Lemon Watch: Counting the Cockroaches at Tesla Motors (TSLA)… All of Them

Trying to keep track of all the problems at Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) or with its cars is getting harder and harder – like trying to count the cockroaches in a bad infestation as the problems seem to be multiplying while the inspectors (e.g. the White House, current administration and Sacramento) all seem to be no where in sight. Just consider the following cockroaches or problems:

Creative Accounting. A recent Bloomberg article (Are There Cockroaches Under Tesla's Hood?) did a good job of outlining the creative accounting that goes on with the books of Tesla Motors that should make the accountants at Chinese reverse merger stocks proud. The article notes how the latest Tesla Motors earnings report under the headline of "Net income (non-GAAP) of $16 million" spends parts of the first three pages discussing that figure and other nonstandard metrics that don't comply with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) with the actual GAAP results beginning at the bottom of the third page. But there's even more:

"Tesla waited until page four to mention that it had a third-quarter net loss of $38 million under GAAP. It didn't show a table reconciling its GAAP and non-GAAP numbers until several pages later."

What's wrong with emphasizing the positive and burying the negative? Any other company who tries it would probably be met with an SEC investigation as it violates decades old report rules and then there is the "cockroach theory" about seeing one problem (like a cockroach) probably meaning there are more and possibly bigger problems (a big infestation in your walls scurrying around) that you aren't seeing…

Exploding Teslas. Recently, a Tesla driver supposedly ran over some sort of metal object at high speed (which penetrated the bottom and the batteries) causing his car to catch on fire (after all and if true, metal objects on the road and cars with very high voltage probably don't mix). You can see the video here on YouTube, Elon Musk taking softball questions about the incident on Bloomberg here and the left wing The Young Turks online show coming up with more excuses here ("It happens to all cars…"). Luckily for Tesla Motors and for investors alike, the incident happened during the so-called government shutdown, but as Lauren Fix recently noted, Tesla Motors was never hauled before the government and there was no safety recall or technical services bulletin issued – like what happens when every other car company has a major problem. Its also not the first fire incident either as apparently there have been a total of three known ones in the past two month plus there is another video posted on YouTube a few years ago (click here). Consumers as Guinea Pigs or Test Drivers. One does have to wonder if Tesla drivers aren't the equivalent of test drivers or guinea pigs for Tesla Motors' products. A quick look at Tesla Motors's official Forum reveals problems with leaky or noisy sun roofs (click here, here, here etc), cars not locking properly (click here or here but then again, who would want to steal one?!!!) and a list of other glitches, quirks and peccadilloes identified by Green Car Reports. Then there are the door handles which, as this video on YouTube shows, would have triggered a recall and lots of lawsuits to "protect" consumers (especially children) in the name of safety if we were talking about any other product – as would any of the other "glitches, quirks and peccadilloes" mentioned by Green Car Reports. Factories That Burn Workers. The AP has just reported that the San Francisco Bay Area Tesla Motors factory where three workers were burned by hot metal was previously cited for a safety violation that led to an injury. Two of the three Tesla Motors workers who were burned remain hospitalized, but don't expect state officials to do much more than give a slap on the wrists and at least the cars aren't being made in Mexico or China. Trial Lawyers are Circling. Although trial lawyers, like hardcore Tesla fans/drivers, the media and environmentalists, are normally a Democratic Part constituency, they are now breaking ranks and circling Tesla Motors as I am seeing at least four press releases this month in the Yahoo! headlines from trial lawyers planning class action suits against the company. After all, where there's smoke, there's usually trial lawyers looking for a match…

With that said, its no surprise that Tesla Motors is down almost 29% since the start of October when the stock peaked (although its still up over 600% since July 2010):

And the latest technical chart is looking rather bearish:

What's the good news among all of the above bad news? Lets face it: As a "green company" like Solyndra, investors should not expect any investigations of Tesla Motors by the SEC, Consumer Protection Bureau and any other government agency (unless it implodes which is unlikely) so long as Democrats control the White House while even Congressional Republicans probably don't want touch the company and risk looking anti-green (besides, their hands are full "investigating" all of the ongoing White House scandals…) So shorting Tesla Motors could be just as dangerous as investing in the stock.

Nevertheless, trying to count all the cockroaches at Tesla Motors is getting harder and harder for objective investors and ultimately to consumers alike - except perhaps to true believers in the cult of Tesla Motors…

McDonald's Wings Not So Mighty As Sales Suffer

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McDonald's (NYSE:MCD), which for years had been a stock that investors would buy and forget about, is not being remembered fondly these days.

Shares of the House of Ronald, fell 61 cents to $94.59 on Monday after it reported sales for the quarter ended September 30 of $7.23 billion, an increase of 2.4%, which trailed analysts' expectations of $7.32 billion. Even worse, comparable sales, a key metric of stores opened at least a year, are little changed so far this month, according to the Oakbrook, Ill., company. That's a bit surprising given the heavy promotion for its new Mighty Wings offering.

In a conference call with investors, CEO Don Thompson said Mighty Wings "performed at the lower end of our expectations" because they were too pricey and spicy for some consumers. He added that McDonald's is improving the product and expects to sell 35 million pounds of wings.

Like every executive of a struggling public company, though, Thompson is asking investors to have patience.

"As the economy does come back a bit, we know that we'll benefit from that," said Thompson, who replaced the popular Jim Skinner in 2012. "But we're also not going to sit back and just wait. We are doing many things tactically to try to address the current environment. But we're not missing out on the long-term environment as well. "

During the third quarter, global comparable sales rose 0.9 percent, below analysts' Net income was $1.52 billion, or $1.52 per share. That's a penny better than expectations. However, operating margins narrowed to 18.7%.

The company's problems aren't solely due to the economy. Consumers, particularly younger ones, aren't patronizing McDonald's as much as they have in years past. A survey from Goldman Sachs found that the company ranked last among 23 fast food chains in terms of food quality. People als! o consider McDonald's to be the least healthy compared with its peers and are the least willing to pay more for its food.

"Simply stated, we must exceed our customers' expectations for fast, accurate, and friendly service at each and every one of our nearly 35,000 restaurants around the world," he said. "And furthermore, those restaurants must be clean, well-maintained, and contemporary."

What he means by that is a matter of debate. McDonald's franchisees are unhappy about the rising fees that they are being charged for rent among other things as Bloomberg News noted in August. The company charges franchisees at least $800,000 for remodeling, well above the $375,000 Wendy's (NYSE:WEN) franchisees pay and $300,000 Burger King (NYSE:BKW) charges, the news service says.

For investors, McDonald's is tough to evaluate. It trades at a price-to-earnings multiple of 17, among the cheapest if not the cheapest of the major restaurant stocks. Its dividend yield of 3.4% also is attractive. But one of the reasons why the shares are cheap is that its growth prospects are limited.

Chipolte (NYSE:CMG), for instance, is expected to increase revenue by 17% this year and sales at Panera Bread (Nasdaq:PNRA) are due to rise 13.5%. McDonald's revenue, by contrast, will rise 2.4% and Wendy's is expected to eek out a 0.2% increase. Burger King sales are due to decline by double digits.

The Bottom Line

McDonald's and other fast food companies are in a tough predicament. They have to appeal to both cash-strapped customers, who are their regular customers, and people with more cash to spend. Striking a balance between these very different types of clients is getting tougher. Many of them are choosing to patronize more upscale McDonald's rivals such as Chipolte and Panera.

Unfortunately, Burger King and Wendy's are doing a better job in appealing to McDonald's core value customers. For it to win back these discontented customers, McDonald's is going to have to make better food cheaper, a challenge that the company's hasn't met for years.

Disclosure - At the time of writing, t! he author did not own shares of any company mentioned in this article.

Calif. finds more instances of offshore fracking

LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) — The oil production technique known as fracking is more widespread and frequently used in the offshore platforms and man-made islands near some of California's most populous and famous coastal communities than state officials believed.

In waters off Long Beach, Seal Beach and Huntington Beach — some of the region's most popular surfing strands and tourist attractions — oil companies have used fracking at least 203 times at six sites in the past two decades, according to interviews and drilling records obtained by The Associated Press through a public records request.

Just this year in Long Beach Harbor, the nation's second-largest container port, an oil company with exclusive rights to drill there completed five fracks on palm tree-lined, man-made islands. Other companies fracked more than a dozen times from old oil platforms off Huntington Beach and Seal Beach over the past five years.

Though there is no evidence offshore hydraulic fracturing has led to any spills or chemical leaks, the practice occurs with little state or federal oversight of the operations.

The state agency that leases lands and waters to oil companies said officials found new instances of fracking after searching records as part of a review after the AP reported this summer about fracking in federal waters off California, an area from three miles to 200 miles offshore. The state oil permitting agency said it doesn't track fracking.

As the state continues its investigation into the extent of fracking — both in federal waters and closer to shore — and develops ways to increase oversight under a law that takes effect in 2015, environmental groups are calling for a moratorium on the practice.

"How is it that nobody in state government knew anything about this? It's a huge institutional failure," said Kassie Siegel, an attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity. "Offshore fracking is far more common than anyone realized."

Little is known about the effects ! on the marine environment of fracking, which shoots water, sand and chemicals at high pressure to clear old wells or crack rock formations to free oil. Yet neither state nor federal environmental regulators have had any role in overseeing the practice as it increased to revitalize old wells.

New oil leases off the state's shores have been prohibited since a 1969 oil platform blowout off Santa Barbara, which fouled miles of coastline and gave rise to the modern environmental movement. With no room for physical expansion, oil companies instead have turned to fracking to keep the oil flowing.

The state launched an investigation into the extent of offshore fracking after the AP report in August. California officials initially said at the time there was no record of fracking in the nearshore waters it oversees. Now, as the State Lands Commission and other agencies review records and find more instances of fracking, officials are confused over who exactly is in charge of ensuring the technique is monitored and performed safely.

"We still need to sort out what authority, if any, we have over fracking operations in state waters; it's very complicated," said Alison Dettmer, a deputy director of the California Coastal Commission.

Nowhere is the fracking more concentrated than in Long Beach, an oil town with a half-million residents and tourist draws such as the Queen Mary.

The city's oil arrangement stems from a deal drawn up in 1911, when California granted the tidelands and other water-covered areas to the city as it developed its harbor. When oil was discovered in the 1930s, the money started coming in.

Workers walk near near the oil pumps on one of the four artificial THUMS islands in San Pedro Bay off the coa! st of Lon! g Beach, Calif., used for oil drilling Thursday, Oct. 3, 2013 in Long Beech, Calif.(Photo: Chris Carlson, AP)

Long Beach transferred $352 million of $581 million in profits to state coffers in fiscal year 2013 from onshore and offshore operations, according to the city's Gas and Oil Department. Most of the oil recovery comes from traditional drilling while fracking accounts for about 10 percent of the work.

The department says fracking is safe. It has a spill contingency plan and monitors pipelines. Well construction designs are approved by state oil regulators. The designs can be used for conventional drilling and fracking. And the oil industry says offshore fracks are much smaller operations than onshore jobs, involving only a fraction of the chemicals and water used on land.

City oil officials see themselves as partners with Occidental Petroleum Corp. — not regulators — though officials participate in the company's internal audits and technical reviews by the state.

Occidental and the city briefly took a fracking timeout after passage of the state's new rules. Long Beach oil operations manager Kevin Tougas said there are plans to frack again later this year. Occidental spokeswoman Susie Geiger said in an email that the company doesn't discuss its operations due to "competitive and proprietary reasons."

No one is tracking the amounts or precise composition of any fracking chemicals that enter the marine environment, though in September the state passed a law that starting in 2015 would require disclosure of agents used during the procedures.

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Fracking fluids can be made up of hundreds of chemicals — some known and others not since they are protected as trade secrets. Some of these chemicals are toxic to fish larvae and crustaceans, bottom dwellers most at risk from drilling activities, according to government health disclosure docum! ents.

!

Myriad state agencies that oversee drilling, water quality and the ocean said they did no monitoring of fracking chemicals during offshore jobs.

Don Drysdale, a spokesman for the California Department of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources, said the new regulations will include "extensive protections" for groundwater.

The industry estimates that about half of the fluids used during fracking remain in the environment; environmentalists say it is much higher. Long Beach says it uses a closed system and there's no discharge into the water. Instead, fluids are treated before being re-injected deep under the seafloor.

The Long Beach Water Department, which monitors well water quality annually, said there are no known impacts to residents' water from fracking.

"It's our hometown," said Chris Garner, a fourth-generation resident who heads the gas and oil department. "We have a vested interest in making sure the oil operations have been without harm to the city."

___

Reach Alicia Chang and Jason Dearen at http://twitter.com/SciWriAlicia and http://twitter.com/JHDearen

Hot Growth Companies To Buy Right Now

The Japanese have been celebrating after winning their bid to host the 2020 Summer Olympics; from our perch, the party is just getting started in Japanese stocks, too. And less heralded, but no less exciting, has been the recent showing by neighboring China, observes Stephen Leeb of The Complete Investor.

The Olympics aren't the only reason for Japan to cheer: So-called Abenomics, named after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, continues to pay off.

Japan's combination of aggressive monetary easing, fiscal stimulus, and economic reform has translated into faster economic growth after decades of stagnation and many false starts.

The country just revised its second-quarter inflation-adjusted real GDP growth upwards to 0.9%, which equates to an annualized 3.8% rate.

Japan also revised its first-quarter GDP upwards, to 4.1% annualized, up from the previous 3.8%.

Japan is still struggling to boost inflation, but is headed in the right direction. Although the country's GDP deflator was a negative 0.5% year-over-year, after 12 consecutive months of deflation, Japan recorded back-to-back June and July increases in its monthly consumer price index.

Hot Growth Companies To Buy Right Now: Checkpoint Systms Inc.(CKP)

Checkpoint Systems, Inc. manufactures and markets identification, tracking, security, and merchandising solutions for the retail and apparel industry worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Shrink Management Solutions, Apparel Labeling Solutions, and Retail Merchandising Solutions. The Shrink Management Solutions segment provides shrink management and merchandise visibility solutions. It offers electronic article surveillance systems, such as EVOLVE, a suite of RF and RFID-enabled products that act as a deterrent to prevent merchandise theft in retail stores; and electronic article surveillance consumables, including EAS-RF and EAS-EM labels that work in combination with EAS systems to reduce merchandise theft in retail stores. This segment also provides keepers, spider wraps, bottle security, and hard tags, as well as Showsafe, a line alarm system for protecting display merchandise. In addition, it offers physical and electronic store monitoring solutions, incl uding fire alarms, intrusion alarms, and digital video recording systems for retail environments; and RFID tags and labels. The Apparel Labeling Solutions segment provides apparel labeling solutions to apparel retailers, brand owners, and manufacturers. It has Web-enabled apparel labeling solutions platform and network of 28 service bureaus located in 22 countries that supplies customers with customized apparel tags and labels. The Retail Merchandising Solutions segment offers hand-held label applicators and tags, promotional displays, and queuing systems. The company serves retailers in the supermarket, drug store, hypermarket, and mass merchandiser markets through direct distribution and reseller channels. Checkpoint Systems was founded in 1969 and is based in Thorofare, New Jersey.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

  Three months after settling upon a new chief executive officer, it looks like Thorofare, N. J.-based Checkpoint Systems (NYSE: CKP  ) will soon have itself a new CFO as well.

Hot Growth Companies To Buy Right Now: Sara Lee Corporation(SLE)

Sara Lee Corporation engages in the manufacture and marketing of a range of branded packaged meat, bakery, and beverage products worldwide. Its packaged meat products include hot dogs and corn dogs, breakfast sausages, sandwiches and bowls, smoked and dinner sausages, premium deli and luncheon meats, bacon, beef, turkey, and cooked ham. It also offers frozen baked products, which comprise frozen pies, cakes, cheesecakes, pastries, and other desserts. In addition, Sara Lee provides roast, ground, and liquid coffee; cappuccinos; lattes; and hot and iced teas, as well as refrigerated dough products. The company sells its products under Hillshire Farm, Ball Park, Jimmy Dean, Sara Lee, State Fair, Douwe Egberts, Senseo, Maison du Caf

10 Best Casino Stocks To Watch Right Now: CNO Financial Group Inc. (CNO)

CNO Financial Group, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the development, marketing, and administration of health insurance, annuity, individual life insurance, and other insurance products for senior and middle-income markets in the United States. The company markets and distributes Medicare supplement insurance, interest-sensitive and traditional life insurance, fixed annuities, and long-term care insurance products; Medicare advantage plans through a distribution arrangement with Humana Inc.; and Medicare Part D prescription drug plans through a distribution and reinsurance arrangement with Coventry Health Care. It also markets and distributes supplemental health, including specified disease, accident, and hospital indemnity insurance products; and life insurance to middle-income consumers at home and the worksite through independent marketing organizations and insurance agencies. In addition, the company markets primarily graded benefit and simplified issue life insurance products directly to customers through television advertising, direct mail, Internet, and telemarketing. It sells its products through career agents, independent producers, direct marketing, and sales managers. CNO Financial Group, Inc. has strategic alliances with Coventry and Humana. The company was formerly known as Conseco, Inc. and changed its name to CNO Financial Group, Inc. in May 2010. CNO Financial Group, Inc. was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Carmel, Indiana.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jonas Elmerraji]

  Up first is CNO Financial Group (CNO), a mid-cap financial stock that's rocketed close to 60% higher since the calendar flipped over to January. Yup, it's been a great year for the market, but it's been a far better one for investors who own CNO. But that strong performance isn't showing any signs of slowing yet. In fact, CNO looks primed for even more upside in the fourth quarter.

  That's because CNO is currently forming a bullish pattern called an ascending triangle. The ascending triangle pattern is formed by a horizontal resistance level above shares -- in this case at $14.75 -- and uptrending support to the downside. Basically, as CNO bounces in between those two technical price levels, it's getting squeezed closer and closer to a breakout above that $14.75 resistance level. When that breakout happens, it's time to become a buyer.

  ACCO's price action isn't exactly textbook. After all, the pattern is coming in at the bottom of a downtrend, not after an uptrend. But ultimately, that doesn't change the trading implications of a move through that $7.50 level.

  Whenever you're looking at any technical price pattern, it's critical to think in terms of those buyers and sellers. Ascending triangles and other pattern names are a good quick way to explain what's going on in a stock, but they're not the reason it's tradable. Instead, it all comes down to supply and demand for shares.

  That $7.50 resistance level is a price where there has been an excess of supply of shares; in other words, it's a place where sellers have been more eager to step in and take gains than buyers have been to buy. That's what makes a breakout above it so significant. The move means that buyers are finally strong enough to absorb all of the excess supply above that price level.

  Don't be early on this trade.

Hot Growth Companies To Buy Right Now: Eastern Insurance Holdings Inc.(EIHI)

Eastern Insurance Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides workers compensation insurance and reinsurance products in the United States. The company?s Workers Compensation Insurance segment provides traditional workers compensation insurance coverage products, including guaranteed cost policies, policyholder dividend policies, retrospectively-rated policies, deductible policies, and alternative market products to employers. This segment distributes its workers? compensation products and services through its independent insurance agents primarily in Pennsylvania, Delaware, North Carolina, Maryland, Indiana, and Virginia. Its Segregated Portfolio Cell Reinsurance segment offers alternative market workers compensation solutions comprising program design, fronting, claims administration, risk management, segregated portfolio cell rental, asset management, and segregated portfolio management services to individual companies, groups, and associations. Eastern Insurance Holdings, Inc. is headquartered in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lauren Pollock]

  ProAssurance Corp.(PRA) agreed to acquire Eastern Insurance Holdings Inc.(EIHI) for about $205 million, expanding the insurance company’s casualty insurance offerings. Eastern Insurance is a domestic casualty insurance group specializing in workers’ compensation products and services, among other things. ProAssurance plans to pay $24.50 in cash for each outstanding Eastern share, a 16% premium over Monday’s closing price.

Hot Growth Companies To Buy Right Now: Intuitive Surgical Inc.(ISRG)

Intuitive Surgical, Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets da Vinci surgical systems for various surgical procedures, including urologic, gynecologic, cardiothoracic, general, and head and neck surgeries. Its da Vinci surgical system consists of a surgeon?s console or consoles, a patient-side cart, a 3-D vision system, and proprietary ?wristed? instruments. The company?s da Vinci surgical system translates the surgeon?s natural hand movements on instrument controls at the console into corresponding micro-movements of instruments positioned inside the patient through small puncture incisions, or ports. It also manufactures a range of EndoWrist instruments, which incorporate wrist joints for natural dexterity for various surgical procedures. Its EndoWrist instruments consist of forceps, scissors, electrocautery, scalpels, and other surgical tools. In addition, it sells various vision and accessory products for use in conjunction with the da Vinci Surgical System as surgical procedures are performed. The company?s accessory products include sterile drapes used to ensure a sterile field during surgery; vision products, such as replacement 3-D stereo endoscopes, camera heads, light guides, and other items. It markets its products through sales representatives in the United States, and through sales representatives and distributors in international markets. The company was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

  Yesterday, small cap medical robotics stock MAKO Surgical Corp (NASDAQ: MAKO) soared 82.19% after it was announced that Stryker Corporation (NYSE: SYK) would acquire it���meaning it might be time to take a closer look at large cap medical robotics leader Intuitive Surgical, Inc (NASDAQ: ISRG) along with small caps Accuray Incorporated (NASDAQ: ARAY) and Hansen Medical, Inc (NASDAQ: HNSN). MAKO Surgical Corp�markets both its RIO Robotic Arm Interactive Orthopedic System and proprietary RESTORIS family of implants to surgeons for a procedure called MAKOplastythat provides a less invasive method for knee resurfacing and a new procedure for Total Hip Arthroplasty.�Stryker Corporation, whose medical technologies include reconstructive, medical and surgical, and neurotechnology and spine products, agreed to pay $1.65 billion or $30 a share for a massive 86%�premium for MAKO Surgical Corp. That�� sounds great for investors unless you are an investor who go in the stock back in 2011 and early 2012 when shares hit as high as the�$43 level.

• [By Sean Williams]

  Reducing VTEs through more precise instrumentation
  One possible way to reduce the potential for developing a blood clot is to reduce the incision size or invasiveness of a surgical procedural. Two companies working diligently on doing just this are robotic surgical system developers Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG  ) and MAKO Surgical (NASDAQ: MAKO  ) .

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  On Thursday, Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG  ) will release its latest quarterly results. The key to making smart investment decisions on stocks reporting earnings is to anticipate how they'll do before they announce results, leaving you fully prepared to respond quickly to whatever inevitable surprises arise. That way, you'll be less likely to make an uninformed kneejerk reaction to news that turns out to be exactly the wrong move.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Finally, beyond the Dow, Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG  ) was a huge decliner, falling 16% after issuing negative earnings guidance for the quarter. With an expected 27% drop in U.S. sales of its da Vinci robotic surgical systems, Intuitive is facing a crisis of confidence as would-be buyers respond to the FDA's investigation earlier this year and to tough questions about the effectiveness of the systems in performing procedures. When high-growth leaders start to falter, it's time to start thinking about whether the bull market is getting long in the tooth.

Hot Growth Companies To Buy Right Now: MEDIFAST INC(MED)

Medifast, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the production, distribution, and sale of weight management and disease management products, and other consumable health and diet products in the United States. The company?s product lines include weight and disease management, meal replacement, and vitamins. It also operates weight control centers that offer Medifast programs for weight loss and maintenance, customized patient counseling, and inbody composition analysis. The company markets its products under the Medifast and Essential brand names, including shakes, appetite suppression shakes, women?s health shakes, diabetics shakes, joint health shakes, coronary health shakes, calorie burn drinks, calorie burn flavor infusers, antioxidant shakes, antioxidant flavor infusers, bars, crunch bars, soups, chili, oatmeal, pudding, scrambled eggs, hot cocoa, cappuccino, chai latte, iced teas, fruit drinks, pretzels, puffs, brownie, pancakes, soy crisps, crackers, and omega 3 and digestive health products. Medifast Inc. sells its products through various channels of distribution comprising Web, call center, independent health advisors, medical professionals, weight loss clinics, and direct consumer marketing supported via the phone and the Web; Take Shape for Life, a physician led network of independent health coaches; and weight control centers. The company was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Owings Mills, Maryland.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Shares of Nutrisystem have gained 20% to $18.05 at 1:34 p.m., while Weight Watchers (WTW) has risen 3.6% to $39.42. Medifast (MED), however, has dropped 1.9% to $24.94.

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  Medifast Inc. (NYSE: MED) saw its stock down 5% in evening trading on Tuesday after the weight loss player had soft sales and guided expectations lower. Shares were still indicated down about 5%, but volume has not yet started.

• [By Holly LaFon] ast produces, distributes and sells weight and health management products with the brand names Medifast, Take Shape for Life, Hi-Energy Weight Control Centers and Woman�� Wellbeing.

  Its return on assets in the third quarter of 2011 was 19.6%, which has been increasing in the past several years. The average return on assets for the specialty retail industry is 10.48% for the trailing 12 months.

  The company�� total assets amounted to $94 million in 2010, which increased from $62.8 million in 2009. Net income also increased to $19.6 million in 2010 from $12 million in 2009.

  Boston Beer Inc. (SAM)

  Boston Beer Inc. is the largest brewer of handcrafted beers in America. Boston Beer is a growing company that recently saw a large increase in its return on assets. It increased from 19.3% in 2010 to 29.7% in 2011, and was negative as recently as 2008. The average return on assets for the beverages industry in the trailing 12 months is 9.47%.

  In 2011, the company�� total assets increased to $272.5 million from $258.5 million in 2010. Net income increased to $66 million from $50 million.

  Alliances Resources Partners (ARLP)

  Alliance Resources Partners is a coal producer and marketer primarily in the eastern U.S. Its ROA has been increasing since 2008 and increased to 22.5% in 2011 from 21.4% in 2010. The average return on assets for the oil, gas & consumable fuels industry in the trailing 12 months is 24.47%.

  In 2011, its total assets increased to $1.7 billion from $1.1 billion in 2010. Its net income increased to $389 million from $321 million.

  Factset Research Systems Inc. (FDS)

  Factset researches global market trends and develops analytical tools for investors. Of all of GuruFocus��5-star predictable companies, it has the highest return on assets at 27%. ROA has been increasing over the past several years. The average return on assets for the software industry for the trailing 12 m

Hot Growth Companies To Buy Right Now: TrueBlue Inc.(TBI)

TrueBlue, Inc. provides temporary blue-collar staffing services in the United States. It supplies on demand general labor to various industries under the Labor Ready brand; skilled labor to manufacturing and logistics industries under the Spartan Staffing brand; and trades people for commercial, industrial, and residential construction, and building and plant maintenance industries under the CLP Resources brand. The company also provides mechanics and technicians to the aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul, aerospace manufacturing, and assembly industries, as well as to other transportation industries under the Plane Techs brand; and temporary drivers to the transportation and distribution industries under the Centerline brand. It primarily serves small and medium-size businesses. The company was formerly known as Labor Ready, Inc. and changed its name to TrueBlue, Inc. in December 2007. TrueBlue, Inc. was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in Tacoma, Washington.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jonathan Yates]

  For those looking to invest in real estate stocks, highly recommended is the Dr. Housing Bubble blog. In a recent posting, the "Dr." pointed out that there was a "Lost Generation" when it came to household income. That has not happened for those investing in staffing industry stocks such as Paychex (NASDAQ: PAYX), Robert Half International (NYSE: RHI), TrueBlue, Inc. (NYSE: TBI), and Labor SMART (OTCBB: LTNC).

Hot Growth Companies To Buy Right Now: Crocs Inc.(CROX)

Crocs, Inc. and its subsidiaries engage in the design, development, manufacture, marketing, and distribution of footwear, apparel, and accessories for men, women, and children. The company primarily offers casual and athletic shoes, and shoe charms. It also designs and sells a range of footwear and accessories that utilize its proprietary closed cell-resin, called Croslite. The company?s footwear products include boots, sandals, sneakers, mules, and flats. In addition, it provides footwear products for the hospital, restaurant, hotel, and hospitality markets, as well as general foot care and diabetic-needs markets. Further, the company offers leather and ethylene vinyl acetate based footwear, sandals, and printed apparels principally for the beach, adventure, and action sports markets; and accessories comprising snap-on charms. The company sells its products through the United States and international retailers and distributors, as well as directly to end-user consumers th rough its company-operated retail stores, outlets, kiosks, and Web stores primarily under the Crocs Work, Crocs Rx, Jibbitz, Ocean Minded, and YOU by Crocs brand names. As of December 31, 2010, it operated 164 retail kiosks located in malls and other high foot traffic areas; 138 retail stores; 76 outlet stores; and 46 Web stores. Crocs, Inc. operates in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company was formerly known as Western Brands, LLC and changed its name to Crocs, Inc. in January 2005. Crocs, Inc. was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Niwot, Colorado.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Matt Thalman]

  In the following video, Fool contributor Matt Thalman discusses how the company known for its fashion faux pas rubber clog is attempting to change consumers' opinions about what it has to offer. Crocs (NASDAQ: CROX  ) is making some big moves, and major strides toward strengthening its offerings and sales. With more than 300 different styles, the company is no longer just the rubber clog with holes in it. And, while that one product still generates more than 47% of the company's revenue, in other countries, it's not seen as such a terrible fashion statement as it is here in the U.S. The company is using that international strength and brand recognition as a way to grow its business.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Stock investors got rewarded again for their risk tolerance Wednesday as major market benchmarks including the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrials rose to new all-time record highs. Even amid the generally bullish sentiment, RealD (NYSE: RLD  ) , Crocs (NASDAQ: CROX  ) , and Sina (NASDAQ: SINA  ) stood out because of their impressive gains. Let's look more closely at these stocks to see why they soared today.

• [By Dividends4Life]

  Memberships and Peers: NKE is a member of the S&P 500 and a member of the Broad Dividend Achievers��Index. The company's peer group includes: Crocs Inc. (CROX) with a 0.0% yield, Deckers Outdoor Corporation (DECK) with a 0.0% yield and Wolverine World Wide Inc. (WWW) with a 0.4% yield.

Ag Markets in Turmoil

The agricultural commodities markets face a double-edged sword as the federal government shutdown drags on. Traders are moving to the sidelines as the flow of data regarding market movements slows to a trickle, and they fear that when the shutdown ends the resulting torrent of data volatility will hit markets hard.

The current lack of federally supplied data on daily sales is leading to a drop in the volume of trades and increasing the likelihood of more short covering as the speculative shorts try to rein in their risks. Coupled with estimates forecasting large crops in North America, prices for corn have dropped to three-year lows and wheat prices are near annual lows as well.

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The highest level of concern centers on the U.S. Department of Agriculture's monthly World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report which is scheduled to be released one week from today, on October 11th. The USDA website is not currently available due to the lapse in federal funding, and a message warns that after funding has been restored users should allow "some time" for the website to be available again.

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The StressTest column appears every Thursday on Fool.com. Check back weekly and follow�@TMFStressTest.

Alcoa (NYSE: AA  ) kicked off second-quarter earnings season by announcing a year-over-year drop in sales and a big net loss.

If you're wondering what this tells us about the rest of earnings season, the answer is "not much." That's because, first, nobody truly thinks about Alcoa as an earnings bellwether anymore. That's due in part to the fact that Alcoa is struggling under issues specific to Alcoa. More importantly, the materials sector in general has been a wreck this year, and it's been tough for any mining or metals companies to overcome that drag.

But Alcoa's earnings report also provides an important reminder as we head into earnings season: Expectations are everything.

Revenue of $5.85 billion was down 2% from the second quarter of 2012, but Wall Street analysts were expecting revenue of $5.83 billion. And while earnings per share -- even on an adjusted basis -- only totaled $0.07, analysts expected just $0.06. So despite lackluster absolute second-quarter results, Alcoa's stock traded down just a penny following earnings because nobody was expecting a blow-out quarter.

Top 5 Penny Companies To Watch For 2014: Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Inc.(RMCF)

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, Inc. operates as a franchiser, confectionery manufacturer, and retail operator. It offers a range of chocolate candies and confectionery products. The company?s products include clusters, caramels, creams, mints, and truffles. As of March 31, 2010 it operated 11 owned, 29 franchised/licensed owned, and 305 franchised Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory stores in 36 states in the United States, Canada, and the United Arab Emirates. The company was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in Durango, Colorado.

Top 5 Penny Companies To Watch For 2014: Innovaro Inc(INV)

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

Top 5 China Companies To Own In Right Now: Enstar Group Limited (ESGR)

Enstar Group Limited, through its subsidiaries, acquires and manages insurance and reinsurance companies in run-off. The company settles insurance and reinsurance claims. It also offers management and consultancy, claims inspection, and reinsurance collection services to its affiliates and third-party clients. The company operates in the United States, Bermuda, the United Kingdom, Europe, and Australia. Enstar Group Limited was formerly known as Castlewood Holdings Limited and changed its name to Enstar Group Limited. Enstar Group Limited was founded in 2001 and is based in Hamilton, Bermuda.

Top 5 Penny Companies To Watch For 2014: Tortoise Capital Resources Corporation(TTO)

Tortoise Capital Resources Corp. is a close ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. It is co-managed by Kenmont Investments Management, L.P. The fund invests in the public equity markets of the United States. It seeks to invest primarily in the energy infrastructure sector. The fund invests in the value stocks of micro cap companies with primary focus on midstream and downstream segments and to lesser extent upstream segment. It also seeks to invest between $5.0 million and $20.0 million per transaction in privately held companies with a market capitalization of less than $250 million. The fund employs quantitative and fundamental analysis with a focus on factors such as fixed asset-intensive, limited technological risk, and experienced management teams to create its portfolio. Tortoise Capital Resources Corp. was formed on September 8, 2005 and is domiciled in the United States.

Top 5 Penny Companies To Watch For 2014: Comtech Telecommunications Corp.(CMTL)

Comtech Telecommunications Corp. engages in the design, development, production, and marketing of products, systems, and services for advanced communications solutions in the United States and internationally. It operates in three segments: Telecommunications Transmission, Mobile Data Communications, and RF Microwave Amplifiers. The Telecommunications Transmission segment provides satellite earth station equipment and systems, over-the-horizon microwave systems, and forward error correction technology, which are used in various commercial and government applications, including backhaul of wireless and cellular traffic, broadcasting (including HDTV), IP-based communications traffic, long distance telephony, and secure defense applications. The Mobile Data Communications segment provides mobile satellite transceivers, and computers and satellite earth station network gateways and associated installation, training, and maintenance services; supplies and operates satellite pac ket data networks, including arranging and providing satellite capacity; and offers microsatellites and related components. The RF Microwave Amplifiers segment designs, develops, manufactures, and markets satellite earth station traveling wave tube amplifiers (TWTA) and broadband amplifiers. Its amplifiers are used in broadcast and broadband satellite communication; defense applications, such as telecommunications systems and electronic warfare systems; and commercial applications comprising oncology treatment systems, as well as to amplify signals carrying voice, video, or data for air-to-satellite-to-ground communications. The company serves satellite systems integrators, wireless and other communication service providers, broadcasters, defense contractors, military, governments, and oil companies. Comtech markets its products through independent representatives and value-added resellers. The company was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Melville, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tim Melvin]

  Comtech Telecommunications (CMTL) is another company with a solid dividend whose shares trade at a decent price. The company makes advanced telecommunication products and sells to a wide range of users, including satellite systems integrators, wireless providers, broadcasters and defense contractors — as well as the U.S. government. The company has seen some weakness as military and government orders have slowed and the marketplace remains very competitive, but the long-term outlook is pretty strong. The company has been actively buying back stock and has spent almost $25 million in purchases in the past nine months. Comtech has more than enough cash on hand and very little debt, so the balance sheet is solid and the stock yields 4.5% right now. The company should be able to increase the dividend at a double-digit pace for the next several years at least.

Pay day lender to pay $19M in refunds, fines

Cash America International, a major owner of U.S. pawn shops and payday loan shops, has agreed pay $19 million in consumer refunds and fines for robo-signing documents used in debt collection, issuing improperly high loans to military members and destroying records sought by a federal regulator.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau imposed the penalties Wednesday under a consent order with the Fort Worth-based company. The penalties marked the agency's first enforcement action against a payday lender, one of the industries the regulator has examined since its 2010 creation under the Dodd-Frank financial reform act.

"If the bureau had not gone on site at Cash America, these problems might never have been uncovered," said CFPB Director Richard Cordray, who said the case highlighted the watchdog agency's mandate to oversee non-bank firms that affect millions of Americans "and make sure they're following the law."

Cash America CEO Daniel Feehan said the firm cooperated with examiners. "Now that we have completed the initial CFPB review process and entered into this settlement, we will continue to focus on serving our customers while working to develop additional compliance programs," he said.

According to the consent order, workers in Cash America's Ohio-based collections department improperly stamped their manager's signature on loan collection affidavits for nearly five years "without the manager's prior review of the affidavits or supporting documentation." An unidentified in-house collection attorney also directed workers to stamp the lawyer's name on Ohio court pleadings that had not been reviewed, the order said.

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More than 14,000 Ohio consumers targeted in debt-collection lawsuits from 2008 to Jan. 2013 were affected, said Cordray. Cash America has already started repaying $6 million to the consumers, and will pay an additional $8 million in ref! unds, he said. The company also worked with the consumer watchdog to cancel improper Ohio debt-collection judgments.

Separately, investigators found that Cash America's online payday loan subsidiary in Chicago for nearly a year gave active-duty service members loans above the 36% annual interest rate maximum allowed by the Military Lending Act. More than 300 military members or their dependents received the loans.

Cash America has refunded $33,550 in loans and related fees to those customers, according to the order.

When notified in July 2012 that the regulator planned to examine its records, Cash America failed to preserve recorded phone calls and halt shredding of documents requested for the review. According to the order, company managers also told call-center workers "to de-emphasize the marketing and sales aspect" of their duties. They also instructed some to avoid using the word "sales" during interviews with examiners, and removed sales-focused material from office walls and cubicles.

The company has agreed to pay a $5 million fine for failing to preserve the requested records. During a conference call with reporters Wednesday, Steve Antonakes, the consumer watchdog's deputy director, said it was unclear whether the record destruction was part of a deliberate effort to impede the exam.

The consent order also requires Cash America to strengthen its legal compliance procedures.

Walt Disney’s daughter Diane Miller dies

NAPA, Calif. (AP) — Diane Disney Miller, Walt Disney's daughter and one of his inspirations for building the Disneyland theme park, has died at her Northern California home. She was 79.

Her death Tuesday in Napa was confirmed by The Walt Disney Co. The cause was complications from a fall, said Andi Wang, spokeswoman for the Walt Disney Family Museum.

"As the beloved daughter of Walt Disney and one of his inspirations for creating Disneyland, she holds a special place in the history of The Walt Disney Co. and in the hearts of fans everywhere," Robert Iger, the company's president and CEO, said in a statement. "She will be remembered for her grace and generosity and tireless work to preserve her father's legacy."

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Miller, the eldest daughter of Walt and Lillian Disney, was born Dec. 18, 1933. In later life, she remembered her father as a man who was caring and patient with his children.

"He'd take me and my sister Sharon to the merry-go-round at Griffith Park and stand there all day waiting until we were ready to go," Miller told the San Francisco Chronicle in 1998. "As he stood there, he kept thinking there should be more for parents and children to do together, and the idea for Disneyland was born."

Miller's younger sister, Sharon, died of cancer in 1993. She is survived by her husband, Ronald, who owns the Silverado Vineyards Winery in Napa Valley, as well as seven children and 13 grandchildren.

Diane Miller founded the Walt Disney Family Museum, which opened in 2009 in San Francisco's Presidio, as a tribute to her family's legacy. One of her major concerns was that her father's name had become associated more with a corporate identity than with the man himself.

She also played a key role in the completion of the Frank Gehry-designed Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, a project started with a $50 million gift from her m! other.

In 1997, she bucked project leaders like Richard Riordan, the mayor at the time, and billionaire Eli Broad, who said Gehry's firm lacked the experience to execute the plans for the building's unusual curved polished steel design. At a crucial point, Miller threatened to withhold the roughly $20 million remaining of her mother's gift if Gehry was not kept on.

"I wanted something that would bear my father's name, that would come from his wealth but not be commercial," Miller told the Los Angeles Times in September. "I think we achieved that."

Forbes Article Misrepresents BDC Fees, Performance: Franklin Square

The title of a recent Forbes article tells you all you need to know about how it feels about nontraded business development companies — “The  Overly Expensive, Tricky To Sell Investment Product Everyone Seems To Be Buying.”

Yet it raises the question, if they’re expensive and “tricky” to sell, yet still popular, are investors dimwitted or are purveyors of the product dishonest?

Neither, said Michael Forman, CEO of Philadelphia's Franklin Square Capital Partners, the subject of the Forbes article. He believes the venerable publication made a simple mistake — an apples-to-oranges comparison.

“The focus of the article focused on two things: performance and fees,” Forman explained to ThinkAdvisor in a rebuttal of the article. “I appreciate that this would be the focus and it should, but it’s far more nuanced that the manner in which it was presented.”

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Zachary Klehr, the firm’s executive vice president, addressed the Forbes description of its returns as “subpar,” noting what he feels is the misleading comparison with publicly traded BDCs. He added that the Franklin Square product has the second best return in its competitive set, with between 16% and 17% annualized returns since inception.

“The article focused on year-to-date returns,” Klehr argued. “The only way we can really compare nontraded with publicly traded BDCs is through the [net asset value] performance.  For nontraded BDCs, that means the change in the share price plus all distributions made to investors.”

The FS Investment Corp. Fund’s total return was 33.33% in 2009, 13.08% in 2010, 8.93% in 2011, 15.83% in 2012 and 7.52% so far in 2013. Total return since its Jan. 1, 2009 is 16.26%.

By comparison, the S&P 500 returned 26.46% in 2009, 15.06% in 2010, 2.11% in 2011, 16% in 2012 and 28.46% so far in 2013.

“We are very upfront with our investors and tell them what to expect,” Klehr continued. “This is a noncorrelated alternative investment meant to complimen the portfolio. Publically traded BDCs, on the other hand, are very correlated.”

As to the fees associated with the product, “it could either be a 10% upfront load or it could be nothing. If you invest through an RIA or a wrap account it might cost you a smaller amount each year, but that 10% figure cannot be taken in a vacuum.”

Noting the product is typically held for between five and seven years, Klehr figured a typical 1.5% fee charged by an advisor will end up costing more than the front-end load over the life of the investment.

“There is a premium in the market for publicly traded BDCs,” he concluded. “Our competitors are trading currently at about a 14% premium. We offer strong, stable returns at that 10% level, so you can see we are extremely competitive for the appropriate investor.”

---

Check out these related stories on ThinkAdvisor:

Why Repros Is Still Risky Despite Stock's Ascent

THE WOODLANDS, Texas (TheStreet) -- This morning's Repros Therapeutics (RPRX) conference call was boring. There was no discussion of gay Cuban sex, no admission of fabricated clinical data. The closest we got to fun was Repros CEO Joe Podolski explaining men who took the experimental testosterone-raising drug Androxal were reporting "lower rates of abstinence" and therefore had low sperm counts. (Lots of ejaculations, understand?)

Repros reported results from a second pivotal study of Androxal on Tuesday which read very much like what the company said last March about the first study: Androxal, a pill, normalized testosterone levels in men with lower-than-normal testosterone and did not cause a statistically lower sperm count than placebo.

A lot of Androxal data wasn't reported Tuesday, just like it was omitted last March. Instead, Repros' Podolksi offered assurances about Androxal's efficacy and safety, even while remaining non-committal about presenting complete results from the two clinical trials at a medical meeting.

The company intends to file Androxal for approval with the FDA in the middle of next year. Repros shares rose 21% to 25.62 Tuesday, so like last March, investors are brushing off the real risk FDA rejects Androxal. Androxal is a variant of the female reproductive hormone Clomid which Repros is developing as a treatment for men with low testosterone. Right now, men with "low T" are prescribed various testosterone-laden gels and creams -- Abbvie's (ABBV) Androgel, Auxillium Pharmaceuticals' (AUXL) Testim or Eli Lilly's (LLY) Axiron. The worldwide testosterone market is $2 billion annually and growing but these rub-on treatments are messy, carry the risk of transference and cause sperm counts to fall. (A big negative for men who still want to father kids.) As a pill, Androxal is designed to be much more convenient, can't be transferred to kids or women, and most importantly, doesn't lower sperm count. In the second phase III study disclosed Tuesday, Repros said 81% of Androxal-treated men reached normal testosterone range, which exceeded the 75% threshold requirement under the Special Protocol Agreement reached with the FDA. [Seventy-nine percent of men on Androxal reported normal testosterone in the first phase III study.] What was the rate of testosterone normalization for men treated with placebo in the phase III study? Repros did not disclose.

What were the baseline and end-of-treatment levels of testosterone for patients in both arms of the study? Repros did not disclose.

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Was the testosterone normalization endpoint reached with statistical significance? Repros did not disclose. [The terms "statistical significance" or "statistically signifcant" do not appear in today's press release.]

The study's sperm count endpoint is similarly messy.

Twenty of 134 men on Androxal reported sperm counts that fell 50% below their baseline levels compared to 2 of 47 men on placebo. While numerically worse, Repros said the Androxal was statistically non inferior to placebo but only just barely. To meet the study's sperm-count endpoint, Androxal could be no more than 20% worse than placebo. The reported statistical difference was 18.3%. Last March, Repros admitted that one of the clinical trials sites fabricated baseline sperm counts for patients. As a result, the company analyzed the study omitting patients from that troubled site. Here, the statistical worsening in sperm count reduction was 19.6%, meaning the study came within a whisper of failing on this endpoint. Repros also slipped in a change to the reporting from the first phase III study. Tuesday, the company said 16 of 113 Androxal-treated men reported sperm counts lower than 50% from baseline. Last March, it was 15 of 113 patients. Under the SPA agreement, Androxal must meet both primary endpoints in both phase III clinical trials in order for the study to be considered successful. On Tuesday, Repros said it "believes" the sperm-count endpoint was met. Why not just make a definitive statement? Repros CEO Podolski blamed his lawyers for wanting to be conservative. Repros must complete an Androxal safety study plus finish some preclinical work before submitting for FDA approval in the middle of next year. The company is also still working through a messy challenge to the patents for Androxal by a New York urologist who claims Podolski stole the idea for the drug from him. -- Reported by Adam Feuerstein in Boston. Follow @AdamFeuerstein

Adam Feuerstein writes regularly for TheStreet. In keeping with company editorial policy, he doesn't own or short individual stocks, although he owns stock in TheStreet. He also doesn't invest in hedge funds or other private investment partnerships. Feuerstein appreciates your feedback; click here to send him an email.

Top 5 Clean Energy Companies To Own In Right Now

The leaders in hydrogen fuel cell technology, General Motors Company (GM) and Honda Motor Co. (HMC), entered a long-term agreement to collaborate on development of next-generation fuel cell vehicles in order to meet the fuel economy standard set in the U.S.

Both GM and Honda have more than 1,200 fuel cell patents between them, filed between 2002 and 2012, and experimental vehicle fleets. They are the top two companies in terms of total fuel cell patents according to the Clean Energy Patent Growth Index.

Both companies aim to develop the vehicles by 2020. The alliance will bring down their costs in building this expensive technology by sharing each other�� expertise and suppliers.

Why Fuel Cell Vehicles?

The U.S. mandate requires corporate average fuel economy of 54.5 miles per gallon by 2020 and there is no better competent than fuel cell vehicles. Why? Fuel cells have highly fuel-efficient technology compared to gasoline and electric batteries. Secondly, it has a longer driving range (up to 400 miles) than electric cars but pollutes less than gasoline vehicles.

Top 5 Clean Energy Companies To Own In Right Now: Rainmaker Enternainment Inc (RNK.TO)

Rainmaker Entertainment Inc. engages in the production of animated projects and provision of animation services to film, television, and gaming industries. The company produces computer generated animation of family entertainment in various entertainment medias, including television, DVD, gaming, and theatrical films. It operates a multi-faceted animation studio that provides animation productions services from concept to completion, including design, casting, recording, modeling, pre-viz, shot set-up, layout, animation, motion capture, render, lighting, and post production. The company also develops and produces its own properties, including feature films and shorts, as well as produces feature length direct to DVD films for international brands. It creates animation films based on various international brands, including Barbie, Hot Wheels, Spiderman, Casper, Popeye, Tony Hawk, Stuart Little, and Inspector Gadget. Rainmaker Entertainment Inc. was founded in 1993 and is he adquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

Top 5 Clean Energy Companies To Own In Right Now: Atac Resources Ltd. (ATC.V)

ATAC Resources Ltd. engages in exploring for metals and minerals with a focus on gold in Canada. It primarily focuses on the exploration and development of the Rackla gold project covering approximately 1,600 square kilometers located in central Yukon. The company also owns interests in the Connaught prospect, a silver-gold property located in the Sixtymile placer gold camp of western Yukon Territory; and the Dawson gold project located in west-central Yukon approximately. ATAC Resources Ltd. is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

Best Biotech Companies For 2014: London Stock Exchange(LSE.L)

London Stock Exchange Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the admission of securities to trading; the delivery of trading systems; clearing and settlement of trading in securities; the organization and regulation of markets in securities; and the provision of real time data and other information products, and technology services. It operates in four segments: Capital Markets, Post Trade Services, Information Services, and Technology Services. The Capital Markets segment facilitates the companies to raise capital, including equity and debt, as well as provides liquid secondary markets for the trading. This segment operates through the Main Market, which offers listing and trading of equity, debt, and other securities; AIM, an equities market for smaller growing companies; Professional Securities Market that provides listing of debt and depository receipts to professional investors; and Specialist Fund Market that provides listing of specialized investment funds. It has 2,938 companies listed or admitted on its markets. The Post Trade Services segment provides various risk management and trade processing services to ensure the completion of trades and custody of assets. It also offers clearing, settlement, and custody services for equity, derivative, and fixed income securities on various platforms and for over the counter products. The Information Services segment provides real time data and other information products, including reference data, indices and desktop solutions for trading participants and investors. The Technology Services segment ensures speed, performance, security, and flexibility of trading, as well as sells systems to third parties. It also offers technology connections and data centre services for clients as well as technology and enterprise services sales to third parties worldwide. London Stock Exchange Group plc was founded in 1698 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

Top 5 Clean Energy Companies To Own In Right Now: Yoma Strategic Holdings Ltd (Z59.SI)

Yoma Strategic Holdings Ltd., an investment holding company, engages in the development and management of properties, and sale of land development rights and houses in Singapore, Myanmar, and the People�s Republic of China. It is also involved in agricultural activities, such as the managing and marketing produce from a 100,000 acre Jatropha Curcas and black pepper plantation located in the Ayerwaddy Division of Myanmar; and automobile dealership business, as well as provision of construction related services. In addition, the company provides project management services; property management; and architectural and design services. The company�s development properties portfolio includes apartments, condominiums, private residential properties, houses, and townhouses. Yoma Strategic Holdings Ltd. is based in Singapore.

Top 5 Clean Energy Companies To Own In Right Now: Schnitzer Steel Industries Inc.(SCHN)

Schnitzer Steel Industries, Inc. engages in recycling ferrous and nonferrous scrap metals, and used and salvaged vehicles; and manufacturing finished steel products. The company operates through three segments: Metals Recycling Business (MRB), Auto Parts Business (APB), and Steel Manufacturing Business (SMB). The MRB segment involves in the purchase, collection, processing, recycling, sale, and broking of ferrous scrap metals. It processes mixed and large pieces of scrap metal into smaller pieces by sorting, shearing, shredding, and torching. This segment?s products include ferrous products, including ferrous scrap metal, a feedstock used in the production of finished steel products; and nonferrous scrap metals, including aluminum, copper, stainless steel, nickel, brass, titanium, lead, high temperature alloys, and joint products, such as zorba (mixed nonferrous material) and zurik (stainless steel). The MRB segment sells its products to steel mills and smelters. The APB segment purchases used and salvaged vehicles and sells serviceable used auto parts from these vehicles through its 45 self-service auto parts stores, which are located across the United States and western Canada. It also sells other vehicles, including auto bodies; cores, such as engines, transmissions, alternators, and catalytic converters; and nonferrous materials to metal recyclers. The SMB segment engages in the purchase of recycled metal, and processing of the recycled metal and other raw materials into finished steel products. Its product portfolio comprises semi-finished goods and finished goods consisting of rebar, coiled rebar, wire rod, merchant bar, and other specialty products. This segment serves steel service centers, construction industry subcontractors, steel fabricators, wire drawers, and farm and wood product suppliers. The company exports its products worldwide. Schnitzer Steel Industries, Inc. was founded in 1946 and is based in Portland, Oregon.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Another problem that ArcelorMittal and other steel companies have faced is the emerging Chinese steel industry. China subsidizes its steelmakers, and with Chinese infrastructure and construction activity being relatively weak, oversupply is spilling over and having an impact on world steel prices. Recycled scrap producer Schnitzer Steel (NASDAQ: SCHN  ) noted last month that market prices for its exports fell by $50 per ton during its most recent quarter, and given Schnitzer's exposure to Asia, those figures likely reflect China's contribution to the global weakness.

Will Apple Continue to Rise?

With shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) trading around $519, is AAPL an OUTPERFORM, WAIT AND SEE, or STAY AWAY? Let's analyze the stock with the relevant sections of our CHEAT SHEET investing framework:

T = Trends for a Stock's Movement

Apple designs, manufactures, and markets mobile communication and media devices, personal computers, portable digital music players, and a variety of related software, services, peripherals, networking solutions, third-party digital content, and applications. The company's products and services include the iPhone, iPad, Mac, iPod, Apple TV, a portfolio of consumer and professional software applications, the iOS and OS X operating systems, iCloud, and further accessory, service, and support offerings. Apple also delivers digital content and applications through its iTunes, App, iBook, and Mac App stores.

Apple and Samsung Electronics are due back in court this week to decide how much Samsung will have to pay Apple for infringing on Apple's patents. Samsung is facing a penalty of up to $1 billion in damages. The New York Times pointed out that the $1 billion figure won't greatly affect the finances of either company, but the decision will have an impact on how juries calculate damages in future patent infringement cases, which is important to Apple and Samsung, as they're embroiled in several other patent suits, as well.

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart Are Strong

Apple stock has struggled to make significant progress in the last several quarters. The stock is currently rising, trading near highs for the year. Analyzing the price trend and its strength can be done using key simple moving averages. What are the key moving averages? The 50-day (pink), 100-day (blue), and 200-day (yellow) simple moving averages. As seen in the daily price chart below, Apple is trading above its rising key averages, which signal neutral to bullish price action in the near-term.

(Source: Thinkorswim)

Taking a look at the implied volatility (red) and implied volatility skew levels of Apple options may help determine if investors are bullish, neutral, or bearish.

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
Apple Options	21.51%	3%	0%

What does this mean? This means that investors or traders are buying a very small amount of call and put options contracts as compared to the last 30 and 90 trading days.

	Put IV Skew	Call IV Skew
December Options	Flat	Average
January Options	Flat	Average

As of today, there is an average demand from call buyers or sellers and low demand by put buyers or high demand by put sellers, all neutral to bullish over the next two months. To summarize, investors are buying a very small amount of call and put option contracts and are leaning neutral to bullish over the next two months.

On the next page, let's take a look at the earnings and revenue growth rates and the conclusion.

E = Earnings Are Mixed Quarter-Over-Quarter

Rising stock prices are often strongly correlated with rising earnings and revenue growth rates. Also, the last four quarterly earnings announcement reactions help gauge investor sentiment on Apple's stock. What do the last four quarterly earnings and revenue growth (Y-O-Y) figures for Apple look like and more importantly, how did the markets like these numbers?

	2013 Q3	2013 Q2	2013 Q1	2012 Q4
Earnings Growth (Y-O-Y)	-4.73%	-19.85%	-17.97%	-0.43%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	4.19%	0.86%	11.27%	17.65%
Earnings Reaction	-2.49%	5.13%	-0.16%	-12.35%

Apple has seen decreasing earnings and increasing revenue figures over the last four quarters. From these numbers, the markets have been pleased with Apple's recent earnings announcements.

P = WeaK Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has Apple stock done relative to its peers, Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Blackberry (NASDAQ:BBRY), and sector?

	Apple	Google	Microsoft	Blackberry	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	-1.90%	43.37%	40.40%	-45.70%	10.04%

Apple has been a poor relative performer, year-to-date.

Conclusion

Apple strives to provide innovative products and services that consumers and companies love to own. The company and Samsung Electronics are due back in court this week to decide how much Samsung will have to pay Apple for infringing on Apple's patents. The stock hasn't made significant progress in the last several years, however, it's currently trading near highs for the year. Over the last four quarters, earnings have been decreasing while revenues have been rising. Relative to its peers and sector, Apple has been a weak year-to-date performer. WAIT AND SEE what Apple does in the coming weeks.

Higher Rates Can't Hinder Housing's Recovery

If the recent rise in home sales is yet another indication of the real estate market returning to normal, now may be the time to consider investing in homebuilders.

In July, home sales rose to their highest level since November 2009, when a federal tax credit spurred a surge of homebuying. This July's seasonally adjusted sales rate was up 17% from July 2012, and the 5.39 million homes sold beat economists' estimates of 5.15 million. In a sign that demand for homes is picking up, median home prices have risen to $213,500, up 14% from July 2012. That's the biggest year-over-year gain since 2005.

Will rising rates scare buyers away?
Market experts are predicting that sales could slow due to rising rates on mortgages, but prices should remain high if the inventory of homes remains tight . USA TODAY reports that interest rates have risen a full percentage point since May, meaning that a median-price homebuyer with a 20% down payment can expect to pay about $100 more a month.

The participants in the housing market are also changing. According to ABC News, investors now make up 16% of home purchasers, down from February's 22%. The data also noted that first-time homebuyers haven't joined in, making up only 29% of July sales. A healthy real estate market usually has about a 40% participation rate from first-time buyers .

While stock prices for homebuilders have fallen in recent months due to rising mortgage rates, the sector may provide buying opportunities for patient investors who believe that housing demand should return to normal levels in the next few quarters. After all, even those higher rates remain historically low. Let's examine how some of the top names in U.S. homebuilding are benefiting from stronger housing demand despite rising mortgage rates.

Lennar reports demand in its markets outpacing supply
Lennar's (NYSE: LEN  ) second-quarter net earnings for the period ended May 31 were $137.4 million, or $0.61 per diluted share. Earnings were hurt by the partial reversal of a deferred tax asset worth $41.3 million, or $0.18 per diluted share. Note that a deferred tax asset is used to decrease the company's tax expense in future periods. Earnings for the second quarter dropped about 70% from $452.7 million, or $2.06 per diluted shares in the previous year . 

Hot Oil Companies To Invest In 2014

CEO Stuart Miller remains confident in a solid housing recovery. Demand in all of Lennar's markets is outpacing supply as it is being squeezed by a limited availability of land and fewer competitors. Despite the rate increases, Miller believes homes are still affordable and has noted little impact on unit sales or pricing .

Toll Brothers has rising sales volume and unit prices
For the third quarter ended on July 31, Toll Brothers' (NYSE: TOL  ) net income was $46.6 million, or $0.26 per share. The latest income figures were down 24% from last year's third-quarter results of $61.6 million, or $0.36 per share. The company's total quarterly revenues were $689.2 million, up 24% over last year, and homebuilding deliveries were 1,059 units, up 10% compared to the same period last year .

According to CEO Douglas C. Yearley, both sales volume and prices increased during the quarter; this pattern is consistent with recent quarters. He confirmed that he believes the housing recovery is in its early stages. The company is committed to growth and increased its land position during the quarter. Toll Brothers' community count was 225 at the end of the third quarter, and is projected to grow 10% to 15% by the end of fiscal 2014 .

PulteGroup has high growth expectations
PulteGroup (NYSE: PHM  ) reported $36 million, or $0.09 per share, of net income for its second quarter ended June 30. Net income included charges for several events that took place in the quarter. In the prior year's quarter, the company reported net income of $42 million, or $0.11 per share. CEO Richard J. Dugas Jr. believes the housing market is on track to a long-term recovery. He finds that consumers see good value in the market, despite a limited supply of housing inventory, rising prices, and higher interest rates.

Adjusted home sales gross margin for the third quarter was 23.9%, an increase of 360 basis points. Net new orders for the second quarter were 4,885 homes, down 12% from prior year. On a dollar basis, the value was $1.5 billion, a decrease of 5% from 2012 .

My foolish conclusion
The average PEG ratios for Toll Brothers -- 0.73 -- and PulteGroup -- 0.51-- are much less than the industry average of 1.92. Sales of Toll Brothers' homes may also be less susceptible to rising mortgage rates since the company caters to a more affluent consumer. Both Toll Brothers and PulteGroup have high five-year growth rate projections of about 54% and 30%, as compared to an industry average growth rate of approximately 20%. 

Based on these numbers, and increasing evidence of a strengthening market, Toll Brothers and PulteGroup may offer a good value for investors looking to invest in the early stages of the housing recovery. 

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22 Commercial Banking Stocks to Buy Now

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This week, 22 Commercial Banking stocks are improving their overall ratings on Portfolio Grader. Each of these stocks is rated an “A” (“strong buy”) or “B” overall (“buy”).

HomeTrust Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:) is making headway this week, with the company’s rating improving to an A (“strong buy”) from a B (“buy”) last week. In Portfolio Grader’s specific subcategories of Earnings Growth, Earnings Revisions, Earnings Surprise, and Margin Growth, HTBI also gets A’s. .

Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:) is making progress this week as its rating of C (“hold”) from last week increases to a B (“buy”) rating this week. Pinnacle Financial Partners is a holding company for Pinnacle National Bank. .

Taylor Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:) is seeing ratings go up from a B last week to an A this week. Taylor Capital Group is a bank holding company for Cole Taylor Bank. .

BSB Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:) boosts its rating from a C to a B this week. BSB Bancorp operates as a bank holding company. .

BNC Bancorp (NASDAQ:) improves from a C to a B rating this week. BNC Bancorp offers products and services to individuals and small- to medium-sized local businesses. .

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:) earns a B this week, jumping up from last week’s grade of C. Wells Fargo provides financial services in mainly wholesale banking, mortgage banking, consumer finance, equipment leasing, agricultural finance and commercial finance. .

PacWest Bancorp (NASDAQ:) shows solid improvement this week. The company’s rating rises from a C to a B. PacWest Bancorp is the holding company for Pacific Western Bank. .

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:) boosts its rating from a C to a B this week. U.S. Bancorp provides banking and financial services. .

Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:) gets a higher grade this week, advancing from a C last week to a B. Huntington Bancshares is a multi-state bank holding company. .

Independent Bank Corp.’s (NASDAQ:) ratings are looking better this week, moving up to a B from last week’s C. Independent Bank is the holding company for Rockland Trust. .

First Financial Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:) is seeing ratings go up from a C last week to a B this week. First Financial Bankshares is a multi-bank holding company. .

Pacific Continental Corporation (NASDAQ:) improves from a B to an A rating this week. Pacific Continental Bank is a bank holding company that provides commercial banking, financing, and mortgage lending in parts of Washington state and Oregon. .

First Community Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:) shows solid improvement this week. The company’s rating rises from a C to a B. First Community Bancshares is the holding company for First Community Bank. .

The rating of Bryn Mawr Bank Corporation (NASDAQ:) moves up this week, rising from a C to a B. Bryn Mawr Bank offers a full range of personal and business banking services. .

Banco de Chile Sponsored ADR (NYSE:) earns a B this week, jumping up from last week’s grade of C. NonactiveBanco de Chile provides a wide customer base of individuals and corporations with general banking services. The current dividend yield is 3.3%. .

This week, BOK Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:) pushes up from a C to a B rating. BOK Financial provides a range of financial services to commercial and industrial customers, other financial institutions, and consumers in the United States. .

This is a strong week for Glacier Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:). The company’s rating climbs to B from the previous week’s C. Glacier Bancorp is a regional multi-bank holding company providing commercial financial services to individuals and corporations. .

This week, Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc.’s (NASDAQ:) ratings are up from a C last week to a B. Washington Trust offers a range of financial services to individuals and businesses, including wealth management. .

First Connecticut Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:) shows solid improvement this week. The company’s rating rises from a C to a B. First Connecticut Bancorp operates as the holding company for Farmington Bank that provides consumer and commercial banking services to businesses, individuals, and governments in central Connecticut. .

First Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:) improves from a B to an A rating this week. South Carolina Bank and Trust is a bank holding company that provides retail and commercial banking, mortgage lending, consumer finance loans, and trust and investment services. .

The rating of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (NYSE:) moves up this week, rising from a C to a B. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce is a global financial institution that serves clients through CIBC retail markets and wholesale banking. The stock price has risen 6.2% over the past month, better than the 1.7% decrease the S&P 500 has seen over the same period of time. At present, the stock has a dividend yield of 3.6%. .

The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:) is seeing ratings go up from a C last week to a B this week. Bank of Nova Scotia offers various personal, commercial, corporate, and investment banking services in Canada and internationally. The stock’s dividend yield is 2.4%. .

Louis Navellier’s proprietary Portfolio Grader stock ranking system assesses roughly 5,000 companies every week based on a number of fundamental and quantitative measures. Stocks are given a letter grade based on their results — with A being “strong buy,” and F being “strong sell.” Explore the tool here.

5 Best Stocks For 2014

In this year's letter to shareholders,�Amazon.com� (NASDAQ: AMZN  ) �CEO Jeff Bezos writes:

...as I frequently quote famed investor Benjamin Graham ... "In the short run, the market is a voting machine but in the long run, it is a weighing machine." ... We want to be weighed, and we're always working to build a heavier company.

With this analogy, there are times when the market's scale could add some pounds that Amazon lacks -- that is, the stock could be overvalued. But looking at history, Amazon constantly ends up weighing more than what the market believes, and then outperforms in its weight class.

So, what about now? It would be crazy to think this trend of outperformance will keep going for a $150 billion company that reports losses instead of profits, right? Here are some reasons to the contrary.

Market opportunity
Amazon, of course, began selling books. Now it enters any industry it deems lucrative. Even though it operates in a breadth of industries from Web services to publishing to video entertainment, and it seems like there aren't many more industries to take on, it can still grow through depth. To Amazon, it's all about the customer experience, and giving incentives and features that will attract new customers and keep old ones. If this strategy proves effective, it could grow its share in any of its many businesses.

5 Best Stocks For 2014: Alexandria Minerals Corporation (AZX.V)

Alexandria Minerals Corporation, a development stage company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral resource properties in Canada. It explores for copper, gold, silver, and zinc ore properties. The company holds interests in 24 mineral properties in 3 areas in the Abitibi Belt in northern Quebec and Ontario. It primarily focuses on exploring the Cadillac Break property group consisting of 21 individual properties covering 12,526 hectares on 675 claims located in Val d�Or, Quebec. The company was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

5 Best Stocks For 2014: Dios Exploration Inc (DOS.V)

Dios Exploration Inc., a mineral research company, operates as a mining exploration and evaluation company in Canada. It focuses on exploring gold, uranium, diamonds, and a carbonatite with rare earth and niobium metals. The company holds interests in various properties comprising 5,300 mining claims covering approximately 2,750 square kilometers in the areas of central Quebec and the Otish Mountains. Dios Exploration Inc. is based in Montreal, Canada.

Top 10 High Tech Companies To Watch In Right Now: Reading International Inc(RDI)

Reading International, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development, ownership, and operation of entertainment and real property assets in the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. It operates multiplex theatres; and involves in real estate development, as well as the rental of retail, commercial, and live theater assets. The company manages its cinema businesses under the Reading, Angelika Film Center, Consolidated Amusements, and City Cinemas brand names. As of December 31, 2010, it had interests in 56 cinemas comprising approximately 453 screens; fee interests in 4 live theaters; and fee ownership of approximately 1.1 million square feet of developed commercial real estate, and approximately 14.9 million square feet of land. Reading International also owns a 66% unincorporated joint venture interest in a leased 5-screen multiplex cinema in Melbourne. The company was founded in 1937 and is headquartered in Commerce, California.

5 Best Stocks For 2014: Aviva plc (AV)

Aviva plc provides insurance, savings, and fund management products and services worldwide. It offers life insurance and savings products, which comprise pensions products, such as personal and group pensions, stakeholder pensions, and income drawdown; annuities; protection products, including term assurance, mortgage life insurance, flexible whole life, and critical illness cover; bonds and savings comprising single premium investment bonds, regular premium savings plans, mortgage endowment products, and funding agreements; and investment products consisting of unit trusts, individual savings accounts, and open ended investment companies, as well as equity release and structured settlements. The company also provides general and health insurance products that include personal lines of insurance products, such as motor, household, travel, and creditor insurance; commercial lines of insurance products consisting of fleet, liability, and commercial property insurance; health insurance products comprising private health, income protection, personal accident, and corporate healthcare insurance products; and insurance for corporate and specialty risks. In addition, it offers fund management products and services for institutional, pension fund, and retail clients. Aviva plc sells its products through various distribution channels, including direct sales forces, intermediaries, corporate partnerships, bancassurance, and joint ventures, as well as through the telephone and Internet. The company was formerly known as CGNU plc and changed its name to Aviva plc in July 2002. Aviva plc is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Royston Wild]

  Bubbly activity in developing geographies can create large opportunities for many London-listed firms. Today, I am looking at Aviva (LSE: AV  ) (NYSE: AV  ) and assessing whether its operations in these regions are likely to underpin solid earnings growth.

5 Best Stocks For 2014: Flanigan's Enterprises Inc.(BDL)

Flanigan's Enterprises, Inc. operates a chain of full-service restaurants and package liquor stores in south Florida. It operates restaurants under Flanigan?s Seafood Bar and Grill name, which offers alcoholic beverages and full food services; and package liquor stores under Big Daddy?s Liquors name that provides brand name and private label liquors, beer, and wines. As of April 2, 2011, the company operated 24 units that consists of restaurants, package liquor stores, and combination restaurants/package liquor stores; 1 adult entertainment club; and franchised 5 units comprising 1 restaurant and 4 combination restaurants/package liquor stores. Flanigan's Enterprises, Inc. was founded in 1959 and is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.