Advanced Search

Possible Bull Market in Yeast Urine Ahead...

By Jeff Clark
Friday, November 24, 2006

Call me a skeptic, but I don’t think the main course that Governor William Bradford carved up for his Indian friends back in 1621 was a turkey stuffed with a duck stuffed with a chicken. Nor, I suspect, did the Pilgrims have access to those little crispy onion things that go on top of a green bean casserole…
 
But the most glaring difference between today’s Thanksgiving and the meal served 385 years ago is the absence of corn…
 
No one eats corn on Thanksgiving anymore.
 
It’s true. Take a look at the November issues of the top food magazines – Martha Stewart Living, Gourmet, Better Homes and Gardens. Nowhere in their pages will you find any recipes for the number one staple of pilgrim dining – corn.
 
But tradition isn’t lost for a group of microscopic organisms in a tiny town up in Northeastern Iowa. For them, everyday is a corn feast.
 
And that feast is creating a booming ethanol business.
 
Everyday the workers at the VeraSun ethanol production plant in Charles City, Iowa introduce yeast to corn mash. The yeast feeds on the corn mash and then discharges carbon dioxide and ethanol.
 
It’s a little bit more complicated than that… but basically ethanol – the fuel of the future – the fuel that politicians are pushing into our gas tanks – the fuel that lobbyists claim will save the world from global warming – is nothing more than yeast urine.
 
And thank goodness it’s a bull market for yeast urine. Ethanol producers are experiencing huge gains in revenues and earnings. But the stocks haven’t gone anywhere – yet.
 
Oh sure, the whole ethanol sector ran up earlier this year as the hype surrounding ethanol as a replacement for MTBE climaxed. But those fast gains disappeared as quickly as Grandma’s pumpkin pie… and the sector has spent the past few months consolidating near the low end of its trading range.
 
This chart of ethanol producer Pacific Ethanol (PEIX) paints the entire picture:
 
 
 
Now, however, the stocks are once again starting to show signs of life and we could be on the verge of a sustainable rally.
 
Not all ethanol stocks are created equal though. And, some companies are definitely better investments than others. But if we’re about to see another run on ethanol, then you need to get some exposure to this sector.
 
And, who knows? Next year, as you carve up the turducken and pass around the candied yams, you just might give thanks that you bought a few shares.
 
Best regards and good trading,
 
Jeff Clark




Recent Articles
Market Notes
Investment banks Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Bear Stearns, Deutsche Bank all at new highs amidst M&A explosion.
 
Microsoft up 36% from summer low.
 
Nearly every country-specific ETF sitting at 2006 high… Mexico, Germany, China, Switzerland, Spain, France, Singapore, U.S., Malaysia, Italy, Israel.
 
Silver stocks creeping up... Silver Standard Resources at new 2006 high.
Market Watch
Symbol Price
Change
52-Wk
S&P 500 1221.53 +1.28% +10.12%
Oil 38.31 +1.43% -0.55%
Gold 138.07 +2.12% +16.32%
Silver 28.60 +2.40% +53.60%
US-Dollar 80.67 -0.81% +8.09%
Euro 1.32 +0.64% -12.10%
Volatility 18.01 -7.12% -19.81%
Gold Stocks 581.56 +3.02% +17.04%
10-Year Yield 3.02 +0.67% -10.65%

World ETFs
Symbol Price
Change
52-Wk
USA 122.89 +0.27% +11.33%
Canada 30.50 +0.20% +16.19%
Russia 21.94 +1.43% +18.08%
India 37.85 +0.32% +22.33%
Israel 16.69 +1.34% +10.75%
Japan 10.64 +0.57% +6.51%
Singapore 13.73 -1.08% +18.77%
Taiwan 14.78 +0.41% +19.19%
S. Korea 57.31 +1.33% +23.38%
S. Africa 71.87 +1.44% +28.20%
China 44.42 -1.42% -0.58%
Lat.America 53.17 +0.66% +8.38%

Sector ETFs
Symbol Price
Change
52-Wk
Oil Service 137.59 +1.04% +18.94%
Big Pharma 64.14 +0.02% -3.24%
Internet 72.07 -0.08% +23.41%
Semis 16.22 +1.19% +29.35%
Utilities 31.28 +0.22% +1.46%
Defense 18.52 +0.05% +10.57%
Nanotech 10.03 +0.40% +1.62%
Alt. Energy 10.08 +1.31% -3.26%
Water 18.49 +0.98% +14.49%
Insurance 16.14 +0.44% +21.08%
Biotech 20.54 -0.19% +28.13%
Retail 19.70 +0.25% +30.20%
Software 24.79 +0.81% +25.90%
Big Tech 53.87 +0.26% +22.74%
Construction 13.10 +0.85% +15.72%
Media 13.64 +0.52% +25.95%
Consumer Svcs 67.39 +0.19% +24.54%
Financials 55.04 +0.31% +7.44%
Health Care 64.30 +0.12% +2.01%
Industrials 63.54 +0.46% +21.03%
Basic Mat 74.35 +1.06% +25.27%
Real Estate 55.32 +0.14% +25.02%
Transportation 91.77 +0.66% +26.93%
Telecom 22.59 +0.49% +17.78%