Top Rocket Stocks for Week of April 28

Update from 7:01 a.m. EDT

For my weekly Rocket Stocks column, I like to find beaten-up stocks that I believe have the potential to snap back in the coming days because of a specific catalyst.

I constantly check the lists of 52-week lows and analyst downgrades lists in the hope that I spot an oversold gem from which readers and fellow investors can profit.

Another great place to check daily is the 52-week high list, which offers some possible momentum plays in which Wall Street currently believes.

One of the keys to choosing rocket stocks that are ideal for a stock-picking contests like TheStreet.com's Beat the Street is to find high beta stocks with upcoming catalysts and exploit the stock-specific news.

Before we get to this week's Rocket Stocks, let's take a quick look at how last week's picks fared.

• AgFeed Industries FEED: Finished the week up 9.5% after earlier in the week climbing more than 17% to a new 52-week high.
• Zoran ZRAN: Finished the week up 9% after offering better-than-expected second-quarter revenue guidance.
• Cemex CX: Finished the week up 5%.
• Eastman Chemical EMN: Finished the week up 3.9%.
• Celanese CE: Finished the week up 3.5%.
• International Coal Group ICO: Finished the week up 2.4%; however, the stock climbed more than 17% at one point to a new 52-week high earlier in the week.
• Potash POT: Finished the week up a slight 0.8%.
• EMC EMC: Finished the week down 1.6% despite solid earnings out of VMware VMW.
• Nokia NOK: Finished the week down 1.2%.
• Diamond Offshore DO: Finished the week down 5.3% on the week after the company posted earnings that fell short of Wall Street estimates.

Now let's take a look at the Rocket Stocks for the Week of April 28-May 2.

First up this week is Manitowoc MTW, a maker of international cranes, trucks and ice-cubes machines. The company is set to report its most recent quarterly financial results after Monday's market close.

Investors have seemingly forgotten about this stock, which has fallen from a 52-week high of $51.49 set in late December to about $39 currently. That creates an opportunity. Shares of Manitowoc are now at a level from which they have the potential to climb higher should the company beat profit estimates this week.

Shares of Manitowoc are reflecting an inaccurate assumption that global growth is slowing. In fact, recent earnings reports suggest otherwise.

With crane operating margins in the high-teens and estimated earnings per share as high as $3.45 for 2008, Manitowoc could move much higher in the coming week.