Top Gas Utility Companies To Watch For 2014

LONDON -- I'm looking at some of your favorite FTSE 100 companies and examining how each will deliver their dividends.

Today, I'm putting Anglo-Dutch consumer goods giant�Unilever� (LSE: ULVR  ) (NYSE: UL  ) under the microscope.

Dividend policy
Soon after Paul Polman took over as chief executive in January 2009, Unilever announced a new dividend policy to run from 2010 onward:�"Unilever's policy is to seek to pay an attractive, sustainable and growing dividend to shareholders."

The company said it would move from paying an interim and final dividend each year to paying four quarterly dividends, announced with the quarterly results. It added that the change would�"better align the payments with the cash flow generation of the business."

Top Gas Utility Companies To Watch For 2014: Trinity(TNI.L)

Trinity Mirror plc engages in the publication and printing of newspapers primarily in the United Kingdom. It operates in two divisions, Regionals and Nationals. The Regionals division publishes a portfolio of print and digital media. Its portfolio includes approximately 160 regional daily and weekly titles, and approximately 500 digital products. This division?s digital portfolio comprises companion Websites to newspaper titles, hyperlocal sites serving specific postcodes and communities, and local and national sites in the verticals of recruitment, property, and motors. It operates in the north west of England and north Wales, the North East, the Midlands, south Wales, Scotland, and the south of England. The Nationals division publishes five national newspaper titles, including the Daily Mirror, the Sunday Mirror, the People, the Daily Record, and the Sunday Mail. The company is based in London, the United Kingdom.

Top Gas Utility Companies To Watch For 2014: Nwest Energy Inc(NWN.V)

NWest Energy Corp. engages in the exploration, acquisition, and advancement of oil and gas properties in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It holds the rights to four contiguous exploration licenses in the Western Newfoundland offshore sector. NWest Energy Corp. is based in St. John?s, Canada.

Top 5 Japanese Stocks To Watch For 2014: Transition Therapeutics Inc.(TTHI)

Transition Therapeutics Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, develops novel therapeutics for various disease indications primarily in Canada. Its lead products include ELND005 (AZD-103), a Phase II clinical trial product for the treatment of Alzheimer?s disease; TT-301 and TT-302, which are Phase I clinical trial products, for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, Alzheimer?s disease, traumatic brain injury, and intracerebral hemorrhage; and TT401/402, a preclinical stage product to treat diabetes. The company also has an emerging pipeline of preclinical and clinical drug candidates for the treatment of anti-inflammatory and metabolic indications. It has strategic collaborations with Elan Pharma International Limited to develop and commercialize ELND005 (AZD-103); and a licensing and collaboration agreement with Eli Lilly and Company to develop and commercialize gastrin based therapies, and the preclinical compound TT401/402. The company was formerly known as Transition T herapeutics and Diagnostics Inc. and changed its name to Transition Therapeutics Inc. on December 2000. Transition Therapeutics Inc. was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Fitz Gerald]

  Biomedical stocks are some of the best performers in the sector, and this is true of Transition Therapeutics. This stock recently saw a net profit margin of more than thirty five percent, and the company is a quality choice.

Top Gas Utility Companies To Watch For 2014: QC Holdings Inc.(QCCO)

QC Holdings, Inc. provides various retail consumer financial products and services in the United States. The company offers payday loans that provide cash to the customers in exchange for a promissory note with a maturity of two to three weeks. It also provides financial products and services, such as installment loans, credit services, check cashing services, title loans, money transfers, and money orders. In addition, QC Holdings operates as a credit services organization that arranges a third-party lender to make a loan to the consumer and for providing related services to the consumer, including a guarantee of the consumer?s obligation to the third-party lender. Further, the company sells used vehicles and earns finance charges from the related vehicle financing contracts; and provides reconditioning services on its inventory of vehicles, and repair services for its customers. As of As of December 31, 2010, the company operated 523 short-term lending branches in 24 sta tes; and 5 buy here, pay here lots located in Missouri and Kansas. QC Holdings, Inc. was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas.

Top Gas Utility Companies To Watch For 2014: Citigroup Inc.(C)

Citigroup, Inc., a global financial services company, provides consumers, corporations, governments, and institutions with a range of financial products and services. The company operates through two segments, Citicorp and Citi Holdings. The Citicorp segment operates as a global bank for businesses and consumers with two primary businesses, Regional Consumer Banking and Institutional Clients Group. The Regional Consumer Banking business provides traditional banking services, including retail banking, and branded cards in North America, Asia, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The Institutional Clients Group business provides securities and banking services comprising investment banking and advisory services, lending, debt and equity sales and trading, institutional brokerage, foreign exchange, structured products, cash instruments and related derivatives, and private banking; and transaction services consisting of treasury and trade solutions, and securiti es and fund services. The Citi Holdings segment operates Brokerage and Asset Management, Local Consumer Lending, and Special Asset Pool businesses. The Brokerage and Asset Management Business, through its 49% stake in Morgan Stanley Smith Barney joint venture and Nikko Cordial Securities, offers retail brokerage and asset management services. The Local Consumer Lending business provides residential mortgage loans, retail partner card loans, personal loans, commercial real estate, and other consumer loans, as well as western European cards and retail banking services. The Special Asset Pool business is a portfolio of securities, loans, and other assets. Citigroup Inc. has approximately 200 million customer accounts and operates in approximately 160 countries. The company was founded in 1812 and is based in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By David Sterman]

  This may seem to be an odd choice for a long-term portfolio. Citigroup has caused all kinds of pain for investors in recent years. But behind the scenes, Citigroup has been transforming itself into a major global player. CEO Vikram Pandit has sought to reduce Citigroup’s exposure to the weak U.S. economy while aggressively investing in the world’s most dynamic emerging economies . Right now, North America and Europe constitute about two-thirds of revenue. But emerging markets are expected to grow at a faster pace than Europe and North America in coming years, so that revenue mix may move closer to 50/50.

  If the dollar weakens further, as many economists predict, then that international exposure will really pay off as Citigroup’s foreign earnings rise in value.

Top Gas Utility Companies To Watch For 2014: Royale Energy Inc.(ROYL)

Royale Energy, Inc. operates as an independent oil and natural gas producer in the United States. It engages in the production and sale of oil and natural gas; acquisition of oil and gas lease interests and proved reserves; drilling of exploratory and development wells; and sale of working interests in wells to be drilled. The company also owns wells and leases located principally in the Sacramento Basin and San Joaquin Basin in California, as well as in Utah, Texas, and Louisiana. In addition, it holds proved developed producing reserves of oil and natural gas in Texas and Louisiana. As of December 31, 2009, Royale Energy operated 52 natural gas wells in California; owned and operated 7 natural gas wells in Utah; and had non operating interests in 17 oil and gas wells in Texas, 3 in Oklahoma, 1 in California, and 2 in Louisiana. It also had proved developed reserves of 4,563 MMcf and total proved reserves of 4,617 MMcf of natural gas; and proved developed oil reserves of 16 Mbbl and total proved oil reserves of 16 Mbbl. The company was founded in 1986 and is based in San Diego, California.