Following a recent string of gun-related tragedies over the past year, few people were surprised by President Obama's efforts to enact legislation aimed at reforming the nation's gun laws.
Of course, equally unsurprising was the deep division of opinions regarding both the effectiveness and necessity of such legislation, which included a proposal to ban some semi-automatic weapons resembling military assault rifles. In addition, the bill had also recently introduced a number of amendments, the most significant of which aimed to expand background checks for gun buyers at firearms shows and on the Internet.
As a result, prices for both firearms and ammunition have spiked over the past few months along with demand, as worried consumers began to stockpile the products.
Sporting-goods retailer�Cabela's (NYSE: CAB ) , for instance, noted a 12% year-over-year increase in comparable-store sales last quarter, largely on the heels of a "surge in the sale of firearms and ammunition." What's more, the outfitter also stated that more than one in five firearms purchasers last quarter were to brand-new Cabela's customers, indicating just how many folks came out to buy guns and ammo before any new laws might have made it more difficult.
Top 5 International Companies To Watch For 2015: Amazon.com Inc.(AMZN)
Amazon.com, Inc. operates as an online retailer in North America and internationally. It operates retail Web sites, including amazon.com and amazon.ca. The company serves consumers through its retail Web sites and focuses on selection, price, and convenience. It also offers programs that enable sellers to sell their products on its Web sites, and their own branded Web sites. In addition, the company serves developer customers through Amazon Web Services, which provides access to technology infrastructure that developers can use to enable virtually various type of business. Further, it manufactures and sells the Kindle e-reader. Additionally, the company provides fulfillment; miscellaneous marketing and promotional agreements, such as online advertising; and co-branded credit cards. Amazon.com, Inc. was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Seattle, Washington.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Chris Hill]
Coach� (NYSE: COH ) fell today after disappointing second-quarter results, stating that foot traffic at North American stores was "substantially lower."�Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC ) rose today after reporting strong Q4 earnings, with increases for the railroad company in most of its shipping categories.�AMD (NYSE: AMD ) was the most traded stock on the New York Stock Exchange today, with shares trading down after the chipmaker lowered guidance for the first quarter. And The Wall Street Journal is reporting that�Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN ) is in discussions with media companies to distribute their channels online. In this segment, Matt and Mike discuss four stocks making moves on the market today.
- [By Fusion Research]
The OEM segment has performed according to the company's expectations in the second quarter of 2013. Amazon.com (AMZN) registered a 22% year over year growth in sales in the second quarter of 2013, due to increasing sales of its kindle and kindle fire HD devices. Amazon began shipping its kindle fire HD tablet to China recently. This product includes Gothic and Song style Chinese fonts from Monotype Imaging. Amazon has thus customized its product according to the needs of its Chinese customers. This has also helped Monotype Imaging to extend its leadership position in the Chinese markets. Amazon has adopted a strategy to expand into the Chinese markets through its kindle sales, and increasing sales will also drive the demand for Monotype Imaging's fonts.
- [By WALLSTCHEATSHEET]
Amazon is one of the largest Internet commerce companies in the world, and it aims to serve the needs of consumers, companies, and entrepreneurs around the globe. The company�says it is hiring more than 2,500 full-time workers at its order fulfillment centers around the U.S. The stock has been flying higher in recent years but is currently trading sideways. Over the last four quarters, earnings and revenues have been rising. However, investors have had mixed feelings about recent earnings announcements. Relative to its peers and sector, Amazon has been an average performer year-to-date. WAIT AND SEE what Amazon does this quarter.
- [By Pato Kehoe]
Another enticing aspect of this media giant is its successful film entertainment studio, which provides 75% of all operating profit, as well as a steady stream of cash flow for the televized side of the firm. The hits produced in the film studio are usually fed to the Fox broadcast networks, or Netflix Inc. (NFLX) and Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN),�via licensing and distribution agreements. This dual system of content creation and channel ownership is a highly sustainable business model which should help the company overcome any bumps in the road over the next 20 years. Furthermore, Fox channels��high viewer rating is a very attractive feature for producers and writers looking to sell their ideas, which will ensure the firm's quality video content creation in the future.
Top 5 Internet Stocks To Buy For 2014: Symantec Corporation(SYMC)
Symantec Corporation provides security, storage, and systems management solutions internationally. The company?s Consumer segment delivers Internet security, PC tune-up, and online backup solutions and services to individual users and home offices. Its Security and Compliance segment provides solutions for endpoint security and management, compliance, messaging management, data loss prevention, encryption, and authentication services to large, medium, and small-sized businesses, as well as offers solutions through its software-as-a-service (SaaS) security offerings. This segment?s products enable customers to secure, provision, and remotely manage their laptops, PCs, mobile devices, and servers. The company?s Storage and Server Management segment provides storage and server management, backup, archiving, and data protection solutions across heterogeneous storage and server platforms, as well as solutions delivered through its SaaS offerings to large, medium, and small-s ized businesses. Symantec?s Services segment offers implementation services and solutions, including consulting, business critical services, education, and managed security services. The company also provides various enterprise support offerings, such as annual maintenance support contracts, including content, upgrades, and technical support. It sells its products through its eCommerce platform, as well as through distributors, direct marketers, Internet-based resellers, system builders, ISPs, and retail locations worldwide. Symantec markets and sells its products through distributors, retailers, direct marketers, Internet-based resellers, original equipment manufacturers, system builders, and Internet service providers; and its e-commerce channels, as well as direct sales force, value-added and large account resellers, and system integrators. The company was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Vanina Egea] and earnings growth (which came in better than expected on the last reported quarter), profit margins and other profitability ratios.
Additionally, I will evaluate which institutional investors bought the stock in the recent quarters (institutional backup can tell a lot about a stock), and the initiatives that the company is putting in motion in order to ameliorate its sales and margins.
Earnings
The first step is analyzing Symantec Corp�� earnings growth. I am looking for companies that are able to expand both their quarterly and annual earnings by more than 15% a year. Last quarter the company generated 13% quarterly EPS growth when compared to the same quarter last year. Thus, I am not encouraged by SYMC�� numbers. Past growth winners (Apple, Baidu, etc.) generated consistent quarterly EPS growth above 15% and I am certainly looking for that level before investing.
In addition, SYMC generated three-year average annual EPS growth of 10%. This is an important metric to follow in growth stocks because it highlights how well the stock grew in the past years. I like to invest in companies that are growing consistently.
Revenue
Let's take a look at SYMC麓s revenue growth. This is a key metric that needs to be analyzed before investing in a company, as it is one of the scarce figures that cannot be modified through accounting tricks and similar dodges.
The company reported a 5% quarterly revenue drop year over year. On the contrary, I look for companies that generate more than 15% in quarterly growth.
When betting on a company, an investor wants to see sales grow or improve over time ���nd not just in the last reported quarter. Looking at the company�� financials in comparison to previous years will give participants a much better idea of how well a company is doing. Symantec Corp generated a three-year average annual sales growth rate of 4%.
A New Strategic Plan
Accepting the problems in its
- [By Tim Melvin]
The first "insider" stock to buy is Symantec Corp. (Nasdaq: SYMC), one of the leading internet security providers in the world.
Symantec makes a wide range of products that help individuals and businesses keep their computers and mobile devices safe from viruses and malware. The stock recently dropped sharply after the company fell short of analysts' quarterly earnings expectations, but CEO Stephen Bennett clearly disagrees with the market's opinion of the company's prospects. He got out his checkbook and added 1,000,000 shares of stock for a total cost of more than $2.2 million. He now owns 488,000 shares of Symantec stock and clearly has high expectations for the future of Symantec's stock price.
- [By Shauna O'Brien]
On Thursday, Morgan Stanley reported that it has downgraded security and storage management company Symantec Corporation (SYMC).
Morgan Stanley has cut its rating on SYMC to an “Equal Weight.” Analysts believe that the company lacks near term catalysts.
Symantec shares were down 55 cents, or 2.18%, during pre-market trading Thursday. The stock is up 34% YTD.
- [By Sue Chang]
Symantec Corp. (SYMC) said its fiscal first-quarter profit jumped 50% on the back of a growth in revenue and cost cutting measures. The security software company reported a profit of $236 million, or 34 cents a share, versus $157 million, or 22 cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding items, earnings rose to 45 cents a share. Revenue rose nearly 2% to $1.74 billion. Shares of Symantec were unchanged in late trade.
Top 5 Internet Stocks To Buy For 2014: Google Inc.(GOOG)
Google Inc. maintains an index of Web sites and other online content for users, advertisers, and Google network members and other content providers. It offers AdWords, an auction-based advertising program; AdSense program, which enables Web sites that are part of the Google Network to deliver ads from its AdWords advertisers; Google Display, a display advertising network that comprises the videos, text, images, and other interactive ads; DoubleClick Ad Exchange, a real-time auction marketplace for the trading of display ad space; and YouTube that provides video, interactive, and other ad formats for advertisers. The company also provides Google Mobile that optimizes Google?s applications for mobile devices in browser and downloadable form; and enables advertisers to run search ad campaigns on mobile devices, as well as Google Local that provides local information on the Web; and Google Boost for small businesses to participate in the ads auction. In addition, it offers And roid, an open source mobile software platform; Google Chrome OS, an open source operating system; Google Chrome, a Web browser; Google TV, a platform for the consumers to use the television and the Internet on a single screen; and Google Books platform to discover, search, and consume content from printed books online. Further, the company provides Google Apps, a cloud computing suite of message and collaboration tools, which includes Gmail, Google Docs, Google Calendar, and Google Sites; Google Search Appliance that offers real-time search of business and intranet applications, and public Web sites; Google Site Search, a custom search engine; Google Commerce Search for online retail enterprises; Google Checkout to make online shopping and payments streamlined and secure; Google Maps Application Programming Interface; and Google Earth Enterprise, a firewall software solution for imagery and data visualization. Google Inc. was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Rick Munarriz]
Qihoo 360 wasn't even in the search market until it booted Google (NASDAQ: GOOG ) as the provider of default searches on its popular Web browser last summer. Taking advantage of the traffic from its industry-leading browser and suite of online security software, Qihoo 360 has gone on to claim 15% of the search market in its first year.
- [By Evan Niu, CFA]
Amazon.com's (NASDAQ: AMZN ) original Kindle Fire still retails for as low as $159, while Google's (NASDAQ: GOOG ) Nexus 7 starts at $199 along with Amazon's newer Kindle Fire HD. Samsung's cheapest tablet is the Galaxy Tab 2, which can be had for just $180. Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT ) has chosen to challenge Apple head-on, with the Surface RT matching flagship iPad pricing at $500. The Surface Pro is the most expensive of the bunch, which can reach as high as $1,000.
- [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]
Our long-term vision is that customers can order and receive a sellers' product the same day anywhere in the world.
"Our long-term vision is that customers can order and receive a sellers' product the same day anywhere in the world," according to one job listing posted in late October. It isn't clear when Amazon hopes to meet its goals and how it would extend same-day delivery to more third-party sellers, who account for 40 percent of items sold on Amazon's website and pay fees between 8 percent and 20 percent in most categories. An Amazon spokesman declined to comment. Amazon offers same-day delivery in just over a dozen U.S. cities, charging $5.99 for members of its Prime program while non-members pay $8.99. In October, the company launched a same-day delivery service in the United Kingdom with newspaper delivery company Connect Group. A senior product manager role advertised on Tuesday called for a candidate to shape the future of same-day delivery and "drive large worldwide projects with huge customer-facing and financial impact." Costly Effort Offering fast shipping is a key piece of Amazon's strategy to compete with brick-and-mortar stores. But the effort is costly -- during the first nine months of 2014, Amazon's shipping costs were more than double its shipping revenue. Some rivals, including eBay (EBAY), have pared back their same-day projects citing still-unproven consumer demand. Amazon also faces competition from Google (GOOG), which expanded its same-day delivery service this year, as well as on-demand delivery startups such as Postmates and Instacart. But the potential payoff could be big, analysts say. According to a September survey by RBC Capital Markets, just 4 percent of Amazon customers used same-day delivery, but they spent 15 percent more than others. Getting more third-party sellers to offer same-day delivery could help Amazon offset the high costs of offering fast shipping and building warehouses near large urban markets, say
Top 5 Internet Stocks To Buy For 2014: eBay Inc.(EBAY)
eBay Inc. provides online platforms, services, and tools to help individuals and merchants in online and mobile commerce and payments in the United States and internationally. Its Marketplaces segment operates ecommerce platform eBay.com; vertical shopping sites, such as StubHub, Fashion, Motors, and Half.com; and classifieds Websites, including Den Bl�Avis, BilBasen, Gumtree, Kijiji, LoQUo, Marktplaats.nl, mobile.de, Alamaula, Rent.com, eBay Anuncios, eBay Kleinanzeigen, and eBay Annunci, as well as provides advertising services. The company?s Payments segment offers payment and settlement services for consumers and merchants on and off eBay Websites and other merchant Websites. This segment operates PayPal, which enables individuals and businesses to send and receive payments online and through mobile devices; Bill Me Later that enables the United States merchants to offer, the United States consumers to obtain, credit at the point of sale for ecommerce and mobile tra nsactions; Zong, which allows users with mobile phones to purchase digital goods and have the transactions charged to their phone bill; and BillSAFE that enables customers pay for purchases upon receipt of an invoice. Its GSI segment offers an ecommerce services suite for enterprise clients that operate in general merchandise categories, including apparel, sporting goods, toys and baby, health and beauty, and home; and marketing services comprising full-service digital agency, enterprise email marketing, mobile advertising, affiliate marketing, advertisement retargeting, and in-depth analytics services. The company also offers X.commerce platform that provides software developers access to the company?s applications programming interfaces to develop functionality for various merchants; and Magento Connect, which allows developers to market and sell add-on functionality and solutions to merchants that use a Magento storefront. eBay Inc. was founded in 1995 and is headquarter ed in San Jose, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Benjamin Pimentel]
Shares of eBay (EBAY) �slipped a fraction to close at $58.86. Investor Carl Icahn again blasted the company�� board, saying in an interview with CNBC that he has ��ever seen worse corporate governance than eBay.��
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