Small cap solar stock Andalay Solar Inc (OTCMKTS: WEST) has largely cratered for investors�verses solar stock peers Real Goods Solar, Inc (NASDAQ: RSOL) and SolarCity Corp (NASDAQ: SCTY), but is the company finally turning itself around after a failed deal to be acquired?
What is Andalay Solar?Founded in 2001 and formerly known as Westinghouse Solar, small cap Andalay Solar pioneered the concept of integrating the racking, wiring and grounding directly into�a solar panel and branded it "Andalay" plus the company�created the first integrated AC solar panel -�reducing the number of components for a rooftop solar installation by approximately 80% and lowering labor costs by approximately 50%. The company sells products to solar installers, trade workers and do-it-yourself customers through distribution partnerships, its dealer network and retail outlets, such as Lowe�� Home Improvement stores. In addition, Andalay Solar has over 30 pending or issued patents related to solar panel installation technology.
Top 10 Penny Stocks To Invest In 2015: Points International Ltd (PCOM)
Points International Ltd. provides a range of e-commerce and technology services to loyalty program operators using. These services consist of a range of e-commerce services (referred as its Loyalty Currency Services) that enable the sale of loyalty currencies (such as frequent flyer miles, hotel points and credit card points), both retail and wholesale. The Company also offers a reward management Website referred to as Points.com. The majority of the Company�� loyalty program partners operate in the United States. It also has a European customer base. It has three wholly owned direct subsidiaries: Points.com Inc., Points International (UK) Limited, and Points International (U.S.) Ltd. The Company�� services are generally delivered through Web-enabled e-commerce solutions. Points.com offers members of multiple loyalty programs the ability to track and manage their loyalty currencies. Advisors' Opinion:- [By Hank Coleman]
Anna Subbotina/Shutterstock You may not be fully aware of it, but you're probably sitting on your own personal treasure hoard: a stash of airline miles, hotel points or reward points you've earned through your credit cards. According to statistics compiled by Points.com and its parent Points International (PCOM), a company specializing in helping consumers trade, exchange and redeem reward points, the average American is hoarding more than 61,000 reward points through various programs. Americans have more than 2.65 billion loyalty memberships -- almost 10 per person. This would be fine if we were spending those points -- but we're not. According to Points.com, only 16 percent of us redeem the points that we earn each year. Why do we love reward points? Is there a danger in hoarding them? What should we do with our points as our balances continue to grow? Why Do We Love Reward Points So Much? Getting something for free is a big allure of reward points and loyalty programs. I love that my airline-branded credit card allows me to check a bag for free. Companies view reward programs as marketing by gamification. If businesses can make patronizing them into a game for their customers, they'll be more likely to do what it takes to advance to the next level. And of course, these programs inspire brand loyalty. I'm a huge fan of Fitbit. I'm always striving for the next badge or level with my fitness goals through the site and its devices. I'm also addicted to checking in to the places that I frequent on Foursquare. It drives me crazy when someone ousts me as the mayor of one of my favorite haunts. Gamification is going on with reward points themselves. Companies have found that we desperately want to get to the next level of rewards. That's why companies have different colored credit cards and exclusive levels that offer even more freebies to loyal customers -- though usually for a price. And we are dreamers. We dream that our frequent flyer miles and hotel rew
Top Tech Stocks To Own For 2014: Manhattan Associates Inc.(MANH)
Manhattan Associates, Inc. develops, sells, deploys, services, and maintains supply chain software solutions for the planning and execution of supply chain activities. It offers Manhattan SCOPE and Manhattan SCALE, which are platform-based supply chain software solutions. The company?s Manhattan SCOPE is a portfolio of supply chain solution suites that include event and schedule tracking; alerts and notifications; inventory, order, and shipment visibility; cost monitoring and tracking; leading-edge analytics; and reporting with graphical depictions of critical supply chain performance metrics. Manhattan SCOPE also includes X-Suite solutions comprising flow management and extended enterprise management. The company?s Manhattan SCALE is a portfolio of logistics execution solutions that offer trading partner management, yard management, optimization, warehouse management, and transportation execution services. Manhattan Associates, Inc. also offers professional services, in cluding planning and implementation services; and customer support, software enhancement, and training services. In addition, it sells computer hardware, radio frequency terminal networks, radio frequency identification chip readers, bar code printers and scanners, and other peripherals. The company serves retailers, distributors, wholesalers, manufacturers, grocery stores, life sciences companies, government, and other organizations. It operates in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. Manhattan Associates, Inc. was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Seth Jayson]
Manhattan Associates (Nasdaq: MANH ) reported earnings on April 23. Here are the numbers you need to know.
The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Manhattan Associates met expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.
Top Tech Stocks To Own For 2014: Digicore Holdings Ltd (DGC)
Digicore Holdings Limited is a South Africa-based holding company engaged in the manufacturing and distribution of fleet management and vehicle tracking solutions. The Company operates in three segments: South African Distribution, Foreign Distribution, Product Development and Manufacturing and Group Management. The Company's South African distribution segment focuses on distribution of manufactured fleet management and vehicle tracking solutions within the South African consumer market. Foreign distribution focuses on the distribution of manufactured fleet management and vehicle tracking solutions all around the world. Product development and manufacturing segment focuses on investing in research, manufacturing and development of vehicle tracking and fleet management solutions for distribution. Group Management segment renders management services to the Company. On August 31, 2012, the Company obtained an additional 27% shareholding in Ctrack (Pty) Ltd. Advisors' Opinion:- [By Eric Lam]
Detour Gold (DGC) plunged 18 percent to C$6.35, an almost five-year low. The company said in a statement it will not reach its 2013 production target of 270,000 ounces of gold and now forecasts 240,000 to 260,000 ounces.
Top Tech Stocks To Own For 2014: CyberOptics Corporation (CYBE)
CyberOptics Corporation supplies optical process control sensors and inspection systems to control the manufacturing process and ensure the quality of electronic circuit boards worldwide. The company also manufactures and sells sensors that assist with yield enhancement during semiconductor fabrication. Its products include surface mount technology (SMT) electronic assembly alignment sensors, including LaserAlign sensor that is incorporated into component placement machines used in the SMT production lines; BoardAlign camera, which identifies fiducial markings on a circuit board and aligns the board in the component placement machine prior to component placement; and InPrinter inspection camera that identifies fiducial markings on a circuit board to ensure accurate board registration prior to placement of solder paste. The company also offers photovoltaic and fuel cell alignment sensors, such as solar wafer alignment cameras for alignment measurements; and embedded process verification inspection technology products and solder paste inspection sensors. In addition, it provides SMT stand-alone inspection system products, which include solder paste inspection and automated optical inspection products; and WaferSense sensors that provide measurements of critical factors in the semiconductor fabrication process, as well as wafer mapping and alignment sensors, frame grabber products, and machine vision subsystems. The company sells its products to the manufacturers of electronic circuit board assembly equipment, manufacturers of semiconductor DRAM memory, and semiconductor capital equipment manufacturers, as well as end-user electronic assembly manufacturers, including original design manufacturers and electronic manufacturing service providers. CyberOptics Corporation markets its products through independent representatives and distributors. The company was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By John Emerson]
I even recorded a tax loss carry-forward on my original purchase of CAMT for which I had paid $2.05 per share. It seems that I was a slow learner in regard to the necessity of selling AOI companies long before they entered a cyclical trough in their earnings. Happily, I have since remedied that problem. For informational purposes I must disclose that in the spring, I repurchased shares of CAMT and made a larger purchase in a Cyberoptics (CYBE) another AOI company, which was near a multiyear low at the time.
Top Tech Stocks To Own For 2014: Telecom Italia S.P.A.(TI)
Telecom Italia S.p.A., together with its subsidiaries, provides fixed-line and mobile telecommunications, Internet, and media services. The company also operates in office and system solutions. Its portfolio ranges from consumer-focused convergent communications services to business-oriented advanced ICT solutions. The company?s integrated range of offerings, proprietary platforms, and network architecture leverage the potential of fixed-line and mobile broadband to offer convergent solutions for communication, Web surfing, always-in-touch services, and serve as a gateway to the digital world from the home, the office, and on the move, from fixed-line telephone, cell phone, PC, or TV. Its business portfolio covers various categories of business needs, from freelance professionals to SMEs, corporations, institutions, and public government bodies. The company?s Web offerings combine Italy?s Virgilio portal with Web 2.0 ventures, such as Yalp!, a TV community where users p ublish their own content and create their own TV channels. Its media operations span traditional broadcasting over analogue and digital networks, and mobile broadcasting through TIM/MTV partnership vehicle, MTV Mobile. The company has operations in Italy, Latin America, Germany, Holland, and the Mediterranean basin. As of December 31, 2009, it provided fixed telecommunications services with approximately 16.1 million physical accesses in Italy. The company?s wholesale customer portfolio consisted of approximately 6.2 million accesses for telephone services; and broadband portfolio had approximately 8.7 million accesses in Italy, as well as 30.8 million mobile telephone lines. Telecom Italia was founded in 1908 and is headquartered in Milan, Italy.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By DAILYFINANCE]
Brent Lewin/Bloomberg via Getty Images NEW YORK -- Facebook (FB) is placing a $19 billion bet on reaching its next billion mobile users with the acquisition of WhatsApp, a popular messaging service that lets people send texts, photos and videos on their smartphones. The $19 billion deal is by far Facebook's largest and bigger than any that Google (GOOG), Microsoft (MSFT) or Apple (AAPL) have ever done. But it is likely to raise worries that Facebook and other technology companies are starting to become overzealous in their pursuit of promising new products and services, said Anthony Michael Sabino, a St. John's University business professor. "This could be seen as a microcosm of a bubble," Sabino said. "I expect there to be a lot of skepticism about this deal. People are going to look at this and say, 'Uh-oh, did they pay way too much for this?" Facebook, for its part, is taking the long view. WhatsApp has 450 million monthly users, 70 percent of whom use it every day. The service is adding a million new users a day. There are 19 billion messages sent and 34 billion received via WhatsApp each day, in addition to 600 million photos and 100 million video messages. At this rate, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is confident the app will reach a billion users. Services that reach that milestone, Zuckerberg said in a statement, "are all incredibly valuable." It's an elite group to be sure -- one that includes Google (which owns YouTube), Facebook itself and little else. Facebook said Wednesday that it's paying $12 billion in stock and $4 billion in cash for WhatsApp. In addition, the app's founders and employees -- 55 in all -- will be granted restricted stock worth $3 billion that will vest over four years after the deal closes. The transaction translates to roughly 11 percent of Facebook's market value. In comparison, Google's biggest deal was its $12.5 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility, while Microsoft's largest was Skype at $8.5 billion. Apple, meanwhil
- [By Jon C. Ogg]
Telecom Italia (NYSE: TI) was started as Buy at Goldman Sachs, just a day after J.P. Morgan raised it to Neutral from Underperform.
Under Armour Inc. (NYSE: UA) was raised to Neutral from Underweight at J.P. Morgan.
- [By Sean Williams]
Don't forget the cash flow
With austerity measures hitting home in Europe, it's fairly easy to understand why Telecom Italia (NYSE: TI ) (NYSE: TI-A ) , Italy's largest telephone service provider, has struggled mightily. Unlike in the U.S., where a landline or cell phone are viewed as practical necessities, consumers in Italy have had no problem giving up their landlines, or businesses postponing their network expansion, until Italy's economy improves. In fact, in Telecom Italia's first-quarter report, we saw EBITDA decline 10%, to $3.5 billion, and overall sales dip 8%. - [By DAILYFINANCE]
Steven Senne/AP NEW YORK -- Target (TGT) massive data breach over the holidays helped push its fourth-quarter profit down 46 percent. The discount retailer also said Wednesday that sales fell 5.3 percent as the breach scared off customers. The nation's second-largest discounter also offered a profit outlook below Wall Street expectations as the costs of the breach that affected millions of credit and debit card customers linger. The discounter, based in Minneapolis, said it earned $520 million, or 81 cents a share, for the three months that ended Feb. 1. That compares with a profit of $961 million, or $1.47 a share a year earlier. Revenue fell to $21.5 billion from $22.7 billion. Revenue at stores open at least a year, an important retail measurement, fell 2.5 percent. Analysts had expected a profit of 80 cents on revenue of 21.5 billion, according to FactSet estimates. The breach resulted in $17 million of net expenses in the fourth quarter, Target said, with $61 million of total expenses partially offset by the recognition of a $44 million insurance receivable. Shares of Target rose 99 cents to $57.50 in premarket trading Wednesday as earnings results beat Wall Street estimates by a penny. The stock has fallen about 10 percent since the company disclosed the breach in mid-December. "As we plan for the new fiscal year, we will continue to work tirelessly to win back the confidence of our guests. We are encouraged that sales trends have improved in recent weeks," Gregg Steinhafel, chairman, president and CEO of Target, said in a statement. The results underscore the big challenges that Steinhafel faces. Even before the breach, Target has struggled with uneven sales since the recession as its middle-income shoppers are still not comfortable in spending. And the company has also grappled with the perception that its prices are too high. Critics also say that the discounter, known for its exclusive limited partnerships with designers, has lost its
Top Tech Stocks To Own For 2014: Electronics for Imaging Inc.(EFII)
Electronics For Imaging, Inc. provides color digital print controllers, digital inkjet printers, and business process automation solutions. The company?s Fiery products consist of stand-alone print controllers and servers connected to digital copiers and other peripheral devices; embedded and design-licensed solutions used in digital copiers and multi-functional devices; optional software integrated into controller solutions that include Fiery Central and MicroPress; Entrac, a self-service and payment solution; PrintMe, a mobile printing application; and stand-alone software-based solutions, such as proofing and scanning solutions, including ColorProof XF, Fiery XF, ColorProof eXpress, and Xflow. It also offers industrial inkjet products, including VUTEk super-wide format digital industrial inkjet printers and inks used by billboard graphics printers, commercial photo labs, sign shops, graphic screen printers, specialty commercial printers, and digital graphics providers; Rastek hybrid and flatbed entry level production UV wide format inkjet printers; and Jetrion label and packaging digital inkjet printers, integration solutions, and specialty digital UV inks for primary and secondary label applications, and industrial label or flexible packaging markets. In addition, the company provides advanced professional print software products consisting of print production workflow and management information software, including Monarch, PSI, Logic, PrintSmith, and PrintFlow; Pace, a cloud-based business process automation software; and cloud-based order entry and order management systems, which comprise Digital StoreFront, PrinterSite, and PrintSmith Site. Electronics For Imaging, Inc. offers its products through sales force and distribution arrangements primarily in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Japan. The company was founded in 1988 and is headquartered in Foster City, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Seth Jayson]
Electronics for Imaging (Nasdaq: EFII ) reported earnings on April 18. Here are the numbers you need to know.
The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Electronics for Imaging beat expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share. - [By Brian Pacampara]
What: Shares of digital printing technologist Electronics for Imaging (NASDAQ: EFII ) popped 12% today after its quarterly results topped�Wall Street expectations.
- [By shash63]
Electronic For Imaging�� (EFII) second biggest segment, Fiery Controllers, contributed 35% of total revenue. This segment provides controllers for digital printers. The company�� big clients in this segment are Xerox, Ricoh, Konica Minolta, and Canon, contributing 80% of this segment�� revenue. These clients are expected to launch new products in future, thus creating further potential for revenue growth.
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