AMC Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: AMCX) Started as Sell at Stifel Nicolaus.
Ashford Hospitality Trust Inc. (NYSE: AHT) Started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Bunge Limited (NYSE: BG) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
Citi Trends, Inc. (NASDAQ: CTRN) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.
DENTSPLY International (NASDAQ: XRAY) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Eastman Kodak Co. (NYSE: EK) Reiterated Hold at Argus.
Equity One Inc. (NYSE: EQY) Raised to Hold at Citigroup.
F5 Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ: FFIV) Started as Hold at Jefferies.
Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. (NYSE: IVN) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Maidenform Brands, Inc. (NYSE: MFB) named Value stock of the day at Zacks.
Precision Drilling Corporation (NYSE: PDS) Started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Riverbed Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: RVBD) Started as Underperform at Jefferies.
Ryanair Holdings plc (NASDAQ: RYAAY) Cut to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.
Sanderson Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAFM) Added to Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.
Tudou Holdings Limited (NASDAQ: TUDO) Started as Buy at Deutsche Bank.

With gold and silver bouncing after what looked like a bursting bubble, here is a list of the top-rated precious metals funds expected to win in uncertain times from Zacks.

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JON C. OGG

Aker owns and operates two ultra-deepwater platforms in the North Sea and has two more on order. The new rigs will cost $900 million. Aker’s contract backlog totals just over $1 billion, and Transocean claims that the acquisition will be “immediately accretive” to earnings.

Some consolidation has already hit the drilling business, with National Oilwell Varco, Inc.’s (NYSE: NOV) recent acquisition of a privately held floating production storage and offloading firm. Other large drillers like Seadrill Ltd. (NYSE: SDRL) and Diamond Offshore Drilling, Inc. (NYSE: DO) may also be on the lookout for expansion. Possible targets include Precision Drilling Corp. (NYSE: PDS), with a market cap of around $4 billion is half the size of Diamond and about a third the size of Precision. Cal-Dive International Inc. (NYSE: DVR) with a market cap of about $292 billion could be an even more appealing target.

Other possible targets include Hercules Offshore, Inc. (NASDAQ: HERO) with a market cap of about $540 million, Vantage Drilling Co. (AMEX: VTG) with a market cap of about $420 million, Parker Drilling Co. (NYSE: PKD) with a market cap of about $700 million, and Pioneer Drilling Co. (NYSE: PDC) with a market cap of $720 million.

Precision Drilling’s trailing P/E ratio has fallen from around 58 in April to around 27 today. It’s forward P/E is down from 13.57 to 10.92 since we put the company on our list of energy value stocks.  The company operates onshore in North America and internationally, so it was largely unaffected by the moratorium in the Gulf of Mexico. Precision’s shares are up nearly 3.5% after about an hour of trading, to $14.69, in a 52-week range of $6.02-$18.18.

Cal Dive cannot put up a positive trailing P/E, and it’s forward P/E is just 7.74. It’s price/book ratio is 0.77. The company was hit by the Gulf drilling moratorium, and its business — putting real people deep underwater — is not filled with competitors. Unfortunately, many of the newest offshore fields are too deep for the company’s divers. Still, this could be a growing business offshore of Africa. Cal Dive’s shares are up more than 4.5%, to $3.13, in a 52-week range of $2.97-$8.19.

Hercules Offshore has even more troubles, with no trailing P/E and no positive forward P/E either. The price/book ratio is a mere 0.54. Revenue rose in the most recent quarter, and the company said dayrates were rising as demand increased in the US Gulf of Mexico. Hercules shares are up more than 7.5%, to $3.99, in a 52-week range of $2.05-$6.99.

Vantage Drilling’s numbers look about equal to Hercules’s. No positive P/E either trailing or forward, and a price/book ratio of 0.57. The company’s problem is long-term debt, which last quarter cost Vantage more than $25 million. Vantage shares are up more than 5.75%, to $1.47, in a 52-week range of $0.97-$2.26.

Parker Drilling’s trailing P/E is a nosebleed-level 143.84, and its forward P/E is 9.10. The stock’s price/book ration is 1.10. The company beat analysts’ expectation for earnings in the second quarter and is expected to earn $0.12/share in the current quarter, compared with just $0.01 last year. Parker’s drilling activities are either onshore or in shallow offshore waters. Parker shares are up more than 6%, to $6.11, in a 52-week range of $3.58-$7.45.

Pioneer Drilling is another onshore driller with a non-existent trailing P/E, but a forward P/E of 15.32. The price/book ratio is 1.74. Pioneer’s shares are up nearly 4%, to $13.34, in a 52-week range of $5.23-$18.00.

Paul Ausick

Just this week we featured Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM) as being a solid value stock pick based upon peers set to benefit from this year;s driving trends, but the focus today is on an expansive list of energy companies.  These companies have fairly low forward P/E ratios that could belie their true value and there are generally other driving factors as well. SOme picks will seem controversial on the surface but that is what the explanations are for in the analysis.

Carrizo Oil & Gas Inc. (NASDAQ: CRZO) explores for oil and gas primarily in the US, but also has a stake in North Sea exploration. The company’s primary holdings are in the Barnett shale, the Marcellus shale, and the Eagle Ford shale. The company’s trailing P/E ratio is negative, and its forward P/E is a meagre 7.87. It’s solid position in the Eagle Ford, a liquids-rich play, argues for a higher valuation.

Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp. (AMEX: KOG), like Carrizo, has holdings in some of the most liquids-rich gas plays in the US, with a particularly strong position in the Williston Basin’s Bakken shale. The company’s trailing P/E ratio, like Carrizo’s, is negative and its forward P/E is 8.04. And again like Carrizo, Kodiak needs to face rising cost issues. The break-even Nymex price for natural gas is more than $4.40/thousand cubic feet, but liquids-rich plays like the Eagle Ford and the Bakken practically assure solid returns, provided costs can be kept under control.

Harvest Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: HNR) is a more global explorer for oil and gas, and does have exposure in Venezuela, which is probably why its trailing P/E ratio is negative and its forward P/E is 8.20. Investor George Soros more than doubled his stake in Harvest during the first quarter of 2011.

Clayton Williams Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: CWEI) is an oil and gas explorer that operates mainly in Louisiana and Texas. The company’s trailing P/E is 75 and its forward P/E is 8.16. The company reduced its guidance following a poor quarter where results were hit by rising costs. What makes the company a reasonable value at its current price is its heavy weighting toward oil production, which accounts for nearly 75% of its total production. Liquids are where the money is.

Petrohawk Energy Corp. (NYSE: HK) is another significant player in the Eagle Ford shale play in south Texas. The company’s P/E ratio is a blinding 252.31, while its forward P/E is 15.81. That’s still a little rich, but Petrohawk is very focused on liquids, it holds more than 330,000 net acres in the Eagle Ford play, and, maybe best of all, with a market cap of around $8 billion it could be a takeover target for one of the big oil guys.

Precision Drilling Corp. (NYSE: PDS) is an onshore drilling company that focuses on North American services. The company’s trailing P/E is a robust 58.05 and its forward P/E is 13.27. Drillers, particularly onshore drillers not affected by the moratorium in the Gulf of Mexico, have done well this year. Precision has boosted its rig utilization rate so far this year and expects to bring another dozen rigs online in 2011, with 11 going to Canada.

Cal Dive International, Inc. (NYSE: DVR) just posted dismal earnings for the first quarter. It’s trailing P/E is negative and its forward P/E is 13.27. The company has been hit by the moratorium on Gulf drilling, but it provides underwater services that are not widely available and, thus, the company has surprisingly strong pricing power. Once drilling starts up again, Cal Dive ought to perform a lot better.

An ending with a driving season note, have a great holiday weekend.

Paul Ausick

Earlier this week, BJ Services Co. (NYSE:BJS) reported very weak results, following so-so reports from both Halliburton Co. (NYSE:HAL) and Weatherford International Ltd. (NYSE:WFT). And also earlier this week, Precision announced a new financing deal to reduce the interest on its borrowing to purchase Grey Wolf. That deal caused the company’s unit price to drop 11% when it was announced on Monday.

Precision common units closed at $4.19 yesterday and shares are up 1% so far at $4.23. The company’s 52-week range is $2.00-$28.59.

Paul Ausick
April 22, 2009

But for a lot less than everybody originally planned. Precision’soriginal offer was worth $9.02 in cash or 0.4225 of a Precision commonunit. The final deal for common units went down at $2.98. That’s whythe choice of cash was oversubscribed. Grey Wolf shareholders will getsome pro-rated portion of $5 cash/share of Grey Wolf stock and 0.1883of a Precision common unit.

If Grey Wolf shareholders had approved a July agreement with BasicEnergy Services, Inc. (NYSE:BAS), they wouldhave received better than $7.00 per share. Precision’s share price is offnearly 5% this morning, trading at around $6.80/share.

Paul Ausick
December 23, 2008

The change to the merger agreement alters terms relating to the cashpaid to Grey Wolf convertible note holders who do not convert theirnotes to Grey Wolf stock before the merger. Precision will keep thecash to buy the convertible notes after the merger is completed. Thischange is not likely to influence many votes one way or the other.

Precision’s common units closed at $8.26/unit yesterday, making theoffer for Grey Wolf worth about $6.55/share, about a third less thanthe offer was worth when it was first made. The longer this soap operacontinues, the less the deal is worth to Grey Wolf shareholders.

Paul Ausick
December 3, 2008

One proxy advisory firm, ISS Riskmetrics, counseled against the GreyWolf-Basic Energy tie-up, citing a possible conflict of interest fromGrey Wolf’s board. Ultimately, the deal was rejected by Grey Wolfshareholders, nearly 100% of which are institutional investors.

Then, Precision Drilling got serious, offering about $2 billion in cashand stock for Grey Wolf. Theinteresting thing about the offer was that it was about $1/share lowerthan the offer Precision Drilling had made earlier. The competitivelandscape had changed after all.

Then last Friday, ISS Riskmetrics and Proxy Governancerecommended that Grey Wolf shareholders accept the offer fromPrecision Drilling. Riskmetrics supports the deal because "the proposedoffer seems to have supported the Grey Wolf stock price as evidenced bythe fact that Grey Wolf’s stock price has declined significantly lessthat the average stock price decline of its peer group." Yes, that’strue, but Precision’s share price is down nearly 70% from 52-week highsit reached before it made its first unsolicited bid for Grey Wolf.

Proxy Governance supports the deal because it "appears to place a fairvalue on the company based on the overall market reaction." Themarket’s reaction since July has been to send Grey Wolf’s share pricedown about 37% from 52-week highs. Over the last twelve months, though,Grey Wolf’s share price has actually increased by 11%, while PrecisionDrilling has lost more than 45%.

Absent a last-minute offer from another buyer, this deal is expected toclose December 10th, the day after Grey Wolf’s shareholder meeting tovote on the buyout.

Paul Ausick
November 17, 2007

The deal has had its ups and downs. In April, Grey Wolf’s board hadagreed to a merger with Basic Energy Services (NYSE:BAS). Precisioninserted an unsolicited bid for Grey Wolf in June, and then sweetened the offera couple of times. Finally, in July, Grey Wolf’s shareholders rejectedBasic’s bid. Today’s deal represents an increase of about 4.5% in thetotal number of units included in Precision’s last offer.

In it’s press release today, Precision noted that Grey Wolf’s board"believes this consideration represents a substantial premium over an‘unaffected’ Grey Wolf stock price without the influence of Precision’sprevious public announcements regarding its desire to acquire GreyWolf." What the heck is the "unaffected" stock price? On June 8th, theday before Precision’s initial offer was announced, Grey Wolf stockclosed at $8.28. Last Friday, Grey Wolf closed at $8.59. Is either ofthose prices "unaffected? Or maybe the "unaffected" stock price is$7.60/share, the price of a share before the first Basic Services offer?

Precision’s previous offer for Grey Wolf used a 2008 cash flow multipleof 8.1 to derive a premium of 34% above Grey Wolf’s 30-day averageclosing stock price on June 8th. Today’s offer actually reducesPrecision’s last offer by about $1/share. Grey Wolf shareholders getless cash, but a larger stake in the combined company.

We had noted to readers of our weekly "10 Stocks Under $10"newsletter that many investors were hoping for $10.00 or even a bit higher.Because virtually all of Grey Wolf’s stock is held by institutionalinvestors, this offer could be deemed to be too low still. In earlytrading today, Grey Wolf is down by about $0.15, and Precision is downmore than $1.25.

Paul Ausick
August 25, 2008

Transocean Inc. (NYSE: RIG) has given back nearly one-quarter of its value from its highs.  The worst performer among the larger players was CalDive (NYSE:DVR), down 43% from its 52-week high. Precision Drilling Trust (NYSE:PDS) is down about 30%, Weatherford (NYSE:WFT) is off about 27%, and National Oilwell Varco (NYSE:NOV) and BJ Services (NYSE:BJS) are down about 25%. A host of others are off around 20%: Baker Hughes (NYSE:BHI) at 22%; Basic Services (NYSE:BAS) at 21%; Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) at 20%; and Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) and Smith International (NYSE:SII) are off about 19%.

That 20% number is pretty well reflected in the stock price declines among the majorintegrated oil companies. One might conclude that big oil sets the pacefor the services companies. But is that really the case?  Ken Heebner’s CGM FOCUS FUND has also stuck with the service companies.

Transocean’s forward P/E ratio is 7.81, against its current P/E of8.25. The company’s 5-year PEG ratio is 0.42. CalDive, the worstperformer, has a forward P/E of 7.46, compared with its current P/E of12.16, and a 5-year PEG ratio of 0.31. The largest companies in thesector, Schlumberger and Halliburton, have 5-year PEG ratios of rightaround 1. The smaller companies are expected to grow more than thelarger ones.

One interpretation of this is that it’s easier for smaller companies togrow than it is for large companies. Schlumberger, with a market cap ofabout $110 billion, needs large projects to make an impact on itsperformance. CalDive can get by with smaller projects. Is there anotherNorth Sea discovery on the horizon? Or an Alaska North Slope? With theexception of the large discoveries offshore Brazil, the answer is "No."Smaller projects, such as recompletions and workovers onshore in theUS, look to be where the action is for production companies. There andin the Gulf of Mexico, where Transocean is the sector’s largest player.Overall, the outlook for oilfield services is strong if the industrycan control costs and investors can be patient.

Right now drilling and day rate prices are very high whether or not oil trades back near $150 as Goldman Sachs reiterated today or if prices go back under$100.00.  You can also see how the services sector performed much better than the pipeline sector.  You can also see how the refiners have fared out the worst of the sector.

Paul Ausick
August 20, 2008

• ArthroCare Corp. (NASDAQ: ARTC) Cut to Market Perform at William Blair.
• Assured Guaranty (NYSE: AGO) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
• Foundry Networks (NASDAQ: FDRY) Cut to Neutral at Piper Jaffray.
• International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE: IFF) Started as Underweight at Lehman.
• PetMed Express (NASDAQ: PETS) Raised to Neutral from Sell at Piper Jaffray.
• Precision Drilling (NYSE: PDS) Raised to Outperform at CIBC.
• salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM) Cut to Hold at Citigroup.
• SanDisk (NASDAQ: SNDK) Cut to Sell at Citigroup.
• Telefonica (NYSE: TEF) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
• Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN) Cut to Neutral at Merrill Lynch.

Jon C. Ogg
July 22, 2008