U.S. stocks rose, halting the first two-day drop in the Standard & Poor�� 500 Index in three weeks, as optimism about corporate earnings offset concern that improving economic data could prompt the Federal Reserve to trim stimulus.
First Solar Inc. rallied 18 percent after the largest U.S. solar-panel manufacturer said third-quarter profit almost doubled. American International Group Inc. lost 6.5 percent after premium revenue fell at its property-casualty division. Chevron Corp. slid 1.6 percent as it reported profit below estimates as weaker refining margins eroded gains from higher commodity prices and output from wells.
The S&P 500 climbed 0.3 percent to 1,761.64 at 4 p.m. in New York, after earlier falling as much as 0.2 percent. The equity gauge advanced 0.1 percent in the past five days, its fourth straight weekly gain. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 69.80 points, or 0.5 percent, to 15,615.55 today. About 6.8 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, 14 percent above the three-month average.
Top 10 Construction Companies To Own For 2015: GigaMedia Limited (GIGM)
Gigamedia Limited, through its subsidiaries, primarily engages in the operation of online games for online game players in Asia. The company provides a portfolio of online games, including MahJong, a traditional Chinese tile game; MMORPG, an Internet-based computer game; advanced casual games; and card, chance-based, and simple casual games. It also develops and licenses online poker, casino, and sports betting gaming software solutions, as well as offers application services for the online poker and casino markets primarily in the continental European markets. The company has strategic alliances with SoftStar Entertainment Inc., Neostorm Holdings Limited, XLGames Inc., Access China Holding Limited, Gorilla Banana Entertainment Corp., JC Entertainment Corporation, Possibility Space Incorporated, East Gate Media Contents & Technology Fund, and BetClic. GigaMedia Limited was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Eric Volkman]
GigaMedia (NASDAQ: GIGM ) results for the company's fiscal Q4 and 2012 have been released. For the quarter, revenue was $4.8 million, down by 34% from the $7.4 million in the same period the previous year. Attributable net loss, however, narrowed considerably to $15.4 million ($0.30 per diluted share) from Q4 2011's shortfall of $51.3 million ($1.01).
10 Best Stocks For 2014: Capstone Turbine Corporation(CPST)
Capstone Turbine Corporation develops, manufactures, markets, and services turbine generator sets and related parts for use in stationary distributed power generation applications. Its stationary distributed power generation applications include cogeneration combined heat and power (CHP), integrated (CHP), resource recovery, and secure power, as well as combined cooling, heat, and power; and its products are used as battery charging generators for hybrid electric vehicle applications. The company primarily offers microturbine units, subassemblies, and components. It also provides various accessories, including rotary gas compressors with digital controls, heat recovery modules for CHP applications, dual mode controllers that allow automatic transition between grid connect and stand-alone modes, batteries with digital controls for stand-alone/dual-mode operations, power servers for multipacked installations, and protocol converters for Internet access, as well as frames, ex haust ducting, and installation hardware. Further, it remanufactures microturbine engines; and provides after-market parts and services, scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, and factory and on-site training services. The company?s microturbines can be fueled by various sources, including natural gas, propane, sour gas, landfill or digester gas, kerosene, diesel, and biodiesel. It primarily sells its products directly to end users, as well as through distributors in North America, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Russian Federation, and South America. Capstone Turbine Corporation was founded in 1988 and is based in Chatsworth, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Rick Munarriz]
Capstone Turbine (NASDAQ: CPST ) -- $1.30
Things are finally starting to happen for the microturbine maker. Revenue is growing at a healthy clip, and analysts see Capstone finally turning a quarterly profit later this year. - [By Tyler Crowe and Aimee Duffy]
Over the past couple weeks Capstone Turbine (NASDAQ: CPST ) shares have launched into orbit on the news that the company had secured several orders for its microturbines. But 40% in a month? On the surface, it seems a bit silly that a company could gain that much on a couple news stories about sales. For a company like Capstone, which has struggled with sales, this kind of news is exactly what shareholders were looking for.
- [By Tyler Crowe]
But to focus simply on renewables for distributed power would do some other parts of the industry a disservice, because companies such as Capstone Turbine (NASDAQ: CPST ) are proving that localized generation of natural gas can be just as efficient as a big centralized utility plant. This one-two punch of renewable power as the primary energy source with localized natural gas generation as a backup for when solar or wind can't generate power could be a big threat to the utilities sector.
10 Best Stocks For 2014: Volcano Corporation(VOLC)
Volcano Corporation designs, develops, manufactures, and commercializes intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) and fractional flow reserve (FFR) products used in the diagnosis and treatment of vascular and structural heart disease. It offers multi-modality consoles, which are marketed as stand-alone units that can be integrated into hospital-based interventional surgical suites, such as catheterization laboratories. The company provides IVUS products, including single-procedure disposable phased array and rotational IVUS imaging catheters; and additional functionality options comprising virtual histology tissue characterization, and ChromaFlo stent apposition analysis. It also offers FFR products, such as pressure and flow consoles, and single-procedure disposable pressure and flow guide wires used to measure the pressure and flow characteristics of blood around plaque enabling physicians to gauge the plaque?s physiological impact on blood flow and pressure. In addition, the com pany develops and manufactures optical monitors for the telecommunication industry; laser and non-laser light sources; optical engines used in the medical OCT imaging systems and advanced photonic components; and sub-systems used in spectroscopy and other industrial applications. Its products under development include image-guided therapy device and micro and thrombectomy catheters. The company?s ongoing clinical studies comprise assessment of dual anti-platelet therapy with drug-eluting stents; vascular evaluation for revascularization; fractional flow reserve and intravascular ultrasound relationship study; adensonine vasodilation independent stenosis evaluation; and evaluation of XIENCE PRIME. It sells its products through direct sales force and distributors, as well as through third parties supply and distribution agreements primarily in the United States, Japan, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and internationally. The company was founded in 2000 and is headquartered i n San Diego, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By alicet236]
According to GuruFocus list of 5-year lows, these Guru stocks have reached their 5-year lows: Hecla Mining Co, Comstock Resources Inc, Permian Basin Royalty Trust, and Volcano Corp.Hecla Mining Co (HL) Reached $2.18The prices of Hecla Mining Co (HL) shares have declined to $2.18, which is only 3.2% above the 5-year low of $2.11. It is now 81.7% off the 5-year high of $11.56. Hecla Mining Co is owned by 4 Gurus we are tracking. Among them, 3 have added to their positions during the past quarter. 3 reduced their positions. Hecla Mining Company, a Delaware corporation was establsihed in 1891. Hecla Mining Co has a market cap of $761.916 million; its shares were traded at around $2.18 with and P/S ratio of 1.63. The dividend yield of Hecla Mining Co stocks is 0.46%.Hecla Mining Co. reported revenues of $117.5 million and net loss of $14.4 million for its 2014 second quarter financial results. GuruFocus Guru Arnold Van Den Berg (Trades, Portfolio) kept his position in Hecla Mining Co unchanged. He owns 3,909,257 shares. Arnold Scheider sold out his holdings of HL.Sr. Vice President & CFO James A Sabala sold 200,000 shares of HL stock in August. VP - Corporate Development Don Poirier and Director Anthony P Taylor sold 64,099 shares of HL stock in July and August.Comstock Resources Inc (CRK) Reached $11.84The prices of Comstock Resources Inc (CRK) shares have declined to $11.84, which is only 9.6% above the 5-year low of $10.70. It is now 76.0% off the 5-year high of $44.52. Comstock Resources Inc is owned by 4 Gurus we are tracking. Among them, 1 have added to their positions during the past quarter. 3 reduced their positions. Comstock Resources, Inc. is a Nevada corporation. It is an energy company which acquires, explores, develops and produces oil and natural gas in the United States. Comstock Resources Inc has a market cap of $566.669 million; its shares were traded at around $11.84 with and P/S ratio of 1.07. The dividend yield of Comstock Resources Inc stock
- [By Teresa Rivas]
Shares of Volcano (VOLC) were up 8% in afternoon trading, following the company�� better-than-expected second-quarter earnings report and a spate of positive analyst commentary.
The medical device company said it earned 3 cents a share, whereas analysts were expecting a one cent per share loss. Revenues of $101.3 million also topped consensus estimates of $97.9 million.
Volcano also issued mixed guidance for the full year, saying it expects to earn between 3 and 5 cents a share on revenue of $394 million to $400 million. Analysts are modeling for earnings per share of a nickel on $395.8 million in sales.
Analysts were also largely positive about the quarter. Canaccord Genuity�� Jason Mills and Jeffery Chu upgraded the stock from Hold to Buy and boosted their price target by $5 to $26 on the news. ��olid or improving revenue growth trends and margin expansion are tried and true drivers of small-cap med-tech multiples. However, since October 2010, VOLC has lost over 20% of its value amid declining growth (admittedly from a high level) and inconsistent gross margin performance, which drove multiple contraction to its current discount relative to the broad comp group. However, improving trends in the core IVUS business, easing Y/Y comps, strong margin expansion potential via manufacturing transition to Costa Rica in 2014, and several catalysts on the horizon (e.g., new products, clinical data), portend a more favorable risk/reward profile in the stock at current trading levels.��/p>
Raymond James analyst Jayson Bedford reiterated an Outperform rating on the stock and boosted his target price by $1 to $25. �� re-acceleration to double-digit constant currency growth and guidance that was maintained should help improve investor sentiment. At 2.5x EV/Sales, we do not believe investors are giving Volcano credit for its 9-11% top-line growth profile, with visibility into 70% gross margins. Additionally, we expect investor enthusiasm to inc
- [By Ben Levisohn]
Instead of an eruption, Volcano (VOLC) got an earnings-induced collapse instead.
Associated PressMedical-device maker Volcano said its third quarter profit would miss Wall Street forecasts, and 2013 sales would also disappoint. And 2014? Well, that didn’t look too exciting other.
JPMOrgan analyst Christopher Pasquale and team have had enough:
We are downgrading VOLC shares to Neutral from Overweight following the company�� negative 3Q preannouncement and disappointing initial 2014 growth outlook Monday after the close. While we continue to see significant long-term potential for Volcano�� technologies, we are concerned by persistent headwinds to its core IVUS franchise and slowing FFR growth. With our conviction in a pipeline-driven reacceleration reduced and visibility into meaningful new growth drivers unlikely for several quarters, we are moving to the sidelines.
Canaccord Genuity’s Jason Mills and Jeffrey Chu also cut Volcano to Hold–just a quarter after upgrading it–and even today’s drop might not make it worth buying. They explain why:
Our upgrade of VOLC last quarter was predicated on the improving trends in the core IVUS business, FFR continuing as a long-term growth engine, and the potential material gross margin expansion. While Q3 results included pockets of good news, adverse trends predominated.
While US IVUS rebounded modestly, driven by peripheral IVUS (+40% Y/Y), IVUS and FM results in Japan were very disconcerting to us (-19%, +8%, respectively), and portend share loss, in our estimation. Also, while we still expect significant gross margin expansion long term, it seems we may have to wait longer than expected.In sum, we would not aggressively buy weakness unless the stock is over-penalized on these results – i.e. below $20.
While shares of Volcano have dropped 15% to $20.74, large-cap medical device companies are having a solid day. Boston Scienti
- [By Ali Berri]
Volcano (NASDAQ: VOLC) shares tumbled 19.58 percent to $12.69 on Q2 results. The company reported Q2 earnings of $0.01 per share on revenue of $102.60 million. Volcano announced its plans to divest its Axsun Technologies subsidiary and also announced the litigation settlement agreement with St. Jude Medical (NYSE: STJ). Oppenheimer downgraded Volcano from Outperform to Market Perform and lowered the price target from $22.00 to $15.00.
10 Best Stocks For 2014: Impax Laboratories Inc.(IPXL)
Impax Laboratories, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company, engages in the development, manufacture, and marketing of bioequivalent pharmaceutical products. The company operates in two divisions, Global Pharmaceuticals and Impax Pharmaceuticals. The Global Pharmaceuticals division develops, manufactures, sells, and distributes generic pharmaceutical products. It provides its generic pharmaceutical prescription products directly to wholesalers and retail drug chains; and generic pharmaceutical over-the-counter and prescription products through unrelated third-party pharmaceutical entities. The Impax Pharmaceutical division develops proprietary brand pharmaceutical products that address central nervous system disorders, including Alzheimer?s disease, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, depression, epilepsy, migraines, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson?s disease, and schizophrenia, as well as promotes third-party branded pharmaceutical products. As of May 2, 2011, the com pany marketed 101 generic pharmaceuticals, which represent dosage variations of 29 different pharmaceutical compounds; and another 16 of its generic pharmaceuticals representing dosage variations of 4 different pharmaceutical compounds. It markets and sells its generic pharmaceutical prescription drug products in the continental United States and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The company has a strategic alliance agreement with Teva Pharmaceuticals Curacao N.V. Impax Laboratories, Inc. was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Hayward, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Garrett Cook]
Shares of Impax Laboratories (NASDAQ: IPXL) were down 12.81 percent to $24.44 after the FDA issued a Form 483 with 10 inspectional observations for Impax Taiwan plant.
- [By Eric Volkman]
Impax Laboratories (NASDAQ: IPXL ) �will soon hand out a raft of pink slips. As part of a move to slice costs, the company has announced a reduction in its headcount by roughly 110 employees. Most of these cuts will be effected at its manufacturing facility in Hayward, Calif.
- [By Max Macaluso, Ph.D.]
RLS hasn't been a high-priority target for the pharma industry given the lackluster sales of Requip and Horizant, a third competitor of�UCB's Neupro, and a number of generic alternatives. Impax Laboratories (NASDAQ: IPXL ) was one of the few developing a new therapy, called IPX159, but Impax put the kibosh on the drug after it failed to meet its primary endpoint in a phase 2b study. According to its latest quarterly report, Impax has no other RLS drugs in development and seems to be focusing on getting its rejected Parkinson's disease drug Rytary back to the FDA for a second chance at approval.
10 Best Stocks For 2014: Genesco Inc. (GCO)
Genesco Inc. engages in the retail and wholesale of footwear, apparel, and accessories. The company operates in five segments: Journeys Group, Schuh Group, Lids Sports Group, Johnston & Murphy Group, and Licensed Brands. The Journeys Group segment operates the Journeys, Journeys Kidz, Shi by Journeys, and Underground by Journeys retail stores that provide footwear and accessories for men, women, and younger children. It also sells footwear and accessories through direct-to-consumer catalog and e-commerce operations. The Schuh Group segment operates Schuh retail footwear stores, which offer casual and athletic footwear for 15 to 30 year old men and women, as well as engages in the e-commerce operations. The Lids Sports Group segment operates headwear and accessory stores under the Lids, Hat World, and Hat Shack banners; sports-oriented fan shops that offer licensed merchandise, such as apparel, hats and accessories, sports decor, and novelty products under the Lids Locker R oom, Sports Fan-Attic, and Sports Avenue banners; and as a Lids Team Sports athletic team dealer, as well as in e-commerce operations. The Johnston & Murphy Group segment is involved in Johnston and Murphy retail, catalog and e-commerce, and wholesale distribution operations. Its stores provide footwear, luggage, and accessories for business and professional customers. The Licensed Brands segment markets casual and dress footwear under the Dockers brand for men aged 30 to 55. As of May 31, 2013, the company operated 2,455 retail stores in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the Republic of Ireland. The company also sells its products through journeys.com, journeyskidz.com, shibyjourneys.com, undergroundbyjourneys.com, schuh.co.uk, and johnstonmurphy.com. Genesco Inc. was founded in 1924 and is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Reuters]
Steven Senne/AP BOSTON -- Companies that help Target process payments could face millions of dollars in fines and costs resulting from the unprecedented data breach that struck the retailer during the holiday shopping season. Investigators are still sorting through just how thieves compromised about 40 million payment cards and the information of about 70 million Target (TGT) customers. But people who have reviewed past data breaches believe Target's partners could face consumer lawsuits and fines that payment networks such as Visa (V) and MasterCard (MA) often levy after cybersecurity incidents. Target's partners "have deep pockets and are intimately involved in certain aspects of how Target gets paid," said Jamie Pole, a cybersecurity consultant in Asheboro, N.C., who works for government agencies and the financial industry. Fines and settlement costs could reach into the millions of dollars for individual companies, he said, though much will depend on how the ultimate liability for the breach is determined. Boston attorney Cynthia Larose of Mintz Levin said Target would likely seek to add its partners as defendants to lawsuits already filed over the breach. "These class-action lawsuits start to bring everyone in at some point," she said. After its systems were penetrated by hackers in the mid-2000s, retailer TJX Cos. (TJX) agreed to pay up to $40.9 million to cover fraud costs in a settlement with Visa. Visa also issued penalties of $880,000 against Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) of Ohio, which processed transactions for TJX. Asked about the business relationships and possible costs, Target spokeswoman Molly Snyder declined to comment, citing the ongoing investigation and pending suits. A Visa spokeswoman declined to comment. A MasterCard spokesman said the company couldn't discuss an ongoing investigation. Handling Target Transactions Several companies are involved in any purchase from a store such as Target. A bank issues the consumer's payment card
- [By Laura Brodbeck]
Thursday
Earnings Expected From: Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF), Dollar General (NYSE: DG), Genesco (NYSE: GCO), Constellium NV (NYSE: CSTM) Economic Releases Expected: Japanese retail sales, Japanese industrial production, Japanese unemployment rate, British consumer confidence, U.S. GDP, eurozone consumer confidence, German unemployment rate, Spanish GDPFriday
10 Best Stocks For 2014: Information Services Group Inc.(III)
Information Services Group, Inc. operates as a fact-based sourcing advisory company principally in the Americas, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. It provides strategic consulting, benchmarking and analytics, managed services, and research services with a focus on information technology, business process transformation, and enterprise resource planning. The company serves financial services, telecom, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, transportation and travel, and energy and utilities industries; and state and local governments and airport and transit authorities. Information Services Group, Inc. was founded in 2006 and is based in Stamford, Connecticut.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Robert Abbott]
The company lists competitive factors this way, and in this order in its 10-K: "...(i) vendor and product reputation; (ii) product quality, performance and price; (iii) the availability of software products on multiple platforms; (iv) product scalability; (v) product integration with other enterprise applications; (vi) software functionality and features; (vii) software ease of use; (viii) the quality of professional services, customer support services and training; and (ix) the ability to address specific customer business problems."
10 Best Stocks For 2014: Beam Inc (BEAM)
Beam Inc. (Beam), incorporated on October 1, 1985, is a premium spirits company that makes and sells branded distilled spirits products in markets worldwide. The Company's principal products include bourbon whiskey, tequila, Scotch whisky, Canadian whisky, vodka, cognac, rum, cordials, and ready-to-drink pre-mixed cocktails. The Company's portfolio consists of brands the Company identifies as Power Brands, Rising Stars, Local Jewels and values Creators. The Power Brands are the Company's core brand equities, with global reach in premium categories. Rising Stars are smaller premium brands. Brands identified as Local Jewels act as Power Brands in local markets. Value Creators include a variety of brands. The Company's three reportable segments are the geographic regions, which consists of North America, Europe/Middle East/Africa (EMEA), and Asia-Pacific/South America (APSA). Each segment is engaged in the manufacture and sale of distilled spirits products. In May 2012, the Company acquired the Pinnacle vodka and Calico Jack rum brands and certain related assets (Pinnacle assets) from White Rock Distilleries, Inc. In January 2012, Beam acquired Cooley Distillery plc (Cooley), an Irish whiskey producer.
The Company�� Power Brands include Jim Beam Bourbon, Maker's Mark Bourbon, Sauza Tequila, Courvoisier Cognac, Canadian Club Whisky, Teacher's Scotch and Pinnacle Vodka. Beam�� Rising Stars brand includes Laphroaig Scotch, Knob Creek Bourbon, Basil Hayden's Bourbon, Kilbeggan Irish Whiskey, Cruzan Rum, Hornitos Tequila, Skinnygirl Cocktails and Sourz Liqueurs. The principal markets for the Company's spirits products are the United States, Australia, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Canada, and the Company continues to invest in emerging markets such as India, Brazil, Mexico, Russia, Central Europe, Asia, and other geographies.
During the year ended December 31, 2012, Power Brands, Rising Stars, and combined Local Jewels/Value Creators (including non-branded sales) repre! sent approximately 60%, 15%, and 25%, respectively, of the Company's net sales. Approximately 55% of its consolidated net sales were generated in the United States (based on country of destination) during 2012. In the United States, the Company sells its products either to wholesale distributors for resale to retail outlets or, in those states that control alcohol sales, to state governments who then sell them to retail customers and consumers. In the Company's other global markets, the Company uses a variety of route-to-market models, including third party distributors, global or regional duty free customers, other spirits producers and its joint ventures with The Edrington Group Ltd.
The Company competes with Bacardi Limited, Brown-Forman Corporation, Constellation Brands, Inc., Davide Campari Milano-S.p.A., Diageo PLC, Pernod Ricard S.A. and Remy Cointreau S.A.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Dan Caplinger]
One concern that Brown-Forman might not need to worry about at least for now is the prospect of further consolidation in the space. For a while, it appeared that Diageo might move forward to try to buy out Brown-Forman whiskey rival Beam (NYSE: BEAM ) . But Diageo CEO Ivan Menezes dismissed talk of a merger, saying it was unnecessary in light of Diageo's already-strong Johnnie Walker brand and other offerings. As for Constellation Brands, its recent move to pick up the Grupo Modelo U.S. beer business has likely left it needing some time before considering any further major corporate moves in the near future.
- [By Seth Jayson]
Beam (NYSE: BEAM ) reported earnings on May 2. Here are the numbers you need to know.
The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Beam beat expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share. - [By Jonas Elmerraji]
Bourbon giant Beam (BEAM) is enjoying strong tailwinds thanks to increased consumption of its namesake spirits. The firm is the name behind Jim Beam and Maker's Mark bourbon as well as Sauza tequila, Pinnacle vodka and Cruzan rum. Since spinning off from what was then Fortune Brands in 2011, this stock hasn't done much in the way of price, but it has made leaps and bounds fundamentally. That financial improvement paves the way for a dividend boost.
Beam is well-positioned in the spirit business. Liquor consumers are sticky. Because BEAM owns some of the most attractive brands in the business, it's less likely to see brand attrition than others. And more recently, the embrace of drinkers' demand for "craft" alcoholic beverages has provided a fast-growing opportunity for the firm: a line of small-batch bourbons. That same small-batch approach could spill over to the firm's other liquor brands in a very positive way; Beam already has a winning model to copy, after all.
In the last few years, Beam has essentially halved its debt, and it's kept balance sheet liquidity very healthy. As a result, income trends look very strong -- and more of that income is available for shareholder payouts rather than bank obligations. While the firm's 1.5% dividend payout it far from high-yield, investors should expect a raise in the coming quarters.
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