BJS provides pressure pumping and other oilfield services serving the petroleum industry worldwide. BJS%s services include well stimulation, cementing, sand control and coiled tubing. For the 3 months ended 12/31/00, revenues increased 38% to $489.7M. Net income totaled $63.5M, up from $20.5M. Revenues reflect an increase in North American drilling activity. Net income also reflects improved equipment utilization.

April 8, 2001

BJ Services (BJS) is a principal supplier of pressure pumping and oilfield services to the petroleum industry worldwide. Demand for the company's services is dependent upon the number of oil and natural gas wells being drilled, the depth and drilling conditions of such wells, and the level of activity worldwide. Currently, the company is benefiting from strong activity in the North American oilfield market. But, aside from BJS’s solid fundamentals, the chart may have just completed a “V” bottom formation. This has been a familiar pattern over the last few months, as quick rallies have unfolded off such reversals. What’s more, the company announced a 2:1 stock split on March 22rd, which could help to generate extra buying ahead of the record date of May 17th. As for the stock, BJS shares, after coming down from highs just last week, may have already formed a near-term bottom. The technical indicators certainly suggest this, with the MACD on the verge of a crossover and the stochastic signaling a mid-week buy signal. Bearing this in mind, should shares trend higher in the upcoming week, we’ll look for initial resistance to occur at $72.75, then the 20-dma of $73.15, followed by a stiffer challenge at the 50-dma of $77.16. Support will come at the $70 mark. Look to time entries when BJS shares bounce off support or break above the 20-dma on volume of at least 850,000 shares traded by midday. We are setting our initial stop at $67, to minimize our downside risk.

Picked on April 8th@ $71.75
Change since picked 0.00
Stop Loss @ $67.00

April 19, 2001

Shares of BJ Services continued to pullback from Tuesday's fall and pierced our stop of $75 in Wednesday's trading session. Although no news was responsible for the fall, traders felt that BJS’s recent rally was a good enough reason to part with their shares. It's also likely that the stock was under selling pressure from traders moving money into technology issues.

Picked on April 8th@ $71.75
Profit/Loss = +3.25 (+5%) (Stopped Wednesday @ $75.00)
Best Profit = +4.94 (+7%)

April 17, 2001

The tight supply on petroleum continues to keep the prices of oil and gas strong and is also creating positive momentum in the oil drilling stocks. News of potentially higher petroleum prices helped BJS deliver another nice rally on Monday, as shares gained as much as 3.3% on the day. With this advance, the stock was able to reach the 50-dma, which positioned us for a potential breakout on Tuesday. Although this scenario didn’t unfold exactly as planned, BJS shares did manage to break above this level on an intraday basis on Tuesday. With 1,238,700 shares crossing the tape, volume was held under the three-month average, as the stock gave back just 0.20% to close at $76.35. Additionally, we were pleased that BJS was able to hold ground above $76, which has plenty of historical support. Although the $76 mark resides just under current levels, it positions us for a sharp bounce as early as tomorrow. The short-term technicals look good, with both the MACD trending higher and the OBV holding strong. That said, should BJS make another attempt at higher levels later in the week, we’ll look for initial resistance at the 50-dma of $76.76 mark and then at Tuesday’s intraday high of $77.99. Look for entries when the stock breaks above either of these levels or bounces from support on good volume of 800,000 shares traded by noon. We’ll raise stops to $75 to help lock in gains.

Picked on April 8th@ $71.75
Change since picked +4.60
Stop Loss @ $75.00

April 12, 2001

The two “buy” ratings from J.P. Morgan and Jefferies & Co. that we reported Wednesday may have been the catalyst behind today’s 2.29% rally in BJ Services. Adding more fuel to the fire was the AMEX Oil Service Index (OSX), which rose 2.16 points, or 1.85%, to close at $549.58. But whatever it was that created the rally, we feel the stock remains poised for higher levels in the upcoming week. The technical indicators certainly support such an argument, with the MACD starting to trend higher and the stochastic issuing a buy signal on the day. We also like the fact that shares came within 1 cent of hitting the 4/10 high of $75. Three intraday highs in a row at this level, however, tell us that there is ample resistance at this point. With that said, the $75 mark will remain our initial resistance, trailed by a more difficult challenge at the $80 mark. The 20-dma of $72.35 has been holding firm support over this same period and should present us with a good base. So, with this in mind, traders looking for additional entry points should wait for a sharp break through resistance at the $75 high or a bounce off the 5-dma of $80.90. We’ll continue to hold our stop at $70.

Picked on April 8th@ $71.75
Change since picked +2.51
Stop Loss @ $70.00