Top 5 Managed Healthcare Companies To Own For 2014

LONDON: Shares in�Vodafone (LSE: VOD  ) (NASDAQ: VOD  ) �slipped over 1% this morning, to 190.88 pence, as the telecoms Goliath announced that it is withdrawing from the process to award two telecommunications licences in Myanmar.

Back in early April, Vodafone revealed that it had teamed up with China Mobile to form a consortium to bid for a mobile telecommunications licence in Myanmar, formerly Burma.

However, despite the consortium being among 12 short-listed applicants due to submit their final bid to the Myanmar authorities on 3 June, both companies decided not to proceed with the process as "the opportunity does not meet the strict internal investment criteria to which both Vodafone and China Mobile adhere."

Myanmar currently has a GDP growth rate of 5.5% per year, a comparatively young and highly literate population of around 60 million, and its and mobile phone penetration is currently below 10%, which is much lower than many emerging countries. With Myanmar believed to be an important new market for the mobile industry, this morning's statement declared, "Vodafone and China Mobile will continue to watch Myanmar's progress with interest and will give due consideration to any future opportunities that would meet the companies' investment criteria."

Top Heal Care Stocks To Watch For 2015: Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA)

Commonwealth Bank of Australia (the Bank) is engaged in the provision of a range of banking and financial products and services to retail, small business, corporate and institutional clients. The Bank is a provider of integrated financial services, including retail, business and institutional banking, superannuation, life insurance, general insurance, funds management, broking services and finance company activities. Its operating segments include Retail Banking Services, Business and Private Banking, Institutional Banking and Markets, Wealth Management, New Zealand, Bankwest and Other. Its retail banking services include home loans, consumer finance, retail deposits and distribution. Its business and private banking include corporate financial services, regional and agribusiness banking, local business banking, private bank and equities and margin lending. The Bank and its subsidiaries ceased to be a substantial holder in Ten Network Holdings Limited, as of September 12, 2012. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jan Schalkwijk]

  M-Pesa, the system that revolutionized mobile payments in Kenya and beyond, is not capital intensive for Safaricom, but the company has to pay 10% of revenues to Vodafone, which runs the system's technology backbone. Safaricom is planning to take this job on itself going forward, which should increase profitability, though there would be some operational risk if they can't deliver the same level of service. M-Pesa has now spawned M-Shwari, which is the same concept but adds mobile banking services such as the provision of credit. This new service is delivered in partnership with the unlisted Commercial Bank of Africa (CBA).

• [By Michael Ugulini]

  Investors can take away that Craft Brew Alliance (CBA) is experiencing growth in all brands as noted by the company's President of Commercial Operations, Mr. Andy Thomas in an August Earning's Call, "For the first time in CBA's history, CBA's quarterly growth was propelled by growth in all brand families and across all CBA sales divisions. Our overall plus 12% STR growth came from a healthy blend of plus 23% growth for Kona, plus 14% growth for Redhook, and plus 1% growth for Widmer Brothers; all accompanied by the continued expansion of Omission in our international markets."

• [By Yoshiaki Nohara]

  Panasonic Corp., Japan�� largest consumer electronics maker, climbed 6.8 percent after posting profit that beat estimates. STX Offshore & Shipbuilding Co. (067250) jumped 15 percent in Seoul after agreeing to restructure it debt. Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), the nation�� biggest lender, fell 1.5 percent, pacing losses among the nation�� financial shares on a report the government will impose a new tax on banks.

• [By Toshiro Hasegawa]

  Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) fell 1.1 percent to A$73.73. Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. (ST) retreated 1.1 percent to S$3.78 today after posting earnings.

Top 5 Managed Healthcare Companies To Own For 2014: Immersion Corporation(IMMR)

Immersion Corporation develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a range of hardware and software technologies and products that enhance digital devices with touch interaction. The company provides haptic technologies that allow people to use their sense of touch when operating a variety of digital devices. It licenses its technologies to the manufacturers of automotive, consumer electronics, gaming, commercial and industrial controls, medical, and mobile communications products under the TouchSense brand. The company?s product portfolio includes TouchSense 1000, TouchSense 2000, TouchSense 3000, TouchSense 4000, TouchSense 5000, and TouchSense 6000. It also offers turn-key engineering and integration services, design kits for prototyping, authoring tools, and application programming interfaces, as well as platform independent solutions. The company operates primarily in North America, Europe, and the Far East. Immersion Corporation was founded in 1993 and is headquar tered in San Jose, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Margins matter. The more Immersion (Nasdaq: IMMR  ) keeps of each buck it earns in revenue, the more money it has to invest in growth, fund new strategic plans, or (gasp!) distribute to shareholders. Healthy margins often separate pretenders from the best stocks in the market. That's why we check up on margins at least once a quarter in this series. I'm looking for the absolute numbers, so I can compare them to current and potential competitors, and any trend that may tell me how strong Immersion's competitive position could be.

Top 5 Managed Healthcare Companies To Own For 2014: Barclays PLC (BARC)

Barclays PLC (Barclays) is a global financial services provider engaged in retail banking, credit cards, wholesale banking, investment banking, wealth management and investment management services. The Company�� operations include its overseas offices, subsidiaries and associates. The Company operates in eight segments: UK Retail and Business Banking (UK RBB), Europe Retail and Business Banking (Europe RBB), Africa Retail and Business Banking (Africa RBB), Barclaycard, Barclays Investment Bank, Barclays Corporate Banking, Wealth and Investment Management, and Head Office and Other Operations. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sarah Jones]

  Barclays Plc (BARC) led a selloff by U.K. lenders as Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. sold half of its stake in the bank. EasyJet Plc (EZJ) lost 4.1 percent as the carrier reported passenger numbers for May. Johnson Matthey Plc (JMAT) rallied 6.3 percent after posting pretax profit that beat analysts��estimates.

• [By Sarah Jones]

  HSBC contributed the most to a selloff by European banks as treasuries slumped, pushing 10-year yields to the highest since 2011, as government bonds from the U.K. to Germany and Ireland slid. HSBC, Europe�� biggest lender, lost 0.9 percent to 655.6 pence. Barclays Plc (BARC) slid 0.9 percent to 279.05 pence.

Top 5 Managed Healthcare Companies To Own For 2014: ADVA Optical Networking SE (ADV)

ADVA Optical Networking SE is a Germany-based company that develops, manufactures and sells optical and Ethernet-based networking solutions to telecommunications carriers and enterprises to deploy, manage and deliver data storage, voice and video services in metropolitan areas. Its optical transmission solutions are based on wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) technology. Its Ethernet-optimized transmission solutions for fiber- or copper-based lines are used to provide access for enterprises into a carrier's network. Its systems are used by telecommunications services providers, companies, universities and government agencies worldwide. It sells its product portfolio both directly and through an international network of distribution partners. Its optical and Ethernet-based network solutions have been deployed by more than 250 carriers and more than 10,000 enterprises. As of December 31, 2012, the Company had 13 wholly owned subsidiaries across Europe, Asia, North and Latin America. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Holly LaFon]

  We re-established an investment in CME Group, Inc. (CME) during the period. CME is the largest and most diversified derivatives marketplace in the U.S. Its exchanges support trading across a variety of asset classes, including interest rates, equity indexes, energy, agricultural commodities, foreign exchange and metals. We believe CME has the opportunity to significantly accelerate its growth rates due to the eventual normalization of interest rates and the attendant interest rate volatility. CME's interest rate trading volumes (ADV) have been depressed as a result of the Fed's zero interest rate policy and low interest rate volatility. For example, interest rate ADV was 4.8 million in 2012compared to 7.1 million in 2007, before the financial crisis. However, given the Fed's recent policy statements (discussed above), market participants are starting to anticipate an end to quantitative easing (QE). On May 30, CME experienced record volume for interest rate derivatives with ADV of 19.4 million. With the globalization of CME's business, a host of new products, and the regulatory requirement for interest rate swaps to be cleared on an exchange, we believe CME's interest rate volumes can surpass their prior peak, significantly driving earnings growth for the company.

• [By Adrian Day]

  Adrian Day: Yes, yes, I like the concept of looking up the secondary plays. I mean, you know we own Altius (ALS) for example, rather than Alderon (ADV). Altius owns 30% of Alderon, that is more diversified, has a better balance sheet. If Alderon succeeds, Atius will succeed.