For those seeking safe, reliable income in the current low interest rate environment, Jack Adamo sees opportunity in high-quality preferred stocks; here, the editor of Insiders Plus highlights two favorite bank-issued preferred stocks.
Steve Halpern: Joining us today is Jack Adamo, editor of Insiders Plus. How are you doing today, Jack?
Jack Adamo: I'm well Steve, thank you.
Steve Halpern: In your latest newsletter, you note that bonds don't currently offer the return investors are seeking, while dividend stocks appear to be getting increasingly overvalued. To overcome this challenge, you've been looking at a less traditional area, preferred stocks. Can you tell us a little about that?
Jack Adamo: Yes. The important thing to remember about preferred stocks is you're looking at different metrics than you are with other stocks. Normally, with other stocks, even dividend stocks, you're concerned with growth.
With preferred stocks, you're not looking for growth in earnings. What you're looking for is solidity and consistency, financial strength of the company paying. Growth is of a secondary concern. It's only an indication that the company is financially healthy.
Top 10 US Companies To Own In Right Now: Anika Therapeutics Inc.(ANIK)
Anika Therapeutics, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and commercializes therapeutic products for tissue protection, healing, and repair. Its products are based on hyaluronic acid (HA), a naturally occurring biocompatible polymer found in the body. The company offers orthobiologics products for providing relief from the pain of osteoarthritis, and regenerating damaged tissue, such as cartilage defects; ORTHOVISC for the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee and various joints; ORTHOVISC mini for the treatment of osteoarthritis in small joints; and MONOVISC, a single injection product used for the treatment of osteoarthritis in various joints. It also provides wound care products that comprise Hyalograft 3D for the regeneration of skin; and Hyalomatrix for the treatment of burns and ulcers. In addition, the company offers AMVISC, AMVISC Plus, STAARVISC-II, Optivisc, and AnikaVisc which are injectable HA products used as viscoelastic agents in o phthalmic surgical procedures, such as cataract extraction and intraocular lens implantation. Further, it provides INCERT, a HA based product for the prevention of post-surgical adhesions; Hyalobarrier and Hyalobarrier Endo, which are post operative adhesion barriers for abdominal indications; and HYVISC, an injectable HA product used for the treatment of joint dysfunction in horses due to non-infectious synovitis associated with equine osteoarthritis. Additionally, the company offers Merogel, a product used for the treatment of ear, nose, and throat disorders; and provides dermal fillers for facial wrinkles and scar remediation under the ELEVESS and HYDRELLE brand names. It markets its products directly, as well as through a network of distributors primarily in the United States and Europe. The company was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By STOCKPICKR]
Anika Therapeutics (ANIK), together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and commercializes therapeutic products for tissue protection, healing, and repair in the U.S., Europe, and internationally. This stock closed up 2.1% to $48.86 in Monday's trading session.
Monday's Volume: 1.25 million
Three-Month Average Volume: 347,160
Volume % Change: 272%From a technical perspective, ANIK jumped higher here right above some near-term support at $46 with above-average volume. This spike higher on Monday briefly pushed shares of ANIK into breakout territory, since the stock flirted with some near-term overhead resistance levels at $49.21 to $49.37. Shares of ANIK tagged an intraday high of $51.40, before it closed below that level at $48.86. Market players should now look for a continuation move to the upside in the short-term if ANIK manages to take out Monday's high of $51.36 to its 52-week high of $52.49 with high volume.
Traders should now look for long-biased trades in ANIK as long as it's trending above Monday's low of $47.57 or above $46 and then once it sustains a move or close above $51.36 to $52.49 with volume that hits near or above 347,160 shares. If that move begins soon, then ANIK will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that move are $55 to $60.
Top 10 Quality Stocks To Invest In 2014: Digital River Inc.(DRIV)
Digital River, Inc. provides end-to-end global cloud-commerce and marketing solutions. The company offers a range of services that enables its customers to establish an online sales channel. Its services include design, development, and hosting of online stores and shopping carts; store merchandising and optimization; order management; denied parties screening; export controls and management; tax compliance and management; fraud management; digital product delivery via download; physical product fulfillment; subscription management; online marketing, including email marketing; management of affiliate programs; paid search programs; payment processing services; Web site optimization, Web analytics, and reporting; and CD production and delivery services. The company also provides paid search advertising, search engine optimization, affiliate marketing, store optimization, multi-variant testing, and Web analytic and e-mail optimization services. In addition, it offers a range of payment processing services, such as multiple payment methods, fraud management, tax management, cloud-based billing, and other payment optimization services. The company sells its products and services through Internet and direct sales force. It serves software, consumer electronics, and computer and video game product manufacturers, as well as online channel partners, including retailers and affiliates in the United States, Austria, Brazil, China, Germany, Korea, Ireland, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, Singapore, Sweden, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom. Digital River, Inc. was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Alex Planes]
What: Shares of Digital River� (NASDAQ: DRIV ) are trading 8% higher in the afternoon after rocketing to an opening-bell gain of over 11% on Wednesday morning. Investors have cheered Digital River's strong first-quarter earnings and are reacting favorably to respectable (though not strong) guidance issued for the remainder of the fiscal year.
Top 10 Quality Stocks To Invest In 2014: Grupo Casa Saba S.A. de C.V.(SAB)
Grupo Casa Saba, S.A.B. de C.V., through its subsidiaries, operates as a multi-channel and multi-product wholesale distributor primarily in Mexico. It distributes pharmaceutical products; health and beauty aids; publication products, such as magazines, books, albums, and stickers; food and non-perishable products; personal care and consumer goods; and general merchandise. The company also sells pharmaceutical products through its Farmacias ABC pharmacy chain located in Guadalajara, Jalisco; Farmacias Provee de Especialidades primarily located in Monterrey and Nuevo Leon of Mexico, as well as in the states of Chihuahua and Coahuila; and through Farmacias Benavides. In addition, it provides freight services to third parties. Further, it operates medical clinics; and offers specialized medical, rehabilitation, and surgical services, as well as provides real estate services. The company serves pharmacies, mass merchandisers, retail and convenience stores, specialty stores, sup ermarkets, and other specialized channels. As of December 31, 2010, it operated a distribution network consisting of 22 active distribution centers. It also operates in Brazil, Chile, and Peru. Grupo Casa Saba, S.A.B. de C.V. was founded in 1892 and is based in Mexico, Mexico.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Inyoung Hwang]
U.K. stocks erased losses in the last half hour of trading, leaving the FTSE 100 Index (UKX) little changed, as a rally in British Sky Broadcasting Group Plc (BSY) and SABMiller Plc (SAB) offset Dagong Global Credit Rating Co.�� downgrade of U.S. sovereign debt.
- [By Tom Stoukas]
SABMiller Plc (SAB) lost 2.1 percent to 3,462 pence. The world�� second-largest brewer said earnings before interest, taxes and amortization in the year to March 31 rose to $6.42 billion. That missed the median estimate of 13 analysts in a Bloomberg News survey that called for $6.46 billion.
Top 10 Quality Stocks To Invest In 2014: Ishares Trust S & P Global (IXC)
iShares S&P Global Energy Sector Index Fund (the Fund) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Standard & Poor�� Global Energy Sector Index (the Index). The Index is a subset of the Standard & Poor�� Global 1200 Index, and measures the performance of companies that Standard & Poor�� deems to be part of the energy sector. Component companies in the Index include those engaged in oil equipment and services, oil exploration and production, and oil refineries.
The Fund invests in a representative sample of securities included in the Index that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Index. The Fund�� investment advisor is Barclays Global Fund Advisors.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Aaron Levitt]
While the previously mentioned XLE is a great fund, the iShares Global Energy (IXC) may be a better bet. The key is the fund�� global exposure. The exchange-traded fund (ETF) tracks 91 different oil stocks — with about 48% of its exposure to those energy firms located outside the United States.
- [By Benjamin Shepherd]
So far, 2014 has been a year of heightened geopolitical risk. Russia has annexed the Crimea region of Ukraine, Syria remains embroiled in a civil war, political protests continue in Egypt and Turkey, and North Korea has once again fired missiles into the sea to protest joint US-South Korea military exercises.
Earlier this month, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde, pointed to these simmering geopolitical tensions as an impediment to global economic growth.
Geopolitical risk can affect a variety of asset classes, ranging from energy and gold to bonds and equities. In the energy space, Brent crude, essentially the equivalent of West Texas Intermediate (WTI), traded above $109 a barrel thanks to worries that Russia might make a play for more Ukrainian territory. While WTI also spiked, it finished the week essentially flat following a stronger than expected inventory report from the Energy Information Administration (EIA).
Even as oil prices are on the rise, so is production. In the US, the EIA reports that crude production average 7.5 million barrels per day (BPD) last year, 1 million BPD over 2012 and the highest annual rate since 1989. The agency estimates that production should run about 8.5 million BPD this year and hit 9.6 million BPD next year, the highest level of production since 1970.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which produces about 40 percent of the world�� oil, is forecasting similar supply growth. This past January production rose by 28,000 BPD to 29.71 million BPD, largely thanks to increased production from Libya. Including America�� production increase, non-OPEC countries are expected to boost their supply by 1.29 million BPD to 55.43 million BPD.
With consumption forecast to grow by about 1.3 million BPD in 2014, that leaves supply and demand in almost perfect balance, supporting strong oil prices even when and if the crisis in Ukraine abates. - [By Louis Navellier]
The ishares Dow Jones U.S. Energy Sector Fund (IYE) tracks the performance of 99 major energy stocks in the U.S. IYE is actually up 20% for the year, but it has been trending downward over the past month. Meanwhile, the ishares S&P Global Energy Sector Fund (IXC) is up just 10% so far for the year. This fund, which also contains 99 holdings from all over the world, provides perhaps the best view of how the energy sector is faring on the global level. It has also fallen in the past month.
Top 10 Quality Stocks To Invest In 2014: Chicago Bridge & Iron Company NV (CBI)
Chicago Bridge & Iron Company N.V. (CB&I) is one of the integrated engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services providers and process technology licensors, delivering solutions to customers primarily in the energy, petrochemical and natural resource industries. CB&I consist of three business sectors: Steel Plate Structures, Project Engineering and Construction, and Lummus Technology. Through these business sectors, the Company offers services both independently and on an integrated basis.
As of December 31, 2012, the Company had more than 900 projects in process in more than 70 countries. On February 13, 2013, it acquired The Shaw Group Inc. (Shaw).
Steel Plate Structures
Steel Plate Structures provides engineering, procurement, fabrication and construction services, including mechanical erection services, for the hydrocarbon, water and nuclear industries. Projects include above ground storage tanks, elevated storage tanks, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) tanks, pressure vessels, and other specialty structures, such as nuclear containment vessels. Customers include international energy companies, such as Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil and Shell; national energy companies, such as ADNOC (Abu Dhabi), CNOOC (China) and Saudi Aramco (Saudi Arabia); and regional energy companies, such as Kinder Morgan (United States) and Suncor (Canada).
Project Engineering and Construction
Project Engineering and Construction provides engineering, procurement, fabrication and construction services for upstream and downstream energy infrastructure facilities. Projects include LNG liquefaction and regasification terminals, gas processing plants, refinery units, petrochemical complexes and a wide range of other energy-related projects. Customers include international energy companies, such as British Petroleum, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil and Shell; national energy companies, such as Ecopetrol (Colombia) and ORPIC (Oman); and regio! nal energy companies, such as Dominion (United States), Gazprom (Russia), Nexen (United Kingdom), and Woodside (Australia).
Lummus Technology
Lummus Technology provides licenses, services, catalysts and equipment for the hydrocarbon refining, petrochemical, and gas processing industries. Customers include international energy companies, such as Chevron and Shell; national energy companies, such as Pemex (Mexico), Petrochina (China), Rosneft (Russia) and Sabic (Saudi Arabia); and regional refiners and chemical and gas processing companies, such as China Coal (China), IRPC (Thailand), Kazakhstan Petrochemical (Kazakhstan), and Williams Energy Services (United States).
Power provides a range of services, including design, EPC, technology and consulting services, primarily to the fossil and nuclear power generation industries. Plant Services provides electric power refueling outage maintenance, turnaround maintenance, routine maintenance, offshore maintenance, modifications, capital construction, off-site modularization, fabrication, reliability engineering, plant engineering, plant support and specialty services. Additionally, it provides services to restore, rebuild, repair, renovate and modify industrial and electric power generation facilities, and offers predictive and preventive maintenance services. Environmental & Infrastructure (E&I) provides full-scale environmental and infrastructure services for government and private-sector clients. These services include program and project management, design-build, engineering and construction, sustainability and energy efficiency, remediation and restoration, science and technology, facilities management and emergency response and disaster recovery. Fabrication and Manufacturing is a worldwide supplier of fabricated piping systems primarily to the electric power, petrochemical and refinery industries, supporting both external clients and other Shaw business sectors.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Rich Duprey]
Engineering and design firm�CB&I (NYSE: CBI ) has been awarded an Environmental Protection Agency contract worth $160 million for remediation services in a region that includes Arizona, Nevada, California, Hawaii, tribal nations, and U.S. territories in the Pacific Ocean, the company announced today.
- [By Jim Jubak]
On February 25, Chicago Bridge & Iron (CBI) reported earnings of $1.91 a share. Excluding a big tax benefit (72 cents) and acquisition costs (11 cents), adjusted earnings came to $1.19 a share. That was 3 cents a share above Wall Street projections.
- [By John Udovich]
Mid cap infrastructure construction stock Chicago Bridge & Iron Company N.V. (NYSE: CBI) fell 7.23% after being trashed in an article by an apparent�short seller posted on Seeking Alpha, meaning its worth taking a closer look at the stock along with the performance of potential benchmarks like Jacobs Engineering Group Inc (NYSE: JEC), KBR, Inc (NYSE: KBR) and First Trust ISE Global Engineering and Construction Index Fund ETF (NYSEARCA: FLM).
- [By Dimitra DeFotis]
Engineering and construction companies like�Chicago Bridge & Iron (CBI) and Foster Wheeler (FWLT) have contracted with Rosneft and ExxonMobil (XOM) on a proposed $15 billion Russian liquefied-natural gas (LNG) project. But Russian gas giant Gazprom dominates. Research from last fall here on how�Russia has been pushing to liberalize and expand its natural gas market.�(subscription required)
Top 10 Quality Stocks To Invest In 2014: Lean Hogs (HE)
Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc., through its subsidiaries, primarily engages in electric utility and banking businesses primarily in Hawaii. The company is involved in the production, purchase, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity from renewable energy sources, such as wind, solar, photovoltaic, geothermal, wave, hydroelectric, sugarcane waste, municipal waste, and other biofuels, as well as from fuel oil. It distributes and sells electricity on the islands of Oahu, Hawaii, Maui, Lanai, and Molokai; and serves suburban communities, resorts, the United States armed forces installations, and agricultural operations. As of December 31, 2011, the company had net generating and firm purchased capability of 2,326.9 megawatts. It also engages in providing banking and other financial services, such as accepting savings accounts, checking accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit; and providing loans comprising residential and commercial real es tate, residential mortgage, construction and development, multifamily residential and commercial real estate, consumer, and commercial loans to consumers and business. The company operated 57 branches and 119 automated teller machines. Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. was founded in 1891 and is based in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Leading and Lagging Sectors
Utilities stocks gained Friday, with Korea Electric Power (NYSE: KEP) leading advancers. Meanwhile, gainers in the sector included Huaneng Power International (NYSE: HNP), with shares up 1.8 percent, and Hawaiian Electric Industries (NYSE: HE), with shares up 1.4 percent. - [By Geoff Gannon]
路 Within 5 or 6 hours��(he) found 20 stocks selling at 2 or 3 (times) earnings with strong balance sheets.
路 Korea rebuilt itself in a big way post 1998. Companies overbuilt their balance sheets.
Top 10 Quality Stocks To Invest In 2014: First Bancorp (FBP)
First Bancorp is a bank holding company. The Company is a service provider of financial services and products with operations in Puerto Rico, the United States and the United States and British Virgin Islands. The Company has six segments: Consumer (Retail) Banking; Commercial and Corporate Banking; Mortgage Banking; Treasury and Investments; United States Operations, and Virgin Islands Operations. The Company specializes in commercial banking, residential mortgage loan originations, finance leases, personal loans, small loans, auto loans, insurance agency and broker-dealer activities. As of December 31, 2011, it controlled two wholly owned subsidiaries: FirstBank and FirstBank Insurance Agency, Inc. (FirstBank Insurance Agency). FirstBank is a Puerto Rico-chartered commercial bank and FirstBank Insurance Agency is a Puerto Rico-chartered insurance agency. On February 16, 2011, FirstBank sold an asset portfolio consisting of performing and non-performing construction, commercial mortgage and C&I loans. The Company�� total investment securities portfolio as of December 31, 2011 amounted to $2 billion. As of December 31, 2011, the Company had a total deposit of $9.9 billion. Effective May 31, 2011, the Company purchased FirstBank-branded consumer credit card portfolio from FIA Card Services, N.A. and an affiliate.
Consumer (Retail) Banking
The Consumer (Retail) Banking segment consists of the Company�� consumer lending and deposit-taking activities conducted mainly through FirstBank�� branch network and loan centers in Puerto Rico. Loans to consumers include auto, boat and personal loans and lines of credit. Deposit products include interest bearing and non-interest bearing checking and savings accounts, Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA) and retail certificates of deposit. Retail deposits gathered through each branch of FirstBank�� retail network serve as one of the funding sources for the lending and investment activities. Credit card accounts are issued under Firs! tBank�� name through an alliance with a financial institution, which bears the credit risk.
Commercial and Corporate Banking
The Commercial and Corporate Banking segment consists of the Company�� lending and other services across a spectrum of industries ranging from small businesses to large corporate clients. FirstBank has developed expertise in industries, including healthcare, tourism, financial institutions, food and beverage, income-producing real estate and the public sector. The Commercial and Corporate Banking segment offers commercial loans, including commercial real estate and construction loans, and other products, such as cash management and business management services. A substantial portion of this portfolio is secured by the underlying value of the real estate collateral and the personal guarantees of the borrowers. The segment also includes the Company�� broker-dealer activities, which are primarily concentrated in bonds underwriting and financial advisory services provided to government entities in Puerto Rico.
Mortgage Banking
The Mortgage Banking segment conducts its operations mainly through FirstBank and its mortgage origination subsidiary, First Mortgage. These operations consist of the origination, sale and servicing of a variety of residential mortgage loan products. Originations are sourced through different channels, such as FirstBank branches, mortgage bankers and in association with new project developers. First Mortgage focuses on originating residential real estate loans, some of which conform to Federal Housing Administration (FHA), Veterans Administration (VA) and Rural Development (RD) standards. The Mortgage Banking segment also acquires and sells mortgages in the secondary markets. Most of the Company�� residential mortgage loan portfolio consists of fixed-rate, fully amortizing, full documentation loans.
Treasury and Investments
The Treasury and Investments segment is responsib! le for th! e Corporation�� treasury and investment management functions. The treasury function, which includes funding and liquidity management, sells funds to the Commercial and Corporate Banking segment, the Mortgage Banking segment, and the Consumer (Retail) Banking segment to finance their respective lending activities and purchases funds gathered by those segments and from the United States Operations segment. Funds not gathered by the different business units are obtained by the Treasury Division through wholesale channels, such as brokered deposits, advances from the FHLB and, repurchase agreements with investment securities, among others.
United States Operations
The United States Operations segment consists of all banking activities conducted by FirstBank in the United States mainland. FirstBank provides a range of banking services to individual and corporate customers primarily in southern Florida through its ten branches. The United States Operations segment offers an array of both retail and commercial banking products and services. Consumer banking products include checking, savings and money market accounts, retail certificates of deposit (CDs), Internet banking services, residential mortgages, home equity loans and lines of credit, automobile loans and credit cards through an alliance with a nationally recognized financial institution, which bears the credit risk. Deposits gathered through FirstBank�� branches in the United States also serve as a funding sources for lending and investment activities in Puerto Rico. The commercial banking services include checking, savings and money market accounts, CDs, Internet banking services, cash management services, remote data capture and automated clearing house (ACH), transactions. Loan products include the traditional commercial and industrial and commercial real estate products, such as lines of credit, term loans and construction loans.
Virgin Islands Operations
The Virgin Islands Operations seg! ment cons! ists of all banking activities conducted by FirstBank in the United States and British Virgin Islands, including retail and commercial banking services, with a total of fourteen branches serving the United States Virgin Islands of St. Thomas, St. Croix, and St. John, and the British Virgin Islands of Tortola and Virgin Gorda. The Virgin Islands Operations segment is driven by its consumer, commercial lending and deposit-taking activities.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By CRWE]
First BanCorp (NYSE:FBP), the bank holding company for FirstBank Puerto Rico, expects to report its financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2012, after the market closes on Wednesday, October 31, 2012.
- [By Laura Brodbeck]
Monday
Earnings Releases Expected: UGI Corporation (NYSE: UGI), Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM), First Bancorp. (NYSE: FBP) Economic Releases Expected: �Indian services PMI, Spanish services PMI, Italian services PMI, German services PMI, eurozone services PMI, British services PMI, German CPI, US ISM non-manufacturing PMITuesday
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