Hot Supermarket Companies To Own In Right Now

LONDON -- The shares of�Wm. Morrison Supermarkets� (LSE: MRW  ) fell 2% to 291 pence during early London trading this morning after the supermarket announced a 2% decline in like-for-like sales.

Morrison, the U.K.'s fourth-largest grocer, has been recently focused on catching up to the online and convenience store offerings of its supermarket rivals.

Having started the quarter with just 12 convenience stores, Morrison claimed it was on track to open its 100th "M Local" shop by the end of the year.

The company said the launch its online grocery service was on schedule for January 2014, and confirmed that strategic discussions with online grocer�Ocado�were still ongoing.

Morrison chief executive Dalton Phillips commented:

We have made a solid start to the year, with our sales performance improving since the last quarter. Our promotions have been more innovative and we are explaining Morrisons points of difference more effectively.

Hot Supermarket Companies To Own In Right Now: Guggenheim CurrencyShares Euro Trust (FXE)

Guggenheim CurrencyShares Euro Trust, formerly CurrencyShares Euro Trust, is a grantor trust. The Trust issues shares (the Shares) in blocks of 50,000 (a Basket) in exchange for deposits of euro and distributes euro in connection with the redemption of Baskets. The investment objective of the Trust is for the Shares to reflect the price of euro plus accrued interest. The Shares are intended to offer investors an opportunity to participate in the market for the euro through an investment in securities. The Shares are bought and sold on NYSE Arca. The Shares are backed by the assets of the Trust, which does not hold or use derivative products. The Trust holds euro and, from time to time, issues Baskets in exchange for deposits of euro and distributes euro in connection with redemptions of Baskets.

The Sponsor is Rydex Specialized Products LLC. The Bank of New York Mellon serves as the Trustee. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., London Branch is the Depository. The Depository maintains two deposit accounts for the Trust, a primary deposit account which may earn interest and a secondary deposit account which does not earn interest (Deposit Accounts). The secondary deposit account is used to account for interest received and paid out on creations and redemptions of Baskets. The secondary account is also used to account for interest, if any, earned on the primary deposit account, pay Trust expenses and distribute any excess interest to Shareholders on a monthly basis.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  The euro has dropped about 0.8% against the dollar, while the CurrencyShares Euro Trust ETF (FXE) has dropped 0.7% to $136.71 and the Currency Shares Japanese Yen Trust ETF (FXY) has fallen 1%. The ProShares UltrasShort Euro ETF (EUO) has gained 1.3% to $16.77, while the ProShares UltraShort Yen (YCS) has gained 1.9% to $66.58.

Hot Supermarket Companies To Own In Right Now: Investors Bancorp Inc.(ISBC)

Investors Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for Investors Savings Bank that provides a range of banking services in the United States. The company accepts deposits and originates loans. Its deposit products include savings accounts, checking accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company offers commercial real estate, construction, multi-family, and commercial and industrial loans; and consumer loans, including home equity loans and home equity lines of credit, as well as mortgage loans secured by one-to four-family residential real estate. As of December 31, 2010, it operated 82 full-service branch offices located in Essex, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Union, and Warren Counties, New Jersey; Nassau and Queens, New York; and Massachusetts. The company was founded in 1926 and is headquartered in Short Hills, New Jersey. Investors Bancorp, Inc. is a subsidiary of Investors Bancorp, MHC.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tim Melvin]

  He also pointed out that the approaching completion of Roma Financial (ROMA) and Investors Bancorp (ISBC) has some interesting implications for bank stock investors. Both are mutual holding companies, and the newly formed bank is expected to complete the process and do a second-step conversion offering. That will be a fairly large deal, much larger than most second-step offerings, as the combined banks should be somewhere around $3 billion in market cap. There will be larger investment banks involved, complete with road shows and institutional meetings to promote the deal. The attention could well cause a revaluation of the mutual holding company and converted thrift sector of the banking market.

• [By Jim Royal]

  I'm about to buy shares in Investors Bancorp (NASDAQ: ISBC  ) , a soon-to-demutualize thrift that is undervalued. The thrift has quickly grown assets since it went public in 2005 and, with improving credit metrics and a solid return on equity, the bank is ready to make the final leap to full public ownership. So my Special Situations portfolio will acquire shares shortly. Here's why I like the stock.

5 Best Communications Equipment Stocks To Watch For 2015: Vanguard Industrials Etf (VIS)

Vanguard Industrials ETF (the Fund), formerly known as Vanguard Industrials VIPERs, is an exchange-traded share class of Vanguard Industrials Index Fund. The Fund employs a passive management or indexing investment approach designed to track the performance of the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) US Investable Market Industrials Index (the Index). The Index is an index of stocks of large, medium and small United States companies in the industrials sector, as classified under the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS). This GICS sector is made up of companies whose businesses are dominated by activities, such as the manufacture and distribution of capital goods (including aerospace and defense, construction, engineering and building products, electrical equipment, and industrial machinery); the provision of commercial services and supplies (including printing, employment, environmental and office services), or the provision of transportation services (including airlines, couriers, marine, road and rail, and transportation infrastructure).

The Fund attempts to replicate the Index by investing all, or substantially all, of its assets in the stocks that make up the Index, holding each stock in approximately the same proportion as its weighting in the Index. It also may sample its target Index by holding stocks that, in the aggregate, are intended to approximate the Index in terms of key characteristics, such as price/earnings ratio, earnings growth and dividend yield.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sofia Horta e Costa]

  Viscofan SA (VIS) fell 9.6 percent, its largest weekly drop in more than five years, after saying it may miss its targets for 2013 because of weak currencies. The Spanish maker of sausage casings in July predicted annual net income of 107 million euros to 108 million euros and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of as much as 195 million euros.

Hot Supermarket Companies To Own In Right Now: Lionbridge Technologies Inc.(LIOX)

Lionbridge Technologies, Inc. provides language, development, and testing services. Its Global Language and Content segment provides product localization services, such as creating foreign language versions of its clients? products and software applications, including the user interface, online help systems, and documentation; and content translation services, such as translating and maintaining clients? Web-based content, eLearning courseware and training materials, technical support, and sales and marketing information. It also offers technical authoring, eLearning courseware development, and production and integration of content; and global language and content services delivery. The company?s Global Development and Testing segment develops and maintains on-premise, SaaS, and smart phone and tablet applications, as well as provides Web production services. This segment also offers various testing services under the VeriTest brand, including managed test teams, test proc ess design, test automation, functional testing, performance testing, globalization testing, and product certification. In addition, it provides specialized search relevance, online content editorial, keyword optimization, and related services. Its Interpretation segment offers interpretation services for government business and healthcare organizations that require experienced linguists to facilitate communication. It provides interpretation communication services, such as onsite interpretation, over-the-phone interpretation and interpreter testing, training, and assessment services in approximately 360 languages and dialects. The company serves the technology, mobile and telecommunications, Internet and media, life sciences, government, manufacturing, automotive, retail, and aerospace sectors in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. Lionbridge Technologies, Inc. was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Calling all cash flows
  When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Lionbridge Technologies (Nasdaq: LIOX  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

Hot Supermarket Companies To Own In Right Now: Aviat Networks Inc.(AVNW)

Aviat Networks, Inc. engages in the design, manufacture, and sale of a range of wireless networking products, solutions, and services worldwide. It offers point-to-point and point-to-multipoint digital microwave transmission systems for first/last mile access, middle mile/backhaul, and long distance trunking applications. The company?s products include broadband wireless access base stations and customer premises equipment for fixed and mobile; point-to-point digital microwave radio systems for access, backhaul, trunking, and license-exempt applications; and supporting network deployments, network expansion, and capacity upgrades. It also provides network management software solutions to enable operators to deploy, monitor, and manage its systems, as well as third party equipment, such as antennas, routers, and multiplexers to build and deploy a wireless transmission network and a suite of turnkey support services. In addition, the company offers professional services, su ch as network planning and design, site surveys and builds, systems integration, installation, maintenance, network monitoring, training, and customer services. It serves mobile and fixed communications service providers, original equipment manufacturers, private network operators, government agencies, transportation and utility companies, system integrators, public safety agencies, and broadcast system operators, as well as pipeline, railroad, and other industrial enterprises that operate wireless networks. The company was formerly known as Harris Stratex Networks, Inc. and changed its name to Aviat Networks, Inc. in January 2010. Aviat Networks, Inc. is headquartered in Santa Clara, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Kell]

  Aviat Networks Inc.(AVNW) cut its fiscal second-quarter revenue forecast, citing lower-than-expected customer orders in Africa. The microwave networking company said it is working on a plan to lower expenses, with cost savings expected to come in part from consolidating Aviat’s supply chain and locations. Shares dropped 1.4% to $2.20 premarket.

Hot Supermarket Companies To Own In Right Now: The Children's Place Retail Stores Inc.(PLCE)

The Children's Place Retail Stores, Inc. operates as a children's specialty apparel retailer in North America. It provides apparel, accessories, and shoes for children from newborn to 10 years of age. The company designs, contracts to manufacture, and sells merchandise under The Children's Place brand name. It serves the wardrobe needs of girls and boys, baby girls and boys, and newborn. As of January 28, 2012, the company operated 1,049 The Children's Place stores, including 732 stores located in malls, 140 in strip centers, 135 in outlet centers, and 42 street stores; and an Internet store at childrensplace.com. The Children's Place Retail Stores, Inc. was founded in 1969 and is based in Secaucus, New Jersey.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Monica Gerson]

  The Children's Place Retail Stores (NASDAQ: PLCE) is estimated to report its Q4 earnings at $0.95 per share on revenue of $484.48 million. Children's Place shares slipped 0.73% to close at $54.70 yesterday.

• [By AnnaLisa Kraft]

  Baby steps for growth
  Competitor Children's Place Retail Stores (NASDAQ: PLCE  ) also saw a 33.2% rise in e-commerce year-over-year. E-commerce contributed 58.3% to total sales growth for the company's most recent quarter, totaling $50.5 million in e-sales.

• [By Anna Prior]

  Among the companies with shares expected to actively trade in Thursday’s session are Children's Place Retail Stores Inc.(PLCE), Costco Wholesale Corp.(COST) and Staples Inc.(SPLS)

Top 5 Railroad Stocks To Watch For 2015

A Canadian National Railway Co. (NYSE: CNI) derailed and 4 cars carrying crude oil and 9 cars carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) caught fire about 50 miles west of Edmonton, Alberta, early Saturday morning. No injuries have been reported. The 100 people living in the town of Gainford were all evacuated as a precaution.

In early July a 72-car train derailed and exploded in the town of Lac-Megantic, Quebec, killing 47 people and levelling the town�� central business district. The derailed train in Alberta was hauling crude and LPG to terminals Vancouver, British Columbia.

Moving crude oil and other petroleum products by rail has boomed in the last few years due to a lack of pipelines in the Bakken shale play in North Dakota and Montana. Crude production in the Bakken rose to more than 900,000 barrels a day this past August, less than a third of which is transported by pipeline.

According to a report from the AP, U.S. railroads have moved 178,000 carloads of crude oil in the first six months of 2013, double the number during the same period last year and 33 times more than during the same period in 2009. The Railway Association of Canada estimates that as many as 140,000 carloads of crude oil will be shipped on Canada�� tracks this year, up from 500 carloads in 2009.

Top 5 Railroad Stocks To Watch For 2015: Gray Fox Petroleum Corp (GFOX)

Gray Fox Petroleum Corp., incorporated on September 22, 2011, is a domestic oil and gas exploration and development company. The Company focuses on the acquisition and exploration of oil and natural gas properties in the Western United States.

The Company has 100% working interest and an 82% net revenue interest in the 32,723 acre West Ranch Prospect. The Company�� West Ranch Prospect is located in the Butte Valley Oil Play Region of north central Nevada in Elko and White Pine Countries, which has produced over 50 million barrels of oil in Nevada from structures and reservoir horizons similar to those under the West Ranch Prospect. The prospect consists of 22 Federal leases in the Butte Valley Oil Play Region.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Peter Graham]

  On Friday, small cap mining stocks Maverick Minerals Corp (OTCMKTS: MVRM) and Liberty Coal Energy Corp (OTCMKTS: LBTG) plus oil stock Gray Fox Petroleum Corp (OTCBB: GFOX) sank 30.9%, 16.67% and 11.2%, respectively. However, only one of these stocks appears to have been the subject of some kind of paid promotion in the form of an investment in some shares. So will these three small cap mining or oil stocks keep coming up empty for investors this week? Here is a closer look:

Top 5 Railroad Stocks To Watch For 2015: Ishares Trust Russell 1000 (IWF)

iShares Russell 1000 Growth Index Fund (the Fund) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the large-capitalization growth sector of the United States equity market, as represented by the Russell 1000 Growth Index (the Growth Index). The Growth Index is a subset of the Russell 1000 Index. The Index is capitalization weighted, and consists of those companies, or portion of a company, with higher price-to-book ratios and higher forecasted growth within the Russell 1000 Index. The Growth Index represents approximately 49% of the total market capitalization of the Russell 1000 Index.

The Fund invests in a representative sample of securities included in the Growth Index that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Growth Index. iShares Russell 1000 Growth Index Fund's investment advisor is Barclays Global Fund Advisors.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By James Brumley]

  It’s been especially untrue the last few years. Since this point in the year back in 2003, the iShares Russell 1000 Growth Fund (IWF) has advanced 81%, while the iShares Russell 1000 Value Fund (IWD) has only advanced 67%.

Top 10 Paper Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSB)

Royal Dutch Shell plc (Shell), incorporated on February 5, 2002, is an independent oil and gas company. The Company owns, directly or indirectly, investments in the numerous companies constituting Shell. Shell is engaged worldwide in the principal aspects of the oil and gas industry and also has interests in chemicals and other energy-related businesses. The Company operates in three segments: Upstream, Downstream and Corporate. Upstream combines the operating segments Upstream International and Upstream Americas, which are engaged in searching for and recovering crude oil and natural gas; the liquefaction and transportation of gas; the extraction of bitumen from oil sands that is converted into synthetic crude oil, and wind energy. Downstream is engaged in manufacturing; distribution and marketing activities for oil products and chemicals, in alternative energy (excluding wind), and carbon dioxide (CO2) management. Corporate represents the key support functions, comprising holdings and treasury, headquarters, central functions and Shell�� self-insurance activities. In October 2011, the Company bought a marine terminal on Canada's Pacific Coast as a possible site for a liquefied natural gas export terminal. In January 2012, the Company's 50% owned, Australia Arrow Energy Holdings Pty Ltd acquired all of the shares in Bow Energy Ltd. In January 2014, Royal Dutch Shell plc completed the acquisition of Repsol S.A.'s liquefied natural gas (LNG) portfolio outside North America.

Upstream International manages the Upstream businesses outside the Americas. It searches for and recovers crude oil and natural gas, liquefies and transports gas, and operates the upstream and midstream infrastructure necessary to deliver oil and gas to market. Upstream International also manages Shell�� entire liquefied petroleum gas (LNG) business, gas to liquids (GTL) and the wind business in Europe. Its activities are organized primarily within geographical units, although there are some activities that are mana! ged across the businesses or provided through support units.

Upstream Americas manages the Upstream businesses in North and South America. It searches for and recovers crude oil and natural gas, transports gas and operates the upstream and midstream infrastructure necessary to deliver oil and gas to market. Upstream Americas also extracts bitumen from oil sands that is converted into synthetic crude oil. Additionally, it manages the United States-based wind business. It comprises operations organized into business-wide managed activities and supporting activities.

Downstream manages Shell�� manufacturing, distribution and marketing activities for oil products and chemicals. These activities are organized into globally managed classes of business, although some are managed regionally or provided through support units. Manufacturing and supply includes refining, supply and shipping of crude oil. Marketing sells a range of products including fuels, lubricants, bitumen and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for home, transport and industrial use. Chemicals produces and markets petrochemicals for industrial customers, including the raw materials for plastics, coatings and detergents. Downstream also trades Shell�� flow of hydrocarbons and other energy-related products, supplies the Downstream businesses, markets gas and power and provides shipping services. Downstream additionally oversees Shell�� interests in alternative energy (including biofuels, and excluding wind) and CO2 management.

Projects and Technology manages the delivery of Shell�� major projects and drives the research and innovation to create technology solutions. It provides technical services and technology capability covering both Upstream and Downstream activities. It is also responsible for providing functional leadership across Shell in the areas of health, safety and environment, and contracting and procurement.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jim Jubak]

  But, to my mind, the biggest news of last week for the valuation of Cheniere actually came from Royal Dutch Shell (RDSB). Europe's biggest oil company announced that it would halt plans to build a $20 billion natural gas of liquids plant in Louisiana, even though the state of Louisiana had agreed on $112 million in subsidies. The project would have used cheap US natural gas to produce 140,000 barrels a day of liquid fuels normally made from oil. Royal Dutch Shell cited rising costs and uncertainty about oil and natural gas prices by the time the plant entered operation, in canceling the project.

Top 5 Railroad Stocks To Watch For 2015: Continental Resources Inc. (CLR)

Continental Resources, Inc. engages in the exploration, development, and production of crude oil and natural gas primarily in the north, south, and east regions of the United States. The company primarily sells its oil and natural gas production to end users, as well as to midstream marketing companies or oil refining companies at the lease. As of December 31, 2011, its estimated proved reserves were 508.4 million barrels of crude oil equivalent, with estimated proved developed reserves of 205.2 million barrels of crude oil equivalent. The company had interests in 3,255 wells and served as the operator of 2,082 of these wells. Continental Resources, Inc. was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Enid, Oklahoma.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Matt DiLallo]

  America began turning around its reserve picture about five years ago. This is when energy companies like EOG Resources (NYSE: EOG  ) and Continental Resources (NYSE: CLR  ) discovered that we actually could economically produce oil out of the Eagle Ford and Bakken Shale plays. The ensuing boom now has America's proved oil reserves at the highest level since 1976.

• [By Sean Williams]

  The Bakken, as my Foolish colleague Matt DiLallo recently pointed out, has seen total oil reserve estimates jump from a range of 3 billion to 4.3 billion barrels five years ago to a current estimate of 7.4 billion. A liquid-rich region like this is highly sought after by oil drillers who want to lessen the impact of still relatively inexpensive natural gas prices. The biggest name in the Bakken, and largest leaseholder, is Continental Resources (NYSE: CLR  ) , which has been shipping close to two-thirds of its Bakken production by rail to Louisiana.

• [By Matt DiLallo]

  The price of oil varies between drillers, as well costs and capital structures also vary in the industry, which can make drilling more profitable for some and a struggle for others. Top Bakken producer�Continental Resources (NYSE: CLR  ) is one of the play's lowest-cost producers. The company's operated wells cost about $9.2 million to complete last year whereas its non-operated wells cost more than $11.3 million to complete. Looking ahead, the company is hoping to knock another million dollars of its completion costs at operated wells this year. The story is similar with smaller Bakken driller, Kodiak Oil and Gas (NYSE: KOG  ) ; however, its overall numbers are much higher. Last year the company spent around $11 million to drill a well, and it expects to get that number down below $10 million per well this year. This is a case were Continental can afford to keep growing even if oil prices dip, while Kodiak might need to put the brakes on its production growth plans.�

Top 5 Railroad Stocks To Watch For 2015: R.G. Barry Corporation(DFZ)

R.G. Barry Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in designing, sourcing, marketing, and distributing consumer products in the retail accessories category primarily in North America. It operates in two segments, Footwear and Accessories. The Footwear segment offers footwear products comprising primarily slippers, sandals, hybrid and fashion footwear, slipper socks, and hosiery under the Dearfoams, Angel Treads, DF by Dearfoams, Utopia by Dearfoams, and Terrasoles names. This segment also markets Levi?s branded slippers and sandals. The Accessories segment provides foot and shoe care products, such as cushioned insoles, handbags, tote bags, and travel products for women under the Foot Petals, Fab Feet, Glamour Toez, Heavenly Heelz, Killer Kushionz, baggallini, and Le Bagg names. The company markets its products through accessory sections of department stores, chain stores, warehouse clubs, specialty stores, independent stores, television shopping networks, e- tailing/Internet based retailers, discount stores, and mass merchandising channels of distribution. R.G. Barry Corporation was founded in 1947 and is headquartered in Pickerington, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Marc Bastow]

  Brand development and marketing products provider R.G. Barry (DFZ) raised its quarterly dividend 11.1% to 10 cents per share, payable on Apr. 4 to shareholders of record as of Feb. 17.
  DFZ Dividend Yield: 2.25%

Apple Just Stunned Wall Street

Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) pleasantly surprised Wall Street by comfortably beating expectations when it reported earnings for its March quarter after the market close today (Wednesday).

The Cupertino, Calif.-based tech giant also threw existing holders of Apple stock several goodies, including an expansion of the stock buyback program, a seven-for-one stock split, and an 8% increase in the dividend.

The Apple stock buyback program will expand by $30 billion, to bring the total by 2015 to $130 billion.

The raft of happy news sent AAPL stock up more than 8% in after-hours trading.

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Apple reported earnings per share of $11.62, a healthy $1.46 above the $10.16 analysts had forecast as well as the $10.09 reported in the same quarter a year ago.

Revenue was $45.6 billion, which was $2 billion above both the year-ago quarter and analyst expectations.

Another pleasant surprise was higher gross margins, which came in at 39.3%. That, too, beat the forecast of 37.7% as well as the year-ago quarter number of 37.5%.

The good news was almost entirely driven by surprisingly strong iPhone sales. Apple sold 43.7 million iPhones in the quarter, a 17% increase over the same quarter last year and far above the Street's number of 37.7 million.

That's a positive sign for the current quarter in that it shows demand for the iPhone remained high despite the lack of any updates and rumors of iPhone models with larger screens (a 4.7-inch and a 5.5-inch) expected to arrive in the fall.

The only other sector to shine in the March quarter was iTunes/Software and Services, which saw revenue rise 11% to nearly $4.6 billion.

Mac sales were nearly flat, rising 1% by revenue and 5% by units. Meanwhile, iPad revenue slumped 13%, with unit sales falling 16%.

Still, the Apple earnings report hit a lot more high notes than anyone expected, particularly with the stock buyback and dividend increase.

But while the stellar earnings report will push Apple stock higher in the short term, it will take more than that to sustain a push back to $600 and beyond.

What Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) Stock Really Needs

While the pop in iPhone sales was great, it pales next to the days of the 50% or even 100% growth that drove Apple stock from 2007 to 2012.

The reality is that the mobile revolution that Apple helped pioneer is reaching maturity - that was clear in the declining iPad sales.

Most of the people in the world who want a smartphone or tablet already have one by now; the market is almost all about replacements and repeat sales now. And while Apple is holding its own, mature markets don't generate the kind of numbers that can double a stock in a year.

Without that dramatic growth in sales of its mobile hardware, Apple stock has settled into a range between $500 and $575.

The strong earnings report has AAPL back at the top of the range, but is unlikely to push it back anywhere near its all-time highs.

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Sure, new iPhones and iPads in the fall will help boost sales seasonally, and maybe give AAPL another short-term pop. But Apple stock can't break out of this range until the company comes out with some completely new product or service.

The rumor mills are full of possibilities here. Apple is alleged to be working on everything from a big-screen TV (very unlikely) to a smartwatch (very likely) to a mobile payment service (also very likely).

Some critics have already started calling for Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook's head for his failure to deliver either new products or substantial growth in any of the existing ones. He doesn't need to fear for his job, but the change in Wall Street's mood is telling - and worrisome.

Apple is known not to debut products until it feels they are truly ready, but unless it actually brings out some major new thing in 2014, the company risks losing its status as a leading Silicon Valley innovator - with other tech titans like Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG) and even Facebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB) only too happy to fill the void.

Were you impressed by the Apple earnings beat? Where do you see AAPL stock headed in 2014 and 2015? Let us know on Twitter @moneymorning or Facebook.

Tech investing in the current markets can be tricky, so you need to find stocks with powerful potential for growth. And there's no better place to start than a company that's tapping into three of tech's hottest growth trends - data centers, the mobile wave, and cloud computing. It's clearly a winning combo...

Why Federal-Mogul Shares Skyrocketed

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of Federal-Mogul (NASDAQ: FDML  ) , an auto parts and vehicles components supplier, soared 26% after the company handily topped Wall Street's EPS expectations in the second quarter.

So what: For the quarter, Federal-Mogul reported a 6% increase in sales to $1.77 billion and saw profits rise to $0.57 per share, decisively reversing a year-ago loss of $0.60 per share. Comparatively, Wall Street was forecasting sales of $1.73 billion and a profit of just $0.39 per share. Federal-Mogul benefited from a stabilization in European sales, as well as closures of factories in North America and Western Europe, which helped bring down expenses.

Now what: Given Federal-Mogul's shaky history, I can't say I'm much of a fan of the company. It emerged from bankruptcy some five years ago right into the deepest recession we've witnessed in 70 years – hardly what I'd call great terms. Although its European business is improving, Europe itself isn't expected to show signs of life for years because of steep spending cuts, meaning that Federal-Mogul's cost-cutting initiatives will only drive the bottom line so far. The "X factor" here, though, is Carl Icahn, who owns a majority stake in the company. Icahn is an activist investor that's known for turning frowns upside down in the business world and could single-handedly allow calmer heads to prevail over the long run. Personally, I'd suggest waiting a few more quarters to see if this turnaround is for real or just an anomaly among a series of bad quarters.

With Europe struggling and U.S. auto sales advancing at a snail's pace, automakers and supplier are turning to China, the world's largest auto market, for their next great growth opportunity. A recent Motley Fool report, "2 Automakers to Buy for a Surging Chinese Market", names two global giants poised to reap big gains that could drive big rewards for investors. You can read this report right now for free – just click here for instant access.

Today's 3 Best Stocks

Surprisingly enough, Ben Bernanke's much-awaited testimony before Congress, and the release of a survey from the Federal Reserve, didn't spook investors. Then again, it didn't exactly light a fire under the optimists, either.

Heading into today, all eyes were on Bernanke, who had scared the broad-based S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC  ) into a tailspin last month on word that the Fed may choose to scale back its bond-buying program before the year was up. Today's testimony, compounded with encouraging data that showed modest to moderate growth in 11 of the 12 surveyed cities (Dallas, yet again, exhibited strong growth), was enough to push the S&P 500 higher. However, gains were also curbed by Bernanke's admission that a pare back of its bond-buying program was in the offing before the year is out if U.S. economic data remained encouraging.

By day's end, the S&P 500 had advanced by 4.65 points (0.28%) to close at 1,680.91. Although today's move higher was pretty tame, three stocks within the index broke decisively higher.

Topping the list of gainers was search engine Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO  ) , which added 10.3% after reporting its second-quarter results. Despite the big gain and the fact that Yahoo! slid past EPS expectations, today's gains have little do with its primary search and ad business, and everything to do with its ownership stake in Alibaba. For the quarter, Yahoo!'s revenue slid slightly to $1.07 billion, and the company actually trimmed its full-year sales forecast because of ongoing ad weakness. However, Yahoo!'s 24% stake in Alibaba, combined with analysts' boosted value estimates for Alibaba, translated into today's big gains. As for me, I'm worried that Yahoo!'s core business has very little going for it, and that gives me enough reason to stick to the sidelines.

Shares of chemicals maker DuPont (NYSE: DD  ) delivered strong gains for shareholders, rising 5.3% after Trian Fund Management's Nelson Peltz disclosed that he'd amassed a "big stake" in DuPont, according to CNBC. If the name sounds familiar, that'd be because Peltz also owns significant stakes in PepsiCo. and Mondelez International, and has been pushing PepsiCo. to make a bid for Mondelez to expand its international snack presence. The thinking here is that Peltz, being a proactive fund manager who seeks to unlock value, could have a trick or two up his sleeve to improve DuPont's lagging share price. We'll have to wait to see if that comes to fruition.

Finally, implantable cardiovascular device maker St. Jude Medical (NYSE: STJ  ) jumped 5.2% after reporting better-than-expected second-quarter results. Although second-quarter revenue fell by less than 1%, to $1.4 billion, from the year-ago period, it was enough to surpass the $1.36 billion analysts expected. Furthermore, St. Jude forecast EPS for the full-year of $3.70-$3.73, as compared to the Street's expectation of just $3.68. While I do see the benefits of owning a company like St. Jude as baby boomers age, I remain a bit concerned about the affect the medical device excise tax and Obamacare as a whole may have on a company like St. Jude in the near term.

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Yum Brands jump as China growth boosts profit

Yum Brands, whose fast-food trio includes the Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut chains, saw its stock rocket more than 3% in after-hours trading, as the company reported better-than-expected profit for its first quarter on rebounding sales at KFC in China.

Yum stock jumped $2.64 to $80.12 in after-hours trading after the report was released. Most of the good news came from China, where the company said same-store sales rose a hefty 9% for the period.

"Yum Brands is clearly on its way to a strong bounce-back year," said CEO David C. Novak, in a statement. "We have significant building blocks in place in China and each of our divisions to drive sales and profit growth this year and beyond."

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Yum's China division -- which accounts for a big chunk of the company's revenue -- took a hit last year following an avian flu outbreak and other issues.

For the quarter, net income grew to $399 million, or 87 cents a share vs. $337 million, or 72 cents, one year earlier. That topped the 84 cents per share analysts expected.

"We expect to achieve earnings per share growth of at least 20% in 2014," said Novak, in a statement, "and look forward to re-establishing our track record of consistently delivering double-digit earnings per share growth in the years ahead."

In the U.S. Taco Bell's sales at existing U.S. stores fell 1%, but the company hopes those numbers will improve in the second quarter with its recent, high-profile breakfast roll-out.

FAST-FOOD FIGHT: Taco Bell escalates breakfast war vs. McDonald's

Taco Bell gathered 25 guys coast-to-coast, whose real names just happen to be Ronald McDonald, and is featuring them in a new ad that extols the Mexican fast-food chain's new breakfast program. Taco Bell

By One Measure, Last Week Was the Worst for IPOs in a Decade

Need any more proof that the market for initial public offerings is showing cracks? Look no further than the ten companies that went public last week.

Eight of those 10 U.S.-listed IPOs priced below their expected range, the most in a single week since July of 2004, according to Dealogic. The lower pricing didn’t help the stocks once they began trading either. The average one-day pop for last week’s IPOs was 6.2%, well below this year’s average of 16.2%, according to Dealogic.

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High-profile offerings from boutique investment bank Moelis(MC) & Co. and travel-technology firm Sabre Corp.(SABR) sold fewer shares at a lower price than both expected lat week. On the day they debuted, shares of the two companies rose 4.6% and 3%, respectively.

The two companies that sold their shares within their marketed range—China’s Leju Holdings Ltd.(LEJU) and Weibo Corp.(WB)—both opted the day of their offerings to sell fewer shares than planned.

For the first two months of the year, as the broader market struggled, IPOs delivered strong returns for investors. The average gain for IPOs on its first day of trading was nearly 20%.

But beginning last month, stocks of high-flying biotech, social media and cloud-computing companies began taking a beating. The Nasdaq Biotechnology Index tumbled 14% over the past month, and the Nasdaq Internet Index fell 9%.

The turmoil quickly caused investors to pull back from IPOs. Shares of King Digital Entertainment(KING) PLC, maker of the “Candy Crush Saga” mobile videogame and one of the most anticipated IPOs of the year, debuted on March 26 and plunged 16% that day.

Two weeks later, two of April’s biggest IPOs --the $2.4 billion sale of Ally Financial Inc.(ALLY) and the $650 million offering of hotel chain La Quinta Holdings Inc(LQ).–priced shares cautiously. Ally priced at the low end of its expected range, while La Quinta priced below its expected range.

Then came last week, with its series of offerings that fell short. With only a handful of small offerings this week, there’s no immediate catalyst looming that will give a fresh jolt to the IPO market.

8 Incredible and Alarming Labor Force Statistics

More than four years removed from the deepest recession the U.S. witnessed since the Great Depression, many investors are finally beginning to see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. The U.S. unemployment rate hit a four-and-a-half-year low in April of just 7.5%, while the housing market continues to find solid footing with regard to both housing starts and rising home prices. If I didn't know any better, I'd call this a slow but steady recovery of the U.S. economy.

But a deeper dive into the condition of the labor force reveals stark dissimilarities between the economic data we've been seeing and what's really happening. It's been my postulation for weeks that there's a large dissociation between labor participation, wages, and satisfaction, and the economic data we've been delivered could be a worrisome sign of things to come for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) and broad-based S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC  ) which both eclipsed all-time highs earlier this year.

Here are eight incredible, depressing, and alarming labor force statistics that certainly have me thinking twice about the market's ability to keep heading higher.

70% of the full-time labor force is "not engaged"
According to a Gallup poll of full-time workers conducted between 2010 and 2012, of the roughly 100 million in the labor force, only 30 million are considered engaged with their job. The remaining 70% are considered "not engaged," or apathetic, toward their job, while 18%, or 18 million, full-time employees are actively disengaged from their employer and potentially looking to undermine their company. These disengaged workers are responsible for costing U.S. businesses upward of half a trillion dollars each year. 

Duration of unemployment has more than doubled in five years to 37 weeks
The average length of time it takes to find a job has risen dramatically in just the past five years. In May 2008, it took an unemployed worker 16.6 weeks to find employment. Last month, that figure stood at 36.9 weeks. Amazingly enough, that's down from a high of 40.7 weeks set in December 2011. Unemployment levels may be falling, but finding a job, based on these figures, is still very difficult.

U.S. real hourly earnings have risen by a grand total of 2% -- in the past 33 years!
An easy way to create a disgruntled labor force is to make it difficult for workers to pay for the things they need. Since 1980, nominal hourly wages for U.S. workers have risen by 205.6%. On the surface, it would appear that employees are enjoying the benefits of increased productivity. However, when adjusted for inflation, real wages for U.S. workers have grown an abysmal 2.1% since January 1980. Meanwhile, many costs, including health care and gasoline, have increased by much more than 2% in real terms over the same period. 

Health care benefits account for approximately 20% of workers' compensation
If you're curious where workers' real wage raises have gone, look no further than the health care sector. In the 1960s, health care expenses accounted for less than 10% of workers' compensation. By 2011, that figure had jumped to just shy of 20%. What's more distressing is that health care costs as a percentage of compensation could potentially soar for some middle-class Americans with the upcoming implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. No longer able to get by with a bare-bones health plan, many middle-class Americans could see up to a triple-digit spike in their health care premiums.

The labor force participation rate hit a 34-year low of 63.3% in April
The cumulative labor force participation rate -- essentially a measure of the current labor force as compared to the number of adults within the same age range -- has been on a steady decline since 2000.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Certainly, the rising number of Americans entering retirement, going to college, and collecting Social Security disability has caused a drop in the labor force participation rate. However, there's little denying that nonexistent real wage growth and an average unemployment period of almost three-quarters of a year are discouraging factors that have caused workers to simply give up trying to find a job.

Labor union membership hit a 97-year low of 11.3% last year
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, union membership declined by 400,000 last year to just 14.3 million members. Tougher anti-union laws in Wisconsin and Indiana, as well as corporate expansion into non-union states, were blamed for much of the decline. Boeing (NYSE: BA  ) , for instance, has been expanding its production in South Carolina, and last month it announced plans to shift its engineering work to the Palmetto State and to Long Beach, Calif. -- both non-union sites. If this trend continues, any bargaining power labor unions possess may soon disappear.

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Less than a third of workers are satisfied with their pay and their jobs' stress level
Based on a Gallup poll on U.S. employee satisfaction conducted in August of last year, only 30% of respondents claimed to be completely satisfied with their pay, while just 29% were completely satisfied with their jobs' stress level. On the opposite end of the spectrum, 28% said they were completely dissatisfied with their pay, and 33% reported being completely dissatisfied with the stress level of their job. This reinforces the notion that as productivity growth outpaces wage growth, the labor force is growing more stressed.

Currently at 57.3%, women's labor force participation rate has been declining since 2000
Having grown throughout the 20th century, women's participation in the labor force simply stopped growing in 2000 and has even been on the decline over the past decade.

Source: St. Louis Federal Reserve.

Partly to blame are restrictive labor laws that can make it difficult for a working mother to raise a family. Many other developed nations offer a longer maternity leave period than the U.S., and more than half of other developed countries have passed legislation prohibiting discrimination against part-time workers -- something that doesn't exist in the U.S. A slumping female labor participation rate is also particularly worrisome because more women than men are now obtaining college degrees, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The takeaway
We may be witnessing bits and pieces of the economy improving, but make no mistake about it: The labor force appears to be in pretty dismal shape. Workers are the root of ingenuity and innovation; without their desire to outperform, as well as a pay structure that outpaces inflation, corporations don't have much hope of delivering meaningful top- or bottom-line growth. These eight depressing statistics should give investors plenty of reason to be skeptical of what could really be wrong with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 at these levels -- and they certainly shouldn't be taken lightly.

With the American markets reaching new highs, investors and pundits alike are skeptical about future growth. They shouldn't be. Many global regions are still stuck in neutral, and their resurgence could result in windfall profits for select companies. A recent Motley Fool report, "3 Strong Buys for a Global Economic Recovery" outlines three companies that could take off when the global economy gains steam. Click here to read the full report!

Check This to See How Should You Should Play Modine Manufacturing

There's no foolproof way to know the future for Modine Manufacturing (NYSE: MOD  ) or any other company. However, certain clues may help you see potential stumbles before they happen -- and before your stock craters as a result.

A cloudy crystal ball
In this series, we use accounts receivable and days sales outstanding to judge a company's current health and future prospects. It's an important step in separating the pretenders from the market's best stocks. Alone, AR -- the amount of money owed the company -- and DSO -- the number of days' worth of sales owed to the company -- don't tell you much. However, by considering the trends in AR and DSO, you can sometimes get a window onto the future.

Sometimes, problems with AR or DSO simply indicate a change in the business (like an acquisition), or lax collections. However, AR that grows more quickly than revenue, or ballooning DSO, can, at times, suggest a desperate company that's trying to boost sales by giving its customers overly generous payment terms. Alternately, it can indicate that the company sprinted to book a load of sales at the end of the quarter, like used-car dealers on the 29th of the month. (Sometimes, companies do both.)

Why might an upstanding firm like Modine Manufacturing do this? For the same reason any other company might: to make the numbers. Investors don't like revenue shortfalls, and employees don't like reporting them to their superiors.

Is Modine Manufacturing sending any potential warning signs? Take a look at the chart below, which plots revenue growth against AR growth, and DSO:

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Data is current as of last fully reported fiscal quarter. FQ = fiscal quarter.

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The standard way to calculate DSO uses average accounts receivable. I prefer to look at end-of-quarter receivables, but I've plotted both above.

Watching the trends
When that red line (AR growth) crosses above the green line (revenue growth), I know I need to consult the filings. Similarly, a spike in the blue bars indicates a trend worth worrying about. Modine Manufacturing's latest average DSO stands at 47.2 days, and the end-of-quarter figure is 53.9 days. Differences in business models can generate variations in DSO, and business needs can require occasional fluctuations, but all things being equal, I like to see this figure stay steady. So, let's get back to our original question: Based on DSO and sales, does Modine Manufacturing look like it might miss its numbers in the next quarter or two?

The numbers don't paint a clear picture. For the last fully reported fiscal quarter, Modine Manufacturing's year-over-year revenue shrank 7.5%, and its AR dropped 6.5%. That looks OK. End-of-quarter DSO increased 0.0% over the prior-year quarter. It was up 18.1% versus the prior quarter. That looks like seasonality. Still, I'm no fortuneteller, and these are just numbers. Investors putting their money on the line always need to dig into the filings for the root causes and draw their own conclusions.

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Natural Resource Stocks For Income, Value And Growth Investors

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Both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index are down in recent market action, prompting speculation that a correction is coming.

If a downturn does ensue, income, value and growth investors should take that event as an opportunity to buy stocks in the natural resource sector; stocks such as BP PLC (NYSE: BP), BHP Billiton (NYSE: BHP) and others at a discount for long term gains.

For income investors, it does not get much better than BP PLC or BHP Billiton.

At present, the average dividend yield for a member of the Standard & Poor's 500 Index is under two percent. The dividend yield for BP, the second largest oil company in Europe, is 4.77 percent. BHP Billiton, the world's largest natural resources firm, has a dividend yield of 3.37 percent. Both have a history of dividend growth to reward long term investors.

Related: 3 Reasons Family Offices Should Crowdfund 

Goldcorp (NYSE: GG), the world's largest gold company, has a great deal of appeal to value investors. It is selling under book value. Not only that, it is much more cheaply priced than many other precious metal firms. Increasing the appeal of Goldcorp is a low level of debt and high dividend yield of 2.53 percent.

Growth investors, meanwhile, should be pleased with the prospects of Premium Exploration (OTC: PMMEF) and Mondial Ventures (OTC: MNVN).

Both are very promising small caps operating in North America, a feature for which investors are willing to pay a premium. It is a dangerous world for natural resource businesses, which makes the United States very alluring for investors. Premium Exploration is a gold company with valuable holdings in Idaho -- while Mondial Ventures operates in the legendary oil country of Texas.

Small caps like these are where growth investors need to be in natural resources, as the high growth days for larger entities such as BHP Billiton and BP PLC are long gone.

If a correction is coming, then the natural resources sector will be attractive. Growth from China, India and other countries is increasing the demand for oil, gold and other commodities. China and India are the two biggest buyers of gold. For many products, China is the largest consumer on the planet.

Given those and other factors, long-term investors should be pleased by the returns from BP PLC, Premium Exploration, BHP Billiton, Mondial Ventures, and others in the natural resources group.

Posted-In: China Gold India metals and mining natural resources OilLong Ideas News Emerging Markets Dividends Small Cap Analysis Commodities Global Economics Markets Trading Ideas Best of Benzinga

© 2014 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

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UBS Names U.S. Head for Complex Equities Group

UBS AG(UBSN.VX) has named a new head of its U.S. group that works on complex stock financings and investments for companies and wealthy individuals.

Alan Rifkin, who joins from Citigroup(C), will run the Americas unit of its Strategic Equity Solutions Group from New York starting in May, according to an internal memo.

The Swiss bank has been shrinking investment-banking footprint, while bulking up parts of its equity underwriting business, especially in the U.S.

The so-called “strategic equity solutions” business focuses on stock underwriting transactions for companies or wealthy individuals, such as family business owners, that are trickier than a typical IPO or public stock sale.

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That includes pre-IPO stock placements, a market that has grown sharply over the last few years as companies stay private longer and reach multi-billion-dollar valuations before going public.

It also works with investors and companies that want to lock-in gains for a volatile private or public stock investment without selling the shares, through the use of derivatives.

Mr. Rifkin spent 15 years in Citi’s equity capital markets group. Before that, he was a lawyer at Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton. He will report to global head of equity solutions Chicco di Stasi, who started the group in 2010, and to the U.S.-based head of Americas equity capital markets, James Palmer.

Why the Dow Jones Jumped Despite Weak Economic Data

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) is up today despite weak economic data in the U.S. and China. The stock market jumped around noon as Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen gave a speech at the Economics Club of New York. As of 1:15 p.m. EDT the Dow was up 117 points, or 0.72%, to 16,380. The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC  ) was up 0.66% to 1,855.

There were two U.S. economic releases today and three releases in China last night:

Report

Period

Result

Previous

Housing starts	March	946,000	920,000
Building permits	March	990,000	1,014,000
Industrial production	March	0.7%	1.2%
Capacity utilization	March	79.2%	78.8%
Chinese GDP growth	Q1 2014	7.4%	7.7%
Chinese retail sales YoY growth	March	12.2%	11.8%
Chinese industrial production YoY growth	March	8.8%	8.6%

YoY = year-over-year.

None of the U.S. reports were encouraging, but the Chinese reports showed the economy did not slow as much as many had feared. The two key reports here are U.S. housing starts and Chinese GDP growth. Housing starts rose to a seasonally adjusted annualized 946,000, up from a revised 920,000 in February but well below analyst expectations of 990,000. Building permits, a leading indicator of housing starts, fell by 2.4% to 990,000, missing expectations of 1.02 million. Housing-market activity has slowly been getting stronger since the depths of 2009 but is still well below the levels seen a decade ago. Today's data just shows that the U.S. housing market continues to slowly strengthen.

US New Housing Permits data by YCharts.

Meanwhile, China's economy has been propped up in recent years by politically directed government lending and infrastructure spending, which has led to large imbalances in the economy. These, coupled with restrictions on investment, have led to a housing bubble, as well as a credit bubble. The Chinese government has begun taking steps to mitigate these through actions to raise interbank lending rates and restrict unconventional lending. The effects were seen this past quarter in China's first-ever default of publicly sold bonds. Previously, government organizations would take all possible measures to prevent any default.

The restrictions on credit were expected to slow the economy's growth, but the Communist party is still targeting 7.5% GDP growth this year. However, recent import and export data has been far worse than expectations, causing analysts to lower forecasts for this quarter's annualized growth to 7.3%. Chinese GDP came in slightly above that at 7.4%, while retail sales and industrial production also beat expectations. Given that China is the world's second-largest economy, its economic data has a direct effect on many Dow stocks that have significant operations around the world.

The Dow Jones spiked upward at noon following Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen's speech at the Economic Club of New York. Yellen said the members of the Federal Open Market Committee believed the recent U.S. economic slowdown was the result of the harsh winter and did not represent a general slowing of economic activity. Yellen said it was "quite plausible" that the U.S. economy could return to full employment and stable prices within the next three years. The FOMC views "full employment" as an unemployment rate near 5.5% -- though that's not entirely accurate, given that many people are simply not looking for jobs or have part-time jobs, which is not reflected in the headline number. Yellen went on to talk about the challenges the Fed and the economy face and explained how the Fed would continue to communicate through its forward guidance; the Fed believes monetary policy is more effective when people understand what the Fed plans to do. Yellen's expectations that the economy will continue grow stronger pushed the Dow up at noon.

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3 Blue Chips Climbing on Earnings (KO, JNJ, SCHW)

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First-quarter earnings season is supposed to be a dud, but don’t tell that to Coca-Cola (KO), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) or Charles Schwab (SCHW). These three blue chips delivered some market-pleasing results Tuesday, helping KO stock, JNJ stock and SCHW stock to take off.

Goodness knows the market can use the help. The S&P 500 looks to be working its way out of the April swoon, but heading into Tuesday it was up just 0.7% for the year-to-date.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average — of which JNJ and KO stock are constituents — is having an even rougher year. The blue-chip index was off 2.4% for the year before KO stock and JNJ stock rose after earnings.

Better-than-expected earnings of the type we saw from KO, JNJ and SCHW are the only hope for the S&P 500 if it’s to avoid a year-over-year decline in quarterly profits.

Analysts on average expect the broader market to post a 1.2% drop in first-quarter earnings, according to data from FactSet. That would be the first decrease in S&P 500 earnings since the third quarter of 2012.

Of course, not all of these names reported a year-over-year increase in net income. Right or wrong, the market doesn’t much care about that. Rather, it all comes down to adjusted earnings (which exclude things like one-time charges), and how those adjusted figures compare with expectations. That’s what’s driving KO stock, JNJ stock and SCHW stock after earnings.

Happily for anyone holding JNJ, SCHW stock or KO stock, the Street’s expectations were not disappointed. Here’s a look at the quarterly highlights for Coca-Cola, Johnson & Johnson and Schwab:

Coca-Cola (KO)

Coca-Cola has been having a rough time as people drink fewer carbonated beverages. Indeed, taste for fizzy drinks appears to be in secular decline. That’s a long-term threat to KO’s core business, and it’s already showing up in KO stock, which was down 3.6% for the year-to-date before Tuesday’s pop.

KO first-quarter profit fell more than 7% and revenue dropped 4%. So what’s the cheering about? Excluding charges, KO stock had earnings of 44 cents a share, which matched Wall Street’s forecast. Moreover, revenue of $10.58 billion exceeded analysts’ average projection.

In other good news for KO stock, global volume rose 2%, giving the market some hope that KO is building some momentum in a shrinking market for carbonated beverages. Another hopeful sign for KO stock is that revenue didn’t drop because of lower sales. Rather, it was all due to a stronger dollar. Strip out the effects of currency exchange, and KO would have had top-line growth of 2%.

No, it wasn’t a great quarter, but KO beat the Street’s low expectations, and that’s all it took to give KO stock some life.

Next Page

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)

Johnson & Johnson is having an excellent year in a flat market. JNJ stock was up nearly 8% before it reported what Wall Street likes best: beat-and-raise earnings.

The wider pharmaceutical industry might be struggling with patent expirations on blockbuster drugs, but that’s not bothering JNJ or JNJ stock. Indeed, Johnson & Johnson’s first-quarter earnings rose 35%, driven by continued sales growth in JNJ’s pharmaceutical business.

Excluding special items like tax benefits and charges, earnings rose 7% to $1.54 a share, easily topping Street expectations of $1.47. Revenue expanded 3.5% to $18.1 billion, which also beat analysts’ average forecast.

Better-than-expected earnings and an ongoing cost-cutting program designed to slash $1 billion in expenses over three years helped JNJ raise its full-year outlook. JNJ now sees adjusted earnings coming in at $5.80 to $5.90 a share, up from a previous estimate of $5.75 to $5.85.

Results like this and JNJ’s strategic plan have the market bullish on JNJ stock. JNJ is in the process of dumping its slow-growth products and businesses — a move that should goose margins. JNJ stock also benefits from the cash the strategic plan puts in JNJ’s coffers. Late last month, JNJ sold its ortho-clinical diagnostics business for roughly $4 billion.

Charles Schwab (SCHW)

Charles Schwab said first-quarter profit rose by more than half, helped by higher trading commissions and fees for managing clients’ money. If SCHW can build on the solid results, SCHW stock might finally go somewhere.

SCHW stock is essentially flat for the year-to-date, but the latest quarterly results might just change the market’s sentiment on the discount brokerage. SCHW net income jumped 58% year-over-year, SCHW revenue increased 15%, and both numbers beat the Street’s expectations.

It looks like SCHW is finally getting a boost from the five-year bull market and stocks notching all-time highs — and that bodes well for SCHW stock. Retail investors have been wary of the stock market since the 2009 melt down, hurting commissions and fees at brokerages like SCHW. The latest results suggest that might be starting to change.

For the latest three-month period, SCHW saw trading revenue, asset-management and administration fees all rise 11%. Customer trading volume also rose 11%, to an average of 553,600 trades a day — the highest volume in SCHW history.

As of this writing, Dan Burrows did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.

Top 10 Oil Stocks To Buy Right Now

A number of readers have recently requested my near- and longer-term outlooks for the energy markets. Let’s first review how changing oil and gas prices have affected various sectors over the past year.

A year ago, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was trading at $91.35 a barrel (bbl), while Brent crude was $110.35/bbl. That $19/bbl spread was a boon for oil refiners who could buy crude oil at prices based on WTI and sell finished products at prices tied to Brent. It was also a boon to railroads whose customers were happy to pay $10-$15/bbl to have oil shipped from North Dakota to the East or West Coast, where the delivered cost was still lower than for waterborne crudes like Brent.

Today WTI is trading at $103.38/bbl and Brent is at $108.85, for a Brent-WTI differential of $5.47/bbl. At that level, the windfall that refiners were enjoying a year ago is gone, and it is no longer economical to rail crude oil across the country. So the lower differential hurts both refiners and the railroads.

Top 10 Oil Stocks To Buy Right Now: Denbury Resources Inc (DNR)

Denbury Resources Inc., incorporated in 1951, is an independent oil and natural gas company. As of December 31, 2011, the Company had 461.9 million barrel of oil equivalent of proved oil and natural gas reserves, of which 77% was oil. The Company�� oil and natural gas properties are concentrated in the Gulf Coast and Rocky Mountain regions in the United States. As of December 31, 2011, the Company's properties with proved and producing reserves in the Gulf Coast region were situated in Mississippi, Texas, Louisiana and Alabama, and in the Rocky Mountain region were primarily situated in Montana, North Dakota, Utah and Wyoming. In April 2012, it sold certain non-operated assets in the Greater Aneth Field in the Paradox Basin of Utah to Resolute Energy Corporation and the Navajo Nation Oil and Gas Company. In December 2012, the Company closed its first phase of its previously announced Bakken sale and asset exchange with Exxon Mobil Corporation and its wholly owned subsidiary XTO Energy Inc. In March 2013, it announced the closing of acquisition of producing property interests in the Cedar Creek Anticline (CCA) of Montana and North Dakota.

The Company�� CO2 source, Jackson Dome is located near Jackson, Mississipp. In addition to the proved reserves, it has an additional 2.5 trillion cubic feet of probable CO2 reserves at Jackson Dome. As of December 31, 2011, there have been 13 structures drilled within the Jackson Dome area and only one has not been productive. In addition to using CO2 for the Company�� Gulf Coast tertiary operations, it sells CO2 to third-party industrial users under long-term contracts and has three CO2 volumetric production payment contracts (VPPs). Approximately 91% of its average daily CO2 production during the year ended December 31, 2011 was used in its tertiary recovery operations on its own behalf and on behalf of other working interest owners in recovery fields, with the balance delivered to third-party industrial users. During 2011, the Company sold an av! erage of 89 million cubic feet per day of CO2 to commercial users, and the Company used an average of 920 million cubic feet per day for its tertiary activities.

In Eastern Mississippi properties, the Company has four tertiary operations (Soso, Martinville, Eucutta and Heidelberg Fields). The majority of the conventional oil production at Heidelberg is from waterflood units that produce from the Eutaw formation (at approximately 4,400 feet). The Company has converted all of the waterflood units in West Heidelberg to CO2 enhanced oil recovery (EOR). As of December 31, 2011, the Company either owned, or controlled through long-term financing leases, approximately 864 miles of CO2 pipelines in the Gulf Coast region. In addition to the NEJD CO2pipeline, the major pipelines are the Free State Pipeline (90 miles), the Delta Pipeline (110 miles) and the Green Pipeline (325 miles).

The Company�� primary Rocky Mountain CO2 source, Riley Ridge is located in southwestern Wyoming. The gas composition from Riley Ridge is approximately 65% CO2, 19% natural gas, 5% hydrogen sulfide (H2S), 0.6% helium, and the remainder other gases. As of December 31, 2011, its interest in Riley Ridge and minor surrounding acreage contained net proved reserves of 415 billion cubic feet of natural gas and 2.2 trillion cubic feet of CO2 reserves. Bell Creek Field is located in southeast Montana. Cedar Creek Anticline (CCA) is primarily located in Montana. CCA is a series of 10 producing oil units. During 2011, the Company fracture stimulated 31 operated wells in the Bakken and four wells in the Selma Chalk utilizing water-based fluids.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Johanna Bennett]

  Denbury Resources (DNR) shares dropped 5.9% after oil-and-natural-gas explorer on Sunday announced that it will initiate quarterly dividend and raised its share repurchase plan to $250 million from the $109 million remaining in its program.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  But Kinder Morgan also needs to demonstrate its ability to keep its organic growth going. In the first quarter, the company's terminals business only managed to report flat growth, leaving it well off track to meet Kinder Morgan's 12% growth goal for the segment. Also, its carbon dioxide business only saw 1% growth in the quarter, despite producers Occidental Petroleum (NYSE: OXY  ) and Denbury Resources (NYSE: DNR  ) having used CO2 as part of their tertiary recovery methods to get additional oil from largely depleted oil fields in the Permian Basin and on the Gulf Coast.

• [By David Smith]

  Denbury Resources (NYSE: DNR  )
  Plano, Texas-based Denbury represents a truly unique way to play the strength in the U.S. oil and gas markets. The company utilizes a process called carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery (CO2 EOR), or tertiary recovery, to produce oil from wells that otherwise might have seen their last days. Through the process, carbon dioxide is injected under high pressure into the otherwise spent wells, thereby facilitating production of large percentages of the remaining oil.

• [By Claudia Assis]

  Denbury Resources Inc. (DNR) �declined 5.5%.

Top 10 Oil Stocks To Buy Right Now: Santos Ltd (STOSF)

Santos Limited is an oil and gas producer, supplying Australian and Asian customers. The Company is primarily engaged in the exploration for, and development, production, transportation and marketing of, hydrocarbons. The Company develops major oil and gas liquids businesses in Australia, and operates in all mainland states and the Northern Territory. The Company has exploration-led Asian portfolio, with a focus on three core countries: Indonesia, Vietnam and Papua New Guinea. The Company operates in four business units of Eastern Australia; Western Australia and Northern Territory; Asia Pacific, and Gladstone LNG (GLNG). The Asia Pacific operating segment includes operations in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Vietnam, India and Bangladesh. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By MARKETWATCH]

  LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Australian stocks fell early Wednesday, tracking a weak lead from the U.S. but with a few blue-chip miners higher after gains for some commodities overnight. The S&P/ASX 200 (AU:XJO) retreated 0.4% to 5,237.80 after similar losses for the main Wall Street indexes, with the Australian benchmark trading around its lowest level since October. Among the major decliners, Qantas Airways Ltd. (AU:QAN) (QUBSF) lost 2.5%, Harvey Norman Holdings Ltd. (AU:HVN) (HNORY) gave up 1.3%, and Incitec Pivot Ltd. (AU:IPL) (ICPVY) fell 1.8%. Santos Ltd. (AU:STO) (STOSF) fell 2.6% on indication it will miss its lowered production guidance for 2013, according to the Australian Financial Review. On the upside, top miners BHP Billiton Ltd. (AU:BHP) (BHP) and Rio Tinto Ltd. (AU:RIO) (RIO) rose 0.3% and 0.7%, respectively, while Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. (AU:FMG) (FSUMF) traded 1% higher. Shares of global shopping-mall developer Westfield Group Australia (AU:WDC) (WEFIF) were on halt

Top 10 Retail Stocks To Buy Right Now: Marathon Oil Corporation(MRO)

Marathon Oil Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates as an international energy company with operations in the United States, Canada, Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. It operates through three segments: Exploration and Production, Oil Sands Mining, and Integrated Gas. The Exploration and Production segment explores for, produces, and markets liquid hydrocarbons and natural gas. The Oil Sands Mining segment mines, extracts, and transports bitumen from oil sands deposits in Alberta, Canada; and upgrades the bitumen to produce and market synthetic crude oil and vacuum gas oil. The Integrated Gas segment markets and transports products manufactured from natural gas, such as liquified natural gas and methanol. The company was formerly known as USX Corporation and changed its name to Marathon Oil Corporation in July 2001. Marathon Oil Corporation was founded in 1887 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Goldman Sachs, however, does see a pickup in capital spending, which is generally linked to an acceleration in economic growth and and an increase in sales, as companies only start to spend after they see a “�increased activity and demand.” That could benefit companies who aren’t spending much now but have strong returns on invested capital, including�Marathon Oil�(MRO),�ConocoPhillips�(COP), and�Starbucks (SBUX).

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  Marathon Oil Corp. (NYSE: MRO) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform by Raymond James.

  Illumina Inc. (NASDAQ: ILMN) was reiterated as Buy but that price target was raised to $90 from $83 at BofA/Merrill Lynch.

Top 10 Oil Stocks To Buy Right Now: Transdigm Group Incorporated(TDG)

TransDigm Group Incorporated designs, produces, and supplies engineered aircraft components for use on commercial and military aircraft principally in the United States. The company?s products include mechanical/electro-mechanical actuators and controls, ignition systems and engine technology, pumps and valves, power conditioning devices, AC/DC electric motors and generators, NiCad batteries and chargers, engineered latching and locking devices, rods and locking devices, engineered connectors and elastomers, cockpit security components and systems, cockpit displays, aircraft audio systems, lavatory components, engineered interior surfaces, and lighting and control technology. Its customers comprise distributors of aerospace components; commercial airlines, including national and regional airlines; commercial transport and regional and business aircraft original equipment manufacturers (OEMs); various armed forces of the United States and foreign governments; defense OEMs; system suppliers; and various other industrial customers. TransDigm Group Incorporated was founded in 1993 and is based in Cleveland, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Eric Volkman]

  TransDigm (NYSE: TDG  ) is rewarding its shareholders mightily with an extraordinary payout. The company has declared a special dividend of $22.00 per share, which will be paid on July 25 to shareholders of record as of July 15.

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Calling all cash flows
  When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on TransDigm Group (NYSE: TDG  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

Top 10 Oil Stocks To Buy Right Now: ATP Oil And Gas Corp (AOB)

ATP Oil & Gas Corporation, incorporated in 1991, is engaged in the acquisition, development and production of oil and natural gas properties. As of December 31, 2011, the Company had estimated net proved reserves of 118.9 Million barrels of crude oil equivalent (MMBoe), of which approximately 75.9 MMboe (64%) were in the Gulf of Mexico and 42.9 MMBoe (36%) were in the North Sea. The reserves consisted of 78.6 Million barrels (MMBbls) of oil (66%) and 241.5 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of natural gas (34%). Its proved reserves in the deepwater area of the Gulf of Mexico account for 62% of the Company�� total proved reserves and its proved reserves on the Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf account for 2% of its total proved reserves. During the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company acquired three licenses in the Mediterranean Sea covering potential natural gas resources in the deepwater off the coast of Israel (East Mediterranean). On August 17, 2012, ATP Oil And Gas Corp filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

The Company�� natural gas reserves are split between the Gulf of Mexico (57%) and the North Sea (43%). Of its total proved reserves, 8.3 MMBoe (7%) were producing, 19.0 MMBoe (16%) were developed and not producing and 91.6 MMBoe (77%) were undeveloped. The Company�� average working interest in its properties at December 31, 2011, was approximately 81%. The Company operates 92% of its platforms. At December 31, 2011, in the Gulf of Mexico, it owned leasehold and other interests in 38 offshore blocks and 49 wells, including 23 subsea wells. The Company operates 43 (88%) of these wells, including 100% of the subsea wells. In the North Sea, it also had interests in 13 blocks and two Company-operated subsea wells. As of March 15, 2011, the Company owned an interest in 13 platforms, including two floating production facilities in the Gulf of Mexico, the ATP Titan at its Telemark Hub and the ATP Innovator at its Gomez Hub. It operates the ATP Innovator and the ATP Titan.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Emerson]

  Most of the Chinese companies that I purchased now reside on the Pink Sheets or have disappeared altogether, but at one time they all traded on major US exchanges. One of them (AOB), even received the honor of ringing the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange in 2007, and people say that crime does not pay.

Top 10 Oil Stocks To Buy Right Now: Emerald Oil Inc (EOX)

Emerald Oil, Inc. (Emerald) incorporated on May 31, 2011, is an independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company. The Company focuses on developing oil wells in the Williston Basin of North Dakota and Montana primarily targeting the Bakken and three forks shale oil formations. Emerald controls approximately 35,000 net acres in the Williston Basin. In February 2014, Emerald Oil Inc acquired core Bakken and Three Forks producing properties and undeveloped leasehold in McKenzie and Williams Counties, North Dakota.

Emerald holds positions in the Rocky Mountain oil and natural gas plays. It has approximately 14,500 net acres in the Sand Wash Basin in northwest Colorado prospective for oil in the Niobrara formation. It has approximately 33,500 net acres in central Montana prospective for oil in the Heath formation. The Company also has approximately 72,800 net acres in the Tiger Ridge Field located in Blaine, Hill, and Chouteau Counties, Montana, prospective for natural gas, and another approximate 1,700 net acres in the Denver-Julesburg (DJ) Basin in Weld County, Colorado, prospective for oil in the Niobrara formation.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

  Small cap Triangle Petroleum Corporation (NYSEMKT: TPLM), just like its peers Emerald Oil Inc (NYSEMKT: EOX) and Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp (NYSE: KOG), is focused on the Williston Basin�� Bakken and Three Forks formations and the company is scheduled to release second quarter fiscal year 2014 financial results after the close of trading�next Monday.�And the last time earnings were reported, shares jumped around 10% plus management gave some rosy commentary for investors. With that in mind, should investors in Triangle Petroleum Corporation be ready for another earnings report that excites the bulls?

• [By Bret Jensen]

  Emerald Oil (EOX) is a small (~$330mm) capitalization Bakken producer that I think has significant upside. It has fast growing production with sales tracking to better than a 70% gain this fiscal year and analysts' consensus for FY2014 have revenue more than doubling. A beneficial owner obviously finds the shares attractive as the entity took more than a $16mm stake in the firm in late May.

• [By Monica Gerson]

  Emerald Oil (NYSE: EOX) is projected to post a Q4 loss at $0.02 per share on revenue of $18.04 million.

  Callon Petroleum Company (NYSE: CPE) is estimated to post its Q4 earnings at $0.00 per share on revenue of $26.83 million.

Top 10 Oil Stocks To Buy Right Now: Delek US Holdings Inc. (DK)

Delek US Holdings, Inc. operates as an integrated downstream energy company that operates in petroleum refining, logistics, and convenience store retailing businesses. The company operates in three segments: Refining, Logistics, and Retail. The Refining segment owns and operates two refineries in Tyler, Texas, and El Dorado, Arkansas; and produces various petroleum-based products used in transportation and industrial markets. The Logistics segment gathers, transports, and stores crude oil, as well as markets, distributes, transports, and stores refined products. It also offers crude oil transportation services for terminalling and marketing services; and markets light products using third-party terminals. This segment owns approximately 400 miles of crude oil transportation pipelines, 123 miles of refined product pipelines, 600-mile crude oil gathering system, and associated crude oil storage tanks with an aggregate of approximately 2.6 million barrels of active shell capa city. The Logistics segment serves oil companies, independent refiners and marketers, jobbers, distributors, utility and transportation companies, and independent retail fuel operators. The Retail segment markets gasoline, diesel, and other refined petroleum products, as well as convenience merchandise. As of May 8, 2013, this segment operated 373 retail fuel and convenience stores under the MAPCO Express, MAPCO Mart, Discount Food Mart, Fast Food and Fuel, East Coast, Delta Express, and Favorite Markets brands. The company was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee. Delek US Holdings, Inc. is a subsidiary of Delek Petroleum Ltd.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Phillips 66 fell 2.6% yesterday, while Holly Frontier dropped 3.1%, Tesoro (TSO) declined 1.4%, Western Refining (WNR) plunged 4.3% and Delek US (DK) finished off 5.2%.

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  The last three months were good for refiners like Phillips 66 (PSX), Western Refining (WNR) and Delek US (DK), which each gained more than 14% during that period.

• [By Dennis Slothower]

  Several of the stocks in our portfolio have become even more attractive while the stock market discounts their future growth:

  Delek Holdings (DK), a petroleum refiner, has a P/E ratio of 4, pays a 2% dividend, and has a 30%+ return on equity.
  
  HollyFrontier (HFC), also a petroleum refiner, has a P/E ratio of 5.5, pays a 3% dividend, and is growing revenue by more than 40%.
  
  CF Holdings (CF), one of the largest fertilizer companies in the world, has a P/E ratio of 8 and a rock-solid balance sheet.
  
  

  We are in a point in the economic cycle where it is crucial to own stocks currently trading below the underlying worth of the business.

Top 10 Oil Stocks To Buy Right Now: Transocean Ltd (RIGN)

Transocean Ltd. (Transocean) is an international provider of offshore contract drilling services for oil and gas wells. The Company operates in two segments: contract drilling services and drilling management services. Contract drilling services, the Company�� primary business, involves contracting its mobile offshore drilling fleet, related equipment and work crews primarily on a dayrate basis to drill oil and gas wells. Its drilling management services segment provides oil and gas drilling management services on either a dayrate basis or a completed-project, fixed-price (or turnkey) basis, as well as drilling engineering and drilling project management services. As of February 14, 2012, it owned or had partial ownership interests in and operated 134 mobile offshore drilling units. On October 4, 2011, the Company acquired Aker Drilling ASA (Aker Drilling). In February 2011, it sold the subsidiary that owns the High-Specification Jackup Trident 20.

During the year ended December 31, 2011 (during 2011), the Company completed the sale of its 50% ownership interest in ODL to Siem Offshore Inc. In October 2011, the Company completed the sale of Challenger Minerals (North Sea) Limited. As of December 31, 2011, the Company�� fleet consisted of 50 High-Specification Floaters (Ultra-Deepwater, Deepwater and Harsh Environment semisubmersibles and drillships), 25 Midwater Floaters, nine High-Specification Jackups, 49 Standard Jackups and one swamp barge. In addition, it had two Ultra-Deepwater Floaters and four High-Specification Jackups under construction.

Drilling Fleet

The Company engaged in both types of drilling activity: floaters, including drillships and semisubmersibles, and jackups. Also included in its fleet is a swamp barge drilling unit. It categorized the drilling units of its fleet as High-Specification Floaters, consisting of its Ultra-Deepwater Floaters, Deepwater Floaters and Harsh Environment Floaters, Midwater Floaters, High-Specification Jackups, St! andard Jackups and a swamp barge. High-Specification Floaters are specialized offshore drilling units that it categorize into three sub-classifications based on their capabilities. Ultra-Deepwater Floaters are equipped with mud pumps and are capable of drilling in water depths of 7,500 feet or greater. Deepwater Floaters are generally those other semisubmersible rigs and drillships capable of drilling in water depths between 7,500 and 4,500 feet. Harsh Environment Floaters are capable of drilling in harsh environments in water depths between 10,000 and 1,500 feet and have displacement, which offers variable load capacity, more useable deck space and motion characteristics. Midwater Floaters are generally consists of those non-high-specification semisubmersibles that have a water depth capacity of less than 4,500 feet.

As of February 14, 2012, the Company�� fleet was located in the Far East (27 units), Middle East (16 units), West African countries other than Nigeria and Angola (14 units), United States Gulf of Mexico (13 units), United Kingdom North Sea (12 units), India (12 units), Brazil (10 units), Nigeria (10 units), Norway (eight units), Angola (four units), Australia (three units), the Mediterranean (two units), Canada (two units), and Romania (one unit).

Contract Drilling Services

The Company specializes in offshore drilling business with a particular focus on deepwater and harsh environment drilling services. Its contract drilling operations are geographically dispersed in oil and gas exploration and development areas throughout the world.

Drilling Management Services

The Company provides drilling management services primarily on a turnkey basis through Applied Drilling Technology Inc., its wholly owned subsidiary, which primarily operates in the United States Gulf of Mexico, and through ADT International, a division of one of its United Kingdom subsidiaries, which primarily operates in the North Sea (together, ADTI). As part o! f its tur! nkey drilling services, the Company provides planning, engineering and management services. Under turnkey arrangements, it designs and executes of a well and delivers a logged or cased hole to an agreed depth. In addition to turnkey drilling services, Transocean participates in project management operations that include providing certain planning, management and engineering services, purchasing equipment and providing personnel and other logistical services to customers.

Integrated Services

Transocean provides well and logistics services in addition to its normal drilling services through third party contractors and the Company�� employees. These other services include integrated services. As of February 10, 2011, it was performing such services in India.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Corinne Gretler]

  Nestle, which makes up 21 percent of the benchmark Swiss Market Index by weight, slid 2.6 percent after reporting the slowest first-half revenue growth in four years. Adecco SA jumped to a two-year high as the biggest provider of temporary workers posted income that exceeded projections. Transocean Ltd. (RIGN), the largest offshore-rig contractor, added 1.1 percent after posting a second-quarter profit.

Top 10 Oil Stocks To Buy Right Now: Nuverra Environmental Solutions Inc (NES)

Nuverra Environmental Solutions, Inc., formerly Heckmann Corporation, incorporated on May 29, 2007, provides environmental solutions to protect, enhance and advance environmental sustainability. Nuverra provides full-cycle environmental solutions to a national customer base consisting of two distinct end markets: Shale Solutions and Industrial Solutions.

The Company is focused on the removal, treatment, recycling, transportation and disposal of restricted solids, fluids and hydrocarbons for E&P customers. It also provides a one-stop-shop for energy recovery, re-refining and recycling of used motor oil and oily wastewater; plus a closed loop spent antifreeze program for retail, automotive and manufacturing customers. Nuverra specializes in providing environmentally compliant and sustainable solutions to a national footprint of customers.

Shale Solutions

Shale Solutions provides environmental solutions for unconventional oil and gas exploration and production, including the delivery, collection, treatment, recycle, and disposal of restricted environmental products used in the development of unconventional oil and natural gas fields. The Company operates in select shale areas in the United States, including the Marcellus/Utica, Eagle Ford, Bakken, Haynesville, Barnett, Permian, Mississippian Lime and Tuscaloosa Marine Shale areas. It serves customers seeking fresh water acquisition, temporary water transmission and storage, transportation, treatment or disposal of fresh water and complex water flows, such as flowback and produced brine water, in connection with shale oil and gas hydraulic fracturing drilling or hydrofracturing operations. The Company also transports fresh water for production and provides services for site preparation, water pit excavations and remediation.

Industrial Solutions

Industrial Solutions provides environmental and waste recycling solutions to its customers through collection and recycling services for waste prod! ucts, including UMO, which the Company processes and sells as RFO, oily water, spent antifreeze, used oil filters and parts washers, and provision of complementary environmental services for a diverse commercial and industrial customer base. Industrial Solutions operates a scalable network infrastructure of 34 processing facilities, approximately 385 tanker trucks, vacuum trucks and trailers and over 200 railcars. With a geographic presence in 19 states in the Western United States stretching from Washington to Texas, Industrial Solutions provides its services to a diverse range of more than 20,000 commercial and industrial customer locations.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tyler Crowe and Aimee Duffy]

  If Heckmann changing its name wasn't confusing enough for investors, it appears as though Nuverra Environmental Solutions (NYSE: NES  ) will be venturing into a new business. The company just�purchased�a greenfield disposal facility that it will use for solid and oil waste from drilling operations. While the potential revenue for the company doesn't really move the needle for the company, the move is more important for the new image that Nuverra wants to reflect to its customers.�

Top 10 Oil Stocks To Buy Right Now: Linn Energy LLC (LINE)

Linn Energy, LLC (LINN Energy) is an independent oil and natural gas company. The Company�� properties are located in the United States, primarily in the Mid-Continent, the Permian Basin, Michigan, California and the Williston Basin. Mid-Continent Deep includes the Texas Panhandle Deep Granite Wash formation and deep formations in Oklahoma and Kansas. Mid-Continent Shallow includes the Texas Panhandle Brown Dolomite formation and shallow formations in Oklahoma, Louisiana and Illinois. Permian Basin includes areas in West Texas and Southeast New Mexico. Michigan includes the Antrim Shale formation in the northern part of the state. California includes the Brea Olinda Field of the Los Angeles Basin. Williston Basin includes the Bakken formation in North Dakota. On December 15, 2011, the Company acquired certain oil and natural gas properties located primarily in the Granite Wash of Texas and Oklahoma from Plains Exploration & Production Company (Plains).

On November 1, 2011, and November 18, 2011, it completed two acquisitions of certain oil and natural gas properties located in the Permian Basin. On June 1, 2011, it acquired certain oil and natural gas properties in the Cleveland play, located in the Texas Panhandle, from Panther Energy Company, LLC and Red Willow Mid-Continent, LLC (collectively Panther). On May 2, 2011, and May 11, 2011, it completed two acquisitions of certain oil and natural gas properties located in the Williston Basin. On April 1, 2011, and April 5, 2011, the Company completed two acquisitions of certain oil and natural gas properties located in the Permian Basin. On March 31, 2011, it acquired certain oil and natural gas properties located in the Williston Basin from an affiliate of Concho Resources Inc. (Concho). During the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company completed other smaller acquisitions of oil and natural gas properties located in its various operating regions. As of December 31, 2011, the Company operated 7,759 or 69% of its 11,230 gross productiv! e wells.

Mid-Continent Deep

The Mid-Continent Deep region includes properties in the Deep Granite Wash formation in the Texas Panhandle, which produces at depths ranging from 10,000 feet to 16,000 feet, as well as properties in Oklahoma and Kansas, which produce at depths of more than 8,000 feet. Mid-Continent Deep proved reserves represented approximately 47% of total proved reserves, as of December 31, 2011, of which 49% were classified as proved developed reserves. The Company owns and operates a network of natural gas gathering systems consisting of approximately 285 miles of pipeline and associated compression and metering facilities that connect to numerous sales outlets in the Texas Panhandle.

Mid-Continent Shallow

The Mid-Continent Shallow region includes properties producing from the Brown Dolomite formation in the Texas Panhandle, which produces at depths of approximately 3,200 feet, as well as properties in Oklahoma, Louisiana and Illinois, which produce at depths of less than 8,000 feet. Mid-Continent Shallow proved reserves represented approximately 20% of total proved reserves, as of December 31, 2011, of which 70% were classified as proved developed reserves. The Company owns and operates a network of natural gas gathering systems consisting of approximately 665 miles of pipeline and associated compression and metering facilities that connect to numerous sales outlets in the Texas Panhandle.

Permian Basin

The Permian Basin is an oil and natural gas basins in the United States. The Company�� properties are located in West Texas and Southeast New Mexico and produce at depths ranging from 2,000 feet to 12,000 feet. Permian Basin proved reserves represented approximately 16% of total proved reserves, as of December 31, 2011, of which 56% were classified as proved developed reserves.

Michigan

The Michigan region includes properties producing from the Antrim Shale formation in the northern ! part of t! he state, which produces at depths ranging from 600 feet to 2,200 feet. Michigan proved reserves represented approximately 9% of total proved reserves, as of December 31, 2011, of which 90% were classified as proved developed reserves.

California

The California region consists of the Brea Olinda Field of the Los Angeles Basin. California proved reserves represented approximately 6% of total proved reserves, as of December 31, 2011, of which 93% were classified as proved developed reserves.

Williston Basin

The Williston Basin is one of the premier oil basins in the United States. The Company�� properties are located in North Dakota and produce at depths ranging from 9,000 feet to 12,000 feet. Williston Basin proved reserves represented approximately 2% of total proved reserves, as of December 31, 2011, of which 48% were classified as proved developed reserves.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Robert Rapier]

  For the full year, Memorial expects DCF of $129 to $133 million, which would provide distribution coverage of 110 to 120 percent. Because I believe natural gas prices will steadily creep higher over the next three to five years, MEMP could make an excellent portfolio addition with some upside appreciation potential. The one caveat is that it trades at a premium to competitors like BreitBurn and Linn Energy (Nasdaq: LINE). This is understandable in the case of Linn, which is dealing with an SEC issue, but I would take a good look at BreitBurn as a lower-cost alternative.

• [By Taylor Muckerman]

  The latest victim
  For a while now, talk has surrounded�LINN Energy's� (NASDAQ: LINE  ) hedging strategy and the way it was handled from an accounting point of view. While a select group warned of potential misrepresentation, others seemed to overlook this fact in favor of a distribution that ranked near the top of its industry. These hedging strategies and their representation are now directly under the SEC's microscope, with LINN's distribution payments and acquisition of Berry Petroleum hanging in the balance. As a result, the past two days have been especially hard on investors, with the stock down over 31%.�

• [By Tyler Crowe]

  Conversely, producers of oil and natural gas will want to write a sell contract, or take the "short position" whenever they believe that the prices of oil and gas are about to drop. Probably one of the most visible companies participating in these kinds of contracts is LINN Energy (NASDAQ: LINE  ) �As a master limited partnership looking to provide consistent payouts to its shareholders, it writes several hundred million dollars in futures contracts to shield against any major price fluxes that would damage the company's ability to pay out distributions.

• [By Matt DiLallo]

  You can make a lot of money by following the advice of a billionaire. That's why I think you should follow what Leon Cooperman, the billionaire and founder of hedge fund Omega Advisors, has to say about two energy stocks. I've been following both companies for quite some time, and I agree: Both LINN Energy (NASDAQ: LINE  ) and SandRidge Energy (NYSE: SD  ) have the potential to make investors a lot of money.