Top Safest Companies For 2014

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Top 5 European Companies To Buy For 2015: Central Iron Ore Ltd (CIO)

Central Iron Ore, Ltd. is a Canada-based exploration and development company. The Company is engaged in the search for and development of iron ore and gold. Its projects include Yilgarn Iron Ore Project, South Darlot Gold Project and Eureka Gold Project. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Monica Wolfe]

  These four insiders made their buys during the public offering for $6 per share, and since their buys the price per share is down about -0.83%.� Highlighted below are the insiders��individual buys:

  Timothy Keating (CEO):� Bought 8,000 shares for $48,000.� Now holds 98,000 shares of KIPO stock. Taylor Simonton (D):� Bought 3,000 shares for $18,000. Now holds 13,000 shares of KIPO stock. Kyle Rogers (CIO):� Bought 3,072 shares for $18,432.� Now holds 8,096 shares of company stock. Frederic Schweiger (CFO/COO):� Bought 8,000 shares for $48,000.� Now holds on to 26,700 shares of KIPO stock.

Top Safest Companies For 2014: Deutsche Grundstuecksauktionen AG (DGR)

Deutsche Grundstuecksauktionen AG is a Germany-based auction house specialized in the auction and agency sale of land and buildings. The Company�� main activities comprise the placement and sale of properties, as well as the provision of real estate assets management and appraisal services. As of December 31, 2011, the Company owned such subsidiaries as Saechsische Grundstuecksauktionen AG, Norddeutsche Grundstuecksauktionen AG, Plettner & Brecht Immobilien GmbH and Westdeutsche Grunstuecksauktionen AG, among others. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Roadmap2Retire]

  AT&T is a Dividend Aristocrat & Dividend Champion having raised dividends for 30 years in a row. The stock is a high yielder (current dividend is 5.31%) and as a result, the dividend growths are comparatively smaller. The 5-yr dividend growth rate (DGR) is 2.4% and 10-yr DGR is 4.9%.

Top Safest Companies For 2014: Scientific Games Corp (SGMS)

Scientific Games Corporation (Scientific Games), incorporated on July 2, 1984, is a global supplier of solutions to lottery and gaming organizations worldwide. The Company�� products and services include instant lottery games, lottery gaming systems, terminals and services, and Internet applications, as well as server-based interactive gaming machines and associated gaming control systems. The Company reports its operations in three segments: Printed Products Group, Lottery Systems Group and Diversified Gaming Group. Printed Products Group is a provider of instant lottery tickets in the world. The Company�� Lottery Systems Group is a provider of customized computer software, software support, equipment and data communication services to lotteries. Its Diversified Gaming Group provides services and systems to private and public operators in the wide area gaming industry, including server-based gaming machines and sports betting systems and services. On September 23, 2011, the Company acquired Barcrest Group Limited. During 2011, the Company launched MDI Interactive, a content services powerhouse dedicated to delivering gaming solutions for the Internet, mobile and all digital things. In October 2013, the Company announced that it has completed the acquisition of WMS Industries Inc.

Printed Products

Printed Products segment is primarily consists of instant ticket lottery business. The Company generates revenue from the manufacturing and sale of instant tickets, as well as the provision of value-added services, such as game design, sales and marketing support, specialty games and promotions, inventory management and warehousing and fulfillment services. It also provides lotteries with cooperative service programs (CSPs), to help them manage and support their operations. The Company also provides licensed games, promotional entertainment and Internet-based services to the lottery industry. It operates six instant ticket printing facilities across five continents.

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The Company provides lotteries with access to some entertainment brands on lottery products through its subsidiary MDI Entertainment LLC (MDI). The Company�� licensed entertainment brands include Harley-Davidson, Major League Baseball, Monopoly, National Basketball Association, The Price is Right, Wheel-of-Fortune and World Poker Tour. It also provides branded merchandise prizes, advertising, promotional support, turnkey drawing management services and prize fulfillment programs. In addition, it offers lotteries a Web-based platform called Properties Plus, which features players clubs, reward programs, second chance promotional websites, interactive games and, subject to applicable law, a subscription system that enables players to purchase lottery games securely over the Internet. The Company owns 20% interests in LNS ad Northstar, and 49% in CSG.

Lottery Systems

The Company is a provider of customized computer software, software support, equipment and data communication services to lotteries. In the United States, the Company typically provides the necessary equipment, software and maintenance services pursuant to long-term facilities. Internationally, it typically sells terminals and/or computer software to lottery authorities and may provide ongoing fee-based systems and software support services. The Company�� lottery systems business includes the supply of transaction-processing software, draw lottery games, keno, point-of-sale terminals, central site computers and communication platforms as well as ongoing operational support and maintenance services. The Company is the instant ticket validation network provider to the China Sports Lottery.

The Company has lottery systems operating in Argentina, Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Israel, Latvia, Mexico, Norway, the Philippines, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. In addition, it provides video lottery central monitoring, and control systems and networks primarily to lotteries an! d gaming ! regulators. It also provides software, hardware and support for sports wagering systems. The Company has 50% interest in Guard Libang, a provider of instant ticket activation and validation and inventory management systems and services.

Gaming

The Company is a provider of server-based gaming machines and systems and other products and services to operators in the gaming industry. The Company�� Gaming segment includes The Global Draw Limited (Global Draw), a supplier of server-based gaming machines and systems, and game content primarily to bookmakers that operate licensed betting offices (LBOs) in the United Kingdom, and to gaming operators outside the United Kingdom. The Gaming segment also includes Barcrest Group Limited (Barcrest) and Games Media Limited (Games Media), suppliers of gaming machines, systems and game content to pubs, bingo halls and arcades in the United Kingdom and continental Europe.

The Company provides its Gaming customers with gaming machines, remote management of game content and management information, central computer systems, secure data communication and field support services. It develops its own game content, and supplements its offering with content from third parties. As of December 31, 2011, the Company installed approximately 23,100 LBO gaming machines in the United Kingdom, which included approximately 8,000 LBO gaming. As of December 31, 2011, it had an installed base of approximately 6,100 gaming machines in its United Kingdom pub, bingo hall and arcade business, and installed approximately 6,500 gaming machines outside of the United Kingdom. During 2011, the Company owned a 50% interest in Sciplay, a joint venture with Playtech Services (Cyprus) Limited. It also owns 29.4% interests in RCN, and 20% in Sportech.

The Compnay competes with Pollard Banknote Limited, GTECH, BI Worldwide Ltd., Alchemy3, LLC, ePrize, LLC, GTECH, Pollard, Intralot Technologies, Inc., International Lottery and Totalizator Systems, Inc.! , Inspire! d Gaming Group Limited, Danoptra Ltd, Sceptre Leisure plc, Games Warehouse Limited, International Game Technology, Lottomatica, Bally Technologies, Inc., Inspired, Aristocrat Leisure Ltd, Novomatic AG, Multimedia Games, Inc., WMS Industries Inc., Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc., Amaya Gaming Group, Inc., Cryptologic Ltd., IGT, Microgaming Software Systems Ltd., Net Entertainment NE AB, NYX Gaming Group, OpenBet Technology Ltd. and Playtech Limited.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Johanna Bennett]

  Scientific Games (SGMS) is placing a big bet on Bally Technologies (BYI).

  Early today, the seller of instant ticketing systems and game-control software announce it was buying the slot machine maker for $5.1 billion, including debt, marking the latest deal in the gaming equipment industry.

  Bally shareholders will get $83.30 a share or a 38% premium to the stock’s closing price on Thursday. Scientific Games will take on $1.8 billion of Bally’s debt.

  As expected, the news sent Bally�� share soaring 20% to $77.72. But investors aren�� going all in on the deal, with Scientific Games��share price down 2% to $8.33 a share.

  The deal looks good on paper. As the WSJ reports:

  The two companies generated combined revenue of about $3 billion in the one-year period ended March 31. The merger plan calls for $220 million of cost synergies and $25 million of capital-expenditure savings through consolidating operations and creating efficiencies across a range of activities.

  Scientific Games said it expects the deal to immediately benefit the company’s per-share earnings and cash flow and help reduce the company’s leverage over the next three to four years.

  This is not the first coupling for Scientific Games. In late 2013, it bagged WMS Industries, a maker of gambling equipment, for $1.42 billion, while Bally acquired fellow casino-device maker SHFL Entertainment for $1.3 billion. And in mid-July, casino-equipment maker International Game Technology (IGT) agreed to be acquired by Italian lottery-operator Gtech in a deal worth $4.7 billion.

• [By Stock Maelstrom]

  We are likely approaching the last time I will be reporting on WMS Industries (WMS), the former Williams Electronics. It has agreed to be acquired by Scientific Games (SGMS) for $26 per share, plus the assumption of WMS' modest debt. The deal is scheduled to close by the end of this year. On its own, WMS is having a dismal fiscal year, which ends June 30. For this year, the company, no doubt with distracted management, earnings are likely to end at about $0.90 per share, compared with fiscal 2012's $1.31 per share. Helping drive earnings lower are additional measures the company is taking to drive up revenues, which remain well below last decade's peak. WMS' stock has flat lined the past few months at within three percent of the $26 price. There is virtually no upside, though there is downside if the deal collapses. I see no reason to get invested in WMS.

• [By Travis Hoium]

  What: Shares of Scientific Games (NASDAQ: SGMS  ) jumped 10% in late trading today after signing an important customer.

  So what: The company announced that it has signed a contract extension to provide lottery gaming and instant ticket services for the Oklahoma Lottery. This was actually disclosed earlier this year,�but investors bid up shares leading up to the announcement and nearly five times the three-month average volume of shares traded hands today. �

• [By Johanna Bennett]

  In corporate news: Scientific Games (SGMS) announced it is buying slot-machine maker Bally Technologies (BYI) for $5.1 billion, including debt. The Bally shareholders will get $83.30 a share or a 38% premium to the stock�� closing price on Thursday. The deal sent Bally soaring more than 29% to $77.70, while Scientific Games rose almost 2.8% to $8.78.

Top Safest Companies For 2014: Fossil Inc.(FOSL)

Fossil, Inc. designs, develops, markets, and distributes fashion accessories worldwide. It offers a line of fashion watches under its proprietary brands, such as FOSSIL, MICHELE, RELIC, and ZODIAC; and through licensed brands, including ADIDAS, BURBERRY, DIESEL, DKNY, EMPORIO ARMANI, MARC BY MARC JACOBS, and MICHAEL KORS. The company designs, markets, and arranges for the manufacture of watches and accessories on behalf of certain mass market retailers, companies, and organizations as private label products or as premium and incentive items for use in various corporate events. It also provides various fashion accessories for men and women, including handbags, belts, small leather goods, jewelry, and sunglasses through company owned retail stores, department stores, and specialty retail stores, as well as over the Internet and through catalogs. In addition, the company sells a line of soft accessories, such as hats, gloves, and scarves, as well as a handbag collection. Furt her, it offers apparel comprising jeans, outerwear, fashion tops and bottoms, and tee shirts for men and women through company-owned stores, as well as over the Internet and through catalogs. Additionally, the company provides footwear products, including sport court sneakers, authentic casuals, dress classics, and boots for men, as well as fashionable flats, heels, wedges, and boots for women. Fossil, Inc., through a license agreement with the Safilo Group, manufactures, markets, and sells optical frames under the FOSSIL and RELIC brand names in the United States and Canada. As of August 9, 2011, it had approximately 360 company-owned and operated retail stores. The company was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Richardson, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By CNNMoney Staff]

  It's expected to be a relatively quiet day on the earnings front. Fossil (FOSL) will report earnings after the closing bell. Big retailers such as Wal-Mart (WMT, Fortune 500) and Macy's (M, Fortune 500) will be reporting later in the week.

• [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]

  www.fossil.com From the world's largest retailer stepping up with fresh financials to a maker of fashionable timepieces proving that it can still grow in this unwelcome climate for watchmakers, here are some of the things that will help shape the week that lies ahead on Wall Street. Monday -- Sounds Good DTS (DTSI) has carved a cozy living providing sound-enhancing technology in Blu-ray players, video game consoles and other devices. Despite its success, DTS is trading a lot closer to its 52-week low than its 52-week high. One thing holding it back is that it has failed to impress the market with its quarterly financials. It's coming off back-to-back quarters of falling short of Wall Street's profit expectations. It's against this setting that DTS will step up after Monday's market close to deliver its latest results. Will the streak of disappointment stretch to three quarters, or is DTS finally going to put out a report that looks as good as its audio technology sounds? We will know soon. Tuesday -- Fossil Fuel Fossil (FOSL) may seem to be toiling away in an industry worthy of its name. Aren't wristwatches dinosaurs? Who wears watches anymore when we have smartwatches to tell us the time. Folks with active lifestyles are saving their wrists for fitness bracelets. Well, Fossil is growing just nicely in this environment, thank you very much. When the trendy watchmaker reports on Tuesday analysts see revenue climbing 13 percent. They see top-line growth of 10 percent for all of 2014. Fossil's profitability isn't expected to clock in as nicely, but unlike DTS,we've seen Fossil blow Wall Street's profit targets away consistently over the past year. Wednesday -- Press Hard CafePress (PRSS) has been a disappointment for investors since going public at $19 two years ago. The stock opened higher on its first day of trading, but it's been mostly downhill for the shares, which now fetch less than a third of the initial public offering price. CafePress was hoping

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Fossil (FOSL) makes watches, handbags. This evening, however, it’s making losses after offering disappointing full-year guidance.

  Fossil reported a profit of $1.22 cents a share, beating analyst forecasts for $1.18 cents a shares. Its sales rose 14% to $777 million, beating forecasts for $772 million. Unfortunately, that was it for the good news. Fossil went on to say that it would earn between $6.90 and $7.30 a share during 2014, skewing below the Street consensus for $7.21, while sales would increases 8% to 10%, which would be at or below forecasts.

  Shares of Fossil have dropped 4% to $107 at 4:21 p.m. in after-hours trading.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  But competition in the watch industry has gotten incredibly fierce. Archrival Fossil (NASDAQ: FOSL  ) has pushed ahead with partnership and expansion plans of its own, with its acquisition of Skagen last year helping to push sales higher. Earlier this month, Fossil posted its own strong earnings report, with a 24% jump in net income coming from a better-than-15% gain in revenue. Although direct sales through its own stores brought in the best margins, Fossil's partnership with Michael Kors (NYSE: KORS  ) and other third-party sales also led to substantial growth.

Top Safest Companies For 2014: Rainmaker Entertainment Inc (RNK)

Rainmaker Entertainment Inc. is an animation studio and is a producer of computer generated (CG) animation. Rainmaker provides services producing CG animation of family entertainment over various entertainment media, including television, digital versatile disc (DVD), gaming and theatrical films. As of December 31, 2011, the Company delivered 42 films based on international brands, such as Barbie, Hot Wheels, Spiderman, Casper, Popeye, Tony Hawk, Stuart Little and Inspector Gadget. In 2011 the Company completed Luna, an animated short film. Rainmaker also produces feature length direct to DVD films for many top international brands including Barbie, Max Steele, Tony Hawk, and more for clients such as Mattel, Sony, and Lions Gate. Rainmaker completed the production of Barbie: Princess Charm School and Barbie in A Mermaid Tale 2 for the series starring Barbie. In December 2011, the Company completed the sale of its remaining interest in Base 10 Group Inc. (Base 10). Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Inyoung Hwang]

  Rank Group Plc (RNK) fell 2.6 percent to 150 pence, falling for a fifth day. The casino operator said it expects full-year operating profit to be marginally below analysts��projection.

Top Safest Companies For 2014: Deluxe Corporation (DLX)

Deluxe Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides personalized printed products, promotional products, and merchandising materials in the United States, Canada, and Europe. Its Small Business Services segment offers printed products, including business checks, promotional products, marketing materials, and related services, as well as retail packaging supplies and a suite of business services comprising Web design and hosting, fraud protection, payroll, logo design, search engine marketing, business networking, and other Web-based services to small businesses. This segment also offers printed forms, such as billing forms, work orders, job proposals, purchase orders, invoices, and personnel forms; computer forms; and stationery, letterhead, envelopes, greeting cards and labels, and business cards in various formats and ink colors. It sells its products through mail and the Internet, referrals from financial institutions and telecommunications clients, independent distributors and dealers, and sales representatives. The company?s Financial Services segment provides check programs for personal and business checks, fraud prevention and monitoring services, customer acquisition campaigns, marketing communications, regulatory program services, and customer loyalty programs to banks, credit unions, and financial services companies primarily through direct sales force. Its Direct Checks segment sells personal and business checks, and related products and services directly to consumers through direct response marketing and the Internet. Deluxe also offers online financial management tools that provide banks with daily access to their financial position and general ledger information. The company was formerly known as Deluxe Check Printers, Incorporated and changed its name to Deluxe Corporation in 1988. Deluxe Corporation was founded in 1915 and is headquartered in Shoreview, Minnesota.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Eric Volkman]

  Deluxe (NYSE: DLX  ) is opening its checkbook for a fresh round of shareholder payouts. The company has declared its latest quarterly dividend, which is to be $0.25 per share, paid on September 3 to shareholders of record as of August 19.�This is in line with the firm's long-standing distribution policy; it has handed out that amount in every quarter stretching back to July 2006.

Top Safest Companies For 2014: Genomma Lab Internacional SAB de CV (LABB.MX)

Genomma Lab Internacional SAB de CV is a Mexico-based over-the-counter pharmaceutical (OTC pharmaceutical), generic drugs (GD) and personal care products company. The Company is engaged in the development, distribution and marketing of a range of products within different brands, for such treatments as anti-acne, varicose vein, hair loss, sexual stimulation and influenza; as well as analgesics and antifungals. The Company�� product portfolio includes such brands as Asepxia, Cicatricure, Goicoechea, Bengue, Diabet TX, Genoprazol, Goicotabs, Shot B, SilkaMedic, Siluet 40, Nikzon, X Ray, Next, Touch Me, Lomecan V and QG5, among others. The Company is a parent of a number of controlled entities, which have operations established in Mexico, the United States, Peru, Chile, Ecuador and Honduras, among others. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  He then took a deep dive into Genomma Lab�(LABB.MX), a Mexican producer of over-the counter pharmaceuticals, generic drugs, and personal care products. Now, I’m sitting with a Chromebook in a large auditorium, so I hope I’ve captured the essence of his argument.