Top 10 Performing Companies For 2014

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) ��Among the companies whose shares are expected to see active trade in Thursday�� session are Lennar Corp., Nike Inc., and ConAgra Foods Inc.

Lennar (LEN) is projected to report fiscal first-quarter earnings of 28 cents a share, according to a consensus survey by FactSet.

Nike (NKE) �is forecast to post fiscal third-quarter earnings of 72 cents a share. ��e remain positive on NKE stock into Thursday�� 3Q PM results, given the brand�� strong global positioning within the out-performing athletic footwear & apparel sector, and impressive top-line trends in an otherwise scarce-growing retail/consumer landscape,��said analysts at Deutsche Bank in a report.

Top 10 Rising Companies To Own In Right Now: Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW)

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German holding company and automobile manufacturer that focuses on the automobile and motorcycle markets. It divides its activities into the three main segments: Automobiles, Motorcycles and Financial Services. It owns three brands: BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce. Its BMW automobile range encompasses the 1 Series, including three-door, five-door, coupe and convertible models; the 3 Series, including sedan, touring, coupe and convertible models; the 5 Series, available in sedan and touring models; the 6 Series, available as a coupe or convertible; the 7 Series large sedan; the Z4 roadster and coupe; the sports utility vehicles, X3, X5 and X6 and M models, such as M3, M5 and M6. It also offers cars under the MINI brand and motorcycles under the BMW brand. The Rolls-Royce brand offers three luxury cars, Phantom, Coupe and Ghost. It has producing, assembly, service and sales subsidiaries throughout the world. In January 2013, it sold its Husqvarna brand. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Namitha Jagadeesh]

  Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW) dropped 0.8 percent to 73.01 euros. The world�� biggest maker of luxury cars said second-quarter earnings before interest and taxes slid 8.8 percent to 2.07 billion euros. Chief Executive Officer Norbert Reithofer said he doesn�� see the European car market rebounding until the second half of 2014.

• [By Tom Stoukas]

  Deutsche Lufthansa AG (LHA) and Allianz SE (ALV) led airlines and insurers lower, retreating at least 1.5 percent. Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW) slid 1.6 percent. Deutsche Bank AG (DBK) rose after JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its recommendation on the shares. Gildemeister AG (GIL) added 3.4 percent after Deutsche Bank upgraded the maker of cutting tools.

Top 10 Performing Companies For 2014: ZIOPHARM Oncology Inc(ZIOP)

ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development and commercialization of small molecule and synthetic biology approaches to cancer therapies in the United States. The company's clinical programs include Palifosfamide, a DNA cross-linker, which is in a phase III clinical trial for the treatment of metastatic soft tissue sarcoma in the front-line setting. ZIOPHARM is also developing Palifosfamide in combination with etoposide and carboplatin in phase I clinical trial to determine safety for initiating a pivotal, adaptive phase III trial in front-line. In addition, the company, in partnership with Intrexon Corporation, is developing DNA-based therapeutics (synthetic biology) that include two phase 1 clinical-stage product candidates, both of which are DNA IL-12 to be turned on/off by an oral activator ligand. Further, it is developing Indibulin, an oral tubulin binding agent, which is in Phase 1/2 for metastatic breast cancer; and Darinaparsin , a mitochondrial- and hedgehog-targeted agent that is in a solid tumor phase I study with oral administration and has been developed intravenously for the treatment of relapsed peripheral T-cell lymphoma. The company was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in New York City, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By James E. Brumley]

  Back on July 16th, I pointed out ZIOPHARM Oncology Inc. (NASDAQ:ZIOP) was a budding superstar. Though I suggested waiting for the stock to cool off before stepping into it (and it did cool off, by the way), ZIOP has since walked its way above the key line in the sand that was acting like a ceiling then. Though there's still one more hurdle shares need to clear before being a "must-have" stock, the heavy lifting's been done.

• [By Garrett Cook]

  In trading on Tuesday, healthcare shares were relative laggards, down on the day by about 0.14 percent. Top losers in the sector included ZIOPHARM Oncology (NASDAQ: ZIOP), down 8.9 percent, and Sanofi (NYSE: SNY), off 9.3 percent.

• [By James E. Brumley]

  Cancer drug investors who have been disappointed in recent results from shares of Clovis Oncology Inc. (NASDAQ:CLVS) or Nuvilex Inc. (OTCMKTS:NVLX) lately may want to take a look at ZIOPHARM Oncology Inc. (NASDAQ:ZIOP) as a replacement for either of those first two stocks. CLVS is down about 16% for the week on a less-than-flattering write-up in a Bloomberg publication, and NVLX has moved under a pair of key moving averages this week because, well, for no specific reason, but broadly because the recent wave of compelling news is already losing its potency, with most of that upside already being priced into shares (and then some) before it became official.

Top 10 Performing Companies For 2014: International Tower Hill Mines Ltd (THM)

International Tower Hill Mines Ltd. (ITH) is an exploration-stage company. The Company is engaged in the business of acquiring, exploring and evaluating mineral properties, and either joint venturing or developing these properties further or disposing of them when the evaluation is completed. As of December 31, 2011, the Company controlled a 100% interest in its Livengood project in Alaska, the United States. The Livengood property is located approximately 115 kilometers northwest of Fairbanks, Alaska in the Tolovana Mining District within the Tintina Gold Belt. The property is approximately 145 square kilometers and consists of fee land leased from the Alaska Mental Health Trust. The project area is centered on Money Knob. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Holly LaFon]

  He increased his holdings in gold companies in the fourth quarter accordingly. Gold stocks he found attractive in the fourth quarter are: Novagold Resources (NG), Randgold Resources (GOLD), Iamgold Corp. (IAG), Barrick Gold Corp. (ABX), Agnico Eagle (AEM) and International Tower Hill (THM).

• [By Anthony Mirhaydari]

  For now, I continue to recommend investors maintain a cautious stance, focusing on the buying interest coming into safe-haven assets like U.S. Treasury bond and precious metals while booking profits in biotech stocks that have been red hot this month. The leveraged Direxion 3x Treasury Bond Bull (TMF) is up nearly 7% in my Edge Letter Sample Portfolio since it was added on Jan. 10. I just sold Tower Hill Mines (THM) and Rosetta Genomics (ROSG) for gains of 46% and 18% respectively.

• [By Bryan Murphy]

  With no revenues, and therefore no profits, International Tower Hill Mines Ltd (NYSEMKT:THM) shouldn't qualify as "investment worthy" in any way, shape, or form. Indeed, the near-100% loss that THM shares have suffered since early 2011 might scare off even the gutsiest of traders. Yet, there's something undeniably bullish about this stock right now.

Top 10 Performing Companies For 2014: Zhongpin Inc.(HOGS)

Zhongpin Inc. engages in the processing and distribution of meat and food products primarily in the People?s Republic of China. The company provides pork and pork products, such as chilled pork, frozen pork, hog by-products and variety meats, and prepared meats; and vegetable and fruit products, including asparagus, sweet corn, broccoli, mushrooms, lima beans, strawberries, and capsicums. It sells its products fast food companies, processing factories, school cafeterias, factory canteens, hotels, army bases, and government departments, as well as directly to retail outlets, including supermarkets. The company also exports its products to Europe, Hong Kong, and other countries in Asia. As of December 31, 2010, it operated 157 showcase stores, 1,072 branded stores, and 2,097 supermarket counter locations. The company is headquartered in Changge City, the People?s Republic of China.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Obviously, the big news for Smithfield during the quarter came from Shuanghui International's offer to buy out the company for $34 per share. The $4.7 billion offer has raised some nationalistic concerns, as the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. will have to approve the merger, but Smithfield CEO Larry Pope said last month when the deal was announced that it believes the deal won't have an effect on the company's operations. In fact, the combination of China's largest meat processor and the world's biggest pork producer could produce a formidable opponent to industry rivals. In particular, Chinese pork producer Zhongpin (NASDAQ: HOGS  ) will inevitably find itself under pressure if the deal goes through, as Shuanghui puts itself in a stronger competitive position in the industry.

Top 10 Performing Companies For 2014: 1-800 FLOWERS.COM Inc.(FLWS)

1-800-Flowers.com, Inc. together with its subsidiaries, operates as a florist and gift retailer in the United States. The company offers a range of products, including fresh-cut flowers, floral arrangements and plants, gifts, popcorn, gourmet foods and gift baskets, cookies, chocolates, candy, and wine through its telephonic and online sales channels, company-owned and operated retail floral stores, and franchised stores. It provides gourmet gifts, such as popcorn and specialty treats through thepopcornfactory.com; cookies and baked gifts through cheryls.com; chocolates and confections through fanniemay.com and harrylondon.com; gift baskets and towers through 1800baskets.com; Celebrations brand party ideas and planning tips through celebrations.com; and customizable invitations, announcements, and greeting cards through finestationery.com. As of July 3, 2011, the company operated 2 floral retail stores, 1 fulfillment center, and approximately 100 franchised stores located within the United States. It has strategic online relationships with Facebook, Google, AOL, Yahoo!, and Microsoft. The company was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Carle Place, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Calling all cash flows
  When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on 1-800-Flowers.com (Nasdaq: FLWS  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

• [By Laura Brodbeck]

  Earnings Expected From: 1-800 Flowers.com, Inc (NASDAQ: FLWS)

  Economic Releases Expected:�Eurozone unemployment rate, Italian CPI, Greek retail sales, French consumer spending, Canadian GDP.

• [By Equities Lab]

  The stocks that currently pass the stock screen in order of market cap are Frontier Communications Corp , Crown Media Holdings (CRWN), Vonage Holding (VG), MCG Capital Corp (MCGC), 1-800-FLOWERS.COM (FLWS), MTR Gaming Corporation (MNTG), Alaska Communications (ALSK), and Enzon Pharmaceuticals (ENZN).

Top 10 Performing Companies For 2014: Primo Water Corporation(PRMW)

Primo Water Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides three- and five-gallon purified bottled water, self-serve filtered drinking water, water dispensers, and carbonating beverage appliances in the United States and Canada. The company?s Primo Water segment sells multi-gallon purified bottled water and self-serve filtered drinking water vending service through retailers in the United States and Canada. It offers its services through point of purchase display racks or self-serve filtered water vending displays, and recycling centers. Its Primo Dispensers segment sells water dispensers that are designed to dispense Primo and other dispenser-compatible bottled water. This segment engages in dispensers sales primarily through retailers. The company also offers home beverage appliances, flavor concentrates, carbon dioxide cylinders, and accessories used with the appliances to make various cold beverages. As of December 31, 2011, its exchange and refill services wer e offered in each of the contiguous United States and in Canada at approximately 23,600 combined retail locations. Primo Water Corporation was founded in 2004 and is headquartered in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

  Small cap water stocks Primo Water Corporation (NASDAQ: PRMW), Arrowhead Water Products Ltd. (CVE: AWA) and Alkaline Water Company Inc (OTCBB: WTER) might be the last place you expect to see much action, but these stocks have been boiling lately for investors���either with news or they have been producing profits:

• [By Bryan Murphy]

  Look out Primo Water Corporation (NASDAQ:PRMW), there's a serious threat nipping out your heels, and there way of "doing bottled water" may be a heck of a lot easier for consumers to swallow than your way. The name of that budding competition? Alkaline Water Company Inc. (OTCBB:WTER). In fact, WTER became just a little more competitive on Tuesday thanks to widening its reach.... again.

Top 10 Performing Companies For 2014: International Montoro Resources Inc (IMT)

International Montoro Resources Inc. is engaged in the exploration and development of mineral properties, focusing on projects in British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and Ontario, Canada. The Company holds a 100% interest in the Malachite Project (New Brunswick). The Company holds a 50% interest in the Red Lake Project (Ontario), the Malachite property consists of 62 claim units comprising 1,352.25 hacteres. The Crackingstone River Project (Saskatchewan) consists of 750 hectare claim block in northern Saskatchewan near Uranium City. The Cup Lake/Donen Claims located in the Greenwood Mining District of B.C. On May 24, 2012, the Company acquired a 100% interest in four mineral claims representing 1,065.10 hactares, which were located in the middle of the west side of the Tacheeda Lake claim block. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Namitha Jagadeesh]

  British American Tobacco Plc and Imperial Tobacco Group Plc (IMT) each lost at least 1.5 percent as American peer Philip Morris International Inc. forecast 2014 profit growth below its long-term target. Antofagasta Plc (ANTO) and Vedanta Resources Plc (VED) followed miners lower, sliding at least 2 percent. Johnson Matthey Plc (JMAT) gained 3.9 percent after posting better-than-forecast profit and raising its dividend.