Union Pacific (NYSE: UNP ) and CSX (NYSE: CSX ) are selections for the real-money Inflation-Protected Income Growth portfolio. Like any investments, they need to be reviewed from time to time to see if� they're still worth owning. In the brief video below, portfolio manager Chuck Saletta reviews their valuations, balance sheets, and dividends and decides whether to hold on to the stocks or let them go.
To follow the iPIG portfolio as buy and sell decisions are made, watch Chuck's article feed by clicking here. To join The Motley Fool's free discussion board dedicated to the iPIG portfolio, simply click here. For more information on the Graham Equation used for the valuation estimates, see the article at this link.
For more on iPIG portfolio selection CSX
With 21,000 miles of track serving two-thirds of the U.S. population, CSX maintains a valuable proprietary asset. Still, this railroad will face difficult obstacles in the years ahead due to a domestic surplus of natural gas and coal's declining popularity. To help investors better understand how CSX can deal with these challenges, The Motley Fool has released a brand-new premium research report authored by Isaac Pino, Industrials Bureau Chief and transportation expert. Isaac provides an in-depth look at CSX's competitive advantages, risk areas, and prospects for the future. Simply click here now to access your copy of this invaluable investor's resource.
Hot Communications Equipment Stocks To Invest In 2015: Coffee Holding Co. Inc.(JVA)
Coffee Holding Co., Inc. engages in manufacturing, roasting, packaging, marketing, and distributing roasted and blended coffees in the United States and Canada. The company offers three categories of products: wholesale green coffee, private label coffee, and branded coffee. The wholesale green coffee product category consists of unroasted raw beans imported from worldwide that are sold to roasters and coffee shop operators in approximately 90 varieties. The private label coffee product category includes coffee roasted, blended, packaged, and sold under the specifications and names of others. As of October 31, 2010, the company supplied private label coffee under approximately 34 different labels to wholesalers and retailers in cans, brick packages, and instants in various sizes. The branded coffee product category comprises coffee roasted and blended to the company's own specifications and offered under its seven brand names in various segments of the market. The company also offers other products, including trial-sized mini-brick coffee packages; specialty instant coffees; instant cappuccinos and hot chocolates; and tea line products. Its coffee brands include Cafe Caribe, S&W, Cafe Supremo, Don Manuel, Fifth Avenue, Via Roma, IL CLASSICO, and Entenmann. Coffee Holding Co., Inc. markets its private label and wholesale coffee through trade shows, industry publications, face-to-face contacts, internal sales force, and non-exclusive independent food and beverage sales brokers, as well as through its Web site, coffeeholding.com. The company was founded in 1971 and is headquartered in Staten Island, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By James E. Brumley]
What do you get when you cross a Coffee Holding Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:JVA) with a Medical Marijuana Inc. (OTCMKTS:MJNA) and a Kraft Foods Group Inc. (NASDAQ:KRFT)? No, it's not a setup for a punch line - there's a legitimate answer. And that answer is, Latteno Food Corp. (OTCMKTS:LATF).
Top 10 Railroad Companies To Watch For 2014: Deutsche Bank AG (LBND)
Deutsche Bank AG is a global investment bank. The Company offers a variety of investment, financial and related products and services to private individuals, corporate entities and institutional clients around the world. The Company operates through such divisions as: Private and Business Clients, Asset and Wealth Management, Corporate Banking and Securities, Global Transaction Banking and Non-Core Operations Unit. Deutsche Bank AG is active domestically and in various countries, through the network of numerous branches. In February 2014, the Company and its related bodies corporate ceases to a share holder in the capital of the Company. Advisors' Opinion:- [By Donald van Deventer]
Long-duration Treasury Exchange-Traded Funds: (TLH), , (IEF), (DTYL), (DLBL), (ILTB), (TENZ), (ITE), (TLO), (EDV), (VGIT), (VGLT), (TMF), (TYD), (LBND), (UBT), (UST), (TMV), (TYO), (DSTJ), (DSXJ), (SBND), (PST), (DTYS), (DLBS), (TBF), (TTT), (TYNS), (TYBS), (TBX).
Top 10 Railroad Companies To Watch For 2014: Platform Specialty Products Corp (PAH)
Platform Specialty Products Corporation is a producer of technology specialty chemical products and provider of technical services. The Company�� business involves the manufacture of a range of specialty chemicals, which the Company creates by blending raw materials, and the incorporation of these chemicals into multi-step technological processes. Advisors' Opinion:- [By Luke Jacobi]
13Fs were released after the close Thursday and resulted in some interesting trading activity Friday. Platform Specialty Products (NYSE: PAH), for example, rose almost six percent Ackman announced a large stake in the company. Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) rose more than two percent after Dan Loeb and Warren Buffett added positions in the company and David Tepper sold his stake.
Top 10 Railroad Companies To Watch For 2014: Emeritus Corporation (ESC)
Emeritus Corporation operates senior living communities in the United States. The company�s communities offer Alzheimer�s and dementia care, independent living, assisted living, specialized memory care, and skilled nursing care services. It also provides management services to independent and related-party owners of assisted living communities. As of November 15, 2012, the company operated approximately 470 senior living communities in 44 states with a resident capacity for approximately 50,000 residents. Emeritus Corporation was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Seattle, Washington.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Lisa Levin]
Emeritus (NYSE: ESC) shares gained 3.20% to touch a new 52-week high of $33.18. Emeritus shares have jumped 31.71% over the past 52 weeks, while the S&P 500 index has gained 16.93% in the same period.
- [By Seth Jayson]
Calling all cash flows
When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Emeritus (NYSE: ESC ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.
Top 10 Railroad Companies To Watch For 2014: Agent155 Media Corp (AGMC)
Agent155 Media Corp., formerly Freshwater Technologies Inc., incorporated on December 10, 1999, is a development-stage company. It will offer a free, online presence for the global artistic and athletic communities through its Website, Agent155.com. Agent155.com provides fashion, performer, art, sports, music, film, writer professionals and amateurs a multi-media content management solution, enabling a collaborative forum to network and develop through www.agent155.com. It also provides talent agencies, agents, producers, directors, and recording companies a location to search and view the profiles. It also re-distributes member content through traditional media channels, such as television, radio, film and print. It will produce films, music tours, commercials, and various events using talent from Agent155.com.directors, and recording companies a location to search and view the profiles and work of talent. In addition, the Company will provide targeted advertising opportunities for members and businesses.
Agent155 Media Corp fulfills the role of a matchmaker allowing talented individuals direct access to those who seek specific talents. Agent155 Media Corp provides talent agencies, agents, producers, directors and recording companies a location to search and view pool of profiles and work of talent.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Peter Graham]
Small cap stocks Profitable Developments Inc (OTCMKTS: PRDL), Dynamic Applications Corp (OTCMKTS: DYAP) and Agent155 Media Corp (OTCMKTS: AGMC) have been getting some attention lately in various investment newsletters. One of these small caps has been getting attention thanks to paid promotions while another saw a trading volume spike for the first three days of last week and the last one has seen a steady rise in share price over October. So what�� going on with these small cap stocks? Here is a quick reality check to help you decide how hot they might be or become:
Top 10 Railroad Companies To Watch For 2014: Hercules Offshore Inc.(HERO)
Hercules Offshore, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides shallow-water drilling and marine services to the oil and natural gas exploration and production industry in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and internationally. Its services comprise oil and gas exploration and development drilling, well services, platform inspection, and maintenance and decommissioning services in various water provinces. As of May 10, 2011, the company owned and operated a fleet of 50 jackup rigs, 17 barge rigs, 65 liftboats, 3 submersible rigs, and 1 platform rig. It serves national oil and gas companies, integrated energy companies, and independent oil and natural gas operators. The company was founded in 2004 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Roberto Pedone]
One energy player that insiders are active in here is Hercules Offshore (HERO), which provides shallow-water drilling and marine services to the oil and natural gas exploration and production industry worldwide. Insiders are buying this stock into major weakness, since shares are off sharply by 38% so far in 2014.
Hercules Offshore has a market cap of $644 million and an enterprise value of $1.79 billion. This stock trades at a cheap valuation, with a forward price-to-earnings of 7.85. Its estimated growth rate for this year is 59.3%, and for next year it's pegged at 20.9%. This is not a cash-rich company, since the total cash position on its balance sheet is $197.21 million and its total debt is $1.29 billion.
The CEO just bought 36,000 shares, or about $144,000 worth of stock, at $4.01 per share.
From a technical perspective, HERO is currently trending below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, which is bearish. This stock recently gapped down sharply from $5 to its new 52-week low of $3.90 a share with heavy downside volume flows. Following that move, shares of HERO have started to rebound off that $3.90 low and off oversold levels since its relative strength index reading hit 30.
If you're bullish on HERO, then I would look for long-biased trades as long as this stock is trending above its 52-week low of $3.90 and then once breaks out above Wednesday's intraday high of $4.10 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above that level with volume that hits near or above its three-month average action of 4.88 million shares. If that breakout starts soon, then HERO will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at around $4.30 or at its 50-day moving average of $4.49 a share. Any high-volume move above $4.70 would then give HERO a chance to re-fill its previous gap-down-day zone that
- [By Taylor Muckerman and Joel South]
On an island by itself
Within the offshore market, Hercules Offshore (NASDAQ: HERO ) has isolated itself as a jack-up rig specialist. Even more specialized is the fact that 29 of its 38 rigs are currently drilling for fossil fuels in the Gulf Coast region. While many companies left the area after the Macondo incident, Hero decided to stick around and many expect this diligence to payoff. Tomorrow's release will certainly go a long way toward proving this optimistic group right or wrong. - [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Equities Trading DOWN
Shares of Hercules Offshore (NASDAQ: HERO) were down 10.96 percent to $5.12. Global Hunter downgraded the stock from Buy to Neutral and cut the price target from $12.00 to $6.00. - [By Matt DiLallo]
A Herculean disaster averted in the Gulf
Just this past week, a blowout occurred on a Hercules (NASDAQ: HERO ) -owned rig operating in the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Natural gas leaking from a well off the coast of Louisiana caught fire and spread to the Hercules rig. Fortunately, all 48 personnel in the rig were safely evacuated. However, the incident underscores the risks of drilling offshore. It could have been a lot worse, as no one was hurt, and this is a natural gas well so the environmental threats are far less than if it were an oil well. While the well is not yet under control, Hercules investors appear to have caught a break, which is why stock was down only about 4% on the week.�
Top 10 Railroad Companies To Watch For 2014: Groundstar Resources Ltd (GSA)
Groundstar Resources Limited (Groundstar) is a development-stage oil and gas company. The Company is engaged in exploration, development and production opportunities in international areas of interest. Through its subsidiaries, the Company�� primary operations are related to its interests in a production sharing contract in Kurdistan (Iraq), concession agreements in Egypt and a petroleum prospecting license in Guyana. Advisors' Opinion:- [By Damian Illia]
The company�� revenues come from the fees charged for operating different domain names. Most domain names��fees are charged as per agreement terms with ICANN; however, fees received for operating the .gov registry are based on the terms of agreement with the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA). As of September 2013, revenues of $125.9 million came from active domain names ending with .com and .net. Even though the company has presence all over the globe, the U.S. contributes 64.8% of revenues, while Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) contribute 15.5%, Australia, China, India and other Asia Pacific countries (APAC), 15.0%, and other countries such as Canada or Latin American countries, contribute 4.7%. Competition is increasing, especially with Latin script ccTLD registries and IDN ccTLD registries, as well as with other name service providers such as Neustar Inc. (NSR) or ARI Registry Services, and search engine providers such as Google Inc. (GOOG) Microsoft, Corp. (MSFT).