Undervalued Stocks To Buy For 2019: February 2014

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Why Groupon Is Getting Clobbered After Beating Estimates

Groupon (NASDAQ: GRPN ) announced earnings of $0.04 per share, which beat expectations by $0.02 and sent the shorts running for cover. The stock rocketed up 18% until people actually read the press release and found that Groupon is projecting a loss rather than a profit for the coming quarter. This is surprising, since revenue guidance was $50 million more than expected. So, the company is closing more business but making less money.

The biggest concern with investing in Groupon is the potential to be driven into a competitive environment so intense that there is no profit to be gained from new ventures. The way to get around this issue is to find profitable niches and gain scale. This is causing the company to use the capital generated from its profitable U.S. business to invest in ventures that are unprofitable today, potentially wasting shareholders' equity.

If at first you don't succeed, acquire again
Part of Groupon's international strategy is to grow through acquisition. In the fourth quarter, this led to an $85.5 million impairment of an investment in Life Media Limited, a Chinese venture that has now been fully written off. This was a minority interest, which Groupon didn't fully have control over. But if the company is using acquisitions as a strategy for growth, should this be written off? Not every acquisition or joint venture will work out. Why shouldn't investors expect that some percentage of investments will be written off in the future? This quarter, Groupon is consolidating Ticket Monster and accelerating its marketing spending to support another acquisition, ideeli. Ticket Monster is a Korean e-commerce company that is maintaining its brand and leadership. Ideeli extends the company's brand into fashion and home decor in the United States. Combined, the companies cost Groupon $300 million in cash and stock, and both are unprofitable today.

Can the goods business hold up outside Christmas?
Of the $65 million in new revenue over the prior year, $53 million came from growth in direct goods sales. This is Amazon's (NASDAQ: AMZN ) sweet spot, and if Groupon is perceived as a secondary vendor, this business may not retain its strength outside of the Christmas season. In a seasonally weak period -- or a more stringent competitive environment -- it is unclear if this business can grow or generate profits.

Increasing competition from Amazon
Amazon launched its local business in August of 2011, but it took a year to build momentum. In the first year, it expanded to 109 regions in 29 states, including the top 15 U.S. cities by population. The business is not significant enough for Amazon to address it directly on its earnings conference calls or break out revenue in the quarterly statements. But a rounding error to a company that generated $5.5 billion in operating cash last quarter can still be very significant. Cash equals options, and if a company decides to use this cash generated from another business to target Groupon's market, it can start a spending war Groupon has little hope of winning.

Summing it up
Groupon has significant challenges ahead of it, both internally and externally. If it doesn't execute flawlessly, it has little hope for survival. It needs to expand to find niches and build sustainable customer relationships to differentiate its brand from Amazon. But that comes at a cost to shareholders, whose capital the company is using.

If we had to buy just one stock in 2014, this would be it
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Friday, February 21, 2014

4 Under-$10 Health Care Stocks Moving Higher

DELAFIELD, Wis. (Stockpickr) -- At Stockpickr, we track daily portfolios of stocks that are the biggest percentage gainers and the biggest percentage losers.

>>5 Active Trades for a Quiet Month

Stocks that are making large moves like these are favorites among short-term traders because they can jump into these names and try to capture some of that massive volatility. Stocks that are making big-percentage moves either up or down are usually in play because their sector is becoming attractive or they have a major fundamental catalyst such as a recent earnings release. Sometimes stocks making big moves have been hit with an analyst upgrade or an analyst downgrade.

Regardless of the reason behind it, when a stock makes a large-percentage move, it is often just the start of a new major trend -- a trend that can lead to huge profits. If you time your trade correctly, combining technical indicators with fundamental trends, discipline and sound money management, you will be well on your way to investment success.

>>5 Stocks With Big Insider Buying

With that in mind, let's take a closer look at a several stocks under $10 that are making large moves to the upside.

Echo Therapeutics

Echo Therapeutics (ECTE) operates as a transdermal medical device company in the U.S. This stock closed up 2.4% to $3.72 a share in Thursday's trading session.

Thursday's Range: $3.59-$3.85

52-Week Range: $1.80-$14.50

Thursday's Volume: 178,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 563,173

>>5 Rocket Stocks to Stomp the S&P in 2014

From a technical perspective, ECTE bounced modestly higher here right off its 200-day moving average of $3.52 with lighter-than-average volume. This move is starting to push shares of ECTE within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade. That trade will hit if ECTE manages to take out Thursday's high of $3.85 to some more near-term overhead resistance at $4.13 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in ECTE as long as it's trending above some near-term support at $3.22 or above its 50-day at $3.04 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 563,173 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then ECTE will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $4.91 to $6.

Ampio Pharmaceuticals

Ampio Pharmaceuticals (AMPE), a biopharmaceutical company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the discovery and development of pharmaceutical drugs and diagnostic products to identify, treat, and prevent metabolic disorders, eye diseases, kidney diseases, acute and chronic inflammation diseases, and male sexual dysfunction This stock closed up 6.4% to $9.24 in Thursday's trading session.

Thursday's Range: $8.60-$9.35

52-Week Range: $3.60-$10.86

Thursday's Volume: 446,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 391,989

>>4 Stocks Spiking on Big Volume

From a technical perspective, AMPE spiked sharply higher here right off some near-term support at $8.50 with above-average volume. This stock has been uptrending strong for the last month and change, with shares moving higher from its low of $6.41 to its recent high of $9.80. During that uptrend, shares of AMPE have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of AMPE within range of triggering a big breakout trade. That trade will hit if AMPE manages to take out Thursday's high of $9.35 and then once it clears some more key overhead resistance levels at $9.80 at $9.95 with high volume

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in AMPE as long as it's trending above some key near-term support at $8.50 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 391,989 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then AMPE will set up to re-test or possibly take out its 52-week high at $10.86.

Baxano Surgical

Baxano Surgical (BAXS), a medical device company, designs, develops, and markets minimally invasive products to treat degenerative conditions of the spine affecting the lumbar region. This stock closed up 5.8% to $1.27 in Thursday's trading session.

Thursday's Range: $1.16-$1.29

52-Week Range: $0.92-$2.67

Thursday's Volume: 563,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 340,859

From a technical perspective, BAXS jumped higher here right above its 50-day moving average of $1.08 with above-average volume. This move is starting to push shares of BAXS within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade. That trade will hit if BAXS manages to take out Thursday's high of $1.29 to $1.35 and then once it takes out some more key overhead resistance levels at $1.43 to $1.45 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in BAXS as long as it's trending above Thursday's low of $1.16 or above its 50-day at $1.08 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 340,859 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then BAXS will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at its 200-day moving average of $1.66 to $1.85, or even $2.

Response Genetics

Response Genetics (RGDX), a life science company, engages in the research, development, marketing, and sale of pharmacogenomic tests for use in the treatment of cancer primarily in the U.S., Asia, and Europe. This stock closed up 9.1% to $1.67 in Thursday's trading session.

Thursday's Range: $1.47-$1.68

52-Week Range: $1.09-$2.93

Thursday's Volume: 805,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 231,900

From a technical perspective, RGDX ripped sharply higher here back above its 200-day moving average at $1.66 with above-average volume. This stock has been uptrending strong for the last month, with shares soaring higher from its low of $1.09 to its intraday high of $1.68. During that move, shares of RGDX have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in RGDX as long as it's trending above Tuesday's low of $1.47 or above its 50-day at $1.32 and then once it sustains a move or close Thursday's high of $1.68 with volume that hits near or above 231,900 shares. If we get that move soon, then RGDX will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $2 to $2.20, or even $2.45.

Best US Companies For 2015

To see more stocks that are making notable moves higher, check out the Stocks Under $10 Moving Higher portfolio on Stockpickr.

-- Written by Roberto Pedone in Delafield, Wis.

Thursday, February 20, 2014

Statoil makes gas find in Barents Sea

Norwegian oil and gas major Statoil ASA (STO) said Thursday it has made a gas discovery in the Kramsno prospect in the Barents Sea, but the exploration program around the Johan Castberg field has so far not delivered expected oil volumes.

-In 2013 Statoil launched a targeted exploration campaign around the Johan Castberg field in order to clarify additional oil potential in the area and make the development project more robust.

-The exploration campaign comprises five prospects, and Kramsno was the fourth of those.

-"The last prospect we will test in this exploration campaign is Drivis, and we will commence drilling operations right after the completion of Kramsno."

-Statoil is operator for production licence PL532 with an ownership share of 50%. The licence partners are Eni Norge AS (30%) and Petoro AS (20%).

Hot Value Companies To Buy For 2015

-At 0819 GMT shares traded 0.6% lower at NOK160.10.

-Write to Dominic Chopping at dominic.chopping@wsj.com; Twitter: @WSJNordics

Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Closed-End Income with Options

This closed-end fund, which is a member of our Sector Portfolio and our Balanced Portfolio, owns many of the largest global companies; it then writes call options against many of these stock positions, explains Bob Carlson in Retirement Watch.

This recommended fund is Eaton Vance Tax-Managed Diversified Equity Income (ETY). The options that the fund writes give buyers the right to buy the stocks from the fund at fixed prices by a certain date.

If a stock doesn't exceed the option price by the expiration date, there's no advantage for the option holder to buy the stock. The option expires worthless, and the fund keeps the premium it earned from writing the option.

If the stock rises above the option price, the option holder buys the stock for the option price. This costs the fund some capital gains it otherwise might have earned.

The option writing, plus owning, primarily, the world's largest companies, give the fund's net asset value more stability than other funds. Option writing also increases the fund's income, allowing it to increase distributions.

The share price of this closed-end is up 23% over the last year. But the net asset value of the fund didn't increase as much, cutting the fund's discount to its net asset value to around 10.56%, which is very close to its average discount.

The fund has a high yield—a distribution rate of over 9% recently. It has a history of making "return of capital" distributions. It adopted a policy of limiting these and had no such distributions in 2012, and probably only a limited amount for 2013. It doesn't use leverage.

The fund's stock holdings are about 80% US and 20% international. Top holdings recently were Google, Apple, Amazon, Gilead Science, and Occidental Petroleum.

Subscribe to Bob Carlson's Retirement Watch here…

Friday, February 14, 2014

Jobless claims rise slightly to 339,000

WASHINGTON — The number of Americans seeking U.S. unemployment benefits rose 8,000 last week to 339,000, evidence that layoffs ticked up. Still, the increase wasn't enough to suggest the job market is worsening.

The Labor Department said Thursday that the four week average of applications, a less volatile measure, increased 3,500 to a seasonally adjusted 336,750.

The average is roughly in line with pre-recession levels and suggests that, despite last week's rise, companies are cutting few jobs. Applications are a proxy for layoffs.

Last week's figure may also have been pushed up by cold weather, which can cause construction firms and other companies to stop work.

A total of 3.52 million Americans received benefits as of Jan. 25 — the latest data available — up from 3.47 million the previous week.

The data suggests the job market remains stable, despite weak hiring in the past two months. Tepid job gains in January and December have raised concerns that the economy has lost momentum this year.

But a sharp slowdown in growth and hiring is less likely as long as applications for unemployment benefits remain relatively low. Steady applications suggest businesses are confident enough in the economy to hold onto their workers.

Employers added just 113,000 jobs in January, a second straight weak showing after just 75,000 new jobs in December. Economists have partly blamed December's figures on extremely cold weather.

There were some good signs in January's report. The unemployment rate fell to a five-year low of 6.6%, from 6.7%. The decline occurred because more of those out of work found jobs. That was an improvement from December, when the rate fell because many of the unemployed stopped searching for work. The government only counts people as unemployed if they are actively looking.

Other recent economic data has been mixed. A survey of manufacturing firms found that factory expansion slowed in January, as a measure of new orders plummeted. A separa! te gauge of forthcoming home sales also fell.

But a survey of service companies, which covered retailers, construction contractors, and financial services firms, among others, found that growth accelerated last month.

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

For One Day at Least, Markets Love Janet Yellen

The market’s weak start to the year is slowly becoming a memory as investors used Janet Yellen’s testimony as an excuse to push up economically sensitive stocks like Boeing (BA), Goldman Sachs (GS), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Chevron (CVX) and International Business Machines (IBM).

EPA

The S&P 500 rose 1.1% to 1,819.75, extending its winning streak to four days. Its four-day rise of 3.9% is the largest such gain since Jan. 2013. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, meanwhile, advanced 192.98 points, or 1.2%, to 15,994.77. Just one Dow stock, Cisco Systems (CSCO), finished in the red.

Boeing rose 2.4% to $130.16 after fellow airplane manufacturer Airbus issued a rosy 20-year forecast, while Goldman Sachs gained 2.1% to 164.39% after making changes to its management committee. Chevron advanced 1.7% to $113.58 as oil rose, while Johnson & Johnson gained 2.1% to $92.97 and International Business Machines advanced 1.5% to $179.70.

The market’s reaction to Yellen’s testimony was far different her first day on the job, when the Dow Jones Industrials plunged more than 300 points. And the love comes despite Yellen saying almost exactly what the markets thought she would. CRT Capital’s Ian Lyngen explains:

So where are we? In the same spot, with the Fed having 1) a dual mandate that is very much on her mind, 2) a path to QE tapering that is unwavering unless economic circumstances change in a way the market doesn't anticipate, 3) a UNR threshold of 6.5% that is truly meaningless at this stage of the Fed cycle, 4) inflation that remains well below the Fed's desired levels, and, cutting to the original chase, 5) "a great deal of continuity" in the FOMC's approach to monetary policy.

What she didn't mention is equally important like new measures to be incorporated into the Fed's mandate – which is not her place to change anyway – or targets like nominal GDP that have at least been bandied about as possible or even more arcane ideas like changing interest rates on required reserves. Yellen was refreshing in her lack of nuance or subtlety so we can get on with things.

So why the big gain? Perhaps, investors craved continuity. Perhaps, as Bloomberg suggests, Yellen’s confidence in the U.S. economy’s ability to withstand tapering was infectious. The Wall Street Journal chalks it up to confidence that the late-January selloff has ended. No matter. Stocks rallied.

But while Yellen was busy building a rally, some worrisome issues hovered beneath the surface. The People’s Bank of China, for instance, is stuck with a monetary conundrum that’s easily as complex as that of the Fed’s: How to cut back on credit without blowing up its economy. Societe Generale’s Patrick Legland thinks the risks of it not being able to are growing:

Top 5 Safest Companies To Buy Right Now

Investors seem to be getting more cautious about the outlook for Chinese growth. A year ago, investors thought the worst reasonable case for Chinese growth was 6%. This has now fallen by 0.4% to 5.6%…

[But] China's ambitious deleveraging plans increase the risk of a hard landing, which could take year-on-year growth to 2%. Investors are still underestimating the risk…

Chinese credit and, to a lesser extent, equity markets would be very vulnerable to a hard landing; emerging markets would also be hit, while the dollar would benefit from a flight to quality.

And while monetary policy got the attention today, we should note that earnings season is nearing its end. It’s been one of “the best earnings season in years,” says Ned Davis Research’s Ed Clissold and team–which could be bad news for the market. They write:

By several metrics the current earnings season is on track to be the best in years. Of the 342 S&P 500 companies that have reported, 73.1% have beaten expectations, the second-highest rate in the last two years. Consensus estimates are for single quarter year/year operating EPS to jump 26.3% in 4Q13, the most since 4Q10. Yet the market is off to its worst start in four years. How can this be?

Clissold offers five reasons including macros issues like the taper and emerging-market selloff, the market’s high valuation, earnings comparisons to periods that were artificially weak and tepid revenue growth. “The weak start to the year has left the market oversold but has not changed the likelihood that the best part of the earnings story has probably happened already,” Clissold writes.

If earnings can’t push stocks higher, what will?

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Top 10 International Stocks To Own For 2014

Many oil and natural gas service companies called the fourth quarter of 2012 a trough in the North American market. By all accounts so far during this reporting period, that appears to be especially prescient. International heavyweights Halliburton (NYSE: HAL ) and Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB ) both witnessed signs that a second half turnaround us likely upon them and the industry as a whole.

What does that mean to Warren Buffett?
Well, a lot, really. For the last couple of quarters, Buffett has been adding stock in National Oilwell Varco (NYSE: NOV ) to his portfolio and for what appears to be good reason. The company is modestly priced compared to peers and has its hand in both on-land and offshore drilling markets. Replacing parts on rigs and upgrading global fleets is Varco's business, and there are no shortage of customers.�

With a great management team in place, tack-on acquisitions have created a full-service company that counts the majority of the drilling world as customers. If the conference call on Friday isn't full of positive news, I would be highly skeptical as to why after following the activity during the past week. �

Top 10 International Stocks To Own For 2014: Overhill Farms Inc.(OFI)

Overhill Farms, Inc. manufactures prepared frozen food products for branded retail, private label, foodservice, and airline customers. Its product line includes entrees, plated meals, bulk-packed meal components, pastas, soups, sauces, poultry, meat and fish specialties, and organic and vegetarian offerings. The company markets its products through its internal sales force, as well as through outside food brokers. Overhill Farms, Inc. was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Vernon, California.

Top 10 International Stocks To Own For 2014: Air Methods Corporation(AIRM)

Air Methods Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides air medical emergency transport services and systems in the United States. It transports persons requiring intensive medical care from either the scene of accident or general care hospitals to highly skilled trauma centers or tertiary care centers. The company operates through three segments: Community-Based Services, Hospital-Based Services, and United Rotorcraft. The Community-Based Services segment provides air medical transportation services, including aircraft operation and maintenance, medical care, dispatch and communications, and medical billing and collection services. This segment operates 201 helicopters and 15 fixed wing aircraft in 29 states. The Hospital-Based Services segment offers air medical transportation services, and medically equipped helicopters and airplanes for hospitals. It operates 212 helicopters and 6 fixed wing aircraft in 34 states. The United Rotorcraft segment designs, manufa ctures, installs, and certifies modular medical interiors, multi-mission interiors, and other aerospace and medical transport products for domestic and international customers, as well as provides quality assurance and certification services. Air Methods Corporation was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Englewood, Colorado.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Brian Pacampara]
What: Shares of air medical transportation company Air Methods (NASDAQ: AIRM ) sank 12% today after its preliminary quarterly results disappointed�Wall Street. �

Top China Stocks To Watch For 2015: Leading Brands Inc(LBIX)

Leading Brands, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development, production, marketing, and distribution of beverages in Canada, the western United States, and Asia. It also involves in beverage bottling, as well as in the sale, merchandising, brand development, brand licensing, and brand management of beverage products. The company?s principal product lines comprise juices and waters. It sells its products under TrueBlue, LiteBlue, and PureBlue brand names, as well as under licensed brand Stewart?s Fountain Classics. The company sells beverage products through its sales force, as well as through outside brokers and agents to retail, wholesale, and distribution outlets. The company was formerly known as Brio Industries Inc. and changed its name to Leading Brands, Inc. in October 1999. Leading Brands, Inc. was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

Top 10 International Stocks To Own For 2014: Marin Software Inc (MRIN)

Marin Software Incorporated, incorporated on March 16, 2006, provides cloud-based digital advertising management platform to advertisers and agencies. The Company�� Revenue Acquisition Management platform is a software-as-a-service (SaaS), analytics, workflow, and optimization solution for marketing professionals, enabling them to manage their digital advertising spend across search, display, social and mobile advertising channels. Its platform integrates with publishers, such as Baidu, Bing, Facebook, Google, Yahoo! and Yahoo! Japan, as well as Web analytics and ad-serving solutions, and key enterprise applications to enable marketers to measure the return on investment of their marketing programs.

The Company�� software platform serves as a system-of-record for advertising performance, revenue and conversion data and allows advertisers to correlate advertising spend to subsequent revenue outcomes or business events. It enables its customers to simultaneously run large-scale digital advertising campaigns across multiple publishers and channels, making it easy for marketers to create, publish, modify and optimize campaigns in real time.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Evan Niu, CFA]
What: Shares of Marin Software (NYSE: MRIN ) got clobbered today, down by as much as 21% after the company reported earnings.

So what: Revenue in the first quarter totaled $17.2 million, which resulted in a non-GAAP net loss of $9.4 million, or $0.39 per share. The freshly public software maker saw gross margin decline to 57%, and its losses grew from a year ago. Investors obviously wanted more.

Top 10 International Stocks To Own For 2014: Century Casinos Inc.(CNTY)

Century Casinos, Inc. operates as an international casino entertainment company in the United States and internationally. The company owns and operates the Century Casino & Hotel Cripple Creek in Cripple Creek; the Century Casino Calgary in Alberta, Canada; the Century Casino & Hotel in Central City, Colorado; and the Century Casino & Hotel in Edmonton, Canada. It also operates ship-based casinos aboard, including the Silver Cloud, the Mein Schiff, and three Oceania Cruises ships. The company, through its Austrian subsidiary, Century Casinos Europe GmbH, holds a 33.3% ownership interest in Casinos Poland Ltd, which owns and operates seven full casinos in Poland. The company also manages the casino at the Radisson Aruba Resort, and Casino & Spa in Aruba, Caribbean. Century Casinos, Inc. was founded in 1992 and is based in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Top 10 International Stocks To Own For 2014: Powerlan Ltd(PWR.AX)

Clarity OSS Limited provides information technology products and services to the telecom industry in Australia and internationally. The company supplies software and related deployment services for operations automation to communications services providers. It offers a suite of products, including Clarity Infrastructure Management used to realize operational efficiency in infrastructure management, from project planning to ongoing asset and estate management; and Clarity Marketplace used to support retail, wholesale, and partner channels for customer account management, self-care, product ordering, settlements, and billing. The company also provides Clarity Fulfillment product to simplify the operational management of multi-technology and multi-vendor networks across inventory, provisioning, and activation; and Clarity Assurance product to monitor and manage networks performance and incidents for resolution. In addition, it offers a range of professional services, includin g software deployment services, education, and customer support. The company was formerly known as Powerlan Limited and changed its name to Clarity OSS Limited in January 2012. Clarity OSS Limited was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in North Sydney, Australia.

Top 10 International Stocks To Own For 2014: ProLogis(PLD)

Prologis Inc. is an independent equity real estate investment trust. It invests in the real estate markets across the globe. The firm engages in the ownership, development, management, and leasing of industrial distribution and retail properties. It was previously known as Security Capital Investment Trust. Prologis Inc. was formed in 1991 and is based in San Francisco, California with an additional office in Denver, Colorado.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Ben Levisohn]
But the S&P 500′s biggest losers show the kind of carnage long predicted by those fearful of higher yields. How’s this for evidence: Real-estate investment trusts,�whose yields look more paltry with every tick higher in the 10-year Treasury, made up half of the top-10 losers. Prologis (PLD) fell 8.4% to $35.08, the Macerich Co. (MAC) dropped 8.2% to $56.72 and Health Care REIT (HCN) was off 8.1% at $58.57.
[By Dimitra DeFotis]
Among real estate trusts:
American Tower��(AMT),�the diversified �REIT, is the best performer in the index.�It was�up 4.6% after saying�Friday it will buy the parent of tower operator Global Tower Partners for $4.8 billion. HCP (HCP), a healthcare REIT, was�up 3.3%. Prologis (PLD) an industrial REIT, was�up 2.8%. Vornado Realty Trust (VNO) was�up 2.7%. Boston Properties (BXP), the office REIT, was�up 2.3%. Equity Residential (EQR), a residential REIT, was�up 2.4%. Ventas (VTR), a healthcare REIT, was�up 2%.
[By Eric Volkman]
Prologis (NYSE: PLD ) has announced that it will sell 31 million new pieces of itself. That's the number of common shares it will float in an upcoming, underwritten public stock offering. The price of the shares will be $41.60 apiece, and the company's underwriters have been granted a 30-day purchase option for up to an additional 4.65 million shares to cover overallotments, if any.

Top 10 International Stocks To Own For 2014: Class Editori(CLE.MI)

Class Editori SpA engages in newspapers, magazines, digital satellite television (TV), digital terrestrial TV, radio, and electronic publishing businesses. The company publishes newspapers that provide news, features, and information of interest to economists, lawyers, tax specialists, bankers, and other professionals; and various magazines for business professionals and consumers. It also operates Class CNBC, an Italian business TV channel, which provides activities and events of Italian stock exchange and Davos world economic forum; Class TV Msnbc, a terrestrial digital information TV channel that offers information on the lives of Italians and weather news; ClassHorseTV, which provides horse events; and Class TV Moda, an Italian fashion channel that offers international events, fashion shows, and interviews with fashion celebrities and VIP guests at fashion shows, as well as other TV channels, such as Class Life. In addition, the company provides a mix of classical musi c and Italian, and international financial news. Further, it supplies data, information, and financial news through various platforms, including cable, satellite, Intranet, and the Internet. Class Editori SpA was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Milan, Italy.

Top 10 International Stocks To Own For 2014: Tranzbyte Corp (ERBB)

The Tranzbyte Corporation, incorporated on November 12, 1998, is a driving force behind Altitude Organic Corporation, One Bode, The YO! Debit Card, and ProximaRF. Altitude Organic Corporation is a medical marijuana dispensary brand. It has developed retailing, branding, and commercial cultivating strategies in conjunction with its licensed medical marijuana retail dispensaries operating under the Altitude Organic Medicine brand name.

Tranzbyte houses the technology division, which is engaged in the sale of its optical media enhancement products to customers in the United States and Asia. Products in the Tranzbyte division include FLASHAlbum and FlixStix technologies that enable distributors of optical media (compact discs, digital video discs, etc.) to consolidate the features of each medium onto a single content-protected universal serial bus (USB) flash drive. One Bode has created an assortment of products focusing on plant-based nutrients and enzymes. Applied radio frequency identification (RFID) and its operating subsidiaries (www.proximarf.com), have a portfolio of RFID reader, sensor tag and data logging products.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Peter Graham]
Small cap holding companies Sibling Group Holdings Inc (OTCMKTS: SIBE), Tranzbyte Corp (OTCMKTS: ERBB) and Readen Holding Corp (OTCMKTS: RHCO) are in the business of holding or acquiring other companies. They have also been getting some attention lately in various investment newsletters and not necessarily because of acquisitions or other news but rather because of a few recent paid promotions. With that in mind, here is a quick look and a reality check about all three:

Top 10 International Stocks To Own For 2014: Camco Financial Corporation(CAFI)

Camco Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Advantage Bank that provides various financial products and services in Ohio, Kentucky, and West Virginia. The company offers a range of deposit products, including interest-bearing and non-interest bearing checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, regular savings accounts, health savings accounts, term certificate accounts, and retirement savings plans. It also provides commercial real estate and business loans; consumer loans; conventional fixed-rate and adjustable-rate mortgage loans for the construction, acquisition, or refinancing of single-family residential homes; and construction and permanent mortgage loans on condominiums, multi-family, and nonresidential properties. As of May 4, 2011, the company operated 22 offices. Camco Financial Corporation was founded in 1970 and is headquartered in Cambridge, Ohio.

Top 10 International Stocks To Own For 2014: Dragonwave Inc(DRWI)

Dragonwave Inc. provides wireless Ethernet equipment for emerging Internet protocol networks worldwide. It designs, develops, markets, and sells carrier-grade microwave radio frequency networking equipment that wirelessly transmit broadband voice, video, and other data between two points. The company?s products have application in the backhaul function in a wireless communications network, as well as in point-to-point transport in private networks, including municipal and enterprise applications. It markets its wireless carrier-Ethernet links under the Horizon trade name. The company also offers service delivery unit solution products based on pseudowire technology. It markets its products to communications service providers comprising cellular service providers and broadband wireless access service providers; wireless extension of fixed-line networks to directly connect high-bandwidth end-customers to the core network; and private networks of large multi-site organizatio ns directly, as well as through distributors and regional value-added resellers. The company was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Ottawa, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

[By Monica Gerson]
DragonWave (NASDAQ: DRWI) soared 32.08% to $2.10 in the pre-market trading after the company reported that it has been selected as a microwave solutions provider for backhaul connectivity by Gogo (NASDAQ: GOGO).
[By Bryan Murphy]
The bad new is, if you didn't catch my first bullish call on DragonWave, Inc. (NASDAQ:DRWI) from November 21st, you missed out on what would have been about a 20% gain. The good news is, it's still not too late to get into DRWI and rack up a very nice profit. In fact, the best days for DragonWave may be in front of it.

Top 10 International Stocks To Own For 2014: Ten Peaks Coffee Company Inc (TPK)

Ten Peaks Coffee Company Inc. (Ten Peaks) is a Canada-based company. It operates its business through its subsidiary, Swiss Water Decaffeinated Coffee Company Inc. (SWDCC), which is a green coffee decaffeinator located in Burnaby, British Columbia. It also owns and operates Seaforth Supply Chain Solutions Inc. (Seaforth), a green coffee handling and warehousing business located in Metro Vancouver. SWDCC is engaged in the coffee decaffeination business utilizing the branded Swiss Water Process of 100% chemical free green coffee decaffeination. SWDCC has two subsidiaries, which include Swiss Water Decaffeinated Coffee Co. USA, Inc, and Swiss Water Process Marketing Services Inc. On November 18, 2011, a subsidiary of Ten Peaks, Seaforth Supply Chain Solutions Inc., was incorporated. On January 1, 2011, in response to changes to the legislation governing the taxation of income trusts which made the income trust form of structure less advantageous, the Fund converted to a corporation. Advisors' Opinion:

[By Inyoung Hwang]
Travis Perkins Plc (TPK) lost 1.6 percent to 1,749 pence. The builders��merchant said its consumer division failed to grow on a comparable basis in the third quarter, slipping from an 8.6 percent increase in the two months ended June.

Monday, February 10, 2014

Finra's proposed monitoring system could cost industry millions

An automated data collection system that would allow Finra to improve its monitoring of brokerage firm customer accounts would require new and potentially costly coordination between brokers and clearinghouses, according to industry participants.

On Dec. 23, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. released a request for comment on a proposal called the Comprehensive Automated Risk Data System. Under the program, Finra would compile account activity information that firms currently maintain in their books and records. The regulator said that the system would allow it to identify harmful sales practices more quickly and efficiently than it does now.

But the system would present a data collection challenge because account information, such as investor profiles and investment objectives, may be maintained in different ways by individual brokerages and clearinghouses. Making the process uniform would require either the brokers to standardize their profiles or the clearinghouses to set up data protocols that are adopted by the industry, according to Paul Tolley, chief compliance officer at Commonwealth Financial Network.

“In order for Finra to articulate this system, there have to be uniform definitions,” Mr. Tolley said. “There may be a substantial cost associated with that either on the B-D side or on the clearinghouse side, depending on which way they go.”

Steven Wallman, chief executive of Foliofn Inc., a clearinghouse and custody firm, said that the data points that Finra could seek are either not captured by both broker-dealers and clearinghouses or are maintained in unique ways on both sides. Standardization could be complicated.

“There's an added level of coordination that is problematic and always more costly,” Mr. Wallman said.

The proposed data collection requirements also could force clearinghouses to collate and manage reams of new account information from brokers.

“Now you're in the data warehousing and data collection business — that's not the business we're in,” Mr. Wallman said.

In the regulatory notice, Finra noted that clearing firms would incur costs related to building and maintaining the technology to provide account information to the regulator, while brokerages would have expenses related to providing additional information to clearing companies.

Finra officials were not available for comment.

The regulator said that the system, which has not yet been formally proposed as a new rule, would allow Finra to perform more-sophisticated data analysis of industry practices that could harm investors.

“The information collected through CARDS will allow Finra to run analytics that identify potential 'red flags' of sales practice misconduct and help us identify potential business conduct problems with firms, branches and registered representatives,” Susan Axelrod, Finra executive vice president of regulatory operations, said in a statement.

The system will help the broker-dealer regulator ferret out “churning, excessive commissions, pump-and-dump schemes, markups [and] mutual fund switching,” among other s! ales violations, according to a regulatory notice.

Brokerage firms would have to provide the account information to their clearing firms — from which Finra would obtain it. Finra would seek account types and categories, customer investment profiles, purchase and sales transactions, additions and withdrawals, margin and balances and a description of securities, among other data.

The information collected in the initial phase of the program is similar to what Finra currently culls on a firm-by-firm basis during examinations. Retrieving it through the new system prior to exams would help Finra identify investor risks earlier, according to a Finra statement.

Amy Lynch, president of FrontLine Compliance, said that while the initiative could be a boon to Finra, it likely will draw initial resistance from financial firms.

“It's going to be a huge burden, especially on the clearing firms, initially, to implement the technology,” Ms. Lynch said, adding that industrywide costs will be at least in the millions of dollars. On an individual-firm basis, she said it would be hard to estimate.

The system “would have to be scalable, somehow,” Ms. Lynch said. “Think of all the firms that don't have the resources to implement the new required technology.”

Finra released the request for comment in part to get industry feedback for a cost-benefit analysis of an information-collection system. The regulatory notice didn't contain cost estimates, but Finra said the program would ease regulatory hassles by making the examination process more efficient.

“CARDS is intended to reduce burdens on firms by eliminating intermittent information requests from Finra for the information CARDS covers,” according to the notice.

Mr. Wallman said that the system could provide a more efficient way to collect account information than the current process of gathering it firm by firm.

“I applaud their looking at it as a new way of doing oversight and regulation,! ” s! aid Mr. Wallman, a former Securities and Exchange Commission member. “It's exactly the kind of thing as a regulator I would do.”

Mr. Tolley similarly endorsement the concept.

“Overall, I'm in favor of the nature of the proposal,” Mr. Tolley said. “[But] there are complexities involved.”

Among those complexities would be the need for the clearing firms and brokerages to add another level of coordination.

"There could be heated discussions as to who is responsible for which end of the data,” Ms. Lynch said.

Finra would collect the information on a daily or weekly basis from clearing firms and perform data analysis to get a better handle on customer contacts at individual firms as well as industry trends.

Top 10 Small Cap Stocks To Watch Right Now

In a test of the concept using information from an individual firm and two clearing firms, Finra said it was able to pinpoint potential investor harm.

“For example, the analytics showed Finra that a firm was selling a new, high-risk product — a business in which the firm was not historically engaged and its financial reporting did not disclose,” the regulatory notice stated.

Friday, February 7, 2014

Is Microsoft Well-Positioned for the Future?

With shares of Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) trading around $36, is MSFT 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

Microsoft is engaged in developing, licensing, and supporting a wide range of software products and services. The company also designs and sells hardware and delivers online advertising to customers. It operates in five segments: Windows and Windows Live, Server and Tools, Online Services Division, Microsoft Business Division, and Entertainment and Devices. As a mature company, Microsoft is also offering a stable dividend, which is currently yielding around 3.32 percent annually.

After compiling a list of more than 100 CEO candidates, Microsoft settled on Satya Nadella a home-grown leader who joined the software maker in the early 1990s. That's back when Google's founders were teenagers and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was in elementary school. Tuesday's hiring of Nadella as Microsoft's CEO after a five-month search is a safe move that's likely to be greeted with sighs of relief around the company's Redmond, Washington headquarters, industry analysts say. But the methodical, almost predictable decision is likely to reinforce perceptions that Microsoft is a plodding company reluctant to take risks as it competes against younger rivals who relish going out on a limb.

While Google founder and CEO Larry Page boasts about his company taking "moon shots" and Zuckerberg promises to "move fast and break things," Microsoft has fallen behind the technological curve after underestimating the importance of Internet search more than a decade ago and reacting too slowly to the rise of mobile devices during the past seven years. Meanwhile, the sales of personal computers running on Microsoft's Windows software are shrinking.

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart Are Mixed

Microsoft stock has seen its fair share of volatility over the last several years. The stock is currently pulling back and may need time to consolidate before heading higher. Analyzing the price trend and its strength can be done using key simple moving averages. What are the key moving averages? The 50-day (pink), 100-day (blue), and 200-day (yellow) simple moving averages. As seen in the daily price chart below, Microsoft is trading between its rising key averages which signal neutral price action in the near-term.

MSFT

(Source: Thinkorswim)

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

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
Microsoft options	26.90%	53%	51%

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

	Put IV Skew	Call IV Skew
March Options	Average	Average
April Options	Average	Average

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

	2013 Q4	2013 Q3	2013 Q2	2013 Q1
Earnings Growth (Y-O-Y)	2.63%	-3.08%	11.94%	20.00%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	14.26%	7.36%	10.17%	17.71%
Earnings Reaction	2.05%	5.96%	-10.85%	3.36%

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

P = Excellent Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has Microsoft stock done relative to its peers, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Oracle (NASDAQ:ORCL), Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), and sector?

	Microsoft	Apple	Oracle	Google	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	-3.18%	-8.30%	-5.38%	2.54%	-2.58%

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

Conclusion

Microsoft is a technology company that provides valuable software products and services to consumers and companies worldwide. The company on Tuesday announced Satya Nadella as its new CEO. The stock has been moving higher in recent years, but is currently pulling back. Over the last four quarters, earnings and revenues have been rising. However, investors have had mixed feelings about recent earnings announcements. Relative to its peers and sector, Microsoft has been a relative year-to-date performance leader. Look for Microsoft to OUTPERFORM.

Thursday, February 6, 2014

John Keeley Comments on NCR Corporation

NCR Corporation (NCR) was the Fund's largest detrac tor during the fourth quarter, falling over 14 percent and detracting 25 basis points of return . The nancial technology company delivered a slightly weaker than expected quarter t hat surprised us as well as the Street. They reafrmed guidance which implies a strong fourth qu arter and suggested that cash ows will continue to be cautiously managed. Since we like th e business and valuation, as well as the improved balance sheet, we are inclined to stay the course.

From John Keeley (Trades, Portfolio)'s Keeley All Cap Value Fund fourth quarter 2013 commentary.

Also check out: John Keeley Undervalued Stocks John Keeley Top Growth Companies John Keeley High Yield stocks, and Stocks that John Keeley keeps buying

Currently 4.00/512345

Best Safest Companies To Watch In Right Now

Rating: 4.0/5 (1 vote)

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Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Dow Braces for One-Day 1,000 Drop, as Markets Plunge

A 1,000-point drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) may appear like a great deal but, based on historical standards, it is not much. Japan’s Nikkei has sold off 14% so far this year, and 4% in a day. The sell-off in equity markets has accelerated. A thousand points off the DJIA would be only 6.5%. And the outside forces that pressure markets up and down are pushing them relentlessly down for the time being.

The DJIA has a tradition of plunging on bad news. It sold off 7.9% on October 15, 2008, a single day during the financial crisis in 2008. More than once during that panic, it dropped more than 7%. Nearly as recently, on October 19, 1987, the DJIA dropped 22.6%. The cause was not extraordinary. The economy was in recession and investors rushed for the exits once it became clear that day’s trading would be terrible.

The swirling down has already started, as the U.S. markets have corrected more than 5%. Among the reasons are concerns that gross domestic product (GDP) in the United States and, probably, in other larger economies have lost the steam of their recoveries. The end to central bank support stands as one reason. Emerging markets like China, India and Brazil cannot be counted on to move global GDP higher, as their own growth rates have slowed.

Consumer confidence in the United States has faltered. Some evidence of that has come out in slow holiday retail sales. Housing prices have stopped rising in some American markets and have slowed in others. The pace of home sales has slowed, as has the number of homes put onto the market.

Unemployment may have dropped to 6.7%, but many experts say that long-term unemployment will dog a recovery for years. And the hope that the jobless rate will return to a “normal” 5% has all but disappeared.

Best Safest Companies To Invest In Right Now

If earnings are at the heart of much of the market’s movement, there has hardly been one huge American public corporation that has outperformed, as measured by fourth-quarter numbers. Certainly based on market cap, there has been little good news. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM), Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT), International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) and General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) each have stumbled.

As the markers for equity market movements are taken into account, there is no positive figure on the ledger. However, there is a large collection of bad ones.

Monday, February 3, 2014

January Auto Sales Slump on Cold Weather

Automakers reported January U.S. sales throughout the morning Monday, and it looks like carmakers posted mostly weaker results. Cold weather in the eastern half of the United States weighed on sales in what is already historically the weakest month for car sales.

Based on analysts’ estimates, January’s seasonally adjusted annual sales rate for 2014 stands at 15.6 million units. Sales in 2013 totaled 15.6 million units, up 8% over 2012 sales.

Chrysler’s year-over-year sales rose 8% to 127,183 units, the company’s best January sales level since 2008. The company’s Chrysler, Jeep, Ram Truck and Fiat brands all posted gains in the January. Month-over-month, however, sales fell by almost 34,000 units, or 21%. Chrysler projected a seasonally adjusted annual rate of sales from all manufacturers at 15.6 million units for 2014, down from last month’s projection of 15.8 million. The company ended the month with 79 days supply of inventory, flat with December’s total.

Top 5 Telecom Stocks To Invest In Right Now

Ford Motor Co.’s (NYSE: F) U.S. sales fell 7% year-over-year in January, to 154,644 Ford and Lincoln vehicles, compared with January 2013 sales of 166,501. Sales were down for all types of vehicles, with car sales off 13.4%, utility vehicle sales off 5.8% and truck sales down 2.2%. Only the Ford Mustang and the Lincoln MKZ and MKX models posted year-over-year sales gains. The company blamed poor weather in Ford’s largest sales regions

Sales for General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) fell 11.9% year-over-year in January to 171,486 vehicles. GM pointed out that January is the industry’s lowest sales month of the year and said “extreme” winter weather pushed sales down even more this year. Based on January sales, GM estimates that the full-year seasonally adjusted annual rate of U.S. sales for all carmakers will total 15.3 million light vehicles sold, down from a December rate of 15.6 million. GM estimates total U.S. sales from all carmakers in 2014 to total 16.0 million to 16.5 million units, the best year since 2007.

Sales at Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) for the month totaled 146,365 units, down 7.2% compared with January 2013. A company executive said, “January was off to a solid start, but the weather condition slowed industry sales in key markets late in the month.” Toyota also announced late last week that it would stop selling certain models due to a problem with seat heaters.

Volkswagen sold just 23,494 units in the United States in January. That was a drop of 19% year-over-year, on top of a 22.7% drop in December sales. In 2013, VW sold 407,704 vehicles, compared with 438,133 in 2012, a decline of 6.9%.

Honda Motor Co. Ltd. (NYSE: HMC) reported fiscal third-quarter results last Friday. In the quarter the company sold 900,000 units, a year-over-year increase of 7%. Auto sales revenue rose 23.9%. The company said it expects to sell 1.6 million cars in the United States in 2014. January sales data will not be released until after markets close Monday.

Saturday, February 1, 2014

5 Stocks Ready to Break Out

DELAFIELD, Wis. (Stockpickr) -- Trading stocks that trigger major breakouts can lead to massive profits. Once a stock trends to a new high or takes out a prior overhead resistance point, then it's free to find new buyers and momentum players who can ultimately push the stock significantly higher.

>>5 Toxic Stocks to Sell Before February

One example of a successful breakout trade I flagged recently was specialty retailer Coldwater Creek (CWTR), which I featured in Jan. 24's "5 Stocks Ready to Break Out" 74 cents per share. I mentioned in that piece that shares of CWTR recently formed a double-bottom chart pattern at 66 cents to 67 cents per share. The stock was starting to bounce off those support levels and it was showing relative strength on a big down day. That bounce was starting to push shares of CWTR within range of triggering a big breakout trade above some near-term overhead resistance levels at 82 to 84 cents per share.

Guess what happened? Shares of CWTR didn't wait long to trigger that breakout, since the stock took out those key overhead resistance levels on Jan. 27 with strong upside volume flows. This stock broke out and continued to soar higher with shares of CWTR tagging an intraday high on Jan. 29 of 97 cents per share. That represents a gain of right around 30% from the 74-cent level for anyone who bought the stock in anticipation of that breakout. CWTR has now pulled back to right above its 50-day moving average of 82 cents per share, which could offer another good entry point if that level holds.

>>5 Stocks Under $10 Set to Soar

Breakout candidates are something that I tweet about on a daily basis. I frequently tweet out high-probability setups, breakout plays and stocks that are acting technically bullish. These are the stocks that often go on to make monster moves to the upside. What's great about breakout trading is that you focus on trend, price and volume. You don't have to concern yourself with anything else. The charts do all the talking.

Trading breakouts is not a new game on Wall Street. This strategy has been mastered by legendary traders such as William O'Neal, Stan Weinstein and Nicolas Darvas. These pros know that once a stock starts to break out above past resistance levels and hold above those breakout prices, then it can easily trend significantly higher.

>>5 Big Trades to Profit During the Fed's QE Pay Cut

With that in mind, here's a look at five stocks that are setting up to break out and trade higher from current levels.

Biostar Pharmaceuticals

One stock that's starting to trend within range of triggering a big breakout trade is Biostar Pharmaceuticals (BSPM), which engages in the development, manufacture, and marketing of over-the-counter and prescription pharmaceutical products for various diseases and conditions in the People's Republic of China. This stock has been on fire over the last three months, with shares soaring by a whopping 85%.

If you take a look at the chart for Biostar Pharmaceuticals, you'll notice that this has been trending sideways and consolidating over the last two months, with shares moving between $1.75 on the downside and $2.66 on the upside. Shares of BSPM have just started to bounce off the lower end its range the last few trading sessions, with the stock spiking from $1.77 to its high of $2.25 a share. That bounce is starting to push shares of BSPM within range of triggering a big breakout trade.

>>5 Short-Squeeze Stocks That Could Pop in February

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in BSPM if it manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance levels at its 50-day moving average of $2.13 a share to some more near-term overhead resistance at $2.25 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above those levels with volume that hits near or above its three-month average volume of 458,935 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then BSPM will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $2.66 to $3 a share. Any high-volume move above those levels will then give BSPM a chance to re-test or possibly take out its 52-week high at $3.44 a share.

Traders can look to buy BSPM off any weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below some key near-term support levels at $1.77 to $1.75 a share. One can also buy BSPM off strength once it starts to take out those breakout levels with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage from your entry point.

MEI Pharma

A development-stage oncology player that's quickly moving within range of triggering a major breakout trade is MEI Pharma (MEIP), which focuses on the clinical development of therapeutics for the treatment of cancer. This stock has trended modestly higher over the last three months, with shares up around 4%.

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If you take a look at the chart for MEI Pharma, you'll notice that this stock has been trending sideways and consolidating for the last three months, with shares moving between $7.30 on the downside and $8.94 on the upside. This stock is just starting to spike modestly higher right off both its 200-day moving average of $8.22 and its 50-day moving average of $8.25 a share. That spike is starting to push shares of MEIP within range of triggering a major breakout trade above the upper-end of its recent sideways trading chart pattern.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in MEIP if it manages to break out above some key near-term overhead resistance levels at $8.68 to $8.94 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above those levels with volume that hits near or above its three-month average action of 130,103 shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then MEIP will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $10 to $10.95 a share. Any high-volume move above $10.95 will then give MEIP a chance to tag $11.50 a share.

Traders can look to buy MEIP off any weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below some key near-term support levels at $8 or $7.50 a share. One could also buy MEIP off strength once it starts to take out those breakout levels with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage from your entry point.

NQ Mobile

Another technology player that's starting to trend within range of triggering a big breakout trade is NQ Mobile (NQ), which provides mobile Internet services in the areas of mobile security, privacy, productivity, personalized cloud and family protection. This stock is off to a decent start in 2014, with shares up notably by 12.7%.

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If you take a look at the chart for NQ Mobile, you'll notice that this stock has been uptrending strong for the last two months, with shares moving higher from its low of $10.53 to its recent high of $18.50 a share with strong upside volume flows. During that uptrend, shares of NQ have been making mostly higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of NQ within range of triggering a big breakout trade above some near-term overhead resistance levels.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in NQ if it manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance levels at $18 to $18.50 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above those levels with volume that hits near or above its three-month average action of 5.15 million shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then NQ will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $22 to $24 a share.

Traders can look to buy NQ off any weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits just below some key near-term support at $14.28 a share, or around its 200-day moving average of $13.74 a share. One can also buy NQ off strength once it starts to take out those breakout levels with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage from your entry point.

Kingold Jewelry

Another stock that's uptrending and starting to move within range of triggering a major breakout trade is Kingold Jewelry (KGJI), which engages in the design, manufacture and sale of gold jewelry, ornaments and investment-oriented products in the People's Republic of China This stock is off to a strong start in 2014, with shares up around 12.5%.

>>4 Stocks Breaking Out on Big Volume

If you look at the chart for Kingold Jewelry, you'll notice that this stock has been uptrending strong over the last month, with shares moving higher from its low of $1.52 to its recent high of $1.98 a share. During that uptrend, shares of KGJI have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of KGJI within range of triggering a major breakout trade.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in KGJI if it manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance at $1.98 a share and then once it clears some past overhead resistance levels at $2.05 to $2.20 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above those levels with volume that hits near or above its three-month average action of 215,384 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then KGJI will set up to re-test or possibly take out its 52-week high at $2.45 a share. Any high-volume move above that level will then give KGJI a chance to tag $3 to $3.50 a share.

Traders can look to buy KGJI off any weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below some key near-term support levels at $1.73 to $1.63 a share. One can also buy KGJI off strength once it starts to clear those breakout levels with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage from your entry point.

Dex Media

My final breakout trading prospect is marketing services player Dex Media (DXM), which provides local, social, and mobile marketing solutions to businesses in communities across the U.S. under the Dex One and SuperMedia brands. This stock has been hammered by the bears over the last six months, with shares down by a whopping 59%.

If you look at the chart for Dex Media, you'll notice that this stock has recently formed a double bottom chart pattern at $5.71 to $5.66 a share right below its 50-day moving average of $6.25 a share. Shares of DXM are now starting to spike higher off those double bottom support zones and that spike is quickly pushing shares of DXM within range of triggering a major breakout trade.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in DXM if it manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance levels at $6.13 to $6.66 a share and then above more resistance at $7.06 a share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above those levels with volume that hits near or above its three-month average action of 401,668 shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then DXM will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $8 to $9.31 a share. Any high-volume move above those levels will then give DXM a chance to tag its next major overhead resistance levels at $10 to its 200-day moving average at $10.77 a share.

Traders can look to buy DXM off any weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below some key near-term support levels at $5.66 or at $5.27 a share. One can also buy DXM off strength once it starts to clear those breakout levels with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a conformable percentage from your entry point.

To see more breakout candidates, check out the Breakout Stocks of the Week portfolio on Stockpickr.

-- Written by Roberto Pedone in Delafield, Wis.