My top idea for conservative, income-oriented investors in the coming year is a closed-end fund that invests in public and privately-held companies doing work in the life sciences arena, writes Nate Pile of Nate's Notes.
The life sciences industry includes stocks in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, managed healthcare and medical equipment, and healthcare information technology and services.
This recommended fund��ambrecht & Quist Life Sciences Fund (HQL)��as also our top pick last year, and the fund rose 44% in 2013.
In addition to rising in value, the fund has a dividend policy of paying out 2% of its net asset value of each quarter.
By choosing to take this payout in the form of a dividend reinvestment, rather than cash, investors have done very well for themselves as they've watched, both the size of their holdings, and the share price itself, increase as the years have rolled by.
To be sure, you will always be able to get more bang for your buck by owning individual biotech stocks.
Best Diversified Bank Companies To Invest In Right Now: Dot Hill Systems Corporation(HILL)
Dot Hill Systems Corp. designs, manufactures, and markets a range of software and hardware storage systems for the entry and midrange storage markets worldwide. Its storage solutions consist of integrated hardware, firmware, and software products employing a modular system that allows end-users to add various protocol, performance, capacity, or data protection schemes. The company offers AssuredSAN products, a flexible line of networked data storage solutions for open systems environments, including fiber channel, Internet small computer systems interface, and serial attached small computer systems interface, or SAS storage markets. Its AssuredSAN product lines range from approximately 146 gigabyte to 192 terabyte storage systems. The company also provides RAID software for industry standard Windows and Linux servers, as well as storage management applications, which manage its storage system configurations. In addition, it sells DMS software products comprising AssuredSna p, AssuredCopy, AssuredRemote, and RAIDar. Further, the company offers standalone storage software products, such as AssuredUVS, a unified virtual storage appliance product; and AssuredVRA. It sells its products through original equipment manufacturers, systems integrators, distributors, and value added resellers. The company was founded in 1988 and is headquartered in Longmont, Colorado.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By John Udovich]
On Monday, small cap storage stock Violin Memory Inc (NYSE: VMEM) surged 21.56% after booting out its CEO in the wake of disappointing earnings and IPO, meaning its time to take a closer look at the stock along with the performance of potential or better known storage peers like large caps SanDisk Corporation (NASDAQ: SNDK) and Western Digital Corp (NASDAQ: WDC) plus small cap Dot Hill Systems Corp (NASDAQ: HILL).
- [By John Udovich]
Small cap storage stock Dot Hill Systems Corp (NASDAQ: HILL) is up 193.4% since the start of the year for a much better performance than its larger cap peers Western Digital Corp (NASDAQ: WDC) and SanDisk Corporation (NASDAQ: SNDK), which are 55.5% and 35.3%, respectively, since the start of the year. So why has this relatively unknown small cap storage stock been a better performer than its better known storage stock peers?
Best Life Sciences Stocks To Own Right Now: Mentor Graphics Corporation(MENT)
Mentor Graphics Corporation provides electronic design automation software and hardware solutions to automate the design, analysis, and testing of complex electro-mechanical systems, electronic hardware, and embedded systems software. It offers ModelSim, a hardware description language mixed-language digital simulator; Questa tool for the verification of systems and ICs; analog/mixed signal simulators, including Eldo, ADVance MS, and ADiT tools; and Veloce, a hardware emulation system. The company also provides Calibre DRC and Calibre LVS physical verification tools; Calibre xRC and xACT transistor-level extraction and device modeling tools; Calibre lithography tools; Calibre PERC tool for checking the electrical design of an IC; and Olympus-SoC place and route solution. In addition, it offers Expedition Series PCB design products; PADS, a PCB design and layout solution; I/O Designer that integrates FPGA input/output planning with PCB design tools; XtremePCB tool for simul taneous design; XtremeAR, a PCB routing product; and FloTHERM, a 3D computational fluid dynamics software. Further, the company provides software tools for the design of complex wire harness systems and automotive electronic components; and a suite of real-time operating systems, Linux and Android products, middleware, and associated development and debugging tools for developing embedded software. Additionally, it offers software support, hardware support, and customer training services; professional consulting services; and methodology development and refinement services to improve product development processes. The company sells and licenses its products through direct sales force, distributors, and sales representatives primarily to large companies in military and aerospace, communications, computer, consumer electronics, semiconductor, networking, multimedia, and transportation industries worldwide. Mentor Graphics Corporation was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in Wilsonville, Oregon.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Steven Russolillo]
WATCH FOR:�Weekly Jobless Claims (8:30 a.m. Eastern Time): seen 310K; previously 297K. May Markit “Flash” PMI (9:45). April Existing Home Sales (10:00): seen +2.0% at 2.68M; previously -0.2% at 4.59M. April Leading Index (10:00): seen +0.5%; previously +0.8%. May Kansas City Fed Manufacturing Survey (11:00): seen 8; previously 7. Aeropostale, Best Buy(BBY), Borcade, Buckle, Dollar Tree(DLTR), GameStop(GME), Gap(GPS), Hewlett-Packard(HPQ), Marvell Tech(MRVL), Mentor Graphics(MENT), Ross Stores(ROST) and TiVo are among companies scheduled to report quarterly results.
Best Life Sciences Stocks To Own Right Now: Omnicell Inc.(OMCL)
Omnicell Inc. provides automated solutions for hospital medication and supply management primarily in the United States and Canada. The company offers medication use products, which include OmniRx that automates the management and dispensing of medications at the point of use; SinglePointe, a software product that controls medications on a patient-specific basis; AnywhereRN, a software that allows nurses to remotely operate automated dispensing cabinets; Pandora Analytics, a reporting and data analytics tool; and Savvy Mobile Medication System, a mobile platform for hospital information systems. Its medication use products also include OmniLinkRx, a software product that automates communication between nurses and the pharmacy; WorkflowRx, an automated storage, retrieval, inventory management, and repackaging solution; controlled substance barcode inventory management system; and Anesthesia Workstation, a secure dispensing system for the management of anesthesia supplies an d medications. In addition, the company provides medical and surgical supply products, which comprise Omnicell Supply Solution that automates the management and dispensing of medical and surgical supplies at the point of use; Supply/Rx Combination Solution, which manages medications and supplies in one versatile cabinet; Omnicell Tissue Center that manages the chain of custody for bone and tissue specimens; OptiFlex SS, which supplies modules for the perioperative areas; OptiFlex CL that supplies modules for the cardiac catheterization lab and other procedure areas; and OptiFlex MS, a system for the management of medical and surgical supplies. Further, it provides customer education and training, and maintenance and support services. The company was formerly known as Omnicell Technologies, Inc. and changed its name to Omnicell, Inc. in 2001. Omnicell, Inc. was founded in 1992 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Seth Jayson]
Basic guidelines
In this series, I examine inventory using a simple rule of thumb: Inventory increases ought to roughly parallel revenue increases. If inventory bloats more quickly than sales grow, this might be a sign that expected sales haven't materialized. Is the current inventory situation at Omnicell (Nasdaq: OMCL ) out of line? To figure that out, start by comparing the company's inventory growth to sales growth. How is Omnicell doing by this quick checkup? At first glance, not so great. Trailing-12-month revenue increased 33.5%, and inventory increased 53.7%. Comparing the latest quarter to the prior-year quarter, the story looks potentially problematic. Revenue expanded 35.8%, and inventory increased 53.7%. Over the sequential quarterly period, the trend looks OK but not great. Revenue dropped 3.4%, and inventory dropped 2.9%.
Best Life Sciences Stocks To Own Right Now: Telus Corporation(TU)
TELUS Corporation provides telecommunications products and services primarily in Canada. Its telecommunications products and services include wireless, data, Internet protocol (IP), voice, and television. The company operates through two segments, Wireless and Wireline. The Wireless segment provides digital personal communications, equipment sales, and wireless Internet services. The Wireline segment offers voice local and voice long distance services; data services, which include television, and managed and legacy data services, as well as Internet, enhanced data, and hosting services; and other telecommunications services. TELUS Corporation was founded in 1993 and is based in Burnaby, Canada.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Ben Levisohn]
Abbvie (ABBV)
Ameren Corp. (AEE)
Arthur J. Gallagher (AJG)
E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. (DD)
ENSCO (ESV)
Enterprise Products Partners LP (EPD)
General Mills (GIS)
H&R Block (HRB)
Hancock Holding (HBHC)
Kraft Foods Group (KRFT)
Lorillard (LO)
Magellan Midstream Partners LP (MMP)
MarkWest Energy Partners L P (MWE)
McDonald’s (MCD)
Microchip Technology (MCHP)
NextEra Energy (NEE)
Regency Centers (REG)
TELUS Corp. (TU)
West Corp. (WSTC)
Williams Companies (WMB) - [By Anders Bylund]
Last week, Canadian cable company TELUS (NYSE: TU ) CEO Darren Entwistle said that Netflix might be as much of an opportunity as a competitor. The company could sell rebranded Netflix services under its own banner to get a leg up on its mostly larger head-to-head competitors. Pairing with local cable providers is a strategy that Netflix hasn't considered (at least not publicly), but it's a wrinkle that's worth keeping a watchful eye on.
- [By Rich Duprey]
Continuing with its practice of raising its dividend payment every year, Canadian telecom�Telus� (NYSE: TU ) �announced today�its second-quarter dividend of $0.34 Canadian per share. Last quarter�the payout was $0.32 Canadian per share. That's a 6.25% increase.
- [By Tom Taulli]
Big competitors for BCE include Rogers Communications (RCI) and Telus (TU), though it also faces niche players such as Public Mobile, Wind Mobile and Mobilicity. Until recently, there was buzz that Verizon (VZ) might enter the market by buying up the latter two, though VZ apparently scrapped plans for Canadian expansion until 2014.
Best Life Sciences Stocks To Own Right Now: ASA Gold and Precious Metals Limited (ASA)
ASA Gold and Precious Metals Limited is a self management investment trust. The firm invests in the public equity markets across the globe. It primarily invests in stocks of companies engaged in the exploration, mining or processing of gold, silver, platinum, diamonds, or other precious minerals. ASA Gold and Precious Metals Limited was founded in 1958 and is based in San Mateo, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Joe Eqcome]
Actionable Items:
Highest Positive Spread: Nuveen Mortgage Opportunity Term Fund (JLS)Focus Stock: LMP Real Estate Income Fund (RIT)Last Week's Focus Stock: ASA Gold and Precious Metals (ASA)ECB cuts its rates: The European Central Bank (ECB) will cut its benchmark rate a quarter-of-a-point to 0.5%.
Best Life Sciences Stocks To Own Right Now: Calavo Growers Inc (CVGW)
Calavo Growers, Inc. (Calavo), incorporated on January 5, 2001, is a provider of value-added fresh food. The Company is engaged in the marketing and distributing avocados, prepared avocados, and other perishable foods allows them to deliver a wide array of fresh and prepared food products to food distributors, produce wholesalers, supermarkets, convenience stores, and restaurants on a worldwide basis. The Company procures avocados principally from California, Mexico, and Chile. Through its various operating facilities, it sort, pack, and/or ripen avocados, tomatoes and/or Hawaiian grown papayas. Additionally, it also produces salsa and prepares ready-to-eat produce and deli products. It distributes its products both domestically and internationally and reports its operations in three different business segments: Fresh products, Calavo Foods and Renaissance Food Group, LLC (RFG).
Fresh products
The Company�� Fresh products business grades, sizes, packs, cools, and ripens (if desired) avocados for delivery to its customers. It operates two packinghouses and three operating and distributing facilities that handle avocados across the United States.Calavo markets California avocados. In California, the growing area stretches from San Diego County to Monterey County, with the majority of the growing areas located approximately 100 miles north and south of Los Angeles County. The storage life of fresh avocados is limited. It generally ranges from one to four weeks, depending upon the maturity of the fruit, the growing methods used, and the handling conditions in the distribution chain. The Company sells avocados to a diverse group of supermarket chains, wholesalers, food service and other distributors, under the Calavo family of brand labels, as well as private labels. From time to time, some of its larger customers seek short-term sales contracts that formalize their pricing and volume requirements. California avocados delivered to the Company�� packinghouses are graded, size! d, packed, cooled and, frequently, ripened for delivery to customers. The Company imports avocados from Mexico, Chile, Peru, New Zealand and the Dominican Republic. It�� diversified avocado sources provide a level of supply stability that may, over time, help solidify the demand for avocados among consumers in all markets it distribute to.
The Company also handles avocados from Chile, Peru and New Zealand, most of which are on a consignment basis with its growers. Pursuant to its joint venture agreement with M5, Calavo de Chile is the primary contact with its Chilean avocado sources. It has invested in the Aweta AFS (acoustic firmness sensor) technology and equipment. It has three Aweta systems in use in the United States, which, it believe, can effectively meet its customers��demand for conditioned fruit. It has developed various display techniques and packages that appeal to consumers and, in particular, impulse buyers. Some of its techniques include the bagging of avocados and the strategic display of the bags within the produce section of retail stores. The majority of its sales are generated from tomatoes and papayas. Tomatoes are primarily handled on a consigned basis, while papayas are handled on a pooling basis, similar to the California avocado pool previously described.
Calavo Foods
The Company�� Calavo Foods business procures avocados, processes avocados into a wide variety of guacamole products, and distributes the processed product to its customers. All of its prepared avocado products shipped to North America are cold pasteurized and include both frozen and fresh guacamole. The Calavo Foods segment was originally conceived as a mechanism to stabilize the price of California avocados by reducing the volume of avocados available to the marketplace.The Company utilizes ultra high pressure machines which are designed to cold pasteurize its guacamole products. Using high pressure only, this procedure substantially destroys the cells of any b! acteria t! hat could lead to spoilage, food safety, or oxidation issues. Once the procedure is complete, its packaged guacamole is cased and shipped to various retail and food service customers throughout the markets its service. Its IQF line provides food service and retail customers with peeled avocado halves that are ripe and suitable for immediate consumption. These halves were frozen, packaged and shipped out of Mexicali to warehouses located in the United States., and, ultimately, to its customers. The Company�� line of salsa will further diversify its product offerings and will be a natural complement to its ultra-high-pressure guacamole, as well as its Calavo tortilla chips.
RFG
The Company�� RFG business produces markets and distributes nationally a portfolio of healthy, lifestyle products for consumers via the retail channel. RFG is a fresh-food company that produces, markets, and distributes nationally a portfolio of healthy, products for consumers via the retail channel.RFG products range from fresh-cut fruit, ready-to-eat vegetables, recipe-ready vegetables and deli meat products. RFG sells under the labels of Garden Highway Fresh Cut, Garden Highway, and Garden Highway Chef Essentials to a wide range of customers. RFG products range from fresh-cut fruit, ready-to-eat vegetables, recipe-ready vegetables and deli meat products. RFG sells under the labels of Garden Highway Fresh Cut, Garden Highway, and Garden Highway Chef Essentials to a range of customers.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Laura Brodbeck]
Monday
Earnings Releases Expected: Sonic Corp (NASDAQ: SONC), Calavo Growers, Inc. (NASDAQ: CVGW), Zep Inc. (NYSE: ZEP) Economic Releases Expected: �Spanish services PMI, Italian services PMI, French services PMI, German services PMI, eurozone services PMI, British services PMI, eurozone investor confidence, German CPI, Australian trade balanceTuesday
- [By John Udovich]
Just when you think the global warming (excuse me, climate change)�warnings could not get anymore hysterical or�goofier (Niagara Falls and the Great Lakes have frozen over after all), Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc (NYSE: CMG) is sounding the alarm (which may rally all of the Sofritas vegan tofu eaters of America)�over�its potential�threat�to�guacamole, but small cap avocado stock Calavo Growers, Inc (NASDAQ: CVGW) continues to grow investor returns no matter what the weather is doing and has outperformed PowerShares DB Agriculture Fund (NYSEARCA: DBA).�First and as noted by ThinkProgress.org, Chipotle Mexican Grill�� latest Annual Form 8-K reported:
Best Life Sciences Stocks To Own Right Now: Deutsche Bank AG (LBND)
Deutsche Bank AG is a global investment bank. The Company offers a variety of investment, financial and related products and services to private individuals, corporate entities and institutional clients around the world. The Company operates through such divisions as: Private and Business Clients, Asset and Wealth Management, Corporate Banking and Securities, Global Transaction Banking and Non-Core Operations Unit. Deutsche Bank AG is active domestically and in various countries, through the network of numerous branches. In February 2014, the Company and its related bodies corporate ceases to a share holder in the capital of the Company. Advisors' Opinion:- [By Donald van Deventer]
Long-duration Treasury Exchange-Traded Funds: (TLH), , (IEF), (DTYL), (DLBL), (ILTB), (TENZ), (ITE), (TLO), (EDV), (VGIT), (VGLT), (TMF), (TYD), (LBND), (UBT), (UST), (TMV), (TYO), (DSTJ), (DSXJ), (SBND), (PST), (DTYS), (DLBS), (TBF), (TTT), (TYNS), (TYBS), (TBX).
No comments:
Post a Comment