Abbott Labs' second-quarter earnings beat Wall Street's projections, as the company continues to perform well in its post-branded pharmaceuticals life. However, Abbott's medical device business couldn't keep up its more successful segments, even as the company has made progress in key areas such as drug-eluting stents, while advancing into emerging markets.Overall, device sales fell 1.6% year-over-year for the quarter.
Abbott's made a few recent acquisitions to beef up this business, and the company's stellar Xience stent remains atop the industry. Are Abbott's plans for the future enough to turn around this division's slumping sales, however? Below, Motley Fool contributor Dan Carroll tells you what you need to know about Abbott's device business, and how this segment will impact this well-diversified company -- and your portfolio -- in the future.
Abbott's diversity and international edge have made this stock one of health care's safest and most reliable picks in the past. Abbott's a key reminder that investing for the long-term is the most sure-fire way to maximize your financial future. The Motley Fool's special free report, "3 Stocks That Will Help You Retire Rich," names specific investment opportunities that could help you build long-term wealth, and help you retire well. The Fool also outlines critical wealth-building strategies that every investor should know.�Click here�to keep reading.
Top 10 Promising Stocks To Buy For 2015: BroadSoft Inc.(BSFT)
BroadSoft, Inc. provides software and services that enable mobile, fixed-line, and cable service providers to deliver unified communications and other voice and multimedia services over Internet protocol (IP) based networks. The company?s communications platform consists of BroadWorks software, which enables its service provider customers to provide enterprises and consumers with a range of cloud-based or hosted IP multimedia communications, such as private branch exchanges, video calling, unified communications, collaboration, and converged mobile and fixed-line services; BroadCloud hosted or cloud service that enables its service provider customers to offer Web collaboration, video conferencing, instant messaging, presence, and short messaging to their end-users; and BroadTouch, a client application that enables carriers to offers unified communications services for smartphones, tablets, desktops, and laptops. It also provides a range of professional support services, i ncluding pre-sales support; installation, network integration, project management, and remote upgrade services, as well as consulting services; product life-cycle services; and training services. The company sells its products to telecommunication service providers directly, as well as indirectly through telecommunications equipment vendors, value-added resellers, and other distributors. It operates in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. BroadSoft, Inc. was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Seth Jayson]
BroadSoft (Nasdaq: BSFT ) is expected to report Q1 earnings on May 6. Here's what Wall Street wants to see:
The 10-second takeaway
Comparing the upcoming quarter to the prior-year quarter, average analyst estimates predict BroadSoft's revenues will grow 0.7% and EPS will shrink -62.1%. - [By SA Pro Top Ideas]
Stock Movers and Great Calls
On August 2, Josh Burwick argued that the market was underestimating BroadSoft's (BSFT) 2014 earnings potential, with 50% upside looming for shares. The stock is +10.6% in the three weeks since. Read article » On June 27, Alan Brochstein said Apogee Glass (APOG) offered compelling value as its architectural glass reverted to historic margins. The shares are +20.4% since. Read article »
Alpha-Rich long and short ideas regularly move stocks and identify stocks that are about to move. Some notable recent calls subscribers had early access to:To Come Today
Don't forget to check your SA Pro dashboard during market hours today for the latest Alpha-Rich ideas, including an undervalued asset manager and a short idea in the oil services sector. Have a great weekend.
SA Pro Editors
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The SA Pro team is Eli Hoffmann (Editor in Chief), Rachael Granby (Editorial Product Manager), Daniel Shvartsman, Samir Patel, Michael McDonald, and Jeffrey Fischer (Senior Pro Editors). You can reach us at pro-editors@seekingalpha.com.
Top 10 Safest Stocks To Invest In Right Now: OGE Energy Corporation(OGE)
OGE Energy Corp., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy and energy services provider that offers physical delivery and related services for electricity and natural gas primarily in the south central United States. The company is involved in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electric energy in Oklahoma and western Arkansas; and gathering, processing, transporting, storing, and marketing of natural gas. It furnishes retail electric service in 268 communities and their contiguous rural and suburban areas. OGE Energy Corp. operates coal-fired and natural gas-fired units, as well as wind-powered units. As of December 31, 2011, the company owned and operated 12 generating stations with an aggregate capability of 6,790 megawatts; and a transmission system comprising 51 substations and 4,258 structure miles of lines in Oklahoma, and 7 substations and 279 structure miles of lines in Arkansas. Its distribution system consisted of 353 substations , 27,854 structure miles of overhead lines, 1,895 miles of underground conduit, and 10,120 miles of underground conductors in Oklahoma, as well as 37 substations, 2,250 structure miles of overhead lines, 212 miles of underground conduit, and 572 miles of underground conductors in Arkansas. The company also owned approximately 6,019 miles of intrastate natural gas gathering pipelines in Oklahoma and Texas; approximately 2,250 miles of intrastate natural gas transportation pipelines in Oklahoma; and 2 underground natural gas storage facilities and 8 operating natural gas processing plants in Oklahoma. It serves residential, commercial, industrial, oilfield, public authorities, and street light operators. OGE Energy Corp. was founded in 1995 and is based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Robert Rapier]
Enable Midstream Partners�(NYSE: ENBL), a joint venture by affiliates of�CenterPoint Energy�(NYSE: CNP),�OGE Energy�(NYSE: OGE) and ArcLight Capital Partners. Enable Midstream Partners is one of the largest midstream partnerships in the US, with oil and gas midstream assets that extend from western Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle to Alabama and from Louisiana to Illinois
Top 10 Safest Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Regency Energy Partners LP (RGP)
Regency Energy Partners LP (the Partnership), incorporated on September 8, 2005, is engaged in the gathering and processing, contract compression, treating and transportation of natural gas and the transportation, fractionation and storage of natural gas liquids (NGLs). The Partnership operates in five business segments: Gathering and Processing, Joint Ventures, Contract Compression, Contract Treating, and Corporate and Others. Its assets are primarily located in Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Pennsylvania, California, Mississippi, Alabama, West Virginia and the mid-continent region of the United States, which includes Kansas, Colorado and Oklahoma. In May 2013, Regency Energy Partners LP closed the acquisition of Southern Union Gathering Company, LLC from Southern Union Company. In February 2014, Regency Energy Partners LP closed its acquisition of the midstream business of Hoover Energy Partners LP.
During the year ended December 31, 2012, Lone Star NGL LLC (Lone Star), a newly formed joint venture that is owned 70% by Energy Transfer Partners, L.P. (ETP) and 30% by the Partnership, acquired all of the membership interest in LDH Energy Asset Holdings LLC (LDH), a wholly owned subsidiary of Louis Dreyfus Highbridge Energy LLC. The Partnership focuses on providing midstream services in some of the most prolific natural gas producing regions in the United States, including the Eagle Ford, Haynesville, Barnett, Fayetteville, Marcellus, Bone Spring, and Avalon shales as well as the Permian Delaware basin and the mid-continent region. The Partnership provides wellhead-to-market services to producers of natural gas, which include transporting raw natural gas from the wellhead through gathering systems, processing raw natural gas to separate NGLs and selling or delivering the pipeline natural gas and NGLs to various markets and pipeline systems.
The Partnership owns and operates a fleet of compressors used to provide turn-key natural gas compression services for customer specific syst! ems. The Partnership owns and operates a fleet of equipment used to provide treating services, such as carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide removal, natural gas cooling, dehydration and BTU management, to natural gas producers and midstream pipeline companies.
Gathering and Processing Operations
The Partnership operates gathering and processing assets in four geographic regions of the United States: north Louisiana, the mid-continent region of the United States, south Texas and west Texas. The Partnership�� north Louisiana assets gather, compress, treat and dehydrate natural gas in five Parishes (Claiborne, Union, DeSoto, Lincoln and Ouachita) of north Louisiana and Shelby County, Texas. Its assets also include two cryogenic natural gas processing facilities, a refrigeration plant located in Bossier Parish, a conditioning plant located in Webster Parish, an amine treating plant in DeSoto Parish, and an amine treating plant in Lincoln Parish. The Partnership�� south Texas assets gather, compress, treat and dehydrate natural gas in LaSalle, Webb, Karnes, Atascosa, McMullen, Frio and Dimmitt counties. The pipeline systems that gather this gas are connected to third-party processing plants and its treating facilities that include an acid gas reinjection well located in McMullen County, Texas.
One of the Partnership�� treating plants consists of inlet gas compression, a 60 one million cubic feet per day amine treating unit, a 55 one million cubic feet per day amine treating unit and a 40 ton (per day) liquid sulfur recovery unit. In January 2012, it completed an expansion of the treating plant, adding an incremental 20 one million cubic feet per day of treating capacity to the facility. The Partnership owns a 60% interest in ELG that includes a treating plant in Atascosa County with a 500 gallons per minute amine treater, pipeline interconnect facilities and approximately 13 miles of ten inch diameter pipeline. Talisman Energy USA Inc. and Statoil Texas Onshore Pro! perties L! P own the remaining 40% interest. It operates this plant and the pipeline for the joint venture while its joint venture partner operates a lean gas gathering system in the Edwards Lime natural gas trend that delivers to this system.
The Partnership�� west Texas gathering system assets offer wellhead-to-market services to producers in Ward, Winkler, Reeves, and Pecos counties, which surround the Waha Hub. The NGL market outlets include Lone Star's west Texas NGL pipeline. It offers producers four different levels of natural gas compression on the Waha gathering system. The Waha processing plant is a cryogenic natural gas processing plant that processes raw natural gas gathered in the Waha gathering system. The Waha processing plant also includes an amine treating facility, which removes carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide from raw natural gas gathered before moving the natural gas to the processing plant.
The Partnership�� mid-continent region includes natural gas gathering systems located primarily in Kansas and Oklahoma. Its mid-continent gathering assets are extensive systems that gather, compress and dehydrate low-pressure gas from approximately 1,500 wells. These systems are geographically concentrated, with each central facility located within 90 miles of the others. The Partnership also owns the Hugoton gathering system that has approximately 1,875 miles of pipeline extending over nine counties in Kansas and Oklahoma. This system is operated by a third party. Its mid-continent systems are located in two natural gas producing regions in the United States, the Hugoton Basin in southwest Kansas and the Anadarko Basin in western Oklahoma.
Joint Ventures Operations
The Partnership owns investments in four joint ventures: a 49.99% general partner interest in RIGS Haynesville Partnership Co., a general partnership, and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Regency Intrastate Gas LP (HPC); a 50% membership interest in MEP; a 30% membership interest in Lone St! ar, and a! 33.33% membership interest in Ranch JV. HPC owns RIGS, a 450-mile intrastate pipeline that delivers natural gas from northwest Louisiana to downstream pipelines and markets. MEP owns an interstate natural gas pipeline with approximately 500 miles stretching from southeast Oklahoma through northeast Texas, northern Louisiana and central Mississippi to an interconnect with the Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line system in Butler, Alabama. Lone Star is an entity owning a diverse set of midstream energy assets, including NGL pipelines, storage, fractionation and processing facilities located in the states of Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana.
Contract Compression Operations
The natural gas contract compression segment services include designing, sourcing, owning, installing, operating, servicing, repairing and maintaining compressors and related equipment. These field-wide applications include compression for natural gas gathering and natural gas processing. The Partnership�� contract compression operations are primarily located in Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Pennsylvania and California.
Contract Treating Operations
The Partnership owns and operates a fleet of equipment used to provide treating services, such as carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide removal, natural gas cooling, dehydration and BTU management, to natural gas producers and midstream pipeline companies. Its contract treating operations are primarily located in Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas.
The Company competes with PELICO Pipeline, LLC (Pelico), ETP, KMP, Chesapeake Midstream Partners, L.P., Enterprise Products Partners LP, DCP Midstream Partners, L.P., Copano Energy, L.L.C, Southern Union Gas Services, Targa Resources Partners L.P., ONEOK Partners L.P., Penn Virginia Resource Partners, L.P., CenterPoint Energy Transmission, Gulf South Pipeline, L.P., Texas Gas Transmission, LLC, Gulf Crossing Pipeline, Centerpoint Energy Gas Transmission and Natural Gas Pipeline Co. of America, Ext! erran Hol! dings, Inc., Compressor Systems, Inc., USA Compression, Valerus Compression Services LP, J-W Energy Company, TransTex Gas Services, LP, Cardinal Midstream LLC, SouthTex Treaters, Interstate Treating Inc., Thomas Russell Co. and Spartan Energy Group.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Marc Bastow]
Natural gas and gas liquids processor and distributor Regency Energy Partners (RGP) raised its quarterly dividend 6.7% to 47.5 cents per share, payable on Feb. 14 to shareholders of record as of Feb. 7. At more than 6%, RGP stock has the highest yield on this week’s list of dividend stock increases.
RGP Dividend Yield: 6.91% - [By John Kell]
Natural gas companies Eagle Rock Energy Partners L.P(EROC). and Regency Energy Partners L.P(RGP). said the Federal Trade Commission is requesting additional information regarding Eagle Rock’s sale of its midstream business to Regency. Eagle Rock slipped 2.6% to $4.95 premarket.
- [By Igor Greenwald]
ETE is the general partner of Energy Transfer Partners LP (ETP), the fourth-largest MLP by market value, and operator of natural gas gathering and transportation pipelines with a combined length of 47,000 miles.
ETE is also the general partner of another pipeline operator, Regency Energy Partners (RGP). - [By Garrett Cook]
Utilities sector was the top gainer in the US market on Thursday. Top gainers in the sector included Cleco (NYSE: CNL), Korea Electric Power (NYSE: KEP), and Regency Energy Partners LP (NYSE: RGP).
Top 10 Safest Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Youku.com Inc.(YOKU)
Youku.com Inc. operates as an Internet television company in the People?s Republic of China. Its Internet television platform enables consumers to search, view, and share video content across various devices. The company?s services for users comprise video content library consisting primarily of professionally produced content, including television serial dramas, movies, event reports, variety shows, and music videos under the Youku brand. It also provides user-generated content through Youku Paike and Youku Niuren programs; and produces a range of content, such as sponsored Web serial dramas, reality shows, interviews, and variety shows under Youku Originals brand. The company?s other services for users comprise online video search and discovery, online community, video space, real time commenting, and searchable community message board, as well as wireless video, iPhone channels and iPad, and P2P downloadable software client services. In addition, it offers online advert ising services to various advertising companies operating in fast moving consumer goods, information technology services, automobile manufacturing, electronics, telecommunications, financial services, e-commerce, and online game industries. The company?s products and services for advertisers and customers include online advertising services, such as in-video, display, sponsorship, and other forms of advertisements; targeting solutions; viral video advertisements; product placements; subscription-based services that enables users to watch advertisement-free premium content, such as high-definition movies; and sub-licensing content. It sells its advertising services through third-party advertising agencies comprising members of American Association of Advertising Agencies and Chinese advertising agencies. The company was formerly known as 1Verge Inc. and changed its name to Youku.com Inc. in June 2008. Youku.com Inc. was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Beijing, the Peo ple?s Republic of China.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Rick Munarriz]
Youku Tudou (NYSE: YOKU ) commands a $3.3 billion market despite losing money, and the assets that Baidu has collected in recent months make it a top player in video. An IPO or spinoff would also help improve Baidu's bottom line as video may be a big drag on its bottom line as it was for Google (NASDAQ: GOOG ) after its initially controversial move to acquire YouTube.�
- [By Charles Riley]
Youku Tudou (YOKU), Sohu (SOHU) and search giant Baidu (BIDU, Tech30) -- all of which trade in New York -- are industry heavyweights. The foreign shows they offer are licensed from their original producers.
- [By Rick Munarriz]
The exodus isn't universal. Youku Tudou (NYSE: YOKU ) �had 11.2 million shorted shares as of mid-April. The leading video streaming website hasn't had this many naysayers since late last year.
- [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Shares of Youku Tudou (NYSE: YOKU) got a boost, shooting up 11.08 percent to $29.28 after the company reported a Q3 gross profit of RMB82.3 million (US$13.4 million).
Top 10 Safest Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Unilever NV (UNA)
Unilever N.V. (NV) is a supplier of fast moving consumer goods. The two parent companies, NV and Unilever PLC (PLC), together with their group companies, operate as the Unilever Group (Unilever). The Company�� four product areas are Personal Care, Foods, Refreshment and Home Care. The Company's personal care, which includes sales of skincare and haircare products, deodorants and oral care products; foods, which includes sales of soups, bouillons, sauces, snacks, mayonnaise, salad dressings, margarines and spreads; refreshment, which includes sales of ice cream, tea-based beverages, weight-management products and nutritionally enhanced staples sold in developing markets and home care, which includes sales of home care products, such as laundry tablets, powders and liquids, soap bars and a range of cleaning products. Advisors' Opinion:- [By Inyoung Hwang]
Unilever (UNA) slipped 2.8 percent to 27.94 euros after saying sales growth slowed as trading in emerging markets deteriorated at a faster rate. Underlying group sales for the three months will rise 3 percent to 3.5 percent, the maker of Lipton tea and Dove soap said late yesterday in a statement. That compares with 5 percent growth in both the first half and second quarter.
Top 10 Safest Stocks To Invest In Right Now: GTT Communications Inc (GTT)
GTT Communications, Inc., formerly Global Telecom & Technology, Inc., incorporated on January 3, 2005, is a global network integrator providing a portfolio of Wide-Area Network (WAN), dedicated Internet access and managed data services. The Company combines multiple networks and technologies, such as traditional OC-x, MPLS and Ethernet, to deliver solutions designed for each client�� requirements. The Company improves its client performance through its Client Management Database (CMD), providing customers with an integrated support system for all of their services. It is provides solutions, project management and 24x7 global operations support. In May 2012, the Company acquired nLayer Communications Inc. In April 2013, Neutral Tandem Inc acquired the global data services business of Global Telecom & Technology Inc.
The Company�� global operations consist of two parts: global customer operations, and global network operations and engineering. Customer operations include project management and development of its CMD system. Global project management assures the implementation of a customer services after the sale. Network operations and engineering consists of global Network Operations Center (NOC) and Engineering and Information and Communications Technology (ICT). The NOC receives, prioritizes, tracks and resolves network outages or other customer needs, along with provisioning and testing of services. Engineering provides support for the NOC and the sales team, as well as carrying out all provisioning for GTT Network Services. ICT manages all internal desktop, and network and server infrastructure.
The Company competes with Level 3, Qwest, KPN, XO Communications, COLT, Verizon Business, AT&T, British Telecom, NTT and Deutsche Telekom.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By The GeoTeam]
This brings us to Global Telecom (GTT), a company that provides customers with innovative connectivity solutions by utilizing its own network assets.
Top 10 Safest Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Deutsche Grundstuecksauktionen AG (DGR)
Deutsche Grundstuecksauktionen AG is a Germany-based auction house specialized in the auction and agency sale of land and buildings. The Company�� main activities comprise the placement and sale of properties, as well as the provision of real estate assets management and appraisal services. As of December 31, 2011, the Company owned such subsidiaries as Saechsische Grundstuecksauktionen AG, Norddeutsche Grundstuecksauktionen AG, Plettner & Brecht Immobilien GmbH and Westdeutsche Grunstuecksauktionen AG, among others. Advisors' Opinion:- [By Roadmap2Retire]
AT&T is a Dividend Aristocrat & Dividend Champion having raised dividends for 30 years in a row. The stock is a high yielder (current dividend is 5.31%) and as a result, the dividend growths are comparatively smaller. The 5-yr dividend growth rate (DGR) is 2.4% and 10-yr DGR is 4.9%.
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