Yellen: Economy Will Need Fed’s Support for ‘Some Time’

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, easing investor concern that interest rates may rise earlier than previously forecast, said the central bank’s unprecedented stimulus will be needed for “some time.”

Yellen, citing the examples of three people struggling to find work, used a speech to a community development conference in Chicago to make the case for continued Fed stimulus, which has included more than five years of interest rates near zero and trillions in bond purchases.

“This extraordinary commitment is still needed and will be for some time, and I believe that view is widely shared by my fellow policymakers at the Fed,” Yellen said in her remarks to a Fed community development conference. “The scars from the Great Recession remain, and reaching our goals will take time.”

Stocks rose as Yellen highlighted the Fed’s commitment to spur the economy and put 10.5 million unemployed Americans back to work. Share prices fell on March 19, when she said in a press conference that the Fed might start raising the benchmark interest rate above zero about six months after ending its bond purchase program. Yellen didn’t mention a timetable today.

“It is an indirect pushback,” said Ward McCarthy, chief financial economist at Jefferies LLC in New York. “I don’t think she could directly contradict what she said at the press conference, so she did the next best thing, which was to paint a picture of a Fed that is going to be accommodative for a long, long time.”

Stagnant Wages

Large numbers of partly unemployed workers, stagnant wages, lower labor-force participation and longer periods of joblessness show that “there remains considerable slack in the economy and the labor market,” Yellen said.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 0.6% to 1,868.55 at 11:38 a.m. in New York. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note was up two basis points, or 0.02 percentage point, to 2.74%.

The Federal Open Market Committee has kept the benchmark interest rate near zero since December 2008 and sought to cut borrowing costs and fuel growth through bond buying that has more than quadrupled its assets to $4.23 trillion.

While policy makers have slowed the pace of their monthly asset purchases over the past three gatherings to $55 billion from $85 billion, Yellen said the central bank’s “commitment is strong” to helping sustain progress in the job market.

“Recent steps by the Fed to reduce the rate of new securities purchases are not a lessening of this commitment, only a judgment that recent progress in the labor market means our aid for the recovery need not grow as quickly,” she said. “Earlier this month, the Fed reiterated its overall commitment to maintain extraordinary support for the recovery for some time to come.”

Human Cost

Yellen, 67, has focused on the labor market and the human cost of unemployment for much of her career as an academic and central bank official. After three years as Fed vice chair, she was sworn in last month to succeed Ben S. Bernanke. The FOMC said in a policy statement this month that rates will likely remain low for a considerable time after the bond buying program ends. The committee said it will weigh a “wide range of information,” including labor-market measures, in deciding when it will eventually begin raising rates.

Unemployment was 6.7% in February, up from the 6.6% level in January that was the lowest since October 2008. The economy added 175,000 jobs in February, more than economists projected, following the weakest two-month hiring gain in more than a year in December and January.

Yellen departed from the style of her recent predecessors by citing three individuals by name and discussing in her speech how their struggles with joblessness “tell us important things that the unemployment rate alone cannot.” Yellen spoke to them by phone, Fed Spokeswoman Michelle Smith said.

Claims Processing

Yellen cited Dorine Poole, who lost a claims processing job and struggled to find work after two years of unemployment. She said Jermaine Brownlee, a plumber and construction worker, “scrambled for odd jobs and temporary work” and still makes less than before the recession. Vicki Lira lost two jobs, was homeless at times, and now serves food samples part time at a grocery store.

“They are a reminder that there are real people behind the statistics, struggling to get by and eager for the opportunity to build better lives,” Yellen said. “Their experiences show some of the uniquely challenging and lasting effects of the Great Recession.”

--With assistance from Kim Chipman in Chicago and Peter Cook in Washington.

Tesla Motors Inc Should Watch Germany, Not Detroit for Competition

Detroit can't seem to get electric vehicles right. The Chevy Volt by General Motors (NYSE: GM  ) is only half electric and isn't inspirational for the high-end market that can go electric. The Nissan Leaf would leave even the shortest commuter with range anxiety. And the Ford (NYSE: F  ) Focus Electric doesn't quite provide enough range or excitement to be a real competitor. 

While Detroit leaves the high end of the EV market to Tesla Motors (NASDAQ: TSLA  ) , instead focusing on cheaper models, there's one company building the capability to compete in the top end of the market. BMW's (NASDAQOTH: BAMXY  ) i-series is the first step into the EV market, and it brings performance and new technology to the equation. 

The i3 is BMW's longer-range, lower-cost model, while the i8 is a hybrid that can perform with the Model S in almost any performance category. There's no doubt Tesla has a head start on BMW, but this is an auto giant with a loyal following and if it keeps pouring money into developing EVs it will be the first major competitor to Tesla's dominance. 

Below, Motley Fool contributor Travis Hoium discusses why Tesla should watch BMW and how this is just the beginning of competition in the EV market. 

America's plan to take the crown back from China
For the first time since the early days of this country, we're in a position to dominate the global manufacturing landscape thanks to a single, revolutionary technology: 3D printing. Although this sounds like something out of a science fiction novel, the success of 3D printing is already a foregone conclusion to many manufacturers around the world. The trick now is to identify the companies -- and thereby the stocks -- that will prevail in the battle for market share. To see the three companies that are currently positioned to do so, simply download our invaluable free report on the topic by clicking here now.

Free Classes to Boost Your Career

Lifelong learning is part of many successful careers. But because employers are getting stingier with tuition-reimbursement benefits and graduate programs can leave young workers swamped with debt, higher education may seem hard to come by. Look to the growing crop of free online classes to give you a knowledge boost.

See Also: Will Your College Degree Pay Off?

Known by the unwieldy term "massive open online courses" (or MOOCs, for short), these classes are (mostly) free digital replicas of actual college offerings (sometimes you have to pay a fee if you want a certificate upon completion). While moving the classroom experience online may limit your time with the professor, the digital classes still encourage a high level of interaction with lots of multimedia extras, including forums to chat with classmates, videos and quizzes. Most courses are created and offered by traditional colleges or universities, such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; others come from for-profit Web sites.

MOOCs are helping people earn more money, get promoted and switch careers. In the past, employers were hesitant to take them at face value. (In 2012, I gave free online classes a poor grade as career boosters; "hiring professionals don't care about them," a human resources consultant told me at the time.) But now that some courses are experimenting with accreditation and business partnerships, managers are taking notice. As Knight Kiplinger, editor in chief of Kiplinger's, noted in A College Degree Isn't Enough, once rigorous testing satisfies employers, these classes could mean as much as — or even more than — a conventional degree.

One MOOC success story, Ryan Hanna, 30, has a million reasons to agree. Just a few years ago, Hanna was a network administrator with limited coding experience. But he wanted to learn a new skill that would boost his annual income and eventually lead to a new career. As a 2012 New Year's resolution, he dove into a free course at Codeacademy. About six days into his lessons, he came up with the idea for Sworkit, a clever fitness app that launched in May 2012 and gained a million free downloads in just 307 days. Thanks to his app's success, Hanna has gotten several job offers and a new career track. Now, he's living in England, developing apps full-time and working with his wife on an education start-up to teach kids robotics and coding.

How MOOCs Work

You can start your own online-learning success story by creating an account on a MOOC Web site. Popular options include Udacity and Coursera. Another option is edX, which was created at MIT and features classes from MIT, Harvard, Georgetown and other esteemed schools. (Keep in mind that the vast majority of MOOCs currently lack accreditation.) Peruse the hundreds of class options, and take your pick.

Classes run the gamut, from the classic Intro to Statistics to the more advanced Intro to Artificial Intelligence and the professionally focused How to Build a Start-up. The first wave of MOOCs was adept at teaching science and math skills because it was easier to design an online class that gave auto-graded, multiple-choice quizzes. Now MOOCs are getting better at teaching important "soft" skills, including writing, critical thinking and public speaking.

For example, on Coursera, Matt McGarrity, a professor at the University of Washington, teaches Introduction to Public Speaking — a perfect choice to hone your job-interview skills, especially if you're trying to transition to a different field, says McGarrity. Students upload videos of their speeches onto a private YouTube channel (so you need a video camera or webcam to participate), and classmates review each other's work.

For some classes, you can start whenever you like. Others have specific start and end dates. Either way, without the motivation of in-person classes or the investment of tuition dollars, you may struggle to stay engaged. It's not uncommon for MOOCs to have completion rates in the single digits. The University of Pennsylvania found that its MOOCs have a 2% to 14% completion rate.

You'll need to schedule at least three hours per week for most classes. Stay engaged by interacting on online forums, tinkering with small projects and promoting your journey on social media.

Brandish Your Badge

Once you finish a MOOC, flaunt your academic accomplishment on your résumé, LinkedIn account and personal Web site. Many MOOCs make it easy to share your success. In addition to digital certificates, some courses award you small icons you can display on LinkedIn.

Those badges matter. They show employers you are actively learning and passionate about certain topics. "The more you can signal to employees what you can do, the better," says Mary Alice McCarthy, a senior education policy analyst at the New America Foundation, a public policy think tank.

Depending on your course of study, you should also aim to make something to show off at the end of your course. Knowledge is invaluable, but tangible evidence of your know-how may be needed to win over employers. It can also deepen your educational experience. Simply "learning to code," for instance, can turn into a dead end. But for Sworkit developer Hanna, setting his sights on building an actual app not only gave him a marketable product at the end of his course, it also provided him added direction throughout his lessons. Instead of memorizing facts, he was solving problems. "I learned more than any additional degree would have taught me," says Hanna. "All with zero new debt and no regrets."

Small Cap TriNet Group Inc (TNET): The Best of the Recent HR Software IPOs? PCTY & WDAY

The IPO of small cap HR software stock TriNet Group Inc (NYSE: TNET) jumped around 20% in its fist day of trading today, meaning its worth taking a closer look at the stock along with the performance of potential peers like Paylocity Holding Corp (NASDAQ: PCTY) and Workday Inc (NYSE: WDAY) which also had recent IPOs while Paycom Software, a profitable cloud-based human-capital management software firm based in Oklahoma City, has recently filed to go public. However, its important to also remember that the HR software solutions space is pretty crowded already with various offerings.

What is TriNet Group Inc?

Small cap TriNet Group provides HR solutions to small to mid-sized businesses, allowing them to focus on what they do best. Specifically, the company's bundled HR products, strategic services and software simplify HR and are tailored by industry with bundled HR products covering the core services of payroll, benefits, risk & compliance, an HR team and a cloud platform. At the end of last year, TriNet had over 8,900 clients in a variety of industries and managed more than $17 billion in payroll and insurance premiums a year.

As for potential small cap HR software peers who also recently had IPOs, Paylocity Holding Corp is a leading provider of cloud-based payroll and human capital management software solutions for medium-sized organizations; and Workday Inc is a leading provider of enterprise cloud-based applications for human capital management, payroll, financial management, time tracking, procurement and employee expense management.

What You Need to Know or Be Warned About TriNet Group Inc

On Thursday, small cap TriNet Group rose 19.38% to $19.10 for a market cap of $291.45 million after shares debuted at $16, the midpoint of its expected range of $15 to $17. The company sold 15 million shares to raise $240 million while underwriters were granted a 30-day option to purchase up to 2,250,000 shares of common stock from stockholders affiliated with General Atlantic LLC.

In mid-March, Burton Goldfield, TriNet Group's CEO, appeared on CNBC's Mad Money to explain why his company is better or different from the competition. He commented:

We're a one stop solution. We'll navigate the affordable care act and HR services and 105 different benefit plans.

He then explained that the TriNet Group has three important components:

We have 300 hr people around the country. We tell our owners if you get into a problem with HR, you learn five words: "Sound series, I'll call Trinet." That's not a software provider. The second piece is a software backbone. We process 17 billion in payroll. We do 5 million transactions a month. Accessible through iPhone apps. Personal time off. Time in accounting. Expense management. That's the software piece and finally those benefit plans which are tightly integrated into the backbone. So the bundle solution is all three pieces.

Cramer did ask about the 20% attrition rate, but the CEO commented:

You know what, we keep clients about five years and some of those clients either get acquired or run out of business. Our most famous client today is What's App. What's App started with five employees and now they have 55. They're still a Trinet client.

He also noted that Obamacare is wonderful for TriNet Group – no doubt because of the constant rewriting of the law and the response employers are taking to those rewrites e.g. changing managers and supervisors to hourly positions.

On the financial front and according to its latest S-1 filing, TriNet Group has reported revenues of $719,383M (2009), $906,190M (2010), $840,390M (2011), $1,019,061M (2012) and $1,644,275M (2013) along with net income of $17,818M (2009), a net loss of $8,827M (2010) and net income of $14,762M (2011), $31,832M (2012) and $13,147M (2013). However, investors should take a closer look at TriNet Group's liabilities:

Liabilities and stockholders' deficit
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable		$	5,250			$	7,315
Accrued corporate wages			15,896				26,264
Deferred income taxes			33,960				16,535
Current portion of notes payable and borrowings under capital leases			9,803				6,669
Other current liabilities			10,232				9,078
Worksite employee related liabilities			399,501				767,624
Total current liabilities			474,642				833,485
Notes payable and borrowings under capital leases, less current portion			291,531				812,208
Workers compensation liabilities			39,327				45,309
Deferred income taxes			18,026				8,888
Other liabilities			6,881				5,210
Total liabilities			830,407				1,705,100

 

Nevertheless, the CEO had also told Cramer:

I believe in growth with predictable profitability. We have exceptional cash flow and we will grow consistently over the next many years to come.

Share Performance: TriNet Group Inc vs. PCTY & WDAY

Finally, here is a look at the performance or technical charts that do exist for TriNet Group, Paylocity Holding Corp and Workday Inc:

The Bottom Line. Although investing in recent IPOs is not for the risk adverse, small cap TriNet Group could at least be worth some further scrutiny.

Gurus Dropped This Stock, Should You Pick It Up?

To explore and produce, a great investment is required in tools, and one of the leading equipment suppliers is Schlumberger (SLB). A key to remaining on top of the industry is innovation, and of that the company has a whole load. Throughout 2014 alone, the firm has introduced a microseismic surface acquisition system, a new fracturing technique for unconventional reserves, launched a degradable alloy technology to improve well productivity, a multilayer bed boundary detection service for clastic and carbonate fields, and a rotary steerable system that increases directional control and drilling efficiency. These product introductions have been done during the first quarter of 2014, making a strong statement about the company's research and development pipeline. Gurus, however, mostly dropped the stock during the end of 2013. Let us see whether you can take advantage of the dumping and take a large position with long-term prospects.

Unequal growth

Schlumberger reported for 2013 an increase of over $4 billion in revenue year-over-over, with diluted earnings-per-share of $4.75 versus $4.01 in 2012. The growth has been pushed by onshore production in the Middle East and Asia, Europe and Asia, and Latin America area. The North America area, however, saw small decline in onshore production offset by a greater increase in offshore activities.

Management explained that land businesses in North America continued to experience pricing weakness in drilling, stimulation and wireline services, although the effect of this was partially offset by increased service intensity, improved efficiency, market share gains and new technology penetration.

Another important note concerning Schlumberger's overall performance is the write-offs issued related to activities in Brazil. These have generated an unequal opportunity to secure profits in the short-term. In short, the company has understated its profits. The upside to this is the fast increase of earnings per share the firm is experiencing. However, given the 13.25% annual returns since 2004 shareholders received, the question that remains is whether such figures will last long enough to take a strong position.

Long-Term Growth

The advantage gurus hold over regular investors is cash leverage. That alone allows gurus to make a profit in the short-term, even if the change in stock price is minimum. Hence, a regular investor has to think more when looking for an appropriate investment. And if dedication is part-time, then a long-term investment is all the more intelligent as it will allow her to be comfortable. A tip is given by the increasing positions during all of 2013 by the two largest gurus holding a position in Schlumberger.

The company is expected to benefit from current trends in oilfield services in North America, as drilling moves from onshore to offshore. Also, the outlook for 2014 remains largely bullish on an improved global economic scenario. Hence, higher demand for its products is expected to come primarily from the Mexican Gulf. An additional and greater push is expected by the remaining geographies as demand for oil continues to rise worldwide.

The greatest downside to Schlumberger is its exposure to the North America region. Here, activities have lagged while the production at other geographies continue to rise. So, the steady purchases by gurus are looking again for short-term profits. The reasoning behind the statement is that as long as the company does not reduce exposure to North America, profits in the long run will be scarce to none.

Moreover, Schlumberger cannot expect to reverse the trend through the introduction of new products that improve current techniques. Those products must revolutionize the industry if the trend wants to be reversed. Hence, the risk associated with the stock is evidenced on the carried 18% discount to the industry average, while trading at 18.7 times its trailing earnings.

Disclosure: Vanina Egea holds no position in any of the mentioned stocks.

About the author:Vanina EgeaA fundamental analyst at Lone Tree Analytics

Visit Vanina Egea's Website

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Nadex Expansion Continues To Grow, Rapidly

The Nadex Exchange has announced that it will be adding additional night time and afternoon intraday binary strikes and expirations for the EUR/JPY, staring on April 7th.

It recently added more binary expirations for the AUD/USD, GBP/USD and Nikkei 225. These changes allow more opportunities for evening traders to trade the Forex markets with defined risk, neutral and directional trades.

With these additions, Nadex now offers more than 2,400 binary option contracts on 24 markets -- with over 25 expirations a day depending on the market, with 3 to 21 binary strikes per expiration.  The binary contracts on Nadex can be opened and closed before expiration, allowing traders to trade trend, swing, and neutral strategies all with defined risk.

Related: What Is A Nadex Binary Option? Here is a chart of the EUR/JPY during the day, showing this is a market with plenty of volatility.  This shows nearly 100 pips just in the past 24 hours, making it a great candidate for trading Nadex.    

All Nadex binaries are based on Reuters Forex Spot Quotes.  They are not based on the Forex future or the Forex ETF contracts.

The new EUR/JPY Nadex binary contracts will be available for trading during the following hours effective April 7, 2014: 

6:00-8:00 pm, 7:00-9:00 pm, 8:00-10:00 pm, 9:00-11:00 pm, 10:00-11:00 pm, 11:00 PM-12:00 am, 12:00-2:00 am, 1:00-3:00 am, 2:00-4:00 am, 3:00-5:00 am, 4:00-6:00 am, 5:00-7:00 am, 6:00-8:00 am, 7:00-9:00 am, 2:00-4:00 pm, Sunday to Friday and 3:00-5:00 pm (Monday to Thursday).

In addition, they have 10:00 am, 11:00 am and 12:00 pm, 1:00 pm, 2:00 pm and 3:00 pm two-hour expirations already in place.  

The Intraday contracts begin trading at 6:00 pm ET Sunday, with the first expiration at 8:00 pm ET, and the final intraday expiration at 5:00 pm ET the following day through Friday. On Friday, there is not a 5:00 pm intraday expiration.

The Weekly contracts begin trading at 6:00 pm ET on Sunday and expire at 3:00 pm ET on Friday. They are open for trading from 6:00 pm ET Sunday to 3:00 pm ET Friday. (Closed between 5:00 pm ET and 6:00 pm ET Monday through Thursday).

The Daily contracts begin trading 23 hours before expiration. Daily expirations are at 7:00 pm, 11:00 pm, 3:00 am, 7:00 am, 11:00 am and 3:00 pm ET. There is not a 7:00 pm or 11:00 pm expiration on Friday. There is not a 7:00 pm expiration on Sunday.

Who is Nadex?

The North American Derivatives Exchange is based out of Chicago and is regulated by the U.S. Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). Nadex allows traders to trade binaries and spreads on foreign exchange (forex) markets, U.S. and International Stock Indices, and Commodities, like gold and oil. Trades can be opened and closed before expiration and NADEX is not trading against you.

How Can Nadex Binary Contracts Be Used?

These contracts can be used to trade strangles on JPY news, directionally, range bound and premium collection.

For example, you could buy a strike under the price. If the market moves up, stays flat or even moves down some, you can profit.

You could buy a strike above the price risking $5 to make $95, or risk $500 to make $9500.

Learn More About Nadex Binaries

On Nadex, the markets are open from as early as 6:00 pm ET to as late as 5:00 pm. the next day, giving the ability to trade day and/or night on intraday, daily and weekly contracts. 

To see examples of trading on Nadex binaries and spreads, see articles posted on Benzinga, click here.

Finally, Office for iPad a Fact

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) has confirmed that it wants in on the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPad. Consumers have been able to use Microsoft’s key Office programs on the Mac, but now it is official: Office for iPad is here.

Satya Nadella’s press briefing on Thursday indicated that the new Office for iPad will be available for download right away. This had been rumored in recent days, and it helps to propel shares on the rumor. Now it is a fact.

The move is a so-called freemium, a free download, for Office 365 subscribers. The reality is that this is potentially huge news on the surface. Now we have to see the functionality and actual interoperability of it before we can say what this does for the company’s subscription revenues.

Tech shares continued their decline on Thursday, and Apple shares were down 0.6% at $536.20 and Microsoft shares down 0.45% at $39.61 in mid-afternoon trading.

We could say more, but sometimes less is more. At least this makes life easier for some of us who run businesses.

Obviously this is not great news for the likes of Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) and Dell. This makes the iPad just that much easier to use for Windows fans. In fact, HP shares were down 1.5% at $31.86 at the same time. That being said, HP shares were actually up from where they were earlier in the day before the Office for iPad was confirmed.

Best Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now

Travelers (NYSE: TRV  ) has traveled north of the border for its latest large-scale asset purchase. The company announced Monday that it has agreed to a deal with Canada's E-L Financial to acquire The Dominion of Canada General Insurance.

The price is roughly $1.1 billion in cash, although the final amount is subject to adjustment.

In the press release announcing the news, Travelers quoted CEO Jay Fishman as saying that Dominion is "a great franchise, and this is a very good opportunity for Travelers to significantly improve its market position and scale in a meaningful market."

The American firm said Dominion's Canadian operations would be integrated with its own in that country, and the blended firms would have their headquarters in Toronto. Dominion's current CEO, Brigid Murphy, will serve in the same capacity for the combined entity. The Dominion was founded in 1887 in Toronto and has expanded across Canada. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter.

Best Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: PerkinElmer Inc.(PKI)

PerkinElmer, Inc. provides technology, services, and solutions to the diagnostics, research, environmental, industrial, and laboratory services markets worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Human Health and Environmental Health. The Human Health segment develops diagnostics, tools, and applications to help detect diseases earlier, as well as accelerate the discovery and development of critical new therapies. This segment provides early detection for genetic disorders from pre-conception to early childhood, as well as digital x-ray flat panel detectors and infectious disease testing for the diagnostics market. It also provides a suite of solutions, including instrumentation for automation and detection solutions, in vitro and in vivo imaging and analysis hardware and software, and a portfolio of consumable products, such as drug discovery and research reagents that enable researchers to enhance the drug discovery process. The Environmental Health segment offers t echnologies and applications to facilitate the creation of safer food and consumer products, secure surroundings, and efficient energy resources. This segment provides analytical technologies that address the quality of environment, sustainable energy development, and ensure safer food and consumer products; analytical instrumentation for the industrial market, which includes the semiconductor, chemical, petrochemical, lubricant, construction, office equipment, and quality assurance industries; and laboratory services. The company markets its products and services directly through its own sales forces and distributors for customers, including pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, laboratories, academic and research institutions, public health authorities, private healthcare organizations, doctors, and government agencies. PerkinElmer, Inc. was founded in 1931 and is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Daniel Lauchheimer]

  Let us contrast this with TROV's progress. TROV has secured two critical partnerships -- with Illumina (ILMN), and PerkinElmer (PKI). Company filings on the ILMN deal don't provide much detail, but the filings with the PKI deal detail how PKI wants to use TROV's science to develop a new t assay to detect the presence of hepatocelluar carcinoma (HCC). While these two partnerships do not guarantee approval in any way, they do provide a solid validation for TROV's technology.

• [By Rich Smith]

  The Department of Defense awarded a dozen separate contracts Thursday, worth more than $225 million in aggregate. Notable winners (among publicly traded companies) included:

• [By David Goodboy]

  In other bullish news, TrovaGene entered into a material agreement with multibillion-dollar diagnostics technology leader PerkinElmer (NYSE: PKI) to jointly develop a test to determine a person's risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The terms have not been disclosed, but PerkinElmer will make milestone payments to TrovaGene. 

Best Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: Comstock Resources Inc. (CRK)

Comstock Resources, Inc., an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, development, exploration, and production of oil and natural gas properties in the United States. The company�s oil and gas operations are primarily located in East Texas/North Louisiana and South Texas. It owns interests in approximately 1,570 producing oil and natural gas wells. As of December 31, 2012, the company had proved reserves of 551 billion cubic feet of natural gas equivalent. Comstock Resources, Inc. was founded in 1919 and is headquartered in Frisco, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Value Digger]

  It is clear that these key metrics match the metrics of a heavily natural gas weighted company that also carries significant debt. To prove this, let's check out Comstock Resources (CRK). Comstock sold some assets recently to Rosetta Resources (ROSE) to reduce its long term debt which still remains high though.

Top Small Cap Stocks To Own Right Now: Hudbay Minerals Inc (HBM)

HudBay Minerals Inc., an integrated mining company, engages in the exploration and development of copper, zinc, and precious metals mines in North and South America. It primarily produces copper concentrates containing copper, gold, and silver; and zinc metal. The company principally owns underground 777 mine that covers an area of 4,400 hectares and is located in Flin Flon, Manitoba. It also owns ore concentrators and a zinc production facility in northern Manitoba and Saskatchewan. The company was founded in 1992 and is based in Toronto, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Dan also highlights a new agreement with Brazil's Vale (NYSE: VALE  ) as an example of a new partner streaming agreement that features a focus on gold. Can Silver Wheaton continue to profit from future agreements with partners such as Barrick Gold (NYSE: ABX  ) , Primaro Mining (NYSE: PPP  ) , and Hudbay Minerals (NYSE: HBM  ) ?

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Dan, however, does believe CEO Randy Smallwood has the experience necessary to deal with these challenges. Strategies may include obtaining better terms from existing partners such as Barrick Gold (NYSE: ABX  ) , Goldcorp (NYSE: GG  ) , and Hudbay Minerals (NYSE: HBM  ) on future contracts.

• [By Sean Williams]

  In August, Silver Wheaton reached its most recent deal with HudBay Minerals (NYSE: HBM  ) , securing the rights to its silver production at a low fixed-cost of $5.90 per ounce and 100% of its gold production at its 777 mine through at least 2016 for $400 an ounce In return, Silver Wheaton will fork over up to $750 million in cash for the buildout of HudBay's Constancia mine. Even with the tumble metal prices took this week, Silver Wheaton's margins will continue to remain fat with gold hovering near $1,400 an ounce and silver near $23 an ounce, and its dividend could still head even higher.

Best Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce(CM)

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce provides various financial products, services, and advice to individual, small business, commercial, corporate, and institutional clients in Canada and internationally. The company offers retail markets services comprising personal banking, business banking, and wealth management services, as well as investment management services to retail and institutional clients. It also provides wholesale banking services, including credit, capital markets, investment banking, merchant banking, and research products and services to government, institutional, corporate, and retail clients. The company provides its services through its branch network, automated bank machines, mobile banking, and online banking site. As of June 3, 2011, it operated approximately 1,100 branches and 4,000 automated bank machines in Canada. The company was founded in 1867 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce� (NYSE: CM  ) �announced this morning�its second-quarter dividend of $0.96 per share, a 2% increase over the $0.94-per-share payout it made last quarter.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  It's easy for U.S. investors to paint Canadian banks with a single brush-stroke, as the differences in the banking system helped keep Bank of Montreal and its peers safer during the financial crisis five years ago. As Canada's housing market has kept rising even after the housing bust south of its border, however, investors have gotten increasingly concerned about the potential health of its banks, especially the largest ones. With downgrades for Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (NYSE: CM  ) , Toronto-Dominion (NYSE: TD  ) , and Bank of Montreal among a total of six banks in January, Moody's identified higher debt levels among Canadian consumers as driving potential risk for the economy.

• [By Arie Goren]

  Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CM)

  Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce provides various financial products and services in Canada and internationally.

• [By Katia Dmitrieva]

  Canadian Imperial (CM) said it�� being shut out in the new agreement. The deal ��ppears to have been intentionally structured in a way that attempts to nullify CIBC�� right of first refusal and any ability to match,��the bank said yesterday in a statement. ��iven the structuring of the document and our contractual rights, we are exploring our options.��

Best Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: Mobile TeleSystems (MBT)

Mobile TeleSystems OJSC, together with its subsidiaries, provides telecommunications services primarily in the Russian Federation, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Armenia, and Belarus. The company provides a range of mobile and fixed line voice and data telecommunications services, including transmission, broadband, pay-TV, and various value-added services; and sells equipment and accessories. It also offers network access services, including mobile cellular voice and data communication services; automatic roaming services; GPRS and Internet access services; and 3G technology. In addition, the company�s services include the design, construction, and installation of local voice and data networks capable of interconnecting with fixed line operators; installation and maintenance of cellular payphones; lease of digital communication channels; and provision of access to open computer databases and data networks, including the Internet, as well as video conferencing, and fixed, local, and long-distance telecommunications services. Its value-added services comprise call divert/forwarding, caller ID and anti-caller ID display, conference calling, WiFi, GPRS, intelligent call assistant, APN remote access point, fixed mobile convergence, enhanced data rates for GSM Evolution, call barring, SMS, mobile office, voicemail, mobile banking, wireless application protocol, MTS-Connect, SIM-browser, point-to-point transfer, unstructured supplementary services data, downlink packet access, mobile TV, call waiting, MMS, ring tones, missed call alert, itemization of monthly bills, information and directory, international access, WEB and WAP portal, customer care system, ring back tone, collect call, and location-based services. As of December 31, 2011, the company had a mobile subscriber base of approximately 101.14 million. It has a strategic partnership with Vodafone. The company was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Moscow, the Russian Federation.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Eric Lam]

  Manitoba Telecom (MBT) gained 5.7 percent to C$33.93 after selling its Allstream fiber network business to Accelero Capital Holdings for C$520 million. The company will use the cash to invest in new wireless spectrum and improve the speed of its existing networks, Manitoba Telecom said in a statement.

Best Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: Sun Life Financial Inc.(SLF)

Sun Life Financial Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides various life and health insurance, savings, investment management, retirement, and pension products and services to individuals and corporate customers. It offers individual life insurance policies, including individual term life, universal life, critical illness, disability, accident, and accidental death and dismemberment insurance policies; and group life insurance policies. The company also provides individual health insurance, long-term care insurance, group health benefits, dental benefits, and group insurance; and various individual and group annuity, retirement, and investment income products and services, such as mutual and pooled funds, variable and fixed annuities, savings, retirement and pension plans, and education savings. In addition, it offers asset management services for corporate retirement plans, separate accounts, public or government funds, and insurance company assets to institutional clients; and advisory services to individual investors. Further, the company provides run-off reinsurance services. Sun Life Financial Inc. distributes its products through direct sales agents, independent and managing general agents, financial intermediaries, broker-dealers, banks, pension and benefit consultants, and other third-party marketing organizations. The company operates primarily in Bermuda, Canada, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Ireland, the Philippines, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Sun Life Financial Inc. was founded in 1999 and is based in Toronto, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Monica Gerson]

  Sun Life Financial (NYSE: SLF) shares gained 2.47% to create a new 52-week high of $34.80 on Q3 results. Sun Life reported its Q3 operating net income from continuing operations of $422 million.

• [By Amanda Alix]

  Insurance companies have created an entire industry based upon risk, and except for AIG (NYSE: AIG  ) during the financial crisis, it has worked out pretty well. So, it's not a stretch to imagine a large life insurer like Canada's Sun Life Financial (NYSE: SLF  ) assuming the pension liability for the Canadian Wheat Board's defined benefit plan in a recent $147 million deal, the first such accord in Canada's history.

• [By Tim Brugger]

  Initially, the deal Sun Life Financial (NYSE: SLF  ) struck in December to sell its U.S. annuity portfolio and some life insurance products for $1.35 billion to Delaware Life Holdings, a Guggenheim Partners-owned company, was scheduled to be completed by Q2 of 2013.

Best Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: EMC Corporation(EMC)

EMC Corporation develops, delivers, and supports the information and virtual infrastructure technologies and solutions. The company offers enterprise storage systems and software, which are deployed in storage area networks (SAN), networked attached storage (NAS), unified storage combining NAS and SAN, object storage, and/or direct attached storage environments, as well as provides backup and recovery, and disaster recovery and archiving solutions. It also offers information security solutions in various areas, such as enterprise governance, risk and compliance, data loss prevention, security information management, continuous network monitoring, fraud protection, identity assurance and access control, and encryption and key management. In addition, the company provides information intelligence software, solutions, and services, including EMC Captiva for intelligent enterprise capture; EMC Document Sciences for customer communications management; EMC Kazeon for e-discovery ; EMC Documentum xCP for building business solutions and an action engine for big data; and the EMC Documentum platform for managing and delivering enterprise information. Further, it offers virtual and cloud infrastructure products, such as virtualization and virtualization-based cloud infrastructure solutions that address a range of IT problems, as well as facilitate access to cloud computing capacity, business continuity, software lifecycle management, and corporate end-user computing device management In addition, the company provides consulting, technology deployment, managed, customer support, and training and certification services. EMC Corporation markets its products through direct sales and through multiple distribution channels in North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, South Africa, and the Asia Pacific region. The company was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Hopkinton, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Brian Pacampara]

  Based on the aggregated intelligence of 180,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, data-storage specialist EMC (NYSE: EMC  ) has earned a coveted five-star ranking.

• [By Dividend]

  EMC Corporation (EMC) has a market capitalization of $52.35 billion. The company employs 60,000 people, generates revenue of $21.713 billion and has a net income of $2.886 billion. EMC Corporation�� earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $5.602 billion. The EBITDA margin is 25.80 percent (the operating margin is 18.10 percent and the net profit margin 13.29 percent).

• [By WALLSTCHEATSHEET]

  To put it simply, even if IT isn�� as strong as in the past, demand for cloud computing is expected to increase, and data levels will intensify. EMC is aiming for simplification in all areas, and buyers of any product or service appreciates simplicity. Combining these factors with a 1.60 percent yield, an expanded share repurchase program, and quality leadership, EMC is an OUTPERFORM.

Best Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: FMC Corporation (FMC)

FMC Corporation, a chemical company, provides solutions, applications, and products for agricultural, consumer, and industrial markets. The company operates in three segments: Agricultural Products, Specialty Chemicals, and Industrial Chemicals. The Agricultural Products segment develops, markets, and sells a portfolio of crop protection, pest control, and lawn and garden products. It produces insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides to protect crops, including cotton, sugarcane, rice, corn, soybeans, cereals, fruits, and vegetables from insects and weed growth; and for non-agricultural applications, including pest control for home, garden, and other specialty markets, as well as for turf and roadside applications. The Specialty Chemicals segment focuses on food ingredients, pharmaceutical excipients, biomedical technologies, and lithium products. It produces microcrystalline cellulose that is used as drug dry tablet binder and disintegrant, and food ingredient; carrageena n, which is used as food ingredient for thickening and stabilizing; encapsulant for pharmaceutical and nutraceutical applications; alginates that are used as food ingredients, and for pharmaceutical excipient, wound care, orthopedic uses, and industrial uses; and lithium that is used in pharmaceuticals, polymers, batteries, greases and lubricants, air conditioning, and other industrial applications. The Industrial Chemicals segment produces inorganic materials, such as soda ash for glass, chemicals, and detergents; specialty peroxygens for pulp and paper, chemical processing, detergents, antimicrobial disinfectants, environmental applications, electronics, and polymers; and zeolites and silicates for detergents, car tires, pulp, and paper. It has operations in North America, Latin America, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The company was founded in 1884 and is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Just as Monsanto is enjoying a surge in sales of Roundup, pesticide makers are witnessing greater sales of pesticides to combat these superbugs. Revenues at Sygenta (NYSE: SYT  ) rose 1.5% to $4.2 billion, FMC's (NYSE: FMC  ) sales were 5% higher, and American Vanguard's (NYSE: AVD  ) surged 39% last quarter. The three companies account for three-quarters of all ground pesticides sold in the United States.

• [By Marc Courtenay]

  Some other names to consider as takeover targets would include FMC Technologies, Inc. (FTI), which provides technology solutions for the energy industry worldwide and hit a 52-week high on April 11th. Another less conspicuous target is the diversified chemical company FMC Corp. (FMC), which has a market cap of only $8 billion plus a forward PE of less than 13.

Best Canadian Stocks To Buy Right Now: Vanguard Natural Resources LLC(VNR)

Vanguard Natural Resources, LLC, through its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition and development of oil and natural gas properties in the United States. Its properties are located in the southern portion of the Appalachian Basin, primarily in southeast Kentucky and northeast Tennessee; the Permian Basin, primarily in west Texas and southeastern New Mexico; and south Texas. As of December 31, 2010, the company had estimated proved reserves of 69.3 million barrels of oil equivalent, as well as working interests in 2,270 net productive wells. Vanguard Natural Resources, LLC was founded in 2006 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Matt DiLallo]

  One company to watch here is�Vanguard Natural Resources (NASDAQ: VNR  ) , which has eschewed increased organic production growth spending until now. However, the company is looking into the possibility of following LINN's blueprint and potentially change its game plan. Last year Vanguard was one of the most conservative E&P MLPs as its adjusted EBITDA was 4.6 times its capital spending. It's one company that certainly has the capacity to pursue organic production growth spending if it can change the philosophical mind-set that would be required to switch models.

• [By GURUFOCUS]

  Vanguard Natural Resources LLC (VNR) engages in the acquisition and development of oil and natural gas properties in the U.S. Aug. 20, the company increased its monthly distribution 1.2% to $0.2075 per unit. The distribution is payable Sept. 13, 2013, to unitholders of record on Sept. 3, 2013. The yield based on the new payout is 9.2%.

• [By Matt DiLallo]

  Among its peers in the MLP and LLC space, LINN by far hedges the most production. BreitBurn Energy Partners (NASDAQ: BBEP  ) , for example, has hedged roughly 75% of its production through 2015, whereas LINN is 100% hedged through 2016. BreitBurn almost exclusively uses swaps as its hedge of choice. It's a similar story at Vanguard Natural Resources (NASDAQ: VNR  ) , which also uses swaps to almost exclusively hedge natural gas while using three-way collars to hedge about a third of its oil production. While LINN could get more creative, one thing I'd be surprised to hear is that it's going to join these two peers and leave some of its production unhedged.

Consumer Confidence Hits 6-Year High in March

Getty Images NEW YORK -- U.S. consumer confidence rose in March to its highest in more than six years as expectations brightened, according to a private sector report released Tuesday. The Conference Board, an industry group, said its index of consumer attitudes rose to 82.3, the highest since January 2008, from a upwardly revised 78.3 in February. Economists had expected a reading of 78.6, according to a Reuters poll. February's figure was originally reported as 78.1. "Overall, consumers expect the economy to continue improving and believe it may even pick up a little steam in the months ahead," said Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators at the Conference Board in a statement. "While consumers were moderately more upbeat about future job prospects and the overall economy, they were less optimistic about income growth." The expectations index rose to 83.5 from and upwardly revised 76.5, while the present situation index fell to 80.4 from a revised 81. Consumers' labor market assessment was slightly more negative in March. The "jobs hard to get" index rose to 33 percent from a downwardly revised 32.4 percent in February, while the "jobs plentiful" index dipped to 13.1 percent from 13.4 percent. Consumers anticipated larger price increases, with expectations for inflation in the coming 12 months up to 5.5 percent in March from 5.2 percent.

What You Can Learn from Buffett's Biggest Blunders

Nati Harnik/AP Warren Buffett, chairman of the board of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B), is surprisingly open about his mistakes, chronicling them for all to read -- and learn from -- in his annual shareholder letters. The Cigar Stubs The textile mill that gave Berkshire Hathaway its name turned out to be an albatross for more than two decades as Buffett dithered over shutting it down. Located in Massachusetts, far from the new textile and cotton hubs down South, it was a money-loser from the start. He has since admitted his stubborn attachment to it probably cost Berkshire $200 billion in lost opportunity costs to invest in better companies. Back then, Buffett was more a proponent of the "cigar stub" theory of investing -- buying a downtrodden company or stock and smoking out the last few puffs of profit. Another iteration of this thesis gone wrong was his purchase of Blue Chip Stamp Co. in the late '60s. It was a lesser rival of the Sperry & Hutchinson Green Stamps Co. Both involved an early form of loyalty program in which shoppers collected stamps that could be redeemed for merchandise. "When I was told that even certain brothels and mortuaries gave stamps to their patrons, I felt I had finally found a sure thing," Buffett said in his 2006 shareholder letter. However, Blue Chip revenues declined by more than 80 percent from 1970 to 1980 and by almost 99 percent by 1990 as credit-card loyalty programs and increasing affluence made shoppers reluctant to waste time pasting stamps in books. What Buffett learned became a new leg of his investing stool: to only buy businesses for their demonstrated profitability. The Economic Moat Buffett coined the term "economic moat" to describe the competitive and hopefully monopolistic advantages that will help a company thrive. He has long said he regrets buying Dexter Shoes in 1993, purchasing it with Berkshire Hathaway stock then worth $433 million for an estimated loss of $3.5 billion. He admits now it didn't have the brand loyalty or moat he expected. Since then Buffett has hunted for big elephants like Heinz and Burlington Northern Santa Fe, and investing more every year in his "Big Four" stocks: Wells Fargo (WFC), IBM (IBM), American Express (AXP) and Coca-Cola (KO). Fear and Greed He purchased US Airways preferred stock in 1989 when optimism about the airline was at its zenith -- just in time for competitors to undercut its prices. He soon found there is no brand loyalty among the flying public. Airlines in general have a tendency to accelerate debt growth at the same time as their revenue growth. In this case, he basically broke even. In 2008, he bought high into ConocoPhillips (COP), expecting oil prices (then more than $100 per barrel) to go even higher, violating his own precept to buy when others are fearful and sell when others are greedy. The loss he took on that gamble amounted to more than $1 billion. Still, this didn't deter him from a blunder detailed in the 2013 annual shareholder letter -- buying $2 billion worth of bonds in Energy Futures Holdings, an electric utility that has suffered from a decline in natural gas prices. Buffett wrote with his usual candor,"Most of you have never heard of Energy Future Holdings. Consider yourselves lucky; I certainly wish I hadn't," adding the company is likely headed for bankruptcy. Buffett has had many more big wins than losses, including some out-of-the-park hits like American Express in the 1960s when it was embroiled in a small subsidiary's salad oil scandal, his purchase of Geico and an annual compounded gain of 19.7 percent in Berkshire Hathaway's book value since 1965. In a seven-decade career dating from age 11 when he bought his first stock, Buffett's mistakes have grown fewer and farther between. Even better for investors, when he chooses poorly, he explains where he went wrong, so we can all learn from his mistakes.

Armco Metals Could be the Next Surprise Breakout (AMCO)

It's still too soon to put it in your portfolio, but Armco Metals Holdings Inc. (NYSE:AMCO) most definitely deserves a place on your watchlist. This Chinese metal stock is poised for a breakout move. It just needs the right nudge, and a little help on a certain front to let AMCO take flight.

Yes, Armco Metals Holdings relies heavily on demand from Chinese metal users, and with economic worries starting to surface in and around the country, demand for steel could wane. As has been the case far more often than not in recent years, however, those worries have more bark than bite. Translation: AMCO should be fine.

In support of that idea is the fact that steel prices have remained strong - and even gotten stronger - over the past twelve months, even if steel stocks haven't. Specifically, steel prices have advanced from $100 per tonne in July of last year to about $380 per tonne this month. While rolled steel (hot and cold) have tapered off a little more than raw steel have of late, they're also tapering off from multi-month highs hit in February. Iron ore prices have been pretty centered at $125 per tonne since this time last year. Iron ore is stable at $150 per tonne. Point being, if China's consumption were drying up and/or Armco Metals Holdings was being thrown into a situation that wasn't favorable, it would have shown up on steel price charts already. It hasn't happened, though.

So what needs to happen to make AMCO a buy? It needs to clear a major resistance line at $0.57. That level has kept the lid on the last three breakout efforts from Armco Metals Holdings Inc. (since October of last year), and the $0.57 level was pretty much where the stock topped in early 2013 too. At the same time, the stock's horizontal ceiling has been matched by a horizontal support line around $0.25, since late 2012. The net result is a chart that's been doing nothing but moving sideways for the better part of two years. Take a look.

Though the stock hasn't budged in a long while, that's not to say things haven't been brewing - there's two years' worth of pent-up bullishness that needs to be let out. Once it's unleashed, it's all apt to be unleashed in a hurry, much like the pent-up energy of a slingshot is rapidly unleashed when the pocket is released, propelling a rock or a small ball a major distance in a short period of time.

As far what suggests Armco Metals Holdings Inc. shares will be hurdled upward rather than downward when-and-if the trading range finally lets go is the massive volume we've seen materialize behind the bullishness from AMCO we've seen in two of the past three weeks. There are a lot of buyers here, which was one of the missing ingredients with prior breakout attempts.

Bottom line? Keep Armco Metals Holdings handy, looking out for a move above $0.57. That could be what opens the floodgates.

For more trading ideas and insights like these, be sure to sign up for the free SmallCap Network newsletter. You'll get stock picks, market calls, and more, every day. Here's what you've missed recently.

Facebook to snap up virtual-reality start-up…

SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook continue its billion-dollar buying binge Tuesday, forking over $2 billion for Oculus, a fledgling start-up in virtual-reality technology.

The deal calls for $400 million in cash and 23.1 million shares of Facebook common stock worth about $1.6 billion. The accord includes another $300 million in cash and stock based on incentives.

"Our mission is to make the world more open and connected," Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a post on his Facebook profile page. "Oculus's mission is to enable you to experience the impossible. Their technology opens up the possibility of completely new kinds of experiences."

The head-gear-mounted technology, a hit at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January, is the brainchild of Palmer Luckey. He was 21 at the time of CES.

Brendan Iribe is CEO and co-founder.

"We believe virtual reality will be heavily defined by social experiences that connect people in magical, new ways," Iribe said in a statement. "It is a transformative and disruptive technology, that enables the world to experience the impossible, and it's only just the beginning."

Oculus is Facebook's second multibillion-dollar purchase this year. In February, it announced plans to acquire messaging app WhatsApp for $19 billion.

Having focused solely on the software side of the industry, Facebook's plunge into a hardware business like Oculus is surprising, says Gartner analyst Brian Blau.

"They've talked about not wanting to be a hardware company," Blau says. "They want to do software and infrastructure, and they're clearly focused on social. Virtual reality isn't any of those things."

Are Their Greenbacks For Investors in These Green Stocks? GEFI, DRAG & WWPW

Small cap green stocks Geo Finance Corporation (OTCMKTS: GEFI), Dragon Polymers Inc (OTCMKTS: DRAG) and Wind Works Power Corp (OTCMKTS: WWPW) have been getting some extra attention lately from various investment newsletters or investor alerts. However, two of these small cap green stocks have also been the subject of paid promotions or investor relations types of activities. So will these green small cap stocks produce some greenbacks for investors and traders alike? Here is a closer look and a reality check:

Geo Finance Corporation (OTCMKTS: GEFI) Acquires a Lubricant Company

Small cap Geo Finance Corporation is a Florida entity established to develop and invest in energy related projects including waste to energy, geothermal collection fields, natural gas and petroleum production. On Friday, Geo Finance Corporation fell 5.24% to $0.0398 for a market cap of $1.65 million plus GEFI is up 109.5% over the past year and up 3,518.2% over the past five years according to Google Finance.

What's the Catch With Geo Finance Corporation? According to various disclosures, transactions of $25k and $80k have occurred to mention Geo Finance Corporation in various investment newsletters. Last Friday, Geo Finance Corporation announced that it and Revolution Lubricants, Inc will be focusing on the US Trucking Industry in 2014-2015 with their Fuel Saving 15W40 Diesel Motor Oil. The press release noted that Revolution Lubricants' Diesel Motor Oil saves 5-20% in fuel costs while cutting engine wear by up to 47% plus the CEO commented:

"This product has been proven out with a small North Carolina trucking company that had just over 50 trucks over 4 years and 100 million miles of computerized documentation from the ECM units on the trucks. The company saved in excess of $325,000.00 annually – over $1.3 million over 4 years – during that time period just in fuel costs."

He also added:

"The biggest hurdle with selling this product to other trucking companies has been their worries about the truck manufacture warranties. We've demonstrated that we meet all manufacturers' specifications and since we have obtained OEM approval from three majors – Detroit Diesel, Cummins Inc. and Volvo/Mack, we have eliminated any and all concerns."

Last Wednesday, Geo Finance Corporation and Revolution Lubricants, Inc had announced the signing of a definitive agreement for the purchase of 51% of Revolution Lubricants, Inc by GEFI. Revolution Lubricants, Inc was spun off from Revolution Oil, a privately held company with engineering capabilities for several products in the Industrial and Transportation lubricants space. Otherwise and in mid-February, Geo Finance Corporation announced it had posted its audited annual financial statements with otcmarkets.com in order to bring the company one step closer to its desired tier change to otcqb. A quick look at Geo Finance Corporation's financials reveals no revenues; net losses of $65k (most recent reported quarter), $18k, $73k and $32k for the past four reported quarters; and $18k in cash to cover $378k in current liabilities at the end of last October.

Dragon Polymers Inc (OTCMKTS: DRAG) Is Doing a Strategic Review

Small cap Dragon Polymers is recycler of industrial polymers through landfill remediation. On Friday, Dragon Polymers fell 9.52% to $0.0019 for a market cap of $12,700 plus DRAG is down 52.5% over the past year and down 74.7% over the past five years according to Google Finance.

What's the Catch With Dragon Polymers? According to various disclosures, a transaction or transactions of $10k have or will occur to mention Dragon Polymers in various investment newsletters. Last Monday, Dragon Polymers gave a brief update to say that the board of directors has initiated a strategy review to evaluate potential strategic partnerships and alliances with established industry players that can "help unlock the potential" of the company. Otherwise and last January, Dragon Polymers issued a brief press release to announce it was completing due diligence on expanding its waste streams too include ASR, (Auto Shred Residue) Nylon 6 and Nylon 6/6, Polyester and Polypropylene from carpets plus working with several OEM's evaluating different equipment options to best sort, separate and transform these new waste streams into usable polymers. A quick look at Dragon Polymers' financials reveals revenues of $22k (most recent reported quarter), $16k, $14k and $15k for the past four reported quarters along with net losses of $88k (most recent reported quarter), $59k, $51k and $52k. At the end of November, Dragon Polymers had $25k in cash to cover $486k in current liabilities. So maybe investors should wait for the strategic review to be completed.

Wind Works Power Corp (OTCMKTS: WWPW) Has Been Quiet Lately

Small cap Wind Works Power Corp now operates 4.6 megawatts in Germany, in which it has a 49% ownership stake. In addition, Wind Works is developing 77 megawatts of near-term permitted projects in Germany; 70 megawatts of FIT contracted projects in Ontario; and 425 megawatts of projects in the United States. On Friday, Wind Works Power Corp rose 9.73% to $0.088 for a market cap of $5.91 million plus WWPW is up 193.3% over the past year and down 79.5% since March 2011 according to Google Finance.

What's the Catch With Wind Works Power Corp? According to various disclosures, no transactions have occurred to mention Wind Works Power Corp in various investment newsletters. Moreover, there is no news from Wind Works Power Corp on major financial newswires beyond an early December announcement from Direct Global Media Inc that it had initiated coverage of WWPW and will be issuing a Research Report soon and as company updates are released. The press release noted:

"We are very impressed with Wind Works Power's recent developments including the company's recent quarterly financials booking a Net Profit of $2.5M ($0.04 EPS)… The company's recent sale of its Germany Wind Farm confirms the economics of their model and have already started with new projects in North America including their recent announcement and completion of a Purchase Agreement for a 100 Megawatt Thunder Spirit Project in North Dakota… Wind Works Power is just starting to get its legs and see exceptional potential for growth in the near term."

A quick look at Wind Works Power Corp's financials reveals revenues of $1,658k (most recent reported quarter), $3,609k, $1k and $11,019k for the past four reported quarters along with a net loss of $123k (most recent reported quarter), net income of $2,527k and net losses of $1,252k and $861k. At the end of last year, Wind Works Power Corp had $581k in cash to cover $8,430k in current liabilities and $17,455k in long term debt. So maybe investors should wait for some news and more financials.

Sleep Well with Mattress Firm

Our latest featured breakout stock recommendation is a Houston, Texas retailer of mattresses, with annual revenues of $1.2 billion, notes technical analyst Leo Fasciocco, editor of Ticker Tape Digest.

Mattress Firm Holding (MFRM) offers both traditional and specialty mattresses, bedding accessories, and related products. MFRM also offers bed frames, pillows, tempurpedic pillows, headboards, and memory foam mattresses.

The stock has broken out from an 11-week, cup-and-handle base. The move was triggered by the company upping its earnings forecast for the year.

MFRM reported earnings for the fourth quarter increased to 25 cents a share from 22 cents a year ago. The reported earnings topped the consensus estimate by one cent a share.

Analysts are forecasting 14% increase in MFRM's earnings for the fiscal year ending in January of 2015. They look for net of $1.90 a share, up from $1.66 in fiscal 2014. Going out to fiscal 2016, profits are expected to climb 19% to $2.25 a share.

The stock came public back in late 2011, trading around $22. It soared to a peak of $48 in 2012, before falling back sharply to $22. Since then, the stock has worked higher to get close to its prior peak.

We are targeting MFRM for a move to $54 off this breakout. A protective stop can be placed near $44.50.

A key fund buyer recently was the 4-star rated Wasatch Small-Cap Growth Fund which purchased 405,738 shares. That gave it a 1.2% stake in MFRM. The largest fund holder is Baron Small-Cap Retail Fund, 4-star rated, with a 4.4% stake.

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I talked about insider trading last week, laying out how I use it to find value stocks. But we can also use the insiders screen to help solve one of the most difficult question facing investors today.

We already know that the stock of companies with recent open-market purchases by the top two executives have a strong tendency to go up substantially over the next year. We can now screen for companies that have shown this type of positive activity from insiders and also provide a high dividend yield.

Top High Dividend Companies For 2014: Nuveen Insured California Premium Income Municipal Fund II In (NCL)

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd., through its subsidiaries, operates as a cruise line operator, offering cruise experiences for travelers with various itineraries in North America, the Mediterranean, the Baltic, Central America, Bermuda, and the Caribbean. The company offers cruises ranging in length from 1 day to 3 weeks. As of December 31, 2012, it operated 11 ships offering cruises in Alaska, the Bahamas, Bermuda, the Caribbean, Europe, Hawaii, Mexico, New England, Central and South America, North Africa, and Scandinavia. The company was formerly known as NCL Corporation Ltd. and changed its name on January 24, 2013. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. was founded in 1966 and is headquartered in Miami, Florida.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  Carnival stock is trading closer to its 52-week low than its high, and the same can't be said of rivals Royal Caribbean (NYSE: RCL  ) and NCL (NYSE: NCL  ) .�

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  Royal Caribbean,�NCL (NYSE: NCL  ) , and ship spa services provider Steiner Leisure (NASDAQ: STNR  ) all hit new 52-week highs earlier this month. Unlike Carnival (NYSE: CCL  ) -- which has been sluggish in light of several mishaps at sea since last year -- everyone seemed to view the negative instances as Carnival-specific events. Now Royal Caribbean's fire may lead folks to question booking on any cruise line in the near future.

Top High Dividend Companies For 2014: V.F. Corporation(VFC)

V.F. Corporation designs and manufactures, or sources from independent contractors various apparel and footwear products primarily in the United States and Europe. The company offers apparel, footwear, outdoor gear, skateboard-inspired and surf-inspired footwear, backpacks, luggage, handbags and accessories, outdoor apparel, travel accessories, and women?s active wear primarily under the Vans, The North Face, JanSport, Eastpak, Kipling, Napapijri, Reef, Eagle Creek, and lucy brands; and denim and casual bottoms, and tops principally under Wrangler, Lee, Riders, Rustler, and Timber Creek by Wrangler brands. Its products also include occupational, athletic, and licensed apparel primarily under the Red Kap, Bulwark, Majestic, MLB, NFL, and Harley-Davidson brands; men?s fashion sportswear, denim bottoms, sleepwear, underwear, as well as handbags, luggage, backpacks, and accessories principally under the Nautica and Kipling brands; and denim and casual bottoms, sportswear, acce ssories, men?s apparel and footwear, and women?s sportswear primarily under the 7 For All Mankind, John Varvatos, Splendid, and Ella Moss brands. The company sells its products to specialty stores, department stores, national chains, and mass merchants primarily through its sales force, independent sales agents, and distributors. V.F. Corporation was founded in 1899 and is based in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Eric Volkman]

  VF Corporation (NYSE: VFC  ) has set its financial goals for the next few years, and it anticipates substantial growth, according to a press release from Tuesday.

• [By Chuck Carnevale]

  VF Corp. (VFC): Leading Apparel Company

  With our third example, VF Corp., we again move further up the growth chain where earnings growth has averaged 8.6% per annum. Again, we discover that the PE = 15 standard continues to apply. However, for companies growing between 5%-15% the extrapolated formula mentioned above automatically calculates fair value. From the graphic, it is clear that a 15 PE represents a reasonable proxy for fair valuation.

• [By Louis Navellier]

  VFC Corporation (VFC) has also seen its stock slip along with the stock market. The stock is down almost 10% so far this year as investors have just sold many of the apparel and clothing related names indiscriminately. The company has several great lines of business, including brands like The North Face, Timberland, and Vans.

• [By Andrew Marder]

  VF� (NYSE: VFC  ) , owner of The North Face, Wrangler, and Timberland brands, among others, has a plan. By 2017, the company wants to be pulling down $17 billion in annual revenue, while earning $18 per share. That's a 50% increase in revenue, and a 67% jump in earnings per share from where the company expects to end 2013. As a potential investor, I'm now all ears to learn how VF is going to make this dream a reality.

Top 10 Cheap Stocks To Own For 2014: Century Aluminum Company(CENX)

Century Aluminum Company, through its subsidiaries, produces primary aluminum in the United States, China, and Iceland. The company offers high purity primary aluminum, molten aluminum, standard-grade ingots, extrusion billets, and other value-added primary aluminum products. It also holds a 40% joint venture interest in a carbon anode and cathode facility located in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of south China. The company was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in Monterey, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

  This series, brought to you by Yahoo! Finance, looks at which upgrades and downgrades make sense, and which ones investors should act on. Today, our headlines include upgrades for both Century Aluminum (NASDAQ: CENX  ) and Deutsche Bank (NYSE: DB  ) . But the news isn't all good, so let's start off with a few words on why...

• [By Rich Smith]

  Even as it contemplates shutting down its largest aluminum smelter in the United States, Century Aluminum (NASDAQ: CENX  ) says it's planning to buy another smelter entirely. On Monday, Century announced that it's signed a definitive agreement to buy Rio Tinto's (NYSE: RIO  ) Sebree aluminum smelter in Henderson County, Ky.

Top High Dividend Companies For 2014: Radiant Creations Group Inc (RCGP)

Radiant Creations Group, Inc., formerly Nova Mining Corporation, incorporated on December 29, 2005, is an exploration-stage Company. The Company�� principal business is the acquisition and exploration of mineral resources.

As of February 28, 2013, the Company has not determined whether its mineral claims contain reserves that are economically recoverable. During the fiscal 2013, the Company had not generated any revenue.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Peter Graham]

  What�� the Catch With Axxess Pharma Inc? According to various disclosures, transactions of $2.5k, $3k, $4k, $14k, $25k, $50k and $85k have or will occur to mention Axxess Pharma Inc in various investment newsletters plus the company has been busy announcing new deals. Last Wednesday, Axxess Pharma Inc announced it had signed term sheet from TCA Global Credit Masters Fund to secure a $4 million revolving line of credit which was expected to close within 14 days pending final due diligence. The press release stated the revolving line of credit would enable Axxess Pharma to ��enerate significant revenue in the near-term with high gross profit margins��plus the deal was expected to be the beginning of a long-term long-term partnership between the two companies. Last Monday, Axxess Pharma Inc also announced an exclusive agreement providing them the world-wide exclusive rights to develop, market and sell a line of pain relief and muscle recovery products, as well as develop and market a vitamins and minerals line under the TapouT brand name; while back in September, the company announced an agreement for the acquisition of the assets of Revive Bioscience Inc. - a leading Canadian OTC healthcare company. However, a quick look at both Google Finance and Yahoo! Finance reveals no financials for Axxess Pharma Inc ��meaning its investor beware.

  Radiant Creations Group Inc (OTCBB: RCGP) Is Launching Its Direct to Consumer Sales Model

  Small cap Radiant Creations Group Inc says it has achieved exciting breakthroughs creating remarkable products in skin protection and hydration, anti-aging, liver health and weight balance by combining DNA technologies developed in the Western World and naturally acting traditional Chinese medicine ingredients believed to be never before used in western culture by any bioscience company. On Friday, Radiant Creations Group Inc fell 9.1% to $0.20 for a market cap of $6 million plus RCGP is up 53.85 ov

Top High Dividend Companies For 2014: LinkedIn (LNKD)

LinkedIn Corporation operates an online professional network. The company, through its proprietary platform, allows members to create, manage, and share their professional identity online; build and engage with their professional networks; access shared knowledge and insights; and find business opportunities. Its platform also offers members with solutions, including applications and tools to search, connect, and communicate with business contacts, learn about career opportunities, join industry groups, research organizations, and share information. In addition, the company provides LinkedIn mobile applications across various platforms and languages, such as Android, Blackberry, iPad, and iPhone mobile devices; a public Website that allows developers to integrate its content and services into their applications; and a set of embeddable widgets to allow Web developers to include content from the company�s network into their Website or application. Further, it offers hiring solutions comprising LinkedIn Corporate Solutions that enable enterprises and professional organizations to find, contact, and hire qualified candidates; LinkedIn Jobs that allow enterprises and professional organizations to advertise job opportunities on the company�s network; and Subscriptions, which enable recruiters and hiring managers to find, contact, and manage potential candidates. Additionally, the company provides marketing solutions, such as LinkedIn Ads, a self-service platform that enable advertisers to build and target their advertisement to its members; and LinkedIn Ads for Enterprise, which are marketing solutions to target larger advertisers that receive dedicated account management and additional marketing solutions. It also offers premium subscriptions that are subscription packages designed for general professionals to manage their professional identity and connect with talent. LinkedIn Corporation was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Mountain Vi ew, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Big Earnings Movers: LinkedIn Corp. (NYSE: LNKD) is down 9.4% at $223.90 after beating estimates but offering cautious guidance. General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) is up 3.3% at $37.24 after beating estimates. Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) is down 1.3% at $47.09 probably due to a loss of cable subscribers. Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) is up 1.7% at $65.22 after disappointing earnings. The Western Union Co. (NYSE: WU) is down 12.5% at $16.84 on a poor profit outlook for next year.

• [By Steve Birenberg]

  Google (GOOG) finally reported a quarter that surpassed Wall Street estimates and satisfied investors. The stock had worked higher over the last few years despite never quite satisfying Wall Street. A bull market and solid core growth search carried the stock but it lacked the momentum of other high flyers with which it is often compared. LinkedIn (LNKD), Netflix (NFLX), and Facebook (FB) all produced stock gains well ahead of GOOG.

• [By Robert Eberhard]

  I bypassed two companies in favor of Under Armour -- Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN  ) and LinkedIn (NYSE: LNKD  ) -- primarily because of their sky-high valuations at the time. LinkedIn has only gone higher since then, and Amazon would have as well if capital expenditures over the past year hadn't led to a loss over the past 12 months. Nevertheless, LinkedIn is the latest addition to my portfolio, and Amazon will probably join it sometime over the next few months. Warren Buffett still laments about waiting for a better price when he bought Wal-Mart, and as much as I'd like to be like Buffett, I think I'll learn a bit from him instead and not let valuation weigh as heavily on my investment decisions.

• [By Daniel Sparks]

  Here's a curve ball. What if, in the world of excellent businesses, past performance was often an excellent indicator of future performance. That's at least how the market seems to feel about LinkedIn (NYSE: LNKD  ) and Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA  ) , two businesses that are clearly firing on all cylinders. As if these stocks weren't already expensive enough, they've crushed the market's returns over the last 12 months, leaving both stocks trading at astronomic valuations. Let's put the market's expectations to the test, and take a look at just how powerful some of these growth drivers really are.