Top Food Companies To Buy For 2014

A recent survey found that Americans visit fast-food restaurants a lot. In fact, they comprise many of the most frequently visited businesses in the nation. Which restaurants do we visit most often and what are reasons they top the list?�

Tasty prospects
The recently released Placed survey found that more than half of the top 10 most-visited U.S. businesses were quick-service restaurants, indicating we're a ravenous and time-starved society.

The study found that�McDonald's (NYSE: MCD  ) is the single most frequented business in the U.S., despite the company's same-store sales declines since early last year. The fast-food giant is scaling back its bloated menu, which has expanded by 70% since 2007 to roughly 145 items. Menu bloat has led to slower operations, tarnishing customer service. The company has more singularly focused on the value-conscious consumer, but the drive toward this consumer has hurt McDonald's. The Golden Arches saw weak earnings growth in the most recent quarter, due to sacrificing profit margins by focusing on value menus to avoid losing customers.

Hot China Stocks To Invest In 2015: SAP AG(SAP)

SAP AG provides business software primarily in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas, and the Asia Pacific Japan region. The company?s products includes SAP Business Suite software, which supports large organizations in their core business operations, such as supplier relationship, production, warehouse management, sales, administration, and customer relationship; SAP Business All-in-One, a business management software that assists midsize companies in managing various business functions, including financials, human resources, procurement, inventory, manufacturing, logistics, product development, sales, and marketing; SAP Business One, a business management application for small businesses; and SAP Business ByDesign, an on-demand solution for integrated business management applications. Its products also comprises SAP BusinessObjects Edge business intelligence and enterprise performance management solutions; Xcelsius, a data visualization software; Crystal Reports, which helps users design interactive reports; Sybase IQ, an optimized analytics server designed to deliver results for business intelligence, analytics, data warehousing, and reporting solutions; SAP solutions for sustainability; and SAP NetWeaver technology platform, which integrates information and business processes across various technologies and organizational structures. In addition, the company offers industry and solution-focused, business transformation, information technology transformation, custom development, and support services; and program, project management, quality assurance, and education and certification services. It sells its products through its subsidiaries and resellers. SAP AG has a strategic relationship with Cap Gemini S.A. to develop and deploy enterprise mobility solutions. The company was formerly known as SAP Aktiengesellschaft Systeme, Anwendungen, Produkte in der Datenverarbeitung. SAP AG was founded in 1972 and is headquartered in Walldorf , Germany.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By James Miller Phd]

  Bullish analysts think Salesforce is leader in the on-demand delivery of CRM software, and providing its services in the public cloud will attract more customers as the cheaper cost and more mature product poses strong competition to Oracle�� and SAP AG (SAP)�� products. However, many customers are reluctant to put all of their information in the public cloud due to security and compliance concerns, making more attractive the hybrid cloud solutions. Keep watching how business develops in the technological field as well as the new Asia-Pacific expansion driven by the increased business Japanese segment.

Top Food Companies To Buy For 2014: Chiquita Brands International Inc. (CQB)

Chiquita Brands International, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the distribution and marketing of bananas and fresh produce under the Chiquita and other brand names worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Bananas, Salads and Healthy Snacks, and Other Produce. The Banana segment sources, transports, markets, and distributes bananas to retailers and wholesalers, and chain stores. It also engages in the cultivation and production of bananas. The Salads and Healthy Snacks segment offers value-added salads under the Fresh Express and other labels; and fresh vegetable and fruit ingredients used in foodservice, healthy snacks, and processed fruit ingredient products. This segment also provides fresh-cut products, such as lettuce, tomatoes, spinach, cabbage, and onions to foodservice distributors who resell these products to foodservice operators. It distributes Fresh Express branded products to food retailers, foodservice distributors, and quick-service restaurants; and fresh produce foodservice offerings primarily to third-party distributors for resale principally to quick-service restaurants in the United States. The Other Produce segment engages in sourcing, marketing, and distributing fresh fruits and vegetables other than bananas in Europe and North America. It offers grapes, pineapples, melons, kiwis, tomatoes, and avocados. The company was founded in 1899 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

  Charlotte, N.C.-based Chiquita Brands (NYSE: CQB  ) will soon have a new chief financial officer -- and a new chief operating officer, too. Sort of.

• [By Sara Murphy]

  Furthermore, the court's finding does not undermine the use of the ATS in cases of human rights abuses. It just requires a stronger connection to the United States. That means that other ATS cases currently working their way through the legal system, such as Earth Rights International's case against Chiquita (NYSE: CQB  ) for allegedly funding and arming Colombian terrorists, are still on track. That also means that the link from human rights violations to corporate liability remains.

Top Food Companies To Buy 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 Equities Lab]

  The stocks that currently pass the stock screen in order of market cap are Frontier Communications Corp , Crown Media Holdings (CRWN), Vonage Holding (VG), MCG Capital Corp (MCGC), 1-800-FLOWERS.COM (FLWS), MTR Gaming Corporation (MNTG), Alaska Communications (ALSK), and Enzon Pharmaceuticals (ENZN).

Top Food Companies To Buy For 2014: Latteno Food Corp (LATF)

Latteno Food Corp. (Latteno), incorporated on August 24, 1994, is engaged in acquiring, organizing, developing and upgrading companies in the international food and beverage market. Latteno is specializing in the dairy industry and coffee industry. The Company operates through its subsidiary in Brazil. On February 10, 2010 Latteno acquired Global Milk Businesses and Administration of Private Properties Ltda. (Global Milk). Global Milk holds the rights of certain intellectual property of the brand name products manufactured and sold under the brand name Teixeira. In March 2013, the Company acquired Green Cannabis Collective Inc.

Latteno is leasing an instant and roasted coffee factory located in Cruzeiro, Sao-Paulo, which was property the Company previously owned under its BDFC Brasil Alimentos Ltda (BDFC) subsidiary. In addition to the lease, the Company has maintained ownership of four brand names, Samba Cafe, Vivenda, Torino and Brazilian Best, used in the past by Latteno to sell its instant and roasted coffee across the world. The Company engaged the service companies to assist with its operations, such as Log-Frio Ltda, SigaSolutions Ltda, Microsiga Ltda and Varistao Transportes Ltda.

The Company competes with Nestle, Companhia Cacique de Cafe Soluvel, Cafe Soluvel Brasilia and Companhia lguacu de Cafe Soluvel.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By James E. Brumley]

  What do you get when you cross a Coffee Holding Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:JVA) with a Medical Marijuana Inc. (OTCMKTS:MJNA) and a Kraft Foods Group Inc. (NASDAQ:KRFT)? No, it's not a setup for a punch line - there's a legitimate answer. And that answer is, Latteno Food Corp. (OTCMKTS:LATF).

Top Food Companies To Buy For 2014: Suedzucker Mannheim Ochsenfurt AG (SZU)

Suedzucker Mannheim Ochsenfurt AG is a Germany-based company engaged in the processing of agricultural raw materials. The Company is organized, along with its subsidiaries, into four segments: the Sugar segment comprises sugar production and the agricultural division; the Special Products segment includes the activities of four divisions: BENEO, which produces and sells ingredients made from natural raw materials for food products and animal feed; the Freiberger Group is a producer of chilled and frozen pizzas, frozen pasta dishes and snacks; the PortionPack Europe group specializes in portion packs, and the starch division comprises starch companies in Hungary and Romania, bio-ethanol production in Austria and Hungary, as well as starch production facilities in Austria; the CropEnergies segment includes the bio-ethanol activities of the Company in Germany, Belgium and France, and the Fruit segment comprises the fruit juice preparations and fruit juice concentrates divisions. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jonathan Morgan]

  Volkswagen AG (VOW), Europe�� biggest automaker, climbed 3.7 percent as data showed European car sales increased for the first time in 19 months in April. Suedzucker AG (SZU) dropped to an eight-month low as J&E Davy Holdings Ltd. downgraded the shares.

Top Food Companies To Buy For 2014: Woolworths Ltd (WOW)

Woolworths Limited is an Australia-based company. The Company operates in five segments: Australian Food and Liquor, New Zealand Supermarkets, Petrol, BIG W and Hotels. Australian Food and Liquor segment is engaged in the procurement of food and liquor and products for resale to customers in Australia. New Zealand Supermarkets segment is engaged in the procurement of food and liquor and products for resale to customers in New Zealand. Petrol segment is engaged in the procurement of petroleum products for resale to customers in Australia. BIG W segment is engaged procurement of discount general merchandise products for resale to customers in Australia. Hotels segment is engaged in the provision of leisure and hospitality services, including food and alcohol, accommodation, entertainment and gaming. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jonathan Burgos]

  Woolworths Ltd. (WOW) dropped 1.6 percent to A$33.22 after Australia�� largest retailer said challenging economic condition were evident in the second quarter.

Top 5 Mid Cap Stocks To Own For 2014

Mid cap telco equipment stock Alcatel Lucent SA (NYSE: ALU) is up 205.9% since the start of the year for a much better performance�verses peers or benchmarks like Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) or the iShares North American Tech-Multimedia Networking ETF (NYSEARCA: IGN)���meaning its probably worth taking a closer look at the stock as its been producing plenty of good news for a change.�I should note that we have recently added�Alcatel Lucent SA to our SmallCap Network Elite Opportunity (SCN EO) portfolio as a�technical based trade because we think shares will continue higher on speculation�about an�improved global footprint�for this leading mobile data network provider.

What is Alcatel Lucent SA?

France based Alcatel Lucent SA provides products and innovations in IP and�cloud networking as well as ultra-broadband fixed and wireless access by serving service providers and their customers, as well as enterprises and institutions throughout the world. In addition, Alcatel Lucent SA's Bell Labs is�one of the world�� foremost technology research institutes that is has been�responsible for countless breakthroughs�which have shaped the networking and communications industry.

5 Best Cheap Stocks To Buy For 2015: Brown(n)

N Brown Group plc operates as an Internet and catalogue home shopping company in the United Kingdom. The company principally offers womenswear, menswear, footwear, household, and electrical products, as well as provides insurance services. It also operates in the Republic of Ireland, Germany, and the United States. The company was founded in 1859 and is based in Manchester, the United Kingdom.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tom Taulli]

  OK, so what are some of the cloud companies that look attractive and have good long-term prospects? Well, here�� a look:

  Cloud Companies to Buy: NetSuite (N)

  NetSuite (N) is one of the pioneers among cloud companies (it was founded in the late 1990s). Then again, the company has needed lots of time to build mission-critical software for ERP (enterprise resource planning) requirements. While there is competition — such as Workday (WDAY) — it is still fairly limited. And this will likely remain the case because of complexities of the market.

• [By Rob DeFrancesco]

  Then, another name similar competes is NetSuite (N), which does something similar to Workday, in the same area, but it concentrates on some smaller companies. Workday tends to go after larger enterprises.

Top 5 Mid Cap Stocks To Own For 2014: TRI Pointe Homes Inc (TPH)

Tri Pointe Homes, Inc., formerly TRI Pointe Homes, LLC, incorporated on August 5, 2010, is engaged in the design, construction and sale of single-family homes in planned communities in metropolitan areas located throughout Southern and Northern California. During the year ended December 31, 2012, the Company�� operations consist of 13 communities, eight of which are actively selling, containing 695 lots under various stages of development in Southern and Northern California. In June 2013, TRI Pointe Homes Inc announced that the acquisition of 202 lots in two California locations- Irvine (Orange County) and Vacaville (Solano County).

The Company�� business focused primarily on fee building projects in Southern California, in which it built, marketed and sold homes for independent third-party property owners, marketed under the TRI Pointe Homes brand name. During the year ended December 31, 2012, the Company has sold over 350 homes (including fee building projects).

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Tri Pointe Homes Inc. (NYSE: TPH) has a market cap of $564.3 million and the stock is down about 5% over the past 12 months. Shares have traded in a 52-week range of $13.43 to $21.25 and closed Friday at $17.51. The consensus price target is $19.60, yielding an implied gain of 12%. Tri Pointe has beaten EPS estimates in each of the past four quarters, and the shares were trading nearly 2% higher early Monday morning. Tri Pointe is expected to post EPS of $0.25 on revenues of $100.04 million when it reports results in late March.

Top 5 Mid Cap Stocks To Own For 2014: iShares MSCI Ireland Capped ETF (EIRL)

iShares MSCI Ireland Capped ETF, formerly iShares MSCI Ireland Capped Investable Market Index Fund (the Fund), seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the MSCI Ireland Investable Market 25/50 Index (the Index). The Index is a free-float adjusted market capitalization-weighted index designed to measure the performance of equity securities in the top 99% by market capitalization of equity securities listed on the stock exchanges in Ireland. BlackRock Fund Advisors (BFA) serves as the investment advisor of the Fund. BFA is a subsidiary of BlackRock Institutional Trust Company, N.A. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Charles Sizemore]

  How does an investment manager reconcile all of the various prognostications he hears on a daily basis?Simple��gnore them.��eb Faber, Global ValueIf you��e never heard of Cambria Investment Management�� Meb Faber, then you have some serious catching up to do. I consider Faber one of the most innovative strategists in the business today, and I found his research on shareholder yield to be compelling enough to make the Cambria Shareholder Yield ETF (SYLD) a core, long-term holding in multiple ETF portfolios I manage. (For readers unfamiliar with the term, ��hareholder yield��is a holistic measure of shareholder friendliness that includes dividends paid, shares repurchased, and debt repaid.)Faber�� latest book, Global Value: How to Spot Bubbles, Avoid Market Crashes, and Earn Big Returns in the Stock Market, provides the research underpinnings for Cambria�� latest ETF offering, the Cambria Global Value ETF (GVAL).Faber is a ��uant��who ignores the news of the day and instead focuses on the raw numbers. At its core, Global Value is a roadmap for implementing the value investing concepts originally espoused by Benjamin Graham and David Dodd in their 1934 classic Security Analysis in a systematic, quantitative manner.Specifically, Faber uses the cyclically-adjusted price/earnings ratio (��APE��, a metric popularized by Yale economist Robert Shiller, as a valuation tool to rank countries. In Faber�� model, an investor buys the stocks of the cheapest countries as ranked by the CAPE.The CAPE divides the current market price by the average of annual earnings across the economic cycle, with 10 years being the most popular time interval.Why? Because using a single year�� earnings can massively skew the results based on where you are in the economic cycle. As an example, a collapse in earnings in 2008-2009 would have made the S&P 500 look expensive had you used a simple P/E calculation with 2008 earnings numbers, even though the market had los

Top 5 Mid Cap Stocks To Own For 2014: iShares Russell 3000 Index Fund (IWV)

iShares Russell 3000 Index Fund (the Fund) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Russell 3000 Index (the Index). The Index measures the performance of the United States equity market. The Index serves as the underlying index for Russell 3000 Growth and Value Series, and the Russell 1000 and Russell 2000 Indexes, as well as their respective Growth and Value series. The Index is a capitalization-weighted index and consists of the 3000 largest companies domiciled in the United States and its territories.

The Fund invests in a representative sample of securities included in the Index that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Index. iShares Russell 3000 Index Fund's investment advisor is Barclays Global Fund Advisors.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Maxfield]

  Over the past five years, this ETF has beaten the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) by 23 percentage points. It's outperformed the Russell 3000 (NYSEMKT: IWV  ) by 21 percentage points. And it's done the same to the eponymous S&P 500, exceeding it by 11 percentage points.

5 Best International Stocks To Watch Right Now

On a slow day for defense contractors, a subsidiary of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-A  ) took home the Pentagon gold Wednesday.

After bidding for the rights to develop and manufacture an aircrew training system for the new KC-46 Boeing aerial refueling tanker, Berkshire subsidiary�FlightSafety International won a $78.4 million contract to produce the system. FlightSafety could have as long as until 2026 to complete work on the contract if all option-year extensions are exercised.

Berkshire's single contract win accounted for more than half the $149.4 million in contracts awarded Wednesday. Of the rest, only one went to another publicly traded company. General Dynamics' (NYSE: GD  ) Advanced Information Systems subsidiary won $31.5 million in the form of a five-year performance-based logistics requirements contract to support six mission computers used on F/A 18 E/F, EA-18G, and AV-8B aircraft. The completion date on this contract is April 2018.

5 Best International Stocks To Watch Right Now: BAB Inc (BABB)

BAB, Inc., incorporated on July 12, 2000, franchises and licenses bagel and muffin retail units under the Big Apple Bagel (BAB) and My Favorite Muffin (MFM) trade names. At November 30, 2012, the Company had 100 franchise units and 6 licensed units in operation in 24 states. The Company additionally derives income from the sale of its trademark bagels, muffins and coffee through nontraditional channels of distribution including under licensing agreements with Kohr Bros. Frozen Custard, Kaleidoscoops, Green Beans Coffee, Sodexo and through direct home delivery of specialty muffin gift baskets and coffee. The Company has two wholly owned subsidiaries: BAB Systems, Inc. (Systems) and BAB Operations, Inc. (Operations). At November 30, 2012, the Company had 100 franchise units and six licensed units in operation in 24 states.

The Company additionally derives income from the sale of its trademark bagels, muffins and coffee through nontraditional channels of distribution including under licensing agreements with Kohr Bros. Frozen Custard, Kaleidoscoops, Green Beans Coffee, Sodexo and through direct home delivery of specialty muffin gift baskets and coffee. The BAB franchised brand consists of units operating as Big Apple Bagels, featuring daily baked bagels, flavored cream cheeses, premium coffees, gourmet bagel sandwiches and other related products. Licensed BAB units serve the Company's par-baked frozen bagel and related products baked daily. BAB units are primarily concentrated in the Midwest and Western United States. The MFM brand consists of units operating as My Favorite Muffin, featuring a variety of freshly baked muffins, coffees and related products, and units operating as My Favorite Muffin and Bagel Cafe, featuring these products as well as a variety of specialty bagel sandwiches and related products.

The Company�� BAB offering franchises in all 50 states, its initial development focus is targeted for the Midwest, specifically Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and Ohio. A! s part of its introductory development plan, BAB will be donating 10% of the initial franchise fee from its 50 SweetDuet units to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, of which BAB is a corporate sponsor. SweetDuet, as its name implies, is a fusion concept, pairing self-serve frozen yogurt with BAB's exclusive line of My Favorite Muffin gourmet muffins, broadening the shop's offering and therefore differentiating itself from the numerous frozen yogurt outlets already populating the market. SweetDuet shops include BAB's Brewster's Coffee and a streamlined breakfast menu. The concept is designed to work in 1600 square feet of space.

BAB franchised stores daily bake a variety of fresh bagels and offer up to 11 varieties of cream cheese spreads. Stores also offer a variety of breakfast and lunch bagel sandwiches, salads, soups, various dessert items, fruit smoothies, gourmet coffees and other beverages. A typical BAB store is in an area with a mix of both residential and commercial properties and ranges from 1,500 to 2,000 square feet. The Company's current store design is approximately 1,800 square feet, with seating capacity for 20 to 30 persons, and includes approximately 750 square feet devoted to production and baking. A satellite store is typically smaller than a production store, averaging 800 to 1,200 square feet. Although franchise stores may vary in size from other franchise stores, store layout is generally consistent.

MFM franchised stores daily bake 20 to 25 varieties of muffins from over 250 recipes, plus a variety of bagels. They also serve gourmet coffees, beverages and, at My Favorite Muffin and Bagel Cafe locations, a variety of bagel sandwiches and related products. The typical MFM store design is approximately 1,800 square feet, with seating capacity for 20 to 30 persons.The Company advertises its franchising opportunities in directories, newspapers and the Internet.

The Company competes with Einstein Noah Restaurant Group, Panera Bread Company and Brue! gger's Ba! gel Bakery.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By CRWE]

  Today, BABB remains (0.00%) +0.000 at $.800 thus far (ref. google finance July 11, 2013).

  For the quarter ended May 31, 2013, BAB had revenues of $658,000 and net income of $125,000, or $0.02 per share, versus revenues of $826,000 and net income of $267,000, or $0.04 per share, for the same quarter last year. For the quarter ended May 31, 2012, the Company received a $171,000 payment for the buyout of the Franchise Agreement from its Minot, ND franchisee so the franchisee could pursue its other business interests associated with the local energy boom. In that acceptance by the Company of the voluntary buyout is unique, no such transaction occurred nor was such income earned in the quarter ended May 31, 2013.

5 Best International Stocks To Watch Right Now: Imperial Oil Limited(IMO)

Imperial Oil Limited engages in the exploration, production, and sale of crude oil and natural gas in Canada. The company operates through three segments: Upstream, Downstream, and Chemical. The Upstream segment engages in the exploration and production of conventional crude oil, natural gas, synthetic oil, and bitumen primarily in the Western Provinces, the Canada Lands, and the Atlantic Offshore. Its primary conventional oil producing asset includes the Norman Wells oil field in the Northwest Territories. The Downstream segment engages in the transportation and refining of crude oil, as well as blending, distribution, and marketing of refined products. It owns and operates crude oil, and natural gas liquids and products pipelines in Alberta, Manitoba, and Ontario. The Chemical segment engages in the manufacture and marketing of various petrochemicals, including ethylene, benzene, aromatic and aliphatic solvents, plasticizer intermediates, and polyethylene resin. As of De cember 31, 2010, Imperial Oil Limited had 1,204 million oil-equivalent barrels of proved undeveloped reserves; maintained a nation-wide distribution system, including 24 primary terminals, to handle bulk and packaged petroleum products moving from refineries to market by pipeline, tanker, rail, and road transport; and sold petroleum products through 1,850 Esso retail service stations, of which approximately 510 were company owned or leased. The company was founded in 1880 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada. Imperial Oil Limited operates as a subsidiary of Exxon Mobil Corporation.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephan Dube]

  Cold Lake's most notable producers:

  Husky Energy (HUSK.PK), see article here.Pengrowth Energy Corporation (PGH), see article here.Southern Pacific Resource (STPJF.PK), see article here.Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ), see article here.Devon Energy (DVN), see article here.Imperial Oil (IMO), see article here.Baytex, see article here.Bonavista Energy (BNPUF.PK), see article here.

  Athabasca's most notable producers:

Best Growth Stocks To Own For 2015: Discovery Communications Inc(DISCA)

Discovery Communications, Inc. operates as a non fiction media and entertainment company worldwide. The company provides original and purchased programming across various distribution platforms. Its content covers science, exploration, survival, natural history, sustainability of the environment, technology, docu-series, anthropology, paleontology, history, space, archaeology, health and wellness, engineering, adventure, lifestyles, forensics, civilization, and current events. The company owns and operates nine national television networks in the United States, including Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Science Channel, Investigation Discovery, Military Channel, Planet Green, Discovery Fit & Health, and Velocity. Discovery Communications also has interests in Oprah Winfrey Network, a pay-television network and Web site; The Hub that features original programming, game shows, and live-action series and specials; and 3net, a three-dimensional network. In addition, it o ffers network branded Web sites, and mobile and video-on-demand services; and distributes various national and pan-regional television networks. Further, the company develops and sells curriculum-based products and services to public and private K-12 schools, such as access to an online VOD service that includes curriculum-based tools, professional development services, and student assessment and publication of hardcopy curriculum-based content; and postproduction audio services to motion picture studios, independent producers, broadcast networks, cable channels, advertising agencies, and interactive producers. As of December 31, 2011, it operated approximately 150 distribution feeds in 40 languages. The company is headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Patricio Kehoe]

  Hasbro, Inc. (HAS) has been on the radar of many investment gurus like Paul Tudor Jones (Trades, Portfolio) and John Hussman (Trades, Portfolio) for some time now, given its position as the second largest toy manufacturer in the industry, only outranked by Mattel, Inc. (MAT). But the company�� first quarter earnings report showed that it could possibly outperform industry giant and rival Mattel in terms of growth, as Europe and Latin America registered 8% and 17% growth respectively, while Mattel saw declines in the same regions. Furthermore, quarterly earnings were driven mainly by the girls��category, which sported a 20% increase in demand for My Little Pony, Equestria Girls, and Nerf Rebelle products. So, with profitability on the right track, what can investors expect from this industry player in the long term?Licensing agreements and emerging market growthAlthough Hasbro�� quarterly earnings were boosted by the girls��toy category, while the boys��segment showed merely 2% growth, fiscal 2014 should balance out the segments when the Transformers and Spiderman films launch in the second quarter. Owning a licensing agreement for Marvel has also helped boost results in the domestic market and Canada, as the recent launch of ��aptain America: The Winter Soldier��was a box office hit, thereby boosting sales of the Captain America action figure in the U.S. Moreover, the firm has been clever to focus its energy some years ago on the digital and entertainment business, giving it a competitive advantage over industry rivals. In fact, while Hasbro�� relationship with Activision Blizzard, Inc. (ATVI) has been significant in positioning the firm in the digital market, its joint venture with Discovery Communications Inc. (DISCA) ��The Hub ��has helped generate very strong brand loyalty, as well as new revenue streams.Furthermore, management has made a point of increasing its stewardship of shareholders via a dividend yield of nearly 3%, as well as its

• [By Lauren Pollock]

  Discovery Communications Inc.(DISCA) is mulling a bid for Scripps Network Interactive Inc.(SNI), the owner of cable channels like the Food Network and HGTV, according to a person familiar with the matter. Shares of Scripps jumped 10% to $83.01 premarket.

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Another day, another market spent looking for direction, even as� stocks drop thanks to big declines in American International Group (AIG),�Merck�(MRK),� Discover Communications (DISCA), Target (TGT) and Twitter (TWTR).

• [By Jonas Elmerraji]

  If the market's had a great year in 2013, Discovery Communications (DISCA) has managed to do one better. Shares of the $30 billion TV broadcaster have rallied almost 32% year-to-date, stomping the performance of the S&P 500 by a wide margin.

  Still, investors hate this stock right now. With a short interest ratio of 10.7, it would take short sellers more than two weeks of buying at current volume levels to cover their positions.

  Discovery owns a handful of international cable TV channels, including the namesake Discovery Channel, TLC, Science Channel and Animal Planet, and positions in properties such as Oprah Winfrey's OWN Network, launched in 2011. Discovery's niche positioning gives it some big benefits -- the firm's channels focus on topics such as science, technology and history, and they're able to sell more targeted advertising as a result. That's helped push the firm's net margins far above those of more conventional network broadcasters.

  Discovery's channels are only part of the story. Content is king in the broadcast business, and so Discovery's 100,000 hour video library provides the firm with an extremely valuable asset -- especially now that streaming video firms such as Amazon.com (AMZN) and Netflix (NFLX) are falling all over themselves to license content.

  DISCA has some tailwinds at its back right now, and its hefty short interest gives it the potential to pop this summer.

5 Best International Stocks To Watch Right Now: United States Brent Oil Fund LP (BNO)

United States Brent Oil Fund, LP (USBO) is a commodity pool. USBO is focused on issuing units that may be purchased and sold on the NYSE Arca, Inc. The investment objective of USBO is for the daily changes in percentage terms of its units��per unit net asset value (NAV) to reflect the daily changes in percentage terms of the spot price of Brent crude oil, as measured by the daily changes in the price of the futures contract for Brent crude oil traded on the ICE Futures Exchange (the ICE Futures).

The investment portfolio of USBO will consist primarily of investments in futures contracts for crude oil, heating oil, gasoline, natural gas and other petroleum-based fuels that are traded on the ICE Futures, New York Mercantile Exchange (the NYMEX) or other United States and foreign exchanges (collectively, Futures Contracts). USBO may also take positions in other crude oil-related investments, such as cash-settled options on Futures Contracts, forward contracts for oil, cleared swap contracts and non-exchange traded (over-the-counter) transactions that are based on the price of crude oil, other petroleum-based fuels, Futures Contracts and indices based on the foregoing (collectively, Other Crude Oil-Related Investments).

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dr. Kent Moors]

  As I have noted before, investors can play this spread by using two exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that are already part of the Energy AdvantagePortfolio: PowerShares DB Energy Fund (NYSE Arca: DBE) and the United States Brent Oil Fund (NYSE Arca: BNO).

• [By Aaron Levitt]

  As we said before, the Iranian deal doesn�� actually add any new supplies back into marketplace for quite some time. With oil demand starting to move ahead as the global economy is beginning to return to normalcy, Brent prices should grind their way upwards. That makes the United States Brent Oil (BNO) a prime play.

• [By Dr. Kent Moors]

  It's time to pull back a bit on exchange-traded fund (ETF) holdings allowing moves playing the WTI-Brent crude pricing spread. I have suggested previously the two primary plays here are PowerShares DB Energy (NYSE Arca: DBE) and United States Brent Oil Fund (NYSE Arca: BNO).

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  How to invest
  If those trends persist, then it could eventually solve the problem that United States Oil Fund has had in underperforming the spot price of crude. Given Brent's stronger backwardation trend, United States Brent Oil Fund (NYSEMKT: BNO  ) might be the better oil ETF to choose.

5 Best International Stocks To Watch Right Now: Guidewire Software Inc (GWRE)

Guidewire Software, Inc. (Guidewire), incorporated in 2001, is a provider of system software to the global property and casualty insurance industry. The Company�� solutions serve as the transactional systems-of-record for, and enable the functions of a property and casualty insurance carrier�� business, such as underwriting and policy administration, claims management and billing. Guidewire has developed a suite of configurable applications that are delivered through a Web-based interface and can be deployed either on-premise or in cloud environments. Its Guidewire InsuranceSuite includes Guidewire PolicyCenter, Guidewire ClaimCenter and Guidewire BillingCenter applications, which enable a range of property and casualty insurance operations. The Company derives its revenues from licensing software applications, providing maintenance support and providing professional services, principally consisting of implementation and training services. Guidewire�� license revenues are primarily generated through annual license fees. In May 2013, Guidewire Software Inc acquired Millbrook Inc.

Guidewire PolicyCenter

Guidewire PolicyCenter is the Company�� underwriting and policy administration application that serves as a system-of-record that supports the policy lifecycle, including product definition, underwriting, quoting, binding, issuances, endorsements, audits, cancellations and renewals. PolicyCenter integrates the underwriting process of evaluating risks and establishing the appropriate policy terms and pricing.

Guidewire ClaimCenter

Guidewire ClaimCenter is the Company�� claims management application for claim intake, assessment, settlement and processing of claim-related financial transactions. ClaimCenter provides property and casualty insurance carriers with the tools built within a business rules-based claims application.

Guidewire BillingCenter

Guidewire BillingCenter is its billing and receivables management a! pplication. It automates the billing lifecycle, enables the design of a range of billing and payment plans, manages agent commissions and integrates with external payment systems. BillingCenter handles direct and agency billing for all property and casualty insurance lines of business, and its dual-entry accounting core integrates with a property and casualty insurance carrier�� general ledger.

The Company competes with Accenture, Computer Sciences Corporation, MajescoMastek, Tata Consultancy Services Limited, AQS, Inc., OneShield, Inc., StoneRiver, Inc., Oracle Corporation, Pegasystems Inc. and SAP AG.

Advisors' Opinion:

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

  Guidewire Software Inc.'s(GWRE) fiscal third-quarter loss narrowed, even as the software vendor reported an uptick in operating expenses that offset revenue growth. Shares edged up 1.6% to $37.50 premarket.

Best Logistics Companies To Invest In 2014

Truth be told, it's not clear if SK3 Group Inc. (OTCMKTS:SKTO) is best described when compared to a name like Cerner Corporation (NASDAQ:CERN), or to a Gentiva Health Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:GTIV). The company's got elements of both major industries being represented by CERN and GTIV (home health care, and information technology), with the addition of another budding industry thrown into the mix. One thing IS clear though... SKTO shares have decidedly reversed a nasty downtrend, and may now be one of the market's best small cap healthcare speculative trades.

Don't sweat it if you've never heard of SK3 Group. Most investors probably haven't, primarily because the company wasn't doing anything (almost literally) until the first quarter of this year. That's when SKTO posted its first revenue in years, on the heels of more open-minded laws regarding the usage of what the company describes as "alternative care and medicine"... which is the politically correct way of saying "medical marijuana". The company acquired another company called Medical Greens, and within a week had booked more than $30 million worth of management and logistics service contracts. By the end of Q1, SK3 Group Inc. had generated sales of $4.7 million, and logged a top line of $13.43 million for the second quarter of this year.

10 Best Financial Stocks To Watch For 2015: Natural Resource Partners LP (NRP)

Natural Resource Partners L.P. is a limited partnership. The Company is engaged principally in the business of owning, managing and leasing mineral properties in the United States. It owns coal reserves in the three United States coal-producing regions: Appalachia, the Illinois Basin and the Western United States, as well as lignite reserves in the Gulf Coast region. The Company is engaged in the ownership and leasing of mineral properties and related transportation and processing infrastructure. As of December 31, 2011, the Company owned or controlled approximately 2.3 billion tons of proven and probable coal reserves and it also owned approximately 380 million tons of aggregate reserves in a number of states across the country. During the year ended December 31, 2011, its lessees produced 49.2 million tons of coal from its properties. In addition, the Company�� lessees produced 49.2 million tons of coal from its properties. The Company�� operations are conducted through, and its operating assets are owned by, its subsidiaries. The Company owns its subsidiaries through a wholly owned operating company, NRP (Operating) LLC. NRP (GP) LP, which is its general partner, which conducts its business and manages its operations. Because its general partner is a limited partnership, its general partner, GP Natural Resource Partners LLC, conducts its business and operations. Robertson Coal Management LLC owns all of the membership interest in GP Natural Resource Partners LLC. In addition to its preparation plants, the Company owns coal handling and transportation infrastructure in West Virginia, Ohio and Illinois. In February 2011, it acquired approximately 500 acres of mineral and surface rights related to limestone reserves on the Tennessee River near Paducah, Kentucky. In March 2011, it acquired approximately 500 acres of mineral and surface rights related to limestone reserves in Cleveland, Tennessee near Chattanooga. In July 2011, it acquired approximately 44,000 acres of coal reserves and coal bed met! hane located in Pennsylvania and Illinois. In February 2012, the Company acquired coal reserves at the Deer Run mine near Hillsboro, Illinois and approximately 9,500 net mineral acres located in the Mississippian Lime oil play in Northern Oklahoma. In March 2012, the Company acquired the rail loadout, associated infrastructure assets and a contractual overriding royalty interest on certain tonnage at the Sugar Camp mine near Benton, Illinois. In May 2012, the Company completed the acquisition of approximately 19,200 net mineral acres in the Mississippian Lime oil play in North Central Oklahoma.

Northern Appalachia

The Beaver Creek property is located in Grant and Tucker Counties, West Virginia. During 2011, 2.4million tons were produced from this property. The Company leases this property to Mettiki Coal, LLC, which is a subsidiary of Alliance Resource Partners L.P. Coal is produced from an underground longwall mine. It is transported by truck to a preparation plant operated by the lessee. Coal is shipped primarily by truck to the Mount Storm power plant of Dominion Power and to various export customers. During 2011, 366,000 tons were produced from Allegany County. The Company leases this property to Vindex Energy, a subsidiary of Arch Coal. Coal from this property is produced from a surface mine. The raw coal is trucked to the Warrior plant of Allegheny Energy. During 2011, 283,000 tons were produced from Area F property. It leases this property to Carter Roag, a subsidiary of Metinvest. Coal from this property is produced from an underground mine. The raw coal is trucked to a preparation plant operated by the lessee. Coal is shipped via rail to domestic metallurgical customers and exported for use by Metinvest.

Central Appalachia

The VICC/Alpha property is located in Wise, Dickenson, Russell and Buchanan Counties, Virginia. During 2011, 4.9 million tons were produced from this property. It primarily leases this property to a subsidiary of Alpha Natu! ral Resou! rces. Production comes from both underground and surface mines and is trucked to one of four preparation plants. Coal is shipped through both the CSX and Norfolk Southern railroads to utility and metallurgical customers. Customers include American Electric Power, Southern Company, Tennessee Valley Authority, VEPCO and the United States Steel and to various export metallurgical customers. The Lynch property is located in Harlan and Letcher Counties, Kentucky. During 2011, 4.8 million tons were produced from this property. The Company primarily leases the property to a subsidiary of Massey Energy. Production comes from both underground and surface mines. Coal is transported by truck to a preparation plant on the property and is shipped primarily on the CSX railroad to utility customers, such as Georgia Power and Orlando Utilities.

The Dingess-Rum property is located in Logan, Clay and Nicholas Counties, West Virginia. This property is leased to subsidiaries of Massey Energy and Patriot Coal. During 2011, 2.8 million tons were produced from the property. Coal is shipped through the CSX railroad to steam customers, such as American Electric Power, Dayton Power and Light, Detroit Edison and to various export metallurgical customers.

The VICC/Kentucky Land property is located primarily in Perry, Leslie and Pike Counties, Kentucky. During 2011, 2.5 million tons were produced from this property. Coal is produced from a number of lessees from both underground and surface mines. Coal is shipped primarily by truck but also on the CSX and Norfolk Southern railroads to customers, such as Southern Company, Tennessee Valley Authority and American Electric Power. The Lone Mountain property is located in Harlan County, Kentucky. During 2011, 2.1 million tons were produced from this property. The Company leases the property to a subsidiary of Arch Coal, Inc. Production comes from underground mines and is transported primarily by beltline to a preparation plant on adjacent property and shipped o! n the Nor! folk Southern or CSX railroads to utility customers, such as Georgia Power and the Tennessee Valley Authority.

The D.D. Shepard property is located in Boone County, West Virginia. This property is primarily leased to a subsidiary of Patriot Coal Corp. During 2011, two million tons were produced from the property. Both steam and metallurgical coal are produced by the lessees from underground and surface mines. Coal is transported from the mines through belt or truck to preparation plants on the property. Coal is shipped through the CSX railroad to various domestic and export metallurgical customers. The Pardee property is located in Letcher County, Kentucky and Wise County Virginia. During 2011, 1.8 million tons were produced from this property. It leases the property to a subsidiary of Arch Coal, Inc. Production comes from underground and surface mines and is transported by truck or beltline to a preparation plant on the property and shipped primarily on the Norfolk Southern railroad to utility customers, such as Georgia Power and the Tennessee Valley Authority and domestic, and export metallurgical customers, such as Algoma Steel and Arcelor.

The Kingston property is located in Fayette and Raleigh Counties, West Virginia. This property is leased to a subsidiary of Alpha Natural Resources. During 2011, 1.5 million tons were produced from the property. Both steam and metallurgical coal are produced from underground and surface mines and has been historically transported by belt or truck to a preparation plant on the property or shipped raw. Coal is shipped via both the CSX railroad and by truck to barges to steam customers and various export metallurgical customers.

Southern Appalachia

The BLC properties are located in Kentucky and Tennessee. During 2011, 1.2 million tons were produced from these properties. The Company leases these properties to a number of operators, including Appolo Fuels Inc., Bell County Coal Corporation and Kopper-Glo Fuels. Prod! uction co! mes from both underground and surface mines and is trucked to preparation plants and loading facilities operated by its lessees. Coal is transported by truck and is shipped through both CSX and Norfolk Southern railroads to utility and industrial customers. Customers include Southern Company, South Carolina Electric & Gas, and numerous medium and small industrial customers. The Oak Grove property is located in Jefferson County, Alabama. During 2011, 470,000 tons were produced from this property. The Company leases the property to a subsidiary of Cliffs Natural Resources, Inc. Production comes from an underground mine and is transported primarily by beltline to a preparation plant. The metallurgical coal is then shipped through railroad and barge to both domestic and export customers.

Illinois Basin

The Williamson property is located in Franklin and Williamson Counties, Illinois. The property is under lease to an affiliate of the Cline Group. During 2011, 6.8 million tons were mined on the property. This production is from a longwall mine. Production is shipped primarily through CN railroad to customers, such as Duke and to various export customers. The Macoupin property is located in Macoupin County, Illinois. The property is under lease to an affiliate of the Cline Group. During 2011, 1.8 tons were shipped from the property. Production is from an underground mine and is shipped through the Norfolk Southern or Union Pacific railroads or by barge to customers, such as Western KY Energy and other midwest utilities or loaded into barges for shipment to export customers. The Sato property is located in Jackson County, Illinois. During 2011, 363,000 tons were produced from the property. The property is under lease to Knight Hawk Coal LLC, an independent coal producer. As of December 31, 2011, production was from a surface mine, and coal was shipped by truck and railroad to various midwest and southeast utilities.

Northern Powder River Basin

The Western Ener! gy proper! ty is located in Rosebud and Treasure Counties, Montana. During 2011, 2.7 million tons were produced from the Company�� property. A subsidiary of Westmoreland Coal Company has two coal leases on the property. Coal is produced by surface dragline mining, and the coal is transported by either truck or beltline to the four-unit 2,200-megawatt Colstrip generation station located at the mine mouth and by the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad to Minnesota Power. A small amount of coal is transported by truck to other customers.

BRP Properties

As of December 31, 2011, BRP had acquired, in several stages, approximately 8.8 million mineral acres in 29 states from International Paper. As of December 31, 2011, BRP held 78 revenue generating leases. BRP�� assets include approximately 300,000 gross acres of oil and gas mineral rights in Louisiana, of which over 72,000 acres were under lease, as of December 31, 2011. In addition, BRP holds a gross production royalty interest on approximately 23,000 mineral acres under lease in Louisiana. The remaining oil and gas mineral acreage in Louisiana is not leased. As of December 31, 2011, BRP owned nearly 246,000 gross mineral acres of primarily lignite coal rights in the Gulf Coast region, of which approximately 5,000 acres are leased under three separate leases in Louisiana and Alabama. In addition to the coal rights, BRP held aggregate reserves, including limestone, granite, clay, and sand and gravel reserves, under lease in six states. As of December 31, 2011, other mineral rights held by BRP included coalbed methane rights in four Gulf Coast states, metals rights in three states, approximately 450,000 acres of water rights in East Texas, geothermal rights and royalty interests in the Gulf Coast and Pacific Northwest and carbon sequestration rights primarily in the Gulf Coast region.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  With steam coal prices continuing to be weak due to the inroads made by natural gas, Natural Resource Partners (NYSE: NRP  ) has decided if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. It announced Monday it is buying producing�oil and gas�properties located in the Williston Basin of North Dakota and Montana from�Abraxas Petroleum (NASDAQ: AXAS  ) for $35.3 million in cash.

• [By Robert Rapier]

  The National Association of Publicly Traded Partnerships (NAPTP) lists five MLPs in the category ��atural Resources – Coal,��although two of the five are Alliance Holdings (NYSE: AHGP) and its operating affiliate, Alliance Resource Partners (NYSE: ARLP). The other three are Natural Resource Partners (NYSE: NRP), Rhino Resource Partners (NYSE: RNO), and Oxford Resource Partners (NYSE: OXF).

• [By Tyler Crowe]

  In the energy world, it's never much of a surprise when an oil company picks up natural gas assets or vice versa. But a coal company getting into the oil business? Now that's a rarity. This week, Natural Resources Partners (NYSE: NRP  ) �did just that. The company announced that it's taking a working interest in some of Abraxas Petroleums (NASDAQ: AXAS  ) assets in the Bakken. While the $35 million purchase was not that large, it's a rare case where a coal company branches out into other natural resources.�

• [By Reuben Brewer]

  That pairs nicely with what's going on at domestic player Natural Resource Partners (NYSE: NRP  ) , which cut its dividend by 36% in early January because of continued weakness in the coal market. However, in an April presentation it gave an update on the market that helps to clarify where the problem lies. The thermal outlook was generally positive, but the first two bullet points on the met side were, "Prices at lowest level in several years" and, "Market is currently being overproduced." So the outlook for Peabody's Aussie operations through the rest of the year isn't great.

Best Logistics Companies To Invest In 2014: Meridian Bioscience Inc.(VIVO)

Meridian Bioscience, Inc., a life science company, engages in the development, manufacture, sale, and distribution of diagnostic test kits primarily for gastrointestinal, foodborne, viral, respiratory, and parasitic infectious diseases. The company?s diagnostic products primarily consist of C. difficile for the detection of gastrointestinal diseases; Rotavirus and Adenovirus products for pediatric diarrhea detection; H. pylori for stomach ulcers; Enterohemorrhagic E. coli infection and Campylobacter jejuni used in the detection of foodborne diseases; Varicella-Zoster for viral diseases; and Cytomegalovirus for organ transplant infections. Its products also include transport media that store and preserve specimen samples from patient collection to laboratory testing. The company?s diagnostic test kits utilize immunodiagnostic and molecular technologies, which test samples of stool, blood, urine, and other body fluids or tissue for the presence of specific infectious disea ses. In addition, Meridian Bioscience, Inc. manufactures and distributes bulk antigens, antibodies, PCR/qPCR reagents, nucleotides, competent cells, and bioresearch reagents used by researchers and other diagnostic manufacturers. Further, it involved in the contract development and manufacture of proteins and other biologicals under cGMP conditions for use by biopharmaceutical and biotechnology companies engaged in research for new drugs and vaccines. The company sells its diagnostic test kits through direct sales force and independent distributors to reference laboratories and hospitals, principally in the United States, Canada, Belgium, France, Holland, Italy, the United Kingdom, Africa, the Middle East, and other European countries. The company was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Marc Bastow]

  Integrated life sciences company Meridian Biosciences (VIVO) raised its quarterly dividend 5.3% to 20 cents per share, payable on Feb. 14 to shareholders of record as of Feb. 3.
  VIVO Dividend Yield: 3.22%

Best Logistics Companies To Invest In 2014: NetSol Technologies Inc.(NTWK)

Netsol Technologies, Inc. designs, develops, and markets software products for the automobile finance and leasing, banking, healthcare, and financial services industries worldwide. It offers NetSol Financial Suite, which is an end-to-end solution that covers the leasing and finance cycle. The NetSol Financial Suite consist of software applications comprising Point of Sale, a front office processing system for the finance sector; Credit Application Processing System to handle the incoming credit applications from dealers, agents, brokers, and the direct sales force; Contract Management System to manage and maintain a contract; Wholesale Finance System to automate and manage the floor plan/bailment activities of dealerships; and Fleet Management System to handle fleet management needs. The NetSol Financial Suite also includes LeasePak that develops Web-enabled and Web-based tools for the leasing technology industry. In addition, the company offers LeaseSoft Portals and Modul es; enterprise wide information systems, such as LRMIS, MTMIS, and Hospital Management Systems; accounting outsourcing services; and career and technology programs. Further, it provides portfolio management systems for the financial services industry; and consulting, custom development, systems integration, and technical services for the healthcare, insurance, real estate, and technology markets. Additionally, the company offers business intelligence, independent system review, information security, and software process improvement consulting services; maintenance and support, and project management services; and solutions for the defense and military forces. It serves Fortune 500 manufacturers, automakers, financial institutions, utilities, technology providers, and government agencies. The company was formerly known as NetSol International, Inc. and changed its name to NetSol Technologies, Inc. in March 2002. NetSol Technologies, Inc. was founded in 1997 and is based in Ca labasas, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By CRWE]

  NetSol Technologies (Nasdaq:NTWK), a provider of global IT and enterprise application solutions, reported that Mercedes-Benz Leasing Company Ltd. (China), went live with the NetSol Financial Suite (NFS(tm)).

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  Another under-$10 stock that's quickly pushing within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade is Netsol Technologies (NTWK), which designs, develops, markets and exports proprietary software products to customers in the automobile finance and leasing, banking, health care and financial services industries internationally. This stock is off to a strong start in 2013, with shares up by 28%.

  If you take a look at the chart for Netsol Technologies, you'll notice that this stock has been downtrending badly for the last two months, with shares sliding sharply lower from its high of $12.10 to its recent low of $7.03 a share. During that downtrend, shares of NTWK have been consistently making lower highs and lower lows, which is bearish technical price action. That said, shares of NTWK have started to stabilize and reverse its downtrend, since the stock has started to make higher lows and higher highs over the last few weeks. This move is quickly pushing shares of NTWK within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade.

  Market players should now look for long-biased trades in NTWK if it manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance at $7.74 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above that level with volume that hits near or above its three-month average action of 225,909 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then NTWK will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $8.71 to its 50-day moving average at $9.16 a share. Any high-volume move above those levels will then give NTWK a chance to tag its 200-day at $10.20 to more resistance at $10.45 a share.

  Traders can look to buy NTWK off weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below some key near-term support levels at $7.20 or $7.03 a share. One can also buy NTWK off strength once it clears $7.74 a share with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage fr

Best Logistics Companies To Invest In 2014: KapStone Paper and Packaging Corporation (KS)

KapStone Paper and Packaging Corporation engages in the production and sale of unbleached kraft, linerboard, saturating kraft, and unbleached folding carton boards primarily in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. It offers kraft paper to converters, who produce multiwall bags for agricultural products, pet food, cement, chemicals, and grocery bags, as well as specialty conversion products, such as wrapping paper products and roll wrap; and linerboards to converters in the corrugated box industry and to other converters for various end uses, including laminated tier sheets and wrapping material. The company offers its saturating kraft products to various industries, such as construction, electronics manufacturing, and furniture manufacturing; and unbleached folding carton board products to the general folding carton segment of paperboard packaging. KapStone Paper and Packaging Corporation offers its kraft paper, linerboard, and saturating kraft products under the DuraSorb brand name; and folding carton board under the Kraftpak brand name. The company was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois.

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 KapStone Paper and Packaging (NYSE: KS  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

Best Logistics Companies To Invest In 2014: ProAssurance Corporation(PRA)

ProAssurance Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides medical and other professional liability insurance products to health care service, legal service, and other professional service providers in the United States. It primarily offers its products to physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists, and allied health professionals. The company markets its products through an internal sales force, as well as independent agents. ProAssurance Corporation was founded in 1976 and is based in Birmingham, Alabama.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Specialty insurance company�ProAssurance� (NYSE: PRA  ) �announced yesterday�its second-quarter dividend of $0.25 per share, the same rate it's paid since it initiated a payout in 2011.

• [By Lauren Pollock]

  ProAssurance Corp.(PRA) agreed to acquire Eastern Insurance Holdings Inc.(EIHI) for about $205 million, expanding the insurance company’s casualty insurance offerings. Eastern Insurance is a domestic casualty insurance group specializing in workers’ compensation products and services, among other things. ProAssurance plans to pay $24.50 in cash for each outstanding Eastern share, a 16% premium over Monday’s closing price.

Best Logistics Companies To Invest In 2014: Anglo American PLC (AAUKY.PK)

Anglo American plc (Anglo American), incorporated on May 14, 1998, is a mining company. The Company�� portfolio include Bulk commodities which consists of iron and manganese, metallurgical coal and thermal; base metals, which consists of copper, nickel and niobium; Precious metals and minerals, which include platinum and diamonds and Other Mining and Industrial. The Company operates in Africa, Brazil, Chile, North and South America, Australia, China, India, Japan, other Asia and Europe. In November 2013, Anglo American PLC announced the completion of its sale of the Amapa iron ore operation in Brazil (Amapa) to Zamin Ferrous Ltd. In January 2014, Anglo American completed the acquisition of Mineral Technology Exploration Production SA (MINTEP) and Societe Miniere d'Alumine SA.

Iron and Manganese

The Company�� Iron Ore portfolio consist a 69.7% holding in Kumba Iron Ore Limited (Kumba), a supplier of seaborne iron ore, and Iron Ore Brazil�� 100% interest in Anglo Ferrous Minas-Rio, a 49% shareholding in LLX Minas-Rio, which owns the port of Acu, and a 70% interest in the Amapa iron ore system. During the year ended December 31, 2012, Kumba operated three mines: Sishen Mine in the Northern Cape, which produced 33.7 million tons (MT) of iron ore, Thabazimbi Mine in Limpopo, with an output of 0.8 MT and Kolomela mine, also in the Northern Cape and produced 1.5 MT. During 2011, Kumba exported more than 85% of its total iron ore sales volumes of 44.4 million tons, with 69% of these exports destined for the People�� Republic of China and the remainder to Europe, Japan, South Korea and the Middle East. Its Minas-Rio iron ore project is located in the states of Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro.

The Company�� Manganese interests consist of a 40% holding in Samancor Holdings, which owns Hotazel Manganese Mines and Metalloys, both in South Africa, and a 40% holding in each of the Australian-based operations Groote Eylandt Mining Company (GEMCO) and Tasmanian Electro ! Metallurgical Company (TEMCO), with BHP Billiton owning 60% and having management control. It is producer of seaborne manganese ore and is top three global producers of manganese alloy. Its operations produce a combination of ores, alloys and metal from sites in South Africa and Australia.

Metallurgical Coal

The Company�� coal operations in Australia are based on the east coast, from where Metallurgical Coal serves a range of customers throughout Asia and the Indian subcontinent, and Europe and South America. Its metallurgical coal operation in Canada, Peace River Coal, mainly serves customers in Europe, Japan and South America. Metallurgical Coal operated six mines, one wholly owned and five in which it has a controlling interest. Five of the mines are located in Queensland�� Bowen Basin: Moranbah North (metallurgical coal), Capcoal (metallurgical and thermal coal), Foxleigh (metallurgical coal), Dawson (metallurgical and thermal coal) and Callide (thermal coal). Drayton mine (thermal coal) is in the Hunter Valley in New South Wales. Moranbah North is an underground longwall mining operation with a mining lease covering 100 square kilometers.

Capcoal operates two longwall underground mines and an open cut mine. Together, they produce around 5.0 MT annually of hard coking coal, pulverised coal injection (PCI) and thermal coal. Capcoal also supplies methane-rich seam gas to Energy Developments Limited�� power station. Foxleigh is an open cut operation with an annual output exceeding 1.4 million tons of PCI coal. During 2012, Dawson, which is an open cut operation, produced 4.6 MT total of coking and thermal coal. During 2012, Capcoal operates two underground mines and an open cut mine. Together, they produced around 6.0 Mt of hard coking, pulverised coal injection (PCI) and thermal coals. During 2012, Foxleigh is an open cut operation which produced 1.9 Mt of high quality PCI coal.

Thermal Coal

Thermal Coal operates in South Africa a! nd and is! a joint partner in Cerrejon, Colombia. In South Africa, Thermal Coal wholly owns and operates nine mines and has a 50% interest in the Mafube colliery and Phola washing plant. During 2012, six of the mines supplied 23 million tons per annum of thermal coal to both export and local markets. New Vaal, New Denmark and Kriel collieries are domestic product operations supplying 29 million tons per annum of thermal coal to Eskom, the state-owned power utility. During 2012, Isibonelo mine produced five million tons per annum of thermal coal for Sasol Synthetic Fuels, the coal to liquids producer, under a 20 year supply contract. Thermal Coal�� South African operations route all export thermal coal through the Richards Bay Coal Terminal (RBCT), in which it has a 24.2% shareholding, to customers throughout the Med-Atlantic and Asia-Pacific regions. Within South Africa, 62% of total sales tons are made to the Eskom power utility.

Copper

The Company has interests in six copper operations in Chile. The wholly owned operations consists of the Mantos Blancos and Mantoverde mines, and it hold a 50.1% interest in Anglo American Sur (AA Sur), which includes the Los Bronces and El Soldado mines and the Chagres smelter. It has a 44% interest in the Collahuasi mine. The mines also produce associated by-products, such as molybdenum and silver. In addition, it has interests in Quellaveco and Michiquillay projects in Peru and a 50% interest in the Pebble project in Alaska.

Nickel

Nickel has three ferronickel operations: Codemin and Barro Alto in Brazil and Loma de Niquel in Venezuela. Within the

business unit�� portfolio there are also two projects, Jacare and Morro Sem Bone, both in Brazil, and exploration projects in Finland, Canada and Australia.

Platinum

The Company�� Platinum business, based in South Africa, is the producer of platinum. Platinum mines, processes and refines the entire range of platinum group metals (PGMs): platin! um, palla! dium, rhodium, ruthenium, iridium and osmium. Base metals such as nickel, copper and cobalt sulphate are secondary products and are contributors to earnings. Platinum�� operations exploit reserve of PGMs, known as the Bushveld Complex, which contains PGMbearing Merensky, UG2 and Platreef ores. During the year ended December 31, 2012, Platinum wholly owns 10 mining operations in production, a tailings re-treatment facility, three smelters, a base metals refinery and a precious metals refinery. Concentrating, smelting and refining of the output are undertaken at Rustenburg Platinum Mines��(RPM) metallurgical facilities. During 2012, Platinum�� 100% owned mining operations consists of the five mines at Rustenburg Section: Khomanani, Bathopele, Siphumelele, Thembelani and Khuseleka; Amandelbult Section�� two mines, Tumela and Dishaba, as well as Mogalakwena and Twickenham mines. Union Mine is 85% held with a black economic empowerment (BEE) partner, the Bakgatla-Ba-Kgafela traditional community, holding the remainder. The Unki mine in Zimbabwe is wholly owned.

Diamonds

The Company�� diamond interests are represented by its 40% holding in De Beers. The other shareholders in De Beers are Central Holdings Ltd, which owns 40%, and the Government of the Republic of Botswana (GRB) with 15%. De Beers is a diamond company producing diamonds from its mines in Botswana, Canada, Namibia and South Africa. As of December 31, 2012, De Beers held a 50% interest in Debswana Diamond Company and in Namdeb Diamond Corporation. In addition, De Beers has a 74% holding in South African based De Beers Mines Limited. De%Beers owns 100% of De%Beers Canada. De%Beers owns 100% of The Diamond Trading Company (DTC). De Beers, through Element Six Technologies, is a supplier of industrial supermaterials. Element Six operates internationally, with 10 manufacturing sites globally and a global sales network.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Kramer-Miller]

  The Pebble Project is an enormous potential mine in Alaska containing mostly copper, and some gold and molybdenum. The project is owned by the Pebble Partnership, of which Northern Dynasty Minerals owns half, while Anglo American (AAUKY.PK) owns the other half.

Hot Blue Chip Companies To Buy Right Now

Pharmaceutical stocks have traditionally been considered logical choices for dividend stocks; here, we look at one of the blue chips of the pharmaceutical world, selling at discounts to historical valuations, explains John Dobosz, editor of Forbes Dividend Investor.

New York-based Pfizer (PFE) is one of the world's largest biopharmaceutical companies that discovers, develops, manufactures, and sells medicines for humans and animals.

Celebrex, for treating arthritis, and Viagra, for erectile dysfunction, are two of Pfizer's best selling drugs. Other products are targeted at Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular issues, depression, pain, respiratory ailments, and smoking cessation.

As blockbuster drugs lose patent protection, Pfizer must find new sources of growth to make up for the lower sales. What's encouraging is recent news from Merck (MRK) that it was working with Pfizer to develop new cancer drugs.

Revenue for 2014 is expected to dip 3% to $49.9 billion, with earnings inching higher by 2.3% to $2.27 per share. Earnings are expected to grow 12.9% for the year that just ended, with revenue up 15.7%.

Top 10 International Companies To Watch For 2015: Chevron Corporation(CVX)

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

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Claudia Assis]

  Big Oil shares were higher as well, with Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) �shares up 0.3%. Chevron Corp. (CVX) �shares rose 0.5%, while shares of ConocoPhillips (COP) �advanced 0.9%.

Hot Blue Chip Companies To Buy Right Now: Visa Inc.(V)

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

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Amanda Alix]

  A long-standing dispute between credit card issuers Visa (NYSE: V  ) and MasterCard (NYSE: MA  ) and the businesses that accept consumer payments via those instruments is heating up again, as a flurry of lawsuits filed on both sides over a prior settlement regarding interchange fees jump-start the hostilities all over again.

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Visa (V) gained 2.8% this week and Walt Disney (DIS) rose 2.7% to $80.31, to lead the Dow higher. Visa managed to gain despite sanctions being imposed on two Russian banks. Pepco Holdings (POM) surged 24% after it agreed to be purchased by Exelon (EXC) for $27.25 a share in an all-cash deal. Exelon dropped 1.2% this week. Energizer (ENR) jumped 17% after it said it would split itself into two companies.

Hot Blue Chip Companies To Buy Right Now: Colgate-Palmolive Company(CL)

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

• [By James Well]

  Analysts��Consensus Position on Pfizer
  
  Thirteen analysts including those at TheStreet, Thomson Reuters/Verus, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Barclays Capital, Morgan Stanley and Argus Research are optimistic about the performance of Pfizer going forward and, hence, reiterated a consensus buy recommendation at an average target price of $31.78 per share. Last Wednesday, analysts at Goldman Sachs removed Pfizer from Goldman�� conviction buy list (CL) where Pfizer has been since Aug. 9, 2011, and placed it on the buy list but raised its price target from $34 to $35 per share. Jami Rubin, an analyst with Goldman Sachs, claimed that Pfizer has gone up by 82.5% since being added to the CL as against 53.9% for the S&P 500 during the period and, therefore, there was the need to replace Pfizer with AbbVie at a price target of $60 because they claimed AbbVie has greater upside at this time.

Hot Blue Chip Companies To Buy Right Now: Apple Inc.(AAPL)

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

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Andrew Tonner]

  It's anyone's guess what smartphone superpower Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) is introducing at its upcoming product launches -- which are expected later this year -- although we have some very good ideas. We recently saw some more detailed information emerge from a very credible source. According to reports, Apple's iPhone is in for a massive overhaul. In the video below, Fool contributor Andrew Tonner tells investors what's important about this major tech storyline.

• [By Bryan Murphy]

  Think patent wars are only being fought - and won - by consumer technologies like Vringo, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRNG) and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)? Think again. While the Vringo patent war with Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) and the Apple infringement case against Samsung may have been the world's highest-profile patent litigation conflicts (and most covered by the media), patent infringement claims and subsequent court cases have become just as common within the biotech world. Just ask Idenix Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:IDIX) and Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)... two biotech names that are currently duking it out over patents that look nearly identical. Indeed, a coin toss may be just as fair of a way to decide who's right and who's wrong between Idenix and Gilead.

10 Best Undervalued Stocks To Own Right Now

10 Best Undervalued Stocks To Own Right Now: Dollar Tree Inc.(DLTR)

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

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Family Dollar (FDO) became a must-have after Carl Icahn announced a 9.4% stake in the bargain retailer–and so did competitors like Dollar General (DG) and Dollar Tree (DLTR).

• [By Steven Russolillo]

  WATCH FOR: Weekly Jobless Claims (8:30 a.m. Eastern Time): seen 310K; previously 297K. May Markit “Flash” PMI (9:45). April Existing Home Sales (10:00): seen +2.0% at 2.68M; previously -0.2% at 4.59M. April Leading Index (10:00): seen +0.5%; previously +0.8%. May Kansas City Fed Manufacturing Survey (11:00): seen 8; previously 7. Aeropostale, Best Buy(BBY), Borcade, Buckle, Dollar Tree(DLTR), GameStop(GME), Gap(GPS), Hewlett-Packard(HPQ), Marvell Tech(MRVL), Mentor Graphics(MENT), Ross Stores(ROST) and TiVo are among companies scheduled to report quarterly results.

• [By Richard Stavros]

  For example, Dollar General (NYSE: DG), t! he nation’s largest dollar-store chain with 11,100 locations, offered a weak profit outlook in the early part of the year after reporting weak fourth-quarter sales. And Dollar Tree (Nasdaq: DLTR), which operates about 5,000 locations, missed profit expectations for the holiday quarter in February. What has happened to the American consumer? Even McDonald's sales were flat in April.

• [By Lawrence Meyers]

  This isn't some growing new industry set to take the world further into the 21st century. It's an old concept that hasn't innovated, won't innovate, and will slowly but surely die out over this century. When I walk into a Walgreens, I see a miniature Target (TGT), a more expensive Dollar Tree (DLTR), and a provider of prescriptions in a world where everything is becoming mail order.

source from Top Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksblog.com/10-best-undervalued-stocks-to-own-right-now-2.html

Top Railroad Companies To Buy Right Now

Union Pacific (NYSE: UNP  ) and CSX (NYSE: CSX  ) are selections for the real-money Inflation-Protected Income Growth portfolio. Like any investments, they need to be reviewed from time to time to see if� they're still worth owning. In the brief video below, portfolio manager Chuck Saletta reviews their valuations, balance sheets, and dividends and decides whether to hold on to the stocks or let them go.

To follow the iPIG portfolio as buy and sell decisions are made, watch Chuck's article feed by clicking here. To join The Motley Fool's free discussion board dedicated to the iPIG portfolio, simply click here. For more information on the Graham Equation used for the valuation estimates, see the article at this link.

For more on iPIG portfolio selection CSX
With 21,000 miles of track serving two-thirds of the U.S. population, CSX maintains a valuable proprietary asset. Still, this railroad will face difficult obstacles in the years ahead due to a domestic surplus of natural gas and coal's declining popularity. To help investors better understand how CSX can deal with these challenges, The Motley Fool has released a brand-new premium research report authored by Isaac Pino, Industrials Bureau Chief and transportation expert. Isaac provides an in-depth look at CSX's competitive advantages, risk areas, and prospects for the future. Simply click here now to access your copy of this invaluable investor's resource.

Top Railroad Companies To Buy Right Now: On Track Innovations Ltd (OTIV)

On Track Innovations Ltd. (OTI) designs, develops and markets solutions based on its secure contactless microprocessor-based smart card technology to address the needs of a range of markets. The Company�� products combine the benefits of both microprocessors and contactless cards. In addition to contactless microprocessor-based smart cards, it also sells products that are based on other card technologies. The Company has focused on the development of its technologies and its products based on its technological platform that consists of smart cards, smart card readers, software tools and secure communication technology. As of December 31, 2012, it offers three lines of solutions, each of which constitutes a complete system, as well as components (such as smart cards and readers) that we sell to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), for incorporation into their own products. OTI�� three vertical markets include Payment Solutions, Petroleum Systems and SmartID Solutions. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Markman Advisors]

  Public companies leveraging their patent portfolios, (aka "patent plays"), are getting the market's attention. Companies such as Vringo (VRNG), ParkerVision (PRKR), MGT Capital (MGT), Worlds Inc. (WDDD.OB) and others have presented trading opportunities due to their volatility while retaining the chance for a big payoff to those investors who stay the course. Yet there exist viable patent plays that are still undiscovered. Some of these so called "plays," which are not getting enough attention, are actually real companies making and selling real products or services in contrast to pure patent monetization companies. Some known examples are Single Touch Interactive (SITO.OB) and Blue Calypso (BCYP.OB). This article is focused on another one of these patent plays, On Track Innovations Ltd. (OTIV).

Top Railroad Companies To Buy Right Now: CEVA Inc.(CEVA)

CEVA, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in licensing silicon intellectual property (SIP) for the handsets, mobile broadband, portable, and consumer electronics markets primarily in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, and the Asia Pacific. It designs and licenses DSP cores in the form of a hardware description language definition; a portfolio of application-specific platforms, including wireless baseband, audio, imaging and vision, voice over Internet protocols (VoIP), Bluetooth, and serial storage technology and serial attached SCSI; and development platforms, software development kits, and software debug tools that facilitate system design, debug, and software development. The company?s intellectual property (IP) is used by semiconductor and original equipment manufacturer companies for application-specific integrated circuits and application-specific standard products. It serves various markets, including feature phones, smartphones, machine to machi ne for various cellular standards, home entertainment, portable game consoles, and serial storage and telecommunication devices. CEVA, Inc. markets its technology through a direct sales force. The company was formerly known as ParthusCeva, Inc. and changed its name to CEVA, Inc. in December 2003. CEVA, Inc. was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California.

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 CEVA (Nasdaq: CEVA  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

Top 5 Cheap Stocks To Buy For 2015: SK3 Group Inc (SKTO)

SK3 Group, Inc. (SK3), formerly CTT International Distributors Inc., is a development-stage company. The Company was formed by the merger of Slabsdirect.com, Inc. and CTT International Distributors Inc. SK3 has one subsidiary, CTT Distributors Ltd., which is the operating company. SK3 is in the e-commerce business and provides non-branded computer and electronic merchandise at discount prices to the Internet consumer through its Website www.cheaperthanthem.com. The Website is hosted by Ezyra E-Business Services, an unrelated party, which charges SK3 an annual fee to host the Website. In December 2009, Healthcare of Today, Inc. acquired controlling interest in the Company. In December 2009, the Company acquired NuvoDigital Technology, Inc., a data security technology firm based in Salt Lake City. In addition, in December 2009, the Company's parent company Healthcare of Today, Inc. acquired Xenotis Pty Ltd. In February 2011, the Company acquired PRN Registry. In March 2011, the Company completed the acquisition of HealthStaff Training Institute. In March 2011, the Company acquired W&M Medical Management, Inc. Effective March 14, 2013, the Company acquired Medical Greens, a provider of medical logistics services.

SK3 has a direct business, in which it buys and takes possession of excess electronic and computer inventory for resale (Direct Business). In addition, SK3 has a fulfillment partner business, in which SK3 facilitates the sale of merchandise of other retailers, cataloguers or manufacturers (Fulfillment Associates) through the Website (Fulfillment Business). For both the direct business and fulfillment business, SK3 has developed a consumer and a wholesaler sales channel.

SK3�� Direct Business involves buying and taking possession of inventory for resale. The Company offers moving picture experts group layer-3 audio (MP3) players and a frequency modulation (FM) transmitter accessory for MP3 players on the Website. SK3 seeks to become an online retailer offering non-b! randed electronic and computer merchandise for sale over the Internet. SK3�� Fulfillment Business sells merchandise of Fulfillment Associates through the Website. SK3 manages the orders collected for the Fulfillment Associates through the Website and forwards the orders on to the Fulfillment Associate, who then fills the order. The Fulfillment Associates perform essentially the same operations as a warehouse: order picking and shipping.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By James E. Brumley]

  Truth be told, it's not clear if SK3 Group Inc. (OTCMKTS:SKTO) is best described when compared to a name like Cerner Corporation (NASDAQ:CERN), or to a Gentiva Health Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:GTIV). The company's got elements of both major industries being represented by CERN and GTIV (home health care, and information technology), with the addition of another budding industry thrown into the mix. One thing IS clear though... SKTO shares have decidedly reversed a nasty downtrend, and may now be one of the market's best small cap healthcare speculative trades.

Top Railroad Companies To Buy Right Now: SPDR S&P International Consumer Discretionary Sector ETF (IPD)

SPDR S&P International Consumer Discretionary Sector ETF (the Fund) seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the total return performance of the S&P Developed Ex-U.S. BMI Consumer Discretionary Sector Index (the Index), an index that tracks the consumer discretionary sector of developed global markets outside the United States. The Index represents the non-United States consumer discretionary sub-industry of developed countries included in the S&P Broad Market Index (the Global BMI Index). The Global BMI Index captures the full universe of institutionally investable stocks in developed and emerging markets with float-adjusted market capitalizations of at lease $100 million. The Fund�� investment advisor is SSgA Funds Management, Inc. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By WilliamBriat]

  The SPDR S&P International Consumer Discretionary Sector (NYSE: IPD) is an ETF that tracks the consumer discretionary sector of developed global markets. Holdings include luxury brand stock juggernaut LVMH Moët Hennessy – Louis Vuitton SA and Swedish luxury brand stock multinational retail clothing company H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB.

Top Railroad Companies To Buy Right Now: Belden Inc (BDC)

Belden Inc. (Belden), incorporated on May 18, 1988, designs, manufactures and markets cable, connectivity, and networking products in markets including industrial, enterprise, and broadcast. The Company operates in three segments: the Americas segment, the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) segment and the Asia Pacific segment. The Company�� offers cable, connectivity and networking products, including power generation and distribution, data centers, oil and gas, broadcast, transportation, healthcare and industrial automation. In December 2012, Carlisle Companies Inc acquired Thermax-Raydex business from the Company. In December 2012, the Company sold Consumer Electronics Assets in China to Shenzhen Woer Heat-Shrinkable Material Co Ltd. During the year ended December 31, 2012, the Company acquired Miranda Technologies Inc. (Miranda).

The categories of cable products are copper cables, including shielded and unshielded twisted pair cables, coaxial cables, and stranded cables, fiber optic cables, which transmit light signals through glass or plastic fibers and composite cables, which are combinations of multiconductor, coaxial, and fiber optic cables jacketed together or otherwise joined together to serve complex applications and provide ease of installation. Connectivity products include fiber and copper connectors for the enterprise, broadcast, broadband, and industrial markets. Networking products include Industrial Ethernet switches and related equipment and security features, fiber optic interfaces and media converters used to bridge fieldbus networks over long distances, networking infrastructure for the television broadcast, cable, satellite and IPTV industry, and load-moment indicators for mobile cranes and other load-bearing equipment.

For industrial end markets, the Company supplies cable, connectivity, and networking products for applications ranging from advanced industrial networking and robotics to traditional instrumentation and control systems. The Compa! ny�� cable products are used in discrete manufacturing and process operations involving the connection of computers, programmable controllers, robots, operator interfaces, motor drives, sensors, printers and other devices. The Company sells its industrial products primarily through value-added resellers, industrial distributors, and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). It designs, manufactures and markets Industrial Ethernet switches and related equipment, both rail-mounted and rack-mounted, for factory automation, power generation and distribution, process automation, and infrastructure projects, such as bridges, wind farms and airport runways. It also designs, manufactures and markets fiber optic interfaces and media converters. In addition, it designs, manufactures, and markets a range of industrial connectors for sensors and actuators, cord-sets, distribution boxes, and fieldbus communications. These products are used both as components of manufacturing equipment and in the installation and networking of such equipment. The Company also designs, manufactures and markets load-moment indicators. Its switches, communications equipment, connectors, and load-moment indicators are sold directly to industrial equipment OEMs and through a network of distributors and system integrators.

For enterprise end markets, the Company supplies structured cabling solutions, connectors, and networking products for the electronic and optical transmission of data, sound, and video over local- and wide- area networks. Products for this market include copper cables including 10-gigabit Ethernet technologies, fiber optic cables, connectors, wiring racks, panels, interconnecting hardware, intelligent patching devices, and cable management solutions for complete end-to-end network structured wiring systems. End-use customers include hospitals, financial institutions, governments, service providers, and data centers. Its systems are installed through a network of trained system integrators and are supplied t! hrough au! thorized distributors.

For broadcast end markets, the Company is a provider of hardware and software solutions for the television broadcast, cable, satellite and IPTV industry. Its solutions also span the full breadth of television operations, including production, playout and delivery. The Company also manufactures a variety of multiconductor and coaxial cable and connector products, which distributes audio and video signals for use in broadcast television including digital television and high definition television, broadcast radio, pre- and post-production facilities, recording studios, and public facilities such as casinos, arenas, and stadiums. Its audio/video cables are also used in connection with microphones, musical instruments, audio mixing consoles, effects equipment, speakers, paging systems, and consumer audio products.

The Company manufactures networking infrastructure products for the television broadcast, cable, satellite and IPTV industry. Its primary market channels for this broadcast, music, and entertainment products are broadcast specialty distributors and audio systems installers. It also sells directly to music OEMs and the television networks including ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC. The Company also provides specialized cables for security applications such as video surveillance systems, airport baggage screening, building access control, motion detection, public address systems, and advanced fire alarm systems. It manufactures flexible, copper-clad coaxial cable and associated connector products for the high-speed transmission of data, sound, and video (broadband) that are used for the drop section of cable television (CATV) systems and satellite direct broadcast systems.

For the broadband end market, Belden manufactures and develops connectivity solutions in several product categories: coax connector products that allow for connections from the provider network to the subscribers��devices, hardline connectors that allow service providers to dist! ribute th! eir services within a city, a town or a neighborhood and entry devices that serves to manage and remove network signal noise that could impair performance for the subscriber, and traps and filtering devices that allow service providers to control the signals that are transmitted to the subscriber.

During 2012, the Americas segment contributed approximately 64% of its consolidated revenues. This segment sells the full array of its products for the industrial, enterprise,and broadcast markets. The EMEA segment contributed approximately 19% of its consolidated revenues. This segment sells the full array of its products for the industrial, enterprise,and broadcast markets. The Asia Pacific segment contributed approximately 17% its consolidated revenues. This segment sells the full array of its products for the industrial, enterprise,and broadcast markets.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Belden (NYSE: BDC  ) reported earnings on May 2. Here are the numbers you need to know.

  The 10-second takeaway
  For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Belden met expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Signal transmission specialist�Belden� (NYSE: BDC  ) �announced yesterday�its second-quarter dividend of $0.05 per share, the same rate it has paid since 2004 when it first began making a payout.

• [By Damian Illia]

  Finally, I always like to see one of the most important financial ratios applying to stockholders, the best measure of performance for a firm's management: the return on equity. The ratio has decreased when compared to its ROE from the same quarter one year prior. Currently, a ROE of 45.9% is higher than all the 1,805 companies in the Diversified Industrials industry. Competitors such General Cable Corp. (BGC) has a very low ROE of 0.3% which is clearly not attractive. An alternative could be Belden Inc. (BDC) with a positive ROE of 24%.

Top Railroad Companies To Buy Right Now: Flextronics International Ltd.(FLEX)

Flextronics International Ltd. provides design and electronics manufacturing services to original equipment manufacturers. The company offers its services to a range of products in the infrastructure, mobile communication devices, computing, consumer digital devices, industrial, semiconductor capital equipment, clean technology, aerospace and defense, white goods, automotive and marine, and medical devices markets. Its services include design and engineering services, such as contract design, joint development manufacturing, and original design and manufacturing services in a range of technical competencies that include system architecture, user interface and industrial design, mechanical engineering, enclosure systems, thermal and tooling design, electronic system design, reliability and failure analysis, and component level development engineering; and systems assembly and manufacturing services, including enclosures, testing, and materials procurement and inventory mana gement services. The company also offers various component product solutions comprising rigid and flexible printed circuit board fabrication, display and touch solutions, optomechatronics, and power supplies; after market supply chain logistics services; and reverse logistics and repair services, such as returns management, exchange programs, complex repair, asset recovery, recycling, and e-waste management services for consumer and midrange products, printers, PDA's, mobile phones, consumer medical devices, notebooks, PC's, set-top boxes, game consoles, and infrastructure products. It has operations in Asia, the Americas, and Europe. Flextronics International Ltd. was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in Singapore.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  As a result, the big threat that Jabil constantly faces is the potential loss of its customers. Rival Flextronics (NASDAQ: FLEX  ) suffered a huge hit last summer when major customer BlackBerry (NASDAQ: BBRY  ) chose to stop using the company to help it make its namesake smartphones, citing cost-cutting efforts in its decision to make changes to its supply chain arrangements. Flextronics has seen substantial revenue declines as a result, even despite BlackBerry's relative weakness in the smartphone space in recent years. More importantly, the move came at the worst possible time, as BlackBerry has subsequently revived in the face of its latest product launch. Jabil counts BlackBerry as a customer as well, so it should be interesting to see how that relationship has developed in the wake of the Z10 and Q10 smartphone releases.

• [By Rich Smith]

  Singaporean contract electronics manufacturer Flextronics International (NASDAQ: FLEX  ) lost its chief financial officer today -- and immediately replaced him.

• [By Amber Hestla, Michael J. Carr]

  Among its suppliers is Flextronics International (Nasdaq: FLEX), which offers a variety of engineering services and provides supply chain management. Other Flextronics customers include Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ), LG and Google's (Nasdaq: GOOG) Motorola Mobility. 

Top Railroad Companies To Buy Right Now: Weir Group PLC (WEIR)

The Weir Group PLC is engaged in engineering businesses. It operates in three segments: Minerals, Oil and Gas, and Power and Industrial. The Minerals segment provides slurry handling equipment and associated aftermarket support for abrasive high wear applications used in the mining and oil sands markets. The Oil & Gas segment provides products and service solutions to upstream, production, transportation, refining and related industries. The Power & Industrial segment designs and manufactures valves, pumps and turbines as well as providing specialist support services to the global power generation, industrial and oil and gas sectors. The Company�� subsidiaries include American Hydro Corporation, EnviroTech Pumpsystems Inc, Gema Industrigummi AB, Linatex Rubber Products Sdn Bhd and Mesa Manufacturing Inc. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Inyoung Hwang]

  Weir Group Plc (WEIR) added 1.6 percent to 2,239 pence, the highest price in almost two months. The U.K.�� largest supplier of pressure pumps was raised to buy from hold at Berenberg Bank.

Top Railroad Companies To Buy Right Now: Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc (MSO)

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. (MSO), incorporated on May 7, 1996, is an integrated media and merchandising company providing consumers with lifestyle content and products. The Company operates in three segments: Publishing, Broadcasting, Merchandising, Publishing and Broadcasting. The media and merchandise it creates generally consists of cooking and entertaining, holiday and celebrations, crafts, home, weddings, organizing, office products and accessories, gardening and outdoor living, and pets (grooming, apparel, feeding and health). In December 2012, the Company ceased its Everyday Food publication. In January 2013, the Company discontinued publication of Whole Living.

Publishing

During the year ended December 31, 2012, the Company�� Publishing segment accounted for 62% of its total revenues, consisting of operations related to magazine and book publishing and digital distribution, principally through its marthastewart.com. Revenues from magazine and digital advertising represented approximately 63% of the segment�� revenues during 2012, while circulation revenues represented approximately 34% of the segment�� revenues. As of December 31, 2012, the Company�� Everyday Food publication is being issued as an occasional insert to Martha Stewart Living subscribers.

Martha Stewart Living, its flagship magazine, is the foundation of its publishing business. The Company As of December 31, 2012, it published Martha Stewart Living on a monthly basis with a rate base of 2.05 million. The magazine primarily focused to the college-educated woman between the ages of 25 and 54 who owns her residence. Martha Stewart Living offers lifestyle ideas. Martha Stewart Weddings, a quarterly publication, targets the upscale bride and serves. Martha Stewart Weddings is distributed primarily through newsstands.

Martha Stewart Living, its flagship magazine, is the foundation of its publishing business. The Company As of December 31, 2012, it published Martha ! Stewart Living on a monthly basis with a rate base of 2.05 million. The magazine primarily focused to the college-educated woman between the ages of 25 and 54 who owns her residence. Martha Stewart Living offers lifestyle ideas. Martha Stewart Weddings, a quarterly publication, targets the upscale bride and serves. Martha Stewart Weddings is distributed primarily through newsstands.

The marthastewart.com Website is its digital properties, offering a range of continually updated articles, recipes and videos developed from several Martha Stewart brands, including its magazine properties. The Website provides several lifestyle categories: food, entertaining, holidays, home and garden, crafts and pets. The Website also serves as a gateway to its other properties, including marthastewartweddings.com and emerils.com. The Company produces digital editions available through Barnes & Noble's Nook, Amazon's Kindle Fire and through the Zinio platform. During 2012, it built a custom storefront in Apple's iTunes, which allows it to sell subscriptions and single copies of its magazines, only for Apple's iPad products. The Company produces iPad versions of Martha Stewart Living and Martha Stewart Weddings, the latter of which was launched during 2012. During 2012, it launched the Craft Studio app available on Apple iTunes.

Merchandising

The Merchandising segment consists of the Company�� operations related to the design and branding of merchandise and related collateral and packaging materials that are distributed by its retail and manufacturing partners in exchange for royalty income. The Company�� merchandising segment contributed 29% of its total revenues during 2012. The segment consists of operations related to the design of merchandise and related packaging, collateral and advertising materials, and the licensing of various trademarks, in connection with retail programs conducted through a number of retailers and manufacturers. The Company�� Martha Stewart Living prog! ram at Th! e Home Depot is available at all of The Home Depot�� stores in the United States and Canada, as well as on www.homedepot.com and Home Decorators Collection catalog, online and retail stores. The Martha Stewart Living program at The Home Depot consists of a range of home decor, paint, storage and organization products, outdoor furniture, window treatments, kitchen cabinetry, countertops, carpet and seasonal holiday decor.

The Company�� Martha Stewart Collection at Macy�� is available at the approximately 650 Macy�� stores in the United States that offer home products, as well on www.macys.com. The Martha Stewart Collection line consists of a range of home goods, including bed and bath textiles, house wares, food preparation and other kitchen items, tabletop and holiday decorating items. Martha Stewart Crafts, a paper-based crafting program, consists of tools, embellishments, paper/albums, and other seasonal products. Martha Stewart Pets line consists of a range of pet accessories, including apparel, collars, leashes, bedding, grooming supplies and toys. The Martha Stewart Home Office line is sold at Staples in the United States and United Kingdom, on www.staples.com, and at Officeworks in Australia. The line consists of a range of home office products, including surface organization, journals, portable filing, pantry organization and the line of bags and totes.

Emerilware products by T-FAL consist of small kitchen appliances available at department stores and specialty retail outlets across the United States, as well as through the Home Shopping Network. Emerilware by All-Clad consists of lines of gourmet cookware and barbeque tools available at department stores and specialty retail outlets across the United States, as well as through the Home Shopping Network. Emeril Lagasse introduced with B&G Foods, Emeril�� Original is a line of seasonings, salad dressings, basting sauces and marinades, mustards, salsas, pasta sauces, pepper sauces, spice rubs, cooking sprays and ! stocks av! ailable at supermarkets and specialty markets across the United States, as well as through the Home Shopping Network. Emeril�� Gourmet Coffee with Timothy�� World Coffee is a single-cup coffee program consisting of flavored coffees inspired by Emeril Lagasse. The program is available in department and specialty stores nationwide, as well as in certain national hotel chains.

Emeril's Red Marble Steaks with Allen Brothers is a line of hand-selected, aged steaks. The line is available through catalog, online and the Home Shopping Network. During 2012, it launched Emeril by Snapware, which is branded food storage, on the Home Shopping Network.

Broadcasting

The Broadcasting segment consists of the Company's television production operations and its satellite radio operations. The Company�� Broadcasting business segment accounted for 9% of its total revenues during 2012. During 2012, the Company restructured the Broadcasting segment, which included the termination of its live audience television production operations. Emeril Lagasse also provides various television services for us. During 2012, Emeril Lagasse hosted a new show, Emeril's Florida, on the Cooking Channel. During 2012, it produced two seasons of a new weekly half-hour series, Martha Stewart�� Cooking School.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  As part of ousted CEO Ron Johnson's plan to revitalize Penney's, the once-venerable department store acquired a 17% stake in Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (NYSE: MSO  ) back in 2011 for $38.5 million, with an eye toward bolstering its cachet. There were airy plans to introduce mini-stores with trained personnel giving out tips and advice. It was likened at the time to�Apple Genius Bars, but I guess employees would be decked out in aprons and dishing out domestic pointers.

• [By Andrew Marder]

  Like seeing a horse named Paste winning the Kentucky Derby, J.C. Penney (NYSE: JCP  ) surprised everyone yesterday by winning one of the little battles in its ongoing war with Macy's (NYSE: M  ) . On Friday, a judge ruled that the struggling retailer could sell its Martha Stewart Living (NYSE: MSO  ) -designed -- but not Martha Stewart-branded -- merchandise while its legal proceedings continue to unfold. The good news came the day after J.C. Penney failed to have the case thrown out�.

Top Railroad Companies To Buy Right Now: Tronox Ltd (TROX)

Tronox Limited, incorporated on September 21, 2011, is engaged in production and marketing of titanium bearing mineral sands and titanium dioxide pigment (TiO2). The Company�� TiO2 products are critical components of everyday applications, such as coatings, plastics, paper and other applications. The Company�� mineral sands business consists primarily of two product streams: titanium feedstock and zircon. The Company operates in three segments: mineral sands, pigment and corporate and other. The corporate and other include its electrolytic manufacturing business. It has operations in North America, Europe, South Africa and the Asia-Pacific region. The Company operates three TiO2 facilities at the locations in Hamilton, Mississippi, Botlek, The Netherlands, and Kwinana, Western Australia, representing approximately 465,000 tons of annual TiO2 production capacity. In addition, it operates three separate mining operations: KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Sands located in South Africa, Namakwa Sands located in South Africa and the Tiwest Joint Venture located in Western Australia, which has a combined annual production capacity of approximately 723,000 tons of titanium feedstock and approximately 265,000 tons of zircon. On June 15, 2012, the existing business of Tronox Incorporated was combined with the mineral sands business under Tronox Limited.

Mineral Sand segment

The Company's minerals segment includes the exploration, mining and beneficiation of mineral sands deposits. These operations produce titanium feedstock, including ilmenite, chloride slag, slag fines and rutile, as well as zircon, pig iron and activated charcoal. Titanium feedstock is used primarily to manufacture TiO2. Zircon is a mineral which is primarily used as an opacifier in ceramic glazes for tiles, plates, dishes and industrial products.

Pigment segment

The Company's pigment segment primarily produces and markets TiO2, and has production facilities in the United States, Australia, and the! Netherlands. TiO2 is used in a range of products due to its ability to impart whiteness, brightness and opacity. TiO2 is used in the manufacture of coatings, plastics and paper and in a range of other applications, including inks, fibers, rubber, food, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. TiO2 is a critical component of everyday consumer applications due to its superior ability to cover or mask other materials effectively and efficiently relative to alternative white pigments and extenders.

Corporate and other

Corporate and other is comprised of corporate activities and businesses that are no longer in operation, as well as its electrolytic manufacturing and marketing operations, all of which are located in the United States. It�� electrolytic and other chemical products operations are focused on advanced battery materials, sodium chlorate and specialty boron products.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Robert Rapier]

  The “drop” mentioned in this question referred to the correction in the prices of many domestic oil producer shares that I had warned was likely during our November web chat. But on Dec. 14, just two days after our latest chat, Anadarko Petroleum (NYSE: APC) suffered a far more worrisome drop. On that day a judge ruled that Anadarko is responsible for at least $5 billion and perhaps up to $14 billion of cleanup costs related to Tronox (NYSE: TROX), which was spun out of Kerr-McGee in 2005 and subsequently declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2009.

Top Railroad Companies To Buy Right Now: Violin Memory Inc (VMEM)

Violin Memory, Inc., incorporated on March 9, 2005, is pioneering a new class of flash-based storage systems that are designed to bring storage performance in-line with high-speed applications, servers and networks. The Company�� Flash Memory Arrays are specifically designed at each level of the system architecture starting with memory and optimized through the array to leverage the inherent capabilities of flash memory and meet the sustained requirements of business-critical applications, virtualized environments and Big Data solutions in enterprise data centers. The Company�� Velocity Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe), Flash Memory Cards leverage its persistent memory-based architecture in servers and are optimized for applications that require continuous access to quantities of low latency persistent memory located directly in servers.

The Company�� storage systems are based on a four-layer hardware architecture, which is integrated with its Violin Memory Operating System (vMOS), software stack to optimize the management of flash memory at each level of its system architecture. The Company�� Velocity PCIe Flash Memory Cards leverage its expertise in persistent memory-based storage and controller design, as well as its vMOS software stack, to offer a differentiated architecture in a deployable PCIe form factor.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Michael Calia]

  Violin Memory Inc.(VMEM) named Kevin A. DeNuccio as chief executive after firing prior CEO Don Basile in December because of the company’s poor performance. The flash-storage company posted disappointing third-quarter results and a sagging stock price.