Top 10 Sliver Stocks To Own For 2014

Tomorrow, Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO  ) will release its latest quarterly results. The key to making smart investment decisions on stocks reporting earnings is to anticipate how they'll do before they announce results, leaving you fully prepared to respond quickly to whatever inevitable surprises arise. That way, you'll be less likely to make an uninformed, kneejerk reaction to news that turns out to be exactly the wrong move.

Cisco is one of the newest members of the Dow Jones Industrials (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) , but it has largely struggled in its time in the average, just barely gaining any ground since its 2009 admission. Lately, though, investors have started to see the networking giant as a legitimate value play. Let's take an early look at what's been happening with Cisco over the past quarter and what we're likely to see in its quarterly report.

Stats on Cisco

Analyst EPS Estimate

Top 10 Food Stocks To Invest In 2015: MFS Special Value Trust (MFV)

MFS Special Value Trust (the fund) is a closed-end fund and maintains a portfolio that includes investments in fixed income and equity securities. During the fiscal year ended October 31, 2007, the MFS Special Value Trust provided a total return of 5.11%, at net asset value. The fund's investment objective is to seek high current income, but may also consider capital appreciation.

MFS Special Value Trust normally invests the fund's assets primarily in debt instruments. MFS Special Value Trust normally invests the fund's assets in United States Government securities, foreign government securities, mortgage backed and other asset-backed securities of United States and foreign issuers, corporate bonds of United States and foreign issuers, debt instruments of issuers located in emerging market countries, and equity securities. MFS Special Value Trust�� investment advisor is Massachusetts Financial Services Company.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dividends4Life]

  According to a Gabelli Funds report, managed distribution policies offer several advantages, including:1. Lower difference between the fund�� market price and its NAV per share.2. Provides support during periods when the stock market is in a decline.3. Provides a measurable performance target for the investment adviser.Below are several high-yield funds from CEFA that have a managed distribution policy (yields as of December 16):Aberdeen Australia Eqty (IAF)- Distribution Yield: 10.4%- Income Yield: 3.46%Bexil Advisers LLC� (DNI)- Distribution Yield: 11.1%- Income Yield: 3.56%BlackRock En Capital&Inc (CII)- Distribution Yield: 8.78%- Income Yield: 2.34%Cornerstone Strat Value (CLM)- Distribution Yield: 18.77%- Income Yield: 1.83%Cornerstone Total Return (CRF)- Distribution Yield: 19.10%- Income Yield: 0.85%Delaware Inv Div & Inc (DDF)- Distribution Yield: 6.70%- Income Yield: 5.26%Gabelli Equity Trust (GAB)- Distribution Yield: 7.58%- Income Yield: 1.54%Gabelli Utility Trust (GUT)- Distribution Yield: 9.45%- Income Yield: 2.84%MFS Special Value Trust (MFV)- Distribution Yield: 9.60%- Income Yield: 5.73%Nuveen Tx-Adv TR Strat (JTA)- Distribution Yield: 6.70%- Income Yield: 3.12%TCW Strategic Income (TSI)- Distribution Yield: 10.54%- Income Yield: 7.88%Zweig Total Return (ZTR)- Distribution Yield: 7.27%- Income Yield: 1.95%As noted in the Gabelli report, a managed distribution policy may create confusion regarding the true current yield since the reported yield includes the return of capital portion. You can see the disparity above between the income yield and the distribution (reported) yield.If you are looking for a sustainable and growing dividend, you may want to consider some blue-chip dividend stocks such as these with a Free Cash Flow Payout less than 50%, 50+ years of consecutive dividend increases and a 2%+ yield:3M Co. (MMM) is a diversified global company provides enhanced product functionality in electronics, health care, industrial, consumer

Top 10 Sliver Stocks To Own For 2014: DCT Industrial Trust Inc (DCF)

DCT Industrial Trust Inc. (DCT) is an industrial real estate company that owns, operates and develops bulk distribution and light industrial properties in distribution markets in the United States and Mexico. The Company is structured as an umbrella partnership real estate investment trust (REIT), under which substantially all of its business is, and will be, conducted through a majority-owned and controlled subsidiary, DCT Industrial Operating Partnership LP (the operating partnership), a Delaware limited partnership, for which DCT Industrial Trust Inc. is the sole general partner. The Company owns properties through its operating partnership and its subsidiaries. As of December 31, 2011, DCT owned approximately 90% of the outstanding equity interests in its operating partnership. In March 2012, DCT acquired a 32.6 acre land parcel in Romeoville, within the southern I-55 industrial submarket of Chicago. In May 2012, the Company acquired two Class A industrial buildings totaling 98,000 square feet in Houston, known as DCT Claymoore Center. Located in the Northwest submarket of Houston, DCT Claymoore Center encompasses a bulk and light industrial facility and is 95.8%-occupied. In August 2013, the Company announced that it has acquired a three building portfolio totaling 308,000 square feet in the Tempe/Airport submarket of Phoenix. In September 2013, Dct Industrial Trust Inc announced the acquisition of 45 acres in the heart of the Inland Empire West submarket of Southern California. In October 2013, DCT Industrial Trust Inc acquired DCT Fox River Business Center, a six-building industrial portfolio in Elgin. In October 2013, DCT Industrial Trust Inc sold its entire portfolio of Mexico assets to an investment trust of Macquarie Mexican REIT.

During the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company acquired 24 buildings comprising 2.8 million square feet and controlling ownership interests in three buildings totaling 0.4 million square feet. In 2011, the Company sold 16 operating properties to! taling approximately 2.7 million square feet to third-parties. As of December 31, 2011, the Company�� consolidated operating properties had leases with approximately 900 customers with no single customer accounting for more than 1.7% of the total annualized base rents of its properties. As of December 31, 2011, the Company owned interests in, managed or had under development approximately 75.5 million square feet of properties leased to approximately 900 customers, including 58.1 million square feet comprising 408 consolidated properties owned in its operating portfolio, which were 90.6% occupied; 0.2 million square feet comprising one consolidated property under redevelopment, and 17.2 million square feet comprising 52 unconsolidated properties, which were 86.3% occupied and one managed-only property operated on behalf of five institutional capital management partners. As of December 31, 2011, its total consolidated portfolio consisted of 409 properties with an average size of 142,000 square feet and an average age of 20.2 years.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Robert Rapier]

  The partnership has generated $7.6 billion of distributable cash flow (DCF) over the past nine years, paying out just short of three quarters of that total and reinvesting the rest. The long-term distribution coverage checks in at a prudent 134%.

• [By David Kerr]

  Let�� take a look at using a version of the Discounted Cash Flow method (DCF) to valuate the share price. I will use the most recent Earnings Per Share of 2.32, an 18.9% growth rate over the next 10 years (which is the average EPS growth rate of the past 10 years), a Terminal Growth Rate of 2% (average inflation rate for 2013 so far), with 10 years of Terminal Growth at a Discount Rate of 12% to be safe. That leaves us with a Fair Value of $58.85 and a 42% Margin of Safety. That�� a healthy margin.

• [By GuruFocus]

  Free cash flow is a favorite parameter of value investors. It seems to make sense, because the value of a company is determined by how much cash it can generate over time. Value investors have developed discounted cash flow (DCF) models to estimate the value of companies.

Top 10 Sliver Stocks To Own For 2014: Energold Drilling Corp (EGDFF.PK)

Energold Drilling Corp. provides, directly and through its subsidiaries, contract diamond drilling services for parties principally in Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, South America, Africa and Asia. The Company, through its subsidiary, designs and manufactures specialty/customized drilling rigs and associated equipment for water well, mineral exploration and geotechnical drilling companies. It, through its subsidiary, also provides drilling and other services to the energy sector in Canada and the United States. It has five segments: Drilling Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America; Drilling South America; Drilling Africa, Asia and Other; Drilling Canada (Corporate); Manufacturing, and Energy. On January 14, 2011 the Company acquired Dando Drilling International Ltd. In April 2013, the Company�� Dando International Drilling Ltd announced that it has established a wholly owned subsidiary, Dando Drilling Services Ltd. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Itinerant]

  Following a period of rampant growth in 2010 and 2011 Energold Drilling Corp (EGDFF.PK) has struggled to remain profitable throughout 2012 and into 2013. The general decline in the resource sector has left its mark on margins and contract volume. The company has maintained a robust balance sheet and can survive further hardship if necessary.

Top 10 Sliver Stocks To Own For 2014: Peabody Energy Corporation(BTU)

Peabody Energy Corporation engages in the mining of coal. It mines, prepares, and sells thermal coal to electric utilities and metallurgical coal to industrial customers. The company owns interests in 30 coal mining operations located in the United States and Australia, as well as owns joint venture interest in a Venezuela mine. It is also involved in marketing, brokering, and trading coal. In addition, the company develops a mine-mouth coal-fueled generating plant; and Btu Conversion projects that are designed to convert coal to natural gas or transportation fuels; and clean coal technologies. As of December 31, 2011, it had 9 billion tons of proven and probable coal reserves. The company was founded in 1883 and is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Taylor Muckerman]

  Coal and iron ore producers have underperformed compared to the market over the past year. Despite being two of the biggest players from either industry, Peabody Energy (NYSE: BTU  ) and Cliffs Natural Resources (NYSE: CLF  ) have lagged the S&P 500 over the past year by 54% and 85%, respectively. For at least one of these companies, the tide might be turning.

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Goldman Sachs analysts�Neil Mehta and Vinit Joshi�started Consol Energy at Neutral in a report dated yesterday, while stating their preference for Peabody Energy (BTU) SunCoke Energy (SXC). Mehta and Joshi explain why they remain on the sidelines:

• [By David Dittman]

  Attorneys general from 14 states, led by Texas, challenged the EPA�� rule along with Southern Company (NYSE: SO), Entergy Corp (NYSE: ETR), Edison International (NYSE: EIX), Peabody Energy Corp (NYSE: BTU), American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP) and the United Mine Workers of America labor union.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Cold like coal
  Similar trends pushed coal producer Peabody Energy (NYSE: BTU  ) down 45%. Coal producers have faced a number of challenges lately. Low natural-gas prices have made coal less desirable as a fuel for power production and other bulk needs, and an adverse regulatory environment in the U.S. has pushed most coal producers to turn to the export markets as their best source of potential demand. Yet as China's economy has slowed, Peabody in particular reaps less benefit from its strategically located reserves in Western Australia. Unless natural gas recovers all of its losses and makes coal more attractive, Peabody could continue to see pressure.

Top 10 Sliver Stocks To Own For 2014: GASFRAC Energy Services Inc (GFS)

GASFRAC Energy Services Inc. (GASFRAC) is an oil and gas service company, whose business is to provide liquid petroleum gas (LPG) fracturing services to oil and gas companies in Canada and the United States of America. As of December 31, 2011, GASFRAC had three 32 tons and nine 100 tons sand storage vessels, 47 fracturing pumpers, 150 LPG storage tanks and related equipment. GASFRAC�� services are marketed and operated under the name of its wholly owned subsidiary GASFRAC Energy Services Limited Partnership. The Company has commercialized the use of LPG as the fracturing fluid. The Company�� subsidiaries include GASFRAC Services GP Inc., GASFRAC US Holdings Inc., GASFRAC Inc., GASFRAC Energy Services (US) Inc. and GASFRAC Luxembourg S.a.r.l. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sarah Jones]

  G4S Plc (GFS) sank 15 percent to 260 pence. The security company reported a lower operating margin for the first quarter, citing challenging economic and trading conditions in continental Europe. It expects the margin trend to continue for the full year.

• [By Sofia Horta e Costa]

  G4S Plc (GFS) dropped 1.7 percent to 225.6 pence. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. reiterated its ��onviction sell��recommendation on the provider of security services, citing continued pressure on its profit margin in the second quarter.

Top 10 Sliver Stocks To Own For 2014: iShares Russell 2000 Index Fund (IWM)

iShares Russell 2000 Index Fund (the Fund) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Russell 2000 Index (the Index). The Index measures the performances of the small capitalization sector of the United States equity market. The Index includes approximately 8% of the market capitalization of all publicly traded United States equity securities.

The Index is a subset of the Russell 3000 Index, and serves as the underlying index for the Russell 2000 Growth and Value Index series. The Index is a capitalization-weighted index of the approximately 2000 smallest companies in the Russell 3000 Index. The Fund uses a representative sampling strategy in seeking to track the Index. iShares Russell 2000 Index Fund's investment advisor is Barclays Global Fund Advisors.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tomi Kilgore and Chris Dieterich Christmas came early for small-cap traders, but not for very long, ]

  The iShares Russell 2000 ETF(IWM) (IWM) didn’t see comparable early gains, as they opened with a 0.6% advance, and were up only 1% at the intraday high. The reason is that certain market makers who help keep ETF prices in line with their indexes use the values of underlying stock baskets, not the value of the Russell index itself, traders said.

Top 10 Sliver Stocks To Own For 2014: Greif Inc (GEF)

Greif, Inc., incorporated on January 25, 1926, is a producer of industrial packaging products and services with manufacturing facilities located in over 50 countries. The Company offers a line of industrial packaging products, such as steel, fiber and plastic drums, rigid intermediate bulk containers, closure systems for industrial packaging products, transit protection products, water bottles and reconditioned containers, and services such as container lifecycle management, blending, filling and other packaging services, logistics and warehousing. It also produces containerboard and corrugated products for niche markets in North America. It sells timber to third parties from its timberland in the south-eastern United States. It has four segments: Rigid Industrial Packaging & Services, Flexible Products & Services, Paper Packaging and Land Management.

Rigid Industrial Packaging and Services

In the Rigid Industrial Packaging and Services, the Company is a provider of rigid industrial packaging products, including steel, fiber and plastic drums, rigid intermediate bulk containers, closure systems for industrial packaging products, transit protection products, water bottles and reconditioned containers, and services, such as container lifecycle management, blending, filling and other packaging services, logistics and warehousing. It sells industrial packaging products to customers in industries, such as chemicals, paints and pigments, food and beverage, petroleum, industrial coatings, agricultural, pharmaceutical and mineral, among others.

Flexible Products and Services segment

In the Flexible Products and Services segment, the Company is a producer of flexible intermediate bulk containers and a North American provider of industrial and consumer multiwall bag products. Its flexible intermediate bulk containers consist of a polypropylene-based woven fabric that is partly produced at its production sites, as well as sourced from strategic regional sup! pliers. Its industrial and consumer multiwall bag products are used to ship a range of industrial and consumer products, such as seed, fertilizers, chemicals, concrete, flour, sugar, feed, pet foods, popcorn, charcoal and salt, primarily for the agricultural, chemical, building products and food industries.

Paper Packaging segment

In the Paper Packaging segment, the Company sells containerboard, corrugated sheets and other corrugated products to customers in North America in industries such as packaging, automotive, food and building products. Its corrugated container products are used to ship such products as home appliances, small machinery, grocery products, building products, automotive components, books and furniture, as well as numerous other applications. Operations related to industrial and consumer multiwall bag products have been reclassified to Flexible Products and Services segment.

Land Management segment

In the Land Management segment, the Company is focused on the active harvesting and regeneration of the United States timber properties to achieve long-term yields. It also sells, from time to time, timberland and special use land, which consists of surplus land, HBU land and development land. As of October 31, 2013, it owned approximately 252,475 acres of timber property in the southeastern United States and approximately 10,300 acres of timber property in Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Geoff Gannon]

  For those of you wondering if Greif Brothers Cooperage has any relation to Greif (GEF) ��yes. It has every relation. It�� the same exact company. And it�� still in pretty much the same business. They used to just make barrels. Now they make all kinds of different drums, containers, etc. That�� not a very big change for a company to make over 60 years or so.