Forget Charles Dickens and A Tale Of Two Cities, I’m talking about right now. After all, when was the last time the U.S. government was willing to give you as much as $4,500 to help you buy a new car . . . and a car company was willing to match it? Also, when was the last time you remember house prices falling 30%?

The story goes that the word “depression” was chosen by President Hoover as a way of describing the economic crisis of the 1930s, because the previously used word “panic” sounded too alarming. Well, with unemployment approaching double digits, and home foreclosures at the highest rate in memory, most Americans are a little depressed right now. But the flip side of the coin is that companies are scrambling to stay in business, and providing consumers (at least the ones who have some loose change left to spend)

...

Shares of Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL) surged approximately 17% today after the airline's first-quarter loss bettered Wall-Street expectations.

The airline said its loss per share, excluding items, came in at 84 cents, compared to the consensus' estimate for a 99-cent loss.

Delta, which acquired Northwest Airlines in October last year, said revenue grew 40% on a GAAP basis, but declined 15% on a combined basis. Meanwhile, capacity witnessed a reduction of 6% year-over-year during the quarter.

Despite the loss, CFO Hank Halter said, "We continue to project a profit for the year, as well as grow our unrestricted liquidity to more than $6 billion by the end of the year."

Delta also announced a $50 fee from international travelers who check a second bag in an effort to counter a deepening recession. This initiative is expected to generate $100 million annually. Moreover, the airline will ground its

...

Customer service calls can be an aggravating experience. Pushing buttons and getting lost in an automated system is not a new experience for most consumers. But when a person stops to consider the volume of interactions for a moment, the complexity of the issue becomes apparent. Customer service is a major portion of the world’s economy today and it appears to be getting bigger with each passing moment. An investor that can find a company which takes advantage of this complex and confusing customer service dance is an investor that may find solid long term profit.

KANA Software Inc., a customer service software developer, marketer and integrator, works to assess company customer services requirements and provide software solutions. The company assesses company needs across the entire spectrum of electronic customer service response/interactions, including e-mail, voice and personal contacts.

The company offers software products to achieve more efficient and productive interactions with a

...

Harbinger CapitalHarbinger Capital | 13F Hedge Fund HoldingsThis post is being written as part of HedgeFundBlogger.com’s Investment Securities Tool which analyzes the holdings of hedge fund managers.Harbinger Capital is a $13.8 Billion firm ran by Philip Falcone. Taken from StreetInsider, Harbinger is “a disciplined, value investor with an emphasis on intensive credit research. Its focus is on middle market companies that tend to be misunderstood or under-researched by the market. Investment approaches include:Restructuring/Bankruptcy, Turnaround, Liquidation, Event Driven, Capital Structure Arbitrage, Short Sale and Special Situations.” At one point during this year, they were up as much as 42% (more on that below).So, now that we’ve got a background on Harbinger Capital, let’s …

Thoratec Corp (THOR) has been climbing steadily, up more than 15% since being featured as a Zacks Rank Buy on August 14th. The stock is still has a #1 and excellent fundamentals.

Company Description

Thoratec Corporation provides cardiac support devices for use by patients with acute or chronic heart failure. Some of the products will pump blood through the heart for prolonged periods of time in the event of cardiac arrest.

The company is headquartered in Pleasanton, California, employs more than 1,000 people internationally, and carries a market cap of $1.36 billion.

Solid Estimates

The full-year consensus estimate for 2008 is 38 cents per share, projecting a 121% gain over last years 17 cents. Thoratec's 5 year growth rate is now 26.7%, which should out pace the industry average of 19.3%.

The Chart

Shares of THOR surged through $21.25,

...

ZACKS RANK BUY STOCKS   Track Zack’s picks at:

http://trackthepros.com/stocks/category/229

* Aggressive Growth - Delta Airlines, Inc. (DAL) is on the verge of a very lucrative merger with Northwest Airlines.     * Growth & Income - Fluor Corporation (FLR) saw analysts raise full-year 2008 earnings estimates from the two months-ago level of $3.29 per share to $3.58.   * Momentum - Astronics Corp.'s (ATRO) share price has recently rallied in response to the company's solid second-quarter results and optimistic outlook.   * Value - Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (LECO) is seeing its overseas business beef up profits as the weakened dollar boosted exports by 28.6%  

With oil trading so low, just about any of the airline stocks could be a great bounce play and the Masters favorite, JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU).  JBLU shares are up 6% today and once we get some calm back in the ...

Delta Airlines, Inc. (DAL) is on the verge of a very lucrative merger with Northwest Airlines. The carrier's international expansion strategy is working as analysts estimates have been rising. Delta is now the fastest growing major carrier in the United States.

Company Description

Delta Air Lines is an international airline with more destinations than any other global carrier. The company offers flights to approximately 311 cities in 52 countries. Delta added 60 new international flights in the past year, making it the fastest growing U.S. airline. The company employs more than 55,000 people, carries a market cap of $2.6 billion, and his headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

Advisors Recommend Delta-Northwest Merger

On September 15th Delta announced that proxy advisors recommended Delta shareholders should vote for the proposed all-stock merger with Northwest Airlines. If the merger is approved by shareholders, the

...

Orbitz Worldwide (OWW) plan on offering 39.1 million shares at a range of $16-$18. Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and Lehman are lead managing the deal