3 Hottest Penny Stocks -- 12/31

When I say hot that doesn't mean buy.  These are just 3 OTCBB stocks that I found on Barchart that have consistently hit new highs in the last 20 trading sessions.  If you're into technical analysis put them on your watch list and run them through your screening process.  If you're a fundamental investor better look at the companies' websites and find out what you can on the Internet.  But--please-- be cognizant that many of the Internet bulletin boards are used by churners that are either pumping a stock up or trashing it to bits while secretly holding a long or short position.  The OTCBB part of the market isn't for long term investors but is a fun place for speculators.

ALME - Alamo Energy -- an early stage oil and gas company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of oil and gas properties. It owns a 75% working interest in oil and gas properties in Frio County, Texas; and a 16% working interest in oil and gas leases in Adair County, Kentucky. It also has farm-in and participation rights agreements in onshore oil and gas properties in the United Kingdom. The company is based in Houston, Texas.

• 96% Barchart technical buy signal
• 16 new highs and up  60.55% in the last month
• Relative Strength Index 83.31% and rising
• Trades around 1.76 well above its 50 day moving average of 1.1859

WLOC - Willow Creek Enterprises -- an exploration stage company, engages in the acquisition and exploration of mineral properties. It holds 100% interest in a mineral claim, known as the Lori/Mamquam property located in the Vancouver Mining District, British Columbia, Canada. The company also has agreements to conduct mineral exploration activities in the Dolly Varden South situated in Elko County, Nevada; and the Hercules properties located in Lyon County, Nevada. Willow Creek Enterprises, Inc. was founded in 2007 and is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.

• 100% Barchart technical buy signal
• 13 new highs and up 36.77% in the last month
• Relative Strength Index 82.77% and rising
• Trades around 2.13 which is above its 50 day moving average of 1.3871

COUGF - Cougar Oil and Gas -- an oil and gas exploration and production company, focuses on the exploration and development of onshore oil and gas properties in Canada. Its projects include the Trout properties located in north central Alberta; the Lucy project in the Horn River Basin in northeast British Columbia; and the CREEnergy project in north central Alberta. The company was formerly known as Ore-More Resources Inc. and changed its name to Cougar Oil and Gas Canada Inc. in February 2010. Cougar Oil and Gas Canada Inc. is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

• 96% Barchart technical buy signal
• 13 new highs and up 65.25% in the last month
• Relative Strength Index 82.21% and rising
• Trades around 3.92 well above its 50 day moving average of 2.3112

Remember, these are not buy recommendations; just something interesting to put on your watch lists.

Jim Van Meerten is an advisor to Marketocracy Capital Management who uses his model portfolios not only to manage their mutual funds but also their clients Separately Managed Accounts. You can read his blogs about those model portfolios and investing here and on Barchart Portfolio Blogs. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com.

Disclosure: Jim Van Meerten through Marketocracy Capital Management has an interest in the stocks mentioned in this blog.

RF Micro Devices -- RFMD -- Sell signal

This morning I deleted RF Micro Devices (RFMD) from the Barchart Van Meerten Speculative Portfolio.  When I decide to sell a stock there is no magic rule but if a stock has a Barchart short term sell signal and is trading below its 20 day moving average I put it immediately on my sell watch list.  I then look at other momentum factors and when there are fewer pros than cons I pull the trigger.  Here's what I found:

• 40% Barchart short term sell signal
• Trading this morning below its 20 day moving average
• Off 7.26% from its recent high
• Relative Strength Index is below 50% at 45.62% and dropping

The last thing I did was to look at the chart.  My default chart is the price plus the 20, 50 and 100 daily moving averages and Trend Spotter (tm).  I just change that to an hourly chart and see where its heading.  At the moment I pulled the trigger it was trading below its 20,50 and 100 hourly moving averages and below the hourly Trend Spotter (tm).

Jim Van Meerten is an advisor to Marketocracy Capital Management who uses his model portfolios not only to manage their mutual funds but also their clients Separately Managed Accounts. You can read his blogs about those model portfolios and investing here and on Barchart Portfolio Blogs. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com.

Disclosure: Jim Van Meerten through Marketocracy Capital Management has an interest in the stocks mentioned in this blog.

3 Hottest ETFs - 12/30

I consider an ETF hot if its having positive and consistent price momentum.  Please look at the reasons I think they are hot and maybe even put them on your watch list.

DTN - Wisdom Tree Dividend Ex-Financials ETF -  WisdomTree Dividend Top 100 Fund seeks investment results that closely correspond to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the WisdomTree Dividend Top 100 Index. The WisdomTree DEFA Equity Income Index is a fundamentally weighted Index that measures the performance of companies with high dividend yields selected from the WisdomTree DEFA Index. At the index measurement date, companies within the WisdomTree DEFA Index with market capitalizations of at least $200 million and average daily trading volumes of at least $200,000 for the prior three months are ranked by dividend yield. Securities ranking in the highest 30% by dividend yield are selected for inclusion. Companies are weighted in the Index based on annual cash dividends paid.

• 96% Barchart technical buy signal
• 17 new highs and up 5.85% in the last month
• Relative Strength Index is 72.15% and rising
• Trades around 48.01 well above its 50 day moving average of 46.38 

IYZ - DJ US Telecom ETF -  The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Dow Jones U.S. Select Telecommunications Index (the "Underlying Index"). The Underlying Index measures the performance of the telecommunications sector of the U.S. equity market. The Underlying Index includes companies in the following industry groups: fixed-line telecommunications and mobile telecommunications. As of May 29, 2009, the Underlying Index was concentrated in the fixed line telecommunications and mobile telecommunications industry groups, which comprised 74% and 26%, respectively, of the market capitalization of the Underlying Index.

• 96% Barchart technical buy signal
• 16 new highs and up 8.06% in the last month
• Relative Strength Index 71.07% and rising
• Trades around 23.36 well above its 50 day moving average of 22.33

EES - Small Cap Earnings ETF --  WisdomTree SmallCap Earnings Fund seeks investment results that correspond to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the WisdomTree SmallCap Earnings Index. The WisdomTree SmallCap Earnings Index is a fundamentally weighted index that measures the performance of earnings- generating companies within the small-capitalization segment of the U.S. stock market. The Index is created by first removing the 500 companies with the highest market capitalizations as of the Index measurement date from the WisdomTree Earnings Index. Those companies that comprise the bottom 25% of the remaining market capitalization of the WisdomTree Earnings Index are included in the WisdomTree SmallCap Earnings Index. Companies are weighted in the Index based on their earnings over their most recent four fiscal quarters preceding the Index measurement date. For these purposes, "earnings" are determined using a company''s "Core Earnings." Core Earnings is a standardized calculation of earnings developed by Standard & Poor''s that is designed to include expenses, incomes and activities that reflect the actual profitability of a company''s ongoing operations. The Index includes primarily small-capitalization securities.

• 96% Barchart technical buy signal
• 16 new highs and up 7.46% in the last month
• Relative Strength Index 72.23% and rising
• Trades around 52.29 which is well above its 50 day moving average of 49.60 

Jim Van Meerten is an advisor to Marketocracy Capital Management who uses his model portfolios not only to manage their mutual funds but also their clients Separately Managed Accounts. You can read his blogs about those model portfolios and investing here and on Barchart Portfolio Blogs. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com.

Disclosure: Jim Van Meerten through Marketocracy Capital Management has an interest in the stocks mentioned in this blog.

Biotime - BTX -- deleted

This morning I deleted the unrated Biotime Inc (BTX) for the Barchart Van Meerten Speculative portfolio for very negative price trend

• Stock dropped 15.29% off its recent high
• Relative Strength Index is 51.72% but dropping rapidly

Jim Van Meerten is an advisor to Marketocracy Capital Management who uses his model portfolios not only to manage their mutual funds but also their clients Separately Managed Accounts. You can read his blogs about those model portfolios and investing here and on Barchart Portfolio Blogs. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com.

Disclosure: Jim Van Meerten through Marketocracy Capital Management has an interest in the stocks mentioned in this blog.

J C Penny -- JCP -- deleted

This morning I deleted J C Penny (JCP) from the Barchart Van Meerten New High portfolio for negative price trends.

• 40% Barchart short term sell signal
• Trading below its 20 and 50 day moving averages
• 7.63% off its recent high
• Relative Strength Index is 46.19% and dropping

Jim Van Meerten is an advisor to Marketocracy Capital Management who uses his model portfolios not only to manage their mutual funds but also their clients Separately Managed Accounts. You can read his blogs about those model portfolios and investing here and on Barchart Portfolio Blogs. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com.

Disclosure: Jim Van Meerten through Marketocracy Capital Management has an interest in the stocks mentioned in this blog.

3 Hottest NASDAQ stocks

Hot stocks not only appreciate but consistently continue to hit new highs.  I found these while screening on Barchart for the NASDAQ stock that hit the most frequent new highs. Put these on your watch lists.

Fulton Financial (FULT) -- a bank holding company. It provides retail and commercial banking and investment management and trust services in central and eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey, northern Maryland and southern Delaware through its wholly-owned subsidiaries: Fulton Bank, Lebanon Valley Farmers Bank, Swineford National Bank, Lafayette Ambassador Bank, FNB Bank, N.A., Great Valley Bank, Hagerstown Trust Company, Delaware National Bank, The Bank of Gloucester County, The Woodstown National Bank & Trust Company, and The Peoples Bank of Elkton.

• 96% Barchart technical buy signal
• 18 new highs and up 20.43% in the last month
• Relative Strength Index 76.51% and rising
• Trades around 10.55 well above its 50 day moving average of 9.32

Adtran (ADTN)  -- a leading global provider of networking & communications equipment, with an eighteen year history of profitability & a portfolio of more than one thousand four hundred solutions for use in the last mile of today's telecommunications networks. Widely deployed by both carriers & small & midsize businesses, Adtran solutions enable voice, data, video, and Internet communications across copper, fiber, & wireless network infrastructures. ADTRAN solutions are currently in use by every major U.S. service provider & many global ones, as well as by thousands of public, private and governmental organizations worldwide. It's product portfolio consists of different high-speed network access devices. In both service provider & enterprise networks, these products are used primarily in the last mile, or local loop, of the network, & in local area networks on the customer premises. The last mile is that segment of the network that connects end-user subscribers to a service provider's closest facility.

• 96% Barchart technical buy signal
• 17 new highs and up 16.48% in the last month
• Relative Strength Index 75.72% and rising
• Trading around 36.27 well above its 50 day moving average of 33.20

Pico Holdings (PICO) -- A diversified real estate developer and holding company

• 72% Barchart technical buy signal
• 17 new highs and up 9.23% in the last month
• Relative Strength Index 68.17% and rising
• Trades around 32.20 well above its 50 day moving average of 30.74

Jim Van Meerten is an advisor to Marketocracy Capital Management who uses his model portfolios not only to manage their mutual funds but also their clients Separately Managed Accounts. You can read his blogs about those model portfolios and investing here and on Barchart Portfolio Blogs. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com.

Disclosure: Jim Van Meerten through Marketocracy Capital Management has an interest in the stocks mentioned in this blog.

Chevron -- CVX -- added

This morning I added Chevron (CVX) to the Barchart Van Meerten New High portfolio.  I think that with the Gulf drilling moratorium ending and CVX's new processing of shale gas the future looks bright.  Between the capital appreciation and the generous and steady dividend long term investors should see a annual total return in the 15% range for the next 5 years.

Chevron is the fifth-largest integrated energy company in the world. Headquartered in San Ramon, California, and conducting business in approximately 180 countries, this highly competitive corporation is engaged in every aspect of the oil and natural gas industry, including exploration and production; refining, marketing and transportation; chemicals manufacturing and sales; and power generation.

The stock came to my notice when I used Barchart to screen for stocks hitting the most frequent new highs.  The stock hit 18 new highs and appreciated 12.52% in the last month earning it a 96% Barchart technical buy signal. The stock trades around 91.99 which is well above its 50 day moving average of 85.04.  The Relative Strength Index is 74.25% and still rising so there is an indication that the price rise will continue.

Wall Street brokerage analysts consider CVX a core position and have published 15 buy and 6 hold recommendations for their brokers to push to clients.  No negative reports were noted.  The consensus is for an increase in sales of 21.80% next year and a 5 year annual compounded earnings per share increase of 18.63% per annum.  That with a 3.60% dividend rate look promising.

The general investor has not let this stock go unnoticed with the CAPS members on Motley Fool voting 3,457 to 158 that the stock will beat the market.  The more experienced All Stars are in agreement with a vote of 957 to 24.  Fool notes that all 22 of the recent Wall Street columnists articles have been positive.

Although this stock is on my list for recent price movement please consider:

• 96% Barchart technical buy signal
• 18 new highs and up 12.52% in the last month
• Wall Street buy recommendations based on projections of double digit increases in both sales and earnings
• Wide and positive general investor sentiment
• Record of increasing dividend payments.

Jim Van Meerten is an advisor to Marketocracy Capital Management who uses his model portfolios not only to manage their mutual funds but also their clients Separately Managed Accounts. You can read his blogs about those model portfolios and investing here and on Barchart Portfolio Blogs. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com.

Disclosure: Jim Van Meerten through Marketocracy Capital Management has an interest in the stocks mentioned in this blog.

Devon Energy looks for liquid growth

A stock you might want to add to your watch list is Devon Energy (DVN).  The company realizes that natural gas prices will continue to stay low but liquid oil prices will probably rise.  That being said they are cutting back on NG exploration and plowing ahead full tilt into discovering new oil reserves.

Devon Energy Corporation is an independent energy company engaged primarily in oil and gas exploration, development and production, and in the acquisition of producing properties. Devon currently owns oil and gas properties concentrated in four operating divisions: the Northern Division; the Southern Division,; Canada; and the International Division.

The company came under my radar while screening on Barchart for S&P 100 stocks enjoying recent positive price momentum.  The stock has a 100% Barchart technical buy signal.  It hit 11 new highs and was up 9.75% in the last month.  The stock trades around 77.47 which is well above its 50 day moving average of 70.93 and enjoys a Relative Strength Index of 73.99% which is on the rise.

Wall Street brokerage analysts have 20 buy and 8 hold reports published with no negative recommendations.  Although overall revenue is not expected to increase they project an annual earnings per share growth of 11.60% for at least the next 5 years.

General investor sentiment is very high with the CAPS members on Motley Fool voting 1,874 to 56 that the stock will beat the market.  The more experienced All Stars are in agreement with a vote of 611 to 5.  Fool notes that 26 of the last 27 Wall Street columnists articles have been positive.

Reasons to put on your watch lists:

• 100% Barchart technical buy signal
• Relative Strength Index of 73.99% and rising
• All 28 Wall Street brokerage analysts following the stock have released Buy or Hold recommendations
• High investor sentiment

Jim Van Meerten is an advisor to Marketocracy Capital Management who uses his model portfolios not only to manage their mutual funds but also their clients Separately Managed Accounts. You can read his blogs about those model portfolios and investing here and on Barchart Portfolio Blogs. Please leave a comment below or email JimVanMeerten@gmail.com.

Disclosure: Jim Van Meerten through Marketocracy Capital Management has an interest in the stocks mentioned in this blog.

Gov Ed Rendell -- Most Ignorant Bozo in America

Just when you think a public official can't make a more stupid statement along comes another political bozo that proves how the average American just throws away his vote by putting the lowest common denominator into a position of public trust.

Gov. Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania chastised football officials for calling off a football game that would have been played in the middle of one of the worst winter blizzards in over a century.  He said that proved that we were a nation of wusses and said the Chinese wouldn't have called off the game.

When there is bad weather schools across the country call off school not because they are wusses but as a safety concern to keep all the teachers, support staff, bus drivers and parents off the roads.  The school days can be made up without putting lives in danger.

Bozo ED - There was going to be a blizzard.  Roads and parking lots were buried under snow.  Public transportation was curtailed.  All the police, firemen and EMTs that would normally be needed at the game were needed elsewhere.

You wanted to put 70,000 fans plus 10's of thousands of support people at the stadium in danger, just for a game that could be postponed to another evening.

If you really believe that not venturing out in the blizzard makes you a Wuss then put your money where your big mouth is.  Declare by Executive Order that any public employee in the State of Pennsylvania who did not show up for work be declared an unexcused Wuss.  Put a reprimand in his file and dock his pay for the unexcused absences.

Hold a press conference and release the names of all the public employee wusses who didn't show up for work.

I bet you won't do it because you are afraid of the public employees unions and you are the Biggest Wuss in America.