Out Fox The $treet

Exxon Mobil continues to boost net debt levels in order to pay massive dividends. The energy giant continues to cut investing in the future in order to pay an 8.3% yield while watching the stock collapse. The stock isn't investable until the company cuts the dividend at least 50% similar to BP. After another quarter of massive amounts of cash exiting the balance sheet in favor of debt,  Exxon Mobil  ( XOM ) investors should want the energy giant to consider cutting the dividend. The biggest issue is that the company can't afford to correctly invest in the future with the massive dividend overhang. My  negative investment thesis  continues to project the stock having less value due to $15 billion in annual payouts causing irrational asset sales and volatile capital spending decisions that hurt investors. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha.  Disclosure: No position mentioned. Please read the disclaimer page for more details. 

n a market constantly claimed to be overvalued, the major oil exploration and production firms provide attractive valuations. Not only are global energy prices at highs, with Brent crude hovering near $110, but several catalysts also exist to keep prices high going forward. Chevron ( NYSE: CVX     ) is a prime example of a strong E&P firm with a solid dividend and numerous large-scale projects ready to usher in growth. Read the full article here . Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more details. 

After a recent weak earnings report and numerous analyst downgrades, shares of MRC Global ( NYSE: MRC     ) did something remarkable. Instead of collapsing even further after the initial 15% plunge, the company's stock started heading back up. Such a scenario is a signal that the analysts were too focused on the short-term problems and not the long-term potential. MRC Global is a distributor of pipe, valve, and fitting (PVF) products and services to the energy and industrial markets. The company is working on capturing a larger share of global spending from energy companies that heavily rely on their products and services domestically. Read the full article here . Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please read the disclaimer page for more details.

Over the last few years, ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP ) was a huge buyer of its own stock. Unfortunately for investors the company has suddenly stopped buying the stock over the last two quarters. Should investors hold onto the stock if the company isn’t buying any more? After the spin-off of the refining business, Phillips 66 , last year, the company is now a leading independent oil and gas producer. The stock more » Disclosure: Long COP. Please review the disclaimer page for more details. 

Today's trading was all about clarity. Though the market started weak and it appeared that the 200EMA was going to become major resistance, all of the troubles in this market seemed to clear up within hours. First, BP caps the well and stops the oil from gushing into the gulf. This will improve confidence assuming of course it continues to work and passes numerous pressure tests. Second, Congress passed a Financial Regulation bill that lacks true to punishing power to the industry. While not a bullish bill by any means, its at least done and alot less harmful then feared. Third, Goldman Sachs (GS) settled with the SEC on fraud charges. The fine was only $550M which was considerably less then feared. With GS being such a market leader, this settlement will unleash the stock and one of the leaders that has held the market down since mid April. The clarity on these subjects along with news overnight that China has been successful in slowing down the economy from torrid growth is also ...

With all the focus on BP, everybody has forgotten the damage done to the stock of Massey Energy (MEE) after the explosion at the Upper Big Branch Mine (UBB) in early April. MEE might be thankful for the attention focused on BP, but the stock price hasn't come close to recovering. All mining stocks are down over the last couple months so its not as though MEE has been harshly punished just for the explosion but it is down significantly more then industry leader Peabody Energy (BTU). The difference between MEE and BP and what interests us in the stock is that they've made several brilliant moves even in the face of the tragedy. MEE is working to enhance shareholder value while BP hopes to keep shareholder value from completely collapsing. While the CEO of BP can't seem to catch a break, the CEO of MEE has made numerous moves that benefit his company. The damage to MEE seems to be in the past and recently they've done a decent job showing that the government is possibly re...

Interesting comments by a UTEP professor regarding the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. First I've really heard about the natural seepage of oil into the worlds oceans that tiny microbs eat on a regular basis. Not that I'm any where close to an expert on oil spills, but it was non the less interesting to hear from an expert that this spill isn't the catastrophe that all claim endlessly on the news channels. It might also explain why we've yet to see much damage or impact from the oil spill other then relents fear from the media.

With the crazy market of the last year, it's been difficult to focus on the Net Payout Yield stocks in our portfolios. The Net Payout Yield is the combination of the payout from a dividend and any stock buyback divided by the market cap of a stock. A lot of mutual funds, ETFs, and advisors focus on the values of investing in dividends, but not many focus on companies that buyback stock. Stock buybacks are more efficient ways for increasing the value of your portfolio, but more people seem to like getting the cash directly even if its less tax efficient. While getting cash can be important to clients, the total return usually rules investment decisions and the Net Payout Yield has proven to be a much better investing philosophy. Unfortunately this last year has made it difficult to pick such companies with so many of them cutting back stock buybacks to conserve liquidity and many financials eliminating dividends. One of the better investments in our Net Payout Yield portfolio has b...