People love organic food which contains no unnatural ingredients such as pesticides or fertilizers. �They increasingly crave food that will allow them to live healthier, longer, and cheaper due to the rising cost of health care. Organic grocery store chains Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ: WFM ) and Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ: SFM ) certainly reap the benefit of this increasing consumer preference.
However, it always pays to do your research to see if these companies grow their revenue and cash flow. Companies that can grow cash flow increase shareholder value, boost dividends, and most importantly reinvest in the business. Let's take a look under the proverbial hood and see how these companies perform.
Source: Motley Fool Flickr by John Bromels
An organic pioneer
The first Whole Foods Market opened its doors in 1980. �As of the most recent quarter, the company operated 374 stores. Over the past five years Whole Foods Market grew its revenue, net income, and free cash flow 70%, 403%, and 122% �respectively. Year to date, Whole Foods Market grew its revenue and net income 10% and 4% respectively. �Comparable store sales increases of 5% and the opening of 12 new stores contributed to the recent increases in revenue and net income. �However, Whole Foods Market's free cash flow declined 27%�so far this year due to increased capital expenditures on store expansions.
Hot Paper Companies To Watch In Right Now: Bank of America Corporation(BAC)
Bank of America Corporation, a financial holding company, provides banking and nonbanking financial services and products to individuals, small- and middle-market businesses, large corporations, and governments in the United States and internationally. The company?s Deposits segment generates savings accounts, money market savings accounts, certificate of deposits, and checking accounts; and Global Card Services segment provides the U.S. consumer and business card, consumer lending, international card and debit card services. Its Home Loans & Insurance segment offers consumer real estate products and services, including mortgage loans, reverse mortgages, home equity lines of credit, and home equity loans. It also provides property, disability, and credit insurance. The company?s Global Commercial Banking segment offers lending products, including commercial loans and commitment facilities, real estate lending, leasing, trade finance, short-term credit, asset-based lending, and indirect consumer loans; and capital management and treasury solutions, such as treasury management, foreign exchange, and short-term investing options. Its Global Banking & Markets segment provides financial products, advisory services, settlement, and custody services; debt and equity underwriting and distribution, merger-related advisory services, and risk management products; and integrated working capital management and treasury solutions. The company?s Global Wealth & Investment Management segment offers investment and brokerage services, estate management, financial planning services, fiduciary management, credit and banking expertise, and asset management products. Bank of America Corporation serves customers through a network of approximately 5,900 banking centers and 18,000 automated teller machines. It was formerly known as NationsBank Corporation and changed its name on October 1, 1998. Bank of America Corporation was founded in 1874 and is based in Charlott e, North Carolina.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By John Divine]
Bank of America (NYSE: BAC ) lost 1.5% today, despite the fact that its board of directors approved a regular $0.01 quarterly dividend payment to common stock shareholders. You'd think investors would be jumping for joy with that guaranteed penny-a-quarter cash flow, but apparently that didn't cut it. It may be because the bank also just agreed to sell a total of 28 branches in New York and Pennsylvania to two smaller banks, reducing its exposure to important markets.
- [By Jeremy Bowman]
Finally, Bank of America (NYSE: BAC ) was the Dow's biggest loser today, falling 1.4%. The motivation for the volatile too-big-to-fail bank's drop seemed to be little more than the decline in home sales, as it is heavily dependent on selling mortgages. Nervousness about the upcoming Fed report may have also contributed to B of A's fall.
- [By John Divine]
And in no sector was Tepper's influence clearer than financials, where the Dow's top gainer, Bank of America (NYSE: BAC ) , resides. Shares surged 2.8% Tuesday after Tepper said Citigroup (NYSE: C ) was his biggest holding and that he also held other domestic financials. On top of that, the threat from ongoing litigation continues to diminish in the sector, as today's news that a big lawsuit against Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS ) was thrown out buoyed shares.
Top 10 Cheap Stocks To Buy For 2014: MEDIWARE Information Systems Inc.(MEDW)
Mediware Information Systems, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, development, and marketing of software solutions targeting specific processes within healthcare institutions. The company offers software systems consisting of company's proprietary application software, and third-party licensed software and hardware. It licenses, implements, and supports clinical and performance management, blood donor, and blood and biologic management products in the United States; and medication management solutions in the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and South Africa. The company?s blood and biologics management solutions include HCLL Transfusion and HCLL Donor, which address blood donor recruitment, blood processing, and transfusion activities for hospitals and medical centers; BloodSafe suite of hardware and software that enable healthcare facilities to store, monitor, distribute, and track blood products; LifeTrak software for blood centers; a nd BiologiCare, a bone, tissue, and cellular product tracking software. Its medication management products comprise WORx, a pharmacy information system to manage inpatient and outpatient pharmacy operations; MediCOE, a physician order entry module; MediMAR, a nurse point-of-care administration and bedside documentation module; MediREC, which assists in achieving compliance with a Joint Commission mandate; and pharmacy management and electronic prescribing systems. The company?s performance management products include InSight software that tracks performance metrics to assist healthcare managers to manage performance. It also provides software installation and maintenance services, as well as billing and collection services to home infusion and home/durable medical equipment markets. The company markets its products primarily through its direct sales force. Mediware Information Systems, Inc. was founded in 1970 and is headquartered in Lenexa, Kansas.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By CRWE]
Mediware Information Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq:MEDW) plans to acquire the assets of Indianapolis-based Strategic Healthcare Group LLC (SHG), a leading provider of blood management consulting, education and informatics solutions.
Top 10 Cheap Stocks To Buy For 2014: CVS Corporation(CVS)
CVS Caremark Corporation operates as a pharmacy services company in the United States. The company?s Pharmacy Services segment provides a range of pharmacy benefit management services, including mail order pharmacy services, specialty pharmacy services, plan design and administration, formulary management, and claims processing; and drug benefits to eligible beneficiaries under the Federal Government?s Medicare Part D program. This segment primarily serves employers, insurance companies, unions, government employee groups, managed care organizations and other sponsors of health benefit plans, and individuals. As of December 31, 2010, it operated 44 retail specialty pharmacy stores, 18 specialty mail order pharmacies, and 4 mail service pharmacies located in 25 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia. This segment operates business under the CVS Caremark Pharmacy Services, Caremark, CVS Caremark, CarePlus CVS/pharmacy, CarePlus, RxAmerica, Accordant, and TheraCom names. The company?s Retail Pharmacy segment sells prescription drugs, over-the-counter drugs, beauty products and cosmetics, seasonal merchandise, greeting cards, and convenience foods through its pharmacy retail stores and online, as well as offers film and photo finishing, and health care services. This segment operated 7,182 retail drugstores located in 41 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia; and 560 retail health care clinics in 26 states and the District of Columbia under the MinuteClinic name. It has a strategic alliance with Alere, L.L.C. for the management of disease management program offerings that cover chronic diseases, such as asthma, diabetes, congestive heart failure, and coronary artery disease. CVS Caremark Corporation was founded in 1892 and is based in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Brad Thomas]
Like many of the other Triple-Net REITs, Agree operates its investment platform with a variety of free-standing net lease tenants including many household names such as Walgreens (WAG), CVS (CVS), Staples, Chase Bank, AutoZone (AZO), Advance Auto Parts (AAP), Lowe's (LOW), McDonald's (MCD), Family Dollar (FDO), Harris Teeter, Dollar General (DG), and Wawa. As shown below, Agree has a majority (88%) of nationally-recognized tenants, including many investment grade retailers (62.6%).
Top 10 Cheap Stocks To Buy For 2014: Progress Software Corporation(PRGS)
Progress Software Corporation operates as an enterprise software company worldwide. Its products include Progress OpenEdge platform, which offers development tools, application servers, application management tools, and an embedded database; Progress Orbix to address enterprise integration problems with standards-based solutions; and Progress ObjectStore, an object data management system to store data faster than relational database management system or file-based storage system. The company?s products also comprise Progress Responsiveness Process Management suite for business users; Progress Control Tower, an interactive business control panel; Progress Sonic, which comprises an enterprise messaging system and the enterprise service buses; Progress Actional that provides operational and business visibility, root cause analysis, and policy-based security and control of services; Progress Apama, which offers tools for creating, testing, and deploying strategies for applicat ions, including algorithmic trading, market aggregation, smart order routing, market surveillance and monitoring, and risk management; Progress Savvion BusinessManager, a business process management software; and Fuse products that provide customers with access to professional open source integration and messaging software. In addition, it offers Progress DataDirect Connect products, which provide data connectivity components; Progress DataDirect Shadow to provide foundation architecture for standards-based mainframe integration; and Progress Data Services product set that offers data integration for distributed applications. Further, the company provides maintenance, consulting, training, and customer support services. Progress Software Corporation sells its products to independent software vendors, original equipment manufacturers, and system integrators through direct sales force and independent distributors. The company was founded in 1981 and is based in Bedford, Massac husetts.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Garrett Cook]
In trading on Friday, technology shares were relative leaders, up on the day by about 0.15 percent. Top gainers in the sector included Aware (NASDAQ: AWRE), up 15.9 percent, and Progress Software (NASDAQ: PRGS), up 10.5 percent.
Top 10 Cheap Stocks To Buy For 2014: Capstone Turbine Corporation(CPST)
Capstone Turbine Corporation develops, manufactures, markets, and services turbine generator sets and related parts for use in stationary distributed power generation applications. Its stationary distributed power generation applications include cogeneration combined heat and power (CHP), integrated (CHP), resource recovery, and secure power, as well as combined cooling, heat, and power; and its products are used as battery charging generators for hybrid electric vehicle applications. The company primarily offers microturbine units, subassemblies, and components. It also provides various accessories, including rotary gas compressors with digital controls, heat recovery modules for CHP applications, dual mode controllers that allow automatic transition between grid connect and stand-alone modes, batteries with digital controls for stand-alone/dual-mode operations, power servers for multipacked installations, and protocol converters for Internet access, as well as frames, ex haust ducting, and installation hardware. Further, it remanufactures microturbine engines; and provides after-market parts and services, scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, and factory and on-site training services. The company?s microturbines can be fueled by various sources, including natural gas, propane, sour gas, landfill or digester gas, kerosene, diesel, and biodiesel. It primarily sells its products directly to end users, as well as through distributors in North America, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Russian Federation, and South America. Capstone Turbine Corporation was founded in 1988 and is based in Chatsworth, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Tyler Crowe]
What:�Shares of Capstone Turbine (NASDAQ: CPST ) skyrocketed 13.59% as the company announced that it had signed a major supplier deal with private real estate and investment firm Related Companies. Shares of Capstone haven't been this high in over a year.
Top 10 Cheap Stocks To Buy For 2014: Kohl's Corporation(KSS)
Kohl?s Corporation operates department stores in the United States. The company?s stores offer private and exclusive, as well as national branded apparel, footwear, and accessories for women, men, and children; soft home products, such as sheets and pillows; and housewares primarily to middle-income customers. As of January 29, 2011, it operated 1,089 stores in 49 states. The company also offers on-line shopping on its Web site at Kohls.com. Kohl?s Corporation was founded in 1962 and is headquartered in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Zahid Waheed]
Most US retailers didn't post a strong holiday quarter as severe weather conditions kept hurting their sales, and this included�Ross Stores� (NASDAQ: ROST ) . Does this mean that Ross is no longer a buy? Let's find out what the future holds for the company and explore where it stands in relation to peers Kohl's (NYSE: KSS ) and Gap (NYSE: GPS ) .
- [By Tom Taulli]
Valuation. JCP is trading at only 0.16 times overall sales — a bargain if you believe in the store’s recovery. This compares to Macy�� (M) and Kohl’s (KSS) at multiples of 0.6.�Something else: JCP still has some heavy-hitters that are long the stock, including George Soros, Richard Perry of Perry Capital and Kyle Bass of Hayman Capital as of the most recent SEC filings.
- [By Varun Chandan, Arora]
This has been an excellent year for most department stores. Year-to-date, shares of Macy's (NYSE: M ) have gained nearly 43%, while�Kohl's (NYSE: KSS ) has gained nearly 30%. One notable, but not surprising, exception has been J.C. Penney (NYSE: JCP ) . Shares of the Plano, Texas-based company have fallen more than 55% this year as the company has continued to struggle. However, last month the company reported encouraging quarterly results which indicate that its turnaround plan is working. So, is this a good time to buy J.C. Penney?
Top 10 Cheap Stocks To Buy For 2014: AeroVironment Inc.(AVAV)
AeroVironment, Inc. designs, develops, produces, and supports unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), and efficient energy systems for various industries and governmental agencies. Its UAS provide intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, including real-time tactical reconnaissance, tracking, combat assessment, and geographic data to the small tactical unit or individual war fighter. The UAS wirelessly transmit critical live video and other information generated by their payload of electro-optical or infrared sensors directly to a hand-held ground control system, enabling the operator to view and capture images during the day or at night on a hand-held ground control unit. AeroVironment also provides spare equipment, alternative payload modules, batteries, chargers, repair services, and customer support for the UAS. In addition, the company produces industrial productivity and clean transportation solutions for commercial and government customers, develops potential clean t ransportation solutions, and performs contract engineering services; offers PosiCharge electric vehicle charging systems for industrial electric material handling fleets, electric vehicle charging systems for passenger and fleet vehicles, and power cycling and test systems for developers and manufacturers of plug-in electric and hybrid vehicles, as well as battery packs, electric motors, and fuel cells; and supplies power cycling and test systems to research and development organizations that focus on developing electric propulsion systems, electric generation systems, and electricity storage systems. It supplies its UAS primarily to the organizations within the United States department of defense. AeroVironment, Inc. was incorporated in 1971 and is headquartered in Monrovia, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Abigail W., Adams]
General Atomics' Predators and Reapers, however, are losing their status. DOD contracts for MQ-9 Reaper procurement fell from $979 million in 2013 to $411 million for 2015. Predator procurement was reduced from $28 million in 2013 to $5 million for 2015. AeroVironment's (NASDAQ: AVAV ) RQ-11 Raven, a portable UAV capable of reconnaissance, surveillance, and target identification, were also a favorite for combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Raven, however, took an enormous hit in 2015. Procurement contracts for the compact drone dropped from $30 million in 2013 to $13 million for 2015.
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