Top 5 Value Stocks To Watch For 2015

Over the past month, rates on 30-year Treasury bonds rose from 3.32%, to 3.54%, �an increase of only 0.22 percentage points. Yet, a 30-Year Treasury bond issued with a face value of $100 in May 2013 recently traded hands at $87.125 in late June. That's a huge swing on a pretty small move in rates. With the Federal Reserve indicating it will taper its bond-buying program as economic conditions improve, chances are very good that rates will continue to rise, and prices of existing bonds fall.

Because interest rates are so very low at the moment, small changes in interest rates drive huge swings in the market prices of existing bonds. It's the nature of the beast, and it's driven by something called the bond's modified duration. With rates so low and poised to rise, understanding why modified duration drives prices may be the most important thing bond investors can do right now to protect their capital -- and their sanity.

Why it works this way
Bond investors generally look to maximize the amount of income they get for a given amount of risk. Bonds are priced based on their debt ratings, time to maturity, possible tax advantages (like municipal bonds paying potentially tax free interest�), and features like whether the issuer can call them away early. Because there's a known schedule to their payments, and a known value to their most typical features, it's very straightforward to compare bonds to one another.

Top 5 Value Stocks To Watch For 2015: Schlumberger N.V.(SLB)

Schlumberger Limited, together with its subsidiaries, supplies technology, integrated project management, and information solutions to the oil and gas exploration and production industries worldwide. The company?s Oilfield Services segment provides exploration and production services; wireline technology that offers open-hole and cased-hole services; supplies engineering support, directional-drilling, measurement-while-drilling, and logging-while-drilling services; and testing services. This segment also offers well services; supplies well completion services and equipment; artificial lift; data and consulting services; geo services; and information solutions, such as consulting, software, information management system, and IT infrastructure services that support oil and gas industry. Its WesternGeco segment provides reservoir imaging, monitoring, and development services; and operates data processing centers and multiclient seismic library. This segment also offers variou s services include 3D and time-lapse (4D) seismic surveys to multi-component surveys for delineating prospects and reservoir management. The company?s M-I SWACO segment supplies drilling fluid systems to improve drilling performance; fluid systems and specialty tools to optimize wellbore productivity; production technology solutions to maximize production rates; and environmental solutions that manages waste volumes generated in drilling and production operations. Its Smith Oilfield segment designs, manufactures, and markets drill bits and borehole enlargement tools; and supplies drilling tools and services, tubular, completion services, and other related downhole solutions. The company?s Distribution segment markets pipes, valves, and fittings, as well as mill, safety, and other maintenance products. This segment also provides warehouse management, vendor integration, and inventory management services. Schlumberger Limited was founded in 1927 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Matt DiLallo]

  Investors may wonder if peers like�Halliburton� (NYSE: HAL  ) �and�Schlumberger� (NYSE: SLB  ) �were pressured this quarter as well. Both companies have waded through the sluggish North American market by relying on growth overseas. If that trend continues, it should continue to mute some of the weakness Nabors experienced.

Top 5 Value Stocks To Watch For 2015: Tupperware Corporation(TUP)

Tupperware Brands Corporation operates as a direct seller of various products across a range of brands and categories through an independent sales force. The company engages in the manufacture and sale of kitchen and home products, and beauty and personal care products. It offers preparation, storage, and serving solutions for the kitchen and home, as well as kitchen cookware and tools, children?s educational toys, microwave products, and gifts under the Tupperware brand name primarily in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, the Asia Pacific, and North America. The company provides beauty and personal care products, which include skin care products, cosmetics, bath and body care, toiletries, fragrances, nutritional products, apparel, and related products principally in Mexico, South Africa, the Philippines, Australia, and Uruguay. It offers beauty and personal care products under the Armand Dupree, Avroy Shlain, BeautiControl, Fuller, NaturCare, Nutrimetics, Nuvo, and Swissgar de brand names. The company sells its Tupperware products directly to distributors, directors, managers, and dealers; and beauty products primarily through consultants and directors. As of December 26, 2009, the Tupperware distribution system had approximately 1,800 distributors, 61,300 managers, and 1.3 million dealers; and the sales force representing the Beauty businesses approximately 1.1 million. The company was formerly known as Tupperware Corporation and changed its name to Tupperware Brands Corporation in December 2005. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Orlando, Florida.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jonathan Berr]

  Multilevel marketing (MLM) groups such as Herbalife operate through independent sales representatives, who earn money both through the sales of product and by recruiting other people to join their team. This business model — which is used by scores of companies, including�Pampered Chef, which is owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B), Tupperware (TUP) and Mary Kay Cosmetics — is legal provided that actual products are sold.

• [By John Udovich]

  Everyone is familiar with�the Tupperware brand from�consumer products stock Tupperware Brands Corporation (NYSE: TUP) and you are probably familiar with the brands�of mid cap stock Jarden Corp (NYSE: JAH) along with small cap stocks Libbey Inc (NYSEMKT: LBY) and Lifetime Brands Inc (NASDAQ: LCUT); but what about the stocks themselves? Chances are, their brands or products are right under your nose at home and you probably don�� know anything about the mid cap or small cap stock behind them.

• [By Johanna Bennett]

  Corporate earnings took a back seat today to the Fed�� latest policy decision. Still, quarterly financial results, and other news sent shares of McCormick & Co. (MKC) and Tupperware (TUP), falling during regular market hours�Here�� a rundown of several of today�� moves:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Where growth will come from
  One area that Newell Rubbermaid still has to tap fully is emerging markets. The company has done a good job of expanding overseas, with 17% annual growth in Latin America. But with barely a quarter of its sales coming from outside the U.S. and Canada, the company has a lot further to go. Storage rival Tupperware (NYSE: TUP  ) gets fully 60% of its total revenue from emerging markets, and it too has seen impressive gains in South America as well as the Asia-Pacific region.

Top 5 Paper Companies To Buy Right Now: Caterpillar Inc.(CAT)

Caterpillar Inc. manufactures and sells construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives worldwide. It operates through three lines of businesses: Machinery, Engines, and Financial Products. The Machinery business offers construction, mining, and forestry machinery, including track and wheel tractors, track and wheel loaders, pipelayers, motor graders, wheel tractor-scrapers, track and wheel excavators, backhoe loaders, log skidders, log loaders, off-highway trucks, articulated trucks, paving products, skid steer loaders, underground mining equipment, tunnel boring equipment, and related parts. It also manufactures diesel-electric locomotives; and manufactures and services rail-related products and logistics services for other companies. The Engines business provides diesel, heavy fuel, and natural gas reciprocating engines for Caterpillar machinery, electric power generation systems, marine, petrol eum, construction, industrial, agricultural, and other applications. It offers industrial turbines and turbine-related services for oil and gas, and power generation applications. This business also remanufactures Caterpillar engines, machines, and engine components; and offers remanufacturing services for other companies. The Financial Products business provides retail and wholesale financing alternatives for Caterpillar machinery and engines, solar gas turbines, and other equipment and marine vessels, as well as offers loans and various forms of insurance to customers and dealers. It also offers financing for vehicles, power generation facilities, and marine vessels. The company markets its products directly, as well as through its distribution centers, dealers, and distributors. It was formerly known as Caterpillar Tractor Co. and changed its name to Caterpillar Inc. in 1986. Caterpillar Inc. was founded in 1925 and is headquartered in Peoria, Illinois.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Stocks bounced back from yesterday’s losses–and it was blue chips like�International Business Machines (IBM),�Johnson & Jonson (JNJ),�Caterpillar (CAT),�Merck (MRK) and�3M (MMM) that led the market higher.

Top 5 Value Stocks To Watch For 2015: Dollar Tree Inc.(DLTR)

Dollar Tree, Inc. operates discount variety stores in the United States and Canada. Its stores offer merchandise primarily at the fixed price of $1.00. The company operates its stores under the names of Dollar Tree, Deal$, Dollar Tree Deal$, Dollar Giant, and Dollar Bills. Its stores offer consumable merchandise, including candy and food, and health and beauty care, as well as household consumables, such as paper, plastics, household chemicals, in select stores, and frozen and refrigerated food; variety merchandise, which includes toys, durable housewares, gifts, party goods, greeting cards, softlines, and other items; and seasonal goods, such as Easter, Halloween, and Christmas merchandise. As of April 30, 2011, it operated 4,089 stores in 48 states and the District of Columbia, as well as 88 stores in Canada. The company was founded in 1986 and is based in Chesapeake, Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Maxfield]

  If you're anything like me, two things went through your head when you saw this. First, you regret that you missed out on the investment opportunity. Since the end of 2009, shares in all three of these companies, led by Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR  ) , have simply trounced the broader market. Even the worst performer of the bunch, Family Dollar (NYSE: FDO  ) , beat it by nearly a factor of two.

• [By Brendan Byrnes]

  Brendan: Not a problem at all. What about the surprising amount of dollar-store companies that are public? You have Family Dollar (NYSE: FDO  ) , Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR  ) , Dollar General (NYSE: DG  ) . You mention, in particular, Family Dollar, which is the lowest market cap out of all of those, as doing the best, an exceptional company. Why?

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Dollar General�� share price is up less than 6% in the past 12 months, but since the beginning of the year shares have risen more than 22%. And even then, Dollar General�trails Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR) in share price growth since January 1. Dollar Tree stock is up 30%.

• [By Jacob Roche]

  With the economy starting to improve, you might think Dollar Tree's (NASDAQ: DLTR  ) fortunes will reverse. The deep discounter provided unemployed and lower-income consumers a safe place in the storm, but with the economic weather clearing up, it would be reasonable to expect consumers to venture out again to higher-end retailers. However, that assumption would be wrong.

Top 10 Japanese Stocks To Buy For 2015

Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU  ) is finally getting ready to close the acquisition of bankrupt rival Elpida. The Japanese operation will give Micron a slew of manufacturing facilities, a whole new level of pricing power, and even a few brand-new customers.

In the video below, Fool contributor Anders Bylund highlights the recent dismissal of another roadblock in front of this long-suffering deal, this time from a Japanese court. The sooner Micron can close this agreement and get down to multicontinental business, the better.

It's incredible to think just how much of our digital and technological lives are almost entirely shaped and molded by just a handful of companies. Find out "Who Will Win the War Between the 5 Biggest Tech Stocks?" in The Motley Fool's latest free report, which details the knock-down, drag-out battle being waged by the five kings of tech. Click here to keep reading.

Top 10 Japanese Stocks To Buy For 2015: Kiwibox.com Inc (KIWB)

Kiwibox.Com, Inc. (Kiwibox), incorporated on April 19, 1988, is an early stage company. The Company owns and operates Kiwibox.com, which is a social networking Website. The Company has equipped the Website with the advertising features, which enable sponsors to self-direct their message to specific target audiences based on gender, age, geographic region, education, and interests. As of December 31, 2011, the Company generated the majority of its revenue from advertising/sponsorships. On September 30, 2011 Kiwibox.com acquired 100% interests in the social network, KWICK!! Community GmbH & Co. KG, and interest of its general partner, Kwick!! Community Beteiligungs GMBH. On March 7, 2011 the Company acquired Pixunity.DE a German photo book community.

Kiwibox.com has developed a monitoring model. The Kiwibox.com platform is equipped with technology features, which includes the private sphere configuration of users, contact blocs, anti-spam protection and intelligent self-learning user-scoring feature.

The Company competes with Facebook.com, Twitter and MySpace.com.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Peter Graham]

  Last Friday, small cap stocks Kiwibox.com Inc (OTCMKTS: KIWB), Eyes on The Go Inc (OTCMKTS: AXCG) and Green Endeavors Inc (OTCMKTS: GRNE) were sinking 37.5%, 28.57% and 23.9%, respectively. Moreover, it should be mentioned that all three small cap stocks have been the subject of recent paid promotions or investor relation campaigns which have gotten them mentions in various investment newsletters or investor alerts. So are the promotional or investor relation campaigns over with for these three small caps? Here is a quick look to help you decide:

  Kiwibox.com Inc (OTCMKTS: KIWB) Makes an Acquisition in Germany and Reports Surging Registrations

  Small cap Kiwibox.com Inc owns and operates social networking sites like Kiwibox.com, a site that has over over 14 years experience as social network. On Friday, Kiwibox.com Inc sank 37.5% to $0.005 for a market cap of $3.41 million plus KIWB is down 58.3% over the past year and down 63% over the past five years according to Google Finance.

Top 10 Japanese Stocks To Buy For 2015: Dole Food Company Inc(DOLE)

Dole Food Company, Inc. engages in sourcing, growing, processing, marketing, and distributing fresh fruits and vegetables, and food products to wholesale, retail, and institutional customers worldwide. It operates in three segments: Fresh Fruit, Fresh Vegetables, and Packaged Foods. The Fresh Fruit segment involves in growing and selling bananas under the DOLE brand name primarily in North America, Europe, and Asia; ripening and distributing DOLE and non-DOLE branded fresh produce in Europe; growing, sourcing, and selling fresh pineapples under the DOLE TROPICAL GOLD label; and exporting Chilean fruits, including grapes, apples, pears, stone fruits, and kiwifruits primarily to North America, Latin America, and Europe. The Fresh Vegetables segment engages in sourcing, harvesting, cooling, distributing, and marketing various fresh and fresh-cut vegetables, including iceberg lettuce, red and green leaf lettuce, romaine lettuce, butter lettuce, celery, cauliflower, broccoli, c arrots, Brussels sprouts, green onions, asparagus, snow peas, artichokes, and radishes, as well as fresh strawberries and raspberries. This segment also processes and markets value-added vegetable products, such as packaged salads and packaged fresh-cut vegetables. The Packaged Foods segment produces and markets canned pineapples, canned pineapple juice, fruit juice concentrate, fruit parfaits, snack foods, and frozen fruits, as well as fruits in plastic cups, jars, and pouches. Its principal customers include mass merchandisers and supermarkets. Dole Food Company, Inc. was founded in 1851 and is based in Westlake Village, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Eric Volkman]

  It didn't take long for Dole Foods (NYSE: DOLE  ) to reverse its policy on stock repurchases. Less than three weeks after initiating a buyback program, the company has suspended it. Instead, it will plow capital into upgrading its fleet of ships, a project it anticipates will cost roughly $165 million.

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Shares of fresh-fruit producer Dole Foods (NYSE: DOLE  ) soared more than 20% in morning trading after the board of directors announced its chairman and CEO had offered to�acquire all of the outstanding shares of company stock he and his family don't already own for $12.00 per share in cash, which values the company at $1.07 billion.

• [By Rich Duprey]

  That's why seeing Dole Foods (NYSE: DOLE  ) lurch from a stock buyback program one day to suspending it weeks later so it can buy new ships instead, rattled investors and caused its stock to drop 10% so far.

Top Media Stocks To Buy Right Now: 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 Eric Volkman]

  EXCO Resources (NYSE: XCO  ) is about to draw another shareholder payback out of the ground. The company has declared a dividend of $0.05 per share for its Q1. That nickel will be paid on June 28 to stockholders of record as of June 14. The amount matches the company's previous distribution, which was paid in late March. Before that, EXCO Resources had handed out $0.04 per share since September 2010.

• [By Arjun Sreekumar]

  EXCO Resources (NYSE: XCO  ) has also seen meaningful improvements�in drilling days, reporting that it drilled its most recent wells in about 34 days, down from 45-60 days a few years ago. These and other efficiency gains helped the Dallas-based company reduce its well costs by about 20% from the end of 2011, with current costs in its core DeSoto area down to about $7.8 million-$8 million.

• [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.

Top 10 Japanese Stocks To Buy For 2015: Ultratech Inc.(UTEK)

Ultratech, Inc. develops, manufactures, and markets photolithography and laser thermal processing equipment. It supplies step-and-repeat photolithography systems based on one-to-one imaging technology to semiconductor device manufacturers for applications involving line geometries of 0.75 microns or greater and to nanotechnology manufacturers. The company?s steppers are also used to manufacture semiconductors that are used in various applications, such as telecommunications, automotive control systems, power systems, and consumer electronics. It also supplies 1X photolithography systems to thin film head manufacturers; and offers LSA100, a laser-based thermal annealing tool used by the semiconductor industry for various process steps, including activation of implanted impurities, dielectric film formation, formation of silicides, and stabilization of copper grain structures. Ultratech, Inc. sells its systems to semiconductor, advanced packaging, high-brightness light emit ting diodes, thin film head, and various other nanotechnology manufacturers in North America, Europe, and Asia. The company was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in San Jose, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Evan Niu, CFA]

  What: Shares of Ultratech (NASDAQ: UTEK  ) got ultra crushed today, down by 18% at the low, following a first-quarter earnings release that didn't meet expectations.

Top 10 Japanese Stocks To Buy For 2015: Associated Banc-Corp(ASBC)

Associated Banc-Corp, a bank holding company, offers various banking and financial services to individuals and businesses primarily in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Minnesota. Its Banking segment provides loans and deposit products to businesses, governments, and consumers. Its products and services include checking, savings, money market deposit, and IRA accounts, as well as certificates of deposit and safe deposit boxes; and home equity loans and lines of credit, residential mortgage loans and mortgage refinancing, education loans, and personal and installment loans. This segment?s products and services also include business checking accounts, business loans, real estate financing, construction loans, letters of credit, revolving credit arrangements, business credit cards, equipment and machinery leases, night depository, cash management, international banking, check clearing, safekeeping, and other banking-based services. The company?s Wealth Management segment provides va rious fiduciary, investment management, advisory, and corporate agency services for individuals, corporations, small businesses, charitable trusts, endowments, foundations, and institutional investors. This segment also offers life, property, casualty, and credit and mortgage insurance, as well as fixed annuities and employee group benefits consulting and administration services; investment brokerage, variable annuities, and discount and online brokerage services; and trust/asset/investment management, administration of pension, profit-sharing and other employee benefit plans, personal trusts, and estate planning services. The company offers its products through branch facilities, loan production offices, supermarket branches, a customer service call center, an interstate automated teller machine network, and Internet banking services. As of December 31, 2010, its banking subsidiary had 280 offices in approximately 150 communities. The company was founded in 1964 and is base d in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By The Part-time Investor]

  The following stocks met the criteria in January of 2008 and were put into the initial portfolio:

  Abbot Labs (ABT)Advanced data processing (ADP)Associated Banc-Corp (ASBC)Bank of America (BAC)BB&T Corp. (BBT)Bemis Company (BMS)Anheuser Busch (BUD)The Chubb Corporation (CB)Clorox (CLX)Comerica Inc. (CMA)Diebold Inc. (DBD)Emerson Electronics (EMR)First Dollar Corp. (FDO)First Third BanCorp. (FITB)Gannett Co, Inc. (GCI)General Electric (GE)Hershey (HSY)Illinois Tools Works (ITW)Johnson and Johnson (JNJ)Leggett and Platt (LEG)Eli Lilly (LLY)La-Z-Boy (LZB)McDonald's (MCD)Marsh and Ilsley (MI)M&T Bancorp (MTB)PepsiCo (PEP)Pfizer (PFE)Procter & Gamble (PG)Pentair Ltd. (PNR)Regions Financial Corp. (RF)Rohm and Haas (ROH)RPM International (RPM)Sherwin Williams (SHW)Sysco Corp. (SYY)UDR Inc. (UDR)

  Historical quotes were taken from Yahoo Finance. $10,000 was put into each position, to the nearest whole share, so a total of $349,262.89 was invested. From 1/15/08 through 5/16/13 all dividends were reinvested back into the stock that paid them. If a dividend cut was announced, that stock was sold on the ex-div date of the new, lower dividend.

• [By Monica Gerson]

  Associated Banc-Corp (NASDAQ: ASBC) shares rose 1.73% to reach a new 52-week high of $18.20 after the company announced a $120 million buyback plan and shelf registration of $500 million.

• [By John Maxfield]

  Given that you clicked on this article, it seems safe to assume you either own stock in Associated Banc-Corp. (NASDAQ: ASBC  ) or are considering buying shares in the near future. If so, then you've come to the right place. The table below reveals the nine most critical numbers that investors need to know about Associated Banc-Corp stock before deciding whether to buy, sell, or hold it.

Top 10 Japanese Stocks To Buy For 2015: Southern Pacific Resource Corp (STPJF.PK)

Southern Pacific Resource Corp. (Southern Pacific) is engaged in the acquisition and development of heavy oil and bitumen producing properties, with a focus on thermal extraction in-situ oil sands projects in the Western Canadian sedimentary basin. Southern Pacific has two principal assets STP-McKay and STP-Senlac. The Company also holds additional oil sands leases in the McMurray and Peace River sub-basins in northeastern Alberta. The Company has 100% working interest in approximately 37,760 acres, of oil sands leases in McKay Block. Southern Pacific has its 100% working interest SAGD thermal heavy oil asset near Unity, Saskatchewan, STP-Senlac. In September 2013, the Company announced the closing of a disposition of non-core assets related to its Leismer property. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephan Dube]

  Cold Lake's most notable producers:

  Husky Energy (HUSK.PK), see article here.Pengrowth Energy Corporation (PGH), see article here.Southern Pacific Resource (STPJF.PK), see article here.Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ), see article here.Devon Energy (DVN), see article here.Imperial Oil (IMO), see article here.Baytex, see article here.Bonavista Energy (BNPUF.PK), see article here.

  Athabasca's most notable producers:

Top 10 Japanese Stocks To Buy For 2015: Total System Services Inc.(TSS)

Total System Services, Inc. provides electronic payment processing and other services to card-issuing and merchant acquiring institutions. The company offers issuer account solutions, including processing the card application, initiating service for the cardholder, processing each card transaction for the issuing retailer or financial institution, and accumulating the account's transactions; fraud management services; and other services, such as customized communications to cardholders, and information verification associated with granting credit, debt collection, and customer service. It also provides merchant processing and related services that comprise processing various payment forms, such as credit, debit, prepaid, electronic benefit transfer, and electronic check; authorization and capture of transactions; clearing and settlement of transactions; information reporting services related to transactions; merchant billing services; and point-of-sale equipment sales and service. In addition, the company offers issuer and merchant card solutions. Total System Services, Inc. provides its services through online accounting and electronic payment processing systems. It operates primarily in the United States, Europe, Canada, Japan, Mexico, the Caribbean, the Asia Pacific, and Brazil. The company was founded in 1982 and is based in Columbus, Georgia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Kyial Robinson]

  Total Systems Services (NYSE: TSS) is typically quiet but steady.

  The company has impressively kept its 52-week high and 52-week low between a $10 dollar margin.

• [By Jane Edmondson]

  One additional item of note: the stock has been a rumored take-out candidate since another large competitor, NetSpend (NTSP), received an offer to be acquired in February by global payment solutions provider TSYS (TSS).

• [By Sean Williams]

  Total System Services (NYSE: TSS  )
  Buffett may have been a bit gun-shy with technology and finance stocks of late, but he could combine the best of both worlds by purchasing Total System Services, a software developer and payment processor for the credit card industry.

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Paperless payments provider�Total System Services� (NYSE: TSS  ) �announced yesterday�its second-quarter dividend of $0.10 per share, the same rate it's paid for the past six quarters.

Top 10 Japanese Stocks To Buy For 2015: Federal Resources Investment Group Inc (FED)

Federal Resources Investment Group Inc.( FED) is a Philippines-based holding company engaged. The Company�� primary activities were to invest in, purchase, or otherwise dispose of real and personal property of every kind and description, including shares of stock, bonds, debentures, notes, evidences of indebtedness, and other securities or obligations of any corporation or corporations, association and associations, domestic or foreign. Prior to its change in primary purpose, the Company was previously engaged in the manufacture, marketing and distribution of various adhesives and sealants, contact cement, wood glues, epoxies, coating, and other specialty products, and other chemicals for hardware, construction, do-it-yourself and other applications. The Company�� operating segments include PVC Resins and Sealants, Coatings and adhesives. The Company is still in the process of winding up its manufacturing and trading operations and selling its remaining inventories. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Canadian Value]

  In the US, we believe the key is whether the economic recovery will be self-sustaining in the absence of the excessively easy monetary policy that the US Federal Reserve (Fed) has been providing via its longstanding Treasury asset purchase program known as Quantitative Easing (QE). Can the Fed orchestrate a steady, manageable rise in interest rates? Will employment and wage growth gather strength and create a virtuous growth cycle without Fed support? And will corporate earnings continue to come through as anticipated by the steady expansion we have seen in valuation multiples? These are all unknowns, but will likely be important parts of the equation for the US market.

• [By Canadian Value]

  I think too many investors have failed to put those events and developments in the proper context. Rather, they have come to the conclusion that emerging markets are finished, particularly, they say, as the US Federal Reserve (Fed) is expected to turn off the money tap, depriving emerging markets of needed liquidity to protect their weakening currencies and pay their debts. For the time being, the Fed has decided to keep the tap flowing, removing one immediate investor fear. But I think there are also other reasons why investors who doubt the emerging markets��story need better context.

Top 10 Japanese Stocks To Buy For 2015: iShares Russell 3000 Index Fund (IWV)

iShares Russell 3000 Index Fund (the Fund) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Russell 3000 Index (the Index). The Index measures the performance of the United States equity market. The Index serves as the underlying index for Russell 3000 Growth and Value Series, and the Russell 1000 and Russell 2000 Indexes, as well as their respective Growth and Value series. The Index is a capitalization-weighted index and consists of the 3000 largest companies domiciled in the United States and its territories.

The Fund invests in a representative sample of securities included in the Index that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Index. iShares Russell 3000 Index Fund's investment advisor is Barclays Global Fund Advisors.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Maxfield]

  Over the past five years, this ETF has beaten the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) by 23 percentage points. It's outperformed the Russell 3000 (NYSEMKT: IWV  ) by 21 percentage points. And it's done the same to the eponymous S&P 500, exceeding it by 11 percentage points.

Top 10 Japanese Stocks To Buy For 2015: iShares U.S. Oil & Gas Exploration & Production ETF (IEO)

iShares Dow Jones U.S. Oil & Gas Exploration & Production Index Fund (the Fund) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Dow Jones U.S. Select Oil Exploration & Production Index (the Index). The Index measures the performance of the oil exploration and production sub-sector of the United States equity market. The Index includes companies that are engaged in the exploration for and extraction, production, refining and supply of oil and gas products.

The Fund will concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to approximately the same extent as the Index is so concentrated. Since all of the securities included in the Index are issued by companies in the oil exploration and production sub-sector, the Fund will be concentrated in the exploration and production industry. The Fund�� investment advisor is Barclays Global Fund Advisors.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Michael Burnick]

  The big E&P (exploration and production) and major integrated oil stocks see profits rise and fall with the price of crude. The iShares US Oil & Gas Exploration & Production ETF (IEO) is one way to play this part of the oil patch.

• [By John Udovich]

  At first glance, you might think it strange that we have both the ProShares UltraShort DJ-UBS Crude Oil ETF (NYSEARCA: SCO), a bearish bet on oil, and the iShares Dow Jones US Oil & Gas Ex Index ETF (NYSEARCA: IEO), a more bullish bet on both domestic oil and gas, in our SmallCap Network Elite Opportunity (SCN EO) portfolio. But there is a method to our apparent madness as one can be both bearish and bullish on oil and/or gas at the same time.

• [By Selena Maranjian]

  Exchange-traded funds offer a convenient way to invest in sectors or niches that interest you. If you'd like to add some gas and oil stocks to your portfolio, the iShares Dow Jones U.S. Oil and Gas Exploration Index ETF (NYSEMKT: IEO  ) could save you a lot of trouble. Instead of trying to figure out which companies will perform best, you can use this gas and oil ETF to invest in lots of them simultaneously.
  
  The basics
  ETFs often sport lower expense ratios than their mutual fund cousins. The gas and oil ETF's expense ratio -- its annual fee -- is a relatively low 0.47%. The fund is on the small side, 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 to this gas and oil ETF.

Why My $600 Mistake Could Make You A Fortune

A recent fit of virtuous (if misguided) housecleaning ended up costing me $600, but what I learned in the process could provide you with a chance to get in on a secondary play of a recovering sector.

It started when I decided to clean under the refrigerator for the first time in quite a while. I took my time sweeping up the accumulated gunk, vacuuming the coils and disinfecting the unit from top to bottom.

But when I plugged the fridge back in, the outside began warming up and the inside stopped being cold. Some 24 hours and a half-dozen Web searches later, I realized my mistake.

 

To get under the unit, I tilted it and rested it on a chair while I cleaned. I'm not strong enough to hold the fridge up with one hand and sweep with the other, but tilting it had burned out the compressor, which moves the refrigerant through all those now-clean metal coils. Whoops.

I decided it was time to buy a new fridge. Shopping for a new unit took me to several home improvement stores -- and to my surprise, they were all jammed. Appliances, tools, paint and lumber -- every section was hopping, and much more than I'd seen in years. Had everyone just broken something at the same time?

No. What I stumbled on was a boom in the home improvement industry resulting from a recovering housing market. 

In June, the monthly sentiment index from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), known as the Housing Market Index (HMI), moved into the positive for the first time since April 2006. The HMI jumped 8 points to 52 (anything greater than 50 indicates positive sales conditions). NAHB Chief Economist David Rowe has predicted housing starts will top 1 million this year for the first time since 2007.

In addition, investors flipped more than 136,000 single-family homes during the first half of this year, according to research firm RealtyTrac's mid-year flipping report. That's 19% higher than the pace last year and 74% percent higher than in 2011 -- and it's on pace to exceed the nearly 233,000 houses flipped in 2006 at the height of the housing bubble.

What do these numbers mean? The current housing boom isn't just the work of homeowners -- the pros are back. And what do the pros do? Spend money to freshen up a property and then resell it.

The Home Improvement Research Institute (HIRI) sees the same trend. HIRI expects total home improvement sales to increase 4.3% this year, to $287.3 billion, and another 5.7% next year.

Next, I looked at several home improvement stocks to see whether those spending numbers were translating into impr! oved financial results.

It sure looks that way: Lumber Liquidators (NYSE: LL) is up more than 160% in a year, and the slowest growth in the sector was still over 30%. In my opinion, investing in this sector provides a prudent and lucrative way to tap into the recovery in the housing market. Here are a few of my favorites:

Whirlpool (NYSE: WHR) recently raised its full-year earnings forecast for this year. A great "made in America" buy, Whirlpool is also seeing a sales rebound in Europe. If Whirlpool can get operating margins above 6% -- where they were a decade ago -- WHR could approach $200 by next summer.

Stanley Black & Decker (NYSE: SWK) announces its earnings expectations on July 26, and I would wait until after that to buy as I expect SWK will dip on slightly contracted revenues and earnings per share. However, this stock could be a really stable investment. It yields a 2.5% dividend, which has grown by about 6% annually over the past decade.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE: WSM) has been hitting 52-week highs this month, but I think it's got room to grow because it has been expanding its margins and moving ahead with expansion plans. Williams-Sonoma also continues to increase its direct-to-consumer revenues as a percentage of its total revenue.

Risks to Consider: The housing sector is cyclical: HIRI forecasts spending will level out in 2015 and 2016. Therefore, home improvement companies are not set-it-and-forget it stocks for the most part, and you will want to revisit your portfolio in a year to gauge whether to take your profits and pull out before the sector turns.

Action to Take --> While the entire sector shows upside, my favorites are Whirlpool, Williams-Sonoma and Stanley Black & Decker because they have significantly lower price-to-earnings ratios than their peers -- which tells me they're still undervalued -- and offer a high dividend yield. Dividend yields are attractive not only because they put additional money in the investor! 9;s pocke! t -- they also indicate a high level of fiscal responsibility.

In the interest of full disclosure, I ended up buying an Amana fridge from Home Depot (NYSE: HD) because they had the best price, plus free home delivery and takeaway of the old unit. I paid extra for a warranty in case I get it in my mind to do any more cleaning.

P.S. -- An eccentric Texas woman who dodged the 2008 financial collapse says the market is ripe for a pullback. This is the same analyst who's produced annual returns of up to 510%, and has picked winning investments roughly 85% of the time. To learn how she's protecting her portfolio today, click here.

Shorts Are Piling Into These Stocks. Should You Be Worried?

The best thing about the stock market is that you can make money in either direction. Historically, stock indexes have tended to trend up over the long term. But when you look at individual stocks, you'll find plenty that lose money over the long haul. According to hedge fund institution Blackstar Funds, even with dividends included, between 1983 and 2006, 64% of stocks underperformed the Russell 3000, a broad-scope market index.

A large influx of short-sellers shouldn't be a condemning factor to any company, but it could be a red flag from traders that something may not be as cut-and-dried as it appears. Let's look at three companies that have seen a rapid increase in the number of shares sold short and see whether traders are blowing smoke or if their worry has some merit.

Company

Short Increase June 14 to June 28

Short Shares As a % of Float

Six Flags Entertainment (NYSE: SIX  )	107.3%	7.2%
American Water Works (NYSE: AWK  )	68.8%	0.7%
Total System Services (NYSE: TSS  )	70%	2.3%

Source: The Wall Street Journal.

A wild ride
It has certainly been quite the comeback for theme-park operator Six Flags Entertainment, emerging from bankruptcy in 2010 and rewarding shareholders in May with the announcement that it was splitting its stock 2-for-1 and paying out a $0.90 quarterly dividend. Tourism in the U.S. has been a bright spot, with Six Flags' traffic numbers way up -- a 41% increase in just the first quarter alone. But, is this amazing ride for shareholders about to be cut short?

The downside to the theme-park industry is that it's intricately tied to consumer spending habits. There's no denying that traffic went up by 41% in the first quarter, but a big chunk of that boost was because of an earlier Easter, which bumped spring break vacations forward into the first quarter. Next year Six Flags is going to have some pretty difficult comparisons to hit because of the earlier holiday. Those comparisons certainly won't be helped by the tragic roller-coaster death in Texas last week, either. However, the negative backlash to come, basing this on how park-goers have responded to accidents in the past, tends to be very short-lived and shouldn't affect the investing thesis for long-term investors in either direction.

I continue to have concerns about the effects higher taxes could have on the consumer. In the first quarter we saw America's largest retailer, Wal-Mart, deliver a same-store sales drop because of delayed tax refunds and higher payroll taxes -- and it's among the best in terms of pricing power in the world. If Wal-Mart is struggling in a low-growth environment, I don't see how Six Flags is going to prosper, either.

Finally, it's a matter of branding. Some theme parks have managed to thrive even in a slow growth environment because of their branding ties. Take Disney (NYSE: DIS  ) , for example, which has intricate ties between its theme park and the entertainment side of its business (i.e., its movies and merchandise). The two go hand-in-hand, which creates a pull for consumers to visit Disney's theme parks and allots them good pricing power for admission tickets. Six Flags doesn't have that branding. Sure, it has certain themed rides that may appeal to fans of specific franchises (e.g., Superman the ride), but it doesn't have the allure to pull in vacationers as its counterpart Disney does. As such, I'd consider leaving this stock to let short-sellers have their way.

Dripping with potential
The end of June wasn't kind to American Water Works, which saw short interest spike by nearly 69%. The risks for a water utility like American Water Works include its relatively high debt load; the potential for water rationing in drought-laden regions, which would slow water demand; and the potential for large infrastructure upgrades, which can sometimes be unexpected and sack profits. Yet in spite of these risks, I selected American Water Works to my Basic Needs Portfolio last week, expecting it to continue its run higher over the long run.

One factor many investors fail to take into account with regard to this water utility is its geographic diversity. A majority of its smaller peers operate in one state, or just a handful. If a drought hits, or the economy in that region deteriorates, it can negatively affect profits. American Water Works, on the other hand, operates in more than 30 states and two Canadian provinces, spreading out its risks and customer base.

The potential for dividend income growth is also huge. At a current yield of 2.6%, American Water Works pays out a yield that's right around the sector average but has a payout ratio that's considerably lower than its peers. To that end, this means it has the greatest potential of boosting its payout in the water utility sector.

The final reason short-sellers may want to think twice about this trade is the simple fact of why I chose it in the first place: Water is a basic need. It's true that economic downturns and droughts may slow demand, but the effect will probably be minimal. We need water to survive, and the average American family uses 300 gallons of it each day! Those figures would portend slow but steady growth for American Water Works over the long run.

A world of potential
It's pretty easy to understand why investors are skeptical of software developer and payment facilitator Total System Services, or TSYS, given that it has missed the Street's revenue estimates in three of the past four quarters. Competition in the payment processing space has also been increasing at a breakneck pace. However, for me I consider all these worries for naught and think TSYS could be an intriguing play moving forward -- and perhaps even a buyout candidate for the famed Warren Buffett.

A big growth opportunity for TSYS is in payment processing. According to MasterCard CFO Martina Hund-Mejean, 85% of the world's transactions are still facilitated with cash, leaving decades of double-digit growth opportunity for TSYS and its peers to tap these markets. The best part is that the global credit market is always growing, meaning every company can get a piece of the pie without stepping on each other's toes.

Another growth driver is its purchase of NetSpend Holdings, which closed earlier this month. NetSpend is a general purpose reloadable prepaid debit card company, which is meant to service some 68 million underbanked citizens in the United States. Prepaid debit cards are a hot spot of growth in the U.S., since the credit crisis made it impossible for some people to get traditional bank accounts. It could also represent a big opportunity overseas in underbanked regions such as Africa and Asia.

But not every prepaid company offered what TSYS was looking for. Green Dot (NYSE: GDOT  ) , for example, directly competes with NetSpend, but has a good chunk of its revenue tied solely to Wal-Mart. With the introduction of new competitors within Wal-Mart, Green Dot was left scrambling for new retail outlets last summer and has yet to fully recover. TSYS made the wiser decision to scoop up the pricier NetSpend, which had considerably better retail outlet diversity.

In short, bet against TSYS at your own risk.

Foolish roundup
This week's theme is all about real-world necessities and diversity. Water is a basic need of life, and access to credit is slowly becoming a way of life for many citizens around the world, making American Water Works and TSYS two companies that aren't worth betting against. For Six Flags, which lacks any driving force or branding, it may find itself at the mercy of a slow-growing U.S. economy.

What's your take on these three stocks? Do short-sellers have these stocks pegged, or are they blowing smoke? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Interested in a stock that might put short-sellers in their place? The Motley Fool's chief investment officer recently selected his No. 1 stock for this year and it has short-crushing potential written all over it. Find out which stock it is in the special free report: "The Motley Fool's Top Stock for 2013." Just click here to access the report and find out the name of this under-the-radar company.

Major oil, gas firm to list fracking chemicals

PITTSBURGH (AP) — A major supplier to the oil and gas industry says it will begin disclosing 100% of the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing fluid, with no exemptions for trade secrets. The move by Baker Hughes of Houston is a shift for a major firm; it's unclear if others will follow suit.

The oil and gas industry has said the fracking chemicals are disclosed at tens of thousands of wells, but environmental and health groups and government regulators say a loophole that allows companies to hide chemical "trade secrets" has been a major problem.

A statement on the Baker Hughes website said the company believes it's possible to disclose 100% "of the chemical ingredients we use in hydraulic fracturing fluids without compromising our formulations," to increase public trust.

"This really good news. It's a step in the right direction," said Dr. Bernard Goldstein, the former dean of the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health. "One hopes that the entire industry goes along with it."

But Goldstein noted one "major hedge" in the Baker Hughes position, since the company said it will provide complete lists of the products and chemical ingredients used in frack fluids "where accepted by our customers and relevant governmental authorities."

Still, Goldstein said the Baker Hughes language sets a new standard for transparency and "clearly distinguishes them from Halliburton," another major industry supplier.

Baker Hughes spokeswoman Melanie Kania wrote in an email that it will take "several months" for the new policy to take effect. She said the end result will be a "single list" that provides "all the chemical constituents" for frack fluids, with no trade secrets.

Amy Mall, a policy analyst for the Natural Resources Defense Council, said the Baker Hughes move is a positive step, and that "if one company can do it, it's very clear all companies can do it." Mall said NRDC doesn't believe companies should use the trade secret argument to hide drilling chem! icals.

A spokeswoman for Houston-based Halliburton, another major oil and gas supplier, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

A boom in drilling has led to tens of thousands of new wells being drilled in recent years using the fracking process. A mix of water, sand and chemicals is forced into deep underground formations to break rock apart and free oil and gas. That's led to major economic benefits but also fears that the chemicals used in the process could spread to water supplies.

The mix of chemicals varies by company and region — and some of the chemicals are toxic and could cause health problems in significant doses — so the lack of full transparency has worried landowners and public health experts.

Many companies voluntarily disclose the contents of their fracking fluids through FracFocus.org, a website partially funded by the oil and gas industry that tracks fracking operations nationwide. But critics say the website has loose reporting standards and allows companies to avoid disclosure by declaring certain chemicals as trade secrets.

An Energy Department task force report issued in March that found that 84% of the wells registered on FracFocus invoked a trade secret exemption for at least one chemical. The Task Force said it "favors full disclosure of all known constituents added to fracturing fluid with few, if any exceptions."

The FracFocus website is managed by the Ground Water Protection Council and Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission, both based in Oklahoma, and is funded by industry and the Energy Department.

Gerry Baker of the Oil and Gas Compact said he doesn't know of any other major supplier that has made a pledge similar to the one from Baker Hughes.

"It's a business decision on their part," Baker said. "Somehow, they've committed to this at the highest levels" of disclosure.

The Interior Department is expected to finalize proposed regulation for hydraulic fracturing on public lands by the end of the year.! The meas! ure would apply to some 700 million acres of federal lands and 56 million acres of lands controlled by federally recognized Indian tribes.

The rule proposed last year would require companies drilling for oil and natural gas to disclose chemicals used in fracking operations. The information would be made public.

The DOE said 25 states now mandate public disclosure of the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing, including 15 that use FracFocus as a reporting tool.

Industry groups oppose the disclosure rule, saying it would be costly for businesses, with little environmental or safety benefit. The American Petroleum Institute, the oil industry's top lobbying group, has praised the efforts of states to adopt the FracFocus database for disclosing chemicals, but has said additional federal regulations could jeopardize economic growth.

Asked about the Baker Hughes plan, API spokesman Zachary Cikanek said in an email that they "also welcome additional efforts by individual companies to increase public engagement and transparency."

The "Earnings Beat" That's Perfect for This Market

Editor's Note: Bill Patalon's readers enjoy inside access to his regular consultations with Money Map Press editors. We're sharing this conversation with you today because the subject happens to lie at the intersection of several high-profit trends now. Here's Bill...

Last Wednesday, the Milpitas, Calif.-based SanDisk Corporation (Nasdaq: SNDK) reported first-quarter results that smashed analyst expectations, and the company's shares shot up 6% in after-hours trading.

But our Chief Investment Strategist Keith Fitz-Gerald saw that beat coming and put readers out in front of it.

He talked to me about its recent stellar performance...

American Resilience Is the Fuel

"One of the arguments that I've advanced in recent weeks is that American companies are far more resilient than Wall Street would have us believe - which is why I watched the sell-off with a feeling of opportunism, and not apprehension," Keith told me. "In the specific report you referenced, BP, I agreed with your assessment that we're moving into a 'stock-picker's market,' and listed three companies that I believed investors should be taking a look at. SanDisk's great first-quarter numbers affirm that assessment."

Keith also recommended ABB Ltd (NYSE: ABB) and Abbott Laboratories Inc. (NYSE: ABT). ABB and Abbott are both earlier Private Briefing recommendations. SanDisk was a brand-new recommendation, but one I like a lot; Keith and resident tech guru Michael Robinson also each like the stock.

One reason it's kind of a cool investment play is that you probably use its products. At minimum, I'm betting you have at least one of its USB Flash Drives. You might also have a SanDisk Micro SD card (the kind you use in a digital camera). And I also have several SanDisk MP3 players; I download "audiobooks" from Audible.com to keep me company during my hour-long commute (one-way) each day.

When you take all of this together, SanDisk "is a great place to start if you're just joining in or have a little extra cash you'd like to put to work at the moment," Keith says.

The company's first-quarter results bear that out.

Revenue totaled $1.51 billion, an increase of 13% on a year-over-year basis. It was $20 million more than analysts were expecting.

Profits came in at $1.44 a share - a 71% gain from the same period a year ago and a full 19 cents better than the Wall Street crowd was expecting.

"We delivered record first quarter results, driven by 61% growth in our SSD (solid-state-drive) revenue and strong retail performance," said Sanjay Mehrotra, SanDisk's president and CEO. "We are excited by the momentum we are building in our business as we continue to execute on our growth initiatives."

A Solid (State) Growth Strategy

SanDisk is hitting its own growth targets by tapping into some of the hottest growth trends - including data centers, the Mobile Wave, and Cloud Computing.

Indeed, the company has recently introduced innovative products in three categories:

A line of "CloudSpeed" enterprise SSDs for data-center and Cloud-Computing storage solutions.

A line of high-performance "iNAND Extreme" embedded flash drives for Android-based smartphones.

And a 128-gigabyte SanDisk Ultra microSDXC" UHS-1 card, which the company says is the world's highest-capacity mobile storage offering.

These are all sound strategic moves, says a recent report from stock-researcher Trefis.com.

"With user data increasingly moving to the Cloud, storage demand from data centers is increasing," the report states. "Over the next few quarters, the company expects the contribution of SSDs to go up to around a quarter of its net revenue due to the expected growth in enterprise storage demand and its new products. If the company meets its expected target, it would provide a substantial boost to earnings."

Late last year, SanDisk upgraded its "Flashsoft" software because it wanted to target the accelerating demand for software-defined storage - a growth market we told you a lot about in a recent report on EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC).

And the way SanDisk pulled this off means its Flashsoft software makes it possible for a standard SSD to be used as high-speed caching memory for enterprise-level storage devices. With such flexibility, SanDisk aims to capture the attention of information-technology (IT) departments that are contemplating the switch to flash arrays. Although flash arrays are gaining traction in the industry, switching to arrays is still costly. Even so, Trefis analysts say this represents a new market for SanDisk, meaning lots of long-term growth should come from software-defined storage.

Top Quality Stocks To Watch Right Now

Wall Street currently has a one-year target price of $81.93 on SanDisk shares - which is about 8% above Keith's recommendation price of $75.69. Of course, we see much bigger gains ahead in the long term.

And after the great "earnings beat," look next for investment-banking analysts to start upgrading SanDisk and boosting their target prices for the stock. That will serve as a nice catalyst in the near term - and will jump-start the long-term appreciation we see for this stock.

We'll keep you posted...

Is Netflix Getting Arrested Again?

Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX  ) may not be ready to let go of the Bluth family just yet.

"We are in conversations with them to do another," Imagine Entertainment's Brian Grazer told Bloomberg Television at the Allen & Co. conference yesterday when asked about Arrested Development on Netflix. "They are interested in doing that."

There has been no response out of Netflix, but the news has pushed the stock today to yet another 52-week high.

The fourth season of the cult favorite was greeted with mixed reviews, but the media attention and show's magnetism probably helped Netflix score another monster quarter. We'll know more in less than two weeks when Netflix reports its second-quarter financials.

Analysts see profitability more than tripling on a better than 20% top-line surge.

Another season next year would be a big catch for Netflix. It would validate the streaming experience for an established star-studded show, paving the way for more of broadcast television's castoffs to treat their devoted fan bases to fresh content.

Anyone who has streamed the entire fourth season also knows that the final episode concluded abruptly, with more than a few unanswered questions. This may have been ammo for Imagine to pull off the full-blown theatrical releases that they were envisioning, but if the market isn't there for that, clearly Netflix isn't shying away from large production budgets for original programming.

Unlike rival Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN  ) , which only bankrolled production of entire seasons of new shows after first running the pilots past its users, Netflix hasn't been afraid to cut big checks for shows sight unseen. Netflix green lighted a second season of Orange is the New Black -- the service's latest foray into first-run programming, which premiered yesterday -- weeks before the audiences weighed in.

Who has the upper hand in the relationship between Netflix and Imagine? That's debatable, but it would seem as if Netflix is Hollywood's new power broker. Amazon's Jeff Bezos isn't afraid to take big hits in the near term as he pursues long-term gains, but there's no way that he would outbid Netflix if a fifth season of Arrested Development was on the block.

Armed with more than 36-million global subscribers -- a figure that will surely go up substantially when Netflix reports later this month -- no platform offers a studio access to such a large tech-savvy audience. 

At the end of the day, no one can be smarter than Netflix when it comes to deciding which shows to renew. It has all of the data on how many people are watching, and if they're sticking around as subscribers. This knowledge has forced Netflix into not renewing some licensing deals that proved controversial, but it's the only one that knows the real value of every single show in its digital vault.

There's always money in the Netflix banana stand.

Dig deeper when it comes to Netflix
The television landscape is changing quickly, with new entrants like Netflix and Amazon.com disrupting traditional networks. The Motley Fool's new free report, "Who Will Own the Future of Television?" details the risks and opportunities in TV. Click here to read the full report!

  

Change Agents: Myhrvold's many missions

BELLEVUE, Wash. — The executives who built Microsoft had a few retire-in-riches models to follow.

There's Bill Gates, best known now for tackling social issues of global importance via his foundation. There's co-founder Paul Allen, who, while keeping a hand in the tech space, has claimed the cultural spotlight as boss of Seattle's Super Bowl-winning Seahawks and owner of impressive megayachts.

When it's suggested to Nathan Myhrvold, Microsoft's first chief technology officer who joined in 1986 and left in 2000, that he doesn't seem the sporting or yachting type, the first of many sonic-boom laughs echoes around his dinosaur skeleton-filled office.

"You should have interviewed me two weeks ago," says Myhrvold (pronounced MER-vold), whose boyish demeanor defies his age, 54. "I was on a yacht diving in Bonaire."

Maybe the man does have at least one indulgent bone? Fat chance: Myhrvold wasn't in the Caribbean to lounge about but rather to polish his considerable photography skills.

Perhaps it's best to get this out of the way now. If our country has a living Renaissance figure, Myhrvold would qualify for the Benjamin Franklin-esque title. The man, who by his own admission "is not very good at dabbling," has charged into a range of fields and wound up challenging or changing the status quo.

"From the time I was little, I was interested in multiple things, checking out library books on everything from cooking to math," he says, sitting between a life-size skull of an ancient shark-eel called Dunkleosteus and a small plastic model of a Gulfstream V jet ("I have the big one, too," he allows with a smile).

Other souvenirs scattered about include a World War II-era Japanese anti-aircraft training gun, a wall-size periodic table of elements filled with actual samples of almost all the elements and, inevitably, the showstopper: the enormous head of the actual Tyrannosaurus Rex model used during the filming of Jurassic Park.

"When I was a kid, my mom would say, 'You ! really need to focus if you're going to amount to anything.' And in hindsight, she was likely right; maybe I could have accomplished more than I have," says the married father of two sons who have inherited his scientific mind. "But that's just not been me."

Mama Myhrvold need not have worried. Her son hasn't been frittering away his life since departing Microsoft.

A longtime lover of dinosaurs, he recently published a scientific paper arguing that the creatures' growth rates were actually a tenth of what the prevailing research indicated.

A foodie since long before the term was chic, he is in the midst of self-publishing a series of photo-driven books called Modernist Cuisine, which deconstruct the science of cooking and sell out despite a price tag pushing $600.

Still profoundly disturbed by the events of Sept. 11, Myhrvold — a Los Angeles-reared, Princeton-trained physicist who did post-graduate work under the legendary Stephen Hawking at Cambridge — is actively meeting senior U.S. officials to discuss the looming perils of terrorists waging war with biological weapons.

This has nothing to do with his day job running Intellectual Ventures, a company that buys patents ("What venture capital did for start-ups, we want to do for inventions," he says). Or its side venture, Global Good, whose projects include using lasers to zap the wings off malarial mosquitoes, which is being partly funded by the foundation run by good friend and former boss Gates.

"Look, I don't play golf," Myhrvold says. "Some of these projects are truly for the good of the world, and others, I won't attempt to defend other than to say I love doing them. When people ask me, 'Why did you get interested in dinosaurs?,' I just say, 'Why did you lose interest in them?' Because we all loved them as kids. I guess for me, it's often just a huge case of arrested development."

That is the key to Myhrvold's youthful attitude, says Bran Ferren, a pioneering technologist and co-founder of Applied Mi! nds who m! et his friend a few decades back when he was CTO at Disney Imagineering.

"His childlike curiosity about things keeps him young," says Ferren, who shares a beard, a slightly high-pitched voice and a passion for exploring with his pal. "As for his varied interests, I'd like to think that's what normal ought to be. We may be in an age of hyper-specialization, but people innately are curious about many things."

Ferren adds that Myhrvold always dives into something "with a mission to make a contribution." As for relaxing, "for guys like him, it's not about finding a new beach to lie on. When we go on a photography trip, that in and of itself helps clear the mind."

Nathan Myhrvold has quite the appreciation for dinosaurs. Check out some of the art around his office. VPC

Myhrvold is what futurist Paul Saffo calls a relatively new breed of public citizen whose professional, and often tech-driven, good fortune allows them to contribute to society at a higher level.

"The best news for paleontology, astronomy, cooking and all those other fields was his leaving Microsoft," says Saffo. "I call him an entrepreneurial intellectual, someone with the drive, resources and brains to go deep on matters that need attention. With any luck, he'll inspire other wealthy individuals to put their money and brains to good use."

Myhrvold — who led the development of Windows software and has an estimated net worth of $650 million — is pleased that "the Silicon Valley system allows people with a technical bent to dream of being rich." But he offers a cautionary rejoinder.

"The dot-com boom created a such a gold rush that some people get focused on creating me-too companies, so instead of doing something hard, they say 'Let's get 17 guys and do the next WhatsApp and sell it to Facebook for a gajillion dollars,'" he says. "Without taking anything away from that, we don't want to be a nation that only tries to solve small problems. That takes energy away from problems that may be more profound."

Will all due respect to the dinosaurs and finding a better way to cook a steak, there's little doubt what ranks highest on Myhrvold's intellectual to-do list. Close to the top would be the mosquito-zapping project, which takes laser-printer technology and adapts it to the pressing needs of sub-Saharan Africa. But at the pinnacle would be bio-terror.

The horrors of 9/11 are apparent, he says, but as many people — 3,000 — die each month in traffic accidents. "Look down the road 10 or 20 years and then ask, what could kill a million Americans? That's bio-terrorism," he says. "Are we doing the right things for it? I have so far not found anyone in government who has said, 'Yes, we're doing the right things.' "

Myhrvold made contact via an Intellectual V! entures employee with White House connections, who forwarded his boss's 50-page paper on the topic. Myhrvold says he's been impressed with the serious approach taken by various officials, but notes that "coordinating and prioritizing those efforts is critical."

He's essentially suggesting that a position of bio-terror czar could help anchor the efforts: "The most embarrassing thing about 9/11 is various parts of the government had suspicions about those (terrorists), and they didn't do anything about it."

The eternal optimist lets slip a rare sigh.

"When I write cookbooks, it's all in my control, but with this, nothing is in my control," he says. "But I'm going to keep trying. I can't be any other way."

_____

ABOUT NATHAN MYHRVOLD, 54

What: CEO, Intellectual Ventures, a patent-purchasing company

Where: Bellevue, Wash.

Why is dinosaur research so important? "You can make an argument that dinosaurs could save humanity. We now know they went extinct due to a meteorite that hit Earth, which caused people to start looking up in the sky for them. If you find one and it's a week away, well too bad, we had our run. But if it's 50 years away, you'd suddenly have the most important international project in history."

Why are you working on a laser that can kill mosquitoes? "Most of the tech industry makes tools or toys for the rich world. It's great fun, and I made money in that world myself. But the rich world doesn't need its life transformed; the poorest people do."

What's the key to fostering innovation in America? "I'm not a sports guy, but we all know the best hitter in baseball has a .400 average. That really means he's a miss-er, not a hitter; he misses 60% of the time. In the innovation game, you're batting .100 if you're lucky. So, baseball arranged its rules, and we need to set the innovation game's rules so that missing 90% of the time is OK. You need to make it culturally OK to fail."

USA TODAY's Change Agents series highlights innovato! rs and en! trepreneurs looking to change business and culture with their vision. E-mail Marco della Cava at mdellacava@usatoday.com. Follow him on Twitter: @marcodellacava.

Kraft Recalls 96,000 Pounds of Oscar Mayer Wieners

Mark Lennihan/AP NEW YORK -- Kraft Foods is recalling 96,000 pounds of its Oscar Mayer wieners because they may mistakenly contain cheese. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service said Sunday that Kraft's "Oscar Mayer Classic Wieners" may instead contain the company's "Classic Cheese Dogs." The agency said the product labels are incorrect and don't reflect the ingredients associated with the pasteurized cheese in the cheese dogs. Those products were made with milk, a known allergen, which isn't declared on the label. It said the problem was discovered by a consumer who notified Kraft on Friday. The company alerted the USDA the following day, according to the statement. The Food Safety and Inspection Service said it hasn't received reports of adverse reactions. A representative for the agency wasn't immediately available for comment. A representative for Kraft Foods Group (KRFT), Joyce Hodel, said in an email that the hot dogs were made in a plant in Columbia, Mo. The products were made in early March and bear the number "Est. 537H" inside the USDA mark of inspection. People with questions about the recall are being asked to contact Kraft's consumer relations department at (855) 688-4386. The recall applies to: 16-ounce individual consumer packages of "Classic Wieners Made with Turkey & Chicken, Pork Added," with a "USE BY 16 Jun 2014" date and product code "044700000632." Cases of 16-ounce packages that were distributed to retailers of "Classic Cheese Dogs Made with Turkey & Chicken, Pork Added, and Pasteurized Cheese Product," with "USE BY 16 Jun 2014" date and case code "00447000005300." Those cases may contain packages that are mislabeled as "Classic Wieners," according to Hodel.

Microsoft Launches "Partner Directory" to Create App Development Network

Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT  ) has launched a new store to help creators build Windows 8 apps to bolster its Windows 8 app offerings.

Named Windows Store Partner Directory, the store lets first- or third-party partners find and hire one another to build better apps. Specifically, Microsoft is working with partners in advertising, analytics, notifications, payments, and more to make sure that the store helps creators create "great app experiences, achieve great economics, and broaden [the app's] reach". When clicking on a partner, people can see their links to their Windows Store app's software starter kit and additional info. Microsoft has also embedded specific deals tailored to each user. 

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The launch comes on the heels of last month's Google I/O conference. There, the search giant unveiled a slew of new tools to help developers improve the development, analytics, and reach of Android apps.

By adding new partners and enabling social features, Microsoft looks to build a support network for developers and other third parties.

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5 Companies That Haven't Earned Their Keep

In order to become a successful investor, it takes a love for finance, quite a bit of discipline, and a long-term mind-set. Another important factor that most investors often overlook is a penchant for cutting your losses early before you let a bad investment spiral out of control.

Today, I take a look at five companies that have taken investors for a roller-coaster ride filled with mounting losses. By focusing on these five companies' accumulated deficit -- which is the amount of net loss that is attained in a given quarter or year (be it through losses or writedowns) and added cumulatively to previous years' net earnings or losses -- you'll be able to get a better idea of why I feel they have no chance of ever earning their keep with shareholders.

Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S  )
It's a good thing that SoftBank agreed to become a majority stakeholder in Sprint Nextel, because the way the company was racking up losses was putting it on a course for irrelevance or perhaps even something worse.

As of the first quarter, Sprint Nextel had an accumulated deficit of an astonishing $45.5 billion. This service provider has fallen way behind its peers Verizon and AT&T in terms of rolling out a next-generation 4G LTE network. Even more disturbing, it sold more than 5 million smartphones during the quarter, delivered its highest wireless service revenue, and also its highest average revenue per user in its history, and still lost money! As I see it, Sprint's days of being relevant are long gone.

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. 

I have personally lost track of how many times this company has diluted shareholders with a secondary offering to stay afloat, but with the share price currently at $1.22 now and a reverse-split-adjusted $14,510 a share one decade ago, that should give you some idea of the danger of buying companies that let their losses grow unabated. Cell Therapeutics does, finally, have an approved drug in the EU known as Pixuvri to treat multiple relapsed or refractory aggressive non-Hodgkin B-cell lymphoma, but that'll hardly make a dent and, in my opinion, certainly won't get the company to profitability by itself.

Clearwire (NASDAQ: CLWR  )
Trust me, there is no irony lost on me in the fact that Sprint Nextel, which boasts an accumulated deficit that's twice as high as its market value, is currently in a bidding war with DISH Network to purchase 4G wireless broadband specialist Clearwire, which has itself amassed an accumulated deficit of $2.57 billion as of the first quarter.

The big allure of Clearwire is its vast spectrum assets. Beyond these assets, I'm not sure there would be a viable reason that Clearwire is still in business. Between 2005 and 2012, Clearwire burned through $10.6 billion in free cash outflow, mostly to expand its now-archaic WiMax network. Even its WiMax partner, Sprint, which has kept Clearwire afloat on more than one occasion, didn't seek out Clearwire for its 4G LTE buildout. Instead, Sprint opted initially for LightSquared and only succumbed to Clearwire's charm after the Federal Communications Commission struck down the use of LightSquared's satellite network because of potential GPS interference. This is nothing more than a merger out of weakness for Clearwire.

Rite Aid (NYSE: RAD  )
If there weren't already plenty of reasons to dislike drugstore Rite Aid, allow me to add one more: an accumulated deficit of $7.77 billion as of the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013. To put it another way, Rite Aid's accumulated deficit is nearly three times its current market value.

Things have certainly improved on the bottom line for Rite Aid over the past two quarters, with the company surprising handily to the upside. However, it's been much of the same for the company with regard to same-store sales figures falling another 2% in the fourth quarter and generic drugs weighing down its pharmacy margins. High levels of debt continue to plague Rite Aid and quell any chances it's had to modernize its stores to make them more customer-friendly or aggressively advertise. Even with the addition of its loyalty rewards program, drugstore customers simply aren't that loyal. When the top year for operating margin over the past decade is 2.7%, you know it's likely time to move along.

Level 3 Communications (NYSE: LVLT  )
We're taught in school that two negatives, when multiplied, equal a positive. Unfortunately, combining two bad companies in real life only leaves you with one really bad company! Thus is the plight of Level 3 Communications, which in 2011 bought Global Crossing for $3 billion, merging two integrated telecommunication companies that haven't turned a profit. As of the first quarter, Level 3 had an accumulated deficit of $12.93 billion.

What's hampering Level 3's growth are many of the same problems that have plagued it for years. First, the company is toting around nearly $8 billion net debt for a worrisomely high net debt to last 12 months' adjusted-EBITDA ratio of 5.3! The interest payments alone on Level 3's $8.6 billion in debt make turning a profit even that more difficult. The company is also encountering demand slowness in Europe and the U.S., with both economies paring back spending.Level 3 hasn't come anywhere near turning a profit over the past decade and I'm not certain it ever will.

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Little-Known Billionaire's Book is the Holy Grail for Investors

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Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesBillionaire Seth Klarman. Among the tattered cookbooks and celebrity biographies at thrift stores and yard sales, you might find financial books whose advice on investing once seemed relevant but now just seems silly. However, the next time you find yourself in this situation, take a closer look, because you might also find the Holy Grail of investment books. Boom and bust cycles in the economy and the stock market often give rise to short-sighted investing theories which financial writers try to exploit. Perhaps the best example is "Dow 36,000," written by Harvard-educated journalist James K. Glassman in 1999 at the height of the dot-com bubble, which predicted a 300 percent rise in the market within 10 years. We're still waiting, James. 'Margin of Safety' It is very rare to find an investing book that stands the test of time, and perhaps the rarest of the rare in that category is "Margin of Safety," written in 1991 by billionaire investor Seth Klarman. Long out of print, less than 5,000 copies of this hardback book exist, and used copies regularly go for $2,500 or more online. The book is divided into three sections: "Where Investors Stumble," "Value Investing Philosophy" and "The Value-Investment Process." He explains his motivation in the introduction:

Investors adopt many different approaches that offer little or no real prospect of long-term success and considerable chance of substantial economic loss. Many are not coherent investment programs at all but instead resemble speculation or outright gambling. Investors are frequently lured by the prospect of quick and easy gain and fall victim to the many fads of Wall Street. My goals in writing this book are twofold. In the first section I identify many of the pitfalls that face investors. By highlighting where so many go wrong, I hope to help investors learn to avoid these losing strategies. For the remainder of the book I recommend one particular path for investors to follow -- a value-investment philosophy.

Warren Buffett Is a Fan If you think that some of this sounds familiar, you might be right. Klarman, 56, is often called the "Warren Buffett of his generation," and Buffett is said to have a copy of "Margin of Safety" on his desk. But the connection between Klarman and Buffett doesn't stop there. Both run multibillion-dollar funds; both use the concepts pioneered by legendary value investor Benjamin Graham when evaluating their investment portfolios; and Klarman's name has long been floated by Berkshire Hathaway shareholders as a potential successor to the Oracle of Omaha. Klarman has had an impressive financial career which, unlike Buffett's, has largely gone unnoticed by the public and financial media. A product of Cornell and Harvard, where future CEOs, GE's (GE) Jeff Immelt and Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase (JPM), were among his classmates, Klarman initially worked for Franklin Templeton Funds before starting Baupost Group in 1982. Baupost manages more than $25 billion in client funds and has an astounding performance record, averaging 20 percent annual returns since its inception. Numbers like that consistently rank Klarman in the top 25 highest-earning fund managers by Forbes, with his total compensation for 2013 coming in at $350 million and net worth estimated to be $1.3 billion. How much of that net worth is comprised of unsold copies of "Margin of Safety" is unknown, but fortunately, you don't have to have big bucks in order to read it, as it's available online in PDF version for free.

Ford hints at new infotainment system

NEW YORK — A top Ford executive hinted today of a new infotainment system that eventually will replace the much criticized and sometimes confusing MyFord Touch screen that has dragged down the company's performance in quality surveys.

"There are software limitations with the current system that we want to break through so we can offer more capability," Joe Hinrichs, Ford president of the Americas, said at the NADA/J.D. Power Automotive Forum, prelude to the New York Auto Show. "Like anything with technology, there is a lot of evolution in capability, speed, memory, all kinds of things."

Ford's customer satisfaction scores have been taking big hits since MyFord Touch was introduced four years ago.

In February, Ford ended a partnership with Microsoft that created the smartphone-like system and agreed to work with unit to refine software underlying Ford's Sync infotainment system. Sync's next generation is expected to enable people to control their smartphones and other devices by voice command.

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"When we are ready, we will have more to say," Hinrichs said when asked directly if an all-new system is in the works.

The complex system — now on more than 5 million vehicles — has befuddled many buyers since it debuted in 2010. They complain the touch screen is not intuitive enough and sometimes distracting from the act of driving because they have to watch the screen instead of feeling the changes through a traditional knob or button.

Hinrichs said Ford has solved most of the problems and that consumers now rate it as good or better than competing systems. Nevertheless, Ford isn't satisfied and continues to seek improvements.

"Consumers want the system to work seamlessly and in an intuitive way. People are expecting touch screens in their vehicles," Hinrichs said. "And they want to be able to control their music, their navigat! ion and their phones with voice controls, and we want to make sure that is done in the simplest and best way possible."

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Job creation last month was shockingly weak, but analysts couldn't really explain why –- other than to blame the weather -- which left investors unsure how to react Friday. Many analysts say the numbers are likely to be revised higher next month, and in the end, market reaction was muted. The Dow Jones industrial average (^DJI) lost ground for a third straight day, declining nearly 8 points, but the Standard & Poor's 500 index (^GPSC) added 4, and the Nasdaq composite index (^IXIC) rose 18 points. Target (TGT) lost more than a point after saying the data breach that began on Black Friday was much worse than previously thought. The company now says as many as 70 million customers had personal information stolen. Target also lowered its fourth quarter outlook, partly because sales slumped after the data breach was first revealed. Sears (SHLD) tumbled by around 13.5 percent. It expects a big quarterly loss as sales fell during the holiday shopping season. Several smaller, specialty retailers also fell: Pacific Sunwear (PSUN) slid 16 percent, Five Below (FIVE) fell 7 percent, Shoe Carnival (SCVL) lost 5 percent, and Conn's (CONN) lost 2 percent. But Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) jumped 12 percent. It raised its earnings forecast as sales were not as bad as expected. Elsewhere, Alcoa (AA) fell about 5.5 percent. It's not quite the economic bellwether it used to be, but the aluminum giant still matters, and its net came in a bit shy of expectations. YRC Worldwide (YRCW) tumbled 13 percent after workers rejected a contract offer. That has raised fears the trucking company could be forced into bankruptcy. On the upside, the weak jobs report could keep mortgage rates from rising, and that boosted housing stocks. KB Homes (KBH) rose 3 percent, William Lyons up 4 percent, and Lennar (LEN) was up 2 percent. And on Thursday we reported that shares of Intercept Pharmaceuticals nearly quadrupled in price on news of a positive clinical study for its liver drug. Well, it soared another 61 percent Friday. The stock has gone from about $70 a share on Wednesday to close the week at $444 a share. What to Watch Monday: The Treasury Department releases the federal budget for December at 2 p.m. Eastern time. -.

10 Best Trucking Stocks To Buy Right Now: Syneron Medical Ltd. (ELOS)

Syneron Medical Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the research, manufacture, development, marketing, and sale of aesthetic medical products worldwide. The company develops products based on its proprietary Electro-Optical Synergy (ELOS) technology, which uses the synergy between electrical energy and optical energy to provide aesthetic medical treatments. Its products target a range of non-invasive aesthetic medical procedures, including hair removal, wrinkle reduction, rejuvenation of the skin�s appearance through the treatment of superficial benign vascular and pigmented lesions, acne treatment, treatment of leg veins, treatment for the temporary reduction in the appearance of cellulite and thigh circumference, ablation and resurfacing of the skin, laser-assisted lipolysis, and topical skin brightening products. It also develops, manufactures, and markets non-invasive technologies for fat cell destruction and body sculpting; and Viador system, a handheld device with a radiofrequency-needle array for use in transdermal delivery of biologic drug-products via a system-specific skin patch. The company sells its products to dermatologists, plastic and cosmetic surgeons, other qualified practitioners, and aestheticians and medical spas through direct sales force and distributors; and to home-use consumers directly, as well as through retailers and a chain of distributors. Syneron Medical Ltd. was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Yokneam Illit, Israel.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Syneron Medical (Nasdaq: ELOS  ) reported earnings on May 22. Here are the numbers you need to know.

  The 10-second takeaway
  For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Syneron Medical met expectations on revenues and met expectations on earnings per share.

10 Best Trucking Stocks To Buy Right Now: BMC Software Inc. (BMC)

BMC Software, Inc. develops software that provides system and service management solutions for enterprises in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Enterprise Service Management and Mainframe Service Management. The Enterprise Service Management segment offers service assurance solutions that manage availability and performance management, event management, service impact management, and capacity management; service automation solutions managing provisioning, configuration change, and compliance automation for servers, networks, applications, and databases; service support solutions, which manages service desk, incident management, service request management, problem management, asset management, service level management, change and release management, and identity management; and BMC Atrium that provides shared technologies that unify information and processes from disparate management tools, and assigns priorities to business servic es. It also offers consulting, implementation, integration, IT process design and re-engineering, and educational services related to its software products. The Mainframe Service Management segment provides mainframe data and performance management solutions that ensure the availability and reliability of the business critical data, applications, and systems; and enterprise workload automation solutions comprising CONTROL-M product line, a set of features enabling data centers to automate their complex workloads and critical business processes. The company serves manufacturers, telecommunication companies, educational institutions, retailers, distributors, hospitals, and other industries, as well as channel partners, including resellers, distributors and systems integrators directly. BMC Software, Inc. was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Divine]

  Dropping 1.5% Monday, BMC Software (NASDAQ: BMC  ) joins Apollo as a notable laggard after the business announced some big strategy changes. An SEC filing today revealed BMC is cutting its workforce, incurring pre-tax charges between $33 million and $38 million in the process. No word yet on how many of the company's 6,900 full-timers will be let go.

• [By Tim Brugger]

  The next best growth by any of the top five ITOM vendors last year? BMC Software (NASDAQ: BMC  ) was up a paltry 0�.9% year over year. Even IBM, the undisputed king of ITOM, grew a mere 0.8% in 2012. Granted, IBM's $3.28 billion in ITOM revenue in 2012 handily beats Microsoft's $1.48 billion, as does BMC's $1.92 billion, but the trend is clear: Microsoft is leveraging its enterprise and cloud computing customers better than its ITOM competitors.

Top 5 Services Stocks To Watch Right Now: China Ming Yang Wind Power Group Ltd (MY)

China Ming Yang Wind Power Group Limited incorporated on February 26, 2009, is a wind turbine manufacturer in China, focusing on designing, manufacturing, selling and servicing megawatt-class wind turbines. The Company�� products consist of basic models of wind turbines, each with a rated power capacity of 1.5 megawatt (MW); wind turbines with a rated power capacity of 2.0MW, and 2.5/3.0MW SCD wind turbines. Each product type may be installed with one of three rotor blade models depending on the location and wind conditions. As of December 31, 2012, the Company had entered into sales contracts with 37 end customers to deliver 3,730 units of its wind turbines.

It cooperates with aerodyn Energiesysteme to develop its 1.5 megawatt wind turbines and share intellectual property rights. It also has obtained licenses from aerodyn Asia Co., Ltd. (aerodyn Asia) to manufacture and distribute wind turbines utilizing its super-compact drive (SCD) technology, with a rated power capacity of 6.0MW.

The Company�� customers are the Chinese state-owned power producers which include Huaneng, China Datang, Huadian, China Guodian Corporation, and China Power Investment Corporation (CPIC) or their alternative energy subsidiaries, such as China Longyuan Power Group Corporation Limited (Longyuan), a subsidiary of Guodian, and China Datang Corporation Renewable Power Co., Limited (Datang Renewable), a subsidiary of China Datang. It also sells wind turbines to regional alternative energy investment companies, regional power producers and wind farm operators in the private sector. Its facilities are located in Zhongshan, Tianjin, Jilin, Rudong, Dali and Inner Mongolia in China.

The Company produces megawatt-class, grid-connected, horizontal-axis wind turbines, equipped with a double-fed constant frequency induction generator, which is a design of the generator that enables the generator to produce electric current of a constant frequency as the shaft rotates at varying speeds causing! the generator rotor to rotate at varying speed. It offers 1.5 megawatt turbines specially designed and developed for the wind and weather conditions and power grids in China. Its 1.5 megawatt wind turbines are equipped with rotor blades with a post-installation diameter of 77.1 meters, 82.6 meters or 89.0 meters.

The Company has license rights under a license agreement from aerodyn Asia to manufacture and distribute 2.5/3.0MW SCD wind turbines and 6.0MW SCD wind turbines in China. The Company is focused on developing 3.8MW wind turbine model for larger multi-megawatt wind turbines.

The Company competes with Sinovel, Goldwind, Dongfang Electric, United Power, Vestas, Gamesa Corporacion Tecnologica S.A. and GE Energy.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  Another under-$10 stock that looks ready to trigger a big breakout trade is China Ming Yang Wind Power Group (MY), a wind turbine manufacturer in China. This stock has been very hot over the last six months, with shares up sharply by 52%.

  If you take a look at the chart for China Ming Yang Wind Power Group, you'll notice that this stock has been uptrending over the last few weeks, with shares moving higher from its low of $1.91 to its intraday high of $2.59 a share. During that uptrend, shares of MY have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of MY within range of triggering a big breakout trade.

  Market players should now look for long-biased trades in MY if it manages to break out above some past overhead resistance levels at $2.58 to $2.80 a share high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above those levels with volume that hits near or above its three-month average action of 1.56 million shares. If that breakout hits soon, then MY will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $3.35 to its 52-week high at $3.52 a share. Any high-volume move above those levels will then give MY a chance to tag $4 a share.

  Traders can look to buy MY off weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below its 50-day moving average of $2.30 a share, or near more support at $2.02 a share. One can also buy MY off strength once it starts to clear those breakout levels with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage from your entry point.

• [By John Udovich]

  Small cap wind stock Broadwind Energy Inc (NASDAQ: BWEN) is up 203.7% since the start of the year, but investors might want to contain their excitement when they look closer at the�stock and�consider its�long term performance along with the performance of other wind investments like First Trust Global Wind Energy ETF (NYSEARCA: FAN) and wind energy stocks Vestas Wind Systems (OTCMKTS: VWDRY) and China Ming Yang Wind Power Group Ltd (NYSE: MY) to see whether BWEN is just blowing more hot air.

• [By Travis Hoium]

  What: Shares of wind turbine maker China Ming Yang Wind Power Group (NYSE: MY  ) jumped as much as 17% after reporting earnings.

  So what: Total revenue in the first quarter was up 98% to $129.7 million, and comprehensive income was $3.8 million, or $0.03 per share. This result is a swing back to profit for the company, and it looks like demand is picking up quickly this year. �

10 Best Trucking Stocks To Buy Right Now: EXACT Sciences Corporation(EXAS)

Exact Sciences Corporation, a molecular diagnostics company, focuses on developing a molecular diagnostic technology for the early detection and prevention of colorectal pre-cancer and cancer. The company develops the Cologuard, a non-invasive stool-based DNA colorectal cancer screening test that is designed to detect each of the four stages of colorectal cancer, as well as pre-cancerous lesions. Its test includes proprietary and patented methods, which isolate and analyze the trace amounts of human DNA that are shed into stool every day from the exfoliation of cells that line the colon. The company?s Cologuard test is also used to detect blood in stool, utilizing an antibody-based fecal immunochemical test. It has a strategic alliance agreement with LabCorp under which it licenses its patents and patent applications relating to the stool-based colorectal cancer screening technology to LabCorp; a collaboration, license, and purchase agreement with Genzyme Corporation to d eliver intellectual property improvements through licenses; and a license agreement with MAYO Foundation for medical education and research. Exact Sciences Corporation was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lisa Levin]

  Exact Sciences (NASDAQ: EXAS) shares jumped 5.96% to $15.28 following the published results of colon cancer screening test.

  Compugen (NASDAQ: CGEN) climbed 3.54% to $11.86 after Jefferies initiated coverage on the stock with a Buy rating and a $17.00 price target.

• [By Daniel Lauchheimer]

  In the past few weeks, I wrote two articles about TrovaGene (TROV) -- one detailing the history of the DNA market generally and the molecular diagnostics -- and TROV's place therein -- market specifically, and the second detailing the company's internal valuation. In this article, I will value TROV on an external, relative basis. Specifically, I will compare TROV to another molecular diagnostics company, Exact Sciences (EXAS), and try to show that while the market seems to have given EXAS a fair shake, it has not done the same for TROV. I will prove this argument by looking at both companies' addressable markets, and their respective progress at bringing the products to market. However, before we take this deep dive into both companies, I will take a moment to review each of the companies' products, so we have a strong background before turning to the deeper analysis.

• [By Sean Williams]

  What: Shares of EXACT Sciences (NASDAQ: EXAS  ) , a molecular diagnostics company focused on cancer and pre-cancer colorectal screening tests, nosedived as much as 30% following the release of top-line data from the company's Deep-C clinical trial for Cologuard.

• [By Keith Speights]

  Year-to-date gains of 25% don't really tell the full story for molecular diagnostics company Exact Sciences (NASDAQ: EXAS  ) . There have been plenty of big ups and downs to get to those 25% gains. Since late April, the stock is actually up almost 70%.

10 Best Trucking Stocks To Buy Right Now: Gramercy Property Trust Inc (GPT)

Gramercy Property Trust Inc., formerly Gramercy Capital Corp., incorporated on April 1, 2004, is an integrated, self-managed real estate investment and asset management company. The Company�� principal business is to acquire and manage industrial and office properties, net leased to tenants in major markets throughout the United States. The Company owns, directly or in joint venture, a portfolio of 112 buildings totaling approximately 4.2 million square feet of office and 1.5 million square feet of industrial, net leased on a long-term basis to tenants, including Bank of America, Nestle Waters, Philips Electronics and others. In September 2013, it closed on five new acquisitions. In October 2013, it acquired an approximately 220,000 square foot food-grade cold storage and distribution facility located in Yuma, Arizona. In October 2013, the Company acquired approximately 120,350 square foot industrial facility in Austin, Texas. In November 2013, the Company announced the acquisition of six new properties.

In June 2013, the Company announced that it has closed on the acquisition of a build-to-suit of an approximately 120,0000 square foot industrial facility located in Hialeah, Gardens, Florida in the Miami Metropolitan Statistical Area. In July 2013, Gramercy Property Trust Inc closed on four acquisitions; a wholesale automotive auction facility in Dallas, Texas, an industrial cold storage facility in Southern New Jersey and two cross-dock truck terminals located in Houston, Texas and Orlando, Florida.

The Company's property management business, operating under the name Gramercy Asset Management, manages for third-parties commercial properties leased primarily to regulated financial institutions and affiliated users throughout the United States. The Company is actively acquiring industrial and office assets leased to companies in a variety of industries. The Company will primarily acquire long-term leased assets, but will acquire shorter leases with risk adjusted returns.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Chris DeMuth Jr.]

  This article is intended to update our readers on the progress on Gramercy Property Trust (GPT) through 2Q 2013. For background you may want to go back and read our previous articles. In this particular article, I will focus on 4 particular points:

10 Best Trucking Stocks To Buy Right Now: Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (ARI)

Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc., a real estate investment trust, engages in originating, acquiring, investing in, and managing performing commercial first mortgage loans, commercial mortgage-backed securities, mezzanine financings, and other commercial real estate-related debt investments in the United States. The company is qualified as a real estate investment trust (REIT) under the Internal Revenue Code. As a REIT, it would not be subject to federal income taxes, if it distributes at least 90% of its REIT taxable income to its stockholders. The company was founded in 2009 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Mortgage real estate investment trust�Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance� (NYSE: ARI  ) announced this morning its second-quarter dividend for its 8.625% Series A cumulative redeemable perpetual preferred stock�of $0.5391�per share for the period ending July 15. That's the same rate it's paid for the past three quarters after it was increased 21% from $0.4432 per share.

10 Best Trucking Stocks To Buy Right Now: United States 12 Month Oil Fund LP (USL)

The United States 12 Month Oil Fund, LP (US12OF) is a commodity pool that issues limited partnership interests traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) Arca, Inc. (the NYSE Arca). The investment objective of US12OF is for the daily changes in percentage terms of its units per unit net asset value (NAV) to reflect the daily changes in percentage terms of the spot price of light, sweet crude oil delivered to Cushing, Oklahoma, as measured by the changes in the average of the prices of 12 futures contracts for light, sweet crude oil traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange (the NYMEX) consisting of the near month contract to expire and the contracts for 11 months, for a total of 12 consecutive months contracts, except when the near month contract is within two weeks of expiration, in which case it is measured by the futures contract that is the next month contract to expire and the contracts for 11 consecutive months (the Benchmark Oil Futures Contracts). The Company is managed and controlled by its general partner, United States Commodity Funds LLC (the General Partner). The General Partner is the general partner of US12OF and is responsible for the management of US12OF.

The net assets of US12OF consist primarily of investments in futures contracts for light, sweet crude oil, other types of crude oil, heating oil, gasoline, natural gas, and other petroleum-based fuels that are traded on the NYMEX, ICE Futures or other United States and foreign exchanges (collectively, Oil Futures Contracts). It also invests in other oil interests, such as cash-settled options on Oil Futures Contracts, forward contracts for oil, cleared swap contracts and non-exchange traded (over-the-counter) transactions that are based on the price of oil, other petroleum-based fuels, Oil Futures Contracts and indices based on the foregoing (collectively, Other Oil-Related Investments). For convenience and unless otherwise specified, Oil Futures Contracts and Other Oil-Related Investments collectively are referred to! as oil Interests.

US12OF invests in Oil Interests to the fullest extent possible without being leveraged or unable to satisfy its current or potential margin or collateral obligations with respect to its investments in Oil Futures Contracts and Other Oil-Related Investments. US12OF�� investments in short-term obligations of the United States of two years or less (Treasuries), cash and/or cash equivalents.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Another choice is to use ETFs with a longer-term futures strategy. The United States 12-Month Oil Fund (NYSEMKT: USL  ) holds equal positions in each of the next 12 futures contracts. That reduces the positive impact of near-term backwardation, but it gives you more exposure to the heavier backwardation that exists further into the future.

10 Best Trucking Stocks To Buy Right Now: Nordion Inc. (NDZ)

Nordion Inc., a health science company, provides various products and services for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Sterilization Technologies and Medical Isotopes. The Sterilization Technologies segment offers Cobalt-60, a radioactive metal that emits radiation and sterilizes items by destroying contaminating micro-organisms; and dosimetry and professional services, as well as designs, constructs, and maintains commercial gamma sterilization systems. The Medical Isotopes segment provides various products that are used in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases, including cardiac and neurological conditions, and various types of cancer. It offers Molybdenum-99, which decays into Technetium-99, a diagnostic that is used in nuclear medical procedures; Xenon-133 used in lung scans; Iodine-131 to treat hyperthyroidism, thyroid cancer, and non-Hodgkin�s lymphoma; Iodine-125 to treat prostate cancer; and Yttri um-90 to treat liver cancer and non-Hodgkin�s lymphoma. This segment also provides cyclotron isotopes, such as Iodine-123 to diagnose thyroid disease; Thallium-201 to diagnose and assess risk of coronary artery heart disease; Palladium-103 for treating prostate cancer; Strontium-82 for cardiac imaging; and Indium-111 and Gallium-67 to diagnose cancer, as well as offers radiopharmaceutical and contract manufacturing services. Nordion Inc. serves radiopharmaceutical and pharmaceutical manufacturers, biotechnology companies, manufacturers of medical supplies and devices, contract sterilizers, hospitals, and academic and government institutions, as well as to food and consumer goods industries. The company was formerly known as MDS Inc. and changed its name to Nordion Inc. in November 2010. Nordion Inc. was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Ottawa, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Louis Navellier]

  The trick to profiting in international markets is the same as it is here at home: Use Portfolio Grader to focus on the international stocks with the very best fundamentals that are attracting buying pressure from institutions.

  Great International Stocks: Nordion (NDZ)

  Nordion (NDZ) is a Canadian health sciences company whose products are used to diagnose, prevent and treat diseases around the world. The company�� primary products are isotopes used in nuclear medicine such as Molybdenum-99, which decays into Technetium-99, utilized in nuclear medical procedures.

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Leading and Lagging Sectors
  Monday morning, the healthcare sector proved to be a source of strength for the market. Leading the sector was strength from Nordion (NYSE: NDZ) and Pacira Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: PCRX). Utilities sector rose by just 0.19 percent in the US market today.

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Leading and Lagging Sectors
  Monday morning, the healthcare sector proved to be a source of strength for the market. Leading the sector was strength from Nordion (NYSE: NDZ) and Insmed (NASDAQ: INSM).

10 Best Trucking Stocks To Buy Right Now: Allot Communications Ltd.(ALLT)

Allot Communications Ltd. engages in developing, selling, and marketing Internet protocol service optimization and revenue generation solutions in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Oceania. Its solutions are used to create policies to monitor network applications, enforce quality of service policies that guarantee mission-critical application performance, mitigate security risks, and leverage network infrastructure investments. The company offers traffic management systems, including Service Gateway platform for broadband service control and optimization based on DPI; and NetEnforcer traffic management system that inspects, monitors, and controls network traffic by application and by user. Its network management application suites comprise NetXplorer that provides service providers and enterprise customers a view of traffic on the network; and Subscriber Management Platform, a system that helps service providers build an intelligent service network d esigned to deliver the quality of experience. The company also offers ServiceProtector, which ensures service continuity, and guards network integrity against known and unknown threats, as well as enables surgical mitigation through immediate identification of denial of service attacks, zero day attacks, worms, zombie, and botnets. In addition, it provides MediaSwift that caches and accelerates popular Internet video. The company markets and sells its products to carriers, mobile operators, cable operators, educational institutions, governments, and enterprises, as well as wireless, wireline, and satellite Internet service providers. It sells it products through distributors, resellers, OEMs, value added resellers, and system integrators, as well as through direct sales. The company was formerly known as Ariadne Ltd. and changed its name to Allot Communications Ltd. in September 1997. Allot Communications Ltd. was founded in 1996 and is based in Hod-Hasharon, Israel.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  Allot Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: ALLT) was raised to Outperform with an $18 price target at Oppenheimer.

  Baxter International Inc. (NYSE: BAX) was added to the Conviction Buy list with an $86 price target at Goldman Sachs.

• [By Evan Niu, CFA]

  What: Shares of Allot Communications (NASDAQ: ALLT  ) have popped today by as much as 10% after the company scored a big contract.

  So what: Allot said it landed a $6.5 million order from a "Tier-1" mobile operator in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa for Intelligent Steering and Value-Added Service licenses. The company added that the contract is a licensing expansion of an existing deployment. The customer will add functionalities to the current Allot Service Gateways deployment.

10 Best Trucking Stocks To Buy Right Now: Delta Air Lines Inc (DAL)

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (Delta) provides scheduled air transportation for passengers and cargo throughout the United States and around the world. The Company�� route network gives it a presence in every domestic and international market. Delta�� route network is centered around the hub system it operate at airports in Amsterdam, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Detroit, Memphis, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York-JFK, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City and Tokyo-Narita. Each of these hub operations includes flights that gather and distribute traffic from markets in the geographic region surrounding the hub to domestic and international cities and to other hubs. The Company�� network is supported by a fleet of aircraft that is varied in terms of size and capabilities.

Delta has bilateral and multilateral marketing alliances with foreign airlines to improve its access to international markets. These arrangements can include code-sharing, reciprocal frequent flyer program benefits, shared or reciprocal access to passenger lounges, joint promotions, common use of airport gates and ticket counters, ticket office co-location, and other marketing agreements. Its international code-sharing agreements enable it to market and sell seats to an expanded number of international destinations. The Company has international codeshare arrangements with Aeromexico, Air France, Air Nigeria, Alitalia, Aeroflot, China Airlines, China Eastern, China Southern, CSA Czech Airlines, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Korean Air, Olympic Air, Royal Air Maroc, VRG Linhas Aereas (operating as GOL), Vietnam Airlines, Virgin Australia and WestJet Airlines.

In addition to the Company�� marketing alliance agreements with individual foreign airlines, it is a member of the SkyTeam airline alliance. Delta also has frequent flyer and reciprocal lounge agreements with Hawaiian Airlines, and codesharing agreements with American Eagle Airlines (American Eagle) and Hawaiian Airlines. It has air service agreements with multiple do! mestic regional air carriers that feed traffic to its route system by serving passengers primarily in small-and medium-sized cities.

Through the Company�� regional carrier program, it has contractual arrangements with 10 regional carriers to operate regional jet and, in certain cases, turbo-prop aircraft using its DL designator code. In addition to Delta�� wholly owned subsidiary, Comair, it has contractual arrangements with ExpressJet Airlines, Inc. and SkyWest Airlines, Inc., both subsidiaries of SkyWest, Inc.; Chautauqua Airlines, Inc. and Shuttle America Corporation, both subsidiaries of Republic Airways Holdings, Inc.; Pinnacle Airlines, Inc. and Mesaba Aviation, Inc. (Mesaba), both subsidiaries of Pinnacle Airlines Corp. (Pinnacle); Compass Airlines, Inc. (Compass) and GoJet Airlines, LLC, both subsidiaries of Trans States Holdings, Inc. (Trans States), and American Eagle.

The Company�� SkyMiles program allows program members to earn mileage for travel awards by flying on Delta, Delta�� regional carriers and other participating airlines. Mileage credit may also be earned by using certain services offered by program participants, such as credit card companies, hotels and car rental agencies. In addition, individuals and companies may purchase mileage credits. The Company reserves the right to terminate the program with six months advance notice, and to change the program�� terms and conditions at any time without notice.

SkyMiles program mileage credits can be redeemed for air travel on Delta and participating airlines, for membership in the Company�� Delta Sky Clubs and for other program participant awards. Mileage credits are subject to certain transfer restrictions and travel awards are subject to capacity controlled seating. During the year ended December 31, 2011, program members redeemed more than 275 billion miles in the SkyMiles program for more than 12 million award redemptions. During 2011, 8.2% of revenue miles flown on Delta were from a! ward trav! el.

The Company generates cargo revenues in domestic and international markets through the use of cargo space on regularly scheduled passenger aircraft. Delta is a member of SkyTeam Cargo, an airline cargo alliance. SkyTeam Cargo offers a network spanning six continents and provides customers an international product line.

The Company has several other businesses arising from its airline operations, including aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO); staffing services for third parties; vacation wholesale operations, and its private jet operations. Delta�� MRO operation, known as Delta TechOps, is an airline MRO in North America. In addition to providing maintenance and engineering support for its fleet of approximately 775 aircraft, Delta TechOps serves more than 150 aviation and airline customers. Its staffing services business, Delta Global Services, provides staffing services, professional security, training services and aviation solutions to approximately 150 customers. The Company�� vacation wholesale business, MLT Vacations, is the provider of vacation packages in the United States. Its private jet operations, Delta Private Jets, provides aircraft charters, aircraft management and programs allowing members to purchase flight time by the hour.

The Company competes with SkyTeam, United Air Lines, Continental Airlines, Lufthansa German Airlines, Air Canada, American Airlines, British Airways and Qantas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Adam Levine-Weinberg]

  The biggest antitrust concern by far relates to the combined carrier's dominance of Washington's Reagan National Airport. The airport operates under capacity controls, and US Airways already controls more than half of the slots there following a slot swap with Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL  ) that was completed last year. Following the merger, the new American Airlines would control 68% of the airport's slots.

• [By DAILYFINANCE]

  Joshua Trujillo, seattlepi.com/AP WASHINGTON -- The Federal Aviation Administration has accepted Boeing's revamped battery system for its beleaguered 787 Dreamliners and agreed to lift its grounding order, according to a congressional official. The order gives Boeing the go ahead to begin retrofitting planes with an enhanced lithium-ion battery system although the root cause of battery failures that caused a fire on one of the planes and smoke on another is still unknown. Boeing Co. (BA) intends to work on the retrofits over the weekend, and flights could resume within days to a week, the official said. The official requested anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak publicly before the FAA's announcement. The FAA gave Boeing permission last month to test the revamped system, which includes additional insulation around each of the battery's eight cells to prevent a short circuit or fire in one of the cells from spreading to the others. The new system also includes enhanced venting of smoke and gas from inside the battery to outside the plane. A strengthened box to hold the battery is an effort to ensure that if a fire were to occur, it wouldn't escape to the rest of the plane. Boeing has completed 20 separate tests of the new system, FAA Administrator Michael Huerta told Congress earlier this week. The FAA's action directly affects United Airlines (UAL), which is the only U.S. airline with 787s in its fleet. But aviation authorities in other countries are expected to swiftly follow suit. Boeing had delivered 50 planes to eight airlines in seven countries when a fire erupted in a battery aboard a Japan Airlines 787 parked at Boston's Logan International Airport on Jan. 7. The FAA and other authorities grounded the entire fleet after a second incident nine days later led to an emergency landing by an All Nippon Airways 787 in Japan. Boeing has recently been readying replacement battery systems for installation in anticipation that the grounding order