Best High Tech Stocks To Own For 2014

In an on-going effort to oust the board of directors of Commonwealth REIT (NYSE: CWH  ) , its second largest shareholder, Corvex Management, recently forwarded a record request date to Commonwealth management. The latest request by Corvex follows an earlier consent solicitation proposal in late March. Corvex's ultimate objective of the shareholder meeting is to "remove all of CWH's Trustees without cause," according to a Commonwealth press release issued today.

One point of contention mentioned by Commonwealth in its release is the April 22 consent solicitation date proposed in the latest Corvex request. According to Commonwealth, the REIT's declarations of trust and company bylaws give its board the authority to set a date with shareholders, and they have 30 days from the receipt of a "valid request" in which to do so.

Best High Tech Stocks To Own For 2014: Convergent Minerals Ltd(CVG.AX)

Convergent Minerals Ltd engages in the exploration and evaluation of mineral resources in Australia. It primarily explores for gold and nickel. The company holds 100% interest in the Bounty Gold Project comprising a tenement package of 42.06 square kilometers located southeast of Southern Cross, Western Australia. Convergent Minerals Ltd is based in West Perth, Australia.

Best High Tech Stocks To Own For 2014: Pilgrim's Pride Corporation(PPC)

Pilgrim's Corp. produces, processes, markets, and distributes fresh and frozen chicken products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators primarily in the United States. Its fresh chicken products consist of refrigerated (non-frozen) whole or cut-up chicken; and pre-marinated or non-marinated, as well as prepackaged case-ready chicken, which includes various combinations of freshly refrigerated, whole chickens, and chicken parts. The company also offers a range of prepared chicken products, including portion-controlled breast fillets, tenderloins and strips, delicatessen products, salads, formed nuggets and patties, and bone-in chicken parts. In addition, it exports whole chickens and chicken parts to approximately 95 countries, including Mexico, Russia, Puerto Rico, and China. The company was formerly known as Pilgrim's Pride Corporation. Pilgrim's Corp. was founded in 1945 and is headquartered in Greeley, Colorado. Pilgrim's Corp. operates as a subsidiary of JBS USA Holdings, Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By David Trainer]

  Pilgrim's Pride Corp (PPC) is another one of my least favorite holdings in FVL. PPC is not a bad company. Its return on invested capital (ROIC) of 9% puts it near the median of all the companies we cover. The issue for PPC is its valuation. To justify its price of ~$17/share, PPC would need to grow after-tax profit (NOPAT) by 12% compounded annually. There is not a lot of value in this stock or this "value" index.

Top Undervalued Stocks To Own Right Now: PokerTek Inc.(PTEK)

PokerTek, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development, manufacture, and marketing of electronic table games and related products for casinos, cruise lines, racinos, card clubs, and lotteries worldwide. Its products include PokerPro system, an automated 10-seated poker table with electronic components that allows players to play live poker against one another in a brick and mortar environment using electronic cards and chips by supporting poker, cash games, tournaments, and various languages; and Blackjack Pro, which offers the traditional game of Blackjack on the new ProCore automated table game platform, as well as allows operators to configure the game rules and payouts to meet their needs. The company distributes its gaming products using internal sales force and select distributors. PokerTek, Inc. was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Matthews, North Carolina.

Best High Tech Stocks To Own For 2014: Linamar Corp Com Npv (LNR.TO)

Linamar Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, and manufactures precision metallic components, modules, and systems for vehicle and power generation markets worldwide. It offers various engine systems, including engine assemblies and engine modules; sub-assemblies and modules for gas and diesel engines used in cars and light trucks; engine components and assemblies used in commercial medium and heavy duty trucks; functional prototypes and sub-assemblies for engine development; cylinder head modules; short-block modules; water, oil, and vacuum pump assemblies and systems; turbocharger assemblies; balance shaft modules; and common rail modules. The company also offers various engine components comprising cylinder blocks and assemblies, cylinder heads and complete head assemblies, camshaft assemblies, crankshaft assemblies, connecting rods, intake manifolds, gears, flywheels, covers and housings, liners and pistons, injectors, and cases. In addition, it provides transmission modules and sub-assemblies for transmission/driveline configurations, such as shafts and shaft/shell assemblies, clutch modules and assemblies, transfer case assemblies, power take off units, housings and covers, differential assemblies, and planetary carrier assemblies. Further, the company offers various precision components comprising valve bodies, gears and pinions, torque converters, pumps, axles, transmission drive shafts, cases and housings, suspension knuckles and assemblies, and steering gear housings and assembling, as well as gears for engine, transmission, and driveline automotive applications. Additionally, it provides product design, development, testing, and engineering services; scissor lifts, boom lifts, and telehandlers; hydraulic cylinders and fluid management systems; transportation services; and lawnmowers and utility trailers. The company was founded in 1966 and is based in Guelph, Canada.

Best High Tech Stocks To Own For 2014: Nestle SA (NESN)

Nestle SA is a Swiss Company engaged in the nutrition, health and wellness sectors. It is the holding company of the Nestle Group, which comprises subsidiaries, associated companies and joint ventures throughout the world. It has such business units as Food and Beverage, Nestle Waters and Nestle Nutrition. It is also active in the pharmaceutical sector. It divides its products into Powdered and liquid beverages, Water, Milk products and Ice cream, Nutrition, Prepared dishes and cooking aids, Confectionery, PetCare and Pharmaceutical products. In February 2011, the Company acquired CM&D Pharma Ltd. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Corinne Gretler]

  Swiss stocks fell for a second day, their first back-to-back losses this month, as Nestle (NESN) SA retreated after reporting slower growth in sales.

Best High Tech Stocks To Own For 2014: Cheviot Financial Corp(CHEV)

Cheviot Financial Corp. operates as the holding company for Cheviot Savings Bank that provides a range of banking services in Ohio. It offers various deposit products, including passbook and statement savings accounts, interest-bearing demand accounts, non-interest-bearing demand accounts, NOW accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company also originates one- to four-family residential real estate loans, multi-family residential real estate loans, residential mortgage loans, construction loans, commercial real estate loans, business lines of credit, and consumer loans. As of April 23, 2010, Cheviot Financial Corp. operated six full-service offices in Hamilton County, Ohio. It also has operations in southeastern Indiana and northern Kentucky. The company was founded in 1911 and is based in Cheviot, Ohio. Cheviot Financial Corp. is a subsidiary of Cheviot Mutual Holding Company.

Best High Tech Stocks To Own For 2014: Cassius Ventures Ltd. (CZ.V)

Cassius Ventures Ltd. engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral properties. The company has an option to earn a 60% interest in the Carrot River Property comprising 15 mining claims totaling 3,073 hectares located in north-central Manitoba. It also holds an option to earn a 100% interest in certain mineral claims covering 4,212.71 hectares located in the Alberni Mining Division of British Columbia. The company was incorporated in 2007 and is based in Vancouver, Canada.

Best High Tech Stocks To Own For 2014: Golfsmith International Holdings Inc.(GOLF)

Golfsmith International Holdings, Inc. operates as a specialty retailer of golf and tennis equipment, apparel, footwear, and accessories. Its stores offer branded clubs, balls, apparel, and accessories, as well as its proprietary-branded products, including Clubmaker, Golfsmith, Killer Bee, J.G.Hickory, Lynx, Profinity, Snake Eyes, TourTrek, XPC, Zevo, Maggie Lane, ZTech, and MacGregor. The company?s stores also provide club components, clubmaking tools, supplies and on-site clubmaking, custom club-fitting, and club repair services; and hitting areas, putting greens, ball-launch monitor technology, and club demos. In addition, its stores offer golf and tennis lessons, tennis equipment, and tennis racquet maintenance and repair services, as well as partial-flight indoor driving ranges. Further, the company develops and promotes proprietary merchandise, including clubs, club components, apparel, golf bags and covers, pull and push carts, shoes, furnishings, accessories, tra ining aids, and gifts. As of January 25, 2012, it operated 79 stores in the United States. Golfsmith International Holdings also offers its products through catalog and Internet sales. The company was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.

U.S. Stocks Are Little Changed Before Fed Statement

U.S. stocks were little changed, with the Standard & Poor's 500 Index trading near its record high, as investors awaited a Federal Reserve announcement on the prospects for monetary stimulus.

FedEx Corp. (FDX) rose 2.6 percent after earnings topped estimates as the operator of the world's largest cargo airline reduced costs. Dollar Tree Inc. gained 2.9 percent after adopting a $2 billion buyback program. Adobe Systems Inc. rallied 7.5 percent as the largest maker of graphic-design tools said it amassed more than 1 million customers for its online services.

The S&P 500 advanced less than 0.1 percent to 1,704.86 at 9:41 a.m. in New York. The benchmark index climbed yesterday to within five points of its all-time high of 1,709.67 reached on Aug. 2. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 25.79 points, or 0.2 percent, to 15,503.94 today. Trading in S&P 500 stocks was 7.4 percent below the 30-day average at this time of day.

"Fed tapering seems to be priced in," Stephane Ekolo, chief European strategist at Market Securities in London, said in an interview. "Most investors expect the Fed to scale back in its monthly bond purchases, a reduction in the corridor of $5 billion to $15 billion."

The Federal Open Market Committee wraps up a two-day policy meeting today. Analysts are divided on the amount by which the Fed will scale back its monthly asset purchases. Among 64 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News, 33 predict it will reduce its buying of Treasuries by $5 billion or less, with 31 forecasting a cut of $10 billion or more.

Stimulus Program

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The central bank's stimulus program has helped the S&P 500 (SPX) rally more than 150 percent from its March 2009 low. Speculation over the future of quantitative easing has whipsawed global asset prices since May, when Chairman Ben S. Bernanke first signaled cu! ts may start in 2013. The S&P 500 tumbled 5.8 percent from a record on May 21 through June 24. It rebounded 8.7 percent to close at its latest record last month, then slumped as much as 4.6 percent before climbing again.

The FOMC releases both its policy statement and forecasts for economic growth, inflation and unemployment at 2 p.m. Washington time. Bernanke will hold a press conference half an hour later.

Housing starts rose 0.9 percent to a 891,000 annual rate, following the prior month's 883,000 pace that was weaker than previously estimated, a Commerce Department report showed today in Washington. The median estimate of 83 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for 917,000. Permits dropped 3.8 percent to a 918,000 pace, showing little momentum heading into this month.

Economic Bellwether

FedEx rallied 2.6 percent to $113.54. The company, regarded as an economic bellwether because of the variety of goods it ships globally, began taking steps last year to reduce costs by $1.7 billion as customers opt for cheaper shipping. FedEx is parking older planes sooner, trimming capacity to Asia and eliminating 3,600 jobs through buyouts.

Dollar Tree added 2.9 percent to $57.47. The discount-store operator said its board authorized $2 billion in equity repurchases. The Chesapeake, Virginia-based company also said it agreed with JPMorgan Chase & Co. to buy back $1 billion in shares under a variable maturity accelerated program.

Adobe climbed 7.5 percent to $51.77. The number of Web subscribers jumped 47 percent in the fiscal third-quarter, even as sales and profit declined.

How to share streaming media

Know the limits of sharing members-only streaming media.

(Money Magazine) When it comes to members-only streaming video and music suites, letting friends and family in on the fun can get a little tricky.

Here are your options:

Netflix -- Stream movies and TV shows

How to share. For $8 a month, you can stream to two devices at once, letting you relax in front of the TV while the kids watch upstairs on a tablet. Or pay an extra $4 to add two more devices.

Sharing is intended for families but isn't formally limited to relatives.

Hit the limit? Try to log in from one device too many, and you get a message saying the action is not permitted.

Amazon Prime -- Get free shipping, ebook loans, and streaming video

How to share. Watch up to two videos at once, borrow an ebook a month, and get free two-day shipping for $79 a year. You can share shipping benefits with up to four "household" members -- though Amazon will not disclose how it determines who qualifies.

Hit the limit? If you try to pull up a third free video, you're asked to log out of one of the others first.

  Inside YouTube's new LA studio

HBO Go -- Watch HBO original programming, plus movies

How to share. So far, HBO has been relatively laissez faire about password sharing. If you subscribe to the channel (rates vary by cable provider), you get one "household" login. The company doesn't specify how many people may share the account.

Hit the limit? Device limits vary by provider. In our test Comcast allowed three; Time Warner Cable, only two, locking us out of a third.

Spotify -- Stream millions of songs on your computer and mobile devices

How to share. The company's free service includes ads, but for $10 a month, you can go commercial-free and use it on mobile devices. The downside: You can play music on only one gadget at a time, so sharing is impractical as well as banned by the company.

Hit the limit? Attempt to play songs from more than one dev! ice per login and the system will stop play on the original device.

Rdio -- Stream some 20 million songs, or cache them for offline listening

How to share. This Spotify competitor allows web streaming for $5 a month, mobile access for another $5. A two-person account is $18; add up to three people for $5 each. Each user on the account gets his own login and set of songs, playlists, and stations.

Hit the limit? Attempt to play songs from more than one device per login and the system will stop play on the original device.

KNOW THE RULES

Tempted to skirt companies' sharing limits? Read this before you try it:

Best Cheap Companies To Invest In 2014

You signed on the virtual line. When you created your account, you agreed to Terms of Use, which typically restrict password sharing. These agreements are legally binding, says intellectual-property attorney Tim Bukher.

Will you get sued? Probably not, says Bukher. But while most companies aren't actively searching for illegal password sharers, they may install tracking software (which you agreed to in the Terms) to monitor your use of the service.

You could be banned. Get caught violating the Terms and a firm may cancel your account or restrict you from using its services -- though there are no data on how often that happens.

Old and redesigned Nissan Rogues both sold as 2…

Nissan says it'll keep selling the current version of the Rogue compact SUV even as it introduces a redesigned Rogue.

The carryover model is continuing to flow into U.S. dealershiips from Japan as a 2013 model. Starting in January, it will be renamed Rogue Select and designated a 2014 model.

The price of that 2014 Select will be about $21,000, or slightly less than the $21,170 base price of the 2013 Rogue.

The redesigned 2014 Rogue -- meant to be a higher-level model -- is due in November with startling prices ranging from $23,350 to $30,280.

2014 ROGUE: More on the redesigned 2014 Rogue (not Select)

The simple explanation for the overlap of old and new models: If Nissan didn't keep shipping previous-generation Rogues, it wouldn't have enough to sell.

The redesigned model is being built at Smyrna, Tenn., instead of Japan. It'll take awhile for production there to ramp up. Without continued supplies, via the carried-over Select (shipped from Japan), dealers would run short.

Rogue is Nissan's second-best-selling vehicle, so running low would anger customers, dealers and Nissan's accountants, left wondering what happened to all the profits from such a popular vehicle.

Sometimes car companies keep the old one around after a new one comes out -- aasily done if the two are built at different factories, as with the Rouge.

The carried-over model becomes a cheap version for rental fleets and other commercial buyers who care more that the car has wheels, brakes and steering, and less about the higher prices that come with the new-tech redesigns.

Chevrolet's Malibu Classic is an example. And Chevy's holding over the outgoing Impala through next summer even as the sexy, and completely different, 2014 Impala makes its debut.

Ford kept its last version of the old, oval-flavored Taurus sedan in production as a fleet car in 2005 and 2006 after the Taurus replacement,called the 500, went on sale.

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But Nissan sells few Rogues to commercial buyers "It's not a fleet play, not at all," says spokesman Dan Bedore.

Instead, NIssan intends to avoid the so-called Marchionne Misstep.

Chrysler and Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne shut off production of the Jeep Liberty in August 2012, and only now is about to get production going on the replacement, called Cherokee. That eliminated 70,.000 to 90,000 sales.

Nissan had its own misstep when it halted the Versa hatchback before the replacement Versa Note was ready. "We lost three or four months of sales," Bedore says.

Finra bars Minneapolis broker after CEO balks

The brokerage industry regulator has kicked a Minneapolis-based firm out of the business after its chief executive refused to cooperate with an investigation into the distribution of investor funds.

In an Aug. 20 settlement, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. barred William Edward Hogan II from the securities industry after he failed to provide documents and information and appear at hearings related to a cycle examination of his firm, The Hogan Co., and to the probe into the investor assets.

In addition to being the CEO, Mr. Hogan was the firm's sole registered representative as well as chief manager of an investment group that handled the investor funds, according to Finra. In May, the regulator launched an investigation targeting deposits made into the investment group's bank account and the disbursement of the money to investors, including Mr. Hogan.

He did not appear for testimony at a May 20 hearing, nor did he respond to a follow-up letters requesting information, which constituted violations of Finra rules. Instead, he agreed to being barred from the brokerage industry. In his settlement with Finra, he did not admit or deny Finra's findings.

Neither Mr. Hogan nor his attorney could be reached for comment.

Mr. Hogan, who has a doctorate degree in electrical engineering, has held positions at corporations and in academia, including being a regent at the University of Minnesota and an academic officer at the University of Kansas. In March 2012, he was appointed to the board of Wikifamilies Inc., a social-media company.

A Wikifamilies news release described The Hogan Co. as a private-equity firm investing in companies with revenue between $5 million and $100 million. The phone number listed for The Hogan Co. in BrokerCheck has been disconnected.

The Fed Gives The OK To Load Up On Emerging Markets

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After being one of the stock market's darlings for the last decade or so, emerging market nations took a break over the last few weeks as investors prepared themselves for the eventual end of Federal Reserve easing programs. With Fed Chairman Ben Bernake's recent decision not to taper bond purchases as early as expected, a fire has once again been lit under emerging markets. Investors may want to plow back in.

No Taper Yet

Here's why:

First, as the Fed has lowered economic growth forecasts for the U.S., the various bond buying programs could last well into 2014. That fact is certainly intensified by the prediction that "dovish" Janet Yellen is almost guaranteed the next Fed chairman spot after Bernanke. Her background suggests that easing programs could be on the table for quite a while until unemployment drops further and economic growth accelerates.

In addition, aside from the obvious "cheap money" that will continue to push up emerging market equities and bonds higher, emerging markets still look good on a number of fronts. The recent declines have pushed valuations into the bargain territory. Looking at P/E ratios, the sector is currently trading at a 35% discount to developed markets. This is significantly lower than the historical norm. That discount also extends to other metrics like price-to-book and price-to-cash flows.

Despite this cheapness, much of the emerging market growth story remains valid. Rising middle class populations, commodity wealth along with fiscal discipline are still hallmarks of the developing world.

Upping Exposure

Broad sector measures such as iShares MSCI Emerging Markets (NYSE:EEM) or the Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (NYSE:VWO) are still the easiest and broadest routes gain exposure.

The PowerShares DWA Emerging Markets Technical Leaders ETF (NYSE:PIE) could be one of the best ways to get the most bang for your Fed buck in the sector. This ETF ranks its components based on relative strength traits. That means it bets on faster moving emerging market companies like Companhia de Bebidas Das Americas (NYSE:ABV) and HDFC Bank (NYSE:HDB). Top nations include Indonesia, Thailand and Turkey. The fund jumped nearly 5% on the day Bernanke announced that he wasn't going to taper. PIE's expenses run 0.90%.

A recent research paper by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York showed that large-scale asset purchases have the effect of pushing investors into emerging market debt. That means both the iShares JPMorgan USD Emerging Markets Bond (NYSE:EMB) and WisdomTree Emerging Markets Local Debt (NYSE:ELD) could be big buys as the Fed continues to stimulate. Both make direct bets on emerging market bonds with dollar and local currency exposure, respectively.

Finally, perhaps the biggest discount in the emerging world can be found in the BRICs. Brazil, Russia, India and China have been hit especially hard as many investors abandoned their growth stories. The SPDR S&P BRIC 40 (NYSE:BIK) tracks 40 of the largest companies in these nations and can be used to gain extra exposure to the titans.

The Bottom Line

The emerging market nations have been hit hard this year as tapering concerns have caused investors to flee risky assets. However, with the Fed signaling that quantitative easing is still very much on the table, the sector should continue to rally into the New Year. For investors, making a play in the developing world could be a big portfolio win. The previous picks- along with the Schwab Emerging Markets Equity ETF (NASDAQ:SCHE) –make ideal selections.

Disclosure: At the time of writing, the author owned shares of VWO

Syria, a Country Without Oil, Pushes Oil Prices Up

Syria’s oil reserves rank 35th in the world. However, the anxiety index among oil traders ignores that, almost certainly because of worry that the conflict in Syria will spill over to its oil-rich neighbors. However, Syria is not very close to most oil-rich nations geographically, other than Iraq. And Iraq has oil export problems of its own, which makes it an unlikely choice as a major source of supply. Years of war and infrastructure failures have kept Iraq’s capacity at low levels compared to its reserves.

Put another way, the Syrian situation is unlikely to interrupt supply from the largest oil-producing nations. All have governments that are stable and will not be shaken by the Syrian civil war.

The largest exports of oil from the Middle East region have had virtually no unrest among their populations. This includes particularly Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Kuwait.

The supplies from the world’s other largest oil producers continue to be steady. There is no reason to think production in the United States, Mexico, Venezuela, Canada or Brazil will change at all.

October NYMEX crude has reached more than $106 and has made a quick assault on $107. The level is extraordinary, given that less than three months ago the price was just above $90. The war premium, which appears to be the single greatest cause, has pressed the price 17% higher over the period.

Oil prices really ought to be dropping. The economies of Europe remain weak, with the exception of Germany. The Chinese economy has cooled. Oil research firm Platts recently reported:

Despite a new oil product pricing mechanism introduced by the central government in March, China’s state refiners continued to suffer in the downstream in the second quarter because of poor domestic demand, their interim results showed.

Downstream margins have improved considerably since last year, largely due to more timely domestic retail oil product price adjustments by the National Development and Reform Commission that closely track oil price changes, along with relatively lower crude prices. However, poor domestic demand continues to weigh on the companies, analysts said this week.

In particular, gasoil demand, which makes up the largest slate in China’s oil product mix, has been weak.

While demand for oil in the United States has been moderately strong, it has not been remarkably high, which additionally begs the question about price.

Syria’s troubles are unique. There is no evidence they will spread, at least in a fashion that will affect supply. So why an increase in prices?

Opening Print and S&P Levels to Watch

It's OK to say you are unsure what's going to happen next. A few weeks ago 90% of everyone we spoke to called for lower prices. The most recent rally is another prime example of when the bus gets too full.

That said, most of the shorts have covered and most people we talk to think the S&P still has more room on the upside. According to the Ned Davis S&P cash study, the Friday before the Sept expiration has been up 19 and down 9 of the last 28 occasions and Monday has been up 16 and down 13 of the last 29. With that in mind, we lean to selling rallies today. We may look to buy weakness, but with the S&P up 6 days in a row the market is overdue for a down day.

As always, use stops and keep an eye on the 10-handle rule. Don't forget to catch MrTopStep on The Closing Print video found under the OptionsTV page (top bar). We report directly from the SPX pits, wrapping up the day and positioning for trade tomorrow.

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European Stocks Drop as Bullard Says Fed May Taper

European stocks dropped from a five-year high as Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard said the central bank may decide to reduce bond purchases at its next policy meeting.

Adidas AG slid 2.9 percent after lowering its profit forecast for 2013. Direct Line Insurance Group Plc lost 2.5 percent as Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc (RBS) sold a 630 million-pound ($1 billion) stake in the U.K.'s biggest car insurer.

The Stoxx 600 slipped 0.2 percent to 314.42 at 3:19 p.m. in London after earlier climbing as much as 0.2 percent. The equity benchmark has still risen 1 percent this week, extending its rally so far this year to 12 percent, as the Fed refrained from slowing the pace of its bond-buying program at its last policy meeting on Sept. 17-18.

"Almost every single investor expected the Fed to taper," Henrik Drusebjerg, who helps oversee $220 billion as a senior strategist at Nordea Bank AB in Copenhagen, said by telephone. "Bullard's comments are definitely something that would concern investors as we've seen quite a rally this week on the back of the Fed indicating that it will delay tapering."

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Bullard said that economic reports over the next month may lead the Federal Open Market Committee to cut its monthly purchases of Treasuries or mortgage bonds when it next meets on Oct. 29-30. "It's possible that you could get some data that change the complexion of the outlook and could make the committee be comfortable with a small taper in October," Bullard said in an interview with Tom Keene on Bloomberg Television's "Bloomberg Surveillance."

Fed Statement

The Stoxx 600 climbed to its highest level since June 2008 yesterday after the Fed said in a statement that it needs to see more evidence of lasting improvement in the U.S. economy before slowing the pace of its bond-buying program. Some 44 of 64 economists surveyed by Bloomberg before the decision had predicted that the central bank would start tapering stimulus measures this month.

In Germany, an INSA opinion poll published yesterday showed the opposition Social Democrats climbing one percentage point to 28 percent, 10 points behind Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union and its sister party the Christian Social Union of Bavaria. Both main groups fell short of a majority with their preferred coalition partners in the survey.

Some polls show the Free Democrats, the junior member of the governing coalition, struggling to reach the 5 percent threshold they need to enter parliament, meaning that Merkel may have to form a government with another party.

"The decision of this election is a fulcrum point for the euro for the next two years until the next major set of elections,"said Justin Urquhart Stewart, who helps oversee about $6.8 billion at Seven Investment Management in London.

Consumer Confidence

A measure of euro-area consumer confidence compiled by the European Commission rose less than economists had predicted. The index of household sentiment climbed to minus 14.9 in September from minus 15.6 in August. The median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg had called for a reading of minus 14.5.

Adidas slipped 2.9 percent to 80.18 euros after cutting the low end of its profit forecast for 2013 by 7.9 percent. The world's second-largest sporting-goods maker said the euro's strength would hurt its sales in the third quarter, while the move to a new distribution center in Russia would reduce the availability of products in shops.

Direct Line

Direct Line (DLG) dropped 2.5 percent to 212.6 pence. RBS sold 300 million shares at 210 pence apiece in its third sale of a stake in the insurance company, according to a statement. The bank, which is majority owned by the U.K. government, reduced its holding in Direct Line by 20 percent to 28.5 percent. RBS slipped 1.3 percent to 364.1 pence.

RWE AG retreated 4.2 percent to 24.61 euros after Germany's second-largest utility said it will reduce its dividend. The company will pay 1 euro ($1.35) on each common and preferred share at its annual general meeting in 2014, half of what it paid this year.

ICAP Plc (IAP) lost 3.5 percent to 395.3 pence as Bank of America Corp.'s Merrill Lynch unit downgraded the world's largest broker of transactions between banks to neutral from buy. The brokerage said that U.S. rules governing swap-execution facilities, which come into effect on Oct. 2, will have a wider scope than analysts had expected.

"These appear to be much more extensive than we -- and the market, we suspect -- had envisaged," the note said. "We therefore see short- and medium-term risks to earnings."

Mediaset Rises

Mediaset SpA (MS) added 2 percent to 3.30 euros after Morgan Stanley increased its target price on the broadcaster controlled by former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to 3.65 euros from 2.15 euros. The brokerage said that an improving advertising market and sustained cost savings will enable the company to reduce its indebtedness.

Ackermans & van Haaren NV rose 4.1 percent to 73.55 euros after the investment firm offered to buy Cie. d'Entreprises CFE SA for 451 million euros to gain full control of the world's third-largest dredging company.

The volume of shares changing hands in companies listed on the Stoxx 600 was 14 percent greater than the average of the past 30 days, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Bitter Facts of the "Jobs Recovery" My Readers Need to Know About

The Federal Reserve and Obama administration have pushed trillions of dollars of stimulus into the economic veins of America. For that, the return on the investment has been dismal.

Just take a look at the retail sales reading for August; consumer spending clearly isn’t doing what the government wants it to do and that is to spend and drive gross domestic product (GDP) growth.

Retail sales increased a mere and disappointing 0.2% in August, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. The reading was well below the Briefing.com estimate of 0.5% and the upwardly revised 0.4% in July. Even on an ex-auto basis, retail sales spurted along at a mere 0.1%.

I’m hearing some economists saying retail sales have been positive for five straight quarters. I say, so what? The reality is that there’s a weak spot in consumer spending. If you want to see strong consumer spending, just look at China, where retail sales surged an impressive 13.4% in August.

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The problem I continue to see in the U.S. is that the jobs market continues to be weak, and this has an impact on consumer spending. When you don’t have work or are underemployed, which millions of Americans are, it’s only expected that you would be hesitant to spend when shopping, especially on non-essential goods and services. The durable goods orders in July plummeted 7.3% after a 3.9% increase in June. This means consumers are not spending on stuff they don’t need.

In my view, this is not the sign of a healthy economy. The rich—the top five percent—may be faring well, but the rest of America, including the middle class and lower-income earners are struggling to make ends meet, so they’re holding back on consumer spending.

In the U.S., we have about 11.27 million people actively looking for work, but only about 3.689 million jobs were available in July, according to JOLTS. However, if you add in the workers who have given up looking for work, the number of unemployed swells to about 21.25 million. (Source: USDebtClock.org, last accessed September 13, 2013.) This means that the majority of America will be less inclined to spend, meaning the poor levels of consumer spending will hinder economic growth.

In August, a mere 169,000 jobs were created. Sorry to say, but that’s just not good enough, especially when we still have about 48 million Americans depending on handouts and food stamps.

With such abysmal numbers and an absence of strong consumer spending, there’s one question we all should be asking the mainstream media: where’s the healthy economy?

This article Bitter Facts of the “Jobs Recovery” My Readers Need to Know About was originally published at Investment Contrarians

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

Apple Continues to Lead U.S. Smartphone Market

For the three months ending in July 2013, Samsung Electronics closed the market share gap slightly between itself and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) in the U.S. smartphone market. Compared with market share totals at the end of April, Apple's share rose from 39.2% to 40.2%, while Samsung's share rose from 22% to 24.1%.

The data was reported by comScore Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR).

The other OEMs in the top five were HTC, with a July share of 8%, down from 8.9% in April; Motorola from Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) with a 6.9% share, down from 8.3% in April; and LG Electronics with a 6.8% share, up 0.1% from April.

In the U.S. market, the Android operating system from Google enjoys 51.8% of the market, compared with 40.4% for iOS. The BlackBerry platform from BlackBerry Ltd. (NASDAQ: BBRY) fell from 5.1% to 4.3%, while Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) remained flat at 3%. Symbian has managed to hold on to 0.3% of the market, but that will dwindle to zero over time.

The top smartphone properties measured by reach belong to Google (92.6% reach), Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) with an 86.3% reach, Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) with 81.7% reach, Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) with 66.8%, and Apple with 50.2%. The top smartphone apps belong to Facebook with 76.1% of U.S. users and four Google apps — YouTube, Google Play, Google Search, and Google Maps — rounding out the top five.

Should Sprint Nextel Be In Your Portfolio?

With shares of Sprint Nextel (NYSE:S) trading around $7, is S 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

Sprint Nextel offers wireless and landline communications products and services to individuals and businesses in the United States. Through its two segments, Wireless and Wireless, it offers voice and data transmission services to subscribers in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands under the Sprint corporate brand, which includes its retail brands of Sprint, Nextel, Boost Mobile, Virgin Mobile, and Assurance Wireless. An increasing share of the population is opting for these communications products and services, fueling profits for Sprint Nextel. A recent bidding war with Dish Network (NASDAQ:DISH) for Clearwire (NASDAQ:CLWR) has ended and left Sprint Nextel with the opportunity to take over the rest of the company that will lead to further expansion. As the desire to connect with others continues to rise, profits and the stock price should follow.

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart are Strong

Sprint Nextel stock has witnessed an explosive move higher over the last couple of years. The stock is now digesting gains from its recent move so it may need some time before continuing. 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, Sprint Nextel is trading between its rising key averages which signal neutral price action in the near-term.

(Source: Thinkorswim)

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

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
Sprint Nextel Options	20.06%	6%	5%

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

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

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

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

E = Earnings Are Mixed Quarter-Over-Quarter

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

	2013 Q1	2012 Q4	2012 Q3	2012 Q2
Earnings Growth (Y-O-Y)	27.59%	-1.22%	-160%	-64.29%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	0.68%	Hot Insurance Companies To Watch In Right Now 3.24%	5.16%	6.40%
Earnings Reaction	-0.14%	-0.51%	-1.77%	20.17%

Sprint Nextel has seen mixed earnings and rising revenue figures over the last four quarters. From these numbers, the markets have been expecting a little more from Sprint Nextel’s recent earnings announcements.

P = Excellent Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has Sprint Nextel stock done relative to its peers, AT&T (NYSE:T), Verizon (NYSE:VZ), T-Mobile (NYSE:TMUS), and sector?

	Sprint Nextel	AT&T	Verizon	T-Mobile	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	23.02%	5.93%	18.35%	21.48%	15.22%

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

Conclusion

Sprint Nextel provides communications services and technology to a multitude of consumers and companies across the nation and its territories. The stock has been on a powerful move higher but is now digesting gains from a recent run. Over the last four quarters, investors have expected a little more as earnings have been mixed and revenue figures have been rising. Relative to its peers and sector, Sprint Nextel has been a year-to-date performance leader. Look for Sprint Nextel to OUTPERFORM.

Cities Where 9% Unemployment Persists: BLS State Unemployment Survey

No one can question that the overall unemployment rate has fallen from a monthly crest of more than 10% at the peak of the recession toward 7% recently. In several states, the figure has dropped below 5%. However, at the other end of the spectrum, the jobless rate remains about 9%, particularly in several large cities.

The areas where unemployment has remained high share one of two features. They were either places where the rise and fall of the real estate markets where fantastic, or ones where old manufacturing industries cratered and will not improve. Whichever is the cause, there is nothing on the horizon that would cause a quick recovery, so the jobless rate in these areas will persist.

Las Vegas may be the city crushed most by the trend of home overbuilding and then underbuying. The jobless rate for the state of Nevada is 9.5%, with Las Vegas accounting for a large portion of the state’s population. After falling over the course of a year, Nevada’s rate has been stuck at the present level for three months. Housing data shows that the market has rebounded some but has stayed sharply below 2005 and 2006 boom levels. To put further pressure on employment in the state, the gaming industry may never return to its previous robust health. Too few people have money to gamble, and there are too many places for the few to go to play.

Top Biotech Companies To Watch For 2014

The employment strength of the manufacturing industry ran across the southern Great Lakes region, from Chicago to Detroit, Toledo, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Buffalo. Most of these jobs were dependent either directly or indirectly on the car industry, and its shows. Unemployment in the Chicago-Joliet-Naperville area was 9.4% in July. In Detroit-Warren-Livonia, the figure is identical. The only other former industrial region that is close to matching these is New England’s old manufacturing center of Rhode Island, where unemployment has lingered at 8.9% for the past three months.

There is a persistent myth that the jobs recovery has been fairly even, but this is not true. Over the course of the past year, once heavily industrialized Illinois has added 50,500 jobs. Colorado, less than half Illinois’s size, has added 63,400. This comparison is not isolated. Michigan added 70,300 jobs in the past year. Washington state, barely two-thirds’ Michigan’s size, added 64,900.

The jobs recovery is nothing if uneven.

SunEdison Chip Spin-Off Could Be Copied by Solar Peers

SunEdison Inc. (NYSE: SUNE), the company formerly known as MEMC Electronics, announced Thursday morning that it would spin off its semiconductor unit in an initial public offering (IPO) tentatively scheduled for early next year. The company plans to file documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in the current quarter. The IPO is, of course, subject to market conditions.

SunEdison currently operates in two divisions: semiconductor materials and solar energy. By shedding the semiconductor business, the company expects to generate more shareholder value:

This new structure will allow each independent company to pursue its shareholder value generating strategies, focus on key markets and customers, optimize capital structures, and enhance access to growth capital for each company in the years ahead. Given the significant accomplishments of the businesses to date, it is the right time for this transaction which we believe maximizes value to our investors while benefiting our customers and employees.

Could this be the beginning of trend in the solar sector? First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) does not use silicon in its solar panels, so there is no chance that it will follow suit. Its recent acquisition of cadmium telluride (CdTe) intellectual property from General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) gives it essentially total control over its technology.

SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) does use silicon in manufacturing its solar cells and modules, but the silicon is supplied by third-party vendors. SunPower has chosen to enter the downstream end of the business — designing and installing solar projects — rather than getting involved in the wafer-making end of the solar market.

Chinese solar companies are a different story. Many manufacture their own silicon wafers and sell silicon to other makers. Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL), LDK Solar Co. Ltd. (NYSE: LDK), JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO) and Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) all manufacture and sell solar ingots, wafers or cells.

While it might make sense to spin off the wafer-making part of these Chinese firms, it may take some time for that to happen. One issue will be whether the government will support a consolidation of the wafer-making industry. Another is how the companies' management will react to spinning off a portion of their business. If a spin-off is viewed as a defeat, achieving any sort of consolidation in China's silicon industry will be a difficult sale.

SunEdison is one of a kind among U.S.-based solar companies, and spinning off a minority stake in its wafer business makes a lot of sense. It is a model that its Chinese peers could choose to follow because it would make sense for some of them as well. But with the government's thumb on the scale, one never knows what to expect.

Shares of SunEdison are up more than 14% in premarket trading Thursday morning, at $7.80 in a 52-week range of $2.15 to $10.47.

Can General Electric Continue This Trend?

With shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE) trading around $23, is GE 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

General Electric is a diversified industrial, technology, and financial services company that operates worldwide. The products and services of the company range from aircraft engines, power generation, water processing, and household appliances to medical imaging, business and consumer financing and industrial products. General Electric's segments include: Energy Infrastructure, Aviation, Healthcare, Transportation, Home & Business Solutions and GE Capital. General Electric is a leading provider of a wide range of products and many are essential in daily lives of consumers and companies around the world.

General Electric (GE Capital) and American International Group (NYSE:AIG) have been designated by the Financial Stability Oversight Council as being non-bank "systemically important financial institutions." What will change? Since both companies are deemed to potentially pose a threat to a financial system in crisis, they are now subject to regulation under the Dodd-Frank financial reform act, which means the companies will face government scrutiny. As countries continue to grow, General Electric will continue to see a rise in profits by providing key products on an ongoing basis.

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart are Mixed

General Electric stock has seen a consistent uptrend extending back so early 2009. The stock is trading very near multi-year highs but still has a ways to go to be where it once was. 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, General Electric is trading slightly above its tangling key averages which signal neutral to bullish price action in the near-term.

(Source: Thinkorswim)

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

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
General Electric Options	20.94%	3%	0%

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

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

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

On the next page, let’s take a look at the earnings and revenue growth rates and 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 General Electric’s stock. What do the last four quarterly earnings and revenue growth (Y-O-Y) figures for General Electric look like and more importantly, how did the markets like these numbers?

	2013 Q1	2012 Q4	2012 Q3	2012 Q2
Earnings Growth (Y-O-Y)	Top Safest Companies To Watch In Right Now 17.24%	8.72%	50.00%	-17.14%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	-0.49%	3.57%	2.79%	2.46%
Earnings Reaction	-4.05%	3.47%	-3.41%	0.35%

General Electric has seen rising earnings and revenue figures over most of the last four quarters. From these numbers, the markets have had mixed sentiment about General Electric’s recent earnings announcements.

P = Excellent Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has General Electric stock done relative to its peers, United Technologies (NYSE:UTX), Philips (NYSE:PHG), Siemens (NYSE:SI), and sector?

	General Electric	United Technologies	Philips	Siemens	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	11.86%	19.01%	6.10%	-4.25%	8.42%

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

Conclusion

General Electric is a global diversified industrial, technology, and financial services company. A segment of the company, GE Capital, is now deemed as a non-bank systemically important financial institution and subject to Dodd-Frank regulations. The stock has been on a consistent run higher but still has a ways to go if it wants to be where it once was. Over most of the last four quarters, General Electric has seen rising earnings and revenue figures, however, earnings reports have resulted in mixed sentiment by investors in the company. Relative to its peers and sector, General Electric has been a year-to-date performance leader. WAIT AND SEE what General Electric does this coming quarter.

10 Best Bank Stocks To Watch For 2014

"Traders and salesmen would boast about 'ripping the face off' their clients -- structuring and selling complicated deals that clients did not understand but that generated huge profits for the bank that was brokering the trade."
--From Simon Johnson and James Kwak's 13 Bankers

Wall Street has always been known as a place to make money -- as an employee. Whether Wall Street's customers do well is another story. And many -- most, in fact -- do not.

More than four years after the financial crisis, do you trust Wall Street? I asked Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab, what she and her clients thought. She brought up an interesting point related to returns of the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC  ) Have a look (transcript follows):

10 Best Bank Stocks To Watch For 2014: Federal National Mortgage Association Fannie Mae (FNMAT)

Federal National Mortgage Association Fannie Mae is a government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) chartered by the United States Congress to support liquidity and stability in the secondary mortgage market, where mortgage-related assets are purchased and sold. The Company�� activities include providing market liquidity by securitizing mortgage loans originated by lenders in the primary mortgage market into Fannie Mae mortgage-backed securities (Fannie Mae MBS), and purchasing mortgage loans and mortgage-related securities in the secondary market for its mortgage portfolio. Fannie Mae operates in three business segments: Single-Family business, Multifamily Business (formerly Housing and Community Development (HCD)) and Capital Markets group. Its Single-Family Credit Guaranty and Multifamily businesses work with its lender customers to purchase and securitize mortgage loans customers deliver to the Company into Fannie Mae MBS.

The Company obtains funds to support its business activities by issuing a variety of debt securities in the domestic and international capital markets. Fannie Mae acquires funds to purchase mortgage-related assets for its mortgage portfolio by issuing a variety of debt securities in the domestic and international capital markets. It also makes other investments. Fannie Mae conducts its business in the United States residential mortgage market and the global securities market. It conducts business in the United States residential mortgage market and the global securities market. During the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company��

Single-Family Business

Single-Family business includes mortgage securitizations, mortgage acquisitions, credit risk management and credit loss management. Single-Family business works with the Company�� lender customers to provide funds to the mortgage market by securitizing single-family mortgage loans into Fannie Mae MBS. Its Single-Family business also works with its Capital Markets group to facilitate the purc! hase of single-family mortgage loans for the Company�� mortgage portfolio. Fannie Mae�� Single-Family business prices and manages the credit risk on its single-family guaranty book of business, which consists of single-family mortgage loans underlying Fannie Mae MBS and single-family loans held in its mortgage portfolio. Single-Family business and Capital Markets group securitize and purchase primarily single-family fixed-rate or adjustable-rate, first lien mortgage loans, or mortgage-related securities backed by these types of loans.

The Company securitizes or purchases loans insured by Federal Housing Administration (FHA), loans guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and loans guaranteed by the Rural Development Housing and Community Facilities Program of the Department of Agriculture, manufactured housing loans, reverse mortgage loans, multifamily mortgage loans, subordinate lien mortgage loans and other mortgage-related securities. Its Single-Family business securitizes single-family mortgage loans and issues single-class Fannie Mae MBS. Fannie Mae�� Single-Family business securitizes loans solely in lender swap transactions, in which lenders deliver pools of mortgage loans to the Company, which are placed immediately in a trust, in exchange for Fannie Mae MBS backed by these loans. Generally, the servicing of the mortgage loans held in its mortgage portfolio or that backs its Fannie Mae MBS is performed by mortgage servicers on the Company�� behalf. Lenders who sell single-family mortgage loans to Fannie Mae service these loans for the Company. For loans it owns or guarantees, the lender or servicer must obtain its approval before selling servicing rights to another servicer.

Fannie Mae�� mortgage servicers collect and deliver principal and interest payments, administer escrow accounts, monitor and report delinquencies, perform default prevention activities, evaluate transfers of ownership interests, respond to requests for partial releases of sec! urity, an! d handle proceeds from casualty and condemnation losses. Its mortgage servicers are the primary point of contact for borrowers and perform implementation of its homeownership assistance initiatives, negotiation of workouts of troubled loans, and loss mitigation activities. Mortgage servicers also inspect and preserve properties and process foreclosures and bankruptcies.

Multifamily Mortgage Business

Multifamily business works with the Company�� lender customers to provide funds to the mortgage market by securitizing multifamily mortgage loans into Fannie Mae MBS. Through its Multifamily business, Fannie Mae provides liquidity and support to the United States multifamily housing market principally by purchasing or securitizing loans that finance multifamily rental housing properties. It also provides some limited debt financing for other acquisition, development, construction and rehabilitation activity related to projects that complement this business. Fannie Mae�� Multifamily business also works with its Capital Markets group to facilitate the purchase and securitization of multifamily mortgage loans and securities for Fannie Mae�� portfolio, as well as to facilitate portfolio securitization and resecuritization activities.

The Company�� multifamily guaranty book of business consists of multifamily mortgage loans underlying Fannie Mae MBS and multifamily loans and securities held in Fannie Mae�� mortgage portfolio. Revenues for Fannie Mae�� Multifamily business are derived from a variety of sources, including guaranty fees received as compensation for assuming the credit risk on the mortgage loans underlying multifamily Fannie Mae MBS and on the multifamily mortgage loans held in its portfolio and on other mortgage-related securities; transaction fees associated with the multifamily business, and other bond credit enhancement related fees. As with the servicing of single-family mortgages, multifamily mortgage servicing is performed by the lenders who s! ell the m! ortgages to the Company. Fannie Mae�� Multifamily business is organized and operated as an integrated commercial real estate finance business.

Capital Markets

Capital Markets group's primary business activities include mortgage and other investments, mortgage securitizations, structured mortgage securitizations and other customer services, and interest rate risk management. Capital Markets group manages the Company�� investment activity in mortgage-related assets and other interest-earning, non-mortgage investments. It funds its investments primarily through proceeds the Company receives from the issuance of debt securities in the domestic and international capital markets. Its business activity is focused on making short-term use of its balance sheet rather than long-term investments. Activities Fannie Mae is undertaking to provide liquidity to the mortgage market include whole loan conduit, early funding, real estate mortgage investment conduit (REMICs) and other structured securitizations and dollar roll transactions. Whole loan conduit activities include its purchase of both single-family and multifamily loans principally for the purpose of securitizing them. During the year ended December 31, 2010, it was engaged in dollar roll activity. A dollar roll transaction is a commitment to purchase a mortgage-related security with a concurrent agreement to re-sell a similar security at a later date or vice versa.

Fannie Mae�� Capital Markets group is engaged in issuing both single-class and multi-class Fannie Mae MBS through both portfolio securitizations and structured securitizations involving third party assets. Its Capital Markets group creates single-class and multi-class Fannie Mae MBS from mortgage-related assets held in its mortgage portfolio. Fannie Mae�� Capital Markets group may sell these Fannie Mae MBS into the secondary market or may retain the Fannie Mae MBS in its investment portfolio. The Company�� Capital Markets group creates single-class ! and multi! -class structured Fannie Mae MBS, for its lender customers or securities dealer customers, in exchange for a transaction fee. The Company�� Capital Markets group provides its lender customers and their affiliates with services that include offering to purchase a range of mortgage assets, including non-standard mortgage loan products; segregating customer portfolios to obtain optimal pricing for their mortgage loans, and assisting customers with hedging their mortgage business.

Although the Company�� Capital Markets group�� business activities are focused on short-term financing and investing, revenue from its Capital Markets group is derived primarily from the difference, or spread, between the interests it earns on its mortgage and non-mortgage investments and the interest it incurs on the debt the Company issues to fund these assets. Its Capital Markets revenues are primarily derived from the Company�� mortgage asset portfolio. Capital Markets group funds its investments primarily through the issuance of a variety of debt securities in a range of maturities in the domestic and international capital markets. Investors in the Company�� debt securities include commercial bank portfolios and trust departments, investment fund managers, insurance companies, pension funds, state and local governments, and central banks.

The Company competes with Freddie Mac, FHA and Ginnie Mae.

10 Best Bank Stocks To Watch For 2014: Access National Corp (ANCX)

Access National Corporation (ANC) operates as a bank holding company. The Company has two wholly owned subsidiaries: Access National Bank (the Bank) and Access National Capital Trust II. The Bank is the operating business of the Company. The Bank provides credit, deposit, and mortgage services to middle market commercial businesses and associated professionals, primarily in the greater Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. The Bank offers a range of financial services and products and specializes in providing customized financial services to small and medium sized businesses, professionals, and associated individuals. The Bank provides its customers with personal customized service utilizing the latest technology and delivery channels. The Bank�� business is serving the credit, depository and cash management needs of businesses and associated professionals. The products and services offered by the Bank include accounts receivable lines of credit, accounts receivable collection accounts, growth capital term loans, business acquisition financing, online banking, checking accounts, money market accounts, sweep accounts, personal checking accounts, savings /money market accounts and certificates of deposit.

The Bank�� revenues are derived from interest and fees received in connection with loans, deposits, and investments. The Bank operates from five banking centers located in Chantilly, Tysons Corner, Reston, Leesburg and Manassas, Virginia and online at www.accessnationalbank.com. The Mortgage Corporation specializes in the origination of conforming and government insured residential mortgages to individuals in the greater Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area, the surrounding areas of its branch locations, outside of its local markets through direct mail solicitation, and otherwise. The Mortgage Corporation has offices throughout Virginia, in Fairfax, Reston, Roanoke, and McLean.

Lending Activities

The Bank�� lending activities involve commercial real estate loa! ns, residential mortgage loans, commercial loans, commercial and residential real estate construction loans, home equity loans, and consumer loans. These lending activities provide access to credit to small to medium sized businesses, professionals, and consumers in the greater Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. Loans originated by the Bank are classified as loans held for investment. At December 31, 2011 loans held for investment totaled $569.4 million. At December 31, 2011 unsecured loans were comprised of $2.9 million in commercial loans and approximately $124 thousand in consumer loans and collectively equal approximately 0.5% of the loans held for investment portfolio.

The Bank�� commercial real estate loans-wner Occupied represented 30.14% of our loan portfolio held for investment, as of December 31, 2011. Its commercial real estate loans-non-owner occupied loans represent ed18.44% of its loan portfolio held for investment, as of December 31, 2011. The Bank�� residential real estate loans represented 22.56% of the loan portfolio, as of December 31, 2011.

These loans fall into one of three situations: loans supporting an owner occupied commercial property; properties used by non-profit organizations, such as churches or schools where repayment is dependent upon the cash flow of the non-profit organizations, and loans supporting a commercial property leased to third parties for investment. Its residential real estate loans category includes loans secured by first or second mortgages on one to four family residential properties, extended to the Bank clients.

As of December 31, 2011, commercial loans represented 23.15% of the Bank�� loan portfolio held for investment. These loans are to businesses or individuals within its market for business purposes. As of December 31, 2011, real estate construction loans consisted of 5.22% of loans held for investment loan portfolio. These loans include loans to construct owner occupied commercial buildings; l! oans to i! ndividuals; loans to builders for the purpose of acquiring property and constructing homes for sale to consumers, and loans to developers for the purpose of acquiring land, which is developed into finished lots for the ultimate construction of residential or commercial buildings. As of December 31, 2011, consumer loans made up approximately 0.49% of its loan portfolio.

Investment Activities

The Company�� investment securities portfolio is consisted of the United States Treasury securities, the United States Government Agency securities, municipal securities, Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) mutual fund, and mortgage backed securities issued by the United States Government sponsored agencies and corporate bonds. At December 31, 2011, securities totaled $85.8 million. . The securities portfolio is comprised of $45.8 million in securities classified as available-for-sale and $40.0 million in securities classified as held-to-maturity.

Sources of Funds

As of December 31, 2011, deposits totaled $645.0 million. As of December 31, 2011, deposits consisted of noninterest-bearing demand deposits in the amount of $113.9 million, savings and interest-bearing deposits in the amount of $182.0 million, and time deposits in the amount of $349.1 million. The Bank also uses wholesale funding or brokered deposits to supplement traditional customer deposits for liquidity. It participates in the Certificate of Deposit Account Registry Service (CDARS). Through CDARS its depositors are able to obtain FDIC insurance of up to $50 million. As of December 31, 2011, brokered deposits totaled $223,554,000, which includes $192,326,000 in reciprocal CDARS deposits. It also maintains lines of credit with the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) and Federal Reserve Bank (FRB). At December 31, 2011 there was $284.9 million available under these lines of credit. Borrowed funds consist of advances from the FHLB, senior unsecured term note, FHLB long-term borrowings, subordinated debentures (! trust pre! ferred), securities sold under agreement to repurchase, United States Treasury demand notes, federal funds purchased, and commercial paper. As of December 31, 2011 borrowed funds totaled $123.6 million. At December 31, 2011 borrowed funds totaled $70.9 million.

Top Insurance Stocks To Buy Right Now: Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. (BBVA.N)

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (BBVA) is a diversified international financial group, with strengths in the traditional banking businesses of retail banking, asset management, private banking and wholesale banking. The Company also has investments in some of Spain�� companies. During the year ended December 31, 2009, BBVA focused its operations on six major business areas: Spain and Portugal, Wholesale Banking and Asset Management, Mexico, The United States, South America and Corporate Activities. On August 21, 2009, through its subsidiary BBVA Compass, BBVA acquired certain assets of Guaranty from the United States Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the FDIC).

Spain and Portugal

The Spain and Portugal business area focuses on providing banking services and consumer finance to private individuals, enterprises and institutions in Spain and Portugal. The main business units included in the Spain and Portugal area Spanish Retail Netwo rk, which manages individual customers, high net-worth individuals (private banking) and small companies and retailers in the Spanish market; Corporate and Business Banking, which manages business with small and medium enterprises (SMEs), large companies, institutions and developers in the Spanish market, and Other units, which includes consumer finance, that manages renting and leasing business, credit to individual and to enterprises for consumer products and Internet banking; European Insurance that manages the insurance business in Spain and Portugal, and BBVA Portugal, that manages the banking business in Portugal. The Spanish Retail Network unit services the financial and non-financial needs of households, professional practices, retailers and small businesses. The Corporate and Business Banking unit offers a range of services and products to SMEs, large companies, institutions and developers with specialized branch networks for each segment.

The Company

10 Best Bank Stocks To Watch For 2014: Fifth Third Bancorp(FITB)

Fifth Third Bancorp operates as a diversified financial services holding company in the United States. The company?s Commercial Banking segment offers credit intermediation, cash management, and financial services; lending and depository products; and foreign exchange and international trade finance, derivatives and capital markets services, asset-based lending, real estate finance, public finance, commercial leasing, and syndicated finance for business, government, and professional customers. Its Branch Banking segment provides deposit and loan, and lease products to individuals and small businesses. This segment?s products include checking and savings accounts, home equity loans and lines of credit, credit cards, loans for automobile and personal financing needs, and cash management services. The company?s Consumer Lending segment engages in the mortgage and home equity lending activities, such as origination, retention, and servicing of mortgage and home equity loans ; and other indirect lending activities, which include loans to consumers through mortgage brokers and automobile dealers. Its Investment Advisors segment offers investment alternatives for individuals, companies, and not-for-profit organizations. It offers retail brokerage services to individual clients, and broker dealer services to the institutional marketplace. This segment also provides asset management services; holistic strategies to affluent clients in wealth planning, investing, insurance, and wealth protection; and advisory services for institutional clients, as well as advises the company?s proprietary family of mutual funds. As of December 31, 2011, the company operated 1,316 full-service banking centers, including 104 Bank Mart locations; and 2,425 automated teller machines in 12 states in the midwestern and southeastern regions of the United States. The company was founded in 1862 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.

10 Best Bank Stocks To Watch For 2014: Wilshire Bancorp Inc.(WIBC)

Wilshire Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for Wilshire State Bank that offers a range of financial products and services. It accepts various deposit products that include certificates of deposit, regular savings accounts, money market accounts, checking and negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, installment savings accounts, and individual retirement accounts. The company?s loan portfolio comprises commercial real estate and home mortgage loans, commercial business lending and trade finance, and small business administration lending, as well as consumer loans, including personal loans, auto loans, and other loans. It also provides trade finance services that include issuance and negotiation of letters of credit, handling of documentary collections, advising and negotiation of commercial letters of credit, transfer and issuance of back-to-back letters of credit, and trade finance lines of credit. In addition, the company offers Internet banking services, auto matic teller machines, and armored carrier services. It has 24 full-service branch offices in Southern California, Texas, New Jersey, and the greater New York City metropolitan area; and 6 loan production offices in Colorado, Georgia, Texas, New Jersey, and Virginia. The company was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Philip]

  Shares of Wilshire Bancorp (WIBC) of Los Angeles closed at $3.42 Friday, down 55% year-to-date. The shares have 18% upside potential, based on a mean 12-month price target of $4.04, among analysts polled by FactSet.

  The company had $2.7 billion in total assets as of Sept. 30, with 24 branches in Southern California, Texas, New Jersey, and the New York City area, and six loan production offices in n Colorado, Georgia, Texas (two offices), New Jersey, and Virginia.

  Wilshire Bancorp owes $62.2 million in federal bailout funds received through the Troubled Assets Relief Program, or TARP. The company raised $100 million in common equity during the second quarter, following an agreement with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and state regulators to bring main subsidiary Wilshire State Bank's Tier 1 leverage ratio up to at least 10%. The Bank subsidiary's Tier 1 leverage ratio was 13.24% as of Sept. 30.

  The holding company reported third-quarter net income available to common shareholders of $10.2 million, or 14 cents a share, increasing from $2.1 million, or 4 cents a share, during the second quarter, and $5.0 million, or 14 cents a share, during the third quarter of 2010.

  The main factor in the earnings improvement was a reduction in credit costs, with a third-quarter provision for loan losses of $2.5 million, declining from $10.3 million the previous quarter and $18.0 million a year earlier. A $5.7 million decline in loan loss reserves during the third quarter directly boosted earnings.

  With the company continuing its aggressive reduction of its commercial real estate loan portfolio and its nonperforming loans, Wilshire Bancorp's total assets declined 17% from a year earlier. During the third quarter, the company sold $28.7 million in loans, most of which were nonperforming, for a gain of $1.7 million.

  Net interest income declined 14% year-over-year to $25.5 million in the third quarter, reflecting the balance sheet reduction.

  The net interest margin -- t! he difference between a bank's average yield on loans and investments and its average cost for loans and deposits -- was a strong 4.23% in the third quarter, which was down from 4.42% the previous quarter, but up from 3.393% a year earlier.

  Wilshire Bancorp's ratio of nonperforming assets to total assets was 2.46% as of Sept. 30, improving from 3.22% the previous quarter and 2.87% a year earlier. The annualized ratio of net charge-offs -- loan losses less recoveries -- to total loans was 0.46%, and with reserves covering 5.27% of total loans, the company appeared well-positioned for continued significant releases of reserves.

  FIG Partners analyst Timothy Coffey on Oct. 28 reiterated his "Outperform" or "Buy" rating for Wilshire Bancorp, raising his 12-month price target to $4.50 from $3.80, also "estimating tangible book values of $3.43 in 2011, $4.21 in 2012 and $4.84 in 2013." The analyst said that he anticipated that "could start to reverse the DTA-Deferred Tax Asset valuation allowance over the coming quarters," and that "the improvement in the earnings power has resulted in losses below management's projections, which has increased the valuation allowance to $40 million." Coffey estimated that "company could have no tax expense or very limited expense in 2012 before a normalized expense returns in 2013."

  The shares trade for 6.8 times the consensus 2012 earnings estimate of 50 cents, among analysts polled by FactSet, and just above their Sept. 30 tangible book value of $3.27, according to SNL Financial.

  Four out of seven analysts covering Wilshire Bancorp rate the shares a buy, while the remaining analysts all have neutral ratings.

10 Best Bank Stocks To Watch For 2014: Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ANZ)

Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ANZ) provides a range of banking and financial products and services to retail, small business, corporate and institutional clients. The Company conducts its operations in Australia, New Zealand and the Asia Pacific region. It also operates in a range of other countries, including the United Kingdom and the United States. The Company operates on a divisional structure with Australia, International and Institutional Banking (IIB), New Zealand, and Global Wealth and Private Banking. As of September 30, 2012, the Company had 1,337 branches and other points of representation worldwide, excluding automatic teller machines (ATMs). In September 2012, it sold its remaining shareholding in Visa Inc. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dale Gillham]

  ANZ's chart shows a similar story to the financial sector chart, with ANZ moving up from its low around $17.50 in 2011 to trade sideways between $20.00 and $22.00. The first positive sign indicating the pendulum may have shifted to favouring equities occurred when ANZ broke through a trend line and created a potential entry in mid-October 2011. This opportunity was only for short-term traders as there was the risk from very strong overhead resistance at around $22.00 for it to turn down again.

  In November 2011 ANZ fell sharply, which suggested it was more likely to continue falling than to rise. However, since then it has shown some resilience and risen again to challenge $22.00. How it reacts here is important and illustrates why investors need to stay alert. While ANZ holds above $20.31 the likelihood for a continuation of the recent rise increases, and for ANZ to achieve a 10 per cent return in a few months.

   

10 Best Bank Stocks To Watch For 2014: National Australia Bank Ltd (NAB)

National Australia Bank Limited provides products, advice and services. In Australia, it operates through National Australia Bank, MLC and UBank. In the United Kingdom, it operates through Clydesdale Bank. In New Zealand, it operates through Bank of New Zealand. In the United States, it operates through Great Western Bank. Segments include Business Banking, Personal Banking, Wholesale Banking, UK Banking and NZ Banking, MLC and NAB and Great Western Ban. As of April 5, 2012, the Company and its associated entities ceased to be a substantial holder in BlueScope Steel Limited. On May 17, 2012, it ceased to be a substantial holder in Spark Infrastructure Group and Sandfire Resources NL. As of August 24, 2012, the Company and its associated entities ceased to be holder in Tabcorp Holdings Limited. In September 2012, the Company and its associated entities have ceased to be a substantial holder in Incitec Pivot Limited, as of August 30, 2012. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dale Gillham]

  NAB is still a long way from its all-time high of $44.84 from 2007, but has so far been able to hold above 50 per cent ($22.42) of its all-time high, which is a positive sign. Given that NAB has spent a lot of time in a zigzag formation above this level; you can see how strong this level has been for its shares. At present NAB is probably my least preferred bank stocks when weighing up the risks from a technical perspective, but while it stays above this 50 per cent level it has a greater probability of rising than falling.

  What is holding it back? You can see how a few months ago NAB attempted to break the $26.00 level overhead, which has proven to be an important threshold for those just not willing to pay more for NAB. If you are a bit of a contrarian and like to pick underdogs, you may decide to keep NAB on your watch list because very soon I am expecting it to show where it is headed. A move back below the 50 per cent level would not bode well for those holding NAB.

10 Best Bank Stocks To Watch For 2014: Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc (MTU)

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (MUFJ), incorporated on April 2, 2001, is a holding company for The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. (BTMU), Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation (MUTB), Mitsubishi UFJ Securities Holdings Co., Ltd. (MUSHD), Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co., Ltd.( MUMSS), Mitsubishi UFJ NICOS Co., Ltd. (Mitsubishi UFJ NICOS) and other companies engaged in a range of financial businesses. Its services include commercial banking, trust banking, securities, credit cards, consumer finance, asset management, leasing and fields of financial services. In May 2010, the Company and Morgan Stanley formed two joint ventures in Japan by integrating our respective Japanese securities companies engaged in investment banking and securities businesses. The Company converted the wholesale and retail securities businesses conducted in Japan by the former MUS into one of the joint venture entities, which is named MUMSS. Morgan Stanley contributed the investment banking operations conducted in Japan by its formerly wholly owned subsidiary, Morgan Stanley Japan Securities Co., Ltd. (MSJS) into MUMSS and converted the sales and trading and capital markets businesses conducted in Japan by MSJS into a second joint venture entity called Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities, Co., Ltd.

Integrated Retail Banking Business Group

The Integrated Retail Banking Business Group covers all domestic retail businesses, including commercial banking, trust banking and securities businesses, and enables the Company to offer a range of banking products and services, including financial consulting services, to retail customers in Japan. This business group integrates the retail business of BTMU, MUTB and MUMSS, as well as retail product development, promotion and marketing in a single management structure. Many of its retail services are offered through its network of MUFG Plazas providing individual customers with access to its financial product offerings of integrated commercial b! anking, trust banking and securities services.

The Company offers a range of bank deposit products, including a non-interest-bearing deposit account that is redeemable on demand and intended for payment and settlement functions, and is insured without a maximum amount limitation. It also offers a variety of asset management and asset administration services to individuals, including savings instruments, such as current accounts, ordinary deposits, time deposits, deposits at notice and other deposit facilities. MUFJ also offers trust products, such as loan trusts and money trusts, and other investment products, such as investment trusts, performance-based money trusts and foreign currency deposits.

The Company creates portfolios by combining savings instruments and investment products. It also provide a range of asset management and asset administration products, as well as customized trust products for high-net-worth individuals, as well as advisory services relating to the purchase and disposal of real estate and effective land utilization, and testamentary trusts. The Company provides a varied line up of investment trust products allowing its customers to choose products according to their investment needs through BTMU, MUTB and MUMSS, as well as kabu.com Securities, which specializes in online financial services. In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2010, BTMU offered a total of five investment trusts. As of the end of March 2010, BTMU offered its clients a total of 73 investment trusts.

The Company offers securities, including publicly offered stocks, foreign and domestic investment trusts, Japanese government bonds, foreign bonds and various other products. The Company offers housing loans, card loans and other loans to individuals. With respect to housing loans, in addition to housing loans incorporating health insurance for seven major illnesses, BTMU began offering in June 2009 preferential interest rates under its Environmentally Friendly Support program ! to custom! ers who purchase environment-conscious houses (like houses with solar electric systems), which meet specific criteria in response to increasing public interest in environmental issues. In September 2009, BTMU launched housing loans with home mortgage insurance, which BTMU jointly developed with the Japan Housing Finance Agency, a governmental agency under the Japanese government�� economic stimulus measures, under which the agency indemnifies BTMU for losses from housing loans.

The Company offers products and services through a range of channels, including branches, automated teller machines (ATMs) (including convenience store ATMs shared by multiple banks), Mitsubishi-Tokyo UFJ Direct (telephone, Internet and mobile phone banking), the Video Counter and postal mail. It offers integrated financial services combining its banking, trust banking and securities services at MUFG Plazas. These Plazas provide retail customers with integrated and flexible suite of services at one-stop outlets. As of March 31 2010, the Company provided those services through 47 MUFG Plazas. The Company offers MUTB�� trust related products and advisory services through its trust agency system not only for MUTB customers but also for BTMU and MUMSS customers. As of March 31, 2010, BTMU engaged in eight businesses as the trust banking agent for MUTB: testamentary trusts, inheritance management, asset succession planning, inheritance management agency operations, business management financial consulting, lifetime gift trusts, share disposal trusts, and marketable securities administration trusts.

Integrated Corporate Banking Business Group

The Integrated Corporate Banking Business Group covers all domestic and overseas corporate businesses, including commercial banking, investment banking, trust banking and securities businesses, as well as UnionBanCal Corporation (UNBC). UNBC is a wholly owned subsidiary of BTMU and a US bank holding company with Union Bank being its primary subsidiary. T! he Compan! y provides various financial solutions, such as loans and fund management, remittance and foreign exchange services. It also helps its customers develop business strategies, such as inheritance-related business transfers and stock listings.

It offers advanced financial solutions to companies through corporate and investment banking services. Product specialists globally provide derivatives, securitization, syndicated loans, structured finance and other services. It also provides investment banking services, such as merger and acquisition (M&A) advisory, bond and equity underwriting. It provides online banking services that allow customers to make domestic and overseas remittances electronically. It also provides a global cash pooling/netting service, and the Treasury Station, a fund management system for a multi-company group. The Company�� global Corporate and Investment Banking business (Global CIB), primarily serves companies, financial institutions, and sovereign and multinational organizations with a set of solutions for their financing needs.

Integrated Trust Assets Business Group

The Integrated Trust Assets Business Group covers asset management and administration services for products, such as pension trusts and security trusts by integrating the trust banking expertise of MUTB and the international strengths of BTMU. The business group provides a range of services to corporate and pension funds, including stable and secure pension fund management and administration, advice on pension schemes, and payment of benefits to scheme members. Its Integrated Trust Assets Business Group combines MUTB�� trust assets business, comprising trust assets management services, asset administration and custodial services, and the businesses of Mitsubishi UFJ Global Custody S.A., Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co., Ltd. and KOKUSAI Asset Management Co., Ltd.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Louis Navellier]

  Mitsubishi UFJ Financial (NYSE:MTU) is a Japanese holding company mainly engaged in the banking business. Mitsubishi Financial has posted a gain of 11% since this time last year. MTU stock gets a “B” grade for operating margin growth, a “B” grade for the magnitude in which earnings projections have increased over the past months, and an “A” grade for cash flow.

10 Best Bank Stocks To Watch For 2014: Goldman Sachs Group Inc.(The)

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides investment banking, securities, and investment management services to corporations, financial institutions, governments, and high-net-worth individuals worldwide. Its Investment Banking segment offers financial advisory, including advisory assignments with respect to mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, corporate defense, risk management, restructurings, and spin-offs; and underwriting securities, loans and other financial instruments, and derivative transactions. The company?s Institutional Client Services segment provides client execution activities, such as fixed income, currency, and commodities client execution related to making markets in interest rate products, credit products, mortgages, currencies, and commodities; and equities related to making markets in equity products, as well as commissions and fees from executing and clearing institutional client transactions on stock, options, and fu tures exchanges. This segment also engages in the securities services business providing financing, securities lending, and other prime brokerage services to institutional clients, including hedge funds, mutual funds, pension funds, and foundations. Its Investing and Lending segment invests in debt securities, loans, public and private equity securities, real estate, consolidated investment entities, and power generation facilities. This segment also involves in the origination of loans to provide financing to clients. The company?s Investment Management segment provides investment management services and investment products to institutional and individual clients. This segment also offers wealth advisory services, including portfolio management and financial counseling, and brokerage and other transaction services to high-net-worth individuals and families. In addition, it provides global investment research services. The company was founded in 1869 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

10 Best Bank Stocks To Watch For 2014: FirstMerit Corporation(FMER)

FirstMerit Corporation operates as the bank holding company for FirstMerit Bank, N.A. that provides a range of banking, fiduciary, financial, insurance, and investment services to corporate, institutional, and individual customers in northern and central Ohio, and western Pennsylvania. The company?s commercial business offers commercial term loans, revolving credit arrangements, asset-based lending, leasing, commercial mortgages, real estate construction lending, letters of credit, cash management services, and other depository products. Its retail business provides various financial products and services, including consumer direct and indirect installment loans, debit and credit cards, debit gift cards, residential mortgage loans, home equity loans and lines of credit, fixed and variable annuities, and ATM network services, as well as deposit products comprising checking, savings, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company?s wealth business provides a sset management, private banking, financial planning, estate settlement and administration, and credit and deposit products and services. FirstMerit Corporation also offers trust and investment services, including personal trust and planning, and investment management; retirement plan services; retail mutual funds, other securities, variable and fixed annuities, personal disability and life insurance products, and brokerage services; and private banking services, including credit, deposit, and asset management solutions. As of December 31, 2009, it operated a network of 160 full service banking offices and 182 ATMs. The company was founded in 1855 and is headquartered in Akron, Ohio.