Top 5 Asian Companies To Watch In Right Now

After a few days of no real news earlier in the week, the markets seem to be using up all their stored energy. With the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) losing 80 points yesterday after spiking in earlier trading, the downward trend continues today. Down 49 points just after 11 a.m. EDT, the index is suffering from more speculation and discouraging international activity.

Outside the U.S.
The Asian markets fell overnight, with the Japanese Nikkei dropping 7.3% by the time the markets closed. With weak manufacturing data from China and increased bond yields in Japan, the pressure on the markets was too great. European markets followed suit, though losses were not as severe. Both the unexpected contraction in China and the eurozone are unsettling to U.S. investors.

Top 5 Asian Companies To Watch In Right Now: Lian Beng Group Ltd (L03.SI)

Lian Beng Group Ltd., an investment holding company, engages in general building construction and civil engineering works primarily in Singapore. The company�s Construction segment engages in constructing residential, institutional, industrial, and commercial properties; and undertaking civil engineering projects in both private and public sectors. Its Engineering and Leasing of Construction Machinery segment is involved in the provision of construction related services, such as scaffolding and electrical installations; and leasing metal formworks, and construction machinery and equipment. This segment manages a fleet of equipment for lease and sales, including generators, air compressors, gondolas, and other building materials, such as external scaffolds and metal forms; and provides services, including erection and dismantling of external scaffolds, and the repair and maintenance of construction equipment and machinery. The company�s Property Development segment engage s in the development, sale, and rental of residential, commercial, and industrial properties, as well as offers property management services. Its Manufacturing of Concrete segment is involved in the manufacture and supply of ready-mixed concrete and sand. In addition, Lian Beng Group Ltd. engages in trading construction materials; training construction workers; and providing formwork services. Further, it is involved in shipping operations, including the chartering of ships. The company has strategic partnership with LaSalle Investment Management Pte Ltd. and Duke Development Pte Ltd. for the development of condominiums. Lian Beng Group Ltd. was founded in 1973 and is headquartered in Singapore.

Top 5 Asian Companies To Watch In Right Now: Aberdeen International Inc (AAB.TO)

Aberdeen International Inc. operates as an investment and merchant banking company focusing on small capitalization companies in the resource sector. It intends to acquire equity participation in pre-IPO and early stage public resource companies with undeveloped or undervalued resources. The company also offers various merchant banking services, including short-term investments, bridge financing, and advisory works, as well as listing vehicles, such as shell companies. In addition, it invests in mineral properties, primarily gold. The company was formerly known as International Catalyst Ventures Inc. and changed its name to Aberdeen International Inc. in November 2001. Aberdeen International Inc. was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

Best High Tech Companies For 2014: Carillion(CLLN.L)

Carillion plc operates as an integrated support services company with a portfolio of public private partnership projects (PPP) and construction capabilities. The company provides services needed to manage, maintain, and operate buildings and infrastructure. Its services include facilities management, facilities services, road maintenance, rail services, and utility services, as well as consulting. Carillion has operations in the United Kingdom, the Middle East and North Africa, and Canada and the Caribbean. The company delivers PPP projects for defense, health, education, transport, secure, and other government accommodation sectors in the United Kingdom and in Canada. These projects use private sector finance to deliver a range of asset-based services ranging from project finance through design and construction, to life-time asset management for central and local government. The company is based in Wolverhampton, the United Kingdom.

Top 5 Asian Companies To Watch In Right Now: Vecta Energy Corporation (VER.V)

Vecta Energy Corporation, a junior oil and gas company, engages in the exploration and production of petroleum and natural gas reserves in Canada. It has working interests in approximately 16,000 acres of lands in the foothills of Alberta and North east British Columbia; and approximately 20 barrels per day of oil equivalent production from the Brewster area. The company was formerly known as Kroes Energy Inc. and changed its name to Kroes Energy Inc. in June 2009. Vecta Energy Corporation is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

Top 5 Asian Companies To Watch In Right Now: Basicnet(BCNT.MI)

BasicNet S.p.A., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the trademark license management in the branded casual and leisurewear, sportswear, footwear, and accessories sector. The company?s brand portfolio comprises Kappa, Robe di Kappa, K-Way, Superga, AnziBesson, Lanzera, and Jesus Jeans. It also operates and manages various franchised retail outlets, as well as distributes of its products through a network of independent licensees companies worldwide. In addition, the company is involved in the operational management of the Basic Village property complex in Turin. BasicNet S.p.A. is based in Torino, Italy.

10 Best Industrial Disributor Stocks To Own Right Now

The following video is from Monday's MarketFoolery, in which host Chris Hill and analysts Bryan Hinmon, Jim Gillies, and Jason Moser discuss the top business and investing stories of the day.

Caterpillar's (NYSE: CAT  ) �first-quarter profit�fell 45% and the company lowered guidance. But its CEO said that his confidence is at a two-year high and sales in China rose. Should investors buy the stock? In this installment, our analysts discuss Caterpillar's future and explain why Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers (NYSE: RBA  ) could be a hidden winner.

The relevant video segment can be found between 1:00 and 5:05.

Caterpillar is the market share leader in an industry in which size matters, and its quality products, extensive service network, and unparalleled brand strength combine to give it solid competitive advantages. Read all about Caterpillar's strengths and weaknesses in The Motley Fool's brand-new report. Just click here to access it now.

10 Best Industrial Disributor Stocks To Own Right Now: Agilent Technologies Inc (A&J)

Agilent Technologies, Inc. (Agilent), incorporated on May 5, 1999, is a measurement company providing bio-analytical and electronic measurement solutions to the communications, electronics, life sciences and chemical analysis industries. During the fiscal year ended October 31, 2011 (fiscal 2011), it had three business segments: electronic measurement business, chemical analysis business and life sciences business. Its electronic measurement business addresses the communications, electronics and other industries. Agilent�� chemical analysis business focuses on the petrochemical, environmental, forensics and food safety industries. Its life sciences business focuses on the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, academic and Government, bio-agriculture and food safety industries. In addition to its three businesses, it conducts research through Agilent Technologies Laboratories (Agilent Labs). In fiscal 2011, the Company acquired A2 Technologies, Lab901 and Biocius Life Sciences Inc. On December 21, 2011, the Company acquired BioSystem Development business and P.V.R. s.r.l., a vacuum pump manufacturer. In February 2012, the Company acquired software solutions and technology for device-level modeling and validation from Accelicon Technologies. In June 2012, the Company acquired cancer diagnostics company, Dako. In August 2012, the Company acquired Aurora SFC Systems, Inc.

Electronic Measurement Business

The Company�� electronic measurement business provides electronic measurement instruments and systems, software design tools and related services that are used in the design, development, manufacture, installation, deployment and operation of electronics equipment, and microscopy products. Related services include start-up assistance, instrument productivity and application services and instrument calibration and repair. It also offers customization, consulting and optimization services throughout the customer's product lifecycle. It sells products and services applicable to a rang! e of communications networks and systems, including wireless communications and microwave networks, voice, broadband, data, and fiber optic networks. Test products include Electronic Design Automation (EDA) software, vector and signal analyzers, signal generators, vector network analyzers, one box testers, oscilloscopes, logic and protocol analyzers, and bit-error ratio testers.

The Company�� wireless communications and microwave network products include radio frequency and microwave test instruments and electronic design automation software tools. These products are required for the design and production of wireless network products, communications links, cellular handsets and base stations. It provides handheld products for the installation and maintenance of wireless networks. Its electronic design automation software tools and instruments are used by radio frequency integrated circuit design engineers to model, simulate and analyze communications product designs at the circuit and system levels.

The Company�� suite of fiber optic test products measure and analyze a range of optical and electrical parameters in fiber optic networks and their components. Components which can be tested with Agilent solutions include source lasers, optical amplifiers, filters and other passive components. Test products include optical component analyzers, optical power meters and optical spectrum analyzers. It sells the products into the general purpose test market, including general purpose instruments, modular instruments and test software, digital test products, semiconductor and board test solutions, electronics manufacturing test equipment, atomic force microscopes and radio frequency and network surveillance solutions. The Company�� general purpose products include spectrum analyzers, network analyzers, signal generators, logic analyzers, digitizing oscilloscopes, voltmeters, multimeters, frequency counters, bench and system power supplies, function generators and waveform synthesizers. Modular! instrume! nts and test software are used by the designers and manufacturers of electronic devices as the building blocks of systems that can be configured for a range of test applications.

The Company�� digital test products are used by research and development engineers across a range of industries to validate the function and performance of their digital product and system designs. These designs include a range of products from digital control circuits to high speed systems, such as computer servers and the gaming consoles. The test products offered include oscilloscopes, logic and serial protocol analyzers, logic-signal sources and data generators.

The Company�� semiconductor and board test solutions enable customers to develop and test semiconductors, test and inspect printed circuit boards, perform functional testing, and measure position and distance information to the sub-nanometer level. It is a supplier of parametric test instruments and systems used to examine semiconductor wafers during the manufacturing process. Its in-circuit test system helps identify quality defects, such as faulty or incorrect parts, that affect electrical performance. Its laser interferometer measurement systems provide precise position or distance information for dimensional measurements. Its atomic force microscopes (AFM) are imaging devices. An AFM allows researchers to observe and manipulate molecular and atomic level features. Its portfolio of AFM products provides customers with tools for a range of nanotechnology applications, including semiconductor, data storage, polymers, materials science and life science studies. The Company�� surveillance systems and subsystems are used by defense and government engineers and technicians to detect, locate and analyze signals of interest. The products offered include receivers for detecting radio frequency signals, probes for detecting wire line signals and software that enables the identification and analysis of these signals. Agilent's electronic measureme! nt custom! ers include contract manufacturers of electronic products, handset manufacturers and network equipment manufacturers who design, develop, manufacture and install network equipment, service providers who implement, maintain and manage communication networks and services, and companies who design, develop, and manufacture semiconductors and semiconductor lithography systems. Its customers use its products to conduct research and development, manufacture, install and maintain radio frequency, microwave frequency, digital, semiconductor, and optical products and systems and conduct nanotechnology research.

The Company competes with Aeroflex Incorporated, Anritsu Corporation, Ansys Corporation, EXFO Electro-Optical Engineering, Inc., National Instruments Corporation, Rohde & Schwartz GmbH & Co. KG, Spirent plc, Danaher Corporation, Bruker Corporation, LeCroy Corporation, Teradyne, Inc., Test Research Inc. and Zygo Corporation.

Chemical Analysis Business

The Company�� chemical analysis business provides application-focused solutions that include instruments, software, consumables and services that enable customers to identify, quantify and analyze the physical and chemical properties of substances and products. Its product categories in chemical analysis include gas chromatography (GC) systems, columns and components; gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) systems; inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) instruments; atomic absorption (AA) instruments; inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) instruments; software and data systems; vacuum pumps and measurement technologies; services and support for its products. Agilent provides custom or standard analyzers configured for specific chemical analysis applications, such as detailed speciation of a complex hydrocarbon stream, calculation of gas calorific values in the field, or analysis of a new bio-fuel formulation. It also offers related software, accessories and consumable ! products ! for these and other similar instruments. Its MS products incorporate technologies for measuring mass, including single-quadrupole, triple-quadrupole, and ion trap mass spectrometers. It combines its mass spectrometers with other instruments to instruments, such as GC/MS, and ICP-MS. It also offers related software, accessories and consumable products for these and other similar instruments. The Company�� spectroscopy instruments include atomic absorption (AA) spectrometers, inductively coupled plasma-optical emissions spectrometers (ICP-OES), inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometers (ICP-MS), fluorescence spectrophotometers, ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectrophotometers, Fourier Transform infrared (FT-IR) spectrophotometers, near-infrared (NIR) spectrophotometers, Raman spectrometers and sample automation products. It also offers related software, accessories and consumable products for these and other similar instruments.

The Company�� vacuum technologies products are used to create, control, measure and test vacuum environments in life science, industrial and scientific applications where clean and vacuum environments are needed. Products include a range of vacuum pumps, including diffusion, turbomolecular and ion getter; intermediate vacuum pumps, including rotary vane, sorption and dry scroll, vacuum instrumentation, including vacuum control instruments, sensor gauges and meters, and vacuum components, including valves, flanges and other mechanical hardware. Its products also include helium mass spectrometry and helium-sensing leak detection instruments used to identify and measure leaks in hermetic or vacuum environments. The Company offers a range of services, including an exchange and rebuild program, assistance with the design and integration of vacuum systems, applications support and training in basic and advanced vacuum technologies. The Company offers a range of consumable products, which support its technology platforms, including sample preparation consumables, suc! h as soli! d phase extraction (SPE) and filtration products, self manufactured GC and LC columns, chemical standards, and instrument replacement parts. Consumable products also include scientific instrument parts and supplies, such as filters and fittings for GC systems; xenon lamps and cuvettes for UV-Vis-NIR, fluorescence, FT-IR and Raman spectroscopy instruments; and graphite furnace tubes, hollow cathode lamps and specialized sample introduction glassware for its AA, ICP-OES and ICP-MS products.

The Company competes with Bruker Corporation, PerkinElmer Inc., Shimadzu Corporation and Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.

Life Sciences Business

The Company�� life sciences business provides application-focused technologies and solutions, which include instruments, software, consumables and services. Its product categories include liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, microarrays, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) instrumentation, bioreagents, electrophoresis, software and informatics, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems, and, consumables and services. The Agilent liquid chromatograph (LC) portfolio is modular in construction and can be configured as analytical and preparative systems. Agilent's liquid chromatography/ mass spectrometer (LC/MS) portfolio includes instruments built around five analyzer types, such as single quadrupole, triple quadrupole, ion trap, time-of-flight (TOF) and quadrupole time-of-flight (QTOF). It is a provider of microarray-based, genomics research solutions. It provides products for sequencing platforms. Its portfolio of PCR instrumentation, reagents and kits, coupled with its other products, such as microarrays and target enrichment systems for sequencing, provides a range of workflow solutions to customers in the genomics marketplace.

Agilent is a supplier of electrophoretic separation solutions. The 2100 Bioanalyzer analyzes biomolecules or cells in microfluidic networks of channels and wells etched i! nto glass! chips. The 3100 OFFGEL Fractionator resolves proteins or peptides by isoelectric point with liquid-phase recovery. It provides software for instrument control, data acquisition, data analysis, laboratory content and business process management, and informatics. With OpenLab, Agilent has open architecture, which enables capture, analyze, and share scientific data throughout the lab and across the enterprise. It offers a range of consumable products, which support its LC, and MS technology platforms. These consumable products include sample preparation products; self manufactured LC columns and instrument replacement parts, and consumable supplies to meet its customers' analysis needs. It offers a range of startup, operational, educational and compliance support services for measurement and data handling systems. Its support services include maintenance, troubleshooting, repair and training for all of its chemical and bioinstrumentation analysis hardware and software products.

The Company competes with Affymetrix Inc., Bruker Corp., Danaher Corporation, Illumina, Inc., Life Technologies Corp., Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. and Waters Corp.

10 Best Industrial Disributor Stocks To Own Right Now: Tribal Group(TRB.L)

Tribal Group plc, through its subsidiaries, provides technology, service delivery, and advisory solutions primarily to the educational sector in the United Kingdom, Australasia, and internationally. The company provides education services to the public sector, including software, managed services, school inspection services, consultancy, benchmarking, e-learning, publishing, and training services. Its technology solutions comprise student management products, asset management products, learning management products, program-based systems, platform-based systems, and bespoke solutions. The company?s service delivery solutions include training and development, school improvement, delivery of major education programs for the government, inspection of schools in the south of England, and management of the early years? professional status. Its advisory services comprise performance improvement, program and project management, strategy and innovation, curriculum support, subjec t excellence, school improvement, benchmarking and consultancy for further and higher education, and workforce development services. The company serves schools, colleges, universities, government agencies, and employers to manage their resources and deliver education services. Tribal Group plc was founded in 1999 and is based in London, the United Kingdom.

Top Safest Stocks To Buy For 2014: Mondelez International Inc (MDLZ)

Mondelez International, Inc. (Mondelez International), formerly Kraft Foods Inc., incorporated on December 7, 2000, is a maker of chocolate, biscuits, gum, candy, coffee and powdered beverages. The Company consists of the global snacking and food brands. Mondelez International's portfolio includes several brands, such as Cadbury and Milka chocolate, Jacobs coffee, LU, Nabisco and Oreo biscuits, Tang powdered beverages and Trident gums. The Company�� products include chocolates, cookies, gums, beverages and crackers. Alpen Gold is a chocolate brand in Russia. Alpen Gold is available in chocolate bars, boxed chocolates and creamy, mouth-watering pralines. Its markets include Poland, Russia and Ukraine. Bubbaloo is a gum brand sold in more than 25 countries and three different continents, including India, Mexico, Portugal and Spain. Belvita are breakfast biscuits made with wholegrain, cereals and fiber. It is sold in Belgium, France, Netherlands, United Kingdom and the United States.

The Cadbury Creme Egg brand is available annually from New Year�� Day to Easter Day. It is sold in Australia, Canada, New Zealand the United Kingdom and the United States. Carte Noire is the coffee brand in France. It is sold in France, Ireland, Russia, Ukraine and the United Kingdom. Chips Ahoy! cookies are chocolate chip cookies packed with chocolate chips. It is sold in Brazil, Canada, China, Ecuador, Mexico, Philippines, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Spain, the United States and Venezuela. Club Social is a cracker in Brazil and Latin America. The newest addition to the Club Social family is Club Social chips in Argentina, available in original, parmesano, and cream and onion flavors. Cote d'Or is a chocolate brand sold in Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Middle East, Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Cadbury Dairy Milk is a milk chocolate bar sold in 33 countries, including Australia, Canada, India, Ireland, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, and available in more than! 23 varieties, like fruit and nut, WholeNut, Snack, Caramello and Breakaway. Dentyne is a gum to aid in oral hygiene sold in Canada and the United States.

Cadbury Flake is chocolate bars sold in Australia, Egypt, Ireland, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Gevalia brand offers more than 50 varieties of coffee and 20 choices of tea, and sold in the United States, Denmark, Finland, Sweden and the United States. Grand Mere coffee brand is sold at France. Green & Black�� is a chocolate brand and also includes gift chocolates, ice cream, biscuits and hot beverages. Halls is sold as a cold relief product. Halls is used as a refreshing candy. Halls products are available in more than 26 flavors.

Hollywood gum is a chewing gum in France. Jacobs coffee is sold throughout Europe and the Middle East, and in Austria, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Ukraine. Jacobs is available in roast and ground, whole beans, soluble crystals, coffee pods and flavored mixes. Kenco coffee is a coffee brand sold in Ireland and the United Kingdom. Lacta is a chocolate in Brazil. It also includes Bis chocolate wafers, Sonho de Valsa pralines and Lacta white chocolate.

LU biscuits are available in 100 countries. Other international brands under the LU name include Petit Dejuener, Mikado, Pepito (Mini Stars), Cracotte, Ourson and Tuc. Milka is a European chocolate. Marabou is a chocolate brand in Sweden. Nabisco�� brands include cookies and crackers. Nabisco 100 Calorie Packs includes 12 varieties, such as Chips Ahoy! Thin Crisps, Oreo Thin Crisps, Lorna Doone Shortbread Cookie Crisps, Ritz Snack Mix, Planters Peanut Butter Cookie Crisps, Kraft Cheese Nips Thin Crisps, Wheat Thins Multigrain Chips, Ritz Chips, Honey Maid Cinnamon Thin Crisps, Mini Teddy Grahams Cinnamon Cubs, Alpha-Bits Mini Cookies and Barnum�� Animals Choco Crackers.

Nutter Butter are sandwich cookies sold in the United States. Nilla wafers include original, reduced-fat and mini wafers. Newtons! are whol! esome snack made with real fruit. It also offers Newtons Fruit Thins and Fruit Crisps. The Natural Confectionery Company is a candy product. Onko offers coffee mixes in cappuccino flavors.

Oreo is a milk favorite cookie. Oreo is available in many flavors and varieties, such as chocolate covered, wafers, pie crusts and soft snack cakes. Premium saltine crackers come in six varieties, including unsalted tops, original, fat-free, low-sodium, soup and oyster and multi-grain. Prince biscuits are available in more than eight countries, including Algeria, Austria, Belgium, China, France, Germany, Netherlands and Spain. Prince biscuits come in creme-filled sandwiches, rolls and chocolate-covered varieties.

Stimorol is a chewing gum brand in Northern Europe, as well as 40 other markets from Greenland to Fiji. Simmenthal is a canned meat in jelly. Simmenthal�� products include beef in jelly with chili and chicken in jelly with curry. Tang is available in more than 30 countries and is a powdered beverage. Tassimo is a hot beverage system, which helps in making coffee, tea, hot chocolate, cappuccino, espresso and lattes. Toblerone is a Swiss chocolate bar made with honey and almond nougat. Trakinas is a creme-filled sandwich cookie.

Trident is a chewing gum brand in the world. Triscuit varieties include original, reduced fat, cheddar, cracked pepper and olive oil, fire roasted tomato and olive oil, garden herb, deli-style rye, roasted garlic, thin crisps, and rosemary and olive oil. Wheat Thins are wheat crackers in a variety of flavors, including sundried tomato and basil, multigrain and parmesan basil.

10 Best Industrial Disributor Stocks To Own Right Now: Lindeteves-jacoberg Ltd (L15.SI)

Lindeteves-Jacoberg Limited, an investment holding company, engages in the distribution of electric motors and components. The company sells its products under Brook Motors, Brook Crompton, Western Electricm, and Fumex trademarks in Singapore, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Europe, North America, and the Middle East Asia. It also licenses its Brook Crompton trade mark. The company was incorporated in 1947 and is based in Singapore. As of May 3, 2006, Lindeteves-Jacoberg Limited operates as a subsidiary of ATB Austria Antriebstechnik AG.

10 Best Industrial Disributor Stocks To Own Right Now: Petroleum Resources Corporation(PEO)

Petroleum & Resources Corporation operates as a nondiversified investment company. It primarily invests in the equity of energy and natural resource companies. The company also has investments in various sectors, including energy, services, basic industries, and paper and forest products. Petroleum & Resources was founded in 1929 and is based in Baltimore, Maryland.

10 Best Industrial Disributor Stocks To Own Right Now: Esprinet(PRT.MI)

Esprinet S.p.A. engages in the wholesale distribution of information technology (IT) and consumer electronics primarily in Italy and Spain. It distributes business to business (B2B) IT and consumer electronic products, including traditional IT products comprising desktop PCs, PC notebooks, printers, photocopiers, servers, and standard software; consumables, such as cartridges, tapes, toners, and magnetic supports; and networking products consisting of modems, routers, and switches; and state-of-the-art digital and entertainment products that include photo cameras, video cameras, videogames, LCD TVs, handhelds, and MP3 readers. The company also provides B2B micro-electronic components, which comprise semiconductors, passive components, connections, displays, and sub-systems for industrial applications to the original equipment and contract electronic manufacturers. In addition, it distributes business to consumer IT and consumer electronics products, including personal comp uting, printers, audio-video, accessories, photography, telephony, air-conditioning, and electric household appliances to private consumers through the online. The company is headquartered in Nova Milanese, Italy.

10 Best Industrial Disributor Stocks To Own Right Now: Advance Auto Parts Inc(AAP)

Advance Auto Parts, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as a retailer of automotive aftermarket parts, accessories, batteries, and maintenance items. It operates in two segments, Advance Auto Parts (AAP) and Autopart International (AI). The AAP segment operates stores, which primarily offer auto parts, including alternators, batteries, chassis parts, clutches, engines and engine parts, radiators, starters, transmissions, and water pumps; accessories comprising floor mats, mirrors, vent shades, MP3 and cell phone accessories, and seat and steering wheel covers; chemicals consisting of antifreeze, freon, fuel additives, and car washes and waxes; and oil and other automotive petroleum products. This segment also provides battery and wiper installation, battery charging, check engine light reading, electrical system testing, video clinics and project brochures, loaner tool programs, and oil and battery recycling services; and sells its products through online. The AI segm ent operates stores that offer replacement parts for domestic and imported cars, and light trucks to customers in northeast and mid-Atlantic regions, as well as to warehouse distributors and jobbers in North America. As of January 1, 2011, the company operated 3,369 AAP stores, including 3,343 stores located in the northeastern, southeastern, and Midwestern regions of the United States under the Advance Auto Parts and Advance Discount Auto Parts trade names; 26 stores situated in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands under the Advance Auto Parts and Western Auto trade names; and 194 stores under the Autopart International trade name in the United States. It serves do-it-yourself, do-it-for-me, or commercial customers. The company was founded in 1929 and is based in Roanoke, Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Vatalyst]

  Advance Auto Parts (AAP) is the second largest parts retailer in the U.S. The common stock currently trades at a price to earnings ratio sits at 12.5, below its historical average of 16 and industry average of 15.7.

  Typical of Wall Street short term thinking, the madding crowd fled this stock in May, due to weak first quarter 2011 comparable store sales gain of 1.4% versus an 8.9% gain during December 2010. Price to book ratio is 4.57 whilst price to cash flow sits at 7.70, well below the industry average of 11.2.

10 Best Industrial Disributor Stocks To Own Right Now: Empower Technologies Corporatio (EPT.V)

Empower Technologies Corporation develops and provides Linux-based embedded system technologies and solutions for the consumer electronics industry and the intelligent appliance markets primarily in Canada, the United States, and Asia. The company offers Linux Embedded Operating Systems (LEOs), an embedded hardware platform that allows product developers and manufacturers to create their own software and embedded hardware, or integrate the company�s software or hardware for their own products. Its products comprise EDK6446, a development kit for the DaVinci DM6446, which is used for media devices in the mobile, set-top-box, and telematic applications; SBC6446/3/1, a single board computer powered by the TI DaVinci dual core SoC; EMP3530/03-SDK, a development kit for single board media computers; EMP3530 and EMP3503 single board media computers; iPOS1000 and iPOS1100 automated sales assistant systems for managing the interaction between customers and products; and BE1000, a real time video motion stabilizer for translational and rotational motions. The company also provides various design and manufacturing, original equipment manufacturer and original design manufacturer, turnkey product development, contract manufacturing, engineering and consulting, and system integration services. Its target customers include product developers and manufacturers in the digital signage and interactive kiosk, security and surveillance, military, automotive and transportation, RFID, healthcare, industrial control, and consumer electronics sectors. The company was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Richmond, Canada.

10 Best Industrial Disributor Stocks To Own Right Now: Apollo Investment Corporation(AINV)

Apollo Investment Corporation is business development company and operates as a closed-end management investment company. The company invests in middle market companies. It provides direct equity capital, mezzanine and senior secured loans, and subordinated debt and loans. It also seeks to invest in PIPES transactions. The company may also invest in public companies that are thinly traded and may acquire investments in the secondary market. It prefers to invest in warrants, makes equity co-investments, and may also invest in cash equivalents, U.S. government securities, high-quality debt investments that mature in one year or less, high-yield bonds, distressed debt, non-U.S. investments, or securities of public companies that are not thinly traded. The company typically invests in building materials, business services, cable television, chemicals, consumer products, direct marketing, distribution, energy and utilities, financial services, healthcare, manufacturing, media, publishing, retail and transportation. It primarily invests between $20 million and $250 million in its portfolio companies. The company seeks to make investments with stated maturities of five to ten years.

10 Best Industrial Disributor Stocks To Own Right Now: Axcelis Technologies Inc.(ACLS)

Axcelis Technologies, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and services ion implantation, dry strip, and other processing equipment used in the fabrication of semiconductor chips in the United States, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. It offers a line of high energy, high current, and medium current ion implanters for various applications, such as line of single wafer implanters, known as the Optima platform, comprising the Optima XE, the Optima HD, and the Optima MD. The company also offers dry strip tools, including the Integra RS, which comprises paired-chamber process modules. In addition, it provides aftermarket services and support, such as spare parts, equipment upgrades, maintenance services, and customer training. The company sells its equipment and services through direct sales force, distributors, and manufacturing representatives. Axcelis Technologies was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Beverly, Massachusetts.

Pfizer to Sell Manufacturing Facility to UPM

5 Hits From a Stock Screen

The latest issue of the T. Rowe Price Report includes an interview with David Giroux, manager of Price's Capital Appreciation Fund, who wraps up the article with some advice: "Focus on companies with 2% to 3% dividend yields that have high-quality business models and trade for no more than 15 times earnings."

That sounds like the makings of a stock screen. The Motley Fool's CAPS Screener found 136 stocks that meet the dividend and P/E ratio criteria. Unfortunately, there's no "high-quality business model" parameter, so I thinned the results to stocks with a four- or five-star rating from our CAPS community. That cut the field to 79 names from the seven sectors shown below.

The table below lists five of the stocks -- one from each of the five sectors with the most hits.

Company	Current Dividend Yield	P/E (TTM)	CAPS Rating (out of 5)	Sector
Aflac (NYSE: AFL  )	2.5%	8.7	*****	Financial
HollyFrontier (NYSE: HFC  )	2.5%	5.5	*****	Basic materials
CSX (NYSE: CSX  )	2.4%	14.1	*****	Services
Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  )	2.7%	10.6	****	Consumer goods
Illinois Tool Works (NYSE: ITW  )	2.2%	12	*****	Industrial goods

Source: Motley Fool CAPS Screener. TTM = trailing 12 months.

HollyFrontier is an oil refiner. The trailing P/E looks like deep-value territory, but analyst estimates going forward bump the ratio up to nine -- still not expensive. With a payout ratio of only 37%, Holly has some cushion to maintain and grow the dividend. The company has increased the dividend five times since 2011 and authorized two $350 million share buybacks last year.

Apple wouldn't have made this list a year ago. A new dividend started last year, and a recent dividend hike and a stock price retreat over the past several months have put Apple squarely into the yield and valuation range recommended by Giroux. In addition to the dividend hike, Apple increased its share buyback authorization from $10 billion to $60 billion in April. As for a high-quality business model, I suspect a high percentage of the folks reading this -- perhaps even both of you -- are doing so on an Apple device.

Cue the duck. Aflac waddles in with a nice dividend and value territory multiple. The insurance company is also a member of Standard & Poor's Dividend Aristocrats -- S&P 500 members that have raised their dividends every year for at least 25 years. Only 53 other companies are in the club. Aflac generates most of its revenue from operations in Japan and currency rates are likely to be a drag on earnings as long as the Bank of Japan is aggressively easing.

Illinois Tool Works produces industrial goods and equipment. It's another Dividend Aristocrat, which is pretty impressive for an industrial company with product demand tied to the economy's ups and downs. In addition to the dividend track record, the company bought back $366 million worth of shares in the first quarter and expects to buy about another $500 million over the rest of 2013.

CSX rolls into the list with a track record of annual dividend hikes dating back to 2005. With a payout ratio of only 31% and company projections of 10%-15% earnings-per-share growth through 2015, it has room to keep the raises coming. In addition, CSX has a two-year, $1 billion share buyback plan.

Screen results should always be considered a starting point for further research, not an outright buy signal. If you want to run this screen for yourself, or with different settings, click on over to our screener and play around a bit.

If you're on the lookout for high-yielding stocks, The Motley Fool has compiled a special free report outlining our nine top dependable dividend-paying stocks. It's called "Secure Your Future With 9 Rock-Solid Dividend Stocks." You can access your copy today at no cost! Just click here.

Earnings Round-Up: The Midstream Industry's Strong Q1

Now that almost all of our favorite midstream companies have reported first-quarter earnings, it's time to take a look at the group's performance as a whole. Today we'll recap a few big winners and losers, and make note of any trends that could affect your investments.

Winners
Given the current state of U.S. energy production, most midstream companies are winners these days. Kinder Morgan Energy Partners (NYSE: KMP  ) got things started off on the right foot, reporting in mid-April and beating expectations on revenue and EPS. Here are some highlights from around the industry:

Buckeye Partners (NYSE: BPL  )  trounced analyst expectations on the top and bottom lines, and recorded a distribution coverage ratio of 1.21 times payouts, allowing the partnership to boost its distribution. DCP Midstream Partners' (NYSE: DCP  )  distributable cash flow popped 40% year over year, and the partnership completed its Eagle Ford dropdown transaction with parent company DCP Midstream, boosting its stake in the lucrative South Texas shale play. Boardwalk Energy Partners' (NYSE: BWP  )  operating revenue and net income increased 5% and 10% year over year. More importantly, distributable cash flow popped 24%, though the partnership elected to hold the distribution flat quarter over quarter. Energy Transfer Partners (NYSE: ETP  )  had no distribution increase either, but things are looking better than they have in a while. Production in the Eagle Ford Shale is driving growth at ETP, and the partnership is reorganizing into an operation that is stronger and more diverse than ever before.

Very strong results here, now let's take a look at some midstream companies that didn't perform as well.

Participation trophies
Enbridge Energy Partners and ONEOK Partners have seen better days. Enbridge Energy reported a net income loss of $67.7 million. Volumes on its liquids pipelines were flat, but low NGL prices crushed earnings. On top of that, certain crude oil systems are suffering mightily, particularly EEP's North Dakota lines, were volumes were cut in half because producers are opting to utilize rail transportation.

ONEOK Partners watched its distributable cash flow plummet more than $80 million, year over year. It too was stung by low NGL prices, as operating income in that segment fell $40 million. As you might have guessed, the effect of low NGL prices is one of our industry trends, so let's take a closer look.

Trends
Diversity is absolutely crucial in the midstream business, and Enbridge Energy Partners can testify to that. The price of natural gas liquids remains depressed, and many of these companies take possession of their NGLs at one stage or another, resulting in slumping margins that hurt the bottom line. While this trend hit different companies in different ways -- and you should know exactly how it could hurt yours -- the bigger midstream entities mitigated the loss with multiple revenue streams.

For example, Kinder Morgan got pinched by NGL prices in its CO2 segment. The company produces NGLs out in the Permian Basin, and therefore is very much on the hook for low prices. However, this segment still grew 1% year over year because production growth hit a record high, and this segment also includes the partnership's crude oil production. Plus, KMP has four other business segments that make serious contributions to its results and help mitigate the NGL pricing pain.

Again, the big, diverse companies like Kinder Morgan and Enterprise Products Partners had a much easier time compensating for these losses than Enbridge and ONEOK.

That point leads us into our next trend. Fee-based business is on the rise in the midstream industry. By securing fee-based transportation or processing contracts, midstream companies avoid commodity risk altogether, which explains why almost every midstream project coming online -- pipelines, terminals, treatment centers, fractionators, etc -- is doing so supported by fee-based agreements.

Enterprise Products Partners drove its Eagle Ford fee-based business up 38% alone in the first quarter. Management is reporting that the overall fee-based increases at Enterprise are enough to mitigate commodity risk in its other segments. Again, size and diversity are crucial here.

Plains All American is another midstream that had a very strong first-quarter, and continues to pump its cash into building up its fee-based business. Management is dedicating 99% of its capital expenditures to fee-based projects, so don't expect this trend to die down anytime soon.

Foolish takeaway
It was a very strong first quarter for the most part, and the midstream industry remains full of some excellent opportunities for investors. For the next few years, the strongest, best-run companies in this bunch are going to continue to crank out excellent results based on the surge in domestic energy production.

Let's not forget the best part about our midstream investments: yield. Things are looking up at Energy Transfer Partners, and its payout is about 7% right now. To see if ETP and its sizable dividend payment could be a good fit for your portfolio, you're invited to check out The Motley Fool's premium research report on the company. Simply click here now for a thorough expert analysis of this midstream company.

Best Cheapest Stocks To Watch Right Now

Bank stocks were the last place any investor wanted to be during the financial crisis. However, as balance sheets have improved, bank stocks have gone on an impressive run. Despite the recent gains, many of the big banks are still trading at deep discounts when compared to their historical valuations.

In this video, Motley Fool banking analysts Matt Koppenheffer and David Hanson identify which banks are the cheapest and debate how much upside these megabanks have over the next five years.�

Bank of America's stock doubled in 2012. Is there more yet to come? With significant challenges still ahead, it's critical to have a solid understanding of this megabank before adding it to your portfolio. In The Motley Fool's premium research report on B of A, analysts Anand Chokkavelu, CFA, and Matt Koppenheffer, Financials bureau chief, lift the veil on the bank's operations, including detailing three reasons to buy and three reasons to sell. Click here now to claim your copy.

Best Cheapest Stocks To Watch Right Now: Medivation Inc.(MDVN)

Medivation, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development of small molecule drugs for the treatment of castration-resistant prostate cancer, Alzheimer?s disease, and Huntington disease. The company?s product candidates under clinical development include MDV3100, which is in Phase 3 development for the treatment of castration-resistant prostate cancer; and dimebon, which is in Phase 3 clinical trial for the treatment of Alzheimer?s disease and Huntington disease. It has collaboration agreements with Pfizer Inc. to develop and commercialize dimebon; and Astellas Pharma Inc. to develop and commercialize MDV3100. The company was founded in 2003 and is based in San Francisco, California.

Best Cheapest Stocks To Watch Right Now: Northwest Natural Gas Company(NWN)

Northwest Natural Gas Company stores and distributes natural gas primarily in Oregon, Washington, and California. The company operates in two segments, Local Gas Distribution and Gas Storage. The Local Gas Distribution segment distributes natural gas in Oregon and southwest Washington. The Local Gas Distribution segment distributes natural gas in Oregon and southwest Washington. This segment engages in building and maintaining pipeline distribution system, purchasing gas from producers and marketers, contracting for the transportation of gas over pipelines from the supply basins to service territory, and reselling the gas to customers. It also transports gas owned by customers from the interstate pipeline connection, or city gate, to the customers? facilities. This segment serves various industries, including pulp, paper, and other forest products; companies manufacturing electronic, electrochemical, and electrometallurgical products; companies engaged in processing of fa rm and food products; metal fabrication and casting companies; organizations that produce various mineral products, machine tools, machinery, and textiles; companies that manufacture asphalt, concrete, and rubber; printing and publishing companies; nurseries; government and educational institutions; and electric generation companies. It has approximately 674,000 utility customers comprising approximately 611,000 residential, 62,000 commercial, and 1,000 industrial customers. The Gas Storage segment offers underground natural gas storage services to interstate and intrastate customers. It holds interests in approximately 9,900 net acres of underground natural gas storage in Oregon and approximately 5,000 net acres of underground natural gas storage in California. This segment serves primarily natural gas distribution, electric generation, and energy marketing companies. The company was founded in 1910 and is headquartered in Portland, Oregon.

Top Freight Stocks To Buy For 2014: Pepsico Inc.(PEP)

PepsiCo, Inc. engages in the manufacture, marketing, and sale of foods, snacks, and carbonated and non-carbonated beverages worldwide. The company operates in four divisions: PepsiCo Americas Foods (PAF); PepsiCo Americas Beverages (PAB); PepsiCo Europe; and PepsiCo Asia, Middle East, and Africa (AMEA). The PAF division offers Lay?s and Ruffles potato chips, Doritos and Tostitos tortilla chips and dips, Cheetos cheese flavored snacks, Fritos corn chips, Quaker Chewy granola bars, and SunChips multigrain snacks in North America; Quaker oatmeal, Aunt Jemima mixes and syrups, Cap?n Crunch cereal, Quaker grits, and Life cereal, as well as Rice-A-Roni, Pasta Roni, and Near East side dishes in North America; and various snack foods under Doritos, Marias Gamesa, Cheetos, Ruffles, Emperador, Saladitas, Sabritas, and Lay?s brands in Latin America. The PAB division provides carbonated soft drinks, beverage concentrates, fountain syrups, and finished goods under Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, 7UP, Tropicana Pure Premium, Electropura, Sierra Mist, Epura, and Mirinda brands; ready-to-drink tea, coffee, and water products through joint ventures with Unilever and Starbucks; and sells concentrate to authorized bottlers, and branded finished goods directly to independent distributors and retailers. This division also manufactures third-party brands, such as Dr Pepper, Crush, Rock Star, and Muscle Milk. The PepsiCo Europe division offers Frito Lay Snacks, Pepsi-Cola beverages, Gatorade sports drinks, Tropicana juices, and Quaker foods in Europe. The AMEA division provides snack food under the Lay?s, Kurkure, Chipsy, Doritos, Smith?s, Cheetos, Red Rock Deli, and Ruffles brands; Quaker-brand cereals and snacks; and beverage concentrates, fountain syrups, and finished goods under the Pepsi, Mirinda, 7UP, and Mountain Dew brands. PepsiCo, Inc. was founded in 1898 and is headquartered in Purchase, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By ETF Authority]

  Unlike its competitor, PepsiCo has a large exposure to the food industry. This has helped the company generate strong performance over the past decade versus Coca-Cola. I personally prefer the taste of Coke over Pepsi, however, and many consumers seem to have similar taste buds. PepsiCo tends to make large acquisitions, which have worked so far. Sometimes it tends to overpay them, like the recent acquisition of Wimm-Bill-Dann. PepsiCo is cheaper than Coca-Cola, and both have similar near-term prospects.

• [By Hesler]

  PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) engages in the manufacture, marketing, and sale of foods, snacks, and carbonated and non-carbonated beverages worldwide. The company has raised distributions for 39 years in a row. The 10 year annual dividend growth rate is 13%/year. The last dividend increase was 7.30% to 51.50 cents/share. Analysts are expecting that PepsiCo will earn $4.65/share in 2012. I expect that the quarterly dividend will reach 55 cents/share in 2012. Yield: 3.20%

Are All S&P 500 ETFs the Same?

The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC  ) is the benchmark by which thousands of money managers overseeing trillions of dollars in assets are judged. For passive index investors who believe that active management doesn't add value over the long run, choosing index-tracking exchange-traded funds tied to the S&P 500 helps them meet their goal of matching the market's overall return.

But many different ETFs track the S&P 500. Which one makes the most sense for you? Let's look at some of the more popular S&P 500-tracking ETFs to pinpoint their differences.

A look at three top S&P ETFs
The biggest S&P-tracking ETF is the SPDR S&P 500 (NYSEMKT: SPY  ) , affectionately known as the Spiders. It was the first exchange-traded fund product to gain widespread use, and it's now a giant in the industry, with $140 billion under management. Its expense ratio is 0.09%, and with average volume of about 133 million shares daily, the Spiders trade $22 billion worth of shares each day -- meaning it takes less than seven days for the entire outstanding share-count to turn over.

Much smaller is the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (NYSEMKT: IVV  ) . With about $43 billion under management, the iShares ETF comes with lower expenses of 0.07%, but much lower average daily volume of just 3.8 million shares. Like the Spiders, its share price roughly corresponds to a tenth of the value of the S&P 500 index.

Finally, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSEMKT: VOO  ) rounds out the major S&P ETFs. Unlike the other two ETFs, its share price bears no resemblance to the index's actual value. With less than $10 billion under management and barely 1.1 million shares trading hands each day, it's also the least liquid of the three ETFs. Yet its expense ratio of 0.05% is also the lowest of the three.

Does an S&P 500 ETF by any other name perform as well?
From a performance standpoint, all three of these ETFs perform the way you'd expect, with returns that trail the S&P 500 index by roughly the amount of their respective expense ratios over the long run. From year to year, ETFs sometimes manage to do better or worse than that expected return, as trading strategies and handling special events like additions and deletions from the index introduce some variables.

For investors, though, you also have to incorporate trading costs, both in the form of commissions and bid-ask spreads. With the largest number of shares and greatest trading volume, the SPDR ETF has the narrowest spreads and the most consistent liquidity. But the iShares ETF also does a relatively good job of keeping bid-ask spreads relatively narrow. Spreads for the Vanguard ETF tend to be higher, making it a more costly choice if you trade frequently, as a $0.01 greater spread amounts to about 0.13% -- or more than two years' worth of expenses for that ETF.

Finally, in considering costs, keep in mind that some companies offer commission-free trading for certain ETFs. Vanguard offers its ETF at no commission, while Fidelity and TD Ameritrade both offer the iShares ETF commission-free.

Choosing the right ETF
In the end, which S&P ETF you pick isn't likely to make a huge difference to your total return. Nevertheless, understanding the differences between similar ETFs is helpful not just in evaluating these ETFs but also in identifying the issues you should look at when you're looking to invest in any ETF.

To learn more about a few ETFs that have great promise for delivering profits to shareholders, check out The Motley Fool's special free report "3 ETFs Set to Soar." Just click here to access it now.

Top 5 Dividend Companies To Watch In Right Now

On Tuesday, Ernest Moniz testified in front of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee in hopes of being confirmed as the next U.S. Energy Secretary. Given that there seems to be bipartisan support for him taking up the position, investors should know where he stands on key issues. In this video, Fool.com contributor Aimee Duffy talks to fellow contributor Tyler Crowe about the decisions Moniz will face when he takes up the post, like whether or not the U.S. should export natural gas, and whether alternative energy companies should be allowed to utilize the master limited partnership business structure.

Master limited partnerships like Energy Transfer Partners dominate the midstream industry and delight investors with their high yields. To see if ETP and its sizable dividend payment could be a good fit for your portfolio, you're invited to check out The Motley Fool's premium research report on the company. Simply click here now for a thorough expert analysis of this midstream company.

Top 5 Dividend Companies To Watch In Right Now: Summit State Bank(SSBI)

Summit State Bank operates as a community bank in Sonoma, Napa, San Francisco, and Marin Counties in California. It offers deposit accounts, such as transaction accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, time deposit accounts, business checking accounts, time certificates of deposit, sweep accounts, and specialized deposit accounts, including professional, small business packaged, and tiered accounts for larger deposits, and Keogh and IRA accounts. The company also provides commercial and industrial lines of credit and term loans, credit lines to individuals, equipment loans, real estate and construction loans, small business loans, and business lines of credit; consumer loans, including auto loans, mortgage loans, home improvement loans, and home equity lines of credit; and loans for accounts receivable and inventory financing, loans to agriculture-related businesses, and equipment and expansion financing programs. In addition, it offers banking by appointment, on line and telephone banking services, direct payroll and social security deposits, letters of credit, access to national automated teller machine networks, courier services, safe deposit boxes, night depository facilities, notary services, travelers? checks, lockbox, and banking by mail. Further, the company, through its subsidiary, Alto Service Corporation, provides deed of trust services. It serves small-to medium-sized businesses, professionals and professional associations, entrepreneurs, high net worth families, foundations, estates, and individual consumers. The company operated five offices in Santa Rosa, Petaluma, Rohnert Park, and Healdsburg. Summit State Bank was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Santa Rosa, California.

Top 5 Dividend Companies To Watch In Right Now: Vivo Participacoes S.A.(VIV)

Telecomunicacoes de Sao Paulo S.A.-TELESP provides fixed-line telecommunications services to residential and commercial customers in the state of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Its services include local voice services, such as activation, monthly subscription, measured service, and public telephones; intraregional, interregional, and international long-distance voice services; data services comprising broadband services; pay TV services through direct to home satellite technology and land based wireless technology multichannel multipoint distribution service; and network services, such as interconnection and rental of facilities, as well as other services consisting of extended maintenance, caller identification, voice mail, cell phone blockers, computer support, and antivirus for Internet service subscribers. The company also offers multimedia communication services, such as audio, data, voice and other sounds, images, and texts and other information. In addition, it provides interc onnection services to cellular service providers and other fixed telecommunications companies through the use of its network. Further, the company offers telecommunications solutions and IT support designed to address the needs and requirements of companies operating various types of industries, including retail, manufacturing, services, financial institutions, and government. Telecomunicacoes de Sao Paulo S.A.-TELESP provides its products and services through person-to-person sales, telesales, indirect channels, Internet, and door-to-door sales. As of December 31, 2010, its telephone network included 11.3 million fixed lines in service, including residential, commercial, and public telephone lines; 3.3 million broadband clients; and 0.5 million pay TV clients. The company was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Telecomunicacoes de Sao Paulo S.A.-TELESP is a subsidiary of Telefonica S.A.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Kennedy]

  Vivo Participacoes (VIV) is acting within the wireless communications industry. The company has a market capitalization of $34.3 billion, generates revenues in an amount of $9.9 billion and a net income of $1.5 billion. It follows P/E ratio is 10.4 and forward price to earnings ratio 10.4, Price/Sales 3.5 and Price/Book ratio 2.4. Dividend Yield: 11.8 percent. The return on equity amounts to 21.6 percent.

Top High Tech Stocks To Buy Right Now: New York Mortgage Trust Inc.(NYMT)

New York Mortgage Trust, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a real estate investment trust (REIT) in the United States. The company engages in acquiring, investing, financing, and managing mortgage-related assets. It primarily invests in agency residential adjustable-rate, hybrid adjustable-rate, and fixed-rate mortgage-backed securities (RMBS); non-Agency RMBS; prime adjustable-rate residential mortgage loans held in securitization trusts; commercial mortgage-backed securities; commercial mortgage loans; and other commercial real estate-related debt investments. The company has elected to be taxed as a REIT and will not be subject to federal income tax if it distributes at least 90% of its REIT taxable income to its stockholders. New York Mortgage Trust, Inc. was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Top 5 Dividend Companies To Watch In Right Now: Qualstar Corporation(QBAK)

Qualstar Corporation designs, develops, manufactures, and sells automated magnetic tape libraries used to store, retrieve, and manage electronic data primarily in network computing environments worldwide. Its tape libraries consists of cartridge tape drives, tape cartridges, and robotics to move the cartridges from their storage locations to the tape drives under software control. The tape libraries also provide data storage solutions for organizations requiring backup, recovery, and archival storage of critical electronic information. The company also offers ancillary products related to its tape libraries, such as tape media, tape magazines, cables, bar code labels, and fiber channel adapters. In addition, it designs, develops, and sells switching power supplies that are used to convert alternate current line voltage to direct current voltages for use in electronic equipment, such as telecommunications equipment, servers, routers, switches, lighting, and gaming devices. Qualstar Corporation sells its tape drive products primarily to value added resellers and original equipment manufacturers, as well as switching power supplies primarily to original equipment manufacturers, contract manufacturers, and distributors. The company was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Simi Valley, California.

Top 5 Dividend Companies To Watch In Right Now: 21st Century Holding Company(TCHC)

21st Century Holding Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in insurance underwriting, distribution, and claims processing primarily in the United States. The company underwrites homeowners? multi-peril, personal umbrella, commercial general liability, commercial excess liability, personal and commercial automobile, fire, allied lines, workers? compensation, business personal property, and commercial inland marine insurance. It also provides premium financing to its insured?s, as well as third party insured?s. The company markets and distributes its own and third-party insurer?s products and other services through contractual relationships with independent agents, and general agents. 21st Century Holding Company was founded in 1991 and is based in Lauderdale Lakes, Florida.

Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014

At Tier 1 Investments, I seek out and invest in elite businesses. These include companies with the most valuable brands, best management, superior products and services, and strongest competitive advantages.

You may have heard your friends refer to Whole Foods (NASDAQ: WFM  ) as "whole paycheck," in reference to its high prices. Whether that's a bad rap or not, perceptions can damage a brand. But can the grocery stalwart clear out this bruised fruit without getting into a defensive price-war?

It's hard to believe that a grocery store could book investors more than 30 times their initial investment, but that's just what Whole Foods has done for those who saw the organic trend coming some 20 years ago. However, it may not be too late to participate in the long-term growth of this organic foods powerhouse. In this brand-new premium report on the company, we walk through the key must-know items for every Whole Foods investor, including the main opportunities and threats facing the company. So make sure to claim your copy today by clicking here.

Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: Empire Oil & Gas NL (EGO.AX)

Empire Oil and Gas NL, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas in Australia. It primarily holds interests in 11 permits covering 3.6 million acres in the Perth basin in Western Australia. The company also has interests in permits in the Carnarvon and Canning basins in Western Australia. Empire Oil and Gas NL is based in Claremont, Australia.

Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: Dollar Financial Corp.(DLLR)

DFC Global Corp. provides retail financial services to unbanked and under-banked consumers, and small businesses. Its primary products and services include short-term consumer loans, single-payment consumer loans, check cashing services, secured pawn loans, and gold buying services. The company also provides other retail services and products comprising money order and money transfer products, foreign currency exchange, VISA and MasterCard branded reloadable debit cards, electronic tax filing, bill payment, and prepaid local and long-distance phone services. In addition, it offers military installment loan and education services, such as fee based services to enlisted military personnel applying for loans to purchase new and used vehicles. The company provides its products and services through storefront locations, as well as via the Internet. As of August 25, 2011, it operated through a network of approximately 1,300 retail storefront locations. It operates its locations principally under the Money Mart, The Money Shop, mce, Insta-Cheques, Suttons and Robertson, The Check Cashing Store, Sefina, Helsingin Panttism, Optima, and Money Now in Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, Poland, the Republic of Ireland, Sweden, and Finland. The company was formerly known as Dollar Financial Corp. and changed its name to DFC Global Corp. in August 2011. DFC Global Corp. was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in Berwyn, Pennsylvania.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Robert Holmes]

  Company Profile: Formerly known as Dollar Financial, DFC Global offers financial services to unbanked and under-banked consumers and small business owners, many of whom receive income on an irregular basis or from multiple employers.

  Share Price: $18.87 (Dec. 6)

  2011 Return: -1.2%

  Investment Thesis: William Blair analysts don't mince words when talking about DFC Global; They argue the market opportunity is "significant" and that business trends are strong and accelerating in the U.K. and Europe and remain solid in U.S. and Canada.

  "We believe DFC is well positioned to provide alternative financial services to the 2.5 billion underserved/underbanked consumers worldwide (about 60 million in the United States) given its diverse product offering, geographic diversity, and strong balance sheet," the analysts write.

  They add that DFC's recent acquisitions provide platforms for growth. "We believe DFC's acquisition pipeline remains active and that DFC will focus primarily on using its recent U.K. and Scandinavian pawn acquisitions as platforms for expansion in existing and adjacent European markets," they add.

  Shares of DFC have fallen hard in recent weeks due to regulatory concerns in the U.K., although William Blair analysts say the selloff is overdone. "A November 2011 review published by HM Treasury increases our conviction that the U.K. government wants to make sure consumers have access to high cost loans with proper disclosures," they add.

Best Canadian Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Rathbone Bros.(RAT.L)

Rathbone Brothers Plc, through its subsidiaries, provides investment management services and related professional advice to private individuals, trustees, charities, pension funds, and professional advisers in the United Kingdom and Jersey. The company offers discretionary, charity, and ethical investment management, as well as unit trusts, tax planning, trust and company management, pension advice, and banking services. Its trust and tax services consist of taxation services, such as compliance and planning; probate services; trust services, including trust formation, administration, accounting and provision of trustees, and protectors; and family office services. The company also provides financial planning, private banking, offshore fund management, and trust administration services. In addition, it offers self-invested personal pensions administration services. Rathbone Brothers was founded in 1742 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: Central European Media Enterprises Ltd.(CETV)

Central European Media Enterprises Ltd., a media and entertainment company, operates broadcast, content, and new media businesses in central and eastern Europe. The company operates in three segments: Broadcast, Media Pro Entertainment, and New Media. The Broadcast segment operates 30 television channels reaching an aggregate of approximately 49 million people primarily in 6 countries. It operates television channels, including BTV, BTV CINEMA, BTV COMEDY, RING.BG, BTV ACTION, and BTV LADY, a female-oriented cable channel in Bulgaria; NOVA TV, DOMA, and NOVA WORLD in Croatia; TV NOVA, NOVA CINEMA, NOVA SPORT, and MTV CZECH in the Czech Republic; PRO TV, PRO TV INTERNATIONAL, ACASA, PRO CINEMA, MTV ROMANIA, PRO TV CHISINAU, and SPORT.RO in Romania; TV MARK�A and DOMA in the Slovak Republic; POP TV, KANAL A, and POP BRIO in Slovenia, as well as various radio channels in Bulgaria. The Media Pro Entertainment segment develops, produces, and distributes content for its own te levision channels, as well as to third parties through the theatrical and home video operations; sells DVD and Blu Ray discs to wholesale and retail clients; and distributes theatrical, home entertainment, digital, and television film rights. It also owns and operates 16 cinema screens in Romania. The New Media segment offers television content; and operates various news portals, niche Websites, and television-related Websites. Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. was founded in 1994 and is based in Hamilton, Bermuda.

Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: Validus Holdings Ltd.(VR)

Validus Holdings, Ltd., through its subsidiaries, provides reinsurance and insurance coverage in the property, marine, and specialty lines markets worldwide. The company underwrites property catastrophe reinsurance, property per risk reinsurance, and property pro rata reinsurance products; and reinsurance on marine risks covering damage to or losses of marine vessels and cargo, third-party liability for marine accidents, physical loss, and liability from principally offshore energy properties. It also underwrites specialty lines of business, which include aerospace and aviation, agriculture, terrorism, life, accident and health, financial lines, nuclear, workers? compensation catastrophe, crisis management, political risks and violence, war, and contingency. The company was founded in 2005 and is based in Pembroke, Bermuda.

Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: Mission West Properties Inc.(MSW)

Mission West Properties, Inc. engages in the acquisition, marketing, leasing, and management of research and development properties, primarily in the Silicon Valley portion of the San Francisco Bay Area. As of December 31, 2006, it owned or managed 107 properties, totaling approximately 7.7 million rentable square feet of research and development properties through limited partnerships. Mission West Properties qualifies as a REIT for federal income tax purposes. As a REIT, it would not be subject to federal income tax to the extent that it distributes at least 90% of its REIT taxable income to its shareholders. The company was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in Cupertino, California.

Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: Orion Marine Group Inc(ORN)

Orion Marine Group, Inc. operates as a marine specialty contractor serving the heavy civil marine infrastructure market. The company provides a range of marine construction and specialty services on, over, and under the water along the Gulf Coast, the Atlantic Seaboard, the West Coast, Canada, the Caribbean Basin, and the Pacific Northwest. The company?s marine construction services include construction of marine transportation facilities, marine pipelines, bridges and causeways, and marine environmental structures. Its marine transportation facility construction projects comprise public port facilities for container ship loading and unloading; cruise ship port facilities; private terminals; recreational use marinas and docks; and other marine-based facilities. Orion Marine Group?s marine pipeline service projects consist of the installation and removal of underwater buried pipeline transmission lines; installation of pipeline intakes and outfalls for industrial facilities ; construction of pipeline outfalls for wastewater and industrial discharges; river crossing and directional drilling; and creation of hot taps and tie-ins. Its bridge and causeway projects include the construction, repair, and maintenance of bridges and causeways, as well as the development of fendering systems in marine environments; and marine environmental structure projects primarily comprise the installation of concrete mattresses to ensure erosion protection, and the installation of geotubes for wetlands and island creation. In addition, the company offers dredging services; specialty services, including salvage, demolition, surveying, towing, diving and underwater inspection, excavation, and repair; and survey services comprising surveying pipelines and performing hydrographic surveys. Its customers include federal, state, and municipal governments, as well as private commercial and industrial enterprises. The company was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Houst on, Texas.

Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: Oil-Dri Corporation Of America(ODC)

Oil-Dri Corporation of America engages in the development, manufacture, and marketing of sorbent products in the United States and internationally. The company offers cat litter products, including coarse and scoopable products under Cat?s Pride and Jonny Cat brands; industrial and automotive sorbent products comprising clay-based, polypropylene-based, and cotton-based sorbent products to absorb oil, grease, water, and chemical spills under the Oil-Dri brand; and bleaching clay and clarification aid products for bleaching, purification, and filtration applications under Pure-Flo, Perform, Select, and Ultra-Clear names. It also provides agricultural and horticultural products consisting of granular and powdered mineral absorbent products that are used as carriers for crop protection chemicals, agricultural drying agents, bulk processing aids, growing media components, and seed enhancement media under Agsorb, Verge, Flo-Fre, and Terra-Green brands. In addition, the company offers animal health and nutrition products, such as enterosorbent products and animal feed binders for the livestock industry under Calibrin, ConditionAde, Pel-Unite, and Pel-Unite Plus names; and sports products for use on baseball, football, and soccer fields under the Pro?s Choice brand. Its customers include mass merchandisers, wholesale clubs, drugstore chains, pet specialty retail outlets, dollar stores, retail grocery stores, distributors of industrial cleanup and automotive products, environmental service companies, and sports field product users; processors and refiners of edible oils, petroleum-based oils, and biodiesel fuel; manufacturers of animal feed and agricultural chemicals; and marketers of consumer products. Oil-Dri Corporation of America sells its products through sales force; food brokers; distributors, including industrial, auto parts, safety, sanitary supply, chemical, and paper distributors; and catalogs. The company was founded in 1941 and is based in Chicago, Illinois.

Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: Wacoal Holdings Corporation (WACLY)

Wacoal Holdings Corp. designs, manufactures, and markets women�s intimate apparel primarily in Japan, the United States, China, Europe, and southeast Asia. It provides foundation garments, including brassieres and girdles; and lingerie, such as slips, bra-slips, and women�s briefs. The company also designs, manufactures, and sells nightwear, children�s underwear, outerwear, sportswear, hosiery, and other apparel and textile products. In addition, it engages in restaurant businesses and cultural projects; the interior design and construction of commercial premises consisting of sales counters operated by sales promoters in department stores and other retailers carrying its apparel; and the manufacture and rental of mannequins and fixtures. The company offers its foundation garments and lingerie products under Wacoal and Wing brand names. Wacoal Holdings Corp. sells its apparel products primarily to general retailers, as well as through a network of specialty retail store s, mail order catalogs, and the Internet. As of March 31, 2012, it operated 122 stores, including 18 factory outlet stores, as well as operated 22 Peach John retail stores. The company was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Kyoto, Japan.

Top 10 Defensive Companies To Invest In 2014: Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc (MTU)

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (MUFJ), incorporated on April 2, 2001, is a holding company for The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. (BTMU), Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation (MUTB), Mitsubishi UFJ Securities Holdings Co., Ltd. (MUSHD), Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co., Ltd.( MUMSS), Mitsubishi UFJ NICOS Co., Ltd. (Mitsubishi UFJ NICOS) and other companies engaged in a range of financial businesses. Its services include commercial banking, trust banking, securities, credit cards, consumer finance, asset management, leasing and fields of financial services. In May 2010, the Company and Morgan Stanley formed two joint ventures in Japan by integrating our respective Japanese securities companies engaged in investment banking and securities businesses. The Company converted the wholesale and retail securities businesses conducted in Japan by the former MUS into one of the joint venture entities, which is named MUMSS. Morgan Stanley contributed the investment banking operations conducted in Japan by its formerly wholly owned subsidiary, Morgan Stanley Japan Securities Co., Ltd. (MSJS) into MUMSS and converted the sales and trading and capital markets businesses conducted in Japan by MSJS into a second joint venture entity called Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities, Co., Ltd.

Integrated Retail Banking Business Group

The Integrated Retail Banking Business Group covers all domestic retail businesses, including commercial banking, trust banking and securities businesses, and enables the Company to offer a range of banking products and services, including financial consulting services, to retail customers in Japan. This business group integrates the retail business of BTMU, MUTB and MUMSS, as well as retail product development, promotion and marketing in a single management structure. Many of its retail services are offered through its network of MUFG Plazas providing individual customers with access to its financial product offerings of integrated commercial b! anking, trust banking and securities services.

The Company offers a range of bank deposit products, including a non-interest-bearing deposit account that is redeemable on demand and intended for payment and settlement functions, and is insured without a maximum amount limitation. It also offers a variety of asset management and asset administration services to individuals, including savings instruments, such as current accounts, ordinary deposits, time deposits, deposits at notice and other deposit facilities. MUFJ also offers trust products, such as loan trusts and money trusts, and other investment products, such as investment trusts, performance-based money trusts and foreign currency deposits.

The Company creates portfolios by combining savings instruments and investment products. It also provide a range of asset management and asset administration products, as well as customized trust products for high-net-worth individuals, as well as advisory services relating to the purchase and disposal of real estate and effective land utilization, and testamentary trusts. The Company provides a varied line up of investment trust products allowing its customers to choose products according to their investment needs through BTMU, MUTB and MUMSS, as well as kabu.com Securities, which specializes in online financial services. In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2010, BTMU offered a total of five investment trusts. As of the end of March 2010, BTMU offered its clients a total of 73 investment trusts.

The Company offers securities, including publicly offered stocks, foreign and domestic investment trusts, Japanese government bonds, foreign bonds and various other products. The Company offers housing loans, card loans and other loans to individuals. With respect to housing loans, in addition to housing loans incorporating health insurance for seven major illnesses, BTMU began offering in June 2009 preferential interest rates under its Environmentally Friendly Support program ! to custom! ers who purchase environment-conscious houses (like houses with solar electric systems), which meet specific criteria in response to increasing public interest in environmental issues. In September 2009, BTMU launched housing loans with home mortgage insurance, which BTMU jointly developed with the Japan Housing Finance Agency, a governmental agency under the Japanese government�� economic stimulus measures, under which the agency indemnifies BTMU for losses from housing loans.

The Company offers products and services through a range of channels, including branches, automated teller machines (ATMs) (including convenience store ATMs shared by multiple banks), Mitsubishi-Tokyo UFJ Direct (telephone, Internet and mobile phone banking), the Video Counter and postal mail. It offers integrated financial services combining its banking, trust banking and securities services at MUFG Plazas. These Plazas provide retail customers with integrated and flexible suite of services at one-stop outlets. As of March 31 2010, the Company provided those services through 47 MUFG Plazas. The Company offers MUTB�� trust related products and advisory services through its trust agency system not only for MUTB customers but also for BTMU and MUMSS customers. As of March 31, 2010, BTMU engaged in eight businesses as the trust banking agent for MUTB: testamentary trusts, inheritance management, asset succession planning, inheritance management agency operations, business management financial consulting, lifetime gift trusts, share disposal trusts, and marketable securities administration trusts.

Integrated Corporate Banking Business Group

The Integrated Corporate Banking Business Group covers all domestic and overseas corporate businesses, including commercial banking, investment banking, trust banking and securities businesses, as well as UnionBanCal Corporation (UNBC). UNBC is a wholly owned subsidiary of BTMU and a US bank holding company with Union Bank being its primary subsidiary. T! he Compan! y provides various financial solutions, such as loans and fund management, remittance and foreign exchange services. It also helps its customers develop business strategies, such as inheritance-related business transfers and stock listings.

It offers advanced financial solutions to companies through corporate and investment banking services. Product specialists globally provide derivatives, securitization, syndicated loans, structured finance and other services. It also provides investment banking services, such as merger and acquisition (M&A) advisory, bond and equity underwriting. It provides online banking services that allow customers to make domestic and overseas remittances electronically. It also provides a global cash pooling/netting service, and the Treasury Station, a fund management system for a multi-company group. The Company�� global Corporate and Investment Banking business (Global CIB), primarily serves companies, financial institutions, and sovereign and multinational organizations with a set of solutions for their financing needs.

Integrated Trust Assets Business Group

The Integrated Trust Assets Business Group covers asset management and administration services for products, such as pension trusts and security trusts by integrating the trust banking expertise of MUTB and the international strengths of BTMU. The business group provides a range of services to corporate and pension funds, including stable and secure pension fund management and administration, advice on pension schemes, and payment of benefits to scheme members. Its Integrated Trust Assets Business Group combines MUTB�� trust assets business, comprising trust assets management services, asset administration and custodial services, and the businesses of Mitsubishi UFJ Global Custody S.A., Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co., Ltd. and KOKUSAI Asset Management Co., Ltd.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Louis Navellier]

  Mitsubishi UFJ Financial (NYSE:MTU) is a Japanese holding company mainly engaged in the banking business. Mitsubishi Financial has posted a gain of 11% since this time last year. MTU stock gets a “B” grade for operating margin growth, a “B” grade for the magnitude in which earnings projections have increased over the past months, and an “A” grade for cash flow.

How the Dow Avoided a Bloodbath

Before the opening bell this morning, it appeared that there would be a bloodbath. As markets opened and closed around the world, things were going from bad to worse, culminating in a staggering 7.3% decline in the Japanese Nikkei 225. Yet the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) is paradoxically higher late in the trading session. What gives?

The answer is that there were two unequivocally positive economic reports released today by the U.S. government. The first concerned home sales and prices. Data from the Department of Commerce (link opens PDF) showed that the volume of single-family home sales last month climbed to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 454,000. While that was only 2.3% higher than the rate in March, it equated to a staggering 29% increase over the same month last year. The same report also estimated that median home prices increased by 15% from $236,400 in April of last year to $271,600 this year.

Given the centrality of the housing market to the national economy, the significance of these results can't be overstated. It's worth noting, moreover, that they provide further confirmation of the growing profitability of homebuilders. Yesterday, for example, the nation's largest luxury homebuilder, Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL  ) , released earnings for its fiscal second quarter. Among other things, it notched a 36% improvement in net signed contracts on a year-over-year basis. On the heels of today's news, shares of the company are up 2%.

The second positive economic development concerns jobs. According to the Department of Labor, the number of jobless claims filed last week fell by 23,000 from the preceding week. As the following chart illustrates, while this is off the recent lows for this figure, it nevertheless puts the economy back on a level comparable to the beginning of 2008, before the financial crisis sent unemployment spiraling higher.

In terms of individual stocks, shares of Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ  ) are far and away the best-performing component of the Dow today, up 15.6% at the time of writing. The struggling PC-manufacturer released its second-quarter earnings last night. As my colleague Dan Dzombak noted, HP's earnings per share beat analyst estimates, but its top-line revenue figure came up short. Given its abysmal financial performance of late, however, the bottom-line beat was clearly more than enough to satisfy investors.

Alternatively, the worst-performing stock on the blue-chip index is Alcoa (NYSE: AA  ) , down by 2%. There are two likely explanations for this. First, after the Federal Reserve released the minutes of its most recent monetary-policy meeting yesterday, many analysts are speculating that it may begin to taper back its massive monthly purchases of bonds. The reduced liquidity could send the prices of commodities, including aluminum, lower. And second, as fellow Fool Matt Thalman observed, there's reason to believe that China's industrial purchasing activity is waning, which could put additional downward pressure on aluminum demand and prices.

Materials industries are traditionally known for their high barriers to entry, and the aluminum industry is no exception. Controlling about 15% of global production in this highly consolidated industry, Alcoa is in prime position to take advantage of growth that some expect will lead to total industry revenue approaching $160 billion by 2017. Based on this prospect and several other company-specific factors, Alcoa is certainly worth a closer look. For a Foolish investment perspective on this global giant, simply click here now to get started.

5 Best Gas Utility Stocks To Buy For 2014

In this video, Fool analyst Isaac Pino reviews three risks for Boston Beer (NYSE: SAM  ) . First, the craft beer market is getting competitive with local brewers and seasonal brewers vying for consumers' attention. Given the "fashion" nature of craft brews, customer loyalty is spotty, as consumers like to experiment. Second, commodity prices could drive up costs for everything from hops to packaging. Lastly, the company is selling at 30 times earnings, but already holds 18% of the craft beer market. While this translates into 1% of the overall beer market, a big question is how they are going to grow, especially given the worrisome trend of increasing costs and declining revenues.�

Boston Beer's Samuel Adams brand helped to redefine beer and kick off the craft beer revolution in the United States. Success breeds competition, though, and while just a few years ago Boston Beer had claim over most of the craft beer shelf, today the field is crowded. Can Boston Beer rise above the rest, or will it be squeezed between small local breweries on one side and global beer giants on the other? To help you decide, we've compiled a premium research report filled with everything you need to know about Boston Beer's risks and opportunities. Just click here now to find out whether Boston Beer is a buy today.

5 Best Gas Utility Stocks To Buy For 2014: China New Borun Corporation (BORN)

China New Borun Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the production and distribution of corn-based edible alcohol in the People�s Republic of China. Its edible alcohol products are primarily sold as ingredients to producers of baijiu, which a grain-based alcoholic beverage to further blend them into finished products that are sold under various brand names in retail stores, bars, banquet halls, restaurants, and other locations. The company also produces distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) feed, corn germ, crude corn oil, and liquid carbon dioxide as by-products during the production of edible alcohol. The company was founded in 2000 and is based in Shouguang, the People's Republic of China. China New Borun Corporation is a subsidiary of King River Holding Limited.

5 Best Gas Utility Stocks To Buy For 2014: Hudson River Minerals Ltd (HRM.V)

Hudson River Minerals Ltd., an early stage exploration company, engages in the exploration of mineral properties in Ontario, Canada. It explores for nickel, copper, platinum, palladium, rhodium, lead, zinc, and gold ores. The company holds a 100% interest in the Glenrock gold property consisting of 18 unpatented mineral claims covering 2,515 hectares located north of Sault Ste. Marie, and an option to acquire a 100% interest in the Zarn Lake gold property consisting of 3 unpatented mineral claims covering 493 hectares located east of Sioux Lookout in northern Ontario. It also holds a 100% interest in the McFaulds Lake properties covering approximately 30,000 hectares located in the McFaulds Lake area in northern Ontario. The company is based in Toronto, Canada.

Hot Financial Stocks To Watch Right Now: Gleacher & Company Inc.(GLCH)

Gleacher & Company, Inc., an independent investment bank, provides corporate and institutional clients with advice and execution in the areas of advisory services, capital raising and research, sales, and trading. It operates through five segments: Mortgage Backed/Asset Backed & Rates (MBS/ABS & Rates), Corporate Credit, Investment Banking, Equities, and Other. The MBS/ABS & Rates segment provides sales, trading, banking, research, and advisory services on a range of mortgage and asset-backed securities; the United States Treasury and government agency securities; and structured products, such as collateralized loan obligations and collateralized debt obligations, whole loans, and other securities. The Corporate Credit segment offers analysis, sales, and trading on various debt securities comprising bank debt and loans, investment grade debt, high-yield debt, treasuries, convertibles, distressed debt, preferred debt, emerging markets debt, and reorganization equities to co rporate and institutional investor clients. The Investment Banking segment provides financial advisory services in regards to mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, recapitalizations, and capital markets-related matters. It engages in capital raising through underwritings and private placements of equity and debt securities. The Equities segment offers research on customer trades in equity securities in aerospace, defense, industrials, technology, healthcare, and REIT sectors. The Other segment provides early stage growth capital to companies in the information and energy technology sectors. The company was formerly known as Broadpoint Gleacher Securities Group, Inc. Gleacher & Company, Inc. was founded in 1952 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

5 Best Gas Utility Stocks To Buy For 2014: Breadtalk Group Limited (5DA.SI)

BreadTalk Group Limited, an investment holding company, engages in manufacturing, retailing, and franchising various food, bakery, and confectionary products. The company is involved in baking, manufacturing, and dealing in bread, flour, and biscuits; and managing and operating food courts, and operating food and drinks outlets within the food courts. It also operates food and drinks outlets, eating houses, and restaurants. As of December 31, 2011, the company operated 471 owned and franchised bakery outlets, 37 food courts, and 26 restaurants under the BreadTalk, Bread Society, Food Republic, Toast Box, RamenPlay, Din Tai Fung, The Icing Room, and Carl's Jr. brand names. It has operations in the People�s Republic of China, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Hong Kong, India, Jordan, Kuwait, Thailand, Korea, Bahrain, Oman, Vietnam, and Taiwan. The company was founded in 2000 and is based in Singapore.

5 Best Gas Utility Stocks To Buy For 2014: Fidelity Bancorp Inc.(FSBI)

Fidelity Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for Fidelity Bank, PaSB that provides a range of banking services in Pennsylvania. It primarily engages in generating deposits and originating loans. The company?s deposit products include savings accounts, demand deposit accounts, NOW accounts, money market deposit accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as retirement accounts, including individual retirement account certificates and Keogh plan retirement certificates. Its loan portfolio comprises residential real estate loans, commercial and multi-family real estate loans, construction loans, and commercial business loans and leases, as well as installment loans, such as home equity and consumer loans. The company also involves in mortgage securitization transactions. As of September 30, 2010, Fidelity Bancorp provided its services through its main office in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, as well as 13 branch offices in Allegheny and Butler counties. The company w as founded in 1927 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.