Speculative (Third-Liners) Stock Picks for 2015

James Ryan Jonas

If you checked out our post about the Biggest PSE Stock Gainers in 2014, you’ll notice that majority of the best performers are so-called Speculative or Third-Liner stocks.

Last year’s top gainer, for instance, was Premium Leisure Corp. (PLC) which ended the year with a whopping 675% price increase. That’s not just doubling your money — that’s actually turning a P10,000 investment into P77,500!

(PLC is a casino license holder in the booming Entertainment City in Pasay that houses various casinos. Backed by the SM Group of Companies, PLC is one of the companies behind the newly-launched City of Dreams Manila integrated resort and casino.)

Top 10 PSE Stocks Gainers in 2014

RankStock CodeCompany Name% Gains in 2014Highest Price in 2014Lowest Price in 2014
1PLCPremium Leisure Corp.674.55%2.280.27
2ISIsland Info662.50%0.820.034
3RPLiRipple494.23%8310
4CATCentral Azucarera de Tarlac457.50%14815
5MAXSMax's Group225.17%687.25
6NIKLNickel Asia213.16%48.9515
7CMTSoutheast Asia Cement166.02%4.20.96
8DNLDNL Industries156.70%17.146.3
9DDDoubleDragon Properties150.00%10.962.4
10CICConcepcion Industrial Corp.124.05%50.0516.54

Those who invested in other speculative stocks above such as Island Information and Technology Inc. (IS), Nickel Asia Corp. (NIKL), and Southeast Asia Cement Holdings (CMT) also made huge profits last year, easily outperforming the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi)’s full-year performance of 22.76%.

High Yield, High Risk

Of course, with great returns come high risks as well. That’s one of the basic tenets of investing. Although speculative stocks may produce outstanding returns, they could also lead to huge losses. It is actually possible to wipe out one’s capital if the wrong speculations are made.

So if you’re aware about the risks of speculative investing and are looking for guidance on how to navigate this tricky but potentially lucrative segment, you might want to refer to special reports prepared by PinoyInvestor, a premium stock portal that contains stock analysis and research by several top stock brokerage firms in the country.

15 Speculative Stocks for 2015

Recently PinoyInvestor issued a Special Report on 15 Speculative Stocks for 2015. This report, prepared by Angping & Associates Securities, provides analyse, outlook and recommendations on 15 third-liner or speculative stocks traded in the PSE, including:

  1. Philippine Savings Bank (PSB)
  2. Pacific Online Systems Corp. (LOTO)
  3. Petroenergy Resources Corp. (PERC)
  4. Phinma Corp. (PHN)
  5. A. Soriano Corp. (ANS)
  6. Oriental Peninsula Resources Group (ORE)
  7. Harbor Star Shipping Services Inc. (TUGS)
  8. Philippine Business Bank (PBB)
  9. Vantage Equities Inc. (V)
  10. STI Education Systems Holdings Inc. (STI)
  11. I-Remit Corp. (I)
  12. Manila Bulletin Publishing Corp. (MB)
  13. Trans-Asia Oil & Energy Dev’t Corp. (TA)
  14. Solid Group Inc. (SGI)
  15. Oriental Petroleum and Mineral Corp. (OPMB)

Here’s an excerpt from the special report’s analysis of OPMB:

Oriental Petroleum and Mineral Corp. (OPMB) was originally included in our stock coverage as a turnaround stock rising from years of deficit. However, lower Dubai crude oil prices will further delay its rise from deficits and just made its valuations expensive. OPMB is still estimated to realize net income in 2015. However, its estimated 2015 net income deteriorated back to 2010 levels.

Recommendation: Sell.

If you have the guts and tenacity to invest in third-liner, this stock report might be of great value to you. Click here to get this Special Stock Report.

2015-pse-speculative-stock-picks

James Ryan Jonas teaches business management, investments, and entrepreneurship at the University of the Philippines (UP). He is also the Executive Director of UP Provident Fund Inc., managing and investing P3.2 Billion ($56.4 Million) worth of retirement funds on behalf of thousands of UP employees.