Top Stocks

Stocks refuse to give in but they have been unable to move out of the danger zone either. The U.S. stock market could still swing either way.

Take a look at the New York Stock Exchange Composite Index, for example. At the beginning of last week, the index fell through its February low, threatening to break through that level of support and turn a correction into something worse. 

But by the end of the week, the index had moved back above the February low and looked like it was trying to make a bottom.

 

Starbucks (SBUX) is finally loosening up its Wi-Fi rules, and will soon allow anyone to connect to its network for free.

It's about time. The company had a ridiculous approach to Wi-Fi in the past, requiring customers to buy a Starbucks loyalty card, put money on it, register it and periodically use it. After all that, you get two hours of Wi-Fi a day (any more than that would cost you).

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People didn't like it. And Starbucks is feeling the pressure from the free Wi-Fi offered at McDonald's (MCD) and other coffee shops. So, starting July 1, Starbucks will stop splitting hairs and open its Wi-Fi at 6,700 locations.

 

There's a lot of talk about whether the recovery will stall or continue building momentum. Well we could get a very clear picture this week since the big economic news will likely be the May price reports. I'm expecting to see signs of deflation across the board -- which could take some of the wind out of consumers' sails.

Here's the news to look for:

• Tuesday, June 15: May Import Prices. Expected decline of -1.5%.
• Wednesday, June 16: May Producer Prices. Expected decline of -0.5%.
• Thursday, June 17: May Consumer Prices. Expected decline of -0.2%.

 

Coffee bean prices have soared in recent days, jumping 8% Friday and reaching their highest level since last January. Blame it on Rio.

An early cold snap in Brazil has traders worried that some of the coffee bean crop there could be damaged, according to the AssociatedPress. Those concerns pushed up coffee prices for July delivery to as high as $1.49 a pound.

The continued rise in coffee prices could be worrisome in the long term for Starbucks (SBUX) and Green Mountain CoffeeRoasters (GMCR), analysts say. Could we eventually see Starbucks prices get even higher? 

Apple (AAPL) has become one of the most valuable companies in the world, and boy, is it ever throwing its weight around.

The company has gone from beloved underdog to ruthless competitor, squeezing out rivals like Adobe (ADBE) and Google(GOOG) in surprisingly bold ways.

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And that's got the attention of antitrust regulators, who are set to begin investigating the company's actions. But has Apple really been that bad? Do shareholders have anything to worry about here?

 

In early May an equal investment in each of my Top 10 Stocks for 2010 were up more than 15%. Since that time the market has been in a tailspin resulting in that performance dropping to a more modest 9% gain.

 

Not bad considering the market as measured by the S&P 500 index is down more than 1% year to date, but the returns could be better if one deployed an absolute return strategy that included incremental moves in managing the portfolio.

 

I made just that suggestion to followers of my Top Stocks strategy in April.

 

As stocks moved lower out of the April high, you started to hear a lot more talk about the rising potential for "double-dip" recession -- a la the experience of the early 1980s where the economy, instead of embarking on a multi-year expansion, started contracting again.

 

With all the concerns over the sovereign debt troubles in Europe, ho-hum job growth here in the United States, and falling stock prices, I'll admit there is plenty of raw material to base these fears on.

 

But a closer look at what's driving the economic cycle gives us reason for hope and optimism.

 

Apple (AAPL) is synonymous with exclusivity, from its closely controlled operating systems to its top secret research. So it’s a bit surprising that for the first time ever, the mass retailer Wal-Mart (WMT) will be partnering on the launch.

When the Apple iPhone 4 debuts June 24, Wal-Mart will stock the gadget on its shelves at the exact moment the company’s namesake Apple Stores do.

And if that's not impressive enough, the Wal-Mart-iPhone deal is not just a first for Steve Jobs & Co. -- it’s a first for the big-box store, too.

 

By Jim Cramer, TheStreet

 

Every weekend when I review the charts, I list all the ones that seem buyable or interesting on the front page of the hand-delivered booklet.

 

This weekend, I ran out of room. There were so many that looked like they had found solid positive momentum, or have bottomed and are on the way up.

 

All sorts of groups appear worth buying, including aerospace with Boeing (BA) leading the way; auto, with Magna (MGA) and Ford (F); and health care, with Cardinal (CAH), Express Scripts (ESRX), Medco (MHS), Stericycle (SRCL), and United Health (UNH) finally joining AmerisourceBergen (ABC) with nice trends (the HMOs all show up strongly, at last).

 

 

Has the recent correction presented investors with a chance to buy back into the market, or is it a sign of more -- and greater -- trouble to come for stocks? While the market gurus I keep an eye on are tending to lean to the bullish side of that question, there are some very bright minds on both sides of the issue.

• Check out my Buffett-inspired Top Stocks tracking portfolio at Wall Street Survivor
  

On the bullish side, for example, there's Bob Doll, portfolio manager and chief equity strategist for fundamental equities for Blackrock. In an opinion piece for The Wall Street Journal this week, Doll said that despite the formidable challenges the U.S. faces, “overweight positions in U.S. equities are more than warranted”.

 

Ah, somebody is finally spelling out the trade-offs if the world's developed economies move now to cut government spending or to raise taxes!

This isn't another one of those exercises that says health care spending and welfare payments will get cut if governments adopt austerity budgets. Really? No kidding. If governments cut spending, governments will spend less?

No, what the World Bank has done is to look at what the effects of different timing for cuts in government spending would do to growth in different parts of the world.

 

Activist investor Carl Icahn sent a letter to the board of directors of his latest takeover target, Lionsgate, on Friday, threatening to tip the company into bankruptcy if it didn't go along with him.

Icahn, who holds 19 percent of Lionsgate's outstanding shares and likely will be tendered another 5.4 percent by Mark Cuban and about 4 percent by individual investors, said he had enough shares to trigger "cross-defaults" on Lionsgate's outstanding debt, which he put at "over $472 million of bond indebtedness."

• Related: Cuban, Icahn Play Cat-and-Mouse With Lionsgate

Warning that Lionsgate may not have enough money to repay its debt all at once, Icahn said that could send the company into voluntary bankruptcy.

 

The unease in the markets over the last few years has caused the price of gold to soar.

If you don't think gold is in a bubble, and want to diversify your portfolio to include the precious metal, there are plenty of ways to do it. Check out the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD), for example.

And, as CBSMoneyWatch.com shows, there are terrible ways to buy gold. Kathy Kristof lists the five worst ways to buy, and it's a good read before venturing into the gold business: 

Burger King (BKC) launched a bit of an unexpected campaign this summer with its barbecue pork ribs. With a price tag north of $7 for eight pieces, the ribs are an oddity in an era when many other merchants are offering up bargains for cash-strapped consumers.

 

Well it turns out Burger King's rib deal may wind down sooner than expected -- but perhaps not for the reason some think. Demand turned out to be so strong for the tasty barbecue items that BK has just sold its 10 millionth rib and expects to exhaust its supply this month!

 

This is great news for Burger King and its shareholders, and could be a further sign of a moment towards a "new upscale" in fast food where higher-priced, higher-margin items compliment traditional offerings of cheap burgers and fries.