Thursday, August 7, 2014

Top 10 Defensive Companies For 2014

Estimates are that we get something like 5,000 marketing and sales messages a day, and with the holiday shopping season in full swing, that number probably has increased.

But many of the sales pitches we receive may not come from those trying to get us to buy a new toaster or vacation in an exotic locale. Some come from those we work with, whether a colleague or a vendor.

COLUMN: Art of influence is in how you ask
COLUMN: Get skills to market yourself to others

Do you pay attention when you feel a team member is trying to "sell" you something? Or do you tune that person out?

If you're not receptive to the message, you're not alone.

"People get defensive when they detect the pitch. They feel like something is being forced on them," says Steve Yastrow, author of the upcoming Ditch the Pitch: The Art of Improvised Persuasion

Top 5 Promising Companies To Buy Right Now: Fibria Celulose SA (FBR)

Fibria Celulose S.A. (Fibria), formerly Votorantim Celulose e Papel S.A., incorporated on July 25, 1941, is a producer of market pulp. During the year ended December 31, 2010, Fibria produced 5,054 kilotons of eucalyptus pulp (including 50.0% of the pulp production of Veracel). The Company also produces coated and uncoated paper, carbonless paper and thermal paper at its Piracicaba paper mill, located in the State of Sao Paulo with an annual production capacity of 190 kilotons. During 2010, it produced 115 kilotons of paper products and recorded consolidated net revenues. Fibria produces bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp at three pulp mills, the Aracruz pulp mill located in the State of Espirito Santo, which has an annual production capacity of 2.3 million tons; the Tres Lagoas pulp mill located in the State of Mato Grosso do Sul, which has an annual production capacity of 1.3 million tons, and the Jacarei pulp mill located in the State of Sao Paulo, which has an annual production capacity of 1.1 million tons. The Company has a 50% interest in Veracel, which owns and operates a pulp mill in the municipality of Eunapolis, State of Bahia, with an annual production capacity of 1.1 million tons.

Pulp

Fibria produces bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp from planted eucalyptus trees. Bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp is a range of hardwood pulp. Eucalyptus is a hardwood tree, and its pulp has short fibers and is generally suited to manufacturing tissue, coated and uncoated printing and writing paper and coated packaging boards. Short fibers are optimal for manufacturing wood-free paper with good printability, smoothness, brightness and uniformity. Market pulp is the pulp sold to producers of paper products. Kraft pulp is pulp produced in a chemical process using sulphate. During 2010, it produced 5,054 kilotons of pulp (including 50.0% of the pulp production of Veracel).

Paper

During 2010, Fibria produced 115 kilotons of paper. The Company produced coated printing an! d writing paper, which is a coated woodfree paper used for promotional materials, folders, internal sheets and cover of magazines, books, tabloids, inserts and mailing; uncoated printing and writing paper, which is a uncoated woodfree paper in reels and sheets; carbonless paper, which is used to produce multi-copy forms, POS, invoices and other applications in place of traditional carbon paper, and thermal paper, which is traditionally used in fax machines; POS, bar code labels, toll tickets, water and gas bills and receipts for automated teller machines (ATMs) and credit card machines. It manufactures thermal paper products with technology licensed byOji Paper Co., Ltd (Oji Paper).

The Company competes with APRIL, Arauco, APP, Georgia Pacific, CMPC, Sodra, Stora Enso, Weyerhaeuser and Suzano.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Seth Jayson]

    Fibria Celulose (NYSE: FBR  ) reported earnings on July 24. Here are the numbers you need to know.

    The 10-second takeaway
    For the quarter ended June 30 (Q2), Fibria Celulose met expectations on revenues and missed expectations on earnings per share.

Top 10 Defensive Companies For 2014: TFS Financial Corporation(TFSL)

TFS Financial Corporation operates as a holding company for Third Federal Savings and Loan Association of Cleveland. The company provides retail consumer banking, including mortgage lending, deposit gathering, and other financial services in Ohio and Florida. Its deposit accounts consist of savings accounts, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, certificates of deposit accounts, individual retirement accounts, and other qualified plan accounts. The company also offers residential real estate mortgage loans, home equity loans, lines of credit, residential construction loans, and consumer loans. It operates 39 full-service branches and 8 loan production offices. TFS Financial Corporation, through its subsidiary, Third Capital, Inc. engages in net lease transactions of commercial buildings; maintains minority investments in private equity funds, and provide escrow and settlement services; and reinsures private mortgage insurance on residential mortgage loans. The company w as founded in 1938 and is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Jim Royal]

    The special situation
    For those of you following my Special Situations portfolio, Investors Bancorp is in a spot similar to First Financial Northwest (NASDAQ: FFNW  ) and TFS Financial (NASDAQ: TFSL  ) , both of which are featured substantially in the portfolio. While Investors Bancorp is still only a partially demutualized thrift (like TFS Financial today), it will soon become a fully public institution, like First Financial.

Top 10 Defensive Companies For 2014: Kyocera Corp (KYOCF)

KYOCERA CORPORATION mainly develops products for the information and communications market. The Fine Ceramic segment offers semiconductor and liquid crystal manufacturing equipment parts, and information communication parts. The Semiconductor Parts segment offers ceramic and optical communication packages. The Fine Ceramic Applied Product Related segment offers residential, industrial photovoltaic generations. The Electronic Device segment offers ceramic capacitors, tantalum capacitors. The Communication Device segment provides personal handy phone systems (PHSs). The Information Equipment segment offers monochromes and combined machine. The Others segment provides information communication services. On April 1, 2013, it transferred the liquid crystal display related business to KYOCERA Display Corporation. On October 1, 2013, it acquired a 55% stake in NEC TOPPAN CIRCUIT SOLUTIONS, INC. from Toppan Printing Co Ltd, and acquired another 45% stake from NEC Corporation. Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By MARKETWATCH]

    LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Japanese stocks weakened in early Thursday trading as the yen rose and Wall Street ended mixed, with the Nikkei Stock Average (JP:NIK) falling 1.2% to 15,929.74 after a 1.9% advance a day earlier. With the yen (USDJPY) slightly firmer than in the previous session, some investors sold currency-sensitive exporters, with Fanuc Corp. (JP:6954) (FANUF) down 2%, Kyocera Corp. (JP:6971) (KYOCF) off 1.9%, and Fujitsu Ltd. (JP:6702) (FJTSY) losing 2.3%. News that China would lift a ban on some sales of videogame consoles had sent shares of Nintendo Co. (JP:7974) (NTDOF) shooting 11% higher on Wednesday, but apparent profit-taking sent the stock down 4.2% in early Thursday action. Shares of rival Sony Corp. (JP:6758) (SNE) , however, followed with a 4% rise, also possibly buoyed by a Nikkei Asian Review report that it was planning a "smartphone offensive" in the U.S. and China. Canon Inc. (JP:7751) (CAJ) fell 2% on a separate Nikkei report that the company's 2013 operating profit would miss forecasts. Toshiba Corp. (JP:6502) (TOSYY)

  • [By Daniel Inman]

    Shares of Japanese real-estate companies managed to move higher in Tokyo, with Mitsui Fudosan (JP:8801) � (MTSFF) �up 1.6%, and Mitsubishi Estate Co. (JP:8802) � (MITEF) �up 1.9%. Local exporters, however, failed to lead the market lower: Honda Motor Co. (JP:7267) � (HMC) �lost 0.8%, and Kyocera Corp. (JP:6971) � (KYOCF) �fell 0.6%

Top 10 Defensive Companies For 2014: Susquehanna Bancshares Inc.(SUSQ)

Susquehanna Bancshares, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides retail and commercial banking, and financial services in the mid-Atlantic region. Its retail banking services include checking, savings, and club accounts, as well as check cards, debit cards, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, individual retirement accounts, home equity lines of credit, residential mortgage loans, home improvement loans, automobile loans, personal loans, and Internet banking services. The company?s commercial banking services comprise business checking accounts, cash management services, money market accounts, land acquisition and development loans, commercial loans, floor plan, equipment and working capital lines of credit, small business loans, and Internet banking services. It also offers commercial, property, and casualty insurance; and risk management programs for medium and large sized companies. In addition, it provides traditional trust and custodial services, as well a s acts as an administrator, executor, guardian, and managing agent for individuals, businesses, and non-profit entities. Further, the company offers investment advisory, asset management, and brokerage services for institutional and high net worth individual clients; and provides retirement planning services. Additionally, it engages in the equity management of assets for institutions, pensions, endowments, and high net worth individuals; and provides consumer vehicle financing services. The company operates 221 branches and 26 free-standing automated teller machines. Susquehanna Bancshares, Inc. was founded in 1982 and is based in Lititz, Pennsylvania.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Rich Duprey]

    Financial services holding company�Susquehanna Bancshares (NASDAQ: SUSQ  ) announced yesterday its third-quarter dividend of $0.08 per share, the same rate it paid last quarter after raising the payout 14%, from $0.07 per share.

Top 10 Defensive Companies For 2014: Masco Corporation (MAS)

Masco Corporation engages in the manufacture, distribution, and installation of home improvement and building products primarily in North America and Europe. The company operates through five segments: Cabinets and Related Products, Plumbing Products, Installation and Other Services, Decorative Architectural Products, and Other Specialty Products. The Cabinets and Related Products segment manufactures and sells stock and semi-custom assembled, and ready-to-assemble cabinetry for kitchen, bath, storage, home office, and home entertainment applications, as well as kitchen countertops, and integrated bathroom vanity and countertop solutions. The Plumbing Products segment offers single-handle and double-handle faucets, showerheads, handheld showers, valves, and toilets; tub and shower systems, bath and shower enclosure units, shower trays, and laundry tubs, as well as spas; and brass and copper plumbing system components, and other plumbing specialties. The Installation and Ot her Services segment sells installed building products, such as gutters, after-paint products, fireplaces, and garage doors, as well as insulation and insulation accessories, and roofing and other products. The Decorative Architectural Products segment produces architectural coatings, including paints, primers, specialty paint products, stains, and waterproofing products; and cabinet, door, window, and other hardware products. The Other Specialty Products segment manufactures and sells vinyl, fiberglass, and aluminum windows and patio doors; and manual and electric staple gun tackers, staples, and other fastening tools. The company offers its products to the home improvement and new home construction markets through mass merchandisers, hardware stores, home centers, homebuilders, distributors, and other outlets for consumers and contractors, as well as directly to the consumers. Masco Corporation was founded in 1929 and is headquartered in Taylor, Michigan.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Sue Chang , Saumya Vaishampayan]

    Masco Corp. (MAS) shares slid 4.4%. The stock�� rating was lowered to underweight from hold at KeyCorp, according to Analyst Ratings Network.

Top 10 Defensive Companies For 2014: BanColombia S.A. (CIB)

Bancolombia S.A., a full service financial institution, provides various banking products and services to individual and corporate customers in Colombia, as well as in Panama, El Salvador, Puerto Rico, the Cayman Islands, Peru, Brazil, the United States, and Spain. The company offers savings and checking accounts, fixed term deposits, and investment products; and trade financing, loans funded by domestic development banks, working capital loans, credit cards, personal loans, vehicle loans, payroll loans, and overdrafts. It also provides mortgage banking, factoring, treasury, cash management, foreign currency, and bancassurance and insurance; and asset management and trust services that comprise money market accounts, mutual and pension funds, private equity funds, payment trust, custody services, and corporate trust. In addition, the company offers brokerage, investment advisory, and private banking services, including selling and distributing equities, futures, foreign cu rrencies, fixed income securities, mutual funds, and structured products; and investment banking services, including advising and assisting companies from various economic sectors in project finance, capital markets, capital investments, mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, and corporate lending. Further, it provides financial and operational leases, including cross-border and international leasing services; and pension plan administration services. The company offers its services through a traditional branch network, and sales and customer representatives, as well as through mobile branches, non-banking correspondents, an ATM network, online and computer banking, telephone and mobile phone banking, and electronic funds transfer at point of sale (PACs). As of September 30, 2012, it had 978 branches and 3,703 ATMs. Bancolombia S.A. was founded in 1945 and is headquartered in Medellin, Colombia.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Matt Smith]

    Bancolombia appears attractively priced
    Another Colombian company that appears under-valued is the Andean country's largest commercial bank Bancolombia (NYSE: CIB  ) . For the year-to-date Bancolombia's share price fell 17% because of a weak second quarter bottom-line. This decline was primarily caused by the bank's net income plunging by 41% year-over-year because of mark-to-market losses caused by the value lost in the bank's securities portfolio.

Top 10 Defensive Companies For 2014: CGI Group Inc (GIB)

CGI Group Inc. (CGI), incorporated on September 29, 1981, provides information technology (IT) consulting, systems integration, IT outsourcing and business solutions. The Company�� delivery model provides for work to be carried out onsite at client premises, or through its centers located globally. CGI has approximately 72,000 members across the globe. The Company also has a range of business solutions, which support long-term client relationships. Its services include consulting, systems integration, and management of information technology (IT) and business functions (outsourcing). On August 20, 2012, CGI completed its acquisition of Logica plc (Logica).

CGI has a range of business solutions, which include Momentum, CGI Advantage, CACS, CACS-G, Bureaulink and Strata. Momentum is an integrated enterprise resource planning suite in use by over 85 federal organizations across the three branches of the United States federal government, including 16 agencies. CGI�� enterprise resource planning solution, CGI Advantage, include financial management, payroll, budgeting, human resources management, procurement and grants management. The CGI Advantage client organizations include 22 states. CGI�� Credit Services Solutions include CACS, CACS-G and Bureaulink, Strata and other components.

Management of IT and Business Functions - Outsourcing

Clients delegate entire or partial responsibility for their IT or business functions to CGI. It implements its processes to improve the client�� operations. It also integrates clients��operations into its technology network. Services provided as part of an outsourcing contract may include development and integration of new projects and applications; applications maintenance and support; technology management (enterprise and end-user computing and network services); transaction and business processing, such as payroll, insurance processing and document management services. Outsourcing contracts have terms of up to 10 years.

Consulting and Systems Integration

CGI provides a full range of IT and business consulting services, including business transformation, IT strategic planning, business process engineering and systems architecture. CGI integrates and customizes technologies and software applications.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Alexis Xydias]

    Commerzbank AG gained for a third day on speculation the German government may sell its 17 percent stake in the lender. GSW Immobilien AG (GIB) slipped 0.9 percent after HSBC Holdings Plc downgraded its rating on Berlin�� largest residential landlord.

  • [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

    CGI Group (NYSE: GIB) was also up, gaining 7.28 percent to $38.59 after the company swung to a profit in the fourth quarter.

    Equities Trading DOWN
    Shares of Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO) were down 13.36 percent to $20.79 after the company posted weaker-than-expected fiscal first-quarter revenue and issued a weak outlook. Cisco also increased its share buyback program by $15 billion. Deutsche Bank downgraded the stock from Buy to Hold.

  • [By Keith Speights]

    Look for politicians on both sides of the aisle to push for a better verification system for the Obamacare subsidies. One winner if they succeed could be CGI Group (NYSE: GIB  ) . The Canadian information technology firm is heavily involved with development of the federal exchanges as well as several state-run exchanges. More extensive verification means more work for some company. CGI's expertise with the exchange systems make it a good candidate to land the added business.

  • [By Chris Isidore]

    The largest contractor is CGI Federal Inc., the U.S. unit of a Canadian firm CGI Group (GIB). It received $88 million through last March 31. Its original $93.7 million contract runs through December, with three one-year option periods still possible.

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