Hi Pat: Because of you and your team’s advice, my portfolio has actually shown a gain in the three years of this turbulent market. In some cases I’m up 600%! I would like your opinion on Africa Oil and Cabo Drilling. As always, your pearls of wisdom are very insightful and greatly appreciated. You are the standard by which the competition is judged! Cheers and thank you.

Africa Oil, $1.68, symbol AOI on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 212.0 million; Market cap: $356.2 million; www.africaoilcorp.com), is a Canadian oil and gas exploration company with interests in properties in Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia and Mali.

Africa Oil plans to drill seven to 10 wells over the next 18 months. The company holds cash of $118.0 million, or $0.53 a share, so it …

Arris Group, $11.75, symbol ARRS on Nasdaq (Shares outstanding: 121.2 million; Market cap: $1.4 billion; www.arrisi.com), supplies phone and cable companies with the technology they need to deliver video, data and voice services.

For example, the company supplies equipment that lets cable operators offer personal video recording (PVR) services, which let viewers record TV programs and view them when it’s convenient. …

Terex Corp., $20.41, symbol TEX on New York (Shares outstanding: 110.3 million; Market cap: $2.3 billion, www.terex.com) makes construction and mining equipment for customers in the U.S. (27% of sales), Germany (7%), the U.K. (5%), other European countries (20%) and elsewhere (41%).

Terex operates has five divisions: cranes (30% of sales); aerial work platforms (25%); construction (22%); material handling and port …

Tuscany Energy, $0.17, symbol TUS on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 125.2 million; Market cap: $21.3 million, www.tuscanyenergy.com), is a junior oil and gas exploration and development company that operates in western Canada. Right now, it gets most of its revenue by producing oil in Saskatchewan.

In the three months ended September 30, 2011, Tuscany’s cash flow was $1.4 million, or $0.02 a …

Aura Minerals, $1.17, symbol ORA on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 227.9 million; Market cap: $266.6 million; www.auraminerals.com), owns the San Andres gold mine in Honduras, the Sao Francisco and Sao Vicente gold mines in Brazil, and the new Aranzazu copper/gold/silver mine in Zacatecas State, Mexico.

The company’s other assets include the advanced-stage Serrote copper/gold/iron ore deposit at the Arapiraca project in …

Some aggressive investors like to get into fast-growing stocks at what they describe as “the ground floor.” They think the best way to profit in stocks is to buy them when they are just barely starting out on a growth phase that can last for years if not decades. Ideally, they want to buy the future top performers when they …

Stevia Corp., $1.53, symbol STEV on the U.S. over-the-counter bulletin board (Shares outstanding: 52.8 million; Market cap: $80.8 million, www.stevia.co), hopes to develop and sell stevia, a zero-calorie, all-natural sweetener derived from Stevia Rebaudiana leaves. The plant, a member of the chrysanthemum family, is quickly gaining in popularity because it supplies sweetness without the calories or health drawbacks of sugar. …

CounterPath Corp., $1.60, symbol CCV on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 39.9 million; Market cap: $63.8 million, www.counterpath.com), makes voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) software for computers and mobile devices.

VoIP technology converts analog signals, mainly voices, to a digital format. This makes it possible for users to make low-cost phone calls over the Internet, as well as share video and instant messaging at the same …

Thompson Creek Metals Co. Inc., $8.59, symbol TCM on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 168.5 million; Market cap: $1.4 billion, www.thompsoncreekmetals.com), is a molybdenum producer with mining, milling, roasting and marketing operations in Canada and the U.S.

The company’s operations include the Thompson Creek mine in Idaho, a roasting facility in Langeloth, Pennsylvania, and 75% of the Endako mine and roaster in B.C.

Molybdenum …

Duoyuan Global Water, formerly symbol DGW on New York (Shares outstanding: 24.6 million; www.duoyuan-hq.com), is a China-based water treatment and equipment supplier.

The company had multiple lawsuits filed against it in 2010. Among other things, these suits alleged that there was a substantial interconnection between Duoyuan Global Water and Duoyuan Printing Inc. The plaintiffs argued that accounting irregularities and weak internal …