Top Takes From RealMoney

The RealMoney contributors are in the business of trading and investing all day on the basis of ongoing news flow. Below, we offer the top five ideas that RealMoney contributors posted today and how they played those ideas.

TheStreet.com brings you the news all day, and with RealMoney's "Columnist Conversation," you can see how the pros are playing it on a real-time basis. Here are the top five ideas played today. To see all that RealMoney offers, click here for a free trial.

1. A Key Trigger Tomorrow

Jason Schwarz
2/17/2009 4:00 PM EST

Everyone now understands that all eyes are on Washington, and I expect Obama to put on a housing show tomorrow. Remember that housing is one of the three triggers for this market. What am I buying ahead of tomorrow? The two stocks that I just can't get out of my head: Exxon Mobil(XOM Quote) and Bank of America(BAC Quote). Oil is very low, and Exxon might have the most reliable trading range of any stock on Wall Street; the big banks are safe, in fact BAC paid back $400 million of TARP today. Way to go, Ken Lewis.

2. SBUX Going Low End? It Makes No Sense

...