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  Tuesday, 8 Jul 2008 | 5:10 PM ET

Finding Wealth In Health

Posted By: Cadie Thompson

Look to health care stocks to find stable earners and diamonds in the rough while the market bottoms, said Connor Browne of Thornburg Value Fund.

Although Browne said his fund believes in a balanced portfolio with consistent earners, Browne said the market's volatility makes it a prime time to stock up on early growth stocks.

Recommendations:

Browne’s stable health-care play is Gilead Sciences, a drug company that provides antivirals for HIV/AIDS patients.

For a more risky move, Browne recommends buying stock in the health club industry, specifically Life Time Fitness.

»Read more
  Tuesday, 8 Jul 2008 | 4:37 PM ET

Health Care Picks: Big Winners

Posted By:

Health care stocks can earn investors big bucks, so long as they know which ones to pick, said William Muggia, portfolio manager at Touchstone Mid Cap Growth Fund.

"Health care is a very diverse group, so there's big winners and big losers," he said.

His fund's two largest holdings are Celgene and Elan, whose multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri is "annualizing at $800 million" after being relaunched only two years ago.

But the company's biggest potential lies in its Alzheimer's treatments, Muggia said. Elan recently presented phase-two data on the disease, which will "potentially be the first disease-modifying agent ever in Alzheimer's," he said. The company will present the full data set on the drug July 29.

Muggia placed Elan's market cap at $16 billion.

Disclosure

Disclosure information was not immediately available for Muggia or his fund.

Disclaimer

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  Tuesday, 8 Jul 2008 | 4:25 PM ET

Gartman: Where Steel is Going

Posted By:

Dennis Gartman, founder of The Gartman Letter explained the reasons behind U.S. Steel’s recent slump.

1. The auto companies are not taking any of the increased prices.

2. China is coming off their Olympic build-up.

3. There is an overall global slowdown in steel demand.

“All of those things were priced into the steel prices. It’s just a normal ebb and flow of the economy.”

»Read more
  Tuesday, 8 Jul 2008 | 2:55 PM ET

Get Y's: Stock Picks for Gen Y

Posted By: Andrew Fisher

Technology and textiles offer some unique opportunities for investors under 30 -- the demographic known as "Generation Y" -- according to Romeo Dator of U.S. Global Investors.

The co-manager of the All American Equity Fund gave CNBC some likely picks for the laid-back, tech-savvy set: Buy what they know.

"I think (they) should look at this as an opportunity to buy after a sell-off, because I think (they) have a very long time horizon," he said of the current market environment. "We're starting to see very attractive valuations."

Recommendations:

Topping his list is Apple.

"You have a group of people with Generation Y who have grown up using Apple products -- the iPod, the Macintosh computer or the iPhone -- and I think they'll be fairly loyal to Apple; I think they'll continue to introduce very good products that they want to use," he explained.

Near-term, Dator notes that the newest-generation iPhone is to be introduced on Friday.

He also likes videogame retailer GameStop, despite the availability of online games for downloading.

"You're not going to be downloading games, because they're just so big, and we don't have the bandwidth to do a lot of that downloading, so I think videogame sales will still be fairly strong until we get that bandwidth built out, which I don't think will happen in the next five years," he said.

His third pick is premium jeans merchant True Religion.

"Fashion is also very important to the Generation Y crowd, and I think that's the best pure denim play," he said. "Denim is still selling well at Bergdorf, Saks, and Nordstrom."

»Read more
  Tuesday, 8 Jul 2008 | 12:25 PM ET

Two Monster Stock Bargains

Posted By: Andrew Fisher

Now is the perfect time to be thinking past the bear market, according to David Katz, the chief investment officer of Matrix Asset Advisors.

Katz told CNBC about two stocks he feels are correctly positioned for investors to thrive on.

Recommendations:

"It's the exact worst time to be owning the company," he said of Monster Worldwide . "Cyclically, we're in a recession right now; we're in a jobs recession. [But] the stock is at a fire-sale price, so you're getting a great Internet business with wonderful global prospects...you've got to buy this company when it's down."

He's also enthusiastic about Walgreen.

"Walgreen is a best-in-class drugstore chain," he said. "[It's] not fun to own retailers right now, but you're really going to get paid for it if you have a 12- to 18-month time frame."

Disclosures:

Katz, his family, and his firm own shares of Monster Worldwide and Walgreen.

Disclaimer

»Read more
  Tuesday, 8 Jul 2008 | 12:21 PM ET

Vice Fund Manager Goes with Value

Posted By: Andrew Fisher

To beat back the bears, Charles Norton goes with value.

The co-portfolio manager of the Vice Fund has found a couple of opportunities for investors among well-known but out-of-favor companies.

Recommendations:

His first pick is Philip Morris International.

"Demand for cigarettes is global, and it's not economically sensitive," he told CNBC. "Philip Morris International (is) benefiting from a strong international operating environment; they have broad geographic diversification, with no U.S. exposure; they have a best-of-class management team."

Norton points to the company's stock-buyback program, totaling $13 billion over the next couple of years.

Among tobacco companies, Lorillard is also on his list.

On a different tack, he also likes Boeing, which has plunged more than 25 percent in the last seven weeks.

"With high fuel costs, investors have basically hit the panic button on anything related to aerospace," he said. "Boeing is trading as if 30 percent of its backlog is going to get canceled, and I think that's just too bearish...the worst-case scenario is already priced into the stock."

Disclosures:

Disclosure information for Charles Norton was not immediately available.

Disclaimer

»Read more
  Tuesday, 8 Jul 2008 | 12:13 PM ET

5-Star Manager's Bear Picks

Posted By: Andrew Fisher

Speciality insurance, global enterprise software, and dry bulk shipping offer some promising opportunities for investors, according to Jonathan Vyorst, senior vice president and portfolio manager of the five-star Paradigm Value Fund.

The fund is up an average of 17.78 percent per year over the last five years.

"We are in a bear market, so you have to invest cautiously, and be prepared for more downturns," Vyorst warned. "These are great picks over a long period, though."

Recommendations:

Vyorst's first pick is American Financial Group.

"It's a great business," he said. "They have specialty markets that are less competitive, and it's as cheap as any stock that you'd want to have."

He also likes software producer Sybase.

"Sybase sells for 12 times free cash flow; it's a cash cow; they just did a Dutch tender offer, bought back ten percent of their shares," he explained. "Whether the market's good or bad, these guys are going to be generating a certain amount of annuity-like cash flow each year."

Also on his list is Horizon Lines, an American shipping company.

"The key to Horizon Lines is that it's a 'Jones Act shipper.'" he said. "The Jones Act limits certain lanes in the United States to American companies...so it's an oligopoly."

Vyorst warns that Horizon is being investigated by the Department of Justice for alleged price-fixing.

»Read more
  Tuesday, 8 Jul 2008 | 11:37 AM ET

Video: Boone Pickens Answers CNBC Viewer Questions

Posted By: CNBC.com

Legendary oilman Boone Pickens joined CNBC Tuesday to share his energy-market insights.

»Read more
  Tuesday, 8 Jul 2008 | 8:19 AM ET

Top Global Agriculture Picks

Posted By: CNBC.com

In a time of rising food prices, investors should have agricultural stocks in their portfolios, Victor Badin, fund manager at Global Cap, said.

And China Farm Equipment, Bunge and Myriya Agro Holdings are among the most attractive of the bunch, Badin said.

China Farm Equipment, which produces, designs and manufactures harvesters, diesel engines and ploughs, is based in the biggest grain production region of the country.

"Farms in China need to modernize, need to mechanize … and the government is pushing in a big way for more investments in farming," Badin said on "Worldwide Exchange."

»Read more
  Monday, 7 Jul 2008 | 4:37 PM ET

Financial Stocks: Skip All But Two

Posted By: CNBC.com

David Lutz, managing director at Stifel Nicolaus, offered CNBC advice for investing in financials.

Pans:

He dealt with Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Marshall & Ilsley, Wells Fargo, Bank of America and Wachovia . His verdict: they're all to be avoided.

Recommendations:

BUT he did approve of two financial stocks:

  • Watch the interview (video: 2 mins, 19 secs) to learn which two!

Disclosures:

Disclosure information was not immediately available for Lutz or his firm.

Disclaimer

»Read more

About The Stock Blog

The CNBC Stock Blog is a cross-section of expert opinions and insights from our TV and Web site coverage. This blog includes posts written by and about top analysts and strategists, super-investors and CNBC's own market mavens. You'll find stock picks, news about publicly-traded companies, commodities, hot sectors, ETFs and the latest options action.