Dow Jones 12427.26 +90.04 1:12 pm PST, February 20, 2008 NASDAQ 2327.10 +20.90 For info, visit access.smallcapnetwork.com S & P 500 1360.03 +11.25 Change your subscription status here Russell 2000 708.63 +6.29 VOLUME 08 : ISSUE 16 Where's the Small Cap Pick? If you're wondering where our new small cap idea is, don't worry - we didn't forget it. We learned in the meantime the company would be announcing earnings this week. Given the opportunity to see more results before we put the name out there, we opted to hold off. I know what you may be thinking...the earnings news may well be a bullish catalyst. Yeah, maybe, but that's not the 'big one' we see brewing - the earnings news may just be a little appetizer before the main course. Once we review the 10Q and any new fine print, then we'll make a decision to put the stock on our watchlist. Even then, we may hold off on an actual trade alert until the time is right (i.e. let's see if the news is actually as big as we think it could be).  We know we're being picky, but that's the difference between good and great. The market hasn't been rewarding anything less than 'outstanding' lately.  In the meantime, we've got another round of good news from a small cap stock that's already proven to be a winner.    The Spicy Pickle Train Just Keeps on Rolling I'm running out of analogies to describe Spicy Pickle's (OTCBB: SPKL) methodical growth. That's a good thing though, since it means there's plenty of progress. The latest mental picture I drew in my head compares Spicy Pickle to Tiger Woods. Whether you're a golf fan or not, you probably know bigger-than-life Tiger Woods is known as much for his intense focus as he is his incredible skill. No matter what, Tiger plays the same aggressive mental game. Leading by 10 strokes? Doesn't matter. On the verge of missing the cut? Doesn't matter. Bad weather? Doesn't matter. Meaningless tournament? Doesn't matter. He keeps his eye on the prize, and his mind on the means to get him there.  Likewise, Spicy Pickle has stayed on the same path of progress they started on in the latter part of last year. And that couldn't have been easy to do. The market has been falling apart at the seams, we're in a recession (by my judgment), and we're truly toying with a bear market. Yet, we keep hearing announcement after announcement about new Spicy Pickle franchisees joining the team, and new location leases being signed.  Why do you think that is?  Today's news isn't likely to shock any of you at this point. Five new storefront leases have been signed. Three of them are going to the first Spicy Pickles in their state, while the other two will be one of the first few in their area.  Congratulations Brooklyn, Edmond, and Ocala residents. Your cities are going to play host to the first Spicy Pickles in New York, Oklahoma, and Florida (respectively). They should be operational by early summer.  Congrats also go out to San Diego, California as well as Austin, Texas. You're now slated to get your second and third restaurants (again, respectively). I don't think either location has the most-recently leased stores up and running yet, but there's no need to delay progress. Look for their grand openings in late spring.  As far as the stock is concerned, it's tough to complain. SPKL is basically where it was in early November. Sure it'd be nice to have a double between then and now. However, considering the market is more than 8% lower for the same timeframe, I'm pleased with the relative strength.  Chart-wise we now have a pretty clear horizontal support line right around $1.12. We've pulled back to there (or near there) four times now over the last three months - with the fourth one being today. All four times the buyers have stepped up to the plate. As long as shares can hold that line I'll be satisfied. It's all about staying in the hunt during a tough environment, so you can pounce when the environment turns more productive.    And Another Thing... I don't know how many of you do it, but I think everybody should. What I'm talking about is paying attention to sectors and industries.  When I first read about Bill O'Neil's CANSLIM methodology, I confess I blew it off. A couple of years later - for whatever reason - I started to incorporate the clues found in new (and old) sector/industry leadership. I swear it's made a very big difference in my results.  Care to know which two areas are the only ones with decent results over the last 52 weeks? I don't think it's a coincidence they're also the leaders (by far) for the last month. The two groups are energy, and basic materials. I doubt anybody is surprised. More importantly, based on their current relative strength (coupled with the economic environment we're in) I think those two sectors may offer a little more opportunity than others in the coming months.  Energy: Even though oil eased off its all-time high close above $100, the crunch is still on. I like the drillers and service/equipment areas a little better than the refiners. However, there's a lot of overlap there.  Simultaneously, it seems like alternative energy stocks come back into focus whenever oil prices spike. Solar power stocks saw a huge run-up late last year, and are getting pushed into the spotlight again now that there's some pain at the gas pump. One of these days I think these stocks are going to come into focus and stay there. That was one of my market predictions for the year, and I'm sticking to my story.  Basic Materials: Some of the strength here can be attributed to inflation. The Fed is somewhat locked into low rates as they try and stave off a recession (good luck to 'em), which unchains inflationary pressures. That's not a problem that's gonna' fix itself in just a few days.  Gold, platinum, and other precious metals are through the roof - all interesting ideas in my opinion. However, one of the more obscure areas I'm looking at is chemicals. Believe it or not, they're actually leading the basic materials charge (subtracting the non-precious-metal stocks). I think they may have more longevity - and less volatility - than gold or platinum.  No specific ideas here - just a little encouragement to think 'bigger picture' about basic materials, energy, solar power, and chemicals.  Anyway, here's the Spicy Pickle news release.    Spicy Pickle(tm) Announces Five New Lease Signings For Franchise Locations  New Locations Will Mark First Stores in Three New States  Wednesday, February 20, 2008, 4:10 PM ET  DENVER, CO--(MARKET WIRE)-February 20, 2008 -- Spicy Pickle(tm) fast casual restaurants (OTC BB: SPKL.OB) today announced five of its franchisees have recently signed leases for new locations.  Today's announcement marks Spicy Pickles first locations in Florida, Oklahoma, and New York. The other two lease signings represent a second location in San Diego, California and a third location in Austin, Texas.  Spicy Pickle will enter the New York metro area with a Brooklyn store. Located at 143 Montague St, Brooklyn NY 11201, this location is adjacent to the Federal Court House in Brooklyn, several Universities, and a number of large, white-collar office buildings.  Edmond, Oklahoma, just North of Oklahoma City will be getting its first location. The Spicy Pickle restaurant will be located in Spring Creek Village at 1389 E 15th St, Edmond, Oklahoma 73013.  Florida will also be the recipient of its first location. The first Florida Spicy Pickle will open in the Northern Florida community of Ocala. The store will be found at the Market Street at Heathbrook, 4414 SW College Road #1020, Ocala, Florida, 34474.  The last two of the five new locations will mark the second San Diego, California store and the third Austin, Texas store.  The new San Diego location is just south of the Little Italy area and adjacent to the downtown financial district. The store is located in the Aperture Building at 1454 Union Street, San Diego CA 92101.  The third Austin store is located at the 1890 Ranch at 1335 E Whitestone Blvd, Cedar Park, Texas, 78613.  The new locations in San Diego and Edmond are expected to open in the late spring. The other three new locations should open sometime in the early summer.  Marc Geman, CEO of Spicy Pickle commented "We always try to be very careful about getting the right location, and this is particularly important for a first restaurant in a new area. Our hard work has paid off with these five leases which will bring the Spicy Pickle to three new states. Our restaurants have always generated additional interest in the area where they are located. We look forward to further expansion in Florida, Oklahoma and New York in the near future."  About Spicy Pickle(tm):  Founded in 1999, Spicy Pickle Franchising, Inc. (OTCBB: SPKL) serves high quality meats and fine artisan breads, baked fresh daily, along with a wide choice of eight different cheeses, twenty-two different toppings, and fourteen proprietary spreads to create healthy and delicious panini and sub sandwiches with flavors from around the world. As a leading "fast-casual" concept, Spicy Pickle(tm) offers menu items that are far beyond traditional fast food -- but without the price point of casual dining. The hallmark of a Spicy Pickle(tm) restaurant is quality, service and an enjoyable atmosphere. The company is headquartered in Denver, Colorado, with restaurants open or under construction across 16 states and many more in development nationwide. For more about Spicy Pickle(tm), including franchise information and inquiries, visit http://www.spicypickle.com.  Forward-Looking Statements:  Certain statements in this press release, including statements regarding the number of restaurants we intend to open, are forward-looking statements. We use words such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "should," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "predict," "project," "target," and similar terms and phrases, including references to assumptions, to identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this press release are based on information available to us as of the date any such statements are made and we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the following: factors that could affect our ability to achieve and manage our planned expansion, such as the availability of a sufficient number of suitable new restaurant sites and the availability of qualified franchisees and employees; risks relating to our expansion into new markets; the risk of food-borne illnesses and other health concerns about our food products; changes in the availability and costs of food; changes in consumer preferences, general economic conditions or consumer discretionary spending; the impact of federal, state or local government regulations relating to our franchisees and employees, and the sale of food or alcoholic beverages; the impact of litigation; our ability to protect our name and logo and other proprietary information; the potential effects of inclement weather; the effect of competition in the restaurant industry; and other risk factors described from time to time in our SEC reports.  COMPANY CONTACT:  Marc Geman, CEO  Spicy Pickle Franchising, Inc.  303-951-2530  ir@spicypickle.com  Source: Spicy Pickle Franchising, Inc.    We Value Your Feedback   Got comments, questions or suggestions? Send 'em on over: Email the Editor If you wish to send a written request or inquiry, please send it to our physical address: TGR Group, LLC 4653 Carmel Mtn Rd Suite 308 #402 San Diego, CA 92130 Subscribe Information is power and timely information is profitable. Become informed and profit from Small Cap Network Profiles and Trading Alerts by becoming a Preferred Member today. There is no cost associated with your email subscription. Add your email address below and make sure to check your email inbox and confirm your opt-in request to start receiving the Small Cap Network Email Newsletter on a regular basis. To ensure newsletter delivery, you can add any additional email addresses you may have to the Small Cap Network Member List. Receiving the Small Cap Network Newsletter in multiple locations is the best way of making sure you don't miss the next investing or trading opportunity! 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For web based email addresses, the Small Cap Network recommends @yahoo.com or @aol.com for timely and reliable email newsletter delivery. D I S C L A I M E R: The Small Cap Network, its website and email newsletter (hereafter, cumulatively referred to as "SCN") , is an independent electronic publication committed to providing its readers with factual information on select publicly traded companies. SCN is owned and operated by TGR Group, LLC ("TGR"). All companies are chosen on the basis of certain financial analysis and other pertinent criteria with a view toward maximizing the upside potential for investors while minimizing the downside risk, whenever possible. Moreover, as detailed below, TGR accepts compensation from third party consultants and/or companies, which it features in the publication and circulation of SCN. To the degrees enumerated herein, SCN should not be regarded as an independent publication.  Click Here or go to http://access.smallcapnetwork.com/compensation_disclosure/ to view our compensation on every company we have ever covered, or visit the following web address: http://access.smallcapnetwork.com/profile_disclosure/ for our full profiles and http://access.smallcapnetwork.com/alert_disclosure/ for Trading Alerts.  Larry Isen, the editor and publisher of the OTC Journal, through various entities he controls, has purchased 1,200,441 shares of Spicy Pickle at an average cost of $.2125 per share. These purchases were made in Spicy Pickle private offerings. The aforementioned purchases were made between August of 2005 and August of 2006. On 12/15/07, on entity controlled by Larry Isen participated in an additional financing wherein 12 shares of convertible preferred, converting at $.85 into 120,000 shares and 90,000 warrants with an exercise price of $1.60 were purchased. In addition, Larry Isen has received 785,000 shares of Spicy Pickle common stock for consulting services. In addition, MarketByte LLC, an entity controlled by Larry Isen, has received a fee of $30,000 cash, and 300,000 newly issued restricted shares for coverage of Spicy Pickle. TGR Group LLC, the publisher of the Small Cap Network, has received $30,000 and 300,000 newly issued restricted shares for coverage of Spicy Pickle. Mr. Isen is an affiliate of TGR Group. In addition, two other individuals affiliated with TGR Group have purchased a total of 300,000 shares at $.25 per share and received an additional 70,000 for consulting services. Current positions of the aforementioned can be found at www.otcjournal.com and access.smallcapnetwork.com in the Spicy Pickle information section.  From time to time TGR sells shares received as compensation for coverage of client companies. Shares received are sold in the open market. 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