2014 Top Stocks Market, Best Stocks Investment In 2014, Top Stocks For 2014: Best Stocks In December 2014

Investors should have a mix of defensive and cyclical stocks when building the core component of an equity portfolio, according to UBS Wealth Management head of investment strategy George Boubouras.

It's not surprising that Boubouras also favours blue-chip companies with a history of consistent returns.

Best Stocks In December 2014:Chemed Corp. (CHE)

Chemed Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides hospice care, and repair and cleaning services in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Vitas and Roto-Rooter. The Vitas segment offers hospice services to terminally ill patients. This segment provides hospice services in the areas of routine home care, general inpatient care, continuous care, and Medicare cap. It also offers spiritual and emotional counseling to patients and their families through its team of doctors, nurses, home health aides, social workers, clergy, and volunteers. The Roto-Rooter segment provides repair and cleaning services, including sewer, drain, and pipe cleaning, as well as plumbing repair to residential and commercial customers through its network of company-owned branches, independent contractors, and franchisees. The company was founded in 1970 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Best Stocks In December 2014:ITC Holdings Corp. (ITC)

ITC Holdings Corp., through its subsidiaries, engages in the transmission of electricity in the United States. The company operates as conduits, allowing for power from generators to be transmitted to local distribution systems either entirely through its own systems or in conjunction with neighboring transmission systems. Its operations include asset planning; engineering, design, and construction; maintenance; and real time operations. ITC Holdings serves investor-owned utilities, municipalities, cooperatives, power marketers, and alternative energy suppliers. The company was founded in 2001 and is based in Novi, Michigan.

Best Stocks In December 2014:AutoZone Inc. (AZO)

AutoZone, Inc. retails and distributes automotive replacement parts and accessories. The company?s stores offer various products for cars, sport utility vehicles, vans, and light trucks, including new and remanufactured automotive hard parts, maintenance items, accessories, and non-automotive products. Its automotive hard parts product line includes A/C compressors, batteries and accessories, belts and hoses, carburetors, chassis, clutches, CV axles, engines, fuel pumps, fuses, ignition, lighting, mufflers, starters and alternators, water pumps, radiators, and thermostats. The company?s maintenance items include antifreeze and windshield washer fluid; brake drums, rotors, shoes, and pads; chemicals, including brake and power; steering fluid, oil, and fuel additives; oil and transmission fluids; oil, air, fuel, and transmission filters; oxygen sensors; paint and accessories; refrigerant and accessories; shock absorbers and struts; spark plugs and wires; and windshield wipers. Its discretionary product line comprises air fresheners, cell phone accessories, drinks and snacks, floor mats and seat covers, mirrors, performance products, protectants and cleaners, sealants and adhesives, steering wheel covers, stereos and radios, tools, and wash and wax products. The company also offers commercial sales program that provides the delivery of parts and other products to local, regional, and national repair garages, dealers, service stations, and public sector accounts. In addition, it sells the ALLDATA brand automotive diagnostic and repair software through the Website, alldata.com; and automotive hard parts, maintenance items, accessories, and non-automotive products through the Website, autozone.com. As of May 7, 2011, the company operated 4,467 stores in the United States and Puerto Rico, and 261 stores in Mexico. AutoZone, Inc. was founded in 1979 and is based in Memphis, Tennessee.

Advisors' Opinion:

By Paul At 2011-10-17
Timothy W Briggs, who is a Senior Vice President at AutoZone Inc. (NYSE:AZO), sold 12,830 shares on Sep 26 at $324.83 per share for a total value of $4,167,574. About the company: AutoZone, Inc. is a specialty retailer of automotive replacement parts and accessories. The Company offers an extensive product line for cars, sport utility vehicles, vans and light trucks, including new and remanufactured automotive hard parts, maintenance items, accessories and non-automotive products. Autozone operates in United States and Puerto Rico, and Mexico.

By Curtis Hesler At 2011-8-26

AutoZone Inc. (NYSE: AZO ) has now been on the Top 5 List for seven consecutive months! and on July 14, AZO broke through its 52-week high. The company also remains remarkably steady in terms of financial health and it receives top marks for buying pressure. Earnings will be released in mid-September and should be impressive. As Americans drive their older cars longer and delay big ticket purchases like new autos, AZO is a good buy.

Best Stocks In December 2014:FactSet Research Systems Inc. (FDS)

FactSet Research Systems Inc. provides financial and economic information to investment community worldwide. FactSet offers fundamental financial data on various companies, analytical applications, and client services to the portfolio managers, research and performance analysts, risk managers, marketing professionals, sell-side equity research professionals, investment bankers, and fixed income professionals. The company?s applications provide users access to company analysis, multicompany comparisons, industry analysis, company screening, portfolio analysis, predictive risk measurements, alphatesting, portfolio optimization and simulation, news and quotes, and tools to value and analyze fixed income securities and portfolios. FactSet combines commercial databases, including content regarding companies and securities from various markets into a single online platform of information and analytics. The company?s solutions for investment management professionals include analyzing market, sector, and fundamental series; offering applications for portfolio attribution, risk management, and quantitative analysis; building quant models and calculating risk; analyzing the nuances of the debt-driven market; viewing event transcripts and corporate event calendars; researching and analyzing companies, benchmarks, debt instruments, and economic series; integrating the client?s own data, such as portfolio holdings and research notes; and creating reports and presentations. FactSet?s solutions for investment banking professionals comprise creating models and presentations; tracking market performance and headlines; providing deal analytic and corporate governance servies; researching on public and private companies; auditing financials underlying SEC filings and annual reports; and providing access to reports via wireless handheld device. The company was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.

Best Stocks In December 2014:DRDGOLD Limited (DROOY)

DRDGOLD Limited engages in the exploration, extraction, processing, and smelting of gold in South Africa. It holds interests in the Blyvoor mine; and the Crown gold surface tailings retreatment facility that reprocesses sand and slimes dumps, as well as involves in the surface retreatment operations. The company was incorporated in 1895 and is based in Roodepoort, South Africa.

Advisors' Opinion:

By seekingalpha.com At 2011-9-7
With mining assets in South Africa, the company runs operations from exploration through to smelting.
Shares are trading at $4.23 at the time of writing, toward the bottom end of their 52-week trading range of $3.96 to $6.23. At the current market price, the company is capitalized at $162.80 million. Earnings per share for the last fiscal year were $1.21, placing the shares on a price to earnings ratio of 3.49. It paid a dividend of $0.06 last year (a yield of 1.40%) which was covered over 20 times by its earnings.

It has the lowest price-to-earnings ratio of the gold mining stocks, though its share price is being held back by recent employee unrest in the region. There is room for the company to increase its well-covered dividend, and that should be attractive to income investors. With gold prices increasing, and production costs likely to remain stable, DRDGold could be a stock worth investing in for the gearing that the safe haven value of its gold reserves offers to its potential earnings.

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