Investors are streaming into the market��hich makes me nervous. As such, my latest recommendation is a defensive selection, a familiar name with low risk and decent growth prospects, suggests Timothy Lutts, editor of Cabot Stock of the Month.
Abbott Laboratories (ABT) is just what the doctor ordered; the 125 year-old company has a solid business with a good reputation and good long-term growth prospects.
It has an experienced management team. And it pays a good dividend, which currently yields 2.3% annually.
The company's four segments are nutritional products, diagnostic equipment, generic drugs, and medical devices, and the leading contributor to growth is the nutrition business, which is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 35%, thanks to China, India, and other developing economies.
Notably, emerging markets account for 40% of Abbott's sales, so, an investment here is a great way to get low risk exposure to fast-growing emerging markets.
Top 5 Communications Equipment Stocks To Buy For 2015: Rood Testhouse International NV (ROO)
Rood Testhouse International NV (RoodMicrotec) is a Netherlands-based company, operating an independent and certified test house and analysis lab for opto- and microelectronics. It is a supply chain management organization engaged in partial processes essential to reliable end-products. Its core services are managing the entire process from design idea all the way to supply to the end-user, including purchasing, logistics, warehousing/logistics; securing testability and manufacturability at an early stage in the chip design process. Its activities include supply chain amangement, test and end-of-line services, failure and technology analysis, test engineering, qualifications and reliability, as well as engineering/consulting/key account project management. It has six wholly owned subsidiaries: RoodMicrotec International B.V., RoodMicrotec Holding GmbH, RoodMicrotec Beteiligungs GmbH, RoodMicrotec Nordlingen GmbH + Co. KG, RoodMicrotec Dresden GmbH and RoodMicrotec Stuttgart GmbH. Advisors' Opinion:- [By Alan Ellman]
The day is Friday July 12, and the stock is LEAP Wireless International Inc. (LEAP), which is a takeover candidate by AT&T. In the late afternoon, the share price was near $8 per share, the July $9 call option was priced @ $0.10, and the August $9 call @ $0.40. Covered call writers could generate an initial profit (ROO) of 1% and 5%, respectively. The average daily option trading volume for this company is 1320 contracts over the last three months. It appeared to be a normal trading day until the last hour of trading when option volume went through the roof. By day’s end, 7139 contracts were traded, all but 350 were calls as traders were taking a bullish stance on this stock. I think you know what’s coming!
Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In Right Now: Siebert Financial Corp.(SIEB)
Siebert Financial Corp., through its subsidiary, Muriel Siebert & Co., Inc., engages in the retail discount brokerage and investment banking operations in the United States. The company provides Internet and traditional discount brokerage and related services to retail investors; independent retail execution services; and retail customer services. It also offers various self-directed retirement accounts, for which it acts as agent on various transactions; and lends customers a portion of the market value of certain securities held in the customer?s account through its clearing agent. In addition, the company, through its other subsidiary, Siebert Woman?s Financial Network, Inc., provides products, services, and information to serve women?s financial needs. Further, Siebert Financial Corp. offers equity execution services on an agency basis, as well as equity and fixed income underwriting and investment banking services to institutional investors, and issuers of equity a nd fixed-income securities. The company provides its discount brokerage services through a broker on the telephone, through a wireless device, or via the Internet. It maintains seven retail discount brokerage offices in New York; Jersey City, New Jersey; Boca Raton, Surfside, West Palm Beach, and Naples, Florida; and Beverly Hills, California. The company was founded in 1886 and is headquartered in New York, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Jon C. Ogg]
Muriel Siebert, founder of Siebert Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: SIEB), passed away over the weekend. Many new investors may not know her nor may they know just how important and influential she was on Wall Street and in the financial services industries. Ms. Siebert died at the age of 80 years old, and we wanted to list some of her accomplishments that have led to at least more equality among women in what had been a men-only club before she came on the stage.
Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In Right Now: MFS Intermediate Income Trust (MIN)
MFS Intermediate Income Trust (the Trust) is a diversified closed-end management investment company. The Trust seeks to preserve capital and provide high current income. It maintains a portfolio that includes investments in short and intermediate-term United States Government and foreign high-grade securities.
MFS Intermediate Income Trust's portfolio includes non-United States Government bonds, mortgage-backed securities, the United States Government agency securities, the United States Treasury securities, emerging market bonds, commercial mortgage-backed securities, residential mortgage-backed securities and high-grade corporate securities. The Trust can invest in foreign securities, including securities of emerging market issuers. The Trust's investment advisor is Massachusetts Financial Services Company.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Akaralph]
I have written about MFS Intermediate Income Fund (MIN) on a few previous occasions, most recently here. I have extolled its virtues as a defensive play in a bear market scenario.
Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In Right Now: AudioCodes Ltd. (AUDC)
AudioCodes Ltd. and its subsidiaries design, develop, and market products and services for voice, data, and video over Internet protocol (IP) networks to service providers and channels, original equipment manufacturers, network equipment providers, and systems integrators in the United States, Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Israel. Its networking products consist of media gateways, enterprise session border controllers, multi-service business routers, IP phones, mobile voice over IP (VoIP), media servers, and various products that are tailored for Microsoft unified communication environments. The company also offers VoIP network assessment for enterprises; and value added applications for unified communications, as well as supports its networking products with a range of professional services. Its technology products comprise signal processor chips that process and compress voice, data, and fax, as well as enable connectivity between traditional telephone networks and pa cket networks; VoIP communications boards; media processing boards for enhanced services and functionalities; and voice and data logging hardware integration board products. AudioCodes Ltd. was incorporated in 1992 and is headquartered in Lod, Israel.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Roberto Pedone]
AudioCodes (AUDC) and its subsidiaries design, develop and market products and services for voice, data and video over Internet protocol networks to service providers and channels, original equipment manufacturers, network equipment providers and systems integrators in the U.S., Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Israel. Its This stock closed up 8% to $6.73 in Tuesday's trading session.
Tuesday's Range: $6.23-$6.85
52-Week Range: $2.13-$7.07
Tuesday's Volume: 574,000
Three-Month Average Volume: 261,738From a technical perspective, AUDC spiked sharply higher here right above some near-term support at $6.04 with above-average volume. This move also pushed shares of AUDC into breakout territory, since the stock took out some near-term overhead resistance at $6.70. Shares of AUDC are now quickly moving within range of triggering another big breakout trade. That trade will hit if AUDC manages to clear Tuesday's high of $6.85 and then once it takes out its 52-week high at $7.07 with high volume.
Traders should now look for long-biased trades in AUDC as long as it's trending above some near-term support levels at $6.25 or $6.04 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 261,738 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then AUDC will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that breakout are $8 to $9.
Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In Right Now: ING Risk Managed Natural Resources Fund (IRR)
ING Risk Managed Natural Resources Fund the (Fund) is a non- diversified, closed-end management investment company. The Fund�� investment objective is total return through a combination of current income, capital gains and capital appreciation. The Fund will seek to achieve its investment objective by investing in a portfolio of equity securities of companies in the energy and natural resources industries. ING Investments, LLC is the Fund�� investment adviser.
The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing at least 80% of its managed assets in the equity securities of, or derivatives linked to the equity securities of companies that are primarily engaged in owning or developing energy, other natural resources and basic materials, or supplying goods and services to such companies (Natural Resources Companies). Equity securities held by the Fund could include common stocks, preferred shares, convertible securities, warrants and depository receipts.
The Fund�� top 10 holdings include ExxonMobil Corp., Chevron Corp., ConocoPhillips, Schlumberger Ltd., Occidental Petroleum Corp., Marathon Oil Corp., Valero Energy Corp., Hess Corp., XTO Energy, Inc. and EI DuPont de Nemours & Co.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Value Digger]
Manitok's total cost per Well (Drill, Case, Complete, Equip & Tie) is about $5.5 million. With average reserves per well ranging from 300 to 850 MMboe, the average payout is about 1.5 years and the peak Internal Rate of Return (IRR) reaches even 150% in some of the most productive properties of the company. Considering the company's balanced production mix, the average operating netback for 2013 is strong and hovers at approximately $33/boe.
Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In Right Now: Strategic Hotels and Resorts Inc (BEE)
Strategic Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (SHR), incorporated on January 27, 2004, operates as a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT). As of December 31, 2012, the Company�� portfolio included 18 full-service hotel interests located in urban and resort markets in the United States; Punta Mita, Nayarit, Mexico; Hamburg, Germany, and London, England. SHR conducts its operations through its direct and indirect subsidiaries, including its operating partnership, Strategic Hotel Funding, L.L.C. (SH Funding), which holds all of the Company�� assets. SHR is the sole managing member of SH Funding and held approximately 99% of its membership units as of February 27, 2013. SHR manages all business aspects of SH Funding, including the sale and purchase of hotels, the investment in these hotels and the financing of SH Funding and its assets. In September 2012, it acquired the JW Marriott Essex House Hotel in New York City. In October 2013, the Company announced that it has sold the Lakeshore Athletic Club property adjacent to the Fairmont Chicago hotel.
As of December 31, 2012, SH Funding owned interests in or leased 18 hotels, which included Fairmont Chicago, Fairmont Scottsdale Princess, Four Seasons Jackson Hole, Four Seasons Punta Mita Resort, Four Seasons Silicon Valley, Four Seasons Washington, D.C., Hotel del Coronado, Hyatt Regency La Jolla, InterContinental Chicago, InterContinental Miami, JW Marriott Essex House Hotel, Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel, Marriott Hamburg, Marriott Lincolnshire Resort, Marriott London Grosvenor Square, Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay, Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel and Westin St. Francis.
The Hotel del Coronado is operated by a specialty management company, KSL Resorts. As of February 27, 2013, the Company wholly owned or leased 14 hotels, had a 53.5% and 51.0% interest in an affiliate that owned a hotel where it asset managed such hotel, and had 50.0% and 36.4% interests in, and acted as asset manager for, two affiliates that eac! h owned one hotel, and owned land held for development, including 20.5 acres of oceanfront land adjacent to its Four Seasons Punta Mita Resort, Nayarit, Mexico and 60 acres of oceanfront land near the Four Seasons Punta Mita Resort; a 20,000 square-foot parcel of land on the ocean in Santa Monica, California adjacent to its Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel entitled for development and residential units; a 50% interest in an affiliate that owned 10 acres of land adjacent to the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess hotel, and a 31% interest in an affiliate with two parties that was developing the fractional ownership program known as the Four Seasons Residence Club Punta Mita.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Anders Bylund]
Strategic Hotels & Resorts (NYSE: BEE ) raised its takeover defenses in 2008 in order to ward off opportunistic raiders amid general market turmoil. The REIT, which specializes in high-end hotels, extended its poison pill last year as the "lingering economic uncertainty" never went away. Six months later, in May 2013, the extension was cut short. No real explanation, but you could take this action as a vote of confidence in an improving economy. The stock has gained 14% in the seven months since, just ahead of the S&P's 11% improvement. No takeover bids here.
Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In Right Now: Dycom Industries Inc.(DY)
Dycom Industries, Inc. provides specialty contracting services in the United States and Canada. The company?s services include engineering services, which comprise the design of service area concept boxes, terminals, buried and aerial drops, transmission and central office equipment, administration of feeder and distribution cable pairs, and fiber cable routing and design for telephone companies; and make-ready studies, strand mapping, field walk-out, computer-aided radio frequency design and drafting, and fiber cable routing and design for cable television multiple system operators. The company also provides construction, maintenance, and installation of splice fiber, copper, and coaxial cables to telephone companies; installation and maintenance of customer premise equipment, including set top boxes and cable modems to cable television multiple system operators; and premise wiring services, which include installation, repair, and maintenance of telecommunications infrast ructure within improved structures to various corporations, and state and local governments. In addition, Dycom offers underground utility locating services, such as locating telephone, cable television, power, water, sewer, and gas lines to various utility companies. Further, it provides construction and maintenance services for electric utilities and others, which include installing and maintaining overhead and underground power distribution lines, as well as maintenance and installation of underground natural gas transmission and distribution systems. The company was founded in 1969 and is based in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Seth Jayson]
Calling all cash flows
When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Dycom Industries (NYSE: DY ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below. - [By Seth Jayson]
Dycom Industries (NYSE: DY ) reported earnings on May 21. Here are the numbers you need to know.
The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended April 27 (Q3), Dycom Industries beat expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share. - [By Ben Levisohn]
Shares of Harsco have gained 4.7% to $26.43 today at 1:16 p.m., outpacing other construction & engineering companies. Dycom (DY) has advanced 0.5% to $30, KBR Inc. (KBR) has ticked up 0.1% to $33.03, Worthington Industries�(WOR) has risen 2.8% to $38.85�and Tutor Perini (TPC) has rallied 3.6% to $22.46.
- [By Brian Pacampara]
What: Shares of telecom contractor Dycom Industries (NYSE: DY ) climbed 11% today after its quarterly results and outlook topped Wall Street expectations.
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