Top Stocks For 2019

tags:TIVO,VVUS,PCG,

Boston, MA, based Investment company North Tide Capital, Llc buys Impax Laboratories, Allergan PLC, Accuray, sells Community Health Systems, Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Mylan NV, Perrigo Co PLC, Select Medical Holdings during the 3-months ended 2016-12-31, according to the most recent filings of the investment company, North Tide Capital, Llc. As of 2016-12-31, North Tide Capital, Llc owns 14 stocks with a total value of $483 million. These are the details of the buys and sells.

New Purchases: IPXL, AGN, ARAY, Added Positions: MYGN, KND, Reduced Positions: MYL, SEM, SVU, GILD, LPNT, Sold Out: CYH, VRX, PRGO, AFAM, ADUS,

For the details of NORTH TIDE CAPITAL, LLC's stock buys and sells, go to http://www.gurufocus.com/StockBuy.php?GuruName=NORTH+TIDE+CAPITAL%2C+LLC

These are the top 5 holdings of NORTH TIDE CAPITAL, LLCSelect Medical Holdings Corp (SEM) - 10,000,000 shares, 27.46% of the total portfolio. Shares reduced by 23.66%SUPERVALU Inc (SVU) - 18,469,921 shares, 17.87% of the total portfolio. Shares reduced by 24.61%Gilead Sciences Inc (GILD) - 500,000 shares, 7.42% of the total portfolio. Shares reduced by 37.5%Kindred Healthcare Inc (KND) - 4,250,000 shares, 6.91% of the total portfolio. Shares added by 6.25%Syneron Medical Ltd (ELOS) - 3,500,000 shares, 6.09% of the total portfolio. New Purchase: Impax Laboratories Inc (IPXL)

North Tide Capital, Llc initiated holdings in Impax Laboratories Inc. The purchase prices were between $12.75 and $24.23, with an estimated average price of $17.1. The stock is now traded at around $9.35. The impact to the portfolio due to this purchase was 5.49%. The holdings were 2,000,000 shares as of 2016-12-31.

Top Stocks For 2019: TiVo Inc.(TIVO)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Peregrine Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of TiVo Corp (NASDAQ:TIVO) by 18.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 516,515 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 118,200 shares during the period. Peregrine Capital Management LLC owned 0.42% of TiVo worth $6,947,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

• [By Lisa Levin]

   

  Companies Reporting After The Bell NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) is estimated to post quarterly earnings at $1.45 per share on revenue of $2.89 billion. News Corporation (NASDAQ: NWSA) is projected to post quarterly earnings at $0.07 per share on revenue of $1.99 billion. Symantec Corporation (NASDAQ: SYMC) is estimated to post quarterly earnings at $0.39 per share on revenue of $1.19 billion. Pilgrim's Pride Corporation (NASDAQ: PPC) is projected to post quarterly earnings at $0.54 per share on revenue of $2.65 billion. Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (NYSE: HE) is expected to post quarterly earnings at $0.38 per share on revenue of $556.81 million. Air Lease Corporation (NYSE: AL) is estimated to post quarterly earnings at $1.01 per share on revenue of $383.37 million. Flowserve Corporation (NYSE: FLS) is expected to post quarterly earnings at $0.27 per share on revenue of $880.89 million. Civitas Solutions, Inc. (NYSE: CIVI) is projected to post quarterly earnings at $0.12 per share on revenue of $396.25 million. The Trade Desk, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTD) is estimated to post quarterly earnings at $0.1 per share on revenue of $73.23 million. Amdocs Limited (NYSE: DOX) is projected to post quarterly earnings at $0.95 per share on revenue of $980.50 million. Yelp Inc. (NYSE: YELP) is estimated to post quarterly loss at $0.04 per share on revenue of $220.14 million. Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ: KLIC) is expected to post quarterly earnings at $0.43 per share on revenue of $210.01 million. TiVo Corporation (NASDAQ: TIVO) is projected to post quarterly earnings at $0.37 per share on revenue of $198.62 million. Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers Incorporated (NYSE: RBA) is expected to post quarterly earnings at $0.17 per share on revenue of $153.87 million. Uniti Group Inc. (NASDAQ: UNIT) is estimated to post quarterly earnings at $0.01 per share on revenue of $247.16 million. Jagged Peak En
• [By Logan Wallace]

  TiVo (NASDAQ: TIVO) and Digital Turbine (NASDAQ:APPS) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, earnings, profitability, institutional ownership, risk and dividends.

Top Stocks For 2019: VIVUS, Inc.(VVUS)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Money Morning Staff Reports]

  But Blink and our other penny stocks to watch are unlikely to continue to lock in such spectacular gains in June. After looking at our 10 top penny stocks to watch this month, we'll show you a small-cap stock with great profit potential in its future…

  Penny Stock Current Share Price Law Month's Gain �Blink Charging Co. (Nasdaq: BLNK) $7.07 439.85% Senes Tech Inc. (Nasdaq: SNES) $1.27 175.40% Vivis Inc. (Nasdaq: VVUS) $0.77 150.41% Adomani Inc. (Nasdaq: ADOM) $1.49 137.68% NF Energy Saving Co. (Nasdaq: NFEC) $2.34 134.88% Vaalco Energy Inc. (NYSE: EGY) $2.15 109.06% Heat Biologics Inc. (Nasdaq: HTBX) $2.35 99.12% ArQule Inc. (Nasdaq: ARQL) $4.88 90.74% LiqTech International Inc. (NYSE: LIQT) $0.66 85.60% Transenterix Inc. (NYSE: TRXC) $3.46 77.84%

  While last month's gains are tremendous, they also illustrate the inherent dangers that come with investing in penny stocks.

• [By Money Morning News Team]

  However, VivoPower and our other penny stocks to watch this week already saw big gains. After looking at our 10 top penny stocks to watch, we'll show you a small-cap stock with serious profit potential in its future…

  Penny Stock Current Share Price Law Week's Gain VivoPower International Plc. (Nasdaq: VVPR) $3.05 88.57% Euro Tech Holdings Co. (Nasdaq: CLWT) $3.77 75.11% Boxlight Corp. (Nasdaq: BOXL) $6.36 65.38% Chine Recycling Energy Corp. (Nasdaq: CREG) $2.01 45.92% Vivis Inc. (Nasdaq: VVUS) $0.52 38.82% HC2 Holdings Inc. (NYSE: HCHC) $6.79 33.49% Biostar Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: BSPM) $2.67 32.23% Turtle Beach Corp. (Nasdaq: HEAR) $6.99 30.19% Aegean Marine Petroleum Network Inc. (NYSE: ANW) $3.30 29.24% Rexahn Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NYSE: RNN) $2.11 29.19%

  While the gains of last week's top penny stocks are exciting, it's important to note that investing in penny stocks is also incredibly risky.

• [By Money Morning News Team]

  Seadrill's rally demonstrates how profitable penny stocks can be for savvy investors. With Seadrill's gains already on the books, we'll look at a stock that's on track to generate tremendous returns – a small cap that just completed a groundbreaking acquisition with huge profit potential…

  Penny Stock Current Share Price Law Week's Gain Seadrill Ltd. (NYSE: SDRL) $0.58 98.74% Vivis Inc. (Nasdaq: VVUS) $0.83 59.97% MEI Pharma Inc. (Nasdaq: MEIP) $3.45 43.40% Transenterix Inc. (NYSE: TRXC) $3.15 35.72% Akers Biosciences Inc. (Nasdaq: AKER) $0.65 34.38% Galectin Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: GALT) $4.54 32.58% Phoenix New Media Ltd. (NYSE ADR: FENG) $5.65 32.22% Heat Biologics Inc. (Nasdaq: HTBX) $1.73 31.37% Bright Scholar Education Ltd. (NYSE ADR: BEDU) $18.51 29.03% 21 Vianet Group Inc. (Nasdaq: VNET) $7.36 28.72%

  These gains are incredibly exciting. However, not all penny stocks are equally strong investments.

Top Stocks For 2019: Pacific Gas & Electric Co.(PCG)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Media coverage about PG&E (NYSE:PCG) has been trending somewhat positive on Saturday, Accern reports. The research firm identifies positive and negative media coverage by analyzing more than 20 million news and blog sources in real-time. Accern ranks coverage of companies on a scale of negative one to positive one, with scores nearest to one being the most favorable. PG&E earned a news sentiment score of 0.20 on Accern’s scale. Accern also gave media stories about the utilities provider an impact score of 46.1218598724786 out of 100, indicating that recent media coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an effect on the stock’s share price in the next few days.

• [By Shane Hupp]

  PG&E (NYSE:PCG) had its target price hoisted by analysts at UBS from $45.00 to $47.00 in a report released on Tuesday, www.benzinga.com reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. UBS’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 10.46% from the company’s current price.

• [By VantagePoint]

  PG&E Corporation (NYSE: PCG) has spent most of the last five weeks consolidating into a tight range, but it looks to have finally broken out on April 5. Since then the stock is up about 7 percent, and despite Friday's weakness VantagePoint's indicators are pointing to that bullish trend remaining intact. 

• [By Maxx Chatsko]

  Many major utilities are now ramping up investments in cost-saving, margin-boosting energy efficiency programs. In fact, there's a strong correlation between the most ambitious renewable energy investment strategies and energy efficiency programs. Some utilities have a lot of catching up to do.��

  Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) has saved 13,000 GWh of electricity consumption across its network over the years, including 9,000 GWh since 2005. The company has an ambitious plan to retire coal-fired power plants and build new wind and solar power capacity, which, when coupled with energy efficiency, could allow it to generate 45% of its electricity from renewables in 2027. Additionally, fuel-related expenses would drop from 47% of capital investments in 2010 to just 28% in 2027. That would free up more cash flow for dividends or growth projects -- or both. PG&E (NYSE:PCG) recently filed a plan to retire an aging fossil fuel power plant with distributed solar and energy efficiency programs, as discussed on a recent quarterly conference call with investors. The utility also offers some of the most ambitious customer rebates in the country, with up to $5,500 per household. Southern Company (NYSE:SO) has saved 2,700 GWh of electricity consumption across its network since 2000. By 2020, it will have invested $1 billion total in energy efficiency programs, although that lags well behind more ambitious peers. Dominion Energy (NYSE:D) was ranked second to last among all utilities in the country in energy efficiency by the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy. That leaves plenty of room for improvement. A recent report suggests it's possible to reduce new home energy consumption in Virginia (the company's home state) by 60%, saving the utility billions in capital investments in the next decade by avoiding the need to build new facilities. Those efforts could also save customers $1.7 billion, but the utility's most recent plan does not prioritize energy efficien

Schwab US Broad Market ETF (SCHB) Stake Lifted by AJ Wealth Strategies LLC

AJ Wealth Strategies LLC grew its position in shares of Schwab US Broad Market ETF (NYSEARCA:SCHB) by 64.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,157 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,308 shares during the period. AJ Wealth Strategies LLC’s holdings in Schwab US Broad Market ETF were worth $1,066,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SCHB. Sandy Spring Bank grew its position in shares of Schwab US Broad Market ETF by 115.4% during the 1st quarter. Sandy Spring Bank now owns 1,719 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after purchasing an additional 921 shares in the last quarter. Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC. grew its position in Schwab US Broad Market ETF by 161.8% in the first quarter. Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC. now owns 1,893 shares of the company’s stock worth $121,000 after acquiring an additional 1,170 shares in the last quarter. Efficient Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Schwab US Broad Market ETF in the first quarter worth $137,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC grew its position in Schwab US Broad Market ETF by 99.5% in the first quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 2,205 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,000 after acquiring an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC purchased a new position in Schwab US Broad Market ETF in the first quarter worth $154,000.

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Schwab US Broad Market ETF traded down $0.15, hitting $68.17, during midday trading on Thursday, Marketbeat reports. The company had a trading volume of 563,470 shares, compared to its average volume of 800,332. Schwab US Broad Market ETF has a 52-week low of $58.24 and a 52-week high of $69.07.

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 27th were given a $0.2874 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 26th. This is a positive change from Schwab US Broad Market ETF’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%.

About Schwab US Broad Market ETF

Schwab U.S. Broad Market ETF (the Fund) seeks to track the total return of the Dow Jones U.S. Small-Cap Total Stock Market Index (the Index). The Index is a float-adjusted market capitalization weighted index that reflects the shares of securities actually available to investors in the marketplace. The Fund��s index includes the 2,500 publicly traded United States companies for, which pricing information is available.

Read More: What do I need to know about analyst ratings?

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SCHB? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Schwab US Broad Market ETF (NYSEARCA:SCHB).

HCG Q1 PAT may dip 85.8% YoY to Rs. 7 cr: Kotak

Kotak has come out with its first quarter (April-June�� 18) earnings estimates for the Pharmaceuticals sector. The brokerage house expects HCG to report net profit at Rs. 7 crore down 85.8% year-on-year (down 74.1% quarter-on-quarter).

Net Sales are expected to increase by 20.5 percent Y-o-Y (up 3.6 percent Q-o-Q) to Rs. 230.3 crore, according to Kotak.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) are likely to rise by 11.9 percent Y-o-Y (up 2.5 percent Q-o-Q) to Rs. 33 crore.

Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts on moneycontrol.com are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.

Read More First Published on Jul 18, 2018 03:04 pm

Buy Federal Bank; target of Rs 120: JM Financial

JM Financial's research report on Federal Bank

Federal Bank reported a strong quarter in 1QFY19, with PAT at INR 2.63bn (+8% above JMFe). The beat in net profit was primarily driven by strong NII growth (+22% YoY), as margins held up for FB. Credit cost was contained at 80bps for FB in 1QFY19, as slippages almost halved sequentially to 2.3% (annualised). Net stress on FB��s loan book (net NPA + other stress) is now at 2% of loans (from 2.3% as of 4QFY18). Management remains confident of containing slippages at INR 11-12bn in FY19E, with credit costs in the range of 65-70bps. Furthermore, FB is positive on its margin outlook, and expects this, along with the containment of credit cost will help it deliver 1% exit RoA by 4QFY19. We remain cautious on the margin outlook for FB and continue to build credit cost of 77bps/74bps in FY19E/FY20E. Our gross slippage expectation of 1.4%/1.2% over FY19E/20E is well below the 2.7% in FY18.

Outlook

We believe FB can deliver RoA/ RoE of 1%/13% in FY20E. Maintain BUY with unchanged TP.

For all recommendations report, click here

Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies on moneycontrol.com are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.

Read More First Published on Jul 18, 2018 05:07 pm

Why Have Costco Wholesale Corp. Shares Gained 12% So Far in 2018?

What happened

The internet can't disrupt Costco Wholesale Corp.�(NASDAQ:COST). The warehouse club has clearly shown that its loyal member base won't be abandoning it for cheaper online options, and that it can steadily grow its numbers of paid members.

Through the first 36 weeks of its fiscal 2018, Costco has grown same-store sales by 9.7% and digital sales by 36.1%. Perhaps more important, it has grown its customer base while maintaining a renewal rate that hovers around 90%.

The warehouse club has also increased its profitability. Through 36 weeks the company has delivered net income of $2.09 billion ($4.74 per share), compared to $1.76 billion ($3.99 per share) during the year-ago period.

Investors clearly like what they see. After closing 2017 at $186.12 a share, the company's stock rose to $208.98 at the end of June, a 12% gain, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence.�

Costco has seen its digital sales rise. Image source: Getty Images.

So what

While a lot of retailers have struggled with digital competition, Costco proved in 2018 that it could increase its digital business as a sort of added bonus for members. The company has improved its website and added delivery options, and makes better use of email offers.

That has helped make a membership even more useful, which likely helps the chain maintain its strong renewal rates. These changes also validate Costco's slow and steady strategy. The company did not rush to compete in digital or delivery. Instead, it waited to see what worked, and implemented the changes that made sense for its business.

Now what

Costco does not have to please the general public. Instead, the company needs to keep its members happy enough that they renew their memberships each year.

That's something the chain has been very able to do. Because Costco is membership-driven, the company can monitor its renewals and new sign-ups to gauge the health of its business. If it has a bad quarter (or even a bad month), it can take steps to correct the problem before it grows.

That does not seem to be something the warehouse club has had to do much of. Costco offers its members value and a fun shopping experience where you never know what you might find. So far, and for the foreseeable future, that should be enough to keep the company on a slow, steady path of growth.

Bankcoin Tops 24 Hour Volume of $5.00 ([email protected])

Bankcoin (CURRENCY:[email protected]) traded 17.6% lower against the US dollar during the 1 day period ending at 14:00 PM ET on July 12th. Bankcoin has a market capitalization of $68,852.00 and approximately $5.00 worth of Bankcoin was traded on exchanges in the last day. In the last seven days, Bankcoin has traded 2.4% higher against the US dollar. One Bankcoin token can now be purchased for approximately $0.0067 or 0.00000108 BTC on exchanges.

Here’s how related cryptocurrencies have performed in the last day:

Get Bankcoin alerts: XRP (XRP) traded down 2.9% against the dollar and now trades at $0.44 or 0.00007036 BTC. Stellar (XLM) traded down 3.8% against the dollar and now trades at $0.18 or 0.00002933 BTC. Tether (USDT) traded 0.2% lower against the dollar and now trades at $1.00 or 0.00016203 BTC. IOTA (MIOTA) traded 2.8% lower against the dollar and now trades at $0.95 or 0.00015405 BTC. TRON (TRX) traded 5.2% lower against the dollar and now trades at $0.0317 or 0.00000513 BTC. NEO (NEO) traded down 3.9% against the dollar and now trades at $31.93 or 0.00516084 BTC. Binance Coin (BNB) traded 3.7% lower against the dollar and now trades at $12.14 or 0.00196194 BTC. VeChain (VET) traded down 4.9% against the dollar and now trades at $2.10 or 0.00033931 BTC. Ontology (ONT) traded 5.5% lower against the dollar and now trades at $3.31 or 0.00053521 BTC. Zilliqa (ZIL) traded down 4.8% against the dollar and now trades at $0.0650 or 0.00001051 BTC.

Bankcoin Profile

Bankcoin’s total supply is 25,000,000 tokens and its circulating supply is 10,291,781 tokens. The official website for Bankcoin is bankcoin.global. Bankcoin’s official Twitter account is @Bankcoin_global and its Facebook page is accessible here.

Bankcoin Token Trading

Bankcoin can be traded on the following cryptocurrency exchanges: Waves Decentralized Exchange. It is usually not possible to purchase alternative cryptocurrencies such as Bankcoin directly using US dollars. Investors seeking to trade Bankcoin should first purchase Ethereum or Bitcoin using an exchange that deals in US dollars such as Gemini, Coinbase or GDAX. Investors can then use their newly-acquired Ethereum or Bitcoin to purchase Bankcoin using one of the exchanges listed above.

Brokerages Set Varian Medical Systems, Inc. (VAR) PT at $111.29

Shares of Varian Medical Systems, Inc. (NYSE:VAR) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the twelve brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $111.29.

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Zacks Investment Research upgraded Varian Medical Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $142.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 13th. Royal Bank of Canada set a $115.00 target price on Varian Medical Systems and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 10th. TheStreet upgraded Varian Medical Systems from a “c” rating to a “b” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Varian Medical Systems from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $105.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Thursday, June 28th.

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In other news, SVP John W. Kuo sold 1,327 shares of Varian Medical Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.15, for a total value of $155,458.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 30,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,579,049.65. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kolleen T. Kennedy sold 699 shares of Varian Medical Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.33, for a total value of $84,110.67. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,361 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,292,349.13. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 5,382 shares of company stock valued at $646,996. Insiders own 0.78% of the company’s stock.

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VAR. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in Varian Medical Systems by 438.0% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 746,200 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $82,940,000 after purchasing an additional 607,500 shares during the period. Schwab Charles Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Varian Medical Systems by 77.1% during the 1st quarter. Schwab Charles Investment Management Inc. now owns 813,274 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $99,749,000 after purchasing an additional 353,938 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in Varian Medical Systems by 842.3% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 256,392 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $31,446,000 after purchasing an additional 229,184 shares during the period. Amundi Pioneer Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Varian Medical Systems during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $19,511,000. Finally, Chicago Equity Partners LLC boosted its position in Varian Medical Systems by 523.8% during the 1st quarter. Chicago Equity Partners LLC now owns 148,100 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $18,164,000 after purchasing an additional 124,360 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.65% of the company’s stock.

VAR stock traded up $1.64 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $118.21. 701,800 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 719,663. Varian Medical Systems has a 12-month low of $95.23 and a 12-month high of $130.29. The company has a market capitalization of $10.67 billion, a PE ratio of 32.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.86.

Varian Medical Systems (NYSE:VAR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 25th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.11. Varian Medical Systems had a return on equity of 27.99% and a net margin of 4.77%. The company had revenue of $729.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $685.86 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.89 EPS. Varian Medical Systems’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. equities research analysts anticipate that Varian Medical Systems will post 4.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Varian Medical Systems Company Profile

Varian Medical Systems, Inc designs, manufactures, sells, and services medical devices and software products for treating cancer and other medical conditions worldwide. It operates through two segments, Oncology Systems and Varian Particle Therapy. The Oncology Systems segment provides hardware and software products for treating cancer with radiotherapy, fixed field intensity-modulated radiation therapy, image-guided radiation therapy, volumetric modulated arc therapy, stereotactic radiosurgery, stereotactic body radiotherapy, and brachytherapy.

Analysts Set Asure Software Inc (ASUR) Price Target at $20.40

Shares of Asure Software Inc (NASDAQ:ASUR) have been given a consensus rating of “Buy” by the eleven analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $20.40.

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Barrington Research set a $25.00 target price on Asure Software and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Zacks Investment Research upgraded Asure Software from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 18th. ValuEngine upgraded Asure Software from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 11th. Canaccord Genuity restated a “buy” rating on shares of Asure Software in a research note on Thursday, May 17th. Finally, Lake Street Capital raised their price target on Asure Software to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 10th.

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In other news, Director Daniel M. Gill sold 500,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.45, for a total transaction of $8,225,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 18.20% of the company’s stock.

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its stake in shares of Asure Software by 19.1% during the first quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 256,997 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,146,000 after buying an additional 41,172 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC bought a new stake in Asure Software during the first quarter valued at about $1,251,000. Ancora Advisors LLC boosted its position in Asure Software by 92.4% during the first quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 211,600 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,590,000 after purchasing an additional 101,600 shares in the last quarter. Element Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Asure Software during the first quarter valued at about $142,000. Finally, Cortina Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Asure Software during the first quarter valued at about $2,172,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 43.59% of the company’s stock.

ASUR stock traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $16.26. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 229,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 177,627. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. Asure Software has a 1 year low of $9.89 and a 1 year high of $19.78. The firm has a market cap of $243.11 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.11, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.24.

Asure Software (NASDAQ:ASUR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 9th. The technology company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.05. Asure Software had a positive return on equity of 9.04% and a negative net margin of 10.45%. The business had revenue of $19.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.23 million. research analysts expect that Asure Software will post 0.68 EPS for the current year.

Asure Software Company Profile

Asure Software Inc provides cloud-based software-as-a-service time and labor management, and workspace management solutions worldwide. The company's product line includes AsureSpace workplace management solutions that enable organizations to manage their office environments and optimize real estate utilization; and AsureForce time and labor management solutions to help organizations optimize workforce, as well as control labor administration costs and activities.

The 1 Stock You've Been Overlooking for Your IRA

The current bull market has been raging for nearly a decade. The stock market's epic run is making it difficult for investors to find compelling opportunities.

Thankfully, I recently came across an under-the-radar business that I believe is nicely positioned to deliver for its investors: BlackLine, Inc. (NASDAQ:BL). This founder-led software company is growing fast, boasts a rock-solid business model, and has a wide-open market opportunity ahead. Those factors make me believe that it's a great company for growth-stock investors to add to their IRAs.

Image source: Getty Images.

The business

Every company depends on reliable financial data to make smart business decisions. However, it can be a hugely burdensome task to constantly gather, process, and consolidate financial information into usable financial statements. This process can be especially arduous for large multinational companies that need to pull, track, and reconcile financial data from a huge variety of sources (bank statements, enterprise resource planning systems, payroll processors, expense management programs, and more).

For years financial professionals have managed this complicated process primarily by using Excel spreadsheets and email. As you can imagine, this is hugely labor-intensive, inefficient, and error-prone.

Enter BlackLine. The company develops sophisticated software that brings order to this chaotic process. BlackLine's cloud-based software automates data collection, processing, and reconciliation tasks in real time. Operating in the cloud also makes it easy for multiple users (think accountants, tax managers, auditors, senior executives, and more) to have access to up-to-date data at the same time.

The advantages of switching to real-time data collection and processing haven't gone unnoticed by the market. BlackLine's unique solution has already been adopted by a range of big-name multinational companies such as Costco Wholesale, Under Armour, Coca-Cola, Autodesk, and more.

In fact, thousands of companies and hundreds of thousands of users have already adopted BlackLine's solution. In turn, the company's revenue has soared:

Metric 2015 2016 2017

Global customers	1,338	1,758	2,208
End Users	129,000	167,000	197,000
Revenue	$84 million	$124 million	$177 million

Data source: BlackLine.

As exciting as BlackLine's growth rates have been, there's still ample reason to believe the company has only scratched the surface of what's possible. Management currently estimates that its software could be useful to more than 165,000 global companies and 13 million professionals. That adds up to an $18 billion market opportunity.

In other words, BlackLine has only captured about 1% of its total addressable market thus far.

Flourishing financials

BlackLine is a software-as-a-service business; its business model is to charge each customer a recurring fee based on the number of users who are on the platform. That's great news for investors because it leads to recurring revenue, which leads to predictable revenue growth as more companies and users warm up to BlackLine's solution.

In an effort to accelerate growth, BlackLine has been spending lavishly over the last few years to enhance its commercial capabilities and build out its product suite. While that has resulted in net losses on the bottom line, the numbers have been trending in the right direction as the business continues to scale:

Metric 2015 2016 2017

Revenue	$83.6 million	$123.1 million	$177.0 million
Non-GAAP net loss	($20.1 million)	($16.5 million)	($3.3 million)
Free cash flow	($11.4 million)	($9.8 million)	($2.2 million)

Data source: BlackLine. GAAP = generally accepted accounting principles.

The company hasn't had any problem funding these losses, as its balance sheet remains packed with cash ($113 million as of the last quarter) and is completely free of debt. Better yet, BlackLine actually recorded non-GAAP profits during the last two quarters, so there's reason for investors to believe that the days of posting losses have finally come to an end.

In other words, this company is currently in great financial shape, and the numbers should only get better over time as new customers sign up.

A founder-led business with a winning culture

I'm a big believer in putting capital behind businesses that are still run by their founders. That's the case at BlackLine, as CEO and founder Therese Tucker has been running the show since she started the business in 2001. Tucker remains heavily invested in the business, too, as she currently owns more than 11% of shares outstanding; at current prices that ownership is worth more than $250 million. That should give investors confidence that she is heavily incentivized to grow shareholder value over time.

I also like that the company gets good reviews from employees. BlackLine has been named among the "Best Places to Work in Los Angeles" for five years in a row, and came in at No. 6 in Fortune's "Best Workplaces in Technology" ranking in 2018. While its reviews on Glassdoor.com are not perfect, they are decent enough to suggest that employees generally enjoy working at the company.

BlackLine is a buy

Between its rock-solid business model, wide-open growth opportunity, and founder-led executive team, BlackLine checks all of the boxes that I look for in a great growth stock. The only knock here is that Wall Street also sees huge growth potential for the business -- and has priced the stock accordingly. Shares are currently trading hands for more than 12 times sales, and 300 times next year's earnings estimates. Those are lofty figures, so if the company fails to deliver on its growth targets, shareholders like me could be in a world of hurt.

In spite of the risk, I think that BlackLine has enough going for it to justify an investment today. In case you think I'm all talk, you should know that I recently used the proceeds from a recent transaction�to add to my BlackLine position, so my money is where my mouth is.

Peel Hunt Reaffirms Buy Rating for EI Group (EIG)

Peel Hunt reissued their buy rating on shares of EI Group (LON:EIG) in a report released on Monday. Peel Hunt currently has a GBX 165 ($2.20) price target on the stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Liberum Capital reaffirmed a hold rating and set a GBX 140 ($1.86) price objective on shares of EI Group in a research report on Friday, May 4th. Numis Securities reaffirmed a buy rating and set a GBX 200 ($2.66) price objective on shares of EI Group in a research report on Tuesday, May 15th. Finally, Barclays raised EI Group to an overweight rating and increased their price objective for the company from GBX 150 ($2.00) to GBX 175 ($2.33) in a research report on Thursday, May 31st.

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EI Group opened at GBX 148 ($1.97) on Monday, MarketBeat reports. EI Group has a one year low of GBX 118.20 ($1.57) and a one year high of GBX 153 ($2.04).

EI Group Company Profile

Ei Group plc operates leased and tenanted pubs in the United Kingdom. It also engages in rental of commercial properties, as well as financing and public houses management businesses. The company operates approximately 4,638 pubs. The company was formerly known as Enterprise Inns plc and changed its name to Ei Group plc February 2017.