Barrow Bits

The Worst January Ever

To be sure, January is my least favorite month.  Living in the northeast the month brings cold, and short dark days.  This year January also has the distinction of being the worst ever for stocks.  This is surely not good news, since the old Wall Street adage is, "so goes January so goes the year".  At this point, it's hard to argue with that point of view.

Evergreen Energy

Earlier in the week I mentioned Evergreen Energy as a potentially interesting speculation. I noted heavy insider buying which is usually a great bullish signal.  When I posted my earlier comment on the company the stock was priced at about $0.35.  Yesterday it closed at $0.67 on huge volume.  Aside from the insider buying I would also comment that Evergreen has some significant associations and potential partners that are very impressive.  If you can tell lots about a person with the company they keep, the same can be said about corporations.  For EEE they currently have relationships with world-class names like IBM, Sumitomo, and Bechtel.  This weekend Evergreen will be presenting at a huge energy conference and it will be interesting to see what develops from that.  I will remind readers again that I own the stock so perhaps my view is biased, but I do believe there is lots more upside potential for this stock.  Do your own research and evaluate for yourself.  Good luck!!!

Not one Republican Vote

If the Republicans want to know why they lost the past two elections they should look to yesterday's House vote on the Obama stimulus plan.  Not one GOP member voted for it.  To be sure, I don't like lots of what's in the bill, but on balance the economy needs a jolt and this is just what the doctor ordered.  Apparently, the Republicans are intent on listening to big mouth blow hards like Rush Limbaugh, rather than those folks who are struggling to make ends meet.  Today's employment numbers are testament to the urgency of the economic situation.  I predict the Republicans will go the route of the Whigs and will no longer exist as a party ten years from now, to which this former Republican says, "good riddance".

Evergreen Energy - Insider Buying

Long time readers of this blog may remember me mentioning Evergreen Energy (NYSE-ARCA) many moons ago.  I am a holder of the stock at much higher prices, and I have been bitterly disappointed with the way things have worked out at what I thought was a promising "clean coal" company.  However, with the stock selling in the $0.35 cent range, and a surge in insider buying in recent days there is some reason for thinking a price rebound may be in the works.  I urge readers to do their own research and bring themselves current on the situation, but this could be a nice short term play, since insider buying is a good barometer of a company in which good things are about to happen.

The Year of the Ox

It's the Lunar New Year and according to many accounts don't look for any big improvements in 2009.

A Fool's Rally

Anyone who believes that this morning's rally has any lasting power is a fool.  So a few economic numbers came in a little better than expected.  Big deal.  The economy is still a huge mess and not about to get better any time soon.  Of particular concern is that some folks actually look at the housing numbers, which were better than expected, and think that the sector will improve, which is just nonsense.  I hear that lots of banks who have foreclosed properties are not putting them on the market because of the glut now existing.  At the first sign of improvement these distressed properties will hit the market and the downward spiral will be reinforced.  The watch word for the day is "SELL".

A Horrible Week Ahead

All of the economic news that will be released this week will likely be horrible, so I would expect a very rough time for stock prices.  Indeed, it could be a test of the October lows.

Testing the Lows

It seems apparent to me that the broad market is in the process of testing the October 2008 lows.  If there is not broad support in that area it could be devastating, at least from a technical point of view.  While some earnings reports clearly offer reason for concern, others are holding up.  The only event that will clearly change market direction is some news that the housing sector is perking up.  The steep decline in housing prices must be at least stabilized.  Until that happens I can't see any meaningful bullish trend developing. Look for the week to end on a sour note.

His worse speech

Barack Obama did not deliver the speech of his career.  In my opinion, and that of others, it was very lacking in specifics and short on inspiration.  I sure hope this is not an omen for his presidency.

Carnage

Yesterday's carnage on Wall Street was in sharp contrast to the crowds of jubilant people in the nation's capital who were celebrating the inauguration of Barack Obama.  All I can say is thank goodness all the ridiculously overstated celebration is over. lt's time to see if the new president can do anything to calm the nerves of investors.  Indeed, the economy is in need of a large dose of Valium given the state of things - particularly the banking system in the U.S. which is essentially bankrupt.  For my part, I am more bearish than ever.