Eurozone Has A Long Path Ahead

 There are three important issues that were raisaed by Draghi at the conference in Frankfurt today.

"We may experience a prolonged period of low inflation," Draghi said. The projections for inflation were revised down 0.2 points to 1.1% in 2014, while its first forecast for 2015 predicted consumer prices rising 1.3%. The midpoint for this year was also down 0.1 point to 1.4% Projections though, for GDP growth in 2014 were raised 0.1 point from September's forecast to 1.1%, up from an unchanged expectation of -0.4% this year. GDP grwoth for 2015 was recevering further to 1.5%. Bank lending in the euro area to companies and households shrank 2.1 percent in October from a year earlier, the 18th conssecutive month of declines.

As a result having in mind that cash inflows are not ijected in the real economy and the fact that inflation is low indicating that demand for goods in the EZ is deteriorated, isn't it obvious to say that the economy has still a long path ahead?

Top Gold Stocks To Own Right Now

Also another important argument is that the issue of even lower rates has not closed yet. Mario is constantly mentions that if the CPI continues to decline a new rate would be still on the epicenter.

Considering that the rate cut issues are still on the back of Dragh's head (including also the potential negative deposite rates) and the fact that LTRO money are actually invested in the internal of the economy,  the big questions is how viability and growth will be induced in the EZ? and how attractive the EZ for the investors is for the short term? As it is revealed, the fact that the rate of gwroth and improvement in EZ is very low, signifies that investors should concern about the economy more for the long run.

 

souces:

Bloomberg

Mni news

The following article is from one of our external contributors. It does not represent the opinion of Benzinga and has not been edited.

Posted-In: Eurozone Economics Markets

  Around the Web, We're Loving... Lightspeed Trading Presents: Thunder and Tubleweeds: Trading Techniques for the New Market Enviroment Pope Francis Rips 'Trickle-Down' Economics Come See How the Pro's Trade in this Exclusive Webinar Wynn, MGM, Other Casino Giants Vying For U.S. Turf What Should You Know About AMZN? Most Popular The Apple - China Mobile Deal By The Numbers Why Tesla Was Up 16 Percent Tuesday The 10 Apple Acquisitions of 2013 J.C. Penney: What The Analysts Are Saying #PreMarket Primer: Thursday, December 5: Apple & China Mobile Ink Deal 3 Reasons Every Family Office Should Own Petrobras Brasileiro Related Articles () Eurozone Has A Long Path Ahead This Friday's NFP Is Important, But It's Not The Most Crucial One Should We Employ Indicators Used by the Majority? Market Wrap For December 5: Market Participants Anxiously Await Tomorrow's Employment Report Silica Holdings Announces 4.526M Share Offering by GGC USS Holdings Finisar Jumps 4% After Q2 Earnings Beat, Strong Guidance View the discussion thread.

Eurodollar contracts suggest rate hike a ways off

Best Heal Care Companies To Own For 2014

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Even as equities and Treasurys sold off following the Federal Reserve's meeting minutes Wednesday, eurodollar futures contracts suggested that investors were not expecting a hike to the central bank's short-term interest rate any time soon. Certain eurodollar futures contracts held at record highs for those contracts after the Fed's minutes suggested the central bank was considering ways to scale back its bond-buying program. The contracts, which trade based on the projected path of the Fed's short-term policy rate, have priced in expectations in recent sessions that the central bank will keep interest rates low for the foreseeable future as the economic recovery gathers steam. The June 2015 contract (EDM5) has an implied fed funds rate of 0.56%. The rate, which moves inversely to price, is at its lowest on record, which goes back to 2005, according to FactSet. The March 2015 contract (EDH5) has an implied rate of 0.46%, while the December 2014 contract (EDZ4) has an implied rate of 0.36%, both the lowest on record.

Massad’s job: Live up to Gensler’s legacy at CFTC

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Timothy Massad, the senior Treasury Department official expected to be nominated to head the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, has a rare challenge as a regulator: he has a legacy to live up to.

The White House is expected to pick Massad to replace Gary Gensler, the outgoing CFTC chief. The transition is expected to come roughly at year-end pending confirmation, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Bloomberg Enlarge Image Timothy Massad

For investors, the choice of Massad is significant. Few regulators are charged with such an enormous and challenging task as regulating a $125 trillion to $180 trillion market, not to mention one as tangled and complicated. Just consider interest-rate and credit default swaps and the derivative of derivatives: the synthetic derivative.

Under Gensler, the CFTC has been surprisingly active in trying to rein in the marketplace. Gensler is a former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS)  banker whose appetite for aggressive regulation was in doubt. He's surprised, time and again.

Massad also will have something to prove. The Treasury Department, especially under Timothy Geithner was often criticized for being too generous with Wall Street interests. Massad's role at the department was to oversee the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the bank bailout program.

To make his task more difficult, the CFTC is struggling with turnover. Two commissioners, not including Gensler, have either left or plan to leave. Should Massad seek to keep the CFTC proactive, he will have to build support among an untested panel of commissioners.

Like the popular Sheila Bair formerly at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Elizabeth Warren, formerly a congressional bailout watchdog and now a U.S. senator from Massachusetts, Massad can gild his reputation as an investor advocate and keeper of the financial system.

Or he can "work" with the industry. Problem is, usually those kind of regulators get worked over instead.

Stocks’ record run continues: Futures climb

Major premarket benchmarks traded higher on Wednesday morning.

Dow Jones industrial average index futures gained 0.5%, Standard & Poor's 500 index futures climbed 0.6% and Nasdaq index futures added about 3%.

In Asia, China's Shanghai composite index was down 1.3%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index lost 1.4% and Japan's Nikkei 225 was off nearly 2% as the yen gained against the U.S. dollar, which can hurt sales and profits at Japanese exporters.

WALL STREET: Stocks breaking all-time highs

DOW: Not part of stocks' record run

Slower U.S. hiring and reports of tighter money market conditions in China that could check its economic recovery were acting as a weight for the region.

In Europe, stocks mostly fell, breaking a recent winning streak. The United Kingdom's FTSE 100 index dropped 0.4% and the DAX index in Germany was down by a similar amount. Spain's IBEX 35 index retreated over 1% even though there was some positive growth data there. The Bank of Spain estimates that the Iberian nation has now exited recession for the first time in over two years.

In the prior session, the Dow gained 0.5% to 15,467.66, the Nasdaq rose 0.2% to 3,929.57 and the S&P 500 added 0.6% to close at an all-time high of 1,754.67.

Best Tech Companies To Own In Right Now

TUESDAY: S&P rises to fourth consecutive record close

In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude for December delivery was down 83 cents at $97.47 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $1.38 to $98.30 on Tuesday.

Contributing: Associated Press

Tesla Slips As Musk Says Short Sellers Slightly Less Crazy Than Before

Shares of Tesla (TSLA) were down about 0.3% at recent check; the stock was also down after hours yesterday, when Elon Musk told Fox Business Network that short sellers are "not as crazy" to bet against the stock as they were in the past, given its recent rally.

From the interview: "In the past I said it's really crazy to short Tesla. Is it so crazy to short Tesla right now? I mean it's not as crazy but I still think it's probably not a good idea."

So, not exactly a damning review of his own company, but enough to send the shares down a bit at midday. Although with the shares up more than 440% in the past twelve months, it might have been crazier of Musk not to acknowledge that the rally could leave some investors skeptical (however unjustifiably, in his view).

Top 5 Low Price Stocks To Watch For 2014

Or maybe investors are signaling their disapproval of potentially naming a child after the electric car company.

Earlier this week, Bloomberg weighed in on Tesla's plan to offer buybacks.

National Advisors Trust to Provide Trust Services for Mercer Advisors

National Advisors Trust Company, which claims to be the nation’s largest independent RIA-owned trust company, announced Monday that it has been chosen by Mercer Advisors to provide trust and trustee services for its clients.

NATC was founded in 2001 and $8 billion in assets under administration through 135 RIA firms throughout the United States. Mercer, founded in 1985, has $4.5 billion in assets under management for 3,700 clients in branch offices in 15 cities.

“We chose NATC to be our provider because they have excellent trust services and a unique business model that allows Mercer Advisors to continue to enhance and preserve client relationships,” Dave Barton, resident and CEO of Mercer Advisors, said in a statement. “NATC’s trust and trustee services are comprehensive, and they do not compete with advisors. We’ve received numerous requests from clients for trustee services, and are looking forward to using NATC’s offering. It’s a natural fit for our needs and for the needs of our clients.”

Jim Combs, CEO of NATC, added “The model of combining an RIA like Mercer Advisors with a national trust company that provides conflict-free trust administration services, is a more attractive wealth management solution when compared to other trust services options on the market today. NATC trust solutions offer RIAs the flexibility and customization they need to meet the diverse needs of their client base, while trust services offered by large bank trust companies are becoming increasingly inflexible, often requiring high asset minimums and lacking a personalized approach.”

“Clearly, being principally owned by RIAs, we understand the RIAs’ need to be able to offer a wide range of personalized trust services,” Combs continued. “RIAs want to be named in trust documents as the investment advisor so they can honor clients’ requests to continue managing client assets when assets pass to family members. That kind of continuity and high-touch service can only be achieved by working with a non-competitive trust partner like NATC.  We see this trend growing, and expect it to continue in the coming decade.”

Does TiVo Support Higher Prices?

With shares of TiVo (NASDAQ:TIVO) trading around $12, is TIVO 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

TiVo is a developer and provider of software and technology that enables the search, navigation, and access of content across sources, including linear television, on-demand television, and broadband video. The company provides these capabilities through set-top boxes that include DVRs or non-DVR set-top boxes, tablet computers, mobile phones, and other screens. It also provides advertising solutions for the media industry, including a platform for interactive advertising and audience measurement services. As consumers look for improved methods to access their entertainment, TiVo is well-positioned to provide these valuable services. Consumers are engaging with media technology at an increasing rate so as long as TiVo continues to improve, rising prices should be in sight.

NEW! Discover a new stock idea each week for less than the cost of 1 trade. CLICK HERE for your Weekly Stock Cheat Sheets NOW!

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart are Mixed

TiVo stock has seen a consistent uptrend over the last several years. The stock has pulled-back from a long-term selling level but may be getting ready to coast higher. 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, TiVo is trading around its key averages which signal neutral price action in the near-term.

(Source: Thinkorswim)

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

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
TiVo Options	77.89%	83%	80%

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

	Put IV Skew	Call IV Skew
June Options	Steep	Average
July Options	Steep	Average

As of today, there is an average demand from call buyers or sellers and high demand by put buyers or low demand by put sellers, all neutral to bearish over the next two months. To summarize, investors are buying a very significant amount of call and put option contracts and are leaning neutral to bearish 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 TiVo’s stock. What do the last four quarterly earnings and revenue growth (Y-O-Y) figures for TiVo look like and more importantly, how did the markets like these numbers?

	2012 Q4	2012 Q3	2012 Q2	2012 Q1
Earnings Growth (Y-O-Y)	-351.82%	309.52%	-35.29%	-116.35%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	33.68%	26.64%	6.66%	48.12%
Earnings Reaction	-0.08%	6.35%	-3.41%	-4.68%

TiVo has seen decreasing earnings and increasing revenue figures over most of the last four quarters. From these figures, the markets have had mixed feelings about TiVo’s recent earnings announcements.

NEW! Discover a new stock idea each week for less than the cost of 1 trade. CLICK HERE for your Weekly Stock Cheat Sheets NOW!

P = Poor Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has TiVo stock done relative to its peers, AT&T (NYSE:T), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Sony (NYSE:SNE), and sector?

	TiVo	AT&T	Microsoft	Sony	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	-2.03%	10.32%	22.61%	70%	11.23%

TiVo has been a relative underperformer, year-to-date.

Conclusion

TiVo provides software and technology products that allows consumers to access their entertainment at their preferred times at any location. The stock has not done too well in recent times but is now displaying signs of life. Earnings and have decreased over most of the last four quarters while revenues have increased, overall, not pleasing investors. Relative to its peers and sector, TiVo has trailed significantly in year-to-date performance. WAIT AND SEE what TiVo does this coming quarter.

First Drive: Chevrolet SS is strong, thirsty

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. -- In a city that revels in its swinging '60s heritage, cruising down Highway 111 in a big new Chevrolet SS sedan with a silky V-8 engine just feels right.

With its size and power, the car hints of the days when locals such as Frank Sinatra and Bob Hope were kings here. Palm Springs was a Mecca for sprawling ranch-style homes with sparkling aqua swimming pools, and living large.

But the era of excess eventually ended. Out went the three-pack-a-day, three-martini-lunch way of life and cars that gulped gas like golfers chugging drinks after 18 holes.

In a revival of sorts, along comes the Chevrolet SS. It's aimed at those who appreciated the large, rear-wheel-drive performance cars of those years, for good and for bad.

"SS rounds out our performance portfolio," says Russell Clark, the marketing director for performance cars. "Some people say, 'Hey I need a back seat. I need a trunk.'"

The SS is designed to seat five comfortably, with a big trunk. The 6.2-liter V-8 produces 415 horsepower, good for zero to 60 miles per hour in a lickety-split 5 seconds, according to Chevrolet. It will hold its own against Detroit's other rip-snorting sedans -- Dodge Charger SRT8 and Ford Taurus SHO.

That's the good. The bad comes when drivers note the car's gas mileage. Rated at 14 miles a gallon in the city, 21 mpg on the highway and 17 mpg overall, the big SS consumes so much fuel it is assessed $1,300 under the federal gas guzzler tax.

As a result, General Motors officials aren't counting on selling a lot. And not at a starting price of $44,700, including $995 in delivery charges. By comparison, that's about $17,000 more than the base full-size Chevy Impala, one of the most acclaimed cars of the year.

SS "is a relatively ! low-volume product," says David Leone, a GM executive chief engineer. Because of the limited production and the fact that is imported from GM's Holden unit in Australia, the interior comes only in black, with leather seats and fuzzy "microsuede" inserts on the dash and doors. There SS logo adorns the dashboard and front headrests. And there are only two options: a $900 sunroof and $500 for a full-size spare tire.

Given prospects for relatively small sales, SS wouldn't have made business sense for a lot of automakers. It worked for GM because Holden, already produces a big, rear-wheel-drive sedans for the U.S., the Caprice being sold to police departments. The SS shares the same basic platform as the Caprice, but is about three inches shorter -- no need for space for that barricade between the front and back seats -- and has a larger, more potent V-8 producing 60 more horsepower.

It doesn't help Chevy that unfavorable exchange rates have made it more expensive to make cars at Holden. As a result, GM announced earlier this month that it will stop making cars in Australia by 2017. GM spokeswoman Afaf Farah says the plans won't affect the current generation of vehicles, including SS, and there's been no talk yet of what happens after production shutdown there.

Though it may sound like a bolt from the past -- the last SS was built in 1996 -- the new SS is thoroughly updated, from its Chevy MyLink infotainment system to its tight, precise suspension. On hard cornering in the hills above Palm Springs, it held flat in the turns without the swaying associated with older sedans. Though there is no manual transmission available -- remember, hardly any options -- the SS had loads of power that make it a joy to drive.

The SS also carries Chevrolet's colors in NASCAR Sprint Cup racing. Leone says that through the SS racing car, Chevy will gain another avenue for gathering tips and for testing technology that can pay off on the street.

Because of its high profile, SS will play a large rol! e at deal! erships. It will be a drawing card to bring people to showrooms, even if they walk away having bought something else from the line.

SS is "meant to be a halo car for Chevy and enhances our performance car offerings," Leone says, including Corvette and Camaro.

At least one analyst who drove it here thinks it stands a reasonable chance in the marketplace.

"The fit and finish of the car is absolutely first rate," says Joe Phillippi of AutoTrends Consulting. "The performance of the car is just terrific." Rather than comparing it to its Detroit competitors, Phillippi thinks it can go up against the best of the German performance sedans.

"It's like buying a (BMW) M5 for $30,000 off," he says.

Is Microsoft's Surface RT $199 Away From Zero?

The stealth discounting of Microsoft's (NASDAQ: MSFT  ) struggling Surface RT tablet continues. 

Tech blog Engadget is reporting that Microsoft is allowing school educators to order the portable devices that hit the market late last year for as little as $199 apiece, a seemingly dramatic 60% savings off the $499 retail price.

There are a few caveats here. For starters, the promotion is only limited to school administrators. This isn't the educator and student discount that Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) and Microsoft routinely offer to get individual students and teachers to buy into their ecosystems at a slightly discounted price. The goal here is to get administrators of grade schools and colleges to buy the systems in bulk. There are no minimum quantities required on the order form, but the intent is reasonably clear.

The steep markdown is also limited to the 32-gigabyte Surface RT that has been widely criticized because more than half of that capacity is taken up by Microsoft's programs. The actual capacity out of the box is a mere 15 gigs. Is Microsoft merely trying to unload its excess inventory of entry-level RTs? Why isn't it offering the 64-gig tablets that have three times the user storage capacity? 

They're certainly not selling in any configuration. Industry tracker IDC reported recently that just 200,000 of the nearly 50 million tablets shipped this past quarter were Windows RT devices. There must be a lot of these suckers collecting dust. There's no way that Microsoft fathomed commanding just 0.4% of the market that Apple continues to dominate with Google's (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) Android gaining serious momentum.

Another thing to watch here is that the $499 retail price isn't really the sticker these days. Microsoft is including a touch or type cover with all Surface RT purchases these days, and that's a configuration that will set administrators back between $249 and $289. The discount on the type covers isn't as significant as the touch covers that were supposed to set the Surface RT apart, and that's another indicator that things just aren't going Mr. Softy's way these days.

Cracking the education market won't be easy. Too many schools have already gone iPad, and while Apple would never follow Microsoft all the way down to $199 to grab the country's youth while they're still in their formative years, schools looking to save money on the pricey iOS can turn to Google's cheaper tablets and possibly even the $199 Google Chromebook netbook.

There's also one big knock working against Microsoft here. School administrators aren't dumb. They've seen Microsoft kill the Kin within weeks and the Zune within months. There are no guarantees that Microsoft will keep Windows RT around if it continues to struggle. It doesn't have a choice with Windows 8, and it wouldn't be a surprise if the software giant backed away from RT -- and naturally the Surface RT -- in the near future. That's a far cry from the comfort in knowing that Apple's iOS and Google's Android will still be actively supported in the coming years. 

Microsoft should've been pricing these Surface RT tablets aggressively out of the gate, and now it's getting schooled in a world where iOS and Android are the class acts of the classroom.

Microsoft got hungry too late.

Self-disruption is an art form
Apple has a history of cranking out revolutionary products... and then creatively destroying them with something better. Read about the future of Apple in the free report, "Apple Will Destroy Its Greatest Product." Can Apple really disrupt its own iPhones and iPads? Find out by clicking here.

Vodafone Group to Receive 2.1 Billion Pound Dividend From Verizon Wireless

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.

Instead, today saw the Verizon Wireless board approve a dividend payment to the tune of 4.6 billion pounds, of which Vodafone will receive 2.1 billion pounds as a 45% stakeholder in the company, with the remaining 2.5 billion pounds heading to Verizon.

Previously, Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam had said that the top priority for Wireless is to pay down $5 billion worth of debt, due between now and mid-2014, in a move widely recognised as an attempt to force Vodafone's hand into selling its interest in Wireless.

However, to reference Owain Bennallack's analogy of these negotiations as a poker game, it appears that Verizon has failed with this bluff and folded on this particular round, with other Fools recognizing that Verizon needs the dividends as much as Vodafone. 

The dividend will be paid out by the end of June 2013, and Vodafone management confirmed that it will provide an update on its plans on how best to utilise this dividend within its preliminary results, due on May 21. Whether it will be paid in the form of a special dividend, or to buy back shares, will interest shareholders hugely.

If you are looking for opportunities in the FTSE 100 outside of Vodafone, though, this exclusive wealth report reviews five particularly attractive alternatives.

Best Heal Care Stocks To Own Right Now

All five of these blue chip companies offer a mix of robust prospects, illustrious histories and dependable dividends. The report is completely free, but will only remain available for a limited time -- simply click here to get it sent to your inbox immediately.

Finish Line Inc Q3 Earnings Beat Estimates; Raises Outlook (FINL)

Shares of Finish Line Inc (FINL) were up nearly 6% on Friday morning after the company reported better than expected third quarter results and raised its FY2014 outlook.

FINL’s Earnings in Brief

-FINL reported Q3 earnings of $2.32 million, compared to a a loss of $0.11 million a year ago. On a per share basis, earnings were 5 cents per share.

-On a Non-GAAP basis, EPS came in at 6 cents, 5 cents above analysts’ estimate of 1 cent.

-Revenue for the quarter rose to $364.5 million, up from $296.62 million last year. Analysts expected to see revenue of $354.57 million.

-Comparable store sales increased 7.1% during the quarter.

-Looking ahead, FINL has raised its outlook for FY2014 and now sees earnings between $1.60 and $1.65 per share. Analysts expect to see earnings of $1.59 per share.

CEO Commentary
Chairman and CEO, Glenn Lyon commented: “We are very pleased with the top and bottom line performance we delivered in the third quarter. Our commitment to developing a premier omni-channel platform is strengthening both our customer relationships and our brand partnerships while also reinforcing our market leadership position. We are continually adapting and refining our strategies in this rapidly evolving retail landscape to ensure we meet the needs of today’s empowered consumer. Finish Line is on the right strategic course and is well-positioned to deliver on our near and longer term goals.”

Best Stocks For 2014

FINL’s Dividend
FINL made no mention of when its next quarterly dividend will be, as the company just paid a 7 cent dividend on December 16. However, it is likely that FINL will announce a 1 cent dividend increase in January.

Stock Performance
Finish Line shares were up $1.54, or 5.89%, during pre-market trading Friday. The stock is up 38% YTD.

Beyonce Snubs Target, But Target Hates Itself

Top Insurance Stocks To Own Right Now

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- I've tried to make sense of Target's (TGT) decision not to sell Beyonce's surprise iTunes-only release when it comes available as a CD.

And I have come to the conclusion that there's just no making sense of what's nothing but a bonehead move. One that perfectly illustrates the pathetically horrendous state of most brick and mortar retailers.

Via our friends and lovers at Billboard, here's the deal: Columbia Records released "Beyonce" at 12 a.m. EST on the morning of Friday, Dec. 13, exclusively via iTunes without any pre-release announcement. They are the exclusive seller of the album through at least Dec. 18, when some brick-and-mortar retailers in the U.S. could begin to receive copies of the album. Most physical retailers will receive it by Friday, Dec. 20. It is understood that the album will not have any additional bonus or exclusive content, for any retailer.

And Target's rationale: At Target we focus on offering our guests a wide assortment of physical CDs, and when a new album is available digitally before it is available physically, it impacts demand and sales projections. I was going to wait until Thursday morning to publish this, but I figured I shouldn't sit on it. Because I'm stunned Target hasn't backtracked yet. If the company has a decision maker with a clue not on holiday, they will change course soon. Particularly as holiday shoppers descend on their stores. Holiday shoppers who have heard the buzz over Beyonce. Buzz that might bring them to Target's CD isles. A trajectory that could lead to CD sales, even if not Beyonce CD sales (though I would bet her previous titles might see an uptick this week and beyond).  Target seems to think Beyonce's decision to go digital-only for a week undermines the notion of the physical CD. That's backwards logic. Target's reactionary decision actually does more damage. The fact that an artist would go all-digital like this (and see it work better than anyone could have imagined) does pose a problem for physical retailers. No doubt. But Target should treat that as a separate and ongoing issue. The company should not confound the butt-whipping it has received over the last decade with singular events. Some people like to have the physical hardcopy of a record (often for the cover art) in addition to or instead of the digital version. My daughter, a big One Direction fan, is one of those people. I know quite a few others. And, while I'm not saying these types will save physical music sales from certain death (they won't), some of them will be looking to get the Beyonce CD in the flesh. And they won't be able to get it from Target. They'll just order it from Amazon.com (AMZN). Or go to Wal-Mart (WMT), who was smart to not only carry the album, but not diss the digital download (also a dying breed). On the other end of the spectrum, you would never -- ever, ever -- see a streaming service such as Pandora (P) or Spotify refuse to stream the tunes once they become available because Apple (AAPL) has first and, for one week, exclusive access. That type of thing just isn't in their DNA. They'll serve their users as best as they can. But, more importantly, they'll look forward, devising creative ways to secure these types of deals, as they have in the past. And that's another funny thing about this -- Target gets all sorts of artist exclusives and special branding opportunities. So why the lame reaction here? There must be something at play behind the scenes. I can only think Target had a deal in place (or something) and feels betrayed. So it's lashing out, but only hurting itself in the process. Pardon the speculation, but I'm racking my brain to try to comprehend such an inane move. Sadly, it could just be that physical retail is run by a group of incompetents who are even more incompetent than I thought they were in the first place. Follow @rocco_thestreet --Written by Rocco Pendola in Santa Monica, Calif.

Stock quotes in this article: TGT, AAPL, P 

Lockheed Martin Corporation 2014 Outlook Hinges on Budget Deal (LMT)

The Maryland-based aerospace and defense manufacturer, Lockheed Martin (LMT), announced on Monday that it may have to revise its outlook for the year ahead depending on whether or not Congress passes the proposed two-year budget deal.
Marillyn Hewson, the company’s CEO, is hopeful that the U.S. Senate will approve the proposed agreement that passed through the House of Representatives last week. The proposed budget deal would call for roughly half of the $52 billion in automatic spending cuts facing the Pentagon in 2014. Hewson went on to state ”We had factored sequestration in, so now that we have more input … assuming that the budget gets approved, we’ll have an opportunity to revisit what our outlook is.”

Shareholders can expect for any revisions in the company’s guidance to be issued during the next earnings call on January 23rd, 2014.

If the budget deal passes, Lockheed Martin will most likely revise upwards its outlook to reflect the higher defense budget that the U.S. government will have to spare. Lockheed Martin shares inched higher to kick off the week, gaining 0.73% as the closing bell rang. The stock is up nearly 52% year-to-date.

Dreyfus’s Biosev Tumbles 14% After Money-Back-Guarantee IPO

Biosev SA (BSEV3), Louis Dreyfus Holding BV's Brazil unit, tumbled in its debut after giving investors in its initial public offering a money-back guarantee.

The shares dropped 14 percent to 12.85 reais at the close of trading in Sao Paulo after earlier sinking as much as 16 percent, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The benchmark Bovespa index gained 1.4 percent.

Brazil's second-largest sugar-cane processor raised 805 million reais ($400 million) by selling shares for 15 reais apiece and put options for 25 centavos that allow investors to return the stock for 16.57 reais over the next 15 months, according to an April 15 prospectus. Louis Dreyfus, based in Amsterdam, controls Biosev through three companies and bought 100 million reais of stock in the offering.

The controlling shareholders' purchase sent "a bad signal to the market," Luiz Roberto Monteiro, a broker at Renascenca DTVM, said in a telephone interview from Sao Paulo. "The feeling is that the IPO was overpriced."

Biosev was planning to raise as much as 945 million reais in the stock offering, according to an April 10 preliminary prospectus.

Two other companies have held IPOs in Brazil this year after the country in 2012 had the fewest offerings since 2003, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Senior Solution SA, which priced shares below the expected range, has gained 0.6 percent since its debut. Software maker Linx SA, which priced shares at the top of its expected range, is up 18 percent since it started trading.

Top Stocks To Buy Right Now

Cosan SA Industria & Comercio is Brazil's largest sugar- cane processor.

Cities adding and losing the most jobs

U.S. payrolls rose by more than 200,000 in November as employers continued to hire at a steady pace. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate dropped to 7.0%, the lowest it has been since late 2008. While the figures generally point to an overall improvement in the economy and labor market, the progress isn't even across the nation, and in some areas, jobs are still being shed.

In some parts of the country, however, job growth is especially strong. Such is the case in the metro area of Naples-Marco Island, Florida, where the number of jobs jumped by 7.59% over the past year. In other areas of the country the job market remains extremely weak. The number of jobs in Decatur, Illinois, fell by 4.3% over the past year. Based on the most recently available data, 24/7 Wall St. identified the metropolitan statistical areas with the greatest percent gains, and losses, in jobs.

Nationally, several industries have been driving job growth. In several of the metro areas that added the most jobs in the past 12 months, these industries have been a major factor as well. Martin Kohli, chief regional economist at the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), noted that "the continued boom in energy exploration appears to be a factor in why these areas in are doing relatively well." In Midland and Odessa, Texas, two of the cities adding the most jobs, mining accounted for a great deal of job growth.

In other metro areas where jobs are on the rise, the housing sector has played a major role. Job growth in construction and new housing starts have begun to pick up after reaching multi-decade lows during the recession. This is especially important for the four fast-growing job markets in Florida, Kohli explained. An improved housing market is important "because areas in Florida were among those hardest hit by the bursting of the housing bubble."

Employment in the manufacturing sector rose last year, but in many of the metro areas losing the most jobs, the long-struggling sector continued to decline. In Peoria and Deca! tur, Illinois, which both had among the largest job losses between October 2012 and October 2013, manufacturing employment declined 8.4% and 16.1%, respectively, during that time.

Largely because of continued budget-tightening, nationwide government employment in October was slightly lower than the same month in 2012. In several of the cities losing the most jobs, government employment declined even more. In Manhattan, Kansas, where overall jobs fell by 3.5%, the number of government jobs fell by nearly 10%.

To identify the 10 cities adding and losing the most jobs, 24/7 Wall St. examined the one-year change in total non-farm payroll from figures published by the BLS for each metro area between October 2012 and October 2013. Additional figures on unemployment and labor force size are also from the BLS, as are data referencing the industry composition of the workforce in specific metro areas. Wage data from the Bureau are as of May 2012. Many of these areas are small and data may be subject to sampling error.

These are the American cities adding (and losing) the most jobs.

1. Naples-Marco Island, Fla.

> Jobs pct. change: 7.6%
> Total non-farm jobs: 124,700
> Total workforce: 155,261
> Unemployment rate: 6.4%

As of October, no metro area matched Naples for non-farm job growth over the preceding 12 months. The metro area also added almost 5,800 workers, a 3.9% increase from the previous October. As a result, Naples' unemployment rate dropped from 8.5% in October 2012 to 6.4% in October 2013. By comparison, non-farm payrolls nationwide rose less than 2% over that time, while the U.S. unemployment rate trickled down from 7.9% to 7.3%. One major source for job growth was the leisure and hospitality industry, where the number of jobs increased by 6.7% from last year. Also, job growth in the professional and business services sector was up 10.4% during the same period.

RICH AND POOR: Cities with the widest gaps

2. Sebastian-Vero Beach, Fla.

>! Jobs pct. change: 6.7%
> Total non-farm jobs: 47,700
> Total workforce: 65,024
> Unemployment rate: 8.0%

The housing crisis affected Florida more than most states, and the Sebastien-Vero Beach area's housing recovery has been slow. The unemployment rate in the area was more than 14% as of October 2009. Three years later, in October 2012, the region still had an unemployment rate of 10.3%, compared to a national rate of 7.9%. Over the next 12 months, however, things began to pick up in the area's job market. The region's labor force grew at one of the fastest rates in the country, and the economy added 3,000 jobs, a 6.7% increase. The unemployment rate fell by 2.3 percentage points to 8%, the fourth-largest decline of any metro area.

CEOS: Eight outrageous perks

3. Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, Fla.

> Jobs pct. change: 6.0%
> Total non-farm jobs: 82,500
> Total workforce: 101,042
> Unemployment rate: 4.4%

Florida is home to the three metro areas with the highest job growth in the U.S., including the Crestview area, where the number of non-farm jobs has risen 6% between October of 2012 and October of 2013. Additionally, the unemployment rate in the area has fallen 1.3 percentage points in the most recent 12 months, and stood at just 4.4% as of October. None of this job growth has come from the public sector, as the number government jobs has been flat over the last year. Many major area employers include aerospace and defense companies, and according to the Economic Development Council of Okaloosa County, Florida, the area also offers an industrial air park for private companies to use as well as tax credits to recruit aerospace employers.

WAGES: Cities where they're soaring

4. Midland, Texas

> Jobs pct. change: 5.2%
> Total non-farm jobs: 87,500
> Total workforce: 95,977
> Unemployment rate: 3.1%

Midland's labor force grew by nearly 4% between October 2012 and October 2013, the fifth! -largest ! improvement out of any metro area. The region's unemployment rate of 3.1% this October was among the lowest in the nation. Like Odessa, Midland's growth may be explained in part by the booming oil and gas industry. According to the Midland Development Corporation, oil and gas companies generated nearly 3,500 jobs in the region over the last 12 months. Compared with other metro areas adding the most jobs, wages in Midland are high. In 2012, the annual median wage was nearly $35,000, in the top third of all metro areas.

HOUSING: Eight hot markets that are cooling down

5. Yuba City, Calif.

> Jobs pct. change: 4.8%
> Total non-farm jobs: 39,100
> Total workforce: 70,446
> Unemployment rate: 12.4%

Yuba City is located in the fertile Sacramento Valley and is highly reliant on agriculture. There are more than 61,000 employed people in the region, but less than 40,000 non-farm jobs. Despite non-farm job growth of nearly 5% in the last year and a 17.4% decline in the jobless population, unemployment remains a problem in Yuba City. The region's unemployment rate as of October was 12.4%, much higher than the national rate of 7.3%. Only three other metro areas had a higher unemployment rate than Yuba City.

24/7 WALL ST.: See the rest of the Top 10 cities with biggest job gains

Cities losing the most jobs

1. Decatur, Ill.

> Jobs pct. change: -4.3%
> Total non-farm jobs: 50,800
> Total workforce: 51,006
> Unemployment rate: 11.7%

Even as the Decatur area's labor force shrank, its unemployment was persistently high. There were roughly 50,800 non-farm jobs in the metro area as of October, down from 53,100 one year earlier. Much of this job loss has been in manufacturing, where employment has declined 16% year-over-year through October. Also, agricultural processing giant Archer Daniels Midland has announced plans to move its global headquarters and top executives out of the area. Currently, Illinois legislators are working! on a pla! n to keep the company in state, offering as much as $25 million in long-term tax incentives if the company moves its headquarters to Chicago while adding 500 jobs over five years in Decatur.

2. Manhattan, Kan.

> Jobs pct. change: -3.5%
> Total non-farm jobs: 57,100
> Total workforce: 62,373
> Unemployment rate: 4.7%

Manhattan, Kansas, has struggled to grow jobs in recent years. Although the Little Apple's unemployment rate was just 4.7% in October, up slightly from October 2012, the number of jobs in the area has declined by 3.5% in the last year. The public sector, including Kansas State University and Fort Riley, home to the U.S. Army's 1st Infantry Division, is one of the area's major employers — and one of its major sources of job losses. Government jobs declined by nearly 10% in the last 12 months. Federal defense spending cuts earlier this year impacted the Fort and its workers.

3. Palm Coast, Fla.

> Jobs pct. change: -3.4%
> Total non-farm jobs: 20,000
> Total workforce: 34,424
> Unemployment rate: 9.4%

The unemployment rate in Palm Coast, fell by 1.3 percentage points between October 2012 and October 2013. Still, with a 9.4% unemployment rate, the region continues to have one of the highest jobless rates in the country. The region has had exceptionally high unemployment rates for some time, well above 10% for nearly all of the last five years. In the last year alone, the region lost roughly 700 jobs, or about 3.4%. One of the biggest factors in this decline was the estimated loss of approximately 300 the government sector jobs.

4. Ocean City, N.J.

> Jobs pct. change: -3.2%
> Total non-farm jobs: 38,800
> Total workforce: 53,525
> Unemployment rate: 11.1%

The unemployment rate in Ocean City was 11.1% in October. However, the high unemployment rate may be in part due to the seasonal nature of work in the area. There is a strong leisure and hospitality sector in Ocean City that is ! subject t! o seasonal fluctuations. This past July, for example, there were 20,200 people employed in the sector. Three months later, in October, the sector had shrunk to 9,200. Even accounting for seasonality, the Ocean City job market is quite poor. As of October, total non-farm jobs were down 3.2% over the last 12 months. Further, the area's annual median wage of $30,310 in 2012 was below the national median.

5. Panama City-Lynn Haven-Panama City Beach, Fla.

> Jobs pct. change: -3.0%
> Total non-farm jobs: 70,700
> Total workforce: 85,992
> Unemployment rate: 6.0%

Unfortunately, the Panama City metro area hasn't improved much since January, 2010 the worst month in the past six years. That month, there were just under 70,000 jobs in the region. At last count, there were 70,700 jobs. This October, the region's labor force had shrunk by more than 5% from the year before — the third largest labor force decline nationwide. Because many residents left the area or stopped looking for work, the number of people considered unemployed declined by more than 25%, the largest decline out of all metro areas. The area's annual median wage of $27,600 in 2012 remained one of the lowest in the nation.

24/7 WALL ST.: See the rest of the Top 10 cities with the biggest job losses

24/7 Wall St. is a USA TODAY content partner offering financial news and commentary. Its content is produced independently of USA TODAY.

Top High Tech Companies To Own For 2014

The debt ceiling crisis was not entirely bad, says MoneyShow's Jim Jubak, who points out the few advantages it did provide, and the new areas to worry about next.

Well, you know, you cannot say that the debt ceiling crisis, manufactured as it was, has not been useful. We now have a little better sense of how the world central banks will react to this crisis, because we have seen how they reacted to the current one, and now that gives us some guidance for how they will react to the next one, when this comes up again in, say, February, according to current legislation that is likely to pass.

The thing that we have seen is that way back in the depths of the global financial crisis in 2008, the Fed opened a lot of credit lines. They were basically willing to lend dollars to any central bank that needed it around the world, so that the global financial system would keep going. They closed some of those lines at the height, there were about 14 in operation, but what they did in 2010, and what they have kept going now, and extended is, they still have major credit lines out to the Bank of England, the Bank of Canada, and the European Central Bank. This gives these banks a chance to borrow as many dollars as they need, to keep their own monetary systems going, and also gives them the dollars that they might need to buy treasurys. If you are looking at a place where the system might fail, and I think that is what we are trying to figure out from this iteration of the debt crisis, we are not looking at the treasury market as really being one place that would happen. It looks like we are going to have plenty of liquidity in the world's most liquid market, thanks to the Fed, and other central banks.

Top High Tech Companies To Own For 2014: In-Touch Survey Systems Ltd (INX.V)

In-Touch Survey Systems Ltd. engages in the design, development, and implementation of data capture technologies and services for business to consumer companies in Canada and the United States. The company operates in four segments: In-Touch Insight Systems, Service Intelligence, Information Management Systems, and Market Research. The In-Touch Insight Systems segment develops managed mobile software technology and services for business to consumer, business to business, governments, and regulators. It offers In-Touch Apps, a software platform that provides for the rapid development of data collection programs, mobile forms creations, and real-time online reporting. The Service Intelligence segment provides onsite audit and mystery shopping services to B2C companies under the In-Touch Insight brand. It also develops the software platform, Unified Insights, to run the audit and shopping services. The Information Management Systems segment offers enterprise software engineer ing services to the Canadian Federal Government. The Market Research segment provides market research services. The company serves insurance and banking, grocery, automotive, restaurant, retail, and public sector industries. In-Touch Survey Systems Ltd. was founded in 1978 and is based in Ottawa, Canada.

Top High Tech Companies To Own For 2014: Cumberland Pharmaceuticals Inc (CPIX)

Cumberland Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Cumberland), incorporated on January 6, 1999, is specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the acquisition, development and commercialization of branded prescription products. Cumberland is focused on acquiring rights to, developing and commercializing prescription products for the hospital care and gastroenterology markets. Its product portfolio includes Acetadote (acetylcysteine), Caldolor (ibuprofen), Kristalose (lactulose) and Hepatoren (ifetroban). As of December 31, 2011, Hepatoren was in Phase II clinical development. The Company markets and sells its products through its hospital and gastroenterology sales forces in the United States. Its pre-clinical product candidates are being developed through its 85% owned subsidiary Cumberland Emerging Technologies, Inc. In November 2011, the Company completed the acquisition of the remaining rights associated with the Kristalose brand, including the United Sates Food and Drug Administration (FDA) registration and trademark. During the year ended December 31, 2011, it acquired rights to a late-stage product candidate that it develops under the brand name Hepatoren.

Acetadote

Acetadote is an intravenous formulation of N-acetylcysteine, or NAC, indicated for the treatment of acetaminophen poisoning. Acetadote is used in hospital emergency departments. In January 2011, the Company received the United Sates Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval and commenced the United Sates launch activities for this Acetadote formulation.

The Company competes with Geneva Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Ben Venue Laboratories, Inc., Roxane Laboratories, Inc. and Hospira Inc.

Caldolor

Caldolor, Cumberland�� intravenous formulation of ibuprofen, is the injectable product approved in the United States for the treatment of both pain and fever. The product is indicated for use in adults for the management of mild to moderate pain, for the management of moderate to severe pain as ! an adjunct to opioid analgesics, and for the reduction of fever. As of December 31, 2011, it was enrolling patients in four clinical studies designed to support marketing of Caldolor. Two of these clinical trials are designed to support pediatric use, including a pediatric fever study to evaluate safety, efficacy and pharmacokinetics of Caldolor in hospitalized children ,as well as a pediatric pain study. Two registry studies with Caldolor are also underway and are designed to gather additional safety and efficacy data on use of the product in adults. As of December 31, 2011, Caldolor was available in 800 milligram vials.

The Company competes with EKR Therapeutics, Inc.

Kristalose

Kristalose is a prescription laxative administered orally for the treatment of constipation. Kristalose is a dry powder crystalline formulation of lactulose. Kristalose is manufactured under a contract with Inalco S.p.A. and Inalco Biochemicals, Inc. (collectively Inalco). Constipation treatments are sold in both the over-the-counter (OTC) and prescription segments.

The Company competes with Sucampo Pharmaceuticals Inc., Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited and Braintree Laboratories, Inc.

Best Small Cap Stocks To Buy For 2014: Lexmark International Inc.(LXK)

Lexmark International, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development, manufacture, and supply of printing, imaging, document workflow, and content management solutions for offices in North and South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, the Pacific Rim, and the Caribbean. It offers monochrome and color laser printers, laser multifunction products, inkjet all-in-one devices, dot matrix printers, and cartridges and other supplies; and services and solutions, including maintenance, consulting, and systems integration, as well as managed print services, such as asset lifecycle management, implementation and decommissioning services, consumables management, optimization services, and utilization management. The company also provides enterprise content management (ECM) software products, including ImageNow document management, document imaging, and workflow suite that allows users to capture, process, and collaborate on important documents and inform ation, protect data integrity throughout its lifecycle, and access precise content; and industry specific workflow solutions for the healthcare, higher education, government, and financial services industries, as well as for back office functions, including accounting, human resources, contracts, and records. Its software modules include Retention Policy Manager to manage the complete lifecycle of content from creation to destruction or disposition; Business Insight, which integrates IBM Cognos to provide industry and business process dashboards, operational and ad-hoc reporting, and report design tools; workflow software that automates processing steps, simplifies work tasks, and provides real-time monitoring; and eForms module, which enables the online entry and collection of raw data in electronic forms that are accessible from Web sites and portals. The company was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in Lexington, Kentucky.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Printer maker�Lexmark (NYSE: LXK  ) announced yesterday its third-quarter dividend of $0.30 per share, the same rate it's paid for the past five quarters after raising the payout 20% from $0.25 per share.

• [By Evan Niu, CFA]

  What: Shares of Lexmark (NYSE: LXK  ) have popped today by greater than 17% following the company's first-quarter earnings release.

  So what: Revenue in the quarter came in at the high end of guidance at $884 million, topping the consensus estimate of $873.6 million. The same is true for Lexmark's non-GAAP earnings per share of $0.88, which was more than the $0.87 per share adjusted profit that investors were expecting. CEO Paul Rooke said Lexmark continues to transition from a hardware-centric model to a solutions-centric approach, which is underscored by the recent acquisitions of two software companies and the sale of the inkjet business.

Top High Tech Companies To Own For 2014: Atwood Oceanics Inc. (ATW)

Atwood Oceanics, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in offshore drilling, and the completion of exploratory and developmental oil and gas wells. The company owns semisubmersible rigs, semisubmersible tender assist rigs, jack-up drilling rigs, and submersible drilling rigs. As of November 22, 2010, it operated nine mobile offshore drilling units located in offshore southeast Asia, offshore Africa, offshore Australia, offshore South America, and the Mediterranean Sea. The company was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Marc Courtenay]

  That's said, I'd also consider Atwood Oceanics (ATW) an even more irresistible acquisition bulls-eye. This Houston, Texas firm is an offshore drilling contractor that engages in the drilling and completion of exploratory and developmental oil and gas wells.

• [By Alex Planes]

  Investors love stocks that consistently beat the Street without getting ahead of their fundamentals and risking a meltdown. The best stocks offer sustainable market-beating gains, with robust and improving financial metrics that support strong price growth. Does Atwood Oceanics (NYSE: ATW  ) fit the bill? Let's take a look at what its recent results tell us about its potential for future gains.

Top High Tech Companies To Own For 2014: Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated(COKE)

Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production, marketing, and distribution of nonalcoholic beverages, primarily products of The Coca-Cola Company. The company offers sparkling beverages, such as energy drinks; and still beverages, including bottled water, tea, ready-to-drink coffee, enhanced water, juices, and sports drinks. It holds cola beverage agreements and allied beverage agreements, under which it produces, distributes, and markets sparkling beverage products of The Coca-Cola Company in certain regions. The company also distributes and markets still beverages of The Coca-Cola Company, such as POWERade, vitaminwater, and Minute Maid Juices To Go, as well as produces, distributes, and markets Dasani water products under still beverage agreements. In addition, it holds agreements to produce and market Dr Pepper. Further, the company distributes and markets various other products, including Monster energy productsand Sund rop, as well as its own products, such as Country Breeze tea, diet Country Breeze tea, and Tum-E Yummies, a vitamin C enhanced flavored drink, Bean & Body, and Simmer and Bazza energy tea. Additionally, it produces beverages for other Coca-Cola bottlers; and provides restaurants and other immediate consumption outlets with fountain products. The company sells and distributes its products directly to retail stores and other outlets, including food markets, institutional accounts, and vending machine outlets. It operates in North Carolina, South Carolina, south Alabama, South Georgia, middle Tennessee, western Virginia, and West Virginia. The company was founded in 1902 and is based in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Dzombak]

  In the U.S., Coke announced that it will sell some of its internal bottling operations to its five U.S. independent bottlers: Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated (NASDAQ: COKE  ) , Coca-Cola Bottling Company United, Swire Coca-Cola USA, Coca-Cola Bottling Company High Country and Corinth Coca-Cola Bottling Works. No details were released, but the company did say it expects to close the deals in 2014.

Top High Tech Companies To Own For 2014: Midway Gold Corporation(MDW)

Midway Gold Corp., an exploration stage company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral properties in North America. Its principal properties include the Spring Valley, Midway, Pan, and Gold Rock gold and silver mineral properties located in Nevada; and the Golden Eagle gold mineral property located in Washington. The company was formerly known as Red Emerald Resource Corp. and changed its name to Midway Gold Corp. in July 2002. Midway Gold Corp. was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Englewood, Colorado.

Top High Tech Companies To Own For 2014: Accuride Corporation New (ACW)

Accuride Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in designing, manufacturing, marketing, and supplying commercial vehicle components in North America. The company offers heavy- and medium-duty steel and aluminum wheels, light truck steel wheels, and military wheels; and wheel-end components and assemblies, such as brake drums, disc wheel hubs, spoke wheels, disc brake rotors, and automatic slack adjusters. It also provides truck body and chassis parts comprising bumpers, fuel tanks, battery boxes and toolboxes, front-end cross members, muffler assemblies, and crown assemblies and components, as well as fenders, exhaust components, sun visors, windshield masks, step assemblies, brackets, fuel tank supports, inner-hood panels, door assemblies, dash panel assemblies, and various other components. In addition, the company offers ductile and gray iron casting of transmission and engine-related components, which comprise flywheels, and transmission and engine-relate d housings and brackets; and ductile and gray iron casting of industrial components, such as flywheels, pump housings, small engine components, and other industrial components. Accuride Corporation markets its products under Accuride, Gunite, Imperial, and Brillion brand names. It serves heavy- and medium-duty truck, and commercial trailer original equipment manufacturers (OEM); and aftermarket suppliers, including OEM dealer networks, wholesale distributors, and aftermarket buying groups. The company was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Evansville, Indiana.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Basic guidelines
  In this series, I examine inventory using a simple rule of thumb: Inventory increases ought to roughly parallel revenue increases. If inventory bloats more quickly than sales grow, this might be a sign that expected sales haven't materialized. Is the current inventory situation at Accuride (NYSE: ACW  ) out of line? To figure that out, start by comparing the company's inventory growth to sales growth. How is Accuride doing by this quick checkup? At first glance, pretty well. Trailing-12-month revenue decreased 14.3%, and inventory decreased 30.5%. Comparing the latest quarter to the prior-year quarter, the story looks decent. Revenue dropped 28.6%, and inventory dropped 30.5%. Over the sequential quarterly period, the trend looks healthy. Revenue grew 9.2%, and inventory dropped 6.1%.

Top High Tech Companies To Own For 2014: Schiff Nutrition International Inc.(WNI)

Schiff Nutrition International, Inc. develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes vitamins, nutritional supplements, and nutrition bars in the United States and internationally. The company?s Schiff brand products include specialty supplements for the joint care; and natural ingredients consisting of tablets, capsules, and softgel product forms. Its Schiff brand products also comprise vitamin products, including multivitamins; individual vitamins, such as vitamin B, vitamin C, and mega-D3; and minerals, which include calcium and iron. In addition, the company provides Omega-3 product line under the MegaRed brand; probiotics products under the Sustenex and Digestive Advantage brands; and joint care products under the Schiff Move Free. Further, it offers other specialty supplement products that comprise omega-3 products, such as fish oil; specialty products, such as prostate health and folic acid for men and women; and other specialty products, such as melatonin ultra, n iacin, and acidophilus. Additionally, the company provides nutrition bars that supply protein, vitamins, and other essential nutrients with fewer calories under the Tiger?s Milk brand. In addition, it manufactures and distributes private label products for retail customers that include specialty supplements; vitamins; and minerals, such as joint care products, vitamin B, and calcium citrate. The company sells its products directly, as well as through brokers. Schiff Nutrition International, Inc. was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Budget Deal Heads for Likely House Passage

The House of Representatives began debating and was expected to pass Thursday the two-year budget deal struck by Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., which sets spending levels at just above $1 trillion for fiscal 2014 and 2015 and eliminates $63 billion in automatic sequestration cuts.

Under the deal, new spending increases would be offset by increasing the amount federal workers must contribute to their retirement plans.

If the budget deal is passed by the House on Thursday, which was expected, it will then move to the Senate to be considered next week.

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, criticized the conservative groups who came out against the budget deal, and was quoted in published reports as saying the groups had lost credibility as they rejected the plan before it was announced. These groups are “using our members and using the American people for their own goals,” Boehner was quoted as saying.

In a statement, Boehner said that he was “grateful” for the work done by Murray and Ryan on the deal, stating that “while modest in scale,” the agreement reached late Tuesday “represents a positive step forward by replacing onetime spending cuts with permanent reforms to mandatory spending programs that will produce real, lasting savings.” He said the framework was “consistent with sequester replacement legislation passed by the House in 2012.”

The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 would set overall discretionary spending for the current fiscal year at $1.012 trillion, about halfway between the Senate budget level of $1.058 trillion and the House budget level of $967 billion.

The agreement would provide $63 billion in sequester relief over two years, split evenly between defense and nondefense programs. In fiscal 2014, defense discretionary spending would be set at $520.5 billion, and nondefense discretionary spending would be set at $491.8 billion.

The sequester relief is fully offset by savings elsewhere in the budget. The agreement includes dozens of specific deficit-reduction provisions, with mandatory savings and non-tax revenue totaling approximately $85 billion. The agreement would reduce the deficit by between $20 and $23 billion.

Russ Koesterich, chief investment strategist for BlackRock, noted in a statement that the budget agreement “is a mild positive” for the economy, with initial estimates suggesting the deal would add 0.2% to U.S. GDP in 2014.

Should the deal pass, he said, “it would remove some of the fiscal drag associated with the sequester and push back the possibility of another government shutdown until October 2015.” This, he continued, “should modestly help business and consumer confidence.”

However, Koestrich also noted the areas the deal fails to address, including raising the debt ceiling, tax reform, long-term entitlement reform and the pending expiration of previously extended unemployment benefits.

Indeed, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., noted in a statement after the deal was announced that “neither side got everything it wanted in these negotiations. That is why I will push for an extension of unemployment insurance, as well as an increase in the minimum wage, when the Senate convenes after the New Year.”

Reid said that an extension of emergency unemployment insurance should also be included in the package.

The two-year bargain, Reid continued, “charts a course for economic growth, maintains fiscal responsibility and – perhaps most importantly – averts another manufactured crisis that would undercut the economic progress of the last four years.” He added: “I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle and both sides of the Capitol to pass this agreement.”

Former Senate Budget Committee Chairman Pete Domenici, now a senior fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center, said in a statement that he hoped the budget deal would pass, adding that “If this deal also leads to less drama over the debt ceiling and fiscal year 2015 appropriations, then the American people will see a much more functional Congress and a much less melodramatic fiscal discussion.”

While the budget deal is “just a first step,” he continued, “it is the essential first step toward eventual congressional action on a long-term debt stabilization plan.”

---

Check out Dodd and Frank, Together Again, Defend Their Namesake Law on ThinkAdvisor.

A High-Yield Blue Chip on the Pink Sheets?

For many, stocks listed on the "Pink Sheets" are to be avoided, as it regarded as the province of thinly-traded, poorly capitalized firms that could not qualify to be listed on "The Big Board" or other, more reputable exchanges.

While that sadly can be the case, there are many blue chips listed on the PInk Sheets that compare with the finest on The New York Stock Exchange or NASDAQ.

One example is Swisscom (OTC: SCMWY), a $26 billion major communications conglomerate operating from Switzerland that compares favorably with AT&T (NYSE: T), Verizon (NYSE: VZ) and Frontier Communications (NASDAQ: FTR).

Many foreign blue chips like Swisscom choose to list on the Pink Sheets, as it benefits its shareholders more. The listing requirements for other exchanges might not be in the best interests of the company. Expenses might be too high. There are also legal matters to consider.

All of that has nothing to do with the suitability of Swisscom, which provides telecommunication services in Switzerland and Italy, and many others on the Pink Sheets, as long-term investments.

Traditionally, phone companies are looked upon as income vehicles. Swisscom certainly answers that call. While the dividend yield for the average member of the Standard & Poor's 500 Index is around 1.9 percent, it is 4.60 percent for Swisscom. For Verizon Communications, it is 4.16 percent.

Swisscom also has a more responsible dividend structure, too.

The dividend for each share is $2.34; with earnings-per-share being $3.45. That is easily affordable for Swisscom.

For Frontier Communications, the dividend per share is $0.10. But only $0.07 is earned per share. Paying more in dividends than is earned per share certainly does not appear to be a sound, long-term policy.

Swisscom also has the low beta that research has proven to be an indicator for superior returns.

As detailed in a previous article on Benzinga, studies by Russell Investments showed superior returns over the long term come from stocks with betas below the market average of one. That makes sense as there is no reason to sell a stock that is performing well, so the beta will be lower as there is not as much activity as those dumping to exit a losing position.

The beta for Swisscom is 0.44. For Frontier Communications, it is 0.70. The beta for AT&T is 0.54. Verizon Communications has a beta of 0.44.

At around $51 a share, Swisscom is near its high for the year. With a low beta, it does not fluctuate much in price. But with its high dividend yield, it should be a rewarding holding for long term investors, something not generally associated with Pink Sheet stocks.

Posted-In: blue chips Pink SheetsLong Ideas News Dividends Dividends Eurozone Technicals Economics Markets Trading Ideas

(c) 2013 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

  Most Popular Rumor: Google to Announce Set-top Box Early in 2014 UPDATE: Sysco and US Foods Agree to Merge in $8.2B Agreement Five Star Stock Watch: eBay, Inc. How to Invest Like Warren Buffett Intel Paves Way For $99 Tablets Market Wrap For December 9: Investors Digest Further Clues Hinting at An Upcoming Taper Related Articles (FTR + SCMWY) A High-Yield Blue Chip on the Pink Sheets? Dow Jumps 129 & Hits a Record High; Twitter IPO Prices at $26 Benzinga Weekly Preview: Central Banks Back In The Spotlight Around the Web, We're Loving... Lightspeed Trading Presents: Thunder and Tubleweeds: Trading Techniques for the New Market Enviroment Pope Francis Rips 'Trickle-Down' Economics

SEC's Aguilar Laments Slow Adoption of Reg D Protections

Securities and Exchange Commissioner Luis Aguilar told consumer advocates Thursday that every day the agency fails to adopt its proposals regarding Rule 506 private offerings under Regulation D is “another day that investors face greater harm.”

“Unfortunately, notwithstanding the 'real-world' evidence, we have recently seen a focus on legislation — such as the JOBS Act  —that seems to prioritize making 'capital-raising' quicker and cheaper, while often overlooking what is required for real capital formation,” Aguilar told attendees at the Consumer Federation of America’s financial services conference in Washington. “The clearest example of this is the new general solicitation provisions in Rule 506 of Regulation D, which were enacted without including the investor protections that many investors, academics and state regulators recommended.”

He said the risks of Rule 506, which allows general advertising of private offerings, were “well documented,” citing recent statistics by the North American Securities Administrators Association that found Rule 506 offerings were “still the most frequent source of enforcement cases conducted by state securities regulators.”

General solicitation, Aguilar continued, “simply exacerbates this problem by enabling potential fraudsters to cast a wider net.” He said that he agreed with NASAA’s prediction that scam artists were likely to use general solicitation under Regulation D “to their advantage.”

Hot Energy Stocks To Own For 2014

Said Aguilar: “Like NASAA and many others, I am concerned that removing the prohibition on general solicitation, without strengthening investor protections, puts investors at risk.”

When the commission adopted the amendment to Rule 506, the agency directed the SEC staff to execute a comprehensive work plan to review and analyze the use of the new exemption. The work plan includes, among other things:

However, “for this work plan to be successful, the commission needs access to timely and useful information regarding the use of the Regulation D exemptions,” Aguilar said.

He noted the rule amendments that the SEC adopted at the same time the agency adopted the rule permitting general solicitation and advertising.

The proposed amendments would require the filing of a Form D in Rule 506(c) offerings before the issuer engages in general solicitation, and would provide for the filing of a closing amendment to Form D after the termination of any Rule 506 offering. Also, they would require written general solicitation materials to include certain legends and other disclosures, extend the antifraud guidance contained in Rule 156 to the sales literature of private funds, and disqualify issuers that fail to make required filings under Rule 506 from using that exemption for future offerings, for at least a year.

“It is now almost five months since those proposals were issued for public comment,” Aguilar said. “I urge the Commission to move forward promptly to adopt the proposed rules.”

But Aguilar told CFA attendees that adoption of these amendments wouldn’t likely be seen in “the next month or two.”

---

Check out SEC Tags Fiduciary as 'Long-Term' Action; Advocates Unfazed on ThinkAdvisor.

 

China Sets IPO Reform Plan Signaling End of Listing Freeze

China's securities regulator issued a reform plan for initial public offerings, as the government prepares to lift a more than one-year freeze on new listings in the world's second-biggest economy.

About 50 companies are expected to complete the IPO approval preparations and list or be ready to do so by the end of January, the China Securities Regulatory Commission said in a statement on its website today. There are more than 760 companies in the queue for approval and it will take about a year to complete an audit of all the applications, the regulator said.

China, the world's largest IPO market in 2010, with a record $71 billion raised, hasn't had a new listing since October 2012 as the CSRC cracked down on fraud and misconduct among advisers and companies. Communist Party leaders pledged this month to change the IPO system as part of a package of reforms that signaled the biggest expansion of economic freedoms since at least the 1990s.

"This is positive for the long-term development of the market as both companies and stock investors will gradually have more choice under the new policy," He Zongyan, an analyst at Shenyin & Wanguo Securities Co. in Shanghai, said today by phone. "It may add downward pressure on the stock market in the short term as 50 new IPOs in the next few months may drain capital and force a correction in some inflated stocks."

Hurt Confidence

The regulator stopped reviewing applications for listing on the country's stock exchanges in Shanghai and Shenzhen amid concern a flood of new shares could hurt investor confidence. Xiao Gang, a former central banker and Bank of China Ltd. (3988) chairman who was named head of the CSRC in March, said Nov. 19 the shift to a looser IPO system must be gradual to avoid shocks to the market.

China's benchmark Shanghai Composite Index (SHCOMP) has dropped 2.1 percent this year and the CSI300 Index has fallen 3.3 percent, the worst performers among 20 primary equity indexes in the Asia-Pacific region tracked by Bloomberg.

In a separate statement, the CSRC said it will draft rules for a trial to allow companies to sell preferred stock, based on guidance issued today by the State Council, and seek public feedback on its proposals.

The use of preference shares will help deepen corporate reform, provide a flexible financing tool for companies and promote the stable development of the capital market, the State Council, China's cabinet led by Premier Li Keqiang, said in guidelines issued on the central government website.

Capital Requirements

Banks will be able to include preference shares in calculations of their tier-one capital, giving them a new financing instrument to meet capital requirements of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, CSRC spokesman Deng Ge said in the statement. Preference shares will also help reduce corporate debt levels, Deng said.

The CSRC's announcements build on reform pledges made in a 60-point document released by the Communist Party on Nov. 15 after its top leaders met to map out policy changes for the coming decade. They vowed to give markets a bigger role in the economy and reduce government interference.

Item 12 on the list focused on improving financial markets, including moving to a registration-based system for issuing stocks and increasing the proportion of funds companies raise through direct financing.

Sole Discretion

Under current rules for domestic IPOs, companies go through a review and approval system, where a CSRC committee has the sole discretion to decide whether a company is fit for listing. The process can involve several rounds of reviews and take years, the official Xinhua News Agency said in a report today.

In the new system, the regulator will only be responsible for examining whether applicants are qualified, leaving investors and the markets to make their own judgment about a company's value and the risks of buying its shares.

"We want to emphasize that the market should not see the registration system as a sign that the government won't supervise and regulate the market anymore," an unidentified CSRC official said in a question and answer statement posted on the regulator's website. "We will review and make sure the application materials carry accurate and adequate information but leave it to investors to decide whether such stocks are worth investing in."

Curb Misconduct

The new rules still impose requirements and threaten penalties on IPO advisers in an effort to curb misconduct in first-time share sales.

The CSRC has penalized at least three brokerages since May for inadequate due diligence on IPOs. It fined Ping An Securities Co. and barred the firm from underwriting for three months. Minsheng Securities Co. was given a warning and fined and Nanjing Securities Co. was censured. Some bankers at all three firms were barred from the industry for life.

Everbright Securities said in June the CSRC had begun an investigation of the company in relation to Henan Tianfon Energy-Saving Panel Science & Technology Co.'s IPO application, which the regulator said contained falsified information. The CSRC said the following month it had concluded field investigation work and passed the case to its administrative penalties commission.

Awaiting Approval

Org Packaging Co., which makes beverage cans, and Fujian Tengxin Foods Co. were the last Chinese companies to list when they started trading in Shenzhen in October 2012. Tengxin changed its name to Haixin Foods Co. on July 4.

Companies including state-owned China National Nuclear Corp. and Bank of Shanghai Co. were awaiting approval for IPOs as of Oct. 31, according to a list on the CSRC's website.

Some 83 companies have had their IPO applications cleared by the CSRC listing committee and are pending final approval, including Shaanxi Coal & Chemical Industry Group Co. and China Postal Express & Logistics Co., the regulator's website shows. The companies may raise a combined 55.8 billion yuan ($9.2 billion), according to June estimates from Ernst & Young LLP.

Where Will Apple Go Next?

With shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) trading around $533, 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 has bought Israel-based PrimeSense Ltd, a developer of chips that enable three-dimensional machine vision, the companies said on Monday, a move that signals gesture-controlled technologies in new devices from the maker of iPhones and iPads. An Apple spokesman confirmed the purchase but declined to say how much it spent or what the technology will be used for. Israeli media said Apple paid about $350 million for PrimeSense, whose technology powers the gesture control in Microsoft Corp’s Xbox Kinect gaming system.

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 surging higher and looks poised to continue. 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	21.46%	10%	8%

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 had conflicting feelings 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	0.23%	49.62%	40.47%	-46.80%	11.88%

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 has bought Israel-based PrimeSense Ltd a move that signals gesture-controlled technologies in new devices from the maker of iPhones and iPads. The stock hasn’t made significant progress in the last several years however, it’s currently surging higher. 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.