If you keep up with the news at The Net Fool, you have probably heard me hinting at a new blog that I have had under wraps for about one month. This project has really been time consuming, and now that it is completed… it is going to unlock a LOT of time to doing what I do best on theNetFool.com.

Announcing the release of Bullish Bankers!

Bullish Bankers is a stock market collaboration owned by yours truly and operated with a bunch of my close friends from Penn State University. Most of these guys are also acting mutual fund managers with the Nittany Lion Fund, LLC. and really know there stuff about the stock market. We are essentially planning to be the next SeekingAlpha, TheStreet.com or TimothySykes in providing 100% free stock market analysis, opinion and research to the masses every day. Let’s have a look, shall we?

Why Bullish Bankers?
Okay so first things first, this website is basically a combination of two blogs. One that I had started, and one that my friend Santosh Sankar had planned. Since I already had the know-how to do this, we decided to collaborate and basically form one big stock market community. I am really interested in the stock market, but as you can see I am gradually shifting focus away from the markets here at theNetFool.com. Why? It simply doesn’t fit the best interests of my audience.

Now, I am going to keep with my spin on things here, informing you guys what is happening and probably still making the occasional stock market related article, but I feel that the bulk of information here is desired to be blogging tips, affiliate marketing, online entrepreneurship and making money in general… so that’s what I’m going to give you! Bullish Bankers is going to be a very large resource in my best estimates, as we already have a decent stock hold of posts. Eventually, we’ll probably be putting out 10-15 articles every single day with the sheer number of authors!

Bullish Bankers Features and Design
By now you are probably saying to yourself, wow… that is one good looking website. This one definitely took a lot of effort (like The Net Fool did), and I really wanted to make sure that everything looked as professional as possible. By the graciousness of Brian Gardener, we got a copy of his popular Revolution News theme absolutely free… which I extensively modified into what you see today. It took a LOT of editing, but it turned out great, and Brian’s theme is an awesome foundation to start from. It is fully based on the WordPress system, and even has a forum running phpBB that will go online shortly for an added level of user interaction.

Okay, so I have the website essentially divided into Equities (that’s all the stocks like Apple, Bank of America and Caterpillar that you know and love), Commodities (like crude oil, corn and gold), Market News (headlines from the economic world) and Economy (U.S. politics). Under equities, which is definitely our focus, we have it broken down neatly into each sector of the S&P 500 Index. This means that you can sort information by just Information Technology or Industrials stocks if you choose! If you are new to investing, we are throwing around investment ideas all the time here… so it would be worth your while to subscribe to our feed and get your free information.

Want To Help Spread The Word and Get A Free Text Link?
I’m looking to expand Bullish Bankers as far as I can from the get go. Knowing that a lot of you own blogs, I would be absolutely floored if you were to write up a post or review about BullishBankers.com. We are currently targeting the phrases “investing ideas,” “stock market trends,” “stock market analysis” and “stock market outlook” so if you write up a post (or blurb in another post) that is 350+ words and use one of those anchor terms to link back to http://www.bullishbankers.com, you’ll score yourself a free month long text link advertisement right here at The Net Fool. Please be sure you have at least 50 subscribers to do this!

Bottom Line: I’m really excited about the prospects behind Bullish Bankers, and I hope your are too. If you are at all interested in the stock market, I really want to encourage you to subscribe to our feed. I’m going to be running some more promotions soon to encourage you all to link to the new blog… but if you act now and offer up a post, you’ll get a free text link and some favorable feedback from me. We all like to network, so if you want to be on my good side, here’s a great way to do it! Let me know what you think of the new blog! I’d love to hear some feedback (positive or negative).

Stay Bullish (Bankers) On The Net!
-The Net Fool

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After a week of renewed hope that the U.S. dollar was going to rebound and oil would perhaps fall back down to $100/barrel levels, the market showed signs of decay this week and things look grim on the surface of things.

I was able to shrug off the positive sentiment from last week, where many investors were telling us that oil was done, which I felt was an over-reaction to one good week of trading. By keeping my favorite gold stock Yamana Gold (NYSE: AUY) my largest holding, I wasn’t hurt too badly this week when the commodity race came back with a vengeance, up $10 a barrel on Friday.

But the million dollar question remains: “can you actually make money in a lousy stock market?” Absolutely not. Yes, you just need to know where to look! Gone are the days when you could brag and look like a genius simply because you bought a small or mid cap stock then went up more than the benchmark… despite the fact that everything was headed up anyway. It’s time to get smart on stocks.

“Unless you were long oil futures, there was nothing pretty about Friday’s session, which was governed by a relatively disappointing employment report for May and a stunning rise in oil prices.” - Briefing.com June 6, 2008

The Net Fool’s Sector Run-Down:
In the 2008 stock market, it’s not which stock you pick, it’s where the stock is from. As the saying goes, you don’t want to best looking house in a bad neighborhood, you’d be much better off holding a half-rate home in a good neighborhood. Buying the best stocks in the best sectors is how you win nowadays, so you definitely want to focus on sector more than stock for the time being. While the common saying is 50% stock / 50% sector… I think that the current conditions merit 75% sector / 25% stock. Getting a well-run company is very important, but if they are getting hit with rising input costs or slow demand… there’s just not a lot they can do.

TNF Ratings (June 06, 2008):
Consumer Discretionary: Neutral
Consumer Staples: Buy
Energy: Strong Buy
Financials: Sell
Healthcare: Buy
Industrials: Buy
Information Technology: Strong Buy
Materials: Buy
Telecommunications: Neutral
Utilities: Neutral

There are gains to be had in everything except financials, a sector that I think will find trouble recovering over the next few months, despite all the ongoing headwinds that have many people smelling a bottom. Energy, namely those stocks specializing in natural gas and oil, has been soaring. I see this group continuing to work all the way to oil @ $150/barrel, where I would re-value. IT stocks were the best gainers last month, and I can see these growth prospects continuing to soar over the summer.

Hot Sub-Industries You Can Count On
While sectors may be a bubble term, you can find great growth out of companies in the same sub-industry. I have a few favorites picked out that I think will continue to fare well for the time being

Oil & Gas Drilling: Favorable industry conditions with increased capital spending overseas has the oil and gas drillers reeling from the recent run-up in the price of crude oil and natural gas. Consider Noble (NYSE: NE) and Chesapeake (NYSE: CHK)… two of my personal favorites.

Fertilizers and Ag. Chemicals: Definitely a long-term bullish prospect. The global food crisis in combination with higher demand for quality meat has these chemical and fertilizer companies pumping out seed on all cylinders. Check two of my favorites Potash (NYSE: POT) and Monsanto (NYSE: MON).

Hypermarkets & Super-Centers: This group comprises of popular recessionary winners in lower-end, bulk shopping destinations such as Walmart (NYSE: WMT) and BJ’s Wholesale (NYSE: BJ). I see sales growth continuing to be supported by a down economy, and competitive pricing initiatives present real opportunity.

Construction & Engineering: Don’t let the title scare you, the housing crisis really hasn’t been much of a turn off in 2008 for these construction companies. There is often a tie in with hot oil & gas and infrastructure markets, so this industry is ripe for the picking. Consider Jacob’s Engineering (NYSE: JEC) or Fluor (NYSE: FLR) for your portfolio.

Coal & Consumable Fuels: Coal is messy. Not doubt about it. But even with this in mind, it will probably be the cheapest and most efficient energy solution for a while… so I like to hold high-flying stars like Arch Coal (NYSE: ACI) and Peabody Energy (NYSE: BTU) for a balanced portfolio with international exposure.

Opportunities exist in today’s market. I feel that the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s 400 point down day on Friday has presented a fantastic buying opportunity for those interested in going long on some stocks. Don’t buy on Monday. My feeling is that the market will fall on Monday too, and start to recover only toward the end of the week. I recommend buying mid-week or whenever you see a rebound. But heck, even if you happen to miss it, if you nailed the sector down, you will probably have yourself a winner in the long run.

-The Net Fool

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The investing environment for oil & gas producers remains bullish in 2008, as record oil prices headline the news almost daily… and analysts see a lot more coming. Since Goldman Sachs predicted a two-year move to $200 in the commodity, people have had renewed confidence in buying up companies that deal with oil, and its cleaner alternative, natural gas.

There have been many doubters out there that you need to be made aware of. With the most recent dramatic upward spiking in commodities, many investors claim that prices are artificially inflated. While this may hold true, it does not mean they won’t continue to inflate artificially… making you money along the way. Despite the fact that all of these companies look expensive as heck, I think that the trend up will continue… and it’s always better to get in on the action than be sitting on the sideline, sucking your thumb.

The Net Fool’s Stock Performance
Back in January, I advised buying four energy superstars, all of which would have made you double-digit profits by now. Transocean (NYSE: RIG) is up 15.20% since my call back at $140.10, and I am still bullish on their solid oil drilling capabilities after their fantastic first quarter results on May 07, I’m maintaining a “buy” on the stock. If you bought into Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB), you’d be sitting on a nice 10.42% profit from my original pitch at $96.57. Schlumberger is the largest oil-services company in the world, so if you like the security of a large company… you’ll love SLB, who still has a lot of upside. My best recommendation in the sector was with Halliburton (NYSE: HAL) which would have given you a 31.70% return since my buy at $37.26. I think it might be time to take profits off the table on Halliburton, moving into another energy stock. The upside is still there, but I think your money would be better off elsewhere. Finally, XTO Energy (NYSE: XTO) has absolutely torn it up since my pitch at $53.88, rising for a 25.95% profit. XTO is an oil & gas exploration company that I maintain a “buy” rating on, still very bullish with plenty of room to move.

Where To Go Now
The energy sector as a whole has been rising off the charts over the past few months. But I don’t want you in the companies that are the staple crop of energy, your Exxon Mobiles and your Chevrons… go to source! I’m talking about the guys that are drilling the oil and natural gas directly, spinning them off for profits. Now you’ve heard from the drillers… I want you in those hybrid oil/gas companies like XTO Energy to capitalize on both markets and diversify risk. Personally, I’m much more bullish on natural gas than oil. I feel that the gas is much more valuable as an energy source but has been largely undiscovered compared to oil by the media, and hasn’t seen the same value appreciation that it deserves. So here are some cream of the crop hybrids with a favorable slant toward natural gas!

Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK):
Chesapeake is the number one independent producer of natural gas, but still has a lot of hedged risk to thwart the volatility factor. It’s the number one driller with 254 rigs and has beaten the market over and over again with its superior hedging strategies. You can bank on the fact that they grew production by a bigger percentage than any other large-cap competitor. Lot’s of worry over the share price is cast toward Chesapeake, but they have performed past expectations time and time again, so you can sleep soundly with the fact that they have issued stronger guidance than any competitor in my opinion. There are some huge reserves that CHK has actively pursued, and I think the best is yet to come.

Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: APC):
Well, they crushed earnings consensus of $1.22/share with $1.55/share… can’t say you couldn’t expect such stellar news from a great company that has been growing faster than the industry for a while now. This trade isn’t done yet, and after an upgrade by Lehman Brothers on May 16th, it’s clear that investors still see the upside. Following earnings, it feels like sunny skies all year long for Anadarko… a company trading at just 15.5 times earnings compared to an industry ratio of 23. APC has proven to investors that it can be the best in a high-growth industry… and I’m still buying.

Helix Energy Solutions Group (NYSE: HLX):
Helix does a lot of oil & gas production in the Gulf of Mexico, and I believe they fly largely under the radar in the energy sector because of their low market cap. Their new Danny-Noonan fields should really benefit earnings for 2009, and could even be a catalyst in 2008. But more importantly than new exploration activity, Helix has taken a hit that I feel is undeserved, essentially because of how their petroleum services unit is tied to their exploration unit. Because of this, Helix has one of the more attractive valuations in the sector. While they may not have the profit margins to beat out competition, HLX is a silent assasin with a low P/E of 11 and a chip on their shoulder.

Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA):
High operating costs and expenses were largely offset by earnings from high oil and gas prices as well as increased volume production over the first quarter. Apache has one of the best managed companies in the business, and I see them outperforming the industry in the long run… despite the fact that there are bordering target prices. Apache has benefited as well as anyone else from five major discoveries, and I feel that APA can fully explot their North American reserves to profit in a beaten-down market in 2008.

Average growth rates for natural gas drillers is 15%, so it’s really quite hard to find a loser in this environment. I see the following companies outperforming the industry in 2008: Chesapeake (CHK), XTO Energy (XTO), Anadarko (APC), Helix (HLX), Transocean (RIG), Schlumberger (SLB). I am rating these energy stocks as market-perform based on valuation: Apache (APA), Halliburton (HAL), Noble (NE), Devon Energy (DVN), Southwestern Energy (SWN).

One thing is for sure, the oil and gas explorers are outperforming nearly every corner of the market. These stocks are poised to outperform in 2008. My investment strategy would be to wait for a $5-$10 pullback in the price of oil before pulling the trigger on one of these companies, primarily because I do feel that the run-up was a bit too quick.

-The Net Fool

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