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Microcap & Penny Stocks : Rat dog micro-cap picks--now moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Bucky Katt who wrote (858)	5/17/2004 1:07:49 PM
From: Skywatcher	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1338

according to the LATIMES....no problem...HA! latimes.com Broad Decline in Stocks Seen as Unlikely Investment pros say a strengthening economy will transcend world events, but some advise sticking to quality. By Josh Friedman, Times Staff Writer For three straight weeks the stock market has lost ground as concern over higher interest rates, rising oil prices and Mideast tensions has overshadowed robust corporate profits and growing evidence of a solid economic expansion. The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index, in the black just a few weeks ago, is now down 1.5% on the year. Other market barometers are faring worse. The Dow Jones industrial average, which ended at 10,012.87 on Friday, has dropped 4.2% since Dec. 31. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index has sunk 5% this year. Investors are starting to ask whether the bull market that ran through most of 2003 was a one-year wonder. At a minimum, some strategists warn, stocks could continue to struggle with so much uncertainty in the air. Yet most investment pros say a broad, deep decline is unlikely from current levels. The optimistic view is that a strong economy, an improving labor market and healthy corporate profits will underpin share prices. Still, some experts say that if the rally resumes, it is most likely to be of the selective, "stock-pickers'-market" variety rather than a broad upswing. "Last year was similar to 1999, when a rising tide lifted all boats, and it almost hurt your performance if you paid attention to the fundamentals," said Russ Koesterich, U.S. equity strategist at State Street Global Markets in Boston. His view is that "we're returning to more normal times, where top companies with strong balance sheets will do best." With the economy rebounding, most analysts are no longer wondering whether the Federal Reserve will hike interest rates when it meets next month; the question now is whether the increase will exceed the quarter percentage point that had been widely anticipated. In times of rising rates, investors' natural tendency is to shift toward large, high-quality companies and away from more speculative names, some Wall Street pros say. Koesterich said he was urging clients to position themselves "defensively," favoring big names in sectors like drugs and consumer staples, which are considered relatively stable and largely immune from interest rate pressures. In the consumer-staples group, personal-care products maker Gillette Co. is up 13% this year. Avon Products Inc. is up 25%. John Snider, manager of the TCW Galileo Large Cap Value mutual fund in Los Angeles, is taking the opposite tack: He said though his portfolio was fairly balanced, he and co-manager Tom McKissick had placed bigger wagers on the energy, basic-materials and industrial sectors, where companies could benefit from a continuing economic expansion.