Saturday, February 28, 2015

Best Clean Energy Companies To Buy Right Now

If you think natural gas prices could wreak havoc on companies like Clean Energy Fuels� (NASDAQ: CLNE  ) �and�Questar's� (NYSE: STR  ) refueling division, you probably don't understand how it all adds up "at the pump."

Andrew Littlefair is the CEO and co-founder of Clean Energy Fuels, the leading provider of natural gas for transportation in North America. Clean Energy provides CNG and LNG fuels to solid waste, trucking, and transit fleets, among others, and currently operates some 500 fueling stations in the United States and Canada, as well as manufacturing related equipment and technologies.

Is natural gas losing its ability to compete as a transportation fuel? In this video segment, Littlefair explains the commodity cost of natural gas, and how it really compares to diesel -- and what a change in the price of natural gas ultimately means at the pump.�

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Top Media Stocks To Watch Right Now: Nishat Power Ltd (NPL)

Nishat Power Limited (NPL) is a Pakistan-based company engaged in the electric utilities industry. The principal activity of the Company is to build, own, operate and maintain a fuel fired power station having gross capacity of 200 megawatt in Jamber Kalan, Tehsil Pattoki, District Kasur, Punjab, Pakistan. It has an installed annual capacity (based on 8,784 hours) of 1,715,559 megawatt hour. The Company�� customer is National Transmission and Dispatch Company Ltd (NTDC). During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2012, its actual energy delivered was 1,062,644 megawatt hour. The Company is a subsidiary of Nishat Mills Limited. Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Federico Zaldua]

    Despite growing expenses, in local currency terms, the bank's net income improved 16% year-over-year (yoy) while Non-Performing-Loans (NPL) have been kept below 4%. Hence, through Galicia, you can invest in an operationally healthy bank that shall behave in line with government bonds. Trading at 3 times P/E and 75% book value I think Galicia is good bet within the space.

    High Exposure to Public Debt

    Banco Macro (BMA) has been one of the highest growing banks during the last two decades. One interesting thing about Banco Macro is that the bank owns approximately $400 million of government related securities when the bank's total market capitalization is now just above $1 billion. On the other hand, Banco Macro is growing earnings aggressively at a 39% year over year rate in local currency terms with a very low (and stable) 1.6% NPL rate. Banco Macro is slightly more expensive than Galicia trading at 80% its book value and 3.2 times P/E.

Best Clean Energy Companies To Buy Right Now: American States Water Co (AWR)

American States Water Company (AWR), incorporated on February 25, 1998, is the parent company of Golden State Water Company (GSWC) and American States Utility Services, Inc. (ASUS) and its subsidiaries (Fort Bliss Water Services Company (FBWS), Terrapin Utility Services, Inc. (TUS), Old Dominion Utility Services, Inc. (ODUS), Palmetto State Utility Services, Inc. (PSUS) and Old North Utility Services, Inc. (ONUS)). AWR operates in three segments: water, electric and contracted services. Within the segments, AWR has two principal business units, water and electric service utility operations, conducted through GSWC, and contracted services conducted through ASUS and its subsidiaries.

GSWC is a California public utility company engaged principally in the purchase, production and distribution of water in 75 communities in 10 counties in the State of California. GSWC also provides electric service to the City of Big Bear Lake and surrounding areas in San Bernardino County, California through its Bear Valley Electric Service (BVES) division. GSWC served 255,657 water customers and 23,379 electric customers as of December 31, 2012. ASUS, through its wholly owned subsidiaries, has contracted with the United States government to provide water and/or wastewater services at various military installations, including the operation, maintenance, renewal and replacement of the water and/or wastewater systems, pursuant to 50-year firm, fixed-price contracts. As of December 31, 2012, GSWC�� physical properties consisted of water transmission and distribution systems which included 2,786 miles of pipeline together with services, meters and fire hydrants and approximately 425 parcels of land.

As of December 31, 2012, GSWC owned 244 wells, of which 188 are active operable wells equipped with pumps with an aggregate production capacity of approximately 202.7 million gallons per day. GSWC has 63 connections to the water distribution facilities of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern Cali! fornia (MWD), and other municipal water agencies. GSWC�� storage reservoirs and tanks have an aggregate capacity of approximately 111 million gallons. GSWC owns no dams. GSWC�� electric properties are located in the Big Bear area of San Bernardino County, California. As of December 31, 2012, GSWC owned and operated 29.6 miles of overhead 34.5 kilovolt transmission lines, 1.4 mile of underground 34.5 kilovolt transmission lines, 179.6 miles of 4.16 kilovolt or 2.4 kilovolt distribution lines, 53.2 miles of underground cable, 13 sub-stations and a natural gas-fueled 8.4 megawatt peaking generation facility. GSWC also has franchises, easements and other rights of way for the purpose of constructing and using poles, wires and other appurtenances for transmitting electricity.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By MONEYMORNING]

    American States Water Co. (NYSE: AWR) is one of the best examples I can think of. Its current payout of 2.88% may not seem like much when compared to the likes of a Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP (NYSE: KMP) at 6.5%, but when you consider that AWR has increased its dividend for the last 59 years, you begin to understand why this is pivotal to building your wealth, especially now.

  • [By MONEYMORNING]

    If you're buying a stock for income, note that, along with how much money you expect it to kick off. That way you can look back years from now and really appreciate something like an American States Water (NYSE: AWR) pick, which has increased its dividend for 59 years.

  • [By Insider Monkey]

    American States Water (AWR), meanwhile, is another dividend giant that has seen bullish insider activity of late. The Western US-focused water utilities company has raised dividends in 59 straight years and currently offers a yield of 2.9%. Somewhat astoundingly, American's payout ratio (47%) is still below its industry's average (59%), so the dividend growth doesn't look set to end anytime soon.

Best Clean Energy Companies To Buy Right Now: Geron Corporation (GERN)

Geron Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, develops therapies for cancer. Its clinical development product candidates include Imetelstat, a telomerase inhibitor, which is in Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer, advanced non-small cell lung cancer, thrombocythemia, and myeloma. The company was founded in 1990 and is based in Menlo Park, California.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By John Udovich]

    On Tuesday, small cap biopharmaceutical company Epizyme Inc (NASDAQ: EPZM) surged 75.56% after the company announced that its�EPZ-5676, a DOT1L inhibitor for acute leukemias, had reached its proof-of-concept milestone, meaning its worth taking a closer look at the stock as well as look at the share performance of cancer stocks like large cap Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ: CELG) and small caps�Dendreon Corporation (NASDAQ: DNDN) and Geron Corporation (NASDAQ: GERN).

  • [By Keith Speights]

    Anticipation elevation
    MLV and Company initiated coverage on Geron Corporation (NASDAQ: GERN  ) this week. The investment firm's "buy" recommendation helped spark shares to jump a whopping 39%.

Best Clean Energy Companies To Buy Right Now: Genius Brands International Inc (GNUS)

Genius Brands International, Inc., formerly Pacific Entertainment Corporation, provides music-based products, which entertains and educates infants and young children under its brands, including Baby Genius. It creates, markets and sells children�� digital versatile discs (DVDs), compact disc (CD) music and book products in the United States by distribution at wholesale to retail stores and outlets and direct to consumers through various deal for a day sites. It also licenses the use of its brands, both domestically and internationally, to others to manufacture, market and sell products based on its characters and brand, whereby the Company receives advances and royalties. In addition to the distribution of its CD and DVD products, the Company has developed and will continue to develop multiple revenue streams, which include worldwide licensing and merchandising opportunities for toys, books, and other customer products. During the year ended December 31, 2011, Pacific Entertainment Corporation, which is a California corporation, merged into the Company. On July 25, 2012, it sold approximately 500,000 Baby Genius DVDs and CDs and over 50,000 Little Genius CDs through its campaigns on Groupon.

Distribution

In 2008, the Company began self-distributing its DVD and CD products through direct relationships with customers. It also has third party licensing agreements under which it has developed musical products under other brands and receives revenue and pay a royalty for distributing those products through its distribution channels. The Company has licensed its brands for production of additional product lines, such as toys, books and other products, the products are primarily distributed by the licensee through the licensee�� marketing channels. As of December 31, 2011, it had one exclusive license agreement, which is with Jakks Pacific�� Tollytots (Tollytots) division.

Products

The Company�� products consist primarily of family and children��! DVD and CD music products. These products are manufactured and sold under brand names, such as Baby Genius, Kid Genius, Wee Worship, 123 Favorite Music and Pacific Entertainment Presents. The Company�� music products also include 50 Classic Lullabies & Soothing Songs and Favorite Guitar and Piano Melodies. During 2011, it released three new music titles, Best of Baby Genius, Sleighbells and Snowflakes and Favorite Country Christmas Music. The entire library of Baby Genius DVD and CD music products includes both English and Spanish versions. It also licenses its Baby Genius brand for various product lines, including toys, books, games and puzzles, sippy cups, and early learning aids, as well as others, and receives royalties based on sales of these products.

The Company has third party licensing agreements under which it has developed musical products under other brands, such as Guess How Much I Love You, The Snowman and Precious Moments. It also licensed the rights to eight DVDs previously created by Precious Moments in exchange for royalty payments on net sales of the DVD products. Through an exclusive licensing agreement with the San Diego Zoological Society, the Company created a series of Baby Genius DVD�� featuring footage from the San Diego Zoo and San Diego Wild Animal Park.

The Company competes with Baby Einstein, Brainy Baby, So Smart, The Wiggles, Sesame Baby, Disney, Universal Studios, Playskool, Fisher Price, Little Tykes and Leapfrog.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Lisa Levin]

    Music & Video Stores: This industry jumped 1.68% by 10:25 am. The top performer in this industry was Genius Brands International (OTC: GNUS), which rose 8.7%. Genius Brands' trailing-twelve-month revenue is $2.00 million.

Best Clean Energy Companies To Buy Right Now: BG Group PLC (BRGXF.PK)

BG Group plc (BG Group) is a natural gas company. The Company is engaged in the exploration, development and production of natural gas and oil. It operates in three business segments: Exploration and Production (E&P), Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and Transmission and Distribution (T&D). Effective January 1, 2012, the Company was managed across three regions: Americas and Europe; Africa, Central and South Asia, and Australia and East Asia, supported by Global Energy Marketing and Shipping (GEMS) and BG Advance. The Company has interests in 25 countries on five continents. During the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company acquired an interest in, and operatorship of, offshore blocks L10A (BG Group 40%) and L10B (BG Group 45%) in Kenya. During 2011, the Company acquired additional Marcellus shale properties in partnership with EXCO Resources, Inc. (EXCO). In June 2013, BG Group PLC announced that it has completed the sale of its 65.12% holding in Gujarat Gas Company Limited (GGCL). Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Heather Ingrassia]

    On Thursday, August 15, GasLog (GLOG) announced that it had ordered two new 174K cbm Tri-Fuel Diesel Electric LNG carriers from Samsung Heavy Industries. These carriers are expected to be delivered in 2016 which is the same year the company will begin seven-year charters with BG Group (BRGYY.PK) (BRGXF.PK).

Thursday, February 26, 2015

Mondelez International’s Starbucks Windfall No Game Changer for Either

Following the close of the stock market yesterday, news broke that Starbucks (SBUX) would have to pay Mondelez International (MDLZ) nearly $2.8 billion for ending a deal between the two companies early.

Bloomberg

Bloomberg has the details:

Starbucks Corp. said it would pay Mondelez International Inc. $2.79 billion to settle a dispute over distribution in the coffee-shop chain's bagged-coffee unit, as grocery-store sales become a growing part of the business.

The payment, ordered by an arbitrator, consists of $2.23 billion in damages and $557 million in interest and attorneys' fees, Seattle-based Starbucks said today in a filing. The company said it has adequate cash and borrowing capacity to fund the payment and will book it as a charge to its fiscal 2013 operating expenses.

The ruling settles a dispute that began in 2010, when Starbucks offered $750 million to end an agreement through which Mondelez, then known as Kraft Foods Inc., distributed its coffee to food retailers. Kraft rejected the offer. Starbucks sought to wrest control of its packaged coffee business as revenue grew and surpassed gains in other segments.

Call JPMorgan’s Ken Goldman surprised by the amount of the award:

The arbitrator concluded that Kraft/MDLZ is entitled to $2.23B in pre-tax damages from SBUX, as well as $527MM in prejudgment and attorneys' fees, for a total of $2.76B. We were anticipating somewhere between $1.5B and $2.0B.

The net proceeds (after a 37% tax rate) are equivalent to ~3% of MDLZ’s market cap. MDLZ said it would use proceeds to repurchase shares.

Shares of Starbucks are little changed at $80.62 after being down as much as 1.8% this morning, while Mondelez has risen 1.9% to $33.04. Kraft Foods (KRFT) has ticked up 0.1% to $52.02.

Morgan Stanley’s Matthew Grainger and team call the award “a net positive” but not “thesis-changing” for Mondelez:

Clearly the proceeds from this arbitration do not address the fundamental issues (execution issues, slowing category growth trends, mixed returns on investments) that have hampered MDLZ in recent quarters. However, we view this as a clear (if modest) positive for the stock, as: (i) it provides a cash windfall equivalent to ~3% of the company's market cap; (ii) allows for the potential to further accelerate share repurchases (we assume $2 billion in 2014, but each additional $500 million would add close to $0.01 to EPS); and (iii) could allow for further flexibility for debt tenders / refinancing by providing both additional balance sheet capacity and providing North America profitability with a source of taxable profit that can be used to offset any premium associated with early debt retirement. Net, while this outcome is not entirely unexpected, both the magnitude of the award and the associated financial flexibility are supportive of our Overweight rating on the stock and expectation of accelerating earnings growth beyond 2015.

William Blair’s Sharon Zackfia and team have similar thoughts about Starbucks:

Excluding the actual judgment itself, we expect that the arbitration will prove roughly $0.02 to $0.03 dilutive to our fiscal 2014 estimate on lost interest income, versus our prior estimate of $2.65, guidance of $2.55 to $2.65, and consensus of $2.66.

While there is a fair question as to whether the pay‐off from Starbucks' decision to take direct control of the package coffee business was worth the pay‐out, the company likely would not have been able to pursue other opportunities such as K‐Cups while still tied to Kraft (which owns Tassimo). All told, we suspect the arbitration outcome is likely to modestly crimp our estimates, but we continue to like Starbucks' shares given robust sales trends, still‐strong expansion prospects, and extraordinarily high visibility on 15% to 20% annual EPS growth.

Starbucks has gained 50% this year, while Mondelez has risen 30%.

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Top Mid Cap Stocks To Invest In Right Now

Mid cap infrastructure construction stock Chicago Bridge & Iron Company N.V. (NYSE: CBI) fell 7.23% after being trashed in an article by an apparent�short seller posted on Seeking Alpha, meaning its worth taking a closer look at the stock along with the performance of potential benchmarks like Jacobs Engineering Group Inc (NYSE: JEC), KBR, Inc (NYSE: KBR) and First Trust ISE Global Engineering and Construction Index Fund ETF (NYSEARCA: FLM).

What is the Chicago Bridge & Iron Company N.V.?

Founded in 1889 in Chicago, mid cap Chicago Bridge & Iron Company N.V. calls itself the most complete energy infrastructure focused company in the world and a major provider of government services. In fact, Chicago Bridge & Iron Company N.V. is one of the most complete providers of a wide range of services including design, engineering, construction, fabrication, maintenance and environmental services.

5 Best Financial Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Bottomline Technologies Inc. (EPAY)

Bottomline Technologies (de), Inc. provides cloud-based payment, invoice, and banking solutions to corporations, insurance companies, financial institutions, and banks worldwide. Its solutions are used to streamline, automate, and manage processes and transactions involving global payments, invoice receipt and approval, collections, cash and document management, risk mitigation, reporting, and document archive. The company’s products include cash management and treasury platforms that enable banks to offer ACH and BACS payments, wires, international payments, check production, balance and information reporting, and cash management facilities; and legal spend management solutions, which integrate with claims management, and time and billing systems to automate legal invoice management processes. It also offers Paymode-X, a business-to-business electronic settlement network, such as online access to purchase orders, invoices, payments, and remittance details, as well a s comprehensive workflow and turnkey vendor enrollment and support; and WebSeries and C-Series, the payment and document automation solutions that generate payment instructions along with consolidated bank reporting of cash activity. In addition, the company provides forms management, mobile documentation, workflow automation, and payments solutions to healthcare organizations. Further, it offers SWIFT access service that enables corporations exchange financial information with their banks and counterparties. Additionally, the company provides consulting, project implementation, and training services; and consumable products for laser check printing that comprise magnetic ink character recognition toner and blank-paper check stock, as well as printers and printer-related equipment. Bottomline Technologies (de), Inc. sells its products directly through sales force, as well as through various channel partners and resellers. The company was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Lisa Levin]

    Bottomline Technologies (de) (NASDAQ: EPAY) shares gained 12.03% to touch a new 52-week high of $35.20 after the company reported upbeat Q1 results.

Top Mid Cap Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Turkish Investment Fund Inc (TKF)

The Turkish Investment Fund, Inc. (the Fund), incorporated on September 27, 1988, is a non-diversified, closed-end management investment company. The Fund�� investment objective is long-term capital appreciation through investments primarily in equity securities of Turkish corporations. Its portfolio includes Turkish common stocks and short-term investments.

The Fund invests in industries, such as automobiles, beverages, commercial banks, construction materials, diversified financial services, real estate and wireless telecommunication services. The Fund�� investment advisor and administrator is Morgan Stanley Investment Management Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Dan Caplinger]

    Liquidity can be an even bigger concern among alternatives to ETFs. The closed-end Turkish Investment Fund (NYSE: TKF  ) has been even more volatile than the Turkish stock market, as the limited availability of closed-end fund shares produces even greater disparities between net asset value and share price. Yesterday, the Turkish closed-end traded at a 13% discount to net asset value, but that discount has moved in a wide range between 6% and 15% at various points during the past year, with some of the biggest discounts coming on days of heightened activity among protesters.

Top Mid Cap Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Aware Inc.(AWRE)

Aware, Inc. supplies various products for the biometrics and digital subscriber line (DSL) service assurance industries primarily in the United States and Germany. It provides biometrics software products, including software development kits (SDKs); BioComponents; biometrics services platform to build and deploy server-based biometric data processing and workflow solutions; universal registration client that performs various biometric data capture, analysis, matching, formatting, and hardware abstraction functions; URC Mobile for performing biometric enrollment, identification, and screening on mobile biometric devices; FormScannerSE and FormScannerMB for scanning and processing of inked fingerprint cards; Forensic Workbench for the categorization, processing, and standards-compliant formatting of biometric images and demographic data; and WebEnroll for browser-based enrollment of biographic data, fingerprints, and facial images. The company also offers medical imaging pro ducts comprising AccuRad ImageShare server that provides viewing of medical images; AccuRad REM server, which collects radiation exposure estimation data, and then stores and analyzes the data to calculate exposure information; and AccuRad SDKs. In addition, it offers advanced imaging products, such as ArchivePack to store and distribute digital imagery; JPEG 2000 image compression software; and SeisPact for the storage and satellite transmission of seismic data from ships. Further, the company provides DSL service assurance products consisting of DSL diagnostics and management software; and DSL test modules for integration into DSL testhead and test set equipment. Additionally, it sells and/or licenses patents that are related to communications, signal processing, and compression technologies. The company serves governments and corporate customers through systems integrator, OEM, and direct sales channels. Aware, Inc. was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Bedford, Mas sachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Garrett Cook]

    In trading on Friday, technology shares were relative leaders, up on the day by about 0.31 percent. Top gainers in the sector included Aware (NASDAQ: AWRE), up 15.4 percent, and Progress Software (NASDAQ: PRGS), up 7.7 percent.

  • [By Garrett Cook]

    In trading on Friday, technology shares were relative leaders, up on the day by about 0.15 percent. Top gainers in the sector included Aware (NASDAQ: AWRE), up 15.9 percent, and Progress Software (NASDAQ: PRGS), up 10.5 percent.

  • [By Garrett Cook]

    In trading on Friday, technology shares were relative leaders, up on the day by about 0.31 percent. Top gainers in the sector included Aware (NASDAQ: AWRE), up 15.4 percent, and Progress Software (NASDAQ: PRGS), up 7.7 percent.

Top Mid Cap Stocks To Invest In Right Now: COCA COLA HELLENIC BOTTLING CO (CCH)

Coca-Cola HBC AG operates as a bottler of products of The Coca-Cola Company in Switzerland and internationally. It offers a range of ready-to-drink non-alcoholic beverages in the sparkling, juice, water, sport, energy, tea, and coffee categories. The company has operations in 28 countries serving approximately 581 million people. Coca-Cola HBC AG is based in Zug, Switzerland. As of April 22, 2013, Coca-Cola HBC AG operates as a subsidiary of Kar-Tess Holding S.A.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    Berkshire’s ownership position in�Coca-Cola may set the stage for something similar to Duracell��ith Berkshire’s 400 million�Coca-Cola shares currently worth $17.8 billion, and an estimated value for CCR (Coca-Cola’s North American bottling assets) of $12.8 billion (based on 8x estimated EBITDA of $1.6 billion), this would not be a large enough transaction for Berkshire to completely transfer its�Coca-Cola stake. Of course, we do not think�Coca-Cola needs to capitalize the business with $5 billion in cash, as Procter & Gamble did for Duracell to “plug the gap” between the valuation of the business and Berkshire’s stake, but that may be a possibility in this instance as well. However��all us crazy��e think Berkshire could also take a look at CCEAG, Coca-Cola’s German bottling business. We valued this at $2.75 billion three years ago6, based on $3.8b of revenue, a 10.4% EBITDA margin and a 7.0x multiple. We think there is upward bias to a current valuation given likely cost rationalization that has occurred in the intervening years. If we wanted to get even more creative, we could even envision Berkshire taking a look more broadly at European bottlers like Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE) and Coca-Cola HBC (CCH), which have similar industry dynamics to the U.S. bottlers. We note that some type of swap transaction, � la Duracell, could save Berkshire Hathaway nearly $5 billion in income taxes.

Top Mid Cap Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Equity One Inc. (EQY)

Equity One, Inc., a real estate investment trust (REIT), engages in the ownership, management, acquisition, renovation, and development of neighborhood and community shopping centers in the United States. Its shopping centers are anchored by supermarkets, drug stores, or discount retail store chains. As of December 31, 2006, the company?s property portfolio consisted of 179 properties, including 166 shopping centers, 6 development parcels, and 7 non-retail properties. As a REIT, Equity One would not be subject to federal tax to the extent that it distributes at least 90% of its taxable income to its shareholders. The company was founded in 1992 and is based in North Miami Beach, Florida with an additional office in Israel.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Dividend King]

    Equity One Inc. (EQY): Equity One Inc. is trading just under its 52-week high of $20.27. The stock issues an annual dividend of $0.88, has a yield of 4.40% and a payout ratio of 142%.

Top Mid Cap Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Timios National Corp (HOMS)

Timios National Corporation, formerly Homeland Security Capital Corporation, incorporated on August 12, 1997, provides radiological, nuclear, environmental, disaster relief and electronic security solutions to government and commercial customers. The Company is engaged in the strategic acquisition, operation, development and consolidation of companies operating in the chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive, (CBRNE), incident response and security marketplaces within the homeland security industry. It is building consolidated enterprises (platform companies) through the acquisition and integration of businesses in the homeland security industry, particularly businesses focused on CBRNE incident response. In August 2011, the Company sold its Nexus Technologies Group. In October 2011, the Company sold its Safety and Ecology Holding Corporation subsidiary to Perma-Fix Environmental Services, Inc. In May 2012, the Company announced the acquisition by its subsidiary Timios, Inc. of Glenn County Title Company. In June 2013, Timios National Corp announced that it has completed the purchase of Glenn County Title Company (GCTC). In September 2013, Timios National Corp announced that it had executed a purchase agreement for the assets of Adobe Title, LLC.

The Company offers a range of management and operational services to each of its subsidiaries through a team of dedicated professionals. Its subsidiaries compensate its holding company for such services. Its core services include environmental remediation and restoration, regulatory compliance, facilities management, facility deactivation, decommissioning and demolition, emergency response, design and construction services and security integration to the United States government agencies, such as the Department of Energy (DOE), the Department of Defense (DoD), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the United states Army Corps of Engineers and the National Aeronautics and Space ! Administration (NASA). It conducts its operations through Safety & Ecology Holdings Corporation (Safety), its wholly owned subsidiary; Nexus Technologies Group, Inc. (Nexus), its 93% owned subsidiary, and Polimatrix, Inc. (PMX), its joint venture. Safety is an international provider of environmental, nuclear and radiological infrastructure remediation, disaster relief solutions and advanced construction services. Nexus designs, develops and installs integrated security systems for government and commercial clients. PMX markets, sells and distributes radiological detection equipment.

Safety & Ecology Holdings Corporation

Safety is a provider of global environmental, hazardous and radiological infrastructure remediation, upgrades and nuclear services in the United States and the United Kingdom. Safety�� main business areas and service offerings include decommissioning and remediation environmental and remedial consultancy services; environmental and consultancy services; nuclear energy design, build, refurbishment and operational support services, and instrumentation and measurement technologies. Safety offers a range of services that include characterization, decontamination, decommissioning of facilities, soil and groundwater remediation, infrastructure reduction and demolition, site preparation, excavation, and remedial system construction; underground and overhead utility installation; electrical and mechanical installation; security fencing and device installation and upgrades; building renovation; piping; roadways, parking lots, and drainage system construction/repair, and landfill remediation and capping.

Safety engages in facility deactivation, demolition and closure solutions, including project investigation; radiological pre-engineering; demolition planning; removing above ground structures and structural components; storing, testing, certifying, processing and shipping nuclear waste, and abatement of hazardous materials. Safety focuses its service offe! ring on t! he application and integration of health physics, industrial hygiene, hazardous material consultancy and safety and health. In addition, Safety couples its technology with its instrumentation offering, on-site radiological laboratory capabilities and mobile radiological materials license to provide radiological services and consultation. Safety provides integrated services to the nuclear energy industry. Safety provides specialized services to a customer base, including government agencies, commercial customers and major engineering and construction companies around the world that are focused in the nuclear new plant deployment initiative, facility operation, decommissioning and refurbishment. The elements of Safety�� technology offering are instrumentation services and instrumentation technology, both of which are targeted to field investigations, characterizations of contaminants and clean-up and material management and disposal solutions.

The Company competes with Stoller, Cabrera, Portage, LATA Northwind, Demco, Eagle, Pro2Serv, PMTech, Navarro, Energy Solutions, the Washington Group, Tetra Tech, Shaw Environmental and C2HM Hill.

Nexus Technologies Group, Inc.

Nexus is a mid-Atlantic security integrator for the corporate and governmental security markets that specializes in the engineering and installation of custom designed integrated electronic security solutions, including access control, alarm, closed circuit television (CCTV), video, communication, perimeter protection and bomb and metal detection security systems. Nexus provides solutions to protect people, property and assets. As a systems integrator, Nexus designs, customizes, installs, integrates and maintains closed CCTV, access control, video and communication systems for its customers. Nexus has undertaken projects in a range of markets, including financial services, corporate and commercial, healthcare, government, nuclear utility services, public transportation, airports, industrial complexes,! museums,! prisons, higher education and data centers. As a provider of custom engineered integrated security solutions, including access control, alarm/intrusion, CCTV, communication, perimeter protection and bomb and metal detection security systems, Nexus is aligned with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). Nexus has focused on five sectors in which it intends to expand, both vertically and horizontally. These sectors are Financial Institutions, Infrastructure Security, Government Facilities, Education Facilities and Corporate Markets.

Financial Institutions include banks, brokerage facilities, trading facilities and foreign currency exchange centers. Infrastructure Security include nuclear power generating facilities, water processing facilities, electricity generating facilities, power transfer stations and transportation centers, which include highway, bridge, tunnel, airport, rail and port security. Government Facilities include federal, state and local government buildings and offices, domestic and foreign embassies, military installations and police and fire department operations centers. Education Facilities include grammar, high school and college buildings, dorms and campuses, satellite learning centers and daycare centers. Corporate Markets include office buildings and grounds, parking lots, garages, retail locations, warehouses and apartment and condominium complexes.

The Company competes with Henry Brothers Electronics, Inc., Diebold, Inc. and ADT.

POLIMATRIX, INC.

PMX is a total solutions provider delivering radiation and nuclear protection and detection services through several engineered portable and stationary devices. PMX�� business plan is the development and marketing of radiological detection products and services. PMX has developed a range of domestic and international marketing initiative in Washington, DC, Virginia and Illinois. These states have used the PMX detection devices for a range of detection, prevention and first respon! der activ! ities. PMX�� product line of portable detection devices are designed to detect potential threats and can be positioned along transportation routes or carried by nuclear power generating facility security personnel. It operates PMX with the assistance of Safety�� personal.

The Company competes with Thermo Scientific and Canberra.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Peter Graham]

    However, there have been no further updates since then. A quick look on both Google Finance and Yahoo! Finance reveals the latest financials date from the end of September 2012 ��meaning its investor beware.

    Timios National Corp (OTCMKTS: HOMS) Has No News Beyond Filings

    Small cap Timios National Corp is involved in the strategic acquisition, development and consolidation of real estate service businesses. Former Maryland Congressman C. Thomas McMillen, who served three consecutive terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from the 4th Congressional District of Maryland, heads the company. On Friday, Timios National Corp sank 32.28% to $1.28 for a market cap of $3.01 million plus HOMS is up 54.2% over the past year and up 1,013% over the past five years according to Google Finance.

  • [By Peter Graham]

    Small cap stocks Timios National Corp (OTCMKTS: HOMS) and Lattice Inc (OTCMKTS: LTTC) surged 54.29% and 20.83%, respectively, while Unique Pizza & Subs Corp (OTCMKTS: UPZS) sank 27.27% last Friday. But today is a new trading week with the last two trading days for the year. So what will these three small caps do today, tomorrow and after New Years�� Here is a closer look:

Thursday, February 19, 2015

Top Food Stocks To Invest In 2015

Top Food Stocks To Invest In 2015: Pinnacle Foods Inc (PF)

Pinnacle Foods Inc., incorporated on July 28, 2003, is a manufacturer, marketer and distributor of branded food products in North America. The Company operates in three segments: the Birds Eye Frozen Division, the Duncan Hines Grocery Division and the Specialty Foods Division. The Birds Eye Frozen Division and the Duncan Hines Grocery Division, which collectively represent its North America Retail operations, include the brands. Its brand portfolio enjoys household penetration in the United States, where its products can be found in approximately 85% of U.S. households. Its products are sold through supermarkets, grocery wholesalers and distributors, mass merchandisers, super centers, convenience stores, dollar stores, drug stores and warehouse clubs in the United States and Canada, as well as in military channels and foodservice locations. On June 24, 2011, the Company completed the sale of its Watsonville, California facility which had been recorded as an asset held for sale.

Birds Eye Frozen Division

The Companys Birds Eye Frozen Division includes its steamed and non-steamed product offerings, with a 27.0% market share, making Birds Eye the recognized frozen vegetables brand in the United States. Birds Eye was the Company to capture a nationwide market share with a product that enables consumers to conveniently steam vegetables in microwaveable packaging.

Duncan Hines Grocery Division

Duncan Hines is the divisions brand and includes cake mixes, ready-to-serve frostings, brownie mixes, muffin mixes, and cookie mixes. During the fiscal year ended September 23, 2012, the Company added two additional items to the line. In February 2012, the Company introduced a line of frosting products, Duncan Hines Frosting Creations, which uses a patent pending frosting system to allow consumers to customize their frosting into one of 12 different flavors. The Company also offers a complete lin! e of shelf-stable pickle products that we market and distribute nationally, primarily under the Vlasic brand, and regionally under the Milwaukees and Wiejske Wyroby brands. In 2012, the Company introduced Vlasic Farmers Garden, artisan-quality pickle line.

Specialty Foods Division

The Companys snack products primarily consist of Tims Cascade, Snyder of Berlin and Husmans. These direct store delivery brands have local awareness and hold market share positions in their regional markets. The Company also manufactures and distributes certain products, mainly in the frozen breakfast, canned meat, and pie and pastry fruit filling categories, through food service channels. The Company also manufactures and distributes certain private label products in the canned meat, shelf-stable pickles and frozen seafood. As part of its ongoing strategic focus over the last several years, the Company has deemphasized the food service and private label businesses for the benefit of its higher margin branded food products.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

    Top Headline
    Hillshire Brands Co (NYSE: HSH) announced its plans to buy Pinnacle Foods (NYSE: PF) for around $6.6 billion including debt. Hillshire will offer $18.00 in cash and 0.50 shares of its common stock for each Pinnacle share.

  • source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.seekpennystocks.com/top-food-stocks-to-invest-in-2015-3.html

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

10 Best Railroad Stocks For 2015

10 Best Railroad Stocks For 2015: Independent Bank Group Inc (IBTX)

Independent Bank Group, Inc., incorporated on September 20, 2002, is bank holding company. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Independent Bank (Bank), a state chartered bank, the Company provides a range of commercial banking products and services for businesses, professionals and individuals. Commercial lending products includes owner-occupied commercial real estate loans, interim construction loans, commercial loans (such as Small Business Administration (SBA) guaranteed loans, business term loans, equipment financing and lines of credit) to a diversified mix of small and midsized businesses, and loans to professionals, particularly medical practices. Retail lending products include residential first and second mortgage loans, and consumer installment loans such as loans to purchase cars, boats and other recreational vehicles. On April 1, 2012, it acquired I Bank Holding Company and its bank subsidiary, and on October 1, 2012, it acquired The Community Group and its ba nk subsidiary. As of March 18, 2013, it operated 30 banking offices in 26 communities in two market regions located in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area and in the greater Austin area. Independent Bank operates 30 banking offices throughout North and Central Texas. In December 2013, the Company announced that it has completed the acquisition of Collin Bank, Plano, Texas. In January 2014, Independent Bank Group, Inc. acquired Live Oak Financial Corp. and its subsidiary, Live Oak State Bank.

Lending Activities

Its loans are primarily real estate secured loans spread among a variety of types of borrowers, including owner occupied offices for small businesses, medical practices and offices, retail operations, and multi-family properties. Its loans are diversified geographically throughout its Dallas/North Texas region (approximately 55%) and its Au! stin/Central Texas region (approximately 45%). As of December 31, 2012, it had total loans of approxi mately $1.4 billion

The Company is primarily a real es! tate secured lender. It originates real estate loans to finance commercial property that is owner-occupied, as well as commercial property owned by real estate investors. The total amount of owner-occupied commercial real estate loans outstanding as of December 31, 2012, was $353.5 million, or 25.6% of its loan portfolio. The total amount of commercial real estate loans outstanding as of December 31, 2012, excluding owner-occupied properties, was $295 million, or 21.4% of its loan portfolio. The real estate securing its existing commercial real estate loans includes a variety of property types, such as owner-occupied offices/warehouses/production facilities, office buildings, healthcare facilities, hotels, mixed-use residential/commercial, retail centers, multifamily properties, restaurants, churches and assisted living facilities.

The Company's construction portfolio includes loans to small and midsized businesses to construct owner-user properties, and, to a much lesser extent, loans to developers of commercial real estate investment properties and residential developments. These loans are typically disbursed as construction progresses and carry interest rates that vary with the prime rate. As of December 31, 2012, the outstanding balance of its construction loans was $97.3 million, or 7.1% of its total loan portfolio. It offers first and second mortgage loans to its individual customers primarily for the purchase of primary and secondary residences. As of December 31, 2012, the outstanding balance of one-to four-family real estate secured loans, including home equity loans, represented $315.3 million, or 22.9%, of its total loan portfolio. Residential real estate loans held for sale of $9.2 million at December 31, 2012, were also included in this category.

The Company makes single-family interim construction! loans to! home builders and individuals to fund the construction of single family residences. Such loans are secured by the real property being built and are made based! on its a! ssessment of the value of the property on an as-completed basis. As of December 31, 2012, the outstanding balance of its single-family interim construction loans was $67.9 million, or 4.9% of its total loan portfolio. The Company originates commercial loans to small businesses and professionals, in particular, medical practices, located in its market areas. These loans are primarily term loans to purchase capital equipment and small loans for working capital and operational purposes. As of December 31, 2012, it had outstanding commercial loans, of $169.9 million, or 12.3% of its total loan portfolio.

The Company's agricultural loan portfolio primarily includes loans secured by real property used for agricultural purposes. It provides loans for the acquisition of farm and ranch land, as well as the construction of buildings upon agricultural real estate. On a more limited basis, it offers agricultural equipment financing and crop production loans which are sec ured by crops, equipment, and crop insurance. The total amount of agricultural loans outstanding at December 31, 2012, was $40.1 million, or 2.9% of its total loan portfolio. The Company offers a variety of consumer loans, such as installment loans to purchase cars, boats and other recreational vehicles. Its consumer loans typically are part of an overall customer relationship designed to support the individual consumer borrowing needs of its commercial loan and deposit customers. As of December 31, 2012, it had outstanding $39.5 million of consumer loans, or 2.9% of its total loan portfolio. The Company also engages in the origination of residential loans sold into the secondary market. Its mortgage originations were $177.1 million during the year ended December 31, 2012. It sells all of the originated mortgages to institutional purchasers shortly after clos! ing.

!

Investment Activities

The types and maturities of securities purchased are primarily b ased on its liquidity and interest rate sensitivity position! s. As of ! December 31, 2012, investment securities held were United States Treasury securities, government agency securities, obligations of state and municipal subdivisions, Residential mortgage backed securities, and corporate bonds.

Sources of Funds

Deposits are the Company's principal source of funds for use in lending and other general banking purposes. The Company provides a range of deposit products and services, including a variety of checking and savings accounts, debit cards, online banking, mobile banking, eStatements and bank-by-mail and direct deposit services. It also offers business accounts and management services, including analyzed business checking, business savings, and treasury management services. As of December 31, 2012, it had total deposits of approximately $1.4 billion. In addition to deposits, it utilizes Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) advances either as a short-term funding source or a longer-term funding source and to manage its interest rate risks on its loan portfolio. The maximum amount of short-term FHLB advances it had outstanding at any month end during the year ended December 31, 2012, was $16.0 million. The Company's FHLB borrowings totaled $164.6 million as of December 31, 2012. Its FHLB advances are collateralized by assets, including a blanket pledge of certain loans with a carrying value of $524.8 million and FHLB stock. As of December 31, 2012, it had $92.7 million in undisbursed advance commitments (letters of credit) with the FHLB.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Markus Aarnio]

    2. Independent Bank Group (IBTX) operates as a bank holding company for Independent Bank that provides commercial banking products and services for small to medium size businesses, professionals, and individuals in North and Central Texas.

  • source fr! om Top Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksblog.com/10-best-railroad-stocks-for-2015.html

Monday, February 16, 2015

Top India Stocks To Buy For 2014

SAN JOSE, Calif. ��Creative explosions have many different sparks. Including fear.

For Jaideep and Sandhya Jain, the prospect of their teenage son starting to drive led directly to their start-up venture, Truvolo, or true "speed" in Latin, which aims to monitor car health and improve driving habits through data nestled in every automobile's computer.

"It wasn't about wanting to spy on him, but about making him a better driver," says Jaideep, 43, whose son, Anoop, is 16. "I looked at the statistics, and the first year of anyone's driving life has the most incidents, simply because you think you know everything but, of course, you don't."

That simple and universal parental concern struck the Jain family, which includes daughter Sahana, 12, at an opportune moment. Jaideep and Sandhya, 46, Indian emigrants who met pursuing computer science master's degrees at Kansas State University, had reached a point in their tech careers where they were ready to use a small nest egg to try and build something together leveraging her software talents and his data-analytics skills.

Top Penny Stocks To Buy For 2015: Infosys Technologies Limited(INFY)

Infosys Ltd. provides information technology (IT) and consulting services worldwide. It offers IT services, such as application, architecture, independent validation and testing, information management, infrastructure, packaged application, SOA, systems integration, and knowledge services; product engineering services, manufacturing process and plant solutions, and product lifecycle management services; and consulting services in the areas of information and technology strategies, product innovation, next generation commerce, process excellence, and learning and complex change. The company also provides business process outsourcing solutions in the areas of business platforms, customer service outsourcing, finance and accounting, human resources outsourcing, legal services, sales and fulfillment, and sourcing and procurement outsourcing. In addition, it offers collaborative analytics solutions; digital consumer platform; Finacle universal banking solution; iProwe, a Web ac cessibility assessment product; mConnect, a real-time enterprise middleware; and research and analytical support services. Further, the company offers unified communications and collaboration solution that streamlines business processes between employees, customers, and suppliers; iTransform that helps healthcare organizations accelerate transition to new platforms; and supply chain visibility and collaboration product suite. It serves aerospace and defense, airlines, automotive, banking, capital markets, communication services, consumer packaged goods, manufacturing, education, energy, healthcare, high technology, hospitality and leisure, insurance, life sciences, logistics and distribution, publishing, resources, utilities, and retail industries. Infosys Ltd. has a strategic partnership with Alstom SA. The company was formerly known as Infosys Technologies Limited and changed its name to Infosys Ltd. on June 16, 2011. Infosys Ltd. was founded in 1981 and is headquartered i n Bengaluru, India.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Garrett Cook]

    Infosys Ltd. (NYSE: INFY) reported a 13% gain in net profit for the three months ended December 31. The company also maintained its revenue growth forecast for the year.

Top India Stocks To Buy For 2014: Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd(RDY)

Dr. Reddy?s Laboratories Limited, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a pharmaceutical company. It produces finished dosage forms, active pharmaceutical ingredients and intermediates, and biotechnology products. The company also conducts research in the areas of cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular, inflammation, and bacterial infection. In addition, it involves in the contract manufacture generic prescription and over-the-counter products for branded and generic companies in the United States. The company primarily focuses on therapeutic categories of cardiovascular, diabetes management, gastro-intestinal, and pain management. It markets its products in India, the United States, Europe, and the Russian Federation. The company has a co-development and commercialization agreement with Rheoscience A/S for the development and commercialization of Balaglitazone/DRF 2593, a partial PPAR-gamma agonist for the treatment of type 2 diabetes; an agreement with ClinTec Internatio nal for the development of an anti-cancer compound, DRF 1042; collaboration with the National Cancer Institute in Maryland; and an agreement with Argenta Discovery Limited for the joint development and commercialization of a novel approach to the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. It also has an agreement with 7TM Pharma for drug discovery collaboration on selected drug targets; and an agreement with GlaxoSmithKline plc to develop and market pharmaceuticals for the treatment of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, oncology, gastroenterology, and pain management. Dr. Reddy?s Laboratories Limited was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Hyderabad, India.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Seth Jayson]

    Dr. Reddy's Laboratories (NYSE: RDY  ) reported earnings on May 14. Here are the numbers you need to know.

    The 10-second takeaway
    For the quarter ended March 31 (Q4), Dr. Reddy's Laboratories beat expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    Teva has dropped 7.7% to $37.85 today at 3:23 p.m. but doesn’t seem to be spreading though the generic drug space. Taro Pharmaceuticals (TARO) ha gained 1.1% to $79, while Actavis (ACT) has gained 1.2% to $156.25 and Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories (RDY) has advanced 1% to $40.24. Mylan (MYL) has dropped 0.7% to $38.40.

  • [By Dan Carroll]

    The company's generic drug segment should also help push emerging market sales. Abbott markets generic pharmaceuticals outside the U.S. only, and while the division isn't growth-oriented -- sales actually fell around 2% for the quarter -- it provides an entry for the company to push into lucrative new markets such as India, where generics make up the large majority of the country's retail market. The company will face tougher competition in this industry, however: Firms such as India-based Dr. Reddy's (NYSE: RDY  ) have also pushed hard into emerging markets lately, and Dr. Reddy's in particular should benefit from its being headquartered in one of the industry's top locales.

Top India Stocks To Buy For 2014: Stewart Information Services Corporation(STC)

Stewart Information Services Corporation provides title insurance and related information services required for settlement by the real estate and mortgage industries. It operates in two segments, Title Insurance-Related Services and Real Estate Information. The Title Insurance-Related Services segment offers services that include searching for and examining documents, such as deeds, mortgages, wills, divorce decrees, court judgments, liens, paving assessments, and tax records, as well as provides titles insurance for residential and commercial properties, undeveloped acreage, farms, ranches, and water rights. This segment serves attorneys, builders, developers, home buyers and home sellers, lenders, and real estate brokers. The Real Estate Information segment offers products and services, which primarily include lender services, title technology, foreign and domestic government services, mapping, title information, Internal Revenue Code Section 1031 tax-deferred property e xchanges, pre-employment services, and online filing and transaction management. Its customers include mortgage lenders and servicers, mortgage brokers, mortgage investors, government entities, commercial and residential real estate agents, land developers, builders, title insurance agencies, and others interested in obtaining property information, as well as accountants, attorneys, investors, and employers. The company has operations primarily in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, central Europe, Mexico, central America, and Australia. Stewart Information Services Corporation was founded in 1893 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    Tower Group has dropped 12% to $3.88 today at 11:39 a.m., while Stewart Information Services (STC) has dipped 0.1% to $31.16, the�Navigators Group�(NAVG) has fallen 1.4% to $54.78 and HCI Group�(HCI) has gained 1% to $38.16.

  • [By James Fink]

    My housing pick is Houston-based Stewart Information Services (STC), a 120-year-old real estate business founded in 1893, that is still owned and managed by the founding family.

Top India Stocks To Buy For 2014: Tata Motors Ltd(TTM)

Tata Motors Limited, an automobile company, engages in the manufacture and sale of commercial and passenger vehicles primarily in India. The company offers cars, utility vehicles, trucks, buses and coaches, and defense vehicles, as well as develops electric and hybrid vehicles for personal and public transportation. It also involves in distributing and marketing cars; and financing the vehicles sold by the company. In addition, the company engages in the provision of engineering and automotive solutions, as well as machine tools and factory automation solutions; construction equipment manufacturing; automotive vehicle components manufacturing and supply chain activities; tooling and plastic and electronic components for automotive and computer applications; and automotive retailing and service operations. It offers its products and services through its dealership, sales, services, and spare parts network. The company also markets its commercial and passenger vehicles in Eu rope, Africa, the Middle East, South East Asia, South Asia, and South America. The company was formerly known as Tata Engineering and Locomotive Company Limited and changed its name to Tata Motors Limited in July 2003. Tata Motors Limited was founded in 1945 and is based in Mumbai, India.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By CFA Institute Contributors]

    Tata Motors (TTM)

    Damodaran doesn't use standard regression betas. Instead, he uses an average of all the betas in a given industry. In this case, the law of large numbers is on the analyst's side. The standard error in a regression beta is typically too large to make any individual beta meaningful. In the case of Tata Motors, using an average of 111 publicly traded companies in the auto industry reduces the standard error of the beta by 90%, he said.

Saturday, February 14, 2015

Top 10 Consumer Stocks To Watch For 2014

It may be time to go on the offensive on the defensive consumer staples sector, as the charts suggest a minimum upside target that’s 5% above current levels, and potentially a lot more.

Robert Sluymer, managing director of U.S. technical research at RBC Capital Markets, recommends investors “increase exposure” to the sector, because the SPDR Consumer Staples Select Sector exchange-traded fund (XLP) has produced bullish breakouts on multiple technical fronts.

1) The XLP has broken through the top of a “rectangle” consolidation pattern. The XLP had been stuck within a range of $39 to $42 since April, with multiple tests of the upper and lower boundaries. The XLP was up 0.7% at $42.85 midday Tuesday, after running up 1.3% on Monday.

Mr. Sluymer said he’s also encouraged that the XLP’s rally started from the 200-day moving average, after multiple failures earlier in the month to get below that longer-term trend proxy.

Best Warren Buffett Companies To Buy Right Now: Express Scripts Holding Co (ESRX)

Express Scripts Holding Company, incorporated in 2011, provides healthcare management and administration services on behalf of its clients, which include health maintenance organizations (HMOs), health insurers, third-party administrators, employers, union-sponsored benefit plans, workers compensation plans, and government health programs. The Company operates in two segments: Pharmacy Benefit Management (PBM) and Emerging Markets (EM). PBM services include network claims processing, home delivery services, patient care and direct specialty and fertility home delivery to patients, benefit plan design consultation, drug utilization review, formulary management, drug data analysis services, distribution of injectable drugs to patients homes and physicians offices, bio-pharma services, and fulfillment of prescriptions to low-income patients through manufacturer-sponsored patient assistance programs. EM segment provides distribution of pharmaceuticals and medical supplies to providers and clinics, healthcare account administration and implementation of consumer-directed healthcare solutions. In September 2013, it announced the acquisition of the SmartD Medicare Prescription Drug Plan (PDP).

On July 20, 2011, Express Scripts, Inc. (ESI) entered into a merger agreement (the Merger Agreement) with Medco Health Solutions, Inc. (Medco). During the year ended December 31, 2011, it reorganized its FreedomFP line of business from its EM segment into its PBM segment. On April 2, 2012, the Company completed the Merger Agreement, and after which ESI and Medco became the wholly owned subsidiaries of the Company. The Company�� customers include HMOs, health insurers, third-party administrators, employers, union-sponsored benefit plans, government health programs, office-based oncologists, renal dialysis clinics, ambulatory surgery centers, primary care physicians, retina specialists and others.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    Just weeks after AbbVie (ABBV) struck a deal to make its hepatitis-C treatment the only one approved by Express Scripts (ESRX), Gilead Sciences (GILD) has reached a similar deal with CVS (CVS). Citigroup’s�Yaron Werber explains the significance:

Top 10 Consumer Stocks To Watch For 2014: Dana Holding Corporation (DAN)

Dana Holding Corporation engages in the design, manufacture, and supply of driveline products, technologies, and service parts for vehicle manufacturers worldwide. The company operates in four segments: Vehicle Driveline Technologies, Commercial Vehicle Driveline Technologies, Off-Highway Driveline Technologies, and Power Technologies. It provides light axles, driveshafts, engine sealing products, thermal products, and related service parts for light trucks, sport utility vehicles, crossover utility vehicles, vans, and passenger cars. The company also offers axles, driveshafts, chassis and side rails, ride controls and related modules and systems, engine sealing products, thermal products, and related service parts for medium- and heavy-duty trucks, buses, and other commercial vehicles. In addition, it provides axles, driveshafts, suspension components, transmissions, electronic controls, related modules and systems, engine sealing products, thermal products, and related s ervice parts for construction and earth moving machinery; agricultural, mining, forestry, rail, and material handling equipment; and various non-vehicular and industrial applications. Dana Holding Corporation was founded in 1904 and is headquartered in Maumee, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By WWW.GURUFOCUS.COM]

    Dana Holding Corp. (DAN)(0.3%) (DAN - $23.27 - NYSE) is a Maumee, Ohio based supplier of axles, drivelines and thermal products for the automotive and trucking industries. Dana's new CEO, Roger Wood, has begun to emphasize the company's strong technological expertise in thermal management technology, including advanced battery cooling products for next generation vehicles. Additionally, the company is beginning to reap the benefits of efforts to improve customer pricing as well as internal manufacturing efficiencies, both of which are expected to improve margins amid robust demand in the company's core auto and trucking markets.From Mario Gabelli (Trades, Portfolio)'s Gabelli Asset Fund's first quarter 2014 shareholder commentary.Also check out: Mario Gabelli Undervalued Stocks Mario Gabelli Top Growth Companies Mario Gabelli High Yield stocks, and Stocks that Mario Gabelli keeps buying Currently 0.00/512345

    Rating: 0.0/5 (0 votes)

  • [By Rich Duprey]

    Auto components manufacturer Dana Holding� (NYSE: DAN  ) announced yesterday its third-quarter dividend of $0.05 per share, the same rate it's paid since it began making a payout last year. The board of directors said the quarterly dividend is payable on Aug. 30 to the holders of record at the close of business on Aug. 9.�

Top 10 Consumer Stocks To Watch For 2014: Colgate-Palmolive Company(CL)

Colgate-Palmolive Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets consumer products worldwide. It offers oral care products, including toothpaste, toothbrushes, and mouth rinses, as well as dental floss and pharmaceutical products for dentists and other oral health professionals; personal care products, such as liquid hand soap, shower gels, bar soaps, deodorants, antiperspirants, shampoos, and conditioners; and home care products comprising laundry and dishwashing detergents, fabric conditioners, household cleaners, bleaches, dishwashing liquids, and oil soaps. The company offers its oral, personal, and home care products under the Colgate Total, Colgate Max Fresh, Colgate 360 Advisors' Opinion:

  • [By Holly LaFon]

    A: The stock market is a market of individual stocks that represent fractional ownership interests in real businesses. The key to investment success is first and foremost to identify individual, highly durable businesses and then have the discipline to buy them when prices are attractive and the risk/reward trade-off is compelling. We invest in what we understand, continuing to pour over the universe of businesses within our many circles of competence that meet our management, capital allocation, business model, and valuation criteria. Some areas that we believe offer the greatest opportunity in terms of prospective returns include:

    Global market leaders such as Nike (NKE), Colgate-Palmolive (CL) and Philip Morris International (PM) that are beneficiaries of a growing global middle class and consumer culture. The global wealth effect, particularly in developing economies, is a real and very powerful force that should serve as a tailwind for these types of global brands over the long term. Well-managed financial services companies with true franchise value due to the success of their particular products or brand that have the ability and management prowess to build market share over time in a highly fragmented marketplace. Wells Fargo and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B) are representative examples in this category. The depth of the recent financial crisis is well known. What is less understood is that certain market leaders used the downturn to dramatically strengthen their capital base and significantly grow their market share at the expense of weaker competitors. Certain health care-related businesses such as UnitedHealth Group and Laboratory Corporation of America that stand to benefit from growing health care spending by aging populations around the world. Workhorse technology companies such as Texas Instruments (TXN), Microsoft (MSFT) and Google that are market leaders with durable competitive moats and that also offer an attractive risk/reward proposition at
  • [By Laura Brodbeck]

    Friday

    Earnings Expected From: Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY), Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE: CL), Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation (NYSE: COG), Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F), Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC), Moody’s Corporation (NYSE: MCO), Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE: PG), Shire plc (NASDAQ: SHPG) Economic Releases Expected: German consumer confidence, Italian retail sales, British GDP, U.S. new home sales

    Posted-In: Earnings News Previews Top Stories Economics Pre-Market Outlook Markets Trading Ideas Best of Benzinga

  • [By Dan Caplinger]

    Moreover, it's starting to appear that Clorox has weathered a tough part of its business cycle. Throughout the industry, Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG  ) , Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE: CL  ) , and Clorox all had to deal with rising costs for the inputs they needed to make their respective products. The companies responded by implementing price-cutting measures and passing on part of their higher costs to their customers. For its part, Clorox was able to expand its gross margins by a full percentage point, with a worse-than-normal flu season contributing to sales. Now that input-cost inflation is easing, P&G and Clorox expect to see better profitability, with growth starting to approach the faster rates that Colgate has enjoyed.

Top 10 Consumer Stocks To Watch For 2014: Tootsie Roll Industries Inc.(TR)

Tootsie Roll Industries, Inc. engages in the manufacture and sale of confectionery products primarily in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The company sells its products under the TOOTSIE ROLL, TOOTSIE ROLL POPS, CHILD?S PLAY, CARAMEL APPLE POPS, CHARMS, BLOW-POP, BLUE RAZZ, ZIP-A-DEE POPS, CELLA?S, MASON DOTS, MASON CROWS, JUNIOR MINT, CHARLESTON CHEW, SUGAR DADDY, SUGAR BABIES, ANDES, FLUFFY STUFF, DUBBLE BUBBLE, RAZZLES, CRY BABY, and NIK-L-NIP. It distributes its products through candy and grocery brokers to the wholesale distributors of candy and groceries, supermarkets, variety stores, dollar stores, chain grocers, drug chains, discount chains, cooperative grocery associations, warehouse and membership club stores, vending machine operators, and the U. S. military and fund-raising charitable organizations. The company was founded in 1896 and is based in Chicago, Illinois.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Sean Williams]

    Leave the wrapper on
    The returns on confectioner Tootsie Roll Industries (NYSE: TR  ) have certainly been sweet for investors over the past year. You have to go back to the summer of 2010 to find sugar prices that were as low as they are now,�which has played a good part in helping Tootsie Roll keep that aspect of its costs down. But taking a bigger view of what's going on with Tootsie Roll and comparing that to its current valuation creates a sour taste in my mouth.

  • [By Rich Smith]

    At the same time, tiny Tootsie Roll (NYSE: TR  ) may see its sales grow as little as 13% through 2016. Could it be that in the candy industry, bigger is better? Does Hershey lack the scale to compete effectively against mammoth Mondelez?

Top 10 Consumer Stocks To Watch For 2014: Verso Paper Corp.(VRS)

Verso Paper Corp. engages in the production and sale of coated papers in the United States. The company offers coated groundwood paper, which is used primarily for catalogs and magazines; coated freesheet paper that is used primarily for annual reports, brochures, and magazine covers; and supercalendered paper, which is primarily used for retail inserts. It also provides northern bleached hardwood kraft pulp that is used to manufacture printing and writing paper grades, and tissue products; recycled paper to meet specific customer requirements; and customized product solutions by producing paper grades with customer-specified weight, brightness, and pulp mix characteristics. In addition, the company offers ultra-lightweight uncoated printing papers, and ultra-lightweight coated and uncoated flexible packaging papers. It serves catalog, magazine, insert, and commercial printing markets through direct sales, commercial printers, paper merchants, and brokers. The company was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By John Udovich]

    Small cap�paper stock�Verso Paper Corp (NYSE: VRS), trucking stock�Covenant Transportation Group, Inc (NASDAQ: CVTI) and gold mining stock Richmont Mines Inc (NYSEMKT: RIC) are among the best small cap stock performers for the�year and the best in their respective sectors because they are�up 390.7%, 224.7% and 215%, respectively, since the start of the year. Why has the paper, trucking and gold mining sector produced three top performing small cap stocks? Here are some answers:

Top 10 Consumer Stocks To Watch For 2014: Rite Aid Corp (RAD)

Rite Aid Corporation, incorporated in 1968, is a retail drugstore chain in the United States. As of March 3, 2012, the Company operated drugstores in 31 states across the country and in the District of Columbia. As of March 3, 2012, it operated 4,667 stores. In the Company�� stores, it sells prescription drugs and a range of other merchandise, which it calls front end products. During the fiscal year ended March 3, 2012 (fiscal 2012), prescription drug sales accounted for 68.1% of its total sales. The Company carries a range of front end products, which accounted for 31.9% of its total sales in fiscal 2012. Front end products include over-the-counter medications, health and beauty aids, personal care items, cosmetics, household items, beverages, convenience foods, greeting cards, seasonal merchandise and other everyday and convenience products, as well as photo processing. It offers a variety of products under its private brands, which contributed approximately 17% of its front end sales in the categories where private brand products were offered in fiscal 2012. As of March 3, 2012, the Company had opened over 2,100 GNC stores-within-Rite Aid-stores. During fiscal 2012, the Company sold two owned operating stores to independent third parties.

During fiscal 2012, its stores filled approximately 295 million prescriptions and served an average of 2.1 million customers per day. The overall average size of each store in its chain is approximately 12,600 square feet. As of March 3, 2012, 60% of its stores were freestanding; 51% of its stores included a drive-thru pharmacy; 24% included one-hour photo shops, and 46% included a GNC store-within-Rite Aid-store. The Company�� customers may also order prescription refills over the Internet through www.riteaid.com, or over the phone through its telephonic automated refill systems for pick up at a Rite Aid store. It has a strategic alliance with GNC, a retailer of vitamin and mineral supplements.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Jayson Derrick]

    Rite Aid (NYSE: RAD) and CVS Caremark (NYSE: CVS) have both disabled customers ability to make purchases with Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL) mobile wallet system, Apple Pay. Shares of Rite Aid gained 0.84 percent, closing at $4.80 while share of CVS hit new 52-week highs of $85.22 before closing the day at $84.84. Shares lost 0.10 percent, closing at $105.11.

  • [By Seth Jayson]

    Rite Aid (NYSE: RAD  ) is expected to report Q1 earnings on June 20. Here's what Wall Street wants to see:

    The 10-second takeaway
    Comparing the upcoming quarter to the prior-year quarter, average analyst estimates predict Rite Aid's revenues will drop -2.7% and EPS will turn positive

  • [By Jonas Elmerraji]

    2013 has been a phenomenal year for shareholders in Rite Aid (RAD). Shares of the retail pharmacy chain have rallied more than 278% since the first trading session of the year. But that's not all. The setup in shares points to higher highs in store for this drugstore in the near-term.

    That's because RAD is currently forming an ascending triangle pattern, a bullish price setup that's formed by a horizontal resistance level above shares at $5.50 and uptrending support to the downside. Basically, as Rite Aid bounces in between those two technically-important price levels, it's getting squeezed closer and closer to a breakout above that $5.50 level. When the breakout happens, it's time to become a buyer.

    The descending triangle pattern is the bearish opposite of an ascending triangle. It's formed by a downtrending resistance level above shares, and horizontal support to the downside. A breakdown below support, currently right below $5, is the signal that it's time to sell or short shares.

    In the last few months, that $5 mark has acted as a last bastion of buying pressure for SAND. But if shares suddenly can't catch a bid below that level, then we'll likely see much lower levels before all is said and done.

    Don't try to call a bottom on SAND. That's a good way to get positioned on the wrong side of a falling stock.

Top 10 Consumer Stocks To Watch For 2014: Peet's Coffee & Tea Inc.(PEET)

Peet?s Coffee & Tea, Inc. operates as a specialty coffee roaster and marketer of fresh roasted whole bean coffee and tea in the United States. It offers whole bean coffee and related products consisting of products for home brewing, tea, and packaged foods; and beverages and pastries. The company also provides brewing equipment for coffee and tea; paper filters and brewing accessories; and branded and non-branded cups, saucers, travel mugs, and serve ware. Peet?s sells its products through various channels of distribution, including grocery stores; home delivery, office, restaurant, and foodservice accounts; and company-owned and operated stores. As of January 2, 2011, it operated 192 retail stores in California, Colorado, Illinois, Oregon, Massachusetts, and Washington. The company was founded in 1966 and is headquartered in Emeryville, California.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Chris Hill]

    In 2012, the Germany-based�Benckiser Group�spent $1.3B to buy Peet's Coffee & Tea, as well as Caribou Coffee. On Friday, Benckiser announced that it's buying European coffee maker Master Blenders for�around�$10 billion. In the United States, Benckiser is closing 15% of Caribou locations, and�converting 20% of the stores into Peet's (NASDAQ: PEET  ) . In this installment of Motley Fool Money, our analysts discuss whether Benckiser's big bet on coffee poses a threat to Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX  ) .

Friday, February 13, 2015

Top Retail Companies To Own In Right Now

Top Retail Companies To Own In Right Now: Tranzbyte Corp (ERBB)

The Tranzbyte Corporation, incorporated on November 12, 1998, is a driving force behind Altitude Organic Corporation, One Bode, The YO! Debit Card, and ProximaRF. Altitude Organic Corporation is a medical marijuana dispensary brand. It has developed retailing, branding, and commercial cultivating strategies in conjunction with its licensed medical marijuana retail dispensaries operating under the Altitude Organic Medicine brand name.

Tranzbyte houses the technology division, which is engaged in the sale of its optical media enhancement products to customers in the United States and Asia. Products in the Tranzbyte division include FLASHAlbum and FlixStix technologies that enable distributors of optical media (compact discs, digital video discs, etc.) to consolidate the features of each medium onto a single content-protected universal serial bus (USB) flash drive. One Bode has created an assortment of products focusing on plant-based nutrients and enzymes. Appl ied radio frequency identification (RFID) and its operating subsidiaries (www.proximarf.com), have a portfolio of RFID reader, sensor tag and data logging products.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By John Udovich]

    Its been a rather eventful week for news from the marijuana sector and small cap marijuana stocks like GW Pharmaceuticals PLC (NASDAQ: GWPH), Tranzbyte Corp (OTCMKTS: ERBB) and Growlife Inc (OTCMKTS: PHOT) as one of these stocks gets endorsed by Morgan Stanley while another appears on CNBC more signs of legitimacy for an investmentsector thats full of pumps, dumps and other unsavory types of activities. Just consider the following small cap marijuana stock or pot industry news:

  • [By John Udovich]

    The SEC has halted trading of small cap marijuana stock Growlife Inc (OTCMKTS: PHOT) after a relatively brief trading halt forAdvanced Cannabis Solutions, Inc (OTCMKTS: CANN), but Tranzbyte Corp (OTCMKTS: ERBB), Ca! nnabis Science Inc (OTCMKTS: CBIS) and Medical Marijuana Inc (OTCMKTS: MJNA) are still very much alive. However and as I have noted (repeatedly)in the past (see here), Medical Marijuana Inc has aformer CEO who has been indicted for a multi-state mortgage fraud scam/ponzi scheme while Medbox Inc (OTCMKTS: MDBX) is another marijuana stock with some issues that were summed up nicely in a Southern Investigative Reporting Foundation article cleverly entitled: Tinkerer, Lawyer, Hustler, Lies: One Mans Path to a Dope Fortune. Obviously, investing in marijuana stocks is not for conservative. Nevertheless, there isstill plenty of good or bad news for investors in the marijuana sector to inhale, including the following:

  • source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.seekpennystocks.com/top-retail-companies-to-own-in-right-now.html

Top 5 Performing Stocks To Own Right Now

The markets rallied again today after a strong consumer sentiment report was released this morning. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) rose 121 points or 0.8% and now sits at 15,354, but even with that impressive gain, the Dow was the worst performing index. The S&P 500 was the best, as it increased by 1.03% during the regular trading session while the NASDAQ rose higher by 0.97%.

The Thomson Reuter/University of Michigan preliminary consumer sentiment index for May rose to 83.7, while analysts were only expecting an increase to 77.9 after April's reading came in at 76.4. Furthermore, this is the highest the index has been since July 2007. But, despite the consumer index climbing higher, a number of the Dow's consumer facing stocks fell this afternoon. �

Top 10 Information Technology Stocks To Watch For 2015: Perrigo Company PLC (PRGO)

Perrigo Company plc, incorporated on March 23, 1988, is a global healthcare supplier that develops, manufactures and distributes over-the-counter (OTC) and generic prescription (Rx) pharmaceuticals, infant formulas, nutritional products, animal health, dietary supplements, active pharmaceutical ingredients (API), and medical diagnostic products, and Multiple Sclerosis drug Tysabri. The Company�� businesses include Consumer Healthcare, Nutritionals, Rx Pharmaceuticals, API, Life Sciences and Other Businesses. The Company offers Healthcare Products across a range of product categories primarily in the United States, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Israel and Australia, and distributes into dozens of other markets worldwide, including Canada, China and Latin America. In February 2014, the Company announced that it has acquired a basket of value-brand OTC products sold in Australia and New Zealand from Aspen Global Inc.

The Company operates through several wholly owned subsidiaries. In the United States, its operations are conducted primarily through L. Perrigo Company, Perrigo Company of South Carolina, Inc., Perrigo New York, Inc., PBM Products, LLC, PBM Nutritionals, LLC, Paddock Laboratories, LLC, Perrigo Diabetes Care, LLC (formerly CanAm Care, LLC), Sergeant's Pet Care Products, Inc. and Fidopharm, Inc. Outside the United States, its operations are conducted primarily through Perrigo Israel Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Chemagis Ltd., Quimica y Farmacia S.A. de C.V., Laboratorios Diba, S.A., Wrafton Laboratories Limited, Galpharm Healthcare Ltd., Orion Laboratories Pty Ltd and Rosemont Pharmaceuticals Ltd.

Consumer Healthcare

Perrigo Consumer Healthcare (CHC) operation includes the Company's United States, United Kingdom and Mexico manufacturing operations supporting the sale of OTC pharmaceutical products. Perrigo CHC supplies more than 15 categories and 500 formulas and offers analgesics, cough and cold remedies, and gastrointestinal and feminine hygiene products, as w! ell as vitamins, dietary supplements and nutritional drinks. Perrigo offers a range of products, such advertised brand products as Tylenol, Advil or One-A-Day. Tylenol has acetaminophen as an active ingredient and is available in stores' analgesic (pain reliever) aisle. Store-brand acetaminophen is located next to the national brand, offering the same active ingredient (acetaminophen) and the same pain relief.

Perrigo Nutritionals

Perrigo is a manufacturer of nutrition products for the store brand market. Nutrition products include infant formula, pediatric nutritionals and vitamins, minerals, and supplements. Acquired by Perrigo, Perrigo Nutritionals, formerly PBM Products, LLC, had introduced private-label, or store-brand infant formulas to the United States. Perrigo Nutritionals is the supplier of store-brand infant formulas and nutrition products. With distribution to major retailers, Perrigo Nutritional products can be found in more than 40,000 retail locations around the world. Its pediatric nutritionals business extends its offerings to children well beyond infancy. Its baby cereals, toddler foods, and pediatric nutritional drinks are available as store brands at various retail locations throughout the United States and the international community. Perrigo manufactures a range of vitamins, minerals, and supplements, in every major segment of the business. Marketed under the store brand labels of the retailers in the food, drug, mass-merchandise and wholesale club channels, it manufactures over 395 formulas of dietary supplements. Its brands include Centrum, One-A-Day, Flintstones, and Osteo-Bi-Flex.

Rx Pharmaceuticals

The Company�� Rx Pharmaceuticals business is focused on the development, manufacture and sale of generic prescription drug products, primarily for the United States market. Manufacturing operations are based in the United States and Israel. Perrigo's portfolio focuses on complex, high-barrier ophthalmological, topical foam and or! al liquid! formulations. Its products include Acetylcysteine Injection 200 mg/mL (6g/30mL), Acetylcysteine Injection 6 g/30 mL (200 mg/1 mL), NOVAPLUS, ACTIDOSE with SORBITOL, ACTIDOSE-AQUA, ASPIRIN SUPPOSITORIES USP, Bacitracin Ophthalmic Ointment USP, Belladonna and Opium Suppositories C-II, BENZOIN COMPOUND TINCTURE USP, Benzoyl Peroxide 10% Acne Medication Wash, CLOBETASOL PROPIONATE LOTION 0.05% and Docusate Sodium.

Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients

Primarily through the Company�� Israel-based business, Perrigo develops, manufactures and markets the complex chemicals and active pharmaceutical ingredients used worldwide by the generic drug industry. Certain of these ingredients are also used in Perrigo's own pharmaceutical products. It manufactures API at facilities in Israel, India and China. Perrigo API specializes in tailor-made research and process development of APIs and Finished Dosage Forms (FDFs).

Life Sciences

Through the Company�� Israel-based business, Perrigo markets and manufactures branded prescription drugs and medical diagnostic products through exclusive agreements with pharmaceutical companies. Its Pharmaceutical and Medical Diagnostic Products businesses also market and manufacture branded prescription drugs under licenses. Other pharmaceutical and medical diagnostics products are imported to Israel through exclusive agreements. Products in life sciences segment include TYSABRI and ELND005. TYSABRI (natalizumab) is indicated for treatment of: Multiple Sclerosis: as monotherapy for the treatment of patients with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis to delay the accumulation of physical disability and reduce the frequency of clinical exacerbations. TYSABRI is recommended for patients who have had an inadequate response to, or are unable to tolerate, an alternate MS therapy; Crohn�� Disease (CD): Inducing and maintaining clinical response and remission in adult patients with moderately to severely active Crohn�� disease with e! vidence o! f inflammation who have had an inadequate response to, or are unable to tolerate, conventional CD therapies and inhibitors of tumor necrosis factor-伪.

Other

Perrigo's Pharmaceutical and Medical Diagnostic Products business markets and manufactures branded prescription drugs under licenses. Other pharmaceutical and medical diagnostic products are imported to Israel through exclusive agreements with pharmaceutical and diagnostics companies. This business is divided into two departments: Pharma-Israel and Tayco Diagnostics. Pharma-Israel operates in the Israeli market as a partner in the marketing, sales and distribution of Rx (dermatology, gastroenterology, blood products, CNS, urology and other fields), OTC, generics, branded generics, dermo-cosmetics and dietary supplements. Tayco, the diagnostics division of Perrigo-Israel Pharmaceuticals Ltd., specializes in marketing and sales of medical laboratory systems, reagents, accessories and consumables. It also markets self-monitoring medical devices for diagnosis and treatment of diabetes. The division operates throughout Israel to service the central laboratory, hospital, clinic, point of care and self-testing markets. Its activities in the medical and research fields in Israel cover all market segments: medical (private and public health services), research institutions and the biotech industry.

The Company competes with Dr. Reddy�� Laboratories, Ltd., Actavis Inc., Aaron Industries, Inc., Ohm Laboratories, Inc., PL Developments, LNK International, Inc., Abbott Laboratories, Mead Johnson Nutrition Co., Nestle S.A. (Gerber), Danone Baby Nutrition, Bayer AG, Pfizer, Inc., Rexall Sundown, Inc., Apotex, Glenmark Generics Inc., Impax, Prasco, Sandoz, Taro Pharmaceuticals, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Triax Pharmaceuticals, and Zydus Pharmaceuticals.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Rich Duprey]

    Investors going with health-care products maker Perrigo� (NYSE: PRGO  ) �will receive a�quarterly cash dividend�of�$0.09 per share on June 18 to shareholders of record at the close of business on May 31 for the fiscal third quarter of 2013.

  • [By Rich Duprey]

    Generic pharmaceutical manufacturer Perrigo (NYSE: PRGO  ) announced today its third-quarter dividend of $0.09 per share, the same rate it's paid for the past three quarters after raising the payout 12.5% from $0.08 per share.

Top 5 Performing Stocks To Own Right Now: United States 12 Month Oil Fund LP (USL)

The United States 12 Month Oil Fund, LP (US12OF) is a commodity pool that issues limited partnership interests traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) Arca, Inc. (the NYSE Arca). The investment objective of US12OF is for the daily changes in percentage terms of its units per unit net asset value (NAV) to reflect the daily changes in percentage terms of the spot price of light, sweet crude oil delivered to Cushing, Oklahoma, as measured by the changes in the average of the prices of 12 futures contracts for light, sweet crude oil traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange (the NYMEX) consisting of the near month contract to expire and the contracts for 11 months, for a total of 12 consecutive months contracts, except when the near month contract is within two weeks of expiration, in which case it is measured by the futures contract that is the next month contract to expire and the contracts for 11 consecutive months (the Benchmark Oil Futures Contracts). The Company is managed and controlled by its general partner, United States Commodity Funds LLC (the General Partner). The General Partner is the general partner of US12OF and is responsible for the management of US12OF.

The net assets of US12OF consist primarily of investments in futures contracts for light, sweet crude oil, other types of crude oil, heating oil, gasoline, natural gas, and other petroleum-based fuels that are traded on the NYMEX, ICE Futures or other United States and foreign exchanges (collectively, Oil Futures Contracts). It also invests in other oil interests, such as cash-settled options on Oil Futures Contracts, forward contracts for oil, cleared swap contracts and non-exchange traded (over-the-counter) transactions that are based on the price of oil, other petroleum-based fuels, Oil Futures Contracts and indices based on the foregoing (collectively, Other Oil-Related Investments). For convenience and unless otherwise specified, Oil Futures Contracts and Other Oil-Related Investments collectively are referred to! as oil Interests.

US12OF invests in Oil Interests to the fullest extent possible without being leveraged or unable to satisfy its current or potential margin or collateral obligations with respect to its investments in Oil Futures Contracts and Other Oil-Related Investments. US12OF�� investments in short-term obligations of the United States of two years or less (Treasuries), cash and/or cash equivalents.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Dan Caplinger]

    Another choice is to use ETFs with a longer-term futures strategy. The United States 12-Month Oil Fund (NYSEMKT: USL  ) holds equal positions in each of the next 12 futures contracts. That reduces the positive impact of near-term backwardation, but it gives you more exposure to the heavier backwardation that exists further into the future.

Top 5 Performing Stocks To Own Right Now: Barrett Business Services Inc.(BBSI)

Barrett Business Services, Inc. provides business management solutions in the United States. The company offers human resource management services in areas comprising payroll processing, employee benefits and administration, human resource management, risk management, and workers? compensation coverage areas. It also provides professional employer organization services, which include employee benefits, health insurance, workers? compensation coverage, workplace safety programs, federal and state employment laws compliance, labor and workplace regulatory requirements, and related administrative services; and payroll administrative services, such as payroll processing, payroll taxes, and human resource consulting services. In addition, the company provides staffing services, including on-demand or short-term staffing assignments, contract staffing, long-term or indefinite-term on-site management, direct placement, and human resource administration services. It serves elect ronics manufacturers; various light-manufacturing industries; forest products and agriculture-based companies; transportation and shipping enterprises; food processing; telecommunications; public utilities; general contractors in various construction-related fields; and professional services firms. Barrett Business Services, Inc. was founded in 1965 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Washington.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Rich Duprey]

    The much smaller Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ: BBSI  ) has done even better, soaring 154% over the last 12 months.

    While that might suggest the opportunity to invest in them has passed, I believe their biggest gains are still ahead. While tentativeness among employers about whether the economy is really improving is helping employers to hire more temp workers, the coming implementation of Obamacare will fuel it further. Even with the employer mandate portion of the law being pushed out past the midterm elections to 2015 instead of going into effect on January 1, that just means more companies will be hiring more temp workers for a longer period of time to get below the thresholds the health-care law imposes.

Top 5 Performing Stocks To Own Right Now: iShares Russell 2000 Value ETF (IWN)

iShares Russell 2000 Value Index Fund (the Fund) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Russell 2000 Value Index (the Index). The Index measures the performance of the small-capitalization value sector of the United States equity market. It is a subset of the Russell 2000 Index. The Index is a capitalization-weighted index and consists of those companies or portion of a company, with lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecasted growth within the Russell 2000 Index. The Index represents approximately 50% of the total market capitalization of the Russell 2000 Index.

The Fund invests in a representative sample of securities included in the Index that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Index. iShares Russell 2000 Value Index Fund's investment advisor is Barclays Global Fund Advisors.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By John Udovich]

    Yesterday, Luna Innovations Incorporated (NASDAQ: LUNA), a rather unusual and innovative small cap stock,�soared some 23.26%���meaning its worth taking a closer look at the stock along with its performance verses the performance of small cap benchmarks like the iShares Russell 2000 Index ETF (NYSEARCA: IWM), the�iShares Russell 2000 Value Index ETF (NYSEARCA: IWN) or the iShares Russell 2000 Growth Index ETF (NYSEARCA: IWO).

  • [By John Udovich]

    Small cap custom carry and protective solutions stock Forward Industries, Inc (NASDAQ: FORD) jumped 22.51% earlier today as an apparent turnaround continues, meaning its worth taking a closer look at a stock that�� in a decidedly niche area plus look at the performance of potential investment benchmarks like the iShares Russell 2000 Index ETF (NYSEARCA: IWM), iShares Russell 2000 Growth Index ETF (NYSEARCA: IWO) and iShares Russell 2000 Value Index ETF (NYSEARCA: IWN).