Barron's summary: Cautious EVDY, CRCM, IMPR, AIRM; Positive on AAL, HLT, R, MDR, BNCL, ASNA
Cover story: Financial advisors face growing competition from robo advisors such as Wealthfront and Betterment that use websites backed by sophisticated software to put investors into asset allocation plans that meet a range of financial goals; Because top advisors dont typically take on clients with less than $1M in assets--and they often require more--the new technology is bringing financial advice to the masses at a low cost.
Tech Trader: Cautious on EVDY, CRCM, IMPR: Digital health, including software, medical devices, and services, continues to grow at a rapid clip, but many companies that have gone public continue to lose money and are likely to do so for some time, despite the success of ATHN and HSTM.
Trader: Dow theory-of-investing bears are ignoring a longer historical perspective, says Weeden chief global strategist Michael Purves; Positive on AAL: Consolidation in the airline sector has boosted profits for carriers but has cost consumers, a trend that isnt going to change in the near future; Cautious on AIRM: Nations biggest air-ambulance firm has continued to raise prices, but they might not continue, which could hurt the stock.
Features: 1) Positive on HLT: Hotel chains shares could rise another 15% to 25% over the next year, driven by continuing expansion and rising revenue per available room, a key hotel metric; 2) Positive on R: Truck-rental company is benefiting from a stronger economy, which has boosted demand among companies that lease trucks, and company is increasing leasing trucks and selling maintenance and supply-chain management; 3) Positive on MDR: Oil-and-gas services company is rebounding after facing a number of problems; despite recent gains, investors still have an opportunity to benefit, since shares could rise by another 35%.
Small Caps: Positive on BNCL: Firm is flush with excess capital, and despite a recent boost, shares could still return 15% or more in the next 18 months.
Profile: Paul Simmie, portfolio manager, Bristol Gate, buys shares of companies that he feels will continue to raise their dividends, such as LUV.
Interview: Charles Pohl and Diana Strandberg, portfolio managers, Dodge & Cox, think U.S. valuations are approaching the higher end of their historical range (picks: SLB, Samsung Electronics, Standard Chartered).
Follow-Up: For the first time in nearly a decade, its turning out to be a good year for stock picking; Positive on CVS: Acquisition of OCR gives pharmacy company an obvious path to gaining sales from the elderly, a growing and heavily medicated population, and investors should hold on to shares; Positive on ASNA: Company expects to generate $150M in cost savings following acquisition of ANN support functions such as transportation, sourcing, and procurement.
European Trader: Positive on British Land, Land Securities, Savills, Foxtons: Property developers and realtors listed in the U.K. are set to benefit most from the surprising victory of Prime Minister David Camerons Conservative Party in the recent elections.
Asian Trader: The fall of Hong Kong-listed Hanergy Thin Film Power Group, which lost $19B in market valuation on Thursday, should come as no surprise; the company received an influx of money through the Connect link to China just as questions were arising about its business.
Emerging Markets: Polands economy is among the fastest-growing in Europe despite the countrys proximity to Russia, helped in part by a stable currency (Positive on PLND, EPOL, Asseco Poland, Alior Bank).
Commodities: A stronger U.S. home-building market is likely to give lumber prices a boost, and they could climb 20% by the end of the year.
Streetwise: Positive on LOW: Despite recent disappointment in same-store sales, retailers turnaround should eventually pay off for patient, long-term investors. - Source TradeTheNews.com