Hot Quality Companies To Own For 2014

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- On vacation in England recently, I avoided Starbucks (SBUX), while the people I was visiting just as eagerly longed for it.

We were motivated by the same call, America.

Living here you can sometimes forget how big a deal this country is to the rest of the world, and how symbolic it remains of the good life. That's what Starbucks sells outside the United States -- not coffee, but a few minutes in America. Where the couches are comfortable and the WiFi is free.

This is especially true in markets like China, where the company will soon open its 1,000th store. As a local blog called The Beijinger put it, "Starbucks in China has never been about coffee." It's about creating a middle ground, an illusion of freedom to speak and equality of rank, in a country where that's very rare. In a way, Starbucks today occupies the position Coca-Cola (KO) did right after World War II. It's a symbol of America's best qualities and its relative safety. A Coke was uniformity in a bottle, a refreshing drink that wouldn't kill you. Starbucks is a place where you can feel safe, equal and free. Both are illusions, but American business thrives on illusions. Movies are illusions, advertisements are illusions. Illusions have immense power in places where reality feels dismal. This gives Starbucks tremendous room to grow, with expanding margins, because price is not the issue. The company now brings about 10 cents on every dollar to the net income line, after taxes, and unlike some other companies its tax bill is rather hefty, about 32%. Which brings up another point about Starbucks. The image it projects is the more benign, liberal face of America. Its request that customers leave their guns at home is a signal to international markets that don't understand America's current gun addiction, a sign Starbucks doesn't either. CEO Howard Schultz also cultivates an image that reminds me of the legendary Coca-Cola CEO Robert Woodruff. He gives lip service to environmental causes and his endorsements to President Obama and ObamaCare. But he's also a deficit scourge, having supported an anti-gridlock group called "No Labels" back in 2011.

Top Stocks For 2015: Carrefour SA (CRERF)

Carrefour SA is a France-based company that is primarily engaged in retail distribution sector. The Company operates a network of hypermarkets, supermarkets, hard discount stores, convenience stores and cash-and-carry outlets and offers e-commerce services. The Company's hypermarkets named Carrefour offer a range of food and non-food products. Carrefour SA�� hypermarkets, supermarkets and convenience stores are operating under the Carrefour city, Carrefour contact, Carrefour express, 8aHuit, Shopi, Marche Plus, Proxi banners and cash & carry stores are operating under the Promocash banner, which primarily offer food, clothing and household goods, among others. The Company operates in mainland France and French overseas territories, as well as in Europe, Asia, Latin America, North Africa and the Middle East through a network of consolidated and franchised stores, and stores that Carrefour SA runs with partner companies. In January 2014, it acquired 129 convenience stores. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sophia Yan]

  Carrefour (CRERF) has also shuttered many stores, and is reported to be exploring a sale of its China and Taiwan businesses.

  Hypermarkets -- big box stores that combine supermarkets and department stores -- first opened up in China's largest cities over a decade ago. And it's no wonder companies such as Wal-Mart have been keen to get a slice of the market.

Hot Quality Companies To Own For 2014: Swissquote Group Holding Ltd (SQN)

Swissquote Group Holding Ltd (Swissquote) is a provider of online financial and trading services in Switzerland. It operates an online bank that accepts deposits from its customers mainly in Swiss Francs, United States Dollars and Euros in current account form, as well as offers electronic dealing in shares, funds, options, warrants and bonds worldwide. Swissquote also provides stock brokerage services to self-directed investors and asset managers; custodian services against fees and foreign exchange; margin loans to customers against pledging of assets; fiduciary placements on behalf and at the risks of clients against commission fees and services to corporations for the management of their stock option programs, among others. Its financial portal swissquote.ch is an online platform providing the information that users need to conduct independent research on various investment vehicles. It is active domestically and abroad, including Dubai and Malta. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tom Stoukas]

  Swissquote Group Holding SA (SQN) surged 13 percent after agreeing to buy MIG Bank for an undisclosed price. Clariant AG lost 1.6 percent after UBS AG removed the maker of specialty chemicals from the list of its most preferred shares.

Hot Quality Companies To Own For 2014: MGIC Investment Corp (MTG)

MGIC Investment Corporation (MGIC), incorporated June 21, 1984, is a holding company and through wholly owned subsidiaries is a private mortgage insurer in the United States. As of December 31, 2012, its principal mortgage insurance subsidiaries, Mortgage Guaranty Insurance Corporation (MGIC) and MGIC Indemnity Corporation (MIC), were each licensed in all 50 states of the United States, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. During the year ending December 31, 2012, the Company wrote new insurance in each of those jurisdictions in MGIC and/or MIC. The Company capitalized MIC to write new insurance in certain jurisdictions where MGIC no longer meets, and is unable to obtain a waiver of, those jurisdictions��minimum capital requirements. Private mortgage insurance covers losses from homeowner defaults on residential mortgage loans, reducing and, in some instances, eliminating the loss to the insured institution if the homeowner defaults.

Mortgage Insurance

Primary insurance provides mortgage default protection on individual loans and covers unpaid loan principal, delinquent interest and certain expenses associated with the default and subsequent foreclosure. Primary insurance is written on first mortgage loans secured by owner occupied single-family homes, which are one-to-four family homes and condominiums. Primary insurance is also written on first liens secured by non-owner occupied single-family homes, which are referred to in the home mortgage lending industry as investor loans, and on vacation or second homes. Primary coverage can be used on any type of residential mortgage loan instrument approved by the mortgage insurer.

When a borrower refinances a mortgage loan insured by the Company by paying it off in full with the proceeds of a new mortgage that is also insured by it, the insurance on that existing mortgage is cancelled, and insurance on the new mortgage is considered to be new primary insurance written. Therefore, continuation of its coverage fr! om a refinanced loan to a new loan results in both a cancellation of insurance and new insurance written. When a lender and borrower modify a loan rather than replace it with a new one, or enter into a new loan pursuant to a loan modification program, its insurance continues without being cancelled assuming that the Company consent to the modification or new loan.

The borrower�� mortgage loan instrument requires the borrower to pay the mortgage insurance premium. There are several payment plans available to the borrower, or lender, as the case may be. Under the monthly premium plan, the borrower or lender pays it a monthly premium payment to provide only one month of coverage. Under the annual premium plan, an annual premium is paid to it in advance, and it earns and recognizes the premium over the next 12 months of coverage, with annual renewal premiums paid in advance thereafter and earned over the subsequent 12 months of coverage. Under the single premium plan, the borrower or lender pays it a single payment covering a specified term exceeding twelve months.

Pool insurance is used as an additional credit enhancement for certain secondary market mortgage transactions. Pool insurance covers the excess of the loss on a defaulted mortgage loan which exceeds the claim payment under the primary coverage, if primary insurance is required on that mortgage loan, as well as the total loss on a defaulted mortgage loan which did not require primary insurance. Pool insurance is used as an additional credit enhancement for certain secondary market mortgage transactions. Pool insurance covers the excess of the loss on a defaulted mortgage loan, which exceeds the claim payment under the primary coverage, if primary insurance is required on that mortgage loan, as well as the total loss on a defaulted mortgage loan which did not require primary insurance. In general, the loans insured by it in Wall Street bulk transactions consisted of loans with reduced underwriting documentation; cash out! refinanc! es, which exceed the standard underwriting requirements of the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) (collectively GSEs); A- loans; subprime loans, and jumbo loans.

Other Products and Services

The Company has participated in risk sharing arrangements with the GSEs and captive mortgage reinsurance arrangements with subsidiaries of certain mortgage lenders, which reinsure a portion of the risk on loans originated or serviced by the lenders, which have MGIC primary insurance. It provides information regarding captive mortgage reinsurance arrangements to the New York Department of Insurance (known as the New York Department of Financial Services), the Minnesota Department of Commerce and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, (HUD). It performs contract underwriting services for lenders, in which it judges whether the data relating to the borrower and the loan contained in the lender�� mortgage loan application file comply with the lender�� loan underwriting guidelines. It also provides an interface to submit data to the automated underwriting systems of the GSEs, which independently judge the data. These services are provided for loans, which require private mortgage insurance, as well as for loans that do not require private mortgage insurance. It provides mortgage services for the mortgage finance industry, such as portfolio retention and secondary marketing of mortgages.

The Company competes with Federal Housing Administration, Veterans Administration, PMI Mortgage Insurance Company, Genworth Mortgage Insurance Corporation, United Guaranty Residential Insurance Company, Radian Guaranty Inc., CMG Mortgage Insurance Company, and Essent Guaranty, Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By George Putnam]

  George Putnam: Sure. Well, MGIC Investment Corp. (MTG), which insures mortgages—residential mortgages—was really hammered back in 2007, 2008, and it struggled to, sort of, dig out of the hole that it got in from all of the defaults that individual homeowners made on their mortgages.

• [By Garrett Cook]

  In trading on Friday, financial shares were relative laggards, down on the day by about 0.40 percent. Top losers in the sector included MGIC Investment (NYSE: MTG), down 11.9 percent, and Radian Group (NYSE: RDN), off 5.2 percent.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Genworth's results are consistent with the gains that its mortgage-insurance peers have experienced. Both Radian Group (NYSE: RDN  ) and MGIC Investment (NYSE: MTG  ) have posted impressive gains that have attracted the attention of hedge-fund investors seeking to capitalize on the strengthening housing market. Yet in the long run, the question that faces the entire industry is whether lenders will even want to make mortgage loans with inadequate down payments that require mortgage insurance in the first place. Some would argue that tighter lending standards would make mortgage insurance unnecessary, while others note that lenders might choose to demand insurance beyond the current standards of roughly 20% to 25% home equity that have historically triggered the contractual need for purchase-money insurance in mortgage contracts.

Hot Quality Companies To Own For 2014: Route1 Inc (ROI)

Route1 Inc. (Route1) delivers security and identity management solutions to corporations and government agencies that need universal, secure access to all digital resources and sensitive data. These customers depend on The Power of MobiNET Route1�� communications and service delivery platform. MobiNET provides identity assurance and individualized access to networks and data. The Company operates in two revenue segments: devices and appliances and services. On September 30, 2010, the Company completed of the pilot project to deploy the Company�� DEFIMNET platform, TruOFFICE application software, and MobiKEY Fusion devices to the United States Navy Reserve Forces Command (RESFOR). On April 13, 2010, the Company announced the release of TruOFFICE application software version 2.8 with strengthened security and Windows 7 support. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Chuck Carnevale]

  Next, I turned to an evaluation of gross profit margin (gpm), net profit margin (npm), return on assets (roa), return on equity (roe) and return on invested capital (roi). The example below only includes gross and net profit margin, however, I review data on all the metrics stated above.

• [By Michael Ugulini]

  Sentiment and semantics are for greeting cards; stakeholders want Return on Investment (ROI) and will raise a glass of suds to widespread distribution via powerhouse Anheuser-Busch's network over a "craft" distinction for some brands.