Top 10 Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now

The joint monthly web chat for subscribers of The Energy Strategist (TES) and MLP Profits (MLPP) took place last week. The chat is conducted by Igor Greenwald, who is managing editor for TES and chief investment strategist for MLPP, and myself. �

There were four energy sector questions remaining at the end of the chat that required an extended answer, or a bit more research. This week I will answer two of the four questions that were left: One on the importance (or lack thereof) of the Keystone XL pipeline, and one on Nordic American Tankers. Next week�� issue will tackle the other two questions: One on Argentina�� expropriation from Repsol in 2012 and one on Shell�� massive floating liquefied natural gas project.

For answers to some of the remaining MLP questions from the chat, see this week�� MLP Investing Insider.

Q: With the impending development of Canada’s own Western and Eastern pipelines, does the Northern leg of Keystone remain essential for Canadian E&Ps or is it just important to transport from the Dakotas?

Top 5 Asian Companies For 2015: Silver Wheaton Corp(SLW)

Silver Wheaton Corp., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a silver streaming company worldwide. The company has 14 long-term silver purchase agreements and 2 long-term precious metal purchase agreements whereby it acquires silver and gold production from the counterparties located in Mexico, the United States, Canada, Greece, Sweden, Peru, Chile, Argentina, and Portugal. Silver Wheaton Corp. is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  During the past decade, Silver Wheaton (NYSE: SLW  ) has taken advantage of soaring silver prices using its unique silver streaming business model. But in the following video, Fool contributor Dan Caplinger says there will be difficult times ahead for Silver Wheaton to navigate. One of the most obvious challenges is the recent decline in silver prices.

• [By Tony Daltorio]

  The chief executive officers (CEOs) of both Silver Wheaton (NYSE: SLW) and Sandstorm Gold (NYSE MKT: SAND) told the Forum now was a great time to bolster their gold streams at a nice discount in price.

• [By The Investment Doctor]

  Another, less likely possibility to raise equity is through selling a part of the precious metals in a streaming deal. I can imagine Sandstorm Gold (SAND) and Silver Wheaton (SLW) would be very interested in a substantial precious metals streaming agreement. At the current gold and silver prices NGEX wouldn't even have to sell its entire precious metals production under a streaming arrangement.

Top 10 Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: MicroFinancial Incorporated(MFI)

Microfinancial Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, operates as a specialized commercial finance company that provides microticket equipment leasing and rental, and other financing services in the United States. The company provides financing alternatives, and leases and rents commercial equipment to start-up and established businesses for use in their daily operations. It leases water filtration systems, food service equipment, security equipment, point-of-sale cash registers, salon equipment, health care and fitness equipment, and automotive equipment. The company primarily sources its originations through a network of independent equipment vendors, sales organizations, and other dealer-based origination networks. Microfinancial Incorporated was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Woburn, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Eric Lam]

  Alacer Gold Corp. and Iamgold Corp. rallied at least 5.9 percent as the metal traded at its highest in 11 weeks. Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (MFI) jumped 7.8 percent as it agreed to sell a unit for C$645 million ($614 million). Penn West Petroleum (PWT) Ltd. added 1.7 percent after cutting 25 percent of its workforce to reduce costs.

• [By Gerrit De Vynck]

  Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (MFI), the Canadian producer of foods from hamburgers to frozen pasta, has drawn bids for its bread unit from Grupo Bimbo SAB, Flowers Foods Inc. (FLO) and several private-equity firms, three people with knowledge of the matter said.

Top 10 Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: STMicroelectronics N.V.(STM)

STMicroelectronics N.V., an independent semiconductor company, engages in the design, development, manufacture, and marketing of a range of semiconductor integrated circuits and discrete devices. Its products include discrete and standard commodity components, application-specific integrated circuits, custom devices and semi-custom devices, and application-specific standard products for analog, digital, and mixed-signal applications. The company also offers subsystems and modules for the telecommunications, automotive, and industrial markets comprising mobile phone accessories, battery chargers, ISDN power supplies, and in-vehicle equipment for electronic toll payment, as well as provides Smartcard products. Its products are used in various microelectronic applications consisting of automotive products, computer peripherals, telecommunications systems, consumer products, industrial automation, and control systems. The company sells its products through distributors and ret ailers. STMicroelectronics N.V. was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By MONEYMORNING]

  In 2009, Ericsson hooked up with STMicroelectronics NV (NYSE ADR: STM) - Europe's No. 1 chipmaker - to produce semiconductors for the wireless market. Launched in 2009, this also was ill-fated.

• [By Seth Jayson]

  STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM  ) reported earnings on July 22. Here are the numbers you need to know.

  The 10-second takeaway
  For the quarter ended June 29 (Q2), STMicroelectronics met expectations on revenues and missed expectations on earnings per share.

Top 10 Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: Ingram Micro Inc. (IM)

Ingram Micro Inc. distributes information technology (IT) products; and provides supply chain solutions, mobile device lifecycle services, and logistics solutions worldwide. The company�s IT peripherals include printers, scanners, displays, projectors, monitors, panels, mass storage, and tape; large format LCD and plasma displays, enclosures, mounts, media players, content software, and content creation and hosting; mobile phones, digital cameras and video disc players, game consoles, televisions, audio, media management, and home control products; barcode/card printers, AIDC scanners and software, and wireless infrastructure products; IP video surveillance, security and fire alarm systems, and access control smart cards; processors, motherboards, hard drives, and memory products; and ink and toner supplies, paper, carrying cases, and anti-glare screens. It also provides various systems, including rack, tower, and blade servers; desktops; portable personal computers and t ablets; and software products, such as business application, operating system, entertainment, security, storage, and virtualization software products, as well as middleware and developer software tools. The company�s networking products comprise switches, hubs, routers, wireless local area networks, wireless wide area networks, network interface cards, cellular data cards, network-attached storage, and storage area networks; voice over Internet protocol, communications, modems, phone systems, and video/audio conferencing; and firewalls, virtual private networks, intrusion detection, and authentication devices and appliances. In addition, it provides integration, technical support, training, financial and credit, marketing, predictive analytics, eCommerce, reseller community hosting, managed, cloud, managed print, and professional services. The company sells its products to resellers through sales representatives. Ingram Micro Inc. was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Santa Ana, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Geoff Gannon]

  A huge net-net like Ingram Micro (IM) with nine out of ten years of profits in the last decade is pretty unusual. And Ingram operates on a razor-thin margin. It usually makes about one cent in profit for every dollar of sales.

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  The first list of 24/7 Wall St. stocks under book value for the month of August are Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA), Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. (NYSE: FDP), Genworth Financial Inc. (NYSE: GNW), Ingram Micro Inc. (NYSE: IM) and JetBlue Airways Corp. (NASDAQ: JBLU). We generally have�focused on net asset values and tangible book values, as well as forward price-to-earnings multiples, share price performance, analyst expectations via the Thomson Reuters consensus price target and more.

• [By Keith Speights]

  My take is that Qualcomm has rapidly established itself as the de facto standard for connecting with medical devices. The company isn't doing it alone, though. It teamed with Ingram Micro (NYSE: IM  ) , the world's largest technology distributor, to support the implementation, logistics, and financial services related to the 2net hub and platform. This partnership should help propagate Qualcomm's technology more effectively than the company could have done on its own.

Top 10 Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: Piper Jaffray Companies(PJC)

Piper Jaffray Companies provides investment banking, institutional brokerage, asset management, and related financial services to corporations, private equity groups, public entities, non-profit entities, and institutional investors in the United States, Asia, and Europe. The company raises capital through equity financings; provides advisory services, primarily relating to mergers and acquisitions for its corporate clients; underwrites debt issuances; and offers financial advisory and interest rate risk management services. Its public finance investment banking capabilities focus on state and local governments, as well as healthcare, higher education, housing, hospitality, transportation, and commercial real estate industries, as well as operates in business and financial services, clean technology and renewables, consumer, and industrial growth, as well as media, telecommunications, and technology industries. The company also offers equity and fixed income advisory and t rade execution services for institutional investors, and government and non-profit entities; and is involved in proprietary trading, as well as has equity sales and trading relationships with institutional investors. In addition, it provides asset management services to separately managed accounts, private funds or partnerships, and open-end and closed-end registered investment companies or funds; and offers an array of investment products comprising small and mid-cap value equity, and master limited partnerships focused on the energy industry, as well as fixed income. Further, the company engages in merchant banking activities, which comprises proprietary debt or equity investments in late stage private companies, and investments in private equity and venture capital funds, as well as other firm investments and forfeiture of stock-based compensation. Piper Jaffray Companies was founded in 1895 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Top losers in the sector included Alto Palermo SA (NASDAQ: APSA), off 5.5 percent, and Piper Jaffray Companies (NYSE: PJC), down 3.5 percent.

  Top Headline
  J.P. Morgan Chase & Co (NYSE: JPM) reported a 19% drop in its first-quarter profit. J.P. Morgan's quarterly profit declined to $5.3 billion, or $1.28 per share, versus a year-ago profit of $6.53 billion, or $1.59 per share. Its revenue slipped 8% to $22.99 billion versus $25.12 billion. J.P. Morgan's investment banking net income dropped 15%. However, analysts were estimating earnings of $1.39 per share on revenue of $24.43 billion.

• [By Rich Smith]

  Investment banker Piper Jaffray (NYSE: PJC  ) expanded its municipal debt business Wednesday, when it purchased Seattle-Northwest Securities in a transaction valued at approximately $21 million.

• [By Monica Gerson]

  Piper Jaffray Companies (NYSE: PJC) is expected to report its Q3 earnings at $0.52 per share on revenue of $117.55 million.

  W.W. Grainger (NYSE: GWW) is estimated to report its Q3 earnings at $3.03 per share on revenue of $2.42 billion.

Top 10 Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: Nu Skin Enterprises Inc.(NUS)

Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc. develops and distributes anti-aging personal care products and nutritional supplements worldwide. The company sells its personal care products under the Nu Skin brand; and nutritional supplements under the Pharmanex brand. Its personal care product line includes core systems, targeted treatments, total care, cosmetic, and Epoch, a product formulated with botanical ingredients. The company?s nutritional supplements product line comprises micronutrient supplements, targeted solution supplements, and weight management products. It also sells Vitameal, which are nutritious meal products for starving children or purchased for personal food storage. In addition, the company offers other products and services consisting of digital content storage, water purifiers, and other household products. It sells its products primarily through a network of independent distributors in north Asia, the Americas, Greater China, Europe, and the south Asia/Pacific. The c ompany also operates retail stores to sell its products in China. As of December 31, 2010, Nu Skin Enterprises operated 40 stores throughout China. The company was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Provo, Utah.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Louis Navellier]

  To get to the point, here are five companies that have the analyst community buzzing, and they should be on your radar as well.

  Facebook (FB): In the past three months, estimates have been revised up 23%. Analysts now expect 47.5% annual sales growth and 58.8% earnings growth this quarter. . Melco Crown Entertainment (MPEL): In the past three months, estimates have been upwardly revised 12%. Analysts now expect 19.9% sales growth and 85% earnings growth. MPEL is a strong buy. Netflix (NFLX): In the past three months, estimates have been upwardly revised 41%. Analysts now expect 23.5% sales growth and 400% earnings growth. NFLX is a strong buy. Westlake Chemical (WLK): In the past three months, estimates have been revised up 13%. Analysts now expect 15.6% sales growth and 50% earnings growth this quarter. . Nu Skin Enterprises (NUS): In the past three months, estimates have been revised up 17%. Analysts now expect 78.1% sales growth and 97.9% earnings growth. NUS is a strong buy.

  To put these earnings estimates into perspective, analysts forecast that the average S&P 500 company will grow earnings by 8.8% this quarter. This means that each of the five buys above are well-positioned to win this earnings season.

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Shares of Herbalife have dropped 3.5% to $66.53 at 2:44 p.m., while Nu Skin Enterprises (NUS) has dipped 0.1% to $79.99, Usana Health Sciences (USNA) has fallen 0.4% to $75.84, Avon Products (AVP) has gained 0.9% to $15.22 and Weight Watchers (WTW) has advanced 0.2% to $20.95.

• [By Jeremy Bowman]

  What: Shares of Nu Skin Enterprises (NYSE: NUS  ) were looking refreshed today, gaining as much as 14% today after the company lifted its guidance significantly for the current quarter and full year.

Top 10 Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: Transcananda Pipelines Ltd.(TRP)

Transcanada Corporation operates as an energy infrastructure company in North America. The company operates in three segments: Natural Gas Pipelines, Oil Pipelines, and Energy. The Natural Gas Pipelines segment develops and operates energy infrastructure, including natural gas pipelines and regulated gas storage facilities. Its network of natural gas pipelines extends approximately 60,000 km tapping into gas supply basins in North America. The Oil Pipelines segment operates Keystone crude oil pipeline system, which includes completed 3,467 km Wood River/Patoka and Cushing Extension phases, and the proposed 2,673 km U.S. Gulf Coast Expansion. The Energy segment engages in the acquisition, development, construction, ownership, and operation of electrical power generation plants; the purchase and marketing of electricity; the provision of electricity account services to energy and industrial customers; and the development, construction, ownership, and operation of non-regulat ed natural gas storage in Alberta. The company was founded in 1951 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Robert Rapier]

  Of course Canada will build its own additional pipelines to the coast. TransCanada (NYSE: TRP) — the company behind Keystone XL — is planning a 4,500-kilometer Energy East pipeline that would carry 1.1-million barrels of crude oil per day from Alberta and Saskatchewan to refineries in Eastern Canada. This project alone would be nearly 50 percent larger than the Keystone XL, and will almost certainly get built. The project involves converting an existing natural gas pipeline to an oil transportation pipeline, constructing new pipelines to link up with the converted pipeline, and then building the associated facilities required to move crude oil from Alberta to Quebec and New Brunswick. This pipeline is expected to be in service to Quebec by 2017 and to New Brunswick by 2018. A recent open season for the project received over 900,000 bpd in shipping commitments for 20 years.

• [By Aimee Duffy and Tyler Crowe]

  Outside of being a hot-button environmental issue, TransCanada's (NYSE: TRP  ) Keystone XL is having a major impact on the depressed price of Canadian crude oil. In this video, Fool.com contributor Aimee Duffy takes a look at a handful of pipeline projects that have yet to be realized that are having a devastating impact on Canadian energy stocks.

• [By Aimee Duffy]

  When�TransCanada� (NYSE: TRP  ) first announced its plan to construct the Keystone XL pipeline, I'm sure company executives never thought it would wind up as one of the most polarizing environmental symbols in recent memory. Nor could they have predicted that the approval process would take, well, forever.

• [By Ari Charney]

  Indeed, Buffett supports the approval of TransCanada Corp�� (NYSE: TRP, TSX: TRP) Keystone XL pipeline, which would transport Canadian unconventional crude to Gulf Coast refineries.

Invest in This Chipmaker to Benefit From Wearable Devices

The supplier of semiconductor products Himax Technologies (HIMX) has produced yet another quarter of good numbers on the back of strong performance of its non-driver business that rose approximately 21.3% from the year ago quarter and up about 9.0% sequentially. However, the company witnessed a dip of nearly 3.5% in its small and medium-sized drivers, basically driver ICs that once accounted over half of total revenue due to inventory adjustment from one of its critical Korean end customers.

Impressive growth

Taiwan-based Himax Technologies for the second quarter reported revenue of $196.4 million that beat the consensus estimate of $195.3 million in revenue. Also its net income for the quarter came in line with the consensus to $24.1 million or earnings of $0.14 per share as against $19.4 million or earnings of $0.12 per share last year in the same quarter.

Moreover, Himax demonstrated a pretty healthy outlook for the third quarter of 2014 as it expects its revenue to increase approximately 10% to 15%, which is well ahead of consensus expectation of 7% increase in revenue. With respect to this healthy outlook, one of the analysts, Chardan at Capital Market, reiterated that Himax is expecting an encouraging correction in the orders from Samsung Electronics (SSNGY) that will certainly drive growth for its revenue in the current quarter. As a result the stock was seen rising almost 5.65% aftermath. In addition, the analysts have estimated CAGR of 23.85%, which is higher than average industry CAGR of 15.22% for the next five years, highlights tremendous growth prospects for the stock going forward. So, investors can choose buying more of the shares that looks solid to propagate in future.

Good strategies

On the top of it, Himax has also entered into a potential partnership with Lumus that manufactures augmented reality glasses. Himax and Lumus will soon be involved in fabricating the next-generation of smart glasses, establishing advanced technology criteria in image superiority and portrayal. This world-class technology is expected to produce amplified reality glasses that look quite strong to get converted into a must-have consumer device in the future, should brighten its outlook in the coming years. Besides, both the companies look determined manufacturing wearable display mainstream consumer products; exploiting their manufacturing capabilities and leveraging their innovative solutions will complement its growth going forward.

Additionally, the supplier of semiconductor products is expecting resilient growth in its product divisions this quarter such as large panel driver ICs, small and medium driver ICs, and in its non-driver professional as the demand for these products is rising in the key Korean end customers like Innolux and its recently acquired new customers from the Taiwanese. Besides, Himax is seeing a stretched capacity from its Chinese TV panel customers on a regular basis for its 4K TV displays and a strong ramp up of its production for its large panel customers should add value to its growth.

So, Himax particularly expects its drivers ICs for TV as a core growth product in the second half of the year with the increased shipment for the large panel ICs for 4K TV. Himax also expects strong growth to continue in the both the remaining quarters and for the first quarter of 2015 for its large penal ICs 4K TV that should further establish a long-run growth trend for next couple of years for its large panel ICs solutions. Meanwhile, the company has also admitted that it will witness fairly improved sales for its large panel drivers ICs in the on-going quarter, since the fourth-quarter 2012.

With the growing popularity of the ground-breaking devices such as smartphones, tablets and for automotive applications, Himax sees tremendous opportunity for its medium and small-sized ICs drivers. Himax expects Chinese smart phones markets to complement this growth for its medium and small-sized ICs drivers this quarter as the government has boosted infrastructure investment in the region. Also, the company has recently brought in the market a new generation of driver ICs for HD720 resolution. Himax is extremely pleased with the initial performance of the driver in the high-end smart phone in China and in other regions as well. In addition, the accelerated demand from the Korean-end customers should generate greater sales for its medium and small-sized panel for the company this quarter.

However, Himax sees sequential declining demand in the drivers for the tablets due to the better reputation of China's white-box market. But it anticipates the rising demand in the smartphone division to offset this declining demand in driver ICs for tablets. Further it is witnessing a steady growth in the automotive driver ICs in this quarter. Himax forecasts a high-single-digit growth in its medium and small-sized ICs driver as compared to the previous quarter. Himax also expects this division to perform exceedingly well in the fourth quarter of 2014.

Apart from these, the supplier of semiconductor products also sees potential growth for its non-driver business division, particularly for its world-class CMOS image sensor and smartphone driver ICs to yield higher sales this quarter despite tough pricing environment. Himax has launched 13 megapixel sensors during the reported quarter and expects this offering to well position the company in the small group of players. Besides, the company is also accelerating shipment for the 8 megapixel sensors this quarter that should drive its growth in the high-end smart phone market that should drive its margins for the second half of the year.

Ending remarks

Himax is currently trading at the forward P/E multiple of 14.92 against trailing P/E multiple of 21.09 that indicate reasonable valuation for the stock that has huge potential to grow in the future. Also, its PEG ratio of 0.71 for the next five years complements its prospects of growth in the coming years. Himax is doing fairly well on the performance as well as on the wealth matrixes as its profit and operating profit yields are 8.72% and 9.05% respectively for the trailing twelve months, while its ROE yields stands at 14.81%. Himax has total cash of 172.93 million and operating cash flow of 56.57 million quite sufficient to cover

Hot Beverage Stocks To Buy Right Now

Williams Capital Group’s Marc Riddick explains why he raised his price target on Keurig Green Mountain (GMCR) to $131 from $125:

Reuters

We are increasing our 12-month price target to $131.00, up from our prior price target of $125.00. Our price target represents a target multiple of 32x a blend of our F2014 and F2015 adjusted diluted earnings per share estimates. We believe that Keurig Green Mountain shares will be predominately driven by new products (Keurig 2.0 new hot beverage platform and Keurig Cold new at-home carbonated beverage platform) and other new relationships…

Our F2014 estimates assume a reduction in year-over-year revenue growth of 7.0% to $4.683 billion, (down from our prior estimate of 7.5%), a reduction in our operating margin estimate to expansion of approximately 216 basis points to 19.73% vs. 17.56% in F2013 (down from our prior expansion estimate of 257 basis points) and a reduction in EPS growth to 13.7% (down from our prior estimate of 13.8%). The adjustments to our full year estimates reflect F3Q 2014 results and a 280 basis point reduction of our operating margin estimate for F4Q due to increased expenses to support the new Keurig 2.0 rollout…

Top Net Payout Yield Stocks To Own For 2015: Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. (CCE)

Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. produces, distributes, and markets non-alcoholic beverages in Europe. It provides a range of beverage categories, including energy drinks, still and sparkling waters, juices, sports drinks, fruit drinks, coffee-based beverages, and teas. The company primarily offers its products under Coca-Cola, Diet Coke/Coke light, Fanta, Coca-Cola Zero, Capri Sun, Schweppes, Sprite, Chaudfontaine, MinuteMaid, and Dr. Pepper brands. It provides its products to customers and consumers through licensed territory agreements in Belgium, continental France, Great Britain, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden. Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. was founded in 1986 and is based in Atlanta, Georgia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By L.A. Little]

  Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. (CCE) � is a consumer staple and has a lot less volatility than most stocks. As seen below, it has broken over multiple swing points on the short-term time frame.

• [By Marc Bastow]

  Non-alcoholic beverage distributor Coca-Cola Enerprises (CCE) raised its quarterly dividend 25% to 25 cents per share, payable on Mar. 20 to shareholders of record as of Mar. 7.
  CCE Dividend Yield: 2.25%

Hot Beverage Stocks To Buy Right Now: Monster Beverage Corp (MNST)

Monster Beverage Corporation, formerly Hansen Natural Corporation, incorporated on April 25, 1990,is a holding company. The Company develops, markets, sells and distributes alternative beverage. The alternative beverage category combines non-carbonated ready-to-drink iced teas, lemonades, juice cocktails, single-serve juices and fruit beverages, ready-to-drink dairy and coffee drinks, energy drinks, sports drinks, and single-serve still water (flavored, unflavored and enhanced) with new age beverages, including sodas that are considered natural, sparkling juices and flavored sparkling beverages. It has two reportable segments, namely Direct Store Delivery (DSD), whose principal products comprise energy drinks, and Warehouse (Warehouse), whose principal products comprise juice-based and soda beverages. The DSD segment develops, markets and sells products primarily through an exclusive distributor network, whereas the Warehouse segment develops, markets and sells products primarily directly to retailers. Corporate and unallocated amounts that do not relate to the DSD or Warehouse segments specifically, have been allocated to Corporate and Unallocated.

During the year ended December 31, 2012, it continued to expand its existing product lines and flavors and further develop its distribution markets. In particular, it continued to focus on developing and marketing beverages that fall within the category generally described as the alternative beverage category. During the year ended December 31, 2012, it introduced a number of new products, including Monster Rehab Tea + Orangeade + Energy, a non-carbonated energy drink with electrolytes, Monster Energy Zero Ultra, a carbonated energy drink which contains zero calories and zero sugar, bermonster Energy Brew, a non-alcoholic energy drink, manufactured using a brewed fermentation process, Hansen�� Coconut Water, in original and tropical flavors, packaged in re-sealable Tetra Prisma boxes, Peace Tea Cranberry, Pink Lemonade and Texas-Style Sweet ! Tea, ready-to-drink iced teas, Monster Cuba-Lima, a carbonated lime flavored non-alcoholic energy drink, Monster Energy Dub Edition Baller�� Blend, a carbonated punch + energy drink and Monster Energy Dub Edition Mad Dog, a carbonated punch + energy drink.

DSD Segment

Monster Energy Drinks offers products under the Monster Energy drink product line: Monster Energy, Lo-Carb Monster Energy, Monster Energy Assault, Monster Khaos, Monster M-80 (named Ripper in certain countries), Monster MIXXD, Monster Energy Absolutely Zero, Monster Energy Import and Import Light, Monster Energy Dub Edition Baller�� Blend, Monster Energy Dub Edition Mad Dog, M3 Monster Energy Super Concentrate energy drinks, bermonster Energy Brew, Monster Energy Zero Ultra and Monster Cuba-Lima.

Java Monster Coffee + Energy Drinks - A line of non-carbonated dairy based coffee + energy drinks. It offers products under the Java Monster product line: Java Monster Kona Blend, Java Monster Loca Moca, Java Monster Mean Bean, Java Monster Vanilla Light, Java Monster Irish Blend and Java Monster Toffee. Monster Energy Extra Strength Nitrous Technology Energy Drinks - A line of carbonated energy drinks containing nitrous oxide. It offer products under the Monster Energy Extra Strength Nitrous Technology product line: Super Dry, Anti Gravity and Black Ice.

-Presso Monster Coffee + Energy Drinks - A line of non-carbonated dairy based coffee + energy drinks. It offers products under the X-Presso Monster coffee + energy drinks product line: X-Presso Monster Hammer and X-Presso Monster Midnite.

Monster Rehab Tea + Energy Drinks - A line of non-carbonated energy drinks with electrolytes. It offers products under the Monster Rehab drink line: Monster Rehab Tea + Lemonade + Energy, Monster Rehab Rojo Tea + Energy, Monster Rehab Green Tea + Energy, Monster Rehab Protean + Energy and Monster Rehab Tea + Orangeade + Energy.

Worx Energy Energy Shots - A line of energy suppleme! nts which! contains zero calories and zero sugar. It offers products under the Worx Energy energy shot product line: Original Formula and Extra Strength.

Peace Tea Iced Teas - A line of ready-to-drink iced teas. It offers products under the Peace Tea product line: green tea, imported Ceylon tea, sweet lemon tea, razzleberry tea, cranberry tea, pink lemonade tea, Texas-style sweet tea and Caddy Shack tea + lemonade.

Warehouse Segment

Hansen�� brand sodas have been a natural soda brand on the West Coast of the United States for more than 30 years and are made with natural flavors. Hansen�� brand sodas, sweetened with cane sugar, and Hansen�� Diet Sodas, sweetened with Splenda no calorie sweetener and Acesulfame-K, contain no preservatives, sodium, caffeine or artificial colorings. It offers sodas under the Hansen�� brand name: Hansen�� Sodas, Hansen�� Diet Sodas and Hansen�� Natural Mixers, as well as Hansen�� Sparkling Waters, in a variety of flavors.

Its Blue Sky products contain no preservatives, artificial sweeteners, caffeine (other than its Blue Sky energy drinks) or artificial coloring and are made with sugar and natural flavors. It offers products under the Blue Sky product line: Blue Sky Natural Soda, Blue Sky Zero Calorie Sodas (sweetened with Truvia brand stevia extract, an all natural sweetener), Blue Sky Premium Sodas, Blue Sky Organic Natural Sodas, Blue Sky Seltzer Waters, Blue Sky Blue Energy drinks, Blue Sky Zero Calorie Blue Energy drinks, Blue Sky Caf Energy drinks and Blue Sky Recover Energy drinks.

Its original Hansen�� energy drinks compete in the functional beverage category, namely, beverages that provide a benefit in addition to simply delivering refreshment. It offers products under the Hansen�� energy drink product line: Hansen�� Natural Energy Pro, Hansen�� Energy Diet Red and Hansen�� Natural Stamina Pro.

Its fruit juice product line includes Hansen�� Natural Apple Juice, Ha! nsen�� ! Natural Grape Juice, White Grape Juice, Pineapple Juice, Apple Grape Juice, Apple Strawberry Juice, Orange Juice, Cranberry Juice, Cranberry-Apple Juice, Cranberry-Grape Juice, Ruby Red Grapefruit Juice, and Organic Apple Juice. In March 2012, it added Hansen�� Natural Apple Orange Pineapple Juice which contains 100% juice as well as 120% of the United States Recommended Daily Allowances (the USRDA) for vitamin C. It also offer Hansen�� Natural Lo-Cal juice cocktails, a line of all natural, low-calorie cocktails in four flavors. The Lo-Cal juice cocktails are sweetened with Truvia sweetener. Hansen�� juice products compete in the shelf-stable juice category.

It offers a number of aseptically packed boxed juice products, including its dual-branded multi-vitamin 100% juice line, which itsell in conjunction with Costco Wholesale Corporation (Costco) through Costco stores. It offers its Hansen�� Natural line of multi-vitamin 100% juices to other customers. These multi-vitamin juices contain eleven essential vitamins and six essential minerals and are available in a variety of flavors. In February 2012, it added Hansen�� Natural Organic Apple Juice, a 100% USDA Certified Organic Apple Juice with 100% of the USRDA for vitamin C.

Its Hansen�� Junior Juice product line is a 100% juice line targeted at toddlers and preschoolers. These juices have added calcium and all flavors contain 100% of the daily recommended allowance of vitamin C. It also offers organic juices as well as Hansen�� Organic Junior Water, a lightly flavored reduced calorie beverage, both of which contain 100% of the daily recommended allowance of vitamin C. In addition, it offers Junior Juice Coconut Water Twist, a line of fruit and coconut water juices containing 100% of the daily recommended allowance of vitamin C.

Its Hubert�� Lemonade is a line of premium ready-to-drink lemonades. Hubert�� Lemonade is sweetened with cane sugar and Truvia sweetener. Hubert�� Lemonade i! s all nat! ural and contains no preservatives, artificial sweeteners, caffeine, or artificial colorings. It offers products under the Hubert�� Lemonade product line: Strawberry Lemonade, Limeade, Mango Lemonade, Honey Lemonade, Raspberry Lemonade and Original Lemonade. It added Cherry Limeade and Blackberry Lemonade flavors to the product line in February 2012 and October 2012, respectively. In July 2012, it introduced 4-count multi-packs of select flavors.

Hubert�� Half & Half is sweetened with cane sugar and Truvia sweetener, and contains no preservatives, artificial sweeteners, or artificial colorings. Its Fruit and Tea Stix product line is an all-natural, low-calorie powder drink mix line, sweetened naturally with Truvia sweetener. Its Angeleno Aguas Frescas is a line of premium ready-to-drink aguas frescas. Angeleno Aguas Frescas are sweetened with cane sugar and real fruit juice and contain no preservatives, artificial sweeteners, caffeine, or artificial colorings. It offers flavors under the Angeleno Aguas Frescas product line: Mango, Melon, Pineapple, Jamaica (Hibiscus) and Tamarindo. Its Hansen�� Natural PRE products include a line of prebiotic and probiotic digestive wellness ready-to-drink beverages and powder drink mixes, containing specially formulated blends by Jarrow Formulas. PRE prebiotic ready-to-drink beverages are sweetened with either cane sugar or stevia. PRE probiotic powder drink mixes are sweetened with cane sugar and stevia. In March 2012, it introduced Hansen�� Natural Coconut Water, a line of premium 100% Coconut Waters available in Pure and Tropical flavors.

The Company competes with TCCC, PepsiCo, Inc. (PepsiCo), The Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, Inc. (the DPS Group), Red Bull Gmbh, Kraft Foods, Inc., GlaxoSmithKline plc, Nestle Beverage Company, Tree Top Inc. (Tree Top), Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc. (Ocean Spray), Red Bull, Rockstar, Full Throttle, No Fear, Amp, Adrenaline Rush, NOS, Venom, Redline, 180, Red Devil, Rip It, Xenergy, 5-Hour Energy ! Shots, Mi! O Energy, Stacker 2, VPX Redline Energy Shots, Red Bull, Rockstar, Burn, V-Energy, Lucozade, Adrenaline Rush, Power Play, Mother, Hell, Shock, Tiger, Boost, Gladiator, TNT, Shark, Hot 6, Nalu, Battery, Bullit, Flash Up, Black, Non-Stop, Bomba, Semtex, Starbucks Frappuccino, Starbucks Double Shot, Starbucks Double Shot Energy Plus Coffee , other Starbucks coffee drinks, Rockstar Roasted, Seattle�� Best, illy issimo coffee, Full Throttle Coffee, Arizona, Lipton, Snapple, Nestea, Xing Tea, Honest Tea, Gold Peak Tea, Fuze Tea, the DPS Group, Cott Corporation and National Beverage Corporation, Jones Soda Co., Crystal Geyser, J.M. Smucker Company, Reeds, Inc., Zevia, Tree Top, Mott��, Martinelli��, Welch��, Ocean Spray, Tropicana, Minute Maid, Langers, Apple , Eve, Seneca, Northland, Juicy Juice, Old Orchard, Calypso, Simply Lemonade, Minute Maid, Cabana, Tropicana, Newman�� Own, Vita Coco, ZICO and O.N.E.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lisa Levin]

  Monster Beverage (NASDAQ: MNST) shares moved up 26.98% to $90.98. The volume of Monster Beverage shares traded was 1610% higher than normal. Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) and Monster Beverage announced a long-term strategic partnership. As part of the deal, Coca-Cola will buy a 16.7% equity stake in Monster.

• [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]

  Paul Morris/Bloomberg/Getty Images There were plenty of winners and losers this week, with a fast food chain's attempt to offer healthier fare falling short and the world's largest networking equipment company letting pink slips fly. Here's a rundown of the week's smartest moves and biggest blunders. Satisfries -- Loser Burger King Worldwide (BKW) is giving up on trying to woo calorie counters. The burger chain is discontinuing Satisfies -- the crinkle-cut fries that contain 40 percent less fat and 30 percent fewer calories than McDonald's (MCD) signature spud sticks -- at most restaurants. Some franchisees will keep offering Satisfries, but the item didn't stick on its menu for much more than a year. Burger King claims that the item didn't sell well despite clearing roughly 100 million orders for the slightly less unhealthy fries. One can argue that Satisfries were doomed because of Burger King chose to charge more for an order than its traditional fries. Fast food joints are magnetic to folks looking to save money. Plus Burger King isn't a big draw to folks on a diet despite following rivals into salads. Monster Beverage (MNST) -- Winner Coca-Cola (KO) has struggled to make a dent in the energy drink market dominated by Red Bull and Monster, so it's betting on a winner. Coca-Cola is investing $2.15 billion to buy a 16.7 percent stake in Monster Beverage. It's a smart move for Coca-Cola as it continues to diversify from carbonated drinks that have fallen out of favor with consumers. However, it's a bigger deal for Monster Beverage. The stock jumped on the news, and rightfully so. Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) has soared since Coca-Cola made a similar investment earlier this year. Cisco (CSCO) -- Loser It's another round of pink slips at Cisco. The networking gear giant announced that it that it will be dismissing 6,000 workers or 8 percent of its staff. It's a big number, but the market shouldn't be surprised. This is the fourth summer in a row

• [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]

  Amy Sancetta/AP Plenty of stocks go up and down in any given week. The gainers inspire us to keep investing. The decliners keep greed in check while reminding us about the risks of the equity markets. Let's go over some of last week's best and worst performers. Chiquita Brands (CQB) -- Up 35 Percent Last Week Investors went bananas over Chiquita after it received -- and rejected -- a buyout offer. Cutrale and Safra offered an unsolicited offer to buy the banana giant at a price of $13 a share, representing a 29 percent premium to where Chiquita closed before bid was made public. Chiquita's board rejected the offer. The stock still moved higher -- above and beyond $13 -- on the possibility of Cutrale and Safra sweetening their bid. Monster Beverage (MNST) -- Up 34 Percent Last Week Soft drinks are out, and adrenaline-boosting energy drinks are in. Coca-Cola (KO) knows this, so it announced on Friday morning that it was buying a nearly 17 percent stake in Monster Beverage for $2.15 billion. Monster and Red Bull dominate this niche despite growing concerns about the health risks of young consumers taking in too many energy drinks. Monster's stock rallied on Friday. Investors may be hoping that Coca-Cola eventually swallows down all of Monster, but in the meantime it validates the beverage category. United Online (UNTD) -- Up 20 Percent Last Week It's possible to be at the right place at the right time but with the wrong approach. United Online hasn't been the market darling that it could have been given its ability to hop on to trends early. After all, it acquired alum-reuniting Classmates before social networking was hot. It built up NetZero when the country was just starting to migrate online. It also bought MyPoints from a legacy airline before the appeal of online coupons and loyalty clubs became popular. However, investors were rewarded last week when United Online posted preliminary quarterly results. Its bean counters are still trying to assess th

• [By Anders Bylund]

  The long-term investment king should be familiar to longtime Fool readers. Energy drink giant Monster Beverage (NASDAQ: MNST  ) , formerly known as Hansen Natural, crushed all comers with a 22,200% return. That's nearly 72% per year on a sustained 10-year run, though the pace slowed down considerably in the back half of this jaw-dropping jump. Monster shares have "only" tripled in the last five years, which sounds weak only when compared to the nearly 60-bagger return of the previous five years.

Hot Beverage Stocks To Buy Right Now: Brown-Forman Corp (BFB)

Brown-Forman Corporation, incorporated on October 19, 1933, primarily manufactures, bottles, imports, exports, markets, and sells a variety of alcoholic beverage brands. The Company�� principal brands are Jack Daniel�� Tennessee Whiskey, Jack Daniel�� Tennessee Whiskey, Pepe Lopez Tequilas, Jack Daniel�� Single Barrel, Woodford Reserve Bourbons, Jack Daniel�� Ready-to-Drinks, Canadian Mist Blended Canadian Whiskies, Jack Daniel�� Tennessee Honey, Chambord Liqueur, Jack Daniel�� Winter Jack Chambord Vodka, Gentleman Jack, Collingwood Canadian Whisky, Southern Comfort, Early Times Bourbon, Southern Comfort Ready-to-Drinks, Early Times flavored line extensions, Southern Comfort flavored line extensions, Early Times Kentucky Whisky, Finlandia Vodkas, Korbel California Champagnes, Finlandia Ready-to-Drinks, Little Black Dress Vodkas, Antiguo Tequila, Maximus Vodkas, el Jimador Tequilas, Old Forester Bourbon, el Jimador New Mix Ready-to-Drinks, Sonoma-Cutrer Wines, Herradura Tequilas, and Tuaca Liqueur.

The Company�� products are sold in more than 150 countries around the world. The Company�� international markets include Australia, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Germany, Poland, France, Russia, Japan, Turkey, Canada, Spain, Czech Republic, South Africa, Brazil and Italy.

The Company competes with Bacardi Limited, Beam Inc., Davide Campari-Milano S.p.A., Diageo plc, LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton S.A., Pernod Ricard S.A., and Remy Cointreau S.A.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Maria Armental var popups = dojo.query(".socialByline .popC"); popups.forEach]

  Brown-Forman Corp.(BFB) said its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings jumped 17% as the Jack Daniel’s whiskey maker posted higher sales and wider margins. Earnings beat expectations.

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Brown-Forman (NYSE: BFB  ) reported earnings on June 5. Here are the numbers you need to know.

  The 10-second takeaway
  For the quarter ended April 30 (Q4), Brown-Forman met expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

• [By Laura Brodbeck]

  Wednesday

  Earnings Expected From: Christopher & Banks Corporation (NYSE: CBK), Brown Forman Corporation (NYSE: BFB), Express, Inc. (NYSE: EXPR), Avago Technologies (NASDAQ: AVGO) Economic Releases Expected: US nonfarm employment change, US trade balance, Canadian trade balance, US new home sales, US ISM non-manufacturing PMI

  Thursday

Hot Beverage Stocks To Buy Right Now: Fomento Economico Mexicano SAB de CV (FOMC)

Fomento Economico Mexicano SAB de CV (FEMSA) is a Mexico-based holding company engaged in the beverages industry. Through its subsidiary Coca-Cola FEMSA SAB de CV, the Company is active in the production and distribution of a variety of non-alcoholic beverages, bottled water and still beverages such brands as Coca-Cola, Fanta, Sprite, Powerade, Delaware Punch and other trademark beverages of The Coca-Cola Company in Mexico. Through FEMSA Comercio SA de CV, it operates the OXXO convenience-store chain in Latin America. The Company operates in a number of Latinamerican countries and in Philippines. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By CanadianValue]

  Former Philadelphia Fed President Edward Boehne elegantly described the approach at a Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting in late 1989:

  ��ow, sooner or later, we will have a recession. I don�� think anybody around the table wants a recession or is seeking one, but sooner or later we will have one. If in that recession we took advantage of the anti-inflation (impetus) and we got inflation down from 4 1/2 percent to 3 percent, and then in the next expansion we were able to keep inflation from accelerating, sooner or later there will be another recession out there. And so, if we could bring inflation down from cycle to cycle just as we let it build up from cycle to cycle, that would be considerable progress over what we��e done in other periods in history.��/p>

• [By Canadian Value]

  Also interesting is that the duration of rising rate environments is distinctly shorter after 1982. The average duration declines to 14 months from 40 months prior to 1982. A possible explanation could be changes in the monetary mechanism influencing interest rates. In 1982, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) first referenced a targeted federal funds rate.7

Top 5 Telecom Companies To Invest In Right Now

Top 5 Telecom Companies To Invest In Right Now: Ruckus Wireless Inc (RKUS)

Ruckus Wireless, Inc (Ruckus), incorporated August 19, 2002, is a provider of Wi-Fi solutions. The Company's solutions, which it calls Smart Wi-Fi, are used by service providers and enterprises to solve network challenges. The Company's products include gateways, controllers and access points. These products incorporate its technologies, including Smart Radio, Smart QoS, Smart Mesh, SmartCell and Smart Scaling. The Company sells its products to service providers and enterprises globally, and as of December 31, 2012, had sold its products to over 21,700 end-customers worldwide. During 2012, the Company added over 10,100 new end-customers. The Company's enterprise end-customers are typically mid-sized organizations in a variety of industries, including hospitality, education, healthcare, warehousing and logistics, corporate enterprise, retail, state and local government and public venues, such as stadiums, convention centers, airports and outdoor public areas. Effectiv e July 23, 2013, Ruckus Wireless Inc acquired YFind Technologies Pte Ltd.

The Company sells directly and indirectly to a range of service providers, including mobile operators, cable companies, wholesale operators and fixed-line carriers. As of December 31, 2012, the Company had over 65 service provider end-customers, including Bright House Networks, The Cloud (a BSkyB Company), KDDI, Tikona Digital Networks, Time Warner Cable and Towerstream. The Company's Smart Wi-Fi solutions are marketed under the SmartCell, ZoneDirector, ZoneFlex and FlexMaster brands and include a range of indoor and outdoor access points (APs), long range point-to-point and point-to-multipoint bridges, wireless local area network (LAN), controllers, network management software and gateway systems with integrated advanced wireless software.

The Company'! s core Smart Wi-Fi technologies include Smart Radio, Smart QoS, Smart Mesh, SmartCell and Smart Scaling. Smart Radio is a set of advanced hardware and software capabilities that auto! matically adjust Wi-Fi signals to changes in environmental conditions. A primary component of Smart Radio technology is BeamFlex, a smart antenna system that makes Wi-Fi signals stronger by focusing them only where they are needed and dynamically steering them in directions that yield the highest throughput for each receiving device. Another component is ChannelFly, a performance optimization capability that automatically determines, which radio frequencies or channels deliver the network throughput based on actual observed capacity, a key benefit for high-density, noisy Wi-Fi environments.

Smart QoS is a software technology that manages traffic load to enhance the user experience. Smart QoS was developed to handle the increasing volumes of voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) and streaming video traffic. Smart QoS offers automatic prioritization of different traffic types through intelligent analytics that classify, prioritize and schedule traffic for transmissi on. Smart QoS employs advanced queuing techniques and dedicated software queues on a per device basis to ensure fairness and optimize overall system performance. Smart QoS includes its band steering, rate limiting, client load balancing and airtime fairness techniques.

Smart Mesh is software technology that uses advanced self-organizing network principles to create Wi-Fi backbone links between access points. Smart Mesh automatically establishes wireless connections between individual access points using patented smart antenna technology and self-heals in the event of a failed link.

SmartCell is a key technology behind the Company's SmartCell Gateway platform that integrates software and specialized hardware deployed at the edge of service provider networks to facilitate the integration of Wi-Fi and cellular infrastructur! es. Smart! Cell includes a set of modular software components ,as well as standard network interfaces into the mobile core that ena ble Wi-Fi to become a standard access mechanism for service ! providers! . Management components provide configuration, user management, analytics, accounting and other operational and maintenance functions.

Smart Scaling uses advanced database management techniques to enable the support of hundreds of thousands to millions of client devices across the Wi-Fi network. Smart Scaling employs intelligent data distribution techniques to extend client information, statistics and other vital user information across any number of nodes within the system without a single point of failure and with linear scalability. Smart Scaling is incorporated in its purpose-built hardware and software, making it capable of supporting hundreds of thousands of access points and user session workloads at the scale required by service providers.

SmartCell Gateway is a platform that integrates software and specialized hardware deployed at the edge of service provider networks to facilitate the integration of Wi-Fi and cellular infrastructures. The Company's SmartCell Gateway is designed to be vendor-agnostic and can control third-party APs. SmartCell Gateway provides standard-based interfaces into existing and future mobile networks to simplify integration.

SmartCell access point addresses the capacity and density needs of service providers deploying networks within urban environments. SmartCell APs employ modular multimode architecture to enable service providers to deploy Wi-Fi, 3G/4G small cell cellular technology and Wi-Fi mesh backhaul within a single device. This provides operators with the ability to enhance and extend their macro networks, injecting much needed capacity into high traffic user environments with the flexibility to deploy Wi-Fi with Smart Mesh backhaul and upgrade to Wi-Fi with 3G/LTE when and where desired without any mounting or backhaul chang! es.

The Company's ZoneDirector Smart WLAN controllers use a intuitive Web user interface to make configuration and administr ation extremely simple. This software includes a variety of ! advanced ! capabilities such as adaptive meshing, integrated client performance tools, authentication support, simplified guest access and user policy, wireless intrusion prevention, automatic traffic redirection, integrated Wi-Fi client performance tools and robust network management. ZoneFlex access points incorporate BeamFlex adaptive antenna array technology to deliver robust Wi-Fi performance, reliability and capacity. These devices support multiple virtual wireless LANs, Wi-Fi encryption and advanced traffic handling. The Company's ZoneFlex outdoor Smart Wi-Fi access points and point-to-point and multipoint bridges can be deployed as stand-alone APs or be centrally managed.

In addition to the Company's hardware products, the Company also sells software products. FlexMaster is a Linux-based Wi-Fi management service platform used by enterprises and service providers to monitor and administrate networks. FlexMaster provides configuration, fault detection, audit, per formance management and optimization of remote Ruckus access points or wireless LAN controllers. It offers a single point for management and a number of automated and customized facilities such as an intuitive dashboard. FlexMaster is designed to operate with existing operational support system and features tiered administration to provide managed wireless LAN or cloud-based wireless services.

The Company competes with Cisco Systems, Ericsson; Hewlett-Packard, Motorola and Aruba Networks.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  Monday
  The market kicks off a new trading week with Ruckus Wireless (NYSE: RKUS  ) reporting quarterly results on Monday. The provider of wireless systems for the mobile Internet infrastructure market went public in November at $15. It moved lower ! initially! , but the stock has crept into the high teens ahead of Monday's report.

• [By gurujx]

  Ruckus Wireless (RKUS): CFO Seamus Hennessy Sold 50,000 Shares

  CFO Seamus Hennessy sold 50,000 shares of RKUS stock on Sept. 6 at the average price of $15.12. The price of the stock has increased by 1.19% since.

source from Top Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksblog.com/top-5-telecom-companies-to-invest-in-right-now-2.html

Top 10 Regional Bank Companies To Own For 2015

Top 10 Regional Bank Companies To Own For 2015: Newcrest Mining Ltd (NCMGF)

Newcrest Mining Limited (Newcrest) is a gold, copper and silver producer that has operations and exploration projects in Australia, the Pacific region, Asia and West Africa. The Company's segments include Cadia Valley, Telfer, Gosowong, Lihir, Hidden Valley JV, West Africa (includes Bonikro operations and exploration and evaluation activities in Cote d'Ivoire) and Exploration and Other. Exploration and Other mainly consists of projects in the exploration, evaluation and feasibility phase and includes Namosi in Fiji, Wafi Golpu in Papua New Guinea (PNG), and Marsden and O'Callaghans in Australia. Cadia Valley Operations (CVO) is a gold mining operation and is 100% owned by Newcrest. It is located approximately 25 kilometers from the city of Orange in central west New South Wales and is 250 kilometers west of Sydney. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By WWW.MARKETWATCH.COM]

  LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- A soft lead from Wall Street and uncertainty ahead of Australian retail sales data (and U.S. jobs data) aren't slowing the Sydney market, where the S&P/ASX 200 stock benchmark is up 0.5% early Thursday, mainly on a gains for commodities. With copper at a fourth-month high and Chinese spot iron-ore prices moving further off their recent lows, Australia's heavily weighted mining stocks are trading broadly higher: BHP Billiton Ltd. (AU:BHP) (BHP) is up 0.7%, Rio Tinto Ltd. (AU:RIO) (RIO) is up 0.5%, Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. (AU:FMG) (FSUMF) is up 2.5%, Mount Gibson Iron Ltd. ! (AU:MGX) is up 3.7%, Oz Minerals Ltd. (AU:OZL) (OZMLF) is up 1.7%, and Newcrest Mining Ltd. (AU:NCM) (NCMGF) is up 1.8%. Casino operator Crown Resorts Ltd. (CWLDF) is up 1.2% as Bell Potter reiterates its buy call on the shares, even as it cuts its target price, according to Dow Jones Newswires. On the downside, David Jones Ltd. (AU:DJS) (DVDJF) is down 0.5% as Australian media reports say the nation's regulators failed to get permission to open an investigation into the retailer's proposed takeover by Woolworths of South Africa.

• [By MARKETWATCH]

  LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Australian stocks rose modestly in early Tuesday trade, with the market reacting to a mixed batch of earnings. The S&P/ASX 200 (AU:XJO) added 0.2% to 5,391.80, with BHP Billiton Ltd. (AU:BHP) (BHP) rising 1.7% after its July-December profit almost doubled from a year earlier, beating forecasts. However, smaller rival Arrium Ltd. (AU:ARI) (ARRMF) added 2.5% after reporting a swing back to profit. Other miners got a bump up from rising commodity prices, as Newcrest Mining Ltd. (AU:NCM) (NCMGF) gained 2.3% and Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. (AU:FMG) ! (FSUM! F) added 1.2%, though Oz Minerals Ltd. (AU:OZL) (OZMLF) slipped 0.4%. Shares of Coca-Cola Amatil Ltd. (AU:CCL) (CCLAF) slumped 5.1% after the drinks firm saw a more than 80% drop in 2013 profit, weighed by a writedown on its fruit-processing business. Packaging firm Amcor Ltd. (AU:AMC) (AMCRF) lost 4.6% after its fiscal-first-half profit fell by about a third.

source from Top Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksblog.com/top-10-regional-bank-companies-to-own-for-2015.html

5 Best Safest Stocks To Own For 2014

The old adage of risk equaling reward couldn't be truer. It was 2008, and the stock market was in chaos.

 

Great rewards went to investors who took the risk of stepping into the fray to buy the lows. But during the same time, many investors were practically wiped out because they failed to manage their risks wisely in the highly volatile environment.

The stock market today isn't as volatile as it was during the financial crisis. However, the same investing maxim still holds: The greater the risk, the greater the rewards. 

Many investors shun risk. These risk-averse investors pile into the safest possible investments in an effort to preserve principal at all costs. This attitude will most likely preserve your portfolio, but it will also greatly decrease your potential for market-beating rewards. 

Top India Stocks To Invest In 2015: RF Micro Devices Inc.(RFMD)

RF Micro Devices, Inc. designs, develops, manufactures, and markets radio frequency (RF) components and compound semiconductor technologies in the United States and internationally. Its products enable mobility, as well as provide connectivity and support functionality in the cellular handsets, wireless infrastructure, wireless local area networks, cable television /broadband, Smart Energy/advanced metering infrastructure, and aerospace and defense markets. The company offers products that range from single-function components to highly integrated circuits and multi-chip modules (MCMs). Its integrated circuit products include gain blocks, low noise amplifiers, power amplifiers (PAs), receivers, transmitters, transceivers, modulators, demodulators, attenuators, switches, frequency synthesizers, and voltage-controlled oscillators (VCOs); MCM products consist of PA modules, switch-filter modules, active antenna products, VCOs, phase-locked loops, coaxial resonator oscillators , active mixers, variable gain amplifiers, hybrid amplifiers, power doublers, and optical receivers; and passive components consist of splitters, couplers, mixers, and transformers, as well as isolators and circulators. The company markets its products to original equipment manufacturers and original design manufacturers. RF Micro Devices, Inc. was founded in 1991 and is headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  RF Micro Devices (NASDAQ: RFMD  ) is a chipmaker that's fared well in getting its smartphone chips into devices of the world's two biggest players in this growing space. Another thing it does is make analysts look like perpetual underachievers. If analysts say the company posted a profit of $0.07 a share in its latest quarter, I'll argue that it held up better than that. History's on my side!

• [By Selena Maranjian]

  Among holdings in which Robeco Investment Management increased its stake were American Capital Agency (NASDAQ: AGNC  ) and RF Micro Devices (NASDAQ: RFMD  ) . American Capital Agency is a mortgage REIT with a tantalizing dividend yield above 16%. The company's CEO is well respected, but some worry that mortgage REITs may lose a valuable tax advantage.

• [By Eric Volkman]

  RF Micro Devices (NASDAQ: RFMD  ) �shares drooped in post-market trading following the release of the company's fiscal Q3 2014 results. For the quarter, revenue came in at $289 million, an improvement over the $271 million in the same period the previous year. Net profit was $36.4 million ($0.13 per diluted share), against Q3 2013's $21.3 million ($0.08).

5 Best Safest Stocks To Own For 2014: Safran SA (SAF)

Safran SA is a France-based high-technology company which produces aircraft and rocket engines and propulsion systems. It divides its work into three segments: Aerospace, Aircraft, Defense and Security. The Aerospace Propulsion division provides engines, turbines and parts for aircraft, and rocket boosters for civil, military and spatial markets through several subsidiaries, including Snecma, among others. The Aircraft Equipment division produces landing gear, wheels and carbon brakes, aircraft engine nacelles and airborne power electronics through its subsidiaries, including Aircelle, among others. The Defense division includes the subsidiary, Sagem, and makes systems and equipment for inertial navigation and other defense applications to be used on military transport and combat aircraft, helicopters, warships, armored vehicles and artillery systems. In October 2013, the Company completed the sale of its United States-based subsidiary, Global Motors Inc to Allied Motion Inc. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sofia Horta e Costa]

  Vivendi SA climbed 2.7 percent after posting better-than-estimated third-quarter profit and saying it plans to spin off its French phone carrier SFR by July 2014. Serco Group Plc (SRP) increased 1.7 percent as UBS AG upgraded the stock. Safran SA (SAF) lost 3.2 percent as its largest shareholder sold a stake.

5 Best Safest Stocks To Own For 2014: CenturyLink Inc.(CTL)

CenturyLink, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated communications company. The company provides a range of communications services, including voice, Internet, data, and video services in the continental United States. Its services include local exchange and long distance voice telephone services, as well as enhanced voice services, such as call forwarding, caller identification, conference calling, voicemail, selective call ringing, and call waiting; wholesale local network access services; and data services, including high-speed Internet access services, data transmission services over special circuits and private lines, and switched digital television services, as well as special access and private line services. The company also offers fiber transport, competitive local exchange carrier, security monitoring, and other communications, as well as professional and business information services. In addition, it provides other related services, such as leasing, selling, installing, and maintaining customer premise telecommunications equipment and wiring; payphone services; and network database services, as well as participates in the publication of local telephone directories. Further, the company offers printing, direct mail services, and cable television services; and wireless broadband Internet access services and satellite television services. As of December 31, 2010, it operated approximately 6.5 million telephone access lines. CenturyLink, Inc was founded in 1968 and is based in Monroe, Louisiana.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Brian Nichols]

  Rackspace Hosting Inc. (NYSE: RAX  ) takeover talks are heating up as analysts believe that CenturyLink (NYSE: CTL  ) has a high probability of making a bid. While this might make sense as a way to better compete against companies like Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN  ) , is this really in the best interest of shareholders?

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  We continue to view the dividend as the main attraction for Frontier shares, supported by FCF stability and limited near-term debt maturities. While the copper-based telephone business is largely in decline, there is a significant growth opportunity to increase share in acquired Verizon properties that Frontier management appears to have begun monetizing. Our target price implies 5.7x 2014E EBITDA and an 8% dividend yield, which we find attractive versus CenturyLink (CTL) at 5.5x with a 6.5% yield.

• [By Lauren Pollock]

  CenturyLink Inc.(CTL) swung to a steep third-quarter loss as the telecommunications company recorded a $1.1 billion impairment charge tied to its data-hosting segment, while revenue fell for the fifth consecutive quarter. Shares declined 2.6% to $33 premarket.

5 Best Safest Stocks To Own For 2014: Emulex Corp (ELX)

Emulex Corporation (Emulex) is a provider of a range of network convergence solutions that connect servers, storage, and networks within the data center. The Company�� product portfolio includes Host Bus Adapters (HBAs), Converged Network Adapters (CNAs), Network Interface Cards (NICs), mezzanine cards for blade servers, Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), embedded storage bridges, routers, and switches, Input/Output Controllers (IOCs), and connectivity management solutions. The Company is a designer, developer and supplier of HBAs, CNAs, NICs, mezzanine cards, Pass-Through Modules (PTM), embedded storage switches, embedded bridges, embedded routers, I/O ASICs, switch-on-a-chip (SOC) ASICs, Internet Baseboard management controllers (iBMC��) and connectivity management solutions. On August 25, 2010, Emulex acquired ServerEngines Corporation. In February 2013, Emulex acquired 89% ownership of Endace Ltd. In April 2013, Emulex Corp announced the completion of acquisition of Endace Limited.

Host Server Products

The Company�� Host Server Products include the development of chip level and board level server-based I/O adapters, including HBAs, Universal Converged Network Adapters (UCNAs), and mezzanine cards that connect servers and storage to networks using a range of products. Its products support Internet protocol (IP) and storage networking, including transmission control protocol (TCP)/IP, Internet small computer system interface (iSCSI), network attached storage (NAS), Fibre Channel, and Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE). Host Server Products (HSP) include LightPulse HBAs, OneConnecttm UCNAs, custom form factor solutions for original equipment manufacturer (OEM) blade servers, and ASICs. These products enable servers to connect to local area networks (LANs), storage area networks (SANs), and NAS by offloading data communication processing tasks from the server as information is delivered and sent to the network.

Its Fibre Channel H! BAs connect host computers to a Fibre Channel network. The Company�� adapters support a range of operating systems and host computer system interfaces, including Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) and PCI Express-based platforms. Its Fibre Channel HBA offerings include single, dual, and quad port adapters at throughput speeds of two gigabyte per second, four gigabyte per second, and eight gigabyte per second for use in enterprise, large, medium, and small-sized organizations. The Emulex OneConnect UCNA is a single chip 10 gigabyte per second Ethernet platform designed to address the challenges of data center networks. The Emulex UCNA platform enables data center managers to consolidate multiple one gigabyte per second Ethernet links on to a single 10 gigabyte per second Ethernet link. Emulex HBAs and UCNAs are based upon its internally developed Fibre Channel and Ethernet IOCs. In addition, these IOCs can be used in embedded I/O environments, such as disk and tape storage arrays and storage appliances. Revenues from these applications are included in the Company�� Embedded Storage Products.

Embedded Storage Products

The Company�� Embedded Storage Products include the development of chip level, board level, and box level array based products that are deployed inside storage arrays, tape libraries, and other storage products to provide connectivity and protocol emulation functions. These products include embedded IOCs, I/O Processors (IOPs), SOCs, embedded bridges (FC/SATA/SAS), and embedded routers (FC/SATA/SAS). Emulex offers a range of integrated, embedded storage networking products for enterprise storage systems that deliver improved performance, reliability and storage connectivity. InSpeed is an advanced switching architecture that results in a single chip capable of handling multiple Fibre Channel devices operating at two, four, or eight gigabyte per second speeds. Its embedded router and bridge products consist of chip and firmware solutions.

! The Compa! ny competes with QLogic Corporation, Brocade Communications Systems, Inc., Broadcom Corporation, Intel Corporation, Chelsio Communications, Inc., Mellanox Technologies, Ltd., LSI, Marvell Technology Group Ltd., Maxim Integrated Products, Inc. and PMC-Sierra, Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  Emulex (ELX) is a provider of a range of network convergence solutions that intelligently connect servers, storage and networks within the data center. This stock closed up 1.6% to $8.14 in Thursday's trading session.

  Thursday's Range: $8.05-$8.22
  
  52-Week Range: $5.72-$8.99
  
  Thursday's Volume: 727,000
  
  Three-Month Average Volume: 786,981

  From a technical perspective, ELX bounced modestly higher here right above some near-term support at $7.95 with decent upside volume. This stock has been trending sideways inside of a consolidation chart pattern over the last month, with shares moving between 7.50 on the downside and $8.46 on the upside. This modest spike is now starting to push shares of ELX within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade above the upper-end of its recent sideways trading chart pattern. That trade will hit if ELX manages to take out some near-term overhead resistance levels at $8.34 to $8.46 with high volume.

  Traders should now look for long-biased trades in ELX as long as it's trending above some key near-term support levels at $7.95 or $7.50 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 786,981 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then ELX will set up to re-test or possibly take out its 52-week high at $8.99. Any high-volume move above $8.99 will then give ELX a chance to tag its next major overhead resistance levels at $10 to $11.19.

Hot Gas Utility Companies To Invest In Right Now

Is equity must in every portfolio? Is it essential that you should invest in equity directly or through mutual in order to generate wealth? The answer to the question is debatable but the fact remains that majority of the people in India create their wealth without using equity as an investment option. This information is not based on gut feeling or general analysis of trends in savings and investments.

As per RBI report, much of the financial savings of the household sector are in the form of bank deposits (around 30 per cent in the 2000s), life insurance funds (22 per cent in the 2000s as against 9.6 per cent in the 1980s), and pension and provident funds (16.5 per cent in the 2000s as against 23.6 per cent in the 1980s). Another startling fact that comes out from RBI report which says shares and debentures accounted for 8.3 per cent of total financial savings in the1980s; their share increased to nearly 13 percent in the 1990s before declining to 4.8 per cent in the 2000s.

Top Performing Companies To Watch In Right Now: Pall Corporation(PLL)

Pall Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets filtration, purification, and separation products and integrated systems solutions worldwide. The company?s Life Sciences segment provides technologies that facilitate the process of drug discovery, development, regulatory validation, and production used in the research laboratories, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, food and beverage industry, blood centers, and hospitals at the point of patient care. It also offers medical products that enhance the safety of the use of blood products in patient care and help control the spread of infections in hospitals; and cell therapy products that enable technologies for the regenerative medicine market. In addition, this segment sells various filtration and purification technologies, appurtenant hardware, and engineered systems for the development and commercialization of chemically synthesized and biologically derived drugs, plasma, and vaccines, as well as offers filtration solutions; validation services to drug manufacturers; and laboratory products for use in drug research and discovery, quality control testing, and environmental monitoring applications. Further, it serves the filtration needs of the food and beverage market. The company?s Industrial segment provides enabling and process enhancing technologies for the industrial market. It offers filtration and fluid monitoring equipment to the aerospace industry; filtration and purification technologies for the semiconductor, data storage, fiber optic, advanced display, and materials markets; and a suite of contamination control solutions for chemical, gas, water, chemical mechanical polishing, and photolithography processes. This segment also provides various technologies to producers of energy, oil, gas, renewable and alternative fuels, electricity, chemicals, and municipal water. The company was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Port Washington, New Yo rk.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By James Miller Phd]

  Pall Corporation (PLL) is a supplier of filtration, separation and purification technologies, principally made by the company, for the removal of solid, liquid and gaseous contaminants from a range of liquids and gases. The company serves customers through two businesses globally: Life Sciences and Industrial. While Pall competes with many companies in the Life Sciences markets and Industrial, few companies operate in both, like ESCO Technologies Inc. (ESE) and Danaher Corp. (DHR).

• [By Mike Deane]

  On Tuesday, Pall Corp (PLL) announced a 10% raise to its quarterly dividend.

  The East Hills, NY-based filtration, purification and separation products supplier will now pay a monthly dividend of 27.5 cents, which is up from its previous quarterly payout of 25 cents. On an annualized basis, PLL will now pay shareholders $1.1 per share.

  The dividend is payable on November 8, 2013 to all shareholders on record as of October 18, 2013. The ex-dividend date is October 16, 2013.

  PLL shares were down just 5 cents, or .06%, at market close on Tuesday. The company’s stock is up more than 24% YTD.

• [By John Divine]

  Filtration systems producer Pall (NYSE: PLL  ) leads off today's list, having slumped 5.1%. The company reported quarterly results after the markets closed yesterday, and investors were underwhelmed. Sales didn't live up to expectations, although earnings actually beat estimates. The company's outlook really stung shares: Pall said that European expansion was going well, while operations in China were sluggish. Apart from that being the inverse version of what Wall Street wanted to hear, the company also lowered guidance for the fiscal year.

• [By Marc Bastow]

  Liquid filtration, separation and purification systems provider Pall (PLL) increased its quarterly dividend 10% to 27.5 cents per share, payable on Nov. 8 to shareholders of record as of Oct.18.
  PLL Dividend Yield: 1.42%

Hot Gas Utility Companies To Invest In Right Now: TCF Financial Corporation(TCB)

TCF Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for TCF National Bank that provides various retail and commercial banking products and services in the United States and Canada. Its products and services include consumer, small business, and commercial deposits, as well as interest-bearing checking accounts, money market accounts, regular savings accounts, certificates of deposit, and retirement savings plans; and consumer real estate loans, commercial real estate loans, commercial business loans, and multi-purpose campus cards for colleges, as well as consumer loans for personal, family, or household purposes. The company also offers leasing and equipment finance products for various companies, inventory finance products, auto finance products, and treasury services. As of December 31, 2011, it had 434 retail banking branches, including 196 branches in Illinois, 110 in Minnesota, 53 in Michigan, 36 in Colorado, 26 in Wisconsin, 7 in Arizona, 5 in Indiana, an d 1 in South Dakota. The company was founded in 1923 and is based in Wayzata, Minnesota.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tim Melvin]

  I always find it very interesting to see what long-term investors are selling in a given quarter. Kahn Brothers lightened up on many financials that have shot up and now trade above book value. The firm sold out of Flushing Financial (FFIC), TCF Financial (TCB) and Dime Community Bank (DCOM). Khan apparently shares my views on the large-cap drug stocks, easing up on both Pfizer (PFE) and Bristol Meyers (BMY) over the summer. Khan Brothers also sold the last of the Travelers shares (TRV) it has owned since 2008 at more than twice the purchase price.

• [By Zacks]

  Shares of TCF Financial Corporation (NYSE: TCB) have recorded a year-to-date return of 26.6%. Impressive organic growth, balance sheet repositioning and strong capital deployment activities of the company were primary factors behind the growth. However, we are not so optimistic about these positives translating into further price appreciation down the road as there will likely be significant pressure on its top line.

Hot Gas Utility Companies To Invest In Right Now: FirstEnergy Corporation(FE)

Firstenergy Corp. operates as a diversified energy company. The company, through its subsidiaries and affiliates, involves in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity, as well as energy management and other energy-related services. It serves approximately 6 million customers within 67,000 square miles through 10 utility operating companies in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia and Maryland. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Akron, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By David Dittman]

  Question: What is your view on mainly electric utilities with the rising interest rates as a trend along with natural gas lower and wholesale electric prices down? Are we in for more Exelon Corp (NYSE: EXC) and FirstEnergy Corp (NYSE: FE) situations?

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Top decliners in the sector American Electric Power Co (NYSE: AEP), down 2.5 percent, and FirstEnergy (NYSE: FE), off 2.5 percent.

  Top Headline
  On Sunday, AT&T (NYSE: T) announced its plans to buy DirecTV (NASDAQ: DTV) for $48.5 billion, or $95 per share in a combination of stock and cash. The offer price of $95 per DirecTV share represents a 10 percent premium to closing price of $86.18 on Friday. The deal has a total value of $67.1 billion, including DirecTV's net debt.

• [By Eric Volkman]

  FirstEnergy (NYSE: FE  ) is keeping the dividend juice flowing. The company has declared a fresh common stock distribution of $0.55 per share, to be paid on September 1 to shareholders of record as of Aug. 7. That amount is in line with all of the firm's regular payouts stretching back to March 2008. Before that, FirstEnergy handed out $0.50 per share.

• [By Sara Murphy]

  First Energy (NYSE: FE  ) may not be. Record drought and extreme heat in the Midwest in 2012 forced the company to slow production at its Perry nuclear plant -- water is necessary to cool nuclear plants, and water levels were at historic lows because of the drought. First Energy isn't alone. Two reactors at Dominion Resources' (NYSE: D  ) Millstone Power Station in Connecticut were forced to shut down last August, when the temperatures in Long Island Sound were too hot to cool the facility. Exelon's (NYSE: EXC  ) Braidwood Generating Station, a nuclear plant near Chicago, received permission from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission last July to operate after temperatures in its cooling pond increased above the plant's 100-degree permit.

Hot Gas Utility Companies To Invest In Right Now: Route1 Inc (ROI)

Route1 Inc. (Route1) delivers security and identity management solutions to corporations and government agencies that need universal, secure access to all digital resources and sensitive data. These customers depend on The Power of MobiNET Route1�� communications and service delivery platform. MobiNET provides identity assurance and individualized access to networks and data. The Company operates in two revenue segments: devices and appliances and services. On September 30, 2010, the Company completed of the pilot project to deploy the Company�� DEFIMNET platform, TruOFFICE application software, and MobiKEY Fusion devices to the United States Navy Reserve Forces Command (RESFOR). On April 13, 2010, the Company announced the release of TruOFFICE application software version 2.8 with strengthened security and Windows 7 support. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Michael Ugulini]

  Sentiment and semantics are for greeting cards; stakeholders want Return on Investment (ROI) and will raise a glass of suds to widespread distribution via powerhouse Anheuser-Busch's network over a "craft" distinction for some brands.

• [By Chuck Carnevale]

  Next, I turned to an evaluation of gross profit margin (gpm), net profit margin (npm), return on assets (roa), return on equity (roe) and return on invested capital (roi). The example below only includes gross and net profit margin, however, I review data on all the metrics stated above.

Hot Gas Utility Companies To Invest In Right Now: MOCON Inc.(MOCO)

MOCON, Inc. develops, manufactures, markets, and services measurement, analytical, and monitoring products to detect, measure, and analyze gases and other chemical compounds; and provides related consulting services. It offers permeation products, including systems and services that measure the rate at which various gases and vapors transmit through various materials for the manufacturers of packaging materials comprising papers, plastic films, coatings, and containers, as well as users of such packaging materials, such as food, beverage, pharmaceutical, and consumer product industries; and laboratory testing services. The company also provides gas analyzer instruments, sensors, and detectors for use in industrial hygiene and safety, hydrocarbon gas analysis for oil and gas exploration, contaminant detection in the manufacture of specialty gases, environmental monitoring, and homeland security applications under the BEVALERT, PETROALERT, and piD-TECH names. In addition, it offers packaging products and services, including headspace analyzers to analyze the amount and type of gas present in the headspace of flexible and rigid packages for the packagers of foods, beverages, and pharmaceuticals; and leak detection equipment to detect leaks in sterile medical trays, food pouches, blister packs, and other packages. Further, the company provides consulting and analytical services for foods, beverages, pharmaceuticals, plastics, chemicals, electronics, and personal care products manufacturers; gas chromatography analyzer products and services for food, beverage, petroleum, chemical, and petrochemical manufacturers; and weighing and pharmaceutical products and services to determine the weight of pharmaceutical capsules and tablets. It sells its products through its direct sales force and independent sales representatives in the United States, Canada, Germany, China, and internationally. The company was founded in 1966 and is headquartered in Minneapo lis, Minnesota.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By victorselva]

  On Nov. 21, Mario Gabelli bought Mocon Inc. (MOCO), a company which makes equipment to test packages and packaging material, and performs consulting and analytical services.

Hot Gas Utility Companies To Invest In Right Now: Rutter Inc (RUT)

Rutter Inc. (Rutter) focuses on providing technologies and manufacturing solutions. The Company supplies technologies to improve efficiency and safety in the marine, defense, transportation, oil and gas sectors. The Company produces and globally markets enhanced radar systems, including oil spill detection, ice navigator, small target detection and wave-monitoring systems. The Company also offers a full range of outsource manufacturing services including: product engineering and design; materials management; manufacturing; sub-assembly; systems integration; project management; testing; logistics and documentation and provides full cycle customer support for all Company products and selected third party components/products that it manufactures under contract. Rutter�� sigma S6 radar signal processing products are designed to enable end users to detect and track objects which would not be visible with conventional radar equipment only. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Victor Reklaitis]

  Meanwhile, the Russell 2000 index (RUT) , a gauge of small-cap stocks, was up 20.88 points, or 1.9%, at 1,099.97. Some eyebrows were raised Wednesday when the Russell diverged, ending lower as the S&P 500 gained ground. The Russell, however, outpaced the S&P 500 on Friday, though it still slightly underperformed for the week, gaining 0.4%.

• [By Anora Mahmudova]

  The Russell 2000 (RUT) index of small stocks closed 11 points, or 1%, lower at 1,097.43.

• [By Anora Mahmudova]

  The Russell 2000 index of small-cap stocks (RUT) � fell 32.30 points, or 2.8%, to 1,127.66. Panic-selling was evident from the jump in the volatility. The CBOE Vix index (VIX) � of implied volatility on the S&P 500 jumped 15% to nearly 16.

• [By Wallace Witkowski]

  Once again, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) �and the S&P 500 Index (SPX) �finished the week at record closing highs and the Russell 2000 Index (RUT) �finally broke back into a gain on the year.

Hot Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014

Investors are suddenly getting less brave as the recent selloff has tested their resolve, and fears that a correction could be coming get more real.

Skittish investors are skipping the exciting momentum stocks for now, instead jumping into the so-called defensive stocks ��those deemed less likely to react to swings in the markets and the economy.

Not wanting to see their gains on big winners disappear, investors are shifting into defensive stocks until the market's turbulence goes away, says Sam Stovall of S&P Capital IQ. "Investors are being no better than hyperactive first graders playing musical chairs and waiting for the music to stop," he says.

MORE STOCKS: Fed exit rattles markets yet again

Signs of investors rush to be seated in defensive areas of the market is clear from:

Top 5 Heal Care Stocks To Watch For 2015: China Telecom Corp Ltd (CHA)

China Telecom Corporation Limited, together with its subsidiaries, provides wireline and mobile telecommunications services in the People's Republic of China. The company?s services include wireline voice, mobile voice, Internet, managed data and leased line, value-added services, integrated information application services, and other related services, as well as prepaid calling cards. Its wireline voice services include local wireline services, domestic long distance wireline services, and international long distance wireline services. The company's mobile voice services comprise local calls, domestic long distance calls, international long distance calls, intra-provincial roaming, inter-provincial roaming, and international roaming. Its Internet access services consist of wireline Internet access services, including dial-up and broadband services, and wireless Internet access services. The company's integrated information application services include Best Tone services, which provide customers with phone number storage, enquiry, and call transfer services; and information technology-based integrated solutions, such as system integration, outsourcing, special advisory, information application, knowledge services, and software development. Its managed data and leased line services consist of services relating to optic fiber and circuits, such as optic fiber and circuit leasing, virtual private network, and bandwidth leasing. The company also offers other services, such as sales, rental, repairs, and maintenance of equipment; and provides consulting services, and e-commerce and booking services, as well as in the sale of telecommunications terminals. It serves government, enterprise, and residential customers. The company was founded in 2002 and is based in Beijing, the People's Republic of China. China Telecom Corporation Limited is a subsidiary of China Telecommunications Corporation.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By David Goldman]

  Until now, Apple had sold the iPhone there through China Mobile's much-smaller competitors, China Unicom (CHU)and China Telecom (CHA), which have about 425 million subscribers between them.

• [By MARKETWATCH]

  LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Stocks in Hong Kong logged gains Tuesday, with the equity benchmark aided by a bump higher in financial shares. The Hang Seng Index (HK:HSI) rose 0.3% to 22,887.80, as China Merchants Bank Co. (HK:3968) (CIHHF) (CN:600036) climbed 2.1% ahead of the company's financial results due later Tuesday. Stock in China Construction Bank Corp. (HK:939) (CICHF) (CN:601939) rose 1.4%, extending Monday's advance of 1.1% despite China's second-largest bank by assets reporting slower-than-expected quarterly profit growth. Meanwhile, shares of China Telecom Corp. (HK:728) (CHA) slipped 0.3% despite the company's report that its third-quarter profit jumped 20% on stronger data sales driven by iPhone users. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index popped higher by 1.4% and on the mainland, the Shanghai Composite Index (CN:SHCOMP) rose 0.6%.

Hot Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: Rimage Corporation(RIMG)

Rimage Corporation provides disc publishing and virtual publishing solutions that enable businesses to deliver digital content to their customers and employees worldwide. Its solutions enable delivery of videos, documents, audio files, and images. The company?s digital publishing solutions archive, distribute, and protect content on CDs, DVDs, and Blu-Ray Discs. It also offers a video platform, which captures, manages, and distributes live and on-demand content. The company, through its joint venture with Taiwan Electronic Data Processing Corporation, also provides Medical Disc System, a medical imaging disc publishing solution. Rimage Corporation was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By ShadowStock]

  RIMG: Rimage Corporation (RIMG)

  "Helps businesses deliver digital content directly and securely to their customers, employees and partners"
  Market Cap: $83.72M
  Enterprise Value: $16.93M

Hot Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: Rayonier Inc. REIT(RYN)

Rayonier, Inc. engages in the sale and development of real estate and timberland management, as well as in the production and sale of cellulose fibers in the United States, New Zealand, and Australia. The company operates in four segments: Timber, Real Estate, Performance Fibers, and Wood Products. Timber segment owns, leases, or manages timberlands and sells standing timber at auction to third parties, as well as sells delivered logs. Real Estate segment sells medium and large tracts of land with infrastructure. This segment holds development and rural properties primarily in the southeast United States. Performance Fibers segment manufactures cellulose specialties that are used principally in acetate textile fibers, cigarette filters, rigid packaging, LCD screens, photographic film, impact-resistant plastics, high-tenacity rayon yarn, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, detergents, food casings, and food products; and absorbent materials that are used in disposable baby diapers, feminine hygiene products, incontinence pads, convalescent bed pads, industrial towels and wipes, and nonwoven fabrics. Wood Products segment primarily manufactures and sells dimension lumber used for residential and industrial construction applications. In addition, Rayonier involves in trading and exporting logs, lumber, and wood panel products. As of December 31, 2005, it owned, leased, or managed approximately 2.5 million acres of timberland and real estate. The company has a joint venture with RREEF Infrastructure to own and manage timber lands in New Zealand. Rayonier has elected to be treated as a real estate investment trust (REIT) for federal income tax purposes and would not be subject to federal income tax on its REIT income that it distributes to its shareholders. The company, formerly known as Rainier Pulp & Paper Company, was founded in 1926. Rayonier is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Saibus Research]

  WY and the majority of the timber, forest and paper products companies have a track record of unimpressive returns on capital, cyclical revenue and profit trends, heavy use of capital expenditures, and significant environmental regulation. We also think that WY's conversion to a REIT was a mistake. Morningstar Investment Research's Timber, Forest and Paper Products analyst Dan Rohr said it best when he rated WY and its Timber REIT peers Rayonier (RYN), Potlatch (PCH) and Plum Creek (PCL) as not possessing any economic moat. That probably explains why we only have an ancillary exposure to this industry for our proprietary portfolio based on our holdings in Brookfield Infrastructure (BIP) and Cintas (CTAS). Brookfield's Timber segment only accounts for 5% of its Fund Flows from operations and Cintas's document management business is suffering from reduced prices on recycled paper. At least Cintas Document Management only accounts for 8% of Cintas's revenue.

• [By Matt DiLallo]

  For perspective, Weyerhaeuser owns almost as many total acres in the Pacific Northwest as Rayonier (NYSE: RYN  ) has in its entire portfolio, and well above the nearly 390,000 acres it has in the Pacific Northwest. Weyerhaeuser is also well above No. 2 timberland owner Plum Creek (NYSE: PCL  ) which holds just 471,000 acres in the Pacific Northwest. These newly acquired acres really puts Weyerhaeuser in a league of its own when it comes to having assets in the strategic Pacific Northwest.

Hot Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: iShares MSCI Germany ETF (EWG)

iShares MSCI Germany Index Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of publicly traded securities in the aggregate in the German market, as measured by the MSCI Germany Index (the Index). The Index seeks to measure the performance of the German equity market. The Index is a capitalization-weighted index that aims to capture 85% of the (publicly available) total market capitalization. Component companies are adjusted for available float and must meet objective criteria for inclusion in the Index. The Index is reviewed quarterly.

The Fund invests in a representative sample of securities included in the Index that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Index. The Fund�� investment advisor is Barclays Global Fund Advisors.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Mark Salzinger]

  iShares MSCI Germany (EWG) and iShares MSCI Switzerland (EWL) continue to have relatively attractive valuations.

  EWG recently sported an average price/earnings (P/E) ratio on 2013's projected earnings of 12.6 and a price/book value (P/B) of just 1.4.

• [By Tom Aspray]

  A few weeks ago, I focused on some of the euro countries' debt levels, as well as the improvement in some of their manufacturing data. Their stock markets have continued to rally sharply as the iShares MSCI France (EWQ) is up over 13% since early July and is doing just slightly better than Germany (EWG).

• [By Matthew McCall]

  iShares MSCI Germany ETF (NYSE: EWG)

  The mess in the Ukraine has spread to Western Europe. Germany led the region lower with a three percent loss this morning. The German economy is the largest in Europe and with their trading ties to Eastern Europe, it is not surprising to see the country falling on the news. Many Western Europe ETFs have gotten ahead of themselves in the short-term and the pullback on the conflict could result in a great buying opportunity by the end of the week, depending on how the situation plays out.

Hot Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: Sabine Royalty Trust(SBR)

Sabine Royalty Trust receives a distribution of royalty and mineral interests from Sabine Corporation. Its royalty and mineral interests, include landowner?s royalties, overriding royalty interests, minerals, production payments, and other non-participatory interests in various producing and proved undeveloped oil and gas properties in Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. The company was founded in 1982 and is based in Dallas, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lawrence Meyers]

  The Sabine Royalty Trust (SBR) is diversified from a geographical perspective, with interests spreading across both producing and undeveloped gas properties in Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.� It essentially operates as a holding company into which all the royalties get deposited and all the money gets distributed to shareholders via its 9.2% yield.

Hot Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: Grupo Simec S.A. de C.V. (SIM)

Grupo Simec, S.A.B. de C.V., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture, processing, and distribution of special bar quality (SBQ) steel and structural products primarily in the United States, Mexico, and Canada. Its steel products include I-beams; channels; structural and commercial angles; hot rolled bars, such as round, square, and hexagonal rods; flat bars; rebars; cold finished bars; wire rods; semi-finished tube rounds; and other semi-finished trade products. The company�s SBQ products are used in various engineered end-user applications, including axles, hubs, and crankshafts for automobiles and light trucks, machine tools, and off-highway equipment; and structural steel products are used in the non-residential construction market and other construction applications, as well as automotive industries. It also operates in Latin America, Europe, and Asia. The company was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in Guadalajara, Mexico. Grupo Simec, S.A.B. d e C.V. is a subsidiary of Industrias CH, S.A.B. de C.V.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Daniel Cross]

  Grupo Simec (NYSE: SIM) is a relatively obscure company with a $1.7 billion market cap that makes special bar-quality steel for North American markets. The company has significant downside protection in the form of its cash and cash equivalents of $623 million and total liabilities of just $665 million. Simec is also aggressively buying back stock. On a technical level, the relative strength index is hovering around 31, signaling that the stock may be oversold.