Saturday, July 12, 2014

Best Media Stocks To Buy For 2014

Introduction: Pessimism Is for Losers

I�� inspired to write this article because I am so frustrated by the plethora of all the so-called expert market prognosticators that continuously bombard the public with negative forecasts. I consider this to be both erroneous and irrational. When the markets are doing well, we are immediately inundated with articles talking about how the market has surely topped and a big drop is imminent. When markets are doing poorly, we are flooded with numerous forecasts of just how bad it�� going to be. The real truth of the matter is that nobody really knows. Not the Federal Reserve, nor any of the so-called experts who are more than willing to provide us with their forecasts of doom and gloom. Pessimism is pervasive, but optimism is, in fact, more accurate and rational in my opinion.

The best investing minds that I��e come across, which are also the ones with the best long-term track records, universally agree that timing markets, or forecasting the economy or interest rates, etc., are exercises in futility. The great investor Bernard Baruch put it quite succinctly when he said:

Top Growth Companies To Own For 2015: Gannett Co. Inc. (GCI)

Gannett Co., Inc. operates as a media and marketing solutions company in the United States and internationally. Its Publishing segment publishes 83 U.S. daily newspapers with affiliated online sites, including USA TODAY, a national, general-interest daily newspaper; USATODAY.com; USA WEEKEND, a magazine supplement for newspapers; Clipper Magazine, a direct mail advertising magazine; bi-weekly Nursing Spectrum and NurseWeek periodicals; and military and defense newspapers. This segment also includes 17 paid-for daily newspapers; approximately 200 weekly newspapers, magazines, and trade publications; and approximately 600 non-daily publications, as well as involves in commercial printing, newswire, marketing, and data services operations. The company?s Digital segment owns and operates CareerBuilder, an employment Web site, which offers online recruitment and career advancement services for employers, employees, recruiters, and job seekers; ShopLocal, which provides multicha nnel shopping and advertising services; Planet Discover, which offers hosted search and advertising services; PointRoll, which provides digital marketing services and technology; and Schedule Star, which offers scheduling solution for high school athletic departments. Its Broadcasting segment operates 23 television stations and affiliated Web sites, which produce local programming, such as news, sports, and entertainment programming. This segment also includes Captivate Network, a national news and entertainment network that delivers programming and full-motion video advertising on video screens located in elevators of office towers and select hotel lobbies in North America. The company has strategic business relationships with online affiliates, including Classified Ventures, ShopLocal.com, Topix, and Metromix LLC, as well as strategic marketing agreement with Microsoft. Gannett Co., Inc. was founded in 1906 and is headquartered in McLean, Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Sue Chang and Polya Lesova]

    Gannett Co. (GCI) �fell 3.4%, among the worst S&P 500 (SPX) laggards. UBS, which rates the stock at neutral, cut its price target to $25 from $27.

Best Media Stocks To Buy For 2014: Thomson Reuters Corp(TRI)

Thomson Reuters Corporation provides intelligent information for businesses and professionals worldwide. The company allows market participants to connect, access content, and trade in a secure environment through Thomson Reuters Eikon desktop, Thomson Reuters Elektron network, content integration and management technology, content feeds and databases, and transactions infrastructure solutions that support buy- and sell-side customers to trade in foreign exchange, fixed income and derivatives, equities, exchange-traded instruments, and commodities and energy markets. It also offers information, analytics, workflow, and technology solutions to buy-side and off-trading floor customers; access to liquidity in over-the-counter markets, trade execution, and connections for market participants and financial professionals? communities; and a suite of solutions offering informed outcomes to regulated industries and law firms. In addition, the company provides critical information , decision support tools, and software and services to legal, investigation, business, and government professionals; integrated tax compliance and accounting software and services for accounting and law firms, corporations, and government professionals; intellectual property and scientific resources that enable its customers to discover, develop, and deliver innovations; and data analytics, and performance benchmarking solutions and services to healthcare sector. Further, it offers coverage of global, regional, and national news in 20 languages covering politics, business, finance, entertainment, lifestyle, technology, health, science, and sports; and engages in advertising-supported direct-to-consumer publishing activities of Reuters.com and its network of Websites, mobile applications, and electronic out-of-home displays. The company was formerly known as The Thomson Corporation and changed its name to Thomson Reuters Corporation in April 2008. The company is headquartered in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Monica Wolfe]

    Thomson Reuters (TRI)

    On Feb. 11, Thomson Reuters declared a dividend of $0.330 per share, representing 3.80% dividend yield for the company. This dividend is payable on March 17 to shareholders of the record at the close of business on Feb. 24, 2014.

  • [By Rich Smith]

    This series, brought to you by Yahoo! Finance, looks at which upgrades and downgrades make sense, and which ones investors should act on. Today, our headlines feature an upgrade for Thomson Reuters Reuters (NYSE: TRI  ) , a new buy rating for Novavax (NASDAQ: NVAX  ) -- but for Union Pacific (NYSE: UNP  ) , a downgrade. Let's get that bad news out of the way first.

  • [By Associated Press]

    Ron Brown, head of Elektron Analytics, a Thomson Reuters (NYSE: TRI  ) unit that sells news feeds that computers can read, said that the words "explosions" or "Obama" alone wouldn't have triggered selling. But add "White House," and it's a combination even the slowest computer couldn't miss.

  • [By Rich Smith]

    Thomson Reuters (NYSE: TRI  ) has acquired Canadian trademark search, monitoring, and screening firm Onscope, Thomson announced Tuesday.

Best Media Stocks To Buy For 2014: Time Warner Inc.(TWX)

Time Warner Inc. operates as a media and entertainment company in the United States and internationally. It operates in three segments: Networks, Filmed Entertainment, and Publishing. The Networks segment provides domestic and international networks, premium pay and basic tier television programming services, and digital media properties, which primarily consist of brand-aligned Websites. Its premium pay television services consist of the multi-channel HBO and Cinemax premium pay television services. This segment provides programming to cable system operators, satellite service distributors, telephone companies, and other distributors; sells advertising; and licenses original programming to domestic and international television networks. The Filmed Entertainment segment produces and distributes feature films, television and other programming, and videogames; distributes home video products; and licenses rights to its feature films, television programming, and characters. T he Publishing segment publishes magazines and books; and operates various Websites, as well as engages in marketing services and direct-marketing businesses. This segment publishes magazines on style and entertainment, lifestyle, news, and sports. The company?s brands include TNT, TBS, CNN, HBO, Cinemax, Warner Bros., New Line Cinema, People, Sports Illustrated, and Time. Time Warner Inc. was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Tim Beyers]

    Pain and Gain from Viacom's (NASDAQ: VIA  ) Paramount Studios ranked second, with $7.6 million at the gate, while 42 from Time Warner's (NYSE: TWX  ) Warner Bros. studio earned $6.2 million, according to figures compiled by Box Office Mojo.

  • [By Rick Aristotle Munarriz]

    Lloyd Bishop/NBCU Photo Bank/Getty ImagesStephen Colbert (left) practices his network performance with Jimmy Fallon. From a fallen dot-com darling scoring a rare hat trick to a discount retailer discounting its headcount, here's a rundown of the week's smartest moves and biggest blunders in the business world. CBS (CBS) -- Winner David Letterman is leaving his late-night talk show next year, and CBS allowed only a week to pass between that announcement and naming his replacement. Stephen Colbert will take over "The Late Show." It may seem like a gutsy call. Colbert's satirical skewering of political conservatives is polarizing, even if his talk show persona is unlikely to embrace the character that made him a Comedy Central late-night star. It's still an attention-grabbing announcement and one that should benefit CBS as well as its sister company and Comedy Central parent Viacom (VIA). Time Warner (TWX) -- Loser "Game of Thrones" kicked off its highly anticipated fourth season on Time Warner's (TWX) HBO on Sunday, but it wasn't just the show's power-hungry characters that were out for blood. Online users were incensed to find an outage on HBO Go preventing them from watching the premiere for several hours. HBO Go has been a major component of the premium movie channel's success in recent years, included at no additional cost with HBO subscriptions to justify the platform's high cost relative to Netflix (NFLX) and other growing streaming video services. Subscribers expect reliability when they're paying up for a premium service, and they just didn't get it. A big reason why this outage is making news -- as HBO Go subscribers had to stay off social media to avoid spoilers -- is because there was a similar disruption last month during HBO's "True Detective." Yelp (YELP) -- Winner Yelp may not be very popular with its investors, nor with some irate merchants, but it got some love from Wall Street this week. Three analyst firms -- Oppenheimer, SunTrust and

  • [By Laura Brodbeck]

    Next week investors will be waiting for several key earnings reports including�Tesla Motors, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA), Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX), CenturyLink, Inc. (NYSE: CTL), Groupon, Inc. (NASDAQ: GRPN)

  • [By Tim Beyers]

    Can anyone touch Walt Disney's (NYSE: DIS  ) Marvel Studios? Man of Steel has proved to be a winner for Time Warner's (NYSE: TWX  ) DC Entertainment and should close the weekend with about $248 million at the U.S. box office, Deadline.com reports. Audiences seem to like director Zack Snyder's grittier, more realistic version of Superman.

Best Media Stocks To Buy For 2014: Comcast Corporation(CMCSA)

Comcast Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides entertainment, information, and communications products and services in the United States and internationally. Its Cable Communications segment provides video, high-speed Internet, and phone services to residential and business customers. As of June 30, 2011, its cable systems served approximately 22.5 million video customers, 17.5 million high-speed Internet customers, and 9.1 million phone customers. The company?s Cable Networks segment operates cable entertainment networks, such as USA Network, Syfy, E!, Bravo, Oxygen, Style, G4, Chiller, Sleuth, and Universal HD; news and information networks, including CNBC, MSNBC, and CNBC World; cable sports networks comprising Golf Channel and VERSUS; regional sports and news networks; international entertainment, and news and information networks, such as CNBC Europe, CNBC Asia, and Universal Networks International portfolio of networks; cable television production oper ations; and digital media properties consisting primarily of brand-aligned Websites and other Websites, such as DailyCandy, Fandango, and iVillage. Its Broadcast Television segment operates the U.S. broadcast networks, NBC and Telemundo; 10 NBC and 15 Telemundo owned local television stations; broadcast television productions; and related digital media properties. The company?s Filmed Entertainment segment operates Universal Pictures, which produces, acquires, markets, and distributes filmed entertainment and stage plays worldwide in various media formats for theatrical, home entertainment, television, and other distribution platforms. Its Theme Parks segment operates Universal Studios Hollywood park and Wet ?n Wild water park, as well as licenses intellectual properties and provides services to third parties that own and operate Universal Studios Japan and Universal Studios Singapore. Comcast Corporation was founded in 1963 and is based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Patricio Kehoe]

    Although these efforts have given positive results, reducing customer losses and growing revenue per customer, the firm still operates at a disadvantage in relation to wireless and cable companies . Firms such as Comcast Corporation (CMCSA), Time Warner Cable Inc. (TWC) and Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) have built superior platforms for Internet access, thus offering better data speeds as well as a full complement of services.

  • [By Alex Planes]

    We didn't really like you guys, anyway
    Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA  ) walked away from an industry-shaking hostile bid to buy Disney (NYSE: DIS  ) on April 28, 2004. Originally valued at $66 billion when announced in February, the all-stock deal had dwindled to $48 billion by the time Comcast backed away. It was a long shot to begin with, as Disney's market cap, despite falling through the period from offer to withdrawal, was rarely below the value of Comcast's bid. Even on April 28, Disney was worth a hair more than $48 billion. Comcast blamed its retraction on Disney management. Could you blame them? Who in his right mind would sell the world's most famous entertainment company at less than market value?

  • [By Tim Brugger]

    Cable companies must be scared, right?
    Are cable Internet providers concerned about the threat posed by Google Fiber? If so, they aren't showing it yet. It's probably just a coincidence that my cable provider, Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA  ) , recently offered to crank up my Internet connectivity speed at no charge. That's right -- a cable company opted to improve service without charging. Interesting.

  • [By Anders Bylund]

    Anders explains how Google's final destination will depend on how today's leading Internet service providers -- such as Verizon (NYSE: VZ  ) and Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA  ) �-- respond to Google's high-quality, low-cost offering. So far, both companies have largely stuck their heads in the sand. They can't afford to ignore the high-speed revolution forever.

Best Media Stocks To Buy For 2014: Discovery Communications Inc(DISCA)

Discovery Communications, Inc. operates as a non fiction media and entertainment company worldwide. The company provides original and purchased programming across various distribution platforms. Its content covers science, exploration, survival, natural history, sustainability of the environment, technology, docu-series, anthropology, paleontology, history, space, archaeology, health and wellness, engineering, adventure, lifestyles, forensics, civilization, and current events. The company owns and operates nine national television networks in the United States, including Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Science Channel, Investigation Discovery, Military Channel, Planet Green, Discovery Fit & Health, and Velocity. Discovery Communications also has interests in Oprah Winfrey Network, a pay-television network and Web site; The Hub that features original programming, game shows, and live-action series and specials; and 3net, a three-dimensional network. In addition, it o ffers network branded Web sites, and mobile and video-on-demand services; and distributes various national and pan-regional television networks. Further, the company develops and sells curriculum-based products and services to public and private K-12 schools, such as access to an online VOD service that includes curriculum-based tools, professional development services, and student assessment and publication of hardcopy curriculum-based content; and postproduction audio services to motion picture studios, independent producers, broadcast networks, cable channels, advertising agencies, and interactive producers. As of December 31, 2011, it operated approximately 150 distribution feeds in 40 languages. The company is headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By WALLSTCHEATSHEET]

    Discover Communications operates as a non-fiction media company worldwide.�The company recently released earning that left investors happy.�The stock has been trending higher over the last couple of years and is currently trading at highs for the year.Earnings and revenue figures have been steadily growing so investors have been very satisfied. Relative to its peers and sector, Discover Communications has been an under-performer leader, year-to-date. Look for Discover Communications to continue to OUTPERFORM.

  • [By Patricio Kehoe] d that precise strategy and now owns several cable networks available in over 200 countries worldwide. The national and pan-regional networks, distributed through 130 feeds and in 40 languages, have established this media firm in virtually every market. So, let�� take a look at what might have encouraged investment gurus Ron Baron (Trades, Portfolio) and Lee Ainslie (Trades, Portfolio) to add more of this company�� shares to their portfolio.�

    Working Through the Niche

    As the niche cable network provider in the media industry, Discovery�� flagship channel addresses topics like science, technology, history and exploration. With TLC, Animal Planet and Discovery as the three key domestic channels, the company reaches 100 million households, and despite the mature U.S. market, sales have grown 6% and revenue 10% in fiscal 2013. This is mainly due to the media giant�� unique content programming and line-up refreshments. Hit shows like Shark Week, for example, have become so popular through advertising that the network experienced in 2013 its all-time best viewership with over 50 million viewing rates during one episode. The men�� lifestyle cable network, Velocity, also experienced a 30% viewership increase in quarter four of 2013, and is now the fastest-growing network in that segment.��

    Furthermore, in addition to the namesake channels, Discovery also owns Investigation Discovery, The Learning Channel, a 50% stake in Oprah Winfrey�� new cable channel OWN, and The Hub, a children�� network created with Hasbro Inc. (HAS). The strong universal appeal of content which transcends cultures and languages, add a differential value to this company and has allowed international distribution across multiple media platforms. In fact, 100% content ownership gives this firm a competitive advantage, as it can seek benefits from non-traditional content distribution. With companies like Netflix Inc. (NFLX)�or Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) looking to push t

  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    So yes, Disney is a Buy, and DiClemente’s $90 price target suggests another 19% of upside from yesterday’s close, though it should be noted he also likes CBS (CBS), Twenty-First Century Fox (FOXA) and Discover Communications (DISCA).

  • [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]

    Evan Agostini, Invision/APCBS president and CEO Leslie Moonves ranked No. 2 on a list of highest paid CEOs. LOS ANGELES -- Once again, media company CEOs are among the highest paid executives in the nation, occupying six of the top 10 earning spots, according to an Associated Press/Equilar study. Compensation experts say a variety of factors are at play, including the gain in media stocks, the intangible value of talent in a hit-or-miss business, the control of shareholder power in very few hands, and the decline of the financial sector. Stock Outperformers Outsized stock growth boosts the value of stock and option grants. Media companies' shares have rebounded strongly since the 2008 recession, mainly because advertising spending grows in tandem with a growing economy. That means higher-priced ads and higher-priced execs. Stocks of the six media companies on the list all outperformed the Standard & Poor's 500 index (^GPSC), which grew 128 percent in the five years through December 2013, according to FactSet. CBS (CBS) shares grew a whopping 699 percent in that period; Discovery Communications (DISCA) went up 539 percent; Viacom (VIA) rose 377 percent; Walt Disney (DIS) rose 250 percent; Time Warner (TWX) climbed 259 percent and Comcast (CMCSA) grew 223 percent. "If shareholders are happy they don't care how much a person makes," said Paul Dorf, managing director of consulting firm Compensation Resources. "When they complain most is when the market doesn't do well and their stock is going down the tubes." Talent Quotient Making it big in media means generating hits. And while top executives may not be hands-on with every decision, they are where the buck stops. Take Disney's animated blockbuster "Frozen," which grossed $1.2 billion at box offices worldwide. While Disney CEO Bob Iger didn't make the movie, he did orchestrate Disney's $7.4 billion acquisition of Pixar in 2006, which brought in talented executives to help reform Disney's faltering a

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