Are These Stocks Bouncing Back?

However hard the market slams a stock, there's always the chance it'll come bouncing right back. We'll consult our Motley Fool CAPS community to find shares on the rebound, examining one specific sector of the economy in search of companies with rising CAPS ratings.          

There are 171 stocks listed under metals & mining in the CAPS' screener, but we've found more than a few that are well respected with four- and five-star ratings. Those accolades mean our 170,000 CAPS members are confident that these stocks will beat the market in the months ahead, but let's see what members are saying about the ones below:

Sources: Motley Fool CAPS, Yahoo! Finance.

The markets may be feeling better about the economy after a few reports have offset the drumbeat of negativism we've seen, and with the S&P 500 up 6% over last year, CAPS metals & mining stocks did significantly better. The average stock is up 24% from the year ago period. Of course, bolstering those returns were performances like those by Silver Wheaton (NYSE: SLW), up 120% year over year, and Titanium Metals (NYSE: TIE), which doubled in the same period.

So let's take a closer look at why investors think that some of these other companies won't be jumping from the frying pan into the fire now that the markets are roiled again.

Some spring in its step
With gold hovering around $1,300 an ounce there seems to be a consensus building that the rush for the precious metal isn't over (which is a good omen for silver which at over $22 an ounce has been tagging along for the ride). A survey by Bloomberg found that 70% of gold traders were looking for higher prices this week and the Federal Reserve is one of the big drivers behind it. With a willingness to feed more money into the system, the dollar has been weakening against the euro and other major currencies making gold easier and cheaper to buy (it's denominated in dollars).

Canadain gold producer Yamana Gold says it will increase production even more at its Latin American mines, wagering that fears of a weak global financial system will keep prices high. That could help it improve its cash flow margin -- the amount of revenues it's turning into free cash flow -- which at 8.5% is respectable, but lags other miners like Newmont Mining (NYSE: NEM) and Kinross Gold (NYSE: KGC).

Almost three-quarters of CAPS members rating the mid-level gold miner expect it to go on to produce market beating results, and by adding Yamana to your My Watchlist page you can have all the Foolish news and analysis about this stock aggregated in one place.

Circuit overload
Those forces are likely to help Hecla Mining as well, as highly rated CAPS All-Star DarthMaul09 says it is benefitting from the commodities rally caused by actions taken by the world's central bankers.

An average miner that has found itself in a metals and commodity rally that will help support its pricing power and profits. Although the stock is near the high end of its trading range, the various central banks appear ready to create a new higher price level for commodities and precious metals, which will not be matched by service related industries or wages. The slight advantage of commodities over the index will likely grow if additional US quantitative easing becomes a reality.

With silver considered "the poor man's gold," Hecla as one of the low-cost miners has an opportunity to widen its lead. And at just 20 times next year's earnings, it offers investors a discount to Silver Wheaton or Silver Standard Resources. Tell us on the Hecla Mining CAPS page if you think there's a nugget of hope for further advances to be made.

Driving a bargain
The engine pushing gold, silver, and other commodities higher has seemingly bypassed aluminum for the most part. Yet the industry still has a pulse, and there are gains being made in the economy that bode well for its future. Durable good orders, excluding transportation, rose 2% last month, twice as much as the market was expecting. But transportation, particularly the airline industry -- a key component for aluminum producers like Alcoa and Kaiser Aluminum -- remains soft. Automobiles look like a better bet however.

Although CAPS member bdescent is looking for economic stabilization to help Alcoa move forward, nearly one in 10 members rating the aluminum giant don't expect market-beating results. CAPS investor jedsbud1 thinks it could be as long as a year before Alcoa breaks through.

The ball's in your court
There are many factors that go into whether a stock is a buy or sell, so it pays to start your own research on these stocks on Motley Fool CAPS. Read a company's financial reports, scrutinize key data and charts, and examine the comments your fellow investors have made all from a stock's CAPS page. Head over to CAPS today and share your thoughts with other investor analysts on whether you think these stocks are ready to bound higher.