Friday, December 19, 2014

Top 10 Logistics Stocks To Watch Right Now

The vast majority of MLPs operate midstream oil and gas businesses. Midstream refers to the segment of the oil and gas industry that moves produced oil and gas (which is “upstream”) to processing facilities (downstream). Midstream business lines function largely as logistics companies that charge fees to move oil and gas along their distribution routes, most commonly via pipeline. These businesses tend to be stable and fairly insulated from commodity risk. As such, they have attracted a large following among conservative investors looking for stable income.

There are MLPs that operate outside the midstream oil and gas business. In fact, some, like StoneMor Partners (NYSE: STON) — an owner/operator of cemeteries, and Cedar Fair (NYSE: FUN) — an amusement-resort operator, are far removed from the oil and gas industry. But the overwhelming majority of MLP offerings continue to be in oil and gas.

Hot Cheapest Stocks To Watch For 2015: Ameren Corp (AEE)

Ameren Corporation (Ameren), incorporated on August 7, 1995, is a utility holding company. The Company�� principal subsidiaries are Union Electric Company (Ameren Missouri) and Ameren Illinois Company (Ameren Illinois). The Company's segments include Ameren Missouri and Ameren Illinois. Ameren Missouri operates a rate-regulated electric generation, transmission and distribution business, and a rate-regulated natural gas transmission and distribution business in Missouri. Ameren Illinois operates a rate-regulated electric and natural gas transmission and distribution business in Illinois. AER consists of non-rate-regulated operations, including Ameren Energy Generating Company (Genco), AmerenEnergy Resources Generating Company (AERG) and Ameren Energy Marketing Company (Marketing Company). In December 2013, the Company announced that it has completed the divestiture of its merchant generation business, formerly known as Ameren Energy Resources Company, LLC (AER).

Ameren Missouri supplies electric and natural gas service to a 24,000-square-mile area in central and eastern Missouri. This area has an estimated population of 2.8 million and includes the Greater St. Louis area. Ameren Missouri supplies electric service to 1.2 million customers and natural gas service to 127,000 customers. Ameren Illinois supplies electric and natural gas utility service to portions of central and southern Illinois having an estimated population of 3.1 million in an area of 40,000 square miles. Ameren Illinois supplies electric service to 1.2 million customers and natural gas service to 806,000 customers. Ameren has other subsidiaries responsible for activities, such as the provision of shared services. Ameren owns an integrated transmission system that consists of the transmission assets of Ameren Missouri, Ameren Illinois and ATXI.

Ameren operates two balancing authority areas, AMMO (which includes Ameren Missouri), and AMIL (which includes Ameren Illinois, ATXI, AERG, and Genco excluding EEI an! d Genco�� Elgin CT energy center). During the year ended December 31, 2012, the peak demand was 8,868 megawatts in AMMO and 9,720 megawatts in AMIL. The Ameren transmission system directly connects with 15 other balancing authority areas for the exchange of electric energy. Ameren Missouri, Ameren Illinois and ATXI are transmission-owning members of MISO. EEI operates its own balancing authority area and its own transmission facilities in southern Illinois. The EEI transmission system is directly connected to the transmission systems of MISO, the Tennessee Valley Authority, and Louisville Gas and Electric Company. EEI�� energy centers are dispatched separately from those of Ameren Missouri, Genco and AERG.

Ameren�� portfolio of natural gas supply resources includes firm transportation capacity and firm no-notice storage capacity leased from interstate pipelines. Ameren Missouri primarily use the interstate pipeline systems of Panhandle Eastern Pipe Line Company, Trunkline Gas Company, Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America, and Mississippi River Transmission Corporation to transport natural gas to energy centers. Ameren Missouri and Ameren Illinois develop and manage a portfolio supply under term agreements with producers, interstate and intrastate firm transportation capacity, firm storage capacity leased from interstate pipelines, and on-system storage facilities to maintain natural gas deliveries to customers throughout the year and especially during peak demand periods. Ameren Missouri and Ameren Illinois primarily use Panhandle Eastern Pipe Line Company, Trunkline Gas Company, Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America, Mississippi River Transmission Corporation, Northern Border Pipeline Company, and Texas Eastern Transmission Corporation interstate pipeline systems to transport natural gas to their systems.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Richard Stavros]

    Similarly, Ameren Corp (NYSE: AEE) in August issued a 10-year bond (CUSIP: 02361DAL4) that yielded 2.7 percent at 99.96, and six months later was trading at 95.66 and yielding 3.281 percent, according to FINRA-Morningstar.

  • [By Justin Loiseau]

    First: falling sales. Although this is a common trend across all utilities, Dominion relies on regulated electricity sales for 50% of its revenue, a significant chunk of its profit pie. Regulated utilities offer some of the steadiest rates of return on the stock market, but overall sales still slump if customers use less energy. Ameren (NYSE: AEE  ) is currently cutting out its merchant generation business entirely, a move that could keep its profits in the pits if electricity use doesn't pick up.

  • [By Eric Volkman]

    Ameren (NYSE: AEE  ) �will hand out a new quarterly dividend identical to those of its predecessors. The firm will distribute $0.40 per share of its common stock on June 28 to shareholders of record as of June 12. This amount keeps the payout in line with the company's previous six disbursements, which have been handed out in each quarter dating back to Dec. 2011.

Top 10 Logistics Stocks To Watch Right Now: MKS Instruments Inc.(MKSI)

MKS Instruments, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides instruments, subsystems, and process control solutions that measure, control, power, monitor, and analyze parameters of manufacturing processes worldwide. It offers instruments and control systems, such as pressure measurement and control, materials delivery, gas composition analysis, and control and information technology products. The company also provides power and reactive gas generation products comprising power delivery, reactive gas generation, processing thin films, and equipment cleaning products; and vacuum technology products, including vacuum containment components, vacuum gauges, vacuum valves, effluent management subsystems and custom stainless steel chambers, vessels, and pharmaceutical process equipment hardware and housings. Its products are used in the semiconductor processing steps, such as depositing thin films of material onto silicon wafer substrates, and etching and cleaning circuit patt erns; manufacture of flat panel displays, light emitting diodes, solar cells, data storage media, and other coatings, including architectural glass; energy generation and environmental monitoring processes, such as nuclear fuel processing, fuel cell research, greenhouse gas monitoring, and chemical agent detection; medical instrument sterilization; consumable medical supply manufacturing; and pharmaceutical applications. The company also offers maintenance and repair, software maintenance, installation, and training services. It serves semiconductor capital equipment and device manufacturers, thin film capital equipment manufacturers, energy generation, environmental monitoring, and manufacturing companies, as well as government, university and industrial research laboratories. The company sells its products primarily through its direct sales force, as well as through sales representatives and agents. MKS Instruments, Inc. was founded in 1961 and is headquartered in Andover, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By James E. Brumley]

    What do small cap stocks MKS Instruments, Inc. (NASDAQ:MKSI), Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. (NYSE:SKT), and Kaman Corporation (NYSE:KAMN) have in common? Absolutely nothing, on the surface, and no, it's not a setup for painfully bad punchline. There is a common thread among KAMN, SKT, and MKSI right now, however... they're all three going into my mental (though publicly-tracked) portfolio this afternoon.

  • [By Ben Axler]

    In the table below, we've listed a sample of small-cap semiconductor capital equipment stocks such as Entegris (ENTG), Advanced Energy Industries (AEIS), ATMI Inc. (ATMI), MKS Instruments (MKSI), Photronics Inc. (PLAB), Rudolph Technologies (RTEC),FormFactor (FORM) and Mattson Technology (MTSN). The peers trade at approximately 1.0x and 15.5x 2014E revenues and EPS, respectively. Furthermore, the average peer trades at 2.1x tangible book value. However, these multiples are based on average 2014E industry revenue and earnings growth of 18% and 119%, respectively. Axcelis is poised to grow at a rate substantially above the industry average.

Top 10 Logistics Stocks To Watch Right Now: Signet Jewelers Limited(SIG)

Signet Jewelers Limited operates as a specialty jewelry retailer in the United States, the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, and the Channel Islands. The company retails jewelry, watches, and associated services. As of January 28, 2012, it operated a network of 1,318 stores in 50 states in the United States that trade nationally in malls and off-mall locations as ?Kay Jewelers?, and regionally under various mall-based brands, as well as operated as destination superstores under the ?Jared The Galleria Of Jewelry? trade name. The company also operated a network of 535 stores in the United Kingdom, including 14 stores in the Republic of Ireland and 3 in the Channel Islands under the ?H.Samuel?, ?Ernest Jones?, and ?Leslie Davis? trade names in high street locations and shopping malls. Signet Jewelers Limited was founded in 1950 and is based in Hamilton, Bermuda.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Dan Moskowitz]

    Peer comparisons
    It's clear that Zale has potential going forward, but while past performance doesn't guarantee future results, it's often a very good indicator of management capabilities. With that in mind, consider the revenue performance for Zale compared to that of�Tiffany (NYSE: TIF  ) , as well as Signet Jewelers (NYSE: SIG  ) , over the past five years:

  • [By John Kell and Lauren Pollock var popups = dojo.query(".socialByline .popC"); ]

    Signet Jewelers Ltd.(SIG) on Thursday posted sales and earnings growth for its fiscal fourth quarter that topped expectations. The company also said it would raise its quarterly dividend 20% to 18 cents a share, a reflection of “the board’s confidence in the strength of the business.” Shares rose 3.5% to $101.75 premarket.

  • [By Rich Duprey]

    Specialty jeweler�Signet Jewelers� (NYSE: SIG  ) announced today its third-quarter dividend of $0.15 per share, the same rate it paid last quarter after raising the payout 25% from $0.12 per share.

Top 10 Logistics Stocks To Watch Right Now: Meru Networks Inc.(MERU)

Meru Networks, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides wireless local area network (LAN) solutions in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It offers a virtualized wireless LAN solution based on its System Director Operating System, which runs on its controllers and access points to enable enterprises to deliver business-critical applications over wireless networks. The company?s System Director Operating System provides centralized coordination and control of various access points on the network; controllers synchronize access points to optimize the user experience and manage traffic on the network; and Wi-Fi certified access points to provide network connectivity for wireless devices. It also offers Meru Networks E(z)RF application suite comprising E(z)RF Network Manager, E(z)RF Service Assurance Manager, E(z)RF Location Manager, E(z)RF OnTheGo, Spectrum Manager, and wired and wireless management solutions, which enable enterprises to configure, monitor, troubleshoot, secure, and operate virtualized wireless LAN solution. In addition, the company provides Identity Manager that simplifies enterprise network access and identity management; Wireless Intrusion Prevention System to recognize and mitigate threats; Compliance Manager to reduce the risk of security breach by protecting customer and employee personal information by extending security to the wireless network; AirFirewall to intercept and block unwanted communications as they transmit over the air, stopping them before they reach the network; and Security Gateway SG1000 to meet the demands of the Federal Information Processing Standard, 140-2 Level 3 security required by federal government agencies and other security-conscious organizations. It serves the education, healthcare, hospitality, manufacturing, retail, technology, finance, government, telecom, transportation, and utility markets. The company was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Eric Volkman]

    Meru Networks (NASDAQ: MERU  ) isn't wasting any time in finding a successor to one of its top executives. The company announced Monday it had appointed Brian McDonald to be its new CFO to replace the resigning Brett White. McDonald took up his position today, although White will remain at the firm through July 1 in order "to effect a smooth transition."

Top 10 Logistics Stocks To Watch Right Now: iShares North American Tech-Multimedia Networking ETF (IGN)

iShares S&P North American Technology-Multimedia Networking Index Fund (the Fund), formerly iShares S&P GSTI Networking Index Fund, seeks investment results that correspond to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, as represented by the S&P North American Technology-Multimedia Networking Index. The Fund invests in a representative sample of securities included in the Index that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Index.

The Index includes companies that are producers of telecom equipment, data networking and wireless equipment. The Index has been developed as an equity benchmark for United States-traded multimedia networking stocks.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By John Udovich]

    Mid cap telco equipment stock Alcatel Lucent SA (NYSE: ALU) is up 205.9% since the start of the year for a much better performance�verses peers or benchmarks like Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) or the iShares North American Tech-Multimedia Networking ETF (NYSEARCA: IGN)���meaning its probably worth taking a closer look at the stock as its been producing plenty of good news for a change.�I should note that we have recently added�Alcatel Lucent SA to our SmallCap Network Elite Opportunity (SCN EO) portfolio as a�technical based trade because we think shares will continue higher on speculation�about an�improved global footprint�for this leading mobile data network provider.

Top 10 Logistics Stocks To Watch Right Now: CCR SA (CCRO3)

CCR SA is a Brazil-based holding company primarily engaged in the operation of highways. The Company's businesses are divided into five main operating segments: Highway which includes concessions such as AutoBAn, ViaOeste, NovaDutra, RodoNorte, SPVias, Ponte, ViaLagos, RodoAnel Oeste, Transolimpica and Renovias; Subway which includes ViaQuatro, Sea Transportation which includes Barcas concession; Airport Concessions which include Quiport, Aeris and CAP, and all companies related to these concessions; and Services/Holdings which is related to sub-holdings CPC and CCR Espana, among others. It is involved in the collection of toll fees on highways and is responsible for repairing, conserving, maintaining and operating of these highways. It is responsible for national highways network in Brazilian states of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Parana. Additionally, it is active in automotive inspection services, automatic toll payment and automatic vehicle identification systems operation. Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Ney Hayashi]

    Toll-road operator CCR SA (CCRO3) added 3.1 percent to 16.75 reais, snapping a five-day rout that drove shares 11 percent lower. Competitor EcoRodovias Infraestrutura e Logistica SA gained 1.7 percent to 14.75 reais today.

Top 10 Logistics Stocks To Watch Right Now: DiamondRock Hospitality Co (DRH)

DiamondRock Hospitality Company, incorporated on May 6, 2004, is a lodging-focused Maryland corporation operating as a real estate investment trust (REIT). It owns a portfolio of 27 premium hotels and resorts that contain 11,590 guest rooms. It also holds the senior note on a mortgage loan secured by an additional hotel and has the right to acquire, upon completion, a hotel under development. Its portfolio is concentrated in key gateway cities and destination resorts. Each of its hotels is managed by a third party and are operated under a brand owned by one of the global lodging brand companies (Marriott International, Inc. (Marriott), Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (Starwood) or Hilton Worldwide (Hilton)). In November 2013, the Company sold the Torrance Marriott South Bay.

The Company conducts its business through an umbrella partnership REIT (UPREIT), in which its hotel properties are owned by its operating partnership, DiamondRock Hospitality Limited Partnership, or subsidiaries of its operating partnership. Its properties are concentrated in key gateway cities (primarily New York City, Chicago, Boston and Los Angeles) and in destination resort locations , such as the United States Virgin Islands and Vail, Colorado.

During the year ended December 31, 2012, it acquired five new hotels and sold four non-core hotels located in the markets: Atlanta, Georgia; Boston, Massachusetts ; Burlington, Vermont; Charleston, South Carolina; Chicago, Illinois ; Denver, Colorado ; Fort Worth, Texas; Los Angeles, California ; Minneapolis, Minnesota; New York, New York ; Oak Brook, Illinois; Orlando, Florida; Salt Lake City, Utah; San Diego, California; San Francisco, California; Sonoma, California; St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands; Vail, Colorado and Washington, D.C. It also owns a senior mortgage loan secured by a 443-room hotel located in Chicago, Illinois and have the right to acquire, upon completion, a 282-room hotel under development in New York City.

On July ! 12, 2012, it acquired a portfolio of four hotels from affiliates of Blackstone Real Estate Partners VI. The portfolio consists of the Hilton Boston Downtown, Westin Washington D.C. City Center, Westin San Diego and Hilton Burlington. The portfolio consists of the 362-room Hilton Boston Downtown, the 406-room Westin Washington, D.C. City Center, the 436-room Westin San Diego and the 258-room Hilton Burlington. On November 9, 2012, it acquired the 94-room Hotel Rex located in San Francisco, California. On March 23, 2012, it completed the sale of a three-hotel portfolio. The portfolio consisted of the Griffin Gate Marriott Resort and Spa, the Renaissance Waverly, and the Renaissance Austin. On October 3, 2012, it completed the sale of the Atlanta Westin North at Perimeter.

The Oak Brook Hills Marriott Resort, the Orlando Airport Marriott and the Hilton Garden Inn Chelsea/New York City each failed its performance test at the end of 2012. The Bethesda Marriott Suites hotel is subject to a ground lease. The Courtyard Manhattan/Fifth Avenue is subject to a ground lease. The Salt Lake City Marriott Downtown is subject to two ground leases: one ground lease covers the land under the hotel and the other ground lease covers the portion of the hotel that extends into the City Creek Center. The Westin Boston Waterfront is subject to a ground lease. The Hilton Minneapolis is subject to a ground lease. In addition, the golf course that is part of the Oak Brook Hills Marriott Resort is subject to a ground lease covering approximately 110 acres. A portion of the parking garage relating to the Renaissance Worthington is subject to three ground leases that cover, contiguously with each other, approximately 1/4 of the land on which the parking garage is constructed. Furthermore, these ground leases generally require them to obtain and maintain insurance covering the subject property.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Marc Bastow]

    Lodging-focused real estate investment trust (REIT) DiamondRock (DRH) raised its dividend 21% to 10.25 cents per share, payable April 10 to shareholders of record as of March 31. Yielding more than 3%, DRH stock has the highest yield of this week’s dividend stocks increasing payouts.
    DRH Dividend Yield: 3.38%

  • [By Laura Brodbeck]

    Monday

    Earnings Releases Expected: �McKesson�(NYSE: MCK), Concho Resources (NYSE: CXO), Diamondrock Hospitality (NYSE: DRH) Economic Releases Expected: �US Federal budget balance, Indian industrial production

    Tuesday

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