Fertilizer Stocks: Our Favorite Space to Trade

It was just about 10 months ago when Jill Malandrino and I put together an article on the fertilizer group, our best idea for 2012. We followed up with a webinar a few months later detailing our trade ideas (check out the link below). For the most part they did NOT disappoint, the group having performed far better than the SPX 500 and in the top 10% of other sector performers. Of course, this is not the sexiest group - this is not Apple (AAPL), Ralph Lauren (RL), Google (GOOG) or even McDonalds (MCD). However, we don't really care much about looking good (or smelling good for that matter -- fertilizers have a very heavy stench), rather it's about finding the best ideas that make us money. Fertilizer names have been strong in 2012 (and there is probably more to come before year end) and we look for that performance to continue in 2013.

The big news early summer of course was the weather. Severe drought conditions caught farmers off guard and crippled an already tight crop of grains. Corn levels ended at multi-year lows while soybean and wheat prices were elevated due to low inventory levels. The rains came later in the summer courtesy of some hurricanes but it was too late to make a difference. Farmers with any decent crop at all will get top dollar - corn reached near record highs over the summer. We expect to see farmers plant heavily into the 2013 season and hopefully they will see a better climate. ...355 more words left in this article. To read them, just click below and try Real Money FREE for 14 days.

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