Hot Stocks To Buy For 2014: January 2014

Thursday, January 30, 2014

Market Primer: Wednesday, October 23: Fed Taper Outlook Looking Cloudy

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Delayed US nonfarms payrolls data on Tuesday further supported the case for the Federal Reserve to continue with its $85 billion per month bond buying plan.

The report showed that US employers added just 148,000 new jobs in September, below analysts' expectations. The figure added to growing speculation that the bank won't reduce its stimulus spending until 2014 and sent US share markets soaring as investors looked to get returns before the taper begins.

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Gold Miners: Cost Cuts, CapEx and the Price of Gold

January is nearing an end, and that means one thing: Gold miners will start announcing earnings. New Gold (NGD) will get things started on Feb 6, followed by Kinross Gold (KGC) on Feb. 12 and Goldcorp (GG) and Barrick Gold (ABX) on Feb. 13.

Reuters

The big question as earnings approach: Can miners cut costs fast enough to satisfy investors? JPMorgan’s John Bridges isn’t so sure. He writes:

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A feature of the upcoming results will be the extent to which cost cuts have protected margins and thus reserves, even as gold prices fall. Cuts to operating and capital costs have become essential as new shareholder funds become expensive. An indirect benefit of these initiatives could be to limit cuts to reported reserves. It will also be interesting to see how investors react to reserve cuts. Reserves and resources were an engine of growth for gold equities in recent years but now, with near-term profitability the key, we expect projections for near-term free cashflow to be more market moving than changes to reserves…

Miners are working hard to cut costs and defer sustaining capex and consequently we estimate average [all-in sustaining cost] to fall by about $100/oz in 2014 for companies in our coverage. [Goldcorp] introduced its 2014 AISC guidance recently at $975 (midpoint), which is $90/oz lower compared to 2013. While some of the savings are sustainable, miners can't perpetually defer buying of new trucks and equipment. [Kinross Gold] announced a steep ~40% reduction in capex for this year, however, suggested that reinvestment would be required at some point…

In our view, market reaction to the upcoming results is likely to be tempered by the current performance of gold, which has been encouraging.

Shares of New Gold have gained 1.8% to $5.82 at 1:05 p.m., while Kinross has risen 0.7% to $4.52, Barrick has advanced 0.5% to $18.62, and Goldcorp has jumped 1.5% to $23.63. The Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (GDX) is up 1.1% to $23.14 today.

Monday, January 27, 2014

Testimony at oil spill trial faults BP response

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — An employee of the company that owned the doomed Deepwater Horizon drilling rig testified Tuesday that he was surprised when BP scrapped his team's design to stop the gusher in the Gulf of Mexico.

Robert Turlak, a Transocean manager, was a witness for his employer at a federal trial that is focusing on BP's response to the April 2010 well blowout. BP's trial adversaries argue the company could have sealed the blown-out well much sooner if it had employed a capping strategy that Turlak and others had devised. It was ready for installation in early June.

BP ultimately used a capping stack to stop the spill July 15 after several other methods failed.

Turlak said he never heard why BP scrapped his team's design.

"We were so close. We had come a long way," said Turlak, Transocean's manager of subsea engineering and well control systems.

BP TRIAL: Judge hears claims BP lied about Gulf oil spill

During the first few weeks after the spill, engineers focused on two methods for stopping the flow of oil: Capping the well was one option. The other, called "top kill," involved pumping drilling mud and other material into the Deepwater Horizon rig's blowout preventer.

Turlak's team was working on a strategy that was called "BOP-on-BOP" because it lowered a second blowout preventer on top of the rig's failed one.

Turlak called it the "obvious solution," but BP said it wasn't a viable option because it could have made the situation worse and hampered other strategies if it failed. BP said the capping stack that later sealed the well was specifically designed to land on the well system above the blowout preventer.

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BP employed the "top kill" method in May 2010, but it didn't stop the flow of oil. Plaintiffs' lawyers claim BP knew the strategy was doomed based on higher flow rate estimates that the company didn't! share with federal officials at the time.

The trial's second phase opened Monday with claims that BP ignored decades of warnings about the risks of a deep-water blowout and withheld crucial information about the size of the spill.

During opening statements, BP attorney Mike Brock said the company's efforts to stop the flow of oil were guided by an overriding principle: "Don't make it worse." Turlak said that was a "reasonable philosophy."

The trial's first phase, which ended in April, focused on the complex chain of mistakes and failures that caused the blowout.

The second phase is divided into two segments: The first centers on BP's efforts to cap the well. The second is designed to help Barbier determine how much oil spilled into the Gulf.

The government's estimate is some 70 million gallons more than what BP says spilled. Establishing how much oil leaked into the Gulf will help figure out the penalties the oil company must pay. Billions of dollars are at stake.

Eleven workers died in the explosion on the rig that was triggered by the blowout.

Sunday, January 26, 2014

[video] Quick Take: Sycamore Shops for Aeropostale

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- While many investors have been hating the teen retail sector, one management team has found that there may be some value to unlock, said TheStreet's Laurie Kulikowski.

She told Brittany Umar that Sycamore Fund's Hummingbird LLC took an 8% stake in Aeropostale (ARO). The firm clearly sees value in the retailer and Stifel Nicolaus came out with a note suggesting the company may try and go private at $10 per share.

Last week, August retail sales came in worse than expected and it now seems that holiday sales will rise by less than they did last year, she said.

Kulikowski noted that many retailers were cutting guidance for the back half of 2013 and she suspects the promotional environment is here to stay, so long as sales continue to struggle. But not all retailers have been struggling. She concluded that consumers haven't been spending on apparel, but holiday shopping should be strong in electronics, particularly for a company like Apple (AAPL). -- Written by Bret Kenwell in Petoskey, Mich. Follow @BretKenwell

Saturday, January 25, 2014

European Stocks Rally as Summers Drops Fed Chairman Bid

European stocks gained, extending a five-year high, as Lawrence Summers withdrew from consideration as Federal Reserve chairman, paving the way for Janet Yellen, who investors say will favor slower stimulus reduction.

EasyJet Plc and International Consolidated Airlines Group SA climbed as oil prices fell after the U.S. and Russia agreed on a plan to destroy Syrian chemical weapons. Hennes & Mauritz AB (HMB) advanced to a three-year high after sales topped estimates. Remy Cointreau SA (RCO) soared the most in almost four years as Chinese cognac shipments increased.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rallied 0.6 percent to 313.42 at the close of trading, the highest level since June 2008. The gauge has risen 5.4 percent this month as Chinese economic reports beat forecasts and the U.S. backed away from military action against Syria over a chemical-weapons attack that America says killed more than 1,400 people.

"The markets are having a bounce on the back of the Larry Summers news and the ongoing Syria talks," Kevin Lilley, head of European equities at Old Mutual Global Investors, which manages about $17 billion, said by phone today. "The market would prefer Yellen because it would be seen as more of the same. She would be more Bernanke-like in her approach and take longer to ease the current policy."

National benchmark indexes gained in 16 of the 18 western European markets today. Germany's DAX (DAX) surged 1.2 percent, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 added 0.6 percent and France's CAC 40 rose 0.9 percent. The volume of shares changing hands in Stoxx 600-listed companies was 8.8 percent lower than the 30-day average, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Summers Withdrawal

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Former Treasury Secretary Summers withdrew his nomination to lead the Fed before a two-day policy meeting starting tomorrow at which the central bank is forecast to reduce its stimulus. Summers would tighten Fed policy more than Yellen, who was his main rival to replace Chairman Ben S. Bernanke, according to a Bloomberg Global Poll of investors, analysts and traders last week.

"I have reluctantly concluded that any possible confirmation process for me would be acrimonious and would not serve the interests of the Federal Reserve, the Administration, or ultimately, the interests of the nation's ongoing recovery," Summers wrote in a letter to President Barack Obama.

The Fed will decide to cut monthly purchases of Treasuries to $35 billion from $45 billion and keep mortgage-bond buying at $40 billion at this week's meeting, according to a Bloomberg survey of economists. Fifty-seven percent of investors surveyed in a Bloomberg Global Poll say they don't expect a sudden change in the markets if the Fed cuts its bond purchases, because they already anticipate tapering action.

Syrian Weapons

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reached an agreement over the weekend on a framework for finding, securing and destroying Assad's stock of poison gas. The deal calls for early signs of progress, giving Assad one week to submit an inventory of his toxic weapons, with initial inspections in Syria by November.

The Stoxx 600 may climb to 345 by the end of 2014, an 11 percent gain from last week's close, Gareth Evans and Thomas Pearce, strategists at Deutsche Bank AG in London, wrote in a report dated Sept. 13. Earnings can increase by 10 percent next year, they said.

"The PMIs are indicating that the global economy is beginning to regain traction," Evans and Pearce said, referring to surveys of purchasing managers. "This should mean that earnings-expectation cuts will soon come to an end."

EasyJet, IAG

EasyJet added 2.4 percent to 1,331 pence, while IAG, the owner of British Airways, climbed 3.3 percent to 325 pence. Air France-KLM Group surged 5.5 percent to 7.15 euros and Ryanair Holdings Plc rallied 4.2 percent to 6.44 euros.

West Texas Intermediate crude fell to a two-week low as the threat of imminent military strikes against Syria eased.

H&M jumped 4 percent to 259.20 kronor, the highest since September 2010. Europe's second-biggest clothing retailer said revenue at stores open at least a year rose 4 percent in August compared with the same month last year. The average estimate in a SME Direkt survey was for a 2.5 percent increase.

Remy Cointreau surged 7 percent to 84.10 euros for the biggest gain in the Stoxx 600 and largest advance since October 2009. Chinese cognac shipments rose 20.5 percent in August, increasing for the first time since January, according to UBS AG, quoting data from BNIC, a trade association of cognac makers.

Fresnillo Falls

Fresnillo Plc (FRES) and Polymetal International Plc sank at least 7 percent to lead declines in the Stoxx 600 after the precious-metals producers were not included in the NYSE Arca Gold Miners Index. Fresnillo tumbled 13 percent to 1,045 pence. Polymetal plunged 7.1 percent to 659.5 pence. African Barrick Gold Plc (ABG) also fell, losing 12 percent to 143.9 pence.

NYSE Euronext announced which companies will be added and deleted from the gauge of gold stocks after changing the methodology to include non-U.S. listed companies. Centamin Plc, the only U.K.-based company added to the index, advanced 2.3 percent to 45.5 pence. The changes will be effective Sept. 23., according to a statement by NYSE Euronext.

Friday, January 24, 2014

Dr. Doom Roubini on Bloomberg

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Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Davos plebeians shrug at the elite gathering

DAVOS, Switzerland — It brings in $45 million for the Swiss economy each year and turns the diminutive, snow-clogged streets here into a living Hollywood Walk of Fame for global elite types.

But some residents of this Swiss mountain resort have mixed feelings about the World Economic Forum's annual meeting, which began Wednesday and runs through Saturday.

"There are locals who are against the idea of the WEF coming to Davos, even though they make a lot of money from it," said Heinz Roth, 63, a ski instructor who was having a beer at the end of the workday at Davos' main train station.

Roth has been guiding the area's well-heeled visitors around the surrounding Alpine slops for close to 40 years.

"Too much security and disruption is what a lot of residents think, but it's not as bad as it used to be," he said. "There's fewer activists around, and the police are better at controlling it."

Roth stared into his beer for a few moments, then added: "St. Moritz (a more upmarket, rival ski resort to Davos a few hours away) may be more famous than us, but it is also jealous that we have the WEF each year."

Reto Baumgartner, a retired taxi driver from Davos, was sitting at the same table as Roth and a few others who meet early each evening at a small diner-like cafe adjacent to the Davos Platz train station.

Baumgartner appeared to give serious consideration to the question of whether the annual meeting is a force for good or ill for Davos — Europe's highest elevation city with a population of about 11,000. In halting English he opined: "Money, money."

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When prompted, Roth said that he was not tempted to come out of retirement to bolster his pension by getting back into the trade.

Money was apparently on the mind of Pope Francis, who provided a message for the opening ceremony that was read to the crowd.

"I ask you to! ensure that humanity is served by wealth and not ruled by it," Cardinal Peter Turkson said on the pontiff's behalf. "The growth of equality demands something more than economic growth, even though it presupposes it."

Hans Bolt, a retired car mechanic, was pessimistic that anything discussed at the WEF would help anyone.

"The WEF people talk a lot, but when they go home they forget it all."

Monday, January 20, 2014

Is Ford Losing Ground to Imports?

Ford's Fusion has made big inroads against import brands, but now the imports appear to be fighting back. Photo credit: Ford Motor.

Ford (NYSE: F ) has made nice gains in the U.S. market (and elsewhere) as its much-improved product line has rolled out over the last few years. This year has been no exception: Ford's Fusion sedan has made big inroads into the market share of Toyota's (NYSE: TM ) Camry -- so much so that Ford has added a second assembly line for the Fusion to meet strong demand.

But even as Ford has been posting gains, exchange-rate shifts have given Japan's automakers an advantage -- and some analysts are predicting that Honda (NYSE: HMC ) and Nissan (NASDAQOTH: NSANY ) will post big sales gains for August, while Ford falls behind. In this video, Fool contributor John Rosevear looks at the latest estimates -- and offers his view on how Ford is likely to respond.

Ford's success so far has nicely rewarded its investors. But for Ford's stock to really soar, a few more critical things need to fall into place. In The Motley Fool's special free report entitled, "5 Secrets to Ford's Future," we outline the key factors every Ford investor needs to watch. Just click here now for your free report.

Friday, January 17, 2014

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General Motors (NYSE: GM ) became one of America's most unpopular companies in the wake of its $49.5 billion taxpayer-funded bailout. But there are more and more signs that GM is following in Ford's (NYSE: F ) footsteps and becoming a great turnaround story. In this video, Motley Fool contributor John Rosevear lists three good reasons to consider buying GM now, and goes into detail about the current state of GM's push to become a top global contender.

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Top Growth Companies To Invest In Right Now: Crocs Inc.(CROX)

Crocs, Inc. and its subsidiaries engage in the design, development, manufacture, marketing, and distribution of footwear, apparel, and accessories for men, women, and children. The company primarily offers casual and athletic shoes, and shoe charms. It also designs and sells a range of footwear and accessories that utilize its proprietary closed cell-resin, called Croslite. The company?s footwear products include boots, sandals, sneakers, mules, and flats. In addition, it provides footwear products for the hospital, restaurant, hotel, and hospitality markets, as well as general foot care and diabetic-needs markets. Further, the company offers leather and ethylene vinyl acetate based footwear, sandals, and printed apparels principally for the beach, adventure, and action sports markets; and accessories comprising snap-on charms. The company sells its products through the United States and international retailers and distributors, as well as directly to end-user consumers th rough its company-operated retail stores, outlets, kiosks, and Web stores primarily under the Crocs Work, Crocs Rx, Jibbitz, Ocean Minded, and YOU by Crocs brand names. As of December 31, 2010, it operated 164 retail kiosks located in malls and other high foot traffic areas; 138 retail stores; 76 outlet stores; and 46 Web stores. Crocs, Inc. operates in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company was formerly known as Western Brands, LLC and changed its name to Crocs, Inc. in January 2005. Crocs, Inc. was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Niwot, Colorado.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By William L. Watts]
Shares of Crocs Inc. (CROX) �rose nearly 17% after Chief Financial Officer Jeff Lasher said in an interview that Blackstone Group LP (BX) �will invest $200 million in the shoe company and that Chief Executive John McCarvel will retire by late April.
[By Dan Caplinger]
Stock investors got rewarded again for their risk tolerance Wednesday as major market benchmarks including the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrials rose to new all-time record highs. Even amid the generally bullish sentiment, RealD (NYSE: RLD ) , Crocs (NASDAQ: CROX ) , and Sina (NASDAQ: SINA ) stood out because of their impressive gains. Let's look more closely at these stocks to see why they soared today.
[By Monica Gerson]
Crocs (NASDAQ: CROX) shares gained 9.83% to $14.64 in the pre-market after the company reported that it will receive a $200 million investment from Blackstone Group LP (NYSE: BX).

Top Growth Companies To Invest In Right Now: Thoratec Corporation(THOR)

Thoratec Corporation engages in the development, manufacture, and marketing of proprietary medical devices used for circulatory support. The company?s primary product lines include ventricular assist devices, such as HeartMate II, an implantable left ventricular assist device consisting of a rotary blood pump to provide intermediate and long-term mechanical circulatory support (MCS); and HeartMate XVE, an implantable and pulsatile left ventricular assist device for intermediate and longer-term MCS. Its ventricular assist devices also comprise Paracorporeal Ventricular Assist Device, an external pulsatile ventricular assist device, which provides left, right, and biventricular MCS approved for bridge-to-transplantation (BTT), including home discharge, and post-cardiotomy myocardial recovery; and Implantable Ventricular Assist Device, an implantable and pulsatile ventricular assist device designed to provide left, right, and biventricular MCS approved for BTT comprising hom e discharge, and post-cardiotomy myocardial recovery. The company also provides CentriMag, an extracorporeal full-flow acute surgical support platform that offers support up to 30 days for cardiac and respiratory failure. In addition, it offers PediMag and PediVAS extracorporeal full-flow acute surgical support platforms designed to provide acute surgical support to pediatric patients. The company sells its products through direct sales force in the United States, as well as through a network of distributors internationally. Thoratec Corporation was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Pleasanton, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Brian Pacampara]
What: Shares of medical device company Thoratec (NASDAQ: THOR ) sank 12% today after its quarterly results missed Wall Street expectations. �
[By Todd Campbell]
Competing for heart pump market share
Abiomed's products provide circulatory support for up to six hours and are designed for use in cardiac cath labs or during heart surgery, but competitors Thoratec (NASDAQ: THOR ) and Heartware (NASDAQ: HTWR ) target the intermediate- and long-term-use market instead.

Top Value Companies To Buy For 2014: Nordstrom Inc.(JWN)

Nordstrom, Inc., a fashion specialty retailer, offers apparel, shoes, cosmetics, and accessories for women, men, and children in the United States. It offers a selection of brand name and private label merchandise. The company sells its products through various channels, including Nordstrom full-line stores, off-price Nordstrom Rack stores, Jeffrey? boutiques, treasure & bond, and Last Chance clearance stores; and its online store, nordstrom.com, as well as through catalog. Nordstrom also provides a private label card, two Nordstrom VISA credit cards, and a debit card for Nordstrom purchases. The company?s credit and debit cards feature a shopping-based loyalty program. As of September 30, 2011, it operated 222 stores, including 117 full-line stores, 101 Nordstrom Racks, 2 Jeffrey boutiques, 1 treasure & bond store, and 1 clearance store in 30 states. The company was founded in 1901 and is based in Seattle, Washington.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Ben Levisohn]
JC Penney’s gain is all the more surprising consider what’s happened to other retailers today. Macy’s (M) has dropped 0.8% to $43.83, Kohl’s (KSS) has dipped 0.4% to $50.16 , Dillard’s (DDS) has fallen 2% to $76.19 and Nordstrom (JWN) has declined o.6% to $56.98.

Top Growth Companies To Invest In Right Now: Waste Management Inc.(WM)

Waste Management, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides waste management services to residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in North America. It offers collection, transfer, recycling, and disposal services. The company also owns, develops, and operates waste-to-energy and landfill gas-to-energy facilities in the United States. Its collection services involves in picking up and transporting waste and recyclable materials from where it was generated to a transfer station, material recovery facility, or disposal site; and recycling operations include collection and materials processing, plastics materials recycling, and commodities recycling. In addition, it provides recycling brokerage, which includes managing the marketing of recyclable materials for third parties; and electronic recycling services, such as collection, sorting, and disassembling of discarded computers, communications equipment, and other electronic equipment. Further, the company e ngages in renting and servicing portable restroom facilities to municipalities and commercial customers under the Port-o-Let name; and involves in landfill gas-to-energy operations comprising recovering and processing the methane gas produced naturally by landfills into a renewable energy source, as well as provides street and parking lot sweeping services. Additionally, it offers portable self-storage, fluorescent lamp recycling, and medical waste services for healthcare facilities, pharmacies, and individuals, as well as provides services on behalf of third parties to construct waste facilities. The company was formerly known as USA Waste Services, Inc. and changed its name to Waste Management, Inc. in 1998. Waste Management, Inc. was incorporated in 1987 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Helix Investment Research]
We note that Keating Capital's co-investors in many of its portfolio companies are not simply other venture capital or existing investors, but strategic investors as well. Examples include Agilyx, where Waste Management (WM) is a co-investor, BrightSource, where Chevron (CVX) and BP (BP) are co-investors, Kabam, where Google (GOOG) and Intel (INTC) are co-investors, or Tremor Video (TRMR), where Time Warner (TWX) is a co-investor. As of the end of Q2 2013, 9 (excluding Jumptap) of Keating Capital's portfolio companies had unrealized gains, with an average gain of 25.6% (again excluding Jumptap, which had unrealized gains of 8% as of the end of Q2 2013). The remaining 6 companies had an average loss of 44.46%. However, on an overall basis, Keating Capital's portfolio currently has an average unrealized gain of 2.15%. While this is not a large gain, we note that the bulk of Keating Capital's profits are realized upon exiting an investment in conjunction with the portfolio company's IPO or sale. Furthermore, portions of Keating Capital's portfolio are defended by structurally protected appreciation clauses that the company has struck with its portfolio companies, clauses that are not reflected on its balance sheet. These clauses, which are negotiated between Keating Capital and its portfolio companies, allow the company to receive shares in the portfolio company's IPO at a discount, or grant it warrants to purchase additional shares in an IPO for a nominal price. Since inception, Keating Capital has negotiated structurally protected appreciation clauses in 11 of the 20 companies it has invested in. As of the end of Q2 2013, 6 of Keating Capital's 15 portfolio companies were protected by structurally protected appreciation clauses, representing $22 million in total capital (almost 43% of the company's invested capital), thereby entitling Keating Capital to a weighted-average aggregate value of 1.9x its investment at the time of an IPO.

Top Growth Companies To Invest In Right Now: MEDIFAST INC(MED)

Medifast, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the production, distribution, and sale of weight management and disease management products, and other consumable health and diet products in the United States. The company?s product lines include weight and disease management, meal replacement, and vitamins. It also operates weight control centers that offer Medifast programs for weight loss and maintenance, customized patient counseling, and inbody composition analysis. The company markets its products under the Medifast and Essential brand names, including shakes, appetite suppression shakes, women?s health shakes, diabetics shakes, joint health shakes, coronary health shakes, calorie burn drinks, calorie burn flavor infusers, antioxidant shakes, antioxidant flavor infusers, bars, crunch bars, soups, chili, oatmeal, pudding, scrambled eggs, hot cocoa, cappuccino, chai latte, iced teas, fruit drinks, pretzels, puffs, brownie, pancakes, soy crisps, crackers, and omega 3 and digestive health products. Medifast Inc. sells its products through various channels of distribution comprising Web, call center, independent health advisors, medical professionals, weight loss clinics, and direct consumer marketing supported via the phone and the Web; Take Shape for Life, a physician led network of independent health coaches; and weight control centers. The company was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Owings Mills, Maryland.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Holly LaFon] ast produces, distributes and sells weight and health management products with the brand names Medifast, Take Shape for Life, Hi-Energy Weight Control Centers and Woman�� Wellbeing.
Its return on assets in the third quarter of 2011 was 19.6%, which has been increasing in the past several years. The average return on assets for the specialty retail industry is 10.48% for the trailing 12 months.
The company�� total assets amounted to $94 million in 2010, which increased from $62.8 million in 2009. Net income also increased to $19.6 million in 2010 from $12 million in 2009.
Boston Beer Inc. (SAM)
Boston Beer Inc. is the largest brewer of handcrafted beers in America. Boston Beer is a growing company that recently saw a large increase in its return on assets. It increased from 19.3% in 2010 to 29.7% in 2011, and was negative as recently as 2008. The average return on assets for the beverages industry in the trailing 12 months is 9.47%.
In 2011, the company�� total assets increased to $272.5 million from $258.5 million in 2010. Net income increased to $66 million from $50 million.
Alliances Resources Partners (ARLP)
Alliance Resources Partners is a coal producer and marketer primarily in the eastern U.S. Its ROA has been increasing since 2008 and increased to 22.5% in 2011 from 21.4% in 2010. The average return on assets for the oil, gas & consumable fuels industry in the trailing 12 months is 24.47%.
In 2011, its total assets increased to $1.7 billion from $1.1 billion in 2010. Its net income increased to $389 million from $321 million.
Factset Research Systems Inc. (FDS)
Factset researches global market trends and develops analytical tools for investors. Of all of GuruFocus��5-star predictable companies, it has the highest return on assets at 27%. ROA has been increasing over the past several years. The average return on assets for the software industry for the trailing 12 m
[By Jon C. Ogg]
Medifast Inc. (NYSE: MED) saw its stock down 5% in evening trading on Tuesday after the weight loss player had soft sales and guided expectations lower. Shares were still indicated down about 5%, but volume has not yet started.

Top Growth Companies To Invest In Right Now: Eastern Insurance Holdings Inc.(EIHI)

Eastern Insurance Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides workers compensation insurance and reinsurance products in the United States. The company?s Workers Compensation Insurance segment provides traditional workers compensation insurance coverage products, including guaranteed cost policies, policyholder dividend policies, retrospectively-rated policies, deductible policies, and alternative market products to employers. This segment distributes its workers? compensation products and services through its independent insurance agents primarily in Pennsylvania, Delaware, North Carolina, Maryland, Indiana, and Virginia. Its Segregated Portfolio Cell Reinsurance segment offers alternative market workers compensation solutions comprising program design, fronting, claims administration, risk management, segregated portfolio cell rental, asset management, and segregated portfolio management services to individual companies, groups, and associations. Eastern Insurance Holdings, Inc. is headquartered in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Lauren Pollock]
ProAssurance Corp.(PRA) agreed to acquire Eastern Insurance Holdings Inc.(EIHI) for about $205 million, expanding the insurance company’s casualty insurance offerings. Eastern Insurance is a domestic casualty insurance group specializing in workers’ compensation products and services, among other things. ProAssurance plans to pay $24.50 in cash for each outstanding Eastern share, a 16% premium over Monday’s closing price.

Top Growth Companies To Invest In Right Now: TrueBlue Inc.(TBI)

TrueBlue, Inc. provides temporary blue-collar staffing services in the United States. It supplies on demand general labor to various industries under the Labor Ready brand; skilled labor to manufacturing and logistics industries under the Spartan Staffing brand; and trades people for commercial, industrial, and residential construction, and building and plant maintenance industries under the CLP Resources brand. The company also provides mechanics and technicians to the aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul, aerospace manufacturing, and assembly industries, as well as to other transportation industries under the Plane Techs brand; and temporary drivers to the transportation and distribution industries under the Centerline brand. It primarily serves small and medium-size businesses. The company was formerly known as Labor Ready, Inc. and changed its name to TrueBlue, Inc. in December 2007. TrueBlue, Inc. was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in Tacoma, Washington.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Jonathan Yates]
For those looking to invest in real estate stocks, highly recommended is the Dr. Housing Bubble blog. In a recent posting, the "Dr." pointed out that there was a "Lost Generation" when it came to household income. That has not happened for those investing in staffing industry stocks such as Paychex (NASDAQ: PAYX), Robert Half International (NYSE: RHI), TrueBlue, Inc. (NYSE: TBI), and Labor SMART (OTCBB: LTNC).
[By Jonathan Yates]
Even though the stock market rallied on Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's remarks with the Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSE: DIA) and Standard & Poor's 500 Index (NYSE: SPY) surging, the long term winners will be stocks in the staffing industry such as Paychex(NASDAQ: PAYX), TrueBlue (NYSE: TBI), Robert Half (NYSE: RHI), and Labor SMART (OTCBB: LTNC).
[By Travis Hoium]
What: Shares of staffing agency TrueBlue (NYSE: TBI ) jumped 10% today after the company reported earnings.

So what: Revenue jumped 19%, to $422.3 million, and beat estimates of $420.2 million from Wall Street. Adjusted earnings per share were also up 19%, to $0.31, outpacing estimates by $0.05.�
[By Jonathan Yates]
When looking at small cap stocks, it is useful to compare the company with others that have expanded in both share price and size. For those considering investing in the $100 billion staffing industry, the growth of TrueBlue (NYSE: TBI) shows what could be the potential path for Labor SMART (OTCBB: LTNC), as both operate in the $29 billion demand labor sector. Other firms have done well in the staffing industry include Paychex (NASDAQ: PAYX) and ManPower Group (NYSE: MAN).

Top Growth Companies To Invest In Right Now: Buffalo Wild Wings Inc.(BWLD)

Buffalo Wild Wings, Inc. engages in the ownership, operation, and franchise of restaurants in the United States. The company provides quick casual and casual dining services, as well as serves bottled beers, wines, and liquor. As of July 26, 2011, it had 773 Buffalo Wild Wings locations in 45 states in the United States, as well as in Canada. The company was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Demitrios Kalogeropoulos]
Buffalo Wild Wings (NASDAQ: BWLD ) has a serious weight problem.

Sure, the restaurant chain reported strong sales growth again this week. Revenue was up by better than 21%, marking the eighth consecutive quarter where sales rose by 20% or more.
[By Anh HOANG]
Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG ) has long been considered the fastest-growing quick-service restaurant chain on the market. Chipotle has risen from $49 per share in 2009 to $517 per share at the time of writing. Because of its high-growth status, Chipotle's stock demands a high valuation--at $517 per share, Chipotle is valued at 40 times its forward earnings. Chipotle's valuation is higher than those of its peers�Buffalo Wild Wings (NASDAQ: BWLD ) and Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM ) , which have forward earnings valuations of 30.5 and 20.1, respectively.
[By Dan Caplinger]
Next Monday, Buffalo Wild Wings (NASDAQ: BWLD ) will release its latest quarterly results. The key to making smart investment decisions on stocks reporting earnings is to anticipate how they'll do before they announce results, leaving you fully prepared to respond quickly to whatever inevitable surprises arise. That way, you'll be less likely to make an uninformed, knee-jerk reaction to news that turns out to be exactly the wrong move.

Thursday, January 16, 2014

TiVo Inc. (TIVO): A Solid Play In Advanced TV Space

TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ:TIVO) shares are at an inflection point and on the cusp of achieving adjusted EBITDA profitability in fiscal 2014, driven by significant growth in MSO (multi-system operator) subscribers and service and technology revenues.

Alviso, California-based TiVo offers the TiVo service and TiVo DVRs directly to consumers online at www.tivo.com and through third-party retailers. TiVo also distributes its technology and services through solutions tailored for cable, satellite, and broadcasting companies.

TiVo is a solid play in the evolving advanced television landscape. The company's MSO segment is growing at a rapid clip as more service providers embrace the company's user interface (UI) products and services integrating linear programming with internet-distributed content.

[Related -TiVo Inc. (TIVO): Attractive Investment Opportunity With Key Catalyst Ahead]

The new Roamio line of DVRs offers a compelling video viewing and streaming experience, integrating linear content with internet content that may help stem TiVo-owned losses over the next few quarters and possibly grow TiVo-owned net subscribers sometime next year.

10 Best Undervalued Stocks To Invest In Right Now

BMO Capital Markets analyst Edward Williams believes the company has roughly penetrated a quarter of its actively engaged MSO base and can double or triple that rate in the years ahead with potential upside from new deals.

The company is on-target to hit a significant milestone in fiscal 2014, achieving adjusted EBITDA profitability for the first time since it introduced the DVR in 1999.

[Related -Tivo Inc.'s (TIVO): CEO's Insider Buy Signal Change Of Heart]

The company remains focused on growing subscribers, more so than ever now, without a legal overhang. All key litigation cases have been settled, with $1.6 billion awarded to TiVo from Dish, AT&T, Verizon, Motorola, and Cisco. With $1.2 billion in collected cash, the company is scheduled to receive approximately $378 million through 2019.

TiVo has deals with Tier 2 operators that cover roughly half of that segment's subscriber base with an opportunity for further penetration. Looking outside the US, Europe and Latin America remain key targets – the company recently beefed up its sales efforts with dedicated bodies addressing both regions.

Williams said the company's success with Virgin and Ono, coupled with the recent Com Hem IPTV deployment, has raised the company's profile among service providers looking for a compelling user interface blending traditional linear programming with over-the-top content.

MSO partnerships remain the core growth driver for the company – both increased penetration of existing customers, as well as new partnerships. The sweet spot for TiVo remains operators with fewer than 5 million subscribers as they lack the scale to develop their own solution internally.

Current customers include Virgin Media, ONO, Suddenlink, RCN, Grande, Mediacom, GCI, Midcontinent, Com Hem, and Atlantic Broadband. The company recently posted its strongest quarter of cable subscription additions to date (295,000), with the highest overall net adds in nearly eight years (274,000).

These positive trends would continue over the next several quarters as momentum builds for MSO rollouts. TiVo currently has 2.9 million MSO subscribers and 960,000 TiVo-owned subscribers.

Among the deployments, Com Hem, the largest operator in Sweden, recently began the rollout of the TiVo IPTV solution and marketing across its entire footprint. Virgin Media and ONO in Spain continue to deploy TiVo rapidly – nearly half of Virgin's subscribers and a third of Ono's subscribers now have TiVo service. The two service operators are also the first in the industry to offer subscribers access to Netflix on a Pay-TV platform with TiVo.

Williams noted that the key for TiVo is to expand its partnerships with MSOs beyond the DVR to a cloud-based UI. As MSOs increasingly look to enhance the television viewing experience for their subscriber base, TiVo should leverage its strong user interface to improve its subscriber base, enhance its revenue growth, and improve the underlying profitability of the business.

TiVo has a compelling valuation. At current prices (including the conversion of debt into equity and the recent settlement), TiVo has an enterprise value of approximately $674 million. In addition, the company is scheduled to collect $378 million from current licensing agreements, suggesting that the core business is getting minimally valued.

At these levels, with this valuation, Williams believes that TiVo could be an attractive acquisition target for larger companies looking to expand their presence on the TV.

On the balance sheet front, the company now has more than $1 billion in cash with approximately $378 million to be collected through 2018 based on existing licensing agreements.

Given the company's immense cash balance and current share price levels, it could repurchase a significant portion of outstanding shares as it continues to evaluate its capital allocation strategy. Approximately $100 million remains on the current $200 million buyback authorization.

Shares of TIVO currently trade at approximately 2.0 times its 2014 EV/Sales estimate, below a historical mean of 4.4 times. They traded between $10.47 and $14.25 during the past 52-weeks.

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Australia stocks rise as Rio report boosts miners

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Australia stocks rose early Thursday, with miners leading the way higher after a positive production report from Rio Tinto Ltd. (AU:RIO) (RIO) , while overall sentiment got a lift from U.S. gains overnight. The S&P/ASX 200 (AU:XJO) improved by 0.6% to 5,274.30, with shares of Rio Tinto rising 2.2% after reporting record high iron-ore shipments for 2013 and a sold gain for copper output. Rio's peers also advanced, with BHP Billiton Ltd. (AU:BHP) (BHP) up 1.7%, Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. (AU:FMG) (FSUMF) ahead by 3.2%, and Oz Minerals Ltd. (AU:OZL) (OZMLF) adding 2.4%. Among the gold producers, Newcrest Mining Ltd. (AU:NCM) (NCMGF) surged 7.2% as J.P. Morgan raised its rating on the shares to overweight from neutral. Banks weren't as lucky, however, with Australia & New Zealand Banking Group (AU:ANZ) (ANEWF) down 0.3%, while Westpac Banking Corp. (AU:WBC) (WEBNF) and Commonwealth Bank of Australia (AU:CBA) (CBAUF) lost 0.7% each as Citibank downgraded the trio to neutral from buy, according to Dow Jones Newswires. The Sydney market was also awaiting Australian jobs data for December due out later in the day, with a Wall Street Journal survey tipping a 10,000 gain in net employment and a jobless rate of 5.8%.

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

5 Stocks That Dominated the Market on Tuesday

The stock gods decided to buy the dip on Tuesday, a day after the biggest sell-off in about three months. Despite a lack of market-moving economic reports, the losses of Monday were gradually bought into on Tuesday after retail sales reports, import and export prices, and even after a fairly weak report from the National Federation of Independent Business. Even a 3% drop in the Nikkei 225 in Japan failed to spoil the mood of US investors on Tuesday. The markets even shrugged off hawkish Fed president commentary on rate hikes and bond purchase tapering.

At the 4:00 p.m. closing bell, the DJIA was up 0.6% and the S&P 500 Index was up by 1.03%. The NASDAQ was effectively at decade highs after a 1.66% gain. These are the five DJIA stocks that dominated the market on Tuesday.

Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) was the beneficiary of a key analyst upgrade, one which gave a $29 price target for the stock. What was so unusual about this upgrade is that it came a day or two ahead of the company earnings report. Shares were trading up 3.9% at $26.50 in the final minutes of trading. Shares even hit a new 52-week high of $26.55 on the day.

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) was up on two issues. One was potential Intel sympathy, but another issue is that the stock was merely bouncing from the drop seen yesterday due to rumors of a new Windows version coming sooner than expected. Microsoft’s stock was up 2.3% at $35.78 in the final minutes of trading.

Top 10 Growth Stocks To Invest In Right Now

3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) was the leader of conglomerates and among DJIA stocks on Tuesday. Nomura Securities said that this was not cheap but could still lead industrials higher. 3M shares were trading up by 1.9% at $137.21 in the last few minutes of trading.

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) saw its stock higher on further reports that more bidders are interested in the drug giant’s generics business. This unit had close to run-rate of $9 billion in annualized sales. Pfizer shares were up 1.5% at $31.00 in the final minutes of trading.

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) was hardly a true leader on the day, but this was the one of two major bank stock reports on fourth quarter earnings. There was a drop due to all of those settlement charges, but the stock managed to get out of the red and shares were still up by 4 cents at $57.74 in the final minutes of trading.

What was very interesting, and very rare, was the ex-DJIA stocks did better than most DJIA stock on average (handily!). The following prices and gains were seen in the final minutes of trading on Tuesday from the ex-DJIA members:

Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) was up 1.99% at $10.30 Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) was up 1.8% at $16.73 Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) was up by 2.5% at $28.82

Wednesday will mark another big day for the markets. Key earnings reports will come from Bank of America, CSX Corp., and the Kinder Morgan entities. Also on deck for Wednesday are economic reports are Producer Price index (wholesale inflation), Empire State Manufacturing (New York), EIA Petroleum and Refining data, and the Fed’s Beige Book.

Friday, January 10, 2014

Hot Clean Energy Stocks To Own Right Now

Deutsche Bank announced on Monday that is was maintaining a “Hold” rating on the New Jersey-based electric utility company NRG Energy Inc. (NRG), but went on to lower its price target for the company.

Greg Poole, an analyst with the firm, commented, “NRG has several diverse businesses – generation, retail, solar, clean energy technologies, and now a separate MLP-like income vehicle for contracted assets. This helps to diversify away from the seemingly perennially challenged merchant generation business, but it also results in an increasingly complex story that may pose a challenge for investors and valuation.” As such, Deutsche Bank announced it was lowering its price target from $27 to $26 a share.

Hot Clean Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: Hydrogenics Corp (HYGS)

Hydrogenics Corporation, incorporated on June 10, 2009, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops and provides hydrogen generation and fuel cell products based on water electrolysis technology and proton exchange membrane (PEM) technology. The Company conducts its business through two business units: OnSite Generation, which focuses on hydrogen generation products for renewable energy, industrial and transportation customers, and Power Systems, which focuses on fuel cell products for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) systems integrators and end users for stationary applications, including backup power, and motive applications, such as forklift trucks. The Company�� products include HySTAT hydrogen generation equipment in its OnSite Generation business and HyPM fuel cell products in its Power Systems business.

The Company maintains operations in Belgium, Canada and Germany. Its OnSite Generation business segment is based in Oevel, Belgium and develops products for industrial gas, hydrogen fueling and renewable energy storage markets. The Company�� Power Systems business segment is based in Mississauga, Canada, with a satellite facility in Gladbeck, Germany, and develops products for energy storage, stationary and motive power applications.

OnSite Generation

The Company�� OnSite Generation business segment, is based on water electrolysis technology, which includes the decomposition of water into oxygen (O2) and hydrogen gas (H2) by passing an electric current through a liquid electrolyte. Its brand includes HySTAT electrolyzer products, which is configured for both indoor and outdoor applications. Its OnSite Generation products are sold to merchant gas companies, such as Air Liquide and Linde Gas and end-users requiring hydrogen produced on-site for industrial applications. The Company also sells and services products for oil and gas companies, such as Shell Hydrogen, requiring hydrogen fueling stations for transportation applications.

Power Systems

The Company�� Power Systems business segment is based on PEM fuel cell technology, which transforms chemical energy liberated during the electrochemical reaction of hydrogen and oxygen into electrical energy. It also develops and delivers hydrogen generation products based on PEM water electrolysis, which can also be used to serve the energy storage markets. Its target markets include backup power for telecom and data centre installations and motive power applications, such as buses, trucks and utility vehicles. The Company�� Power Systems products are sold to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), such as CommScope, Inc. (CommScope) to provide backup power applications for telecom installations and vehicle and other integrators for motive power, direct current (DC) and alternative current (AC) backup. In addition, its products are sold for prototype field tests. The Company also sells its Power Systems products to the military.

HySTAT Hydrogen Stations

HySTAT Hydrogen Stations offer an on-site supply of hydrogen for a range of hydrogen applications, including vehicle fuelling, distributed power, and a variety of industrial processes. It also provides spare parts and service for its entire installed base.

As of December 31, 2011, the Company offered its HySTAT Hydrogen Station in multiple configurations based on the amount of hydrogen required. This product is suitable for producing continuous or batch supplies of hydrogen for industrial processing applications and generates between 10 - 60 normal cubic meters per hour (Nm3/hr) of hydrogen.

HyPM Fuel Cell Products

The Company�� HyPM fuel cell products provide electrical power from clean hydrogen fuel. Its HyPM fuel cell products include HyPM Fuel Cell Power Modules, HyPX Fuel Cell Power Pack, Integrated Fuel Cell Systems and Engineering Development Services. Its HyPM power module runs on hydrogen and produces direct current (DC) power. This product! is suita! ble for a range of stationary, mobile and portable power applications. The HyPM XR model is targeted at backup power applications and the HyPMHD model is targeted at motive power applications. The Company�� HyPX Power Pack includes a HyPM power module integrated with hydrogen storage tanks and ultracapacitors that provide higher power in short bursts. Its integrated fuel cell systems are built around its HyPM power modules and used for portable and stationary applications, including portable and auxiliary power units for military applications and DC backup power system for cellular tower sites. The Company also enters into engineering development contracts with certain customers for new or custom products.

The Company competes with Air Liquide and Linde Gas.

Hot Clean Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: Murgor Resources Inc (MGR.V)

Murgor Resources Inc. engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral properties in Canada. The company explores for gold, copper, zinc, and silver deposits. It primarily focuses on exploring the Golden Arrow gold property that consists of 20 patented mining claims and 11 mining claims covering an area of 1,377 hectares in Hislop, McCann, and Playfair townships that are located to the east of the town of Timmins in Ontario. The company was formerly known as Advance Murgor Exploration Limited and changed its name to Murgor Resources Inc. in 1985. Murgor Resources Inc. was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in Kingston, Canada.

Hot Oil Stocks To Buy Right Now: (MOSERBAER.NS)

Moser Baer India Limited engages in the manufacture and sale of optical storage media in India and internationally. The company offers a range of optical storage media products, which include recordable compact discs, rewritable compact discs, recordable digital versatile discs (DVD), rewritable DVD?s, and blue laser discs. It also provides solar power products, including photovoltaic cells, crystalline cells and modules, and thin films. In addition, the company offers home entertainment products, such as pre-recorded disks of home video titles in various Indian languages. It has rights for approximately 10,000 titles in all the languages. Further, the company provides information technology peripherals comprising USB drives, memory cards, DVD writers, PC peripherals, TFT Monitors, UPS, and external hard drives; and consumer electronics, which consist of LCD TVs, DVD players, portable DVD players, digital photo frames, media players, and multimedia speakers. Moser Baer Ind ia Limited was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in New Delhi, India.

Hot Clean Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: Resources Connection Inc.(RECN)

Resources Connection, Inc. provides professional services in the areas of finance, accounting, risk management and internal audit, corporate advisory, strategic communications and restructuring, information management, human capital, supply chain management, actuarial, and legal and regulatory services to support client-led projects and initiatives. It offers finance and accounting services, including financial analyses, budgeting and forecasting, audit preparation, public-entity reporting, tax-related projects, merger and acquisition due diligence, initial public offering assistance, and assistance in the preparation or restatement of financial statements; information management services, such as financial system/enterprise resource planning implementation, and post implementation optimization services; and corporate advisory, strategic communications, and restructuring services. The company also provides risk management and internal audit services comprising compliance r eviews, internal audit co-sourcing, and assistance services; supply chain management services, including strategic sourcing efforts, contract negotiations, and purchasing strategy services; and actuarial support services for pension and life insurance companies. In addition, it offers human capital services, such as change management, and compensation program design and implementation services; and legal and regulatory services comprising providing attorneys, paralegals, and contract managers to assist clients, such as law firms with project-based or peak period needs. Further, the company provides policyIQ, a Web-based content management product for documenting, managing, and communicating various types of business information, including policies and procedures, Sarbanes documentation, training documentation, and other business content. It operates in North America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Irvine, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Rich Smith]
On May 28, Irvine, Calif.-based Resources Connection (NASDAQ: RECN ) will be losing one chief executive officer, and gaining a new one.
[By Seth Jayson]
Calling all cash flows
When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Resources Connection (Nasdaq: RECN ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.
[By Ben Levisohn]
Resources Connection (RECN) has plunged 8.2% to $12.56 after it reported a profit of 9 cents a share, below forecasts for 11 cents.

Hot Clean Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: Morgans Hotel Group Co.(MHGC)

Morgans Hotel Group Co., a hospitality company, engages in the acquisition, ownership, operation, development, and redevelopment boutique hotels, nightclubs, restaurants, bars, and other food and beverage venues. It has operations primarily in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company was incorporated in 2005 and is based in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Roberto Pedone]
Morgans Hotel Group (MHGC) operates, owns, acquires, develops and redevelops boutique hotels, primarily in gateway cities and select resort markets in the U.S., Europe and other international locations and nightclubs, restaurants. This stock closed up 3.8% to $6.99 in Tuesday's trading session.

Tuesday's Range: $6.73-$7.06

52-Week Range: $4.66-$8.15

Tuesday's Volume: 388,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 196,219

From a technical perspective, MHGC spiked higher here right above its 200-day moving average of $6.45 with above-average volume. This move is quickly pushing shares of MHGC within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade. That trade will hit if MHGC manages to take out Tuesday's high of $7.06 and then once it takes out more near-term resistance at $7.20 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in MHGC as long as it's trending above its 200-day at $6.41 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 196,219 shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then MHGC will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $8 to its 52-week high at $8.15. Any high-volume move above those levels will then give MHGC a chance to tag its next major overhead resistance levels at $9 to $10.

Hot Clean Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: Telus Corporation Com Npv (T.TO)

TELUS Corporation provides telecommunications products and services primarily in Canada. Its telecommunications products and services include wireless, data, Internet protocol (IP), voice, and television. The company operates through two segments, Wireless and Wireline. The Wireless segment provides digital personal communications, equipment sales, and wireless Internet services. The Wireline segment offers voice local and voice long distance services; data services, which include television, and managed and legacy data services, as well as Internet, enhanced data, and hosting services; and other telecommunications services. As of December 4, 2012, it has 13 million customer connections, including 7.6 million wireless subscribers, 3.5 million wireline network access lines, 1.3 million Internet subscribers, and 635,000 TELUS TV customers. TELUS Corporation was founded in 1993 and is based in Burnaby, Canada.

Hot Clean Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: Wallbridge Mining Com Npv (WM.TO)

Wallbridge Mining Company Limited, a mineral exploration company, engages in the discovery, exploration, and development of mineral resources in Canada. It primarily explores for nickel, copper, cobalt, platinum, palladium, and gold properties. The company�s principal properties are located in the Sudbury area of Ontario, including 42 exploration properties covering approximately 688 square kilometers. The company was founded in 1996 and is based in Lively, Canada.

Hot Clean Energy Stocks To Own Right Now: Pulse Data Inc Class A Com Npv(PSD.TO)

Pulse Seismic Inc. engages in the acquisition, marketing, and licensing of two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) seismic data for the energy sector in Western Canada. The company owns a licensable seismic data library that consists of approximately 27,100 net square kilometers of 3D seismic data and 340,000 net kilometers of 2D seismic data covering the areas in Alberta, northeast British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Northwest territories, Yukon, Manitoba, and Montana. Its seismic data is used by oil and natural gas exploration, development, and production companies in exploring for and developing new reserves, and in establishing the extent of existing reserves and in managing producing reservoirs. The company sells its data library under various types of sale contracts, including retail data library sales, library cards, commitment cards, and review and possession agreements. The company was formerly known as Pulse Data Inc. and changed its name to Pulse Seismic Inc . in May 2009. Pulse Seismic Inc. was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

Thursday, January 9, 2014

Stocks Hitting 52-Week Lows

Hot Undervalued Stocks To Watch Right Now

Pretium Resources (NYSE: PVG) shares fell 3.30% to reach a new 52-week low of $2.93. Pretium Resources shares have dropped 77.54% over the past 52 weeks, while the S&P 500 index has gained 28.53% in the same period.

DRDGOLD (NYSE: DRD) shares fell 4.09% to reach a new 52-week low of $4.66. DRDGOLD's trailing-twelve-month profit margin is -1.61%.

InnerWorkings (NASDAQ: INWK) shares dipped 34.83% to touch a new 52-week low of $6.19 after the company reported downbeat Q3 results and issued a weak FY13 outlook.

EZCORP (NASDAQ: EZPW) shares fell 9.74% to touch a new 52-week low of $14.01 on FQ4 results.

Posted-In: 52-Week LowsNews Movers & Shakers Intraday Update Markets

Around the Web, We're Loving... Learn to Use Trading Platforms Like Hedge Fund Traders do Rumsfeld: Denial of Benefits to Fallen Soldiers' Families 'Inexcusable' Come See How the Pro's Trade in this Exclusive Webinar Facebook, Baidu Lead Big Caps Beating Shutdown What Should You Know About AMZN? Most Popular Bill Ackman: Herbalife Will Shut Down Within a Year (HLF) iPad Air Is Cheaper, More Profitable Than iPad 3 UPDATE: Sterne Agee Downgrades Pioneer Natural Resources on Weakening Earnings Growth Outlook Apple Rumor Mill Strikes Back, Promises Large iPad In 2014 Tesla Down 10% Following Earnings Beat Groupon Earnings Preview: In-Line Results Expected, US Booking Progress Related Articles (EZPW + DRD) Stocks Hitting 52-Week Lows View the discussion thread. Partner Network #marketfy-ae-block { display: none; border: 2px solid #0a3f75; overflow: hidden; width: 300px; height: 125px; text-align: center; background-color: #45719E; position: relative; z-index: 1; } #marketfy-ae-block a { display: block; width: 300px; height: 125px; position: relative; z-index: 2; color: #ffffff; text-decoration: none; } #marketfy-ae-block-countdown-text { color: #f9fc99; padding: 0px 0 0 0; font-size: 19px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 19px; } #marketfy-ae-block-countdown-text-start { font-size: 12px; } #marketfy-ae-block-countdown { padding: 5px 0 5px 0; font-size: 26px; } #marketfy-ae-block-signup { padding: 5px 47px; } #marketfy-ae-block-signup:hover { background-color: #457a1a; } #marketfy-ae-block #marketfy-ae-block-logo { display: block; padding: 3px 0 0 0; margin: 0; } #marketfy-ae-block-logo { text-indent: -9999px; } #marketfy-ae-block-free { display: block; position: absolute; top: 7px; right: -23px; width: 80px; height: 16px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; opacity: 1; -webkit-transform: rotate(45deg); -moz-transform: rotate(45deg); -ms-transform: rotate(45deg); transform: rotate(45deg); font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal; color: #333333; background-color: yellow; z-index: 500; text-shadow: 1px 1px #999999; } #marketfy-ae-block-arrow { position: relative; width: 60px; height: 60px; z-index: 10; margin: -80px 0 13px -21px; } #marketfy-ae-block-arrow img { height: 60px; width: auto; } Marketfy's International
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Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Is Google About to Upstage Apple's Siri Again?

Voice-powered virtual assistants were all the rage in 2011. Two years later, they remain something of a novelty feature with untapped potential. Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL ) kicked things off in the mainstream with Siri in the iPhone 4S, but Google (NASDAQ: GOOG ) showed the Mac maker how it's really done with Google Now, which is widely considered a superior service.

All the while, both assistants have remained relegated to mobile platforms, even though it seems inevitable for them to find their ways to the desktop. Apple has only added voice dictation to OS X, with no mention of bringing Siri to the Mac yet. There have been hints that Siri will indeed come to the Mac eventually (such as job postings). When Apple detailed OS X 10.9 Mavericks earlier this month at WWDC, again it said nothing of Siri on the Mac.

Google might upstage Siri once again. CNET noticed that a recent developer build of Google's popular Chrome browser contained hints that Google Now may get integrated in the immediate future. It seems more imminent now because while there were similar hints in December, now Chrome appears to hook up to Google's servers for Now-related notifications.

If Google Now is about to be built into Chrome, which StatCounter estimates has a 41% browser market share, it could easily become the dominant virtual assistant. Google Now is already available on both Android and iOS -- another example of Google services infiltrating the rival mobile platform.

Services are an increasingly important battleground between Apple and Google, and there's no doubt that the search giant currently has the lead. Apple is hoping to beef up its service offerings, such as the introduction of a new Maps desktop app to compete with web-based Google Maps.

Bringing Google Now to the Mac via Chrome could crush Siri's prospects on its home turf.

It's incredible to think just how much of our digital and technological lives are almost entirely shaped and molded by just a handful of companies. Find out "Who Will Win the War Between the 5 Biggest Tech Stocks?" in The Motley Fool's latest free report, which details the knock-down, drag-out battle being waged by the five kings of tech. Click here to keep reading.

Sunday, January 5, 2014

Bill Gates Is Only Partially Right About the iPad

Uh-oh, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL ) . Bill Gates says iPad users are "frustrated" because they don't have access to Microsoft's Office suite of productivity software.

Gates is right only in that users don't have access to Office. Otherwise, there seems to be little interest in using the iPad as a laptop replacement. Instead, it's become a preferred device for playing games and watching video, says Tim Beyers of Motley Fool Rule Breakers and Motley Fool Supernova in the following video. Gates is concocting problems where none exist.

And it's not like those who want to use the iPad as a business device aren't without options. Many Google (NASDAQ: GOOG ) apps function quite well on the iPad, Tim says, pointing to his own frequent use of Google Drive for creating and editing documents. Meanwhile, sales of Microsoft's (NASDAQ: MSFT ) own Surface tablets have been mixed.

Do you agree? Please watch the video to get Tim's full take, and then let us know whether you believe Bill Gates is right about the iPad.

The next big iThing
Apple has a history of cranking out revolutionary products... and then creatively destroying them with something better. Read about the future of Apple in the free report, "Apple Will Destroy Its Greatest Product." Can Apple really disrupt its own iPhones and iPads? Find out by clicking here.