Considering�how difficult the lending environment is for mid-size private companies, it only makes sense to take a hard look at the business development companies (BDCs).
It’s been a catch 22 for the banks. They are awash in cash,� but after getting shell shocked by the recession they aren’t willing to put that cash in the system in the form of new small-business loans as the Fed had intended under its current policy.
Top 10 Clean Energy Companies To Own For 2016: Ishares Trust S & P Global * (IXJ)
iShares S&P Global Healthcare Sector Index Fund (the Fund) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Standard & Poor�� Global Healthcare Sector Index (the Index). The Index is a subset of the Standard & Poor�� Global 1200 Index, and measures the performance of companies that Standard & Poor�� deems to be a part of the healthcare sector. Component companies include healthcare providers, biotechnology companies, and manufacturers of medical supplies, advanced medical devices and pharmaceuticals.
The Fund invests in a representative sample of securities included in the Index that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Index. The Fund�� investment advisor is Barclays Global Fund Advisors.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By MONEYMORNING.COM]
Consider the iShares S&P Global Healthcare Sect. (ETF) (NYSE: IXJ). While not a pure European play, it has one of the highest non-U.S. exposures in healthcare, most of which is European, and trades at a more reasonable P/E of 19. The fund is up 8.44% year to date and recently set a new all-time high, so it's definitely got momentum on its side.
Best High Dividend Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Assured Guaranty Ltd(AGO)
Assured Guaranty Ltd., through its subsidiaries, provides credit protection products to public finance, infrastructure, and structured finance markets in the United States and internationally. The company offers insurance, reinsurance, and credit derivative products that protect holders of debt instruments and other monetary obligations from defaults in scheduled payments, including scheduled interest and principal payments. It provides policies issued directly to the holders of insured obligations at time of issuance and those issued in the secondary market; and assumed reinsurance contracts written to third parties. The company insures various types of securities, including taxable and tax-exempt obligations issued by the United States or municipal governmental authorities, utility districts, or facilities; notes or bonds issued to finance international infrastructure projects; and asset-backed securities issued by special purpose entities. Assured Guaranty Ltd. markets its credit protection products directly to issuers and underwriters of public finance, infrastructure, and structured finance securities, as well as to investors in such debt obligations. The company was founded in 2003 and is based in Hamilton, Bermuda.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Eric Volkman]
Assured Guaranty (NYSE: AGO ) is attempting two well-tried moves to keep shareholders happy. The first is a quarterly dividend distribution amounting to $0.10 per share of its stock, to be handed out on June 5 to shareholders of record as of May 22. That amount matches Assured Guaranty's previous disbursement, which was paid in March.
- [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Assured Guaranty (NYSE: AGO) was also up, gaining 6.63 percent to $23.16 on Q3 results.
Equities Trading DOWN
Shares of Rackspace Hosting (NYSE: RAX) were down 13.47 percent to $42.67 after the company reported a 40 percent drop in its third-quarter net income. - [By GuruFocus]
George Soros (Trades, Portfolio) just reported his first quarter portfolio. He buys Citrix Systems Inc, Baker Hughes Inc, Comcast Corp, Spansion Inc, etc during the 3-months ended 03/31/2014, according to the most recent filings of his investment company, Soros Fund Management LLC. As of 03/31/2014, Soros Fund Management LLC owns 305 stocks with a total value of $10.1 billion. These are the details of the buys and sells.New Purchases: BHI, CODE, CTRP, CLI, AVB, COMM, CNQ, AGO, AUY, ATML, ASH, BXMT, CSTM, AEM, CMA, ARE, CHKP, AUQ, BEAV, CX, ADSK, AALCP, BLK, AIG, BIIB, ADEP, AMRI, ARWR, ATHX, BALT, BCRX, BEAT, CFX, CLFD, CUR, CODE,Added Positions: CTXS, CMCSA, CNP, ALTR, BRCD, CBS, CRM, CHTR, CCJ, CIEN, BIDU, ALLE, ABT, CDNS, ACT,Reduced Positions: AAPL, CCI, AMT, ABBV, AAL, BITA, AL, ANGI, ARIA, CBST, BA, BIRT, EXAR,Sold Out: C, BAC, CRI, AMZN, AGN, CF, BRCM, COTY, BMY, AMCX, CAR, A, ADBE, AFL,For the details of George Soros (Trades, Portfolio)'s stock buys and sells, go to http://www.gurufocus.com/StockBuy.php?GuruName=George+SorosThis is the sector weightings of his portfolio:Technology18.9%Energy14%Healthcare8.3%Consumer Defensive8.2%Communication Services8.1%Consumer Cyclical5.4%Industrials5.1%Basic Materials4.9%Financial Services2.5%Real Estate1.9%Utilities0.5%These are the top 5 holdings of George Soros (Trades, Portfolio)1. Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (TEVA) - 10,310,041 shares, 5.4% of the total portfolio. Shares added by 10.67%2. Herbalife Ltd (HLF) - 4,901,337 shares, 2.8% of the total portfolio. Shares added by 52.9%3. EQT Corp (EQT) - 2,573,814 shares, 2.5% of the total portfolio. Shares added by 3.27%4. Adecoagro SA (AGRO) - 25,915,076 shares, 2.1% of the total portfolio.5. Halliburton Co (HAL) - 3,596,353 shares, 2.1% of the total portfolio. Shares reduced by 20.73%New Purchase: Baker Hughes Inc (BHI)George Soros (Trades, Portfolio) initiated holdings in Baker Hughes Inc. His purchase prices were between $51.82 and $65.27, with an estimated
- [By Sue Chang]
Assured Guaranty Ltd. (AGO) �is forecast to post third-quarter earnings of 63 cents a share.
Best High Dividend Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Ivanhoe Energy Inc (IVAN)
Ivanhoe Energy Inc. (Ivanhoe), incorporated on February 21, 1995, is an independent international heavy oil development and production company. Ivanhoe�� core operations are in Canada, Ecuador, China and Mongolia, with business development opportunities worldwide. Ivanhoe�� wholly owned subsidiary, Sunwing Energy Ltd. (Sunwing) is focused on a natural gas exploration project (the Zitong Block) in Sichuan Province of China. The Sichuan Basin is located in central China approximately 930 miles southwest of Beijing. Its oil and gas operations are located in three geographic areas: Asia, Canada and Ecuador. In December 2012, the Company had closed the Share Purchase and Sale Agreement with MIE Holdings Corporation for all of the interest of its indirect, wholly owned subsidiary, Pan-China Resources Ltd.
Asia
In China, Sunwing operates the 659,840-acre (1,031-square-miles) Zitong gas exploration block in the Sichuan Province, and it holds a 90% Contractor Interest in a Petroleum Contract with PetroChina Company Limited. Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company of Japan holds the remaining 10% Contractor Interest. Sunwing produces approximately 1,800 (gross) barrels of light oil per day in Dagang, in China's Hebei province, in a production sharing agreement with Petrochina in which Sunwing is the operator and maintains a royalty interest in the revenue stream from its first project carried out in the Daqing Oil Field. In November 2002, the Company entered into a 30 year production sharing contract (PSC) with China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) for the Zitong block, which covers an area of approximately 248,000 gross acres after contractual relinquishments in the Sichuan basin.
During the year ended December 31, 2006, the Company farmed out 10% of its working interest in the Zitong block to Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company Inc. of Japan. In Phase I of the contract, Ivanhoe reprocessed 1,649 miles of two dimensional (2D) seismic data and acquired 705 miles of new 2D s! eismic data. In Phase II of the contract, the Yixin-2 and Zitong-1 gas wells were drilled during the year ended December 31, 2010, and completed during the year ended December 31, 2011. Ivanhoe�� oil production originates in the Kongnan oilfield in Dagang, Hebei Province, China (the Dagang field). In 2011, production in averaged 967 barrels per day net. The Company�� Nyalga Block XVI is in the Khenti and Tov provinces in Mongolia. The block covers an area of approximately 3.1 million gross acres, after a 25% relinquishment in 2010.
Canada
Ivanhoe holds a 100% working interest in the Tamarack Project, subject only to a 20% back-in right held by Talisman Energy. Tamarack is a 6,880 acre lease located approximately 10 miles northeast of Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada. The Tamarack integrated oil sands project (Tamarack Project) consists of a two-phased 40,000 bbl/d steam-assisted gravity drainage thermal recovery (SAGD) and HTL facility.
Ecuador
The Company's activities in Latin America are carried out under its wholly owned subsidiary, Ivanhoe Energy Latin America Inc. Ivanhoe Energy Ecuador Inc., a Canadian company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ivanhoe Energy Latin America Inc. and is responsible for the Company's activities in Ecuador. In October 2008, Ivanhoe Energy Ecuador Inc. had signed a 30 year contract with the Ecuador state oil companies Petroecuador and Petroproduccion. The contract gives Ivanhoe the right to explore and develop the Pungarayacu heavy oil field in Block 20, an area of 426 square miles, approximately 125 miles southeast of Quito, Ecuador�� capital city. Block 20 is an area of approximately 426-square-miles (1,103.34-square-kilometers) located 125 miles (201.17 kilometers) southeast of Quito. Block 20 contains the 250-square-mile (647.5-square-kilometer) Pungarayacu oil field. In 2010, Ivanhoe drilled its two appraisal wells in the Pungarayacu field. The second, IP-5b, well was drilled, cored and logged to a total depth ! of 1,080 ! feet. The well was perforated in the Hollin oil sands and steam was injected into the reservoir resulting in production of heated heavy oil. In 2011, the heavy crude oil extracted from the IP-5B well was upgraded to local pipeline specifications using Ivanhoe�� HTL upgrading process. In 2011, the Company completed a 190-kilometer 2-D seismic survey over the southern portion of Block 20.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Stephan Dube]
Athabasca's most notable producers:
Suncor Energy (SU) (Part 1), see article here.Suncor Energy (Part 2), see article here.Athabasca Oil (ATHOF.PK), see article here.Canadian Natural Resources, see article here.Imperial Oil, see article here.Cenovus Energy (CVE), see article here.MEG Energy (MEGEF.PK), see article here.Devon Energy, see article here.Royal Dutch Shell, see article here.Ivanhoe Energy (IVAN), see article here.Nexen (CNOOC) (CEO), see article here.An analysis of the current operations of the company will be examined with the objective to provide the most complete information available to potential investors before deciding to seize the opportunity that the 54,132 square miles of the Carbonate Triangle has to offer. Let's start by introducing Athabasca, a famous and most prolific region in the Canadian oil sands as well as one of the largest reserve in the world.
Best High Dividend Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Highway 50 Gold Corp (HWY)
Highway 50 Gold Corp. is an exploration-stage company. The Company is engaged principally in the acquisition and exploration of exploration and evaluation assets. The Company owns, or has the right to acquire an interest in, two projects located in Nevada (the Golden Brew Property and the Porter Canyon Project). Porter Canyon Project consists of 201 unpatented claims located in Lander County, Nevada that cover the projected north-eastern terminus of the Eastgate volcanic trough under pediment cover outboard of the Quito Mine. The Golden Brew claims (Golden Brew) consists of 153 claims prospective for Carlin-style gold mineralization. The gold mineralization at Golden Brew consists of a zone of gold bearing jasperoid measuring 2,500 feet long and up to 200 feet wide, hosted in thin bedded platey Cambrian-aged carbonates. Advisors' Opinion:- [By Ben Levisohn]
It wasn’t all good news, however. Healthways�(HWY) plunged 30% to $11.41, making it the S&P 1500′s biggest loser, while�Cameron International (CAM) fell 18% to $53.25, making it the S&P 500′s weakest stock. Both released disappointing earnings reports this week.
Best High Dividend Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Avon Products Inc. (AVP)
Avon Products Inc. manufactures and markets beauty and related products worldwide. Its product categories include color cosmetics, fragrances, skin care, and personal care; fashion jewelry, watches, apparel, footwear, and accessories; and gift and decorative products, housewares, entertainment and leisure, and children?s and nutritional products. Avon Products Inc. markets its products through direct selling and independent representatives, as well as through distributorships. The company was founded in 1886 and is based in New York, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Brian Pacampara]
Alticor
Avon Products (NYSE: AVP )
Newell Rubbermaid (NYSE: NWL )Sources: S&P Capital IQ and Motley Fool CAPS.
- [By Ben Levisohn]
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.5% to 15,545.75, led by big drops in Visa –down 3.5% after releasing disappointing earnings–JPMorgan Chase–off 2% after it and other large banks were sued by Fannie Mae–and American Express (AXP), which fell 1.6% to $81.80. The S&P 500 fell 0.4% to 1,756.54, as Avon (AVP)� plunged 22% on bad earnings and the likelihood of a larger-than-expected settlement with the SEC, and MetLife (MET) dipped 3.5% on disappointing earns and said it would no longer offering future guidance.
- [By Vera Yuan]
We bought relatively small new positions in Willis Group Holdings and Avon Products in the third quarter. Willis (WSH) is a leading global insurance broker. We have followed this attractive industry for many years through investments in Aon, Brown & Brown and others (including Willis under prior management). Organic revenue growth has been solid, and Willis has a near-term opportunity to expand margins through expense initiatives and restructuring savings that are likely to kick in next year. We think the stock should be revalued higher once management follows through on its pledged cost discipline and drives operating leverage. Avon (AVP) is a direct selling, branded beauty business undergoing a turnaround in the U.S. market. The overwhelming majority of Avon�� business value comes from its stronger positions in Latin America and other emerging markets. Our investment thesis is that well-run direct selling can be a decent business with solid margins and high returns, that the Avon brand is not fundamentally broken, and that the U.S. business is bottoming as evidenced by break-even results in the most recent quarter. Avon has a wider range of potential outcomes than our typical investment and is sized accordingly.
- [By Sean Williams]
Finally, beauty products maker Avon Products (NYSE: AVP ) gained 4.1% after also reporting its first-quarter results. Total revenue dipped 4% for the quarter, but was hurt primarily by unfavorable currency translation. Volume dropped 3%, but was countered by a 3% jump in prices. The Street might appear pleased with Avon's stabilizing business, but I continue to see its volume declines and high representative turnover as discouraging. Price hikes seem to be the only way Avon can stabilize its domestic and overseas business, and that's a recipe that I'm fairly certain will lead to lost customers.
Best High Dividend Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Aon Corporation(AON)
Aon Corporation provides risk management services, insurance and reinsurance brokerage, and human resource consulting and outsourcing services primarily in the United States, the Americas, the United Kingdom, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company?s Risk Solutions segment offers retail brokerage products and services, including affinity products, general underwriting management services, placement services, and captive management services; and advisory services to technology, financial services, agribusiness, aviation, construction, health care, and energy industries, as well as facilitates various risk management solutions for property liability, general liability, professional liability, directors' and officers' liability, workers' compensation, and various healthcare products. This segment also provides risk consulting services comprising captive management; eSolutions products that enable clients to manage risks, policies, claims, and safet y concerns through an integrated technology platform; reinsurance brokerage services, such as actuarial, enterprise risk management, catastrophe management, and rating agency advisory services; property and casualty reinsurance; and specialty lines, which include professional liability, medical malpractice, accident, life, and health, as well as capital management transaction and advisory services. Its HR Solutions segment offers human capital services in the areas of health and benefits, retirement, compensation, and strategic human capital; and benefits administration and human resource business process outsourcing services. The company was founded in 1919 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Holly LaFon]
Aon (AON) also performed well in the quarter and first half, adding 5% and 16% respectively. As the world's largest insurance broker, the Risk Solutions group grows with global economic recovery as insurance pricing and risk coverage increase. In addition, fiduciary income should rise as interest rates move up. CEO Greg Case and his team continue to improve the Human Resources segment, which has been hampered by various issues including European weakness. By repurchasing $300 million in shares at discounts to our appraisal, management built value per share over the period.
- [By Rich Duprey]
Risk manager�Aon� (NYSE: AON ) announced yesterday its third-quarter dividend of $0.175 per share, the same rate it paid last quarter after raising the payout 11%, from $0.1575 per share.
- [By Reuters]
Wendy Maeda/The Boston Globe via Getty Images NEW YORK -- Walgreen is moving 120,000 employees to a private health insurance exchange from coverage provided directly from carriers, the company will announce Wednesday. The pharmacy chain will join 17 other large employers on the Aon Hewitt Corporate Health Exchange as part of a growing movement to offer employees fixed dollar amounts to purchase their own plans on such exchanges. The end-cost to employees depends on the plan chosen, but they typically get more options than under traditional arrangements. Private exchanges mimic the coverage mandated as part of the Affordable Care Act. Enrollment in the public exchanges starts Oct. 1. "What happens to employer contributions over time? Will they put in as much as they put in the past? These are unanswered questions but potential negatives," says Paul Fronstin, a senior research associate with the Employee Benefit Research Institute. The benefit to Walgreen and other employers is unknown at this point, as their cost-savings aren't clear. Of the 180,000 Walgreen (WAG) employees eligible for health care insurance, 120,000 opted for coverage for themselves and 40,000 family members. Another 60,000 employees, many of them working part-time, weren't eligible for health insurance. Aon Hewitt (AON) says other participants in its program include retailer Sears Holding (SHLD) and Darden Restaurants (DRI). These new additions raise enrollment to 330,000 from 100,000 last year, and Aon Hewitt estimates enrollment will jump to 600,000 next year, a fivefold increase from 2012. By 2017, nearly 20 percent of employees nationwide could get their health insurance through a private exchange, according to Accenture Research (ACN). A recent report by the National Business Group on Health said that 30 percent of large employers are considering moving active employees to exchanges by 2015. Other major providers of private exchanges include Mercer, a division of Marsh & Mc
Best High Dividend Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Cardinal Financial Corporation(CFNL)
Cardinal Financial Corporation operates as the holding company for Cardinal Bank that provides banking products and services to commercial and retail customers in Virginia and greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. It primarily engages in accepting deposits and originating loans. The company?s deposit products include commercial and retail checking accounts, money market accounts, individual retirement accounts, regular interest-bearing savings accounts, and certificates of deposits. Its lending portfolio comprises commercial and industrial loans, commercial mortgage loans, residential mortgage loans, construction loans, home equity lines of credit, and consumer loans. The company also offers courier, telephone and Internet banking, and automatic teller machine services, as well as traveler?s checks, coin counters, wire services, and safe deposit box services. In addition, Cardinal Financial Corporation, through its other subsidiaries, involves in the origination an d acquisition of residential mortgages for sale into the secondary market in the metropolitan Washington, D.C. region, as well as provides a construction-to-permanent loan program; offers retail securities brokerage and asset management services; and provides trust, estate, custody, investment management, and retirement planning services. It operates 26 banking offices. Cardinal Financial Corporation was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in McLean, Virginia.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Ben Levisohn]
Cardinal Financial (CFNL) has gained 5.8% to $17.47 after it was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform by Keefe Bruyette & Woods.
Weatherford International (WFT) has dropped 6.3% to $14.75 before the open of trading after it announced the departure of its CFO in an 8-K filing. Wells Fargo and Raymond James both cut Weatherford’s shares as a result of the change.
- [By Marc Bastow]
Bank holding company Cardinal Financial (CFNL) raised its quarterly dividend 33% to 8 cents per share, payable on Feb. 24 to shareholders of record as of Feb. 6.
CFNL Dividend Yield: 1.88%
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