What Are Your Favorite Stock Picks?

“I've been spending a lot of time these past two years, studying companies whose names I recognize, digging into their backgrounds, financials, etc., and I pay attention to the financial press (I get WSJ & Investor's Daily) and watch MSNBC's Sqwaukbox.

This past year, I've noted that I've done well with some, not so well with others. Some are tech, and others are not. And having watched a few specific companies pretty closely, I finally bought at a time I felt was a respectable low, with the goal of going long on these.

I'm working with a limited fund, having allocated a specific amount to my "fund" and working only with that.

So far, I've done very well with 4 companies - Harley Davidson, Handspring, Alliance Gaming, and Inktomi.

What's working for you?”

“Not usx......they are buying there stock back........And you know wat that might mean in the long run......Whats it going to be 13,7,11?????????”

“Long term on the long side? Stuff I would put Mom into? Only the bluest of blue chip...GE, JPM, IBM MSFT, etc. (mostly pay divs too). I am not making any long term moves now, prefering to wait until the spring.

Now, if you want to talk play time, yeeehaw, short CSCO anywhere over 20; scalp a few either way off ORCL between 13 and 15. There so many bumping up against overheard resistance right now fun times are coming back into the market, beware (or benefit) from possible breakouts through January and then get short. Just MHO.”

“I prefer thorlo's myself, but I do own a pair of smartwool's.”

“AmGen the pharmaceutical company. Check it out.”

“Introgen(INGN)a cancer gene therapy company. It's fascinating stuff.”

“If you like techs, my prophecy is that Red Hat will be a major competitor to Microsoft in about 5 - 10 years. They are not profitable now, but they are growing fast.”

“Are you a linux man Matt?”

“I guess you could call me a linux fan. I see where it is useful (this server runs RH 7) and where is needs work (the desktop). But I just have this feeling that Microsoft's business practices, like forcing yearly updates to businesses, will cause many people to look for an alternative. So I think in 5 - 10 years, linux will be that alternative.”

“The only issue I have with MS is heavy-handed approach they take. Linux has a hell of a battle to win marketshare. Large companies are still scared of it. If MS gets dismantled I'm buying a bucketload of RH stock though.”

“USX ? One would think that after the split between MRO and USX that one should rise. I'm betting on MRO.

My long term is in CPN (Calpine), if they don't go they way of ENE (Enron).

Should have bought ENE when it hit $0.16. Two days later it was at $0.95.”

“oh.. never mind.. I forgot..
you can't remote load..

just go to here instead!

Ohhh.. STOCK PICKS.. I thought you said SPOCK PICS!”

“Check that link TD, I think there's been some kind of tripod error.”

“hehe.. one more time..

Ohhh.. STOCK PICKS.. I thought you said SPOCK PICS!

Now it is right.. :)”

“Three's the charm!”

“no comment... i'd lose my job”

“Matt, five to ten years is just about an eternity in computer hardware and software technology.

In ten years EVERYTHING will be different. My guesses:

- There won't be an OS called "Windows" anything

- Linux will still be around but Red Hat won't be

- Microsoft will have been broken up and/or won't be nearly as dominant as they are today

Who knows what else will change?”

“You people are crazy. In 2006, all corporations will be replaced by cooperatives. The next administration will change the federal and state corporation laws, so there is one vote per share HOLDER, rather than per share of stock. Banks and savings and loan associations will be replaced with CREDIT UNIONS in the same way, so there is one vote per depositor and shareholder.

ALL financial, economic, and banking officials will be ELECTED rather than APPOINTED. The position now held by Alan Greenspan will be periodically and directly ELECTED on a national level. There will even be added a 4TH BRANCH of government, for "Banking and Finance".

There will be established a GUARANTEED MONTHLY INCOME, just enough for basic food, clothing, and shelter costs, given to each and EVERY person REGARDLESS of his or her wealth, wages, salary, or other earnings. The money for this will be created OUT OF "THIN AIR" by simply having computers OFFICIALLY print out and mail monthly allowance checks.

To distribute the available useful work more evenly, fairly, and DEMOCRATICALLY among everyone who wants it, a FOUR DAY WORK WEEK will be instituted by changing FEDERAL AND STATE OVERTIME LAWS, FROM 40 TO 32 HOURS.

Remember "capitalism" is NOT free enterprise. It is CORPORATE SOCIALISM, which is the opposite side of the SAME coin of STATE socialism which we call "communism".

Consider the ABSURDITY of forcing People to compete against each other for a chance to "EARN" the things they need and should receive regardless. Look what happens to the LOSERS of such competition and their families! Even the "winners" are SLAVES, when they have to settle for work they don't really want, and are forced to submit to the WHIMS of their bosses. They are also SLAVES to the extent that they are UNDERPAID for their work.”

“i'm underpaid?

yeah, you're right. i'm sure i'd earn MUCH more, under communist rule!”

“I doubt MSFT will be broken up, at least by the government anyway. I thought DOJ already gave up on that. Besides, isn't the OS less that 1/3 MSFTs rev's nowadays, they're more of an entertainment company. One thing the Clinton/DOJ thing taught MSFT is you can't just go about your egghead business and expect to get big and not pay the piper. They are now a player (a payer) and will have good "insurance" against this type of thing happening in the future.”

“My Krispy Kreme stock is rocking this world. I bought in at opening. It's split twice and is kicking ass into Canada (recently had their biggest opening day at a store in the co.'s history). I think it's gonna split again soon.

I knew the West Coast would suck these things up!

Power to the donut!”

“?”

“EFDS

ATYT

GRMN

FLIR”

“I could give you the worst stock picks.”

“I like gig cap techs. CSCO, INTC, HPQ, BRCM are all making good gains. Should IT spending return, they're all positioned to take advantage, and most are heavy with cash and have zip debt. I have also like a little bank stock in Pennsylvania..Community Banks CMTY.

When I was born in 1943, my grandmother gave me five shares of Citizens National Bank of Ashland. That bank merged and merged and bought up other little banks. Those five shares have since grown to 1400, and I have sold more than 600. It doesn't have bad years. Check it out.

Harley Davidson is priced right, and I think there is still upside there, but HD guys are really getting bald and gray, and I really don't know if a younger generation will buy into the Harley myth. Their licensing of products is huge. I first bought that stock in 1988 at 12 when the company made fewer than 50,000 units a year. Check out their production now.

If you own bonds, you might consider taking some profit. I doubt bond prices will go much higher, and if Greenspan goes, the next Fed chair may make some sense out of raising interest rates.

Cash on hand is nice, but there are some awfully nice prices out there. Sun Micro SUNW fell to below $3 a share. It has since climbed to almost $5. That's a huge percentage increase, and Sun isn't a chump change company. I suspect someone will buy out Sun, and maybe at double its present price.

Broadcom can make money for you, but it will come in fits and starts. If you are a bit of a woosie when it comes to investing, this market may not be right for you, but if you've got some patient cash to park somewhere for a while, big cap techs might help your net worth, but patience is the key...also, never be afraid to take some profit. I always part with some shares whenever they hit 20%.

Sleeper stock..Texas Utilities TXU.

Died last year from lousy investments in Europe, but that is pretty much behind them. The stock has gone from $15 last December to around $22. It pays about 2.3% dividend.”

“I think that Whammies are groundhogs animated...not sure , I'll get back to you on this one.”

“EENC
TIVO
FTEK
sell bonds as said above.Keep junk bonds.”

“I like TIVO, but I don't think the technology will be mutually exclusive for long. I suspect cable companies will eventually incorporate the TIVO concept into their products. Short term it looks pretty good...as does Netflix.

That's an interesting concept...ordering CD's on-line. I used it faithfully throughout the winter, but once movie watching season ended...usually happens when the days start getting longer...and the best films were gone, I found myself not using the service. I cancelled my subscription, but I will get it back in the Fall. I think the business model will work for a while, but like TIVO, I think its life-span is limited.

As to Krispy Kreme..their growth has astounded me seeing as how their product is simply a glob of "hot" sweet dough. Here in California every store opening is an event, but if I had a choice, it would be Dunkin' Donuts, but they aren't here. I guess the company still has lots of mileage on the upside until someone figures out how much they are paying for a warm glob of more than 300 calories. But then again fast food still sells big regardless of concerns the food is essentially not healthy.

I never liked food stocks. Technology is still where the fortunes are to be made, and if you have the time and wherewithal to do some research and homework, and the Internet provides much of what you need, you can make a lot of money in the equities market. It is very much a stockpicker's market, and those who take the time dig into a company's guts could be rewarded. Don't depend on brokers. They make money buying and selling. You can do the same without the middle man/woman.”

“Almost forgot Hewlitt-Packard. Well positioned especially this year when because of the new tax laws, HP will be able to repatriate $12 billion in money they won't have to pay in taxes on foreign products. The tax for one year has been reduced from 30% to 5%. That's a group of cash added to the bottom line.”

“Starbucks?

I prefer Dunlop 1mm picks and D'Adarrio .011 gage Jazz/Blues strings.”

“Tortex .73 mm picks and Guild Phosphor Bronze Light Gauge, <G>.”

“TTEK - shameless plug :)”

“Any stock would do today.Beware the profit takers could take the last month back in very few sessions.”

“Today was a sweet day.”

“Celery!

Yeah...celery.”

“Ah, yes...another potentially interesting and enlightening discussion down the tubes.”

“Jello, yeah, lime green jello!”

“Man held in Google stock fraud FBI arrests Dutch native in sale of fake IPO shares

The FBI has arrested a Dutch native in New York for allegedly selling $2.8 million in nonexistent shares of Google, the Internet search engine.

Shamoon Rafiq, who was arrested at his home March 5, is accused of fraud as part of the scheme to sell victims shares of "Series B Preferred Stock" in Google, prior to what he described as the company's impending initial public offering, according to authorities.

Google, based in Mountain View, has no such shares and isn't raising any capital, the complaint said.

Doug Morris, a public defender representing Rafiq, declined to comment.

His client, who has been charged by federal prosecutors, but not formally indicted, faces a maximum of 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $1 million.

Rafiq is alleged to have collected $500,000 from at least four victims and offered them promissory notes for another $2.3 million. The FBI identified the victims only by profession, including the chairman of a global telecommunications company, a New York investment banker, a corporate attorney and a senior executive at a brokerage firm, according to the complaint.

"Shamoon Rafiq preyed upon the public's enthusiasm for the growth of dynamic companies and in the process swindled some of the most sophisticated investors in the United States and abroad," Roslynn Mauskopf, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said in a statement.

"This is another lesson to be wary of anyone claiming to have the inside track on an opportunity that seems too good to be true."

more...”

“The 1993 Economic Plan raised taxes on the wealthiest 1.2%, reduced taxes on 15 million working American families with incomes below $27,000 through expansion of the earned income tax credit and made tax cuts available to 90% of small businesses.

It was passed without a single Republican vote.

Dumbya reversed all this.”

“Wrong thread!”

“WHOA! My company's stock is taking off......

http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=ARRY”

“Pharmacy company...LOL right they are going to be investigated for being successful by the upcoming congress.”

“I'd go Northern Tool and Equipment.

”

“Jim Cramer: "Bear Stearns is Fine!" 3/11/08: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3FVBKic5Ek”