Saturday, February 28, 2015

Best Paper Stocks For 2015

Best Paper Stocks For 2015: Domtar Corp (UFS)

Domtar Corporation, incorporated on August 16, 2006, designs, manufactures, markets and distributes a range of fiber-based products, including communication papers, specialty and packaging papers and adult incontinence products. The Company operates in three business segments: Pulp and Paper, Distribution and Personal Care. Its Pulp and Paper segment consists of the manufacturing, sale and distribution of communication, specialty and packaging papers, as well as softwood, fluff and hardwood market pulp. The Companys Distribution segment includes the purchasing, warehousing, sale and distribution of its paper products and those of other manufacturers. These products include business and printing papers, certain industrial products and printing supplies. Its Personal Care segment consists of the manufacturing, sale and distribution of adult incontinence products.The Company is an integrated marketer and manufacturer of uncoated freesheet paper in North America for a varie ty of customers, including merchants, retail outlets, stationers, printers, publishers, converters and end-users. The Company produces incontinence care products marketed primarily under the Attends brand. The Company owns and operates Ariva. On May 10, 2012, the Company acquired EAM Corporation. In June 2013, the Company announced the completion of its acquisition of Xerox Corp paper and print media products business in the United States and Canada. In July 2013, Domtar Corp announced that completion of the acquisition of Associated Hygienic Products (AHP) from DSG International. In January 2014, the Company acquired Laboratorios Indas, SAU.

Pulp and Paper

The Company produces 4.2 million metric tons of hardwood, softwood and fluff pulp at 12 of its 13 mills. The majority of its pulp is consumed internally to manufacture paper and consumer products, with the balance being sold as market pulp. The Company also purchases papergrade pulp from third pa rti! es. The Company has 10 pulp and paper mills (eight in the United States and two in Canada), with an annual paper production capacity of approximately 3.4 million tons of uncoated freesheet paper. Its paper manufacturing operations are supported by 15 converting and distribution operations, including a network of 12 plants located offsite of its paper making operations. In addition, it has forms manufacturing operations at three offsite converting and distribution operations. Approximately 81% of its paper production capacity is in the United States, and the remaining 19% is located in Canada.

The Company produces market pulp in excess of its internal requirements at its three non-integrated pulp mills in Kamloops, Dryden, and Plymouth, as well as at its pulp and paper mills in Espanola, Ashdown, Hawesville, Windsor, Marlboro and Nekoosa. The Company sells approximately 1.6 million metric tons of pulp per year depending on market conditions. Approximately 50% of its trade pulp production capacity is in the United States, and the remaining 50% is located in Canada. The fiber used by its pulp and paper mills in the United States is hardwood and softwood, both being readily available in the market from multiple third-party sources. The fiber used at its Windsor pulp and paper mill is hardwood originating from a variety of sources, including purchases on the open market in Canada and the United States, contracts with Quebec wood producers marketing boards, public land where it has wood supply allocations and from its private lands. The softwood and hardwood fiber for its Espanola pulp and paper mill and the softwood fiber for its Dryden pulp mill, is obtained from third parties, directly or indirectly from public lands, through designated wood supply allocations for the pulp mills. The fiber used at the Companys Kamloops pulp mill is all softwood, originating from third-party sawmilling operations in the southern-interior part of British Columbia.

The Company uses various chemic! al compou! nds in its pulp and paper manufacturing facilities that it purchases, primarily on a central basis, through contracts. For pulp manufacturing, it uses numerous chemicals, including caustic soda, sodium chlorate, sulfuric acid, lime and peroxide. For paper manufacturing, it also uses several chemical products, including starch, precipitated calcium carbonate, optical brighteners, dyes and aluminum sulfate. It owns power generating assets, including steam turbines, at all of its integrated pulp and paper mills, as well as hydro assets at four locations: Espanola, Ottawa-Hull, Nekoosa and Rothschild. The Companys business papers include copy and electronic imaging papers, which are used with ink jet and laser printers, photocopiers and plain-paper fax machines, as well as computer papers, preprinted forms and digital papers. These products are primarily for office and home use. The Companys commerci al printing and publishing papers include uncoated freesheet papers, such as offset papers and opaques. These uncoated freesheet grades are used in sheet and roll fed offset presses across the spectrum of commercial printing end-uses, including digital printing. Its publishing papers include tradebook and lightweight uncoated papers used primarily in book publishing applications, such as textbooks, dictionaries, catalogs, magazines, hard cover novels and financial documents. Design papers, a sub-group of commercial printing and publishing papers, have features of color, brightness and texture and are targeted towards graphic artists, design and advertising agencies, primarily for special brochures and annual reports. These products also include base papers that are converted into finished products, such as envelopes, tablets, business forms and data processing/computer forms.

The Company also produces paper for several specialty and packaging markets. These pro ducts consist primarily of base stock for thermal printing, flexible packaging, food packaging, medical gowns and drapes, sandpapers bac! king, car! bonless printing, labels and other coating and laminating applications. The Company also manufactures papers for industrial and specialty applications, including carrier papers, treated papers, security papers and specialized printing and converting applications. The Company sells business papers primarily to paper stationers, merchants, office equipment manufacturers and retail outlets. The Company distributes uncoated commercial printing and publishing papers to end-users and commercial printers, mainly through paper merchants, as well as selling directly to converters. The Company sells its specialty and packaging papers mainly to converters, who apply a further production process, such as coating, laminating, folding or waxing to its papers before selling them to a variety of specialized end-users.

Distribution

The Company's Distribution business involves the purchasing, warehousing, sale and distribution of the Company's various products and those of other manufacturers. These products include business, printing and publishing papers and certain packaging products. These products are sold to diverse customer base, which includes small, medium and large commercial printers, publishers, quick copy firms, catalog and retail companies and institutional entities. The Company's Distribution business operates in the United States and Canada under a single banner and umbrella name, Ariva. Ariva operates throughout the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest areas from 16 locations in the United States, including 12 distribution centers serving customers across North America.

Personal Care

The Company's Personal Care business sells and manufactures adult incontinence products and distributes disposable washcloths marketed primarily under the Attends brand n ame. The Company is a supplier of adult incontinence products sold into North America and Northern Europe, selling to hospitals (acute cares) and nursing homes (long-term care) and the Company has a gr! owing pre! sence in the homecare and retail channels. The Company operates two manufacturing facilities, with each having the ability to produce multiple product categories. The Company also has a research and development facility and production lines which manufacture high quality airlaid and ultrathin laminated absorbent cores.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Rich Duprey]

    Specialty paper makerDomtar (NYSE: UFS  ) wrote it all down yesterday: itwill pay aregular quarterly dividendof $0.55 per share that's 22% higher than the $0.45 per share payout it made last quarter. Shareholders of record on June 14 will receive the new dividend rate at the close of business on July 15.

  • [By Saibus Research]

    Weyerhaeuser is the largest forest products real estate investment trust in the United States. Weyerhaeuser grows and harvests trees, builds homes and makes a range of forest products essential to everyday lives. The company has undergone a dramatic level of strategic and organizational level change over the past several years in the wake of its debt-funded hostile takeover of Willamette Industries in 2002. In 2006, Weyerhaeuser agreed to spin off its fine paper business under a split-off transaction with Domtar (UFS). Under the terms of the deal, Weyerhaeuser would spin-off the fine paper business and the business would merge with Domtar Inc to create Domtar Corporation. Weyerhaeuser has four business segments as follows:

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

Friday, February 27, 2015

Top 5 High Tech Companies To Watch In Right Now

Top 5 High Tech Companies To Watch In Right Now: Dover Corp (DOV)

Dover Corporation (Dover), incorporated in 1947, manufactures a range of specialized products and components and also offers related services and consumables. The Company operates in four segments: Communication Technologies, Energy, Engineered Systems, and Printing & Identification. In July 2011, it acquired Sound Solutions from NXP Semiconductors N.V. In September 2011, the Company sold Crenlo, LLC and Paladin Brands of Cedar Rapids. In October 2011, the Company acquired Oil Lift Technology. In November 2011, it acquired Advansor A/S. In November 2011, the Company realigned into four business segments, which includes Communication Technologies, Energy, Engineered Systems and Printing & Identification. In December 2011, the Company sold Heil Trailer International. In March 2012, the Company acquired Maag Group (Maag).

Communication Technologies

Dover Communication Technologies is engaged in the design and manufacture of products and components in the communications, life sciences, aerospace/industrial, defense, and telecommunication/other markets. The Companys Communication Technologies focuses on markets, such as life sciences, aerospace/industrial, defense and telecommunication/other. Communication Technologies products are manufactured primarily in North America, Europe and Asia. Its businesses serves the communications market design, manufacture and assemble micro-acoustic audio input and output components for use principally in personal mobile handsets. Life sciences businesses serves the life sciences market manufacture advanced miniaturized receivers and electromechanical components for use in hearing aids, connectors for use in a variety of medical devices and bio processing applications, and specialized components for use in implantable devices and medical equipment. Its aerospace/industrial businesses serves the aerospace/industrial markets manufacture precision engineered components and ! aftermarket parts across a range of market applications. In the commerci! al aerospace market, its businesses design and manufacture specialty hydraulics, fasteners, bearings, switches and filters sold to both original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and as aftermarket products. It also design and manufacture frequency control components, electromechanical switches, multi-layered capacitors, filters and quick disconnect couplings serving the general industrial markets. Its defense businesses serves the defense market manufacture specialty hydraulics, mechanical and frequency control communication components, serving shipboard applications, strategic mission critical parts on key Airborne programs and Command and Control communications. Its telecommunication/other businesses serves the telecommunication/other markets manufacture frequency control components for wired and wireless network base station communications that ensure precise signal timing and filters for non-interrupted access across high speed networks.

Energy

T he Companys Energy segment serves the oil, gas and power generation industries. It consists of lines of business, which include drilling, production and downstream. The drilling businesses serves the drilling market design and manufacture products, including long-lasting polycrystalline diamond cutters (PDCs) for applications in down-hole drilling tools and quartz pressure transducers and hybrid electronics used in down-hole tools and monitoring devices. Its production businesses serves the production market design and manufacture products and components that facilitate the extraction and movement of fuel from the ground, including steel sucker rods, down-hole rod pumps, progressive cavity pumps and drive systems, plunger lifts, and accessories used in artificial lift applications in oil and gas production; pressure, temperature and flow monitoring equipment used in oil and gas exploration and production applications, and control valves and instrumentation! for oil ! and gas production. In addition, these businesses manufacture vario! us compre! ssor parts that are being used in the natural gas production, distribution and oil refining markets; and winches, hoists, gear drives, swing drives, auger drives, slewing ring bearings, hydraulic pump and electronic monitoring solutions for energy, infrastructure and recovery markets worldwide. Its downstream businesses serve the downstream market produce systems and products that support transportation and handling of fuel, hazardous liquids and dry-bulk commodities. Vehicle fuel dispensing products include conventional, vapor recovery, and clean energy (liquid petroleum gas (LPG), compressed natural gas, and Hydrogen) nozzles, swivels and breakaways, as well as tank pressure management systems. Products manufactured for the transportation, storage and processing of hazardous liquid and dry-bulk commodities include relief valves, loading/unloading angle valves, rupture disc devices, actuator systems, level measurement gauges, swivel joints, butterfly valves, lined ball valv es, aeration systems, industrial access ports, manholes, hatches, collars, weld rings and fill covers. In addition, it offer bearings, bearing isolators, seals and remote condition monitoring systems that are used for rotating machinery applications, such as turbo machinery, motors, generators and compressors used in energy, utility, marine and other industries.

Engineered Systems

Dover Engineered Systems is engaged in the fluids systems, refrigeration and food equipment, waste and recycling, and industrial markets. Dover Engineered Systems combines its engineering technology, product advantages, and applications to address market needs and requirements.

The Fluid Solutions platform designs and manufactures pumps, compressors, and chemical proportioning and dispensing products. The pumps and compressors are used to transfer liquid and bulk products and are sold to a wide variety of markets, including the refine! d fuels, ! LPG, pulp and pap er, wastewater, food/sanitary, military, transportation and ! chemical ! process industries. The pumps include centrifugal, reciprocating (double diaphragm) and rotary pumps that are used in demanding and specialized fluid transfer process applications. The chemical portioning and dispensing systems are used to dilute and dispense concentrated cleaning chemicals and are sold to the food service, health care, supermarket, institutional, school, building service contractor and industrial markets. In addition, the platform manufactures copper-brazed compact heat exchangers, and designs software for heating and cooling substations. Fluid Solutions products are manufactured in the United States, South America, Asia and Europe. Its refrigeration and food equipment businesses manufacture refrigeration systems, refrigeration display cases, walk-in coolers and freezers, electrical distribution products and engineering services, commercial foodservice equipment, cook-chill production systems, custom food storage and preparation products, kitchen ventilatio n systems, conveyer systems, beverage can-making machinery, and packaging machines used for meat, poultry and other food products. The waste and recycling business in the solid waste management market provides products and services for the refuse collection industry and for on-site processing and compaction of trash and recyclable materials. Products are sold to municipal customers, national accounts and independent waste haulers through a network of distributors and directly in certain geographic areas. The Company also serves the vehicle service and industrial automation markets, providing a range of products and services that are utilized in vehicle services, maintenance, washing, repair and modification. The businesses in the industrial automation market provide a range of modular automation components including manual clamps, power clamps, rotary and linear mechanical indexers, conveyors, pick and place units, glove ports and manipula! tors as w! ell as end-of-arm robotic g rippers, slides and end effectors. These products serve a ra! nge of ma! rket, including food processing, packaging, paper processing, medical, electronic, automotive, nuclear, and general industrial products. These products are produced in the North America, Europe and Asia.

Printing & Identification

Dover Printing & Identification is a supplier of precision marking and coding, dispensing, printing, soldering, coating, inspection and testing equipment and related consumables and services. It provides its services in fast moving consumer goods (FMCG), industrial, and electronics.

FMCG businesses serves this market primarily design and manufacture marking and coding products used for printing variable information, such as date codes and serial numbers on food, beverage, consumer goods, and pharmaceutical products. Its industrial products used by the industrial market are primarily marking and coding, bar code and portable printers, and fluid dispensing related products serving a number of industrial end marke ts, including aerospace, cable, military, material packaging, industrial assembly, and medical devices. Additional products include a range of marking solutions leveraged for secondary packaging, such as cartons and pallets for use in warehouse logistics operations, and bar code printers and portable printers.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By The Part-time Investor]

    Due to the sale of stocks that cut their dividend (and buyouts), and reinvestment of this money into new positions, In January of 2009 the following three new stocks were purchased.

    Dover Corp. (DOV)Johnson Controls (JCI)Medtronics (MDT)

    In January of 2010, again, due to stock sales (and buyouts) a further four new stocks were bought.

  • [By Monica Gerson]

    Dover (NYSE: DOV) is expected to report its Q1 earnings at $1.01 per share on revenue of $1.87 billion.

    Pepsico (NYSE: PEP) is estimated to report its Q1 earni! ngs at $0! .75 per share on revenue of $12.40 billion.

  • [By Jonas Elmerraji]

    Dover (DOV) is another stock that's in a solid uptrend this fall. Like BSX, the manufacturing conglomerate has been trending higher since the start of the summer – beating the S&P 500 on a relative strength basis all the way up.

    And just like BSX, the ideal time to buy comes on a bounce off of trendline support.

    DOV pushed higher off of support in yesterday's session, catching a bid before it got down to the 50-day moving average. At this point, Dover's bounce is still a little tentative. While buyers did step in and bid shares up, yesterday's price action left things close to the support line. So while now might be a good time to build a starter position in DOV, I'd recommend waiting for a more confirmed more off of support before putting cash on this trade.

    If you decide to jump in here, keep a tight protective stop in place.

  • source from Top Stocks To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/top-5-high-tech-companies-to-watch-in-right-now-2.html

Hot Chemical Stocks To Watch For 2014

Israel Chemicals Ltd. (ICL), the fourth-largest potash producer in the world by sales, is weighing on the Tel Aviv benchmark stock index on concern the government will exact higher royalties amid a global oversupply.

ICL, as the Israeli crop maker is known, has tumbled 36 percent this year, while parent company Israel Corp. has slumped 29 percent. The stocks were set for the steepest annual plunges since 2008 and 2011, respectively. That compares with an 8.8 percent jump for the TA-25 index. With the two companies making up an average 10 percent of the index�� weighting, their declines trimmed the advance of the equity gauge by 4.4 percentage points, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Finance Minister Yair Lapid said in April that natural resources are a public asset and set up a panel to review royalties paid by ICL, a year after the government doubled the producer�� taxes to 10 percent. The Tel Aviv-based company will probably report the smallest profit in four years, according to the mean estimate of 13 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Best Healthcare Technology Companies To Watch In Right Now: Clariant AG (CLN)

Clariant AG is a Switzerland-based holding company engaged in the chemical sector. The Company's key markets include Paints, comprising decorative interior and exterior, primers, varnishes, anticorrosion and industrial applications, Construction, comprising concrete applications, roofing, tiling, sealants and primers, Adhesives, comprising wood, paper, lamination, packaging and Pressure Sensitive Adhesives, and Textile, leather and paper, comprising various functional effects and coatings. The Company diversifies its business into several units, including Additives, Catalysis & Energy, Emulsions, Functional Materials, Industrial & Consumer Specialties, Leather Services, Masterbatches, Oil & Mining Services, Paper Specialties, Pigments and Textile Chemicals. In every business unit, the Company diversifies five geographical regions, including Europe, Latin America, North America, Asia/Pacific, and Middle East & Africa. In January 2014, it sold its Detergents & Intermediates business. Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Tom Stoukas]

    Clariant slid 1.6 percent to 15.57 francs, dropping for a seventh day. UBS removed the company from its most preferred list because of the shares��recent rally. Clariant (CLN) has surged 26 percent this year, while the SPI has gained 21 percent.

Hot Chemical Stocks To Watch For 2014: Rockwood Holdings Inc (ROC)

Rockwood Holdings, Inc. (Rockwood), incorporated in September 19, 2000, is a developer, manufacturer and marketer of specialty chemicals and advanced materials used for industrial and commercial purposes. Rockwood is focused on surface treatment and lithium chemicals, advanced ceramics, titanium dioxide pigments, iron-oxide pigments, timber-treatment chemicals and clay-based additives. Its products consist primarily of inorganic chemicals and solutions and engineered materials. As of December 31, 2012, it manufactured its products in 80 facilities in more than twenty countries and sold its products and services to more than 60,000 customers. The Company operates in five segments: Lithium, Surface Treatment, Performance Additives, Titanium Dioxide Pigments, and Advanced Ceramics. In September 2012, its subsidiary, Chemetall GmbH, completed the formal legal split of its operations into two independent legal entities. In September 2013, Rockwood Holdings, Inc completed the sale of CeramTec, its advanced ceramics business to Cinven. In October 2013, Rockwood Holdings Inc announced that the specialty chemicals group ALTANA completed the acquisition of the rheology business of Rockwood Holdings, Inc.

Lithium

The Company�� Lithium segment operates under the Rockwood Lithium brand name and develops lithium chemicals for a range of industries and end markets. It develops and manufactures a broad range of basic lithium compounds, including lithium carbonate, lithium hydroxide, lithium chloride, and lithium specialties and reagents, including butyllithium and lithium aluminum hydride. The Company operates its lithium business along five business divisions: Lithium Salts, Special Salts, Butyllithium/Lithium Metal, Battery Products and Lithium Specialties.

The Company develops and manufactures basic lithium compounds, which serve a range of industries and applications, and potash. Its products include lithium carbonate, lithium hydroxide, lithium nitrate, lithium chloride ! and potash. The Company develops and manufactures products which include lithium phosphate, lithium bromide and lithium carbonate pharmaceutical grade. It develops and manufactures lithium products for electronic applications, mainly for the primary (disposable) and secondary (rechargeable) battery industries. It develop and manufacture lithium compounds and other products for life science applications, such as special reagents for the synthesis of drug intermediates as well as for the flavor and fragrances industry. The Company develops and manufactures a range of products based on special metal compounds derived from cesium, zirconium, titanium, barium and rubidium.

The Company competes with FMC Corporation, Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A., Cabot Corporation, Sigma Aldrich Corporation.

Surface Treatment

The Company�� Surface Treatment segment operates under the Chemetall brand name and develops and manufactures metal surface treatment products and services for a range of industries and end markets. This segment supplies surface treatment products and solutions for metal processing industries. It develops and supplies products and solutions for the chemical pre-treatment of metals and other substrates, some of which are customized for individual customers and applications. The Company provides surface treatment products and solutions for automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), including an entire range of products and services for use in the paint shop step of car-body and automotive component manufacture. It provides products and services used to facilitate the cold forming of tubes, wire drawing and cold extrusion of metal.

The Company competes with Henkel AG & Co. KGaA, Nihon Parkerizing Co., Ltd., PPG Industries, Inc. and Nippon Paint Co., Ltd.

Performance Additives

The Company�� Performance Additives segment consists of business lines which develop and manufacture a range of specialty chemicals us! ed indust! rial and consumer products and processes. The Company produces synthetic iron-oxide and other inorganic pigments in a range of yellow, red, orange, ultramarine blue, black, manganese violet or blended shades, and serves the construction, paints and coatings, plastics, and specialty application markets with powder, granular and liquid grades. The Company develops and manufactures principally iron-oxide pigments for manufacturers of construction products for use in the coloring of concrete products, including paving stones, bricks, concrete blocks, roofing tiles, stucco and mortar.

It also develops and manufactures color pigments for the paints, coatings, plastics, paper and rubber end-use markets including its brands Ferroxide, Trans-oxide, Solaplex, Solarox and Colourplex. It produces a wide variety of pigments that include synthetic iron-oxides, corrosion inhibitor pigments, complex inorganic color pigments and process natural pigments such as burnt umbers and siennas. Its iron-oxide pigments are also used in a variety of specialty applications such as toner for printers and copiers, security inks used to print bank notes, catalysts for styrene production and cosmetics.

The Company�� Timber Treatment Chemicals business line manufactures food protection products primarily in North America and Europe. Its Timber Treatment Chemicals business also manufactures inorganic chemicals such as nitrates and chlorides for various industrial applications including chemicals that are added to concrete as curing accelerants and corrosion inhibitors, chemicals that are used for odor control in water treatment, galvanizing fluxes, micronutrients, pesticides and catalysts used in the manufacture of textile resins. The Company also develops and manufacture inorganic metallic chemicals for certain specialty markets. Its Clay-based Additives business develops and manufactures a range of specialty rheology modifiers and additives.

The Company competes with Lanxess AG, Cathay Pigment! s Group, ! Interstar Materials Inc. and Shanghai Yipin Pigments Co., Ltd., Lonza Group Ltd, Osmose, Inc., BASF Group, Kurt Obermeier GmbH & Co. KG, Rutgers AG, Elementis plc, Laviosa Chimica Mineraria S.p.A., R.T. Vanderbilt Company, Inc., Amcol, and Feralco AB.

Titanium Dioxide Pigments

The Company�� Titanium Dioxide Pigments segment operates under the Sachtleben brand name. Titanium Dioxide Pigments consists of two business lines: Titanium Dioxide and Functional Additives. It produces specialty grade titanium dioxide (TiO2) serving a variety of customers in the synthetic fibers, plastics, paints, packaging inks, coatings, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and paper industries. The Company also develops TiO2 pigments, which are mainly used in special applications such as selected coatings, paints, packaging inks, plastics and laminated paper production processes. Its Functional Additives business line is a global manufacturer of barium-based and zinc-based inorganic fine white pigments and additives.

The Company competes with Fuji Titanium Industry Co., Ltd, Kronos Worldwide, Inc, DuPont Titanium Technologies, Cristal Global, Tronox Incorporated, Huntsman LLC, Tayca Corporation, Ishihara Corporation and Evonik Degussa., Solvay S.A., Gruppo Chimico Dalton S.p.A., Sakai Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.

Advanced Ceramics

The Company�� Advanced Ceramics segment operates under the CeramTec brand name. The Company produces ceramic components for hip joint prostheses, such as ball heads and inserts and ceramic glove formers latex gloves. The Company develops and manufacture products used in cutting tools, other tools and tooling systems. The Company develops and manufactures ceramic components that are used in mechanical applications and systems. Its products in mechanical applications include cutting blades, drawing and forming tools, drawing cones and capstans, guide elements, precision parts, pre-forms and friction discs. It also produces products used for app! lications! in certain niche markets, such as electrical/thermal and ceramic metal connections, pre-forms for the casting process of piston engines, mainly for diesel engines, and wear and corrosion protection in industrial plants and armor components used in vehicle protection.

The Company competes with Kyocera Corporation, CoorsTek, Inc., The Morgan Crucible Company plc and 3M.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Monica Gerson]

    Huntsman (NYSE: HUN) surged 8.05% to $20.68 in the pre-market session after the company announced its plans to buy Rockwood Holdings' (NYSE: ROC) Performance Additives and Titanium Dioxide businesses for $1.1 billion in cash.

Hot Chemical Stocks To Watch For 2014: Cytec Industries Inc (CYT)

Cytec Industries Inc/De/, formerly Cytec Industries Inc., incorporated on December 17, 1993, is a specialty chemicals and materials company focused on developing, manufacturing and selling value-added products. Its products serve a diverse range of end markets, including aerospace and industrial materials, mining and plastics. The Company has four business segments: Engineered Materials, Umeco, In-Process Separation and Additive Technologies. Engineered Materials segment principally includes advanced composites, carbon fiber, and structural film adhesives. The Umeco segment includes composite and process materials, primarily for the aerospace and defense, wind energy, automotive, recreation and other industrial segments. The In Process Separation segment includes mining chemicals and phosphines. The Additive Technologies segment includes polymer additives, specialty additives and formulated resins. On July 20, 2012, the Company acquired Umeco plc.

Engineered Materials

The Engineered Materials segment is a global provider of technologically advanced materials for aerospace, high-performance industrial and other extreme-demand markets. Its primary product lines are advanced aerospace composites and structural adhesives, High performance industrial materials and Carbon fibers. Its major products in the advanced aerospace composites include aerospace- qualified prepregs, resin infusion systems and structural/surfacing adhesives. Its principal applications include commercial airliners, regional and business jets, military aircraft, including rotorcraft, satellites and launch vehicles. The products in the high performance industrial materials include Industrial-grade prepregs, resin infusion systems and structural/surfacing adhesives. Its applications include high performance automotive, defense, tooling and alternative energy. The products in carbon fibers include high performance fiber carbon fibers. Its applications include reinforcements for advanced aerospace and industrial c! omposites.

The Company is a supplier to the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and F-18 fighter jet programs. It is also a supplier for the business and regional jet market, supporting programs, such as Bombardier�� CSeries and LearJet85. It also manufactures specialty adhesive forms for complex composites assemblies, such as honeycomb and sandwich structures and special surfacing films to provide aircraft lightning strike protection. It manufactures and sells various high-performance grades of both polyacrylonitrile (PAN) type and pitch type carbon fibers used as a reinforcement material for aerospace and other extreme-demand and high-performance composites.

The Company�� High Performance Industrial Materials (HPIM) product line strategy is to leverage its composites, adhesives and resin technologies across multiple industrial markets. The Company supplies composites and adhesives to a spectrum of markets, such as high performance and luxury low-rate serial automotive, defense, and alternative energy.

Umeco

Umeco�� primary product lines are High performance composites structural materials/solutions and Composite process materials/solutions. Its major products in the High performance composites structural materials/solutions include Aerospace-qualified prepregs, Industrial-grade prepreg. Its principal applications include large commercial airliners, military aircraft, high performance automotive, defense, tooling, recreation, industrial and alternative energy. The products in Composite process materials/solutions include Process materials/solutions including vacuum bagging, release films and sealant tapes. Its principal applications include large commercial airliners, military aircraft, high performance automotive, defense, tooling, recreation, industrial and alternative energy and Process materials for the forming, infusion, curing of composite structures.

The Company�� structural materials product line includes the development, manufa! cturing a! nd supply of advanced composite materials. It specializes in the manufacture of composite materials for a range of industries such as aerospace and defense, marine, motor sport and automotive, construction, wind energy, and recreation.

In-Process Separation

The In-Process Separation segment includes mining chemicals and phosphines. The Company�� mining chemicals product line include flotation promoters, collectors, frothers, dispersants and depressants, solvent extractants, flocculants, filter and dewatering aids, antiscalants, and defoamers . Its principal applications include mineral separation and processing for copper, alumina, cobalt, nickel, and other minerals. Its Phosphines include flame retardants, catalyst ligands, high purity phosphine gas and biocides.

Its phospine based specialty products are used primarily in the pharmaceutical, chemical and electronic manufacturing, and fumigation. Its patented MaxHT antiscalant is sold for suppressing sodalite scale formation. Its phosphine specialties are utilized for a variety of applications. It is a supplier of ultra- high purity phosphine gas, used in semiconductor manufacturing and light emitting diode applications, various phosphine derivative products, including phosphonium salts used in pharmaceutical catalysts and biocides. Included in the phosphine line are organo phosphorus compounds. The compounds are used primarily as intermediates and catalyst ligands for organic and chemical synthesis in the pharmaceutical and chemical industries.

Additive Technologies

The Additive Technologies segment includes polymer additives specialty additives and Formulated resins. Polymer additives include ultraviolet light stabilizers and absorbers, high performance antioxidants and antistatic agents. Its applications include plastics, coatings, and fibers for: agricultural films, automotive parts, architectural lighting, housewares, packaging, outdoor furniture, sporting goods, toys and apparel.! Specialt! y additives include surfactants, specialty monomers, resin amines, and PTZ Phenothiazine. Its Formulated resins are used in for bonding or sealing of electrical and electronic components.

The Company markets its Additive Technologies chemicals through specialized sales and technical service staffs for each of its product lines. Sales are usually made directly to customers and through distributors to smaller customers. The Company is a global supplier to the plastics industry of specialty additives, which protect plastics from the ultraviolet radiation of sunlight and from oxidation. It is a global supplier of sulfosuccinate surfactants, Docusate sodium, and PTZ phenothiazine. Sulfosuccinate surfactants and acrylamide-based specialty monomers products are used in emulsion polymers, paints, paper coatings, printing inks, and other diverse customer applications. Docusate is a pharmaceutical grade product used as both an active ingredient and excipient/formulating aid. PTZ phenothiazine is primarily used as an acrylic acid, acrylic ester and methacrylate monomer stabilizer.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Rich Duprey]

    Specialty chemicals and materials maker Cytec Industries� (NYSE: CYT  ) announced this morning that it will be completing its previously authorized $650 million share repurchase program that it had announced last October, and the board of directors has authorized a new $200 million buyback plan.

  • [By Stoyan Bojinov]

    The New Jersey-based specialty chemicals maker, Cytec Industries (CYT), announced third quarter operating results after the closing bell on Thursday that topped analysts’ estimates.

    Cytec Industries managed to rake in revenues of $464 million last quarter, falling short of the projected $482.61 million figure. The company did manage to beat the mark, however, in terms of earnings per share; in the third quarter Cytec generated EPS of $1.32, beating the expected EPS of $1.34 by two pennies.

    Looking back, the most recent quarterly results are well above the 91 cents EPS seen in Q3 exactly one year ago. Looking ahead, the company expects FY2013 EPS of $4.70-$4.80 compared to the consensus of $4.82.

    Cytec Industries shares rallied higher on Thursday, gaining 0.58% on the day. The stock is up 25% YTD.

  • [By Holly LaFon]

    His largest holdings are Cytec Industries Inc. (CYT), Vivus Inc. (VVUS), Marathon Petrol (MPC), Google Inc. Cl A (GOOG) and Liberty Media A (LINTA).

Hot Chemical Stocks To Watch For 2014: NewMarket Corp (NEU)

NewMarket Corporation (NewMarket), incorporated in 2004, is a holding company, which is the parent company of Afton Chemical Corporation (Afton), Ethyl Corporation (Ethyl), NewMarket Services Corporation (NewMarket Services), and NewMarket Development Corporation (NewMarket Development). Each of the Company�� subsidiaries manages its own assets and liabilities. Afton encompasses the petroleum additives business, while Ethyl represents the sale and distribution of tetraethyl lead (TEL) in North America and certain petroleum additives manufacturing operations. NewMarket Development manages the property, which it owns in Richmond, Virginia. NewMarket Services provides administrative services to NewMarket, Afton, Ethyl, and NewMarket Development. NewMarket Services departmental expenses and other expenses are billed to NewMarket and each subsidiary pursuant to services agreements between the companies.

As a specialty chemicals company, Afton develops, manufactures, and blends formulated fuel and lubricant additive packages, and markets and sells these products globally. Afton is a lubricant and fuel additives companies globally. Lubricant and fuel additives are products for maintenance and reliable operation of all vehicles and machinery. Ethyl provides contract manufacturing services to Afton and to third parties and is one of the marketers of TEL in North America. NewMarket Development manages the property, which it owns on a site in Richmond, Virginia consisting of approximately 64 acres.

Petroleum Additives

Petroleum additives are used in lubricating oils and fuels to enhance their performance in machinery, vehicles, and other equipment. It manufactures chemical components, which are selected to perform specific functions and combine those chemicals with other components to form additive packages for use in specified end-user applications. The petroleum additives market is an international marketplace, with customers ranging from oil companies and refineries t! o original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and other specialty chemical companies. Lubricant additives are ingredients for lubricating oils. Lubricant additives are used in a range of vehicle and industrial applications, including engine oils, transmission fluids, gear oils, hydraulic oils, turbine oils, and in other application where metal-to-metal moving parts are utilized. Lubricant additives are organic and synthetic chemical components, which enhance wear protection, prevent deposits, and protect against the hostile operating environment of an engine, transmission, axle, hydraulic pump, or industrial machine.

Lubricants are used in every piece of operating machinery from heavy industrial equipment to vehicles. Lubricants provide a layer of protection between moving mechanical parts. Lubricants serve the functions, such as friction reduction, heat removal and containment of contaminants.

The Company offers a range of lubricant additive products, each of which is composed of component chemicals specially selected to perform desired functions. It manufactures the chemical components and blends these components to create formulated additives packages. Purchasers of lubricant additives tend to be oil companies, distributors, refineries, and compounders/blenders. The engine oils market�� primary customers include consumers, service dealers, and OEMs. Afton offers products, which enhances the performance of mineral, part-synthetic, and fully-synthetic engine oils.

The driveline additives submarket is consisted of additives designed for products, such as transmission fluids, gear oils, and off-road fluids. Transmission fluids serve as the power transmission and heat transfer medium in the area of the transmission. Gear oil additives lubricate gears, bearings, clutches, and bands in the gear-box and are used in vehicles, off-highway, hydraulic, and marine equipment. Other products in this area include hydraulic transmission fluids, universal tractor fluids, power ste! ering flu! ids, shock absorber fluids, gear oils and lubricants for machinery. These additives are sold to oil companies and often sold to vehicle OEMs for new vehicles. End-products are also sold to service dealers for aftermarket servicing (service-fill), as well as retailers and distributors.

The industrial additives submarket is consisted of additives designed for products for industrial applications, such as hydraulic fluids, grease, industrial gear fluids, industrial specialty applications, and metalworking additives. This submarket also shares in the 30% of the market not covered by engine oils. These products must conform to industry specifications, OEM requirements and/or application and operating environment demands. Industrial additives are sold to oil companies, service dealers for after-market servicing, and distributors.

The types of fuel additives the Company offers include gasoline performance additives, which clean and maintain fuel delivery systems, including fuel injectors and intake valves, in gasoline engine; diesel fuel performance additives, which perform similar cleaning functions in diesel engines; cetane improvers, which increase the cetane number in diesel fuel by reducing the delay between injection and ignition; stabilizers, which reduce or eliminate oxidation in fuel; corrosion inhibitors, which minimize the corrosive effects of combustion by-products and prevent rust; lubricity additives, which restore lubricating properties lost in the refining process; cold flow improvers, which improve the pumping and flow of diesel in cold temperatures, and octane enhancers. It offers a range of fuel additives globally and sells its products to fuel marketers and refiners, as well as independent terminals and other fuel blenders.

Real Estate Development

The real estate development segment represents the operations of Foundry Park I, LLC (Foundry Park I). The Company is exploring various development opportunities for other portions of the proper! ty it own! s, as the demand warrants.

All Other

The All other category includes the continuing operations of the TEL business (primarily sales of TEL in North America), as well as contract manufacturing performed by Ethyl. Ethyl manufacturing facilities include its Houston, Texas and Sarnia, Ontario, Canada plants. The Houston plant is engaged in petroleum additives manufacturing and produces both lubricant additives and fuel additives. The Sarnia plant is engaged in petroleum additives manufacturing and produces fuel additives. The All other category financial results include a service fee charged by Ethyl for its production services to Afton. Its remaining manufacturing facilities are part of Afton and produce both lubricant additives and fuel additives.

The Company competes with Berkshire Hathaway Inc., ExxonMobil Chemical, Royal Dutch Shell plc, Chevron Oronite Company LLC, BASF AG, Chevron Oronite Company LLC, The Lubrizol Corporation, Innospec, Inc., Eurenco and EPC - U.K.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By John Udovich]

    The biotech sector has been pretty exciting this year�with small cap biotech stocks Prana Biotechnology Limited (NASDAQ: PRAN) and TNI BioTech (OTCMKTS: TNIB) having recently produced noteworthy news for investors�while Acceleron Pharma, Inc (NASDAQ: XLRN), Ophthotech (NASDAQ: OPHT) and BIND Therapeutics (NASDAQ: BIND) have just�set term sheets for their upcoming IPOs. Just consider all of the following recent news:

    Surge in Biotech IPOs. Unquote.com has noted�a surge in biotech IPOs this year as there have been�almost 30 biotech IPOs since January - marking a 13-year high and sparking some concerns about a bubble. More specifically and according to the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), there was just one venture capital-backed biotech IPO in the US in the first quarter of this year, but this was followed by a massive increase of 20 in�the second quarter and a�further six since July. There has also been a small uptick in�venture capital-backed European biotech companies going public (four) with�a listing on the Nasdaq appearing to be the most popular or rather the safest option. � New IPO Term Sheets. This month, a couple of small cap biotech companies announced their terms for upcoming IPOs, including 1)�Acceleron Pharma, Inc, a clinical stage biotech developing protein therapeutics for cancer and rare diseases, plans to raise $65 million by offering 4.7 million shares at a price range of $13 to $15; 2) Ophthotech, a clinical-stage biotech developing therapeutics for eye diseases, plans to raise $100 million by offering 5.7 million shares at a price range of $16 to $19; and 3) BIND Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotech developing a platform of targeted and programmable therapeutics, plans to raise $71 million by offering 4.7 million shares at a price range of $14 to $16. Biotechs Invest More on R&D. The 2013 BDO Biotech Briefing examined the most recent 10-K SEC filings of publicly traded companies listed on the Nasdaq Biotechnolog

Hot Chemical Stocks To Watch For 2014: Ashland Inc. (ASH)

Ashland Inc. operates as a specialty chemicals company in the United States and internationally. Its Ashland Aqualon Functional Ingredients segment produces cellulose ethers; and specialty additives and functional ingredients. Its products offer functionality, such as thickening and rheology control; water retention; adhesive strength; binding power; film formation; protective colloid, suspending, and emulsifying action; foam control; and pH stability. The company?s Ashland Hercules Water Technologies segment manufactures papermaking chemicals and supplies specialty chemicals. It offers sizing agents, wet/dry strength additives, and crepe and release additives for tissue manufacturing; and deposit control agents, defoamers, biocides, and other process additives. This segment also provides specialized chemicals and consulting services for the utility water treatment; and performance-based feed and control systems; and monitoring devices and remote system surveillance. Its A shland Performance Materials segment manufactures and supplies specialty chemicals and customized services to the building and construction, transportation, metal casting, packaging and converting, and marine markets. It also offers unsaturated polyester and vinyl ester resins, and gelcoats; adhesives and specialty resins; and metal casting consumables and design services. The company?s Ashland Consumer Markets segment produces and markets packaged automotive lubricants, chemicals, appearance products, antifreeze, and filters to the private passenger car, light truck, and heavy duty markets. It also operates a quick-lube franchise under the name of Valvoline Instant Oil Change. The company was founded in 1918 and is headquartered in Covington, Kentucky.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Victor Selva] ow such a promising comeback, and the drop in revenue during 2012 was anticipated by investor Jean-Marie Eveillard (Trades, Portfolio), who sold out his 3.9 million share position by the third quarter of that year.

    Another industry giant, Huntsman Corporation (HUN) did show more promising results, and less volatile revenues during these last years. This, of course, has led to a high price to earnings ratio discouraging investors as we see later.

    Geographically Diversified

    On 2012, almost 50% of Eastman sales were generated in North America, while more than 25% were in Asia and 20% in Europe, Middle East and Africa. This diversification is to be taken into account since it guarantees long-term revenue, even if cigarette consumption decreases in some specific region (for instance, American sales declined �in recent years), which would stabilize acetate tow demands worldwide.

    Industrial Background and Gurus��Preference

    Eastman�� earnings per share growth was significantly higher than industry median (46.9% vs. 5.2%) but so was Huntsman��, at 46.5%. The critical difference between these two industry giants stands out by looking at their price to earnings: Eastman�� is below median (16.4 vs. 19.1) while Huntsman rose up to 130.1, thus entailing a significant price premium relative to industry peers��average.

    Although Ashland does have an inferior price to earnings ratio than Eastman�� (11.5), there�� a significant difference in their earnings per share growth: 27%, probably caused by a decline in revenue.

    This might have been one of the reasons that motivated investors David Dreman (Trades, Portfolio) and Joel Greenblatt (Trades, Portfolio) to significantly reduce their stake in Huntsman (both of them by more than 80% margin). In contrast, Leon Cooperman (Trades, Portfolio) and Scott Black (Trades, Portfolio), reinforced their positions in Eastman. Most notably, Ray Dalio (Trades, Portfolio)

  • [By Shauna O'Brien]

    Jefferies reported on Thursday that it has cut its rating on chemical company Ashland Inc. (ASH).

    The firm has downgraded ASH from “Buy” to “Hold,” and has lowered the company’s price target from $104 to $97. This price target suggests a 9% upside from the stock’s current price of $88.47.

    Analyst Laurence Alexander commented: “Investor confidence in the asset shuffling thesis may not withstand 2-3 more rounds of downward revisions to EPS and FCF forecasts for 2014E-2016E.”

    “Pension headwinds, incentive comp, Valvoline marketing expenses, sluggish end markets: in our view, it all adds up, and makes further multiple expansion more difficult.”

    Looking ahead, the firm has reduced estimates for the fourth quarter from $1.70 to $1.59 per share. For FY2013, earnings estimates have been lowered from $6.25 to $6.15 per share. FY2014 estimates have been cut from $7.45 to $6.75 per share.

    Ashland shares were mostly flat during pre-market trading Thursday. The stock is up 10% YTD

Hot Chemical Stocks To Watch For 2014: Bitcoin Collect Inc (BTCC)

Bitcoin Collect Inc, formerly SolPower, Corp., incorporated on July 22, 1996, offers software solutions for the healthcare industry addressing problems with the system involving billing, collections and the lack of adequate medical insurance. The company�� primary product is a software System called MedCare Collect. In July 2014, the Company acquired Good Vibrations Shoes.

Medcare Collect utilizes the technology in electronic banking and transaction submission allowing healthcare professionals to accept clients who may not have adequate health insurance with an almost negligible risk of the patient defaulting. MedCare Collect is revolutionizing medical billing by allowing doctors to take on patients they would otherwise have to turn away, while adding much needed revenue to their bottom line.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Iampat]

    Square 1 Financial (SQBK) and Bitcoin (BTCC) have sort of touched on the accommodations of having a versatile wallet, and it's without a doubt a corner that I think is still in the early phases of its reception bend. Hence, when I discovered that Facebook was concentrating on it, I loved the thought.

Wednesday, February 25, 2015

10 Best New Stocks For 2015

10 Best New Stocks For 2015: Enertopia Corp (ENRT)

Enertopia Corp (Enertopia), incorporated on November 24, 2004, is engaged in medicinal marijuana business. The Company is diverse in its pursuit of business opportunities in several sectors, including: Medicinal Marijuana, Oil and Gas, Solar PV (Photovoltaic), Solar Thermal (Hot Water), Energy Retrofits and Recovery, and Solar powered Filtered Drinking Water.

The Company no longer has any material oil and gas resources. The Company operates in two segments: renewable energy, and mining exploration and developments, which are managed separately based on fundamental differences in their operations nature.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Peter Graham]

    Whats the Catch With Lexaria Corp? According to various disclosures, a transaction or transactions of $1k has or will occur to mention Lexaria Corp in various investment newsletters. Last Friday, Lexaria Corp announced it had closed its Private Placement financing announced on March 5 for gross proceeds of $1,272,000 higher than the originally announced $960,000 figure due to overwhelming demand. Lexaria Corp will issue 10,600,000 common shares at US$0.12 and 10,600,000 full warrants that expire on September 21, 2016 with an exercise price of US$0.25. However, the company may also accelerate the expiry date of the warrants if the stock price trades above CAD$0.40 cents for 20 consecutive days at any time after 6 months and one day has elapsed. Otherwise and in early March, Lexaria Corp reported that its board of directors had decided to make a strategic entry into the medical marijuana business by way of an important Joint Venture with Enertop ia Corp (OTCQB: ENRT). Under the terms of the Agreement, Lexaria Corp had agreed to pay Enertopia 1 million restricted common shares in return for Enertopia's participation plus 500,000 restricted common shares ENRTs Chairman in return for his participation on the Lexaria Advisory Board. Following the i! ssuance of these shares, Lexaria Corp will have a total of 18,431,452 shares issued and outstanding and 21,256,452 shares fully diluted. A quick look at Lexaria Corps financials reveals revenues of $160k (most recent reported quarter), $241k, $251k and $253k for the past four quarters along with net losses of $102k (most recent reported quarter), $126k, $58k and $48k. At the end of last January, Lexaria Corp had $66k in cash to cover $1,415k in current liabilities and $59k in other liabilities. So aside from the income statement, investors might want to look more closely at Lexaria Corps financing terms.

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

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Top Rising Stocks To Invest In Right Now

Lackluster trading and mixed earnings reports had U.S. equities trading in a narrow range this week.�Fast-food giant McDonald�� (MCD) reported earnings and revenues that disappointed Wall Street expectations. Toy-maker Hasbro (HAS) also reported lower-than expected earnings, while Haliburton (HAL) missed earnings forecasts but reported higher revenues.�Travelers (TRV) earnings rose 85%, while tech giant Apple (AAPL) beat both earnings and revenue estimates. In economic news,�existing-home sales fell 1.2% in June, while new home sales rose 8.3%. In a separate report, the�Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond reported that manufacturing activity in the central Atlantic region contracted in July, falling to -11 (an above zero reading indicates expansion) .�

Below, we highlight seven insightful�articles circulating around the financial space this week:

Is the buy-and-hold strategy effective?�(Hussman Funds)Gold�� downtrend could be tested soon (Andrew Thrasher)An interview with CME�� Blu Putnam ��US oil & gas boom driving the recovery �(Phil Pearlman)Lumber futures rising ��a good sign for construction?�(Sober Look)Under the hood of highly-specialized ��iche��ETFs�(The Street)How to value speculative companies (The Aleph Blog)Troubled currencies ��Iran, North Korea, Argentina, Venezuela, Egypt and Syria (CATO Institute)Follow me on Twitter�@DPylypczak.

Hot Warren Buffett Companies To Buy For 2015: The Finish Line Inc.(FINL)

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

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    In our opinion, this was a fine quarter with no surprises; however, as we expected expenses are accelerating resulting in guidance that implies a meaningful reduction to Q3 and Q4 estimates. Also, gross margin headwinds are mounting as the favorability from raw materials has turned and supply chain disruptions in Mexico will persist for two Q��. Given NKE�� premium 25x multiple, we prefer to play its strength through its retail partners ([Foot Locker (FL) and Finish Line (FINL)]).

Top Rising Stocks To Invest In Right Now: ABM Industries Incorporated (ABM)

ABM Industries Incorporated provides integrated facility solutions services in the United States and internationally. It offers floor cleaning and finishing, window washing, furniture polishing, carpet cleaning and dusting, and other building cleaning services for commercial office and industrial buildings, retail stores, shopping centers, warehouses, airport terminals, health facilities, educational institutions, stadiums and arenas, and government buildings. The company also provides mobile and onsite services comprising mechanical engineering and technical services and solutions for infrastructure systems, including maintenance, retro-commissioning, mechanical retrofits and upgrades, electric vehicle charging stations, electrical service, systems start-ups, performance testing, and energy audits to government facilities, military installations, commercial infrastructure, airports/transportation centers, healthcare centers and hospitals, data centers, manufacturing facil ities, educational campuses, corporate office buildings, resorts, shopping malls, museums, and residences. In addition, it offers support programs to government, such as leadership development, education and training, language support, medical support, and construction management services; and food and facility solutions services to hospitals, healthcare systems, long-term care facilities, and retirement communities. Further, the company operates parking lots and garages at office buildings, hotels, medical centers, retail centers, sports and entertainment arenas, educational institutions, municipalities, and airports; and provides transportation services. Additionally, it offers security services comprising staffing of security officers, mobile patrol services, investigative services, electronic monitoring of fire, life safety systems, access control devices, and security consulting services to various facilities. The company was founded in 1909 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Dan Caplinger]

    Next Monday, ABM Industries (NYSE: ABM  ) will release its latest quarterly results. With the stock having recently hit 52-week highs, can the company keep delivering the growth that investors want to see?

  • [By Dividends4Life]

    ABM Industries Incorporated (ABM) offers floor cleaning and finishing, window washing, furniture polishing, carpet cleaning and dusting, and other building cleaning services. December 9th the company increased its quarterly dividend 3.3% to $0.155 per share. The dividend is payable February 3, 2014, to stockholders of record on January 2, 2014. The yield based on the new payout is 2.3%.

Top Rising Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Von Roll Holding AG (ROH)

Von Roll Holding AG is a Switzerland-based holding company that focuses on products and systems for power generation, transmission and distribution, as well as high-tech materials. The Company diversifies its activities into three business segments: Von Roll Insulation; Von Roll Composites, and Von Roll Transformers. The Von Roll Insulation business segment covers the Company's products, systems and services related to insulation with focus on large generators, high-voltage motors, traction motors and transformers. The Von Roll Composites business segment covers the Company's heat and fire resistant cable insulations, composite materials, compression-molded tiles and solutions for ballistic protection. The Von Roll Transformers business segment covers the Company's complete solutions for power transmission and distribution, power transformers and special transformers. In June 2013, it acquired Albesiano Sisa vernici Srl. Advisors' Opinion:
  • [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 Rising Stocks To Invest In Right Now: InvenSense Inc (INVN)

InvenSense, Inc. (InvenSense), incorporated in June 2003, is a provider of intelligent motion processing solutions. The Company is engaged in the designing, developing, manufacturing and marketing linear and mixed-signal integrated circuits (IC). It has designed and developed an integrated motion processing solution that enables a motion-based user interface for consumer electronics. Its solutions are comprised of an IC that incorporates motion sensors, such as gyroscopes, with associated software and are differentiated by their small form factor, high level of integration, performance, reliability and cost effectiveness. It targets consumer electronics applications, such as console and portable video gaming devices, handset and tablet devices, digital still and video cameras, digital television and set-top box remote controls, three-dimensional (3D) mice and portable navigation devices. As of March 31, 2010, InvenSense had shipped over 60 million units of its products. In November 2013, Analog Devices, Inc completed the sale of the assets of its microphone product line to InvenSense, Inc.

The Company�� MotionProcessing platform offers its customers an integrated and solution comprised of its micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) based motion sensors and their companion mixed-signal integrated circuits, embedded DigitalMotion processors that combine digital outputs from multiple motion sensors to provide more accurate motion tracking functionality, which it refers to as SensorFusion, and its MotionProcessing library that allows its customers to create applications using its MotionProcessing solutions. To promote faster adoption and time to market for its customers, InvenSense provides application programming interfaces and pre-configured application functionalities, such as gesture recognition, which it refers to as MotionApplication software.

The Company�� technology is comprised of four components: Nasiri-Fabrication process, advanced MEMS gyroscope design, mixed-sig! nal circuitry that provides sensor signal processing and enables SensorFusion technology critical to its MotionProcessing platform, and MotionProcessing library and MotionApplication software solutions. InvenSense�� Nasiri-Fabrication process allows it to combine MEMS with standard complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) at the wafer level. InvenSense utilizes a fabless business model, working with third parties to manufacture, package and assemble its products. It performs its own wafer level sorting, testing and calibration with testing tools at its facilities in Taiwan. It sells its products through direct sales to manufacturers of consumer electronics devices.

The Company competes with Analog Devices, Inc., Robert Bosch GmbH, Epson Toyocom Corporation, Freescale Semiconductor, Inc., Rohm Co., Ltd., Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Panasonic Corporation, Sony Corporation, and STMicroelectronics N.V.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Esekla]

    Like Universal Display, InvenSense (INVN) represents a good long-term opportunity in its own right. The price entry point is not quite as good, though it has pulled back under my more recent price target of $15, when reports of a long-awaited Apple design win were challenged. Though conversations between the two are ongoing, InvenSense management's comments indicate an unwillingness to get roped into wrecking margin for volume, like many other Apple suppliers. Consequently, I don't believe they will gain Apple as a customer until the release of an iWatch or similar device that absolutely requires InvenSense's best-in-class form factors and power usage. It's also possible that continued good news on their legal battles with ST Micro (STM) could move the stock.

  • [By Eric Volkman]

    InvenSense (NYSE: INVN  ) results for the company's Q4 and fiscal 2013 have been released. For the quarter, revenue was just over $55 million, up by 67% from the $33 million in the same period the previous year. Net income advanced almost three-fold on a year-over-year basis, to land at $13.6 million ($0.15 per diluted share), from Q4 2012's $5.9 million ($0.07).

Top Rising Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Lam Research Corporation(LRCX)

Lam Research Corporation designs, manufactures, markets, refurbishes, and services semiconductor processing equipments used in the fabrication of integrated circuits. The company offers etch products that remove portions of various films from the wafer in the creation of semiconductor devices. Its etch products include dielectric etch, conductor etch, three-dimensional integrated circuit etch, MEMS devices, CMOS image sensors, and power devices for etching process. Lam Research Corporation also provides wafer cleaning steps that comprise post-etch and post-strip cleans, and pre-diffusion and pre-deposition cleans; and single-wafer wet clean and plasma-based bevel clean systems. The company offers its products to semiconductor manufacturers. It operates in the United States, Europe, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, and the Asia Pacific. Lam Research Corporation was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Fremont, California.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Sam Collins]

    Lam Research (LRCX) — This is one of the leading manufacturers of etch products, used to etch away portions of films to create integrated circuits (IC).

  • [By Brian Stoffel]

    3. Lam Research (NASDAQ: LRCX  ) , P/E of 166
    Lam's core business is in making equipment that helps to manufacture computer chips. The company trades at a lofty 166 times earnings right now, but if Lam is able to meet analyst expectations for 2013, today's price is just 12 times expected earnings.

  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    Companies that could benefit from a pickup in capital spending include Akamai Technologies (AKAM) and priceline.com (PCLN), which have the highest sensitivity to “non-residential fixed investment in Intellectual Property Products,” Frontier Communications (FTR) and Lam Research (LRCX), which have the highest sales sensitivity to non-residential fixed investment in Equipment,” and Transocean (RIG), which is among the companies with a high exposure to “non-residential fixed investment in Structures.”

  • [By Ben Axler]

    In addition, the company announced in December 2012 that it entered a strategic collaboration agreement on ion implant, dry-strip, etch processes, and photoresist strip applications, including material modification implants and high-dose implant strip (HDIS) with Lam Research (LRCX). Lam also agreed to acquire ACLS's dry strip intellectual property and technology for $10.7m ($8.7m received immediately, and $2.0m based on milestones). ACLS will indefinitely retain the entire service and support contracts of its dry strip installed base. In addition to the immediate financial benefits, ACLS benefits from a partnership with Lam by getting better visibility into end customer problems, and the ability to expand addressable market opportunities.

Top Rising Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Xilinx Inc (XLNX)

Xilinx, Inc. (Xilinx), incorporated on February 5, 1984, designs, develops and markets programmable platforms. These programmable platforms have a number of components, including integrated circuits (ICs) in the form of programmable logic devices (PLDs), including Extensible Processing Platforms (EPPs); software design tools to program the PLDs; targeted reference designs; printed circuit boards, and intellectual property (IP), which consists of Xilinx and various third-party verification and IP cores. In addition to its programmable platforms, Xilinx provides design services, customer training, field engineering and technical support. The Company�� PLDs include field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs) that its customers program to perform logic functions, and EPPs. Xilinx�� products are offered to electronic equipment manufacturers in end markets, such as wired and wireless communications, industrial, scientific and medical, aerospace and defense, audio, video and broadcast, consumer, automotive and data processing. The Company sells its products globally through independent domestic and foreign distributors and through direct sales to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) by a network of independent sales representative firms and by a direct sales management organization. In January 2011, the Company acquired AutoESL Design Technologies, Inc. In August 2012, the Company acquired embedded Linux solutions provider PetaLogix.

Product Families

The 7 series devices that comprise the Company�� 28-nanometer (nm) product families are fabricated on a high-K metal gate 28-nm process technology. These devices are based on an architecture, which enables design and IP portability and re-use across all families, as well as provides designers the ability to achieve the appropriate combination of I/O support, performance, feature quantities, packaging and power consumption to address a range of applications. The 7 series devices consist of! three families: Virtex-7 FPGA, Kintex-7 FPGAs and Artix-7 FPGAs. The Zynq-7000 family is the family of Xilinx EPPs. The Virtex-6 FPGA family consists of 13 devices and is the sixth generation in the Virtex series of FPGAs.

Virtex-6 FPGAs are fabricated on a high-performance, 40-nm process technology. There are three Virtex-6 families: Virtex-6 LXT FPGAs, Virtex-6 SXT FPGAs and Virtex-6 HXT FPGAs. The Spartan-6 family is the PLD industry�� 45-nm high-volume FPGA family, consisting of 11 devices in two product families: Spartan-6 LX FPGAs and Spartan-6 LXT FPGAs. The Virtex-5 FPGA family consists of 26 devices in five product families: Virtex-5 LX FPGAs for logic-intensive designs, Virtex-5 LXT FPGAs for high-performance logic with serial connectivity, Virtex-5 SXT FPGAs for high-performance DSP with serial connectivity, Virtex-5 FXT FPGAs for embedded processing with serial connectivity and Virtex-5 TXT FPGAs for high-bandwidth serial connectivity. Prior generation Virtex families include Virtex-4, Virtex-II Pro, Virtex-II, Virtex-E and the original Virtex family. Spartan family FPGAs include 90-nm Spartan-3 FPGAs, the Spartan-3E family and the Spartan-3A family. Prior generation Spartan families include Spartan-IIE, Spartan-II, Spartan XL and the original Spartan family.

Design Platforms and Services

The Company offers three types of programmable platforms. The Base Platform is the delivery vehicle for all of its new silicon offerings used to develop and run customer-specific software applications and hardware designs. The Base Platform consists of FPGA silicon; Integrated Software Environment (ISE) Design Suite design environment; integration support of optional third-party synthesis, simulation, and signal integrity tools; reference designs; development boards and IP. The Domain-Specific Platform targets one of the three primary Xilinx FPGA user profiles: the embedded processing developer; the DSP developer; or the logic/connectivity developer. The Market-S! pecific P! latform enables software or hardware developers to build and run their specific application or solution. Built for specific markets, such as automotive, consumer, aerospace and defense, communications, audio, video and broadcast, industrial, or scientific and medical, the Market-Specific Platform integrates both the Base and Domain-Specific Platforms.

During April 2012, Xilinx introduced the Vivado Design Suite. Vivado supports Xilinx 7 series FPGAs and Zynq EPPs. Xilinx and various third parties offer hundreds of no charge and fee-bearing IP core licenses covering Ethernet, memory controllers Interlaken and PCIe interface, as well as domain-specific IP in the areas of embedded, DSP and connectivity, and market-specific IP cores. The Company also offers development kits, including hardware, design tools, IP and reference designs. Xilinx offers a range of configuration products, including one-time programmable and in-system programmable storage devices to configure Xilinx FPGAs. These programmable read-only memory (PROM) products support all of the Company�� FPGA devices. Xilinx and certain third parties have developed and offer a ecosystem of IP, boards, tools, services and support through the Xilinx alliance program. Xilinx also works with these third parties to promote its programmable platforms through third-party tools, IP, software, boards and design services. Xilinx engineering services provide customers with engineering, ranging from hands-on training to full design creation and implementation.

The Company competes with Altera Corporation, Lattice Semiconductor Corporation and Microsemi Corporation.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Beth Piskora]

    They are listed below:

    Altera (ALTR)��ielding 1.7%

    Apple (AAPL)��ielding 2.5%

    Applied Materials (AMAT)��ielding 2.6%

    Cisco (CSCO)��ielding 2.9%

    EMC Corp. (EMC)��ielding 1.5%

    International Business Machines (IBM)��ielding 2.0%

    KLA-Tencor (KLAC)��ielding 3.2%

    Microchip Technology (MCHP)��ielding 3.6%

    Oracle (ORCL)��ielding 1.5%

    Qualcomm (QCOM)��ielding 2.1%

    Texas Instruments (TXN)��ielding 2.9%

    Xilinx (XLNX)��ielding 2.3%

    Subscribe to S&P's The Outlook here��/P>

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

    Xilinx Inc.(XLNX) reported that revenue rose 5.8% in its fiscal first quarter, but it missed expectations as the chip maker was hit by weaker-than-anticipated sales in its defense and wireless businesses. Shares fell 13% to $41.90 premarket.

  • [By ovenerio]

    In this article, let's take a look at Xilinx Inc. (XLNX), a $11.04 billion market cap company, which is one of the world's leading suppliers of programmable logic chips and related development system software.

  • [By Matt Egan]

    It's also been an ugly day for chip maker Xilinx (XLNX). The company's shares plummeted 16% on disappointing revenue and a gloomy outlook for the current quarter.

Top Rising Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Golden Valley Bank (GVYB)

Golden Valley Bank is owned and operated commercial bank serving the needs of individuals and businesses in northern California. The Bank provides personal services, such as checking and savings and IRAs. The Bank�� business includes checking, savings, commercial lending, online banking and eDeposit.

The Bank provides business owners; commercial developers and investors, and residential builders and developers. Golden Valley Bank's business online banking service provides account management, bill pay and transactions services.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By CRWE]

    Today, GVYB remains (0.00%) +0.000 at $9.00 thus far (ref. google finance Delayed: 11:59AM EDT July 17, 2013).

    Golden Valley Bank headquartered in Chico, California previously reported June 30, 2013 financials. The company also announced their $.05 per share second quarter cash dividend.

    2nd Quarter 2013 Financial Highlights: Year to date net profit $683,911 compared to $514,030 year to date in 2012; Assets up $14.9 million to $136.7 million, or 12.2%, over the second quarter of 2012; Loans up $6.2 million to $89.5 million, or 7.4%, over the second quarter of 2012; Deposits up $14.6 million to $118.6 million, or 14%, over the second quarter of 2012

    The results of the Gravity Survey will be released once they are available

Monday, February 16, 2015

Top Managed Healthcare Stocks To Own Right Now

Top Managed Healthcare Stocks To Own Right Now: Xerox Corporation(XRX)

Xerox Corporation provides business process and information technology (IT) outsourcing, and document management services worldwide. Its business process outsourcing services include human resources services; finance and accounting services; healthcare payers and pharma; customer management solutions; healthcare provider solutions; technology-based transactional services for retail, travel, and non-healthcare insurance companies; programs for federal, state, county, and town governments; transportation solutions; and government healthcare solutions. The company is involved in designing, developing, and delivering IT solutions, such as comprehensive systems support, systems administration, database administration, systems monitoring, batch processing, data backup, and capacity planning services; telecommunications management services; and desktop services. Its document outsourcing services comprise managed print services that optimize, rationalize, and manage the operation of Xerox and non-Xerox print devices; and communication and marketing services that deliver design, communication, marketing, logistic, and distribution services through SMS, Web, email, and mobile, as well as print media. The company also manufactures and sells products, including desktop monochrome, color and compact printers, multifunction printers, copiers, digital printing presses, and light production devices for small/mid-size businesses and large enterprises. In addition, it sells paper, wide-format systems, network integration solutions, and electronic presentation systems. The company sells its products and solutions through its sales force, as well as through a network of independent agents, dealers, value-added resellers, systems integrators, and the Web. Xerox Corporation was founded in 1906 and is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Sean Williams]

    This week's loser
    On the fl! ipside, information technology and print services specialist Xerox (NYSE: XRX  ) tumbled 6.2% on the week after reporting uninspiring first-quarter earnings results. For the quarter, Xerox delivered $5.36 billion in total revenue and an adjusted profit of $0.27. Profits topped expectations by $0.03; however, revenue was $130 million shy of expectations. Xerox saw sales at its document technology segment fall 9%, while service revenue jumped 4%. As Xerox continues to transition toward a service-based model, these sales fluctuations will lessen dramatically. As a big catalyst, I'll be looking for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to drastically boost its Medicare processing business next year in California.

  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    Shares of Iron Mountain have fallen 2.3% to $25.72 today, while comparable have been mixed. Leidos Holdings (LDOS) has ticked up 0.6% to $46.28 and Amdocs (DOX) has risen 0.8% to $37.20. Maximus (MMS), on the other hand, has fallen 1.2% to $46.22 and Xerox (XRX) is off 0.3% to $10.62.

  • source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.seekpennystocks.com/top-managed-healthcare-stocks-to-own-right-now-3.html

Top 5 Healthcare Equipment Stocks To Watch For 2015

Top 5 Healthcare Equipment Stocks To Watch For 2015: Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd (KWHIY)

Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd (KHI), incorporated on October 15, 1896, is a global manufacturer of transportation equipment and industrial goods. KHI manufactures ships, rolling stock, aircraft and jet engines, gas turbine power generators, environmental and industrial plants, and range of manufacturing equipment and systems. KHI also produces consumer products, such as Kawasaki-brand motorcycles and personal watercraft. KHIs business is divided into seven operations: shipbuilding, rolling stock and construction machinery, aerospace, gas turbines and machinery, plant and infrastructure engineering, consumer products and machinery, and hydraulic machinery.

Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation, which is the company of this segment, is engaged in building gas carriers and submarines, which require advanced design and construction technologies. It offers

a range of liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, extending from small carriers with cargo tank capacitie s of 19,000 cubic meters to large carriers with capacities of 177,000 cubic meters. It also developed and offered in its lineup a pressure build-up type LNG carrier for short distance and small-volume transportation. The Companys shipbuilding operations include products, such as LNG carriers, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers, container ships, very large crude carriers (VLCCs) and other types of tankers, bulk carriers, high speed vessels, submarines, maritime application equipment.

KHIs rolling stock production systems are located in Hyogo and Harima in Japan and in Lincoln, Nebraska, and Yonkers, New York, in United States. Kawasaki completed its light rail vehicle (LRV), dubbed SWIMO. It also is developing efSET (Environmentally Friendly Super Express Train) which achieves a service speed of 350 kilometers per hour (km/h). Regarding the construction machinery business, Kawasaki has arranged a business alliance with! Hitachi Construction Machinery Co ., Ltd., and TCM Corporation. As of April 1, 2009, the Company split off its construction machinery business as a wholly owned subsidiary of KHI, KCM Corporation.

KHI is the prime contractor for the development of the MODs large-scale XP-1 and C-X aircraft. In the commercial aircraft field, KHI delivered a test model of Boeings 787 Dreamliner passenger aircraft. KHI is a partner corporation in the development and production of the 787 Dreamliner.

The Gas Turbines & Machinery segment has a range of products for the energy and transportation equipment field. KHI focuses to expand its global business by offering solutions for its customers that include a lineup of in-house developed gas turbines together with product support and maintenance. During the year ended December 31, 2008, the 8MW-class power-generating capacity Kawasaki Green Gas Engine had 4,000 hours of operational testing.

The plant and infrastructure engineering segm ent encompasses the operations of Kawasaki Plant Systems, Ltd. (K Plant), which undertakes projects to supply energy-related, industrial infrastructure, environmental preservation systems and equipment, and the operations of the parent companys Industrial Facilities and Tunneling Equipment Division, which mainly focuses on LNG tanks and diverse other storage tanks along with shield machines and tunnel-boring machines. The Anhui Conch Kawasaki Energy Conservation Equipment Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (CKM) is engaged in the manufacturing of PH boiler parts that are employed in waste heat power plants. CKM has commenced the manufacturing and sales of environmental preservation related products, including cement plant components, such as vertical mills, boilers for waste heat recovery power generation systems, and waste gasification systems and sewage treatment systems that can be integrated with cement kilns to enable municipal waste recycling.

The consumer product s and machinery segment inclu! des the m! anufacture of motorcycles, all terrain vehicles (ATVs), utility vehicles, personal watercraft, general purpose gasoline engines and industrial robots. In the motorcycle line, Kawasaki launched the ZRX1200 DAEG and the Ninja ZX-6R. In the cruiser segment, Kawasaki launched its Vulcan 1700 series with developed engine and chassis. This series includes the Vulcan 1700 Voyager, a full-dress V-twin engine tourer with a load of long-distance touring equipment. In the utility vehicle category, KHI equipped the Teryx 750 series with an electronic fuel injection system, mainly for recreational use. The MULE utility-oriented vehicle series was restyled with the launch of the MULE 4010 series.

The hydraulic machinery operations include Kawasaki Precision Machinery Ltd. (KPM). It has five manufacturing and marketing facilities, which comprises KPMs headquarters plant and the facilities

of Kawasaki Precision Machinery (U.K.) Li mited; Kawasaki Precision Machinery (U.S.A.), Inc.; China based Kawasaki Precision Machinery (Suzhou) Ltd.; and Korea-based Flutek, Ltd.

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

    LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Japanese stocks have ended with losses in every session this week, and sure enough, the Nikkei Average (JP:NIK) was down 0.6% in early Friday trade, though off an opening 0.8% defecit, while the Topix carried a 0.7% loss. Overnight losses for the U.S. and further strength in the yen (with the dollar falling to 楼101.28 from 楼101.56 a day earlier) helped drag the market lower, as did results from Fast Retailing Co. (JP:9983) (FRCOF) , the shares of which hold the heaviest weighting on Nikkei Average. Fast Retailing said that while its Uniqlo brand was doing great business, weakness for its J Brand luxury demin label helped send September-May profit down 4% and promp! ted anoth! er cut to Fast's full-year outlook. Consequently, its shares traded 0.7% lower, though rivals Takashimaya Co. (JP:8233) and J. Front Retailing Co. (JP:3086) (JFROF) also saw losses of 0.6% and 0.5%, respectively. Among other decliners, Sony Corp. (JP:6758) (SNE) lost 0.7%, Toshiba Corp. (JP:6502) (TOSYY) fell 2.1%, Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. (JP:7012) (KWHIY) fell 1.5%, Toyota Motor Corp. (JP:7203) (TM) and Nissan Motor Co. (JP:7201)

  • source from Top Stocks To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/top-5-healthcare-equipment-stocks-to-watch-for-2015.html

Friday, February 13, 2015

Top Food Companies To Watch For 2014

Last week, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke acknowledged that as economic conditions improved, he'd start tapering his bond-buying stimulus program. Markets tumbled on the news, but it was a wonderful gift from the Fed Chairman to patient investors looking to pick up companies at reasonable prices.

For the real-money Inflation-Protected Income Growth portfolio, it meant that the long-standing limit order to buy energy pipeline giant Kinder Morgan (NYSE: KMI  ) below $36 finally triggered on Friday. That purchase means that the original $30,000 invested in the iPIG portfolio has now been completely allocated to stocks. With all that cash allocated, the next test is whether the companies in the portfolio will continue their strings of paying and raising their dividends.

Speaking of dividends
Of the previously existing holdings in the portfolio, two paid their dividends last week: fast-food giant McDonald's (NYSE: MCD  ) and electricity generator NV Energy (NYSE: NVE  ) . McDonald's $0.77 per share added $12.32 to the iPIG portfolio's coffers and was the company's third consecutive quarterly dividend at that rate. NV Energy's $0.19 per share handed $15.96 to the iPIG portfolio and was the second quarterly payout at that level.

10 Best European Stocks To Own For 2015: Ingredion Inc (INGR)

Ingredion Incorporated (Ingredion), formerly Corn Products International, Inc., incorporated on March 27, 1997, is a global manufacturer and supplier of starch and sweetener ingredients to a range of industries, including packaged food, beverage, brewing and industrial customers. The Company's product line includes starches and sweeteners, animal feed products and edible corn oil.

The Company's starch-based products include both food-grade and industrial starches. The Company's sweetener products include glucose syrups, high maltose syrups, high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), caramel color, dextrose, polyols, maltodextrins and glucose and syrup solids. The Company's products are derived primarily from the processing of corn and other starch-based materials, such as tapioca, potato and rice.

Sweetener Products

The Company's sweetener products represented approximately 44% of the Company's net sales for the year ended December 31, 2012. Glucose syrups are fundamental ingredients used in food products, such as baked goods, snack foods, beverages, canned fruits, condiments, candy and other sweets, dairy products, ice cream, jams and jellies, prepared mixes and table syrups. Glucose syrups offer functionality in addition to sweetness to processed foods. High Maltose Syrup is special type of glucose syrup, which is primarily used as a fermentable sugar in brewing beers. High maltose syrups are also used in the production of confections, canning and some other food processing applications. The Company's high maltose syrups actually speeds the fermentation process, allowing brewers to increase capacity without adding capital.

High fructose corn syrup is used in a variety of consumer products, including soft drinks, fruit-flavored beverages, baked goods, dairy products, confections and other food and beverage products. In addition to sweetness and ease of use, high fructose corn syrup provides body,humectancy and aids in browning, freezing point and crystalliza! tion control.

Dextrose has a range of applications in the food and confection industries, in solutions for intravenous and other pharmaceutical applications, and numerous industrial applications like wallboard, biodegradable surface agents and moisture control agents. Dextrose functionality in foods, beverages and confectionary includes sweetness control; body and viscosity; acts as a bulking, drying and anti-caking agent; serves as a carrier; provides freezing point and crystallization control; and aids in fermentation. Dextrose is also a fermentation agent in the production of light beer. In pharmaceutical applications dextrose is used in IV solutions as well as an excipient suitable for direct compression in tableting.

Polyols products are sugar-free, reduced calorie sweeteners primarily derived from starch or sugar for the food, beverage, confectionery, industrial, personal and oral care, and nutritional supplement markets. In addition to sweetness, polyols inhibit crystallization; provide binding, humectancy and plasticity; add texture; extend shelf life; prevent moisture migration, and are an excipient suitable for tableting.

Maltodextrins and Glucose Syrup Solids products have a multitude of food applications, including formulations where liquid syrups cannot be used. Maltodextrins are resistant to browning, provide solubility, have a low hydroscopicity (do not retain moisture), and are ideal for their carrier/bulking properties. Glucose syrup solids have a bland flavor, remain clear in solution are easy to handle and provide bulking properties.

Starch Products

The Company's starch products represented approximately 37 % of the Company's net sales for 2012. Starches are an important component in a range of processed foods, where they are used for adhesions, clouding, dusting, expansion, fat replacement, freshness, gelling, glazing, mouth feel, stabilization and texture. Starches are also used in paper production to create a smooth s! urface fo! r printed communications and to improve strength in recycled papers. Specialty starches are used for enhanced drainage, fiber retention, oil and grease resistance, improved printability and biochemical oxygen demand control. Industrial starches are used in the production of construction materials, textiles, adhesives, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, as well as in mining, water filtration and oil and gas drilling. Specialty starches are used for biomaterial applications including biodegradable plastics, fabric softeners and detergents, hair and skin care applications, dusting powders for surgical gloves and in the production of glass fiber and insulation.

Co-Products and others

Co-products and others accounted for 19% of the Company's net sales for 2012. Refined corn oil (from germ) is sold to packers of cooking oil and to producers of margarine, salad dressings, shortening, mayonnaise and other foods. Corn gluten feed is sold as animal feed. Corn gluten meal is sold as high protein feed for chickens, pet food and aquaculture.

The Company competes with ADM Corn Processing Division (ADM), Cargill, Inc. and Tate & Lyle Ingredients Americas, Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Jeremy Bowman]

    What: Shares of Ingredion (NYSE: INGR  ) were down as much as 10% today after the ingredient seller cut its full-year and current-quarter EPS forecast.

Top Food Companies To Watch For 2014: Unilever NV (UNA)

Unilever N.V. (NV) is a supplier of fast moving consumer goods. The two parent companies, NV and Unilever PLC (PLC), together with their group companies, operate as the Unilever Group (Unilever). The Company�� four product areas are Personal Care, Foods, Refreshment and Home Care. The Company's personal care, which includes sales of skincare and haircare products, deodorants and oral care products; foods, which includes sales of soups, bouillons, sauces, snacks, mayonnaise, salad dressings, margarines and spreads; refreshment, which includes sales of ice cream, tea-based beverages, weight-management products and nutritionally enhanced staples sold in developing markets and home care, which includes sales of home care products, such as laundry tablets, powders and liquids, soap bars and a range of cleaning products. Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Inyoung Hwang]

    Unilever (UNA) slipped 2.8 percent to 27.94 euros after saying sales growth slowed as trading in emerging markets deteriorated at a faster rate. Underlying group sales for the three months will rise 3 percent to 3.5 percent, the maker of Lipton tea and Dove soap said late yesterday in a statement. That compares with 5 percent growth in both the first half and second quarter.

  • [By Adi Narayan]

    Unilever (UNA) fell short on its public offer to raise its majority holding in Hindustan Unilever Ltd. (HUVR) to 75 percent, ending up with about a two-thirds stake after some shareholders of the Mumbai-based company opted not to sell.

Top Food Companies To Watch For 2014: 1-800 FLOWERS.COM Inc.(FLWS)

1-800-Flowers.com, Inc. together with its subsidiaries, operates as a florist and gift retailer in the United States. The company offers a range of products, including fresh-cut flowers, floral arrangements and plants, gifts, popcorn, gourmet foods and gift baskets, cookies, chocolates, candy, and wine through its telephonic and online sales channels, company-owned and operated retail floral stores, and franchised stores. It provides gourmet gifts, such as popcorn and specialty treats through thepopcornfactory.com; cookies and baked gifts through cheryls.com; chocolates and confections through fanniemay.com and harrylondon.com; gift baskets and towers through 1800baskets.com; Celebrations brand party ideas and planning tips through celebrations.com; and customizable invitations, announcements, and greeting cards through finestationery.com. As of July 3, 2011, the company operated 2 floral retail stores, 1 fulfillment center, and approximately 100 franchised stores located within the United States. It has strategic online relationships with Facebook, Google, AOL, Yahoo!, and Microsoft. The company was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Carle Place, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [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 1-800-Flowers.com (Nasdaq: FLWS  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

  • [By Garrett Cook]

    Toward the end of trading Friday, the Dow traded down 0.60 percent to 16,947.43 while the NASDAQ declined 0.75 percent to 4,557.59. The S&P also fell, dropping 0.83 percent to 1,980.97.

    Leading and Lagging Sectors Cyclical consumer goods & services shares fell by just 0.50 percent in trading on Friday. Top gainers in the sector included ULTA Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance NASDAQ: (ULTA), up 17.5 percent, and 1-800-Flowers.com (NASDAQ: FLWS), up 4.5 percent. In trading on Friday, utilities shares were relative laggards, down on the day by about 1.89 percent. Meanwhile, top decliners in the sector included Companhia Energética de Minas Gerais - CEMIG (NYSE: CIG), down 4.7 percent, and CPFL Energia SA (NYSE: CPL), off 4.3 percent. Top Headline Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI) reported better-than-expected fiscal first quarter earnings. The Orlando, Florida-based company reported a quarterly loss of $19.3 million, or $0.14 per share, versus a year-ago profit of $42.2 million, or $0.32 per share. Excluding non-recurring items, the company earned $0.32 per share. Its sales surged to $1.6 billion versus $1.53 billion. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $0.30 per share on revenue of $1.6 billion. Equities Trading UP Conversant (NASDAQ: CNVR) shares shot up 30.25 percent to $34.79 after Alliance Data Systems (NYSE: ADS) announced its plans to buy Conversant for $35 per share. Shares of ULTA Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance (NASDAQ: ULTA) got a boost, shooting up 17.69 percent to $114.72 after the company reported upbeat second-quarter results and raised its outlook. The company also unveiled a five-year plan for impressive growth. Sportsman's Warehouse Holdings (NASDAQ: SPWH) shares were also up, gaining 15.89 percent to $7.00 after the company reported stronger-than-expected fiscal second-quarter results. Equities Trading DOWN Shares of Ruckus Wireless (NASDAQ: RKUS) were down 5.19 percent to $14.35. Buckingham

Top Food Companies To Watch For 2014: Sprouts Farmers Market Inc (SFM)

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (Sprouts), incorporated on January 27, 2011, is a specialty retailer of natural and organic food focusing on health and wellness. The Company offers fresh produce, bulk foods, vitamins and supplements, grocery, meat and seafood, bakery, dairy, frozen foods, body care and natural household items. The Company�� product offerings focus on fresh, natural and organic foods. Natural foods can be defined as foods that are minimally processed and are free of synthetic preservatives, artificial sweeteners, colors, flavors and other additives, growth hormones, antibiotics, hydrogenated oils, stabilizers and emulsifiers. The Company categorize the over 7,000 range of products, it sells as perishable and non-perishable. Perishable product categories include produce, meat, seafood, deli and bakery. Non-perishable product categories include grocery, vitamins and supplements, bulk items, dairy and dairy alternatives, frozen foods, beer and wine, and natural health and body care.

The cornerstones of the Company�� business are fresh, natural and organic products. As of July 19, 2013, the Company opened 87 new stores while rebranding 43 Henry�� and 39 Sunflower stores to the Sprouts banner. The Company�� stores include Produce, Bulk Items, Vitamins and Supplements, Grocery, Meat, Seafood, Deli, Bakery, Dairy and Dairy Alternatives, Frozen Foods, Beer and Wine and Natural Health and Body Care.The Company offer its customers a farmers market open-feel environment consisting of an abundant and affordable offering of fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs, focused on appearance, flavor and value. The Company�� stores include a crafted selection of more than 450 ranges of scoopable nuts, fruits, trail mixes, grains, beans, cereals, coffee, tea, spices, candy and snacks featured in the center of the store. The Company�� stores feature more than 4,200 vitamins, supplements, natural remedies, functional food, lifestyle support, and herbal supplements. This department includes ! an extensive private label offering.

The Company�� grocery offering focuses on healthy options. The Company carries approximately 4,200 natural and organic products in its grocery aisles, including meal components, natural sodas and other beverages, snacks and bars, baking goods, baby, pet and household items such as detergent and paper towels, and earth-friendly mercantile items. The Company�� Olde Tyme Butcher Shops combine sourcing through its trusted supplier network, product variety and old-fashioned customer service. The Company offers a range of seafood favorites delivered up to six days a week. The Conpany feature a range of fresh deli specialties, including sliced deli meat, salads, dips, entrees, side dishes, fresh made to order sandwiches at value prices and an abundant selection of over 200 varieties of cheeses from around the world.

The Company��bakery offering includes artisan bread alongside a wide assortment of sandwich breads, rolls, tortillas, pitas, muffins, cookies and pies as well as sugar free, gluten free and low carbohydrate products. The Company�� dairy department features a selection of organic, natural and regionally sourced milk, yogurt (including Greek, Australian, organic, and soy-based), butter and eggs, as well as a full selection of vegan and vegetarian alternative dairy products. The Company�� freezer cases feature traditional and ethnic natural and organic entrees and side dishes, along with frozen vegetables, desserts and specialty items, such as gluten-free breads and non-dairy ice creams. The Company offers approximately 2,400 natural, cruelty-free health and beauty products, old-fashioned remedies and modern body care innovations, including facial care products and make up, skin, hair, dental, baby care and grooming products.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Rich Duprey]

    Struggling to combat inroads that new entrants such as Sprouts Farmers Market� (NASDAQ: SFM  ) �are making on its turf, Whole Foods saw its same-store sales rise less than 6% in the organic grocer's fourth quarter, its slowest rate in nearly four years. In contrast, Sprouts saw pro forma comps surge 10% year over year, leading to a 24% increase in total sales from the year-ago period.

  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    Surprisingly, our AlphaWise survey showed that consumers��interest in online ordering (either to be picked-up at store, or delivered to home) is very low…only 12% of consumers surveyed said they would be ‘very likely’ to order groceries online in the next 6 months if the offering were available. This reflects the fact that consumers like to see and choose the food they��e purchasing, especially perishables. We believe this dynamic largely insulates traditional food retailers (both conventional like Kroger, and specialty like Whole Foods Market and Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM)) from online competition.

  • [By Charles Sizemore]

    All of this points to a rosy picture for premium grocery chains. Yet the stock performancee paint a very different picture. Compare the performance of publicly traded premium grocers — Whole Foods, Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM), The Fresh Market (TFM), and Fairway Group Holdings (FWM) — against that of the ultimate common-man�� grocer, Walmart. Since last October, Walmart is the only grocer stock that hasn�� seen substantial declines. What gives? I have one word for you: valuation.

Top Food Companies To Watch For 2014: KBB Resources Bhd (KBB)

KBB Resources Berhad is an investment holding company. The Company is engaged in manufacturing and marketing of all types of rice and sago sticks (vermicelli), sago starch and related products. The Company�� product includes Rice Vermicelli, Instant Noodle, Instant Bihun, Laksa and Sago. The Company�� subsidiaries include Kilang Bihun Bersatu Sdn Bhd, which is engaged in Manufacturing and marketing of all types of rice and sago sticks (vermicelli); Rasayang Food Industries Sdn Bhd, which is engaged in manufacturing and trading of beehoon and beehoon laksa; Bersatu Noodles Industries Sdn Bhd, which is engaged in manufacturing and trading of noodles and related products, and Bersatu Biotechnology (Johore) Sdn Bhd, which is engaged in manufacturing and marketing of all types of sago starch and related products. Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Neha Marwah]

    LMC Automotive expects the annualized rate to be 16.1 million, the best in six years. This is a decent improvement from last year�� November, when the industry reported 15.3 million as the adjusted annualized rate. In comparison, Kelley Blue Book (KBB) expects the November 2013 SAAR to be around 15.6 million, while Edmunds.com estimates it to be 15.7 million.