Navellier Growth: your source for market-beating growth stocks

The stock market was rattled today by the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, the former Prime Minister of Pakistan. The Dow closed the day down more than 190 points.

We have to remember that we still live in a very dangerous world. Pakistan is not a democracy. It is a nuclear power. John Carney at DealBreaker.com summed it up well:

Bhutto was actually a source of stability for the country. She was a reasonable and relatively U.S.-friendly alternative to Musharraf. With her out of the picture, it's unclear what direction the opposition to Musharraf will take. But what is clear is that the opposition will most likely strengthen and act with a greater sense of urgency. The world is slightly more dangerous this afternoon than it was when we went to bed last night.

That's very true. The other news that hurt the market today was that an analyst at Goldman Sachs said that Citigroup could write off as much as $18.7 billion in the fourth quarter. That's a staggering amount. If it happens, the bank may slash its dividend by 40%. That's another event that would send a shiver all across Wall Street.

Clearly, the stock market is in "fear mode." It's times like these that I like to refer to the advice of George Bailey in It's a Wonderful Life:

Can't you understand what's happening here? Don't you see what's happening? Potter isn't selling. Potter's buying! And why? Because we're panicky and he's not. That's why. He's picking up some bargains.

Exactly, and there are lots of bargains around. The key is to keep your head when all about you are losing theirs. This is one of the reasons why my Blue Chip Growth Letter has been so successful—we don't follow the crowd. Today, Peter Brimelow highlighted us as one of the top-performing newsletters of 2007. So far, we're up 25.5%, which is about four times the S&P 500.

I'm very pleased with our success this year, and I think 2008 will be even better. This week, I want to tell you why I'm so optimistic and more importantly, I'll let you in on some of my favorite stocks to buy right now.

Before I get to the details, I want to remind you that you can pick up a one-year subscription to Blue Chip Growth for just $149. This is an especially good service for people new to investing.

OK, enough selling—let's talk stocks! Next year is an election year and that's typically very good for stocks. In 2004, the last presidential election year, Blue Chip Growth made over 20% which nearly doubled the S&P 500.

At my seminars, I'm often asked by investors if there are lower-priced stocks that I like. The answer is—of course. In Blue Chip Growth, I recommend several lower-priced stocks. Not all the best stocks are $200 stocks like Apple (AAPL) or $700 stocks like Google (GOOG). Though, I should add that I love both Google and Apple. In fact, Apple just made a new high today and it's up over 635% since I first recommended it.

Two of my favorite stocks under $30 a share are Shaw Communications (SJR) and Schering-Plough (SGP). Shaw provides American and Canadian customers with Internet connection, digital phones, broadband cable television, telecommunications and satellite services. The company is also involved with redistributing television and radio signals via satellite to other cable operators and distributors.

In late October, Shaw stunned Wall Street by reporting earnings of 29 cents a share, far more than the 19 cents that the Street was expecting. I think another earnings surprise is coming soon. Earnings are due on January 11.

Schering-Plough makes prescription and over-the-counter drugs, animal health products and personal care products. The company is best-known for its Clarinex and Nasonex allergy medications. Schering-Plough also specializes in anti-infectives (particularly for hepatitis), and cancer drugs, which have become an increasingly lucrative business. In March, SGP agreed to acquire Akzo Nobel's Organon BioSciences unit, which is in the human and animal healthcare business.

Shares of SGP have pulled back in the past few weeks and the stock is now going for less than 16 times next year's earnings. Business is going well for Schering and the company just announced that it expects to report higher sales of its cholesterol drugs Vytorin and Zetia. One last bit of info: Over the last 23 years, SGP has returned nearly 40-fold.

That's all for this week. I want to wish everyone a safe and happy New Year. This year has been very good to us, and I see 2008 being even better!

Sincerely,

Louis Navellier