10 Best US Stocks To Own For 2014

Warren Buffett knows what he likes -- and he gets what he likes. While he is widely known for investing in consumer product companies, another industry has also captured his attention and his money. Here are three things Buffett really likes about health care.

1. Keep it simple
Buffett likes to keep things simple and understand the business before he buys. DaVita Healthcare Partners (NYSE: DVA  ) is a great example of this desired simplicity. The company provides dialysis services for patients with chronic kidney disease or end stage renal disease. Patients with these diseases can't survive without dialysis. DaVita provides the service. It doesn't get much more simple than that.

Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-B  ) owns 14% of DaVita, valued at more than $1.9 billion and growing. The stock has a one-year return of nearly 34%.Keeping it simple can pay off.

2. Investing for the long run
Some might look at a company like GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK  ) and run for the hills. Just last year, the British pharma lost an estimated $35 billion in sales due to generic competition as key drugs lost patent protection. But Buffett first bought the stock in 2008 -- with full knowledge that the patent cliff was coming. Why? Buffett looks at the long run. His ideal holding period is "forever."�

Top Communications Equipment Companies For 2015: Comcast Corporation(CMCSA)

Comcast Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides entertainment, information, and communications products and services in the United States and internationally. Its Cable Communications segment provides video, high-speed Internet, and phone services to residential and business customers. As of June 30, 2011, its cable systems served approximately 22.5 million video customers, 17.5 million high-speed Internet customers, and 9.1 million phone customers. The company?s Cable Networks segment operates cable entertainment networks, such as USA Network, Syfy, E!, Bravo, Oxygen, Style, G4, Chiller, Sleuth, and Universal HD; news and information networks, including CNBC, MSNBC, and CNBC World; cable sports networks comprising Golf Channel and VERSUS; regional sports and news networks; international entertainment, and news and information networks, such as CNBC Europe, CNBC Asia, and Universal Networks International portfolio of networks; cable television production oper ations; and digital media properties consisting primarily of brand-aligned Websites and other Websites, such as DailyCandy, Fandango, and iVillage. Its Broadcast Television segment operates the U.S. broadcast networks, NBC and Telemundo; 10 NBC and 15 Telemundo owned local television stations; broadcast television productions; and related digital media properties. The company?s Filmed Entertainment segment operates Universal Pictures, which produces, acquires, markets, and distributes filmed entertainment and stage plays worldwide in various media formats for theatrical, home entertainment, television, and other distribution platforms. Its Theme Parks segment operates Universal Studios Hollywood park and Wet ?n Wild water park, as well as licenses intellectual properties and provides services to third parties that own and operate Universal Studios Japan and Universal Studios Singapore. Comcast Corporation was founded in 1963 and is based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Paul Ausick]

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

10 Best US Stocks To Own For 2014: Grupo Aeromexico SAB de CV (AEROMEX*)

Grupo Aeromexico SAB de CV is a Mexican holding company primarily engaged in the provision of passenger and cargo air transport services. It offers destinations in Mexico, the United States, Europe, Central and South America, Asia and Canada. It operates a fleet of over 110 aircrafts. The Company is primarily engaged in the passenger transportation segment, comprising regional, domestic and international routes, and package holidays; as well as in cargo transportation segment, handled mainly by its subsidiary Aeromexico Cargo. By its subsidiaries the Company is also engaged in real estate sector and in providing services to the aviation companies, including personnel training, management, and aircraft maintenance and modification. Its subsidiaries include Aerovias de Mexico SA de CV, Premier Loyalty & Marketing SAPI de CV, and Inmobiliaria Avenida Fuerza Aerea Mexicana 416 SA de CV, among others. In addition, it is a member of the SkyTeam airline alliance. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jonathan Levin]

  Volaris became Mexico�� second publicly traded carrier, after larger competitor Grupo Aeromexico SAB (AEROMEX*) sold stock in 2011. Airlines in Mexico have expanded into a void left when Cia. Mexicana de Aviacion, then largest based on passenger traffic, sought protection from creditors and ceased operations in 2010.

10 Best US Stocks To Own For 2014: iShares MSCI Japan ETF (EWJ)

iShares MSCI Japan Index Fund (the Fund) seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of publicly traded securities in the aggregate in the Japanese market, as measured by the MSCI Japan Index (the Index). The Index seeks to measure the performance of the Japanese equity market. The Index is a capitalization-weighted index that aims to capture 85% of the (publicly available) total market capitalization. Component companies are adjusted for available float and must meet objective criteria for inclusion in the Index. The Index is reviewed quarterly.

The Fund invests in a representative sample of securities included in the Index that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Index. iShares MSCI Japan Index Fund's investment advisor is Barclays Global Fund Advisors.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Philip Springer, President, Retirement Wealth Management, Inc.]

  The first of two ETF alternatives here is iShares MSCI Japan (EWJ). It provides broad exposure, with 300 stocks and a tilt toward large export-oriented and financial companies.

• [By Charles Sizemore]

  After closing at a recent high of 16,291 on Dec. 30, the Nikkei was down by about 14% through yesterday�� close. The iShares MSCI Japan ETF (EWJ), the most popular Japan ETF, is down a more modest 9%, due in part to currency effects (the yen tends to rally during ��isk off��market conditions).

• [By Mark Hulbert]

  The ETFs linked to these respective regions that Mr. Nadig�� firm favors are the iShares MSCI Japan fund (EWJ) �, with a 0.53% expense ratio; the iShares MSCI EMU Index fund (EZJ) �, also with a 0.53% expense ratio; and the iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets fund (IEMG) �, with a 0.18% expense ratio.

10 Best US Stocks To Own For 2014: Dell Inc.(DELL)

Dell Inc. provides integrated technology solutions in the information technology (IT) industry worldwide. It designs, develops, manufactures, markets, sells, and supports mobility and desktop products, including notebooks, workstations, tablets, smartphones, and desktop PCs, as well as servers and networking products. The company offers storage solutions, including storage area networks, network-attached storage, direct-attached storage, and various backup systems. It also provides IT and business services comprising transactional services, such as support, managed deployment, enterprise installation, and configuration services; outsourcing services, including data center and systems management, network management, life cycle application development and management, and business process outsourcing services; and project-based services consisting of IT infrastructure, applications, business process, and business consulting services. In addition, the company offers third-part y software products comprising operating systems, business and office applications, anti-virus and related security software, and entertainment software; and peripheral products, such as printers, televisions, notebook accessories, mouse, keyboards, networking and wireless products, and digital cameras. Further, it provides financial services, including originating, collecting, and servicing customer receivables related to the purchase of its products and third-party technology products. The company sells its products and services directly through its sales representatives, telephone-based sales, and online sales; and through retailers, third-party solution providers, system integrators, and third-party resellers. It serves corporate businesses, law enforcement agencies, small and medium businesses, consumers, and public institutions that include government, education, and healthcare organizations. Dell Inc. was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Round Rock, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sean Williams]

  Also in the news...
  In this week's episode of "Dells� (NASDAQ: DELL  ) of Our Lives," we received word that the company's board of directors approved an $0.08 quarterly cash distribution, payable on July 22, 2013 for shareholders on record as of July 1, 2013. Sure, this news is a bit more tame than the mudslinging Carl Icahn and Dell's management have thrown back and forth at each other over the past couple of weeks, but we should know more within the next five weeks, when Dell shareholders vote on the proposed offer of $13.65 per share by founder Michael Dell and private-equity firm Silver Lake Partners.

• [By Douglas A. McIntyre]

  Logically, the first place Gates & Co. would look is at other big tech companies. Unfortunately, almost all the other chief executives are tied to Microsoft’s failures, or are founders of their own companies. So, leave out the CEOs of Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC), Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ)�and Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL), as if the heads of HP and Dell were not already dealing with their own problems. Other successful tech companies might include Oracle Corp.’s (NASDAQ: ORCL)�CEO and founder Larry Ellison, who is nearly as wealthy as Gates, or Marc Benioff, the founder and CEO of Salesforce.com Inc. (NYSE: CRM). Neither would ever abandon their successes for the uncertainty of Microsoft.

• [By John Reeves]

  In the following video, Fool analyst John Reeves discusses one particularly rational analysis of Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) , done by Aswath Damodaran on his Musings on Markets website. John discusses where Aswath currently values shares of Apple, what he saw as the good news and the bad news for the company, and why there's some fear that Apple may follow in the footsteps of other tech giants facing serious headwinds in a maturing market, such as Dell (NASDAQ: DELL  ) or Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT  ) .

• [By Alyce Lomax]

  Just this week, ISS came out in support of a $24.4 billion buyout of Dell (NASDAQ: DELL  ) , offered by none other than its founder, Michael Dell. He has partnered with private equity firm Silver Lake and is currently vying with Carl Icahn for shareholders' approval for a buyout. Icahn contends that Dell plans to underpay for the company.

10 Best US Stocks To Own For 2014: Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC (RYCEY)

Rolls-Royce Holdings plc, formerly Rolls-Royce Group plc is a provider of power systems and services for use on land, at sea and in the air. The Company operates in four segments: civil aerospace, defense aerospace, marine and energy. The civil aerospace is engaged in development, manufacture, marketing and sales of commercial aero engines and aftermarket services. The defense aerospace is engaged in development, manufacture, marketing and sales of military aero engines and aftermarket services. The marine segment is engaged in development, manufacture, marketing and sales of marine propulsion systems and aftermarket services. The energy segment is engaged in development, manufacture, marketing and sales of power systems for the offshore oil and gas industry and electrical power generation and aftermarket services. In January 2013, the Company bought PKMJ Technical Services. In January 2013, Alstom SA acquired Tidal Generation Limited from the Company.

During the year ended December 31, 2010, it acquired ODIM ASA. In June 2011, Daimler AG and Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC had secured around 94% interest in Tognum AG-DJ. In September 2011, the Company acquired R Brooks Associates.

Civil aerospace

The Company�� civil aerospace business provides the powers for 30 different types of commercial aircraft in a range of markets, such as widebody, narrowbody, corporate and regional aircraft. As of December 31, 2010, it had over 13,000 engines in service with 650 airlines, freight operators and lessors and 4,000 corporate operators. Its civil aerospace products include large aircraft engines, small aircraft engines and helicopter engines. The Company�� Trent 700 is an engine on the Airbus A330. The Trent 1000 is powering the Boeing 787 on the aircraft�� flight test schedule. It provides a range of services, such as TotalCare, CorporateCare, helicopters services, financial services, training and technical publications.

Defence Aerospace

The Compan! y is a provider of defence aero-engine products and services, with 18,000 engines in service for 160 customers in 103 countries. It is also the supplier of engines for transport aircraft globally, powering fleets, such as the C-130, C-130J, Spartan C-27 and Osprey V-22. It is also involved in research projects, such as Adoptive Versatile Engine Technology (ADVENT), which is designed to reduce fuel consumption. Its engines power aircraft in all sectors, such as transport, combat, reconnaissance, training, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles. The defense aerospace segment of the Company provides engines power aircraft in all sectors, such as transport, combat, reconnaissance, training, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles. Its products include combat jets, helicopters, transporters, trainers, tactical aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles and distributed generation systems. It provides a range of services, such as training, technical publications and service locations.

Marine

The Company focuses on power, propulsion and motion control solutions and serves over 2,500 customers and has equipment installed on 30,000 vessels operating worldwide. As of December 31, 2010, the Company had 650 designed and equipped vessels operating in the offshore oil and gas sector. As of December 31, 2010, it had more than 2,500 marine customers and has equipment installed on over 30,000 vessels worldwide, including those of 70 navies. The energy business supplies gas turbines, compressors and diesel power units. Its products include automation and control, bearings and seals, deck machinery, electrical power systems, engines, gears, propulsors, ship design, shiplifts and submarine equipment. It provides a range of services, such as global support network, spares and tools, field shop services, technical support, training, tailored solutions and upgrading.

Energy

The Company is a provider of gas turbines for onshore and offshore applications. The Company�� energy busi! ness is e! ngaged in two activities: supply power to the oil and gas sector, and the provision of power generation products and services. Its products include gas engines, gas turbine engines, gas compression, diesel engines, fuel cells, and automation and control systems. Its services consist of long term service agreements, component supply and technical support, distributed generation systems and training. During the year ended December 31, 2010, it conducted a range of a tidal power turbine, anchored on the sea bed off the coast of Scotland. During 2010, this had generated 500 kilo-watt at full power and has been successfully linked into the national grid.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

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

10 Best US Stocks To Own For 2014: Titan Machinery Inc (TITN)

Titan Machinery Inc., incorporated in 1980, owns and operates a network of agricultural and construction equipment stores in the United States and Europe. The Company is a retail dealer of Case IH Agriculture equipment and a retail dealer of New Holland Agriculture, Case Construction and New Holland Construction equipment in the United States. It operates in two segments: Agriculture and Construction. The agricultural equipment, which it sells and services includes machinery and attachments for uses ranging from large-scale farming to home and garden use. The construction equipment it sells and services includes heavy construction and light industrial machinery for commercial and residential construction, road and highway construction and mining. On February 28, 2011, it acquired certain assets of Tri-State Implement, Inc. On March 31, 2011, the Company acquired interest in Schoffman's Inc. In July 2012, the Company acquired Curly Olney��, Inc. and opened two Case IH dealerships in Cluj and Roman, Romania. In November 2012, the Company acquired Falcon Power Inc. In December 2012, the Company acquired VAIT D.o.o. In February 2013, it acquired Tucson Tractor Company. In March 2013, it acquired Adobe CE, LLC, consisting of one Case Construction equipment dealership located in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

On April 1, 2011, the Company acquired certain assets of ABC Rental & Equipment Sales. On May 13, 2011, the Company acquired certain assets of Carlson Tractor & Equipment, Inc. On May 31, 2011, the Company acquired certain assets of St. Joseph Equipment Inc. On September 2, 2011, the Company acquired certain assets of Virgl Implement Inc. On September 2, 2011, the Company acquired certain assets of Victors Inc. On November 1, 2011, the Company acquired certain assets of Van Der Werff Implement, Inc. On December 1, 2011, the Company acquired certain assets of Jewell Implement Company, Inc. On December 23, 2011, the Company, through a newly formed subsidiary, Titan Machinery Romania, S.R.L., ac! quired certain assets of AgroExpert Capital S.R.L. On February 27, 2012, the Company acquired certain assets of the Colorado division of Adobe Truck & Equipment, LLC. On March 5, 2012, the Company acquired certain assets of Rimex 1-Holding EAD. On March 30, 2012, the Company acquired certain assets of Haberer's Implement, Inc. On April 2, 2012, the Company acquired certain assets of East Helena Rental, LLC.

Equipment Sales

The Company sells agricultural and construction equipment manufactured under the CNH family of brands, as well as equipment from a variety of other manufacturers. The used equipment it sells is from inventory acquired through trade-ins from its customers and selective purchases. The agricultural equipment, which it sells and services includes application equipment and sprayers, combines and attachments, hay and forage equipment, planting and seeding equipment, precision farming technology, tillage equipment and tractors. The construction equipment, which the Company sells and services includes articulated trucks, compact track loaders, compaction equipment, cranes, crawler dozers, excavators, forklifts, loader/backhoes, loader/tool carriers, motor graders, skid steer loaders, telehandlers and wheel loaders. The Company also sells used equipment through its outlet stores.

Parts Sales

The Company sells a range of maintenance and replacement parts on equipment that it sells, as well as other types of equipment. It maintains an in-house parts inventory to provide parts, and repair and maintenance support to its customers.

Repair and Maintenance Services

The Company provides repair and maintenance services, including warranty repairs, for its customers equipment. In addition, the Company provides customer service by maintaining service histories for each piece of equipment owned by its customers, maintaining around-the-clock service hours, providing on-site repair services, scheduling off-season maintenance acti! vities wi! th customers, notifying customers of periodic service requirements and providing training programs to customers.

Equipment Rental and Other Business Activities

The Company rents equipment to its customers on a short-term basis for periods ranging from a few days to a few months. In addition, the Company provides ancillary equipment support activities, such as equipment transportation, global positioning system (GPS) signal subscriptions in connection with precision farming and reselling CNH Capital finance and insurance products.

The Company competes with RDO Equipment Co., Butler Machinery, Ziegler Inc. and Brandt Holdings Co.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Clash of the titans
  Where Wal-Mart got a boost from its earnings, Titan Machinery (NASDAQ: TITN  ) was slashed as a result of its financial report as profits narrowed in the fourth quarter and it missed by a wide mark analyst expectations.�Even though it beat top line estimates as revenues jumped 29% from the year-ago period, Titan's per-share earnings came in at just $0.73, a $0.19 miss from what Wall Street was anticipating.

10 Best US Stocks To Own For 2014: ARC Document Solutions Inc (ARC)

ARC Document Solutions, Inc., formerly American Reprographics Company, provides specialized document solutions to businesses of all types, with a focus on the non-residential segment of the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry. The Company offers reprographic services, as well as managed print services, digital color printing, and document management technology products and services. It also has operations in Canada, China, India and the United Kingdom. It is a document solutions company serving the AEC industry that provides document management services through a combination of local service facilities in more than 40 states, 12 digital color service centers, online channels, including Web-based applications, and software. The Company conducts its operations through a wholly owned subsidiary, American Reprographics Company, L.L.C. and its subsidiaries.

The Company offers three general categories of service: Reprographics Services, Facilities Management, and Equipment and Supplies. Reprographics Services sales include operational activities, such as document management services, document logistics, large- and small-format print-on-demand services in color and black and white, and digital document management services. Facilities Management sales are primarily composed of onsite services, where it provides document production equipment, technology solutions and sometimes staff to its customers in their offices. These services include both traditional reprographics services focused on large-format printing, as well as managed print services (MPS). Under an MPS contract, it supplies, maintains and manages a customer�� entire print networks, including office printing equipment, on an outsourced basis. Equipment and Supplies sales involve the resale of printing and imaging equipment and supplies from a variety of suppliers.

As of December 31, 2011, the Company operated 220 reprographics service centers, of which 199 were in the United States, seven were in ! Canada, 11 were in China, two were in India and one in London, England. It also occupied a technology center in Silicon Valley, California, a software programming facility in Kolkata, India, as well as other facilities, including its offices located in Walnut Creek, California. The Company�� products and services are available from any of ARC�� 220 service centers worldwide. The Company supplies reprographics services to project architects, engineers, general contractors and others. In addition to the AEC industry, ARS also provides document management and printing services to the retail, aerospace, technology, entertainment, and healthcare industries, among others.

The Company competes with Oce, Xerox, Canon, Konica Minolta, Ricoh and Sharp.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

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

Hot Casino Stocks To Watch For 2014

Wynn Resorts (WYNN) announced on Tuesday that it plans to run its online gaming business in Caesars Entertainment Corp’s hotel in New Jersey.

Wynn, which does not have any casinos in New Jersey, will run its online gaming business through computers at Caesars hotel in Atlantic city. Both Caesars and Wynn will be working with 888 Holdings Plc, one of Europe’s largest online gambling operators.

Currently, Wynn owns two destination casinos:�Wynn Las Vegas and Wynn Macau. The two casinos feature roughly 186,000 and 275,000 square feet of casino gaming space, respectively.

Hot Dividend Stocks For 2015: Monarch Casino & Resort Inc (MCRI)

Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc. (Monarch), incorporated in 1993, through its wholly owned subsidiary, Golden Road Motor Inn, Inc. (Golden Road), owns and operates the Atlantis Casino Resort Spa(the Atlantis), a hotel/casino facility in Reno, Nevada. Monarch�� other wholly owned subsidiaries, High Desert Sunshine, Inc. (High Desert) and Golden North, Inc. (Golden North), each own separate parcels of land located adjacent to the Atlantis. The Company owns and operates the Atlantis Casino Resort Spa, which is located approximately three miles south of downtown in the area of Reno, Nevada. The Atlantis features approximately 61,000 square feet of casino space; a hotel with 824 guest rooms and suites; ten food outlets; an enclosed year-round pool with waterfall; an outdoor pool; a health spa; two retail outlets offering clothing and resort gift shop merchandise; a full service salon for men and women; an 8,000 square-foot family entertainment center; and approximately 52,000 square feet of banquet, convention and meeting room space. During the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company acquired 1.5 acre parcel of developable land contiguous to the Riviera Black Hawk Casino.

In April 2012, it acquired Riviera Black Hawk, Inc.

The Atlantis Casino offers approximately 1,450 slot and video poker machines; approximately 39 table games, including blackjack, craps, roulette and others; a race and sports book; keno and a poker room. The Atlantis includes three contiguous high-rise hotel towers with 824 rooms and suites. The Atlantis includes three contiguous high-rise hotel towers with a total of 824 rooms and suites. The first of the three hotel towers contains 160 rooms and suites in 13 stories. The 19-story second hotel tower contains 278 rooms and suites. The third tower contains 386 rooms and suites in 28 stories.

The Atlantis hotel rooms feature designs and furnishings consistent with the Northern Nevada market, as well as nine-foot ceilings (most standard hotel rooms have eig! ht-foot ceilings), which create an open and spacious feel. The third hotel tower features a four-story waterfall with an adjacent year-round swimming pool in a climate controlled, five-story glass enclosure, which shares an outdoor third floor pool deck with a seasonal outdoor swimming pool and year round whirlpool. A full-service salon (the Salon at Atlantis) overlooks the third floor sundeck and outdoor seasonal swimming pool and offers salon-grade products and treatments for hair, nails, skincare and body services for both men and women. A health spa is located adjacent to the swimming areas, which offers treatments and amenities. The hotel rooms on the spa floor are designated as spa rooms and feature decor that is themed consistent with the spa. Certain spa treatments are also available in spa floor hotel rooms. The hotel also features glass elevators rising the full 19 and 28 stories, of the respective towers providing views of the Reno area and the Sierra Nevada mountain range.

The Atlantis has eight restaurants, two gourmet coffee bars and one snack bar. It includes 160-seat Atlantis Steakhouse gourmet restaurant; the 200-seat upscale Bistro Napa featuring a centrally located wine cellar; the Oyster Bar restaurant in the Sky Terrace offering fresh seafood, soups and bisques made to order; the Sushi Bar, also in the Sky Terrace, offering a variety of fresh raw and cooked sushi specialties, including all-you-can-eat lunch and dinner selections. The Oyster Bar and Sushi Bar can accommodate up to 139 guests; The 178-seat 24-hour Purple Parrot coffee shop; the 122-seat Cafe Alfresco restaurant serving a full menu, pizzas prepared in a wood-fired, brick oven and a variety of gelato deserts; the 170-seat Manhattan Deli restaurant specializing in piled-high sandwiches, soups, salads and desserts; two gourmet coffee bars, offering specialty coffee drinks, pastries and desserts made fresh daily in the Atlantis bakery; a snack bar and soda fountain serving ice cream and arcade-style refreshmen! ts.

The Sky Terrace is a structure with a diamond-shaped, blue glass body suspended approximately 55 feet, and spanning 160 feet across, South Virginia Street. The Sky Terrace connects the Atlantis with additional parking on its 16-acre site across South Virginia Street from the Atlantis. The structure rests at each end on two 100-foot tall Grecian columns with no intermediate support pillars. The interior of the Sky Terrace contains the Oyster Bar, the Sushi Bar, a video poker bar, banks of slot machines and a lounge area with oversized leather sofas and chairs.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Vanina Egea] ong>Risks and Valuation

  Although the Chinese government will maintain its gambling restrictions in the mainland over the next decade, Sand Corp�� market share and leverage in fixed costs will continue to riel in strong revenue growth from this region. Fiscal 2013 marked a 24.80% revenue increase ($13.8 billion) and operating margins continue to expand at the same pace. Despite the inherent risk of an economic slowdown in Asia or a recession in the U.S., which could put a halt to leisure spending, the company is well prepared to balance out any short-term losses. The casino operator�� EBITDA growth of 65.30%, for example, is an impressive result when compared to the industry�� average of 4.90%.

  Looking forward, earnings per share are expected to continue their fast-paced upward trend, having jumped from $1.56 in 2011 to $2.79 at the end of fiscal 2013. The 21.6% return on equity, as well as 1.80% dividend yield should also be attractive to shareholders and future investors. Although Las Vegas Sand Corp is currently trading at a 24% price premium relative to the industry average of 22.60x trailing earnings, I feel very bullish about this firm�� long term profitability, given its strong market position in Asia.

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

  
  Also check out: Andreas Halvorsen Undervalued Stocks Andreas Halvorsen Top Growth Companies Andreas Halvorsen High Yield stocks, and Stocks that Andreas Halvorsen keeps buying
  About the author:Vanina EgeaA fundamental analyst at Lone Tree Analytics

  Visit Vanina Egea's Website

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Monarch Casino & Resort (MCRI) fell 15% to $18.71 after revenue missed forecasts today.

  Stamps.com (STMP) fell 6.2% today ahead of its earnings results. It beat earnings after the close today.

• [By Jeremy Bowman]

  What: Shares of Monarch Casino & Resort (NASDAQ: MCRI  ) were cooling off today, falling as much as 20% after the company's earnings report failed to impress.

Hot Casino Stocks To Watch For 2014: Wynn Resorts Limited(WYNN)

Wynn Resorts, Limited, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development, ownership, and operation of destination casino resorts. The company owns and operates Wynn Las Vegas casino resort in Las Vegas, which includes approximately 22 food and beverage outlets comprising 5 dining restaurants; 2 nightclubs; 1 spa and salon; 1 Ferrari and Maserati automobile dealership; wedding chapels; an 18-hole golf course; meeting space; and foot retail promenade featuring boutiques. Wynn Las Vegas casino resort also features approximately 147 table games, 1 baccarat salon, private VIP gaming rooms, 1 poker room, 1,842 slot machines, and 1 race and sports book. It also owns and operates an Encore at Wynn Las Vegas resort, a destination casino resort located adjacent to Wynn Las Vegas that features a 2,034 all-suite hotel, as well as a casino with 95 table games, 1 sky casino, 1 baccarat salon, private VIP gaming rooms, and 778 slot machines. In addition, the company operates Wyn n Macau casino resort located in the Macau Special Administrative Region of the People?s Republic of China. Wynn Macau casino resort features approximately 595 hotel rooms and suites, 410 table games, 935 slot machines, 1 poker room, 1 sky casino, 6 restaurants, 1 spa and salon, lounges, meeting facilities, and retail space featuring boutiques. Further, it operates Encore at Wynn Macau resort located adjacent to Wynn Macau. Encore at Wynn Macau resort features approximately 410 luxury suites and 4 villas, as well as casino gaming space, including a sky casino consisting of 60 table games and 80 slot machines, 2 restaurants, 1 luxury spa, and retail space. The company was founded in 2002 and is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  4. Nevada
  The $8.25 minimum wage that Nevada pays comes with an interesting twist: Companies that offer health insurance benefits to their employees are allowed to pay $1 less in hourly wages. Although a referendum in 2006 required the state to index its base wage to inflation, the wage has stayed the same since 2010. Another perk: Tipped employees have to receive the same minimum wage as other workers. That's a big cost for Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS  ) , Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ: WYNN  ) , and other companies with casinos in the state that might otherwise be able to pay many of their tip-earning workers less.

Hot Casino Stocks To Watch For 2014: Penn National Gaming Inc.(PENN)

Penn National Gaming, Inc. and its subsidiaries own and manage gaming and pari-mutuel properties in the United States. It operates approximately 27,000 gaming machines; 500 table games; and 2,000 hotel rooms in 23 facilities in 16 jurisdictions, including Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ontario. The company was formerly known as PNRC Corp. and changed its name to Penn National Gaming, Inc. in 1994. Penn National Gaming, Inc. was founded in 1982 and is based in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Will Ashworth]

  Although Penn National Gaming (PENN) completed the spinoff of its real estate assets on Nov. 1, 2013, Gaming and Leisure Properties��(GLPI) shares have traded since mid-October. The only pure-play Casino REIT was created to provide PENN shareholders with two investments: gaming and real estate. Both businesses would be able to focus on what they do best with shareholders better off as a result. I can�� argue with the rationale.

• [By Grace L. Williams]

  Next, we turn to another gaming company: Penn National Gaming (PENN). Three insiders bought during the quarter: CEO Timothy J. Wilmott bought 50,000 shares for $537,000; CFO Saul Reibstein bought 5,000 shares for $52,700 and John Jacquemin, a director, bought 20,000 shares for $214,800

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Stocks on the Move: BlackBerry Ltd. (NASDAQ: BBRY) is down 16.4% at $6.50 after announcing that no buyout bid will be forthcoming. Penn National Gaming Inc. (NASDAQ: PENN) is down 76.7% at $13.75 after spinning-off its real-estate holdings into a REIT. Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP) is up 15.5% at $1.53 following the acquisition of its major operations in Wuxi.

Hot Casino Stocks To Watch For 2014: Pinnacle Entertainment Inc.(PNK)

Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc. owns, develops, and operates casinos, and related hospitality and entertainment facilities in the United States. It operates casinos, such as L'Auberge du Lac in Lake Charles, Louisiana; River City Casino and Lumiere Place in St. Louis, Missouri; Boomtown New Orleans in New Orleans, Louisiana; Belterra Casino Resort in Vevay, Indiana; Boomtown Bossier City in Bossier City, Louisiana; and Boomtown Reno in Reno, Nevada. The company also operates River Downs racetrack in southeast Cincinnati, Ohio. As of May 26, 2011, it operated seven casinos and one racetrack. The company was formerly known as Hollywood Park, Inc. and changed its name to Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc. in February 2000. Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc. was founded in 1935 and is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Pinnacle Entertainment (PNK) has gained 56% this year; Las Vegas Sands (LVS) has climbed 38%. And Deutsche Bank has nice things to say about both today.

  Bloomberg

  First Pinnacle. Deutsche Bank’s Carlo Santarelli ponders the stock’s big move and comes away still seeing value in its shares. He writes:

  When we upgraded PNK in April, our thesis centered on the FCF strength of the combined entities [Pinnacle completed its acquisition of Ameristar Casinos on Aug. 14], a handful of favorable catalysts, easing regional gaming comps, & an inexpensive relative valuation. Given the shares’ sizeable move since then, we believe it is worth revisiting the investment case. Post the announcement of several asset sales and the closing of the transaction, we are adjusting our estimates, raising our PT to $30 from $24, and maintaining our bullish view at current levels given what we still believe to be an attractive free cash flow valuation, meaningful potential synergy realization beyond the $40 mm of announced benefits, and a free option on a lagging regional recovery.

  Santarelli also revisited Las Vegas Sands and there too, he likes what he sees. He writes:

  With…LVS at [a share price level] that have been challenging to break from over the last year plus, we believe this time is different and hence we see continued upward momentum…In the case of LVS, we see; 1) meaningful mass market strength continuing through year end, setting the stage for upward company and market estimate revisions for 2014, 2) continued cash flow appreciation and capital returns serving as downside protection and positive catalysts, and 3) continued shared gains, largely driven by table optimization and mass market strength, driving both estimates and sentiment.

  He also likes Wynn Resorts (WYNN), despite its 34% gain.�Santarelli writes:

  As for WYNN, we believe near-term estimates continue to take a back seat to capital return

• [By Dan Radovsky]

  Pinnacle Entertainment (NYSE: PNK  ) has reached an agreement in principle with the Bureau of Competition of the Federal Trade Commission that would allow the company to complete its proposed acquisition of Ameristar Casinos (NASDAQ: ASCA  ) , Pinnacle announced today.

Hot Casino Stocks To Watch For 2014: MGM Resorts International(MGM)

MGM Resorts International, through its subsidiaries, primarily owns and operates casino resorts in the United States. The company?s resorts offer gaming, hotel, dining, entertainment, retail, and other resort amenities. It also owns and operates golf courses and a golf club. As of December 31, 2010, the company owned and operated 15 properties located in Nevada, Mississippi, and Michigan; and has 50% investments in 4 other casino resorts in Nevada, Illinois, and Macau. In addition, MGM Resorts International has an agreement with the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, which owns and operates a casino resort in Connecticut, to carry the ?MGM Grand? brand name. The company was formerly known as MGM MIRAGE and changed its name to MGM Resorts International in June 2010. MGM Resorts International was founded in 1986 and is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Monica Wolfe]

  MGM Resorts International (MGM)

  Paulson�� fifth largest holding is in MGM Resorts where he maintains 29,800,000 shares of the company�� stock. His position makes up for 3.9% of his total portfolio and 6.09% of the company�� shares outstanding.

Hot Casino Stocks To Watch For 2014: NanoTech Entertainment Inc (NTEK)

NanoTech Entertainment, Inc. (NanoTech), formerly Aldar Group, Inc., is a provider of gaming technology for the coin-op arcade, casino gaming and consumer gaming markets. The Company operates as a manufacturer, developing technology and games, and then licensing them to third parties for manufacturing and distribution. As of June 30, 2009, the Company�� products included MultiPin, Xtreme Rally Racing, NanoNET Online System, Pinball Wizard, Mot-Ion Adapter, Opti-Gun Adapter and Retr-IO Adapter. In April 2009, the Company acquired NanoTech Entertainment, Inc. In July 2013, NanoTech Entertainment Inc completed the acquisition of Clear Memories, Inc. of Napa California. Effective August 9, 2013, NanoTech Entertainment Inc acquired Worldwide Global Entertainment, a developer of prepackaged software.

The Company�� physics engine and motion sensors allow MultiPin to accurately recreate the experience of a mechanical pinball machine, while providing players with a variety of classic and modern pinball games to choose from. Xtreme Rally Racing is a driving machine that features three modes of game play: Xtreme Off-Road-Race Head to Head against other players and the computer to checkpoints while driving anywhere on the map with no preset course; Timed Rally Stages-Classic Rally Racing on real world courses. Players will be able to race in five different countries on real world rally courses, and Xtreme Stadium Racing-Custom Stadiums designed for Xtreme racing, including a figure eight multi-lap course with huge jumps. NanoNET Online System is remote operator control of machines, including diagnostics, accounting reports, and automatic software updates and enhancements downloaded over the net.

The Company has created the input device designed to give the pinball players a way to experience real pinball controls on their personal computer. Based on the technology developed for the MultiPin product it has built a controller that lets people play pinball using traditional controls and! the ability to shake and nudge the table. The Mot-Ion adapter is a universal serial bus (USB) adapter that allows do it yourself Pinball enthusiasts to build their own cabinet using real pinball controls providing analog inputs for nudging and bumping. The OptiGun adapter is a USB adapter that allows players to connect Arcade Light Guns to any USB based system. The Retr-IO adapters provide a standard JAMMA interface for USB based systems.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Bryan Murphy]

  Call them hunches (because that's all they are), but now would be a great time to get out of a NanoTech Entertainment, Inc. (OTCMKTS:NTEK) position and/or get into an ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:ACAD). NTEK looks like its reached its maximum potential - for the time being - while ACAD looks like it's ready to start rolling higher again.

• [By James E. Brumley]

  Looking for a couple of near-term trades that have a decent shot at rallying even if the broad market feels like it might pull back? Then take a look at Liquidmetal Technologies Inc. (OTCBB:LQMT) and NanoTech Entertainment, Inc. (OTCMKTS:NTEK). Although both LQMT and NTEK will be dismissed by some traders simply because they're OTC-listed stocks, for those traders willing to look past the exchange and appreciate the opportunity, the risk-versus-reward ratio is actually quite compelling.

Hot Casino Stocks To Watch For 2014: Dover Downs Gaming & Entertainment Inc (DDE)

Dover Downs Gaming & Entertainment, Inc., incorporated in December of 2001, is a premier gaming and entertainment resorts. The Company�� operations consist of: Dover Downs Casino, a 165,000-square foot casino complex featuring table games, including craps, roulette and card games, such as blackjack, Spanish 21, baccarat, 3-card and pai gow poker, the latest in slot machine offerings, multi-player electronic table games, the Crown Royal poker room, a Race & Sports Book operation, the Dover Downs' Fire & Ice Lounge, the Festival Buffet, Doc Magrogan's Oyster House, Frankie's Italian restaurant, as well as several bars, restaurants and four retail outlets; Dover Downs Hotel and Conference Center, a 500 room AAA Four Diamond hotel with a full-service spa/salon, conference, banquet, ballroom and concert hall facilities, and Dover Downs Raceway, a harness racing track with pari-mutuel wagering on live and simulcast horse races. All of its operations are located at its entertainment complex in Dover. Its two wholly owned subsidiaries include Dover Downs, Inc. and Dover Downs Gaming Management Corp.

Dover Downs Casino

The Company's casino had approximately 2,539 slot machines as of December 31, 2011. It is open for business around the clock. During the year ended December 31, 2011, that the facility was visited by approximately 2.6 million patrons. Its slot machines range from penny machines to $100 machines in the Premium Slots area and include games found in the country's major gaming jurisdictions. The Company operates with 40 tables, including blackjack, craps and roulette tables. The Crown Royal poker room has 12 poker tables. It has its Race and Sports Book operation featuring parlay sports wagering on NFL games and pari-mutuel wagering on live and simulcast horse races. Dover Downs, Inc. is authorized to conduct video lottery, sports wagering and table game operations. The Company's Capital Club, a slots players club and tracking system, allows it to identify customers and t! o reward their level of play through various marketing programs.

Dover Downs Hotel

The Company's luxury hotel facility, the Dover Downs Hotel and Conference Center, connects to the Company's casino. The facility includes 500 rooms, including 11 luxury spa suites, a multi-purpose ballroom/concert hall, a fine dining restaurant, swimming pool and a luxurious 6,000 square-foot full-service spa. It offers a range of entertainment options to its patrons, including concerts featuring prominent entertainers, live boxing, gourmet dining, spa facilities, trade shows and conferences. During 2011, hotel occupancy averaged 90%.

Dover Downs Raceway

The Company�� Dover Downs Raceway conducts live harness races from November until April and is simulcast to more than 300 tracks and other off-track betting locations across North America on each of the Company's more than 120 live race dates. The Company's harness racing track is a 5/8-mile track that is located on DVD's property and is on the inside of its one-mile motorsports superspeedway. Additional amenities include the Winners Circle Restaurant overlooking the horse racing track. Within the Company's Race & Sports Book operation is the simulcast parlor where the patrons can wager on harness and thoroughbred races received by satellite into its facility year round from numerous tracks across North America. Television monitors throughout the area provide views of all races simultaneously and the betting windows are connected to a central computer allowing bets to be received on all races from all tracks.

The Company has an agreement with the Delaware Standardbred Owner's Association, Inc. (DSOA) effective September 1, 2010 and continuing through August 31, 2014. DSOA's membership consists of owners, trainers and drivers of harness horses participating in harness race meetings at its facilities and elsewhere in the United States and Canada. Under the DSOA agreement, the Company is required to distrib! ute as pu! rses for races conducted at its facilities a percentage of its retained share of pari-mutuel revenues.

The Company competes with Harrington Raceway and Delaware Park.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Stocks on the move: Vodafone Group PLC (NASDAQ: VOD) is up 8.1% at $31.80 on reports of discussions with Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) that would result in the sale of Vodafone�� 45% stake in Verizon Wireless to the controlling shareholder. Dover Downs Gaming & Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: DDE) is up 10.8% at $1.54 after Wednesday�� launch of its online casino games that will soon be available to state residents to play for real money.

10 Best Consumer Stocks To Invest In Right Now

Here are some stock picks from Morningstar in an overvalued market. Would these be great buys in a correction or market dip? Let's take a look:

HCP Inc. (HCP) is a self-administered REIT that acquires, develops, leases, manages and sells healthcare real estate and provides financing to healthcare providers. HCP has a current dividend of 5%, which is great. HCP currently trades at 1.83 times its book value and about 28 times its free cash flow. One alarming figure is the $8 billion in long term debt, which is of course the financing used to acquire properties. Investors should wait to buy this stock, but it could be a bargain if a correction occurs.

Enterprise Products Partners LP (EPD) is an energy pipeline company that provides services to producers and consumers of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil and certain petrochemicals. They pay a 3.5% dividend. EPD has little cash, a large amount of receivables, and high current liabilities and $17 billion in long-term debt. Priced at almost 5 times its book value, and almost 70 times its free cash flow, EPD is overvalued and probably won't be a bargain in a market correction.

Top 10 Construction Material Stocks To Buy Right Now: Tata Motors Ltd(TTM)

Tata Motors Limited, an automobile company, engages in the manufacture and sale of commercial and passenger vehicles primarily in India. The company offers cars, utility vehicles, trucks, buses and coaches, and defense vehicles, as well as develops electric and hybrid vehicles for personal and public transportation. It also involves in distributing and marketing cars; and financing the vehicles sold by the company. In addition, the company engages in the provision of engineering and automotive solutions, as well as machine tools and factory automation solutions; construction equipment manufacturing; automotive vehicle components manufacturing and supply chain activities; tooling and plastic and electronic components for automotive and computer applications; and automotive retailing and service operations. It offers its products and services through its dealership, sales, services, and spare parts network. The company also markets its commercial and passenger vehicles in Eu rope, Africa, the Middle East, South East Asia, South Asia, and South America. The company was formerly known as Tata Engineering and Locomotive Company Limited and changed its name to Tata Motors Limited in July 2003. Tata Motors Limited was founded in 1945 and is based in Mumbai, India.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By CFA Institute Contributors]

  Tata Motors (TTM)

  Damodaran doesn't use standard regression betas. Instead, he uses an average of all the betas in a given industry. In this case, the law of large numbers is on the analyst's side. The standard error in a regression beta is typically too large to make any individual beta meaningful. In the case of Tata Motors, using an average of 111 publicly traded companies in the auto industry reduces the standard error of the beta by 90%, he said.

• [By Trey Thoelcke]

  The rise of VW could hit GM particularly hard, both in terms of reputation and in earnings. GM said it was looking to introduce four new Chevrolet models in China next year, as well as to expand its low-cost Baojun brand. Chinese buyers could already be looking elsewhere though, given the rise of VW and of Tata Motors Ltd. (NYSE: TTM), which sells cars under the Jaguar and Range Rover brands. Sales of Tata vehicles have risen sharply in the past year, and the company is set to begin producing cars in China.

10 Best Consumer Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Unilever NV (UNA)

Unilever N.V. (NV) is a supplier of fast moving consumer goods. The two parent companies, NV and Unilever PLC (PLC), together with their group companies, operate as the Unilever Group (Unilever). The Company�� four product areas are Personal Care, Foods, Refreshment and Home Care. The Company's personal care, which includes sales of skincare and haircare products, deodorants and oral care products; foods, which includes sales of soups, bouillons, sauces, snacks, mayonnaise, salad dressings, margarines and spreads; refreshment, which includes sales of ice cream, tea-based beverages, weight-management products and nutritionally enhanced staples sold in developing markets and home care, which includes sales of home care products, such as laundry tablets, powders and liquids, soap bars and a range of cleaning products. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Adi Narayan]

  Unilever (UNA) fell short on its public offer to raise its majority holding in Hindustan Unilever Ltd. (HUVR) to 75 percent, ending up with about a two-thirds stake after some shareholders of the Mumbai-based company opted not to sell.

10 Best Consumer Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Want Want China Holdings Ltd (WWNTF)

Want Want China Holdings Limited is an investment holding company. The principal activities of the Company and its subsidiaries are the manufacturing, distribution and sale of rice crackers, dairy products and beverages, snack foods and other products. The Company segments include manufacturing and sale of Rice crackers, including sugar coated crackers, savoury crackers and fried crackers; dairy products and beverages, including flavored milk, yogurt drinks, ready-to-drink coffee, juice drinks, carbonated drinks, herbal tea and milk powder; snack foods, including candies, popsicles and jellies, ball cakes and beans and nuts, and other products, mainly including wine and other food products. Its operations are located in the People�� Republic of China, with the rest located in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan. As of December 31, 2011, its subsidiaries included Want Want Holdings Ltd., Long Wave Foods Limited, Want-Want Foods Limited and others. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By WWW.MARKETWATCH.COM]

  HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Hong Kong stocks swung between small gains and losses early Thursday after hitting a seven-month high in the previous session, with the Hang Seng Index (HK:HSI) down less than 0.1%. Most mainland Chinese property developers outperformed the markets, with Guangzhou R&F Properties Co. (HK:2777) (GZUHF) rallying 3.4%, after the company reported a 44% month-on-month jump in sales for June. Shimao Property Holdings Ltd. (HK:0813) (SIOPF) climbed 2.6%, and China Resources Land Ltd. (HK:1109) (CRBJF) rose 1.7%. However, several retailers were weak, as Want Want China Holdings Ltd. (HK:0151) (WWNTF) , the country's top food and beverage maker, declined 2%. Hong Kong-based cosmetics brand Sa Sa International Holdings (HK:0178) (SAXJF) fell 1.6%, with a decline in Chinese June non-manufacturing data helping weigh on some retailers. Over on the Chinese mainland, the Shanghai Composite Index (CN:SHCOMP) retreated 0.4%, pulling back from its highest close in two weeks.

10 Best Consumer Stocks To Invest In Right Now: CannaVEST Corp (CANV)

CannaVEST Corp., formerly Foreclosure Solutions, Inc., incorporated on December 9, 2010, is engaged in the business of developing, producing, marketing and selling end consumer products to the nutriceutical industry containing the hemp plant extract, Cannabidoil (CBD). The Company produces raw ingredients for neutraceutical markets. This substance can be used with foods and nutritional supplements for consumer health and wellness benefits, as well as in the pharmaceutical industry. On March 4, 2013, the Company acquired KannaLife Sciences, Inc. On December 31, 2012, the Company acquired certain assets of PhytoSPHERE Systems, LLC (PhytoSPHERE). It also secured the license to the name PhytoSPHERE and PhytoSPHERE Systems for use in the development and commercialization of hemp-based products.

The Company focuses to develop applicable raw ingredients, and provide raw ingredients for the production and development of multiple existing and developing product applications. Its focus is to produce, market and distribute hemp-based consumer products, as well as acquire existing businesses involved in the industrial hemp industries.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Burrows]

  But it doesn’t end there. Investors should run away from all OTC marijuana stocks, including Medical Marijuana (MJNA), Cannabis Science (CBIS), CannaVest (CANV), MediSwipe (MWIP) and GreenGro Technologies (GRNH). As the SEC warns:

• [By John Udovich]

  The Marijuana Index is Really Getting Stoned. The Marijuana Index, which is the first and only registered equity tracking index for marijuana stocks, cannabis stocks and hemp stocks,�experienced significant volume and price fluctuations throughout the month of February when is started the month at the $25 level only to close the month at $56.21 for a 125% gain as some marijuana stocks experienced all time highs. Notable gainers included Abattis Bioceuticals (OTCMKTS: ATTBF)�being up 194%, Advanced Cannabis Solutions (OTCQB: CANN) being up 132% and CannaVest (OTCMKTS: CANV) being up 116%. You can see all of the�Marijuana Index�� advancers and decliners at http://www.marijuanaindex.org.

10 Best Consumer Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Sprouts Farmers Market Inc (SFM)

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (Sprouts), incorporated on January 27, 2011, is a specialty retailer of natural and organic food focusing on health and wellness. The Company offers fresh produce, bulk foods, vitamins and supplements, grocery, meat and seafood, bakery, dairy, frozen foods, body care and natural household items. The Company�� product offerings focus on fresh, natural and organic foods. Natural foods can be defined as foods that are minimally processed and are free of synthetic preservatives, artificial sweeteners, colors, flavors and other additives, growth hormones, antibiotics, hydrogenated oils, stabilizers and emulsifiers. The Company categorize the over 7,000 range of products, it sells as perishable and non-perishable. Perishable product categories include produce, meat, seafood, deli and bakery. Non-perishable product categories include grocery, vitamins and supplements, bulk items, dairy and dairy alternatives, frozen foods, beer and wine, and natural health and body care.

The cornerstones of the Company�� business are fresh, natural and organic products. As of July 19, 2013, the Company opened 87 new stores while rebranding 43 Henry�� and 39 Sunflower stores to the Sprouts banner. The Company�� stores include Produce, Bulk Items, Vitamins and Supplements, Grocery, Meat, Seafood, Deli, Bakery, Dairy and Dairy Alternatives, Frozen Foods, Beer and Wine and Natural Health and Body Care.The Company offer its customers a farmers market open-feel environment consisting of an abundant and affordable offering of fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs, focused on appearance, flavor and value. The Company�� stores include a crafted selection of more than 450 ranges of scoopable nuts, fruits, trail mixes, grains, beans, cereals, coffee, tea, spices, candy and snacks featured in the center of the store. The Company�� stores feature more than 4,200 vitamins, supplements, natural remedies, functional food, lifestyle support, and herbal supplements. This department includes ! an extensive private label offering.

The Company�� grocery offering focuses on healthy options. The Company carries approximately 4,200 natural and organic products in its grocery aisles, including meal components, natural sodas and other beverages, snacks and bars, baking goods, baby, pet and household items such as detergent and paper towels, and earth-friendly mercantile items. The Company�� Olde Tyme Butcher Shops combine sourcing through its trusted supplier network, product variety and old-fashioned customer service. The Company offers a range of seafood favorites delivered up to six days a week. The Conpany feature a range of fresh deli specialties, including sliced deli meat, salads, dips, entrees, side dishes, fresh made to order sandwiches at value prices and an abundant selection of over 200 varieties of cheeses from around the world.

The Company��bakery offering includes artisan bread alongside a wide assortment of sandwich breads, rolls, tortillas, pitas, muffins, cookies and pies as well as sugar free, gluten free and low carbohydrate products. The Company�� dairy department features a selection of organic, natural and regionally sourced milk, yogurt (including Greek, Australian, organic, and soy-based), butter and eggs, as well as a full selection of vegan and vegetarian alternative dairy products. The Company�� freezer cases feature traditional and ethnic natural and organic entrees and side dishes, along with frozen vegetables, desserts and specialty items, such as gluten-free breads and non-dairy ice creams. The Company offers approximately 2,400 natural, cruelty-free health and beauty products, old-fashioned remedies and modern body care innovations, including facial care products and make up, skin, hair, dental, baby care and grooming products.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Maureen Farrell]

  Two other consumer companies have been among the hottest IPOs of 2013. Shares of sandwich shop Potbelly (PBPB) and organic food retailer Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) more than doubled on their first day of trading.

• [By Anna Prior]

  Sprouts Farmers Market Inc.(SFM) said its first-quarter profit surged 86% as the specialty grocer’s revenue beat expectations. Adjusted earnings also beat estimates and the company raised its 2014 guidance. Shares climbed 4.7% to $28.68 premarket.

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Struggling to combat inroads that new entrants such as Sprouts Farmers Market� (NASDAQ: SFM  ) �are making on its turf, Whole Foods saw its same-store sales rise less than 6% in the organic grocer's fourth quarter, its slowest rate in nearly four years. In contrast, Sprouts saw pro forma comps surge 10% year over year, leading to a 24% increase in total sales from the year-ago period.

10 Best Consumer Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Smithfield Foods Inc.(SFD)

Smithfield Foods, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and marketing of fresh meat and packaged meats products in the United States and internationally. The company involves in the production of hog; and produces various fresh pork, beef, poultry, and packaged meats products. It sells fresh pork to retail customers as unprocessed and trimmed cuts, such as butts, loins, picnics, and ribs; packaged meats products, including smoked and boiled hams, bacon, sausage, hot dogs, and deli and luncheon meats; specialty products, such as pepperoni and dry meat products; and ready-to-eat prepared foods comprising pre-cooked entrees, and pre-cooked bacon and sausages. The company offers its products to supermarket chains; wholesale distributors; the foodservice industry, including fast food, restaurant and hotel chains, hospitals, and other institutional customers; export markets; and other further processors. It sells its products through its salespersons an d independent commission brokers. Smithfield Foods, Inc. was founded in 1961 and is headquartered in Smithfield, Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  Paula Deen has seen her future earnings prospects dim after her admission of using a racial slur. She lost her show. Several retailers have stopped stocking the celebrity chef's products. However, Deen has also lost lucrative endorsements with casino operator Caesars Entertainment (NASDAQ: CZR  ) and packaged pork products producer Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD  ) .

• [By Jeremy Bowman]

  What: Shares of Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD  ) were smoking today, gaining as much as 31% after a Chinese company agreed to buy the meat processor for $7.1 billion.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Finally, beyond the Dow, Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ: PPC  ) soared 22% on apparent speculation that the poultry giant might be next on the chopping block as a target for a big acquisition. The proposed buyout of pork producer Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD  ) by a Chinese company was controversial in large part because of the geopolitical implications of international buyers purchasing U.S. food-industry assets, but business analysts have rightly looked instead at the implications for further consolidation in the industry. With no formal announcement from Pilgrim's Pride, today's move could invite scrutiny from the SEC and other regulators should any sort of definitive buyout bid materialize in the days to come.

10 Best Consumer Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Koninklijke Ahold NV (AHONY)

Koninklijke Ahold N.V. (Ahold), incorporated on April 29, 1920, is engaged in the operation of retail food stores in the United States and Europe through subsidiaries and joint ventures. Ahold�� retail operations are presented in four segments: Stop & Shop/Giant-Landover, Giant-Carlisle, Albert Heijn and Albert/Hypernova. During the fiscal year ended January 3, 2010 (fiscal 2009), it operated 2,909 stores. On February 8, 2010, Ahold�� Giant-Carlisle acquired 25 stores from Ukrop�� Super Markets.

Franchisees operated 783 of the Albert Heijn, Etos and Gall & Gall stores, 463 of which were either owned by the franchisees or leased independently from Ahold. Of the 2,446 stores, 20% were company-owned and 80% were leased. Ahold�� stores range in size from 20 to over 10,000 square meters. Albert Heijn is a food retailer in the Netherlands. Etos is a health and beauty retailer in the Netherlands. Gall & Gall is a wine and liquor specialist in the Netherlands. Stop & Shop is a supermarket brand, operating in six states in the northeast United States. Giant-Landover is a supermarket brand, operating in four states in the mid-Atlantic United States. Peapod is an online grocery delivery service working in partnership with Stop & Shop and Giant-Landover. It also serves the metropolitan areas of Chicago, Illinois; Milwaukee and Madison, Wisconsin, and the northern areas of Indiana.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  As mentioned, Kroger is still swallowing Harris Teeter and has said it needs time to make more acquisitions. Royal Ahold (NASDAQOTH: AHONY  ) is also said to be leery about doing large acquisitions these days, while Cerberus recently finished acquiring the Albertsons and Acme chains from SUPERVALU (NYSE: SVU  ) �for $3.3 billion.

10 Best Semiconductor Stocks To Buy For 2014

According to a post by ex. WSJ reporter Jessica Lessin, Apple (AAPL) recently purchased for an undisclosed amount Passif Semiconductor, a small Silicon Valley company specializing in low energy chip design. Passif develops communication chips that use very little power. Its technology, which includes a radio that works with a low-energy version of Bluetooth called Bluetooth LE, is promising for health-monitoring and fitness devices that need extra-long battery life.

The interesting thing about this company is that it was purchased some months ago under everyone's noses. That's correct, exactly when Apple made this purchase is unclear. Passif is not the only semiconductor company that has been bought by Apple. In 2008 it acquired P.A. Semi Inc., a designer of low-power processors that deliver more computing power per watt of electricity.

Naturally, what comes to mind is that Apple is interested in this technology for the iWatch. When making any type of wrist device, the most important issue is battery life. No one will buy any type of wrist device (smart or otherwise), if the user has to recharge it every now and then. So assuming that Apple has a technology that uses very little energy to emit radio Bluetooth waves, then that opens up a world of possibilities.

Top Trucking Stocks For 2015: Tokyo Electron Ltd (TOELY.PK)

Tokyo Electron Limited is a company mainly engaged in the manufacture and sale of electronic products for industrial uses. The Semiconductor Manufacturing Equipment, Flat-panel Display (FPD) and Photovoltaic Cell (PV) Manufacturing Equipment segment provides coaters and developers for wafer processing, plasma etching equipment, thermal processing systems, single wafer deposition systems, cleaning systems, coaters and developers for FPD manufacturing, ashing devices and plasma chemical vapor deposition (CVD) devices. The Electronic Component and Information Communication Equipment segment designs, develops, purchases and sells semiconductor products such as integrated circuits (ICs), computer and network equipment and software. The Others segment involves in logistics, facility management and insurance businesses. On April 1, 2013, it merged with two subsidiaries. In January 2014, the Company established TEL-Applied Holdings B.V. and a Japan-based company. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephen Simpson, CFA]

  Ultratech isn't the only game in town, though, and there are multiple technologies and process steps that are going to play significant roles in the production of FinFETs and 3D circuits. With that, I would take a look at Mattson Technologies (MTSN), as this company has already accomplished the not-so-easy task of gaining meaningful share in the dry strip, rapid thermal processing (RTP), and etch markets despite competing with giants like Lam Research (LRCX), Applied Materials (AMAT), and Tokyo Electron (TOELY.PK).

10 Best Semiconductor Stocks To Buy For 2014: NVIDIA Corporation(NVDA)

NVIDIA Corporation provides visual computing, high performance computing, and mobile computing solutions that generate interactive graphics on various devices ranging from tablets and smart phones to notebooks and workstations. It operates in three segments: Graphic Processing Unit (GPU), Professional Solutions Business (PSB), and Consumer Products Business (CPB). The GPU segment offers GeForce discrete and chipset products, which support desktop and notebook personal computers plus memory products. The PSB segment provides its Quadro professional workstation products and other professional graphics products, including its NVIDIA Tesla high-performance computing products used in the manufacturing, entertainment, medical, science, and aerospace industries. The CPB segment offers Tegra mobile products, which support tablets, smartphones, personal media players, Internet television, automotive navigation, and other similar devices. This segment also licenses video game consol es and other digital consumer electronics devices. The company sells its products to original equipment manufacturers, original design manufacturers, add-in-card manufacturers, consumer electronics companies, and system builders worldwide that utilize its processors as a core component of their entertainment, business, and professional solutions. NVIDIA Corporation was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Santa Clara, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Brian Pacampara]

  Based on the aggregated intelligence of 180,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, graphics-chip maker NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA  ) has earned a respected four-star ranking.

• [By John Udovich]

  He went on to add that its ��angerous to assume��that AMD doesn't face significant pressure from the likes of Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC) and NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) even if those companies are ��hells of their former selves��because they've done moderately better than AMD in navigating the declining PC market. He also noted that while Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) has partnered with Intel, there is no such���ifeline���for AMD to the extent to ��ustify optimism��about the company's future. Moreover:

10 Best Semiconductor Stocks To Buy For 2014: Aeroflex Holding Corp (ARX)

Aeroflex Holding Corp. (Aeroflex Holding) is a provider of radio frequency (RF) and microwave integrated circuits, components and systems used in the design, development and maintenance of wireless communication systems. The Company�� solutions include microelectronic components and test and measurement equipment used by companies in the space, avionics and defense; commercial wireless communications, and medical and other markets. Its products include a range of RF, microwave and millimeter wave microelectronic components, integrated circuits (ICs), and analog and mixed-signal devices. It also manufactures a range of RF and microwave wireless radio and avionics test equipment and solutions particularly for the wireless, avionics and radio test markets. The Company operates in two segments: Aeroflex Microelectronics Solutions (AMS) and Aeroflex Test Solutions (ATS). In August 2010, it acquired Advanced Control Components. In September 2013, the Company announced the sale of its Aeroflex Test Equipment Services (ATES) business to Trescal Limited. In February 2014, Aeroflex Holding Corp announced the acquisition of Shenick Network Systems.

Aeroflex Microelectronic Solutions

AMS offers a range of microelectronics products and is a provider of specialty products for the space, avionics, defense, commercial wireless communications, medical and other markets. RadHard products are specifically designed to tolerate high radiation level environments, which otherwise can degrade electronic components. The Company principally operates on a fabless semiconductor manufacturing model, outsourcing virtually all front-end semiconductor fabrication activities to commercial foundries. AMS offers a range of complementary products that provide connectivity and computing functionality for applications. Its product portfolio includes RF, microwave and millimeter wave products, including discrete components, ICs, monolithic microwave ICs and multi-chip modules.

AMS designs and manu! factures application specific, analog and mixed-signal devices for use in medical, industrial and intelligent sensors. The Company�� AMS products are used in over 100 space, avionics and defense platforms, including the Wideband Global Satellite Communications satellites, the Geostationary Operational Environmental satellites, the Advanced Extremely High Frequency satellites, the Boeing 777 airliner's databus, the F-16's modular mission computer, the B-1 flight controls upgrade and the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense program. Its AMS products are also used in wireless communications platforms, including WCDMA and LTE cellular base station systems, as well as point-to-point broadband radio applications. In the medical area, our products are used by two of the top four manufacturers of CT scan equipment.

AMS provides HiRel standard and custom integrated circuits and circuit card assembly for the aerospace, altitude avionics, medical, x-ray cargo scanners, critical transportation systems, nuclear power controls, global positioning systems (GPS) receivers, networking and telecommunication markets. AMS' HiRel products include transceivers, analog multiplexers, clock management generators, MSI logic products, battery electronics units, voltage regulators, high-speed power controllers, MIL-STD 1553 bus controllers, remote terminals, bus monitors, microcontrollers and microprocessors, RadHard Pulse Width Modulation Controllers, RadHard Resolver-to-Digital and memory modules. HiRel Microelectronics/ Semiconductors have a typical life cycle of 10-20 years.

AMS provides a set of standard and application specific RF/microwave diodes and semiconductor devices. Microwave semiconductor products offered include diodes, amplifiers, resistors, inductors, capacitors, switches, and integrated devices. RF and Microwave active components and subsystems offered include PIN diode-based microwave control components, variable attenuators, phase shifters, limiters, time delay units and Multi-Funct! ion Micro! wave assemblies. AMS offers resistor products, which include a variety of low and high reliability power surface mounted passive devices for the wireless infrastructure and defense markets with applications in isolators, circulators, single and multi-carrier power amplifiers and circuits. Passive components offered include attenuators, terminations, adapters, DC blocks, and other components for commercial, military and laboratory applications. Other products include power amplifiers, up and down converters, mixers, filters and micro-receivers operating to over 40 giga hertz (GHz). RF and Microwave components have a typical life cycle of 5-15 years. The Company�� motion control products provide complete and integrated motion control solutions for space (both military and commercial), military, avionics, and industrial customers. Its product line offerings include actuators and mechanisms, electronic controllers, slip rings and twist capsules, DC motors and Gimbal Systems. Motion control products have a typical life cycle of 10-20 years.

Aeroflex Test Solutions

ATS is a provider of a line of specialized test and measurement hardware and software products, primarily for the space, avionics, defense, commercial wireless communications and other markets. ATS products and their applications include wireless test equipment, which is used to develop and test handsets and base stations; military radio and PMR test equipment, which is used by radio manufacturers and military, police, fire, and emergency response units to test handheld radios; avionics test equipment, which is used in the design, manufacture and maintenance of electronics systems for aircraft; synthetic test equipment, which is used to test satellites and transmit / receive modules prior to launch and deployment, and general purpose test equipment, including spectrum analyzers and signal generators.

Wireless Test Equipment is used by wireless service providers and equipment manufacturers to test wireless ! handsets ! and base stations. The Company offers a range of cellular tests across a range of wireless standards and communication frequencies, including 2G and 3G, with particular capability in EDGE protocols, and the new 4G LTE/LTE(A) protocols. Products include a range of system, protocol, physical layer and parametric test solutions, such as the TM500 test mobile, RF synthesizers, digitizers and combiners, and application software. In addition, ATS provides PXI-based products which are modular scalable solutions for the handset manufacturing environment. Product applications include research and development, conformance, manufacturing/production, installation and commissioning, field service, and network optimization.

ATS Radio Test Equipment is used by radio manufacturers and military, police, fire and emergency response units to test handheld radio units. ATS provides TErrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA), and Project 25 (P25), radio test equipment, addressing both mobile and repeater test applications. TETRA is a global standard for private mobile radio (PMR), systems used by emergency services, public transport and utilities. P25 is a standard for digital radio communications for use by federal, state, private, and local public safety agencies in North America. Its military communications testing systems are primarily used by the United States military to test complex voice and data frequency hopping radios and accessories. Military radio and PMR test equipment has a typical life cycle of 5-20 years.

Avionics test equipment is used in the design, manufacture, test and maintenance of commercial, civil and military airborne electronic systems, or avionics. ATS equipment provides the stimulus and signals necessary for certification, verification, fault finding and diagnosis of airborne systems on the ground. For civil and commercial aviation, it has test solutions for various transponder modes, communications frequencies, emergency locator transmitters, weather radars and GPS systems. F! or milita! ry aviation, it has test solutions for microwave landing systems, tactical air navigation, enhanced traffic alert and collision avoidance systems, various identification friend or foe, or IFF, transponder/interrogator modes and IFF monopulse antenna simulation. ATS also provides customized avionics test solutions to support manual and automatic test equipment for manufacturing, repair and ground support operations. Avionics test equipment has a typical life cycle of 8-15 years.

Synthetic test systems test several attributes through one box and can take multiple complex measurements simultaneously. ATS provides synthetic test environment that allows digital, analog, RF/microwave and power test of circuits, modules, subsystems and complete systems for commercial, military, and aerospace customers. ATS' STI 1000C+ and TRM 1000C products offer synthetic microwave test systems optimized for testing Transmit/Receive modules and satellite payloads in a factory setting. Its SMART^E and SMART^E 5300 products offer a modular approach for implementing multi-function configurable and reconfigurable test systems. Synthetic test solutions products have a typical life cycle of 10-15 years.

ATS offers a variety of general purpose test solutions including microwave test solutions, counters and power meters. ATS microwave test solutions cover frequency ranges from 1 megahertz (MHz) to 46 gigahertz (GHz), with various tracking, offset, continuous wave, modulated source, fault location, and group delay configuration options provided. ATS power meters are designed for field use, automated test equipment requirements and standard bench applications. General purpose test solutions have a typical life cycle of 4-7 years.

The Company Competes with Agilent Technologies, Honeywell, BAE Systems, Hittite Microwave Corporation, ILC / Data Devices Corporation, Microsemi, Anaren, Anite, Anritsu, Rohde & Schwarz, Spirent and National Instruments.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Leading and Lagging Sectors
  In trading on Tuesday, technology shares were relative leaders, up on the day by about 0.12 percent. Leading the sector was strength from Aeroflex Holding (NYSE: ARX) and Canadian Solar (NASDAQ: CSIQ). Cyclical consumer goods & services shares declined around 0.71 percent in Tuesday's trading.

10 Best Semiconductor Stocks To Buy For 2014: NeoPhotonics Corp (NPTN)

NeoPhotonics Corporation, incorporated on October 31, 1996, is a designer and manufacturer of photonic integrated circuit (PIC)-based modules and subsystems for bandwidth-intensive, high-speed communications networks. The Company has a portfolio of over 300 products, including products that enable data transmission at 10 gigabytes per second, 40 gigabytes per second and 100 gigabytes per second, agility products, such as reconfigurable optical add/drop multiplexers (ROADMs) that allocate bandwidth to adjust for volatile traffic patterns, and access products that provide high-bandwidth connections to more devices and people over fixed and wireless networks. In October 2011, the Company acquired Santur Corporation. In June 2013, it announced first shipments of optical transceiver modules out of its new, high capacity factory in Dongguan, Guangdong Province, China.

The Company�� products are categorized in 34 product families. The Company sells its products to the network equipment vendors globally, including ADVA AG Optical Networking Ltd., Alcatel-Lucent SA, Ciena Corporation (including its recent acquisition of Nortel�� Metro Ethernet Networks business), Cisco Systems, Inc., FiberHome Technologies Group, ECI Telecom Ltd., Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, Fujitsu Limited, Harmonic, Inc., Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd., Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, NEC Corporation, Nokia Siemens Networks B.V. and ZTE Corporation.

The Company competes with Finisar Corporation, JDS Uniphase Corporation, MRV Communications, Inc., NTT Electronics Corporation and Sumitomo Electric Device Innovations, Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Anders Bylund]

  Close competitor NeoPhotonics (NYSE: NPTN  ) soared 15% higher. Larger rival JDS Uniphase (NASDAQ: JDSU  ) jumped 7.9% to become the fastest gainer on the S&P 500. If Ciena can beat its own expectations in selling Internet backbone equipment to a bevy of major telecoms, its chief rivals must eventually follow suit. JDS is only one month removed from its latest quarterly report, which sent shares diving 7% overnight (but all was forgiven a week later). NeoPhotonics also reported in early May, but didn't make any waves then.

10 Best Semiconductor Stocks To Buy For 2014: Micron Technology Inc.(MU)

Micron Technology, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and marketing of semiconductor devices worldwide. Its products include dynamic random access memory (DRAM) products that provide data storage and retrieval, which include DDR2 and DDR3; and other specialty DRAM memory products, including DDR, SDRAM, DDR and DDR2 mobile low power DRAM, pseudo-static RAM, and reduced latency DRAM. The company also offers NAND flash memory products, which are electrically re-writeable and non-volatile semiconductor devices that retain content when power is turned off. In addition, it provides NOR flash memory products that are electrically re-writeable and non-volatile semiconductor memory devices; phase change memory products; and image sensor products. Micron Technology?s products are used in a range of electronic applications, including personal computers, workstations, network servers, mobile phones, flash memory cards, USB storage devices, digital still c ameras, MP3/4 players, and in automotive applications. It sells its products to original equipment manufacturers and retailers through internal sales force, independent sales representatives, and distributors, as well as through a Web-based customer direct sales channel. The company was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Boise, Idaho.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rex Crum]

  The most-notable losses came from Micron (MU) , which fell more than 8%, to $16.84 a share, following the chipmaker�� late-Thursday earnings results. Micron reported fiscal fourth-quarter sales that exceeded expectations, but its earnings, excluding a specific one-time gain, failed to meet Wall Street analysts��forecasts.

• [By Lauren Pollock]

  Micron Technology Inc.(MU) and Rambus Inc.(RMBS) said they have ended a series of court battles that stretched for 13 years, with Micron agreeing to pay up to $280 million to Rambus over seven years. The deal announced late Monday gives Micron, one of the biggest makers of memory chips, rights to use Rambus patents in certain products. Rambus shares surged 9.7% to $9.36 premarket, while Micron was inactive.

• [By Jonas Elmerraji]

  As impressive as T-Mobile's rally has been in 2013, it doesn't hold a candle to the momentum in shares of Micron Technology (MU) this year: since the calendar flipped over to January, Micron's share price has exploded by 207%. And with the way this stock is positioned right now, it's not too late to take the reins in Micron.

  Micron is a computer memory maker that until recently was best known for manufacturing RAM for PCs. But the company has spent the last several years building its flash memory business, a switch that exposes Micron to a far more lucrative niche. Flash memory is a supply constrained business -- it's costly for newcomers to try to ramp up production, and the surge mobile device purchases has driven demand for NAND flash memory through the roof. That's helped Micron collect heftier prices and deeper margins for its efforts.

  Most of Micron's flash memory customers are original equipment manufacturers, not consumers. Those OEM connections are a big advantage because they keep sales efforts minimal. Instead, the firm just needs to keep creating flash technology that device makers want. The increasing use of flash memory in enterprise settings (such as servers) is another big trend that's helped to propel Micron's share price in 2013.

• [By Garrett Cook]

  Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU) shares were also up, gaining 4.64 percent to $32.71 after the company reported better-than-expected fiscal third-quarter earnings. Micron posted its adjusted earnings of $0.79 per share, beating analysts’ estimates of $0.69 per share.

10 Best Semiconductor Stocks To Buy For 2014: Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc (ASX)

Advanced Semiconductor Engineering, Inc. is principally engaged in the manufacture, assembly, processing, testing and distribution of integrated circuits (ICs). The Company provides semiconductor packaging and testing services, including plastic leaded chip carriers (PLCCs), quad flat packages (QFPs) and flip chip packaging technology, among others, which are applied in the manufacture of household electrical appliances, communication devices, automobile components, personal computers, set top boxes, servers, memory integrated circuits (ICs), mobile phones, digital cameras, game consoles, projectors, high definition (HD) televisions, wireless communication network products and power management ICs, among others. The Company operates its businesses primarily in Taiwan, Europe and the Americas. In August 2010, the Company acquired a 100% interest in EEMS Test Singapore.

The Company is focused on packaging and testing logic semiconductors. The Company offers its customers turnkey services, which consist of packaging, testing and direct shipment of semiconductors to end users designated by its customers. The Company�� global base of over 200 customers includes semiconductor companies across a range of end use applications, including Altera Corporation, ATI Technologies, Inc., Broadcom Corporation, Cambridge Silicon Radio Limited and Microsoft Corporation. During the year ended December 31, 2008, the Company�� packaging revenues accounted for 77.7% of its net revenues and its testing revenues accounted for 20.1% of its net revenues.

Packaging Services

The Company offers a range of package types to meet the requirements of its customers, with a focus on packaging solutions. Within its portfolio of package types, the Company focuses on the packaging of semiconductors. These include advanced leadframe-based package types, such as quad flat package, thin quad flat package, bump chip carrier and quad flat no-lead package, and package types based on substrates, such a! s flip-chip ball grid array (BGA) and other BGA types, as well as other packages, such as wafer-bumping products. Leadframe-based packages are packaged by connecting the die, using wire bonders, to the leadframe with gold wire. The Company�� leadframe-based packages include quad flat package (QFP)/ thin quad flat package (TQFP), quad flat no-lead package (QFN)/microchip carrier (MCC), advanced quad flat no-lead package (AQFN), bump chip carrier (BCC), small outline plastic package (SOP)/thin small outline plastic package (TSOP), small outline plastic j-bend package (SOJ), plastic leaded chip carrier (PLCC) and plastic dual in-line package (PDIP). Substrate-based packages employ the BGA design, which utilizes a substrate rather than a leadframe. It also assembles system-in-a-package products, which involve the integration of more than one chip into the same package. The Company�� substrate-based packages include Plastic BGA, Cavity Down BGA, Stacked-Die BGA, Flip-Chip BGA and land grid array (LGA).

The Company�� wafer-level packaging products include wafer level chip scale package (aCSP) and advanced wafer level package (aWLP). The Company offers module assembly services, which combine one or more packaged semiconductors with other components in an integrated module to enable functionality, typically using surface mount technology (SMT) machines and other machinery and equipment for system-level assembly. End use applications for modules include cellular phones, personal digital assistant (PDAs), wireless local area network (LAN) applications, bluetooth applications, camera modules, automotive applications and toys.

The Company provides module assembly services primarily at its facilities in Korea for radio frequency and power amplifier modules used in wireless communications and automotive applications. Interconnect materials connect the input/output on the semiconductor dies to the printed circuit board. Interconnect materials include substrate, which is a multi-layer m! iniature ! printed circuit board. The Company produces substrates for use in its packaging operations.

Testing Services

The Company provides a range of semiconductor testing services, including front-end engineering testing, wafer probing, final testing of logic/mixed-signal/radio frequency (RF) and memory semiconductors and other test-related services. The Company provides front-end engineering testing services, including customized software development, electrical design validation, and reliability and failure analysis. The Company provides final testing services for a variety of memory products, such as static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), single-bit erasable programmable read-only memory semiconductors and flash memory semiconductors.

The Company provides a range of additional test-related services, including burn-in testing, module sip testing, dry pack, tape and reel, and electric interface board and mechanical test tool design. The Company offers drop shipment services for shipment of semiconductors directly to end users designated by its customers.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Adam Haigh]

  ASX Ltd. (ASX) posted the biggest weekly loss in 3 1/2 years, falling 6.1 percent to A$33.15, amid a A$553 million ($530 million) capital raising at the operator of Australia�� main stock exchange to ensure its clearing business complies with new regulations.

• [By Alexis Xydias]

  The FTSE 100 Index (UKX) gained 53.93 points, or 0.8 percent, to 6,683.93 at 8:58 a.m. in London, rebounding from a 1.4 percent loss yesterday. The benchmark has rallied 13 percent this year as central banks around the world commit to maintain monetary stimulus to nurture economic growth. The broader FTSE All-Share Index (ASX) increased 0.8 percent today, while Ireland�� ISEQ Index advanced 0.5 percent.

• [By Jeff Reeves]

  Next Page

  Best Stocks to Buy for Around $5: Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASX)

  Advanced Semiconductor Engineering�(ASX) builds and distributes integrated circuits and other electronics. While that�� not as sexy as other chipmakers that play to mobile, it�� still a good business, considering the general demand for microchips in everything from cars to computers to TVs.

• [By Namitha Jagadeesh]

  The FTSE 100 Index (UKX) fell 1.31 points, less than 0.1 percent, to 6,679.77 at 10:12 a.m. in London, trimming an earlier decline of as much as 0.6 percent. The gauge has climbed 13 percent this year as central banks maintained stimulus measures to support the global economy. The broader FTSE All-Share Index (ASX) was also little changed today, while Ireland�� ISEQ Index retreated 0.3 percent.

10 Best Semiconductor Stocks To Buy For 2014: Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc (ASX)

Advanced Semiconductor Engineering, Inc. is principally engaged in the manufacture, assembly, processing, testing and distribution of integrated circuits (ICs). The Company provides semiconductor packaging and testing services, including plastic leaded chip carriers (PLCCs), quad flat packages (QFPs) and flip chip packaging technology, among others, which are applied in the manufacture of household electrical appliances, communication devices, automobile components, personal computers, set top boxes, servers, memory integrated circuits (ICs), mobile phones, digital cameras, game consoles, projectors, high definition (HD) televisions, wireless communication network products and power management ICs, among others. The Company operates its businesses primarily in Taiwan, Europe and the Americas. In August 2010, the Company acquired a 100% interest in EEMS Test Singapore.

The Company is focused on packaging and testing logic semiconductors. The Company offers its customers turnkey services, which consist of packaging, testing and direct shipment of semiconductors to end users designated by its customers. The Company�� global base of over 200 customers includes semiconductor companies across a range of end use applications, including Altera Corporation, ATI Technologies, Inc., Broadcom Corporation, Cambridge Silicon Radio Limited and Microsoft Corporation. During the year ended December 31, 2008, the Company�� packaging revenues accounted for 77.7% of its net revenues and its testing revenues accounted for 20.1% of its net revenues.

Packaging Services

The Company offers a range of package types to meet the requirements of its customers, with a focus on packaging solutions. Within its portfolio of package types, the Company focuses on the packaging of semiconductors. These include advanced leadframe-based package types, such as quad flat package, thin quad flat package, bump chip carrier and quad flat no-lead package, and package types based on substrates, such a! s flip-chip ball grid array (BGA) and other BGA types, as well as other packages, such as wafer-bumping products. Leadframe-based packages are packaged by connecting the die, using wire bonders, to the leadframe with gold wire. The Company�� leadframe-based packages include quad flat package (QFP)/ thin quad flat package (TQFP), quad flat no-lead package (QFN)/microchip carrier (MCC), advanced quad flat no-lead package (AQFN), bump chip carrier (BCC), small outline plastic package (SOP)/thin small outline plastic package (TSOP), small outline plastic j-bend package (SOJ), plastic leaded chip carrier (PLCC) and plastic dual in-line package (PDIP). Substrate-based packages employ the BGA design, which utilizes a substrate rather than a leadframe. It also assembles system-in-a-package products, which involve the integration of more than one chip into the same package. The Company�� substrate-based packages include Plastic BGA, Cavity Down BGA, Stacked-Die BGA, Flip-Chip BGA and land grid array (LGA).

The Company�� wafer-level packaging products include wafer level chip scale package (aCSP) and advanced wafer level package (aWLP). The Company offers module assembly services, which combine one or more packaged semiconductors with other components in an integrated module to enable functionality, typically using surface mount technology (SMT) machines and other machinery and equipment for system-level assembly. End use applications for modules include cellular phones, personal digital assistant (PDAs), wireless local area network (LAN) applications, bluetooth applications, camera modules, automotive applications and toys.

The Company provides module assembly services primarily at its facilities in Korea for radio frequency and power amplifier modules used in wireless communications and automotive applications. Interconnect materials connect the input/output on the semiconductor dies to the printed circuit board. Interconnect materials include substrate, which is a multi-layer m! iniature ! printed circuit board. The Company produces substrates for use in its packaging operations.

Testing Services

The Company provides a range of semiconductor testing services, including front-end engineering testing, wafer probing, final testing of logic/mixed-signal/radio frequency (RF) and memory semiconductors and other test-related services. The Company provides front-end engineering testing services, including customized software development, electrical design validation, and reliability and failure analysis. The Company provides final testing services for a variety of memory products, such as static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), single-bit erasable programmable read-only memory semiconductors and flash memory semiconductors.

The Company provides a range of additional test-related services, including burn-in testing, module sip testing, dry pack, tape and reel, and electric interface board and mechanical test tool design. The Company offers drop shipment services for shipment of semiconductors directly to end users designated by its customers.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jeff Reeves]

  Advanced Semiconductor Engineering�(ASX) builds and distributes integrated circuits and other electronics. It�� not as sexy as some mobile chipmakers, but thankfully it doesn�� have to be — ASX is simply capitalizing on the general demand for microchips in everything from cars to computers to TVs.

• [By Adam Haigh]

  ASX Ltd. (ASX) posted the biggest weekly loss in 3 1/2 years, falling 6.1 percent to A$33.15, amid a A$553 million ($530 million) capital raising at the operator of Australia�� main stock exchange to ensure its clearing business complies with new regulations.

• [By Jeff Reeves]

  Next Page

  Best Stocks to Buy for Around $5: Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASX)

  Advanced Semiconductor Engineering�(ASX) builds and distributes integrated circuits and other electronics. While that�� not as sexy as other chipmakers that play to mobile, it�� still a good business, considering the general demand for microchips in everything from cars to computers to TVs.

• [By Alexis Xydias]

  The FTSE 100 Index (UKX) gained 53.93 points, or 0.8 percent, to 6,683.93 at 8:58 a.m. in London, rebounding from a 1.4 percent loss yesterday. The benchmark has rallied 13 percent this year as central banks around the world commit to maintain monetary stimulus to nurture economic growth. The broader FTSE All-Share Index (ASX) increased 0.8 percent today, while Ireland�� ISEQ Index advanced 0.5 percent.