The Most Unfair Countries For Women

By many measures, the United States is the wealthiest economy in the world. However, according to a recent survey, women do not benefit nearly as much as men. The U.S. ranked 23rd in the world for gender equality, behind countries including South Africa, Cuba, and the Philippines.

The World Economic Forum (WEF) report, the 2013 Global Gender Gap Report, measured the disparities between men and women in 136 countries. In the nations that scored the worst, economic and educational opportunities, as well as political representation and health outcomes, were far worse for women than for men. According to the report, Iceland was the best country for gender equality, while Yemen was the worst. 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 10 nations with the worst gender-based inequality.

Click here to see the Most Unfair Countries For Women

The world's worst countries for gender inequality consistently failed to provide the same education opportunities for women that were available for men. Five of these nations were among the bottom 10 countries measured for equality of educational attainment.

According to the most recently available data, just 49% of Yemeni women and 40% of Pakistani women were literate, compared to 82% and 69% of men, respectively. Last year, the Pakistani Taliban shot teenager Malala Yousafzai for actively promoting girls' right to an education. She survived and was nominated for this year's Nobel Peace Prize for her activism.

Women in countries with extreme gender inequality frequently also lack representation in political office. Women accounted for at least 20% of parliament in only three of the 10 worst nations. In Yemen, there are no female members of parliament. Only one of these nations, Pakistan, has had a female head of state in the last 50 years. Pakistan's former prime minister, Benazir Bhutto — the sole woman to lead any of these countries — was assassinated in 2007.

While the rank is based on the inequality between men and women, the nations also tended to among the worst countries for women overall. Nine of them had among the world's worst labor force participation rates. Similarly, in half of the nations more than half of all women were illiterate, according to the latest available data.

24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 10 nations that received the worst score in the World Economic Forum's 2013 Global Gender Gap Report. Each country was graded based on its score in four key areas: economic participation and opportunity; educational attainment; health and survival; and political empowerment. Countries scored worse by each measure when the gap between men and women for that measure was the widest. For example, women in Yemen do not have the lowest literacy rate in the world, but the gap between men and women by that measure is the widest, so Yemen received the lowest score for literacy. At the time the WEF produced their study all figures represented the most recently available data.

These are the most unfair countries for women.

Can Men’s Wearhouse Continue This Bullish Run?

With shares of Men's Wearhouse (NYSE:MW) trading around $37, is the company an OUTPERFORM, WAIT AND SEE or STAY AWAY? Let's analyze the stock with the relevant sections of our Cheat Sheet investing framework:

T = Trends for a Stock’s Movement

Men's Wearhouse is a specialty retailer of men's suits and a provider of tuxedo rental products in the U.S. and Canada. The company operates 1,049 stores in the U.S. and 117 stores in Canada in two segments, retail and corporate apparel, operated under the brand names of Men's Wearhouse, Men's Wearhouse and Tux, K&G, and Moores Clothing for Men. Men’s Wearhouse also offers dry cleaning and laundry operations through MW Cleaners. Men’s suits will always be in demand — the styles have stood the test of time. Look for Men’s Wearhouse to continue to provide its customers with the products and services needed to always look their best.

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart are Strong

Men's Wearhouse stock has seen a fair amount of progress in recent years. The stock is now trading near highs established last year, so it may be a bit of time before its next leg rises. Analyzing the price trend and its strength can be done using simple moving averages. The key moving averages are the 50-day (pink), 100-day (blue), and 200-day (yellow). As seen in the daily price chart below, Men's Wearhouse is trading above its rising key averages, which signal neutral to bullish price action in the near-term.

Taking a look at the implied volatility and implied volatility skew levels of Men's Wearhouse options may help determine if investors are bullish, neutral, or bearish.

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
Men's Wearhouse Options	31.06%	13%	11%

This means that investors or traders are buying a minimal amount of call and put options contracts, compared to the last 30 and 90 trading days.

	Put IV Skew	Call IV Skew
July Options	Flat	Average
August Options	Flat	Average

As of Tuesday, there is an average demand from call buyers or sellers and low demand by put buyers or high demand by put sellers, all neutral to bullish over the next two months. To summarize, investors are buying a very minimal amount of call and put option contracts and are leaning neutral to bullish in the next two months.

E = Earnings Are Increasing Quarter-Over-Quarter

Rising stock prices are often strongly correlated with rising earnings and revenue growth rates, and the last four quarterly earnings announcement reactions help gauge investor sentiment on Men's Wearhouse’s stock. What do the last four quarterly earnings and revenue growth (ar-over-year) figures for Men's Wearhouse look like and more importantly, how did the markets like these numbers?

	2013 Q1	2012 Q4	2012 Q3	2012 Q2
Earnings Growth (Y-O-Y)	25.00%	-9.21%	23.38%	5.50%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	5.11%	8.23%	7.93%	1.03%
Earnings Reaction	5.67%	19.09%	-2.67%	18.68%

Men's Wearhouse has seen increasing earnings and revenue figures over the past four quarters. From these numbers, the markets have been very happy with Men's Wearhouse’s recent earnings announcements.

P = Poor Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has Men's Wearhouse stock done relative to its peers, Jos. A. Bank (NASDAQ:JOSB), Express (NYSE:EXPR), Destination XL (NASDAQ:DXLG), and the sector?

	Men's Wearhouse	Jos A Bank	Express	Destination XL	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	19.14%	-3.05%	35.52%	45.95%	30.11%

Men's Wearhouse has been a poor relative performer, year-to-date.

Conclusion

Men's Wearhouse provides elegant men’s apparel that has remained a staple in every man’s closet in the U.S. and Canada. The stock has been on a path toward higher prices but is now moving sideways before continuing on its next leg. In the past four quarters, investors in the company have been happy as earnings and revenue figures have been on the rise. Relative to its peers and sector, Men’s Wearhouse has been an average year-to-date performer. Look for Men’s Wearhouse to continue to OUTPERFORM.

Using a solid investing framework such as this can help improve your stock-picking skills. Don't waste another minute — click here and get our CHEAT SHEET stock picks now.

5 Favorite Stocks of Mega-Millionaires

By Hal M. Bundrick

NEW YORK (MainStreet) It is an elite group of 220 mega-millionaires from all walks of life: executives, inventors and business owners from young CEOs in their early 30s, to retired execs in their 80s.

Collectively managing $20 billion in assets, they are strictly vetted for membership into this private club, and after signing a confidentiality agreement, pay $30,000 in annual dues to share investment ideas. With exclusive access to the biggest names and the brightest minds in the financial world, they are known as Tiger 21 and this is how they invest.

It is not a conservative bunch. According to an annual survey of Tiger 21 investment preferences, on average only 7% say they favor fixed income for their portfolios, mainly in municipal bonds, with a fairly equal mix between individual bonds and managed portfolios. And Tiger 21 members are fully invested, with an average of only 2% of their portfolios held in cash. These mega millionaires are full-on in the stock market. Equity investments are a favorite of 41% of the membership, up 2% from last year and fully 10% higher than in 2011. Financials (22%), technology (20%) and consumer (12%) equities are the most popular sectors with this elite group, and half prefer buying individual stocks over hedge funds and mutual funds, each of which account for just 14% of holdings. Exchange-traded funds and index funds are gaining favor with these ultra wealthy investors, with 21% claiming passive investing as a preference. "It is not surprising that public equities are among the most favored investments," said Michael Sonnenfeldt, founder and chairman of Tiger 21. "What is more telling is how members gain exposure to equities. We have seen ETFs gain popularity among members in recent years as evidenced by the first ETF appearing in the top five picks in last year's survey and a second appearing in the top five picks in this year's survey." The five favorite stocks of Tiger 21 investors are Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A) Apple (AAPL) iShares MSCI EAFE Index Fund (EFA) Qualcomm (QCOM) SPDR S&P 500 (SPY) More of these high net worth individuals are choosing private equity investments, with 17% saying it is a favored investment strategy this year, through funds as well as via direct investments. "The real story here is the growth in members' involvement with private companies, which is driving their exposure to private equity," Sonnenfeldt says. "Members are spending more time backing start ups, sitting on boards and getting involved with private companies because that is where they created their own wealth and they know it can be an engine of growth in their portfolio." Hedge funds are losing their appeal with this moneyed crowd. Only 17% claim alternative investments as a favorite. That's down two percentage points from last year's survey, and is a full 5% below its 2011 ranking. Real estate ranks as the fourth favorite investment for the group but has the second largest allocation (21%). "This represents an example of members' faith in real estate's long term value proposition, even though it doesn't register as high when members are considering what they are most 'excited' about," says Sonnenfeldt. Commodity trading is preferred by only a very few, with just 1% saying it was a favored investment. No Tiger 21 member mentioned currency trading as a preferred strategy. --Written by Hal M. Bundrick for MainStreet

Top 10 Medical Companies To Watch In Right Now

After spinning off its pharmaceutical business -- and most of its dividend, essentially -- you may think Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT  ) is relegated to a boring medical-device company. Heart stents just aren't as sexy as the megablockbuster drugs now being wielded by AbbVie� (NYSE: ABBV  ) . The spinoff also took a promising�pipeline and most of the former company's dividend, which may make investors think twice about owning a slow-growing, mediocre-paying company such as Abbott.�

Simply put, the medical-device industry won't offer the high growth�that investors enjoy with pharmaceutical companies. You may call it boring, but sometimes boring can be a long-term investor's best friend.

If that gets your attention, you should give Abbott Laboratories stock a hard look, as it's well positioned to capitalize on the steady growth of the broader health-care industry. The company's focus on innovative new laboratory products bodes well for investors and could dramatically lower diagnostic times for health-care professionals and patients. Better yet, its nutritional segment is making up for lackluster growth in medical devices and established pharmaceuticals. Here's a big-picture view.

Top 10 Medical Companies To Watch In Right Now: Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc (INO)

Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc., incorporated on June 29, 1983, is engaged in the development of a new generation of vaccines, called synthetic vaccines, focused on cancers and infectious diseases. The Company's SynCon technology enables the design of universal vaccines capable of providing cross-protection against existing or changing strains of pathogens, such as influenza and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The Company's electroporation delivery technology uses brief, controlled electrical pulses to increase cellular uptake of the vaccine. Its clinical programs include cervical dysplasia (therapeutic), avian influenza (preventive), prostate cancer (therapeutic), leukemia (therapeutic), hepatitis C virus (HCV) and HIV vaccines. It is advancing preclinical research and clinical development for a universal seasonal/pandemic influenza vaccine, as well as preclinical work for other products, including malaria and prostate cancer vaccines. Its partners and collaborators include University of Pennsylvania, Drexel University, National Microbiology Laboratory of the Public Health Agency of Canada, Program for Appropriate Technology in Health/Malaria Vaccine Initiative (PATH/MVI), National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), Merck, ChronTech, University of Southampton, United States Military HIV Research Program (USMHRP), the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) and HIV Vaccines Trial Network (HVTN). As of December 31, 2011 it owned 16.1% interest in VGX Int��.

Inovio�� Solution

The Company�� synthetic vaccine platform consists of its SynCon vaccine design process and electroporation delivery technology. It has developed a preclinical and clinical stage pipeline of vaccines. The Company�� synthetic vaccines are designed to prevent a disease (prophylactic vaccines) or treat an existing disease (therapeutic vaccines). Its synthetic vaccine consists of a deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) plasmid encoding a selected antigen! (s), which is introduced into cells of humans or animals with the purpose of evoking an immune response to the encoded antigen. The Company�� synthetic vaccines are designed to generate specific antibody and/or T-cell responses.

The Company�� SynCon technology provides processes that employ bioinformatics, which combine extensive genetic data and sophisticated algorithms. Its design process uses the genetic make-up of a common antigen(s) from multiple strains of a virus within a viral sub-type or taxonomic group (family) of pathogens, such as HIV, hepatitis C virus (HCV), human papillomavirus (HPV), influenza and other diseases to synthetically create a new antigen for the desired pathogen target that does not exist in nature. Its synthetic vaccine candidates are being delivered into cells of the body using its electroporation (EP) DNA delivery technology.

Cancer Synthetic Vaccines

The Company has two broad types of cancer vaccines: preventive (or prophylactic) vaccines, which are intended to prevent cancer from developing in healthy people, and treatment (or therapeutic) vaccines, which are intended to treat an existing cancer by strengthening the body�� natural defenses against the cancer. Two types of cancer preventive vaccines are available in the United States. The United States Food and Drug Administration (the FDA) has approved two vaccines, Gardasil and Cervarix that protect against infection by the two types of HPV-types 16 and 18-that cause approximately 70% of all cases of cervical cancer worldwide. In addition, Gardasil protects against infection by two additional HPV types, 6 and 11, which are responsible for about 90% of all cases of genital warts in males and females but do not cause cervical cancer.

Cervarix manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, is composed of virus-like particles (VLPs) made with proteins from HPV types 16 and 18. Cervarix is approved for use in females��ages 10 to 25 for the prevention of cervical cancer caused by! HPV type! s 16 and 18. Gardasil manufactured by Merck, is approved for use in females for the prevention of cervical cancer, and some vulvar and vaginal cancers, caused by HPV types 16 and 18 and for use in males and females for the prevention of genital warts caused by HPV types 6 and 11. The vaccine is approved for these uses in females and males ages 9 to 26. The FDA has also approved a cancer preventive vaccine that protects against hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection.

Inovio�� VGX-3100 is designed to raise immune responses against the E6 and E7 genes of HPV types 16 and 18 that are present in both pre-cancerous and cancerous cells transformed by these HPV types. E6 and E7 are oncogenes that play an integral role in transforming HPV-infected cells into cancerous cells. In March 2011, it initiated a randomized, double-blind Phase II study of VGX-3100 delivered using the CELLECTRA intramuscular electroporation device in women with HPV Type 16 or 18 and diagnosed with, but not yet treated for, cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) 2/3. The study is designed to enroll 148 subjects. In January 2011, it announced the publication of a scientific paper in the journal Human Vaccines detailing potent immune responses in a preclinical study of its SynCon vaccine for prostate cancer targeting two antigens, prostate specific antigen (PSA) and prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA).

In January 2011, the Company announced the regulatory approval of a Phase II clinical trial (WIN Trial) to treat leukemia utilizing its new ELGEN 1000 automated vaccine delivery device. The single dose level, Phase II study, called WT1 immunity via DNA fusion gene vaccination in haematological malignancies by intramuscular injection followed by intramuscular electroporation. Cancer Vaccines encodes for hTERT, an antigen related to non-small cell lung, breast and prostate cancers. The vaccine is delivered using its electroporation delivery technology.

Infectious Disease Synthetic Vaccines

In Marc! h 2011, the Company announced the initiation of a follow-on open label, single dose Phase II clinical study in collaboration with ChronTech of the ChronVac-C HCV DNA vaccine delivered using its electroporation technology in treatment naive HCV infected individuals. Its HIV vaccines consist of candidates for HIV prevention, as well as therapy or treatment. PENNVAX-B is designed to target HIV clade B (most commonly found in the United States, North America, Australia and the European Union (EU). PENNVAX-G is designed to target HIV clades A, C and D, which are more commonly found in Asia, Africa, Russia and South America. This Phase I clinical study of PENNVAX-B (HVTN-080) vaccinated 48 healthy, HIV-negative volunteers to assess safety and levels of immune responses generated by Inovio�� PENNVAX-B vaccine delivered with its CELLECTRA electroporation device. PENNVAX-B is a SynCon vaccine that targets HIV gag, pol, and env proteins.

The Company�� VGX-3400X targets H5N1. The vaccine consists of three distinct DNA plasmids coded for a consensus hemagglutinin (HA) antigen derived from different H5N1 virus strains; a consensus neuraminidase (NA) antigen derived from different N1 sequences; and a consensus nucleoprotein (NP) fused to a small portion of the m2 protein (m2E) based on a broader cross-section of influenza viruses in addition to H5N1 and H1N1. Conventional vaccines are strain-specific and have limited ability to protect against genetic shifts in the influenza strains they target. They are therefore modified annually in anticipation of the next flu season�� new strain(s). It is focused on developing DNA-based influenza vaccines able to provide broad protection against known as well as newly emerging, unknown seasonal and pandemic influenza strains.

Animal Health/Veterinary

VGX Animal Health, Inc. (VGX AH), a majority-owned subsidiary, has licensed LifeTide, a plasmid-based growth hormone releasing hormone (GHRH) technology for swine. LifeTide is one of onl! y four DN! A-based treatments approved for use in animals and is the only DNA-based agent delivered using electroporation that has been granted marketing approval (Australia). VGX AH is also developing a GHRH-based treatment for cancer and anemia in dogs and cats. It is developing a synthetic vaccine for foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) administered by its vaccine delivery technology. The FMD virus is one of the most infectious diseases affecting farm animals, including cattle, swine, sheep and goats, and is a serious threat to global food safety.

The Company competes with Crucell N.V, Sanofi-Aventis, Novartis, Inc., GlaxoSmithKline plc, Merck, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Inc., Novartis, Inc., MedImmune and CSL.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sean Williams]

  On the clinical data front, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ALNY  ) and Inovio Pharmaceuticals (NYSEMKT: INO  ) both put investors in their happy place.

Top 10 Medical Companies To Watch In Right Now: CEL-SCI Corp (CVM)

CEL-SCI Corporation (CEL-SCI), incorporated on March 22, 1983, is engaged in the business of Multikine cancer therapy; New cold fill manufacturing service to the pharmaceutical industry, and ligand epitope antigen presentation System (LEAPS) technology, with two products, hemagglutinin type 1 and neuraminidase type 1 (H1N1) swine flu treatment for H1N1 hospitalized patients and CEL-2000, a rheumatoid arthritis treatment vaccine.

Multikine

CEL-SCI's Multikine, is being developed for the treatment of cancer. It is a cancer immunotherapy drugs called Combination Immunotherapy because it combines active and passive immunity in one product. It is the only cancer immunotherapy that both kills cancer cells and activates the general immune system to destroy the cancer. Multikine target the tumor micro-metastases for treatment failure. Multikine is also applicable in many other solid tumors.

New Manufacturing Facility

CEL-SCI's facility manufactures Multikine for CEL-SCI's Phase III clinical trial. CEL-SCI offers the use of the facility as a service to pharmaceutical companies and others, particularly those that need to fill and finish their drugs in a cold environment. Fill and finish is the process of filling injectable drugs in a sterile manner.

LEAPS

CEL-SCI's patented T-cell Modulation Process uses heteroconjugates to direct the body to choose a specific immune response. The heteroconjugate technology, referred to as LEAPS, is intended to stimulate the human immune system to fight bacterial, viral and parasitic infections, as well as autoimmune, allergies, transplantation rejection and cancer. Administered like vaccines, LEAPS combines T-cell binding ligands with small, disease associated and peptide antigens.

Using the LEAPS technology, CEL-SCI has created a peptide treatment for H1N1 (swine flu) hospitalized patients. This LEAPS flu treatment is designed to focus on the conserved, non-changing epitopes of the di! fferent strains of Type A Influenza viruses, including swine, avian or bird, and Spanish Influenza. CEL-SCI's LEAPS flu treatment contains epitopes.

Top 10 Insurance Companies To Buy Right Now: Hemispherx Biopharma Inc (HEB)

Hemispherx Biopharma, Inc. (Hemispherx) is a specialty pharmaceutical company engaged in the clinical development of new drugs therapies based on natural immune system enhancing technologies for the treatment of viral and immune based chronic disorders. Hemispherx focuses on two core pharmaceutical technology platforms Ampligen and Alferon N Injection.The commercial focus for Ampligen includes application as a treatment for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) and as an influenza vaccine enhancer (adjuvant) for both therapeutic and preventative vaccine development. Alferon N Injection is a United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved product with an indication for refractory or recurring genital warts. Alferon LDO (Low Dose Oral) is a formulation under development targeting influenza. It has three subsidiaries BioPro Corp., BioAegean Corp., and Core BioTech Corp. The Company's foreign subsidiary is Hemispherx Biopharma Europe N.V./S.A.

Ampligen

Ampligen is an experimental drug, which is undergoing clinical development for the treatment of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS). Over 1,000 patients have participated in the Ampligen clinical trials representing the administration of more than 90,000 doses of this drug. The Company is also engaged in ongoing, experimental studies assessing the efficacy of Ampligen against influenza viruses.

Alferon N Injection

Alferon N Injection is the registered trademark for the Company's injectable formulation of natural alpha interferon. Interferons are a group of proteins produced and secreted by cells to combat diseases. The Company's natural alpha interferon is produced from human white blood cells. Alferon N Injection [Interferon alfa-n3 (human leukocyte derived)] is a highly purified, natural-source, glycosylated, multi-species alpha interferon product.

Alferon LDO (Low Dose Oral)

Alferon LDO [Low Dose Oral Interferon Alfa-n3 (Human Leukocyte Derived)]! is an experimental low-dose, oral liquid formulation of Natural Alpha Interferon and like Alferon N Injection should not cause antibody formation, which is a problem with recombinant interferon. It is an experimental immunotherapeutic that works by stimulating an immune cascade response in the cells of the mouth and throat, enabling it to bolster systemic immune response through the entire body by absorption through the oral mucosa.

The Company competes with Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, AstraZeneca, Baxter International, Fletcher/CSI, AVANT Immunotherapeutics, AVI BioPharma and Genta.

Top 10 Medical Companies To Watch In Right Now: Inergetics Inc (NRTI)

Inergetics, Inc., formerly Millennium Biotechnologies Group, Inc., incorporated on November 9, 2000, is a holding company for its sole operating subsidiary, Millennium Biotechnologies, Inc. (Millennium). The Company through its subsidiary Millennium, engages in the research, development, and marketing of specialized nutritional supplements as an adjunct to medical treatments for select medical conditions, as well as for athletes seeking improved recovery and advanced performance. The Company markets products, which are targeted toward immuno-compromised individuals undergoing medical treatment for diseases, such as cancer, as well as wound healing and post-surgical healing and geriatric patients in long-term care facilities among other conditions. In January 2013, the Company acquired Bikini Ready and SlimTrim brands from Whole Products Group.

The Company�� product portfolio include, Resurgex Select, Ready-To Drink Resurgex Essential and Ready-To-Drink Resurgex Essential Plus. Resurgex Select is a whole foods-based, calorically dense, high-protein powdered nutritional formula developed for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy or radiation treatments. Resurgex Essential and Resurgex Essential Plus represent Millennium�� Ready-to-Drink product line and are being sold into the Long-Term Care geriatric markets.

Resurgex Select

Resurgex Select is a whole foods-based nutritional product that is designed to be used throughout the course of cancer treatment (chemotherapy, radiation, etc.), as many times patients lose weight and cannot consume adequate nutrition. This product combines dietary fiber (3 g), low sugar (5 g), and high protein (15 g) with no added antioxidants to be a high-calorie (350 calorie) supplement. It is available in three flavors (Vanilla Bean, Chocolate Fudge, and Fruit Smoothie) and each can be mixed with water, milk, juices, or in soft cold foods, such as yogurt, apple sauce or pudding.

Surgex

Surgex (www.surgexspor! ts.com), is a nutritional support formula that aims to address the concerns of many elite athletes who suffer from symptoms, such as fatigue, lean muscle loss, lactic acid buildup, oxidative stress, and stressed immune systems. This formula is designed to improve recovery parameters in efforts to enhance the performance of professional and collegiate athletes.

Resurgex Essential

The Essential line is a ready-to-drink alternative to Ensure and Boost designed to be marketed into the long-term care channel. Resurgex Essential has 250 whole food calories containing no corn syrup or corn oil. The product also contains fruit and vegetable extracts, and FOS Fiber to provide calories and taste.

The Company competes with Nestle and Abbott Laboratories Inc.

Top 10 Medical Companies To Watch In Right Now: Rexahn Pharmaceuticals Inc (RNN)

Rexahn Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Rexahn) is a development-stage biopharmaceutical company. The Company focuses on the development of cures for cancer to patients worldwide. The Company�� pipeline features one drug candidate in Phase II clinical trials. The Company also has several other drug candidates in pre-clinical development. In addition, the Company has two renal cell carcinoma (CNS) candidates, Serdaxin, CNS Disorders drug for depression and neurodegenerative diseases and Zoraxel, which is a erectile dysfunction (ED) and sexual dysfunction drug that are in clinical stages and the Company is are exploring options for further development . The Company�� drug candidate, Archexin is an anticancer Akt inhibitor.

Archexin

Archexin is potent inhibitor of the Akt protein kinase (Akt) in cancer cells. Archexin has FDA orphan drug designations for five cancers (RCC, glioblastoma, and cancers of the ovary, stomach and pancreas). Multiple indications for other solid tumors can also be pursued. Archexin inhibit both activated and inactivated forms of Akt, and to reverse the drug resistance observed with the protein kinase inhibitors. Archexin is an antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) compound that is complementary to Akt mRNA, and selective for inhibiting mRNA expression and production of Akt protein. As of December 31, 2011, Archexin was in Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of pancreatic cancer with enrollment completed in September, 2011.

Serdaxin

Serdaxin is an extended release formulation of clavulanic acid, which is an ingredient present in antibiotics approved by the FDA. The Company had been developing Serdaxin for the treatment of depression and neurodegenerative disorders. From January to September, 2011, the Company conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study compared two doses of Serdaxin, 0.5 milligram and 5 milligram, to placebo over an eight-week treatment period for major depressive disorder (MDD) patients. As of Dec! ember 31, 2011, the Company had not made a determination of Serdaxin�� future paths or resource allocations to further develop Serdaxin to treat MDD.

Zoraxel

Zoraxel is an orally administered, on-demand tablet to treat sexual dysfunction. Zoraxel is a dual enhancer of neurotransmitters in the brain that play a key role in sexual activity phases of motivation and arousal, erection and release, and may be the ED drug to affect all three of these phases of sexual activity. As of December 31, 2011, the Company was evaluating how to proceed with the Phase IIb study of Zoraxel.

The Company�� Pre-clinical Pipeline Drug Candidates includes RX-1792, which is a small molecule anticancer EGFR inhibitor; RX-5902, which is a small molecule anticancer ribonucleic acid (RNA) helicase regulator; RX-3117, which is a Small molecule anticancer deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) synthesis Inhibitor; RX-8243, which is a small molecule anticancer aurora kinase inhibitor; RX-0201-Nano, which is a nanoliposomal anticancer Akt inhibitor; RX-0047-Nano, which is an nanoliposomal anticancer HIF-1 alpha inhibitor and RX-21101, which is a nano-polymer Anticancer.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By James E. Brumley]

  With just a quick glance at a chart of Rexahn Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSEMKT:RNN), it would be easy to conclude it's nothing but a volatile mess. When you take a step back and look at a long-term weekly chart of RNN, however, it starts to become clear that this small cap biopharma name is on the verge of a monster-sized breakout. First things first, however.

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  One under-$10 biopharmaceutical player that's just starting to move into breakout territory is Rexahn Pharmaceuticals (RNN), which is engaged in the development of novel treatments for cancer to patients. This stock has been on fire so far in 2013, with shares up sharply by 62%.

  If you take a look at the chart for Rexahn Pharmaceuticals, you'll notice that this stock has been uptrending strong for the last month, with shares moving higher from its low of 36 cents per share to its intraday high of 53 cents per share. During that uptrend, shares of RNN have been making mostly higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of RNN into breakout territory above some near-term overhead resistance levels at 49 cents to 50 cents per share. It's worth noting that volume today is tracking in extremely strong with over 3 million shares traded, versus its three-month average action of 1.22 million shares.

  Traders should now look for long-biased trades in RNN if it manages to break out above Thursday's intraday high of 53 cents per share with high volume. Look for a sustained move or close above that level with volume that hits near or above its three-month average action of 1.22 million shares. If that breakout hits soon, then RNN will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at 64 cents to its 52-week high at 66 cents per share. Any high-volume move above 66 cents to 67 cents per share could then send RNN towards its next major overhead resistance levels at 81 cents per share.

  Traders can look to buy RNN off any weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below its 50-day moving average at 47 cents per share. One can also buy RNN off strength once it clears 53 cents per share with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage from your entry point.

Top 10 Medical Companies To Watch In Right Now: Galectin Therapeutics Inc (GALT)

Galectin Therapeutics Inc., formerly Pro-Pharmaceuticals, Inc., incorporated on January 26, 2001, is a development-stage company. The Company is engaged in drug development to create therapies for cancer and fibrotic disease. As of December 31, 2011, the Company has two compounds in development, one is to be used in cancer therapy and the other intended to be used in the treatment of liver fibrosis and fatty liver disease. These two compounds are produced from different natural starting materials, both possessing the property, which lends itself to binding to and inhibiting galectin proteins. GM-CT-01, the Company's product candidate for cancer therapy, is a linear polysaccharide polymer consisted of mannose and galactose that has a defined chemical structure and is derived from a plant source. GR-MD-02, the Company's product for treatment of liver fibrosis and fatty liver disease with inflammation and fibrosis, is a polysaccharide polymer possessing both linear and globular structures, which also is derived from a plant source.

GM-CT-01 has in development for the therapy of colorectal cancer and is in a Phase I/II clinical trial as a combination therapy with a tumor vaccine in patients with advanced melanoma. Based on the completed Phase I and partially completed Phase II clinical trials, the Company is exploring two additional potential indicia for the use of GM-CT-01 in combination with cancer chemotherapy. There are two additional pathways for the development of GM-CT-01 for use in treatment of cancer. GM-CT-01 was found to be generally safe when studied in a Phase I clinical trial in end-stage cancer patients with multiple tumor types alone and in combination with 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU), which is an Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved chemotherapy used for treatment of various types of cancer.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Roberto Pedone]

   

  Galectin Therapeutics (GALT) offers drug research and development to create new therapies for fibrotic disease and cancer. This stock closed up 9.6% to $12.06 in Monday's trading session.

   

  Monday's Volume: 674,000
  
  Three-Month Average Volume: 222,171
  
  Volume % Change: 149%

   

  Shares of GALT jumped higher on Monday after Ascendiant initiated coverage on the stock with a buy recommendation.

   

   

  From a technical perspective, GALT spiked sharply higher here with strong upside volume. This stock has been uptrending for the last three months, with shares ripping higher from its low of $3.95 to its recent high of $13.21. During that move, shares of GALT have been making mostly higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of GALT within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade. That trade will hit if GALT manages to take out Monday's high of $12.44 and then once it clears its 52-week high at $13.21 with high volume.

   

  Traders should now look for long-biased trades in GALT as long as it's trending above some near-term support levels at $11 or at $10 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 222,171 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then GALT will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory above $13.21, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that breakout are $15 to $16.

   

Top 10 Medical Companies To Watch In Right Now: Zynex Inc (ZYXI)

Zynex, Inc. operates under three primary business segments: Zynex Medical, Zynex NeuroDiagnostics and Zynex Monitoring Solutions. Zynex Medical engineers, manufactures, markets and sells its design of electrotherapy medical devices used for pain management and rehabilitation. Zynex Medical�� product lines are cleared by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and sold worldwide. Zynex NeuroDiagnostics, sells the Company's NeuroMove device designed to help stroke and spinal cord injury patients and is seeking opportunities into markets for electromyogram (EMG), electroencephalogram (EEG), sleep pattern, auditory and nerve conductivity neurological diagnosis devices through product development and acquisitions. As of January 30, 2012, Zynex Monitoring Solutions was in the development-stage and was established to develop and market medical devices for non-invasive cardiac monitoring. In February 2012, the Company announced the creation of a European wholly owned subsidiary in Denmark. In June 2012, the Company acquired ZYNEX.com Internet domain.

The Company�� products include TruWave TENS, ValuTENS II, IF8100 Interferential Current, E-Wave Muscle Stimulator, NeuroMove NM900, PGS-123 Pulsed-Galvanic Stimulator, NuTrac Pelvator, Knapp Knee Brace and ValuTENS III. TruWave TENS is used for management and symptomatic relief of chronic intractable pain, post-traumatic and post-surgical Pain. ValuTENS II is used for the indications of chronic and acute pain symptoms and post-operative pain. IF8100 Interferential Current is used for symptomatic relief of chronic intractable pain, post-traumatic and post-surgical pain. E-Wave Muscle Stimulator is used for muscle re-education, prevention or retardation of disuse atrophy, increasing local blood circulation, maintaining or increasing range of motion and relaxation of muscle spasms. NeuroMove NM900 is used for stroke rehab by muscle re-education, relaxation of muscle spasms, prevention of retardation of disuse atrophy, increase local blo! od circulation, muscle re-education and maintaining range of motion. PGS-123 Pulsed-Galvanic Stimulator is used for muscle re-education, prevention of retardation of disuse atrophy, increase local blood circulation, maintain or increase range of motion and relaxation of muscle spasms. NuTrac Pelvator - Pelvic Floor Stimulator provides electrical stimulation and neuromuscular re-education for the purpose of rehabilitation of weak pelvic floor muscles for the treatment of stress, urge and mix urinary incontinence in women. ValuTENS III is used for chronic and acute pain symptoms and post-operative pain. Knapp Knee Brace is used for the indications of MCL and LCL Sprains, pre and post-op care of meniscus injuries, mild to moderate ACL and PCL Sprains and general knee instability.

Top 10 Medical Companies To Watch In Right Now: Galena Biopharma Inc (GALE)

Galena Biopharma, Inc. (Galena), formerly RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation, incorporated on April 3, 2006, is a biotechnology company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing therapies addressing unmet medical needs using targeted biotherapeutics. The Company is pursuing the development of cancer therapeutics using peptide-based immunotherapy products, including its main product candidate, NeuVaxTM (E75), for the treatment of breast cancer and other tumors. NeuVax is a peptide-based immunotherapy intended to reduce the recurrence of breast cancer in low-to-intermediate HER2-positive breast cancer patients not eligible for trastuzumab (Herceptin; Genentech/Roche). On January 19, 2012, the Company initiated enrollment in its Phase 3 PRESENT clinical trial for NeuVax (E75 peptide plus GM-CSF) vaccine in low-to-intermediate HER2 1+ and 2+ breast cancer patients in the adjuvant setting to prevent recurrence (Clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT01479244). The Prevention of Recurrence in Early-Stage, Node-Positive Breast Cancer with Low to Intermediate HER2 Expression with NeuVax Treatment study is a randomized, multicenter, multinational clinical trial that will enroll approximately 700 breast cancer patients. The Company�� Phase 2 trial of NeuVax achieved its primary endpoint of disease-free survival (DFS). On April 13, 2011, the Company completed its acquisition of Apthera, Inc.,(Apthera).

The Company focuses to start a Phase 2 trial comparing NeuVax in combination with trastuzumab (Herceptin) versus trastuzumab, alone, in a 300-patient, randomized study in the adjuvant breast cancer setting. The Company's second product candidate, Folate Binding Protein-E39 (FBP), is a vaccine, consisting of the peptides E39 and J65, aimed at preventing the recurrence of ovarian, endometrial, and breast cancers. On February 14, 2012, the Company announced the initiation of a Phase 1/2 clinical trial in two gynecological cancers: ovarian and endometrial adenocarcinomas. Folate binding protein has ! very limited tissue distribution and expression in non-malignant tissue and is over-expressed in more than 90% of ovarian and endometrial cancers, as well as in 20% to 50% of breast, lung, colorectal and renal cell carcinomas.

In April 2011, the Company acquired Apthera Inc and its NeuVax product candidate. The Company focuses on developing a pipeline of immunotherapy product candidates for the treatment of various cancers based on the E75 peptide, the advanced of which is NeuVax, which is targeted at preventing the recurrence of breast cancer. NeuVax has had positive Phase 1/2 clinical trial results for the prevention of breast cancer recurrence in patients who have had breast cancer and received the standard of care treatment (surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormonal therapy as indicated). The Company had also initiated its Phase 3 PRESENT clinical trial of NeuVax for the prevention of breast cancer recurrence in early-stage low-to-intermediate HER2 breast cancer patients. NeuVax directs killer T-cells to target and destroy cancer cells that express HER2/neu, a protein associated with epithelial tumors in breast, ovarian, pancreatic, colon, bladder and prostate cancers. NeuVax is comprised of a HER2/neu-derived peptide called E75. E75 is a nine-amino acid sequence that is immunogenic (produces an immune response) and GM-CSF is a commercially available protein that acts to stimulate and activate components of the immune system such as macrophages and dendritic cells.

The Company also develops novel applications for NeuVax based on preclinical studies and phases 2 clinical trials which suggest that combining NeuVax and trastuzumab (Herceptin; Genentech/Roche) can increase antigen presentation by tumor cells by promoting receptor internalization and subsequent proteosomal degradation of the HER2 protein. The Company also is pursuing additional therapeutic indications for NeuVax that are in Phase 1/2 clinical trials. RXI-109, is a dermal anti-scarring therapy that targets! connecti! ve tissue growth factor (CTGF) and that may inhibit connective tissue formation in human fibrotic disease.

The Company competes with Roche Laboratories, Inc., Pfizer Inc., Bayer HealthCare AG, Sanofi-Aventis, US, LLC, Amgen, Inc., GlaxoSmithKline plc, Renovo Group plc, CoDa Therapeutics, Inc., Sirnaomics, Inc., FirstString Research, Inc., Merz Pharmaceuticals, LLC, Capstone Therapeutics, Halscion, Inc., Garnet Bio Therapeutics, Inc., AkPharma Inc., Promedior, Inc., Kissei Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Eyegene, Derma Sciences, Inc., Healthpoint Biotherapeutics, Pharmaxon, Excaliard Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Marina Biotech, Inc., Tacere Therapeutics, Inc., Benitec Limited, OPKO Health, Inc., Silence Therapeutics plc, Quark Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Rosetta Genomics Ltd., Lorus Therapeutics, Inc., Tekmira Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Arrowhead Research Corporation, Regulus Therapeutics Inc. and Santaris.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Stocks on the move: Galena Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ: GALE) is down 15.4% at $1.93 after pricing a secondary offering of 17.5 million units at $2.00. Safeway Inc. (NYSE: SWY) is up 6.1% at $28.21, after an analyst�� upgrade which sent shares to a new 52-week high of $28.88 earlier. Avanir Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: AVNR) is down 18.2% at $4.08.

Top 10 Medical Companies To Watch In Right Now: Spectrum Pharmaceuticals Inc.(SPPI)

Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a commercial-stage biotechnology company, primarily focuses on oncology and hematology. The company engages in acquiring, developing, and commercializing a broad and diverse pipeline of late-stage clinical and commercial products. It markets Zevalin, a prescribed form of cancer therapy, radioimmunotherapy; and Fusilev, a novel folate analog formulation and the pharmacologically active isomer of the racemic compound, calcium leucovorin. The company?s drugs in late stage development include Apaziquone, an anti-cancer agent; and Belinostat, a histone deacytelase inhibitor. Its drugs in development also include Ozarelix a luteinizing hormone releasing hormone antagonist, which is in Phase II clinical stage; SPI-1620, a peptide agonist of endothelin B receptors, which is in Phase I clinical stage; and RenaZorb, a lanthanum-based nanoparticle phosphate binding agent, which is in preclinical stage. The company was formerly known as NeoTherapeutics, Inc. and changed its name to Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in December 2002. Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was founded in 1987 and is based in Henderson, Nevada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Keith Speights]

  Biotech stocks are highly volatile. A good example of this is Spectrum Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: SPPI  ) . Spectrum rode a wave of generic leucovorin shortages in late 2010 and early 2011 to stock gains of more than 170%. Shares then plunged more than 30% from July through September 2011. But the ride wasn't over yet.

• [By Rich Smith]

  Spectrum Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: SPPI  ) has found itself a new Executive Vice President, a new Chief Financial Officer, and a new Principal Accounting�Officer. They're all the same person.

• [By Keith Speights]

  Another prime case study for this comes from Spectrum Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: SPPI  ) . Spectrum's stock more than doubled from October 2011 through July 2012. However, shares plunged 55% from those highs because business dynamics changed since then. A shortage of a generic rival to Spectrum's lead drug Fusilev was alleviated, resulting in sales slowing down considerably.�

Top 10 Medical Companies To Watch In Right Now: Telik Inc (TELK)

Telik, Inc. (Telik), incorporated in 1988, is a clinical-stage drug development company focused on discovering and developing small molecule drugs to treat cancer. The Company discovers its product candidates using the Company�� drug discovery technology, Target-Related Affinity Profiling (TRAP). TELINTRA, its principal drug product candidate in clinical development, is a small molecule glutathione analog inhibitor of the enzyme glutathione S-transferase P1-1 (GST P1-1). TELCYTA, its other product candidate, is a small molecule cancer drug product candidate designed to be activated in cancer cells.

Clinical Product Development

TELINTRA is the Company�� lead small molecule product candidate in clinical development for the treatment of blood disorders, including cancer. It has a mechanism of action and acts by inhibiting GST P1-1, an enzyme that is involved in the control of cellular growth and differentiation. Inhibition of GST P1-1 results in the activation of the signaling molecule Jun kinase, a regulator of the function of blood precursor cells. Preclinical tests show that TELINTRA is capable of causing the death or apoptosis of leukemic or malignant blood cells, while stimulating the growth and development of normal blood precursor cells. TELINTRA has been studied in Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS) using two formulations. A liposomal formulation was developed for intravenous administration of TELINTRA and was used in Phase I and Phase II studies in MDS patients. The results from the Phase II intravenous liposomal TELINTRA clinical trials demonstrated that TELINTRA treatment was associated with improvement in all three types of blood cell levels in patients with all types of MDS, including those in intermediate and high-risk groups. An oral dosage formulation (tablet) was subsequently developed and results from a Phase I study with TELINTRA tablets showed clinical activity and the formulation to be well tolerated. In June 2011, the Company initiated a Phase II clinical ! trial to evaluate TELINTRA tablets. In October 2011, the Company initiated an additional Phase IIb clinical trial to evaluate TELINTRA tablets. '

The activity and safety profile of tablet formulation allowed the Company to complete a Phase II trial of TELINTRA tablets in MDS. The primary objective of the Phase II TELINTRA tablet study was to determine the efficacy of TELINTRA. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted to identify MDS disease prognostic factors associated with erythroid improvement response rates, including prior MDS treatment, age, gender, the international prognostic scoring system (IPSS), risk, Eastern Cooperative Group performance status, years from MDS diagnosis, MDS World Health Organization subtypes, anemia only versus anemia plus other cytopenias, dose schedule and starting dose. Results from this study show that TELINTRA is the first GSTP1-1 enzyme inhibitor shown to cause clinically reductions in red blood cell transfusions, including transfusion independence in low to intermediate-1 risk MDS patients, as well as improvement in platelet count and white blood cell levels in certain patients. TELINTRA, administered orally twice daily, appeared to be convenient and flexible for chronic treatment administration.

TELCYTA is a small molecule drug product candidate that the Company is developed for the treatment of cancer. TELCYTA binds to GST. TELCYTA has been evaluated in multiple Phase II and Phase III clinical trials, including trials using TELCYTA as monotherapy and in combination regimens in ovarian, non-small cell lung, breast and colorectal cancer. Results from these clinical trials indicate that TELCYTA monotherapy was generally well-tolerated, with mostly mild to moderate side effects, particularly when compared to the side effects and toxicities of standard chemotherapeutic drugs. When TELCYTA was evaluated in combination with standard chemotherapeutic drugs, the tolerability of the combinations was similar to that expected of each! drug alo! ne.

Clinical activity including objective tumor responses and/or disease stabilization was reported in the TELCYTA Phase II trials; however, TELCYTA did not meet its primary endpoints in the Phase III studies. Positive results from a Phase I-IIa multicenter, dose-ranging study of TELCYTA in combination with carboplatin and paclitaxel as first-line therapy for patients with non-small cell lung cancer, or NSCLC, were published in a peer reviewed publication. Clinical data demonstrated positive results of TELCYTA in combination with carboplatin and paclitaxel in the treatment of first-line lung cancer followed by TELCYTA maintenance therapy. As of December 31, 2011, the Company had an on-going investigator-led study at a single site of TELCYTA in patients with refractory or relapsed mantle cell lymphoma, diffuse B cell lymphoma, and multiple myeloma.

Preclinical Drug Product Development

The Company has a small molecule compound, TLK60404, in preclinical development that inhibits both Aurora kinase and VEGFR kinase. Aurora kinase is a signaling enzyme whose function is required for cancer cell division, while VEGF plays a key role in tumor blood vessel formation, ensuring an adequate supply of nutrients to support tumor growth. These lead compounds prevented tumor growth in preclinical models of human colon cancer and human leukemia by inhibiting both Aurora kinase and VEGFR kinase. A development drug product candidate, TLK60404, has been selected.

The Company, using its TRAP technology has discovered TLK60357, a novel, potent small molecule inhibitor of cell division. TLK60357 inhibits the formation of microtubules that are necessary for cancer cell growth leading to persistent G2/M cancer cell cycle block and subsequent cell death. This compound demonstrates potent broad-spectrum anticancer activity against a number of human cancer cells. This compound also displays oral efficacy in multiple, standard preclinical models of cancer. TLK60596, a potent VG! FR kinase! inhibitor, blocks the formation of new blood vessels in tumors. Oral administration of TLK60596 to animal models of human colon cancer reduced tumor growth.

This Could Be a Game Changer for Buffalo Wild Wings

With the craft beer movement in full swing, is the world ready to embrace yet another delicious brew?

Buffalo Wild Wings (NASDAQ: BWLD  ) investors sure hope so, because Monday marked the official debut of the company's new "Game Changer Ale," which was created with the help of the folks at Redhook Brewery.

Image source: Buffalo Wild Wings (cropped for size)

For those of you keeping track, remember that Redhook has stood proud as a part of Craft Brew Alliance since it merged with Widmer Brothers Brewing in 2008.

So how did this all come about? According to a recent Today interview with Patrick Kirk, who maintains the completely awesome title from B-Wild as "director of beverage innovations," the company has "always talked about creating a Buffalo Wild Wings beer, and as we pursued it, we realized we needed someone to work with."

Then, when B-Wild figured out Redhook was already working on creating a "sports bar-friendly brew," it was a match made in heaven.

After all, considering Buffalo Wild Wings serves more draft beer than any other restaurant chain in America, who would know better how to help Redhook realize what works great with sports bar food?

That said, while the brewery isn't obligated to make the beer exclusive to Buffalo Wild Wings, Redhook representatives were kind enough to state "Given the role Buffalo Wild Wings had in the process, we'll be giving the majority of resources to them."

Not the first of its kind
Of course, this isn't the first time specialty beer has assimilated more closely into larger restaurant chains.

Remember, last year Red Robin Gourmet Burgers (NASDAQ: RRGB  ) partnered with Boston Beer Company to eliminate the need for diners to choose between beer and a shake with their Sam Adams Oktoberfest Milkshake. Putting aside the potential negative post-dinner repercussions of mixing beer with a shake -- oof, I'm breathing heavy just thinking about it -- this was still a pretty fun collaborative idea which meshed well with Red Robin's atmosphere.

That said, while it's safe to say the Oktoberfest Milkshake was a relative success for both Red Robin and Boston Beer (at least from a public relations perspective, anyway), I can't imagine the product had any significant long-term positive effects from a financial standpoint.

More closely aligned with B-Wild's new efforts, however, are the folks at BJ's Restaurants (NASDAQ: BJRI  ) , who just so happen to integrate their very own enviable list of more than a dozen of BJ's award-winning, handcrafted brews on tap at each of their restaurants. All told, craft brews have served as a centerpiece of BJ's business so far, helping the up-and-coming company to grow to 132 locations in 15 states as of the end of last quarter.

In all, that leaves plenty of room for BJ's restaurants to grow en route to management's goals of eventually having as many as 425 domestic locations.

Here's why Game Changer Ale could be huge
The thing is, Buffalo Wild Wings already has a sticky business model with which hungry consumers tend to resonate, and adding its own specialty brew to the ranks of the dozens of beers it already serves should only help diners love the popular chain even more than they do now.

This, in turn, should help Buffalo Wild Wings accelerate its pursuit of new restaurant growth, even with 923 current total locations in 49 states and in Canada. When all is said and done, remember B-Wild management hopes to eventually operate as many as 1,700 total locations between the U.S. and Canada alone.

Foolish takeaway
Of course, this growth potential is one of the very things which makes Buffalo Wild Wings so enticing from an investment standpoint in the first place. If the company can simply continue steadily growing its restaurant base, while simultaneously doing what it does so well in delighting its patrons, there's every reason to believe patient shareholders should be rewarded handsomely over the long run.

But if Buffalo Wild Wings doesn't quite whet your appetite for growth, where else can you look? Luckily for you, Motley Fool co-founder David Gardner, founder of the No. 1 growth stock newsletter in the world, has developed a unique strategy for uncovering truly wealth-changing stock picks. And he wants to share it, along with a few of his favorite growth stock superstars, WITH YOU! It's a special 100% FREE report called "6 Picks for Ultimate Growth." So stop settling for index-hugging gains... and click HERE for instant access to a whole new game plan of stock picks to help power your portfolio.

6 Billion Reasons Vodafone Connects

The recent investments made by the world's second-largest mobile telecommunications company have caused a swell of investor excitement. Royston Wild of The Motley Fool UK shares several reasons he feels this stock is set to skyrocket well into the long-term.

Project Spring program boosts earnings prospects

Vodafone's (LSS:VOD) (NQ:VOD) recent purchase of Kabel Deutschland (LES:0MPU) (OP:KBDHF) has caused a ripple of excitement among investors, the firm's maiden foray into the lucrative multi-services entertainment sphere, providing bubbly earnings potential. This has seen news of Vodafone's Project Spring organic investment program take the back seat, but I believe that the gigantic 6bnp scheme also has the potential to turbocharge revenues in coming years.

Vodafone announced the massive investment scheme after agreeing to offload its 45% stake in Verizon Wireless to Verizon Communications (VZ) for USD130bn in September. The three-year plan will enable the company "to strengthen and accelerate our existing Vodafone 2015 strategy," the company said, "enabling us to take even greater advantage of the growing global demand for ubiquitous high-speed data."

Specifically, the firm plans to plow these vast sums into 4G, 3G, fiber, and broadband services, clearly massive growth areas for communications specialists across the globe.

Vodafone's operations in these areas continue to pull up trees, particularly in respect of rolling out its 4G technology across the UK. The business has signed up 100,000 customers since rollout in August, as of the start of the month, and is stepping up the number of cities which can access its new technology. Vodafone is also boosting its 4G services on the continent, and increased the speed of its LTE network in various cities in Germany to an industry-busting 150Mbps in recent months.

Vodafone's excellent growth potential has seen takeover speculation ratchet up in recent months, and I expect chatter to provide an extra catalyst to share prices sooner rather than later. Recently, broker Credit Suisse said that Vodafone has a 50% chance of being acquired by US telecoms giant AT&T (T). And the broker attached a 280p price target should a bid materialize, providing a 22% premium to current levels.

Now that Vodafone has unattached itself from its Verizon Wireless venture in North America, the telecoms company has become a prime target in, what is becoming, an increasingly frantic industry on the M&A front. But whether or not a takeover approach actually materializes, I believe that Vodafone offers enough growth potential to send shares rocketing higher.

Royston does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned. The Motley Fool has recommended shares in Vodaphone.

Read more from The Motley Fool UK here...

Jim Cramer's 'Mad Money' Recap: Stick With the Best-of-Breed Stocks

Search Jim Cramer's "Mad Money" trading recommendations using our exclusive "Mad Money" Stock Screener.

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Stop playing themes and start investing in best-of-breed stocks. That was Jim Cramer's advice to "Mad Money" viewers Thursday.

Cramer said if investors only read the headlines, they'll never understand the markets. One day tech stocks are good, the next they're bad. Oil is good, but then oil is bad. Housing is horrendous, but then it's fabulous.

That's why it's more important than ever to pay attention to individual companies, in particular those that are executing well. Investors only need to look at Caterpillar (CAT) to see what happens when things go wrong. With construction on the rise and China recovering it should be all systems go at this heavy equipment maker, but CAT still managed to miss the numbers and cut estimates. Cramer said a better way to play construction would be with United Rentals (URI) and China with Cummins (CMI). Other examples of bad execution include Diamond Offshore (DO) in the oil patch and Union Pacific (UNP) for the rails. Both failed to deliver while rivals Ensco (ESV), a stock Cramer owns for his charitable trust, Action Alerts PLUS, and Norfolk Southern (NSC) delivered the goods. From airlines to chemical to even the home builders, Cramer said some companies get it while others clearly don't. Which is why investors need to continue doing their homework and stick with only the best-of-breed players. Executive Decision: In the "Executive Decision" segment, Cramer once again spoke with Ellen Kullman, chair and CEO of DuPont (DD), the chemical maker that delivered today a four-cents-a-share earnings beat on better-than-expected revenue while reaffirming guidance and announcing the spinoff of its cyclical performance chemical business. Shares of DuPont currently yield 3% and are up 15% since Cramer last spoke with Kullman on June 25. Kullman said DuPont is now splitting into two world-class companies. One will be a company dedicated to new and novel applications of science, while the other will remain a strong, industry-leading chemical company with high margins. One example of science in action is DuPont's insecticide business, which now tops $900 million in annual sales after just five years. Meanwhile, on the chemical side of the house, Kullman said she sees the market for TiO2 stabilizing.

Among the bright spots for DuPont is its safety and protection division, which is seeing an uptick in Kevlar-related sales, and also Latin America, which is seeing increased demand for DuPont's agricultural products.

Finally, when asked about the global marketplace, Kullman said that in big industries including autos, electrical and industrial goods there remains a lot of uncertainty, and the U.S. is losing credibility by not being able to resolve its issues in Washington. "Our destiny is in our control," said Kullman. "We just need to get after it." Executive Decision: John Faraci

In his second "Executive Decision" segment, Cramer sat down with John Faraci, chairman and CEO of International Paper (IP), which today announced a penny-a-share earnings beat after a 17% boost in its dividend and a monster share buyback program equal to 7.5% of the company's market cap. Despite all the recent good news, shares of IP still trade at just 10 times earnings.

Faraci said International Paper continues to innovate in the packaging business, and he showed off one of his company's new paper-based containers for cold and frozen items that replaces traditional foam containers. He said companies including Tyson Foods (TSN) and Amazon.com (AMZN) remain big customers. But beyond innovation, Faraci noted IP is also a cash-flow story and has been steadily increasing margins and efficiencies through both acquisitions. He said IP is not interested in just growth, but profitable growth, and only makes acquisitions that make sense and will impact the bottom line. Cramer continued his recommendation of International Paper, noting that it's the perfect investment for a retirement or discretionary portfolio. Lightning Round In the Lightning Round, Cramer was bullish on Cheniere Energy (LNG), Noble Energy (NBL), Royal Bank (RBS) and Halcon Resources (HK). Cramer was bearish on Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR), CVR Refining (CVRR) and Triquint Semiconductor (TQNT). Executive Decision: Rick Hamada P/>In a third "Executive Decision" segment, Cramer checked in with Rick Hamada, CEO of Avnet (AVT), the distributor of IT hardware and services that today delivered a two-cents-a-share earnings beat on lighter-than-expected revenue and initiated a regular dividend for shareholders. Hamada said Avnet is looking for a more systematic way to return capital to shareholders and decided that now was the right time to make that commitment in the form of a regular dividend. When asked about the technology sector overall, Hamada characterized it as an industry with multiple dimensions of change. He said companies are increasingly pressured to keep up with the accelerating pace, which is why there are companies doing well while others fall behind. The key, he said, is to pay attention to your customers and adapt quickly Turning to the topic of Washington, Hamada said he couldn't draw a straight line from the government shutdown to any specific failure in his business this quarter, which is why he chose not to blame any weakness on Washington. "I'm not going to tell you what I don't see," Hamada said. However, Hamada did mention the troubles in Washington are not going unnoticed around the globe and is a topic Avnet is hearing about every day as it talks to its customers. Cramer said he continues to recommend Avnet despite the mixed reaction to its quarterly results. No Huddle Offense In his "No Huddle Offense" segment, Cramer asked, "will any retailer ever be able to please Wall Street?" He noted that Home Depot's (HD) earnings were amazing, yet were met by yawns. Costco (COST), an Action Alerts PLUS holding, saw same-store sales pop 5%, yet its shares barely crawled back to even. But then there were the earnings from two niche retailers, Lumber Liquidators (LL) and Tractor Supply (TSCO), that were met with cheers and adoration. Cramer called these two stocks the "biotechs of retail" because Lumber Liquidators posted a 17% rise in same-store sales while Tractor Supply saw a 7% pop. Both companies still have tons of room to go because Lumber Liquidators only has 17 stores in California and Tractor Supply is just now accelerating its planned store openings. These stocks may seem expensive, trading at 40 times and 30 times earnings, respectively, but Cramer said given their growth and love from Wall Street they're definitely worth the premium. To watch replays of Cramer's video segments, visit the Mad Money page on CNBC. To sign up for Jim Cramer's free Booyah! newsletter with all of his latest articles and videos please click here. -- Written by Scott Rutt in Washington, D.C. To email Scott about this article, click here: Scott Rutt Follow Scott on Twitter @ScottRutt or get updates on Facebook, ScottRuttDC

At the time of publication, Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS had a position in COST, ESV, NBL and UNP. Jim Cramer, host of the CNBC television program "Mad Money," is a Markets Commentator for TheStreet.com, Inc., and CNBC, and a director and co-founder of TheStreet.com. All opinions expressed by Mr. Cramer on "Mad Money" are his own and do not reflect the opinions of TheStreet.com or its affiliates, or CNBC, NBC Universal or their parent company or affiliates. Mr. Cramer's opinions are based upon information he considers to be reliable, but neither TheStreet.com, nor CNBC, nor either of their affiliates and/or subsidiaries warrant its completeness or accuracy, and it should not be relied upon as such. Mr. Cramer's statements are based on his opinions at the time statements are made, and are subject to change without notice. No part of Mr. Cramer's compensation from CNBC or TheStreet.com is related to the specific opinions expressed by him on "Mad Money." None of the information contained in "Mad Money" constitutes a recommendation by Mr. Cramer, TheStreet.com or CNBC that any particular security, portfolio of securities, transaction, or investment strategy is suitable for any specific person. You must make your own independent decisions regarding any security, portfolio of securities, transaction, or investment strategy mentioned on the program. Mr. Cramer's past results are not necessarily indicative of future performance. Neither Mr. Cramer, nor TheStreet.com, nor CNBC guarantees any specific outcome or profit, and you should be aware of the real risk of loss in following any strategy or investments discussed on the program. The strategy or investments discussed may fluctuate in price or value and you may get back less than you invested. Before acting on any information contained in the program, you should consider whether it is suitable for your particular circumstances and strongly consider seeking advice from your own financial or investment adviser. Some of the stocks mentioned by Mr. Cramer on "Mad Money" are held in Mr. Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio. When that is the case, appropriate disclosure is made on the program and in the "Mad Money" recap available on TheStreet.com. The Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio contains all of Mr. Cramer's personal investments in publicly-traded equity securities only, and does not include any mutual fund holdings or other institutionally managed assets, private equity investments, or his holdings in TheStreet.com, Inc. Since March 2005, the Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio has been held by a Trust, the realized profits from which have been pledged to charity. Mr. Cramer retains full investment discretion with respect to all securities contained in the Trust. Mr. Cramer is subject to certain trading restrictions, and must hold all securities in the Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio for at least one month, and is not permitted to buy or sell any security he has spoken about on television or on his radio program for five days following the broadcast.

Why Wolverine World Wide Stock Is Wowing Shareholders

Wolverine World Wide (NYSE: WWW  ) will be one of the first companies to release its earnings for the quarter. But Wolverine World Wide stock has already anticipated strong results from the company next Tuesday, and even though analyst projections are calling for a decline in earnings from the year-ago quarter, massive sales growth should point the way to an earnings recovery in the long run.

Wolverine World Wide is part of the highly competitive footwear business, with its shoe offerings including its namesake Wolverine brand as well as Keds, Stride Rite, Saucony, and Hush Puppies. Let's take an early look at what's been happening with Wolverine World Wide over the past quarter and what we're likely to see in its report.

Stats on Wolverine World Wide

Analyst EPS Estimate	$0.34
Change From Year-Ago EPS	(29%)
Revenue Estimate	$591.03 million
Change From Year-Ago Revenue	89%
Earnings Beats in Past 4 Quarters	3

Source: Yahoo! Finance.

Why aren't Wolverine World Wide's earnings keeping up with its revenue growth this quarter?
Analysts have had mixed views on Wolverine World Wide's earnings prospects recently, cutting their estimates for the June quarter by $0.07 per share but boosting their full-year 2013 and 2014 consensus estimates by 1% to 2%. Wolverine World Wide stock has reacted favorably, rising more than 25% since early April.

The big move for Wolverine came last year, when the company made a $1.2 billion purchase of the Performance and Lifestyle Group of Collective Brands, the parent company of the Payless ShoeSource chain. The move came as part of a group deal with private equity companies that were interested in the Payless retail business, but it gave Wolverine ownership of the popular Keds, Saucony, Stride-Rite, and Sperry Top-Sider brands. The deal has led to the huge gains in revenue that Wolverine has seen, but it has also had an impact on earnings as the company works to integrate its purchase.

Even with that strategic acquisition, Wolverine faces a big challenge from competitors. Deckers (NASDAQ: DECK  ) has had to deal with investors' skepticism about whether its UGG line of footwear can avoid the same fate that fad products from other companies have suffered in years past, but value investor Whitney Tilson notes that many UGG buyers see their shoes as a utilitarian rather than a fashion choice. Meanwhile, Saucony gives Wolverine an entry into the athletic shoe industry, but Nike (NYSE: NKE  ) continues to dominate the industry with its strong gross margins. In order to disrupt Nike's strength, Wolverine will need to emphasize Saucony's focus on running shoes, aiming to capture business from runners who value attention to their specific needs rather than Nike's broad array of shoes covering multiple sports.

Wolverine has made some smart moves to try to boost its sales further. In April, the company won a $15 million contract for safety boots for the U.S. Navy, demonstrating its ability to tap niche opportunities. Moreover, marketing and distribution rights play an important role for Wolverine, with the shoe retailer having deals with Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT  ) and Harley-Davidson (NYSE: HOG  ) to sell footwear bearing the CAT and Harley brands. Those deals help Harley and Caterpillar with their own marketing efforts, boosting awareness in a long-term effort to spur purchases of their own products down the road, but they also give Wolverine an opportunity to broaden its appeal.

In Wolverine's earnings report, watch for discussion of how the company is doing integrating its Collective Brands purchase. Investors want to see the earnings bleeding stop, and better guidance going forward would do a lot to justify the big bull run that Wolverine World Wide stock has made recently.

The retail space is in the midst of the biggest paradigm shift since mail order took off at the turn of last century. Only those most forward-looking and capable companies will survive, and they'll handsomely reward those investors who understand the landscape. You can read about the "three companies ready to rule retail" in The Motley Fool's special report. Uncovering these top picks is free today; just click here to read more.

Click here to add Wolverine World Wide to My Watchlist, which can find all of our Foolish analysis on it and all your other stocks.

Outerwall, Formerly Coinstar, Buying All of ecoATM

Outerwall (NASDAQ: OUTR  ) , formerly Coinstar, began trading under its new ticker symbol today, with Outerwall's management team ringing the morning bell on Nasdaq. The company also announced an acquisition of a company that created automated self-serve kiosk system to purchase used mobile phones, tablets and MP3 players for cash.

In a press release, Outerwall explained the name change, saying that over time, it has evolved from being just the Coinstar business, to becoming "an umbrella corporate brand that encompasses the company's current operations and provides a platform for future automated retail opportunities." Outerwall is also a term that can refer to the fact that most of the company's coin counting and movie kiosks are located on what it refers to as a store's fourth wall, which is typically at the front of the store and underutilized by many retailers.

Outerwall also announced today that it has bought 100% control of automated cell phone, tablet, and MP3 player recycler ecoATM, which sets up kiosks where people trade their used devices in for cash. Outerwall values the transaction at $350 million, but because it already owned 23% of the company, its actual cost is closer to $270 million.

The company says 175 million new mobile devices are sold annually in the United States and that only 20% of used mobile phones are collected, with more than 50% being discarded or stored, "representing a significant market opportunity."

Outerwall CFO Galen C. Smith said he expects ecoATM "to be accretive to Outerwall's EPS in 2014 and to yield a positive return on invested capital in the coming years." The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter.

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Obamacare's Health Exchange Application Figures Are In: Do They Signal Success or Failure?

If the success of Obamacare's health exchanges were measured in the number of fingers pointed over the past three weeks since it went live, then its success would be off the charts. Unfortunately, finger pointing doesn't count, and aside from a scant group of 10 state-run exchanges that reported their early stage enrollment figures last week, it's been like pulling teeth trying to get an update regarding enrollment figures at the federally run Healthcare.gov from the Department of Health and Human Services -- until now.

Source: White House on Flickr.

According to an Associated Press report over the weekend, administration officials announced that a combined 476,000 people had submitted applications for health insurance on state and federal exchanges. This figure doesn't give us any information as to whether people completed the application and obtained health insurance, but it's a good starting point.

Breaking it down further, the administration's data notes that a bit more than half of the 476,000 applications have come from the federally run Healthcare.gov, and that, in the interim, it's encouraging people to use call centers to sign up for health insurance. In fact, call center head count has been beefed up by 50% to meet increased questions and demand while technicians continue to work out the numerous architectural flaws in the government-run website.

Finally, we also found out that the number of people who had visited Healthcare.gov through Friday night had risen to 19 million.

Are these numbers good enough?
The big question on everyone's mind, especially with the innumerable glitches many Americans have encountered, is whether Obamacare is succeeding. The answer to that question is both yes and no.

Clearly Obamacare is a success in a handful of states such as New York and Washington, which have seen few state-run health exchange issues. My home state of Washington, for instance, had its health exchange go down on the first day due to an overwhelming amount of traffic but hasn't logged any major problems since.

Obamacare is also succeeding in bringing previously uninsured Americans with preexisting conditions who had been denied by insurers otherwise into the fold. Perhaps not the best news for insurance companies in this respect, it is great news for hospital providers like HCA Holdings (NYSE: HCA  ) , which would expect to see a reduction in doubtful accounts with more of its sick patients being covered by insurance. Last year, HCA wrote off about 10.3% of its revenue as uncollectable because it treated patients who were uninsured or simply couldn't pay their bill. With the individual mandate soon to become an enforceable law on Jan. 1, 2014, the expectation is that lower doubtful account provisions (and thus better margins) could allow HCA to purchase state-of-the-art medical equipment or perhaps repurchase its own shares or initiate a dividend.

These numbers don't add up
Then again, the pace at which consumers are enrolling looks painstakingly slow and bogged down primarily by Healthcare.gov's ongoing glitches.

Let's recall that the administration's figure of 476,000 is for applications, not enrollments! For all we know only half of those people may have completed the application process or even less! Furthermore, the administration has absolutely no plans to update actual enrollment figures before mid-November -- more than likely because it gives HHS time to fix some of the more serious problems with Healthcare.gov.

Based on last week's state-run health exchange enrollment figures obtained through the 10 reporting states, we were able to extrapolate out an enrollment rate through the enrollment cutoff date of March 31, 2014, of roughly 2.8 million people. This figure was more or less in line with previous enrollment forecasts. However, if only about 250,000 people have applied for health insurance through three weeks on federal exchanges, Obamacare's enrollment target of 7 million people is likely to wind up around 2 million people short come the coverage cutoff date!

The good, the bad, and the ugly for your investments
The way it's shaping up right now, insurers, hospitals, and IT companies tied to the federal exchange are probably going to struggle to meet the lofty near-term expectations of shareholders, while those operating predominantly in state-run locales will be in good shape.

If you want a ray of sunshine in this mess, look no further than either WellPoint (NYSE: WLP  ) or Molina Healthcare (NYSE: MOH  ) . Both companies have a stronghold in California with WellPoint's Blue Cross Blue Shield and Molina's low-cost and Medicaid-sponsored plans offering ample choices in the early going for consumers. Although early enrollment in California was disappointing, the expectation all along has been that it would pick up as we get closer to coverage enrollment cutoff date. With few signs of exchange problems in California I'd look for these two companies to impress investors moving forward.

On the other end of the spectrum we've got hospital operator Tenet Healthcare (NYSE: THC  ) which on the surface would like a pedestrian investment that shouldn't be affected too much by the ongoing federal glitches. However, Tenet's hospitals, with the big exception of California, are located primarily in states operating on the federal health exchange. In other words, Tenet shareholders probably shouldn't expect its doubtful accounts provision to drop dramatically anytime soon with enrollment figures pacing well below expectations at the moment.

It could be even uglier for CGI Group (NYSE: GIB  ) as I've touched on previously. It's not that this software developer of Healthcare.gov isn't getting its fair share of pay for its time and effort to construct the federally run website. It's that the negative publicity surrounding the event and its inability to quickly fix what are growing problems in the system could damage its reputation for years to come, possibly costing the company future orders.

A better gauge
The administration's application figures are certainly great to have because it finally gives us some indication of how strongly enrollment and public interest are proceeding. However, I would suggest not getting too caught up in data that's hardly even three-weeks old yet. The main reason is that it's difficult to get consumers to pay for a product that doesn't even go into effect until Jan. 1, 2014. Therefore, a good chunk of visitors to the state and federal sites are likely just gawkers right now. This means a surge in enrollment figures is likely to come on the back half of the coverage period. So while many would be tempted to call Obamacare an utter failure based on these early results, we're still a long ways away from the meat-and-potatoes part of the enrollment period. Until we get well into December and January, it's going to be difficult to decisively call it a victory or failure.

If you have Obamacare questions, we have answers
Health care as we know it is about to change. Do you know how the changes in the health care law will affect you and your portfolio? If not, we're here to help: The Motley Fool has compiled a special new report filled with Everything You Need to Know About Obamacare. This report is a free offer from us to help you get educated on this important subject. Please click here to access your free copy.

Are Tapering Fears Overdone?

Concerns over future Fed action are causing some turmoil in the market and DASH Financial's Michael Khouw discusses what he sees as the longer-term implications.

SPEAKER 1:  My guest today is Mike Khow.  Hi Mike and thanks for joining me.

MICHAEL:  Thanks for having me.

SPEAKER 1:  You know we’ve had a really good run in the market and some people are saying that the whole idea of tapering is what recently brought the market down 225 points in one day.  Everyone thinks oh my gosh, 225 points, but in reality, percentage wise, it really isn’t that bad.  I mean, where do we go from here?  I mean, do you think this tapering concept has kind of been hovering over us as a black cloud for the last few months?  Do you think that’s going to keep investors out of the market now?

MICHAEL:  Well, I think it’s definitely a cause for concern; not just among individual investors, but institutional investors.  Think about this; QE was the biggest justification for some of the largest bowls in the market over the course of the last couple of years.  I’m talking about guys like David Tepper and other who said that it was foolish to think that the market could do anything but go up, all right.  A lot of people think of QE as printing money, okay, and while there is an element of truth to that concept, what we really have to understand is that the reason the Fed was doing this was when the credit bubble collapsed, essentially, the money supply decreased because there was a huge amount of non-inter financial lending that was built into it, and the way to think about that, there’s a multiplier effect.

SPEAKER 1:  Right.

MICHAEL:  You make a dollar, you put it in the bank; $.80 gets lent out, and so on.  When a lot of that lending money comes out of the marketplace, that’s deflationary, and that’s what they were trying to avoid.  When we talk about tapering now, what are we really talking about?  Are we talking about something contractionary like that bubble coming out.  That isn’t really what we’re talking about.  What we’re talking about is are we going to continue to try to reflate what was lost?  Once we’ve done that, there’s not really a need to continue to do it, so provided that we don’t start seeing contractionary action from the Fed, some form of tightening, I don’t really think we have to be as concerned about it, I think, as people are.  What we’re going to do is we’re going to reestablish a more normal market condition, so while I think obviously you don't have that free put that the Fed provides when they’re just throwing all that stimulus things – basically, passive financial assets really have nowhere to go but up in that environment.

You lose that, but that doesn’t necessarily mean everything is going to go down now.  Now, what you do is you say, you know what, we’re back to a more normal set of circumstances, let’s just go about our normal investment process, and try to make smart decisions.  The market, on a long-term fundamental basis – S&P trading 16 times earnings, 15-1/2 times earnings, that’s only a shade over a long-term historical average, so it’s not like we can say the market’s 20% or 30% over value, all of that is supported by Fed action.  Quite the contrary.  It’s at about a fair valuation.  There are still some values in the market, mostly in the cyclical names, and there’s a couple areas that have been a little bit inflated, and some of that is caused by this concern.  People buy staples and dividend stock because they’re afraid of what’s going to happen in the marketplace, so those are areas that are probably going to get pressured a little bit, but overall, I don’t think the markets in a lot of danger here.

SPEAKER 1:  Thank you.

MICHAEL:  Sure.

SPEAKER 1:  And thanks for joining as at the MoneyShow.com Video Network.

Top 10 Performing Stocks To Buy For 2014

"Prophesy is a good line of business, but it is full of risks." - Mark Twain

Hope over a deal in Washington, combined with expectations of a dovish Fed led by Janet Yellen, have put a bid back into stocks which had been hovering around some key technical levels in the US. Emerging markets continue to power higher, and the meme remains that "every dip is bought." This is of course true until it isn't and mentality breaks. Reflation remains the underlying hope for all bulls, even though it simply has not existed in 2013 based on how intermarket trends have behaved. That does not mean that inflation expectations can't rise from here, but rather that there is still much skepticism given that this is the first time QE has failed to juice fear over rising prices in the economy and a true pickup of economic growth.

Despite big swings up and down, money may finally be starting to pay attention. There has been notable improvement in defensive sectors which seem to be on the verge of reversing their divestment relative behavior. Take a look below at the price ratio of the SPDR S&P Dividend Index ETF (SDY) relative to the S&P 500 (SPY). As a reminder, a rising price ratio means the numerator/SDY is outperforming (up more/down less) the denominator/SPY.

Top 10 Performing Stocks To Buy For 2014: Marenica Energy Ltd(MEY.AX)

Marenica Energy Limited engages in the exploration and development of uranium deposits in Namibia and Australia. The company also explores for lead, zinc, silver, gold, and copper. Its principal project includes the Marenica Uranium project that covers an area of 527 square kilometers located in the Damara Province, Namibia. The company was formerly known as West Australian Metals Ltd and changed its name to Marenica Energy Limited in November 2009. Marenica Energy Limited was incorporated in 1978 and is based in West Perth, Australia.

Top 10 Performing Stocks To Buy For 2014: West Mountain Cap Corp (WMT.V)

West Mountain Capital Corp., through its subsidiary, Phase Separation Solutions, Inc., provides soil remediation services in North America. It uses Thermal Phase Separation Technology for the treatment of contaminated soil, sludge, and solid wastes impacted with chlorinated hydrocarbons, such as PCB�s, dioxins, furans, and pesticides. The company is based in St. John�s, Canada.

Top Financial Stocks To Own For 2014: Epicore Bionetworks Inc. (EBN.V)

Epicore BioNetworks Inc. designs, develops, and manufactures biotechnology products and specialty animal feeds worldwide. The company offers a family of EPICIN branded biological aquaculture systems that create a cleaner and healthier growing environment in aquaculture hatcheries and grow-out ponds, as well as eliminates toxic ammonia and nitrates and improves animal health and disease resistance for the aquaculture industry. It also provides agriculture products, including EPIZYM-AW and EPIZYM-PIGS, which are animal manure bacterial inoculants to liquefy and deodorize animal waste; PHYTOZYM 2-2-2 liquid foliar spray and seed treatment, a stabilized biochemical concentrate; EPITHATCH biological thatch digester, a dry biological formulation that decomposes dead grass; and EPITHERM microbial ecosystem for composting organic waste. In addition, the company offers municipal products comprising LINEBAC, a microbial ecosystem to biodegrade contaminants in industrial and municipa l wastewater collection systems; LIPOSOLVE municipal emulsifier; DEOBAC Biological deodorizer and odor neutralizer, a liquid microbial ecosystem to biodegrade organic matter; and GREASE-X aqueous cleaner and degreaser that penetrates and softens various forms of grease, fats, and oil. Further, it provides wastewater treatment products, including EPIZYM-100 microbial ecosystem for the biodegradation of industrial and municipal wastewater; and EPIZYM-200 microbial inoculant for the biodegradation of crude oil and petroleum products. Additionally, Epicore BioNetworks Inc. offers biological cleaning products, such as drain and grease trap cleaners, hard surface cleaner, carpet and upholstery shampoo, and aqueous cleaner and degreaser; and bio remediation products. The company was formerly known as Epicore Networks Inc. and changed its name to Epicore BioNetworks Inc. in 2000. Epicore BioNetworks Inc. was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Eastampton, New Jersey.

Top 10 Performing Stocks To Buy For 2014: PulteGroup Inc.(PHM)

PulteGroup, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in homebuilding and financial services businesses primarily in the United States. The company?s homebuilding business includes the acquisition and development of land primarily for residential purposes within the United States; and the construction of housing on such lands. It offers various home designs, including single-family detached, townhouses, condominiums, and duplexes under the Pulte Homes, Del Webb, and Centex brand names. As of December 31, 2011, its homebuilding operations offered homes for sale in approximately 700 communities. The company?s financial services business consists of mortgage banking and title operations. It arranges financing through the origination of mortgage loans for its homebuyers; sells such loans and related servicing rights; and provides title insurance policies as an agent, and examination and closing services to its home buyers. The company was formerly known as Pulte Homes, Inc. an d changed its name to PulteGroup, Inc. in March 2010. PulteGroup, Inc. was founded in 1956 and is headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sean Williams]

  Finally, homebuilder PulteGroup (NYSE: PHM  ) rallied 4.7%, in spite of no company-specific news. This appeared to be more of a rebound rally than anything else, as investors have demonstrated their concerns in recent days about whether the rally in homebuilders was too much, too soon. While home prices have been strong, and inventories remain low, the prospect of the Federal Reserve's bond-buying program tapering off sooner than later could stymie loan growth, and bring the housing sector to a grinding halt. I certainly feel the risk far outweighs the reward with PulteGroup at the moment.

• [By Dimitra DeFotis]

  In the homebuidling category:

  Weyerhaeuser (WY), the producer of lumber, was up nearly 3%. On Thursday, Citigroup Analyst Anthony Pettinari wrote that Weyerhaeuser could sell its homebuilder unit for between $2.5 billion and $3.5 billion, and interested buyers in the unit, WRECO, could include Lennar�(LEN), Toll Brothers (TOL) and Brookfield Residential Properties (BRP). About 67% of the Weyerhaeuser unit’s roughly 27,000 lots are in California. Citi has a Buy rating on Weyerhauser and a $35 price target. Lennar, the home builder, was�up 2.6%. Masco (MAS), the building materials maker, was�up 2%.� PulteGroup (PHM), the home builder, was�up 2%. DR Horton�(DHI), the home builder, was�up 1.9%.

  Among real estate trusts:

• [By John Divine]

  Prominent homebuilder PulteGroup (NYSE: PHM  ) also directly suffered from speculation about further Fed involvement. As bonds sold off, rates rose, and rising rates can have ominous effects on the real estate industry. From a buyer's perspective, if it costs more to borrow money in order to purchase a home, it can cause some understandable hesitation, and even make getting a mortgage financially impossible. PulteGroup, along with every other residential construction company in the S&P homebuilders index, fell today; PulteGroup slipped 2.9%.

Top 10 Performing Stocks To Buy For 2014: Txt E-solutions(TXTS.MI)

TXT e-solutions S.p.A. provides various software products and solutions to the industrial sector in Italy and internationally. It offers TXT PERFORM, a suite of demand and supply chain management solutions, which comprises TXT CDMi, a collaborative demand management and intelligence tool; TXTPLAN that provides optimization algorithms, what-if capabilities, and performance management capabilities within an integrated environment for production, inventory, distribution, and replenishment planning; PDMi, a product data management and intelligence tool, which provides product data management and collection design and development capabilities; TXTCHAIN, a Web-based supplier relationship management tool for communication and process management with partners; and TXTMAKE, that supports planning and managing production operations? workflows and reporting. The company also provides TXT NEXT, that offers a portfolio of system integration and information technology services, primari ly for aerospace and defense, and high tech manufacturing, and banking and finance sectors. In addition, TXT e-solutions offers TXT Polymedia Video, that captures, manages, handles, and distributes videos on different media and channels; and Polymedia advertising, which provides interactive advertising solutions to various channels and media. The company has strategic partnerships with Microsoft, IBM, Accenture, and HP. The company was formerly known as TXT Ingegneria Informatica S.p.A and changed its name to TXT e-solutions S.p.A. in March 2000. TXT e-solutions S.p.A. was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Milan, Italy.

Top 10 Performing Stocks To Buy For 2014: R.G. Barry Corporation(DFZ)

R.G. Barry Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in designing, sourcing, marketing, and distributing consumer products in the retail accessories category primarily in North America. It operates in two segments, Footwear and Accessories. The Footwear segment offers footwear products comprising primarily slippers, sandals, hybrid and fashion footwear, slipper socks, and hosiery under the Dearfoams, Angel Treads, DF by Dearfoams, Utopia by Dearfoams, and Terrasoles names. This segment also markets Levi?s branded slippers and sandals. The Accessories segment provides foot and shoe care products, such as cushioned insoles, handbags, tote bags, and travel products for women under the Foot Petals, Fab Feet, Glamour Toez, Heavenly Heelz, Killer Kushionz, baggallini, and Le Bagg names. The company markets its products through accessory sections of department stores, chain stores, warehouse clubs, specialty stores, independent stores, television shopping networks, e- tailing/Internet based retailers, discount stores, and mass merchandising channels of distribution. R.G. Barry Corporation was founded in 1947 and is headquartered in Pickerington, Ohio.

Top 10 Performing Stocks To Buy For 2014: Pennant Energy Inc.(PEN.V)

Pennant Energy Inc., a junior exploration company, engages in the investment, exploration, and development of oil and gas properties. It holds 100% working interest in the Bronson and Kaybob prospects covering 1,920 acres of land located in the established Kaybob South Field area of west central Alberta; an undivided 25% working interest in 2 producing oil and gas wells and certain P&NG right in 2 sections of land located at Badger, Alberta; 17.17% working interest in the Ferrier property located northwest of Red Deer, Alberta; 25% working interest in the Pearl and Watts fields located northeast of Drumheller, Alberta; and 24% interest in the Pembina property located southwest of Edmonton, Alberta. The company also has non-operated working interests ranging from 15% to 45% in 9 producing oil wells in the Daly Field in Manitoba. The company was formerly known as Penteco Resources Limited and changed its name to Pennant Energy Inc. Pennant Energy Inc. was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

Top 10 Performing Stocks To Buy For 2014: Vicor Corporation(VICR)

Vicor Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and markets modular power components and power systems. The company?s Brick Business Unit segment offers modular power converters and configurable products. Vicor?s VI Chip segment designs, develops, manufactures, and markets the company?s factorized power architecture products. Its Picor segment manufactures and markets power management integrated circuits and related products for use in various power system applications. The company sells its products in North America and South America through a network of independent sales representative organizations; and in other areas through independent distributors. Vicor Corporation was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in Andover, Massachusetts.

Top 10 Performing Stocks To Buy For 2014: Ocean Park Ventures Corp (OCP.V)

Ocean Park Ventures Corp. engages in the exploration and development of base and precious metal properties in the Americas. The company holds an option to acquire a 51% interest in the Adelita copper-gold-silver project located in the southern part of Sonora, Mexico; a 50% interest in the Trapper gold project consisting of 9 contiguous mining claims located in the Atlin Mining Division of northern British Columbia, Canada; and a 100% interest in the Metla gold property located in northern British Columbia, Canada. It also holds option to acquire the Chisna copper/gold property located in the south central state of Alaska. The company was formerly known as eTV Technology Inc. and changed its name to Ocean Park Ventures Corp. in April 2009. Ocean Park Ventures Corp. was incorporated in 1987 and is based in Vancouver, Canada.

Top 10 Performing Stocks To Buy For 2014: Spirent Plc(SPT.L)

Spirent Communications plc operates as a communications technology company in Europe, the Asia Pacific, the Americas, and Africa. It operates in three segments: Performance Analysis, Service Assurance, and Systems. The Performance Analysis segment provides solutions that test current and next-generation communications technologies in the lab. It develops test solutions for the engineers in the communications industry that allow them to evaluate the performance of the latest technologies, infrastructure, and applications to be deployed worldwide. This segment also offers tools for service technicians and field test engineers to enhance network quality and make troubleshooting of live networks. In addition, it allows network equipment and mobile device manufacturers, service providers, enterprises, and government entities to test and benchmark the performance of their networks, network elements, mobile devices, and services; and delivers solutions, which address high speed E thernet, data center, cloud computing, virtualization, IMS, IPTV, location based services, multi-GNSS satellite technologies, 3G and 4G/LTE wireless, and other technologies. The Service Assurance segment provides network monitoring and field test solutions for live networks. This segment allows service providers to diagnose, troubleshoot, and determine how to resolve issues with networks and systems within the live network. The Systems segment supplies electronic control systems for electrically powered vehicles in the medical mobility and industrial markets. These include vehicles, such as powered wheelchairs and mobility scooters, as well as industrial vehicles, including floor cleaning equipment, fork-lift trucks, aerial access platforms, and golf carts. Spirent Communications plc was founded in 1936 and is headquartered in Crawley, the United Kingdom.