Monday, January 12, 2015

Top Dow Dividend Companies To Watch For 2014

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

What: Shares of Avanir Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: AVNR  ) , a biopharmaceutical company focused on rare central nervous systems disorders, jumped as much as 13% after the Food and Drug Administration OK'd an accelerated development pathway for AVP-786.

So what: In a pre-investigational new drug meeting with the FDA, Avanir was able to rely on information from previous studies in AVP-923 to gain an expedited development pathway for its proposed neuropathic pain medication, AVP-786. This means that it will only need to run a limited amount of preclinical trials prior to moving on to human clinical trials. Obviously, if all goes well in the preclinical and clinical settings, this could get AVP-786 to market a lot faster and should reduce Avanir's out-of-pocket trial costs. In addition to neuropathic pain, Avanir is angling AVP-786 to treat agitation in Alzheimer's disease and levodopa-induced dyskinesia in Parkinson's disease.

Top 5 Value Companies To Buy Right Now: Investment Technology Group Inc (ITG)

Investment Technology Group, Inc. (ITG), incorporated on March 10, 1994, is an independent execution and research broker that partners with global portfolio managers and traders to provide data-driven insights throughout the investment process. It operates in three segments: United States Operations, Canadian Operations, European Operations and Asia Pacific Operations. The United States Operations segment provides electronic and trade execution, trade order and execution management, network connectivity, analytical products and investment research services. The Canadian and Asia Pacific Operations segments provide electronic and high-touch trade execution, trade execution management, network connectivity, analytical products and investment research services. The European Operations segment provides electronic and high-touch trade execution, trade order and execution management, network connectivity and analytical products and includes a technology research and development facility in Israel.

ITG offers a range of solutions for asset managers in the areas of electronic brokerage, research sales and trading, trading platforms and analytics. These offerings include trade execution services and solutions for portfolio management, as well as investment research, pre-trade analytics and post-trade analytics and processing. Its principal subsidiaries include: ITG Inc., AlterNet Securities, Inc., ITG Derivatives LLC, Investment Technology Group Limited, ITG Australia Limited, ITG Canada Corp., ITG Hong Kong Limited, ITG Software Solutions, Inc. and ITG Solutions Network, Inc.

Electronic Brokerage

ITG electronic brokerage services include self-directed trading using algorithms, smart routing and matching through POSIT in cash equities (including single stocks and portfolio lists), futures and options. ITG Algorithms and ITG Smart Router offer portfolio managers and traders a way to trade orders quickly, from any ITG Execution Management System (EMS) or ITG Order Managemen! t System (OMS) and third-party trading platforms. ITG Algorithms help users pursue execution through two suites: ITG Single Stock Algorithms and ITG List-Based Algorithms. ITG Smart Router offers an alternative to routing trades that can help capture liquidity with a combination of speed and confidentiality. These routers continuously scan markets for liquidity with an emphasis on trading without displaying the order.

POSIT Alert is a buyside-only block crossing mechanism within POSIT. POSIT Alert scans uncommitted shares from participating clients. When a crossing opportunity is detected, POSIT Alert notifies the relevant users that a matching opportunity exists. POSIT Marketplace provides access to POSIT liquidity, the dark pools of other ATSs, and certain exchange hidden order types. POSIT Marketplace is a dark pool aggregator that provides clients with access to a range of liquidity destinations. POSIT Marketplace uses advanced quantitative techniques in an effort to protect clients from gaming and to interact with quality liquidity. ITG Derivatives provides electronic-listed futures and options trading, including algorithmic trading and direct market access. ITG offers options features for traders employing volatility or delta-neutral strategies and also provides low-latency application programming interfaces.

ITG offers guidance, administration, and consolidation of client commission arrangements across the range of preferred brokerage and research providers of its clients using ITG Commission Manager, a robust, multi-asset Web-based commission management portal. Through stock borrow and stock loan transactions, ITG facilitates shortened or extended settlement periods to help clients meet their internal cash flow needs.

Research Sales & Trading

ITG provides unbiased, data-driven equity research through its ITG Investment Research subsidiary. This offering has expanded ITG's client relationships beyond the trading desk to chief investment officer! s, portfo! lio managers and analysts. ITG Market Research offers market research capabilities to corporate clients within the healthcare and telecom industries. The healthcare market research practice combines survey results with empirical data to deliver syndicated and custom reporting capabilities. ITG provides high-touch sales trading and portfolio trading for institutional clients. ITG's high-touch trading desk is staffed with experienced trading professionals who provide ITG clients with execution expertise and also convey trading ideas based on ITG Investment Research.

Trading Platforms

ITG EMSs are designed to meet the needs of disparate trading styles. Triton Derivatives is a broker-neutral direct access EMS that provides traders with access to scalable, low-latency, multi-asset trading opportunities. ITG OMS combines portfolio management, compliance functionality (ITG Compliance Monitoring System), trading and post-trade processing (ITG Trade Operations Outsourcing), and a fully integrated and supported financial services communications network (ITG Net) with a consolidated, outsourced service for global trade matching and settlement (ITG Trade Operations Outsourcing) that provides connectivity to the industry's post-trade utilities, support for multiple, flexible settlement communications methods and a real-time process monitor. ITG Net is a global financial communications network that provides secure, reliable and fully supported connectivity between buy-side and sell-side firms for order routing and indication-of-interest messages from ITG and third-party trading platforms.

ITG's commitment to execution platforms also extends to broker-neutral operational services to help ensure that trades clear and settle efficiently, and to significantly lower the transaction costs associated with trade tickets. The ITG Smart Trading Analytics suite enables portfolio managers and traders to improve execution performance before the trade happens (pre-trade) and during trading ! (real-tim! e) by providing reliable portfolio analytics and risk models that help them perform predictive analyses, manage risk, change strategy and reduce trading costs. ITG Transaction Cost Analysis (TCA) offers measurement and reporting capabilities to analyze performance across the trading continuum. ITG Alpha Capture Reporting measures cost at every point of the investment process and provides portfolio managers with quarterly analytical reviews, written interpretations and on-site consultative recommendations to enhance performance.

ITG provides tools to assist asset managers with portfolio decision-making tasks from portfolio construction and optimization to the enterprise challenges of global, real-time portfolio compliance monitoring and the fair valuation of securities. ITG Portfolio Fair Value Service helps mutual fund managers meet their obligations to investors and regulators to fairly price the securities within their funds, and helps minimize the impact of market timing. ITG Portfolio Optimization System allows portfolio managers to develop new portfolio construction strategies and solve complex optimization problems. ITG Portfolio Optimization System allows users to accurately model tax liability, transaction costs and long/short objectives, while adhering to diverse portfolio-specific constraints.

Non-U.S. Operations

ITG has a development center in Tel Aviv. In Asia Pacific, ITG has offices in Sydney, Melbourne, Hong Kong and Singapore. Local representation in regional markets provides an important advantage for ITG. ITG also provides electronic and high-touch trading for Latin American equities, including algorithms for Brazil and Mexico, from its New York headquarters.

Canadian Operations

ITG Canada provides electronic brokerage services, including ITG Algorithms, ITG Smart Router and the POSIT suite, as well as high-touch agency execution and portfolio trading services. In addition, ITG Canada provides Triton, Triton Derivatives! , connect! ivity services, ITG Single Ticket Clearing, ITG Portfolio Optimization System, ITG Smart Trading Analytics, ITG TCA and investment research services. ITG Canada also engages in principal trading activities. ITG Canada's customers primarily consist of asset and investment managers, broker-dealers and hedge funds.

European Operations

ITG Europe focuses on trading European, Middle Eastern and African equities, as well as providing ITG's technologies to its clients. ITG Europe provides electronic brokerage services, including ITG Algorithms, ITG Smart Router, and the POSIT suite, as well as high-touch agency execution and portfolio trading services. ITG Europe also provides ITG OMS, Triton, connectivity services, ITG Single Ticket Clearing, ITG TCA, ITG Alpha Capture Reporting and ITG Smart Trading Analytics.

Asia Pacific Operations

ITG provides institutional investors with a range of ITG's products and services including trade execution, trade execution management through Triton, connectivity services and pre-and post-trade analysis through ITG TCA and ITG Smart Trading Analytics. Execution services are provided through electronic brokerage products such as ITG Algorithms and the POSIT suite and through an experienced high-touch agency trading services team. Other trading tools provided by ITG Hong Kong include Triton, connectivity services, ITG TCA and ITG Smart Trading Analytics. ITG Singapore provides institutional investors in Singapore with a range of ITG's products and services including electronic and high-touch execution services, trade execution management through Triton and trading analysis through ITG TCA and ITG Smart Trading Analytics.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By victorselva]

    The Charles Schwab Corporation (SCHW) is a savings and loan holding company. The company is engaged, through its subsidiaries, in securities brokerage, banking, money management, and financial advisory services. Its subsidiaries include Charles Schwab & Co. (a leading discount broker-dealer), Charles Schwab Investment Management (a mutual fund investment advisor) and Charles Schwab Bank.In this article, let's take a look at this brokerage firm and try to explain to investors the reasons this is an apparently appealing investment opportunity.The FocusThe company provides financial services to individuals and institutional clients through two segments: Investor Services and Institutional Services. The Investor Services segment provides retail brokerage and banking services to individual investors. The Institutional Services segment provides custodial, trading, and support services to independent investment advisors. The Institutional Services segment also provides retirement plan services, specialty brokerage services, and mutual fund clearing services. The company seeks to meet the financial services needs of investors, advisers and employers. It focuses on building client loyalty with the goal of attracting new clients and serving them. Additionally, Schwab麓s strengths through shared core processes and technology advances which help create services that are scalable and consistent with the business.Interest Rates, Capital Structure and Debt-to-Capital RatioThe results are dependent on short-term interest rates, as 37% of its top line came from net interest income in the first quarter of 2014.The broker has been making significant efforts to become less dependent on interest rates, which we expect Federal Reserve will raise them in late 2014 or 2015. Also, the company麓s plan is to reach a low-cost capital structure and targets a long-term debt-to-total financial capital ratio of less than 30%.Lucrative Derivatives Trading In 2011, the company acquired Compl

  • [By Jon C. Ogg]

    Investment Technology Group Inc. (NYSE: ITG) was downgraded to Market Perform from outperform by Keefe�Bruyette & Woods.

    Liquidity Services Inc. (NASDAQ: LQDT) was raised to Buy from Underperform, and the price target was raised up to $45 from $28.50, at Merrill Lynch.

Top Dow Dividend Companies To Watch For 2014: Ebix Inc(EBIX)

Ebix, Inc. provides on-demand software and e-commerce solutions to the insurance industry. The company operates data exchanges, which connects multiple entities within the insurance markets and enables the participant to carry and process data from one end to another in the areas of life insurance, annuities, employee health benefits, risk management, workers compensation, and property and casualty (P&C) insurance. It is also involved in designing and deploying broker systems comprising three back-end systems consisting of eGlobal for multinational P&C insurance brokers; WinBeat for P&C brokers in the Australian and New Zealand markets; and EbixASP for the P&C insurance brokers in the United States. In addition, the company offers business process outsourcing services, which include certificate origination, certificate tracking, claims adjudication call center, and back office support. Further, it focuses on designing and deploying on-demand and back-end carrier systems, s uch as Ebix Advantage and Ebix Advantageweb targeted at small, medium, and large P&C carriers in the United States and internationally that operate in the personal, commercial, and specialty line areas of insurance. Additionally, Ebix, Inc. provides software development, customization, and consulting services to various companies in the insurance industry, such as carriers, brokers, exchanges, and standard making bodies. The company was formerly known as Delphi Systems, Inc. and changed its name to Ebix, Inc. in December 2003. Ebix, Inc. was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Peter Graham]

    The Q3 2014 earnings report for small cap insurance software stock Ebix Inc (NASDAQ: EBIX), a potential peer of insurance software stocks like small cap�Benefitfocus Inc (NASDAQ: BNFT) and mid cap�Guidewire Software Inc (NYSE: GWRE), is scheduled for before the market opens on Friday (November 7th). Aside from the Ebix Inc earnings report, it should be said that Benefitfocus Inc will report Q3 2014 earnings�when the market closes today while Guidewire Software Inc reported Q4 2014 earnings on September 2nd. However, the Ebix Inc earnings report will be closely watched as it�� the fourth most shorted stock on the Nasdaq with short interest of 53.62%�according to HighShortInterest.com. These shorts began targeting Ebix Inc�in the summer of 2013 when Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE: GS) terminated an agreement to acquire the company after reports of a probe of allegations of intentional misconduct with Bloomberg reporting the company was being investigated specifically for money laundering.

  • [By Caroline Bennett]

    Ebix's� (NASDAQ: EBIX  ) latest earnings call�revealed�a 6.9% decrease in the company's quarterly revenue, dropping from $53.8 million in Q3 2012, to $50.3 million.�

  • [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

    Shares of Ebix (NASDAQ: EBIX) got a boost, shooting up 4.42 percent to $17.00 after the company reported better-than-expected Q4 earnings.

    Liberty Media (NASDAQ: LMCA) was also up, gaining 8.56 percent to $136.94 after the company dropped its bid to buy SiriusXM (NASDAQ: SIRI). The company will reclassify common stock to create two groups.

  • [By Evan Niu, CFA]

    What: Shares of Ebix (NASDAQ: EBIX  ) have soared today by as much as 14% after the company agreed to sell itself to a Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS  ) affiliate.

Top Dow Dividend Companies To Watch For 2014: Nelnet Inc (NNI)

Nelnet, Inc.,incorporated on December 21, 1977,is an education services company focused primarily on providing fee-based processing services and education-related products and services in four core areas: asset management and finance, loan servicing, payment processing, and enrollment services (education planning). The Company's products and services help students and families plan, prepare and pay for their education and make the administrative and financial processes more efficient for schools and financial organizations.

In addition, the Company earns interest income on a portfolio of federally insured student loans. The Company's operating segments include: Student Loan and Guaranty Servicing, Tuition Payment Processing and Campus Commerce, Enrollment Services and Asset Generation and Management.

Student Loan and Guaranty Servicing

The primary service offerings of Student Loan and Guaranty Servicing segment includes Servicing FFELP loans, Originating and servicing non-federally insured student loans, Servicing federally-owned student loans for the Department of Education, Servicing and outsourcing services for FFELP guaranty agencies, including FFELP guaranty collection services and Providing student loan servicing software and other information technology products and services. The Student Loan and Guaranty Servicing operating segment provides for the servicing of the Company's student loan portfolio and the portfolios of third parties. The loan servicing activities include loan conversion activities, application processing, borrower updates, payment processing, due diligence procedures, funds management reconciliations, and claim processing.

Although similar in terms of activities and functions as FFELP servicing (i.e., disbursement processing, application processing, payment processing, statement distribution, and reporting), non-federally insured loan servicing activities are not required to comply with provisions of the Higher Education Act ! and may be more customized to individual client requirements. The Company serviced non-federally insured loans on behalf of approximately 20 third-party servicing customers as of December 31, 2012.

The Student Loan and Guaranty Servicing operating segment provides servicing support for guaranty agencies, which are the organizations that serve as the intermediary between the United States federal government and FFELP lenders, and are responsible for paying the claims made on defaulted loans. The Department has designated approximately 30 guarantors that have been formed as either state agencies or non-profit corporations that provide FFELP guaranty services in one or more states. Approximately half of these guarantors contract externally for operational or technology services. The services provided by the Company include providing software and data center services, borrower and loan updates, default aversion tracking services, claim processing services, and post-default collection services. A portion of guaranty servicing revenue earned by the Company relates to rehabilitating delinquent loans (collection services).

The Student Loan and Guaranty Servicing operating segment provides student loan servicing software, which is used internally by the Company and licensed to third-party student loan holders and servicers. These software systems have been adapted so that they can be offered as hosted servicing software solutions that can be used by third-parties to service various types of student loans, including Private, Federal Direct Loan Program, and FFEL Program loans. The Company earns a monthly fee from its remote hosting customers for each borrower on the Company's platform, with a minimum monthly charge for contracts.

Tuition Payment Processing and Campus Commerce

The Company's Tuition Payment Processing and Campus Commerce operating segment provides products and services to help students and families manage the payment of education costs at all leve! ls.It als! o provides education-focused technologies, services, and support solutions to help schools with the everyday challenges of collecting and processing commerce data. The Company's financial needs assessment service serves over 3,600 schools and dioceses, helps schools evaluate and determine the amount of grants and financial aid to disburse to the families it serves. The Company's donor services allow schools to assess and deliver strategic fundraising solutions using the latest technology.

The higher education market consists of nearly 4,400 colleges and universities. The Company offers two principal products to the higher education market: actively managed tuition payment plans, and campus commerce technologies and payment processing.

The Company has actively managed tuition payment plans in place at approximately 650 colleges and universities. Higher education institutions contract with the Company to administer payment plans that allow the student and family to make monthly payments on either a semester or annual basis. The Company collects a fee from the student or family as an administration fee.

The Company's suite of campus commerce solutions provides services that allow for families' electronic billing and payment of campus charges. Campus commerce includes cashiering for face-to-face transactions, campus-wide commerce management, and refunds management, among others.

Enrollment Services

The Enrollment Services segment offers products and services that are focused on helping colleges recruit and retain students and helping students plan and prepare for life after high school and military service. The primary products and services the Company offers as part of the Enrollment Services segment: Inquiry Generation - Inquiry generation services include delivering qualified inquiries or clicks to third-party customers, primarily higher education institutions, Inquiry Management (Agency) services, which include managing the marketin! g activit! ies for third-party customers, primarily higher education institutions, in order to provide qualified inquiries or clicks, Inquiry Management (Software) services, which include the licensing of software to third-party customers, primarily higher education institutions, Digital marketing services include interactive services to connect students to colleges and universities and are sold primarily based on subscriptions. Digital marketing services also include editing services for admission essays. Content Solutions - Content solutions includes test preparation study guides, school directories and databases, career exploration guides, on-line courses, scholarship search and selection data, career planning, and on-line information about colleges and universities. Its Content solutions includes providing list marketing services to help higher education institutions and businesses reach the middle school, high school, college bound high school, college, and young adult market places.

Asset Generation and Management Operating Segment

The Asset Generation and Management segment includes the acquisition, management, and ownership of the Company's student loan assets, which was historically the Company's product and service offering. The Company generates a substantial portion of its earnings from the spread, referred to as the Company's student loan spread, between the yield it receives on its student loan portfolio and the associated costs to finance such portfolio. The student loan assets are held in a series of education lending subsidiaries and associated securitization trusts designed specifically for this purpose. In addition to the student loan spread earned on its portfolio, all costs and activity associated with managing the portfolio, such as servicing of the assets and debt maintenance, are included in this segment.

Student loans consist of federally insured student loans and non-federally insured student loans. Federally insured student loans were made un! der the F! FEL Program. The Higher Education Act regulates every aspect of the federally insured student loan program, including certain communications with borrowers, loan originations, and default aversion.

The Company competes with SLM Corporation, reat Lakes Educational Loan Services Inc. (Great Lakes), Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA), and Sallie Mae.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Victor Selva]

    We can appreciate that Capital One麓s ROE is lower than that of American Express, Discover Financial Services, First Cash Financial Services (FCFS) and Nelnet Inc. (NNI).

Top Dow Dividend Companies To Watch For 2014: CannaVEST Corp (CANV)

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

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

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Dan Burrows]

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

  • [By John Udovich]

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

Top Dow Dividend Companies To Watch For 2014: Akamai Technologies Inc.(AKAM)

Akamai Technologies, Inc. provides content delivery and cloud infrastructure services for accelerating and improving applications over the Internet in the United States and internationally. The company offers application and cloud performance solutions to enhance the operation of the applications used by enterprises to connect with their employees, suppliers, and customers. Its solutions include Web Application Accelerator, which enables enterprises to run various applications; and IP Application Accelerator that is designed to optimize the performance, availability, and real-time sensitivity associated with IP-enabled applications delivered over Internet-related protocols. The company also provides video and software solutions that are designed to enable enterprises to execute their large file management and distribution strategies, which include media delivery solution to entertainment industry; and electronic software delivery solution that handles the distribution of s oftware for its customers. In addition, it offers Website optimization services for accelerating business-to-consumer Websites that integrate collaborative content and applications into their online architecture; security and protection solutions that address the Internet security requirements; and network operator solutions, which provide custom solutions to commercial and government customers. Further, the company provides mobile content adaptation solution; and advertising decision solutions that enable advertisers, agencies, publishers, and networks to buy and sell advertising, as well as network data feeds, Website analytics, and business performance management services. It markets and sells its services and solutions through direct sales and services organization; and through active channel partners. Akamai Technologies, Inc. was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Rex Moore]

    Second-screen technology was one of the big topics at the recent Cable Show in Washington, D.C. Motley Fool analyst Rex Moore was at the event and chatted with Akamai's (NASDAQ: AKAM  ) Kris Alexander about how so-called "couch commerce" is opening up new revenue streams for retailers, advertisers, and programmers.

  • [By WALLSTCHEATSHEET]

    Akamai expects strong growth over the next four years. Thanks to its high quality services, it�� an industry leader. There will likely be increased investments, which could impact the bottom line. Macroeconomic conditions and stock market manipulation also pose risks. However, potential rewards still outweigh risks for Akamai.

  • [By Alex Planes]

    How many times have you heard (or said) that computer programming seems like a pretty great job? Many of the best companies to work for are major employers of software engineers. The Fool's own list of the 25 best companies in America has three: Google (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) , Akamai (NASDAQ: AKAM  ) , and IBM. Google and Akamai also place highly on Glassdoor's latest Best Places to Work list, which is topped by Facebook (NASDAQ: FB  ) , one of the few companies to inspire an award-winning film about (among other things) coding software.

Top Dow Dividend Companies To Watch For 2014: Oppenheimer Holdings Inc.(OPY)

Oppenheimer Holdings Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as a middle-market investment bank and full service broker-dealer. It offers full-service brokerage services covering various investment alternatives, such as exchange-traded and over-the-counter corporate equity and debt securities, money market instruments, exchange-traded options and futures contracts, municipal bonds, mutual funds, and unit investment trusts. The company also provides financial and wealth planning services; margin lending; securities lending; and online equity investing and discount brokerage services. In addition, it offers asset management services for equity, fixed income, large-cap balanced, and alternative investments offered through vehicles, such as privately managed accounts, and retail and institutional separate accounts. Further, the company provides strategic advisory services and capital markets products; institutional equity sales and trading; equity research; equity options and derivatives; convertible bonds; and event driven sales and trading services. Additionally, it trades in non-investment grade public and private debt securities, mortgage-backed securities, sovereign and corporate debt, and distressed securities; provides fixed income research, public finance, and municipal trading services; and is involved in proprietary trading and investment activities. The company also participates in loan syndications and operates as underwriting agent in financing transactions; trades syndicated corporate loans in the secondary market; offers various trust services; and provides mortgage services to developers of commercial properties. It serves high-net-worth individuals and families, corporate executives, small and mid-sized businesses, endowments and foundations, and institutions in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and South America. The company was founded in 1977 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Ben Rooney]

    Tamayo then handed that information over to Vladimir Eydelman, a stock broker at Oppenheimer (OPY) and Morgan Stanley (MS). Eydelman in turn used it to trade stocks for Tamayo and other customers.

  • [By Hilary Kramer]

    With this news, some Wall Street firms finally ��albeit a bit late ��jumped on the ICPT bandwagon.� Citigroup (C) raised its target to $400, stating that its market cap (at the time $5.4 billion) didn�� reach the opportunity for these liver disease treatments.� They estimated that the OCA could exceed a $5 billion sales level.� Oppenheimer (OPY) also raised its target to $360 while Bank of America/Merrill’s (BAC) target is set at $872, the only one not yet exceeded with the most recent move.

Top Dow Dividend Companies To Watch For 2014: Mohawk Industries Inc. (MHK)

Mohawk Industries, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and sale of floor covering products for residential and commercial applications primarily in the United States and Europe. The company operates through three segments: Mohawk, Dal-Tile, and Unilin. The Mohawk segment designs, manufactures, sources, distributes, and markets floor covering product lines, which include carpets, ceramic tiles, laminates, rugs, carpet pads, hardwood, and resilient. This segment offers its products under the brand names of Mohawk, Aladdin, Mohawk ColorCenters, Mohawk Floorscapes, Portico, Mohawk Home, Bigelow, Durkan, Horizon, Karastan, Lees, and Merit. In addition, this segment markets and distributes its soft and hard surface products through independent floor covering retailers, home centers, mass merchandisers, department stores, commercial dealers, and commercial end users, as well as through private labeling programs. The Dal-Tile segment designs, manufactur es, sources, distributes, and markets a line of ceramic tile, porcelain tile, and natural stone products. This segment offers its products primarily under the Dal-Tile and American Olean brand names through company-owned service centers, independent distributors, home center retailers, tile and flooring retailers, and contractors. The Unilin segment offers laminate and hardwood flooring under the brand names of Quick-Step, Columbia Flooring, Century Flooring, and Universal Flooring through retailers, independent distributors, and home centers. This segment also produces roofing systems, insulation panels, and other wood products. Mohawk Industries, Inc. was founded in 1988 and is headquartered in Calhoun, Georgia.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Traders Reserve]

    Mohawk Industries (MHK) is primed to benefit from strength in housing. Even before January this stock was cheap relative to expected profit growth. Today it is 5% cheaper. Analysts expect the company to grow profits by 27% in 2014. At current prices shares trade for 17 times 2014 estimated earnings. Mohawk is an easy January dog to buy during this recent pullback.

  • [By Jonas Elmerraji]

    First up is $10 billion flooring maker Mohawk Industries (MHK). 2013 has been a stellar year for shares of Mohawk, with the stock rallying more than 46% on the strength of the housing sector.

    But don't ignore this stock just because you missed the move. MHK looks well-positioned for more upside in 2013.

    That's because Mohawk is currently forming an ascending triangle pattern, a bullish price setup that's formed by a horizontal resistance level above shares (at $135 in this case) and uptrending support to the downside. Basically, as shares of MHK bounce in between those two technical price levels, they're getting squeezed closer and closer to a breakout above resistance. When that breakout happens, it's time to be a buyer.

    Shares have gotten swatted down on each of the last four attempts at the $135 level. That glut of selling pressure makes a move through it all the more significant. We could see another test of $135 happen this week.

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