Out Fox The $treet

Mitcham Industries or MIND supplies rental or new seismic equipment to the oil and gas industry, seismic contractors, government agencies and universities. It also manufactures specialized seismic equipment through its Seamap brand. Have never heard of this company before, but I was just blown away by the results reported after hours today. MIND reported earnings of $.52 versus and estimate of only $.22. It also reported 40% revenue growth to a record of $28M. Beating estimates by 150% is very impressive. The other impressive number was that leasing revenue jumped 116%. Not being familiar with this sector I can't provide much in the way of opinion other than the stock is benefitting from the boom in demand for higher resolution 3D imaging in the shale plays and increased utilization in Latin America. Is this just the start for MIND? Does it have a recently developed competitive advantage? Don't know, but would love to hear from any readers. Details on the quarter: ...

Forbes has a fascinating story about Chesapeake Energy CEO Aubrey McClendon. His risk taking has made Chesapeake Energy (CHK) into the 2nd biggest producer of natural gas in the US and the largest land owner in the prolific shale plays in the US. Unfortunately his level of risk taking has made investors shy away from the stock. Reading the detailed Forbes article makes a normal investors head spin. All the joint ventures, hedging, VPPs, and oil services make it very complex for an investor to understand the risks involved in an investment which will likely depress the stock in the future. As skeptics point out, this all sounds eerily close to Enron though probably not fair. CHK is just the opposite in that it is actually hedging and selling production it owns. Building up land positions in shale areas and selling a portion for a profit is very smart. Sure beats the majors sitting around and missing the opportunity completely. What actually scares me is that McClendon appears a l...

CNBC has a little article on this ratio going back nearly 20 years. The ratio historically averages in the 6-8 range and anything outside that range suggests that one commodity has moved to much or the other is lagging. When ratio hits a 20 year high its something to take note of. Basically the use of oil is now so much more then natural gas that anybody possibly able to switch will whether using compressed natural gas in vehicles or such which in turn helps rebalance the price ratio. It's important to note that the crossover of use is very limited. Natural Gas is a domestic fuel not widely transported beyond the borders of the US. Any pickup in demand will have to come from the US and the growth in compressed natural gas being delivered to the US has increased the worry that pressure will exist on prices. Oil on the other is a global product where the prices are determined by the demand in China and Europe and the US. Supply can also be more impacted by political issues in OPEC o...