Last Friday, the Chinese government announced a phase-out of incandescent light bulbs, beginning with eliminating 100-watt+ bulbs by the end of 2012 and 60-watt+ bulbs by 2014. The decision triggered a solid boost to…
Our series on expected upside in stock prices continues today with a look at the biofuels sector. What you are about to see are numbers that, for the most part, defy gravity. With just…
It isn’t every day that a $7.1 billion deal falls through. Even rarer is a seller’s reaction that amounts to, “What, me worry?” But that’s what occurred over the weekend as BP plc (NYSE:…
Brent crude was not supposed to rise to $120 again. That was good news, because high oil prices has been viewed as a potential trigger of a global economic slowdown. And, there are already…
If there is one single event that can help an entire sector out immediately, it is when China announces major policy changes. News is out that China is taking a multi-step plan to stop…
The train wreck more widely known as the solar sector may finally be adjusting to reality and trying to get back on the tracks. SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWRA) reported earnings after the markets closed…
Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) opened about 2% higher this morning following its third-quarter earnings release after markets closed yesterday. The company posted adjusted EPS of $0.72, beating the consensus estimate by $0.04. Revenue…
Two major oil refiners have reported third-quarter earnings since the market closed last night. Both posted better-than-expected earnings primarily due to sharply higher refining margins. Western Refining Corp. (NYSE: WNR) reported net income of…
What a difference two decades makes. Following the peaceful implosion of the USSR in December 1991, numerous opportunities opened worldwide. The Bush administration chose to devote its energies to achieving global military “full spectrum”…
Alternative energy stocks continue on their path of self-destruction. The government has been handing over taxpayer cash in droves to help fund alternative energy companies. Now what we are witnessing is nothing short of a…
Oil prices are about $93 now. That is down from well over $100 a quarter ago, but is still not low enough to bolster the economy much. Consumers and many businesses are in too…
Crude oil prices have jumped more than $3/barrel this morning on the expectation that the European agreement on sovereign debt will put some life back into the global economy. That outcome is at least…
The first large-scale geothermal electricity generating plant in the US was developed in the 1960s in northern California. Unocal, now part of Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX), did the initial work and the complex, known…
First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) went ahead and got its earnings report out of the way. After all, it botched its “CEO exit” so badly yesterday that it was an unfair burden to shareholders. Shares…
First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) must be in real trouble, even worse than what we have all been fearing. Rob Gillette is out as CEO. The circumstances behind the news were not telegraphed well…