5 Best Paper Stocks To Own For 2014

While there's no denying that Vringo, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRNG) and VirnetX Holding Corporation (NYSEMKT:VHC) have made a big name for themselves - not to mention made big, even if uneven, gains for shareholder of VHC and VRNG - within the worked of intellectual property enforcement, bigger isn't always better. Smaller companies in the IP arena have a focus and flexibility that larger players like VirnetX and Vringo could never enjoy. Take, for instance, Endeavor IP Inc. (OTCBB:ENIP). This little patent owner may not look like much at first glance, but just ask the four organizations that have already entered licensing deals with ENIP and/or the four, well, now five companies that are currently litigating against Endeavor IP.... this little outfit packs a huge punch.

Endeavor IP currently owns (and this isn't a typo) three patents. It almost seems like a comical number compared to the hundreds, if not thousands, of patents owned between Vringo, Inc. and VirnetX Holding Corporation. Take a closer look at how many of those patents VRNG and VHC are actually making an effort to monetize though. It's only a handful, at best. The rest of their patent portfolios are wasted capital that may never even be reviewed. Endeavor IP Inc. is taking a different approach, however. It's only interested in intellectual property with high odds of enforcement success; it's not interested in spending money to buy patents by the dozens, if not hundreds, knowing most of them aren't even worth the paper they're printed on too.

10 Best Defense Stocks To Buy Right Now: Greif Inc (GEF)

Greif, Inc., incorporated on January 25, 1926, is a producer of industrial packaging products and services with manufacturing facilities located in over 50 countries. The Company offers a line of industrial packaging products, such as steel, fiber and plastic drums, rigid intermediate bulk containers, closure systems for industrial packaging products, transit protection products, water bottles and reconditioned containers, and services such as container lifecycle management, blending, filling and other packaging services, logistics and warehousing. It also produces containerboard and corrugated products for niche markets in North America. It sells timber to third parties from its timberland in the south-eastern United States. It has four segments: Rigid Industrial Packaging & Services, Flexible Products & Services, Paper Packaging and Land Management.

Rigid Industrial Packaging and Services

In the Rigid Industrial Packaging and Services, the Company is a provider of rigid industrial packaging products, including steel, fiber and plastic drums, rigid intermediate bulk containers, closure systems for industrial packaging products, transit protection products, water bottles and reconditioned containers, and services, such as container lifecycle management, blending, filling and other packaging services, logistics and warehousing. It sells industrial packaging products to customers in industries, such as chemicals, paints and pigments, food and beverage, petroleum, industrial coatings, agricultural, pharmaceutical and mineral, among others.

Flexible Products and Services segment

In the Flexible Products and Services segment, the Company is a producer of flexible intermediate bulk containers and a North American provider of industrial and consumer multiwall bag products. Its flexible intermediate bulk containers consist of a polypropylene-based woven fabric that is partly produced at its production sites, as well as sourced from strategic regional sup! pliers. Its industrial and consumer multiwall bag products are used to ship a range of industrial and consumer products, such as seed, fertilizers, chemicals, concrete, flour, sugar, feed, pet foods, popcorn, charcoal and salt, primarily for the agricultural, chemical, building products and food industries.

Paper Packaging segment

In the Paper Packaging segment, the Company sells containerboard, corrugated sheets and other corrugated products to customers in North America in industries such as packaging, automotive, food and building products. Its corrugated container products are used to ship such products as home appliances, small machinery, grocery products, building products, automotive components, books and furniture, as well as numerous other applications. Operations related to industrial and consumer multiwall bag products have been reclassified to Flexible Products and Services segment.

Land Management segment

In the Land Management segment, the Company is focused on the active harvesting and regeneration of the United States timber properties to achieve long-term yields. It also sells, from time to time, timberland and special use land, which consists of surplus land, HBU land and development land. As of October 31, 2013, it owned approximately 252,475 acres of timber property in the southeastern United States and approximately 10,300 acres of timber property in Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Geoff Gannon]

  For those of you wondering if Greif Brothers Cooperage has any relation to Greif (GEF) ��yes. It has every relation. It�� the same exact company. And it�� still in pretty much the same business. They used to just make barrels. Now they make all kinds of different drums, containers, etc. That�� not a very big change for a company to make over 60 years or so.

5 Best Paper Stocks To Own For 2014: Fibria Celulose SA (FBR)

Fibria Celulose S.A. (Fibria), formerly Votorantim Celulose e Papel S.A., incorporated on July 25, 1941, is a producer of market pulp. During the year ended December 31, 2010, Fibria produced 5,054 kilotons of eucalyptus pulp (including 50.0% of the pulp production of Veracel). The Company also produces coated and uncoated paper, carbonless paper and thermal paper at its Piracicaba paper mill, located in the State of Sao Paulo with an annual production capacity of 190 kilotons. During 2010, it produced 115 kilotons of paper products and recorded consolidated net revenues. Fibria produces bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp at three pulp mills, the Aracruz pulp mill located in the State of Espirito Santo, which has an annual production capacity of 2.3 million tons; the Tres Lagoas pulp mill located in the State of Mato Grosso do Sul, which has an annual production capacity of 1.3 million tons, and the Jacarei pulp mill located in the State of Sao Paulo, which has an annual production capacity of 1.1 million tons. The Company has a 50% interest in Veracel, which owns and operates a pulp mill in the municipality of Eunapolis, State of Bahia, with an annual production capacity of 1.1 million tons.

Pulp

Fibria produces bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp from planted eucalyptus trees. Bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp is a range of hardwood pulp. Eucalyptus is a hardwood tree, and its pulp has short fibers and is generally suited to manufacturing tissue, coated and uncoated printing and writing paper and coated packaging boards. Short fibers are optimal for manufacturing wood-free paper with good printability, smoothness, brightness and uniformity. Market pulp is the pulp sold to producers of paper products. Kraft pulp is pulp produced in a chemical process using sulphate. During 2010, it produced 5,054 kilotons of pulp (including 50.0% of the pulp production of Veracel).

Paper

During 2010, Fibria produced 115 kilotons of paper. The Company produced coated printing an! d writing paper, which is a coated woodfree paper used for promotional materials, folders, internal sheets and cover of magazines, books, tabloids, inserts and mailing; uncoated printing and writing paper, which is a uncoated woodfree paper in reels and sheets; carbonless paper, which is used to produce multi-copy forms, POS, invoices and other applications in place of traditional carbon paper, and thermal paper, which is traditionally used in fax machines; POS, bar code labels, toll tickets, water and gas bills and receipts for automated teller machines (ATMs) and credit card machines. It manufactures thermal paper products with technology licensed byOji Paper Co., Ltd (Oji Paper).

The Company competes with APRIL, Arauco, APP, Georgia Pacific, CMPC, Sodra, Stora Enso, Weyerhaeuser and Suzano.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Fibria Celulose (NYSE: FBR  ) reported earnings on July 24. Here are the numbers you need to know.

  The 10-second takeaway
  For the quarter ended June 30 (Q2), Fibria Celulose met expectations on revenues and missed expectations on earnings per share.

5 Best Paper Stocks To Own For 2014: International Paper Co (IP)

International Paper Company (International Paper), incorporated on June 23, 1941, is a global paper and packaging company, with primary markets and manufacturing operations in North America, Europe, Latin America, Russia, Asia and North Africa. The Company operates in four segments: Industrial Packaging, Printing Papers, Consumer Packaging and Distribution. As of December 31, 2012, in the United States, the Company operated 28 pulp, paper and packaging mills, 187 converting and packaging plants, 18 recycling plants and three bag facilities. Production facilities as of December 31, 2012 in Europe, Asia, Latin America and South America included 11 pulp, paper and packaging mills, 65 converting and packaging plants, and two recycling plants. It distribute printing, packaging, graphic arts, maintenance and industrial products principally through over 88 distribution branches in the United States and 32 distribution branches located in Canada, Mexico and Asia. As of December 31, 2012, it owned or managed approximately 327,000 acres of forestland in Brazil and had, through licenses and forest management agreements, harvesting rights on government-owned forestlands in Russia. On July 2, 2012, it sold Ontario and Oxnard (Hueneme), California containerboard mills to New-Indy Containerboard LLC, and its New Johnsonville, Tennessee containerboard mill to Hood Container Corporation. On January 3, 2013, it acquired joint venture partner, Sabanci Holding.

Industrial Packaging

International Paper is a manufacturer of containerboard in the United States. Its production capacity is about 14 million tons annually. The Company�� products include linerboard, medium, whitetop, recycled linerboard, recycled medium and saturating kraft. About 80% of its production is converted domestically into corrugated boxes and other packaging by its 178 United States container plants. In addition, it recycles approximately one million tons of old corrugated containers (OCC) and mixed and white paper through ! our 20 recycling plants. In Europe, our operations include one recycled fiber containerboard mill in Morocco and 20 container plants in France, Italy, Spain, and Morocco. In Asia, its operations include 19 container plants in China and additional container plants in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. Its container plants are supported by regional design centers, which offer total packaging solutions and supply chain initiatives.

Printing Papers

International Paper is a producer of printing and writing papers. Products in this segment include uncoated and coated papers, uncoated bristols and pulp. This business produces papers for use in copiers, desktop and laser printers and digital imaging. End use applications include advertising and promotional materials, such as brochures, pamphlets, greeting cards, books, annual reports and direct mail. Uncoated papers also produce a variety of grades that are converted by its customers into envelopes, tablets, business forms and file folders. Uncoated papers are sold under private label and International Paper brand names that include Hammermill, Springhill, Williamsburg, Postmark, Accent, Great White, Chamex, Ballet, Rey, Pol and Svetocopy. The mills producing uncoated papers are located in the United States, France, Poland, Russia, Brazil and India. The mills have uncoated paper production capacity of approximately five million tons annually.

Pulp products include fluff, and southern softwood pulp, as well as southern and birch hardwood paper pulps. These products are produced in the United States, France, Poland, Russia, and Brazil and are sold around the world. International Paper facilities have annual dried pulp capacity of about 1.7 million tons.

Consumer Packaging

International Paper is a producer of solid bleached sulfate board with annual United States production capacity of about 1.7 million tons. Its coated paperboard business produces coated paperboard for a variety of packag! ing and c! ommercial printing end uses. Its Everest, Fortress, and Starcote brands are used in packaging applications for everyday products, such as food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, computer software and tobacco products. Its Carolina brand is used in commercial printing end uses, such as greeting cards, paperback book covers, lottery tickets, direct mail and point-of-purchase advertising. Its United States capacity is supplemented by about 365,000 tons of capacity at its mills producing coated board in Poland and Russia and by its International Paper & Sun Cartonboard Co., Ltd. joint venture in China, which has annual capacity of 1.0 million tons. Its Foodservice business produces cups, lids, food containers and plates through three domestic plants and four international facilities.

Distribution

xpedx, the Company�� North American merchant distribution business, distributes products and services to a number of customer markets, including commercial printers with printing papers and graphic pre-press, printing presses and post-press equipment; building services and away-from-home markets with facility supplies; manufacturers with packaging supplies and equipment, and to a number of customers, it provides distribution capabilities, including warehousing and delivery services. xpedx is the wholesale distribution marketer in these customer and product segments in North America, operating 108 warehouse locations in the United States and Mexico.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John McCamant, Editor, Medical Technology Stock Letter]

  SGMO continues to create strong intellectual property (IP), which is the core strength of the company. We also expect SGMO to continue translating their strong IP into solid revenue streams.

• [By Jacob Roche]

  The increased demand is bad for homebuilders, but it's also bad for paper companies. They could at least use the beetle-bored wood that homebuilders don't want, since it would just be ground to pulp and bleached anyway. But with power companies buying up even wasted sawdust, International Paper (NYSE: IP  ) , one of the largest paper companies, has seen its margins compressed, as some operational improvements have been offset by lower sales prices and higher input costs.

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  International Paper Company (NYSE: IP) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

  J. C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Maxim Group.

• [By Anna Prior]

  International Paper Co.(IP) said Tuesday its board approved an expansion of the company’s existing share-repurchase program by as much as $1.5 billion.

5 Best Paper Stocks To Own For 2014: Berry Plastics Group Inc (BERY)

Berry Plastics Group, Inc. (Berry), incorporated on November 18, 2005, is a provider of plastic consumer packaging and engineered materials. Berry owns 100% interest of Berry Plastics Corporation. Berry sells its solutions predominantly into end markets, such as food and beverage, healthcare and personal care. The Company operates in three segments: Rigid Packaging, Engineered Materials and Flexible Packaging. As of September 19, 2012, the Company supplied its customers through 82 manufacturing facilities throughout the United States (68 locations) and select international locations (14 locations). In June 2012, the Company acquired 100% interest of Frans Nooren Beheer B.V. and its operating companies (Stopaq). In September 2011, the Company acquired 100% interests of Rexam Closures Kentucky Inc., Rexam Delta Inc., Rexam Closures LLC, Rexam Closure Systems LLC, Rexam de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Rexam Singapore PTE Ltd., Rexam Participacoes Ltda. and Rexam Plasticos do Brasil Ltda. (collectively, Rexam SBC). In August 2011, Berry acquired 100% interest of LINPAC Packaging Filmco, Inc.

Rigid Packaging

The Company�� Rigid Packaging business consists of containers, foodservice items, house wares, closures, over caps, bottles, prescription vials, and tubes. The end uses for these products are consumer-oriented end markets, such as food and beverage, retail mass marketers, healthcare, personal care and household chemical. The Company manufactures a collection of container products. The Company produces 32 ounce or thermoformed polypropylene (PP) drink cups and offers a product line with sizes ranging from 12 to 52 ounces. The Company�� products of house wares market is focused on producing semi-disposable plastic home and party and plastic garden products. The Company produces closures and over caps across several of its product lines, including continuous-thread and child-resistant closures, as well as aerosol over caps. The Company also provides a range of custom closure ! solutions including fitments and plugs for medical applications, cups and spouts for liquid laundry detergent, and dropper bulb assemblies for medical and personal care applications.

The Company competes with Airlite, Letica, Polytainers, Silgan, Aptar Group and Reynolds.

Engineered Materials

Berry�� Engineered Materials business primarily consists of pipeline corrosion protection solutions, specialty tapes and adhesives, polyethylene-based film products, and can liners served to a variety of end markets including oil, water and gas infrastructure, industrial and consumer-oriented end markets. The Company produces anti-corrosion products to infrastructure, rehabilitation and pipeline projects throughout the world. Products include heat-shrinkable coatings, single- and multi-layer sleeves, pipeline coating tapes, anode systems for cathodic protection and epoxy coatings. These products are used in oil, gas and water supply and construction applications.

Berry is the manufacturer of cloth and foil tape products. Other tape products include range of splicing and laminating tapes, flame-retardant tapes, vinyl-coated and carton sealing tapes, electrical, double-faced cloth, masking, mounting, original equipment manufacturer (OEM) medical and specialty tapes. These products are sold under the National, Nashua and Polyken brands in the United States. The Company manufactures and sells a portfolio of PE-based film products to end users in the retail markets. These products are sold under brands, such as Ruffies and Film-Gard. Its products include drop cloths and retail trash bags. The Company manufactures customized PP-based, woven and sewn containers for the transportation and storage of raw materials, such as seeds, titanium dioxide, clay and resin pellets.

The Company offers range of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) meat film and agricultural film. Berry�� products are used primarily to wrap fresh meats, poultry and produce for supermarket applic! ations. I! n addition, the Company offers a line of boxed products for food service and retail sales. Berry sells trash-can liners and food bags for offices, restaurants, schools, hospitals, hotels, municipalities and manufacturing facilities. The Company also sells products under the Big City, Hospi-Tuff, Plas-Tuff, Rhino-X and Steel-Flex brands. The Company produces both hand and machine-wrap stretch films, which are used by end users to wrap products and packages for storage and shipping. It sells stretch film products to distributors and retail and industrial end users under the MaxTech and PalleTech brands.

The Company competes with AEP, Sigma and 3M.

Flexible Packaging

The Company�� Flexible Packaging business consists of barrier, multilayer film products, as well as finished flexible packages, such as printed bags and pouches. Berry manufactures and sells a range of film products ranging from mono layer to coextruded films having up to nine layers, lamination films sold primarily to flexible packaging converters and used for peelable lid stock, stand-up pouches, pillow pouches and other flexible packaging formats. The Company also manufactures barrier films used for cereal, cookie, cracker and dry mix packages that are sold directly to food manufacturers like Kraft and Pepsico. It also manufactures films for industrial applications ranging from lamination film for carpet padding to films used in solar panel construction.

The Company supplies component and packaging films used for personal care applications. Berry is a converter of printed bags, pouches and roll stock. Its manufacturing base includes integrated extrusion that combines with printing, laminating, bagmaking, Innolok and laser-score converting processes. The Company is a supplier of printed film products for the fresh bakery, tortilla and frozen vegetable markets with brands, such as SteamQuick Film, Freshview bags and Billboard. The Company manufactures specialty coated and laminated produ! cts for a! range of packaging applications. Its products are sold under the MarvelGuard and MarvelSeal brands and are sold to converters who transform them into finished goods.

The Company competes with Printpak, Tredegar and Bemis.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

  One of the most famous scenes in the cult classic, the Graduate, was when Mr. McGuire�took Dustin Hoffman�� character aside and said�"Ben, I want to say one word to you, just one word: Plastics"; but what about the Berry Plastics Group Inc (NYSE: BERY) and its performance verses that of the�iShares S&P 500 Index ETF (NYSEARCA: IVV), iShares Russell Midcap Index Fund ETF (NYSEARCA: IWR) and iShares S&P SmallCap 600 Index ETF (NYSEARCA: IJR)? I should mention that plastics and the Berry Plastics Group was not the place to be yesterday as the stock took a tumble on reduced guidance.

• [By Ben Rooney]

  In pointing out the possibility of the upcoming ban, a recent Goldman Sachs (GS) report said it would be good news for Berry Plastics Group (BERY), which makes cups out of a material similar to polystyrene that is recyclable.

• [By Bryan Murphy]

  It's certainly not as big as Berry Plastics Group Inc. (NYSE:BERY). It's not even as big as Tredegar Corporation (NYSE:TG). There's one big way AEP Industries (NASDAQ:AEPI) can certainly compete head-on with BERY and TG right now, however... as an investment opportunity. Thanks to the bullish bump AEPI gave us last week, a long-standing selloff has been revered, and there's a whole lot of ground to make up.

Top 5 Asian Stocks To Invest In Right Now

Wendy's has big plans to return to its salad days.

On Tuesday, the burger chain will announce the March 17 national rollout of two new menu items to its salad lineup: an Asian Cashew Chicken Salad and a BBQ Ranch Chicken Salad. Also, Wendy's will announce plans to add more fresh veggies ��cucumbers and red peppers ��to its spiffed-up side salads,

Some 35 years ago, Wendy's was the first national fast-food chain to roll-out a salad bar ��which it dropped in 1997, to focus on more drive-through-friendly portable salads. Wendy's lost its salad edge to savvy, slightly more upscale rivals such as Panera, which surpassed it in perceived quality. Now, Wendy's wants to once again be the king of salads.

The moves come at a time the $200 billion fast-food industry is in competitive turmoil. In a nation of increasingly health-obsessed consumers, something as simple as an extra salad option or two can sway millions of consumer choices. Salads have extra appeal to Millennials and females ��key targets that fast-food giants are eager to attract.

Hot Growth Stocks To Watch Right Now: Ametek Inc (AME)

AMETEK, Inc. (AMETEK), incorporated in 1930, is a global manufacturer of electronic instruments and electromechanical devices with operations in North America, Europe, Asia and South America. The Company markets its products worldwide through two groups: the Electronic Instruments Group (EIG) and the Electromechanical Group (EMG). EIG builds monitoring, testing, calibration and display devices for the process, aerospace, industrial, power and medical markets. EMG produces engineered electromechanical connectors for hermetic (moisture-proof) applications, specialty metals for niche markets and brushless air-moving motors, blowers and heat exchangers. End markets include aerospace, defense, mass transit, medical, office products and other industrial markets. In December 2013, the Company announced that it has acquired Powervar, a provider of power management systems and uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems. In January 2014, the Company acquired Teseq Group. In February 2014, the Company acquired VTI Instruments.

The Electronic Instruments Group

EIG consists of a group of differentiated businesses. EIG manufactures instruments used for testing, monitoring, calibration and display for the process, aerospace, industrial and power markets. EIG is specialized in the markets it serves, including aerospace engine sensors, heavy-vehicle instrument panels, analytical instrumentation, level measurement products, power instruments and pressure gauges. It has joint venture operations in China, Taiwan and Japan. EIG had 56 operating facilities: 35 in the United States, seven in the United Kingdom, five in Germany, three in France, two in Switzerland and one each in Argentina, Austria, Canada and Denmark, as of December 31, 2011. EIG also shares operating facilities with EMG in China and Mexico.

Process and analytical measurement and analysis instruments include oxygen, moisture, combustion and liquid analyzers; emission monitors; spectrometers; mechanical and electronic ! pressure sensors and transmitters; radiation measurement devices; level measurement devices; precision pumping systems, and force-measurement and materials testing instrumentation. EIG�� focus is on the process industries, including oil, gas and petrochemical refining, power generation, specialty gas production, water and waste treatment, natural gas distribution and semiconductor manufacturing. AMETEK�� analytical instruments are also used for precision measurement in a number of other applications including radiation detection for the United States Department of Homeland Security, materials analysis, nanotechnology research and other test and measurement applications.

TMC serves the manufacturers of life sciences, photonics and semiconductor equipment with a range of custom active piezoelectric vibration cancellation systems, based on their patented active piezo technology. TMC also supplies passive vibration cancellation systems, optical test tables, acoustic isolation hoods and magnetic isolation hoods. Reichert Technologies provides high-technology instruments used by ophthalmologists, optometrists, and opticians for vision correction and the screening and diagnosis of eye diseases, such as glaucoma and macular degeneration.

Atlas Material Testing Technology LLC (Atlas) has products, which include weather exposure test systems, corrosion-testing instruments, specialty lighting systems, and large-scale weathering test chambers. In addition, Atlas offers indoor laboratory and outdoor testing services, photovoltaic and solar testing and consulting. AMETEK�� power businesses provide analytical instruments, uninterruptible power supply systems and programmable power supplies used in a range of industrial settings. EIG designs and manufactures power measurement and recording instrumentation used by the electric power and manufacturing industries. Those products include power transducers and meters, event and transient recorders, annunciators and alarm monitoring systems us! ed to mea! sure, monitor and record variables in the transmission and distribution of electric power.

EIG�� Solidstate Controls business designs and manufactures uninterruptible power supply systems for the process and power generation industries. EIG also manufactures sensor systems for land-based gas turbines and for boilers and burners used by the utility, petrochemical, process and marine industries worldwide. EIG�� programmable power business provides programmable alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) power sources. EM Test provides equipment used to perform electrical immunity and electromagnetic compatibility testing. EM Test manufactures a full line of conducted electromagnetic compatibility test equipment, including electrical fast transient generators, electrostatic discharge simulators, surge generators, waveform simulators and multifunctional generators.

Aerospace products include airborne data systems; turbine engine temperature measurement products; vibration-monitoring systems; indicators; displays; fuel and fluid measurement products; sensors; switches; cable harnesses, and transducers. EIG serves all segments of commercial aerospace, including helicopters, business jets, commuter aircraft and commercial airliners, as well as the military market. Its customers are the producers of airframes and jet engines and other aerospace system integrators. The Company also serves the commercial aerospace aftermarket with spare part sales and repair and overhaul services.

Electromechanical Group

EMG provides engineered motors, blowers, fans, heat exchangers, connectors, and other electromechanical products or systems for commercial and military aerospace applications, defense, medical equipment, business machines, computers and other power or industrial applications. EMG had 58 operating facilities: 34 in the United States, nine in the United Kingdom, three in France, two each in China, Czech Republic, Italy and Mexico and one each in Brazil, M! alaysia, ! Morocco and Taiwan, as of December 31, 2011. Differentiated businesses consists of the technical motors and systems businesses and the engineered materials, interconnects and packaging businesses. Technical motors and systems consist of brushless motors, blowers and pumps, as well as other electromechanical systems. These products are used in aerospace and defense, business machines, computer equipment, mass transit vehicles, medical equipment, power, and industrial applications.

EMG produces electronically commutated (brushless) motors, blowers and pumps. These motor-blower systems and heat exchangers are used for thermal management and other applications on a range of military and commercial aircraft and military ground vehicles, and are used in medical and other applications. These motors provide cooling and ventilation for business machines, computers and mass transit vehicles. EMG also serves the commercial and military aerospace third-party maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) market. These services are provided on a global basis with facilities in the United States, Europe and Singapore.

During the year ended December 31, 2011, engineered materials, interconnects and packaging products represented 37% of EMG�� net sales. AMETEK provides specialized metal powder, strip, wire and bonded products. It produces stainless steel and nickel clad alloys; stainless steel, cobalt and nickel alloy powders; metal strip; specialty shaped and electronic wire, and advanced metal matrix composites used in electronic thermal management. Its products are used in automotive, appliance, medical and surgical, aerospace, telecommunications, marine and general industrial applications.

Coining provides custom-shaped preforms, microstampings and wire used for joining electronic circuitry, packaging microelectronics and providing thermal protection and electric conductivity for a range of electronic devices. Coining�� products are used in engineered applications for the radio f! requency ! (RF)/microwave, photonics, medical, aerospace and defense, and general electronics industries. Avicenna produces fine-featured catheter and other medical components for leads, guide wires and custom medical assemblies. Avicenna complements the Company�� medical device market businesses fits with its Technical Services for Electronics (TSE) business. TSE fits with the HCC Industries division, which manufactures engineered electronic interconnects and microelectronics packaging for sophisticated electronic applications.

AMETEK is a medical interconnects provider with integrated capabilities for the catheter, cardiac and neurostimulation markets. During 2011, floorcare and specialty motor markets represented 18% of EMG�� net sales, where it sells air-moving electric motors to the floorcare other equipment manufacturers (OEMs), including vertically integrated OEMs that produce some of their own motors. EMG produces motor-blowers for a range of floorcare products, ranging from hand-held, canister and upright vacuums to central vacuums for residential use. High-performance vacuum motors also are marketed for commercial and industrial applications.

The Company also manufactures a variety of specialty motors used in a range of products, such as household and personal care appliances; fitness equipment; electric materials handling vehicles, and sewing machines. In addition, its products are used in outdoor power equipment, such as electric chain saws, leaf blowers, string trimmers and power washers.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

  The U.S. Department of Defense announced a half dozen new contracts benefiting the U.S. Navy Wednesday. Of these, five went to publicly traded companies, namely:

• [By Gregory Vousvounis]

  Ametek (AME) is a global manufacturer of electronic instruments and electromechanical devices. Ametek is a strong leader in most of its niche markets having either a low-cost advantage over competitors or higher-quality products that address critical customer needs.

• [By John Udovich]

  Last week, it was reported that S&P MidCap 400 constituents Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASD: VRTX) and Ametek Inc (NYSE: AME) would be replacing Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE: AMD) and SAIC Inc (NYSE: SAI) in the S&P 500, and Advanced Micro Devices and SAIC will replace Vertex Pharmaceuticals and Ametek in the S&P Mid Cap 400. I should mention that both Advanced Micro Devices and SAIC Inc are�in our�SmallCap Network Elite Opportunity (SCN EO) portfolio and as of today, we are down 1.29% and up 19.77%, respectively, in both stocks. In the case of�Advanced Micro Devices, we feel the company�� transition into mobility and gaming consoles makes it a compelling value while defense contractor SAIC Inc is interesting as its well positioned to address�cyber security issues. Moreover, SAIC Inc is splitting into 2 companies in a transaction that�� expected to be completed before the end of the month.

Top 5 Asian Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP (BIP)

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. engages in the utilities, transportation and energy, and timber businesses. It operates through Utilities, Transport, Energy, and Timber segments. The company operates a port facility that exports metallurgical and thermal coal mined in the central Bowen Basin region of Queensland, Australia; approximately 9,900 kilometers of electricity transmission lines in North and South America; and approximately 2.5 million electricity and natural gas connections in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Colombia. It is also involved in the transportation of freight, bulk commodities, and passengers through a platform of approximately 5,100 kilometers of tracks in southwest region of Western Australia; 3,200 kilometres of toll roads in Brazil and Chile; and approximately 30 port terminals primarily in Europe. In addition, the company provides energy transportation, distribution, and storage services through 15,500 kilometers of natural gas transm ission lines primarily in the United States. Further, it engages in the timberland operations with approximately 343,000 net acres of freehold timberlands located in the coastal region of British Columbia, Canada; and the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners Limited serves as a general partner of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. The company was founded in 2007 and is based in Toronto, Canada. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. is a subsidiary of Brookfield Asset Management Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Bob Bogda]

  Wireless semiconductor maker Skyworks Solutions (Nasdaq: SWKS) posted a gain of 101.8% in calendar-year 2010 after a listing in the "Top 10 Stocks" report. Ditto for Silver Wheaton (NYSE: SLW), which soared a whopping 159.9%. Last year, Brookfield Infrastructure Partners (NYSE: BIP) more than doubled the gain in the S&P 500 index after rising 33.2%.

• [By Saibus Research]

  WY and the majority of the timber, forest and paper products companies have a track record of unimpressive returns on capital, cyclical revenue and profit trends, heavy use of capital expenditures, and significant environmental regulation. We also think that WY's conversion to a REIT was a mistake. Morningstar Investment Research's Timber, Forest and Paper Products analyst Dan Rohr said it best when he rated WY and its Timber REIT peers Rayonier (RYN), Potlatch (PCH) and Plum Creek (PCL) as not possessing any economic moat. That probably explains why we only have an ancillary exposure to this industry for our proprietary portfolio based on our holdings in Brookfield Infrastructure (BIP) and Cintas (CTAS). Brookfield's Timber segment only accounts for 5% of its Fund Flows from operations and Cintas's document management business is suffering from reduced prices on recycled paper. At least Cintas Document Management only accounts for 8% of Cintas's revenue.

Top 5 Asian Stocks To Invest In Right Now: DENTSPLY International Inc.(XRAY)

DENTSPLY International Inc. designs, develops, manufactures, and markets dental consumable products, dental laboratory products, and dental specialty products worldwide. The company?s dental consumable products include dental sundries, such as dental anesthetics, prophylaxis pastes, dental sealants, impression materials, restorative materials, tooth whiteners, and topical fluoride; and small equipment, including high and low speed handpieces, intraoral curing light systems, dental diagnostic systems, and ultrasonic scalers and polishers used in dental offices for the treatment of patients. Its dental laboratory products comprise dental prosthetics, including artificial teeth, precious metal dental alloys, dental ceramics, and crown and bridge materials, as well as equipment, such as computer aided machining ceramic systems and porcelain furnaces used in the preparation of dental appliances by dental laboratories. The company?s dental specialty products consist of endodonti c instruments and materials, implants and related products, bone grafting materials, 3D digital implantology, and orthodontic appliances and accessories. Its customers include dentists, dental hygienists, dental assistants, dental laboratories, and dental schools. The company distributes its dental products directly to dental laboratories and dental professionals, as well as through distributors, dealers, and importers. DENTSPLY International Inc. was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in York, Pennsylvania.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

  Yesterday, small cap dental stock BIOLASE Inc (NASDAQ: BIOL) surged 17.69% after announcing it had received a license from the Health Canada-Medical Device Bureau to sell its EPIC dental soft-tissue diode laser systems throughout Canada, meaning its worth taking a closer look at the stock along with the performance of mid cap dental stocks like Sirona Dental Systems, Inc (NASDAQ: SIRO), DENTSPLY International Inc (NASDAQ: XRAY) and Align Technology, Inc (NASDAQ: ALGN).

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Shares of Align have surged 24% to $57 at 12:37 p.m. Sirona Dental Systems (SIRO) has risen 0.8% to $69.61, Dentsply International (XRAY) is up 0.1% at $45.44, Integra Lifesciences (IART) has� gained 0.4% to $44.23 and Danaher (DHR) has fallen 0.3% to $72.13.

• [By Monica Gerson]

  DENTSPLY International (NASDAQ: XRAY) shares touched a new 52-week high of $47.65. DENTSPLY's trailing-twelve-month ROE is 15.95%.

  Sun Life Financial (NYSE: SLF) shares gained 2.47% to create a new 52-week high of $34.80 on Q3 results. Sun Life reported its Q3 operating net income from continuing operations of $422 million.

• [By Seth Jayson]

  There's no foolproof way to know the future for DENTSPLY International (Nasdaq: XRAY  ) or any other company. However, certain clues may help you see potential stumbles before they happen -- and before your stock craters as a result.

Top 5 Asian Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Statoil ASA (STO)

Statoil ASA (Statoil), incorporated on September 18, 1972, is an integrated energy company primarily engaged in oil and gas exploration and production activities. As of December 31, 2011, the Company had business operations in 41 countries and territories. Effective from January 1, 2011, the Company�� segments were Development and Production Norway; Development and Production International; Marketing, Processing and Renewable Energy; Fuel & Retail, Other. As of 31 December 2011, the Company had proved reserves of 2,276 million barrels (mmbbl) and 3,150 billion cubic meters (bcm) (equivalent to 17,681 trillion cubic feet (tcf)) of natural gas, corresponding to aggregate proved reserves of 5,426 mmboe. In December 2011, the Company acquired Brigham Exploration Company. On April 14, 2011, Statoil's formation of a joint venture and sale of 40% of the Peregrino field off the coast of Brazil to the Sinochem Group was closed. With effect from January 2011, Statoil formed a joint venture with PTTEP of Thailand in its oil sands business and, as part of that transaction, sold PTTEP a 40% interest in the leases in Alberta, Canada. Statoil retains 60% ownership and operatorship of the oil sands project. In June 2012, the Company divested its 54% interest in Statoil Fuel & Retail ASA to Alimentation Couche-Tard.

Development and Production Norway

Development and Production Norway (DPN) consists of the Company�� field development and operational activities on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS). Development and Production Norway is the operator of 44 developed fields on the NCS. Statoil's equity and entitlement production on the NCS was 1.316 mmboe per day in 2011, which was about 71% of Statoil's total production. Acting as operator, DPN is responsible for approximately 72% of all oil and gas production on the NCS. In 2011, its average daily production of oil and natural gas liquids (NGL) on the NCS was 693 mboe, while its average daily gas production on the NCS was 99.1 mmcm (3.5 b! illion cubic feet (bcf)). The Company has an ownership interests in exploration acreage throughout the licensed parts of the NCS, both within and outside its production areas. It participates in 227 licenses on the NCS and is the operator for 171 of them. As of 31 December 2011, Statoil had a total of 1,369 mmbbl of proved oil reserves and 444 bcm (15.7 tcf) of proved natural gas reserves on the NCS. Total entitlement liquids and gas production in 2011 amounted to 1,316 mmboe per day.

Statoil's NCS portfolio consists of licenses in the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea. It has organized its production operations into four business clusters: Operations South, Operations North Sea West, Operations North Sea East and Operations North. The Operations South and Operations North Sea West and East clusters cover its licenses in the North Sea. Operations North covers the Company�� licenses in the Norwegian Sea and in the Barents Sea, while partner-operated fields cover the entire NCS and are included internally in the Operations South business cluster. During 2011, it two Statoil-operated oil discoveries: the Aldous discovery (PL265) in the North Sea and the Skrugard discovery (PL532) in the Barents Sea. The Aldous Major South discovery in PL265 on the Utsira Height in the Sleipner area is situated 140 kilometers west of Stavanger and 35 kilometers south of the Grane field. The Skrugard discovery is located about 250 kilometers off the coast from the Melkoya LNG plant in Hammerfest.

As of December 31, 2011, the Company�� fields under development included the Gudrun, Valemon, Visund South, Hyme, Stjerne, Vigdis North-East, Skuld, Vilje South, Skarv, and Marulk. In 2011, the Company�� total entitlement oil and NGL production in Norway was 252 mmbbl, and gas production was 36.2 bcm (1,287 bcf). The main producing fields in the Operations South area are Statfjord, Snorre, Tordis, Vigdis, Sleipner and partner-operated fields. Operations North Sea East is a gas area tha! t also co! ntains quantities of oil. The area includes the Troll, Fram, Vega, Oseberg and Tune fields. The Company�� producing fields in the Operations North area are Asgard, Mikkel, Yttergryta, Heidrun, Kristin, Tyrihans, Norne, Urd, Alve, Njord, Snohvit and Morvin.

Development and Production International

Development and Production International (DPI) is responsible for the development and production of oil and gas outside the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS). In 2011, the segment was engaged in production in 12 countries: Canada, the United States, Brazil, Venezuela, Angola, Nigeria, Iran, Algeria, Libya, Azerbaijan, Russia and the United Kingdom. In 2011, DPI produced 28.9% of Statoil's total equity production of oil and gas. Statoil has exploration licenses in North America (Gulf of Mexico, Canada and Alaska), South America and sub-Saharan Africa (Brazil, Cuba, Suriname, Venezuela, Angola, Mozambique and Tanzania), Middle East and North Africa (Libya and Iran) and Europe and Asia (the Faeroes, Greenland, the United Kingdom, Azerbaijan and Indonesia). The main sanctioned development projects in which DPI is involved are in the United States, Angola and Canada. The Brigham Exploration Company acquisition added production of approximately 21 mboe per day (as of December) to Statoil's production and gave access to 1,500 square kilometers (375,000 acres) in the Bakken and Three Forks formations in the Williston Basin.

The Company has exploration licenses in North America (Gulf of Mexico, Canada and Alaska), South America and sub-Saharan Africa (Brazil, Cuba, Suriname, Venezuela, Angola, Mozambique and Tanzania), Middle East and North Africa (Libya and Iran), and Europe and Asia (the Faroes, Greenland, the United Kingdom, Azerbaijan and Indonesia). It completed 16 wells in 2011. Five were announced as discoveries: the Mukuvo and Lira discoveries in Angola, the Gavea and Peregrino South discovery in Brazil and the Logan discovery in Gulf of Mexico (GoM). Statoil acquired in! terests i! n six new licenses in Indonesia in 2011. Statoil has activities in the United States, with approximately 300 exploration leases in the GoM and 66 in Alaska. It is also an operator and partner in exploration licenses off the coast of Newfoundland in Canada. Statoil is operator and partner in exploration licenses off the coast of Newfoundland (11,138 square kilometers). It has exploration licenses in Brazil, Cuba, Suriname, Venezuela, Angola, Mozambique and Tanzania. The Company has licenses in Libya, Iran, Faroes, Greenland, the United Kingdom, Azerbaijan and Indonesia. In 2011, Statoil's petroleum production outside Norway amounted to an average of 334 mboe per day of entitlement production and 534 mboe per day of equity production.

The Company has activities in the United States Gulf of Mexico, the Appalachian region, south-west Texas, the Williston Basin, off the East Coast of Canada and in the oil sands of Alberta, Canada. It also has a representative office in Mexico City. Offshore, the Company has production interests in Hibernia and Terra Nova, and interests in two development projects. Its development and production activities in South America and sub-Saharan Africa comprise the Peregrino operatorship in Brazil, the Petrocedeno project in Venezuela, the Agbami offshore field in Nigeria and four Angolan offshore blocks. Statoil's development and production in the Middle East and North Africa in 2011, primarily encompassed Algeria, Libya, Egypt, Iran and Iraq. The Company�� Development and Production in Europe and Asia primarily comprises Azerbaijan, Russia, United Kingdom and Ireland.

Marketing, Processing and Renewable Energy

Marketing, Processing and Renewable Energy (MPR) is responsible for the transportation, processing, manufacturing, marketing and trading of crude oil, natural gas, liquids and refined products, and for developing business opportunities in renewables. It runs two refineries, two gas processing plants, one methanol plant and three crude! oil term! inals. MPR is also responsible for marketing gas supplies originating from the Norwegian state's direct financial interest (SDFI). In total, it is responsible for marketing approximately 80% of all Norwegian gas exports. In 2011, Statoil sold 36.1 bcm (1.3 tcf) of natural gas from the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS) on its own behalf, in addition to approximately 33.5 bcm (1.2 tcf) of NCS gas on behalf of the Norwegian state. Statoil's total European gas sales, including third-party gas, amounted to 79.8 bcm (2.9 tcf) in 2011, of which 39.5 bcm (1.4 tcf) was gas sold on behalf of the Norwegian state. The Natural Gas business cluster is responsible for Statoil's marketing and trading of natural gas worldwide, for power and emissions trading and for overall gas supply planning. In 2011, the Company sold 36.1 bcm (1.3 tcf) of natural gas from the NCS on its own behalf, in addition to approximately 33.5 bcm (1.2 tcf) of NCS gas on behalf of the Norwegian state. Statoil's total European gas sales, including third-party gas, amounted to 79.8 bcm (2.9 tcf) in 2011, of which 39.5 bcm (1.4 tcf) was gas sold on behalf of the Norwegian state. In addition, it sold 5.5 bcm (0.2 tcf) of gas originating from its international positions, mainly in Azerbaijan and the United States, of which 2.7 bcm (0.1 tcf) was entitlement gas. As technical service provider (TSP), Statoil is responsible for the operation, maintenance and further development of the Karsto gas processing plant on behalf of the operator Gassco.

Statoil is the seller of crude oil, operating from sales offices in Stavanger, Oslo, London, Singapore, Stamford and Calgary and selling and trading crude oil, condensate, NGL and refined products. Statoil holds the lease for the South Riding Point crude oil terminal in the Bahamas, which includes, oil storage as well as loading and unloading facilities. It also operates the Mongstad terminal and has shared ownership with Petoro. The Company is a majority owner (79%) and operator of the Mongstad ref! inery in ! Norway, which has a crude oil and condensate distillation capacity of 220,000 barrels per day. It is the sole owner and operator of the Kalundborg refinery in Denmark, which has a crude oil and condensate distillation capacity of 118,000 barrels per day. In addition, it has rights to 10% of production capacity at the Shell-operated refinery in Pernis in the Netherlands, which has a crude oil distillation capacity of 400,000 barrels per day. The Company�� methanol operations consist of an 81.7% interest in the gas-based methanol plant at Tjeldbergodden, Norway, which has a design capacity of 0.95 million tons per year. It also operates the Oseberg Transportation System (36.2% interest), including the Sture crude oil terminal.

Technology, Projects and Drilling

Technology, Projects and Drilling (TPD) is responsible, as a global service provider to Statoil, for delivering projects and wells and for providing support through global expertise, standards and procurement. TPD is also responsible developing and implementing new technological solutions. Statoil's research and development portfolio is organized in seven programs covering the upstream building blocks. The research and development organization operates and develops laboratories and test facilities and has an academia program that addresses cooperation with universities and research institutes.

Global Strategy and Business Development

Global Strategy and Business Development (GSB) was established in 2011, with its main office in London. GSB sets the direction for Statoil and identifies, develops and delivers opportunities for global growth.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Paul Ausick]

  In similar fashion, Noble is going to concentrate its efforts on the high-margin deepwater drilling business and leave the shallow-water business. Last May, Noble won a contract with Statoil ASA (NYSE: STO) for a North Sea project in deep water and a harsh environment that Noble hopes will lead to strategic relationship with Statoil in the coming developments in the Arctic.

Top Cheap Stocks To Watch For 2015

Top Cheap Stocks To Watch For 2015: Whole Foods Market Inc.(WFM)

Whole Foods Market, Inc. engages in the ownership and operation of natural and organic food supermarkets. The company offers produce, seafood, grocery, meat and poultry, bakery, prepared foods and catering, coffee and tea, nutritional supplements, and vitamins. It also provides specialty products, such as beer, wine, and cheese; body care and educational products, such as books; and floral, pet, and household products. As of February 9, 2011, the company operated 302 stores in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Whole Foods Market, Inc. was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Brian Stoffel]

  In the depths of the Great Recession, many people thought Whole Foods (NASDAQ: WFM  ) was done for. I didn't agree with those folks, and I backed that assertion up two years ago -- when I pledged to buy $4,000 worth of Whole Foods stock for my retirement portfolio.

• [By Joe Tenebruso]

  Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ: WFM  ) is far more than simply a premium-priced grocery store; it's fast becoming a premium lifestyle brand and has earned a reputation as a purveyor of some of the healthiest foods and beverages on the market, at a time when consumers are beginning to care more and more about what they put into their bodies. Its strong competitive position in the natural and organic foods market should lead to sustained growth in its store count, revenue, profits, and ultimately, the dividends it pays to shareholders.

• [By Daniel Sparks]

  Growth investing relies on a simple premise: Find great companies that will outperform over the long haul, outgrowing their premium valuations over time. This, of course, is easier said than done. In the video below, Fool contributor Daniel Sparks discusses a great way to tell the gold from the fool's gold. To illustrate, he takes a look at Whole Foods Ma! rket (NASDAQ: WFM  ) and Panera Bread (NASDAQ: PNRA  ) .

source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.seekpennystocks.com/top-cheap-stocks-to-watch-for-2015.html

Show us your car: GM's Chevrolet Corvair

CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. -- As General Motors soldiers through recalls involving deadly ignition switches, it's worthwhile to look back at one of the cars that gave America's largest automaker a bad reputation in its heyday.

It's the Chevrolet Corvair of the early 1960s, and now with decades having passed and many chances for reassessment, the car has a slew of defenders who think that it got a bad rap. One is Patrick Croan of Temecula, Calif., who we came across last month at the Desert Classic Concours d'Elegance.

at a golf course here.

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The Corvair was the compact that propelled Ralph Nader to fame. The attorney wrote a scathing book, Unsafe At Any Speed, in 1965 in which he went through a litany of ways that cars are unsafe -- from lack of restraint systems to unpadded dashboards. A starring example was the hapless Corvair, a car with a rear-engine design and swing-arm suspension that he alleged was prone to spinning out of control. The Corvair had been around for about five or six years when the book came out, and although it would stay in production for another four, the sullied image of the formerly carefree car never recovered.

None of that bothers Croan. His family owned a Corvair, and he says he made a coast-to-coast trip in the car as a boy . Five people crammed in the small car made the trip, including spending nights sleeping in it along the way. For Croan, it was bliss. "It was really a great experience," he says.

About 11 years ago, Croan yearned for a Corvair. So he bought the 1962 model from an owner that never quite got around to restoring it. It came in boxes. About five years later, Croan had put the car back into basic shape. But he didn't stop there. Almost as if to underscore his confidence in its safety, he souped it up.

"I have a need for speed," he explains.

Today, it's a dream car. And despite all of GM's! sea of troubles, Corvair nostalgia lives on.

How the Golden Age of Television and Baseball Ends

It was early December and a buzz was rippling throughout the baseball world. Jay-Z, the hip-hop mogul turned sports agent, was reportedly flying to Seattle on a private jet with his star client, second baseman Robinson Cano. They were seeking a contract so large that even baseball's richest club, the New York Yankees, had balked at its size.

The media dismissed the visit as leverage – Cano was surely using any interest from Seattle to pry a better deal out of the Yankees, the team for which he had played his entire career. After all, the Mariners had only the 20th highest-paid roster in baseball last year; the Yankees spent a whopping 168% more on salaries. 

Yet, on the next day news broke that Cano would be joining the Mariners for a deal that would pay him $240 million over 10 years. When you consider that Cano is already 31 and generously might have seven good years left in his career, the contract effectively pays him $35 million a year. 

Cano's megadeal is the sixth baseball contract over $200 million in the past five years. No sport in the world competes with baseball for the kind of money it pays its best players. The eight largest contracts in sports history have been signed by pro baseball players.

The size of baseball contracts have left other sports far behind.

Soaring player salaries are the result of baseball's fortunes trending upward. Bloomberg now estimates the average franchise is worth a billion dollars. For a league that considered contracting teams last decade, baseball is doing amazingly well, and its success is far beyond the usual powerhouse teams like the Yankees and Red Sox. Teams like the Mariners, Dodgers, and Rangers are flush with cash and competing for baseball's biggest free agents. 

The paradox is that baseball's newfound riches come from lucrative new television contracts, yet the sport's popularity on television has actually been declining in recent years.

How is that possible?

TV: Sport's sugar daddy

Baseball is far from television's greatest sports draw. The Dec. 1 night game between the NFL's Redskins and Giants (who came into the game with a dismal combined 7-15 record) still attracted 17.7 million viewers, a higher viewer total than all but one of this year's World Series games. In fact, the top 26 most watched sporting events last year were all NFL games.

Overall, the NFL collects just a tad shy of $5 billion annually from NBC, ABC, CBS, and ESPN for national broadcast rights. Toss in deals with DirecTV and Verizon, and its broadcast rights come in at about $5.9 billion. 

Football national rights are in a different league.

Compare that to baseball, where Fox, ESPN, and Turner Sports recently signed deals that will pay MLB a combined $1.55 billion annually for national broadcast rights. The disparity reflects the continuing popularity of primetime football.

Given football's dominance over other sports in terms of viewership, you might expect salaries to be leaving baseball in the dust, and the value of NFL teams soaring past the best MLB clubs.

Yet, while the NFL sells almost all of its broadcast rights to national broadcasters like ESPN and CBS, baseball's meandering 162-game season means the vast majority of its games aren't broadcast nationally. This leaves baseball teams open to negotiate local TV contracts that are shown on regional sports networks.

Until recently, these local contracts were a nice complement to gate receipts and national TV revenues. However, in the past three years the size of local TV contracts began swelling. They're the new economic engines that are driving the next 15 years of Major League Baseball. The new "haves" in baseball are teams with lucrative new local contracts, and they're competing with traditional big spenders like the Yankees and Red Sox.

Local television contracts are redefining the business of baseball. But what's even more fascinating is that they're becoming the central battleground around the future of television itself.

The MLB game-changer: local TV contracts

In August 2012, a group that included Magic Johnson purchased the Los Angeles Dodgers for over $2 billion. Just eight years earlier, the team had sold for $430 million. That $2 billion purchase price easily eclipsed the previous record amount paid for a U.S. sports team, $1.1 billion for the Miami Dolphins in 2009.

Magic and the new owners didn't end their big-spending ways once they bought the team either – shortly after the purchase they announced a megatrade to absorb a handful of overpaid Boston Red Sox players. Between the beginning of the 2012 and 2013 seasons, the Dodgers payroll ballooned by 129%. The new owners wanted to bring the team back to its winning ways after the previous owner had throttled spending.

Yet, more importantly, the Dodgers were in negotiations for a new local TV contract and the new owners wanted to create excitement around the team for maximum negotiating leverage. Their record purchase price was nearly entirely predicated on their ability to land a record-size local TV contract.

The bonanza around local TV contracts in Major League Baseball really took off in 2010 when the Texas Rangers inked a 20-year deal estimated to be worth $1.6 to $1.7 billion. The size of the deal sent shockwaves throughout baseball. The Rangers' previous local TV contract was an estimated $250 million over 15 years. In just a decade's time, the team saw nearly a 5X increase in the value of their local TV contracts!

The Rangers were just the beginning. Soon after, the Los Angeles Angels signed a deal valued at $2.5 billion over 17 years. The Astros – one of baseball's most dismal teams in recent years – signed a deal paying a reported $80 million annually.

Even the Mariners – a team with the third longest postseason drought in baseball – received a new local TV deal worth about $2 billion over 17 years. That gave them the financial firepower to outbid the Yankees for Robinson Cano's megacontract.

Oh, and the Dodgers ended up getting their new local TV contract last off-season as well. Their deal with Time Warner Cable is worth a reported $7 billion over 25 years. That's an average value of $280 million per year coming in, before any gate receipts, national TV revenue, corporate sponsorships, concessions, radio revenue, or merchandising dollars.

Why sports on TV has become so valuable

Understanding why local TV contracts in baseball are exploding requires some background on the tectonic technological shifts that are threatening America's television industry. Aside from the rise of cable in the late '70s, television media has remained startlingly unchanged in the past 50 years. Until now.

With the rise of streaming services like Netflix, online video, video on-demand, and devices that allow consumers to watch TV on their own terms, television has seen more change this decade than the preceding half-century. 

Channels that had previously relied on filling programming with syndicated reruns of TV shows or movies suddenly became less valuable. For the first time, viewers had a choice beyond "channel surfing." Rather than watching an episode of Roseanne because a rerun happened to be on TBS, a viewer could fire up Netflix, explore recordings on their DVR, or look through video-on-demand offerings. 

But sports still demands that viewers watch it live. According to research from Nielsen, 99% of primetime viewing of sports is either live or watched on the same day. For drama TV shows, that figure is 70%. Netlix, Hulu, and the like can fill viewers' needs for comedies and dramas, but you need live TV for sports -- nobody wants to watch the 2011 Super Bowl on Hulu. And more than 100 million viewers will watch the next Super Bowl live on television on Feb. 2.

An introduction to affiliate fees and your cable bill

Not only that, but sports are must-watch programming for a considerable percentage of the population, which gives cable channels that carry sports programming significant leverage when negotiating the fees they charge cable operators.

In this article "cable operator" is used as fill-in for any company that provides television services. The illustration above shows the choices a consumer in a given area might have. Usually, an incumbent such as Comcast and a satellite provider like DirecTV will be available. In certain areas, alternatives such as Verizon FiOS are available.  

The finances of most sports channels have been shifting away from advertising in the past decade. Since viewers spend around 16 minutes of each TV hour watching advertising, you might assume advertising drives the finances of cable companies. That would be true for most non-sports channels. However, sports channels (and a handful of non-sports channels as well) increasingly rely on "affiliate fees" – the amount a cable operator like Comcast pays to a cable network/channel such as AMC or ESPN to include its channels in varying cable packages – for a majority of their revenue. 

In AMC's case, these affiliate fees accounted for 58% of their revenue in 2012. It's reported that ESPN makes two-thirds of its profit from affiliate fees charged to cable operators; just one-third of its profits are from advertising. These fees wind up getting passed on to consumers via rising cable bills. So, whether or not you watch ESPN, if it's in your cable package you're paying roughly $5 a month in affiliate fees for the channel.

In short, affiliate fees are a guaranteed monthly payment from consumers to cable channels that are hidden in your cable bill. While consumers may groan about Comcast boosting their bill each year, in the background ESPN is raising its affiliate fees by 7% each year and forcing the cost of cable upward.

Court filings have shown that ESPN has secured affiliate fee increases with Time Warner Cable that will see the channel's fees hit $8 a month by the end of the decade.

The deciding factor in whether a cable channel can continue raising affiliate fees is whether it has programming leverage over cable operators. And the single biggest point of leverage is unique "must-see" programming that viewers would loudly complain – or cancel their service – if it was removed.

Cable channels don't necessarily need a full slate of widely watched programming to get high affiliate fees either. The vast majority of AMC's programming, for example, is older television shows and movies. Yet, because it has shows like Mad Men, Breaking Bad, and Walking Dead with fiercely loyal fan bases, the company has been able to extract huge raises in the affiliate fees it charges cable companies to carry its channels. Cable One, a small Phoenix-based cable operator, recently said AMC was demanding a 520% increase in the fees it was charging to carry its programming.

Baseball: the ultimate affiliate fee weapon

Regional sports networks, or RSNs, copy the playbook of AMC very well. They surround relatively unwatched programming throughout the day with marquee programming like games from the local MLB or NBA team during primetime hours. Even if you've never watched one, RSNs are likely on your cable package under names like "Fox Sports West," "Root Sports," or "Comcast SportsNet."

Like AMC leveraging its ownership of Walking Dead, RSNs leverage live sports such as Cincinnati Reds games. When it comes time to negotiate affiliate fees, local cable operators are forced to continue paying through the nose for access to that marquee "must-see" programming such as baseball even if other programming on RSNs is of limited value.

That strategy is working, very well. Over the past five years, researcher SNL Kagan estimates RSNs across the country have been able to increase their affiliate fees by 52%. On a longer-term time frame, the average basic cable bill rose by 150% in the 15 years between 1995 and 2010, according to the FCC. Sports is a key driver of those increases. 

RSN fees typically range in the $2 to $3 range, but new deals could see the most lucrative RSNs closer to $5 per month. Source: AllThingsD, SNL Kagan, Barclays. Numbers are estimates from February 2012. 

Looking at the above chart, you might expect that ESPN is the most-watched cable network since it can command affiliate fees four times the most expensive non-sports channel. However, in the week ending Dec. 15, ESPN was actually just the fifth most watched cable channel in terms of average viewership.

Its ability to extract such large and growing affiliate fees comes not from consistently highly viewed shows, but rather the fact that without ESPN, viewers would miss marquee events such as Monday Night Football and the BCS National Championship game. Likewise, in terms of total viewership, RSN ratings are anemic; their value is predicated almost entirely on live broadcasting of local games.

Sports have created a new economic model that's far more lucrative than other television channels, and those riches are trickling down from the TV channels, to the sports leagues, to the players.

In 2002, the Yankees cut out the middle man and set up their own RSN, the YES Network. The Yankees owned 25% of the venture, with the remainder owned by Twenty-First Century Fox, the Nets, and Goldman Sachs. Likewise, the Red Sox have long been 80% owners of the regional network carrying their games.With RSNs seeing their ability to continue charging cable operators more and more each year, Major League Baseball teams have swooped in to get their fair cut of the TV loot.

Baseball franchises know their 162 games provide the majority of the value for RSNs, so they've begun getting far more aggressive in recent negotiations. The local RSN is given two options: Either they must significantly increase the annual fees they're paying to broadcast baseball games, or teams can threaten to copy the Yankees and carry their games on a network they create with a rival joint venture. The increased bargaining power baseball teams now possess led to the Rangers' $1.6 billion contract and the glut of eye-popping deals that followed.

The fading popularity of big-time baseball

The irony of baseball entering a golden age where teams are now being valued in the billions of dollars is that in many ways, baseball is less popular than ever. Interest in the World Series has been falling for decades while Super Bowl viewership continues to rise.

The World Series, the showcase of baseball's empire, is no more popular than an airing of The Big Bang Theory on CBS.

Not only that, but ratings for national showcase games have been falling. Fox's nationally televised Game of the Week saw its audience shrink by 33% between 2004 and 2012. Across all national stations that broadcast MLB, ratings have been falling.

Across the board, fewer people are watching baseball. Source: Sports Business Daily

To be sure, while national interest might be flagging, regional ratings can be much stronger. When teams are very good the results are lucrative. RSNs in Cincinnati, Detroit, St. Louis (all playoff teams in the top five of local baseball ratings) sold almost all of their advertising before the season even started, according to Broadcasting & Cable. Baseball appeals particularly to men in the 25-54 demographic, a group that's coveted by advertisers. The best baseball teams can see local ratings of 7-10 on their RSNs, (ratings represent the percentage of households watching a show in a given area), which is better than just about any programming you'll find on cable.

The flip side is that struggling teams often are unable to find sizable audiences. The Los Angeles Angels, who signed that massive $2.5 billion contract in 2012, averaged less than 65,000 households watching their games last season in the Los Angeles market, which is the second largest in the country. The Astros, who recently signed a deal paying $80 million annually, did even worse. Their average household viewership in Houston last year was less than 10,000 viewers. The ratings nadir was an Astros game that was watched by fewer than 1,000 households. Its local ratings were lower than an out-of-market WNBA game the same day.

Cable operators that sign multi-year contracts with RSNs are captive to those seasons when the local team is making a heroic playoff run and everyone gets swept up in the success, when that civic passion that's unique to sports takes hold. The top-5 highest rated baseball teams in 2013 all made the playoffs and all saw huge ratings in the process.

And it's not like the cable operators have much of a choice. Cord-cutting is a viable phenomenon that's picking up traction. If a cable package can't provide sports – the one area Netflix can't replicate – it invites consumers to wonder why they're shelling out so much for their cable bill every month.

There is also the one-sided PR nightmare that comes from not carrying popular programming. 

With cable pricing so opaque, the cable operator is always the bad guy. It's very difficult for cable operators to explain the complicated issue of affiliate fees and get any sympathy from customers if they cut a channel. Ultimately, the bill each month comes from them. ESPN is never named a "worst company in America," but cable operators routinely lead those lists. 

It's an uneasy and sometimes strained relationship between sports and cable operators, but one they've ultimately made work in recent years because they need each other.

Can the game of fewer viewers and more money go on?

We've observed that baseball in many ways is less popular than ever, but at the same time making significantly more money. According to ESPN's sports business reporter Darren Rovell, even after factoring for inflation, baseball revenues are up 242% since 1990. In turn, player salaries have risen 194% in that time. Television is bringing riches to everyone involved with baseball. Footing the bill are consumers who pay an unseen "baseball tax" in their cable bill each month.

Baseball has managed to pull off the remarkable feat of decoupling revenue from popularity because it's the single largest beneficiary of cable bundles.

Can baseball – and sports – continue increasing the amount of money they're bringing in each year while ratings are stale or falling? The question naturally becomes, if cable operators are seeing sports channels demand large affiliate fee increases and consumers fret over cable bundles where they have to pay for channels they don't watch, why does the cable bundle continue?

Beyond sports: The cable bundle works for everyone

Even with hand-wringing from cable operators about how sports programming cost increases aren't sustainable (researcher NPD estimated the average cable bill could crest over $200 by 2020, largely thanks to sports), the simple fact is that they haven't yet aggressively fought back against sports because the cable bundle works tremendously well for all parties involved.

In the case of cable operators, Comcast made over $13 billion in operating profits across the past year and its stock is up 111% over the past two years. Selling cable in bundled packages has been working for the company and helps cable operators receive higher revenue per user. Not only that, but some cable operators are trying to cut out the middle man and get more into the sports game themselves. That $7 billion Dodgers deal is in partnership with Time Warner Cable, which will then charge local cable competitors the high affiliate fees funding the deal. 

But what about non-sports channels such as USA and Fox News that receive a fraction the affiliate fees ESPN receives relative to their viewership? In their case, while affiliate fees are a big part of their business, the biggest advantage of the cable business actually comes down to advertising.

Different cable companies are normally part of larger cable networks that have strong bargaining power against cable operators.

Overall, the total TV advertising market in the United States will be about $70 billion in 2013, which overshadows the estimated $39 billion collected in affiliate fees. In the past decade, with consumers shifting away from magazines and newspapers, advertising dollars have been moving to online areas like search, banner ads, mobile, and video. Of the older advertising mediums, only television has managed to grow along with the emergence of online advertising. Even today, it's about 60% larger than all digital advertising in the U.S. and is far and away the world's biggest ad market. 

What the bundle does so well for cable companies is limits competition and assures distribution; it puts a wall up to ensure viewers and advertisers have limited choice. As much as we might marvel at TV packages with hundreds of channels, there still isn't a lot of competition in the space relative to the amount of money advertisers are pouring into the medium.

There might realistically be only 50 cable channels consumers regularly watch. In addition, cable programming is dominated by a very small group of companies that then bundle their own programming. A suit from cable operator Cablevision against media conglomerate Viacom accused the company of forcing the inclusion of 14 "lesser-watched" channels to get access to the company's more notable channels such as Nickelodeon and MTV. 

This means the bundle gives cable networks themselves a point of tremendous leverage over cable operators. They can expand their revenues by creating lightly watched channels that get very low affiliate fees, but are assured distribution to millions of homes they can sell advertising spots to as well.

Take Scripps as an example. The company owns channels like HGTV, Travel Channel, and the Food Network. In the past year its profit margins are higher than Microsoft and Google. Think about that for a minute – those leading technology companies have been accused of being monopolies, and a cable network that runs a package of lightly watched channels claims higher pricing power! Scripps does it almost all through advertising as well, with ad spending being 69% of its television revenues.

Once you're in the cable bundle, you're one of a very select few companies that gets to split up that $70 billion television advertising pot.

There is no escape from the bundle

When you add it all up, every party benefits from the cable bundle. While consumers might grouse at only wanting to pay for what they watch, the reality is the famed "a la carte" solution would devastate the industry. 

Let's look at ESPN. If it were part of an a la carte option at the prices it currently charges ($5+ a month in affiliate fees), a large percentage of cable subscribers would choose not to pay for the channel. Investment bank RBC estimates around 80% of basic cable subscribers would pass on sports if given the option. In such a case, ESPN would need to charge at least $25 per subscriber a month to keep its revenue the same.

Two major problem emerge here. First, having one-fifth the subscribers could devastate the third of ESPN's profit that comes from advertising. Second, even sports fans might balk at the higher price. Even if 40% of subscribers are wiling to pay for sports, these two problems still ensure that in any unbundled scenario ESPN doesn't come out whole. The math is even crueler for local RSNs. 

Then you could look at a company like Scripps, the owner of HGTV and other networks. If Scripps charged consumers monthly fees for carrying its channel, a high percentage of people would opt out. That lost viewership would devastate the advertising business that contributes 69% of its television revenues. On the other hand, if Scripps decided to cut the 31% of its business that's affiliate fees in hopes of seeing higher advertising revenue, opportunities are limited. Of the roughly 114 million households with televisions, about 104 million pay for cable. With the cable bundle, Scripps' best channels are already reach a tremendous amount of their potential audience. 

Finally, we could look at cable operators like Comcast or DirecTV. At the end of the day, they're largely passing affiliate fees on to customers. The problem is, researcher Needham says consumers name an "ideal price" of $30 per month for unbundled cable packages. With the average American paying closer to $90 in cable bills right now, that's a huge difference. At such a low price, cable operators would have a hard time keeping up their healthy profit margins. 

Where this will all go wrong

There is only one real way to describe the current world of cable: Mutually assured destruction. While no one in the broader pay-television landscape speaks happily about cable bundles, they all know that if any party left, the whole industry would see profits crumble. 

Yet, with all parties so entrenched, what situation could lead to the cable bundle falling?

Simple: Excess, greed, selfishness, self-interest.

Right now, every piece of the cable bundle is exploiting the bundle's bizarre economics to maximize their own benefit. Sports is using its limited, yet fanatical fan base to charge huge affiliate fees. Largely unwatched RSNs are commonly the second-most expensive channel in cable lineups. Beyond baseball, other sports are cashing in as well. Realignment in college football is driven by new television contracts. In basketball, the Lakers are creating two RSNs that will charge affiliate fees. The list goes on. 

Cable networks have created their own bundles of minor channels and required their inclusion in cable television packages. All these moves increase the price consumers pay while adding little benefit to cable TV as a product. 

Each move is minor in isolation. An RSN charging an extra $1 a month in affiliate fees won't break cable, neither would the inclusion of an MTV3 that adds $1 a year. However, added up, they're all straining the limits of what consumers will pay for television. 

In the third quarter of this year, the nation's fourth largest cable operator, Time Warner Cable, lost 306,000 TV subscribers. While companies have yet to report results, its expected that 2013 will be the fist ever annual decline in pay TV subscribers. With streaming services becoming more varied and more content available online, there are real alternatives to television. 

The good news is that as long as all the cable networks hold firm, only remaining on pay TV, television cancellations will remain a relative trickle.

However, that's unlikely. 

The slow doomsday scenario

Fox recently canned its lightly watched Speed channel and instead created Fox Sports One to compete with ESPN. NBCUniversal refocused Versus into its more pre-eminent NBC Sports channel. The companies want to cash in on juicy sports affiliate fees, and have the money to buy programming. In the end, this will lead to larger affiliate fee demands from Fox and NBC, and more pressure from sports programming on cable prices. 

With sports fees – and the number of sports channels – continuing to increase, the tension is growing with other non-sports channels. Those channels commonly rely more on advertising, which is harmed when customers cancel cable. Not only that, but affiliate fees shifting toward sports will lead to cable operators pushing back against the fees they pay to non-sports programming. 

Put yourself in the position of Scripps Network. If in the coming years cable subscriber numbers are slowly falling and cable operators are beginning to resist affiliate fee increases, would you decline an incremental revenue opportunity to move television-like programming off of cable?

Let's say such an offer was from Google. The company now receives an estimated $5 billion a year from advertising on YouTube and sells its popular $35 Chromecast device, which bridges mobile devices, PCs, and the television. If they offered guaranteed money upfront, and a revenue-sharing deal for subscribing to online channels similar to what you already offer on television, would you decline that offer? There is little doubt a company like Google is interested in television – it's an ad company, and television is the largest ad market in the world. They've already begun pushing different channels as the central focus of YouTube in an effort to make it more "TV-like."

One cable network alone wouldn't have a watershed impact, but if several companies began testing moving more content away from cable and into online, the trend of cord-cutting could escalate quickly. None of them would be endangering their cable revenue in the near-term, all immediate revenue would be "incremental." The damage would be done by slowly chipping away at the advantages of the television ecosystem. Moving enough programmed content away from TV to make consumers more comfortable not paying for bundled television. 

While cable's reign might seem a given today, entrenched industries can fall fast to rapid external change. While it might be easy to look back and know newspapers died the day the web was born, in reality, the rapid decline of print advertising didn't begin in earnest until late 2006, and within three years the industry was half its size. Give consumers a "good enough" alternative, and the speed at which they'll adopt it has surprised many once-thriving industries. 

Remember, television companies are used to impressive growth rates. In the past five years Scripps has grown sales at 10% annually. Discovery Communications has seen its sales grow across the same period at 15% annually. If advertising growth slows or affiliate fee increases are pushed back on, they'll be looking for opportunities like I described above to incrementally increase their revenue. To satisfy shareholders with lofty expectations. 

The cable bundle stands to falter because it's a tremendous deal for all included, but they're helpless to not continue pursuing better deals that are increasingly straining the bundle proposition itself. 

Microsoft-like profit margins can't last forever. 

The biggest loser in all this: baseball

Predicting the future is at best an imprecise science, and at worst a fool's game. How fast cable could decline, we can't say. 

However, what can be said for certain is that the next decade of television is fraught with unknowns. Pay television faces two great challenges in out-of-control cable bundle economics and technology beginning to encroach on its space. The most dangerous assumption for any cable network would be to assume pay television will look the same a decade from now as it does today. 

Yet, that's just the assumption being made in baseball. Many of the monstrous RSN deals being signed right now have timeframes that run in excess of 15 years. The Yankees' current deal with their RSN, YES, runs through 2041. That's 27 years away.

To put that into perspective and to show the speed of technology, the World Wide Web didn't exist 27 years ago. 

These deals are being signed under the belief sports programming will continue increasing in value, largely thanks to its ability to charge more affiliate fees in the cable bundle. With sports – and especially local RSNs – standing to lose tremendously if the cable bundle sees serious changes, there is tremendous risk signing such long-term contracts. 

You could say that risk is on the local RSNs that are committing to such large contracts. However, since Major League Baseball takes 34% of all local TV revenue to be spread out under "revenue sharing" plans, many teams have begun forgoing more guaranteed television money in exchange for equity stakes in the local RSNs. The value of ownership stakes in RSNs isn't shared with fellow MLB clubs. 

For example, the value of the Mariners "$2 billion" deal includes an ownership stake in their local RSN. The Angels received a 25% stake in their RSN as part of their $2.5 billion deal, and the Astros deal included a 46% ownership stake in their newly created RSN. 

Essentially, the rules of baseball "revenue sharing" has led teams to tie their own financial futures to the idea that the cable bundle will last for decades. That affiliate fees will be on the rise. That baseball can continue indefinitely see more revenue even as fewer and fewer people watch its games. 

The risk, therefore, is actually baseball's.

The NFL is in a dramatically better place. While it collects $1.9 billion from cable bundle-dependent ESPN each year for "Money Night Football" and owns its own cable channel, it has major deals with broadcasters like FOX, CBS, and NBC that are worth about $3 billion annually. Those deals are almost fully supported by advertising, rather than cable channels using their programming to command higher affiliate fees. 

The value of MLB franchises may rival the value of many NFL franchises, but the risk facing baseball's television revenues is dramatically higher. 

Has it already begun?

Last Sept. 27, the Astros were surprised when the RSN they owned 46% of declared bankruptcy. It was just a year old. The RSN was seeking a reported $3.40 per month from cable operators to carry its channel. With the Astros having a league-worst payroll, cable operators balked at the high cost and refused to carry the channel. Astros games are currently only on Comcast, a co-owner of the RSN. 

With only 40% of households in Houston able to see the games, the channel couldn't collect enough affiliate fees to pay the Astros agreed upon annual fees. There isn't an uproar from customers of other cable operators because there is little demand to watch Astros games. 

The Astros are seeking to dismiss the bankruptcy, claiming it's a "transparent" attempt by co-owner Comcast to take control of the RSN. Yet, the fact is, this deal is just a year old and already failing. 

With the Astros among the worst teams in baseball history, it'd be easy to dismiss the struggles of their RSN as an isolated incident. Yet, there are other troubling signs on the sports landscape.

Time Warner Cable is refusing to carry the Padres' RSN. DirecTV has refused to carry the Pac-12 Network. These disputes aren't new – in 2002 CableVision refused to carry Yankees games when their new RSN premiered. 

However, it is concerning that there are so many disputes when cable television is still in its golden age. After all, every year before 2013 saw increases in the number of pay television subscribers. With baseball television contracts stretching out for decades, will these disputes become more common if 2% of customers cut their cable? What about 5%, or 10%? Cable operators will feel far less need to pay the high prices to pander to a sliver of fanatical sports fans if other customers are leaving in droves to pursue cheaper viewing options. 

Ten years down the road, as a 41-year-old Robinson Cano wraps up the final playing days of the contract he just signed, will anyone be watching?

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Top Supermarket Stocks To Watch For 2014

LONDON �-- I'm always searching for shares that can help ordinary investors like you make money from the stock market. However, many people have been worried the market could be overheating -- with fears recently being realized.

So right now I'm analyzing some of the most popular companies in the FTSE 100, hoping to establish if they can continue to outperform in today's uncertain economy.

Today I'm looking at�Wm. Morrison Supermarkets� (LSE: MRW  ) (NASDAQOTH: MRWSY  ) to determine whether the shares are still safe to buy at 264 pence.

So, how's business going?
Morrisons has failed to impress the market over the last few months as investors worry about the company's ability to compete with larger peers Tesco�and�Sainsbury's, which dominate the food retail market.

Having said that, Morrisons has been working hard to try and turn its fortunes around, and it appears that the company's plan is starting to gain traction.

Indeed, according to a report released this week by researcher Kantar, Morrisons' sales rose 1.2% in the 12 weeks to June, the company's third consecutive quarter of sales growth, reversing the previous six quarters of declining sales.

Top 5 Casino Stocks To Own Right Now: Tsakos Energy Navigation Ltd(TNP)

Tsakos Energy Navigation Limited, together with its subsidiaries, provides seaborne crude oil and petroleum product transportation services worldwide. The company offers marine transportation services for national and independent oil companies and refiners under long, medium, and short-term charters. As of August 16, 2011, its fleet consisted of 50 vessels comprising 59 tankers, including 2 dynamic positioning 2 (DP2) shuttle tankers under construction, and 1 liquefied natural gas carrier. The company was formerly known as MIF Limited and changed its name to Tsakos Energy Navigation Limited in July 2001. Tsakos Energy Navigation Limited was founded in 1993 and is based in Athens, Greece.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Laura Brodbeck]

  Friday

  Earnings Expected From: Tsakos Energy Navigation (NYSE: TNP) Economic Releases Expected: Japanese industrial production, French GDP, Italian trade balance, Hong Kong GDP, US building permits, US housing starts

  Posted-In: Federal Reserve UkraineEarnings News Guidance Previews Pre-Market Outlook Markets Trading Ideas Best of Benzinga

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  We can start with Tsakos Energy Navigation Limited (NYSE: TNP  ) . Shares of the energy transporter moved 27% higher last week after surprising the market with a quarterly profit. Business isn't great at Tsakos. Revenue dipped slightly during the period, and a profit of $0.02 a share may not turn heads. However, analysts were bracing for a loss of $0.08 a share on a sharper decline in revenue.

• [By Travis Hoium]

  What: Shares of energy transporter Tsakos Energy Navigation Limited (NYSE: TNP  ) jumped 17% today after the company released earnings.

Top Supermarket Stocks To Watch For 2014: First Financial Corporation Indiana(THFF)

First Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides various financial services. Its deposit products include interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing demand deposits, savings accounts, time deposits, and certificates of deposit. The company?s loan portfolio comprises commercial, financial, and agricultural loans; residential loans; and consumer loans. It also provides mortgage lending; lease financing; trust account and depositor services; and insurance services, such as property and casualty insurance, surety bonds, employee benefit plans, life insurance, and annuities. The company operates 54 branches in west-central Indiana and east-central Illinois. First Financial Corporation was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Terre Haute, Indiana.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By James E. Brumley]

  What do Prospect Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:PSEC), Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE), and First Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:THFF) have in common? Not much, on the surface. In fact, were it not for something very specific to one particular person (me), they'd have nothing in common at all. This week though, THFF, ASTE, and PSEC all have at least one thing in common, and that's the fact that they're all going into my mental/hypothetical portfolio.

• [By Doug Hughes]

  Doug Hughes: Sure, there is another one. The next one, the symbol would be (THFF). They're in Indiana, a very large bank. First Federal Financial Corporation. Again, their book value is $27.

Top Supermarket Stocks To Watch For 2014: PIMCO 1-5 Year US TIPS Index Exchange-Traded Fund (STPZ)

PIMCO 1-5 Year US TIPS Index ETF, formerly Pimco 1-5 Year U.S. TIPS Index Fund, is an exchange traded fund (ETF) designed to capture the returns of the shorter maturity subset of the Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) market by tracking The BofA Merrill Lynch 1-5 Year US Inflation-Linked Treasury Index. The BofA Merrill Lynch 1-5 Year US Inflation-Linked Treasury Index is an unmanaged index comprised of the United States Treasury Inflation Protected Securities with at least $1 billion in outstanding face value and a remaining term to final maturity of at least one year and less than five years. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Benjamin Shepherd]

  While there are several exchange-traded funds (ETFs) devoted to TIPS, my favorite is PIMCO 1-5 Year US TIPS Index (NYSE: STPZ).

  This ETF has one of the lowest durations of any of the TIPS funds at 2.7 years, so it won’t take much of a ding based on shifting interest rates.

Top Supermarket Stocks To Watch For 2014: Insteel Industries Inc.(IIIN)

Insteel Industries, Inc. manufactures and markets steel wire reinforcing products for concrete construction applications. The company offers pre-stressed concrete strand (PC strand) and welded wire reinforcement (WWR) products. Its PC strand is a high strength seven-wire strand that is used to impart compression forces into precast concrete elements and structures, which may be either pre-tensioned or post-tensioned, providing reinforcement for bridges, parking decks, buildings, and other concrete structures. The company?s WWR is produced as either a standard or a specially engineered reinforcing product for use in nonresidential and residential construction. Its products comprise concrete pipe reinforcement, an engineered made-to-order product that is used as the primary reinforcement in concrete pipe, box culverts, and precast manholes for drainage and sewage systems, water treatment facilities, and other related applications; engineered structural mesh, an engineered m ade-to-order product, which is used as the primary reinforcement for concrete elements or structures; and standard welded wire reinforcement, a secondary reinforcing product for crack control applications in residential and light nonresidential construction, including driveways, sidewalks, and various slab-on-grade applications. Insteel Industries sells its products through sales representatives to the manufacturers of concrete products, distributors, and rebar fabricators in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Central and South America. The company was founded in 1958 and is headquartered in Mount Airy, North Carolina.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Insteel Industries (Nasdaq: IIIN  ) reported earnings on July 18. Here are the numbers you need to know.

  The 10-second takeaway
  For the quarter ended June 29 (Q3), Insteel Industries met expectations on revenues and missed estimates on earnings per share.

Top Supermarket Stocks To Watch For 2014: NeuroMetrix Inc.(NURO)

NeuroMetrix, Inc., a science-based health care company, develops and markets products for the detection, diagnosis, and monitoring of peripheral nerve and spinal cord disorders, such as those associated with diabetes, carpal tunnel syndrome, lumbosacral disc disease, and spinal stenosis. The company focuses on diagnosis and treatment of the neurological complications of diabetes, including diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) and median neuropathy. Its marketed products include the ADVANCE NCS/EMG system, a platform for the performance of traditional nerve conduction studies and invasive electromyography procedures for the diagnosis and evaluation of CTS, low back and leg pain, and DPN; and the NC-stat DPNCheck, a device used to evaluate systemic neuropathies, such as DPN at the point-of-care, as well as consumables and accessories for use with its neurodiagnostic equipment. The company is also developing SENSUS pain therapy device, a transcutaneous electrical nerve stimul ator used in the management of chronic pain, such as that caused by DPN; and ADVANCE CTS, a version of the ADVANCE NCS/EMG device for the detection of CTS in people with diabetes. The company distributes its products directly through its direct sales force and independent sales representatives to physicians, clinics, and hospitals consisting of primary care, internal medicine, orthopedic and hand surgeons, pain medicine physicians, neurologists, physical medicine and rehabilitation, physicians, and neurosurgeons, as well as endocrinology/podiatry market in the United States and internationally. NeuroMetrix, Inc. was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Bryan Murphy]

  Over the past few weeks, Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:LXRX) and Decision Diagnostics Corp. (OTCBB:DECN) have dominated the diabetes diagnostics and diabetes treatment landscape. Shares of LXRX jumped 20% on Tuesday following news that one of the key drugs in its pipeline showed more than enough efficacy in its clinical trials. DECN shares are up more than 250% on the heels of an almost-assured victory in its patent lawsuit against industry giant Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ). Anyone looking for a new trade in the diabetes diagnostics space, however, may want to look past overbought Lexicon Pharmaceuticals and Decision Diagnostics at this point, and instead turn their attention to newly-budding Neurometrix Inc. (NASDAQ:NURO).

• [By Bryan Murphy]

  My recent love affair with Neurometrix Inc. (NASDAQ:NURO) hasn't exactly been a veiled secret. I first pointed out this diabetes-diagnostics stock was working on a technical breakout effort in early October, and I penned two more bullish-progress reports on NURO in November. Yet, the Neurometrix rally is still in its infancy, when you take a step back and look at the bigger weekly chart.

Top Supermarket Stocks To Watch For 2014: Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc.(SBGI)

Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc., a television broadcasting company, owns or provides certain programming, operating, or sales services to television stations in the United States. The company broadcasts free over-the-air programming, such as network provided programs, news produced locally, local sporting events, programming from program service arrangements, and syndicated entertainment programs. It owns or provides programming and operating services pursuant to local marketing agreements, or provides sales services pursuant to outsourcing agreements to 58 television stations in 35 markets. The company was founded in 1952 and is based in Hunt Valley, Maryland.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Eric Volkman]

  Sinclair Broadcast Group (NASDAQ: SBGI  ) is tapping the markets in a new, underwritten public share offering. The company has priced its issue of 18 million class A common shares at $27.25 apiece. Sinclair said that certain selling stockholders have granted the underwriters of the offering a 30-day purchase option for up to an additional 2.7 million shares.