If prices of goods or services are rising or falling, it often means that someone is winning and someone is losing as a result. As a general service reminder, and hopefully a money-saving reminder, Saturday is the last day to buy postage stamps from the US Postal Service before the price hike takes effect on January 26, 2014. Despite some shipping sector concerns, this does act as a base rate hike for all shipping providers – 3 of which are public companies.
First Class Mail Forever Stamps will be $0.49, versus $0.46 ahead of the price hike. First Class Mail International Global Forever stamps will be $1.15, up from $1.10 ahead of the price hike. This means hopefully that the USPS will lose less money in 2014 than it did in prior years. Still, that is on a “hopefully” status.
Then there is that lucky or unlucky outcome of price hikes. The public will pay more for stamps, making you and me the losers in this. The question to ask is whether or not Stamps.com Inc. (NASDAQ: STMP) just get a built-in revenue booster per customer on a static basis?
Hot Dow Dividend Companies To Watch In Right Now: Mexico Fund Inc (MXF)
The Mexico Fund, Inc. (the Fund), incorporated on January 13, 1981, is a closed-end, non-diversified management investment company. Fund's investment objective is to seek long-term capital appreciation through investment in securities, primarily equity, listed on the Mexican Stock Exchange. Fund invests at least 80% of its total assets in equity securities listed on the Mexican Stock Exchange. The Fund may invest up to 20% of its assets in issuers that are listed on the Mexican Stock Exchange, but which are organized outside of Mexico, provided each such issuer has a subsidiary organized in Mexico. The Fund's investment advisor is Impulsora del Fondo Mexico, S.C. BBVA Bancomer, S.A. is the Fund�� custodian.
The Fund invests in various sectors, such as beverages, telecommunications, retail, chemical products, housing companies, financial groups, media, mining and building materials. The The Fund's investment advisor is Impulsora del Fondo Mexico, S.C. BBVA Bancomer, S.A. is the Fund�� custodian.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Daniel Cross]
A broad-based investment into the Mexican economy either through the iShares MSCI Mexico Investable Market Index (NYSE: EWW) or the Mexico Fund (NYSE: MXF) -- a favorite of StreetAuthority analyst Amy Calistri -- are good ways to establish a position. These funds not only have exposure to the manufacturing sector, but also to energy, health care and media -- sectors that are benefiting from political reforms and a growing Mexican middle class. The Mexico Fund has a powerful incentive for investors as well in the form of a hefty 10% dividend.
Top 10 Shipping Stocks To Watch For 2014: Sapient Corporation(SAPE)
Sapient Corporation helps clients to leverage marketing and technology to transform their businesses in the United States and internationally. It operates in three segments: SapientNitro, Sapient Global Markets, and Sapient Government Services. The SapientNitro segment offers Web and interactive development, traditional advertising, media planning and buying, strategic planning and marketing analytics, and multi-channel commerce strategy and solutions, including a focus on mobile, and content and asset management strategies and solutions. This segment also provides integrated marketing and creative services, such as visual concept, design, and implementation through multiple media; brand building and direct response programs, audience segmentation, and profiling strategies; customer loyalty strategies; customer relationship strategy and implementation; customer lead generation and management; and integrated advertising campaigns. The Sapient Global Markets segment offers i ntegrated advisory, program management, analytics, technology, and operations services to capital and commodity markets. This segment also provides business and information technology strategy, process and system design, program management, custom development and package implementation, systems integration, and outsourced services to financial services and energy services markets. The Sapient Government Services segment offers digital marketing strategy and execution, program management, solution delivery, strategy, and communications and outreach services, as well as provides consulting, technology, and marketing services to the United States governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations. The company serves financial services, technology and communications, consumer, travel, automotive, energy services, government, health, and education sectors. Sapient Corporation was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.
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 Sapient (Nasdaq: SAPE ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below. - [By CRWE]
Sapient (NASDAQ:SAPE) reportedthat Alan J. Herrick, president and chief executive officer, and Joseph S. Tibbetts, Jr., senior vice president and chief financial officer, will present at the Sanford C. Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference at The Waldorf Astoria in New York on Thursday, May 31, 2012 from 4:00 p.m. to 4:45 p.m. ET.
Top 10 Shipping Stocks To Watch For 2014: Granite Broadcasting Corp (GRRP)
Granite Broadcasting Corporation (Granite), incorporated in 1988, is a television broadcasting company focused on developing and operating small- to middle-market television broadcast stations in the United States. The Company owns and operates six middle-market stations, and has shared services agreements and advertising representation agreements to two additional stations owned by Malara Broadcast Group and one additional station owned by Four Seasons Broadcast Company. Granite's revenues are derived principally from local and national advertising and, to a lesser extent, from network compensation for the broadcast of programming, and from studio rental and commercial production activities. On July 26, 2006, the Company completed the acquisition of WBNG, Channel 12, the CBS-affiliated television station serving Binghamton and Elmira, New York. In December 2006, Granite, along with certain of its subsidiaries, voluntarily filed petitions for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.
The stations that Granite owns and the stations to which the Company provides services under local services agreements operate in geographically diverse markets. With respect to the stations the Company owns, as of December 31, 2005, two stations are located in the west region (KBWB-San Francisco, California and KSEE-Fresno, California); four stations are located in the mid-west region (WDWB- Detroit, Michigan; WEEK-Peoria, Illinois; WISE-Fort Wayne, Indiana, and KBJR-Duluth, Minnesota), and two stations are located in the northeast region (WKBW-Buffalo and WTVH-Syracuse, New York).
As of December 31, 2005, four of the eight stations the Company owns are affiliated with NBC, one is affiliated with ABC, one is affiliated with CBS and two are affiliated with the WB Network, which has announced that it will no longer provide programming to WB affiliates effective September 2006. All three of the s! tations to which the Company provides services under local services agreements are located in the midwest region (WPTA-Fort Wayne, Indiana; KDLH-Duluth, Minnesota, and WAOE- Peoria, Illinois). WPTA is affiliated with ABC, KDLH is affiliated with CBS and WAOE is affiliated with UPN.
Affiliates of the major networks, which include NBC, ABC, CBS and Fox, receive a significant portion of their programming each day from the network. These major networks provide programming, and in some cases, cash payments, to their affiliated stations in exchange for a significant portion of the affiliates' advertising inventory during the network provided programs. These networks then sell this advertising time and retain the revenue.
Granite has entered into affiliation agreements with networks for each of the stations the Company owns. KSEE, WEEK, WISE (acquired on March 8, 2005) and KBJR are affiliated with NBC, WKBW is affiliated with ABC, WTVH is affiliated with CBS, and KBWB and WDWB stations are affiliated with WB. WPTA, which Granite sold, on March 7, 2005, to Malara Broadcast Group, is affiliated with ABC. With respect to the two stations that are owned by Malara Broadcast Group to which, since March 8, 2005, the Company provides services under local services agreements, KDLH is affiliated with CBS and WPTA is affiliated with ABC. WAOE, which is owned by Four Seasons Broadcast Company, is affiliated with UPN. In addition to these network affiliation agreements, Granite delivers WB programming on leased cable channels in Fort Wayne, Indiana and Duluth, Minnesota-Superior, Wisconsin. In the Duluth, Minnesota-Superior, Wisconsin, the Company delivers UPN programming on one of KBJR's digital streams, which programming is retransmitted in analog format by certain major cable systems in the DMA. In addition, KRII multicasts Weather Plus on another of KBJR's digital streams.
Since March 8, 2005, Granite has shared services agreements and advertising representation agreements (or loc! al servic! e agreements) to provide advertising, sales promotion and administrative services, and selected programming to two additional stations owned by Malara Broadcast Group, all of which Granite and Malara stations are affiliated with either ABC, NBC or CBS, the Company's Big Three Affiliates. On September 8, 2005, Granite entered into a definitive agreement (the KBWB Purchase and Sale Agreement) to sell substantially all of the assets of KBWB-TV, the WB affiliate serving the San Francisco, California television market, to AM Broadcasting KBWB, Inc. (the KBWB Buyer). In addition, on September 8, 2005, the Company entered into a definitive agreement (the WDWB Purchase and Sale Agreement, and together with the KBWB Purchase and Sale Agreement, the Purchase and Sale Agreements) to sell substantially all of the assets of WDWB-TV, the WB affiliate serving the Detroit Michigan television market, to AM Broadcasting WDWB, Inc. (the WDWB Buyer).
On September 1, 2005, Granite entered into an arrangement with Four Seasons Broadcast Company, under which the Company will provide advertising, sales promotion and administrative services to Four Seasons Broadcast Company-owned station WAOE-TV, the UPN affiliate serving Peoria-Bloomington, Illinois, in return for certain fees that will be paid by Four Seasons Broadcast Company to Granite. On January 13, 2006, Granite and certain of its subsidiaries entered into a definitive agreement with Television Station Group Holdings, LLC and certain of its subsidiaries to purchase substantially all of the assets of WBNG-TV, Channel 12, the CBS-affiliated television station serving Binghamton and Elmira, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Lauren Pollock]
E.W. Scripps Co.(SSP) agreed to acquire two television stations, one in Detroit and another in Buffalo, N.Y., for a combined $110 million from Granite Broadcasting Corp.(GRRP)
Top 10 Shipping Stocks To Watch For 2014: Profire Energy Inc (PFIE)
Profire Energy, Inc., incorporated on May 5, 2003, is engaged in the business of developing combustion management technologies for the oil and gases industry. The Company manufactures, install and service oilfield combustion management technologies and related products, such as train components and secondary airplates. The Company's primary products are burner management systems. The Company�� Profire 2100 burner management system allows the end-user to manage a variety of combustion vessels. Its Profire 1300 is a flare-ignition system that provides fundamental ignition capabilities for combustor and open-flare vessels, and can relay flame-status. Its Profire 1800 is a mid-range burner management system option that provides fundamental burner management functionality, such as burner re-ignition and temperature management.
The Company also manufactures other technologies and products for sale, including specialized burner management systems intended for use in specific firetube vessels (e.g. incinerators), valve train products, including valves, gauges, and installation products, and miscellaneous componentry, such as solar-power generation kits, add-on cards to expand the functionality of a given system, and a airplate that meters secondary airflow to the burner, allowing for more optimized combustion and reduced emissions.
The Company competes with SureFire, Platinum, ACL and TitanLogix.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Peter Graham]
Small cap green stocks Eco Depot Inc (OTCMKTS: ECDP), Eco Building Products Inc (OTCMKTS: ECOB) and Profire Energy, Inc (OTCBB: PFIE) has been getting some extra attention lately in various investment newsletters thanks to paid promotions or investor relation campaigns. Of course, there is nothing wrong with properly disclosed promotions and investor relations campaigns, but small cap green stocks tend to be extra volatile when compared with other stocks. So how in greenbacks will these three small cap green stocks produce for investors? Here is a quick reality check:
Top 10 Shipping Stocks To Watch For 2014: Walter Bau AG (WTB)
Walter Bau AG is an international construction group based in Augsburg, southern Germany. The Company's core construction-related services are planning, financing, project development and facilities management. It is active in the fields of turnkey construction, civil engineering, international construction and transportation infrastructure. Its subsidiary, DYWIDAG-Systems International markets the Company's products and systems worldwide, particularly in the field of post-tensioning and geotechnics, as well as special civil engineering processes. Walter Bau also provides operation and financing solutions, as well as developing commercial and residential real estate projects. Facilities Management is offered by DYWIDAG Service GmbH. Its Logistics Competence Center in Augsburg bundles the Company's Germany-wide activities as a general contractor in the planning, construction and support of distribution centers. The Company commenced insolvency proceedings in April 2005. Advisors' Opinion:- [By Namitha Jagadeesh]
BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP) and Rio Tinto Group, the world�� biggest mining companies, fell at least 3 percent. Whitbread Plc (WTB) dropped 2.8 percent after UBS AG downgraded the owner of the Costa Coffee chain. British Land Co., the U.K.�� second-largest real estate investment trust, advanced 1.2 percent after saying it bought commercial property in London for 470 million pounds ($707 million).
- [By Sofia Horta e Costa]
Whitbread Plc (WTB) added 4.1 percent to 3,114 pence, its largest advance since September 2012. Oriel Securities Ltd. raised its rating on the shares to buy from hold, citing improvement in the U.K. hotel market.
Top 10 Shipping Stocks To Watch For 2014: PetroLogistics LP (PDH)
PetroLogistics LP owns and operates propane dehydrogenation (PDH) facility. The Company is located in the vicinity of the Houston Ship Channel. As of April 23, 2012, the Company had an annual production capacity of approximately 1.45 billion pounds of propylene. Its PDH facility uses a CATOFIN dehydrogenation technology pursuant to a fully-paid license from CB&I Lummus. It derives its sales from three different sources: propylene sales, hydrogen sales, and mixed stream of butane and butylenes (C4 mix stream) and heavier hydrocarbons (C5+ stream) sales.
Contracted Propylene Sales
The Company has propylene sales contracts with The Dow Chemical Company (Dow), Total Petrochemicals USA, Inc. (Total), and INEOS Olefins and Polymers USA (INEOS), each of which use the propylene it supplies in the acrylic acid, polypropylene and acrylonitrile plants. Effective January 1, 2012, it added BASF Corporation (BASF) and LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (LyondellBasell) as additional contracted customers. It delivers propylene to these customers through its integrated pipeline system, which connects its facility to the Dow and Total plants and the LyondellBasell system, and through interconnected third-party pipelines, which connect its facility to INEOS and BASF and to other potential propylene customers.
Spot-Market Propylene Sales
Through the Company�� integrated pipeline system, the Company accesses other consumers of propylene, which it is able to supply on a spot basis with its excess production capacity. It manages its contract and spot portfolio.
Hydrogen Gas Sales
As part of the PDH process, the Company produces commercial quantities of hydrogen. Hydrogen is consumed in refinery processes, including fuel desulphurization.
C4 Mix/C5+ Streams Sales
The Company produces commercial quantities of C4 mix/C5+ streams. It sells the C4 mix stream to specialty chemical consumers or refiners and these customers tran! sport the purchased volumes from its facility by truck. The C5+ stream, which is heavy in aromatics, is transported by its pipeline to a Kinder Morgan terminal, and then sold to Texas Aromatics for use in the chemical or gasoline markets.
The Company competes with Enterprise, Chevron Phillips, ExxonMobil Chemical, Shell Chemical, Flint Hills and the Williams Companies.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Seth Jayson]
PetroLogistics (NYSE: PDH ) reported earnings on July 24. Here are the numbers you need to know.
The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended June 30 (Q2), PetroLogistics met expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.
Top 10 Shipping Stocks To Watch For 2014: Performant Financial Corp (PFMT)
Performant Financial Corporation (Performant), incorporated on October 8, 2003, provide technology-enabled recovery and related analytics services in the United States. The Company�� services help identify and recover delinquent or defaulted assets and improper payments for both government and private clients in a broad range of markets. The Company provides its services on an outsourced basis, where the Company handles many or all aspects of its clients��recovery processes. The Company derives its revenues from services for clients in a range of different markets. These markets include student lending and healthcare, as well as its other markets, which include delinquent state taxes and federal Treasury and other receivables. The Company�� clients include 12 of the 32 public sector participants in the student loan industry. In February 2012, it purchased a perpetual software license and computer equipment from HOPS, Inc.
Student Lending
The Company derives its revenues from the recovery of student loans. These revenues are contract-based and consist primarily of contingency fees based on a specified percentage of the amount the Company enables its clients to recover. The Company engages subcontractors to assist in the recovery of a portion of the client�� portfolio. It also receives success fees for the recovery of loans under Master Service Agreements (MSAs) and its revenues under MSA arrangements include fees earned by the activities of its subcontractors. The Company uses its technology to identify, track and communicate with defaulted borrowers on behalf of its clients to implement suitable recovery programs for the repayment of outstanding student loan balances.
The Company�� client�� contract with it to provide recovery services for large pools of student loans generally representing a portion of the total outstanding defaulted balances they manage, which they provide to us as placements on a periodic basis. The Company also restructures and r! ecovers student loans issued directly by banks to students outside of federal lending programs.
Healthcare
The Company derives revenues from the healthcare market primarily from its Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC), contract, under, which it is a prime contractor responsible for detecting improperly paid Part A and Part B Medicare claims in 12 states in the Northeastern United States. Revenues earned under the RAC contract are driven by the identification of improperly paid Medicare claims through both automated and manual review of such claims. The Company outsourced certain aspects of its healthcare recovery process to three different subcontractors.
Other
The Company derives revenues from the recovery of delinquent state taxes, and federal Treasury and other receivables, default aversion services for certain clients, including financial institutions and the licensing of hosted technology solutions to certain clients. For its hosted technology services, the Company licenses its system and integrates its technology into its clients��operations, for which it is paid a licensing fee. The Company�� revenues for these services include contingency fees, fees based on dedicated headcount to its clients and hosted technology licensing fees. The federal agency market consists of government debt subrogated to the Department of the Treasury.
For state and municipal tax authorities, the Company analyzes a portfolio of delinquent tax and other receivables placed with the Company, develop a recovery plan and execute a recovery process designed to maximize the recovery of funds. In some instances, it has also run state tax amnesty programs, which provide one-time relief for delinquent tax obligations, and other debtor management services for its clients. For the Department of the Treasury, it recovers government debt subrogated to it by numerous different federal agencies. The placements it has provided represent a mix of commercial and individual oblig! ations.
Data Management Expertise
The Company�� platform manages and stores large amounts of data throughout the workflow process. This includes both data it has compiled, as well as third-party data.
Data Analytics Capabilities
The Company�� data analytics capabilities screen and allocate massive volumes of recovery inventory. Upon receipt of each placement of student loans, the Company utilize its algorithms to assist its in determining the recovery process and the optimal allocation of recovery specialist resources for each loan. In the healthcare market, the Company analyze millions of Medicare claims to find potential correlations between claims data and improper payments.
Workflow Processes
The Company refers to the patented technology that supports its workflows as Smart Bins. The Company�� workflow processes integrate a range of functions that encompass each stage of a recovery process.
The Company competes with Health Management Systems, Inc., Connolly Consulting, Inc. and CGI Group.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Roberto Pedone]
Performant Financial (PFMT) provides technology-enabled recovery and related analytics services in the U.S. This stock closed up 6.9% at $11.84 in Friday's trading session.
Friday's Volume: 310,000
Three-Month Average Volume: 261,916
Volume % Change: 60%From a technical perspective, PFMT soared higher here right off both its 200-day moving average of $11.02 and its 50-day moving average at $11.06 with decent upside volume. This move is quickly pushing shares of PFMT within range of triggering a major breakout trade. That trade will hit if PFMT manages to take out some near-term overhead resistance levels at $12.47 to $13.26 with high volume.
Traders should now look for long-biased trades in PFMT as long as it's trending above its 200-day at $11.02 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that's near or above 261,916 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then PFMT will set up to re-test or possibly take out its all-time high at $14.09. Any high-volume move above $14.09 will then give PFMT a chance to trend north of $15.
- [By Magic Diligence]
Much of United Online's appeal was due to its over 4% dividend yield, but the company announced in late January that it would be discontinuing its dividend to focus on growth initiatives. This follows itsNovember spin-off of FTD, which leaves United with 3 cash producing but declining businesses: Classmates.com, NetZero, and Juno. NetZero Mobile Broadband is an interesting product but one with a lot of competition from the carriers. Frankly, the dividend has been the main attraction for some time, and without it this is a declining company with a fair bit of debt. That does not make for the most attractive option. PASS.
Performant Financial (PFMT) - down 28.1%Performant earns fees for collecting delinquent student loans (about 60% of the business) and providing recovery services for improper Medicare payments (close to 30%). The recent sell-off in the stock seems due to comments from Sallie Mae regarding lower rehabilitation fees paid to Guarantee Agencies, which investors expect to "trickle down" to service providers like PFMT. The stock has been sold off dramatically on these assumptions. We should know more when the company reports earnings in the coming weeks, but this is one worth looking at more closely - the firm has been growing revenue at 30%+ rates. WORTHY OF CONSIDERATION.