“Media hype can help drum up interest in the Super Bowl, a new TV show or some other event and boost interest and ratings,” Stoddard begins. “But in the stock market, heavy media coverage is often a lagging indicator, kicking in after a stock has already enjoyed a big run.”

Stoddard points out that magazines like Fortune and Forbes typically run cover photos and profiles of companies or CEOs in part to satisfy their readers’ interest in finding the secrets to success. That helps sell copies. Whether or not the prices of the stocks that media outlets profile rise or fall is a secondary concern.

Stoddard uses the historical example of Oracle’s (ORCL) share price rise in late 1999 and early 2000. “Oracle is a good example of a stock that began attracting huge media attention after it had already enjoyed a huge run-up,” he stated. “Oracle cleared an 11.76 buy point (adjusted for a pair of 2-for-1 splits, both in 2000) in a flat base-on-base pattern in the week ended Oct. 29, 1999. Over the next year, it quadrupled to a peak of 46.47 in the week of Sept. 1, 2000, about six months after tech bubble reached its zenith.”

According to Stoddard, the database and business software developer continued to attract media attention as it was peaking. IBD ran stories on the company in March 2000. In June that year, Oracle founder and CEO Larry Ellison was quoted as saying that the company’s potential was “breathtaking.”

Learn more about what happened to Oracle shares from that point in Stoddard’s full analysis, which can be found here.

According to Royal, CST Brands operates nearly 1,900 convenience stores/gas stations in the U.S. and Canada. Over 1,000 sites are located in the U.S., with about 60% exposed to the robust economy of Texas. Domestically, the company owns 81% of its locations. In Canada, over 60% of outlets are in Quebec, while just 38% of sites are owned.

“Last year CST generated revenue of $13.1 billion and would have made $379 million in EBITDA as a stand-alone entity. In addition to fuel sales, the company relies heavily on tobacco and alcohol – about 50% of store sales – like other convenience stores do. Store sales are a key driver of profitability,” Floyd stated.

He also said that the convenience store industry is “surprisingly robust, with consistent growth over the past two decades, the only interruption being the financial crisis. And even then it was only fuel sales that dipped, not the more lucrative inside sales. CST expects to grow store count about 1.5% this year and refocus on growing inside-the-store sales.”

Something has gone right since Floyd first put his spotlight on CST. At the time he wrote about the issue, it was trading at $27.50 per share. Currently, CST shares are trading north of $33 each.

You can read more details about why Royal believes CST Brands fits his “special situation” criteria, and how the valuation of competitors’ stock compares to CST’s, here.

In spite of the broad market rally this year, he believes that some stocks are looking “toxic” right now for a variety of reasons “And those names that are underperforming — or showing signs of a major bearish change in trend — could drag mightily on your investment returns this year,” he cautioned. “While a rising tide lifts all ships in a bull market, it also hastens the sinking of the few ships with holes in them.”

Relative weakness is the primary technical indicator Elmerrajii looks for as a sell sign. “One of the biggest red flags right now is relative weakness; The stocks that aren’t participating in the across-the-board equity rally are the ones that you need to think about unloading. And the ones that are looking outright bearish are the ones that you need to sell now.

While acknowledging that the companies on his list—Sonoco Logistics Partners (SXL), Canadian Pacific Railway (CP), Eni SpA (E), Cenovus Energy (CVE) and Vodafone (VOD)—“aren’t junk,” Elmerrajii provides an in-depth analysis of why they may merit selling here.

“Tuesday morning, Five Below (FIVE) reported that first-quarter revenue jumped 33% on a 4.2% improvement in same-store stores. That’s remarkable growth at a time when many U.S. companies are struggling to grow revenue at all, and especially so for retailers that saw cold weather reduce store traffic this year,” Hough begins.

“The more remarkable thing about Five Below,” said Hough, “is its stock market value. The retailer of pre- and young-teen essentials like Sour Patch candies, flip flops, water guns and nail polish, all priced from $1 to $5, had a public offering at $17 a share last July. The stock closed its first day of trading above $25. In morning trading, shares were up 3.1% to $39.84.”

Hough notes that at its current price, Five Below, which is still a regional chain with 258 stores in 19 mostly eastern states, is worth $2.1 billion. “Compare that with some nationwide chains that are household names with moms, dads and teens: Ann Taylor parent Ann (ANN) is worth $1.5 billion; suit seller Jos. A. Bank (JOSB) is valued at $1.3 billion; and denim specialist Aeropostale (ARO) is worth $1.2 billion.”

“Investors who buy Five Below shares today pay more than 50 times this year’s earnings forecast, versus about 14 for the typical U.S. stock. That makes the purchase a risky one, although the price may be more reasonable than it appears,” Hough stated. Interestingly, however, he’s bullish on the stock. “Five Below has unique potential among publicly traded retailers, for two main reasons.”

You can find out what those are, and read more of Hough’s detailed anlaysis of FIVE shares here.

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Founded in 1997, ChemoCentryx went public in February 2012. According to the author, the company currently has a pipeline of six small molecule drugs (three of which are partnered with big pharma heavyweight GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) ) that target specific chemokine receptors. GSK also has a significant equity interest in the company—7.33 million shares, or about 20% of CCXI’s 38.6 million outstanding shares.

“Chemo-attractant cytokines, or chemokines, are chemical messengers involved in coordinating the body’s inflammatory response to infection, irritation, or injury. Different combinations of chemokines and their respective receptors can direct different inflammatory responses. Chronic inflammation over a long period of time can lead to certain auto-immune diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetic nephropathy, multiple sclerosis, and others,” the story states.

In addition to its novel drug pipeline, the company currently has 490 issued or allowed patents (with expirations ranging from 2020 to 2029) and 225 patents pending. “CCXI’s pipeline was derived from its EnabLink Technology which identifies small molecule antagonists best suited for interfering with the chemokine receptor mostly associated with a particular disease. CCXI has stated its intent to retain significant rights to programs that would address specialty market opportunities while partnering those programs addressing primary care markets.”

The author outlines three significant advantages of it products currently undergoing clinical trials: 1) selectivity, which avoids the widespread immunosuppressive effects of current therapies; 2) oral administration versus injectable or infusable therapies; and 3) a lower manufacturing cost as a small molecule as compared to protein therapeutics, or biologics.

Read more about CCXI’s product pipeline and financials here.

“As the calendar turns toward the second quarter of the year, it’s again time to revisit the popular investing adage, “Sell in May and go away,” writes Ciura. “As the theory stipulates, investors should get rid of their stocks and head for the safety of cash, so as to avoid the market’s seemingly inevitable spring swoon.”

Ciura takes a look back in time to see how that adage has played out in reality. He found that “over the past few years, the theory held true. In May 2010, the S&P 500 Index lost 4% during the month. Similar declines, of 3% and 6%, occurred in May 2011 and May 2012, respectively” Despite that data, Giura doesn’t buy the theory. “This pattern has only added fuel to the fire of what is, in truth, a seriously flawed idea,” he concludes.

In fact, Ciura remains quite bullish on the markets’ overall prospects. “The truth is that the declines seen in May over the past few years belie what has been a remarkable rally since the Great Recession. No matter the month, the market offers some of America’s best, most profitable blue chips stocks that should be bought and held.”

Ciura goes on to list the issues he likes, and why. “Investors interested not in flipping stocks for quick gains, but rather in building wealth over the long term, likely realize the foolishness of the “sell in May and go away” adage. Timing the market for any period of time is rarely a wise idea. Unfortunately, none of us has the ability to see the future, despite what we’d all like to believe,” he concludes.

You can read more on Ciura’s blue chip picks here.

“When it comes to making decisions about a stock, you generally can let volume be your guide,” Reklaiti begins. “Volume can tell you what to do — not just when you’re looking at buying, but also when you’re selling a good stock.”

Early on, most traders learn that an increase in volume, accompanied by a rising stock price, is often a solid technical indicator of more potential gains to come. Using volume to pick a sell point, however, is a bit trickier. “One example of volume helping you decide to sell can occur with rebounds,” Reklaiti explains. “Let’s say a stock has fallen hard in strong turnover, but you’ve held onto it. Perhaps the high-volume decline didn’t actually trip one of IBD’s sell rules, or maybe the stock clearly found support at its 10-week moving average during its slide.”

At that point, Reklaiti says, you want to pay attention when the stock rebounds. “Check how volume looks with the rally, on both daily and weekly charts. Weak turnover, such as much lower trade than during the sell-off, tells you that you probably want to sell. You might also see poor price recovery.”

You can find out more about Reklaiti’s sell strategy, using the trading action in Goldman Sachs shares from several years ago as an example, here.

“Despite the failure of a late-stage Alzheimer’s drug study, announced Tuesday, Baxter remains a compelling investment,” argues Defotis. She immediately cites a comment by Joanne Wuensch, a BMO Capital Markets analyst who follows the company, to support her thesis. “While the headline is disappointing, we believe expectations were low, and this may prove a clearing event for the stock,” Wuensch opined.

Defotis notes that Baxter has underperformed its peers this year even as competitors, including Eli Lilly (LLY), have struggled to produce Alzheimer’s treatments.  She contends that regardless of the level of progress on the race for good Alzheimer’s drugs, Baxter plans to release dozens of new products, and more than two-thirds of its revenue comes from products that are market leaders in their categories.

Baxter has also been active on the acquisition front, makings its largest acquisition in December when it purchased Gambro for $4 billion. “That should yield significant opportunities as Gambro is a big producer of hemodialysis in hospital settings, which dovetails nicely with Baxter’s at-home dialysis business,” Defotis said.

“Also, emerging markets present a significant growth opportunity in the next several years. Baxter is expected to produce $15.5 billion in revenue this year, and foreign markets comprise about 60% of revenue. Emerging markets could represent a third of revenue in coming years.”

You can find Defotis’ complete take on Baxter, including earnings expectations and recent dividend news, here.

“You may have heard it before: Quality is leading in this market,” Elmerraji begins. “What it means is that big, blue-chip dividend payers are outperforming other stocks in this environment. In a sense, that’s providing a performance double whammy for investors with exposure to quality stocks in their portfolios: They’re collecting (relatively) hefty dividend yields, and they’re laying claim to outsized capital gains as well.”

The reasons for this trend are linked to our declining, historically low interest rates. “With interest rates scraping historic lows, the yields being paid out by dividend stocks in this environment provide a major incentive to pile into income stocks,” said Elmerraji. “Couple that with a rally in 2013 that most investors still haven’t bought into, and the result is an emphasis on quality in the middle of the second quarter.”

In arriving at the five picks he calls readers’ attention to, Elmerraji looks at a combination of factors: a solid balance sheet, a low payout ratio, and a history of dividend hikes. “While those items don’t guarantee dividend announcements in the next month or three, they do dramatically increase the odds that management will hike their cash payouts, especially as investors start to get antsy about whether or not 2013′s rally will be able to hang on,” he stated.

His gang of five, by those criteria,are Intel (INTC), Lowe’s (LOW), Kellogg (K), Coach (COH) and J.M. Smucker (SJM).

To find out in greater detail why Elmerraji likes these issues, you can read more here.