Investors who had been counting on a summer stock market correction to grab up shares of promising companies on the cheap got a nasty wake-up call from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke last night, with his comments supporting the continued "highly accommodative monetary policy" stoking the fire of bullishness once more. By today's close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI ) found itself at a new record-high close of 15,461, having climbed 169 points. The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC ) joined the fun with a new all-time high of its own, rising 22, to 1,675, while the Nasdaq had to be content with a 13-year high of 3,578, up more than 57 points on the day.
The Bernanke-inspired rally lifted all 30 of the Dow's stocks, but a few of them had limited gains of less than half a percent. IBM (NYSE: IBM ) was the biggest laggard, rising just a quarter-percent. The tech giant likely didn't suffer any ill effects from yesterday's announcement that PC demand had continued to slide during the first quarter, as it has transitioned away from hardware production toward higher-margin businesses like IT services. Yet, comments from UBS suggest that IBM could be vulnerable if macroeconomic conditions don't pick up worldwide in the near future, especially given the recent hit to emerging markets. Still, IBM's strong pursuit of high-reward areas, like cloud computing and Big Data, should help the company make the best of whatever conditions it faces, even if a recovery in global growth doesn't happen as quickly as some hope.
Hot Semiconductor Stocks To Invest In 2015: CVS Corporation(CVS)
CVS Caremark Corporation operates as a pharmacy services company in the United States. The company?s Pharmacy Services segment provides a range of pharmacy benefit management services, including mail order pharmacy services, specialty pharmacy services, plan design and administration, formulary management, and claims processing; and drug benefits to eligible beneficiaries under the Federal Government?s Medicare Part D program. This segment primarily serves employers, insurance companies, unions, government employee groups, managed care organizations and other sponsors of health benefit plans, and individuals. As of December 31, 2010, it operated 44 retail specialty pharmacy stores, 18 specialty mail order pharmacies, and 4 mail service pharmacies located in 25 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia. This segment operates business under the CVS Caremark Pharmacy Services, Caremark, CVS Caremark, CarePlus CVS/pharmacy, CarePlus, RxAmerica, Accordant, and TheraCom names. The company?s Retail Pharmacy segment sells prescription drugs, over-the-counter drugs, beauty products and cosmetics, seasonal merchandise, greeting cards, and convenience foods through its pharmacy retail stores and online, as well as offers film and photo finishing, and health care services. This segment operated 7,182 retail drugstores located in 41 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia; and 560 retail health care clinics in 26 states and the District of Columbia under the MinuteClinic name. It has a strategic alliance with Alere, L.L.C. for the management of disease management program offerings that cover chronic diseases, such as asthma, diabetes, congestive heart failure, and coronary artery disease. CVS Caremark Corporation was founded in 1892 and is based in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Lauren Pollock]
CVS Caremark Corp.(CVS) agreed to buy medical provider Coram LLC from Apria Healthcare Group Inc. for roughly $2.1 billion, continuing its push into the specialty-drug market. Coram provides infusion therapies–giving medicine through a needle or catheter
Hot Cheap Companies To Buy For 2014: UnitedHealth Group Incorporated(UNH)
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated provides healthcare services in the United States. Its Health Benefits segment offers consumer-oriented health benefit plans and services to national employers, public sector employers, mid-sized employers, small businesses, and individuals; and non-employer based insurance options for purchase by individuals. It also provides health and well-being services for individuals aged 50 and older; and for services dealing with chronic disease and other specialized issues for older individuals, as well as health plans for the beneficiaries of acute and long-term care Medicaid plans. This segment offers its services through a network of 730,000 physicians and other health care professionals, and 5,300 hospitals. Its OptumHealth segment provides health, financial, and ancillary services and products that assist consumers through personalized health management solutions; benefit administration, and clinical and network management; health-based financi al services; behavioral solutions; and specialty benefits, such as dental, vision, life, critical illness, short-term disability, and stop-loss product offerings. The company?s Ingenix segment offers database and data management services, software products, publications, consulting and actuarial services, business process outsourcing services, and pharmaceutical data consulting and research services. Its Prescription Solutions segment provides integrated pharmacy benefit management services comprising retail network pharmacy contracting and management, claims processing, mail order pharmacy services, specialty pharmacy, benefit design consultation, rebate contracting and management, drug utilization review, formulary management programs, disease therapy management, and adherence programs to employer groups, union trusts, managed care organizations, Medicare-contracted plans, Medicaid plans, and third party administrators. The company was founded in 1974 and is based in Minne tonka, Minnesota.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Jeremy Bowman]
UnitedHealth (NYSE: UNH ) shares were also looking brighter today, gaining 2.2% after JPMorgan Chase upgraded its rating on UnitedHealth and Humana to overweight, saying the insurance providers should be able to grow their Medicare Advantage enrollment in spite of potential reimbursement cuts. UnitedHealth shares have bounced up and down this year as the government has changed its expected cut to the program from 8% to 4%.
- [By Matt Thalman]
Shares of UnitedHealth (NYSE: UNH ) also increased by more than 2% today after it was recently revealed that it would not partake in California's health insurance exchange. The company reported that it wants to sit by and see how the whole process plays out before participating. The exchange is basically a place where all the major insurance companies will offer pricing to customers in a very transparent manner. Since UnitedHealth is sitting out the first big exchange, the company will likely be able to learn from others' mistakes without costing shareholders money. �
- [By Keith Speights]
Revenue for the quarter, however, was down nearly 4% year-over-year. The loss of UnitedHealth Group's (NYSE: UNH ) business as the big insurer transitions pharmacy claims to its OptumRx PBM accounts for much of this drop.
- [By Ben Levisohn]
In Peter Jackson’s the Desolation of Smaug, the second part of his Hobbit trilogy, Bilbo Baggins and his dwarf companions make their escape from a group of elves by hiding inside barrels and being swept down a river. Investors this week can surely sympathize with those dwarves, as the stock market provided a rocky and uncomfortable ride, and stocks like Nike (NKE),� United Health (UNH) and United Technologies (UTX) pulled the major benchmarks down. Unlike last week, this time there was no escape.
Hot Cheap Companies To Buy For 2014: Whole Foods Market Inc.(WFM)
Whole Foods Market, Inc. engages in the ownership and operation of natural and organic food supermarkets. The company offers produce, seafood, grocery, meat and poultry, bakery, prepared foods and catering, coffee and tea, nutritional supplements, and vitamins. It also provides specialty products, such as beer, wine, and cheese; body care and educational products, such as books; and floral, pet, and household products. As of February 9, 2011, the company operated 302 stores in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Whole Foods Market, Inc. was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Rex Moore]
It seems a social media buzz is brewing in the beer industry. Our roving reporter Rex Moore visited the recent Craft Brewers Conference and spoke with some folks who should know, including the director of Whole Foods' (NASDAQ: WFM ) social media efforts.
- [By Asit Sharma]
Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ: WFM )
For a company that enjoys vigorous revenue growth, Whole Foods employs a slow-motion approach to international expansion. Many domestic companies with similar long-term prospects have jumped into international markets over the last decade to establish a presence in developing markets. But Whole Foods is so focused on optimizing its stores in the U.S. that it is content to have only a middling presence in other countries -- for now. As of its most recent business quarter, the company reported that year to date, it derived fully 96.6% of its sales within the U.S. And those sales resulted in an impressive net profit margin of 4.7% -- one of the highest margins in the grocery industry.One key to Whole Foods' continued success will be its ability to make steady, incremental progress in its pricing strategies and operational efficiencies, which I've discussed previously here. Whole Foods' stock tends to be volatile around its earnings releases, and this often provides a good entry point for first-time investors. - [By Tess Stynes var popups = dojo.query(".socialByline .popC"); popups.forEach(fu]
Among the companies with shares expected to actively trade in Wednesday’s session are Mondelez International Inc.(MDLZ), Whole Foods Market Inc.(WFM) and AOL Inc.(AOL)
Hot Cheap Companies To Buy For 2014: LifePoint Hospitals Inc.(LPNT)
LifePoint Hospitals Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates general acute care hospitals in non-urban communities in the United States. The company?s hospitals provide a range of medical and surgical services comprising general surgery, internal medicine, obstetrics, emergency room care, radiology, oncology, diagnostic care, coronary care, rehabilitation services, and pediatric services, as well as specialized services, such as open-heart surgery, skilled nursing, psychiatric care, and neuro-surgery. Its hospitals also offer outpatient services, including one-day surgery, laboratory, x-ray, respiratory therapy, imaging, sports medicine, and lithotripsy. As of December 31, 2009, LifePoint Hospitals owned or leased 47 hospitals with a total of 5,552 licensed beds in 17 states. The company was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee. Lifepoint Hospitals Inc. (NasdaqNM:LPNT) operates independently of HCA Inc. as of May 11, 1999.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Keith Speights]
The fun wasn't just limited to the big three hospital operators. Lifepoint Hospitals (NASDAQ: LPNT ) stock jumped 5% on the CMS news, reflecting a $109 million market cap expansion. Likewise, Vanguard Health Systems (NYSE: VHS ) shares climbed 5%, bumping its market cap up by�$55 million.
- [By Ben Levisohn]
Yesterday afternoon, Pennsylvania announced that it would use federal dollars to pay private insurers to cover eligible Pennsylvanians. UBS analysts A.J. Rice and Jailendra Singh think Community Health Systems (CYH), Tenet Healthcare (THC) and LifePoint Hospitals (LPNT) stand to benefit the most from the deal:
Hot Cheap Companies To Buy For 2014: International Business Machines Corporation(IBM)
International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) provides information technology (IT) products and services worldwide. Its Global Technology Services segment provides IT infrastructure and business process services, including strategic outsourcing, process, integrated technology, and maintenance services, as well as technology-based support services. The company?s Global Business Services segment offers consulting and systems integration, and application management services. Its Software segment offers middleware and operating systems software, such as WebSphere software to integrate and manage business processes; information management software for database and enterprise content management, information integration, data warehousing, business analytics and intelligence, performance management, and predictive analytics; Tivoli software for identity management, data security, storage management, and datacenter automation; Lotus software for collaboration, messaging, and so cial networking; rational software to support software development for IT and embedded systems; business intelligence software, which provides querying and forecasting tools; SPSS predictive analytics software to predict outcomes and act on that insight; and operating systems software. Its Systems and Technology segment provides computing and storage solutions, including servers, disk and tape storage systems and software, point-of-sale retail systems, and microelectronics. The company?s Global Financing segment provides lease and loan financing to end users and internal clients; commercial financing to dealers and remarketers of IT products; and remanufacturing and remarketing services. It serves financial services, public, industrial, distribution, communications, and general business sectors. The company was formerly known as Computing-Tabulating-Recording Co. and changed its name to International Business Machines Corporation in 1924. IBM was founded in 1910 and is based in Armonk, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Wallace Witkowski]
IBM (IBM) �shares fell 6% to $175.56 on heavy volume after the company reported adjusted third-quarter earnings of $3.99 a share . Analysts polled by FactSet estimated $3.96 a share on revenue of $24.79 billion. The consensus estimate for earnings had held steady since late July, while revenue estimates had come down slightly over the same period.
- [By Jon C. Ogg]
Again, Buffett talks up intrinsic value as the real yardstick. After all, he is not going to give short sellers and critics a reason to bash him. Berkshire Hathaway purchased additional shares of Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) to a 9.2% stake versus 8.7% a year earlier, and International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) to a 6.3% stake versus 6.0%. Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) is far from being one the “Big Four” holdings, but that may change in time.
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