Top 10 Energy Stocks To Invest In Right Now

With shares of Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) trading around $42, is KO an OUTPERFORM, WAIT AND SEE or STAY AWAY? Let�� analyze the stock with the relevant sections of our CHEAT SHEET investing framework:

T = Trends for a Stock’s Movement

Coca-Cola is�a beverage company that engages in the manufacture, marketing, and sale of nonalcoholic beverages worldwide. The company primarily offers sparkling beverages and still beverages. Its sparkling beverages include nonalcoholic ready-to-drink beverages with carbonation, such as carbonated energy drinks, and carbonated waters and flavored waters. The company�s still beverages comprise nonalcoholic beverages without carbonation, including noncarbonated waters, flavored and enhanced waters, noncarbonated energy drinks, juices and juice drinks, ready-to-drink teas and coffees, and sports drinks. It also provides flavoring ingredients, sweeteners, powders for purified water products, beverage ingredients, and fountain syrups. Coca-Cola Company sells its products primarily under the Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Coca-Cola Light, Coca-Cola Zero, Sprite, Fanta, Minute Maid, Powerade, Aquarius, Dasani, Glac茅au Vitaminwater, Georgia, Simply, Del Valle, Ayataka, and I Lohas brand names. Consumers around the world love the products offered by Coca-Cola and enjoy them almost on a daily basis. Through its brands, Coca-Cola is able to reach a wide consumer base in just about every corner of the world that will continue to enjoy its products for years to come.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Hi Crush Partners LP (HCLP)

Hi Crush Partners LP, formerly Hi-Crush Partners LP, is a domestic producer of monocrystalline sand, a specialized mineral that is used as a proppant to enhance the recovery rates of hydrocarbons from oil and natural gas wells. The Company reserves consist of Northern White sand, a resource existing in Wisconsin and limited portions of the upper Midwest region of the United States. It owns, operates and develops sand reserves and related excavation and processing facilities and will seek to acquire or develop additional facilities. The Company's 561-acre facility with integrated rail infrastructure, located near Wyeville, Wisconsin, enables it to process and deliver approximately 1,600,000 tons of frac sand per year. In June 2013, Hi Crush Partners LP announced the completion of its acquisition of D&I Silica, LLC (D&I).

The Company�� frac sand production is sold to investment grade-rated pressure pumping service providers under long-term, contracts that require its customers to pay a specified price for a specified volume of frac sand each month. The Company owns and operates the Wyeville facility, which is located in Monroe County, Wisconsin and, as of December 31, 2011, contained 48.4 million tons of proven recoverable sand reserves of mesh sizes it has contracted to sell. From the Wyeville in-service date to March 31, 2012, it had processed and sold 555,250 tons of frac sand.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Alex Planes]

  Hi-Crush Partners (NYSE: HCLP  ) and U.S. Silica Holdings (NYSE: SLCA  ) could also pose a threat to CARBO's higher-end products. CARBO has worked feverishly to convince drillers that ceramic proppants are much stronger than sand, and can withstand the high temperatures and pressures of deep, fractured wells. Since Hi-Crush's IPO, however, it does appear that the tide has shifted to sand, as Carbo's revenues have declined�while Hi-Crush and U.S. Silica have gained. Increased competition from a number of Chinese companies that have flooded the domestic market with cheap ceramic proppants is also a danger to CARBO's higher-quality products, provided that the cut-rate ceramics are actually up to the task.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Vantage Drilling Company(VTG)

Vantage Drilling Company, through its subsidiaries, provides offshore contract drilling services to oil and natural gas companies in the United States and internationally. The company offers drilling units, related equipment, and work crews under contract to drill oil and natural gas wells; construction supervision services; and operates and manages drilling units owned by others. Its customers primarily include multinational oil and natural gas companies, government owned oil and natural gas companies, and independent oil and natural gas producers. The company owns and manages four jackup rigs and three drillships. Vantage Drilling Company was founded in 2007 and is based in Houston, Texas.

10 Best Gold Stocks To Invest In 2014: Noble Corp (NE)

Noble Corporation is an offshore drilling contractor for the oil and gas industry. The Company performs contract drilling services with its fleet of 79 mobile offshore drilling units and one floating production storage and offloading unit (FPSO) located globally. As of December 31, 2011, its fleet consisted of 14 semisubmersibles, 14 drillships, 49 jackups and two submersibles. Its fleet includes 11 units under construction, which include five ultra-deepwater drillships, and six jackup rigs. As of February 15, 2012, approximately 84% of its fleet was located outside the United States in areas, which included Mexico, Brazil, the North Sea, the Mediterranean, West Africa, the Middle East, India and the Asian Pacific. During the year ended December 31, 2011, it completed construction on the Noble Bully I, a drillship, owned through a joint venture with a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell plc; completed construction on the Noble Bully II, a drillship, and it completed construction of Globetrotter-class drillship. As of February 15, 2012, it had 10 rigs under contract in Mexico with Pemex Exploracion y Produccion (Pemex).

During 2011, the Company conducted offshore contract drilling operations, which accounted for over 98% of its operating revenues. It conducts its contract drilling operations in the United States Gulf of Mexico, Mexico, Brazil, the North Sea, the Mediterranean, West Africa, the Middle East, India and the Asian Pacific. During 2011, revenues from Shell and its affiliates accounted for approximately 24% of its total operating revenues. During 2011, revenues from Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras) accounted for approximately 18% and 19% of its total operating revenues. Revenues from Pemex accounted for approximately 15%, 20% and 23% of its total operating revenues.

Semisubmersibles

Semisubmersibles are floating platforms which, by means of a water ballasting system, can be submerged to a predetermined depth so that a substantial portion of the hull is b! elow the water surface during drilling operations. As of December 31, 2011, the semisubmersible fleet consisted of 14 units, including five Noble EVA-4000 semisubmersibles; three Friede & Goldman 9500 Enhanced Pacesetter semisubmersibles; two Pentagone 85 semisubmersibles; two Bingo 9000 design unit submersibles; one Aker H-3 Twin Hull S1289 Column semisubmersible, and one Offshore Co. SCP III Mark 2 semisubmersible.

Drillships

The Company�� drillships are self-propelled vessels. These units maintain their position over the well through the use of either a fixed mooring system or a computer controlled dynamic positioning system. Its drillships are capable of drilling in water depths from 1,000 to 12,000 feet. The maximum drilling depth of its drillships ranges from 20,000 feet to 40,000 feet. As of December 31, 2011, the drillship fleet consisted of 14 units, including four drillships under construction with Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. (HHI); three Gusto Engineering Pelican Class drillships; two Bully-class drillships to be operated by it through a 50% joint venture with a subsidiary of Shell; one dynamically positioned Globetrotter-class drillship that left the shipyard during the fourth quarter of 2011; one Globetrotter-class drillship under construction; one moored Sonat Discoverer Class drillship capable of drilling in Arctic environments; one NAM Nedlloyd-C drillship, and one moored conversion class drillship.

Jackups

As of December 31, 2011, the Company had 49 jackups in its fleet, including six jackups under construction. The rig hull includes the drilling rig, jacking system, crew quarters, loading and unloading facilities, storage areas for bulk and liquid materials, helicopter landing deck and other related equipment. All of its jackups are independent leg and cantilevered. Its jackups are capable of drilling to a maximum depth of 30,000 feet in water depths up to 400 feet.

Submersibles

The Company has two su! bmersible! s in the fleet, which are cold-stacked. Submersibles are mobile drilling platforms, which are towed to the drill site and submerged to drilling position by flooding the lower hull until it rests on the sea floor, with the upper deck above the water surface. Its submersibles are capable of drilling to a depth of 25,000 feet in water depths up to 70 feet.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Aaron Levitt]

  That�� put a lot of coin in Noble�� (NE) pockets — as well as those of its shareholders.

  However, things may be getting even better for the offshore driller. Following the lead of other offshore drilling players like SeaDrill�(SDRL) and Transocean (RIG), Noble is planning to make itself a ��ure��deepwater rig operator by splitting itself into two separate firms.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Bankers Petroleum Ltd (BNK.TO)

Bankers Petroleum Ltd. (Bankers) is engaged in the exploration for and oil in Albania. The Company generates all of the oil revenue from its operations in Albania, which is located northwest of Greece in South Eastern Europe. In Albania, Bankers operates and has the rights to develop the Patos-Marinza and Kucova oilfields pursuant to License Agreements with the Albanian National Agency for Natural Resources (AKBN) and Petroleum Agreements with Albpetrol Sh.A (Albpetrol), the state-owned oil and gas corporation. The Patos-Marinza oilfield is an onshore oilfield in continental Europe, holding approximately 5.1 billion barrels of original-oil-in-place (OOIP). The Company also has rights to exploration Block F (adjacent to the Patos-Marinza oilfield), an 185,000 acre oil and gas prone exploration field. The Company�� subsidiaries include Bankers Petroleum Albania Ltd. (BPAL), Bankers Petroleum International Limited (BPIL) and Sherwood International Petroleum Ltd (Sherwood).

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Invest In Right Now: First Power and Light Inc (VOLT.PK)

First Power and Light, Inc. (FPL), formerly Mainstream Entertainment, Inc., incorporated on June 24, 2008, is a full service solar installation company. The Company is engaged in the financing, design, installation and maintenance of small to large scale solar installations. The Company�� services include residential, commercial and solar farms.

As of July 22, 2013, the Company has completed over 400 commercial, Federal Government and residential installations. The Company has developed software. Its monitoring software provides both the Company and its customers with a view of their energy generation, consumption and carbon offset through an application available on smart-phones and any device with a Web browser.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Marathon Petroleum Corp (MPC)

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC), incorporated on November 9, 2009, is a petroleum product refiners, transporters and marketers in the United States. The Company operates in three segments: Refining & Marketing, Speedway and Pipeline Transportation. Marathon Petroleum�� refining, marketing and transportation operations are concentrated in the Midwest, Gulf Coast and Southeast regions of the United States. MPC has two retail brands: Speedway and Marathon. Effective as of June 30, 2011, MPC was separated from Marathon Oil Corporation (Marathon Oil) and became an independent company in a spin-off transaction.

Refining & Marketing

The Company owned and operated six refineries in the Gulf Coast and Midwest regions of the United States with an aggregate crude oil refining capacity of approximately 1.2 million barrels per calendar day as of December 31, 2011. During 2011, its refineries processed 1,177 million barrels per day of crude oil and 181 mbpd of other charge and blend stocks. Its refineries include crude oil atmospheric and vacuum distillation, fluid catalytic cracking, catalytic reforming, desulfurization and sulfur recovery units. The refineries process a range of crude oils and produce numerous refined products, ranging from transportation fuels, such as reformulated gasolines, blend-grade gasolines intended for blending with fuel ethanol and ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel, to heavy fuel oil and asphalt. Additionally, MPC manufacture aromatics, propane, propylene, cumene and sulfur.

The Company�� Garyville, Louisiana refinery is located along the Mississippi River in southeastern Louisiana between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. The Garyville refinery is configured to process heavy sour crude oil into products, such as gasoline, distillates, asphalt, polymer grade propylene, propane, isobutane, sulfur and fuel-grade coke. The Catlettsburg, Kentucky refinery is located in northeastern Kentucky on the western bank of the Big Sandy River, near the confluence! with the Ohio River. The Catlettsburg refinery processes sweet and sour crude oils into products such as gasoline, distillates, asphalt, cumene, petrochemicals, propane and propylene. The Robinson, Illinois refinery is located in southeastern Illinois. The Robinson refinery processes sweet and sour crude oils into products, such as multiple grades of gasoline, distillates, anode-grade coke, propane, butane and propylene.

MPC�� Detroit, Michigan refinery is located near Interstate 75 in southwest Detroit. It is the petroleum refinery operating in Michigan. The Detroit refinery processes light sweet and heavy sour crude oils, including Canadian crude oils, into products, such as gasoline, distillates, asphalt, slurry, propane, and propylene. Its Canton, Ohio refinery is located approximately 60 miles southeast of Cleveland, Ohio. The Canton refinery processes sweet and sour crude oils into products such as gasoline, distillates, asphalt, propane, slurry and roofing flux. Its Texas City, Texas refinery is located on the Texas Gulf Coast approximately 30 miles south of Houston, Texas. The refinery processes sweet crude oil into products such as gasoline, chemical grade propylene, propane, slurry and aromatics.

As of December 31, 2011, the Company owned and operated 62 light product and 21 asphalt terminals. In addition, it distributes through approximately 52 third-party light product and 12 third-party asphalt terminals in its market area. During 2011, marine transportation operations included 15 towboats, as well as 167 owned and 14 leased barges that transport refined products on the Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois rivers and their tributaries, as well as the Intercoastal Waterway. As of December 31, 2011, the Company leased or owned approximately 1,950 railcars of various sizes and capacities for movement and storage of refined products. In addition, it own 124 transport trucks for the movement of refined products.

The Company produces propane at all six of its! refineri! es. Propane is primarily used for home heating and cooking, as a feedstock within the petrochemical industry, for grain drying and as a fuel for trucks and other vehicles. The Company is also a producer and marketer of feedstocks and specialty products. Product availability varies by refinery and includes propylene, cumene, dilute naphthalene oil, molten sulfur, toluene, benzene and xylene. Propane is primarily used for home heating and cooking, as a feedstock within the petrochemical industry, for grain drying and as a fuel for trucks and other vehicles.

Speedway

The Company sells transportation fuels and convenience products in the retail market in the Midwest, primarily through Speedway convenience stores. The Speedway segment sells gasoline and merchandise through convenience stores that the Companu owns and operates, primarily under the Speedway brand. Speedway-branded convenience stores offer a range of merchandise, such as prepared foods, beverages and non-food items, including a number of private-label items. As of December 31, 2011, Speedway had 1,371 convenience stores in seven states.

Pipeline Transportation

The Company transports crude oil and other feedstocks to our refineries and other locations, delivers refined products to wholesale and retail market areas and includes, among other transportation-related assets, a majority interest in LOOP LLC, which is the owner and operator of the United States deepwater oil port. It owns common carrier pipeline systems through Marathon Pipe Line LLC (MPL) and Ohio River Pipe Line LLC (ORPL), both of which are wholly owned subsidiaries. These pipeline systems transport crude oil and refined products, primarily in the Midwest and Gulf Coast regions, to its refineries, its terminals and other pipeline systems. The Company�� MPL and ORPL wholly owned carrier systems consist of 1,707 miles of crude oil lines and 1,825 miles of refined product lines comprising 31 systems located in 11 states, as of Decem! ber 31, 2! 011. In addition, MPL leases and operates 217 miles of common carrier refined product pipelines.

The common carrier refined product pipelines include the owned and operated Cardinal Products Pipeline and the Wabash Pipeline. The Cardinal Products Pipeline delivers refined products from Kenova, West Virginia, to Columbus, Ohio. The Wabash Pipeline system delivers refined products from Robinson, Illinois, to various terminals in the area of Chicago, Illinois. Other refined product pipelines owned and operated by MPL extend from: Robinson, Illinois to Louisville, Kentucky; Robinson, Illinois to Lima, Ohio; Wood River, Illinois to Indianapolis, Indiana; Garyville, Louisiana to Zachary, Louisiana, and Texas City, Texas to Pasadena, Texas.

As of December 31, 2011, the Company had partial ownership interests in the pipeline companies that have approximately 110 miles of crude oil pipelines and 3,600 miles of refined products pipelines, including about 970 miles operated by MPL, which include Centennial Pipeline LLC (Centennial), Explorer Pipeline Company (Explorer), LOCAP LLC (LOCAP), LOOP LLC (LOOP), Muskegon Pipeline LLC (Muskegon) and Wolverine Pipe Line Company (Wolverine).

The Company holds a 50% interest in Centennial, which owns a refined products pipeline system connecting the Gulf Coast region with the Midwest market. The Company holds a 17% interest in Explorer, a refined products pipeline system extending from the Gulf Coast to the Midwest. It holds a 51% interest in LOOP, the owner and operator of the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, which is a deepwater oil port capable of receiving crude oil from large crude carriers, located 18 miles off the coast of Louisiana, and a crude oil pipeline connecting the port facility to storage caverns and tanks at Clovelly, Louisiana. The Company holds a 60% interest in Muskegon, which owns a refined products pipeline extending from Griffith, Indiana to North Muskegon, Michigan. It hold a 6% interest in Wolverine, a refined prod! ucts pipe! line system extending from Chicago, Illinois to Toledo, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Shauna O'Brien]

  Credit Suisse announced on Tuesday that it has cut its rating on Marathon Petroleum Corp (MPC).

  The firm has downgraded MPC from “Outperform” to “Neutral” as refining capture continues to be low.

  Marathon Petroleum shares were mostly flat during pre-market trading Tuesday. The stock is up 10% YTD.

• [By Lee Jackson]

  UBS feels that the refiners are at a disadvantage as oil prices rise and better off when prices fall. Refiners could underperform as oil prices rise, as margins will be squeezed by the rise in feedstock costs, and they could outperform after the peak in oil prices as margins widen out again. The analysts are somewhat positive on Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) and Marathon Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: MPC). They would focus on the other stocks mentioned.

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Marathon Petroleum (NYSE: MPC  ) is expected to report Q2 earnings on Aug. 1. Here's what Wall Street wants to see:

  The 10-second takeaway
  Comparing the upcoming quarter to the prior-year quarter, average analyst estimates predict Marathon Petroleum's revenues will grow 14.1% and EPS will contract -21.7%.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Precision Drilling Corp (PDS)

Precision Drilling Corporation (Precision) is a provider of contract drilling and completion and production services primarily to oil and natural gas exploration and production companies in Canada and the United States. The Company operates in two segments: Contract Drilling Services, and Completion and Production Services. In Canada, the Contract Drilling Services segment includes land drilling services, directional drilling services, procurement and distribution of oilfield supplies and the manufacture and refurbishment of drilling and service rig equipment, and the Completion and Production Services segment includes service rigs for well completion and workover services, snubbing services, camp and catering services, wastewater treatment services and the rental of oilfield surface equipment, tubulars, well control equipment and wellsite accommodations.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Invest In 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 Energy Stocks To Invest In Right Now: EcoloCap Solutions Inc (ECOS)

EcoloCap Solutions Inc. (EcoloCap), incorporated on March 18, 2004, is a development stage company. The Company is an integrated network of environmentally focused technology companies that design, develop, manufacture and sell cleaner alternative energy products.

The Company through its subsidiary Micro Bubble Technologies Inc. (MBT), developed and manufactures M-Fuel. The Company also developed the Carbon Nano Tube Battery (CNT-Battery), and the Nano Li- Battery both recyclable, rechargeable batteries. MBT has also developed a process that blends non-miscible liquids (oil and water) on a submicron level in order to create a non-emulsified fuel product that it calls EM-Fuel.

Top 10 Energy Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Caiterra International Energy Corp (CTI.V)

CaiTerra International Energy Corporation (Caiterra), formerly Cyterra Capital Corp., is a Canada-based company is engaged in the exploration and development of oil and gas properties. The Company�� project includes Faust, Amadou and Lac La Biche. On March 9, 2012, the Company completed its qualifying transaction with West Pacific Petroleum Inc. (WPP), pursuant to which the Company acquired all of WPP�� working interests in certain petroleum and natural gas leases and an oil sand lease in the Lac La Biche and Amadou Projects located in Alberta, Canada and certain other assets (the QT Oil and Gas Properties) from West Pacific Petroleum Inc. (WPP). On December 17, 2012 the Company acquired the Faust Property located just north of the Swan Hills oil field and south of the Town of Slave Lake.

Qualcomm, Clinical Cloud-Based Software

Qualcomm Inc. NASDAQ (QCOM) is a global leader in supplies of chips for cellphones. The 2013 outlook looks very promising with profits posted at 36% YOY rise and revenues at 29% upsurge, completing nearly $2 billion revenue last fourth quarter. The industry as a whole last Thursday closed the day up 1.1%. By the end of trading, Qualcomm rose $0.71 (1.1%) to $65.27 on average volume. Throughout the day, 10,978,535 shares of Qualcomm exchanged hands as compared to its average daily volume of 13,646,300 shares. The stock ranged in a price between $64.31-$65.48 after having opened the day at $64.78 as compared to the previous trading day's close of $64.56

Qualcomm sustains global demand for its integrated circuit products. Its customer base includes giants such as Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), Ingram Micro Inc. (NYSE: IM), Samsung (SSNLF:PK) and BlackBerry (NASDAQ:BBRY). The company is capitalizing on the rise of smartphones and 4G. QCOM is set to begin trading ex-dividend March 06, 2013. A cash dividend payment of $0.25 per share is scheduled to be paid for March 27, 2013. 2013's expected earnings are at $4.35 a share. A new $5 billion share buyback program has also been initiated to replace its existing $4 billion program with $2.5 billion remaining for repurchases. The repurchase program has no expiration date. Qualcomm's daily earnings are at $65.86 - $66.65 with earnings at a 52 week range $53.09 - $68.87. The company expects annual earnings to be $24 billion.

A company committed to innovation, willing to build their capabilities, and open to a new view of value will likely be the first to reap the rewards of big data and help patients achieve better outcomes. Over the last decade, pharmaceutical companies have been aggregating years of research and development data into medical databases, while payors and providers have digitized their patient records.

eMarketer estimates that digital pharma US ad spending will reach $1.19 billion in 2013 and climb to $1.33 billion by 2016. 2012 marke! d a year of many opportunities in digital health enjoying high growth rates over the past twelve months. Digital health investments for software rose 19 percent and digital health grew 45 percent. Personal health tools and health tracking totaled $143 million. Consumer engagement was at $237 million. The market has also remained cautious in its investment strategies following regulations and standards.

Qualcomm is a company that leads investing in digital health. A forecast of 5 billion sales of smartphones are expected from Qualcomm between 2012 and 2016. The mHealth partnership shows investors Qualcomm's market capabilities where the company is able to lead ahead of its rivals.

Qualcomm Life's 2net Platform is an FDA-listed, Class I Medical Device Data System (MDDS) that will enable millions of consumers to connect to the device. The WebMD and Qualcomm Life collaboration will help consumers sync data collected and give consumers the opportunity to take charge of their health via a technology ecosystem of digital health apps and third-party devices.

For investors, Qualcomm understand the benefits of cloud services. It seems there are numerous questions unresolved. Over the last decade, pharmaceutical companies have been aggregating years of research and development data into medical databases, initiating overhauls of its R&D and selling, general and administrative (SG&A) segments for Pharma. A company willing to build their capabilities, and open to a new view of value will likely achieve better outcomes. Delivering support, personalization, scalability, speed and flexibility are attractive areas for growth.

Is senior management able to significantly impact by, and address to guide appropriate R&D investment decisions to its organizations?

Qualcomm is a global leader in supplies of chips for cellphones. Founded in 1985, QUALCOMM is an American telecommunications company that specializes in digital wireless telecommunications products. So, this company has a hand in every! thing fro! m mobile phone components to chat programs to operating systems. Over the past 10 years, the company has made at least nine high-profile acquisitions, increasing the company's exposure to various wireless technology applications. This company brought in just under $15 billion in sales in 2011 and employs 21,200 worldwide.

Yes, the Cell Therapeutics Rally is For Real (CTIC)

If you're reading this, then odds are you already know that the last two weeks (not even a full two weeks) have been more fruitful for Cell Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:CTIC) shareholders than the prior two years have been - the stock's up 28% since last Thursday. And, odds are you already know why. The question most of you are asking now is, can CTIC actually keep climbing at this pace, or even keep climbing at any pace? The answer is "yes", though floating that answer almost inherently requires a deeper explanation.

On the off chance you're not familiar with the company or its portfolio and pipeline, CTIC is the company behind the much-ballyhooed drug called Pixantrone. It was all the rage - and the source of great debate - back in 2010 when the company was aiming for an FDA approval. The non-Hodgkins lymphoma treatment was ultimately rejected, but in Europe, it was approved last year. In fact, it was the drug's success in Europe that ultimately prompted the recent rally.

Last quarter, Cell Therapeutics Inc. sold about $1.1 million worth of Pixantrone (under the trade name PIXUVRI) in Europe, well up from $300,000 in sales in the prior quarter... both of which were higher than the year-ago quarters when there are no sales of the drug at all. The vast majority of the company's revenue stems Pixantrone sales.

Compared to the loss of $17.9 million last quarter, that revenue seems tepid. Compared to the CTIC market cap of $150 million, a little more than a million bucks in revenue seems downright weak. And truth be told, it was weak. On the other hand, for a drug's second quarter of being on the market in a fairly competitive NHL market, $1.1 million actually isn't bad. Revenue will ramp up for years before Pixantrone hits its full stride in Europe.

In the meantime - and this is the aspect of Cell Therapeutics Inc. that most investors don't fully appreciate - the company has another drug in the pipeline (Pacritinib) taking aim at two indications, and Pixantrone is being tested in combination with another NHL drug. Outside of the company's own in-house drugs, it's also conducting three trials for two other drugs developed and/or owned by outside parties. All of those other drugs are in Phase 2 or Phase 3 trials, which bodes very well for CTIC shareholders. Oh, it may take a while to reach the endzone with those tests, but as veteran biotech traders can attest, the market rewards milestones.

All that being said, make no mistake - it was signs of life with Pixantrone in Europe that lit the current fire. Thing is, now that the fire is lit, a bunch of other bullish factors are coming out of the woodwork.

The bottom line is, although traders (and especially newcomers) should continue to expect volatility from the stock, this nudge is a big deal for CTIC. The bump knocked shares out of a rut, and above the 200-day moving average line (green) for the first time in well over a year. Now that the stock's out of the rut, it'll be much easier to keep rolling higher. And, there are plenty of ways for the company to tout itself now, and keep new buyers interested.

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Don't Miss 50% Upside Because Of Short Sellers

When short sellers start circling the wagons, they can drive a stock down and keep it down for quite some time. 

That goes even for a company that has no debt -- and has been consistently increasing shareholders' equity. 

One such company also has high margins and generates impressively high returns on invested capital. Over the past four years, this company has maintained a return on invested capital (ROIC) of 35% or higher. 

This company is Vera Bradley (NYSE: VRA), which, with a short interest of more than 50%, is one of the most shorted stocks in the market. While VRA has more than disappointed investors over the past 12 months, the market could be offering investors a great entry point for the long term.

The short interest in Vera comes as competition in the women's accessories market has been heating up. The success of Michael Kors (NYSE: KORS) over the past year and a half has kept the short interest relatively high at Vera. But Kors appears to be much more of a threat to Coach (NYSE: COH) than to Vera. Rising inventory levels had also managed to catch short sellers' attention. This was a result of too many Vera products flooding the market, but a refocus on strategy should improve inventory management.  

Any sign of a turnaround over the next several quarters could well spur a short-covering rally, with the days to cover (that is, how many days it would take for all shorts to cover their position based on average trading volume) at 35. So once the market realizes that Vera is for real, then the short squeeze could be fierce.

Vera is a leading designer and retailer of accessories for women. The company is best known for its handbags, and bills itself as a lifestyle brand. Its products are in the accessible luxury category, which appeals to a larger clientele base. The company has a cultlike following. This comes as the company's products offer immense versatility. 

New designs are released frequently to keep the brand fresh and encourage customers to shop for the company's latest offerings. This allows the brand to appeal to all demographics. 

Irrespective of how the short-sellers feel, there is money to be made in Vera. The investment thesis is supported by three pillars. First, shares are extremely undervalued, and the company is incredibly cheap compared with its peers. Second, the company has a great business and a strong customer base. Third, the company has no debt. 

	Flickr/Jungle Jim's International Market
	Vera is best known for its handbags, and bills itself as a lifestyle brand. Its products are in the accessible luxury category, which appeals to a larger clientele base.

While CEO Michael Ray has done a great job in managing the company, he's not a "retail guy" -- he's more of a "finance guy" (which shows in how well run the company is financially). Ray is also the son-in-law to one of Vera's co-founders. Overall, his decision to retire as CEO is a major tailwind for the company. 

Vera needs to bring in a retail/marketing CEO to increase sales and better connect with customers. The company's products are still in favor, as can be seen in Vera's sales, which more than doubled between 2009 and this year.

The new CEO also needs to reduce the overall merchandise assortment. Even Ray has acknowledged that the company has too many patterns, too many styles and too broad a selection. The company needs to reduce the number of stock keeping units (SKUs) and improve product line management. The good news is that the company is aware of this issue and has already cut 20% of the SKUs from next spring's collection.

There is also a need for the company to expand its outlet stores, which it has the balance sheet to do. This is where the company can sell its discontinued items. Vera can then increase the exposure of its latest items -- not discontinued items -- on its website. An increase in outlet stores would help drive sales and move discontinued products. 

The company needs a sales outlet strategy that doesn't weaken the brand, but strengthens it. This is especially true with Vera, where it has found that its full-price and outlet shops cater to different clientele. The outlet stores cater to those who don't mind last year's style at a discount, and the other group favors the latest and most recent styles.

Vera already has a strong e-commerce business. In the second quarter, website traffic increased 20% compared with last year. Vera has had 45 million visitors to its website this year, and its Facebook page has 1.4 million followers. The retailer now has more than 2 million customers in its growing database.

Vera has a strong relationship with Dillard's (NYSE: DDS). The company invested in Vera Bradley fixtures for more than 100 Dillard's locations. Dillard's has 283 locations across the U.S., and the company has shown an increased willingness to support the Vera Bradley brand.

Vera is also compelling from a valuation perspective, trading below major peers. Vera trades with a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 10.5, where Coach is at 12.8 and Michael Kors is 22. On an enterprise value/EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) basis, Vera is at 6.6, compared with Coach's 8 and Kors' 19. 

Risks to Consider: The first risk is that the overall macro environment remains weak, where the accessible luxury category is consumer discretionary. The company's handbags are not necessities, and so their purchase can be delayed. That has had a significant effect on the company over the past two years.

Action to Take --> Vera is in the early innings of its long-term growth story, and investors with patience will be well-rewarded. The company has high insider ownership, and once a new CEO is appointed, a lot of uncertainty will be removed. The potential upside is to $30, which is a price-to-sales multiple of 2 on Wall Street's 2015 sales estimates, driven by a returns to positive comparable store sales and improvements in its merchandise assortment.

While the ebb and flow of apparel and accessory trends make Vera a tough stock to own forever, there are a select group of world dominating companies that investors can actually own forever. We call these "forever" stocks, because investors can literally buy, forget about and hold -- forever. To learn more about these stocks -- including some of their names and ticker symbols -- click here.

Invest In The Housing Recovery With This Overlooked Stock

I live in the Northeast region of the United States. Having purchased a home in 1998, I experienced firsthand the wild price appreciation between then and early 2006. 

Homes in my neighborhood tripled in value during this heady time. Nothing seemed financially impossible with soaring home prices and lenders throwing money at the fortunate homeowners. I remember randomly receiving a pre-qualified credit card with a $100,000 home equity credit line attached to it. All that was needed to access that money was a phone call and a drive-by appraisal. 

Well, it sure was fun while it lasted.  

As quickly as this gold rush started, it ended. Home prices began falling, and underwater homeowners scrambled to maintain their equity-driven lifestyles. Prices continued to drop, forcing many credit-foolish owners to sell at a devastating loss or face a credit-ruining foreclosure proceeding. 

A domino effect ensued, with prices plummeting and excess housing supply quickly outstripping demand. The S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index plunged to its lowest level at the end of 2008. 

But it now looks like things are turning around. New-home sales hit their highest level in five years in June. The National Association of Realtors has forecast a 5% increase in home sales next year. In addition, prices are starting to move higher with housing prices in the 20 largest U.S. cities up more than 12% in June from the same period a year earlier. While this industry has a long way to go, opportunities to profit are starting to accumulate. 

I like to search for opportunities around a central bullish economic theme. So in this case, I asked myself, "What other industries will benefit from steady upticks in housing?" There are many different businesses that fit this description, so I looked for the top-performing companies related to housing.

What I discovered surprised me. I was standing on the product of one of these top companies in my home office. That's right, carpet. It isn't something I think about very often, but carpet is part of the features in nearly every home and commercial building. 

The leading company in this industry, Mohawk Industries (NYSE: MHK) boasts a market cap of more than $9 billion, and its stock is up nearly 65% over the past year. However, at nearly $130, the share price precludes many investors from making a substantial long-term investment in the company. Using this performance as a guide, I scanned for lower-priced stocks in the same business with similar performance.

The company I discovered astounded me: It's up more than 220% in the past year, and shares are trading for around $11. It is high-end carpet maker The Dixie Group (Nasdaq: DXYN). Founded in 1919, this carpet manufacturer and marketing company has a market cap of about $143 million and annual revenue of just over $296 million. It sells carpets with the Fabrica International, Masland Residential and Dixie Home brands. 

Dixie posted impressive second-quarter results: Sales were up 26% year over year, and earnings came in at $0.13 per share compared with a loss of $0.03 a share for the same period last year.

DXYN is being driven upward not only by the housing market but also by the soaring stock market. Dixie specializes in the high-end segment of the housing and commercial markets, and many owners of high-end properties are also stock investors. Surging stock prices create a "wealth effect" that results in homeowners upgrading their homes with high-end furnishings, including carpet. In addition, Dixie's recent outperformance has resulted in analysts hiking their estimates, creating a bullish environment for DXYN across the board.

Risks to Consider: Dixie relies on the continual improvement of the economy to maintain its growth trajectory. Should there be a downtick in the overall economic picture, particularly housing, Dixie shares may slip downward. In addition, it's important to note that the company's chief financial officer recently sold 6,000 shares. While this is a minor amount and shares have traded higher since the sale, the action is something to keep in mind.

Action to Take --> I love this stock on a breakout close above $12 with a 12-month target price of $17. Placing initial stops just below $10 makes sense. With the Federal Reserve assuring the market of no immediate tapering, stocks should continue to push higher, creating the wealth effect mentioned earlier. Combine this with the increasingly bullish housing market, and it creates a compelling picture for DXYN. 

P.S. -- DXYN is an attractive stock, but there's an even better way to invest in the housing market. The nation's largest investors are moving to profit from the next housing boom, but we've found a backdoor way for regular investors to get in on the action. If you'd like to start collecting "rents" as high as 8.6% without owning a square foot of property, click here now.

Can Apple Really Hit a $777 Analyst Price Target and New All-Time Highs?

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) was the beneficiary of what has become a very rare analyst upgrade for the case to buy Apple shares. The stock was initiated by Cantor Fitzgerald in new analyst coverage with a price target of $777 for the stock. Before you get too excited here, the analyst call is from Brian White who was formerly with Topeka Capital. It is an extremely bullish call, but from an analyst who was always bullish on Apple before.

Be advised that the analyst previously had a price target north of $1,000 for Apple during and after the boom, but earlier in 2013 White lowered his target down to an odd $888 target because Apple’s stock price had fallen so much.

White called the company’s fiscal 2014 a year for liftoff. The thesis is that the years of innovation will start to payoff over the coming year after a very competitive year in looking backwards. New products are expected, included the formerly much talked about AppleTV and an iWatch as well as refreshes of the iPhone and iPad models.

Apple shares rose 2% to $498.69 based upon this upgrade and with an up-day in the stock market. What is interesting is that this implies upside north of 55% for new investors. It also implies gains that would be about 10% higher than that former 52-week high and all-time high of $705.07.

This analyst call has a bit of irony or paradox to it. We consider it a regurgitated call. If this is the same analyst who was rating it before, a mere company moniker change does not necessarily mean it is a new call. Outside of that, we also cannot help but call this analyst upgrade price target out for being lower than before even if it is much higher than now.

We have no real problem with analyst calls due to changes in firms. It happens. That being said, getting back above that former all-time high over $700 is not likely going to be an easy task. The consensus price target is down at $527.17 as of Wednesday and the highest price target is $825 for Apple.

We think it is worth noting that Apple is back to be being the most valuable company by market capitalization worth some $453 billion now. For Apple to rise as much as Brian White hopes it can, Apple would be worth just over $700 billion minus the impact of any share buybacks retiring shares. The translation is that it is magically creating another $250 billion in market capitalization, and much of that has to come from real investors putting serious capital to work in Apple alone.

BRIC markets create $100 billion buffer

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is hoping developed economies will ensure their exit from stimulus programs will be "orderly."

LONDON (CNNMoney)

The world's biggest emerging markets pledged Friday to create a $100 billion fund to help protect their economies from shocks as G20 leaders warned that the global recovery was still at risk from volatile capital flows.

According to the agreement announced at the meeting of G20 leaders in Russia, China will contribute $41 billion to the fund. Brazil, Russia and India will provide $18 billion each while new BRIC member South Africa will pay $5 billion.

The fund -- dubbed the Contingent Reserve Arrangement -- is designed to provide member countries with an emergency cushion of cash during times of crisis. Its creation reflects frustration in emerging markets at a lack of influence over institutions such as the International Monetary Fund despite their growing importance in the world economy.

Jim O'Neill, a former Goldman Sachs economist who coined the "BRIC" acronym, called the $100 billion fund "an encouraging, interesting development" that could help emerging markets "take more responsibility" for themselves on the international economic stage.

"To reduce the vulnerability of these countries and others, they've got to develop their own funding sources and their own currencies in a spectacular way," O'Neill told CNN.

The effort comes as certain emerging markets, including India, Indonesia, Turkey and Brazil, have come under economic stress as money that had been pulsing through their economies begins to dry up.

Developing nations that rely heavily on foreign capital -- those with large current account deficits -- have suffered the worst.

The money began flowing ou! t of these countries and moving back to developed markets ever since Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke warned in May that the Fed planned to cut back on its stimulus programs, which had been flooding the world with cheap money.

The Fed announcement spooked market players around the globe, resulting in capital flowing back to perceived safe haven assets and the U.S., where the economy has been improving and the dollar strengthening.

In their closing statement, G20 leaders said the recovery was still too weak. They cited the market volatility linked to expectations that the Fed and other central banks will begin choking off the flow of cheap money.

"We agreed that it remains critical for G20 countries to focus all our joint efforts on engineering a durable exit from the longest and most protracted crisis in modern history," they said.

"Our central banks have committed that future changes to monetary policy settings will continue to be carefully calibrated and clearly communicated."

President Obama said developing economies recognized that a strong U.S. economy was good for them too, but he acknowledged the challenges some countries face.

"We need to make sure that we are working with them in managing this process," he said. "And I'm pleased that over the past two days we reached a consensus on how to proceed. We agreed that our focus needs to be on creating jobs and growth that put people back to work."

But some emerging market leaders feel they have been left in the dust as they contend with devaluing currencies, rattled stock markets, increasing borrowing costs and the threat of slower economic growth.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development has even warned that a global recovery could be "derailed" by an emerging market slowdown.

Ahead of the G20 conference, Indian Prime Minister Manmahon Singh stressed the importance of developed nations taking an orderly, measured approach when pulling ba! ck on the! ir monetary stimulus programs.

"Though there are encouraging signs of growth in industrialized countries, there is also a slowdown in emerging economies," he said, stressing that an orderly retreat from stimulus measures would cushion the blow to the developing world.

But a coordinated effort may not be in the best interests of the central bankers who set monetary policies.

"Central bankers are there to support their domestic economies, they're not meant to focus on the economies of other countries," explained David Lebovitz, a global markets strategist at J.P. Morgan Asset Management. "I would be surprised if we saw a global coordinated central bank effort. But I wouldn't be surprised if I saw them talking more and having more conversations about the implications of their policies. I think a bit more global conversation would be positive."

Pope Francis even weighed in on the economic situation this week, issuing a public letter to the G20 host -- Russian President Vladimir Putin -- urging him to continue developing "a global financial framework with its own just and clear rules ... to achieve a more equitable and fraternal world." However, Francis did not outline any holy guidance for central bankers.

-- Charles Riley and Mark Thompson contributed to this article.

Will Summer Sales Boost Wal-Mart Stock?

With shares of Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) trading around $77, is WMT an OUTPERFORM, WAIT AND SEE or STAY AWAY? Let's analyze the stock with the relevant sections of our CHEAT SHEET investing framework:

T = Trends for a Stock’s Movement

Wal-Mart operates retail stores in various formats around the world. The company aims to price items at the lowest price every day. Wal-Mart operates in three business segments: the Walmart U.S. segment, the Walmart International segment, and the Sam's Club segment. It operates retail stores, restaurants, discount stores, supermarkets, supercenters, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs, apparel stores, Sam''s Clubs, neighborhood markets, and other small formats, as well as Walmart.com and Samsclub.com. Through its retail channels, Wal-Mart is able to provide a variety of products and services at very affordable prices to consumers and companies worldwide.

Wal-Mart is an especially hot place for summer lovers to take advantage of, as it provides a one-stop shop for anything a beach bum's heart desires. Customers know that they can get in and out of Wal-Mart quickly and find all of their summer gear at relatively low prices. One out of three customers give Wal-Mart's summer products a perfect 10, and 33.8 percent assert that they would be extremely likely to recommend the store. Wal-Mart is undoubtedly looking at a very successful summer sales quarter. For consumers and businesses looking for one location that contains a wide variety of products and services, Wal-Mart is the spot and will continue to be well into the future.

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart are Strong

Wal-Mart stock has been surging higher over the last couple of years. The stock is now consolidating near all-time high prices so it may need some time before its next move. Analyzing the price trend and its strength can be done using key simple moving averages. What are the key moving averages? The 50-day (pink), 100-day (blue), and 200-day (yellow) simple moving averages. As seen in the daily price chart below, Wal-Mart is trading slightly above its rising key averages which signal neutral to bullish price action in the near-term.

(Source: Thinkorswim)

Taking a look at the implied volatility (red) and implied volatility skew levels of Wal-Mart options may help determine if investors are bullish, neutral, or bearish.

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
Wal-Mart Options	16.21%	20%	18%

What does this mean? This means that investors or traders are buying a minimal amount of call and put options contracts, as compared to the last 30 and 90 trading days.

	Put IV Skew	Call IV Skew
August Options	Flat	Average
September Options	Flat	Average

As of today, there is an average demand from call buyers or sellers and low demand by put buyers or high demand by put sellers, all neutral to bullish over the next two months. To summarize, investors are buying a minimal amount of call and put option contracts and are leaning neutral to bullish over the next two months.

On the next page, let’s take a look at the earnings and revenue growth rates and the conclusion.

E = Earnings Are Increasing Quarter-Over-Quarter

Rising stock prices are often strongly correlated with rising earnings and revenue growth rates. Also, the last four quarterly earnings announcement reactions help gauge investor sentiment on Wal-Mart’s stock. What do the last four quarterly earnings and revenue growth (Y-O-Y) figures for Wal-Mart look like and more importantly, how did the markets like these numbers?

	2013 Q1	2012 Q4	2012 Q3	2012 Q2
Earnings Growth (Y-O-Y)	4.59%	11.14%	12.50%	8.26%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	1.04%	3.86%	3.36%	4.51%
Earnings Reaction	-1.70%	1.51%	-3.63%	-3.08%

Wal-Mart has seen increasing earnings and revenue figures over the last four quarters. From these numbers, the markets have expected a little more from Wal-Mart’s recent earnings announcements.

P = Weak Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has Wal-Mart stock done relative to its peers, Target (NYSE:TGT), Costco (NASDAQ:COST), Kohl’s (NYSE:KSS), and sector?

	Wal-Mart	Target	Costco	Kohl’s	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	13.56%	22.78%	16.14%	24.97%	19.15%

Wal-Mart has been a weak relative performer, year-to-date.

Conclusion

Wal-Mart is a global retail bellwether and a one-stop shop for many products, including summer gear. The stock has been on powerful move higher over the last couple of years and is now digesting these gains. Over the last four quarters, earnings and revenue figures have been increasing, however, investors in the company have expected a little more. Relative to its peers and sector, Wal-Mart has been a weak year-to-date performer. Look for Wal-Mart to catch-up and OUTPERFORM.

Will Bank of America Continue Its Powerful Move Higher?

With shares of Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) trading around $13, is BAC an OUTPERFORM, WAIT AND SEE or STAY AWAY? Let's analyze the stock with the relevant sections of our CHEAT SHEET investing framework:

T = Trends for a Stock’s Movement

Bank of America is a financial institution, serving individual consumers, small and middle market businesses, corporations, and governments with a range of banking, investing, asset management, and other financial and risk management products and services. Through its banking and various nonbanking subsidiaries throughout the United States and in international markets, the company provides a range of banking and nonbanking financial services and products through five business segments: Consumer and Business Banking, Consumer Real Estate Services, Global Banking, Global Markets and Global Wealth & Investment Management, and Other. Bank of America is a giant in the financial industry that is the backbone of most economies worldwide. The industry suffered in recent years but is now recovering and looks poised to provide the products and services consumers and companies need in order to see progress.

NEW! Discover a new stock idea each week for less than the cost of 1 trade. CLICK HERE for your Weekly Stock Cheat Sheets NOW!

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart are Strong

Bank of America stock had a disastrous fall during the 2008 Financial Crisis but has bounced back since then. The stock is now trading near levels not seen since 2009 and 2010. Analyzing the price trend and its strength can be done using key simple moving averages. What are the key moving averages? The 50-day (pink), 100-day (blue), and 200-day (yellow) simple moving averages. As seen in the daily price chart below, Bank of America is trading above its rising key averages which signal neutral to bullish price action in the near-term.

(Source: Thinkorswim)

Taking a look at the implied volatility (red) and implied volatility skew levels of Bank of America options may help determine if investors are bullish, neutral, or bearish.

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
Bank of America Options	31.74%	90%	89%

What does this mean? This means that investors or traders are buying a very significant amount of call and put options contracts, as compared to the last 30 and 90 trading days.

	Put IV Skew	Call IV Skew
June Options	Flat	Average
July Options	Flat	Average

As of today, there is an average demand from call buyers or sellers and low demand by put buyers or high demand by put sellers, all neutral to bullish over the next two months. To summarize, investors are buying a very significant amount of call and put option contracts and are leaning neutral to bullish over the next two months.

On the next page, let’s take a look at the earnings and revenue growth rates and the conclusion.

E = Earnings Are Mixed Quarter-Over-Quarter

Rising stock prices are often strongly correlated with rising earnings and revenue growth rates. Also, the last four quarterly earnings announcement reactions help gauge investor sentiment on Bank of America’s stock. What do the last four quarterly earnings and revenue growth (Y-O-Y) figures for Bank of America look like and more importantly, how did the markets like these numbers?

	2013 Q1	2012 Q4	2012 Q3	2012 Q2
Earnings Growth (Y-O-Y)	233.33%	-77.17%	-100%	121.11%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	4.13%	-25.02%	-28.20%	65.97%
Earnings Reaction	-4.72%	-4.24%	-0.21%	-4.92%

Bank of America has seen mixed earnings and revenue figures over the last four quarters. From these numbers, the markets have been disappointed with Bank of America’s recent earnings announcements.

NEW! Discover a new stock idea each week for less than the cost of 1 trade. CLICK HERE for your Weekly Stock Cheat Sheets NOW!

P = Poor Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has Bank of America stock done relative to its peers, Citigroup (NYSE:C), JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM), Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC), and sector?

	Bank of America	Citigroup	JPMorgan Chase	Wells Fargo	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	19.60%	35.21%	26.70%	21.39%	23.40%

Bank of America has been a relatively poor performer, year-to-date.

Conclusion

Bank of America provides essential financial products and services to consumers and companies operating all around the world. The stock has bounced back from extreme selling pressure and is looking to continue its bullish run. Over the last four quarters, earnings and revenue figures have been mixed which has really disappointed investors. Relative to its peers and sector, Bank of America has been a poor performer year-to-date. WAIT AND SEE what Bank of America does this coming quarter.

SandRidge Energy Posts Earnings Surprise

SandRidge Energy Inc. (NYSE: SD) reported second-quarter 2013 results before markets opened this morning. The independent oil and gas company posted adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.08 on revenues of $512.99 million. In the same period a year ago, the company reported EPS of $0.07 on revenues of $478.43 million. Second-quarter results also compare to the Thomson Reuters consensus estimates for a net loss of $0.03 per share and $424.16 million in revenues.

On a GAAP basis SandRidge posted a loss of $0.07 per share.

The company replaced its CEO in June and gave four of its nine board seats to hedge fund TPG-Axon, which had forced the removal of founder and former CEO Tom Ward following allegations of directing some of the SandRidge's business to outside firms in which Ward had an interest. Ward is also a co-founder of Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK).

SandRidge provided updated guidance that was a significant jump to its previous outlook. Total production of oil and gas rose from 32.7 million barrels of oil equivalent to 33.3 million barrels. Production costs per barrel were shaved by lower general and administrative expenses and a lower interest expense. The company also raised its full-year average oil differential from $8.50 to $9.50 a barrel, reflecting higher volume of natural gas liquids and a decrease in premiums for its Louisiana Light Sweet crude oil.

Shares were up 0.7% in after-hours trading last night, at $5.82 in a 52-week range of $4.52 to $7.80. Thomson Reuters had a consensus analyst price target of around $5.50 before today's report.

Three Tobacco Stocks Investors Should Look Out For

Tobacco companies have always offered high dividends, and associated with strong balance sheets. The three big players in the industry are Altria Group Inc. (MO), Reynolds American Inc. (RAI) and Lorillard Inc. (LO). The trio has similar valuations and comparable yields. These companies hailing from an unhealthy industry are poised to continue raising their safely maintained dividends. They will find plenty of tobacco huffers in the developing world, if they can build out their international presence. Below is some insight into the three.

Altria (MO)

Altria's Philip Morris USA holds a 50% share of the U.S. tobacco market with a 60% share in the premium brand segment. Altria, whose brands include top-selling Marlboro cigarettes, Skoal smokeless tobacco and Black & Mild cigars, also reaffirmed its 2013 full-year adjusted earnings forecast of between $2.35 and $2.41 per share.

The company holds a voting stake in brewer SABMiller, owns wine businesses and has a financial services division. The company's diversification into smokeless tobacco is crucial to promoting its growth due to the declining market for smokers in the U.S.

Philip Morris USA is Altria's domestic cigarette manufacturing company. Philip Morris remains the largest tobacco company in the United States by both revenue and volume. It owns UST, the world's largest moist smokeless tobacco manufacturer by sales. UST provides Altria with the leading smokeless tobacco brands, Skoal and Copenhagen.

It has a strong dividend growth history. With a current dividend yield of 5%, its dividend payout ratio based on consensus estimates for earnings this year is 73.3%. Next year, it is expected to earn $2.57 per share. If the payout ratio remains the same, annual dividends would come to $1.88 per share, which means a dividend increase of about 6.8%. As of March 2013, cash increased to $3.8 billion. The company is in a strong financial position based on this, and has additional cash to further strengthen this positio! n.

Reynolds American (RAI)

Reynolds American and Lorillard hold 29% and 10% of the market share, respectively. Reynolds American offers cigarettes under the brand names of Camel, Pallmall, Winston, Kool, etc. It produces more savings brands, making it likely to benefit from consumers switching from premium to value brands. With a current dividend yield of 5.3%, this North Carolina based company has the highest payout ratio of 78.5%. The company is expected to grow its earnings to $3.40 per share next year. As of March 2013, it had $2.8 billion of cash and generated $922 million of free cash flow. Recently, it bought back $325 million of stock paid $326 million in dividends.

Despite the fact that the company's revenues are downward trending and it has lost some of its market share, it continues to be an attractive investment from a dividend standpoint. The current P/E ratio is 19x, at a premium to its industry average.

Lorillard (LO)

The firm is a leader in e-cigarettes, electronic nicotine delivery systems that simulate the smoking experience, and gives people a healthy injection of nicotine. Lorillard's flagship cigarette Newport is by far the most popular brand of mentholated cigarettes. Earnings for American tobacco company are projected to be $3.42 per share next year. With a current payout ratio of 70.5%, the company can maintain a dividend increase of 10% next year. As of March 2013, it had $2 billion of cash on its balance sheet and free cash flow was $692 million. Revenue is expected to grow 7.5% this year and 7.4% next year. Earnings per share are pegged to rise 11% this year and 12.5% next year.

However, Altria's size and revenues put both of them at a relative disadvantage in terms of sheer heft in the industry. Both competitors are subject to the same external events, i.e. taxation, litigation and changes in popular attitudes about smoking.

Economic Downturns

The tobacco industry is heavily taxed and due to steep cigarette price increa! ses, some! consumers have switched from premium brands to value or deep-discount brands. Most of Altria's cigarette brands are classified as premium, making it more sensitive to these shifts in consumption than some other tobacco companies with more equally distributed product lines.

Cost-conscious consumers may stop smoking or downgrade to a value-priced brand during economic slumps, but most consume the same brands at the same or slightly lower level. As a result, Altria and other similar companies generally experience less of a decrease in revenues during recessions than the economy as a whole.

On a Concluding Note

With strong financial positions, it is nearly inevitable that these companies are well-placed to increase their dividends in the time to come. To choose any one of these may be a personal preference. But if I had to select it then would have been Altria, since it is, according to me, the best-performing stock for the last five decades.

With impressive top- and bottom-line growth of 6% and 7%, respectively, on average in the recent five years, it is expected that there will be growth rate of 7.5% on an average in the coming five years. It has increased its dividend for the last 44 years. The dividend growth rate was about 11.4% for the last decade.

Altria has a reputation as an income investor's staple. It has been inculcated in shareholder-friendly policies, and is expected to provide value for investors. This company has a record of healthy operating cash flows. The venture of the company into e-cigarettes will support growth in the near future. For decades, the company has pumped out steady profit growth, returning a great deal to shareholders, and is expected to do so in the near future. This makes it an attractive stock to hold on to.

Hot Bank Companies To Watch For 2014

Emerging Markets ETFs: Turnaround Plays

Emerging markets, which were on everyone's must own list not long ago, have performed poorly over the last couple of years, says George Putnam, editor of The Turnaround Letter. For contrarians, he highlights some diversified emerging markets ETFs.

Some people fear that rising interest rates will slow global growth, and that will have the most pronounced impact on the developing countries.

A related fear is that the apparent slowdown in China will drag down, not only that country's securities, but the stocks in many other emerging markets as well.

In addition, the weakness in commodities prices will hurt many of the developing countries, whose economies depend heavily on the natural resources sector. Added to all of these, are worries about social unrest in a number of areas of the globe.

All of these concerns are valid, but they are short-term. When you take a longer-term view, it seems clear that the developing economies will provide the lion's share of global growth in the decades to come.

The emerging markets also provide an interesting way to play a possible rebound in commodities.

Of course, the emerging markets are not without risks. The negative short-term views may persist for some time. And it remains difficult to pick the ultimate winners, either in terms of countries, or even more so, in terms of companies.

For these reasons, we recommend investing in the emerging markets through diversified pools, such as exchange traded funds. We've highlighted several ETFs below, all offering substantial size and liquidity.

Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets (VWO) focuses on, in descending order of size, China, Brazil, Taiwan, and South Africa.

The fund has a high level of diversification. Its largest holding, China Construction Bank Corp., accounts for only 1.6% of assets. The nearly 4% yield provides a nice buffer while awaiting the turnaround.

WisdomTree Emerging Markets Equity (DEM) takes a somewhat different approach because it focuses quite heavily on dividend yield.

As a result, the fund has an attractive 4.2% yield. Financial services is the fund's largest sector exposure, followed by energy, basic materials, and communications.

Morgan Stanley Emerging Markets Fund (MSF) is not an index-based fund, and therefore, its portfolio managers have a lot of latitude.

Among their top ten holdings are a range of consumer and technology holdings, such as Samsung Electronics and Taiwan Semiconductor, as well as financials. At current prices, the fund is trading at a roughly 10.5% discount to its net asset value (NAV).

Templeton Emerging Markets Fund (EMF) is also actively managed. Currently, the fund is Asian-centric with about 71% of assets from Asian markets, mostly China and Thailand.

Latin America is second, mostly Brazil, followed by Europe, mostly Russia. The fund is trading at more than a 7% discount to NAV.

Subscribe to The Turnaround Letter here…

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Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of Ultratech (NASDAQ: UTEK  ) got ultra crushed today, down by 18% at the low, following a first-quarter earnings release that didn't meet expectations.

So what: Revenue in the first quarter totaled $60.6 million, which didn't stack up favorably to the $65.3 million in sales that investors were hoping for. Ultratech posted net income of $13.7 million, or $0.48 per share, which was just a penny shy of the $0.49 per share profit the Street was modeling for. CEO Arthur W. Zafiropoulo's comments may have also rattled investors.

Now what: Zafiropoulo said that results were in line with expectations, but reiterated that the near-term outlook is uncertain and "will be challenging." However, the executive believes that conditions will improve during the second half of the year from anticipated increases in semiconductor capital equipment spending. For now, investors seem to be moving to the sidelines until things get better.

Top 5 Penny Companies To Watch In Right Now: Midway Gold Corporation(MDW)

Midway Gold Corp., an exploration stage company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral properties in North America. Its principal properties include the Spring Valley, Midway, Pan, and Gold Rock gold and silver mineral properties located in Nevada; and the Golden Eagle gold mineral property located in Washington. The company was formerly known as Red Emerald Resource Corp. and changed its name to Midway Gold Corp. in July 2002. Midway Gold Corp. was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Englewood, Colorado.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Chuck Carlson]

  The company Midway Gold Corp. (AMEX: MDW) is in charge of exploring and capturing gold deposits in North America.  Midway Gold Corp was alerted by investorgoodies for a buy at $0.61 and it is now currently at $2.32 making over 200% increase in price over a one year period.

Top 5 Penny Companies To Watch In Right Now: Helios Strategic Income Fd Inc (HSA)

Helios Strategic Income Fund, Inc. is a closed ended fixed income mutual fund launched and managed by Brookfield Investment Management Inc. It operates as a diversified and closed-end management investment company. The fund primarily invests in debt securities and equity securities. Its portfolio of investments includes investments in corporate bonds, home equity loans, commercial loans, franchise loans, equipment leases, manufactured housing, common stock, collateralized debt obligations, certificate-backed obligations, collateralized mortgage obligations, and government agency securities. It was formerly known as RMK Strategic Income Fund, Inc. Helios Strategic Income Fund, Inc. was founded in 2004 and is based in Memphis, Tennessee.

Best China 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.

Top 5 Penny Companies To Watch In Right Now: ChinaCast Education Corporation(CAST)

ChinaCast Education Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides post-secondary education and e-learning services in China. The company operates in two segments, E-learning and Training Service Group and Traditional University Group. The E-learning and Training Service Group provides post secondary education distance learning services that enable universities and other higher learning institutions to provide nationwide real-time distance learning services. It also provides K-12 educational services, such as broadcast multimedia educational content services to primary, middle, and high schools; and vocational/career training services. The Traditional University Group segment operates private residential universities that offer four-year bachelor?s degree and three-year diploma programs in finance, economics, trade, tourism, advertising, IT, music, foreign languages, tourism, hospitality, computer engineering, law, and art. The company also provides logistic service s. ChinaCast Education Corporation was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Central, Hong Kong.

Top 5 Penny Companies To Watch In Right Now: Air Transport Services Group Inc(ATSG)

Air Transport Services Group, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides aircraft, airline operations, and other related services primarily to the shipping and transportation industries. The company provides air cargo transportation services; airlift services, including aircraft, aircraft flight crews, and maintenance services; airlift services to other airlines, freight forwarders, and the U.S. military; freight transportation and supply chain management services; passenger transportation primarily to the U.S. military; air charter brokerage services, fuel management, and specialized cargo management services; and warehousing and cargo handling services, as well as leases aircraft. It also provides aircraft maintenance and modification services, aircraft part sales services, equipment leasing and maintenance services, mail handling services for the U.S. Postal Service, and specialized services for aircraft fuel management and freight logistics. The company operates in Europ e, Asia, Africa, and the Americas. As of December 31, 2009, its in-service fleet consisted of 62 aircraft. The company was formerly known as ABX Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to Air Transport Services Group, Inc. in May 2008. Transport Services Group, Inc. was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Wilmington, Ohio.

What separates extra-ordinary business from ordinary ones

Most businesses realise less than 10% of their potential while others rise to extraordinary heights. What separate an ordinary business from an extra-ordinary business is not the quantitative aspects rather the qualitative points.

Here we are going to discuss those qualitative factors that will have a long-term bearing on the business.

A. Financial Management �

� The management should encourage effective Balance Sheet management involving sufficient cash balances and relevant Working Capital management.

� The management should also encourage giving due regard to conservative accounting treatment.

� The finance department should ensure that sufficient transparency is maintained as suggested by accounting guidelines prescribed by ICAI and IFRS in future.

� The most commonly abused accounting practice is about related party transactions. The accounts and audit department should ensure that there is due compliance of Related Party Transactions in spirit and not just by the letter of law.

� The Balance sheet shall contain everything that shareholders should know for proper assessment of the company.

B. Strategic Management �

� The organization should define the vision and mission clearly. The business targets should be fixed and should be divided with parts delegated across the organization structure.
� Any new development in the industry and strategies of the competitors should be evaluated pro-actively rather than reactively and management should be ready with the corresponding counter-strategies.

C. General Principles �

� The organisation should be due compliant with the provisions and regulation of various statutes and should ensure timely payments of all the tax liabilities.

� If it is a listed entity the responsibility increases many fold. In listed companies, the shareholders wealth creation should be regarded as prime objective as they have invested their hard-earned money. Other stake holders such as creditors, debtors and lenders should also be regarded in organisation goal-setting.

� Proper public relations should be developed for constant communication with media to avoid contradictory views.

Extraordinary business is synonymous with business success.

Understanding that a business derives its revenues as part of a larger system � getting value from and contributing to that system � is what history has shown separates ordinary businesses from extraordinary ones. For last three decades India has produced several extra-ordinary businesses such as Infosys, Bharti etc which truly can be differentiated from ordinary ones