10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014

Pre-market ��Monday 12-30-2013

��he just price is the price established by the ��ommon estimation��[17] of buyers and sellers.��

Saint Thomas Aquinas

1225 -1274

Dr. John L. Faessel

ON THE MARKET

Commentary and Insights

Quote of the day

There�� a reason why in New York Harbor we have the Statue of Liberty, not the Statue of Equality.��

Charles Krauthammer

***

MARKET

To the sky and beyond BUT the AD line shows dwindling participation

Price highs for the indices are being made with dwindling participation, and that is not generally good news. A-D data are perhaps the best way of finding out the state of the liquidity available to the stock market.

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: WaterFurnace Renewable Energy Inc (WFIFF)

WaterFurnace Renewable Energy, Inc. specializes in the design, manufacture and distribution of geothermal and water-source systems. It�� the United States subsidiary companies are WaterFurnace International, Inc. (WaterFurnace) and LoopMaster International, Inc. (LoopMaster). In December 2010, it incorporated two Australian subsidiaries: WaterFurnace International Asia Pacific Pty. Ltd. (WaterFurnace Asia Pacific) and Hyper WFI Pty. Ltd. (Hyper WFI). WaterFurnace designs, manufactures and distributes geothermal water source heating and cooling systems for residential, commercial and institutional buildings. LoopMaster installs geothermal loops for residential applications, does commercial conductivity testing and provides design and installation assistance. Hyper WFI designs, develops and builds devices that limit the inrush current, which electric motors draw upon start up. On January 21, 2011, the Company acquired inventory and fixed assets from Binary Engineering Pty. Ltd.

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: Liberte Investors Inc. (FAC)

First Acceptance Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in retailing, servicing, and underwriting non-standard personal automobile insurance and related products. Its primary business involves issuing automobile insurance policies to individuals who are categorized as non-standard based primarily on their inability or unwillingness to obtain insurance coverage from standard carriers due to various factors, including their payment history or need for monthly payment plans, and failure to maintain continuous insurance coverage or driving record. The company also offers optional products that provide ancillary reimbursements and benefits in the event of an automobile accident; and underwrites a tenant homeowner policy that provides contents and liability coverage to renters. In addition, it engages in activities related to the disposition of real estate held for sale. The company distributes its products through retail locations. As of March 31, 2012, it leased and op erated 378 retail locations. First Acceptance Corporation was founded in 1969 and is based in Nashville, Tennessee.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

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

Hot Penny Stocks For 2015: Exone Co (XONE.W)

The ExOne Company, incorporated on December 21, 2012, is engaged in manufacturing and selling three-dimensional (3D) printing machines and printing products to specification for its customers using its in-house 3D printing machines. The Company provides 3D printing machines, 3D printed products and related services to industrial customers in the aerospace, automotive, heavy equipment, energy/oil/gas and other industries. It offers pre-production collaboration and print products for customers through its production service centers (PSCs), which are located in the United States, Germany and Japan. On January 1, 2013, the Company merged its predecessor company, The Ex One Company, LLC, with and into EXO Acquisitions Inc., which changed its name to The ExOne Company.

The Company produces an array of materialization systems to support a range of customer needs and facility requirements. It offers two printers on the world market for 3D printing of sand and metal materials, offering build sizes as large as 1800 x 1000 x 700 mm (70 x 39 x 27 in.) for sand and 780 x 400 x 400 mm (30.7 x 15.75 x 15.75 in.) for metal. It also offers Orion short pulse laser systems, utilizing a five-axis machine tool with four additional axes available on the trepanning head. The Company builds 3D printing machines at its facilities in the United States and Germany. The Company also supplies the associated products, including consumables and replacement parts, and services, including training and technical support, necessary for purchasers of its machines to print products. The Company�� 3D printing machines are able to manufacture casting molds and cores from specialty silica sand and ceramics, which are the traditional materials for these casting products.

The Company competes with 3D Systems Corporation, Stratasys Inc., Solidscape, Inc. and Objet Ltd., EOS Optronics GmbH, EnvisionTEC GmbH, and Solid Model Ltd.

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: Tomra Systems ASA (TOM.OL)

Tomra Systems ASA (TOMRA) is a Norway-based company that produces sensor-based solutions for optimal resource productivity. The Company operates within two business segments: Collection Solutions, which offers reverse vending solutions, pick-up, transportation and processing of empty beverage containers, and Sorting Solutions, which provides optical sorting systems. The Company�� principal product groups include reverse vending systems, sensor-based sorting solutions, compaction and baling solutions, ore and mineral sorting solutions, as well as processing solutions for the food industry. As of December 31, 2011, the Company was active in over 50 countries around the world thorugh such subsidiaries, as Tomra Europe AS, Tomra Butikksystemer AS, Retail Services GmbH, Tomra Sorting Solutions Sro and Odenberg Engineering Ltd, among others. As of May 21, 2012, the Company's largest shareholder was Investment AB Latour, which held 15.5% shares.

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: Armstrong Industrial Corp Ltd (A14.SI)

Armstrong Industrial Corporation Limited, an investment holding company, engages in the manufacture and sale of foam and rubber components focusing on noise, vibration, and heat management for use in the automotive and electronics industries. The company offers rubber parts and components of electronic and other instruments; rubber products, hardware, industrial parts, and components; and precision die-cutting, die fabrication, rubber molding, stamping, vacuum forming, heat press molding, and EPP molding components, as well as provides related product�s tooling fabrication, processing, and sale services. It also provides automotive products; gasket connectors, crash stops/latch bumpers, insulators, and damper adhesives for the data storage industry; rubber/ foam rollers, insulation films/foams, dampers, rubber feet products, cushion pads, panel acoustics, reflectors/ scanner foam assemblies, and labels and separator pads used in the office automation industry; and acousti c foams, dust sealants, filter foams, foots, heat sink gaskets, lens film spacers, microphone holders, insulator films, motor gaskets, O-rings, and silicon plugs for the consumer electronics industry. The company�s solutions are used for dampening, insulation, sealing, cushioning, sound absorption, and related applications. In addition, it produces noise and vibration reduction components, silkscreen nameplates, labels, and stickers; provides architectural, engineering, and related technical consultancy services; and trades in various materials and machineries, as well as adhesive and foam products. The company primarily operates in the People's Republic of China, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam. It has a strategic partnership with Odenwald-Chemie GmbH. The company was founded in 1974 and is headquartered in Singapore.

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: Entree Gold Inc (ETG.TO)

Entr茅e Gold Inc., an exploration stage resource company, engages in the exploration, development, and production of mineral properties primarily in Mongolia and the United States. The company holds interests in three key copper porphyry deposits, including the Hugo North Extension and the Heruga deposits in Mongolia; and the Ann Mason deposit, located near Yerington, Nevada. It is also exploring for porphyry-related copper systems in Nevada and New Mexico. The company was formerly known as Entr茅e Resources Inc. and changed its name to Entr茅e Gold Inc. on October 9, 2002. Entr茅e Gold Inc. was founded 1995 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: Penske Automotive Group Inc.(PAG)

Penske Automotive Group, Inc. operates as an automotive retailer. It sells new and used vehicles of approximately 40 vehicle brands; offers vehicle maintenance and repair services; and engages in the sale and placement of third-party finance and insurance products, third-party extended service contracts, and replacement and aftermarket automotive products. As of December 31, 2011, the company operated 320 retail automotive franchises, of which 166 franchises were located in the United States and 154 franchises are located outside of the United States primarily in the United Kingdom. It also has operations in Puerto Rico and Germany. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lawrence Meyers]

  However, the company just reported that retail sales were flat with last year. AN stock is sitting in a better position than KMX, with 18.65% long term growth. On FY14 EPS of $3.38, it suggests fair value is upwards of $60, and currently trades at $49. The company isn’t heavily leveraged, and it has positive FCF. So far, AN stock is looking like the best buy among these used car stocks.

  Penske Automotive Group (PAG)

  Penske Automotive Group (PAG) could almost be an identical twin to AutoNation as far as what it provides, outside of the luxury market.

• [By Seth Jayson]

  When judging a company's prospects, how quickly it turns cash outflows into cash inflows can be just as important as how much profit it's booking in the accounting fantasy world we call "earnings." This is one of the first metrics I check when I'm hunting for the market's best stocks. Today, we'll see how it applies to Penske Automotive Group (NYSE: PAG  ) .

• [By Brian Pacampara]

  AutoNation (NYSE: AN  )
  Penske Automotive Group (NYSE: PAG  )

  Sources: S&P Capital IQ and Motley Fool CAPS.

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Penske Automotive Group (NYSE: PAG  ) reported earnings on April 29. Here are the numbers you need to know.

  The 10-second takeaway
  For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Penske Automotive Group missed estimates on revenues and beat slightly on earnings per share.

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG)

Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (the Fund) is an open-end investment company, or mutual fund. It seeks to track the performance of an index that measures the investment return of common stocks of companies that have a record of increasing dividends over time. Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF is an exchange-traded share class of Vanguard Dividend Appreciation Index Fund (the Fund), which employs a passive management or indexing investment approach designed to track the performance of the Dividend Achievers Select Index (the Index).

The Index is a subset of the Broad Dividend Achievers Index and is administered for Vanguard by Mergent, Inc. The Fund attempts to replicate the Index by investing all, or substantially all, of its assets in the stocks that make up the Index, holding each stock in approximately the same proportion as its weighting in the Index.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  But you can see in several places the consequences of the stampede toward high yield. Here are just a few:

  Closed-end funds Cornerstone Progressive (NYSEMKT: CFP  ) and Pimco High Income (NYSE: PHK  ) both make fixed payments back to fund shareholders on a monthly basis, and their distribution yields are truly extraordinary, at about 17% and 12%, respectively. Those dividends have enticed shareholders to pay $1.30 to $1.40 or more for each $1 of assets in the funds. Yet during most months, a substantial portion of those distribution payments has simply been a return of investor capital rather than true income from the funds' investments. A recent study discussed in The Wall Street Journal found that returns on a portfolio with a combined value and dividend-income strategy outperformed a strategy focused more exclusively on maximizing dividends by an average of 1.7 percentage points per year, a huge edge in long-run returns. In the dividend ETF arena, most funds tend to focus on maximizing yield. Although the popular Vanguard Dividend Appreciation (NYSEMKT: VIG  ) ETF bucks the trend by screening first for consistent dividend growth and only then looking at yield as a factor, many rival ETFs start with high-yielding stocks as their baseline and only then consider other desirable traits. Others focus solely on high-dividend niches of the market, such as iShares FTSE NAREIT Mortgage-Plus (NYSEMKT: REM  ) and its concentration on high-yield mortgage REITs.

  When dividend stocks get too popular, their prices get out of line with both their dividend income and the fundamentals of the businesses that underlie those stocks. In simpler terms, when dividend stocks become bad values, it's time to consider looking elsewhere for a margin of safety.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Investing in dividend stocks is easy. Exchange-traded funds Vanguard Dividend Appreciation (NYSEMKT: VIG  ) , iShares Dow Jones Select Dividend (NYSEMKT: DVY  ) , and SPDR S&P Dividend (NYSEMKT: SDY  ) give you low-cost access to dozens or even hundreds of dividend-paying stocks, all within a single investment vehicle. If you prefer, you can also buy individual stocks, either through a broker or through direct investment plans. Blue-chip companies General Electric (NYSE: GE  ) and Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG  ) are just two of the hundreds of stocks that offer shares through direct plans and allow you to reinvest dividends automatically in additional shares at no fee.

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: Novadaq Technologi Com Npv (NDQ.TO)

Novadaq Technologies Inc. develops, manufactures, and commercializes fluorescence imaging products and therapeutic devices for surgeons in the operating room and other clinical settings primarily in the United States, Japan, and internationally. The company�s proprietary imaging platform is used to visualize blood vessels, nerves, and the lymphatic system during surgical procedures. Its SPY�inpatient open surgical imaging system, including SPY and SPY Elite are used in coronary artery bypass graft surgery, cardiovascular surgery, plastic surgery, reconstructive surgery, microsurgery, organ transplant, and gastrointestinal surgery. The company�s LUNA � diagnostic outpatient imaging system enables physicians treating chronic wounds for the treatment of diabetic foot ulcers, pressure sores, and other serious wounds. Its FIREFLY�robotic surgical imaging system is used for robotic surgery; and PINPOINT�endoscopic fluorescence imaging system is used for traditional endosco pe and to obtain fluorescence images on demand or in a simultaneous imaging mode during minimally invasive surgery. The company also offers SPY analysis toolkit, a post-processing software that allows surgeons to apply objective analysis tools to SPY, SPY Elite, and LUNA images; CO2 heart laser systems for transmyocardial revascularization; and Trapper technology system, a surgical lymphoscintigraphy gamma camera system. Novadaq Technologies Inc. was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Mississauga, Canada.

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: Smithfield Foods Inc.(SFD)

Smithfield Foods, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and marketing of fresh meat and packaged meats products in the United States and internationally. The company involves in the production of hog; and produces various fresh pork, beef, poultry, and packaged meats products. It sells fresh pork to retail customers as unprocessed and trimmed cuts, such as butts, loins, picnics, and ribs; packaged meats products, including smoked and boiled hams, bacon, sausage, hot dogs, and deli and luncheon meats; specialty products, such as pepperoni and dry meat products; and ready-to-eat prepared foods comprising pre-cooked entrees, and pre-cooked bacon and sausages. The company offers its products to supermarket chains; wholesale distributors; the foodservice industry, including fast food, restaurant and hotel chains, hospitals, and other institutional customers; export markets; and other further processors. It sells its products through its salespersons an d independent commission brokers. Smithfield Foods, Inc. was founded in 1961 and is headquartered in Smithfield, Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Michael Lewis]

  Earlier this year, the world's largest pork producer, Smithfield Farms (NYSE: SFD  ) , received an appealing buyout offer from a China-based meat processor-- Shuanghui The board agreed to the $7.1 billion takeover (debt included) -- the largest Chinese buyout of a U.S. firm in history. Now, though, it appears that U.S. regulators may block the deal as a matter of national security. If the deal fails, investors may have to worry, as the company is struggling�to grow amid rising feed costs and tepid international demand. Here's why federal regulators are concerned.

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  Paula Deen has seen her future earnings prospects dim after her admission of using a racial slur. She lost her show. Several retailers have stopped stocking the celebrity chef's products. However, Deen has also lost lucrative endorsements with casino operator Caesars Entertainment (NASDAQ: CZR  ) and packaged pork products producer Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD  ) .

• [By Victor Mora]

  Smithfield Foods is a provider of fresh and packaged meat products that are seen as a staple food item for many consumers and growing populations worldwide. A takeover of the company is believed to be going through after a shareholder vote scheduled for Tuesday. The stock has been moving higher in recent years and is now trading slightly below all-time high prices. Over the last four quarters, investors have had mixed feelings about the company, as earnings have been decreasing and revenues have been rising. Relative to its peers and sector, Smithfield Foods has been a year-to-date performance leader. WAIT AND SEE if a vote to acquire Smithfield Foods goes through.

• [By Michael Lewis]

  Virginia-based pork producer Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD  ) recently released a less-than-stellar earnings announcement, largely due to increasing feed prices coupled with heavy pricing pressure at the grocery store. But the earnings have been far from the headlines as the company looks to close out on its sale to China's largest meat processing company. To add to the fray, 6% activist owner Starboard Value believes that the buyout offer undervalues Smithfield, and that a breakup of the company offers shareholders a better alternative. Let's take a look at both options, and try to determine where the cards are stacked.

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: Superior Energy Services Inc.(SPN)

Superior Energy Services, Inc. provides specialized oilfield services and equipments to serve the production and drilling-related needs of oil and gas companies. It operates through three segments: Subsea and Well Enhancement; Drilling Products and Services; and Marine. The Subsea and Well Enhancement segment provides integrated subsea and engineering services, coiled tubing, electric line, pumping and stimulation, gas lift, well control, hydraulic workover and snubbing, recompletion, stimulation and sand control equipment and services, well evaluation, offshore oil and gas tank, vessel cleaning, decommissioning, plug and abandonment, and mechanical wireline services. This segment also manufactures and sells drilling rig instrumentation equipments; and involves in the production and sale of oil and gas from its properties in the Gulf of Mexico. The Drilling Products and Services segment manufactures, sells, and rents equipments for use with offshore and onshore oil and gas well drilling, completion, production, and workover activities. This segment?s products and services include pressure control equipment, drill pipe and landing strings, connecting iron, handling tools, stabilizers, drill collars, and on-site accommodations. The Marine segment owns and operates a fleet of liftboats in the Gulf of Mexico. The company operates 25 rental liftboats with leg lengths ranging from 145 feet to 265 feet. Superior Energy Services, Inc. sells its products and services in Latin America, North America, North Sea and Europe, the Middle East, West Africa, and the Asia Pacific region. The company was founded in 1991 and is based in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By David Smith]

  Superior Energy Services (NYSE: SPN  )
  The largest of the three "smaller" oil-field services companies for this discussion carries an approximately $4.4 billion market cap. The Houston-based company has been accorded a rating of 1.6 by the analysts, with no single rating below a buy. (All three of the companies discussed here are headquartered in Houston. But that's a coincidence, not a requirement.)

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: Africa Oil Corp (AOI.V)

Africa Oil Corp., an exploration stage company, engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas. The company holds interests in approximately 300,000 square kilometers (gross) of exploration property in various African rift basins, focusing primarily on east Africa. It owns interests in exploration licenses in Kenya, Ethiopia, the Republic of Mali, and Somalia. The company was formerly known as Canmex Minerals Corporation and changed its name to Africa Oil Corp. in August 2007. Africa Oil Corp. was incorporated in 1983 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: Yale Resources Ltd. (YLL.V)

Yale Resources Ltd., an exploration stage company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral properties in Mexico. The company primarily explores for gold, silver, copper, zinc, and lead. It also has interests in oil and gas properties in the United States. The company was founded in 1987 is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: Transpac Industrial Hldgs Ltd (T55.SI)

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

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: Banco Santiago S.A.(SAN)

Banco Santander-Chile provides commercial and retail banking services to corporate and individual customers in Chile. The company offers time and demand deposits, checking accounts, and debit card accounts, as well as savings products; and peso and foreign currency denominated loans to finance various commercial transactions, trade, foreign currency forward contracts, and credit lines. Its loan portfolio comprises consumer loans, auto loans, residential mortgage loans, mutual funds, foreign trade financing, mortgage loans, and commercial loans. The company also provides factoring, credit cards, cash management, treasury services, short?term financing and funding, interest rate and foreign currency derivatives, and securitization services. Further, it offers various financial services, including leasing, financial leasing, financial advisory, mutual fund management, securities brokerage, insurance brokerage, and investment management services. As of December 31, 2010, the company had a branch network of 504 branches. Banco Santander-Chile was founded in 1977 and is headquartered in Santiago, Chile.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Carroll]

  That doesn't make either of these nations a safe bet for investors -- and especially not Spain, with its skyrocketing unemployment rate and bleak prospects for real economic growth in the near future. Still, that doesn't mean there aren't deals to be found among the best companies in these countries. Banco Santander (NYSE: SAN  ) has lost more than 11% year to date, but this financial firm has diversified well away from Europe's fiscal mess and toward developing Latin America, making the bank stock an intriguing emerging-markets play. With a massive 10.8% dividend yield and an optimistic earnings projection for the year, Santander isn't without appeal for investors. Still, Spain's risky economic situation makes nearly any stock from the country -- even a geographically diversified one -- a tough call.

• [By Alanna Petroff]

  The police linked the theft at Barclays (BCS) to another attempt to steal money from a Santander (SAN) branch in London, which led to the arrest of 12 men last week.

• [By Carlton Delfeld]

  Carl Delfeld: Sure. Well, one company that we recommended in the third quarter of last year was a bank, Banco Santander. (SAN) is the New York Stock Exchange ticker.

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own For 2014: U.S. Physical Therapy Inc.(USPH)

U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates outpatient physical and occupational therapy clinics in the United States. Its clinics provide pre-and-post operative care and treatment for orthopedic-related disorders, sports-related injuries, preventative care, rehabilitation of injured workers, and neurological-related injuries. The company also offers physician services to third parties; and operates clinics, which specialize in the outpatient, non-surgical treatment of osteo arthritis degenerative joint disease and other musculoskeletal conditions. As of December 31, 2011, it operated 416 clinics in 42 states; and managed 15 physical therapy facilities for third parties, including physicians. The company focuses its marketing efforts on physicians comprising orthopedic surgeons, neurosurgeons, physiatrists, internal medicine physicians, podiatrists, occupational medicine physicians, and general practitioners. U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. was founded in 1 990 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Calling all cash flows
  When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on US Physical Therapy (NYSE: USPH  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.