McDonald's sets 2020 sustainability goals

Ronald McDonald is wearing a new-and-improved sustainability hat.

McDonald's, on Wednesday, announced new goals for sustainability and social responsibility by 2020 – including sustainable beef production – but at least one environmental group found the goals too modest and and not transparent enough.

"While it appears to be a positive move, McDonald's whole business model is based on disposable matter and cheap food that's cheaply produced," says Lisa Archer, director of the food technology program at Friends of the Earth, a national environmental group. "Their whole business model is based on an unsustainable system. So they have a long way to go."

McDonald's executives says the goals are a big deal. "We are focusing on the areas that are core to our business and that make a real difference," says J. C. Gonzalez-Mendez, senior vice president of McDonald's global corporate social responsibility, sustainability and philanthropy, in a statement.

The move comes at a time Millennials are increasingly attracted to companies – particularly food and restaurant companies – that practice sustainable business habits. Buying or using green products, for example, is important to four in 10 Millennials, which is greater than to any other age group, according to a recent survey by Shelton Group, a communications agency focused on sustainability.

Perhaps that's why everyone from Coca-Cola to PepsiCo to Chipotle upped their sustainability communications via social media last year, reports the Social Media Sustainability Index.

Among McDonald's 2020 goals:

– Supporting sustainable beef production and beginning purchasing an unspecified portion of beef from verified sustainable sources in 2016.

– Sourcing 100% of coffee, palm oil and fish that is verified to support sustainable production.

– Purchasing 100% of fiber-based packaging from certified or recycled sources.

– Serving 100% more fruit, vegetable, low-fat diary or whole grains in nine o! f its top markets.

– Increasing in-restaurant recycling by 50%.

– Increasing energy-efficiency in company-owned restaurants by 20% in seven of its top markets.

"We're on our way to mainstreaming sustainability," says Bob Langert, McDonald's vice president of corporate social responsibility and sustainability.

But Archer, of Friends of the Earth, says McDonald's has no choice but to make these changes – and more. "They are losing market share as customers seek more sustainable food," she says. "They are making these changes because they have to."

Qualcomm Is Still Going Strong

When someone expects a lot from you, it might either put a lot of pressure on your performance or even your best might not please them. This is actually what is happening with Qualcomm (QCOM) because despite stellar top and bottom line growth at nearly 24% year-on-year in the last five years, the stock has appreciated just 15%. But Qualcomm still looks good for the long run.

Outlook

Qualcomm's license business' revenue and profits will fall when developed markets shift to 4G, as it would earn 3.3% royalty on 4G/LTE, while it earns a 5% royalty for 3G. The bright side remains that the complete transition from 3G to 4G/LTE will take at least a couple of years in the developed markets. Moreover, the need to backward-integrate will provide Qualcomm with ample opportunities in developing countries as they are shifting to 3G now.

The company's margins have reduced, but its superior business and market dominance cannot be challenged. It held nearly 86% of the total market for LTE chipsets in 2012 and continues the same dominance this year too with its first ever LTE-Advanced smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy S4 LTE-A, launched in late June. The new Galaxy S4 LTE-A, utilizing LTE carrier aggregation, will offer data rates up to 150 Mbps, thereby offering twice the current LTE speeds.

Qualcomm's Snapdragon 800 processors are designed to hold up LTE carrier aggregation without affecting the battery life. Snapdragon 800 is expected to go into commercial position soon and is expected to feature in 200 phones and tablets to be released later this year. The company is well ahead of competition as the MDM 9X25 and Snapdragon 800 chipsets are its third generation of LTE modems, while most of the competitors are still struck with the first generation. Being well ahead of competition and the only provider of LTE-Advanced features, Qualcomm is poised to perform in the growing smartphone market.

The only close competitor to Snapdragon 800 is NVIDIA (NVDA)'s fourth generation Tegra chips, Tegra 4i, which are expected to be launched in the beginning of next year, and Broadcom's (BRCM) recently launched BCM21892. The Tegra 4i will be half the size of Snapdragon 800 processor and BCM21892 is currently the smallest LTE 4G enabled chip in the industry. The smaller size of the chips makes them cheaper to produce and more energy efficient. However, Qualcomm's earlier launch of its Snapdragon 800 processor with an LTE –Advanced feature places it in an advantageous position, as there is no other competing product.

However, NVIDIA's attempt to speed up the launch of Tegra 4i delayed the launch of Tegra 4, which forced the company to continue with Tegra 3, a comparatively outdated product compared to its competitors. The delay cost the company a number of design wins too. Further, Tegra 4i does not offer any great hardware upgrades from the Tegra 3, which might cost the company heavily, as in the tech sector, innovation is the key to success.

On the other hand, Broadcom's chip forms an integral part in both Samsung and Apple's devices, which provides certainty to its future revenue. Further, it is continuously putting tremendous efforts into forming partnerships with local carriers and handset makers in emerging markets, especially China. There is no doubt of the potential that China offers, and going forward Broadcom is expected to be benefited from its operations there.

What About 5G?

Broadcom is the first company to initiate a 5G WiFi combo chip for smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices. The company is bidding on the 802.11ac standard for every chief WiFi product segment. The 5G technology offers significant increases in WiFi coverage and transfer speeds, with considerably less power consumption, which enhances the efficiency to about six times the current levels. Entry into the 5G market should work in Broadcom's advantage in the long run, making it a good bet.

Final Words

With a short-term view, if we see Qualcomm's performance year to date, its stock price has remained almost flat, but it has provided opportunities to gain from stock price volatility. Even after it reported its last earnings, its shares fell over 10% in two days despite strong performance by the company, which I believe was a good buying opportunity keeping in view the growth that Qualcomm offers in the long term.

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Should You Take A Gamble On Zynga?

Zynga's (NASDAQ:ZNGA) stock price plummeted earlier this month, and it lost 16 percent of its market cap after the company revealed plans to cut 18 percent of its workforce. Can the company rebound from this massive layoff? Let's use our Cheat Sheet investing framework to decide whether Zynga is an OUTPERFORM, WAIT AND SEE, or STAY AWAY.

C = Catalysts for the Stock's Movement

Clearly, the most recent catalyst for the fall in Zynga's share price has been the large-scale layoff announced at the beginning of the month. CEO Mark Pincus said that by closing three U.S. offices, the online game developer would cut costs by $70 million to $80 million annually. The reduction in costs will free up capital for Zynga to focus on its mobile gaming strategy. The news is especially disheartening as Zynga had to close its OMGPOP Studios branch — makers of Draw Something — one year after acquiring the company for $200 million. This bleak news has spooked investors and initiated a large sell-off.

Zynga has become reliant on Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) games for personal computers and has recently seen a sharp decline in its daily average users, a standard metric measuring online game usage. While titles like Farmville achieved massive success in 2009 and 2010, generating more than $1 billion in revenue for Zynga, the popularity of these types of titles has diminished. Zynga needs to adapt to current market trends or face obscurity.

H = High-Quality Products in the Pipeline? 

The company hopes to get back on track by pivoting to a strategy focused on mobile gaming. But Zynga might be too late to the party: its most popular game, Farmville, has been overtaken on mobile devices by newer releases. Pincus's track record has not exactly been stellar — investors and employees alike question his foresight and ability to capitalize on new trends in gaming.

Zynga has talked about rolling the dice and entering the online real-money gambling sector. It plans to use new capital to develop online card and slot games, recently acquiring Spooky Cool Labs, an online slot game designer. While the economics of online gambling is certainly more profitable than that of Zynga's “freemium” business model, the industry is surrounded by uncertainty. Currently, online gambling is illegal in most states. And even if more states legalize online gambling, the company would be facing online gambling titans such as Caesar's Entertainment (NASDAQ:CZR), who have much more resources than Zynga as well as exposure in the gambling industry.

T = Technicals are Weak

Zynga is currently trading around $2.75, below both its 50-day moving average of $3.12 and 200-day moving average of $3.05. The company is experiencing a strong downtrend, and is down more than 55 percent since its 52-week high one year ago of $6.35. Zynga currently has a relative strength index of less than 30, suggesting that the stock is oversold and could be poised for a rally. However, if Zynga continues to report bad news and earnings, this is a remote possibility.

Conclusion 

The future for Zynga is uncertain. Its stock price may currently be undervalued, as indicated by its low RSI after the layoff announcement on June 4 triggered a large sell-off. The stock has posted two consecutive quarters of declining revenue growth and expects to report a net loss next quarter of between $28.5 million and $39 million. But the company is not yet in dire straits: It still has $1.4 billion in cash and a $2.18 billion market cap as of Tuesday.

If you feel like taking a chance on the government's decision to allow online gambling, Zynga might have some upside. And if the company can produce another hit equivalent to Farmville for mobile devices, it could rapidly expand its user base and, consequentially, its share price. These events are just speculation at this point. While Zynga is not a worthless company, there is too much uncertainty in its transitioning business model and the economics of its industry to warrant an OUTPERFORM rating. For now, Zynga is a WAIT AND SEE.

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What Does Wall Street See for HMS Holdings's Q2?

HMS Holdings (Nasdaq: HMSY  ) is expected to report Q2 earnings on July 26. Here's what Wall Street wants to see:

The 10-second takeaway
Comparing the upcoming quarter to the prior-year quarter, average analyst estimates predict HMS Holdings's revenues will increase 3.0% and EPS will shrink -8.7%.

The average estimate for revenue is $123.7 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.21.

Revenue details
Last quarter, HMS Holdings recorded revenue of $116.6 million. GAAP reported sales were 8.7% higher than the prior-year quarter's $107.3 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
Last quarter, non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.15. GAAP EPS of $0.08 were the same as the prior-year quarter.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Recent performance
For the preceding quarter, gross margin was 33.4%, 300 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 13.1%, 180 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 6.0%, 60 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

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Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $504.9 million. The average EPS estimate is $0.88.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 281 members out of 296 rating the stock outperform, and 15 members rating it underperform. Among 63 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 59 give HMS Holdings a green thumbs-up, and four give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on HMS Holdings is outperform, with an average price target of $31.08.

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Add HMS Holdings to My Watchlist.

What President Obama's Emissions Proposal Means for Natural Gas

In a speech at Georgetown University late last month, President Obama outlined a detailed plan for tackling the pressing issue of climate change.

One of the main goals he discussed was reducing annual carbon pollution in half over the next two decades. To move closer to this goal, he plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from U.S. power plants by empowering the Environmental Protection Agency to establish carbon pollution standards for both new and existing power plants.

While the coal industry didn't take too kindly to his proposal, his words were surely well received by natural gas companies. Let's take a closer look at why the president's proposal could lead to a substantial increase in natural gas demand over the next several years.

Obama's proposal and future natural gas demand
According to industry analysts, President Obama's plan to cut carbon emissions from U.S. power plants could mean an additional 4 billion to 8 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas demand growth over the next decade.

"Using the National Resources Defense Council's notional 1,500 [pounds of CO2 emissions per kilowatt hour] as a starting point implies an incremental retirement of about 70 GW of coal-fired capacity by 2020 over and above approximately 40 GW of expected retirements associated with the MATS rule," said ClearView Energy Partners' analyst Kevin Book in a note released after the speech.

The basic idea is that the president's proposal to limit carbon emissions will give power plants incentive to use more natural gas instead of coal. That's because coal and natural gas compete directly for market share in the U.S. power-generation market. Though this market has historically been dominated by coal, gas suddenly became a much more attractive alternative as its price plunged to a decade low last spring.

Other natural gas demand drivers
In addition to demand from utilities, other key drivers of future demand for natural gas include industrial and petrochemical firms, LNG exports, and, to a lesser extent, residential and commercial conversion. Another wildcard source of demand may also come from the transport industry, where demand for natural gas-powered trucks has soared in recent years and is likely to increase further.

For instance, Waste Management (NYSE: WM  ) has amassed a fleet of around 2,000 trucks that are powered by compressed natural gas and plans to add more, while UPS (NYSE: UPS  ) recently announced plans to purchase 285 more gas-powered trucks next year.

Even some of the largest players in the railroad industry, including Berkshire Hathaway's Burlington Northern Santa Fe, Union Pacific, and Norfolk Southern, are carefully studying the costs and benefits of converting their freight trains' engines to burn natural gas instead of diesel. BNSF, for instance, is using units from General Electric (NYSE: GE  ) and Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT  ) , the biggest manufactures of locomotives in the world, to determine whether it wants to convert some of its trains to run of a mix of natural gas and diesel.

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In all, these trends paint a highly bullish picture for the future of natural gas demand. Over the next five to seven years, we may see up to 20 billion cubic feet per day of incremental demand, according to Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE: EPD  ) , a leading midstream firm. As I have argued before, I believe that there's a good chance that gas demand could outpace supply in the future, which suggests to me that natural gas prices are likely to move much higher over the next three to five years.

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Facebook, Inc.'s Monster Quarter in 3 Must-See Charts

Going into Facebook's (NASDAQ: FB  ) first-quarter earnings report today, the stakes were undoubtedly high. Not only has the company been growing its top and bottom line faster than anyone expected, but the market has also priced into the stock some wildly bullish expectations. Facebook stock trades at about 100 times earnings. But despite the Street's euphoric outlook for the company, Zuckerberg and Co. delivered yet again in Q1. Here's the story in three charts.

Increasingly mobile
In the third quarter of 2012, 0% of Facebook's revenue came from mobile. Back then, the Street was dubious: Could Facebook meaningfully monetize the limited real estate on a small smartphone display?

Today, investors have their answer: When it comes to monetizing mobile, Facebook is the master. In the company's first quarter of 2014, Facebook confirmed that it is still succeeding on mobile -- better than ever, actually. Just a year and a half after it introduced mobile ads, mobile ad revenue now accounts for 59% of Facebook's total ad revenue.

Data for chart retrieved from SEC filings for quarters shown.

Accelerating growth
Facebook isn't just growing -- it's growing faster every quarter. In Q1, Facebook continued this trend. With the help of a growing base of monthly and daily active users, improving user engagement, higher quality ad products, new ad products, and larger spending from marketers, Facebook was able to post a record year-over-year ad revenue growth rate as a public company in Q1.

Data for chart retrieved from SEC filings for quarters shown.

Benefiting from monstrous operating leverage
Facebook showed off the power of its enviable operating leverage in its first-quarter results. Operating income soared 188% on a 72% boost in year-over-year revenue. Facebook can thank its robust operating margin of 43% (up nicely from 26% in the year-ago quarter) for that. On a non-GAAP basis, Facebook's operating margins reached 55%, up from 39% last year. Facebook's Q1 figures even trump Google's Q1 non-GAAP operating margin of 32%.

The growing leverage has resulted in some wild growth in operating income.

Data for chart retrieved from SEC filings for quarters shown. Non-GAAP rates were used due to large and volatile charges as a percentage of total revenue in Facebook's earlier quarters as a public company.

Facebook's overall results crushed expectations. The consensus analyst estimate was for Facebook to report non-GAAP earnings per share of $0.24 and year-over-year revenue growth of 60%. Instead, Facebook posted non-GAAP EPS of $0.34 and revenue growth of 72%.

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While Facebook's first-quarter results are impressive, they don't necessarily make the stock a buy. Trading at such a considerable premium to earnings, it would be very difficult to argue that Facebook trades at a discount to fair value these days. Does this mean current Facebook shareholders should take their profits if the stock trends higher on this news? Not at all, the social network's excellent performance is just more evidence that Zuckerberg and his team of programmers have what it takes to continue to disrupt advertising and woo big marketing budgets.

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Larry Roth's doing a lot more than selling nontraded REITs

Gerardo Tabones

Larry Roth surprised some people last summer when he jumped ship as chief executive of leading independent broker-dealer network Advisor Group to become chief executive at Realty Capital Securities.

The move struck some as odd, because Realty Capital is the wholesaling broker-dealer for nontraded real estate investment trusts sponsored by American Realty Capital. Advisor Group, owned by American International Group Inc., is a broker-dealer network of four firms and 6,135 reps and advisers — a markedly different business.

At the time, Nicholas Schorsch, CEO of ARC, said that Mr. Roth would be at the forefront of distributing products, from mutual funds to nontraded REITs, with an emphasis on wirehouses. The potential for Realty Capital's and ARC's new relationships with wirehouses is “a huge area for Larry,” Mr. Schorsch said.

(See also: Brash REIT boss hires his opposite)

A number of people in the industry doubted his pronouncements. Mr. Roth is a known dealmaker, having spent 2001 to 2005 at Berkshire Capital, a top mergers and acquisition investment bank that focuses on financial services firms and independent broker-dealers.

Such prowess looked to be a perfect fit for Realty Capital. Its parent, RCS Capital Corp., has been on a buying spree, with RCS Capital or related entities completing one broker-dealer acquisition and announcing four others since last June. The transactions affect almost 9,000 reps and advisers.

(More: No end in sight for Schorsch tear)

Why would Mr. Schorsch hire Mr. Roth and ignore his M&A expertise, particularly as Mr. Schorsch and RCS Capital were assembling a top-tier IBD network? That was a prevalent industry question when Mr. Roth joined Realty Capital last September.

Well, it looks as though Mr. Roth has been doing a lot more than wholesaling alternative mutual funds and nontraded REITs in the past several months. In fact, he was sitting at Mr. Schorsch's side, at least through the initial discussions of RCS Capital's most significant deal to date, the pending $1.15 billion purchase of Cetera Financial Group from private equity manager Lightyear Capital.

According to RCS Capital's proxy filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 8, Mr. Roth and Mr. Schorsch met Donald Marron, chairman of the Cetera board and Lightyear's founder, on Nov. 23 in Lightyear's New York offices. The purpose of the meeting, which involved a smattering of other Lightyear and Realty Capital executives, was “to discuss a potential strategic transaction between [RCS Capital] and Cetera,” the filing states. The deal progressed rapidly and was announced in January.

Meanwhile, the industry is waiting for Mr. Schorsch's next acquisition. RCS Capital indicated such a move in March, saying it had another potential broker-dealer acquisition teed up but was waiting for the Cetera ! purchase to close.

Will Mr. Roth be sitting next to Mr. Schorsch when that deal is done? Will he help engineer a bid for another large broker-dealer network that he knows well?

Don't be surprised if he does.

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“We can’t let people make their own errors,” Vanguard founder John Bogle noted at last year’s Retirement Income Symposium in Boston, when commenting on the effectiveness of 401(k)s. “It’s too expensive.”

Bogle’s view, along with other industry critics, was bolstered on Monday by New York Life Retirement Plan Services’ first “State of the Retirement Industry” report.

It found 401(k) plan participants who take out loans might sabotage their retirement savings. Participants who take loans are more likely to save at a lower contribution rate than their counterparts, and are not likely to repay the loan when leaving their employer.

The average contribution rate for a participant who takes out a loan from their 401(k) is 5.63%, compared with 7.23% for participants without loans, the report said. Additionally, more than two-thirds of participants with an outstanding loan balance who leave their employer will take a cash distribution from their retirement plan rather than paying back the loan. Preventing this so-called "leakage" is very important in helping workers successfully save for retirement, it concludes.

Hot Healthcare Equipment Companies To Watch In Right Now: First Interstate BancSystem Inc.(FIBK)

First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for First Interstate Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking services. Its deposit products include checking, savings, time, and demand deposits; and repurchase agreements primarily for commercial and municipal depositors. The company?s loan portfolio consists of a mix of real estate, consumer, commercial, agricultural, and other loans, including fixed and variable rate loans. Its real estate loans comprise commercial real estate, construction, residential, agricultural, and other real estate loans. The company also provides a range of trust, employee benefit, investment management, insurance, agency, and custodial services to individuals, businesses, and nonprofit organizations. These services include the administration of estates and personal trusts; management of investment accounts for individuals, employee benefit plans, and charitable foundations; and insurance planning. It serves indi viduals, businesses, municipalities, and other entities in various industries, including energy, healthcare and professional services, education and governmental services, construction, mining, agriculture, retail and wholesale trade, and tourism. The company operates 72 banking offices in 42 communities located in Montana, Wyoming, and western South Dakota. First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. was incorporated in 1971 and is headquartered in Billings, Montana.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Zacks]

  Some better-ranked Midwest banks include First Interstate Bancsystem Inc. (NASDAQ: FIBK), Wintrust Financial Corporation (NASDAQ: WTFC) and PrivateBancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: PVTB). All these stocks carry a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Hot Healthcare Equipment Companies To Watch In Right Now: Intuit Inc.(INTU)

Intuit Inc. provides business and financial management solutions for small and medium-sized businesses, consumers, accounting professionals, and financial institutions primarily in the United States, Canada, India, Singapore, and the United Kingdom. The company offers QuickBooks financial and business management software and services, technical support, financial supplies, and Web site design and hosting services for small and medium-sized businesses; and payroll products and services, as well as merchant services comprising credit and debit card processing, electronic check conversion, and automated clearing house services for small businesses. It also provides TurboTax income tax preparation products and services for consumers and small business owners; Lacerte and ProSeries professional tax products and services; and QuickBooks Premier Accountant Edition and the QuickBooks ProAdvisor Program for accounting professionals. In addition, the company offers outsourced online financial management solutions for banks and credit unions; Quicken personal finance products and services; Mint.com online personal finance services; and Intuit Health online patient-to-provider communication solutions. It sells its products and services through various sales and distribution channels, including Websites, promotions, retail channels, and call centers, as well as through alliance partners, principally consisting of banks, credit unions, and securities and investment firms. The company was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

  ADP stock is worse than average
  ADP shares have been on a bit of a tear these past 12 months, outperforming not just the S&P 500 in general, but also rivals Paychex (NASDAQ: PAYX  ) and Intuit (NASDAQ: INTU  ) in particular. It's a bit of a mystery, however, understanding why investors like ADP stock so much.

Hot Valued Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Opt-Sciences Corp (OPST)

Opt-Sciences Corporation, incorporated on November 1956, conducts its business through its wholly owned subsidiary, O and S Research, Inc. The Company deposits anti-glare and/or transparent conductive optical coatings on glass used primarily to cover instrument panels in aircraft cockpits. It also provides full glass cutting, grinding and painting operations, which augment its optical coating capabilities. Its products are designed to enable pilots to read aircraft instruments in direct sunlight or at night or in covert situations using appropriate night vision filters or to protect the instruments from electromagnetic interference. The Company�� business is dependent on a robust commercial, business, and regional aircraft market and to a lesser degree the military aircraft market. It generally has a four to twelve week delivery cycle depending on product complexity, available plant capacity and required lead time for specialty raw materials, such as polarizers or filter glass.

The Company�� offers incorporate an optical coating of some type. Its primary coatings are for aircraft cockpit display applications and consist of its anti-reflection coating used for glare reduction and its transparent conductive coating used for electromagnetic interference shielding. In addition, it also offers a full range of other specialty instrument glass, including night vision filter glass, circular polarizers, touchpads, glass sandwiches for liquid crystal displays (LCDs) as well as other custom designed specialty glass components and assemblies. It uses its technology to apply a micro thin optical non-glare and/or conductive coating to the glass. Both processes utilize the deposit of a thin film of metal or metal oxide on the surface of the glass. The process takes place in a heated vacuum chamber. It heats the deposited material to over 1800 degrees Centigrade causing it to evaporate.

The Company competes with JDSU, Mod A Can, Dontech, Schott Glass and Hoya Optics

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Geoff Gannon] ng>Micropac

  Micropac is 76% owned by Heinz-Werner Hempel. He�� a German businessman. You can see the German company he founded here. He�� had control of Micropac for a long-time. I don�� have an exact number in front of me. But I would guess it�� been something like 25 years.

  ADDvantage

  ADDvantage Technologies is controlled by the Chymiak brothers. See the company�� April 4 press release explaining their decision to turn over the CEO position to an outsider. Regardless, the Chymiaks still control 47% of the company. Ken Chymiak is now chairman. And David Chymiak is still a director and now the company�� chief technology officer. Clearly, it�� still their company.

  By the way, the name ADDvantage Technologies has nothing to do with the Chymiaks. Today�� AEY really traces its roots to a private company called Tulsat. The Chymiak brothers acquired that company about 27 years ago. So, effectively, when you buy shares of AEY you are buying into a 27-year-old family-controlled company.

  That�� pretty typical in the world of net-nets.

  Solitron

  Solitron Devices is 29% owned by Shevach Saraf. He has been the CEO for 20 years. The post-bankruptcy Solitron has never known another CEO. Before the bankruptcy, Solitron was a much bigger, much different company. So even though we are not talking about the founder here ��and even though 70% of the company�� shares are not held by the CEO ��we��e still talking about a company where one person has a lot of control. Solitron only has three directors. Saraf is the chairman, CEO, president, CFO and treasurer. Neither of the other two directors joined the board within the last 15 years. So, we aren�� talking about a lot of tumult at the top.

  In fact, profitable net-nets seem to be especially common candidates for abandoning the responsibilities of a public company without actually getting taken private.

  OPT-Sciences

  This company is controlled by Arthu

Hot Healthcare Equipment Companies To Watch In Right Now: Pacific Drilling SA (PACD)

Pacific Drilling S.A., incorporated on March 22, 2011, is an international offshore drilling Company. The Company is a provider of ultra-deepwater drilling services to the oil and natural gas industry through the use of high-specification drilling rigs. The Company�� primary business is to contract its ultra-deepwater drilling rigs, related equipment and work crews, primarily on a dayrate basis, to drill wells for its customers. The Company is primarily focused on the ultra-deepwater market. The Company generally consider ultra-deepwater to begin at water depths of more than 7,500 feet and to extend to the maximum water depths, in which rigs are capable of drilling, which is approximately 12,000 feet.

The Company operates four drillships and has four drillships under construction, two of which are under customer contract. In connection with the Restructuring, the Company�� Predecessor was contributed to a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company by a subsidiary of Quantum Pacific International Limited.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Aaron Levitt]

  Management recently announced a hefty 50% hike in its quarterly dividend to 37.5 cents per share of NE stock. And with a 4.8% dividend yield, NE stock is now one of the best-paying dividend stocks in the energy sector.

  Dividend Stocks To Buy #5 — Pacific Drilling (PACD)

  Estimated Dividend Yield: 6.5%

Hot Healthcare Equipment Companies To Watch In Right Now: Spartan Motors Inc (SPAR)

Spartan Motors, Inc. is an engineer and manufacturer in the heavy-duty, custom vehicles marketplace. The Company has five wholly owned operating subsidiaries: Spartan Motors Chassis, Inc. (Spartan Chassis), Crimson Fire, Inc. (Crimson), Crimson Fire Aerials, Inc. (Crimson Aerials), Utilimaster Corporation (Utilimaster) and Classic Fire LLC (Classic Fire). Spartan Chassis is a designer, engineer and manufacturer of custom heavy-duty chassis. The chassis consist of a frame assembly, engine, transmission, electrical system, running gear (wheels, tires, axles, suspension and brakes) and, for fire trucks and some specialty chassis applications, a cab. Crimson engineers and manufactures fire trucks built on chassis platforms purchased from either Spartan Chassis or outside sources. Crimson Aerials engineers and manufactures aerial ladder components for fire trucks. Classic Fire engineers and manufactures fire trucks that are built on commercial chassis. Utilimaster is a manufacturer of specialty vehicles made to customer specifications in the delivery and service market, including walk-in vans and hi-cube vans, as well as truck bodies. The Company is organized into two segments: Specialty Vehicles, which consists of the Company's emergency response chassis, motor home chassis, specialty vehicle chassis, emergency response bodies and related aftermarket parts and assemblies operations, and Delivery and Service Vehicles, consisting of delivery and service vehicles. On April 1, 2011, the Company acquired Classic Fire LLC (Classic Fire). In January 2013, the Company sold majority of its Wakarusa, Indiana facility to Forest River, Inc. On December 31, 2013, the Company sold its residual 35% interest in Folkestone SI 1 Pty Ltd to Folkestone Limited.

Specialty Vehicles

The Company's Specialty Vehicles segment consists of four wholly owned subsidiaries, Spartan Chassis, Crimson, Crimson Aerials, and Classic Fire. Spartan Chassis designs and manufactures custom chassis for emergency respons! e vehicles, motor homes and other specialty vehicles. Crimson and Classic Fire specialize in the manufacture of emergency response bodies, while Crimson Aerials specializes in the engineering and manufacture of aerial ladders and emergency response vehicle bodies. Sales from the Specialty Vehicles segment represented 61.1% during the year ended December 31, 2011.

The Company manufactures emergency response chassis and cabs to exact customer specifications. The Company has four fire truck models: Gladiator chassis, Metro Star chassis, Spartan Force chassis and Metro Star RT (rescue transport). The Company engineers and manufactures bodies for custom and commercial emergency response vehicles and apparatus. The Company engineers, manufactures and markets aerial ladder components for fire trucks. The Company manufactures chassis to the individual specifications of its motor home chassis original equipment manufacturers (OEM). Motor home chassis are into three models: Mountain Master series chassis, K2 series chassis and K3 series chassis.

Through its Spartan Chassis subsidiary, the Company develops specialized chassis to unique customer requirements. The Company also assembles the Isuzu N-Series Gasoline Cab-Forward Trucks.

Delivery and Service Vehicles

The Company manufactures delivery and service vehicles. The Company designs, develops, and manufactures products to customer specifications for use in the package delivery, one-way truck rental, bakery/snack delivery, utility, and linen/uniform rental businesses. The majority of its revenues are in the delivery and service market, which includes walk-in vans for the package delivery, bakery/snack delivery and linen/uniform rental markets. Its remaining revenues are from commercial truck bodies, along with aftermarket parts and assemblies. Sales from the Delivery and Service Vehicles segment represented 48.9% for the year ended December 31, 2011. The principal types of commercial vehicles are walk-in vans,! cutaway ! vans and truck bodies. Walk-in vans are sold under the Aeromaster brand. Cutaway vans are installed on cutaway van chassis, and are sold under the Utilimaster, Utilivan, Metromaster and Trademaster brand names. Cutaway bodies are primarily used for local delivery of parcels, freight and perishable food.

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 Spartan Motors (Nasdaq: SPAR  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

Hot Healthcare Equipment Companies To Watch In Right Now: Sparton Corporation(SPA)

Sparton Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, offers electronic manufacturing services primarily for medical device, defense and security systems, and electronic manufacturing services industries worldwide. The company?s Medical segment engages in the contract development, design, production, and distribution of medical related electromechanical devices for the medical OEM and ET customers primarily in the vitro diagnostic and therapeutic device areas. Its EMS segment involves in the contract manufacturing, assembly, design, preproduction, prototyping, and/or box building assemblies, such as flight control systems and fuel control systems for the aerospace, medical diagnostics systems, security systems, detection systems, lighting, and defense. The company?s DSS segment engages in the design, development, and production of electromechanical equipment, such as sonobuoys, an anti-submarine warfare device used by the United States Navy and foreign governments; and perf orms an engineering development function for the United States military and prime defense contractors on advanced technologies for defense products, and replacement of current systems. It also offers non-sonobuoy related manufacturing and services. Sparton Corporation was founded in 1900 and is headquartered in Schaumburg, Illinois.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Emma O��rien]

  Futures (SPA) on the Standard & Poor�� 500 Index fell and the yen climbed against the dollar as U.S. lawmakers continued to scrap over raising the debt limit and the government shutdown. Crude oil declined while gold rallied.

• [By Louis Navellier]

  Sparton Corporation (SPA) provides electromechanical systems and operates in three segments: medical devices, complex systems and defense and security systems. The medical devices segment makes devices used in diagnostic, therapeutic, surgical, and laboratory applications. Complex devices makes printed circuit assemblies used in military, aerospace, industrial and commercial OEMs, while the defense and security segment designs products for defense applications.

Hot Healthcare Equipment Companies To Watch In Right Now: CBL & Associates Properties Inc. (CBL)

CBL & Associates Properties, Inc. is a public real estate investment trust. It engages in acquisition, development, and management of properties. The fund invests in the real estate markets of United States. Its portfolio consists of enclosed malls and open-air centers. CBL & Associates Properties is based in Oak Brook, Illinois. CBL & Associates Properties was founded in 1978 and is based in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dividend King]

  CBL & Associates Properties Inc (CBL): CBL & Associates Properties Inc distributes an annual dividend of $0.84, has yield of 4.70% and a payout ratio of 135%. During the last 12 months, sales and income increased 0.40% and 17.80%, respectively.

• [By Monica Gerson]

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

  VIVUS (NASDAQ: VVUS) shares dipped 11.58% to touch a new 52-week low of $8.32 on weak sales of Qsymia. Bank of America downgraded VIVUS from Buy to Neutral.

• [By Marc Bastow]

  Regional shopping mall real estate investment trust (REIT) CBL & Associates (CBL) raised its quarterly dividend 6.5% to 24.5 cents per share, payable on Jan. 15 to shareholders of record as of Dec. 30.
  CBL Dividend Yield: 5.44%

Why I'm Buying Weight Watchers

A historic view of recurring themes in major wartime conflicts, our puzzling tendency to continuously overeat, and the pie-in-the-sky popularity of Charles Duhigg's The Power of Habit reveals a telling bit of human nature. We don't change bad habits, despite knowing better.

Better or worse, that's why I'm purchasing shares of Weight Watchers (NYSE: WTW  ) equal to 3% of my Real Money Portfolio's capital. Our collective waistlines are expanding, at an ever-increasing rate. And in an industry dominated by snake-oil remedies, quick fixes and faddish diets, and short-termist solutions, Weight Watchers' clinically proven, decades-old approach to weight loss management and behavior modification stands apart.

On the heels of recent marketing missteps, an ill-timed share repurchase (that ballooned its debt burdens), and broader concerns over the health of its online and meetings businesses, Weight Watchers' shares have shed a few pounds -- roughly 30% off 52 week highs, and 50% from all-time highs set two years ago.

The result: a capital-light business with sustainable competitive advantages, a history of superior returns on capital, and excellent free cash generation trades at 8 times trailing free cash flow. The stock market's priced Weight Watchers as a business in decline, but its target market is only getting, er, larger. To wit: According to the World Health Organization, worldwide obesity has almost doubled from 1980, and worldwide, 1.4 billion adults were considered overweight.

A healthy business
Weight Watchers started as many entrepreneurial ventures do: a vision in someone's basement. In 1961, founder Jean Nidetch started holding weight-loss meetings with overweight friends in the basement of her NYC apartment building, sharing her learnings after attending an obesity clinic. Together, they saw results, via virtuous cycle -- supporting each other, advising on good habits, and, most importantly, remaining accountable.

In the time since, Weight Watchers has evolved and grown, becoming the world's foremost network of weight-loss plans and tools, meetings, and related products. In its current incarnation, Weight Watchers' business is somewhat different: 51% of 2012 revenue derived from meeting fees, 28% from its Internet-based tools and offerings, and the remainder from licensing arrangements, ad revenues, and franchise royalties. Its approach has also evolved, to one that increasingly emphasizes empirically validated weight loss methods alongside behavior modification, coupled to the psychological benefits from support networks.

In doing so, it's created powerful competitive advantages. For one, its brand stands apart -- 80 medical journals have reported statistically significant weight loss among program participants, validating its approach. For its customers, a single factor sets it apart: a proven method. Absent a plan, it's difficult to identify how to correct bad habits. Weight Watchers attacks this from several angles. Its meetings offer the power of networks and accountability, on a global scale. Online tools allow customers to log diet plans, access recipes, and effectively integrate various foods into diet plans. Taken together, they create two powerful loops: network effects in the meetings, and switching costs in its online tools (because information is logged there).

Most significantly, despite its dominant market position, the diet industry is still relatively fragmented, leaving significant growth potential. At current, Weight Watchers only owns 5% of an estimate

Are shares worth a bite?
But recently, shares have been hit, for reasons I've already referenced -- a tough 2013 marketing effort and according declines to membership, concerns over competition from free (or cheaper) apps, and debt assumed to finance a value-destroying share repurchase in 2012. Concerning? A little. But I believe the market's unduly discounted these stressors, and after considering the value in its online business, we're getting Weight Watchers' meetings business and an option on future growth for free.

1. Losing weight? A poorly received 2013 product launch, blithe marketing copy, and concerns that free apps and other Internet-based solutions are eating into Weight Watchers' market have put a hurt on shares. There's some truth to it all: U.S. meeting revenue declined 7.4% in the first quarter, International meeting revenue slipped 11.1%, and the company's guidance calls for earnings per share to decline 10% at the midpoint, even after repurchasing 25% of its shares in 2012. This has prompted concerns. Online revenue grew at just 10.4% in the first quarter after years of 20% or greater revenue growth, prompting concern that free apps (or cheaper alternatives) are indeed taking share.

Is the worst to come? I don't think so. For one, the market size, and growth potential, is large enough that Weight Watchers can lose share, and still grow. Likewise, a contingent of its customers represent a relatively recurring source of revenue -- as switching costs (from entering meal plans, caloric intake, and storing recipes) keep them coming back -- and a select group will benefit from and relatively continuously attend meetings. Last, where free online competitors and the Hydroxycuts of the world peddle solutions endorsed by "doctors," the strength of Weight Watchers' brand, history of clinical effectiveness, and concretely defined plans provide a degree of credibility competitors lack.

Most importantly, this needn't be a winner-take-all game: To be a successful investment, Weight Watchers doesn't have to secure world domination. Its shares are priced as if the business won't grow, at all.

2. Buy one, get one: Currently, the market is, in effect, giving us the meetings business, product sales (nutritional bars and snacks, scales, and various publications), and licensing revenue for free. Last year, the online segment generated $260 million worth of operating income. After netting enterprise-wide interest expense and taxes out, and assigning a 17.5 times earnings multiple (the market multiple), it's worth almost $2 billion. Weight Watchers' current market cap is $2.4 billion. But remember: Meetings, product sales, and licensing made $250 million in operating income last year -- about the same as online.

Top 10 Integrated Utility Stocks To Buy Right Now

3. A share repurchase and debt: Last year, management repurchased roughly 25% of shares outstanding. I might champion that behavior, were it for an important fact: The price was positively outrageous and, in doing so, destroyed value for shareholders. Worse, the company assumed $1.6 billion worth of debt -- nearly tripling its burden. All of this has given rise to concerns that, if meeting revenues continue to slide, Weight Watchers may violate its debt covenants.

I'd wager those concerns unfounded. There's actually a silver lining for would-be purchasers. If profits from meeting revenues, licensing, and product sales were almost halved, the company probably wouldn't violate its covenants. In short, I'm not too concerned. Instead, I expect Weight Watchers to pay down debt via its copious cash generation and, in the process, accrue value to shareholders -- as perceived risk declines, and it renegotiates interest rates on remaining debt.

4. An option on health care: Last, there's one big growth option. It's wild-eyed, but not altogether impossible. What if Weight Watchers were to partner with insurance companies?

Valuation
So what it's all worth? Two ways to skin a cat here. My discounted cash flow analysis assumes that Weight Watchers is able to grow revenue at a 4% to 5% clip across the mid-term, as growth from online subscribers offsets near-term declines to meeting attendance, the company passes intermittent price increases, and an eventual, slow increase to meeting attendance contributes to operating margin expansion. On this basis, I estimate the shares' worth at $67.

Don't take my word, though. Weight Watchers has acquired franchisee operations at a relatively continuous clip over the years. At last year's close, it'd spent $778 million in total. In its financials, the company estimates that, should operating income declines anywhere between 3% and 50% (depending on geography), 89% of its acquired franchisees are worth three times the price paid, or about $2.1 billion. Take this, and add the online biz, whose worth I ballpark at about $2 billion, and the shares could be worth $74.

Risks
The risks to Weight Watchers are pretty clear. First are those from competitors, which, for reasons I mentioned above, I don't find particularly concerning. The company also faces more formidable, though less seasoned, competition in offerings from Herbalife (NYSE: HLF  ) and Nutrisystem (NASDAQ: NTRI  ) . Both companies' product offerings are respectable in their own right, but neither possesses the pedigree or extent of clinical support.

Next are weight-loss drugs. Most notable are Arena Pharmaceuticals' (NASDAQ: ARNA  ) recently launched Belviq and Vivus' (NASDAQ: VVUS  ) Qsymia. These represent a threat, but again, I don't think this is a winner-take-all proposition. Drugs are pricier, and, as Weight Watchers, are only likely to grab a relatively small proportion of the overall market. What'd concern me most? Continued missteps from management on product launches, marketing, or another ill-timed share repurchase. Even so, at today's prices, I believe the shares adequately account for these risks.

Last, Artal Group, a private equity firm, owns 44% of shares, and effectively controls the board. You might argue that last summer's tender offer was a cash-out for its private equity owners, and it wouldn't be unreasonable. Fortunately, at today's prices, I believe that risk is again muted -- Weight Watchers' private equity owners also want full value for their shares.

The bottom line
What's healthy for Weight Watchers' customers can be healthy for your portfolio. A competitively advantaged business in a growing market can be had as if it's in decline. I think the market's due to add some meat to these shares' bones.

The best investing approach is to choose great companies and stick with them for the long term. The Motley Fool's free report "3 Stocks That Will Help You Retire Rich" names stocks that could help you build long-term wealth and retire well, along with some winning wealth-building strategies that every investor should be aware of. Click here now to keep reading.

Best Oil Service Companies To Invest In Right Now

For this company, big is beautiful. Scale has become a burden for oil majors struggling to grow their production, but this oil services firm can still count it a blessing, observes Richard Moroney, editor of Dow Theory Forecasts.

Founded in 1926, Schlumberger (SLB), operates in all major facets of oilfield services, essentially covering the lifespan of reservoirs that house natural gas and oil.

About 75% of the 27 energy equipment and services companies in the S&P 1500 Index have market values below $5 billion. By comparison, Schlumberger's market cap tops $106 billion.

Schlumberger's scale��reater operating cash flow than its three largest US rivals combined��llows the company to pursue opportunities worldwide.

North America generated 31% of sales for the 12 months ended June, followed by Europe and Africa (28%), Middle East and Asia (23%), and Latin America (18%).

The US land-drilling industry suffers from declining rig counts and relatively weak pricing. But international markets have rebounded, especially Saudi Arabia, China, and Australia.

Best Oil Service Companies To Invest In Right Now: CMS Energy Corp (CMS)

CMS Energy Corporation (CMS Energy) is an energy company operating primarily in Michigan. CMS Energy is the parent holding company of several subsidiaries, including Consumers Energy Company (Consumers) and CMS Enterprises Company (CMS Enterprises). Consumers is an electric and gas utility, and CMS Enterprises, primarily a domestic independent power producer. Consumers serves individuals and businesses operating in the alternative energy, automotive, chemical, metal, and food products industries, as well as a diversified group of other industries. CMS Enterprises, through its subsidiaries and equity investments, is engaged primarily in independent power production and owns power generation facilities fueled mostly by natural gas and biomass. CMS Energy operates in three business segments: electric utility, gas utility and enterprises, its non-utility operations and investments. EnerBank USA (EnerBank), a wholly owned subsidiary of CMS Energy, which provides unsecured consumer installment loans for financing home improvements.

CONSUMERS ELECTRIC UTILITY

Consumers��electric utility operations include the generation, purchase, distribution, and sale of electricity. During the year ended December 31, 2011, Consumers��electric deliveries were 38 billion kilowatt hour, which included Retail Open Access (ROA) deliveries of four billion kilowatt hour. Consumers��distribution system includes 413 miles of high-voltage distribution radial lines operating at 120 kilovolts or above; ,244 miles of high-voltage distribution overhead lines operating at 23 kilovolts and 46 kilovolts; 17 miles of high-voltage distribution underground lines operating at 23 kilovolts and 46 kilovolts; 55,953 miles of electric distribution overhead lines; 10,112 miles of underground distribution lines, and substations with an aggregate transformer capacity of 24 million thousand volt-amperes.

At December 31, 2011, Consumers��electric generating system consisted of coal generation, oil/gas/st! eam generation, hydroelectric and gas/oil combustion turbine. At December 31, 2011, Consumers had contracts to purchase coal through 2014. At December 31, 2011, Consumers had 86% of its 2012 expected coal requirements under contract, as well as a 41-day supply of coal on hand. During 2011, Consumers purchased 53% of the electricity it provided to customers through long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs), seasonal purchases, and the Midwest Energy Market. Consumers offers its generation into the Midwest Energy Market on a day-ahead and real-time basis and bids for power in the market to serve the demand of its customers. Consumers is a net purchaser of power and supplements its generation capability with purchases from the Midwest Energy Market to meet its customers��needs during peak demand periods.

CONSUMERS GAS UTILITY

Consumers��gas utility operations include the purchase, transmission, storage, distribution, and sale of natural gas. Consumers��gas utility customer base consists of a mix of residential, commercial, and diversified industrial customers in Michigan�� Lower Peninsula. In 2011, deliveries of natural gas, including off-system transportation deliveries, through Consumers��pipeline and distribution network, totaled 337 billion cubic feet of gas, which included Gas Customer Choice (GCC) deliveries of 48 billion cubic feet of gas. Consumers��gas utility operations are seasonal. During 2011, 46% of the natural gas supplied to all customers during the winter months was supplied from storage.

Consumers��gas distribution and transmission system located in Michigan�� Lower Peninsula consists of 26,623 miles of distribution mains; 666 miles of transmission lines; seven compressor stations with a total of 150,635 installed and available horsepower, and 15 gas storage fields with an aggregate storage capacity of 307 billion cubic feet of gas and a working storage capacity of 142 billion cubic feet of gas. In 2011, Consumers purchased 70% of ! the gas i! t delivered from United States producers and 10% from Canadian producers. The remaining 20% was purchased from authorized GCC suppliers and delivered by Consumers to customers in the GCC program.

ENTERPRISES SEGMENT

CMS Energy�� enterprises segment, through various subsidiaries and certain equity investments, is engaged primarily in domestic independent power production and the marketing of independent power production. At December 31, 2011, CMS Energy had ownership interests in independent power plants totaling 1,135 gross megawatts or 1,034 net megawatts. CMS Energy Resource Management (ERM) purchases and sells energy commodities in support of CMS Energy�� generating facilities and continues to focus on optimizing CMS Energy�� independent power production portfolio. In 2011, CMS ERM marketed 17 billion cubic feet of natural gas and 2,417 gigawatt-hour of electricity.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Richard Stavros]

  Michigan-based ITC Holdings Corp (NYSE: ITC) is the largest electric transmission company in the US. The company is in charge of the electric transmission system formerly owned by DTE Energy Holding Co (NYSE: DTE) and CMS Energy Corp (NYSE: CMS).

Best Oil Service Companies To Invest In Right Now: SEACOR Holdings Inc (CKH)

SEACOR Holdings Inc, incorporated on November 7, 1989, is a global provider of equipment and services primarily supporting the offshore oil and gas and marine transportation industries. The Company offers customers a diversified suite of services, including offshore marine, aviation, inland river, marine transportation, crisis and emergency management preparedness and response solutions, commodity trading and logistics and offshore and harbor towing. On March 19, 2012, J.F. Lehman & Company acquired National Response Corporation and its affiliated businesses NRC Environmental Services, SEACOR Response, and SEACOR Environmental Products (collectively NRC) from the Company. In January 2013, the Company sold its energy trading division, SEACOR Energy Inc. to Par Petroleum Corporation. On January 31, 2013, it completed the spin off its Era Group Inc unit (Era).

Offshore Marine Services

The Company�� Marine operates a diversified fleet of vessels, servicing the offshore oil and gas exploration, development, and production industry worldwide.The Company�� marine provides its customers with the assembly of offshore vessel services in the global offshore oil and gas industry, including transport of personnel, platform supply, offshore accommodation, intervention, maintenance and repair support, standby safety services, anchor handling and mooring services, wind farm support, lift boat services, offshore construction support, well enhancement support, and lightering services.

Aviation Services

The Company�� aviation services subsidiary, Era Group (Era), is the helicopter operators globally. ra supports the oil and gas industry in the United States Gulf of Mexico, Alaska, and internationally. Era provides air medical services, firefighting support, flightseeing tours in Alaska, and Search and Rescue and Emergency Medical Services. Era's affiliate, Era Training Center, offers flight training services. Era also markets and distributes specialty helicopter! equipment and accessories.

Inland River Services

The Company�� Inland River Services group owns and operates modern river transportation equipment; owns covered and open hopper barges, 10,000 and 30,000 barrel tank barges, deck barges, inland river towboats and smaller harbor boats; and provides ancillary services along the United States Inland River Waterways and the Parana-Paraguay and the Magdalena River Systems in South America. SCF Marine operates a fleet of hopper barges along the United States Inland River Waterways and South America, transporting agricultural, industrial, and project cargoes. The liquid division, Supercritical Fluid (SCF) Liquids, is a integrated towboat and tank barge company, specializing in the transportation of chemical, clean, and dirty products. Gateway Terminals is among the newest ethanol and petroleum storage terminals on the Mississippi River, with a capacity of 400,000 barrels and the ability to receive and transfer products by barge, unit train, and truck.

Marine Transportation Services

The Company�� ocean shipping and harbor towing subsidiary, SEACOR Ocean Transport, is an owner and operator of equipment engaged in oil transportation, bunkering, harbor towing, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminal support, short sea shipping and logistics, and third-party ship management services. Through all aspects of its operations, SEACOR Ocean Transport focuses to provide its customers with marine transportation solutions.

Commodity Trading and Logistics

The Company�� Commodity Trading and Logistics group specializes in the purchase, storage, transportation, and sale of agricultural and energy commodities, which include renewable fuels, blendstocks, sugar, rice, and salt. The Agricultural group is primarily focused on the global sourcing and logistics of sugar, rice, salt, and other dry bulk products. The Energy group is primarily focused on the domestic trading and transportation of physical e! thanol an! d clean blendstocks.

Harbor and Offshore Towing Services

The Company�� ocean shipping and harbor towing subsidiary, SEACOR Ocean Transport, is an operator of equipment engaged in oil transportation, bunkering, harbor towing, LNG terminal support, short sea shipping and logistics, and third-party ship management services. The harbor towing services group, Seabulk Towing, is a tugboat operator with operations along the Gulf Coast and Southeastern seaboard port system from Cape Canaveral, Florida, to Port Arthur, Texas. Seabulk Island Transport owns and operates four ocean tugs and five ocean liquid tank barges.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Traders Reserve]

  For investors who want a piece of this developing trend, Transocean and Seadrill are two of the bigger players in this arena. Other offshore drillers/rig operators are Noble (NE) and Ensco (ESV). Companies that provide services to offshore drillers and benefit from increases in exploration and drilling activity are Gulfmark Offshore (GLF), Hornbeck (HOS), Seacor (CKH) and Tidewater (TDW).

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Margins matter. The more Seacor Holdings (NYSE: CKH  ) keeps of each buck it earns in revenue, the more money it has to invest in growth, fund new strategic plans, or (gasp!) distribute to shareholders. Healthy margins often separate pretenders from the best stocks in the market. That's why we check up on margins at least once a quarter in this series. I'm looking for the absolute numbers, so I can compare them to current and potential competitors, and any trend that may tell me how strong Seacor Holdings's competitive position could be.

5 Best Net Payout Yield Stocks To Buy Right Now: 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 Michael Lewis]

  In the ever-difficult, commoditized business of produce, Chiquita Brands International (NYSE: CQB  ) has been a constant player, if troubled in recent years. Margin pressure and a shift in industry trends left the company with weak financials and angry shareholders, but in the past 12 months much of that has turned around. In the midst of a restructuring and armed with a (relatively) new CEO, this company is pushing its 52-week highs but may be headed higher. Does the banana brand belong in your portfolio?

• [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.

Best Oil Service Companies To Invest In Right Now: BanColombia S.A. (CIB)

Bancolombia S.A., a full service financial institution, provides various banking products and services to individual and corporate customers in Colombia, as well as in Panama, El Salvador, Puerto Rico, the Cayman Islands, Peru, Brazil, the United States, and Spain. The company offers savings and checking accounts, fixed term deposits, and investment products; and trade financing, loans funded by domestic development banks, working capital loans, credit cards, personal loans, vehicle loans, payroll loans, and overdrafts. It also provides mortgage banking, factoring, treasury, cash management, foreign currency, and bancassurance and insurance; and asset management and trust services that comprise money market accounts, mutual and pension funds, private equity funds, payment trust, custody services, and corporate trust. In addition, the company offers brokerage, investment advisory, and private banking services, including selling and distributing equities, futures, foreign cu rrencies, fixed income securities, mutual funds, and structured products; and investment banking services, including advising and assisting companies from various economic sectors in project finance, capital markets, capital investments, mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, and corporate lending. Further, it provides financial and operational leases, including cross-border and international leasing services; and pension plan administration services. The company offers its services through a traditional branch network, and sales and customer representatives, as well as through mobile branches, non-banking correspondents, an ATM network, online and computer banking, telephone and mobile phone banking, and electronic funds transfer at point of sale (PACs). As of September 30, 2012, it had 978 branches and 3,703 ATMs. Bancolombia S.A. was founded in 1945 and is headquartered in Medellin, Colombia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lisa Levin]

  Bancolombia SA (NYSE: CIB) shares touched a new 52-week low of $47.94. Bancolombia's trailing-twelve-month ROA is 1.45%.

  Posted-In: 52-Week LowsNews Movers & Shakers Intraday Update Markets

• [By Matt Smith]

  Bancolombia appears attractively priced
  Another Colombian company that appears under-valued is the Andean country's largest commercial bank Bancolombia (NYSE: CIB  ) . For the year-to-date Bancolombia's share price fell 17% because of a weak second quarter bottom-line. This decline was primarily caused by the bank's net income plunging by 41% year-over-year because of mark-to-market losses caused by the value lost in the bank's securities portfolio.

Best Oil Service Companies To Invest In Right Now: Sharp Corp (SRP)

Sharp Corporation is a Japan-based company mainly engaged in the manufacture and sale of electric telecommunication, electric and electronic equipment. The Company operates in two business segments. The Electronics Equipment segment offers audio and video (AV) and communication products, including liquid crystal color televisions, projectors and various telephones; health and environmental equipment, including refrigerators, microwaves and air conditioners, as well as information equipment, such as handy terminal equipment, electronic registers, information displays and copy machines. The Electronic Component segment provides liquid related products such as liquid crystal display modules, solar cells, as well as other electronic devices, such as parts for satellite broadcasting, regulators and optical sensors. The Company withdrawed from solar battery production in United Kingdom by end of Feb. 2014. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sofia Horta e Costa]

  Vivendi SA climbed 2.7 percent after posting better-than-estimated third-quarter profit and saying it plans to spin off its French phone carrier SFR by July 2014. Serco Group Plc (SRP) increased 1.7 percent as UBS AG upgraded the stock. Safran SA (SAF) lost 3.2 percent as its largest shareholder sold a stake.

• [By Alexis Xydias]

  Eurasian Natural Resources Corp. fell 3.7 percent, as a gauge of London-listed commodity producers dropped. BAE Systems Plc (BA/) retreated 2.1 percent after Deutsche Bank AG downgraded Europe�� biggest defense company. Serco Group Plc (SRP) advanced 2.7 percent after saying first-half sales will grow at a faster pace than it had estimated.

Best Oil Service Companies To Invest In Right Now: Victory Electronic Cigarettes Corp (ECIG)

Victory Electronic Cigarettes Corporation, formerly Teckmine Industries, Inc., incorporated on May 19, 2004, is a development-stage company. As of December 31, 2011, the Company was seeking opportunities with established business entities for the merger or other form of business combination with its company. In April 2013, it acquired Victory Electronic Cigarettes LLC.

The Company may acquire assets and establish wholly owned subsidiaries in various businesses or acquire existing businesses as subsidiaries. As of December 31, 2011, it had not owned any property interests.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

  While there is a�new ��tudy��out claiming�that�electronic cigarettes, or so-called e-cigarettes or e-cigs, may contain a comparable level of carcinogens to regular cigarettes,�speculative investors might still want to take a look at�small cap electronic cigarette stocks like�Hop-on, Inc (OTCMKTS: HPNN), Smokefree Innotec (OTCMKTS: SFIO), Vapor Corp (OTCMKTS: VPCO) and Victory Electronic Cigarettes Corp (OTCMKTS: ECIG) as these appear to be the major publicly traded small cap stocks left in the sector. I should note that�all of the�major big tobacco stocks have entered the electronic cigarette market (see Who Are the Big Tobacco Electronic Cigarette Stocks? MO, LO & RAI) through acquisitions or their own R&D initiatives, which might�mean�that an acquisition by big tobacco is off the table as an�exit strategy for investors. �Moreover and as I previously noted, there are concerns about the safety of electronic cigarettes as their popularity grows�while the Wall Street Journal recently reported that the FDA has been in discussions with the e-cigarette industry about a possible online-sales ban of the product.

• [By John Udovich]

  Last week, I talked about small cap electronic cigarette stocks Vapor Corp (OTCMKTS: VPCO) and Hop-On Inc (OTCMKTS: HPNN) as being among the last of the e-Cig�stocks not controlled by ��ig Tobacco,��but Victory Electronic Cigarettes Corp (OTCMKTS: ECIG), mCig Inc (OTCBB: MCIG) and American Heritage International (OTCBB: AHII)�are also�positioning themselves or their technology to exploit opportunities in the e-Cig market or even in�marijuana or cannabis. Last year, industry experts were already saying that�US retail sales of e-cigarettes could reach $1 billion for the year�for roughly�1% of the country's cigarette market. That number might appear small, but its more than double 2012 sales�as sales increasingly�move off the Internet and into more mainstream retailers thanks to their positioning as a���ealthier��alternative to smoking.

• [By Rupert Hargreaves]

  As it turns out, many e-cig start-ups and even tobacco industry giant Lorillard (NYSE: LO  ) �have infringed on these patents, possibly due to their rush getting e-cig products to market. So, six months on from closing the deal with Dragonite, Fontem Ventures, backed by Imperial Tobacco, has filed nine lawsuits in a federal court, asking the court to rule that the patents infringed were valid, and the defendants should pay as-of-yet unspecified damages. The companies Imperial is taking to court are Lorillard, NJOY, Vapor Corp., VMR Products LLC, Ballantyne Brands LLC, CB Distributors, Spark Industries LLC, Logic Technology Development LLC, FIN Branding Group LLC, Victory Electronic Cigarettes Corp. (NASDAQOTH: ECIG  ) , and DR Distributors LLC. So, it would seem as if Imperial is intending to kill off the majority of its competition before many of them can even get much of a foothold in the market.

Best Oil Service Companies To Invest In Right Now: Etablissementen Fr Colruyt NV (COLR)

Etablissementen Fr Colruyt NV, also known as Colruyt Group, is a Belgian company primarily engaged in retail and wholesale of food products. The Company's retail trade division includes the direct supply of products to retail customers operating through brands Colruyt, DreamBaby, BIO-planet, DreamLand and ColliShop, among others. The Company supplies to wholesalers and affiliated independent merchants in Belgium, France and Luxembourg. It also provides printing solutions (photo Fuji Colruyt). Colruyt Group also has a corporate activities division, which combines support services, processes and systems and central administration, among others. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tom Stoukas]

  Colruyt SA (COLR) fell 4 percent to 42.31 euros. Belgium�� largest discount food retailer forecast full-year net income of about 369 million euros ($498 million) compared with analysts�� estimates of 381.2 million euros.

• [By Corinne Gretler]

  Colruyt (COLR) gained 8.3 percent to 40.08 euros, the largest jump since June 27, 2012. Belgium�� biggest discount food retailer said full-year earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization amounted to 699.8 million euros ($910 million), beating the average 684 million-euro analyst projection in a Bloomberg survey. The company also raised its dividend to 1 euro a share, exceeding the Bloomberg Dividend Forecast of 98 cents.

Best Oil Service Companies To Invest In Right Now: Enzymotec Ltd (ENZY)

Enzymotec Ltd., incorporated on March 08, 1998, is engaged in manufacturing of ingredients and medical foods company. Its technologies, research, and clinical validation process enables the Company to develop differentiated solutions across a variety of products. The Company markets its product portfolio primarily to established global consumer companies and target large and growing consumer health and wellness markets. Its clinically validated products include bio-functional lipid-based compounds designed to address dietary needs, medical disorders and common diseases. The Company operates in two segments: Nutrition and VAYA Pharma. In addition to its existing products, the Company has several other products to address additional indications in the development phase. enzyme processes; lipid modification; lipid analysis; and process technology and development.

Nutrition

The Company�� Nutrition segment develops and manufactures nutritional ingredient products based on lipids, such as phospholipids, which form the structural basis of cell membranes and are easily recognized, incorporated and used by the body. Its customer base for this segment includes formula and nutritional supplement companies such as Biostime and IVC. Its two selling nutritional ingredient products are InFat, a clinically-proven fat ingredient for infant formula, and krill oil. Its other products in this segment are targeted at improving brain health and providing benefits in memory, learning abilities and concentration.

VAYA Pharma

VAYA Pharma, develops, manufactures and sells branded, prescription-only medical foods for the dietary management of patients with certain medical conditions or diseases having special, medically determined nutrient requirements. Although medical foods must be safe and effective as demonstrated in human clinical studies, they do not require the same expensive and time consuming regulatory approval process typical of prescription drugs. In addition to! its existing products, it has several other products to address additional indications in the development phase.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Victor Selva]

  Finally, as opposed to what we just discussed, the firm is currently Zacks Rank # 4��ell, and it also has a longer-term recommendation of ��eutral�� A Sell rating indicates that the stock, over the next 1 to 3 months, will perform at an annualized rate of 4.8%, which is not attractive for investors. For investors looking for a Strong Buy Rank, BioLife Solutions, Inc. (BLFS) and Enzymotec Ltd. (ENZY) could be the options.

Best Oil Service Companies To Invest In Right Now: ADT Corp (ADT)

The ADT Corporation (ADT), incorporated on January 18, 2012, is a provider of electronic security, interactive home and business automation, and monitoring services for residences and small businesses in the United States and Canada. The Company�� products and services include ADT Pulse interactive home and business solutions, and home health services. ADT provides business security intrusion detection, which protect the business from burglary, robbery and intruders. Its electronic access control limits unauthorized entry and employee access to the business, as well as complete access. Effective August 2, 2013, The ADT Corp acquired Devcon Security Services Corp, a provider of security protection services, from Devcon International Corp. In November 2013, Kastle Systems International announced that it had acquired Mutual Central Alarm Services and Stat-Land Security Systems from ADT Corporation.

The Company's video surveillance views events in multiple areas of facility, which has control over loss and oversees business. On October 1, 2012, the Company completed the acquisition of Absolute Security.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Dobosz]

  With that cautionary prologue, let's get to our rationale for buying The ADT Corporation (ADT) now��fter reporting quarterly results that fell short of expectations.

• [By Michael Robinson]

  CSD also holds shares in a stock that has prospered after being spun-off from troubled Tyco��he ADT Corp. (ADT), which is best known as a leading home security firm.

• [By Damian Illia]

  The ADT Corporation (ADT) is a provider of electronic security, interactive home and business automation and related monitoring services in the U.S. and Canada (about 6.5 million residential and small business customers).

Fed: Economy sees gains after rough winter

The nation's economy largely emerged from a weather-related winter slump over the past six weeks, but cold and stormy conditions continued to dampen growth somewhat, the Federal Reserve said Wednesday.

The Fed's "beige book," named for the color of its cover, suggests that the labor market and economic data could reveal further catch-up effects in April as consumers and businesses unleash pent-up demand and hiring accelerates. The beige book provides an anecdotal snapshot of the economy that could foreshadow broader gains in market-moving reports.

From early March through mid-April, 10 of 12 Fed bank districts reported an expanding economy — a marked improvement from the eight regions reporting growth in the previous report. Growth was "modest or moderate" in the Boston, Philadelphia, Richmond, Atlanta, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Dallas and San Francisco regions. New York and Philadelphia "rebounded from weather-related slowdowns." In the Chicago area, the Fed simply said growth "had picked up."

But activity slowed in the Cleveland and St. Louis regions, the report said.

FIRST TAKE: Signs of a spring stirring?

Consumer spending increased broadly, with New York bouncing back "strongly from weather-depressed levels." St. Louis reported "a number of store openings and plans for future openings." And sales of cars and light trucks, in particular, perked up as the milder weather drew consumers into dealerships, the Fed said.

But cold weather continued to hold down sales in the Cleveland area.

Tourism, meanwhile, "was generally positive" in many areas, including Philadelphia, Atlanta and Kansas City. In New York, Broadway theater sales picked up because more shows were playing, but "cold weather had decreased travel."

A similar dynamic played out in manufacturing. Production generally improved, with moderate growth in the Chicago and Minneapolis districts and manufacturing gaining "some momentum" in San Francisco. But in nine areas — including Boston, New York! , Atlanta, Chicago and Dallas — "lingering winter weather hampered business activity, but the impact was less severe than earlier this year."

In the Chicago area, steel production returned to normal, but food manufacturers in the Boston, Richmond and Dallas areas faced a weather-related drop in demand.

The housing recovery, which is even more dependent on weather, was mixed. Home sales were solid in the Kansas City, Dallas and Richmond areas. But home sales and listings fell in Chicago mainly because of cold weather. Brokers "were optimistic that activity would improve in coming months."

Housing starts, meanwhile picked up moderately in the Boston and San Francisco areas and modestly in the New York, Philadelphia and Atlanta regions. Apartment building drove the increases in several regions. Construction declined, however, in Cleveland, St. Louis and Minneapolis.

Loan demand also ticked up in most areas, though volumes fell in the St. Louis region. The credit quality of borrowers increased sharply in New York and Dallas.

The labor market was mixed, the Fed said, as employment increased modestly to moderately in the New York, Chicago and Minneapolis districts. But firms in Philadelphia and Atlanta said they planned to make capital purchases before hiring.

Employers in the New York, Cleveland, Richmond, Chicago, Kansas City and Dallas regions said they had difficulty finding skilled workers.

Hot Life Sciences Companies To Watch In Right Now

Ford Motor Company (F) announced on Wednesday the addition of two new board members.

The automaker named James P. Hackett and John C. Lechleiter as the newest members of the company’s board of directors. Hackett’s new role will begin immediately, while Lechlieter will officially join on October 1, 2013.

Hackett is currently the CEO of Steelcase, Inc–a furniture maker–and also serves on the board of Fifth Third Bancorp, the National Center for Arts and Technology, and the��Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and Life Sciences Institute at University of Michigan. Lechlieter is the President and CEO of Eli Lilly and Company, one of the largest pharmaceutical firms in the world, and also serves on the board of Nike, Inc, United Way�Worldwide, Xavier University, the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership and the Life Sciences Foundation.

Hot Life Sciences Companies To Watch In Right Now: Plantronics Inc.(PLT)

Plantronics, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, manufacture, and marketing of lightweight communications headsets, telephone headset systems, and accessories for the business and consumer markets under the Plantronics name worldwide. It also offers specialty telephone products, such as telephones for the hearing impaired and other related products for people with special communication needs under the Clarity brand name. The company?s products are designed for specific markets and applications, such as offices; contact centers; mobile devices comprising mobile phones and smart phones; computer and gaming; and residential applications, as well as for other specialty applications. It sells its products through a network of distributors, retailers, wireless carriers, original equipment manufacturers, and telephony service providers. The company was founded in 1961 and is headquartered in Santa Cruz, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sean Williams]

  Can you hear me now?
  Unlike YRC, which I consider to be in awful shape, audio communication solutions maker Plantronics (NYSE: PLT  ) is merely a sell in my book based on its recent share price appreciation.

• [By Lee Jackson]

  Plantronics Inc. (NYSE: PLT) is a global leader in audio communications for businesses and consumers. It has pioneered new trends in audio technology, creating innovative products that allow people to simply communicate. From unified communication to Bluetooth headsets to gaming solutions, it delivers uncompromising quality, an ideal experience and extraordinary service. Plantronics is used by every company in the Fortune 100, as well as 911 dispatch, air traffic control and various mission critical applications for those on the frontline. Investors are paid a small 0.9% dividend. The J.P. Morgan target price is $49, and the consensus is set higher at $54.14. Plantronics closed Tuesday at $45.79.

Hot Life Sciences Companies To Watch In Right Now: RSA Insurance Group PLC (RSA)

RSA Insurance Group plc is the holding company of the RSA group of companies whose principal activity is the transaction of personal and commercial general insurance business. The Company operates in four segments: Scandinavia, Canada, United Kingdom and Western Europe, and Emerging Markets. The Company provides insurance covers for a range of renewable energy technologies, including Wind Energy, which includes onshore and offshore facilities; Solar Energy, which includes photovoltaic, concentrated and thermal installations; Small Hydro, which includes power stations producing an output up to 50 megawatt, and Bio energy, which includes Biomass, Biogas and Waste to Energy plants. The Company works with both large and small brokers. The Company works with partners, such as building societies, banks, retailers, motor manufacturers, charities, utilities and unions to offer their customers appropriate insurance products. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sarah Jones]

  RSA Insurance Group Plc (RSA) gained 0.8 percent to 114.1 pence after Morgan Stanley upgraded the insurer to overweight from underweight, saying the share price will benefit from a stronger prospective U.K. performance. The stock has declined 9.2 percent so far this year, while the FTSE 350 Insurance Index has rallied 10 percent.

• [By Sofia Horta e Costa]

  RSA Insurance Group Plc (RSA), which insures cars, homes and ships in the U.K., Scandinavia and emerging markets, rose 0.8 percent to 114.1 pence. Morgan Stanley raised its rating on the stock to overweight, the equivalent of a buy recommendation, from underweight.

Top Companies To Own In Right Now: Airgas Inc.(ARG)

Airgas, Inc., through its subsidiaries, distributes industrial, medical, and specialty gases, as well as hardgoods in the United States. The company offers various gases, including nitrogen, oxygen, argon, helium, and hydrogen; welding and fuel gases, such as acetylene, propylene, and propane; and carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, ultra high purity grades, special application blends, and process chemicals. Its hardgoods products comprise welding consumables and equipment, safety products, and construction supplies, as well as maintenance, repair, and operating supplies. The company also engages in the rental of gas cylinders, cryogenic liquid containers, bulk storage tanks, tube trailers, and welding and welding related equipment. In addition, the company manufactures and distributes liquid carbon dioxide, dry ice, nitrous oxide, ammonia, refrigerant gases, and atmospheric merchant gases. It serves repair and maintenance, industrial manufacturing, energy and infrastructure co nstruction, medical, petrochemical, food and beverage, retail and wholesale, analytical, utilities, and transportation industries. The company operates an integrated network of approximately 1100 locations, including branches, retail stores, packaged gas fill plants, specialty gas labs, production facilities, and distribution centers. Additionally, it provides retail solutions to retail customers, such as florists, grocers, restaurants and bars, tire and automotive service centers, and others. The company markets its products through multiple sales channels, including branch-based sales representatives, retail stores, strategic customer account programs, telesales, catalogs, e-business, and independent distributors. Airgas, Inc. was founded in 1982 and is based in Radnor, Pennsylvania.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Monica Gerson]

  Airgas (NYSE: ARG) is expected to report its Q2 earnings at $1.22 per share on revenue of $1.28 billion.

  The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA) is estimated to report its Q3 earnings at $1.55 per share on revenue of $21.68 billion.

Hot Life Sciences Companies To Watch In Right Now: Mackinac Financial Corporation(MFNC)

Mackinac Financial Corporation operates as the holding company for mBank that engages in commercial banking business. It offers interest bearing and non-interest bearing deposit products, including commercial and retail checking accounts, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, money market accounts, individual retirement accounts, regular interest-bearing statement savings accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company?s loan portfolio comprises commercial real estate loans; commercial, financial, and agricultural loans; one-to-four family residential real estate loans; construction loans; and consumer loans. It operates 6 branch offices in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and 4 branch offices in Michigan?s Lower Peninsula; and also operates 10 automated teller machines. The company was founded in 1974 and is headquartered in Manistique, Michigan.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Marc Bastow]

  Michigan-based bank holding company Mackinac Financial (MFNC) raised its quarterly dividend 25% to 5 cents per share, payable on Jan. 8 to shareholders of record as of Dec. 30.
  MFNC Dividend Yield: 2.1%

Hot Life Sciences Companies To Watch In Right Now: Huaneng Power International Inc (HNP)

Huaneng Power International, Inc. is principally engaged in the investment, construction, operation and management of power plants. The Company�� electricity generation business covers Northeast China Grid, North China Grid, Northwest China Grid, East China Grid, Central China Grid and South China Grid, as well as grid in Singapore. The Company�� power plants are mainly located in Shandong province, Liaoning province, Zhejiang province, Guangdong province, Jiangsu province, Hebei province, Fujian province, Jiangxi province, Chongqing city, Gansu province, Beijing city and Shanghai city, among others. As of December 31, 2010, the Company had a wholly owned power operation subsidiary in Singapore.

The Company�� Huaneng Dalian Power Plant (Dalian Power Plant) is located on the outskirts of Dalian, on the coast of Bohai Bay. Dalian Power Plant, including Phase I and Phase II, has an installed capacity of 1,400 megawatts and consists of four 350 megawatts coal-fired units. Dalian Power Plant typically stores 200,000 tons of coal onsite. Dalian Power Plant sells all its electricity through the Liaoning Electric Power Co., Ltd. and the Northeastern Power Grid. Electricity generated by Dalian Power Plant is delivered to the Liaoning Provincial Power Grid. Huaneng Dandong Power Plant (Dandong Power Plant) is located on the outskirts of the city of Dandong in Liaoning. Dandong Power Plant comprises two 350 megawatts coal-fired units. All the electricity generated by Dandong Power Plant is delivered to the Liaoning Provincial Power Grid and is sold through the Liaoning Electric Power Co., Ltd. and the Northeastern Power Grid.

Huaneng Yingkou Power Plant (Yingkou Power Plant) is located in Yingkou City in Liaoning Province. Yingkou Power Plant Phase I has an installed capacity of 640 megawatts and consists of 2x320 megawatts supercritical coal-fired generating units. Yingkou Power Plant sells all its electricity through Liaoning Electric Power Co., Ltd. and the Northeastern Power ! Grid. Electricity generated by Yingkou Power Plant is delivered to the Liaoning Provincial Power Grid. The Company�� construction projects in the Liaoning Province include the Yingkou Power Plant Phase II, which is planned to consist of two 600 megawatts coal-fired generating units. The Company owns 100% equity interests in this project.

Power Plant in Fujian Province

The Company�� Huaneng Fuzhou Power Plant (Fuzhou Power Plant) is located on the south bank of the Min River, southeast of the city of Fuzhou. Fuzhou Power Plant, including Phase I and Phase II, has an installed capacity of 1,400 megawatts and consists of four 350 megawatts coal-fired units. All the electricity sales of Fuzhou Power Plant are made through the Fujian Electric Power Company, Ltd. Electricity generated by Fuzhou Power Plant is delivered to the Fujian Provincial Power Grid.

Power Plant in Hebei Province

Huaneng Shangan Power Plant (Shangan Power Plant) is located on the outskirts of Shijiazhuang. Shangan Power Plant has been developed in two separate expansion phases. The Shangan Power Plant Phase I has an installed capacity of 700 megawatts and consists of two 350 megawatts coal-fired units. Shangan Power Plant sells all its electricity through the Hebei Electric Power Corporation. Electricity generated by Shangan Power Plant is delivered to the Hebei Provincial Power Grid. Shangan Power Plant Phase III is planned to consist of two 600 megawatts coal-fired generating units. The Company owns 100% equity interests in this project.

Power Plants in Jiangsu Province

Huaneng Nantong Power Plant (Nantong Power Plant) is located in the city of Nantong. Nantong Power Plant, including Phase I and Phase II, has an installed capacity of 1,404 megawatts, and consists of two 352 megawatts and two 350 megawatts coal-fired units. Nantong Power Plant sells all its electricity through the Jiangsu Electric Power Company. Electricity generated by Nantong Power Pl! ant is de! livered to the Jiangsu Provincial Power Grid. The Company�� Huaneng Nanjing Power Plant (Nanjing Power Plant) has an installed capacity of 640 megawatts consisting of two 320 megawatts coal-fired units.

The Huaneng Taicang Power Plant (Taicang Power Plant) is located in the vicinity of Suzhou, Wuxi and Changzhou in the Jiangsu Province. Taicang Power Plant is an ancillary facility of the China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park and has a total planned capacity of 1,200 megawatts. Taicang Power Plant Phase I consists of 2 x 300 megawatts coal-fired generating units. Taicang Phase II Expansion consists of two 600 megawatts coal-fired generating units. The Huaneng Huaiyin Power Plant (Huaiying Power Plant) is located in the Centre of the Northern Jiangsu Power Grid. The plant has 2 x 220 megawatts coal-fired generating units.

Power Plants in Shanghai Municipality

Huaneng Shanghai Shidongkou First Power Plant (Shidongkou I) is located in the northern region of the Shanghai Power Grid. The plant comprises 3 x 325 megawatts, 1 x 300 and 1 x 320 coal-fired generating units, and has a total installed capacity of 1,270 megawatts. Electricity generated by Shidongkou I is delivered to the Shanghai Municipal Power Grid. Huaneng Shanghai Shidongkou Second Power Plant (Shidongkou II) is located in the northern suburbs of Shanghai. Shidongkou II has an installed capacity of 1,200 megawatts and consists of two 600 megawatts coal-fired supercritical units.

Power Plants in Guangdong Province

Located on the outskirts of the city of Shantou, the Huaneng Shantou Oil-Fired Power Plant (Shantou Power Plant) was set up with the support of the Shantou municipal government and the Guangdong provincial government. In 2007, Shantou Power Plant Phase I consisted of two 300 megawatts coal-fired units. The Company�� construction project in Guangdong Province consists of the Huaneng Haimen Power Plant (Haimen Power Plant), which is planned to consist of two 1,000 mega! watts gen! erating units with a total installed capacity of 2,000 megawatts. The Company owns 100% equity interest in this project.

Power Plants in Shandong Province

Huaneng Dezhou Power Plant (Dezhou Power Plant) is located in Dezhou City, near the border between Shandong and Hebei Provinces. Dezhou Power Plant consists of three Phases, with Phases I consisting of one 320 megawatts and one 330 megawatts coal-fired generating units, Phase II consisting of two 300 megwatts coal-fired generating units, and Phase III consisting of two 700 megawatts coal-fired generating units. Dezhou Power Plant sells its electricity through Shandong Electric Power Corporation. Electricity generated by Dezhou Power Plant is delivered to the Shandong Provincial Power Grid. Huaneng Jining Power Plant (Jining Power Plant) is located in Jining City, near the Jining load Centre and near numerous coal mines.

Huaneng Weihai Power Plant (Weihai Power Plant) is located approximately 16 kilometers southeast of Weihai City, on the shore of the Bohai Gulf. The Company holds a 60% interest in Weihai Power Plant, the remaining 40% interest of which is owned by Weihai Power Development Bureau (WPDB). Weihai Power Plant, developed in two phases, consists of four coal-fired generating units with an aggregate design capacity of 850 megawatts. Huaneng Xindian Power Plant (Xindian Power Plant) is located in Zibo Municipality of Shandong Province.

Power Plants in Zhejiang Province

Huaneng Changxing Power Plant (Changxing Power Plant) is located at the intersection of Zhejiang Province, Jiangsu Province and Anhui Province. Changxing Power Plant has one 125 megawatts and one 135 megawatts coal-fired generating units. Changxing Power Plant sells its electricity to Zhejiang Provincial Electric Power Company. The Yuhuan Power Plant is located in Taizhou of Zhejiang Province and consists of two 1,000 megawatts ultra-supercritical, coal-fired generating units with a total installed capacity of ! 2,000 meg! awatts.

Power Plant in Shanxi Province

Huaneng Yushe Power Plant (Yushe Power Plant) is located in Yushe County of Shanxi Province. Yushe Power Plant Phase I has an installed capacity of 200 megawatts and consists of two 100 megawatts coal-fired generating units. Yushe Power Plant sells all its electricity through the Shanxi Electric Power Corporation. Electricity generated by Yushe Power Plant is delivered to the Shanxi Provincial Power Grid.

Power Plant in Henan Province

Qinbei Power Plant is located in Jiyuan Municipality of Henan Province. Its installed capacity is 2,400 megawatts, which consists of four 600 megawatts supercritical coal-fired generating units.

Power Plant in Jiangxi Province

Huaneng Jinggangshan Power Plant (Jinggangshan Power Plant) is located in Jian City of Jiangxi Province, and has an installed capacity of 600 megawatts and consists of two 300 megawatts coal-fired generating units. Jinggangshan Power Plant sells its electricity through the Jiangxi Electric Power Corporation. Electricity generated by it is delivered to the Jiangxi Provincial Power Grid.

Power Plant in Hunan Province

Huaneng Yueyang Power Plant (Yueyang Power Plant) is located in Yueyang City of Hunan Province. Yueyang Power Plant Phase I has an installed capacity of 725 megawatts and consists of two 362.5 megawatts sub-critical, coal-fired generating units. Yueyang Power Plant Phase II consists of two coal-fired generating units with installed capacity of 600 megawatts. Yueyang Power Plant sells its electricity through the Hunan Electric Power Corporation. Electricity generated by Yueyang Power Plant is delivered to the Hunan Provincial Power Grid.

Power Plant in Chongqing Municipality

Huaneng Luohuang Power Plant (Luohuang Power Plant) is located in Chongqing Municipality. Each of Phase I and Phase II of Luohuang Power Plant has an installed capacity of 720 megawatts and consists ! of two 36! 0 megawatts coal-fired generating units. Luohuang Power Plant Phase III consists of two 600 megawatts coal-fired generating units with an installed capacity of 1,200 megawatts.

Power Plant in Gansu Province

Huaneng Pingliang Power Plant (Pingliang Power Plant) is located in Pingliang City of Gansu Province. It has an installed capacity of 1,200 megawatts and consists of four 300 megawatts coal-fired generating units.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Leading and Lagging Sectors
  Friday morning, the utilities sector proved to be a source of strength for the market. Leading the sector was strength from Huaneng Power International (NYSE: HNP) and Pure Cycle (NASDAQ: PCYO). In trading on Friday, healthcare shares were relative laggards, down on the day by about 0.28 percent.

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Leading and Lagging Sectors
  Utilities stocks gained Friday, with Korea Electric Power (NYSE: KEP) leading advancers. Meanwhile, gainers in the sector included Huaneng Power International (NYSE: HNP), with shares up 1.8 percent, and Hawaiian Electric Industries (NYSE: HE), with shares up 1.4 percent.

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Leading and Lagging Sectors
  Friday morning, the utilities sector proved to be a source of strength for the market. Leading the sector was strength from Huaneng Power International (NYSE: HNP) and Exelon (NYSE: EXC). In trading on Friday, telecommunications services shares were relative laggards, down on the day by about 0.01 percent.

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Utilities sector gained 0.78 percent in the US market today. Among the utilities stocks, Huaneng Power International (NYSE: HNP) was down more than 1.4 percent, while UIL Holdings (NYSE: UIL) tumbled around 0.7 percent.

Hot Life Sciences Companies To Watch In Right Now: Actions Semiconductor Co. Ltd.(ACTS)

Actions Semiconductor Co., Ltd. operates as a semiconductor company in the People?s Republic of China. The company designs, develops, and markets integrated platform solutions, including system-on-a-chips (SoCs), firmware, software development tools, and reference designs for the manufacturers of portable media players. Its SoCs are integrated circuits that incorporate digital signal processor, a micro controller unit, embedded memory, codec, a power management unit, and other components. The company?s SoCs products also comprise on-chip memory, controllers for color liquid crystal display, and analog components, including digital-to-analog converters, phase lock loops, and USB transceivers. Actions Semiconductor Co., Ltd.?s solution development kits include the embedded firmware code, software tools, and documentation to utilize its SoCs in portable media players. The company?s firmware utilizes an embedded structure design with interface that allows customers to pick and choose functionalities and add new device drivers. Its manufacturing software tools also allow its customers in the mass production of products based on its turnkey process. The company?s reference designs consist of detailed specifications of other required components and references, which allow customers to assemble a portable media player. Actions Semiconductor Co., Ltd. also offers semiconductor product testing services. The company sells its integrated platform solutions directly, as well as through distributors to portable media player manufacturers, brand owners, and value-added distributors in China and internationally. Actions Semiconductor Co., Ltd. was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Zhuhai, the People?s Republic of China.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  When judging a company's prospects, how quickly it turns cash outflows into cash inflows can be just as important as how much profit it's booking in the accounting fantasy world we call "earnings." This is one of the first metrics I check when I'm hunting for the market's best stocks. Today, we'll see how it applies to Actions Semiconductor (Nasdaq: ACTS  ) .