Tuesday, December 23, 2014

Hot International Companies To Watch In Right Now

WASHINGTON (AP) ��Secret Service investigators say they are close to gaining a full understanding of the methods hackers used to breach retailer Target's computer systems last December.

But the agency says it could take years to identify the criminals who stole some 40,000 debit and credit card numbers of Target shoppers and other personal information from as many as 70 million people in the pre-Christmas breach.

And it may take even longer to bring the offenders to justice. The federal investigation is complicated by the international nature of high-profile digital heists. The perpetrators are likely located overseas, which makes extradition and prosecution difficult. As a result, the Secret Service is focused on monitoring the online activities of its suspects, in hopes that they'll be able to arrest them at an opportune moment, says Ari Baranoff, an assistant special agent in charge with the Secret Service's criminal investigative division.

Top Industrial Conglomerate Stocks To Own Right Now: CBRE Group Inc (CBG)

CBRE Group, Inc., incorporated on February 20, 2001, is a holding company that conducts all of its operations through its indirect subsidiaries. The Company is a commercial real estate services firm. The Company offers a range of services to occupiers, owners, lenders and investors in office, retail, industrial, multi-family and other types of commercial real estate. As of December 31, 2011, it operated approximately 300 offices worldwide, providing commercial real estate services under the CBRE brand name, investment management services under the CBRE Global Investors brand name and development services under the Trammell Crow brand name. CBRE Services, Inc., its direct wholly owned subsidiary, is also a holding company and is the primary obligor or issuer with respect to most of its long-term indebtedness. The Company operates in five segments: Americas, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), Asia Pacific, Global Investment Management and Development Services. In March 2014, the Company acquired VALTEQ Gesellschaft mbH and its subsidiaries.

The Americas

The Americas segment consisted of operations throughout the United States and Canada, as well as markets in Latin America. Its operations are wholly owned, but also include independent affiliated offices, which license the use of the CBRE and CB Richard Ellis names in their local markets in return for payments of annual royalty fees to the Company and an agreement to cross-refer business between the Company and the affiliate. Its advisory services businesses offer occupier/tenant and investor/owner services that meet the full spectrum of marketplace needs, including real estate services, capital markets and valuation. Within advisory services, its service lines are Real Estate Services, Capital Markets and Valuation.

The Company provides strategic advice and execution to owners, investors and occupiers of real estate in connection with leasing, disposition and acquisition of property. It generates revenue from ! existing United States real estate sales and leasing clients in 2011. This includes referrals from its contractual fee-for-services businesses, such as facilities and property management, mortgage loan servicing and investment management provided by CBRE Global Investors. The Company offers clients integrated investment sales and debt/equity financing services under the CBRE Capital Markets brand. The Company provides valuation services that include market value appraisals, litigation support, discounted cash flow analyses and feasibility and fairness opinions.

Outsourcing commercial real estate services is a long-term trend in its industry, with corporations, institutions, public sector entities, health care providers and others. Its outsourcing services primarily include two business lines that seek to capitalize on this trend: corporate services and asset services. The Company provides a suite of services to corporate users of real estate, including transaction management, project management, facilities management, strategic consulting, portfolio management and other services. Its clients are global corporations, health care providers and public sector entities with geographically-diverse real estate portfolios. Project management services are typically provided on a portfolio-wide or programmatic basis. Facilities management involves the day-to-day management of client-occupied space and includes headquarter buildings, regional offices, administrative offices and manufacturing and distribution facilities. The Company provides property management, construction management, marketing, leasing, accounting and financial services on a contractual basis for income-producing office, industrial and retail properties owned by local, regional and institutional investors. It provides these services through a network of real estate experts in markets throughout the United States.

Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA)

The Company�� Europe, Middle East and Africa, segment, ! operates ! in 44 countries with operations primarily conducted through a number of indirect wholly owned subsidiaries. The operations are located in France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Russia, Spain and the United Kingdom. Its operations in these countries generally provide a range of services to the commercial property sector. Additionally, it provides some residential property services, primarily in France, Spain and the United Kingdom. Within EMEA, its services are organized along the same lines as in the Americas, including brokerage, investment properties, corporate services, valuation/appraisal services, asset management services and facilities management, among others.

In France, it has operations in Aix in Provence, Bagnolet, Bordeaux, Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Montreuil, Montrouge, Neuilly Sur Seine, Saint Denis and Toulouse. Its German operations are located in Berlin, Cologne, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich and Stuttgart. Its presence in Italy includes operations in Milan, Modena, Rome and Turin. Its operations in the Netherlands are located in Amsterdam, Almere, the Hague, Hoofddorp and Rotterdam. Itsoperations in Russia consist of an office in Moscow. In Spain, it provides full-service coverage through its offices in Barcelona, Madrid, Marbella, Palma de Mallorca and Valencia. The Company is a commercial real estate services company in the United Kingdom. In London, it provides a range of commercial property real estate services to investment and corporate clients.

The Company has affiliated offices that provide commercial real estate services under its brand name in several countries throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Its agreements with these independent offices include licenses to use the CBRE and CB Richard Ellis names in the relevant territory in return for payments of annual royalty fees to the Company. In addition, these agreements also include business cross-referral arrangements between the Company and its affiliates.

Asia Pacific!

The Company�� Asia Pacific segment operates in 13 countries with operations primarily conducted through a number of indirect wholly owned subsidiaries. It is a provider a range of real estate services to corporations throughout the region, similar to the range of services provided by its Americas and EMEA segments. Its principal operations in Asia are located in China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Singapore and South Korea. In addition, it has agreements with affiliate offices in the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Malaysia that generate royalty fees and support cross-referral arrangements similar to its EMEA segment.

Global Investment Management

The Company�� operations in Global Investment Management segment are conducted through its indirect wholly owned subsidiary CBRE Global Investors, LLC and its global affiliates, which it also refers to as CBRE Global Investors. CBRE Global Investors provides investment management services to pension funds, insurance companies, sovereign wealth funds, foundations, endowments and other institutional investors seeking to generate returns and diversification through investment in real estate. It sponsors investment programs that span the risk/return spectrum across three continents: North America, Europe and Asia. CBRE Global Investors��investment programs are organized into four primary categories, which include direct real estate investments through separate accounts and sponsored equity and debt funds, as well as indirect real estate investments through listed securities and multi manager funds of funds. As of December 31, 2011, its portfolio of consolidated real estate held for investment consisted of one industrial property and three multi-family/residential properties, all located in the United States.

Development Services

The Company�� operations in Development Services segment are conducted through its indirect wholly owned subsidiaries Trammell Crow Company, Trammell Crow S! ervices, ! Inc. (both of which merged into Trammell Crow Company, LLC effective January 1, 2012) and certain of its subsidiaries, providing development services primarily in the United States to users of and investors in commercial real estate, as well as for its own account. Trammell Crow Company pursues opportunistic, risk-mitigated development and investment in commercial real estate across a wide spectrum of property types, including industrial, office and retail properties; healthcare facilities of all types (medical office buildings, hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers); higher education facilities (primarily student housing); and residential/mixed-use projects.

Trammell Crow Company acts as the manager of development projects, providing services that are in all stages of the process, including site identification, due diligence and acquisition; evaluating project feasibility, budgeting, scheduling and cash flow analysis; procurement of approvals and permits, including zoning and other entitlements; project finance advisory services; coordination of project design and engineering; construction bidding and management as well as tenant finish coordination; and project close-out and tenant move coordination. As of December 31, 2011, its portfolio of consolidated real estate consisted of land, industrial, office and retail properties and mixed-use projects.

The Company competes with Cushman & Wakefield, Jones Lang LaSalle and Grubb & Ellis.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By David Carey]

    ��undamentals turned positive in the second quarter of 2010, when demand growth outpaced supply growth for the first time in years,��said Kevin Mallory, global head of CBRE Hotels, the lodging-specialty practice of commercial-property brokerage CBRE Group Inc. (CBG) ��ncreased liquidity in the capital markets, combined with a recovery in fundamentals, has driven strong investor interest in hotel-sector investments.��

  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    Among stocks in the S&P 500, CBRE Group (CBG) has dropped 5.5% to $23.05 after it reported a profit of 30 cents a share, missing forecasts for 33 cents. Aflac (AFL), meanwhile, has fallen 3% to $65 after it reported a profit of $1.47, missing estimates for $1.48 on weakness in Japan. Plum Creek Timber (PCL) has dropped 1.3% to $45.76 after announcing that it would sell 12.1 million shares of stock at $45.

Hot International Companies To Watch In Right Now: Volvo AB (VOLVY)

AB Volvo is a supplier of commercial transport solutions providing products, such as trucks, buses, construction equipment, engines and drive systems for boats and industrial applications, as well as aircraft engine components. The Company also offers its customers financial solutions. The Company operates in six segments: Trucks, Buses, Construction Equipment, Volvo Penta, Volvo Aero and Financial Services. The business units include Volvo 3P, Volvo Powertrain, Volvo Parts, Volvo Logistics, Volvo Business Services, Volvo Information Technology (IT), Volvo Real Estate and Volvo Technology. During the year ended December 31, 2009, AB Volvo acquired all shares in Volvo Logistics AB from Fortos Ventures AB. In April 2014, the Company announced that it has completed the sale of commercial real estate. In June 2014, the Company acquired Terex's hauler business.

The Company�� truck operations consist of Volvo Trucks, Renault Trucks, UD Trucks, Mack Trucks and VE Commercial Vehicles (50%) in India. The product offer stretches from heavy-duty trucks for long-haulage and construction work to light-duty trucks for distribution. Volvo Trucks, Renault Trucks, UD Trucks, Mack Trucks and Eicher offer customers a range of products and services for transports.

The Buses has a product range consisting of city and intercity buses, coaches and chassis. Volvo Buses��product line includes complete buses and bus chassis for city, intercity and coach traffic. The Company has a total offering that, in addition to buses, includes a service network, spare parts handling, service and repair contracts, financial services and traffic information systems.

The Company�� construction equipment manufactures equipment for construction applications and related industries. Volvo Construction Equipment develops, manufactures and markets equipment for construction and related industries. Its products include a range of wheel loaders, hydraulic wheeled and crawler excavators, articulated haule! rs, road machinery and a range of compact equipment.

The Company�� Volvo Penta offers engines and drives systems for leisure and commercial boats and for industrial applications, such as gensets and materials handling. Volvo Penta manufactures engines and drive systems for marine applications, for both leisure and commercial craft, with an engine range of 10 to 1,200 horse power and has a global service network with approximately 5,000 dealers. Volvo Penta also supplies industrial engines ranging from 75 kilowatts to 600 kilowatts for irrigation pumps, generator units and other application areas.

The Company�� Volvo aero offers advanced components for aircraft engines and space applications with a focus on lightweight technology for reduced fuel consumption. Volvo Aero specializes in a number of highly advanced components for aircraft engines and space rockets.

The Company�� financial services segment conducts operations in customer and dealer financing. It offers financial services, such as customer and dealer financing and other Services, such as insurance contribute to create customer value. It provides financing solutions and other services in retaining customers and attracting new ones to the Company.

The Company competes with Daimler, Paccar, Navistar, MAN, Scania, Caterpillar, Komatsu, Cummins and Brunswick.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Jason Hall]

    However, there are a couple of bright spots out there. First, sales of Westport's 12 liter ISX12 G, being co-built with�Cummins� (NYSE: CMI  ) , are on track to meet targets for 2014 according to a number of industry experts. Sales of natural gas trucks in 2014 are expected to have grown 27% this year versus 2013. Also, part of the delay in bringing HPDI to market is Westport's shift to HPDI 2.0, and the adoption of HPDI 2.0 by development partners like�AB Volvo� (NASDAQOTH: VOLVY  ) . The injector components are expected to be manufactured in Westport's venture with�Delphi Automotive� (NYSE: DLPH  ) , and the costs will be less than earlier versions, helping natural gas engines be more cost-competitive with diesel.�

  • [By Rich Smith]

    The Department of Defense awarded Sweden's Volvo AB (NASDAQOTH: VOLVY  ) -- or more specifically, Volvo's Mack Trucks subsidiary -- a $177.5 million contract Friday for the purchase of tractor trailers.

Hot International Companies To Watch In Right Now: Prudential Public Limited Company(PUK)

Prudential plc provides retail financial products and services, and asset management services to individuals and businesses in Asia, the United States, and the United Kingdom. It offers savings, protection, investment, and unit-linked products; manages investments across a range of asset classes for internal, retail, and institutional clients; manages onshore mutual funds; and provides retirement planning, consumer and Islamic finance, and health solutions. The company also provides retirement savings and income solutions; variable annuities; fixed and fixed index annuities; term life, universal life, and variable universal life insurance; permanent individual life insurance; and institutional products, such as guaranteed investment contracts, funding agreements, and medium term note funding agreements. In addition, it offers pensions and annuities; investment plans; and car, health, home, travel, and protection insurance policies. Further, Prudential plc provides fund man agement services for individual and institutional clients. The company was founded in 1848 and is based in London, the United Kingdom.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By David O��ara]

    Prudential
    Shares in insurer�Prudential� (LSE: PRU  ) (NYSE: PUK  ) are up 51% in the last 12 months. In that time, the FTSE 100 is 16.7% ahead.

  • [By Patricio Kehoe]

    In fact, today the company announced that it will be launching a new universal life product for the Canadian market called Manulife UL by May 26 of this year. The new product will offer cost-effective insurance protection, as well as the opportunity for tax-advantaged investing, catering to customer�� demands for a more simplified insurance solution, which should help boost sales to some extent. Although the firm�� balance sheet is highly leveraged, exposing it to possible damages in the case of higher-than-expected policy liabilities, Manulife�� capital position has improved substantially over the past year. With a ratio of regulatory capital to capital required at 248%, the firm possesses excessive capital levels, well above competitors like Prudential Public Limited Company (ADR) (PUK), China Life Insurance Company Ltd. (ADR) (LFC), and Sun Life Financial Inc. (USA) (SLF), which all sport a 200% ratio. Moreover, the company�� excessive capital should allow it to maintain the above average dividend yield of 2.66% offered to shareholders.

Hot International Companies To Watch In Right Now: Lehigh Gas Partners LP (LGP)

Lehigh Gas Partners LP, incorporated on December 2, 2011, is engaged in the wholesale distribution of motor fuels, consisting of gasoline and diesel fuel, and to own and lease real estate used in the retail distribution of motor fuels. It generates revenues from the wholesale distribution of motor fuels to gas stations, truck stops and toll road plazas, which it refers to as sites, and from real estate leases. It generates cash flows from the wholesale distribution of motor fuels by charging a per gallon margin. Its supply agreements with lessee dealers have three-year terms, and its supply agreements with independent dealers generally have 10-year terms. In May 2011, the Company acquired from Motiva Enterprises, LLC (Motiva) a total of 26 Shell Oil Company branded gas stations and convenience stores (Shell Locations) located in New Jersey and also acquired 56 wholesale fuel supply agreements. In September 2013, the Company announced that it has completed asset acquisition in the Knoxville, Tennessee region from Rocky Top Markets, LLC and Rocky Top Properties, LLC.

The Company generates cash flows from rental income by collecting rent from lessee dealers and Lehigh Gas-Ohio, LLC (LGO) pursuant to lease agreements. During the year ended December 31, 2011, it distributed approximately 561 million gallons of motor fuels to 570 sites. In addition, it has agreements requiring the operators of these sites to purchase motor fuels from it. As of December 31, 2011, it distributed motor fuels to the classes of businesses, including 185 independent dealers; 181 sites owned or leased by it and that will be operated by LGO following the closing of this offering; 134 sites owned or leased by it and operated by lessee dealers; and 70 sites distributed through six sub-wholesalers. In May 2012, the Company entered into a master lease agreement to lease 120 sites from an affiliate of Getty Realty Corp. Of the 120 sites, 74 are located in Massachusetts, 22 are located in New Hampshire, 15 are located in Pen! nsylvania and nine are located in Maine. The Company is focused on owning and leasing sites located in metropolitan and urban areas. It owns and leases sites located in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio, New York, Massachusetts, Kentucky, New Hampshire and Maine.

Wholesale Motor Fuel Distribution

The Company purchases branded and unbranded motor fuel from integrated oil companies, refiners and unbranded fuel suppliers. It distributes motor fuel to lessee dealers, independent dealers, LGO and sub-wholesalers. The Company is a distributor of brands of motor fuel, as well as unbranded motor fuel. During the year ended December 31, 2011, it distributed approximately 561 million gallons of motor fuel. It distributes motor fuel to lessee dealers and independent dealers under supply agreements. It provides credit terms to its lessee dealers and independent dealers, which are generally one to three days.

The Company distributes motor fuel to sub-wholesalers under supply agreements. Under its supply agreements, it agrees to supply a particular branded motor fuel or unbranded motor fuel to the sub-wholesaler. Motor fuels are sold to the sub-wholesalers at rack plus. It provides credit terms to its sub-wholesalers, which are one to three days. Branded motor fuels are purchased from integrated oil companies and refiners under supply agreements. During the year ended December 31, 2011, its wholesale business purchased approximately 46%, 23%, 22% and 5% of its motor fuel from ExxonMobil, BP Products North America, Inc. (BP), Shell Oil Company (Shell) and Valero respectively.

Real Estate

The Company owns or lease 315 sites located in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio, New York, Massachusetts and Kentucky. 186 of the sites it owns fee simple and 107 sites it leases from third-party landlords. Over 90% of its sites are located in metropolitan and urban areas. It derives its rental income from sites it owns or leases. It collects rent from the lessee dealers and! LGO purs! uant to lease agreements it has with the lessee dealers and LGO. All of its 186 owned sites are leased to lessee dealers or LGO. Its leases with the lessee dealers have three year terms. As of December 31, 2011, the average remaining lease term for owned sites it leases to lessee dealers was 1.8 years. As of December 31, 2011, it also leased 98 sites from third-parties and then sub-leased these sites to lessee dealers and LGO. As of December 31, 2011, the average remaining lease term for sites it leases from third-parties was 7.5 years. Its sub-leases with the lessee dealers have three-year terms. The average remaining sub-lease term for sites it sub-lease to lessee dealers is 4.2 years.

The rental income the Company earns from sites it owns or leases include rental income associated with the personal property located on these sites, such as motor fuel pumps. It sells sites, which it owns and then leases the sites back from the buyer. It refers to these transactions as sale-leasebacks. In these sale-leaseback transactions, it retains the environmental liabilities associated with the site. As of December 11, 2012, the Company leased 22 sale-leaseback sites. As of December 31, 2011, the average remaining lease term of these sale-leaseback sites was 17.5 years. It sub-leases its sale-leaseback sites to lessee dealers and LGO. Its sub-leases with the lessee dealers have three-year terms. As of December 31, 2011, the average remaining sub-lease term for sites it sub-lease to lessee dealers was 2.1 years. As of December 31, 2011, the Company owned 186 sites.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Ali Berri]

    Lehigh Gas Partners LP (NYSE: LGP) shares shot up 24.13 percent to $32.25 after CST Brands (NYSE: CST) announced its plans to acquire Lehigh Gas GP LLC, the general partner of Lehigh Gas Partners LP. Lehigh Gas Partners also reported its financial results for the second quarter.

Hot International Companies To Watch In Right Now: Respect Your Universe Inc (RYUN)

Respect Your Universe, Inc. (RYU), incorporated on November 21, 2008, in a start-up stage company. The Company focuses on capitalizing mixed martial arts (MMA) and similar fighting styles and design, market and sell sportswear and competition apparel directed toward the worldwide MMA fan base. Its product line focuses on apparel that is designed for MMA training and competition, as well as a broader and more mainstream post-competition sportswear category. In October 2012, the Company announced the opening of their first retail location at The Shoppes at the Palazzo in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The Company�� product is classified into three categories: Training, Competition and Lifestyle. Its training apparel includes compression tops and compression shorts, training shorts, training hoodies, t-shirts and duffel bags. Competition wear includes MMA competition shorts. Sportswear includes t-shirts, hoodies, beanies and shorts. In the lifestyle classifications the Company has created products, which include Organic Graphic Tee shirts, in tank, Short sleeve, and long sleeve; Organic Hoody�� full zip and pullover made from premium heavyweight organic cotton fleece, and Bamboo Rayon Tee��.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Peter Graham]

    Small cap stocks Respect Your Universe Inc (OTCMKTS: RYUN), Global Gaming Network (OTCMKTS: GBGM) and Innocap, Inc (OTCBB: INNO) have been getting some attention lately in various investment newsletters thanks in part to paid promotions or investor relations activities. Of course there is nothing wrong with properly disclosed paid promotions or investor relations type of activities, but they can come back and bite unwary traders or investors. So what should you do with these three small cap stocks? Here is a quick reality check:

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