Thursday, January 9, 2014

Top 5 Financial Stocks To Buy For 2014

Former political pariah Eliot Spitzer has made headlines recently with his re-emergence into the public-service arena. Spitzer initially gained notoriety as the attorney general of New York, a position that gave him the nickname "The Sheriff of Wall Street." Now running for state comptroller, a role that includes overseeing the New York's $139 billion pension funds, Spitzer vows to resume his hard-line stance on public companies. The politician has already proved he isn't afraid of going after big-name financial institutions, and he has a record of chasing down fraudsters of all shapes and sizes. When it comes to your investments, are you worried about the second coming of The Sheriff of Wall Street?

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Before Eliot Spitzer's fall from grace as New York governor in 2008, he had maintained a strong reputation as a statesman. As attorney general, Spitzer brought the 1921 Martin Act back to life. The Martin Act is a New York piece of legislation that gives power to the attorney general to chase down financial frauds. It's the only law of its kind among the 50 states.

Top 5 Financial Stocks To Buy For 2014: Cotton #2(CT)

Capital Trust, Inc., a real estate investment trust, operates as a real estate finance and investment management company that provides credit sensitive financial products in the United States. The company?s investment programs focus on loans and securities backed by commercial real estate assets, including mortgage loans, property and corporate mezzanine loans, commercial mortgage backed securities, and subordinate mortgage interests. Its balance sheet investments include various types of commercial mortgage backed securities and collateralized debt obligations or securities, and commercial real estate loans and related instruments. The company qualifies as a real estate investment trust for federal income tax purposes. It generally would not be subject to federal corporate income taxes if it distributes at least 90% of its taxable income to its stockholders. Capital Trust, Inc. was founded in 1966 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Top 5 Financial Stocks To Buy For 2014: SLOUGH ESTATES ORD GBP0.25(SGRO.L)

SEGRO plc, a real estate investment trust, engages in the acquisition, development, and management of commercial properties in Europe. The company also provides utility services and services associated with such activities. It also owns and manages flexible business space for various facilities in the areas of logistics, warehousing, other industrial facilities, offices, and retail. The company was founded in 1920 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

Hot High Tech Stocks To Buy Right Now: Tree.com Inc.(TREE)

Tree.Com, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in lending business in the United States. It owns various brands and businesses that provide information, tools, advice, products, and services for consumers looking to comparison shop for loans, real estate, and other services from businesses and professionals. The company?s LendingTree Loans segment originates, processes, approves, and funds various types of residential real estate loans primarily under the LendingTree Loans brand name. It offers a range of adjustable and fixed rate mortgage loans, including conforming and prime loans, as well as non-conforming and FHA loans. This segment sources its leads through online and telephone services, as well as through various non-LendingTree channels, such as third-party online lead aggregators and direct mail marketing campaigns. Its Exchanges segment consists of online lead generation networks under the LendingTree.com, GetSmart.com, DegreeTree.com, HealthTree.com, LendingT reeAutos.com, DoneRight.com, and InsuranceTree.com brands; and call centers that connect consumers and service providers, principally in the lending, higher education, home services, insurance, and automobile marketplaces. This segment also provides unsecured loans, automobile loans, credit cards, and various consumer insurance products, as well as opportunities for students seeking institutions of higher education, and home improvement professional services with contractors. The company is based in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Top 5 Financial Stocks To Buy For 2014: Gafisa SA (GFA)

Gafisa S.A. (Gafisa), incorporated on November 12, 1996, is a diversified national homebuilder serving all demographic segments of the Brazilian market. The Company�� brands include Tenda, which serves the affordable entry-level housing segments, Gafisa, which offers a variety of residential options to the mid to higher income segments and Alphaville, which focuses on the identification, development and sale of residential communities. In addition, it provides construction services to third parties. Gafisa�� core business is the development of residential units in attractive locations. During the year ended December 31, 2009, approximately 55% of the value of its launches was derived from high and mid high-level residential developments under the Gafisa brand. It is also engaged in the development of land subdivisions, also known as residential communities, representing approximately 18% of the value of its launches under the Alphaville brand, and affordable entry-level housing, which represents approximately 27% of the value of its launches under the Tenda brand. In addition, it provides construction services to third parties. Gafisa operates in more than 120 cities, including Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Salvador, Fortaleza, Natal, Curitiba, Belo Horizonte, Manaus, Porto Alegre and Belem, across 21 states and the Federal District.

Real Estate Activities

The Company�� real estate business includes developments for sale of residential units; land subdivisions (also known as residential communities); commercial buildings; construction services to third parties, and sale of units through its brokerage subsidiaries, Gafisa Vendas and Gafisa Vendas Rio, jointly referred to as Gafisa Vendas. In the residential buildings product category, Gafisa develops three main types of products: luxury buildings targeted at upper-income customers, buildings targeted at middle-income customers; and affordable entry-level housing targeted at lower-income customers. Quality residential buildi! ngs for middle- and upper-income customers are its core products. Luxury buildings units usually have over 180 square meters of private area, at least four bedrooms and three parking spaces. The development includes swimming pools, gyms, visitor parking, and other amenities.

Buildings targeted at middle-income customers have accounted for the majority of its sales. Units usually have between 90 and 180 square meters of private area, three or four bedrooms and two to three underground parking spaces. Buildings are usually developed in large tracts of land as part of multi-building developments and, to a lesser extent, in smaller lots in attractive neighborhoods. Affordable entry-level housing consists of building and house units. Units usually have between 42 to 60 square meters of indoor private area and two to three bedrooms.

Commercial Buildings

During 2009, the Company launched four commercial buildings. These buildings include Centro Empresarial Madureira, Paulista Corporate, Reserva Eco Office Life and Global Offices.

Construction Service

Gafisa provide construction services to third parties, building residential and commercial projects for developers in Brazil. The Company�� principal construction services clients are large companies, many of them developers that do not build their own projects. As of December 31, 2009, its principal construction services clients were Fibra Empreendimentos Imobiliarios S.A., Sisan-Grupo Silvio Santos, Camargo Correa Desenvolvimento Imobiliario S.A., Helbor Empreendimentos Imobiliarios Ltda., InCons S.A., SDI Desenvolvimento Imobiliario Ltda. and Abyara. It also provides construction services on certain developments where it retains an equity interest.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Roberto Pedone]

    Gafisa (GFA) is a homebuilder in Brazil. This stock closed up 5% to $3.13 in Tuesday's trading session.

    Tuesday's Range: $2.97-$3.15

    52-Week Range: $2.22-$5.24

    Tuesday's Volume: 1.70 million

    Three-Month Average Volume: 1.77 million

    From a technical perspective, GFA ripped higher here right above some near-term support at $2.80 with decent upside volume. This stock has been uptrending strong for the last month, with shares moving higher from its low of $2.27 to its intraday high of $3.15. During that move, shares of GFA have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of GFA within range of triggering a big breakout trade. That trade will hit if GFA manages to take out Tuesday's high of $3.15 to some past resistance at $3.30 with high volume.

    Traders should now look for long-biased trades in GFA as long as it's trending above support at $2.80 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 1.77 million shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then GFA will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at its 200-day moving average of $3.68 to more resistance at $4.20 to $4.70.

Top 5 Financial Stocks To Buy For 2014: Main Street Capital Corp (MAIN)

Main Street Capital Corporation (MSCC) is a principal investment firm primarily focused on providing customized debt and equity financing to lower middle market (LMM) companies, which it generally define as companies with annual revenues between $10 million and $100 million that operate in diverse industries. Main Street's LMM portfolio investments principally consist of secured debt, equity warrants and direct equity investments in privately held LMM companies. Main Street's privately placed portfolio investments consist of primarily debt investments in middle market businesses that are generally larger in size than the portfolio companies within the LMM portfolio. Its LMM portfolio investments range in size from $5 million to $25 million. As of December 31, 2011, it had debt and equity investments in 54 LMM portfolio companies. On February 29, 2012, MSCC completed the exit of its debt investment and a portion of its equity investments in Drilling Info, Inc., (Drilling Info). Effective September 5, 2013, Main Street Capital Corp acquired TBT Holding Co Inc, a manufacturer of dump trailers, from Harbert Management Corp's Harbert Private Equity Fund II LLC subsidiary.

On January 5, 2012, Main Street fully exited its debt and equity investments in Currie Acquisitions, LLC (Currie). On February 17, 2012, MSCC acquired a total of approximately 8.5% of the total dollar value of the MSC II limited partnership interests not owned by MSCC. The Company has approximately 75% of its total LMM portfolio investments at cost were in the form of debt investments as of December 31, 2011. At December 31, 2011, it had equity ownership in approximately 94% of its LMM portfolio companies and the average fully diluted equity ownership in those portfolio companies was approximately 34%. Its portfolio investments are generally made through MSCC and the Funds.

Debt Investments

The Company�� LMM debt investments have terms of three to seven years, with limited required amortization p! rior to maturity, and provide for monthly or quarterly payment of interest at fixed interest rates generally between 12% and 14% per annum, payable in cash. The Company also provides floating interest rates for a portion of a single tranche debt security. In addition, certain LMM debt investments may have a form of interest that is not paid but is accrued and added to the loan balance and paid at maturity. As of December 31, 2011, 93% of its LMM debt investments at cost were secured by first priority liens on the assets of LMM portfolio companies. In addition to seeking a senior lien position in the capital structure of its LMM portfolio companies, it seeks to limit the downside of its LMM investments by negotiating covenants that are designed to protect its LMM investments while affording its portfolio companies as much flexibility in managing their businesses as is reasonable.

Warrants

In connection with its LMM debt investments, the Company has received equity warrants to establish or increase its equity interest in the LMM portfolio company. Warrants it receives in connection with a LMM debt investment typically require only a nominal cost to exercise, and thus, as a LMM portfolio company appreciates in value, it may achieve additional investment return from this equity interest. The Company structures the warrants to provide provisions protecting the rights as a minority-interest holder, as well as secured or unsecured put rights, or rights to sell such securities back to the LMM portfolio company, upon the occurrence of specified events.

Direct Equity Investments

The Company usually makes its direct equity investments in connection with debt investments. In addition, the Company may have both equity warrants and direct equity positions in some of its LMM portfolio companies. The Company makes its direct equity investments in connection with debt investments. In addition, it may have both equity warrants and direct equity positions in some of its! LMM port! folio companies. It seeks to maintain fully diluted equity positions in its LMM portfolio companies of 5% to 50%, and may have controlling equity interests in some instances.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Rich Duprey]

    Private equity firm Main Street Capital� (NYSE: MAIN  ) announced today third-quarter monthly dividends of $0.155 per share, the same rate it paid in the second quarter after it raised the payout a half penny from $0.15 per share.

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