Three Segments Ending 2009 With A Bang (DTG, CAR, HTZ, UHAL, JASO, CSIQ, SOL, LDK, SNDK, NVDA, FCS, DIOD)

Tickerspy’s Vehicle Rental Index

VEHICLE RENTAL INVESTING IDEAS

• Popular long ideas: CAR, HTZ, [DTGF]
• Popular short ideas: CAR, [DTGF], ZIP
• Top dividend plays: None
• Pro favorites: HTZ, CAR, UHAL

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VEHICLE RENTAL COVERAGE

These firms are in the business of renting cars and trucks

• Analyst Comments No Help To Zipcar (ZIP, UHAL, CAR, HTZ, DTG)
• Bidding War Continues For Pros' Favorite Rental Car Stock (CAR, DTG, HTZ, UHAL)
• Car Rental Stocks Surge On M&A Action (DTG, HTZ, CAR, UHAL)

VEHICLE RENTAL CHART

VEHICLE RENTAL METRICS

Avg. Market Cap:	$5.6B
Avg. P/E Ratio:	24.2
Avg. Div Yield:	0.0%

There’s something to be said for finishing strong, and investors are helping these equity sectors do just that.

In recent weeks stock pickers and financial journalists have been making their picks for 2010. While next year’s winners won’t be known for some time, certain sectors are set to start with the wind at their backs. December’s top-performing equity segments added double-digit returns for the period, and investors are betting on momentum to carry the stocks to early gains in 2010.

Three of four Vehicle Rental Stocks Index components added more than 20% gains in December. Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group (DTG) led the way with a 40% spike, while Avis Budget (CAR) and Hertz (HTZ) added 37% and 23% respectively. U-Haul parent Amerco (UHAL) was the sector’s lone laggard, slipping by -2% in December.

A look at the Chinese Solar Stocks Index’s three-month performance chart shows that it has been accelerating past the S&P 500 since mid-November. December’s top performers include JA Solar (JASO), Canadian Solar (CSIQ), and ReneSola (SOL). All three have added more than 18% over the last month. LDK Solar (LDK) is the segment’s only loser for the period after the company shocked the Street with capital concerns.

Select semiconductor sub-segments also outperformed in the last month of 2009. SanDisk (SNDK) and NVIDIA (NVDA) led the Digital Semiconductor Stocks Index with 50% and 45% respective gains. Meanwhile, the Discrete Semiconductor Stocks Index shot higher with the help of Fairchild Semiconductor International (FCS) and Diodes Inc. (DIOD).

As of this writing, the December’s top-15 tickerspy Indexes are all ahead by 15% or more for the period. It will be interesting to see whether these stocks can maintain momentum into the New Year.

Investors can track the above Indexes and more than 250 others for performance trends and a suite of other metrics at tickerspy.com.

Tags: CAR, CSIQ, DIOD, DTG, FCS, HTZ, JASO, LDK, NVDA, SNDK, SOL, UHAL