X Investing

2007-07-12T08:05:00.000-07:00

Solar Heated Stocks

Soar Panel Makers have seen some extreme moves. As an environmentalist I am happy the industry is getting support, but as an investor and a person whose dreams with fuel cells disappeared, I am mighty apprehensive.... consider First Solar's (FSLR) P/E of over 500 . Can a company grow into that revenue stream with out difficulty? They are hirining and profitable :)

Chinese solar companies? (The Wall Street Journal Comment) Trina Solar (TSL) Can anyone be sure about their revenues? C'mon they all start promising and burn up in the light. See China Sun Energy for a marketing scam....( CSUN).... And what Jim Cramer 's favorite Sun Power SPWR? They make a $400 million on $5 billion in market cap... (at least SPWR has very little debt and is making revenue)

First Solar, (FSLR) around since 1999 is making thin film technology. FSLR shot up 23% for announcing they may have orders...geee.....

Remember BP Solar , Siemens, and Kyrocera actually make money in the solar game ....and no doubt research thin film and nano technology. Will they buy technology or just out spend and crush the little newcomers? I am sure the latter is the case.

Evergreen Solar (ESLR) has not moved in years, and is not profitable although selling in retail stores with BP and Siemens. Adding thin film solar to windows hasn't made much for penny stock XsunX (http://finance.yahoo.com/q?d=t&s=XSNX.OB)

How about this Sun: Sun Microsystems SUNW http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=SUNW because I live near them.
Others in the sun gold rush:
Solarfun (SOLF) and Suntech Power (STP ), JA Solar (JASO ) and Canadian Solar (CSIQ )

2006-11-09T19:06:00.000-08:00

New Energy

I am moving to Zecco.com check it.....

So Dems take the house......will energy change? stick to the fundamentals (ie the company makes money) and you will be money making......

PEIX or Pacific Ethanol may go up, but the company is so extremely overvalued, buying the stock is a pure play on momentum. The company is worth less than a dollar a share.

One thing for sure is that ethanol producers use corn and soybeans, which both parties heavily subsidize. I do not want any of the fuel in the future grown, but fuel from recycled products can be useful. Like methanol of waste treatment plants like WMI incorporates. Waste Management is a boring stock though in so far as the price may not change 5% in the next year.

Other opportunities with democrats in congress include Fuel Cell Energy (FCEL). I believe the future of hydrogen as a fuel is so far out that one has to be very realistic in earnings to correctly value the stock. So far FCEL can eek out earnings but looses quite a bit. It may continue to loose (as much as I want the stock to kill the market, I am not naïve)

ENER or energy conversion devices has one of the better chances to prosper. The make money and do not rely on one product. They have battery technology and fuel cell technology. They also have solar panel shingles which were feature on the H&G channel show “I Want That.” The best alternative energy play I see is with battery makers. No matter what for of energy takes the lead, small things will need batteries.

Solar makers and Wind generators will have an uphill battle if just one more nuclear plant is built. Distributed energy may become more important as the power requirements exceed the grids capacity. So small power makers and even powerline service companies may do well. We all need power.

2006-11-02T19:14:00.000-08:00

Now Boarding VLCM to the Future

Volcom
What does it take to outfit the future? Styles come and go, so you have to pick a company that can move with the style. When in doubt Stay young.

Quick Facts:
VLCM is profitable with low debt and high growth
pm= 11.5% (yahoo finance)
debt= 200k
ROA = 25%
PE = 21
eps= .93
opinion = Good Balance sheet

Today Volcom was up after its main distributor PacSun was lower.
This company has grown up with the snowboard industry and gotten its diamond logo into most skate shops. It’s not just in Big Mall stores like PacSun, but in “mom’n’pop shops” by mountains and parks. Burton, still my personal fav and not public, is better and less “trendy.” Vans (and VFC corp) have gotten skate / surf brands into mall department stores like Nike, Columbia (COLM) and Quicksilver (ZQK) did before it.

What happens when Volcom catches this wave and ends up in Macy’s? Will it be like North Face which has continued to make some very high quality product , leveraging its name and shoving the arc logo all over Dick’s department stores? Or like Mongoose bikes, which used to make quality bikes and now seems to only make cheap bikes too heavy for even me to ride? Well since Volcom’s products really don’t need too much of a technical edge like bikes and boards, as long as the brand holds up, Volcom will slalom run the economic gates.

2006-10-19T19:05:00.000-07:00

Fuel Cells and Big Oil ( FCEL vs. BP )

Could these two live in the same portfolio? Idealism aside, they probably should. Over the next month or so, oil will wane as will alternative energy. But idealism will kick in around November making it a good time to buy Fuel CEll Energy . Seasonally November is good for FCEL. Goto Google chart pagee for FCEL and look at the November though january segment. It rises in the fall, and fals in the spring...every year it seems....

Oil companies do make money, and it may be good for your retirement if you make money. Many of my friends get upset when I decide to recommend they get BP and maybe CRT to add income and stability to their future. Neither are going to rocket up, but they are not going down, unless something big happens which will knock everything else down too.

So my philosophy is that BP is trying to be a good big oil company, but they still have to be a big dog in a dog eat dog industry. CRT earns an incredible 8% yield, which over the long run is a very good return for the lack of risk.

FCEL Fuel Cell energy gives the portfolio some green goodness. The company’s technology can be over run by Seimens or better yet, if their patents hold out (which are aging) they may get bought. As much as I want FCEL to take over the distributed energy market, I’d bet GE could enter at any time and take over when profits are actually there.

I like battery technology and other power companies to add to the energy mix. Idaho Power (IDA) makes fuel cells and is a dividend paying utility whose stock does not move. Dividends are like the stock moving up though! Battery makers are tricky? Toshiba? Panasonic? Who makes the chemical separators for the batteries in power tools?

Any of these can be a stabilizer in a market that is full of stocks with incredibly high PE’s and uncertain futures.

2006-10-09T17:41:00.000-07:00

Watching Patiently

I am waiting for October to be over. I do not trust the market right now. Many stocks are fairly valued, meaning I think if they were any higher, they would be over priced. I suggest dividend yeild stocks like VF Corp. Christmas may bring sales to their brands. Banks....not so sure....Food....tough business... I am skeptical of restaurants.... but

My speculative hopefule EBOF , a biofuels stock has plunged, making me glad I have no money in the market now.

Another speculation is CRGN... CuraGen . An oncology stock biotech in DNA research. Totally spec and how can anyone know thr outcome of their research?

Well, My pick from last christmas have done allright....
Last year about this time I was on my way to meet the Oracle of Omaha!!! This year I hope to get to the Mountains and do some BOARDING!

2006-09-20T20:45:00.000-07:00

Growing OATS

I have finally visited my first Wild Oats Market in Louisville Kentucky and I was very impressed. I have driven past Harry’s (a Whole Foods Store) in Alpharetta Georgia, where Alton Brown chief/scientist from Food TV’s “Good Eats,” is continually shooting episodes. He totally advertises the store, which he uses to explain what Quality is.

What is driving the growth of Markets like Whole Foods (WFMI) and Wild Oats? Healthy and educated living styles are more common. Wal-Mart’s newness and wonderland of cheap everything is deterring crowd and conscious leery middle income buyers. There are quality food sections in Kroger and other chains…so why are these chains growing so popular? Is it their interior atmosphere? Assured quality, because the management seems to share similar beliefs? Probably.

Details:
OATS (around since the 70’s from Colorado) is up 36% for the year and made $.37 per share net income. Other Financial also look good, except a large amount of debt, which, although typical for a growing company and a good use of stock holder capital, can lead to growing pains. Over 26% of OATS shares are held by insiders which can reduce volatility.

Whole Foods appears to have better financials such as a positive Return on Assets (Oats is negative) earns $1.20 per share…Note: WFMI growth is much less now as they have entered many suburban markets. OATS also has a Negative Operating Margin! They are better at managing inventory (+) but spending lots of money. Also Depreciation is a large part of cash flows which will lower (lower operating cash flow in) as equipment ages….of course spending on equipment will also lower because refridgerators and trucks do last a while after fully depreciated.

OATS seems to have sustainable growth. OATS does not seem overly eager to start new stores and compete like drug stores CVC and Walgreens. They pop up stores that may loose money just to force the competitor out.

Check out finance.google.com for a hyperactive chart that can show trading trends.

Trends are trends, but it is Management and Business Strategy that make long term Buys. Whole Foods managers are serious and good. They are businessmen, not hippies in business. OATS managers seem to be less hardcore but more good spirited. They pay their lower employees more, less aggressive negotiators for rental space, (opinion from news articles), and contribute more to the environmental community.

This separates them from the Kroger chains that have a natural section. Wild Oats, may be up there with whole foods if new big eyed managers come in.

2006-09-14T19:57:00.000-07:00

Piedmont Biofuel CoOp

The Carolinas have a growing number of Biodiesel Coops. More and More People are learning that fuel for diesel engines can come from straight vegatable oil, and better, plant oil reacted with methane and washed to operate clean.

I went to the Piedmont Biofuel Coop to check out all this group has learned. I joined in.
They are excellent people and try to educate and create more biodiesel fans. More later....but their large production facility is opening in a month and sell biodiesel 100 on a "trail"of five outlets where members can fill their Jettas and diesel trucks and join in the production.

2006-09-13T19:18:00.000-07:00

Powering Down Or Up?

Late september the market takes a bounce like a trampoline into november.
In October the stock bounces up or off the side. Hopefully this October it'll bounce up. The economy is growing....BUT...It is dangerous for us to grow too fast! and unsustainable even...so it is really important to find solid earners...ie value stocks... with low growth...like.... an energy or power company!!..or find a brand new market like...alternative energy!!!

Everything else is trading sideways because high P?E's are evry where and most stocks are fully valued.

IDA Idaho Power and Duke Power are examples of power companies that are constant. They can't loose market share...they practically own the power lines. Idaho power (Div = $1.20 or 3.1% Div yeild) has a big interest in fuel cells and alternative energy ......and is partially owned by Bill Gates. Duke is big in the Nuclear sector, which I think I like ....even though it may take mutant bacteria to get rid of the toxic sludge.

NC Greenpower Is where Carolina residents can pay $4 extra on their bill to support alternative energy development. It is a program that buys alternative power to add to the grid through
Advanced Energy

http://www.advancedenergy.org/

2006-09-05T17:58:00.000-07:00

Good People Finish

This is a reprise of a Sustainablog and Treehugger blog from

Jeff McIntire-Strasburg, St. Louis, MO.....

It's good to hear this...Better then Katie Couric eh? Although Morgan Splaylock did have some poetic discourse about politicans being like wrestlemaniacs with media exposure... funny
Anyway...

Good people are recycling phones 22, 2006 07:35 AM - Jeff McIntire-Strasburg

Americans, on average, trade in their cell phones for a newer model every eighteen months, and that creates a huge waste stream of used phones still in usable condition. Fifteen years ago, while cell phones were still a luxury item, Michigan entrepreneur Charles Newman recognized a business opportunity in those old phones. His company, Recellular, now controls more than half of the US market for used cell phones, and in addition to keeping 75,000 phones a week out of landfills, the company provides affordable wireless communications to residents of developing countries around the world. As most used cell phones are collected either by charitable operations, or on behalf of them by wireless giants such as Sprint and Verizon, these used phones also create another stream of revenue for often strapped non-profits:

The March of Dimes, which does research and education on birth defect prevention, turned to ReCellular when it decided to launch a cellphone donation program several years ago. The drive brings in about $160,000 a year.

"They are an excellent company to deal with," said March of Dimes fundraising executive Bob Perry.

When the Canadian Association of Food Banks decided to set up a cellphone collection program, it shopped around for a company to handle the phones, said spokeswoman Tamara Eberle in Toronto.

The umbrella group for 2,000 food banks and other agencies across Canada has collected about 100,000 phones through its Phones for Food program that began in 2003, raising about $140,000.

Those phones often go to countries where residents often have cellular access (over 80% of the world has it), but new phones are prohibitively expensive. Recellular's phones retail for $40 or less, opening up communication possibilities to people far from land line infrastructure. Like Great Britain's envirophone, Recellular demonstrates that reusing and recycling create plentiful opportunities for people, planet and profit. As reduction doesn't seem to be on most Americans' mind in terms of cell phone purchases, it's great to see companies like these keeping older ones in circulation. ::USA Today via NextBillion

2006-09-05T17:49:00.000-07:00

Good People Finish

2006-08-16T21:10:00.000-07:00

Tesla Electric Car and BIOFUEL Index

Two things I have been obessing about: alternative transportation and the fuel that powers it. The first thing is Lithium Ion Batteries. The Tesla car is what Jesse James can repect: 0 to 60 in 4 seconds and a 250 mile range. Bad side is the three hour recharge. This is really a Wired magazine scoop

http://www.teslamotors.com/index.php?js_enabled=1
http://blog.wired.com/teslacar/
http://www.ubs.com/4/investch/flash/biofuel_index/index.html
First biofuel index launched

From Press Release Newswire:
"Swiss-based investment bank UBS has teamed up with Diapason Commodities Management to launch the first biofuel index giving investors access to various commodity futures.
The global index, which will be published in US dollars, euros, Swiss francs and Japanese yen, will cover a range of commodities which are used in the production of biofuels ethanol and biodiesel. The bank believes that increasing energy concerns such as global warming and supply security will drive businesses and societies toward alternative fuels.

Bioethanol is an alcohol-based fuel made from the fermentation of crops such as sugar beet or wheat. It can be mixed in petrol to reduce emissions. Biodiesel is produced from vegetable oil and can be used in diesel engines. Production of these two major forms of alternative fuel is increasing rapidly as more countries attempt to cut carbon emissions and find alternative forms of energy.

2006-08-10T14:18:00.000-07:00

BP Volcom Whole Foods drop like bombs

BP had their pipes corrode. Although they are more environmentally conscious than other petroleum groups, they have a darker side. They have also been linked to price fixing.

Volcom ( VLCM ) dipped $10 or 30% down to their IPO price recently. News reports blame Wachovia Downgrades and a PACSUN dismal outlook. On my September '05 blog I wrote Wachovia, the underwriter, would pull the rug out as they sold off their interest (opinion). I though it would happen sooner. Volcom is still really cool gear.

Whole Foods
(WFMI) also took a smashing lately as the very high valuation (P/E > 60) is lowered to a still very high valuation (P/E=40). EPS is $1.20 and growth is estimated at 29% per quarter which suggests a reasonable P/E soon.

An oil services company that makes money from fixing pipelines and shutting down old ones is Tetra Technologies (TTI)

The Tungragua Volcano Erupted in Ecuador recently. I was there a while ago, and hope the country returns to normal.

Biodiesel Is Bad Too Blog
says:
1. Biodiesel from algae may be feasible... but not from Soy or Rapeseed which require water/space/and fossil fuel. We can't supply our national fuel need without making food costs higher .
2. Biodiesel causes tropical nations to destroy forest to plant palm oil plantations reducing biodiversity and Orangatang Homes

So Now I am looking to Nuclear and Batteries which also have extreme problems.

What should be the transportation fuel of the future?

2006-07-25T09:26:00.000-07:00

Bio Willie & Earth BioFuels (ebof.ob) b100 deisel

I reported on Bio Willie in one of my first ever posts a year ago.

Recently Julia Roberts joined Earth Biofuels Company board. They are publically traded (EBOF.OB). Morgan Freeman is also on their board so this company is actracting quite a bit of star power. Although the company is not profitable, they are on an exploding business with more promise than ethanol. "Flex fuel" means they can just use ethanol or variations of. However any diesel motor can run on straight vegatable oil or treated vegatable oil. Fortunatley the process to create Biodeisel is not difficult or energy intensive. BioDiesel can come from restaurant waste oil soy bean or corn oil.

The BioWillie site has a lot of background on Bio Diesel.

Biodeisel Site

Earth Biodiesel is or was
owned by Apollo Resources
http://www.apolloresources.com/
aoor.ob
http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=epg
http://www.wnbiodiesel.com/

http://biodiesel.rain-barrel.net/earth-biofuels/

2006-07-17T09:01:00.000-07:00

World News

The most important world news is not that Ben Bourgeois and Rob Machado surfed in the Reef (VF Corp, VFC $64)contest in Writesville Beach this weekend. (See the wblivesurf link to the right) Vf Corp has grown net income 30% over three years, and although it slowed last year they paid off debt.

World News is getting intense again. I wish I could understand what is going on in the Mid East, but I have a feeling people there do not a have firm understanding of all the complex forces and strategies. Some of these strategies are geopolitical and not religous or a safety concern. I wish aI could also understand the $30 excess in the price per barrell of oil. Is it all geopolitical concers? How much could supply be dissrupted to cause this excess. Demand has decreased (thank y'all) and supplies are up, even in the US gov stock pile.

Anyway....

2006-07-13T11:30:00.000-07:00

Canadian Oil Sands

Oils Sands are going to become big, even though refinery production isn't feasible yet. Please do not support ethanol as the alternative energy of choice.

Some Oil Sands Companies include:
*** My Personal Favorite ***

Canadian Oil Sands Trust (COS-UN.TO)
Suncor Energy (SU)

Kinder Morgan's (KMI)
Deer Creek (DCE.TO)
Suncor Energy (SU)
Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ)
Husky Energy, (HSE.TO)
Petro-Canada (PCZ)
EnCana (ECA)
Northgate Minerals nxg

Nuclear Power to make Hydrogen ( See Air Products {APD}) is much less environmentally damaging than oil or ethanol.
Camping With My Romanian Freinds: New River In Boone this June

OK

2006-07-03T10:09:00.000-07:00

Big VeraSUN (VSE) & Aventine Summer Fuels IPOs

Say no to ethanol. Ethanol will ruin our crop land, and the farmer will not benifit as much as the fertilizer industry. VeraSun and Aventine (Avr) are the latest IPOs in the ethanol industry and are very similar businesses. They are chemicals companies that make ethanol and feed stock.

Aventine is the more profitable of the two and has been around years longer. Their revenue is just over $1 billion, with revenue at $30 per share-- positive. EPS is $1 so there must be significant costs in operating the business. Just to compare businesses, the top owners make around $200k/ year and there is less debt with a better cash flow per share. So I beleive it is run better than VeraSUn ( Opinion)

Verasun opened at $29, it dropped to $26 and Aventine dropped from $42 to $39. VeraSun has a 2 billion dollar market cap and has only $300 million in revenues....The IPO has served the company weel, but how is going to expand and use all that new cash? The top three employees make over $500k a year. It is expected to grow 62% per and although eps is $.03 it is profitable which is better than many other investments. They also have very little debt ($200 millin).

I would advise buying BP stock any since they supply petroleum for tractors fertilizers, and the natural gas used to turn grain into ethanol.

Ethanol is not environmentally freindly.
I would rather build nuclear plants than have our food plants diverted to cars. The current push to expand the ethanol market is to get the Mid West corridor to sell E85 and in fortmation about ethanol projects are avilable at both companies' web sites.

Let's think about this alternative energy thing and not let ADM and Cargill fight or conspire to decide our future.

2006-06-12T20:38:00.000-07:00

Summer Cinema

Summertime for the stock market is usually slow. Everyone is on a mental vacation. July is a low point and usually the time to get back in the water of the market before the intense September and October financial storms.

On a Local note
The Carolina Hurricanes are doing well in the Stanley Cup as Hurricane season kicks up...Yeah

Go Carolina!

But onto Cinema. Summertime block busters means family films and action heroes. Celebs are known to be selfish but also supportive of the environment. Support movie studios that put effort into helping out mother nature as they entice people to come inside from the heat....can you imagine the cooling bill for theaters? No wonder they charge $5 for a small pepsi...or coke.

Warner Bro's was the first, but certainly won’t be the last, major studio to commission complete carbon offsetting for production of a movie (Syriana). Encourage more studios to continue this trend. Warner Bros has started a great learning and operational initiative. (TWX) is having a meltdown but their stock may jump up. Pixar was purchased by Disney and does have a significant educational influence on the younger crowds through their cartoons and exhibits. I haven't seen the Pixar "Car" movie, but the stock looks to be heating up.

Climate Crisis is the film about global warming with Big Al Gore. Too bad it only played in "select" places..Noooo where near here. Many actors are driving Hybrids which is a small drop in the bucket, but a visible sign to GM to make some viable gas sipping cars. Stop Global Warming site. Climate star is another actor initiative.

On a sour Note the Czech beat the USA intheir e opening World Cup match 3- nil. Didn't see the game, but heard the US looked tired...Layy off the hefe weisen und machens fellas.

ps thanx Ideal Bite for some tips...

2006-05-24T19:18:00.000-07:00

summertime dreams

the water is getting warm
the farmer tan is getting deep

the stock market is lazy wandering

we all need dreams to keep us going
to get the dreams, I need a good sleep in the sun ...
or a long boring trip to another place

My dream is to get the environment healthy and use new technology to drive a newer economy.

Many new companies are jumping on the alternative energy wave.

STP Suntech Power holdings is a recent IPO ready to charge ahead.The company has revenue and earnings growth, but not alot. I am skeptical. Maybe all the solar plays have me burned...
I still think chemists can work magic with biofuels.

Catching the next wave is great, but it takes timing, and you have to paddle before the wave gets to you to catch it....The new starts don't have much on the big old companies I love to Hate like GE Seimens and BP. Good luck fellas.

2006-05-17T15:53:00.000-07:00

B-day and Graduation

It's my b-day and I graduated with my MBA!

Good luck investing
long term & positive

2006-05-01T20:19:00.000-07:00

Monster Electro Car

Discovery Channel's

Monster Garage

built a Monster...

400 batteries and 100mph in the quarter mile!

Monster Garage's electro drag racer is what I have been looking for! Power! All from rechargable power tool batteries! The new light weight power tool batteries ( found at Home Depot and Lowe's and my toolbox) are excellent sources of clean juice. The metals in the batteries are toxic... but the car won't need gas. The kicker is that Jesse James' elctric car is a large heap of metal that drag raced a 70's muscle car. If they could put the same power in a light truck.......

specs
Electrical Components:
* Two Zilla 1800-Amp 336-Volt Motor Controllers
* Custom-Made Breaker Box/Disconnect
* Custom-Made Dual Foot Potentiometer
* 384 Milwaukee V28 Lithium Ion Tool Batteries
* 210 Milwaukee V28 Battery Chargers
* Custom Wiring Harness

Moving Parts:
* Two GE 12-inch Motors
* Powerglide Two-Speed Transmission
* Currie 9-inch Rear End
* Custom-Built Driveshaft
* B/M Shifter

Little bits:

Garmin GPS
A company I have been keeping an eye on is Garmin. GRMN makes GPS gadgets. Competitors are moving in fast ( so I am surprised at this move). I must not know something.

2.85 eps , ~$1 bil in revenues , no debt, 0.6 dividend yeild, ~30% Profit Margin, ~44% q rev. growth...$311M Net Income (profit) & ~30 P/E (the only negative)

Morningstar report on Funds with Social Responsibility as Key

fairx Fairholme Capital managment has a social mid-cap fund that produces dividends and can be purchased through a broker. It has recently done well, 42% in 2001, and usually better than the S&P 500 by a good 10% margin. But, as with all funds, prior performance is no garantee of future returns. It is meant to be a long term investment, and is not quickly liquid. It is valued by the NAV method, or the funds total value of holdings and investors assets are divided by the number of shares. The fees are fairly straight forward, meaning that a $10,000 investment will cost just over $100 a year to maintain. But any stock sales that yeild profits will mean some tax reporting. The top holdings include Berkshire Hathaway, and Sears. While most of the holdings are not eco-stellar, they are not unethical holdings.

CUMULATIVE 
                             fairx                S&P
1-Year (4/1/05 - 3/31/06)   +18.72%              +11.73% 
3-Year (4/1/03 - 3/31/06)   +99.35%              +61.07% 
5-Year (4/1/01 - 3/31/06)   +99.86%              +21.48% 
SINCE INCEPTION (99 - 06)  +192.91%              - 2.29%

speculation:
CYBR.PK

article: biofuel production.....what does this have to do with the company"s core business?

My first concern is this is a medical service provider jumping on the biofuels bandwagon. Second? Big debt and low income.

2006-04-24T21:45:00.000-07:00

Happy Earth Day!

?Que Onda Guero?
I didn't do too much to save the planet this weekend, but I did go surfing. Ok, I caught two waves and slept on the beach....But I did see the local surf posse clean up. Anyone's group can just go out to the place they love and clean up. Many counties give you free bags and fashionable orange vests.

Surfrider foudation sponsored events everywhere.

Another great business person is Gary.
He founded Clif's Bars from his Dad's garage and now is an amazingly well off and concientious green business man (not a martian, a cool business man) His new campaign is to start global cooling. Positive

Last episode I mentioned Patagonia
who make earth day grants.
Aloha

2006-04-10T18:38:00.000-07:00

Patagonia

Not sure if this related to stocks, but patagonia has sent a couple lucky souls around the world. They visited some organic farms.

PEIX went up $3 today? I should 've could've would've.
Now it's so high, it's either going to get crazy like google or fall out. The stock is honestly hard to value because they have no history. Only a possible deal with GM. I'm not sure how much that means.

Love to the Bull

2006-04-08T18:26:00.000-07:00

GAS: PEIX

+ Me @ NASDAQ

PEIX Pacific Ethanol is on a tear. I picked this stock (toot toot) back in January for my X_mas stock list . Use the search this blog button in the top tool bar to find other stocks or industries I have mentioned.

I saw a Playgirl announce on CNBC that PEIX was doing well....and 3 days later...BOOM!

It has a small market cap ($800M), but revunues are $555,000 (possibly more but they have not filed their annual report on time, and no new info is available). There are 28.7M shares out so that is 2 cents a share or a P/E of $28/ .02 = 1,400

Sounds excessive. an Interesting note is that this is a new company name. PEIX was:
SEC

SIC: 2860 - Industrial Organic Chemicals
State location: CA | State of Inc.: DE |
formerly: ACCESSITY CORP (filings through 2005-03-24)
formerly: DRIVERSSHIELD COM CORP (filings through 2003-06-27)
formerly: FIRST PRIORITY GROUP INC (filings through 2000-09-01)

Bill Gates also hold IDA in his portfolio, which I have mentioned because the have an interest in fuel cell power.

ME In NY NASDAQ Opening and MOMA

(Jackson Pollock painting)

2006-03-28T19:21:00.000-08:00

New?

Not much new under the sun these days. Significant battery technology released by a MIT off shoot may help lower the rate and increase the capacity for hybrids.

What I am waiting for in a car (besides a large paycheck) is a deisel hybrid (which could be biodeisel ) like the Ford Reflex

Flex Fuels I still do not want to grow our fue for cars which is a water stress, and may allow ADM to use more petrol chemicals on our farmland.

glacier melting
Is there any doubt glaciers are dissapearing?

Any way, I am very busy but I hope to provide an in depth look at promising companies shortly. I noticed Pacific Gas and Electric (PEIX) had a strong move last month but has leveled off.

2006-03-15T06:26:00.000-08:00

Long Time No Post

I wish I had more time to write. I am doing case studies on the Restaurant and Trucking industries which is taking up my computer time....for I must devote at least 1 hour to not sitting in front of a monitor.

Quick Notes --depth and detail later....detail is where the money is made!
By the way, the trucking company is an excellent indicator for the economy, even though the stocks hardley move either way.

Quicksilver's (ZQK) first quarter was an improvement. Their sposored riders also did very well in the olympics . 36 medals!

Treehugger.com ( check the side bar link) says that Volvo (VOLVY) has an CO2 emission free factory in Sweden. (ps. the stock is up over 120% in 3 years...steady up $17 -$44.

xsnx is way up from $.03 October 2005 to $2.09 March 10 for some reason. This is highly speculative and not something for th faint of heart. I have completely watched the move and scratched my head. However, these things can go bad like CESV China Energy BS which has stopped trading on the Nasdaq because of improper reporting for several weeks now. Uh Oh.... I hope something fishing isn't happening to xsnx as well. I read on the bulletin boards so much gossip, that I still like to invest based on a history of balance sheets. I know I will miss the penny stocks...oh well....

MIT a123

MIT has a new method for creating Li Ion batteries (Wired Magazine) that will double the power density and make them lighter and more viable for cars and my portable drill gun.

OK Details on things later. Just posting so I don't forget....p

2006-02-21T16:01:00.000-08:00

Timberline Consumer Info
Socially Reposible by Choice
Outdoors by Nature

TBL
Timberland Service Info
Timberland and the Environment

Patagonia works with Clean-air Cool Planet

evidence of warming in New England

Organic Exchange

Patagonia

One percent for the planet is an organization with members like Jack Johnson, who give 1% to envirnmental programs.

Pointblank

From the site:
TIMBERLAND ANNOUNCES INDUSTRY-LEADING PACKAGING INITIATIVE THAT PROVIDES NEW LEVELS OF TRANSPARENCY FOR CONSUMERS

01/26/06

STRATHAM, NH, January 26, 2006 – The Timberland Company today announced a footwear packaging initiative that reduces Timberland’s environmental impact and provides consumers with new information to help guide them in the purchase process. The initiative, the first of its kind in the retail industry, will be seen in stores in 2006. Most notably, Timberland will place a “nutritional label” on each box that will educate consumers about the product they are purchasing, including where it was manufactured, how it was produced, and its effect on the environment.

Highlights of the packaging initiative include:
• The “nutritional label” that will inform consumers about Timberland’s environmental and community impact.
• Footwear boxes made of 100 percent recycled post-consumer waste fiber.
• Footwear boxes using no chemical glues and only soy-based inks to print labels.
• Messaging inside the box that asks consumers “what kind of footprint will you leave” and provides a call to action for them after purchase.

Thanks Sean Dempsey

2006-02-19T09:28:00.000-08:00

K2 Yeah Gretchen!!!

Women Snowboarders have really been doing well. Lindsey Jacobellis had an oooops, as she was winning and decided to look back. Bad move. She fell and came in second. It takes full concentration to stay up.

I had a Bode moment last night. I was watching the Nike commercial with Bode -isms, which may not be as profound as Yogi Berra -isms , and decided that ** competing in your core competancy *** is the best thing to do...(MBA school is having an effect eh?) So this blog will stick to the environment and sports I know best. While wall-street can be experts at the flip of a news page....I know organics alternative energy and alternative sports like Bugs Bunny knows carrots. In the late 1990's I was taken by fuel cells, and subsequently knocked on my but by powerful energy companies. I know what is going on and how small companies can compete with the big dogs.

Back to Boarding

Gretchen Bleiler was #1 in the 2006 Olympic half pipe. Her board is k2, and her drink is Redbull. I prefer Burton and Mountain Dew, but hey...no one is giving me anything.....

K2 snow boards (KTO) happens to make my favorite clothing line. I didn't realize this until I did some homework last night. I thought Planet Earth was an independent brand, but now I know it is a part of K2.

The Ticker Quicky : KTO Stock price has averaged around $10 for 7 years. It is not going anywhere (opinion). Volcom has room to grow, but K2 is like Reebok in their industry. Not the best, but totally everywhere.

Fome the site:

K2 Inc. is a premier, branded consumer products company with a portfolio of leading brands including Shakespeare®, Pflueger® and Stearns® in the Marine and Outdoor segment; Rawlings®, Worth®, and K2 Licensing & Promotions® in the Team Sports segment; K2®, Völkl®, Marker®, Ride® and Brass Eagle® in the Action Sports segment; and, Adio®, Marmot® and Ex Officio® in the Footwear and Apparel segment. K2's diversified mix of products is used primarily in team and individual sports activities such as fishing, watersports activities, baseball, softball, alpine skiing, snowboarding, in-line skating and mountain biking. Among K2's other branded products are Miken® softball bats, Tubbs® and Atlas® snowshoes, JT® and Worr Games® paintball products, Planet Earth® apparel, Hawk® skateboard shoes, and Dana Design® backpacks.
Adio®, Atlas®, Brass Eagle®, Dana Designs®, Ex Officio®, Hawk® skateboard shoes, JT®, K2®, Marker®, Marmot®, Pflueger®, Planet Earth®, Rawlings®, Ride®, Shakespeare®, Stearns®, Tubbs®, Völkl®, Worth® and Worr Games®, are trademarks or registered trademarks of K2 Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States or other countries.

Note: Marmot, Dana Designs are excellent backpacking/hiking/ sleeping bag makers with great product.
Ride was a very strong brand before aquired.

As far as winter sports go.....I hope snow continues to fall....Winter ski areas are on shaky weather ground.....Italy looks warm and glaciers are melting very fast. It is obvious to me. What will happen, I don't know, but warming is going to hurt ski areas. They have huge costs and liability threats, and are more affected by sport trends than equipment makers.

Here's to planet Earth: Warming Impacts

Exxons Media Mission

Gretchen Bleiler
http://www.k2snowboarding.com/team/international_gretchen_interview.asp

Pictures on this page ( I obviously do not have the rights to photos from nbcolympics.com and Transworld Snowboarding mag - They have great photographers and thanks.)

2006-02-13T19:26:00.000-08:00

TORINO Boarding!!!!!

YYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!

Those Guys and Girls ROCK!!!!
(yahoo sports slideshow)

The snowboarders just killed it!

Boarder Cross is on Thursday 2/16/06 (My personal Favorite and something I have done circa '95)

NBC is lame! sell GE stock NOW!

Kidding...They post the great runs Here! (video is on the right, click on Shaun Wite's winning run First.... then tomorrow maybe they will post Clark's Run)

Why am I so crazy about snowboarding?
BBC
ESPN pocasts

Hahahaha. Ok. This is a casual post.

Gretchen had a clean a big run. But I think the winner should have been KELLY CLARK

HER RUN MADE ALL BOYS LOOK WEAK! She went HUGE...I don't think judges understand that every inch in air adds difficulty.
She went several feet above anyone else (including most guys) and barley sketched out on a front side 9 to place 4th...Not Cool. She went 10 feet in the air and spun, not 360, not 720, but 900! 2 and half times around! She also had several spin ticks like the upside down crippler 540. Her first airs were huge! I wish I could come close to that! Way to go Girls!!!!

Oh yeah, Danny Kass and the "Flying Tomato", ( bet he hates that) Shaun White, also ripped it up in the halfpipe.

Wish I was there to go free riding. The alps look steep and fun.
BIZ: Volcom (VLCM) Roxy (quicksilver, ZQK) Burton, Mountain Dew (PEP)

2006-02-11T14:15:00.000-08:00

Downer Week means Stocks are on Sale!

This week saw dramatic price drops in Whole Foods WFMI to $65, which I think is a more reasonable valuation. I think WFMI will grow more than Wild Oats OATS .

Olympic Snowboarding!!!!!
Boarder Cross Halfpipe Downhill!
More on Shaun White , Shaun Palmer. and the ladies' (like Gretchen ) sponsors next time.

I just want to note an article about BP and Edison Energy's project in California to use old oil to power an electric plant ....It will use the excess CO2 to capture more oil.

Somewhat recycling right?

2006-02-03T12:53:00.000-08:00

SOY Bio Diesel

I regard the president's speech promoting other alternative fuels with apathy. Although I am pleased it is getting national attention, alternative energy is long overdue for actual subsidies. The subsidies for oil and drilling are enormous. < /a>

Renewable energy blog

Biodiesel is getting more attention and there is a convention happening in San Diego now.

It may be possible to have a Biodeisel sailboat or mower from Yanmar

SunOpta (STKL) may not be the best stock for biodiesel

Most biodiesel is made from Soy Beans. Want some facts on SOYBEANS ?

The < a href="http://www.soygrowers.com/newsroom/releases/2005%20releases/r111405.htm"> ASA (soybean association) is upset about the tax incentives for soy diesel that allows foreign producers an advantage.

A penny stock for your thoughts:
EFTI.ob Earth First Technologies Group

A large competitor is Emcor (EME)

2006-01-30T17:32:00.000-08:00

Plastic

Trex Plastic TWP

Plastic recycling is a green business but very competitive. The company Trex makes composite wood products like plastic (composite sounds better doesn't it?) decks and fence rails.

At first look, I though the company might be undervalued and ready for a move up. Home Depot is now carrying their products. However, a look at their income statement and balance sheet shows a debt burden and high expansion costs. They haven't reached a good economy of scale yet. The company also has a few patent lawsuits with Exxon (XOM makes more money than any company ). The company also experiences heavy market costs. The heavy sell off in June '05 is also suspect.

Bioplastics

2006-01-25T17:48:00.000-08:00

STOCK

Sundance and...SlamDance Film Festivals happening right now. This is one of my favorite times of the year.....
Snow, Films, .... jacuzzi's .... hot chili and beer ...
Oh yeah, Cucalorus Film Festival in Wilmington is in March!

My kind of Film! A Mountain Bike Video

In honor of Independent FIlms I will review the stocks of the film industry...
Besides Pixar, they aren't very moving....

Sony Pictures, a division of Sony
Sony Corporation (ADR) (SNE)

Pixar
(PIXR)
Walt Disney (DIS)

Dreamworks

Time Warner TWX
http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=TWX

upn and WB to close
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/060124/tv_network.html?.v=7

These people make interesting films and someone there makes money, but not small stock traders....
Lion's Gate Films LGF "hostel" & "lord of war"

I am not sure what this company does? New Star Management

EW SCRIPPS CO SSP
owns HGTV & Food Network Fine Living and Great American Country
IFC films is owned by Cablevision CVC

2006-01-24T11:57:00.000-08:00

ENER Solar shingles on HGTV

Blog on Uni Solar Shingles at work

I missed the episode of HGTV's "I want that" that shows solar shingles from UniSolar a division of Ovonics and ENER....Apparently the show made people "want that"

Gov't Solar tax credits

To buy UniSolar shingles

2006-01-23T18:40:00.000-08:00

ENER: Charge!

I was looking at Energy Conversion Devices' income statement and found they had an unusual profit last year . I was hoping to find that this was a sign that they were becoming profitable. However, their letter to the editor warns about cash use for research and a need for more funds. This tells me they may sell more stock or increase debt. The run in ENER stock price (+200% 2005/6) may be a sign of a good future or increased risk. Since the company is not selling much and is dependent on technology patents and licenses, it is hard to say. They have greatly increased profits from licenses. Note: I am not a bull or bear kind of investoblogger, I just get "some" facts ma'am...

The company reports on the unusual profit in the annual report and letter to shareholders:

ECD Ovonics went from a net loss from continuing operations of $49.2 million in fiscal 2004 to a net income from continuing operations of $49.5 million in the same period of 2005. Primary contributors to the change in net income were as follows:

United Solar Ovonic had a gross profit of $4.4 million in 2005 versus a gross loss of $6.3 million last year.

For the fiscal year 2005, net income was favorably impacted by a one-time noncash revenue of $79.5 million realized by the Company for the additional rights licensed to Cobasys and by an $8.0 million distribution from Cobasys to partially reimburse the Company for legal expenses in connection with the patent litigation resolution in July 2004. The license revenue was in the form of an option (exercised in May 2005) granted by Chevron to the Company to purchase 4,376,633 shares of common stock at a price of $4.55 per share.

In December 2004, the Company received $2.3 million, net of taxes, in connection with the transfer of Chevron's interest in Ovonic Hydrogen, which the Company recognized as an extraordinary item (gain) in fiscal year 2005.

Partially offsetting the above, ECD Ovonics had $2.7 million in expenses in fiscal year 2005 related to Sarbanes-Oxley compliance, an increase of $2.2 million over 2004.

(Sorry for the cut and paste from the web site)

Cobasys, a joint venture between ECD Ovonics and Chevron, announced that it has received battery pack purchase orders for hybrid vehicle applications from world class automotive companies. These battery systems will be "plug and play" integrated solutions manufactured and assembled at Cobasys' Springboro, Ohio, facility to meet customer program timing. Cobasys also confirmed that it is in the advanced stages of hybrid vehicle prototype development and testing for several transportation and vehicle manufacturing companies located in North America, Europe and Asia.

Energy Conversion Devices has an interesting mix of products including CD-r technology, which it liscences.

The future of hybrid cars lithiumclude Litium Ion or NiMH.
compare battery types:
web site that compares battery types

Hybridcars.com

Johnson Controls

JCI (NYSE) $67.88

I looked at other battery companies:

Exide is a large company and supplies John Deere

2 small interesting companies with a chance ( a chance) of success...

Valence Technology VLNC uses less cadmium for a more envifriendlylly freindly battery, but may not be a strong company.

LTHU.OB

I am not a bull or bear kind of investoblogger, I just get some facts ma'am...

2006-01-21T14:01:00.000-08:00

Value Investing

Stock trading may be slow, but for something to keep y'all posted on good ideas, I found a great site on value investing.

Moneychimp

This site also has a geek note about Fiboncci Numbers..1.68 is magic

A slow and steady 5% investment with dividends beats making 15% and then loosing it...

Some green skiing links from Idealbit.com
green ski blog.....

ps Volcom's stock (VLCM) has really moved up, but the valuation worries me.....but there may be growth as the Chinese start hitting the slopes X Style

NSAA Green Ski Resorts" because water use and tree removal aren't so freindly....

ECO Wearables Swag

ECO Wearables Raw Organique

ECO Warmth @ ECOGROOVY

2006-01-13T14:31:00.000-08:00

Going up?

My New year picks are doing well (except for VFC BA BBT, but those are long term investments right?)

Whole Foods stock price is down but their social resposibility goes up as they power with wind

Volcom VLCM is tearing it up and has room to grow.... (I can't figure out how to insert good formatted tables.... sorry for the excess space) But scroll down! --- the chart numbers are there! Links to the stocks are all over my blog, so check out the archives for valuable research goodies!


Stock Ticker     Price        12/13/05   1/13/06   gain/loss
ener 
Energy Conversion Devices 36.64       51.21    14.57

fcel
FuelCell Energy                   8.40          9.63      1.23

eslr
Evergreen Solar                   12.05     12.26       0.21

bp
BP                                       66.88     69.77       2.89

vfc
VF Corp                              56.10       56.31      0.21

zqk
Quiksilver                          12.49       14.22       1.73

unfi
United Food                       28.54       27.91       -0.63

gmcr
Green Mountain Coffee     40.89        39.94       -0.95

wfmi*
Whole Foods                     76.17        73.20      -2.97

oats
Wild Oats                         11.52       12.16         0.64

zbra
Zebra                              43.88         46.16       2.28

vclm
Volcom                           33.39          37.20       3.81

cat
Caterpiller                     58.97           62.33        3.36

peix
Pacific Gas                     8.95             10.19        1.24

ida
Ida Corp                      29.40             31.41         2.01

bbt
BB&T                           43.08            41.87         -1.21

pep
pepsi                           58.97            58.70        -0.27

tm
toyota                       98.68              104.28        5.60

xsnx.ob
XSunX                         0.56               1.04          0.48

yhoo
yahoo                        41.20             39.90       -1.30

                                                                        31.82

2006-01-09T14:37:00.000-08:00

GM's Saturn VUE Hybrid

I think GM is holding out. They have introduced the new Saturn SUV hybrid for summer 1996. Which is a mild hybrid because it only has regenerative braking and maybe 15% better economy....

This auto show article is worth a look...

1994 Motor Trend Test shows the Lexus and Honda Civic are still better.

Battery companies like Panasonic and Cobasys (private) are worth looking into....I'll get right on it....

2006-01-09T14:15:00.000-08:00

Whole Foods New Year

Well the new year has started and I am back from a mental vacation. I don't know how Cramer ( from CNBC ) can keep it up.

Good news is that I went to several Whole Foods ( WFMI ) grocery stores in Atlanta and Raleigh and they were jam packed.

The store experience is very good (if slightly high end). I especially enjoy all the outrageous chocolates they have that are not only mucho choco ( 50 %+ cocoa) but are charitable with profits. They carry Paul Newman's chocolate bars and Endangered Species bars ( I am big on improving biodiversity since the reduction of wild land is likely to pressure on many types of animals)

They carry a variety of quality foods, and there is a balance between organic and "regular" brand produce and packaged foods. They also carry a few Argentine wine brands that are much better than many Chilean wines and are under $10.

They stock is now over $77 and near to its pre-split high price. Their competitor Wild Oats market is also holding up, but I can understand why WFMI is trading at a much higher multiple.

Fuel cell stock plays like Fuel Cell Energy (FCEL) are holding on and I don't expect major movement in their stock price as hybrid cars will push battery technology before hydrogen.

As I get back into the swing of things I will write deeper research.
Good investing this new year!! And check previous posts for links to organic beers and alternative outdoor sportswear.

2005-12-29T09:02:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year

My prediction for 2006? Growth in infrastructure and environmental technologies. IE: heavy industries like CATERPILLAR (CAT) . I am also going to go out on a limb: GM will rebound. As much as I don't like what GM is making now (they have pushed back good car technologies as far as they can), I think they will come out swinging with new technologies and leap ahead of their competitors. OK maybe not in 2006 but in five years....

Turn that yield curve frown upside down:
What can be positive about an inverted yield curve? I think the fed is managing inflation well. Sustainable growth is good. Rates on long term bonds are lower than short term rates because... well I have no idea. I can see the brighter side of this because the curve in the early 90's, after a hard real estate market, fortold low inflation and high tech investment.

The big question is what will drive growth? Investment in infrastructure is very likely, especially abroad. I think people will want more efficient cars, a shorter trip to work (but not at home), more time to travel, a good environment, a way to retire in good health, and possible a fantastic future in space. Fashion and trendy electronics are falling off (I am overwhelmed by choices and don't really want anything to pass time in my house or ot a station)

Surf Notes:
Billibong is buying Nixon watches, and Reef is supplying surfboard blanks ( a big supplier suddenly stopped)
How much more can surf companies grow? China? India? I think alternative sports companies can grow.

2005-12-19T20:07:00.000-08:00

Wind Energy, Suzlon Energy Ltd

I found this company on the KLD Global Climate 100 Index fund site.

Suzlon Energy is in Pune India.
http://www.suzlon.com/
Yahoo finance has their ticker as suzlon.ns and KLD has it as SUEL:BSE.

The web site claims Suzlon is among the top ten in the industry and owns one of the largest wind farms in asia.
The site also claims John Deere as client (among 7 listed in their 30 years of experience).

1000+ employees.

I can't find many financial statements for this company except the 2nd 2005 quarter. I am also not familiar with Indian stock markets (for instance the BSE Bombay or NSE National Stock Exchange). The company had its IPO in lat September. In October the price was around 630 Rs and is listed as 931 Rs. 12/16/05.

However I am curious about Indian markets and this company.
info@suzlon_usa.com
icicidirect

2005-12-13T14:05:00.000-08:00

MY Holiday List

It's hard not to be in the shopping mood, so here are my stocks to buy for other people

BP for my Mom
GMCR for my dog who likes coffee
WFMI for my Cousins
VFC for my SIS
PEP for my Bro since he works for Coke hehehe
IDA for my Grandma
CAT for my Girls
TM for my Neices
BBT for my Pops
ESLR for my solar friend
ZQK for my surfing bro's
and I'll take a little BP for myself too (ps I already have some BP and that's it right now).
Just so I (and anyone else) can keep track of the buys.....
( I have a tendancy to " forget" my practice buy prices)

...here's the long list of 20 for the new years to come....we'll see how I do in a few months



































































  ) INDEX STOCK Ticker   Industry   Price 12/13/05 
  ener  Alt Energy   $36.64 
  fcel  Alt Energy   $8.40 
  eslr  Alt Energy   $12.05 
  bp   Energy   $66.88 
  vfc   Clothes/Xsports   $58.28 
  zqk  X Sports  $12.49 
  unfi  Food Distributor   $28.54 
  gmcr   Coffee   $40.89 
  wfmi   Grocery   $152.33 
  oats  Grocery   $11.52 
  zbra  RFID  $43.88 
  vclm  X Sports  $33.39 
  cat  Heavy Machines   $58.97 
  peix  Alt Energy   $8.95 
  ida   Power Co  $29.40 
  bbt   Bank  $43.08 
  pep  Food  $58.97 
  tm  Auto  $98.68 
  xsnx.ob   Alt Energy   $0.56 
  yhoo  Internet   $41.20

2005-12-12T12:16:00.000-08:00

Alternative Energy

ENER
Energy Conversion Devices looks to be a profitable choice in alternative energy. They have profits ($1.39 eps) and growing sales +/- 5%. The company has had recognition for its LiIon Battery technology. Short term trouble is the growing short ratio, which says more people are shorting the stock. However, long term investors may be better off with a stock that makes profits thatn an upstart with interesting technology.

Many others like SunPower (SPWR) do not seem to have the business to stay on top of the game, especially if their patents don't last until their business takes off.

Another company I am worried about is Electro Energy Inc (EEEI), a company that makes replacement NiCAD batteries for cars. I think that military contracts help, but are not an indicator that the business will do well. Panasonic is a major competitor and the current provider of batteries for the Toyota's Prius. I hope to find out if Toyota may use Lithium Ion Batteries soon.

The surfing world is continually trying to improve the sustainablity of the world. Surfer's that are giving to social projects like Malaria eradication:
SurfAid International
Surfer's Path
location of dolphin surf pic by Josh Kimballon the Surfer's Path web site

2005-11-30T20:41:00.000-08:00

Pacific Ethanol

PEIX

good link to ethanol production

News says Bill Gates is buying this company

3.5 times more cash than debt.
Revenues = $555,000
Market cap = $309 million.

Archer Daniels Midland is a major obstacle. So is Cargill (giants). Both are known to have influence on price and politics. Also, Land-O-Lakes makes ethanol from cheese whey.

(ADM stock price)

ADM describes ethanol business

Dept of Energy on Ethanol

Ethanol comes from corn or soybeans, which are mostly used for feed ( corn is about 80%). So the price of ethanol will likely be a balance between feed prices and gas. I do not favor biofuels longterm....They will one day compete for food resources, and affect water supplies and unsustainable farming with high levels of chemicals.

However, some places in the northwest use wood or brewery waste to make ethanol.

In the short term, ethanol is already being used in gas since it can be cheaper. It can also lower gas prices because it is a cleaning agent, a replacement for other additives to make gas meet emissions requirements.

PS
ADM is on my not cool list for price fixing .

2005-11-28T17:17:00.000-08:00

Platinum is Forever

Platinum made the news today as spot prices lept over $1000. The price was under $800 in June '04 but was over $1000 in the 80's.

Platinum, is a rare metal traded on the NY Merc . It is very difficult to trade, because of the complex processes of puts and spreads.

I was interested in platinum when I found out they were used in fuel cells .

That is also when I found out Johnson Matthey ( JMAT.L ) , a big chemicals company, had an interest in fuel cells.

Hydrogen and oxygen gas mixtures explode in the presence of platinum wire...

it is a byproduct of nickel. Platinum production is used for electronics ( almost half is for jewelry and other cosmetic wear). The biggest electronic use now is for catalytic converters in cars. It is also used in dentistry....forggettabout gold teeth man.

Factoid: melts at 1772 degrees centigrade

2005-11-23T18:17:00.000-08:00

Quiksilver

ZQK

Quiksilver, not quicksilver (no c). $12.35 on 11/23/05.

This company is well known. One of it's biggest team surfers/riders Is Kelly Slater. He recently won another world championship. Go Kelly... Tear it up....

The Quiksilver snowboard team includes Todd Richards , who was 16th the first olympic snowboarding halfpipe contest, and 1st in the 2001 slopestyle.

For the girls, there is Roxy .
I love a surfer girl, and Roxy works for good birthday and Christmas gifts. For the boarders, Rossignol is their subsidiary, but I think it's clear private Burton Snowboards has it locked up. Other subs: Dynastar, Cleveland Golf clubs, Gnu (I like Gnu boards)

The company is also champ in my eyes. They got a little backhanded the other day by Jim Cramer, but they put shoes on my feet (DC shoes) and baggies on my backside. I think this is the biggest public alternative sport brand besides Billabong, which I think just started public trading on the austailian exchange a year ago.

Billabong Fpo 12.97 AU 11/23/05
ASX:BBG
Australian Stock Exchange

Volcom (VLCM) has seen a price jump, but since it is an ipo and brand names are fickle (besides the top dog) I would wait it out for a while.....

The biggest thing that makes me prefer this older company, besides zqk's consitant Kelly Slater performance, is a positive attitude.

The Quiksilver Foundation does it all. Cool Man...

Some Finance: they made $99 million on $1.5 billion in sales.
p/e = 15
They have better than industry ratios and although very cyclical, good growth.

That's it then.

2005-11-20T18:24:00.000-08:00

Mr. Warren Buffett

I have recently returned from my trip to Omaha.

Several ECU classmates and I went with Dr. Tibbs to meet with Mr. Buffett.

We had the opportunity to ask questions. The affable Mr. Buffett encouraged all types of questions and often made some funny jokes...which I will not repeat because....well...you had to be there.

He spoke about the growing trade imbalance and value investing. He remarked about the increasing threat of natural disasters from a warming Gulf of Mexico. He also was nice enough to have lunch with us at one of his favorite steak houses....Vegetarian meals available.

Beyond the jokes and amazing ability to refine profound questions into understandable and specific answers....He gave life advice that few people with money seem grounded enough to give. He is a man that loves people.

He spoke about socially responsible investing. He mentioned that he would not buy a whole company with questionable ethics (he regards owning a business as a way to achieve returns over time, rather than incessant trading). His core ideals are easily viewed and understood through the Berkshire Hathaway web site.

2005-11-07T21:25:00.000-08:00

Organic Food: Vindicated

Jim Cramer, on CNBC mentioned Whole Foods (WFMI) and Wild Oats Markets (OATS) (I own Wild Oats)

Whole Foods is a great company. I do have some concerns some of their< social resposibilities>, but they run their business very well, with profits, dividends, and growth.

They have management that is very good and business minded. But the leaders also
may not be as socially resposible as your local organic food co-op. They do however, give substantial amounts to fund social projects and are therefore socially resposible. They are just anti union and against high wages. Understandable. You have to make money right?

If you live in a large metro area, there is probably a farmer's market or co-op that is close.
You may have a local market theet is just as good because many grocers are carriying (or may soon carry) organic food as the market demands. Whole Foods management is great when you compare its store's business model to A&P or Kroger or Harris Teeter.

PUBLICS, Harris Teeter, Lowe;s Foods, Kroger...all sell organic foods.

Wild Oats Markets ( est. 1987, Colorado) is much smaller and faces substantial competition from Whole Foods. Whole Foods (est. 1978, Texas) has 170 stores in 3 countries, and has a $9 billion market cap with $2.37 EPS, or $4 billion in revenue. OATS has $1 billion in revenue, $348 million market cap, 10% less quarterly growth, 112 stores, and a stock price with less growth.

2005-10-26T07:06:00.000-07:00

GreenMountainCoffee

(GMCR)

www.GreenMountainCoffee.com

Green Mountain Coffee has been recognized for the past six years as one of Forbes Magazine's 200 Best Small Companies. They are one of the largest and most experienced dealers in Fair Trade Coffee. Fair Trade is when the middle man is cut out and the farmers receive the bulk of the price. Currently, the "middle man" takes most of the price, and distributes very little to the farmer, causing the farmer to just live above subsistence.

EPS 1.13

qrtly earnings growth 13%

csh 5.66 M

debt 8.78 m

book value per share 7.6 m

free cash flow -4.53 m

32% INSIDERS

7.42 MILLION SHARES Outstanding

• above/ over the 50 and 200 day moving averages

• stock holders get a 10% discount on non sale items

• $8.69 for 12 oz fair trade, organic, roasted whole bean

2005-10-20T17:37:00.000-07:00

RFID Zebra (ZBRA)

or Where is it?

As I was looking into what could be a future growth market, I remebered RFID. A radio braodcast barcode that helps track items from the factory through shipping to the shelf. Lost/ Misplaceitems account for huge inventory cost. The armed forces and Wal-Mart are both into the technology. Grocery stores are also interested in it because it helps keep inventory at controllable levels and instead of the store ordering more inventory, the vendor knows when stocked items are low. When the vendor knows, the factory knows..an so on.

Enter Zebra... Zebra makes printable RFID ink so that bar codes can send info efficiently from ....printable RFID tags....like Barcodes now in use. Of course many companies that are large mega caps are into it as well like Unova (UNA) and seimens.

Zebra's competitive advantage is that it only make the tags, but works with established database systems (SAP/Oracle/ Microsoft) to ensure a smoother transition. They make a profit, have operated over 20 years from California, and are growing.

From the Zebra.com Web site:
"Radio frequency identification (RFID) printers and encoders help you implement instant, measurable improvements in operating efficiency, accuracy, and supply chain visibility. You can digitally encode error-free data in an RFID tag or smart label, then wirelessly transmit that data to an RFID reader--even in harsh environments."

2005-10-18T17:33:00.000-07:00

Social Investing Funds vs Warren Buffet

What do environmental and social funds hold....after a little web soul searching, I was a little surprised to find some companies that are questionable.....

Now I know that you have to make a buck, but the whole point is shifting money to businesses you would care about, right?

This article describes the situation...

Social funds:
Domini Social Funds symbol (Symbol: DSEFX) currently about $28 and does has been for around two years...About 1.2 billion in assets. The Domini 400 Social index includes DuPont, 3M, PG&E, and XTO Energy (10-05-2005). Among other well alternative energy companies.

Here's a list I found of what Berhire Hathaway owned in 2002 for comparison:erkshire Hathaway had, as of 2002, holdings in the following companies.
COMPANIES BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY OWNS
GEICO - Primarily a motor insurance company, reputedly number 6 in America which provided earnings to Berkshire in 2002 of 271 million dollars. (Read our history of GEICO)
General Re - One of the largest reinsurers in the world, which contributed negatively to Berkshire’s earnings in 2002.
Shaw Industries - Makes tufted broadloom carpet. A good contributor to Berkshire in 2002 to the tune of 258 million dollars.
Nebraska Furniture Mart - This originally family owned company’s store in Omaha is the largest of its kind in the USA, and probably the world. Its new store in Kansas City will, with 450,000 square feet, be Number 2. The story of this company is a Warren Buffet classic and can be found here Berkshire also owns R.C. Willey Home Furnishings, Star Furniture, and Jordan’s Furniture.
Borsheim’s Jewelry - This is another classic Buffett company. Berkshire also owns Helzberg Diamond Shops.
Benjamin Moore - This company makes and sells architectural and industrial coatings.
Johns Manville - This company makes and sells insulation and building products.
Acme Building Brands - Makes face brick and concrete masonry products.
MiTek Inc - A manufacturer of steel connector products and engineering software.
Fruit of the Loom - This apparel company has about one third of the US market for men and boy’s underwear.
Garan - This company makes and distributes children’s wear under the brand name Garanimals.
Fechheimer
H.H. Brown - A leading manufacturer and seller of shoes
Justin Brands - Another shoe maker which has been improving its margins over the years.
Dexter - This shoe maker has been turned around from a loser to a winner.
Scott Fetzer - This company makes commercial and industrial products under the brand names of Kirby and Campbell Hausfeld brand names and put 83 million dollars into Berkshire’s coffers in 2002.
FlightSafety International - Provides training for aircraft and ship operators.
NetJets - NetJets provides fractional ownership programs for general aviation aircraft and is the market leader. The flight services sector of Berkshire added 133 million dollars in 2002.
The Buffalo News
See’s Candies - This famous company will sell you candy at its stores or over the Internet.
Albecca - A company that designs, makes and sells high-quality picture framing products under the name Larson-Juhl.
CTB International - A leading manufacturer of equipment for the livestock and agricultural industries
International Dairy Queen - A well known franchise, with over 6000 outlets.
The Pampered Chef - A recent acquisition and reputedly the largest direct seller of house ware products in America. This company sells a lot of its products through home parties a la Tupperware.
Mid American Energy Holdings - This company Holds gaslines in Wyoming and the Mid-West of the USA.
SUBSTANTIAL HOLDINGS IN OTHER COMPANIES
As at the date of the 2002 Annual General Meeting, Berkshire Hathaway had substantial holdings in the following companies.
• American Express Company
• The Coca-Cola Company
• The Gillette Company
• H&R Block, Inc
• M&T Bank
• Moody’s Corporation
• The Washington Post Company
• Wells Fargo & Company

Conclusion? Bershire Hathaway may be an SRI Fund....

2005-10-13T05:12:00.000-07:00

Columbia Sportswear

First news observations: Google and Microsoft are fighting it out hard. They are both too expensive for me (valuation wise) but the fight is interesting. Google may buy some AOL. Microsoft has been trying to get into AOL too. That's about as direct as you can get. Also, Microsoft is teaming with Yahoo? Looks like Google isn't doing their own thing so much as playing defense.

Also, now that Michael Eisner has retires, Apple and Disney like each other. Also, if prices in October for stocks drop, I think ( a big I think here) stocks will be more fairly valued and a good time to buy the bigger issues.

Back to Columbia:

It's getting to be fall, and winter clothing should do well this year. Although I remain a supporter of Burton (private) and I have mentioned The North Face is part of Greensboro conglomerate VF corporation (see previous posts)...Columbia is well represented in the malls and other highly visible sporting goods stores.

COLM

Yahoo lists their competitors as Nike and Timberland. I don't think so. Not the same at all. However, Similarities are:
Columbia makes sports wear for many big universities like UNC OSU Michigan Washington, ect like Nike.... They also make boots...but they are beyond Timberlands. They also make adventure gear like tents, packs, Hunting camo-s, wet bags for Kayaking, and snowboarding gear....and were one of the first to use GoreTex. On a personal note, I still use a Columbia jacket from ten years ago as a back-up.

Columbia is sold world wide and has room to grow overseas. They could get to a sales level near Nike. The two companies have sililar growth and margins and EPS. Net income is very different because Nike is in the billions. Growth is twice that of Timberland (TBL) although the other numbers are quite the same (P/E both around 13.5--Nike=~16)

Smartmoney's value checker puts COLM's estimated value at $60.....however there was a large valume selloff in May dropping the price from $55.

Opinion: The tenacious Mother Son team is likely to continue the small family feel while going big.

2005-10-10T10:46:00.000-07:00

Will gm use bankruptcy to cut its pension load?...

or...gm is Junk twice

I am sick of US companies failing to make a good business, then pawning their ugliness off on the taxpayer...Can't they just compete?

"I'd rather push a Chevy than drive a Ford"
That's the redneck axiom in my part of the south....
That's also the thinking that let's GM build whatever %%$# they can... Instead of beating the ^&^$ out of the competition ...like normal businesses strive to do.

GM likes to build &^&^ and expects to sell it....with high value loans.... Hence margins ...and the unions ask for a huge piece of those margins...Fair enough. Maybe it's fair to use the court to renig on pensions so that the corps can take all those retirement millions saved up.

GM has said they are building hybrid and fuel cell cars, but but but but but,
I'll believe it when I see it. Skeptical is an understatement.

It seems like gm is doing everything possible to not make nice technology into current production. They have their circus at auto shows... and they have teams of brilliant engineers, but what is there to show for it on the dealer lot? Not Xhit.

Can you list all the companies that claim bankruptcy to end pension plans?
A bit about the maneuver:

pension theft

GM takes back health plan via Findlaw.com
Delphi raises exec payouts after Bankruptcy
ERISA the law from Findlaw.com
Pension Termination and ERISA at FIndlaw.com
wikipedia Pension benefit guaranty Corp

"Bloomberg News Service
Aug. 24, 2004

A $350 billion pension shortfall among U.S. companies may force the federal agency that insures retirement plans to seek a taxpayer bailout similar to the one during the savings and loan crisis, according to the Cato Institute, a Washington-based policy research group.

The federal agency, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. had a record deficit of $11.2 billion last year after taking over plans for 152 companies such as Bethlehem Steel Corp. and US Airways Group Inc. Without changes to funding and premium rules, the PBGC's deficit is likely to swell to $18 billion in the next 10 years, and may reach more than $50 billion, said Richard A. Ippolito, chief economist at Cato.

"If exposures create claims that reach catastrophic levels, taxpayers will be called upon to provide a bailout," Ippolito said.

Stock price declines and low interest rates have eroded the value of pension plans. Groups such as the Pension Rights Center, a Washington-based workers' advocacy group, have dismissed the likelihood of a bailout, saying the PBGC is well funded over the long term.

The collapse of savings and loans in the 1980s and early 1990s costs taxpayers about $124 billion and the thrift industry another $29 billion, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

-----------------
United Airlines parent, UAL Corp., said last week that it probably will terminate and replace all its pension plans. United, the second-biggest U.S. air carrier, plans to skip about $575 million of pension contributions this year to help it come out of bankruptcy without a government-backed loan.

The PBGC is funded through insurance premiums collected from employers that sponsor defined-benefit plans, returns on investments and the assets of pension plans that it takes over. Underfunding can be controlled by making the PBGC a private insurance program that sets premiums based on the risk that plan sponsors add to the program, Ippolito said.

"Eliminate the loopholes that permit sponsors of underfunded plans to evade the variable rate premium and require sponsors to calculate market value underfunding," said Ippolito. Such reforms would increase revenue to the PBGC and reduce underfunding, he said.

The PBGC was created by Congress in 1974 to guarantee pension benefits, and is run by a board that includes the U.S. secretaries of Labor, Treasury and Commerce. Since its creation, the airline and steel industries have accounted for more than 70 percent of the claims against the program while representing less than 5 percent of insured participants, the PBGC said." (end article)

Toyota is buying up all thebattery technology at Panasonic .....Should anyone care? ....horsepower or efficiency? Does it have to be so cut and dry?

Today's news about GM selling part of their Fujitsu holdings (Suburu maker) ... and that Toyota is the buyer. Bank of America downgraded gm to a sell. FUJI goes back to Toyota

Bankruptcy is good for gm and Delphi's board, but not for its employees. I believe they are aiming to go into bankruptcy as a tool to decrease the amount of pension liability they have ...this will force the US taxpayer to pay the union pensions.

wow.... I got out of bed on the wrong side today eh?

2005-10-06T08:05:00.000-07:00

LG makes fuel cell Laptop batteries: 10+ hrs

2005-10-05T06:29:00.000-07:00

BP

BP ... Can an environmentally concerned investor buy a huge oil company? Sure---If BP is going to make money anyway, they might as well pay me (an investor) part of their profits. BP's dividend is good ( 2.14 and possibly 3 next year) They are growing...... net income (profits) grew at about 6%, even though growth estimates for revenues are about 11%... profits are 6% on $316 billion... wow, that should be nice to take part in. Enough said about the solid business....

...It's the future I'm worried about

Doubt CO2's effect on the environment? BP doesn't (unlike some others).

They have a whole web site dedicated to the future sustainability of energy and the environment .

1) decarbonized fuels ....or turning Natural Gas or Oil into hydrogen !!! .... H2 future...one day...one day....

2) BP Solar: They sell at Home Depot complete systems .... WholeFoods (WFMI) BP Solar CASE STUDY

Solar Costs are initially higher than costs can be recovered in five years.... are they woth it? Step in the Government to help the market have a little forsight and planning...

Tax benifit in your area:
National database for renewable tax incentives:
http://www.dsireusa.org/index.cfm

nc state tax credit site

• A maximum of $3,500 for residential active space heating, combined active space and domestic hot water systems, and passive space heating;
• A maximum of $1,400 for residential solar water heating systems, including solar pool heating systems;
• A maximum of $10,500 for photovoltaic (solar electric), wind, or other renewable energy systems for residential use;
• A maximum of $250,000 (increasing to $2,500,000 for 2006 through 2010) for all solar, wind, hydro and biomass applications on commercial and industrial facilities, including photovoltaic, daylighting, solar water and space heating technologies.
Renewable energy equipment costs eligible for the tax credit include the cost of the equipment and associated design, construction costs and installation costs less any discounts, rebates, advertising, installation assistance credits, name referral allowances or other similar reduction

2005-10-03T17:25:00.000-07:00

Ida Tech

(IDA)

I have no idea why I think this... but Ida Tech is a part of an Idaho power company, IdaCorp (IDA) , that may be into fuel cells.... and could have Bill Gates as an investor. I have found many links that say Bill Gates bought 5% stake in Avista Labs....

and recent news on Hoku suggests idacorp' s know how has something to do with Hoku's recent upgrades. Personal note: HOKU is pure spec and unless you are a gambling man...

The safer Fuelcell investor:
Idacorp provides electric power and has a dividend you could count on...plus the stock has been around $30 for five years....dividends (+/- .30 ) provide a positive yeild compared to other fuel cell companies...
I guess if you watched Jim Cramer on Mad Money (CNBC) a week ago, when HOKU was $8 and Cramer said not to buy over the closing price that day, the recent $12 is a respectable gain.......but long term?

From Web site
TheStreet.com - RealMoney.com
Can't Use Valuation on Hoku
9/20/2005 11:30 AM EDT
By James Cramer
These only measure for the beauty of these under-$10 monsters is in the eye of the last beholder.

2005-09-29T15:45:00.000-07:00

Analysts and Underwriters

A note about volcom's news from wachovia...

Wachovia is their underwriter , and as the lock out period ends, which is in december for volcom....underwriters often come out with news.

I'm not saying VLCM is hype, but the timing of the news should draw attention.

2005-09-28T17:23:00.000-07:00

Water

For a thirsty world:
Mostly large companies make water purification systems (ie GE, DuPont, Seimens)

Clorox makes Brita.
Pur water filters is a private company...

Zenon donates a good deal to Tsunami and others ... It's a Canadian company
ZEN.to

Pall Corp also makes heavy donations of water filters, and is the largest public company I have found so far
PLL
Pall has a solid balance sheet and some growth....

2005-09-27T06:52:00.000-07:00

Volcom

(VLCM)

I've been around snowboarding longer than I have been driving. I have seen many companies come and go. Burton has always been there, and as long as I have money in my pocket, Burton will always be there. Ok so that doesn't say too much, except the link on the side panel to transworld biz magazine explains why some sport companies go public and some stay private.

The best companies are still private. Period. I looked up every company that had something in my house and only Billibong was public. I do not own anything volcom? Why? I don't know? Stuff looks pretty hard-core. They have lots of style and products. They are very into the culture and are doing more than many other companies including mountain dew...... The guys started with five grand from their folks in 1991. They have spread the logo and have something for sale in malls and serious skate/surf shops. They have nice looking stuff...I don't know why I don't own any of it....but for the record, I own no O'neil, quicksilver, or PowellPeralta (Dog Town and Z boyz)

Vans was a public company until bought by VF corp (see previous post)

2005-09-24T09:53:00.000-07:00

More trash talking

Fuel costs are hurting these guys, but like all utilities, their revenues are fairly constant. Apparently, recycling is not profitable due to the fluctuation in commodity prices. I look for the price of plastic to increase a little, but modestly higher plastic prices will not make recycling more attractive. Here, recycling is done by a not-for-profit company, which is supported by the county.

The Sopranos are in the waste business....but what does that have to do with anything? Anyway, Waste Management Industries (WMI) is one of the largest companies in the industry. It has over $2 billion in revenues after taxes. They also have 17 waste to energy plants , 138 recycling plants, bioreactor landfills and 85 landfill gas projects ( capturing methane from decomposing trash).

Casella Waste systems is a smaller waste company with some recycling facilities. They also have a partnership that makes cellulose insulation. Positive.

Casella Waste

Do you have radioactive waste?
Try The American Ecology Group from Boise Idaho...They have a nice dividend and most of the stock is held by insiders (as opposed to underwriters)
(ECOL)

Clean Harbors Inc. (CLHB) Is the big cleaner in New Orleans for the toxic muck...and their stock has been going up for years.

Oh and, if you are a long term investor, watch out for shows on CNBC. They tend to sell stocks like a broker.
Jim Cramer? I suspect you have two days to get in then out of his stock ideas.
Boo YaMad Money Stats

411 on recycling

2005-09-21T19:56:00.000-07:00

OUTDOORS

Nothing like fall weather to get me in the great outdoors....forgettabout cars...It's the gear

Go to smartmoney's (smartmoney.com) value calculator to see how much speculation is in your stock picks.

VF Corporation's value is far below it's price...which is rare theses days... (according to the calculator based on analyst growth estimates)
( vfc )

VF owns Lee, Wrangler, Lily of France, Nautica, JanSport and The North Face, and posted sales of $5.2 billion last year. Also bought up Reef .. you may want to see what the reef girls are in to... or

VF's outdoors companies like North Face are standards, and they set a standard for outdoor protection by giving back..

http://www.globalgiving.com/
http://www.conservationalliance.com/

fed ex also donates and supports the Oudoors through discounts to member businesses of the OIA

a couple other tickers to remember:
billabong
bbg

....oakley oo

Love to LA Miss

2005-09-19T08:34:00.000-07:00

Evergreen Solar

Evergreen Solar has been recieving more attention lately. Alternative energy stocks a commonly momentum plays. The cause?Natural gas prices are rising over $11, twice that of last fall.

XsunX

Many large buildings can benifit from solar power. A recent "gamble" or speculative stock is the penny stock XSNX.OB . They are making photovoltaic glass for large buildings. It's like siding a building with solar cells that you can look through.

It is important to remember that investing in solar power companies, that many large corporations have an advantage. BP Solar and Seimens have very large amounts of production capacity and more than enough free cash for R&D. Evergreen Solar's free cash ( - ) and R&D funding ($5 million) add to potential financing problems unless more stock is sold. ESLR looses nearly $16 MILLION A YEAR ON INCOME OF $30 MILLION and has a market cap of nearly $500 million. This suggests an over valued price. As I mentioned growth may not come if large corporations take advantage of their size and distribution resources ( other competitors include GE and Kyocera )

Capstone turbines and Beacon energy are both far below their recent price levels....I feel Evergreen may have a price below the current one in the near future. I hope that Solar power improves and permeates the market, but I don not expect small companies like evergreen to fully capitalize on the market potential. On that note, Hoku os still bafflingly high at $11 per share. I suspect Kramer coverage had a lot to do with the spec on this.

2005-09-16T15:25:00.000-07:00

WAVES

Big waves for fuel cell stocks are like the hurricane that just went through my area. Ophelia just took its time meanding around, sometimes big, sometimes small, and scrubbed the coast. Many fuelcell stocks do just that. They linger, change in size, have some affect, the drift out to sea. Recently Jim Cramer hyped the new fuelcell stock on the block Hoku Scientific (hoku) and the stock price exploded. I feel it jumped an unreasonable amount just on the news that it had a deal with nissan and is profitable. The company has only fourteen employees and several other car makers have fuel cell makers with fuel cell technology lined up.....I'll have to see what the big deal is later.....

I certainly hope someone makes a fuel cell car a reality before 2090, but after the dismantling of Ballard and others by large companies like GE...any patents that these guys hold will not last until the fuel cells hit the market.
Hoku is an IPO, so beware...

Toshiba is making a mini fuel cell to MP# players last up to 60 hours.....finally....

2005-09-13T07:05:00.000-07:00

Dew It

Mountain Dew is a staple of snowboarders....I know. I haven't made the change to super charged drinks like Red Bull with taurine and vitamin's....Mostly because of the price and the unwanted jitters from being supercaffinated.

Mountain Dew sponsors many a boarder and the physically adventurous... Their latest marketing effort is producing films. MD Films , a unit of Mountain Dew, made "First Descent" to create buzz for the drink.... Which will probably happen.

PepsiCo owns Mountain Dew and is involved in several snack products, and no longer in the restaurant business. Some products include: Tropicana, Aquafina, Quaker, Lays, Sunchips, Cracker Jacks, Rice a Roni, and Life cereal. They have about the same annual income available for common shares as debt. Also their main competitor ( KO )is more globally recognized.

Key Stats: Growth is over 12% per quarter(8% for KO) and the divedend is around 1.05.....$2.60 earnings per share, 1.7 billion shares out...and 14% profit margin. Also very similar to KO.

2005-09-08T16:57:00.000-07:00

Taking Out

the Trash

Environmental remediation and water quality are super important these days.

CNN highlights the problems of waste in the water in Louisianna.

The biggest players in the remediation business are Tyco and DuPont.

But in Baton Rouge, there is the Shaw Group (sgr) who has recently seen a spike in stock valuation.

ps..
Beacon Power and Capstone among others have started to return to lower valuations
More later....

2005-09-06T06:48:00.000-07:00

Plastic

A friend and I were drinking beer ( see previous post) and wagered to see who could give up plastic the longest. That didn't last long. It was maybe twenty minutes before we gave up (I lost). Plastic is in everything... including the ice cube trays my friend caught me using.

The reason for the naive wager? Plastic can be recylcled,but it often isn't ...and it comes from petroleum.

Toyota ( TM )is about to make bio plastic. Hopefully my car will have less plastic from pertroleum in the future.

Also bio plastic resins are getting better and more useful. Sanyo claims to have made opticle hard disks from bioplastic.

Another difficulty in the wager were the potatochips. Food may come in bioplastic wrappers in the future.

Other bio plastic links:

DuPont:
positive
negative

General BP Site

naturalfoodsmerchandiser

sustainablebusiness

2005-09-01T18:59:00.000-07:00

Green Mountain Coffee and the Global Reporting Initiative

Hope help is on the way to the Gulf States

Prayers....anyway...
Stock traders pumping alternative energy stocks in this crisis are bound to capitalize on some good hearts. However, there has been a growing movement for alternative energy and sustainable reporting (from "Fast Company" article) .

I have been drinking too much coffee latley, and although Starbucks has their plan ....Green Mountain Coffee Roasters are leading the way...plus there stock price is interesting GMCR

Many companies put tremendous effort to hide things on their books so why would they add another item?
Here are some links on corporate environmental reporting.....

environment on the books Corporate Sunshine

world business council for sustainable development

corporate responsibility newswire

2005-08-31T14:21:00.000-07:00

FAT CAT

Caterpiller split in July and has continued to increase in price. Sure, they are expected to help in the tramatic rebuild from Katrina....but they also have my X approval by incorporating Fuel Cells into their growth plan.

Some interesting notes in their newsa is that one of their managers was appointed to the EPA.

They also issued $250 million in new debt....possible bond buy?

They have an enterprise value of $60.41 billion and a market cap of $37.5 billion. Seems like a good deal.

2005-08-30T21:06:00.001-07:00

Real Investing

Hype...I've seen it before, but the recent activity in alternative energy is something the long term investor is best to avoid. If you like to gamble or follow the money, maybe you missed your chance.

Capstone has risen above $5 from $1 a couple of months ago. This company has almost no sales and as soon as sales pick up, I am sure GE will take over. Profits are what I invest in now, not dreams..unfortunately...

Evergreen Solar is another company I am worried about. Sure they have great new products and sales, but I doubt their patents will last until the market for solar energy expands. Their competitors include BP and Siemens....tuff stuff....

Short term, you can look at energy bills and horrific energy troubles to increase stock price....but if you look at the value of their future sales, it is unlikely their market cap justifies the price.

Smartmoney.com has a valuation tool to help you decide...

good luck alternative energy companies.....I can't throw money at short term trades right now....

2005-08-29T15:07:00.001-07:00

Organic Grocery Stores Fight Back

I found a funny link from the folks at the Tradin Organic Company website

Organic Store Wars

Dow Jones has a sustainable Stoxx 's index...

AND Capstone Turbines (cpst) is on the rise! From $1 to over $4 and higher after in after market trading....

2005-08-28T20:55:00.001-07:00

Katrina

The hurricane is going to drive traders into a frenzy I'm sure. Insurance companies will loose, crops will get damaged, construction will slow and.....the oil refineries, offshore drilling, and shipping......

It's very well known about Louisiana's energy production and hurricane sensitivity. "Eighteen percent of U.S. oil production originates in, is transported through, or is processed in Louisiana coastal wetlands with a value of $6.3 billion a year. Almost 24 percent of U.S. natural gas production originates in or is processed in Louisiana's coastal wetlands with a value of $10.3 billion a year.As of October 1998, there were 3,439 platforms in the Gulf off Louisiana's coast." The government Energy Information Administration has some factoids..... Journalists have been pondering the effects of a hurricane like this for a while.

I filled up my tank today... I wish I didn't need gas, but tomorrow I am expecting another price jump.
$1.53 for the cheapestuff in NC

Viewpoint Biodiesel:
I am not a fan of biodiesel for everyone....I really don't want water problems to grow gas for cars. Crops are better for food.

2005-08-24T09:55:00.003-07:00

BEER

There are not many public companies selling socially resposible beer

....what is that any way?

The Sierra Nevada Brewing Company is not public but has invested in fuel cells. That's the Govornator checking out Sierra Nevada's Fuel Cell from Fuel Cell Energy in the photo.

Many beer brewers out there use organic hops and barley.
I went to Mellow Mushroom Pizza and found Wolavers,a great oragnic beer...

Samuel Smith also makes a good pair of organic beers. They are a little pricey, but quality is job 1.

Co-op Americaa list of organic brewers..some background and links for business to business....in case you need something to drink these hot days...

Cheers!

2005-08-23T13:10:00.000-07:00

ECOTOURING

I'm thinking about investing in a nice eco tour....

My Usual eco tour is possibly seeing some dolphins out surfing Masonboro Island or the Outerbanks. My other favorite local eco tour is simply hiking the Appalachian Trail. Joyce Kilmore National Forest is a great spot west of Asheville.

Outside Magazine has a few other ideas for me...

I have also been thinking about taking a Volunteer eco trip. volunteering to help science sounds wild...EcoVolunteer also has some projects...

Top on my on "to do" list, which is growing, is to go to MAHO BAY in the Virgin Islands....

have fun!

2005-08-23T12:20:00.002-07:00

BCON up 17% midday

check Hoovers Online

There are about 49 million shares. The price was around $4.82 midday.

Trading volume has gone from a three month average of 4 million, to nearly 15 million average for the past ten days.

This is from Beacon Power's web site:

Corporate Overview

Beacon Power Corporation designs sustainable energy storage and power conversion solutions that would provide reliable electric power for the utility, renewable energy, and distributed generation markets. Beacon’s new Smart Energy Matrix is a design concept for a megawatt-level, utility-grade flywheel-based energy storage solution that would provide sustainable power quality services for frequency regulation, and support the demand for reliable, distributed electrical power. Two prototype Smart Energy Matrix systems have been ordered by energy authorities in California and New York, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy. The goal of both projects is to demonstrate the performance of Beacon's flywheel energy storage technology in regulating grid frequencies, and to evaluate other potential advantages, such as clean operation, fast reponse time, and ease of use. Both systems will be installed and testing will begin in 2005.

Our mission is to become a leading supplier of advanced solutions that enhance electrical grid reliability and operation. We believe that in a time of increasing uncertainty about grid reliability and energy issues in general, Beacon Power systems can offer dependable, better-performing, and environmentally sustainable alternatives to conventional regulation services.

2005-08-22T12:56:00.000-07:00

X Investing

Beacon Power Corp
Is going Crazy!

BCON

Ok, this is highly subjective....
I have one eyebrow up when a company in alternative energy starts moving rapidly.
When this stock was below $2 I felt that BCON was a speculative trade....... any movement was subject to the whims of underwriters and/or traders. But there could be guesses about the market size for Beacon Power's technology that suggests future growth.

The company makes energy storage devices using flywheel technology......sort of like winding up a spring of magnets and releasing it in a controlled and efficient way. Flywheels are an alternative to batteries, which contain metals potentially harmful to the environment.

I still don't know, but buying this stock in March at $1 +/- would have been a good call considering today's (8-22-05) trading price over $4 a share......but did the energy bill have anything to do with the increase?
News on the Energy Bill is highly subjective. Everyone has and idea of the bill's impact. Some views are different than others Like Environmental Groups

FROM finance.yahoo.com 8/22/2005
Beacon Power Profile
24 employees.


(in thousands)
               0-Jun-05    31-Mar-05    31-Dec-04     30-Sep-04
Total Revenue       318           636           60           81  
Cost of Revenue     334           671           949          80  
Gross Profit        (16)          (34)          (34)        (899)

What do I see on the Balance Sheet? Snoreville...but I am curious why BCON is moving up so suddenly.
For the year ending in Dec. 2004
R&D budget = $3,532,000

Operating loss was $9,049,000 and "Total other Income/expenses net" was $3,719,000. 2003 "Total other income/expenses net" was $526,000 and $72,000 in 2002.

This "Total other income" affects their Net Income. Net income is now -$5,330,000 (2004) which is propetionally a large improvement from -$20,839,000 in 2002. In 2002 there were non recurring charges of $6,456,000 and a larger R&D budget.

Interesting note: The company shows no long term debt on it's balance sheet. Also Total Stockholder Equity has decreased from $17.7 million in 2002 to $3.7 the period ending June 30th.

Losses are common with development stage alternative energy companies. They must continue with large R&D budgets.They also must spend money on selling expenses to convince consumers of their product's value compared to traditional energy sources in their market like American Power Conversion Devices (APCC).

2005-08-22T12:13:00.000-07:00

Socially Responsible Investing

Funds

SRI funds, or socially resposible investing funds use screeners to determine which stocks meet a conciouss investors' needs.

SocialFunds.com has an overview and general list.

I also have a few links on the sidebar that help explain why the funds are good for some people and how they work.
Check out GreenMoney Journal for some basics and more links.

I don't want to rehash their screeners, but they find stocks that have a certain level of environmental reporting, or avoid companies that have questionable ethics. Most of these funds have averaged around 7% on before tax returns with some years reaching way into the double digits. For instance the Pax Balanced fund, according to their april 2005 prospectus, had negative numbers for 2001 (-9.09%) and 2002 (-8.86%)......while 2003 saw a 17.27% return and 2004 had 13.39%. In their prospectus, as with any, they note past performance is not a very good predictor of future performance. This has a lot to do with the economy and mindset of consumers, as well as the manager which can have a a good/bad year.

Here is what the Sierra Club has and you can see how the holdings are to your taste:

Sierra Club Fund Facts
Hershey Foods
3.77%
Equifax
2.95%
NVR
2.18%
Alltel
2.11%
Jefferson-Pilot
2.00%
Hewlett-Packard
1.99%
Franklin Resources
1.98%
Oracle
1.97%
Astoria Financial
1.95%
MGM Mirage
1.94%
McGraw Hill
1.86%
Bank of America
1.85%
CIGNA
1.82%
SAFECO
1.76%
Humana
1.76%
UnitedHealth Group
1.75%
Comcast
1.73%
KeyCorp
1.71%
Starbucks
1.70%
McCormick & Co.
1.59%
Kroger
1.56%
Amgen
1.55%
MGIC Investment
1.54%
Fastenal
1.51%
Microsoft
1.47%

2005-08-19T12:30:00.000-07:00

FOOD

...is there a broad market for using organic foods?

I recently saw a movie called The Corporation, a documentary that had a blurb about Monsanto's impact on milk products> It basically reported how their milk production injections affected bacteria and antibiotic levels in the milk and they had to cover up the story. Their genetically modified food products may help feed the world, but some things are not necessary.

I have three local grocery store chains: Lowes's Foods, Harris Teeter, Kroger, and Walmart. Forget about Walmart. Kroger relegates their organic and natural foods section to the vitamins area beside baby food and bread, but Harris Teeter and Lowe's Foods integrate their natural and organic brands into the regular isles. The organic cereals are beside the Kelloggs brands. I know shelf space is important to big distributors, so this is a big move. Harris Teeter and Lowe's organic brands are from mosstly private firms like Cascadian Farms.

Check your local co-op and invest in them.....they'll pay you as co-owner!
Example ...Wilmington NC's Tidal Creek

A basic listing of some public companies that distribute oranic products can be found at the The Organic Pages.

The largest chain natural food stores are Whole Foods Market and Wild Oats Markets. There stocks have been doing well, but there are some big differences between the two as far as financial statistics.

WholeFoods, wfmi, has positive earnings and 30% growth. Their market cap is over 8.5 billion on sales revenue last year of 4.5 billion. AND they have positive free cash flow ( a sign of a well run and profitable company). ANother interesting positive is that their revenue per share of 70 million is above their book value per share of 20 million. Their stock is up nearly 70% from last year to $130. Recent news is about them opening up a store in London.

Wild Oats Markets, oats , stock has been hovering around $12, up from around $8 in May. Key statistics for Wild Oats reveals debt and losses, although revenues were over 1 billion last year. They have planty of cash, but a negative cash flow. Their market cap is around $357 million, much smaller the Whole Foods.

Two other interesting stocks in the organics food mix:
United Natural Foods, unfi, supplies food to these two growing stores and trades around $30.

Raw food supplier Sunopta,stkl , stock has been hovering aroun $6 this summer. Their business is to supply soy products to large manufacturers.

More on Food later, I'm hungry....

2005-08-19T09:02:00.000-07:00

X Investing

Alternative Fuel Stocks like Fuel Cell Energy can be cyclical. It seems the summer is a down spot and November shows higher activity.

2005-08-16T13:03:00.000-07:00

Investing in
X

...By the WAY
Did you hear Danny Way jumped the great wall of China? That's him in the photo....wow

Are there some waves?

Ok...Some public companies involved in X Sports ...

(I am not a financial advisor and accurate stock information should be found on company websites or other sites)

Ski Resort?
Intrawest Corporation This resort operates Snowshoe in West Virginia, Copper Mountain in Colorado, and Whistler in Canada... to name a few. They also operate resorts around the world. Yahoo finance has their current ratios, but as of 8/16/05 they are a 2 billion+ market cap company with a .976 beta. Point is: the low beta and high market cap could suggest this stock would balance a high risk stock in a portfolio. They pay a $.16 dividend, growth is around 22%, and positive free cash flow. Ticker: idr

Transworld represents the leading magazines for x game culture. They have a business site! The business around cruising waves of cement, snow, water, dirt, and ...

Oakleymakes high quality sunglasses and have had a steady stock price for some time. Ticker: oo

Reef sandals are on my feet right now...I love 'em and they are owned by a huge public company near my area in North Carolina ...
VF CorporationTicker: vfc
VF owns Lee, Wrangler, Lily of France, Nautica, JanSport and The North Face, and posted sales of $5.2 billion last year.

Volcom clothing went public: Ticker: vlcm

Billabong Corporate
ticker: bbg in austrailia

K2 action sports makes boards I ride and shoes I wear. The stock is around $12 8/16/05

stock link:
michaelbluejay.com

2005-08-16T08:59:00.000-07:00

Intro:

Who won't need energy or water or food in the future?

Some companies make food, but are ethically questionable (ADM). Some make technology that doesn't sell (CPST). Some really have nothing to do with the earth's ecology but are cool because they make life nice for me (VLCM).

Although energy prices are high, nuclear power is still basically inexpensive... and coal so congressionally supported that wind and solar power companies (ESLR) have a difficult time..... Energy for cars? Hydrogen? I'm all for it, but as for investing.......I'm little wiser now.....Willie Nelson was just in the Wall Street Journal selling his new name brand BioWillie biodesiel....+ positive.

The thought of energy coming from somewhere besides oil sounds good to me. fuel cells?.

) INDEX STOCK Ticker	Industry	Price 12/13/05
ener	Alt Energy	$36.64
fcel	Alt Energy	$8.40
eslr	Alt Energy	$12.05
bp	Energy	$66.88
vfc	Clothes/Xsports	$58.28
zqk	X Sports	$12.49
unfi	Food Distributor	$28.54
gmcr	Coffee	$40.89
wfmi	Grocery	$152.33
oats	Grocery	$11.52
zbra	RFID	$43.88
vclm	X Sports	$33.39
cat	Heavy Machines	$58.97
peix	Alt Energy	$8.95
ida	Power Co	$29.40
bbt	Bank	$43.08
pep	Food	$58.97
tm	Auto	$98.68
xsnx.ob	Alt Energy	$0.56
yhoo	Internet	$41.20

X Investing

Solar Heated Stocks

New Energy

Now Boarding VLCM to the Future

Fuel Cells and Big Oil ( FCEL vs. BP )

Watching Patiently

Growing OATS

Piedmont Biofuel CoOp

Powering Down Or Up?

Good People Finish

Good People Finish

Tesla Electric Car and BIOFUEL Index

BP Volcom Whole Foods drop like bombs

What should be the transportation fuel of the future?

Bio Willie & Earth BioFuels (ebof.ob) b100 deisel

World News

Canadian Oil Sands

Canadian Oil Sands Trust (COS-UN.TO)Suncor Energy (SU)

Big VeraSUN (VSE) & Aventine Summer Fuels IPOs

Summer Cinema

B-day and Graduation

Monster Electro Car

Monster Garage

Happy Earth Day!

Patagonia

GAS: PEIX + Me @ NASDAQ

ME In NY NASDAQ Opening and MOMA

New?

Long Time No Post

MIT a123

Timberline Consumer InfoSocially Reposible by ChoiceOutdoors by Nature

K2 Yeah Gretchen!!!

Back to Boarding

TORINO Boarding!!!!!YYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!

Downer Week means Stocks are on Sale!

SOY Bio Diesel

ENER Solar shingles on HGTV

ENER: Charge!

Value Investing

Going up?

GM's Saturn VUE Hybrid

Whole Foods New Year

Happy New Year

Wind Energy, Suzlon Energy Ltd

MY Holiday List

Alternative Energy

Platinum is Forever

Mr. Warren Buffett

Organic Food: Vindicated

RFID Zebra (ZBRA)

or Where is it?

Social Investing Funds vs Warren Buffet

Will gm use bankruptcy to cut its pension load?...

or...gm is Junk twice

Ida Tech

Analysts and Underwriters

Water

More trash talking

OUTDOORS

WAVES

Taking Out the Trash

Plastic

Green Mountain Coffee and the Global Reporting Initiative

Real Investing

Organic Grocery Stores Fight Back

Katrina

BEER

ECOTOURING

BCON up 17% midday

X Investing

Beacon Power Corp Is going Crazy!

Socially Responsible Investing

Funds

FOOD

X Investing

Investing in X

Intro:

Canadian Oil Sands Trust (COS-UN.TO)
Suncor Energy (SU)

GAS: PEIX

+ Me @ NASDAQ

Timberline Consumer Info
Socially Reposible by Choice
Outdoors by Nature

TORINO Boarding!!!!!

YYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!

Taking Out

the Trash

Beacon Power Corp
Is going Crazy!

Investing in
X