Top 5 Integrated Utility Companies To Watch For 2014

Mylan (Nasdaq: MYL  ) reported earnings on May 2. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Mylan missed estimates on revenues and met expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue expanded slightly. Non-GAAP earnings per share increased significantly. GAAP earnings per share dropped.

Gross margins expanded, operating margins shrank, net margins contracted.

Revenue details
Mylan reported revenue of $1.63 billion. The 16 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ foresaw sales of $1.69 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were the same as the prior-year quarter's.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
EPS came in at $0.62. The 20 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated $0.62 per share. Non-GAAP EPS of $0.62 for Q1 were 19% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.52 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.27 for Q1 were 10.0% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.30 per share.

Top 10 Companies To Watch For 2015: SM Energy Co (SM)

SM Energy Company (SM Energy), incorporated in 1915, is an independent energy company. The Company is engaged in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids (referred to as oil, gas, and NGLs) in onshore North America. The Company�� operations are focused on five operating areas in the onshore United States. In December 2011, the Company closed on its acquisition and development agreement with Mitsui E&P Texas LP (Mitsui), an indirect subsidiary of Mitsui & Co. Ltd., which transferred 12.5% of its working interest in certain non-operated oil and gas assets in South Texas. In August 2011, the Company sold approximately 15,400 net operated acres in LaSalle and Dimmit Counties, Texas to Talisman Energy USA Inc. and Statoil Texas Onshore Properties LLC (collectively, Talisman/Statoil). In June 2011, the Company completed the divestiture of certain assets located in its Mid-Continent region. In January 2011, it completed the divestiture of certain assets located in its Rocky Mountain region. In December 2013, SM Energy Co announced that it had closed its previously announced Anadarko Basin divestiture package.

As of December 31, 2011, the Company had working interests in 1,353 gross (741 net) productive oil wells and 2,928 gross (1,060 net) productive gas wells. All of its drilling activities are conducted using independent drilling contractors. As of December 31, 2011, it had 415.2 billion cubic feet of natural gas equivalent of proved undeveloped reserves.

South Texas & Gulf Coast Region

Operations for the South Texas & Gulf Coast region are managed from its office in Houston, Texas. The Company�� operations in South Texas & Gulf Coast Region focus primarily on its Eagle Ford shale program. Its acreage position covers a portion of the western Eagle Ford shale play, including acreage in the oil, the NGL-gas, and the dry gas windows of the play. During the year ended December 31, 2011, it had approx! imately 250,000 net acres in the play, which consisted of an approximate 165,000 net acre operated position in Webb, Dimmit, and LaSalle Counties, Texas and an approximate 85,000 net acre non-operated position in Maverick, Dimmit, LaSalle, and Webb Counties, Texas. As of December 31, 2011, it had approximately 196,000 net acres in the play. During 2011, the production was 69.7 billion cubic feet of natural gas equivalent.

Rocky Mountain Region

Operations for the Company�� Rocky Mountain region are managed from its office in Billings, Montana. During 2011, the Company focused on Bakken/Three Forks formations in the North Dakota portion of the Williston Basin, where it had approximately 87,000 net acres.

Mid-Continent Region

Operations for the Company�� Mid-Continent region are managed from its office in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The Company�� operations in the Mid-Continent region are primarily focused on the horizontal development of the Granite Wash formation in western Oklahoma. Its Mid-Continent region also manages its Woodford shale assets. In 2011, its Mid-Continent region's production was 31.6 billion cubic feet of natural gas equivalent. Proved reserves during 2011 were 234.6 billion cubic feet of natural gas equivalent.

ArkLaTex Region

The Company�� focus on the ArkLaTex region has been the horizontal development of its Haynesville shale acreage. In 2011, production in its ArkLaTex region was 30.1 billion cubic feet of natural gas equivalent.

Permian Region

Operations for the Company�� Permian region are managed from its office in Midland, Texas. The Company�� Permian region covers western Texas and eastern New Mexico. Its primary area of development focus in this region is the Wolfberry tight oil play. During 2011, the region�� production was 11.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas equivalent.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Shares of SM Energy Company (NYSE: SM) were down 17.47 percent to $73.93 after the company reported downbeat quarterly earnings. KeyBanc downgraded the stock from Buy to Hold.

Top 5 Integrated Utility Companies To Watch For 2014: Mindspeed Technologies Inc.(MSPD)

Mindspeed Technologies, Inc. designs, develops, and sells semiconductor networking solutions for communications applications in enterprise, fixed and mobile broadband access, metropolitan, and wide-area networks (WAN). The company offers communications convergence processing products that serve as bridges for transporting video, voice, fax, and modem transmissions between circuit-switched and packet-based fixed and mobile networks, and across network boundaries; and offer video and voice over Internet protocol, voice-over-asynchronous transfer mode (ATM), and voice-over-digital subscriber line services, as well as wireline-to-wireless connectivity. These products include the eighth-generation Comcerto family for fiber-access service delivery; and Transcede family of 3G/4G base station baseband processors. It also provides analog transmission devices and switching products, which comprise laser drivers, transimpedance amplifiers, post amplifiers, clock and data recovery cir cuits, signal conditioners, serializers/deserializers, video reclockers, cable drivers, and line equalizers that support storage area network, fiber-to-the-premise, optical transport networks, and broadcast video. In addition, the company offers WAN communications products comprising transmission solutions and ATM/multi-protocol label switching network processors that facilitate the aggregation, processing, and transport of voice and data traffic over copper wire or fiber optic cable to access metropolitan and long-haul networks. It sells its products directly to network infrastructure original equipment manufacturers; and indirectly through electronic component distributors and third-party electronic manufacturing service providers in the Americas, the Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The company was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Newport Beach, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Monica Gerson]

  Mindspeed Technologies (NASDAQ: MSPD) surged 69.02% to $5.02 in the pre-market session after M/A-Com Technology Solutions Holdings (NASDAQ: MTSI) announced its plans to acquire Mindspeed Technologies.

• [By Lauren Pollock]

  M/A-COM Technology Solutions Holdings Inc.(MTSI) agreed to acquire semiconductor manufacturer Mindspeed Technologies Inc.(MSPD) in a deal valued at $272 million, expanding the company’s markets to include enterprise applications. Mindspeed shares surged 70% to $5.04 premarket.

• [By Lee Jackson]

  Mindspeed Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: MSPD) provides voice over internet protocol (VOIP) infrastructure and some telecom chips, which account for about 10% of sales. This could disrupt earnings at a micro cap tech company. The consensus price target for the stock is $3.75.

Top 5 Integrated Utility Companies To Watch For 2014: CNH Global N.V. (CNH)

CNH Global N.V. manufactures, markets, and distributes a line of agricultural and construction equipment and parts worldwide. It operates in three segments: Agricultural Equipment, Construction Equipment, and Financial Services. The Agricultural Equipment segment provides tractors, combine harvesters, hay and forage equipment, seeding and planting equipment, tillage equipment, and sprayers, as well as cotton picker packagers, and sugar cane and grape harvesters primarily under the Case IH and New Holland brands. The Construction Equipment segment offers heavy construction equipment, such as crawler and wheeled excavators, wheel loaders, graders, dozers, and articulated haul trucks; and light construction equipment, including backhoe loaders, skid steer and tracked loaders, mini and midi excavators, compact wheel loaders, and telehandlers primarily under the Case and New Holland Construction brands. This segment serves construction companies, municipalities, local governmen ts, rental fleet owners, quarrying and aggregate mining companies, waste management companies, forestry-related concerns, contractors, residential builders, utilities, road construction companies, landscapers, logistics companies, and farmers. The Financial Services segment provides financial products and services, including retail financing for the purchase or lease of the company�s and other manufacturers� new and used products; and facilitates the sale of insurance products and other financing programs to retail customers. This segment also offers wholesale financing to its dealers and rental equipment operators, as well as financing options to dealers to finance working capital, real estate, and other fixed assets and maintenance equipment. CNH Global N.V. sells and distributes its products through dealers and distributors in approximately 170 countries. The company was founded in 1991 and is based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. CNH Global N.V. is a subsidiary of Fiat Netherlands Holding N.V.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Kubota isn't the only company aggressively challenging Deere. AGCO (NYSE: AGCO  ) has made aggressive expansion efforts in Africa, working with specialty agricultural lender Rabobank to try to help farmers on the continent buy more farming equipment. Moreover, both AGCO and CNH Global (NYSE: CNH  ) have made emerging markets like Latin America a high priority, reaping benefits from the more rapidly expanding economies among Latin American nations. Deere has targeted Latin America as well, but it hasn't been as aggressive with its international efforts as its peers. Deere's stock price has reflected its lack of initiative in expanding globally:

• [By vaninaegea]

  In august, the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) published the mid-year review for the agricultural sector. Their findings point to a slowdown for the industry, highlighting a 9.5% decline on exports through the first half of 2013. Also, late soybean planting in the USA is expected to compound the industry�� slowdown. So, what are the prospects for AGCO (AGCO), CNH Global (CNH), and Deere & Co. (DE) under such conditions?

• [By Mike the PhD]

  Historically the stock prices of Deere (DE) and other agricultural equipment firms and retailers like Case-New Holland (CNH), Titan Machinery (TITN), AGCO (AGCO), Tractor Supply (TSCO), Valmont (VAL), and Lindsay (LNN) have tended to closely track the price of corn. When corn prices go up, farmers tend to make more money, and they spend that money on new equipment from Deere and other firms. This relationship is especially strong for Deere and Corn, but it holds true for all of the stocks above to some extent. (Correlation coefficients between all of the stock prices above and corn are statistically significant to at least the 5% level, see my blog here for more details.)

Top 5 Integrated Utility Companies To Watch For 2014: Brunswick Corp (BC)

Brunswick Corporation (Brunswick), incorporated on December 31, 1907, is a worldwide designer, manufacturer and marketer of recreation products, including marine engines, boats, fitness equipment and bowling and billiards equipment. Brunswick�� engine products include outboard, sterndrive and inboard engines; trolling motors; propellers; engine control systems, and marine parts and accessories. The Company�� boat offerings include fiberglass boats; sportfishing convertibles and motoryachts; offshore fishing boats; aluminum fishing boats, and pontoon and deck boats. Brunswick�� fitness products include both cardiovascular and strength training equipment for the commercial and consumer markets. Brunswick�� bowling products include capital equipment, aftermarket and consumer goods. The Company also sells a range of billiards tables and other gaming tables and accessories. In addition, the Company owns and operates Brunswick bowling family entertainment centers in the United States and other countries. In August 2013, Brunswick Corporation completed the sale of the Hatteras and CABO brands of motoryachts and sportfishing convertibles to Navis HCY Acquisition.

The Company, through its Brunswick Financial Services Corporation (BFS) subsidiary, owns a 49% interest in a joint venture, Brunswick Acceptance Company, LLC (BAC). CDF Ventures, LLC (CDFV), a subsidiary of GE Capital Corporation, owns the remaining 51%. Under the terms of the joint venture agreement, BAC provides secured wholesale inventory floorplan financing to the Company�� engine and boat dealers.

Marine Engine Segment

Mercury Marine manufactures and markets a range of sterndrive propulsion systems, inboard engines and outboard engines under the Mercury, Mercury MerCruiser, Mariner, Mercury Racing, Mercury SportJet and Mercury Jet Drive, MotorGuide, Axius and Zeus brand names. In addition, Mercury Marine manufactures and markets marine parts and accessories under the Quicksilver, Mercury Precision! Parts, Mercury Propellers, Attwood, Land ����Sea, Kellogg Marine Supply, Diversified Marine Products, Sea Choice and MotorGuide brand names, including marine electronics and control integration systems, steering systems, instruments, controls, propellers, trolling motors, service parts and marine lubricants. Mercury Marine�� sterndrive engines, inboard engines and outboard engines are sold to independent boat builders, local, state and foreign governments, and to the Company�� Boat segment. In addition, Mercury Marine�� outboard engines are sold to end-users through a global network of more than 7,000 marine dealers and distributors, specialty marine retailers and marine service centers.

Mercury Marine, through Cummins MerCruiser Diesel Marine LLC (CMD), a joint venture between Brunswick�� Mercury Marine division and Cummins Marine, a division of Cummins Inc., supplies integrated diesel propulsion systems to the worldwide recreational and commercial marine markets, including the Company�� Boat segment. Mercury Marine manufactures two-stroke OptiMax outboard engines ranging from 75 to 300 horsepower, all of which feature Mercury�� direct fuel injection (DFI) technology, and four-stroke outboard engine include Verado, a collection of supercharged outboards ranging from 150 to 350 horsepower, and Mercury Marine's naturally aspirated four-stroke outboards, ranging from 2.5 to 150 horsepower including the introduction of the 150 FourStroke, which is quickly becoming known for its light weight, fuel efficiency and performance. In addition, most of Mercury�� sterndrive and inboard engines are available with catalyst exhaust monitoring and treatment systems.

Mercury Marine�� sterndrive and outboard engines are produced domestically in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, with outboard engines also produced internationally in China and Japan. Mercury Marine manufactures 40, 50 and 60 horsepower four-stroke outboard engines in a facility in China, and produces smaller outboard en! gines in ! Japan pursuant to a joint venture with its partner, Tohatsu Corporation. CMD manufactures diesel marine propulsion systems in South Carolina.

Mercury Marine also operates a remanufacturing business for engines and service parts in Wisconsin. In addition, Mercury Marine has an equity ownership interest in a company that manufactures boats under the brand names Bella, Flipper and Aquador in Finland. Mercury Marine also has an interest in a company that manufactures boats under the brand names Bella, Flipper and Aquador in Finland. Mercury Marine�� parts and accessories distribution businesses include Land ����Sea, Kellogg Marine Supply and Diversified Marine Products. These businesses are the distributors of marine parts and accessories throughout North America.

Boat Segment

The Boat Group consists of the boat brands, such Sea Ray yachts, sport yachts, sport cruisers and runabouts; Bayliner sport cruisers and runabouts; Meridian motoryachts; Boston Whaler, Lund and Trophy fiberglass fishing boats, and Crestliner, Cypress Cay, Harris FloteBote, Lowe, Lund, Princecraft, Suncruiser and Triton aluminum fishing, utility, pontoon and deck boats. The Boat Group also includes a commercial and governmental sales unit that sells products to commercial customers, as well as the United States Government and state, local and foreign governments. The Boat Group procures most of its outboard engines, gasoline sterndrive engines and gasoline inboard engines from Brunswick�� Marine Engine segment.

The Boat Group has active manufacturing facilities in Florida, Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Tennessee, Canada, Mexico and Portugal, as well as additional inactive manufacturing facilities in Florida, Maryland, North Carolina and Tennessee. The Boat Group utilizes contract manufacturing facilities in Argentina and Poland. The Boat Group has constructed a manufacturing plant in Joinville, Santa Catarina, Brazil, which has nearly 150,000 square feet of man! ufacturin! g space. The Boat Group�� products are sold to end-users through a worldwide network of approximately 2,850 dealers and distributors, each of which carries one or more of Brunswick�� boat brands.

Fitness Segment

Brunswick�� Fitness segment consists of its Life Fitness division (Life Fitness), which designs, manufactures and markets a range of cardiovascular fitness equipment (including treadmills, total body cross-trainers, stair climbers and stationary exercise bicycles) and strength-training equipment under the Life Fitness and Hammer Strength brands. Life Fitness��commercial sales customers include health clubs, fitness facilities operated by professional sports teams, the military, governmental agencies, corporations, hotels, schools and universities. Consumer products are available at specialty retailers, select mass merchants, sporting goods stores, through international distributors, and on Life Fitness��Website. The Fitness segment�� principal manufacturing facilities are located in Illinois, Kentucky, Minnesota and Hungary. Life Fitness distributes its products worldwide from regional warehouses and production facilities.

Bowling & Billiards Segment

The Bowling & Billiards segment consists of the Brunswick Bowling & Billiards division (BB&B). BB&B is a worldwide designer, manufacturer and marketer of bowling products. BB&B's bowling products business designs, manufactures and markets a variety of bowling products, including capital equipment (such as automatic pinsetters and scoring devices), bowling balls and aftermarket products (such as lane machines, pinsetter parts, lane conditioners and lane cleaners). Through licensing arrangements, BB&B also offers an array of bowling consumer products, including bowling shoes, bags and accessories.

BB&B operates 95 bowling centers in the United States, Canada and Europe. BB&B retail bowling centers offer bowling and, depending on size and location, may also offer activities a! nd facili! ties: restaurants, lounges, snack bars, billiards, video and redemption games, laser tag, pro shops and meeting and party rooms. Of the Company's 95 bowling centers, 42 have been converted into Brunswick Zones, which are bowling centers that offer an array of active entertainment activities for its guests. BB&B designs and/or markets billiards tables, table tennis tables, air powered table hockey games, billiard balls, cues and other gaming tables, as well as game room furniture and related accessories, under the Brunswick and Contender brands. BB&B's primary manufacturing and distribution facilities are located in Michigan, Wisconsin, Hungary and Mexico. Brunswick�� bowling and billiards products are sold through a variety of channels, including distributors, dealers, mass merchandisers, bowling centers and retailers, and directly to consumers on the Internet and through other outlets.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Basic guidelines
  In this series, I examine inventory using a simple rule of thumb: Inventory increases ought to roughly parallel revenue increases. If inventory bloats more quickly than sales grow, this might be a sign that expected sales haven't materialized. Is the current inventory situation at Brunswick (NYSE: BC  ) out of line? To figure that out, start by comparing the company's inventory growth to sales growth. How is Brunswick doing by this quick checkup? At first glance, not so great. Trailing-12-month revenue increased 3.0%, and inventory increased 8.4%. Comparing the latest quarter to the prior-year quarter, the story looks decent. Revenue increased 3.7%, and inventory increased 8.4%. Over the sequential quarterly period, the trend looks healthy. Revenue grew 19.9%, and inventory grew 5.0%.

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Calling all cash flows
  When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Brunswick (NYSE: BC  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.