First Take: GoDaddy pulls up its Super Bowl dra…

This Super Bowl, GoDaddy finally will be playing the prude.

No more GoDaddy Girls. No more uncomfortable TV censors. No more outraged parents asking themselves: What on earth is this stuff doing on the Super Bowl? And while Danica Patrick is returning to GoDaddy's Super Bowl advertising for the ga-zillionth time, no more racy role for her, either.

Sorry Miley Cyrus, but GoDaddy, the company that almost single-handedly turned Super Bowl advertising into soft porn, has finally come to the corporate realization that at some point, sex actually doesn't sell. Particularly when it's predictable, gratuitous and, well, boring.

GODADDY: Not bringing sexy back

Over the years, GoDaddy and its racy Super Bowl spots have devolved into little more than a sophomoric wink, wink. It's one thing to wink at a pickup bar. It's another thing to wink in front of the nation's biggest annual TV audience exceeding 100 million viewers.

Any time you're a company known for its babes with big bumps — and you're not Playboy, Penthouse or Hooters — you've got a problem. Oh sure, the GoDaddy girls put a virtually unknown GoDaddy on the map a decade ago and gave it instant name recognition, but at what price? Super Bowl after Super Bowl, GoDaddy dug itself deeper into the muck, concocting sometimes absurd ways to tease Super Bowl viewers into not only watching its ads, but then, jumping onto its website to click away and be teased some more.

At the beginning, it was nothing more than a shrewd branding gamble. And it worked — for a while. Just get enough people to notice you, and maybe remember your name, at all costs: even if one of those costs is your very reputation. Heck, you can worry about all the baggage that comes with it later on.

Well, the baggage piled up. It piled GoDaddy right into a creative corner. And now, after 10 Super Bowls of pushing sex, sex and more sex, Go Daddy wants to wiggle its way out.

It won't be easy. But it had to happen.

Of course, G! oDaddy can't be blamed for all of the Super Bowl's tasteless commercials. Tacky Super Bowl advertising has been around for years . But GoDaddy quickly, and easily, stole the spotlight.

Never mind that two years ago — at one of its Super Bowl ad shoots at its headquarters in Phoenix — GoDaddy founder Bob Parsons told USA TODAY, with a straight face, "Any sex in the ads is manufactured in the minds of the viewer."

Right. (Wink, wink.)

Year after year, GoDaddy's ads ranked near — if not, at — the very bottom of USA TODAY'S Super Bowl Ad Meter consumer poll. Parson's loved it. He couldn't care less about the polls, he said. What he most cared about was driving people to his company's website.

But the one-trick pony has lost its step. The GoDaddy girls have become yesterday's news. So, GoDaddy must venture out into the real world of corporate branding this Super Bowl and find something else to stand for besides babes in tight T-shirts.

Imagine that. Ten Super Bowls and tens of millions of dollars after its first big splash, GoDaddy must move beyond the sizzle and finally pull together something for Super Bowl Sunday that every other serious player has before it: a game plan ... that's more than skin deep.

Tesla’s Big Battery Order: How Many Cars is That?

Tesla (TSLA) needs batteries like a character in a Lou Reed song needs a fix–and Panasonic is willing to be The Man.

Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

The Associated Press has the details on Tesla’s order.

Under the pact announced early Wednesday, Panasonic will supply nearly 2 billion cells over the next four years. The automotive grade lithium-ion battery cells will power the Model S sedan as well as the Model X SUV, which is scheduled to go into production by the end of 2014, Tesla said.

The agreement amends a 2011 contract between Panasonic and Tesla that promised enough cells for 80,000 vehicles — or approximately 560,000 cells — through 2015.

Deutsche Bank’s Dan Galves does the math:

We estimate that these vehicles use an average of 6,000 cells per vehicle (i.e. 7k for the 85kwh and 5k for 60kwh). So this implies that Tesla sees the potential for production of roughly 330k vehicles over that 4-year period. (Hat Tip: Street Insider.)

Tesla expects 21,000 of its Model S to hit dealerships this year, the AP says.

Shares of Tesla have dropped 2.3% to $160.73 today at 11:47 a.m.

U.K. Stocks Rise as BP Profit Exceeds Analysts’ Estimates

U.K. stocks climbed for a fourth day, extending a five-month high, as BP (BP/) Plc posted earnings that exceeded analysts' estimates, while Federal Reserve policy makers began a two-day meeting.

BP rallied the most since January 2011 after Europe's third-largest oil company also increased its dividend. Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA), the region's biggest crude producer, rose 1.5 percent. Lloyds Banking Group Plc (LLOY) lost 2 percent after reporting that its loss widened in the third quarter.

The FTSE 100 Index (UKX) added 48.91 points, or 0.7 percent, to 6,774.73 at the close in London, its highest level since May 22. The equity benchmark has rallied 4.8 percent in October as U.S. lawmakers reached a last-minute deal to increase their government's borrowing authority. The broader FTSE All-Share Index also advanced 0.7 percent today, while Ireland's ISEQ Index decreased less than 0.1 percent.

"Investor sentiment is geared towards central-bank action and where we're seeing tapering going," Keith Bowman, an equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown Plc in London, said by telephone. "We've had a positive combination of earnings generally exceeding expectations while any central-bank action has been deferred. That's providing a positive backdrop for equities."

BP rose 5.6 percent to 477.5 pence. Third-quarter profit adjusted for one-off items and inventory changes dropped to $3.7 billion from $5 billion a year earlier, the London-based company said in a statement. That still beat the $3.4 billion average estimate of 13 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. The oil producer raised its dividend by 5.6 percent to 9.5 cents a share.

Energy Companies

Oil and gas companies posted the biggest gain of the 19 industry groups in the Stoxx Europe 600 Index, rising 1.9 percent. Shell added 1.5 percent to 2,168.5 pence.

The Federal Open Market Committee starts a two-day meeting today to discuss whether to reduce its $85 billion of monthly asset purchases. The policy makers will not opt for less bond buying until they meet on March 18-19, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg News earlier this month.

A Commerce Department report in Washington showed that U.S. retail sales unexpectedly fell 0.1 percent in September. The median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg had called for no change. A separate release showed that the Conference Board's measure of consumer confidence declined to 71.2 this month from 80.2 in September, a bigger slide than economists had forecast.

Bovis Homes

Bovis Homes Group Plc (BVS) climbed 4 percent to 790 pence. Liberum Capital Ltd. raised its rating on the housebuilder to buy from hold. Persimmon Plc (PSN), the U.K.'s largest residential property developer, gained 2.5 percent to 1,255 pence.

"U.K. house prices are likely to continue to rise because of government help, subdued interest rates and good affordability, but there are enough checks and balances to ensure that price rises do not get out of hand," Charlie Campbell, a London-based analyst at Liberum wrote in a note.

Lloyds slid 2 percent to 78 pence after Britain's biggest mortgage lender posted a net loss of 1.3 billion pounds ($2.1 billion) for the three months through September. The bank said it set aside an additional 750 million pounds to compensate people wrongly sold loan insurance. Lloyds also reported better-than-expected pretax profit for the period.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, which is majority owned by the state, decreased 1 percent to 364.8 pence.

Does Men’s Wearhouse Suit Your Portfolio?

With shares of Men's Wearhouse (NYSE:MW) trading around $38, is MW 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

Men's Wearhouse is a specialty retailer of men's suits and a provider of tuxedo rental products in the U.S. and Canada. The company operates 1,049 stores in the U.S. and 117 stores in Canada in two segments, retail and corporate apparel, operated under the brand names of Men's Wearhouse, Men's Wearhouse and Tux, K&G, and Moores Clothing for Men. Men's Wearhouse also offers dry cleaning and laundry operations through MW Cleaners. George Zimmer, founder and former Executive Chairman, has been fired and actually revealed, in an open letter, that he planned to take the company private because the company was being steered in a direction he didn’t like. However, investors today seem to like the move. Men's suits will always be in demand — the styles have stood the test of time. Look for Men's Wearhouse to continue to provide its customers with the products and services needed to always look their best.

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart are Strong

Men's Wearhouse stock has witnessed a powerful move higher in recent years. The stock is now bumping-up against previous multi-year highs not seen since last year. Analyzing the price trend and its strength can be done using key simple moving averages. What are the key moving averages? The 50-day (pink), 100-day (blue), and 200-day (yellow) simple moving averages. As seen in the daily price chart below, Men's Wearhouse 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 Men's Wearhouse options may help determine if investors are bullish, neutral, or bearish.

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
Men's Wearhouse Options	29.85%	13%	10%

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
July Options	Flat	Average
August 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 Increasing 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 Men's Wearhouse’s stock. What do the last four quarterly earnings and revenue growth (Y-O-Y) figures for Men's Wearhouse look like and more importantly, how did the markets like these numbers?

	2013 Q1	2012 Q4	2012 Q3	2012 Q2
Earnings Growth (Y-O-Y)	25.00%	-9.21%	23.38%	5.50%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	5.11%	8.23%	7.93%	1.03%
Earnings Reaction	5.67%	19.09%	-2.67%	18.68%

Men's Wearhouse has seen mostly increasing earnings and revenue figures over the last four quarters. From these numbers, the markets have been upbeat about Men's Wearhouse’s recent earnings announcements.

P = Average Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has Men's Wearhouse stock done relative to its peers, Express (NYSE:EXPR), Jos. A. Bank (NASDAQ:JOSB), Destination XL (NASDAQ:DXLG), and sector?

	Men's Wearhouse	Express	Jos. A. Bank	Destination XL	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	21.25%	38.10%	-5.19%	52.38%	32.19%

Men's Wearhouse has been an average relative performer, year-to-date.

Conclusion

Men's Wearhouse provides elegant and sought after apparel for men that fit styles around the world. The stock has been on a powerful run but is now bumping up against critical price levels not seen since last year. Over the last four quarters, investors in the company have been upbeat as earnings and revenue figures have been rising. Relative to its peers and sector, Men’s Wearhouse has been an average year-to-date performer. Look for Men’s Wearhouse to OUTPERFORM.

Is Investing in Oracle Good or Bad News?

With shares of Oracle Corporation (NASDAQ:ORCL) trading at around $34.16, is ORCL an OUTPERFORM, WAIT AND SEE or STAY AWAY? Let's analyze the stock with the relevant sections of our CHEAT SHEET investing framework:

C = Catalyst for the Stock's Movement

We'll begin with the most important quote of all, which was written on Glassdoor.com by an Oracle employee:

"Company is global and is focusing on hiring outside the US. Even though the margin is very high, this company is bent on increasing its margin every quarter, even at the expense of employees and customers."

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!

This might be bad news for employees, but it's good news for investors.

The next quote relates to Oracle Cloud, which has 25 million users per day. Oracle recently announced the latest release of Oracle Service Cloud, which will offer robust support for mobile. Stephanie Arnette, Global Lead for Oracle Customer Experience, Accenture, stated:

“Oracle Service Cloud is a core component of our Application Services for Oracle Customer Experience Suite, which help clients leverage investments in their CRM systems with lower costs and increased flexibility. Our expertise in Software as a Service implementations supported with cloud factories, tools, and methods, combined with a longstanding alliance with Oracle, have allowed us to build our Oracle Service Cloud implementation capabilities that provide our clients with a strong framework for success. We’re excited to see continued investments from Oracle with the May 2013 release, including robust mobile capabilities that can help our clients stay competitive.”

David Vap, Group Vice President Product Development, Oracle, said:

“The new release of Oracle Service Cloud with Oracle RightNow Mobile Agent App specifically addresses and solves important pain points for the mobile employee. Organizations will discover increased efficiency through untethered access to real-time, up-to-date contact records and service history information, ensuring interactions with customers are timely, relevant, and engaging. This helps reduce time to resolution, in turn driving customer satisfaction and building customer loyalty through strengthened relationships.”

In regards to Oracle and Dell's recently expanded strategic alliance, Marius Haas, president of enterprise solutions for Dell, stated:

"Dell is growing fast in the datacenter and gaining market share across the world in our three core businesses. In part, this success is due to the fact we are focused on building and optimizing Dell infrastructure to help customers run their core mission-critical workloads. Today's agreement with Oracle greatly expands this commitment. By combining Oracle's strong position in the database and business applications markets with Dell's leadership in industry-standard servers, data center storage, and networking, we're combining the best of both worlds to deliver innovative solutions to customers that deliver superior performance, lower costs, and increased value."

Oracle President Mark Hurd, stated:

"This partnership with Dell is an extension of Oracle's engineered systems strategy where we simplify IT and reduce integration costs by delivering hardware and software together. We believe that by working together, Dell will gain significant market share by delivering to its customers an integrated, optimized solution designed to deploy business critical applications. This is just the beginning of a lot of great things to come."

The chart below compares basic fundamentals for Oracle, International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM), and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT).

	ORCL	IBM	MSFT
Trailing P/E	15.89	14.22	17.96
Forward P/E	11.69	11.24	11.38
Profit Margin	28.46%	16.05%	21.58%
ROE	24.29%	82.86%	22.58%
Operating Cash Flow	13.72B	19.32B	30.61B
Dividend Yield	0.70%	1.80%	2.60%
Short Position	1.10%	1.60%	1.20%

Let's take a look at some more important numbers prior to forming an opinion on this stock.

T = Technicals Are Strong

Oracle has been a steady performer for many years. Over the past year, it has outperformed IBM and Microsoft. However, Microsoft has been the big winner in this group year-to-date. It should also be noted that Microsoft offers the highest yield at 2.60 percent whereas IBM yields 1.80 percent, and Oracle yields 0.70 percent.

	1 Month	Year-To-Date	1 Year	3 Year
ORCL	2.19%	2.37%	32.46%	53.13%
IBM	1.20%	8.50%	10.87%	69.52%
MSFT	5.15%	32.94%	26.66%	41.15%

At $34.16, Oracle is trading above its averages.

50-Day SMA	33.52
200-Day SMA	33.72

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!

E = Equity to Debt Ratio Is Normal

The debt-to-equity ratio for Oracle is close to the industry average of 0.30. Debt management isn’t a concern.

	Debt-To-Equity	Cash	Long-Term Debt
ORCL	0.45	33.41B	19.75B
IBM	1.74	12.06B	33.40B
MSFT	0.19	73.79B	14.76B

E = Earnings Have Been Steady

Earnings and revenue have consistently improved on an annual basis. Notice that Oracle turned a profit in 2008 and 2009. That was no easy feat.

Fiscal Year	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012
Revenue ($) in millions	22,430	23,252	26,820	35,622	37,121
Diluted EPS ($)	1.06	1.09	1.21	1.67	1.96

Looking at the last quarter on a year-over-year basis, revenue declined and earnings improved. The last quarter wasn’t impressive on a sequential basis. That said, Oracle’s revenue and earnings both tend to fluctuate in a somewhat predictable range. This isn’t a growth play; it’s a slow and steady play. As long as the profits continue to roll in, all is well.

Quarter	Feb. 29, 2012	May. 31, 2012	Aug. 31, 2012	Nov. 30, 2012	Feb. 28, 2013
Revenue ($) in millions	9,039	10,916	8,181	9,094	8,958
Diluted EPS ($)	0.49	0.69	0.41	0.53	0.52

Now let's take a look at the next page for the Conclusion. Is this stock an OUTPERFORM, a WAIT AND SEE, or a STAY AWAY?

Conclusion

Oracle has steadily increased revenue and earnings on an annual basis. The stock is trading at 16 times earnings, whereas the industry average is 26 times earnings. The stock is more resilient than most throughout the broader market, margins are high, there is a 0.70 yield, operating cash flow is strong at $13.72 billion, 80 percent of employees approve of CEO Larry Ellison, and analysts love the stock: 27 Buy, 15 Hold, 1 Sell.

Mining and Metals: Don't Panic

Mining and metals stocks did not help our performance in the second quarter. Our advice, however, is "Do not panic and sell," as you may regret it later, suggests Russ Kaplan, editor of Heartland Advisor.

A major protection against unexpected events is to buy financially solid companies so they can ride out these events and not go bankrupt. Thus, the best thing to do is to figure out what is going on with these companies, and see if this is a permanent or temporary situation.

One thing not helping us is the fact that the price of gold and copper has been going down. Is this a permanent or temporary situation?

The price of these commodities has been volatile since, almost the beginning of the human race, and no doubt will continue to be volatile. However, I believe that, in the near future, they will go up again.

Meanwhile, investors should consider Black Swans; these are not the pretty birds, but harbingers of problems beyond a company's foreseen control. When we look at the mining stocks, we see that they have had more than their share of unexpected events.

One of these Black Swan events that recently happened was the Grasberg Mine incident in Indonesia, which is owned by Freeport-McMoran (FCX). Grasberg holds the world's largest gold mine and the third largest copper mine in the world.

Last May, there was a tragic event at Grasberg. A tunnel collapsed and killed 28 people. The government closed Grasberg pending a thorough investigation, which caused the loss of many tons of gold and copper.

Mine safety is paramount to Freeport-McMoran, and fortunately, this incident was temporary; the mine started back up on July 4, and production will soon be back on schedule.

While no sane person wants tragedies to happen, these events made Freeport-McMoran an even better buy now, than when we first bought it. There is also an above average dividend while you wait.

Just as Freeport-McMoran has had trouble with its Grasberg Mine, Barrick Gold (ABX) is having problems with its Pascula Lama mine in Chile.

This mine produced less gold than expected, causing Barrick Gold to take a $5.5 billion write-off. Again, I see this as a temporary problem and an opportunity to buy Barrick Gold at an even better price.

Further, just as Freeport McMoran and Barrick Gold are having their own problems, so are Southern Copper (SCCO) and Rio Tinto (RIO), offering a chance to average down or get in at new positions.

I believe that these stocks were undervalued when they were first recommended and are now even more undervalued. The above-mentioned companies are financially solid, which make them good buys.

Subscribe to Heartland Advisor here…

More from MoneyShow.com:

Gold Guru's Top Development-Stage Miners

A Bullish Outlook for Gold and Resources

Gold: The Big Picture

P&G Rises On Q2 Beat; Lafley Promises Focus, Cost Cutting

Procter & Gamble (PG) was rising more than 1% this morning on a better-than-expected second quarter.

The company said it earned $1.88 billion, or 79 cents a share, down from $3.63 billion a year earlier. Revenue rose 2.2% to $20.66 billion.

Analysts were looking for earnings of 77 cents per share on revenue of $20.54 billion.

The company's full-year guidance came in light, however. P&G said it will see earnings per share grow 5% to 7%, to a range of $4.25 a share to $4.33 a share, while the consensus estimate is $4.32.

In the quarter, organic sales climbed rose 4%; the company said it expects sales to grow between 1% and 2% for the full year, while organic sales rise 3% to 4%.

Gross margin narrowed to 47.5% from 48.1%.

CEO A.G. Lafley also spoke publicly for the first time since retaking the corner office, saying he would redouble efforts to win more market share and cut costs.

S&P Capital IQ's Ian Gordon reiterated a Hold rating on the stock, but sounded an upbeat note, boosting his target price by $2 to $85 and writing "We see a focus on productivity enabling PG to drive EPS growth more in line with peers in FY 15 and beyond."

P&G is up more than 26% for the year, slightly outpacing the broader market.

10 Best Penny Stocks To Own Right Now

The results are in and Consumer Reports has named�America's top appliance retailer. (Hint: It's Abt Electronics). But the winner's identity isn't the only thing coming out this month. In the course of describing what makes a retailer good or bad, CR also managed to "out" one of the biggest scams in retail: the extended warranty.

According to CR, you see, the level of a retailer's customer "service heavily influenced how satisfied subscribers were with major-appliance stores overall." Companies like Abt, which earned top marks for service, tended to perform well in the rankings. In contrast, companies that seemed more interested in milking their customers for every penny they were worth fared less well.

CR singled out one retailer in particular, P.C. Richard & Son, for opprobrium for being "among the pushiest" when pressuring customers to buy extended warranties. Not coincidentally, the company ranked dead last in the field of nine retailers ranked. Indianapolis-based hhgregg (NYSE: HGG  ) and Abt neighbor Sears (NASDAQ: SHLD  ) , which ranked Nos. 6 & 7, respectively, were also said to be "more likely than other retailers to push added coverage."

10 Best Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: NRG Energy Inc.(NRG)

NRG Energy, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a wholesale power generation company. The company engages in the ownership, development, construction, and operation of power generation facilities. It also involves in the transacting in and trading of fuel and transportation services; the trading of energy, capacity, and related products in the United States and internationally; and the supply of electricity, energy services, and cleaner energy and carbon offset products to retail electricity customers in deregulated markets. The company operates natural gas- fired, coal- fired, oil-fired, nuclear, solar, and wind power plants. As of December 31, 2010, it had power generation portfolio of 193 operating fossil fuel and nuclear generation units with an aggregate generation capacity of approximately 24,570 megawatt (MW), as well as ownership interests in renewable facilities with an aggregate generation capacity of 470 MW. The company portfolio also includes appr oximately 24,035 MW generation capacity in the United States, and 1,005 MW generation capacity in Australia and Germany. In addition, it has a district energy business with steam and chilled water capacity of approximately 1,140 megawatts thermal equivalent. NRG Energy, Inc. was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Travis Hoium]

  The size of the investments Buffett is making is what makes his fascination with solar astounding. He owns two projects built by First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR  ) , including 49% of Agua Caliente, which he co-owns with NRG Energy (NYSE: NRG  ) , and a third project called Antelope Valley, the largest solar power plant in the world, which is currently under construction by SunPower (NASDAQ: SPWR  ) .

• [By John Udovich]

  On Thursday, NRG Yield Inc (NYSE: NYLD), a wholly owned subsidiary of NRG Energy Inc (NYSE: NRG),�debuted in an IPO priced at $22 a share and closed the day at $27.25 a share. The offering of 19.575 million shares raised more than $430 million plus the IPO underwriters�have an option to buy 2.9 million more shares if demand is strong enough.

• [By Travis Hoium]

  NRG Energy (NYSE: NRG  ) and Edison International (NYSE: EIX  ) are starting to make this transition. NRG has built a solar leasing subsidiary called Residential Solar Solutions, and Edison International subsidiary Southern California Edison was one of the first utilities to embrace solar, with a 250 MW plan for commercial solar in 2008. The parent company, Edison International also recently invested equity in Clean Power Finance itself so it's hoping to profit from the company's growing finance presence.�

• [By Sara Murphy]

  David Crane, CEO of NRG Energy (NYSE: NRG  ) , is the rare brand of leader who can do just that. At the recent Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) Summit, he laid out his vision for his company and the future of the energy sector.

10 Best Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: PMC Commercial Trust(PCC)

PMC Commercial Trust operates as a real estate investment trust (REIT). It primarily originates loans to small businesses, principally in the limited service hospitality industry, collateralized by first liens on the real estate of the related business. The company has elected to be treated as a REIT under the Internal Revenue Code and would not be subject to federal income tax, provided it distributes approximately 90% of its taxable income to its shareholders. PMC Commercial Trust was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.

Top Casino Companies To Own In Right Now: Theravance Inc.(THRX)

Theravance, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the discovery, development, and commercialization of small molecule medicines for various therapeutic areas, including respiratory disease, bacterial infections, and central nervous system (CNS)/pain. The company?s key development programs with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) include the RELOVAIR, a Phase 3 clinical trial program for the treatment of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and/or asthma; the LAMA/LABA program, a Phase 3 COPD program; and the Bifunctional Muscarinic Antagonist-beta2 Agonist (MABA) program, a Phase 2b program for the treatment of COPD, as well as Peripherally Selective Mu-Opioid Receptor Antagonist (P Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sean Williams]

  The buzz in the health-care sector this week has nothing to do with earnings reports and everything to do with an expected PDUFA decision by the FDA on GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK  ) and Theravance's (NASDAQ: THRX  ) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, inhaled drug, Breo Ellipta.

• [By Sean Williams]

  On the bright side, GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK  ) and Theravance (NASDAQ: THRX  ) received a much-expected drug approval for once-daily inhaled COPD maintenance treatment Breo Ellipta from the Food and Drug Administration. Having proved non-inferior to the placebo in trials, and delivering a favorable safety profile while reducing flare-ups and helping relieve air flow obstruction, Breo Ellipta has a good shot at being a blockbuster drug within the next couple of years. Breo Ellipta is expected to be available to patients next quarter. In addition, as I've alluded to on numerous occasions, it could be the impetus that encourages Glaxo to gobble up Theravance's Royalty Management -- one of two proposed entities that Theravance plans to split into. This is certainly a big win for both companies.

• [By Keith Speights]

  Breathing easier
  Shares of Theravance (NASDAQ: THRX  ) popped 34% this week. The nice gains came after Theravance and partner GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK  ) announced that the FDA's Pulmonary-Allergy Drugs Advisory Committee voted 9-4 to recommend Breo Ellipta for approval.

• [By Jonas Elmerraji]

  First up is $4 billion biopharmaceutical firm Theravance (THRX). It's been one heck of a year already for THRX's shareholders. Since the calendar flipped over to January, shares of the firm have rallied more than 75%. But the setup forming in shares points to even higher ground for the final quarter of 2013.

  That's because Theravance is currently forming an ascending triangle pattern, a bullish setup that's formed by a horizontal resistance level above shares at $42 and uptrending support to the downside. Basically, as Theravance bounces in between those two technical levels, it's getting squeezed closer and closer to a breakout above that $42 resistance level. When that happens, traders have a buy signal.

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

  That $42 is a price where there has been an excess of supply of shares; in other words, it's a place where sellers have been more eager to step in and take gains than buyers have been to buy. That's what makes a breakout above it so significant -- the move means that buyers are finally strong enough to absorb all of the excess supply above that price level.

  Don't be early on this trade.

10 Best Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: USA Technologies Inc.(USAT)

USA Technologies, Inc. supplies cashless, remote management, reporting, and energy management solutions for the unattended point of sale market primarily in the United States. The company offers networked devices and associated services that enable the owners and operators of stand-alone distributed assets, such as vending machines, kiosks, personal computers, photocopiers, and laundry equipment the ability to remotely monitor, control, and report on the results of these distributed assets, as well as the ability to offer their customers cashless payment options. Its products include Intelligent Vending, an ePort connect solution for the vending industry; Kiosk, an ePort solution that offers an electronic payment option and Web-based remote monitoring and management for various kiosk types; eSuds, a solution for the commercial laundry industry; Business Express, which provides self-service business center solutions to the hotel and motel industry; and ePort Transact soluti on for the self-service business center devices, such as printers and copy machines. The company also manufactures and sells energy conservation products comprising VendingMiser, CoolerMiser, VM2IQ and CM2IQ, SnackMiser, and PlugMiser for various existing equipment, including refrigerated vending machines and glass front coolers. USA Technologies, Inc. was founded in 1992 and is based in Malvern, Pennsylvania.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Monica Gerson]

  USA Technologies (NASDAQ: USAT) is estimated to report its Q4 earnings at $0.02 per share on revenue of $9.89 million.

  Vail Resorts (NYSE: MTN) is projected to post a Q4 loss at $1.71 per share on revenue of $117.82 million.

10 Best Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: SORL Auto Parts Inc.(SORL)

SORL Auto Parts, Inc., through its principal operating subsidiary, Ruili Group Ruian Auto Parts Co., Ltd., engages in the development, manufacture, and distribution of automotive brake systems and other safety related auto parts for commercial vehicles, such as trucks and buses. The company, through its 90% ownership in Ruili Group Ruian Auto Parts Co., Ltd., a Sino-foreign joint venture, offers various products, including spring brake chamber, clutch servos, air dryers, relay valves, and hand brake valves. It also provides auto metering products, auto electric products, anti-lock brake systems, retarders, hydraulic brakes, and power steering products. SORL Auto Parts, Inc. markets its products under the SORL brand to automotive original equipment manufacturers and the related aftermarket customers in the People?s Republic of China and internationally. The company was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Ruian City, the People?s Republic of China.

10 Best Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: LifePoint Hospitals Inc.(LPNT)

LifePoint Hospitals Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates general acute care hospitals in non-urban communities in the United States. The company?s hospitals provide a range of medical and surgical services comprising general surgery, internal medicine, obstetrics, emergency room care, radiology, oncology, diagnostic care, coronary care, rehabilitation services, and pediatric services, as well as specialized services, such as open-heart surgery, skilled nursing, psychiatric care, and neuro-surgery. Its hospitals also offer outpatient services, including one-day surgery, laboratory, x-ray, respiratory therapy, imaging, sports medicine, and lithotripsy. As of December 31, 2009, LifePoint Hospitals owned or leased 47 hospitals with a total of 5,552 licensed beds in 17 states. The company was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee. Lifepoint Hospitals Inc. (NasdaqNM:LPNT) operates independently of HCA Inc. as of May 11, 1999.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Keith Speights]

  The fun wasn't just limited to the big three hospital operators. Lifepoint Hospitals (NASDAQ: LPNT  ) stock jumped 5% on the CMS news, reflecting a $109 million market cap expansion. Likewise, Vanguard Health Systems (NYSE: VHS  ) shares climbed 5%, bumping its market cap up by�$55 million.

10 Best Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: Trailer Bridge Inc.(TRBR)

Trailer Bridge, Inc., an integrated trucking and marine freight carrier, provides freight transportation services between the continental United States, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic. It provides services through southbound containers and trailers, as well as through marine vessels that are configured to carry 48 inch and 53 inch long, and 102 inch wide high-cube equipment. The company also involves in moving new and used automobiles, non-containerized or freight not in trailers, and freight moving in shipper owned or leased equipment. It offers highway transportation services in the continental United States; and marine transportation services between Jacksonville, Florida, San Juan, Puerto Rico and Puerto Plata, and the Dominican Republic. The company also provides rail transportation services. In addition, it engages in chartering its vessels that are not in liner service to third party operators. The company ships furniture, consumer goods, raw materials for manufacturing, electronics, new and used automobiles, and apparel to Puerto Rico; healthcare products, pharmaceuticals, electronics, shoes and recyclables from Puerto Rico; raw materials for manufacturing to the Dominican Republic; and apparel, raw materials for manufacturing, and recyclables from the Dominican Republic. As of December 31, 2010, it operated a fleet of 141 tractors comprising of 79 company owned units and 62 leased and owner operator units; 2 736' triple-deck ro/ro ocean-going barges and 5 triplestack box carriers; and 3,957 high cube containers, 3,157 chassis, 164 high-cube trailers, and 299 vehicle transport modules, as well as leased 435 chassis and 531 high-cube containers. Trailer Bridge, Inc. was founded in 1991 and is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida.

10 Best Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: Tele Norte Leste Participacoes S.A.(TNE)

Tele Norte Leste Participacoes S.A. provides integrated telecommunication services in Brazil. It operates in three segments: Fixed-Line Services, Mobile Services, and Other. The Fixed-Line Services segment offers local fixed-line, long-distance, and fixed-line data transmission services, as well as interconnections to its fixed-line network. The Mobile Services segment provides mobile services, including voice, mobile data communications, and other value-added services, as well as interconnections to its mobile network. The Other segment offers pay television, Internet service provider, Internet portal, mobile phone payment system, and call center services. The company also offers data transmission services comprising broadband access. It serves residential customers, governmental agencies, and small, medium, and large companies. The company was founded in 1972 and is headquartered in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Tele Norte Leste Participacoes S.A. is a subsidiary of Telemar Pa rticipacoes S.A.

10 Best Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: Teleflex Incorporated(TFX)

Teleflex Incorporated designs, manufactures, and distributes specialty medical devices for a range of procedures in critical care and surgery worldwide. It offers disposable medical products for critical care that includes medical devices used in critical care procedures for vascular access, respiratory care, anesthesia and airway management, treatment of urologic conditions, and other specialty procedures; and devices used in the treatment of patients with severe cardiac conditions, including intra aortic balloon pump systems and intra aortic balloon catheters and accessories. The company also provides surgical devices and instruments used in general and specialty surgical procedures, such as ligation and closure products, including appliers, clips, and sutures; access ports used in minimally invasive surgical procedures comprising robotic surgery; fluid management products for chest drainage; and hand-held instruments for general and specialty surgical procedures under t he Deknatel, Pleur-evac, Pilling, Taut, and Weck brand names. In addition, it offers cardiac care products, including diagnostic catheters and capital equipment; instruments and devices for other medical device manufacturers; and customized medical instruments, implants, and components to original equipment manufacturers. The company sells its medical products through its sales forces, and independent representatives and distributor networks. Teleflex Incorporated was founded in 1938 and is based in Limerick, Pennsylvania.

10 Best Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: Orchids Paper Products Company(TIS)

Orchids Paper Products Company manufactures private label tissue products for the consumer market in the United States. Its product line includes paper towels, bathroom tissue, and paper napkins. The company also offers its products under the Orchids, Velvet, Colortex, Ultra Valu, Dri-Mop, Big Mopper, Soft & Fluffy, Tackle, My-Size, and Care brand names. It serves value retailers (dollar stores), discount retailers, grocery stores, grocery wholesalers and cooperatives, and convenience stores. The company markets its products directly, as well as through independent brokers. Orchids Paper Products Company was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Pryor, Oklahoma.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By David Goodboy]

  My next step was to locate stocks in this industry. One company stood out above the rest as a top performer with plenty of upside. That company is Orchids Paper Products Co. (NYSE: TIS).

A Basket of Promising Small-Caps

Exchange-traded funds offer a convenient way to invest in sectors or niches that interest you. If you'd like to add some small-cap stocks to your portfolio, but don't have the time or expertise to handpick a few, the Guggenheim Russell 2000 Equal Weight ETF (NYSEMKT: EWRS  ) could save you a lot of trouble. Instead of trying to figure out which companies will perform best, you can use this ETF to invest in lots of them simultaneously.

The basics
ETFs often sport lower expense ratios than their mutual fund cousins. The Guggenheim ETF's expense ratio -- its annual fee -- is a relatively low 0.41%. The fund is very small, too, so if you're thinking of buying, beware of possibly large spreads between its bid and ask prices. Consider using a limit order if you want to buy in.

This ETF is too young to have a sufficient track record to assess, but for the curious, it underperformed the S&P 500 in 2012, and is ahead of it so far this year. As with most investments, of course, we can't expect outstanding performances in every quarter or year. Investors with conviction need to wait for their holdings to deliver.

Why small caps?
It's smart to include smaller companies in your portfolio, as the best of them can grow rapidly, and eventually become large caps.

More than a handful of small-cap companies had strong performances over the past year. SUPERVALU (NYSE: SVU  ) surged 200%. The company has suspended its dividend, in order to cut costs and more effectively compete in its low-margin industry, where it also faces growing competition from Wal-Mart and other discounters. Some rivals such as Whole Foods Market have been able to maintain higher margins by offering organic produce and higher-end products. SUPERVALU has been reshaping itself and selling off some brands, and apparently many investors are hopeful.

Boulder Brands (NASDAQ: BDBD  ) gained 38%, and though you may think you don't know the company, it used to be Smart Balance until recently, and sports healthy-leaning brands, such as Smart Balance, Udi's, Glutino, Earth Balance, and Best Life. (The company is based in New Jersey, not Colorado, too.) Boulder recently bought 80% of GlucoBrands, owner of Level Life Foods, which specializes in blood-sugar-managing products such as bars and shakes. Boulder Brands is free-cash-flow positive and enjoying double-digit revenue growth.

Diamond Foods (NASDAQ: DMND  ) advanced 17%, posting a surprising gain instead of an expected loss in its last quarter. Some have worried about a drop in nut sales, and view the company as a possible acquisition target, while others think the company might want to do some shopping of its own. Diamond is also recovering from accounting-related troubles, and a new possible worry is the FDA looking into why salmonella has been turning up in nuts recently.

Other companies didn't do as well last year, but could see their fortunes change in the coming years. Dietary supplement maker Star Scientific (NASDAQ: STSI  ) sank 60%, with some investors worried about persistent net losses and even scandals. In its last quarter, the company blamed its growing losses on increased sales efforts, and also noted significant legal costs related to investigations and class-action lawsuits. Bulls noted solid sales growth for its inflammation-treating supplement, Anatabloc.

The big picture
A well-chosen ETF can grant you instant diversification across any industry or group of companies -- and make investing in and profiting from it that much easier.

This is not the only ETF worth considering. I invite you to check out The Motley Fool's special free report, "3 ETFs Set to Soar," to learn more about a few ETFs that have great profit-delivering potential for shareholders. Just click here to access it now.

To manage steep gains, advisers need to open the tax toolbox

This year's big stock market gains are forcing advisers to think about how to help their clients contend with a potentially stiff capital gains tax bite from mutual fund distributions.

Investors holding mutual funds in taxable accounts are liable to be taxed on the distributions that mutual funds often make after selling securities. Those distributions are taxed as either short-term gains from securities held for a year or less, or long-term gains for securities held more than a year.

”If you have an actively managed mutual fund with a high turnover ratio, you may be getting a large taxable distribution,” said Richard Gotterer, a managing director and senior financial adviser with Wescott Financial Advisory Group. “So this is something that merits a look.”

Mutual funds' fiscal years typically end Oct. 31 and they begin releasing preliminary estimates for distributions in November.

While the sharp stock market gains — the S&P 500 index is up around 25% for the year — means strong returns for investors, it also means higher mutual fund distributions. In addition, investors are facing higher capital gains rates. Short-term capital gains are taxed at the same rate as ordinary income, so the highest bracket is 39.6%, compared with 35% in 2012. For the highest bracket, long-term capital gains rates are at 20%, up from 15% last year.

Advisers do have tools to help clients minimize the IRS' impact, however.

For instance, clients can assess the size of their mutual fund distribution, consider how long they've been a shareholder in the fund — namely, whether their gains would be considered long-term or short-term — and then sell their holdings to miss the distribution, Mr. Gotterer said.

If the client has incurred a loss, he or she can then buy back into the fund after 30 days so the transaction is not considered a wash sale, which carries other tax consequences.

“The value of the fund's shares will fall by the amount of the distribution, so you buy it back after that occurs so you don't collect the taxable distribution,” he said.

This tactic isn't right for everyone. For one thing, it doesn't make sense if the fund isn't in a taxable account, and the distribution from the fund has to be sizable to be worth the legwork.

“You need to see whether the funds will have an extraordinary capital gains distribution,” Mr. Gotterer said. “And you need to see if there is an arbitrage between taking the capital gain versus taking the distribution from a tax perspective: Which one is more beneficial?”

Another way to minimize the bite from capital gains taxes is to look for loss carry forwards from the past. Capital losses can be reported up to seven years after they occurred. Some investors may al! so be able to harvest losses, noted Robert S. Keebler, a partner with Keebler and Associates. “You want long-term losses to offset short-term gains; that's your best arbitrage,” he said.

Those losses, used wisely, can also help knock an investor into a lower tax bracket, Mr. Keebler said.

In fact, back in 2008, the silver lining in the market's dismal performance for many investors was the fact that they could take stock market losses and use them to soften the capital gains tax blow they would be facing when the market climbed in subsequent years, Mr. Gotterer said.

By now, however, those losses have been used up.

UnitedHealth Lags the Dow, but Can This Top Insurer Overcome Obamacare's Missteps?

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over daily movements, we do like to keep an eye on market changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

Stocks have wobbled wildly on the day, but the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) is still pulling off gains to end the week. As of 2:30 p.m. EDT, the Dow Jones has risen 34 points, or 0.22%. Most stocks are in the green today, but UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH  ) is hanging flat with the rest of a slumbering health-care sector so far. Let's catch up on what you need to know.

A cautious approach to Obamacare
As Obamacare stumbles out of the gate, UnitedHealth's decision to join only a few state individual exchanges is looking better and better. The firm's Optum unit -- which runs Quality Software, a group that contributed to the design of the much-maligned Obamacare websites -- testified before Congress this week and claimed to have fixed its part of the online mess that has plagued health care reform so far.

For UnitedHealth investors, however, it's better to look at what UnitedHealth is doing outside of Obamacare. The firm's growing its membership strongly, and even with a smaller gain in subscribers in the third quarter -- just 300,000 new enrollees joined UnitedHealth's subscription rolls for the quarter -- the company's in a good spot and has a substantial bulwark in place to deal with any more mishaps in Obamacare's launch.

Companies like Aetna (NYSE: AET  ) and UnitedHealth were concerned involved with the Obamacare rollout, and now with the law's individual mandate potentially being delayed, it's looking more and more like these firms were in the right to hold back from jumping in to participate too quickly. If the individual mandate is delayed a year, it's more likely that Aetna, UnitedHealth, and America's largest insurers will see most formerly uninsured Americans joining their ranks to be those most in need of coverage. That'll only drive costs up higher. Aetna and UnitedHealth abandoned California's individual market for just that reason.

While this won't likely slow down revenue at these companies and other large insurers, it could weigh on earnings. While UnitedHealth managed to grow its total revenue by 11.5% over the first half of 2013, its total operating costs grew by 11.8% to diminish those gains. In particular, medical costs jumped by 10.7%, and an influx of customers in need of coverage could send that mark jumping in quarters to come.

It's not yet clear how much Obamacare's launch will affect UnitedHealth's finances and those of other big insurers like Aetna, but for now, the companies that have approached this new law with caution are those that look the best for investors' portfolios.

How will Obamacare affect your investments?
Obamacare seems complex, but it doesn't have to be. In only minutes, you can learn the critical facts you need to know in a special free report called "Everything You Need to Know About Obamacare." But don't hesitate, because it's not often that we release a free guide containing this much information and money-making advice. Please click here to access your free copy.

Stocks To Watch For Friday, October 25

Some of the stocks that may grab investor focus today are:

Wall Street expects Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE: PG) to report its Q3 earnings at $1.05 per share on revenue of $21.05 billion. Procter & Gamble shares gained 0.30% to $80.85 in after-hours trading.

Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) posted better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results. Microsoft shares surged 5.31% to $35.51 in the after-hours trading session.

Analysts are expecting United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS) to have earned $1.15 per share on revenue of $13.60 billion in the third quarter. UPS shares climbed 1.70% to $96.10 in after-hours trading.

Zynga (NASDAQ: ZNGA) posted a narrower-than-expected third-quarter loss. Zynga shares jumped 12.87% to $3.99 in the after-hours trading session.

Analysts expect Weyerhaeuser Co (NYSE: WY) to report its Q3 earnings at $0.21 per share on revenue of $2.09 billion. Weyerhaeuser shares rose 0.50% to $30.45 in after-hours trading.

Posted-In: Stocks To WatchEarnings News Pre-Market Outlook Markets Trading Ideas

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

  Around the Web, We're Loving... Learn to Use Trading Platforms Like Hedge Fund Traders do Rumsfeld: Denial of Benefits to Fallen Soldiers' Families 'Inexcusable' Come See How the Pro's Trade in this Exclusive Webinar Facebook, Baidu Lead Big Caps Beating Shutdown What Should You Know About AMZN? Most Popular UPDATE: Jefferies Downgrades Exelon Corporation on Valuation Earnings Scheduled For October 24, 2013 Apple Rumored To Ship 10 Million iPad Air Units In Q4 Icahn Makes a Big Profit on Netflix, Offers Lesson in Selling 3 Small Caps With Dividends over 4% That Could Grow Even Bigger Top Tweets From Stocktoberfest 2013 Related Articles (MSFT + PG) Stocks To Watch For Friday, October 25 Earnings Scheduled For October 25, 2013 Market Wrap for October 24: Microsoft, Amazon Earnings Cheer Investors as Stocks Rally Microsoft Jumps 6% After Q1 Earnings Beat Microsoft's Surface Pro Clearance Knocks $100 Off MSRP US Stock Futures Up Ahead Of Ford Earnings, Jobless Claims Data View the discussion thread. Partner Network #marketfy-ae-block { display: none; border: 2px solid #0a3f75; overflow: hidden; width: 300px; height: 125px; text-align: center; background-color: #45719E; position: relative; z-index: 1; } #marketfy-ae-block a { display: block; width: 300px; height: 125px; position: relative; z-index: 2; color: #ffffff; text-decoration: none; } #marketfy-ae-block-countdown-text { color: #f9fc99; padding: 0px 0 0 0; font-size: 19px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 19px; } #marketfy-ae-block-countdown-text-start { font-size: 12px; } #marketfy-ae-block-countdown { padding: 5px 0 5px 0; font-size: 26px; } #marketfy-ae-block-signup { padding: 5px 47px; } #marketfy-ae-block-signup:hover { background-color: #457a1a; } #marketfy-ae-block #marketfy-ae-block-logo { display: block; padding: 3px 0 0 0; margin: 0; } #marketfy-ae-block-logo { text-indent: -9999px; } #marketfy-ae-block-free { display: block; position: absolute; top: 7px; right: -23px; width: 80px; height: 16px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; opacity: 1; -webkit-transform: rotate(45deg); -moz-transform: rotate(45deg); -ms-transform: rotate(45deg); transform: rotate(45deg); font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal; color: #333333; background-color: yellow; z-index: 500; text-shadow: 1px 1px #999999; } #marketfy-ae-block-arrow { position: relative; width: 60px; height: 60px; z-index: 10; margin: -80px 0 13px -21px; } #marketfy-ae-block-arrow img { height: 60px; width: auto; } Marketfy's International
Traders & Investors Summit Register for this FREE Event! Hosted by Marketfy

Top 10 Financial Companies To Invest In 2014

NEW YORK ��Bank of America was found liable for fraud Wednesday for a program dubbed "the Hustle" that caused millions in losses to federally-backed mortgage finance firms Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac amid fallout from the financial crisis.

The civil verdict by a Manhattan federal court jury similarly found the bank's Countrywide Financial unit found liable, and also determined that former Countrywide executive Rebecca Mairone committed fraud while overseeing the loan-origination program.

Bank of America acquired Countrywide in July 2008.

The decision following a month-long trial focused on evidence that the Countrywide program processed mortgage applications at high speed with little checking for fraud, misrepresentations or other potential wrongdoing.

U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff is expected to determine civil costs to be paid by the bank in the penalty phase of the case.

Top 10 Financial Companies To Invest In 2014: Halmont Properties Corporation (HHC.V)

Halmont Properties Corporation invests in commercial real estate properties and securities of companies with real estate interests in Canada. It holds a 75% equity interest in a commercial office building located in the central financial district of Toronto, Ontario; and interests in a forest reserve. The company is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

Top 10 Financial Companies To Invest In 2014: Putnam High Income Bond Fund(PCF)

Putnam High Income Securities Fund is a closed-ended fixed income mutual fund launched and managed by Putnam Investment Management, LLC. The fund is co-managed by Putnam Investments Limited (U.K.). It invests in the fixed income markets of the United States. The fund seeks to invest in high yield convertible securities. For its fixed income portfolio, it looks for convertible, high yield, lower rated securities to make its investments. The fund benchmarks the performance of its portfolio against the Merrill Lynch All-Convert. Speculative Index and JP Morgan Dev. High yield Index. It was formerly known as Putnam High Income Bond Fund. Putnam High Income Securities Fund was formed on July 9, 1987 and is domiciled in the United States.

Top 10 Blue Chip Companies To Own For 2014: CoreSite Realty Corporation(COR)

CoreSite Realty Corporation operates as real investment trust in the United States. The company engages in the ownership, acquisition, construction, and management of data centers. It provides data centers that optimize, secure, and interconnect the mission-critical IT assets of the organizations. The company offers private data centers and suites, cage-to-cabinet colocation, and interconnection services, such as Any2, CoreSite's Internet exchange. Its data centers are located in Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay and Northern Virginia areas, Chicago, and New York City. The company provides its data centre services to enterprises, cloud providers, financial firms, and Government agencies. As of March 31, 2011, its property portfolio included 11 operating data center facilities, 1 data center under construction, and 1 development site. The company was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ong Kang Wei]

  For example, Digital Realty (DLR) is the undoubted leader in the data storage industry, with a market cap of $8.3B. Its other three competitors, DuPont Fabros (DFT), CoreSite Realty (COR) and CyrusOne (CONE), have market caps of $1.5B, $930M and $430M respectively. In addition, with the level of complexity involving Digital's business making it immensely difficult for companies to operate data centre facilities, the company is in a good position for future growth. The company also has a wide network of 595 tenants (significantly more than other competitors), including CenturyLink (CTL), AT&T and Morgan Stanley (MS). This further secures its long term business prospects and also its dominance over its competitors.

• [By Monica Wolfe]

  CoreSite Realty Corp (COR)

  During the second quarter, Columbia Wanger increased their holdings in CoreSite Realty by 256.43%. The fund purchased a total of 1,176,650 shares of the company�� stock. They purchased these shares at an average price of $34.19 and since then the price per share has increased an additional 4.1%.

Top 10 Financial Companies To Invest In 2014: Straits Trading Co. Ltd (S20.SI)

The Straits Trading Company Limited, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the mining, and smelting of tin concentrates and tin bearing materials. The company produces, sells, and delivers various grades of refined tin metal and its by-products under the MSC brand name, as well as invests in other metals and mineral resources. It also owns, leases, and/or manages 13 hotels under the Rendezvous and the Marque brands; and invests, develops, sells, and leases properties, including residential and commercial properties, such as apartments, retail malls, office buildings, hotels, bungalows, condominiums, resort, and recreation facilities. In addition, the company provides media advertising services; and manages resorts. It primarily has operations in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Australia. The company was founded in 1887 and is headquartered in Singapore. The Straits Trading Company Limited is a subsidiary of The Cairns Private Limited.

Top 10 Financial Companies To Invest In 2014: Transpac Industrial Hldgs Ltd (T55.SI)

Transpac Industrial Holdings Limited, an investment holding company, provides venture capital to companies with capital appreciation potential in Asia. It invests in the securities of growing private companies principally located in China/Hong Kong SAR, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia. The company is based in Singapore.

Top 10 Financial Companies To Invest In 2014: Nuveen Texas Quality Income Municipal Fund(NTX)

Nuveen Texas Quality Income Municipal Fund is a closed-ended fixed income mutual fund launched by Nuveen Investments, Inc. The fund is managed by Nuveen Asset Management. It invests in the fixed income markets of Texas. The fund invests primarily in municipal securities rated Baa/BBB or better. It invests in securities that provide income exempt from federal and Texas income tax. The fund employs fundamental analysis with bottom-up stock picking approach to create its portfolio. It benchmarks the performance of its portfolio against the S&P National Municipal Bond Index and the S&P Texas Municipal Bond Index. Nuveen Texas Quality Income Municipal Fund was formed on July 26, 1991 and is domiciled in the United States.

Top 10 Financial Companies To Invest In 2014: PSB Holdings Inc.(PSBH)

PSB Holdings, Inc. operates as the holding company for Putnam Bank that provides a range of banking services to individual and small business customers located primarily in eastern Connecticut. It accepts various deposit products that include checking, savings, money market deposit accounts, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, and fixed-term certificates of deposit. The company?s loan portfolio comprises one- to four-family residential real estate mortgage loans, including home equity loans and lines of credit; commercial real estate loans comprising multi-family real estate loans; commercial loans; construction mortgage loans primarily secured by single-family properties; and consumer loans, such as loans on new and used automobiles, loans secured by deposit accounts, and unsecured personal loans. It operates seven full service branch offices and one loan origination center. The company was founded in 1862 and is headquartered in Putnam, Connecticut. PSB Holdings, I nc. is a subsidiary of Putnam Bancorp, MHC.

Top 10 Financial Companies To Invest In 2014: Magyar Bancorp Inc.(MGYR)

Magyar Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Magyar Bank, which provides various banking products and services in New Jersey. The company?s deposit products include demand accounts, savings accounts, now accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, and retirement accounts. Its loan portfolio comprises residential mortgage loans, commercial real estate loans, construction loans, commercial business loans, home equity lines of credit, and consumer loans. The company also provides non-deposit investment products and financial planning services, including insurance products, fixed and variable annuities, and retirement planning for individual and commercial customers. As of September 30, 2009, it operated five branch offices, including two in New Brunswick, and one each in North Brunswick, South Brunswick, and Branchburg, New Jersey. The company was founded in 1922 and is headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Magyar Bancorp, Inc. is a subsi diary of Magyar Bancorp, MHC.

Top 10 Financial Companies To Invest In 2014: First Citizens Banc Corp.(FCZA)

First Citizens Banc Corp operates as the holding company for The Citizens Banking Company, which provides various banking products and services in Ohio. It accepts various deposit products that include non interest-bearing and interest-bearing demand deposits; savings accounts comprising money market deposit accounts; and certificates of deposit, such as individual retirement accounts. The company?s loan portfolio comprises commercial and agricultural loans, commercial real estate loans, residential real estate loans, real estate construction loans, consumer loans, leases, and credit card and other loans. First Citizens also provides trust services, item-processing services for financial institutions, and third party insurance services. It operates in Erie, Crawford, Champaign, Franklin, Logan, Summit, Huron, Ottawa, Union, and Richland Counties, Ohio. The company was founded in 1884 and is based in Sandusky, Ohio.

Top 10 Financial Companies To Invest In 2014: LNB Bancorp Inc.(LNBB)

LNB Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for The Lorain National Bank that provides commercial and retail banking, investment management, and trust services to individual, municipal, and corporate customers in Ohio. It offers various transaction and time deposit accounts, including demand deposits, interest-bearing checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, consumer time deposits, public time deposits, and brokered time deposits, as well as cash management services. The company also provides commercial and industrial loans, commercial real estate loans, construction and equipment loans, letters of credit, revolving lines of credit, small business administration loans, and government guaranteed loans; and residential mortgages, direct and indirect automobile loans, personal loans, second mortgages, and home equity lines of credit. In addition, it offers safe deposit boxes, night depository, U.S. savings bonds, travelers? checks, money orders, cash iers checks, automated teller machines (ATMs), debit cards, wire transfers, electronic funds transfers, and foreign drafts, as well as foreign currency, phone and Internet banking, and lockbox services. Further, the company provides bank-owned life insurance, as well as title insurance. It operates through 20 retail-banking locations and 30 ATMs in Lorain, Erie, Cuyahoga, and Summit counties in the Ohio communities of Lorain, Elyria, Amherst, Avon, Avon Lake, LaGrange, North Ridgeville, Oberlin, Olmsted Township, Vermilion, Westlake, and Hudson, as well as a business development office in Cuyahoga County. The company was founded in 1905 and is headquartered in Lorain, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Commercial banking concern�LNB Bancorp� (NASDAQ: LNBB  ) �announced yesterday�its second-quarter dividend of a penny per share, the same rate it's paid since 2009, when it cut the payout from $0.09.

SEC proposes crowdfunding rules

Bloomberg News

The Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday proposed rules that would allow startup companies to raise capital on the Internet, in small amounts. Investment advisers are wary of the idea.

With its unanimous vote, the agency took the first step to implement the so-called crowdfunding provisions of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, which eases securities registration for small businesses. It was approved overwhelmingly last year by Congress.

(Related: What advisers don't know about crowdfunding can hurt them.)

The proposal, which is more than 500 pages and contains about 295 questions for public response, will be open for a 90-day comment after it is published in the Federal Register. The SEC may revise the rule, and another vote is required to finalize it.

Read the full proposal here.

Under the rule, small companies would be able to sell up to $1 million in equity over a 12-month period. Investors with income or net worth of less than $100,000 could invest $2,000 or 5% of their annual income or net worth, whichever is greater, in crowdfunding offerings over a period of 12 months. Investors with income or net worth above $100,000 could invest up to 10% of their income or net worth.

BENEFITS AND DRAWBACKS

Crowdfunding advocates argue that it will enable entrepreneurs to reach new investors, build companies and create jobs. Critics warn that small investors could be harmed by fraudulent offerings.

Investment advisers are skeptical. They contend that it would be virtually impossible to research amorphous startup companies, which could range from the corner bookstore to the next Apple.

“Anything like this scares me to death,” said C.E. Scott Brewster, owner of Brewster Financial Planning. “The amount of due diligence that would be needed to make sure it's a prudent investment would far outweigh the benefits. It's not the type of investment I would recommend.”

Diahann Lassus, president of Lassus Wherley & Associates, said that crowdfunding could be a boon for startups, but investors must tread carefully.

“It is absolutely investor beware,” she said. “It will provide opportunities for small businesses that have a bright future to get capital for their growth. But it will also provide opportunities for businesses that don't really have their act together.”

Investors face the risk of losing money on failed ventures or getting ripped off, according to some advisers.

“There will be ample opportunities for fraud,” said Timothy Chase, ma! naging partner of WMS Partners.

He doubts that his high-net-worth clients will be interested in crowdfunding.

“They're not going to waste an ounce of energy on this,” Mr. Chase said. “The investor that crowdfunding is targeting is the least sophisticated investor.”

INCLUDING SMALL INVESTORS

SEC member Michael Piwowar argued that crowdfunding will enable investors with modest assets to participate in the next business breakthrough.

“All investors, not just the so-called accredited investors, will have an opportunity to invest in entrepreneurs at an earlier stage than ever before,” he said.

Lawmakers from both parties have been pressuring the SEC to move ahead with crowdfunding rules, which were supposed to have been proposed by last December.

Broker-dealers or platforms that register with the SEC would conduct crowdfunding. The agency estimates that about 50 to 100 crowdfunding portals will operate initially when the rule is approved.

Since the JOBS Act was signed into law, about 200 companies have begun exploring whether to create a portal or provide services for them, according to Judd Hollas, founder and CEO of Equitynet LLC. He expects about 20% of them to remain once equity crowdfunding gets underway.

“It reminds me of the dotcom boom of 1999,” said Mr. Hollas, whose platform is currently doing crowdfunding with accredited investors. “It is moving that fast. There will be no shortage of portals.”

The portals would not be allowed to offer investment advice and would be prohibited from charging commissions to investors. The proposal doesn't specify whether portals would be responsible for ensuring that investors meet the crowdfunding criteria or whether investors would be allowed to self-certify.

SEC Chairman Mary Jo White said the agency will keep a close eye on how the market develops.

“If the proposal is adopted, the staff will … evaluate the types of issuers using the new crowdfunding exemption, how ! issuers a! nd intermediaries are complying with the rule, and whether the exemption is promoting capital formation and effectively protecting investors,” she said.

SEC member Kara Stein cautioned that the SEC must address investor protection even as it opens a new avenue of capital formation.

“We know very little about the dynamics of how this financial innovation will work,” Ms. Stein said. “Getting the balance right will likely take time and careful refinement [of the proposal].”

Top 5 Small Cap Companies For 2014

Auto sales continue to rise and that is good news for small cap auto insurers Infinity Property and Casualty Corp (NASDAQ: IPCC), First Acceptance Corporation (NYSE: FAC) and Atlas Financial Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: AFH) which are focused on niche auto insurance markets.�A Yahoo! Autos blog post�recently noted that in August, automakers sold 1.5 million new vehicles for the highest rate in years. Moreover,�most industry forecasters expect sales to�return to the level they hit before the 2008 recession of 16 million vehicles a year. The blog post then went on to note the three forces driving auto sales:

Retirees (who have predictable income from Social Security) Cheap loans Lower standards for borrowers

I am not so sure if #2 and #3 are such a good thing and I�should also mention that Infinity Property and Casualty Corp and First Acceptance Corporation are focused on so-called nonstandard auto insurance which provides coverage to drivers who, due to their driving record, age or vehicle type, represent higher than normal risks and pay higher rates for comparable coverage.

Top 5 Small Cap Companies For 2014: Sify Technologies Limited(SIFY)

Sify Technologies Limited provides enterprise and consumer Internet services primarily in India. The company offers various corporate network/data services comprising e-commerce and network connectivity solutions, such as end-to-end services network, application, and security services; voice origination and termination services; co-location and managed hosting services; and system integration services for data centre build, hardware distribution, security solutions, and turnkey projects. It also provides application services, including SLEMS and Microsoft Exchange messaging platforms; I-test for online assessment and LiveWire, which enable management of training processes across the organization; document management system for the management of documents electronically; and Forum, a forward supply chain solution. In addition, the company operates e-Ports that offer browsing, chat, email, gaming, utility bill payment, travel ticketing, hotel booking, mobile recharge, Intern et telephony, and online share trading services; and portals, which provide news, views, reviews, interactions, and services in the areas of movies, sports, finance, food, videos, astrology, online games, shopping, and travel, as well as offers content offerings and broadband services. Further, it provides infrastructure management services, such as network management, datacenter and helpdesk outsourcing, desktop and storage outsourcing, IT security outsourcing, LAN and WAN outsourcing, database and telecom outsourcing, and application monitoring and management services to automotive, chemical, media, and financial enterprises; and virtualization design, integration, and deployment services for servers, storage, networks, and end user clients. Sify has approximately 1,278 e-Ports in 200 towns and cities; and serves 1,06,000 broadband subscribers through 1500 cable TV Operators. The company, formerly known as Sify Limited, was founded in 1995 and is based in Chennai, India.

Top 5 Small Cap Companies For 2014: OCZ Technology Group Inc(OCZ)

OCZ Technology Group, Inc. designs, develops, manufactures, and distributes computer components for computing devices and systems worldwide. It primarily offers solid state drives, flash memory storage, memory modules, thermal management solutions, AC/DC switching power supply units, and computer gaming solutions. The company?s products are used in industrial equipment and computer systems; computer and computer gaming solutions; mission critical servers and high end workstations; personal computer (PC) upgrades to extend the useable life of existing PCs; high performance computing and scientific computing; video and music editing; home theatre PCs and digital home convergence products; and digital photography and digital image manipulation computers. OCZ Technology Group, Inc. offers its products to retailers, on-line retailers, original equipment manufacturers, systems integrators, and distributors. The company was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in San Jose, Califo rnia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  The not-so-great and wonderful OCZ
  There was no company-specific news that caused solid-state-drive maker OCZ Technology (NASDAQ: OCZ  ) to fall almost 8% Wednesday. But an article that appeared on Seeking Alpha �questioning whether the company had six months or less to live before it filed for bankruptcy seemed to coincide with its fall.

Top 5 Low Price Stocks To Watch For 2014: FuelCell Energy Inc.(FCEL)

FuelCell Energy, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development, manufacturing, and sale of high temperature fuel cells for clean electric power generation primarily in South Korea, the United States, Germany, Canada, and Japan. The company offers proprietary carbonate Direct FuelCell Power Plants that electrochemically produce electricity from hydrocarbon fuels, such as natural gas and biogas. Its fuel cells operate on a range of hydrocarbon fuels, including natural gas, renewable biogas, propane, methanol, coal gas, and coal mine methane. The company also develops carbonate fuel cells, planar solid oxide fuel cell technology, and other fuel cell technologies. It provides its products to universities; manufacturers; mission critical institutions, such as correction facilities and government installations; hotels; and natural gas letdown stations, as well as to customers who use renewable biogas for fuel, including municipal water treatment facilities, br eweries, and food processors. The company was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in Danbury, Connecticut.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Green Energy Addict]

  On June 3, 2013 I gave my 5 Bullish Signs ahead of the FuelCell Energy (FCEL) Q2 2013 earnings report. I cited the large backlog as one of the reasons for my bullish views. I gave as my reasoning the following:

Top 5 Small Cap Companies For 2014: Achillion Pharmaceuticals Inc.(ACHN)

Achillion Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the discovery, development, and commercialization of treatments for infectious diseases. The company focuses on the development of antivirals for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C; and the development of antibacterials for the treatment of resistant bacterial infections. Its drug candidates for the treatment of chronic HCV include ACH-1625, a protease inhibitor, which is in phase IIa clinical trial for the treatment of chronic HCV; ACH-2684, a pangenotypic protease inhibitor, which is in phase I clinical trial for the treatment of chronic HCV infection; and NS5A inhibitors for the treatment of chronic HCV infection, including ACH-2928, which is to enter a phase I clinical trial, as well as various additional NS5A inhibitors in preclinical development. Its pipeline of product candidates also includes ACH-702 and ACH-2881 for drug resistant bacterial infections; elvucitabine for HIV infection; and AC H-1095 for HCV infection. The company was founded in 1998 and is based in New Haven, Connecticut.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Achillion Pharmaceuticals (ACHN) has plunged 51% to $3.53 after the FDA kept a hold on its hepatitis C drug in trials. The stock was downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Merrill Lynch.

• [By Keith Speights]

  Hold horrors
  Achillion Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ACHN  ) takes the worst spot this week. Shares plunged 62% on bad news from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Top 5 Small Cap Companies For 2014: KongZhong Corporation(KONG)

KongZhong Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides wireless interactive entertainment, media, and community services to mobile phone users in the People's Republic of China. It also involves in the development, distribution, and marketing of consumer wireless value-added services, including wireless application protocol, multimedia messaging services, short messaging services, interactive voice response services, and color ring back tones. In addition, it offers interactive entertainment services, such as mobile games, pictures, karaoke, electronic books, mobile phone personalization features, entertainment news, chat, and message boards; and through Kong.net offer news, community services, games, and other interactive media and entertainment services; and sells advertising space in the form of text-link, banner, and button advertisements. Further, the company develops and publishes mobile games, including downloadable mobile games and online mobile games cons isting of action, role-playing, and leisure games. As of December 31, 2009, it had a library of approximately 300 internally developed mobile games. Additionally, it develops online games; and provides consulting and technology services, as well as media and net book services. The company was formerly known as Communication Over The Air Inc. and changed its name to KongZhong Corporation in March 2004. KongZhong Corporation was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Beijing, the People?s Republic of China

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 Kongzhong (Nasdaq: KONG  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

5 Important Trends in Consumer Electronics

The big consumer electronics show known as CE Week wrapped up in New York City a few days ago. Produced by the Consumer Electronics Association, this mid-year trade show is a good gauge of what industry insiders consider the most important up-and-coming technologies.

Our roving reporter Rex Moore was in New York for the extravaganza, and in the video below explains the trends investors need to know about.

Meanwhile, smartphones always play a part in consumer technology trends. Want to get in on the phenomenon? Truth be told, one company sits at the crossroads of smartphone technology as we know it. It's not your typical household name, either. In fact, you've probably never even heard of it! But it stands to reap massive profits NO MATTER WHO ultimately wins the smartphone war. To find out what it is, click here to access the "One Stock You Must Buy Before the iPhone-Android War Escalates Any Further..."

Cree’s Mixed Results Darkened by Outlook

Cree Inc. (NASDAQ: CREE) reported first fiscal quarter 2014 results after markets closed on Tuesday. For the quarter, the LED-lighting maker posted adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.39 on revenues of $391 million. In the same period a year ago, the company reported EPS of $0.27 on revenues of $315.8 million. First-quarter results compare to the Thomson Reuters consensus estimates for EPS of $0.39 and $392.31 million in revenues.

The company warned on earnings in mid-August and today's results were right in line with the mid-points of the ranges the company gave for EPS and revenues. The damage today came from Cree's estimate of second quarter profit. The company says it expects EPS of $0.36 to $0.41 compared with a current consensus estimate of $0.44. The company expects revenues in the range of $410 to $420 million and the analysts' estimate calls for $414.29 million.

In addition to the weak profits, gross margins are expected to be lower in the second quarter and operating expenses are going to rise as the company promotes its new LED Bulb.

The company's CEO said:

Fiscal 2014 is off to a good start, as we delivered solid Q1 revenue and earnings growth in line with our targets. The strong performance was primarily due to increased sales of our lighting products, higher gross margins and improved operating leverage across the business. Based on our backlog, current sales activity and project forecasts, we are targeting growth in all product segments in Q2, led by growth in LED fixtures and the Cree LED Bulb.

Cree may be targeting growth, but that growth is coming at a cost that investors are unhappy paying. The company posted its 52-week high the day before announcing its earnings warning, and an upgrade from one analyst firm in early October pulled the shares up from around $60 to Monday's close at nearly $74. That momentum is history after tonight's earnings.

Cree's shares are trading down about 13.7% at $64.12 in after-hours trading Tuesday, in a 52-week range of $28.08 to $76.00. Thomson Reuters had a consensus analyst price target of around $67.50 before today's report.

5 Stocks Poised to Pop on Bullish Earnings

DELAFIELD, Wis. (Stockpickr) -- Short-sellers hate being caught short a stock that reports a blowout quarter. When this happens, we often see a tradable short squeeze develop as the bears rush to cover their positions to avoid big losses. Even the best short-sellers know that it's never a great idea to stay short once a bullish earnings report sparks a big short-covering rally.

>>5 Rocket Stocks to Buy Now

This is why I scan the market for heavily shorted stocks that are about to report earnings. You only need to find a few of these stocks in a year to help enhance your portfolio returns -- the gains become so outsized in such a short time frame that your profits add up quickly.

That said, let's not forget that stocks are heavily shorted for a reason, so you have to use trading discipline and sound money management when playing earnings short-squeeze candidates. It's important that you don't go betting the farm on these plays and that you manage your risk accordingly. Sometimes the best play is to wait for the stock to break out following the report before you jump in to profit off a short squeeze. This way, you're letting the trend emerge after the market has digested all of the news.

Of course, sometimes the stock is going to be in such high demand that you risk missing a lot of the move by waiting. That's why it can be worth betting prior to the report -- but only if the stock is acting technically very bullish and you have a very strong conviction that it is going to rip higher. Just remember that even when you have that conviction and have done your due diligence, the stock can still get hammered if The Street doesn't like the numbers or guidance.

>>5 Dogs of the Dow to Stomp the Market

If you do decide to bet ahead of a quarter, then you might want to use options to limit your capital exposure. Heavily shorted stocks are usually the names that make the biggest post-earnings moves and have the most volatility. I personally prefer to wait until all the earnings-related news is out for a heavily shorted stock and then jump in and trade the prevailing trend.

With that in mind, here's a look at several stocks that could experience big short squeezes when they report earnings this week.

Illumina

My first earnings short-squeeze trade idea is Illumina (ILMN), a developer and manufacturer of life science tools and integrated systems, which is set to release numbers on Monday after the market close. Wall Street analysts, on average, expect Illumina to report revenue of $343.56 million on earnings of 40 cents per share.

The current short interest as a percentage of the float Illumina is very large at 18.9%. That means that out of the 123.32 million shares in the tradable float, 23.31 million shares are sold short by the bears. If the bulls get the earnings news they're looking for, then shares of ILMN could soar sharply higher post-earnings as the bears rush to cover some of their short positions.

>>5 Stocks Poised for Breakouts

From a technical perspective, ILMN is currently trending above both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, which is bullish. This stock has been uptrending strong for the last few weeks, with shares moving higher from its low of $72.77 to its recent high of $83.50 a share. During that uptrend, shares of ILMN have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of ILMN within range of triggering a big breakout trade post-earnings.

If you're bullish on ILMN, then I would wait until after its report and look for long-biased trades if this stock manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance levels at $83.50 to its 52-week high at $85.81 a share with high volume. Look for volume on that move that hits near or above its three-month average action of 952,865 shares. If that breakout hits, then ILMN will set up to enter new 52-week high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that breakout are $95 to $100 a share.

I would simply avoid ILMN or look for short-biased trades if after earnings it fails to trigger that breakout and then drops back below its 50-day moving average of $80.09 a share with high volume. If we get that move, then ILMN will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major support levels at $76 to $72.77 a share.

Netflix

Another potential earnings short-squeeze play is Netflix (NFLX), an Internet subscription service provider of streaming television shows and movies, which is set to release its numbers on Monday after the market close. Wall Street analysts, on average, expect Netflix to report revenue $1.10 billion on earnings of 49 cents per share.

>>5 Big Stocks to Trade for Big Gains

The current short interest as a percentage of the float for Netflix is pretty high at 12.5%. That means that out of the 52.18 million shares in the tradable float, 6.96 million shares are sold short by the bears. This is a high short interest on a stock with a relatively low float. Any bullish earnings news could easily spark a monster short-squeeze for shares of NFLX post-earnings.

From a technical perspective, NFLX is currently trending above both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, which is bullish. This stock has been trending incredibly strong over the last four months and change, with shares soaring higher from its low of $205.75 to its intraday high of $349. During that uptrend, shares of NFLX have been mostly making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action.

If you're in the bull camp on NFLX, then I would wait until after its report and look for long-biased trades if this manages to break out above its new 52-week high of $349 a share high volume. Look for volume on that move that hits near or above its three-month average action of 3.13 million shares. If that breakout triggers, then NFLX will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that breakout are $380 to $400 a share.

I would simply avoid NFLX or look for short-biased trades if after earnings it fails to trigger that breakout and then drops back below Monday's low of $340.10 a share with high volume. If we get that move, then NFLX will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major support levels at $320 to $310 a share. Any high-volume move below those levels will then give NFLX a chance to tag its 50-day moving average of $298.44 a share.

Jakks Pacific

Another potential earnings short-squeeze candidate is toy and electronics maker Jakks Pacific (JAKK), which is set to release numbers on Thursday before the market open. Wall Street analysts, on average, expect Jakks Pacific to report revenue of $297.88 million on earnings of $1.05 per share.

Just recently, B. Riley initiated shares of Jakks Pacific with a neutral rating and a price target of $4.50 per share.

>>5 Stocks Under $10 Set to Soar

The current short interest as a percentage of the float for Jakks Pacific is extremely high at 35.2%. That means that out of the 16.80 million shares in the tradable float, 6.06 million shares are sold short by the bears. This is a high short interest on a stock with a very low tradable float. Any bullish earnings news could easily spark a monster short-squeeze for shares of JAKK post-earnings.

From a technical perspective, JAKK is currently trending below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, which is bearish. This stock has been downtrending badly for the last three months and change, with shares plunging lower from its high of $11.75 to its recent low of $4.45 a share. During that move, shares of JAKK have been consistently making lower highs and lower lows, which is bearish technical price action. That said, shares of JAKK have started to reverse that trend during the last month, and the stock is now moving within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade post-earnings.

If you're bullish on JAKK, then I would wait until after its report and look for long-biased trades if this stock manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance levels at $5 to $5.27 a share with high volume. Look for volume on that move that hits near or above its three-month average action of 637,282 shares. If that breakout hits, then JAKK will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $5.68 to $6 a share. Any high-volume move above those levels will then give JAKK a chance to tag $7 to $8 a share.

I would avoid JAKK or look for short-biased trades if after earnings it fails to trigger that move, and then drops back below some key near-term support levels at $4.68 to $4.51 a share and the below its 52-week low at $4.45 a share. If we get that move, then JAKK will set up to enter new 52-week-low territory, which is bearish technical price action. Some possible downside targets off that move are $4 to $3.50 a share.

ServiceNow

Another earnings short-squeeze prospect is cloud-based services provider ServiceNow (NOW), which is set to release numbers on Wednesday after the market close. Wall Street analysts, on average, expect ServiceNow to report revenue of $105.33 million on a loss of 2 cents per share.

Just recently, UBS said it expects ServiceNow to growth at least 20% faster than its competitors in 2014, and the firm expects the stock to continue to outperform as its cloud offerings are adopted by many more companies. The firm has an outperform rating on the stock and it raised its price target to $62 from $50.

>>5 Stocks the Pros Hate

The current short interest as a percentage of the float for ServiceNow stands at 5.3%. That means that out of the 119.61 million shares in the tradable float, 6.28 million shares are sold short by the bears. This isn't a huge short interest, but it's more than enough to spark a solid short-covering rally for shares of NOW post-earnings if the bulls get the earnings news they're looking for.

From a technical perspective, NOW is currently trending just above its 50-day moving average and well below its 200-day moving average, which is bullish. This stock has been uptrending strong for the last five months, with shares soaring higher from its low of $35.21 to its recent high of $55.46 a share. During that uptrend, shares of NOW have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of NOW within range of triggering a big breakout trade post-earnings.

If you're bullish on NOW, then I would wait until after its report and look for long-biased trades if this stock manages to break out above its all-time high at $55.46 a share with high volume. Look for volume on that move that hits near or above its three-month average action of 1.50 million shares. If that breakout hits, then NOW will set up to enter new all-time high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that breakout are $65 to $70 a share.

I would simply avoid NOW or look for short-biased trades if after earnings it fails to trigger that breakout and then drops back below some key near-term support levels at $52 to its 50-day moving average of $49.02 a share with high volume. If we get that move, then NOW will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major support levels at $46 to $42 a share.

TripAdvisor

My final earnings short-squeeze play is online travel research player TripAdvisor (TRIP), which is set to release numbers on Wednesday after the market close. Wall Street analysts, on average, expect TripAdvisor to report revenue of $257.97 million on earnings of 45 cents per share.

The current short interest as a percentage of the float for TripAdvisor is very high at 15%. That means that out of the 111.67 million shares in the tradable float, 16.71 million shares are sold short by the bears. If the bulls get the earnings news they're looking for, then shares of TRIP could rip sharply higher post-earning as the bears rush to cover some of their bets.

From a technical perspective, TRIP is currently trending above its 200-day moving average and just below its 50-day moving average, which is neutral trendwise. This stock has uptrending modestly for the last month, with shares moving higher from its low of $68.11 to its recent high of $75.43 a share. During that move, shares of TRIP have been mostly making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of TRIP within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade post-earnings.

If you're in the bull camp on TRIP, then I would wait until after its report and look for long-biased trades if this stock manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance levels at its 50-day moving average of $74.02 a share to more resistance at $75.43 a share with high volume. Look for volume on that move that hits near or above its three-month average volume of 1.82 million shares. If that breakout hits, then TRIP will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $79.89 a share to its 52-week high at $82.19 a share. Any high-volume move above those levels will then give TRIP a chance to tag $85 to $90 a share.

I would avoid TRIP or look for short-biased trades if after earnings it fails to trigger that breakout and then drops back below some key near-term support levels at $71.60 to $68.11 a share with high volume. If we get that move, then TRIP will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major support levels at $62.50 to its 200-day moving average of $60.03 a share.

To see more potential earnings short squeeze plays, check out the Earnings Short Squeeze Plays portfolio on Stockpickr.

-- Written by Roberto Pedone in Delafield, Wis.

RELATED LINKS:

>>5 Stocks With Big Insider Buying

>>5 Stocks Triggering Breakouts on Big Volume

>>4 Stocks Under $10 Making Big Moves

Follow Stockpickr on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

At the time of publication, author had no positions in stocks mentioned.

Roberto Pedone, based out of Delafield, Wis., is an independent trader who focuses on technical analysis for small- and large-cap stocks, options, futures, commodities and currencies. Roberto studied international business at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, and he spent a year overseas studying business in Lubeck, Germany. His work has appeared on financial outlets including

CNBC.com and Forbes.com. You can follow Pedone on Twitter at www.twitter.com/zerosum24 or @zerosum24.