Knobias ClipReport (7-16-2007)

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Friday’s session saw momentum in blue chip names continue throughout the trading day although at a more subdued level compared to Thursday’s extraordinary gain. Consumer confidence numbers added fuel to the fire as did General Electric numbers, which were inline, though the name noted they were exiting the subprime mortgage business. Contrary to normal market reactions, oil prices were up, briefly hitting the $74 a barrel which marked an 11 month high. To continue the momentum, significant news would have to be on the horizon for investors to see a 14,000 print on the Dow.

On an otherwise slow day in the small cap space, one name did have a somewhat interesting piece of news that could be worth following over the coming months.

LifeVantage Corporation (LFVN), which focuses on manufacturing, marketing and selling health products, noted that they Company had been granted a patent for its antioxidant therapy formula used in Protandim(R).

The patent, titled "Compositions for Alleviating Inflammation and Oxidative Stress in a Mammal," is the first patent granted to LifeVantage. Two other patent applications have been filed by LifeVantage for Protandim(R).

Protandim(R) is a dietary supplement that increases the body's natural antioxidant protection by inducing naturally occurring protective enzymes, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT). Oxidative stress occurs as a person ages, when subjected to environmental stresses, or as an associated factor in certain illnesses. TBARS are laboratory markers for oxidative stress in the body. Data from a scientific study in men and women, sponsored by LifeVantage, show that after 30 days of taking Protandim(R), the level of circulating TBARS decreased an average of 40%. With continued use, the decrease was maintained at 120 days.

According to a 2006 article in the medical journal, Free Radical Biology & Medicine, "Causing induction of SOD and CAT to decrease oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation in vivo is a much more effective approach than conventional antioxidant supplements."

The Company manufacturers Protandim(R) through an agreement with The Chemins Company, Inc. Chemins is registered with the FDA, and maintains a quality system program designed to comply with all requirements of the GMPs for Dietary Supplements and the current NPA, Natural Products Association. Their quality standards are also certified by Academy of Clinical, Environmental, Research & Information Sciences which states that Chemins complies with all "Good Manufacturing Practices of the FDA."

Akin's Natural Foods Markets(TM) and Chamberlin's(R) Natural Foods Markets, both headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, recently agreed to carry the Protandim(R) product. The companies collectively have 13 stores operating in Florida, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Oklahoma.

The Company recently signed a license agreement with Montel Williams. This three-year, renewable license agreement provides LifeVantage with the opportunity to market science-based dietary supplement products using Montel's name and persona to identify and promote LifeVantage products. The Company will soon begin to promote its products in the direct response television market.

The direct response television infomercials have led some companies to very successful results with George Forman Grills and Ginsu Knives being the more knowledgeable success stories in past years.

At the present time, the Company only sells its single product, Protandim(R), but it plans to continue research, development, testing, and licensing efforts to be able to introduce additional products in the future.

For the three months ended March 31, 2007, the Company reported their third quarter net revenues of $1.0 million and a loss of 3c per share. For the three months ended December 31, 2006, the Company recorded net revenues of $1.1 million and a loss of $1.8 million, or 8c per share. For the three months ended March 31, 2006, it had net revenues of $1.4 million and a loss of 3c per share. The Company's accumulated deficit was $12.2 million and cash and cash equivalents were $724,000.

LFVN's top line results have declined in each of the last two quarters, and the Company has until September 30, 2007 to achieve sustainable growth, based on reported cash on hand and cash burn of $410,000 per quarter.

With a successful implementation of their direct television campaign and a monetization of their marketing deal with Montell Williams, the name could be one to watch over the coming months. Investors would be wise to watch.


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Knobias ClipReport (7-13-2007)

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Retail sales numbers put the market on its back and carried the Dow to a gain of over 290 points in the face of what some technicians were labeling a variation of the dreaded triple top. Wal-Mart’s same store sales and the merger and acquisition news of Rio Tinto’s $38 billion offer for Alcan, Inc. were the main drivers for the day. The only sector lagging seemed to be the airlines but the day saw the highest gain of the year and reached all time highs.

In other news, just when you thought the iPhone’s luster was wearing off, a rumor began to surface that Apple was planning on releasing a smaller version of the iPhone similar to what the Nano iPod is to the regular size iPod.

The handset mania may never end and with that in mind, one name that has a fairly decent product could begin to gain some attention over the next few weeks.

Mobility Electronics Inc (MOBE) designs, develops, manufactures and distributes power products for high-power mobile electronic devices, power products for low-power mobile electronic devices and MP3 players; connectivity products; expansion products; and docking and accessory products.

The Company’s universal power products for high power mobile electronic devices include laptops and portable computers. Their universal power adaptors for low-power mobile electronic devices include mobile phones, PDAs, MP3 players and digital cameras.

The Company had an agreement in place to supply Dell with its high power adapters. That contract has since expired and the Company also expects the contract with Lenovo to expire during the third quarter of 2007.

Even with two of the Company’s largest customers using other suppliers, the Company’s earnings guidance is still not as bad as one would think. In early May, the Company reported revenue excluding revenue related to business lines divested during and subsequent to the end of the first quarter of 2007 (Handheld and Expansion/Docking) of $17.5 million in the first quarter of 2007, compared with $16.7 million in the first quarter of 2006. This also compares with revenue of $16.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2006, excluding revenues related to the divested businesses. Non-Gaap net loss excluding the divested business was $600,000, or ($0.02) per diluted share, in the first quarter of 2007, compared with a net loss of $1.5 million, or ($0.05) per diluted share, in the same quarter of the prior year.

Charlie Mollo, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented in the earnings press release, "Our first quarter revenues reflect increasing sales to Targus and RadioShack, as these two customers return to more normalized ordering patterns, and the initial sales to our new distributors in the wireless carrier market. Most significantly, we secured a national roll-out for our low-power adapters with a major wireless carrier following the completion of a trial program that was initiated last year. With this planned roll-out and a trial program already in place with another major wireless carrier, we are making excellent progress in expanding the distribution for our products and diversifying our customer base."

In mid June, the Company announced that one of the largest wireless carriers in the US was now carrying the Company’s universal charger for mobile electronic devices. It was noted that the chargers would be available in 102 retail stores and kiosks throughout the country.

While 102 stores isn’t many, the device provides unparalleled convenience and functionality to consumers by enabling one charger to power/charge hundreds of brands and thousands of models of ME devices (cell phones, PDAs, smartphones, digital cameras, portable computers, etc.) through the use of interchangeable tips.

The product line, named iGo, includes an auto charger, a wall charger, a power splitter and a variety of interchangeable power tips that that can be utilized on any iGo product.

The universal power cords make too much sense in all reality, which could be the reason they’re only available in 102 retail outlets and not tens of thousands which would have happened if they’d enacted a deal with a top 4 carrier. Carrier’s make a nice profit on selling car and home chargers when customers upgrade their handsets. The exclusive chargers will normally range in the $30 range and easily add top line revenue to the carriers’ income statements. The loss of that revenue is not something the carriers would likely be willing to let happen even though each of their customers would most likely buy the product, but would only have to buy it once.

The Company does seem optimistic about the future of the product and its guidance displays the fact. In the first quarter earnings statement, the Company noted expectations for the second quarter of excluding any revenue or expenses from divested businesses, the Company believes that total revenue will range from $16.0 million to $17.0 million, and fully diluted loss per share (excluding charges related to non-cash equity compensation and CEO retirement severance) will range from ($0.04) to ($0.05).

With the loss of Dell and Lenovo, the Company is expecting to replace the revenue from those contracts with additional iGo sales but with only 20% of total revenue derived from the product line in the first quarter, the sales jump would certainly have to be fairly large. If the Company can succeed in this area and possibly add some larger retailers besides Radio Shack, the name could become one to follow in these handset mania days. Investors would be wise to watch.


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Knobias ClipReport (7-12-2007)

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Wednesday’s session saw the market fight off bad news throughout the day ranging from subprime housing woes to the yields in bonds. Hopes for a strong second quarter earnings season were the cause though a deterioration could be ahead if numbers don’t meet the already lowered expectations.

In the small cap space, many solar names were hot again, but another piece of news caught the attention of some attentive traders.

SBE, Inc. (SBEI) was focused on manufacturing and selling embedded hardware products including wide area network and local area network interface cards and central processing units to OEM’s who embedded their hardware products into their products for the communication market. The Company also designed and provided software based storage networking solutions for an extensive range of business critical applications, including disk to disk back-up and disaster recovery.

Following quarters of unimpressive numbers, management decided to sell their embedded hardware and storage software business and seek a merger candidate which is exactly what they did.

In early January, the Company and Neonode, Inc., a privately-held, Swedish mobile handset developer, announced the execution of a definitive merger agreement. SBEI was noted as paying 57 million shares for the shares of Neonode and the assumption of warrants and options. The board of Neonode would then become the board of SBEI and become a publicly traded company in the US giving them access to large amounts of capital.

Also in January, the Company signed an asset purchase agreement with One Stop Systems, Inc to purchase their embedded hardware business for $2.2 million cash plus the assumption of their corporate headquarters office lease and a lease for certain engineering equipment. In late March, they announced the completion of the sale and noted that the Company was completely divested of their embedded hardware business.

While the Company still has operations in the storage software business, the Company noted that they were actively seeking strategic alternatives there as well, leaving the merger with Neonode as their lone operating business going forward and in July, the Company filed the Definite Proxy statement that would allow the merger to be voted on by shareholders on August 10th. With approval, the shares authorized number would be increased to 40 million from 25 million and a reverse split would take place. It seems inevitable that the merger will take place with SBEI not having another business to fall back on if holders were to vote down the merger.

But the piece of news that caught the attention of traders was the release regarding Neonode’s new order from Telenor Sweden. Telenor Sweden is a complete communication service provider for mobile and fixed telephones.

The Neonode N2, which many have dubbed an iPhone clone, would be distributed in Telenor Sweden stores beginning in September of this year. With iPhone currently unavailable in the European countries, the product could receive similar attention following its release.

The Neonode N2 predecessor was the Neonode. Its release was met with tempered expectations because of the 2 year delay stemming from a lack of funds which caused employee layoffs and other cost cutting related issues.

In any event, the large announcement couldn’t have come at a better time for SBEI holders. With a successful launch of the N2 with similar capabilities of the iPhone, the European version of mobile mania could ensue.

While the expectations could be fairly high for many of the domestic producers for a response to the iPhone, the European version could be all that its cracked up to be displayed from the attention shares of SBEI received during the day. The name was up over 160% on over 1.6 million shares. Even NeoMagic Corporation (NMGC), the company suspected of producing the processor powering the N2, shares were in on the action. Shares were up some 19% on over 720 thousand in volume.

While the enthusiasm surrounding the iPhone has somewhat worn off, the European version could be just now beginning and with momentum names being many traders’ best friends, shares could begin a rally stemming over the next few periods. Investors would certainly be wise to watch.


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Knobias ClipReport(7-10-2007)

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Monday saw the Dow up ahead of the kickoff to second quarter earnings with Alcoa’s report after the market close. Many investors thought the lowered expectations could be easily beaten causing optimism ahead of the earnings season.

With many traders returning from their extended holiday, the greeting they were met with was a market full of momentum plays that were trading similar to biotech names expecting news.

Solar names have been especially hot over the past few weeks and have recently been joined by other obscure alternate energy names that were once momentum plays in recent summers.

Capstone Turbine Corporation (CPST), Plug Power Inc. (PLUG), Quantum Fuel System Technologies Worldwide (QTWW), Satcon Technology Corp. (SATC), Beacon Power Corporation (BCON), Active Power Inc. (ACPW), Ballard Power Systems Inc. (BLDP), and FuelCell Energy Inc. (FCEL) shares were all up on increased attention. The names have all been momentum plays in past years and all involved in the alternate energy sector through dealing with fuel cell or clean electrical energy technology.

One name that was especially interesting was Hydrogenics Corporation (HYGS). The Company is a developer of clean energy solutions, advancing the hydrogen economy by commercializing hydrogen and fuel cell products. The Company has a portfolio of products and capabilities serving the hydrogen and energy markets of today and tomorrow.

Headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, their operations revolve around three business units- OnSite Generation, Power Systems and Test Systems. Within these business units, there are varying degrees of commercial readiness and this reality impacts many aspects of their operations.

Over the past two months, shares have gone from trading at their cash levels to doubling in value.

In early May the Company was notified that the shares no longer met Nasdaq listing requirements due to their depressed bid price. Following that announcement, the Company reported earnings that were slightly better than estimates. First quarter numbers were revenues of $6.9 million for the first quarter of 2007, a 12% increase from revenues of $6.1 million for the comparable period of 2006. Net loss was $8.3 million for the first quarter of 2007, consistent with the first quarter of 2006. Per share amounts were a loss of 9c versus a loss of 9c beating the estimate for a loss of 10c.

Included in the better than expected earnings report were new initiatives that were expected to cut the Company’s cash burn by a third annually. Also announced was a backlog close to $31 million.

With the summer heat wave affecting much of the continental United States, many of these alternate energy and fuel cell names have seen increased action on the expected subsequent energy shortcomings. Ford also released some interesting news regarding their fuel cell cars which has also shed added legitimacy on the area. With any new government initiatives discussed during this congressional session, the entire area could see even more action. Investors would be wise to watch.



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Knobias ClipReport(7-9-2007)

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The last day of the trading week was very subdued as many were still absent on a long July 4th holiday weekend. Much of the attention was diverted to Microsoft which noted that it would take up to a $1.15 billion charge due to an expanded warranty program because of the number of repairs to their Xbox video game system.

Labor numbers were also reported as the economy added some 132 thousand non farm jobs while the unemployment rate remained constant at 4.5%. The numbers caused some to feel the Fed would watch the unemployment rate very closely into the next meeting because of the eventual effects on inflation.

In merger and acquisition news, news was surfacing that the Chicago Mercantile Exchange holding was increasing its bid for CBOT Holding Inc. for the third time. The deal was to be contemplated by holders over the weekend for an impending vote on Monday as to their decision.

Also over the weekend, the number of weddings planned worldwide was said to be the highest in history. Saturday, which has a numerical date of 07/07/07 or 7/7/07, had many brides feeling the day could be their lucky day.

TheKnot.com, a popular wedding-planning site, was noted as having some 38 thousand weddings registered for 7/7/07 which was three times more than the average number for a Saturday in mid-summer.

One company saw an increase in attention which could spill over into next week’s trading due to the lucky day. LJ International Inc. (JADE) shares, gained over 6% on over 1 million shares traded.

The Company designs, brands, markets, retails and distributes a full range of exquisite jewelry to fine jewelers, department stores, national jewelry chains and electronic and specialty retailers. Their largest line includes the Lorenzo line which is distinguished by its vibrant colors, designs, and craftsmanship.

The Company, which does the majority of its business in China, recently reported that its retail division, ENZO, now has 62 stores open in China. The Company also reiterated its target of having 100 ENZO stores in operation by the beginning of 2008.

ENZO has now opened 20 stores since the start of 2007. Currently, it operates 16 stores in Shanghai, 13 in Beijing, four each in Tianjin, Harbin and Shenyang, three in Hong Kong, two each in Dalian, Ningbo, Changsha, Chengdu and Heifei, and one each in Qingdao, Shijiazhuang, Zhengzhou, Jinan, Wuxi, Chongqing, Macau and Shenzhen. ENZO also noted that it expected to open its second store in Macau at the Venetian Macau Resort in August 2007.

Though the Company hasn’t reported its year end earnings, (it filed an extension for filing their Form 20-F for the latest fiscal year ended December 31, 2006 due in part to the process of changing independent accountants) the Company could be one to watch following the earnings announcement which should be reported before July 16th.

With the number of people worldwide expected to tie the Knot over the weekend, the lucky day could have a material affect on Jade’s numbers especially considering the number of people expected to visit casino’s over the weekend and the Company’s location in one of Macau’s resorts. With the name possessing the summer momentum apparent in many high flying names in a slow overall market, investors would be wise to watch.



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Knobias ClipReport (7-6-2007)

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Thursday’s action was expectedly slow as many in the industry were using vacation days following the July 4th holiday to extend their break through the weekend. Even though fireworks were seen over the holiday, the market seemed to lack the spark to ignite any type of rally with the lowered summer volume.

The largest news piece seemed to be the buyout of Hilton Hotels Corp by Blackstone Group in a reported $26 billion deal. The acquisition continued the private equity buyouts of major names in the market, and of course, following the acquisition, others in the hotel industry subsequently became buyout candidates. Some of the names rumored were Marriot International and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. Needless to say, the hotel arena was the hot sector of the day.

In other merger and acquisition news, Advanced Medical Optics Inc. (EYE) was noted as having bid $75 a share for competitor, Bausch & Lomb Inc. (BOL). Shares of BOL were halted due to the news. Cooper Companies Inc (COO), another competitor in the space, saw its shares surge on the news.

Another name seemed to gain momentum throughout the day following the July 4th holiday. Jones Soda Inc. (JSDA) shares gained over 13% on over 4.8M shares traded. The Company is a producer and distributor of premium beverages and related products.

Many may have recognized their product with the quirky names like Turkey & Gravy and Fufu Berry while waiting in line for coffee at Starbucks. The Company had a deal with Starbucks to distribute the product but that decision was reversed by the coffee maker last month to make room for higher margined salads and sandwiches.

Following that announcement and the Company’s 1st quarter results, the name took a hit. Shares fell from highs in the $32 range to $14 before finding what seemed like a bottom.

The bottom comes at a time when the Company has some new initiatives in place to pick up the slack caused by Starbucks’ decision to drop the drink. Even though the Starbucks deal only accounted for 3% of the Company’s total revenue, the brand awareness was certain to take a hit.

The new initiatives involved some fairly timely and innovative ideas. Last week, The Company reached an agreement with Pharma Foods International Co. and Mitsubishi Corp. which granted the Company exclusive rights to use the Pharma Gaba amino acid in an energy drink line which was expected to be introduced this winter.

As many already know, energy drinks have been all the rage over the last few years following Red Bull’s entry into the market.

Another new initiative was the Company plan to release a new cola and diet cola drink this month, and their new contract with Qwest Field, the home of the National Football League's Seattle Seahawks, to supply it with drinks beginning in August.

The new initiatives should be apparent in the Company’s second quarter earnings which are expected early next month. With the other new initiatives being the Company’s product line now being distributed in higher margin cans, along with a so called “foot in the door” of the NFL, the name is certainly one to follow over the coming quarters. Add to the fact that the name has some impressive momentum and it’s easy to see why investors would be wise to watch.


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Knobias ClipReport (7-5-2007)

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With the shortened trading day, many weren’t expecting much in the name of news or announcements. The market held its gains into the close, rising 40 points on expectedly low volume.

Apple continued to hold many traders attention due to news regarding the margins on iPhones. Some estimates have the 8GB phones creating margins of 55% on the $599 retail price and with 700K phones sold over this past weekend at a conservative $220 dollar profit per phone, Apple presumably made over $154M over the weekend.

With the start of the third quarter, many were looking for new positions after closing out some before the end of the last quarter. The solar sector, along with a few others, had some of the best performing names in the overall market.

One name related to the alternate energy sector that had a stellar second quarter on news that wouldn’t seem to move as much as it did was Beacon Power Corporation (BCON). The Company designs and develops advanced products and services to support stable, reliable and efficient electricity grid operation. Their sustainable energy storage technology has been approved for use in providing frequency regulation services in three of the largest open-bid electricity markets in the U.S.

Shares of the Company have gained almost 100% since late May, running from the 75c range to a high on Tuesday of $1.52.

In early May, BCON reported their first quarter numbers. Revenue was reported at $393,000 and a net loss of $3,090,000, or ($0.05) per share, compared to revenue of $289,000 and a net loss of $2,822,000, or ($0.05) per share, in the first quarter of 2006.

During the first quarter of 2007, Beacon Power incurred costs of $1,660,000 in research and development expense, compared to $1,061,000 in the first quarter of 2006. Research and development expense increased primarily due to increased expenses for development materials, increased headcount-related expenses resulting from hiring of engineering personnel and other expenses to support the continuation of their flywheel development and design of their initial frequency regulation facility.

In early June, the Company announced that the PJM Interconnection, a not-for-profit organization that manages the flow of electricity in the world's largest competitive wholesale electricity market, had approved BCON's flywheel technology for use as a frequency regulation resource in its region.

The flywheel technology benefits companies by allowing for increased market competitiveness, technology diversity, and the potential for reducing CO2 greenhouse gas emissions.

Noted Bill Capp, Beacon Power president and CEO, in the press release, “Beacon Power's flywheel technology has now been qualified by three of the country's five open-bid electricity markets: California, New York, and the PJM Interconnection, which collectively serve more than 100 million electricity users. These approvals give us multiple options for where to build our initial frequency regulation plant in 2008.”

With the efforts of government and activists to clean up and become more efficient in the energy sector, the name could become one to follow over the coming months as they execute their construction of the regulation plant. Investors would be wise to w

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Knobias ClipReport (7-3-2007)

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Monday’s action was the start of the third quarter which also is the beginning of the second half of the year. With second quarter window dressing and losers liquidated, investors were greeted with unexpected strength in the nation’s manufacturing sector and another Monday merger with the $49 billion takeover of Canadian telecom, BCE.

Even though volume was light ahead of the July 4th holiday, the Dow surged to triple digit gains quelling fears that the merger and acquisition activity might be slowing.

In the small cap space, momentum was with 3 names for much of the day.

Local.com Corporation (LOCM) shares added to their extraordinary gains with an additional day of 70% gains before selling off in the closing hour. On Friday, the Company announced that they had been awarded patent number 7,231,405 by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for the process of indexing and retrieving web-related information by geographical location.

The patent covers local search technology related to identifying location information from web documents, indexing that information and making it searchable geographically. In Local.com's commercial implementation of the technology, the search results are ranked by search term, LocalRank score, location prominence, among other factors. The system then extracts, matches, and indexes web pages from the Internet and generates web references where applicable on more than 16 million local businesses listed nationwide on Local.com.

On Monday, the Company announced that they had been awarded an additional patent number 7,200,413 by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for the method of responding to enhanced directory assistance inquiries using various protocols including voice-enabled and SMS systems. The patent also covers an associated referral advertising model, which is designed to monetize those local searches.

The patent covers a system and method for providing businesses with referral advertising opportunities (such as pay-per-click or pay-per-call) utilizing directory assistance and wireless messaging systems. The model enables businesses to receive search leads on a pay-per-referral basis when their listings are included in a set of search results provided to consumers as a result of an enhanced directory assistance inquiry. The results are delivered to consumers via operator assisted calls, messaging systems such as SMS, WAP, automated voice-enabled systems, or any combination of these. Advertiser listings in this model can be organized by location, referral amount paid, and keyword association.

The patents have given rise to many different theories of the next step for the Company. Some have noted a Qualcomm type model, capitalizing from licensing fees if the Company can raise sufficient capital to defend the patents in court. Others have suggested the patents make the Company an acquisition candidate by other behemoths in the search industry.

On Monday, LOCM’s CEO, Heath Clarke was interviewed by a Reuters and noted that he believed the Company was an acquisition candidate and had been approached by many firms including Yellow Page and newspaper publishers. Later on in the afternoon, the CEO said that the comments were misconstrued and that his remarks were general about takeovers and that the Company was not an acquisition candidate.

Either way, investors became very weary about the name following the reports. The comments are almost certainly to draw the ire of those in the SEC with the amount of impact the rhetoric had. Shares were up over 70% before selling off in the last hour with the name only gaining 35%.

Another name which had many riding its momentum was Handheld Entertainment Inc. (ZVUE). The mobile entertainment device Company had many speculating the Company would soon announce a handset with phone capabilities which would rival the recently released iPhone. The rumors were substantiated but the shares had momentum during the day which could parlay in a multi day move.

The other name that seemed to hold many traders’ attention was Think Partnership Inc. (THK). The Company is focused on interactive performance-based marketing and related Internet technologies. They provide a comprehensive and integrated set of scalable and cost-effective marketing solutions for both advertisers and publishers. These solutions increase customer retention and revenues through a diverse set of related marketing channels, including affiliate marketing, click-fraud-protected pay-per-click advertising, lead generation, interactive direct marketing, integrated offline advertising, campaign management, public relations, and branding.

The name was suggested as a value buyout candidate for Microsoft and other larger names because of the recent buyouts of aQuantive by Microsoft, Yahoo’s buyout of Right Media, and Google’s bid for DoubleClick. The deals, which were all under investigation by the FTC for antitrust, leave ValueClick (a $3B market cap company) and Think Partnership (a $200M market cap company) in the industry.

With Think Partnership being the cheaper candidate that also possesses a click fraud prevention technology, the name has been closely associated with the behemoths as possible complementary additions to their recent acquisitions in the space.

In any event, the slow, summer trading sessions leave only a handful of investors trading an even fewer number of names. The culmination is a momentum trading which has been evident in past weeks in Dendreon, Hoku, and many others on negligible news. With ‘momo’ trading in full effect, investors would be wise to follow these names over the coming days.


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Knobias ClipReport (7-2-2007)

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Friday’s action was dominated with news regarding hand held devices. The session, termed ‘Device Day’ by many saw the introduction of Apple’s iPhone and Research in Motion’s superb earnings release. Both stocks performed well while Palm Inc.’s Treo was the loser.

RIMM noted Thursday that its fiscal first-quarter earnings grew 73% due to increased sales and subscriber additions. The Company also announced a 3 for 1 stock split while rival Palm reported a 43% plunge in fiscal fourth-quarter profit amid sharply rising costs.

The new entrant has some worried, namely Palm, but they’ve noted that they won’t dwell on Apple iPhone sales figures. Reasearch in Motion’s Blackberry is more of a corporate device rather than a consumer product and is available in a multitude of countries under many carriers. The iPhone will only be available in the U.S. for now and has a 5 year exclusive agreement with AT&T. It will certainly allow for the carrier to take customers from others, but Blackberry users aren’t expected to switch to the iPhone at a rate as high as other smartphone users.

The initial response from consumers could be to raise awareness of music capable phones. The awareness will evolve into other phone makers developing music solutions for wireless handsets.

The real winner from the introduction of the iPhone could be a different company all together. Smith Micro Software, Incorporated (SMSI) is a developer of innovative communications software for the wireless industry. Their leading-edge mobility products simplify communications access over both Wireless Wide Area Networks (WWANs) and Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs), and their compression technologies such as StuffIt have been established as industry standards.

One of the Company’s main products is software that sounds familiar to anyone who has ever heard of the iPod. The Music Essentials program allows people to download music from the Internet onto their PCs and then zip those tunes over to a handheld device. The difference is that the device is a phone and not an iPod.

The Company already has a deal with Verizon Wireless with the company being the first to release phones with SMSI software. Following that deal in November, the Music Essentials product became the largest for SMSI.

The Company has a multitude of analysts covering the name with 8 having a buy or strong buy rating. The latest, JP Morgan, noted that the iPhone would spur Verizon and Sprint to release competitive phones and ramp up orders for the Company’s media solutions.

With the huge amount of attention the iPhone has received, other carriers are expected to release more phones with the music playing capability in the second half of the year. With that in mind following the Company’s second earnings in the latter part of July, the Company could become a name to follow with the product offering of cellular makers expanding. Investors would be wise to watch.


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Knobias ClipReport (6-28-2007)

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Summer trading has begun as has the summer media menu. With elections still some time away and no one missing or on trial at the moment, the slow season has taken hold of both arenas. Trading has become extremely thin with traders piling into the latest low float, hot name. News headlines have begun to scratch and grasp at anything that could possibly grab national attention.

The latest headlines, whether you like it or not, has been the Paris Hilton saga which will undoubtedly come to a head with a Larry King live interview Wednesday night. With the first interview since being released from jail, though being completely absurd, will make national headlines and be the talk of many in media during Thursday.

This aspect gives way to the latest theory of celebrity trading. Hilton has been firmly entrenched as spokesman and marketer of Parlux Fragrances Inc. (PARL). The Company is engaged in the creation, design, manufacture, distribution and sale of prestige fragrances and beauty related products marketed primarily through specialty stores, national department stores and perfumeries on a worldwide basis.

Hilton, who has a signature line of fragrances, lotions, and watches marketed by the Company, could cause a movement in the stock if there is mention of the Company’s products.

Parlux shares on Wednesday saw an increase in interest on news that the Company had signed a global licensing agreement with Jessica Simpson to launch her signature fragrance which will debut in July 2008. Shares were up 7.5% on the news and were possibly helped by early entrants hoping for price spikes due to the Hilton interview.

Another public company was also in the news which could have an effect on its share value. World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) which last week staged the death of founder/chairman, Vince McMahon, was struck by tragedy when former wrestling champion, Chris Benoit, was involved in the murder and subsequent suicide of his family.

The Company, which came under fire from the staged death of Vince, was now under even more scrutiny following the latest wrestler’s death. The athletes involved in the sport have long been suspected of illegal steroid use and painkillers to help them look and perform their best on one of the most grueling schedules in all of sports and entertainment.

More scrutiny could come about if the toxicology reports on Benoit show steroids were in his system at the time of the tragedy. Ratings could suffer while advertisers move their business from WWE to other time slots or television stations all together. Congressional hearings could also come about, which in itself is incredible they haven’t happened already with the number of wrestler deaths related to the performance enhancer especially considering Major League Baseball’s recent cleanup.

Donald Trump’s name has also been in the limelight. The reality television star and real estate mogul’s company Trump Entertainment Resorts (TRMP) has been reportedly put up for sale. Dennis Gomes and Morris Bailey are bidding on the Company and have noted that the talks are progressing.

Trump has been noted as saying that he will not accept anything lower than the low $20’s for the Company which owns and operates three casino hotel properties in Atlantic City, New Jersey: Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort, Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino and Trump Marina Hotel Casino. Morgan Stanley, the largest shareholder, noted that it would not consider anything below $17 a share.

Gomes and Bailey along with Bear Stearns have noted that $11 a share was a reasonable offer considering the circumstances hampering the casino’s profitability. The valuation could impede the sale which is already seen as a having a remote chance by many investors.

In any event, the latest media headlines have given traders opportunities to capitalize. With Hilton’s interview, shares of Parlux have a considerable chance to build on Wednesday’s move. WWE shares could continue to come under pressure with further information regarding the recent tragedy and possible reform, while Trump’s latest casino sale might cause someone to get fired. These headlines are certainly some that investors would be wise to watch.

Knobias ClipReport (6-27-2007)

Submitted from Knobias ClipReport.

Additional home price data was released that displayed what has come to be expected: home prices were falling. The surprise was that prices fell at their fastest rate in 16 years.

Another large piece of news was Apple’s pricing plans with AT&T regarding their iPhone set for release this month. Shares fell sharply after the announcement which was seen as being a bit high when adding the already high price of the phone itself.

In the small cap arena, solar plays were the highlight of the day, once again, with Hoku Scientific and Daystar Technologies being on the radar of many traders. The names saw large gains on heavy volume days though volume seemed to dry up after the noon hours which could be reason to believe their rallies could be decelerating.

Another name which caught some eyes was Tubearoo Inc. (TUBR). The shares were up over 30c, before falling 86c in intraday trade. Much of the volatility was speculated as being caused by a promotional email campaign which was halted. The name is a textbook example of the infamous pump and dump scam.

The Company, which doesn’t file with the SEC, has a YouTube like site with video content and a Digg.com like site with viewer rated worldwide news. Though the sites seem to be knockoffs of the originals, the Company does claim to have launched a mobile video providing service which it noted was in beta version.

An additional name which caught the eye was Orexigen Therapeutics Inc. (OREX). The Company is a biopharmaceutical focused on the development and commercialization of pharmaceutical products for the treatment of central nervous system disorders, with an initial focus on obesity.

The Company’s lead combination product candidates targeted for obesity are Contrave, which is in a Phase III clinical trial, and Empatic (formerly Excalia), which is in a Phase IIb clinical trial.

Orexigen has focused its clinical development programs on drug combinations that it expects will generate weight loss and attenuate, or limit the effect of, the pathways in the brain that prevent extended weight loss. The Company’s combination approach contrasts with most currently approved weight loss drug therapies, which utilize a single active ingredient and have typically shown early weight loss followed by a plateau after several months of treatment.

On Monday, the Company announced inclusion into the Russell 2000 Index which could give it a wider investor base which includes institutions as many have Russell 2000 inclusion as a requirement of potential investments.

With the recent news regarding data from a sub-study of its Phase IIb multi- center clinical trial of Contrave, the name could see some increased action over coming days. The data demonstrated robust improvements in both visceral fat and insulin resistance which was a major worry from some investors as the FDA’s heightened requirements are for a loss of visceral fat and not lean body mass. With more information expected on the candidates in the third quarter, the young name could be one to follow over the coming months. Investors would be wise to watch.

Knobias ClipReport (6-26-2007)

Submitted from Knobias ClipReport.

Monday’s session saw home sales numbers reach four year lows and inventory numbers of previously owned homes reach their highest levels in 15 years. The summation was a bleak look for housing over the coming months.

The morning hours of trading saw the market begin the week in a green fashion before abruptly turning about face in the noon hours and ending the day moderately in the red. Much of the losses were attributed to market data which was set to be released during Tuesday’s session. Also contributing was continued unrest from the brokers stemming from subprime losses.

In the small cap arena, solar names were the focus of many traders with one name in particular displaying strong momentum over the weekend. Hoku Scientific Inc. (HOKU) shares gained over 27% on over 32M shares traded.

Another name in the sector also had a fairly heavy day in trading though not near the volume. Daystar Technologies (DSTI) shares gained 31% on only 1.6M shares.

On Thursday, the Company released an 8-K detailing a bridge loan financing agreement in which it secured $4 million to continue operations while it searched for an additional $25 million to ramp up production.

The $25 million financing was noted as possibly being equity derived which would seem to be a negative to investors looking for possible investments in the solar arena.

The Company, which makes thin film solar cells, was planning on moving their headquarters to California from New York. Some of the money expected to be raised in the equity deal was noted as to be used in the move.

Even though the raising of equity financing could be considered a positive for the name, terms would have to be good with the number of shares being issued as low as possible to limit the amount of dilution.

But the large amount of financing could be a fairly tall order since the Company lost $20 million last year, and even in its initial public offering only raised around $8 million. Also of note was that the Company was currently able to use $1.5 million of the bridge financing loan proceeds. If there is no continuing event of default the Company would be able to use another $1.2 million 30 days after June 15, 2007.

Speculation suggested that if the Company wasn’t close to securing the $25 million in equity financing that the remaining $2.5 million in bridge financing wouldn’t be available for use.

Add to the fact that the Senate Finance committee recently proposed an Energy Incentive Bill that was considered by many to be a bit modest, and one can see the uphill battle this name could face in the coming months.

With a positive outcome to the equity financing deal as well as a successful transition into the new headquarters along with the construction of the new 25 megawatt production line in California, and the name could become one to watch in this highly speculative solar arena. Investors would be wise to watch.