Mark a Green-Letter Day for H-P

This column was originally published on RealMoney on Dec. 6 at 12:33 p.m. EST. It's being republished as a bonus for TheStreet.com readers. For more information about subscribing to RealMoney, please click here.

Investor days have come back into vogue as data points on which to make money. It's been almost six years since a company could throw a day of presentations and be counted on to give you a profitable trade.

Tuesday we had Prudential(PRU Quote) make a presentation. Could there be a bigger yawner than this one? I mean, do you really care?

You sure should have cared. You would be up a couple of smackers for this trade, which can only be described as an unexpected gift.

To me, this says take a look at your calendar. Think about Dec. 12. That's when Hewlett-Packard(HPQ Quote) has an investor day. Normally, I would just say "big deal," but that's no longer the case. Too much movement off these meetings.

H-P has a great story to tell, with Vista coming up and its taking of market share in printers and lots of new applications for its technology. This stock has been sitting here since Dell(DELL Quote) reported a good number, as if the only reason H-P has gone up was Dell's falling apart.

I believe there's plenty of room for an improving Dell and a thriving H-P, especially given the Vista launch. I would consider this one as the trade for next week.

Random musings: Tonight is Cramer night at Borders Books and Music in Bridgewater, N.J. (290 Commons Way, Bridgewater Commons mall). I'll see you there for my book signing, at 7 p.m.!