Dividend investors would be wise to focus not just on a stock's current yield, but also on the long-term growth potential of its dividends. That's because strong businesses that consistently raise their dividend payouts reward shareholders with a steadily rising income stream that essentially equates to a raise every year. And, well, who doesn't like a raise?
But there are other reasons to value dividend growth so highly, and they're well supported by research. For instance, a study by C. Thomas Howard published in Advisor Perspectives found that for every percentage point a stock's yield rises, its annual return increases by 0.22 percentage points if it's a large cap, 0.25 if it's a mid cap, and 0.46 if it's a small cap. Even better, Howard found that dividend-growing stocks outperformed dividend cutters by 10 percentage points per year from 1973 to 2010 and beat both flat- and no-dividend stocks. And the icing on the cake is that Howard showed that this outperformance came with a third less volatility. Higher returns, less volatility-induced stress, and a steadily growing income stream -- what's not to love?
5 Best Mid Cap Stocks To Own For 2015: Salesforce.com Inc (CRM)
Salesforce.com, inc., incorporated in February 1999, is a provider of enterprise cloud computing and social enterprise solutions. The Company provides a customer and collaboration relationship management (CRM), applications through the Internet or cloud. Cloud computing refers to the use of Internet-based computing, storage and connectivity technology to deliver a variety of different services. The Company delivers its service through Internet browsers and mobile devices. It markets its social enterprise applications and platforms to businesses on a subscription basis, primarily through its direct sales efforts and indirectly through partners. In January 2011, it acquired Heroku, Inc. and DimDim, Inc. In May 2011, the Company acquired Radian6 Technologies Inc. In September 2011, the Company acquired Assistly. In August 2012, the Company acquired Buddy Media. In May 2013, SalesForce.com Inc acquired Clipboard Inc.
The Company introduced Chatter, a collaboration application for the enterprise to connect and share information securely and in real-time. It serves its customers from third-party data center hosting facilities located in the United States and other countries. The Company�� primary applications are sales cloud, service cloud, salesforce chatter, Salesforce Radian6 and Salesforce Data.com.
The Company�� customers are able to establish a system and process for recording, tracking, and sharing information about sales opportunities, sales leads, sales forecasts, the sales process, and closed business, as well as managing sales territories. Customers are able to create social profiles of their customers, based on information from social networking services like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Its customers are also able to manage unstructured information, such as sales collateral, presentations, price lists, and video assets. In addition, the Sales Cloud encompasses partner relationship management functionality (including channel management and partner portals) and m! arketing automation (including campaigns, and return-on-investment tracking).
The Company�� customer service and support automation features are marketed under its Service Cloud brand and allow its customers to service and engage with their customers. Using the Service Cloud, companies can access a solution for their customer service interactions across every service channel: call centers with phone, email, and chat; Web portals for self-service and customer collaboration; and community interactions within social networks. In addition, built-in collaboration tools enable customer service agents to share information on how to better service customers.
The Company�� Chatter application enables customers to create private employee social networks for companies of all sizes in order to improve employee collaboration. For customers of its Sales and Service Cloud editions, Chatter is included free for all subscribers. In addition, it offers Chatter Plus edition, designed to provide access to Chatter for employees in customers��organizations who are not subscribers of a Sales or Service Cloud edition. It delivered features, including Chatter Now for real-time collaboration, and Chatter Customer Groups enabling users to invite people outside their organizations, such as customers and partners, into their Chatter network to collaborate in a secure environment. Chatter is a core attribute of its Force.com platform and its social capabilities are an integral part of each of its application offerings and its Social Enterprise solution.
The Company�� Radian6 application provides its customers a tool for social media monitoring and marketing. The application allows companies to listen, analyze, engage and measure their brand�� presence within social media. It provides companies with a database of business contacts, company profiles and social insights. Delivered as a service, data.com integrates with its applications to provide the business data that helps companies in! crease th! eir pipeline of sales leads.
The Company�� cloud platforms provide application developers access to new capabilities that can be built into their business applications. These platforms include features popularized by social networking companies, such as profiles, status updates and feeds, and also the capability to extend applications for use on mobile devices. In addition, they run on its Database.com offering, an open enterprise database built for social and mobile computing. Its cloud platforms allow both information technology (IT) departments and independent software vendors (ISV) developers to use several programming languages to build their applications. Developers are able to use the programming languages on its cloud platforms, such as Java and Ruby, to build their applications, and its cloud platforms support multiple other languages to provide developers openness and choice.
The Company has two platform offerings: Force.com and Heroku, and offer additional developer tools, such as Database.com and the AppExchange. The Force.com cloud computing platform provides a feature set and technology environment for building business applications, including data models and objects to manage data, a workflow engine for managing collaboration of data between users, a user interface model to handle forms and other interactions, and a Web services API for programmatic access and integration. Heroku is a cloud platform for application developers to build and deploy social and mobile applications. Built on open standards, Heroku supports multiple frameworks, databases, and languages, including Java and Ruby. The AppExchange is an online directory that provides customers a way to browse, sample, share, and install applications developed on its Force.com platform. Partners and developers can offer their applications and services for a fee on the AppExchange directory. This directory gives its users a way to find and install applications to expand their use of the Force.com platform t! o areas t! hat are complementary to its social enterprise solution.
The Company offer consulting, deployment and training services to our customers to facilitate the adoption of its social enterprise services. Consulting services consist of services, such as business process mapping, project management services and guidance on best practices in using its service. Deployment services include systems integration, technical architecture and development, configuration and data conversion, as well as developing and delivering customized education programs for its customers. Most of its consulting and deployment engagements are billed on a time and materials basis. It offer a number of traditional classroom and online educational classes that address topics, such as deploying, using, administering and developing on its service. It also offers classes for its partners who deploy its service on behalf of its customers.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Matt Jarzemsky]
Investors this year have piled into shares of companies that make Web-based business software–the so-called “cloud” model popularized by Salesforce.com Inc.(CRM) and others. Likewise, ad-supported social media businesses such as Facebook Inc.(FB) have run up.
- [By MarketWatch]
Discussing cloud-computing stocks, the Barron�� article also said: ��ndustry leader Salesforce.com (CRM) � doesn�� earn a profit based on GAAP earnings that includes its stock compensation expense and yet it has a market value of $34 billion. Other hot plays with 2014 price/sales ratios above 10 and no GAAP earnings include Workday, NetSuite (N) , and ServiceNow (NOW) .��
- [By Brian Pacampara]
What: Shares of ExactTarget (NYSE: ET ) soared 52% today after cloud technologist salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM ) agreed to acquire the marketing software company for $2.5 billion.
5 Best Mid Cap Stocks To Own For 2015: UBS AG (UBSN.VX)
UBS AG, incorporated on February 28, 1978, is a client-focused financial services company that offers a combination of wealth management, asset management and investment banking services on a global and regional basis. UBS AG is the parent company of the UBS Group (Group).The operational structure of the Company consists of the Corporate Center and four business divisions: Wealth Management & Swiss Bank, Wealth Management Americas, Global Asset Management and the Investment Bank. As of December 31, 2011, the Company operated about 877 business and banking locations worldwide, of which about 42% were in Switzerland, 42% in the Americas, 11% in the rest of Europe, Middle East and Africa, and 5% in Asia-Pacific. During the year ended December 31, 2011, it completed acquisitions in Global Asset Management and in the equities business of the Investment Bank. In November 2011, investment management responsibility for a private equity fund of funds was transferred to Global Asset Management from Wealth Management & Swiss Bank. In October 2011, Global Asset Management acquired ING Investment Management Limited business in Australia. In July 2011, the infrastructure and private equity fund of funds businesses were transferred from its alternative and quantitative investment area to its infrastructure investment area. In January 2011, investment management responsibility for a multi-manager alternative fund was transferred to Global Asset Management from Wealth Management & Swiss Bank.
Wealth Management
Wealth Management provides wealthy private clients with financial advice, products and tools to fit their individual needs. As of December 31, 2011, Wealth Management had presence in over 40 countries and approximately 200 wealth management and representative offices, half of which are outside Switzerland, mostly in Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East. During 2011, the Company had CHF 750 billion of invested assets. The Company offers products and services to private! clients, focusing in particular on the ultra-high-net-worth (clients with investable assets of more than CHF 50 million) and high-net-worth client segments (clients with investable assets between CHF 2 million and CHF 50 million). In addition, it also provides wealth management solutions, products and services to financial intermediaries. Wealth Management has a presence in over 40 countries and approximately 200 wealth management and representative offices, half of which are outside Switzerland, mostly in Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East.
The Company�� Global Financial Intermediaries (Global FIM) business serves approximately 1,700 asset managers. It provides its clients with the financial advice, products and tools. The Company�� clients can trade a range of financial instruments from single securities, such as equities and bonds, to various investment funds, structured products and alternative investments. Additionally, it offers structured lending, corporate finance and wealth planning advice on client needs, such as funding for education, inheritance and succession. For its ultra high net worth clients, it offers institutional-like servicing that provides access to its Investment Bank and Global Asset Management offerings. Wealth Management also gives clients access to the knowledge, and product and service offerings from Global Asset Management and the Investment Bank, complemented by an open product platform providing access to an array of products from third-party providers.
The Company competes with Credit Suisse, Julius Bar, HSBC, Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan, Citigroup, Barclays and Unicredit.
Retail & Corporate
The Company delivers financial products and services to its retail, corporate and institutional clients. The Retail & Corporate unit is a core element of UBS Switzerland�� universal bank delivery model. As of December 31, 2011, the Company had a network of around 300 branches, 1,250 automated teller machines! , self-se! rvice terminals and customer service centers, alongside e-banking and mobile banking. The Company�� retail clients have access to offering, including cash accounts, payments, savings and retirement solutions, investment fund products, residential mortgages, as well as life insurance and advisory services. It provides financing solutions to its corporate clients, offering access to capital markets (equity and debt capital), syndicated and structured credit, private placements, leasing and traditional financing. The Company�� transaction banking offers solutions for payments and cash management services, trade and export finance, receivable finance, as well as global custody solutions to institutional clients.
The Company competes with Credit Suisse, Raiffeisen and PostFinance.
Wealth Management Americas
Wealth Management Americas provides advice-based relationships through its financial advisors, who deliver a range of wealth management solutions. On December 31, 2011, the business division had CHF 709 billion in invested assets. Wealth Management Americas consisted of branch networks in the United States, Puerto Rico and Canada, with 6,967 financial advisors as of 31 December 2011. Most corporate and operational functions of the business division are located in the home office in Weehawken, New Jersey. In the United States and Puerto Rico, Wealth Management Americas operates through direct and indirect subsidiaries of UBS AG. Securities and operations activities are conducted primarily through two broker-dealers, UBS Financial Services Inc. and UBS Financial Services Incorporated of Puerto Rico. Its banking services in the United States include those conducted through the UBS AG branches and UBS Bank USA, a federally regulated Utah bank, which provides Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insured deposit accounts. It includes the domestic US business, the domestic Canadian business and international business booked in the United States.
Ca! nadian we! alth management and banking operations are conducted through UBS Bank (Canada). The Company�� include wealth accumulation and preservation, income generation and portfolio diversification. The Company�� advisors work closely with internal consultants in areas, such as wealth planning, portfolio strategy, retirement and annuities, alternative investments, managed structured products, banking and lending, equities, and fixed income accounts, structured products, banking and lending, equities, and fixed income retirement and annuities, alternative investments, managed accounts, structured products, banking and lending, equities, and fixed income. It also offers lending and cash management services, such as securities-backed lending, the resource management account, FDIC-insured deposits, mortgages and credit cards. For corporate and institutional clients, it offers a range of solutions, including equity compensation, administration, investment consulting, defined benefit and contribution programs and cash management services. It offers a range of equity and fixed income instruments.
The Company competes with Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo.
Global Asset Management
The Company serves third-party institutional and wholesale clients and the clients of UBS�� wealth management businesses. The Company�� fund services unit, a global fund administration business, provides professional services, including legal fund set-up, accounting and reporting. Invested assets totaled CHF 574 billion and assets under administration were CHF 375 billion on December 31, 2011. Global Asset Management serves third-party institutional and wholesale clients, and the clients of UBS�� wealth management businesses. Global Asset Management�� business lines include traditional investments (equities, fixed income and global investment solutions); alternative and quantitative investments; global real estate; infrastructure and private equity, and fund services.
Global ! investment solutions offer asset allocation, currency, multi-manager, structured solutions, risk advisory and strategic investment advisory services. Alternative and quantitative investments has two primary business lines-Alternative Investment Solutions (AIS) and O��onnor. AIS offers a range of hedge fund solutions and advisory services, including multi-manager strategies. O��onnor is a provider of single-manager global hedge funds. Global real estate manages real estate investments globally and regionally within Asia, Europe, Switzerland and the United States. Infrastructure and private equity manages direct infrastructure investment and multi-manager infrastructure and private equity strategies for both institutional and high net worth investors. Infrastructure asset management manages direct investments in core infrastructure assets worldwide. Fund services, the global fund administration business, provides professional services, including legal set-up, reporting and accounting for retail and institutional investment funds, hedge funds and other alternative products.The Company competes with Fidelity Investments, AllianceBernstein Investments, BlackRock, JP Morgan Asset Management and Goldman Sachs Asset Management.
Investment Bank
The Investment Bank provides a range of products and services in equities, fixed income, foreign exchange and commodities to corporate and institutional clients, sovereign and government bodies, financial intermediaries, alternative asset managers and UBS�� wealth management clients. The Investment Bank has three business areas: equities, fixed income, currencies and commodities (FICC), and the investment banking department. The Company operates through branches and subsidiaries of UBS AG. Securities activities in the United States are conducted through UBS Securities LLC, a broker-dealer. Securities research provides investment analysis across a range of asset classes of more than 3,400 companies worldwide.
The ! Company p! articipates in the primary and secondary markets for cash equity and equity-related products, including listed options, structured products, equity-linked securities, swaps, futures and over-the-counter (OTC) derivative contracts. Cash equities provide clients with liquidity, investment advisory, trade execution and related consultancy services. It offers trade execution for single stocks and portfolios, including capital commitment, block trading, small-cap execution and commission management services. In addition, it also provides clients with a range of electronic trading algorithms and analytical tools. Derivatives and equity-linked provides a range of flow, structured, synthetic and equity-linked products with worldwide access to primary and secondary markets.
Prime services offer brokerage business, including clearing and custody, capital consultancy, financing, securities lending and equity swaps execution. The FICC business area delivers products and solutions to corporate, institutional and public-sector clients in all markets, as well as to private clients via targeted intermediaries. Macro consists of the foreign exchange, money market and interest rate sales and trading businesses, as well as cash and collateral trading. It provides a range of foreign exchange, precious metals, treasury, and liquidity management solutions to institutional and private clients via targeted intermediaries. Credit sales and trading consists of the origination, underwriting, trading and distribution of cash and synthetic products across the credit spectrum - bonds, derivatives, notes and loans.
The investment banking department provides advice and a range of capital markets execution services to corporate clients, financial institutions, financial sponsors, sovereign clients and hedge funds. The Company also provides liquidity in local markets across foreign exchange, credit, rates and structured products. The advisory group assists in acquisitions and sale processes, and also advises on! reviews ! and corporate restructuring solutions. Global capital markets is a joint venture with the securities business. It offers financing and advisory services that cover all forms of capital raising, as well as risk management solutions. Global leveraged finance provides event-driven (acquisition, leveraged buyout) loans, and bond and mezzanine leveraged finance to corporate clients and financial sponsors.
The Company competes with Bank of America/Merrill Lynch, Barclays Capital, Citigroup, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase and Morgan Stanley.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Paul Vigna]
After rising as high as 1897 intraday, the S&P 500 took a straight dive down, and is now bouncing and churning around this key support level. The index tested it briefly at the open, falling to 1841.95, bounced off it again, then came back to it again. The day’s low, so far, is 1839.92. UBS's(UBSN.VX) Art Cashin puts the critical range between 1837-1840. John O’Hara at FBN thinks the market is going to churn in the 1820-1840 area this week, and test that lower boundary. “That would be a good set-up for a rally into week’s end,” he wrote.
- [By Telis Demos]
UBS AG(UBSN.VX) has named a new head of its U.S. group that works on complex stock financings and investments for companies and wealthy individuals.
Top 10 Quality Stocks To Buy For 2015: Fusion Pharm Inc (FSPM)
Fusion Pharm, Inc., incorporated on January 21, 1998, manufactures and sells a patent pending commercial hydroponic cultivation system capable of growing almost any herb, vegetable, flower, fruit or terrestrial plant better and faster than traditional farming methods. The Company is the creator and manufacturer of the PharmPods hydroponic cultivation container system. The Company sells and licenses its PharmPods containers to agricultural equipment distributers, urban farming companies and other specialty growers. The Company is focused on the development and commercialization of its patent pending PharmPods cultivation container system. In February 2013, the Company completed the sale of 8 PharmPod High Intensity containers under its licensing agreement with Meadpoint Venture Partners (Meadpoint).
The Company's PharmPods are constructed of standard ISO steel shipping containers that are repurposed for use in hydroponic plant cultivation and are equipped with specialty lighting, irrigation systems, climate-control systems and ventilation for a grow-ready, self-contained agricultural solution. PharmPods allow users to precisely control what a plant receives, grow crops densely, avoid using pesticides, increase yields and automatically water plants.
The Company�� PharmPods are used for agricultural cultivation by urban faming companies and other specialty growers The Company does not own any real estate or other physical properties material to its operations. It operates from leased space.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Dan Burrows]
From questions regarding the accuracy of publicly-available information about these companies��operations to potential illegal activity, these marijuana stocks have incurred the wrath of federal regulators for good reason:
GrowLife (PHOT) FusionPharm (FSPM) CannaBusiness Group (CBGI) Advanced Cannabis Solutions (CANN) Petrotech Oil and Gas (PTOG) Marijuana Stocks Asking for TroubleBut it doesn’t end there. Investors should run away from all OTC marijuana stocks, including Medical Marijuana (MJNA), Cannabis Science (CBIS), CannaVest (CANV), MediSwipe (MWIP) and GreenGro Technologies (GRNH). As the SEC warns:
5 Best Mid Cap Stocks To Own For 2015: PDI Inc.(PDII)
PDI, Inc. provides outsourced promotional services to various companies in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and healthcare industries in the United States. The company?s services offer customers a range of both personal and non-personal promotional options for the commercialization of their products throughout the product lifecycles, from development through maturity. It operates in three segments: Sales Services, Marketing Services, and Product Commercialization Services. The Sales Services segment focuses primarily on product detailing, which includes a sales representative meeting face-to-face with targeted physicians and other healthcare decision makers to provide a technical review of the product being promoted; and offers a portfolio of expanded sales services consisting of talent acquisition services, short-term teams, and vacancy coverage services. The Marketing Services segment is involved in the creation, design, and implementation of interactive digital commu nications programs to the healthcare community through the Internet, multimedia, tablet PCs, mobile devices, and dimensional direct mail, as well as DIAGRAM, a proprietary software to deliver non-personal selling solutions via interactive communications exchanges that accommodate the schedules of healthcare providers. This segment also engages in the creation of teledetailing programs executed via tele-representatives. The Product Commercialization Services segment provides product commercialization solutions, including product detailing, full supply chain management, operations, sales, marketing, compliance, and regulatory/medical management to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device, and diagnostics clients. The company was founded in 1988 and is headquartered in Parsippany, New Jersey.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By CRWE]
PDI, Inc. (Nasdaq:PDII) reported the signing of a contract with a new customer to provide promotional services across PDI’s multiple communications channels that will target primary care physicians.
5 Best Mid Cap Stocks To Own For 2015: Dime Community Bancshares Inc.(DCOM)
Dime Community Bancshares, Inc. operates as the holding company for The Dime Savings Bank of Williamsburgh that provides financial services and loans primarily for multifamily housing. The company accepts various deposit products, including savings accounts, certificates of deposit, money market accounts, interest bearing checking accounts, and non-interest bearing checking accounts. Its loan products comprise multifamily residential mortgage loans, commercial real estate loans, one- to four-family residential mortgage loans, construction and land acquisition loans, and consumer loans. In addition, the company, through its other subsidiaries, involves in the management and ownership of real estate; the sale of non-FDIC insured investment products; and investing in multifamily residential, one to four-family, and commercial real estate loans. As of January 26, 2012, it operated 26 branches located throughout Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Nassau County, New York. The comp any was founded in 1864 and is headquartered in Brooklyn, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Tim Melvin]
I always find it very interesting to see what long-term investors are selling in a given quarter. Kahn Brothers lightened up on many financials that have shot up and now trade above book value. The firm sold out of Flushing Financial (FFIC), TCF Financial (TCB) and Dime Community Bank (DCOM). Khan apparently shares my views on the large-cap drug stocks, easing up on both Pfizer (PFE) and Bristol Meyers (BMY) over the summer. Khan Brothers also sold the last of the Travelers shares (TRV) it has owned since 2008 at more than twice the purchase price.
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