Best Financial Stocks To Buy Right Now

Harvey Miller, the lawyer guiding Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. through the biggest-ever U.S. bankruptcy, sipped a cappuccino at a tourist-filled cafe near Manhattan's Central Park and reflected on how his client's collapse five years ago went from unthinkable to inevitable.

Lehman's demise “ignited a worldwide conflagration that almost brought down the global financial system,” said Miller, who filed the Chapter 11 petition at 2 a.m. on Sept. 15, 2008, in New York after the bank failed to win U.S. government aid or attract a buyer. “The consequences were unknown.”

Five years later, Miller takes credit for helping fend off some creditors' liquidation demands and instead turning the remains of one of the biggest failures of the financial crisis into a going concern. In the process, the Lehman estate has paid more than $2 billion in fees and expenses to professionals like him for that work, dwarfing the previous record of $757 million in Enron Corp.'s bankruptcy.

Top 5 Industrial Conglomerate Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Aflac Incorporated(AFL)

Aflac Incorporated, through its subsidiary, American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus (Aflac), provides supplemental health and life insurance. The company offers various voluntary supplemental insurance products, including cancer plans, general medical indemnity plans, medical/sickness riders, care plans, living benefit life plans, ordinary life insurance plans, and annuities in Japan. It also provides loss-of-income products, such as life and short-term disability plans; and products designed to protect individuals from depletion of assets, which comprise hospital indemnity, fixed-benefit dental, vision care, accident, cancer, critical illness/critical care, and hospital intensive care plans in the United States. The company sells its products through sales associates and brokers, affiliated corporate agencies, independent corporate agencies, and individual agencies. Aflac Incorporated was founded in 1955 and is headquartered in Columbus, Georgia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Stocks that meet his criteria heading into 2014 include Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR), Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (REGN), Aflac (AFL) and LeapFrog Enterprises (LF).

• [By Dividends4Life]

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• [By Seth Jayson]

  AFLAC (NYSE: AFL  ) reported earnings on April 24. Here are the numbers you need to know.

  The 10-second takeaway
  For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), AFLAC beat slightly on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

• [By Dividends4Life]

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Best Financial Stocks To Buy Right Now: FirstMerit Corporation(FMER)

FirstMerit Corporation operates as the bank holding company for FirstMerit Bank, N.A. that provides a range of banking, fiduciary, financial, insurance, and investment services to corporate, institutional, and individual customers in northern and central Ohio, and western Pennsylvania. The company?s commercial business offers commercial term loans, revolving credit arrangements, asset-based lending, leasing, commercial mortgages, real estate construction lending, letters of credit, cash management services, and other depository products. Its retail business provides various financial products and services, including consumer direct and indirect installment loans, debit and credit cards, debit gift cards, residential mortgage loans, home equity loans and lines of credit, fixed and variable annuities, and ATM network services, as well as deposit products comprising checking, savings, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company?s wealth business provides a sset management, private banking, financial planning, estate settlement and administration, and credit and deposit products and services. FirstMerit Corporation also offers trust and investment services, including personal trust and planning, and investment management; retirement plan services; retail mutual funds, other securities, variable and fixed annuities, personal disability and life insurance products, and brokerage services; and private banking services, including credit, deposit, and asset management solutions. As of December 31, 2009, it operated a network of 160 full service banking offices and 182 ATMs. The company was founded in 1855 and is headquartered in Akron, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tim Melvin]

  The year ahead should be a great one for the smaller bank stocks. Larger regionals like Huntington Bancorp (HBAN) and Capital Ban Financial (CBF) have made it clear they intend to grow by acquisition in the years ahead. Banks like First Merit (FMER) and First Merchants (FRME) have done deals in the past year and are open to doing more to increase their market share and footprints. This should be the year the floodgates open and we see the first wave of merger activity in small banks.

Best Financial Stocks To Buy Right Now: Noah Holdings Ltd (NOAH)

Noah Holdings Limited, incorporated on June 29, 2007, through its subsidiaries is a service provider focusing on distributing wealth management products to the high net worth population in the People�� Republic of China (PRC). The Company provides direct access to China�� high net worth population. Noah Holdings Limited is a holding company and it operates its business through its PRC subsidiary, Shanghai Noah Rongyao Investment Consulting Co., Ltd (Noah Rongyao), its variable interest entity, Shanghai Noah Investment Management Co., Ltd (Noah Investment), and their respective subsidiaries in China. While Noah Rongyao conducts most of the Company�� businesses, it conducts its insurance brokerage business through Noah Investment and its subsidiaries. Its products choices consist of over-the-counter (OTC) products originated in China and designed to cater to the needs of high net worth population.

With over 300 relationship managers in 28 branch offices, the Company�� coverage network encompasses China�� economically developed regions where high net worth population is concentrated, including the Yangtze River Delta, the Pearl River Delta and the Bohai Rim. Through this coverage network, it serves high net worth individuals, enterprises affiliated with high net worth individuals and wholesale clients, primarily local commercial banks or branches of national commercial banks, which distribute wealth management products to their own clients. Its registered clients were 12,353 as of June 30, 2010. The number of its active clients was 779 as of June 30, 2010. Noah Holdings Limited distributes OTC, wealth management products originated in China. Its product choices primarily include fixed income products, private equity funds and securities investment funds.

Noah Holdings Limited markets and distributes various categories of products supplied by third party product providers, which include fixed income products, mainly including collateralized fixed income products sponso! red by trust companies and other products that provide investors with fixed rates of return; private equity funds products, including investments in private equity funds sponsored by domestic and internal fund management firms; securities investment funds, which are privately raised funds investing in publicly traded stocks, and investment-linked insurance products. It generates revenues primarily from one-time commissions and recurring service fees paid by third-party product providers or, for the majority of fixed income products, by the underlying corporate borrowers. Its one-time commissions accounted for 78.6% of its net revenues during the year ended December 31, 2009, and its recurring service fees accounted for 21.4% of its net revenues in 2009.

The Company competes with China Merchants Bank, China Minsheng Bank and China Everbright Bank.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Belinda Cao]

  Noah Holdings Ltd. (NOAH), a Chinese wealth-management company, jumped to the highest level in more than two years in New York after raising its 2013 profit estimate.

• [By John Udovich]

  While America�� middle class appears to be shrinking with little upward mobility, small cap wealth management stocks Noah Holdings Limited (NYSE: NOAH) and A.F.P Provida SA (NYSE: PVD)�plus larger cap Affiliated Managers Group, Inc (NYSE: AMG) are managing money in places where the ranks of the middle class and the wealthy are still growing strong. Specifically, Noah Holdings Limited is based in China, Chile based A.F.P Provida SA is spreading its footprint into other Latin American countries and the�Affiliated Managers Group is growing�a global footprint. For those reasons, you have probably not heard of these wealth management stocks, but here are some reasons why you might want to consider investing in one:

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Stocks on the move: Onyx Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ONXX) is up 5.6% at $123.52 after accepting a $10.4 billion buyout offer from Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN). Chinese wealth management firm Noah Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: NOAH) is down 16.6% at $13.76 following an analyst downgrade on worries about the company�� recurring revenues.

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  Noah (NOAH) is a service provider focusing on distributing wealth management products to the high-net-worth population in the People's Republic of China. This stock closed up 7.7% to $12.64 in Friday's trading session

  Friday's Volume: 357,000
  
  Three-Month Average Volume: 207,430
  
  Volume % Change: 120%

  From a technical perspective, NOAH ripped higher here right above its 50-day moving average of $11.37 with above-average volume. This move is quickly pushing shares of NOAH within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade. That trade will hit if NOAH manages to take out some near-term overhead resistance levels at $12.77 to $12.98 with high volume. At last check, NOAH hit an intraday high on Friday of $12.98 and volume was well above its three-month average action of 207,430 shares.

  Traders should now look for long-biased trades in NOAH as long as it's trending above its 50-day at $11.37 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 207,430 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then NOAH will set up to re-test or possibly take out its 52-week high at $14.64. Any high-volume move above $14.64 will then push NOAH into new 52-week-high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that move are $18 to $20.

Best Financial Stocks To Buy Right Now: Aberdeen Australia Equity Fund Inc (IAF)

Aberdeen Australia Equity Fund, Inc. (the Fund) is a closed-end, non-diversified management investment company. The Fund�� principal investment objective is long-term capital appreciation through investment primarily in equity securities of Australian companies listed on the Australian Stock Exchange Limited. Its secondary objective is current income, which is expected to be derived primarily from dividends and interest on Australian corporate and governmental securities. The Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets, plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes, in equity securities, consisting of common stock, preferred stock and convertible stock, of companies tied economically to Australia (each an Australian Company), and at least 65% of its total assets in equity securities, consisting of common stock, preferred stock and convertible stock, listed on the Australian Stock Exchange Limited (ASX). Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dividends4Life]

  According to a Gabelli Funds report, managed distribution policies offer several advantages, including:1. Lower difference between the fund�� market price and its NAV per share.2. Provides support during periods when the stock market is in a decline.3. Provides a measurable performance target for the investment adviser.Below are several high-yield funds from CEFA that have a managed distribution policy (yields as of December 16):Aberdeen Australia Eqty (IAF)- Distribution Yield: 10.4%- Income Yield: 3.46%Bexil Advisers LLC� (DNI)- Distribution Yield: 11.1%- Income Yield: 3.56%BlackRock En Capital&Inc (CII)- Distribution Yield: 8.78%- Income Yield: 2.34%Cornerstone Strat Value (CLM)- Distribution Yield: 18.77%- Income Yield: 1.83%Cornerstone Total Return (CRF)- Distribution Yield: 19.10%- Income Yield: 0.85%Delaware Inv Div & Inc (DDF)- Distribution Yield: 6.70%- Income Yield: 5.26%Gabelli Equity Trust (GAB)- Distribution Yield: 7.58%- Income Yield: 1.54%Gabelli Utility Trust (GUT)- Distribution Yield: 9.45%- Income Yield: 2.84%MFS Special Value Trust (MFV)- Distribution Yield: 9.60%- Income Yield: 5.73%Nuveen Tx-Adv TR Strat (JTA)- Distribution Yield: 6.70%- Income Yield: 3.12%TCW Strategic Income (TSI)- Distribution Yield: 10.54%- Income Yield: 7.88%Zweig Total Return (ZTR)- Distribution Yield: 7.27%- Income Yield: 1.95%As noted in the Gabelli report, a managed distribution policy may create confusion regarding the true current yield since the reported yield includes the return of capital portion. You can see the disparity above between the income yield and the distribution (reported) yield.If you are looking for a sustainable and growing dividend, you may want to consider some blue-chip dividend stocks such as these with a Free Cash Flow Payout less than 50%, 50+ years of consecutive dividend increases and a 2%+ yield:3M Co. (MMM) is a diversified global company provides enhanced product functionality in electronics, health care, industrial, consumer