Two firms are upgrading Visa (NYSE:V) today:- Piper Jaffray upgrades V to Buy saying they believe this very high-quality franchise should be oninvestors' short list of stocks to own through this economic cycle. Firm is comfortable with Visa's earnings power through this cycle and over the long-term, despite financial/economic uncertainty in the markets and dollar strength; Visa's intrinsic value will continue to grow at a very attractive rate for many years to come.Pullback in the share price, even with yesterday's recovery, has greatly improved the risk/reward, in our view, creating an attractive entry point for long-term investors; shares trading at 21x calendar '09 est. of $2.76.Buffers against economic slowdown: debit (35% of pay. vol), non-U.S. & non-Europe pay. vol, new products, margin expansion on scale, op. leverage. Reducing fiscal '09/'10 EPS estimates from $2.77/$3.26 to $2.66/$3.22 on slower payments volume growth forecast.Tgt ...

Hello Friends!  Thanks so much for stopping by and visiting my blog, Stock Picks Bob’s Advice! As always, please remember that I am an amateur investor, so please remember to consult with your professional investment advisers prior to making any investment decisions based on information on this website.

Earlier this morning, my Copart (CPRT) stock hit an appreciation target of a 30% gain triggering a partial sale of 1/7th of my position or 30 shares which were sold at $43.80/share.  This represented a gain of $10.08/share or 29.9% since purchase.  The shares were initially acquired 9/27/07 at a cost basis of $33.72/share.

As you may know, I use sales like today’s sale as a ’signal’ to buy an additional position if I am under my maximum of 20 positions.  Since, after yesterday’s sale of ResMed (RMD), I …

S&P has tried and failed to overcome the 1400 level consistently over the last couple of months. Today, it overcame 1400 for a bit only to fall back. in fact, as I write this, the rally that has lasted most of the day has completely evaporated and S&P is now lower on the day. For the last week, I have looked at my holdings again and again wondering if I should sell my long positions or trim down. Many of my stocks have been steady and forming nice bottoms or bases (Omniture, Marchex) and some have just been going up at any sign of a broader market rally. Visa, Potash, RIMM, Apple and Nintendo have all weathered the pull backs exceptionally well and I am torn whether to hold on and ride out the bear or to sell and buy at lower levels. But then I have never been good ...