2/28/2015

5 stocks to watch

The market right now is very mixed, so we're going to cover both longs and shorts today.

Brocade Communications Systems Inc. (BRCD)  had a very significant breakout on Tuesday on earnings, up 67 cents, or 8.3%, to 8.77 on 15.3 million shares. With the breakout across multiple tops over the last few months, it sure looks like a parallel channel is forming, which could lead to 10.00, maybe 11.00, on this stock.

Check out Harry's video analysis of this stock on the last page.

2/26/2015

What the October Jobs Numbers Really Mean

Despite worries the 16-day government shutdown would weigh on job growth, the October jobs report was surprisingly strong.

That's what the government is reporting, anyway...

According to the Labor Department numbers released today (Friday), employers increased headcount by 204,000 in October, handily beating the 120,000 many economists expected. The government report also showed revisions to late summer numbers, revealing an extra 60,000 jobs total were created in August and September.

Although the October report included the robust 204,000 number, it was full of uninspiring data:

The labor force participation rate continues to drop. It slipped to 62.8% from 63.2%, last month, the lowest read since March 1978. An astonishing 932,000 - nearly 1 million Americans - dropped out of the labor force last month, bringing the rate to a fresh 35-year low. It marks the third-highest monthly increase in individuals leaving the labor force in U.S. history. "At this pace, the people out of the labor force will surpass the working Americans in about 4 years," writes ZeroHedge. October job gains were highest among the lowest-paying sectors. These are actually are a "net drag" on the economy, according to The Wall Street Journal, due to the amount of assisted government benefits these workers receive. A University of California, Berkley, and University of Illinois study found front-line workers at fast-food restaurants, and their families, received at least $7 billon annually in public benefits to supplement their wages. The federal government continued to trim workers, cutting 12,000 (one-third of which were at the U.S. Postal Service). That brings the year-to-date total to 94,000. Excluding the postal service, the October report showed federal jobs at the lowest level since 2009. The number of long-term unemployed held steady at 4.1 million, accounting for 36.1% of the unemployed. The number of temporary workers rose by nearly 500,000. The mushrooming number likely includes non-essential government employees and government contractors affected by the government shutdown. The number underscores the distorted picture the BLS report paints of the labor market, in part due to the thousands of federal workers furloughed during the payroll period upon which the jobs data is based. The unemployment rate rose to 7.3% from 7.2% in September. The official unemployment rate counts only those workers who are actively seeking work. If the same percentage of adults were in the workforce today as when U.S. President Barack Obama took office, the unemployment rate would be upwards of 10.8%, the Washington Post reports. What the Jobs Report Means to Markets

October's seemingly swift job growth, coupled with the sizable upward revisions for the previous two months, fueled speculation that the U.S. Federal Reserve will soon take action to scale back its $85 billion a month asset purchase program. A taper was expected in September, but lackluster economic data prompted the Fed to pause.

"The Fed now has one more payroll report before its December meeting," Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomic, wrote in a note to clients Friday. "Clearly, another report like this one will greatly increase the odds of tapering at that meeting. Our base case remains that it won't happen then, but the odds have sustainably improved already with the release of these numbers."

Sharing that sentiment is Robert Murphy, an economics professor at Boston College. Murphy told ABC News the Fed is likely to hold off its tapering of bond purchasing until next year due to the fact the first "clean" employment report won't be presented until early January, with December's data.

"November's report, due out in early December, will contain some 'bounce back' from the shutdown that will continue to cloud the Fed's interpretation of the state of the labor market, putting the Fed on hold at its next meeting in mid-December," Murphy said.

And with Yellen on her way in, it looks like more of the same for months to come... take a look...

Related Articles:

The Wall Street Journal:
Public Cost of Fast-Food Industry's Low Pay Remains Unclear ABC News:
Jobs Report Shows Unemployment Rate Ticked Up to 7.3%; 204,000 Jobs Added The New York Times:
Hiring Brisk in Jobs Data Skewed by U.S. Shutdown

2/16/2015

Today’s After Hours Earnings: AFLAC Incorporated, Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc., More (AFL, SKT, AMP, More)

After the closing bell on Tuesday, there were a number of big-name dividend-paying companies that announced quarterly earnings. Below, we highlight the most important earnings information for dividend investors.

Aflac Posts Lower Earnings and Revenue; Misses Estimates

Aflac (AFL) announced third quarter revenues that fell 14% to $5.89 billion from $6.8 billion in 2012′s Q3. The company attributed the loss to the weak yen/USD exchange rate. Net earnings for the company came in at $702 million, or $1.50 per share, which was down from $1 billion, or $2.16 per share, a year ago. Not including one-time items, AFL’s EPS came in at $1.47, which missed analysts’ estimates of $1.48. Revenues barely missed analyst views of $5.9 billion. The company announced its 2014 share buyback program being in the range of $800 million to $1 billion.

Ameriprise Financial Beats Earnings Views, Misses Revenue Estimates

Financial planning and services company Ameriprise Financial (AMP) announced earnings of $381 million, or $1.86 per diluted share, which was up from last year’s Q3 earnings of $174 million, or 79 cents per diluted share. The company’s operating revenue increased to $2.7 billion. AMP beat analysts’ estimates of $1.79, but missed revenue views of $2.78 billion.

IAC Interactive Beats EPS Estimates, but Misses on Revenue

New York-based IAC Interactive Corp. (IACI

2/13/2015

Mortgage Interest Deduction Living on Borrowed Time

In 2013, Congress is expected to explore a number of tax reforms in order to address staggering deficits and a crippling $17 trillion in debt owed by the Federal government.

No proposed tax reform will be more controversial this year than attempts to alter the Home Mortgage Interest Deduction (HMID).

Considered the holy grail of tax deductions, the annual tax break to homeowners, which provides more than $100 billion a year in tax relief, could see significant changes, thus affecting the finances of millions of Americans.

But in order to understand how these changes could affect you, one needs to understand how this tax break became so monstrous in the first place, and what the impact of such proposals could have on the housing markets.

In fact, this very issue proves why even grander tax reform is necessary right now in the United States.

Is it Your Money or the Government's?

Tax breaks - known as tax loopholes by those who enjoy spending taxes instead of paying them - are public policies that provide discounts on your taxes and encourage economic activity that the government deems beneficial to the Americans and the economy.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, tax breaks "cost the government" $1.2 trillion annually, with roughly 75% going to the top 20% of wage earners.

Such activities include starting a business, buying a home, going to college, or having a child (after all, productive members of society become productive taxpayers in the end).

However, the problem is that any activity can be considered beneficial to the economy if one wanted to stretch their imaginations. For example, joining a gym is technically a beneficial activity because health and wellness decreases your strain on healthcare services and prolongs your economic activity to the country.

And proposals have been put forward that gym memberships should be tax deductible, and, in some cases for specific employment classes, actually are.

For these reasons, the number and size of tax breaks has dramatically increased over the years. Critics argue that the federal government forfeits money that would have otherwise been collected as revenue, and that these breaks are little more than subsidies that add up over time and favor the wealthiest classes.

Proponents argue these forms of stimulus are necessary in order to drive economic activity and encourage businesses to hire, Americans to buy houses, and students to go to college.

The problem is... both sides are wrong.

The Mother of All Tax Breaks

Under the current structure of the HMID, the U.S. government permits homeowners to deduct up to $1 million each year in mortgage interest, including the purchase of second homes and vacation houses.

And the amount of money deducted is relatively staggering. The Congressional Budget Office projects this specific annual tax break will cost the government more than $1 trillion over a decade.

But more interesting is the stratification of the benefits across various classes in the United States. The HMID mostly benefits households earning $75,000 to $500,000 a year. According to the Tax Policy Center, this range of Americans earns 77 percent of the tax savings from the HMFD.

Despite this overwhelming benefit to higher households (the median household income in the U.S. hovers near $50,000), many Americans do not have the appetite for removing this form of stimulus.

Even though 77 percent of the breaks go to higher income levels, nearly every American homeowner receives some form of benefit.

So, while no one believes the tax break will go away completely, reform is likely.

Considerations include a simple paring back of the income limit. According to the Tax Policy Center, an annual cap of $500,000 (from $1 million) and using a credit system instead of a deduction, the Federal government could raise $213 billion over the next 10 years.

But even tweaking the cap could have a big impact on the housing market in the short-term. Just the mere mention of altering the deduction would send some ripples through the markets. After all, we just saw what Bernanke's thoughts of the paring back of $85 billion a month to the economy did to the stock market.

Lobbyists Prepare to Defend the Deduction

Critics and lobbyists have long argued the U.S. is only now showing signs of emerging from a years-long housing crisis and that changing the deduction would have a serious impact on housing prices.

Jamie Gregory, a lobbyist of the National Association of Realtors, told Politico that curbing the deduction would harm housing prices, primarily in vacation communities.

"We finally have housing and the economy headed in the right direction, and we don't think this is a good time to be messing around with it," he said.

And Gregory is accurate. In a nation full of subsidies, the mortgage deduction, by definition, creates an incentive and thus inflates the housing market by subsidizing homes that people wouldn't be able to afford otherwise.

This is free money from the government to finance the service on loans to purchase houses.

In fact, many financial and tax advisers encourage homebuyers to use that deduction to their advantage when evaluating properties to buy. Having an extra few thousand dollars annually (and in some cases tens of thousands) adds up, and enables some people to purchase homes they wouldn't consider without the subsidy. This creates a distortion down the value chain of the housing industry.

Naturally, eliminating the deduction would have a ripple effect across the economy, but at the same time, it would move the housing markets back toward equilibrium, where it should have been after the crash. The financial incentive of the mortgage deduction would be removed, and Americans would purchase homes without the need for the subsidy.

However, the impact on aggregate home purchases isn't entirely clear following a potential downturn. Congress creates tax breaks in order to stimulate demand, but it is clear that unintended consequences of this deduction have been the artificial increase in the purchase of more expensive homes.

This is just one more tool of Keynesian economics that creates false realities and reliance by taxpayers to encourage more of the same sort of gifts to certain classes and special interest groups.

The reality is that the tax system is so Byzantine and favors the few at the expense of the rest. The reality is that lower tax rates coupled with the elimination of these deductions would provide far more equality and stability to Americans, and reduce the need for this ridiculous argument in the first place.

By lowering tax rates, the government would automatically erase any need for these special interest stimuli. If someone wants to buy a house with the money they save on taxes... they will buy a house.

But in the end, what would all the tax advisers and lawyers do?

Now we know why the spending on lobbying is at an all-time high for both of these industries... and real estate interests doubled their lobbying cash in 2012. It's all about the tax code... and its failures.

In the end, this complex economic issue will be handled by Congress. Given that only 25 percent of our sitting Congressmen and Senators have any form of economics training whatsoever, I'm sure that this matter will be handled with the utmost care and attention it deserves. It's not like Congress was responsible for the last housing bubble...

The housing recovery seems to be for real. Read how you can profit from it.

So what do you think? Has the Home Mortgage Interest Deduction affected your home purchasing strategy in anyway?

Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Verizon Makes Deal to Buy Out Vodafone

Not that anyone should be shocked. The deal has been rumored for days. Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) bought out the minority interest of Verizon Wireless owned by Vodafone Group PLC (NASDAQ: VOD). The deal was first reported in The Wall Street Journal.

The Verizon announcement:

NEW YORK – Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ) today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with Vodafone Group Plc (London, Nasdaq: VOD) to acquire Vodafone's U.S. group with the principal asset of 45 percent of Verizon Wireless for $130 billion, consisting primarily of cash and stock. Verizon expects the transaction at close to be immediately accretive to the company's EPS (earnings per share) by approximately 10 percent, without any one-time adjustments.

The transaction was unanimously approved by the boards of directors of Verizon and Vodafone, and is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals and the approval of both companies' shareholders. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2014.

The transaction would provide Verizon with 100 percent ownership of the industry-leading wireless carrier in the United States. As a wholly owned entity, Verizon Wireless will be better equipped to take advantage of the changing competitive dynamics in the market and capitalize on the continuing evolution of consumer demand for wireless, video and broadband services.

Lowell McAdam, Verizon chairman and CEO, said: "Over the past 13 years, Verizon Wireless has been a key driver of our business strategy, and through our partnership with Vodafone, we have made Verizon Wireless into the premier wireless provider in the U.S. The capabilities to wirelessly stream video and broadband in 4G LTE complement our other assets in fiber, global IP and cloud. These assets position us for the rapidly increasing customer demand for video, machine to machine and big data. We are confident of further growth in wireless, and our business in its entirety."

McAdam continued: "This transaction will enhance value across platforms and allow Verizon to operate more efficiently, so we can continue to focus on producing more seamless and integrated products and solutions for our customers. We believe full ownership will provide increased opportunities in the enterprise and consumer wireline markets."

McAdam concluded: "Verizon Wireless is the greatest wireless company in the world, and a big part of this success was due to the hard work of both partners, Vodafone and Verizon. The timing was right to execute a transaction that benefits both companies and their shareholders. Today's announcement is a major milestone for Verizon, and we look forward to having full ownership of the industry leader in network performance, profitability and cash flow."

Vittorio Colao, Vodafone Group CEO, said: "This transaction allows both Vodafone and Verizon to execute on their long-term strategic objectives. Our two companies have had a long and successful partnership and have grown Verizon Wireless into a market leader with great momentum. We wish Lowell and the Verizon team continuing success over the years ahead."

Quarterly Dividend Increase

Demonstrating the importance of its dividend policy to deliver value for shareholders, Verizon also announced today that its Board of Directors has declared a quarterly dividend of 53 cents per outstanding share, an increase of 1.5 cents per share, or 2.9 percent, from the previous quarter. On an annual basis, this increases Verizon's dividend 6 cents per share, from $2.06 to $2.12 per share.

Financing and Approvals

The transaction consideration of $130 billion consists of a combination of cash, Verizon common stock and other items.

Verizon will pay Vodafone $58.9 billion in cash. To fund this portion of the consideration, Verizon has entered into a fully executed $61.0 billion Bridge Credit Agreement with J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, N.A., Morgan Stanley Senior Funding, Inc., Bank of America, N.A. and Barclays. Verizon intends to reduce the commitments under the Bridge Credit Agreement with the issuance of permanent financing. In addition, Verizon expects to maintain capital structure, balance sheet and financial policies consistent with investment-grade credit metrics, in part based on 100 percent access to Verizon Wireless' cash flow.

Verizon will also issue common stock currently valued at approximately $60.2 billion to be distributed to Vodafone shareholders, subject to a collar arrangement with a floor price of $47.00 and a cap price of $51.00 that will determine the maximum and minimum number of shares to be issued upon closing of the transaction. In addition, Verizon will issue $5.0 billion in notes payable to Vodafone, and Verizon will sell its 23.1 percent minority stake in Vodafone Omnitel N.V. to Vodafone for $3.5 billion. The remaining $2.5 billion of the transaction value will be a combination of other consideration.

2/10/2015

Why I'm Still Not Buying Gold Stocks

One year ago, I told investors to avoid gold stocks.   My call was mostly based on surging costs. You see, almost everything miners had to buy in order to get gold out of the ground was getting more expensive. That includes heavy equipment, mine infrastructure, labor, electricity, and fuel.   According to royalty giant Royal Gold, the average cost to produce an ounce of gold was $662 in 2011. Last June, the average cost was $1,000. According to RBC Capital Markets, it costs at least $1,200 to produce an ounce of gold today.   That's an astounding 81% increase in costs in two years.   If you followed my advice last year, you avoided a 50% collapse in the gold sector...   In April, I told you again to avoid gold stocks. Production costs were still rising. And gold prices started collapsing. Profits for gold companies were about to get hammered.   More important, most institutional analysts (like JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs) were not factoring the changes into the earnings estimates. Consensus earnings estimates were adjusted only slightly lower to account for the massive headwinds facing gold giants Goldcorp, Barrick Gold, and Newmont Mining.   Since April, gold stocks have fallen another 15%.     Today, gold stocks look incredibly cheap. The average gold company in the Market Vectors Gold Miners Fund trades at just 11 times earnings. Plus, on a technical level, it looks as if gold prices have finally found a bottom. We could see a big bounce here.   But I still see more pain ahead.   According to Bloomberg, gold producers spent nearly $200 billion on acquisitions over the past 10 years. Many of these large acquisitions – like the $7.1 billion Kinross Gold paid for Red Back Mining or the $7.3 billion Barrick Gold paid for Equinox Minerals – took place in just the past 24 months.   As my colleague Matt Badiali has pointed out, many of these projects will have to be written down. This trend has just begun. Bloomberg says that gold producers wrote down $17 billion in projects in just the past 18 months. With the price of gold trading at the same price as production costs, we could see this number grow fivefold in the next 18 months.   I'm sure many names in the sector will be reporting losses at least over the next few quarters. And even with prices down this much, I don't see this risk factored in to most gold stocks.   My advice is to continue to stay clear of the gold sector. You may see a few bounces – even a violent rally, like my colleague Jeff Clark is predicting. But based on the headwinds facing gold stocks – and the billions in write-downs that have yet to be announced – you are better off looking elsewhere to find cheap stocks for the long term.   Good investing,   Frank Curzio



2/09/2015

Dow May Jump as Investors Wait for Fed

LONDON -- Stock index futures as of 6:30 a.m. EDT indicate that the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) may open up by 114 points, or 0.76%, while the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC  ) is expected to open flat. It's been four weeks since May 22, when Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said that stimulus measures might be tapered if employment data showed sustained improvement, but despite the volatility we've seen during that period, the Dow closed last night 11 points higher than its May 22 close.

Most European markets edged lower this morning ahead of the conclusion of today's Federal Reserve policy meeting. At 7:20 a.m. EDT, the FTSE 100 was down 0.48%, France's CAC 40 was down 0.66%, and the German DAX was down 0.17%. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 and the TOPIX both closed 1.8% higher earlier today, making them the top performers in the Asia-Pacific region.

Yesterday's inflation data was the last possible input for today's FOMC decision on monetary policy, which is due at 2 p.m. EDT. This will be followed at 2:30 p.m. EDT by Bernanke's press conference, at which he is likely to comment further on the Fed's outlook on the economy and his view on the future of the Fed's stimulus programs. Chairman Bernanke's words will be closely scrutinized, and the Dow and S&P 500 are likely to be fairly volatile during and immediately after Bernanke's comments.

Although the Fed is likely to overshadow any corporate news today, one set of quarterly results may be worth focusing on. Package delivery giant FedEx is generally considered to be a good economic indicator; when the global economy is good, parcel volumes rise, and when things are tough, they fall. This morning the company reported fourth-quarter earnings of $2.13 per share (excluding items), beating analysts' expectations of $1.95 per share and the prior-year quarter's EPS of $1.99. FedEx stock closed 1.1% higher yesterday and is up 1.3% in premarket trading this morning.

One other stock that may be actively traded this morning is Adobe Systems, which is up by 6.4% in premarket trading this morning after the firm's quarterly results beat expectations last night.

Finally, let's not forget that the Dow's daily movements can add up to serious long-term gains. Indeed, Warren Buffett recently wrote, "The Dow advanced from 66 to 11,497 in the 20th Century, a staggering 17,320% increase that materialized despite four costly wars, a Great Depression and many recessions." If you, like Buffett, are convinced of the long-term power of the Dow, you should read "5 Stocks To Retire On." Your long-term wealth could be transformed, even in this uncertain economy. Simply click here now to download this free, no-obligation report.

2/08/2015

The Beginners' Portfolio: Should We Sell Vodafone Group Plc?

This article is the latest in a series that aims to help novice investors with the stock market. To enjoy past articles in the series, please visit our full archive.

LONDON: The Beginners' Portfolio is based firmly on a "long-term buy and hold" ethos, or "LTBH." Now, some investors have done very well by taking that to mean "forget and hold forever," but that's really not my approach. No, for me, investments need to be reexamined at regular intervals, based on two key criteria:

Firstly, on price. If a share price has risen so that its valuation looks to be fully realised, and it's not a bargain any more, consider selling and looking for a better place for the money. I don't believe any of the Beginners' holdings are at that stage.

Secondly, if the fundamental nature of the company, including any of the factors that led to the original purchase decision, have changed, it's also time for a reevaluation. And Vodafone (LSE: VOD  ) (NASDAQ: VOD  )  has changed!

Verizon
There could be big changes in the pipeline based on Vodafone's relationship with Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ  ) , with Vodafone owning 45% of Verizon Wireless. We recently had Verizon hinting that it might not pay a dividend this year, but that turned out to be a bit of brinkmanship -- Verizon wanted the cash as much as Vodafone, and the payment materialised as usual.

Then we've heard all sorts of on-again, off-again stories about a possible takeover, or a merger of the two companies, or the sale of Vodafone's Verizon Wireless stake.

I'm convinced something will happen, but this is really not news, as these shenanigans were happening at the time of our purchase -- and I can only see an eventual deal being to the advantage of Vodafone shareholders. On this score, I'll revisit our Vodafone holding when something actually happens.

The dividend
But there has been another development, and something very important has changed -- Vodafone has announced a change in its dividend policy! The dividend was a key part of my original buy decision, and I was looking forward to yearly rises in the cash paid out.

And when final results were released on 21 May, the full-year dividend was hiked by 7% to provide a 5.1% yield on the share price at the time. Forecasts for next year suggest a 5.3% yield on the current share price of 194 pence ... so what's the problem?

Well, among the rest of the announcement, Vodafone told us that, in future, it "aims at least to maintain the ordinary dividend per share at current levels." That's no commitment to any future rises, and the company would satisfy its new policy even if it never again lifted its annual payout.

And that does concern me, as I see Vodafone as being mainly a mature dividend payer, with share price growth a bonus. It's certainly not enough to make me want to dump the shares yet -- not with the new policy effectively promising a yield at least close to that 5.3% for March 2014, and not with the shares on a modest forward P/E of 12.

No more rises?
But, if the dividend does stagnate, I'll be revisiting my decision -- and I'll be paying careful attention to dividend news at interim time.

Finally, my idea of the kind of shares that should make up the core of a beginner's portfolio is the same as my choice for an ISA, or a retirement portfolio -- or, in fact, any portfolio. I'd start with good strong companies that should stand the test of time, and potentially reward you for decades.

Not surprisingly, the Fool's top analysts think similarly, and they have put together a special report detailing five blue-chip shares that I think would be ideal for anyone at the start of his or her investing career.

But it will only be available for a limited period, so click here to get your hands on these great ideas that could start you on the road to long-term riches.

2/07/2015

Why Apple Is Waiting for a Bigger iPhone

The chorus of analysts and investors calling for Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) to launch a larger iPhone continues to get louder. There's no doubt that a segment of the smartphone market prefers larger phones, and everyone keeps wondering when Apple will step up to meet that need.

Barclays analyst Ben Reitzes took the opportunity to ask again, since he asked the same question on the January call. He asked Tim Cook if his view of the 5-inch phone market had changed at all in the past three months, or if Cook felt that the 4-inch display is still sufficient.

According to Cook, it's all about trade-offs:

My view continues to be that iPhone 5 has the absolute best display in the industry. And we always strive to create the very best display for our customers. And some customers value large screen size, others value also other factors such as resolution, color quality, white balance, brightness, reflectivity, screen longevity, power consumption, portability, compatibility with apps and many things.

Our competitors had made some significant trade-offs in many of these areas in order to ship a larger display. We would not ship a larger display iPhone while these trade-offs exist.

The CEO clearly feels like jumping the gun with a bigger iPhone display would translate into sacrifices in other important areas that affect overall display quality.

Cook also noted certain weaknesses such as color saturation and brightness with OLED displays back in February at a Goldman Sachs conference, which sent shares of Universal Display (NASDAQ: OLED  ) reeling briefly before the OLED specialist recovered. That was likely a knock directed more in Samsung's direction, since the South Korean company is the biggest proponent of OLED displays in mobile devices, but Samsung is also Universal Display's biggest customer. Universal Display simply got caught in the crossfire.

But he didn't say "no"
Cook didn't say "no" to a larger iPhone. Instead, he implied Apple would only launch a larger iPhone to address the growing phablet niche after it can properly address the lengthy laundry list of trade-offs.

Fortunately, the continued strength of the iPhone 4, a nearly 3-year-old smartphone with a 3.5-inch display, shows Apple can afford to wait.

With the prospect of a larger iPhone looming, 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 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.

2/06/2015

5 Stocks Rising on Unusual Volume

DELAFIELD, Wis. (Stockpickr) -- Professional traders running mutual funds and hedge funds don't just look at a stock's price moves; they also track big changes in volume activity. Often when above-average volume moves into an equity, it precedes a large spike in volatility.

Must Read: Warren Buffett's Top 10 Dividend Stocks

Major moves in volume can signal unusual activity, such as insider buying or selling -- or buying or selling by "superinvestors."

Unusual volume can also be a major signal that hedge funds and momentum traders are piling into a stock ahead of a catalyst. These types of traders like to get in well before a large spike, so it's always a smart move to monitor unusual volume. That said, remember to combine trend and price action with unusual volume. Put them all together to help you decipher the next big trend for any stock.

With that in mind, let's take a look at several stocks rising on unusual volume recently.

Must Read: 10 Stocks Carl Icahn Loves in 2014

comScore

comScore (SCOR) provides a range of digital media analytics solutions in the U.S., Europe, Canada and others. This stock closed up 3% to $39.38 in Monday's trading session.

Monday's Volume: 429,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 195,363

Volume % Change: 142%

From a technical perspective, SCOR jumped higher here right off its 50-day moving average of $37.86 with above-average volume. This spike to the upside on Monday is quickly pushing shares of SCOR within range of triggering a major breakout trade. That trade will hit if SCOR manages to take out some key near-term overhead resistance levels at $39.70 to its 52-week high of $39.78 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in SCOR as long as it's trending above its 50-day at $37.86 or above more near-term support levels at $37 or $36 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 195,363 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then SCOR will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that breakout are $45 to $50.

Must Read: 10 Stocks George Soros Is Buying

Williams Partners

Williams Partners (WPZ), an energy infrastructure company, focuses on connecting North America's hydrocarbon resource plays to growing markets for natural gas and natural gas liquids. This stock closed up 3.5% at $51.75 in Monday's trading session.

Monday's Volume: 3.42 million

Three-Month Average Volume: 972,045

Volume % Change: 269%

From a technical perspective, WPZ jumped notably higher here back above its 200-day moving average of $50.73 with strong upside volume flows. This trend to the upside on Monday is quickly pushing shares of WPZ within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade. That trade will hit if WPZ manages to take out its 50-day moving average of $52.26 and then once it clears more key near-term overhead resistance at $52.90 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in WPZ as long as it's trending above Monday's intraday low of $50 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 972,045 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then WPZ will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $55.28 to $56.30, or even its 52-week high at $57.29.

Must Read: 5 Stocks Under $10 Set to Soar

Access Midstream Partners

Access Midstream Partners (ACMP) owns, operates, develops and acquires natural gas, natural gas liquids and oil gathering systems, and other midstream energy assets in the U.S. This stock closed up 3.1% to $62.76 in Monday's trading session.

Monday's Volume: 2.51 million

Three-Month Average Volume: 434,394

Volume % Change: 427%

From a technical perspective, ACMP jumped higher here back above its 50-day moving average of $62.41 with heavy upside volume flows. This move also pushed shares of ACMP into breakout territory, since the stock took out some near-term overhead resistance at $62.08 to just under $63. Market players should now look for a continuation move to the upside in the short-term if ACMP manages to take out Monday's intraday high of $63.64 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in ACMP as long as it's trending above Monday's intraday low of $60.98 or above its 200-day at $59.40 and then once it sustains a move or close above $63.64 with volume that hits near or above 434,394 shares. If that move begins soon, then ACMP will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $65.55 to $65.90, or even its 52-week high at $66.71. Any high-volume move above those levels will then give ACMP a chance to make a run at $70.

Must Read: 7 Stocks Warren Buffett Is Selling in 2014

GSI Group

GSI Group (GSIG), together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures and sells precision photonic and motion control components and subsystems to original equipment manufacturers in the medical, industrial, electronics and scientific markets. This stock closed up 3.8% at $12.32 in Monday's trading session.

Monday's Volume: 141,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 69,503

Volume % Change: 110%

From a technical perspective, GSIG spiked notably higher here back above both its 50-day moving average of $12.07 and its 200-day moving average of $12.15 with above-average volume. This trend to the upside on Monday also pushed shares of GSIG into breakout territory, since the stock took out some near-term overhead resistance levels at $11.91 to $12.05. Market players should now look for a continuation move to the upside in the short-term if GSIG manages to take out Monday's intraday high of $12.40 to some more near-term overhead resistance just above $12.60 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in GSIG as long as it's trending above Monday's intraday low of $11.80 or above $11.60 and then once it sustains a move or close above $12.40 to around $12.60 with volume that this near or above 69,503 shares. If that move gets set off soon, the GSIG will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $13.19 to its 52-week high at $13.71. Any high-volume move above those levels will then give GSIG a chance to tag $15.

Must Read: 5 Stocks Insiders Love Right Now

Level 3 Communications

Level 3 Communications (LVLT), together with its subsidiaries, operates as a facilities-based provider of a range of integrated communications services primarily in North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. This stock closed up 2.9% at $43.46 in Monday's trading session.

Monday's Volume: 3.83 million

Three-Month Average Volume: 2.14 million

Volume % Change: 89%

From a technical perspective, LVLT jumped higher here right above its 200-day moving average of $41.17 with above-average volume. This stock has been uptrending over the last few weeks, with shares moving higher from its low of $37.61 to its intraday high of $43.60. During that uptrend, shares of LVLT have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. Market players should now look for a continuation move to the upside in the short-term if LVLT manages to take out its 50-day moving average of $43.56 to some more near-term overhead resistance at $44 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in LVLT as long as it's trending above its 200-day at $41.17 and then once it sustains a move or close above $43.56 to $44 with volume that's near or above 2.14 million shares. If that move materializes soon, then LVLT will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $46.20 to $48.21, or even its 52-week high at $49.22.

Must Read: 10 Stocks Billionaire John Paulson Loves in 2014

To see more stocks rising on unusual volume, check out the Stocks Rising on Unusual Volume portfolio on Stockpickr.

-- Written by Roberto Pedone in Delafield, Wis.


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>>5 Rocket Stocks to Buy for November Gains



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>>Book Double the Gains With These 5 Shareholder Yield Champs

Follow Stockpickr on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

At the time of publication, author had no positions in stocks mentioned.

Roberto Pedone, based out of Delafield, Wis., is an independent trader who focuses on technical analysis for small- and large-cap stocks, options, futures, commodities and currencies. Roberto studied international business at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, and he spent a year overseas studying business in Lubeck, Germany. His work has appeared on financial outlets including

CNBC.com and Forbes.com. You can follow Pedone on Twitter at www.twitter.com/zerosum24 or @zerosum24.


2/05/2015

Markets Tank; Vistaprint Shares Surge On Strong Results

Related BZSUM Dow Dips Over 200 Points; Vistaprint Shares Surge On Strong Results Markets Tumble; Kellogg Lowers Full-Year Forecast

Wrapping up Thursday's trading session, the Dow traded down 1.52 percent to 16,623.35 while the NASDAQ tumbled 1.84 percent to 4,380.91. The S&P also fell, dropping 1.64 percent to 1,937.69.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

In trading on Thursday, non-cyclical consumer goods & services shares dropped by just 1.11 percent. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Bunge (NYSE: BG), up 8.34 percent, and Avon Products (NYSE: AVP), up 0.31 percent.

Technology sector was the top decliner in the market on Thursday. Top losers in the sector included QuickLogic (NASDAQ: QUIK), Glu Mobile (NASDAQ: GLUU), and L-3 Communications Holdings (NYSE: LLL).

Top Headline

Kellogg Co (NYSE: K) reported in-line earnings for the second quarter and cut its full-year forecast.

The Battle Creek, Michigan-based company posted quarterly earnings of $295 million, or $0.82 per share, down 15% versus the year-ago quarter. Excluding special items, it earned $1.02 per share.

Its sales declined 0.8% to $3.7 billion. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $1.02 per share on revenue of $3.705 billion.

Equities Trading UP

Vistaprint NV (NASDAQ: VPRT) shares shot up 29.18 percent to $48.74 after the company reported better-than-expected quarterly results and issued a strong FY15 outlook.

Shares of LivePerson (NASDAQ: LPSN) got a boost, shooting up 19.98 percent to $12.19 after the company reported upbeat quarterly results and issued a strong revenue forecast.

Journal Communications (NYSE: JRN) shares were also up, gaining 24.66 percent to $10.92. The E.W. Scripps Company (NYSE: SSP) and Journal Communications have agreed to merge their broadcasting operations and spin off their newspapers businesses into a separate publicly held company.

Equities Trading DOWN

Shares of A10 Networks (NYSE: ATEN) were down 17.05 percent to $10.73 on downbeat Q2 results.

On Assignment (NYSE: ASGN) shares tumbled 22.61 percent to $27.01 after the company reported Q2 earnings of $0.56 per share on revenue of $468.60 million. Baird downgraded the stock from Outperform to Neutral.

L-3 Communications Holdings (NYSE: LLL) was down, falling 14.22 percent to $102.61 after the company reported weak Q2 results and lowered its FY14 earnings guidance. L-3 Communications also reported that it had fired 4 employees on accounting misconduct at aerospace business.

Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded down 1.68 percent to $98.59, while gold traded down 0.91 percent to $1,283.10.

Silver traded down 0.74 percent Thursday to $20.52, while copper fell 0.28 percent to $3.23.

Eurozone

European shares were lower today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 fell 1.31 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index tumbled 2.10 percent, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index declined 1.52 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX declined 1.85 percent and the French CAC 40 dropped 1.52 percent while UK shares fell 0.64 percent.

Economics

US jobless claims increased by 23,000 to 302,000 in the week ended July 26. However, economists were estimating claims to reach 308,000 in the week.

The Chicago PMI declined to 52.6 in July, versus 62.6 in June. Economists were expecting a reading of 63.5.

US natural-gas supplies increased 88 billion cubic feet for the week ended July 25, according to the Energy Information Administration. However, analysts were estimating a gain of 90 billion to 94 billion billion cubic feet.

Data on farm prices for July will be released at 3:00 p.m. ET.

Data on money supply will be released at 4:30 p.m. ET.

Posted-In: Earnings News Guidance Downgrades Eurozone Futures Commodities M&A

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

  Most Popular Morgan Stanley: 'Prepare To Buy The Dip' On Tesla's Q2 Earnings Earnings Scheduled For July 30, 2014 Earnings Scheduled For July 31, 2014 NQ Mobile Soars On Offer From Bison Capital Wells Fargo Securities Sees Positive Catalysts Ahead For Apple BlackBerry Shares Move On Windows Phone Announcement Related Articles (ASGN + ATEN) Markets Tank; Vistaprint Shares Surge On Strong Results Dow Dips Over 200 Points; Vistaprint Shares Surge On Strong Results Markets Tumble; Kellogg Lowers Full-Year Forecast Stocks Hitting 52-Week Lows

2/04/2015

GM recalls 512,000 Camaros

2014 chevrolet camaro The 2014 Chevy Camaro is one the cars included in the latest GM recall NEW YORK (CNNMoney) General Motors announced a new recall of 512,000 Camaros, saying a flaw can switch the popular sports car off while it's being driven.

GM said that the problem is similar but not identical to the flawed ignition switch in 2.6 million Chevrolet Cobalts that has been tied to at least 13 deaths. In that recall, the ignition switch itself was faulty and needed to be replaced. In the case of the Camaro, the design of the ignition key and the attached fob makes it susceptible to being bumped out of the "run" position, similar to what happened with the recalled Cobalts.

But GM said the ignition switch does not need to be replaced in the Camaro. Instead it is issuing a new key and fob which aren't attached to each other.

GM (GM) said the problem with the Camaro has been traced to at least three accidents and four minor injuries, but no deaths or serious injuries.

GM said that it is acting much faster in response to reports of problems than it did with the Cobalts, which the automaker waited 10 years to recall.

"Discovering and acting on this issue quickly is an example of the new norm for product safety at GM," said Jeff Boyer, vice president of GM Global Safety.

GM is under fire over the 10-year delay in the Cobalt recall. It had to pay the maximum $35 million fine to federal safety regulators and faces criminal probes as well as Congressional investigations over that recall. The automaker has also said it will set up a fund to compensate those crash victims.

The Camaro recall covers the models years from 2010 through the current 2014 model. The company said it applies to 465,000 Camaros in the United States, while the rest are in Mexico, Canada or overseas.

The price tag for corporate negligence   The price tag for corporate negligence

GM also announced three other minor recalls in which there were no accidents or injuries reported, including about 30,000 Saab convertibles due to a problem with the seat belt retractor. Saab, which GM jettisoned as part of its 2009 bankruptcy, is one of the few GM brands that the automaker had not recalled before now.

GM is also recalling 25,000 Chevy Sonics, and 15,000 Buick LaCrosses.

All told, Friday's recall brings GM's recall total for the year to 14.4 million U.S. cars and trucks, and 16.5 million worldwide.

2/03/2015

5 Stocks With Crummy Cash Flow — HXM TWGP STP ATPG NIHD

RSS Logo Portfolio Grader Popular Posts: Hottest Energy Stocks Now – HK QEP CLMT SDRL13 “Triple A” Stocks to Buy7 Biotechnology Stocks to Buy Now Recent Posts: Hottest Healthcare Stocks Now – CAH PDLI SHPG FRX Hottest Technology Stocks Now – CYOU HPQ NCR MSFT Biggest Movers in Financial Stocks Now – RDN AIG MTG MFG View All Posts

This week, these five stocks have the worst ratings in Cash Flow, one of the eight Fundamental Categories on Portfolio Grader.

Desarrolladora Homex SAB de CV Sponsored ADR () operates as a vertically integrated home builder. HXM gets F’s in Earnings Growth, Earnings Momentum, Equity, Operating Margin Growth and Sales Growth as well. .

Tower Group International Ltd. () is a provider of property and casualty insurance products and services. TWGP also gets F’s in Earnings Growth, Earnings Momentum, Equity, Operating Margin Growth and Sales Growth. The price of TWGP is down 18.5% since the first of the year. This is worse than the Nasdaq, which has remained flat. .

Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. Sponsored ADR () is a solar energy company that designs, develops, manufactures and markets PV cells and molecules. STP gets F’s in Earnings Growth, Equity, Operating Margin Growth and Sales Growth as well. .

ATP Oil & Gas () is engaged in the acquisition, development and production of oil and natural gas properties in the Gulf of Mexico and the U.K. ATPG also gets F’s in Analyst Earnings Revisions and Sales Growth. .

NII Holdings, Inc. Class B () provides mobile communications for business customers in Latin America. NIHD gets F’s in Earnings Momentum, Equity and Sales Growth as well. .

Louis Navellier’s proprietary Portfolio Grader stock ranking system assesses roughly 5,000 companies every week based on a number of fundamental and quantitative measures. Stocks are given a letter grade based on their results — with A being “strong buy,” and F being “strong sell.” Explore the tool here.

Why You're Wrong to Think the HBO-Amazon.com Deal Is a Netflix, Inc Killer


Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Amazon.com  (NASDAQ: AMZN  ) has fired the next shot in the war for your living room. In the digital age, consumers are slowly cutting the cord on traditional cable subscriptions and moving toward streaming services and devices. That's resulted in a constant tug-of-war between major streaming providers to obtain content. The most recent deal involves Amazon teaming up with Time Warner's (NYSE: TWX  ) HBO, through its Prime streaming service.

Amazon and HBO struck an agreement in which HBO will allow some of its series to be available on the Amazon Prime service. This is getting a lot of attention through the financial media, since it represents the first time Time Warner has licensed its programming to an online streaming service.

In addition, many are seeing this as a clear blow to Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX  ) , since HBO is not available on Netflix at this time. Netflix shares sunk on the day of the announcement. But here's why I think this deal is not a Netflix killer and is much ado about nothing.

Amazon to mostly provide old content
A key caveat to this deal is that Amazon Prime customers will only have access to older shows, such as The Sopranos or The Wire, which have long stopped airing new episodes. It stands to reason that consumers who wanted to watch those shows have already done so. Current shows, which are airing new episodes, such as Veep or Game of Thrones, will not be available on Amazon Prime until three years after the original airing.

Netflix already offers certain shows that aired on premium channels, such as Showtime's Dexter. It doesn't seem like such programming makes or breaks Netflix's subscriber numbers. Actually, the deal seems to benefit Time Warner the most. That's because it probably realized that older shows are stale, and this is a convenient way to further monetize old programming. Moreover, it's crucial to remember that you're not getting access to new programming on Amazon Prime.

For consumers who are actually interested in watching older HBO shows, Netflix has an available option. For example, consumers who want to watch The Sopranos or the first season of Game of Thrones could rent them from Netflix's DVD service.

Where Amazon really struck a blow
Amazon's share price fell on the day of the announcement, which implies that investors don't see this as a ground-breaking deal, and certainly not something that will sink Netflix. It seems that Netflix is frequently used as a complement to streaming TV devices like Amazon Fire TV and not necessarily a substitution. Amazon's Fire TV device comes with a free 30-day trial of Netflix.

However, one area in which Amazon does gain an advantage is by obtaining rights to display HBO GO. Amazon's deal with HBO looks like more of a blow to other streaming device makers such as the Apple TV, Google Chromecast, and Roku.

The bottom line is that the biggest winner of the deal appears to be Time Warner. It has secured a way to further monetize older programming, and potentially increase subscribers if Amazon Prime members take to its programming. Amazon looks to be a winner as well, in the sense that it will more effectively compete with other streaming devices.

Netflix may seem like a loser from this deal, but that's not likely to be the case. Netflix has a well-established customer base. Those subscribers probably won't be lured away just by being able to watch HBO shows that are no longer airing new episodes.

The bigger battle appears to be in new programming, in which Netflix holds an ace up its sleeve in the form of its hit show House of Cards. Netflix doesn't appear to be a direct competitor with Amazon, but rather a complementary service. As a result, don't expect a mass subscriber exodus from Netflix any time soon.

Your cable company is scared, but you can get rich
You know cable's going away. But do you know how to profit? There's $2.2 trillion out there to be had. Currently, cable grabs a big piece of it. That won't last. And when cable falters, three companies are poised to benefit. Click here for their names. Hint: They're not Netflix, Google, and Apple. 

 

2/02/2015

Yum Brands jump as China growth boosts profit

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2/01/2015

3 Secrets to Saving Money at the Pump

rising Gas Prices Toby Talbot/AP Gas is one of the most substantial household expenses for many families. I know it's a pretty big expense for mine. However, throughout the past couple of years, I've been trying to live a more frugal life. That involves looking for ways to pay less. Today, I'm going to share some secrets I've found that can save you a pretty penny at the pump. Secret No. 1: Look for local deals. When we look for local deals, we often think about coupon clipping for a few bucks saved at the local grocery store. However, that's not the only place you can save money locally. For instance, in my area, and to the best of my knowledge, in all of Oregon, shopping at Safeway (SWY) can save you money on gas. They have a rewards program and a partnership with Chevron which allows me to save up to $1 a gallon when I fill up. Do a little research online to see if there are any loyalty based gas rewards programs in your area. Secret No. 2: Use gas station credit cards. I know how annoying it can be to be asked, "Would you like to sign up for our credit card?" at the pump, but it's important to remember that doing so could save you a ton of money. The general reluctance to sign up stems from our fear that credit cards will lead us to overwhelming debt. That only happens if you let it. Credit cards also have the potential to save you a ton of money, if used correctly. Most gas station credit cards give you 10 percent off at the pump as well as rewards points when you use the card. If you do the math, you generally earn 10 to 12 percent savings when you use gas station cards. The key is not paying interest on your purchases. After all, how great can 12 percent really be if you're paying 20 percent to get it? The good news is avoiding interest really isn't all that hard. To avoid paying interest on your gas rewards credit card, simply pay your card off every time you fill up. The truth is credit cards have grace periods. If you pay your balance in full within the grace period, you won't be charged interest. By paying your card off the day you fill up, you'll be sure to make it within your grace period, meaning you won't have to pay for your rewards. Secret No. 3: Use your smartphone. We use our phones for everything else these days; why not use them to save money on gas? Some apps directly help to save money at the pump and some help in round about ways if you think outside the box. Here are a few examples. iGasUp: This is one of those apps that directly helps you to save money at the pump. Using this app, you can find the ten cheapest gas stations closest to your current location. Choose the station you want to go to and it will even give you directions on how to get there. The most amazing part to me is how accurate it is. It gets its pricing data through real time credit card transactions. Google Maps: One of the easiest ways to spend a ton of money on gas unnecessarily is to get lost. Making sure this app is on your phone will help ensure that you don't get lost, wasting gas in the process. Carticipate: If you're a social extrovert like me, you'll love Carticipate. One of the best ways to save money on gas is to carpool. Carticipate is an awesome app that helps bring carpoolers together. Not only will it save you money on gas, it can help you meet some pretty cool people. Gas is expensive, we all know that. However, these simple tips can save you quite a bit over the course of a year. By my calculations, following the secrets above, I save between $40 and $60 a month on gas, depending on how much I drive that much. That means these three simple steps save me $480 a year at the very minimum. I hope they do the same for you.