Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Top 10 Life Sciences Stocks To Watch For 2015

Top 10 Life Sciences Stocks To Watch For 2015: Pentair Inc.(PNR)

Pentair, Inc. operates as a diversified industrial manufacturing company worldwide. The company?s Water segment offers products and systems for use in the movement, storage, treatment, and enjoyment of water. It offers light duty diaphragm pumps and solid handling pumps for water and wastewater applications and agricultural spraying; and pressure tanks for residential applications. This segment also provides control valves, pressure tanks, membranes, carbon products, point of entry and point of use systems, and other filter cartridges for commercial and residential water filtration applications; and pool equipment and accessories, such as pumps, filters, heaters and heat pumps, lights, automatic controls, automatic pool cleaners, commercial deck equipment, maintenance equipment, and pool accessories for commercial and residential pool maintenance, repair and renovation, and service and construction. In addition, it offers filter systems, filter cartridges, pressure vessels , and dispensing pumps for commercial, foodservice, industrial, marine and aviation markets. This segment distributes its products through wholesale distributors, retail distributors, original equipment manufacturers (OEM), home centers, and home and pool builders. The company?s Technical Products segment provides standard, modified, and custom enclosures that house and protect sensitive electronics and electrical components, as well as protect people that use them. Its products comprise metallic and composite enclosures, cabinets, cases, subracks, backplanes, and associated thermal management systems used in industrial machinery, data communications, networking, telecommunications, test and measurement, automotive, medical, security, defense, and general electronics. This segment distributes its products through electrical and data contractors, electrical and elect! ronic components distributors, and OEMs. Pentair, Inc. was founded in 1966 and is based in Golden Valley, Minn e sota.

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

    What do BG Medicine, Inc. (NASDAQ:BGMD) and Pentair, Ltd. (NYSE:PNR) have in common? Most investors would say absolutely nothing. BGMD is a small cap medical diagnostics company, while PNR is a large cap industrial equipment manufacturer. Those are worlds that simply never collide. The directions each stock has been traveling in over the past few months have even been polar opposites.

  • [By Seth Jayson]

    Calling all cash flows
    When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Pentair (NYSE: PNR  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

  • [By The Part-time Investor]

    The following stocks met the criteria in January of 2008 and were put into the initial portfolio:

    Abbot Labs (ABT)Advanced data processing (ADP)Associated Banc-Corp (ASBC)Bank of America (BAC)BB&T Corp. (BBT)Bemis Company (BMS)Anheuser Busch (BUD)The Chubb Corporation (CB)Clorox (CLX)Comerica Inc. (CMA)Diebold Inc. (DBD)Emerson Electronics (EMR)First Dollar Corp. (FDO)First Third BanCorp. (FITB)Gannett Co, Inc. (GCI)General Electric (GE)Hershey (HSY)Illinois Tools Works (ITW)Johnson and Johnson (JNJ)Leggett and Platt (LEG)Eli Lilly (LLY)La-Z-Boy (LZB)McDonald's (MCD)Marsh and Ilsley (MI)M&T Bancorp (MTB)PepsiCo (PEP)Pfizer (PFE)Procter & Gamble (PG)Pentair Ltd. (PNR)Regions Financial Corp. (RF)Rohm and Haas (ROH)RPM International (RPM)Sherwin Williams (SHW)Sysco Corp. (SYY)UDR Inc. (UDR)

    Historical quotes were taken from Yahoo Finance. $10,000 was put into each position, to the nearest whole share, so a total of $349,262.89 was invested. ! From 1/15! /08 throu gh 5/16/13 all dividends were reinvested back into the stock that paid them. If a dividend cut was announced, that stock was sold on the ex-div date of the new, lower dividend.

  • source from Top Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksblog.com/top-10-life-sciences-stocks-to-watch-for-2015-2.html

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

5 Best Energy Stocks To Own For 2015

5 Best Energy Stocks To Own For 2015: CAMAC Energy Inc (CAK)

CAMAC Energy Inc. (CAMAC), incorporated on December 12, 1979, is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company focused on energy resources in Africa. Its asset portfolio consists of nine production and exploration licenses in four countries covering an area of 43,000 square kilometers (approximately 10 million acres), including existing production and other projects offshore Nigeria, as well as exploration licenses with hydrocarbon potential onshore and offshore Kenya, offshore Gambia, and offshore Ghana.

Nigeria

The Company owns 100% of the economic interests under a Production Sharing Contract (PSC) and related assets, contracts and rights pertaining to those certain Oil Mining Leases 120 and 121 (OMLs 120 and 121) including the producing Oyo Field which is located in deep-water (200-500 meters) approximately 75 kilometers (46 miles) offshore Nigeria. In September 2013, drilling operations commenced on the Oyo-7 well in OML 120. In October 2013, the preliminary results from the Oyo-7 well were announced. Based on logging while drilling (LWD) data, the well encountered gross oil pay of 133 feet (net oil pay of 115 feet) and gross gas pay of 103 feet (net gas pay of 93 feet) in the gas cap from the producing Pliocene reservoir, with reservoir. The top of the reservoir was penetrated at 5,564 feet.

Kenya

The Kenya PSCs for blocks L1B and L16 each provide for an initial exploration period of two years with specified minimum work obligations during that period. The Company conducts, for each block, a gravity and magnetic survey and acquire, process and interpret two dimensional (2D) seismic data. The gravity and magnetic survey on blocks L1B and L16 was completed in April 2013. The Company has the right to apply for up to two additional two-year exploration periods with specified a! dditional minimum work obligations, including the acquisition of three dimensional (3D) seismic da ta and the drilling of one exploratory well on each block du! ring each such additional period. In December 2013, the Company initiated an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) study in blocks L1B and L16 in order to obtain the license to carry out a 2D seismic survey.

The Kenya PSCs for blocks L27 and L28 each provide for an initial exploration period of three years with specified minimum work obligations during that period. The Company conducts, for each block, a regional geological and geophysical study, acquire 2D seismic data and acquire, process and interpret 3D seismic data. The Company has the right to apply for up to two additional two-year exploration periods with specified additional minimum work obligations, including the drilling of one exploratory well on each block, during each such additional period. CAMAC is participating in a multi-client combined gravity / magnetic and 2D seismic survey which is underway in blocks L27 and L28.

The Gambia

The Gambia Licenses for both blocks provide for an initial exploration period of four years with specified minimum work obligations during that period. The Company conducts, for each block, a regional geological study, acquire process and interpret 750 square kilometers of 3D seismic data, drill one exploration well to the total depth of 5,000 meters below mean sea level and evaluate drilling results. The Company has the right to apply for up to two additional two-year exploration periods with specified additional minimum work obligations, including the drilling of one exploration well during each additional period for each block.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Rich Bieglmeier]

    But, we'll take a look at CAMAC Energy Inc (NYSEMKT:CAK).  Since the odds are you haven't heard of CAK, the company is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company focused on energy res! ources in! Africa. Its asset portfolio consists of nine production and exploration licenses in four countries covering an area of 43,000 square kilometers (approximately 10 million acres), including existing production and other projects offshore Nigeria, as well as exploration licenses with hydrocarbon potential onshore and offshore Kenya, offshore Gambia, and offshore Ghana.

  • source from Top Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksblog.com/5-best-energy-stocks-to-own-for-2015.html

Monday, April 27, 2015

Top 10 Heal Care Stocks For 2015

Top 10 Heal Care Stocks For 2015: Globe Specialty Metals Inc.(GSM)

Globe Specialty Metals, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, produces and sells silicon metal and silicon-based alloys in North America, Europe, South America, and Asia. The company primarily offers silicon metal that is used as a raw material for silicone compounds, aluminum, and polysilicon. It also produces silicon-based alloys, such as ferrosilicon; magnesium-ferrosilicon-based alloys known as nodularizers; ferrosilicon-based alloys known as inoculants; calcium silicon alloys; and cored-wire silicon-based alloy products, as well as carbon electrodes, silica fume, and fines. The silicon-based alloy products are used as raw materials for steel, automotive components, and ductile iron. In addition, the company processes and supplies specialty metallurgical coal to other silicon and silicon-based alloy producers. Its customers include silicone chemical, aluminum, and steel manufacturers; auto companies and their suppliers; ductile iron foundries; manufacturers of photovol taic solar cells and computer chips; and concrete producers. The company was formerly known as International Metal Enterprises, Inc. and changed its name to Globe Specialty Metals, Inc. in November 2006. Globe Specialty Metals, Inc. was incorporated in 2004 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Marc Bastow]

    Silicon metals and alloys producer Globe Specialty Metals (GSM) raised its quarterly dividend 7.1% to 7.5 cents per share, payable March 12 to shareholders of record as of Feb. 26.
    GSM Dividend Yield: 1.65%

  • source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.seekpennystocks.com/top-10-heal-care-stocks-for-2015.html

Friday, April 24, 2015

5 Best Industrial Conglomerate Stocks For 2014

In yet another attempt by Congress to stymie the Department of Labor’s effort to release its fiduciary reproposal, Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah,  introduced legislation on Tuesday that would return oversight of IRAs to the Treasury Department—stripping that oversight from DOL.

DOL has received significant pushback regarding its plan to include IRAs in its rule to amend the definition of fiduciary under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), with the most notable complaint being that advisors would lose their ability to earn commissions on IRA advice.

The provision to nix DOL oversight of IRAs is included in a bill, the Securities Annuities for Employee (SAFE) Retirement Act of 2013, which would create a new public retirement plan in which insurance companies pay benefits through annuity contracts. The measure includes wide-ranging modifications to 401(k)s, including expanding employers’ ability to offer annuities in defined contribution plans and making target-date fund disclosure more effective.

Best Media Companies For 2015: Toshiba Corp (TOSBF)

TOSHIBA CORPORATION is a Japan-based manufacturer that operates in five business segments. The Digital Product segment manufactures and sells cellular phones, hard disc devices, optical disc devices, televisions among others. The Electronic Device segment provides general logic integrated circuits (ICs), optical semiconductors, power devices, large-scale integrated (LSI) circuits, among others. The Social Infrastructure segment manufactures and sells various generators, power distribution systems, water and sewer systems, transportation systems and station automation systems, among others. The Home Appliance segment provides refrigerators, drying machines, washing machines, cooking utensils, cleaners and lighting equipment, among others. The Others segment is involved in the provision of logistics services. In January 2014, Toshiba Corp purchased substantially all assets of OCZ Technology Group, and launched new subsidiary, OCZ Storage Solutions. Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Dan Carroll and Max Macaluso, Ph.D.]

    Panasonic's (NASDAQOTH: PCRFY  ) not the first company you may think of in the health-care field, but this Japanese electronics maker's a player in blood glucose monitors and other fields. With Panasonic's sales under fire across the board, however, this company's looking to sell off its health-care business to refocus on its core segments. Toshiba (NASDAQOTH: TOSBF  ) reportedly has expressed interest in a buy, and private equity-firms are also in the hunt to get on board with Asia's health-care rise.

  • [By Bruce Kennedy]

    On Monday, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced indictments against five officers in China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) for ��erious cybersecurity breaches��against six American firms: Westinghouse Electric, a division of Toshiba (OTC: TOSBF) , Alcoa (NYSE: AA),�Allegheny Technologies (NYSE: ATI), U.S. Steel (NYSE: X), the United Steelworkers Union and SolarWorld (OTC: SRWRY).

5 Best Industrial Conglomerate Stocks For 2014: Smiths Group PLC (SMGKF.PK)

Smiths Group plc is a technology company. It has five divisions: Smiths Detection, Smiths Medical, John Crane, Smiths Interconnect and Flex-Tek. The Company and its subsidiaries develop, manufacture, sale and support advanced security equipment, including trace detection, millimeter-wave, infrared, biological detection and diagnostics; mechanical seals, seal support systems, engineered bearings, power transmission couplings and specialist filtration systems, and medical devices aligned to specific therapies, principally airway, pain and temperature management, and vascular access. It also develops, manufactures, sells and supports specialized electronic and radio frequency products for the global wireless telecommunications, aerospace, defense, space, medical, rail, test and industrial markets, and engineered components, including ducting, hose assemblies and heating elements. In May 2011, it acquired the entire issued share capital of SDBR Comercio De Equipamentos De Seguanca LTDA. Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Daniel Lauchheimer]

    Currently, three main companies supply security equipment to the TSA - Safran (SAFRY.PK), Smiths (SMGKF.PK), and Level-3 Holdings (LLL). All three of these companies sell the whole range of their products to the TSA, with an ETD offering included. Recently, however, a new company, Implant Sciences Corporation (IMSC.PK) received approval from the TSA to begin selling their ETD equipment to airport security professionals. This approval has opened the door for IMSC to begin taking some market share away from the more established players in the US and beyond.

5 Best Industrial Conglomerate Stocks For 2014: Wartsila Oyj Abp (WRT1V.HE)

Wartsila Oyj Abp is a Finland-based company. Its operations are divided into four segments: Power Plants, Ship Power, Services and PowerTech. The Power Plants segment offers multi-fuel solutions for power generation markets, such as gas power plants, dual-fuel power plants, oil power plants and liquid biofuel power plants, among others. The Ship Power segment offers a range of products and services to both shipyards and ship owners, such as medium-speed and low-speed engines, seals and bearings, automation systems, ship design and ballast water treatment systems, among others. The Services segment offers solutions, such as basic support, installation and commissioning, performance optimization and upgrades, among others. The PowerTech segment comprises research and development for medium-speed engines and other operations, with a focus on gas, environmental solutions and Smart Power Generation drives. It has operations in more than 160 locations in over 70 countries around the world. Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Robert Wall var popups = dojo.query(".socialByline .popC"); popups.forEach(fu]

    The British company tried to strengthen its maritime engine business through a $10 billion takeover of Finland�� W盲rtsil盲 Oyj (WRT1V.HE) which rebuffed Rolls-Royce’s preliminary approach. The attempted acquisition of a company of that size surprised investors who hadn�� realized expansion was on management�� agenda so soon after its full takeover of Tognum, a German engineering company originally acquired in partnership with Daimler.

5 Best Industrial Conglomerate Stocks For 2014: Siemens AG (SIEGY)

Siemens AG (Siemens), incorporated on August 28, 1996, is a globally operating technology company with core activities in the fields of energy, healthcare, industry and infrastructure. Siemens business activities focus on four sectors, Energy, Healthcare, Industry and Infrastructure & Cities. These sectors form four of Siemens reportable segments. In addition to the four sectors, Siemens has two additional reportable segments: Equity Investments and Siemens Financial Services (SFS). The Energy sector comprises four divisions: Power Generation, Wind Power, Power Transmission and Energy Service. The Healthcare Sector includes four divisions: Imaging & Therapy Systems, Clinical Products, Diagnostics and Customer Solutions; and one sector-led Business Unit, Audiology Solutions. The Industry sector consists of three divisions: Industry Automation, Drive Technologies and Customer Services; and one sector-led Business Unit, Metals Technologies. The Infrastructure & Cities sector consists of five divisions: Rail Systems, Mobility and Logistics, Low and Medium Voltage, Smart Grid, and Building Technologies. In July 2013 Siemens sold its stake in the Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) joint venture to Nokia and OSRAM Licht AG was spun off from Siemens.

Industry

The Industry Sector offers a broad spectrum of products, solutions and services that help customers use resources and energy. The Sector�� integrated technologies and holistic solutions primarily address industrial customers, particularly those in the process and manufacturing industries. The portfolio spans industry automation, industrial software, drive products and services, system integration, and solutions for industrial plant businesses. The Industry Sector consists of three Divisions: Industry Automation, Drive Technologies and Customer Services. The Sector also includes a sector-led Business Unit, Metals Technologies. In addition to its Sector-level financial results, Industry also breaks out financial results for the Indust! ry Automation Division and the Drive Technologies Division. The Industry Automation Division offers a range of standard products and system solutions for automation technologies used in the manufacturing and process industries. The Division�� offerings include automation systems and software, motor controls, machine-to- machine communication products, sensors, product and production lifecycle management products, and software for simulating and testing mechatronic systems. The Drive Technologies Division offers products and comprehensive systems across the entire drive train. These offerings are customized to the respective application and include numerical control systems, inverters, converters, motors (geared and gearless), drives and couplings. In addition, Drive Technologies supplies integrated automation systems for machine tools and production machines. The Division also offers integrated lifecycle solutions and services for industries such as shipbuilding, cement, mining, and pulp and paper. The Customer Services Division offers a comprehensive portfolio of services and supports industrial customers.

Energy

The Energy Sector offers a spectrum of products, solutions and services for generating and transmitting power, and for extracting, converting and transporting oil and gas. The Fossil Power Generation Division offers products and solutions for fossil-based power generation. The Division concentrates on products and solutions for gas and steam turbines, turbo generators, heat recovery steam generators including control systems, with an emphasis on combined-cycle power plants. It also develops solutions for instrumentation and control systems for all types of power plants and for use in power generation. The Wind Power Division manufactures wind turbines for onshore and offshore applications, including both geared turbines and direct drive machines. The product portfolio is based on four product platforms, two for each of the onshore and offshore applications. The Oil ! & Gas Div! ision has a comprehensive portfolio of rotating machinery (gas turbines, steam turbines, compressors with associated equipment) and electrical, instrumentation and telecommunication (EIT) solutions. The Power Transmission Division provides customers with turnkey power transmission solutions as well as discrete products, systems and related engineering and services. It covers high-voltage transmission solutions, power and distribution transformers, high-voltage switching and non-switching products and systems, and alternating and direct current transmission systems. The Energy Service Division offers comprehensive services for products, solutions and technologies, covering performance enhancements, maintenance services, customer trainings and consulting services for the Divisions Fossil Power Generation, Wind Power and Oil & Gas. The Wind Power Division is active in both the onshore and the offshore market segments globally. Power Transmission Division is expanding infrastructure in emerging countries, equipment replacement and modernization in mature economies, and integration of renewable energies.

Healthcare

The Healthcare Sector offers customers a comprehensive portfolio of medical solutions across the treatment chain-ranging from medical imaging to in-vitro diagnostics to interventional systems and clinical information technology systems-all from a single source. In addition, the Sector provides technical maintenance, professional and consulting services, and, together with Financial Services (SFS), financing to assist customers in purchasing the Sector�� products. The Healthcare Sector includes four Divisions: Imaging & Therapy Systems, Clinical Products, Diagnostics and Customer Solutions. The Sector also includes one sector-led Business Unit, Audiology Solutions. In addition to its Sector-level financial results, Healthcare also separately breaks out financial results for the Diagnostics Division.

The Imaging & Therapy Systems Division provides large-scale! medical ! devices for diagnostic imaging and for image-guided therapies. Imaging equipment includes computed tomographs, magnetic resonance imaging equipment, angiography systems for diagnostics, and positron emission tomography. The Clinical Products Division mainly comprises the business with ultrasound and X-ray equipment including mammography. The Diagnostics Division offers products and services in the area of in-vitro diagnostics. The Division�� product portfolio represents a comprehensive range of diagnostic testing systems and consumables, including offerings for clinical chemistry and immunodiagnostics, molecular diagnostics, hematology, hemostasis, microbiology, point-of-care testing and clinical laboratory automation solutions. The Customer Solutions Division provides healthcare information technology (HIT) systems. It is responsible for the Sector�� service business and customer relationship management on a global level.

Equity Investments

The Equity Investments comprises equity stakes held by Siemens that are accounted for by the equity method, at cost or as current available-for-sale financial assets and for strategic reasons are not allocated to a Sector, SFS, Centrally managed portfolio activities, Siemens Real Estate (SRE), Corporate items or Corporate Treasury. Its main investments within Equity Investments are its stake of 50% in BSH Bosch and Siemens Hausgerate GmbH (BSH), its stake of 17% in OSRAM Licht AG (OSRAM) as well as its 49% stake in Enterprise Networks Holdings B.V. (EN).

Financial Services

Financial Services provides a variety of financial services and products to other Siemens units and their customers and to third parties. SFS has three strategic pillars: supporting Siemens units with finance solutions for their customers, managing financial risks of Siemens and offering third-party finance services and products. SFS��business can be divided into capital business and fee business. The Commercial Finance Business Unit offers! a compre! hensive range of solutions for equipment financing, leasing, rental and related financing for equipment supplied by Siemens or third-party providers. The Venture Capital Business Segment�� main task, together with Siemens��Sectors, is to identify and finance young companies worldwide. The Treasury Business Unit operates the global Corporate Treasury of the Siemens Group, with SFS employee�� thereby managing liquidity, cash and financial risks (interest, foreign exchange, commodities) on behalf of Corporate Treasury. The Financing & Investment Management Business Unit manages fee-based receivables and offers investment management services. The Insurance Business Unit acts primarily as an insurance broker for Siemens and external customers.

Infrastructure & Cities

The Infrastructure & Cities Sector offers a range of technologies for the sustainability of metropolitan centers and urban infrastructures worldwide, such as integrated mobility solutions, building and security systems, power distribution equipment, smart grid applications and low and medium-voltage products. The Sector consists of five Divisions: Rail Systems; Mobility and Logistics; Low and Medium Voltage; Smart Grid; and Building Technologies. The Rail Systems Division comprises Siemens��rail vehicle business, encompassing the entire spectrum of rolling stock-including high-speed trains, commuter trains, passenger coaches, metros, people movers, light rail vehicles, locomotives, bogies, traction systems and rail-related services. The Mobility and Logistics Division primarily provides products, solutions (including IT solutions) and services for rail transportation operating systems, such as central control systems, interlockings and automated controls. The Division also provides offerings for road traffic, including traffic detection, information and guidance systems.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Luke Jacobi]

    Shares of Dresser-Rand Group (NYSE: DRC) got a boost, shooting up 9.4 percent to $79.91 on report of a $85 per share bid from Siemens (OTC: SIEGY).

  • [By John Udovich]

    With that in mind, here is what you need to know about all three stocks:

    Dresser-Rand Group Inc. One of the largest global suppliers of custom-engineered rotating equipment solutions, mid cap Dresser-Rand Group�� solutions are intended for�long-life, critical applications in the oil, gas, chemical, petrochemical, process, power, military and other industries worldwide -�including the environmental market space within energy infrastructure. More specifically, Dresser-Rand Group���centrifugal and reciprocating gas compressors, gas and steam turbines, gas expanders, gas and diesel engines, and associated control panels are used in oil and gas production, high-pressure field injection and oil recovery, gas liquefaction, gas transmission, refinery processes, natural gas processing, petrochemical production, general industry (including paper, steel, sugar, and distributed power) and�US Navy applications. The company operates manufacturing facilities in the United States, France, United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, Norway, and India plus�maintains a network of 49 service and support centers (including six engineering and R&D centers) covering more than 150 countries. On September 21st, it was announced that Siemens AG (OTCMKTS: SIEGY) would acquire the�Dresser-Rand Group for $83.00 per share in cash in a transaction valued at approximately $7.6 billion in order to get more exposure to the North American hydraulic fracturing market and capitalize on the growing interest in fracking in Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America. In early December, Reuters quoted Siemens��CEO as saying they are not going to pull out from the deal despite the big oil price decline:

    "If we walked away from that deal we would see a lot of happy competitors. That is why we do not even think about walking away. We are in this for the long haul.��/p>

  • [By Garrett Cook]

    Dresser-Rand Group (NYSE: DRC) shares were also up, gaining 2.60 percent to $81.99 after Siemens AG (OTC: SIEGY) announced its plans to acquire Dresser-Rand for $7.6 billion.

  • [By Luke Jacobi]

    Dresser-Rand Group (NYSE: DRC) shares were also up, gaining 2.6 percent to $81.97 after Siemens AG (OTC: SIEGY) announced its plans to acquire Dresser-Rand for $7.6 billion.

Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Top Specialty Retail Stocks For 2015

Top Specialty Retail Stocks For 2015: Ulta Salon Cosmetics and Fragrance Inc (ULTA)

Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance, Inc. (Ulta), incorporated on January 9, 1990, is a beauty retailer, which provides one-stop shopping for prestige, mass and salon products and salon services in the United States. During the year ended January 28, 2012 (fiscal 2011), the Company opened 61 new stores. It operates full-service salons in all of its stores. Its Ulta store format includes an open and modern salon area with approximately eight to 10 stations. The entire salon area is approximately 950 square feet with a concierge desk, skin treatment room, semi-private shampoo and hair color processing areas. Each salon is a full-service salon offering hair cuts, hair coloring and permanent texture, with salons also providing facials and waxing.

The Company offers products in the categories, such as cosmetics, which includes products for the face, eyes, cheeks, lips and nails; haircare, which includes shampoos, conditioners, styling products, and hair accessories; salon styling tools, which includes hair dryers, curling irons and flat irons; skincare and bath and body, which includes products for the face, hands and body; fragrance for both men and women; private label, consisting of Ulta branded cosmetics, skincare, bath and body products and haircare, and other, including candles, home fragrance products and other miscellaneous health and beauty products. The Company has combined its three operating segments: retail stores, salon services and e-commerce, into one reportable segment.

The Company competes with Macys, Nordstrom, Sephora, Bath & Body Works, CVS/pharmacy, Walgreens, Target, Wal-Mart, Regis Corp., Sally Beauty and JCPenney salons.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Garrett Cook]

    Cyclical consumer goods & services shares fell by just 0.30 percent in trading on Friday. Top gainers in the sector included ULTA Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance NASDAQ: (! ULTA), up 18.6 percent, and 1-800-Flowers.com (NASDAQ: FLWS), up 4.6 percent.

  • source from Top Stocks To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/top-specialty-retail-stocks-for-2015-4.html

Monday, April 20, 2015

Top Railroad Stocks For 2015

Top Railroad Stocks For 2015: Retail Opportunity Investments Corp.(ROIC)

Retail Opportunity Investments Corp., a real estate investment trust (REIT), engages in the acquisition, ownership, and management of necessity-based community and neighborhood shopping centers in the eastern and western regions of the United States. As of December 31, 2011, its portfolio consisted of 30 owned retail properties totaling approximately 3.2 million square feet of gross leasable area. The company has elected to be taxed as a REIT, for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The company is based in White Plains, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Brian Stoffel]

    Retail Opportunity Investment Corp. (NASDAQ: ROIC  )
    Fool analyst Michael Olsen tends to focus on overlooked companies that offer up deals based on the difference between a stock's price and its intrinsic value. His recent pick of ROIC stock is right down his alley.

  • [By David Trainer]

    Pilgrim's Pride Corp (PPC) is another one of my least favorite holdings in FVL. PPC is not a bad company. Its return on invested capital (ROIC) of 9% puts it near the median of all the companies we cover. The issue for PPC is its valuation. To justify its price of ~$17/share, PPC would need to grow after-tax profit (NOPAT) by 12% compounded annually. There is not a lot of value in this stock or this "value" index.

  • [By David Trainer]

    Kroger (KR) is one of my favorite stocks held by All Cap Blend ETFs and mutual funds and earns my Attractive rating. Kroger has grown profits (NOPAT) consistently since 1998 with a compounded annual growth rate of 8%. While Kroger's return on invested capital (ROIC) of 7% may not be top of the heap, its cost of capital (WACC) is less than 5%, allowing it to achieve positive economic earnings that have grown at a rate of 45% compounded annually since the financial crisis in 2008. Despite KR's excellent past few years, the stock is still tradi! ng at ~$37.63/share, giving KR a price to economic book value ratio of 0.7, implying that the market expects KR's profits to permanently decline by 30%. Judging by KR's past few years and its recent acquisition of expanding rival Harris Teeter (HTSI), this looks extremely unlikely, and investors should jump on while the stock still trades at a discount.

  • source from Top Stocks To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/top-railroad-stocks-for-2015.html

Sunday, April 19, 2015

Top 10 Income Companies For 2015

Top 10 Income Companies For 2015: Sempra Energy(SRE)

Sempra Energy, together with its subsidiaries, develops new energy infrastructure, operates utilities, and provides energy-related products and services worldwide. It operates in six segments: SDG&E, SoCalGas, Sempra Generation, Sempra Pipelines & Storage, Sempra LNG (liquefied natural gas), and Sempra Commodities. The SDG&E segment has electric and natural gas franchises that locate, operate, and maintain facilities for the transmission and distribution of electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, street and highway lighting, and direct access customers. The SoCalGas segment has natural gas franchises that locate, operate, and maintain facilities for the transmission and distribution of natural gas to electric generation, wholesale, large commercial, industrial, and enhanced oil recovery customers. The Sempra Generation segment involves in the generation and wholesale distribution of electricity through a fleet of natural gas-fired power generati on facilities in Arizona, Nevada, and Indiana, as well as Mexico with a total capacity of 2,513 megawatts. The Sempra Pipelines & Storage segment operates 1,883 miles of distribution pipelines, 224 miles of transmission pipelines, and 3 compressor stations in Mexico; operates Mobile Gas, a natural gas distribution utility located in Mobile and Baldwin counties in Alabama; and operates natural gas storage facilities in Washington County of Alabama and Simpson County of Mississippi. The Sempra LNG segment involves in the receipt, storage, and vaporization of LNG, as well as the purchase and sale of natural gas. It operates Energia Costa Azul LNG receipt terminal in Baja California, Mexico, as well as Cameron LNG receipt terminal in Hackberry, Louisiana. The Sempra Commodities segment engages in the commodities-marketing business. Sempra Energy has operations in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, and Peru. The company was founded in 1998 and is headquarte! red i n San Diego, California.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Aaron Levitt]

    CBI has been racking up new contracts like crazy. The latest include a $6 billion LNG export facility contract with Sempra Energy (SRE) and a $100 million contract to build pipelines & propane dehydrogenation unit for Enterprise Products Partners (EPD).

  • [By Justin Loiseau]

    According to the press release, Southern's newest solar farm will be built, operated, and maintained by First Solar. Generated electricity is slotted for Sempra Energy's (NYSE: SRE  ) San Diego Gas & Electric Company through a 20-year power purchase agreement.

  • source from Top Stocks To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/top-10-income-companies-for-2015-2.html

Thursday, April 16, 2015

5 Best Construction Material Stocks To Buy Right Now

5 Best Construction Material Stocks To Buy Right Now: Holcim Ltd (HOLN)

Holcim Ltd (Holcim) is a Switzerland-based holding company that specializes in the manufacture, distribution and marketing of building materials. The Company operates four business segments, including Cement, Aggregates, Other construction materials and services, and Corporate. The Cement segment is engaged in the development of cement and comprises clinker and other cementitious materials, among others. The Aggregates business segment includes crushed stone, gravel and sand. The Other construction materials and services business segment comprises ready-mix concrete, concrete products, asphalt, construction and paving, and trading, among others. Additionally, other construction materials and services segment provides environmental services, including waste management, among others. The Corporate segment is engaged in holding activities and general management. It operates through subsidiaries in Asia Pacific, Latin America, Europe, North America, Africa and Middle East regions . Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Sofia Horta e Costa]

    Holcim Ltd. (HOLN) lost 0.9 percent to 68.15 francs in Zurich. Bank of America Corp.s Merrill Lynch unit cut its rating on the worlds largest cement maker to underperform, similar to a sell recommendation, from neutral. Merrill Lynch cited the companys exposure to emerging markets.

  • source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.seekpennystocks.com/5-best-construction-material-stocks-to-buy-right-now.html

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

Top Media Stocks To Buy Right Now

SAN FRANCISCO -- ��In case you've missed it, Silicon Valley has its own version of Occupy Wall Street.

This culture war lacks rampant arrests, bursts of violence or national media coverage, but the dissent of anti-gentrification groups over income and housing is creating a stir just the same here.

For the third time in about a month, protesters on Tuesday blocked tech buses from Google and Facebook carrying workers out of the city. A few dozen protesters, chanting "Stop evictions," surrounded the buses and prevented them from moving. Some plastered a sign to one of the coaches, in a Google-type font, that read "Gentrification and Eviction Technologies."

Demonstrators stood outside the Berkeley home of a Google engineer on Wednesday to object to the company's work on military robots.

5 Best Cheap Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Time Warner Inc.(TWX)

Time Warner Inc. operates as a media and entertainment company in the United States and internationally. It operates in three segments: Networks, Filmed Entertainment, and Publishing. The Networks segment provides domestic and international networks, premium pay and basic tier television programming services, and digital media properties, which primarily consist of brand-aligned Websites. Its premium pay television services consist of the multi-channel HBO and Cinemax premium pay television services. This segment provides programming to cable system operators, satellite service distributors, telephone companies, and other distributors; sells advertising; and licenses original programming to domestic and international television networks. The Filmed Entertainment segment produces and distributes feature films, television and other programming, and videogames; distributes home video products; and licenses rights to its feature films, television programming, and characters. T he Publishing segment publishes magazines and books; and operates various Websites, as well as engages in marketing services and direct-marketing businesses. This segment publishes magazines on style and entertainment, lifestyle, news, and sports. The company?s brands include TNT, TBS, CNN, HBO, Cinemax, Warner Bros., New Line Cinema, People, Sports Illustrated, and Time. Time Warner Inc. was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By WALLSTCHEATSHEET]

    Time Warner provides media and entertainment through a variety of mediums to consumers and businesses all around the world. Hobbit, the company’s most expensive franchise to date, earned close to $1 billion on its first film and is set to release the second later this year. The stock has been moving higher in recent years and is now trading near highs for the year. Over the last four quarters, earnings have been rising while revenues have been decreasing, which has produced mixed feelings among investors about recent earnings announcements. Relative to its peers and sector, Time Warner has been a year-to-date performance leader. Look for Time Warner to OUTPERFORM.

  • [By Will Ashworth]

    FactSet pegs both companies��2014 enterprise value at 10 times EBITDA, which is less than bigger players such as Walt Disney (DIS), Time Warner (TWX) and Viacom (VIAB). If the two firms continue to operate independently of one another, they run the risk of becoming also-rans in the cable network consolidation game. Together, they have a better chance of naming their price when the big boys eventually come knocking.

  • [By Tim Beyers]

    Time Warner (NYSE: TWX  ) adds another element to the DC television universe tonight when The Flash premieres at 8 p.m. Eastern on The CW. Arrow returns for season 3 tomorrow night, adding to a DC Comics-influenced television lineup that already features�Gotham on Fox. A fourth show, Constantine, is scheduled to premiere on Friday, Oct. 24, on NBC.

  • [By Tim Beyers]

    Anyone wondering if Time Warner (NYSE: TWX  ) intends to build an integrated DC television universe got their answer yesterday when Stephen Amell, star of The CW hit Arrow, appeared in the The Flash trailer.

Top Media Stocks To Buy Right Now: DISH Network Corporation(DISH)

DISH Network Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides direct broadcast satellite (DBS) subscription television services in the United States. It offers programming that includes approximately 280 basic video channels, 60 Sirius satellite radio music channels, 30 premium movie channels, 35 regional and specialty sports channels, 2,800 local channels, 250 Latino and international channels, and 55 channels of pay-per-view content. The company also offers local HD channels in approximately 160 markets and 215 national HD channels; and receiver systems, including a small satellite dish, digital set-top receivers, and remote controls. In addition, it provides DISHOnline.com, which enables DISH Network subscribers to watch 150,000 movies, television shows, clips, and trailers; DISH Remote Access that enables subscribers to remotely manage their DVRs using compatible mobile devices, such as smartphones, tablets, and laptops through their broadband-connected receiver; and Go ogle TV that enables DISH Network subscribers to search the Internet, check email, interact with social media, and find additional online programming content while simultaneously watching television. As of March 31, 2011, the company had approximately 14.191 million customers. DISH Network provides receiver systems and programming through direct sales channels; and independent third parties, such as small satellite retailers, direct marketing groups, local and regional consumer electronics stores, nationwide retailers, and telecommunications companies. The company was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Englewood, Colorado.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Anders Bylund]

    Just one week ago, it seemed nearly certain that the four-way bidding war over wireless network operators Clearwire (NASDAQ: CLWR  ) and Sprint� (NYSE: S  ) would end up with a split pot. Sprint's board had approved an updated offer from Japanese telecom SoftBank while Clearwire recommended shareholders accepting a raised bid from satellite broadcasting veteran DISH Network (NASDAQ: DISH  ) .

  • [By Jonathan Berr]

    DTV has jumped almost 30% this year, on par with peers like Dish Network (DISH) and Comcast (CMCSA). One reason for DTV’s outperformance has been its strong international business and its satisfied customers. During the most recent quarter, DirecTV’s churn rate fell to 1.61% — its lowest quarterly churn in more than 6 years.

Top Media Stocks To Buy Right Now: CBS Corporation(CBS)

CBS Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a mass media company in the United States and internationally. The company?s Entertainment segment distributes a schedule of news and public affairs broadcasts, sports, and entertainment programming; produces, acquires, and distributes programming, including series, specials, news, and public affairs; produces and distributes theatrical motion pictures across various genres; and operates online content networks for information and entertainment. Its Cable Networks segment owns and operates multiplexed channels that offers subscription program services, including recently released theatrical feature films, original series, documentaries, boxing, mixed martial arts and other sports-related programming, and special events; and CBS College Sports Network, a 24-hour cable program service related to college sports. This segment also owns and manages Smithsonian Networks, which operates Smithsonian Channel, a basic cab le service in the United States. The company?s Publishing segment publishes and distributes adult and children?s consumer books in printed, audio, and digital formats. Its Local Broadcasting segment owns 29 broadcast television stations; owns and operates 130 radio stations in 28 U.S. markets and related online properties; and owns local Websites that combine television and radio local media brands online to provide the latest news, traffic, weather, and sports information, as well as local discounts, directories, and reviews. The company?s Outdoor segment sells advertising space on various media, including billboards, transit shelters and other street furniture, buses, rail systems, mall kiosks, stadium signage, and in retail stores. CBS Corporation was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Jake Mann]

    The switch to cable
    The most likely culprit is the Final Four's move to Time Warner's (NYSE: TWX  ) �TBS from traditional host�CBS (NYSE: CBS  ) . Both stations are in the midst of a�14-year contract with the�NCAA. Under the deal, TBS gained airing rights to both�semifinal games this year, and will have similar access next year. In 2016, the cable network will air the�national championship, before handing it back to CBS in 2017.

Top Media Stocks To Buy Right Now: Charter Communications Inc.(CHTR)

Charter Communications, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides entertainment, information, and communications solutions to residential and commercial customers in the United States. The company offers cable video programming services, such as basic and digital video, premium channels, OnDemand, pay-per-view, high definition television, digital video recorder, and online video services; Internet services; Charter.net, which provides multiple e-mail addresses, as well as various entertainment, games, news, and sports content; and telephone services. It also provides broadband communications solutions, such as Internet access, data networking, fiber connectivity to cellular towers and office buildings, video entertainment services, and business telephone services under the Charter Business brand name to business and carrier organizations. As of December 31, 2011, the company served approximately 4.1 million video customers; approximately 3.5 million Internet customers; appr oximately 1.7 million telephone customers; and approximately 476,200 commercial primary service units. Charter Communications, Inc. was founded in 1999 and is based in St. Louis, Missouri.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Paul Ausick]

    The country�� two largest cable operators, Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) and Time Warner Cable Inc. (NYSE: TWC) have reportedly had discussions in the past few months related to a combination. Time Warner took the lead in an apparent attempt to forestall a bid from Charter Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTR).

Hot Information Technology Stocks To Own Right Now

Hot Information Technology Stocks To Own Right Now: Nuance Communications Inc.(NUAN)

Nuance Communications, Inc. provides voice and language solutions for businesses and consumers worldwide. It offers dictation and transcription solutions and services, which automate the input and management of medical information; and speech recognition solutions for radiology, cardiology, pathology, and related specialties that help healthcare providers dictate, edit, and sign reports without manual transcription. The company also offers mobile and consumer solutions and services comprising an integrated suite of voice control and text-to-speech solutions, desktop and portable computer dictation applications, predictive text technologies, mobile messaging services, and emerging services, such as dictation, Web search, and voicemail-to-text for manufacturers and suppliers of mobile phones, automotive products, personal navigation devices, computers, and other consumer electronics. In addition, it provides customer service business intelligence and authentication solutions for enterprises in the telecommunications, financial services, travel, entertainment, and government sectors to support, understand, and communicate with their customers. Further, the company offers document imaging, print management, and PDF solutions to multifunction printer manufacturers, home offices, small businesses, and enterprise customers; software development toolkits for independent software vendors; and licenses its software to multifunction printer manufacturers. Nuance Communications, Inc. markets and sells its products through direct sales force; its e-commerce Web site; and a network of resellers, including system integrators, independent software vendors, value-added resellers, hardware vendors, telecommunications carriers, and distributors. The company was formerly known as ScanSoft, Inc. and changed its name to Nuance Communications, Inc. in November 2005. Nuance Communications, Inc. was founded in 1992 and is headquart! ered in Burlington, Massachusetts. Advisors' Opinion:

  • [By Damian Illia]

    On Aug. 29, Carl Icahn incremented his stake in Nuance Communications (NUAN) by 3%. The investment guru started buying the company's stock by the end of March 2013. Since then, he increased his participation in the company in four occasions, turning into the largest institutional stockholder by a large margin. So, one question arises: What does Icahn see in Nuance? And, is there a better option in the software industry?

  • source from Top Stocks To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/hot-information-technology-stocks-to-own-right-now-2.html

Sunday, April 12, 2015

Best Value Companies To Invest In Right Now

Best Value Companies To Invest In Right Now: Caterpillar Inc.(CAT)

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

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Rick Munarriz]

    Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT  )
    Let's talk construction equipment. Caterpillar is the major player in construction and mining equipment. From backhoes to excavators, Caterpillar is responsible for a lot of moving ground.

  • [By E. Michael Greenberg]

    Blue Sphere is a small company with a big future and that future starts now. Over the last two weeks Blue Sphere Corp. (OTCQB: BLSP) has announced commitments for over $25 million dollars of financing for their Charlotte, North Carolina based 5.2 Mega Watt (Mw) anaerobic digestion facility. Blue Sphere, in two press releases, announced a commitment for $17.785 million in debt financing from Caterpillar Financial Services Corporation, the financial services arm of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) and $7.5 million in an equity commitment from a leading environmental finance fund.

  • [By Matt Thalman]

    The big losers
    Earth-moving company Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT  ) lost 0.42% of its value over the past few trading days, as precious metals and other natural resources had a terrible Friday. On the last day of the week alone, gold lost 3.13%, sliver declined by 4.89%, and platinum and copper slid 1.51% and 3.45% respectively. Caterpillar is a big player in mining equipment sales, and when the commodity prices of the resources which are mined fall, demand for heavy machinery usually will follow suit.

  • source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.seekpennystocks.com/best-value-companies-to-invest-in-right-now-2.html

Thursday, April 9, 2015

Top Logistics Stocks To Invest In 2015

Top Logistics Stocks To Invest In 2015: Oshkosh Truck Corporation(OSK)

Oshkosh Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets a range of specialty vehicles, and vehicle bodies worldwide. Its Defense segment manufactures severe-duty, heavy, and medium-payload tactical trucks for the Department of Defense, including hauling tanks, missile systems, ammunition, fuel, and troops and cargo for combat units. The company?s Access Equipment segment offers aerial work platforms and telehandlers used in a range of construction, agricultural, industrial, institutional, and general maintenance applications. This segment also manufactures towing and recovery equipment and related parts; and leases equipments for short-term to rental companies. The company?s Fire and Emergency segment provides custom and commercial fire apparatus, and emergency vehicles, including pumpers, aerial and ladder trucks, tankers, rescue vehicles, wildland rough terrain response vehicles, mobile command and control centers, bomb squad vehicles, hazardous materials control vehicl e s, and other emergency response vehicles. This segment also offers snow removal vehicles in airports; custom ambulances for private and public transporters, and fire departments; mobile medical trailers for medical centers and service providers; mobile command and control centers and simulation units; and vehicles for broadcasters, TV stations, broadcast production, and radio stations. Oshkosh Corporation?s Commercial segment manufactures refuse collection vehicles for the waste services industry; front and rear discharge concrete mixers, and portable and stationary concrete batch plants for the concrete ready-mix industry; and field service vehicles and truck-mounted cranes for the construction, equipment dealer, building supply, utility, tire service, and mining industries. The company was formerly known as Oshkosh Truck Corporation and changed its name to Oshkosh C! orporation in February 2008. Oshkosh Corporation was founded in 1917 and is based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By BLOGS.BARRONS.COM]

    You don't have to be an income investor to like dividend stocks, especially when they’ve been beaten down like Baker Hughes (BHI) and Oshkosh (OSK) have.

  • [By Rich Smith]

    Better protection for soldiers, too
    A smaller contract went to Oshkosh Corp. (NYSE: OSK  ) to bolster protection for troops on the ground. Valued at $45 million, the award will fund repairs and upgrades on 800 of the company's Mine-Resistant, Ambush-Protected All-Terrain Vehicles, dubbed "M-ATV," and used primarily to transport troops and supplies in Afghanistan. Work performed under this contract will continue through the end of next year -- which suggests U.S. troops will be present in Afghanistan at least that long as well.

  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    Shares of Navistar have dropped 4.1% to $31.89 at 2:02 p.m. today, while Oshkosh (OSK) has fallen 0.2% to $57.76 and Cummins (CMI) has gained 1.2% to $144.13.

  • [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

    Shares of Oshkosh (NYSE: OSK) got a boost, shooting up 7.96 percent to $55.55 after the companyposted upbeat fiscal first-quarter earnings and lifted its full-year forecast.

  • source from Top Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksblog.com/top-logistics-stocks-to-invest-in-2015.html

Sunday, April 5, 2015

Top Computer Hardware Companies To Own In Right Now

BlueFire Equipment Corporation (BLFR)

Today, BLFR surged (+8.91%) up +0.049 at $.599 with 202,607 shares in play thus far (ref. google finance Delayed: 12:28PM EDT July 15, 2013).

BlueFire Equipment Corporation previously reported field testing of its proprietary polycrystalline diamond cutter (PDC) drill bits has exceeded company expectations.

BlueFire�� exclusive technology provides the potential for higher rates of penetration (ROP) and longer bit runs in hard rock formations and shales.

BlueFire Equipment Corporation Chairman and CEO William A. Blackwell said, ��.S. drilling companies continue to seek out and employ new technologies to improve performance and effectiveness. Culminating years of research and development, BlueFire has taken a ground up approach to redesigning the PDC bit to help meet these needs.��/p>

BlueFire Equipment Corporation (BLFR) 5 day chart:

Top Dow Dividend Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Western Digital Corp (WDC)

Western Digital Corporation (WD) is a provider of solutions for the collection, storage, management, protection and use of digital content, including audio and video. Its principal products are hard drives, which are devices that use one or more rotating magnetic disks (magnetic media) to store and allow access to data. Its hard drives are used in desktop and notebook computers, corporate and cloud computing data centers, home entertainment equipment and stand-alone consumer storage devices. In addition to hard drives, its other products include solid-state drives and home entertainment and networking products. The Company operates as the parent company of its hard drive business, Western Digital Technologies, Inc. Effective March 8, 2012, the Company acquired Viviti Technologies Ltd. In May 2012, the Company completed the divestiture of certain 3.5-inch hard drive assets to Toshiba Corporation. As part of its deal with Toshiba, WD also completed its purchase of Toshiba Storage Device (Thailand) Company Limited (TSDT), which manufactured hard drives.

The Company offers a line of storage devices. Its hard drives include 3.5-inch and 2.5-inch form factors, capacities ranging from 80 gigabytes to three terabytes, nominal rotation speeds up to 10,000 revolutions per minute, and interfaces, such as Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA) and Serial Attached SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) (SAS). In addition, the Company offers a family of hard drives specifically designed to consume less power than standard drives, utilizing its WD GreenPower Technology. Its solid-state drives include 2.5-inch and Compact Flash form factors, capacities ranging from 1 gigabyte to 256 gigabytes, and interfaces, such as SATA and PATA.

Client Compute Storage Products

Client compute consists of hard drives and solid-state drives for desktop and mobile personal computers (PC��). During the fiscal year ended July 1, 2011 (fiscal 2011), it shipped 151 million hard drive clie! nt compute unit. Its client compute storage products include WD Caviar, WD Scorpio and WD Silicon Edge. WD Caviar family of hard drives is designed for use in desktop PCs. WD Scorpio family of hard drives is designed for use in mobile PCs. WD Silicon Edge family of solid-state drives is designed for both read-intensive client/consumer applications and write-intensive original equipment manufacturer (OEM) applications.

Client Non-Compute Storage Products

Client non-compute consists of branded products and consumer electronics products. Its hard drive client non-compute unit shipments were 46 million, during fiscal 2011.

Branded Products

Branded products consists of hard drives embedded into WD-branded external storage appliances with capacities ranging from 250 gigabytes to 8 terabytes and using interfaces, such as Universal Serial Bus (USB) 2.0, USB 3.0, external SATA, FireWire and Ethernet network connections. Certain branded products models include software that assists customers with back up, remote access and management of digital content. Branded products also include its home entertainment and networking products. Its branded products include My Book and WD Elements Desktop family of storage appliances. My Passport and WD Elements Portable family of storage appliances include WD ShareSpace, WD TV and WD Livewire.

My Book and WD Elements Desktop family of storage appliances are designed to add external capacity to desktops and digital video recorders (DVRs), allow for the transfer and storage of videos directly from certain camcorders, and connect to networks to simplify storage for consumers. My Passport and WD Elements Portable family of storage appliances are designed for external portability weighing less than one-half of a pound and allow for the transfer and storage of videos directly from certain camcorders. WD ShareSpace is a network-attached storage system designed for home office or small office applications. WD TV m! edia play! ers connect to a user�� television or home theater system and play digital movies, music and photos from an integrated hard drive, network hard drives, any of its WD-branded external hard drives, other USB mass storage devices or content services accessed over the Internet. WD Livewire, which enables consumers to use their existing electrical outlets to extend Internet connections throughout the home.

Consumer Electronics Products

WD AV family of hard drives is designed for use in products, such as DVRs and audio and video applications. WD AV drives deliver the characteristics CE manufacturers.

Enterprise Storage Products

Enterprise consists of hard drives for traditional enterprise and nearline storage applications, as well as solid-state drives for embedded applications. Its hard drive enterprise unit shipments were 10 million, for fiscal 2011. Its enterprise storage products include WD S25 hard drive, WD VelociRaptor, WD RE and WD SiliconDrive. WD S25 hard drive is designed for mission-critical enterprise server and storage applications, such as data centers and data arrays. WD VelociRaptor hard drive is designed for enterprise server and storage applications. This hard drive is also used in the high-end desktop PC market for applications including gaming, servers and advanced computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) systems. WD RE family of hard drives is designed for nearline storage enterprise applications. WD SiliconDrive family of solid-state drives features fast read/write speeds in high capacities and is designed for embedded system OEM applications.

The Company competes with Hitachi Global Storage Technologies, Intel Corporation, Micron Technology, Inc., Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., Seagate Technology, STEC, Inc. and Toshiba Corporation.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Tim Brugger]

    HGST, a wholly owned subsidiary of Western Digital (NASDAQ: WDC  ) , has entered into an agreement whereby HGST will acquire a 100% ownership stake in sTec (NASDAQ: STEC  ) in an all-cash transaction valued at $340 million, equal to $6.85 a share, the companies announced today.

  • [By DailyFinance Staff]

    Investors took a wait-and-see attitude Tuesday, but airline stocks lost altitude. The market is in a holding pattern until 2 p.m. Wednesday, when the Fed reveals details of this week's FOMC policy meetings, and whether it's ready to begin cutting back on its main economic stimulus program. If it does begin to taper, the next debate will begin immediately: Is that good or bad for investors? On Wall Street today, the Dow Jones industrial average (^DJI) edged down 9 points, the Nasdaq composite (^IXIC) fell nearly 6, and the Standard & Poor's 500 index (^GPSC) lost 5 points. The Dow's gainers were led by a pair of companies hiking their dividends. 3M (MMM), which makes everything from Post-It notes to medical equipment, rose 3 percent after increasing its payout by 35 percent. And Boeing (BA) rose 1 percent. It boosted the dividend by 50 percent and announced a big stock buyback. The other big blue chip winner was Visa (V), which gained another 2.5 percent. Its stock is now up 43 percent from a year ago. On the downside, Verizon (VZ), IBM (IBM), McDonald's (MCD) and Microsoft (MSFT) all lost about one percent. Microsoft says it will not name a new CEO until next year. And airline stocks were broadly lower. United (UAL) and Delta (DAL) both fell 3 percent. American Airlines (AAL), which completed its merger with U.S. Airways last week, fell 2 percent. And Southwest (V) also lost 2 percent. Brokerage recommendations gave a boost to several issues. Data storage companies Seagate (STX), up 3 percent, and Western Digital (WDC), up 2.5 percent, following JP Morgan upgrades. And iRobot (IRBT) surged 17 percent after Raymond James gave it a 'strong buy.' Shares of Facebook (FB) rose 2 percent, hitting an all-time high. The social media giant is rolling out new video ads this week. That's expected to boost revenue. The question is, will it alienate users? On the downside, Targacept (TRGT) lost more than a third of its value. A clinical trial of its schizophreni

  • [By Dan Caplinger]

    The concern that most investors have, though, is that the steady decline in PC sales threatens Seagate's traditional strength in providing peripherals for PC buyers. Yet at least so far, Seagate has arguably benefited from the weak prospects for PC demand. Consolidation in the industry has left it and rival Western Digital (NASDAQ: WDC  ) as the two main survivors in the hard-drive market. As long as demand for those drives exists, Seagate will hold onto its share of the profits from the industry, supporting its stock price.

  • [By Alex Planes]

    Investors love stocks that consistently beat the Street without getting ahead of their fundamentals and risking a meltdown. The best stocks offer sustainable market-beating gains, with robust and improving financial metrics that support strong price growth. Does Western Digital (NASDAQ: WDC  ) fit the bill? Let's take a look at what its recent results tell us about its potential for future gains.

Top Computer Hardware Companies To Own In Right Now: Fusion-io Inc (FIO)

Fusion-io Inc (Fusion) is a provider of datacenter solutions that accelerate databases, virtualization, cloud computing, big data, and the applications that help drive business from the smallest e-tailers to some of the largest data centers, social media leaders, and Fortune Global 500 businesses. The Company's integrated hardware and software platform enables the decentralization of data from legacy architectures and specialized hardware. The Company sells its solutions through a global direct sales force, original equipment manufacturers, or OEMs, including Cisco, Dell, HP, and IBM, and other channel partners. In August 2011, the Company acquired IO Turbine, Inc.,. Effective March 18, 2013, the Company acquired ID7.

Fusion-io's ioMemory hardware is a sub-system connecting a large array of industry-standard NAND Flash memory through the Company's data-path controller and its virtual storage layer, or VSL, software to create a high capacity memory tier that natively attaches to a server's PCI-Express peripheral bus (PCIe).

The Company's portfolio of storage memory products incorporates the Company's ioMemory hardware combined with its virtual storage layer (VSL) and caching software into its family of ioDrive, ioFX, and ioCache enterprise grade products. The Company's ioDrive products work in conjunction with the Company's directCache data-tiering software, ioTurbine virtualization software, ioSphere management system, and ION Data Accelerator software. The Company's latest ioDrive, ioFX, and ioCache product families are a line of PCIe standard form-factor storage memory platforms that combine one or more ioMemory sub-systems with the Company's VSL software.

The Company's directCache software extends the Company's ioMemory based platforms and permits interoperability with traditional direct-attached, network-attached, storage area network attached, and appliance attached backend storage systems. The Company's ioTurbine virtualization software extends the Company! 's ioMemory platform and permits host-based data acceleration to specifically address the demand for high-density, high-performance server, and desktop virtualization.

ioSphere is a suite of management software purpose-built for the Company's storage memory infrastructure and designed around its application acceleration platform. ioSphere software is accessible through a graphical user interface that enables datacenter administrators to centrally configure, monitor, manage, and tune all distributed ioMemory devices throughout the datacenter. In addition, this software offers real-time, predictive, and historical reporting of ioMemory's performance and wear.

The Company's ION Data Accelerator software transforms server platforms into application acceleration appliances that share Fusion ioMemory across applications. ION Data Accelerator delivers Fusion-io performance on open server platforms with software-defined storage, or SDS, for applications such as Oracle RAC, Microsoft SQL Server, MySQL, and SAP HANA, along with other applications where shared storage aids deployment. The Company's original equipment manufacturer�� (OEMs), including Cisco, Dell, HP, and IBM, sell branded storage memory solutions based on the Company's standard products as well as custom form-factor versions to fit specific applications.

The Company competes with EMC Corporation, Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P, Texas Memory Systems, Oracle, Adaptec, Inc., LSI Corporation, Sandisk, Corp, IBM, CA, Inc, Nagios Enterprises, LLC., Hitachi Data, Huawei Technologies, Co., Intel Corp., LSI Corporation, Marvell Semiconductor, Inc., Micron Technology, Inc., OCZ Technology Group, Inc., Samsung Electronics, Inc., SanDisk, Corp., Seagate Technology, STEC, Inc., Toshiba Corp., and Western Digital Corp.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Evan Niu, CFA]

    What: Shares of Fusion-io (NYSE: FIO  ) soared by as much as 21% today after the company posted strong earnings with an encouraging outlook.

Top Computer Hardware Companies To Own In Right Now: Imation Corp (IMN)

Imation Corp. (Imation) is a global scalable storage and data security company. The Company�� portfolio includes tiered storage and security offerings for business and products designed to manage audio and video information in the home. The Company�� global brand portfolio includes the Imation brand, the Memorex brand, the XtremeMac and MXI Security brands. Imation is also the exclusive licensee of the TDK Life on Record brand. Its three product categories include traditional storage, secure and scalable storage, and audio and video information. It operates in four geographic segments: Americas, Europe, North Asia and South Asia. On February 28, 2011, it acquired all of the assets of Encryptx Corporation. On June 4, 2011, it acquired the assets of MXI Security, from Memory Experts International Inc. On October 4, 2011 it acquired the secure data storage hardware assets of IronKey Systems Inc. In December 2011, it acquired the data deduplication technology from Nine Technology.

The Americas segment includes North America, Central America and South America. The Europe segment includes Europe and parts of Africa. North Asia segment includes Japan, China, Hong Kong, Korea and Taiwan. The South Asia segment includes Australia, Singapore, India, the Middle East and parts of Africa.

Imation brand products include magnetic tape media, recordable compact discs (CDs), digital versatile Discs (DVDs) and Blu-ray discs, flash products and hard disk drives. The Imation brand includes the DataGuard Data Protection Appliances, InfiniVault Storage appliances and removable disk technology (RDX) removable hard disk storage systems. Imation Defender products include secure storage flash drives and external hard drives. Imation brand products are sold throughout the worldwide and target the commercial user and individual consumer. Imation Defender products include secure storage flash drives and external hard drives. TDK Life on Record brand products include recordable CDs, DVDs and Blu-ray d! iscs, flash drives, tape cartridges, headphones and computer speakers which are sold to commercial customers and individual consumers. TDK Life on Record brand products is sold throughout the world.

XtremeMac brand products include cases, chargers and audio solutions to protect, power and play Apple iPad, iPod, iPhone and other devices. XtremeMac products are developed for Apple enthusiasts and are available worldwide. Its MXI Security brand includes secure storage flash drives and external hard drives, as well as software solutions to help manage portable security devices on the network.

Traditional Storage

The Company�� optical media products consist of CDs, DVDs and Blu-ray recordable media. It sells Blu-ray discs, which are used primarily for recording high-definition video content. Its recordable optical media products are sold through a variety of retail and commercial distribution channels and sourced from manufacturers primarily in Taiwan and India. Optical storage capacities range from 650 megabyte CD-R (recordable) and CD-RW (rewritable) optical discs to 9.4 gigabyte double-sided DVD optical discs and Blu-ray discs with 25 gigabyte to 100 gigabyte of capacity. Its optical media is sold throughout the world under brands it owns or controls, including Imation, Memorex and TDK Life on Record and under a distribution agreement for the Hewlett Packard brand.

The Company�� magnetic tape media products are used for back-up, business and operational continuity planning, disaster recovery, near-line data storage and retrieval and for mass and archival storage. Other traditional storage products include primarily optical drives and audio and video tape media.

Secure and Scalable Storage

Secure storage products and software include universal serial bus (USB) flash drives and external hard drives designed to meet the security standards to protect data at rest with Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) validation, pa! ssword an! d biometric authentication, including biometric USB drives, encrypted and biometric hard disk drives, secure portable desktop solutions and software solutions. It also sells standard USB flash drives and external hard disk drives throughout the world under its Imation, Memorex and TDK Life on Record brands. It sources these products from manufacturers primarily in Asia and the United States and sell them through a variety of retail and commercial distribution channels around the world. Scalable storage products include data protection appliances, such as DataGuard network attached storage backup appliances and InfiniVault active archive appliances.

Audio and Video Information

The Company�� audio and video information products include Apple iPad, iPod and iPhone accessories, headphones, CD players, alarm clocks, portable boom boxes, moving picture experts group layer-3 audio (MP3) players, and speakers sold under the Memorex, TDK Life on Record and XtremeMac brands. It designs products to meet user needs and source these products from manufacturers throughout Asia.

The Company competes with Maxell, JVC, Sony, Verbatim, Fuji, HP, SanDisk, Lexar, PNY and Kingston.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By John Udovich]

    As cyber theft and hacking continues to grow, mir or small cap stocks like Splunk Inc (NASDAQ: SPLK), Imation Corp (NYSE: IMN) and Staffing 360 Solutions Inc (OTCBB: STAF)�are some overlooked, indirect or just plain interesting plays on cybersecurity that investors might want to take note of:

Top Computer Hardware Companies To Own In Right Now: Lenovo Group Ltd (LNVGY)

Lenovo Group Limited (Lenovo) is a personal technology company serving customers in more than 160 countries. The Company is a personal computer (PC) vendor. The Company develops, manufactures and markets technology products and services. Its product lines include Think-branded commercial PCs and Idea branded consumer PCs, as well as servers, workstations, and a family of mobile Internet devices, including tablets and smart phones. Lenovo operates seven research and development centers and more than 46 world-class labs, including research centers in Yamato, Japan; Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen, China; and Raleigh, North Carolina, the United States. The Company is also engaged in investment holding. It operates in three segments: China, emerging markets (excluding China) and mature markets. Lenovo offers a range of commercial desktops to businesses of all sizes.

The Company�� products include laptops, tablets, desktops, workstations and servers. In May 2010, it launched the LePhone smartphone in China. During the fiscal year ended March 31, 2011 (fiscal 2011), China accounted for 46.4% of the Company�� total sales. During fiscal 2011, Emerging Markets (excluding China) accounted for 17.9% of the Company�� total sales. During fiscal 2011, Mature Markets accounted for 35.7% of the Company�� total sales. Its brands include ThinkPad notebook, as well as products carrying the ThinkCentre, ThinkStation, ThinkServer, IdeaCentre and IdeaPad sub-brands.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Bob Ciura]

    IBM has conducted a number of deals in recent years to divest itself of technology hardware. Investors might recall that earlier this year the company sold its x86 server business to Lenovo (NASDAQOTH: LNVGY  ) for $2.1 billion.

Top Computer Hardware Companies To Own In Right Now: Lenovo Group Ltd (LNVGF.PK)

Lenovo Group Limited is principally engaged in investment holding. It is a personal technology company serving customers in more than 160 countries. The Company is a personal computer (PC) vendor. The Company develops, manufactures and markets technology products and services. Its product lines include Think-branded commercial PCs and Idea branded consumer PCs, as well as servers, workstations, and a family of mobile Internet devices, including tablets and smart phones. It offers a range of commercial desktops and notebooks to businesses of all sizes that feature cutting-edge technology, customer-centric innovation and productivity features. It operates in three segments: China, Emerging Markets (excluding China) and Mature Markets. Lenovo has research centers in Yamato, Japan; Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen, China; and Raleigh, North Carolina, the United States. Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Investometrica]

    x86: With regards to the specific x86 server business, it seems that IBM is considering the possibility of fully divesting it. According to Morgan Stanley, the server business generated about $4.9 billion of the company's $15.4 billion in server sales last year. This enormous volume is due to the fact that IBM may be producing the overall market's highest volumes, at the lowest profit level; which suggests this segment is doomed. Finally, IBM has a history of aggressive shifts to areas with better growth prospects and margins. For example, the company agreed to sell off the PC business to Lenovo (LNVGF.PK) at a moment where the PC still seemed attractive.

Thursday, April 2, 2015

Top 10 Paper Companies For 2014

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) Procter & Gamble is cleaning house.

The nation's largest consumer product company, will be dumping about 90 of its smaller, less popular brands. The move, announced Friday as executives discussed earnings with investors, will still leave the company with portfolio of 70 to 80 brands. Company officials did not immediately identify the names of the brands being cut. Some will be sold to new owners, others will just be closed down.

P&G will continue to sell many of the best known products found in American households, including Tide laundry detergent, Charmin toilet paper, Gillette razors and Pampers diapers, Crest toothpaste and Bounty paper towels.

The brands the company is keeping account for 90% of the company's annual sales of $83 billion.

10 Best Integrated Utility Stocks To Invest In Right Now: CenturyLink Inc.(CTL)

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

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Mike Deane]

    CenturyLink, Inc. (CTL) announced its third quarter earnings after the bell on Wednesday, with core revenues tumbling 1% from last year’s Q3 figure.

    CTL Earnings In Brief

    -The company announced operating revenues of $4.52 billion, which was slightly above the analyst consensus of $4.51 billion.
    -The company’s adjusted earnings came in at $375 million, or 63 cents per share; this is in line with analysts’ EPS estimates.
    -CTL gave EPS guidance for the fourth quarter of 55 cents to 60 cents, which is below the 63 cents that analysts are expecting.
    -Q4 guidance for revenue is in the range of $4.5 billion to $4.55 billion, which is in line with analysts’ views.

    CEO Commentary

    Glen F. Post III, the CEO and president of CenturyLink, had the following to say about the company’s quarterly results:

    “Overall, we continue to perform well with particular strength in our Business segment where sustained demand for high-bandwidth services and solid sales momentum continue to drive strong results.�Despite this overall solid operating performance in the third quarter, there was a special item which significantly impacted our�financial results�for the quarter. We were required, under GAAP, to recognize a non-cash $1.1 billion impairment to the goodwill assigned to our Data Hosting segment. While we continue to be optimistic and encouraged about the future growth potential and value of our Data Hosting business, we are not currently achieving the forecasted growth and cash flows we originally projected.�As part of our accounting valuation process, past performance was a factor in the development of growth projections for our Data Hosting business in future periods.”

    No Mention of Dividend�

    CTL did not mention its dividend in the quarterly report, and last paid a dividend on September 19. Look for CTL to declare a dividend in mid-November. The company’s last dividend mov

  • [By Selena Maranjian]

    Douglas C. Lane reduced its stake in lots of companies, including telecom company CenturyLink (NYSE: CTL  ) . The company sports a tempting 6% dividend yield, and that's after it cut its payout by about 25%, in part to focus more on share buybacks. The company landed a hefty Pentagon contract in April, with a possible 10-year value of $750 million and has been moving into promising arenas such as cloud computing (via its purchase of SAVVIS). CenturyLink carries more than $19 billion in debt, but it's also generating significant free cash flow, near $3 billion annually. Its revenue growth has been accelerating in recent years and has long been in double digits annually.

  • [By Ben Levisohn]

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

Top 10 Paper Companies For 2014: Meadwestvaco Corporation (MWV)

MeadWestvaco Corporation (MWV) provides packaging solutions to the healthcare, personal care and beauty, food, beverage, home and garden, tobacco, and commercial print industries worldwide. The company?s Packaging Resources segment produces bleached paperboard, Coated Natural Kraft paperboard, and linerboard. Its Consumer Solutions segment designs and produces multi-pack cartons and packaging systems primarily for the beverage take-home and tobacco market. In addition, it offers a range of converting and consumer packaging solutions, including printed plastic packaging and injection-molded products used for personal care, beauty, and pharmaceutical products; and dispensing and sprayer systems for personal care, beauty, healthcare, fragrance, and home and garden markets. In addition, this segment has a pharmaceutical packaging contract with a mass-merchant, and manufactures equipment that is leased or sold to its beverage and dairy customers to package their products. The c ompany?s Consumer & Office Products segment manufactures, sources, markets, and distributes school and office products, time-management products, and envelopes in North America and Brazil through both retail and commercial channels. Its Specialty Chemicals segment manufactures, markets, and distributes specialty chemicals derived from sawdust and other byproducts of the papermaking process in North America, South America, and Asia. Its products include activated carbon used in emission control systems for automobiles and trucks, as well as for water and food purification applications, and performance chemicals used in printing inks, asphalt paving, adhesives, and lubricants for the agricultural, paper, and petroleum industries. MWV?s Community Development and Land Management segment involves in real estate development, forestry operations, and leasing activities. MeadWestvaco Corporation was founded in 1888 and is based in Glen Allen, Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Lauren Pollock]

    MeadWestvaco Corp.(MWV) expanded its cost-cutting efforts and said it plans to simplify the structure of its packaging businesses, as it strives to improve its performance.

  • [By ovenerio]

    The company has a current ROE of 14.5% which is higher than the industry median. Also, it is higher than the ones exhibit by Sealed Air Corp (SEE) and Sonoco Products Co (SON). In general, analysts consider ROE ratios in the 15-20% range as representing attractive levels for investment. So for investors looking at those levels, MeadWestvaco Corp (MWV) and Packaging Corp of America (PKG) could be the options. It is very important to understand this metric before investing, and it is important to look at the trend in ROE over time.

  • [By Ray Merola]

    International Paper Co Share Price versus Competitors RockTenn (RKT), MeadWestvaco Corp (MWV), Packaging Corporation of America (PKG), and S&P 500 (March 2009-to-date)

  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    When you’re stock has been lagging the S&P 500, sometimes drastic action must be followed by even more drastic action. Case in point: MeadWestvaco (MWV), which announced a program of cost cutting on the heels of one announced last year.

Top 10 Paper Companies For 2014: International Paper Co (IP)

International Paper Company (International Paper), incorporated on June 23, 1941, is a global paper and packaging company, with primary markets and manufacturing operations in North America, Europe, Latin America, Russia, Asia and North Africa. The Company operates in four segments: Industrial Packaging, Printing Papers, Consumer Packaging and Distribution. As of December 31, 2012, in the United States, the Company operated 28 pulp, paper and packaging mills, 187 converting and packaging plants, 18 recycling plants and three bag facilities. Production facilities as of December 31, 2012 in Europe, Asia, Latin America and South America included 11 pulp, paper and packaging mills, 65 converting and packaging plants, and two recycling plants. It distribute printing, packaging, graphic arts, maintenance and industrial products principally through over 88 distribution branches in the United States and 32 distribution branches located in Canada, Mexico and Asia. As of December 31, 2012, it owned or managed approximately 327,000 acres of forestland in Brazil and had, through licenses and forest management agreements, harvesting rights on government-owned forestlands in Russia. On July 2, 2012, it sold Ontario and Oxnard (Hueneme), California containerboard mills to New-Indy Containerboard LLC, and its New Johnsonville, Tennessee containerboard mill to Hood Container Corporation. On January 3, 2013, it acquired joint venture partner, Sabanci Holding.

Industrial Packaging

International Paper is a manufacturer of containerboard in the United States. Its production capacity is about 14 million tons annually. The Company�� products include linerboard, medium, whitetop, recycled linerboard, recycled medium and saturating kraft. About 80% of its production is converted domestically into corrugated boxes and other packaging by its 178 United States container plants. In addition, it recycles approximately one million tons of old corrugated containers (OCC) and mixed and white paper through ! our 20 recycling plants. In Europe, our operations include one recycled fiber containerboard mill in Morocco and 20 container plants in France, Italy, Spain, and Morocco. In Asia, its operations include 19 container plants in China and additional container plants in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. Its container plants are supported by regional design centers, which offer total packaging solutions and supply chain initiatives.

Printing Papers

International Paper is a producer of printing and writing papers. Products in this segment include uncoated and coated papers, uncoated bristols and pulp. This business produces papers for use in copiers, desktop and laser printers and digital imaging. End use applications include advertising and promotional materials, such as brochures, pamphlets, greeting cards, books, annual reports and direct mail. Uncoated papers also produce a variety of grades that are converted by its customers into envelopes, tablets, business forms and file folders. Uncoated papers are sold under private label and International Paper brand names that include Hammermill, Springhill, Williamsburg, Postmark, Accent, Great White, Chamex, Ballet, Rey, Pol and Svetocopy. The mills producing uncoated papers are located in the United States, France, Poland, Russia, Brazil and India. The mills have uncoated paper production capacity of approximately five million tons annually.

Pulp products include fluff, and southern softwood pulp, as well as southern and birch hardwood paper pulps. These products are produced in the United States, France, Poland, Russia, and Brazil and are sold around the world. International Paper facilities have annual dried pulp capacity of about 1.7 million tons.

Consumer Packaging

International Paper is a producer of solid bleached sulfate board with annual United States production capacity of about 1.7 million tons. Its coated paperboard business produces coated paperboard for a variety of packag! ing and c! ommercial printing end uses. Its Everest, Fortress, and Starcote brands are used in packaging applications for everyday products, such as food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, computer software and tobacco products. Its Carolina brand is used in commercial printing end uses, such as greeting cards, paperback book covers, lottery tickets, direct mail and point-of-purchase advertising. Its United States capacity is supplemented by about 365,000 tons of capacity at its mills producing coated board in Poland and Russia and by its International Paper & Sun Cartonboard Co., Ltd. joint venture in China, which has annual capacity of 1.0 million tons. Its Foodservice business produces cups, lids, food containers and plates through three domestic plants and four international facilities.

Distribution

xpedx, the Company�� North American merchant distribution business, distributes products and services to a number of customer markets, including commercial printers with printing papers and graphic pre-press, printing presses and post-press equipment; building services and away-from-home markets with facility supplies; manufacturers with packaging supplies and equipment, and to a number of customers, it provides distribution capabilities, including warehousing and delivery services. xpedx is the wholesale distribution marketer in these customer and product segments in North America, operating 108 warehouse locations in the United States and Mexico.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Jonas Elmerraji]

    As its name implies, International Paper (IP) is one of the largest paper and packaging manufacturers in the world, supplying corrugated packaging and free-sheet paper to North America and the emerging market. Still, North America represents that vast majority of IP's business -- the firm earns 75 cents out of every dollar here at home, positioning that leaves some big growth opportunities open overseas. Manufacturing operations in a basket of the most attractive developing economies gives it a key foot in the door to accomplish that growth.

    I'll admit that paper isn't exactly the most exciting business. But it can be lucrative – after 2008, staid paper makers sported insanely cheap valuations that ultimately led to some of the S&P 500's rebound gains. And while IP isn't as bargain-priced as it was then, the stock is far from expensive. International Paper spent recent years becoming a less integrated paper firm, unloading around $10 billion worth of timberland assets and buying other firms' paper and packaging units instead. That change has spread out IP's capital needs and put operations more in-line with the ebb and flow with the economy.

    A balance sheet with very high replacement value and a substantial share of the North American market help pave the way for a dividend hike at IP in the next quarter. Right now, the firm pays a 30-cent quarterly yield that adds up to a 2.5% yield.

  • [By James Oberweis]

    First, call centers are moving en masse from traditional PBX-based systems to cutting edge Internet-based (IP) systems.

    Second, communications systems are shifting to the cloud, with market growth of 18% for hosted systems, versus 2% for on-premise systems.

Top 10 Paper Companies For 2014: Crown Holdings Inc (CCK)

Crown Holdings, Inc., incorporated on February 7, 2003, is engaged in designing, manufacturing and sale of packaging products for consumer goods. Its business is organized within three divisions: Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific. Its segments within the Americas Division are Americas Beverage and North America Food. Its segments within the European Division are European Beverage and European Food. Americas Beverage includes beverage can operations in the United States, Brazil, Canada, Colombia and Mexico. North America Food includes food can and metal vacuum closure operations in the United States and Canada. European Beverage includes beverage can operations in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. European Food includes food can and metal vacuum closure operations in Europe and Africa. Its Asia Pacific Division consists of beverage and non-beverage can operations, primarily food cans and specialty packaging. As of December 31, 2012, it acquired Superior Multi-Packaging Ltd.

The Company supplies beverage cans and ends and other packaging products to a range of beverage and beer companies, including Anheuser-Busch InBev, Carlsberg, Coca-Cola, Cott Beverages, Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Heineken, National Beverage and Pepsi-Cola, among others. The Company manufactures a range of food cans and ends, including two-and three-piece cans in numerous shapes and sizes, and sells food cans to food marketers, such as Bonduelle, Cecab, ConAgra, Continentale, Mars, Simmons Foods, Nestle, Princes Group and Stockmeyer, among others.

The Company offers a range of metal vacuum closures and sealing equipment. The Company�� customers for aerosol cans and ends include manufacturers of personal care, food, household and industrial products, including Colgate Palmolive, Procter & Gamble, SC Johnson and Unilever, among others. The Company�� customers for aerosol cans and ends include manufacturers of personal care, food, household and industrial products, including Colgate Palmolive, Procte! r & Gamble, SC Johnson and Unilever, among others.

Americas Division

The Americas Division includes operations in the United States, Brazil, Canada, the Caribbean, Colombia and Mexico. These operations manufacture beverage, food and aerosol cans and ends, specialty packaging and metal vacuum closures and caps. The Americas Beverage segment manufactures aluminum beverage cans and ends and steel crowns, referred to as bottle caps. The North America Food segment manufactures steel and aluminum food cans and ends and metal vacuum closures.

European Division

The European Division includes operations in Eastern and Western Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. These operations manufacture beverage, food and aerosol cans and ends, specialty packaging and metal vacuum closures and caps. The European Beverage segment manufactures steel and aluminum beverage cans and ends. The European Food segment manufactures steel and aluminum food cans and ends, and metal vacuum closures.

Asia Pacific division

The Company's Asia Pacific Division consists of beverage can operations in Cambodia, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam and non-beverage can operations, primarily including food cans and specialty packaging in China, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. As of December 31, 2012, the division operated 32 plants in six countries.

The Company competes with Ardagh Group, Ball Corporation, BWAY Corporation, Can-Pack S.A., Metal Container Corporation, Mivisa Envases S.A.U., Rexam PLC and Silgan Holdings Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Lauren Pollock]

    Crown Holdings Inc.(CCK) cut its third-quarter earnings guidance on lower end-user demand in some of the food-and-beverage packaging company’s markets, including European food cans and North American beverage cans.

Top 10 Paper Companies For 2014: Berry Plastics Group Inc (BERY)

Berry Plastics Group, Inc. (Berry), incorporated on November 18, 2005, is a provider of plastic consumer packaging and engineered materials. Berry owns 100% interest of Berry Plastics Corporation. Berry sells its solutions predominantly into end markets, such as food and beverage, healthcare and personal care. The Company operates in three segments: Rigid Packaging, Engineered Materials and Flexible Packaging. As of September 19, 2012, the Company supplied its customers through 82 manufacturing facilities throughout the United States (68 locations) and select international locations (14 locations). In June 2012, the Company acquired 100% interest of Frans Nooren Beheer B.V. and its operating companies (Stopaq). In September 2011, the Company acquired 100% interests of Rexam Closures Kentucky Inc., Rexam Delta Inc., Rexam Closures LLC, Rexam Closure Systems LLC, Rexam de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Rexam Singapore PTE Ltd., Rexam Participacoes Ltda. and Rexam Plasticos do Brasil Ltda. (collectively, Rexam SBC). In August 2011, Berry acquired 100% interest of LINPAC Packaging Filmco, Inc.

Rigid Packaging

The Company�� Rigid Packaging business consists of containers, foodservice items, house wares, closures, over caps, bottles, prescription vials, and tubes. The end uses for these products are consumer-oriented end markets, such as food and beverage, retail mass marketers, healthcare, personal care and household chemical. The Company manufactures a collection of container products. The Company produces 32 ounce or thermoformed polypropylene (PP) drink cups and offers a product line with sizes ranging from 12 to 52 ounces. The Company�� products of house wares market is focused on producing semi-disposable plastic home and party and plastic garden products. The Company produces closures and over caps across several of its product lines, including continuous-thread and child-resistant closures, as well as aerosol over caps. The Company also provides a range of custom closure ! solutions including fitments and plugs for medical applications, cups and spouts for liquid laundry detergent, and dropper bulb assemblies for medical and personal care applications.

The Company competes with Airlite, Letica, Polytainers, Silgan, Aptar Group and Reynolds.

Engineered Materials

Berry�� Engineered Materials business primarily consists of pipeline corrosion protection solutions, specialty tapes and adhesives, polyethylene-based film products, and can liners served to a variety of end markets including oil, water and gas infrastructure, industrial and consumer-oriented end markets. The Company produces anti-corrosion products to infrastructure, rehabilitation and pipeline projects throughout the world. Products include heat-shrinkable coatings, single- and multi-layer sleeves, pipeline coating tapes, anode systems for cathodic protection and epoxy coatings. These products are used in oil, gas and water supply and construction applications.

Berry is the manufacturer of cloth and foil tape products. Other tape products include range of splicing and laminating tapes, flame-retardant tapes, vinyl-coated and carton sealing tapes, electrical, double-faced cloth, masking, mounting, original equipment manufacturer (OEM) medical and specialty tapes. These products are sold under the National, Nashua and Polyken brands in the United States. The Company manufactures and sells a portfolio of PE-based film products to end users in the retail markets. These products are sold under brands, such as Ruffies and Film-Gard. Its products include drop cloths and retail trash bags. The Company manufactures customized PP-based, woven and sewn containers for the transportation and storage of raw materials, such as seeds, titanium dioxide, clay and resin pellets.

The Company offers range of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) meat film and agricultural film. Berry�� products are used primarily to wrap fresh meats, poultry and produce for supermarket applic! ations. I! n addition, the Company offers a line of boxed products for food service and retail sales. Berry sells trash-can liners and food bags for offices, restaurants, schools, hospitals, hotels, municipalities and manufacturing facilities. The Company also sells products under the Big City, Hospi-Tuff, Plas-Tuff, Rhino-X and Steel-Flex brands. The Company produces both hand and machine-wrap stretch films, which are used by end users to wrap products and packages for storage and shipping. It sells stretch film products to distributors and retail and industrial end users under the MaxTech and PalleTech brands.

The Company competes with AEP, Sigma and 3M.

Flexible Packaging

The Company�� Flexible Packaging business consists of barrier, multilayer film products, as well as finished flexible packages, such as printed bags and pouches. Berry manufactures and sells a range of film products ranging from mono layer to coextruded films having up to nine layers, lamination films sold primarily to flexible packaging converters and used for peelable lid stock, stand-up pouches, pillow pouches and other flexible packaging formats. The Company also manufactures barrier films used for cereal, cookie, cracker and dry mix packages that are sold directly to food manufacturers like Kraft and Pepsico. It also manufactures films for industrial applications ranging from lamination film for carpet padding to films used in solar panel construction.

The Company supplies component and packaging films used for personal care applications. Berry is a converter of printed bags, pouches and roll stock. Its manufacturing base includes integrated extrusion that combines with printing, laminating, bagmaking, Innolok and laser-score converting processes. The Company is a supplier of printed film products for the fresh bakery, tortilla and frozen vegetable markets with brands, such as SteamQuick Film, Freshview bags and Billboard. The Company manufactures specialty coated and laminated produ! cts for a! range of packaging applications. Its products are sold under the MarvelGuard and MarvelSeal brands and are sold to converters who transform them into finished goods.

The Company competes with Printpak, Tredegar and Bemis.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By John Udovich]

    One of the most famous scenes in the cult classic, the Graduate, was when Mr. McGuire�took Dustin Hoffman�� character aside and said�"Ben, I want to say one word to you, just one word: Plastics"; but what about the Berry Plastics Group Inc (NYSE: BERY) and its performance verses that of the�iShares S&P 500 Index ETF (NYSEARCA: IVV), iShares Russell Midcap Index Fund ETF (NYSEARCA: IWR) and iShares S&P SmallCap 600 Index ETF (NYSEARCA: IJR)? I should mention that plastics and the Berry Plastics Group was not the place to be yesterday as the stock took a tumble on reduced guidance.

  • [By Bryan Murphy]

    It's certainly not as big as Berry Plastics Group Inc. (NYSE:BERY). It's not even as big as Tredegar Corporation (NYSE:TG). There's one big way AEP Industries (NASDAQ:AEPI) can certainly compete head-on with BERY and TG right now, however... as an investment opportunity. Thanks to the bullish bump AEPI gave us last week, a long-standing selloff has been revered, and there's a whole lot of ground to make up.

  • [By Ben Rooney]

    In pointing out the possibility of the upcoming ban, a recent Goldman Sachs (GS) report said it would be good news for Berry Plastics Group (BERY), which makes cups out of a material similar to polystyrene that is recyclable.

Top 10 Paper Companies For 2014: Bemis Company Inc (BMS)

Bemis Company, Inc., incorporated on May 18, 1885, is a manufacturer of packaging products and pressure sensitive materials. The Company's business activities are organized around its three reportable business segments, U.S. Packaging , Global Packaging and Pressure Sensitive Materials. The majority of the Company�� products are sold to customers in the food industry. Other customers include companies businesses, such as chemical, agribusiness, medical, pharmaceutical, personal care, electronics, automotive, construction, graphic industries and other consumer goods. In July 2013, Bemis Company Inc acquired all of the common stock of Foshan New Changsheng Plastics Films Co., LTD.

The Company�� flexible packaging businesses has a technical base in polymer chemistry, film extrusion, coating, laminating, printing, and converting. The Company�� pressure sensitive materials business specializes in adhesive technologies. On August 22, 2012, the Company acquired two flexible packaging businesses in Australia and New Zealand.

U.S. Packaging segment

The U.S. Packaging segment represents all food, consumer, and industrial products packaging-related manufacturing operations located in the United States. This segment manufactures multilayer polymer, blown and cast film structures to produce packaging sold for food and personal care product applications as well as non-food applications. Additional products include custom thermoformed packaging, and multiwall paper bags. Markets for these products include processed and fresh meat, liquids, frozen foods, cereals, snacks, cheese, coffee, condiments, candy, pet food, bakery, seed, lawn and garden, tissue, fresh produce, personal care and hygiene, disposable diapers, agribusiness, and minerals. This segment has 35 manufacturing plants located in 16 states, of which 32 are owned directly by the Company or its subsidiaries and three are leased from outside parties.

Global Packaging segment

The ! Global Packaging segment includes all packaging-related manufacturing operations located outside of the United States as well as global medical device and pharmaceutical packaging manufacturing operations. This segment manufactures multilayer polymer, blown and cast film structures to produce packaging sold for a variety of food, medical, pharmaceutical, personal care, and industrial applications. Additional products include injection molded plastic and folding carton packaging. Markets for these products include processed and fresh meat, liquids, snacks, cheese, coffee, condiments, candy, bakery, tissue, fresh produce, personal care and hygiene, disposable diapers, agribusiness, pharmaceutical, and medical devices. This segment has 32 manufacturing plants located in three United States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and ten non-United States countries, of which 26 are owned directly by the Company or its subsidiaries and six are leased from outside parties.

Pressure Sensitive Materials segment

The Pressure Sensitive Materials segment is a global manufacturer of pressure sensitive adhesive coated paper and film substrates sold into label, graphic, and technical product markets. Products for label markets include narrow-Web rolls of pressure sensitive paper, film, and metalized film printing stocks used in high-speed printing and die-cutting. Products for graphic markets include pressure sensitive films used for decorative signage through computer-aided plotters, digital and screen printers, and photographic overlaminate and mounting materials including optically clear films with built-in ultraviolet (UV) inhibitors. Products for technical markets include micro-thin film adhesives used in delicate electronic parts assembly and pressure sensitive applications utilizing foam and tape based stocks to perform fastening and mounting functions. This segment has seven manufacturing plants located in three states and two non-United States countries, all of which are owned directly b! y the Com! pany or its subsidiaries.

The Company competes with Amcor Limited, Berry Plastics Corporation, Bryce Corporation, Exopack Company, Hood Packaging Corporation, Printpack, Inc., Sealed Air Corporation, Sonoco Products Company, Wihuri OY, Winpak ltd, 3M, Acucote, Inc., Avery Dennison Corporation, FLEXcon Corporation, Green Bay Packaging Inc., Ricoh Company, Ltd., Ritrama Inc., Spinnaker Industries, Inc., Technicote Inc., UPM-Kymmene Corporation, and Wausau Coated Products Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Jessica Alling]

    Leaders and laggards
    Merck (NYSE: MRK  ) is at the top of the class this morning with a 5.19% gain following some extremely encouraging news about its latest experimental drug,�lambrolizumab. Aimed at unleashing the powers of a patient's own immune system, the drug disables the immune system cells' prevention method that curbs its attack on cancer cells -- a protein called the programmed death 1 receptor, or PD-1. Merck's drug has shown a 38% rate in tumor reduction in patients with advanced melanoma, and up to 52% in patients who received the highest dosage of the drug. Though the patients have not undergone the trial for a long enough period yet, the results are attracting attention for matching the current treatments from two Bristol-Meyers Squibb (NYSE: BMS  ) drugs, Yervoy and nivolumab, with potentially milder side effects. The news is great for Merck investors, as the company has only played a small part in oncology treatments to date.

  • [By The Part-time Investor]

    The following stocks met the criteria in January of 2008 and were put into the initial portfolio:

    Abbot Labs (ABT)Advanced data processing (ADP)Associated Banc-Corp (ASBC)Bank of America (BAC)BB&T Corp. (BBT)Bemis Company (BMS)Anheuser Busch (BUD)The Chubb Corporation (CB)Clorox (CLX)Comerica Inc. (CMA)Diebold Inc. (DBD)Emerson Electronics (EMR)First Dollar Corp. (FDO)First Third BanCorp. (FITB)Gannett Co, Inc. (GCI)General Electric (GE)Hershey (HSY)Illinois Tools Works (ITW)Johnson and Johnson (JNJ)Leggett and Platt (LEG)Eli Lilly (LLY)La-Z-Boy (LZB)McDonald's (MCD)Marsh and Ilsley (MI)M&T Bancorp (MTB)PepsiCo (PEP)Pfizer (PFE)Procter & Gamble (PG)Pentair Ltd. (PNR)Regions Financial Corp. (RF)Rohm and Haas (ROH)RPM International (RPM)Sherwin Williams (SHW)Sysco Corp. (SYY)UDR Inc. (UDR)

    Historical quotes were taken from Yahoo Finance. $10,000 was put into each position, to the nearest whole share, so a total of $349,262.89 was invested. From 1/15/08 through 5/16/13 all dividends were reinvested back into the stock that paid them. If a dividend cut was announced, that stock was sold on the ex-div date of the new, lower dividend.

Top 10 Paper Companies For 2014: Cornerstone Progressive Return Fund(CFP)

Cornerstone Progressive Return Fund is a closed-ended equity fund of fund launched and managed by Cornerstone Advisors, Inc. The fund invests funds investing in the public equity markets of the United States. It invests in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors. Cornerstone Progressive Return Fund was formed on April 26, 2007 and is domiciled in the United States.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Dan Caplinger]

    But you can see in several places the consequences of the stampede toward high yield. Here are just a few:

    Closed-end funds Cornerstone Progressive (NYSEMKT: CFP  ) and Pimco High Income (NYSE: PHK  ) both make fixed payments back to fund shareholders on a monthly basis, and their distribution yields are truly extraordinary, at about 17% and 12%, respectively. Those dividends have enticed shareholders to pay $1.30 to $1.40 or more for each $1 of assets in the funds. Yet during most months, a substantial portion of those distribution payments has simply been a return of investor capital rather than true income from the funds' investments. A recent study discussed in The Wall Street Journal found that returns on a portfolio with a combined value and dividend-income strategy outperformed a strategy focused more exclusively on maximizing dividends by an average of 1.7 percentage points per year, a huge edge in long-run returns. In the dividend ETF arena, most funds tend to focus on maximizing yield. Although the popular Vanguard Dividend Appreciation (NYSEMKT: VIG  ) ETF bucks the trend by screening first for consistent dividend growth and only then looking at yield as a factor, many rival ETFs start with high-yielding stocks as their baseline and only then consider other desirable traits. Others focus solely on high-dividend niches of the market, such as iShares FTSE NAREIT Mortgage-Plus (NYSEMKT: REM  ) and its concentration on high-yield mortgage REITs.

    When dividend stocks get too popular, their prices get out of line with both their dividend income and the fundamentals of the businesses that underlie those stocks. In simpler terms, when dividend stocks become bad values, it's time to consider looking elsewhere for a margin of safety.