Sep. 20--See our enhanced stocks page and our custom portfolio feature.

There's something extra from the Business staff in your Sunday paper this week.

Look in the inserts for our 2009 Tulsa World Investment Guide, a 24-page magazine that focuses on stocks of local interest.

A lot of newspapers do an annual ranking of stocks, but ours is different. Instead of making a list of the businesses that performed well over the past year, we ask local money managers to select the stocks they think will do best during the coming 12 months. We tabulate their picks and create our list of the top 20 public companies to watch.

We still include graphics of past performance, but we've always felt that alone isn't the key information you want. After all, if a stock went up 150 percent last year, is that any indicator of where it's going next?

We have been producing the Investment Guide for 15 years now. It's always more fun to write when we are in a bull market or at least one that is rebounding.

Thankfully, after a bleak 2008, the Dow has been rising this summer and things are looking up, according to our local analysts.

Jake Dollarhide, CEO of Longbow Asset

Management and one of 17 pickers in this year's guide, predicts the market will begin a consistent upward trend in January.

"That could be the beginning of a nice one- or two-year run," he told me in an interview. "I think the Dow Jones industrial average could rise 20 percent to 40 percent during that time."

Dollarhide is putting his clients into a lot of financial stocks, as well as insurance companies and some credit providers. These are shares that have been hit especially hard in the recession and therefore have the potential for strong returns, he says.

Our other pickers tend to agree, as four banks made our top 20 list, led by regional power BOK Financial Corp. at a strong No. 5.

With oil prices rising again, a petroleum firm -- ConocoPhillips -- topped our list. And, our analysts also appear to be anticipating a retail rebound as the recession eases, with Wal-Mart Stores being ranked No. 2.

The 2009 Investment Guide also offers some Web-only features that complement the printed magazine. On page 2 of the guide, you'll find a link to additional coverage that includes investment tips, other forecasts and photos of some of our pickers.

In addition, we've added some enhancements to our online stock resources that we think you will like. Our stock page at tulsaworld.com now leads with an illustrated rotating "module" that features market trends. Underneath is a list that includes new items of interest for investors.

I invite you to explore these features. Also, while you are there, try our free custom portfolio tracker. Click on "My Stocks and Funds" and plug in the ticker symbols for the issues you follow. Then, any time you revisit that page, you will be able to view updated prices for your favorite stocks and funds. It's a handy device.

As always, we caution that our Investment Guide and online stock features are for your general information. The Tulsa World is not in the business of recommending stocks. You should speak with a professional about strategy.

You might want to keep the guide and take it with you, though.

As we approach the last quarter of 2009, at least we are talking about stocks again instead of wondering how much cash we can stuff in our mattress.

As staff writer Laurie Winslow notes colorfully in her preface to the Investment Guide, the U.S. economy has been like a ship pounded in a storm. Laurie, who puts about three months of hard work into editing the guide every year, knows that all too well as her beat encompasses finance and the economy. She's written plenty of shipwreck stories.

We'll hope calmer seas are not far off.

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To see more of the Tulsa World, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.tulsaworld.com.

Copyright (c) 2009, Tulsa World, Okla.

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