In Oregon, a company is offering checks to residents if they promise not to complain about noise from turbines.

An effort known as a static kill is part of a two-pronged strategy to kill the well in the Gulf of Mexico by cementing it shut from above and below.

As signs of oil on the gulf surface recede, biologists worry about hidden impacts to marine life.

The Pennsylvania racetrack, site of a 500-mile Nascar Sprint Cup race, is the world’s largest sports facility operating on power from the sun.

Top Stocks for Slow Economy

Filed under: China

According to recent news reports out of the World Bank, China is now the world's number two economy, passing Japan.

China's fast-growing economy has been moving forward at more than 10% a year for many years and is likely to become the world's largest economic superpower, bypassing America by 2025, or maybe even as soon as 2017 as I pointed out recently.

Continue reading China Surpasses Japan as World's #2 Economy

China Surpasses Japan as World's #2 Economy originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 31 Jul 2010 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Japan - United States - World Bank - China - BloggingStocks

Filed under: Earnings Reports, Newell Rubbermaid (NWL)

Last time I wrote about Newell Rubbermaid (NWL), in a piece published way back in January, I was a bit too conservative on the stock's short-term prospects. As this chart will show, the shares eventually rose for a while after the fourth-quarter report was released.

However, they have pulled back somewhat from the 52-week high of $17.96. The company closed Friday's session at a price of $15.50, representing a very modest decline in reaction to the second-quarter earnings numbers that were released before the market was open for business.

Continue reading Newell Rubbermaid's Q2: Market Wasn't Too Excited

Newell Rubbermaid's Q2: Market Wasn't Too Excited originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 31 Jul 2010 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Newell Rubbermaid - Business - BloggingStocks - Graco - Papermate

Filed under: Comfort Zone Investing, Recession

This recession is very different from any since the Depression. Normal events just aren't happening, ones like a rebound in housing prices, shorter unemployment periods, interest rates bouncing back. The severity of the economic slowdown continues to grind on, and investors who thought along the lines of a "normal" recovery have been disappointed so far as there's nothing normal happening.

Continue reading Comfort Zone Investing: Unconventional Thinking Needed

Comfort Zone Investing: Unconventional Thinking Needed originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 31 Jul 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Recession - Unemployment - BloggingStocks - Interest rate - United States

Filed under: Wal-Mart (WMT), Coca-Cola (KO), China, McDonald's (MCD), Yum Brands (YUM), Stocks to Buy

"Ya'll oughta try some of this here fried chicken; you ain't gonna believe it!" "Xie-Xie!" (pronounced "she-she") That is Chinese for thank you. From the hills of Kentucky, the Colonial Sanders secret recipe has made a splash in China. While it is well known a lot of the stuff you buy at Walmart (WMT) is made in China; what you may not know is that China is crazy for KFC.

You may not think anything of going out for Chinese with your friends and practice eating with chopsticks; when the Chinese go out with their friends to practice eating with a fork; KFC seems to be a popular option.

Continue reading China Is Crazy over KFC

China Is Crazy over KFC originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 31 Jul 2010 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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China - Wal-Mart - Coca-Cola - Yum Brands - BloggingStocks

The focus is more on long-term recovery now that some of the urgent demands of the spill are diminishing.

The French energy giant cited costs related to its U.S. nuclear ventures and the construction of its latest generation nuclear power plant in France, which will be delayed until 2014.

For decades, the oil industry, farming and lax oversight have contributed to a dead zone in the gulf.

The oil is clearing much faster than expected, but concern remains over the unseen effects.

An American oil spill consultant suggests the Chinese spill was larger than the government admits.

Filed under: Earnings Reports, Forecasts, Products and Services, Competitive Strategy, Allergan (AGN)

Drug manufacturer Allergan, Inc. (AGN) will be reporting its second quarter results on Monday, with analysts expecting to see an 8% earnings increase from the same period last year.

Analysts have forecast earnings of $0.81 for the quarter, versus $0.75 during the same period last year.

Allergan has managed to outpace analyst estimates for each of the past six quarters, and has not failed to at least match estimates since the first quarter of 2007.

Continue reading Allergan Second Quarter Earnings Preview

Allergan Second Quarter Earnings Preview originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 30 Jul 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Allergan - BloggingStocks - Products and Services - United States - Food and Drug Administration

Filed under: Research in Motion (RIMM), Options

Research in Motion (RIMM) closed up $1.83 to $57.53. RIMM is expected to launch its Blackpad in November. August put option implied volatility is at 40, September at 51, December is at 46; versus its 26-week average of 43 according to Track Data, suggesting larger September price movement.

Rambus (RMBS) closed up 30 cents to $19.65. RMBS call option volume of 9K contracts compares to put volume of 1K contracts. August put option implied volatility is at 50, September is at 51, November is at 55, January is at 57; versus its 26-week average of 66 according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

Options Update is by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.

Options Update: Research in Motion August Volatility at 40, September at 51 as New Device Announced originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 30 Jul 2010 17:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Option - Research in Motion - Put option - Implied volatility - BloggingStocks

Filed under: Good news, From the Boards, BP p.l.c. ADS (BP), Oil

Two weeks ago, BP plc (BP) was able to stop oil from spilling into the Gulf of Mexico. The company announced today that it was time to being scaling back on the cleanup process.

Since the spill began back in April, there has been over eleven million feet of boom deployed in the Gulf, but these only last for a certain number of tide cycles, and in areas where the company feels that beaches are not in danger, the boom will be removed.

Continue reading BP to Begin Scaling Back Oil Cleanup

BP to Begin Scaling Back Oil Cleanup originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 30 Jul 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gulf of Mexico - BP - BloggingStocks - Business - Oil spill

Acme Packet (APKT) was a great example of a company that was Overvalued coming into earnings, so that anything less than absolutely outstanding results will pull the stock lower. Today, the communications equipment maker reported earnings and revenues that topped analysts’ expectations but rather than getting a boost shares are trading lower by 12% on Friday afternoon. Furthermore, the company raised sales guidance for the rest of the year to $214 million to $218 million, but that was considered weaker than the market hoped to see. As for profits, for the full-year Acme expects to earn between 72 and 74 cents per share, exceeding consensus estimates of 68 cents.

Excluding items, Acme Packet earned 18 cents per share in the second quarter, a penny ahead of expectations. Sales were up 62% to $53.3 million beating projections of $52.4 million. To see the company perform better than expected and raise guidance for the rest of the year is encouraging, but it is clear to us that the stock had already priced in plenty of growth already.

At Google (GOOG) I/O in May, the search giant indicated that they were about to take their commitment to location to the next level. Sure, Latitude had been around for a while, but everyone knew that Google could do more in the space. The announcement of some new location APIs seemed to a big part of the solution. And now comes the fun part.

Thursday on their Geo blog, Google announced that they’re beginning to open the Places API for business. The first developers getting access? Those working on check-in services.

This one's gonna sting. For the 2nd day in a row I did not check the schedule of earning reports due to a very busy schedule and, unlike Akamai Technologies (AKAM), I actually have some decent sized exposure to Acme Packet (APKT). The tiny silver lining is it's a good reminder of the reasons why I have been cutting back almost every position going into earnings. (Click to enlarge)

Going into the day I have a 9% unrealized gain in the stock which shall vanish and then some, I am sure. From there it will be exactly the same situation as Netflix (NFLX) and Akamai (this is starting to be a pattern)... if (when) it breaks the 50-day moving average ($28.50s) I have to cut it back sharply. And if it does not regain that level soon, we'll most likely cut bait and revisit it later in the year. But the prognosis for today is PAIN. Time for damage control. (Note to readers - never try to launch a mutual fund during earnings season.)