Top 5 Prefered Companies To Invest In 2014

"Surprises are foolish things. The pleasure is not enhanced, and the inconvenience is often considerable." - Jane Austen

The S&P 500 (SPY) rose last week following a very weak August as traders returned from the long weekend and re-adjusted probabilities of a Syria strike as President Obama decided to seek Congressional approval. The Fed's Beige Book emphasized moderate growth, auto sales came in better than expected, and ISM manufacturing was strong. None of this, however, translated into the Friday jobs report, which was highly disappointing. Not only did the August data miss expectations with whisper numbers considerably higher, but prior month revisions were lower. Some economists have argued the data was "just good enough" to keep the Fed on course for tapering, while others think tapering will be pushed out. Either way, the data seems to have complicated the Fed's expected timeline for pulling back on QE fully.

Top 10 Diversified Bank Stocks For 2015: American Midstream Partners LP (AMID)

American Midstream Partners, LP, incorporated on August 20, 2009, owns, operates, develops and acquires a portfolio of natural gas midstream energy assets. The Company is engaged in the business of gathering, treating, processing and transporting natural gas through its ownership and operation of 10 gathering systems, four processing facilities and a 50% non-operating interest in a fifth plant, two interstate pipelines and four intrastate pipelines. Its assets are located in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas, provide infrastructure, which links producers and suppliers of natural gas to diverse natural gas markets, including interstate and intrastate pipelines, as well as utility, industrial and other commercial customers. In December 2013, American Midstream Partners, LP acquired Blackwater Midstream Holdings, LLC from an affiliate of ArcLight Capital Partners, LLC. In February 2014, Penn Virginia Corporation sold all of its Eagle Ford Shale natural gas midstream assets to the Company.

The Company operates in two segments: Gathering and Processing, and Transmission. In its gathering and processing segment, it receives fee-based and fixed-margin compensation for gathering, transporting and treating natural gas. Where it provide processing services at the plants that it owns, or obtain processing services for its own account under its elective processing arrangements. During the year ended December 31, 2012, it owned four processing facilities that produced an average of approximately 49.9 million gallons of liquid per day of gross natural gas liquids (NGLs). In addition, under its elective processing arrangements, it contracts for processing capacity at a third-party plant where it has the option to process natural gas that it purchases. During 2012, under these arrangements, it sold an average of approximately 27.9 million gallons of liquid per day of net equity NGL volumes. It also receives fee-based and fixed-margin compensation in its transmission segment related to ! capacity reservation charges under its firm transportation contracts and the transportation of natural gas.

Gathering and Processing

The Company�� gathering and processing segment provides wellhead to market services for natural gas to producers of natural gas and oil, which include transporting raw natural gas from various receipt points through gathering systems, treating the raw natural gas, processing raw natural gas to separate the NGLs and selling or delivering pipeline quality natural gas, as well as NGLs to various markets and pipeline systems. It gathers and processes natural gas pursuant to arrangements, including fee-based arrangements, fixed-margin arrangements and percent-of-proceeds arrangements.

The Company competes with Tennessee Gas Pipeline (TGP), Gulf South and ANR.

Transmission Segment

The Company�� transmission segment transports and delivers natural gas from producing wells, receipt points or pipeline interconnects for shippers and other customers, which include local distribution companies (LDCs), utilities and industrial, commercial and power generation customers. Results of operations from its transmission segment are determined by capacity reservation fees from firm transportation contracts and the volumes of natural gas transported on the interstate and intrastate pipelines it owns. Its transportation arrangements include firm transportation arrangements, interruptible transportation and fixed-margin contracts. Its Midla and AlaTenn systems are interstate natural gas pipelines. Its Bamagas system is a Hinshaw intrastate natural gas pipeline, which travels west to east from an interconnection point with TGP in Colbert County, Alabama to two power plants owned by Calpine Corporation (Calpine), in Morgan County, Alabama. The Bamagas system consists of 52 miles of high pressure, 30-inch pipeline with a design capacity of approximately 450 million cubic feet per day.

The AlaTenn system is an intersta! te natura! l gas pipeline that interconnects with TGP and travels west to east delivering natural gas to industrial customers in northwestern Alabama, as well as the city gates of Decatur and Huntsville, Alabama. Its AlaTenn system has a design capacity of approximately 200 million gallons of liquid per day and is consisted of approximately 295 miles of pipeline with diameters ranging from three to 16 inches and includes two compressor stations with combined capacity of 3,665 horsepower. The AlaTenn system is connected to four receipt and 61 delivery points, including the Tetco Pipeline system, an interstate pipeline owned by Duke Energy Corporation, and the Columbia Gulf Pipeline system, an interstate pipeline owned by NiSource Gas Transmission and Storage.

The Company�� Midla system is an interstate natural gas pipeline with approximately 370 miles of pipeline linking the Monroe Natural Gas Field in Northern Louisiana and interconnections with the Transco Pipeline system and Gulf South Pipeline system to customers near Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Its Midla system also has interconnects to Centerpoint, TGP and Sonat along a high-pressure lateral at the north end of the system, called the T-32 lateral. Its Midla system is located near the Perryville Hub, which is a hub for natural gas produced in the Louisiana and broader Gulf Coast region, including natural gas from the Haynesville shale, Barnett shale, Fayetteville shale, Woodford shale and Deep Bossier formations of Northern Louisiana, Central Texas, Northern Arkansas, Eastern Oklahoma and East Texas, respectively. The Midla system is connected to nine receipt and 19 delivery points. The northern portion of the system, including the T-32 lateral, consists of approximately four miles of high pressure, 12-inch diameter pipeline. Natural gas on the northern end of the Midla system is delivered to two power plants operated by Entergy by way of the T-32 lateral and the CLECO Sterlington plant by way of the Sterlington lateral.

The Company�� s mainlin! e of the system has a design capacity of approximately 198 million cubic feet per day and consists of approximately 172 miles of low pressure, 22-inch diameter pipeline with laterals ranging in diameter from two to 16 inches. During 2012, average throughput on the Midla mainline was approximately 72.7 million cubic feet per day. The southern portion of the system, including interconnections with the MLGT system and other associated laterals, consists of approximately two miles of high and low pressure, 12-inch diameter pipeline. This section of the system primarily serves industrial and LDC customers in the Baton Rouge market. In addition, this section includes two small offshore gathering lines, the T-33 lateral in Grand Bay and the T-51 lateral in Eugene Island 28, each of which are approximately five miles in length. Natural gas delivered on the southern end of the system is sold under both firm and interruptible transportation contracts with average remaining terms of two years.

The MLGT system is an intrastate transmission system that sources natural gas from interconnects with the FGT Pipeline system, an interstate pipeline owned by Florida Gas Transmission Company, the Tetco Pipeline system, the Transco Pipeline system and its Midla system to a Baton Rouge, Louisiana refinery owned and operated by ExxonMobil and five other industrial customers. Its million cubic feet per day system has a design capacity of approximately 170 million cubic feet per day and is consisted of approximately 54 miles of pipeline with diameters ranging from three to 14 inches. The MLGT system is connected to seven receipt and 16 delivery points. During 2010, average throughput on the MLGT system was approximately 50.5 million cubic feet per day.

The Company�� other transmission systems include the Chalmette system, located in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana, and the Trigas system, located in three counties in northwestern Alabama. The approximate design capacities for the Chalmette and Trigas sys! tems are ! 125 million cubic feet per day and 60 million cubic feet per day, respectively. During 2012, the approximate average throughput for these systems was 9.8 MMcf/d and 10.6 MMcf/d. It also owns a range of interconnects and small laterals that are referred to as the SIGCO assets.

The Company competes with Southern Natural Gas Company and Louisiana Intrastate Gas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lauren Pollock]

  Vacation-home rental website operator HomeAway Inc.(AWAY) and midstream energy owner American Midstream Partners LP(AMID) separately disclosed plans to offer shares and units, respectively. HomeAway is aiming to raise proceeds for general corporate purposes, while American Midstream is looking to use some of the funds to pay for a previously disclosed acquisition.

• [By Robert Rapier]

  American Midstream Partners (NYSE: AMID) gained 96 percent in 2013 before accounting for distributions. American Midstream is engaged in the business of gathering, treating, processing, fractionating and transporting natural gas and natural gas liquids. Operations are organized into two segments, Gathering and Processing and Transmission. Assets are primarily located in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas. The partnership operates 2,100 miles of pipelines that gather and transport over 850 MMcf/d of natural gas. Units currently yield 6.8 percent.

Top 5 Prefered Companies To Invest In 2014: John Wiley & Sons Inc (JW.A)

John Wiley & Sons, Inc., incorporated on January 15, 1904, is a global provider of knowledge and knowledge-based services in areas of research, professional development and education. Core businesses produce scientific, technical, medical and scholarly research journals, reference works, books, database services, and advertising; professional books and certification, assessment and training services, and education content and services, including online program management for colleges and universities and integrated online teaching and learning resources for instructors and students. The Company sells its products to customers in the Middle East (including Iran and Syria), Africa (including Sudan), Cuba, and other developing markets where it does not have operating subsidiaries.

Research

The Company�� Research business serves the world�� research and scholarly communities and is a publisher for professional and scholarly societies. Research�� mission is to support researchers, professionals and learners in the discovery and use of research knowledge to achieve results that help shape the future. Research products include scientific, technical, medical and scholarly research journals, books, major reference works, databases, clinical decision support tools and laboratory manuals and workflow tools, in the publishing areas of the physical sciences and engineering, health sciences, social science and humanities and life sciences. Research customers include academic, corporate, government, and public libraries; researchers; scientists; clinicians; engineers and technologists; scholarly and professional societies, and students and professors. The Company�� Research products are sold and distributed globally, online and in print through multiple channels, including research libraries and library consortia, independent subscription agents, direct sales to professional society members, bookstores, online booksellers and other customers. Publishing centers include Australia, Ge! rmany, India, Singapore, the United Kingdom and the United States. Research accounted for approximately 57% of total Company revenue (fiscal 2013). The Company�� Research business is a provider of content and services in evidence-based medicine (EBM). Through the Company�� alliance with The Cochrane Collaboration, the Company publishes The Cochrane Library.

Wiley Online Library, the online publishing platform for the Company�� Research business, is a multidisciplinary collections of online resources covering life, health and physical sciences, social science and the humanities. Wiley Online Library delivers seamless integrated access to over four million articles from 1,500 journals, 13,000 online books, and hundreds of reference works, laboratory protocols and databases. Wiley Online Library provides the user with intuitive navigation, enhanced discoverability, expanded functionality and a range of personalization options. Wiley Open Access is the Company�� publishing program for open-access research articles. Under the Wiley Open Access business model, research articles submitted by authors are published and compiled by subject area into open-access journals. In addition to Wiley Open Access, the Company provides authors with the opportunity to make their individual research articles that were published within the Company�� paid subscription journals freely available to the general public through OnlineOpen.

Professional Development (PD)

The Company�� Professional Development business acquires, develops and publishes professional books, subscription products, certification and training services and online applications in the areas of business, finance, accounting, workplace learning, management, leadership, technology, behavioral health, engineering/ architecture and education. Products are developed in print and digitally for worldwide distribution through multiple channels, including major chains and online booksellers, independent bookstores, libr! aries, co! lleges and universities, warehouse clubs, corporations, direct to consumer, websites and other online applications. Publishing centers include Australia, Canada, Germany, India, Singapore, the United Kingdom and the United States. Professional Development accounted for approximately 24% of total Company revenue in fiscal year 2013. Professional Development revenue by product type includes eBooks and Print Books; Online Training and Assessment which is revenue from the sale of products and services focusing on workplace effectiveness and career success; Publishing Rights which is revenue from the licensing of the right to republish Wiley content either online or in print; Journal Subscriptions online and in print to professionals, and Other.

Education

The Company�� Education business produces educational content and services, including online program management for colleges and universities and integrated online teaching and learning resources for instructors and students. Education�� mission is to help teachers teach and students learn by delivering to students, faculty and institutions throughout the world personalized content, tools and services that demonstrate results. Education offers products and services principally delivered through college bookstores and online distributors, with customers having access to content in multi-media formats, as well as the traditional textbook. Education�� solutions are available in each of its publishing disciplines, including the sciences, engineering, computer science, mathematics, business and accounting, statistics, geography, hospitality and the culinary arts, education, psychology and modern languages. Education accounted for approximately 19% of total Company revenue in fiscal year 2013. Education revenue by product type includes eBooks and Print Textbooks; Online Program Management; WileyPLUS, the Company�� online learning solution; revenue from the licensing of publishing content rights and Other Nontraditional and Digita! l Product! s, such as custom publishing and other content adaption��.

Education offers online learning solutions including WileyPLUS, it�� research-based, online environment for effective course teaching and learning that is integrated with a complete digital textbook. WileyPLUS improves student learning through instant feedback, personalized learning plans, and self- evaluation tools and a range of course-oriented activities, including online planning, presentations, study, homework and testing. The Company also provides the services of the Wiley Faculty Network, a global community of faculty that offers guidance, training, and resources. Through the Wiley Faculty Network, instructors and administrators can collaborate with each other, attend virtual and live events, and utilize a wealth of resources all designed to help them grow as educators.

Journal Products

The Company publishes approximately 1,600 Research and Professional Development journals. Journal subscription revenue and other related publishing income, such as advertising, backfile sales, the licensing of publishing rights, journal reprints and individual article sales accounted for approximately 48% of the Company�� consolidated fiscal year 2013 revenue. The journal portfolio includes titles owned by the Company, in which case they may or may not be sponsored by a professional society; titles owned jointly with a professional society; and titles owned by professional societies and published by the Company pursuant to long-term contracts. The Company also enters into agreements with outside independent editors of journals that state the duties of the editors, and the fees and expenses for their services. The Company sells journal subscriptions directly through Company sales representatives; indirectly through independent subscription agents; through promotional campaigns, and through memberships in professional societies for those journals that are sponsored by societies. Journal subscriptions are primarily! licensed! through contracts for online content delivered through the Company�� online platform, Wiley Online Library.

Book Products

The Company�� Book products and book related publishing revenue, such as advertising and the sale of publishing rights, accounted for approximately 48% of the Company�� fiscal year 2013 revenue. The Company enters into agreements with authors that state the terms and conditions under which the materials will be published, the name in which the copyright will be registered, the basis for any royalties, and other matters. The Company develops content in a digital format that can be used for online and print products, resulting in productivity and efficiency savings, and enabling print-on-demand delivery. Book content is available online through Wiley Online Library, WileyPLUS, Custom Select and other platforms. Ebooks are delivered to intermediaries, including Amazon, Apple and Google for re-sale to individuals in various industry-standard formats, which are now also the preferred deliverable for licensees of all types, including foreign language publishers.

Other Digital Products and Services

The Company is focused on delivering content-enabled services which improve learning, career management and effectiveness for its target communities. The Inscape and ELS businesses, along with the Company�� Pfeiffer brand, represent the Company�� professional training and assessment services. These businesses offer a variety of classroom learning solutions and e-learning activities that are delivered to customers directly through online digital delivery platforms and also through an authorized distributor network of independent consultants, trainers and coaches. The Company�� professional training and assessment services offer highly flexible packages and modules for its customers that include online pre-work and profile assessments, self-study materials, online videos, mobile apps and other sophisticated planning tools.

The Com! pany generates advertising revenue from print and online journal subscription products; its online publishing platform, Wiley Online Library; the Wiley Job Network, a full service online job board; online events such as webinars and virtual conferences; community interest websites such as spectroscopyNOW.com and websites for the Company�� brands like Dummies.com. The Company�� publications and services are sold throughout most of the world through operations located in Europe, Canada, Australia, Asia, and the United States.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Geoff Gannon]

  John Wiley (JW.A)

  Notice that 4 of those 10 stocks have a market cap under $100 million. This is shocking. I�� ranking the companies by years of positive earnings (special items ��which explain H&R Block�� losses ��are excluded). If a company earns money for several decades ��this group has tended to be profitable for over 30 years ��and it retains that money, it will end up with a big market cap.

• [By Arie Goren]

  After running this screen on May 21, 2013, before the markets' open, I discovered the following eight stocks: Sunoco Logistics Partners LP (SXL), Leggett & Platt Inc (LEG), Copa Holdings SA (CPA), RPC Inc. (RES), Tupperware Brands Corp. (TUP), Herbalife Ltd. (HLF), John Wiley & Sons Inc. (JW.A) and C.H. Robinson Worldwide Inc. (CHRW).

Top 5 Prefered Companies To Invest In 2014: Metlife Inc (MET)

MetLife, Inc. (MetLife), incorporated on August 10, 1999, is a provider of insurance, annuities and employee benefit programs, serving 90 million customers in over 50 countries. Through its subsidiaries and affiliates, MetLife operates in the United States, Japan, Latin America, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East. It is organized into six segments: Insurance Products, Retirement Products, Corporate Benefit Funding and Auto & Home (collectively, U.S. Business), and Japan and Other International Regions (collectively, International). In addition, the Company reports certain of its results of operations in Corporate & Other, which includes MetLife Bank, National Association (MetLife Bank) and other business activities. U.S. Business provides insurance and financial services products, including life, dental, disability, auto and homeowner insurance, guaranteed interest and stable value products, and annuities through independent retail distribution channels, as well as at the workplace. Outside the U.S., it operates in Japan and over 50 countries within Latin America, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East. MetLife is the life insurer in Mexico and also holds positions in Japan, Poland, Chile and Korea. This business provides life insurance, accident and health insurance, credit insurance, annuities, endowment and retirement and savings products to both individuals and groups. In August 2012, it acquired Reynolds Plantation. In January 2013, the Company completed the sale of MetLife Bank, N.A.'s deposit business. Effective July 25, 2013, MetLife Inc acquired Broadstone Laurel Highlands, from Alliance Residential Fund I. In September 2013, MetLife Inc and Thayer Lodging Group acquired the 365-room Hilton Los Cabos Beach & Golf Resort in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico in a joint venture.

Insurance Products

The Insurance Products segment offers a range of protection products and services aimed at serving the financial needs of its customers throughout their lives. These pro! ducts are sold to individuals and corporations, as well as other institutions and their respective employees. It is organized in three businesses: Group Life, Individual Life and Non-Medical Health.

The Group Life insurance products and services include variable life, universal life, and term life products. It offer group insurance products as employer-paid benefits or as voluntary benefits where all or a portion of the premiums are paid by the employee. These group products and services also include employee paid supplemental life and are offered as standard products or may be tailored to meet specific customer needs.

The Individual Life insurance products and services include variable life, universal life, term life and whole life products. Additionally, through its broker-dealer affiliates, it offers a full range of mutual funds and other securities products. The products within both Group Life and Individual Life include Variable Life, Universal Life, Term Life and Whole Life. Variable life products provide insurance coverage through a contract that gives the policyholder the policyholder flexibility in investment choices and, depending on the product, in premium payments and coverage amounts, with certain guarantees. With variable life products, premiums and account balances can be directed by the policyholder into a variety of separate account investment options or directed to the Company�� general account. In the separate account investment options, the policyholder bears the entire risk of the investment results.

Universal life products provide insurance coverage on the same basis as variable life, except that premiums, and the resulting accumulated balances, are allocated only to the Company�� general account. Universal life products may allow the insured to increase or decrease the amount of death benefit coverage over the term of the contract and the owner to adjust the frequency and amount of premium payments.

Term life products provid! e a guara! nteed benefit upon the death of the insured for a specified time period in return for the periodic payment of premiums. Specified coverage periods range from one year to 30 years, but in no event are they longer than the period over, which premiums are paid. Death benefits may be level over the period or decreasing. Decreasing coverage is used principally to provide for loan repayment in the event of death. Premiums may be guaranteed at a level amount for the coverage period or may be non-level and non-guaranteed. Term insurance products are sometimes referred to as pure protection products, in that there are typically no savings or investment elements. Term contracts expire without value at the end of the coverage period when the insured party is still living.

Whole life products provide a guaranteed benefit upon the death of the insured in return for the periodic payment of a fixed premium over a predetermined period. Premium payments may be required for the entire life of the contract period, to a specified age or period, and may be level or change in accordance with a predetermined schedule. Whole life insurance includes policies that provide a participation feature in the form of dividends. Policyholders may receive dividends in cash or apply them to increase death benefits, increase cash values available upon surrender or reduce the premiums required to maintain the contract in-force.

The Non-Medical Health products and services include dental insurance, group short- and long-term disability, individual disability income, long-term care (LTC), critical illness and accidental death & dismemberment coverage. Other products and services include employer-sponsored auto and homeowners insurance provided through the Auto & Home segment and prepaid legal plans. The Company also sells administrative services-only (ASO) arrangements to some employers. The products in this area are Dental, Disability and Long-term Care (LTC). Dental products provide insurance and ASO plans that ass! ist emplo! yees, retirees and their families in maintaining oral health while reducing out-of-pocket expenses and providing superior customer service. Dental plans include the Preferred Dentist Program and the Dental Health Maintenance Organization. Disability products provide a benefit in the event of the disability of the insured. This benefit is in the form of monthly income paid until the insured reaches age 65. In addition to income replacement, the product may be used to provide for the payment of business overhead expenses for disabled business owners or mortgage payment protection. This is offered on both a group and individual basis. LTC products provide protection against the potentially high costs of LTC services. They generally pay benefits to insureds that need assistance with activities of daily living or have a cognitive impairment.

Retirement Products

The Retirement products segment includes a variety of variable and fixed annuities that are primarily sold to individuals and employees of corporations and other institutions. The products in this area are Variable Annuities and Fixed Annuities. Variable annuities provide for both asset accumulation and asset distribution needs. Variable annuities allow the contract holder to make deposits into various investment options in a separate account, as determined by the contract holder. The risks associated with such investment options are borne entirely by the contract holder, except where guaranteed minimum benefits are involved.

Fixed annuities provide for both asset accumulation and asset distribution needs. Fixed annuities do not allow the same investment flexibility provided by variable annuities, but provide guarantees related to the preservation of principal and interest credited.

Corporate Benefit Funding

The Corporate Benefit Funding segment includes a range of annuity and investment products, including, guaranteed interest products and other stable value products, income annuitie! s, and se! parate account contracts for the investment management of defined benefit and defined contribution plan assets. This segment also includes certain products to fund postretirement benefits and company, bank or trust owned life insurance used to finance non-qualified benefit programs for executives. The products in this area are Stable Value Products, Pensions Closeouts, Torts and Settlements, Capital Markets Investment Products and other Corporate Benefit Funding Products and Services. The Company offers general account guaranteed interest contracts, separate account guaranteed interest contracts, and similar products used to support the stable value option of defined contribution plans. It also offers private floating rate funding agreements that are used for money market funds, securities lending cash collateral portfolios and short-term investment funds.

The Company offers general account and separate account annuity products, generally in connection with the termination of defined benefit pension plans, both in the United States and the United Kingdom. It also offers partial risk transfer solutions that allow for partial transfers of pension liabilities and annuity products that include single premium buyouts. It offers strategies for complex litigation settlements, primarily structured settlement annuities. Under the Capital Markets Investment Products, the products offered include funding agreements, Federal Home Loan Bank advances and funding agreement-backed commercial paper. Under the Other Corporate Benefit Funding Products and Services, it offers specialized insurance products designed specifically to provide solutions for non-qualified benefit and retiree benefit funding purposes.

Auto & Home

The Auto & Home segment includes personal lines property and casualty insurance offered directly to employees at their employer�� worksite, as well as to individuals through a variety of retail distribution channels, including independent agents, property and casu! alty spec! ialists, direct response marketing and the individual distribution sales group. Auto & Home primarily sells auto insurance, which represented 67% of Auto & Home�� total net earned premiums in 2011. Homeowners and other insurance represented 33% of Auto & Home�� total net earned premiums in 2011. The products in this area are Auto Coverages and Homeowners and Other Coverages. Auto insurance policies provide coverage for private passenger automobiles, utility automobiles and vans, motorcycles, motor homes, antique or classic automobiles and trailers. Auto & Home offers traditional coverage, such as liability, uninsured motorist, no fault or personal injury protection, as well as collision and comprehensive. Homeowners��insurance policies provide protection for homeowners, renters, condominium owners and residential landlords against losses arising out of damage to dwellings and contents from a variety of perils, as well as coverage for liability arising from ownership or occupancy. Other insurance includes personal excess liability (protection against losses in excess of amounts covered by other liability insurance policies), and coverage for recreational vehicles and boat owners. Most of Auto & Home�� homeowners��policies are traditional insurance policies for dwellings, providing protection for loss on a replacement cost basis. These policies also provide additional coverage for reasonable, normal living expenses incurred by policyholders that have been displaced from their homes.

International

International provides life insurance, accident and health insurance, credit insurance, annuities, endowment and retirement & savings products to both individuals and groups. The Company focuses on markets primarily within Japan, Latin America, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East. It operates in international markets through subsidiaries and affiliates. The Company operates in 22 countries in Latin America, with operations in Mexico, Chile and Argentina. It operates in fou! r countri! es in Asia Pacific with operations in Korea, Hong Kong and Australia. It operates in 35 countries in Europe and the Middle East with operations in Poland, the United Kingdom, France, and the United Arab Emirates, as well as through a consolidated joint venture in India.

Corporate & Other

Corporate & Other contains the excess capital not allocated to the segments, which is invested to optimize investment spread and to fund company initiatives and various start-up and run-off entities. Mortgage products offered by MetLife Bank include forward and reverse residential mortgage loans. Residential mortgage loans are originated through MetLife Bank�� national sales force, mortgage brokers and mortgage correspondents. The residential mortgage banking activities include the origination and servicing of mortgage loans. Mortgage loans are held-for-investment or sold primarily into Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC) or Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA) securities. Deposit products include traditional savings accounts, money market savings accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs) and individual retirement accounts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Marc Bastow]

  Of course, since it’s earnings season, Apple wasn’t the only dividend stock rewarding investors with increased payouts; utility holding company Southern (SO) also came through, as did insurance sector giant MetLife (MET).

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Beyond mortgage insurance, not everything has gone well at Genworth. Its long-term care insurance business continues to struggle, with operating profits having fallen by more than 40% as Genworth struggles to get regulators to allow it to increase rates enough to make the business economically viable. Major competitors MetLife (NYSE: MET  ) and Prudential (NYSE: PRU  ) have already pulled back from long-term care, and Genworth might have to follow suit if it can't find other ways to make money from the segment. In addition, Genworth joined other insurers in settling claims that it and others failed to pay policy benefits to life-insurance customers, serving as a reminder that litigation risks continue to exist throughout the financial industry.

Top 5 Prefered Companies To Invest In 2014: MGT Capital Investments Inc (MGT)

MGT Capital Investments, Inc (MGT), incorporated in 1977, is a holding company. As of December 31, 2011, the Company was analyzing potential acquisition opportunities in healthcare marketing and technology, as well as various intellectual property assets. The Company has a controlling interest in Medicsight ltd (Medicsight) and its subsidiaries Medicsight, Inc., Medicsight KK (Japan), Medicsight Pty Limited (Australia), Medicsight FZE (UAE), MedicEndo Limited (UAE), MedicCO2lon Limited (UAE) and Medicsight UK Limited (UK). The Company also have wholly owned subsidiaries MGT Capital Investments (UK) Limited, MGT Investments (Gibraltar) Limited, and Medicsight. Medicsight and its wholly owned subsidiaries is a medical technology company focusing on medical imaging software development and medical hardware devices. On March 29, 2011 the Company disposed of its 49% holding in Moneygate Group Limited (Moneygate). In September 2013, MGT Capital Investments, Inc MGT Interactive, LLC acquired certain assets from Gioia Systems LLC.

Medicsight�� core technology is the ColonCAD algorithm that is integrated (using application protocol interface (API) technology) into visualization workstations for radiologists to use when reviewing a patient�� colon computer tomography (CT) scan data. The computer-aided detection (CAD) algorithm assists the radiologist as they search for polyps in the CT scan image data. The radiologist uses the visualization software to review the patient�� CT scan images on the screen and searches for polyps (potentially pre-cancerous lesions on the wall of the colon). After a full review, the radiologist then activates the Medicsight ColonCAD software, which immediately displays CAD marks on the images, drawing the radiologist�� attention to potential polyps and other regions of interest. The radiologist then assesses each marked region in order to make the final decision as to the presence or absence of a polyp.

In addition to the computer aided detection so! ftware applications, Medicsight has developed an automated carbon dioxide (CO2) insufflation device, MedicCO2LON. A patient undergoing a CT colon scan requires the colon to be insufflated (distended) with either CO2 gas or room air administered prior to the acquisition of their CT colonography images. MedicCO2LON is designed to provide insufflation, for the acquisition of images from the CT colonography examination.

The Company competes with GE, Hitachi, Philips, Siemens and Toshiba.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Markman Advisors]

  Public companies leveraging their patent portfolios, (aka "patent plays"), are getting the market's attention. Companies such as Vringo (VRNG), ParkerVision (PRKR), MGT Capital (MGT), Worlds Inc. (WDDD.OB) and others have presented trading opportunities due to their volatility while retaining the chance for a big payoff to those investors who stay the course. Yet there exist viable patent plays that are still undiscovered. Some of these so called "plays," which are not getting enough attention, are actually real companies making and selling real products or services in contrast to pure patent monetization companies. Some known examples are Single Touch Interactive (SITO.OB) and Blue Calypso (BCYP.OB). This article is focused on another one of these patent plays, On Track Innovations Ltd. (OTIV).