Best Growth Stocks To Buy For 2017: January 2015

Saturday, January 31, 2015

Top Asian Companies For 2015

Top Asian Companies For 2015: EOG Resources Inc.(EOG)

EOG Resources, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration, development, production, and marketing of natural gas and crude oil primarily in the United States, Canada, the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the United Kingdom, and the People's Republic of China. As of December 31, 2010, its total estimated net proved reserves were 1,950 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMBoe), of which 386 million barrels (MMBbl) were crude oil and condensate reserves, and 152 MMBbl were natural gas liquids reserves; and 8,470 billion cubic feet (Bcf) or 1,412 MMBoe were natural gas reserves. The company held approximately 520,000 net acres in the mature oil window of the Eagle Ford Shale Play near San Antonio, Texas. EOG Resources, Inc. was founded in 1985 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Aimee Duffy]
Customer diversification and fee-based revenue are tough to beat. Let's look at some of QEP's top customers:
Anadarko Petroleum EOG Resources (NYSE: EOG ) Questar (NYSE: STR ) Ultra Resources, a subsidiary of Ultra Petroleum (NYSE: UPL )
EOG Resources accounted for 11% of the midstream unit's revenue in 2012, while Questar accounted for 12%. Ultra is one of the two-largest shippers on QEP's Green River 60-mile crude oil pipeline (the other is Chevron).
[By Arjun Sreekumar]
The higher resource estimate is due mainly to a reassessment of the quality of the company's acreage and improved technical knowledge it has gleaned over years of drilling. Conoco is not the only company to revise its Eagle Ford resource estimate upward. Peer EOG Resources (NYSE: EOG ) also this year increased its Eagle Ford resource potential to 3.2 billion barrels of oil equivalent, of BBOE, up 45%from a previous estimate of 2.2 BBOE, thanks largely to improvements in completion techniques and tighter spacing between wells.
[By Paul Ausick]
EOG Resources Inc. (NYSE: EOG) is down 0.8%, at $158.12 in a 52-week range of $105.45 to $161.47.

The U.S. Natural Gas Fund (NYSEMKT: UNG) is down 1.2%, at $18.56 in a 52-week range of $16.59 to $24.09. The Market Vectors Oil Services ETF (NYSEMKT: OIH) is down 0.6%, at $45.45 in a 52-week range of $36.24 to $46.78. The first fund tracks spot prices; the second includes major drillers and services companies.
[By Chad Fraser]
One stock the Energy Strategist highlights as a strong choice for growth-focused oil and gas investing is EOG Resources (NYSE: EOG), one of America’s largest non-integrated oil and gas firms and one of the top five companies in the prolific Bakken shale region by oil and gas production. It’s also the largest producer in Texas’s Eagle Ford shale.

source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.seekpennystocks.com/top-asian-companies-for-2015-3.html

Thursday, January 29, 2015

Jim Rogers to BBC - Tapering Will Lead to Disaster

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Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Best Dow Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now

I�� Professor and Chair of the Department of Economics at LIU Post in New York. I��e published several articles in professional journals and magazines, including Barron��, The New York Times, Japan Times, Newsday, Plain Dealer, Edge Singapore, European Management Review, Management International Review, and Journal of Risk and Insurance. I��e have also published several books, including Collective Entrepreneurship, The Ten Golden Rules, WOM and Buzz Marketing, Business Strategy in a Semiglobal Economy, China�� Challenge: Imitation or Innovation in International Business, and New Emerging Japanese Economy: Opportunity and Strategy for World Business. I��e traveled extensively throughout the world giving lectures and seminars for private and government organizations, including Beijing Academy of Social Science, Nagoya University, Tokyo Science University, Keimung University, University of Adelaide, Saint Gallen University, Duisburg University, University of Edinburgh, and Athens University of Economics and Business. Interests: Global markets, business, investment strategy, personal success.

Top 5 Recreation Stocks To Own Right Now: NewLink Genetics Corp (NLNK)

NewLink Genetics Corporation (NewLink), incorporated on June 4, 1999, is a development-stage company. The Company is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing immunotherapeutic products for cancer treatment. Its portfolio includes biologic and small-molecule immunotherapy product candidates focused to treat a range of oncology indications. Its product candidate, HyperAcute Pancreas cancer immunotherapy (HyperAcute Pancreas), is being studied in a Phase-III clinical trial in surgically-resected pancreatic cancer patients that is being performed under a Special Protocol Assessment (SPA), with the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). It has three additional product candidates in clinical development, including its HyperAcute Lung cancer immunotherapy (HyperAcute Lung), which is being studied in a Phase-I/II clinical trial conducted at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and its HyperAcute Melanoma cancer immunotherapy (HyperAcute Melanoma), which is being studied in an investigator-initiated Phase-II clinical trial.

The Company�� HyperAcute product candidates are based on its HyperAcute immunotherapy technology, which is designed to stimulate the human immune system. It is also conducting small-molecule based research and development to produce new drugs capable of breaking the immune system's tolerance to cancer through inhibition of the indoleamine-(2,3)-dioxygenase (IDO), pathway. It is engaged in the study of IDO pathway inhibitor product candidate, d-1-methyltryptophan (D-1MT), in collaboration with the NCI, in two Phase 1B/II clinical trials.

HyperAcute Cancer Immunotherapy Product Candidates

In May 2010, the Company initiated Phase-III clinical trial for HyperAcute Pancreas. Its second product candidate, HyperAcute Lung, is in a Phase I/II clinical trial that is enrolled with 54 patients for the treatment of refractory, recurrent or metastatic nonresectable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Its Hyper! Acute Melanoma product candidate is being studied in an investigator-initiated, fully enrolled 25 patient Phase-II clinical trial for the treatment of advanced melanoma.

HyperAcute Cancer Immunotherapy Technology

The Company�� HyperAcute immunotherapies operate by exploiting a natural barrier present in humans that protects against infection being transmitted from other mammals. This barrier is related to the enzyme, alpha (1,3) galactosyl transferase, which is expressed in the cells of lower mammals. The presence of this enzyme results in the expression of a non-human form of carbohydrate called alpha (1,3) galactosyl carbohydrates (a-Gal), on the surface of affected cells. Its HyperAcute immunotherapy product candidates are composed of irradiated, live, allogeneic human cancer cells modified to express the gene that makes a-Gal epitopes. This exposure to a-Gal stimulates the human immune system to attack and destroy the immunotherapy cells on, which a-Gal is present by activating complement.

IDO Pathway Inhibitor Product Candidate

The Company is developing D-1MT, a small-molecule, orally bioavailable product candidate designed to inhibit the IDO pathway. In preclinical models, IDO pathway inhibitors have shown anti-tumor effects in combination with radiotherapy, chemotherapy, targeted therapy or immunotherapy. Through its collaboration with the NCI, it is studying D-1MT in two Phase 1B/II safety and efficacy clinical trials in various chemotherapy and immunotherapy combinations. One clinical trial combines D-1MT with an Ad-p53 autologous dendritic cell vaccine for solid malignancies with p53 mutations, such as lung, breast and colon cancers. The other clinical trial involves the combined use of D-1MT and Taxotere for patients with advanced stage solid tumors, for which Taxotere is the standard-of-care treatment, such as metastatic breast, prostate, ovarian and lung cancers.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Jayson Derrick]
NewLink Genetics (NASDAQ: NLNK) announced that it will discontinue the phase 3 IMPRESS clinical trial of algenpantucel-L for patients with pancreatic cancer. The company intends to regroup and ��athering additional, more mature data in support of our mission to provide improved treatment options for patients with pancreatic cancer.��Shares fell 16.20 percent, closing at $31.60.

Best Dow Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: The Finish Line Inc.(FINL)

The Finish Line, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a mall-based specialty retailer in the United States. It operates Finish Line stores that offer performance and athletic casual footwear, apparel, and accessories for men, women, and kids. The company also sells merchandise through its Web site, finishline.com. As of September 22, 2011, it operated 646 stores in the United States. The company was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Garrett Cook]
Shares of Finish Line (NASDAQ: FINL) were down 11.25 percent to $26.10 after the company reported downbeat second-quarter results.

Powell Industries (NASDAQ: POWL) shares tumbled 8.79 percent to $45.35 after the company lowered its FY14 outlook.

Best Dow Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: Bounty Oil and Gas NL (BUY)

Bounty Oil & Gas NL (Bounty) is an Australia-based company engaged in the exploration, development, production and marketing of oil and gas (petroleum). The Company operates in two segments: Core Petroleum Segment and Secondary Segment. The Core Petroleum Segment is involved in oil and gas exploration, development and production. The Secondary Segment is involved in the Investment in listed securities. During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2012 (fiscal 2012), the Company produced light sweet crude oil from the Murta Zone in the Utopia Field , southwest Queensland and continued to sell the oil to the Eromanga Refinery 50 kilometers north of the field; produced oil from several oil fields and leases operated by Santos Limited in ATP 259P, Naccowlah Block, southwest Queensland, and achieved revenue from sale of listed investments. The Company also operates Nyuni Joint Venture which is offshore Tanzania, East Africa. Advisors' Opinion:

[By wax]
Positive (buy) investment interest means that the current key performance indicators (KPIs) favor investment consideration at this time.
The recent close of $10.01 is approximately 13% below the fair value buy target for the stock and approximately 58% below the fair value close target for the stock. The recent close is also 5% above analysts��twelve-month $9.50 median price target for the stock.

Best Dow Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: Elan Corporation PLC (ELN)

Elan Corporation, plc (Elan), incorporated in December 1969, is a neuroscience-based biotechnology company. The Company is focused on discovering and developing advanced therapies in neurodegenerative and autoimmune diseases. Elan�� business focuses on neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer�� disease and Parkinson�� disease; autoimmune diseases, including MS and Crohn�� disease and neo-epitope based targets for treatments across a range of therapeutic indications. Tysabri is a treatment for MS and Crohn�� disease that the Company markets and distributes with Biogen Idec. On September 16, 2011, Elan sold its EDT business to Alkermes, Inc. In November 2011, Elan launched a collaboration with the University of Cambridge, England, the Cambridge-Elan Centre for Research Innovation and Drug Discovery (Cambridge-Elan Centre). On December 21, 2012, the Company completed the demerger of Prothena Corporation plc. In April 2013, it closed the TYSABRI (natalizumab) Collaboration Transaction with Biogen Idec.

Tysabri

Tysabri, which is an alpha-4 integrin inhibitor, is a therapy for MS, a neurological disorder involving central nervous system dysfunction among adults. Tysabri is approved in more than 65 countries. Tysabri is approved in the United States as a monotherapy for relapsing forms of MS, for patients who have had an inadequate response to, or are unable to tolerate, an alternative MS therapy. In the European Union, it is approved for relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) in adult patients who have failed to respond to beta interferon or have rapidly evolving, severe RRMS. As of December 31, 2011, there were approximately 64,400 patients on Tysabri therapy worldwide.

In June 2011, the European Commission (EC) approved the inclusion of the anti-JCV antibody status as an additional factor in stratifying patients at risk for developing PML in the Summary of Product Characteristics��(SmPC) for Tysabri in the European Union. The Company has developed a two-step ! enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), STRATIFY JCV, with Biogen Idec. The assay detects anti-JCV antibodies in the blood of patients, and is commercially available in Europe. In January 2012, the FDA cleared the assay for commercial use in the United States. As of December 31, 2011, over 80,000 tests had been administered using the assay. Tysabri is marketed and distributed by Elan and Biogen Idec. The Company�� research group, Neotope, is focused on creating monoclonal antibodies based on neo-epitope targets for the treatment of a range of therapeutic indications.

Beta Amyloid Immunotherapies (AIP)

Beta amyloid immunotherapy includes the treatment of Alzheimer�� disease by inducing or enhancing the body�� immune response in order to clear toxic species of beta amyloid from the brain. The AIP includes bapineuzumab (intravenous and subcutaneous delivery) and ACC-001, as well as other compounds. Bapineuzumab is an experimental humanized monoclonal antibody delivered intravenously that is being studied as a treatment for mild to moderate Alzheimer�� disease. It is designed to provide antibodies to beta amyloid directly to the patient (passive immunotherapy).

ELND005, an A� Aggregation Inhibitor

The small molecule ELND005 (Scyllo-inositol) is a beta amyloid anti-aggregation agent. Preclinical data suggest that ELND005 may act through the mechanism of preventing and reversing the fibrilisation of beta amyloid (the aggregation of beta amyloid into clumps of insoluble oligomers). ELND005 may have additional applications in psychiatric indications, such as bipolar disorder. In November 2011, the Company entered into a manufacturing agreement for the supply of the active pharmaceutical ingredient for ELND005 with Lonza Group AG.

Neotope Biosciences Limited

Neotope Biosciences Limited (Neotope) is the Company�� wholly owned subsidiary that focuses on the discovery and development of antibodies to neo-epitope related targ! ets for t! he treatment of a range of indications. It includes amyloidosis, diabetes, cancer and macular degeneration. Neotope�� portfolio of targets includes alpha-synuclein for the potential treatment of synucleinopathies, such as Lewy body dementia and Parkinson�� disease, tau for Alzheimer�� disease and other tauopathies. It also has a program for type 2-diabetes.

Onclave Therapeutics Limited

Elan�� wholly owned subsidiary Onclave Therapeutics Limited (Onclave) was formed to develop assets originating from Elan that have application in oncology related diseases. Onclave�� program, NEOD001, which originated from Neotope, is being investigated for the treatment of AL amyloidosis, which is a fatal disease involving abnormal accumulation of amyloid in organs and tissue. During the year ended December 31, 2011, Onclave filed for orphan drug designation of NEOD001. Onclave�� pipeline includes additional compounds with relevance in diverse cancer indications.

The Company competes with Biogen Idec, Bayer Schering Pharma AG, Bayer Schering Pharma, Merck Serono, Pfizer, Teva Neurosciences, Inc., Sanofi-Aventis and Novartis AG.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Sarah Jones]
Elan Corp. (ELN) fell 3.4 percent to 9.80 euros. Shareholders risk losing $2 billion by listening to the company�� board and rejecting Royalty Pharma�� takeover bid at a ballot next week.
[By Tim Brugger]
After consulting with outside financial advisors, in conjunction with the Elan (NYSE: ELN ) board of directors and executive management team, the Ireland-based biotechnology company has determined the recent $12.50-a-share buyout offer from Royalty Pharma undervalues select Elan assets by as much as $4.3 billion, the company announced Wednesday.
[By WALLSTCHEATSHEET]
Elan is a biotechnology company that is looking for ways to improve and better the lives of people with neurodegenerative and autoimmune diseases. The stock has struggled over the last couple of years and looks to be comfortable at these prices. Over the last four quarters, investors in the company have been disappointed as earnings have decreased while revenue figures have increased. Relative to its peers and sector, Elan has been a year-to-date performance leader. WAIT AND SEE what Elan does in coming quarters.
[By Sean Williams]
Elan (NYSE: ELN )
Having a lot of cash in the biotech sector doesn't mean that a company's clinical trials will translate into success. Elan's claim to fame was the development of multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri, which it licensed out to Biogen Idec (NASDAQ: BIIB ) . Sales of the drug hit $1.6 billion last year.

Best Dow Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: Texas Rare Earth Resources Corp (TRER.PK)

Texas Rare Earth Resources Corp., formerly Standard Silver Corporation, incorporated on July 29, 1970. a mining company engaged in the business of the acquisition and development of mineral properties. As of August 31, 2012, it held a nineteen year lease to explore and develop a 950 acre rare earth uranium-beryllium prospect located in Hudspeth County, Texas known as Round Top and prospecting permits covering an adjacent 9,345 acres.

The Company�� principal focus will be on developing a metallurgical process to concentrate or otherwise extract the metals from the Round Top rhyolite. In addition to the Round Top Project, the Company also own title to 12 unpatented mining claims, the Macho group, comprising 240 acres covering the Old Dude Mine, located in Sierra County, New Mexico. Another 18 unpatented mining claims and fractional claims, the HA group, consisting 274 acres cover an andesite hosted vein system similar to and some 10 miles to the southwest of the Macho District.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Jake Mitchell]
As a speculative play on the industry, I came across Texas Rare Earth Resources (TRER.PK), which is principally focused on its 950 acre Round Top project. A Preliminary Economic Assessment by an independent third party found that there are an estimated over 1 billion metric tonnes of resources containing over 1 billion pounds of rare earth elements. A revised PEA, which was originally projected to have a capital cost of $2.1 billion is now estimated to be between $150 million to $350 million. A key concern in the exploration of these mines is how expensive it is to ultimately extract the rare earths from the ground. If Texas Rare Earth is able to show evidence that cost has been significantly reduced it will be the target of interested parties globally.

Best Dow Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: Mack-Cali Realty Corporation (CLI)

Mack-Cali Realty Corporation is a real estate investment trust (REIT). It engages in the leasing, management, acquisition, development, and construction of commercial real estate properties in the United States. The firm invests in the real estate markets of the United States primarily in the northeastern United States, as well as in the District of Columbia. It primarily invests in office and office/flex buildings, totaling approximately 30.0 million square feet, and developable land. The firm�s properties also include industrial/warehouse buildings, retail properties, a hotel, and parcels of land leased. Mack-Cali Realty was incorporated in 1994 and is based in Cranford, New Jersey.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Lisa Levin]
Mack-Cali Realty (NYSE: CLI) shares reached a new 52-week low of $19.12. Mack-Cali's PEG ratio is -2.63.

Rocket Fuel (NASDAQ: FUEL) shares dipped 11.85% to touch a new 52-week low of $41.74 on Q3 results.
[By Lisa Levin]
Mack-Cali Realty (NYSE: CLI) shares moved up 4.90% to $19.50. The volume of Mack-Cali Realty traded was 998% higher than normal. Mack-Cali announced that CEO Mitchell E. Hersh will step sown.

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Top Specialty Retail Stocks To Buy Right Now

Top Specialty Retail Stocks To Buy Right Now: CSS Industries Inc (CSS)

CSS Industries, Inc. (CSS), incorporated on November 5, 1923, is a company primarily engaged in the design, manufacture, procurement, distribution and sale of seasonal and all occasion social expression products, principally to mass market retailers. These seasonal and all occasion products include gift wrap, gift bags, gift boxes, gift card holders, boxed greeting cards, gift tags, decorative tissue paper, decorations, classroom exchange Valentines, decorative ribbons and bows, floral accessories, Halloween masks, costumes, make-up and novelties, Easter egg dyes and novelties, craft and educational products, stickers, memory books, stationery, journals, notecards, infant and wedding photo albums, scrapbooks, and other gift items that commemorate lifes celebrations. In September 5, 2012, it sold the Halloween portion of its Paper Magic business to Gemmy Industries (HK) Limited.

CSS product provides its retail customers the opportunity to use a single ven dor for much of their seasonal product requirements. A substantial portion of CSS products are manufactured, packaged and/or warehoused in 10 facilities located in the United States, with the remainder purchased primarily from manufacturers in Asia and Mexico. The Companys products are sold to its customers by national and regional account sales managers, sales representatives, product specialists and by a network of independent manufacturers representatives. The Companys principal operating subsidiaries include Paper Magic Group, Inc. (Paper Magic), Berwick Offray LLC (Berwick Offray) and C.R. Gibson, LLC (C.R. Gibson). CSS designs, manufactures, procures, distributes and sells a range of seasonal consumer products primarily through the mass market distribution channel. Christmas products include gift wrap, gift bags, gift boxes, gift card holders, boxed greeting cards, gift tags, decorative tissue paper and decorations. CSS Valentine product offerings incl! ud e classroom exchange Valentine cards and other related Valen! tine products, while its Easter product offerings include Dudleys brand of Easter egg dyes and related Easter seasonal products. CSS also designs and markets decorative ribbons and bows, all occasion boxed greeting cards, gift wrap, gift bags, gift boxes, gift card holders, decorative and waxed tissue, decorative films and foils, stickers, memory books, stationery, journals, notecards, infant and wedding photo albums, scrapbooks, floral accessories and other gift and craft items to its mass market, craft, specialty and floral retail and wholesale distribution customers, and teachers' aids and other learning oriented products to the education market through mass market retailers, school supply distributors and teachers' stores. Key brands include Paper Magic, Berwick, Offray, C.R. Gibson, Markings, Creative Papers, Tapestry, Dudleys, Don Post Studios, Eureka, Learning Playground, Stickerfitti and iota. Key brands include Paper Magic, Berwick, Offray, C.R. Gibson, Markin gs, Creative Papers, Tapestry, Seastone, Dudleys, Eureka, Learning Playground and Stickerfitti.

CSS operates 10 manufacturing and/or distribution facilities located in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Alabama and Texas. Its boxed greeting cards are produced by Asian manufacturers to the Companys specifications. Halloween make-up and Easter egg dye products are manufactured in Asia to specific formulae by contract manufacturers who meet regulatory requirements for the formularization and packaging of such products. Ribbons and bows are primarily manufactured and warehoused in seven facilities located in Pennsylvania, Maryland, South Carolina and Texas. Memory books, stationery, journals and notecards, infant and wedding photo albums, scrapbooks, and other gift items are imported from Asian manufacturers and warehoused and distributed from a distribution facility in Florence, Alabama. Floral accessories, including pot covers, foil, waxe d! tissue, ! shred, aisle runners, corsage bags and other paper! and film! products, are manufactured in a facility located in Milford, New Hampshire and Juarez, Mexico. Manufacturing includes gravure and flexo printing, waxing and converting. Products are warehoused and distributed from a distribution facility in Berwick, Pennsylvania. Other products including, but not limited to, decorative tissue paper, all occasion gift wrap, gift tags, gift bags, gift boxes, gift card holders, classroom exchange Valentine products, Halloween masks, costumes and novelties, Easter products, decorations and school products are designed to the specifications of CSS and are imported primarily from Asian manufacturers.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Rich Duprey]
Gifts makerCSS Industries (NYSE: CSS ) announced yesterday its second-quarter dividend of $0.15 per share, the same rate it's paid since 2008.

source from Top Stocks To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/top-specialty-retail-stocks-to-buy-right-now.html

Top 10 Consumer Companies To Buy For 2015

Top 10 Consumer Companies To Buy For 2015: J&J Snack Foods Corp (JJSF)

J & J Snack Foods Corp. (J & J), incorporated in 1971, manufactures nutritional snack foods and distributes frozen beverages, which it markets nationally to the food service and retail supermarket industries. The Company's principal snack food products are soft pretzels marketed under the brand name SUPERPRETZEL and frozen juice treats and desserts marketed under the LUIGI'S, WHOLE FRUIT, ICEE and MINUTE MAID brand names. In June 2012, the Company acquired the assets of Kim & Scott's Gourmet Pretzels, Inc., a manufacturer and seller of a brand soft pretzel. In October 2013, J & J Snack Foods Corp. acquired the assets of New York Pretzel.

J & J is a manufacturer of soft pretzels in the United States, Mexico and Canada. Other snack food products include churros (an Hispanic pastry), funnel cake, dough enrobed handheld products and bakery products. The Company's principal frozen beverage products are the ICEE brand frozen carbonated beverage and the SLUSH PUPPIE brand frozen uncarbonated beverage. The Company's Food Service and Frozen Beverages sales are made to food service customers, including snack bar and food stand locations in chain, department, discount, warehouse club and convenience stores; malls and shopping centers; fast food outlets; stadiums and sports arenas; leisure and theme parks; movie theatres; independent retailers, and schools, colleges and other institutions. The Company's retail supermarket customers are supermarket chains. The Company operates in three business segments: Food Service, Retail Supermarkets and Frozen Beverages.

The products sold by the food service segment are soft pretzels, frozen juice treats and desserts, churros, dough enrobed handheld products and baked goods. Its customers in the food service segment include snack bars and food stands in chain, depar! tment and discount stores; malls and shopping centers; casual dining restaurants; fast food outlets; stadiums and s ports arenas; leisure and theme parks; convenience stores; m! ovie theatres; warehouse club stores; schools, colleges, and other institutions. The products sold to the retail supermarket channel are soft pretzel products, including SUPERPRETZEL, frozen juice treats and desserts, including LUIGI'S Real Italian Ice, MINUTE MAID Juice Bars and Soft Frozen Lemonade, WHOLE FRUIT frozen fruit bars and sorbet, ICEE Squeeze-Up Tubes and dough enrobed handheld products, including PATIO burritos. The Company sells frozen beverages to the food service industry primarily under the names ICEE, SLUSH PUPPIE, PARROT ICE and ARCTIC BLAST in the United States, Mexico and Canada. It also provides repair and maintenance service to customers for customers' owned equipment.

Soft Pretzels

The Company's soft pretzels are sold under many brand names, which are SUPERPRETZEL, PRETZEL FILLERS, PRETZELFILS, GOURMET TWISTS, MR. TWISTER, SOFT PRETZEL BITES, SOFTSTIX, SOFT PRETZEL BUNS, TEXAS TWIST, CINNAPRETZEL and SERIOUSLY TWISTED! ; and under private labels. Soft pretzels are sold in the Food Service and Retail Supermarket segments. During fiscal year ended September 29, 2012 (fiscal 2012), soft pretzel sales amounted to 18% of the Company's revenue.

Soft pretzels, ranging in size from one to ten ounces in weight, are shaped and formed by the Company's twister machines. These soft pretzel tying machines are for twisting dough into the traditional pretzel shape. In addition, it makes soft pretzels, which are extruded or shaped by hand. The Company's marketing program in the Food Service segment includes supplying ovens, mobile merchandisers, display cases, warmers and similar merchandising equipment to the retailer to prepare and promote the sale of soft pretzels.

Frozen Juice Treats and Desserts

The Company's frozen juice treats and d! esserts a! re marketed primarily under the LUIGI'S, WHOLE FRUIT, ICEE and MINUTE MAID brand names. Frozen juice treats and desserts are sold in the Food Service and Retail Supermarke! ts segmen! ts. During fiscal 2012, frozen juice treats and dessert sales were 13% of the Company's revenue.

The Company's school food service MINUTE MAID and WHOLE FRUIT frozen juice bars and cups are manufactured from an apple or pineapple juice concentrate to which water, sweeteners, coloring (in some cases) and flavorings are added. The juice bars are produced in various flavors and are packaged in a sealed push-up paper container referred to as the Milliken M-pak. The balance of the Company's frozen juice treats and desserts products are manufactured from water, sweeteners and fruit juice concentrates in various flavors and packaging, including cups, tubes, sticks, M-paks, pints and tubs.

Churros

The Company's churros are sold under the TIO PEPE'S and CALIFORNIA CHURROS brand names. Churros are sold to the Food Service and Retail Supermarkets segments. During fiscal 2012, Churro sales were 6% of the Company's sales. Churros are H ispanic pastries in stick form, which the Company produces in several sizes. The churros are deep fried, frozen and packaged. At food service point-of-sale they are reheated and topped with a cinnamon sugar mixture. The Company also sells fruit and creme-filled churros. The Company supplies churro merchandising equipment.

Handheld Products

The Company's dough enrobed handheld products are marketed under the PATIO, HAND FULLS, HOLLY RIDGE BAKERY, VILLA TALIANO, TOP PICKS brand names and under private labels. Handheld products are sold to the Food Service and Retail Supermarket segments. During fiscal 2012, handheld product sales amounted to 6% of the Company's sales.

Bakery Products

The Company's bakery products are marketed under the MRS. GOODCOOKIE, READI-BAKE, COUNTRY HOME, MARY B'S, DADD! Y RAY'S! and JANA'S brand names, and under private labels. Bakery products include biscuits, fig and fruit bars, cookies, breads, rolls, crumb, muffins and donuts. Bakery products are sold ! to the Fo! od Service segment. During fiscal 2012, bakery products sales amounted to 32% of the Company's sales.

Frozen Beverages

The Company markets frozen beverages primarily under the names ICEE, SLUSH PUPPIE, PARROT ICE and ARCTIC BLAST in the United States, Mexico and Canada. During fiscal 2012, frozen beverages are sold in the Frozen Beverages segment. During fiscal 2012, frozen beverage sales amounted to 16% of revenue in fiscal 2012.

Under the Company's principal marketing program for frozen carbonated beverages, it installs frozen beverage dispensers for its ICEE and ARCTIC BLAST brands at customer locations and thereafter services the machines, arranges to supply customers with ingredients required for production of the frozen beverages, and supports customer retail sales efforts with in-store promotions and point-of-sale materials. During fiscal 2012, the Company also provided repair and maintenance service to customers for customer s' owned equipment and sells equipment in its Frozen Beverages segment, revenue from which amounted to 7% of sales. The Company sells frozen un-carbonated beverages under the SLUSH PUPPIE and PARROT ICE brands through a distributor network and through its own distribution network.

Each new frozen carbonated customer location requires a frozen beverage dispenser supplied by the Company or by the customer. Company-supplied frozen carbonated dispensers are purchased from outside vendors, built new or rebuilt by the Company. The Company provides managed service and/or products to approximately 87,000 Company-owned and customer-owned dispensers.

Other Products

Other products sold by the Company include soft drinks, funnel cakes sold under the FUNNEL CAKE FACTORY brand name and smaller amounts of vari! ous other! food products. These products are sold in the Food Service and Frozen Beverages segments.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Suravi Thacker]
Food industry is one of the safest options to invest in since food can never be out of vogue. Moreover, even snack making industry is quite a lucrative one with some of the prominent players being Kellogg (K), Mondelez International (MDLZ) and J&J Snack Foods (JJSF). However, it is important to understand which among these will be the best pick for any investor.
[By John Kell and Lauren Pollock var popups = dojo.query(".socialByline .popC"); ]
Hologic Inc.(HOLX) named Eric Compton as its chief operating officer, a newly created position, amid a handful of leadership changes at the medical-equipment maker. Mr. Compton most recently worked as the world-wide president of Johnson & Johnson’s Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics. J&J(JJSF) in January agreed to sell the blood-testing business for $4.15 billion to Carlyle Group L.P(CG).

source from Top Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksblog.com/top-10-consumer-companies-to-buy-for-2015-3.html

Monday, January 26, 2015

Emerging Stocks Trim Best Quarter in 2013 as Vale Tumbles

Emerging-market stocks fell, paring the biggest quarterly gain this year, as Vale SA led commodity shares lower before a potential U.S. government shutdown. Indonesia's rupiah had the largest three-month drop since 2008.

The MSCI Emerging Markets Index decreased 1.2 percent to 987.46, trimming its rally for the quarter to 5 percent. Brazil's Ibovespa (IBOV) posted the longest losing streak since March as mining company Vale slumped, while OAO RusHydro paced losses in Russia. Benchmark equity gauges from Philippines to Indonesia and Thailand retreated at least 2.4 percent. The rupiah led losses in emerging markets this quarter.

Commodity shares in the measure for developing nations declined as the S&P GSCI gauge of 24 raw materials slid to a seven-week low after a Chinese manufacturing index rose less than analysts forecast. Both parties in U.S. Congress dug in deeper hours before a midnight deadline to keep the government open, lobbing dead-end proposals and insults across the Capitol as the first partial shutdown in 17 years looked inevitable.

Top 10 Diversified Bank Stocks To Own For 2015

"What happens in the U.S. affects global markets," Alan Gayle, senior strategist at RidgeWorth Capital Management, said by phone from Atlanta. His firm oversees about $48 billion. "If there's some concern about economic momentum entering the fourth quarter, that's probably going to weigh on emerging markets."

Today's drop pared a monthly gain in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index to 6.2 percent. The gauge traded at 10.4 times projected earnings, compared with the valuation of 13.9 for the MSCI World Index, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Emerging ETF

The iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index exchange-traded fund slid 1.2 percent to $40.76. The Chicago Board Options Exchange Emerging Markets ETF Volatility Index, a measure of options prices on the fund and expectations of price swings, surged 9.8 percent to 25.73.

Brazil's Ibovespa dropped for a fifth consecutive day as lower commodity prices pushed raw-material producers down. Vale fell 1.9 percent, while oil company OGX Petroleo e Gas Participacoes SA sank to a record after people with direct knowledge of the matter said it plans to miss a $44.5 million payment on dollar bonds scheduled for tomorrow.

Russian stocks trimmed their strongest quarterly rally in almost three years as crude oil, the nation's chief export earner, declined. OAO RusHydro, the nation's biggest renewable energy producer, sank 2.6 percent. OAO Mechel, Russia's largest coking coal producer, retreated 2.3 percent.

China's Stocks

The Shanghai Composite Index (SHCOMP) capped the best quarter in three years as consumer discretionary and technology stocks advanced in the last trading day before a weeklong holiday shuts the nation's markets. Shanghai Oriental Pearl (Group) Co. jumped by the 10 percent daily limit after the central government inaugurated the Shanghai free trade zone yesterday.

Chinese shares gained even after data showed that the Purchasing Managers' Index from HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics rose to 50.2 in September from 50.1 in August. The final number was less than last week's 51.2 preliminary reading and the 51.2 median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey. A similar gauge from the government is due tomorrow.

India's (SENSEX) benchmark stock index fell to a three-week low. ICICI Bank Ltd. (ICICIBC), the country's second-biggest lender, slid 4.3 percent. The rupee capped its best month in a year after the central bank took steps to boost dollar supply.

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index fell 3 percent, capping a 4.2 percent quarterly loss. Thailand's SET Index (SET) sank 2.4 percent to the lowest level since Sept. 6. Indonesia's rupiah weakened 14 percent since the end of June as of 4:24 p.m. in Jakarta, the biggest loss among 24 developing-nation exchange rates tracked by Bloomberg. The rupiah fell 5.7 percent in September and 0.4 percent today.

The premium investors demand to own emerging-market debt over U.S. Treasuries advanced four basis points, or 0.04 percentage point, to 337 basis points, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Sunday, January 25, 2015

Best Rising Companies To Invest In 2014

If you had questions about the “if and when” of the tapering of the $85 billion in bond purchases in quantitative easing, the answer is looking more and more clear that it will begin later in 2013 and that the bond buying will end in the middle of 2014. Silver and gold have been victims of rising interest rates, even if there has been some effort from the World Gold Council to show why this time may be different about rising rates and precious metals. Now we have yet another report showing that silver and gold already may�have discounted the impact of the bond purchase tapering.

ETF Securities showed that gold and silver have risen despite spikes in U.S. bond yields and despite a stronger dollar. To show just how much the rise is, the price of silver is up by 27% in the past eight weeks. The price of gold has�risen by 14% since its lows in early July. Monday’s report from ETF Securities shows that precious metals took the latest release of the Fed�� FOMC minutes in stride as both gold and silver rose last week. It said:

Top Dividend Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Teck Resources Ltd(TCK)

Teck Resources Limited operates as a diversified mining, mineral processing, and metallurgical company. It is involved in exploring, developing, smelting, refining, safety, environmental protecting, product stewardship, recycling, and researching activities. The company offers zinc and lead concentrates, and copper and molybdenum concentrates; zinc and lead, and alloys in a range of compositions and shapes; specialty metals, such as germanium, indium, and cadmium; and precious metals, including refined silver and gold dore. It also provides materials comprising low alpha lead materials, as well as delivers low alpha tin and copper electroplating anodes for semiconductors and integrated circuits; indium-based paste for thermal interfaces; and metal salt solutions used in the production of solar panels and other plating applications. In addition, Teck Resources Limited offers non-ferrous metal refining, metal alloying and casting, electro-winning and electro-refining, metal distilling, metal atomizing, metal salt producing, and metal recycling services for product development. Further, it provides industrial chemicals comprising copper arsenate, copper sulphate pentahydrate, ferrous granules, molten sulphur, sodium antimonate, sulphur dioxide, and sulphuric acid; ammonium sulphate solution and zinc sulphate solution; steelmaking coal; and fertilizers. The company has exploration operations in various countries of the Americas, the Asia Pacific, Europe, and Africa. Teck Resources Limited holds interest in oil sands development assets; wind power project; and a portfolio of copper, zinc, and gold exploration properties. It also owns interests in approximately 13 mines in Canada, the United States, Chile, and Peru, as well as 1 metallurgical complex in Canada. The company was formerly known as Teck Cominco Limited and changed its name to Teck Resources Limited in April 2009. Teck Resources Limited was founded in 1906 and is headquartered in Vancou ver, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Ben Levisohn]
Against that backdrop, Cowen’s Daniel Scott and Bryan Bergin have decided to cut their ratings on met coal producers Alpha Natural Resources, Walter Energy and Teck Resources (TCK) to Market Perform from Outperform. Scott and Bergin explain why:

Best Rising Companies To Invest In 2014: iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Value ETF (IJS)

The iShares S&P SmallCap 600 Value Index Fund (the Fund) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Standard & Poor�� SmallCap 600/Citigroup Value Index (the Index). The Index measures the performance of the small-capitalization value sector of the United States equity market. The Index is a subset of the S&P SmallCap 600 Index and consists of those companies exhibiting the strongest value characteristics within the S&P SmallCap 600 Index.

The Fund invests in a representative sample of securities included in the Index that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Index. Barclays Global Fund Advisors (BGFA) acts as the investment advisor of the Fund.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Gary Gordon]
On behalf of most of my clients in 2013, I chose to overweight tech and health care. However, I did so with areas that are traditionally less volatile. I continue to own Powershares Pharmaceuticals (PJP) and/or SPDR Select Healthcare (XLV). I’ve been a proponent of “old tech” with the attractive prices and dividends; First Trust NASDAQ Tech Dividend (TDIV) fits the bill. Additionally, I have remained faithful to iShares Small Cap Value (IJS) for small-cap exposure, rather than hop on the IWO express.

Best Rising Companies To Invest In 2014: NN Inc.(NNBR)

NN, Inc. engages in the manufacture and sale of metal bearing, plastic and rubber, and precision metal components for bearing manufacturers worldwide. It operates in three segments: Metal Bearing Components, Plastic and Rubber Components, and Precision Metal Components. The Metal Bearing Components segment manufactures precision steel balls that are used primarily by manufacturers of anti-friction bearings; steel rollers comprising tapered rollers used in automotive gearbox applications, automotive wheel bearings, and various industrial applications; cylindrical rollers; and precision metal retainers for roller bearings. The Plastic and Rubber Components segment offers precision bearing seals for use in the automotive, industrial, agricultural, and mining markets; precision plastic retainers for ball and roller bearings used in various industrial applications; and precision plastic components, including automotive under-the-hood components, electronic instrument cases, pre cision electronic connectors and lenses, and various specialized industrial and consumer parts. The Precision Metal Components segment provides engineered shafts, fluid power assemblies, and complex precision assembled and tested parts used in the automotive, HVAC, fluid power, and diesel engine markets. The company was founded in 1980 and is based in Johnson City, Tennessee.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Marc Bastow]
Precision ball-bearings and tapered rollings manufacturer NN, Inc. (NNBR) raised its quarterly dividend 16.6% to 7 cents per share, payable March 14 to shareholders of record as of Feb. 28.
NNBR Dividend Yield: 1.47%
[By Eric Volkman]
NN (NASDAQ: NNBR ) has a new man in the CEO chair. Richard Holder has been tapped to be the firm's CEO, effective June 3. He replaces the retiring Roderick Baty. Holder will also assume Baty's board seat, the term for which runs through NN's annual meeting in 2015.

Best Rising Companies To Invest In 2014: PIMCO 1-5 Year US TIPS Index Exchange-Traded Fund (STPZ)

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

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

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

Best Rising Companies To Invest In 2014: AllianceBernstein Global High Income Fund Inc (AWF)

AllianceBernstein Global High Income Fund, Inc., (the Fund), formerly Alliance World Dollar Government Fund II, Inc. is a non-diversified, closed-end management investment company. This Fund seeks high current income and secondarily, capital appreciation. Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 65% of its total assets in sovereign debt obligations issued or guaranteed by foreign governments. Up to 35% of the Fund's investments may comprise high-yielding, high-risk fixed-income securities issued by United States corporations. AllianceBernstein Investments, Inc., an affiliate of AllianceBernstein L.P., is the manager of the Fund.

The Fund is permitted to invest, without limit, in securities denominated in non-United States currencies, as well as those denominated in the United States dollar. The Fund may also invest, without limit, in sovereign debt securities issued by emerging and developed nations and in debt securities of United States and non-United States corporate issuers.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Adam Aloisi]
The following chart takes a comparative look at some widely held ETFs/CEFs holding different types of bonds. The objective is to visualize not only how much these products cost, but also to break down the percent of total yield depleted by management fees. I define total yield as current annualized yield plus net fees - in other words the yield of the fund if there were no management fees attached. The funds we will examine are aforementioned BND, iShares 20+ Treasury Bond (TLT), iShares High-Yield Corporate (HYG), Nuveen Municipal Value (NUV), Eaton Vance Limited Duration (EVV) and Alliance Bernstein Global High-Yield (AWF).

Best Rising Companies To Invest In 2014: Novartis AG (NOVN)

Novartis AG provides healthcare solutions. The Company is a multinational group of companies specializing in the research, development, manufacturing and marketing of a range of healthcare products led by pharmaceuticals. Its portfolio includes medicines, eye care, cost-saving generic pharmaceuticals, preventive vaccines and diagnostic tools, over-the-counter and animal health products. It has five segments: Pharmaceuticals, which include patent-protected prescription medicines; Alcon, which include surgical, ophthalmic pharmaceutical and vision care products; Sandoz, which include generic pharmaceuticals; vaccines and diagnostics, which include human vaccines and blood-testing diagnostics, and consumer health, which include over-the-counter medicines (OTC) and Animal Health. In February 2014, it acquired CoStim Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Advisors' Opinion:

[By Corinne Gretler]
Novartis AG (NOVN) climbed 2 percent to 69.25 Swiss francs after raising its full-year forecasts. Sales will increase at a low-to mid-single-digit percentage rate in constant currencies, and core operating income will match or exceed the previous year, Europe�� biggest drugmaker said. In July, the company forecast a low-single-digit percentage decline in earnings in 2013, with sales rising at a similar rate.

Saturday, January 24, 2015

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Invest In 2015

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Invest In 2015: Apple Inc.(AAPL)

Apple Inc., together with subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and markets personal computers, mobile communication and media devices, and portable digital music players, as well as sells related software, services, peripherals, networking solutions, and third-party digital content and applications worldwide. The company sells its products worldwide through its online stores, retail stores, direct sales force, third-party wholesalers, resellers, and value-added resellers. In addition, it sells third-party Mac, iPhone, iPad, and iPod compatible products, including application software, printers, storage devices, speakers, headphones, and other accessories and peripherals through its online and retail stores; and digital content and applications through the iTunes Store. The company sells its products to consumer, small and mid-sized business, education, enterprise, government, and creative markets. As of September 25, 2010, it had 317 retail stores, including 233 stores in the United States and 84 stores internationally. The company, formerly known as Apple Computer, Inc., was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Cupertino, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]
With nearly all of 2014 fading in the rear-view mirror, it's time to turn our attention to the year ahead. There will be a lot of tech trends playing out in 2015. Let's go over a few of the more compelling movements. 1. Smart Watches It's now been a couple of years since the Kickstarter-funded Pebble ushered in the era of smart watches. Wristwatches that do more than tell time -- tethered to smartphones via Bluetooth to deliver calls and notifications, track your fitness, and run apps -- were supposed to be the next big thing in 2013 when Samsung entered the market. It didn't happen. This year has also been pretty unremarkable. All of! that should change early next year, when Apple (AAPL) gets into the game. The Apple Watch is no longer a work of fanboy fiction. After years of rumors, Apple finally unveiled the tech giant's first foray into wearable computing, targeting a release just after this year's holiday season. As a tastemaker in tech, Apple is hard to ignore. The Apple Watch may initially be too expensive or limited to iPhone users, but it's hard to bet against this serial innovator. The company made portable media players, smartphones, and tablets cool. It could do the same thing to the smart watch next year. 2. Peer-to-Peer App-Facilitated Taxi Service Uber has turned heads this year with its latest financing round, valuing the leader of peer-to-peer transportation at a cool $40 billion. Its nearest rival, Lyft, is also making waves. Uber and Lyft are pioneering a new approach to the cab industry. They are providing cheaper rides than traditional taxis, and the convenience of hailing a ride via app. They are also succeeding in getting drivers to sign up, arming the public with a cottage industry for folks to make the most of their vehicles that sit dormant most of the time. There have been and will continue to be regulatory challenges to the Uber model. A few nasty accidents or bad actors on either end of the transaction can dampen the appetite fo
[By Motley Fool Staff]
Need a reason to invest in stocks? How about the beginning of a new year. To help you find solid stock ideas we asked Fool.com contributors covering technology and consumer goods stocks to talk about top stocks for 2015. Read on to see what they had to say about Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM ) , Facebook (NASDAQ: FB ) , SeaWorld Entertainment (NYSE: SEAS ) , WhiteWave Foods (NYSE: WWAV ) , Google (NASDAQ: GOOG ) (NASDAQ: GOOGL ) , Taiwan Semiconductor (NYSE: TSM ) , and Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL ) .
[By Ashraf Eassa]
Back at ! Apple's ! (NASDAQ: AAPL ) 2013 World Wide Developers Conference, the company launched new variants of its iconic MacBook Air product line, featuring Intel (NASDAQ: INTC ) Haswell processors. Since then, the MacBook Air lineup has received a small speed bump in the form of refreshed Haswell processors, but the industrial design and other specifications have not been changed.
[By Jamal Carnette]
Gartner focuses on mobile phones sold during a particular period, allowing investors to detect trends more quickly, but the results can vary more than installed base figures that include preexisting users. Gartner's survey also goes beyond mere handset makers -- such as Samsung (NASDAQOTH: SSNLF ) , Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL ) , Xiaomi, and Huawei -- by including operating system statistics from Google's (NASDAQ: GOOGL ) (NASDAQ: GOOG ) Android, Apple's iOS, and Microsoft's (NASDAQ: MSFT ) Windows Phone. Here are three key takeaways from Gartner's report.

source from Top Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksblog.com/hot-blue-chip-stocks-to-invest-in-2015.html

5 Best Supermarket Stocks To Buy For 2014

Whole Foods Market, Inc. (NASDAQ: WFM) may have just telegraphed the peak of the growth trends in organic and high-priced groceries. For years we have argued that investors need to think of Whole foods as a luxury goods destination rather than being in an industry dominated by low-margin supermarket stores. Now Whole Foods is finding again that growing pains come in measured steps, and the trends elsewhere may have even started catching up to the company.

In the latest quarterly earnings report, Whole Foods showed that same-store sales were up a mere 5.9%. That is great for other chains, but investors demand more of this luxury food giant.

The latest quarterly earnings came to $121 million, or $0.32 per share. Revenue growth was only 2% to $2.98 billion. We had estimates pegged at $0.31 in earnings per share, but the revenue expectations were $3.04 billion. That 2% sales growth was represented as being from the 13-week period last year and an increase of 11% on a comparative 12-week basis, so growth is perhaps better than it sounds on the surface.

10 Best Oil Stocks To Watch For 2015: Dun & Bradstreet Corp (DNB)

The Dun & Bradstreet Corporation (D&B), incorporated on April 25, 2000, is the source of commercial information and insight on businesses, enabling customers to Decide with Confidence. As of December 31, 2012, the Company�� global commercial database contained more than 220 million business records. The database is enhanced by its DUNSRight Quality Process, which transforms commercial data into valuable insight which is the foundation of its global solutions. Customers use D&B Risk Management Solutions to mitigate credit and supplier risk, increase cash flow and drive profitability; D&B Sales & Marketing Solutions to provide data management capabilities that provide marketing solutions to increase revenue from new and existing customers, and D&B Internet Solutions to convert prospects into clients by enabling business professionals to research companies, executives and industries.

The Company operates in three segments: North America (which consists of its operations in the United States and Canada); Asia Pacific (which primarily consists of its operations in Australia, Greater China, India and Asia Pacific Worldwide Network), and Europe and other International Markets (which primarily consists of its operations in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium, Latin America and its European Worldwide Network). The Company conducts its business internationally through its wholly owned subsidiaries, majority-owned joint ventures, independent correspondents, strategic relationships through its D&B Worldwide Network and minority equity investments.

Risk Management Solutions

The Company provides traditional, value-added and supply management solutions. The Company�� Traditional Risk Management Solutions, which primarily includes its core DNBi product line, as well as reports from its database which are used primarily for making decisions about new credit applications, constituted 74% of its Risk Management Solutions revenue and 47% of its total revenue for the ye! ar ended December 31, 2012. Its Value-Added Risk Management Solutions, which constituted 20% of its Risk Management Solutions revenue and 12% of its total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2012, generally support automated decision-making and portfolio management through the use of scoring and integrated software solutions. The Company�� Supply Management Solutions, which can help companies understand the financial risk of their supply chain, constituted 6% of its Risk Management Solutions revenue and 4% of its total revenue in 2012. Risk Management Solutions accounted for 63% of its total revenue in 2012.

Effective January 1, 2013, the Company began managing and reporting its North America Risk Management Solutions business as DNBi subscription plans, Non-DNBi subscription plans, and projects and other risk management solutions.

The Company�� principal Risk Management Solutions are DNBi, various business information reports, eRAM, and D&B Direct. DNBi is the Company�� interactive, customizable online application that offers customers a subscription based real time access to its complete and up-to-date global DUNSRight information, comprehensive monitoring and portfolio analysis. It is also focused on helping more customers protect their business from risk through additions of DNBi products: DNBi Corporate, offering flexible pricing options allowing credit departments of all sizes to get data and options they need and Portfolio Risk Manager for DNBi, a module which allows DNBi users to create strategic one -click analytic reports to see risk and opportunity across their customer base. Various business information reports include Business Information Report, its Comprehensive Report, and its International Report that are consumed in a transactional manner across multiple platforms, such as DNB.com. eRAM is an enterprise solution for large global and domestic customers for automated decisioning and portfolio analytics. D&B Direct is a software application programming inter! face (API! ) that enables data integration inside enterprise applications, such as ERP, and enables master data management.

Sales & Marketing Solutions

The Company�� Sales & Marketing Solutions is a customer solution set, which accounted 29% of its total revenue in 2012. Within this customer solution set, it offers traditional and value-added solutions. Its Traditional Sales & Marketing Solutions generally consist of its marketing lists and labels used by the Company�� customers in direct mail and marketing activities, its education business and its electronic licensing solutions. These solutions constituted 30% of its Sales & Marketing Solutions revenue and 9% of its total revenue in 2012. Effective January 1, 2013, The Company began managing and reporting its Internet Solutions business as part of its Traditional Sales & Marketing Solutions set. Its Value-Added Sales & Marketing Solutions generally include decision-making and customer information management solutions, including data management solutions like Optimizer (its solution to cleanse, identify and enrich its customers' client portfolios) and products introduced as part of its Data-as-a-Service (DaaS) Strategy, which integrates the Company�� data directly into the applications and platforms that its customers use every day. The Value-Added Sales & Marketing Solutions constituted 70% of Sales & Marketing Solutions revenue and 20% of its total revenue in 2012

Internet Solutions

The Company�� Internet Solutions business provides organized and easy-to-use products that address the online sales and marketing needs of professionals and businesses, including information on companies, industries and executives. Internet Solutions, primarily representing the results of its Hoover's business, accounted for 7% of its total revenue in 2012. Effective January 1, 2013, the Company began managing and reporting its Internet Solutions business as part of its Traditional Sales & Marketing Solutions set.

T! he Company competes with Equifax, Inc., Experian Information Solutions, Inc., infoGROUP, Graydon, and Sinotrust.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Geoff Gannon] d a few good businesses but Moody's was a great business. And it was splitting up.
And then he goes on to talk about how he can't evaluate management at Moody's because it is such a great business that it is hard to know whether management is any good when you put someone in charge of a business like that.
He focused on the idea of pricing power. At the Buffalo Evening News he focused on the fact that they were the dominant weekday paper and they weren't doing a Sunday edition. He knew they could knock their competitor out if they went ahead with a Sunday paper. He knew how important that was to a newspaper's economics.
Doing a common sense qualitative analysis ��like a reporter on a news story ��is what can give you these insights. For example, Quan recently wrote a blog post where he casually mentions that Games Workshop ��a small U.K. company ��raises prices every June. It is an annual ritual for them. Just like at See's Candies.
If you remember my discussion of George Risk (RSKIA), one of the things I said was that I knew George Risk's materials cost was higher than some competitors' selling price. The fact that any company could survive under conditions like that immediately suggested that dollars paid for the product was not the key concern for this product.
Perceived costs had to involve other concerns like customization, shipping speed, reliability, etc. Because it was a low cost product going into a higher cost product going into very high cost projects it seemed likely there was the opportunity to raise prices if needed. And that's what they ended up doing. The important clue for me in that investigation was the severe cost disadvantage George Risk had. You couldn�� compete at such a cost disadvantage unless price was less important than I initially thought.
I think you will find that most of these insights are not available in the financial statements. They come from reading the 10-Ks of all companies in the
[By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE: DNB) was down, falling 9.16 percent to $96.71 after the company reported downbeat Q4 earnings.

Commodities
In commodity news, oil traded up 0.80 percent to $97.20, while gold traded down 0.41 percent to $1,254.50.
[By Geoff Gannon] ly doesn�� need working capital even when it grows say 3% a year or so. And some companies always need a ton of working capital like Lakeland (LAKE) or ADDvantage (AEY). How you feel about how those companies use working capital has a lot to do with whether or not you like those stocks long-term.
Then there are companies that have increased working capital very, very fast over the last decade or so ��but they��e also increased sales at a startling clip.
That�� Carbo.
Let�� look at where the difference between EBITDA and operating cash flow is coming from.
Cash flow from others as shown on GuruFocus�� 10-year financials page for Carbo ��I��l use this as a proxy for working capital changes ��was positive in only two years. And not by much. Usually, it�� been negative. Over the 10 years, that single line has added up to a negative $173 million. Wow.
Okay. Then there�� the difference between free cash flow and owner earnings. Owner earnings as you��l remember is Warren Buffett�� calculation of what a business could pay out to owners in cash at the end of the year ��if it stopped growing. But didn�� shrink. More on that later. For now, let�� look at the difference between Carbo�� depreciation and Carbo�� spending on property, plant and equipment.
Over the last 10 years, cap-ex has been: $546 million (or $425 million if you allow cap-ex to provide cash flow in certain years, this is a weird issue I don�� want to touch right now)
And over the last 10 years, depreciation has been: $201.52 million
That�� a big gap. We��e got some combination of Carbo underreporting economic depreciation by anywhere from $225 million to $350 million or so ��or we��e got Carbo investing something like $225 million to $350 million in growth.
Which is it?
Let�� check the growth angle first.
Over the last 10 years, Carbo has grown total sales by just under 18% a year. Now, I happen to
[By Geoff Gannon] nflation plus population growth: CEC Entertainment (CEC)
路 Nominal GDP Growth: Village Supermarket (VLGEA)
Over the last 10 years ��population growth, inflation, and real output per person growth has been so low it�� hard to tell the difference between companies growing at the rate of inflation, along with the population, or along with the economy.
You have to squint really hard to see any difference in the revenue growth records of DNB, Chuck E. Cheese, and Village.
This will not be true in all countries and at all times.
A literally no growth company like Earthlink is actually shrinking. It just happens to look like it�� staying perfectly flat because inflation is hiding the company�� real decay rate. In real terms, the company has been shrinking by about 3% a year for the last 10 years. So, Earthlink is not a no growth company. It�� shrinking.
That�� a bad sign. And, frankly, I don�� know how to value Earthlink. You would need to evaluate it as a turnaround or something ��not as a business that�� simplly stuck in place. I don�� know how to do that.
So, Earhtlink goes into the ��oo hard��pile.
Dun & Bradstreet and CEC Entertainment are actual no growth businesses. This is hidden by their constant share buy backs. So, if you look at their earnings per share growth they look kind of like Peter Lynch�� idea of a ��low growth��company or even a ��talwart�� They aren��. They��e no growth businesses.
The same is pretty much true with Village Supermarket. Although this is complicated. The nature of their business ��high volume, low cost groceries ��means they can appear to be a no growth business when they are actually just keeping prices down and increasing volume. You would need to check their sales numbers more carefully. Grocery stores often discuss inflation in their annual reports. Village Supermarket always does this.
(The annual report is Exhibit 13 of the

5 Best Supermarket Stocks To Buy For 2014: QUALCOMM Incorporated(QCOM)

QUALCOMM Incorporated engages in the development, design, manufacture, and marketing of digital wireless telecommunications products and services. The company operates in four segments: Qualcomm CDMA Technologies (QCT), Qualcomm Technology Licensing (QTL), Qualcomm Wireless and Internet (QWI), and Qualcomm Strategic Initiatives (QSI). The QCT segment develops and supplies code division multiple access (CDMA)-based integrated circuits and system software for wireless voice and data communications, multimedia functions and global positioning system products. The QTL segment grants licenses to use portions of its intellectual property portfolio comprising patent rights useful in the manufacture and sale of wireless products, such as products implementing cdmaOne, CDMA2000, WCDMA, CDMA TDD, GSM/GPRS/EDGE, and/or OFDMA standards and their derivatives The QWI segment consists of Qualcomm Internet Services that provides content enablement services for the wireless industry and pu sh-to-talk and other products and services for wireless network operators; Qualcomm Government Technologies, which offers development, hardware, and analytical services to the United States government agencies involving wireless communications technologies; Qualcomm Enterprise Services that provides satellite and terrestrial-based two-way data messaging, position reporting, wireless application services, and managed data services to transportation and logistics companies and other enterprise companies; and Firethorn, which builds and manages software applications that enable mobile commerce services. The QSI segment makes strategic investments to support the worldwide adoption of CDMA- and OFDMA-based technologies and services. QUALCOMM Incorporated primarily operates in China, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, and the United States. The company was founded in 1985 and is based in San Diego, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Dan Caplinger]
But Intel has taken aim at the smartphone and mobile market, and although it's been slow out of the gate, it has some advantages over its rivals. ARM Holdings (NASDAQ: ARMH ) has gathered a client list that features most of the primary device-makers in the world, and its architecture has largely been accepted as the mobile standard. But Intel's investment in mobile manufacturing will result in smaller chips, with 22-nanometer design displacing its competitors' products. Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM ) is widely seen as the leading-edge chip designer, but its current designs are based on 28-nanometer models. Intel has a huge opportunity to use its technological prowess to take a big step forward.

5 Best Supermarket Stocks To Buy For 2014: iMD Companies Inc (ICBU)

IMD Companies, Inc., formerly Optimum Mobile Imaging, Corp, incorporated in 1993, is focused on products and services in the health and fitness nutraceutical and medical diagnostics services markets. The Company provides mobile Ultrasound imaging services. It also provides Echocardiography and Vascular Ultrasound services, including Carotid, Arterial with ABI (ankle-brachial index) and Venous duplex ultrasound. The equipment will be transported into customer's facility on a medical cart by its technologist who will perform all tests in one of customer's exam rooms. In February 2011, the Company completed the acquisition of Integrated Medical Diagnostics, Inc. In January 2014, the Company announced that it has formed a partnership with Anything Technologies Media Inc. by acquiring 51% interest in R-Quest Hydroponics, Inc., developer of the environmental master controller for medical and recreational marijuana hydroponic gardens. In January 2014, IMD Companies Inc and Anything Technologies Media Inc announced that they jointly acquired Green Linx Inc., and will split revenue on a 50:50 basis.

MyLab30 by Biosound implements phased array technology for cardiac imaging, linear array for vascular and small parts imaging, as well as curved array and microconvex for general imaging. The system allows for the evaluation of the heart, vasculature and organs of the body with the appropriate transducer technology and the appropriate measurement and analysis packages.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Peter Graham]
Small cap stocks Frontier Beverage Company Inc (OTCMKTS: FBEC), IMD Companies Inc (OTCMKTS: ICBU) and Dmh International Incorporated (OTCBB: DMHI) were all mimicking the Titanic last Friday by sinking 41.18%, 32.5% and 28.16%, respectively, last Friday. Moreover, all three of these stocks have been the subject of paid promotions or investor relation campaigns. With the promotions in mind, is it to late to dump these small cap stocks or will this week present a buying opportunity? Here is a closer look:

5 Best Supermarket Stocks To Buy For 2014: Mast Therapeutics Inc (MSTX)

Mast Therapeutics, Inc., formerly ADVENTRX Pharmaceuticals, Inc., incorporated in December 1995, is a development-stage company biopharmaceutical company focused on developing product candidates. The Company's product candidate is ANX-188, a rheologic, antithrombotic and cytoprotective agent that improves microvascular blood flow and has application in treating a range of diseases and conditions, such as complications arising from sickle cell disease. As of December 31, 2011, the Company also is developing ANX-514, a detergent-free formulation of the chemotherapy drug docetaxel. The Company offers ANX-188 (purified poloxamer 188), ANX-514 (docetaxel for injectable emulsion) and Exelbine (vinorelbine injectable emulsion). In April 2011, the Company acquired SynthRx, Inc. In February 2014, Mast Therapeutics Inc completed its acquisition of Aires Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Aires became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mast Therapeutics.

ANX-188 (purified poloxamer 188)

ANX-188 is an aqueous solution of a purified form of poloxamer 188. Poloxamer 188 (P1880, is a nonionic, block copolymer that has been found to improve microvascular blood flow by reducing viscosity, particularly under low shear conditions, and by reducing adhesive frictional forces. The Company�� purified form of P188 (purified P188), which is the active ingredient in ANX-188, was designed to eliminate certain low molecular weight substances present in P188 (non-purified), which is primarily responsible for the moderate to moderately severe elevations in serum creatinine levels (acute renal dysfunction) observed in prior clinical studies of P188 (non-purified). Purified P188 has been evaluated in multiple clinical studies by a prior sponsor, including a 255-patient, phase III study.

ANX-514 (docetaxel for injectable emulsion)

ANX-514 is a detergent-free emulsion formulation of docetaxel, an intravenously-injected chemotherapy drug commonly used to treat solid tumors. Taxotere, a branded form! ulation of docetaxel, is approved to treat breast, non-small cell lung, prostate, gastric, and head and neck cancers. ANX-514 was designed to have clinically comparable release of docetaxel relative to Taxotere while eliminating the presence of polysorbate 80 and ethanol, both of which are used to solubilize docetaxel in the Taxotere formulation. The ANX-514 formulation solubilizes docetaxel using oil droplets consists of a combination of non-toxic excipients. Docetaxel is contained within these oil droplets and can be administered intravenously without using detergents as pharmaceutical vehicles. Once in central circulation, the emulsion is metabolized rapidly, leaving chemically-identical active ingredient to exert its cytotoxic effect. ANX-514 may reduce the incidence and severity of hypersensitivity reactions and delay the onset of fluid retention.

Exelbine (vinorelbine injectable emulsion)

Exelbine is an emulsion formulation of the chemotherapy drug vinorelbine. Navelbine, a branded formulation of vinorelbine, is approved in the United States to treat advanced non-small cell lung cancer as a single agent or in combination with cisplatin, and approved in the European Union to treat non-small cell lung cancer and advanced or metastatic breast cancer.

In August 2011, the Company received a complete response letter from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) stating that it could not approve the Exelbine Non Disclosure Agreement (NDA) in its present form and that the bioequivalence study would need to be repeated because the authenticity of the drug products used in the bioequivalence trial could not be verified in accordance with FDA standards. However, the Company elected to discontinue independent development of Exelbine and as of December 31, 2011, the Company was seeking a partner or outside investor for the program to complete the necessary bioequivalence study.

The Company competes with GlaxoSmithKline, Provenge and Pfizer.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By John Udovich]
The start of 2014 shows that biotech is still a hot area with the sector along with small cap biotech stocks like AMAG Pharmaceuticals, Inc (NASDAQ: AMAG), Mast Therapeutics Inc (NYSEMKT: MSTX), Cell Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: CTIC), Imprimis Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: IMMY) and TNI BioTech (OTCMKTS: TNIB) producing news or returns�plus Auspex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ASPX), Cara Therapeutics (NASDAQ: CARA), Egalet (NASDAQ: EGLT), Flexion Therapeutics (NASDAQ: FLXN) and Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ: RARE) are among the (many�� planned biotech IPOs that have recently been announced publicly:
[By Roberto Pedone]

Mast Therapeutics (MSTX), a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing therapies for serious or life-threatening diseases. This stock closed up 2.1% 65 cents per share in Thursday's trading session.

Thursday's Range: $0.63-$0.67

52-Week Range: $0.40-$1.10

Thursday's Volume: 1.11 million

Three-Month Average Volume: 1.88 million

From a technical perspective, MSTX spiked modestly higher here right above its 50-day moving average of 61 cents per share with decent upside volume. This stock has been trending sideways and consolidating for the last month, with shares moving between 60 cents on the downside and 72 cents on the upside. Shares of MSTX are now starting to push higher and into range of triggering a big breakout trade above the upper-end of its recent sideways trading chart pattern. That trade will hit if MSTX manages to clear some near-term overhead resistance levels at 68 to 72 cents per share with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in MSTX as long as it's trending above some key near-term support at 60 cents per share and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 1.88 million shares. If that breakout materializes soon, then MSTX will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at 80 to 85 cents per share, or even 93 cents per share.
[By James E. Brumley]
A little over a month ago, owning Mast Therapeutics, Inc. (NYSE: MSTX) was nothing but pure misery. Shares plunged from $0.63 to $0.43 in one day, when details of a dilutive public offering were unveiled. As is so often the case though, the market may have overshot with the selling effort that KO's MSTX. Though putting more shares 'out there' mathematically meant existing shareholders would have to share more of the company's upside with newcomers, what's slowly coming to light is that the inflow of new cash is still more advantageous to those prior shareholders; the company would progress little without it.
[By Lauren Pollock]
Mast Therapeutics Inc.(MSTX) said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave orphan-drug designation to its MST-188 drug for the treatment of acute limb ischemia, providing a boost for the biopharmaceutical firm. Shares surged.

Thursday, January 22, 2015

Top 10 Valued Stocks To Watch Right Now

This series, brought to you by Yahoo! Finance, looks at which upgrades and downgrades make sense, and which ones investors should act on. Today, our headlines feature a pair of upgrades for home furnishings store Pier 1 (NYSE: PIR ) and engine technologist BorgWarner (NYSE: BWA ) . Let's address those two real quick, before we get to the day's really big news (about American Tower (NYSE: AMT ) ).

Pier 1 won't sink�
As housing sales boomed, Pier 1 Imports grew its sales 9%, and its earnings 14% in the most recent quarter. Arguing that Pier 1 is likely to continue growing sales in quarters to come, Argus Research announced this morning that it's upgrading the shares to "buy" and assigning them a $27 price target. With the shares currently trading for $23 and change, that works out to about a 13% potential profit on top of Pier 1's modest 0.8% dividend yield. An attractive proposition in an overvalued market, to be sure -- but will Pier 1 really rise to $27?

Hot Warren Buffett Companies To Buy For 2015: Schlumberger N.V.(SLB)

Schlumberger Limited, together with its subsidiaries, supplies technology, integrated project management, and information solutions to the oil and gas exploration and production industries worldwide. The company?s Oilfield Services segment provides exploration and production services; wireline technology that offers open-hole and cased-hole services; supplies engineering support, directional-drilling, measurement-while-drilling, and logging-while-drilling services; and testing services. This segment also offers well services; supplies well completion services and equipment; artificial lift; data and consulting services; geo services; and information solutions, such as consulting, software, information management system, and IT infrastructure services that support oil and gas industry. Its WesternGeco segment provides reservoir imaging, monitoring, and development services; and operates data processing centers and multiclient seismic library. This segment also offers variou s services include 3D and time-lapse (4D) seismic surveys to multi-component surveys for delineating prospects and reservoir management. The company?s M-I SWACO segment supplies drilling fluid systems to improve drilling performance; fluid systems and specialty tools to optimize wellbore productivity; production technology solutions to maximize production rates; and environmental solutions that manages waste volumes generated in drilling and production operations. Its Smith Oilfield segment designs, manufactures, and markets drill bits and borehole enlargement tools; and supplies drilling tools and services, tubular, completion services, and other related downhole solutions. The company?s Distribution segment markets pipes, valves, and fittings, as well as mill, safety, and other maintenance products. This segment also provides warehouse management, vendor integration, and inventory management services. Schlumberger Limited was founded in 1927 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Lee Jackson]
Energy: Schlumberger Ltd. (NYSE: SLB)�crushed earnings by an astonishing 50.9% last quarter. With Mexico changing its policy on oil exploration, the oil field services leader may see continued strong earnings growth in the years ahead. The consensus price target for the stock is posted at $96. Investors are paid a 1.5% dividend.
[By Tyler Crowe]
Surprisingly, our energy boom could help China, but not in the way you might think. The energy sector in the U.S. has been an incubator for innovative drilling techniques and technologies over the past few years. Now we have a near monopoly on the technology. Like the U.S., China has massive shale gas deposits, and the technology we possess could help them develop domestic sources and allow them to become more energy self-sufficient. We're starting to see it happen. Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS-A ) has signed a deal with PetroChina (NYSE: PTR ) to spend $1 billion a year to develop shale resources there. Also, fracking�specialists�Haliburton (NYSE: HAL ) and Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB ) are partnering with various Chinese companies to supply the country with hydraulic fracturing equipment and specialty fluids.�
[By David Smith]
I noted in Part 1 that Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB ) , easily the largest participant in the oilfield services space, is appropriate for subsea investing. The same can be said of seismic. The company's WesternGeco unit leaves its competition in the dust -- or water -- from the perspective of both size and technological sophistication.

Top 10 Valued Stocks To Watch Right Now: Dollar Tree Inc.(DLTR)

Dollar Tree, Inc. operates discount variety stores in the United States and Canada. Its stores offer merchandise primarily at the fixed price of $1.00. The company operates its stores under the names of Dollar Tree, Deal$, Dollar Tree Deal$, Dollar Giant, and Dollar Bills. Its stores offer consumable merchandise, including candy and food, and health and beauty care, as well as household consumables, such as paper, plastics, household chemicals, in select stores, and frozen and refrigerated food; variety merchandise, which includes toys, durable housewares, gifts, party goods, greeting cards, softlines, and other items; and seasonal goods, such as Easter, Halloween, and Christmas merchandise. As of April 30, 2011, it operated 4,089 stores in 48 states and the District of Columbia, as well as 88 stores in Canada. The company was founded in 1986 and is based in Chesapeake, Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By ANUP SINGH]
Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR ) is among the most successful single-price-point retailers in the U.S. It operates more than 4,842 stores across 48 states in the U.S. and five Provinces in Canada. The chart below shows that the company has been performing consistently well over the past five years.

Top 10 Valued Stocks To Watch Right Now: Caterpillar Inc.(CAT)

Caterpillar Inc. manufactures and sells construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives worldwide. It operates through three lines of businesses: Machinery, Engines, and Financial Products. The Machinery business offers construction, mining, and forestry machinery, including track and wheel tractors, track and wheel loaders, pipelayers, motor graders, wheel tractor-scrapers, track and wheel excavators, backhoe loaders, log skidders, log loaders, off-highway trucks, articulated trucks, paving products, skid steer loaders, underground mining equipment, tunnel boring equipment, and related parts. It also manufactures diesel-electric locomotives; and manufactures and services rail-related products and logistics services for other companies. The Engines business provides diesel, heavy fuel, and natural gas reciprocating engines for Caterpillar machinery, electric power generation systems, marine, petrol eum, construction, industrial, agricultural, and other applications. It offers industrial turbines and turbine-related services for oil and gas, and power generation applications. This business also remanufactures Caterpillar engines, machines, and engine components; and offers remanufacturing services for other companies. The Financial Products business provides retail and wholesale financing alternatives for Caterpillar machinery and engines, solar gas turbines, and other equipment and marine vessels, as well as offers loans and various forms of insurance to customers and dealers. It also offers financing for vehicles, power generation facilities, and marine vessels. The company markets its products directly, as well as through its distribution centers, dealers, and distributors. It was formerly known as Caterpillar Tractor Co. and changed its name to Caterpillar Inc. in 1986. Caterpillar Inc. was founded in 1925 and is headquartered in Peoria, Illinois.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Rich Duprey]
China's manufacturing sector is contracting at an alarming rate, and Caterpillar's (NYSE: CAT ) stock may not be able to surmount the obstacles the collapse is throwing in its path.
[By Dan Caplinger]
Among Dow stocks, the obvious victim of gold's decline is Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT ) , which has dropped 2.7%. The maker of construction and mining equipment will suffer both from slowing growth in China, one of its primary markets, and from reduced mining activity among gold producers that will suddenly find their operations much less profitable than they were before the plunge in precious metals.

Top 10 Valued Stocks To Watch Right Now: Tupperware Corporation(TUP)

Tupperware Brands Corporation operates as a direct seller of various products across a range of brands and categories through an independent sales force. The company engages in the manufacture and sale of kitchen and home products, and beauty and personal care products. It offers preparation, storage, and serving solutions for the kitchen and home, as well as kitchen cookware and tools, children?s educational toys, microwave products, and gifts under the Tupperware brand name primarily in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, the Asia Pacific, and North America. The company provides beauty and personal care products, which include skin care products, cosmetics, bath and body care, toiletries, fragrances, nutritional products, apparel, and related products principally in Mexico, South Africa, the Philippines, Australia, and Uruguay. It offers beauty and personal care products under the Armand Dupree, Avroy Shlain, BeautiControl, Fuller, NaturCare, Nutrimetics, Nuvo, and Swissgar de brand names. The company sells its Tupperware products directly to distributors, directors, managers, and dealers; and beauty products primarily through consultants and directors. As of December 26, 2009, the Tupperware distribution system had approximately 1,800 distributors, 61,300 managers, and 1.3 million dealers; and the sales force representing the Beauty businesses approximately 1.1 million. The company was formerly known as Tupperware Corporation and changed its name to Tupperware Brands Corporation in December 2005. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Orlando, Florida.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Ben Levisohn]
Shares of Herbalife have gained 0.9% to $79.51 this morning in pre-open trading. Its shares have gained 139% this year, a nice gain, but lagging Nu Skin Enterprises 271% rise. Avon Products�(AVP), another multi-level marketer, has gained 21% so far this year, while Tupperware Brands�(TUP) has risen 49%.