"And, by the way, the bulk of the billions in Berkshire Hathaway has come from the better businesses. ... And most of the other people who've made a lot of money have done so in high-quality businesses."
-- Charlie Munger�
At Tier 1 Investments, a Motley Fool Real-Money Portfolio, I seek out and invest in elite businesses. These include companies with the most valuable brands, best management, superior products and services, and strongest competitive advantages. This strategy has proved to be very effective, with Tier 1 returning 49% since its inception nearly two ago, which has outperformed the S&P 500 by nearly five percentage points during that time.
But I also appreciate the power of dividend growth when it comes to earning market-beating returns. In fact, a study by C. Thomas Howard published in Advisor Perspectives found that for every percentage point a stock's yield rises, its annual return increases by 0.22 percentage points if it's a large cap, 0.25 if it's a mid cap, and 0.46 if it's a small cap. Even better, Howard found that dividend-growing stocks outperformed dividend cutters by 10 percentage points per year from 1973 to 2010 and beat both flat- and no-dividend stocks. And the icing on the cake is that Howard showed that this outperformance came with a third less volatility. Higher returns, less volatility-induced stress, and a steadily growing income stream -- three powerful aspects of dividend growth investing that can help you grow your wealth.
Hot Restaurant Companies For 2015: Kulicke and Soffa Industries Inc.(KLIC)
Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. designs, manufactures, and sells capital equipment and expendable tools used to assemble semiconductor devices, including integrated circuits, high and low powered discrete devices, light-emitting diodes, and power modules. It also services, maintains, repairs, and upgrades its equipment. The company operates in two segments, Equipment and Expendable Tools. The Equipment segment manufactures and sells a line of ball bonders, heavy wire wedge bonders, stud bumpers, and die bonders. Its Ball bonders are used to connect very fine wires, primarily made of gold or copper, between the bond pads of the semiconductor device or die, and the leads on its package; Heavy wire wedge bonders are used in the power semiconductor and automotive power module markets; and Die bonders are used to attach a die to the substrate or lead frame, which will house the semiconductor device. This segment?s Stud bumpers mechanically apply bumps to die, while still in the wafer format, for some variants of the flip chip assembly process. The Expendable Tools segment manufactures and sells various expendable tools for a range of semiconductor packaging applications. Its products include capillaries, bonding wedges, and saw blades. The company?s customers primarily comprise semiconductor device manufacturers, outsourced semiconductor assembly and test providers, other electronics manufacturers, and automotive electronics suppliers in the United States and the Asia/Pacific region. Kulicke and Soffa Industries sells its products through manufacturers? representatives and distributors. The company was founded in 1951 and is headquartered in Singapore.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Equities Trading UP
Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ: KLIC) shares shot up 8.95 percent to $13.76 after the company reported upbeat Q2 earnings and issued a strong Q3 revenue forecast. - [By Brian Pacampara]
Based on the aggregated intelligence of 180,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, chip equipment maker Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ: KLIC ) has earned a coveted five-star ranking.
Best Mid Cap Companies To Own For 2014: Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals Inc (TTPH)
Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals, Inc., incorporated on July 7, 2006, is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company. The Company�� product candidate, eravacycline, is a fully synthetic tetracycline derivative that the Company are developing as a broad-spectrum intravenous and oral antibiotic for use as a first-line empiric monotherapy for the treatment of multi-drug resistant infections, including multi-drug resistant Gram-negative infections. The Company�� frequently used products, such as Zyvox and Cubicin, are limited to Gram-positive bacteria and thus are rarely used as a first-line empiric monotherapy if broad bacterial coverage is required. During the year ended December 31, 2012, completed a Phase 2 clinical trial of eravacycline with intravenous administration for the treatment of patients with complicated intra-abdominal infections, or cIAI, and are finalizing its pivotal Phase 3 program for eravacycline. In 2012, in vitro experiments, eravacycline has demonstrated the ability to cover a variety of multi-drug resistant Gram-negative, Gram-positive, anaerobic and atypical bacteria, including multi-drug resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae, the species of Gram-negative bacteria that killed seven patients at the Clinical Center of the National Institutes of Health.
Gram-positive bacteria that have developed resistance to existing drugs include: Streptococcus pneumoniae that cause pneumonia, ear infections, bloodstream infections and meningitis; Staphylococcus aureus that cause skin, bone, lung and bloodstream infections, and Enterococci that are responsible for infections transmitted in healthcare settings. Gram-negative bacteria that have developed resistance to existing drugs include: Escherichia coli that cause urinary tract, skin and bloodstream infections; Salmonella and Escherichia coli that cause foodborne infections, and Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella spp.
In addition, other antibiotics that have been used as first-line empiric monothe! rapies, such as Levaquin, piperacillin/tazobactam, which is marketed by Pfizer as Zosyn, carbapenems, such as Merrem, and imipenem/cilastatin, which is marketed by Merck as Primaxin, have seen their utility as first-line empiric monotherapies diminished as the number of bacterial strains resistant to these therapies has increased. In addition to developing an intravenous formulation of eravacycline, the Company is also developing an oral formulation. A number of previous tetracyclines have been available in both intravenous and oral dosage forms. Infections that are resistant to existing oral drugs are increasingly common, and the Company believe that an intravenous-to-oral step-down therapy in which patients are started on the intravenous formulation of eravacycline and then stepped down to an oral formulation of eravacycline could reduce the length of a patient�� hospital stay or help avoid hospital admission altogether, lowering the overall cost of care for these patients.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Roberto Pedone]
Another under-$10 biopharmaceutical player that's starting to trend within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade is Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals (TTPH), which using its proprietary chemistry technology creates novel antibiotics for serious and life-threatening multi-drug resistant infections. This stock is off to a strong start in 2013, with shares up 19.4%.
If you take a look at the chart for Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals, you'll notice that this stock has just started to trend back above its 50-day moving average of $7.76 a share with decent upside volume flows. That move is quickly pushing shares of TTPH within range of breaking out above some key near-term overhead resistance levels that have acted as a ceiling for the stock for the last three months.
Market players should now look for long-biased trades in TTPH if it manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance levels at $8.30 to $8.40 a share and then once it takes out more resistance at $8.50 to $9 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above those levels with volume that registers near or above its three-month average volume of 62,234 shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then TTPH will set up to re-test or possibly take out its all-time high at $9.66 a share. Any high-volume move above that level will then push TTPH into new all-time high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that move are $12 to $13 a share.
Traders can look to buy TTPH off any weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below its 50-day at $7.76 a share, or below more key near-term support levels at $7.37 to $7.02 a share. One can also buy TTPH off strength once it clears those breakout levels with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage from your entry point.
Best Mid Cap Companies To Own For 2014: Sify Technologies Limited(SIFY)
Sify Technologies Limited provides enterprise and consumer Internet services primarily in India. The company offers various corporate network/data services comprising e-commerce and network connectivity solutions, such as end-to-end services network, application, and security services; voice origination and termination services; co-location and managed hosting services; and system integration services for data centre build, hardware distribution, security solutions, and turnkey projects. It also provides application services, including SLEMS and Microsoft Exchange messaging platforms; I-test for online assessment and LiveWire, which enable management of training processes across the organization; document management system for the management of documents electronically; and Forum, a forward supply chain solution. In addition, the company operates e-Ports that offer browsing, chat, email, gaming, utility bill payment, travel ticketing, hotel booking, mobile recharge, Intern et telephony, and online share trading services; and portals, which provide news, views, reviews, interactions, and services in the areas of movies, sports, finance, food, videos, astrology, online games, shopping, and travel, as well as offers content offerings and broadband services. Further, it provides infrastructure management services, such as network management, datacenter and helpdesk outsourcing, desktop and storage outsourcing, IT security outsourcing, LAN and WAN outsourcing, database and telecom outsourcing, and application monitoring and management services to automotive, chemical, media, and financial enterprises; and virtualization design, integration, and deployment services for servers, storage, networks, and end user clients. Sify has approximately 1,278 e-Ports in 200 towns and cities; and serves 1,06,000 broadband subscribers through 1500 cable TV Operators. The company, formerly known as Sify Limited, was founded in 1995 and is based in Chennai, India. Advisors' Opinion:
- [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Leading and Lagging Sectors
Technology stocks gained Tuesday, with Ku6 Media Co (NASDAQ: KUTV) leading advancers. Among leading tech stocks, gains came from Rubicon Technology (NASDAQ: RBCN), Bitauto Holdings (NYSE: BITA) and Sify Technologies (NASDAQ: SIFY). - [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Leading and Lagging Sectors
Technology stocks gained Tuesday, with Ku6 Media Co (NASDAQ: KUTV) leading advancers. Among leading tech stocks, gains came from Rubicon Technology (NASDAQ: RBCN), Bitauto Holdings (NYSE: BITA) and Sify Technologies (NASDAQ: SIFY). Utilities shares dropped by 0.11 percent in the US market today.
Best Mid Cap Companies To Own For 2014: Metals USA Holdings Corp. (MUSA)
Metals USA Holdings Corp., through its subsidiaries, provides carbon steel, stainless steel, aluminum and specialty metals, and manufactured metal components in the United States and Canada. It operates in three segments: Plates and Shapes, Flat Rolled and Non-Ferrous, and Building Products. The Plates and Shapes segment processes and sells steel plates and structural beams, bars, angles, and tubes. This segment provides processing services, such as cutting, cambering/leveling, punching, bending, shearing, cut-to-length, blast and paint, and tee-splitting. It serves customers in the the electrical and appliance manufacturing, fabrication, furniture, commercial construction, machinery and equipment, land and marine transportation, energy, and aerospace industries. The Flat Rolled and Non-Ferrous segment processes and sells flat rolled carbon and stainless steel, aluminum, brass, and copper in various alloy grades. This segment offers processing services, such as slitting, p recision blanking, leveling, cut-to-length, punching, and shearing. It serves customers in the electrical and appliance manufacturing, fabrication, furniture, machinery and equipment, transportation, and aerospace industries. The Building Products segment produces and distributes aluminum and steel building products consisting of covered canopies and walkways, awnings, sunrooms, solariums, and other products primarily for the commercial and residential building products industries. The company is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By David Tristan Liu]
Murphy USA (MUSA) first caught my attention after Southeastern Asset Management acquired a massive stake ($668mm) in its former parent company Murphy Oil Corporation (MUR) in Q1 2013. One thing about Murphy Oil Corporation I noticed after an initial glance through their 10-K and annual report was its ownership of a valuable fuel and convenience retailer segment with high ROIC, valuable real estate, low CAPEX requirements, and relatively decent growth prospects that was under-followed and whose underlying value was concealed by the parent company's core production and exploration business.
Best Mid Cap Companies To Own For 2014: Central Europe Russia and Turkey Fund Inc (CEE)
Central Europe and Russia Fund, Inc. (the Fund) is a non-diversified, closed-end management investment company. The Fund seeks long-term capital appreciation primarily through investment in equity and equity-linked securities of issuers domiciled in Central Europe and Russia. The Fund's portfolio includes investments in Russian, Polish, Hungarian, Czech Republic, Turkish, Austrian, Dutch, Cyprus, Bermuda and Virgin Islands common stocks.
The Fund invests in various industries, including commercial banks, diversified telecommunication services, food products, metals and mining, personal products, wireless telecommunication services, building products, construction and engineering, diversified telecommunication services, media, pharmaceuticals, automobiles, and oil, gas and consumable fuels. The Fund is managed and advised by subsidiaries of the Deutsche Bank Group. The Fund's investment advisor is Deutsche Asset Management International GmbH. The Fund's manager is Deutsche Investment Management Americas Inc.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Among the financial stocks, Ashford Hospitality Trust (NYSE: AHT) was down more than 5.7 percent, while The Central Europe, Russia and Turkey Fund (NYSE: CEE) tumbled around 5 percent.
- [By STANSBERRYRESEARCH]
With emerging market speculation heating up again, TRF is trading for a 24% premium right now. If that premium climbs any higher, we predict another obliteration. – Brian Hunt, DailyWealth, December 21, 2006
We published that note in December 2006. By March 2009, it had lost more than 90% of its value. Perhaps more importantly to any long-term, buy-and-hold investor, the decline we foresaw in the fund would have wiped out more than 100% of the accumulated capital gains, assuming you invested as much as 15 years earlier. Now... I'd like you to look at the chart one more time. Look at what happened to the fund in the first half of 2009. It went nearly straight up. On April 17, 2009, we told subscribers to buy Russian stocks. Instead of using TRF, Steve Sjuggerud recommended a nearly identical Scudder Fund, the Central Europe and Russia Fund (NYSE: CEE). Both went up 150% from their March lows. So if you followed the buy-and-hold strategy in Russian stocks over the last 15 years, you would have made a very small amount of money – or lost money, depending on when you sold your shares. On the other hand, if you applied a few of our secrets, you could have easily traded this fund for more than 100% gains in only a few weeks. And if you watch this fund, you'll be able to make trades like this three or four times each decade. If you watch other similar funds, you'll be able to make trades like this once or twice a year. And let me tell you one more thing about this situation. In January 2007, when TRF was widely overvalued and when most individual investors were clamoring to buy shares – despite the premium valuation – we checked to see if we could sell the fund short. We knew it was going to collapse and wanted to profit directly as it fell. But we couldn't. Why not? Because other professionals had already borrowed all of the available shares to sh
Best Mid Cap Companies To Own For 2014: American Capital Agency Corp (AGNC)
American Capital Agency Corp. (AGNC) is a real estate investment trust (REIT). The Company earns income primarily from investing on a leveraged basis in agency mortgage-backed securities. These investments consist of residential mortgage pass-through securities and collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs) for which the principal and interest payments are guaranteed by government-sponsored entities, such as the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), or by a United States Government agency, such as the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae) (collectively, GSEs). It may also invest in agency debenture securities issued by Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae or the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB). The Company is managed by American Capital AGNC Management, LLC, which is an affiliate of American Capital, Ltd.
AGNC funds its investments primarily through short-term borrowings structured as repurchase agreements. The agency mortgage-backed securities in which the Company invests consist of agency residential pass-through certificates and CMOs. Agency residential pass-through certificates are securities representing interests in pools of mortgage loans secured by residential real property. Agency CMOs are securities that are structured instruments representing interests in agency residential pass-through certificates. Agency CMOs consist of multiple classes of securities.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Sean Williams]
Hitting the sweet spot
All this talk that the Federal Reserve will scale back -- and potentially even end -- its bond-buying program, which consists of U.S. Treasury notes and mortgage-backed securities, has investors worried, unless you're an investor in mortgage REITs such as Annaly Capital Management and American Capital Agency (NASDAQ: AGNC ) . - [By Amanda Alix]
The recent gyrations in the mortgage REIT sector have knocked down even big players like Annaly Capital (NYSE: NLY ) and American Capital Mortgage (NASDAQ: AGNC ) , leaving them bruised and battered as investors flee the once-lucrative trusts for something a little less volatile. Annaly has just been downgraded to Underperform by Sterne Agee, and American Capital Mortgage's Gary Kain was forced to admit that his agency-only trust will experience another drop in book value�for the second quarter, after saying earlier that book value was rebounding.
- [By David Hanson and Matt Koppenheffer]
One of the biggest movers today is Armour Residential REIT (NYSE: ARR ) , falling over 6% at one point. Two mREITs run by Gary Kain, American Capital Agency (NASDAQ: AGNC ) and American Capital Mortgage (NASDAQ: MTGE ) , were also trading lower.
- [By Jon C. Ogg]
American Capital Agency Corp. (NASDAQ: AGNC) with a neutral rating. The firm’s price target is $22.00, and that is slightly under the current $22.80 price in the report. Last quarter’s book value was $25.53, and Sterne Agee is projecting a book value of $25.31.
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