Despite a recovering U.S. economy, teenage unemployment remains high. Teen apparel retailers such as Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (ANF) and Aeropostale Inc. (ARO) seek to continue growing in this unfavorable macroeconomic scenario, yet they face fierce competition. As of late, both these firms have had a hard time connecting with customers due to merchandising missteps, which have placed their business in a tough spot.
Discount Retailer with Poor Prospects
The mall-based apparel retailer Aeropostale caters fashion basics at low prices for teenagers and children. At its 995 company own stores, the firm provides merchandise for 14 to 17-year-olds, which constitute the company�� core customers. After becoming one of the most shopped brands in the U.S., however, Aeropostale fell out of favor when its products failed to meet fashion trends. John Hussman of Hussman Economtrics Advisors saw this negative trend and decided to sell his entire stake in the firm earlier this year.
With the teen apparel industry suffering from reduced traffic and very aggressive discounting, Aeropostale has been forced into a discounting cycle. Despite being historically more promotional than its competitors, the firm reduce prices further in order to keep up with the competition. However, this business strategy has resulted in reduced margins for the company. Offering better merchandise for similar prices, fast growing fashion retailers such as H&M and Forever 21 have been stealing market share from Aeropostale for years now. Hence, the main issue the firm faces is tricky fashion trends. As long as the business strategy does not get the fashion right, it will be increasingly hard to expand its customer base, or even sustain current sales levels.
Top 10 Net Payout Yield Stocks To Buy Right Now: Malaysian Pacific Industries Bhd (MPI)
Malaysian Pacific Industries Berhad (MPI) is an investment holding company. The principal activities of MPI, through its subsidiaries are manufacturing, assembling, testing and sale of integrated circuits, semiconductor devices, electronic components and lead frames to customers globally. The Company�� operating geographical segments include Asia, The United States of America, and Europe. The Company's subsidiaries include Carsem (M) Sdn Bhd, Recams Sdn Bhd, Carsem Holdings Limited, Carsem Semiconductor (Suzhou) Co., Ltd, Dynacraft Industries Sdn Bhd, Carter Realty Sdn Bhd, Carter Realty Sdn Bhd and Carsem Holdings (HK) Limited. Advisors' Opinion:- [By Sofia Horta e Costa]
Michael Page International Plc (MPI) increased 1.1 percent to 490.2 pence after Goldman Sachs Group Inc. upgraded the stock to buy from neutral, saying the recruitment firm will benefit from a pick-up in the European economy.
5 Best Low Price Stocks To Own For 2014: ASML Holding N.V. (ASML)
ASML Holding N.V., through its subsidiaries, engages in designing, manufacturing, marketing, and servicing semiconductor processing equipment used in the fabrication of integrated circuits. The company offers a portfolio of lithography systems for manufacturing semiconductors, integrated circuits, or chips. It primarily provides PAS 5500 product family that comprises wafer steppers, and step and scan systems suitable for the i-line, krypton fluoride, and argon fluoride processing of wafers; TWINSCAN for manufacturing environments for which design resolutions down to 38 nanometers are required; TWINSCAN NXT system to support extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUV) imaging in various system critical areas; and NXE (EUV) system that utilizes reflective mirrors with a numerical aperture of 0.25. The company operates principally in Japan, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, rest of Asia, Europe, and the United States. The company was formerly known as ASM Lithography Holding N.V. and chang ed its name to ASML Holding N.V. in 2001. ASML Holding N.V. was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Veldhoven, the Netherlands.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Top decliners in the sector included ASML Holding NV (NASDAQ: ASML), off 5 percent, and ADTRAN (NASDAQ: ADTN), down 6.3 percent.
Top Headline
Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) reported a net loss in the first quarter. Bank of America posted a quarterly net loss of $276 million, or $0.05 per share, versus a year-ago profit of $1.5 billion, or $0.10 per share. The results include a pretax litigation expense of $6 billion, or around $0.40 per share after tax. - [By Brian Womack]
The consolidation among chip-equipment makers mirrors the increasing concentration within their customer base. Intel Corp. (INTC), Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (2330) and Samsung Electronics Co. (005930) now buy the majority of the production machines deployed by the industry, making the earnings of their suppliers more volatile. Veldhoven, Netherlands-based ASML Holding NV (ASML), Europe�� biggest chipmaking-tools supplier, completed its purchase of San Diego-based Cymer Inc. in May to expand in extreme ultraviolet lithography technology.
- [By Corinne Gretler]
ASML Holding NV (ASML) climbed 2.5 percent to 52.55 euros. Europe�� largest semiconductor-equipment supplier posted first- quarter sales of 892 million euros, topping the 874 million-euro analyst estimate. The company also announced a share buyback program of as much as 1 billion euros and said Chief Executive Officer Eric Meurice will step down as of July.
5 Best Low Price Stocks To Own For 2014: New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc.(EDU)
New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc. provides private educational services primarily in the People?s Republic of China. It offers a range of educational programs, services, and products consisting primarily of English and other foreign language training; test preparation courses for admissions and assessment tests; primary and secondary school education; development and distribution of educational content; software and other technology; and online education. The company?s language training courses primarily consist of various types of English language training courses, and other foreign languages, including German, Japanese, French, Korean, and Spanish. It offers test preparation courses for language and entrance exams used by educational institutions in the United States, the People?s Republic of China, and commonwealth countries. The company also operates primary and secondary schools in Yangzhou. In addition, New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc. deve lops and edits content for educational materials for language training and test preparation, such as books, software, CD-ROMs, magazines, and other periodicals. It distributes these materials through various distribution channels consisting of own classrooms and bookstores, as well as third-party distributors. Further, the company offers various online education programs on its Web site, koolearn.com. Additionally, it provides consulting services to help students through the application and admission process for overseas educational institutions, as well as post-secondary educational programs to help students seek career opportunities; and operates two pre-schools. The company offers educational services under the ?New Oriental? brand name. As of May 31, 2010, it offered education programs, services, and products through a network of 48 schools, 319 learning centers, and 25 bookstores. The company was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Beijing, the People?s Republic of China.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Equities Trading DOWN
Shares of New Oriental Education & Technology Group (NYSE: EDU) were 8.55 percent to $23.76 after the company reported FQ3 results. New Oriental's quarterly net income surged 50.2% y/y to US$42.1 million versus US$28.0 million. - [By Belinda Cao]
New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc. (EDU), China�� largest private educational company, fell 11 percent last week to a one-month low of $16.07. Oppenheimer & Co. analyst Ella Ji said April 2 that students may avoid large gatherings because of the flu, impacting New Oriental.
- [By Seth Jayson]
New Oriental Education & Technology Group (NYSE: EDU ) reported earnings on April 24. Here are the numbers you need to know.
The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Feb. 28 (Q3), New Oriental Education & Technology Group met expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share. - [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Equities Trading DOWN
Shares of New Oriental Education & Technology Group (NYSE: EDU) were 9.62 percent to $23.48 after the company reported FQ3 results. New Oriental's quarterly net income surged 50.2% y/y to US$42.1 million versus US$28.0 million.
5 Best Low Price Stocks To Own For 2014: Leucadia National Corporation(LUK)
Leucadia National Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in manufacturing, land based contract oil and gas drilling, gaming entertainment, real estate, medical product development, and winery operations in the United States and internationally. Its manufacturing operations include remanufacturing, manufacturing, and/or distribution dimension lumber, home center boards for retailers, pine decking, and other specialty wood products; and manufacturing and marketing lightweight plastic netting used in building and construction, erosion control, packaging, agricultural, carpet padding, filtration, and consumer products. The company?s land based contract oil and gas drilling operations include the provision of drilling services to independent oil and natural gas exploration and production companies in the Mid-Continent region of the United States, including Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Kansas. As of December 31, 2010, it had 38 drilling rigs. The company?s g aming entertainment operations consist of owning the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Biloxi located in Biloxi, Mississippi, which consists of 325 rooms and suites, 1,268 slot machines, 52 table games, 6 live poker tables, 5 restaurants, and spa. Its real estate activities include investment in commercial properties, residential land development projects, and other unimproved land. The company?s medical product development operations comprise the development of MP4OX that has completed a phase II proof of concept clinical trial and is a solution of cell-free hemoglobin, administered intravenously to provide oxygen delivery to oxygen deprived tissues. In addition, Leucadia National Corporation engages in the production and sale of wines; and investment and evaluation of gasification projects to convert various types of low grade fossil fuels into energy products. The company was founded in 1854 and is based in New York, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Eric Volkman]
Leucadia's (NYSE: LUK ) Jefferies, Morgan Stanley (NYSE: LUK ) , and SunTrust's Robinson Humphrey unit are the joint book-running managers of the issue.
- [By Eric Volkman]
Leucadia's (NYSE: LUK ) Jefferies and Piper Jaffray are the joint-book running managers of the issue.
Currently, AcelRx has 37.2 million shares outstanding, and its stock most recently closed at $12.48 per share.
- [By Michael Hooper]
When compared with similar companies, Berkshire Hathaway carries a premium over Markel� (NYSE: MKL ) , valued at 1.15 times book value and a 20 forward P/E ratio; and Leucadia National� (NYSE: LUK ) , valued at 1.10 times book value and a 7.16 trailing P/E.�
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