With all the volatility in the markets today, there's no shortage of market seers attempting to call a bottom. Bernanke called a bottom not once, but twice. Heck, even Keanu Reeves laid out what a world-ending market bottom looks like.

Investors should consider buying stocks after a big decline, when pessimism has unduly beaten good companies down to great prices. That's why we here at the Fool -- and 140,000-plus investors like us -- look to the Motley Fool CAPS community to help sniff out the real opportunities from languishing companies driven by speculation.

A real bottom or another leg down?
Of course, there's no foolproof method for timing a market bottom. But CAPS has a great balance of both quantitative and qualitative resources available on 5,300 stocks, and even a nifty stock screening tool to help investors quickly zero in on potential investment opportunities. Once we've rounded up our candidates, we can use all the information in CAPS to test whether each company has already hit bottom or simply primed shareholders for further pain.

I've used the CAPS screener to look for $100 million-plus companies that have seen their stock price appreciate by at least 15% in the past 13 weeks even while they remain at least 35% below their 52-week high. If you'd like, run this screen yourself -- just keep in mind that results may change as the market does.

Company

CAPS Rating
(Out of 5)

13-Week
Price Change^

% Below
52-Week High

Danaos

*****

20.7%

59.5%

Popular Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

***

77.4%

61.2%

MGM Mirage (NYSE:MGM)

**

16.8%

38.2%

Source: Motley Fool CAPS.
^ Aug. 14 through Nov. 9.

The bottom case
There are several reasons to believe that the worst may be behind MGM Mirage, especially considering its precarious position a year ago. While Melco Crown Entertainment (NASDAQ:MPEL) bets big on its City of Dreams casino in Macau, MGM's long-awaited, $8.5 billion, dream-almost-turned-nightmare CityCenter resort is set to open its first phase next month in Las Vegas. The company expects it to be a strong growth driver and hold a strong position for a long time, since many other Las Vegas projects have been put on hold, like Boyd Gaming's (NYSE:BYD) Echelon resort. MGM doesn't see any new significant supply coming online for at least five to 10 years.

The company forecasts improvement next year in revenue per available room, which has taken a hit from the recession, and reported that it picked up market share in its recent quarter. Its operating results have been improving sequentially in recent quarters as well, and it's negotiated with lenders to amend its credit facility, providing badly needed financial flexibility.

Or dead cat in disguise?
Even though MGM Mirage may look lively and spry, Las Vegas continues to be a tough place to be a casino operator. MGM relies heavily on Vegas, while Macau provides only a piece of its business, compared to larger Macau operations at Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS) and Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ:WYNN).

Similar to the effects being felt at other tourist-driven companies like Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL), MGM's Las Vegas properties were hit hard in the third quarter, and it suffered a massive writedown on its CityCenter property, leading to a large quarterly loss. Many CAPS members remained concerned with the company's large debt level (Fitch Ratings has concerns, too), as the company is still struggling to win over investors in preparation for some major bills coming due.

What's your call?
Overall, 78% of the 1,173 CAPS members rating MGM Mirage are bullish and see it outperforming the broader market. For my part, I've been steering clear of casinos and their stocks lately; the risk/reward ratio is just out of my comfort zone.

But what ultimately counts is your own opinion; CAPS is just there to help you form it. The best part is that the Motley Fool CAPS database is all free, and you can even add your own insight on any of the 5,300 stocks that our 140,000-plus members have covered.