Top 10 Building Product Companies To Own For 2014

Investors are bargain hunting in shares of housing contractor Installed Building Products Inc.(IBP), which saw its initial public offering price well below expectations late Wednesday.

The Columbus, Ohio-based company settled for a much smaller initial share sale than it had planned, as institutional investors involved in pricing the deal late Wednesday balked at the valuation the company had pitched. The IPO priced at $11 a share, versus the company�� forecast of $14 to $16. Further reducing the deal�� size, the company sold 17% fewer shares than expected.

But the shares opened up 12% in their trading debut Thursday, and extended gains later in the morning.

Installed Building Products��debut follows mixed performance from shares of some newly public building-products companies. Through Tuesday, siding manufacturer Ply Gem Holdings Inc.(PGEM)�� shares were down 39% from the offer price in its $381 May debut. Wood-products maker Boise Cascade Co.(BCC) was up 46% from its $284 million February IPO.

Top 10 Sliver Stocks To Watch For 2015: Bill Barrett Corp (BBG)

Bill Barrett Corporation explores for and develops oil and natural gas in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States. As of December 31, 2011, the Company had four active development programs, including the Gibson Gulch area in the Piceance Basin, the Uinta Oil Program in the Uinta Basin, the West Tavaputs area in the Uinta Basin and, following an acquisition in August 2011, a primarily oil program in the Denver-Julesburg Basin. The Company holds acreage in a number of basins with plans for drilling activity in the Powder River, Southern Alberta, Paradox and San Juan Basins. Among its four key development programs, three of the programs target oil and high British Thermal Unit (BTU) content natural gas that can be processed into natural gas liquids (NGLs), while its exploration program is exclusively focused on oil and high BTU content natural gas. On December 31, 2012, the Company sold its natural gas assets to an affiliate of Vanguard Natural Resources, LLC. In December 2013, Bill Barrett Corp closed its sale of the West Tavaputs natural gas property located in the Uinta Basin, Utah to affiliates of EnerVest, Ltd.

Piceance Basin

The Piceance Basin is located in northwestern Colorado. As of December 31, 2011, its estimated proved reserves was 596 billions of cubic feet equivalents. As of December 31, 2011, the Company had interests in 826 gross (779.8 net) producing wells, and it serves as the operator in 796 gross producing wells. As of December 31, 2011, it held 42,633 net undeveloped acres, including the Cottonwood Gulch prospect. As of December 31, 2011, it was in the process of drilling three gross (three net) wells and waiting to complete 44 gross (44 net) wells within the Piceance Basin.

The Gibson Gulch area is a basin-centered gas play along the north end of the Divide Creek anticline near the eastern limits of the Piceance Basin�� productive Mesaverde (Williams Fork) trend at depths of approximately 7,500 feet. Its natural gas production in this ! basin is gathered through its own gathering system and EnCana Oil & Gas Corporation�� gathering system and delivered to markets through a variety of pipelines, including pipelines owned by Questar Pipeline Company, Northwest Pipeline, Colorado Interstate Gas, TransColorado Pipeline, Wyoming Interstate Gas Company Pipeline and Rockies Express Pipeline LLC. The energy content of its Piceance gas is 1.15 BTU per cubic foot and the natural gas is processed at an Enterprise Products Partners L.P. plant in Meeker, Colorado.

Uinta Basin

The Uinta Basin is located in northeastern Utah. As of December 31, 2011, in West Tavaputs Area, it had the estimated proved reserves was 460.7 billions of cubic feet equivalents. As of December 31, 2011, it had interests in 271 gross (258 net) producing wells, and it serves as the operator in 271 gross producing wells. During the year ended December 31, 2011, the net production was 32 billions of cubic feet equivalents. As of December 31, 2011, it held 22,618 net undeveloped acres, along with 16,119 net acres that are subject to drill-to-earn agreements. As of December 31, 2011, it was in the process of drilling one gross (one net) well and waiting to complete 17 gross (12.5 net) wells.

The Company serves as operator of its interests in the West Tavaputs Area. As of December 31, 2011, it had identified 622 potential drilling locations and 460.7 billions of cubic feet equivalents of estimated proved reserves with a weighted average working interest of 96%. The Company is actively drilling its shallow program, which targets the gas-productive sands of the Wasatch and Mesaverde formations at depths down to 7,600 feet on average. The Company drilled 92 wells during the year ended December 31, 2011, and completed 89 wells. Two of the new wells during 2011, targeted the Mancos and Niobrara formations to test these deeper horizons. Additionally, two recompletions were performed on existing wells in the Mancos and Niobrara formations. T runni! ng a one ! rig drilling program to drill and complete wells in the Wasatch and Measverde formations in the West Tavaputs area of the Uinta Basin. Its natural gas production in the West Tavaputs Area is gathered through its own gathering systems and delivered into Questar Pipeline Company and Three Rivers Gathering, LLC. Gas delivered into Questar Pipeline is processed by Questar Transportation Services Company, and gas delivered into Three Rivers Gathering can be processed by QEP Field Services Co and Chipita Processing LLC. Gas can then be marketed through a variety of pipelines including Questar Pipeline Company, Northwest Pipeline, CIG, Ruby Pipeline LLC, Rockies Express Pipeline LLC, and Wyoming Interstate Gas Company Pipeline.

The Uinta Oil Program is a fractured oil play with multiple pay zones. The program consists of three main areas of development, including Blacktail Ridge, Lake Canyon and newly acquired East Bluebell. As of December 31, 2011, it had identified three formations: the Green River, Wasatch and Uteland Butte, with 1,688 potential drilling locations and 172.8 billions of cubic feet equivalents of estimated proved reserves and a weighted average working interest of 54%. The Company is also in the planning stages of selecting 80 acre pilot test areas across the field. It is running a three rig drilling program in the Uinta Oil Program which may be adjusted throughout the year as business conditions and operating results warrant.

The Blacktail Ridge area consists of both vertical and horizontal wells that target the Wasatch, Green River, Uteland Butte and Mahogany formations. At December 31, 2011, it had an acreage position of 23,037 net acres with an additional 16,660 net acres subject to drill-to-earn agreements. Under its exploration and development agreement with the Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation, (Ute Tribe), and Ute Development Corporation, it serves as operator and has the right to earn a minimum of a 50% working interest in all formation! s. Throug! h December 31, 2011, it had earned 17,588 gross (8,794 net) tribal acres in this area. The Ute Tribe assigned its participation rights pursuant to the exploration and development agreement to Ute Energy Corporation (Ute Energy).

The Lake Canyon area consists of both vertical and horizontal wells that target the Wasatch, Green River, and Uteland Butte formations. At December 31, 2011, it had an acreage position of 21,595 net acres with an additional 44,228 net acres subject to drill-to-earn agreements. Under the amended exploration and development agreement with the Ute Tribe and Ute Development Corporation, it operates the northern block of Lake Canyon (consisting of 19,781 net tribal acres) with a 75% working interest, and its industry partner operates the southern block where it retains a 25% working interest. The agreement also requires the Company and its industry partner to drill at least two wells per year from 2012 through 2015 and an additional 14 wells at some point between 2012 and 2015. Through December 31, 2011, it had earned 10,200 gross (4,640 net) tribal acres in this area. The Ute Tribe assigned its participation rights pursuant to the Lake Canyon amended agreement to Ute Energy.

On June 8, 2011, the Company closed on an acquisition of oil properties and related assets in the Uinta Basin referred to as East Bluebell. The acquired properties, which consist of 20,413 net acres, are located approximately 35 miles east-northeast of the Blacktail Ridge and Lake Canyon projects with a mixture of fee, state, federal and tribal minerals both unitized and non-unitized. Three federal units exist within the acquired leasehold, Aurora Unit, Ouray Valley Unit and Roosevelt Unit. Also included in the acquisition was associated gathering and transportation infrastructure.

Denver-Julesburg Basin

The Denver-Julesburg Basin (DJ Basin) is located in Colorado�� eastern plains and parts of southern Wyoming, western Kansas and western Nebraska. As of D! ecember 3! 1, 2011, its estimated proved reserves were 41.1 billions of cubic feet equivalents. As of December 31, 2011, it had interests in 216 gross (156.6 net) producing wells, and it serves as operator in 148 gross wells. As of December 31, 2011, the Company held 52,075 net undeveloped acres. As of December 31, 2011, it was in the process of drilling one gross (one net) well and waiting to complete two gross (two net) wells within the DJ Basin. The main oil and gas formations being targeted in the DJ Basin are the tight Muddy J Sandstone, Codell Sandstone and the Niobrara.

On August 16, 2011, it closed on an acquisition of oil and gas properties in the DJ Basin. This acquisition included approximately 26,416 gross (17,074 net) development and exploratory acreage in the Niobrara oil play in the Borie, Chalk Bluffs and Briggsdale prospect areas of Laramie County, Wyoming and Weld County, Colorado. With the acquisition, it also obtained operatorship of 126 producing wells and an interest in another 60 non-operated wells. The Company acquired another 21,903 gross acres (14,800 net) in the Niobrara oil and gas play in the Greater Wattenberg Area of Weld and Adams Counties in Colorado. The Company is running a one rig drilling program to drill and complete horizontal wells targeting oil in the Niobrara formation in the DJ Basin.

Powder River Basin

The Powder River Basin is primarily located in northeastern Wyoming. Its development operations are conducted in its coalbed methane (CBM) fields along with a Powder River Deep Program targeting oil. As of December 31, 2011, its estimated proved reserves were 55.7 billions of cubic feet equivalents. As of December 31, 2011, it had interests in 742 gross (472 net) producing wells and it serves as operator in 580 gross wells. As of December 31, 2011, it held 45,652 net undeveloped acres. During 2011, the Company�� net production was 13.2 billions of cubic feet equivalents. As of December 31, 2011, the Company was not in the process of! drilling! or completing any CBM wells within the Powder River Basin. Coalbed methane wells are drilled to 1,200 feet on average, targeting the Big George Coals. Its natural gas production in this basin is gathered through gathering and pipeline systems owned by Fort Union Gas Gathering, LLC and Thunder Creek Gas Services.

The Company�� Powder River Deep Program consists of vertical and horizontal wells targeting various Cretaceaous oil bearing horizons, including the Parkman, Sussex, Shannon, Niobrara, Turner and Frontier formations. The Company also has an interest in an active Parkman waterflood. At December 31, 2011, it had an interest in 51 gross (10.7 net) producing wells with estimated net proved reserves of three billions of cubic feet equivalents, and it serve as operator in seven gross wells. The Company has increased its net acreage position to 27,201 net acres throughout 2011, along with 11,141 net acres that are subject to drill-to-earn agreements.

Wind River Basin

The Wind River Basin is located in central Wyoming. The Company�� activities are concentrated primarily in the eastern Wind River Basin, along the greater Waltman Arch, where it generally serves as operator. In addition, it has a number of exploration projects, some of which are in areas of the Wind River Basin where it has no existing development operations. As of December 31, 2011, its Estimated proved reserves was 35.2 billions of cubic feet equivalents. As of December 31, 2011, the Company had interests in 152 gross (144.3 net) producing wells, and it serves as operator in 148 gross wells. During 2011, its net production was 5.3 billions of cubic feet equivalents. As of December 31, 2011, it held 180,273 net undeveloped acres. As of December 31, 2011, it was not in the process of drilling or completing wells within the Wind River Basin. its natural gas production in this basin is gathered through its own gathering systems and delivered to markets through pipelines owned by Kinder Morgan Inte! rstate (K! MI) and Colorado Interstate Gas (CIG).

Paradox Basin

The Paradox Basin is located in southwestern Colorado and southeastern Utah. As of December 31, 2011, it had interests in six gross (5.9 net) producing, or capable of producing, wells, and it serves as operator in six gross wells. As of December 31, 2011, it held 365,988 net undeveloped acres. As of December 31, 2011, the Company was not in the process of drilling or completing wells within the Paradox Basin. Its Paradox Basin prospect targets oil, natural gas and associated natural gas liquids from the Gothic and Hovenweep shales at average vertical depths of 5,800 and 5,700 feet, respectively. Through December 31, 2011, it had drilled four exploratory vertical wells to gather rock property data and nine horizontal well bores in the Gothic shale. Six of the horizontal wells were on production at various times in 2011, of which two have continually produced from inception and thus far exhibit flat decline curves. It serves as operator in this area where it has a working interest of approximately 100%.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Yoshiaki Nohara]

  Man Wah Holdings Ltd. (1999), a furniture maker that gets 51 percent of its sales in the U.S., gained 9.2 percent in Hong Kong. Daiwa Securities Group Inc., Japan�� second-largest brokerage, rebounded 12 percent after slumping yesterday. Billabong International Ltd. (BBG), the Australian surfwear company that has breached debt-payment terms, plunged 49 percent after takeover talks with two suitors ended.

Top 10 Building Product Companies To Own For 2014: Furniture Brands International Inc. (FBN)

Furniture Brands International, Inc. engages in designing, manufacturing, sourcing, and retailing home furnishings in the United States and internationally. The company offers case goods, such as bedroom, dining room, and living room wood furniture; stationary upholstery products comprising sofas, loveseats, sectionals, and chairs; and motion upholstered furniture, including recliners and sleep sofas. It also provides occasional furniture, such as accent pieces, home entertainment centers, and home office furniture, as well as wood, metal, and glass tables; and decorative accessories and accent pieces. The company�s brand portfolio includes Thomasville, Broyhill, Lane, Drexel Heritage, Henredon, Pearson, Hickory Chair, Lane Venture, Maitland-Smith, La Barge, and Creative Interiors. It markets its products through its Thomasville retail stores, interior designers, multi-line/independent retailers, and mass merchant stores to retailers, including independently owned furnitu re stores, department stores, and chains. The company was formerly known as Interco Inc. and changed its name to Furniture Brands International, Inc. in 1996. Furniture Brands International, Inc. was founded in 1921 and is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Fox Business]

  Billionaire Investor Sam Zell spoke with FOX Business Network�� (FBN) Maria Bartiromo during Opening Bell with Maria Bartiromo in a wide ranging interview about the Federal Reserve, the stock market and growth sectors in the economy. Regarding the Federal Reserve, Zell said, �� just do not know whether the Fed has the guts to really complete the taper��and that the tapering won�� ��e over by October.��Zell discussed the stock market saying, �� think the stock market is over exuberant��and �� think that the stock market reflects the fact that there's very little other options��for investors. When asked about international investments Zell said, ��e have invested very little in Europe��and that ��exico is one of the places that we're very excited about.��Zell also commented on the commercial real estate market saying, the hot markets are ��an Francisco, New York and Seattle. Those three markets have pricing that's very different from the rest of the country.��/p>

• [By Bryan Murphy]

  Have you ever looked back after a stock's rebounded and realized you missed the obvious hints that the bottom had been made (and you missed out)? Yeah, well, I suspect a bunch of traders are going to look back at Furniture Brands International, Inc. (NYSE:FBN) a few weeks from now and realize right now - as in today - is when FBN made a major bottom and began a bullish reversal.

• [By Sally Jones]

  Here�� a look at what goes inside those new homes: new furniture. As furniture makers increase outsourcing and the U.S. manufacturing sector declines, investors must be wondering about the future of American furniture companies. Trading histories show Guru billionaires have taken years of losses, especially in the case of Furniture Brand International Inc. (FBN), but the recent insider trades at Furniture Brand may be some indication of what we can expect from Guru shareholders when their second quarter trading activity in this sector is revealed.

• [By FoxBusiness]

  In an interview to appear on FOX Business Network�� (FBN) Countdown to the Closing Bell (3PM/ET), Citigroup CEO Michael Corbat speaks with anchor Liz Claman about the company�� recovery. Corbat says, �� think when we look back, we've done a pretty monumental transformation of the company��and that ��e feel like we've got the right business model and the right mix of businesses.��Corbat also comments on cyber security saying, �� think the threat of cyber security is absolutely real��and that this is ��n area where we dedicate a lot of resources, people, hours, money, to making sure that we've got the best technology.��/p>

Top 10 Building Product Companies To Own For 2014: Citadel Capital SAE (CCAP)

Citadel Capital SAE is an Egypt-based company engaged in the private equity investment activities. The Company manages an investment portfolio that consist of 19 Opportunity-Specific Funds (OSFs), which controls entities platform distributed across 12 countries in the Middle Eastern and North African markets, and span 14 industrial sector such as energy, cement manufacturing, solid waste management, real estate, mining, agricultural, glass manufacturing, transportation and metallurgy. Its OSFs entities include Asec Holding, Ascom Geology and Mining SAE, Nile Logistics, Rift Valley Railways, Gozour, Wafra, Nopc / Rally Energy Group, Nile Valley Petroleum Ltd, Egyptian Refining Company, Taqua Arabia, GlassWorks and Finance Unlimited, among others. On December 9, 2012, the Company announced that it has sold 100% of its interest in National Petroleum Company Egypt Limited (NPC Egypt), a wholly owned portfolio company, to Sea Dragon Energy Inc. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Julia Leite]

  Declines provided an opportunity for ��rofit taking��for ��hort term players who bought in the last week or so,��Julian Mayo, who helps manage $2.5 billion in emerging-market assets as the co-chief investment officer at Charlemagne Capital Ltd. (CCAP) in London, said by e-mail. ��fter a 5 to 10 percent gain in some emerging markets in such a short time, some correction is always likely.��

Top 10 Building Product Companies To Own For 2014: LDK Solar Co. Ltd.(LDK)

LDK Solar Co., Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, development, manufacture, and marketing of photovoltaic (PV) products; and development of power plant projects. It offers solar-grade and semiconductor-grade polysilicon; and multicrystalline and monocrystalline solar wafers to the manufacturers of solar cells and solar modules. The company also provides wafer processing services to monocrystalline and multicrystalline solar cell and module manufacturers; and sells silicon materials, such as ingots and polysilicon scraps. In addition, it engages in the production and sale of solar cells and modules to developers, distributors, and system integrators; and design and development of solar power projects in Europe, the United States, and China, as well as provides engineering, procurement, and construction services. LDK Solar Co., Ltd. operates in Europe, the Asia Pacific, and North America. The company was founded in 2005 and is based in Xinyu City, t he People?s Republic of China.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Travis Hoium]

  In China, LDK Solar (NYSE: LDK  ) and Yingli Green Energy (NYSE: YGE  ) are trying to grow in systems but with billions of dollars in debt and extremely low margins they can't compete with First Solar. So, even their higher-efficiency modules put them behind the curve.

Top 10 Building Product Companies To Own For 2014: Google Inc (GOOGL)

Google Inc. (Google), incorporated on October 22, 2002, is a global technology company. The Company�� business is primarily focused around key areas, such as search, advertising, operating systems and platforms, enterprise and hardware products. The Company generates revenue primarily by delivering online advertising. The Company also generates revenues from Motorola by selling hardware products. The Company provides its products and services in more than 100 languages and in more than 50 countries, regions, and territories. Effective September 16, 2013, Google Inc acquired Bump Technologies Inc. Effective October 22, 2013, Google Inc acquired FlexyCore, a developer of software. Effective December 6, 2013, Google Inc acquired the entire share capital of SCHAFT Inc. Effective December 14, 2013, Google Inc acquired Boston Dynamics Inc. Effective January 15, 2014, Google Inc acquired Impermium Corp, a developer of SaaS application software. Effective February 7, 2014, Google Inc acquired the remaining 88% interest in Nest Labs Inc. Effective February 21, 2014, Google Inc acquired Spider.io, a provider of online fraud detection services. Effective March 12, 2014, Google Inc acquired Green Throttle Games.

Search

The Company integrates features into its search service and offers specialized search services to help users tailor their search. The Company also offers product listing advertisements (ads), which include product information, such as product image, price, and merchant information, without requiring additional keywords or ad text. In January 2012, it launched Search plus Your World. During the year ended December 31, 2012, it also introduced Google Now and Google�� Knowledge Graph. Google Now is a search feature that gets the right information at just the right time. It tells the day�� weather before start of a day, how much traffic to expect before you leave for work or school, when the next train will arrive as you��e standing on the platform, or favorite team�! � score while they��e playing - all automatically with cards appearing throughout the day at the moment you need them. Google�� Knowledge Graph, enables the user to search for things, people or places that Google knows about-landmarks, celebrities, cities, sports teams, buildings, geographical features, movies, works of arts and more-and enhances Google Search in three ways: find the right thing, get the summary, and go deeper and broader.

Advertising

The Company�� AdWords is a primary auction-based advertising program, which delivers ads to search queries or Web content. With AdWords, advertisers create text-based ads that then appear beside related search results or Web content on its Websites and on thousands of partner Websites in its Google Network, which is the network of third parties that use its advertising programs to deliver relevant ads with search results and content. The Company also offers AdWords on a cost-per-impression basis that enables advertisers to pay the Company based on the number of times their ads appear on its Websites and the Company�� Google Network Members��Websites as specified by the advertiser. Its AdSense program enables Websites that are part of the Google Network to deliver ads from its AdWords advertisers that are relevant to the search results or content on Websites. In June 2012, the Company integrated its AdMob technology directly into its AdWords system, which enables advertisers to run campaigns across the more than 300,000 mobile applications running ads by AdMob - all from within the AdWords interface.

The Company�� Display advertising consists of videos, text, images, and other interactive ads that run across the Web on computers and mobile devices, including smart phones and handheld computers, such as net books and tablets. The Google Display Network provides advertisers services related to the delivery of display advertising across publishers participating in its AdSense program, publishers participat! ing in th! e DoubleClick Ad Exchange, and Google-owned sites, such as YouTube and Google Finance. Through its DoubleClick advertising technology, it provides to publishers, agencies, and advertisers the ad serving technology, which is the infrastructure that enables billions of ads to be served each day across the Web. Its DoubleClick Ad Exchange creates a real-time auction marketplace for the trading of display ad space. In addition, YouTube provides a range of video, interactive, and other ad formats for advertisers to reach their intended audience. YouTube�� video advertising solutions give advertisers a way to promote their content to the YouTube community, as well as to associate with content being watched by their target audience. YouTube also offers analytic tools to help advertisers understand their audience and derive general business intelligence.

The Company is focused on developing easy-to-use ad products to help advertisers extend their reach, help create revenue opportunities for its publisher partners, and deliver relevant and useful ads to users on the go. Google Mobile extends its products and services by providing mobile-specific features to mobile device users. The Company�� mobile-specific search technologies include search by voice, search by sight, and search by location. Google Mobile also optimizes a number of Google�� applications for mobile devices in both browser and downloadable form. In addition, the Company offers advertisers the ability to run search ad campaigns on mobile devices with mobile-specific ad formats, such as click-to-call ads in which advertisers can include a phone number within ad text. AdMob also offers effective ad units and solutions for application developers and advertisers. The Company provides users with relevant local information. The Company has organized information around more than 80 million places globally from various sources across the Web. Users can find addresses, phone numbers, hours of operation, directions and more for millions of! local qu! eries like shops, restaurants, parks and landmarks right on Google.com, on Google Maps and on Google Maps for mobile. Its products and services also help local business owners manage their online presence and connect with potential customers.

Operating Systems and Platforms

The Company�� Android is a free and open source mobile software platform that any developer can use to create applications for mobile devices and any handset manufacturer can install on a device. Google Chrome OS is an open source operating system with the Google Chrome Web browser as its foundation. Both the Google Chrome OS and the Google Chrome browser are built around the core tenets of speed, simplicity, and security. The Chrome browser runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux computers. Google+ is a new way to share online just like users do in the real world, sharing different things with different people. Google Play is a cloud-based, digital entertainment destination with more than 700,000 applications (apps) and games plus music, movies and books that its users can find, enjoy and share on the Web and on their Android phone or tablet. Google Drive is a place where users can create, share, collaborate, and keep all of their stuff. Google Docs is built right into Google Drive so users can work with others in real time on documents, spreadsheets and presentations and users��files go everywhere they do. Google Wallet is a virtual wallet that securely stores credit and debit cards, offers, and rewards cards. Users can tap their phone to pay in-store using Google Wallet anywhere contactless payments are accepted - at over 200,000 merchants across the United States. Google TV is a platform that gives consumers the power to experience television and the Internet on a single screen, with the ability to search and find the content they want to watch. The Google TV platform is based on the Android operating system and runs the Google Chrome browser.

Enterprise

The Company�� enterprise! products! provide Google technology for business settings. Through Google Apps, which includes Gmail, Google Docs, Google Calendar, and Google Sites, among other features, it provides hosted, Web-based applications that people can use on any device with a browser and an Internet connection. In addition, the Company provides its search technology for use within enterprises through the Google Search Appliance (real-time search of business applications, intranet applications, and public websites), on their public-facing sites with Google Site Search (custom search engine), and Google Commerce Search (for online retail enterprises). The Company also provide versions of its Google Maps Application Programming Interface (API) for businesses (including interactive Google Maps for public and internal Websites), as well as Google Earth Enterprise (a behind-the-company-firewall software solution for imagery and data visualization). Its enterprise solutions have been adopted by a variety of businesses, governments, schools, and non-profit organizations.

Motorola

The Company�� Motorola business consists of two segments: Mobile segment and Home segment. The Mobile segment is focused on mobile wireless devices and related products and services. The Home segment is focused on technologies and devices that provide video entertainment services to consumers by enabling subscribers to access a variety of interactive digital television services.

The Company competes with Facebook, Inc., Twitter Inc., Yahoo! Inc., Microsoft Corporation, eBay Inc., and Amazon.com, Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Andrew Tonner]

  And even though hearing about it may get old, it's beyond dispute that the Internet of Things isn't just some flash in the pan. It's the real deal, and investors should be paying attention to it and strategizing ways to tap into its growth. And in that vein, search giant Google (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) (NASDAQ: GOOGL  ) recently made a major move in its IoT landgrab.

• [By Sam Mattera]

  Echo's announcement was unexpected, and given that it has yet to receive a full release, its success is largely unproven. Moreover, the reviews it has received have been rather lukewarm -- though for a first generation product, that's not particularly unusual. Still, the category appears to hold promise, and its one that Amazon's major mobile�competitors -- Google (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) (NASDAQ: GOOGL  ) , Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT  ) , and Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) -- would do well to follow.

• [By Monica Gerson]

  Google (NASDAQ: GOOGL) reported weaker-than-expected first-quarter earnings. Google posted its adjusted profit of $6.27 per share on adjusted revenue of $12.19 billion. However, analysts were estimating earnings of $6.36 per share on revenue of $12.41 billion. Google shares dropped 3.26% to $545.50 in the after-hours trading session.

• [By Jesse Solomon]

  On Wednesday, analysts will be digging into Google's (GOOGL) earnings report to see if the company has improved on mobile. Even though its fourth quarter profit soared 17%, the tech giant struggled to convince marketers to pay as much for mobile ads as desktop ads.

Top 10 Building Product Companies To Own For 2014: Powershares Golden Dragon (PGJ)

PowerShares Golden Dragon Halter USX China Portfolio is based on the Halter USX China Index. The Index is comprised of the United States listed securities of companies, which derive a majority of their revenue from the People's Republic of China. The fund was incepted on December 9, 2004.

The sectors covered by the investment include consumer discretionary, consumer staples, energy, financials, healthcare, industrials, information technology, materials, telecommunications and utilities. PowerShares Capital Management LLC provides investment management to the Fund.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By MONEYMORNING.COM]

  PowerShares Golden Dragon China Portfolio (NYSE: PGJ) has a position in more than 70 companies, and its holdings are all U.S.-listed companies that generate most of their revenue in China. For that reason, Alibaba is the perfect candidate to join PGJ's holdings once it starts trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

Top 10 Building Product Companies To Own For 2014: MicroFinancial Incorporated(MFI)

Microfinancial Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, operates as a specialized commercial finance company that provides microticket equipment leasing and rental, and other financing services in the United States. The company provides financing alternatives, and leases and rents commercial equipment to start-up and established businesses for use in their daily operations. It leases water filtration systems, food service equipment, security equipment, point-of-sale cash registers, salon equipment, health care and fitness equipment, and automotive equipment. The company primarily sources its originations through a network of independent equipment vendors, sales organizations, and other dealer-based origination networks. Microfinancial Incorporated was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Woburn, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Magic Diligence]

  We've said it time and time again... one of the absolute best features of the Magic Formula庐 Investing (MFI) strategy is its ability to dig up highly attractive, small-cap value stocks that you would probably not hear about anywhere else.

• [By Eric Lam]

  Alacer Gold Corp. and Iamgold Corp. rallied at least 5.9 percent as the metal traded at its highest in 11 weeks. Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (MFI) jumped 7.8 percent as it agreed to sell a unit for C$645 million ($614 million). Penn West Petroleum (PWT) Ltd. added 1.7 percent after cutting 25 percent of its workforce to reduce costs.

• [By Gerrit De Vynck]

  Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (MFI), the Canadian producer of foods from hamburgers to frozen pasta, has drawn bids for its bread unit from Grupo Bimbo SAB, Flowers Foods Inc. (FLO) and several private-equity firms, three people with knowledge of the matter said.