Top Defense Stocks To Buy For 2015

Top Defense Stocks To Buy For 2015: Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC (RYCEY)

Rolls-Royce Holdings plc, formerly Rolls-Royce Group plc is a provider of power systems and services for use on land, at sea and in the air. The Company operates in four segments: civil aerospace, defense aerospace, marine and energy. The civil aerospace is engaged in development, manufacture, marketing and sales of commercial aero engines and aftermarket services. The defense aerospace is engaged in development, manufacture, marketing and sales of military aero engines and aftermarket services. The marine segment is engaged in development, manufacture, marketing and sales of marine propulsion systems and aftermarket services. The energy segment is engaged in development, manufacture, marketing and sales of power systems for the offshore oil and gas industry and electrical power generation and aftermarket services. In January 2013, the Company bought PKMJ Technical Services. In January 2013, Alstom SA acquired Tidal Generation Limited from the Company.

During the year ended December 31, 2010, it acquired ODIM ASA. In June 2011, Daimler AG and Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC had secured around 94% interest in Tognum AG-DJ. In September 2011, the Company acquired R Brooks Associates.

Civil aerospace

The Company's civil aerospace business provides the powers for 30 different types of commercial aircraft in a range of markets, such as widebody, narrowbody, corporate and regional aircraft. As of December 31, 2010, it had over 13,000 engines in service with 650 airlines, freight operators and lessors and 4,000 corporate operators. Its civil aerospace products include large aircraft engines, small aircraft engines and helicopter engines. The Company's Trent 700 is an engine on the Airbus A330. The Trent 1000 is powering the Boeing 787 on the aircraft's flight test schedule. It provides a range of services, s! uch as TotalCare, CorporateCare, helicopters services, financial services, training and technical publicat ions.

Defence Aerospace

The Compan! y is a provider of defence aero-engine products and services, with 18,000 engines in service for 160 customers in 103 countries. It is also the supplier of engines for transport aircraft globally, powering fleets, such as the C-130, C-130J, Spartan C-27 and Osprey V-22. It is also involved in research projects, such as Adoptive Versatile Engine Technology (ADVENT), which is designed to reduce fuel consumption. Its engines power aircraft in all sectors, such as transport, combat, reconnaissance, training, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles. The defense aerospace segment of the Company provides engines power aircraft in all sectors, such as transport, combat, reconnaissance, training, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles. Its products include combat jets, helicopters, transporters, trainers, tactical aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles and distributed generation systems. It provides a range of services, such as training, technical publications and service locations.

Marine

The Company focuses on power, propulsion and motion control solutions and serves over 2,500 customers and has equipment installed on 30,000 vessels operating worldwide. As of December 31, 2010, the Company had 650 designed and equipped vessels operating in the offshore oil and gas sector. As of December 31, 2010, it had more than 2,500 marine customers and has equipment installed on over 30,000 vessels worldwide, including those of 70 navies. The energy business supplies gas turbines, compressors and diesel power units. Its products include automation and control, bearings and seals, deck machinery, electrical power systems, engines, gears, propulsors, ship design, shiplifts and submarine equipment. It provides a range of services, such as global support network, spares and tools, field shop services, technical support, training, tail! ored solu! tions and upgrading.

Energy

The Company is a provider of gas turbines for on shore and offshore applications. The Company's energy busi! ness is e! ngaged in two activities: supply power to the oil and gas sector, and the provision of power generation products and services. Its products include gas engines, gas turbine engines, gas compression, diesel engines, fuel cells, and automation and control systems. Its services consist of long term service agreements, component supply and technical support, distributed generation systems and training. During the year ended December 31, 2010, it conducted a range of a tidal power turbine, anchored on the sea bed off the coast of Scotland. During 2010, this had generated 500 kilo-watt at full power and has been successfully linked into the national grid.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Alan Oscroft]

  Rolls-Royce (LSE: RR  ) (NASDAQOTH: RYCEY  )
  Having reached 1,148 pence this morning to set a new 52-week high, Rolls-Royce Holdings shares are now up 40% since this time last year. That was partly due to a strong 2012, which saw a 22% rise in earnings per share and an 11% rise in the dividend -- albeit with a modest yield of 2.2% on the year-end price.

• [By Rich Smith]

  The Department of Defense ended the week with a bang (if you'll pardon the expression) on Friday, awarding no fewer than 29 separate contracts worth more than $951 million in aggregate. Publicly traded companies securing contracts included:

• [By Rich Smith]

  The Department of Defense awarded a round dozen defense contracts Friday, worth just under $7.2 billion in aggregate. The bulk of the contracts -- $7 billion worth -- were split among eight small privately held firms scattered around New Jersey, Maryland, Indiana, and Virginia contracted to supply software and systems engineering services in support of the Army's Software Engineering Center. But a handful of better-known -! - and, mo! re importantly to investors, publicly traded -- companies won contracts as well. Namely:

• [By Rich Smith]

  According to the DSCA, Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT  ) will be the prime contractor on this sale, which is valued at $588 million. It would involve not only the sale of the planes per se, but also eight Rolls Royce (NASDAQOTH: RYCEY  ) AE 2100D3 engines for the four-engine planes, and two spare engines, plus modifications to be made on the planes, radio equipment and other accessories, technical documentation, three years of training, and related logistics services.

source from Top Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksblog.com/top-defense-stocks-to-buy-for-2015.html

Hot Defense Stocks To Watch For 2015

Hot Defense Stocks To Watch For 2015: VelaTel Global Communications Inc (VELA.PK)

VelaTel Global Communications Inc, formerly China Tel Group, Inc. (ChinaTel), incorporated on September 19, 2005, is engaged in the business, which combines its engineering and deployment, its equity funding relationships, its vendor partnership, radio frequency spectrum, fiber optic cable and concession rights assets acquired through a subsidiary or a joint venture relationship to create and operate wireless broadband access (WBA) networks worldwide. It offers Internet access, voice, video, and data services to the subscribers of various WBA networks it operate. The Companys secondary business is to distribute products and services used in connection with WBA networks, specifically hydrogen fuel cells used as a back-up power source for certain transmission equipment, and devices and services. As of December 31, 2011, it holds investments or contracts in ten projects: the VelaTel Peru Network; the GBNC Network; the VN Tech Fuel Cell Business; the Exclusive Services Agre ement with NGSN; the Exclusive Services Agreement with Aerostrong; the Sino Crossings Fiber Joint Venture; Zapna; the Novi-Net Network; the Montenegro Connect Network and the VeratNet Network. In April 2012, it acquired Herlong Investments Limited and its operating subsidiaries, Novi-Net and Montenegro Connect. In April 2012, it signed and closed a stock purchase agreement to acquire a 75% equity interest in Zapna, ApS. In November 2012, the Company acquired 100% of interest in China Motion Telecom (HK) Limited.

The Company sells prepaid and postpaid plans, and branded consumer devices using VelaTel Perus brand name GO MOVIL. Chinacomm holds licenses and permits from China to build and operate a 3.5-gigahertz wireless broadband telecommunications network (Chinacomm Network) in 29 cities in China. These licenses run through February 2013. Phase 1 of the Chinacomm Network consisted of the deployment of the Chinacomm Network in the 12! cities of Beijing, Shanghai , Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Qindao, Nanjing, Chongqing, Harbin, X! ian, Xiamen, Wuhan and Kunming.. Portions of the Chinacomm Network are operational in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen. Perusat provides local and international long-distance telephone services, including fixed line and voice over Internet protocol (IP) services, to approximately 6,500 customers in nine cities in Peru (Lima, Arequipa, Chiclayo, Trujillo, Piura, Santa, Cusco, Ica and Huanuco). Based on its status as a licensed telephone operator, Perusat has been granted a license in the 2.5-gigahertz spectrum covering these cities, other than Lima and its surrounding metropolitan area.

The Company contracted with Chinacomm to acquire a 49% equity interest in ChinaComm Limited (Chinacomm Cayman). Trussnet Capital Partners (HK), Ltd. (TCP) acquired a 49% interest in Chinacomm Cayman. Trussnet Dalian leased Yunji equipment required in the deployment of the Chinacomm Network and provide technical and management services to Yunji for the procurement, installation and optimization of the equipment.

The Compets with GBNC, VN Tech, NGSN, Aerostrong, Sino Crossings, Novi-Net, Montenegro Connect and VeratNet.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Alan Brochstein]

  Matula, who is currently a SVP for LiveDeal (LIVE), has a history of association with penny stock failures. An interesting angle is his tie to a lawyer in Las Vegas, Michael Balabon, who purports to have two separate practices, including a bankruptcy/divorce practice and an employment law practice who has acted as Registered Agent for many of these companies. I was unable to reach anyone at either office on several occasions. In any event, Balabon is the registered agent for PLPL. Coincidentally, he served in that role for NVLX as well as well as all of the former subsidiaries and partners the firm used (the new Medical Marijuana Sciences subsidiary too). Recall that the predecessor to PLPL was Diamond Ranch, and ! Balabon w! as the RA there as well. Matula has served in I.R. roles for perpetual failures like VelaTel Global (VELA.PK).

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

Top 5 Information Technology Stocks To Own Right Now

Top 5 Information Technology Stocks To Own Right Now: Hansen Medical Inc.(HNSN)

Hansen Medical, Inc. develops, manufactures, and sells medical robotics designed for positioning, manipulation, and control of catheters and catheter-based technologies. The company?s products comprise the Sensei Robotic Catheter System and its related Artisan and Lynx catheters. It offers Sensei Robotic Catheter systems and Artisan catheters for manipulation, positioning, and control of mapping catheters during electrophysiology procedures. The company also provides robotic platforms consisting of the Magellan Robotic System and the NorthStar Robotic Catheter for the treatment of vascular disease. In addition, it offers CoHesion 3D Visualization Module, a software interface that provide physicians with 3D visualization to augment their ability to move a catheter throughout the heart, as well as control the placement of the catheter in specific locations. The company sells its products through direct sales force in the United States; and through direct sales force and dis tributors primarily in the European Union and internationally. It has a joint development agreement and co-marketing agreement with St. Jude Medical, Inc. for the development of CoHesion 3D Visualization Module; and a collaboration agreement with Philips Medical Systems Nederland B.V. to co-develop integrated products for use in the diagnosing and treatment of arrhythmias. The company was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

  While billed as a rival to America's Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG  ) , Mazor actually bears closer resemblance to tiny Hansen Medical (NASDAQ: HNSN  ) . Lacking profits despite raking in nearly $15 million in revenues last year, Mazor doesn't generate positive free cash flow like Intuitive does. Instead, it burns it like Hansen does (albeit more slowly). Last year, negative free cash flows amounted ! to $2.1 million, which suggests that Wallachbeth's endorsement may be a bit premature.

• [By John Udovich]

  Small cap robotic stock Adept Technology (NASDAQ: ADEP) has put in a very good performance this month verses its immediate peeriRobot Corporation (NASDAQ: IRBT) as well as against medical robotic stocks like MAKO Surgical (NASDAQ: MAKO), Accuray Incorporated (NASDAQ: ARAY) and Hansen Medical, Inc (NASDAQ: HNSN). I should also mention that we have recently added Adept Technology to our SmallCap Network Elite Opportunity (SCN EO) portfolio (we are up 9% since last week) because we feel robotics is an improving sector as companies aim to reduce overhead and improve efficiencies through machine to machine (M2M) automation.

• [By John Udovich]

  Yesterday, small cap medical robotics stock MAKO Surgical Corp (NASDAQ: MAKO) soared 82.19% after it was announced that Stryker Corporation (NYSE: SYK) would acquire it meaning it might be time to take a closer look at large cap medical robotics leader Intuitive Surgical, Inc (NASDAQ: ISRG) along with small caps Accuray Incorporated (NASDAQ: ARAY) and Hansen Medical, Inc (NASDAQ: HNSN). MAKO Surgical Corpmarkets both its RIO Robotic Arm Interactive Orthopedic System and proprietary RESTORIS family of implants to surgeons for a procedure called MAKOplastythat provides a less invasive method for knee resurfacing and a new procedure for Total Hip Arthroplasty.Stryker Corporation, whose medical technologies include reconstructive, medical and surgical, and neurotechnology and spine products, agreed to pay $1.65 billion or $30 a share for a massive 86%premium for MAKO Surgical Corp. Thats sounds great for investors unless you are an investor who go in the stock ba ck in 2011 and early 2012 when shares hit as high as the$43 level.

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  One health care player that insiders are active in here is Hansen Medical (HNSN), which develops, manufactures and markets new generation of medical ro! botics fo! r accurate positioning, manipulation and stable control of catheters and catheter-based technologies. Insiders are buying this stock into relative weakness, since shares are off by 19.2% so far in 2013.

  Hansen Medical has a market cap of $113 million and an enterprise value of $118 million. This stock trades at a premium valuation, with a price-to-sales of 7.13. Its estimated growth rate for this year is -3%, and for next year it's pegged at 36.2%. This is not a cash-rich company, since the total cash position on its balance sheet is $21.08 million and its total debt is $29.57 million.

  A beneficial owner just bought 8.1 million shares, or about $9.96 million worth of stock, at $1.23 per share.

  From a technical perspective, HNSN is currently trending above its 50-day and just below is 200-day moving average, which is neutral trendwise. This stock recently spiked up sharply from its low of $1.14 to its recent high of $1.96 a share with big upside volume. Since that move, shares of HNSN have pulled back and started to consolidation between $1.77 and $1.60 a share. This stock is now starting to bounce higher and move within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade.

  If you're bullish on HNSN, then look for long-biased trades as long as this stock is trending some key near-term support levels at $1.60 to its 50-day at $1.51, and then once it breaks out above some near-term overhead resistance levels at $1.77 to $1.96 a share high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above those levels with volume that hits near or above its three-month average volume of 530,653 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then HNSN will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $2.15 to $2.23 a share. Any high-volume move above those levels will then gi

source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.seekpennystocks.com/top-5-information-technology-stocks-to-own-right-now.html

Top US Companies To Watch For 2015

Top US Companies To Watch For 2015: United Parcel Service Inc.(UPS)

United Parcel Service, Inc., a package delivery company, provides transportation, logistics, and financial services in the United States and internationally. It operates in three segments: U.S. Domestic Package, International Package, and Supply Chain & Freight. The U.S. Domestic Package segment engages in the time-definite delivery of letters, documents, and packages in the United States. The International Package segment offers air and ground delivery of small packages and letters to approximately 220 countries and territories, including shipments outside the United States, as well as shipments with either origin or distribution outside the United States; export services; and domestic services move shipments within a country?s borders. The Supply Chain & Freight segment provides forwarding and logistics services, such as supply chain design and management, freight distribution, customs brokerage, mail, and consulting services in approximately 195 countries and territorie s; and less-than-truckload and truckload services to customers in North America. In addition, the company offers various technology solutions for automated shipping, visibility, and billing; information technology systems and distribution facilities to various industries comprising healthcare, technology, and consumer/retail; and a portfolio of financial services that provides customers with short-term working capital, government guaranteed lending, global trade financing, credit cards, and export financing. It operates a fleet of approximately 99,800 package cars, vans, tractors, and motorcycles; an air fleet of 527 aircraft; and 33,800 containers used to transport cargo in its aircraft. The company was founded in 1907 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By tyokunbo]

  Competition The express package and freight s! ectors are very competitive. The ability to compete effectively depends on a company's rivals. FedEx faces competition principally from United Parcel Service (UPS) and Amazon (AMZN). Many of FedEx's other rivals in the international market are government-controlled companies. Despite the tough competition, FedEx has a competitive advantage. It is expanding its solutions for customers through a more efficient business model.

• [By Brian O'Connell]

  Investing Daily analysts have been bullish on FedEx Corp (NYSE: FDX) and current indicators show that a positive sentiment is still appropriate for the company.
  
  See here and here for more background on Federal Express from InvestingDaily.com experts.
  
  Finding good stocks like FDX is becoming paramount, as winter gives way to spring. The S&P 500 is only up by one percent so far this year, and that's after a plunge of negative 5.5 percent in January. Geopolitical upheaval in the Ukraine, high debt in key emerging market countries like China, and a sluggish US jobs market are all pulling down the US stock market right now.
  
  In an interview with TheStreet.com this week, Dan Veru, Palisade Capital Management’s chief investment officer, says he expects the stock market to hold its uneven performance "for three to six months."
  
  But FDX is showing all the signs of being the exception to the rule, and should see its stock price (about $137 per share this week) to rise above $155 per share this year. How so?
  
  Take the company's third-quarter financials. The firm doesn't post its Q3 revenues until Wednesday, March 19, but there's enough data out there to show that Fed Ex has survived a rough winter and is poised for upward growth for the remainder of the year.
  
  The third quarter was a wild one for the nation's second-largest shipping service. It included the all-important holiday shopping season, which wasn’t kind to Fed Ex and its arch rival UPS (NYSE: UPS), the top shipping ! services ! company in the US. The season included the worst winter weather conditions in years, which impacted the ability of delivery companies to ship client packages.
  
  Still, the news looks upbeat for Fed Ex. Here's what the company is expecting from its own financial projections:

source from Top Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksblog.com/top-us-companies-to-watch-for-2015.html

4 Stocks Under $10 in Breakout Territory

DELAFIELD, Wis. (Stockpickr) -- At Stockpickr, we track daily portfolios of stocks that are the biggest percentage gainers and the biggest percentage losers.

>>5 Stocks Set to Soar on Bullish Earnings

Stocks that are making large moves like these are favorites among short-term traders because they can jump into these names and try to capture some of that massive volatility. Stocks that are making big-percentage moves either up or down are usually in play because their sector is becoming attractive or they have a major fundamental catalyst such as a recent earnings release. Sometimes stocks making big moves have been hit with an analyst upgrade or an analyst downgrade.

Regardless of the reason behind it, when a stock makes a large-percentage move, it is often just the start of a new major trend -- a trend that can lead to huge profits. If you time your trade correctly, combining technical indicators with fundamental trends, discipline and sound money management, you will be well on your way to investment success.

>>5 Rocket Stocks to Buy for Short-Week Gains

With that in mind, let's take a closer look at a several stocks under $10 that are making large moves to the upside.

Cytokinetics

Cytokinetics ( CYTK), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery and development of novel small-molecule therapeutics that modulate muscle function for the potential treatment of serious diseases and medical conditions. This stock closed up 4.7% to $5.17 in Tuesday's trading session.

Tuesday's Range: $4.95-$5.22

52-Week Range: $3.96-$14.28

Tuesday's Volume: 1.05 million

Three-Month Average Volume: 1.45 million

From a technical perspective, CYTK surged sharply higher here with decent upside volume. This spike higher on Tuesday is quickly pushing shares of CYTK within range of triggering a big breakout trade. That trade will hit if CYTK manages to take out Tuesday's intraday high of $5.22 to its recent gap-down-day high of $5.45 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in CYTK as long as it's trending above its recent breakout levels of $4.73 to $4.78 and then once it sustains a move or close above $5.22 to $5.45 with volume that hits near or above 1.45 million shares. If that breakout hits soon, then CYTK will set up to re-fill some of its previous gap-down-day zone from April that started above $13.

Procera NetworksPKT/">PKT) provides intelligent policy enforcement solutions based on deep packet inspection technology that enable mobile and broadband network operators and entities to manage and control their private networks. This stock closed up 6.2% to $9.85 in Tuesday's trading session.

Tuesday's Range: $9.38-$9.96

52-Week Range: $8.33-$16.48

Tuesday's Volume: 276,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 353,109

From a technical perspective, PKT ripped sharply higher here back above its 50-day moving average of $9.75 with lighter-than-average volume. This move also pushed shares of PKT into breakout territory, since it flirted with or took out some near-term overhead resistance levels at $9.52 to $9.89. Shares of PKT tagged an intraday high of $9.96 before it closed just below that level at $9.85. Market players should now look for a continuation move higher in the short-term if PKT manages to take out Tuesday's intraday high of $9.96 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in PKT as long as it's trending above Tuesday's low of $9.38 and then once it sustains a move or close above $9.96 with volume that hits near or above 353,109 shares. If that move starts soon, then PKT will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $10.81 to $11.50, or even $12.

Avanir Pharmaceuticals

Avanir Pharmaceuticals (AVNR), together with its subsidiaries, is engaged in acquiring, developing and commercializing novel therapeutic products for the treatment of central nervous system disorders primarily in the U.S. This stock closed up 4.1% to $5.04 a share in Tuesday's trading session.

Tuesday's Range: $4.80-$5.09

52-Week Range: $2.62-$6.00

Tuesday's Volume: 3.72 million

Three-Month Average Volume: 3.09 million

From a technical perspective, AVNR spiked notably higher here right above some near-term support at $4.57 with above-average volume. This spike higher on Tuesday is quickly pushing shares of AVNR within range of triggering a major breakout trade. That trade will hit if AVNR manages to take out Tuesday's high of $5.09 to some more near-term overhead resistance at $5.22 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in AVNR as long as it's trending above Tuesday's low of $4.80 or above more near-term support at $4.57 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 3.09 million shares. If that breakout materializes soon, then AVNR will set up to re-test or possibly take out its 52-week high of $6.

On Track Innovations

On Track Innovations (OTIV) designs, develops and markets cashless payment solutions. This stock closed up 7.4% to $2.45 in Tuesday's trading session.

Tuesday's Range: $2.29-$2.47

52-Week Range: $0.91-$4.38

Tuesday's Volume: 464,724

Three-Month Average Volume: 195,738

From a technical perspective, OTIV ripped higher here with strong upside volume. This sharp spike higher on Tuesday is starting to push shares of OTIV within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade. That trade will hit if OTIV manages to take out some key near-term overhead resistance levels at $2.55 to $2.58 and then once it clears more resistance at $2.63 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in OTIV as long as it's trending above Tuesday's low of $2.29 or above more support at $2.20 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 464,724 shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then OTIV will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $3.15 to $3.45.

To see more stocks that are making notable moves higher, check out the Stocks Under $10 Moving Higher portfolio on Stockpickr.

-- Written by Roberto Pedone in Delafield, Wis.

RELATED LINKS:

>>4 Big Stocks to Trade (or Not)

>>5 Stocks Poised for Breakouts

>>5 Stocks Under $10 Set to Soar

Follow Stockpickr on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

At the time of publication, author had no positions in stocks mentioned.

Roberto Pedone, based out of Delafield, Wis., is an independent trader who focuses on technical analysis for small- and large-cap stocks, options, futures, commodities and currencies. Roberto studied international business at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, and he spent a year overseas studying business in Lubeck, Germany. His work has appeared on financial outlets including

CNBC.com and Forbes.com.

You can follow Pedone on Twitter at www.twitter.com/zerosum24 or @zerosum24.

How Not To Get Soaked When The Bond Bubble Bursts

Most investors are unaware and ill-prepared for the impact that rising interest rates will have on their bond funds and ETF investments. There has been an unprecedented period of Fed participation (manipulation) with six years of near zero-percent interest rate policy and trillions of newly created currency.

The Federal Reserve is waging a battle against deflation. Deflation can lead to depression. The Fed's objective is to create inflation. Our risk is that they do not succeed.  Unfortunately, our risk is also that they do succeed.

In inflationary periods, interest rates rise.  Since the Fed sets short-term rates, let's take a look at where the Federal Open Market Committee members believe interest rates are heading. Currently, 13 of the 16 FOMC participants believe the Fed will begin to raise rates in 2015.  One sees rates beginning to rise in 2014 and the remaining two see rates rising in 2016.  Their median year-end Fed funds rate target for 2015 is now 1.00%, up from 0.75% just three months ago.  The year-end target for 2016 is now 2.25%, up from 1.75%.

All of this suggests that the FOMC will begin hiking rates sooner and perhaps more aggressively than what investors may be expecting.  Also of note is that the FOMC participants see a 4% federal funds rate longer term. Rising rates spell trouble for unsuspecting bond investors.

What is the potential impact?  Recently, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note was 2.50%.  That is 2.50% above the current Fed funds rate of 0%.  If the Fed funds rate reaches 1% in 2015, then the 10-year Treasury is likely to yield 3.50%.  Such a move higher will cause an approximate 8% loss in principal value; though rates could move even higher.

A 2016 Fed funds target of 2.25% puts the 10-year Treasury yield near 4.75% (an approximate loss of 18%) and a longer-term Fed funds target of 4% puts the 10-year Treasury yield near 6.50%, a loss in principal value of 29%.  Further, if you own bond funds or ETFs with long-term exposure, the losses will be even greater.  A behavioral disconnect exists as many individual investors are unaware they can lose money in their bond funds and ETFs.

Top 5 Financial Stocks To Buy Right Now

The following chart shows the current yield on the 10-year and 30-year Treasury (orange highlight).  The green arrow shows how much bonds will appreciate if rates move 1% lower.  The red arrow shows the approximate loss for every 1% rise in interest rates.  I've circled in red the potential loss should rates rise 3% above where they are today.

These are estimates, of course, yet the idea is to gain awareness of the large interest rate risk that may exist in your portfolio. While rates may continue to go lower before they go higher, most Wall Street analysts project the 10-year Treasury to yield north of 3% by year end.  So far they are wrong yet at some point, with little room left on the downside, rates are likely to rise.  It is important to protect your portfolio against the inevitable rise in interest rates while at the same time participating in bond returns when the trend for interest rates is down (such as year-to-date 2014).

What can you do? Tactically trade your bond funds and bond ETFs.

Years ago the late Marty Zweig created a tactical trend following bond model. We recently did some customized work and updated a model Marty co-created with Ned Davis Research in the mid 1980s. The rules have remained in place since then, the model has continued to perform well and it has been properly positioned in bonds this year.  Of course, there are no guarantees in this business.  This is a mathematical process you could track and trade on your own.

Here is how this particular tactical trend following process works:

Here's how you can be a good investor

Rupee hits a low, interest rates rise, stock prices fall, vegetable prices zoom a common man is hit from all sides. What should one do with the investments in such a scenario?

Many an investors feel too much anxiety about their personal finances, especially when the investments are made in a market that exhibits price volatility.

Professor Sheena Iyengar of Columbia Business School in her book, the Art of Choosing, narrates one experiment carried out by a psychologist in the year 1965. Here is a short description of the experiment and the findings:

Dr. Martin Seligman and team began the experiment by leading mongrel dogs into a white crucible, one by one, and suspending them in rubberized cloth harness. Panels were placed on either side of each dog's head, and a yoke between the panels across the neck help the head in place. Every dog was assigned a partner dog placed in another cubicle.

During the experiment each pair of dogs was periodically subjected to physically nondamaging yet painful electrical shocks.=, but there was a crucial difference between the two dogs' cubicles: One could put an end to the shock simply by pressing the side panels with its head, while the other could not turn it off, no matter how it writhed.

The shocks were synchronized, starting at the same moment for each dog in the pair, and ending for both when the dog with the ability to deactivate pressed the side panel. Thus, the amount of shock was identical for the pair, but one dog experienced the pain as controllable, while the other did not.

The dogs that could do nothing to end the shocks on their own soon began to cower and whine, signs of anxiety and depression that continued even after the sessions were over. That dogs that could stop the shocks, however, showed some irritations but soon learned to anticipate the pain and avoid it by pressing their heads.

In the second phase of the experiment, both dogs in the pair were exposed to a new situation to see how they would apply what they had learned from being in or out of control.

Researchers put each dog in a large black box with two compartments, divided by a low wall that came up to about shoulder height on the animals. On the dog's side, the floor was periodically electrified. On the other side, it was not.

The wall was low enough to jump over, and the dogs that had previously been able to stop the shocks quickly figured out how to escape. But of the dogs that had not been able to end the shocks, two-thirds lay passively on the floor and suffered.

The shocks continued, and although the dogs whined, they made no attempt to free themselves. Even when they saw other dogs jumping the wall, and even after researchers dragged them to the other side of the box to show them that the shocks were escapable, the dogs still gave up and endured the pain.

For them, the freedom from pain just on the other side of the wall so near and so readily accessible was invisible.

This is termed as learned helplessness. This is "giving up" even when help is available and feeling hopeless.
This is a very powerful insight and it is not new. (The experiment was carried out in 1965). The feeling of control plays a vital role in exercising the choice. Having a choice is one thing, but being able to see possibility of a positive outcome is another.

In the markets, where the prices fluctuate out of no understandable reasons, as mentioned in the beginning, many investors feel great amount of anxiety. How do we see that in light of Dr. Seligman's experiment? Is it possible to exercise choice? Or are we just plain simple vulnerable?

The answer to this question lies in the serenity prayer:

God grant me the serenity to accept things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference

Let us understand why we invest in the first place. We invest for some purpose for some, the purpose would be to meet some large lump sum financial requirements what the financial advisors would call the family's financial goals, or in some cases, the purpose would be to create wealth for oneself or for others. Whatever the purpose, the same must be central to the investment plan.

Towards this objective, we build our investment portfolios. However, the money must be invested somewhere. And that is where the worries start. We forget the serenity prayer and try to control the uncontrollable.

Many a times, investors try to predict the future movement of the price of their investments. Often, investors expect their advisors to be able to predict. Expertise is very different from ability to forecast.
It is here that the experiment mentioned earlier helps us. Repeated failure in trying to forecast and the inability to see the logic behind short-term price movements results into conditioning the brain such that we start forming certain beliefs.

Examples of some such beliefs are:

• Nobody can make money in the markets

• The market prices are manipulated

• The market is a casino

All these are conclusions that are not going to help anyone.

Let us look at this point from a different perspective that of control. Any investment plan has two sides: the investor's personal situation and the investments and markets. Between these two, the investor has a better control over one's own situation and hardly any over the investments and the markets.

What is a good financial plan? It should take care of the basic need, i.e. getting the required amount of money at the time of the requirement. In such a case, the basic principles one can start with could be:

1. The loss on account of a default which could arise out of inability or mala fide intentions should be avoided as much as possible

2. At any point one needs money, one should not be vulnerable to the price fluctuations

3. Investment growth lagging the rise in goal value another situation that must be taken care of

The first is the easiest diversify your investments across different companies and industries. You may also diversify across geographies. What is proper diversification? The basic principal behind diversification is that the same must be done across "diverse" investments.  "Diverse" or "unrelated" is a very important word out here. It is actually the essence of diversification.

The second is a little more difficult. It can be managed by planning the finances in such a manner that at the time of the goal, there is sufficient money in investment avenues, which are not subject to price fluctuations. Such options are bank deposits, liquid mutual funds or cash in bank savings account.

The third can be countered by investing money in assets that has the potential to grow at a rate higher than inflation. However, let us visit out Math class.

Way back in secondary school, we were taught the equation of compound interest, which is reproduced below:

A = P * (1 + r) ^ n, where
A = amount accumulated or to be accumulated. In our context, it is the goal value
P = amount invested or to be invested. This could be one time investment or a periodic regular investment
r = rate of return on investment, and
n = the time period for which the money would remain invested

The goal to be achieved is A. For that, there are three variables on the right hand side. If one is able to reach the target amount through increasing the time horizon or the amount invested, one need not seek high rate of return on investment.

However, one must keep in mind that the goal value is subject to inflation and hence the goal value would keep rising as the time passes. In this context, for long term investment plans, one must factor inflation in. without considering the impact of inflation, there is a very high probability of regret in the later years by then, it would be too late to take corrective action.

To summarise, an investor must consider the risks of investments, viz., risk of default, risk of volatility and risk of inflation while planning. If a portfolio is constructed with these principles, the investor would have better control over the situation and would lead to one taking better and correct actions when required. Focusing on things beyond one's control is a sure-shot recipe for disaster.

Remember the old proverb: "You can't direct the wind, but you can adjust the sails". Similarly, "you can't direct the markets, but you can adjust your own cash flows."

The author is proprietor of Karmayog Knowledge Academy.

Chevrolet Impala becomes latest 'micro hybrid'

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General Motors says the 2015 Chevrolet Impala full-size sedan will come with a gas-saving stop-start system on its base 2.5-liter engine, showing how fast previous gee-whiz technology is migrating down from luxury cars.

The system shuts off the car's engine at stoplights. The engine restarts as soon as the driver pushes down the accelerator. The system saves all the gas that otherwise would have been wasted waiting for the stoplight to turn green. Because of their limited capabilities, they are being termed "micro hybrids."

Only a couple years ago, the technology was limited to luxury and exotic cars, like Porsche's 911. While fairly common in Europe, American automakers complained that they didn't get full credit for stop-start systems when it came to the testing process to be certified for gas-mileage ratings in the U.S.

Now, it should start turning up everywhere. By 2021, Navigant Research says more than half of all light-duty vehicles sold worldwide will use stop-start to save fuel otherwise lost to idling.

"Micro hybrid technology enables large vehicles to be designed to run leaner without sacrificing drivability, and small vehicles to be set up for limited electric-only operation," says David Alexander, senior research analyst with Navigant Research.

In the Impala, the four-cylinder engine that will get the stop-start system is ordered about 30% of the time, General Motors says.

The 2014 Chevrolet Impala, on sale since April, is a looker. It's the10th-generation of Impala, which was launched in 1957 as a 1958 model.  (Photo: General Motors) Fullscreen Impala is built on the same chassis used for the redone, smaller 2013 Malibu.  (Photo: General Motors) Fullscreen Impala joined the Chevrolet lineup as its new flagship for the 1958 model year. Pictured here is the 1958 Impala Sport Coupe, which broke new ground for high style in a mainstream-brand car.  (Photo: Chevrolet) Fullscreen Behind the big screen in the dashboard is a storage bin with USB port.  (Photo: General Motors) Fullscreen 2013 Impala LTZ.  (Photo: General Motors) Fullscreen The 2014 Impala offers a 2.5-liter four-cylinder rated 196 hp, 186 lbs.-ft. of torque, and a 3.6-liter V-6 rated 305 hp and 264 lbs.-ft. Both use six-speed automatic..  (Photo: General Motors) Fullscreen The rear seat has almost has generous leg room, as much as the front seat in many other cars.  (Photo: Chevrolet) Fullscreen The new Impala's interior is more upscale in design and materials.  (Photo: General Motors) Fullscreen Coming this fall for the Impala is a model with a "mild hybrid" powertrain GM calls eAssist. It's similar to what's used in the Eco model of the Chevy Malibu and in some of GM's Buicks.  (Photo: General Motors) Fullscreen 2014 Chevrolet Impala.  (Photo: General Motors) Fullscreen The 2014 Impala LTZ.  (Photo: General Motors) Fullscreen Like this topic? You may also like these photo galleries:Replay

No Surprise: Stocks Trade Up on Fed Yawner; Lorillard Leaps on Merger Talks

Stocks made back much of yesterday’s losses as the minutes from the last FOMC meeting revealed nothing we hadn’t already known. Goldman Sachs (GS) and Microsoft (MSFT) led blue chips higher, while Tiffany (TIF), Lorillard (LO) and Netflix (NFLX) were the big gainers among large-company stocks.

Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 158.75 points, or 1%, to 16,533.06 today, while the S&P 500 gained 0.8% to 1,888.03. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.8% to 4,131.54, while the small-company Russell 2000 finished up 0.5% at 1,103.63. The 10-year Treasury yield rose 0.03 percentage point to 2.54%.

Goldman Sachs rose 1.9% to $159.35 today, making it the biggest gainer in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, after announcing that it was seeking to sell its commodity warehouse business, while Microsoft gained 1.7% to $40.35 a day after launching its super-sized tablet computer. Microsoft was the second-largest percentage gainer in the Dow.

Tiffany surged 9.2% to $62.63 after raising its earnings guidance, while Netflix climbed 5.1% to $390.60 after announcing that it would expand into six European countries. Lorillard spiked 10% to $62.63 on reports that it’s in talks to be purchased by Reynolds American (RAI). Reynolds American gained 4.4% to $59.77.

As for the Fed minutes, let’s just say they caused investors to hit the snooze button. Pierpont Securities Stephen Stanley explains:

I found the April FOMC minutes to be unusually bland, perhaps not surprising since the April FOMC statement was virtually unchanged from the March communiqué…The two key topics of conversation were a special discussion of policy normalization and the usual discussion of the economic and policy outlook.

The former has been a topic of much speculation since the announcement that there was a joint Board of Governors/FOMC meeting at the beginning of the regular FOMC gathering.  This effort was part of "prudent planning" and "did not imply that normalization would necessarily begin sometime soon." … Meanwhile, the discussion on the economy held few surprises.  The outlook was said not to have changed materially since the March meeting.

Gluskin Sheff’s David Rosenberg notes that the recent decline in Treasury yields has amounted to “a de facto rate cut.” He explains why:

This is effectively ade factorate cut by the Fed since this yield move would not have been possible with the new forward guidance on the future policy path. It’s akin to an exogenous positive shock to the economy, especially the rate-sensitive sectors (housing, autos, capital goods) — as if the Fed eased 50 basis points via the back end of the yield curve…This bond yield decline, contrary to reflecting a softer pace of economic activity ahead, is more likely going to bolster the macroeconomic outlook for the spring and summer months. So look through this corrective phase in equities and look forward to picking up cyclical and growth segments at better prices.

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Looks like the market might finally be coming around to that point of view.

IRS Says It Will Revise Rules on Political Nonprofit Groups

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service said Thursday that it will revise proposed rules governing nonprofit groups’ involvement in politics.

The rules, released last year, were an attempt to provide guidance for how much political activity groups organized under section 501(c)(4) of the U.S. tax code could engage in without risking loss of their tax exemption or being forced to reveal their donors.

The IRS disclosed in May 2013 that it gave some Tea Party groups seeking tax-exempt status extra scrutiny because of their names, not their activities. President Barack Obama forced out acting IRS commissioner Steven Miller, and several other senior executives left their jobs, including Lois Lerner, who was the agency’s director of exempt organizations.

The rules, designed to provide clearer guidelines for IRS employees, were part of the government’s response to the issue.

Some actions would be considered political involvement, including advertising, voter guides, voter-registration drives, get-out-the-vote campaigns, Internet references to candidates and some appearances by candidates at groups’ events.

Under the proposed rules, a group would risk losing its tax-exempt status by engaging in too many of those activities, though the rules didn’t define what would be considered too much.

After the IRS released the new rules, groups across the political spectrum objected with more than 150,000 comments, calling them too broad and an attack on free speech. Opponents included the American Civil Liberties Union and the American Family Association.

Republicans called on the IRS and the Treasury Department to start over. Until today, the IRS had said it was planning a public hearing in the next few months.

“It is likely that we will make some changes to the proposed regulation in light of the comments we have received,” the IRS said in a statement Thursday. “Given the diversity of views expressed and the volume of substantive input, we have concluded that it would be more efficient and useful to hold a public hearing after we publish the revised proposed regulation.”

The statement doesn’t specify how extensive the changes will be, when a new rule would be released or when it would take effect.

IRS Commissioner John Koskinen has previously said it was very unlikely that the process would be completed this year.

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The 501(c)(4) groups, including Crossroads Grassroots Policy Strategies, have become increasingly prominent in U.S. elections. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, they spent $256 million on the 2012 election, more than three times what they spent in 2008.

Such groups are different from super-political action committees, or Super PACs, which disclose their donors.

The tax law says 501(c)(4) groups must be organized “exclusively” to promote social welfare. The IRS has said politics can’t be such a group’s primary purpose, leading to conflicts over how to measure politics and primary purpose.

 

Robots will replace fast-food workers

Protesters rally outside McDonald's corporate headquarters in Oak Brook, Ill., on Wednesday to demand higher wages for workers.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) As protesters across the country call for the fast-food chains to raise their wages, a number of companies have begun experimenting with new technology that could significantly reduce the number of restaurant workers in the years to come.

Restaurant industry backers warn that a sharp rise in wages would be counterproductive, increasing the appeal of automation and putting more workers at risk of job loss.

"Faced with a $15 wage mandate, restaurants have to reduce the cost of service," blared an ad in The Wall Street Journal last year from the Employment Policies Institute, which supports corporate interests. "That means fewer entry-level jobs and more automated alternatives -- even in the kitchen."

Other industry observers aren't so definitive, noting that it takes time to introduce new technology and that human interaction has always been a major component of the hospitality business. What's clear at least is that software and machines will play an increased role in our dining experiences going forward.

  It slices, it dices, it's a noodle robot!

Panera Bread (PNRA) is the latest chain to introduce automated service, announcing last month that it plans to bring self-service ordering kiosks as well as a mobile ordering option to all its locations within the next three years. The news follows moves from Chili's and Applebee's to place tablets on their tables, allowing diners to order and pay without interacting with human wait staff at all.

Panera, which spent $42 million developing its new system, claims it isn't planning any job cuts as a result of the technology, but some analysts see this kind of shift as unavoidable for the industry.

In a widely cited paper released last year, University of Oxford researchers estimated that there is a 92% chance that fast-food preparation and serving will be automated in the coming decades.

With artificial-intelligence technology like IBM's (IBM, Fortune 500) Watson platform making strides in advanced reasoning and language understanding, it's not hard to see how robots could be designed to provide more sophisticated interactions with restaurant customers than kiosks can manage.

Delivery d! rivers could be replaced en masse by self-driving cars, which are likely to hit the market within a decade or two, or even drones. In food preparation, there are start-ups offering robots for bartending and gourmet hamburger preparation. A food processing company in Spain now uses robots to inspect heads of lettuce on a conveyor belt, throwing out those that don't meet company standards, the Oxford researchers report.

Darren Tristano, a food industry expert with the research firm Technomic, said digital technology will "slowly, over time, create efficiency and labor savings" for restaurants. He guessed that work forces would only drop as a result by 5% or 10% at a maximum in the decades to come, however, given the expectations that customers have for the dining experience.

"If you look at the thousands of years that consumers have been served alcohol and food by people, it's hard to imagine that things will change that quickly," he said.

Tiffany Q1 Sales Up 13%, Comps Up 11%

Tiffany & Co Tiffany & Co. said Wednesday that worldwide net sales in the first quarter increased 13 percent, year-over-year, to $1 billion led by strong results in nearly all regions and product categories. On a constant-exchange-rate basis that excludes the effect of translating foreign-currency-denominated sales into U.S. dollars worldwide net sales rose 15 percent and comparable store sales rose 11 percent due to growth in most regions.

The New York-based luxury jewelry retailer said the spike in sales was combined with an improved operating margin, resulting in a growth in net earnings to $126 million, or $0.97 per diluted share, from $84 million, or $0.65 per diluted share, in last year's first quarter when pre-tax expenses of $9 million, or $0.05 per diluted share, were recorded for staff and occupancy reductions. Excluding those expenses, net earnings rose 41 percent.

Tiffany also increased its earnings forecast for the current fiscal year.

Sales by region are as follows:

* In the Americas, total sales increased 8 percent to $439 million. On a constant-exchange-rate basis, total sales rose 9 percent and comparable store sales rose 8 percent, primarily due to geographically broad-based growth across the U.S.

* In Asia-Pacific, total sales rose 17 percent to $261 million. On a constant-exchange-rate basis, total sales increased 19 percent and comparable store sales rose 10 percent with noteworthy growth throughout Greater China and in Australia.

* In Japan, total sales surged 20 percent to $174 million. On a constant-exchange-rate basis eliminating the negative effect of a weaker yen versus the U.S. dollar, total sales and comparable store sales rose 29 percent and 30 percent.

* In Europe, total sales rose 9 percent to $101 million. On a constant-exchange-rate basis, total sales rose 2 percent and comparable store sales declined 3 percent. Trends were similar in the U.K. and in continental Europe.

* Other sales increased 39 percent to $37 million, primarily due to retail sales growth which included 18 percent comparable store sales growth in the United Arab Emirates and the opening of the first company-operated Tiffany & Co. store in Russia. Other sales also benefited from an increase in wholesale sales of diamonds; such diamonds are a result of the company's rough diamond sourcing operations.

"This is an excellent and encouraging start to the year," said Michael J. Kowalski, Tiffany chairman and CEO. "We were pleased with the strong and broad-based sales growth across most regions and product categories and our ability to leverage those improved sales into very significant growth in operating and net earnings. Strength in fine and statement jewelry sales continued, while sales of our new or expanded jewelry collections accelerated, led by our ATLAS collection."

Based on the results, Tiffany increased its earnings forecast for the fiscal year ending January 31, 2015, to a range of $4.15-$4.25 per diluted share, versus its previously-published forecast of $4.05-$4.15 per diluted share.

Tiffany opened four stores in the first quarter (including a store on the Champs Elysees in Paris) and closed one in the US. The company now operates 292 stores (121 in the Americas, 72 in Asia-Pacific, 55 in Japan, 38 in Europe, five in the U.A.E. and one in Russia), versus 275 stores a year ago.

Please join me on the Jewelry News Network blog, the Jewelry News Network Facebook Page, and on Twitter @JewelryNewsNet.

Putnam’s Reynolds: Better Times Call for Active Management

Robert Reynolds, president and CEO of Putnam Investments, is happy with the state of the U.S. economy.

It isn’t booming, he said earlier today during the keynote presentation at Envestnet’s 14th Annual Advisor Summit in Chicago, but it’s certainly robust enough to boast, among other achievements, a strong financial system, a chance to be energy independent by 2020 and extremely favorable demographics compared  with many other industrialized nations.

Globally, too, things are looking pretty good.

The worst of the European crisis is apparently over, and while emerging markets are going through some challenges, elections in several countries — India, Indonesia, Brazil — will allow a record number of voters to have their say, and hopefully, elected leaders will enact the necessary structural reforms to ensure long-term, sustainable economic growth.

All this is very new, of course, but against a more favorable backdrop — one where globalization continues, Reynolds said, and where “in 10 years, China will be even bigger than it is now” — advisors are going to have to work hard to figure out the best investment options for their clients. The low-interest environment provides an added challenge when seeking to meet retirement goals in particular, Reynolds said, calling on advisors to be nimble and creative in seeking out the best, long-term investment solutions and managers to work with on their clients’ behalf.

For Reynolds, this is the time for active management, for seeking opportunities and value beyond the tried and true, to figure out different ways to manage volatility, all the while embracing new opportunities.

“Today, we’re entering a period where active management can really add premium,” he said.

As life expectancy increases, there’s a greater need to generate income in retirement. Being able to meet those income generation goals means operating in a global environment that lends itself to active management — to stock picking, for example, rather than indexing.

Those who are stock pickers, who are ready to look for different opportunities in various countries across the globe in an active manner, will fare well, Reynolds believes, and those advisors who seek out actively managed funds will be able to add greater value to their clients’ portfolios by capitalizing on individual opportunities within a favorable overall backdrop.

Hedge Funds Hate These 5 Stocks -- Should You?

BALTIMORE (Stockpickr) -- If you go to any number of investment conferences around the world, you'll find no shortage of professional fund managers talking their book. The fact is that professional investors are only too happy to talk about the stocks they've been buying -- but they rarely pipe up about the names they're selling.

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That's not surprising. For hedge fund managers, revealing the "sell list" is an act of contrition. Even disciplined investors don't like admitting spotlighting the names they're getting creamed on.

And consumer discretionary stocks are a perfect example of that. No other sector got sold off as hard as consumer discretionary stocks did in the first quarter of 2014. And that's giving us some crucial data to look at as summer fast approaches.

Investors love knowing what the pros are buying – that's only natural. But it's the sell list -- the names that institutional investors hate the most -- that represent some of the biggest conviction moves. Scouring fund managers' hate list is valuable for two important reasons: It includes names you should sell too, and it includes names that could soon present buying opportunities.

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Why would you buy a name that pro investors hate? Often, when investors get emotionally involved with the names in their portfolios, they do the wrong thing. The big performance gap between hedge funds and the S&P 500 Index in the last year is proof of that. So that leaves us free to take a more sober look at the names fund managers are capitulating on.

Luckily for us, we can get a glimpse at exactly which stocks top hedge funds' hate lists by looking at 13F statements. Institutional investors with more than $100 million in assets are required to file a 13F, a form that breaks down their stock positions for public consumption.

From hedge funds to mutual funds to insurance companies, any professional investors who manage more than that $100 million watermark are required to file a 13F. So far, 1,798 hedge funds filed the form for the most recent quarter, so by comparing one period's filing with another, we can get a sneak peek at how early filers are moving their portfolios around.

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Without further ado, here's a look at five stocks fund managers hate.

Amazon.com

Not long ago, Amazon.com (AMZN) was the name that could do no wrong. No profits? No problem! But that's changed pretty abruptly in 2014, as razor-thin margins suddenly became less tolerable for investors in the world's biggest online retailer. Year-to-date, AMZN is down more than 23% -- and funds have been selling shares all the way down. In the first quarter, funds sold 1.29 million shares of Amazon, unloading a nearly $400 million stake at current price levels.

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That's enough to make Amazon the most-sold name on our institutional selling preview.

Amazon is the largest online retailer, moving $74.5 billion worth of merchandise last year. The firm's reach goes beyond traditional e-commerce, however; AMZN also owns a growing streaming service and a device ecosystem through its Kindle e-readers and tablets. Amazon is additionally one of the largest cloud computing names through its Amazon Web Services unit.

For years, Amazon has sacrificed margins for growth, commoditizing countless products and selling Kindles at or below cost to drive consumption of digital media. The idea is that AMZN can suddenly flip a switch and ramp up margins -- but the question of whether customers will remain sticky is less clear. For now, AMZN has lost its momentum but it retains a very lofty valuation. It makes sense to join the sellers in Amazon this summer.

Starbucks

Coffee shop giant Starbucks (SBUX) hasn't done much but give up 2013's gains ever since the calendar flipped to January. And so investors have been selling into the weakness: funds unloaded 4.83 million shares of SBUX last quarter, selling off a $343 million bet on the firm at today's share prices.

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Starbucks is a $53 billion coffee company that runs a worldwide chain of more than 20,000 company-owned and licensed stores, as well as a packaged coffee products business whose products can be found on grocery shelves. The firm is largely responsible for creating a market for $5 cups of coffee, a lucrative business that's created more than a few competitors in the space. And that, in turn, has helped to fuel a strong growth story despite SBUX's current size.

Like Amazon, Starbucks currently sports a hefty valuation. While balance sheet leverage is still minimal, the firm's debt load has been growing in the past few quarters. Likewise, serious challenges in the packaged coffee space from the likes of Keurig Green Mountain (GMCR) is threatening to unseat SBUX in its home turf; the firm's own entree into the single-serve coffee market has failed to gain the traction that investors hope for.

Low moats, significant competition and a big price tag make SBUX a less than invigorating name to own in 2014.

Best Buy

Electronics retailer Best Buy (BBY) has gone from a punch line to a turnaround story in the last year and change. After struggling through declining sales, management scandals, and economic turmoil, Best Buy is regaining profitability again thanks to its "Renew Blue" turnaround initiative. But it hasn't been enough to attract hedge funds in 2014: portfolio managers unloaded 10.66 million shares in the first quarter of this year. That amounts to more than 20% of institutional investors' holdings in BBY.

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Best Buy may have great reach with its huge footprint of nearly 2,000 stores across the world, but encroachment from the likes of Amazon.com has meant that many Best Buy locations have become physical showrooms for BBY's better-priced rivals. The restructuring plan has helped to trim substantial costs and make BBY dramatically more competitive in 2014, but none of that changes the fact that Best Buy's business is being fundamentally challenged.

On the upside, investors don't have to pay much for the business today. Shares trade at just 13 times earnings -- a tiny multiple for such a low-margin business. If BBY can squeeze just a few more basis points out of its margins, shares could move materially.

Ultimately, it's hard to call BBY a conviction buy at today's levels. Until the firm can give consumers a compelling reason to spend money inside BBY stores, this name is going to continue to trade at a discount.

TJX

Discount apparel and housewares retailer TJX (TJX) is a different story. Not only does this firm sport a very compelling traffic driver for its stores, TJX also benefits from outsized margins from the retail sector. So while fund managers sell shares of TJX Companies in 2014, it makes sense to be on the other side of the trade.

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TJX owns an attractive collection of discount retail names that includes T.J. Maxx, Marshall's and HomeGoods -- three store chains that benefit when consumers want to seek out a bargain. TJX is the standard bearer in the off-price retail segment, the firm's stores stock major brand name clothing, accessories and housewares at prices that are fairly dramatic discounts to their retail costs. That positioning helps to ensure limited competition from online discount retailers; the limited stock nature of the off-price retail business makes online sales difficult. Better, full-price retailers and manufacturers need TJX because the firm is willing to buy massive swaths of excess inventory.

Retail is extremely capital intense, and TJX provides a top-line boost to its suppliers with zero risk. On the consumer side, TJX's value proposition means that the firm stands to do well in the event of a surprise economic hiccup. Even so, funds sold off 6.87 million shares of TJX in the most recent quarter.

Coach

Last up is luxury handbag maker Coach (COH). Not long ago, Coach was a bloated name that was still sitting high on the last vestiges of its huge success in 2008. While other higher-end accessory brands were reeling from the spending cuts of the Great Recession, Coach took the calculated risk of offering lower-priced luxury goods to "mass affluent" consumers. That strategy paid off in spades as COH managed to attract more customers without diluting its storied brand.

Coach makes and retails handbags and other accessories (such as wallets and umbrellas) through a network of around 543 North American stores and a large presence online and in third party channels like department stores. In the last few years, overseas has been the big story -- and newer stores in markets such as China and Japan have warranted a hefty growth premium in the stock's price.

But that premium is all but evaporated now. COH currently trades for just 12.9 times trailing earnings, a price tag that puts a fat 3.2% dividend yield on shares at current levels. That's a big income check for a stock that's already delivering hefty internal growth rates.

While funds sold 3.22 million shares of the handbag maker, it looks buyable here now that a big correction has taken hold.

To see these stocks in action, check out the Institutional Sells portfolio on Stockpickr.



-- Written by Jonas Elmerraji in Baltimore.

RELATED LINKS:

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Follow Stockpickr on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

At the time of publication, author had no positions in the stocks mentioned.

Jonas Elmerraji, CMT, is a senior market analyst at Agora Financial in Baltimore and a contributor to

TheStreet. Before that, he managed a portfolio of stocks for an investment advisory returned 15% in 2008. He has been featured in Forbes , Investor's Business Daily, and on CNBC.com. Jonas holds a degree in financial economics from UMBC and the Chartered Market Technician designation.

Follow Jonas on Twitter @JonasElmerraji

Top Internet Stocks To Invest In Right Now

The bad new is, if you didn't catch my first bullish call on DragonWave, Inc. (NASDAQ:DRWI) from November 21st, you missed out on what would have been about a 20% gain. The good news is, it's still not too late to get into DRWI and rack up a very nice profit. In fact, the best days for DragonWave may be in front of it.

First things first. DragonWave, Inc. makes networking equipment for high-end and back-end service providers... not the router you have in your house, but more like the huge routers your corporation or your local internet service provider might employ. As I noted back in November, DRWI was a $62 million company that generated $116 million in sales for its prior four quarters - a complete mismatch of sales and size, even if the company wasn't turning a profit yet. In the meantime the market cap has grown to $77 million, but compared to the tailing revenue of $116 million and the projected revenue of $163 million for 2014, there's still a ton of value packed in here. And, the recent news has all been bullish.

Top Internet Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Symantec Corporation(SYMC)

Symantec Corporation provides security, storage, and systems management solutions internationally. The company?s Consumer segment delivers Internet security, PC tune-up, and online backup solutions and services to individual users and home offices. Its Security and Compliance segment provides solutions for endpoint security and management, compliance, messaging management, data loss prevention, encryption, and authentication services to large, medium, and small-sized businesses, as well as offers solutions through its software-as-a-service (SaaS) security offerings. This segment?s products enable customers to secure, provision, and remotely manage their laptops, PCs, mobile devices, and servers. The company?s Storage and Server Management segment provides storage and server management, backup, archiving, and data protection solutions across heterogeneous storage and server platforms, as well as solutions delivered through its SaaS offerings to large, medium, and small-s ized businesses. Symantec?s Services segment offers implementation services and solutions, including consulting, business critical services, education, and managed security services. The company also provides various enterprise support offerings, such as annual maintenance support contracts, including content, upgrades, and technical support. It sells its products through its eCommerce platform, as well as through distributors, direct marketers, Internet-based resellers, system builders, ISPs, and retail locations worldwide. Symantec markets and sells its products through distributors, retailers, direct marketers, Internet-based resellers, original equipment manufacturers, system builders, and Internet service providers; and its e-commerce channels, as well as direct sales force, value-added and large account resellers, and system integrators. The company was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Amanda Alix]

  Of course, banks can't know when an attack is merely disruptive, and when it may be covering for criminal activity. Security company Symantec (NASDAQ: SYMC  ) has commented that these assaults have become a way for hackers to distract banks while funds are illegally withdrawn. Though most of the thefts have occurred in Europe, where attacks have progressed from website outages to actual bank heists, at least one U.S. bank, Citigroup, disclosed some losses due to cyber thievery earlier this year.

• [By Traders Reserve]

  For some reason, certain companies can attract buyers no matter the circumstance. I would put Symantec (SYMC) in that category. Shares have gained nearly 20% this year even as Symantec�� prospects deteriorated.

Top Internet Stocks To Invest In Right Now: IAC/InterActiveCorp (IACI)

IAC/InterActiveCorp engages in the Internet business in the United States and internationally. The company�s Search segment develops, markets, and distributes various downloadable toolbars; provides search, reference, and content services through its destination search and other Websites, including Ask.com and Dictionary.com; and aggregates and integrates local advertising and content for distribution to publishers on Web and mobile platforms, as well as markets and distributes mobile applications through which it provides search and additional services. Its Match segment offers subscription-based and advertiser-supported online personals services through its Websites comprising Match.com, Chemistry.com, OurTime.com, BlackPeopleMeet.com, and OkCupid.com, as well as through mobile applications and Meetic-branded Websites. The company�s ServiceMagic segment offers Market Match service that matches consumers with service professionals; Exact Match service, which enables con sumers to review service professional profiles and select the service professional that meets their specific needs; and 1800Contractor.com, an online directory of service professionals. This segment also offers Website design and hosting services. Its Media and Other segment operates CollegeHumor.com, an online entertainment Website that targets young males; Vimeo, a Website on which users can upload, share, and view video; and Pronto.com, a comparison search engine. This segment also engages in the creation of video content for various distribution platforms; and operates as an Internet retailer of footwear and related apparel and accessories, as well as focuses on multimedia business. The company was formerly known as InterActiveCorp and changed its name to IAC/InterActiveCorp in July 2004. IAC/InterActiveCorp was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Eric Volkman]

  Rhyu joins the company from IAC's (NASDAQ: IACI  ) Match.com, where he has filled the roles of both CFO and chief administrative officer since 2011. Previous to that, he was a senior vice president at News Corp's (NASDAQ: FOXA  ) Dow Jones & Company. He also served as corporate controller for both Sirius XM Radio and GrafTech International (NYSE: GTI  ) .

• [By Timothy Lutts, Publisher, Cabot Heritage Corporation]

  In 2004, TripAdvisor (TRIP) was purchased by conglomerate Interactive Corp (IACI), which spun off its travel businesses under the name of Expedia in 2005. In December 2011, TripAdvisor was spun off from Expedia in an IPO.

• [By Chris Isidore]

  Newsweek, the news magazine whose print version was abandoned late last year, was sold in August by IAC (IACI) to another all-digital news company, IBT Media.

• [By Eric Volkman]

  AP/Jim Mone Is Bitcoin a slam-dunk as the currency of the future? The Sacramento Kings seem to think so. The NBA team recently became the first pro sports franchise to accept Bitcoin as a form of payment. Basketball fans will be able not only to purchase tickets and merchandise online with the digital cryptocurrency, but also to use it to buy souvenirs at the arena come game time. The team is the latest in a growing number of commercial entities finding a slot in their virtual cash registers for Bitcoin. Little by little, momentum is building for a widespread acceptance of the upstart currency. Overstocking The Kings' drive towards the Bitcoin basket comes a week after the big online retailer Overstock.com (OSTK) announced it would start accepting payments in the currency. The move was an instant hit -- the first day the company had the nifty Bitcoin button as an option in its shopping cart, its customers used it to make more than 800 transactions for total sales of around $130,000. Overstock.com was by no means the first online marketplace to accept the currency. Numerous web retailers have been doing so for some time. It's a natural fit, %VIRTUAL-article-sponsoredlinks in a way, since Bitcoin exists solely in the digital realm. Customers booking flights on discount travel operator CheapAir.com, for example, can use Bitcoin to buy their tickets, as can love seekers on dating site OkCupid, owned by IAC/InteractiveCorp (IACI). These digital players are going to have plenty of company. Earlier this month, online games purveyor Zynga (ZNGA) started to dip its toes in the water, announcing that it was testing Bitcoin payments for some of its titles in conjunction with specialist transaction facilitator BitPay. But if Overstock.com didn't get there first, it's still the largest and most prominent e-retailer to take the Bitcoin plunge thus far. This is a big win for the currency and its advocates, and Overstock.com will surely be followed by more well-known comp

Best Wireless Telecom Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Google Inc.(GOOG)

Google Inc. maintains an index of Web sites and other online content for users, advertisers, and Google network members and other content providers. It offers AdWords, an auction-based advertising program; AdSense program, which enables Web sites that are part of the Google Network to deliver ads from its AdWords advertisers; Google Display, a display advertising network that comprises the videos, text, images, and other interactive ads; DoubleClick Ad Exchange, a real-time auction marketplace for the trading of display ad space; and YouTube that provides video, interactive, and other ad formats for advertisers. The company also provides Google Mobile that optimizes Google?s applications for mobile devices in browser and downloadable form; and enables advertisers to run search ad campaigns on mobile devices, as well as Google Local that provides local information on the Web; and Google Boost for small businesses to participate in the ads auction. In addition, it offers And roid, an open source mobile software platform; Google Chrome OS, an open source operating system; Google Chrome, a Web browser; Google TV, a platform for the consumers to use the television and the Internet on a single screen; and Google Books platform to discover, search, and consume content from printed books online. Further, the company provides Google Apps, a cloud computing suite of message and collaboration tools, which includes Gmail, Google Docs, Google Calendar, and Google Sites; Google Search Appliance that offers real-time search of business and intranet applications, and public Web sites; Google Site Search, a custom search engine; Google Commerce Search for online retail enterprises; Google Checkout to make online shopping and payments streamlined and secure; Google Maps Application Programming Interface; and Google Earth Enterprise, a firewall software solution for imagery and data visualization. Google Inc. was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Big Earnings Movers: Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) is up 13.8% at $1,011.65 after hammering estimates. Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NYSE: AMD) is down 13.7% at $3.53. General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) is up 3.6% at $25.57 after beating estimates. Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is up 2.6% at $29.68. Schlumberger Ltd. (NYSE: SLB) is up 2.8% at $93.95 on solid earnings. All these stocks, except AMD, posted new 52-week highs today; Google posted its all-time high.

• [By Richard Moroney]

  Google (GOOG)

  Unlike the other four stocks featured below, Google is not cheap, trading at 27 times trailing earnings and earning a Quadrix Value score of 31. However, it looks more reasonable based on the long-term outlook, with a PEG ratio (P/E divided by estimated five-year profit growth) of 1.2, cheaper than about 68% of US stocks.

Top Internet Stocks To Invest In Right Now: eBay Inc.(EBAY)

eBay Inc. provides online platforms, services, and tools to help individuals and merchants in online and mobile commerce and payments in the United States and internationally. Its Marketplaces segment operates ecommerce platform eBay.com; vertical shopping sites, such as StubHub, Fashion, Motors, and Half.com; and classifieds Websites, including Den Bl�Avis, BilBasen, Gumtree, Kijiji, LoQUo, Marktplaats.nl, mobile.de, Alamaula, Rent.com, eBay Anuncios, eBay Kleinanzeigen, and eBay Annunci, as well as provides advertising services. The company?s Payments segment offers payment and settlement services for consumers and merchants on and off eBay Websites and other merchant Websites. This segment operates PayPal, which enables individuals and businesses to send and receive payments online and through mobile devices; Bill Me Later that enables the United States merchants to offer, the United States consumers to obtain, credit at the point of sale for ecommerce and mobile tra nsactions; Zong, which allows users with mobile phones to purchase digital goods and have the transactions charged to their phone bill; and BillSAFE that enables customers pay for purchases upon receipt of an invoice. Its GSI segment offers an ecommerce services suite for enterprise clients that operate in general merchandise categories, including apparel, sporting goods, toys and baby, health and beauty, and home; and marketing services comprising full-service digital agency, enterprise email marketing, mobile advertising, affiliate marketing, advertisement retargeting, and in-depth analytics services. The company also offers X.commerce platform that provides software developers access to the company?s applications programming interfaces to develop functionality for various merchants; and Magento Connect, which allows developers to market and sell add-on functionality and solutions to merchants that use a Magento storefront. eBay Inc. was founded in 1995 and is headquarter ed in San Jose, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tim Beyers]

  Suddenly, Google (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) is getting grabby. According to a report from the Google Operating System, a new service called Google Mine is in the works that would allow Google+ users to document and share what they own.
  
  All Google will say is that it is always working on new things. No news there. But imagine if Google Mine does come to be. Not only could you share notes about your collections, or document valuables for insurance purposes, but you could also Imagine a barter system whereby you sell or trade via Google+, with any money exchanged via Google Wallet. A tailored credit or debit card might not be far behind, says Fool contributor Tim Beyers in the following video.
  
  At the very least, the idea threatens eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY  ) . The company depends on an ever-increasing volume of transactions to fund growth. In Q1, the auctioneer was responsible for $49 billion worth of commerce. By 2015, eBay wants to enable $300 billion in commerce annually, up from $175 billion last year. Google Mine, like Craigslist before it, could stand in the way of that.
  
  Do you agree? Please watch the video to get Tim's full take, and then let us know if having Google Mine would make you more or less bullish on the search king's long-term prospects.

• [By Buck Hartzell]

  eBay's (NASDAQ: EBAY  ) various businesses are growing quite nicely at the moment, but I'm surprisingly disappointed with the company nonetheless. Recently, it has become very obvious that investor capital is flowing into the pockets of insiders. C'mon eBay, it's not 1999 anymore.

• [By Benjamin Pimentel]

  Shares of eBay Inc. (EBAY) �shed 0.8% to close at $58.31. The company�� battle with Carl Icahn continued as eBay director Marc Andreessen defended his role at the company, calling the billionaire�� allegations ��alse and misleading.��

Top Internet Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Yahoo! Inc.(YHOO)

Yahoo! Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a digital media company that delivers personalized digital content and experiences through various devices worldwide. It offers online properties and services to users; and a range of marketing services to businesses. The company?s communications and communities offerings include Yahoo! Mail, Yahoo! Messenger, Yahoo! Groups, Yahoo! Answers, Flickr, and Connected TV, which provide a range of communication and social services to users and small businesses enabling users to organize into groups and share knowledge, common interests, and photos. Its search products comprise Yahoo! Search and Yahoo! Local, available free to users to navigate the Internet and discover content. The company?s marketplaces offerings and services include Yahoo! Shopping, Yahoo! Travel, Yahoo! Real Estate, Yahoo! Autos, and Yahoo! Small Business, which allow users to research specific topics, products, services, or areas of interest by review ing and exchanging information, obtaining contact details, or considering offers from providers of goods, services, or parties with similar interests. Its media offerings comprise Yahoo! Homepage, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Sports, Yahoo! Finance, My Yahoo!, Yahoo! Toolbar, Yahoo! Entertainment & Lifestyles, Yahoo! Contributor Network, and Yahoo! Pulse, which are designed to engage users with online content and services on the Web. The company also offers marketing services, such as display and search advertising, listing-based services, and commerce-based transactions to advertisers. In addition, it provides software and platform offerings for third-party developers, advertisers, and publishers, such as Yahoo! Developer Network, Yahoo! Open Strategy, Yahoo! Application Platform, Yahoo! Updates, Yahoo! Query Language, and Yahoo! Search BOSS. The company has strategic alliances with Nokia and ABC News, Inc. Yahoo! Inc. was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Sunnyvale, Californi a.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Igor Novgorodtsev]

  Google has updated its installation policies for AdWords affiliates such as browser toolbar makers which became active for most companies early this year. This change led to a number of articles on Seeking Alpha making a short case for AVG and Perion as well as some rebuttals from me and other authors. The biggest flaw in the "short case" was a failure to recognize that Google is not the only game in town. While Google commands a dominant 68% search market share, Bing (MSFT) with 18% and Yahoo (YHOO) with 11% are desperate to keep pace and do not impose equally onerous terms on its affiliates. Conduit dumped Google for Bing almost three years ago for US users. I speculate that the new company will become a predominantly Bing shop (Yahoo also runs on Bing with revenue sharing) removing remaining headwinds from Google policy changes, which put a dent in Perion's and Conduit's revenue this year. If Perion switches to Conduit's search page and toolbar, the switch to Bing for US users would become immediate and automatic.

• [By Tom Jacobs]

  The following table examines year-over-year quarterly DSOs, and then the more important sequential change in LTM DSOs at four companies competing with each other fiercely in many areas: Google (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) , Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) , Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT  ) , and Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO  ) . There's clearly a big fifth in�Facebook,�but we lack enough data for anything meaningful on DSOs so far.�

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Tech website re/code reported on Friday that Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) is working on a plan to build a competitor to the ubiquitous YouTube franchise that Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) paid $1.65 billion for in late 2006. Just a guess, but Yahoo is likely to spend a lot more than that to get a competitive product out the door.

Top Internet Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Amazon.com Inc.(AMZN)

Amazon.com, Inc. operates as an online retailer in North America and internationally. It operates retail Web sites, including amazon.com and amazon.ca. The company serves consumers through its retail Web sites and focuses on selection, price, and convenience. It also offers programs that enable sellers to sell their products on its Web sites, and their own branded Web sites. In addition, the company serves developer customers through Amazon Web Services, which provides access to technology infrastructure that developers can use to enable virtually various type of business. Further, it manufactures and sells the Kindle e-reader. Additionally, the company provides fulfillment; miscellaneous marketing and promotional agreements, such as online advertising; and co-branded credit cards. Amazon.com, Inc. was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Seattle, Washington.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By The Science of Hitting]

  3. The company sells a lot of items that seem out of place. Once I got out of the apparel sections and into the areas selling kitchen appliances and home goods, I noticed that a lot of the products being sold didn�� really mesh with what I envision as the future of JCP. A great example of this was a rack of 50 to 100 boxes of K-cups and Nespresso pods. I simply cannot imagine who comes to Penney�� to load up capsules for their single-serve coffee machine (and after looking at the rapidly approaching expiration date on many of the boxes, the answer might be that not many people do). Thinking about the strategy as presented by Johnson, it is about product quality, with a focus on differentiated experiences and offerings. What the company will do in sections like kitchen to eliminate the plethora of cheap appliances and other trinkets that have no real place in the store and face direct competition with the Walmarts (WMT) and Amazons (AMZN) of the world is still a bit unclear to me.

• [By Sean Williams]

  Barnes & Noble has been struggling for years as the content medium has shifted drastically from print to digital platforms. With such a large brick-and-mortar presence around the U.S., its stores have struggled to keep up with faster-growing online platforms like Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN  ) and even eBay to some extent. Although Barnes & Noble does have a direct-to-consumer online department, the brand name, convenience, and, in many cases, the lower price that Amazon and eBay can offer consumers pushes them to purchase hardback books online from the comfort of their own home.

• [By Eric Volkman]

  AP/Jim Mone Is Bitcoin a slam-dunk as the currency of the future? The Sacramento Kings seem to think so. The NBA team recently became the first pro sports franchise to accept Bitcoin as a form of payment. Basketball fans will be able not only to purchase tickets and merchandise online with the digital cryptocurrency, but also to use it to buy souvenirs at the arena come game time. The team is the latest in a growing number of commercial entities finding a slot in their virtual cash registers for Bitcoin. Little by little, momentum is building for a widespread acceptance of the upstart currency. Overstocking The Kings' drive towards the Bitcoin basket comes a week after the big online retailer Overstock.com (OSTK) announced it would start accepting payments in the currency. The move was an instant hit -- the first day the company had the nifty Bitcoin button as an option in its shopping cart, its customers used it to make more than 800 transactions for total sales of around $130,000. Overstock.com was by no means the first online marketplace to accept the currency. Numerous web retailers have been doing so for some time. It's a natural fit, %VIRTUAL-article-sponsoredlinks in a way, since Bitcoin exists solely in the digital realm. Customers booking flights on discount travel operator CheapAir.com, for example, can use Bitcoin to buy their tickets, as can love seekers on dating site OkCupid, owned by IAC/InteractiveCorp (IACI). These digital players are going to have plenty of company. Earlier this month, online games purveyor Zynga (ZNGA) started to dip its toes in the water, announcing that it was testing Bitcoin payments for some of its titles in conjunction with specialist transaction facilitator BitPay. But if Overstock.com didn't get there first, it's still the largest and most prominent e-retailer to take the Bitcoin plunge thus far. This is a big win for the currency and its advocates, and Overstock.com will surely be followed by more well-known comp

• [By Douglas A. McIntyre]

  The first evidence that retailers and publisher will cash in on�Leonard’s death is the front page at Amazon.com Inc.’s (NASDAQ: AMZN)�book section. Under “More to explore” is the first promotion: