Saturday, November 30, 2013

Jim Cramer's 'Mad Money' Recap: Retail Earnings Ahead

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NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- With the markets completing their sixth week in rally mode, Jim Cramer told his "Mad Money" TV show viewers Friday that next week's earnings will set the tone for the rest of the year as many retailers will provide their last update before the holiday shopping season begins.

But before retail kicks into high gear, Cramer said he'll be watching the Salesforce.com (CRM) DreamForce conference for all the latest from the tech sector and all the best the cloud has to offer.

Tuesday brings earnings from Best Buy (BBY), Home Depot (HD) and Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS). Cramer said that he still likes both Best Buy and Home Depot but that Dick's has been a bit of a downer recently. Next on Wednesday, it's JCPenney (JCP), Staples (SPLS) and Williams-Sonoma (WSM) in the spotlight, along with John Deere (DE) and ADT (ADT). Cramer said that both Deere and ADT have been disappointing, and he's still not a fan of JCPenney. He was more upbeat on Staples however, and said Williams-Sonoma will likely fall on its earnings, only to bounce right back as it often does. Then on Thursday, it's more retailers with Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF), Dollar Tree (DLTR), GameStop (GME) and Target (TGT). Cramer was bullish on Dollar Tree and GameStop, but did not expect any good news from either Abercrombie or Target. Finally on Friday, Cramer said he'll be watching Foot Locker (FL), which will tell him whether to buy Nike (NKE), and Ann Taylor (ANN), a stock that reminds him that women's apparel is too hard a segment to judge. Last but not least is Petsmart (PETM), a stock that's up only 8% on the year, but should be picking up steam. Executive Decision: George John In the "Executive Decision" segment, Cramer spoke with George John, CEO of Rocket Fuel (FUEL), the programmatic advertising platform that allows companies to place ads in real time. Rocket Fuel had a stellar IPO this past September, rising 93% on its first day of trading. But shares fell to a low of $37 a share in early November before rebounding sharply on its 132% increase in revenues this quarter.

John said that programmatic ad buying allows for a better experience for everyone. He said advertisers get to pick the exact time and placements for all their ads, while users get more relevant ads and developers can more easily monetize their apps. John also noted that brand advertising also works well with programmatic buying, as companies can drive results to the goals they're trying to achieve.

When asked about the competition from behemoth Google (GOOG), John said that Rocket Fuel has been competing against Google since day one and has seen incredible growth even with Google continuing to dominate the market for online ads. John noted that mobile, social and video now account for a quarter of Rocket Fuel's revenues.

Cramer said that Rocket Fuel's revenue growth has been astounding, and the company's conference call and investor materials are very informative for any investor who wants to learn why programmatic ad buying online is the future. Executive Decision: Jack Hartung

For his second "Executive Decision" segment, Cramer spoke with Jack Hartung, CFO of Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG), a stock that's up 84% for the year and 45% since Cramer last checked in with Hartung in July. Hartung started off by commenting on food prices. He said that Chipotle has always had high food costs given the ingredients they use, but has also always been slow to raise its prices. With prices now at the high end of the range, Hartung said the company will likely consider a price increase in the middle of next year, but will first wait to see how the economy and consumer confidence are doing. Hartung also reiterated what makes Chipotle different from other restaurant chains that have been struggling. He said that customers increasingly want to know where their food comes from, which is why Chipotle takes the time to source the best ingredients and teach the staff how to cook it properly. Chipotle never competes on price, Hartung said, only on quality, where it is second to none. Chipotle is also about great service, which is why Hartung noted that the chain keeps its best people online during the lunch and dinner rush and would never interrupt the throughput by trying to train new employees during those hectic times. He said that complexity, whether via staffing or a bloated menu, only slows things down and creates bad economics.

Finally, Hartung provided an update on European sales, which are following the same sales trends as the U.S. in its early days, and also on Shophouse, the company's Asian kitchen concept, which has five locations and is doing well.

Cramer said that while he's not sure where Chipotle will be trading in the short term, over the next few years, the stock's direction is crystal clear. Lightning Round

In the Lightning Round, Cramer was bullish on Radian Group (RDN), Genworth Financial (GNW), Quiksilver (ZQK), G-III Apparel Group (GIII), Sony (SNE), Dominion Resources (D) and Foundation Medicine (FMI).

Cramer was bearish on Maxim Integrated Products (MXIM), National Bank of Greece (NBG) and NV Energy (NVE). Homework In his "Homework" segment, Cramer followed up on a handful of stocks that stumped him during earlier shows. He said that Abaxis (ABAX) is far from a great stock and he'd stay away from that one, but he was more bullish on Pitney Bowes (PBI), after the company announced a new partnership with eBay (EBAY). Cramer said he wasn't a fan of BJ's Restaurants (BJRI), as the company has hit several speed bumps in its regional-to-national rollout, but he did like NCR (NCR), the old-school tech giant that's moving away from hardware, like ATM machines, and into more lucrative software products. Cramer also responded to questions sent via Twitter to @JimCramer. He said to steer clear of Alcoa (AA), as there's still a huge glut of aluminum in the world, but he remained a big fan of CVS Caremark (CVS), which continues to have great earnings. No Huddle Offense In his "No Huddle Offense" segment, Cramer opined on the news that Facebook (FB) offered $3 billion to buy the social photo app SnapChat. Would Facebook have been dramatically overpaying for another fad like OMGpop? Cramer said that depends. In the race to win the mobile, social and cloud space, Cramer said it's worth paying $3 billion just to keep a service like SnapChat out of the hands of the other guy. Just imagine if Apple (AAPL) had made a preemptive bid for Twitter (TWTR), Cramer pondered. Yes, the thought of 20-something founders spurning a $3 billion offer reminds us all of the dot-com bubble, but in today's Internet race, companies can't afford to ignore the next hot thing, which SnapChat represents.

To watch replays of Cramer's video segments, visit the Mad Money page on CNBC.

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-- Written by Scott Rutt in Washington, D.C.

To email Scott about this article, click here: Scott Rutt Follow Scott on Twitter @ScottRutt or get updates on Facebook, ScottRuttDC

At the time of publication, Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS was long AAPL and FB. Jim Cramer, host of the CNBC television program "Mad Money," is a Markets Commentator for TheStreet.com, Inc., and CNBC, and a director and co-founder of TheStreet.com. All opinions expressed by Mr. Cramer on "Mad Money" are his own and do not reflect the opinions of TheStreet.com or its affiliates, or CNBC, NBC Universal or their parent company or affiliates. Mr. Cramer's opinions are based upon information he considers to be reliable, but neither TheStreet.com, nor CNBC, nor either of their affiliates and/or subsidiaries warrant its completeness or accuracy, and it should not be relied upon as such. Mr. Cramer's statements are based on his opinions at the time statements are made, and are subject to change without notice. No part of Mr. Cramer's compensation from CNBC or TheStreet.com is related to the specific opinions expressed by him on "Mad Money." None of the information contained in "Mad Money" constitutes a recommendation by Mr. Cramer, TheStreet.com or CNBC that any particular security, portfolio of securities, transaction, or investment strategy is suitable for any specific person. You must make your own independent decisions regarding any security, portfolio of securities, transaction, or investment strategy mentioned on the program. Mr. Cramer's past results are not necessarily indicative of future performance. Neither Mr. Cramer, nor TheStreet.com, nor CNBC guarantees any specific outcome or profit, and you should be aware of the real risk of loss in following any strategy or investments discussed on the program. The strategy or investments discussed may fluctuate in price or value and you may get back less than you invested. Before acting on any information contained in the program, you should consider whether it is suitable for your particular circumstances and strongly consider seeking advice from your own financial or investment adviser. Some of the stocks mentioned by Mr. Cramer on "Mad Money" are held in Mr. Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio. When that is the case, appropriate disclosure is made on the program and in the "Mad Money" recap available on TheStreet.com. The Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio contains all of Mr. Cramer's personal investments in publicly-traded equity securities only, and does not include any mutual fund holdings or other institutionally managed assets, private equity investments, or his holdings in TheStreet.com, Inc. Since March 2005, the Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio has been held by a Trust, the realized profits from which have been pledged to charity. Mr. Cramer retains full investment discretion with respect to all securities contained in the Trust. Mr. Cramer is subject to certain trading restrictions, and must hold all securities in the Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio for at least one month, and is not permitted to buy or sell any security he has spoken about on television or on his radio program for five days following the broadcast.

Chris Davis' Top Five Positions

Over the past quarter Chris Davis of Davis Selected Advisers reported a total portfolio of 181 stocks valued at $38.5 billion. The guru purchased 17 new stocks over the quarter.

The Davis Funds select their stocks based on the types of businesses that they would want to own. Their criterion includes companies with proven management and durable, financially strong business models as well as companies with sustainable competitive advantages.

The following five companies represent Chris Davis' top five stock positions.

American Express (AXP)

Davis' largest position is in American Express where he holds on to a total of 37,113,556 shares of the company's stock. His holdings make up for 7.3% of his total holdings and 3.44% of the company's shares outstanding.

During the past quarter Davis made a slight reduction of his holdings. The guru reduced his position -1.76% by selling 666,306 shares. He sold these shares in the quarterly price range of $71.91 to $78.33, with an estimated average quarterly price of $75.23. Since then the price per share has increased approximately 8.8%.

Davis' historical holding history:

[ Enlarge Image ]

American Express together with its subsidiaries is a global service company that provides customers with access to products, insights and experiences that enrich lives and build business success. Its principal products and services are charge and credit payment card products.

American Express's historical revenue and net income:

Friday, November 29, 2013

5 Things to Watch on Wall Street This Week

KFC in Beijing China 23 Sep 2006Alamy 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.

Best Penny Companies To Buy Right Now

Yelp, Inc. (YELP) will issue its financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2013 after the market close on Tuesday, October 29, 2013.� Yelp will host a conference call to discuss the results at 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time (4:30 p.m. Eastern Time) on the same day.

Wall Street anticipates that internet services provider will lose a penny for the quarter. iStock expects YELP to hit Wall Street's consensus number. The iEstimate is a loss of a penny, too.

Yelp, Inc. operates Yelp.com, an online urban city guide that helps people find places to eat, shop, drink, relax, and play based on the informed opinions of a community of locals in the know.

Since Yelp business is online and advertising dependent, investors can get an idea of what to expect by looking at traffic and search volume trends. According to Alexa.com, Yelp's page views were up 9.5% versus the previous three months. Quantcast.com shows the online service's number of unique visitors rising in July and August, but flattening out in September.

Best Penny Companies To Buy Right Now: Innovaro Inc(INV)

Innovaro, Inc. provides a comprehensive portfolio of end-to-end innovation solutions primarily in the United States and the United Kingdom. It helps clients develop compelling strategies to drive and catalyze growth, source externally developed technologies, create added value from their intellectual property, and gain foresight into marketplace and technology developments that affect their business. The company operates in two segments, Strategic Services and Technology Services. The Strategic Services segment offers strategic innovation consulting; business model and product development consulting; identify and develop new segments and markets; and create and act on game-changing strategies. The Technology Services segment provides futures scenario development and planning; custom and syndicated research; online information services; IP consulting; IP and market landscape analysis; technology search; In- and out-licensing; online marketplaces; and partner search and prof iling services. Its clients include consumer goods, consumer packaged goods, retail, medical, telecommunications, chemicals, media, financial services, energy, utilities, and government agencies. The company was formerly known as UTEK Corporation and changed its name to Innovaro, Inc. in July 2010. Innovaro, Inc. is based in Tampa, Florida.

Best Penny Companies To Buy Right Now: Amsurg Corp.(AMSG)

AmSurg Corp., through its wholly owned subsidiaries, engages in the development, acquisition, and operation of ambulatory surgery centers in partnership with physicians in the United States. The company?s surgery centers perform colonoscopy and other endoscopy procedures in the area of gastroenterology; cataracts and retinal laser surgery in the area of ophthalmology; and knee and shoulder arthroscopy and carpal tunnel repair in the area of orthopedics. As of December 31, 2010, it owned interest in 204 surgery centers in 33 states and the District of Columbia, including 140 centers performed gastrointestinal endoscopy procedures, 37 centers performed ophthalmology surgery procedures, 19 centers were multiple specialties, and 8 centers performed orthopaedic procedures. AmSurg Corp. markets its surgery centers directly to patients; and referring physicians and third-party payors, such as health maintenance organizations, preferred provider organizations, other managed care o rganizations, and employers. The company was founded in 1992 and is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Tom Lydon]

    Top holdings based on the index include Acadia Healthcare Companies (ACHC), Amsurg Corporation (AMSG), Brookdale Senior Living (BKD), Clarcor (CLC) and Community Health Systems (CYH).

  • [By Seth Jayson]

    AmSurg (Nasdaq: AMSG  ) is expected to report Q1 earnings on April 24. Here's what Wall Street wants to see:

    The 10-second takeaway
    Comparing the upcoming quarter to the prior-year quarter, average analyst estimates predict AmSurg's revenues will grow 13.6% and EPS will grow 4.0%.

Top 10 Safest Companies To Buy For 2014: Coffee Holding Co. Inc.(JVA)

Coffee Holding Co., Inc. engages in manufacturing, roasting, packaging, marketing, and distributing roasted and blended coffees in the United States and Canada. The company offers three categories of products: wholesale green coffee, private label coffee, and branded coffee. The wholesale green coffee product category consists of unroasted raw beans imported from worldwide that are sold to roasters and coffee shop operators in approximately 90 varieties. The private label coffee product category includes coffee roasted, blended, packaged, and sold under the specifications and names of others. As of October 31, 2010, the company supplied private label coffee under approximately 34 different labels to wholesalers and retailers in cans, brick packages, and instants in various sizes. The branded coffee product category comprises coffee roasted and blended to the company's own specifications and offered under its seven brand names in various segments of the market. The company also offers other products, including trial-sized mini-brick coffee packages; specialty instant coffees; instant cappuccinos and hot chocolates; and tea line products. Its coffee brands include Cafe Caribe, S&W, Cafe Supremo, Don Manuel, Fifth Avenue, Via Roma, IL CLASSICO, and Entenmann. Coffee Holding Co., Inc. markets its private label and wholesale coffee through trade shows, industry publications, face-to-face contacts, internal sales force, and non-exclusive independent food and beverage sales brokers, as well as through its Web site, coffeeholding.com. The company was founded in 1971 and is headquartered in Staten Island, New York.

Best Penny Companies To Buy Right Now: LJ International Inc.(JADE)

LJ International Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, manufacture, marketing, and sale of precious and color gemstones, and diamond jewelry. The company offers colored jewelry; and pieces set in yellow gold, white gold, or sterling silver, as well as adorned with colored stones, diamonds, pearls, and precious stones. Its product line includes earrings, necklaces, pendants, rings, and bracelets. The company distributes its products to fine jewelers, national jewelry chains, department stores, TV shopping channels, discount chain stores, and electronic and specialty retailers in North America and Western Europe. It also involves in the retail of jewelry products under the ENZO brand. As of December 31, 2010, the company operated 133 ENZO stores in the People's Republic of China, Hong Kong, and Macau. In addition, it owns commercial and residential properties in Hong Kong, which are held primarily for lease. The company was founded in 1987 and is based in Hung Hom, Hong Kong.

Best Penny Companies To Buy Right Now: Gold Reserve Inc(GRZ)

Gold Reserve Inc., an exploration stage company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of mining projects. The company was founded in 1956 and is based in Spokane, Washington.

Thursday, November 28, 2013

CVS Caremark Corporation to Acquire Coram LLC for $2.1B (CVS)

CVS Caremark Corporation (CVS) reported on Wednesday that it has agreed to acquire infusion services and nutrition business Coram LLC for $2.1 billion.

CVS will purchase Coram from Apria Healthcare Group Inc in a deal that will likely close in the first quarter of 2014. CVS said that this acquisition is expected to add $1.4 billion to revenue in the first year and 3 to 5 cents per share in 2015. This purchase is in-line with the company strategy of focusing on core businesses that will drive growth.

Jon Roberts, President of CVS Caremark Pharmacy Services said in a statement: “Bringing together CVS Caremark’s unique range of specialty pharmacy services with Coram’s infusion capabilities will expand our competitive offerings in the specialty arena. Infusion will be a valuable component of our broad specialty pharmacy offering going forward. Our comprehensive services will enable us to streamline care management for patients as well as their physicians, leading to better health outcomes while avoiding unnecessary costs.”

CVS Caremark shares were mostly flat during pre-market trading Wednesday. The stock is up 27% YTD.

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

10 Best Energy Stocks To Buy Right Now

LINN Energy (NASDAQ: LINE  ) had a "wait and see until we finish our Berry Petroleum (NYSE: BRY  ) acquisition" kind of quarter. While overall production jumped a very healthy 69% over last year, it just didn't quite meet what the company expected. Weather was part of the problem, but much of the company's woes came in one place: Texas. Does LINN have a problem with Texas' tea? Let's take a look at these pieces of bad news and see if the problems lie with LINN or the Lone Star State.�

Permian all plugged up
Although the news that takeaway capacity isn't quite up to snuff for many of the producing regions in the U.S., the Permian in particular has been suffering despite the region only producing at half the rate of its peak production back in 1973. LINN, and its operating arm LinnCo (NASDAQ: LNCO  ) , stated that it has reduced the amount of rigs it has working in the region and has focused on the western side of the basin because of stronger infrastructure there.�

10 Best Energy Stocks To Buy Right Now: Solazyme Inc (SZYM)

Solazyme, Inc. (Solazyme), incorporated on March 31, 2003, makes oil. The Company�� technology transforms a range of plant-based sugars into oils. Its renewable products can replace or enhance oils derived from the world�� three existing sources-petroleum, plants and animal fats. The Company is focused on commercializing its products into three target markets: fuels and chemicals, nutrition, and skin and personal care. In 2010, the Company launched its products, the Golden Chlorella line of dietary supplements. In March 2011, the Company launched its Algenist brand for the luxury skin care market through marketing and distribution arrangements with Sephora S.A. (Sephora International), Sephora USA, Inc. (Sephora USA), and QVC, Inc. (QVC).

The Company is engaged in development activities with multiple partners, including Chevron U.S.A. Inc., through its division Chevron Technology Ventures (Chevron), The Dow Chemical Company (Dow), Ecopetrol S.A. (Ecopetrol), Qantas Airways Limited (Qantas) and Conopoco, Inc., doing business as Unilever (Unilever).

In 2010, the Company entered into a 50/50 joint venture with Roquette Freres, S.A. (Roquette). In November 2010, the Company entered into a joint venture and operating agreement for Solazyme Roquette Nutritionals with Roquette. In December 2010, the Company entered into an exclusive distribution relationship with Sephora International, and in January 2011, the Company entered into a distribution relationship with Sephora USA. Under the arrangements, each of Sephora International and Sephora USA will distribute the Algenist product line in their respective territories.

In Fuels and Chemicals market its renewable oils can be refined and sold as drop-in replacements for marine, motor vehicle and jet fuels, as well as replacements for chemicals that are traditionally derived from petroleum or other conventional oils. The Company work with its refining partner Honeywell UOP to produce Soladiesel (renewable diesel), So! ladiesel renewable diesel for United States Naval vessels, and Solajet renewable jet fuel for both military and commercial application testing. In nutrition market the Company has developed microalgae-based food ingredients, including oils and powders that enhance the nutritional profile and functionality of food products while reducing costs for consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies. In Skin and Personal Care market the Company hs developed a portfolio of branded microalgae-based products. Its ingredient is Alguronic Acid, which the Company has formulated into a range of skin care products with anti-aging benefits. The Company is also developing algal oils as replacements for the oils used in skin and personal care products.

The Company competes with BP p.l.c., Royal Dutch Shell plc, and Exxon Mobil Corporation, jatropha, camelina, SALOV North America Corporation, Archer Daniels Midland Company, Cargill, Incorporated, DSM Food Specialties and Danisco A/S

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Alyce Lomax]

    Alternative oils play Solazyme (NASDAQ: SZYM  ) may have just gotten riskier; apparently, many investors think so. Unlike many stocks today, Solazyme's trip to the woodshed is hinged on actual news and, unfortunately, it's one of the market's biggest decliners as of this writing. Today we learned that one of its partnerships will be dissolved within weeks.

10 Best Energy Stocks To Buy Right Now: Magnum Hunter Resources Corp (MHR)

Magnum Hunter Resources Corporation (Magnum Hunter), incorporated in June 1997, is an independent oil and gas company engaged in the exploration for and the exploitation, acquisition, development and production of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids, primarily in the states of West Virginia, Ohio, Texas, Kentucky and North Dakota and in Saskatchewan, Canada. The Company is also engaged in midstream operations, including the gathering of natural gas through its ownership and operation of a gas gathering system in West Virginia and Ohio, named as its Eureka Hunter Pipeline System. The Company�� portfolio includes Marcellus/Utica Shales in West Virginia and Ohio, the Eagle Ford Shale in south Texas, and the Williston Basin/Bakken Shale in North Dakota and Saskatchewan, Canada. As of December 31, 2011, its proved reserves were 44.9 million barrels of oil equivalent and were approximately 48% oil. In August 2012, the Company closed on the acquisition of 1,885 net mineral acres located in Atascosa County, Texas. With this acquisition, the Company has approximately 7,278 gross acres and 5,212 net acres located in Atascosa County, Texas.

On May 3, 2011, it acquired NuLoch Resources Inc. In April 2011, Triad Hunter, its wholly owned subsidiary, acquired certain Marcellus Shale oil and gas properties located in Wetzel County, West Virginia. On April 13, 2011, it acquired NGAS Resources, Inc. In February 2012, Triad Hunter acquired leasehold mineral interests located primarily in Noble County, Ohio.

Eagle Ford Shale Properties

Eagle Ford Shale is located in Gonzales, Lavaca, Atascosa and Fayette Counties, Texas. The Eagle Ford Shale properties are held primarily by its wholly owned subsidiary, Eagle Ford Hunter, Inc. As of February 27, 2012, the Company�� Eagle Ford Shale properties included approximately 54,000 gross (24,000 net) acres primarily targeting the Eagle Ford Shale oil window, principally in Gonzales and Lavaca Counties, Texas. As of December 31! , 2011, proved reserves attributable to the Eagle Ford Shale properties were 5.4 million barrels of oil equivalent, of which 94% were oil and 24% were classified as proved developed producing, and 5.4 million barrels of oil equivalent. As of February 27, 2012, its Eagle Ford Shale properties included 18 gross (10 net) productive wells, of which it operated 14.

Williston Basin Properties

The Williston Basin is spread across North Dakota, Montana and parts of southern Canada. The basin produces oil and natural gas from a range of producing horizons, including the Madison, Bakken, Three Forks/Sanish and Red River formations. As of February 27, 2012, the Company�� Williston Basin properties included approximately 413,003 gross (122,561 net) acres. As of December 31, 2011, proved reserves attributable to the Williston Basin properties were 8.9 million barrels of oil equivalent, of which 94% were oil and 42% were classified as proved developed producing, and 8.8 million barrels of oil equivalent. As of February 27, 2012, the Williston Basin properties included approximately 288 gross (98.9 net) productive wells.

The Williston Hunter United States property acreage is located in Divide and Burke Counties, North Dakota, with its primary production from the Bakken Shale and Three Forks/Sanish formations. As of February 27, 2012, its Williston Hunter United States properties included approximately 36,355 net acres in the Williston Basin in North Dakota. As of February 27, 2012, the Williston Hunter United States properties included approximately 105 gross (9.5 net) productive wells. The Company�� Williston Hunter Canada property is located primarily in Enchant, near Vauxhall, Alberta, Canada, at Balsam near Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada and at Tableland, near Estevan, Saskatchewan, Canada. As of February 27 2012, the Williston Hunter Canada properties included approximately 107,270 gross acres (79,693 net acres). At December 31, 2011, the Williston Hunter Canada prope! rties inc! luded approximately 65 gross productive wells. As of December 31, 2011, Williston Hunter Canada had 41,797 gross (32,944 net) acres of land that is prospective for Bakken and Three Forks/Sanish oil in the Tableland field. The Enchant property consists of 10,720 acres. As of December 31, 2011, 48 wells (44.1 net) were producing on this acreage. As of December 31, 2011, the Company owned approximately 43% average interest in 15 fields located in the Williston Basin in North Dakota consisting of 151 wells, and approximately 15,000 gross (6,450 net) acres.

Appalachian Basin Properties

The properties acquired in the NGAS acquisition are held by its wholly owned subsidiary, Magnum Hunter Production, Inc. As of February 27, 2012, its Appalachian Basin properties included a total of approximately 484,412 gross (412,323 net) acres, located primarily in the Marcellus Shale, Utica Shale and southern Appalachian Basin. At December 31, 2011, proved reserves attributable to its Appalachian Basin properties were 29.9 million barrels of oil equivalent, of which 27% were oil and 59% were classified as proved developed producing, and 30.2 million barrels of oil equivalent. As of February 27, 2012, the Appalachian Basin properties included approximately 3,112 gross (2,257 net) productive wells, of which we operated approximately 88%.

As of February 27, 2012, it had approximately 58,426 net acres in the Marcellus Shale area of West Virginia and Ohio. The Company�� Marcellus Shale property is located principally in Tyler, Pleasants, Doddridge, Wetzel and Lewis Counties, West Virginia and in Washington, Monroe and Noble Counties, Ohio. As of February 27, 2012, the Company operated 33 vertical Marcellus Shale wells and 16 horizontal Marcellus Shale wells. As of February 27, 2012, approximately 63% of its leases in the Marcellus Shale area were held by production.

Other Properties

The Company�� East Chalkley field is located in Cameron Parish, Louisiana.! The fiel! d consists of approximately 714 gross acres (443 net acres). This developmental project is an exploitation of bypassed oil reserves remaining in a natural gas field located at depths between 9,300 and 9,400 feet. As of February 27, 2012, the Company operated the East Chalkley field and owned an approximately 62% working interest and an approximately 42.7% net revenue interest in the field. Other properties of the Company are located in Nacogdoches, Colorado, Lavaca, Bee, Fayette and Wharton Counties, Texas and Desoto Parish, Louisiana. As of February 27, 2012, these properties consisted of an aggregate of approximately 7,050 gross (1,188 net) acres.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Rick Munarriz]

    5. Hunting for a new auditor
    Shares of Magnum Hunter Resources (NYSE: MHR  ) fell sharply after its auditor disclosed material weakness in internal controls.

5 Best Warren Buffett Stocks To Buy For 2014: EXCO Resources NL(XCO)

EXCO Resources, Inc., an independent oil and natural gas company, engages in the exploration, exploitation, development, and production of onshore North American oil and natural gas properties with a focus on shale resource plays. The company holds interests in various projects located in East Texas, North Louisiana, Appalachia, and the Permian Basin in west Texas. As of December 31, 2010, it had proved reserves of approximately 1.5 trillion cubic feet equivalent; and operated 7,276 wells. The company was founded in 1955 and is based in Dallas, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Arjun Sreekumar]

    In response, virtually every major U.S. energy producer curtailed gas drilling in favor of producing oil and, to a lesser degree, natural gas liquids. For instance, Chesapeake Energy (NYSE: CHK  ) , the nation's second-largest natural gas producer, reduced its gas-directed rig count from over 100 rigs in early 2010 to around 10 by the third quarter of last year. Similarly, EXCO Resources (NYSE: XCO  ) slashed its gas rig count from 23 as of year-end 2011 to 7 as of the end of October last year.

  • [By Rich Smith]

    Chesapeake Energy (NYSE: CHK  ) continued its efforts to get its balance sheet in order this week. On Wednesday, the company announced it has signed agreements to sell to an EXCO Resources (NYSE: XCO  ) subsidiary:

  • [By Tyler Crowe]

    Using this simple thesis not only makes the whole idea of LNG exports rather simple, it doesn't need to drastically change the way you think about the energy space already. For those who are a little more tolerant of risk, natural gas producers should look a bit more attractive. Low-cost producers like Ultra Petroleum (NYSE: UPL  ) and Exco Resources (NYSE: XCO  ) beat analyst expectations this past quarter because the small uptick in gas prices gave them enough room to profit. If we were to see an uptick in demand thanks to natural gas, then these companies could stand to profit greatly.�

  • [By Arjun Sreekumar]

    In Pennsylvania, for instance, several hundred wells have been drilled but not completed because the takeaway capacity to get their production to market simply isn't there. Several operators have been forced to drastically reduce their rig counts in the region. For instance, both EXCO Resources (NYSE: XCO  ) and Talisman Energy (NYSE: TLM  ) have just one rig each remaining in the Marcellus.

10 Best Energy Stocks To Buy Right Now: Neoprobe Corporation(NEOP)

Neoprobe Corporation, a biomedical company, engages in the development and commercialization of precision diagnostics that enhance patient care and improve patient benefit. The company is developing and commercializing targeted agents aimed at the identification of occult (undetected) disease. Neoprobe?s two lead radiopharmaceutical agent platforms, Lymphoseek and RIGScan are intended to help surgeons better identify and treat certain types of cancer. Lymphoseek is a diagnostic imaging agent intended for radiolabeling and administration in radiodetection and visualization of the lymphatic system draining the region of injection for delineation of the lymphatic tissue; and RIGScan is an intraoperative biologic targeting agent consisting of a radiolabeled murine monoclonal antibody. The company has a biopharmaceutical development and supply agreement with Laureate Biopharmaceutical Services, Inc. to support the initial evaluation of the viability of the CC49 master working c ell bank, as well as the initial steps in re-validating the commercial production process for the biologic agent used in RIGScan CR. The company was founded in 1983 and is based in Dublin, Ohio.

10 Best Energy Stocks To Buy Right Now: New Concept Energy Inc (GBR)

New Concept Energy, Inc. (New Concept), incorporated on May 30, 1991 in, owns and operates oil and gas wells in Ohio and West Virginia. The Company, through its wholly owned subsidiaries Mountaineer State Energy, Inc. and Mountaineer State Operations, LLC. operates oil and gas wells and mineral leases in Athens and Meigs Counties in Ohio and in Calhoun, Jackson and Roane Counties in West Virginia. As of March 30, 2012, the Company had 159 producing gas wells, 27 non-producing wells and related equipment and mineral leases covering approximately 20,000 acres. The Company operates in two primary business segments: oil and gas operations and retirement facilities.

During the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company had drilled eight wells. New Concept focuses on North American onshore oil and natural gas drilling and exploration. The Company's properties are concentrated in the Appalachian Basin, Fort Worth Basin, and the Arkoma Basin. The Company leases and operates Pacific Pointe Retirement Inn (Pacific Pointe) in King City, Oregon. Pacific Pointe has a capacity of 114 residents and provides community living with basic services, such as meals, housekeeping, laundry, 24/7 staffing, transportation and social and recreational activities.

10 Best Energy Stocks To Buy Right Now: Whitehaven Coal Ltd (WHITF)

Whitehaven Coal Limited (Whitehaven) is engaged in the development and operation of coal mines in New South Wales. During the fiscal year ended 30 June 2012 (fiscal 2012), Whitehaven Coal Limited and its controlled entities continued development at the Narrabri underground mine. The Company operates in two segments: Open Cut Operations and Underground Operations. The Company�� Gunnedah operations include the Tarrawonga (70% owned by Whitehaven), Rocglen (100% owned by Whitehaven), and Sunnyside (100% owned by Whitehaven) open cut mines and the Gunnedah coal handling and preparation plant and train load out facility (CHPP��(100% owned by Whitehaven). The Werris Creek mine is 100% owned by Whitehaven. During fiscal 2012, the Company produced 4.28 million tons per annum of saleable coal. On May 1, 2012, the Company acquired Boardwalk Resources Limited. On May 2, 2012, the Company acquired Aston Resources Limited. On June 20, 2012, it acquired Coalworks Limited.

10 Best Energy Stocks To Buy Right Now: Caiterra International Energy Corp (CTI)

CaiTerra International Energy Corporation (Caiterra), formerly Cyterra Capital Corp., is a Canada-based company is engaged in the exploration and development of oil and gas properties. The Company�� project includes Faust, Amadou and Lac La Biche. On March 9, 2012, the Company completed its qualifying transaction with West Pacific Petroleum Inc. (WPP), pursuant to which the Company acquired all of WPP�� working interests in certain petroleum and natural gas leases and an oil sand lease in the Lac La Biche and Amadou Projects located in Alberta, Canada and certain other assets (the QT Oil and Gas Properties) from West Pacific Petroleum Inc. (WPP). On December 17, 2012 the Company acquired the Faust Property located just north of the Swan Hills oil field and south of the Town of Slave Lake.

10 Best Energy Stocks To Buy Right Now: JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd.(JASO)

JA Solar Holdings Co., Ltd., through its subsidiaries, engages in the design, development, manufacture, and sale of photovoltaic solar cells and solar products, which convert sunlight into electricity in the People's Republic of China. The company?s principal products include monocrystalline and multicrystalline solar cells, as well as various solar modules. It also provides silicon wafer and solar cell processing services. The company sells its products primarily under the JA Solar brand name, as well as produces equipment for original equipment manufacturing customers under their brand names. It sells its solar cell and module products primarily to module manufacturers, system integrators, project developers, and distributors in the Germany, Italy, the United States, Hong Kong, Spain, India, the Czech Republic, France, and South Korea. The company has strategic partnerships with various solar power companies, such as BP Solar, Solar-Fabrik, and MEMC/SunEdison. JA Solar Holdings Co., Ltd. was founded in 2005 and is based in Shanghai, the People?s Republic of China.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Lauren Pollock]

    JA Solar Holdings Co.'s(JASO) fiscal third-quarter loss narrowed as the solar company trimmed costs and improved its revenue on higher-than-expected shipments. The loss was still slightly wider than expected, and shares dropped 6.1% to $9.98 premarket.

  • [By Travis Hoium]

    What: After a two-day run-up in solar stocks, the party ended quickly, and every stock in the industry is dropping like a rock. Suntech Power (NYSE: STP  ) led the declines by falling 23%, and LDK Solar (NYSE: LDK  ) , Yingli Green Energy (NYSE: YGE  ) , and JA Solar (NASDAQ: JASO  ) all dropped at least 15%.

  • [By Paul Ausick]

    JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO) stands to benefit from the increased demand for solar power from China. That country is set to overtake Europe, the U.S., and Japan as the world�� largest consumer of solar panels and modules. That�� good for the Chinese solar makers, but it will be difficult for U.S. analysts and investors to figure out exactly what�� happening with the individual companies due to the lack of real transparency into their operations.

  • [By Dan Caplinger]

    Nevertheless, the main problem for ReneSola is that it still hasn't managed even to get gross profit margins above zero. JA Solar (NASDAQ: JASO  ) has been in the same boat recently, with the costs of making its products exceeding its sales even before considering operating expenses and other costs of doing business. Unless ReneSola can get its margins up, then it won't be able to compete against much better performing U.S. rivals that have seen their prospects soar lately.

10 Best Energy Stocks To Buy Right Now: Helix Energy Solutions Group Inc (HLX)

Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc.( Helix), incorporated on November 17,1983, is an international offshore energy company that provides specialty services to the offshore energy industry, with a focus on its growing well intervention and robotics operations. The Company had had two business segments: Contracting Services and Production Facilities. Its Contracting Services seek to provide services and methodologies which it believes are critical to developing offshore reservoirs and maximizing production economi regions. Its Production Facilities segment consists of its majority ownership of a dynamically positioned floating production vessel ( Helix Producer I or HP I). In June 2013, Helix Energy Solutions Group Inc closed the previously announced sale of its pipelay vessel, the Caesar, to Trevaskis Ltd.

In January 2012, it sold its oil and gas properties within the Main Pass area of the Gulf of Mexico. On September 26, 2012, the Company sold its pipelay vessel, Intrepid, to Stabbert Maritime Holdings, LLC. On February 6, 2013, it sold Energy Resource Technology GOM, Inc. (ERT), a former wholly-owned United States subsidiary that conducted its oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico.

Contracting Services Operations

The Company provides services and methodologies which it believes are critical to developing offshore reservoirs and maximizing production economics. Its life of field services are segregated into four disciplines: well intervention, robotics, subsea construction and production facilities. It provides a full range of contracting services primarily in the Gulf of Mexico, North Sea, Asia Pacific and West Africa regions primarily in deepwater.

The Company's services include production, which includes inspection, repair and maintenance of production structures, trees, jumpers, risers, pipelines and subsea equipment, well intervention, life of field support and intervention engineering; reclamation and remediation services include pluggin! g and abandonment services, pipeline abandonment services and site inspections; installation of subsea pipelines, flowlines, control umbilicals, manifold assemblies and risers, pipelay and burial, installation and tie-in of riser and manifold assembly, commissioning, testing and inspection, and cable and umbilical lay and connection. It provides oil and natural gas processing services to oil and natural gas companies, primarily those operating in the deepwater of the Gulf of Mexico using its HP I vessel. The HP I is being utilized to process production from the Phoenix.

The Company engineers, manages and conducts well construction, intervention and asset retirement operations in water depths ranging from 200 to 10,000 feet. Three of its vessels serve as work platforms for well intervention services at costs that are typically significantly less than offshore drilling rigs. In the Gulf of Mexico, its multi-service semi-submersible vessel, the Q4000, has set a series of well intervention firsts in increasingly deeper water without the use of a traditional drilling rig. In August 2012, it acquired the Discoverer 534 drillship from a subsidiary of Transocean Ltd.

The Company operates remotely operated vehicles ( ROVs), trenchers and ROVDrills designed for offshore construction and well intervention services. As global marine construction support moves to deeper water. Its chartered vessels add value by supporting deployment of its ROVs. It provides its customers with vessel availability and schedule flexibility to meet the technological challenges of their subsea activities worldwide. Its robotics assets include 49 ROVs, four trencher systems and two ROVDrills. It operate in the Gulf of Mexico, North Sea, Asia Pacific and West Africa regions. It charters four vessels to support its robotics operations and it has engaged additional vessels on short-term (spot) charters as needed. In 2012, its robotics operations had 377 vessel utilization days and 16% of global revenues derived from! alternat! ive energy contracts. Subsea construction services include the use of umbilical lay and pipelay vessels and ROVs to develop fields in the deepwater.

The Company owns interests in two production facilities in hub locations where there is potential for subsea tieback activity. It has invested in two over-sized facilities that allow the operators of these fields to tie back without burdening the operator of the hub reservoir. It owns a 50% interest in Deepwater Gateway, which owns the Marco Polo TLP located in 4,300 feet of water in the Gulf of Mexico. It also owns a 20% interest in Independence Hub which owns the Independence Hub platform, a 105-foot deep draft, semi-submersible platform located in a water depth of 8,000 feet that serves as a regional hub for up to one billion cubic feet (Bcf) of natural gas production per day from multiple ultra-deepwater fields in the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

The Company competes with Oceaneering International, Inc., Saipem S.p.A., Fugro N.V., DOF ASA, Aker Solutions ASA, Subsea 7 S.A., Technip, McDermott International, Inc., Island Offshore and Edison Chouest Offshore Companies.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By GuruFocus]

    Helix Energy Solutions Group Inc (HLX): PRESIDENT & CEO Owen E Kratz Bought 50,000 Shares PRESIDENT & CEO of Helix Energy Solutions Group Inc (HLX) Owen E Kratz bought 50,000 shares on 10/24/2013 at an average price of $24.03. Helix Energy Solutions Group Inc has a market cap of $2.54 billion; its shares were traded at around $24.03 with and P/S ratio of 2.96.

  • [By David Smith]

    Helix Energy Solutions Group (NYSE: HLX  )
    At $2.70 billion in market capitalization, Helix is equidistant between Flotek and Superior from a size perspective. The company operates through two segments: contracting services and production facilities.

10 Best Energy Stocks To Buy Right Now: Archer Ltd (ARCHER.OL)

Archer Ltd, formerly Seawell Limited is a Bermuda-based global oilfield service company. The Company provides drilling services, such as platform drilling, land drilling, modular rings, directional drilling, drill bits, tubular services, drilling and completion fluids, cementing tools, plugs and packers, underbalanced services, rentals and engineering. It specialises also in well services, such as wireline intervention, specialist intervention, frac valves, wireline logging, integrity diagnostics, imaging, production monitoring, coiled tubing, completion services and fishing. As of January 3, 2012, the Company's organizational structure centered on four geographic and strategic areas: North America (NAM), North Sea (NRS), Latin America (LAM) and Emerging Markets & Technologies (EMT). As of December 31, 2010, it was active through a number of subsidiaries, namely Seawell, Allis-Chalmers Energy, Gray Wireline, Rig Inspection Services and TecWel, among others.

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Buy Oil Stocks on the Iranian Nuclear Deal

Twitter Logo Google Plus Logo RSS Logo Aaron Levitt Popular Posts: Is the Oracle Right About XOM?4 Ways to Cash In on Energy Growth in ChinaSDRL – One of the Best Dividend Stocks Just Got Even Better Recent Posts: Buy Oil Stocks on the Iranian Nuclear Deal SDRL – One of the Best Dividend Stocks Just Got Even Better 5 Sweet Energy Picks From T. Boone Pickens View All Posts

We may be witnessing history across the Atlantic.

midstream oilAfter decades of geopolitical tension in Iran, the situation seems to be getting a bit less tense. Over the weekend, Iran — along with nations in the G6 — signed an agreement to curtail is nuclear ambitions and its enrichment projects. Those controversial programs were thought to be part of a larger nuclear weapons agenda.

To combat those ambitions, the West has brought years of sanctions against Iran. The latest of which hit Tehran right where it hurts: in the "oily" pocketbook. Bans on Iranian crude oil exports have prevented the energy producer from getting its products to key markets in Asia and Europe.

Needless to say, the energy sector didn't take too kindly to the idea that Iran could be finally shipping its crude — to the tune of 2.5 million barrels of oil per day — out to the market. Both international standard Brent and North American benchmark WTI fell hard on the news. Meanwhile, the Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) underperformed its sector ETF peers on the positive news.

However, energy investors shouldn't get too bearish on Iran's decision. In fact, they should be buying oil stocks hand-over-fist.

Still Plenty of Uncertainty

The current drop in energy stocks and oil prices based on the Iranian nuclear deal could be one of the best buying opportunities we've have in months.

The important thing to remember is that the deal doesn't actually lift any ban on crude oil exports. It seems that the market didn't read the entire press report.

Over the next six months, Iran will have to prove itself to the U.N. and G6. Under this probationary period, E.U. crude oil bans will remain in effect and limit Iran to approximately 1 million bpd in crude oil sales. However, analysts at British investment bank Barclays (BCS) estimate that Iran will have trouble ramping up its exports to more than 400,000 barrels as restarting shut-in oil wells will prove nearly impossible.

Sanctions that keep Western oil service firms — like Halliburton (HAL) and Schlumberger (SLB) –- from doing business in Iran remain firmly in place. That’s a huge issue because Iran needs their help in order to get oil flowing and keep it flowing. Like much of the Middle East, Iran is facing the problem of dwindling output from its legacy oil fields and needs some Western-style technology to keep pumping.

In addition, U.S. and E.U. sanctions preventing the sale of refined petroleum products into Iran are also still outstanding. And because it has zero refining infrastructure, Iran needs to imports pretty much all of its diesel and gasoline needs. The irony is that Iran needs these fuels in order to help run the ships and equipment needed to export its bounty.

So realistically, while the deal is great for world peace, it isn't going to significantly add any real volume to crude oil supplies in the near term.

Speaking of that near term, this is Iran we are talking about and let's face facts — it has zero credibility in the face of the world. A lot can happen in six months. Iran can renege on its promises. Israel — who isn't at all happy with the deal — could finally decide they've had enough and pursue a military strategy. Syria, Egypt and Libya are still hot beds of turmoil. The Middle East risk premium is still very much alive.

Meanwhile, Congress here at home has already begun discussing going around the deal and imposing harsher sanctions, if Iran doesn't show any progress.

Snag Energy Stocks

The recent dip in energy stocks make the perfect buying opportunity for long-term investors.

While the previously mentioned XLE is a great fund, the iShares Global Energy (IXC) may be a better bet. The key is the fund's global exposure. The exchange-traded fund (ETF) tracks 91 different oil stocks — with about 48% of its exposure to those energy firms located outside the United States.

While that does include Canada, the bulk of these holdings production is priced according to Brent crude benchmarks. Any "hiccups" in Iran's willingness to comply with rules will benefit these firm's more than, say, shale producer Range Resources (RRC). At the same time, the U.S.-based holdings in IXC represent some of the largest and globally diverse energy firms on the planet. They'll pick-up plenty of Brent crude gains as well. Expenses for IXC run just 0.48% or $48 per $10,000 invested

A second play could be in the crude oil itself.

As we said before, the Iranian deal doesn't actually add any new supplies back into marketplace for quite some time. With oil demand starting to move ahead as the global economy is beginning to return to normalcy, Brent prices should grind their way upwards. That makes the United States Brent Oil (BNO) a prime play.

The ETF tracks futures contracts on the international crude oil benchmark. Due to its close ties with Middle East production, BNO should provide a nice gain once the market returns to its senses and realizes what the agreement actually means. That is, if Iran sticks to the nuclear deal at all. If not, BNO should soar. Expenses for the ETF run 0.75%.

At first blush, the deal with Tehran may seem like terrible news for the energy sector. However, the news isn’t as bearish as it seems. For investors, the time to buy energy stocks is on. Both IXC and BNO are prime picks to play Brent's rebound.

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

Google is winning online ad war by going mobile

SAN FRANCISCO – Google is losing the battle against falling ad prices, but still winning the online advertising war.

In its earnings report on Thursday, the company revealed the decline of a key pricing metric has once again accelerated, as its cost-per-click fell 8% from a year earlier.

The reason is a surge in mobile ads, which cost less per unit and have lower click rates than those served onto desktop computers.

FIRST TAKE: Google is the latest $1,000-per-share club member

STOCK SOARS: Google shares soar on strong earnings

Google CEO Larry Page said almost 40% of the traffic on the company's YouTube video site now comes from mobile device users, up from 6% two years ago.

Yet, the search giant more than made up for lower prices with higher volume, as its number of paid clicks climbed 26% year-over-year. That was higher than the 21% jump reported by rival Yahoo.

The net result was a 19% jump in quarterly revenue (or 12% including its lagging Motorola handset unit) and a 36% surge in net income.

Google's ad numbers suggest that changes that the company has made to how it sells advertising have merely slowed — not stopped — the downward pricing pressure caused by a surge in mobile ad traffic.

Close Google watchers will remember that the impact of mobile ads on Google's business first revealed itself 15 months ago, during its quarterly earnings report in July 2012.

That's when the company reported its cost-per-click dropped 16% from a year earlier, alarming Wall Street and prompting a short-term drop in its stock price.

In response, Google made changes to how it deals with professional online ad buyers, essentially stripping them of the ability to target ads at either desktop, tablet or smartphone users.

Instead, the company's technology now determines where and when to place text and video ads onto those different platforms, based on where Google thinks is best.

John Shinal, technology columnist for USA TODAY.(Photo: USA TODAY)

Thanks to the new method, which Google has dubbed "enhanced campaigns," the company earlier this year had slowed the annual rate of decline in its cost-per-click to 4%.

Yet, the decline has accelerated during the last two quarters, and for the period ended in September, prices were falling at twice that rate.

The reason is mobile.

Google's algorithms can't change the fact that most mobile device users think cheap-looking text ads that pop up on smartphones or tablets are more annoying than enticing.

Annoying ads aren't clicked on as frequently as relevant ones, which is one reason mobile ads are so cheap per unit.

The click-through rate for ads served on Android-powered tablets fell to 2.3% in the third quarter, from 3.2% a year earlier, according to a report released this week from market researcher, The Search Agency.

For smartphone users, the rate dropped to 3.1% from 3.9%.

Sheer volume is another reason for the decline. The number of these ads is exploding as more consumers make the switch from desktop computers to mobile devices.

That same report from The Search Agency showed that one-third of the clicks on Google search ads in the U.S. now come from mobile users.

No wonder mobile ad revenue skyrocketed 145% during the first half of this year to $3 billion, compared with the same period in 2012, according to the latest report from the Interactive Advertising Bureau, a trade group.

That's eight times faster growth than the overall online ad market.

Those findings were echoed in the data from The Search Agency, which found that click volume on tablets in the U.S. surged 63% during the third quarter, and tablet advertising spending, 68%.

The surge! came eve! n though the cost-per-click for all ads displayed on tablets in the U.S. fell 10.4% in the third quarter, compared with a year earlier, as the report said.

Clearly, there's money to be made in mobile ads, and Google — no surprise — is capturing a large chunk of it, even as the average unit price of its search ads continues to fall.

Monday, November 25, 2013

US Automobile Sales Expected to End on a Solid Note in November

The US automobile industry is experiencing the best year post the recession. Automobile sales are expected to rise in the range of 4% to 7% for the month of November compared to last year same period. Several analysts are estimating that the seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) would cross 16 million, which is the best since August.

LMC Automotive expects the annualized rate to be 16.1 million, the best in six years. This is a decent improvement from last year's November, when the industry reported 15.3 million as the adjusted annualized rate. In comparison, Kelley Blue Book (KBB) expects the November 2013 SAAR to be around 15.6 million, while Edmunds.com estimates it to be 15.7 million.

How strong the sales will be a lot depends on the last week of the month which generally witnesses solid boost from the holiday season ahead. In fact as said by a senior market analyst of KBB rightly "these are some of the best sales days of the year".

So how are individual automakers expected to perform?

The top US automaker General Motors (GM) got a good boost this Black Friday as it introduced its promotional offers on its models of Chevrolet, Buick and GMC. KBB said that it expects to see sales gain of 12% in November, the highest among the top auto giants. Edmunds expects the top Detroit maker to post sales rise of 8%, and estimates Chrysler to report 10% sales gain.

However, foreign automakers including Honda (HMC), Hyundai and Volkswagen (VLKAY) are expected to lose market share in November. One of the prime reasons why these foreign automakers aren't benefitting as much as domestic carmakers is because they do not specialize in pickups and trucks. The Detroit Three, General Motors, Ford (F), and Chrysler are known for manufacturing pickups and trucks. With the rebound in the housing and construction sector, businesses are improving and are therefore demanding more and more of pickups.

This is bolstering the sale of domestic auto giants who are witnessing a sup! erb year. The good news is that the revival of the housing sector is there to stay for at least a couple of years. This would give domestic automakers a real boost, particularly after suffering distressed years post recession. Several industry analysts believe that the industry shall continue to see significant upward trend. The holiday season is ahead and car shoppers have already started taking advantage of the incentives that automakers give during this period.

Solid November

Sales during September and October were disturbed by external factors which suppressed the demand for cars as buyers started losing their confidence in the economy. However, November is expected to end at a solid note. LMC projects that November would post 1.22 million deliveries. If this is the case then the US automobile industry would record the best November since 2003. Automakers are scheduled to post November figures on December 3.

The US automobile industry is estimated to post 15.5 million annual sales, 1 million higher compared to last year. The increase in sales is majorly due to pent-up demand, Toyota's (TM) US Chief Executive Jim Lentz says. Honda's US Chief Executive Tetsuo Iwamura expects that 2014 US sales figure would be in the higher bracket of 15 million. Sales gain is not expected to be as strong as in 2013, though the industry shall continue to be in momentum. 2013 is a dream year for the automakers, it would be interesting to see how 2014 turns out to be.

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Sunday, November 24, 2013

The Greatest Turnaround Teams In NFL History

Last year, the Kansas City Chiefs were the worst team in the NFL, winning just two games and scoring an average of 13 points per game. This year, after hiring long-time Eagles coach Andy Reid, the Chiefs are one of only two undefeated teams and appear on their way to at least a long playoff run, if not the Super Bowl.

Click here to see the greatest turnaround teams in NFL history

Most teams with bad years tend to require a number of years to improve (if they improve at all, that is). If the Chiefs continue their improbable success, they could become one of those rare franchises that bounces back straight to the top — appearing in the Super Bowl. Looking through the history of the modern Super Bowl era, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the eight teams that managed to come back from a losing season to make it all the way to the Super Bowl.

Sometimes, a disappointing season can actually improve a team's chances of making the Super Bowl. A terrible year, or years, can often lead management to clean house, firing coaches and making trades. In 2002, the Carolina Panthers fired George Seifert after an abysmal 1-15 season. His replacement, John Fox, ended up leading the team on a Super Bowl run two seasons later.

A bad year can also boost a team's chances in the form of new star players. Fans know this because the worst teams are allowed to pick earlier in the draft after a season concludes. So, the 15-loss Panthers were allowed to select second overall. They used this pick to draft future star defensive end Julius Peppers, who became a major part of the following year's Super Bowl team.

The San Francisco 49ers' poor 1980 season allowed them to draft Hall of Fame defensive back Ronnie Lott eighth overall. Lott then helped the San Francisco make and win the Super Bowl the following year.

For some of these comeback teams, the Super Bowl run was just the first sign of years of success. Going into the 1999 season, the St. Louis Rams had not had a winning season in nearly a decade. That team, which became known as the "greatest show on turf" for its high-powered offense, won the Super Bowl that year, played in another two years later, and made the playoffs in four of the next five seasons.

On the other hand, there are comeback teams on this list that ended up being flashes in the pan. The 1998 Atlanta Falcons came back from two losing seasons to go 14-2 and lose Super Bowl XXXIII. Instead of riding on that success, the team then missed the playoffs in each of the next three years.

24/7 Wall St. reviewed teams that played in a Super Bowl the year following a season where they lost more games than they won. Only teams in the modern Super Bowl era, which began in 1965) were included. The 1988 Cincinnati Bengals and the 1982 San Francisco 49ers were excluded because of the shortened seasons those year.

These are The Greatest Turnaround Teams in NFL History

Saturday, November 23, 2013

Bonds Are Riskier Than Ever. Here's Why.

Budget Deficit (FILE- In this Monday, Aug. 8, 2011, file photo, a statue of former Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin stands guaAP, Jacquelyn MartinThe U.S. Treasury Building in Washington. In investing, bonds have always had a reputation for being the safe choice. Compared to the wild oscillations one can get in the stock market, bonds appear stable and downright boring: They make predictable interest payments and eventually return the invested principal to their buyers at maturity. Lately, though, some troubling trends have turned against bond investors. In particular, two recent events have shown just how willing the government entities that issue bonds are to put investors at risk of losing their investments. The Debt Ceiling And You The government shutdown in Washington has affected millions of Americans, with an estimated 800,000 federal workers having been furloughed, and many private businesses and their employees suffering from the collateral damage of shutdowns of government agencies and of federally-owned landmarks like national parks. But of greater importance to investors around the world is the debt ceiling debate. Under current law, the government sets a limit on the total amount of debt that it is allowed to incur. At the current rate of borrowing, the national debt will hit that limit later this month. Until recent years, most investing analysts assumed -- correctly -- that lawmakers would raise the debt ceiling as necessary without much fuss. Now, though, there's a very real possibility that Congress won't take action, which could cause the U.S. to default on some of its debt. Investors have reacted to that possibility. Rates on the shortest-term Treasury bills available have jumped eightfold in just the past week as those who invest in that short-term debt have to factor in the risk that they might not be repaid on time when their Treasury bills mature next month. Moreover, foreign bondholders aren't happy with Congress's shenanigans over the debt situation. Chinese officials noted recently that they wanted the U.S. government to protect the safety of its bond holdings in light of the debt-ceiling deadline. Similarly, Japan, which is the second-largest foreign bondholder of U.S. Treasuries behind China, wants reassurance that a U.S. debt crisis won't jeopardize its strategy of weakening the Japanese yen against the dollar. Regardless, members of Congress haven't seemed deterred by the potential impact of a bond default on investors. Despite tens of millions of Americans having a stake in Treasury debt either directly through their investments or indirectly because of the Treasury holdings that entities like pension funds own, their elected representatives aren't rushing to resolve the debt ceiling issue. Striking a Balance Indeed, governments seem more willing than ever to let bondholders shoulder a share of the burdens created by our still-shaky economy. At the local level, the bankrupt city of Stockton, Calif., issued its plan to exit legal bankruptcy proceeds late last month. The plan included forcing bond investors to accept a substantial reduction in the amount of interest they would receive on their bonds, as the city has said that it can pay less than 20 percent of the $2.9 million in annual bond-financing costs. Bondholders won't be the only ones hurt by that bankruptcy. Stockton also intends to raise sales taxes in the city and has already reduced services and made employee cuts before the bankruptcy was filed. The plan does preserve pension payments to retirees, although retired workers will lose health-insurance subsidies they previously received. Bond investors do have the right to fight the plan in bankruptcy court, arguing that they're being treated unfairly. Increasingly, though, the concept of "fairness" that bankrupt cities and towns espouse includes having bondholders suffer losses. That's contrary to past experience, in which bond investors could expect repayment in full before other stakeholders got any recovery. Bonds: Know the Risks If you thought bonds were risk-free, recent events should have you rethinking that assessment. Before you add bonds to your portfolio, make sure you understand the real and growing possibility that you might not get repaid in full or on time. Even if the debt-ceiling debate gets resolved favorably this time around, the trend toward less protection for bond investors could nevertheless continue in the future.

Treasury yields hit daily highs on Fed minutes

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Treasury prices extended a drop Wednesday, pushing benchmark yields up to their highest point of the day after the Federal Reserve's meeting minutes showed tapering still on track for this year. The Federal Open Market Committee minutes for its September meeting showed that while the central bank's members surprised markets by holding off on a wind-down of its $85 billion in monthly bond buys, they expect to begin the process before the end of the year. On that news, the 10-year note (10_YEAR) yield, which moves inversely to price, rose 3 basis points on the day to 2.667%, and hit as high as 2.674%. The 5-year note (5_YEAR) yield rose slightly to 1.429% while the 30-year bond (30_YEAR) yield rose 4 basis points to 3.735%.

Carl Icahn Is Interested in Health Care Needs of Women

Let´s start looking at the "big picture." The Health Care Equipment sub-industry will remain strong due to the increasing age of the population. Also, two important factors to consider are the increase in the industry's clientele, and the ability to manage this new clientele in a more efficient way, with improved technology and better health care equipment. With this promising outlook, let's take a look at Icahn´s last trade and try to explain to investors the reasons of this appealing investment opportunity.

On Nov. 11, Carl Icahn bought Hologic Inc. (HOLX), a company that develops, manufactures, and markets x-ray systems. It operates through four segments: Diagnostics, Breast Health, GYN Surgical and Skeletal Health.

Good Deal

On Aug 2012, the company acquired Gen-Probe, a leading maker of molecular diagnostic products. The deal will generate cost synergies of over $40 million in the first year and about $35 million at 2015. The Diagnostics products segment (36% sales of fiscal year 2012) has reported a strong increased, with a growth of nearly 100% and we expect much more upside potential in this segment. Additionally, we think Gen-Probe´s products to penetrate regions with good prospects to grow like in the BRIC countries.

Conversion from Analog to Digital

In Jan 2003 the firm sold its first FDA-approved digital mammography system in the U.S. Due to the rapid growth in the digital mammography category, digital platforms became very popular and demanded. A potential upside driver include faster than expected tomosynthesis adoption. Tomosynthesis is a new technology to produce (3D) images. The firm was the first to offer a 3D digital system in the U.S. taking advantage over a number of competitors, such as General Electric, Agfa, Siemens, Philips and Johnson & Johnson.

Valuation

In terms of valuation, its price-to-book ratio of 2.05 indicates a discount versus the industry average of 2.79 and the price-to-sales ratio of 2.47 is below the industry aver! age of 2.5. The company announces a $250M repurchase plan that covers the next three years. Management reiterated its focus on return on invested capital and its intention to pay down debt while returning cash to shareholders.

Finally, I always like to see one of the most important financial ratios applying to stockholders, the best measure of performance for a firm's management: the return on equity. The ratio has decreased when compared to its ROE from the same quarter one year prior. This is a signal of major weakness.

Final Comment

Hologic´s revenue growth has outpaced the industry average of 6%. I expect this trend to continue aided by new products, expansion into emerging markets, and strategic acquisitions. Despite of having found a major weakness in the result of ROE, the firm has other highlights as its revenue growth seen before and the increase in stock price during the past year.

For a long-term perspective, I would advise fundamental investors to consider adding Hologic to their portfolios as it seems to starting gaining a leading position in the market.

Hedge fund managers have also been active in the company. Hedge fund gurus like Jim Simons, Steven Cohen, Paul Tudor Jones and Jean-Marie Eveillard have invested in it.

Disclosure: Victor Selva holds no position in any stocks mentioned.
Also check out: Carl Icahn Undervalued Stocks Carl Icahn Top Growth Companies Carl Icahn High Yield stocks, and Stocks that Carl Icahn keeps buying

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Friday, November 22, 2013

JFK’s death overshadowed nursing home fire

TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — While an anguished nation slept in the hours after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, flames tore through a nursing home in rural northern Ohio, killing 63 people in what remains one of the worst such fires in U.S. history.

Many victims had been restrained to their beds or trapped behind wheelchairs that were too wide for the exits. Investigators later blamed faulty wiring and found the nursing home didn't have an evacuation plan.

Overshadowed by the shooting in Dallas 50 years ago and largely forgotten today, the deadly fire along with a string of other nursing home fires in the 1960s helped bring about better federal and state oversight and uniform safety rules for the industry.

Until then, inspections and regulations left to the states were inconsistent, and there were no requirements for sprinklers, fire drills or safety plans.

The result was a series of multiple-death nursing home fires that killed an average of 15 people per year during the 1960s and early 1970s, said Tom Jaeger, of Great Falls, Va., a longtime consultant to the nursing home industry.

Now, with stricter safety codes and sprinklers in nearly every nursing home, the number killed in multiple-death nursing home fires is less than two each year, Jaeger said.

The industry has made great strides in reducing those fires, but health experts and regulators warned just this year that many nursing homes are ill-prepared for natural disasters after examining responses to Superstorm Sandy and Hurricane Katrina.

Some of the warnings being sounded today about evacuation plans are similar to the complaints that came up after the Nov. 23, 1963, fire, which killed all but 21 of the residents at the Golden Age Nursing Home in Fitchville, a village between Toledo and Cleveland.

The fire began just before 5 a.m. ET, in the attic of the one-story building, burned through the phone lines and spread before anyone knew what was happening. By the time firefighters arrived 10 ! minutes later, the building was burning from one end to the other.

Passers-by and employees managed to get a few residents out. Steve Pierce said his father went in four or five times before the roof collapsed.

"I remember his clothes smelled so bad I think mom said she had to bury them," said Pierce, who still lives nearby.

Jerry Earl, who was 18 at the time, said the flames were shooting through the roof when he arrived with his father, a fire chief in a neighboring village.

"The heat was so intense it melted a glass-block window into one big teardrop," he said.

Earl said he found one of the exits blocked by a wheelchair with a charred mass behind it.

Investigators said some of the victims died steps away from exits, adding that the large loss of life was caused by the lack of a plan for prompt evacuation.

Many of those who died suffered from dementia and were wards of the state and not from the area.

Henry Timman, a local historian in nearby Norwalk, remembered hearing about the fire on the radio amid coverage of Kennedy's assassination.

"You were just stunned at all that was happening," he said.

Even though the fire was so close to home, almost all thoughts remained focused on Kennedy, he said.

"We kind of put the nursing home aside until the president's funeral," Timman said. "It was overshadowed in a way, but its effects were far-reaching."

After the fire, which made the front pages in northern Ohio but wasn't carried on the covers of many major U.S. newspapers, Ohio's governor's ordered beefed up inspections of wiring in nursing homes. State lawmakers later established regulations that required sprinklers, fire exits and extinguishers while also giving the state more authority over nursing homes.

Congress instituted new safety codes that went into effect in 1970 and spelled out rules for building construction and fire safety. But it wasn't until this year that all nursing homes were required to have automatic sprinklers! if they ! wanted to qualify for Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements.

HHS pushes back health insurance enrollment dea…

WASHINGTON — Consumers looking for health insurance under the new federal exchange will have an additional week — until Dec. 23 — to sign up on Healthcare.gov to receive benefits beginning Jan. 1, the Department of Health and Human Services said Friday.

HHS spokeswoman Julie Bataille said the decision was made in consultation with insurers, who assured the government that they will be able to enroll those customers by the beginning of the new year. Those consumers must pay their first month's premium by Dec. 31 to have the policy take effect.

The extension applies only to the first month of enrollments. After that, consumers will still have to enroll by the 15th of the month in order to have insurance take effect on the first of the next month. And the end of the open enrollment period for 2014 remains March 31. After that, people who remain uninsured may be subject to penalties by the Internal Revenue Service.

Bataille would not say whether all insurers would participate in the extended deadline. Those details will be released once HHS publishes formal policy documents, she said.

HHS made the announcement at the beginning of a daily briefing with reporters on the progress of fixes to the Healthcare.gov website.

Jeffrey Zients, the man tapped by President Obama to oversee those fixes, said the government is on track to keep its promise of having the website "working smoothly for the vast majority of users by the end of November."

Yesterday, HHS announced it was delaying the start of the 2015 open enrollment period by a month, to Nov. 15, 2014 — pushing it until after the midterm elections.

Follow @gregorykorte on Twitter.

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

A Dogfight Over London Heathrow

The phrase "location, location, location" is often applied to real estate but serves the airline industry equally well. Since slots at popular airports are limited, competition is fierce and can make or break a section of an airline's route network. Among the most valuable airports is London Heathrow Airport and major airlines are doing whatever they can to add more London Heathrow flights to their networks.

Why London Heathrow?
Heathrow has a value-increasing combination of high demand and limited supply. Let's begin with the high-demand part.

Business travel is a key source of revenue for airlines since these travelers tend to spend more. After all, they aren't personally paying for the ticket -- corporate is. As a result, business travelers generate a disproportionately large share of airline revenue. And with London being a major financial capital, the city attracts plenty of high-paying business travelers.

But London Heathrow can't just expand to meet the airlines' demands. Parliament decided against expanding the airport back in 2010, keeping the airport at its current size.

Home-field advantage
British Airways, a subsidiary of International Air Group (NASDAQOTH: ICAGY  ) , has a major slot advantage at Heathrow. After merging with bmi, British Airways controls around half the total slots at the airport.

This brings an advantage to the other members of the OneWorld airline alliance since other members can operate codeshares on British Airways' routes. American Airlines, a subsidiary of AMR (NASDAQOTH: AAMRQ  ) , is the only major U.S.-based airline to be able to codeshare on these London routes.

But the expected merger between AMR and US Airways (NYSE: LCC  ) gives US Airways shareholders a chance to benefit from these routes as well. The new American Airlines Group would not only be able to codeshare these routes but would also take the crown of world's largest airline.

Buying a home team
Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL  ) wants to play a greater role in the London Heathrow market but did not have the advantage of the OneWorld alliance or being a British airline. But there was another airline not committed to any major airline alliance and Delta took advantage of the opportunity.

For $360 million, Delta purchased a 49% stake in Virgin Atlantic. As part of the deal, Delta and Virgin set up a codeshare to create more Delta network flights between New York JFK International and London Heathrow.

With this setup, Delta has effectively bought itself a codeshare into the Heathrow market. Although British airways has more total slots than Virgin Atlantic at Heathrow, the new codeshare between Delta and Virgin is a key part of developing Delta's international network.

Where from here?
London Heathrow is one of the most in-demand airports in the world with major airlines sometimes making major investments to gain greater access. While the demand for Heathrow flights will likely remain the same or even increase along with a recovering economy, there is a possibility that the airport could see a new round of expansion. A commission study report is expected for 2015. And if the politics are in favor of expansion, expect strong competition for new slots.

The next opportunity
Airlines have recorded multibagger gains over the past several months, leaving investors on the sidelines burned. However, opportunistic investors can still find huge winners. The Motley Fool's chief investment officer has just hand-picked one such opportunity in our new report: "The Motley Fool's Top Stock for 2014." To find out which stock it is and read our in-depth report, simply click here. It's free!

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD): Bernstein Research’s Much Ado About Nothing Concerns & More

Last week, we noted how Mad Money's Jim Cramer has fallen out of love with Advanced Micro Devices, Inc (NYSE: AMD) and back in love with an old flame known as Apple (see: Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) is Rising… Again (Thanks to NVDA or Jim Cramer?)) while this week, the latest important news surrounding the stock would be another swipe by Bernstein Research. However, I should also mention that we have had Advanced Micro Devices in our SmallCap Network Elite Opportunity (SCN EO) portfolio since last July and we have had an up and down ride – usually because of earnings reports (see: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc (AMD): When Warm Just Isn't Hot Enough and Time to be Bullish, Bearish or Just Realistic? Advanced Micro Devices' (AMD) Third Quarter Earnings Report). With that in mind, here is the latest AMD news for investors and traders alike to chew on, swallow or spit out:

Will a Big Payment to GlobalFoundries Really Impact AMD or Much Ado About Nothing? Bernstein Research's Stacy Rasgon believes that investors have failed to appreciate a huge payment Advanced Micro Devices will have to make to GlobalFoundries this quarter as it continues to feel the impact of weak PC microprocessor demand. Barron's quotes her latest research note as saying: 

The Q4 commitment due is, in fact, nothing short of astonishing. Given their purchases in the first three quarters of the year, to meet their total $1.15B commitment AMD is contractually obligated to take over $400M in wafers from GlobalFoundries in Q4, almost double the run-rate in the first three quarters of the year. AMD's purchases from GlobalFoundries in the first three quarters of the year totaled $269M, $255M, and $222M respectively, or $746M overall. 

In addition, there is an additional $250M wafer commitment due in Q1. However and if you read the comments on the Barron's article, some of them point out that the payment obligations have been known since earlier this year and that Bernstein is also shorting the stock. One commenter also posted the following note apparently sent by AMD investor relations regarding issue:

Thank you for your email. You are correct; our wafer purchase commitment to Global Foundries is ~$400M in Q4 2013. As we indicated on our October earnings call, we are on track to meet that commitment and indicated that our inventory levels in the 4th quarter would be flat from Q3 levels. We believe this inventory level is appropriate to support our business, as we've seen strength from our high-end A8/A10 APUs, our recently launched R7/R9 GPUs and the continued semi-custom production. We will also begin shipping Kaveri, our next-generation desktop APU in the 4th quarter.

Nevertheless, the AMD bears and shorts appear to have another talking point.

The Increased Importance of Video Game Consols to AMD. The Wall Street Journal has an article about how Advanced Micro Devices' future prospects have become closely tied to new videogame consoles hitting the market this month as Sony Corporation (NYSE: SNE) has said it sold one million units of its PlayStation 4 console in the US and Canada in the first 24 hours following its launch late last week while the Xbox One from Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) goes on sale this Friday. Both the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One use a customized version of AMD's Jaguar chip family which are not being made by or are covered by the agreement with Global Foundries. And while pent-up demand and the holiday season have sparked a big launch of gaming consols, the Wall Street Journal pointed out that sales are likely to ebb as 2014 progresses and that could be a problem for AMD as Wall Street forecasts its revenue will increase by 11% next year. Share Performance. Advanced Micro Devices is up 42.5% since the start of the year and up 40.7% over the past five year:

Finally, here is a look at the latest technical chart for AMD which reveals some bearish trend lines:

Given the above, it looks like investors in Advanced Micro Devices should brace for more choppy waters rather than smooth sailing – at least for the near term.  

SmallCap Network Elite Opportunity (SCN EO) has an open position in AMD. To find out what other open positions SCN EO currently has, and to learn why so many traders and investors are relying on this premium subscription service, click here to find out more.

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