3 Hot Stocks to Trade (or Not)

BALTIMORE (Stockpickr) -- Put down the 10-K filings and the stock screeners. It's time to take a break from the traditional methods of generating investment ideas. Instead, let the crowd do it for you.


Read More: 5 Stocks With Big Insider Buying



From hedge funds to individual investors, scores of market participants are turning to social media to figure out which stocks are worth watching. It's a concept that's known as "crowdsourcing," and it uses the masses to identify emerging trends in the market.


Crowdsourcing has long been a popular tool for the advertising industry, but it also makes a lot of sense as an investment tool. After all, the market is completely driven by the supply and demand, so it can be valuable to see what names are trending among the crowd.


While some fund managers are already trying to leverage social media resources like Twitter to find algorithmic trading opportunities, for most investors, crowdsourcing works best as a starting point for investors who want a starting point in their analysis. Today, we'll leverage the power of the crowd to take a look at some of the most active stocks on the market today.


Without further ado, here's a look at today's stocks.

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RadioShack

Nearest Resistance: $1.60

Nearest Support: $1

Catalyst: Rescue Deal

Shares of beleaguered electronics retailer RadioShack (RSH) are rallying to the tune of 20% on massive volume this afternoon, up following news that the firm is discussing a possible rescue plan with one of its biggest shareholders. RadioShack is in talks with hedge fund Standard General to possibly finance a rescue package that could help the firm avoid bankruptcy. While the possibility of a bailout is far from certain at this stage, the prospect is providing more than enough buying pressure for today's pop.

RadioShack has spent most of 2014 wearing cement shoes – even with today's 20% rally, shares of RSH are still down more than 60% since the calendar flipped to January. But RadioShack could be about to make up for lost ground. Shares officially broke their downtrend last week, and more upside looks likely from here.

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Oi SA

Nearest Resistance: $0.70

Nearest Support: $0.50

Catalyst: Acquisition Plan

Brazil's number-four wireless carrier, Oi SA (OIBR) is up 11% this afternoon, following news that the firm had engaged Banco BTG Pactual to review its options for acquiring TIM Participacoes from Telecom Italia (TI). The potentially $8 billion acquisition would be transformative for Oi, ratcheting up the firm's scale, and making it more competitive with its bigger Latin American rivals. More importantly for shareholders of this low-priced name, today's news is breaking the long-term downtrend in OIBR.

OIBR has been a horrific name to own in 2014, down more than 60% year-to-date, even with today's double-digit rally factored in. But the long-term downtrend finally broke on today's breakout. That means that investors who aren't risk-averse can consider piling into shares here.

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Halliburton

Nearest Resistance: $70

Nearest Support: $67

Catalyst: Gabelli Comments

Halliburton (HAL) is seeing big volume this afternoon, down 1.6% following comments by Gamco's Mario Gabelli yesterday on CNBC. Gabelli thinks that Halliburton could be a potential suitor for Weatherford International (WFT) at up to a 50% premium to today's prices. So today, shareholders are selling on worries that such a deal could destroy value for HAL.

Ultimately, today's price action isn't technically significant. Shares have been consolidating sideways since the calendar flipped to August, churning after a big move to start the year. A breakout above $70 resistance is the technical trigger that needs to happen before HAL becomes buyable again.

Read More: 5 Hated Earnings Stocks You Should Love

To see these stocks in action, check out the at Most-Active Stocks portfolio on Stockpickr.



-- Written by Jonas Elmerraji in Baltimore.

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

Jonas Elmerraji, CMT, is a senior market analyst at Agora Financial in Baltimore and a contributor to

TheStreet. Before that, he managed a portfolio of stocks for an investment advisory returned 15% in 2008. He has been featured in Forbes , Investor's Business Daily, and on CNBC.com. Jonas holds a degree in financial economics from UMBC and the Chartered Market Technician designation.

Follow Jonas on Twitter @JonasElmerraji