Beginners guide: Ashish Chugh on how to trade in shares

According to him, a serious investor should consider stock as a part of the business. "When you are buying even 100 shares you are actually taking a stake in that business," Chugh adds.

Also read: Tips to help you diversify into commodities

Here is an edited transcript of his comments.

Q: If a new investor want to enter the market now, what are the few things they should keep in mind? How do they start picking stocks?

A: When somebody is new to investing and he enters a stock market, the focus is on how to make money. That's the end objective. But what the investor has to be focused on is how to not let his capital depreciate. I think one should achieve the first objective and the second part will be taken care of automatically. I am not just talking about first time investors but lot of experienced investors also.

Lot of them when invest in the market they see the stock as just a ticker symbol. That's where they make mistake, they are just chasing the price of the stock. I think for a serious investor it is important to consider that stock as a part of the business. When you are buying even 100 shares you are actually taking a stake in that business. But I would like to caution here while you are investing.  I am talking specifically in terms of investing in small and midcap stocks because that's what I do personally.

I think you have to first look within whether your temperament is actually suited for investment in those kinds of stock. Those are stocks where the returns may not come immediately. Returns in midcap and smallcap are not linear or related to the market. It may happen that the stock is consolidating for two years and in one year it goes up five times. So it is very important to have, that frame of mind to hold the stock for two years when it is not making any money.

Q:  What are the cautions one needs to take while building a portfolio in midcaps, considering that one had an investment in power sector but had to come out as it turned bad? If the investment on mutual funds is not giving good returns should one liquidate and put the money back into the stocks or  rather built a portfolio?

A: While creating a portfolio of small and midcap stocks the first thing you should avoid is getting into the hottest stock in the hottest sector. As a value investor that is a strict no-no. Talking about your stock-loss in the power sector, I believe this would be a time when power sector was booming.

When Reliance Power IPO came most power companies were trading at their peaks. I know many retail investors, who entered into power companies at that point of time, without realizing that this is a business which has got a long gestation period. Power projects do not come in a day. It may take three to five years for power projects to come in.

At this point of time power, infra, real estate they may not be bad sectors to invest into, reason being that they have almost seen the worst phases. If you talk about the real estate company, most investors are clearly out of that sector. Fund houses have liquidated their position thinking that all the promoters are frauds. So there is realignment happening and these sectors are probably lying at their lowest level. So, that is maybe one way which you can start building into sectors which have been ignored as of today but have potential for the future.

Q: How safe is it to invest in commodity trading? Gold is reaching its height right now, how safe it would be if one invest in gold?

A: When one does commodity trading, they have to draw a distinction between trading and investing. Like gold can be a small part of once entire portfolio. But trading is totally different ball game. Probably some guys are working the whole day and may not even get the time to look at the screen, so then trading maybe disastrous. Here one has to take care of number of things. One have to consider the stop losses and other things. So for guys like that what I would advice is to have a diversified portfolio and maybe gold and silver can be just one part of that.

Sutor Technology: A Strong Buy - Analyst Blog

Zacks Investment Research upgraded Sutor Technology Group Limited (SUTR) to a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) on Jul 11, 2013.

Why the Upgrade?

Sutor Technology posted impressive financial results for the third quarter of fiscal 2013 (ended Mar 31, 2013) on May 13. Earnings per share in the quarter came in at 10 cents, up from just 3 cents earned in the year-ago quarter and double the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 5 cents per share.

Revenue increased 27.0% year over year to $139.6 million in the quarter. Sales volume was up 54% while average selling prices were down 22%. Domestic sales rose 25% while international sales increased 56%.

Increase in proportion of high-margin products in the quarter pushed gross margin up by 60 basis points (bps). Total operating expenses, as a percentage of revenue, went down by 10 basis points to 2.8%. Operating margin stood at 5.0% versus 4.3% in the year-ago quarter.

Sutor Technology had positive earnings surprise in three out of four trailing quarters, the average being 100.0%. This combined with the third quarter results has raised optimism for a better financial performance ahead. Also, in the last 60 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for fiscal 2013 has gone up by 16.1% to 36 cents while that for fiscal 2014 went up 7.1% to 45 cents.

Other Stocks to Consider:

Sutor Technology is one of the leading manufacturers and suppliers of steel products in China. The company currently has a market capitalization of $60.8 million. Other stocks worth a look at in the industry are RTI International Metals, Inc. (RTI), with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Carpenter Technology Corp. (CRS) and Material Sciences Corporation (MASC).

InSite Vision Regained Development Rights for AzaSite Xtraâ„¢ (OTCMKTS:INSV, OTCMKTS:CLNO)

InSite Vision Incorporated (INSV)

Today, INSV has shed (-2.74%) down -0.009 at $.320 with 15,483 shares in play thus far (ref. google finance Delayed: 10:59AM EDT June 28, 2013), but don't let this get you down.

InSite Vision Incorporated previously reported the company has regained North American development rights to azithromycin ophthalmic solution 2%, trademarked as AzaSite Xtra™, from Inspire Pharmaceuticals Inc., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., known as MSD outside the United States and Canada. AzaSite Xtra, formulated in InSite's DuraSite® topical drug delivery system, is a product candidate intended for the topical treatment of ocular infections.

Take a look at InSite Vision Incorporated (INSV) 5 day chart:

Cleantech Transit, Inc. (CLNO)

Cleantech Transit, Inc. (OTCMKTS:CLNO) (www.cleantechtransit.net) through its Discovery Carbon subsidiary, develops emissions offset strategies for companies, municipalities, and countries. CLNO currently has surged (+11.79%) up +0.031 at $.294 with 1,819,971 shares in play thus far (ref. google finance Delayed:  12:22PM EDT June 28, 2013). Earlier this morning (June 28, 2013), this company hit as low as $.21 and as high as $.349. The fact that their is over a million shares in play thus far only ignites the excitement that CLNO brings to the table.

Today (June 28) CLNO's daily range was at ($.349 – $.21) currently at $.294 would be considered a (+26627.27%) gain above the 52 wk low of $.0011. Eventhough CLNO has surged (+11.79%) up +0.031 at $.294 with 1,819,971 shares in play  thus far (ref. google finance Delayed:  12:22PM EDT June 28, 2013), the stock is up +15373.68% since the concerning dates of December 31, 2013 – June 28, 2013. +15373.68% is the 6 month high and rightly so.

Earlier this month (June 3), CLNO acquired control of Discovery Carbon Environmental Securities Corporation ("Discovery"). The acquisition advances the strategy of developing significant market share in the alternative clean energy sector. Discovery's proprietary GreenTrees™ for renewable energy, and EvoCert™ environmental credits for offsetting business and individual carbon foot prints are some of the exciting products Discovery provides to clients throughout the world.

To view EQCO2 video click URL http://www.crwetube.com/media/billy-barnwell-ceo-of-eqco2-talks-about-the-compan

CLNO reported last Friday (June 21), that it has acquired 81% of the issued and outstanding shares of Discovery Carbon Environmental Securities Corporation ("Discovery"), a Nevada corporation. The acquisition advances the strategy of developing significant market share in the alternative clean energy sector. Discovery's proprietary GreenTrees™ for renewable energy, and EvoCert™ environmental credits for offsetting business and individual carbon foot prints are some of the exciting products Discovery provides to clients throughout the world.

The Exchange Agreement between the parties required that at least 80% of Discovery's issued and outstanding shares be exchanged for shares of the Company's common stock, in restricted form. The parties are now in the final stages of closing the transaction. As part of the closing of this acquisition, the Company has announced that it will be changing its name to EQCO2, Inc. as well as implementing a 1 for 5 forward stock split for its common stock.

To view CLNO video chart (June 24, 2013) brought to you by BlueHorseshoeStocks click URL http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8UJpn5IJ_c

Check out, Barchart.com detailed opinion about CLNO looks very enticing: URL http://www.barchart.com/opinions/stocks/CLNO

Keep in mind, (June 27) CLNO closed at $.26 with 2,393,381 in play (ref. google finance June 27, 2013 – Close).  (June 26) CLNO closed at $.19 with 2,657,859 in play (ref. google finance June 26, 2013 – Close).  (June 25) CLNO closed at $.17 with 3,217,105 in play (ref. google finance June 25, 2013 – Close).  (June 24) CLNO closed at $.16 with 1,006,552 in play (ref. google finance June 24, 2013 – Close).  (June 21) CLNO closed at $.13 with 1,747,826 in play (ref. google finance June 21, 2013 – Close). (June 20) CLNO closed at $.10 with 1,644,340 in play (ref. google finance June 20, 2013 – Close). (June 19) CLNO closed at $.09 with 1,786,438 in play (ref. google finance June 19, 2013 – Close). (June 18) CLNO closed at $.08 with 1,224,685 in play (ref. google finance June 18, 2013 – Close). (June 17) CLNO closed at $.06 with 2,681,749 in play (ref. google finance June 17, 2013 – Close). (June 14) CLNO closed at $.09 with 4,923,706 in play (ref. google finance June 14, 2013 – Close). (June 13), CLNO closed at $.09 with 2,457,486 in play (ref. google finance June 13, 2013 – Close). (June 12) CLNO closed at $.07 with 2,067,313 in play (ref. google finance June 12, 2013 – Close). (June 11) CLNO closed at $.04 with 1,978,366 in play (ref. google finance June 11, 2013 – Close). (June 10) CLNO closed at $.03 with 1,134,672 in play (ref. google finance June 10, 2013 – Close).

Now take a look at the Cleantech Transit, Inc. (CLNO ) 5 day chart:

Equity, Bond Flows Bounce Back in Early July

During the first week of July, investors changed their tune on where central-bank policymaking is heading and poured nearly $6 billion into equity funds and over $2 billion into bond funds, according to the EPFR Global.

This was quite a turn for fund flows, which had seen nearly $58 billion in redemptions from bond-funds alone over the past four weeks, according to EPFR Global, which released its latest report on Friday. (The research firm tracks almost 50,000 funds and $19.6 trillion in assets worldwide.)

Investors seemed to be responding to remarks made by central bankers in the Europe, which reflected comments made by members of the Federal Reserve concerning the less-than-imminent death of quantitative easing.

U.S.- and Europe-based funds accounted for most inflows with investors positioning themselves ahead of an earnings season that, at least for exporters, should be a good one, the research group says.

While Canada and Australia continued to experience record outflows, Germany, Switzerland and UK equity funds took in over $100 million; funds focused on Italy, Spain and Sweden also recording solid inflows. “Investors largely shrugged off data showing unemployment in the European Union holding at record levels and fears the Portuguese government will collapse, taking its commitment to austerity measures with it, with daily data only turning negative on July 3,” EPFR explained.

In Japan, equity funds hit a six-week high. With renewed turmoil in Egypt, dropping oil production in Mexico, Venezuela and Nigeria, energy-sector funds saw inflows top $2 billion for the first time since early 2011.

“Seven of the other 10 major groups tracked by EPFR Global also posted inflows as receding fears about the pace of monetary tightening and a focus on the upcoming 2Q13 earnings season attracted some fresh money,” the group shared.

Emerging-markets bond funds, however, suffered net redemptions for the sixth-straight week, though the level of outflows was just a-fifth of the previous week’s record-setting amount.

Emerging-market corporate bond funds, though, had outflows hit their highest weekly total since the start of the current financial crisis.

Top High Tech Stocks To Invest In Right Now

Any time the federal government enacts major legislation, there are inevitable winners and losers in the corporate world. That's certainly the case with major laws passed during the first four and a half years of President Obama's time in office.

The first big piece of legislation the Obama administration passed was the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, or ARRA. Signed into law in 2009, ARRA spent around $800 billion with the goal to stimulate the economy. The other major victory for the administration was passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or PPACA, commonly referred to as Obamacare. While these bills created varied effects -- good and bad -- for different industries, a few companies emerged as big winners from both ARRA and PPACA.

High fives for HITECH
ARRA spread that $800 billion or so around in lots of different ways. One important part of the legislation was the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, or HITECH. The feds allocated almost $26 billion with HITECH to foster the adoption of health information technology by health-care providers, especially hospitals and physicians.

Top High Tech Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Bioquell(BQE.L)

Bioquell PLC engages in the design, manufacture, and supply of bio-decontamination equipment and services for the life sciences, healthcare, and defense sectors in the United Kingdom and internationally. The company operates in two divisions, Bio-decontamination and TRaC. The Bio-decontamination division develops, designs, and manufactures specialist surface sterilization and filtration technology used in the life sciences, healthcare, and defense sectors. It also offers room bio-decontamination services; chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear filtration equipment; and Microflow and Astec laboratory filtration and containment equipment. The TRaC division provides specialist testing services, including environmental testing, telecoms testing, radio testing, EMC testing, safety testing, and CE mark testing, as well as finite element analysis and seismic testing services. It also provides regulatory and compliance services to companies and organizations. The company is based in Andover, the United Kingdom.

Top High Tech Stocks To Invest In Right Now: SP Bancorp Inc.(SPBC)

SP Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for SharePlus Federal Bank that provides community banking products and services to individuals, families, and businesses in the United States. The company offers various deposit products, including noninterest-bearing and interest-bearing demand accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit. Its loan portfolio includes residential mortgage loans secured by residential real estate; commercial real estate and home equity loans, including lines of credit and home improvement loans; consumer loans consisting primarily of automobile loans; and commercial business loans. The company also provides brokerage services for the purchase and sale of non-deposit investment and insurance products through a third-party brokerage arrangement. It provides its services through seven branches, four of which are located near the Bank's headquarters in Plano, Texas; two branches are located in Louisville, Kentuc ky; and one branch is located in Irvine, California. The company was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Plano, Texas.

10 Best Energy Stocks To Buy Right Now: Marine Petroleum Trust(MARPS)

Marine Petroleum Trust, through its subsidiary, Marine Petroleum Corporation, operates as a royalty trust in the United States. It holds an overriding royalty interest in oil, natural gas, and other mineral leasehold interests located in the Gulf of Mexico acquired by Chevron U.S.A., Inc. The company, through its 32.6% interest in Tidelands Royalty Trust ?B?, owns interest in 5 leases covering 22,948 acres. It has lease interests covering approximately 226,564 gross acres. The company was founded in 1956 and is based in Dallas, Texas.

Top High Tech Stocks To Invest In Right Now: KERRY GROUP 'A'ORD EUR0.125(KYGA.L)

Kerry Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and delivers technology based ingredients, flavors, and integrated solutions for the food, beverage, and pharmaceutical industries worldwide. It operates in two segments, Ingredients & Flavors and Consumer Foods. The Ingredients & Flavours segment manufactures and distributes application specific ingredients and flavors, such as savory ingredients, sweet ingredients, food coating systems, nutritional systems, and specialty protein applications. The Consumer Foods segment manufactures and supplies added value brands and customer branded foods to the Irish and the United Kingdom. This segment supplies its own brands and private label products, such as dairy spread and cheese products; meats and savory products; and chilled and frozen ready meals to retailers primarily under the Wall?s, Mattessons, Richmond, Pure, Denny, Galtee, Roscrea, Shaws, Ballyfree, Cheestrings, Charleville, Mitchelstown, LowLow, and Dairygold brand names. The company operates in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas, and the Asia-Pacific. Kerry Group plc was founded in 1972 and is headquartered in Tralee, Ireland.

Want to invest for the short term? Check out top strategies

5 Best Clean Energy Stocks To Own Right Now

There was a research conducted in United States on the average number of days investors hold the stock. The number was 187 (about 6 months) in 1991-1996 period. The median was worse with just 90 days. With internet boom era and overpriced IPOs in 2000s, this came down to about 3 months. There is no data available for Indian market but looking at the volatility of our stock market, the numbers will be very close or even less. 

This tells us there are mostly short term traders in the market. Is there anything wrong with short term trading? Absolutely not, but investors should know the rules of the game before they trade short term. Apart from knowing the rules, investors should also understand that short term trading mostly relies on luck and on study, which at best can be termed speculative.

In the current volatile market scenario, you could be tempted to try your luck in some short term investment strategies to make the best out of a bad situation. Here is an understanding of some short term trading strategies usually followed by short term traders. Knowing these strategies will make you aware of your own actions. However, do proceed with caution.

Day-trade in stocks

In this trading style, traders buy and sell the stocks on the same day or in a very short period of time. The traders take advantage of daily market volatility to profit. They buy when the stock prices go down hoping the prices to appreciate in the day. They square-off by the end of the day. This can result in profit or loss depending on whether the price they sold at was higher or lower than their buy price. This is a very popular way to trade. The popularity stems from the fact that this looks exciting. Even if traders lose money, the loss doesn�t seem big as daily variation is not very volatile.

Day-trading, however, is the most popular way to lose money. Majority of day-traders either lose money or do not make better than a long term investor. Investors look at daily loss and assume that this is not a big loss but accumulate the losses for the year and they can see the big picture.

For example. If I have 1 lakh and I gamble, I will be happy to earn Rs 2000 from my gamble. However, I will not be too worried if I lose Rs 2000. This psychology works against traders. The happiness to get marginal profit is more than the sorrow of suffering a marginal loss. Take another example. A buyer goes to a showroom and to buy a car worth 3 lakh. At the last moment, he comes to know that the seller is giving Rs 6000 coupon free to be spent in lifestyle. At the same time, another buyer goes to another shop and buys the car at 2 lakh and 94000 rupees. Both come out of the shop. Whom do you think will have bigger smile?

Risk mitigation

Investors should not put all their money in day-trading. If you are too excited by daily price volatility and want to try your hands in day-trading, put at most 10% of your total investment for this and play with this. Do not gamble more.

Trading on margin

In margin trading, the investor spends some part from his or her pocket and borrows the rest from the broker at an interest. In this context, investors have to understand the concept of initial and maintenance margin. Initial margin is the % of total investment that investors have to put. When the prices go down, your contribution in terms of percentage will go down. After it goes below a certain percentage, the broker will ask you to put more money to take it to the initial margin. This �certain percentage� is called maintenance margin.
Take an example.

Let�s say an investor, Rakesh buys 100 stock of Airtel at Rs 400 a share. The initial margin is 25% and maintenance margin is 10%. This means Rakesh has to put 10,000 (25% of total investment of 40,000). The rest 30,000 is borrowed by broker. Suppose the prices start going down and goes to Rs 330 a share. In this case, the total value is 330*100 = Rs 33,000. Let�s calculate what the contribution by investor at this point is. The investor contribution is (33000-30000)/33000. This is less than 10%. Hence investor will get a call to put more money so that his or her contribution is 25% of Rs 33000 which is Rs 8250. Since his amount is 3000, he will have to deposit another 5250.

This is high risk high return strategy. The advantage is that if the prices go up, you earn all the profit minus the interest you pay to the broker on his contribution. However, the loss is equally yours because the broker will anyway charge the interest. This is a double whammy.

Risk Mitigation

The only risk mitigation strategy is that the investors should never put more money when margin call is given by the broker. The investor, instead, should ask the broker to square off the position with whatever loss has happened. Avoid the temptation to put more money after the margin call.

Selling short

In this short term strategy, investors borrow and sell the shares and later they have to buy this from open market and give it back to the lender. The idea is to benefit from decreasing prices. Investors short-sell stocks because they assume that prices will go down and when it goes down they buy it cheaper and give it back. The difference is the profit to investors.

For example. An investor Rakesh expects the price of Airtel with current market price @400 to go down. Since he has no stocks, he borrows 100 Airtel stocks from the market and sells it immediately earning 40,000. After sometime, as he expected, the Airtel price went down to 350. He buys 100 stocks back at 35,000 and gives it back. He earns Rs 5000 from this transaction. We are ignoring transaction costs and other charges for the sake of simplicity.

Risk mitigation

Short-selling is speculative in nature and investors may lose if the prices go up. There is no guarantee that stocks will go down as expected. There are other ways to mitigate the risk by using derivatives but those are out of scope of this article. If you are keen on doing it, use a very small amount (less than 10% of your investment) for short-selling.

Short term is tempting to investors. Short term trading offers excitement, action, and instant gratification. Compared to this, long term is boring, tedious, and requires extreme patience. However, there is no way to build wealth but by using long term strategies.

This is true for most of the investors. There are short term investors who have done tremendously well but they are few and far between. Hence investors should put their major portion of investment corpus for long term wealth building assets and segregate a minor portion for short term speculation.

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Hot Oil Companies For 2014

"The only certainty in life is death and taxes."
-- Mark Twain.

The death of a company may not be as certain as a human's, but taxes are an everyday occurrence for corporations and humans alike. In the most recent budget proposal from the Obama�administration, companies in the energy space could see a big increase in that certainty.

Let's take a quick look at the gory details and see what the industry gets out of it.

Just give it to me, doc
To determine the exact effects of the new budget proposal, you have to do some pretty deep digging. The reason is that the tax increases are spread out over several different departments. For instance, there is a proposal to increase the taxes by $64 million a year starting in 2014 to pad the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund, but it's only noted as a line item buried deep in the summary tables.

Hot Oil Companies For 2014: Western Refining Inc.(WNR)

Western Refining, Inc. operates as an independent crude oil refiner and marketer of refined products. The company operates in three segments Refining Group, Wholesale Group, and Retail Group. The Refining Group segment operates two refineries in Texas and Mexico; two stand-alone refined product distribution terminals in New Mexico; and four asphalt terminals in Texas, as well as operates crude oil transportation and gathering pipeline system in New Mexico. It refines various grades of gasoline, diesel fuel, jet fuel, and other products from crude oil, other feedstocks, and blending components; and acquires refined products through exchange agreements and from various third-party suppliers. This segment sells its products through its wholesale group and service stations, independent wholesalers and retailers, commercial accounts, and sales and exchanges with oil companies. The Wholesale Group segment distributes commercial wholesale petroleum products primarily in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, and Utah for retail fuel distributors, as well as for the mining, construction, utility, manufacturing, transportation, aviation, and agricultural industries. The Retail Group segment operates service stations, which include convenience stores or kiosks that sell various grades of gasoline, diesel fuel, general merchandise, and beverage and food products to the general public. As of February 24, 2012, it operated 210 service stations with convenience stores or kiosks located in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Texas. The company was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in El Paso, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  Another stock that's starting to trend within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade is Western Refining (WNR), a crude oil refiner and marketer of refined products. It also operates service stations and convenience stores. This stock is off to a decent start in 2013, with shares up 10.8%.

  If you look at the chart for Western Refining, you'll notice that this stock has been uptrending strong for the last month and change, with shares soaring higher from its low of $25.47 to its recent high of $32.09 a share. During that uptrend, shares of WNR have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. This stock has also moved back above both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, which is bullish. That move has now pushed shares of WNR within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade.

  Traders should now look for long-biased trades in WNR if it manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance at $32.09 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above that level with volume that hits near or above its three-month average action of 1.96 million shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then WNR will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $34 to $36.50 a share. Any high-volume move above $36.50 will then give WNR a chance to tag its 52-week high at $39.42 a share.

  Traders can look to buy WNR off any weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below either its 200-day at $30.06 a share or its 50-day at $29.30 a share. One can also buy WNR off strength once it takes out that breakout level with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage from your entry point.

  This is yet again another name that the bears are in love with, since the current short interest as a percentage of the float for WNR is crazy high at 39.7%. A monster short-squeeze could easily trigger here if that breakout hits soon, so make sure to put this name on your trading radar.

Hot Oil Companies For 2014: American Petro-Hunter Inc (AAPH)

American Petro-Hunter Inc., incorporated on January 24, 1996, is an oil and natural gases exploration and production company with projects in Kansas and Oklahoma. As of March 15, 2012, the Company has two producing wells in Kansas and six producing wells in Oklahoma. The Company also has rights for the exploration and production of oil and gas on an aggregate of approximately 6,230 acres in those states. On January 4, 2011, the Company announced plans to drill the NOS227 Well as a direct offset to the NOJ26 Well.

On March 25, 2011, the Company announced that the Company had acquired a working interest in an additional 2,000 acres located in Payne County in northern Oklahoma, near the Company�� Yale Prospect. The project has been named North Oklahoma Mississippi Lime Project. On May 16, 2011, the Company announced that drilling operations had commenced at the Company�� first horizontal well, NOM1H. The Company owns a 25% Working Interest in the lease. On June 29, 2011, the Company announced that NOM1H had begun commercial production. On July 18, 2011, the Company announced drilling plans for a total of 11 horizontal wells at the North Oklahoma Project. On July 20, 2011, the Company announced the acquisition of a 40% working interest in the South Oklahoma Project on 3,000 acres of land in south-central Oklahoma.

On February 6, 2012, the Company announced that the Company had drilled a total of 1,988 feet in the horizontal well segment penetrating into the 100 plus foot thick Mississippi pay zone. As of March 2012, there are nine locations left to drill on the acreage. The Company's crude oil production is sold to N.C.R.A. in MacPherson Kansas and Sunoco in Oklahoma. The Company sells natural gas through such pipeline to DCP Midstream, LP of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Best Penny Stocks To Invest In 2014: Marathon Petroleum Corp (MPC)

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

Refining & Marketing

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

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

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

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

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

Speedway

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

Pipeline Transportation

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

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

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

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

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jim Jubak]

   A river of oil from the oil-shale boom in North Dakota and Texas is gradually making its way to the country's Gulf Coast refineries as pipelines and other infrastructure are built out. The arrival of oil from resources like the Eagle Ford and Bakken shales will mean rising margins at Gulf Coast refineries as they begin their work with cheaper oil.

  Marathon Petroleum (MPC) will get a big hunk of that refining business -- and those higher refining margins -- and it seems determined to gather in even more with its purchase in October of BP's (BP) Texas City refinery. Texas City gives Marathon a refinery close to growing crude production from Eagle Ford and the Permian Basin. What I like about this deal -- and Marathon Petroleum's positioning -- is that as the infrastructure buildout continues, the company will be able to grow margins and earnings by simply substituting cheaper mid-continent oil for more expensive imported oil.

Hot Oil Companies For 2014: Transportadora de Gas del Sur SA (TGS)

Transportadora de Gas del Sur S.A. (TGS) is engaged in the transportation of natural gas and production and commercialization of natural gas liquids (NGL). TGS�� pipeline system connects major gas fields in southern and western Argentina with gas distributors and industries in those areas and in the greater Buenos Aires area. The Company also renders midstream services, which consist of gas treatment, removal of impurities from the natural gas stream, gas compression, wellhead gas gathering and pipeline construction, operation, and maintenance services. The Company operates in three segments: natural gas transportation services through its pipeline system; NGL production and commercialization, and other services, which include midstream and telecommunication services.

During the year ended December 31, 2009, the Company�� gas transportation represented approximately 42% of total net revenues. During 2009, its NGL production and commercialization segment accounted for 50% of the total revenues of the Company. During 2009, its other services segment accounted for 8% of total revenues of the Company. Its other services segment consists of midstream and telecommunications services. Through midstream services, TGS provides integral solutions related to natural gas from wellhead up to the transportation systems. The services consists of gas gathering, compression and treatment, as well as construction, operation and maintenance of pipelines, which are generally rendered to natural gas and oil producers at wellhead. The customers��portfolio also includes distribution companies, industrial users, power plants and refineries.

During 2009, the Company provided a range of technical services to different customers. The services consisted of connections to the transportation system, engineering inspections, project management and professional technical counseling. Telecommunication services are provided through Telcosur S.A. (Telcosur), who renders services both as an independent c! arrier of carriers and to corporate clients within its area. Telcosur has a digital land radio connection system.

Top 10 Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now

One of the reasons investors regard the 30 stocks in the Dow Jones Industrials (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) as blue-chip giants is that all 30 of them pay dividends. With an overall dividend yield of about 2.5%, just buying a Dow-tracking ETF can get you a significantly larger amount of income than you'll get from the broader market.

But Dow components have had to cut their dividends in the past, and so it makes sense to ask the question of whether each of the 30 Dow companies pays a sustainable dividend that isn't in danger of getting cut. With that in mind, let's take a look at companies that pay relatively rich dividends compared to their earnings.

The common problem of telecom payouts
Inevitably, when you look at payout ratios -- the amount a company pays out in dividends compared to its earnings -- two companies pop up with potential warning signs: Verizon (NYSE: VZ  ) and AT&T (NYSE: T  ) . Verizon in particular looks the most problematic, with trailing dividends equal to five times stated trailing earnings, according to figures from Yahoo! Finance. AT&T weighs in at "only" 137% of net income paid out in dividends.

Top 10 Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: Seadrill Limited(SDRL)

Seadrill Limited, an offshore drilling contractor, provides offshore drilling services to the oil and gas industries worldwide. It also offers platform drilling, well intervention, and engineering services. As of March 31, 2011 the company owned and operated 54 offshore drilling units, which consist of drillships, jack-up rigs, semisubmersible rigs, and tender rigs for operations in shallow and deepwater areas, as well as in benign and harsh environments. Seadrill Limited was founded in 1972 and is based in Hamilton, Bermuda.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Bryan Perry]

  SeaDrill Ltd. (NYSE: SDRL) is a unique opportunity for income investors seeking a pure play on deep-water drilling outside the post-BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The company was formed in 2005, and owns the most state-of-the-art drilling equipment in the entire industry that commands premium day rates. It is in big demand with utilization rates running near100% as big oil deposits become harder to find without going deep.

  These guys operate all over the world in 15 countries on four continents, owning 54 rigs with exposure to only one rig in the Gulf of Mexico. Most of their drilling activity is off the coast of Norway and South Asia, so it has no exposure to the now unstable Middle East. However, news of ARAMCO in Saudi Arabia upping drilling production is hugely positive news for the oil and gas drilling sector. It confirms the belief that the worldwide drilling rig count will rise as well as day rates for the balance of 2011.

  Shares of SeaDrill stand to trade significantly higher than its current price of $36.50, while paying a dividend yield of 7.5%. Buy SDRL under $40.

Top 10 Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: Rogers Communication Inc.(RCI)

Rogers Communications, Inc. operates as a communications and media company in Canada. The company?s Wireless segment provides wireless voice and data communications services. It operates a global system for mobile communications and general packet radio service network. This segment markets its products and services under Rogers Wireless, Fido, and chatr brands. Its Cable segment offers cable television, high-speed Internet access, and cable telephony services. As of December 31, 2010, this segment provided digital cable services to approximately 1.7 million households; Internet service to approximately 1.7 million residential subscribers; and residential circuit-switched telephony services to approximately a million subscribers. This segment also offers local and long-distance telephone, enhanced voice and data services, and IP access. In addition, this segment operates a retail distribution chain consisting of approximately 400 stores that provide cable services and digi tal and Internet equipment, as well as offers digital video disc and video game sales and rentals. The company?s Media segment publishes magazines, trade and professional publications, and directories, as well as operates 55 radio stations in Canada; multicultural OMNI broadcast television stations; the 5 station Citytv television network; specialty sports television services, including Rogers Sportsnet, Sportnet ONE, and Setanta Sports Canada; specialty services, which comprise Outdoor Life Network, The Biography Channel Canada, and G4 Canada; and televised shopping service, The Shopping Channel. It also holds an ownership in a mobile sports and events production and distribution joint venture; delivers content and conducts ecommerce through the Internet; and owns Blue Jays, a League Baseball club, as well as Rogers Centre sports and entertainment venue. The company was founded in 1920 and is based in Toronto, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Pat Racaniello]

  Rogers Communications (RCI) is a Canadian communications firm with a presence in every major telecom segment, including wireless, wireline, cable television and high speed internet. Wireless communications is the biggest segment of the company’s revenues, with 56% of the most recent quarter contributed by wireless. The company is organized as a holding company, with stakes in major subsidiaries such as Rogers Broadcasting and Rogers Sports Group, which hold further stakes in multiple businesses.

  The stock last traded at $37.57, with an overall tight 52 week range of $40.82 - $33.62, representing low volatility. The price earnings ratio is near the industry average and the 5 year low price earnings at 14.4 times, considering the company just announced an 11% increase in the dividend. In addition, with far higher leverage than the industry at 245.39 (long term debt to equity), the company is also far more comfortable in terms of interest coverage at 4.3 versus 0.02.

Top 10 Clean Energy Stocks To Buy Right Now: Public Storage(PSA)

Public Storage operates as a real estate investment trust (REIT). It engages in the acquisition, development, ownership, and operation of self-storage facilities in the United States and Europe. The company?s self-storage facilities offer storage spaces for lease on a month-to-month basis for personal and business use. Public Storage also has interests in commercial properties containing commercial and industrial rental space; facilities that lease storage containers; and ancillary operations, which include reinsurance of policies against losses to goods stored by its self-storage tenants, retail operations comprising merchandise sales and truck rental operations. As of December 31, 2008, the company had interests in 2,012 self-storage facilities with approximately 127 million net rentable square feet in 38 states; and 181 self-storage facilities with approximately 10 million net rentable square feet in 7 western European nations. It also had direct and indirect equity int erests in approximately 21 million net rentable square feet of commercial space located in 11 states in the U.S. As a REIT, the company would not be subject to federal income tax to the extent that it distributes at least 90% of its taxable income to its shareholders. Public Storage was founded in 1971 and is based in Glendale, California.

Top 10 Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: Johnson & Johnson(JNJ)

Johnson & Johnson engages in the research and development, manufacture, and sale of various products in the health care field worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Consumer, Pharmaceutical, and Medical Devices and Diagnostics. The Consumer segment provides products used in baby care, skin care, oral care, wound care, and women?s health care fields, as well as nutritional, over-the-counter pharmaceutical products, and wellness and prevention platforms under the brands of JOHNSON?S, AVEENO, CLEAN & CLEAR, JOHNSON?S Adult, NEUTROGENA, RoC, LUBRIDERM, DABAO, LISTERINE, REACH, BAND-AID, CAREFREE, STAYFREE, SPLENDA, TYLENOL, SUDAFED, ZYRTEC, MOTRIN IB, and PEPCID AC. The Pharmaceutical segment offers products in various therapeutic areas, such as anti-infective, antipsychotic, contraceptive, dermatology, gastrointestinal, hematology, immunology, neurology, oncology, pain management, and virology. Its principal products include REMICADE for the treatment of immune me diated inflammatory diseases; STELARA for the treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis; SIMPONI, a treatment for adults with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, and ankylosing spondylitis; VELCADE for the treatment of multiple myeloma; PREZISTA and INTELENCE for treating HIV/AIDS patients; NUCYNTA for moderate to severe acute pain; INVEGA SUSTENNAtm for the acute and maintenance treatment of schizophrenia in adults; RISPERDAL CONSTA for the management of bipolar I disorder and schizophrenia; and PROCRIT to stimulate red blood cell production. The Medical Devices and Diagnostics segment primarily offers circulatory disease management products; orthopaedic joint reconstruction, spinal care, and sports medicine products; surgical care, aesthetics, and women?s health products; blood glucose monitoring and insulin delivery products; professional diagnostic products; and disposable contact lenses. The company was founded in 1886 and is based in Ne w Brunswick, New Jersey.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Michael Brush]

  Johnson & Johnson has a dividend yield of 3.4%.

  The world's largest health care company provides investors with exposure (similar to that of a mutual fund) to the health care sector. The company has three main divisions: pharmaceuticals, medical devices and consumer products.

  Johnson & Johnson has had its share of quality control issues, but that's no reason to avoid this stock. The company's strong research pipeline, broad product lines and abundant cash flow mean it will continue to grow -- and keep increasing dividends.

• [By Zachary Silver]

  Healthcare giants like Johnson & Johnson have performed extraordinarily well this year. Johnson & Johnson has a beta of 0.38, meaning that it will be less volatile than the market. This might bring peace of mind to some investors who have grown tired of the recent volatility in the markets. With its attractive dividend rate, historically strong free cash flow margins, and a low beta, Johnson & Johnson could be a good addition to a core retirement portfolio.

Top 10 Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: CCA Industries Inc.(CAW)

CCA Industries, Inc. engages in manufacturing and selling health and beauty aid products primarily in the United States and Canada. The company primarily offers toothpastes and teeth whiteners under the Plus+White brand; anti-aging skin care products under the Sudden Change brand; nail care treatments under the Nutra Nail and Power Gel brands; medicated topical and shave gels under the Bikini Zone brand; diet supplements under the Mega-T Green Tea brand; and gums and mint products under the Mega?T Green Tea brand. It also provides hair removal and depilatory products under the Hair Off brand; foot-care products under the IPR brand; sun-care products under the Solar Sense brand; shampoos and conditioners under the Wash ?N Curl brand; vanilla fragrances, including perfumes under the Parfume de Vanille brand; ear-care products under the Lobe Wonder brand; topical analgesic products under the Pain Bust*R II brand; and scar diminishing cream under the Scar Zone brand. CCA Indus tries, Inc. markets and sells its products through its sales force, independent sales representatives, and distributors to drug, food, and mass-merchandise retail chains, as well as to warehouse clubs and wholesalers. The company was founded in 1983 and is based in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Top 10 Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: TECO Energy Inc.(TE)

TECO Energy, Inc., an electric and gas utility company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, purchase, transmission, distribution, and sale of electric energy. It provides retail electric service to approximately 672,000 customers in West Central Florida with a net winter system generating capability of 4,684 megawatts. The company also engages in the purchase, distribution, and marketing of natural gas. It serves approximately 336,000 residential, commercial, industrial, and electric power generation customers in Florida. In addition, the company owns mineral rights, owns or operates surface and underground mines, and owns interests in coal processing and loading facilities. TECO Energy, Inc. was founded in 1899 and is headquartered in Tampa, Florida.

Top 10 Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: Sanofi(SNY)

sanofi-aventis engages in the discovery, development, and distribution of therapeutic solutions to improve the lives of everyone. The company offers a range of healthcare assets, including a broad-based product portfolio in prescription drugs, OTC/OTX, generics, vaccines, and animal health. It has a strategic alliance with Regulus Therapeutics Inc. to discover, develop, and commercialize micro-RNA therapeutics, initially in fibrosis. The company was founded in 1970 and is headquartered in Paris, France.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Michael]

  Sanofi is a global and diversified healthcare company. Cramer holds 2,600 shares of SNY stocks. SNY has a dividend yield of 5.40% and returned 7.19% since the beginning of this year. It has a market cap of $87.11B and a P/E ratio of 14.42. Ken Fisher invested nearly $600 million in SNY.

• [By Dividend Stocks Online]

  Sanofi (SNY) has a market capitalization of $129.70 billion. The company employs 113,719 people, generates revenue of $47.297 billion and has a net income of $6.562 billion. The firm’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $13.805 billion. The EBITDA margin is 29.19 percent (the operating margin is 16.18 percent and the net profit margin 13.87 percent). 
  
  Financial Analysis: The total debt represents 15.41 percent of the company’s assets and the total debt in relation to the equity amounts to 27.46 percent. Due to the financial situation, a return on equity of 10.42 percent was realized. Twelve trailing months earnings per share reached a value of $3.05. Last fiscal year, the company paid $1.79 in the form of dividends to shareholders. 
  
  Market Valuation: Here are the price ratios of the company: The P/E ratio is 16.07, the P/S ratio is 2.74 and the P/B ratio is finally 1.70. The dividend yield amounts to 3.46 percent and the beta ratio has a value of 0.91.

Top 10 Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: Oneida Financial Corp.(ONFC)

Oneida Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for The Oneida Savings Bank that provides community banking services primarily in Madison and Oneida Counties in New York, and surrounding counties. Its deposit products include savings accounts, interest-bearing demand accounts, non interest-bearing checking accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts. The company?s loan products portfolio comprises one-to-four family residential and commercial real estate loans, consumer loans, and commercial business loans. It also offers trust and investment services, including fiduciary services for trusts and estates, money management, and custodial services. In addition, the company sells insurance; provides employee benefits consulting services; and offers risk management services to help mitigate and prevent work related injuries. It operates through 10 full service branch offices in Madison and Oneida Counties; and 1 full service branch office in Onondaga County in New York. The company was founded in 1866 and is based in Oneida, New York. Oneida Financial Corp. is a subsidiary of Oneida Financial MHC.

Top 10 Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: Hudson City Bancorp Inc.(HCBK)

Hudson City Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Hudson City Savings Bank that provides a range of retail banking services. It offers a range of deposit accounts, including passbook and statement savings accounts, interest-bearing transaction accounts, checking accounts, money market accounts, and time deposits, as well as IRA accounts and qualified retirement plans. The company?s loan portfolio primarily comprises one-to four-family first mortgage loans for residential properties; multi-family and commercial mortgage loans; construction loans; and consumer loans, such as fixed-rate second mortgage loans and home equity credit line loans, as well as collateralized passbook loans, overdraft protection loans, automobile loans, and secured and unsecured commercial lines of credit. As of December 31, 2009, it operated 95 branches located in 17 counties throughout the State of New Jersey; 10 branch offices in Westchester County, 9 branch offices in Suffolk Cou nty, 1 branch office each in Putnam and Rockland Counties, and 6 branch offices in Richmond County; and 9 branch offices in Fairfield County, Connecticut. The company was founded in 1868 and is based in Paramus, New Jersey.

Top 10 Dividend Stocks To Buy Right Now: Leggett & Platt Incorporated(LEG)

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated designs and produces various engineered components and products worldwide. Its Residential Furnishings segment offers bedding components, such as innersprings and wire forms; furniture components, including steel mechanisms, springs, seat suspensions, steel tubular seat frames, bed frames, ornamental beds, and power foundations; and structural fabrics, carpet underlay materials, and geo components. This segment serves manufacturers of finished bedding products or upholstered furniture. The company?s Commercial Fixturing & Components segment provides shelving, counters, showcases, and garment racks; standardized shelvings; point-of-purchase displays; and bases, columns, back rests, casters, and frames. This segment offers its products to retail chains and specialty shops; brand name marketers; distributors of consumer products; and office, institutional, and commercial furniture manufacturers. Its Industrial Materials segment provides steel rod s, drawn wires, steel billets, fabricated wire products, welded steel tubing, and fabricated tube components to bedding and furniture, and mechanical spring makers; automotive seating, and lawn and garden equipment manufacturers; and waste recyclers, waste removal businesses, and medical supply businesses. The company?s Specialized Products segment offers manual and power lumbar support and massage systems; seat suspension systems; automotive control cables; low voltage motors; actuation assemblies; formed metal and wire components; quilting machines; machines for shaping wire into springs; industrial sewing/finishing machines; van interiors; and docking stations, as well as specialty trailers for telephone, cable, and utility companies. It serves bedding and automobile seating manufacturers. The company sells its products through its sales representatives and distributors. Leggett & Platt, Incorporated was founded in 1883 and is based in Carthage, Missouri.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Paul]

  Founded in 1883, Leggett & Platt Inc. (NYSE: LEG) designs and manufactures a wide range of products used in items from home furnishings to automobile interiors to wires and tubing for industrial use.

  Current Yield: 4.1% ($1.08 a share annually)

  Dividend History: In July 2010, Leggett & Platt paid a quarterly dividend of 26 cents a share. This July, LEG it will pay 27 cents, or a nearly 4% increase. LEG has paid dividends since 1939.

  Dividend Outlook: According to Bloomberg data, LEG’s three-year dividend growth rate is expected to be 3.6%.

  Recent Performance: Leggett & Platt has underperformed across the last year, but has really taken off in 2011. The manufacturer has doubled the market with a nearly 15% gain since Jan. 1, and is up against a new 52-week high.

  Strong Outlook for Shares: Part of the reason Leggett & Platt has performed so well is because of strong earnings at the end of April, which showed a 10% jump in sales, beating expectations, and higher guidance for fiscal 2011. Big growth of 28% in the specialized products segment gives investors reason to be optimistic about LEG stock for the rest of the year.

Glaxo Initiates Phase III Study - Analyst Blog

Top 5 Clean Energy Stocks To Buy For 2014

Genmab (GNMSF) recently announced that its partner GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has initiated a phase III study (n ~ 136) on a subcutaneous formulation of their marketed drug Arzerra (ofatumumab) for an additional indication. The double blind phase III study will evaluate the safety and efficacy of Arzerra in patients suffering from pemphigus vulgaris, a rare skin related autoimmune disorder.

We note that Arzerra was approved in Oct 2009 for the treatment of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), a type of blood cancer, refractory to Sanofi's (SNY) Campath (alemtuzumab) and Fludara (fludarabine). In the first quarter of 2013, Glaxo reported Arzerra revenues of £21 million, up 67% from the year-ago quarter.

Glaxo and Genmab are looking to expand the label of Arzerra. In May 2013, Glaxo and Genmab announced encouraging top-line data from a phase III study (n = 447) which compared the efficacy of Arzerra as an adjunct to another oncology drug at Glaxo, Leukeran (chlorambucil) in treatment-naive CLL patients versus Leukeran alone.

The study met its primary endpoint of progression free survival (PFS/the time a patient lived without worsening of their disease). Data from the study was assessed by an independent review committee. In the Arzerra + Leukeran arm of the study, median PFS of 22.4 months was observed as compared to 13.1 months in the Leukeran arm.

Glaxo carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We are pleased with Glaxo's label expansion efforts. Moreover, Glaxo boasts of a robust pipeline. A number of pipeline-related news is expected in the coming quarters. Given the declining sales from generic competition, we believe Glaxo's pipeline must deliver. Companies that currently look attractive include Novo Nordisk (NVO) carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

There’s No Magic Bullet

5 Best Insurance Stocks To Watch Right Now

No two stocks are identical. Walmart's (WMT) market cap is larger than that of Target's (TGT). Target has a lower price-to-book ratio and price-to-earnings ratio than Walmart's. Walmart has a better return on assets and return on equity, but Target has better operating margins and net margins. Walmart, however, has less debt. The list goes on and on.

Investors are faced with choices such as this everyday and investing life would be much simpler if only the picture each company portrayed was much clearer and convincing as to which company each of us should invest in. Ultimately, investors must choose. There is no perfect check list, though I use one. There is no one metric or ratio to guarantee success, though I use many of them. In other words, there is no magic bullet that any guru, checklist, analyst, etc., can offer you so that you know that your stock will increase in price. Only time can do that, along with Mr. Market acknowledging what hopefully was a wise choice.

Every day, investors must make decisions and use their very best judgment. Many seek out that one magic bullet that will separate one stock from the other. If you like reading, you will discover that there are many more metrics or ratios for determining the quality of a stock you intend to investigate. Some are more important than others.

One of the most important and helpful devices is the actual study of the financial statements. I have a copy of Enron's 2000 annual report and occasionally review it, almost as a study guide. Would I have seen the problems before the demise? I would certainly like to think so. Luckily, I never owned it and I
would like to believe that based upon their statements, I never would have. But what exactly are we looking for or what should you be looking for?

Search the Internet, read a book on investing or follow the Piotroski (! F-Score) and you will discover that a key metric watched by investors everywhere is that operating cash flow exceed net income. But is it a magic bullet? This is only one of many metrics that an investor should use, but let's investigate this one a little more closely. Those that have followed or used the Piotroski F-Score and done any back testing will see that operating cash flow greater than net income is one of the most important of the scoring. One of the reasons that this is important is because its more difficult to manipulate the numbers on the cash flow statement. Not impossible — just more difficult.

[ Enlarge Image ]

Above is a portion of Walmart's cash flow statement. You will note that the top line of the cash flow statement begins with net income. The bottom line shown here is cash flow from operations and is how a statement should look in a perfect world. But alas, we don't live in a perfect world and not all stocks have this clean of a statement.

Look at Hi-Tech Pharmacal's (HITK) cash flow statement below. Hi-Tech just received approval by the FDA for an oral concentrate of Lorazepam. Lorazepam is an often-used drug for the treatment of anxiety and is probably used by more Wall Street analysts than I care to know about. Note that the last three years indicate that net income is greater than operating cash flow. This is known as a red flag and should be investigated thoroughly if you intend to invest in any stock with similar numbers.

It's important to understand that this may only be temporary, but you should investigate fully before you dive into any stock where net income is greater than operating cash flow. Remember that cash flow is an adjustment to net income and considers such items as depreciation and amortization which alter the net income figure considerably. Depreciation and amortization don't actually require cash outlays and therefore don't alter cas! h flow, g! iving a clearer picture of the company's position. This is one of the reasons why investors prefer to look at cash flow instead of net income. Further, if the spread of the larger net income is huge, it may indicate that earnings may be less than useful for consideration.

[ Enlarge Image ]

Many investors will choose to use free cash flow over operation cash flow which I don't suggest because there is no "approved" definition of free cash flow and it may differ from various sources.

Companies take their cash and make up their inventories which are stored until sold. When sold, they typically, if not receiving cash, go into the column labeled account receivables until the customer pays. So looking closer at Hi-Tech for the last three years, let's note a couple of things:

[ Enlarge Image ]

The annual growth rate of the revenues annually is 17.87% with a five-year rate of 39.41%. Not bad, so where do we look from here? Think about what we just stated regarding our cash going into inventories and account receivables. Take a look at the trend of their receivables.

[ Enlarge Image ]

Take note that the receivables are growing much faster than sales, another red flag.

These and many more are the types of steps you need to take when evaluating a stock. Be diligent and be careful.

Finally, don't necessarily conclude that this is a bad investment. Joel Greenblatt did not think so. Look at his record:

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Happy investing!

Disclosure: I am long on WMT

How To Write An Effective Investment Banking Resume

Investment banking is a fast-moving, high-stress, ferociously competitive business that requires specialized knowledge and experience - not to mention commitment, focus, and the physical and mental stamina required to work long hours. Career opportunities in investment banking are always available, although in boom years they're more abundant and in lean economic times they're scarce. Read on for tips on how to build a killer investment banking resume. Obtaining a job in this potentially lucrative occupation usually requires a few key skills and qualities – although a strong recommendation from someone of influence may trump all of them.

Building Your Resume
Although there is no perfect format and no infallible content for a resume, the suggestions below have proved effective in securing jobs in the finance sector, including investment banking.

Keep in mind that there is a difference between a resume in application for an investment banking job and an accounting job. The investment banking candidate may have accounting experience, but beyond that a background in financial analysis, mergers and acquisitions, initial public offerings, valuations, or experience in both buy side and sell side research tends to be much more important. And, of course, a candidate must be able to demonstrate a willingness to put in the demanding hours the job requires.

The resume format sample suggested below is a standard and widely used arrangement, but you may also want to research other resume formats online or in the many books available on this subject. Also note that the information included in the sample is for illustrative purposes only. Your own resume will, of course, reflect your own education, experience and other pertinent information.

Education
Cite the college or university where you studied, list degrees, honors and achievements and cite special courses relevant to investment banking. For example, computer science, statistical analysis, contract law, management or business administration courses, and business writing may all be worth mentioning in this section.

Employment Background
Include the title of your current and previous jobs, along with the name and location of the company and your duties and accomplishments in a paragraph.

For example:

2008 to Present
Junior Accountant, Business Loans Department,
Branch of Major Bank, New York, NY
Audited books of small business loan applicants to determine cash flow, debt levels and risk factors to assess credit worthiness. Reported directly to VP and chairman of small business loan committee.

Cite previous employment in the same manner as the sample above.

Skills
Cite your relevant skills beneath this heading. For example, beyond your talent as an accountant, you may have written and verbal skills, a knowledge of tax law, managerial abilities and a sharper-than-average understanding of human nature. Focus on the skills with the most relevance and give reasonable proof that you posses these skills.

If you are short on specific skills, you may also cite personal skills. For example, you might say that you are highly motivated, energetic, enthusiastic, detail-oriented and so on. Many of these things will be implied in your investment banking skill set – that is, accounting skills generally suggests a detail-oriented personality – so you can omit overlap for the sake of brevity.

Qualifications
Potential employers in the field of investment banking will look for candidates with the following qualifications in education and work experience.

College or university degrees in any of the following:
Accounting Banking Business Administration Business Law Computer Science Economics Finance Human Resources Information Technology Tax Law This is not set in stone, as potential employers will consider and other business, law and technology related disciplines not listed here. Basically, employers want to see that you can bring something to their team.

Unique Qualifications
Employers with special needs may look for candidates with education and experience in government relations, international relations and/or public policy, depending on the type of banking that the office specializes in.

Work experience in the areas cited above, plus any aspect of accounting, banking, finance and mid-level to senior management positions - especially in finance - are particularly attractive to potential employers.

Another area in which investment banks may be hiring is in government compliance. With new banking and financial regulatory laws now in place, there is more demand for compliance personnel. Another critical aspect of investment banking involves raising capital to fund investments. This job requires the talents of a salesperson as well as knowledge in finance.

Entry-Level Qualifications
For junior-level positions, trainee positions or internships in investment banking, qualifications may not be confined to the areas cited above. Education and experience that is less focused on finance may be acceptable to potential employers with a view toward training new hires in investment banking specialties.

Personal Qualifications
The personal qualifications that employers find attractive in a job candidate may include the following:
Strategic thinking Communication skills People skills - collaboration, management ability, personality, etc. Again, you will have to back these up with a short statement in your resume and, assuming you get through, further evidence in the interview.

Your Purpose
Finally, be sure to state your passion for banking and finance and convey your energy and enthusiasm for the business. Often, these qualities help younger and less experienced applicants secure the desired job.

Phrasing Your Experience and Accomplishments
You should try to list all your relevant experience and achievements in succinct, bullet-point format. Use active verbs and phrases such as: managed, supervised, developed, created, invented, organized, assisted, analyzed, raised funds, sold products, wrote, designed and similar words that reflect your specific achievements. This can be integrated within each entry to the employment history section of the resume.

For example:
Supervised a team of internal auditors Created and implemented a new debt-tracking software program Raised $5 million in investment capital through cold calling and direct mail advertising, working in collaboration with an advertising agency. The Applicant's Edge
If replying to a job opening advertisement, the applicant should repeat some key words found in the ad in his or her cover letter. For example, if a job advertisement states that candidates should have marketing and management skills, be sure to include these key phrases somewhere near the top of your cover letter and in your resume.

The Reference Advantage
Positive letters of reference from previous employers are a plus. However, if you don't secure letters of reference and still cite previous employers as references, be sure to obtain their permission in advance. Again, if you have a large pool to pull from, you'll want the references from the posts you've held that are most relevant to investment banking qualifications.

For job seekers currently employed, asking your employer for a reference may not be a good idea.

The Bottom Line
In a competitive job market, a persuasive resume will give the applicant a definite edge among the many who may apply for the position. Relevance should always be your guide in deciding what to include and expand upon in your investment banking resume. Following the suggestions above in drafting your resume may not guarantee that you'll be hired, but if you're qualified, you'll be in the running.

Will Barnes & Noble Surge Higher After the Exit of its CEO?

With shares of Barnes & Noble (NYSE:BKS) trading around $18, is BKS an OUTPERFORM, WAIT AND SEE or STAY AWAY? Let's analyze the stock with the relevant sections of our CHEAT SHEET investing framework:

T = Trends for a Stock’s Movement

Barnes & Noble is a content, commerce, and technology book-selling company that provides customers access to books, magazines, newspapers, and other content across its multi-channel distribution platform. The company operates 1,338 bookstores in 50 states, 647 bookstores on college campuses, one e-commerce site, and develops digital content products and software. Barnes & Noble operates in three segments: B&N Retail, B&N College, and Nook. The company may be preparing to close its doors as it has struggled to compete with Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL). Its founder, Leonard Riggio, has suggested the company may be able to survive if it splits its digital businesses from its physical stores

Barnes & Noble’s CEO, William Lynch, is now leaving the company after the massive failure of Barnes & Noble's Nook tablets to compete in the tablet or e-reader markets. The bookseller also gave a severely disappointing earnings report recently. The company requires a major restructuring if it looks to compete so look for things to change or the company to continue to struggle.

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart are Mixed

Barnes & Noble stock not managed to do very well over the last few years due to the effectiveness of its competition. The stock is bouncing a bit after trading near lows for the year due to a disappointing earnings report. Analyzing the price trend and its strength can be done using key simple moving averages. What are the key moving averages? The 50-day (pink), 100-day (blue), and 200-day (yellow) simple moving averages. As seen in the daily price chart below, Barnes & Noble is trading between its key averages which signal neutral price action in the near-term.

(Source: Thinkorswim)

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

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
Barnes & Noble Options	53.91%	16%	14%

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

	Put IV Skew	Call IV Skew
July Options	Steep	Top Companies To Buy Right Now Average
August Options	Steep	Average

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

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

E = Earnings Are Decreasing Quarter-Over-Quarter

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

	2013 Q1	2012 Q4	2012 Q3	2012 Q2
Earnings Growth (Y-O-Y)	-110.37%	-125.35%	76.47%	21.21%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	-4.70%	-8.82%	-0.39%	2.47%
Earnings Reaction	-17.05%	3.34%	-11.15%	-3.88%

Barnes & Noble has seen decreasing earnings and declining revenue figures over most of the last four quarters. From these numbers, the markets have not been pleased with Barnes & Noble’s recent earnings announcements.

P = Excellent Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has Barnes & Noble stock done relative to its peers, Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), and sector?

	Barnes & Noble	Amazon	Apple	Google	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	21.80%	15.65%	-21.08%	27.97%	11.82%

Barnes & Noble has been a relative performance leader, year-to-date.

Conclusion

Barnes & Noble, the last remaining nationwide bookstore, may be getting ready to close its doors as it struggles against current competition. Recently, it was announced that the current CEO will be leaving his post. The stock has struggled to perform well in recent years but may be stabilizing a bit at current prices. Over the last four quarters, earnings have been decreasing while revenue figures have been declining which has not really pleased investors in the company. Relative to its peers and sector, Barnes & Noble has been a year-to-date performance leader. WAIT AND SEE the direction the company takes in coming quarters.

Is Dynex Capital a Top-Tier Dividend Play?

This column originally appeared exclusively first for Stock Investor Cheat Sheet premium subscribers on May 20th and has been updated to reflect current data changes.

With shares of Dynex Capital Inc. (NYSE:DX) trading at around $10.63, is DX an OUTPERFORM, WAIT AND SEE or STAY AWAY? Let's analyze the stock with the relevant sections of our CHEAT SHEET investing framework:

C = Catalyst for the Stock's Movement

Dynex Capital, Inc. is a real estate investment trust, or REIT, which invests in mortgage loans and securities on a leveraged basis.  The company invests in both Agency and non-Agency securitized mortgage products. The company also has investments in securitized single-family residential and commercial mortgage loans originated by the Company from 1992 to 1998.  The company finances it investments through a combination of repurchase agreements, securitization financing, and equity capital.

Since Dynex Capital is a REIT, 90 percent of all taxable income must go to shareholders. This is what makes REITs so appealing to savvy dividend investors. And in this case, the dividend yield is an impressive 10.68 percent. Another big selling point for Dynex Capital is that it held up relatively well during the financial crisis. The stock lost just over 30 percent, which was nothing compared to most stocks throughout the broader market. There was also a generous yield to make up for those losses. Dynex Capital has since recouped all those losses and more.

Revenue has consistently improved on an annual basis, and earnings have been steady. As far as the last quarter (Q1) goes, diluted EPS came in at $0.34, which was a slight increase year-over-year. Revenue also increased year-over-year. There is a chart on the next page showing annual and quarterly revenue and earnings.

Getting back to Q1 results, net income increased to $22.5 million from $21.1 million in Q4 2013. General administration expenses were $3.8 million compared to $3.5 million in Q4 2013, but this increase was seasonal. The investment portfolio has increased. For example, in Q1, Dynex Capital purchased $636.0 million in MBS investments.

Mr. Thomas Akin, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, made the following comments about the quarter:

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“Our first quarter results were excellent. Our book value per common share increased by $0.20 even as interest rates increased during the quarter. Net interest income increased to $22.5 million for this quarter from $21.1 million in the prior quarter. Return on average common equity remained the same as the fourth quarter of 2012 at 13.0%. Our performance was driven significantly by our focus over the past twelve months on CMBS investments, which now represent 61% of our invested capital. The Series B preferred stock we issued in April 2013 helps to diversify our capital base while lowering our average cost of equity capital. We now have fully invested the proceeds of this issuance at accretive returns to our shareholders. We believe that our portfolio is well positioned in this low-rate and uncertain environment.”

Let's take a look at some numbers before forming an opinion on the stock. The chart below compares fundamentals for Dynex Capital, Capstead Mortgage Corp. (NYSE:CMO), and iStar Financial Inc. (NYSE:SFI).

	DX	CMO	SFI
Trailing P/E	7.82	8.94	N/A
Forward P/E	N/A	9.08	N/A
Profit Margin	85.18%	91.80%	N/A
ROE	13.35%	10.61%	-16.98%
Operating Cash Flow	N/A	271.33M	-223.75M
Dividend Yield	10.60%	9.60%	N/A
Short Position	2.80%	2.10%	20.60%

Let's take a look at some more important numbers prior to forming an opinion on this stock.

T = Technicals Are Strong

Dynex Capital and its peers have performed very well over the past three years. There have been no signs of a slowdown.

	1 Month	Year-To-Date	1 Year	3 Year
DX	1.05%	15.67%	28.13%	63.37%
CMO	-6.02%	9.44%	-0.46%	63.49%
SFI	6.18%	45.52%	101.40%	106.30%

At $10.63, Dynex Capital is trading above its averages.

50-Day SMA	10.63
200-Day SMA	10.22

E = Equity to Debt Ratio Is Weak

The debt-to-equity ratio for Dynex Capital is weaker than the industry average of 1.70, but high debt-to-equity ratios are normal for the industry. Is there room for improvement? Yes, but it’s not an issue in the current environment.

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	Debt-To-Equity	Cash	Long-Term Debt
DX	5.96	44.13M	3.77B
CMO	8.69	471.62M	12.95B
SFI	3.07	478.92M	4.50B

E = Earnings Are Strong

Earnings have been steady, and revenue has consistently improved on an annual basis.

Fiscal Year	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012
Revenue ($) in millions	30	39	49	83	114
Diluted EPS ($)	0.91	1.02	1.41	1.03	1.35

When we look at the last quarter on a year-over-year basis, we see a significant increase in revenue and a slight increase in earnings.

Quarter	Mar. 31, 2012	Jun. 30, 2012	Sep. 30, 2012	Dec. 31, 2012	Mar. 31, 2013
Revenue ($) in millions	26.27	29.99	31.84	33.51	32.98
Diluted EPS ($)	0.33	0.35	0.34	0.34	0.34

Now let's take a look at the next page for the Trends and Conclusion. Is this stock an OUTPERFORM, a WAIT AND SEE, or a STAY AWAY?

T = Trends Support the Industry

REITs have performed very well over the past several years. Investors have been forced out of fixed income investments, which has left them searching for high-yielding stocks that offer at least some resiliency if the market were to suffer a steep correction. REITs fit the bill.

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Conclusion

With steadily increasing revenue, a superb yield, trends supporting the industry, and decent resiliency, potential rewards outweigh downside risks.