Referencing my weekly stock radar from Sunday night, I am highlighting a few of the charts below. As discussed previously, I’m mostly in cash until I feel more confident in upside that won’t be derailed from EU headline news. The risk of holding overnight is significantly higher due to this.
I’m eyeing charts which are showing strength with long-established trendline support levels. This creates more favorable risk-reward buys. In a good market, I am more than willing to buy on breakouts. In this market, I am finding that many breakouts are fizzling fast due to overall fearful sentiment. With that being said, I am more inclined to make moves near trendline support rather than breakouts until sentiment improves.
You’ll notice a purple line in the background on my charts. That shadow chart is ProShares UltraShort 20+ Year Treasury (TBT). As I discussed weeks ago, I’ve been using it to help determine overall strength in the equity markets. As of now, TBT is near yearly lows, which is bearish for equity markets. Equities would prefer bond holders selling and allocating that capital towards riskier equities as they chase performance. When TBT increases, that is the theory behind it, but TBT has been steadily falling for weeks now making me more cautious of buying longs. When TBT improves, you’ll see me quickly turn bullish.
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Conns (CONN)
Yahoo Finance Profile:
Conns, Inc. operates as a specialty retailer of home appliances, consumer electronics, home office equipment, lawn and garden products, mattresses, and furniture in the United States. Its home appliances products include refrigerators, freezers, washers, dryers, dishwashers, ranges, and room air conditioners; consumer electronics products consist of LED, LCD, plasma, DLP and 3-D televisions, camcorders, digital cameras, Blu-ray and DVD players, video game equipment, portable audio, MP3 players, GPS devices, and home theater products; and furniture and mattresses include living room, bedroom, and dining room furniture. The company’s products also comprise lawn and garden equipment, which includes lawn mowers, lawn tractors, and handheld equipment; and home office equipment, including computers, notebooks, and computer accessories. It also offers repair service agreements and customer credit programs, including installment and revolving credit account programs, and various credit insurance products. In addition, the company sells its products online. As of September 7, 2011, it operated 71 retail locations in Texas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma. The company was founded in 1890 and is headquartered in Beaumont, Texas.
Healthstream (HSTM)
Yahoo Finance Profile:
HealthStream, Inc. provides Internet-based learning and research solutions in the United States. The company operates in two segments, HealthStream Learning and HealthStream Research. The HealthStream Learning segment offers training and education content with administrative and management tools through its Internet-based platforms, the HealthStream Learning Center and HealthStream Express; and various additional courseware subscriptions. Its learning management system supports healthcare administrators in configuring training for various groups of employees, modifying training materials, and documenting completed training. This segment also provides training, implementation, and account management services to facilitate adoption of its platform; HealthStream Competency Center, a software-as-a-service competency management solution for healthcare organizations; and Authoring Center to create online courses. In addition, it develops, manages, and distributes online, print education, and training activities for provider-based healthcare professionals and physicians, as well as offers online education and training services for sales representatives; and other products focused on education and training to serve professionals. The HealthStream Research segment provides research solutions, such as Patient Insights, Employee Insights, Physician Insights, and Community Insights surveys that deliver insight, analysis, and industry benchmarks to healthcare organizations; data analyses of survey results; and other research-based measurement tools. The company markets its products and services through its direct sales teams, consultants, and account relationship managers to healthcare organizations, pharmaceutical and medical device companies, and other participants in the healthcare industry. HealthStream, Inc. was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee.
Yahoo Finance Profile:
Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp. engages in the acquisition, exploration, exploitation, development, and production of natural gas and crude oil in the United States. The companys oil and natural gas reserves and operations are primarily concentrated in the Williston Basin of North Dakota and Montana, and the Green River Basin of Wyoming and Colorado. As of December 31, 2010, it had estimated proved reserves of 10.0 million barrels of oil and 9.0 billion cubic feet of natural gas. The company was formerly known as Columbia Copper Company Ltd. and changed its name to Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp. in September 2001. Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp. was incorporated in 1972 and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado.
Yahoo Finance Profile:
Vical Incorporated engages in the research and development of biopharmaceutical products based on its deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) delivery technologies for the prevention and treatment of serious or life-threatening diseases. Its products include Allovectin-7 immunotherapeutic, a Phase III clinical trial product to treat metastatic melanoma; TransVax, a Phase II clinical trial product to prevent viral reactivation and disease after transplant; Prophylactic vaccine for H5N1 pandemic influenza virus, which completed Phase I clinical trial to protect against infection, disease, and/or viral shedding; Prophylactic vaccine for H1N1 pandemic influenza virus, which is under preclinical trial to protect against infection, disease, and/or viral shedding; CyMVectin prophylactic vaccine for cytomegalovirus, which is under preclinical trial to prevent infection before and during pregnancy; and Therapeutic vaccine for herpes simplex type 2 virus, which is under research to prevent recurring flare-ups. The company, through corporate collaborations, develops Collategene angiogenic therapy encoding Hepatocyte Growth Factor, Temusi angiogenic therapy encoding Fibroblast Growth Factor 1, and Angiogenic therapy encoding Hepatocyte Growth Factor to induce local growth of blood vessels to restore blood flow to limbs and heart affected by ischemia; Therapeutic vaccine encoding human telomerase reverse transcriptase to treat non-small cell lung, prostate cancer, melanoma, or carcinomas of the upper GI tract, colon, kidney, or bladder; Prophylactic and/or therapeutic hepatitis C vaccine to protect farm-raised salmon from infection; and ONCEPT therapeutic cancer vaccine encoding human tyrosinase for the treatment to increase survival time of dogs with oral melanoma. Vical Incorporated, through government collaboration, develops Prophylactic and/or therapeutic HIV vaccine to prevent/treat infection or disease. The company was founded in 1987 and is based in San Diego, California.
TASER (TASR)
Yahoo Finance Profile:
TASER International, Inc. develops, manufactures, and sells electronic control devices (ECD) for use in the law enforcement, military, corrections, private security, and personal defense markets. ECDs transmit electrical pulses along the wires and into the body affecting the sensory and motor functions of the peripheral nervous system. Its products for the law enforcement, military, corrections, and professional security market include TASER X26 product line, which consists of TASER X26, various cartridges, a digital power magazine, download software and equipment, extended warranties, and holstering options and accessories; TASER X3, a multi-shot ECD that can engage multiple targets; and ADVANCED TASER M26 product line comprising the ADVANCED TASER M26, various cartridges, rechargeable batteries, a battery charging system, data download software and equipment, extended warranties, and various holstering options and accessories. The company also provides TASER XREP, a self-contained, wireless ECD that deploys from a 12-gauge pump-action shotgun; and TASER Shockwave system for safety and stand-off capability during hostile situations. In addition, it manufactures TASER C2, TASER X26C, ADVANCED TASER M18, and ADVANCED TASER M18L devices for the personal defense market, as well as offers various cartridges and other accessories. The company sells its products in the United States through its direct sales force, distribution partners, online store, and third party resellers, as well as internationally through a network of distributors. The company was formerly known as TASER International, Incorporated and changed its name to TASER International, Inc. in January 2001. TASER International, Inc. was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Ebix (EBIX)
Yahoo Finance Profile:
Ebix, Inc. provides on-demand software and e-commerce solutions to the insurance industry. The company operates data exchanges, which connects multiple entities within the insurance markets and enables the participant to carry and process data from one end to another in the areas of life insurance, annuities, employee health benefits, risk management, workers compensation, and property and casualty (P&C) insurance. It involves in designing and deploying broker systems comprising three back-end systems consisting of eGlobal for multinational P&C insurance brokers; WinBeat for P&C brokers in the Australian and New Zealand markets; and EbixASP for the P&C insurance brokers in the United States. In addition, the company offers business process outsourcing services, which include certificate origination, certificate tracking, claims adjudication call center, and back office support. Further, it provides software development, customization, and consulting services to various companies in the insurance industry, including carriers, brokers, exchanges, and standard making bodies. Additionally, Ebix, Inc. focuses on designing and deploying carrier systems, such as Ebix Advantage and Ebix Advantageweb for P&C carriers. The company was formerly known as Delphi Systems, Inc. and changed its name to Ebix, Inc. in December 2003. Ebix, Inc. was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
Procera Networks (PKT)
Yahoo Finance Profile:
Procera Networks, Inc. provides network traffic awareness, analysis, and control solutions for broadband service providers. It offers intelligent policy enforcement solutions that enable mobile and broadband network operators and entities to manage private networks. The company offers its products under the PacketLogic brand name. Its network operator customers include mobile service providers, broadband service providers, cable multiple system operators, Internet service providers, educational institutions, enterprises, and government agencies. The company sells its products through its direct sales force, resellers, distributors, and system integrators in the Americas, the Asia Pacific, and Europe. Procera Networks, Inc. was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Fremont, California.
As always, do your own homework to see if you agree. Good luck out there.
Mike
At the time of publication, Kudrna was long VICL, but positions may change at any time
