We had a few more short-term penny stock recommendations than usual today, so we’ve split our breakout list from our longer-term list. This is the short-term idea list, which are trades designed to move far and fast, but not for very long. Therefore holding periods are measured in days, if not hours. (Needless to say, if you’re trading these penny stock picks, you’ll want to be nimble.

If you also want to add something a little more tame and longer-term to your penny stock portfolio, be sure to take a look at today’s Penny Stock Pick list.

On with the recommendations, in no particular order….

Oramed Pharmaceutical (ORMP)

The stock popped on relatively benign Phase II news yesterday, though it may have been enough to fully shake off any dead weight ORMP has been lugging around.

As you’ll see on the chart, Tuesday’s final “umph” made a pretty decisive statement about the long downtrend being bucked.

CopyTele Inc. (COPY)

Huge volume yesterday, then the stock partially retreated from its high. That’s ok though - the damage has already been done (for the better). If you look closely, you’ll see the moving averages that were formerly resistance are now acting as support.

The bears took their shot, and didn’t kill the stock. We’re looking for the buying to resume now.

OSG America L.P. (OSP)

Note this is a bearish trade. So, you’ll only be able to do anything about this idea in a margin account with shorting privileges. Needless to say, be careful - shorting is infinitely dangerous. Anyway…

There’s something suspicious about two modest selloffs in a row, and HUGE volume. Monday’s loss was an outside day (a major sign of reversal), while Tuesday’s losing bar was an inside day (also a sign of a bearish reversal). We’d be very surprised if these last two days weren’t a clue of a bomb that’s going to be dropped in the near future.

NIC Inc. (EGOV)

Lots of buying volume on Tuesday, but no real progress from the stock (at least none that wasn’t in place on Monday)? Hmmm. The stock’s already in a nice uptrend, but seems to be testing the waters at $5.75. Based on other factors, we recommend getting in prior to any breakout effort here.

NIC reported solid number on Monday, and they’re expected to get better in 2009.

Strong company results? A rising stock? Reasonable valuations? Stranger things have happened.

That’s it for now, but check back tomorrow - we’ve always got more coming down the pike.

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We had more penny stock picks than usual today (short-term and long-term), so we’ve broken out our usual list and commentary into two. This one’s the longer-term pick list, which are intended to be held for days to weeks… and should be a relatively modest rise by penny stock standards.

If you’re looking for shorter-term recommendations, be sure to visit today’s Penny Stock Breakout Trade picks.

In no particular order, here are Wednesday’s longer-term penny stock recommendations….

CCF Holding Co. (CCFH)

CCF Holding has been working on the slowest recovery in the history of stocks. That’s ok though - the slower the reversal, the longer it lasts.

The momentum started to turn for the better in March, but this turn has something very important other ones didn’t… volume. In fact, it’s the healthiest we’ve seen this stock act since mid-2007 when it was trading above $20.00.

Though we can’t quite see why, somebody’s buying this stock again. Perhaps they know something we don’t. At 95 cents, we can afford to go along for the ride and find out what it is.

TAM S.A. (TAM)

This isn’t the only ADR that made today’s list, and we know in the mid-$7.00 range we’re pushing the definition of a penny stock. We just like the combination of the renewed momentum on the chart, Tuesday’s huge volume (perhaps an omen?), and the airline’s ability to manage the business well through the heart of the recession.

The stock’s trading at about 1/3 of its value before the market imploded.

Grupo Simec S.A.B. de C.V. (SIM)

This Mexican iron and steel company isn’t technically playing host to a penny stock either - SIM shares are above $5.00. But, the upside opportunity is very penny-like. Basically, with swine flu worries winding down and a global stimulus kicking in, infrastructure is at the forefront. That means everyone, everywhere will need building and manufacturing materials.

SIM’s starting to pull out of a long consolidation phase too, breaking resistance and closing at its highest close since November.

(Side note: We picked a Mexican engineering stock in another pick list today.)

Global Crossing Ltd. (GLBC)

Global Crossing’s Q1 really wasn’t all that impressive, but the market seems to be ok with it. The bears took a swipe, sending the stock all the way back to the 20 day average line yesterday. Then the bulls stepped in again, salvaging most of the decline… with a lot of volume. The rebound simply continues what’s become a long and quiet recovery effort.

We recommend getting in before more resistance lines break. As long as the market doesn’t get completely whacked in the near future, the breakout could take hold within days.

Caution: Global Crossing ain’t gonna’ be profitable anytime soon, so don’t get married to it.

That’s it for today, at least for the longer-term penny stock picks.

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Though the market is due for a bit of a retreat, astute investors know this isn’t a time to panic, but rather a time to go shopping for bargains. We’ve got five tickers for your consideration today.

These stocks were hand-picked based on a variety of factors, including fundamental, technical, and sentiment. Just bear in mind that the technical criteria we use specifically look for stocks that are truly on the verge of a breakout; you may not have days to mull them over.

Better yet, all five appear to be undervalued, and all five are priced under $10.00. Two of them are under $5.00…. true penny stock pricing. Bargains indeed.

We’ve got some other considerations for you after we look at these five stocks, so be sure to keep reading once you’ve seen all five ideas.

Genworth Financial Inc. (GNW)

Don’t look now, but the insurance companies are making a comeback. Genworth is near the front of the pack. The stock is trading at nearly a tenth of what it was a year ago, but appears to be on the mend. And no wonder - the forward-looking P/E is a paltry 2.0.

If volume is any indication, the market caught its collective mistake on Tuesday.

MBIA Inc. (MBI)

The stock jumped shortly after the next earnings call was announced, perhaps serving as an omen of what to expect. (Or, it may be a case of “buy the rumor, sell the news”.) At only $5.81 though - and with the stock breaking above resistance - it may be worth the price of entry to see what happens with this stock that nobody, and we mean nobody, says they want to touch… even though it’s more than doubled since early March.

Century Aluminum (CENX)

Here’s an amazing stat…despite Century Aluminum’s 100% rally since late April, the stock is still down 90% since its mid-2008 peak. That spells value, but more importantly, the recent bump suggests the value is being unlocked.

The only drawback we can see with CENX is that it’s very overbought in the short run. Waiting for a pullback may be merited.

Hexcel Corp. (HXL)

Like Rodney Dangerfield, Hexcel gets no respect. This aerospace and defense contractor has topped earnings estimates for three straight quarters, yet analysts are still not budging on this year’s and next year’s expectations.

The stock’s on a tear too, but volume is still increasing on the way up.

Emprasas ICA SA (ICA)

This may be one of the biggest companies you’ve never heard of. The Mexican engineering and construction stock took the expected hit with the swine flu scare, but as those fears have subsided, so has the selling. Bigger picture, infrastructure investment is the primary beneficiary of a global stimulus, and Emprasas is well-positioned in the region. The stock’s trading at about 1/3 of its mid-2008 value.

Final Thoughts

So are these ‘trades’, or ‘investments’? Fundamentals are for long-term thinkers, but technical analysis is for short-term traders.

We hate to pigeon-hole any trading idea, as that may prevent you from taking the appropriate profit-taking or stop-loss action should the need arise. But, if we have to categorize them, we’ll lean towards describing them as investments. (We just happen to use technical analysis to optimize our entries and exits into bigger-picture trends.)

With that in mind, there’s only one caveat….. recognize that being 100% committed to a market philosophy in this environment can be pad for your portfolio’s health; flexibility is the key to maximizing your profit and minimizing your losses.

Did you miss out on the 70% gain we booked on Clearwater Paper Corp. (CLW) in less than a week? Did you miss the 72% gain we took on Sunrise Solar Corp. (SSLR) in two days? Did you miss the 22% gain on Boyd Gaming (BYD) and the 20% gain on GlobalScape (GSB)? These were all booked this week. Don’t miss the next one - sign up for the free newsletter today.

I hate to do this to you guys this soon, but I think it’s time to make an exit on any Sunrise Solar Corporation (SSLR) shares you may have bought on our recommendation from last Friday. At the time we suggested this penny stock on the 1st, it was trading at 59 cents (it also closed at 59 cents that day). Currently it’s trading at $1.02, which translates into a 72% gain for this penny stock trade.

Normally I’d prefer to just let it ride and let each of you decide for yourself when to get out. However, I just don’t like the shape of today’s chart - it looks like a blowoff, particularly after seeing it retreat back from the intra-day high of $1.29. I hope some of you got out closer to that level, for more than a double.

On a side note, this chart pretty much played out as I expected it to. We saw a huge move in only a few days, but the move was hinted with modest acceleration a few days prior. This surge looked a lot like the one we witnessed in January, September, and July.

I’ll be keeping SSLR on my penny stock radar in case we get the early warning again.

Don’t miss another penny stock alert from the Small Cap Network - you could end up missing out an a gain like the 64% win we just booked on Sunrise Solar Corp. (SSLR). The best way to get our recommended trades and their exits is to sign up for the free newsletter. You can see an example of a recent profit-taking edition here.

Our “penny stocks worth a look” list isn’t quite as long as usual as we kick off the week, though there are still some interesting ideas on the table.

As always, these penny stocks come to our attention though a variety of proprietary scans designed to pinpoint the most trade-worthy or investment-worthy stocks, while disregarding the mediocre ideas. Though no stock-selection process is perfect, we have found our strategy to be a very efficient ways to find trading ideas for you to review further.

Note: Our penny stock ‘picks’ are generally a longer-term idea, while our penny stock ‘trades’ are likely to have a shorter holding period. There’s crossover from time to time though, so don’t get too rigid in your trading plan.

Also, if you’re going to act on any of these ideas, do so intelligently. Use tight stops, take profits at peaks, etc.  This is still a speculative game, and it’s your money on the line. We may or may not revisit any of these tickers in the future, so it’s up to you to handle them.

We’ve added the most meaningful pieces of information for each of today’s four penny stocks.

BBVA Banco Frances S.A. (BFR)

We’ve now seen two unexplained volume surges over the last three days, made as part of a pretty reliable uptrend. In other words, we think the volume was buying volume, as the stock didn’t falter. There was no news behind the volume surge either.

BBVA is just one of those undiscovered penny stocks that the market is slowly - very slowly - finding. The P/E of 5.64 is attractive, and the company has made a habit of topping analyst’s expectations. This year’s and next year’s bar may still be set too low to boot. It could just be one of those micro companies (foreign, no less) that quietly makes its owners a fortune while nobody’s looking.

MGMT Energy, Inc. (MGEG)

Slow and steady wins the race, and we’ve seen just that from MGMT Energy. Support has been made pretty consistently while the stock has moved from the low $3’s to the high $3’s. It was today’s high-volume break above the ceiling at $3.75 that got our attention though….on no news (that we could find anyway). It could be the beginning of another bullish wave, with the news behind it all to be announced later.

Omnicity, Corp. (OMCY)

This is a tough one. The trend is bullish, and today’s volume is bullish. However, we’re actually thinking this thing could turn BEARISH in a hurry.

What gives? The stock has made little to no progress despite a massive increase in volume of late. Perhaps for every buyer, there’s a willing seller. If potential buyers see the stall and back of from their ask price, the bottom could drop out. Or, OMCY could break through resistance at 73 cents (fueled by lots of volume) and explode to the upside.

We think there’s tons of ’swing’ opportunity here….it’s just not clear in which direction yet. Keep it on your radar, but be ready to move quickly.

China Distance Education Holdings Limited (DL)

This is a bearish play (a shorting idea, if your broker allows you to short stocks under $5.00).

Basically, we find it a little ironic that the same day the company provided a firm date for last quarter’s earnings conference call is the same day the stock started to fall apart. The 7.6% dip is the worst daily showing in months; plenty of technical damage was inflicted too. We can’t help but wonder if earnings numbers were leaked, and it turns out that China’s for-profit schools are starting to experience the same problems U.S. distance-learning and for-profit schools are. Today’s not a good omen for the bulls.

This is just a small sample of the kinds of great penny stock and small cap trading ideas you can get by subscribing to our free newsletter. Don’t miss your next chance to make some serious money. Sign up today and start profiting tomorrow.

Some more penny stock plays popped up on Friday. As always, we view some of these picks as short-term trading candidates, while others may be best used as longer-term positions. (Of course, ‘long-term’ for penny stock folks may still be short-term for everyone else.)

Even though we’re recommending them, in all cases you’ll still want to do some more of your own due diligence, and trade them intelligently. The key themes we saw for each ticker are described below.

Click on each company name (ticker) to view a chart, if the chart’s not shown.

Hyperdynamics Corp. (HDY)

Hyperdynamics’ board is not inviting CEO Kent Watts to return to his post - his last day will be July 1st. And apparently, the market is happy with the decision. Normally we wouldn’t chase a high-volume breakout on news like that, but this move may have broken the stock’s rut by giving the company new life. HDY rallied very well for several days the last time we saw buying this heavy.

Arbinet-thexchange Inc. (ARBX)

A big move out of nowhere? An earnings call scheduled for May 7th on the same day the big move started? It could be an omen, and ARBX may be able sustain the speculative rally right up until earnings are released…..and maybe afterward as well. This is still a pretty speculative chart, but it’s also the best move we’ve seen since 2006.

Sunrise Solar Corp. (SSLR)

Sunrise Solar has a fairly reliable history of strong rallies that start out modestly, and then accelerate for a week or so once engaged. Each of the recent ones (July of ‘09 and January of ‘09) faded just as quickly, so be sure to bail at the first sign of a top. But, it could be a decent ride on the way up.

The Dixie Group Inc. (DXYN)

Q1 was worse than expected, but the market doesn’t seem to care. Perhaps investors are eying earnings of 10 cents in 2010. Either way, the downtrend has turned into a well-supported uptrend. Look for turbulence in the $3.70-ish area.

Angiotech Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ANPI)

Angiotech’s conference call on Thursday was uneventful, as was the market’s response to what was said. That’s perfect - we can do without the volatility for this long-term idea. What the market doesn’t quite get (or maybe it does) is that Angiotech’s slow trek into the black as about to accelerate. Analysts are looking for earnings of 2 cents in 2009, and 12 cents in 2010. At the current price, that means the forward-looking P/E is 4.5. We love the slow, methodical progress in the meantime.

Elray Resources Inc. (ELRA)

Didn’t we already pick Elray earlier this week? Yep, but it popped up again using a different scan. In the past we’ve found if stocks keep showing up on different ‘buy’ lists for different reasons, it does actually mean that all those things are coming together in a ‘perfect storm’. Note the support being made at the 20 day moving average line. If resistance at 50 cents is broken, look out above.

This is just a sample of the kinds of picks, ideas, and commentary you can get by subscribing to our free newsletter. Don’t scour the market hours looking for ideas - we can do it for you. Register today.