Best European Companies To Watch For 2014

Arena Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ARNA  ) released its first-quarter results after the market closed today and, according to Yahoo! Finance, shares are down significantly in after-hours trading. So what exactly are investors concerned about?

Regulatory roadblocks
Arena's flagship drug, the obesity treatment Belviq, gained FDA approval last June, but the company is still waiting for the DEA to complete scheduling before it can launch the product in the U.S. with its marketing partner Eisai. Investors are certainly anxious for this drug to finally reach the market, but the glaring issue in the press release actually concerns a regulatory roadblock on the other side of the Atlantic.

Back in January, Arena received the Day 180 List of Outstanding Issues from the European Medicines Agency's CHMP, which functions in a similar role as America's FDA. The committee had concerns about Belviq's potential safety risks, but they invited Arena to offer a written and oral defense of the drug before a final opinion was formed.

Top Companies To Own For 2015: Aegon NV(AEG)

AEGON N.V. provides life insurance, pensions, and asset management products and services worldwide. The company?s life insurance products include traditional, term, universal, whole, and other life insurance products sold as part of defined benefit pension plans, endowment policies, post-retirement annuity products, and group risk products; supplemental health insurance products comprise accidental death, other injury, critical illness, hospital indemnity, medicare supplement, and student health; specialty lines consists of travel, membership, and creditor products; and long term care insurance products for policyholders who require care due to a chronic illness or cognitive impairment. It also offers a range of savings and retirement products and services, including mutual funds, and fixed and variable annuities, savings accounts and investment contracts, segregated funds, guaranteed investment accounts, and single premium immediate annuities, as well as investment advice to individuals. In addition, the company offers employer solutions and pensions, such as retirement plans, pension plans, and pension-related products and services; investment products, including onshore and offshore bonds, and trusts; reinsurance products and solutions to life insurance and financial services companies; general insurance products comprising house, car, and fire insurance; and asset management products and services, including general account assets, unit-linked funds, and third party activities. AEGON N.V. markets its products through independent and career agents, financial planners, registered representatives, independent marketing organizations, banks, broker-dealers, benefit consulting firms, wirehouses, affinity groups, institutional partners, independent managing general agencies, and specialized financial advisors, as well as through online, direct, and worksite marketing. The company was founded in 1900 and is headquartered in The Hague, the Netherl ands.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Will Ashworth]

  Assuming it delivers on its outlook for 2014, its current free cash flow yield is a very enticing 20%. This isn�� a growth stock, but its brands still possess hidden value. As cheap stocks go, it�� very attractive.

  Cheap Stocks to Buy: Aegon (AEG)

  It�� not often that you can buy a $19 billion market cap for under 10 bucks. Aegon�� a Dutch insurance company that�� had a rough ride over the past few years, and its stock�� suffered as a result. In the late ’90s AEG stock traded around $60 — it hasn�� been anywhere close since. However, it�� got some good assets that should bear fruit in the years to come. Aegon has 12,000 employees in the Americas doing business primarily under the Transamerica brand, which has been a part of AEG since 1999.

Best European Companies To Watch For 2014: STMicroelectronics N.V.(STM)

STMicroelectronics N.V., an independent semiconductor company, engages in the design, development, manufacture, and marketing of a range of semiconductor integrated circuits and discrete devices. Its products include discrete and standard commodity components, application-specific integrated circuits, custom devices and semi-custom devices, and application-specific standard products for analog, digital, and mixed-signal applications. The company also offers subsystems and modules for the telecommunications, automotive, and industrial markets comprising mobile phone accessories, battery chargers, ISDN power supplies, and in-vehicle equipment for electronic toll payment, as well as provides Smartcard products. Its products are used in various microelectronic applications consisting of automotive products, computer peripherals, telecommunications systems, consumer products, industrial automation, and control systems. The company sells its products through distributors and ret ailers. STMicroelectronics N.V. was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

  If you are looking for a semiconductor stock that�� focus on an area that�� not so cyclical, mid cap microcontroller (MCU) stock Atmel Corporation (NASDAQ: ATML) could be a good choice���meaning its worth taking a closer look at the stock along with other�microcontroller�players like Microchip Technology Inc (NASDAQ: MCHP), STMicroelectronics N.V. (NYSE: STM) and Cypress Semiconductor Corporation (NASDAQ: CY). Microcontrollers are programmable and�embedded�chips that are increasingly�hidden inside a all sorts of products these days e.g. if you have an appliance�with a�LED or LCD screen and a keypad, it contains some kind of�microcontroller plus all new�automobiles contain at least one�and often several. I should mention that we have also recently added Atmel Corporation to our SmallCap Network Elite Opportunity (SCN EO) portfolio and we are down about 5.6% mostly due to the recent market volatility.

Best European Companies To Watch For 2014: Aercap Holdings N.V. (AER)

AerCap Holdings N.V., through its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated aviation company worldwide. It engages in leasing and trading aircraft and engines; and selling parts. The company also provides aircraft management services, as well as aircraft and limited engine MRO services, and aircraft disassembly services through its repair stations. In addition, it offers aircraft services, including remarketing aircraft; collecting rental and maintenance payments, monitoring aircraft maintenance, monitoring and enforcing contract compliance, and accepting delivery and redelivery of aircraft; conducting ongoing lessee financial performance reviews; inspecting the leased aircraft; coordinating technical modifications to aircraft to meet new lessee requirements; conducting restructurings negotiations in connection with lease defaults; repossessing aircraft; arranging and monitoring insurance coverage; registering and de-registering aircraft; arranging for aircraft and aircraft engine valuations; and providing market research. The company?s management services include leasing and remarketing, cash management and treasury, technical advisory, and accounting and administrative services. As of March 31, 2011, it owned 272 aircraft and 95 engines, which it leased under operating leases to 118 lessees in 53 countries. The company was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Schiphol, the Netherlands.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  AerCap (AER) provides aircraft leasing and aviation finance services. This stock closed up 3.3% at $18 in Wednesday's trading session.

  Wednesday's Volume: 740,000
  
  Three-Month Average Volume: 318,589
  
  Volume % Change: 85%

  From a technical perspective, AER jumped higher here right above its 50-day moving average of $17.27 with above-average volume. This stock has been uptrending strong for the last five months, with shares moving higher from its low of $14.84 to its recent high of $18.16. During that uptrend, shares of AER have been making mostly higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of AER within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade. That trade will hit if AER manages to take out its 52-week high at $18.16 with high volume.

  Traders should now look for long-biased trades in AER as long as it's trending above its 50-day at $17.27 or above more near-term support at $17.17 and then once it sustains a move or close above its 52-week high at $18.16 with volume that's near or above 318,589 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then AER will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that move are $20 to $23.

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Finally. Finally American International Group (AIG) has disposed of its ILFC unit by selling it to AerCap Holdings (AER).

  Bloomberg News

  The Wall Street Journal has the details on the deal:

• [By Jayson Derrick]

  Analysts at Barclays maintained an Equal-weight rating on Aercap Holdings (NYSE: AER) with a price target raised to $53 from a previous $24. Shares lost 1.32 percent, closing at $47.06.

• [By Tess Stynes]

  AIG confirmed it will sell its stake in International Lease Finance Corp to aircraft-leasing company AerCap Holdings N.V(AER). for $5.4 billion in cash and stock.

Best European Companies To Watch For 2014: British American Tobacco Industries p.l.c.(BTI)

British American Tobacco p.l.c., through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture, distribution, and sale of tobacco products. The company offers cigars, cigarettes, smokeless snus, roll-your-own, and pipe tobacco products under the Dunhill, Kent, Lucky Strike, Pall Mall, Vogue, Viceroy, Kool, Rothmans, Peter Stuyvesant, Benson & Hedges, and State Express 555 brand names. It has operations in the Asia-Pacific, the Americas, eastern and western Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. The company was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom. British American Tobacco p.l.c. operates independently of Remgro Ltd. as of November 03, 2008.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By G. A. Chester]

  LONDON -- There are things to love and loathe about most companies. Today, I'm going to tell you about three things to love about�British American Tobacco� (LSE: BATS  ) (NYSEMKT: BTI  ) .

• [By Roland Head]

  Today, I'm going to take a look at cigarette giant�British American Tobacco (LSE: BATS  ) (NYSEMKT: BTI  ) �to see how attractive it looks on these two measures.

• [By Alan Oscroft]

  British American Tobacco (LSE: BATS  ) (NYSEMKT: BTI  )
  Thursday will also bring us a first-quarter update from British American Tobacco, and yet again we're seeing a share price rise that has started to tail off. The price hit a 52-week peak of 3,640 pence on March 12 (the same day the FTSE 100 reached a five-year high of 6,534) but has since slipped back to 3,502 pence.

• [By Victor Selva]

  Investors can have another option of investing in the tobacco sector with British American Tobacco PLC (BTI). Also selling tobacco products in 180 countries, the company holds leadership positions in around 50 of them. Brands like Dunhill, Kent, Pall Mall and Lucky Strike are well known and have been gaining share over the past several years.