The Motley Fool's CAPS investing service is a great way for investors to work together to beat the market -- and maybe get famous while they're at it. Among its features, CAPS lets users blog about their picks, investing strategies, market views, the upcoming football season, or whatever floats their boat.
As the CAPS blogosphere continues to grow, players are adding great content on a daily basis. To make it easier to find some of the gems out there, I've dug through the past week's posts to find some of CAPS' best insights. With room for only seven posts, I can't possibly cover all of the great stuff in the CAPS blogosphere, so when you're done here, I highly recommend heading over to CAPS and checking out what some of the other investors have to say.
Good old-fashioned genetically modified growth
The agriculture run-up added words such as "potash" -- and companies such as PotashCorp (NYSE:POT) -- to nearly every investor's vocabulary. But things have taken a bit of a breather lately. Analysts seem to be split over whether this is just a pause in an even bigger, longer move, or whether it's the bursting of a long-inflating bubble. CAPS blogger TMFDeej thinks it's the latter. This member recently highlighted Syngenta (NYSE:SYT) in his blog as a "cheaper alternative to Monsanto (NYSE:MON)" and a way to take advantage of the ag boom. Head to Deej's blog to get his full take.
Bank stocks -- how to recognize a loser
CAPS blogger dexion10 doesn't want you to get caught with a loser of a bank stock. Nor does he want you trying to value a bank stock -- whether it's big ol' Wachovia (NYSE:WB) or little PacWest Bancorp -- based on a price-to-earnings multiple. So he's posted his quick rules of thumb for dealing with bank stocks. Check out his blog post to get the lowdown.
Time to go shopping for gold miners
"Enough is enough," says CAPS member jwfoster; "miners have had a round of abuse but I'll be adding to positions over the next couple weeks." This CAPS All-Star is ready to get serious about some gold producers, but which ones? Barrick Gold and Golden Star Resources (AMEX:GSS) are among his favorites. A visit to his blog will get you his entire list.
Looking for bargains in the retail sector
Consumer confidence is in the doldrums, thanks to the collapse of the housing market and the general economic malaise we've been in. For many retail stocks, this has meant a swift trip to 52-week lows, and CAPS member Imperial1964 thinks these declines could be a good opportunity to scoop up some bargains. Among his favorites are Coach (NYSE:COH) and Lowe's, but be sure to visit his blog to check out his whole list, along with his pitches.
Cal-Maine Foods: great company, terrible stock
Cal-Maine Foods (NASDAQ:CALM), a leader in the business of eggs, has been a major beneficiary of the run-up in food prices. And as the company's numbers have improved, so has the stock. Cal-Maine's stock is currently sitting at more than double its price of just a year ago. CAPS blogger goldminingXpert, though, doesn't think the run is sustainable. Saying "an egg is an egg is an egg," this member argues that it makes no sense to "plunk down $39 a share for stock to get $11.60 of chickens." Think he's right? Think he's wrong? Let him know by heading over to his blog.
The stock market for dummies
Need a hand getting started in the stock market? If so, you're in the same boat as CAPS member dannp. She recently wrote a post on her blog asking for some help getting introduced to Mr. Market and got some great advice from the CAPS community. Check out dannp's blog to see what advice she got or to contribute some knowledge of your own.
Top financial blogs
CAPS blogger Atleus shared a list of his favorite financials blogs, including the always-popular Big Picture (a Barry Ritholtz production) as well as the bare-all Naked Capitalism. Head over to Atleus' blog to see his full list or suggest some of your own favorites.
And that's our roundup for this week. Be sure to check back next week for more great blogging action. In the meantime, why not head over to CAPS and add your two cents to the community pool?
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