Talk about about-faces. As well as the U.S. stock market has performed over the past year, European bourses have done even better. Two years after the near-collapse of the euro, the euro zone�� economy is finally on the mend and may emerge from recession by the end of the year. One of the best ways to play the recovery is with T. Rowe Price European Stock (PRESX). The no-load fund, managed since 2005 by Dean Tenerelli, has topped its benchmark, the MSCI Europe index, in six of the past eight calendar years, including 2013.
See Also: Look Overseas for Cheap Stocks
The 75-stock portfolio holds com颅panies of all sizes from developed European countries. But, says the London-based Tenerelli, ��hey are not the typical blue chips people see in many other funds.��He uses estimates of a company�� future free cash flow (the cash left over after the capital expenditures needed to maintain a business) to determine its current value and buys a stock when it�� selling below that figure. �� do not focus on growth,��Tenerelli says. ��ut I find a lot of interesting opportunities in slower-growing companies that the market overlooks because they seem boring.��/p>
Best Gas Companies To Buy Right Now: iRobot Corp (IRBT)
iRobot Corporation (iRobot), incorporated in August 1990, designs and builds robots. The Company�� home care robots perform time-consuming domestic chores while its government and industrial robots perform tasks, such as battlefield reconnaissance and bomb disposal, multi-purpose tasks for local police and first responders, and long-endurance oceanic missions. It sells its robots to consumers through a range of distribution channels, including chain stores and other national retailers, and through its on-line store, and to the United States military and other government agencies globally. It designs and builds robots for the consumer and government and industrial markets. It sells its products through distinct sales channels to the consumer and government and industrial markets. In the United States and Canada, it sells its consumer products through a network of national retailers. As of December 31, 2011, this network consisted of more than 30 retailers, which often sell either one or some combination of its products. Its smaller domestic retail operations are supported by distributors to whom it sells product directly. It sells its government and industrial products directly to end users and indirectly through prime contractors and distributors. During the year ended December 31, 2011, sales to non-the United States customers accounted for 45.5% of total revenue.
Consumer Products
The Company sells various products, which are designed for use in and around the home. Its consumer products are focused on both indoor and outdoor cleaning applications. It offers multiple Roomba floor vacuuming robots and Scooba floor washing robots. Its Roomba robot�� compact disc shape allows it to clean under beds and other furniture, resulting in cleaner floors. In addition, it cleans automatically upon the push of a button. Its Scooba robot�� cleaning process allows the robot to simultaneously sweep, wash, scrub and dry hard floors, all at the touch of a button. Its Verro Pool Cleani! ng Robot is used to clean a residential pool and removes debris as small as two microns from the pool floor, walls and stairs. Verro is brought to market under the iRobot brand through a relationship with the Aqua Products Group companies, including AquaJet LLC and Aquatron, Inc., which developed the pool cleaning robots.
The Company�� Looj Gutter Cleaning Robot cleans an entire stretch of gutter. The Looj also features a detachable handle that doubles as a wireless remote control, providing control of the robot while cleaning.
Government and Industrial Products
In government and industrial product markets, the Company offers both ground and maritime unmanned vehicles. Its tactical ground robots include the combat-tested 510 PackBot line of small, unmanned ground robots, the 310 small unmanned ground vehicle (SUGV) and XM1216 SUGV (Small Unmanned Ground Vehicle) multi-purpose ground robots, the 110 FirstLook small, light, throwable robot, and the 710 Warrior multi-purpose robot capable of carrying heavy payloads. The PackBot, SUGV, FirstLook, and Warrior robot series make up a family of robots using many common platform components and offer its flipper technology, which enables robots to climb stairs, navigate rubble, and penetrate inaccessible areas. These robots keep war fighters and public safety officials out of harm�� way and are designed for performing search, reconnaissance, mapping, bomb disposal and other dangerous missions. As of December 31, 2011, more than 4,500 robots had been delivered to military and civil defense forces globally. Its Aware 2 software is incorporated into the 510 PackBot chassis and operator control unit. As a result, PackBot can support multiple configurations and payloads with the same chassis and operator control unit, providing customers with a single robot capable of performing multiple missions.
Contract Research and Development Projects
The Company is involved in several contract development pr! ojects wi! th the United States governmental agencies and departments. The durations of these projects range from a few months to several years. These projects are usually funded as either cost-plus, firm fixed price, or time and materials contracts. In a cost-plus contract, it is allowed to recover its actual costs plus a fixed fee. Under a firm fixed price contract, it receives a fixed amount upon satisfying contractually defined deliverables. On its time and materials contracts, it recovers a specific amount per hour worked based on a bill rate schedule, plus the cost of direct materials, subcontracts, and other non-labor costs, including an agreed-upon mark-up.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Steve Symington]
Of course, that doesn't mean share buybacks don't have their place; back in February, I supported iRobot's (NASDAQ: IRBT ) �plan to repurchase up to $25 million of its common stock, but that was only because the company had just taken a beating after an ugly fourth-quarter earnings report, and I also believed its shares were fundamentally undervalued relative to its growth prospects.
- [By Rich Smith]
The Department of Defense issued some 22 separate contract awards Thursday, totaling just under $1 billion in combined value. Not all of them went to publicly traded defense contractors, of course, but enough of them did to be worth mentioning. Here are a few of the lucky winners:
- [By John Udovich]
Small cap robotic stock Adept Technology (NASDAQ: ADEP) has put in a very good performance this month verses its immediate peer�iRobot Corporation (NASDAQ: IRBT) as well as against medical robotic stocks like MAKO Surgical (NASDAQ: MAKO), Accuray Incorporated (NASDAQ: ARAY) and Hansen Medical, Inc (NASDAQ: HNSN). I should also mention that we have recently added Adept Technology to our SmallCap Network Elite Opportunity (SCN EO) portfolio (we are up 9% since last week) because we feel robotics is an improving sector as companies aim to reduce overhead and improve efficiencies through machine to machine (M2M) automation.
- [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Shares of iRobot (NASDAQ: IRBT) was up as well, gaining 13.63 percent to $42.76 after as the stock's new alltime high was breached, leading to bullish sentiment on Wall Street.
Top 5 US Companies To Buy For 2014: Pike Electric Corp.(PIKE)
Pike Electric Corporation provides energy solutions for investor-owned, municipal, and co-operative utilities in the United States. The company?s services include siting, permitting, engineering, designing, planning, constructing, maintaining, and repairing power delivery systems, including renewable energy projects. Its planning and siting process leverages technology and the collection of environmental, cultural, land use, and scientific data to facilitate negotiations and permitting for powerlines, substations, pipelines, and renewable energy installations. The company also provides design, engineering, procurement and construction, owner engineer, project management, multi-entity coordination, grid integration, balance-of-plant, and thermal rate solutions for individual or turnkey powerline, substation, and renewable energy projects. In addition, it offers overhead and underground powerline construction, up gradation, and extension services for distribution networks a nd transmission lines with voltages up to 345kV, energized maintenance work for voltages up to 500kV; and substation construction and service. Further, Pike Electric Corporation provides a total energy solution platform, including preliminary studies, planning, siting and permitting, engineering and design, construction, procurement, and grid interconnection services. Additionally, it offers storm restoration services, which include the repair or reconstruction of parts of a distribution or sub-500 kV transmission network comprising substations, power lines, utility poles, or other components damaged during flash floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, and snow, ice, or wind storms, as well as other natural disasters. The company was founded in 1945 and is headquartered in Mount Airy, North Carolina.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]
Alamy There are plenty of stocks going up -- and down -- in any given week. The gainers inspire us to keep investing. The decliners keep greed in check while reminding us about the risks of the equity markets. Let's go over some of last week's best and worst performers. Pike (PIKE) -- Up 49 percent last week The market's biggest winner of last week was Pike, a specialty construction and engineering firm that received a bid to be taken private. J. Eric Pike -- the firm's chairman and CEO -- is teaming up with private equity firm Court Square Capital Partners to buy out shareholders at $12 a share. It's a fair premium, pricing the buyout at a better than 50 percent premium to where the stock was trading when it was announced. A few attorneys are trying to smoke out investors who feel that the CEO-led privatization push isn't fair, but it's likely to stick at that kind of healthy markup. Pike shares may have traded in the low teens last summer, but that was before revenue and earnings began heading the wrong way. Most shareholders should be more than happy to take the money and run. RadNet (RDNT) -- Up 34 percent last week Operating a network of 251 facilities that perform outpatient diagnostic imaging services is looking good for RadNet. The stock moved sharply higher after a strong quarterly report. Revenue inched slighting higher as MRI and CT scan volume increased modestly during the period. However, the real star in the report was RadNet's bottom line. Its cost-cutting and debt-slashing efforts paid off with net income soaring to $0.12 a share after clocking in at a $0.07 a share a year earlier. Analysts were only holding out for $0.05 a share. RadNet also helped improve its standing by boosting its guidance for all of 2014. You don't need any of RadNet's fancy imaging equipment to see that that's a healthy sign. Trex (TREX) -- Up 25 percent last week It was a good week for a pair of home improvement specialists. Shares of CaesarStone (CSTE) moved 20
- [By Damian Illia]
Finally, I always like to see one of the most important financial ratios applying to stockholders, the best measure of performance for a firm's management: the return on equity. The ratio has decreased when compared to its ROE from the same quarter one year prior. This is a signal of major weakness. Moreover, it is worse than those shown in the table like Aegion Corporation (AEGN), EnerNOC Inc. (ENOC), MYR GroupInc. (MYRG) and Pike Corporation (PIKE).
Top 5 US Companies To Buy For 2014: Verizon Communications Inc.(VZ)
Verizon Communications Inc. provides communication services. The company operates through two segments, Domestic Wireless and Wireline. The Domestic Wireless segment offers wireless voice and data services; and sells equipment in the United States. The Wireline segment provides voice, Internet access, broadband video and data, Internet protocol network, network access, long distance, and other services in the United States and internationally. The company serves consumer, business, and government customers, as well as carriers. As of December 31, 2010, its network covered a population of approximately 292 million and provided service to a customer base of approximately 94.1 million. The company was formerly known as Bell Atlantic Corporation and changed its name to Verizon Communications Inc. in June 2000. Verizon Communications Inc. was founded in 1983 and is based in New York, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Sam Robson]
LONDON -- Vodafone (LSE: VOD ) (NASDAQ: VOD ) has drawn first blood in the ongoing saga with Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ ) over the ownership of Verizon Wireless, after the U.S. telecoms Goliath relented after claiming initially that Wireless's dividend payout was not assured this year.
- [By WALLSTCHEATSHEET]
Verizon provides communications products and services through a variety of mediums to consumers and companies around the world. The company is reportedly ready to pursue the purchase of Vodafone’s stake in Verizon Wireless. The stock has struggled in the last several months and looks to be trending lower. Over the last four quarters, earnings and revenues have been rising which have generally pleased investors in the company. Relative to its peers and sector, Verizon has been a weak year-to-date performer. WAIT AND SEE what Verizon does this coming quarter.
- [By Jessica Alling]
Earnings can make or break you
There has been a trend this earnings season that the companies beating expectations are rewarded, but how investors are deciding the winners varies. Now this is good news for Verizon (NYSE: VZ ) , which announced earnings this morning. Helped by decreased costs in its wireless division and higher sales of smartphones in the first quarter, Verizon beat analyst earnings estimates by $0.02 per share, with EPS of $0.68 per share -- a $0.09-per-share increase from the prior year's quarter. Though the wireless provider missed revenue expectations, the stock is up 3.61% so far in trading. Verizon also announced that it was confident that it could acquire the remaining 45% stake in Vodafone's wireless operations without any major tax implications. This is a further development in the company's back-and-forth with Vodafone over the joint operations.
Top 5 US Companies To Buy For 2014: Altra Holdings Inc.(AIMC)
Altra Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiary, Altra Industrial Motion, Inc., designs, produces, and markets a range of mechanical power transmission and motion control products worldwide. The company provides industrial clutches and brakes for elevators, forklifts, lawn mowers, oil well draw works, punch presses, and conveyors; open and enclosed gearing products for conveyors, ethanol mixers, packaging machinery, and metal processing equipment; and engineered couplings for extruders, turbines, steel strip mills, and pumps. It also offers engineered bearing assemblies for cargo rollers, seat storage systems, and conveyors; power transmission components for conveyors, lawn mowers, and machine tools; and engineered belted drives for pumps, sand and gravel conveyors, and industrial fans. The company sells its products under the Warner Electric, Boston Gear, TB Wood?s, Kilian, Nuttall Gear, Ameridrives, Wichita Clutch, Formsprag Clutch, Bibby Transmissions, Stieber, Matrix, In ertia Dynamics, Twiflex, Industrial Clutch, Huco Dynatork, Marland Clutch, Delroyd, Warner Linear, and Bauer Gear Motor brands through its sales force, industrial distributors, and independent sales representatives. It serves aerospace, energy, food processing, general industrial, material handling, mining, petrochemical, transportation, and turf and garden markets. The company is headquartered in Braintree, Massachusetts.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Seth Jayson]
When judging a company's prospects, how quickly it turns cash outflows into cash inflows can be just as important as how much profit it's booking in the accounting fantasy world we call "earnings." This is one of the first metrics I check when I'm hunting for the market's best stocks. Today, we'll see how it applies to Altra Holdings (Nasdaq: AIMC ) .
- [By Brian Pacampara]
What: Shares of power transmission products maker Altra Holdings (NASDAQ: AIMC ) plummeted 17% today after its quarterly results and outlook disappointed Wall Street.�
No comments:
Post a Comment