4 Stocks Under $10 Moving Higher Into Breakout Territory

DELAFIELD, Wis. (Stockpickr) -- At Stockpickr, we track daily portfolios of stocks that are the biggest percentage gainers and the biggest percentage losers.

Read More: 5 Hated Earnings Stocks You Should Love




Stocks that are making large moves like these are favorites among short-term traders because they can jump into these names and try to capture some of that massive volatility. Stocks that are making big-percentage moves either up or down are usually in play because their sector is becoming attractive or they have a major fundamental catalyst such as a recent earnings release. Sometimes stocks making big moves have been hit with an analyst upgrade or an analyst downgrade.



Regardless of the reason behind it, when a stock makes a large-percentage move, it is often just the start of a new major trend -- a trend that can lead to huge profits. If you time your trade correctly, combining technical indicators with fundamental trends, discipline and sound money management, you will be well on your way to investment success.



With that in mind, let's take a closer look at a several stocks under $10 that are making large moves to the upside.

Read More: 10 Stocks Billionaire John Paulson Loves in 2014

RiceBran Technologies

RiceBran Technologies (RIBT), a human food ingredient and animal nutrition company, is engaged in the processing and marketing of healthy, natural, and nutrient dense products that are derived from rice bran. This stock closed up 4.7% to $5.34 in Thursday's trading session.

Thursday's Range: $5.02-$5.39

52-Week Range: $3.56-$14.000

Thursday's Volume: 223,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 109,502

From a technical perspective, RIBT ripped higher here back above both its 50-day moving average at $5.16 and its 200-day moving average at $5.26 with above-average volume. This sharp move to the upside is now quickly pushing shares of RIBT within range of triggering a major breakout trade. That trade will hit if RIBT manages to take out Thursday's intraday high of $5.39 to its recent gap-down-day high of $5.64 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in RIBT as long as it's trending above some near-term support levels at $5 or at $4.84 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 109,502 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then RIBT will set up to re-fill some of its previous gap-down-day zone from earlier this month that started at $6.90.

Ocean Power Technologies

Ocean Power Technologies (OPTT) develops and commercializes proprietary systems that generate electricity by harnessing the renewable energy of ocean waves primarily in the U.S., Europe, Asia, and Australia. This stock closed flat to $1.30 in Thursday's trading session.

Thursday's Range: $1.22-$1.35

52-Week Range: $1.03-$7.01

Thursday's Volume: 355,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 407,620

From a technical perspective, OPTT bounced around here right above some near-term support at $1.21 with decent upside volume flows. Shares of OPTT briefly traded to an intraday high of $1.35, before closing at $1.30 and finishing just above its 50-day moving average of $1.28. Shares of OPTT are now starting to move within range of triggering a major breakout trade. That trade will hit if OPTT manages to take out Thursday's intraday high of $1.35 to some more key overhead resistance levels at $1.50 to $1.54 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in OPTT as long as it's trending above some near-term support at $1.21 or above more support at $1.14 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 407,620 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then OPTT will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $1.80 to $1.84, or even just above $2.

Read More: 3 Huge Stocks on Traders' Radars

PhotoMedex

PhotoMedex (PHMD), a skin health company, provides integrated disease management and aesthetic solutions to dermatologists, professional aestheticians, and consumers in North America, the Asia Pacific, Europe, and South America. This stock closed up 2.2% to $7.40 a share in Thursday's trading session.

Thursday's Range: $7.04-$7.43

52-Week Range: $7.04-$16.82

Thursday's Volume: 115,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 120,912

From a technical perspective, PHMD bounced higher here right off its new 52-week low of $7.04 with decent upside volume flows. This stock has been downtrending badly for the last two months and change, with shares moving lower from its high of $12.75 to that new 52-week low at $7.04. During that downtrend, shares of PHMD have been consistently making lower highs and lower lows, which is bearish technical price action. That said, shares of PHMD are now starting to rebound off oversold levels, since its current relative strength index reading is 27.8. This rebound is starting to push shares of PHMD within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade. That trade will hit if PHMD manages to take out some near-term overhead resistance levels at $7.56 to $7.60 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in PHMD as long as it's trending above its 52-week low at $7.04 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 120,912 shares. If that breakout materializes soon, then PHMD will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels near $8.50 to $9, or even its 50-day moving average of $9.36.

Read More: 5 Breakout Stocks Under $10 Set to Soar

Nanosphere

Nanosphere (NSPH) provides molecular diagnostic tests that can lead to earlier disease detection, optimal patient treatment, and enhanced healthcare economics. This stock closed up 4% to 63 cents per share in Thursday's trading session.

Thursday's Range: $0.59-$0.66

52-Week Range: $0.54-$2.97

Thursday's Volume: 653,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 1.21 million

From a technical perspective, NSPH ripped higher here right above some near-term support at 58 cents per share with lighter-than-average volume. This spike to the upside on Thursday briefly pushed shares of NSPH into breakout territory, since the stock flirted with some near-term overhead resistance at 65 cents per share. Shares of NSPH tagged an intraday high of 66 cents per share, before closing just below that level at 63 cents per share. This move is now starting to push shares of NSPH within range of triggering another big breakout trade. That trade will hit if NSPH manages to take out Thursday's intraday high of 66 cents per share to some more near-term overhead resistance at 70 cents per share with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in NSPH as long as it's trending above some key near-term support levels at 58 cents to 56 cents per share and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 1.21 million shares. If that breakout develops soon, then NSPH will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at 80 cents to 90 cents per share, or even 99 cents per share.

Read More: 5 Stocks With Big Insider Buying

To see more stocks that are making notable moves higher, check out the Stocks Under $10 Moving Higher portfolio on Stockpickr.

-- Written by Roberto Pedone in Delafield, Wis.

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At the time of publication, author had no positions in stocks mentioned.

Roberto Pedone, based out of Delafield, Wis., is an independent trader who focuses on technical analysis for small- and large-cap stocks, options, futures, commodities and currencies. Roberto studied international business at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, and he spent a year overseas studying business in Lubeck, Germany. His work has appeared on financial outlets including

CNBC.com and Forbes.com.

You can follow Pedone on Twitter at www.twitter.com/zerosum24 or @zerosum24.

Clorox: This is the One Big Change That Could Happen Under New CEO

Last night, Clorox (CLX) announced that CEO Donald Knauss would step down and be replaced by COO Benno Dorer. B. Riley’s Linda Bolton Weiser doesn’t expect any major changes other than a possible exit from Venezuela. She explains:

Clorox

After the close on 9/18, CLX announced insider Benno Dorer, 50, will become CEO effective 11/20. This is not a big surprise as Don Knauss, 63, has been CEO for eight years. Dorer started his career with Procter & Gamble (PG), joined Clorox in 2005 and was promoted to COO in 2013.  The Clorox share price has continued to go up over the years, but op. profit growth was higher and more consistent early in Knauss' tenure, with more inconsistency in recent years:  FY07 +5%, FY08 +4%, FY09 +15%, FY10 +7%, FY11 -5%, FY12 -2%, FY13 +8%, FY14 -1%, FY15E +3%.  During his tenure as CEO, Knauss acquired Burt's Bees (at a very high valuation) and several health care disinfecting businesses, and divested auto care (Armor All and STP).  He can also be credited with building Clorox's Away-from-Home and B-to-B businesses, which have been growing in the double-digits.  Early in his tenure, Knauss talked about building a bigger international business, but he didn't persist with that theme. While Knauss was CEO, Carl Icahn became involved as an activist shareholder, essentially inviting strategic and financial buyers to bid on Clorox—Clorox's board rejected Icahn's recommendation to sell the company. Icahn did not criticize how the company was being managed, but claimed the company was undervalued.  We don't expect big strategic changes under Dorer, but wonder if he will make the move to exit Venezuela, where Clorox is now unprofitable, as a higher percentage of its business is impacted by price controls than for the personal care companies.

Shares of Clorox have gained 0.5% to $90.36 at 1:22 p.m., while Procter & Gamble has risen 0.6% to $84.70.

Awkward: Sears borrows $400M from its CEO

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) Talk about awkward. Sears secured a $400 million loan this week from a hedge fund whose sole shareholder is the struggling retailer's chairman, CEO and leading investor.

The unusual agreement -- and what it signals about the overall health of Sears (SHLD) -- spooked Wall Street. Shares of the retailer plunged another 9% on Tuesday to the lowest level sine February.

"It's shady because there is clearly a conflict of interest here," said Brian Sozzi, who closely tracks the retail industry as CEO of Belus Capital Advisors.

Devil's in the details: Sears, which lost $1 billion during the first half of the year, revealed the loan in a vaguely-worded regulatory filing late Monday.

The company said the the short-term loan is being provided by entities tied to ESL Investments, whose sole stockholder and CEO is Sears head Eddie Lampert.

ESL Investments controls 24.8% of Sears's outstanding shares, making it the No. 1 stockholder. Lampert himself is listed as owning 23.7% of the company's outstanding stock.

The filing said the loan, which carries an annual base interest of 5% plus upfront fees of 1.75%, is being secured by 25 unspecified properties. Presumably that means some of the company's hundreds of Sears and Kmart stores.

Collateral damage: The fact that Sears didn't disclose which properties are being used as collateral is raising eyebrows. The loan even gives the lender (Lampert) the opportunity to swap out certain stores with other ones.

As pointed out by Yahoo Finance, the $400 million loan values each store at just $16 million. That's a steep discount to the $20 million to $50 million Sears has typically been selling its stores for to other retailers and investors. It also seems cheap given the $5 billion of real-! estate assets listed on the Sears balance sheet.

"We don't even know all the deal terms. Are shareholders getting a raw deal here? Did Lampert undervalue the stores?" said Sozzi.

For its part, Sears said in a statement to CNNMoney that the deal does not create a conflict of interest and is in the "best interest of the company."

Even if the deal terms are fair for Sears shareholders, the fact the loan is needed doesn't bode well for the company's sales metrics, especially as it heads into the critical holiday period.

Last month, Sears revealed its ninth straight quarterly loss amid deep discounting. The company was forced to raise $500 million earlier this year by spinning off Lands' End (LE).

"The loan tells you the company is having another challenging start to the third quarter. They are going to enter the holiday season with zero momentum," said Sozzi.

Sears said the loan "allows us additional financial flexibility, particularly as we enter the holiday season." The company said it wants to be "proactive" in showing vendors and others it will "continue to generate liquidity needed to invest in our business and meet all of our financial obligations."

Cash concerns persist: Despite the cash infusion, Sozzi said he still believes Sears is barreling towards some sort of wind down by 2017 due to a cash crunch.

He's not the only one worried about a possible restructuring. Last week, Fitch Ratings slashed its credit rating on Sears further into junk territory due to cash-burn concerns.

The ratings company cited the deep plunge in profitability and "lack of visibility to turn operations around."

Many shareholders blame Lampert for the company's struggles.

"He will go down as the man who ruined a national icon in Sears," he said.

The Crazy Secret to Picking Stock Winners? Buy High, Sell Higher

Tom Wang/Shutterstock For investors building a portfolio of individual stocks, the fundamental goal is to find great companies whose stock price has the potential to rise dramatically. But most investors avoid buying stocks off the one list where those types of companies are guaranteed to show up -– the 52-week high list. The desire to buy things for as cheap a price as we can is natural. It's a concept we start learning practically as soon we begin to reason –- always look for a deal. So it doesn't matter if we're contemplating the purchase of a flat-screen TV, a new car or a house, or a stock, we want to get the best bargain possible -- and at the very least, avoid "overpaying." But this mindset turns out to be at odds with the dynamics of the stock market -- and often causes investors to avoid buying the best companies. Stocks Aren't Wasting Assets When you go into a store to buy a product, in almost all cases it is a "wasting asset." Over time, wear and tear -- as well as the introduction of newer models -- conspire to make the product less and less valuable, and thus less desirable. That's why Craigslist and garage sales exist – to get rid of items that once were more valuable then they currently are. But in the stock market the goal is to buy an asset -– in the form of a share of stock –- that will hopefully be in more demand in the future and garner us a high price than we paid for it. And the 52-week high list is the perfect place to look for those type of stocks. "It doesn't matter how smart you are; how ingenious you investing idea is," says Ivaylo Ivanhoff, chief strategist for Social Leverage 50, which selects and ranks stocks in the early stages of their price growth cycle. "Until the market agrees with you, you won't make a cent. And the market agrees with you when you see your stocks on the 52-week high list." Those sentiments seem to be backed up not only by math, but by common sense as well. Apple for $4 For example, at the end of 2004, Apple (AAPL) was trading around $4 a share on a split-adjusted basis -- which was not only a 52-week high, but an all-time high –- and had gone up 300 percent in the previous year alone. To many, this was a sign the stock was too expensive. But before a stock can go up 5,000 percent -- like Apple did between 2004 and 2014 -- it first has to go up 50 percent. And then 100 percent. And then 200 percent. And so on. And each time it does, chances are it is hitting 52-week highs. "The 52-week high list is basically a short-cut into the minds of people, who can create and sustain trends," says Ivanhoff, referring to the large institutions who can move markets and individual stocks with their investments.