Disney's Deal With Netflix Was Inevitable

No company other than Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX  ) could have given Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS  ) the deal it wanted for four new superhero TV shows, Fool contributor Tim Beyers argues in the following video.

Netflix offers each new Marvel show international distribution to as many as 40 million viewers worldwide. Disney can't achieve that on its own, Tim says, because it controls a limited number of channels for offering live action superhero content and ABC already airs Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

History also favors the deal. More than 66% of gross receipts for Iron Man 3 came from overseas territories. Thor: The Dark World is also tracking well in foreign territories, much like its predecessor. Settling for U.S.-centric distribution would be aiming too low, Tim says.

Disney also has a history of licensing properties to experts. Think of how it shuttered LucasArts in the months following its acquisition of Lucasfilm. Electronic Arts is now tasked with creating the next round of Star Wars video games.

Now it's your turn to weigh in. What do you expect from Marvel now that Disney's deal with Netflix is in place? Please watch the video to get Tim's full take, and then leave a comment to let us know what you think.

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Best Dow Stocks For Dividend Reinvestment Plans

By Charles Carlson

The Dow Jones Industrial Average recently moved to its highest level ever and is up 18% year to date. The Dow also had a makeover that saw three new stocks join the index—Nike (NKE), Goldman Sachs (GS), and Visa Visa (V). These stocks replaced Alcoa Alcoa (AA), Bank of America Bank of America (BAC), and Hewlett- Packard (HPQ) in the index.

From a dividend reinvestment plan (DRIP) perspective, the Dow is a fertile hunting ground for DRIP investors:

➤ All 30 Dow stocks pay a dividend, and 23 of the Dow stocks have yields of 2% or greater.

➤  22 Dow stocks offer direct-purchase plans whereby any investor may buy the first share and every share of stock directly. Dow stocks with direct-purchase plans are highlighted in the table.

➤ Five Dow stocks—Boeing (BA), DuPont (DD), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), 3M (MMM), and Travelers (TRV)—offer traditional DRIPs whereby investors must already be a shareholder of record in order to enroll in the plan.

➤ Only three Dow stocks do not offer a direct-purchase plan or a traditional DRIP—Goldman Sachs, UnitedHealth Group (UNH) and Visa. Curiously, these three stocks are among the newest members of the Dow, with Goldman Sachs an Visa coming onboard this year and UnitedHealth Group joining the Dow in September, 2012. (The remaining new member—Nike—has a direct- purchase plan.)

From an investment perspective, Dow stocks as a group have decent investment appeal. Indeed, 77% of the 30 Dow stocks sport Quadrix Overall scores that place them in the top half of DRIP Investor's 4,000-plus Quadrix stock universe.

I currently have 12 favorites. Some of these stocks, such as Exxon Mobil (XOM), represent excellent "buy-and- hold" plays. While Exxon may not be the most dynamic stock over the next 12 months, the issue is the type of "Steady Eddie" play that works nicely in a DRIP portfolio.

I have owned Exxon for more than 20 years, and the stock has been a perfect holding in many ways. Exxon rarely forces investors to make a decision, and its "easy hold" characteristics have allowed me to hold and reap ample gains. Exxon has a 2.8% yield and offers a direct-purchase plan whereby any investor may buy the first share and every share directly from the company. Minimum initial investment is $250.

The other energy play in the Dow, Chevron (CVX), fits the "Steady Eddie" description as well and should be a productive investment over the long term. Chevron has a yield of 3.2% and its direct-purchase plan has a minimum initial investment of $250.

Another stock I like for its "Steady Eddie" characteristics and long-term growth appeal is Disney (DIS). Admittedly, Disney's current Quadrix Overall score of 60 is a bit on the low end for recommended stocks. However, I'm willing to break my rule a bit for Disney.

I like the company's diversified operating base, which includes theme parks, broadcasting (ABC, ESPN), and movie operations. Entertainment, travel and media are among my favorite sectors, and Disney provides exposure to all three. The stock is suitable for any DRIP investor and is especially appropriate for a child or grandchild who is being introduced to investing via DRIPs. Minimum initial investment in Disney's direct-purchase plan is $250 and the stock has a yield of 1.2%.

Two of my favorite Dow stocks for the next 12 months are Cisco Systems (CSCO) and J.P. Morgan Chase (JPM). Cisco and J.P. Morgan are fairly controversial stocks right now. J.P. Morgan is always in the headlines for some investigation or lawsuit.

However, I remain a fan of company management and the firm's ability to crank out big profits and dividends. The yield of nearly 3% enhances appeal. J.P.Morgan has perhaps the most impressive set of Quadrix scores of any Dow stock, with the stock having an Overall score of 94 (out of a possible 100), a Value score of 96, and a Quality score of 73. Such broad Quadrix strength should translate into above-market returns over the next year. J.P. Morgan's direct-purchase plan permits minimum initial investment of $250.

Cisco stock fell following its most recent earnings announcement. Quite frankly, I didn't think the quarterly results were bad. That Cisco was a bit dour during the conference call probably stemmed as much from the fact that the company didn't want to come off as being ebullient given it was laying off 4,000 employees.The yield of 2.8% boosts total-return potential. Cisco offers a direct-purchase plan. Minimum initial investment is $500.

With Fight Nearing End, Dow Jones Industrials Rally 200 Points

House Speaker John Boehner said today that he won’t fight the Senate’s standoff-ending deal–and investors didn’t fight the stock-market rally.

AP

The S&P 500 gained 1.4% to 1,721.54 today, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 205.82 points, or 1.4%, to 15,373.83.

By agreeing to a deal, Congress has proven what many investors have said all along–it’s all just noise. Osterweis Capital Management John Osterweis and Matt Berler sum up the vibe:

We believe it is important to avoid getting caught up in the drama on Capitol Hill and remain focused on the slow continued healing taking place in the U.S. economy….Once the political dust settles surround the budget and the debt ceiling we think the equity market will resume their upward bias.

Jefferies’ Ward McCarthy and Thomas Simons wonder when economic data will start getting released:

Before the shutdown, BLS officials indicated that the BLS would release a revised data calendar, and that it did not expect to release all of the data at the same time. It is also possible that the data releases on the calendar will not follow the usual order once the data deluge begins…

Our expectation, therefore, is that the employment data will be released two, or possibly three, days after the government shutdown has been completed. The best case scenario is that the House and Senate complete the votes on an un-altered Senate bill tonight, so that at least some government workers are back at the desk in the morning. If BLS employees worked Thursday and Friday, with some work over the weekend, we could get the employment data on Monday.

Consumer stocks got a boost from the deal today, with three among the top-15 gainers in the S&P 500. JC Penney (JCP) rose 4.2% to $7.47, TJX Companies (TJX) jumped 3.8% to $57.72 and Kohl’s (KSS) advanced 3.5% to $53.24

JPMorgan (JPM) gained 3.2% to $54–making it the Dow’s biggest winner–after reaching an agreement with the CFTC over the “London Whale” case. Goldman Sachs (GS) was a close second after rising 2.9% to $162.25 ahead of tomorrow’s earnings.

3 Key Takeaways From Pandora’s Earnings

Internet radio upstart Pandora Media  (NYSE: P  ) is doing everything in its power to justify its massive valuation and fend of increased competition from a myriad of competitors including Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) and Google.

But can it actually cash in on its disruptive potential, especially among such fierce and growing competition?

That, it turns out, is the $5.7 billion dollar question. And unfortunately for Pandora investors, Thursday's third-quarter earnings report didn't necessarily go a long way in clearing the matter up.

In that spirit, let's take a look at three of the most important items from Pandora's earnings report.

1 – User growth is slowing
Unfortunately for Pandora, user growth reached an inflection point in Q3. The number of people using the service actually declined for the first time on record on a quarter-over-quarter basis in Q3.

Source: Pandora

Users will quickly point out that Apple's recently launched iTunes Radio service, basically a Pandora clone with iTunes integration, rolled out during the quarter. Apple certainly took a pot shot at Pandora when it announced that 11 million listeners tried iTunes Radio its first weekend on the market.

However, the general consensus is still that Pandora's service enjoys an edge in terms of selecting songs users really want to hear, thanks to its 13-year old Music Genome project. The hope is that by having superior algorithms powering Pandora's service, Pandora will be able to fend off the competition like Apple. Although with the massive trove of listener data that a company like Apple enjoys, it's understandable how this advantage could erode over time for Pandora.

No matter what, slowing user growth raises a serious red flag for a company still working toward profitability like Pandora.

However, there is also room for optimism here as well because even despite slowing user growth...

2 – Pandora's business model is still gaining steam
Regardless the number of people actually using the service, Pandora is undeniably doing a better job making money off its users. Two metrics are particularly helpful in understand this trend. The first is Pandora's revenue per user, which has been consistently gaining steam over the last several years.

Source: Pandora

Pretty hard to argue with the progress Pandora's made on the monetization front. Over the last 11 quarters, Pandora's increased revenue per user by nearly 60%. That's impressive no matter how you slice it.

The progress Pandora's made here though is largely a reflection of perhaps the most important single metric an investors needs to monitor in order to gauge the success of Pandora's overall business model – Revenue Per 1000 Ad impressions, or simply RPMs.

Source: Pandora

Pandora hasn't been as forthcoming about breaking these figures out in the past, which is why the data set doesn't reach as far back as the above charts.

For a company who's long-term strategy is predicated on advertising, this is really the holy grail in gauging Pandora's overall health. Thankfully for Pandora investors, the company has been aggressive in expanding its advertising capabilities in both national and local markets. This has given Pandora a nice lift, and helped edge the company further toward what it claims will be eventual profitability. If this number can continue to rise, Pandora will be well on track to realize that vision.

However, as my third point highlights, that isn't necessarily a sure thing, especially in the short term.

3 – Pandora offered soft guidance for the coming quarter
Although not missing analysts' expectations by much, Pandora reiterated that it sees its financials coming in slightly lower than expected in the upcoming three months.

For the coming quarter, Pandora said it expects to generate sales between $185 million and $190 million, right in line with the $187.5 million estimates. However EPS should be roughly between $0.02 and $0.04, down slightly from the $0.04 estimated.

More importantly than playing the analyst game, Pandora's guidance does represent a slight slowing of growth from the same period last year. If Pandora meets the mid-point of its guidance, it will increase sales 49%, down from 54% in Q4 last year.

Again, this is still strong growth for Pandora. However, as with the user figures, it hints that Pandora's growth engine might be slowing, which should certainly give investors pause.

Overall, Pandora's most recently reported quarter should be viewed as a success. However sadly, the future remains just about as uncertain as it always has for the streaming upstart.

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Ross Stores’ Disappointing Results: Aberration or a New Trend?

If you don’t have any goals, you can never be disappointed. And if you set your goals too high, you might get crushed. Ross Stores (ROST) might want to consider that in the future.

Bloomberg

Shares of Ross Stores have plunged today, after the retailer beat its third quarter guidance, but issued guidance below analyst forecasts. Reuters has the details on Ross Stores results:

For the quarter ended Nov. 2, Ross Stores reported a profit of $171.6 million, or 80 cents a share, up from $159.5 million, or 72 cents a share, in the prior-year period. The company in August said it expected per-share profit of 75 cents to 78 cents, which was below analyst estimates at the time.

Sales were up 6% to $2.4 billion. Analysts predicted $2.43 billion.

Same-store sales rose 2%, compared with a 6% gain in the prior-year period…

For the current quarter, the discount clothing and home-goods retailer said it expects per-share earnings of 97 cents to $1.01. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters recently expected $1.09 a share. The company also said it expects same-store sales to be up 1% to 2% in the period, compared with 5% growth last year.

For a stock that had returned 49% this year–or more than 20 percentage points more than the S&P 500 and twice the average apparel store–that was hardly good news. Shares of Ross Stores have fallen 5.8% to $75.58 , while TJX Corp. (TJX) has dropped 1.4% to $63.08 and Gap (GPS) has declined 1.3% to $41.31.

Top Warren Buffett Companies To Buy For 2014

Sterne Agee’s Ike Boruchow and Tom Nikic call the drop a buying opportunity. They write:

ROST’s top-line shortfall in Q3 was likely driven by government shutdown effects on its macro-sensitive, lower income demographic as comps decelerated in the back half of the quarter. Margin trends remain rock solid, as inventory is well controlled and full-price selling is up. Management now expects a slower holiday selling season, and given expectations were high heading into the print, shares could be under near-term pressure. We are buyers of this story on weakness.

Maxim Group’s Rick Snyder sees the weakness continuing and downgrades Ross Stores to Sell from Hold:

After an impressive run of mid-single-digit comp gains since 2008, the company failed to beat its Q3 comp guidance of a 2.0%-3.0% comp gain, recording a 2.0% Q3 comp gain. We view this as more than a one-time event and believe that the law of large numbers may be finally catching up to Ross at the same time consumer demand is falling.

So what time is it–to buy or to sell?

5 Short-Squeeze Stocks Ready to Pop in October

BALTIMORE (Stockpickr) -- There are a lot of reasons to short stocks right now. You've probably already heard all the arguments against owning equities: they're expensive; there's the government shutdown to worry about, then there's another debt ceiling; they've already rallied so far so fast.

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But none of that matters. Fact is, the more individual investors hate stocks, the more you should be buying them.

Going back over the last decade, buying heavily shorted large and mid-cap stocks (the top two quartiles of all shortable stocks by market capitalization) would have beaten the S&P 500 by 9.28% each and every year. That's some material outperformance during a decade when decent returns were very hard to come by.

When I say that investors "hate" a stock, I'm talking about its short interest. A stock with a high level of shorting indicates that there are a lot of people willing to bet on a decline in its share price -- and not many willing to buy. Too much hate can spur a short squeeze, a buying frenzy that's triggered by shorts who need to cover their losing bets. And with the rally we've been since last November, you can probably guess that there are lots of losing open short bets.

>>5 Trades to Take for October Gains

One of the best indicators of just how high a short-squeezed stock could go is the short interest ratio, which estimates the number of days it would take for short-sellers to cover their positions. The higher the short ratio, the higher the potential profits when the shorts get squeezed.

It's worth noting, though, that market cap matters a lot -- short sellers tend to be right about smaller names, with micro-caps delivering negative returns when the same method was used.

>>5 Stocks Set to Soar on Bullish Earnings

Today, we'll replicate the most lucrative side of this strategy with a look at five big-name stocks that short sellers are piled into right now. These stocks could be prime candidates for a short squeeze in 2013.

Gilead Sciences

2013 has been a blockbuster year for Gilead Sciences (GILD) -- shares of the $96 billion biopharmaceutical company have charged more than 70% higher since the start of the year. But that upward momentum hasn't kept short sellers at bay; it's only made them shout their value argument louder. As I write, GILD carries a short interest ratio of 10.01, indicating that it would take more than two weeks of buying pressure for short sellers to exit their bets against this stock.

>>4 Biotech Stocks Under $10 Making Big Moves

Gilead's business centers around creating and marketing drugs that fight infectious diseases, with a focus on HIV and hepatitis B and C. Gilead's HIV treatments are making waves in the health care field -- the all-in-one pill Atripla dramatically simplifies the daily regimen for HIV patients, for instance. The firm also made an $11 billion bet on treating hepatitis C through the acquisition of drug maker Pharmasset. That diversification should be welcome for investors in this concentrated stock.

While patent expirations are a concern for Gilead, the firm's keystone HIV patents don't start expiring until 2018, ample time for the firm to develop new formulations and to keep adding other diseases to its hit list. Financially, GILD is in solid shape in spite of its transformational acquisition efforts, with $3 billion in cash and investments largely offsetting a $7.3 billion debt load.

There's no question that Gilead isn't exactly cheap right now, but it's trajectory isn't showing any signs of slowing either.

Becton, Dickinson

Becton, Dickinson (BDX) is another health care name that investors hate this fall. Becton is the world's largest medical supply company, manufacturing and distributing surgical instruments such as needles, syringes and scalpels to facilities all over the world. With a short interest ratio of 12.59, it would take more than two weeks of buying pressure for shorts to get rid of their bets against this stock.

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Becton's biggest business is still in basic medical instruments, but the firm has been at work for years to grow its complex high-margin medical equipment (like oncology and pathology diagnostic devices) into a bigger piece of the revenue pie. Together, those two parts of BDX's business provide a very complementary whole -- the basics pay the bills and provide downside protection from a bumpy economy, while high-tech devices hold the promise for revenue growth and margin expansion. That's been a key to the year-over-year sales growth BDX has booked since the financial crisis.

The latest stage of "Obamacare" kicking off this week should usher in a big tailwind for BDX. Whatever your politics, there's no question that an aging baby boomer demographic with more government-mandated insurance is good for medical device sales. And with one of the most-trusted brands and most established distribution networks out there, Becton, Dickinson is uniquely positioned to take full advantage.

Earnings the first week of November could have short squeeze implications for this stock. Stay tuned.

Intuit

There's no avoiding death and taxes. California-based software firm Intuit (INTU) is counting on at least half of that statement holding up.

>>4 Tech Stocks Spiking on Unusual Volume

Intuit develops tools that help consumers and businesses figure out their finances. The firm's brands include tax preparation software TurboTax, and leading accounting titles Quicken and QuickBooks. Intuit's success in simplifying financials have established a major economic moat for the firm -- its software enjoy nearly 90% of the market share for tax prep and small business accounting software. And as the firm markets more services to its existing customer lists, it should continue to churn out growth.

Intuit benefits from extremely high switching costs. Because customers have years of detailed tax data stored through TurboTax, for example, they're a lot less likely to convert to a rival service -- even a free one. For businesses, services like payroll and payment processing tie in perfectly with QuickBooks. That means that switchers have to deal with enormous headaches to jump ship.

That domination shines through to INTU's balance sheet. Right now, the firm boasts $1.6 billion in cash and just $499 million in debt. While that hardly makes Intuit a deep value name, it protects the firm from a lot of downside risks. Just like Becton, Intuit isn't cheap right now. But if short sellers lose their patience, this name could be a textbook short squeeze: Right now, the firm has a short interest ratio of 11.82.

Paychex

One of Intuit's competitors is joining it on our list today. Paychex (PAYX) is the second-largest payroll outsourcer in the world, taking care of the payroll paperwork for 500,000 small and medium business clients all over the globe. While the uneasy recovery in the jobs market has acted as a big black cloud over PAYX in the last five years, the firm is making it clear that its revenues are recovering faster than unemployment data dictate.

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In the past, Paychex has traditionally been a payroll company, providing services for business owners who wanted to simplify the process of getting employees paid and taxes sorted. But PAYX has unlocked a profitable niche in the HR outsourcing business, upselling everything from 401(k) record-keeping to workers' compensation administration to its existing customer Rolodex. As with Intuit, the high cost of switching and hard-to-find side services makes PAYX's customers extremely sticky.

One key revenue source for payroll outsourcers is float income, the interest income it earns by holding clients' cash until employees withdraw it. Obviously, record-low interest rates have hammered Paychex's ability to earn money on its massive float. But with low float revenues already priced into shares, any buoyancy in interest rates means that there's a sudden, big source of free money on tap down the road.

Right now, Paychex's short interest ratio sits at 12.84.

Chipotle Mexican Grill

Short sellers just haven't learned their lesson from Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG). Shares of the $13 billion fast-casual restaurant chain have rallied more than 43% since the calendar flipped over to January, basically guaranteeing that anyone who bet against this perennially-hated stock this year is getting shellacked. But CMG's short interest ratio is still up at 10.61.

Chipotle operates more than 1,500 stores across the U.S. and Canada, with a smaller presence in the U.K. and France. While Chipotle's operations across the pond provide a solid testbed for a couple of exciting markets, the real growth story is still centered on North America right now. Chipotle estimates that it can still double its store count here at home before the market starts to get saturated, a fact that leaves a lot of room open overhead for growth. Despite stiff competition, Chipotle continues to offer a value proposition that customers want -- and its higher-quality positioning means that it's able to collect thick margins for its trouble.

Just as important as how fast Chipotle is growing is how it's paying for that growth. To date, Chipotle has almost exclusively used cash from operations to finance its new stores, providing the firm with a debt-free balance sheet and nearly $500 million in cash. That lack of leverage means that CMG can weather the next economic hiccup better than most restaurant names.

It also means that we could easily see a short squeeze in shares. Keep an eye on this one.

To see these short squeezes in action, check out this week's Short Squeezes portfolio on Stockpickr.

-- Written by Jonas Elmerraji in Baltimore.

RELATED LINKS:

>>4 Stocks Under $10 to Watch for Breakouts

>>5 Dividedn Stocks That Want to Pay You More

>>5 Big Trades to Take Right Now

Follow Stockpickr on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

At the time of publication, author had no positions in stocks mentioned.

Jonas Elmerraji, CMT, is a senior market analyst at Agora Financial in Baltimore and a contributor to

TheStreet. Before that, he managed a portfolio of stocks for an investment advisory returned 15% in 2008. He has been featured in Forbes , Investor's Business Daily, and on CNBC.com. Jonas holds a degree in financial economics from UMBC and the Chartered Market Technician designation.

Follow Jonas on Twitter @JonasElmerraji

5 Tech Stocks Under $10 for Your Trading Radar

DELAFIELD, Wis. (Stockpickr) -- At Stockpickr, we track daily portfolios of stocks that are the biggest percentage gainers and the biggest percentage losers.

Stocks that are making large moves like these are favorites among short-term traders because they can jump into these names and try to capture some of that massive volatility. Stocks that are making big-percentage moves either up or down are usually in play because their sector is becoming attractive or they have a major fundamental catalyst such as a recent earnings release. Sometimes stocks making big moves have been hit with an analyst upgrade or an analyst downgrade.

Regardless of the reason behind it, when a stock makes a large-percentage move, it is often just the start of a new major trend -- a trend that can lead to huge profits. If you time your trade correctly, combining technical indicators with fundamental trends, discipline and sound money management, you will be well on your way to investment success.

With that in mind, let's take a closer look at a several stocks under $10 that are making large moves to the upside today.

Support.com

Support.com (SPRT) is a provider of online care for the digital home and small business. This stock closed up 2.7% to $5.89 in Tuesday's trading session.

Tuesday's Range: $5.67-$5.92

52-Week Range: $3.67-$6.28

Thursday's Volume: 304,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 377,189

From a technical perspective, SPRT spiked higher here right above its 50-day moving average of $5.51 with decent upside volume. This move also pushed shares of SPRT into breakout territory, since the stock took out some near-term overhead resistance at $5.80. Shares of SPRT have been uptrending for the last month, with the stock moving higher from its low of $5.01 to its intraday high of $5.92. During that uptrend, shares of SPRT have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in SPRT as long as it's trending above its 50-day at $5.51 or above more near-term support at $5.43 and then once it sustains a move or close above Tuesday's high of $5.92 to its 52-week high at $6.28 with volume that hits near or above 377,189 shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then SPRT will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory above $6.28, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that move are $7 to $8.

Rambus

Rambus (RMBS) is a technology solutions company that brings invention to market. This stock closed up 4% to $9.25 in Tuesday's trading session.

Tuesday's Range: $8.85-$9.39

52-Week Range: $4.01-$10.85

Tuesday's Volume: 1.93 million

Three-Month Average Volume: 960,806

From a technical perspective, RMBS soared notably higher here back above its 50-day moving average of $9.09 with heavy upside volume. This move also pushed shares of RMBS into breakout territory, since it took out some near-term overhead resistance levels at $9.17 to $9.24. This stock has been uptrending strong for the last month and change, with shares moving higher from its low of $7.95 to its intraday high of $9.40. During that move, shares of RMBS have been making mostly higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in RMBS as long as it's trending above some near-term support levels at Tuesday's low of $8.85 to $8.87 and then once it sustains a move or close above Tuesday's high of $9.40 with volume that hits near or above 960,806 shares. If we get that move soon, then RMBS will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $10 to its 52-week high at $10.85 Any high-volume move above $10.85 will then put $12 into range for shares of RMBS.

AudioCodes

AudioCodes (AUDC) and its subsidiaries design, develop and market products and services for voice, data and video over Internet protocol networks to service providers and channels, original equipment manufacturers, network equipment providers and systems integrators in the U.S., Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Israel. Its This stock closed up 8% to $6.73 in Tuesday's trading session.

Tuesday's Range: $6.23-$6.85

52-Week Range: $2.13-$7.07

Tuesday's Volume: 574,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 261,738

From a technical perspective, AUDC spiked sharply higher here right above some near-term support at $6.04 with above-average volume. This move also pushed shares of AUDC into breakout territory, since the stock took out some near-term overhead resistance at $6.70. Shares of AUDC are now quickly moving within range of triggering another big breakout trade. That trade will hit if AUDC manages to clear Tuesday's high of $6.85 and then once it takes out its 52-week high at $7.07 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in AUDC as long as it's trending above some near-term support levels at $6.25 or $6.04 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 261,738 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then AUDC will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that breakout are $8 to $9.

Maxwell Technologies

Maxwell Technologies (MXWL) develops, manufactures and markets energy storage and power delivery products for transportation, industrial telecommunications and other applications and microelectronic products for space and satellite applications. This stock closed up 3.7% to $9.50 in Tuesday's trading session.

Tuesday's Range: $9.07-$9.54

52-Week Range: $4.90-$11.08

Tuesday's Volume: 369,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 360,477

From a technical perspective, MXWL spiked notably higher here right above some near-term support at $9 with above-average volume. This stock has been consolidating and trending sideways for the last two months, with shares moving between $8.61 on the downside and $10.39 on the upside. Shares of MXWL are now quickly moving within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade above the upper-end of its recent sideways trading chart pattern. That trade will hit if MXWL manages to take out Tuesday' high of $9.54 and then once it clears more near-term overhead resistance at $10.39 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in MXWL as long as it's trending above its 50-day at $8.81 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that's near or above 360,477 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then MXWL will set up to re-test or possibly take out its 52-week high at $11.08. Any high-volume move above that level will then give MXWL a chance to tag $12.

SemiLEDS

SemiLEDS (LEDS) develops, manufactures and sells LED chips and components. This stock closed up 4.2% to $1 in Tuesday's trading session.

Tuesday's Range: $0.93-$1.04

52-Week Range: $0.60-$2.44

Tuesday's Volume: 285,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 309,811

From a technical perspective, LEDS ripped higher here right above some near-term support at 90 cents with decent upside volume. Shares of LEDS flirted with its 50-day moving average of $1 on Tuesday after the stock hit an intraday high of $1.04, and then closed at $1. This stock has been uptrending strong for the last month and change, with shares moving higher from its low of 79 cents to its intraday high of $1.04. During that move, shares of LEDS have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in LEDS as long as it's trending above 90 cents and then once it sustains a move or close above Tuesday's high of $1.04 with volume that hits near or above 309,811 shares. If we get that move soon, then LEDS will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at its 200-day moving average of $1.14 to $1.20, or even $1.35.

To see more stocks that are making notable moves higher today, check out the Stocks Under $10 Moving Higher portfolio on Stockpickr.

-- Written by Roberto Pedone in Delafield, Wis.

As Websites Turn to Video, YouTube Maintains Dominance

The largest Internet companies have described video content as critical to their futures. Video advertising carries a huge premium to the banner ads that have dominated the industry’s revenue stream for years. In addition, there are the premium content firms that rely on subscriptions, first among them Hulu. Each can only sit and watch as Google Inc.’s (NASDAQ: GOOG) YouTube extends the period over which it has taken the massive part of Internet video “eyeballs.” Its dominance dwarfs the audiences of sites that need their video programming to thrive.

According to online video ranking data for last month posted by research firm comScore:

Google Sites, driven primarily by video viewing at YouTube.com, ranked as the top online video content property in August with 167 million unique viewers. AOL captured the #2 spot with 71.2 million, followed by Facebook with 62.2 million, NDN with 50.7 million and VEVO with 49.4 million. 46.7 billion video content views occurred during the month, with Google Sites generating the highest number at 17.4 billion, followed by AOL, Inc. with 992 million and Facebook with 803 million. Google Sites had the highest average engagement among the top ten properties.

To further show YouTube’s dominance, minutes per view on the site were 521.6 in August. AOL Inc.’s (NYSE: AOL) were 56.8, Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) sites registered 33 minutes, and Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) sites 79.2. Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) posted a pitiful 21.6.

The irony about the online video information is that YouTube needs video ads and consumer-paid video content less than its much smaller competition. Its juggernaut parent Google brings in so much revenue – $14 billion in the second quarter — that YouTube is all but a rounding error. Its sales are not even broken out.

YouTube has made efforts to bring in video advertising revenue, and it even has a movie rental business. Neither had been successful. That may be because YouTube is largely populated by user-generated video that is often short and low quality. YouTube has to explain why premium content can sit side by side with the “junk” and still create an environment for high-end marketers used to TV production quality.

YouTube’s spot as the number one video site will hold during the foreseeable future. Because of that, online viewers — who obviously only have so much time — will not migrate in any number to the sites that really, desperately need the money that goes with those viewers.

Top U.S. Online Video Content Properties Ranked by Unique Video Viewers August 2013 Total U.S. – Home and Work Locations Content Videos Only (Ad Videos Not Included) Source: comScore Video Metrix
Property	Total Unique Viewers (000)	Videos (000)	Minutes per Viewer
Total Internet : Total Audience	188,499	46,746,596	1,294.3
Google Sites	166,966	17,437,897	521.6
AOL, Inc.	71,202	991,800	56.8
Facebook	62,183	803,148	21.6
NDN	50,650	569,815	92.0
VEVO	49,371	609,833	42.3
Microsoft Sites	48,894	689,704	33.0
Yahoo! Sites	45,049	368,975	79.2
Viacom Digital	44,434	452,938	45.2
Amazon Sites	34,499	133,380	22.5
Collective Video	31,857	149,318	29.1

This Cheap 7% Yielder Is Up 35% This Year

In 2008, Apollo Global Management (NYSE: APO) co-founder Joshua Harris was on a losing streak.

The firm's $430 million investment in big-box retailer Linens N' Things went south when the company filed for bankruptcy.

Investments in Claire's retail stores, Realogy Holdings (NYSE: RLGY), and Harrah's Entertainment all came under pressure as the global credit crisis hit. Apollo was forced to shut off cash interest payments to investors and to issue more debt.  

But Harris didn't let a little bad luck stop him. He and his partners kept making deals.

In a classic contrarian move, he purchased more shares of troubled plastics-maker LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE: LYB), even as the company was sliding toward bankruptcy.

The result? By 2013, the firm's initial $2 billion investment had turned a $9.6 billion profit, the largest gain ever on a private equity investment.

Apollo Management was a private equity firm until its IPO in 2011. And even though Apollo is an excellent company, it's the idea of private equity I would like to talk about today.

If you're a regular StreetAuthority reader, you may have heard of business development companies (BDCs). BDCs allow you to invest in private equity firms on the open market. And their structure gives stockholders several unique advantages.

Because business development companies target underserved firms, they typically can charge higher interest rates on loans, helping to compensate for any additional risk. In addition, BDCs will often take an equity stake in the companies they finance -- if these small private firms go public, the BDC scores a windfall.

Even better, they offer tremendous tax advantages. The federal government wants to encourage investment in small businesses -- according to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), small companies hire more than half the U.S. private-sector workforce and have accounted for 60% to 80% of all new U.S. jobs over the past decade. Therefore, BDCs are a special type of organization exempt from federal taxation.

To qualify, a company must meet certain specific criteria. First, it must pay out 90% of its income to shareholders as dividends. Not all of this cash must be paid out immediately -- some can be carried forward to smooth out dividends over time, but the cash must be paid or the BDC faces taxes on part of its earnings. This is why most BDCs offer high dividend yields, approaching 20% in some cases.

And because the companies they invest in are considered riskier, the government also requires BDCs retain relatively low leverage. 

Business development companies must have $1 in equity for every $1 borrowed -- their debt-to-equity ratio cannot exceed 1.0. Thus, your average BDC has far less debt than an average bank of equal size.

But thanks to the law, even if some of a BDC's investments go south because of a weak economic environment, it doesn't have huge fixed charges in the form of debt repayments to worry about.

Even the worst markets can offer great opportunities for BDCs. When credit markets dry up and banks are unwilling to take on risky lending, BDCs are one of the few sources of financing for many small companies. This gives them the opportunity to extract particularly favorable terms for their investments.

StreetAuthority expert analyst Amy Calistri has had incredible success with BDCs in her Daily Paycheck portfolio. When she recommended Hercules Technology (NYSE: HTGC) in February 2010, the stock was trading for a little more than $10 a share.

Today, HTGC is trading near $15 a share. A 50% gain in three years isn't too shabby -- but let's not forget the rich 7% yield that Hercules has been paying out over that same time. By reinvesting her dividends, Amy (and the subscribers who took her advice) is enjoying a total gain of 104% on her position.

And here's the thing: At today's prices, Hercules is still a bargain.

Hercules makes money by providing finance to tech companies at all stages of development -- from startups to mature companies looking for growth.

These companies are major players across the tech spectrum. From Achronix Semiconductors to Zoom Media Group, Hercules' investments include companies that operate in communications and telecom infrastructure, computing and storage infrastructure, digital media and consumer Internet, e-commerce, security and cloud computing.

10 Best China Stocks To Buy For 2014

Over the past two years, HGTC has been on a remarkable run:

But despite a 35% rise in share price this year, the stock still trades at a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 11 and a price-to-book (P/B) ratio of 1.5.

As mentioned, HGTC's dividend yield is 7%. And that's on the low end for Hercules: Thanks to the dividend-friendly BDC structure, the company has paid annual yields ranging from 7% to 16% over the past five years.

For context on Hercules' attractive share price compared with its yield, consider this: The average company in the S&P 500 currently yields 2% and trades at a P/E of 19 and a P/B of 2.5.

Amy made a smart move when she added Hercules to her portfolio in 2010, and she's been smart to keep the company in her portfolio. If you haven't already, you might be smart to add Hercules to your portfolio today. 

Risks to Consider: BDC dividends are taxed as ordinary income rather than the lower 15% dividend rate. So it is preferable to hold BDCs in a tax-advantaged account. BDCs are sensitive to interest rates, and a sharp rise could make dividends and share prices volatile.

Action to Take --> HTGC is a strong buy for income-oriented investors at today's prices.

P.S. Current yields averaging 7.2%... gains of more than 127%... and 43% safer returns than traditional investing. Amy Calistri's Daily Paycheck advisory is delivering all of these things and more. Right now, 91% of her picks are winners, and she's collecting more than $1,400 per month in dividend checks. Click here to see how she's doing it -- and how you can join her today.

Zulily IPO zooms 92% in opening trading

SAN FRANCISCO -- Shares of Zulily blasted off 92% in trading action Friday on investor enthusiasm for the e-commerce site that offers goods for babies, kids and moms.

Shares of Zulily jumped $18.39 at $38.39 in midday trading on pent up demand for shares. The company last night bumped up its pricing to $22 per share from its previously set $20 price because of heated interest in the stock.

Seattle-based Zulily's offering sold 11.5 million shares at $22 each, raising $253 million in total, with $140 million going to the coffers of the e-commerce company.

"The business has been profitable; we've been cash-flow positive for the past few years, says CEO and founder Darrell Cavens. "That's one of the pieces of the story that's different than what's out there. We've got growth paired with the bottom line."

Zulily has seen its revenue soar. For 2012, it reported $331 million in revenue, up 132% from a year ago. For the first nine months of 2013, it reported $438.7 million in revenue. Zulily is getting 45% of its orders from mobile.

The e-commerce site refreshes its offers daily with promotions on curated items it says can run 50% below retail. The company has a merchandising team of 300 employees charged with finding new products at discount.

Amazon.com CEO Jeff Bezos has made no secret of ambitions for becoming an everything store, entering just about every market. The company's approach of delivering products aimed at kids is no different. The e-commerce giant acquired Diapers.com for $545 million in 2010, a deal that came after its $1.2 billion purchase of Internet shoe retailer Zappos.com.

"I think our model is really different. We're out there finding boutique products and putting them out there," says Cavens.

The company's customer base has been swelling. As of September 2013, it counted 2.6 million active customers, up from 1.6 million active customers in 2012 and 791,000 in the year before. The site was launched in January 2010.

Shares of Zulily tra! de on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol "Zu."

Hot Clean Energy Companies To Watch In Right Now

Exchange-traded funds offer a convenient way to invest in sectors or niches that interest you. If you'd like to add some clean-energy-related stocks to your portfolio, the PowerShares WilderHill Clean Energy Portfolio ETF (NYSEMKT: PBW  ) could save you a lot of trouble. Instead of trying to figure out which companies will perform best, you can use this ETF to invest in lots of them simultaneously.

The basics
ETFs often sport lower expense ratios than their mutual fund cousins. The PowerShares ETF's expense ratio -- its annual fee -- is 0.70%. The fund is fairly small, too, so if you're thinking of buying, beware of possibly large spreads between its bid and ask prices. Consider using a limit order if you want to buy in.

This ETF has performed�terribly, significantly underperforming the world market over the past three and five years. But the future counts more than the past, and it's been a rough few years for the entire solar energy industry, among others. And, as with most investments, of course, we can't expect outstanding performances in every quarter or year. Investors with conviction need to wait for their holdings to deliver. Indeed, stocks that have fallen sharply are sometimes great bargains.

Hot Clean Energy Companies To Watch In Right Now: Reading International Inc (RDIB)

Reading International, Inc. engages in the development, ownership, and operation of entertainment and real property assets in the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. The company operates in two segments, Cinema Exhibition and Real Estate. It operates multiplex theatres; and invests, develops, owns, operates, and rents commercial, retail, and live theater assets. The company manages its cinema exhibition businesses under the Reading, Angelika Film Center, Consolidated Theatres, City Cinemas, Beekman Theatre, The Paris Theatre, Liberty Theatres, and Rialto brands. As of December 31, 2012, it had interests in 54 cinemas comprising approximately 462 screens; fee interests in 4 live theaters; and fee ownership of approximately 24.0 million square feet of developed and undeveloped real estate assets. The company was founded in 1937 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

Hot Clean Energy Companies To Watch In Right Now: Continental Resources Inc. (CLR)

Continental Resources, Inc. engages in the exploration, development, and production of crude oil and natural gas primarily in the north, south, and east regions of the United States. The company primarily sells its oil and natural gas production to end users, as well as to midstream marketing companies or oil refining companies at the lease. As of December 31, 2011, its estimated proved reserves were 508.4 million barrels of crude oil equivalent, with estimated proved developed reserves of 205.2 million barrels of crude oil equivalent. The company had interests in 3,255 wells and served as the operator of 2,082 of these wells. Continental Resources, Inc. was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Enid, Oklahoma.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Bret Jensen]

  The company's wells are non-operated and has already seen operating costs drop by $1mm a well with Continental Resources (CLR) who operates ~12% of its wells. As new techniques continue to drop operational costs in the Bakken, Northern should be a core beneficiary.

• [By Matt DiLallo]

  On the other hand, Continental Resources� (NYSE: CLR  ) �and�EOG Resources� (NYSE: EOG  ) are two U.S.-focused oil producers that have been enjoying oil's price ride higher. Both companies are up by more than 10% over the past month, as these two are getting higher prices for the oil that's produced. Investors here have been well rewarded as both are trading around all-time highs.

• [By Matt DiLallo]

  We're simply seeing stunning production growth here in the U.S. In the Bakken, for example, Continental Resources (NYSE: CLR  ) projects that its production and reserves will increase threefold by 2017. Meanwhile, smaller producers like Kodiak Oil & Gas (NYSE: KOG  ) have seen production grow by triple digits every year since 2010. The company, which expects to drill 75 more wells this year, estimates that it can drill another 950 wells in the future.

Top 10 Companies To Buy Right Now: Chinasing Investment Hldg Ltd (C16.SI)

Chinasing Investment Holdings Limited, an investment holding company, engages in the provision of computer consultancy services; and the design, development, and sale of computer software and hardware systems in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Europe, the United States, Singapore, and other Asian countries. It also involves in property and investment holding, and general trading activities; and the manufacture and trading of consumer electronic products and components, and satellite communication products, including low-noise block converters, transceivers, and digital video broadcasting decoders, which are used in satellite broadcasting, satellite telephone, satellite monitoring, and global positioning systems. In addition, Chinasing provides system integration and software installation services. The company was formerly known as Joinn Holdings Limited and changed its name to Chinasing Investment Holdings Limited in April 2008. Chinasing Investment Holdings Limited was incorpo rated in 2000 and is based in Central, Hong Kong.

Hot Clean Energy Companies To Watch In Right Now: Cheniere Energy Partners LP (CQP)

Citigroup Funding Inc. offers debt instruments that include commercial papers, medium-term notes and structured equity-linked and credit-linked notes. Citigroup Funding, Inc. is based in United States. Citigroup Funding Inc. operates as a subsidiary of Citigroup, Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Eric Volkman]

  Cheniere Energy Partners (NYSEMKT: CQP  ) is keeping its payout level for now. The partnership has declared a distribution of $0.425 per common unit, to be paid on August 14 to holders of record as of August 1. That amount is in line with nearly all of Cheniere Energy Partners' previous distributions stretching back to August 2007. The only exception is its first payout of $0.028, which was handed out in May 2007.

• [By Aimee Duffy]

  What went wrong�
  Cheniere's management attributes the widening losses to several things:

  LNG terminal and pipeline development expenses for the Cheniere Energy Partners (NYSEMKT: CQP  ) liquefaction facility at Sabine Pass LNG terminal and pipeline development expenses for the proposed liquefaction facility at Corpus Christi Losses on interest rate derivatives purchased in August 2012 in connection with its senior secured credit facility Increases in general and administrative expenses, attributed to awards doled out as part of the company's long-term incentive plan at its Sabine Pass facility

  In other words, rising expenses -- some the company can control and some it cannot -- really hurt Cheniere this quarter. Operating costs were up 91% year over year. The loss on derivatives also increased significantly, from $836,000 in 2012 to $17.5 million this year.

Hot Clean Energy Companies To Watch In Right Now: AeroVironment Inc.(AVAV)

AeroVironment, Inc. designs, develops, produces, and supports unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), and efficient energy systems for various industries and governmental agencies. Its UAS provide intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, including real-time tactical reconnaissance, tracking, combat assessment, and geographic data to the small tactical unit or individual war fighter. The UAS wirelessly transmit critical live video and other information generated by their payload of electro-optical or infrared sensors directly to a hand-held ground control system, enabling the operator to view and capture images during the day or at night on a hand-held ground control unit. AeroVironment also provides spare equipment, alternative payload modules, batteries, chargers, repair services, and customer support for the UAS. In addition, the company produces industrial productivity and clean transportation solutions for commercial and government customers, develops potential clean t ransportation solutions, and performs contract engineering services; offers PosiCharge electric vehicle charging systems for industrial electric material handling fleets, electric vehicle charging systems for passenger and fleet vehicles, and power cycling and test systems for developers and manufacturers of plug-in electric and hybrid vehicles, as well as battery packs, electric motors, and fuel cells; and supplies power cycling and test systems to research and development organizations that focus on developing electric propulsion systems, electric generation systems, and electricity storage systems. It supplies its UAS primarily to the organizations within the United States department of defense. AeroVironment, Inc. was incorporated in 1971 and is headquartered in Monrovia, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

  AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV  )
  Shifting over the implications of this news for automotive investments, the key attraction for AeroVironment investors (aside from selling UAVs into an Afghan war that's winding down) has been the company's "PosiCharge" electric-car battery recharging technology. AV says it beats all comers with the ability to recharge a lithium ion battery pack in mere minutes. But if Khare's invention bears fruit, and battery recharge times begin getting measured in seconds, AV's raison d' etre could vanish.

• [By Alex Planes]

  Investors love stocks that consistently beat the Street without getting ahead of their fundamentals and risking a meltdown. The best stocks offer sustainable market-beating gains, with robust and improving financial metrics that support strong price growth. Does AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV  ) fit the bill? Let's look at what its recent results tell us about its potential for future gains.

Hot Clean Energy Companies To Watch In Right Now: RTI International Metals Inc.(RTI)

RTI International Metals, Inc. produces and supplies titanium mill products worldwide. The company operates in three segments: The Titanium Group, The Fabrication Group, and The Distribution Group. The Titanium Group segment melts, processes, and produces various titanium mill products, including, blooms, billets, sheets, and plates, which are further processed by its customers for use in various commercial aerospace, defense, and industrial and consumer applications. This segment also produces ferro titanium alloys for its steel-making customers. It serves prime aircraft manufacturers, as well as their subcontractors comprising fabricators, forge shops, extruders, castings producers, fastener manufacturers, machine shops, and metal distribution companies. The Fabrication Group segment extrudes, forms, fabricates, machines, and assembles titanium and other specialty metal parts and components. Its products primarily include complex engineered parts and assemblies that are used in commercial aerospace, defense, medical device, oil and gas, power generation, and chemical process industries, as well as in various other industrial and consumer markets. This segment also provides engineered tubulars and extrusions, fabricated and machined components, and sub-assemblies, as well as engineered systems for deepwater oil and gas exploration and production infrastructure. In addition, it produces components for the production of minimally invasive and implantable medical devices. The Distribution Group segment stocks, distributes, finishes, cuts-to-size, and facilitates delivery services of titanium, steel, and other specialty metal products primarily nickel-based specialty alloys to commercial aerospace, defense, and industrial and consumer customers. The company sells its products primarily through its sales force. RTI International Metals, Inc. was founded in 1950 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

5 Things to Watch on Wall Street This Week

10 Best Heal Care Stocks To Watch Right Now

Alamy You can never know in advance all the news that will move the market in a given week, but some things you can see coming. From the release of a new video game console to an earnings report out of the world's largest retailer, here are some of the items that will help shape the week that lies ahead on Wall Street. Monday -- Host in the Machine: Most Internet users take web-hosting for granted, but leading websites and apps wouldn't be available if it wasn't for the growing fleet of servers manned by companies specializing in getting websites up and running. Rackspace (RAX) is a market darling among web hosts, and on Monday it will serve up its latest financials. This has become a competitive market as providers aim to host websites and cloud computing solutions. The end result is that analysts see Rackspace growing its revenue by a hearty 15 percent, but they also see profitability declining during the quarter. Tuesday -- KFC in China: Yum! Brands (YUM) is the parent company behind the fast food team of Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and KFC. A surprisingly large portion of Yum! Brands' business in recent years has come from expanding its chicken chain in China. But the market has been challenging lately. Same-store sales for Chinese KFC locations plunged 14 percent in its latest quarter. As a result of its poor performance in the world's most populous nation, Yum! Brands is temporarily offering monthly same-store sales updates. It will offer an update on how October went on Tuesday after the market close. Wednesday -- Panic at the Cisco: It may seem like a long time ago, but there was a brief moment in time -- just before the dot-com bubble popped -- that Cisco (CSCO) commanded the largest market capitalization in the country. The Internet was all the rage with investors, and Cisco was the leading provider of routers, switches, and other networking gear that kept the whole web connected. The past few years have been volatile for Cisco, with the tech bellwether's low point being when it had to concede failure in the consumer market by getting rid of its Flip camcorder division two years ago. Despite layoffs earlier this year, Cisco is starting to bounce back these days. When it reports on Wednesday, analysts see revenue and earnings climbing 4 percent and 6 percent, respectively. That's certainly not the kind of growth that would have one reaching for an old school Flip cam to record, but at least it's Cisco moving in the right direction. Thursday -- Welcome to Walmart: The world's largest retailer is Walmart (WMT), and it reports on Thursday. This may be one of the better early reads that investors get of the upcoming holiday shopping season: Despite the controversies and disdain that dog the top dog in retail, Walmart is a pretty good gauge of the retail environment among discounters. If Walmart isn't your bag, other retailers sharing the earnings stage with the company that Sam Walton built include Kohl's (KSS) and Nordstrom (JWN). Friday -- Sony Skies Ahead: It's been seven years since Sony (SNE) began selling the PS3, and on Friday the PS4 will hit the market. Sony's hoping that its new console will woo diehard gamers. The $400 price point is steep, but it's actually $100 cheaper than the Xbox One that hits stores a week later. Sony is going with a brand new chip architecture to make its new system more powerful. The downside to that is that older games won't be compatible with the new machine, but Sony has promised an online solution that will allow owners to keep playing older-generation PlayStation games.

Bank Of England Called Out On Startup Taxes

The cries for a better startup climate came from Dan Wagner, founder and CEO of POWA Technologies, a London-based online business platform that just raised a $76 million series A round of funding, announced earlier this month.

Wagner talked up the UK's entrepreneurial potential, cautioning that businesses won't stay at home if prospects are better elsewhere and that the country is already experiencing a 'brain-drain.' "We have some fantastic, inspirational entrepreneurs who start great businesses, but unfortunately many of them have to go abroad to get the funding they need to grow and succeed and that is a shame," he said. "Britain has great innovation across all areas and it needs to be nurtured and supported because it will be the lifeblood for the return of economic strength."

Nurturing the startup community would lead to an increase in jobs and exports, he argued. "I would like to see capital gains tax completely removed from the funding of start-up businesses."

Wagner wasn't just lobbing up his opinion on a whim. The Bank of England's newest governor, Mark Carney, gave his first speech today following his appointment last month. He pledged to have £90 billion at the ready to lend to households and businesses, if needed.

3 Natural Gas Stocks to Buy Now

Popular Posts: 5 Energy Stocks to Power Your PortfolioShould I Buy XOM? 3 Pros, 3 ConsThe 4 Best ETFs for Young Investors Recent Posts: 3 Natural Gas Stocks to Buy Now 5 Energy Stocks to Power Your Portfolio Should I Buy XOM? 3 Pros, 3 Cons View All Posts

Now is a great time to be an investor in energy stocks: North America's shale oil and natural gas revolution keeps on rolling. Hydraulic fracturing has simply changed the game for the energy industry. And as the E&P sector continues to use fracking and other advanced drilling techniques, production numbers and reserves keep climbing.

All of that activity has been a big boon to natural gas stocks.

Various utilities are switching over from "dirty" coal to the cheaper, cleaner-burning fuel, and with consumers — both residential and commercial — increasing their demand, consumption of natural gas continues to spike. Meanwhile, the promises of liquefied natural gas exports and natural gas-fueled vehicles only heightened the potential boom for natural gas companies even further.

Overall, the Energy Information Administration projects that natural gas demand in the United States could be 26.55 trillion cubic feet by the year 2035 — a 16% increase since the hydraulic fracturing boom took off in 2009.

Simply put, natural gas stocks could be the energy stocks with biggest potential. Here are three prime natural gas stocks to buy now:

Southwestern Energy

Southwestern Energy (SWN) is well-positioned to benefit from rising gas demand. The natural gas stock is one of the biggest players in some of the most prolific shale fields in the country. Those fields include Pennsylvania's mammoth Marcellus and roughly 915,000 acres in the Fayetteville shale of Oklahoma and Arkansas.

While the focus on dry gas has hindered many other natural gas stocks, SWN has benefited due to its drilling efficiencies and low cost structure. Southwestern’s finding and development costs have averaged below $1.50 per millions of cubic feet of natural gas equivalent over the last three years. Only a small handful of natural gas companies — including Range Resources (RRC) — have beaten SWN in that regard.

Those low capex costs have helped the firm see huge returns in the earnings department.

The natural gas stock reported a 34.2% jump in profits and a 25.5% increase revenues vs. the year-ago quarter. That follows SWN's massive 108% profit gain reported in the second quarter. With Southwestern deciding to hike its 2013 capital spending plan to $2.25 billion, analysts estimate that the boost in output should help profits grow even further into 2014.

SWN shares currently trade for a forward P/E of 17.

Cabot Oil & Gas

First mover status is vitally important when it comes to selecting energy stocks — just ask Cabot Oil & Gas (COG). The firm is one of the first and largest players in the Marcellus, where COG has seen the biggest production gains — to the tune of a 61% rise in the third quarter.

However, those gains are set to continue as COG just finished a massive capex spending plan. And like SWN, Cabot's costs remain one of the lowest in the industry — $1.20 per Mcf. The company plans on spending $1.475 billion on future drilling and well completion, which should help move the needle on cash flows and profits at the natural gas company.

Analysts at Goldman Sachs (GS) estimate that COG should produce pre-tax profits of $515 million in 2013 and jump to $800 million next year. That implies a $48 price target for the energy stock — $14 higher than today.

Ultra Petroleum

For those investors looking for natural gas companies with a bit more "oomph,” energy stock Ultra Petroleum (UPL) could be the prime portfolio play. As of the end of 2012, UPL's mix of production included about 96% dry natural gas. While that seems awfully scary given just how much prices for the fuel have swayed, Ultra is a low-cost leader … just like both SWN and COG.

In fact, UPL's finding and development costs are a little more than $1 per McfE, and it only needs natural gas to be at $2.88 to "break even" on its wells. Other natural gas companies — like kingpin Chesapeake (CHK) — need prices to be around $4 to make a profit.

Now, UPL has recently made moves to purchase more oil reserves and boost its overall product mix. The firm paid $650 million for acreage in Utah’s Uinta Basin, which features many of the same operating dynamics and low costs as UPL's current mix of shale assets. Ultimately, those oilier acres should help smooth out earnings for the stock and help produce higher cash flows. But much of Ultra's future production will still be tied to natural gas, making it one of the best natural gas stocks to buy if you want to play rising demand.

As of this writing, Aaron Levitt did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.

Stocks Hitting 52-Week Lows

Best Safest Companies To Invest In 2014

Pretium Resources (NYSE: PVG) shares fell 3.30% to reach a new 52-week low of $2.93. Pretium Resources shares have dropped 77.54% over the past 52 weeks, while the S&P 500 index has gained 28.53% in the same period.

DRDGOLD (NYSE: DRD) shares fell 4.09% to reach a new 52-week low of $4.66. DRDGOLD's trailing-twelve-month profit margin is -1.61%.

InnerWorkings (NASDAQ: INWK) shares dipped 34.83% to touch a new 52-week low of $6.19 after the company reported downbeat Q3 results and issued a weak FY13 outlook.

EZCORP (NASDAQ: EZPW) shares fell 9.74% to touch a new 52-week low of $14.01 on FQ4 results.

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Frontier Communications: It’s All About the Dividend

Frontier Communications (FTR) is a four buck stock with a 8% dividend yield. It’s not supposed to move that much from day to day.

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But today isn’t any other day. Frontier Communications has gained more than 4%, a big gain for just about any stock, let alone one with a beta of just 0.56. And it’s not as if Frontier’s results were all that good. It reported a non-GAAP profit of six cents a share, in line with analyst estimates, on sales of $1.2 billion, also near forecasts, give or take.

So what gives? Nomura’s Adam Ilkowitz and Donald Chen say it’s all about the free cash flow:

Despite the weaker financial results, free cash flow was ahead of our estimate due to timing on cash tax payments. More importantly, management maintained 2013 FCF guidance of $825-925mn, implying a strong 4Q13 outlook. Frontier also reiterated the ability to use free cash flow and cash on hand to meet all obligations in the coming years, supporting our positive outlook on the shares as a sustainable dividend payer with an attractive yield.

We continue to view the dividend as the main attraction for Frontier shares, supported by FCF stability and limited near-term debt maturities. While the copper-based telephone business is largely in decline, there is a significant growth opportunity to increase share in acquired Verizon properties that Frontier management appears to have begun monetizing. Our target price implies 5.7x 2014E EBITDA and an 8% dividend yield, which we find attractive versus CenturyLink (CTL) at 5.5x with a 6.5% yield.

So yes, Frontier Communications can keep paying it’s dividend–at least for the time being–and that’s reason enough for it to jump 4.7% to $4.70 today at 2:51 p.m., while CenturyLink has gained 1.1% to $33.75. Verizon (VZ) has advanced 1.1% to $50.64 and AT&T (T) is up 0.9% at $35.86.

How you can get shares of the Twitter IPO

If there's one burning question investors have about the Twitter IPO it's this: How can I get shares?

Normally, investment bankers' process of selling shares of initial public offerings is a mundane one that few people pay attention to. But when the IPO is of a company that garners great media attention, as Twitter has, many investors who normally would have no interest in stocks, much less risky ones, say they want to get in line.

The process of selling shares of Twitter will follow the same procedure that most IPOs follow. And that means there will be four ways for investors to possibly get a shot at owning shares of the online messaging service, Twitter:

Hot Stocks To Invest In Right Now

•Working with a full-service brokerage firm involved in bringing the IPO to market. The investment banking operations running the Twitter IPO include Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch and Deutsche Bank. Each of these investment banking operations also has brokerage operations, which have clients that are often given access to IPOs. Typically, a vast majority of the shares are sold to large clients of these firms, including pension funds and mutual funds. But there might be some shares made available to individual customers of these firms, typically high-net-worth investors. But don't think you can just run out and open an account with Morgan Stanley and expect your broker to sell you Twitter shares. Shares of popular deals are typically given to long-standing customers.

•Checking with your online brokerage firm. If you have an account with an online brokerage, and you'd like to invest in Twitter at the IPO price, call and ask. TD Ameritrade is allowing investors to express interest in the owning Twitter shares, although, at this time it cannot disclose how many shares it will get. If you're a customer of Fidelity, the brokerage firm was allowing customer! s to express interest in investing in Twitter up through the cutoff on Monday.

•Buying through a mutual fund. Many large technology mutual funds will probably be offered Twitter shares at the IPO price. Since the shares haven't been sold yet, mutual fund companies have not yet disclosed their plans, so it's more or less a guessing game.

•Waiting for the stock to start trading. Investors often think if they don't get in at the so-called offering price, they missed out. The offering price is the price that the very first investors buy shares of an IPO at, currently expected to be $23 to $25 a share. But remember that most of these initial investors are free to sell the next day once regular trading starts, and at that point, anyone can buy. Often, the best course of action is to wait for the stock to trade. There's no guarantee the stock will trade higher, and at least in the case of several recent social media IPOs, the stocks actually dropped.

There are two rules of thumbs when it comes to regular investors and IPOs. First of all, if you don't know how to buy shares of IPOs, you probably shouldn't start now, especially with a deal that's as widely publicized as Twitter. Investing in stocks with long trading histories and stable earnings is tricky enough, and IPOs are even more difficult to buy and sell profitably.

The second rule of thumb is this: If you're a regular investor and you can buy shares in an IPO, you should probably pass. IPOs are doled out on a supply-and-demand basis, and if the large, wealthy investors aren't snapping up the shares, you should ask why not.

Facebook's IPO last year was a classic example. After the company increased the deal size and offering price, large institutions dropped out, and individual investors wound up buying at an over-inflated price and watching half their money vanish until the stock finally recovered in 2013.

Top 10 Biotech Stocks To Own Right Now

Biotech company Peregrine Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: PPHM  ) was up as much as 33% today after announcing that it's starting a phase 3 trial for bavituximab�in non-small-cell lung cancer.

You read that right. Not up 33% because its phase 3 trial was a success. Up 33% because it's starting a phase 3 trial.

Now granted, Peregrine is a small biotech company. The bump in share price only represents about a $70 million increase in Peregrine's value. But I'm not sure the news is worth even that much.

My best guess is that investors take the start of the trial as some sort of endorsement by the Food and Drug Administration. Peregrine even mentions the agency in the headline of the press release, highlighting that the company "has reached agreement with the FDA." If the agency agreed to allow Peregrine to run the trial, it must think the trial will work right?

Top 10 Biotech Stocks To Own Right Now: RXi Pharmaceuticals Corp (RXII.PK)

RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation (RXi), incorporated on September 8, 2011, is a development-stage company. The Company is a biotechnology company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing therapies addressing medical needs using RNA interference (RNAi)-targeted technologies. As of July 12, 2012, RXi was focusing on its internal therapeutic development efforts in fibrosis. RXI-109 is its RNAi product candidate, which is a dermal anti-scarring therapy that targets connective tissue growth factor (CTGF). The Company�� therapeutic platform consists of two main components: RNAi Compounds (rxRNA) and Advanced Delivery Technologies. RNAi compounds include rxRNAori, rxRNAsolo and sd-rxRNA, or self-delivering RNA. On April 26, 2012, it completed the spin-off transaction from Galena Biopharma, Inc. (Galena).

In January 2011, the Company announced research results in collaboration with Generex Biotechnology Corporation, and RXi�� wholly owned subsidia ry Antigen Express, Inc., in developing vaccine formulations for immunotherapy. In January 2011, it announced initial results as part of its collaboration with miRagen Therapeutics, Inc. in creating microRNA mimics, or artificial copies of microRNAs, using the Company�� sd-rxRNA technology. In February 2011, it announced the initiation of RXi�� development program for RXI-109.

Top 10 Biotech Stocks To Own Right Now: Navidea Biopharmaceuticals Inc (NAVB)

Navidea Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (Navidea), formerly Neoprobe Corporation, incorporated in 1983, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of precision diagnostic agents. As of December 31, 2011, the Company�� radiopharmaceutical development programs included Lymphoseek (Lymphoseek, Kit for the Preparation of Technetium Tc99m for Injection), a radiopharmaceutical agent for lymph node mapping; AZD4694, an imaging agent, and RIGScan, a tumor antigen-specific targeting agent. In January 2012, the Company executed an option agreement with Alseres Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Alseres) to license [123I]-E-IACFT Injection, also called Altropane, an Iodine-123 radiolabeled imaging agent, being developed as an aid in the diagnosis of Parkinson�� disease, movement disorders and dementia. In August 2011, the Company sold its gamma detection device line of business (the GDS Business) to Devicor Medical Products, Inc.

Lymphoseek

Navidea�� pipeline includes clinical-stage radiopharmaceutical agents used to identify the presence and status of disease. Lymphoseek (Kit for the Preparation of Technetium Tc99m for Injection) is a lymph node targeting agent intended for use in intraoperative lymphatic mapping (ILM) procedures and lymphoscintigraphy employed in the overall diagnostic assessment of certain solid tumor cancers. The lymph system is a component of the body�� immune system. The key components of the lymph system are lymph nodes-small anatomic structures that contain disease-fighting lymphocytes, filter lymph of bacteria and cancer cells, and signal infection in response to heightened levels of pathogens. In Navidea�� Phase III clinical studies of Lymphoseek, it detected over 99% of positive nodes identified by vital blue dye (VBD). As of December 31, 2011, Navidea, in co-operation with UC, San Diego affiliate (UCSD), completed or initiated five Phase I clinical trials, one multi-center Phase II trial and three multi-center Phase II trials inv! olving Lymphoseek. Two Phase III studies were completed in subjects with breast cancer and melanoma. During the year ended December 31, 2011, data from NEO3-09 were released, which indicated that all primary and secondary endpoints for the study were met. As of December 31, 2011, third Phase III clinical trial for Lymphoseek in subjects with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (NEO3-06) was in progress.

AZD4694

AZD4694 is a Fluorine-18 labeled precision radiopharmaceutical candidate for use in the imaging and evaluation of patients with signs or symptoms of cognitive impairment such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). It binds to beta-amyloid deposits in the brain that can then be imaged in positron emission tomography (PET) scans. Amyloid plaque pathology is a required feature of AD and the presence of amyloid pathology is a supportive feature for diagnosis of probable AD. Patients who are negative for amyloid pathology do not have AD. AZD4694 has been studied in several clinical trials. Clinical studies through Phase IIa have included more than 80 patients to date, both suspected AD patients and healthy volunteers. No significant adverse events have been observed. Results suggest that AZD4694 has the ability to image patients quickly and safely with high sensitivity.

RadioImmunoGuided Surgery

As of December 31, 2011, RIGScan had been studied in a number of clinical trials, including Phase III studies. Navidea has conducted two Phase III studies, NEO2-13 and NEO2-14, of RIGScan in patients with primary and metastatic colorectal cancer, respectively. Both studies were multi-institutional involving cancer treatment institutions in the United States, Israel, and the European Union.

The Company competes with Pharmalucence, Eli Lilly, Bayer Schering, General Electric and GE Healthcare.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sean Williams]

  Diagnostics can also play an important role in early and late-stage breast cancer diagnoses. Navidea Biopharmaceuticals (NYSEMKT: NAVB  ) had Lymphoseek, its external lymph-node imaging and intra-operative lymphatic mapping diagnostic device, approved by the Food and Drug Administration earlier this year to help doctors stage cancer. Discovering whether breast cancer has invaded adjacent lymph nodes has never been easier or safer thanks to Lymphoseek, and it can dramatically aid physicians in determining the best course of action for breast cancer patients.

Top High Tech Stocks To Buy For 2014: Inergetics Inc (NRTI)

Inergetics, Inc., formerly Millennium Biotechnologies Group, Inc., incorporated on November 9, 2000, is a holding company for its sole operating subsidiary, Millennium Biotechnologies, Inc. (Millennium). The Company through its subsidiary Millennium, engages in the research, development, and marketing of specialized nutritional supplements as an adjunct to medical treatments for select medical conditions, as well as for athletes seeking improved recovery and advanced performance. The Company markets products, which are targeted toward immuno-compromised individuals undergoing medical treatment for diseases, such as cancer, as well as wound healing and post-surgical healing and geriatric patients in long-term care facilities among other conditions. In January 2013, the Company acquired Bikini Ready and SlimTrim brands from Whole Products Group.

The Company�� product portfolio include, Resurgex Select, Ready-To Drink Resurgex Essential and Ready-To-Drink Resurgex Essential Plus. Resurgex Select is a whole foods-based, calorically dense, high-protein powdered nutritional formula developed for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy or radiation treatments. Resurgex Essential and Resurgex Essential Plus represent Millennium�� Ready-to-Drink product line and are being sold into the Long-Term Care geriatric markets.

Resurgex Select

Resurgex Select is a whole foods-based nutritional product that is designed to be used throughout the course of cancer treatment (chemotherapy, radiation, etc.), as many times patients lose weight and cannot consume adequate nutrition. This product combines dietary fiber (3 g), low sugar (5 g), and high protein (15 g) with no added antioxidants to be a high-calorie (350 calorie) supplement. It is available in three flavors (Vanilla Bean, Chocolate Fudge, and Fruit Smoothie) and each can be mixed with water, milk, juices, or in soft cold foods, such as yogurt, apple sauce or pudding.

Surgex

Surgex (www.surgexspor! ts.com), is a nutritional support formula that aims to address the concerns of many elite athletes who suffer from symptoms, such as fatigue, lean muscle loss, lactic acid buildup, oxidative stress, and stressed immune systems. This formula is designed to improve recovery parameters in efforts to enhance the performance of professional and collegiate athletes.

Resurgex Essential

The Essential line is a ready-to-drink alternative to Ensure and Boost designed to be marketed into the long-term care channel. Resurgex Essential has 250 whole food calories containing no corn syrup or corn oil. The product also contains fruit and vegetable extracts, and FOS Fiber to provide calories and taste.

The Company competes with Nestle and Abbott Laboratories Inc.

Top 10 Biotech Stocks To Own Right Now: Prima BioMed Ltd (PBMD)

Prima BioMed Ltd is a biotechnology company is engaged in the development and commercialization of medical therapies with a focus on oncology. Its product candidates in development include Cvac, an autologous dendritic cell vaccine for ovarian cancer, monoclonal antibodies for multiple tumour types, and an oral formulation for the human papilloma virus (HPV), vaccine. Its product candidate Cvac is a dendritic cell therapy, for which it is conducting a Phase IIb trial for the treatment of ovarian cancer. Cvac is designed to target the tumour antigen mucin-1, which is expressed at high levels on different tumour types. It also has two preclinical product development programs. In May 2011, Prima BioMed GmbH, a 100 % owned subsidiary of Prima BioMed Ltd, was incorporated in Germany. In May 2011, Prima BioMed Middle East FZLLC, a 100 % owned subsidiary of Prima BioMed Ltd, was incorporated in the United Arab Emirates. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Monica Gerson]

  Prima Biomed (NASDAQ: PBMD) shares dipped 38.59% to touch a new 52-week low of $1.44 after the company reported top-line analysis of CVac Phase 2 trial.

• [By Monica Gerson]

  Prima Biomed (NASDAQ: PBMD) dropped 38.17% to $1.45 after the company reported top-line analysis of CVac Phase 2 trial.

  Tower Group International (NASDAQ: TWGP) plummeted 24.31% to $10.49. Tower Group announced its plans to release its Q2 results during the week of October 7, 2013. FBR Capital downgraded the stock from Outperform to Market Perform.

Top 10 Biotech Stocks To Own Right Now: Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc.(ALNY)

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, engages in discovering, developing, and commercializing novel therapeutics based on RNA interference (RNAi). Its core product programs under clinical or pre-clinical development include ALN-TTR, a Phase I clinical trial program for the treatment of transthyretin-mediated amyloidosis; ALN-APC, a Phase I clinical trial program for the treatment of hemophilia; ALN-PCS for the treatment of severe hypercholesterolemia; ALN-HPN, a pre-clinical development for the treatment of refractory anemia; and ALN-TMP, a pre-clinical development for the treatment of hemoglobinopathies, including beta-thalassemia and sickle cell anemia. The company?s partner-based programs comprise ALN-RSV01, a Phase II clinical trial program for the treatment of respiratory syncytial virus infection; ALN-VSP, a Phase I clinical trial completed program for the treatment of liver cancers; and ALN-HTT, a pre-clinical development for the treatment of Huntington?s disease. It has strategic alliances with Novartis Pharma AG; F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd; Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited; Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Medtronic Inc.; Kyowa Hakko Kirin Co., Ltd.; and Cubist Pharmaceuticals, Inc. The company was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sean Williams]

  RNAi therapeutics expert Alnylam Phrmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ALNY  ) also delivered big gains this week to the tune of 22% after reporting very encouraging mid-stage data for ALN-TTR02, its treatment targeting TTR-mediated amyloidosis. Its experimental drug ALN-TTR02 delivered a 93% reduction in TTR rates in patients, which is perfectly consistent with its early stage results that demonstrated a reduction in TTR rates of 94%. Peak sales estimates, should the drug be approved, range from $800 million to up to $2 billion, but I'd caution investors keep a level head on their shoulders in the meantime.

• [By Sean Williams]

  What: Shares of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ALNY  ) , a biopharmaceutical company developing treatments based on RNA interference, vaulted 19% higher after the company announced positive top-line data for ALN-TTRsc.

Top 10 Biotech Stocks To Own Right Now: Prima BioMed Ltd (PRR)

Prima BioMed Ltd is a biotechnology company is engaged in the development and commercialization of medical therapies with a focus on oncology. Its product candidates in development include Cvac, an autologous dendritic cell vaccine for ovarian cancer, monoclonal antibodies for multiple tumour types, and an oral formulation for the human papilloma virus (HPV), vaccine. Its product candidate Cvac is a dendritic cell therapy, for which it is conducting a Phase IIb trial for the treatment of ovarian cancer. Cvac is designed to target the tumour antigen mucin-1, which is expressed at high levels on different tumour types. It also has two preclinical product development programs. In May 2011, Prima BioMed GmbH, a 100 % owned subsidiary of Prima BioMed Ltd, was incorporated in Germany. In May 2011, Prima BioMed Middle East FZLLC, a 100 % owned subsidiary of Prima BioMed Ltd, was incorporated in the United Arab Emirates.

Top 10 Biotech Stocks To Own Right Now: CEL-SCI Corp (CVM)

CEL-SCI Corporation (CEL-SCI), incorporated on March 22, 1983, is engaged in the business of Multikine cancer therapy; New cold fill manufacturing service to the pharmaceutical industry, and ligand epitope antigen presentation System (LEAPS) technology, with two products, hemagglutinin type 1 and neuraminidase type 1 (H1N1) swine flu treatment for H1N1 hospitalized patients and CEL-2000, a rheumatoid arthritis treatment vaccine.

Multikine

CEL-SCI's Multikine, is being developed for the treatment of cancer. It is a cancer immunotherapy drugs called Combination Immunotherapy because it combines active and passive immunity in one product. It is the only cancer immunotherapy that both kills cancer cells and activates the general immune system to destroy the cancer. Multikine target the tumor micro-metastases for treatment failure. Multikine is also applicable in many other solid tumors.

New Manufacturing Facility

CEL-SCI's facility manufactures Multikine for CEL-SCI's Phase III clinical trial. CEL-SCI offers the use of the facility as a service to pharmaceutical companies and others, particularly those that need to fill and finish their drugs in a cold environment. Fill and finish is the process of filling injectable drugs in a sterile manner.

LEAPS

CEL-SCI's patented T-cell Modulation Process uses heteroconjugates to direct the body to choose a specific immune response. The heteroconjugate technology, referred to as LEAPS, is intended to stimulate the human immune system to fight bacterial, viral and parasitic infections, as well as autoimmune, allergies, transplantation rejection and cancer. Administered like vaccines, LEAPS combines T-cell binding ligands with small, disease associated and peptide antigens.

Using the LEAPS technology, CEL-SCI has created a peptide treatment for H1N1 (swine flu) hospitalized patients. This LEAPS flu treatment is designed to focus on the conserved, non-changing epitopes of the di! fferent strains of Type A Influenza viruses, including swine, avian or bird, and Spanish Influenza. CEL-SCI's LEAPS flu treatment contains epitopes.

Top 10 Biotech Stocks To Own Right Now: Organovo Holdings Inc (ONVO.PK)

Organovo Holdings, Inc. (Organovo), formerly Real Estate Restoration & Rental, Inc., incorporated in 2007, is a development-stage company. The Company has developed and is commercializing a platform technology for the generation of three-dimensional (3D) human tissues that can be employed in drug discovery and development, biological research, and as therapeutic implants for the treatment of damaged or degenerating tissues and organs. On December 28, 2011, Real Estate Restoration and Rental, Inc.�� (RERR) entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger, pursuant to which RERR merged with its, wholly owned subsidiary, Organovo (Merger Sub). On February 8, 2012, the Company merged with and into Organovo Acquisition Corp. (Acquisition Corp.), a wholly owned subsidiary of Organovo, with the Company surviving the merger as a wholly owned subsidiary of Organovo Holdings (the Merger). As a result of the Merger, Organovo acquired the business of Organovo, Inc.

The C ompany has collaborative research agreements with Pfizer, Inc. (Pfizer) and United Therapeutic Corporation (Unither). As of March 31, 2012, it has five federal grants, including Small Business Innovation Research grants and developed the NovoGen MMX Bioprinter (its first-generation 3D bioprinter). The Company is engaged in the development of specific 3D human tissues to aid Pfizer in discovery of therapies in two areas of interest. In addition, in October 2011, it entered into a research agreement with Unither to establish and conduct a research program to discover treatments for pulmonary hypertension using its NovoGen MMX Bioprinter technology. Additionally, under the research agreement with Unither, the Company granted Unither an option to acquire from the Company a worldwide, royalty-bearing license in certain intellectual property created under the research agreement solely for use in the treatment or prevention of pulmonary hypertension and all other lung diseases.

The Company�� NovoGen MMX Bioprinter is an aut! om! ated device that enables the fabrication of three-dimensional (3D) living tissues comprised of mammalian cells. A custom graphic user interface (GUI) facilitates the 3D design and execution of scripts that direct precision movement of the dispensing heads to deposit cellular building blocks (bio-ink) or supporting hydrogel. The Company is using a third party manufacturer, Invetech Pty., of Melbourne, Australia, to manufacture its NovoGen MMX Bioprinter. Its bioprinting technology and surrounding intellectual property and commercial rights serve as a platform for product generation across multiple markets that employ cell- and tissue-based products and services.

The Company competes with Organogenesis, Advanced BioHealing, Tengion, Genzyme, HumaCyte and Cytograft Tissue Engineering.

Top 10 Biotech Stocks To Own Right Now: ArQule Inc.(ARQL)

ArQule, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company, engages in the research and development of cancer therapeutics directed toward molecular targets and biological processes. Its lead product ARQ 197 is non-adenosine triphosphate competitive inhibitor of the c-Met receptor tyrosine kinase, which is being evaluated as monotherapy and in combination therapy in a Phase II clinical development program that includes trials in non-small cell lung cancer, c-Met-associated soft tissue sarcomas, pancreatic adenocarcinoma, hepatocellular carcinoma, germ cell tumors, and colorectal cancer. The company is also developing ARQ 621, a Phase I program focused on inhibition of the Eg5 kinesin spindle protein. Its clinical stage products include ARQ 501, ARQ 761, and ARQ 171, which are designed to kill cancer cells selectively while sparing normal cells through the direct activation of DNA damage response/checkpoint pathways. In addition, the company involves in pre-clinical development o f B-RAF and AKIP Kinase inhibitors. The company has collaborations with Kyowa Hakko Kirin Co., Ltd. and Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd. ArQule, Inc. was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Woburn, Massachusetts.

Top 10 Biotech Stocks To Own Right Now: Cell Therapeutics Inc (CTIC)

Cell Therapeutics, Inc. (CTI), incorporated in 1991, develops, acquires and commercializes treatments for cancer. The Company�� research, development, acquisition and in-licensing activities concentrate on identifying and developing new ways to treat cancer. As of December 31, 2011, CTI focused its efforts on Pixuvri (pixantrone dimaleate) (Pixuvri), OPAXIO (paclitaxel poliglumex) (OPAXIO), tosedostat, brostallicin and bisplatinates. As of December 31, 2011, it developed Pixuvri, an anthracycline derivative for the treatment of hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. Another late-stage drug candidate of the Company, OPAXIO, is being studied as a potential maintenance therapy for women with advanced stage ovarian cancer, who achieve a complete remission following first-line therapy with paclitaxel and carboplatin. As of December 31, 2011, it also developed tosedostat in collaboration with Chroma Therapeutics, Ltd. (Chroma). On May 31, 2012, CTI completed its acquisition gaining worldwide rights to S*BIO Pte Ltd.'s (S*BIO) pacritinib.

Pixuvri

As of December 31, 2011, the Company developed Pixuvri, an aza-anthracenedione derivative, for the treatment of non-Hodgkin�� lymphoma (NHL), and various other hematologic malignancies, and solid tumors. Pixuvri was studied in the Company�� EXTEND, or PIX301, clinical trial, which was a phase III single-agent trial of Pixuvri for patients with relapsed, refractory aggressive NHL who received two or more prior therapies and who were sensitive to treatment with anthracyclines. On September 28, 2011, CTI announced that a second independent radiology assessment of response and progression endpoint data from its PIX301 clinical trial of Pixuvri was achieved with statistical significance. The results of the EXTEND trial met its primary endpoint and showed that patients randomized to treatment with Pixuvri achieved a significantly higher rate of confirmed and unconfirmed complete response compared to patients treated with standard chem! otherapy had a significantly increased overall response rate and experienced a statistically significant improvement in median progression free survival. Pixuvri had predictable and manageable toxicities when administered at the proposed dose and schedule in the EXTEND clinical trial in heavily pre-treated patients. In March 2011, the Company initiated the PIX-R trial to study Pixuvri in combination with rituximab in patients with relapsed/refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Pixuvri has also been studied in patients with HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer who have tumor progression after at least two, but not more than three, prior chemotherapy regimens. In the second quarter of 2010, the NCCTG opened this phase II study for enrollment. The study is closed to accrual and results are expected to be reported by the NCCTG later in 2012.

OPAXIO

OPAXIO is the Company�� biologically-enhanced chemotherapeutic agent that links paclitaxel to a biodegradable polyglutamate polymer, resulting in a new chemical entity. As of December 31, 2011, the Company focused its development of OPAXIO on ovarian, brain, esophageal, head and neck cancer. OPAXIO was designed to improve the delivery of paclitaxel to tumor tissue while protecting normal tissue from toxic side effects. In November 2010, results were presented by the Brown University Oncology Group from a phase II trial of OPAXIO combined with temozolomide (TMZ), and radiotherapy in patients with newly-diagnosed, high-grade gliomas, a type of brain cancer. The trial demonstrated a high rate of complete and partial responses and a high rate of six month progression free survival (PFS). Based on these results, the Brown University Oncology Group has initiated a randomized, multicenter, phase II study of OPAXIO and standard radiotherapy versus TMZ and radiotherapy for newly diagnosed patients with glioblastoma with an active gene termed MGMT that reduces responsiveness to TMZ. A phase I/II study of OPAXIO combined with radi! otherapy ! and cisplatin was initiated by SUNY Upstate Medical University, in patients with locally advanced head and neck cancer.

Tosedostat

In March 2011, the Company entered into a co-development and license agreement with Chroma Therapeutics, Ltd. (Chroma), providing the Company with marketing and co-development rights to Chroma�� drug candidate, tosedostat, in North, Central and South America. Tosedostat is an oral, aminopeptidase inhibitor that has demonstrated anti-tumor responses in blood related cancers and solid tumors in phase I-II clinical trials. Interim results from the phase II OPAL study of tosedostat in elderly patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) showed that once-daily, oral doses of tosedostat had predictable and manageable toxicities and results demonstrated response rates, including a high-response rate among patients who received prior hypomethylating agents, which are used to treat myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), a precursor of AML.

Brostallicin

As of December 31, 2011, the Company developed brostallicin through its wholly owned subsidiary, Systems Medicine LLC, which holds rights to use, develop, import and export brostallicin. Brostallicin is a synthetic deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) minor groove binding agent that has demonstrated anti-tumor activity and a favorable safety profile in clinical trials, in which more than 230 patients have been treated as of December 31, 2011. The Company uses a genomic-based platform to guide the development of brostallicin. A phase II study of brostallicin in relapsed, refractory soft tissue sarcoma met its predefined activity and safety hurdles and resulted in a first-line phase II clinical trial study that was conducted by the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC).

The Company competes with Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Sanofi-Aventis, Pfizer, Roche Group, Genentech, Inc., Astellas Pharma, Eli Lilly and Company, Celgene, Telik, I! nc., TEVA! Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. and PharmaMar.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sean Williams]

  Cell Therapeutics (NASDAQ: CTIC  )
  Certainly no discussion of companies with large accumulated deficits would be complete without discussing a biotechnology company. It's perfectly understandable to see a biotech, especially a clinical-stage one, run with an accumulated deficit, as it takes time and money to build up a drug pipeline. However, after multiple complete response letters (the equivalent of a rejection) by the Food and Drug Administration and years without an approved drug, Cell Therapeutics racked up an astounding $1.83 billion in accumulated deficits through the end of fiscal 2012. By comparison, that's nearly 56 times larger than its shareholder equity.�

• [By John Udovich]

  Large and small cap cancer stocks Gilead Sciences, Inc (NASDAQ: GILD), Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ: CELG), Veracyte (NASDAQ: VCYT), Genomic Health, Inc (NASDAQ: GHDX), Cell Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: CTIC) and MetaStat Inc (OTCMKTS: MTST) have all been producing a steady stream of news lately for biotech investors looking for a way to cash in on the growth in development of�cancer treatments. Just consider the following news: