With all the talk of stocks being overvalued due to the massive rally we've seen since March, you'd think there'd be almost no dirt cheap stocks. You know what I'm talking about. I mean really cheap. Stocks with single digit P/Es and price-to-book ratios well under 1.0.

But what if I told you that there's one sector where there's not just one dirt cheap stock, but many of them. And as an added bonus, these dirt cheap stocks also have a Zacks Rank of #1 or #2, which means they have rising earnings estimates.

Too good to be true?

Nah. You just have to know where to look.

Dirt Cheap Stocks are Not the Techs

To find the dirt cheap stocks in this market you have to get over your obsession with tech stocks, energy plays and, as hard as it is, even the drybulk shippers.

Because our dirt

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BlackRock's veteran CIO believes this rally can last. But he warns that growth will likely be slow, with some sectors doing better than others.

 

Bob Doll has been chief investment officer of global equities at BlackRock Inc. since 2006. Before that he served in several portfolio management and executive investment positions with Merrill Lynch. Starting in 1999, he became chief investment officer of equities at Merrill Lynch Investment Management Americas. He later was promoted to co-head of that unit and senior vice president at Merrill Lynch. 

During a recent pause in market activity, IndexUniverse.com's Murray Coleman talked to the BlackRock CIO about his take on various sectors and asset classes.  

 

IU.com: Do you think this rally has legs?

Doll: Yes, over time. But it's not going to follow a one-way path heading straight up. There will be some rallies followed by some pullbacks—a lot of volatility still remains in

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ETF Deathwatch In '09

Tom Petruno of the Los Angeles Times notes that about 60 exchange-traded funds were closed in 2008, a big increase from past years. The articles says that only five ETFs were shuttered from 2003-2007.

He talks to Ron Rowland, who serves as chief investment officer at Capital Cities Asset Management. He also publishes newsletters advocating momentum-based trading strategies using stocks, ETFs and other types of funds. In any case, he has formulated his own ETF Deathwatch List, which enters 2009 with 97 ETFs and 42 exchange-traded notes included.

His list is calculated based on average daily volumes, among other factors. You can read the story here. 

 

Energy ETFs Rebounding

This article in Barron's by Michael Kahn takes a look at ETFs such as the Sector Select SPDR Energy ETF (XLE) and the Market Vectors-Coal ETF (KOL), which are starting to attract more assets and look better

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Despite severe economic turmoil, demand for oil is rising significantly—in fact, it will land somewhere in the range of $150 to $157, according to Roger Wiegand, editor of Trader Tracks. In this exclusive interview with The Energy Report, Wiegand takes a close look at the untamed commodities bull and names some of his favorite buys.

The Energy Report: How does you think oil will play out in current economic scenario?

Roger Wiegand: The big sell-off during the past month or two was triggered when the funds bailed out. Roughly 50% of the CRB—the commodities index—is in oil. When oil moves, it moves the index. The sell-off brought oil down from a high of $147 to roughly $90. It bounced back up to $108 to $110; $108.50 is a good support and resistance level for oil today. The next price up should be $112.50, then $122.50, followed by a couple of more …