Many of the most prominent publicly traded companies have familiar business models. They operate stores, provide financial services, produce and distribute energy, and drive innovation in technology, medicine and other fields. There are others, however, that operate unique, even bizarre, businesses, with few or even no publicly traded competitors.
Unusual companies operate niche businesses because they perceive opportunities for growth and ��in the long-run ��substantial profit. Oftentimes, this includes providing products and services in an underdeveloped sector of an established industry. For example, Clean Energy Fuels operates natural gas fueling stations throughout the United States and Canada, a unique business within the massive energy industry. GW Pharmaceuticals is the only publicly traded pharmaceutical company focusing on cannabinoid-based medications.
10 Best Clean Energy Stocks To Invest In 2015: Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores Inc (SHOS)
Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores, Inc. (SHO), incorporated on April 23, 2012, is a retailer primarily focused on selling home appliances, hardware, tools and lawn and garden equipment. As of April 28, 2012, the Company and its dealers and franchisees operated 1,238 stores across all 50 states and Puerto Rico, Guam and Bermuda. The Company also provides its customers with a range of services, including home delivery and installation and product protection agreements. SHO operates in two segments: the Sears Hometown and Hardware segment and the Sears Outlet segment.
Sears Hometown
Sears Hometown and Hardware segment�� stores are designed to provide its customers with in-store and online access to a range selection of brands of home appliances, tools, lawn and garden equipment, sporting goods, consumer electronics and household goods, depending on the particular store. Its Sears Outlet stores are designed to provide its customers with in-store and online access to purchase new, one-of-a-kind, out-of-carton, discontinued, obsolete, used, reconditioned, overstocked and scratched and dented products, collectively, outlet-value products, including home appliances, lawn and garden equipment, apparel, mattresses, televisions, sporting goods and tools.
As of April 28, 2012, the Sears Hometown and Hardware segment consisted of 944 Sears Hometown Stores, 96 Sears Hardware Stores and 76 Sears Home Appliance Showrooms. The 944 Sears Hometown Stores are primarily independently owned stores, predominantly located in smaller communities and offering appliances, consumer electronics, lawn and garden equipment, and hardware. Hometown Stores carry y Sears brand products, such as Kenmore, Craftsman, and DieHard, as well as other brands. 96 Sears Hardware Stores are hardware stores that carry Craftsman brand tools and lawn and garden equipment, DieHard brand batteries and other national brands and other home improvement products. 93 of these locations also offer a selection of Kenm! ore and other national brands of home appliances.
Sears Hometown and Hardware business operates through three formats: Sears Hometown Stores (Hometown Stores), Sears Hardware Stores (Hardware Stores), and Sears Home Appliance Showrooms (Home Appliance Showrooms). Hometown Stores offer products and services across a range of merchandise categories, including home appliances, consumer electronics, lawn and garden equipment, sporting goods, tools and household goods. Most of its Hometown Stores carry Sears brand products, such as Kenmore, Craftsman, and DieHard, as well as other national brands. Its Hardware Stores offer products and services across a range of merchandise categories and sales are primarily driven by tools, lawn and garden equipment, home appliances, and other home improvement products. In addition, these stores offer blade sharpening, key cutting and screen repair, as well as products typically found in local hardware stores, such as fasteners, electrical supplies and plumbing supplies. These stores carry Craftsman brand tools and lawn and garden equipment, DieHard brand batteries and a range of national brands and other home improvement products. Its Home Appliance Showrooms offer home appliances and related services in stores primarily located in strip malls and lifestyle centers of metropolitan areas. Home Appliance Showroom sales are primarily driven by big-ticket cooking, laundry and refrigeration home appliances, as well as, in certain stores, mattresses. These stores carry Kenmore and other national brands of home appliances. As of April 28, 2012, out of 76 Home Appliance Showrooms in 19 states, 44 of these stores are owned and operated by franchisees, 30 stores are owned and operated by the Company and two are owned and operated by independent dealers.
Sears Outlet
As of April 28, 2012, the Sears Outlet segment consisted of 122 Sears Outlet Stores. The Company�� Sears Outlet stores provide in-store and online access to purchase outlet-value ! products ! across a range of merchandise categories, including home appliances, consumer electronics, lawn and garden equipment, apparel, sporting goods, tools, and household goods.
The Company competes with Sears Holdings, The Home Depot, Best Buy, Lowe�� and Tractor Supply, Ace Hardware, True Value, HH Gregg and US Appliances.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By James Brumley]
The folks who originally said Eddie Lampert — hedge fund manager, major SHLD shareholder, and now acting Sears CEO — was mostly viewing Sears Holdings as a real estate play have since been vindicated. In addition to the spinoff of Orchard Supply Hardware (OSHWQ) in 2011 and last year’s spinoff of the relatively successful Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores (SHOS), Lampert is now finally getting serious about shedding SHLD department store units. Last year he sold or closed 46 of the company’s 1,300 or so full-line mall stores, vs. letting go of less than 10 in any year since he became a major shareholder back in 2006.
- [By James Brumley]
Two years later, the company spun off its Hometown and Outlet stores by issuing shares of Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores (SHOS) to SHLD stock owners … charging them for the right to receive what they technically already owned.
10 Best Clean Energy Stocks To Invest In 2015: Citi Trends Inc (CTRN)
Citi Trends, Inc., incorporate on March 3, 1999, is a retailer of urban fashion apparel and accessories for the entire family. The Company offers branded apparel from national brands, as well as private label apparel, accessories and a limited assortment of home decor items. As of February 2, 2013, the Company operated 513 stores in both urban and rural markets in 29 states. The Company�� stores average approximately 10,700 square feet of selling space and are located in neighborhood shopping centers. The Company also offers products under its brands, such as Diva Blue, Red Ape, Vintage Harlem and Lil Ms Hollywood. The Company�� store offers a variety of products for men and women, as well as children. During the fiscal years ended February 2, 2013 (fiscal 2012), the Company opened four new stores.
The Company's merchandise includes apparel, accessories and home decor. Within apparel, the Company offers fashion sportswear for men, women and children, including offerings for newborns, infants, toddlers, boys and girls. Accessories include handbags, jewelry, footwear, belts, intimate apparel and sleepwear. All merchandise sold in the Company's stores is shipped directly from its distribution centers in Darlington, South Carolina and Roland, Oklahoma.
The Company competes with TJX Companies, Inc., Ross Stores, Inc., The Cato Corporation, Burlington Coat Factory Warehouse Corp., Rainbow, Dots, It's Fashion!, Simply Fashions, Wal-Mart and Target, Kmart.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Seth Jayson]
Calling all cash flows
When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Citi Trends (Nasdaq: CTRN ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.
Top 5 Diversified Bank Companies To Invest In Right Now: Charles River Laboratories International Inc. (CRL)
Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. provides research models and laboratory animal support expertise to help its global partners advance their research and drug development efforts. The company offers a portfolio of services to support discovery and imaging, preclinical and early-phase clinical studies, and biopharmaceutical and endotoxin products and services for manufacturing and quality control. Its portfolio spans the entire research and drug development process, from IND consultation to discovery through market approval, allowing customized approaches to support both single-study or broad-based programs. Charles River Laboratories International serves pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, as well as government agencies, hospitals, and academic institutions. The company was founded in 1947 and is headquartered in Wilmington, Massachusetts.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Damian Illia]
Based in Valencia, Calif., and founded in 1991, MannKind Corporation (MNKD) is a development stage biopharmaceutical company. It is engaged in the discovery, development and commercialization of therapeutic products for diseases like diabetes. The company's lead and only late stage pipeline candidate for this year is Afrezza, an inhalation powder which is an ultra insulin therapy for the treatment of adults with type 1 or type 2 diabetes to control their hyperglycemia. Currently, it is in late-stage clinical trials and a final decision from the U.S. regulatory body is expected by April 15, 2014. There is great concern revolving around this decision, as MannKind has already received two complete response letters (CRL) for Afrezza from the FDA, and it was requested to conduct two phase III trials with the next-generation inhaler. Further delay in approval or another setback related to this candidate could be a great danger for the company. Over and probably excessive dependence on Afrezza ���s the company discontinued any other reasearch in other candidates ���s something to worry about. The company has generated no revenue last year round and its shares have experienced a total annual loss of $0.64 so far.
10 Best Clean Energy Stocks To Invest In 2015: Osiris Therapeutics Inc.(OSIR)
Osiris Therapeutics, Inc., a stem cell company, focuses on the development and marketing of therapeutic products to treat various medical conditions in the inflammatory, autoimmune, orthopedic, and cardiovascular areas. It operates in two business segments, Therapeutics and Biosurgery. The Therapeutics segment focuses on developing biologic stem cell drug candidates from a readily available and non-controversial source, adult bone marrow. The Biosurgery segment works to harness the ability of cells and novel constructs to promote the body's natural healing. This segment focuses on developing biologic products for use in surgical procedures. The company?s lead biologic drug candidate is Prochymal, which is in phase 2 and 3 clinical trails for various indications, including acute graft versus host disease (GvHD), Crohn's disease, acute myocardial infarction, type 1 diabetes, pulmonary disease, and gastrointestinal injury resulting from radiation exposure. Its biologic drug candidates also include Chondrogen, a preparation of adult mesenchymal stem cells that is in phase 2 clinical trials for osteoarthritis and cartilage protection. The company has collaboration agreements with Genzyme Corporation for the development and commercialization of Prochymal and Chondrogen in various countries except in the United States and Canada. It also has a partnership with Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation for the development of Prochymal as a treatment for the preservation of insulin production in patients with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes mellitus. Osiris Therapeutics, Inc. was founded in 1992 and is headquartered in Columbia, Maryland.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Alexander Maxwell]
One of the companies attempting to develop a better treatment for chronic diabetic foot ulcers is Osiris Therapeutics� (NASDAQ: OSIR ) . Earlier this month, Osiris shares more than doubled as the company announced positive data for its CDFU drug Grafix. The study results were very impressive to say the least; the study was stopped early due to the overwhelming efficacy exhibited by the treatment. A main highlight is the fact that 62% of Grafix patients had their wound closed at 12 weeks, compared to only 21% of patients using conventional methods. Clearly, the efficacy in this endpoint was overwhelming. Grafix also achieved all of the secondary endpoints for the trial, and more importantly demonstrated a relatively benign safety record.�
- [By Maxx Chatsko]
Additionally, stem cell therapies have remained elusive as the industry's ultimate Holy Grail. Osiris (NASDAQ: OSIR ) received Canadian approval for the world's first stem cell drug, Prochymal, for children battling acute graft-versus-host disease, or GvHD, last year. The approval meant more symbolically than to the bottom line, but it definitely put the potential of stem cells front and center for investors.
- [By Lauren Pollock]
Osiris Therapeutics Inc.(OSIR) said Friday a proposed ruling from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services won’t immediately affect reimbursements for its Grafix stem-cell product. The regenerative medicine company said Grafix will maintain its current reimbursement status — also called transitional pass-through status — potentially through late 2015.
10 Best Clean Energy Stocks To Invest In 2015: Pampa Energia S.A.(PAM)
Pampa Energia S.A., through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity in Argentina. It has an installed hydro electricity generation capacity of approximately 2,217 megawatts. The company also joint-controls the operation and maintenance of the high-tension transmission network covering 10,613 kilometers (km) of own lines, as well as 6,110 km of high-tension lines belonging to Empresa de Transporte de Energ� El�tricapor Distribuci� Troncal de la Provincia de Buenos Aires Sociedad An�ima Transba S.A. It distributes electricity to approximately 3.5 million residential, commercial, and industrial customers. The company was formerly known as Pampa Holding S.A. and changed its name to Pampa Energia S.A. in September 2008. Pampa Energia S.A. was incorporated in 1945 and is headquartered in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Leading and Lagging Sectors
In trading on Wednesday, utilities shares were relative leaders, up on the day by about 0.46 percent. Top gainers in the sector included PPL (NYSE: PPL), Empresa Distribuidora y Comercializadora Norte SA (NYSE: EDN), and Pampa Energia SA (NYSE: PAM). Telecommunications services sector was the top decliner in the US market on Wednesday. - [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Leading and Lagging Sectors
Utilities stocks gained Thursday, with Companhia de Saneamento Basico do Estado de Sao Paulo (NYSE: SBS) leading advancers. Among the leading sector stocks, gains came from Companhia Paranaense de Energia (NYSE: ELP), Pampa Energia SA (NYSE: PAM) and CenterPoint Energy (NYSE: CNP). - [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Leading and Lagging Sectors
Utilities stocks gained Friday, with Korea Electric Power (NYSE: KEP) leading advancers. Meanwhile, gainers in the sector included Huaneng Power International (NYSE: HNP), with shares up 2.1 percent, and Pampa Energia SA (NYSE: PAM), with shares up 2.5 percent.
10 Best Clean Energy Stocks To Invest In 2015: Investors Bancorp Inc.(ISBC)
Investors Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for Investors Savings Bank that provides a range of banking services in the United States. The company accepts deposits and originates loans. Its deposit products include savings accounts, checking accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company offers commercial real estate, construction, multi-family, and commercial and industrial loans; and consumer loans, including home equity loans and home equity lines of credit, as well as mortgage loans secured by one-to four-family residential real estate. As of December 31, 2010, it operated 82 full-service branch offices located in Essex, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Union, and Warren Counties, New Jersey; Nassau and Queens, New York; and Massachusetts. The company was founded in 1926 and is headquartered in Short Hills, New Jersey. Investors Bancorp, Inc. is a subsidiary of Investors Bancorp, MHC.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Tim Melvin]
He also pointed out that the approaching completion of Roma Financial (ROMA) and Investors Bancorp (ISBC) has some interesting implications for bank stock investors. Both are mutual holding companies, and the newly formed bank is expected to complete the process and do a second-step conversion offering. That will be a fairly large deal, much larger than most second-step offerings, as the combined banks should be somewhere around $3 billion in market cap. There will be larger investment banks involved, complete with road shows and institutional meetings to promote the deal. The attention could well cause a revaluation of the mutual holding company and converted thrift sector of the banking market.
- [By Jim Royal]
I'm about to buy shares in Investors Bancorp (NASDAQ: ISBC ) , a soon-to-demutualize thrift that is undervalued. The thrift has quickly grown assets since it went public in 2005 and, with improving credit metrics and a solid return on equity, the bank is ready to make the final leap to full public ownership. So my Special Situations portfolio will acquire shares shortly. Here's why I like the stock.
10 Best Clean Energy Stocks To Invest In 2015: China Direct Industries Inc.(CDII)
CD International Enterprises, Inc. sources, produces, and distributes industrial products in the People?s Republic of China and the Americas. The company operates in three segments: Magnesium, Basic Materials, and Consulting. The Magnesium segment produces, sells, and distributes pure magnesium ingots, magnesium powder and granules, and magnesium scraps. The Basic Materials segment sells and distributes various products, including industrial grade synthetic chemicals, steel products, non-ferrous metals, recycled materials, and industrial commodities. The Consulting segment provides a range of consulting services to the U.S. public companies that operate primarily in China. This segment offers its services in the areas of financing structures and arrangements, mergers, acquisitions and other business transactions, identifying potential areas of growth, translation services, managing and coordinating necessary government approvals and licenses, marketing services, investor relations services, and coordination of the preparation of required SEC filings. The company was formerly known as China Direct Industries, Inc. and changed its name to CD International Enterprises, Inc. in February 2012. CD International Enterprises, Inc. is headquartered in Deerfield Beach, Florida.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Peter Graham]
Small cap stocks CD International Enterprises Inc (OTCMKTS: CDII), Creative Edge Nutrition Inc (OTCMKTS: FITX) and Metrospaces Inc (OTCMKTS: MSPC) have all been the subject of recent as well as past paid for stock promotions. Of course, there is nothing wrong with properly disclosed stock promotions or investor awareness campaigns, but they can and do often backfire on unwary investors and traders alike. With that in mind, will investors and traders come out winners with these small caps or should they just be left to the promoters? Here is a quick reality check:
CD International Enterprises Inc (OTCMKTS: CDII) Has Been Busy Announcing New DealsSmall cap CD International Enterprises is a US based company that produces, sources, and distributes industrial commodities in China and the Americas and provides business and financial corporate consulting services. On Friday, CD International Enterprises closed at $0.133 for a market cap of $7.60 million plus CDII is up 29% since the start of the year and down 91.4% over the past five years according to Google Finance.
10 Best Clean Energy Stocks To Invest In 2015: Vitran Corporation Inc (VTNC)
Vitran Corporation Inc. (Vitran), incorporated on April 29, 1981, is a provider of freight surface transportation and related supply chain services throughout Canada 34 states in the eastern, southeastern, central, southwestern, and western United States. The Company�� business consists of Less-than-truckload services (LTL). These services are provided by stand-alone business units within their respective regions. Vitran�� business is carried on through its subsidiaries, which hold the licenses and permits required to carry on business. As of December 31, 2012, Vitran�� principal wholly owned operating subsidiaries included Vitran Express Canada Inc. (Ontario), Can-Am Logistics Inc. (Ontario), Vitran Logistics Ltd. (Ontario), Expediteur T.W. Ltee (Canada), Vitran Corporation (Nevada), Vitran Express Inc. (Pennsylvania), Vitran Logistics Corp. (Delaware), Vitran Logistics Inc. (Indiana), and Las Vegas/L.A. Express, Inc. (California). In March 2013, Vitran Corp Inc completed divestiture of its Supply Chain Operation division to Legacy Supply Chain. In October 2013, Vitran Corporation Inc. completed the sale of its United States LTL business.
LTL Services
Within Canada, the Company provides next-day service within Ontario, Quebec and parts of western Canada, and generates its revenue from the movement of LTL freight within the three- to five-day east-west service lanes. The majority of its trans-Canada freight is shipped intermodally, whereby the Company�� containers are loaded onto rail cars and trans-loaded to Vitran facilities where Vitran�� network of owner operators pick up and deliver the freight to various destinations. During 2012, Vitran�� Canadian LTL business represented approximately 27.6% of total LTL revenues. Vitran�� Transborder Service Solution (inter-regional) provides over-the-road service between its Canadian LTL and United States LTL business units.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Monica Gerson]
Breaking news
Vitran Corporation (NASDAQ: VTNC) announced today that it has entered into a definitive arrangement agreement with TransForce pursuant to which TransForce has agreed to acquire all of the outstanding common shares of Vitran not already owned by TransForce for US$6.50 in cash per share, in accordance with TransForce's prior proposal. To read the full news, click here. ReneSola (NYSE: SOL) today announced it signed a Memorandum of Intent (MOI) to sell three utility-scale projects in Western China, with a total capacity of 60MW, to Jiangsu Akcome Solar Science & Technology Co on December 30, 2013. To read the full news, click here. Cooper Tire & Rubber Company (NYSE: CTB) today announced it has terminated the merger agreement with Apollo Tyres (NSE:ApolloTYRE). To read the full news, click here. RedHill Biopharma (NASDAQ: RDHL) today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with leading healthcare investor OrbiMed Israel Partners Limited Partnership, an affiliate of OrbiMed Advisors LLC, for the sale of RedHill's American Depository Shares and warrants in a private placement transactionor a total sum of $6.0 million. To read the full news, click here.Posted-In: Guggenheim US Stock FuturesNews Eurozone Futures Global Pre-Market Outlook Markets
10 Best Clean Energy Stocks To Invest In 2015: Avista Corporation (AVA)
Avista Corporation, an energy company, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of energy and other energy-related businesses in the United States and Canada. It operates in two segments, Avista Utilities and Advantage IQ. The Avista Utilities segment involves in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity primarily from hydroelectric and thermal sources. It also engages in the distribution of natural gas to retail customers in eastern Washington, northern Idaho, and parts of northeast and southwest Oregon, as well as in the wholesale purchase and sale of electricity and natural gas. As of December 31, 2010, this segment operated facilities with a total net capability of 1,791 mega watts, as well as provided retail electric service to 359,000 customers; and retail natural gas service to 319,000 customers. This segment offers electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers. The Advantage IQ segment provides sustainable utility expense management and energy management solutions to multi-site companies in North America. It offers invoice processing, auditing and payment services, energy procurement, reporting, advanced analysis, and consulting services. In addition, the company engages in the custom sheet metal fabrication of electronic enclosures, parts, and systems for the computer, telecom, renewable energy, and medical industries; real estate investments, primarily commercial office buildings; and investing in emerging technology venture capital funds and low income housing. Avista Corporation was founded in 1889 and is headquartered in Spokane, Washington.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Seth Jayson]
Calling all cash flows
When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Avista (NYSE: AVA ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below. - [By Seth Jayson]
Calling all cash flows
When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Avista (NYSE: AVA ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.
10 Best Clean Energy Stocks To Invest In 2015: LinnCo LLC (LNCO)
Linn Co, LLC (Linn Co) sole purpose is to own LINN Energy, LLC (LINN) units. LINN is independent oil and natural gas company. LINN is focused on the development and acquisition of oil and natural gas properties, which include various producing basins within the United States. LINN�� properties are located in eight operating regions, which include Mid-Continent, which includes properties in Oklahoma, Louisiana and the eastern portion of the Texas Panhandle; Hugoton Basin, which includes properties located primarily in Kansas and the Shallow Texas Panhandle; Green River Basin, which includes properties located in southwest Wyoming; Permian Basin, which includes areas in west Texas and southeast New Mexico; Michigan/Illinois, which includes the Antrim Shale formation in the northern part of Michigan and oil properties in southern Illinois; California, which includes the Brea Olinda Field of the Los Angeles Basin; Williston/Powder River Basin, which includes the Bakken formation in North Dakota and the Powder River Basin in Wyoming, and East Texas, which includes properties located in east Texas. On March 30, 2012, the Company acquired certain oil and natural gas properties (Properties) located primarily in the Hugoton Basin of Southwestern Kansas from BP America Production Company (BP). On May 1, 2012, LINN completed the acquisition of certain oil and natural gas properties located in east Texas. In December 2013, Linn Energy LLC and Linn Co, LLC (Linn Co) announced the completion of the merger between LinnCo and Berry Petroleum Company (Berry), where LinnCo had acquired all of Berry's interest.
During the year ended December 31, 2011, LINN drilled a total of 294 gross wells. As of June 1, 2012, LINN had interests in approximately 15,000 gross productive wells (approximately 71% operated) and approximately 1.8 million net acres across seven regions in the United States.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Eric Volkman]
Affiliated companies LINN Energy (NASDAQ: LINE ) and LinnCo (NASDAQ: LNCO ) are continuing to return money to their share- and unitholders. Both companies have declared dividends for their respective Q1s, and they match -- each will pay $0.725 per share or unit.
- [By Ben Levisohn]
Gershuni reiterated his Neutral rating on LinnCo (LNCO).
Shares of Linn Energy have gained 0.8% to $31.65 at 2:15 p.m. today, while LinnCo has jumped 2.1% to $30.31.
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