Bad news matters and so does good news, when it comes to the direction of stock prices. So do the intentions and operations of the market mover and "specialists", who are also called "market makers".

But what makes a stock "cheap" or "under-valued"? In the past it had something to do with the ratio between the current price of the stock and the earnings of the company that the stock represented.

An article on today's Yahoo! Finance site referred to an article in the Wall Street Journal titled, "The Decline of the P/E Ratio" and it makes some great points and begs some important questions.

Respected Economic Research Firm Among
Fastest-Growing Private Businesses in America

Stowe, VT—Renowned investment newsletter firm Casey Research has been named to the prestigious Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing, privately held companies in America. The annual list published by Inc. magazine is determined by a company’s revenue and growth.

“Casey Research has experienced tremendous growth since its inception, and the current economy has not changed that. As investors grapple with a difficult markets and unheard-of economic conditions, more and more of them are taking control of their own investment strategies,” said Olivier Garret, CEO of Casey Research. 

“With a team of skilled economists and analysts who travel the world looking for undervalued investment opportunities, Casey Research presents analysis of economic trends that allows our subscribers to make intelligent decisions.”

"More often than not, the Labor Day weekend has marked the end of the traditional summer rally. If the Market has started to decline in August, the month of September usually sees an acceleration of that decline. Despite the plurality of August advances in Presidential election years, “the month of September has shown a plurality of declines in Presidential election years”.

“September is the record pivot month with the historical accent on “bear” Market starts (bull Market peaks)”. Again, caution in September to be justified depends on the previous trend of the Market. “The month is not to be feared if a major low has been recorded within the previous twelve months”. “Bull” Market peaks were recorded during this month in 1912, 1929, and 1939."

Written by Richard Wendling on his site, "The Bear Facts Specialist Report" which we recommend you familiarize yourself with http://www.bearfactsspecialistreport.com/stock_market_timing.htm

Gold's price is "probably" suppressed surreptitously by the Federal Reserve, U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, remarked today in an interview with Daniela Cambone of Kitco News.

Seeming to refer to GATA, with which he has had regular contact in recent years, Paul told Kitco News in regard to gold price manipulation:

"I am not the one to lay out proof of this. Others have done a lot of investigation. One of the reasons I don't dwell on that is they are not going to listen to us. But I think it is very important somebody talks about it and emphasizes it just as a warning to be careful. You don't have to only anticipate what the markets are doing, but you have to anticipate what the government is doing."

First, I confess that I went to see the movie, even though I was certain it was going to be a "Chick-Flick"---a.k.a.--Mainly for a Female Audience.

Boy (excuse the male pun) was I wrong! This is a movie that men can learn a lot from, especially if they are already fathers and have a family or thinking of starting one.

Which leads to the question posed in an interesting article I read today. According to one of my favorite "Green" web sites, there just may be a powerful "green" message to this movie, and it gave me  some "food (organic) for thought".

Stocks sank for a fourth straight day after another disappointing report on housing deepened worries that the economic recovery could be fading. Bonds rallied and yields fell as investors sought out more stable investments.

The Dow dipped briefly below 10,000 for the first time in seven weeks and has now lost 375 points since its four-day slump began last Thursday. The yield on the two-year Treasury note reached another record low as cautious investors fled fearfully into the bond market.