Best Biotech Companies To Invest In Right Now

Call it a hunch (because that's all it is), but I think Cardium Therapeutics Inc. (NYSEMKT:CXM) at least belongs on your watchlist, if not already in your portfolio. CXM shares have dropped a handful of key hints that say the bulls are just one good nudge away from catapulting this stock upward.

For those not familiar, CXM is a biotech stock. Specifically, Cardium Therapeutics is a modestly-diversified biotherapy developer with a hand in prostate cancer (as an insurer), health supplements (via its 'To Go' brand), a tissue engineering and wound/ulcer repair technology called Excellagen, and a cardiac drug Generx (Ad5FGF-4) that combats heart disease... atherosclerotic plaque to be specific.

The variety of its revenue bearing products - current and future - makes it tough to evaluate CXM from an investment standpoint. But, that doesn't mean one has to steer clear of the stock. It simply means that anyone interested in trading Cardium Therapeutics has to pay as much attention to the chart as anything else, since the chart is an indication of the market's ever-changing opinion of the stock. Thing is, the way opinions change are fairly predictable, meaning the subtle clues a chart drops over time may well tell you what's in store next for a particular chart.

Best Biotech Companies To Invest In Right Now: Oxford BioMedica PLC (OXB)

Oxford BioMedica plc is a biopharmaceutical company developing gene-based medicines and therapeutic vaccines. The Company�� LentiVector platform products include ProSavin, RetinoStat, StarGen, UshStat, EncorStat, Glaucoma-GT and MoNuDin. Its 5T4 Tumour Antigen produces TroVax and Anti-5T4 antibody. The Prime Boost�� product includes Hi-8 Mel. Its GDEPT platform produces MetXia and Anti Angiogenesis platform produces EndoAngio-GT. The Company is developing four LentiVector platform product candidates for the treatment of ocular diseases: RetinoStat for wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD); StarGen for Stargardt disease; UshStat for Usher syndrome type 1B, and EncorStat for corneal graft rejection. TroVax is a therapeutic vaccine that stimulates the immune system to destroy cancerous cells expressing the 5T4 tumour antigen. On February 25, 2011, the Company purchased a freehold property, United Kingdom comprising a manufacturing facility.

Best Biotech Companies To Invest In Right Now: Incyte Corporation(INCY)

Incyte Corporation focuses on the discovery and development of proprietary small molecule drugs for hematologic and oncology indications, and inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. Its product pipe line includes INCB18424, which is in Phase III clinical trial for myelofibrosis; Phase III trial for polycythemia vera; Phase III trial for essential thrombocythemia; Phase I/II trial to treat solid tumors/other hematologic malignancies; and Phase IIb trail for the treatment of psoriasis. The company?s portfolio also includes INCB28050, a Phase IIb clinical trial product for rheumatoid arthritis; INCB28060, a Phase I/II product for solid tumors; INCB7839, a Phase II product for breast cancer; and INCB24360, a Phase I/II product for solid tumors. It has a collaborative research and license agreements with Novartis International Pharmaceutical Ltd.; Eli Lilly and Company; and Pfizer Inc. The company was founded in 1991 and is headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jay Silverman]

  Steve Halpern: One of your long-standing recommendations is Incyte (INCY), which recently reported some positive news and saw a huge jump in the price-up close to 30% in one day. What happened there and what's your outlook for the stock?

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Big earnings winners: Incyte Corp. (NASDAQ: INCY) up 34.4% to $36.02 on a successful drug trial, Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) down 3.5% to $65.54 on weak earnings and lowered outlook, and Lowe�� Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW ) up 4.4% at $46.01 on strong earnings and an improved outlook.

• [By Maxx Chatsko]

  Incite growth into your portfolio
  Investors looking for the next high-growth biotech company should certainly spend time researching Incyte (NASDAQ: INCY  ) . The company sports a handful of the most promising JAK inhibitors, which are garnering high level interest throughout the pharmaceutical industry. The molecules have big potential in treating various cancers and inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis.

Top Low Price Companies To Invest In 2014: Galena Biopharma Inc (GALE.PH)

Galena Biopharma, Inc. (Galena), formerly RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation, incorporated on April 3, 2006, is a biotechnology company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing therapies addressing unmet medical needs using targeted biotherapeutics. The Company is pursuing the development of cancer therapeutics using peptide-based immunotherapy products, including its main product candidate, NeuVaxTM (E75), for the treatment of breast cancer and other tumors. NeuVax is a peptide-based immunotherapy intended to reduce the recurrence of breast cancer in low-to-intermediate HER2-positive breast cancer patients not eligible for trastuzumab (Herceptin; Genentech/Roche). On January 19, 2012, the Company initiated enrollment in its Phase 3 PRESENT clinical trial for NeuVax (E75 peptide plus GM-CSF) vaccine in low-to-intermediate HER2 1+ and 2+ breast cancer patients in the adjuvant setting to prevent recurrence (Clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT01479244). The Preven tion of Recurrence in Early-Stage, Node-Positive Breast Cancer with Low to Intermediate HER2 Expression with NeuVax Treatment study is a randomized, multicenter, multinational clinical trial that will enroll approximately 700 breast cancer patients. The Company�� Phase 2 trial of NeuVax achieved its primary endpoint of disease-free survival (DFS). On April 13, 2011, the Company completed its acquisition of Apthera, Inc.,(Apthera).

The Company focuses to start a Phase 2 trial comparing NeuVax in combination with trastuzumab (Herceptin) versus trastuzumab, alone, in a 300-patient, randomized study in the adjuvant breast cancer setting. The Company's second product candidate, Folate Binding Protein-E39 (FBP), is a vaccine, consisting of the peptides E39 and J65, aimed at preventing the recurrence of ovarian, endometrial, and breast cancers. On February 14, 2012, the Company announced the initiation of a Phase 1/2 clinical trial in two gynecological cancers: ovari an and endometrial adenocarcinomas. Folate binding protein! h! as very limited tissue distribution and expression in non-malignant tissue and is over-expressed in more than 90% of ovarian and endometrial cancers, as well as in 20% to 50% of breast, lung, colorectal and renal cell carcinomas.

In April 2011, the Company acquired Apthera Inc and its NeuVax product candidate. The Company focuses on developing a pipeline of immunotherapy product candidates for the treatment of various cancers based on the E75 peptide, the advanced of which is NeuVax, which is targeted at preventing the recurrence of breast cancer. NeuVax has had positive Phase 1/2 clinical trial results for the prevention of breast cancer recurrence in patients who have had breast cancer and received the standard of care treatment (surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormonal therapy as indicated). The Company had also initiated its Phase 3 PRESENT clinical trial of NeuVax for the prevention of breast cancer recurrence in early-stage low-to-intermediate HER2 breast cancer patients. NeuVax directs killer T-cells to target and destroy cancer cells that express HER2/neu, a protein associated with epithelial tumors in breast, ovarian, pancreatic, colon, bladder and prostate cancers. NeuVax is comprised of a HER2/neu-derived peptide called E75. E75 is a nine-amino acid sequence that is immunogenic (produces an immune response) and GM-CSF is a commercially available protein that acts to stimulate and activate components of the immune system such as macrophages and dendritic cells.

The Company also develops novel applications for NeuVax based on preclinical studies and phases 2 clinical trials which suggest that combining NeuVax and trastuzumab (Herceptin; Genentech/Roche) can increase antigen presentation by tumor cells by promoting receptor internalization and subsequent proteosomal degradation of the HER2 protein. The Company also is pursuing additional therapeutic indications for NeuVax that are in Phase 1/2 clinical trials. RXI-109, is a dermal anti-scarring therapy that ! targ! ets! conne! ctive tissue growth factor (CTGF) and that may inhibit connective tissue formation in human fibrotic disease.

The Company competes with Roche Laboratories, Inc., Pfizer Inc., Bayer HealthCare AG, Sanofi-Aventis, US, LLC, Amgen, Inc., GlaxoSmithKline plc, Renovo Group plc, CoDa Therapeutics, Inc., Sirnaomics, Inc., FirstString Research, Inc., Merz Pharmaceuticals, LLC, Capstone Therapeutics, Halscion, Inc., Garnet Bio Therapeutics, Inc., AkPharma Inc., Promedior, Inc., Kissei Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Eyegene, Derma Sciences, Inc., Healthpoint Biotherapeutics, Pharmaxon, Excaliard Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Marina Biotech, Inc., Tacere Therapeutics, Inc., Benitec Limited, OPKO Health, Inc., Silence Therapeutics plc, Quark Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Rosetta Genomics Ltd., Lorus Therapeutics, Inc., Tekmira Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Arrowhead Research Corporation, Regulus Therapeutics Inc. and Santaris.

Best Biotech Companies To Invest In Right Now: Scancell Holdings PLC (SCLP.L)

Scancell Holdings PLC is a United Kingdom-based company. The Company�� principal activity of the consists of the discovery and development of monoclonal antibodies and vaccines for the treatment of cancer. In April 2012, the Company completed recruitment to the Phase 1 clinical trial of SCIBI. In May 2012, the Company commenced recruitment and treatment of the first patient in the second part of it Phase 1/2 clinical trial of SCIBI. The Phase 2 part of the trial is conducted in five United Kingdom centers in Nottingham, Manchester, Newcastle, Leeds, and Southampton. On August 15, 2012, the Company announced the development of a platform technology, Moditope.

Best Biotech Companies To Invest In Right Now: Prosensa Holding NV (RNA)

Prosensa Holding N.V., formerly Prosensa Holding B.V., is a biotechnology company engaged in the discovery and development of ribonucleic acid-modulating (RNA)-modulating, therapeutics for the treatment of genetic disorders. The Company�� primary focus is on rare neuromuscular and neurodegenerative disorders with a large unmet medical need, including Duchenne muscular dystrophy, myotonic dystrophy and Huntington�� disease. The Company�� clinical portfolio of RNA-based product candidates is focused on the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). The Company�� platform technology allows the development of RNA-modulating therapeutics that either interferes with splicing (exon skipping, exon inclusion, or splice mutation correction), remove mutant RNA, or block RNA expression, for different indications.

DMD is a rare, severe muscle wasting disease that occurs in up to 1 in 3,500 male births. It is commonly diagnosed between the ages of three to five, when boys begin to show signs of impaired motor development. PRO044, the Company�� product candidate, addresses a separate sub-population of DMD patients. The Company developed PRO044 using its exon-skipping technology to generate a product candidate with the same mechanism of action that is used by drisapersen.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Brian Orelli]

  Ironically, phase 3 data from Sarepta's direct competitor -- GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK  ) and Prosensa's (NASDAQ: RNA  ) drisapersen -- that's due in the fourth quarter could help the FDA answer the question about whether dystrophin is an acceptable surrogate endpoint. If increases in dystrophin correlate with clinical outcomes, it would support approving eteplirsen with less data. It's not clear to me whether Glaxo and Prosensa would have to share that correlation with the FDA -- the clinical phase 3 data should be sufficient for approval -- and if it does make those calculations whether the FDA could legally use it to support the approval of another drug since NDA data is proprietary while under patent.

Best Biotech Companies To Invest In Right Now: Organovo Holdings Inc (ONVO.PK)

Organovo Holdings, Inc. (Organovo), formerly Real Estate Restoration & Rental, Inc., incorporated in 2007, is a development-stage company. The Company has developed and is commercializing a platform technology for the generation of three-dimensional (3D) human tissues that can be employed in drug discovery and development, biological research, and as therapeutic implants for the treatment of damaged or degenerating tissues and organs. On December 28, 2011, Real Estate Restoration and Rental, Inc.�� (RERR) entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger, pursuant to which RERR merged with its, wholly owned subsidiary, Organovo (Merger Sub). On February 8, 2012, the Company merged with and into Organovo Acquisition Corp. (Acquisition Corp.), a wholly owned subsidiary of Organovo, with the Company surviving the merger as a wholly owned subsidiary of Organovo Holdings (the Merger). As a result of the Merger, Organovo acquired the business of Organovo, Inc.

The C ompany has collaborative research agreements with Pfizer, Inc. (Pfizer) and United Therapeutic Corporation (Unither). As of March 31, 2012, it has five federal grants, including Small Business Innovation Research grants and developed the NovoGen MMX Bioprinter (its first-generation 3D bioprinter). The Company is engaged in the development of specific 3D human tissues to aid Pfizer in discovery of therapies in two areas of interest. In addition, in October 2011, it entered into a research agreement with Unither to establish and conduct a research program to discover treatments for pulmonary hypertension using its NovoGen MMX Bioprinter technology. Additionally, under the research agreement with Unither, the Company granted Unither an option to acquire from the Company a worldwide, royalty-bearing license in certain intellectual property created under the research agreement solely for use in the treatment or prevention of pulmonary hypertension and all other lung diseases.

The Company�� NovoGen MMX Bioprinter is an aut! om! ated device that enables the fabrication of three-dimensional (3D) living tissues comprised of mammalian cells. A custom graphic user interface (GUI) facilitates the 3D design and execution of scripts that direct precision movement of the dispensing heads to deposit cellular building blocks (bio-ink) or supporting hydrogel. The Company is using a third party manufacturer, Invetech Pty., of Melbourne, Australia, to manufacture its NovoGen MMX Bioprinter. Its bioprinting technology and surrounding intellectual property and commercial rights serve as a platform for product generation across multiple markets that employ cell- and tissue-based products and services.

The Company competes with Organogenesis, Advanced BioHealing, Tengion, Genzyme, HumaCyte and Cytograft Tissue Engineering.

Best Biotech Companies To Invest In Right Now: StemCells Inc (STEM)

StemCells, Inc. (StemCells), incorporated in August 1988, is engaged in the research, development, and commercialization of stem cell therapeutics and related tools and technologies for academia and industry. The Company is focused on developing and commercializing stem and progenitor cells as the basis for therapeutics and therapies, and cells and related tools and technologies to enable stem cell-based research and drug discovery and development. The Company�� primary research and development efforts are focused on identifying and developing stem and progenitor cells as potential therapeutic agents. The Company has two therapeutic product development programs, including its CNS Program, which is developing applications for HuCNS-SC cells, its human neural stem cell product candidate, and its Liver Program, which is characterizing the Company�� human liver cells as a therapeutic product.

CNS Program

The Company in its CNS Program, is in clinical development with its HuCNS-SC cells for a range of disorders of the central nervous system. The CNS includes the brain, spinal cord and eye. In February 2012, the Company had completed a Phase I clinical trial in Pelizeaus-Merzbacher Disease (PMD), a fatal myelination disorder in the brain.

The Company�� CNS Program is focused on developing clinical applications, in which transplanting HuCNS-SC cells protect or restore organ function of the patient before such function is irreversibly damaged or lost due to disease progression. The Company�� initial target indications are PMD, and more generally, diseases in which deficient myelination plays a central role, such as cerebral palsy or multiple sclerosis; spinal cord injury, disorders in which retinal degeneration plays a central role, such as age-related macular degeneration or retinitis pigmentosa. The Company�� product candidate, HuCNS-SC cells, is a purified and expanded composition of normal human neural stem cells. Its HuCNS-SC cells can be directly transp! lanted.

Liver Program

Liver stem or progenitor cells offer an alternative treatment for liver diseases. A liver cellular therapy or cell-based therapeutic provide or support liver function in patients with liver disease. The Company held a portfolio of issued and allowed patents in the liver field, which cover the isolation and use of both hLEC cells and the isolated subset, as well as the composition of the cells themselves.

The Company�� range of cell culture products, which are sold under the SC Proven brand, includes iSTEM, GS1-R, GS2-M, RHB-A, RHB-Basal, NDiff N2, and NDiff N2B27. Its iSTEM is a serum-free, feeder-free medium that maintains mouse embryonic stem cells in their pluripotent ground state by using selective small molecule inhibitors to block the pathways, which induce differentiation. RHB-A is a defined, serum-free culture medium for the selective culture of human and mouse neural stem cells and their maintenance and expansion as adherent cell populations. RHB-Basal is a defined, serum-free basal medium. When supplemented with specific growth factors, this media is formulated for the propagation and differentiation of adherent neural stem cells. RHB-Basal can also be tailored to specific-cell type requirements by the addition of customer preferred supplements.

The Company�� NDiff N2 is a defined serum-free scell culture supplement for the derivation, maintenance, expansion and/or differentiation of human and mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells and tissue-derived neural stem cells supplement. Its NDiff N2-AF is a serum-free and animal component-free version of NDiff N2. Its NDiff N2B27 is a defined, serum-free medium for the differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells to neural cell types. NDiff N27-AF is a serum-free and animal component-free version of NDiff N27. Its GS1-R is a serum-free media formulation shown to enable the derivation and long-term maintenance of true, germline competent rat embryonic stem cells without the add! ition of ! cytokines or growth factors. Its GS2-M is a defined, serum- and feeder-free medium for the derivation and long-term maintenance of true, germline competent mouse iPS cells.

The Company also markets a number of antibody reagents for use in cell detection, isolation and characterization. These reagents are also under the SC Proven brand and it includes STEM24, STEM101, STEM121 and STEM123. Its STEM24 is a human antibody that recognizes human CD24, also known as heat stable antigen (HSA), a glycoprotein expressed on the surface of many human cell types, including immature human hematopoietic cells, peripheral blood lymphocytes, erythrocytes and many human carcinomas. Its CD24 is also a marker of human neural differentiation. Its STEM101 is a human-specific mouse antibody that recognizes the Ku80 protein found in human nuclei. Its STEM121 is a human-specific mouse antibody that recognizes a cytoplasmic protein of human cells. Its STEM123 is a human-specific mouse antibody that recognizes human glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP).

The Company�� Other products marketed under SC Proven include total cell genomic DNA (gDNA), RNA and protein lysate reagents purified from homogenous stem cell populations for intra-comparative studies, such as Epigenetic fingerprinting, Southern, Western and Northern blots, PCR, RT-PCR and microarrays. This range of purified stem cell line lysates includes mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells propagated in SC Proven 2i inhibitor-based GS2-M media and mouse ES cell-derived and fetal tissue-derived neural stem (NS) cells propagated in SC Proven RHB-A media.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

  The results of a recent Pew Center Poll regarding attitudes towards abortion and various forms of stem cell research could be a good sign for the stem cell industry along with small cap stem cell stocks like StemCells Inc (NASDAQ: STEM), NeoStem Inc (NASDAQ: NBS), Neuralstem, Inc (NYSEMKT: CUR),�International Stem Cell Corp (OTCMKTS: ISCO) and BioRestorative Therapies (OTCBB: BRTX). Basically, Americans think that having an abortion is a moral issue with 49% of American adults believing abortion is morally wrong, 23%�view it not as a moral issue and and 15% view it as morally acceptable. However and when Americans were asked about issues surrounding�human embryos, such as stem cell research or in vitro fertilization, as a matter of morality, their views were different.

• [By James E. Brumley]

  When an investor thinks of spinal-related stem cell stocks, usually a name like Neuralstem, Inc (NYSEMKT: CUR) or StemCells Inc (NASDAQ: STEM) comes to mind. And well they should. STEM has logged some amazing breakthroughs in the field of spinal cord repair, while CUR has done the same. Not all back problems are spinal cord related though. In fact, most back problems - and therefore the most opportunity - are bone and disc related problems. That's where a young gun like BioRestorative Therapies (OTCBB: BRTX) can step in and make stem cell waves. BRTX has developed an approach to rejuvenate and revive failing spinal discs, potentially ending pain for millions of back-pain sufferers, and circumventing expensive spinal surgeries that are in increasing burden on insurance companies.

Best Biotech Companies To Invest In Right Now: Galectin Therapeutics Inc (GALT)

Galectin Therapeutics Inc., formerly Pro-Pharmaceuticals, Inc., incorporated on January 26, 2001, is a development-stage company. The Company is engaged in drug development to create therapies for cancer and fibrotic disease. As of December 31, 2011, the Company has two compounds in development, one is to be used in cancer therapy and the other intended to be used in the treatment of liver fibrosis and fatty liver disease. These two compounds are produced from different natural starting materials, both possessing the property, which lends itself to binding to and inhibiting galectin proteins. GM-CT-01, the Company's product candidate for cancer therapy, is a linear polysaccharide polymer consisted of mannose and galactose that has a defined chemical structure and is derived from a plant source. GR-MD-02, the Company's product for treatment of liver fibrosis and fatty liver disease with inflammation and fibrosis, is a polysaccharide polymer possessing both linear and globular structures, which also is derived from a plant source.

GM-CT-01 has in development for the therapy of colorectal cancer and is in a Phase I/II clinical trial as a combination therapy with a tumor vaccine in patients with advanced melanoma. Based on the completed Phase I and partially completed Phase II clinical trials, the Company is exploring two additional potential indicia for the use of GM-CT-01 in combination with cancer chemotherapy. There are two additional pathways for the development of GM-CT-01 for use in treatment of cancer. GM-CT-01 was found to be generally safe when studied in a Phase I clinical trial in end-stage cancer patients with multiple tumor types alone and in combination with 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU), which is an Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved chemotherapy used for treatment of various types of cancer.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Roberto Pedone]

   

  Galectin Therapeutics (GALT) offers drug research and development to create new therapies for fibrotic disease and cancer. This stock closed up 9.6% to $12.06 in Monday's trading session.

   

  Monday's Volume: 674,000
  
  Three-Month Average Volume: 222,171
  
  Volume % Change: 149%

   

  Shares of GALT jumped higher on Monday after Ascendiant initiated coverage on the stock with a buy recommendation.

   

   

  From a technical perspective, GALT spiked sharply higher here with strong upside volume. This stock has been uptrending for the last three months, with shares ripping higher from its low of $3.95 to its recent high of $13.21. During that move, shares of GALT have been making mostly higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of GALT within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade. That trade will hit if GALT manages to take out Monday's high of $12.44 and then once it clears its 52-week high at $13.21 with high volume.

   

  Traders should now look for long-biased trades in GALT as long as it's trending above some near-term support levels at $11 or at $10 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 222,171 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then GALT will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory above $13.21, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that breakout are $15 to $16.

   

Best Stocks To Buy

"Dogs of the Dow" is the name given to one of the simplest dividend strategies for beating the market. Over the coming year, I'll track the Dogs' performance and keep you abreast of news affecting these companies.

The strategy
The Dogs is an investing strategy that buys and holds equal dollar amounts of the 10 best-yielding dividend stocks of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) . The strategy banks on the idea that blue-chip stocks with high yields are near the bottom of their business cycle and should do much better going forward. Investors in the strategy then would not only get large dividends but also gains in the stocks underlying those dividends.

High-yield dividends
High-yield portfolios are often dismissed as inferior to their growth counterparts for various reasons:

Many people fear that increasing dividend yields mean lower portfolio returns. Others believe that dividend payments mean that management believes the business is done growing.

Evidence compiled by Tweedy Browne refutes these falsehoods. Research shows that portfolios of high-yield dividend stocks outperform lower-yielding portfolios and the market in general. In fact, a study by noted finance professor Jeremy Siegel found that over 45 years, the highest-yielding 20% of S&P 500 stocks outperformed the S&P 500 by three times! The highest-yielding stocks turned a $1,000 investment in 1957 into $462,750 by 2002, compared with $130,768 if the same money was invested in the index.

Best Stocks To Buy: Golfsmith International Holdings Inc.(GOLF)

Golfsmith International Holdings, Inc. operates as a specialty retailer of golf and tennis equipment, apparel, footwear, and accessories. Its stores offer branded clubs, balls, apparel, and accessories, as well as its proprietary-branded products, including Clubmaker, Golfsmith, Killer Bee, J.G.Hickory, Lynx, Profinity, Snake Eyes, TourTrek, XPC, Zevo, Maggie Lane, ZTech, and MacGregor. The company?s stores also provide club components, clubmaking tools, supplies and on-site clubmaking, custom club-fitting, and club repair services; and hitting areas, putting greens, ball-launch monitor technology, and club demos. In addition, its stores offer golf and tennis lessons, tennis equipment, and tennis racquet maintenance and repair services, as well as partial-flight indoor driving ranges. Further, the company develops and promotes proprietary merchandise, including clubs, club components, apparel, golf bags and covers, pull and push carts, shoes, furnishings, accessories, tra ining aids, and gifts. As of January 25, 2012, it operated 79 stores in the United States. Golfsmith International Holdings also offers its products through catalog and Internet sales. The company was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.

Best Stocks To Buy: Hudson Highland Group Inc.(HHGP)

Hudson Highland Group, Inc. provides specialized professional-level recruitment and related talent solutions worldwide. The company provides permanent recruitment services; and contract consulting services, including project management, interim management, and professional contract staffing services. It also offers legal eDiscovery services, such as eDiscovery solutions, which provide information management solutions for transaction and regulatory actions; managed document review comprising logistical deployment, project management, process design and productivity management; and contract attorney staffing services. In addition, the company provides recruitment process outsourcing services, which include complete recruitment outsourcing, project-based outsourcing, contingent workforce solutions, and recruitment consulting; and talent management services, such as talent assessment, interview training, executive coaching, employee development, and outplacement. It serves sma ll to large-sized corporations and government agencies in the Americas, the Asia Pacific, and Europe. The company was founded in 2003 and is based in New York, New York.

Top Companies To Buy For 2014: Paragon Group(PAG.L)

The Paragon Group of Companies PLC, through its subsidiaries, engages in first mortgage and consumer finance businesses in the United Kingdom. The company?s services include buy-to-let and owner-occupied mortgage assets; asset investment and administration; vehicle fleet management; unsecured lending; property services; mortgage brokering; loan and vehicle finance; and surveyors and property consulting. It also offers a range of services to its landlord customers, including tenant assessments, insurance products, and energy performance certificates. In addition, the company provides consumer finance and specialist loan servicing for non-performing assets, litigation, and surveying services for third party clients comprising the management of portfolios and the provision of arrears management. Its clients include building societies, investment banks, specialist lenders, hedge funds, private equity houses, commercial banks, and other financial services companies. The Parago n Group of Companies PLC was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in Solihull, the United Kingdom.

Best Stocks To Buy: Circa Enterprises Inc (CTO.V)

Circa Enterprises Inc. engages in the design, manufacture, marketing, and sale of surge protection and related telecommunications products primarily in the United States and Canada. The company�s surge protection products provide primary protection to telephone systems and data transmission equipment against voltage surges. It offers indoor and outdoor building entrance terminals, central office connectors, surge protection modules, station protectors, station protection enclosures, and 5 pin protector modules; and custom original equipment manufacturer products for the telecommunications sector, including rack mount protectors, test cords, and panels primarily for large outdoor cabinets. The company is also involved in the precision metal fabrication business; and designs, manufactures, markets, and sells pole line hardware, mining hardware, transmission hardware, anchors, bolts, washers, transformer hardware, arrestor brackets, insulators, forgings, meter sockets, enclo sures, and industrial bus duct and generator switches, as well as grounding, distribution, and communication hardware to the electrical industry. It sells its products directly, as well as through distributor networks. The company was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

Best Stocks To Buy: Geron Corporation (GERN)

Geron Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, develops therapies for cancer. Its clinical development product candidates include Imetelstat, a telomerase inhibitor, which is in Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer, advanced non-small cell lung cancer, thrombocythemia, and myeloma. The company was founded in 1990 and is based in Menlo Park, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Keith Speights]

  Anticipation elevation
  MLV and Company initiated coverage on Geron Corporation (NASDAQ: GERN  ) this week. The investment firm's "buy" recommendation helped spark shares to jump a whopping 39%.

Best Stocks To Buy: China Biologic Products Inc.(CBPO)

China Biologic Products, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the research, development, manufacture, and sale of human plasma-based biopharmaceutical products to hospitals and inoculation centers in the People?s Republic of China. It offers Human Albumin for the treatment of shock caused by blood loss trauma or burn; raised intracranial pressure caused by hydrocephalus or trauma; oedema or ascites caused by hepatocirrhosis and nephropathy; and neonatal hyperbilirubinemia, as well as for the prevention and treatment of low-density-lipoproteinemia. The company also offers Human Hepatitis B Immunoglobulin for the prevention of measles and contagious hepatitis; Human Immunoglobulin and Human Immunoglobulin for Intravenous Injection products for original immunoglobulin deficiency, secondary immunoglobulin deficiency, and auto-immune deficiency diseases; and Thymopolypeptides Injection that is used in the treatment of various original and sec ondary T-cell deficiency syndromes, auto-immune deficiency diseases, and a range of cell immunity deficiency diseases, as well as assists in the treatment for tumors. In addition, it provides Human Rabies Immunoglobulin primarily for passive immunity from bites or claws by rabies or other infected animals; Human Tetanus Immunoglobulin for the prevention and therapy of tetanus; and Placenta Polypeptide that is used for the treatment of cell immunity deficiency diseases, viral infection, and leucopenia caused by various reasons, as well as assists in postoperative heating. The company?s products under development comprise Human Prothrombin Complex Concentrate; Human Coagulation Factor VIII; Human Hepatitis B Immunoglobulin (PH4) for Intravenous Injection; Human Fibrinogen; Varicella Hyperimmune Globulins; and Human Immunoglobulin for Intravenous Injection. The company is based in Beijing, the People's Republic of China.

U.K.’s FTSE 100 Retreats as U.S. Employers Add Fewer Jobs

U.K. stocks fell for the first time in five days, trimming the benchmark FTSE 100 Index (UKX)'s weekly advance, after a report showed U.S. employers added fewer jobs in July than forecast.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc sank 3.3 percent after reporting results and naming the head of its U.K. consumer unit as chief executive officer. William Hill Plc (WMH) dropped the most in four years after the bookmaker posted earnings that missed analysts' projections. International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (IAG) rose to a five-year high as the parent of British Airways reported an operating profit in the second quarter.

The FTSE 100 slid 34.11 points, or 0.5 percent, to 6,647.87 at the close in London. The gauge has still gained 1.4 percent this week as a report showed the U.S. economy, the world's largest, grew more than projected in the second quarter and the Federal Reserve said it will maintain its bond-buying program.

"The headlines from the report look disappointing," Stewart Richardson, who helps oversee about $100 million at RMG Wealth Management LLP in London, said by telephone. "It goes slightly against the grain compared with the other U.S. data we saw this week. People are reappraising their positions."

The volume of shares changing hands in FTSE 100 companies today was 1.8 percent lower than the 30-day average, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The broader FTSE All-Share Index fell 0.4 percent today, while Ireland's ISEQ Index (ISEQ) increased 0.8 percent, extending the highest level since 2008.

Jobs Data

U.S. employers added a 162,000 workers in July, after hiring a revised 188,000 in the previous month, the Labor Department's payrolls report showed today. That fell short of the median estimate of 185,000 jobs in a Bloomberg survey. The jobless rate fell to 7.4 percent. Economists had predicted an unemployment rate of 7.5 percent.

The FTSE 100 earlier rose as much as 0.2 percent as U.K. construction growth accelerated to the fastest in three years in July. An index of activity rose to 57 from 51 in June, Markit Economics and the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply said today. Reading above 50 indicate expansion.

Britain's economy will grow faster than previously forecast as consumers increase spending, according to the National Institute of Economic and Social Research. Gross domestic product will expand 1.2 percent this year and 1.8 percent in 2014, compared with predictions in May of 0.9 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively, the institute said today.

RBS Retreats

RBS (RBS) sank 3.3 percent to 322.5 pence. Britain's biggest publicly owned lender said Ross McEwan will replace Stephen Hester as CEO on Oct. 1. First-half net income was 535 million pounds ($808 million), compared with a 2 billion-pound loss a year earlier. That missed the 605 million-pound estimate of Mark Phin, an analyst at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Ltd.

William Hill fell 7.3 percent, the most since August 2009, to 458.5. The operator of more than 2,300 betting shops said first-half pretax profit was 143.6 million pounds, trailing the average analyst estimate of 152.3 million pounds.

Smiths Group Plc (SMIN) tumbled 5.5 percent to 1,320 pence. The U.K. producer of security scanners said talks with a potential buyer for the sale of its medical division have ended after failing to reach an agreement on terms.

IAG jumped 6.7 percent to 317 pence, the highest since February 2008. Profit before one-time items was 245 million euros ($324 million) in the second quarter, compared with a 4 million-euro loss in the year-earlier period.

Weir Gains

Weir Group Plc (WEIR) added 1.6 percent to 2,239 pence, the highest price in almost two months. The U.K.'s largest supplier of pressure pumps was raised to buy from hold at Berenberg Bank.

Inchcape Plc (INCH) surged 9.9 percent to 645 pence, the highest level since June 2008. The largest publicly traded U.K. car retailer and wholesaler reported first-half adjusted pretax earnings increased 11 percent. The company also announced share buybacks of 100 million pounds in the next year.

Man Group Plc advanced 9.5 percent, the most in three months, to 91.5 pence. The world's biggest publicly traded hedge-fund manager posted first-half earnings that surpassed analysts' estimates, helped by higher performance fees at its GLG Partners unit.

New York Manufacturing Growth Expands for July

New York manufacturing growth is making modest improvements, according to a July report (link opens as PDF) released today by the New York Federal Reserve.

Comprised of surveys from around 100 New York executives, The Empire State Manufacturing Survey attempts to determine whether certain components of manufacturing have experienced growth (positive number) or contraction (negative number).

For July, the survey's general business conditions index managed a two-point increase, to 9.5, exceeding analyst expectations of a slight slump in growth, to 5.00, after June's 7.84 reading. According to the New York Federal Reserve, this index has been "modestly positive for five of the past six months," alluding to May's romp in the red.

Source: New York Federal Reserve 

Investors watch New York manufacturing (and other areas, as well) as a possible signal of larger economic upswings or downturns.

While current conditions managed a solid increase, future expectations look even more optimistic. The survey's six-month outlook index rose seven points, to 32, pushed ahead by predictions of new orders as well as declines in inventory levels.

Surprise! This Company is a Serious Crohn's Disease Player (CNDO, CCXI, TNIB, GSK)

The last few weeks haven't been particularly encouraging for Crohn's disease sufferers. In August, GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) and ChemoCentryx (NASDAQ:CCXI) reported that a jointly-developed Crohn's drug, vercirnon, had failed to meet its late-stage trial endpoints. Though the in-development drug isn't dead in the water (GSK and CCXI could rework the drug, the testing regimen, or use it for other indications), it doesn't look good. Then this month - just a few days ago - Coronado Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ:CNDO) reported that its Phase 3 trials of Crohn's disease drug TSO had also failed to meet its primary endpoints as well. Like vercirnon, CNDO isn't completely out of luck here with the treatment, but forging ahead with further development of the treatment is grasping at straws. Crohn's sufferers don't need to give up home just yet, however - TNI Biotech Inc. (OTCMKTS:TNIB) appears to have a Crohn's treatment that works, and should be able to sidestep the problems that plagued ChemoCentryx, GlaxoSmithKline, and Coronado Biosciences.

Wait a minute. Isn't TNI Biotech the company working on cancer immunology drugs? How is it going to accomplish what CCXI, GSK, and CCXI couldn't? The answer is, yes, TNIB is probably best known for its cancer research, but the great part about immunology is that it's broad-based, and can be just as effective in the war against other conditions like Multiple Sclerosis and, you got it, Crohn's disease. In fact, the company's biotechnology appears to be highly-suited in the war against Crohn's.

The heart of the TNI Biotech opportunity to develop a treatment for Crohn's is rooted in a minor (at the time) study performed rather obscurely (also at the time) by the University of Pennsylvania's College of Medicine found that low-dose naltrexone, or LDN, was found to be an effective treatment for Crohn's conditions.

It's an important detail, pointing to the legitimacy of the idea; most drug discoveries that start in an academic setting tend to be the proverbial "real deal", as schools have little to no interest in creating highly-storied drugs.

If the term low-dose naltrexone, or LDN, rings a bell, it may be because that's what TNI Biotech drug Lodonal is... and it's already being sold, in some markets. A recent deals struck with AHAR Pharma in Nigeria guarantees TNIB $53 million worth of Lodonal sales in 2014 alone. Point being, though the drug is not yet approved in the United States for Crohn's, it is approved for similar indications in some overseas markets, and the potential has already been made clear.

That being said - and this is another detail the market may be overlooking - the introduction of LDN as a treatment for Crohn's may be closer than investors realize, and much closer to an approval than the company's other biotechnology, MENK, is to being approved as a cancer therapy.

How close? TNI Biotech is ready to begin Phase 3. It's just waiting to get the nod from the FDA. Assuming it starts those trials in 2014 (which is likely), Lodonal could be approved as a treatment for Crohn's in the United States as early as 2017 (mere minutes in biotech-time), doing what ChemoCentryx, GlaxoSmithKline, and Coronado Biosciences were unable to do. At that point, TNIB could be fiscally self-sufficient, funding the completion of its MENK trials against cancer ... the kind of thing biotech investors love to celebrate.

The bottom line is, not only is TNI Biotech not just a cancer play, it's a rather potent Crohn's disease play in an environment where other biopharma firms have struggled. It will still have to contend with category leader Humira, from Abbvie (NYSE:ABBV), and perhaps Stelara from Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) when the time comes; Stelara is currently in Phase 3 trials as a Crohn's treatment as well. Humira is only the leading drug on the Crohn's front because no real competitor has presented itself yet. It's not perfect. And as for J&J's Stelara, it's no slam dunk either. TNIB has as much potential - maybe more - in the $4 billion (annually) Crohn's market.

Sometimes the thing that makes a stock a hot commodity isn't the one you're expecting.

For more on TNI Biotech, visit the SCN research page here.

10 Best Energy Stocks For 2014

Asian stocks rose, with the regional benchmark equities gauge on course to halt a two-day drop, as Japan�� Topix index closed at its highest level in nearly two months after the yen weakened and Citigroup Inc. earnings beat estimates.

Indian stocks tumbled after the central bank raised interest rates. Canon Inc. (7751), a Japanese camera maker that gets 27 percent of its sales in the Americas, gained 2.7 percent. GCL-Poly Energy Holdings Ltd. (3800), which produces solar-grade polysilicon, jumped 6.7 percent in Hong Kong after China�� State Council issued a plan to boost the solar industry. Paladin Energy Ltd. (PDN) soared 7.3 percent in Sydney after reporting record uranium output.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.6 percent to 135.69 as of 7:05 p.m. in Tokyo, with all 10 industry groups on the gauge increasing.

��sian and emerging equity markets are positioned for a very good tactical rebound,��said Nader Naeimi, Sydney-based head of dynamic asset allocation at AMP Capital Investors Ltd., which manages more than $130 billion. ��e started the quarter with the earnings expectation for the June quarter at around 5.5 percent and came all the way down to 2.4 percent. Chances are final results will be better than that.��

10 Best Energy Stocks For 2014: DayStar Technologies Inc.(DSTI)

DayStar Technologies, Inc., a development stage company, engages in the development, manufacture, and marketing of solar photovoltaic products to the grid-tied and ground-based photovoltaic markets. The company offers solar photovoltaic modules to convert sunlight into electricity. It provides monolithically integrated copper indium gallium selenide modules on glass laminate substrates for centralized utility power plants, commercial building roof tops, and smaller residential roof tops. DayStar Technologies, Inc. was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Milpitas, California.

10 Best Energy Stocks For 2014: Ascent Solar Technologies Inc.(ASTI)

Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc., a development stage company, focuses on commercializing flexible photovoltaic (PV) modules using its proprietary technology. The company intends to manufacture roll-format PV modules that use copper-indium-gallium-diselenide (CIGS) on a plastic substrate. Its proprietary manufacturing process deposits multiple layers of materials, including a thin-film of CIGS semiconductor material on a plastic substrate and laser patterns the layers to create interconnected PV cells or PV modules through monolithic integration process. The company would serve the building applied photovoltaic (BAPV) and building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) market, as well as specialty markets, such as defense, portable power, transportation, electronic integrated photovoltaic, and space and near-space. It has a strategic relationship with Norsk Hydro Produksjon AS to access customers in the BIPV/BAPV markets worldwide. Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc. was founded in 200 5 and is based in Thornton, Colorado.

Best Heal Care Stocks To Watch For 2014: (FNVRF)

Finavera Wind Energy Inc., a wind energy development company, focuses on the development, construction, and operation of wind farms in North America and Ireland. It has wind energy projects under development in British Columbia, Canada, and in Ireland. The company was formerly known as Finavera Renewables Inc. and changed its name to Finavera Wind Energy Inc. in February 2011. Finavera Wind Energy Inc. was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

10 Best Energy Stocks For 2014: National-Oilwell Inc.(NOV)

National Oilwell Varco, Inc. designs, constructs, manufactures, and sells systems, components, and products used in oil and gas drilling and production; provides oilfield services and supplies; and distributes products, and provides supply chain integration services to the upstream oil and gas industry worldwide. Its Rig Technology segment offers offshore and onshore drilling rigs; derricks; pipe lifting, racking, rotating, and assembly systems; rig instrumentation systems; coiled tubing equipment and pressure pumping units; well workover rigs; wireline winches; wireline trucks; cranes; and turret mooring systems and other products for floating production, storage and offloading vessels, and other offshore vessels and terminals. The company?s Petroleum Services & Supplies segment provides various consumable goods and services to drill, complete, remediate, and workover oil and gas wells and service pipelines, flowlines, and other oilfield tubular goods. It also manufacture s, rents, and sells products and equipment for drilling operations, including drill pipe, wired drill pipe, transfer pumps, solids control systems, drilling motors, drilling fluids, drill bits, reamers and other downhole tools, and mud pump consumables. In addition, this segment provides oilfield tubular services comprising the provision of inspection and internal coating services; equipment for drill pipe, line pipe, tubing, casing, and pipelines; and coiled tubing pipes and composite pipes. Its Distribution Services segment sells maintenance, repair and operating supplies, and spare parts to drill site and production locations. The company primarily serves drilling contractors, shipyards and other rig fabricators, well servicing companies, pressure pumping companies, oil and gas companies, supply stores, and pipe-running service providers. National Oilwell Varco, Inc. was founded in 1862 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By David Smith]

  I recently described to Fools why I believe National Oilwell Varco (NYSE: NOV  ) , Cameron International (NYSE: CAM  ) , and Oceaneering International (NYSE: OII  ) all stand to benefit from the steady march of the global oil industry into progressively deeper waters.

• [By Russ Fischer]

  National Oilwell Varco (NOV)

  Energy upstream sector. National Oilwell Varco, Inc. provides equipment and components for oil and gas drilling and production. Its Rig Technology segment offers offshore and onshore drilling rigs. The company is involved in virtually all products and services in support of the oil patch worldwide. NIV should be a prime beneficiary of the expansion of shale and horizontal drilling worldwide. Yield 0.8%

10 Best Energy Stocks For 2014: ATP Oil & Gas Corporation(ATPG)

ATP Oil & Gas Corporation engages in the acquisition, development, and production of oil and natural gas properties primarily in the Gulf of Mexico and the United Kingdom sector of the North Sea. The company also has interests in three deepwater licenses in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Israel. As of December 31, 2011, it had estimated net proved reserves of 118.9 million barrels of crude oil equivalent (MMBoe), of which approximately 75.9 MMBoe were in the Gulf of Mexico and 42.9 MMBoe were in the North Sea. The company?s reserves comprised approximately 78.6 million barrels of crude oil or other liquid hydrocarbons and 241.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas. It also owned leasehold and other interests in 38 offshore blocks and 49 wells comprising 23 subsea wells in the Gulf of Mexico, as well as had interests in 13 blocks and 2 company-operated subsea wells in the North Sea. ATP Oil & Gas Corporation was founded in 1991 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.< /p>

10 Best Energy Stocks For 2014: BMB Munai Inc (BMBM)

BMB Munai, Inc., incorporated in July 1981, focuses on oil and natural gas exploration and production in the Republic of Kazakhstan (Kazakhstan) through a wholly owned operating subsidiary, Emir Oil LLP, (Emir Oil). Emir Oil holds an exploration contract that allowed exploration drilling and oil production in the Mangistau Province in the southwestern region of Kazakhstan. On February 14, 2011 the Company entered into a Participation Interest Purchase Agreement (the Purchase Agreement) with MIE Holdings Corporation (MIE), and its subsidiary, Palaeontol B.V (Palaeontol), pursuant to which the Company agreed to sell all of its interest in Emir Oil to Palaeontol (the Sale). On September 19, 2011, the Company completed the sale of all of its interests in Emir Oil LLP to a subsidiary of MIE Holdings Corporation. The operations of Emir Oil LLP is classified as discontinued.

The initial distribution amount was determined after giving effect to the estimated closing adjustments, Escrow amount, repayment of the Convertible Senior Notes, and after providing for the payment of or reserve for other anticipated liabilities and transaction costs. In February 2012 the Company entered into a Management Services Agreement (Services Agreement) with Lakeview International, LLC (Lakeview). Pursuant to the Services Agreement, Lakeview is providing management, administrative and support personnel and services to the Company.

10 Best Energy Stocks For 2014: Frank s International NV (FI)

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Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Namitha Jagadeesh]

  Herro�� fund has beaten 96 percent of its peers in the last five years, data compiled by Bloomberg show. He owns shares in Daimler AG (DAI), the Stuttgart, Germany-based maker of luxury cars, and Fiat Industrial SpA (FI), the maker of commercial and agriculture vehicles spun off from Fiat SpA in 2011.

10 Best Energy Stocks 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 Rich Smith]

  On April 15 -- Tax Day -- millions of Americans got bad news from their tax software programs, about money they'd have to pay the IRS. That same day, lenders to Chinese integrated solar power company LDK Solar (NYSE: LDK  ) got even worse news -- the company was running out of cash and would default on a scheduled debt payment, and they would need to reschedule their payments if they hoped to get anything back at all.

• [By Travis Hoium]

  But all of these positives couldn't help LDK Solar (NYSE: LDK  ) post decent numbers, and the company continues to slip closer and closer to bankruptcy. First-quarter sales were just $104.3 million, which isn't even double the quarterly interest expense of $58 million, and net loss was $187.1 million.�

10 Best Energy Stocks For 2014: Chevron Corporation(CVX)

Chevron Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in petroleum, chemicals, mining, power generation, and energy operations worldwide. It operates in two segments, Upstream and Downstream. The Upstream segment involves in the exploration, development, and production of crude oil and natural gas; processing, liquefaction, transportation, and regasification associated with liquefied natural gas; transportation of crude oil through pipelines; and transportation, storage, and marketing of natural gas, as well as holds interest in a gas-to-liquids project. The Downstream segment engages in the refining of crude oil into petroleum products; marketing of crude oil and refined products primarily under the Chevron, Texaco, and Caltex brand names; transportation of crude oil and refined products by pipeline, marine vessel, motor equipment, and rail car; and manufacture and marketing of commodity petrochemicals, plastics for industrial uses, and fuel and lubricant additives. It a lso produces and markets coal and molybdenum; and holds interests in 13 power assets with a total operating capacity of approximately 3,100 megawatts, as well as involves in cash management and debt financing activities, insurance operations, real estate activities, energy services, and alternative fuels and technology business. Chevron Corporation has a joint venture agreement with China National Petroleum Corporation. The company was formerly known as ChevronTexaco Corp. and changed its name to Chevron Corporation in May 2005. Chevron Corporation was founded in 1879 and is based in San Ramon, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Matt DiLallo]

  After lots of speculation, oil and gas giant Chevron (NYSE: CVX  ) has finally come to terms on a joint development agreement with Argentine national oil company YPF (NYSE: YPF  ) . The $1.24 billion deal will help further the development of oil and gas at Argentina's Vaca Muerta formation. Vaca Muerta, which in Spanish means "dead cow," holds more hope for both Chevron and Argentina than that name might imply, as it's estimated to hold 27 billion barrels of technically recoverable oil.

• [By Tyler Crowe]

  Hawaiians have perpetually been saddled with high gas prices, and it doesn't look like things are going to get any better. Tesoro intends to shut down its facility in the island state, leaving Chevron (NYSE: CVX  ) as the only game in town. That, combined with the high costs to ship crude there, has gas prices well north of $4.00 a gallon. As gasoline prices remain high in Hawaii, don't be surprised if more and more drivers make the switch to alternative fuels�

• [By John Divine]

  The oil and gas sector was the only major sector to decline today, and Chevron (NYSE: CVX  ) shares acted unsurprisingly, slipping 0.8% as a result. Today, the company announced a $1.5 billion investment in an Argentine energy company, but for the $240 billion Chevron, that's just a drop in the bucket.

• [By Matt Thalman]

  On less than usual volume, shares of Chevron (NYSE: CVX  ) rose 1.1% today. Less than 4.5 million shares of the oil giant traded hands today while the average three-month volume is just below 6.1 million shares. The low volume may have played a role in the stock moving higher today as there were likely more buyers than sellers. This idea shouldn't seem too far-fetched, as the stock is still trading for less than 10 times price to earnings, and paying a 3.2% dividend yield at a time when we haven't seen oil make any significant moves lower since the middle of April. Lastly, the stock likely was under buying pressure today after the announcement that China's energy needs will double that of the U.S.'s by 2040.�

10 Best Energy Stocks For 2014: Apache Corporation(APA)

Apache Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration, development, and production of natural gas, crude oil, and natural gas liquids. The company has exploration and production interests in the Gulf of Mexico, the Gulf Coast, east Texas, the Permian basin, the Anadarko basin, and the Western Sedimentary basin of Canada; and onshore Egypt, offshore Western Australia, offshore the United Kingdom in the North Sea, and onshore Argentina, as well as on the Chilean side of the island of Tierra del Fuego. Apache Corporation sells its natural gas to local distribution companies, utilities, end-users, integrated oil and gas companies, and marketers; and crude oil to integrated oil companies, marketing and transportation companies, and refiners. As of December 31, 2009, it had total estimated proved reserves of 1,067 million barrels of crude oil, condensate, and natural gas liquids, as well as 7.8 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. The company was founded in 1954 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA) was raised to Buy at Mizuho�Securities, and the price target was raised to $100 from $90. Its price target was raised to $113 from $106 at Canaccord Genuity. This was also named as a below book value stock in our recent screenings as well.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Stocks on the move: Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA) is up 8.9% at $85.66 after a $3.1 billion asset sale to Sinopec. OmniVision Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: OVTI) is down 16.1% at $15.45 after warning on earnings due to lower sales of smartphones. E-Commerce China Dangdang Inc. (NYSE: DANG) is down 10.1% at $7.80 on a downgrade from JPMorgan.

• [By Shauna O'Brien]

  Oppenheimer reported on Tuesday that it has raised its rating on energy company Apache Corporation (APA).

  The firm has upgraded APA from “Perform” to “Outperform,” and has given the company a $100 price target. This price target suggests a 12% increase from the stock’s current price of $87.57.

  Analysts believe that the current stock price already reflects risks and the company is repurchasing shares and debt.

  Apache shares were up 79 cents, or 0.91%, during Tuesday morning trading. The stock is up 12% YTD.

Wells Fargo Lowers Price Target on McDonald’s (MCD)

Wells Fargo announced on Monday that it has lowered its price target on McDonald’s (MCD) from $105-$110 to $102-$106. Wells Fargo also maintained its outperform rating on the fast food company.

The lower price target comes after McDonald’s reported its third quarter earnings results; EPS came in at $1.52 per share – above analyst expectations, while revenues came in slightly below expectations at $7.32 billion.

Wells Fargo also lowered its 2013 EPS estimate for McDonald’s from $5.58 to $5.55. For its 2014 estimates, EPS is now expected to come in at $5.97, down from the previous estimate of $6.15.

Wells Fargo analyst Jeff Farmer noted “While we’re disappointed with MCD's Q4 SSS and margin outlook, we’re maintaining our Outperform rating based on our expectation for MCD to reaccelerate market share gains in 2014 as the company continues to refine its strategic focus on both new product introductions and affordability.”

McDonald’s shares slipped 0.64% during Monday’s session. Year-to-date, the stock is up 5.64%.

JPMorgan, execs not in clear with settlement

The tentative $13 billion settlement JPMorgan Chase has reportedly reached with the Justice Department for the bank's role in mortgage bond sales doesn't get the firm or its executives off the hook.

According to the New York Times, the settlement, if finalized, would still allow federal prosecutors to pursue a criminal inquiry of the bank and JPMorgan would have to cooperate with any criminal investigations of former employees who helped create the mortgage investments.

Deal: JPMorgan Chase, Justice Department near settlement

If finalized, the settlement would be the government's biggest and highest-profile enforcement action in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis.

It's a major win for the Justice Department, "particularly since the deal only applies to the civil case. It also brings to account a major Wall Street player for the market crisis, something enforcement officials and the public have been looking for," says Thomas Gorman, a partner at Dorsey Whitney law firm.

But it "leaves the bank seriously at risk because of the (potential) criminal charges," added Gorman, former senior counsel in the enforcement division of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Fines: JPMorgan Chase settlements, fines since mid-2010

Over the weekend, officials at JPMorgan and Justice declined comment on the case as details of the tentative settlement were reported by The Associated Press, The Wall Street Journal, the Times, Bloomberg News and others. All of the reports cited anonymous sources familiar with the negotiations.

The deal reportedly includes a $4 billion settlement with the Federal Housing Finance Agency over the bank's mortgage-backed securities sales to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, according to more than one published report. The FHFA is Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's regulator. All told, $9 billion would be in fines and $4 billion in relief for homeowners struggling to make their payments, the Times reported.

Since mid-2010, the bank has paid clos! e to $6 billion in fines and settlements. JPMorgan's total reserve for litigation and regulatory proceedings is now $23 billion. That number could rise $5.7 billion for possible future expenses and doesn't include $8 billion already paid, the bank said when it released its third-quarter earnings report this month.

Regulators continue to aggressively pursue the financial institutions for actions that contributed to the financial crisis, including the issuance of risky mortgages and the resale of those mortgages into securities that defaulted at high rates, costing investors billions of dollars in losses. Among the losers were Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which buy mortgages from banks, and bundle them into securities for sale to investors.

What Microsoft’s new CEO should do

(Editor's note: Dan Ferris, an analyst at Stansberry & Associates, asserts that Microsoft's outgoing CEO Steve Ballmer has been stingy sharing free cash flow with Microsoft shareholders. Here's what Ferris would like to see Microsoft's next CEO do.)

Microsoft expects to have a new CEO by the end of the year. Let's not waste time guessing who it might or ought to be. Let's make it clear what the new CEO should do on his/her first day at work.

Microsoft isn't a consumer PC company anymore. It gets more than 60% of its sales and 70% of its profits from selling software to small, medium, and large businesses. Microsoft isn't Apple. Microsoft is a business software company – and a great one.

Context: Why some shareholders also want Bill Gates out.

It has 16 businesses that do $1 billion or more a year in sales. Some grow at double-digit rates. These and other Microsoft ventures gush tens of billions in cash flow every year. You've probably never even heard of some of these billion-dollar businesses: SQL Server, System Center, Sharepoint, Lync... These are business-software tools. Information technology professionals can't do their jobs without them.

Microsoft has its problems, but its biggest one is rarely mentioned: It doesn't know what to do with all the money it makes. That, I believe, is the real reason its stock price never seems to go anywhere.

Top 5 Undervalued Stocks To Buy For 2014

Microsoft has wasted nearly $22 billion on three terrible acquisitions since 2007. It paid $6 billion for online marketing services firm aQuantive – and wrote the entire investment off as a total loss last year. It paid $8.5 billion for Internet phone company Skype, which adds little to Microsoft's massive bottom line. And now it's paying over $7 billion for Nokia – a dying brand whose sales plummeted another 32% in the first half of this year.

Microsoft should listen to co! -founder and chairman Bill Gates' good friend Warren Buffett, who reminds us, "Most turnarounds don't." Nokia hasn't made money in three years. Microsoft won't turn it around. It's just another expensive dud.

For all its genius at software, Microsoft is lousy at reinvesting its huge profits. The solution is simple. Pay out more in dividends and share repurchases. Microsoft holds $70 billion offshore, as if paying U.S. corporate taxes is worse than Microsoft's huge, costly acquisitions. It should bring the cash home and pay it out to shareholders.

Microsoft should also dedicate 50% or more of its annual excess cash flow to dividends and share buybacks. That'll help discipline Microsoft against more waste, cause its share price to soar, and reward shareholders of the world's greatest software firm, accordingly.

About the author: Dan Ferris is a value analyst for Stansberry & Associates Investment Research and is the editor of two monthly investment research publications, The 12% Letter, an income-focused research advisory which looks for the market's best dividend-growth stocks and Extreme Value which focuses on the safest stocks in the market: great businesses trading at steep discounts. Dan's strategy of finding safe, cheap, and profitable stocks has earned him a loyal following – as well as one of the most impressive track records in the industry.

Top Cheap Companies To Own For 2014

Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) is set to report second quarter 2013 results on Jul 16. Last quarter, it posted a 36% positive surprise. Let�� see how things are shaping up for this announcement.

Growth Factors this Past Quarter

Yahoo�� search business continues to show signs of improvement, even in the face of tough competition from Facebook, Google and Microsoft. Improvements on the display side are ongoing, although the impact is not apparent just yet.

However, under its new CEO Marissa Meyer, Yahoo has been active on the acquisition front. It acquired multiple start-ups mainly in the mobile space. The acquisitions are part of a strategy to broaden and strengthen Yahoo�� expertise in the mobile segment as adoption of mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets continue to accelerate.

With these acquisitions, Yahoo is picking up a whole lot of engineering talent as well as key technologies and products at a cheaper rate. Yahoo also expects that these acquisitions will enable it to enter the emerging social marketing segment, where its rivals have already established themselves.

Top Cheap Companies To Own For 2014: Popular Inc.(BPOP)

Popular, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides a range of retail and commercial banking products and services primarily to corporate clients, small and middle size businesses, and retail clients in Puerto Rico and Mainland United States. It offers deposit products; commercial, consumer, and mortgage loans, as well as lease finance; and finance and advisory services. The company also offers trust and asset management, brokerage and investment banking, and insurance and reinsurance services. As of December 31, 2010, it owned and occupied approximately 94 branch premises and other facilities in Puerto Rico; and 119 offices, including 20 owned and 99 leased in New York, Illinois, New Jersey, California, Florida, and Texas. Popular, Inc. was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Popular (NASDAQ: BPOP) shares tumbled 5.54 percent to $27.48 after Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock from Equal-weight to Underweight.

  Pacific Coast Oil Trust (NYSE: ROYT) down, falling 7.13 percent to $16.70 after the company priced a public offering by Pacific Coast Energy Company LP and other selling unitholders of 13,500,000 trust units at a price of $17.10 per unit.

Top Cheap Companies To Own For 2014: Emerson Electric Company(EMR)

Emerson Electric Co. operates as a diversified manufacturing and technology company. The company engages in appliance solutions, climate technologies, industrial automation, motor technology, network power, process management, professional tools, and storage solutions businesses. Its appliance solutions business provides appliance controls, appliance motors, heating products, and white-rodgers; climate technology business provides heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVACR) solutions for residential, industrial, and commercial applications; and industrial automation business offers bearings and power transmission products, electrical power generation products, electric motors, variable speed drives and servos, electrical products, material joining solutions, fluid automation products, and wind turbine systems. The company?s motor technology business provides appliance motors, HVACR motors, DC motors, fractional horsepower motors, integral horsepower a nd larger motors, and drives; network power business provides power, precision cooling, connectivity, and embedded solutions; and process management business provides various wireless related products from self-organizing field networks to wireless asset and people tracking. Its professional tools business offers pipe working and threading equipment, pressing technology, utility locating and visual diagnostics systems, drain maintenance tools, power tools, air tools, general purpose hand tools, wet/dry vacs, job site storage equipment, truck tool boxes and equipment, and van storage equipment; and storage solutions business provides shelving and storage products for residential, commercial, and foodservice needs, as well as offers specialized carts, mobile computer workstations, and cabinet fixtures. The company was founded in 1890 and is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Chuck Carnevale]

  Actually, there are several companies on these lists that qualified for either or both of my favorites lists. For example, Aflac (AFL) and or Emerson Electric (EMR) could easily be on both lists. My point is that I feel the reader should give the same consideration to each of these names as they would the two top 10 lists. To be clear, selecting the top 10 was difficult and therefore to a great extent subjective on my part. My method was to simply run a F.A.S.T. Graphs��on each Dividend Champion with above-average total return calculations. Then my lists were created by picking and choosing those companies that from my review looked best based on value, earnings and safety.

• [By The Part-time Investor]

  The following stocks met the criteria in January of 2008 and were put into the initial portfolio:

  Abbot Labs (ABT)Advanced data processing (ADP)Associated Banc-Corp (ASBC)Bank of America (BAC)BB&T Corp. (BBT)Bemis Company (BMS)Anheuser Busch (BUD)The Chubb Corporation (CB)Clorox (CLX)Comerica Inc. (CMA)Diebold Inc. (DBD)Emerson Electronics (EMR)First Dollar Corp. (FDO)First Third BanCorp. (FITB)Gannett Co, Inc. (GCI)General Electric (GE)Hershey (HSY)Illinois Tools Works (ITW)Johnson and Johnson (JNJ)Leggett and Platt (LEG)Eli Lilly (LLY)La-Z-Boy (LZB)McDonald's (MCD)Marsh and Ilsley (MI)M&T Bancorp (MTB)PepsiCo (PEP)Pfizer (PFE)Procter & Gamble (PG)Pentair Ltd. (PNR)Regions Financial Corp. (RF)Rohm and Haas (ROH)RPM International (RPM)Sherwin Williams (SHW)Sysco Corp. (SYY)UDR Inc. (UDR)

  Historical quotes were taken from Yahoo Finance. $10,000 was put into each position, to the nearest whole share, so a total of $349,262.89 was invested. From 1/15/08 through 5/16/13 all dividends were reinvested back into the stock that paid them. If a dividend cut was announced, that stock was sold on the ex-div date of the new, lower dividend.

Top Safest Companies For 2014: Horace Mann Educators Corporation(HMN)

Horace Mann Educators Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates as a multiline insurance company in the United States. The company underwrites and markets personal lines of property and casualty insurance, retirement annuity, and life insurance products. Its products include private passenger automobile and homeowner?s insurance coverage; tax-qualified individual and group annuities in fixed account and combination contracts; and individual and joint whole and term life insurance products. The company offers its products primarily to K-12 teachers, school administrators, education support personnel, and other employees of public schools and their families. It markets its products through its sales force, as well as through independent agents. Horace Mann Educators Corporation was founded in 1945 and is based in Springfield, Illinois.

Top Cheap Companies To Own For 2014: Partner Communications Company Ltd.(PTNR)

Partner Communications Company Ltd. provides various telecommunications services in Israel. It offers cellular telephony services on GSM/GPRS and UMTS/HSDPA networks. The company also provides basic services, including domestic mobile calls, international dialing, roaming, voice mail, short message services, intelligent network services, content based on its cellular portal, data and fax transmission, and other services. In addition, it offers Internet services provider services that provides access to the Internet, as well as home WiFi networks; value added services, such as anti-virus and anti-spam filtering; and transmission services; and Web video on demand services, music tracks, and games. Further, the company provides voice over broadband and primary rate interface fixed-line telephone services; and data capacity services. Additionally, it offers content services comprising voice mail, text, and multimedia messaging, as well as downloadable wireless data application s, including ring tones, music, games, and other informational content; and sells handsets, phones, routers, and related equipment. The company markets its products through its sales centers, business sales representatives, traditional networks of specialized dealers, and non-traditional networks of retail chains and stores under the Orange brand name. Partner Communications Company Ltd. was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Rosh Ha-ayin, Israel.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  Another under-$10 wireless telecom player that's starting to move within range of triggering a major breakout trade is Partner Communications (PTNR), a telecommunications company, provides cellular and fixed-line telecommunication services in Israel. This stock is off to a strong start in 2013, with shares up sharply by 29%.

  If you take a look at the chart for Partner Communications, you'll notice that this stock has been trending sideways for the last month, with shares moving between $7.28 on the downside and $7.96 on the upside. Shares of PTRN are bucking the overall market weakness today as the stock starts to move within range of triggering a breakout trade above the upper-end of its sideways trading chart pattern.

  Market players should now look for long-biased trades in PTNR if it manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance levels at $7.80 to $7.85 a share and then once it clears its 52-week high at $7.96 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above those levels with volume that registers near or above its three-month average volume of 107,303 shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then PTNR will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that move are $10 to $12.20 a share.

  Traders can look to buy PTNR off any weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below some key near-term support levels at $7.38 to $7.28, or below its 50-day at $6.97 a share. One can also buy PTNR off strength once it clears those breakout levels with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage from your entry point.

Top Cheap Companies To Own For 2014: USG Corporation(USG)

USG Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and distribution of building materials worldwide. The company offers gypsum and related products, including gypsum wallboard, joint compounds used for finishing wallboard joints, cement boards, glass mat sheathing, gypsum fiber panels, poured gypsum underlayments, ultra light panels, and various construction plaster products. Its gypsum products are used in various building applications to finish the interior walls, ceilings, and floors in residential, commercial, and institutional constructions, and repair and remodel constructions. The company also produces gypsum-based products for agricultural and industrial customers to use in various applications, including soil conditioning, road repair, fireproofing, and ceramics. In addition, it manufactures ceiling grid and acoustical ceiling tile for electrical and mechanical systems, and air distribution and maintenance applications. USG Corporation distribut es its gypsum products through specialty wallboard distributors, building materials dealers, home improvement centers and other retailers, contractors, and a network of distributors. Further, it distributes other manufacturers? gypsum wallboard, joint compound and other gypsum products, as well as drywall metal, insulation, and roofing products and accessories. The company sells its products under SHEETROCK, DUROCK, FIBEROCK, SECUROCK, LEVELROCK, RED TOP, IMPERIAL, DIAMOND, SUPREMO, AURATONE, ACOUSTONE, DONN, DX, FINELINE, CENTRICITEE, CURVATURA, and COMPASSO brands. The company was founded in 1901 and is based in Chicago, Illinois.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  USG (NYSE: USG  ) reported earnings on April 24. Here are the numbers you need to know.

  The 10-second takeaway
  For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), USG missed estimates on revenues and missed estimates on earnings per share.

• [By Eric Volkman]

  She also serves as chairman of the United States Steel and Carnegie Pension Fund, and on that organization's investment committee. Outside of U.S. Steel, she sits on the board of directors of USG (NYSE: USG  ) and the Pennsylvania Business Council, among other entities.

Top Cheap Companies To Own For 2014: Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold Inc.(FCX)

Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. engages in the exploration, mining, and production of mineral resources. The company primarily explores for copper, gold, molybdenum, silver, and cobalt. It holds interests in various properties, located in North and South America; the Grasberg minerals district in Indonesia; and the Tenke Fungurume minerals district in the Democratic Republic of Congo. As of December 31, 2010, the company?s consolidated recoverable proven and probable reserves totaled 120.5 billion pounds of copper, 35.5 million ounces of gold, 3.39 billion pounds of molybdenum, 325.0 million ounces of silver, and 0.75 billion pounds of cobalt. The company was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Divine]

  Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold (NYSE: FCX  ) rounds out the list of today's laggards, with a 2.3% loss. This is the third straight day of declines for the copper miner, which continues to struggle with market repercussions from a deadly mining disaster at one of its locations in Indonesia. The lost production from the closed mine is estimated to be around $15 million per day.

• [By Matt DiLallo]

  Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold� (NYSE: FCX  ) is expected to report its second-quarter results on July 23. What's different this time around is that it will be reporting more than copper and gold earnings because the company's transition into oil and gas is now complete. Let's take a look at three burning questions investors want answered when the newly combined company reports.

Xilinx Beats Analysts’ Q2 Estimates (XLNX)

Xilinx, Inc. (XLNX) announced its earnings results for its second quarter fiscal 2014 on Wednesday after the closing bell.

The company reported earnings of 58 cents per share, beating analysts’ estimates of 53 cents. Revenue was reported at $598.94 million, above the expected $588.28 million and a 3% increase from the prior quarter and up 10% from a year prior.

Top Medical Companies To Buy Right Now

Xilinx also reported that it expects sales to be up 2% to down 2% sequentially. Gross margin is expected to be approximately 69% for the December quarter fiscal 2014.

Xilinx shares traded 1.19% higher during Wednesday’s session. Year-to-date, the stock is up 25.02%.

5 Stocks With Breakout Potential

BALTIMORE (Stockpickr) -- Buyers flexed their muscles in yesterday's market session, pushing the broad market from medium-sized losses in the big indices at the open to medium-sized gains. If you own stocks right now, that's a very welcome sight.

There's a lot of headline risk baked into Mr. Market right now. Between earnings season and the battle that wages on in Congress, there is no shortage of items that could inject volatility into stock prices in October. But buyers' asserting themselves yesterday is a good sign.

Another good sign comes from the technical picture in the broad market. With another big confirmed bounce off of the S&P 500 long-term uptrend line this week, now looks like a good time to be a buyer.

I've said all year long that we're in a "buy the dips market." Well, that was a dip.

But it's not good enough to just say buy stocks in general. That's why we're taking a closer technical look at five individual names with breakout potential this week.

For the unfamiliar, technical analysis is a way for investors to quantify qualitative factors, such as investor psychology, based on a stock's price action and trends. Once the domain of cloistered trading teams on Wall Street, technicals can help top traders make consistently profitable trades and can aid fundamental investors in better planning their stock execution.

So, without further ado, let's take a look at five technical setups worth trading now.

CNO Financial Group

Up first is CNO Financial Group (CNO), a mid-cap financial stock that's rocketed close to 60% higher since the calendar flipped over to January. Yup, it's been a great year for the market, but it's been a far better one for investors who own CNO. But that strong performance isn't showing any signs of slowing yet. In fact, CNO looks primed for even more upside in the fourth quarter.

That's because CNO is currently forming a bullish pattern called an ascending triangle. The ascending triangle pattern is formed by a horizontal resistance level above shares -- in this case at $14.75 -- and uptrending support to the downside. Basically, as CNO bounces in between those two technical price levels, it's getting squeezed closer and closer to a breakout above that $14.75 resistance level. When that breakout happens, it's time to become a buyer.

ACCO's price action isn't exactly textbook. After all, the pattern is coming in at the bottom of a downtrend, not after an uptrend. But ultimately, that doesn't change the trading implications of a move through that $7.50 level.

Whenever you're looking at any technical price pattern, it's critical to think in terms of those buyers and sellers. Ascending triangles and other pattern names are a good quick way to explain what's going on in a stock, but they're not the reason it's tradable. Instead, it all comes down to supply and demand for shares.

That $7.50 resistance level is a price where there has been an excess of supply of shares; in other words, it's a place where sellers have been more eager to step in and take gains than buyers have been to buy. That's what makes a breakout above it so significant. The move means that buyers are finally strong enough to absorb all of the excess supply above that price level.

Don't be early on this trade.

Lionsgate Entertainment

Why bother with introducing a new chart setup when there's another new take on the triangles we've been looking at so far? Lionsgate Entertainment (LGF) is a textbook example of the bearish inverse of the patterns in ACCO and CNO.

Lionsgate currently looks "toppy" thanks to a descending triangle that's been forming in shares since the beginning of September. The descending triangle is formed by a downtrending resistance level above shares and horizontal support, in this case at $34. The breakdown below the $34 price level is the signal to sell (or short) LGF.

Lionsgate's outcome is by no means foregone at this point -- buyers are still showing a willingness to step in and pick up shares at $34. But when LGF can print below that $34 price floor, traders should consider the uptrend officially over. If you decide to short the move, I'd recommend keeping a protective stop on the other side of the 50-day moving average.

Papa John's International

Small-cap pizza chain Papa John's International (PZZA) has been flashing the green light for buyers since the start of the year, up more than 30% year-to-date. And you don't have to be an expert technical analyst to see why; PZZA bouncing higher in a textbook channel right now.

The channel in Papa John's gives traders a high-probability range for shares to trade within. And while there's really no bad time to buy a stock that's in an uptrend, the ideal time to jump in comes on a bounce off of trendline support. Buying off a support bounce makes sense for two big reasons: it's the spot where shares have the furthest to move up before they hit resistance, and it's the spot where the risk is the least (because shares have the least room to move lower before you know you're wrong).

While the most recent bounce in PZZA just happened late last week, the fact that buying pressure has been so uncharacteristically strong off of trendline support means that a small correction could be in the cards for traders eyeing a second chance at a low risk entry.

Keep an eye on this one -- and watch out for earnings on Nov. 5.

Dunkin' Brands

Last up on our list is Dunkin' Brands (DNKN), another high-flier this year that's been making its way higher in a well-defined uptrend. Since the start of the year, DNKN has been swatted higher off of support seven times. More touches of support are the biggest key that a support level is significant -- it indicates that buyers are eager enough to keep throwing out bids along that demand line.

The strategy to enter DNKN is just like the plan for PZZA. Ideally, you want to come in on a bounce off of trendline support. But since Dunkin's channel is comparatively wider than Papa John's, there's enough upside room to warrant being a buyer at these prices.

Just remember that all trendlines do eventually break, and when this one does, it's critical to keep your exit strategy ready to go. Unload shares if they can't hold out above the 50-day moving average.

To see this week's trades in action, check out the Technical Setups for the Week portfolio on Stockpickr.

-- Written by Jonas Elmerraji in Baltimore.

Dollar under pressure as budget talks go on

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — The dollar edged down against some rivals on Monday as the U.S. approached its debt limit with congressional leaders trying to work out a deal on Capitol Hill.

Click to Play Shutdown continues as debt ceiling looms

What's News: The battle over how to end the government shutdown moves to the Senate, and the U.S. approaches its debt limit. Three Americans win this year's Nobel Prize in economics. Netflix hunts for a cable TV deal. Sara Murray reports. Photo: AP

"We could get a deal at any moment, or trundle into the debt ceiling sometime after Oct. 17," said Kit Juckes, a strategist at Societe Generale, in a research note.

The euro (EURUSD)  inched up to $1.3566 from $1.3551 late Friday.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he was "very optimistic" on a deal that would raise the debt ceiling and end the government shutdown, now in its 14th day. Reid's comments helped support the dollar (USDJPY) against the yen, fetching ¥98.54 versus ¥98.48 late Friday.

A meeting between President Barack Obama and leaders in Congress was postponed to give the Senate more time to work toward a solution. The U.S. will hit the debt ceiling on Thursday unless Congress raises the limit. A failure to raise the debt ceiling could trigger a U.S. default, as the nation would be unable to borrow money to fulfill its obligations.

"The U.S. debt story and, more importantly, the immediate consequence for monetary policy — a likely delay of the Federal Reserve's tapering as well as a possible enhancement of forward guidance under [Janet] Yellen next year — will keep the [euro] supported in the near term," Frederik Ducrozet, a senior economist at Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, said in emailed comments.

The Federal Reserve currently buys $85 billion a month in mortgage and Treasury debt as part of its efforts to spur the economy, and many had expected the central bank to slow those purchases this year. But a prolonged shutdown, which prevents the release of closely watched labor-market data, could push out expectations for a step down in monetary stimulus.

• Government shutdown: Track the latest news out of Washington »
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The ICE dollar index (DXY) , a measure of the greenback's strength against six other currencies, edged down to 80.296 from 80.375 late Friday.

The WSJ Dollar Index, (XX:BUXX) , a rival measure that pits the dollar against a broader basket, declined to 72.69 from 72.77.

The Eurogroup, the group of euro-zone finance ministers, met in Luxembourg on Monday. Jeroen Dijsselbloem, Eurogroup president and Dutch finance minister, said in a press conference the group would discuss Ireland and Spain's exits from the international bailout program at the next meeting in November, including "whether accompanying measures are needed to smooth the transition."

Ireland's Finance Minister Michael Noonan on Saturday said the country had substantial cash reserves that could be used in a crisis after its exit from the international bailout. His comments suggested that Ireland might not need a safety net, such as a precautionary line of credit, after the country receives the last of its bailout loans. "The Irish finance minister is sounding optimistic just like he should be," said Ducrozet of Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank.

Olli Rehn, European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs, said U.S.politicans could learn from the recent budget compromise in the Netherlands. "It is high time for U.S. politicians to go Dutch," he said in the press conference . "We urgently need to see a similar victory for responsibility in Washington in order to not inflict serious damage on the world economy and jeopardize, also, the nascent recovery underway now in Europe."

The British pound (GBPUSD)  rose to $1.5991 from $1.5955 late Friday.

In China, consumer prices rose faster than expected in September. The consumer price index jumped 3.1% last month from a year earlier. The index posted a 2.6% increase in August. Wholesale prices, measured by the producer price index, declined 1.3% in September from the year-ago period.

Separately, Chinese exports declined 0.3% in September from a year ago, the weakest performance in three months, according to data released Saturday. The decline came as a surprise, as economists had expected an increase of 6%. "Poor trade data in China are a reminder of the headwinds to global trade," said Juckes of Societe Generale.

The Australian dollar (AUDUSD)  rose to 94.99 U.S. cents from 94.66 U.S. cents late Friday.