Monthly Archives: September 2005

Another excellent resource for investment information for Alternative/Clean/Green investing is Clean Break. If you haven't added Tyler's blog to your RSS aggregator, then you should. I point this out since there is a very interesting snippet in one of his recent posts about future projections for investment by the VC community. Cleantech Venture Network released its latest data on cleantech investing. In the second quarter of 2005 investments in cleantech grew to $369 million (U.S.), up 9 per cent from the first quarter. In the first half of 2005, investments have jumped 21 per...

The Motley Fool finally had something good to say about an alternative energy stock. It just so happens to be for one I purchased earlier this morning. Don't look now, but Energy Conversion Devices might just prove to be that rare bird an alternative energy play with actual products and a reasonable chance of living up to lofty investor expectations. ... It would appear to me that hybrid vehicle batteries are the biggest near-term opportunity. Although the company didn't specify the customers, it has acknowledged receiving production orders for battery packs. They say that...

Energy Conversion Devices Inc (ENER) opened up trading this morning with a gap down to the $33 level. For the last hour it has been steadily rising up from this point. As I said in my earlier post, I have been looking for a good entry point in this company and feel that the near term support of $33 is an ideal area to place an order. The stock has been on a run for several months and it is always hard to take a new position in a stock that has already seen dramatic increases...

Toyota said it's aiming to increase hybrid production by 60 percent in 2006 and will cut costs and prices to make them more affordable. "In the future, the cars you see from Toyota will be 100 percent hybrid,'' Toyota Executive Vice President Kazuo Okamoto said in Frankfurt, declining to give a time for achieving the target. "We believe that in 10 years the world will be filled with hybrids.''

Energy Conversion Devices Inc (ENER) announced quarterly results on Monday. They beat Wall Street expecations with a less than expected loss, but did not meet sales estimates. They posted a loss of $6.9 million, or 23 cents per share, for the three months ended June 30, compared with a year-ago loss of $11.5 million, or 44 cents per share. The company's loss from continuing operations was 22 cents per share. Wall Street estimates on the loss were 26 cents a share. The stock is currently trading down over 4% in pre-market trading. I have been looking for a...

The alternative energy investing stories continue to be written. The most recent was published on Sunday by the NY Times. This article specifically mentions Evergreen Solar, DayStar Technologies, Energy Conversion Devices and Spire, and SunPower. "The solar market is projected to grow 35 percent a year for the next three to five years," said Walter V. Nasdeo, managing director of Ardour Capital, an investment bank in New York that specializes in energy companies. "As these technologies get better, we're seeing things being developed like solar panels integrated into roofing tiles. That way, they don't look like a...

Quantum Fuel Systems Technologies Worldwide Inc (QTWW) is currently down over 11% today on the release of its Q1 earnings reports. The loss of 15 cents a share was greater than expected and almost double its last years quarter loss of 8 cents a share. In yesterdays earnings press release the company attributes the shortfall to lower sales and the incorporation of the recent acquisition of Tecstar Automotive. Although we reported significant revenue growth during the first quarter due to the Tecstar acquisition, we did experience a shortfall in development program revenue. The costs of revenues,...

DayStar Technologies Inc (DSTI) has been on my radar for some time and the recent operational update created some renewed interest in the company. The stock traded up nicely over the past couple of days and it is now trading back down to the near term support due to some profit taking on the news. I have been looking for a good entry point on this stock and I feel like today is the day to make the move. Technically, the downside of this stock is that it may not be able to hold its currently levels and could...

Hydrogenics Corp (HYGS) is a developer of fuel cell technology and hydrogen generation. They are also working with wind farm technology in the generation of hydrogen. Back in January of this year they successfully completed the purchase of Stuart Energy which compliments their product portfolio. Shares of the stock have been under pressure for the last couple of months due to missed expectations on Q1 revenue results. There is also some major concern about an increase in product backlog. In August, HYGS issued their most recent quarterly earnings and are attempting to reassure the...

Chartoftheday.com always has some interesting charts and information. This was today's. You will see that on an inflation adjusted basis, we are near the all time high for gas prices.

I finally got around to setting up a virtual mutual fund at Marketocracy.com. This virtual fund gives me 1 million in play money to prove my worth. If they like what they see, they will set up a real fund. Just like every real mutual fund you need to setup an investment charter and style. They will report on performance once you have maintained the mutual fund compliance rules. In a nutshell they are as follows: No position can exceed 25% of your total portfolio value.Half your portfolio must be comprised of positions under 10% each.Your cash...

Lighting Science Group Corp. (LSGP.OB) has been on my watchlist for several months. They design and market energy efficient lighting solutions with long lasting LED bulbs that can be quickly deployed in existing lighting applications and produce immediate cost savings and environmental benefits. Some key events that have attracted me to this company: They recently moved to the OTC BB off the pink sheets.They recently received a private placement of almost $7 millionAfter a several year absence they are finally a fully reporting companyThey are currently far from being profitable, but the trend on the balance sheet is...

Dr. John Tuttle, Chairman and CEO of DayStar Technologies Inc (DSTI) released a very extensive operational update detailing fundamental progress that has been made by DayStar over the past several months. "Since my last communication of this nature, we have made great progress towards establishing our first product-based revenue opportunities and have announced two new exciting customer relationships. Specifically, on June 9, 2005, we reported signing a purchase agreement with Blitzstrom, GmbH, a PV system integrator of Megawatt-scale PV power plants and a distributor of photovoltaic systems and components in Germany and the EU. This agreement, which could...

Electro Energy Inc (EEEI) announced receipt of a $1,050,000 contract with the U.S. DoE for the further development of its Bipolar Nickel Metal Hydride energy storage battery. These 2nd generation prototype test units, rated from 150 Volts, 20AHr to 500 Volts, 6AHr, will be constructed and tested at EEEI, and subsequently delivered to Sandia for further testing. Units of this size have potential applications for utility, wind, solar and customer side load regulation and back up power. This stock has been in a long term down trend and this contract was a much needed win to...

I'm continuing to make changes to the site behind the scenes.One major change that I'm going to institute is to provide greater transparency in my own Alt E portfolio. The goal of this change is not for ego but to prove that this sector can be profitable for your portfolio. In future posts you will see everything, the winners, the losers, and also the what and why of each investment decision. This was one of the most frequent requests made by many website visitors. The news stories will be fewer and more focused. This will give me more time...

Green Car Congress has an excellent writeup about the recently announced Honda 2005 Civic Hybrid. Compared to the 2005 Civic Hybrid, the 2006 model with the new IMA is 18% more powerful than its predecessor while delivering a combined EPA estimated fuel economy of 50 mpg US compared to 47–48 mpg US of the 2005 hybrid. The new IMA also adds the ability to cruise only under the power of the electric motor. Honda Motor Co (HMC) has been playing catchup with Toyota in the hybrid marketplace and they are looking strong with this new offering....