Some predictions have the Chinese auto market growing by 144% in the coming years. In this video, Brendan Byrnes discusses which auto companies are most likely to benefit. Right now, he says, General Motors and Volkswagen have substantial market share and are likely to expand on their stakes. Ford isn't as big in China as GM or VW are, but it's investing heavily and won't go away quietly. With a decline in Japanese auto sales stemming from the country's current anti-Japan attitudes, American companies could benefit, despite some headwinds related to regulations and infrastructure. Check out the video for further details.
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Top 5 Logistics Companies To Own In Right Now: Simmons First National Corp (SFNC)
Simmons First National Corporation is a multi-bank financial holding company. As of December 31, 2011, the Company had total loans of $1.7 billion, deposits of $2.7 billion and equity capital of $408 million. As of December 31, 2011, it owned eight community banks, which are located throughout Arkansas and conduct its operations through 88 offices, of which 84 are branches, or financial centers, located in 47 communities in Arkansas, Missouri and Kansas. Its community banks are supported by its subsidiary bank, Simmons First National Bank (SFNB or lead bank), which allows its community banks to provide products and services, such as a bank-issued credit card. As of December 31, 2011, SFNB had total loans of $0.9 billion and total deposits of $1.5 billion. Simmons First Trust Company N.A., a wholly owned subsidiary of SFNB, performs the trust and fiduciary business operations for SFNB and for the Company. Simmons First Investment Group, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of SFNB, is a broker-dealer and performs the broker-dealer operations for SFNB. Its subsidiary banks provide complete banking services to individuals and businesses throughout the market areas they serve. These banks offer consumer (credit card and other consumer), real estate (construction, single family residential and other commercial) and commercial (commercial, agriculture and financial institutions) loans, checking, savings and time deposits, trust and investment management services and securities and investment services. In September 2012, through its wholly owned bank subsidiary, Simmons First National Bank (SFNB), it acquired assets of Truman Bank of St. Louis from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the FDIC). In October 2012, SFNB acquired Excel Bank of Sedalia from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. In November 2013, the Company acquired Metropolitan National Bank. Efffective November 25, 2013, the Company acquired Rogers Bancshares Inc.
Lending Activities
During the year ended December! 31, 2011, the Company�� loan portfolio, excluding loans covered by Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) loss share arrangements, averaged $1.621 billion. As of December 31, 2011, total loans, excluding loans covered by FDIC loss share arrangements, were $1.580 billion. The components of the loan portfolio were loans to businesses (commercial loans, commercial real estate loans and agricultural loans) and individuals (consumer loans, credit card loans and single-family residential real estate loans).
Consumer loans consist of credit card loans, student loans and other consumer loans. As of December 31, 2011, consumer loans were $346.6 million or 21.9% of total loans. As of December 31, 2011, the student loan portfolio balance was $47.4 million. As of December 31, 2011, student loans were 3% of total loans. Real estate loans consist of construction loans, single family residential loans and commercial loans. As of December 31, 2011, real estate loans were $1.001 billion or 63.4% of total loans. As of December 31, 2011, its construction and development (C&D) loans represent 7% of its loan portfolio and commercial real estate (CRE) loans (excluding C&D) represent 34% of its loan portfolio. Commercial loans consist of commercial loans and agricultural loans. As of December 31, 2011, commercial loans were $227.2 million or 14.4% of total loans.
Investment Activities
Securities within the portfolio are classified as either held-to-maturity, available-for-sale or trading. Held-to-maturity securities include any security for which management has the positive intent and ability to hold until maturity, are carried at historical cost, adjusted for amortization of premiums and accretion of discounts. As of December 31, 2011, held-to-maturity and available-for-sale investment securities were $525.4 million and $172.2 million. As of December 31, 2011, $312.8 million, or 59.5%, of the held-to-maturity securities were invested in United States Treasury securities and o! bligation! s of the United States government agencies, 60.0% of which will mature in less than five years. In the available-for-sale securities, $153.6 million, or 89.2%, were in the United States Treasury and the United States government agency securities.
Sources of Fund
Deposits are the Company�� source of funding for earning assets and are developed through its network of 84 financial centers. It offers a range of products designed to attract and retain customers with a continuing focus on developing core deposits. Its core deposits consist of all deposits excluding time deposits of $100,000 or more and brokered deposits. As of December 31, 2011, core deposits comprised 86.5% of its total deposits. As of December 31, 2011, its total deposits were $2.65 billion. As of December 31, 2011, non-interest bearing transaction accounts were $532.3 million. As of December 31, 2011, interest bearing transaction and savings accounts were $1.240 billion. As of December 31, 2011, it had $20.6 million of brokered deposits.
As of December 31, 2011, Federal funds purchased and securities sold under agreements to repurchase were $114.8 million. As of December 31, 2011, its other short-term borrowings, consisting of the United States Treasury Tax and Loan (TT&L) Notes and short-term Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) borrowings were $272,000. As of December 31, 2011, its long-term debt was $120.8 million. As of December 31, 2011, the outstanding long-term debt balance includes $89.9 million in FHLB long-term advances and $30.9 million of trust preferred securities.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By CRWE]
Simmons First National Corporation (Nasdaq:SFNC) reported, through its wholly-owned bank subsidiary, Simmons First National Bank (“SFNB”), that it has expanded into the St. Louis, Missouri market by acquiring approximately $282 million in assets of Truman Bank of St. Louis from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the “FDIC”).
- [By Tim Melvin]
Finally, Simonds First National Corp. (Nasdaq: SFNC) is a Midwestern bank with 96 branches in Arkansas, Missouri, and Kansas. The stock has been strong this year, but CEO George Makris thinks there is additional upside ahead for the shares.
Top Japanese Companies To Invest In 2014: Quadrant 4 Systems Corp (QFOR)
Quandrant4 Systems Corp., formerly Zolon Corporation, incorporated on May 9, 1990, is focused in the information technology (IT) sector as a provider of Software as a Service (SaaS) based technology products to enterprise customers in addition to custom software development, life cycle maintenance, outsourcing and consulting services. The Company intends to provide IT consulting services; managed services; software product architecture; software development, maintenance and outsourcing and industry-specific software solutions primarily to enterprises engaged in the Financial Services, Retail and Healthcare sectors, but not limited to, IT services/solutions, managed services, software product architecture, development, maintenance and outsourcing, IT consulting and specific industry-focused software products and/or technology. On July 1, 2011, the Company merged VSG Acquisition Corp. and Resource Mine Acquisition Corp. into ISS Acquisition Corporation, all wholly-owned subsidiaries, which was then, renamed Quadrant 4 Consulting, Inc. Effective February 26, 2013, the Company acquired BlazerFish LLC, Teledata Technology Solutions Inc and Momentum Mobility.
Financial Services
The Company recognizes the changing regulatory environment as well as trends in the interaction between financial services providers and their customers and the role of technology and business-process solutions. It helps its customers implement customer-relationship-management tools based on newer trends and technology. Ite also helps its customers develop and maintain their technology infrastructure in light of regulatory factors, investing markets and demands for analysis.
Health Care and Life Sciences
In the Healthcare sector, the Company represent marketing opportunities. These opportunities are in part driven by regulatory climate while both payers and providers are recognizing that new set of technologies can play a role in achieving additional cost savings and efficiencies. I! t helps its customers integrate their needs of providing Healthcare services, managing information, managing preventive health services with the ever-increasing regulatory framework in which Healthcare services are provided. Its consulting services help customers deliver Healthcare or financing for Healthcare to get the affordability and availability to the patients using technology and business-processes in the areas of records management, billing, back-office services and service-provision analysis.
The Company competes with Accenture, IBM Global Services and Cap Gemini.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By RedChip]
Quadrant 4 Systems (OTCQB: QFOR), a provider of informational technology software and services, is focused on four key areas that are shaping the future of business: social media, mobile technology, big-data analytics, and cloud computing. According to market research firm IDC, these four areas are expected to account for $5 trillion in spending by 2020. QFOR's solutions help blue-chip companies such as Walgreens, Ford, Citibank, and Cisco improve their efficiency and better serve their customers.
Top Japanese Companies To Invest In 2014: Stereotaxis Inc.(STXS)
Stereotaxis, Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets cardiology instrument control systems for use in a hospital?s interventional surgical suite or interventional lab for the treatment of arrhythmias and coronary artery diseases in the United States and internationally. The company provides Niobe system, which includes Niobe Magnetic Navigation System that navigates catheters, guidewires, and other delivery devices through complex paths in the blood vessels and chambers of the heart to carry out treatment; Navigant, a user interface or physician control center, which physicians use to visualize and track procedures and to provide instrument control commands that govern the motion of the working tip of the catheter, guidewire, or other interventional device; Cardiodrive, a catheter advancement system to remotely advance and retract the catheter in the patient?s heart. It also offers Odyssey enterprise solutions, which provides information solutions to manage, control, rec ord, and share procedures across networks; acquires remote view of the lab capturing synchronized procedure data for review of important events during cases; and review recorded cases and create snapshots following procedures for clinical reporting, auditing, and presentation. In addition, the company provides disposable interventional devices comprising automated catheters, coronary guidewires, and navigation and ablation systems. It markets its products through its direct sales force, distributors, and sales agents. The company was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Roberto Pedone]
One under-$10 health care player that looks poised for a potentially large move higher is Stereotaxis (STXS), which designs, manufactures and markets an advanced cardiology instrument control system for use in a hospital's interventional surgical suite to enhance the treatment of arrhythmias and coronary artery disease. This stock has been on fire so far in 2013, with shares up big by 43%.
If you take a look at the chart for Stereotaxis, you'll notice that this stock has formed a major bottom pattern over the last three months, since this stock has found buying interest each time it has pulled back towards $3.50 and $3.10 a share. Buyers have stepped in at those levels and have not let the sellers pressure STXS lower. Shares of STXS are now starting to spike higher today right off its 50-day moving average of $3.59 a share. That spike is quickly pushing shares of STXS within range of triggering a big breakout trade above a key downtrend line.
Traders should now look for long-biased trades in STXS if it manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance at $4 a 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 1.98 million shares. If that breakout triggers soon, then STXS will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $5 to $6.24 a share. Any high-volume move above $6.24 a share will then give STXS a chance to re-fill some of its previous gap down zone from August that started at $10 a share.
Traders can look to buy STXS off any weakness to anticipate that breakout and simply use a stop that sits right below those key support levels at $3.50 to $3.10 a share. One can also buy STXS off strength once it clears $4 a share with volume and then simply use a stop that sits a comfortable percentage from your entry point.
- [By Bryan Murphy]
Look out Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG), and step aside BioTelemetry Inc. (NASDAQ:BEAT). There's a new cardiac name in town, and its name is Stereotaxis Inc. (NASDAQ:STXS). This small company's stock is soaring today on the heels of encouraging news, though the prompt for the stock's strength has been brewing for quite some time. This nudge for STXS, however, may well mean it has a lot more potential than ISRG or BEAT do for the foreseeable future.
Top Japanese Companies To Invest In 2014: Jacksonville Bancorp Inc. (JXSB)
Jacksonville Bancorp, Inc. operates as the holding company for Jacksonville Savings Bank that provides various banking products and services in Illinois. Its deposit products include interest-bearing and non interest-bearing checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, term certificate accounts, individual retirement accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company?s loan portfolio comprises one-to four-family mortgage loans; commercial and agricultural real estate, and multi-family residential real estate loans; commercial and agricultural business loans; and consumer loans, such as home equity loans and lines of credit, and automobile loans. It operates through its main office, as well as through six branches located in Jacksonville, Virden, Litchfield, Chapin, and Concord, Illinois. The company was founded in 1916 and is based in Jacksonville, Illinois. Jacksonville Bancorp, Inc. is a subsidiary of Jacksonville Bancorp, MHC.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Traders Reserve]
Jacksonville Bancorp (JXSB), based in Illinois, owns a loan portfolio comprised of one-to four-family residential real estate; commercial and agricultural real estate; multi-family residential real estate loans; commercial and agricultural business loans; home equity loans and lines of credit.
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