Best Companies To Watch In Right Now

From The Kiplinger Letter, Sept. 13, 2013

If your computers use Microsoft�� Windows XP operating system, take note:

As of April 8, 2014, Microsoft will no longer provide technical support for it, despite the popularity of the venerable software. So users will no longer receive fixes for glitches or updates to ward off the latest security threats, as they have for years. Most businesses will upgrade to Windows 7, one of three operating systems currently sold by Microsoft. But before upgrading, make sure your current computers are powerful enough to run the newer software. Many users will need new machines for Windows 7 or the more advanced Windows 8, meant for devices with touch screens.

Watch for more and more touch screens to pop up in business applications, as folks used to smart phones and tablets in their personal lives increasingly prefer to tap and swipe rather than click and type. Tablets and other touch screen devices let office workers instantly share files, work together online and do other group tasks in ways that PCs can��, making the offices more collaborative...and more productive.

Best Companies To Watch In Right Now: Market Vectors ETF Trust Market Vectors India Small Cap Index ETF (SCIF)

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Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  Market Vectors India Small-Cap ETF (NYSEMKT: SCIF) is down almost 3% at $22.38, and the new low was put in today, with its 52-week range now being $22.25 to $46.60. This one is now down over half from its high and without any extreme leverage other than holding smaller stocks.

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  The small-cap ETF for India is the Market Vectors India Small-Cap ETF (NYSEMKT: SCIF), and its gain is only 0.5% to $24.48, against a 52-week range of $22.25 to $46.60. The recovery here is only almost 9% when it is still trading at about half the price of its 52-week high.

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  Market Vectors India Small-Cap ETF (NYSEMKT: SCIF) is down 3.5% and hit a new 52-week low of $23.71 and its 52-week high was $46.60. This is now effectively down by 50%, and that is without any extreme leverage.

• [By Ankush Shaw]

  Therefore the�Market Vectors India Small Cap ETF� (NYSEMKT: SCIF  ) , with an asset base of $90.39 million, could be a good option for investor. The ETF has a large allocation toward banks and the financial sector (20%), which is an added advantage, as the Indian financial sector would be the biggest beneficiary of the latest policies.

Best Companies To Watch In Right Now: Overland Storage Inc.(OVRL)

Overland Storage, Inc. provides data management and data protection solutions for primary or nearline storage, disk backup and recovery, and data management and protection worldwide. It offers Snap Server, a line of network attached storage and storage area network solutions designed for primary and secondary data accessibility and protection; and are available with backup, replication, and mirroring software in fixed capacity or highly scalable configurations. The company also provides NEO SERIES and REO SERIES of virtual tape libraries, tape backup, and archive systems designed to meet the need for data storage for long-term archiving and compliance requirements. In addition, it offers data management software, including GuardianOS, a storage-optimized platform operating system; Snap Enterprise Data Replicator, which provides multi-directional, WAN-optimized replication for Snap Server systems; and Protection OS software that offers virtualization, data protection, data management, and connectivity features for REO virtual tape library systems. It serves various industries, such as financial services, video surveillance, healthcare, retail, manufacturing, telecommunications, broadcasting, and research and development. The company markets its products through original equipment manufacturers, direct market resellers, distributors, and value-added resellers to small and medium enterprises, corporate departments, small and medium businesses multinational corporations, governmental organizations, and educational institutions. The company was formerly known as Overland Data, Inc. and changed its name to Overland Storage, Inc. in 2002. Overland Storage Inc. was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.

Top Casino Companies To Invest In 2014: CorVel Corp.(CRVL)

CorVel Corporation provides medical cost containment and managed care services to manage the medical costs of worker?s compensation and auto claims in the United States. It offers network solutions, including bill review, PPO management, professional review, reimbursement, pharmacy, directed care, and clearinghouse services, as well as medicare solutions. The company also provides patient management services comprising claims management, case management, nurse triage, utilization management, vocational rehabilitation, life care planning, disability management, liability claims management, and auto claims management. It provides its services to insurance companies, third-party administrators, employers, and government agencies. The company was founded in 1987 and is based in Irvine, California.

Best Companies To Watch In Right Now: Intel Corporation(INTC)

Intel Corporation engages in the design, manufacture, and sale of integrated circuits for computing and communications industries worldwide. It offers microprocessor products used in notebooks, netbooks, desktops, servers, workstations, storage products, embedded applications, communications products, consumer electronics devices, and handhelds. The company also provides system on chip products that integrate its core processing functionalities with other system components, such as graphics, audio, and video, onto a single chip. In addition, it offers chipset products that send data between the microprocessor and input, display, and storage devices, including keyboard, mouse, monitor, hard drive, and CD, DVD, or Blu-ray drives; motherboards designed for desktop, server, and workstation platforms, and that has connectors for attaching devices to the bus; and wired and wireless connectivity products consisting of network adapters and embedded wireless cards used to translate and transmit data across networks. Further, the company provides NAND flash memory products primarily used in portable memory storage devices, digital camera memory cards, and solid-state drives; software products comprising operating systems, middleware, and tools used to develop, run, and manage various enterprise, consumer, embedded, and handheld devices; and software development tools that enable the creation of applications. Additionally, it develops computing platforms, which are integrated hardware and software computing technologies designed to offer an optimized solution. The company sells its products principally to original equipment manufacturers, original design manufacturers, PC components and other products users, and other manufacturers of industrial and communications equipment. It has a strategic alliance with Scientific Conservation Inc. Intel Corporation was founded in 1968 and is based in Santa Clara, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Kofi Bofah]

  In his May 14, 2013 interview with Fortune Magazine, ARM (ARMH) CEO Simon Segars mocked the personal computer market as a place "where two people have controlled it and the person that makes PCs runs on 2% profit margin and can't afford to innovate anything other than which shade of grey the plastic is." At the time, Segars' ridicule of the personal computer industry came against a Company Overview backdrop of claims that ARM architecture has been installed within more than 95% of the world's mobile phones. Over the past 24 months, of course, Microsoft (MSFT) and Intel (INTC) have expressed their financial and ideological commitment to building out mobile businesses. The moves out of Segars' "two people," however, have increasingly reeked of desperation. For once, Microsoft and Intel are finding themselves largely shut out and unable to bully their way into a lucrative market.

• [By Selena Maranjian]

  Intel (NASDAQ: INTC  )

  To earn their high scores, the companies above engaged in a variety of good practices such as paying employees for some of their volunteering time, loaning talent, and permitting the use of facilities. Each company's total annual giving was also considered.
  
  Digging deeper
  So what, exactly, are these companies doing right? Here are a few examples of their philanthropic practices:

• [By Alex Dumortier, CFA]

  The article cites several specific examples in which the tax credit made a dramatic impact on companies' effective tax rate, including Intel (NASDAQ: INTC  ) and Google. In the case of Intel, the chip maker's tax rate fell to 16.3% in the first quarter from 28.2% in the prior year period. The company itself said the extension of the research tax credit was responsible for the "substantial majority" of the decline.

• [By Andrew Tonner]

  In case you hadn't noticed, the PC market is in absolute shambles these days. With�Microsoft's (NASDAQ: MSFT  ) Windows 8 having failed to drive the refresh cycle many had hoped, we're now seeing names like Microsoft and�Intel (NASDAQ: INTC  ) shift their strategy. In the coming months, investors and consumers will see a new spate of devices enter the market that will take aim at the tablet market. And while these are two of the most formidable names in all of technology, the challenge they both face is maybe equally immense as both�Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) and�Google (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) continue to click on all cylinders in the mobile space as well. This tension should be one of the defining storylines in big tech today.

Best Companies To Watch In Right Now: PACCAR Inc.(PCAR)

PACCAR Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and distributes light-, medium-, and heavy-duty trucks and related aftermarket parts worldwide. The company offers its trucks for use in the over-the-road and off-highway hauling of freight, petroleum, wood products, construction, and other materials to independent dealers under the Kenworth, Peterbilt, and DAF nameplates. It also provides finance and leasing products and services, such as inventory financing for independent dealers; and retail loan and lease financing for new and used trucks, as well as other transportation equipment; and full service leasing under the PacLease trade name. In addition, it manufactures and sells industrial winches under the Braden, Carco, and Gearmatic nameplates. PACCAR Inc was founded in 1905 and is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Navistar hasn't been entirely locked out of the trucking market, though. The company won several contracts from the Defense Department in support of its military vehicles, including its MaxxPro mine-resistant, ambush-protected armored vehicle. On the commercial front, Navistar won part of an order in May from trucking company Con-Way (NYSE: CNW  ) , which purchased 200 ProStar vehicles from the company. Still, the fact that rival Paccar (NASDAQ: PCAR  ) got an even bigger portion of the Con-Way order is just one more sign of the ongoing struggles Navistar faces.

• [By Neha Chamaria]

  Investors who follow the industrial sector closely should be ready for a busy week ahead, as some of the top names turn up with their quarterly earnings reports. One company to pay attention to is PACCAR (NASDAQ: PCAR  ) .

• [By Daniel Ferry]

  Another important development last week was the announcement that Trillium CNG, a division of Integrys Energy Group (NYSE: TEG  ) , would build 101 new compressed natural gas (CNG) refueling stations across the country by 2016. This would expand the existing infrastructure of publicly available CNG refueling stations by nearly 20%. This is good news for Westport because many of Westport's products run on CNG, including its bi-fuel WiNG system for light-duty Ford pickup trucks, as well as the medium-duty ISL G and heavy-duty ISX12 G engines it produces through Cummins Westport Incorporated, its manufacturing joint-venture with independent engine maker Cummins (NYSE: CMI  ) . Users of the ISL G and ISX12 G engines include long-haul truck manufacturers like PACCAR (NASDAQ: PCAR  ) , Volvo, and Daimler. Freight trucking is a critical growth industry for natural gas engines, because the long miles and heavy loads that freight trucks endure relative to passenger vehicles make them especially sensitive to fuel costs.