Good Stocks 2014

2014 began on a strong note by recording its preeminent single-session percentage gain in weeks, closing at a two-month high on the first day of 2014 trading. The markets are all currently trading at multi-year highs. There are a multitude of positives spurring the advance. Please review the following highlights of macro-economic positive indicators.

• China's PMI beat expectations of 49.6 by rising slightly from last month to 50.5.
• India recently reported its best manufacturing reading in six months.
• Manufacturing data from Europe is comparatively inspiring based on the dismal expectations.
• Recent manufacturing activity in the United Kingdom is better than expected.
• Eurozone manufacturing activity is somewhat in-line with outlooks.
• Progress by the ECB with regard to sovereign debt in the form of the LTRO is proving positive for stocks.
• The U.S. Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Index was reported at 54.1, up from 53.1 last month.

 

 

Good Stocks 2014:PC Mall Inc. (MALL)

 PC Mall, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a value added direct marketer of technology products, services, and solutions to businesses, government and educational institutions, and individual consumers primarily in the United States. It offers information technology products, services, and solutions, as well as consumer electronics equipment and other consumer products. The company?s product portfolio comprises software, notebooks, desktop, storage and networking devices, iPods/MP3s, displays, servers, printers, supplies, input devices, memory devices, consumer electronics, and accessories. It also provides planning and assessment, data center hosting, Microsoft hosting, remote systems monitoring and management, deployment, end-user desktop, managed print, recycling and disposal, change management consulting, and installation/move/add/change services to the commercial and public sector markets. In addition, the company offers data center, client computing, unified communications, virtualization, secure mobility, borderless networks, enterprise servers, storage and security, software licensing, and procurement solutions. PC Mall offers its products, services, and solutions through account executives, field service teams, various direct marketing techniques, and three retail stores; through catalogs under the PC Mall, MacMall, PC Mall Gov, and SARCOM brands; and through Web sites, such as pcmall.com, macmall.com, sarcom.com, pcmallgov.com, abreon.com, nspi.com, onsale.com, healthdynamix.com, pcmallsbn.com, and other promotional materials. The company was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Torrance, California.

Good Stocks 2014:Simulations Plus Inc. (SLP)

 Simulations Plus, Inc. develops and produces software for use in pharmaceutical research and education, as well as provides contract research services to the pharmaceutical industry. Its software products include ADMET Predictor that offers numerical models for predicting absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicity properties of chemical compounds from their molecular structures; MedChem Studio, a tool for medicinal and computational chemists for data mining and designing new drug-like molecules; DDDPlus, a software program that is used by formulation scientists to reduce the number of cut-and-try attempts to design new drug formulations, as well as to design in vitro experiments to mimic in vivo conditions; and GastroPlus that simulates the absorption, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of drugs administered to humans and animals. The company also provides contract research and consulting services in the areas oral absorption and pharmacokinetics. In addition, it develops and sells interactive, educational software programs that simulate science experiments conducted in middle school, high school, and junior college science classes, as well as provides Abbreviate, a productivity software program. Further, the company designs and develops computer software and manufactures augmentative communication devices and computer access products for physically disabled persons. It markets augmentative and alternative communication products to speech pathologists, occupational therapists, rehabilitation engineers, special education teachers, disabled persons, and relatives of disabled persons, through a network of employee representatives, independent dealers, and resellers. The company operates in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Oceania. Simulations Plus, Inc. was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Lancaster, California.

Good Stocks 2014:AmTrust Financial Services Inc. (AFSI)

 AmTrust Financial Services, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as a multinational specialty property and casualty insurance company in the United States and internationally. The company operates in three segments: Small Commercial Business, Specialty Risk and Extended Warranty, and Specialty Middle Market Business. The Small Commercial Business segment provides workers? compensation insurance and an array of commercial package products, including commercial property, general liability, inland marine, automobile, workers? compensation, umbrella, and farm and ranch owners? coverage to small businesses, such as restaurants, retail stores and strip malls, professional offices, owner or contractor of building management-operations, private schools, business traveler hotels/motels, light manufacturing, small grocery and specialty food stores, light contracting, distributors, and laundry/dry cleaners. The Specialty Risk and Extended Warranty segment serves manufacturers, service providers, retailers, and third party warranty administrators that provide coverage for accidental damage, mechanical breakdown, and related risks for consumer and commercial goods. This segment also provides coverage for products, such as personal computers, consumer electronics, consumer appliances, automobiles, cellular telephones, furniture, heavy equipment, homeowner?s latent defects warranty, hand tools, credit payment protection, gap insurance, commercial and residential properties, and legal expenses. The Specialty Middle Market Business segment underwrites worker?s compensation, package products, general liability, commercial auto liability, and other specialty commercial property and casualty insurance for retail, wholesale, service operations, artisan contracting, trucking, light and medium manufacturing, and habitational markets. The company sells its products through a network of independent wholesale agents, brokers, and retail agents. The company is based in New York, New York.

Good Stocks 2014:Full House Resorts Inc. (FLL)

 Full House Resorts, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, develops, manages, invests in, and owns gaming-related enterprises. The company holds interest in Gaming Entertainment (Delaware), LLC, a joint venture with Harrington Raceway, Inc., which has a management contract with Harrington Raceway and Casino that has approximately 1,800 slot machines and 40 table games, a 450-seat buffet, a dining restaurant, a 50-seat diner, and an entertainment lounge area located in Harrington, Delaware. It also owns and operates Stockman?s Casino, which has approximately 264 slot machines, 4 table games, and keno, as well as a bar, a dining restaurant, and a coffee shop situated in Fallon, Nevada. In addition, the company holds interests in Gaming Entertainment Michigan, LLC that has a joint venture with RAM Entertainment, LLC, which has a management agreement with the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi Indians for the development and management of the FireKeepers Casino in Battle Creek, Michigan. Full House Resorts, Inc. was founded in 1987 and is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Good Stocks 2014:Summit State Bank (SSBI)

 Summit State Bank operates as a community bank in Sonoma, Napa, San Francisco, and Marin Counties in California. It offers deposit accounts, such as transaction accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, time deposit accounts, business checking accounts, time certificates of deposit, sweep accounts, and specialized deposit accounts, including professional, small business packaged, and tiered accounts for larger deposits, and Keogh and IRA accounts. The company also provides commercial and industrial lines of credit and term loans, credit lines to individuals, equipment loans, real estate and construction loans, small business loans, and business lines of credit; consumer loans, including auto loans, mortgage loans, home improvement loans, and home equity lines of credit; and loans for accounts receivable and inventory financing, loans to agriculture-related businesses, and equipment and expansion financing programs. In addition, it offers banking by appointment, online and telephone banking services, direct payroll and social security deposits, letters of credit, access to national automated teller machine networks, courier services, safe deposit boxes, night depository facilities, notary services, travelers? checks, lockbox, and banking by mail. Further, the company, through its subsidiary, Alto Service Corporation, provides deed of trust services. It serves small-to medium-sized businesses, professionals and professional associations, entrepreneurs, high net worth families, foundations, estates, and individual consumers. The company operated five offices in Santa Rosa, Petaluma, Rohnert Park, and Healdsburg. Summit State Bank was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Santa Rosa, California.

Good Stocks 2014:Advance America Cash Advance Centers Inc. (AEA)

 Advance America, Cash Advance Centers, Inc. provides cash advance services in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. The company offers various types of short-term credit products, including single cash advances; installment loans with closed-end terms; lines of credit; and second mortgage loans. Its cash advances are small-denomination, short-term, and unsecured advances that are due on the customer?s next payday. The company also offers a fee-based credit services package to assist customers in trying to improve their credit and in obtaining an extension of consumer credit through a third-party lender. In addition, it sells prepaid debit cards as an agent of a bank, as well as sells money orders; and provides money transfer services as an agent of a registered money transmitter. The company offers its cash advance services primarily to middle-income working individuals. As of December 31, 2010, it operated 2,313 centers in the United States, 21 centers in the United Kingdom, and 18 centers in Canada, as well as had 62 limited licensees in the United Kingdom. The company operates its centers under the ?Advance America? and ?National Cash Advance? brand names. Advance America, Cash Advance Centers, Inc. was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

Good Stocks 2014:Barnes Group Inc. (B)

 Barnes Group Inc. operates as an international logistical services company, and aerospace and industrial components manufacturer in the United States, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Korea, Mexico, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, and the United Kingdom. It operates in two segments, Logistics and Manufacturing Services, and Precision Components. The Logistics and Manufacturing Services segment provides value-added logistical support services, including inventory management, technical sales, and supply chain solutions for maintenance, repair, operating, and production supplies and services; and repair services comprising the manufacture of spare parts for the refurbishment and repair of highly engineered components, and assemblies for commercial and military aviation. The Precision Components segment supplies precision springs ranging from fine hairsprings for electronics and instruments to large heavy-duty springs for machinery, as well as precision-machined and fabricated components and assemblies for original equipment manufacturer turbine engine, and airframe and industrial gas turbine builders, as well as the military. This segment also manufactures and supplies precision mechanical springs, compressor reed valves, and nitrogen gas products; high-precision punched and fine-blanked components used in transportation and industrial applications; nitrogen gas springs and manifold systems used to control stamping presses; and retention rings that position parts on a shaft or other axis. It serves durable goods manufacturers operating in various industries, including transportation, consumer products, farm equipment, telecommunications, medical devices, home appliances and electronics, and airframe and gas turbine engines. The company was founded in 1857 and is headquartered in Bristol, Connecticut.