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Published since 1990
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"
Stocks in the Spotlight"

September 23, 2010
 
PAST "SPOTLIGHT" STOCKS WE DO NOT WANT TO OWN
 
Some times even yours truly makes a wrong choice. Sorry, and I know you find that hard to believe, but it's true. Even I mess up.
 
The two stocks you will find on this page are companies I have changed my mind on because of new findings or getting tired of waiting.
 
If you own any of these stocks you don't want to.
 
In-my-opinion - The best bet is to be somewhere else!
 

 
Stock Alert
"SELL"
BRAND NEUE CORPORATION
A "Killer Shark" hiding in a Dolphin's body

Brand Neue Corp. (OTCBB: BRNZ) (52 week range 0.12 - 1.71),  now at 0.43 X 0.54. Brand Neue was a recent "Spotlight" stock and it moved from our buy at 0.70 to $1.10 before turning back down. Although that was a 50% move, the stock fell like a brick.

The Reason:

When I first introduced BRNZ the president was a seasoned ex-employee of Wal-Mart, where he had worked in marketing for 30 years. Recently, this important addition to the management team jumped ship. So long! Adios! Good Bye!

You might say he left (we will never know the real reason) before the ship sank. Grabbed his Nike's, put them on and split. Didn't let the door hit him in the back on the way out. 

After taking a much closer look, we find a company that owns nothing, has nothing, sells nothing, has zero revenues and none on the way. Of course, if they finally sell something, something they have not been able to do in a year, the company could become a good bet.

You Can't Judge A Book By Its Cover

The above saying could have been written with this company in mind. Nice looking cover but when we start reading it we discover it's not a very good story. 

The LED lighting business will be big, but there are big players in it already, such as GE and Sylvania.  The problem with Brand Neue is the company would have to get a giant order, or several giant orders, to warrant a stock price over a dime, making the current 0.60 level very risky, and the dime worth would only be because of a giant order.

We can bet on slim chances for this to happen, but you never know. Heck! Mr. Ed was a horse that could talk so I guess anything can happen.

Idiscovered by the recent "quick" move up that the stock was being "Spiked". Another word for spike is "pump & dump.    The art of a strong promotion designed to last a short period of time so "those in the know" can sell into the higher price. Once done, no more promotion and down comes baby, cradle and all. Don't get me wrong, I totally believe in promoting a company long term but this does not appear to be what is happening.

  • If we don't own it already, we don't want to;
  • If we already own it at a profit, grab those Nike's and run fast to the sell desk;
  • If we own the stock too high, wait for the next spike, if not too long from now, and get on those Nike's ;
  • If we are the higher risk player and want to catch the spike, good luck, because it will be hard to pick the low price to get in, since the stock is already so far over priced.

The recent news might be looked at as "hogwash". One announcement talks about leasing light bulbs. I chuckled on this one. Also, no one is leasing any bulbs yet, or maybe they are. I haven't noticed any news telling us this.

A announcement that gives a company 6 months to decide if it wants to buy the company's spray can, but after 6 months, it's gone and the company doesn't have to buy anything. Great deal, for the other guy.

There was an announcement about having its first distributor, Hawaii, with orders to be shipped in 30 days, or by September 16, 2010. OOPS! That was last week. Soon I hope, but it better be a big one.

Another announcement in the last week talks about a new partnership in lighting, but again, no orders.

The company is either losing products, or giving them up, in an attempt to concentrate on the bulb business. Sort of a better idea (picture a small light bulb)! OOPS! Ford will hate me for this.

On August 27, 2010 , Mr. John J. Ryan III resigned as the President of Brand Neue Corp. This is the guy with 30 years at Wal-Mart. I guess he is not much of a believer in Brand Neue's future. This is one of my main reasons to tell investors that avoiding this stock is best and of course with no sales to add, is another good reason to break away from this company.

Sure , I could be wrong, since there is always a possibility a company can finally climb out of the gutter, but so far I have not seen any signs this one will do so any time soon.

The constant dilution from the company selling stock is hurting current shareholders, but this is the only way the management team can get paid, since there are no orders to bring in money.

When I first looked at this company it looked good, but after I opened the book and started reading the pages I found the best part of this story was the cover .

Right after I wrote about the company it started a round of press releases that had no sales in any one of their products, plus the President jumped ship.

I am guessing there might be another "pump & dump" in the not too distant future, which could bring the stock back up a bit, but nowhere near the previous high. The next time down will probably see the 0.30 area. Each pump & dump usually climbs less than the previous one, has less volume and falls further each time the dump is completed.

Keep in mind that this could be the greatest investment anywhere, its just that I don't believe so and this is my opinion. I am sorry I got caught in this one, but it just goes to show, the early bird sometimes bites into the wrong worm. I truly believe, as investors, you should be somewhere else.

Trading near the $0.60 level. Any quick move higher will offer an opportunity to get out.

Sell here, or into any attempt to move higher!


 
Stock Alert
"SELL"
MINERAL HILL INDUSTRIES
 
!!!MOVING NOW!!!

Mineral Hill Industries Ltd. (MHI.V) (52 week range 0.03 - 0.17), now at ¢ 0.05. Mineral Hill Industries Ltd. is in the business of finding & mining Lithium. Lithium is one of the fastest growing of the rare minerals, but so far MHI has been a total let down.
 
Other than the normal land plays (acquiring extra land to do nothing with - until the company has the money to do something with), Mineral Hill Industries has nothing going on that will bring any bucks in the door anytime soon.
 
Once the stock hit the 0.03 level the game was over. No news and nothing that looks to be strong enough to make a difference is on the horizon that I am aware of. 
 
The company is stuck at raising money while the stock price is down and all this does is dilute the current shareholders more and bury them deeper.
 
What to do? That is exactly what the question should be. The stock is screaming today (Thursday) with no news. I am guessing a "pump & dump" is in progress and if we own any shares, we want to be out of them when this dumping is complete.
 
Poor management for allowing the stock to fall so far and no money and no revenue makes Mineral Hill Industries a very risky investment. Sell into this ongoing (I hope) rally. If we are lucky, we might have early on the coming week to get out.
 
Again, I could be wrong, after-all I was wrong in choosing this company in the first place so why break the habit? In-my-opinion, I don't see any reason to own any shares in this company. There are many better places to be.
 
Best bet is to be somewhere else!
 

Remember, if in the right stock, at the right price,
the market direction will mean little!

I am J.R. Budke and this is my opinion!

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J.R. Budke became a stock broker in 1981, an options principle in 1982 and a branch office manager in 1987. He is currently inactive as a stockbroker as of 12/31/99. J.R. writes the articles and opinions for the Stocks in the Spotlight. The stories and stocks found on this site, or any "Stocks in the Spotlight" written material, are the opinions of J.R. Budke unless other wise stated, and should not be considered as advice. You should not purchase any stocks solely on the opinions found on the "Stocks in the Spotlight's" web site or in any of its written material. You should also be aware that options are not for everybody and carry a high degree of risk.

The "Stocks in the Spotlight" provides information only, this is not meant to be a recommendation to buy or sell the profiled security, nor is this an offer to buy or sell the security.
The publishers of "Stocks in the Spotlight" are not investment advisors and are not acting in any way to influence the purchase or sale of the security. Before purchasing or selling any security profiled, it is encouraged and recommended that you consult a stockbroker or other registered financial advisor. The reader must understand that the companies we select may involve a high degree of investment risk. Potential investors must understand that they may lose all or a portion of their investment due to the risk involved.

The recommendations and updates in this "Current Up-Date" may include "forward- looking" statements as that term is defined in the Private Security Reform Act of 1995, & therefore are subject to various risks & uncertainties. There can be no assurance that actual results, business conditions, business developments, losses & contingencies, and local & foreign factors will not differ materially from those suggested in the "forward-looking" statements as a result of various factors, including market conditions, competition, advances in technology, acquisitions, potential litigation, personnel changes, capital availability, and all sorts of other factors.