIG, SU, FLR, DNR, ABB, JEC, SD, CLNE

Is this the opportunity we have been waiting for? Was I the only one cheering on the bears the past few months? When you consider that our very own economy today, even down to the credit crisis, is what led whales such as T. Boone Pickens and the Oracle himself, Warren Buffet to the start of their empire. I can't help but to get a little excited about the buying opportunities in the oil and energy sectors we have today. Chesapeake Energy trading in the teens. XTO under $30. King Hal in the teens as well. Schlumberger in the 50's? ABB in the 14's? Now is the time to begin aggressively, not tenderly, aggressively accumulating shares in these beleaguered stocks. These are all great companies with beaten stocks. These prices only come once in a lifetime. Just ask any whale....

The Stock Market is there to serve you, not to instruct you.

When investing in the stock market, you should be reminded of a few rules that will help you capitalize your returns. Rule #1: DON"T FOLLOW THE CROWD. If you buy the same stocks as other people do, you will have the same results as other people. It is impossible to produce a superior performance unless you do something different than the rest or the majority. To buy stocks when others are selling, or sell when others are buying takes incredible fortitude. But this very game plan is the one that often will pay the highest rewards. Rule #2: IF YOU KNOW ABOUT IT, EVERYONE ELSE DOES TOO! Most people make the mistake of buying only that which is universally advertised and acknowledged. Chances are that if you and everyone else knows about it, you'll have high volume and inflated values. Look for hard to find gems that no one else knows about. In other words, don't find your stock on CNBC or Money Magazine.

ETF's & Index Funds

So you're headed to the in-laws for the holidays, theme parks or the mountains for your winter vacation. You need to vacation proof your portfolio since you won't have time to review your picks daily. Buying individual stocks doesn't accomplish that, and actively managed mutual funds generally underperform the market. What do you do now?Answer: invest in index funds. Index funds are known as “passive” funds because they track established market indices or fixed baskets of stocks, in contrast to “active” funds that employ portfolio managers to actively pick stocks. In all cases, passive funds tend to be far more cost efficient than active funds. The largest index funds track the S&P 500, a group of 500 of the largest publicly traded US companies selected by a committee independent of the index funds that buy the stocks. Other indexes are available that cover the largest companies based on more objective criterias. If you buy an S&P 500 or Russell 1000 index fund, you can be confident that you can hold it for 20 years without the constituent companies losing competitiveness, since these indexes are periodically updated to represent only successful companies (defined by market capitalization). Since they represent the largest US companies, stocks are dropped from these indexes when the companies they represent shrink. As a result, sale of a stock by these index funds rarely results in realization of capital gains. So go ahead and invest in ETF's or Index Funds like IVV, SPY or QQQQ and vacation proof your portfolio.

Lack of Savings... Yes you!

The average American saves less than 5% a year. While people in other industrialized nations such as Canada, France, and Japan save on average, roughly 11% to 15% a year. The average saver in the United States won't even begin to think about saving money until they reach their 35th birthday. Time and time again, I find myself encouraging everyone I meet to save at least 10% of their weekly paycheck. Pay yourself first in other words. You just won't miss it. That 10% that you just don't have, will be spent on a CD, book, food, or another non-essential item. Trust me when I tell you, you're not going to miss that 10%. Give it a year and you will see just how quickly you can build up your savings account. Not disciplined enough to save on your own? Easy. Setup an automatic deposit of 10% of your weekly salary at your local banking institution or other sites such as e-trade or Scottrade. You won't miss it, you won't see it and before you know it... You're well on your way to a nice savings account!

So you really want to buy stocks?

So you think you're ready to manage a portfolio. You think you're ready to go out and pick winning stocks. Well, it's just not that simple. Here's some of my rules on owning stocks that may help you.

1. Two hours per week of research per stock owned.
2. Buy and homework, not buy and hold.
3. Don't own to many stocks, you will become your very own mutual fund if you do.
4. If you're just starting out, begin with 5 stocks in your portfolio.
5. Diversify! Don't buy multiple stocks in one sector if you own five stocks.
6. Buy 1 speculation stock. Swing for the fences with this stock.
7. Fun, Fun, Fun... You need to have fun to stay in the game.
8. Never buy market orders, only buy limit. (same fees applied to each order)
9. Never buy after market hours.
10. Don't get greedy. You only make money when you sell your stock.

By the way, before you even start to look into stocks to buy... Make sure you've done the following first!

1. Pay off every credit card bill you have (become debt free)
2. Build an emergency fund (6 months worth of cash in a money market account)
3. First $10K should be allocated to an index fund (SPY & IVV are two great choices)
4. Begin buying stocks, bonds, ETF's or mutual funds depending on your ability to do research.

The Great Depression... Again?

It's a little known fact that more millionaires were made during The Great Depression than in any other time in U.S. history. You should know that the Great Depression actually began a few years in advance of the 1929 stock market crash and lasted until World War II brought the country out of the Depression. During the years before 1929, as greater and greater amounts of credit was extended to individuals and businesses the economy was tipping over the edge from available cash to excessive amounts of credit debt. When the amount of extended credit reached a critical mass, and businesses failed to pay the credit bills, the companies crashed (the 1929 stock market crash.) Because employees lost their jobs they could not pay their credit debts and the housing market and banking industries crashed. The many business enterprises that changed hands during the depression by people with liquid cash are too numerous to mention, but due to the war effort, those with liquid cash who bought land, homes, companies, or invested in the stocks of the companies that produced products that were in demand by our government for the war effort made millions. The scary thing is that our current economy today has the same indicators that heralded the depression of the 1930’s. Not enough cash savings, too much corporate and personal credit debt, banks failing, etc. Individuals today have no liquid cash that they could get their hands on within 30 minutes if an emergency presented itself. I have a saying, when there's blood on the street, there is money to be made. If you have liquid cash at hand, you should rest well at night. Your time to build wealth may have just arrived.