Hot Long Term Companies To Watch For 2014

Labor SMART (OTCBB: LTNC) is proving my pick right as it booked record revenues for August.

The entire demand labor industry should do well as the US Department of Labor just reported that 169,000 more jobs were added to the American economy. The more work there is, the more demand there is for the services of staffing solutions firms such as Labor SMART, Paychex (NASDAQ: PAYX), TrueBlue (NYSE: TBI), and Robert Half International (NYSE: RHI).

I made Labor SMART as a pick as I like growth stocks (who doesn't?)

It has not disappointed. Revenues for August were up 175% from those for August 2012. In addition, Labor SMART added more than 100 clients in August. The client base for Labor SMART ranges from small businesses to Fortune 100 corporations. That is a diverse client base that will serve investors well for the long term.

5 Best Insurance Stocks To Own For 2015: Westfield Financial Inc.(WFD)

Westfield Financial, Inc. operates as a bank holding company for the Westfield Bank that provides various community banking products and services to businesses and individuals in Massachusetts. The company offers various deposit products, including regular savings deposits comprising passbook and statement savings accounts; NOW accounts; noninterest-bearing demand accounts; money market accounts; certificates of deposit; and time deposits. Its loan portfolio primarily consists of commercial and industrial loans, such as business installment loans, vehicle and equipment financing, lines of credit, and other commercial loans; commercial real estate loans to finance the purchase of real property, and construction loans to developers of commercial and residential properties; residential real estate loans; home equity loans; and consumer loans that consist of automobile loans, secured passbook loans, credit lines tied to deposit accounts to provide overdraft protection, and uns ecured personal loans. The company also offers commercial products and services, which include commercial deposit accounts, cash management services, Internet banking, sweep accounts, ATM network, remote deposit, and night deposit services. It operates 11 banking offices in Agawam, East Longmeadow, Holyoke, Southwick, Springfield, West Springfield, and Westfield, Massachusetts; and 12 free-standing ATM locations in Feeding Hills, Holyoke, Springfield, West Springfield, and Westfield, Massachusetts. The company was founded in 1853 and is based in Westfield, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tim Melvin]

  Westfield Financial (WFD) has 11 branches and about $1.3 billion in total assets in Massachusetts. The company has been consistently buying back its shares and in September authorized another 5% stock buyback plan. In the fourth quarter alone the bank repurchased 603,046 shares of its stock at below book value. In addition to the buyback, the bank pays a generous dividend — 3.22% at the current price.

• [By Dividends4Life]

  Memberships and Peers: PBCT is a member of the S&P 500 and a member of the Broad Dividend Achievers��Index. The company's peer group includes: Bank of America Corporation (BAC) with a 0.3% yield, Brookline Bancorp, Inc. (BRKL) with a 3.7% yield and Westfield Financial Inc. (WFD) with a 3.5% yield.

Hot Long Term Companies To Watch For 2014: Cardinal Financial Corporation(CFNL)

Cardinal Financial Corporation operates as the holding company for Cardinal Bank that provides banking products and services to commercial and retail customers in Virginia and greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. It primarily engages in accepting deposits and originating loans. The company?s deposit products include commercial and retail checking accounts, money market accounts, individual retirement accounts, regular interest-bearing savings accounts, and certificates of deposits. Its lending portfolio comprises commercial and industrial loans, commercial mortgage loans, residential mortgage loans, construction loans, home equity lines of credit, and consumer loans. The company also offers courier, telephone and Internet banking, and automatic teller machine services, as well as traveler?s checks, coin counters, wire services, and safe deposit box services. In addition, Cardinal Financial Corporation, through its other subsidiaries, involves in the origination an d acquisition of residential mortgages for sale into the secondary market in the metropolitan Washington, D.C. region, as well as provides a construction-to-permanent loan program; offers retail securities brokerage and asset management services; and provides trust, estate, custody, investment management, and retirement planning services. It operates 26 banking offices. Cardinal Financial Corporation was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in McLean, Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Marc Bastow]

  Bank holding company Cardinal Financial (CFNL) raised its quarterly dividend 33% to 8 cents per share, payable on Feb. 24 to shareholders of record as of Feb. 6.
  CFNL Dividend Yield: 1.88%

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Cardinal Financial (CFNL) has gained 5.8% to $17.47 after it was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform by Keefe Bruyette & Woods.

  Weatherford International (WFT) has dropped 6.3% to $14.75 before the open of trading after it announced the departure of its CFO in an 8-K filing. Wells Fargo and Raymond James both cut Weatherford’s shares as a result of the change.

Hot Long Term Companies To Watch For 2014: Donegal Group Inc.(DGICB)

Donegal Group Inc., through its subsidiaries, offers personal and commercial lines of property and casualty insurance to businesses and individuals in the United States. The company?s personal lines of insurance products include private passenger automobile insurance, which provides protection against liability for bodily injury and property damage arising from automobile accidents, and protection against loss from damage to automobiles owned by the insured; and homeowners insurance that offers coverage for damage to residences and their contents from a range of perils, including fire, lightning, windstorm, and theft, as well as covers liability of the insured arising from injury to other persons or their property. Its commercial lines of insurance products comprise commercial automobile policies that provide protection against liability for bodily injury and property damage arising from automobile accidents, and protection against loss from damage to automobiles owned by the insured; commercial multi-peril policies, which offer protection to businesses against various perils primarily combining liability and physical damage coverages; and workers? compensation policies that provide benefits to employees for injuries sustained during employment. Donegal Group Inc. markets its insurance products through a network of approximately 2,200 independent insurance agencies. As of December 31, 2010, it wrote business in 22 states of the United States. The company was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Marietta, Pennsylvania.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Luke Jacobi]

  Donegal Group (NASDAQ: DGICB) closed up 14.86 percent to $23.95 after Gregory Shepard offered $33-$37 per share for Donegal Group.

  The ExOne (NASDAQ: XONE) gained 4.13 percent to closed at $48.32 as 3D printing stocks once again were spotlighted for today's trading session.

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Shares of Donegal Group (NASDAQ: DGICB) got a boost, shooting up 16.24 percent to $23.22 after Gregory Shepard offered $33-$37 per share for Donegal Group.

Hot Long Term Companies To Watch For 2014: Midnight Sun Mining Corp (MMA)

Midnight Sun Mining Corp., formerly Midnight Sun Capital Corp., is an exploration-stage company engaged in the acquisition and exploration of mineral property interests in Canada. On May 12, 2010, the Company completed its Qualifying Transaction and entered into a mineral property option agreement with ATAC Resources Ltd. Under the agreement it agreed to acquire a 100% interest in the Arn mineral properties located in the Whitehorse Mining District, Yukon Territory. The Company announced that it has entered into an agreement dated July 28, 2011, with Logwood Investments Inc., a Namibian company (the Optionor), whereby the Company had acquired the option to earn a 60% interest in certain mineral properties in Namibia. The Klein Aub Copper-Silver Property in Namibia includes the seven optioned properties comprising 3,750 square kilometers of Exclusive Prospecting Licences in Namibia. The northern group of three properties are located 90 kilometers south of the capital city of Windhoek. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dividends4Life]

  Fair Value: In calculating fair value, I consider the NPV MMA Differential Fair Value along with these four calculations of fair value, see page 2 of the linked PDF for a detailed description: 1. Avg. High Yield Price 2. 20-Year DCF Price 3. Avg. P/E Price 4. Graham Number K is trading at a discount to only 3.) above. Since K's tangible book value is not meaningful, a Graham number can not be calculated. The stock is trading at a 130.9% premium to its calculated fair value of $28.13. K did not earn any Stars in this section.Dividend Analytical Data: In this section there are three possible Stars and three key metrics, see page 2 of the linked PDF for a detailed description: 1. Free Cash Flow Payout 2. Debt To Total Capital 3. Key Metrics 4. Dividend Growth Rate 5. Years of Div. Growth 6. Rolling 4-yr Div. > 15% K earned no Stars in this section. The company has paid a cash dividend to shareholders every year since 1923 and has increased its dividend payments for 10 consecutive years.Dividend Income vs. MMA: Why would you assume the equity risk and invest in a dividend stock if you could earn a better return in a much less risky money market account (MMA) or Treasury bond? This section compares the earning ability of this stock with a high yield MMA. Two items are considered in this section, see page 2 of the linked PDF for a detailed description: 1. NPV MMA Diff. 2. Years to > MMA The NPV MMA Diff. of the $37 is below the $2,500 target I look for in a stock that has increased dividends as long as K has. If K grows its dividend at 2.2% per year, it will take 8 years to equal a MMA yielding an estimated 20-year average rate of 3.31%.Memberships and Peers: K is a member of the S&P 500. The company�� peer group includes: Campbell Soup Company (CPB) with a 2.7% yield, General Mills, Inc. (GIS) with a 3.0% yield, and The Hershey Company (HSY) with a 1.9% yield.Conclusion: K did not earn any Stars in the Fair Value section, did not earn any Stars in the Divi

Hot Long Term Companies To Watch For 2014: Ellie Mae Inc (ELLI)

Ellie Mae, Inc., incorporated October 14, 2007, is a provider of on-demand automation solutions for the mortgage industry. The Company offers an end-to-end solution, delivered using a Software-as-a-Service model that serves as the core operating system for mortgage originators and spans customer relationship management, loan origination and business management. It also hosts the Ellie Mae Network that allows Encompass users to electronically conduct business transactions with the lenders and settlement service providers they work with to process and fund loans. The Company's offerings include range of Encompass services and the DataTrac mortgage management software system. On August 15, 2011, it completed the acquisition of Del Mar Datatrac,Inc. (DMD).

Using the Company�� network technology, it has helped connect a fragmented world of mortgage bankers, mortgage brokers, community banks, credit unions, lenders, investors and service providers, all of which are integral to the origination and funding of residential mortgages. Its Encompass360 solutions include Encompass Product & Pricing Service; Ellie Mae Total Quality Loan Program; Encompass Compliance Service; Encompass Appraisal Service; Encompass CenterWise; Encompass Commissions; Encompass TPO WebCenter and Encompass Docs Solution.

Ellie Mae�� Total Quality Loan program helps in identifying compliance, income and fraud issues early in the origination process; help protect business from loan buy-backs, and fortify workflow and uncover and correct possible issues before you close the loan.Encompass Appraisal Service, integrated inside Encompass360, is that solution helps in completing order right from the loan file in Encompass360; import complete appraisal reports directly into eFolder, and customize appraisal workflow by type of loan and control, which its users can order appraisals. Its Encompass CenterWise wraps two essential Web and electronic document solutions into one unified package. Encompass Commissions is a ! commission management solution integrated inside Encompass360 that automates the calculation, reconciliation and communication of variable pay across your organization. Hosted Encompass360 Banker Edition users can connect directly with third-party originators (TPOs) without leaving Encompass360, and have them connect back in a secure, synchronized, and easy-to-use Web-based environment. Encompass Docs Solution provides a single, integrated application incorporating both initial disclosures and closing documents.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  Residential real estate is hot, and we saw that when Ellie Mae (NYSE: ELLI  ) -- a fast-growing provider of mortgage industry solutions -- posted blowout quarterly results on Tuesday night.

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Calling all cash flows
  When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Ellie Mae (NYSE: ELLI  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

• [By Charley Blaine]

  Equities Trading DOWN
  Shares of Ellie Mae (NYSE: ELLI), which operates an electronic mortgage origination network, were down 18.27 percent to $23.62, after the company reported a weaker-than-expected Q3 profit. Ellie Mae also signed a definitive agreement to buy MortgageCEO.

Hot Long Term Companies To Watch For 2014: Nuance Communications Inc.(NUAN)

Nuance Communications, Inc. provides voice and language solutions for businesses and consumers worldwide. It offers dictation and transcription solutions and services, which automate the input and management of medical information; and speech recognition solutions for radiology, cardiology, pathology, and related specialties that help healthcare providers dictate, edit, and sign reports without manual transcription. The company also offers mobile and consumer solutions and services comprising an integrated suite of voice control and text-to-speech solutions, desktop and portable computer dictation applications, predictive text technologies, mobile messaging services, and emerging services, such as dictation, Web search, and voicemail-to-text for manufacturers and suppliers of mobile phones, automotive products, personal navigation devices, computers, and other consumer electronics. In addition, it provides customer service business intelligence and authentication solutions for enterprises in the telecommunications, financial services, travel, entertainment, and government sectors to support, understand, and communicate with their customers. Further, the company offers document imaging, print management, and PDF solutions to multifunction printer manufacturers, home offices, small businesses, and enterprise customers; software development toolkits for independent software vendors; and licenses its software to multifunction printer manufacturers. Nuance Communications, Inc. markets and sells its products through direct sales force; its e-commerce Web site; and a network of resellers, including system integrators, independent software vendors, value-added resellers, hardware vendors, telecommunications carriers, and distributors. The company was formerly known as ScanSoft, Inc. and changed its name to Nuance Communications, Inc. in November 2005. Nuance Communications, Inc. was founded in 1992 and is headquartered in Burlington, Massachusetts. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lee Jackson]

  Nuance Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: NUAN) is the company that brought you the Siri application that you can talk to on your iPhone. The stock also got crushed after an earnings miss this year. Mega-investor Carl Icahn has accumulated a 16.9% share of the company and may be looking for more. The consensus target for the stock sits at $22.

Hot Long Term Companies To Watch For 2014: Northland Power Inc (NPIFF.PK)

Northland Power Inc. (Northland) owns or has an economic interests, through its subsidiaries, in operating power-producing facilities and a pipeline of construction and development projects. Its operating assets consist of facilities, which produce electricity from natural gas and renewable sources. Its subsidiaries include Iroquois Falls Corp., which owns the Iroquois Falls Facility; Kingston LP, which owns the Kingston Facility; Thorold LP, which owns the Thorold Facility; Mont Miller LP; Jardin LP, which owns the Jardin wind farm; DK Windpark Kavelstorf GmbH & Co. KG and DK Burgerwindpark Eckolstadt GmbH & Co. KG, which own the German Wind Farms; Mont Louis LP, which owns the Mont Louis Wind Farm; Spy Hill LP, which owns the Spy Hill Facility, and North Battleford LP, which owns the North Battleford Facility. Northland owns a 19% interest in Panda Energy Corporation, which through its wholly owned subsidiaries owns the 230 mega-watts combined-cycle Panda-Brandywine facility. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Markus Aarnio]

  Emera's competitors include Northland Power (NPIFF.PK), Fortis (FRTSF.PK), and Atlantic Power (AT). Northland Power has seen insider buying in August and has a dividend yield of 7.6%. Fortis has seen both insider buying and insider selling in August. Fortis has a dividend yield of 4.1%. Atlantic Power saw insider buying last time in April. Atlantic Power has a dividend yield of 9.4%.