Company Creating $25K Doomsday Timeshares Beneath Ground for Survivalists

A company hoping to cash in on people’s fear of the potential doom facing the world are creating the perfect utopian world for doomsday survivalists.

And that world can yours for an easy payment of $25,000.

Terra Vivos is building underground doomsday timeshares — communities “built to withstand a 50-megaton nuclear blast 10 miles away, 450mph winds, a magnitude-10 earthquake, 10 days of 1,250°F surface fires, and three weeks beneath any flood.”

The communities offer Luxury Class and Economy Class, which are sure to be respected when all rule of law has been eliminated and the earth is ravaged by nuclear holocaust.

From RoadTrippers:

The shelter is located 50-150ft below the Missouri River bluffs, in part of a former limestone mine, known as the Atchison Storage Facility. This facility served as a secure bunker complex for the U.S. government since World War 2 up until 2013, when the company behind the Vivos Survival Shelter and Resort acquired a large portion of the 2.7 million sq. ft. underground storage facility. The Vivos shelters will also come with their very own “Cryovaults” that will house “reproductive gamete cells and DNA of humans and animals for a potential re-population of the Earth.”

Why panic alone when you can do it with neighbors?

Technical Forecast for GBP/USD

 

GBPUSD topped at 1.5963 & fell back to support at 1.5895/85 which has held the downside as expected so far at least. However the outlook is quite negative so a break lower today should target trend line support at 1.5865. A bounce from here is possible but longs need stops below 1.5850 for the next support at 1.5835/30. Exit shorts here & try longs with stops below 1.5815.

 

Above 1.5900 is less negative & could allow a move towards 1.5922/27 & possibly a retest of 1.5960/65. Exit longs & try shorts up to 1.6010, looking for a medium sell off on profit taking but we need stops above 1.6050.

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

6-Step Guide to Getting Rich Is Buried In 76-Year-Old Book

The Booklight/Flickr Thousands of personal finance books on shelves today promise to teach you to spend less, save more, invest better, retire earlier, get out of debt faster, and solve just about every financial conundrum in between. But perhaps none said it better than a book published in 1937. Napoleon Hill, a Great Depression-era author and former adviser to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, interviewed "more than five hundred of the most successful men this country has ever known" to figure out the key to their good fortune. He wrapped all of his insights in a 200-page package and published "Think and Grow Rich," which went on to become one of the best-selling books of all time. Don't expect to find any stock-picking or gambling advice in it. Despite Hill interviewing some of the most iconic businessmen of his day, none of his findings involved any particularly hard-to-attain skills. His entire premise is helping people overcome the psychological barriers that keep them from wealth. "Wishing will not bring riches," Hill writes. "But desiring riches with a state of mind that becomes an obsession, then planning definite ways and means to acquire riches, and backing those plans with persistence which does not recognize failure, will bring riches." In one passage, he sums up six steps to turning a desire for wealth into "its financial equivalent":

First. Fix in your mind the exact amount of money you desire. It is not sufficient merely to say "I want plenty of money." Be definite as to the amount. (There is a psychological reason for definite- ness which will be described in a subsequent chapter). Second. Determine exactly what you intend to give in return for the money you desire. (There is no such reality as "something for nothing.") Third. Establish a definite date when you intend to possess the money you desire. Fourth. Create a definite plan for carrying out your desire, and begin at once, whether you are ready or not, to put this plan into action. Fifth. Write out a clear, concise statement of the amount of money you intend to acquire, name the time limit for its acquisition, state what you intend to give in return for the money, and describe clearly the plan through which you intend to accumulate it. Sixth. Read your written statement aloud, twice daily, once just before retiring at night, and once after arising in the morning. AS YOU READ, SEE AND FEEL AND BELIEVE YOURSELF ALREADY IN POSSESSION OF THE MONEY.

It seems basic, but if you actually compare this to just about any personal finance guide out there, you'll find exactly the same simple steps. They just come with a lot more bells and whistles. If anything, Hill's book is a reminder that one of the only ways to achieve true wealth is to understand that more often than not our emotions and our mindset are what keep us from succeeding, and that it's our job to come up with a plan to overcome them.

Market Wrap For Friday, September 27: Dow Ends The Week Negative For First Time In Month

For the first time in a month, the Dow had a negative week after trading down four days this week.

Top news items include consumer confidence, personal income figures, and BlackBerry's (NASDAQ: BBRY) disappointing quarter.

Major Indexes

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 70.06 points, or 0.46 percent, to 15,258.24.

The S&P 500 fell around 6.92 points, or 0.41 percent, to close just above 1,691.75.

The Nasdaq rose a little less than 5.84 points, or 0.15 percent, to 3,781.59.

The Russell 3000 dropped 3.49 points or 0.34 percent to 1,017.31.

Consumer Confidence

The University of Michigan's final consumer confidence figure for September was slightly worse than expected at 77.5 versus 78. This is still above the previous reading of 76.8.

Personal Income and Spending

Both personal income and personal spending came in as expected. Personal income rose 0.4 percent for August after 0.1 percent growth in July. Personal spending rose 0.3 percent for the month after 0.1 percent growth for July.

Stock Movers

RDA Microelectronics (NASDAQ: RDA) shot up 11.96 percent to $15.54 after the company received a non-binding acquisition proposal.

Finish Line (NASDAQ: FINL) got a boost, shooting up 9.02 percent to $24.41 after the company reported a 6.1 percent rise in its fiscal second-quarter earnings.

Cerner Corporation (NASDAQ: CERN) was also on the rise, gaining 7.76 percent to $52.61 after news hit that the company won a landmark contract with Intermountain this afternoon.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ: NKTR) were down 23.90 percent to $10.54 after the company reported that the results from Phase 2 trial of NKTR-181 missed primary efficacy endpoint.

United Continental Holdings (NYSE: UAL) was down as well, falling 9.28 percent to $30.91 following more fears of a government shutdown.

J.C. Penney Company (NYSE: JCP) was down, falling 13.15 percent to $9.05 after the company priced its underwritten public offering of 84.0 million shares of its common stock at $9.65 per share.

Commodities

Late in Tuesday's trading session, WTI crude futures had fallen 0.22 percent to $102.80 while Brent crude was down 0.71 percent to $108.43. Natural gas was higher on the session, up 0.14 percent to $3.50.

Precious metals saw gains on the session. At last check, COMEX gold futures were up 1.19 percent to $1,339.80. Silver recorded more modest gains, up just 0.29 percent to $21.83.

Volume and Volatility

One again volume was very light on the session. Heading into the close, only 76 million shares of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSE: SPY) had traded hands, compared to the three month average of 127 million.

Volatility surged higher on the session with the CBOE measure (VIX) up 12.16 percent at last check to 15.77.

Currencies

The U.S. Dollar lost value with a down equity market to end the week. Near the close, the PowerShares DB US Dollar Index Bullish ETF (NYSE: UUP), which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of foreign currencies, had fallen 0.37 percent to $21.65.

The closely watched EUR/USD rose 0.24 percent to $1.3521. Other key movers on the day include the USD/JPY down 0.75 and the AUD/USD down 0.51 percent.

Global Markets

Asian markets were mixed overnight with China at a small gain and Japan recording a small loss. The Shanghai index picked up 0.2 percent with Hong Kong's Hang Seng also up 0.36 percent. Japan's Nikkei dropped 0.26 percent on the day.

European markets were overall down on the day. The Euro Stoxx index, which tracks 50 euro zone blue chips fell 0.12 percent. London's FTSE dropped 0.81 percent, and France's CAC finished the day even.

Posted-In: Market WrapEarnings News Emerging Markets Eurozone Futures Commodities Forex Global Econ #s Economics After-Hours Center Markets Best of Benzinga

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

  Around the Web, We're Loving... Petition urges Wal-Mart, McDonald's to pay more Obama's Syria Waffle Huge Blow to US Credibility in Mideast Microsoft Buys Nokia Phone Unit for $7.2B - And CEO? What Should You Know About AMZN? Most Popular The Apple Stories You Missed Wednesday (AAPL) These Two Stocks Are Moving Closer to Death By The Day Bill Gates Admits Well-Known Windows Trick Was a Mistake REVIEW: Nexus 7 (2013 Edition) And Chromecast (GOOG) Is Carl Icahn Secretly Net Short Apple? (AAPL) PlayStation 4 Software Pre-Orders Top Xbox One By 55% (SNE, MSFT) Related Articles (BZSUM + BBRY) Market Wrap For Friday, September 27: Dow Ends The Week Negative For First Time In Month Mid-Afternoon Market Update: Cerner Rallies Major Contract While United Airlines Plummets Mid-Day Market Update: Finish Line Gains On Upbeat Results; JC Penney Shares Fall How Hertz Longs Can Limit Further Hurt Mid-Morning Market Update: Markets Open Lower; BlackBerry Reports Q2 Loss PreMarket Info Recap for September 27, 2013: Casual 84M Share Offering from JC Penney 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)

LPL puts layoff, outsourcing plan into action

Details of LPL Financial LLC's plan to outsource workers have emerged as the firm this month told California officials it planned to lay off up to 130 employees in San Diego and move their jobs out of the company.

LPL told the state of its plans in an Aug. 16 layoff notice, according to a report from the San Diego Union Tribune. An initial 31 workers are likely to be let go by mid-October, including risk management analysts, dividends operations specialists and senior accountants, according to the report. Other workers would be laid off through February.

With 3,000 employees, the layoffs and outsourcing affect a little more than four percent of the company's fulltime workers. (See: LPL plans 3Q job cuts, move to outsourcing.

LPL's major partner in the outsourcing effort is Accenture, an outsourcing company that has 266,000 employees and operations in 54 countries, including India and The Philippines.

LPL expects $20 million next year in savings and roughly $30 million total in 2015.

“We still anticipate growing in other areas of the business, so although much of this savings will come from transitioning responsibilities to outsourcing relationships, our head count will grow in our core areas as the business grows,” LPL spokeswoman Betsy Weinberger said. “There will be no outsourcing of customer-facing functions, and currently we have approximately 200 job openings in our company at our three locations, San Diego, Boston and Charlotte, N.C.”

Twitter's Potential for Profit

One of the leading topics these days, especially in regards to investing, is Twitter and its possible, impending IPO. Growth investor Chris Umiastowki of The Globe and Mail, shares his thoughts on this and what it, not only might mean for him, but also for you.

Earlier this month, the micro-blogging giant, Twitter Inc., filed its prospectus for an initial public offering. In my Strategy Lab columns, I've always said I would be interested in taking a very close look at Twitter if it went public.

Unfortunately for me, Twitter is taking advantage of a new rule that allows US companies with less than a billion dollars in revenue to file for their IPO confidentially. This hinders analysts, everyday investors and the press from digging into Twitter's financials or business strategy until shortly before the company's stock-market debut. Until I can see real numbers, I'll have to be satisfied reading the industry scuttlebutt and thinking about where Twitter's business may go in the coming years. Henry Blodget from BusinessInsider.com wrote just such a piece, referencing research from Wall Street analyst Robert Peck. It seems Twitter is expected to go public with a market capitalization of about $20-billion (US), which would represent 17 times next year's revenue estimate. This means, analysts think, admittedly based on very limited information, that Twitter will do about $1.2-billion in revenue in 2014. This seems like a crazy high multiple, until you realize that both Facebook and LinkedIn have gone public with similar forward revenue multiples, and both are posting excellent annual growth, which could justify their valuations.

I see tremendous potential for Twitter in the coming five to ten years. Out of nowhere, they've become the go-to place for any kind of headline, from technology, to finance, to Hollywood entertainment and gossip, to politics. Before Twitter, I found most of my industry-specific headlines from websites such as Yahoo Finance or by subscribing to the RSS feeds of websites that I liked reading. Twitter is superior, in my opinion, because it allows me to follow all the websites I love, but also lets me follow specific people, who will share interesting news that I'd have missed otherwise. Twitter also represents a well-organized, constantly updated flow of what's going on right now.

People care deeply about news and information in their areas of interest. I think this has more value than the kind of personal updates most people post on Facebook. It keeps people coming back.

I think Twitter should have excellent monetization opportunities. Need to hire for a specific role? Promote a tweet to people who follow Twitter accounts related to the topic in question. Want to tell the world about a new product? Whether it be recruiting, product advertising, or brand awareness, Twitter is built around users who follow other users, and that information reveals a lot about a person's likes and interests. I think this should drive incredible growth in advertising. It might also drive subscription-based revenue for firms who need to use Twitter's data to analyze trends or generate other useful analysis. The team of people who run the company on a full-time basis can surely come up with better monetization strategies than I can.

Consider that Twitter has only 200 million active users, as of February, and is expected to post revenue of $1.2-billion next year. I have to wonder whether we could see ten times that level of revenue inside of ten years. If so, I think it means there is powerful upside potential in the stock.

As a long term investor, I'm very interested in seeing if Twitter can go from dominant in the headlines to dominant in making money from the headlines. Right now they are the clear leader. With good execution, I suspect the company could make more money than LinkedIn ($27-billion market capitalization) and perhaps as much as Facebook ($115-million market capitalization).

Once I see the financials, I'll have a better idea of whether or not I want to pull the trigger on a Twitter share purchase. If I do, my intention would be to hold for a decade or longer. As with anything quite new, things can change. Twitter could lose out to a newer, better way of getting quasi real-time information on what matters to people. Or they could be outgunned by a company like Google via their social network, Google+. I'd have to keep a close eye on whether the opportunities I've described here are indeed materializing. I'd look to sell only when the reasons I bought were no longer valid.

I'd also have to accept, as always, that a stock like Twitter is bound to be hugely volatile. I might invest at one price and see the stock plummet 50% at some point. If you can't stomach something like that, please don't invest. But to me, I'm very interested in taking the risk on short-term volatility when I think there is an opportunity for a multibagger over the next decade.

Read more from the Globe and Mail here…

At the Open: Stocks Tick Lower as Consumer Confidence Slips; Carnival Plunges 8% as Guidance Disappoints

Stocks have traded lower this morning as consumer confidence slipped and home prices rose at a slower pace.

AP

The S&P 500 has dropped 0.3% to 1,697.42, while the Dow Jones Industrials are off 0.2% at 15,370.56. The Nasdaq Composite has dropped 0.2% to 3,759.11.

Consumer confidence fell to 79.7 in September, the lowest since May, likely taking a beating from the continued budget and debt ceiling debate Washington. Home prices, meanwhile, rose in July, but at a slower pace. High Frequency Economics’ Jim O’Sullivan explains:

The recovery in home prices continues, although the pace may be  slowing a little. The seasonally adjusted S&P/Case-Shiller (CS) 20-city index rose 0.6% m/m in July, slightly below the 0.8% consensus, following 0.9% in June, 0.9% in May, and 1.7% in April.  We had forecast 0.7%. Before seasonal adjustment, the index rose 1.9% m/m in July…

Strengthening in home prices is a plus for growth through various channels, including increased consumer spending because of wealth and confidence effects, increased incentive to buy before prices go up some more, and increased incentive to lend because of less chance of mortgages turning delinquent.

As with yesterday, however, uncertainty regarding the Fed and when it will start to taper hangs over the market, as two Fed governors, Cleveland President Sandra Pianalto and Kansas President Esther George, are set to speak.

That should keep investors on their toes.

Carnival (CCL) has fallen 7.6% to $34.56 in early trading this morning after the company reported a profit of $1.38, above forecasts for $1.32, but issued disappointing guidance. It’s also dragging down shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCL), which have fallen 3.1% to $38.18.

KB Home (KBH) has fallen 0.2% to $17 after it said it earned 28 cents a share, beating analyst forecasts for a profit of 21 cents a share.

Ocwen Financial (OCN) has gained has gained 1.6% to $57.70 after the company purchased its own shares from Wilbur Ross and amended its credit facility.

Molycorp (MCP) has gained 2.1% to $7.34 on reports that China would increase its purchases of rare-earth metals.

RiverNorth, DoubleLine Reopen $1 Billion Strategic Income Fund

RiverNorth and DoubleLine announced Thursday that the RiverNorth/DoubleLine Strategic Income Fund (RNSIX) has reopened to new investors.

RiverNorth CIO Patrick Galley said in a webcast that performance of the fund, launched at the end of 2010, had been very strong until the early part of this year, “until ‘fear and loathing’ came to dominate fixed income,” particularly among the 300 fixed income closed-end funds in its universe. That sector constitutes one of the three sleeves in RNSIX, along with DoubleLine Capital’s core fixed income sleeve and that firm’s opportunistic fixed income picks.

Galley (left) said that this summer, “when interest rates sold off,” RiverNorth descried the increased discount to the value of the underlying assets in closed-end funds “go from boring to a very strong opportunity.” That opportunity is so strong, in fact, that the fund now has 33% of its holdings in each of the three sleeves. At inception, 50% of the fund’s holdings were in DoubleLine’s core fixed income sleeve. “We soft closed as opportunity shrunk; now we’ve shifted, finding new opportunity,” especially since “discount volatility is what we like at RiverNorth.”

 During the webcast, DoubleLine Capital CEO Jeffrey Gundlach (right) noted that the announcement came on the same day that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke announced that the Fed would continue its monthly bond purchases at the same level, rather than start tapering those purchases. Saying the FOMC move made it likely that “zero interest rates are here to stay for a long time,” Gundlach said that in the “beginning of a cyclical change, closed-end funds might be more attractive than open-end funds; they’re already cheap, and may become cheaper than open-end funds or bonds themselves.”

In addition to commenting on the possible reasons for the Fed’s decision, Gundlach said of the Strategic Income Fund that “I’m an investor in the fund and I’ve been happy with its performance.”

---

Check out Gross, Gundlach Cheer as Fed Holds Off on ‘Death Swim’ on ThinkAdvisor.

Citigroup 'Faces Pressure' for Q3 Revenue: JPMorgan

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Citigroup (C) faces "pressures on several revenue sources, international credit costs, and high legal expenses," according to JPMorgan Chase analyst Vivek Juneja.

In his early preview of third-quarter earnings for the large-cap banks covered by his firm, Juneja on Wednesday wrote that the group would be facing significant revenue pains, including a major decline in mortgage loan originations and a decline in gain-on-sale spreads for newly originated loans sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, "which worsened in September."

In addition to the mortgage decline, which has been widely signaled to investors through an array of economic reports and projections from the Mortgage Bankers Association, Juneja expects a "Larger than normal seasonal decline in capital markets," along with "weak loan growth" and a narrowing of net interest margins "for some."

That last comment may surprise some investors, since the market yield on 10-year Treasury bonds has soared by over 110 basis points since the end of April, in anticipation of a decline in bond purchases by the Federal Reserve. The Federal Open Market Committee will finish its two-day policy meeting Wednesday, after which the committee is expected to announce a modest tapering of the central bank's long-term bond purchases, which have been running at a net $85 billion per month since last September, as part of the "QE3" effort to hold down long-term interest rates. But for most banks, a parallel rise in interest rates is needed to significantly boost net interest margins and net interest income, and some assets are continuing to reprice at lower rates. The short-term federal funds rate has been locked in a historically low range of zero to 0.25% since late 2008, and the FOMC has repeatedly said it was unlikely to raise the target rate at least until the national unemployment rate drops below 6.5%. The August unemployment rate was 7.3%, improving slightly from 7.4% in July. Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke is scheduled to hold a press conference at 2:30 p.m. ET Wednesday. According to Juneja, a 20% to 30% drop in mortgage revenue for the big banks will be partially offset by higher servicing revenue. He added that "investment banking volumes slowed in 3Q, most notably in debt underwriting, which was hurt by the impact of rising interest rates in August," and also wrote that "3Q trading revenues are likely down double digits on both a [quarter-over-quarter and year-over-year] basis reflecting a greater than normal seasonal drop in activity levels."

Credit leverage -- with continuing boosts to earnings from the release of loan loss reserves and expense reductions from cuts in staff working on nonperforming assets -- will continue, partially offsetting the expected revenue declines, although the analyst pointed out that "cost cuts are partly offset by high compliance and legal costs."

This is especially true for JPMorgan Chase (JPM) itself, with CFO Marianne Lake on Sept. 9 saying at a conference that the bank was expecting net losses in its mortgage origination business during the second half of 2013, and that a "crescendo" of regulatory activity would lead to additions to third-quarter additions to litigation reserves "which will more than offset the $1.5 billion or so of consumer reserve releases."

Getting back to Citigroup, Juneja estimates the company will report third-quarter revenue, net of interest expense, of $18.821 billion, declining from $20.479 billion in the second quarter. Revenue is expected to increase from $13.703 billion in the third quarter of 2012, however, the company booked $3.470 billion other-than-temporary impairment losses on its (then) 35% remaining share of the retail brokerage joint venture with Morgan Stanley (MS).

Citigroup's is the cheapest among the large-cap banks covered by Juneja, to his forward earnings estimates. The shares closed at $51.20 Tuesday and traded for 9.8 times Juneja's 2014 earnings estimate of $5.25 a share. The analyst has a neutral rating on Citigroup, with a $54 price target. Juneja doesn't cover his own firm, whose stock is arguably even cheaper than Citi. JPMorgan's shares closed at $53.09 Tuesday and traded for 8.7 times the consensus 2014 EPS estimate of $6.09, among analysts polled by Thomson Reuters. Investors holding shares of Citigroup and JPMorgan may be traveling a rocky road through the end of 2013, with plenty of revenue concerns and a continuing flow of leaks, settlements and other negative headlines for JPMorgan. But long-term value investors who can make a multiyear commitment may be looking at quite an opportunity to load up on cheap bank stocks. -- Written by Philip van Doorn in Jupiter, Fla. >Contact by Email. Follow @PhilipvanDoorn

Philip W. van Doorn is a member of TheStreet's banking and finance team, commenting on industry and regulatory trends. He previously served as the senior analyst for TheStreet.com Ratings, responsible for assigning financial strength ratings to banks and savings and loan institutions. Mr. van Doorn previously served as a loan operations officer at Riverside National Bank in Fort Pierce, Fla., and as a credit analyst at the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York, where he monitored banks in New York, New Jersey and Puerto Rico. Mr. van Doorn has additional experience in the mutual fund and computer software industries. He holds a bachelor of science in business administration from Long Island University.

Intel Shows Off New Products at Developer Forum (INTC)

The Santa Clara-based semiconductor juggernaut Intel Corp. (INTC) revealed a slew of new products at this year’s Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco.

Intel unveiled a host of consumer electronics products that it hopes will catch on with the mobile revolution. One of the most exciting announcements was the first fanless ultrabook laptop, and the company plans to team up with tablet makers to gain a foothold in that market; by the upcoming U.S. holiday season, there should be more than 20 Android and Windows 8 tablets based on Intel’s new “Bay Trail” CPU. The company also plans to release a 20nm SoC chip for smartphones as well as number of “wearable” electronics including a watch as well as a bracelet based on Intel hardware.

Intel shares sank lower on Wednesday, shedding 0.76% on the day. The company is up nearly 11% YTD.

S&P Downgrades Walter Energy (WLT)

Standard & Poor’s Rating Services announced on Thursday that it has lowered its corporate credit rating on Walter Energy (WLT) from B to B-.

The rating on the existing senior secured debt was also lowered from B+ to B, while the senior unsecured debt was downgraded from B- to CCC+. According to the ratings firm, the downgrade and negative outlook reflects its expectations that Walter Energy’s leverage will rise to more than 10x in 2013, and that it will likely continue to be above 5x in 2014. Walter Energy has also suffered from a significant decline in coal prices, as well as weaker demand in Europe and China.

Despite the downgrade, Walter Energy shares rallied 5.8% during Thursday’s session. Year-to-date, the stock is down 63.70%.

Top Analyst Downgrades and Stocks to Sell: Abercrombie, TASER, Tiffany and More

It is a pre-holiday week, interest rates have risen and many headwinds are in the air. Wall Street analysts are still issuing upgrades and downgrades. Each and every morning we peruse dozens of research notes to find the gems for investors looking for stocks to buy and stocks to sell. Investors frequently get to see the analyst upgrades and Buy ratings from Wall Street firms, but often do not get to see when to sell or avoid a company. These are this Wednesday’s top analyst downgrades and cautious research notes from Wall Street.

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) was maintained as Hold at Argus, but the firm lowered its earnings estimates for this year and next year.

Aerovironment Inc. (NASDAQ: AVAV) was maintained Neutral but its 2014 earnings estimates were cut by almost half after the company signaled order delays in its earnings report.

Douglas Dynamics Inc. (NYSE: PLOW) was downgraded to Underperform from an already cautious Neutral rating at Credit Suisse, and the target price is $14, versus a current $14.72 share price.

TASER International Inc. (NASDAQ: TASR) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at J.P. Morgan.

Tiffany & Co. (NYSE: TIF) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup.

Here are Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades. Also, if you have grown worried about a possible market crash, here are five strategies hedge funds use to stay in the market while lowering their risk.

Pay TV Subscriber Numbers Slide

The number of subscribers to cable, satellite and telecom video programming fell by 366,000 in the second quarter of 2013, according to research firm SNL Kagan. The summertime drop was not unexpected, and the better news for the pay TV companies is that the quarterly loss was 11% smaller than the loss in the second quarter of 2012.

As a whole the industry's subscriber numbers are about 200,000 below the same period a year ago, and SNL Kagan estimates that the total number of subscribers is about 121,000 higher than at the end of the second quarter of 2011. How bad was it?

SNL Kagan noted that cable outfits like Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA), Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC) and Cablevision Corp. (NYSE: CVC) saw subscriber losses double to 607,000. Cable's share of the pay TV market has now fallen to 55.3%.

Satellite providers like Dish Network Corp. (NASDAQ: DISH) and DirecTV (NASDAQ: DTV) saw a drop of 162,000 in the quarter and appear stuck at a total audience of around 34 million. The satellite companies actually have seen a slight uptick in subscriber numbers over the past 12 months.

Telecom providers like AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) continue to snatch market share from both the cable and the satellite operators. The telecom programmers added 400,000 subscribers, substantially more than in the second quarter a year ago. The telecom companies now claim 10.7 million subscribers, according to SNL Kagan.

The recent spat between Time Warner Cable and CBS Corp. (NYSE: CBS) that resulted in a month-long blackout of CBS stations from Time Warner in several markets over a dispute on retransmission fees is yet another signal that traditional cable and satellite providers may be suffering more than we think. CBS was reportedly demanding a payment of $2 a month per subscriber and Time Warner was offering $1 or less.

As subscriber numbers decline, remaining viewers may have to pay more to meet the demands of networks like CBS on cable companies. That will cause more defections and put even more of a squeeze on the cable operators. Satellite providers face the same issues, and the telecom companies also are likely to begin feeling the effects of network demands for higher retransmission fees. It is indeed a brave new world.

Best High Tech Companies To Watch For 2014

On the back of three consecutive days of decent gains, U.S. stocks are taking a breather this morning, with the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC  ) and the narrower, price-weighted Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) down 0.6% and 0.79%, respectively, at 10:10 a.m. EDT.

"Risk-parity" funds get hit
More victims of the recent bout of volatility! The Wall Street Journal published a very interesting article on their website yesterday evening, according to which fashionable "risk parity" mutual funds have been hit hard�recently.

Imported from the hedge fund world with a basis in modern portfolio theory, risk-parity funds invest across multiple asset classes (stocks, bonds, commodities, etc.) and aim to achieve the highest returns possible with a specific level of volatility (i.e., the best "risk-adjusted" returns). Typically, the fund's manager does this by resorting to leverage and/or by actively reallocating among the different asset classes, instead of maintaining a fixed allocation.

Best High Tech Companies To Watch For 2014: AtriCure Inc.(ATRC)

AtriCure, Inc., a medical device company, develops, manufactures, and sells cardiac surgical ablation systems designed to create precise lesions, or scars, in cardiac tissue. Its primary product line includes isolator synergy bipolar radio-frequency ablation clamps for open-heart procedures and minimally invasive procedures; ablation and sensing unit, a compact power generator that delivers bipolar radio-frequency (RF) energy; AtriCure switch box, a compact switch box providing the technology needed for the dual pulsing electrodes, and the ability to connect and toggle between multiple RF devices; isolator multifunctional pen, a disposable RF device enabling surgeons to toggle back and forth between temporary pacing, sensing, and stimulation and ablation; and coolrail linear ablation device, a disposable linear RF ablation device, which allows physicians to create an expanded cardiac ablation lesion set during minimally invasive procedures. The company also offers cryoabla tion system, which consists of various reusable and disposable devices, including the Frigitronics CCS-200 product line for cardiac ablation; and Cryo1, a disposable cryoablation device, as well as AtriClip system, which is designed to exclude the left atrial appendage by implanting the device during concomitant open surgical procedures from the outside of the heart. In addition, it sells enabling technologies, including Lumitip dissector to separate tissues to provide access to key anatomical structures targeted for ablation; and MicroPace ORLab system, a stimulating, mapping, and recording system enabling physicians to confirm the ablation lines being created are forming electrical barriers or lines of block. The company sells its medical devices to hospitals and medical centers in the United States and internationally. AtriCure, Inc. is headquartered in West Chester, Ohio.

Best High Tech Companies To Watch For 2014: The Spectranetics Corporation (SPNC)

The Spectranetics Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets single use medical devices used in minimally invasive surgical procedures within the cardiovascular system in conjunction with its proprietary excimer laser system, the CVX-300. The company?s excimer laser technology is used to ablate multiple lesion morphology morphologies, such as plaque, moderate calcium, and thrombus. It offers four primary product categories for the Vascular Intervention product line, including peripheral atherectomy, coronary atherectomy, thrombus management, and crossing solutions. The peripheral atherectomy product line consists of a selection of proprietary laser catheters that are indicated for the treatment of infrainguinal (leg) stenoses and occlusions; and the coronary atherectomy product line includes a selection of proprietary laser catheters to be used in various types of coronary artery diseases comprising occluded saphenous vein bypass grafts, ostial lesions, long lesions, m oderately calcified stenoses, total occlusions traversable by guidewire, lesions, and restenosis. The thrombus management product line consists of three thrombus removal devices intended to remove fresh, soft thrombi, and emboli from vessels in the arterial system, as well as to address thrombotic occlusions in dialysis grafts and fistulae; and the crossing solutions product line support guidewires or other devices in facilitating vascular access in the arterial system to enable various types of interventions. The company?s lead management product line comprises excimer laser sheaths, non-laser sheaths, and cardiac lead management accessories for the removal of pacemaker and defibrillator cardiac leads. It sells its products in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, the Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Puerto Rico. The company has a strategic alliance with Kensey Nash Corporation. The Spectranetics Corporation was founded in 1984 and is based in Colorado Springs , Colorado.

Best Cheap Companies To Own In Right Now: Templeton Dragon Fund Inc.(TDF)

Templeton Dragon Fund, Inc. is a closed ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by Templeton Asset Management Ltd. It invests in the public equity markets of China. The fund invests in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors. It invests in value stocks of companies. The fund typically employs fundamental analysis focusing on factors like growth prospects, competitive positions in export markets, technologies, research and development, productivity, labor costs, raw material costs and sources, profit margins, returns on investment, capital resources, government regulation and management. Templeton Dragon Fund, Inc was formed on September 20. 1994 and is domiciled in Singapore.

Best High Tech Companies To Watch For 2014: China Xiniya Fashion Limited(XNY)

China Xiniya Fashion Limited engages in the design and manufacture of men?s business casual and business formal apparel and accessories. It offers business casual apparel, including jackets, pants, shirts, T-shirts, sweaters, and overcoats; business formal apparel comprising suits, business pants, and dress shirts; and accessories consisting of ties, bags, belts, and shoes. The company sells its products under the Xiniya brand name to distributors and department store chains in the People?s Republic of China. China Xiniya Fashion Limited was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Jinjiang, the People?s Republic of China.

Best High Tech Companies To Watch For 2014: Saunders International Ltd(SND.AX)

Saunders International Limited designs, constructs, and maintains steel bulk liquid storage tanks and reservoirs in Australia. It constructs water reservoirs and petroleum tanks, as well as acid, bitumen, and chemical tanks. The company also offers facilities maintenance services, including risk based maintenance prioritizing, QA compliant inspection, decommissioning and recommissioning, in-house engineering analysis and workshop fabrication, mechanical repair, and preventative maintenance services. In addition, it provides steel fabrication services, which consists of rolling, pressing, abrasive blasting, and painting. The company offers its products to companies operating in petroleum, mining, mineral processing, manufacturing, water, and waste water sectors. Saunders International Limited was founded in 1951 and is headquartered in Condell Park, Australia.

Best High Tech Companies To Watch For 2014: Keryx Biopharmaceuticals Inc.(KERX)

Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, together with its subsidiaries, focuses on the acquisition, development, and commercialization of pharmaceutical products for the treatment cancer and renal disease. The company?s products under development include KRX-0401 (perifosine), an oral anti-cancer agent that inhibits Akt activation in the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) pathway, as well as affects other pathways associated with programmed cell death, cell growth, cell differentiation, and cell survival. Its KRX-0401 is in Phase III clinical development stage for the treatment of refractory advanced colorectal cancer and multiple myeloma, as well as in Phase I and Phase II clinical development stages for the treatment of other tumor types. The company is also developing Zerenex (ferric citrate), an oral, ferric iron-based compound that is in Phase III clinical development for the treatment of hyperphosphatemia in patients with end-stage renal disease o n dialysis. Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. has commercial license agreements with Zentaris AG for the development of KRX-0401; Panion & BF Biotech, Inc. for the development and marketing of Zerenex; and Japan Tobacco Inc. and Torii Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. for the development and commercialization of Zerenex in Japan. The company was founded in 1997 and is based in New York, New York.

Best High Tech Companies To Watch For 2014: Metro Bancorp Inc(METR)

Metro Bancorp, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Metro Bank, which provides a range of retail and commercial banking services to consumers and small and mid-sized companies in Pennsylvania. Its deposit products include personal and business checking accounts, regular savings accounts, money market accounts, interest checking accounts, fixed rate certificates of deposit, individual retirement accounts, and club accounts. The company?s loan products portfolio comprises commercial and industrial, owner occupied real estate, commercial construction and land development, and commercial real estate loans; consumer loans, including home equity, overdraft checking protection, and consumer credit cards, as well as installment loans for home improvement, and the purchase of consumer goods and automobiles; and construction loans and permanent mortgages for homes. It also offers debit card services, online banking services, safe deposit facilities, and automated teller fa cilities. As of July 14, 2011, Metro Bancorp operated 33 stores in the counties of Berks, Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, and York. The company was formerly known as Pennsylvania Commerce Bancorp, Inc. and changed its name to Metro Bancorp, Inc. in June 2009. Metro Bancorp, Inc. was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Best High Tech Companies To Watch For 2014: The Wharf (4)

The Wharf (Holdings) Limited is an investment holding company. It has four segments: property investment, which includes property leasing and hotel operations, and its properties portfolio consists of retail, office, service apartments and hotels, and is primarily located in Hong Kong and Mainland China; property development, which involves activities relating to the acquisition, development, design, construction, sale and marketing of its trading properties primarily in Hong Kong and Mainland China; logistics, which includes the container terminal operations undertaken by Modern Terminals Limited (Modern Terminals), Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals Limited and other public transport operations, and communications, media and entertainment (CME), which comprises pay television, Internet and multimedia and other businesses operated by its non-wholly-owned subsidiary, i-CABLE Communications Limited and also includes the telecommunication businesses operated by Wharf T&T Limited.

Will Cliffs Natural Resources Change Direction with This News?

With shares of Cliffs Natural Resources (NYSE:CLF) trading around $16, is CLF 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

Cliffs Natural Resources is a mining and natural resources company that engages in the production of iron ore pellets, fines and lump ore, and metallurgical coal. It operates several iron ore mines, five metallurgical coal mines, and a couple of thermal coal mines in various countries around the world. Basic materials have not seen significant strength this year, although economies in several countries are growing at explosive rates. Infrastructure development and construction worldwide should fuel a surge in basic materials.

Cliffs Natural Resources CEO Joseph Carrabba announced he will step down by the end of the year. Joseph Carrabba has also left his position as chairman of the company, but he will continue to serve as director and CEO of the energy company until a successor for him is found. With a new CEO, and with economies in many countries growing, look for this news to generate positive vibes for Cliffs Natural Resources.

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart are Weak

Cliffs Natural Resources’ stock has been on a disastrous decline over the last couple of years. The stock is now trading at price lows not seen since the 2008 financial crisis. Analyzing the price trend and its strength can be done using key simple moving averages. What are the key moving averages? They are the 50-day (pink), 100-day (blue), and 200-day (yellow) simple moving averages.

As seen in the daily price chart below, Cliffs Natural Resources is trading below its key averages, which signal neutral to bearish price action in the near-term.

(Source: Thinkorswim)

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

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
Cliffs Natural Resources Options	69.64%	80%	79%

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

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

As of today, there is average demand from call buyers or sellers, and high demand by put buyers or low demand by put sellers, all neutral to bearish over the next two months. To summarize, investors are buying a very significant amount of call and put option contracts, and are leaning neutral to bearish over the next two months.

On the next page, let’s take a look at the earnings and revenue growth rates and what that means for Cliffs Natural Resources’ stock.

E = Earnings Are Decreasing Quarter-Over-Quarter

Rising stock prices are often strongly correlated with rising earnings and revenue growth rates. Also, reactions to the last four quarterly earnings announcements can help gauge investor sentiment on Cliffs Natural Resources’ stock. What do the last four quarterly earnings and revenue growth (Y-O-Y) figures for Cliffs Natural Resources 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)	-74.90%	-976.54%	-85.78%	-38.01%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	-5.93%	-4.23%	-26.05%	-9.96%
Earnings Reaction	14.98%	-19.99%	-10.51%	-6.26%

Cliffs Natural Resources has seen decreasing earnings and revenue figures over the last four quarters. From these numbers, it seems the markets haven’t been too excited about Cliffs Natural Resources’ recent earnings announcements.

P = Weak Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has Cliffs Natural Resources stock done relative to its peers: Alpha Natural Resources (NYSE:ANR), Consol Energy (NYSE:CNX), Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU), and the overall sector?

	Cliffs Natural Resources	Alpha Natural Resources	Consol Energy	Peabody Energy	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	-56.83%	-43.64%	-14.33%	-41.71%	-28.17%

In a very weak sector, Cliffs Natural Resources has been a relative underperformer, year-to-date.

Conclusion

Cliffs Natural Resources is a mining and natural resources company that provides raw products worldwide. The current CEO, Joseph Carrabba, will be leaving his post by the end of the year, so the company is looking for a replacement that could potentially change the direction of the company. The stock has been on the decline for the last couple of years, and is now trading at prices not seen since the financial crisis hit in 2008. Over the last four quarters, investors in the company have not been very excited about declining earnings and revenue figures. Relative to its very weak peers and sector, Cliffs Natural Resources has been a poor year-to-date performer. WAIT AND SEE what direction Cliffs Natural Resources takes.

Today's "Gold Convergence" is Your Best Buy Signal Yet

We've been recommending gold shares for months now, ever since prices collapsed in April. But timing's getting critical, because now the market is telling you gold is set to surge...

The first piece of evidence hit my radar on August 1st, moments after Barrick Gold released its $8.7 billion "news." (More on that in a minute.)

The Commitment of Traders report - perhaps the best leading indicator for gold prices - delivered the second piece of evidence: a staggering 70% spike in "red flag" futures trading. And the third and fourth pieces of evidence just arrived.

But before we look at each of these events in detail, here's what you need to know:

Any one of these indicators is bullish on its own. So when all four signals flash at once, please don't wait.

A "Gold Convergence" like this hasn't happened in 12 years...

Indicator No. 1: A True Bottom

Calling market bottoms - and tops, for that matter - is typically a 50/50 proposition... unless, of course, the market hands you an overwhelming element of proof, just like it did on August 1st...

On August 1, the world's largest gold miner, Barrick Gold (NYSE:ABX) said it was writing down $8.7 billion on a single project, Pascua-Lama, located on the border between Chile and Argentina. 

Barrick's market cap is just twice the hit it's taking on Pascua-Lama. 

What's more, on that same day the company announced it was cutting its quarterly dividend, and would defer expansions and divest certain assets to reduce costs.  Things could hardly look worse for a gold miner.

But the amazing thing is, in the wake of all this awful news, Barrick's stock hardly budged.

And that can only mean one thing...the bad news is already priced in. Price action in a number of other large gold miners has been similar.

Indicator No. 2: Record Short Positions

One of the best indicators of the direction of the gold price is the Commitment of Traders (COT) report for gold. Because they tend to move in herds, speculators are almost always wrong at extremes.

According to recent COT reports, speculators are so bearish on the gold price, their short positions are 70% higher than they have ever been throughout this 12-year secular gold bull market.

Given the massive leverage many futures contracts are traded on - up to 16 to 1 - just a 6.4% rally in the gold price would obliterate all the capital of those fully leveraged contracts.

Just a small percent rise in the gold price can lead to a massive short covering, which would feed on itself, pushing gold still higher and faster.

Short covering rallies can lead to violent upside surges.

And right now, gold hasn't been this hated since its bull market began in 2001. After the extreme bearish sentiment of 2008, gold rallied 70% in a little over one year.

Indicator No. 3: Gold Stocks-to-Gold Ratio

The Gold Stocks-to-Gold Ratio (HUI) is flashing its best bullish signal in 12 years. By comparing the HUI to the gold price, you get a sense whether gold stocks are pricey or not relative to gold. 

The last time we saw this ratio at current levels was back in late 2000, at the very beginning of this secular gold bull market. From that bottom, gold stocks catapulted by over 430%.

Even the crash in 2008 only saw this ratio temporarily dip below 0.25. From that point, gold stocks shot over 150% higher in the following year. So if gold can rise a bit from here, gold stocks could leverage that substantially just by returning to their long-term average.

But there's more...

Indicator No. 4: Gold-to-Oil Ratio

The Gold-to-Oil Ratio is also very bullish right now. This ratio plots the value of gold to oil, and gives us a strong indication of how these two valuable commodities are priced relative to each other.

In the past year, this ratio has fallen nearly in half, from 20 to 12. That's been mostly thanks to a dramatic fall in the price of gold.

In order to get back to a more normal gold-to-oil ratio, gold can rise, oil can fall, or a combination of the two can take place. I believe there's some room for oil to fall, but given gold's drop so far, I think it has a lot more room to climb.

As gold and gold stocks return to more normal levels, I expect to see both of them considerably higher from here. Sentiment and these three valuation metrics say the odds are definitely in gold's favor.

If you want to take advantage of the coming higher gold stock prices, the best choice is to buy SPDR Gold Shares (NYSE:GLD). For more leverage and more risk, you can raise the stakes by choosing the Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (NYSE:GDX), a proxy for the HUI.

For more crucial evidence that global indicators point to a strong rally in gold prices, check out Money Morning's Special Report: "Shocking New Gold Chart" here.

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As Verizon Losses an International Partner, Sprint Struggles Forward with One

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) bought out Vodafone Group PLC’s (NASDAQ: VOD) minority interest in Verizon Wireless for a staggering sum. Vodafone dumped its 45% in the joint venture, and fled the U.S. market. Perhaps the sale happened because Verizon offered $130 billion in cash and stock. Perhaps Vodafone believed that its minority position would always prevent it from having a decision-making role in Verizon Wireless. Or, perhaps Vodafone just made an intelligent decision. Wireless is no longer a growth industry in the United States. Ironically, Softbank clearly believes otherwise. Just weeks ago, Softband closed a $21.6 billion transaction that gave it a 72% ownership in Sprint Corp. (NYSE: S), the third-largest company in the American market. Five billion dollars of that money will go to strengthen Sprint’s balance sheet, which in turn gives Sprint leeway to aggressively market its products and services.

In the U.S. wireless market, there is AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) and Verizon, and then a string of much smaller competitors, among which Sprint is the largest. Yet, Verizon’s prime position has not been enough to drive any significant expansion. Revenue from Verizon’s wireless in the first half was $39.4 billion, up only 7% from the same period in 2012. AT&T’s wireless results actually were worse for the same period. Revenue rose less than 5% to $34 billion. Despite their sizes, each of these companies has fought a zero-sum game for a long time. There are about 300 million wireless subscriptions in the United States, only slightly fewer than there are people. The marketing efforts of the wireless companies largely revolve around stealing one another’s customers.

The theory that the wireless industry in America will improve over time is based on the presumption that people will be forced to pay more for the data used by their smartphones and tablets. That has yet to be proved, and most analysts don’t believe in this supposition. The price wars hardly allow for sharp increases in fees of any kind, and it is these fees that drive profit.

The largest price war in the history of the wireless industry probably will be started soon by Sprint. Masayoshi Son, the high-spirited CEO of Softbank and new chairman of Sprint, knows he has only one chance to take away business from his two larger rivals. Sprint’s network is no better than those of AT&T and Verizon. All sell the same products. That leaves price as the only realistic differentiator for customers. And price wars are expensive when millions of customers are the prize.

Softbank’s initial plan for Sprint shows why Vodafone wanted out of the American market. The $5 billion war chest that Softbank will supply will not go to either creating new smartphones or some equally radical new services such as introducing 5G just as 4G has gotten its footing. Son can provide money to allow Sprint to weather sharp profit margin compression (Sprint rarely makes money, so margins will actually grow negative more rapidly). Son can sell phones at lower prices or offer better priced subscription programs. However, either of the two larger wireless companies, which have extraordinary balance sheets, can raise the ante in a battle for customers based on rates. Put bluntly, Sprint does not stand a chance.

Verizon Wireless does stand a chance, but not a very good one. Its best period of growth is over. It can market new devices, new data products and multimedia offerings in an attempt to raise its yield per subscriber. However, price wars generally exclude the opportunity for these tactics. Vodafone, one of the largest wireless companies in the world, can see the future of U.S. wireless. It is ugly, something Masayoshi Son has ignored.

Should Costco Be in Your Portfolio?

With shares of Costco (NASDAQ:COST) trading around $114, is COST 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

Costco is engaged in the operation of membership warehouses in the United States and Puerto Rico, Canada, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Japan, Australia, and through majority-owned subsidiaries in Taiwan and Korea. The company's depots receive container-based shipments from manufacturers and reallocate these goods for shipment to its individual warehouses, generally in less than 24 hours. Costco's typical warehouse format averages approximately 143,000 square feet, where many products are offered for sale in case, carton, or multiple-pack quantities only.

Earlier this quarter, Sinegal James D, who is Director at Costco, sold 8,000 shares at $115.92 per share for a total value of $927,360. The shares recently traded near $115 per share.

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart Are Strong

Costco stock has been exploding higher over the last few years. The stock is currently trading below all-time high prices so it may need time before it gets going once again. 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, Costco 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 Costco options may help determine if investors are bullish, neutral, or bearish.

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
Costco Options	19.43%	76%	75%

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

	Put IV Skew	Call IV Skew
September Options	Flat	Average
October 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 significant 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 Rising 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 Costco’s stock. What do the last four quarterly earnings and revenue growth (Y-O-Y) figures for Costco 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)	18.18%	37.78%	30.14%	29.13%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	4.86%	8.29%	9.65%	14.34%
Earnings Reaction	-0.94%	1.27%	-0.60%	1.92%

Costco has seen rising earnings and revenue figures over the last four quarters. From these numbers, the markets have had mixed feelings about Costco’s recent earnings announcements.

P = Excellent Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has Costco stock done relative to its peers Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT), Target (NYSE:TGT), Pricesmart (NASDAQ:PSMT), and sector?

	Costco	Wal-Mart	Target	Pricesmart	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	16.01%	7.09%	7.52%	11.53%	9.43%

Costco has been a relative performance leader, year-to-date.

Conclusion

Costco is a warehouse chain that sells large and bulk items to consumers looking to save an extra few bucks. A recent insider sale seems to not be having a significant effect on the company. The stock has been exploding higher and is now trading slightly below highs for the year. Over the last four quarters, earnings and revenues have been rising, however, investors in the company have had mixed feelings about these announcements. Relative to its peers and sector, Costco has been a year-to-date performance leader. Look for Costco to OUTPERFORM.

Top 5 Small Cap Stocks To Own For 2014

Exchange-traded products have found their way into countless portfolios as investors of all walks have embraced these financial instruments for their ease-of-use, cost-efficiency, and unparalleled transparency.�Institutional and self-directed money managers alike have taken advantage of ETFs as they offer instant diversification along with the ability to easily tap into virtually any asset class around the globe; with over 1,400 products on the market, there is an ETF for almost everything imaginable, spanning from gold funds to emerging markets small caps to international bonds and everything in between .�

A recent WSJ article by Anna Prior highlights the sheer diversity among products in the ETF universe and how investors can actually build fairly complete portfolios with just a few funds. In the spirit of simplicity, below we outline 25 All-ETF portfolios, each comprised of just three funds in total; please note that investors should adjust the suggested allocations within each of the strategies to better suite their individual risk preferences and current income needs.

Top 5 Small Cap Stocks To Own For 2014: Voyager Oil & Gas Inc.(VOG)

Voyager Oil & Gas, Inc. engages in the exploration and production of oil and gas in the United States. It primarily focuses on oil shale resource prospects in Montana, North Dakota, Colorado, and Wyoming. As of May 17, 2011, the company controlled approximately 141,500 net acres in the five primary prospect areas comprising 28,000 net acres targeting the Bakken/Three Forks in North Dakota and Montana; 14,200 net acres targeting the Niobrara formation in Colorado and Wyoming; 800 net acres targeting a Red River prospect in Montana; 33,500 net acres in a joint venture targeting the Heath Shale formation in Musselshell, Petroleum, Garfield, and Fergus counties of Montana; and 65,000 net acres in a joint venture in the Tiger Ridge gas field in Blaine, Hill, and Chouteau counties of Montana. It supplies energy and fuel for industrial, commercial, and individual consumers. The company is based in Billings, Montana.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By SmallCap Investor]

  Shares of this explorer, which has operations in the Western U.S., crossed back above $3 and have risen 40 percent in the past month, amid increasing investor interest in companies drilling in the Bakken region.

Top 5 Small Cap Stocks To Own 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 Wyatt Research]

  The maker of solid state drives for computers reported revenue more than doubled and posted adjusted net income of 1 cent per share. It predicted a full-year revenue rise of at least 65 percent. The share price has jumped 210 percent in the past year.

Top Canadian Stocks To Own For 2014: China Metro-Rural Holdings Limited(CNR)

China Metro-Rural Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, primarily engages in the development and operation of agricultural logistics and trade centers in northeast China. It also involves in purchasing, processing, assembling, merchandising, and distributing pearls and jewelry products. The company markets its pearls and jewelry products to wholesale distributors and mass merchandisers in Europe, the United States, Hong Kong, and other parts of Asia. In addition, it develops, sells, and leases residential and commercial properties in Hong Kong and the People?s Republic of China. The company is based in Tsimshatsui, Hong Kong.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Wyatt Research Staff]

  The stock moved significantly higher in mid-January and traded in a fairly tight range ever since. However, that could change soon. China's agricultural exports to Japan will grow if radiation continues to seep into the food chain.

  China exported $593 million worth of agricultural goods to Japan last year.

Top 5 Small Cap Stocks To Own For 2014: InterDigital Inc.(IDCC)

Interdigital, Inc. engages in the design and development of digital wireless technology solutions. The company offers technology solutions for use in digital cellular and wireless products and networks, including 2G, 3G, 4G, and IEEE 802-related products and networks. It holds patents related to the fundamental technologies that enable wireless communications. The company licenses its patents to equipment producers that manufacture, use, and sell digital cellular and IEEE 802-related products; and licenses or sells mobile broadband modem solutions, including modem IP, know-how, and reference platforms to mobile device manufacturers, semiconductor companies, and other equipment producers that manufacture, use, and sell digital cellular products. InterDigital?s solutions are incorporated in various products comprising mobile devices, such as cellular phones, tablets, notebook computers, and wireless personal digital assistants; wireless infrastructure equipment, such as base stations; and components, dongles, and modules for wireless devices. The company was founded in 1972 and is headquartered in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By CRWE]

  InterDigital, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDCC) reported that certain of its subsidiaries have completed the previously announced sale of roughly 1,700 patents and patent applications to Intel Corporation for $375 million in cash.

• [By SmallCap Investor]

  The wireless technology company said it's exploring its options, including a possible sale, following last month's successful auction of Nortel Networks intellectual property which brought in $4.5 billion. IDCC owns about 1,300 patents related to mobile phone technology.

Top 5 Small Cap Stocks To Own For 2014: OmniVision Technologies Inc.(OVTI)

OmniVision Technologies, Inc. designs, develops, and markets semiconductor image-sensor devices. The company offers CameraChip image sensors, which are single-chip solutions that integrate various functions, such as image capture, image processing, color processing, signal conversion, and output of a processed image or video stream for use in various consumer and commercial mass-market applications; and CameraCube imaging devices that are image sensors with integrated wafer-level optics. It also provides companion chips used to connect its image sensors to various interfaces, including the universal serial bus and other industry standard interfaces; and companion digital signal processors that perform compression in standardized still photo and digital video formats. In addition, the company designs and develops software drivers for Linux, Mac OS, and Microsoft Windows, as well as for embedded operating systems, such as Blackberry OS, Palm OS, Symbian, Windows CE, Windows Embedded, and Windows Mobile. Its products are used in mobile phones, notebooks, Webcams, digital still and video cameras, commercial and security and surveillance, and automotive and medical applications, as well as in entertainment devices. The company sells its products directly to original equipment manufacturers and value added resellers, as well as indirectly through distributors worldwide. OmniVision Technologies, Inc. was founded in 1995 and is based in Santa Clara, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Karim]  

  They make the 5-megapixel sensors in the camera of every iPhone. Along with this they carry a strong balance sheet and upbeat earnings expectations boding well for future growth.

Is Salesforce.com a Buy at All-Time Highs?

With shares of Salesforce.com (NYSE:CRM) trading around $49, is CRM 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

Salesforce is a provider of enterprise cloud computing and social enterprise solutions. The company provides a customer and collaboration relationship management applications through the Internet or cloud. Salesforce delivers its service through Internet browsers and mobile devices and markets its social enterprise applications and platforms to businesses on a subscription basis. Cloud computing — the use of Internet-based computing, storage, and connectivity technology to deliver a variety of different services — has generated a lot of buzz in recent years.

Salesforce.com recently reported earnings and gave full-year guidance which topped analyst expectations. The company made a profit of $76.6 million, up from a loss of $9.8 million a year ago. Revenue for the period ending in October is expected to be between $1.05 billion and $1.06 billion with a profit of 8 cents or 9 cents per share. “We're having an outstanding year of growth,” CEO Marc Benioff told analysts on an earnings call.

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart Are Strong

Over the last couple of years, Salesforce.com stock has struggled to make new highs until today. The stock is currently trading near all-time high prices and looks poised to continue. Analyzing the price trend and its strength can be done using key simple moving averages. What are the key moving averages? The 50-day (pink), 100-day (blue), and 200-day (yellow) simple moving averages. As seen in the daily price chart below, Salesforce.com 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 Salesforce.com options may help determine if investors are bullish, neutral, or bearish.

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
Salesforce.com Options	37.75%	30%	27%

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

	Put IV Skew	Call IV Skew
September Options	Flat	Average
October 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 small amount of call and put option contracts and are leaning neutral to bullish over the next two months.

On the next page, let’s take a look at the earnings and revenue growth rates and the conclusion.

E = Earnings Are Mixed Quarter-Over-Quarter

Rising stock prices are often strongly correlated with rising earnings and revenue growth rates. Also, the last four quarterly earnings announcement reactions help gauge investor sentiment on Salesforce.com’s stock. What do the last four quarterly earnings and revenue growth (Y-O-Y) figures for Salesforce.com look like and more importantly, how did the markets like these numbers?

	2013 Q2	2013 Q1	2012 Q4	2012 Q3
Earnings Growth (Y-O-Y)	-18.18%	-200.00%	-378.67%	-5066.67%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	30.80%	28.35%	32.09%	34.94%
Earnings Reaction	13.13%*	8.29%	-17.28%	-5.26%

Salesforce.com has seen decreasing earnings and rising revenue figures over the last four quarters. From these numbers, the markets have been upbeat about Salesforce.com’s recent earnings announcements.

*As of this writing

P = Excellent Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has Salesforce.com stock done relative to its peers Oracle (NASDAQ:ORCL), SAP (NYSE:SAP), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), and sector?

	Salesforce.com	Oracle	SAP	Microsoft	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	18.41%	-3.84%	-8.11%	24.36%	12.41%

Salesforce.com has been a relative performance leader, year-to-date.

Conclusion

Salesforce is a leading provider of cloud computing and CRM technology to companies and consumers worldwide. The company recently reported earnings that impressed investors as well as raised guidance. The stock is currently trading near all-time high prices and looks ready to continue. Over the last four quarters, investors have been upbeat about the company as earnings have been decreasing while revenues have been exploding. Relative to its peers and sector, Salesforce.com has been a year-to-date performance leader. Look for Salesforce.com to continue to OUTPERFORM.

Forget Coca-Cola: Buy This Stock Instead

My job as chief investment strategist for Game-Changing Stocks requires me to look for "the next big thing."

Sometimes that means I'm looking through obscure government reports to learn about the latest technology the Pentagon is using that could soon make it to a retailer near you.

Other times, it means I might be on the phone with an executive of a small company with designs on changing the way we fuel our cars -- or treat patients in hospitals.

But sometimes, I see a game-changing product right in front of me. And I just have to tell my readers about how they can profit from it.

You don't have to own shares of Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) to know that through its worldwide production and distribution network, the company owns some of the most valuable brands in the world. All told, Coca-Cola pours 3% of the beverages served to humanity each day.

And you don't have to work on Wall Street to know that shareholders have done pretty well in the past decade...

Coke products aren't the most-consumed liquid overall, of course. Good old H2O accounts for the most amount of servings, then tea. But as far as soft drinks are concerned, Coke and Diet Coke are the No. 1 and No. 2 brands in the world.

A game-changer right in the midst of this "stodgy" industry...
This planet consumes 55 billion beverage servings a day. Globally, the research consultancy Datamonitor pegs the soft-drink market at an eye-popping $216 billion annually. Beverage Digest, a trade publication, puts the value of the U.S. soft drink market at fully $77.1 billion a year.

 

The beverage industry is extremely large, highly fragmented and intricately complex. Some brands are doing well. Others are -- forgive me -- flat, and a few are on the express train to Donesville.

But the industry view from 30,000 feet isn't so hot. Beverage Digest, in its 2011 rankings, noted that carbonated soft-drink sales fell 1.2% in 2012. Soft drinks haven't seen an increase in U.S. sales since 2004, which seems to indicate people are cutting back for reasons other than the lackluster economy. Consumption, for now, is at 1996 levels.

So should investors steer clear of this industry? Not if you want to miss out on a game-changing company with virtually unlimited potential.

SodaStream (Nasdaq: SODA) is an Israeli company that makes a carbonation machine that makes custom-flavored sodas. The company has a razor/razor blade business model, given that it sells both the machines -- which cost anywhere from $99 to $129 -- as well as consumables like CO2 cartridges, flavoring and special carbonation bottles. The company's worldwide retail footprint comprises 60,000 stores in more than 40 countries, including mass-market chains in the United States.

The appeal of the product is multi-faceted...

We live in a do-it-yourself (D-I-Y) society. Consumers are learning how to do their own home repairs, create their own fashions, and grow their own food. And they're always on the lookout for more ways to stop buying someone else's product or service, and do it on their own.

Of course even the most brilliant concept can languish if management doesn't know how to crack a market. Sodastream's executives courted the most popular retailers to give its products visibility. Mission accomplished. Prominent Sodastream displays can be found in major retailers across the country.

Tapping into Bed, Bath & Beyond (Nasdaq: BBBY) and other U.S. retailers helped this once obscure company boost its sales to more than $400 million by 2012 from around $145 million in 2009. Considering that less than 2% of all U.S. households have a Sodastream beverage maker, this company's domestic growth prospects are open-ended. And management is now tapping into a range of promising international markets as well, setting the stage for more than $600 million in sales by 2014, and perhaps $1 billion a year later.

This isn't just a play on sugar-laden soft drinks that you can make at home. Many people simply make carbonated fruit juice or make plain old seltzer. The days of lugging home a heavy case of water bottles may soon be gone.

Of course, whenever you are looking at a young and fast-growing company, you have to wonder if management is too focused on sales growth and ignoring the bottom line. After all, profit-less growth is a Pyrrhic victory: you may win the sales battle, but will lose the profit war.

Notably, Sodastream's bottom-line performance may be even more impressive than its top-line gains. Per share profits rose an average 50% in 2011 and 2012, and should continue to grow at an average of 25% in 2013 and 2014 (to around $3.20) a share, according to consensus forecasts.

The strategy to grow is solid: Expand its retail footprint geographically across a variety of price points and functionally own the do-it-yourself soda market, then expand into office systems and food service.

That, to my mind's eye, is the money shot.

I've tried SodaStream products, and they're good, at least as good as the other stuff that is out there, but add booze into the mix and you might just have The Real Thing. Restaurants live and die on high-margin alcohol sales, and customized boozy sodas might be a nice way to augment the till behind the bar.

I like this product. I like that the company is profitable. I like its prospects for growth, and I like that it is riding a pair of trends -- wellness and the environment -- that I think have real legs as consumer movements. I also like that the company, valued at about $1.34 billion, has a lot of room to grow.

SodaStream is still growing, and it's not inconceivable that it'll experience some growing pains along the way. The stock can be a bit volatile sometimes, so it's important that you be able to stomach the day-to-day swings, keeping in mind that this company is capable of big things.

You may want to wait to buy this stock on any pullbacks, but I think shares are a good "buy" at their current level for aggressive growth investors.

P.S. -- Have you heard about my 11 Shocking Investment Predictions for 2014? If not, I highly reccoment you do so today... My previous predictions have returned up to 310% gains within a year of releasing the report. And this year's predictions could be the best yet. One of these predictions is about how one of the most important electronic devices of the last 146 years will disappear. Another prediction is about how this tiny company will kill the gasoline engine. To check out this report right now, click here.

Charity Donations Rose in 2012: Giving USA

Americans donated an estimated $316 billion to charitable causes in 2012, according to the annual Giving USA report, released Tuesday.

Gifts from American households and bequests from their estates, corporations and foundations grew 3.5% year-over-year (1.5% adjusted for inflation) in 2012.

The report, issued by the Giving USA Foundation and its research partner, the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, included these findings:

—Giving by individuals rose to $229 billion in 2012, an estimated 3.9% increase (1.9% adjusted for inflation)
—Giving by bequest decreased an estimated 7% in 2012 (8.9% adjusted for inflation) to $23 billion
—Giving by corporations and their foundations rose 12.2% in 2012 (9.9% adjusted for inflation), to an estimated $18 billion in the form of cash, in-kind donations and grants
—Giving by foundations increased 4.4% (2.3% adjusted for inflation) to an estimated $46 billion in 2012, according to Foundation Center figures.

Contributions to arts, culture and humanities organizations rose an estimated 7.8% last year—a sharp contrast to a decline of 17.6% in 2008 and slow growth through 2011.

Charities focused on the environment and animals also saw significant growth in 2012 over 2011, up 6.8%. International giving, which had enjoyed very high growth rates in some recent years, leveled off in 2012 to a 2.5% increase.

The modest increase in charitable giving last year matched the same figurative portrait of 2012’s economic indicators, the report said. Some trends were positive, others were negative, but overall, growth took place.

“When you consider all the factors that go into determining how much we give to charity, modest growth makes sense and is actually encouraging,” Gregg Carlson, chair of the Giving USA Foundation, said in a statement.

“Most households feel pressured at every economic corner, but the longstanding social contract between Americans and the nonprofits they believe in remains resilient and intact; many see giving as a core budget item.”

Publicly aired federal proposals aimed at capping or eliminating the charitable tax deduction may have influenced some giving decisions, David King, chair of the Giving Institute, said in the statement. 

“Philanthropic giving fares best in a known environment, and has been dependent, in part, on certain factors holding true over the decades, including the charitable tax deduction,” King said.

“Some donors may have ‘prepaid’ gifts they had intended to make in 2013 to ensure they received a tax benefit, while others may have chosen not to donate out of concern that deductions for very large gifts would not carry over in 2013 and beyond.”

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Check out Senate Finance Mulls Charitable Giving Reform on AdvisorOne.