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Due to a short Thanksgiving week, rather than the usual stock-by-stock update, I will briefly highlight some significant moves by Explorer stocks. I’d also like to wish you and your family a great long Thanksgiving weekend.

Regrettably, Universal Technical Institute (UTI) has not worked out for us despite filling a crucial need and posting impressive earnings, as the stock was down sharply this week. I’m moving this to a sell. Coeur Mining (CDE) and International Business Machines (IBM) were both up about 6% this week, while Sea Limited (SE) was down 7%.

I like looking at microcars, but I don’t want to buy them. I’m sticking with stocks as there are some great bargains out there.

The overall market remains healthy, and while we still haven’t received an “all-clear” signal from our long-term timing indicator, we do have a positive signal from the 90% Blastoff Indicator, and that’s good!

Overall, our portfolio stocks are behaving quite well, with none disappointing today. In fact, many are so strong that I expect pullbacks in the future. The only sale today is of a stock that has given us a quick 30% profit. Otherwise, I’m sitting tight.



As for today’s recommendation, it’s a company in the online education industry, where demand is booming thanks to COVID-19.



Full details in the issue.

Jacob Mintz, Chief Analyst of Cabot Options Trader, Cabot Options Trader Pro, and Cabot Profit Booster talks about Options Trading.
Among the topics he covers:
* Why options should be part of every investor’s toolkit
* How easy, and profitable, it is to do options trades
* How options can be used to enhance the return on trades you are already making
* 2 options trades you can make right now

I’ve mentioned a few times this year that I expect the shortage of truck drivers in the U.S. to be the lynchpin in the current economic cycle’s eventual inflation surge. Now that Wal-Mart (WMT) is publicly discussing their driver shortage, let’s review this theory.

We haven’t yet seen the buyers retake control (the intermediate-term trend is down and few stocks are moving up), so we’re sticking with a cautious stance. In the Model Portfolio, we are restoring one Buy rating, but we’re standing pat with 45% cash and are waiting patiently for the trend to turn up.

In tonight’s issue, we go over all our recent moves, dive into the recent action in one of our stocks and review one of our proprietary indicators that, along with some precedent analysis, adds further evidence to the market’s bullish outlook.

We’re adding what we believe can be a leading glamour stock of the bull market. Elsewhere in tonight’s issue, we write about the recent long-term breakout by Chinese stocks.

The timing is right for alternative energy.

Alternative energy (also referred to as clean or alternative energy) is by far the fastest growing energy source. The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that global renewable power supply will grow 50% in just the next 5 years.



While clean energy has been a story and knocking at the door for a while now, a certain critical mass in growth and development seems to be taking place recently. The market usually gets it. And it’s telling us something.



The iShares Global Clean Energy ETF (ICLN), which tracks 30 stocks in the Global Clean Energy Index, has taken off lately after going nowhere for more than a decade. ICLN soared 100% over the past year and 178% for the past two years, compared to S&P 500 returns of 22% and 44% respectively over the same period.



The market clearly sees big changes looming in the energy sector. It also helps that the Biden Administration will likely reward clean energy companies with more tax breaks and subsidies and other goodies. But more importantly, the focus will draw still more investor attention to the booming growth in alternative energy. And investor intrigue will only accelerate.



This month’s highlighted stock NextEra Energy (NEE) should clearly benefit going forward. It may not be the sexiest clean energy. But it provides a great way for more conservative, income oriented investors to play the trend.

As of yesterday, the market’s intermediate-term trend is now negative, so certain defensive measures are now appropriate. These might include lowering your overall risk profile by holding cash when possible, taking profits when stocks are extended, and being less tolerant of poor behavior.

For the first time in months, stocks actually have a bit of momentum. Is it sustainable? Or another false start? Too early to tell. But it’s a good time to keep adding beaten-down names that are finally showing signs of life. This week’s new recommendation fits the bill, and has been a big winner for Carl Delfeld since he added it to his Cabot Explorer portfolio earlier this month.

Details inside.

The market has been stagnant for the last month, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It could be a nice, long deep breath – in what is historically the market’s worst-performing month – before the next big push in this still-new bull market. But just in case it goes the other direction, today we add a low-risk utility stock that’s having a down year but tends to beat the indexes over time. It’s a longtime favorite of Cabot Dividend Investor Chief Analyst Tom Hutchinson.

Details inside.

Stocks are showing signs of strength as we dive head-first into third-quarter earnings season. Will the latest round of company reports give markets the nudge they need to enter their first substantive rally since mid-summer? Or will they douse the rally with cold water before it really even begins? We’ll have our answer soon. In the meantime, in case it’s the latter, today we add a reliable dividend payer that’s been gaining traction thanks to the restored global supply chain. It’s a brand-new recommendation from Cabot Dividend Investor’s Tom Hutchinson.

Details inside.

The stock-market picture continues to improve, and it’s possible the current rally is more than yet another head fake; it could be the start of a new bull market. While we’re not there yet, there’s reason for optimism. So today, we take another big swing by adding a fast-emerging electric vehicle maker that has struggled since its IPO last June but is showing signs of life lately. It’s a recent recommendation from Cabot Explorer Chief Analyst Carl Delfeld.

Energy stocks have been by far the best-performing market sector over the last couple of years. They went from worst to first in dramatic fashion. And the good times may be just beginning.

The industry has had very low capital spending and expansion in recent years. Crude oil inventories have fallen below the five-year average and are likely headed far lower. OPEC has pledged dramatic production cuts to push prices higher. There is also a high degree of geopolitical risk. In fact, Goldman Sachs analysts are forecasting oil prices to get back to $95 per barrel before the end of this year.

The fundamentals are in place for prices to average a lot higher than they are now over the next few years. And that will lift stock prices. Stocks are also cheap, have among the best dividend yields on the market, and tend to perform well during times of inflation.

This issue highlights one of the highest-growth energy companies on the market. It has the ability to grow production by double digits for many years to come and at very low cost.

Santa Claus hasn’t arrived yet for investors, as stocks are enduring a rough December. As a result, we have two sells today and another rating downgrade. However, we are adding a stock that’s perfect for these turbulent times: a dividend-paying utility that holds up well in sharp sell-offs like this one but features an alternative energy wing that has allowed it to outperform the market for years, even in good times. It’s built for safety and growth and is a longtime favorite of Cabot Dividend Investor Chief Analyst Tom Hutchinson.

The market remains in decent shape despite an onslaught of potential landmines, including the new conflict in the Middle East, worsening unrest domestically and the July 9 deadline on the 90-day tariff pause for some 130 countries fast approaching. It’s not raining, but dark clouds are forming, so it’s worth bringing a poncho with you the next time you leave the house (so to speak). Today, we go with what’s working, and that’s energy, as oil prices have gotten an immediate boost from the sudden Israel-Iran war. Fortunately, Cabot Dividend Investor Chief Analyst Tom Hutchinson has one of the best-performing energy-related stocks out there, and one that pays a nice dividend to boot. It’s the newest addition to the Stock of the Week portfolio.

Details inside.

It’s cannabis company earnings season once again. Below, I summarize the highlights from our portfolio companies. But first, here are the major sector trends that emerged from the calls.