Hot Logistics Companies For 2014

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of Universal Truckload Services (NASDAQ: UACL  ) , a North American provider of trucking and logistics solutions, jumped as much as 12% after receiving an upgrade from BB&T�Capital Markets.

So what: According to BB&T Capital Markets, Universal Truckload's product offerings should broaden and its gross margins should improve following its $335 million purchase of privately held LINC Logistics, announced last year. BB&T upgraded Universal Trucking to a buy from a hold and set its price target at $33, implying 32% upside based on Friday's closing price.

Now what: As usual, the first thing you need to do is not allow the extremely short-term movements of analysts to cloud your long-term investing thesis. In the case of Universal Truckload, it's going to be a bumpy ride but management seems to have the steering wheel pointed in the right direction. The purchase of LINC adversely affected the company's bottom line because of a change in tax code last quarter and Universal could suffer as it sheds lower margin and unprofitable operations. However, I do see value in the LINC purchase and feel, after a moderate pullback, that this could be a name worth keeping an eye on in the trucking sector.

Top 10 Warren Buffett Stocks To Own Right Now: Gerdau SA (GGB)

Gerdau S.A. (Gerdau), incorporated on November 20, 1961, is a producer of long rolled steel. Gerdau operates steel mills that produce steel by direct iron-ore reduction (DRI) in blast furnaces and in electric arc furnaces (EAF). In Brazil, the Company operates four integrated steel mills, including its mill, Acominas mill, an integrated steel mill located in the state of Minas Gerais. It has a total of 60 steel producing units globally, including joint ventures and associate companies. The joint ventures include a unit located in the United States for the production of flat rolled steel and another unit in India. The associate companies are Aceros Corsa in Mexico; Corporacion Centroamericana del Acero in Guatemala, and Industrias Nacionales (INCA) in the Dominican Republic. Through its subsidiaries and affiliates, the Company also engages in other activities related to the production and sale of steel products, including reforestation, electric power generation projects; coking coal, iron ore and pig iron production, as well as fab shops and downstream operations. On August 12, 2010, Gerdau acquired the remaining 49.1% interest in the Cleary Holdings Corp. On October 21, 2010, Gerdau, through its wholly owned subsidiary Gerdau Ameristeel acquired TAMCO Steel.

Gerdau offers a range of steel products, which are manufactured according to a variety of customer specifications. Its product mix includes crude steel (slabs, blooms and billets) sold to rolling mills, finished products for the construction industry, such as rods and structural bars, finished products for industry, such as commercial rolled steel bars and machine wire and products for farming and agriculture, such as poles, smooth wire and barbed wire. The Company also produces specialty steel products utilizing technology and normally with a certain degree of customization for the manufacture of tools and machinery, chains, locks and springs, for the automotive and mechanical industries. As of December 31, 2010, the Company operat! ed 19 steel production units in the United States and Canada through its principal entity, Gerdau Ameristeel Corporation. Gerdau operates in four business segments: Brazil (Brazil Business Operation), includes Brazil�� operations, except specialty steel; North America (North America Business Operation), includes all North American operations, except Mexico and specialty steel; Latin America (Latin America Business Operation), includes all Latin American operations, except for Brazil, and Specialty Steel (Specialty Steel Business Operation), includes the specialty steel operations in Brazil, Spain and the United States.

Crude Steel (Billets, Blooms and Slabs)

Crude steel products include billets, blooms and slabs. Billets are bars from square sections of long steel that serve as inputs for the production of wire rod, rebars and merchant bars. They are the main product of the Acominas mill. Blooms are used to manufacture products, such as springs, forged parts, heavy structural shapes and seamless tubes. Slabs are used in the steel industry for the rolling of a range of flat rolled products. Slabs are mainly used to produce hot and cold rolled coils, heavy slabs and profiles. Crude steel products are produced using either the continuous casting or conventional process.

Common Long Rolled Products

Common long rolled products represent a major portion of the Company�� production. The Company�� main long rolled products include rebars, merchant bars and profiles, which are used mainly by the construction and manufacturing industries.

Drawn Products

Drawn products include barbed and barbless fence wire, galvanized wire, fences, concrete reinforcing wire mesh, nails and clamps. These products are not exported and are sold to the manufacturing, construction and agricultural industries.

Specialty Steel Products

Gerdau produces specialty and stainless steel used in tools and machinery, chains, fasteners! , railroa! d spikes and special coil steel at its Acos Villares and Piratini units in Brazil, at Corporacion Sidenor units in Spain and at the MacSteel units in the United States. In the United States, Gerdau Ameristeel produces special sections, such as grader blades, smelter bars, light rails, super light I-beams, elevator guide rails and other products that are made on demand for the Company�� clients, which are mainly manufacturers. It is a joint venture with the Kalyani Group in India, in which Gerdau has a 73.2% interest in the joint venture.

Flat Products

Gerdau�� Acominas mill produces slabs, which are rolled into flat products, such as hot and cold steel coils, heavy plates and profiles. In addition, the Company�� distribution subsidiary, Comercial Gerdau, resells flat steel products manufactured by other Brazilian steel producers. Gerdau Ameristeel also supplies flat steel to its customers through its joint venture Gallatin located in Kentucky. Gallatin is a joint venture with ArcelorMittal, Canada, a flat steel producer, and has nominal installed capacity of 1.4 million tons of flat steel per year.

The Company competes with Commercial Metals Company, Nucor Corporation, Steel Dynamics Inc., ArcelorMittal Inc., ArcelorMittal Brasil, Usiminas Group and CSN.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Victor Selva] -largest producer in the sector.

  Why Not No. 1?

  Brazil-based Gerdau has three main advantages. Size ��though it�� a strong pro ��is not necessarily one of them. To start with, Gerdau is a highly integrated company, with annual iron ore production capacity totaling 11.5 million metric tons, enabling it to be over 80% and 40% self-sufficient in Brazil and the U.S., respectively, and thus hedging itself from volatility in raw material prices.

  Second, the company has a relatively modern fleet of furnaces, mainly composed of electric arc furnaces (EAFs), which are more energy-efficient than traditional blast furnaces and should result on a more flexible supply.

  Last, the location is also a positive factor: with a high geographical diversification, Gerdau has still managed to maintain a strong leadership in the markets where it operates (particularly in Brazil and the U.S.). This allows it, on the one hand, to supply many different markets and therefore reduce risks of local economic underperformances and, on the other hand, to profit from low-cost labor in Brazil. In addition, the upcoming sporting events ��2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics ��are expected to generate a strong inflow of investments in infrastructure in the country, with Gerdau as a potential beneficiary of this.

  In spite of being the biggest worldwide, I believe that ArcelorMittal doesn�� count with these characteristics. Further, as players in the industry are so atomized, being the No. 1 producer implies having only 6% of the global market share, which doesn�� give ArcelorMittal a superior bargain power than its peers. And though it�� still a very diversified and vertically integrated group, its costs will tend to be higher than those of Gerdau, since its furnaces are primarily blast furnaces and its labor expenses are higher as the company is based in Europe.

  US Steel will also have to deal with an old and inefficient fleet of furnaces, w

• [By Jeff Reeves]

  Gerdau (GGB) is one of the best ways to play this trend if you believe in a commodities shift. The Brazilian steel company trades for a forward P/E of about 5, and a price/sales of just a bit more than 0.7. That�� an incredible valuation.

Hot Logistics Companies For 2014: Medtronic Inc (MDT)

Medtronic, Inc. (Medtronic), incorporated on April 23, 1957, is engaged in medical technology - alleviating pain, restoring health, and extending life for millions of people worldwide. As of April, 27, 2012, the Company functions in two operating segments that manufacture and sells device-based medical therapies. The Company's operating segments include Cardiac and Vascular Group, which consists of Cardiac Rhythm Disease Management (CRDM) and CardioVascular, and Restorative Therapies Group, which consists of Spinal, Neuromodulation, Diabetes and Surgical Technologies. Medtronic serves hospitals, physicians, clinicians, and patients in more than 120 countries worldwide. The Company's primary customers include hospitals, clinics, third-party health care providers, distributors, and other institutions, including governmental health care programs and group purchasing organizations. In August 2013, Medtronic, Inc. announced the closing of the acquisition of Cardiocom. Effective September 3, 2013, Medtronic Inc acquired a 30% stake in NGC Medical SpA.

Cardiac Rhythm Disease Management

CRDM develops, manufactures, and markets products for the diagnosis, treatment, and management of heart rhythm disorders and heart failure, including implantable devices, leads and delivery systems, products for the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF), and information systems for the management of patients with CRDM devices. The Company's principal products offered by CRDM business include Implantable Cardiac Pacemakers (Pacemakers), Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators (ICDs), Implantable Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy Devices (CRT-Ds and CRT-Ps), AF Products, Diagnostics and Monitoring Devices and Patient Management Tools. The Company's pacemaker systems are compatible with certain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machines. This includes the Revo MRI SureScan with United States Food and Drug Administration approval and the Advisa and Ensura MRI SureScan models with Conformite Europeene (CE)! Mark approval. Medtronic also continues to market the Adapta product family, which includes the Adapta, Versa, Sensia, and Relia models.

The Medtronic ICDs is the Protecta family with SmartShock technology, including the Lead Integrity Alert, a technology designed to improve the detection of lead fractures. Devices in the ICD family are the Protecta XT, Protecta, Cardia, and Egida models. Medtronic also continues to market the Secura and Maximo II devices. The Medtronic CRT-Ds is the Protecta family with SmartShock technology, including Protecta XT and Protecta, and the CRT-P devices are Consulta and Syncra. Medtronic also continues to market the Consulta, Cardia, Egida, and Maximo II CRT-D devices. In addition to these devices, Medtronic has an offering of left heart leads and delivery catheters with its Attain family of products. The Company's portfolio of AF products includes the Arctic Front Cardiac CryoAblation Catheter designed to treat paroxysmal AF by performing pulmonary vein isolation. The Company also offers the Reveal XT Insertable Cardiac Monitor, which is designed to identify and quantify episodes of AF. The Reveal DX and Reveal XT Insertable Cardiac Monitors devices are used to record the heart's electrical activity before, during, and after transient symptoms such as syncope and palpitations to help provide a diagnosis. It has a number of patient management tools, such as CareLink, Paceart, and CardioSight Service. CareLink enables patients to transmit data from their pacemaker, ICD, CRT-D, or Insertable Cardiac Monitors using a portable monitor that is connected to a standard telephone line or cellular network using the Medtronic M-Link accessory.

The Company competes with St. Jude Medical, Inc., Boston Scientific Corporation, Biotronik, Inc. and Sorin Group.

CardioVascular

CardioVascular is comprised of three businesses: Coronary, Endovascular and Peripheral, and Structural Heart. The Coronary business includes therapies to treat ! coronary ! artery disease (CAD) and hypertension. The products contained within this business include coronary stents and related delivery systems, along with a broad line of balloon angioplasty catheters, guide catheters, guidewires, diagnostic catheters, and accessories. The products offered by its Coronary business include Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI) and Renal Denervation. The Endovascular and Peripheral business is comprised of a range of products and therapies to treat abdominal and thoracic aortic aneurysms and peripheral vascular disease (PVD). The Company's products include endovascular stent graft systems, embolic protection systems, and stent systems for the treatment of narrowed iliac arteries. The products offered by the Company's Endovascular and Peripheral business include Endovascular Stent Grafts and Peripheral Vascular Intervention (PVI). The Structural Heart business offers a range of products and therapies to treat a variety of heart valve disorders. The Company's products include products for the repair and replacement of heart valves, perfusion systems, positioning and stabilization systems for beating heart revascularization surgery, and surgical ablation products. The Company's principal products offered by its Structural Heart business include Heart Valves, Transcatheter Heart Valves, Arrested Heart Surgery, Beating Heart Surgery and Surgical Ablation.

The Company competes with Abbott Laboratories, Boston Scientific, and Johnson & Johnson, Cook, Inc., W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc., Endologix, Inc., C.R. Bard, Inc., Edwards LifeSciences Corporation, St. Jude, Terumo Medical Corporation and Sorin Group.

Spinal

The Company's Spinal business develops, manufactures, and markets a range of medical devices and implants used in the treatment of the spine and musculoskeletal system. The Company's products and therapies treat a range of conditions affecting the spine, including degenerative disc disease, spinal deformity, spinal tumours, fractures ! of the sp! ine, and stenosis. The Company's Spinal business also provides biologic solutions for the dental and orthopedic markets. The Company's Spinal products are used in spinal fusion of both the thoracolumbar region, referring to the mid to lower vertebrae, as well as of the cervical region, or upper spine and neck vertebrae. Products used to treat spinal conditions include rods, pedicle screws, hooks, plates, and interbody devices, as well as biologics products, primarily bone growth substitutes including bone graft extenders and structural allografts such as dowels and wedges. The products offered by the Company's Spinal business include Thoracolumbar Products, Cervical Products and Biologics Products.

The Company competes with DePuy Spine, Inc., Synthes, Inc., Stryker Corporation, NuVasive, Inc., Globus Medical, Inc., Zimmer, Inc., Alphatec Spine, Inc., Orthofix International N.V., Biomet, Inc. and Johnson & Johnson.

Neuromodulation

The Company's Neuromodulation business develops, manufactures, and markets medical devices for the treatment of chronic pain, movement disorders, psychological disorders, and urological, fecal, and gastroenterological disorders. The l products offered by the Company's Neuromodulation business includes Neurostimulators for Chronic Pain, Implantable Drug Delivery Systems, Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) Systems and Urology, Fecal, & Gastroenterology Devices. The Company's portfolio of products includes the RestoreSensor (rechargeable), with the Company's AdaptiveStim technology, as well as the RestoreULTRA (rechargeable), RestoreADVANCED (rechargeable), and PrimeADVANCED (non-rechargeable) neurostimulation systems. The SynchroMed II Programmable Infusion System delivers small quantities of drug directly into the intrathecal space surrounding the spinal cord. These devices are used to treat chronic, intractable pain and severe spasticity associated with cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord and traumatic brain injuries, and stroke.

DBS uses a surgically implanted medical device, similar to a cardiac pacemaker, to deliver carefully controlled electrical stimulation to precisely targeted areas in the brain. The Company's family of Activa Neurostimulators for DBS includes Activa SC (single-channel primary cell), Activa PC (dual channel primary cell), and Activa RC (dual channel rechargeable). The Company's therapeutic portfolio for urology and gastroenterology includes the InterStim Therapy System, which treats the symptoms of overactive bladder, urinary retention, and chronic fecal incontinence, and the Enterra Therapy System for the treatment of chronic nausea and vomiting caused by gastroparesis of diabetic or idiopathic origin for drug refractory patients.

The Company's competes with Boston Scientific, St. Jude., Urologix, Inc. and Allergan.

Diabetes

The Company's Diabetes business develops, manufactures, and markets advanced, integrated diabetes management solutions that include insulin pump therapy, continuous glucose monitoring systems, and therapy management software. The products offered by the Company's Diabetes business includes Integrated Diabetes Management Solutions, Professional CGM and CareLink Therapy Management Software. Outside the United States, the Company offers its Paradigm Veo System, an integrated system that includes a Low Glucose Suspend feature that automatically suspends insulin delivery when glucose levels become too low. In the United States, the Company offers the Paradigm Revel System, which incorporates new CGM features, including predictive alerts that can give early warning to people with diabetes so they can take action to prevent dangerous high or low glucose events. Medtronic offers physicians a Professional CGM product called the iPro CGM and iPro2 Professional CGM. The Company offers Web-based therapy management software solutions, including CareLink Personal software for patients and CareLink Pro software, to helps patients and their health care prov! iders con! trol their diabetes.

The Company competes with DexCom, Inc., Insulet Corporation, Johnson & Johnson and Roche Ltd.

Surgical Technologies

The Company's Surgical Technologies business develops, manufactures, and markets products and therapies to treat diseases and conditions of the ear, nose, and throat (ENT) and certain neurological disorders. In addition, the business develops, manufactures, and markets image-guided surgery and intra-operative imaging systems that facilitate surgical planning during precision cranial, spinal, sinus, and orthopedic surgeries. The products offered by the Company's Surgical Technologies business includes ENT, Neurological Technologies, Navigation and Advanced Energy. The ENT products treat diseases and conditions, such as NIM Nerve Monitoring Systems, Fusion ENT Navigation System, Hydrodebrider Endoscopic Sinus Irrigation System, Meniett Device for Meniere's Disease, Pillar Procedure for Snoring and Sleep Apnea, and Repose System for Obstructive Sleep Apnea. The Neurological Technologies products treat certain neurological disorders and conditions, such as Midas Rex Spine Shaver, the Midas Rex MR7 Pneumatic Platform, the Midas Rex Legend EHS High Speed Surgical Drill, the Strata Family of Adjustable Valves for the treatment of Hydrocephalus, Duet External Drainage & Monitoring System, the IPC System, and the Subdural Evacuating Port System.

The Navigation products are used in cranial, spinal, sinus, and orthopedic surgeries, such as the StealthStation S7 Navigation and i7 Integrated Navigation Systems, the O-Arm 2D/3D Surgical Imaging System, and the PoleStar Surgical MRI System. The products make up the Advanced Energy business: PEAK Surgery System, a tissue dissection system that consists of the PEAK PlasmaBlade and the PULSAR Generator and is cleared for use in a variety of settings, including ENT, plastic reconstructive and general surgery; and the Aquamantys System, which uses patented Transcollation technology to ! provide h! aemostatic sealing of soft tissue and bone and is cleared for use in a range of surgical procedures, including orthopedic surgery, spine, solid organ resection and thoracic procedures.

The Company competes with Gyrus ACMI, Stryker Corporation, Johnson & Johnson, Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corporation, BrainLAB, Inc., GE Healthcare, Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc., Philips Medical Systems, Covidien and ArthroCare Corporation.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  Medtronic�Inc. (NYSE: MDT) reports on Tuesday morning and this medical device company is close to all-time highs all over again. Earnings estimates are $0.90 EPS and $4.18 billion in revenue. Medtronic’s focus is often on different metrics, but at $58.35 in late-Monday trading its 52-week range is $40.28 to $58.85.

• [By Jesse Solomon]

  The latest deals include medical device maker Medtronic's (MDT) $42.9 billion acquisition of rival Coviden (COV), telecom giant Level 3 Communications' (LVLT) $5.7 billion purchase of tw telecom (TWTC), Williams Companies (WMB)' $6 billion controlling stake in natural gas driller Access Midstream Partners (ACMP), and SanDisk's (SNDK) $1.1 billion takeover of flash technology company Fusion-io (FIO).

• [By Dan Carroll]

  Investors have gotten their money's worth out of Boston Scientific's (NYSE: BSX  ) stock lately. Shares of the medical device maker have surged by more than 30% in the past six months alone, rising higher despite the company's troubles. Sales have fallen into a slump at Boston Scientific, led lower by the company's cardiac rhythm management, or CRM, business, which produces everything from pacemakers to implantable defibrillators. This is an industry on the decline�--�Medtronic (NYSE: MDT  ) , a leader in the medical device field, has seen its own CRM sales slump in recent quarters, while Boston Sci rival St. Jude Medical (NYSE: STJ  ) has similarly had its top line hammered by its CRM division's falling revenue.

• [By Lauren Pollock]

  Medtronic Inc.(MDT) said its fiscal third-quarter earnings fell 23% on a big write-down related to the medical-device maker’s renal denervation program that masked revenue growth. The company narrowed its earnings forecast for the year.

Hot Logistics Companies For 2014: Good Times Restaurants Inc.(GTIM)

Good Times Restaurants, Inc., through its subsidiary, Good Times Drive Thru Inc., engages in developing, owning, operating, and franchising hamburger-oriented drive-through restaurants. The company operates restaurants under the Good Times Burgers & Frozen Custard name primarily in Colorado. It also has franchised restaurants in North Dakota and Wyoming. As of September 30, 2011, the company operated 25 company-owned and joint venture restaurants located in Colorado; and franchises, including 16 located in Colorado, 2 in Wyoming, and 2 in North Dakota. Good Times Restaurants, Inc. was founded in 1987 and is based in Golden, Colorado.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

  Small cap restaurant stocks BJ's Restaurants, Inc (NASDAQ: BJRI), Good Times Restaurants Inc (NASDAQ: GTIM) and Giggles N Hugs Inc (OTCMKTS: GIGL) aren�� well known to most investors and consumers, but they have produced their share of decent returns for investors. Here is what investors need to know about all three small cap restaurant stocks:

Hot Logistics Companies For 2014: Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA (NAS)

Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA is a Norway-based company active in the low-cost airline industry. It operates scheduled services with additional charter services. It has a route portfolio that stretches across Europe into North Africa and the Middle East, as well as Thailand and the US. The Company operates approximately 400 routes and over 120 destinations. It has a fleet of over 80 jet aircrafts, including Boeings 737-800, Boeings 787-8 Dreamliners, Boeings 737 MAX8 and Airbuses A320neo. It is the parent company of the Norwegian Group and operates through subsidiaries, including Norwegian Air Shuttle Polska Sp z o o, Norwegian Air Shuttle Sweden AB, Call Norwegian AS, NAS Asset Management Norway AS, among others. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By GURUFOCUS]

  EMC�� products ��both hardware and software - are litearlly a geek�� wonderland alphabet soup, which include Storage Area Network (SAN), Network Attached Storage (NAS), Direct Attached Storage (DAS), Virtual SAN, All-Flash XtremIO, Atmos, Avamar, �Data Domain, Isilon, Pivotal, ViPR Software Defined Storgae, VMAX, VNX, VNXe, VPLEX, VSPEX (none of these are typos).� Information storage makes up 70% of revenues and virtualization 23% of revenues.� Products generate 55% of revenues.� Services generate 45% of revenues.� The Company�� gross profit split is approximaltey 67% data storage and 31% virtualization.

Hot Logistics Companies For 2014: Martin Marietta Materials Inc. (MLM)

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and sale of aggregates for the construction industry primarily in the United States, Canada, the Bahamas, and the Caribbean Islands. The company operates in four segments: Mideast Group, Southeast Group, West Group, and Specialty Products. It mines, processes, and sells granite, limestone, sand, gravel, and other aggregate products for use in the public infrastructure, and nonresidential and residential construction industries, as well as in the agriculture, railroad ballast, chemical, and other applications. The company also offers asphalt, ready mixed concrete, and road paving materials. In addition, it manufactures and markets magnesia-based chemical products for the industrial, agricultural, and environmental applications; and dolomitic lime primarily for use in the steel industry. These chemical products are used in flame retardants, wastewater treatment, pulp and paper producti on, and other environmental applications. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. was founded in 1993 and is based in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Still, most companies in the space have high expectations for the future. Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE: MLM  ) said in its first-quarter report that it expects rising shipments for its aggregates, pointing to better housing starts, employment figures in the construction industry, and the need to upgrade highways as justifying greater sales.

Hot Logistics Companies For 2014: Liquidity Services Inc.(LQDT)

Liquidity Services, Inc. operates various online auction marketplaces for surplus and salvage assets in the United States. Its auction marketplaces include liquidation.com, which enables corporations and selected government agencies located in the United States to sell surplus and salvage consumer goods and capital assets; govliquidation.com that enables government agencies to sell surplus and scrap assets; govdeals.com, which enables local and state government entities, including city, county, and state agencies, as well as school boards and public utilities located in the United States to sell surplus and salvage assets. The company also operates secondipity.com that provides consumers a source of products and a socially conscious online experience through donating a portion of the proceeds of every sale to charity; and truckcenter.com, a marketplace for the sale of idle, surplus, and used fleet and transportation equipment. Its marketplaces provide professional buyers a ccess to supply of surplus and salvage assets presented with customer focused information, including digital images and other relevant product information along with services to complete the transaction; and enable corporate and government sellers to enhance their financial return on excess assets by providing liquid marketplaces and value-added services that integrate sales and marketing, logistics, and transaction settlement. The company offers approximately 500 products organized into various categories, including consumer electronics, general merchandise, apparel, scientific equipment, aerospace parts and equipment, technology hardware, energy equipment, industrial capital assets, fleet and transportation equipment, and specialty equipment. Liquidity Services, Inc. was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Washington, District of Columbia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  Liquidity Service (LQDT) is an online auction marketplace for surplus and salvage assets. This stock closed up 14.9% at $34.44 in Monday's trading session.

  Monday's Volume: 1.60 million
  
  Three-Month Average Volume: 402,622
  
  Volume % Change: 336%

  From a technical perspective, LQDT skyrocketed higher here right off its 50-day moving average of $30.94 with strong upside volume. This move briefly saw shares of LQDT trend back above its 200-day moving average at $34.60, before it closed just below that level at $34.44. Shares of LQDT are now quickly moving within range of triggering a big breakout trade. That trade will hit if LQDT manages to take out Monday's intraday high of $35.21 and then once it clears some more near-term overhead resistance at $35.71 with high volume.

  Traders should now look for long-biased trades in LQDT as long as it's trending above $32.67 or above $31.60 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that hits near or above 402,622 shares. If we get that breakout soon, then LQDT will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $38 to $40.90.

• [By Rich Smith]

  Liquidity Services is drying up
  Shares of surplus, scrap, and salvage merchandise liquidator Liquidity Services (NASDAQ: LQDT  ) are getting vaporized Monday, down nearly 4% as of this writing. For this, you can (at least partly)�blame analysts at the Benchmark Company, who cut their price target on Liquidity to $47.

• [By Evan Niu, CFA]

  What: Shares of Liquidity Services (NASDAQ: LQDT  ) have jumped today by as much as 13% after the company said sales posted a big increase last month.

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  My first earnings short-squeeze trade idea is surplus and salvage assets auction marketplace player Liquidity Services (LQDT), which is set to release numbers on Thursday before the market open. Wall Street analysts, on average, expect Liquidity Services to report revenue of $124.48 million on earnings of 45 cents per share.

  The current short interest as a percentage of the float Liquidity Services is extremely high at 34.7%. That means that out of the 25.21 million shares in the tradable float, 9.12 million shares are sold short by the bears. This is a huge short interest on a stock with a very low tradable float. Any bullish earnings news could easily spark a monster short-squeeze for shares of LQDT post-earnings.

  From a technical perspective, LQDT is currently trending below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, which is bearish. This stock has been uptrending a bit over the last month, with shares moving higher from its low of $24.77 to its recent high of $28.25 a share. During that move, shares of LQDT have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of LQDT within range of triggering a breakout trade post-earnings.

  If you're bullish on LQDT, then I would wait until after its report and look for long-biased trades if this stock manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance at $28.25 a share, and then once it takes out both its 50-day at $29.59 and its 200-day at $31.96 a share with high volume. Look for volume on that move that hits near or above its three-month average action of 414,200 shares. If that breakout hits, then LQDT will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $36 to $38 a share.

  I would simply avoid LQDT or look for short-biased trades if after earnings it fails to trigger that breakout, and then drops back below some key near-term support levels at $26 to its 52-week l

Hot Logistics Companies For 2014: FuelCell Energy Inc.(FCEL)

FuelCell Energy, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development, manufacturing, and sale of high temperature fuel cells for clean electric power generation primarily in South Korea, the United States, Germany, Canada, and Japan. The company offers proprietary carbonate Direct FuelCell Power Plants that electrochemically produce electricity from hydrocarbon fuels, such as natural gas and biogas. Its fuel cells operate on a range of hydrocarbon fuels, including natural gas, renewable biogas, propane, methanol, coal gas, and coal mine methane. The company also develops carbonate fuel cells, planar solid oxide fuel cell technology, and other fuel cell technologies. It provides its products to universities; manufacturers; mission critical institutions, such as correction facilities and government installations; hotels; and natural gas letdown stations, as well as to customers who use renewable biogas for fuel, including municipal water treatment facilities, br eweries, and food processors. The company was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in Danbury, Connecticut.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Kell and Lauren Pollock var popups = dojo.query(".socialByline .popC"); ]

  FuelCell Energy Inc.(FCEL) said its fiscal first-quarter loss narrowed as strong gains in product sales drove the power-equipment maker’s overall revenue higher. Shares surged 18% to $4.64 premarket.

• [By Jesse Solomon]

  Fuel cell stocks were all the rage earlier this year when Plug Power (PLUG)announced it got an order from Wal-Mart (WMT) to help power forklifts in some of its distribution center. Plug Power and FuelCell Energy (FCEL)have both skyrocketed this year, but are down 30% and 20%, respectively, this month. Both companies regularly report quarterly losses.

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  As a result, Plug Power’s shares are tumbling. They’ve dropped 19% to $6.87 at 2:20 p.m. today–and Plug Power’s plunge has dragged FuelCell Energy�(FCEL) down 15% to $2.48 and �Ballard Power Systems�(BLDP) down 19% to $4.38.