ID Analysts

Our seasoned team of analysts continually monitors investment opportunities around the world, to provide investors with the widest possible array of money-making ideas.

Analyst Articles

We took profits on two trades in the past week, selling the Whitting Petroleum (WLL) June 52.50 call option for 28 percent gain in one week, and the American Express (AXP) July 52.50 call option for a gain of 11 percent in two weeks. We’re still bullish on the energy sector, and this morning we added the Diamond Offshore (DO) June 66 call option. Use a limit order to pay no more than $4.50 per contract to buy if you don’t own it yet. Precious metals are once again getting a strong bid this morning. If gold can manage to close above $1,767 an ounce (less than 1 percent above where it stands as of this writing), it could quickly run to $1,800 or so, if not higher. Silver, too, is close to an important level just above $34 an ounce. If it surmounts that level, it should lead to decent further gains in the near term. The SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) are both rated buys for new clients to profit from those gains. The mining stocks have been playing catch-up in recent months and the strength in the underlying metals should translate into strong gains for the mining shares. We continue to like the prospects for the Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (GDX), as well as NovaGold Resources (NG) and Gabriel Resources (GBU.TO, GBRRF). Each of these is rated a buy. We’re holding two positions to capitalize on a pullback in share prices. The Oracle (ORCL) June 28 put option is a buy up to $1.60. Oracle (ORCL) has struggled in the $29 area and should pullback by several points in the near term. Read More

It’s Valentine’s Day and stocks are flirting with important overhead resistance. The question on everyone’s mind at this point is can share prices head higher still or do they need to consolidate their recent gains first? We think there are valid arguments on both sides of the debate. Read More

We took two losses in the past week, giving up 44 percent on the Nordstrom (JWN) April 49 put after the stock displayed persistent strength, and 56 percent in the Joy Global (JOY) April 95 call option after it pulled in substantially.   We also added three trades in the past week. The latest was this morning’s recommendation to buy the Whitting Petroleum (WLL) June 52.50 call option. It’s a buy up to $5.50 per contract.   We took a somewhat aggressive stance in the financial sector, buying an out-of-the money American Express (AXP) July 52.50 call option. The company recently reported excellent earnings and is likely to see follow-through buying in the next few weeks. The option can be purchased at its current price.   In addition, we added the Oracle (ORCL) June 28 put option, which is also a buy at its current price. We pocketed a nice profit from the stock’s advance a month ago, but at present Oracle (ORCL) appears to be consolidating, offering a chance to play it on the down side.    We’re hanging on to our J.C. Penney (JCP) May 41 put option, although we rate the position a hold. It still looks vulnerable, but the stock has not yet retreated as we had expected. At first blush January’s retail sales, which climbed 0.6 percent (ex autos and gas station store sales), looked pretty good. But given favorable weather comparisons in the heavily populated Northeast between the current period and a year ago, we’re reserving judgment on the sector’s renaissance.   Read More

"The Rukeyser 100" has returned as an online-only quarterly feature! Although it's now called "The Shepherd 100," we still employ the same time-tested methodology to create our listing of top-performing mutual funds. Read More