Thursday, April 30, 2015

Top 5 Safest Stocks To Watch Right Now

Top 5 Safest Stocks To Watch Right Now: Titan Pharmaceuticals Inc (TTNP.OB)

Titan Pharmaceuticals, Inc., incorporated in February 1992, is a biopharmaceutical company developing therapeutics primarily for the treatment of central nervous system (CNS) disorders. The Company is focused primarily on clinical development of products that include Probuphine for the treatment of opioid addiction; Iloperidone: for the treatment of schizophrenia and related psychotic disorders, and Spheramine for the treatment of advanced Parkinsons disease. Titan Pharmaceuticals is directly developing its product candidates and also utilizing corporate partnerships, including a collaboration with Bayer Schering Pharma AG, Germany (Bayer Schering) for the development of Spheramine to treat Parkinsons disease, and Vanda Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Vanda) for the development of iloperidone for the treatment of schizophrenia and related psychotic disorders.

Probuphine

Probuphine is the first product to utilize the Companys ProNeura long-ter m drug delivery technology. Probuphine is designed to provide continuous, long-term therapeutic levels of the drug buprenorphine, an approved agent for the treatment of opioid addiction. In December 2007, the Company completed enrollment in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-center Phase III clinical study of Probuphine in the treatment of opioid addiction. This 150 patient study, which is being conducted in the United States, will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of treatment with Probuphine versus placebo in reducing opioid addiction over 24 weeks of treatment. This study is part of a registration directed program intended to obtain marketing approval of Probuphine for the treatment of opioid addiction in Europe and the United States.

Iloperidone

Iloperidone was evaluated in a Phase III program comprising over 3,500 patients at more than 200 sites in 24 countries, administered and funded by Novartis Pha! rma AG (Novartis). In three completed efficacy studies conducted by Novartis, i! loperidone statistically reduced the symptoms of schizophrenia compared to placebo. Iloperidone has also been investigated in three 12-month safety studies, which confirm safety and tolerability. A dose dependent increase in the Q-T Corrected (QTc) interval was observed and investigated further in a clinical study, and no clinically significant adverse events were observed. In September 2007, Vanda submitted a new drug application (NDA) with the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for iloperidone. The NDA for iloperidone was officially accepted for review by the FDA in November 2007.

Spheramine

Spheramine is a cell-based therapeutic that utilizes the Companys cell-coated microcarrier (CCM) technology, which enables the development of cell-based therapies for minimally invasive, site-specific delivery to the central nervous system of therapeutic factors precisely where t hey are needed. Spheramine consists of microcarriers coated wit h human retinal pigment epithelial cells that are intended to enhance brain levels of dopamine, a neurotransmitter deficient in certain brain regions in Parkinsons disease, leading to movement disorders. Preclinical studies have demonstrated the preliminary efficacy and safety of Spheramine, including blinded studies in a primate model of Parkinsons disease. In June 2007, enrollment was completed in a current multi-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial of Spheramine in Parkinsons disease. This Phase IIb clinical study enrolled 71 patients with advanced Parkinsons disease (Hoehn and Yahr Stages III and IV) to further evaluate the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of Spheramine.

Bayer Schering, the Companys corporate partner for worldwide development and commercialization of Spheramine, is funding the clinical development program for Spheramine. Under an agreement, Bayer Schering has received exclusive, worl! dwide dev! e lopment, manufacturing and commercialization rights, and, in! addition! to the clinical and manufacturing development funding and milestone payments, Bayer Schering will pay Titan Pharmaceuticals a royalty on future product sales.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By C.R. Jackson]

    Fanapt was discovered by Hoechst Marion Roussel in 1995 as a novel atypical antipsychotic agent. Hoechst was a German life-sciences company that became Aventis Deutschland after its merger with France's Rhône-Poulenc in 1999. When the company joined with Sanofi-Synthélabo in 2004, it became a subsidiary of the Sanofi-Aventis (SNY) the French pharmaceutical conglomerate. In 1997, Hoechst sold the research rights to Titan Pharmaceuticals (TTNP.OB). Then Titan quickly sold the worldwide rights to Novartis in 1998. Novartis then sold the Phase 3 development rights for loperidone to Vanda in 2004. Vanda originally attempted to get FDA approval for Fanapt in 2008, but the FDA refused to approve iloperidone. The agency required an additional clinical trial.

  • source from Top Stocks To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/top-5-safest-stocks-to-watch-right-now.html

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Top 5 Low Price Companies To Watch In Right Now

Top 5 Low Price Companies To Watch In Right Now: AU Optronics Corp (AUO)

AU Optronics Corp. engages in the design, development, manufacture, assembly, and marketing of thin film transistor liquid crystal displays and other flat panel displays. The company operates in two segments, Display and Solar. It offers a range of display panels for use in mobile PCs, such as notebooks and tablets; desktop monitors; consumer electronics products consisting of mobile phones, digital still cameras, portable navigation displays, digital camcorders, automobile displays, amusement and printer displays, and portable gaming consoles; and LCD televisions. The company sells its panels to original equipment manufacturing service providers who manufacture products on a contract basis for brand companies; and to brand companies on a direct shipment basis. It also manufactures upstream and midstream products, such as polysilicons, ingots, wafers, and solar cells; designs, develops, and manufactures solar photovoltaic (PV) modules; produces solar PV systems; and provid es various value-added services for solar PV systems projects. AU Optronics Corp. operates in the Peoples Republic of China, Taiwan, Singapore, Korea, and internationally. The company was formerly known as Acer Display Technology, Inc. and changed its name to AU Optronics Corp. in May 2001. AU Optronics Corp. was founded in 1996 and is based in Hsinchu, Taiwan.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Monica Gerson]

    AU Optronics (NYSE: AUO) shares reached a new 52-week low of $3.06. AU Optronics' PEG ratio is 2.34.

    CBL & Associates Properties (NYSE: CBL) shares fell 5.20% to reach a new 52-week low of $18.43 after the company reported Q3 results.

  • [By Seth Jayson]

    Basic guidelines
    In this series, I examine inventory using a simple rule of thumb: Inventory increases ought to roughly parallel revenue increases. If inventory bloats more quickly than sales grow, this might be a sign that expected! sales haven't materialized. Is the current inventory situation at AU Optronics (NYSE: AUO  ) out of line? To figure that out, start by comparing the company's inventory growth to sales growth. How is AU Optronics doing by this quick checkup? At first glance, pretty well. Trailing-12-month revenue increased 6.5%, and inventory decreased 13.1%. Comparing the latest quarter to the prior-year quarter, the story looks decent. Revenue increased 14.9%, and inventory contracted 13.1%. Over the sequential quarterly period, the trend looks worrisome. Revenue dropped 7.7%, and inventory grew 7.7%.

  • source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.seekpennystocks.com/top-5-low-price-companies-to-watch-in-right-now-3.html

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Best Biotech Stocks To Watch Right Now

Best Biotech Stocks To Watch Right Now: FibroGen Inc (FGEN)

FibroGen, Inc. (FibroGen) is a research-based biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel therapeutics to treat unmet medical needs. The Company focuses in the areas of fibrosis and hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) biology. FibroGens products include Roxadustat (FG-4592), which is an oral small molecule inhibitor of HIF prolyl hydroxylases (HIF-PHs), in Phase III clinical development for the treatment of anemia in chronic kidney disease (CKD), and FG-3019, which is a monoclonal antibody in Phase II clinical development for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), pancreatic cancer and liver fibrosis. The Companys subsidiaries include FibroGen Europe Oy (FibroGen Europe) and FibroGen China Anemia Holdings, Ltd. (FibroGen China).

Roxadustat is the HIF-PH inhibitor in Phase III clinical development, which acts by stimulating the bodys natural pathway of erythropoiesis, or red blood cell produc tion. Roxadustat represents a new paradigm for the treatment of anemia in CKD patients and offers injectable erythropoiesis stimulating agents (ESAs). 1,449 subjects have participated in 26 completed Phase I and II clinical studies for roxadustat in North America, Europe and Asia. The Company, along with its collaboration partners, Astellas Pharma Inc., (Astellas) and AstraZeneca AB,(AstraZeneca), has designed a global Phase III program to support regulatory approval of roxadustat in both NDD-CKD and DD-CKD patients in multiple geographies.

FG-3019 is the Companys fully-human monoclonal antibody that inhibits the activity of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), a critical common element in the progression of fibrosis and associated diseases. In Phase II IPF clinical studies, FG-3019 demonstrated the stabilization of disease and, in human studies, reversal of lung fibrosis in some patients. In an open-label Phase II pancreatic cancer study of FG-3019 plus ! gemcitabine and erlotinib, FG-3019 demonstrated a dose-depen! dent improvement in one year survival rate. In 10 Phase I and Phase II clinical studies of FG-3019 to date involving over 340 subjects, FG-3019 has been tolerated across a range of doses studied, and there have been no dose-limiting toxicities observed as of November 13, 2014.

The Company competes with Threshold Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Gilead Sciences, Inc., Halozyme Therapeutics, Inc., Gilead Sciences, Inc., Celgene Corporation, Janssen Biotech, Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Inc., Sanofi, Novartis and Biogen Idec.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By John Udovich]

    Recent IPOFibroGen Inc (NASDAQ: FGEN) surged 22.96% today, reportedly after the journal Hepatology published the results of a workshop between the FDA and the American Association for the Study of Liver Disease (AASLD) which laid out criteria for a phase three study of a treatment for non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) meaning its worth taking a closer look at the stock along with the performance of potential small cap or mid cap liver disease stock peers like Conatus Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: CNAT), Intercept Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: ICPT) and Raptor Pharmaceutical Corp (NASDAQ: RPTP) which rose 24.35%, 10.98% and 2.02%, respectively. According to Investors Business Daily, NASH (the more serious version of fatty liver disease) is potentially an enormous market with about 6 millionUS patients but thelack of previous treatments had left it unclear how the FDA would measure success against the disease while FibroGen Inc doesn't yet have a NASH human trial in the works, it has said it hopes to start one for its lead candidate FG-3019 (its in mid-stage trials for pulmonary fibrosis and liver fibrosis due to hepatitis B infection).

  • source from Top Stocks To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/best-biotech-stocks-to-watch-right-now-3.html

Monday, April 27, 2015

Hot Valued Stocks To Buy For 2015

Hot Valued Stocks To Buy For 2015: Tupperware Corporation(TUP)

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

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Johanna Bennett]

    Corporate earnings took a back seat today to the Feds latest policy decision. Still, quarterly financial results, and other news sent shares of McCormick & Co. (MKC) and Tupperware (TUP), falling during regular market hoursHeres a rundown of several of todays moves:

  • [B! y Dan Caplinger]

    Where growth will come from
    One area that Newell Rubbermaid still has to tap fully is emerging markets. The company has done a good job of expanding overseas, with 17% annual growth in Latin America. But with barely a quarter of its sales coming from outside the U.S. and Canada, the company has a lot further to go. Storage rival Tupperware (NYSE: TUP  ) gets fully 60% of its total revenue from emerging markets, and it too has seen impressive gains in South America as well as the Asia-Pacific region.

  • [By John Kell]

    Among the companies with shares expected to actively trade in Wednesday’s session are Dow Chemical Co.(DOW), Tupperware Brands Corp.(TUP) and Yahoo Inc.(YHOO)

  • source from Top Stocks To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/hot-valued-stocks-to-buy-for-2015-5.html

PVH Corp. Upgraded to Strong Buy - Analyst Blog

On Jul 13, Zacks Investment Research upgraded PVH Corporation (PVH) to a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Why the Upgrade?

PVH Corp. has been witnessing rising earnings estimates on the back of strong first-quarter fiscal 2013 results and an impressive guidance for the current fiscal. Moreover, this well-known apparel retailer surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the last 28 quarters with an average beat of 10.1%. The long-term expected earnings growth rate for this stock is 14.3%.

PVH Corp. came up with strong first-quarter results on Jun 12, 2013, with adjusted earnings per share rising 43.6% year over year to $1.91, thereby beating its own guidance of $1.33 and the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.37. The upside was primarily driven by strong revenue growth resulting from the acquisition of The Warnaco Group, Inc. and improved margins.

During the quarter, total revenue of the company (including sales return of $30.0 million related to certain Warnaco wholesale customers) jumped 33.8% to $1,910.2 million, compared with $1,427.4 million in the year-ago quarter. The year-over-year surge in revenue was attributable to robust sales performances across all segments of the company.

Based on solid first-quarter performance, the company remains optimistic about achieving its targeted sales and earnings per share guidance for fiscal 2013. Therefore, PVH Corp. reaffirmed its fiscal 2013 revenue and earnings outlook of $8.2 billion and $7.00 per share, respectively.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fiscal 2013 increased 1.1% to $7.10 per share as most of the estimates were revised upwards over the last 60 days. For fiscal 2014, the estimates moved higher over the same time period, lifting the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.2% to $8.23 per share.

Other Stocks to Consider

Apart from PVH Corp., other stocks worth a look in the retail industry include G-III Apparel Group, Ltd. (GIII), Maidenform Brands, Inc. (MFB) and Michael Kors Holding Ltd. (KORS). All o! f them carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Own For 2014

Because February was such a strong month for equities��nd for Fidelity�� stock funds��he January sell-off is looking more like an aberration and not a harbinger of another market apocalypse, suggests John Bonnanzio in Fidelity Monitor & Insight.

While fourth-quarter consumer spending has been revised down to 2.6% from 3.3%, that�� still the fastest increase in seven quarters. Also, businesses are spending more on equipment, and US exports rose 9.4%.

Among growth stocks, the number of companies booking revenue growth appears to be rising. This should lend support to growth stocks as the year progresses. As such, we are modestly rebalancing our style exposures to emphasize ��rowthier��stocks.

These types of stocks are held in Fidelity Blue Chip Growth (US:FBGRX). Unless his fund implodes over the next few months, Sonu Kalra will look back over his five-year tenure on this large-cap growth fund and likely boast that he has beaten around 90% of his peers.

Best Machinery Stocks To Buy Right Now: Philip Morris International Inc(PM)

Philip Morris International Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products in markets outside of the United States. Its international product brand line comprises Marlboro, Merit, Parliament, Virginia Slims, L&M, Chesterfield, Bond Street, Lark, Muratti, Next, Philip Morris, and Red & White. The company also offers its products under the A Mild, Dji Sam Soe, and A Hijau in Indonesia; Diana in Italy; Optima and Apollo-Soyuz in the Russian Federation; Morven Gold in Pakistan; Boston in Colombia; Belmont, Canadian Classics, and Number 7 in Canada; Best and Classic in Serbia; f6 in Germany; Delicados in Mexico; Assos in Greece; and Petra in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. It operates primarily in the European Union, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Canada, and Latin America. The company is based in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Garrett Cook]

    Philip Morris International (NYSE: PM) was down, falling 1.02 percent to $82.85. Analysts at Bank of America downgraded Philip Morris International from Buy to Neutral and lowered the target price to $87.

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Own For 2014: Visa Inc.(V)

Visa Inc., a payments technology company, engages in the operation of retail electronic payments network worldwide. It facilitates commerce through the transfer of value and information among financial institutions, merchants, consumers, businesses, and government entities. The company owns and operates VisaNet, a global processing platform that provides transaction processing services. It also offers a range of payments platforms, which enable credit, charge, deferred debit, debit, and prepaid payments, as well as cash access for consumers, businesses, and government entities. The company provides its payment platforms under the Visa, Visa Electron, PLUS, and Interlink brand names. In addition, it offers value-added services, including risk management, issuer processing, loyalty, dispute management, value-added information, and CyberSource-branded services. The company is headquartered in San Francisco, California.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Dan Caplinger]

    2. A simple savings account
    Savings accounts aren't popular among financial institutions because they aren't big revenue generators. The profits from prepaid cards come from merchant charges that Visa (NYSE: V  ) and MasterCard (NYSE: MA  ) collect, keeping a portion and giving the rest to card-issuing institutions. That's likely where SpendSmart expects to get the money to pay Bieber's $3.75 million endorsement fee.

  • [By JulieYoung789]

    In the DJIA financial stocks Visa (V) and Goldman Sachs led the index higher. Visa was up 1.86% ending at $221.03 and Goldman Sachs was up 1.33% ending the day at $167. Laggers in the index included Merck (MRK) which was down 0.44% to $58.18 and Wal-Mart (WMT) which was down 0.35% to $76.55.

  • [By Rupert Hargreaves]

    Even so, thanks to its checkered past, many companies such as Visa� (NYSE: V  ) �and�MasterCard� (NYSE: MA  ) �have been late to the party.�However, astute companies, such as�Deutsche Bank� (NYSE: DB  ) have been active in the market since the mid 1970s.

  • [By Dan Caplinger]

    The Dow Jones Industrials (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) soared 132 points by 12:30 p.m. EDT, as all but a handful of blue-chip stocks gained on good news from the retail sales front. With the measure of spending activity climbing by the largest amount in a year and a half, the news was definitely positive for Visa (NYSE: V  ) , which led all 30 Dow components with a 2.4% rise. Yet rival MasterCard (NYSE: MA  ) gained an even more impressive 4%, and investors are uncertain over how the companies' battle will play out�over the long run.

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Own For 2014: Apple Inc.(AAPL)

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

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Daniel Sparks]

    Though 2012 was an excellent year for marketing at Samsung, it was quite the opposite at Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) . The company's short-lived "Genius" ads were mocked and its product-based ads were questioned.

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Own For 2014: Colgate-Palmolive Company(CL)

Colgate-Palmolive Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets consumer products worldwide. It offers oral care products, including toothpaste, toothbrushes, and mouth rinses, as well as dental floss and pharmaceutical products for dentists and other oral health professionals; personal care products, such as liquid hand soap, shower gels, bar soaps, deodorants, antiperspirants, shampoos, and conditioners; and home care products comprising laundry and dishwashing detergents, fabric conditioners, household cleaners, bleaches, dishwashing liquids, and oil soaps. The company offers its oral, personal, and home care products under the Colgate Total, Colgate Max Fresh, Colgate 360 Advisors' Opinion:

  • [By Lee Jackson]

    Colgate-Palmolive Co. (NYSE: CL) is a top consumer staples name to make the UBS. Colgate sells its products in more than 200 countries and makes more than 75% of its revenue outside the United States, which provides geographic diversification and growth opportunities in emerging markets for the company. This diversity, matched with a huge list of consumer products, keeps revenues and dividends growing. Investors are paid a 2.3% dividend. The consensus target is $67.14. Colgate closed Tuesday at $64.34.

  • [By Dan Caplinger]

    Investors have always been interested in stocks that pay dividends, but lately, low interest rates on bonds and other fixed-income investments have made solid dividend payers even more valuable. Among the most promising dividend stocks in the market is Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE: CL  ) , and one big reason is that it is one of the few exclusive companies to make the list of Dividend Aristocrats. In order to become a member of this elite group, a company must have raised its dividend payouts to shareholders every single year for at least a quarter-century. Only a few dozen stocks manage to make the cut, and those that do tend to stay there for a long time.

  • [By Teresa Rivas]

    We think KMB will be perceived as the safest of the multinationals. Its sales outside the US are about 55% of total; this compares to 65%-70% for Procter & Gamble (PG) and Coty (COTY) and 80%-90% for Colgate (CL), Avon and Tupperware (TUP). In general, its risk to the most volatile currencies is below average (its exposure to Eastern Europe is less than 2% of sales), though it is still translating results in Venezuela (about 3% of sales and profit) at the official rate of 6.3 VEF/$ (the parallel rate just hit 175 VEF/$) and Argentina (also 3% of sales) may devalue again. The cost of important raw materials has started to weaken; as they follow oil�� decline they could boost gross margins in 2H15. Of note, polypropylene and natural gas are off 17% 4Q-to-date; pulp prices, while not declining much, seem manageable.

  • [By TaniaC]

    Colgate-Palmolive Company (CL) is a consumer products company whose products are marketed in over 200 countries and territories throughout the world. It operates in two segments: Oral, Personal and Home Care and Pet Nutrition.

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Own For 2014: Chevron Corporation(CVX)

Chevron Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in petroleum, chemicals, mining, power generation, and energy operations worldwide. It operates in two segments, Upstream and Downstream. The Upstream segment involves in the exploration, development, and production of crude oil and natural gas; processing, liquefaction, transportation, and regasification associated with liquefied natural gas; transportation of crude oil through pipelines; and transportation, storage, and marketing of natural gas, as well as holds interest in a gas-to-liquids project. The Downstream segment engages in the refining of crude oil into petroleum products; marketing of crude oil and refined products primarily under the Chevron, Texaco, and Caltex brand names; transportation of crude oil and refined products by pipeline, marine vessel, motor equipment, and rail car; and manufacture and marketing of commodity petrochemicals, plastics for industrial uses, and fuel and lubricant additives. It a lso produces and markets coal and molybdenum; and holds interests in 13 power assets with a total operating capacity of approximately 3,100 megawatts, as well as involves in cash management and debt financing activities, insurance operations, real estate activities, energy services, and alternative fuels and technology business. Chevron Corporation has a joint venture agreement with China National Petroleum Corporation. The company was formerly known as ChevronTexaco Corp. and changed its name to Chevron Corporation in May 2005. Chevron Corporation was founded in 1879 and is based in San Ramon, California.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Jon C. Ogg]

    Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) appears to be the best value for 2014 among the integrated oil and gas giants. The stock has close to 10% in expected upside from the analysts that cover it, it has a high yield of 3.2% and it trades at only ten times expected 2014 earnings. We expect that dividend to keep marching higher as well.

  • [By Ali Berri]

    In a report released Friday, Barclay analyst Paul Cheng released coverage on major oil companies such as Petroleo Brasileiro Petrobras SA (NYSE: PBR), Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM), ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP), Chevron (NYSE: CVX) and Suncor Energy (NYSE: SU).

  • [By Sara Murphy]

    For example, Chevron (NYSE: CVX  ) is embroiled in a take-no-prisoners battle with its shareholders over a $19 billion lawsuit in Ecuador for its pollution of that country's rainforests. Last year, in connection with the Ecuador debacle, more than a third of Chevron's shareholders voted to strip the CEO of his other role as chairman of the board. Investors also continue to propose resolutions requesting greater transparency from Chevron on its decision-making process with regard to entering countries with poor human rights records. These salvos from shareholders are becoming increasingly difficult for companies to ignore.

  • [By WALLSTCHEATSHEET]

    Chevron is an oil and gas bellwether that provides essential energy products and services to consumers and companies worldwide. The company reported earnings that were lower in 2013 than 2012. The stock has been trading sideways in recent quarters and is now trading near lows for the year. Over the last four quarters, earnings have been decreasing while revenues have been mixed, which has left investors optimistic about recent earnings announcements. Relative to its peers and sector, Chevron has been a poor year-to-date performer. WAIT AND SEE what Chevron does this coming quarter.

Hot Blue Chip Stocks To Own For 2014: International Business Machines Corporation(IBM)

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) provides information technology (IT) products and services worldwide. Its Global Technology Services segment provides IT infrastructure and business process services, including strategic outsourcing, process, integrated technology, and maintenance services, as well as technology-based support services. The company?s Global Business Services segment offers consulting and systems integration, and application management services. Its Software segment offers middleware and operating systems software, such as WebSphere software to integrate and manage business processes; information management software for database and enterprise content management, information integration, data warehousing, business analytics and intelligence, performance management, and predictive analytics; Tivoli software for identity management, data security, storage management, and datacenter automation; Lotus software for collaboration, messaging, and so cial networking; rational software to support software development for IT and embedded systems; business intelligence software, which provides querying and forecasting tools; SPSS predictive analytics software to predict outcomes and act on that insight; and operating systems software. Its Systems and Technology segment provides computing and storage solutions, including servers, disk and tape storage systems and software, point-of-sale retail systems, and microelectronics. The company?s Global Financing segment provides lease and loan financing to end users and internal clients; commercial financing to dealers and remarketers of IT products; and remanufacturing and remarketing services. It serves financial services, public, industrial, distribution, communications, and general business sectors. The company was formerly known as Computing-Tabulating-Recording Co. and changed its name to International Business Machines Corporation in 1924. IBM was founded in 1910 and is based in Armonk, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Jeff Reeves]

    However, enterprise tech in general hasn�� had a great year in 2013 amid soft business spending, with IBM (IBM) and Oracle (ORCL) both actually in the red year-to-date. And after IBM just dipped on ugly earnings including very soft performance in Asia, it doesn�� bode well for CSCO.

Monday, April 20, 2015

Top 10 Japanese Companies To Invest In Right Now

After more than nine months of high-stakes dealmaking, Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S  ) and Clearwire (NASDAQ: CLWR  ) have finally found their permanent homes. I think they're turning Japanese.

DISH Network (NASDAQ: DISH  ) dropped its $25.5 billion bid for Sprint and then abandoned the $6.3 billion offer to buy Clearwire. That leaves Japan-based wireless operator Softbank unopposed in its quest to own Sprint, which in turn lost its only challenger for Clearwire ownership. Sprint shareholders have already approved the Softbank merger. It's only a matter of time and formalities before the Sprint-Clearwire bundle lands in Japanese hands.

Shareholders in Sprint and Clearwire may or may not be sad to see DISH leave the negotiating table, but they certainly should appreciate the bidding war that just ended. Sprint shares have more than doubled over the past year, while Clearwire quadrupled.

Where does that leave DISH? Scouring the wireless market for leftovers, of course. In the following video, Fool contributor Anders Bylund dismisses the idea that DISH might give up on ground-based wireless networking at this point, and suggests two options to move Chairman Charlie Ergen closer to his wireless broadcasting ambitions.

5 Best Oil Stocks To Buy For 2015: Arris Group Inc(ARRS)

Arris Group, Inc. develops, manufactures, and supplies telephony, data, video, construction, rebuild, and maintenance equipment for the broadband communications industry worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Broadband Communications Systems (BCS); Access, Transport, and Supplies (ATS); and Media and Communications Systems (MCS). The BCS segment provides VoIP and high speed data products, including CMTS edge routers, 2-line residential EMTA, multi-line EMTA for residential and commercial services, wireless gateway, and high speed data cable modems; video/IP products comprising CMTS edge routers, broadband and universal EdgeQAM, and whole home gateway and media players; and video processing products, such as switched digital video systems, digital video encoders, transcoders, transraters, and statistical multiplexers. The ATS segment offers hybrid fiber-coaxial plant equipment products comprising headend and hub products, optical transmitters, optical amplifiers , optical repeaters, optical nodes, WiFi access points, ePON optical network units and line terminals, RF over glass optical network units, and radio frequency amplifiers; and infrastructure products for fiber optic or coaxial networks, which include cable and strand, vaults, conduit, drop materials, tools, connectors, and test equipment. The MCS segment provides media, delivery, and monetization platform products, such as video on demand management and distribution, and linear and advanced advertising; operations management systems comprising network and service assurance, and mobile workforce management; and fixed mobile convergence platform products, such as mobility application servers for continuity of services in wireless and PacketCable networks, and voice call continuity application servers for continuity of services in IP multimedia subsystem networks. The company offers its services to cable system operators. Arris Group, Inc. was founded in 1969 and is headquarter ed in Suwanee, Georgia.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Lee Jackson]

    Arris Enterprises Inc. (NASDAQ: ARRS) has become a major competitive threat to Cisco after its acquisition of the set-top box business of Motorola Mobility. IHS estimated that the global set-top box shipment will grow 8% year-over-year to 269 million units in 2013 from 250 million units in 2012. This is further expected to increase 6% in 2014 to 286 million units and another 1% in 2015 to 290 million units. Moreover, IHS also estimated that the global set-top box revenues will reach a record-high $22.2 billion in 2013. The consensus price target for Arris is $17.25.

  • [By Rich Smith]

    Suwanee, Ga.-based Arris Group (NASDAQ: ARRS  ) is clear to buy Google's (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) Motorola Home cable set-top box division, the company announced Friday.

Top 10 Japanese Companies To Invest In Right Now: Heineken NV (HEINY)

Heineken N.V. (Heineken), incorporated on January 27, 1873, is a beer brewer with brands available in 178 countries worldwide with operations in 71 countries. Heineken owns, markets and sells more than 250 of the brands. The Company�� principal global brand is Heineken is the international premium beer brand. Other international premium, regional, local and specialty beers include Amstel, Birra Moretti, Cruzcampo, Desperados, Dos Equis, Foster��, Newcastle Brown Ale, Ochota, Primus, Sagres, Sol, Star, Tecate, Zlaty Bazant and Zywiec. Its joint venture brands include Anchor, Cristal, Kingfisher and Tiger. In addition, its global portfolio include Heineken is the cider maker with brands, such as Strongbow Gold and Bulmer��. It has a global network of distributors and 140 breweries. Heineken operates in six segments: Western Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, The Americas, Africa and the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Head Office and Other/eliminations. On December 2, 2011, Heineken acquired the Galaxy Pub Estate (Galaxy) in the United Kingdom from The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). In January 2013, it acquired remaining 18.4% interest in Asia Pacific Breweries Ltd.

During year ended 31 December 2011, Heineken disposed of 25% of its 100% interest in Commonwealth Brewery Limited (CBL). In January 2011, the Company acquired two Nigerian holding companies from the Sona Group. The two acquired businesses have controlling interests in each of the Sona, IBBI, Benue, Life and Champion breweries in Nigeria. The acquisition provided the Company with an additional technical capacity of 3.7 million hectoliters. During 2011, HEINEKEN acquired five new breweries in Nigeria and two new breweries in Ethiopia. On January 12, 2011, Heineken acquired two holding companies, which together own the Sona brewery group from Lewiston Investments SA. On August 11, 2011, Heineken acquired two breweries named Bedele and Harar from the government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.

Wester! n Europe

Heineken has operating companies in 10 countries, which include Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Italy, Belgium, Finland, France, Ireland, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland. The Company owns and operates 25 breweries, five non-brewing production sites and two malteries. In Belgium its brands include Maes, Grimbergen, Cristal, Mort Subite, Ciney, Affligem, Judas, Hapkin, Brugs, Postel, Desperados and Heineken. In Finland, its brands include Lapin Kulta, Karjala, Foster��, Heineken, 1836 Classic Gourmet, Jaffa, Pepsi, Novelle, Original Long Drink and Upcider. In France its brands include Heineken, Pelforth, Desperados, Affligem, Fischer tradition, ��3��Export, Panach�� Adelscott, Amstel, Georges Killians and Murphy�� Irish Stout. In Ireland its brands include Heineken, Amstel, Coors Light, Desperados, Tiger, Sol, Murphy�� Irish Stout, Beamish Stout, Foster��, Paulaner, Birra Moretti, Z.ywiec and Affligem.

In Italy the Company�� brands include Birra Moretti, Heineken, Dreher, Ichnusa, Classica von Wunster, Birra Messina, Prinz Brau, Sans Souci, Amstel, Fischer and Strongbow. In Netherlands its brands include Heineken, Amstel, Wieckse Witte, Jillz, Strongbow, Desperados, Lingen�� Blond, Murphy�� Irish Red Brand Crystal Clear, Royal Club, Sisi, Sourcy, Vitamin Water, Pepsi, 7-Up and Rivella. In Portugal, its brands Sagres, Luso, Cruzeiro, Cergal, Imperial, Heineken, Foster��, Jansen, Sao Jorge and Bulmer. In Spain its brands include Cruzcampo, Amstel, Heineken, Shandy, Paulaner, Guinness, Latino, Foster��, Legado de Yuste, Maes, John Smith, Judas, Mort Subite and Newcastle. In Switzerland its brands include Heineken, Eichhof, Calanda, Desperados, Ittinger, Haldengut, Ziegelhof, Erdinger, Clausthaler and Amstel. In the United Kingdom its brands Foster��, Strongbow, John Smith��, Kronenbourg, Bulmers, Heineken, Newcastle Brown Ale, Amstel, Sol, Woodpecker, Tiger, Jacques and Deuchars IPA.

Central and Eastern Europe

Heineken! has a pr! oduct portfolio of over 180 brands. The Company owns more than 60 breweries and has operating companies in 14 countries, which include Austria, Belarus, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia and Slovakia. In Austria its brands include Heineken, Zipfer, Gosser, Puntigamer, Desperados, Edelweiss, Schlossgold, Kaiser, Schwechater, Wieselburger, Reininghaus and Schladminger. In Belarus its brands include Heineken, Zlaty Bazant, Rechitskoe, Bobrov, Gosser, Doctor Diesel and Dneprovska. In Bulgaria its brands include Heineken, Zagorka, Desperados, Ariana, Amstel, Stolichno, Starobrno and Kaiser. In Croatia its brands include Heineken, Karlovacko, Desperados and Edelweiss. In Czech Republic its brands include Heineken, Krusovice, Starobrno, Zlatopramen, Breznak, Frij, Zlaty Bazant, Hostan, Cerveny Dark and Baron Trenck.

In Germany the Company�� brands include Paulaner Weissbier, Paulaner, Hacker-Pschorr, Thurn & Taxis, Auer, Hopf Weisse, Kulmbacher, Monchshof, EKU, Kapuziner, Sternquell, Braustolz, Scherdel, Wurzburger Hofbrau, Keiler, Furstenberg, Riegeler, Hoepfner, Grape, Schmucker. In Greece its brands include Heineken, Amstel, Alfa, Fischer, Sol, Buckler, McFarland, Murphy�� Irish Stout, BIOS 5 and IOLI. In Hungary its brands include Heineken, Gosser, Soproni Aszok, Amstel, Kaiser, Zlaty Bazant, Edelweiss, Schlossgold, Steffl, Adambrau and Buckler. In Kazakhstan its brands include Heineken, Tian Shan, Efes, Beliy Medved, Stary Melnik, Sokol and Gold Mine. In Macedonia its brands include Heineken, Amstel, Skopsko and Gorsko.

In Poland the Company�� brands include Heineken, Desperados, Z ywiec, Warka, Tatra, Strong, Special, Krolewskie and Lezajsk. In Romania its brands include Heineken, Ciuc, GoldenBrau, Silva, Bucegi, Neumarkt, Gambrinus, Horgita, Hatigana, Desperados and Edelweiss. In Russia its brands include Heineken, Amstel, Bochkarev, Ochota, Zlaty Bazant, Guinness, Buckler, Stepan Razin, PI! T, Edelwe! iss, Doctor Diesel, Tri Medvedya, Gosser, Amur-Pivo, Zhigulevskoye, Patra, Strelets, Bereg Baikala, Okskoye, Rusich, Volnaya Sibir, Sedoy Ural, Shikhan, Ostmark and Kenigsberg. In Serbia its brands include Heineken, MB, Master, Amstel PilsPlus, Efes and Zajecarsko. In Slovakia its brands include Heineken, Zlaty Bazant, Corgon, Kelt, Starobrno, Gemer and Martiner.

Africa and the Middle East

Heineken operations include 20 countries, 34 breweries (consolidated), 12 breweries (managed), three soft drink plants, three malteries, two packaging plants, two wineries, one distillery and one extract plant. The Company exports to more than 50 countries, including its operating companies and joint ventures. In Algeria its brands include Tango, Samba, Fiesta, Heineken and Amstel. In Burundi its brands include Amstel, Primus and Heineken. In Cameroon its brands include Amstel, Mutzig and Heineken. In Congo its brands include Guinness, Maltina, Mutzig, Ngok, Primus, Turbo King and Heineken. In Democratic Republic of Congo its brands include Maltina, Mutzig, Primus, Turbo King, Legend, Heineken and Amstel. In Egypt its brands include Heineken, Birell, Fayrouz, Meister Max, Sakara, Stella, Amstel Zero and Luxor. In Ethiopia its brands include Bedele and Harar. In Ghana its brands include Amstel Malta, Guinness, Gulder, Star, Malta and Heineken.

In Israel the Company�� brands include Heineken, GoldStar, Maccabi, Nesher Malt and Newcastle Brown Ale. In Jordan its brands include Amstel and Heineken. In Lebanon its brands include Almaza, Laziza, Amstel and Heineken. In Morocco its brands include Heineken and Fayro. In Namibia its brands include Heineken, Guinness, Windhoek, Amstel and Tafel. In Nigeria its brands include Heineken, Amstel Malta, Gulder, Legend, Maltina, Star, Fayrouz, Life Continental Lager, Goldberg Lager, Malta Gold ��3��Export, Hi-malt, Maltex, Turbo King, More Lager, Williams and Champion Lager. In Reunion its brands include Bourbon, Dynamalt and Heineken. In! Rwanda i! ts brands include Amstel, Guinness, Mutzig, Primus, Turbo King and Heineken. In Sierra Leone its brands include Heineken, Guinness, Maltina and Star. In South Africa its brands include Heineken, Amstel, Windhoek, Strongbow and Guinness. In Tunisia its brands include Heineken, Golden Brau, Fayrouz, Bravo and Sahara.

The Americas

Heineken Americas operates 20 majority-owned breweries and seven joint venture breweries, a maltery and a distillery in the region, as well as producing soft drinks in some markets. In Argentina its brands include Heineken, Budweiser, Paulaner, Birra Moretti, Guinness, Corona, Negra Modelo, Salta, Santa Fe, Cordoba, Kunstmann, Palermo, Biecker, Schneider, Imperial and Otro Mundo. In Bahamas its brands include Heineken, Guinness, Kalik and Vitamalt. In Brazil its brands include Kaiser, Bavaria, Sol, Summer Draft, Gold, Heineken, Kaiser Bock, Xingu, Dos Equis, Amstel Pulse, Birra Moretti, Edelweiss, Murphy�� and Santa Cerva. In Chile its brands include Heineken, Cristal, Escudo, Royal and Kunstmann. In Costa Rica its brands include Heineken, Bavaria, Imperial, Pilsen and Rock Ice. In Dominican Republic its brands include Presidente. In Haiti its brands include Guinness, Malta and Prestige.

In Jamaica the Company�� brands include Heineken, Dragon Stout, Guinness and Red Stripe. In Martinique its brands include Heineken, Lorraine, Malta and Porter. In Mexico its brands include Tecate, Sol, Dos Equis, Bohemia and Coors. Light, Indio, Carta Blanca, Superior, Kloster, Noche Buena and Soul Citric. In Nicaragua its brands include Heineken, Bufalo, Tona and Victoria. In Panama its brands include Heineken, Crystal, Guinness, Panama, Soberana and Budweiser. In St. Lucia its brands include Heineken, Guinness and Piton. In Suriname its brands include Heineken and Parbo. In Trinidad its brands include Carib, Stag and Guinness.

Asia Pacific

Heineken operates a part of the region through joint ventures. These include S! ingapore-! listed Asia Pacific Breweries (APB) and India-listed United Breweries Limited (UBL). APB is the Company�� primary investment vehicle in Asia Pacific with 23 breweries in 14 countries. UBL is in India and has 18 breweries. In Cambodia its brands include ABC Extra Stout, Anchor, Gold Crown and Tiger. In China its brands include Heineken, Reeb, Tiger, Anchor, Aoke, Tiger Crystal, Sol, Strongbow and Murphy�� Irish Red. In India its brands include Heineken, Cannon 10000, Arlem, Baron�� Strong Brew, Kingfisher, Kalyani and UB. In Indonesia its brands include Heineken, Bintang, Guinness, Bintang Zero and Green Sands. In Laos its brands include Tiger, Namkong, ABC Stout and Heineken. In Malaysia its brands include Heineken, Anchor, Baron��, Guinness, Strongbow, Kilkenny, Tiger, Lion, Malta and Angli. In Mongolia its brands include Tiger and Sengur. In New Caledonia its brands include Heineken, Number One, Desperados, Havannah and Hinano.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    Who knew that consolidation speculation in the beer industry could be sung to the tune of the Butthole Surfers’ “Pepper.” SABMiller (SBMRY) wants to buy Heineken (HEINY). Anheuser-Busch InBev (BUD) might want to buy SABMiller. And Molson Coors Brewing (TAP) might scoop up the leftovers.

  • [By Charles Sizemore]

    I��e never been a big fan of STZ stock, as the economics of the wine business are much less attractive than those of beer and spirits. Wineries have far less brand value than beer brewers and liquor distillers and tend to have lower margins. In February of last year, I recommended that readers steer clear of STZ stock and instead focus on Dutch megabrewer Heineken (HEINY).

Top 10 Japanese Companies To Invest In Right Now: Hyundai Motor Co (HYMLF.PK)

HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY is a Korea-based automobile manufacturer. Along with its subsidiaries, the Company operates in three business divisions: vehicle division, financial division and other business division. Its vehicle division manufactures passenger cars under the brand names of Centennial, Genesis, Veloster, Azera, Sonata, i40, Elantra, Accent, i30cw, i20, ix20 and others; sport utility vehicles (SUVs) under the brand names of Veracruz, Santa Fe and Tucson, and commercial vehicles, including trucks, buses, special vehicles and bare chassis, as well as provides automobile maintenance services and related components. Its financial division mainly provides automobile financing services and credit card services. Its other business division includes construction of railways and others. Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Quoth the Raven]

    It was reported this morning that Hyundai's (HYMLF.PK) CEO, John Krafcik, has gone on the record and said that the U.S. government shutdown could affect the U.S. automobile market negatively. He's made a headline that's been picked up by news organizations across the board this morning. It echoes sentiments from executives at both Ford and GM. Autonews.com reported:

Top 10 Japanese Companies To Invest In Right Now: Genius Brands International Inc (GNUS)

Genius Brands International, Inc., formerly Pacific Entertainment Corporation, provides music-based products, which entertains and educates infants and young children under its brands, including Baby Genius. It creates, markets and sells children�� digital versatile discs (DVDs), compact disc (CD) music and book products in the United States by distribution at wholesale to retail stores and outlets and direct to consumers through various deal for a day sites. It also licenses the use of its brands, both domestically and internationally, to others to manufacture, market and sell products based on its characters and brand, whereby the Company receives advances and royalties. In addition to the distribution of its CD and DVD products, the Company has developed and will continue to develop multiple revenue streams, which include worldwide licensing and merchandising opportunities for toys, books, and other customer products. During the year ended December 31, 2011, Pacific Entertainment Corporation, which is a California corporation, merged into the Company. On July 25, 2012, it sold approximately 500,000 Baby Genius DVDs and CDs and over 50,000 Little Genius CDs through its campaigns on Groupon.

Distribution

In 2008, the Company began self-distributing its DVD and CD products through direct relationships with customers. It also has third party licensing agreements under which it has developed musical products under other brands and receives revenue and pay a royalty for distributing those products through its distribution channels. The Company has licensed its brands for production of additional product lines, such as toys, books and other products, the products are primarily distributed by the licensee through the licensee�� marketing channels. As of December 31, 2011, it had one exclusive license agreement, which is with Jakks Pacific�� Tollytots (Tollytots) division.

Products

The Company�� products consist primarily of family and children��! DVD and CD music products. These products are manufactured and sold under brand names, such as Baby Genius, Kid Genius, Wee Worship, 123 Favorite Music and Pacific Entertainment Presents. The Company�� music products also include 50 Classic Lullabies & Soothing Songs and Favorite Guitar and Piano Melodies. During 2011, it released three new music titles, Best of Baby Genius, Sleighbells and Snowflakes and Favorite Country Christmas Music. The entire library of Baby Genius DVD and CD music products includes both English and Spanish versions. It also licenses its Baby Genius brand for various product lines, including toys, books, games and puzzles, sippy cups, and early learning aids, as well as others, and receives royalties based on sales of these products.

The Company has third party licensing agreements under which it has developed musical products under other brands, such as Guess How Much I Love You, The Snowman and Precious Moments. It also licensed the rights to eight DVDs previously created by Precious Moments in exchange for royalty payments on net sales of the DVD products. Through an exclusive licensing agreement with the San Diego Zoological Society, the Company created a series of Baby Genius DVD�� featuring footage from the San Diego Zoo and San Diego Wild Animal Park.

The Company competes with Baby Einstein, Brainy Baby, So Smart, The Wiggles, Sesame Baby, Disney, Universal Studios, Playskool, Fisher Price, Little Tykes and Leapfrog.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Lisa Levin]

    Music & Video Stores: This industry jumped 1.68% by 10:25 am. The top performer in this industry was Genius Brands International (OTC: GNUS), which rose 8.7%. Genius Brands' trailing-twelve-month revenue is $2.00 million.

Top 10 Japanese Companies To Invest In Right Now: Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc.(HOT)

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. operates as a hotel and leisure company worldwide. The company operates luxury and upscale full service hotels, select-service hotels, extended stay hotels, resorts, retreats, and residences under St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, W, Westin, Le M�idien, Sheraton, Four Points, Aloft, and Element brand names. It also engages in the development and operation of vacation ownership resorts; marketing and selling vacation ownership interests in the resorts; and provision of financing to customers who purchase such interests. In addition, the company develops, markets, and sells residential units at mixed use hotel projects. As of December 31, 2011, its hotel portfolio included 1,076 owned, managed, or franchised hotels with approximately 315,300 rooms; and 13 stand-alone vacation ownership resorts and residential properties. The company was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwid e Inc. operates independently of ITT Corporation as of December 19, 1995.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Dan Caplinger]

    Starwood Hotels & Resorts (NYSE: HOT  ) : up 150%
    Unlike most companies, Starwood makes dividend payments only once a year, but its end-of-2012 payout of $1.25 per share was far above the $0.50 it paid in 2011. Even with its international exposure leaving it facing headwinds in troubled areas such as Europe, recovering prospects in its key U.S. market and expansion into growth markets around the world have led to strong performance for Starwood, and sharing the wealth with shareholders shows that Starwood expects the good times to continue.

Top 10 Japanese Companies To Invest In Right Now: BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Inc.(BCRX)

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biotechnology company, designs, optimizes, and develops small-molecule pharmaceuticals that block key enzymes involved in infectious diseases, cancer, and inflammatory diseases. It uses structure-based drug design, which incorporates multiple scientific disciplines, including biology, crystallography, medicinal chemistry, and computer to develop new therapeutic candidates. The company has three novel late-stage compounds in development, which include Peramivir, a neuraminidase inhibitor for the potential treatment of influenza; BCX4208, a purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) inhibitor for gout; and Forodesine, a PNP inhibitor for cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) and chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Peramivir is being developed under a contract from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority within the United States Department of Health and Human Services. Forodesine has been granted orphan drug status by the FDA for thr ee indications, which include T-cell non-Hodgkin?s lymphoma, including CTCL; CLL and related leukemias, including T-cell prolymphocytic leukemia, adult T-cell leukemia, and hairy cell leukemia; and for treatment of B-ALL. The FDA has also granted fast track status to the development of forodesine for the treatment of relapsed or refractory T-cell leukemia, and special protocol assessment from the FDA for forodesine to conduct a pivotal clinical trial in CTCL with an oral formulation. The company announced the initiation of a Phase 2b study of BCX4208 as add-on therapy in gout patients who have not responded to allopurinol therapy alone. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals utilizes crystallography and structure-based drug design to discover additional compounds and to progress others through pre-clinical and early development to address the unmet medical needs of patients and physicians. The company was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Durham, North Carolina.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Monica Gerson]

    BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: BCRX) shares gained 5.98% to $6.91 in the pre-market session after the company has been awarded contract by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to develop BCX4430 for the treatment of Marburg virus disease.

Top 10 Japanese Companies To Invest In Right Now: GTSI Corp.(GTSI)

GTSI Corp., together with its subsidiaries, provides information technology (IT) hardware and solutions to federal, state, and local government customers, as well as to prime contractors in the United States. It offers IT infrastructure solutions, including data center consolidation and optimization solutions, server and desktop virtualization solutions, cloud computing solutions, network modernization solutions, unified communications and collaboration solutions, database and software development solutions, asset management solutions, and financial services solutions. The company also provides various services comprising software development and maintenance, program and project management, database development and maintenance, and legacy systems modernization services. In addition, it offers computer hardware, software, and peripheral products, as well as provides technical support and assistance services. The company markets and sells its computer hardware and software, and solutions through GTSI.com. It has strategic partner relationships with Cisco, Hewlett Packard, Crossmatch Technologies, Microsoft, Dell, Oracle, Net App, and Hitachi. GTSI Corp. was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Herndon, Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Geoff Gannon]

    I picked GTSI (GTSI) for the Ben Graham: Net-Net Newsletter.

    And that is not a good business. It lost money in about half of the last 10 years. It had no history of earning more than about 6% on equity over time. It was a truly terrible business.

  • [By Geoff Gannon]

    Someone who reads my articles sent me this question: My��uestion has to do with the type of investments you tend to put your energy toward. Evaluating a net-net is a whole lot different than evaluating a company that has a competitive advantage and trades at much higher multiples. To me, the net-net evaluation process is a whole lot more straightforward, as there are fewer intangibles (if any) and less prediction about the future involved. I don't have to worry about whether GTSI (GTSI) has any competitive advantage ��I know it doesn't. Then again, I look at a company like Becton Dickenson (BDX) and I see a highly predictable company with a decent moat selling at a reasonable price. I can look at BDX and figure I might earn 10-15% annually over a long time frame. That's really different from thinking about investing in a net-net where I can see how it's 30-50% undervalued now, but it's not something I'm going to hold onto for decades. It's more of a matter of waiting for that one-time "pop" that will happen sometime in the next 1-5 years. How do you decide where to put your energy?

  • [By Geoff Gannon]

    I would never assume that $1 of retained earnings at GTSI (GTSI) was worth $1. It�� not.

    So it would be hard to buy GTSI on an earnings basis. I didn��. I bought it for the Ben Graham: Net-Net Newsletter�� model portfolio simply based on its cash, receivables, and stake in another company. Those 3 things meant the company�� liquidation value was higher than the price I paid for the stock.

Saturday, April 18, 2015

5 Best Income Stocks To Watch For 2015

5 Best Income Stocks To Watch For 2015: Finisar Corporation(FNSR)

Finisar Corporation designs, develops, manufactures, and markets optical subsystems and components that are used to interconnect equipment in short-distance local area networks (LANs), storage area networks (SANs), longer distance metropolitan area networks (MANs), fiber-to-the-home networks, cable television networks, and wide area networks. Its optical subsystems primarily include transmitters, receivers, transceivers, and transponders. The company?s optical subsystems provides the fundamental optical-electrical interface for connecting the equipment used in building networks comprising switches, routers, and file servers in wireline networks, as well as antennas and base stations for wireless networks. It also offers products for switching network traffic from one optical wavelength to another across multiple wavelengths, known as reconfigurable optical add/drop multiplexers. The company?s line of optical components principally comprises packaged lasers and photodetec t ors used in transceivers for LAN and SAN applications; and passive optical components used in building MANs. It sells its optical products to manufacturers of storage system, networking equipment, and telecommunication equipment or their contract manufacturers through direct sales force and distribution channels in the United States, Malaysia, the People?s Republic of China, and internationally. The company was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Monica Gerson]

    Finisar (NASDAQ: FNSR) is expected to post its Q1 earnings at $0.32 per share on revenue of $328.66 million.

    Verint Systems (NASDAQ: VRNT) is estimated to post its Q2 earnings at $0.60 per share on revenue of $270.88 million.

  • [By Jon C. Ogg]

    Finisar Corp. (NASDAQ: FNSR) was raised to Outperform from Market Performby Raymond James after raising guidance.

    Mead Johnson Nutrition Co! . (NYSE: MJN) was raised to Outperform from Neutral with a $90 price target at Credit Suisse.

  • [By Garrett Cook]

    Shares of Finisar (NASDAQ: FNSR) were down 22.44 percent to $19.58 after the company reported downbeat earnings for the fourth quarter and issued a weak profit forecast for the current quarter.

  • source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.seekpennystocks.com/5-best-income-stocks-to-watch-for-2015-2.html

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

24 Commercial Banking Stocks to Buy Now

RSS Logo Portfolio Grader Popular Posts: 7 “Triple A” Stocks to Buy5 Pharmaceutical Stocks to Buy Now16 Oil and Gas Stocks to Sell Now Recent Posts: 24 Commercial Banking Stocks to Buy Now 3 Auto Parts Stocks to Sell Now 10 Best “Strong Buy” Stocks — TYL DXPE PCYC and more View All Posts

The grades of 24 Commercial Banking stocks are better this week, according to the Portfolio Grader database. Every one of these stocks has an “A” (“strong buy”) or “B” overall (“buy”) rating.

This week, Yadkin Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:) is showing good progress as the company’s rating jumps from a B (“buy”) last week to an A (“strong buy”). Yadkin Financial operates as a bank holding company for Yadkin Bank that provides consumer and commercial banking services in North Carolina and South Carolina. In Portfolio Grader’s specific subcategories of Earnings Momentum and Earnings Revisions, YDKN also gets A’s. .

Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:) is bettering its rating of C (“hold”) from last week to a B (“buy”) this week. Pinnacle Financial Partners is a holding company for Pinnacle National Bank. Shares of PNFP have increased 5.1% over the past month, better than the 1.3% decrease the Nasdaq has seen over the same period of time. .

Taylor Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:) improves from a B to an A rating this week. Taylor Capital Group is a bank holding company for Cole Taylor Bank. .

This week, BSB Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:) pushes up from a C to a B rating. BSB Bancorp operates as a bank holding company. .

This is a strong week for First Business Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:). The company’s rating climbs to A from the previous week’s B. First Business Financial Services is a bank holding company involved in the commercial banking business through offices located in Wisconsin. .

BNC Bancorp (NASDAQ:) gets a higher grade this week, advancing from a C last week to a B. BNC Bancorp offers products and services to individuals and small- to medium-sized local businesses. .

This is a strong week for Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:). The company’s rating climbs to B from the previous week’s C. Wells Fargo provides financial services in mainly wholesale banking, mortgage banking, consumer finance, equipment leasing, agricultural finance and commercial finance. .

This week, PacWest Bancorp’s (NASDAQ:) ratings are up from a C last week to a B. PacWest Bancorp is the holding company for Pacific Western Bank. .

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:) boosts its rating from a C to a B this week. U.S. Bancorp provides banking and financial services. .

The rating of Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:) moves up this week, rising from a C to a B. Huntington Bancshares is a multi-state bank holding company. .

Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:) improves from a C to a B rating this week. Independent Bank is the holding company for Rockland Trust. .

First Financial Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:) is seeing ratings go up from a C last week to a B this week. First Financial Bankshares is a multi-bank holding company. .

Pacific Continental Corporation (NASDAQ:) shows solid improvement this week. The company’s rating rises from a B to an A. Pacific Continental Bank is a bank holding company that provides commercial banking, financing, and mortgage lending in parts of Washington state and Oregon. .

First Community Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:) earns a B this week, jumping up from last week’s grade of C. First Community Bancshares is the holding company for First Community Bank. .

Bryn Mawr Bank Corporation’s (NASDAQ:) ratings are looking better this week, moving up to a B from last week’s C. Bryn Mawr Bank offers a full range of personal and business banking services. .

This week, Banco de Chile Sponsored ADR (NYSE:) pushes up from a C to a B rating. NonactiveBanco de Chile provides a wide customer base of individuals and corporations with general banking services. At present, the stock has a dividend yield of 3.3%. .

This week, BOK Financial Corporation’s (NASDAQ:) ratings are up from a C last week to a B. BOK Financial provides a range of financial services to commercial and industrial customers, other financial institutions, and consumers in the United States. .

The rating of Glacier Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:) moves up this week, rising from a C to a B. Glacier Bancorp is a regional multi-bank holding company providing commercial financial services to individuals and corporations. .

Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc.’s (NASDAQ:) ratings are looking better this week, moving up to a B from last week’s C. Washington Trust offers a range of financial services to individuals and businesses, including wealth management. .

First Connecticut Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:) is seeing ratings go up from a C last week to a B this week. First Connecticut Bancorp operates as the holding company for Farmington Bank that provides consumer and commercial banking services to businesses, individuals, and governments in central Connecticut. .

First Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:) boosts its rating from a B to an A this week. South Carolina Bank and Trust is a bank holding company that provides retail and commercial banking, mortgage lending, consumer finance loans, and trust and investment services. .

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (NYSE:) earns a B this week, jumping up from last week’s grade of C. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce is a global financial institution that serves clients through CIBC retail markets and wholesale banking. The current dividend yield is 3.6%. .

This week, The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:) pushes up from a C to a B rating. Bank of Nova Scotia offers various personal, commercial, corporate, and investment banking services in Canada and internationally. The stock’s dividend yield is 2.4%. .

Top 10 Telecom Stocks To Invest In Right Now

This is a strong week for MutualFirst Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:). The company’s rating climbs to A from the previous week’s B. MutualFirst Financial is the holding company for Mutual Federal Savings Bank. .

Louis Navellier’s proprietary Portfolio Grader stock ranking system assesses roughly 5,000 companies every week based on a number of fundamental and quantitative measures. Stocks are given a letter grade based on their results — with A being “strong buy,” and F being “strong sell.” Explore the tool here.

Saturday, April 11, 2015

Hot Defensive Stocks To Buy Right Now

Hot Defensive Stocks To Buy Right Now: J P Morgan Chase & ; Co(JPM)

JPMorgan Chase & Co., a financial holding company, provides various financial services worldwide. Its Investment Bank segment provides various investment banking products and services, including advising on corporate strategy and structure, capital-raising in equity and debt markets, risk management, market-making in cash securities and derivative instruments, prime brokerage, and research services serving corporations, financial institutions, governments, and institutional investors. The company?s Commercial Banking segment provides lending, treasury, investment banking, and asset management services to corporations, municipalities, financial institutions, and not-for-profit entities. Its Treasury & Securities Services segment offers cash management, trade, wholesale card, and liquidity products and services to small and mid-sized companies, multinational corporations, financial institutions, and government entities. It also holds, values, clears, and services securities, cash, and alternative investments for investors and broker-dealers, and manages depositary receipt programs worldwide. JPMorgan?s Asset Management segment provides investment and wealth management to institutions, retail investors, and high-net-worth individuals. This segment offers investment management in equities, fixed income, real estate, hedge funds, private equity, and liquidity products, as well as trust and estate, banking and brokerage services, and retirement services. Its Retail Financial Services segment offers retail banking and consumer lending services that include checking and savings accounts, mortgages, home equity and business loans, and investments through ATMs, online banking, and telephone banking, as well as auto dealerships and school financial-aid offices. The company?s Card Services segment issues credit cards and processes various credit c! ard payments. JPMorgan Chase & Co. was founded in 1823 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Kristen Scholer var popups = dojo.query(".socialByline .popC"); popups.forEac]

    Thomas Lee, formerly a strategist at J.P. Morgan (JPM), may as well have popped the champagne early Wednesday night as his initial estimate of 2075 proved most accurate. It came within 16 points of where the S&P settled at the close.

  • [By Motley Fool Staff]

    Patrick Morris: In my opinion, the top bank stock to own for 2015 will be none other than JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM  ) .

    As previously discussed, it currently trades at a very reasonable valuation relative to the strength of its financial position. In addition to its financial strength, the strength of its businesses also makes it a compelling investment consideration.

  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    Financials are certainly having a good day today. The Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) has gained 0.7% to $24.25 at 12:24 p.m., while Citigroup (C) has risen 1% to $54.03, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) has advanced 0.8% to $60.62 and Bank of America (BAC) is up 0.9% at $17.16.

  • source from Top Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksblog.com/hot-defensive-stocks-to-buy-right-now.html

Monday, April 6, 2015

Hot Oil Service Companies To Invest In Right Now

Hot Oil Service Companies To Invest In Right Now: Buckeye Partners L.P. (BPL)

Buckeye Partners, L.P. owns and operates refined petroleum products pipeline systems in the United States. Its Pipelines & Terminals segment transports refined petroleum products; and provides bulk storage and terminal throughput services in the continental United States. This segment owns and operates approximately 6,000 miles of pipeline serving approximately 110 delivery locations; and has 100 active products terminals with aggregate storage capacity of approximately 40 million barrels. The company’s International Operations segment provides marine terminal throughput, marine bulk storage, and other related services. This segment operates through two petroleum product terminals located on Grand Bahama Island, in The Bahamas and in Puerto Rico with an aggregate storage capacity of approximately 30 million barrels. Its Natural Gas Storage segment provides natural gas storage services through a facility with approximately 30 billion cubic feet of working natural gas storage capacity located in Northern California. The company’s Energy Services segment engages in the wholesale distribution of refined petroleum products, including gasoline; propane; ethanol; biodiesel; and petroleum distillates, such as heating oil, diesel fuel, and kerosene to wholesalers and commercial users. Its Development and Logistics segment provides contract operations, construction management, and asset development services to third-party pipeline and energy assets, and energy companies in the United States. This segment owns and operates 2 underground propane storage caverns with approximately 800,000 barrels of throughput and storage capability in Indiana and Illinois; and a 30-mile ammonia pipeline and 25 miles of pipeline in Texas. Buckeye GP LLC serves as the general partner of the company. Buckeye Partners, L.P. was founded in 1886 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By J! on C. Ogg]

    Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE: BPL) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at J.P. Morgan.

    Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) was reiterated as Neutral at Canaccord Genuity.

  • [By Aimee Duffy]

    Master limited partnerships are not like other stocks, and the metrics we use to compare an MLP to its peers differ from the metrics we use to compare regular companies. For example, instead of the traditional P/E ratio, we emphasize MLP-specific metrics like distribution coverage ratio and today's focus: price to distributable cash flow (P/DCF). I'll use Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE: EPD  ) , Kinder Morgan Energy Partners (NYSE: KMP  ) , and Buckeye Partners (NYSE: BPL  ) to illustrate the concept.

  • [By Aimee Duffy]

    Buckeye Partners (NYSE: BPL  ) is another company hoping to exploit alternative transportation from its rail and barge hub at the Port of Albany, on the Hudson River.

  • source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.seekpennystocks.com/hot-oil-service-companies-to-invest-in-right-now.html

Sunday, April 5, 2015

Top 10 International Companies To Buy Right Now

Top 10 International Companies To Buy Right Now: ITT Industries Inc.(ITT)

ITT Corporation designs, manufactures, and sells a range of engineered products, and provides related services worldwide. Its Defense & Information Solutions segment develops tactical communications equipment, electronic warfare and force protection equipment, radar systems, integrated structures equipment, and imaging and sensor equipment, including night vision goggles, as well as weather, location, surveillance, and other related technologies for military and government agencies. It also provides services comprising air traffic management, information and cyber solutions, large-scale systems engineering, and integration and defense technologies; satellite-based imaging payloads for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance solutions; and high-resolution commercial imaging systems with earth and space science applications, climate and environmental monitoring sensors and systems, and GPS navigation and software applications designed for image and data processing and dissemination. The company?s Fluid Technology segment provides water transport and wastewater treatment systems, pumps and related technologies, and other water and fluid control products with municipal, residential, commercial, and industrial applications. Its Motion & Flow Control segment manufactures shock absorbers and brake friction materials for the transportation industry; switch applications for the industrial and aerospace industries; electrical connectors used in telecommunications, computers, aerospace, medical, and industrial applications; and a range of pumps and tailored products for marine, food and beverage, and general industrial markets. The company was formerly known as ITT Industries, Inc. and changed its name to ITT Corporation in July 2006. ITT Corporation was founded in 1920 and is based in White Plains, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Aaron Levitt]

    Spun-off from industrial giant ITT (ITT) ! a few years ago, Xylem (XYL) could be a great starting point for investors looking at water stocks. Aside from its cool and appropriate name, XYL provides host of equipment — pumps, controllers and filtration devices — for wastewater treatment plants across the globe.

  • source from Top Stocks To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/top-10-international-companies-to-buy-right-now-3.html

Top Penny Stocks To Own Right Now

Top Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: Integrated Silicon Solution Inc.(ISSI)

Integrated Silicon Solution, Inc., a fabless semiconductor company, designs and markets integrated circuits for digital consumer electronics, networking and telecommunications, mobile communications, automotive electronics, and industrial markets. Its primary products include low and medium density DRAM; and high speed and low power SRAM. The company?s low and medium density DRAM products are used in wireless local area networks (WLANs), base stations, networking switches and routers, fiber to the home (FTTH), DSL and cable modems, set top boxes, digital cameras, MP3, flat panel TVs, LCD TVs, HDTVs, video phones, Voice over Internet Protocol, printers, disk drives, tape drives, audio/video equipment, instrumentation, global positioning systems (GPS), telematics, infotainment, smart meters, and other applications. Its SRAM products are used in WLANs, cell phones, base stations, networking switches and routers, FTTH, DSL modems, LCD TVs, set-top boxes, GPS systems, instrumen tation, engine control systems, medical equipment, telematics, audio and video equipment, satellite radio, POS terminals, fax machines, copiers, tape drives, and other applications. Integrated Silicon Solution, Inc. also designs and markets application specific standard products, including high performance serial EEPROMs for use in TVs, networking systems, modems, telephone sets, security systems, video games, automobiles, and other consumer products; and SmartCards that have applications in transportation passes, payment cards, health care cards, and other cards that store secure data. The company markets and sells its products in Asia, the United States, and Europe through direct sales force, independent sales representatives, and distributors. Integrated Silicon Solution, Inc. was founded in 1988 and is headquartered in San Jose, California.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Seth Jayson]

    Basic guidelines
    In this serie! s, I examine inventory using a simple rule of thumb: Inventory increases ought to roughly parallel revenue increases. If inventory bloats more quickly than sales grow, this might be a sign that expected sales haven't materialized. Is the current inventory situation at Integrated Silicon Solution (Nasdaq: ISSI  ) out of line? To figure that out, start by comparing the company's inventory growth to sales growth. How is Integrated Silicon Solution doing by this quick checkup? At first glance, not so great. Trailing-12-month revenue increased 7.0%, and inventory increased 43.7%. Comparing the latest quarter to the prior-year quarter, the story looks potentially problematic. Revenue grew 20.0%, and inventory grew 43.7%. Over the sequential quarterly period, the trend looks OK but not great. Revenue dropped 1.8%, and inventory dropped 0.8%.

  • source from Top Stocks To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/top-penny-stocks-to-own-right-now-6.html

Friday, April 3, 2015

Top Communications Equipment Stocks To Invest In 2015

Top Communications Equipment Stocks To Invest In 2015: PositiveID Corp (PSID)

PositiveID Corporation (PositiveID), incorporated in November 2001, is engaged in developing, marketing and selling radio frequency identification (RFID), systems used for the identification of people in the healthcare market. PositiveID is focused on providing health and security identification tools to protect consumers and businesses, operating in two segments: HealthID and ID Security. The Companys HealthID segment is focused on the development of four products, which includes the GlucoChip, iglucose, Easy Check and the rapid flu detection system. Its ID Security segment includes the identity security suite of products, sold through its NationalCreditReport.com brand and its Health Link personal health record (PHR) business. In July 2011, it completed the sale of substantially all of the assets of NationalCreditReport.com. On May 23, 2011, the Company acquired all of the interest of MicroFluidic Systems (MicroFluidic). In November 2013, the Company sold its interest in VeriTeQ Corporation (VeriTeQ).

HealthID Segment

PositiveIDs HealthID segment product GlucoChip is a glucose-sensing microchip is developed in conjunction with Receptors LLC (Receptors). Iglucose is a self-contained unit that automatically queries a diabetic users data-capable glucometer for blood glucose data and sends that data via encrypted text messaging to the iglucose online database. Easy Check is a non-invasive breath glucose detection system, based on the correlation of acetone in exhaled breath to blood glucose levels. The rapid flu detection system is also developed in conjunction with Receptors. The Companys HealthID segment also includes the VeriMed system, which uses an implantable passive RFID microchip (the VeriChip) that is used in patient identification applications. Each implantable microchip contains a verification number that is read when it is scanned by its scanner.

ID Security Segm! ent

P ositiveIDs NationalCreditReport.com business offers consumers a range of identity security products and services primarily on a subscription basis. These services help consumers protect themselves against identity theft or fraud and understand and monitor their credit profiles and other personal information, which include credit reports, credit monitoring and credit scores. The Company has Health Link PHR business.

Healthcare Products

PositiveIDs Healthcare products include the GlucoChip, a product that combines a glucose-sensing microtransponder. The Company has partnered with Receptors to develop an in-vivo glucose sensor to detect glucose levels in the human body. In conjunction with Receptors, the Company has completed Phase I and Phase II development of the glucose-sensing microchip and are in Phase III development. The Easy Check breath glucose test, as of January 31, 2012 is under development, is a non-invasive glucose detection system that measures acetone levels in a patients exhaled breath. The iglucose system uses machine to machine technology to automatically communicate a diabetics glucose readings to the iglucose online database.

MicroFluidic Systems

MicroFluidic specializes in the production of automated instruments for a range of applications in the detection and processing of biological samples, ranging from rapid medical testing to airborne pathogen detection for homeland security. MicroFluidics substantial portfolio of related to sample preparation and rapid medical testing applications are the portfolio of virus detection and diabetes management products.

Identity Security Products and Services

National Credit Report.com, LLC (NCRC) is engaged in the consumer provision of credit reports, credit score and credit monitoring products. This business provides a medium for consumers to retrieve and review their credit history, as well a s monitor their credit files with one or all three ! of the ma! jor credit reporting bureaus: Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. The Companys products and services are offered to consumers on a monthly subscription basis.

Health Link Personal Health Record and Other Applications

Health Link is a patient-controlled, online repository to store personal health information, such as medications, allergies, family history, previous surgeries, vaccinations and lab results. Health Link also connects the patient to a multitude of customized materials, such as personalized health education and online connectivity to caregivers. Patients can also utilize Health Link to connect with numerous Electronic Medical Record (EMR) systems that are accessible through Microsoft HealthVault and Google Health. In conjunction with Raytheon Microelectronics Espana, the Company developed an eight millimetre microchip, which has functionality that is substantially equivalent to the VeriChip.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By James E. Brumley]

    Ever heard of PositiveID Corp. (OTCMKTS:PSID)? Most people haven't, so don't worry if it's an unfamiliar name. What's surprising is that PSID is still a little unfamiliar to the masses at this stage of the Ebola game. It's not just a worry that we only have to worry about domestically. It's now spreading within the United States, which is a whole different ball game than preventing it from getting to the United States. This presents a real risk of pandemic spreading within our borders. PositiveID can help.

  • source from Top Stocks To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/top-communications-equipment-stocks-to-invest-in-2015-2.html

Wednesday, April 1, 2015

10 Best Restaurant Stocks To Own Right Now

10 Best Restaurant Stocks To Own Right Now: Darden Restaurants Inc (DRI)

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (Darden), incorporated in March 1995, is a company owned and full-service restaurant company. As of May 27, 2012, the Company operated through subsidiaries 1,994 restaurants in the United States and Canada. In the United States, it operated 1,961 restaurants in all 50 states, including 677 Red Lobster, 786 Olive Garden, 386 LongHorn Steakhouse, 46 The Capital Grille, 30 Bahama Breeze, 23 Seasons 52, eight Eddie V's Prime Seafood and three Wildfish Seafood Grille restaurants, and two test synergy restaurants, which house both a Red Lobster and Olive Garden restaurant in the same building. In Canada, the Company operated 33 restaurants, including 27 Red Lobster and six Olive Garden restaurants. Through subsidiaries, it owns and operates all of its restaurants in the United States and Canada, except for three restaurants located in Central Florida that is owned by joint ventures it manages. On November 14, 2011, it acquired eight Eddie V's Prime Seafo od restaurants and three Wildfish Seafood Grille restaurants.

As of May 27, 2012, the Company had 28 restaurants outside the United States and Canada operated by independent third parties pursuant to area development and franchise agreements, including five LongHorn Steakhouse restaurants in Puerto Rico, 22 Red Lobster restaurants in Japan, and one Red Lobster restaurant in Dubai. During fiscal year ended May 27, 2012, it opened 89 net new restaurants in the United States and Canada.

Red Lobster

Red Lobster is a full-service dining seafood specialty restaurant operator in the United States. It offers a menu featuring fresh fish, shrimp, crab, lobster, scallops and other seafood. The menu includes a variety of specialty seafood and non-seafood entrees, appetizers and desserts. Red Lobster maintains different lunch and dinn! er menus and different menus across its trade areas.

Olive Garden

Olive Garden is a full s ervice dining Italian restaurant operator in the United Stat! es. Olive Garden's menu includes a range of authentic Italian foods featuring fresh ingredients and a wine list that includes a selection of wines imported from Italy. The menu includes flatbreads and other appetizers, soups, salad and garlic bread sticks, baked pastas, sauted specialties with chicken, seafood and fresh vegetables, grilled meats, and a variety of desserts. Olive Garden also uses coffee imported from Italy for its espresso and cappuccino.

LongHorn Steakhouse

LongHorn Steakhouse restaurants are full-service establishments serving both lunch and dinner. With locations in 35 states, primarily in the Eastern half of the United States, LongHorn Steakhouse restaurants feature a range of menu items, including signature fresh steaks, as well as salmon, shrimp, chicken, ribs, pork chops, burgers and prime rib.

The Capital Grille

The Capital Grille has locations in metropolitan cities in the United States. The Capit al Grille offers seafood flown in daily and culinary specials created by its chefs. The restaurants feature a wine list offering over 350 selections, personalized service, and private dining rooms.

Bahama Breeze

Bahama Breeze restaurants bring guests the feeling of a Caribbean escape, offering the food, drinks and atmosphere found in the islands. The menu features Caribbean-inspired seafood, chicken and steaks, as well as signature specialty drinks. During fiscal 2012, it opened four Bahama Breeze restaurant.

Seasons 52

Seasons 52 is a grill and wine bar with seasonally inspired menus offering ingredients to meals that are lower in calories than comparable restaurant meals. It offers a wine list of more than 90 wines with approximately 60 available by the glass. As of May 27, 2012, there were 23 Season! s 52 rest! aurants in the United States.

Synergy restaurant

Synergy restaurant houses both a Red Lo bster and Olive Garden restaurant in the same building, but ! with sepa! rate front doors, dining rooms and brand-specific menus. It opened a second synergy test location during fiscal 2012.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]

    Steve Helber/AP There's dough in breadsticks and green in bottomless salad bowls at Olive Garden again. Parent company Darden Restaurants (DRI) posted better-than-expected quarterly results after Tuesday's market close. Sales from continuing operations rose nearly 5 percent to $1.56 billion, with adjusted earnings more than doubling to 28 cents a share. Both marks landed just ahead of the $1.55 billion in sales and profit of 27 cents a share that the pros were forecasting. However, the big headline number in Darden's report is that Olive Garden managed to post its first quarter of positive year-over-year growth in comparable-store sales in more than a year. Olive Garden's 0.5 percent uptick in comps may not seem like much It didn't keep pace with inflation or with what some of its casual-dining rivals are reporting, but it still snaps a streak of five quarters of negative comparable-restaurant sales growth at the once-fading Italian restaurant chain. Olive Garden Outsmarts Red Lobster Darden has a lot of young, exciting concepts. There's the beer-heavy Yard House, tropical Bahama Breeze, and health-conscious Seasons 52. There are also plenty of steakhouses, ranging from LongHorn on the casual end to the premium chophouse havens of Eddie V's and The Capital Grille. However, the lion's share of Darden's restaurants until earlier this year was Red Lobster and Olive Garden. The two chains combined for the majority of Darden's business, and when both concepts were struggling, they were dragging the parent down with their sloppy performances. Darden sold off Red Lobster earlier this year, and it seemed as if Olive Garden woul! d be the ! next major concept to go if it didn't shape up. After all, Red Lobster was performing horribly, but Olive Garden wasn't doing a whole lot better. Despite Darden owning several concepts, Olive Garden still accounts for 57 percent of the company's total sales, accounting for 838 of Darden's 1,520 eateries. As Olive Garden goes, so go

  • [By Johanna Bennett]

    Darden Restaurants (DRI) jumped 2.6% after KeyBanc upgraded the Olive Garden parent to "buy" from "hold," saying the restaurant chain's menu revamp could reverse an earnings decline.

  • source from Top Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksblog.com/10-best-restaurant-stocks-to-own-right-now-3.html