Steady Income for Inflation Protection

The best strategy for keeping up with inflation is to focus on companies yielding 2% to 5%, while delivering steady growth in their payouts. It's the smart bet over the long haul, advises Benjamin Shepherd, editor of Survival of the Fittest.

These stocks tend to be larger, blue chip companies that also have strong pricing power in their respective markets, so cash flows increase even as inflation heats up.

As a result, they're able to steadily increase their dividend payouts at a rate that ideally exceeds that of inflation.

Those same companies are also likely to be generating capital gains precisely because they're able to produce reliable cash flow and profit growth.

Between capital gains and growing dividends, investors are able to live comfortably in inflationary periods with a minimum drawdown on their investment principal. Below are two companies that fit the bill.

Over the past five years, Kimberly Clark (KMB) has grown its dividend by better than 3% annually, while generating a total return of 64.7%, thanks to the addition of capital gains.

Going back even further, it has increased its total dividend payout in each of the past ten years.

That's an extremely impressive performance from a company that mainly makes tissue paper, diapers, and feminine care products. The company does have exposure to commodity prices by way of paper pulp, making iconic brands such as Kleenex and Huggies, which are sold around the world.

However, it's able to pass much of any increase along to consumers. That, in turn, allows it to generously reward its investors with a payout ratio that holds steady in the mid-60% range, while reliably increasing the absolute dividend paid.

TransCanada (TRP) has increased its dividend as reliably as Kimberly Clark, sustaining a yield of about 4% and generating a total return of 58% over the past five years.

Maintaining a network of oil and natural gas pipelines and essentially collecting tolls on the volume of commodity moved, the company has little direct exposure to commodity prices.

But it is still able to maintain its pricing power to a large degree, because of the fixed nature of its network, giving commodity producers in the regions it covers little choice but to use its services. That allows it to maintain a higher payout ratio of about 75%.

Given the power of Kimberly Clark's brands and TransCanada's assets, there is little reason to doubt that both will be able to retain their competitive advantages over the long haul.

TransCanada is more economically sensitive; the company has cut its dividend once in the past decade, though it quickly made it up. However, both companies should be able to support their dividends and continue generating capital gains, year in and year out, even as the pace of inflation ticks up.

Subscribe to Survival of the Fittest here…

More from MoneyShow.com:

Finding Truly Great Dividend Values

Bet on Gundlach for Total Return

A-List Dividend Duo

Asian Stocks Drop Ahead of Fed Meeting; ANZ Bank Gains

Asian stocks fell, with the regional benchmark gauge paring its first back-to-back monthly gain since April, as investors awaited a two-day Federal Reserve policy meeting.

Komatsu Ltd. tumbled 8 percent in Tokyo after the world's second-largest maker of construction equipment cut its full-year profit forecast by 26 percent. Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. gained 1.4 percent in Hong Kong, pacing an advance among Chinese lenders, after China's central bank added funds to the financial system for the first time in two weeks. Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. (ANZ) climbed 1.4 percent to a record in Sydney after posting its highest profit and raising its dividend more than forecast.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slid 0.3 percent to 142.16 as of 12:37 p.m. in Hong Kong, with eight of the 10 industry groups on the gauge falling. Investors are waiting for clues on the outlook for Fed monetary stimulus when a policy meeting concludes tomorrow, after U.S. payrolls rose less than predicted last month and the 16-day government shutdown took at least $24 billion out of the world's largest economy.

"We've seen very strong gains across Asia and the market is pondering what the Fed is going to say," Tai Hui, Hong Kong-based chief Asia market strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management, which oversees about $2.2 trillion globally, told Bloomberg TV. "The market is positioning for some new messages from the Fed, especially their assessment after the government shutdown."

Cash Injection

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index (HSI) slid 0.1 percent and China's Shanghai Composite Index dropped 1.1 after the central bank's first cash injection in two weeks failed to reduce money-market rates. Money-market rates in the world's second-biggest economy surged through Oct. 25 as the central bank refrained from injecting funds into the banking system.

ICBC gained 1.4 percent to HK$5.27 in Hong Kong. Bank of China Ltd. advanced 1.2 percent to HK$3.50 and China Construction Bank Corp. added 1 percent to HK$5.83.

"Liquidity flows are still going to be very accommodative from a central-bank perspective," Stephen Davies, Singapore-based chief executive officer at Javelin Wealth Management Pte Ltd., told Bloomberg TV. "If that's the case in the U.S., then it's doubly so for the European Central Bank, the Bank of Japan and various central banks out here in Asia."

Japan's Topix index slid 0.3 percent. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index dropped 0.6 percent and New Zealand's NZX 50 Index fell 0.2 percent. South Korea's Kospi retreated 0.3 percent and Singapore's Straits Times Index lost 0.1 percent. Taiwan's Taiex Index declined 0.2 percent. Futures on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index slid 0.1 percent.

Asian Earnings

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 2.9 percent in October through yesterday, on course for a second monthly increase. That pushed its price-earnings multiple to 13.7 times estimated profit yesterday from 12.7 at the end of August, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That compares with 15.9 for the Standard & Poor's 500 Index and 14.8 for the Stoxx Europe 600 Index.

Of the 121 companies in the MSCI Asia Pacific Index that have provided quarterly results this earnings season and for which Bloomberg compiles estimates, 54 percent posted profit that missed expectations, the data show.

The Topix lost 0.4 percent this month through yesterday, trailing all its 23 developed-market peers. Japanese shares are still the best performers this year among developed markets amid optimism Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's policies and unprecedented monetary easing from the Bank of Japan will lead the country out of deflation.

More than 1,100 companies on the Topix are reporting results through Nov. 7, the peak for earnings season, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Earnings per share for companies on the measure are expected to increase 56 percent from the previous quarter, according to analyst estimates.

Indian Rates

The Reserve Bank of India will probably raise its benchmark interest rate today for the second straight month to fight the fastest inflation rate in Asia, a Bloomberg survey showed. The decision is expected at 11 a.m. local time.

The Fed is likely to delay reducing its $85 billion in monthly bond purchases until March, according to a Bloomberg News survey of economists conducted Oct. 17-18.

Komatsu lost 8 percent to 2,170 yen in Tokyo. The firm, which sells large dump trucks and excavators to customers such as Rio Tinto Group and BHP Billiton Ltd., said yesterday that demand for mining equipment may fall by half in the 12 months ending March 31.

NSK Ltd. sank 4.1 percent to 1,039 yen, paring its surge this year to 71 percent, even after the Japanese maker of ball bearings reported net income that beat estimates.

ANZ, Australia's third-largest bank by market value, rose 1.4 percent to A$33.705 after posting a 13 percent increase in second-half cash profit on higher lending and lower operating expenses. The bank boosted its final dividend to 91 Australian cents a share from 79 cents a year earlier. The median estimate of eight analysts surveyed by Bloomberg was for a dividend of 86 cents.

The Real Reason ARMH Plummeted After Earnings

Arm Holdings (ARMH) shares dropped sharply post earnings last week. Commentators have attributed the drop to various aspects of the earnings release for example "guidance that disappointed", "concerns of smartphone slowdown" and one report even linking the stock drop to "solid performance".

The reality, however, is that earnings met analyst expectations, were in line with previous company guidance, and forward guidance on the earnings call was positive. To remove any lingering suspicions that the stock dropped on earnings, consider that ARM released results before the UK Market open on Tuesday. and after the London market opened, the stock was trading higher, reaching all-time highs. So what´s really going on?

Other companies such as TriQuint (TQNT) and Broadcom (BRCM) are reporting results with "strong mobile demand" and "higher-than-anticipated sales of cellular system-on-chip (SOC) and touch controllers." More famously, Apple (AAPL) has announced record sales for its ARM-inside iPhone 5S model introduced last month. Investors and analysts already knew that ARM reports royalty revenue a quarter in arrears, so any gains from iPhone 5S sales will not start to be seen until ARM´s next quarterly report and were not expected to be a factor in this report.

The real event was not the earnings announcement from Cambridge, England, but the events in Cupertino on the same day. Apple were making a number of product launches, and there had been speculation ARM would be a big winner...

One speculation making the rounds was that the iPad might feature a quad core version of the A7 64-bit CPU that debuted last month in the iPhone 5S. In fact the iPad was equipped with the exact same A7 found in the iPhone.

Now, while doubling the number of CPU cores in a product already using an ARM CPU would have increased royalty revenue per iPad, a far bigger, and more profitable, coup for ARM would have been a high profile design win, d! isplacing a major competitor. At the iPhone launch event in September, Apple described the iPhone´s A7 chip as "desktop class." This has led to speculation that Apple would be announcing desktops and laptops using ARM where previously it used Intel (INTC) processors. This pipedream did not come to pass either.

On a more speculative angle, the Lumia RT tablet, also announced Tuesday, featuring a 32-bit ARM CPU may have disappointed some ardent ARM optimists who may have been hoping for a 64 bit tablet CPU. This would have turned the Apple A7 development from a one-off into a new trend. But considering the approximately year-long negativity linked to Windows 8 RT and Windows 8 in general, the Apple disappointment factor was the main cause of the ARMH stock losses.

5 Best Performing Stocks To Buy For 2014

Conclusion: When the iPhone 5s was revealed in September along with its 64-bit A7 chip, ARMH stock received a nice boost. Investors were hoping for a similar boost from last week´s Apple event, and ran the stock up in anticipation. When no ground breaking use of ARMH technology was forthcoming, the stock backed down. The earnings release on the same day was not a factor in the drop. In fact, the timing of the release and the ticker show that the earnings release was a positive for the stock.

(Footnote: This article made the point that the earnings call and guidance were in fact positive. Possibly this got mulled over and factored in by the market eventually, as ARMH has since recovered roughly half of its post-earnings... er... post-Apple drop)

Source: The Real Reason ARMH Plummeted After Earnings

Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, but may initiate a short position in ARMH over the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article. (More...)

Pew: Reading news on Facebook mostly incidental

Facebook's ambition to be a go-to news source may need some work.

A vast majority of U.S. adults who have read news from Facebook - 78% - say they've logged on to the popular social networking site for other reasons, such as browsing photos, says a study by the Pew Research Center released Thursday.

Roughly two-thirds of U.S. adults use Facebook, and half of them have seen news on the site, says the report, completed in collaboration with the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. That means about 30% of U.S. adults are considered "Facebook news consumers," says the report, which queried more than 5,000 adults.

"People go to Facebook to share personal moments – and they discover the news almost incidentally," says Amy Mitchell, Pew Research Center's director of journalism research. "The serendipitous nature of news on Facebook may actually increase its importance as a source of news and information, especially among those who do not follow the news closely."

Those who don't follow news regularly were more likely to deem Facebook as an "important' news source. Just 38% of Facebook news consumers who say they follow the news "all" or "most of the time" describe Facebook as an important news outlet. For those who follow the news just "some of the time" or less, it was 47%.

Other findings:

* Young people (18- to 29- year-olds) account for about a third (34%) of Facebook news consumers.

* 42% Facebook news consumers often watch local television news, but only 21% of often read print newspapers.

Hot Stocks To Watch For 2014

* About half (49%) of Facebook news consumers regularly get news on six or more different topics. Entertainment news is the most popular topic.

* 64% of Facebook news consumers say they at least sometimes click on news links, while 43% post or share links.

* About a third of Facebook news consumers say they prefer news that shares their own po! int of view, a slightly higher share than the 27% of U.S. adults who say the same.

Top 5 Warren Buffett Companies To Own For 2014

The following stocks meet the criteria that Warren Buffett has emphasized in the past.� As such, these stocks might satisfy the ��racle of Omaha.��/p>

How does Buffett make his picks? In short, he uses the following five investment criteria.

��Free cash flow of at least $250 million.

��Net profit margin of 15% or more.

��Return on equity of at least 15% for each of the past three years and the most recent quarter.

��One dollar�� worth of shareholder equity created for every dollar of retained earnings over the past five years.

��Market capitalization of at least $500 million.

Top 5 Warren Buffett Companies To Own For 2014: Empire State Realty Trust Inc (ESRT)

Empire State Realty Trust, Inc., incorporated on July 29, 2011, is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT), which owns, manages, operates, acquires and repositions office and retail properties in Manhattan and the greater New York metropolitan area. The Company operates in two segments: real estate and construction contracting. As of June 30, 2013, the Company owned 12 office properties (including one long-term ground leasehold interest) encompassing approximately 7.7 million rentable square feet of office space, which were approximately 83.5% leased (or 86.2% giving effect to leases signed but not yet commenced as of that date). Seven of these properties are located in the midtown Manhattan market and encompass in the aggregate approximately 5.9 million rentable square feet of office space, including the Empire State Building. Its Manhattan office properties also contain an aggregate of 440,615 rentable square feet of retail space on their ground floor and/or lower levels. Its remaining five office properties are located in Fairfield County, Connecticut and Westchester County, New York, encompassing in the aggregate approximately 1.8 million rentable square feet.

The Company has entitled land at the Stamford Transportation Center in Stamford, Connecticut, adjacent to one of its office properties, that supports the development of an approximately 380,000 rentable square foot office building and garage, which refers to herein as Metro Tower. As of June 30, 2013, its portfolio also included four standalone retail properties located in Manhattan and two standalone retail properties located in the city center of Westport, Connecticut, encompassing 204,452 rentable square feet in the aggregate. As of June 30, 2013, its standalone retail properties were 100% leased in the aggregate. In addition, the Company has an option to acquire from affiliates of its predecessor two additional Manhattan office properties encompassing approximately 1.5 million rentable squar! e feet of office space and 153,209 rentable square feet of retail space at the base of the buildings.

The Empire State Building is the Company�� flagship property. The 102-story building consists of 2,701,938 rentable square feet of office space and 167,788 rentable square feet of retail space. The building also includes its observatory and broadcasting operations. The Company�� portfolio includes retail properties located in retail corridors in Manhattan and Westport, Connecticut. Tenants at 10 Union Square in Manhattan include Best Buy Mobile, Starbucks, A&P, Panera Bread, FedEx/Kinko��, Au Bon Pain, Chipotle Mexican Grill, and GameStop. In the greater New York metropolitan area, its portfolio includes high quality suburban office properties in densely populated metropolitan communities in Fairfield County, Connecticut and Westchester County, New York. tenants of the greater New York metropolitan area flagship Metro Center (at the Transportation Center in Stamford, Connecticut) include Thomson Reuters, Jefferies Group, Columbus Circle Investors, Torm Shipping, Olympus Partners, BP Energy, Tweedy, Browne Company and Susquehanna International.

The Company approximately has 242 million square feet of rentable space, which are contained within Midtown�� multi-tenant office buildings. Downtown Chicago and the Washington, D.C. CBD combine has a total of 230 million square feet of office space. Three-quarters 75.3% of Midtown�� office stock is classified as Class A with total square footage of 182 million square feet. The Company approximately has 43.9 million square feet of Midtown office space is counted as Class B stock, accounting for 18.2% of the total market. The remaining 6.5% of Midtown office space (15.8 million square feet) is categorized as Class C space. The Grand Central submarket is a office submarket in Midtown Manhattan with 44 million square feet and is located on the east side of Midtown Manhattan, to the north of Murray Hill and to the south of the Park ! Avenue co! rridor.

The West Side office submarket, located to the south and west of Central Park and including the area around Columbus Circle, consists of 25.8 million square feet of office space. Westchester County contains approximately 28.9 million square feet of office space and is split into six submarkets: White Plains CBD and non-CBD, Northern, Central, Eastern and Southern. The White Plains CBD is situated in south central Westchester County, along the Cross-Westchester Expressway (Interstate 287) corridor between the Sprain Brook Parkway and the Hutchinson River Parkway. The submarket consists of approximately 6.3 million square feet of office space and is defined to include the area south of Barker Avenue, north of Quinby Avenue, east of the Bronx River Parkway and west of South Broadway/Post Road. Westchester�� Eastern office submarket consists of 6.5 million square feet of space and is located to the east of White Plains, between New Rochelle and the Connecticut state border.

Top 5 Warren Buffett Companies To Own For 2014: Rockville Financial Inc.(RCKB)

Rockville Financial, Inc. operates as the holding company for Rockville Bank that provides a range of banking services to consumer and commercial customers. The company accepts deposit instruments, which include checking, savings, money market savings accounts, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, and fixed-rate time deposits. Its loan portfolio comprises commercial and industrial loans; residential mortgage loans; commercial real estate loans; consumer loans; commercial and residential construction loans; commercial business loans; and installment, collateral, and other loans. As of July 14, 2011, the company operated 21 branches in Tolland, Hartford, and New London counties in Connecticut. It operates 41 automated teller machines (ATM), including 9 stand-alone ATM facilities. The company was founded in 1858 and is based in Rockville, Connecticut. Rockville Financial, Inc. is a subsidiary of Rockville Financial MHC, Inc.

Top 10 Value Companies To Own For 2014: Eureka Resources Inc.(EUK.V)

Eureka Resources, Inc. engages in the exploration and development of natural resource properties in Canada. It primarily explores for copper and gold ores. The company?s mineral property interests are located in the Cariboo Mining Division of British Columbia, which include the Frasergold project consisting of 18 claims covering approximately 2,866 hectares; and the Lottie Lake project comprising 11 claims covering approximately 3,000 hectares. Eureka Resources Inc. was incorporated in 1981 and is based in Vancouver, Canada.

Top 5 Warren Buffett Companies To Own For 2014: HRT Participacoes em Petroleo SA (HRTPY)

HRT Participacoes em Petroleo SA, formerly BN 16 Participacoes Ltda, is a Brazil-based holding company engaged in the oil and gas industry. The Company is primarily involved in the exploration and production (E&P) of oil and natural gas in Brazil and Namibia. Through its subsidiaries, it is active in the geophysical and geological research, exploration, development, production, import, export and sale of oil and natural gas, as well as in the provision of air logistics services in transporting people and equipment related to oil and gas activities in the exploratory campaign in the Solimoes Basin. As of December 31, 2011, the Company had seven subsidiaries, including Integrated Petroleum Expertise Company Servicos em Petroleo Ltda (IPEX), HRT O&G Exploracao e Producao de Petroleo Ltda, HRT Netherlands BV, HRT America Inc, HRT Africa, HRT Canada Inc and Air Amazonia Servicos Aereos Ltda.

Top 5 Warren Buffett Companies To Own For 2014: Bovis Homes Group(BVS.L)

Bovis Homes Group PLC engages in designing, building, and selling homes for private and public sectors primarily in England and Wales. Its products range from one and two bedroom coach houses and apartments to three storey town houses and four and five bedroom family homes; and retirement living and social housing, as well as partnership housing. The company also undertakes mixed use schemes, including retail, commercial, and office projects. As of December 31, 2010, it had consented land bank of 13,766 plots and strategic land bank of 17,325 plots. The company was founded in 1885 and is headquartered in Longfield, the United Kingdom.

Best Undervalued Stocks To Watch For 2014

Firearms enthusiasts have been investing in new guns at record rates this year. These ace shots should also consider investing in the stocks of the companies that make firearms, providing a different type of bang for their buck. Read on for more about the firearms industry and some publicly traded firearms stocks available to investors.

The firearms industry has some interesting investing dynamics you don't find anywhere else:

Many so-called socially responsible investors outright avoid owning gun stocks and sin stocks, which can make these stocks persistently undervalued. The firearms industry faces a perennial threat from gun control legislation, but this just leads to spikes in gun and ammo sales whenever there are talks or fear of gun control. The most recent talks have set off a surge of interest in buying guns. During the first quarter of this year, the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) saw a 46% increase in background checks for firearms purchases. Gun manufacturers face an existential threat in the future�if 3-D printing of guns ever takes off.

Let's take a look at some publicly traded stocks involved in firearms, one of which could be your ace stock.

Best Undervalued Stocks To Watch For 2014: Dollar Tree Inc.(DLTR)

Dollar Tree, Inc. operates discount variety stores in the United States and Canada. Its stores offer merchandise primarily at the fixed price of $1.00. The company operates its stores under the names of Dollar Tree, Deal$, Dollar Tree Deal$, Dollar Giant, and Dollar Bills. Its stores offer consumable merchandise, including candy and food, and health and beauty care, as well as household consumables, such as paper, plastics, household chemicals, in select stores, and frozen and refrigerated food; variety merchandise, which includes toys, durable housewares, gifts, party goods, greeting cards, softlines, and other items; and seasonal goods, such as Easter, Halloween, and Christmas merchandise. As of April 30, 2011, it operated 4,089 stores in 48 states and the District of Columbia, as well as 88 stores in Canada. The company was founded in 1986 and is based in Chesapeake, Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Mani]

  Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR) is one of the companies that are set to exploit the ongoing trend of consumers' increasing focus on value with significant opportunity to grow its store base, and expand margins.

Best Undervalued Stocks To Watch For 2014: Schlumberger N.V.(SLB)

Schlumberger Limited, together with its subsidiaries, supplies technology, integrated project management, and information solutions to the oil and gas exploration and production industries worldwide. The company?s Oilfield Services segment provides exploration and production services; wireline technology that offers open-hole and cased-hole services; supplies engineering support, directional-drilling, measurement-while-drilling, and logging-while-drilling services; and testing services. This segment also offers well services; supplies well completion services and equipment; artificial lift; data and consulting services; geo services; and information solutions, such as consulting, software, information management system, and IT infrastructure services that support oil and gas industry. Its WesternGeco segment provides reservoir imaging, monitoring, and development services; and operates data processing centers and multiclient seismic library. This segment also offers variou s services include 3D and time-lapse (4D) seismic surveys to multi-component surveys for delineating prospects and reservoir management. The company?s M-I SWACO segment supplies drilling fluid systems to improve drilling performance; fluid systems and specialty tools to optimize wellbore productivity; production technology solutions to maximize production rates; and environmental solutions that manages waste volumes generated in drilling and production operations. Its Smith Oilfield segment designs, manufactures, and markets drill bits and borehole enlargement tools; and supplies drilling tools and services, tubular, completion services, and other related downhole solutions. The company?s Distribution segment markets pipes, valves, and fittings, as well as mill, safety, and other maintenance products. This segment also provides warehouse management, vendor integration, and inventory management services. Schlumberger Limited was founded in 1927 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Arjun Sreekumar]

  Not surprisingly, the industry's annual capital spending has more than tripled over the past decade, coming in at $550 billion in 2011, according to oil-field services firm Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB  ) . Yet despite shelling out all that money, the industry as a whole has been unable to secure enough new reserves to offset production.

• [By Tyler Crowe]

  Talk to your CFO if you experience bloating
  This quarter, Nabors, Halliburton (NYSE: HAL  ) , and Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB  ) have all struggled in their pressure-pumping businesses because of oversupply in the current market. According to Nabors CEO Anthony Petrello, this has led to a very competitive market: "It is not unusual to bid frac jobs against 20 other pumpers, and sometimes as many as 35 show up. We have seen some instances of competitors winning bids with economics that at least from our perspective appear to be near cash break-even."

5 Best Growth Stocks To Buy Right Now: Tupperware Corporation(TUP)

Tupperware Brands Corporation operates as a direct seller of various products across a range of brands and categories through an independent sales force. The company engages in the manufacture and sale of kitchen and home products, and beauty and personal care products. It offers preparation, storage, and serving solutions for the kitchen and home, as well as kitchen cookware and tools, children?s educational toys, microwave products, and gifts under the Tupperware brand name primarily in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, the Asia Pacific, and North America. The company provides beauty and personal care products, which include skin care products, cosmetics, bath and body care, toiletries, fragrances, nutritional products, apparel, and related products principally in Mexico, South Africa, the Philippines, Australia, and Uruguay. It offers beauty and personal care products under the Armand Dupree, Avroy Shlain, BeautiControl, Fuller, NaturCare, Nutrimetics, Nuvo, and Swissgar de brand names. The company sells its Tupperware products directly to distributors, directors, managers, and dealers; and beauty products primarily through consultants and directors. As of December 26, 2009, the Tupperware distribution system had approximately 1,800 distributors, 61,300 managers, and 1.3 million dealers; and the sales force representing the Beauty businesses approximately 1.1 million. The company was formerly known as Tupperware Corporation and changed its name to Tupperware Brands Corporation in December 2005. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Orlando, Florida.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Arie Goren]

  After running this screen on May 21, 2013, before the markets' open, I discovered the following eight stocks: Sunoco Logistics Partners LP (SXL), Leggett & Platt Inc (LEG), Copa Holdings SA (CPA), RPC Inc. (RES), Tupperware Brands Corp. (TUP), Herbalife Ltd. (HLF), John Wiley & Sons Inc. (JW.A) and C.H. Robinson Worldwide Inc. (CHRW).

• [By John Udovich]

  Everyone is familiar with�the Tupperware brand from�consumer products stock Tupperware Brands Corporation (NYSE: TUP) and you are probably familiar with the brands�of mid cap stock Jarden Corp (NYSE: JAH) along with small cap stocks Libbey Inc (NYSEMKT: LBY) and Lifetime Brands Inc (NASDAQ: LCUT); but what about the stocks themselves? Chances are, their brands or products are right under your nose at home and you probably don�� know anything about the mid cap or small cap stock behind them.

Best Undervalued Stocks To Watch For 2014: Caterpillar Inc.(CAT)

Caterpillar Inc. manufactures and sells construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives worldwide. It operates through three lines of businesses: Machinery, Engines, and Financial Products. The Machinery business offers construction, mining, and forestry machinery, including track and wheel tractors, track and wheel loaders, pipelayers, motor graders, wheel tractor-scrapers, track and wheel excavators, backhoe loaders, log skidders, log loaders, off-highway trucks, articulated trucks, paving products, skid steer loaders, underground mining equipment, tunnel boring equipment, and related parts. It also manufactures diesel-electric locomotives; and manufactures and services rail-related products and logistics services for other companies. The Engines business provides diesel, heavy fuel, and natural gas reciprocating engines for Caterpillar machinery, electric power generation systems, marine, petrol eum, construction, industrial, agricultural, and other applications. It offers industrial turbines and turbine-related services for oil and gas, and power generation applications. This business also remanufactures Caterpillar engines, machines, and engine components; and offers remanufacturing services for other companies. The Financial Products business provides retail and wholesale financing alternatives for Caterpillar machinery and engines, solar gas turbines, and other equipment and marine vessels, as well as offers loans and various forms of insurance to customers and dealers. It also offers financing for vehicles, power generation facilities, and marine vessels. The company markets its products directly, as well as through its distribution centers, dealers, and distributors. It was formerly known as Caterpillar Tractor Co. and changed its name to Caterpillar Inc. in 1986. Caterpillar Inc. was founded in 1925 and is headquartered in Peoria, Illinois.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT  ) lost half a percent, even as gold and silver prices posted modest gains. Caterpillar finds itself in a difficult position, as low metals prices will likely force many of its mining-company clients to delay or downsize purchases of capital equipment. Ordinarily, cyclical economic improvement would bode well for the company, but to the extent that improving conditions lead to less monetary accommodation from central banks, prices of metals could fall further, and jeopardize that part of Caterpillar's business, even if construction and infrastructure activity pick up. That will be a difficult line for the company to walk in the year ahead.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT  ) is scheduled to release its quarterly earnings report tomorrow, and investors are bracing for a substantial drop in net income. Yet for all of Caterpillar's woes, the long-term question is whether the pullback is part of a normal cyclical decline or the result of longer-term macroeconomic trends toward slowing growth in formerly red-hot areas of the world.

Thursday's Top News Headlines

Here are today's top news headlines from Fool.com. Check back throughout the day as this list is updated, and follow us on Twitter at TMFBreaking.

Shareholders Approve Going-Private Plan for 7 Days Group

Dr. Reddy's Launches Generic Lamictal

Amazon Expands PBS Shows on Prime Instant Video

Sprint to Introduce Two New Microsoft Phones

Google Fiber Picks Up Another City: Mission, Kan.

Microsoft Reveals Windows 8.1

eBay Enterprise Signs Deal With Hygiene and Forest Products Company

Google Updates Satellite Imagery

Seattle's Best Frozen Coffee Smoothie Blends Hit Grocery Stores

LinkedIn Now Available in Tagalog

Mortgage Rates Soar. Bernanke Comments Seen as Catalyst

Initial Jobless Claims Drop 2.5%

Pending Home Sales Hit 6-Year High

Personal Income, Spending Rise

Commercial Metals Net Earnings Fall YOY, Dividend Stays Steady

Zhongpin Shareholders Approve Going-Private Plan

It's Official: DISH Takes Clearwire Offer Off the Table

Precision Castparts to Acquire Permaswage for $600 Million

Edison International to Lay Off 1,100 Workers in Calif.

DIRECTV Overstates Latin American Subscribers, Will Take $25 Million Charge

Federal Regulator Sues Corzine Over MF Global Failure

5 Best Stocks To Buy For 2014

Although business headlines still tout earnings numbers, many investors have moved past net earnings as a measure of a company's economic output. That's because earnings are very often less trustworthy than cash flow, since earnings are more open to manipulation based on dubious judgment calls.

Earnings' unreliability is one of the reasons Foolish investors often flip straight past the income statement to check the cash flow statement. In general, by taking a close look at the cash moving in and out of the business, you can better understand whether the last batch of earnings brought money into the company, or merely disguised a cash gusher with a pretty headline.

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

5 Best Stocks To Buy For 2014: China Nepstar Chain Drugstore Ltd (NPD)

China Nepstar Chain Drugstore Ltd. operates retail drugstores in the People?s Republic of China. The company?s drugstores provide pharmacy services and other merchandise, including prescription drugs; over-the-counter drugs; nutritional supplements, such as healthcare supplements, vitamins, minerals, and dietary products; herbal products, including drinkable herbal remedies and packages of assorted herbs for making soup; and private label products. Its stores also offer personal care products, such as skin care, hair care, and beauty products; family care products, including portable medical devices for family use, birth control products, and early pregnancy test products; and convenience products, such as soft drinks, packaged snacks, other consumables, cleaning agents, and stationeries, as well as seasonal and promotional items. The company operates its stores under the China Nepstar brand name. As of December 31, 2009, its store network comprised 2,479 retail drugstores located in approximately 71 cities in Guangdong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Liaoning, Shandong, Hunan, Fujian, Sichuan, and Hubei provinces, as well as in Shanghai, Tianjin, and Beijing municipalities of the People?s Republic of China. The company was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Shenzhen, the People?s Republic of China.

5 Best Stocks To Buy For 2014: Top Global Limited (519.SI)

Top Global Limited, through its subsidiaries, engages in property development and other real estate related businesses primarily in Singapore. The company�s activities comprise development and sale of real estate properties; investment in and rental of real estate properties; property and facility management services; and real estate agency services. It is also involved in the car parking services business. Top Global Limited is based in Singapore.

Hot Bank Companies To Watch For 2014: CytRx Corporation(CYTR)

CytRx Corporation, a biopharmaceutical research and development company, engages in the development of human therapeutics, specializing in oncology. Its drug development pipeline includes INNO-206, which is in Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of soft tissue sarcomas and is in Phase Ib/2 clinical trials for the treatment of solid tumors; and tamibarotene that is in Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of non-small-cell lung cancer and acute promyelocytic leukemia. The company also develops Bafetinib, which is in Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia and advanced prostate cancer, as well as in pharmacokinetic clinical trial for brain cancer. CytRx Corporation was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lauren Pollock]

  Biopharmaceutical development company CytRx Corp.(CYTR) and early-stage diagnostics company Cancer Genetics Inc.(CGIX) separately disclosed plans to sell stock. CytRx, whose offering of 10 million shares priced at an 18% discount, is aiming to raise money to fund its clinical trials, while Cancer Genetics wants to hire more sales and marketing personnel, as well as fund research and development. CytRx dropped, while Cancer Genetics fell.

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  Another under-$10 biotechnology player that's starting to trend within range of triggering a major breakout trade is CytRx (CYTR), which has an oncology pipeline that includes two programs in clinical development for cancer indications: aldoxorubicin and tamibarotene. This stock has been moving to the upside during the last three months, with shares up by 21%.

  If you take a look at the chart for CytRx, you'll notice that this stock has been trending sideways inside of a consolidation chart pattern for the last two months, with shares moving between $2.27 on the downside and $2.68 on the upside. That consolidation pattern has occurred right above this stock's 50-day and 200-day moving averages. Shares of CYTR have now started to break out above some near-term overhead resistance at $2.49 a share. That move is quickly pushing CYTR within range of triggering an even bigger breakout trade above the upper-end of its recent sideways trading chart pattern.

  Market players should now look for long-biased trades in CYTR if it manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance levels at $2.68 to $2.80 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above those levels with volume that registers near or above its three-month average action of 154,838 shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then CYTR will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $3.20 to $4 a share.

  Traders can look to buy CYTR off any weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below its 200-day at $2.33 a share or below more support at $2.27 a share. One can also buy CYTR off strength once it clears those breakout levels with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage from your entry point.

• [By Bryan Murphy]

  Though worth keeping on your radar, until today, CytRx Corporation (NASDAQ:CYTR) wasn't actually a name worth taking a swing on. Today's action changed everything, for the better. Thanks to Wednesday's 6.0% pop, the CYTR tide has convincingly turned bullish.�

5 Best Stocks To Buy For 2014: Lakeland Financial Corporation(LKFN)

Lakeland Financial Corporation operates as the holding company for Lake City Bank that provides various commercial and retail banking, wealth advisory, and investment management services in Indiana. The company accepts checking accounts, savings accounts, time deposits, certificates of deposit, money market accounts, and health savings accounts. It provides commercial, real estate, and agricultural loans; direct and indirect consumer loans; and commercial and residential real estate mortgage loans, as well as home equity lines of credit and retail installment loans, including indirect automotive financing. In addition, the company offers retail and merchant credit card services, corporate treasury management services, retirement services, bond administration, safe deposit box services, and trust and brokerage services, as well as involves in the sale of securities under agreements to repurchase. Further, it provides retail brokerage services, including various financial an d investment products, such as annuities and life insurance; and Internet business banking and on-line treasury management services. As of October 25, 2011, it had 43 branches in Kosciusko, Elkhart, Allen, St. Joseph, DeKalb, Fulton, Huntington, LaGrange, Marshall, Noble, Pulaski, and Whitley counties of northern Indiana, as well as a loan production office in Indianapolis, Indiana. The company was founded in 1872 and is headquartered in Warsaw, Indiana.

5 Best Stocks To Buy For 2014: Vendanta Resources Ord Usd 0.1(VED.L)

Vedanta Resources plc operates as a diversified metals and mining company in India, China, the United Kingdom, Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. It involves in mining, smelting, refining, and producing aluminum, alumina, copper, and zinc products; producing lead and iron ore products; processing gold and silver; and bauxite mining. The company also provides various financing services, port services, and accomodation and catering services, as well as engages in power generation business activities. Vedanta Resources plc was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

Top 10 Warren Buffett Companies To Buy Right Now

Shareholders at the Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-B  ) annual meeting saw a unique sight: Warren Buffett invited Doug Kass -- a certified Berkshire short-seller -- to ask tough questions throughout the day. Motley Fool analysts Joe Magyer and Rex Moore, who were in Omaha, offer their thoughts on the bear experiment.

Thanks to the savvy of investing legend Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway's book value per share has grown a mind-blowing 586,817% over the past 48 years. But with Buffett aging and Berkshire rapidly evolving, is this insurance conglomerate still a buy today? In The Motley Fool's premium report on the company, Berkshire expert Joe Magyer provides investors with key reasons to buy as well as important risks to watch out for. Click here now for instant access to Joe's take on Berkshire!

Top 10 Warren Buffett Companies To Buy Right Now: Caspian Oil & Gas Ltd (CIG.AX)

Equus Mining Limited focuses on the identification, evaluation, and development of copper and gold resource properties in Chile. The company has an option to acquire 100% interests in the group of 14 Mining Licenses covering an area of 18.05 square kilometers and is located in the Naltagua Copper District, southeast of San Antonio city. It also has interests in the Yerba Project in the Naltagua Copper system; and the Araya Project in the south-central portion of the Naltagua Copper System. The company was formerly known as Caspian Oil & Gas Limited and changed its name to Equus Mining Limited in November 2012. Equus Mining Limited is headquartered in Sydney, Australia.

Top 10 Warren Buffett Companies To Buy Right Now: Avexa Ltd (AVX.AX)

Avexa Limited, a biotechnology company, engages in the discovery, development, and commercialization of anti-infective pharmaceutical medicines for the treatment of human infectious diseases. The company�s research programs primarily focus on the discovery of medicines for the treatment of the diseases caused by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and vancomycin- and methicillin-resistant bacteria. Its principal projects include apricitabine, a nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor for the treatment of HIV infection; and an HIV integrase inhibitor program. The company, through its license agreement with Valevia Pharmaceuticals GmbH, also develops AVX13616, an anti-bacterial lead compound for antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections. The company was founded in 2004 and is based in Richmond, Australia.

Best Medical Companies To Own For 2014: Rogers Corporation(ROG)

Rogers Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development, manufacture, and distribution of specialty materials and components worldwide. It provides polyurethane and silicone foam products; and fabricates, coats, and customizes printed circuit board laminate products for high frequency and performance applications. The company also offers power electronic substrate products; and power distribution system components primarily to manufacturers of high power electrical inverter and converter systems for use in mass transit and clean technology applications. In addition, it provides elastomer components, such as floats for level sensing in fuel tanks, motors, and storage tanks; elastomer rollers and belts for document handling in copiers, printers, mail sorting machines, and automated teller machines; and nonwoven composite materials for medical padding, industrial prefiltration applications, and as consumable supplies in the lithographic printing industr y, as well as distributes inverters. The company markets its products for original equipment manufacturers and contract manufacturers in portable communications, communications infrastructure, consumer electronics, mass transit, automotive, defense, and clean technology markets. Rogers Corporation was founded in 1832 and is headquartered in Rogers, Connecticut.

Top 10 Warren Buffett Companies To Buy Right Now: Alkermes Inc.(ALKS)

Alkermes plc, an integrated biotechnology company, develops medicines that enhance patient outcomes. The company has a diversified portfolio of approximately 20 commercial drug products and a clinical pipeline of product candidates that address central nervous system (CNS) disorders, such as addiction, schizophrenia, and depression. It manufactures and commercializes VIVITROL for alcohol and opioid dependence; RISPERDAL CONSTA for schizophrenia and bipolar I disorder; INVEGA SUSTENNA for the treatment of schizophrenia; AMPYRA to improve walking in patients with multiple sclerosis; and BYDUREON for the treatment of type II diabetes. Alkermes? pipeline includes extended-release injectable and oral products for the treatment of prevalent, chronic diseases, such as central nervous system disorders, addiction, and diabetes. The company was founded in 1987 and headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Brian Orelli]

  Alkermes (NASDAQ: ALKS  ) is up big today on phase 2 data suggesting that its depression drug ALKS 5461 works.

  The drug produced a statistically significant improvement in three different rating scales for depression compared to placebo. Alkermes didn't add any numbers to the top-line data; it's saving them for a medical meeting at the end of next month.

• [By Sean Williams]

  It's not easy to reinvent yourself in the biotechnology sector, but that's exactly the path that Alkermes (NASDAQ: ALKS  ) CEO Richard Pops has decided to take his company.

• [By Brian Orelli]

  Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ  ) is the leader for the long-acting antipsychotic, selling $1.4 billion worth of Risperdal Consta and $800 million worth of Invega Sustenna last year. Alkermes (NASDAQ: ALKS  ) also benefits from a royalty on both drugs. It developed the extended-release technology in Risperdal Consta, and Alkermes acquired the royalty rights to Invega Sustenna when it bought Elan's (NYSE: ELN  ) drug technology division.

• [By Sean Williams]

  What: Shares of Alkermes (NASDAQ: ALKS  ) , a diversified biopharmaceutical company, rose as much as 16% after the company announced positive clinical results for ALKS-5461 in a mid-stage trial to treat major depressive disorder, or MDD.

Top 10 Warren Buffett Companies To Buy Right Now: Hansard Group Plc(HSD.L)

Hansard Global plc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a specialist long-term savings provider, offering life assurance and investment solutions to international investors. The company provides a range of flexible and tax-efficient investment products within life assurance policy wrappers. Its products are unit-linked life assurance contracts that qualify for favorable tax treatment. The company distributes its contracts through financial service intermediaries, independent financial advisers, and retail operations of financial institutions, as well as through its multi-language Internet platform, Hansard OnLine. Hansard Global plc was founded in 1970 and is based in Douglas, the United Kingdom.

Top 10 Warren Buffett Companies To Buy Right Now: Ascent Solar Technologies Inc.(ASTI)

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

Top 10 Warren Buffett Companies To Buy Right Now: Glacier Bancorp Inc. (GBCI)

Glacier Bancorp, Inc., a multi-bank holding company, provides commercial banking services in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and Washington. It offers transaction and savings deposits; real estate, commercial, agriculture, and consumer loans; mortgage origination services; and retail brokerage services to individuals, small to medium-sized businesses, community organizations, and public entities. The company�s deposit products include non-interest bearing demand accounts, interest bearing checking accounts, regular statement savings accounts, money market deposit accounts, fixed rate certificates of deposit, negotiated-rate jumbo certificates, individual retirement accounts, and reciprocal deposits. Its loan products comprise construction and permanent loans on residential real estate; consumer land and lot acquisition loans; unimproved land and land development loans; residential builder guidance lines comprising pre-sold and spec-home construction, and lot acqu isition loans; commercial real estate loans to purchase, construct, and finance commercial real estate properties; commercial and industrial loans; consumer loans secured by real estate, automobiles, and other assets; second mortgage and home equity loans; and agriculture loans. The company operates 106 locations, including 97 branches. Glacier Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1955 and is headquartered in Kalispell, Montana.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Eric Volkman]

  Glacier Bancorp (NASDAQ: GBCI  ) is reaching into its vault for more cash to return to shareholders. The company this week declared its latest dividend, which is to be $0.15 per share paid on July 18 to shareholders of record as of July 9.

Top 10 Warren Buffett Companies To Buy Right Now: Symmetricom Inc.(SYMM)

Symmetricom, Inc. provides timekeeping technologies, instruments, and solutions worldwide. Its Communications business unit provides timing technologies and services for communications infrastructure. The Communications business unit products comprise primary reference sources; edge clocks and distribution products for synchronization outside the network core; building integrated timing supply and sync supply unit for the central office; the PackeTime product suite; data over cable service interface specifications timing interface systems; network management and monitoring software; and embedded hardware and software solutions for integration with various elements of the communications ecosystem, such as silicon, routers, switches, microwave backhaul, and base stations. The company?s Government business unit offers time technology products for aerospace/defense, IT infrastructure, power infrastructure, and science and metrology applications. The Government business unit p roduct portfolio comprises timescale clock sources; network time servers; network time displays; time code generators; bus level timing cards; primary reference standards, such as rubidium and cesium oscillator standards; high stability masers; chip-scale atomic clocks; ruggedized crystal oscillators; and custom time and frequency systems. It offers timekeeping in GPS satellites, national time references, and national power grids, as well as in critical military and civilian networks, which enable data, voice, mobile, and video networks and services. The company sells its products through distributors, systems integrators, and manufacturer sales representatives. It serves various markets, including communications service providers; network equipment manufacturers; silicon suppliers; aerospace/defense; power utility infrastructure; IT infrastructure; underwater exploration and navigation; and science and metrology. The company was founded in 1956 and is headquartered in San J ose, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

  San Jose, Calif.-based Symmetricom (NASDAQ: SYMM  ) has a new chief executive officer.

  On Tuesday, the "precise time" computer announced a series of changes in upper management. Current CEO David G. Cote is leaving the company "to pursue other interests" and has been replaced by new CEO Elizabeth A. Fetter, a current board member. Details on Fetter's compensation have yet to be filed with the SEC.

Top 10 Warren Buffett Companies To Buy Right Now: Mercury Computer Systems(MRCY)

Mercury Computer Systems, Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets high-performance embedded, real-time digital signal and image processing systems and software for specialized defense and commercial computing markets. The company operates in two segments, Advanced Computing Solutions (ACS) and Mercury Federal Systems (MFS). The ACS segment provides high-performance computing solutions, such as single board computers, digital signal processors, and integrated subsystems to the aerospace and defense, semiconductor, and commercial computing markets. This segment also provides microwave sub-assemblies to address needs in EW, SIGINT, ELINT, and high bandwidth communications subsystems; and software and customized design services for military and commercial applications. The MFS segment focuses on services and support work with the Department of Defense and federal intelligence and homeland security agencies, including designing and engineering intelligence, surveillance, and re connaissance (ISR) capabilities to address threats to the U.S. forces. It offers a range of engineering architecture and design services that enable clients to deploy computing capabilities for ISR systems on an accelerated time cycle. The company has operations in the United States, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. The company was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in Chelmsford, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By CRWE]

  Mercury Computer Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq:MRCY), a best-of-breed provider of commercially developed, open sensor and Big Data processing systems for critical commercial, defense and intelligence applications, reported it had received a $2.2M purchase order relating to an airborne radar application for fighter aircraft.

Top 10 Warren Buffett Companies To Buy Right Now: PURICORE PLC ORD GBP0.01(PURI.L)

PuriCore plc, a water-based clean technology company, engages in developing and commercializing proprietary products that kill pathogens. It offers Sterilox food safety systems that are used by retail supermarkets to keep produce, cut fruit, floral, and seafood fresh, as well as to address cross-contamination; and FloraFresh Systems to keep flowers fresher for leading supermarket and floral chains. The company also provides Vashe wound therapy, an FDA-cleared medical device used for moistening, irrigating, cleaning, and debriding acute and chronic wounds, including stage I through IV pressure ulcers, stasis ulcers, diabetic ulcers, post-surgical wounds, first- and second-degree burns, abrasions, and minor irritations of the skin. In addition, it offers Aqualox water treatment systems that produce hypochlorous acid for water and wastewater disinfection, as well as for killing E.coli, Legionella, and other harmful micro-organisms; Sterilox Biosafety system that rapidly disin fects surfaces to protect against the spread of infectious pathogens; and Sterilox dental systems that generate solutions to decontaminate and disinfect hard surfaces and inside dental unit water lines ensuring a clean environment for dental professionals, patients, and staff. Further, the company?s products address various public health threats of MRSA, M.tuberculosis, Legionella, E.coli, HIV, poliovirus, Helicobacter pylori, norovirus, Salmonella, and animal and human influenza virus. PuriCore plc is headquartered in Malvern, Pennsylvania.

Thursday's Top News Headlines

Here are today's top news headlines from Fool.com. Check back throughout the day as this list is updated, and follow us on Twitter at TMFBreaking.

Budweiser Introducing Bowtie-Shaped Can

Logitech CFO Leaps to Roku

Texas Instruments Cranks Dividend Higher

Google Picks Provo as Third City for Google Fiber

Labor Nominee Perez Pledges Open Mind

Congress OK Sought to Sell Boeing C-17 Globemaster to Kuwait

Boeing in Line for $300 Million Contract to Support NATO

U.S. Natural Gas Supplies Grew Last Week

U.S. Companies to Bid to Sell Israel Fuel Valued Around $2.7 Billion

Swiss to Hold Referendum on Gold Reserves

EU Aims to Get U.S. Trade Deal by Next Year

Mortgage Rates Drop; 5/1 ARM at 8-Year Low

Amazon Appstore Expanding to Nearly 200 Countries

Oil Rises Near $88; Natural Gas Jumps 4 Percent

Macy's Request for Restraining Order Denied by Judge

Vonage Adds Video Calling to Mobile Service

Barclays Shakes Up Senior Management Team

Allstate March Catastrophe Loss Estimate Totals $198 Million

Initial Jobless Claims Up 1.1%

IMF Chief Says Global Pro-Growth Policies Needed

Johnson & Johnson Sells Back Shares to Elan

Gold Rises; Corn Falls as Export Sales Disappoint

Nervous Consumers Pull Leading Indicators Down 0.1%

Money Market Fund Assets Fall to $2.595 Trillion

Microsoft CFO Leaving

Google Pays $1 for $39 Million Utah Fiber Service

Will the Galaxy S4 Launch Bruise Apple?

The much-hyped Samsung Galaxy S4 smartphone will be available in the U.S. beginning this week. In this multipart series, Fool analysts Rex Moore and Andrew Tonner talk about whether the phone can live up to the hype leading up to the launch. Will the S4 simply annoy Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), or alter the smartphone competitive landscape?

Meanwhile, there's no doubt that Apple is at the center of technology's largest revolution ever, and that longtime shareholders have been handsomely rewarded with over 1,000% gains. However, there is a debate raging as to whether Apple remains a buy. The Motley Fool's senior technology analyst and managing bureau chief, Eric Bleeker, is prepared to fill you in on both reasons to buy and reasons to sell Apple, and what opportunities are left for the company (and your portfolio) going forward. To get instant access to his latest thinking on Apple, simply click here now.

Top 5 China Companies To Invest In Right Now

3 Biotech Companies for Young Investors

Take one look at the returns from biotech darlings Celgene, Biogen Idec, and Gilead Sciences over the past year. If that doesn't get you excited as an investor, then you had better check your pulse. The further back you go, the better it gets. Had you staked a position in the companies above 10 years ago, you would have captured returns of 1,626%, 610%, and 833%, respectively. These companies above may not be done growing, but with market caps ranging between $50 billion and $80 billion, it would be misguided to expect similar gains from them going forward.   

While we cannot travel back in time (yet) to make our present selves look like investing geniuses, we can attempt to learn from the past while searching for the next big biotech companies. Young investors who are not afraid to adopt a buy-and-hold mentality could benefit the most from finding the next gem. The eye-popping returns of biotech firms coupled with the compounding effect enjoyed by investors who get an early start can be a powerful combination. Here are three companies that could trounce the market in the next 10 years.

Building momentum
It may not seem too impressive on the surface, but Momenta Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: MNTA  ) has the makings of a game-changing biotech company. The company has developed a novel platform that greatly speeds the development and characterization of complex biological compounds. Unlike more traditional small molecules, therapeutic proteins are massive molecules whose exact chemical structure and makeup can vary from one production method to the other. Simple folds of subunits within the protein can drastically affect its efficacy and toxicity.

Momenta's platform swipes away uncertainty and risk from product development by making connections between a drug's chemical structure, manufacturing process, and mechanism of action. The approach has attracted the attention of Novartis and Baxter Pharmaceuticals, which are going all-in on the future of biosimilars, or generic biologics. Although the company's technology was proven successful at an early stage, its first generic drug quickly succumbed to a flood of competition. An astounding $180 million in profits on $283 million in revenue in 2011 fell a mind-numbing 97% as a result.  

10 Best Value Stocks To Own Right Now

Despite an early collapse, Momenta has a promising future ahead of it. A partnership with Baxter could produce up to six biosimilars -- the first of which could be up for regulatory approval by 2014. The company is also developing a novel oncology drug on its own, although it is still in phase 1 trials. It will remain a high-risk investment until it can generate more revenue. But if Momenta can diversify its revenue stream and build out its product portfolio, it should be able to capture the ridiculous profit margins of 2011.

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

Incyte and Novartis have teamed up to market Jakafi -- the company's first and only approved drug -- for myelofibrosis (a bone marrow cancer). The pair is also evaluating the novel compound in four additional cancer trials; one phase 3 and the balance in phase 2 development. Meanwhile, Eli Lilly has tapped Incyte's baricitinib for inflammatory diseases. The drug crushed its phase 2 trial for rheumatoid arthritis late last year and is wrapping up a phase 2 trial for psoriasis.

With a market cap of just $3 billion and plenty of positive developments, Incyte could be a good early candidate for the next big biotech company. Investors will have to practice extreme patience, though, since the next phase 3 data won't be published for several years. 

You call it cheating -- I call it looking ahead
Who said biotech investments are confined to health care and pharmaceuticals? Solazyme (NASDAQ: SZYM  ) has nothing to do with either, but forward-thinking investors won't let that stop them. The industrial biotechnology company is developing a novel renewable oils platform that could one day produce commercial quantities of in-spec chemicals for a variety of applications including cosmetics, flavors and fragrances, specialty chemicals, and fuels.

Solazyme is feverishly working on building its first production capacity in Brazil, the United States, and Europe. When the last of the three facilities is commissioned in early 2014, the company will own an annual nameplate oils capacity of 125,000 metric tons. With just 8,500 metric tons of capacity at the beginning of 2013, it is easy to see why investors are excited about the big increases in revenue coming their way.

Potential will likely push shares higher over the next year, although Solazyme still needs to commercialize all of it oils at industrial levels of production to become profitable. The company hasn't missed any major milestones to date, but it's clear that big challenges lie ahead. Despite the risks, Solazyme remains the best investment in industrial biotechnology.

Foolish bottom line
Will one of these companies become the next big biotech company? It is much too early to say, but young investors looking for great buy-and-hold opportunities should consider the innovative group. Each comes with more risks than more mature companies such as Celgene, Biogen, or Gilead, but that also makes the potential returns far greater. All three are on my watchlist and will be added to my portfolio in the next year. Will you be joining me? Let me know in the comments section below.

While you can certainly make huge gains in biotech prospects, the best investing approach is to choose great companies and stick with them for the long term. The Motley Fool's free report "3 Stocks That Will Help You Retire Rich" names stocks that could help you build long-term wealth and retire well, along with some winning wealth-building strategies that every investor should be aware of. Click here now to keep reading.

Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014

W&T Offshore� (NYSE: WTI  ) �has increased its�second-quarter dividend�by a penny to $0.09 per share, an increase of 12.5%.

The oil and gas driller has regularly increased its dividend over the years and has also bestowed a series of special dividends on investors. In 2012, it paid two special dividends of $0.32 and $0.55 per share, making 2012's total dividend paid $1.11, or 40% more than it paid in 2011.

Of the latest dividend increase, W&T CEO�Tracy W. Krohn said: "We are pleased to be able to increase our regular quarterly dividend by 12.5% and continue to reward our shareholders for their ongoing support. We began paying a�$0.02�dividend in�January 2005�shortly after going public and have been able to grow that amount over the years. This recent increase reflects our continued confidence in W&T Offshore's ability to continue to generate strong cash flow."

The new payout annualizes to $0.36 per share and yields 2.8% based on the closing price of W&T Offshore's stock on May 7.

Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: Luna Innovations Incorporated(LUNA)

Luna Innovations Incorporated engages in the research, development, and commercialization of technologies in the areas of sensing and instrumentation products, and health care products primarily in the United States. The company?s Product and Licensing segment offers test and measurement products to monitor the integrity of fiber optic network and sub-assemblies. This segment provides Optical Vector Analyzer platform, a device for single-measurement, all-parameter analysis of fiber optic components and assemblies up to 150 meters in length; Optical Backscatter Reflectometer, a sensitive diagnostic device, for data and telecommunications companies, and service providers who maintain their own fiber optic networks; and Phoenix laser, a MEMs-based external cavity laser, that offers low noise and precise tuning capability over the C-band. It also offers distributed sensing systems, which comprise multiple sensors whose input is integrated through a fiber optic network and soft ware to detect distributed strain, shape, and temperature; and tunable lasers. In addition, this segment provides health care products, including medical devices for minimally invasive diagnostics, surgery, and therapy; non-invasive monitoring and diagnosis medical devices consisting of emboli detection and classification QUANTIFIER, a non-invasive medical device, that uses quantitative ultrasound technology to count emboli in ex-vivo blood circuit; and nanomaterial-based medical products comprising Trimetasphere nanomaterials. The company?s Technology Development segment provides contract research services to universities, government entities, and corporations. Luna Innovations Incorporated offers its services to energy, telecommunications, life sciences, and defense industries .The company was incorporated in 1990 and is headquartered in Roanoke, Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

  Shares of microcap fiber optic test and measurement sensor-maker Luna Innovations (NASDAQ: LUNA  ) surged as much as 85% in Monday trading before finally settling down to book a 41% gain for the day. The catalyst: The company announced that it had extended its multiyear agreement to develop and supply "high-speed shape-sensing technology" to robotic surgery giant Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG  ) for use in its da Vinci surgical robots.

Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: Tyson Foods Inc.(TSN)

Tyson Foods, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production, distribution, and marketing of chicken, beef, pork, and prepared food products, as well as related allied products worldwide. The company?s Chicken segment involves in breeding and raising chickens, as well as processing live chickens into fresh, frozen, and value-added chicken products. Its Beef segment processes live fed cattle and fabricates dressed beef carcasses into primal and sub-primal meat cuts and case-ready products The company?s Pork segment involves in the processing live market hogs; and fabricating pork carcasses into primal and sub-primal cuts and case-ready products. Its Prepared Foods segment manufactures and markets frozen and refrigerated food products comprising pepperoni, bacon, beef and pork pizza toppings, pizza crusts, flour and corn tortilla products, appetizers, prepared meals, ethnic foods, soups, sauces, side dishes, meat dishes, and processed meats. The company mark ets and sells its products to grocery retailers, grocery wholesalers, meat distributors, warehouse club stores, military commissaries, industrial food processing companies, chain restaurants or their distributors, international export companies, and domestic distributors, as well as to foodservice operations, such as plant and school cafeterias, convenience stores, hospitals, and other vendors. Tyson Foods, Inc. also offers its allied products to the manufacturers of pharmaceuticals and technical products, as well as to pork processors. The company was founded in 1935 and is headquartered in Springdale, Arkansas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  The four biggest chicken processors in the country are Tyson Foods (NYSE: TSN  ) ,�JBS, Perdue, and�Sanderson Farms� (NASDAQ: SAFM  ) , which slaughter 60% of all the chickens consumed in the country, and according to the National Chicken Council, the industry has invested tens of millions of dollars in technology and scientific processes to minimize any risks to the buying public. Indeed, every�factory-scale slaughterhouse has four USDA inspectors overseeing its kill lines.�

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  It is not that frequent that an analyst downgrade sparks a 7% drop in a stock. That is why we are focusing on this big analyst downgrade in Tyson Foods Inc. (NYSE: TSN). BofA/Merrill Lynch downgraded Tyson to Neutral from Buy with a $32 price target. The prior target was $33 on the stock. The ramifications are strong enough that shares of rival Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. (NYSE: PPC) traded lower just as though they are the same company.

• [By Dan Radovsky]

  One case where the SEC did not seem to follow through with its oversight duties due to cost concerns involved a bribery scandal at Tysons Foods (NYSE: TSN  ) . Even after the company admitted in 2011 to the longtime bribing of veterinarians in a Mexican poultry-processing plant, the SEC had not brought charges against any Tysons employees. Why? It seems the cost of going forward with the prosecution of foreign witnesses would be just too high.

Hot Casino Stocks To Buy Right Now: Select Comfort Corporation(SCSS)

Select Comfort Corporation develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes adjustable-firmness beds and other sleep-related accessory products in the United States, Alaska, Hawaii, Canada, and Australia. It offers its mattresses under the Sleep Number brand name. The company also provides a line of accessory bedding products, including specialty pillows, mattress pads, comforters, sheets, and leg options. Select Comfort Corporation distributes its products through retail, direct marketing, and e-commerce channels. As of January 2, 2010, it had 403 company-owned stores and 146 retail partner doors. The company was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  But Mattress Firm has to deal with competitors that are highly motivated to thwart its growth plans. On one hand, Tempur-Pedic's (NYSE: TPX  ) now-completed acquisition of Sealy has broadened the former high-end mattress specialist's product line to cover more of the lower-end business that Mattress Firm has historically focused on. At the same time, Select Comfort (NASDAQ: SCSS  ) has managed to take over its primary competitor in the air-filled mattress market, giving it sole control of that segment of the overall mattress market.

• [By Sean Williams]

  What: Shares of Select Comfort (NASDAQ: SCSS  ) , a retailer of mattresses and other sleep-related products, dipped as much as 10% after reporting disappointing second-quarter results.

Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: NET Servicos de Comunicacao S.A.(NETC)

Net Servicos de Comunicacao S.A., through its subsidiaries, provides cable television, Internet access, and voice services in Brazil. It offers cable television services under the ?NET? brand name through various cable networks located in the largest cities of Brazil. The company also offers broadband Internet access services under the ?NET VIRTUA? brand name by using Embratel's IP backbone infrastructure. In addition, it provides voice services under the ?NET FONE VIA EMBRATEL? brand name jointly with Embratel. Further, the company offers integrated video, broadband, and voice services. Net Servicos de Comunicacao S.A. was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: Majesco Entertainment Company(COOL)

Majesco Entertainment Company develops and markets video game products primarily for family oriented mass-market consumers. The company publishes video games for various interactive entertainment hardware platforms, including Nintendo?s DS, DSi, and Wii; Sony?s PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable; Microsoft?s Xbox 360; and personal computers. It also publishes games for various digital platforms consisting of mobile platforms comprising iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch, as well as online platforms, including Facebook. The company sells its products primarily to retail chains, specialty retail stores, video game rental outlets, and distributors. The company was founded in 1998 and is based in Edison, New Jersey.

Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: Homeowners Choice Inc.(HCII)

Homeowners Choice, Inc., an insurance holding company, provides property and casualty insurance in Florida. The company provides property and casualty homeowners? insurance, condominium owners? insurance, and tenants? insurance to individuals owning property. It serves approximately 59,500 policyholders primarily through independent agents. The company was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Tampa, Florida.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By CRWE]

  Homeowners Choice, Inc. (Nasdaq:HCII), a Florida-based insurance holding company, reported that its board of directors has declared cash dividends of 5.833 cents per share on its Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock (“HCIIP”) for the months ending September 30, October 31 and November 30, 2012.

Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: Navarre Corporation(NAVR)

Navarre Corporation engages in the distribution and publication various computer software, home entertainment, and multimedia products in the United States and Canada. It operates in two segments, Distribution and Publishing. The Distribution segment distributes computer software, home video, video games, and accessories; and provides a range of value-added services including, vendor-managed inventory, Internet-based ordering, electronic data interchange services, fulfillment services, and retailer-oriented marketing services to the vendors and retailers. The Publishing segment owns or licenses various computer software and home video titles, and other related merchandising and broadcasting rights. This segment publishes print, personal productivity, education, family entertainment, and system utilities computer software categories; and packages, brands, markets, and sells to retailers, third party distributors, and the company?s distribution business. The company?s custom ers include wholesale clubs, mass merchandisers, third party distributors, computer specialty stores, book stores, office superstores, and electronic superstores. Navarre Corporation was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in New Hope, Minnesota.

Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: Orchids Paper Products Company(TIS)

Orchids Paper Products Company manufactures private label tissue products for the consumer market in the United States. Its product line includes paper towels, bathroom tissue, and paper napkins. The company also offers its products under the Orchids, Velvet, Colortex, Ultra Valu, Dri-Mop, Big Mopper, Soft & Fluffy, Tackle, My-Size, and Care brand names. It serves value retailers (dollar stores), discount retailers, grocery stores, grocery wholesalers and cooperatives, and convenience stores. The company markets its products directly, as well as through independent brokers. Orchids Paper Products Company was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Pryor, Oklahoma.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By David Goodboy]

  My next step was to locate stocks in this industry. One company stood out above the rest as a top performer with plenty of upside. That company is Orchids Paper Products Co. (NYSE: TIS).

Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: CCA Industries Inc.(CAW)

CCA Industries, Inc. engages in manufacturing and selling health and beauty aid products primarily in the United States and Canada. The company primarily offers toothpastes and teeth whiteners under the Plus+White brand; anti-aging skin care products under the Sudden Change brand; nail care treatments under the Nutra Nail and Power Gel brands; medicated topical and shave gels under the Bikini Zone brand; diet supplements under the Mega-T Green Tea brand; and gums and mint products under the Mega?T Green Tea brand. It also provides hair removal and depilatory products under the Hair Off brand; foot-care products under the IPR brand; sun-care products under the Solar Sense brand; shampoos and conditioners under the Wash ?N Curl brand; vanilla fragrances, including perfumes under the Parfume de Vanille brand; ear-care products under the Lobe Wonder brand; topical analgesic products under the Pain Bust*R II brand; and scar diminishing cream under the Scar Zone brand. CCA Indus tries, Inc. markets and sells its products through its sales force, independent sales representatives, and distributors to drug, food, and mass-merchandise retail chains, as well as to warehouse clubs and wholesalers. The company was founded in 1983 and is based in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Top 10 Penny Companies To Own For 2014: Diana Shipping inc. (DSX)

Diana Shipping Inc. provides shipping transportation services. It transports dry bulk cargoes that include commodities, such as iron ore, coal, grain, and other materials along worldwide shipping routes. As of December 31, 2010, the company?s fleet consisted of 23 dry bulk carriers, including 14 Panamax, 1 Post-Panamax, and 8 Capesize dry bulk carriers with a combined carrying capacity of approximately 2.5 million deadweight tonnage. Its customers include national, regional, and international companies. The company was formerly known as Diana Shipping Investments Corp. and changed its name to Diana Shipping Inc. in February 2005. Diana Shipping Inc. was founded in 1999 and is based in Athens, Greece.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Del, Vecchio,]

  A smooth operator
  Just as DryShips is able to generate revenues during off-peak seasons, it is important for a company to be able to maintain healthy operating margins throughout the year. Another shipping company doing a good keeping these margins open despite lower revenues is Diana Shipping (NYSE: DSX  ) . As seen in the chart above, revenues have been dwindling, but that does not mean management is not doing its part.

Best Cheap Companies For 2014

I��e received access to the gurufocus database recently. They run on their site several automated screener to find great value stocks.

Today I used the undervalued predictable screener and I will introduce the best yielding results (more than 2 percent dividend yield) here on my site for you. It's definitly a good source if you have no ideas what to buy for the long-run.

Eighteen stocks from the screen yielding over the mentioned level. Two of them got a high-yield and twelve stocks have a buy or better rating.

For more details about the methodic to find cheap predictable stocks, you should read the gurufocus guide about Discount Cash Flow and Discount Earnings to find undervalued stocks. Technology, services and consumer stocks dominate the results.

Here are the biggest stocks from the Undervalued Predictable screener:

Apple (AAPL) has a market capitalization of $442.61 billion. The company employs 72,800 people, generates revenue of $156.508 billion and has a net income of $41.733 billion. Apple�� earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $58.51 billion. The EBITDA margin is 37.39 percent (the operating margin is 35.30 percent and the net profit margin 26.67 percent).

Best Cheap Companies For 2014: CVS Corporation(CVS)

CVS Caremark Corporation operates as a pharmacy services company in the United States. The company?s Pharmacy Services segment provides a range of pharmacy benefit management services, including mail order pharmacy services, specialty pharmacy services, plan design and administration, formulary management, and claims processing; and drug benefits to eligible beneficiaries under the Federal Government?s Medicare Part D program. This segment primarily serves employers, insurance companies, unions, government employee groups, managed care organizations and other sponsors of health benefit plans, and individuals. As of December 31, 2010, it operated 44 retail specialty pharmacy stores, 18 specialty mail order pharmacies, and 4 mail service pharmacies located in 25 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia. This segment operates business under the CVS Caremark Pharmacy Services, Caremark, CVS Caremark, CarePlus CVS/pharmacy, CarePlus, RxAmerica, Accordant, and TheraCom names. The company?s Retail Pharmacy segment sells prescription drugs, over-the-counter drugs, beauty products and cosmetics, seasonal merchandise, greeting cards, and convenience foods through its pharmacy retail stores and online, as well as offers film and photo finishing, and health care services. This segment operated 7,182 retail drugstores located in 41 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia; and 560 retail health care clinics in 26 states and the District of Columbia under the MinuteClinic name. It has a strategic alliance with Alere, L.L.C. for the management of disease management program offerings that cover chronic diseases, such as asthma, diabetes, congestive heart failure, and coronary artery disease. CVS Caremark Corporation was founded in 1892 and is based in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By CRWE]

  CVS Caremark Corporation (NYSE:CVS) reported that Dave Denton, executive vice president and chief financial officer of CVS Caremark Corporation, will be speaking at William Blair & Company’s Growth Stock Conference on Tuesday, June 12, 2012, at approximately 8:50 a.m. CDT (9:50 a.m. EDT).

• [By Keith Speights]

  Express Scripts isn't alone in experiencing improved generic utilization. CVS Caremark (NYSE: CVS  ) saw its overall rate increase from 76.5% in its first quarter of 2012 to 80.5% in the same quarter this year. UnitedHealth didn't report detailed numbers for OptumRx last quarter, but noted that it was seeing improvements in its generic mix that helped drive earnings higher. Catamaran (NASDAQ: CTRX  ) also experienced a solid 3% year-over-year jump during the first quarter to 83%.

Best Cheap Companies For 2014: Cloud Peak Energy Inc(CLD)

Cloud Peak Energy Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in coal mining operations in the Powder River Basin of the United States. It produces sub-bituminous steam coal with low sulfur content for electric utilities and industrial customers. The company owns and operates Antelope surface coal mine located to the south of Gillette, Wyoming; the Cordero Rojo surface coal mine located to the south of Gillette, Wyoming; and the Spring Creek surface coal mine located in Montana. It also owns a 50% interest in the Decker surface coal mine located in Montana. As of December 31, 2010, it had approximately 970 million tons of proven and probable reserves. The company was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Gillette, Wyoming.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  Before you think the call was all positive, it is not. Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral. Industry-leading Peabody Energy Corp. (NYSE: BTU) was given a mere Neutral rating, but it does have a $20 target, versus a $17.85 close. Cloud Peak Energy Inc. (NYSE: CLD) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy and given a $15 price target, versus a $15.20 closing price.

Top Clean Energy Companies To Invest In Right Now: S&P GSCI(GD)

General Dynamics Corporation, an aerospace and defense company, provides business aviation; combat vehicles, weapons systems, and munitions; military and commercial shipbuilding; and communications and information technology products and services worldwide. Its Aerospace group designs, manufactures, and outfits various large and mid-cabin business-jet aircraft; provides maintenance, repair work, fixed-based operations, and aircraft management services; and performs aircraft completions for aircraft. The company?s Combat Systems group offers tracked and wheeled military vehicles, weapons systems, and munitions. Its product lines include wheeled combat and tactical vehicles; battle tanks and infantry vehicles; munitions and propellant; rockets and gun systems; and axle and drivetrain components and aftermarket parts. This group also manufactures and supplies engineered axles, suspensions, and brakes for heavy-load vehicles for military and commercial customers. The company Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

  The Department of Defense awarded a round dozen defense contracts Friday, worth just under $7.2 billion in aggregate. The bulk of the contracts -- $7 billion worth -- were split among eight small privately held firms scattered around New Jersey, Maryland, Indiana, and Virginia contracted to supply software and systems engineering services in support of the Army's Software Engineering Center. But a handful of better-known -- and, more importantly to investors, publicly traded -- companies won contracts as well. Namely:

• [By Rich Smith]

  The Department of Defense awarded more than $961 million worth of contracts to a total of 17 awardees on Thursday. Notable awards to publicly traded companies included:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Last quarter, Buffett sold his stakes in�Archer Daniels Midland�(ADM) and�General Dynamics�(GD), and added to a position�in�International Business Machines�(IBM). He also bought shares of�Chicago Bridge & Iron�(CBI), an old favorite of mine from my trading days.�

• [By Rich Smith]

  General Dynamics' (NYSE: GD  ) earnings report this past week continued a trend of stronger-than-expected results out of America's defense contractors. Make sure to read that with the emphasis on "than expected," however -- because objectively speaking, the news really wasn't that great.

Best Cheap Companies For 2014: MetroPCS Communications Inc.(PCS)

MetroPCS Communications, Inc., a wireless telecommunications carrier, together with its subsidiaries, provides wireless broadband mobile services in the United States. Its services include voice services, such as local, domestic long distance, and international call services; and data services, including domestic and international text messaging, multimedia messaging, mobile Internet access, mobile instant messaging, location based services, social networking services, push e-mail, and multimedia streaming and downloads, as well as services provided through the binary runtime environment for wireless (BREW), Blackberry, Windows, and the Android platforms, including ringtones, ring back tones, games, and content applications. The company also offers custom calling features consisting of caller ID, call waiting, three-way calling, and voicemail services. In addition, it sells mobile handsets. The company offers its products and services under the MetroPCS brand name, directl y through the company-operated retail stores and indirectly through independent retail outlets, as well as through Internet. As of December 31, 2010, it served approximately 8.1 million subscribers, as well as operated 159 retail stores primarily in the metropolitan areas of Atlanta, Boston, Dallas/Fort Worth, Detroit, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Orlando/Jacksonville, Philadelphia, Sacramento, San Francisco, and Tampa/Sarasota. The company is headquartered in Richardson, Texas.

Best Cheap Companies For 2014: First Busey Corporation(BUSE)

First Busey Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Busey Bank that provides various retail and commercial banking products and services to individual, corporate, institutional, and governmental customers in the United States. It accepts noninterest-bearing demand, interest-bearing transaction, savings, money market, and time deposits. The company?s loan portfolio includes commercial, agricultural, and real estate loans; individual, consumer, installment, first mortgage, and second mortgage loans; and commercial real estate, residential real estate, and consumer loans. It also provides money transfer, safe deposit, fiduciary, automated banking, and automated fund transfer services. In addition, the company provides asset management, brokerage, and fiduciary services, including financial planning, investment management, retirement planning, brokerage, and trust and estate advisory services to individuals; investment management, business succession planning, an d employee retirement plan services to businesses; and investment management, investment strategy consulting, and fiduciary services to foundations. Further, it offers pay processing solutions, such as walk-in payments processing for payments delivered by customers to retail pay agents; online bill payment solutions for payments made by customers on a billing company?s Website; customer service payments for payments accepted over the telephone; direct debit services; electronic concentration of payments delivered by the automated clearing house network; money management software and credit card networks; and lockbox remittance processing of payments delivered by mail. The company has 33 locations in Illinois, 7 locations in southwest Florida, and 1 location in Indianapolis, Indiana. First Busey Corporation was founded in 1868 and is headquartered in Champaign, Illinois.

Best Cheap Companies For 2014: DRDGOLD Limited(DROOY)

DRDGOLD Limited engages in the exploration, extraction, processing, and smelting of gold in South Africa. It holds interests in the Blyvoor mine; and the Crown gold surface tailings retreatment facility that reprocesses sand and slimes dumps, as well as involves in the surface retreatment operations. The company was incorporated in 1895 and is based in Roodepoort, South Africa.