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| | Monday, August 25, 2008 | Volume 2, Issue #30 | |  Published weekly, the TopStockAnalysts Digest is loaded with stock picks, trading ideas, market commentary, and educational guidance designed to help you become a better investor. To ensure uninterrupted delivery of this newsletter, please follow these simple instructions.
| | | | Today's Top Stock Picks | |  One of the Market's Best Downside Hedges -- and Most Explosive Profit-Producers
Healthcare analyst Marc Lichtenfeld discusses why the biotechs are going to keep on outperforming.
Read More. . .
 Building the Country's Infrastructure -- and Your Profits
Infrastructure spending chugs along, even in a slow economy -- which is just one the many reasons to like URS now. Read More. . . | | | Sarb-Ox Panic Hands Investors 7 Times Their Money Why would a CEO voluntarily sell valuable assets at bargain basement prices? Why would a CEO do anything to "cause" investors to dump his company's stock ...artificially? Answer: to avoid jail time and huge fines. Fortunately, Horacio Marquez has found a way to use one CEO's fear of Sarb-Ox penalties to increase your money 7 times this year. READ REPORT. | | . | | Market Update | | It was a tale of two halves this past week, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average logging its sharpest two-day decline in months early on, but then rebounding the next several days in a rally that gained steam heading into the weekend. Once again, lingering jitters in the financial sector were the culprit for falling stock prices. Specifically, traders are becoming increasingly alarmed that a government bailout might be needed to keep mortgage giants Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM) and Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) afloat, in which case stockholders might be left holding nothing. Meanwhile, inflation continues to rear its ugly head and is moving beyond merely uncomfortable readings to those that might require some coercive action from the Fed. Earlier this month, we discovered that prices at the consumer level spiked +0.8% in July and are running at their fastest pace in more than 17 years. And now, the Labor Department is reporting that wholesale prices have sprinted +9.8% over the past year
-- levels last seen in 1981 when the Fed was trying to rein in the extreme inflation of the late 1970's. Of course, rising energy costs deserves some of the blame, along with upticks for food and beverages (milk prices rose +5% last month and beef prices jumped +7.4%). However, even after stripping out those categories, core inflation was still up +0.7% for the month, more than triple what economists were forecasting. All of that, along with weak housing start figures, drove the Dow Industrials down more than 300 points by Wednesday. Fortunately, the market recovered just in time to salvage the week thanks to a nice rally on Friday. Talk of a possible Korean buyout of embattled broker Lehman Brothers (NYSE: LEH) gave stocks a boost. And Fed Captain Ben Bernanke calmed some nerves by claiming that a strengthening dollar and falling commodity prices should help ease inflationary pressures later in the year. For the week, the Dow Industrials ended near the unchanged mark and the S&P 500 posted a modest loss of -0.5%.
According to Morningstar, biotech has been one of the best performing industries over the last three months. And TopStockAnalysts Digest is pleased to have Marc Lichtenfeld, Smart Profit Reports Senior Analyst and Healthcare Specialist, on board to give us his insight on this exciting sector.
And although gasoline prices have tumbled more than 30 days in a row, many consumers remain in belt-tightening mode and have pared back some purchases in an attempt to stretch their dollars. However, deep-pocketed agencies of the Federal government have shown no such restraint and are likely to remain profligate spenders. In fact, one new report shows that the U.S. is staring at a massive $1.6 trillion bill to repair roads, bridges and other critical infrastructure. And as Market Advisor editor Paul Tracy explains below, all of this could spell booming business for URS Corp. (NYSE: URS, $45.83).
Good Investing! 
-- Nathan Slaughter
Co-Editor
TopStockAnalysts Digest
| | | They Never Wanted You To Know The Wall Street elite aren't happy with me. Why? Because I just revealed every detail on the "secret" investment strategy they never wanted you to know about.
Even better, I figured out a way to exploit profits to the max. And a discreet circle of investors are set make a series of plays for gains of up to 9,100% over the next 12 months.
This might seem like a bold claim, but in a minute you will discover that it's possible...
To use this simple and proven wealth-building strategy month after month, check this out. | | . | | | One of the Market's Best Downside Hedges -- and Most Explosive Profit-Producers
By Marc Lichtenfeld, Senior Analyst, Xcelerated Profits Report & Smart Profits Report | | | I'm bullish on the biotech sector.
From groundbreaking new drugs and medical treatments -- to a massive amount of repeat business that can dish some handsome profits to investors, no matter what the rest of the market or economy is doing (this is one of the best recession-proof sectors) -- to a big wave of mergers and acquisitions, small-cap biotech and healthcare stocks offer the greatest opportunities in the market, in my opinion.
Rarely do investors have the opportunity to turn a few thousand dollars into tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Heck, you can even make millions, as early investors did on Amgen (Nasdaq: AMGN). If you'd invested $5,000 in Amgen two years after it went public, you'd have had your million dollars 13 1/2 years later, for a compounded annual growth rate of nearly 50%. Even if your time horizon was shorter, you could still have obtained a 300% gain in two years.
These are exactly the kind of profits that I aim for when I go hunting for small-caps. But just how do you find the most profitable opportunities while also lowering risk?
"Show Me The Money"
Read the business section of the newspaper. Log onto some financial websites. Flip on the TV to the business channels.
You'll probably get some decent investment information somewhere along the way. After all, there are countless analysts, economists, and commentators only too happy to tell you which sectors and industries are hot/cold and poised for an upturn/downturn. And that's great. But it's only part the story. It's like going to a football game, but only staying until halftime.
As the saying goes, "Show me the money."
Alas, that's where it gets a bit tougher. Picking the right companies that have the potential to hand you some handsome gains. Sadly, a lot of commentators call it a day without getting to this part.
I'm going to take you a bit further today. I'm going to show you which sector I believe is poised for some big gains over the next few years and show you the specific research methodology I use to pick the best stocks from this sector.
More Biotech Buyouts In The Pipeline
The biotech buyout buzz continues to get louder. Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) is just one of several companies getting busy. It just offered $4.5 billion to buy ImClone Systems (Nasdaq: IMCL) -- its partner firm on cancer drug Erbitux. The reason for the buyout boost is two-fold:
 Many "Big Pharma" firms have very sparse drug pipelines.
The patents on their lucrative drugs are now expiring - and without the exclusivity, they're open to more generic competition.
But buyers are in a strong position at the moment. Healthcare is a traditionally recession-proof sector; folks will always need medical treatment and drugs, regardless of what the economy is doing. And given that the economy enjoyed several strong years of growth, many also boast a hefty cash hoard. That, coupled with the weak dollar, puts them in an advantageous position.
In addition to Bristol-Myers' proposed buyout of ImClone, Swiss giant Roche offered $43.7 billion a few weeks ago to acquire 44% of biotech heavyweight Genentech (NYSE: DNA) -- an offer that Genentech said "substantially undervalues" the firm. But the buyout buzz surrounding the biotech sector at the moment is likely to mean companies paying hefty premiums to acquire the objects of their affection.
With piddly pipelines and expiring exclusivity, Big Pharma is on the prowl. For example, earlier this year, GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) acquired Sirtris Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: SIRT) -- and paid 80% more than Sirtris' closing price. That's a serious premium to pay. But it's not even the highest. In late May, Intercell paid a whopping 126% premium to acquire Iomai (Nasdaq: IOMI). With Big Pharma firms desperate to shore up their sagging pipelines and protect themselves from expiring patents, they're paying up big-time.
With regard to Bristol-Myers, the firm has even indicated that it's shifting its focus from pharma towards the biotech area. I recommended the firm to Xcelerated Profits Report readers on June 20th -- and we're up about +11% so far.
Important Note: Because this article is fairly extensive, we could not include it in its entirety in today's newsletter. You can find the remainder of this article on our web site. Please visit this link to continue reading this article. | | | Capture an 11.8% Yield with this Dominant CPP In a country that has more cell phones than people, this company is the nation's leading cell phone provider (CPP). It enjoyed total returns of +40% last year, and with the country's population growth and increasing demand for data service plans this company still has excellent growth potential. But the best part is that it pays 75% of its annual net income to you every three months -- in cash. Learn More in the Full Report. | | . | | | Building the Country's Infrastructure -- and Your Profits
by Paul Tracy, Editor -- Market Advisor | | | URS Corporation (NYSE: URS, $45.83) performs engineering and construction work both for the private sector and for federal, state, local and foreign governments. In any given quarter, 30-40% of URS' revenues come from the federal government -- projects include constructing various facilities and basic service functions such as equipment maintenance. In addition, URS offers flight services and training for the Department of Defense, along with hazardous and nuclear waste management for the Department of Energy.
| While the government occasionally cuts spending or eliminates major new weapons programs, spending on the type of basic infrastructure and services URS provides is unlikely to be cut back. In fact, there is a growing trend for the military and government agencies to outsource some service and maintenance functions in an effort to cut costs. And there are plenty of costs to be cut -- Department of Defense spending on basic operations and maintenance has soared from $182 billion in 2005 to an estimated $301 billion next year. |  | That trend plays right into the hands of URS. And even if the U.S. economy slows down further, federal spending dollars should keep flowing.
Outside the federal market, URS is a key player in several key infrastructure businesses. The company designs and builds roads, public transport networks, airports, ports and water and wastewater facilities. Much of the basic infrastructure in the U.S. is aging and will need to be replaced in coming years. For example, after the tragic collapse of a key interstate highway bridge in Minnesota last year, the government determined that as many as one-quarter of U.S. bridges are "structurally deficient" and need repair or replacement.
And given high fuel prices, mass transit systems are reporting record passenger volumes. Many local systems are scheduled for expansion and upgrades to handle these rising volumes.
Finally, URS is a key player in the oil, natural gas and electric power markets. The company builds or assists in the building and maintenance of both fossil fuel and nuclear power plants. That includes retrofitting older coal-fired plants to comply with the newest emissions regulations. Strong growth in demand for power globally, and particularly in the developing world, should continue to support growth in this segment.
And in the oil and gas sector, URS builds refineries, liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities, pipelines and even facilities for extracting and processing oil sands. With global energy prices soaring, there is strong demand for URS' energy-related engineering and construction services.
URS trades at 15 times forward earnings while sporting a long-term growth rate of
+15%. Thus, the stock trades in line with its growth rate despite the company's exposure to some of the world's most lucrative markets. Even better, the stock trades at a discount to its major competitors in the engineering and construction space despite its stable growth profile. URS looks like a good value under $50. | | | . | | Additional Investing Ideas | | | | | . | | Investor Trivia -- +127.8% Gains and 9% Yields | | Which country's market index has gained an astonishing +127.8% in the past five years and has an average dividend yield that is more than twice what economic powerhouse China has to offer?
A.) Israel
B.) United States
C.) Australia
D.) India
E.) Morocco (Please click on one the links above. After you make your choice, we'll show you the correct answer on our web site.) | | | . | | Featured Topic -- Warming Relations with China are Heating Up Taiwan's Market | Much has been written about the tremendous long-term potential of Chinese stocks, which are being driven by the sustained economic boom of the world's most populous country. Despite predictions by some that China's economy is seriously threatened by inflation and a crimped supply of some essential raw materials, the country keeps rolling. Its economy expanded at an annual rate of +10.1% in the second quarter -- slightly lower than the average forecast of economists, but still a pace that's akin to the record-breaking sprinters from the Beijing Olympics.
One of the surest beneficiaries of China's growth is the Republic of China, the island nation off the coast of mainland China better known as Taiwan. One of the wealthiest and most developed economies in Asia, Taiwan has a robust technology industry that is a natural complement to China's low cost and efficient industrial base.
The fact that China's economic growth is doing tremendous good for Taiwan is ironic, as the two countries have engaged in a decades-long family feud over sovereignty that remains contentious. But in pragmatic fashion, they're increasingly setting aside their differences to work together economically.
Important Note: Because this article is fairly extensive, we could not include it in its entirety in today's newsletter. You can find the remainder of this article on our web site. Please visit this link to continue reading this article. | | | . | | Free Investing Resources |  | 2008 "Lock of the Year" -- Once a year the founder of Gryphon Financial personally sends out one trade, so powerful it could only be considered -- THE 2008 LOCK OF THE YEAR. Join now to receive the free "Lock of the Year" and The Network Newsletter. Sign up for this free offer. | |  | 52 Wins in 52 Weeks -- 365 Days Without A Loss -- Get our weekend newsletter free and register for Success Trading Group's next stock picks, free for 30 days!
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Good investing in the coming weeks! TopStockAnalysts
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