Investing Daily

We’ve been looking for this cycle to kick in for some time, and it’s one reason the IT sector is among my favorites; in fact, I just added a play on this trend in the most recent issue of Personal Finance.

With an increasing amount of sensitive business being conducted online, cybersecurity is becoming a necessity.

How technology is used makes for successful innovation.

Converting now will allow Ag Growth greater access to capital as it pursues an aggressive growth strategy, much of which is focused on expanding its international presence. About two-thirds of the company’s 2008 sales were to US-based customers, a market supported by federal legislation mandating the use of corn-based ethanol in gasoline. But developing countries are also investing more in grain infrastructure.

There’s a palpable feeling of disgust among taxpayers these days. It’s bad enough that the false prosperity engendered by years of reckless borrowing and lending has given way to the worst financial crisis since The Great Depression. But in some ways the government’s ever-expanding bailout of the banking system is even more galling: From an emotional standpoint, it’s the equivalent of rubbing salt into a gaping wound--repeatedly.

Although not the deepest markets in Asia, these economies can surprise investors as their long-term potential remains solid.

Health care was one of the few bright spots in an otherwise dismal 2008, underscoring the sector’s reputation as a classic defensive play. This month we look at a pharmacy benefits management firm that’s well positioned to weather any economic headwinds and offers attractive growth potential

Health care stocks offer recession-resistant growth with a kicker: an emerging boom in acquisitions activity.

Consolidated Water shares have fallen hard since late 2007. Ironically, the seawater-to-freshwater producer has continued to seamlessly expand its reverse osmosis facilities throughout the Caribbean, locking down profitable sales of its output, mostly to governments.

After a nasty fall last year, global markets should stabilize and recover in 2009. Here's how to position your portfolio.

The US and foreign governments are planning an unprecedented barrage of fiscal stimulus over the next two years. Here's how to profit.

Well managed, dominant companies use downturns to become more powerful. And that’s definitely what new Growth Portfolio addition Telefonica is up to.

There are myriad opportunities amid the rubble of the current bear market. For the most potential, focus on three sectors: health care, energy and consumer staples.

In early 2003, Germany’s RWE paid a hefty premium for American Water Works. Five years later, new management took a $1 billion writeoff to unload the company, handing investors a chance to buy the country’s biggest water ute for 75 percent of book value and a yield two times pre-takeover levels.

For every modern market collapse, a new bubble has emerged to take its place. This isn’t how things should work in an efficient market, but the fact is that’s been the trend.

Super Oils such as Chevron Corp no longer have a hammerlock on global supplies of oil and natural gas. But they do have more powerful balance sheets than most countries and solid positions in all areas of the energy business. That makes them virtually recession proof and the surest bets on long-term growth in global energy demand and shrinking supplies.

Defense stocks are one of the most secure places in times of market troubles. Although most businesses need credit lines to conduct and expand business operations, big defense companies are underwritten by big governments and ink their deals with nations, not other businesses.

Oil started the year near $90 a barrel, shot up to $160 and fell back toward $110. Natural gas, meanwhile, began in mid-single digits per million British thermal units, launched to the low teens and collapsed to around $8.