Best Up And Coming Companies To Buy Right Now

While consumer confidence in technology spending is on the rise in the past few weeks, it's down year-over-year since last June. That's according to Shawn DuBravac, chief economist of the Consumer Electronics Association, or CEA.

DuBravac presented his findings at the recent CEA Research Summit at CE Week in New York City. If you're wondering about the greatest growth in consumer electronics, look no further than the tablets and smartphones produced by Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) , along with its many Android competitors. Tablets sales are expected to continue to surge, making up about 80% of all computer sales by 2016.

Motley Fool analyst Rex Moore spoke with DuBravac at CE Week, and has more on the state of the consumer electronics sector in the video below.

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Top 10 Defensive Companies To Buy For 2015: The Hackett Group Inc.(HCKT)

The Hackett Group, Inc. operates as a strategic advisory and technology consulting firm primarily in the United States and western Europe. The company offers executive advisory programs, benchmarking, business transformation, and technology consulting services, as well as shared services, offshoring, and outsourcing advice. Its executive advisory programs consists of advisor inquiry, an inquiry service used by clients for access to fact-based advice on proven approaches and methods to increase the effectiveness of selling, general, and administrative processes (SG&A); best practice research, a research that provides insights into the proven approaches in use at organizations; peer interaction program comprising member-led Webcasts, annual Best Practice Conferences, annual Member Forums, membership performance surveys, and client-submitted content; and best practice intelligence center, an online, searchable repository of practices, performance metrics, conference presentat ions, and associated research. The company?s bench marking services conduct studies in the areas of SG&A, finance, human resources, information technology, procurement, enterprise performance management, shared service centers, and working capital management. These services are used by clients to establish priorities, generate organizational consensus, align compensation to establish performance goals, and develop the required business case for business and technology investments. Its business transformation programs help clients to develop coordinated strategy for achieving performance improvements across the enterprise; and Hackett Technology Solutions help clients choose and deploy the software applications that meet their needs and objectives. The company was formerly known as Answerthink, Inc. and changed its name to The Hackett Group, Inc. in January 2008. The Hackett Group, Inc. was founded in 1991 and is headquartered in Miami, Florida.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By ValueArtifex]

  One such situation currently in the process of unfolding this month is a Dutch Tender by The Hackett Group (HCKT). I will briefly discuss the underlying business, what exactly a Dutch Auction (or in this case, a Tender) is, what options investors have when approaching this situation and how it could play out.

Best Up And Coming Companies To Buy Right Now: Marine Products Corp (MPX)

Marine Products Corporation (Marine Products), incorporated on August 31, 2000, designs, manufactures and sells recreational fiberglass powerboats in the sportboat, deckboat, cruiser, sport yacht and sport fishing markets. The Company sells its products to a network of 135 domestic and 69 international independent authorized dealers. The Company focuses to remain a manufacturer of recreational powerboats for sale to a range of consumers globally. The Company manufactures Chaparral sterndrive and inboard-powered pleasure boats including H2O Sport and Fish & Ski boats, SSi and SSX Sportboats, Sunesta Sportdecks and Xtreme Tow boats, Signature Cruisers, Premiere Sport Yachts and Robalo outboard sport fishing boats. The Company offers a range of products to the family recreational, cruiser and sport yacht markets through its Chaparral brand, and to the sport fishing market through its Robalo brand.

The Company's products include Chaparral - H2O Sport Series, which is a fiberglass multipurpose runabouts; Chaparral - SSi Wide tech, which is a fiberglass closed deck runabouts; Chaparral - SSX Sportdecks, which is a fiberglass bowrider crossover sportboats; Chaparral - Sunesta Xtreme Tow Boats, which is a fiberglass pleasure boats; Chaparral - Signature Cruisers, which is a fiberglass, accommodation-focused cruisers; Chaparral - Premiere Sport Yacht, which is a fiberglass sport yacht, and Robalo - Sport Fishing Boats, which is a sport fishing boats for freshwater lakes or saltwater use. Domestic sales are made through approximately 74 Chaparral dealers, 16 Robalo dealers and 45 dealers that sell both brands located in markets throughout the United States. Marine Products also has 69 international dealers.

The Company competes with Sea Hunt, Sea Fox, Grady-White, Boston Whaler, Everglades and Parker.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [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 Marine Products (NYSE: MPX  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

• [By Sean Williams]

  Sink or swim
  Sometimes the best short-sale opportunities are small, under-the-radar companies. One that I feel fits the bill perfectly is fiberglass boat maker Marine Products (NYSE: MPX  ) .

Best Up And Coming Companies To Buy Right Now: State Auto Financial Corporation(STFC)

State Auto Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, writes personal and business lines of insurance to individuals and small-to-medium sized businesses. The company operates through four segments: Personal insurance, Business insurance, Specialty insurance, and Investment operations. The Personal insurance segment provides personal automobile and homeowners insurance products to the personal insurance market. The Business insurance segment offers commercial automobile, commercial multi-peril, fire and allied lines, and general liability insurance covering small-to-medium sized commercial exposures in the business insurance market. The Specialty insurance segment provides commercial coverages requiring specialized product underwriting, workers? compensation, claims handling, or risk management services. The Investment operations segment offers investment portfolio management services. State Auto Financial Corporation markets its insurance products primarily through independent insurance agencies, which include retail agencies and wholesale brokers in 50 states and the District of Columbia. The company was founded in 1950 and is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. State Auto Financial Corporation is a subsidiary of State Automobile Mutual Insurance Company.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By CRWE]

  State Auto Financial Corporation (Nasdaq:STFC), a super regional property and casualty insurance holding company, will discuss its third quarter 2012 results in a conference call on Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2012, at 10 a.m. ET.

Best Up And Coming Companies To Buy Right Now: InterContinental Hotels Group PLC (IHG)

InterContinental Hotels Group PLC (IHG), incorporated on May 21, 2004, is a global hotel company, operating seven brands internationally. IHG is the holding company. The principal activities of the Company are in hotels and resorts, with franchising, management, ownership and leasehold interests in over 4,400 establishments, with more than 658,000 guest rooms in over 100 countries and territories worldwide. IHG�� hotels brands include InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Club Vacations, Holiday Inn Express, Staybridge Suites, Candlewood Suites and Priority Club Rewards. It has four geographical segments: Americas, Europe, Asia, Middle East and Africa (AMEA), and Greater China. As of December 31, 2011, the pipeline totalled 1,144 hotels (180,484 rooms). In March 2012, the Company announced the launch of HUALUXE Hotels and Resorts in China. During the year ended 31 December 2011, it sold four hotels, three in the Americas region and one in the AMEA region. IHG also manages the hotel loyalty program, Priority Club Rewards. As of December 31, 2011, the Company has 3,832 hotels operate under franchise agreements; managed 637 hotels worldwide and owned 11 hotels. During 2011, the Company opened 241hotels (44,265rooms) and removed 98 hotels (33,078 rooms). IHG is focused on the three segments that together generate over 90% of branded hotel revenues: midscale (broadly 3-star hotels), upscale (4-star), and luxury (5-star). InterContinental Hotels & Resorts InterContinental Hotels & Resorts is IHG�� 5-star brand located in cities and resort destinations across more than 60 countries worldwide. Hotels under InterContinental Hotels & Resorts brand are principally managed by the Company. As of December 31, 2011, there were 169 hotels and 57,598 rooms. As of December 31, 2011, it had 51 hotels in development pipeline. Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts is the IHG�� upscale 4-star segment, specializes in offering modern business and meeting facilities with a service style to provide productive and energising experiences to guests. The majority of hotels under Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts brand are principally operated under franchise agreements in the United States and Europe, and are managed by the Company. As of December 31, 2011, there were 387 hotels and 105,104 rooms. As of December 31, 2011, it had 108 hotels in development pipeline. Hotel Indigo Hotel Indigo provides guests with the refreshing design and service experience with a boutique hotel. The Hotels Indigo brand is principally operated under franchise agreements. As of December 31, 2011, there were 39 hotels and 4,564 rooms. As of December 31, 2011, it had 59 hotels in development pipeline Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Club Vacations The Holiday Inn brand family consists of Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express and Holiday Inn Club Vacations. Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Club Vacations is the midscale hotel brand. Focused on creating an atmosphere where guests can relax, the brand is designed to support both business and leisure travellers. The brand family operates under franchise agreements. As of December 31, 2011, there were 1,240 hotels and 228,256 rooms. As of December 31, 2011, it had 267 hotels in development pipeline. Holiday Inn Express Holiday Inn Express offers convenience and comfort. As of December 31, 2011, there were 2,114 hotels and 196,666 rooms. As of December 31, 2011, it had 470 hotels in development pipeline. Staybridge Suites Staybridge Suites is the Company�� upscale extended stay brand for guests on longer trips, offering studios and suites complete with full kitchens and separate sleeping and work areas in a sociable, family-like atmosphere. Properties under Staybridge Suites brand are operated under a mixture of franchise and management agreements. As of December 31, 2011, there were 179 hotels and 19,567 rooms. As of December 31, 2011, it had 95 hotels in development pipeline. Candlewood Suites Candlewood Suites is the Company�� midscale extended stay brand that gives its guests all the essentials they need for a home-like stay. Properties under Candlewood Suites brand are principally operated under franchise agreements. As of December 31, 2011, there were 285 hotels and 27,500 rooms. As of December 31, 2011, it had 94 hotels in development pipeline. The Company competes with Accor, Choice Hotels International, Inc., Hilton Hotels Corporation, Hyatt, Marriott, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. and Wyndham Worldwide Corporation. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Reuters]
  ATLANTA -- A credit card data breach has been detected that exposed guests at certain Marriott, Holiday Inn, Sheraton and other hotel properties to theft, hotel management firm White Lodging Services said Monday. The breach occurred at food and beverage outlets at 14 hotels, including some operated under the Westin, Renaissance and Radisson names, between March 20 and Dec. 16 last year, White Lodging said in a statement. The company said information subject to potential theft by cybercriminals included names and numbers on consumers' debit or credit cards, security codes and card expiration dates. Customers who used their cards at the affected outlets should review all statements from the time in question and consider placing fraud alerts on their credit files, White Lodging said. White Lodging wouldn't estimate how many card numbers might have been taken. Krebs on Security, the cybersecurity blog that first reported the breach Friday, said thousands of accounts had been compromised. The latest data breach comes after the FBI warned retailers last month to prepare for more cyber attacks after discovering about 20 hacking cases in the past year involving the same kind of malicious software used against Target (TGT) over the holiday shopping season. The incident involving Target, the No. 3 U.S. retailer, was one of the biggest retail cyber attacks in history. In a confidential, three-page report to retail companies the FBI described the risks posed by "memory-parsing" malware that infects point-of-sale systems, which include cash registers and credit-card swiping machines in checkout aisles. Restaurants and lounges affected by the White Lodging breach were at hotels in Chicago; Austin, Texas; Richmond, Va.; Plantation, Fla.; Denver; Boulder and Broomfield, Colo.; Louisville, Ky.; Erie, Pa.; Indianapolis; and Merrillville, Ind., the company said. White Lodging, which manages 169 hotels that include brands of Marriott International (MAR), Starwood

Best Up And Coming Companies To Buy Right Now: Commercial Metals Co (CMC)

Commercial Metals Company, incorporated on August 29, 1946, and its subsidiaries manufacture, recycle and market steel and metal products, related materials and services through a network, including steel mini mills, steel fabrication and processing plants, construction-related product warehouses, a copper tube mini mill, metal recycling facilities and marketing and distribution in the United States and in international markets. The Company Americas Division operates utilizing three segments: Americas Recycling, Americas Mills and Americas Fabrication. The Company�� International Division operates utilizing two segments: International Mill and International Marketing and Distribution, which includes all marketing and distribution operations located outside the United States, as well as two United States-based trading and distribution divisions, CMC Cometals, located in Fort Lee, New Jersey and CMC Cometals-Steel, located in Irving, Texas. In October 2013, Commercial Metals Company completed the sale of Howell Metal Company, to Mueller Copper Tube Products, Inc., a subsidiary of Mueller Industries, Inc.

Americas Recycling

The Americas Recycling segment processes scrap metals for use as a raw material by manufacturers of new metal products. This segment operates 33 scrap metal processing facilities with 16 locations in Texas, eight in Florida, two locations in Missouri and one location in each of Arkansas, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, North Carolina, Oklahoma and Tennessee. The Company purchases ferrous and nonferrous scrap metals, processed and unprocessed, from a range of sources in a range of forms for its metals recycling plants. Sources of metal for recycling include manufacturing and industrial plants, metal fabrication plants, electric utilities, machine shops, factories, railroads, refineries, shipyards, ordinance depots, demolition businesses, automobile salvage firms and wrecking firms.

The Company's scrap metal recycling plants typically consist of an o! ffice and warehouse building equipped with specialized equipment for processing both ferrous and nonferrous metal located on several acres of land that the Company uses for receiving, sorting, processing and storing metals. Several of the Company's scrap metal recycling plants use a small portion of their site or a nearby location to display and sell metal products that may be reused for their original purpose without further processing. Americas Recycling operates five shredding machines, three in Texas, one in Florida, and one in Oklahoma capable of pulverizing obsolete automobiles or other sources of scrap metal. The Company sells scrap metals to steel mills and foundries , aluminum sheets and ingot manufacturers, brass and bronze ingot makers, copper refineries and mills, secondary lead smelters, specialty steel mills, high temperature alloy manufacturers and other consumers.

Americas Mills

The Americas Mills segment includes the Company's domestic steel mills, including scrap metal shredders and processing facilities that directly support these mills and the domestic copper tube minimill. The Company conducts its Americas Mills operations through a network, which includes five steel mills, commonly referred to as minimills, that produce one or more of reinforcing bar, angles, flats, rounds, small beams, fence-post sections and other shapes; two scrap metal shredders and processing facilities that directly support the steel minimills, and The Company operates five steel minimills, which are located in Texas, Alabama, South Carolina, Arizona and Arkansas.

The Company's Texas minimill manufactures a line of bar size products, including reinforcing bar, angles, rounds, channels, flats, and special sections used primarily in building highways, reinforcing concrete structures and manufacturing. It sells primarily to the construction, service center, energy, petrochemical, and original equipment manufacturing industries. The Company's South Carolina minimill manufac! tures a l! ine of bar size products, which primarily includes steel reinforcing bar. The minimill also manufactures angles, rounds, squares, fence post sections and flats. The South Carolina minimill ships its products to customers located in the Southeast and mid-Atlantic regions, which include the states from Florida through southern New England.

Americas Fabrication

The Americas Fabrication segment consists of the Company's rebar fabrication operations, fence post manufacturing plants and construction-related and other product facilities. The Company conducts its Americas Fabrication operations through a network include steel plants that bend, cut, weld and fabricate steel, primarily reinforcing bar; warehouses that sell or rent products for the installation of concrete; plants that produce steel fence posts, and plants that heat-treat steel to strengthen and provide flexibility. The Company's Americas Fabrication segment operates 49 facilities that the Company considers to be engaged in the various aspects of steel fabrication.

The Company conducts steel fabrication activities in 16 locations in Texas, five each in California and South Carolina, three in Florida, two each in Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, and Virginia, and one each in Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, New Mexico, Tennessee and Utah. Fabricated steel products are used primarily in the construction of commercial and non-commercial buildings, hospitals, convention centers, industrial plants, power plants, highways, bridges, arenas, stadiums, and dams. Generally, the Company sells fabricated steel in response to a bid solicitation from a construction contractor or the project owner. The Company sells and rent construction related products and equipment to concrete installers and other construction businesses.

The Company has 23 locations in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Oklahoma, where the Company store and sell these products which, with the exception of a s! mall port! ion of steel products, are purchased from third-party suppliers. The Company operates plants in Chicora, Pennsylvania, Struthers, Ohio and Pell City, Alabama which manufactures armor plate for military vehicles, high strength bar for the truck trailer industry and special bar quality steel for the energy market.

International Mill

The Company's International Mill segment includes the Company's minimill and recycling operations in Poland and its fabrication operations. The Company's subsidiary, CMC Zawiercie S.A. (CMCZ), owns a steel minimill and conducts its operations at Zawiercie, Poland. CMCZ, along with the Company's international recycling and fabrication operations, constitute the International Mill segment. CMCZ operates equipment similar to the Company's domestic steel minimills. The Company operates three rolling mills, one wire-rod mill and two bar mills including a specialty rod finishing mill. In addition, the Company operates a fabrication facility in Dabrowa Gornicza, Poland, that produces welded steel mesh, cold rolled wire rod and cold rolled reinforcing bar.

International Marketing and Distribution

International Marketing and Distribution includes international operations for the sales, distribution and processing of steel products, ferrous and nonferrous metals and other industrial products. In addition, the Company's International Marketing and Distribution segment includes the Company's United States based trading and distribution divisions, CMC Cometals and CMC Cometals Steel. The Company's International Marketing and Distribution business buys and sells primary and secondary metals, fabricated metals, semi-finished, long, flat steel products and other industrial products. The Company sells its products to customers, primarily manufacturers, in the steel, nonferrous metals, metal fabrication, chemical, refractory, construction and transportation businesses. This segment also operates a recycling facility in Singapore.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  First, let Credit Suisse analyst�Nathan Littlewood and team explain why they not only downgraded US Steel and Nucor, but lowered their EBITDA forecasts for AK Steel (AKS), Commercial Metals (CMC) and Steel Dynamics (STLD), as well:

• [By Monica Gerson]

  Commercial Metals Company (NYSE: CMC) is estimated to report its Q3 earnings at $0.29 per share on revenue of $1.85 billion.

  Finish Line (NASDAQ: FINL) is projected to report its Q1 earnings at $0.21 per share on revenue of $394.47 million.

• [By Lauren Pollock]

  Commercial Metals Co.'s(CMC) fiscal first-quarter earnings fell 7.6% as the scrap-metal processor’s revenue in several key segments dropped and the top line missed estimates.

Best Up And Coming Companies To Buy Right Now: Kona Grill Inc.(KONA)

Kona Grill, Inc. owns and operates upscale casual dining restaurants in the United States. The company operates its restaurants under the Kona Grill name. As of September 22, 2011, it owned and operated 23 upscale casual restaurants in 16 states, including Arizona, Missouri, Nevada, Colorado, Nebraska, Indiana, Texas, Illinois, Michigan, Connecticut, Louisiana, Florida, Virginia, New Jersey, Minnesota, and Maryland. Kona Grill, Inc. was founded in 1994 and is based in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lisa Levin]

  Kona Grill (NASDAQ: KONA) shares rose 2.76% to reach a new 52-week high of $14.95. Kona Grill shares have jumped 66.10% over the past 52 weeks, while the S&P 500 index has gained 26.62% in the same period.

• [By Quoth the Raven]

  My argument here is very similar to my argument I recently made with Kona Grill (KONA). Not only is NGS similar to Kona in the fact that they both have insiders with a huge stake in the game, but they both have the same growth prospects.