The phase 3 clinical program for Merck's (NYSE: MRK ) new drug preladenant, a receptor antagonist in the treatment of Parkinson's disease, will be discontinued based on a lack of efficacy compared to a placebo, the company�announced�yesterday. After studying the results of three independent phase 3 clinical trials, Merck has decided to "discontinue the extension phases of these studies and no longer plans to pursue regulatory filings for preladenant," the company said in a statement.
In response to the preladenant trial results, Dr. David Michelson, vice president of clinical research, neuroscience, and ophthalmology at Merck research laboratories, said, "Parkinson's disease is very complex, making it difficult to treat patients and develop novel therapeutic approaches."
Merck intends to conduct further studies of the preladenant trial's results and will share its data with the scientific community in an effort to find "new approaches to treat this debilitating disease."
Best Restaurant Stocks To Buy Right Now: Washington Federal Inc (WAFD)
Washington Federal, Inc., incorporated on November 15, 1994, is a bank holding company, which conducts its operations through a federally-insured savings association subsidiary, Washington Federal (Bank). The Bank is a federal savings association. The business of the Bank consists of attracting deposits from the general public and investing these funds in loans of various types, including first lien mortgages on single-family dwellings, construction loans, land acquisition and development loans, loans on multi-family and other income producing properties, home equity loans and business loans. It also invests in United States government and agency obligations and other investments permitted by applicable laws and regulations. As of September 30, 2013, Washington Federal had 182 full service branches located in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Arizona, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico and Texas. Through its subsidiaries, the Company is also engaged in real estate investment and insurance brokerage activities. The principal sources of funds for the Company's activities are retained earnings, loan repayments (including prepayments), net deposit inflows, repayments and sales of investments and borrowings. Washington Federal's principal sources of revenue are interest on loans and interest and dividends on investments. Its principal expenses are interest paid on deposits, credit costs, general and administrative expenses, interest on borrowings and income taxes. On October 31, 2012, South Valley Bancorp, Inc. merged with and into the Company, followed by the merger of South Valley's wholly owned subsidiary, South Valley Bank & Trust, into the Bank.
Lending Activities
As of September 30, 2013, the Company's net portfolio of loans totaled $7.5 billion representing approximately 58% of its total assets. The Company concentrates its lending activities on the origination of 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage loans, which are neither insured nor guaranteed by agencies of the United States government. Washin! gton Federal's lending activity is concentrated on the origination of loans secured by real estate, including long-term fixed-rate mortgage loans, adjustable-rate construction loans, adjustable-rate land development loans, fixed-rate multi-family loans and business loans.
The Company's lending activity is the origination of real estate mortgage loans to purchase or refinance single-family residences. The Company also originates a range of construction and land development loans, along with multi-family residential and commercial loans. As of September 30, 2013, single-family residential loans totaled $5.4 billion, or 67.2% of the Company's gross loan portfolio; construction- speculative loans totaled$131 million, or 1.6% of the Company's gross loan portfolio; construction - custom loans totaled $303 million, or 3.8% of the Company's gross loan portfolio; land acquisition and development loans totaled $82 million, or 1.0% of the Company's gross loan portfolio; land - consumer lot loans totaled $125 million, or 1.6% of the Company's gross loan portfolio; multi-family loans totaled $836 million, or 10.5% of the Company's gross loan portfolio; commercial real estate loans totaled $625 million, or 7.8% of the Company's gross loan portfolio; commercial and industrial loans totaled $326 million, or 4.1% of the Company's gross loan portfolio; home equity line of credit (HELOC) loans totaled $134 million, or 1.7% of the Company's gross loan portfolio and consumer loans totaled $55 million, or 0.7% of the Company's gross loan portfolio.
The Company originates 30 year fixed-rate loans secured by single-family residences. The Company originates construction loans to finance construction of single-family and multi-family residences, as well as commercial properties. Loans made to individuals for construction of their home generally are 30 year fixed rate loans. Multi-family residential (five or more dwelling units) loans are secured by multi-family rental properties, such as apartment build! ings.
!The Company makes various types of business loans to customers in its market area for working capital, acquiring real estate, equipment or other business purposes, such as acquisitions. The terms of these loans range from less than one year to a maximum of 10 years. Consumer loans are home improvement loans made through third party originators that bear interest at rates of 10% and higher.
Investment Activities
As a federal association, the Bank is obligated to maintain adequate liquidity and does so by holding cash and cash equivalents and by investing in securities. These investments include, among other things, certain certificates of deposit, repurchase agreements, bankers��acceptances, loans to financial institutions whose deposits are federally-insured, federal funds, United States government and agency obligations and mortgage-backed securities.
Sources of Funds
Deposits are the source of the Company�� funds for use in lending and other general business purposes. In addition to deposits, Washington Federal derives funds from loan repayments, advances from the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) and other borrowings and from investment repayments and sales. The Company�� deposits are obtained from residents of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Arizona, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico and Texas. The Company obtains advances from the FHLB upon the security of the FHLB capital stock it owns and certain of its loans, provided certain standards related to credit worthiness have been met. The Company also uses reverse repurchase agreements as a form of borrowing. Under reverse repurchase agreements, the Company sells an investment security to a dealer for a period of time and agrees to buy back that security at the end of the period and pay the dealer a stated interest rate for the use of the dealer's funds. The Company also offers two forms of repurchase agreements to its customers. One form has an interest rate, which floats like that of a money market d! eposit ac! count. The other form has a fixed rate and is offered in a minimum denomination of $100,000. Both forms are fully collateralized by securities. As of September 30, 2013, the Company had $46.1 million of such agreements outstanding.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Eric Volkman]
Washington Federal (NASDAQ: WAFD ) is keeping its dividend level even as it effects a corporate transformation by the end of next month. The company has declared a quarterly distribution of $0.09 per share, to be paid on July 19 to shareholders of record as of July 5. That amount matches the firm's previous distribution, which was paid in April. Prior to that, it handed out a penny less at $0.08 per share.
- [By Brian Pacampara]
What: Shares of financial holding company Washington Federal (NASDAQ: WAFD ) climbed as high as 10% today after its quarterly results topped Wall Street expectations.�
Hot Integrated Utility Stocks To Own For 2014: Forge Group Ltd (FRGXF)
Forge Group Limited is engaged in construction, commercial building, engineering, maintenance and workshop fabrication. Forge is the holding company of Cimeco Pty Ltd, Webb Construction West Africa Ltd, Abesque Engineering Ltd (Abesque) and CTEC Pty Ltd, which provide a range of engineering and construction services to a diverse range of clients particularly to the resource and oil and gas sectors through its operating entities. Cimeco provides construction services across a range of disciplines, including, commercial building, civil, concrete, structural, mechanical, piping, tanks and electrical. Webb specializes in structural, mechanical and pipe installation, tank fabrication and erection. Abesque specializes in the provision of engineering design, project management services to the resources sector, including base metals, gold and iron ore. In January 2014, Forge Group Limited announced that BlackRock Inc. and subsidiaries had ceased to be the substantial holder of the Company. Advisors' Opinion:- [By MARKETWATCH]
LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Australia stocks started solidly lower Tuesday, weighed by large losses on Wall Street, with the S&P/ASX 200 (AU:XJO) retreating 0.8% to 5,248.90. Globally sensitive stocks were among the leading decliners after a 1.3% pullback for the S&P 500 (SPX) in the U.S., with financial major Macquarie Group Ltd. (AU:MQG) (MCQEF) falling 2.2%, News Corp. (AU:NWS) (NWS) -- the parent of MarketWatch, publisher of this report -- off 1.4%, and construction-material firm James Hardie Industries SE (AU:JHX) (JHIUF) 1.2% lower. Miners came under pressure, with BHP Billiton Ltd. (AU:BHP) (BHP) down 0.9% and Oz Minerals Ltd. (AU:OZL) (OZMLF) dropping 1%, while Forge Group Ltd. (AU:FGE) (FRGXF) tumbled 12.8% after issuing a profit warning. On the upside, mild gains overnight for Comex gold futures helped the fortunes of some gold extractors, helping Newcrest Mining Ltd. (AU:NCM) (NCMGF) and Evolution Mining Ltd. (AU:EVN) (CAHPF)
Hot Integrated Utility Stocks To Own For 2014: Symantec Corporation(SYMC)
Symantec Corporation provides security, storage, and systems management solutions internationally. The company?s Consumer segment delivers Internet security, PC tune-up, and online backup solutions and services to individual users and home offices. Its Security and Compliance segment provides solutions for endpoint security and management, compliance, messaging management, data loss prevention, encryption, and authentication services to large, medium, and small-sized businesses, as well as offers solutions through its software-as-a-service (SaaS) security offerings. This segment?s products enable customers to secure, provision, and remotely manage their laptops, PCs, mobile devices, and servers. The company?s Storage and Server Management segment provides storage and server management, backup, archiving, and data protection solutions across heterogeneous storage and server platforms, as well as solutions delivered through its SaaS offerings to large, medium, and small-s ized businesses. Symantec?s Services segment offers implementation services and solutions, including consulting, business critical services, education, and managed security services. The company also provides various enterprise support offerings, such as annual maintenance support contracts, including content, upgrades, and technical support. It sells its products through its eCommerce platform, as well as through distributors, direct marketers, Internet-based resellers, system builders, ISPs, and retail locations worldwide. Symantec markets and sells its products through distributors, retailers, direct marketers, Internet-based resellers, original equipment manufacturers, system builders, and Internet service providers; and its e-commerce channels, as well as direct sales force, value-added and large account resellers, and system integrators. The company was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Reuters]
Peter Parks, AFP/Getty ImagesThe 12-story building in Shanghai's northern suburb of Gaoqiao where a Chinese military-led hacking group allegedly conducted a series of attacks on U.S. companies networks. BOSTON -- Cybersecurity company FireEye has acquired Mandiant, the computer forensics specialist best known for unveiling a secretive Chinese military unit believed to be behind a series of hacking attacks on U.S. companies. FirEye (FEYE) shares jumped more than 20 percent after Thursday's announcement of the $1.05 billion cash-and-stock deal, which FireEye said closed Monday. It unites two companies with relatively new technologies for thwarting cyber attacks, and brings together two of the most-respected executives in the security industry: FireEye CEO Dave DeWalt and Mandiant founder Kevin Mandia. While sales of older anti-virus products have been on the decline, security experts expect strong growth in both FireEye's cloud-based systems for detecting malicious software and Mandiant's software that analyzes cyber attacks. About a year ago the two companies entered into a technology development agreement that made it easier to deploy their products together. With the merger, FireEye will gain Mandiant's team of forensics investigators. "They have these very strong Navy 'cyber' Seals who respond to breaches and are very good at what they do," DeWalt said about Mandiant. He had previously served as chairman of Mandiant's board. "My aim is to create the strongest security company in the world," DeWalt said in an interview. FireEye, which has yet to post a profit, said the acquisition will be immediately accretive to earnings and expects the combined company's revenue to grow about 50 percent this year. In comparison, Symantec (SYMC), the biggest maker of anti-virus software, has said it expects fiscal 2014 revenue to drop 3 percent to 4 percent. Mandiant is best known for its forensics services. The company rose to prominence in February 2013 when it pu
- [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]
Judith Collins/Alamy WASHINGTON - Home improvement retailer Home Depot (HD) has been in contact with the U.S. Secret Service about an alleged major breach of customer and credit card data that came to light this week, a law enforcement source told Reuters on Thursday. Any investigation by the Secret Service appears to be at a very early stage, the source said. The Secret Service, which declined comment, usually is the lead agency in federal criminal investigations into complex breaches of credit card and other consumer data. Another law enforcement source said the FBI, which also sometimes participates in such investigations, doesn't appear to be involved. It is unclear whether the U.S. Department of Justice is playing any role. Customer data could have been stolen from nearly all of Home Depot's 2,200 stores in the United States, according to information released Wednesday by security blog Krebs on Security. Home Depot hasn't confirmed that a breach occurred and it remains unclear whether or how many customers were impacted. If confirmed, the Home Depot incident could be among the most widespread in the string of security breaches at U.S. retailers in the recent past. Spokeswoman Paula Drake said Wednesday that the retailer is working with IT security firms, including Symantec (SYMC) and FishNet Security, to investigate whether there has been a data breach. A Symantec spokeswoman confirmed that Symantec was assisting with the investigation but didn't elaborate. Home Depot sought to comfort its consumers, promising free identity-protection services, including credit monitoring, to any potentially impacted customers and reassuring that the retailer or the banks that issued the cards will be responsible for any fraudulent charges. Home Depot shares were up 1.6 percent at $90.39 Thursday morning on the New York Stock Exchange. Concerns about a potential Home Depot data theft follow a major breach at retailer Target (TGT), where hackers late last yea
- [By Traders Reserve]
For some reason, certain companies can attract buyers no matter the circumstance. I would put Symantec (SYMC) in that category. Shares have gained nearly 20% this year even as Symantec�� prospects deteriorated.
Hot Integrated Utility Stocks To Own For 2014: Duke Energy Corp (DUK)
Duke Energy Corporation (Duke Energy) is an energy company. Duke Energy�� segments are U.S. Franchised Electric and Gas (USFE&G), Commercial Power and International Energy. The remainder of Duke Energy�� operations is presented as Other. Its regulated utility operations serve four million customers located in five states in the Southeast and Midwest United States. Its Commercial Power and International Energy business segments own and operate diverse power generation assets in North America and Latin America, including a portfolio of renewable energy assets in the United States. Duke Energy operates in the United States primarily through its direct and indirect wholly owned subsidiaries, Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC (Duke Energy Carolinas), Duke Energy Ohio, Inc. (Duke Energy Ohio), which includes Duke Energy Kentucky, Inc. (Duke Energy Kentucky), and Duke Energy Indiana, Inc. (Duke Energy Indiana), as well as in Latin America through Duke Energy International, LLC. In December 2012, the Company acquired a commercial solar power project located within the University of Arizona's (UA) Science and Technology Park. In August 2011, its Duke Energy Renewables purchased the Ajo Solar Project and Bagdad Solar Project from Recurrent Energy. Effective July 2, 2012, the Company merged with Progress Energy Inc. In July 2012, the Company acquired Chilean Campanario power plant. In December 2012, the Company's subsidiary acquired CGE Group's Iberoamericana de Energia Ibener S.A. (Ibener) subsidiary in Chile.
The remainder of Duke Energy�� operations is presented as Other. Other primarily includes Bison Insurance Company Limited (Bison), Duke Energy�� wholly owned, captive insurance subsidiary, contributions to the Duke Energy Foundation, Duke Energy�� effective 50% interest in DukeNet Communications, LLC (DukeNet) and related telecom businesses, and Duke Energy Trading and Marketing, LLC (DETM), which is 40%-owned by Exxon Mobil Corporation and 60%-owned by Duke. Bison�� principal activities! as a captive insurance entity include the indemnification of various business risks and losses, such as property, business interruption, workers��compensation and general liability of subsidiaries and affiliates of Duke Energy. DukeNet develops, owns and operates a fiber optic communications network, primarily in the southeast United States, serving wireless, local and long-distance communications companies, Internet service providers and other businesses and organizations.
U.S. Franchised Electric and Gas
USFE&G generates, transmits, distributes and sells electricity in central and western North Carolina, western South Carolina, central, north central and southern Indiana, and northern Kentucky. USFE&G also transmits, distributes and sells electricity in southwestern Ohio. Additionally, USFE&G transports and sells natural gas in southwestern Ohio and northern Kentucky. It conducts operations primarily through Duke Energy Carolinas, the regulated transmission and distribution operations of Duke Energy Ohio, including Duke Energy Kentucky, and Duke Energy Indiana (Duke Energy Ohio, Duke Energy Indiana and Duke Energy Kentucky collectively referred to as Duke Energy Midwest). Its service area covers 50,000 square miles. USFE&G supplies electric service to four million residential, general service and industrial customers. USFE&G provides regulated transmission and distribution services for natural gas to 500,000 customers in southwestern Ohio and northern Kentucky. Electricity is also sold wholesale to incorporated municipalities, electric cooperative utilities and other load serving entities.
Electric energy for USFE&G�� customers is generated by three nuclear generating stations with a combined owned capacity of 5,173 megawatts, including Duke Energy�� 19.25% interest in the Catawba Nuclear Station; 14 coal-fired stations with an overall combined owned capacity of 12,977 megawatts, including Duke Energy�� 69% interest in the East Bend Steam Station, and 5! 0.05% int! erest in Unit 5 of the Gibson Steam Station; 31 hydroelectric stations (including two pumped-storage facilities) with a combined owned capacity of 3,321 megawatts, 15 combustion turbine (CT) stations burning natural gas, oil or other fuels with an overall combined owned capacity of 5,012 megawatts, and two Combined Cycle (CC) stations burning natural gas with an owned capacity of 905 megawatts. In addition, USFE&G operates a solar Distributed Generation program with nine megawatts of capacity.
Commercial Power
Commercial Power owns, operates and manages power plants and engages in the wholesale marketing and procurement of electric power, fuel and emission allowances related to these plants, as well as other contractual positions. Commercial Power�� generation operations, excluding renewable energy generation assets, consist primarily of coal-fired and gas-fired non-regulated generation assets, which are dispatched into wholesale markets. These assets are comprised of 7,550 net megawatts of power generation primarily located in the Midwestern United States. The asset portfolio has a diversified fuel mix with base-load and mid-merit coal-fired units, as well as combined cycle and peaking natural gas-fired units. Commercial Power also has a retail sales subsidiary, Duke Energy Retail Sales, LLC (Duke Energy Retail).
Duke Energy Retail serves retail electric customers in southwest, west central and northern Ohio with energy and other energy services. Through Duke Energy Generation Services, Inc. (DEGS), Commercial Power engages in the development, construction and operation of renewable energy projects. In addition, DEGS develops commercial transmission projects. DEGS also owns and operates electric generation for energy consumers, municipalities, utilities and industrial facilities. DEGS managed approximately 3,700 megawatts of power generation at various sites throughout the United States during the year ended December 31, 2011.
International Energy
! International Energy principally operates and manages power generation facilities and engages in sales and marketing of electric power, natural gas, and natural gas liquids outside the United States. It conducts operations through Duke Energy International, LLC (DEI) and its affiliates and its activities principally target power generation in Latin America. Additionally, International Energy owns a 25% interest in National Methanol Company (NMC), a producer of methanol and methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) located in Saudi Arabia. International Energy has a 25% interest in Attiki Gas Supply S.A. (Attiki), a natural gas distributor located in Athens, Greece. International Energy�� customers include retail distributors, electric utilities, independent power producers, marketers and industrial/commercial companies. International Energy owns, operates or has interests in approximately 4,600 gross megawatts of generation facilities.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Rich Smith]
Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK ) is expanding its exposure to solar power.
On Wednesday, the electric utility announced that it's adding to its nearly 100 megawatts of solar generating capacity by buying two Californian solar power projects from Germany's SolarWorld. The solar farms in question, designated Highlander Solar 1 and 2, target production of 21 MW of electricity when they go on line -- sufficient power to supply 4,000 homes with electricity. Duke Energy Renewables President Greg Wolf says that when combined into a single solar farm under Duke ownership, they will constitute "the company's largest commercial solar farm in the nation."
- [By Justin Loiseau]
Duke's fresh start?
This week's been a doozy for Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK ) . On Monday, North Carolina regulators rejected the utility's $446 million base rate request, cutting increases nearly in half. The $235 million approved increase will be spread out over a three-year period, and Duke Energy will also spend $10 million on an assistance package to offset rate increases for low-income customers. - [By Jayson Derrick]
Dynegy (NYSE: DYN) announced that it has acquired power generation assets from Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK) and Energy Capital partners. In total, Dynegy acquired 12.5 megawatts of coal and gas generation, almost doubling its existing assets to nearly 26,000 megawatts. Dynegy expects the acquisitions will create synergy targets of more than $40 million per year, $200 million in collateral efficiencies translating to nearly $500 million in present value cash savings. The company expects its adjusted EBITDA accretion to be 125 percent, while its free cash flow accretion will be 220 percent in 2015. Shares gained 8.75 percent, closing at $32.32.
Hot Integrated Utility Stocks To Own For 2014: iShares Short Treasury Bond ETF (SHV)
iShares Lehman Short Treasury Bond Fund (the Fund) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the short-term sector of the United States Treasury market as defined by the Lehman Brothers Short U.S. Treasury Index (the Index). The Index includes all publicly issued United States Treasury securities that have a remaining maturity of between 1 and 12 months, and have more than $250 million or more of outstanding face value. In addition, the securities must be denominated in United States dollars, and must be fixed-rate and non-convertible securities. Excluded from the Index are certain special issues, such as flower bonds, targeted investor notes, and state and local government series bonds (SLG5), and coupon issues that have been stripped from assets that are already included in the Index.
The Index is a market capitalization-weighted index. The Fund generally will invest at least 95% of its assets in the United States Government bonds. The Fund invests in a representative sample of the securities in the Index, which has a similar investment profile as the Index. The Fund�� investment advisor is Barclays Global Fund Advisor.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Donald van Deventer]
Shorter-duration Treasury Exchange-Traded Funds: (SHY), (SHV), (IEI), (BIL), (TUZ), (FIVZ), (DTUL), (VGSH), (DTUS), (DFVS), (DFVL), (SST), (ISTB), (TBZ).
Hot Integrated Utility Stocks To Own For 2014: Manchester United PLC (MANU)
Manchester United plc, formerly Manchester United Ltd., incorporated on April 30, 2012, is engaged in the operations of professional sports team. It provides manchester united a platform to generate revenue from multiple sources, including sponsorship, merchandising, product licensing, new media & mobile, broadcasting and matchday. The Company had three principal sectors: Commercial, Broadcasting and Matchday.
Commercial
Within the Commercial revenue sector, the Company had three revenue streams which include sponsorship revenue; retail, merchandising, apparel and product licensing revenue; and new media and mobile revenue. Retail, Merchandising, Apparel and Product Licensing, it markets and sells sports apparel, training and leisure wear and other clothing featuring the Manchester United brand on a global basis. In addition, it also sells other licensed products, from coffee mugs to bed spreads, featuring the Manchester United brand and trademarks. These products are distributed through Manchester United branded retail centers and e-commerce platforms, as well as its partners' wholesale distribution channels.
The Company retails, merchandizes, apparel & product licensing business is managed by Nike, who pays it a minimum guaranteed amount and a share of the business' cumulative profits. It has formed mobile telecom partnerships in 44 countries. In addition, it markets content directly to its followers through its Website, www.manutd.com, and associated mobile properties.
Broadcasting
The Company generates revenue from distribution and broadcasting of live football content. Broadcasting revenue is derived from the global television rights relating to the Premier League, Champions League and other competitions. In addition, its global television channel, MUTV, delivers Manchester United programming to 54 countries around the world. Broadcasting includes all revenue covering domestic and international television and radio rights. Broadc! asting revenue including, in some cases, prize money received by it in respect of the various competitions.
Matchday
The Company generates revenue during the matchday from the Old Trafford, a sports venue.
Other Matchday revenue includes matchday catering, event parking, program sales as well as membership and travel, Manchester United Museum revenue and a share of the ticket revenue from away matches in domestic cup competitions. Matchday revenue also includes revenue from other events hosted at Old Trafford, including other sporting events (including football matches as part of the London 2012 Olympic Games and the annual Rugby Super League Grand Final), music concerts and entertainment events.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By CRWE]
Manchester United plc (NYSE:MANU), one of the most popular and successful sports teams in the world, playing one of the most popular spectator sports on Earth, reported that it has rescheduled its fourth quarter and fiscal 2012 earnings conference call and live webcast.
- [By Trista Kelley]
Science in Sport was created by cycling enthusiast Tim Lawson in a kitchen in 1992 and was bought by Provexis two years ago. About 60 percent of sales come from cyclists, though the brand has been raising its profile among other athletes with help from the London Olympics last year and from Wimbledon champion and Go gel user Andy Murray. SiS has also widened its appeal to soccer fans, supplying products to Manchester United Plc (MANU) players, Moon said.
- [By STOCKPICKR]
Manchester United (MANU), together with its subsidiaries, is engaged in the ownership and operation of Manchester United Football Club, a professional football club in the United Kingdom. This stock closed up 4.1% to $17.50 in Monday's trading session.
Monday's Volume: 973,000
Three-Month Average Volume: 48,028
Volume % Change: 1099%From a technical perspective, MANU surged sharply higher here right off its 50-day moving average of $16.87 with monster upside volume. This spike higher on Monday pushed shares of MANU into breakout territory, since the stock took out some near-term overhead resistance levels at $17 to $17.34. Market players should now look for a continuation move higher in the short-term if MANU manages to take out Monday's intraday high of $17.50 with strong upside volume.
Traders should now look for long-biased trades in MANU as long as it's trending above Monday's low of $16.80 and then once it sustains a move or close above $17.50 with volume that hits near or above 48,028 shares. If that move starts soon, then MANU will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $18.48 to its 52-week high of $19.
Hot Integrated Utility Stocks To Own For 2014: Basic Energy Services Inc. (BAS)
Basic Energy Services, Inc. provides various well site services to oil and natural gas drilling and producing companies in the United States. Its Completion and Remedial Services segment provides pumping services, such as cementing, acidizing, fracturing, coiled tubing, nitrogen, and pressure testing; rental and fishing tools; snubbing services; thru-tubing; cased-hole wireline services; and underbalanced drilling in low pressure and fluid sensitive reservoirs. This segment operates 228 pressure pumping units. It also operates 14 coiled tubing units; 49 air compressor packages; 12 wireline units; and 34 snubbing units. The company�s Fluid Services segment offers oilfield fluid supply, transportation, storage, and construction services, which comprise the transportation of fluids and salt water; sale and transportation of fresh and brine water; rental of portable frac tanks and test tanks; operation of company-owned fresh water and brine source wells and non-hazardous wast ewater disposal wells; and preparation, construction, and maintenance of access roads, drilling locations, and production facilities. This segment owns and operates 955 fluid services trucks with a fluid hauling capacity of up to 150 barrels apiece. Its Well Servicing segment provides various services performed with a mobile well servicing rig and ancillary equipment, such as maintenance work, hoisting tools and equipment required by the operation, and plugging and abandonment services, as well as manufactures and sells workover rigs. It operates a fleet of 425 well servicing rigs. The company�s Contract Drilling segment employs drilling rigs and related equipment to penetrate the earth to a desired depth and initiate production. This segment owns and operates 12 land drilling rigs. The company was formerly known as Sierra Well Service, Inc. and changed its name to Basic Energy Services, Inc. in 2000. Basic Energy Services, Inc. was founded in 1992 and is based in Fort Wort h, Texas.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Simon Casey]
Dow is investing $4 billion to expand production in the U.S., where an abundance of natural gas from drilling in shale formations has made U.S. plastics production competitive with the Middle East. The company, founded in 1897 as a bleach maker, is the world�� biggest producer of chlorine, epoxy resins and polyethylene plastic. It�� the world�� second-biggest chemical maker after Germany�� BASF SE. (BAS)
- [By Aaron Levitt]
For investors, the choice is clear — you need to focus globally when it comes to oil stocks. North American-focused oil stocks like C&J Energy (CJES) and Basic Energy Services (BAS) might not be up to snuff in such a highly challenging pricing environment.
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