Monday, September 22, 2014

Top 5 Mid Cap Companies To Watch In Right Now

"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.

Top New Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Hilltop Holdings Inc. (HTH)

Hilltop Holdings Inc., through its subsidiary, NLASCO, Inc., operates as a property and casualty insurance company in the United States. The company�s personal product line includes homeowners, dwelling fire, manufactured home, flood, and vacant insurance policies; and commercial product line consists of commercial, builders risk, builders risk renovation, sports liability, and inland marine insurance policies. It distributes its insurance products through a network of independent agents and managing general agents. The company was formerly known as Affordable Residential Communities Inc. and changed its name to Hilltop Holdings Inc. in July 2007. Hilltop Holdings Inc. was founded in 1948 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

    Meanwhile, top decliners in the sector included United Fire Group (NASDAQ: UFCS), down 4.9 percent, and Hilltop Holdings (NYSE: HTH), off 3.7 percent.

Top 5 Mid Cap Companies To Watch In Right Now: NII Holdings Inc.(NIHD)

NII Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides wireless communication services under the Nextel brand name to businesses and individuals in Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, and Chile. Its services include mobile telephone service; Nextel Direct Connect service, which allows subscribers to talk to each other on a push-to-talk basis for private one-to-one calls or on group calls. The company also provides value-added services, including text messaging services; mobile Internet services; e-mail services; location-based services, such as the use of global positioning system technologies; digital media services; and a set of applications available via its content management system and the Android open application market. In addition, it offers business solutions, such as security, work force management, logistics support, and other applications to improve productivity; and international roaming services. NII Holdings, Inc. sells its products and services through direct sales representatives, indirect sales agents, retail stores, kiosks, and Website. The company was formerly known as Nextel International, Inc. and changed its name to NII Holdings, Inc. in December 2001. NII Holdings, Inc. was founded in 1995 and is based in Reston, Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Evan Niu, CFA]

    What: Shares of NII Holdings (NASDAQ: NIHD  ) jumped today by as much as 11% after an analyst expressed optimism over an upcoming sale of wireless towers.

  • [By Lisa Levin]

    NII Holdings (NASDAQ: NIHD) shares dropped 2.19% to reach a new 52-week low of $2.91. NII Holdings' trailing-twelve-month ROE is -72.60%.

    Foundation Medicine (NASDAQ: FMI) shares tumbled 7.58% to reach a new 52-week low of $21.23. Foundation Medicine's trailing-twelve-month profit margin is -147.08%.

  • [By Evan Niu, CFA]

    What: Following a 25% jump on Wednesday, shares of NII Holdings (NASDAQ: NIHD  ) are soaring again today after the rumored sale has been made official.

Top 5 Mid Cap Companies To Watch In Right Now: Liquidmetal Technologies Inc (LQMT)

Liquidmetal Technologies, Inc. (Liquidmetal Technologies), incorporated in 1987, is materials technology company that develops and commercializes products made from amorphous alloys. The Company's Liquidmetal family of alloys consists of a variety of bulk alloys and composites that utilize the advantages offered by amorphous alloy technology. The Company designs develop and sell products and components from bulk amorphous alloys to customers in various industries. The Company also partners with third-party manufacturers and licensees to develop and commercialize Liquidmetal alloy products. The Company focused to commercializes its Liquidmetal alloys on three identified product areas, such as Components for Non-Consumer Electronic Products, Sporting Goods and Leisure Products and Medical Devices. On December 1, 2011, the Company entered into a Share Purchase Agreement with LMTK Holdings, Inc. (LMTK Holdings) to sell its former Korean subsidiary and manufacturing facility, Liquidmetal Technologies Korea (LMTK). Under the Share Purchase Agreement, the Company sold all of LMTK�� shares of common stock to LMTK Holdings.

The Company designs, develops and produces components for non-consumer electronic devices utilizing its bulk Liquidmetal alloys. The product categories in the non-consumer electronics field include, but are not limited to, parts for high end printers, commercial imaging devices, aerospace components, medical devices and industrial machines. The Company is also developing a variety of applications for Liquidmetal alloys in the sporting goods and leisure products area.

The Company develops a variety of applications for Liquidmetal alloys in the sporting goods and leisure products area. In the sporting goods industry the Company focuses on products that meet its design criteria. The Company has produced prototype rings made from an amorphous Liquidmetal platinum alloy that is harder, in the leisure products category. The Company emphasis on surgical instrument appl! ications for Liquidmetal alloys. These include, but are not limited to, specialized blades, orthopedic instruments utilized for implant surgery procedures, dental devices and general surgery devices

The Company is engaged in product development efforts relating to various medical devices that could be made from bulk Liquidmetal alloys. The properties of bulk Liquidmetal alloys provide a combination of performance that makes them a replacement to incumbent materials, such as stainless steel and titanium.

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

    Looking for a couple of near-term trades that have a decent shot at rallying even if the broad market feels like it might pull back? Then take a look at Liquidmetal Technologies Inc. (OTCBB:LQMT) and NanoTech Entertainment, Inc. (OTCMKTS:NTEK). Although both LQMT and NTEK will be dismissed by some traders simply because they're OTC-listed stocks, for those traders willing to look past the exchange and appreciate the opportunity, the risk-versus-reward ratio is actually quite compelling.

  • [By John Udovich]

    On Wednesday, small cap Liquidmetal Technologies Inc (OTCBB: LQMT) spiked 223.2% on renewed speculation about Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) having won a patent for a process to mass produce Liquidmetal, but what�� the whole story for investors?

Top 5 Mid Cap Companies To Watch In Right Now: iShares PHLX SOX Semiconductor Sector Index Fund (SOXX)

iShares S&P North American Technology-Semiconductors Index Fund (the Fund), formerly iShares S&P GSTI Semiconductor 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-Semiconductors 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 has been developed as an equity benchmark for United States-traded semiconductor stocks. The Index includes companies that are producers of capital equipment or manufacturers of wafers and chips.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By John Udovich]

    There appears to be light at the end of the tunnel for mid cap fabless semiconductor stock Marvell Technology Group Ltd (NASDAQ: MRVL) despite the fact that the company has lost a patent infringement battle with Carnegie Mellon University that could cost it $1.54 billion, meaning its worth taking a closer look at the stock along with the performance of semiconductor ETF benchmarks like SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (NYSEARCA: XSD), iShares PHLX SOX Semiconductor Sector (NASDAQ: SOXX) and Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X Shares (NYSEARCA: SOXL).

No comments:

Post a Comment