The 2014 Jeep Patriot really is the complete package. Photo credit: Chrysler
Have you ever come to the point where your current vehicle just isn't cutting it anymore? It just seems like one thing happens after another and you realize that it's time for an upgrade. Unfortunately, that just opens up a whole new set of issues as you now need to find that new set of wheels.
That's exactly the position my wife and I found ourselves in recently, when it became apparent it was time to replace our 2007 Jeep Liberty. Because Jeep stopped manufacturing the Liberty after the 2012 model year, we were forced to look elsewhere for our upgrade. Surprisingly, there wasn't much on the market that appealed to us. We were looking for something having the rugged good looks of the Liberty, but with better gas mileage and more comfort for long trips. Not only that, but we needed something with four-wheel drive for visits to family during the winter. Oh, and we wanted it all for a price we could afford.
Top Oil Companies To Buy For 2015: Cardinal Health Inc. (CAH)
Cardinal Health, Inc. operates as a healthcare solutions company that provides health care products and services. The company operates in two segments, Pharmaceutical and Medical. The Pharmaceutical segment distributes branded and generic pharmaceutical, over-the-counter healthcare, specialty pharmaceutical, and consumer products to retail customers, hospitals, and alternate care providers in the United States and Puerto Rico. This segment also operates nuclear pharmacies and cyclotron facilities that prepare and deliver radiopharmaceuticals for use in nuclear imaging and other procedures in hospitals and clinics; offers third-party logistics support services; franchises retail pharmacies under the Medicine Shoppe and Medicap brands; and provides pharmacy and pharmaceutical repackaging services, as well as other services comprising distribution, inventory management, data/reporting, new product launch support, and contract and chargeback administration. The Medical segment distributes a range of medical, surgical, and laboratory products to hospitals, surgery centers, laboratories, physician offices, and other healthcare providers. This segment also develops, manufactures, and sources medical and surgical products, including sterile and non-sterile procedure kits; single-use surgical drapes, gowns, and apparel; exam and surgical gloves; and fluid suction and collection systems. Its medical and surgical products are sold directly or through third-party distributors in the United States, Canada, Europe, South America, and the Asia/Pacific region. The company was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ohio.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Chad Fraser]
Big Moves Are Reshaping Baxter
Baxter shares have risen 6.8% year-to-date, below the S&P 500�� 7.6% gain. But even though the stock hasn�� caused a lot of buzz with investors, management has made a number of important moves in the past two years.
The first came in late 2012, when the company acquired Gambro AB for US$4.0 billion, marking the biggest acquisition in its 83-year history. Sweden-based Gambro makes dialysis products for patients with acute and chronic kidney disease. The company is the world�� second-largest manufacturer of dialysis machines, after Germany�� Fresenius.
Baxter already had a presence in the dialysis market but mainly focused on in-home equipment, while Gambro�� products are mostly used in clinics.
This is a large and growing market for the company: according to the Baxter, approximately two million people worldwide are on some form of dialysis, and that number is growing by more than 5% annually due to rising rates of diabetes and hypertension.
Another major move came in March, when Baxter announced that it would break itself into two separate firms along the lines of its current divisions; it aims to complete the split in mid-2015.
��he breakup makes sense because the two units have separate profiles, with the medical devices business being more defensive, while the biopharmaceuticals unit grows faster, albeit with greater risk,��wrote Springer.
One of those risks is rising competition. For example, Biogen Idec�� (NasdaqGS: BIIB) Eloctate hemophilia A therapy received FDA approval in June. Eloctate could become a significant competitor to Baxter�� Advate treatment, which controls about 35% of the market. But Advate has the advantage of being well established: it was approved more than a decade ago and is now used in 64 countries.
Eloctate is expected to cost roughly the same as Advate, but it requires fewer injections. Baxter is currently developing a longer- - [By Keith Speights]
This market reaction doesn't mean that Lymphoseek lacks solid potential. It does. The product should appeal to oncologists. Navidea has a tight relationship with Cardinal Health (NYSE: CAH ) , which has exclusive U.S. distribution rights for Lymphoseek. Cardinal operates the largest nuclear pharmacy network in the nation with 140 pharmacies.
Top 5 Managed Healthcare Stocks To Invest In 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 Sean Williams]
But, this concern isn't just relegated to Walgreen. Rite-Aid (NYSE: RAD ) , for instance, only recently recorded an annual profit in fiscal 2013 -- its first such annual profit since 2006! Rite-Aid's problems flow from two fronts: weaker store traffic and extremely high debt levels, which weigh down its strategic options. Even the bigger CVS Caremark (NYSE: CVS ) is having its own set of problems. In the first-quarter it delivered a pharmacy same-store prescription increase of 2%, but saw pharmacy same-store sales dip by 1.4% because of more generic prescriptions being filled. This is a low-margin sector, so anything that can drag down margins can dramatically affect these stocks.
- [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
Top 5 Managed Healthcare Stocks To Invest In 2014: Superior Energy Services Inc.(SPN)
Superior Energy Services, Inc. provides specialized oilfield services and equipments to serve the production and drilling-related needs of oil and gas companies. It operates through three segments: Subsea and Well Enhancement; Drilling Products and Services; and Marine. The Subsea and Well Enhancement segment provides integrated subsea and engineering services, coiled tubing, electric line, pumping and stimulation, gas lift, well control, hydraulic workover and snubbing, recompletion, stimulation and sand control equipment and services, well evaluation, offshore oil and gas tank, vessel cleaning, decommissioning, plug and abandonment, and mechanical wireline services. This segment also manufactures and sells drilling rig instrumentation equipments; and involves in the production and sale of oil and gas from its properties in the Gulf of Mexico. The Drilling Products and Services segment manufactures, sells, and rents equipments for use with offshore and onshore oil and gas well drilling, completion, production, and workover activities. This segment?s products and services include pressure control equipment, drill pipe and landing strings, connecting iron, handling tools, stabilizers, drill collars, and on-site accommodations. The Marine segment owns and operates a fleet of liftboats in the Gulf of Mexico. The company operates 25 rental liftboats with leg lengths ranging from 145 feet to 265 feet. Superior Energy Services, Inc. sells its products and services in Latin America, North America, North Sea and Europe, the Middle East, West Africa, and the Asia Pacific region. The company was founded in 1991 and is based in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Dimitra DeFotis]
Sterne Agee said in July research that operators with Bakken-formation leverage, including Oasis, Superior Energy Services�(SPN),�Whiting Petroleum (WLL) and QEP Resources (QEP),�“have improved their communication with Wall Street and appropriately managed expectations for the impact that flooding in North Dakota could have on second-quarter earnings.” �See Barron’s Investor’s Soapbox PM�for�July 17, subscription required.)
Top 5 Managed Healthcare Stocks To Invest In 2014: Medical Cannabis Payment Solutions (REFG.PK)
Medical Cannabis Payment Solutions, incorporated on December 1, 2005, is a provider of integrated supply and distribution technology. The Company�� Seed-to-Sale (S2S) integrated solution is a management and compliance technology for growers, caregivers and dispensaries in the market. The Company also works with public officials and government agencies to expand the acceptance of medicinal cannabis, and the adoption of a legal framework where maximum market expansion is possible. The Company solves the fragmentation problem by identifying tools that are important to dispensaries, and customizing those tools specifically catered to the industry. The Company's solutions include Spark, Ghost and S2S.
Spark
The Company�� SPARK Hosted Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) provides customers with enterprise-class hosted phone systems customized to fit customers��needs. SPARK's service is a fully-managed, cloud-based system. The Company offers the convenience of an online Internet Protocol (IP)-based telecommunications system while still delivering substantial savings to customers bottom line.
Ghost
By offering customers a customized, tailored mobile solution, the Company's Ghost Mobile Apps give a marketing tool with a texting and e-mail solution, keeping customers in constant contact with patients and clients. The Company creates an optimized experience in context to each device or screen size.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Alan Brochstein]
Not too surprisingly, supply is starting to increase. We have seen some companies enter the space by expanding their own businesses, but there have been some reverse mergers lately too. I had mentioned Refill Energy (REFG.PK) recently (soon to be Medical Cannabis Financial Group), but earlier this month Promap (PMAP.OB) acquired 94% of Advanced Cannabis Solutions (link to 8-K). As an aside, I think that this company is worth considering given the management team and the business model. Investors should keep in the back of their mind that there are many companies that are quietly developing their business models and could become public over time, especially as the regulatory and legal landscapes improve.
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