Investors took a quiet ride this week, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI ) rose or fell nearly 100 points during intra-day trading before reversing course the past three days of the week. The roller coaster investors boarded start on Wednesday, with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke testifying before Congress that the Fed's bond-buying program could end in the coming months -- and based on the central bank's meeting minutes, which were also released on Wednesday, it seems a number of Fed members think the quantitative easing programs should come to an end sooner rather than later.
This news sent shock waves throughout the markets as investors grappled with the thought that cheap money could soon be a thing of the past. Consequently, the Dow fell 51 points, or 0.33%, during the past five trading days, and now the blue-chip index sits at 15,303. The S&P 500 fared slightly worse, losing 0.99% last week, while the Nasdaq fell 1.13%. Twenty of the Dow's 30 components ended the week lower than were they began it.
Hot Cheap Companies To Own In Right Now: Alliance Holdings GP L.P.(AHGP)
Alliance Holdings GP, L.P., through its subsidiaries, produces and markets coal primarily to utilities and industrial users in the United States. It produces a range of steam coal with varying sulfur and heat contents. The company operates nine underground mining complexes in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, and West Virginia. As of December 31, 2010, it had approximately 697.4 million tons of proven and probable coal reserves in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. In addition, the company leases land; and operates a coal loading terminal, with a capacity of 8.0 million tons with ground storage of approximately 60,000 to 70,000 tons, on the Ohio River at Mt. Vernon, Indiana. Further, it engages in purchasing and selling coal; and providing services, including ash and scrubber sludge removal, coal yard maintenance, and arranging alternate transportation services. Alliance GP, LLC, serves as the general partner of the company. Allian ce Holdings GP, L.P. is based in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Chris Stuart]
Alliance Holding(AHGP) is a diversified coal producer with mining operations in Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, West Virginia and Maryland.
The stock has slumped 18% in the past three months due to a secondary offering of 2.75 million shares, which was released in April for $52 a share. Shares are now trading $6 below the offering price.
Management has stepped up and put its own money to work with CEO Joe Craft buying $3 million worth of stock last week. The company pays a dividend of $2.22 a share, with a yield of 5%. Alliance trades at a discount to other coal competitors at a P/E of 15. With expectations calling for 20% growth, the shares look attractive. TheStreet Ratings has a $61 price target on Alliance.
Hot Cheap Companies To Own In Right Now: TII Network Technologies Inc.(TIII)
Tii Network Technologies, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells products for use in the networks to service providers in the communications industry in the United States. It provides network interface devices (NID), including overvoltage surge protectors, digital subscriber line (DSL) service splitters, and customer bridge modules; building entrance terminals; and accessories comprising station protectors, customer wiring modules, electro-magnetic interference filters, and line test modules. The company also offers broadband products, such as DSL electronic products that include xDSL plain old telephone service splitters to isolate voice and data signals; Outrigger, an outdoor intelligent residential gateway; HomePlug technology that enables networking of voice, data, and audio devices through the consumers? AC power lines. In addition, it provides connectivity products consisting of connector block and terminal block products; voice over I nternet protocol products; switchable voice NID products; voice intercom systems for use in multi-dwelling units; and wire terminals and other connectivity products. Further, the company offers fiber optic products which comprise wall mount enclosures, rack mount enclosures, OSP fiber enclosures, cable assemblies, miscellaneous fiber accessories, and optic network terminals installation accessories. Additionally, it offers overvoltage surge protection products, including two and three electrode gas tubes; station overvoltage surge protectors; protector modules; and protector packs and cat 5 cat 6 protection products, as well as other surge protection products comprising a 75 ohm coaxial protector for cable networks; a 50-ohm coaxial protector for wireless service providers? cell sites; a gel-sealed Ethernet data protector; and power line/data line protectors for personal computers and home entertainment systems. The company was founded in 1964 and is headquartered in Edgewoo d, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By John Reese]
Tii Network Technologies (NASDAQ: TIII) helps protect expensive telecom equipment with its overvoltage surge protection devices. This is especially useful during lightning strikes and power surges. Its Total Failsafe products offer modular station protectors, while its In-Line products protect broadband coaxial cables.
Naturally, large telecom carriers like Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) are big customers and account for 34% of sales. DIRECTV (NASDAQ: DTV), Power & Telephone Supply and Tyco Electronics (NYSE: TEL) are also customers. With Verizon and other cell phone providers upgrading to 4G, Tii’s sales should remain very strong.
The stock is a good buy, but it is thinly traded, so use a limit order within 10 cents of the previous day’s closing price. Buy TIII under $3.
5 Best Insurance Stocks To Own Right Now: Cowen Group Inc.(COWN)
Cowen Group, Inc. is a publicly owned asset management holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides alternative investment management, investment banking, research, and sales and trading services for its clients. It manages separate client focused portfolio through its subsidiaries. Through its subsidiaries, the firm invests in equity and fixed income markets. It also invests in alternative investments markets through its subsidiaries. Cowen Group, Inc. was founded in 1994 and is based in New York, New York with additional offices in Boston, Massachusetts, Chicago, Illinois, Cleveland, Ohio, Dallas, Texas, and San Francisco, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Michael Brush]
The name isn't as common as others here, but you might remember the boutique investment banking and stock research shop Cowen Group (COWN). It helped hatch many of the midsize, high-growth tech and health-care companies during the late 1990s boom. Cowen itself went public in 2006, just in time to get trounced by an economic meltdown.
Since the economy's upward turn, Cowen's stock hasn't rebounded as well as bigger rivals like Goldman Sachs, GS. But its time will come, insists Anton Schutz, the manager of the Burnham Financial Industries Fund (BMFIX), which owns the stock. "In a true bull market, Cowen is capable of earning over $1 a share," says Schutz. Since boutique investment banks carry price-to-earnings ratios at least in the low teens in good times, this stock could double or even triple from recent levels of $4 a share, Schutz reasons.
Cowen recently purchased the brokerage LaBranche (LAB), whose presence on the Hong Kong stock exchange should help Cowen increase its investment banking business in China. "I expect this area to be of vital importance in growth for us," Cowen CEO and Wall Street veteran Peter Cohen said in the company's most recent conference call. LaBranche also gives Cowen much-needed electronic platforms supporting options and high frequency trading, says Sandler O'Neill analyst Devin Ryan, who has a $7 price target on the stock.
Asset management arm Ramius, which offers hedge funds and mutual funds, should continue to perform well as the stock market and economy rebound. These trends will also support Cowen's U.S. brokerage and investment banking businesses. "The smaller brokers don't need that many crumbs to fall off the table to make some really good money," Ryan says.
Meanwhile, Cowen's stock looks cheap, trading at about 70% of book value, compared with a 24% premium to book value at bigger rivals like Goldman Sachs (GS). That protects investors against downside, and also makes Cowen a possible buyout target.
- [By Michael Brush]
The name isn't as common as others here, but you might remember the boutique investment banking and stock research shop Cowen Group (COWN). It helped hatch many of the midsize, high-growth tech and health-care companies during the late 1990s boom. Cowen itself went public in 2006, just in time to get trounced by an economic meltdown.
Since the economy's upward turn, Cowen's stock hasn't rebounded as well as bigger rivals like Goldman Sachs, GS. But its time will come, insists Anton Schutz, the manager of the Burnham Financial Industries Fund (BMFIX), which owns the stock. "In a true bull market, Cowen is capable of earning over $1 a share," says Schutz. Since boutique investment banks carry price-to-earnings ratios at least in the low teens in good times, this stock could double or even triple from recent levels of $4 a share, Schutz reasons.
Cowen recently purchased the brokerage LaBranche (LAB), whose presence on the Hong Kong stock exchange should help Cowen increase its investment banking business in China. "I expect this area to be of vital importance in growth for us," Cowen CEO and Wall Street veteran Peter Cohen said in the company's most recent conference call. LaBranche also gives Cowen much-needed electronic platfor ms supporting options and high frequency trading, says Sandler O'Neill analyst Devin Ryan, who has a $7 price target on the stock.
Asset management arm Ramius, which offers hedge funds and mutual funds, should continue to perform well as the stock market and economy rebound. These trends will also support Cowen's U.S. brokerage and investment banking businesses. "The smaller brokers don't need that many crumbs to fall off the table to make some really good money," Ryan says.
Meanwhile, Cowen's stock looks cheap, trading at about 70% of book value, compared with a 24% premium to book value at bigger rivals like Goldman Sachs (GS). That protects investors against downsi! de, and also makes Cowen a possible buyout target.
Hot Cheap Companies To Own In Right Now: Uranium Resources Inc.(URRE)
Uranium Resources, Inc. engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and mining of uranium properties, using the in situ recovery or solution mining process. It owns developed and undeveloped uranium properties in South Texas; and undeveloped uranium properties in New Mexico. The company?s primary customers include utilities who utilize nuclear power to generate electricity. Uranium Resources, Inc. was founded in 1977 and is based in Lewisville, Texas.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Louis]
Uranium exploration, mine development and production company Uranium Resources Inc.(URRE) has watched its stock value skyrocket 179% in the past 12 months -- and it is still trading for less than $2 per share! This is even more impressive when you consider that investors fled the sector in March after the nuclear power plant crisis in Japan, causing URRE to lose close to 50%. Since its March 16 low, shares have climbed 38% to $1.92. With a 52-week trading range of 38 cents to $3.98, look for shares to make their way higher as the sector continues to rebound.
Hot Cheap Companies To Own In Right Now: Oracle Corporation(ORCL)
Oracle Corporation, an enterprise software company, develops, manufactures, markets, distributes, and services database and middleware software, applications software, and hardware systems worldwide. It licenses of database and middleware software, including database management software, application server software, service-oriented architecture and business process management software, data integration software, business intelligence software, identity and access management software, content management software, portals and user interaction software, development tools, and Java; and applications software comprising enterprise resource planning, customer relationship management, enterprise performance management, supply chain management, business intelligence applications, enterprise portfolio project management, Web commerce, and industry-specific applications software. The company also offers customers with rights to unspecified software product upgrades and maintenance releases; Internet access to technical content; and Internet and telephone access to technical support personnel. In addition, its hardware systems products consist of computer server and hardware-related software, including the Oracle Solaris Operating System; and storage products, such as tape, disk and networking solutions for open systems and mainframe server environments. Its hardware systems support solutions include software updates for the software components. Further, the company offers consulting solutions in business and IT strategy alignment, enterprise architecture planning and design, initial product implementation and integration, and ongoing product enhancements and upgrades; cloud services, including Oracle Cloud Services and Advanced Customer Services; and education solutions comprising instructor-led, media-based, and Internet-based training in the use of its software and hardware products. The company was founded in 1977 and is headquartered in Redwood Ci ty, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Fabian]
Oracle. This software service giant, which deals in a slew of databases, applications, product support, and other services, has also made some smart acquisitions, Resendes says. "The companies they've acquired--PeopleSoft, BEA, and Seibold--really round out the product line." What's more, Oracle's database business has been steadily gaining market share, he says, which is "a positive sign because they're starting to eat up competitors." Oracle's stock, recently $18, is trading slightly below what it was a year ago. Resendes thinks that share price could rise 25 percent.
- [By Bill]
Larry Ellison has created a winner in Oracle. This stock has great numbers, cash on hand, and upbeat expectations. All the above are things I like.
- [By Goodwin]
Oracle (ORCL), a software enterprise company, is the only Overweight-rated company in this market segment. With the introduction of a new Exadata product line, Oracle is set to enjoy a positive secular trend. Its current market price of $29.58 has fluctuated in the range of $24.72 to $36.50. Earnings per share of $1.76 have been posted and market capitalization stands at $149.47 billion. Its recent P/E ratio was 16.88x and the company showed a net profit margin of 23.99%.
Hot Cheap Companies To Own In Right Now: Progress Software Corporation(PRGS)
Progress Software Corporation operates as an enterprise software company worldwide. Its products include Progress OpenEdge platform, which offers development tools, application servers, application management tools, and an embedded database; Progress Orbix to address enterprise integration problems with standards-based solutions; and Progress ObjectStore, an object data management system to store data faster than relational database management system or file-based storage system. The company?s products also comprise Progress Responsiveness Process Management suite for business users; Progress Control Tower, an interactive business control panel; Progress Sonic, which comprises an enterprise messaging system and the enterprise service buses; Progress Actional that provides operational and business visibility, root cause analysis, and policy-based security and control of services; Progress Apama, which offers tools for creating, testing, and deploying strategies for applicat ions, including algorithmic trading, market aggregation, smart order routing, market surveillance and monitoring, and risk management; Progress Savvion BusinessManager, a business process management software; and Fuse products that provide customers with access to professional open source integration and messaging software. In addition, it offers Progress DataDirect Connect products, which provide data connectivity components; Progress DataDirect Shadow to provide foundation architecture for standards-based mainframe integration; and Progress Data Services product set that offers data integration for distributed applications. Further, the company provides maintenance, consulting, training, and customer support services. Progress Software Corporation sells its products to independent software vendors, original equipment manufacturers, and system integrators through direct sales force and independent distributors. The company was founded in 1981 and is based in Bedford, Massac husetts.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Chris Stuart]
Progress Software(PRGS) recently cut its outlook for the fiscal second quarter ended in May, saying execution problems at its EDS (enterprise data solutions) segment would lead to a shortfall.
Mark Schappel from Benchmark Securities (which rates Progress a "buy" with a $31 target) says the shortfall is a speed bump in the company's ongoing transformation, and not a sign of a slump in infrastructure spending.
TheStreet Ratings has a $34 price target on Progress Software.
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