Intelligent Speculator

Home Solutions of America is a company that I have some reservations about recommending but I think now is a good time to buy.

HSOA provides recovery, restoration, and remodeling services. The company’s stock price had quite a run last year but a questionable press release by the company sent the stock sharply down and the stock hasn’t recovered. I will leave it to you to find out the details of what happened but it definitely raises concern about the management of the company. (more…)

I originally recommended Ceco Environmental as a stock to buy and hold. However, the stock is up 31% in a little over two weeks and I think it would be foolish for me not to give a sell recommendation.

I said yesterday that I think CECE still has room to run but it only gained two cents today and I think the share price is most likely going to pull back.

Furthermore, a lot of the increase in Ceco’s share price has come in the last couple of days and is due to speculators who bought in before the State of the Union Address. Well, the State of the Union Address is over and if you followed my advice on PFSW you saw what can happen to the share price of a stock after the momentum dries up. (more…)

When I originally gave my buy recommendation of Ceco Environmental I said to buy and accumulate at the current price (which was $9.89). However, the share price is up quite a bit since I originally recommended it and I am going to change my recommendation to hold.

Ceco Environmental has had some positive developments recently but I think the huge jump today is due to speculators buying in before the State of the Union Address on Tuesday. If the president mentions greater pollution controls to fight global warming this will obviously bode well for Ceco Environmental. (more…)

Datalink is up 6% since I originally recommended it and there haven’t been any developments since my original recommendation. However, Datalink is set to report earnings on February 7 and I am going to give you my opinion of what you should expect. (more…)

I would continue holding your short position in MAMA and if you are a patient investor I would recommend shorting more. MAMA may not drop immediately but eventually its share price is going to correct and reflect its fundamentals.

If you are looking for a short term gain I would not recommend shorting MAMA. There are a lot of daytraders and greater fools buying MAMA right now and they may continue to send MAMA up in spite of its ridiculous valuation. However, the momentum will die out and MAMA will assuredly drop. (more…)

This overcompensation has been a problem for years and people just tend to overlook it. CEOs make millions of dollars in base pay and are given stock options worth tens of millions even when their companies and their stocks underperform. To add insult to injury it has been disclosed in the last year that they have been backdating their options (changing the date of their options to coincide with the lowest price during the year). This should be illegal and in my opinion a lot of CEOs should be going to jail for this. Furthermore, CEOs are given lavish perks and “golden parachutes” when they retire. Some of these CEOs get a retirement package worth millions of dollars a year for life. This is a fleecing of shareholders and is simply unacceptable. (more…)

When I originally recommended PFSW I believed the stock was undervalued but I did not think the share price would run up so quick (51% in a little over three weeks). In light of this runup I think now would be a good time to cash in your profits.

The share price has benefited from a few favorable press releases (a couple of which were about previously disclosed contracts) and the anticipation of PFSW regaining compliance with Nasdaq. PFSW will regain compliance and its stock price might get a boost when that is announced, but after that I don’t see any short term catalysts. (more…)

I am reaffirming my buy recommendation because the stock price has dropped a little since I originally recommended it. I am going to average my original recommendation with today’s closing price. I also want to disclose I took a small position today.

Disclosure: I currently own shares of STRM.

Speculation can test the nerves and it requires a lot more work than just buying and holding a stock. You need to find a few stocks that you can hold long term and not worry about very much. CECO Environmental Corp has the potential to be one of these stocks.

CECO Environmental provides air pollution control products and services. I think the concern about global warming and pollution in general will keep their products in demand for the foreseeable future. I also think the government will implement greater pollution controls in the future and this will benefit CECO. (more…)