Is there anyone left who believes that Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS ) isn't adding value to Marvel? Recently, the House of Mouse obtained all of Viacom's�remaining distribution rights to four Marvel films: Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Thor, and Captain America: The First Avenger for an undisclosed sum.
The payoff ends a distribution arrangement that allowed Marvel to become a Hollywood power player at a time when investors didn't know the full value of comic book films, says Fool contributor Tim Beyers in the following video.
Previously, Disney was phasing out Paramount on a film-by-film basis, with Marvel's The Avengers the highest profile (and most profitable) solo effort to date. Now, every Marvel film property to which it has rights will be produced and distributed directly. Expect a modest boost to profits as a result.
More important for investors, Tim says, is that the deal is indicative of Disney's willingness to invest to make its Marvel properties more valuable. Deals to secure Joss Whedon to direct not only Avengers 2, but also Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and Robert Downey Jr., for the next two Avengers films, fall in the same category, Tim says.
Now it's your turn to weigh in. Do you believe Disney's investments in Marvel will pay off over the long term? Why or why not? Please watch the video to get Tim's full take, and then leave a comment to let us know what you think.
Hot Defense Stocks To Watch For 2015: Axcelis Technologies Inc.(ACLS)
Axcelis Technologies, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and services ion implantation, dry strip, and other processing equipment used in the fabrication of semiconductor chips in the United States, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. It offers a line of high energy, high current, and medium current ion implanters for various applications, such as line of single wafer implanters, known as the Optima platform, comprising the Optima XE, the Optima HD, and the Optima MD. The company also offers dry strip tools, including the Integra RS, which comprises paired-chamber process modules. In addition, it provides aftermarket services and support, such as spare parts, equipment upgrades, maintenance services, and customer training. The company sells its equipment and services through direct sales force, distributors, and manufacturing representatives. Axcelis Technologies was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Beverly, Massachusetts.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Stephen Simpson, CFA]
The major dry strip product today is Suprema - Mattson's most advanced tool, and one that uses inductively coupled plasma (ICP) technology and vacuum transfer. Two of the company's primary competitors use one but not the other, while the third uses both but charges about 20% more for its tools. According to Gartner, Mattson holds about 22% market share in this roughly $180 million/year market, with Lam Research (which acquired Novellus and dry strip IP from Axcelis (ACLS)) and PSK as the primary competitors.
- [By Ben Axler]
An old spin-out of Eaton Corp. (ETN), Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) designs, manufactures and services ion implantation, dry strip and other processing equipment used in the fabrication of semiconductor chips. The semiconductor capital equipment industry is very cyclical, and as a smaller player in the industry, ACLS has not been immune, and gone through protracted periods of losses. In the past few years, the company has taken numerous steps to reposition itself for the next cyclical upswing by listening to its customers and investing heavily in R&D to revamp its product line to expand its addressable market opportunity, right-sizing its cost structure to substantially lower its breakeven level, establishing new collaborative partnerships, and optimizing its balance sheet to unlock value. Now with signs of a cyclical upswing occurring, and being led by memory - Micron (MU) and SanDisk (SNDK), ACLS is poised for accelerating earnings potential beginning in Q4'2013 that could drive its stock price substantially higher. However, with a few nearer-term catalysts on the horizon, investors may not want to wait too long before purchasing shares. As an early indicator, investors should consider that insiders recently purchased the stock in the open market in August at current levels. These stock purchases coincide with the one year anniversary of ACLS's new Purion M product line entering an evaluation period with a major customer. Sell-side analysts are starting to take notice and listening in to the company's recent conference call, which at least opens the door to new broker initiations in the future. The downside risk appears mitigated by ACLS's strengthened balance sheet, and dramatically improved operating financial model that has stemmed further cash burn. As the company hits an inflection point with new customer contracts and proves its earnings cycle is under way, we expect ACLS's valuation discount to peers to narrow and the stock to appreciate substantially
5 Best Dow Dividend Stocks To Buy For 2014: Ballard Power Systems Inc.(BLDP)
Ballard Power Systems Inc. engages in the design, development, manufacture, sale, and service of fuel cell products for motive and stationary power applications worldwide. It offers clean energy PEM (proton exchange membrane) fuel cell stacks, modules, and complete systems. The company provides fuel cell products and services for material handling and bus, back-up power, and distributed generation applications; and fuel cell engineering solutions for various fuel cell applications. It also offers carbon-based engineered material products in the form of roll goods as woven carbon fiber textile fabrics or carbon fiber papers primarily for automotive transmissions and gas diffusion layers. Ballard Power Systems Inc., through its interests in Dantherm Power A/S develops clean energy backup power through utilization of hydrogen fuel cell technology; and Automotive Fuel Cell Cooperation Corp. develops fuel cell products for the automotive fuel cell market. The company was founde d in 1979 and is headquartered in Burnaby, Canada.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By James E. Brumley]
For those of you that were lucky enough to read, and act on, my bullish call on ZBB Energy Corporation (NYSEMKT:ZBB) penned one week ago (almost to the hour), then congratulations - you're up 270%, give or take. Now get out. Seriously. I have a funny feeling that ZBB along with FuelCell Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:FCEL), Ballard Power Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:BLDP), and all the other names in the alternative electricity-production group are seeing their last hurrah today. The smart money is already thinking about getting out now, selling into the strength all the late-comers are creating for FCEL, BLDP, and its peers.
- [By Tyler Crowe]
If you are looking at fuel cell stocks and wondering whether FuelCell Energy (NASDAQ: FCEL ) , Ballard Power Systems (NASDAQ: BLDP ) , or Plug Power (NASDAQ: PLUG ) will come out on top, just remember this: FuelCell Energy is the only one in this group that is betting solely on fuel cells as a means of power generation rather than energy storage.
- [By Ben Levisohn]
Cowen’s Jeffrey Osborne and Thomas Boyes are impressed with Plug Power’s (PLUG) financial results, which are helping to boost Ballard Power Systems (BLDP) and FuelCell Energy (FCEL), as well:
5 Best Dow Dividend Stocks To Buy For 2014: NYSE Euronext Inc.(NYX)
NYSE Euronext, through its subsidiaries, operates securities exchanges. It operates various stock exchanges, including the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), NYSE Arca, Inc., and NYSE Amex LLC in the United States; and five European-based exchanges that comprise Euronext N.V. ? the Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, and Lisbon stock exchanges, as well as the NYSE Liffe derivatives markets in London, Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, and Lisbon. The company?s Derivatives segment provides access to trade execution in derivatives products, options, and futures; offers clearing services for derivative products; and sells and distributes market data and related information. NYSE Euronext?s Cash Trading and Listings segment engages in offering access to trade execution in cash trading and settlement of transactions in European markets; obtaining new listings and servicing existing listings; selling and distributing market data and related information; and providing regulatory services. Its Info rmation Services and Technology Solutions segment operates sell side and buy side connectivity networks for its markets and for other market centers, and market participants in the United States, Europe, and Asia; provides trading and information technology software and solutions; sells and distributes market data and related information to data subscribers for proprietary data products; and offers asset management services, and consultancy services to exchanges and liquidity centers. The company is headquartered in New York, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Sam Mamudi]
Markets run by NYSE Euronext (NYX) and Nasdaq account for roughly 20 percent of average daily U.S. stock trading, according to data on Bats��website. The exchanges operated by Bats and Direct Edge also post a total of about 20 percent.
- [By Sam Mamudi]
The levy, disclosed yesterday in a settlement with the biggest American options venue, marks the third time in nine months the Securities and Exchange Commission has announced financial sanctions against a market operator. Before collecting $5 million from NYSE Euronext (NYX) in September for data dissemination violations, the commission had never imposed a monetary penalty on an exchange.
- [By Dave Michaels]
Midas provides the regulator with more complete data than traders and researchers can see from the public price feeds operated by NYSE Euronext (NYX) and Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. (NDAQ) Midas includes every order on exchanges, not just the best offers reported to the public tape. It also gathers data on orders that are modified, canceled or filled.
5 Best Dow Dividend Stocks To Buy For 2014: Eaton Vance Corporation (EV)
Eaton Vance Corp., through its subsidiaries, engages in the creation, marketing, and management of investment funds in the United States. It also provides investment management and counseling services to institutions and individuals. Further, the company operates as an adviser and distributor of investment companies and separate accounts. As of October 31, 2004, the company provided investment advisory or administration services to approximately 150 funds; approximately 1,300 separately managed individual and institutional accounts; and participated in approximately 40 retail-managed account broker/dealer programs. It markets and distributes shares of funds through a retail network of national and regional broker/dealers, banks, insurance companies, and financial planning firms. Eaton Vance Corp. was founded in 1944 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.
Advisors' Opinion:- [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 Eaton Vance (NYSE: EV ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below. - [By Steven Russolillo]
WATCH FOR:� No major economic data on dap. American Eagle, Booz Allen, Eaton Vance(EV), Hormel Foods(HRL), L Brands(LB), Lowe's(LOW), NetApp, PetSmart(PETM), Renren(RENN), Sina, Target, Tiffany, Trina Solar(TSL) and Williams-Sonoma(WSM) are among companies scheduled to report quarterly results.
- [By Dan Caplinger]
Some of T. Rowe Price's competitors have made moves toward offering actively managed ETFs. For instance, earlier this year, Eaton Vance (NYSE: EV ) filed with the SEC to create a new type of ETF, limiting the amount of disclosure the company would have to make about its holdings. So far, actively managed ETF have largely been limited to the bond arena, where requirements for daily disclosure of holdings don't represent as much of a loss of proprietary information. For now, T. Rowe Price has said it has no immediate plans to offer active ETFs.
- [By Holly LaFon]
I think Rockwood Holdings is a good example of a company in the battery and power storage business with really promising prospects. Rockwood makes specialty surface treatment chemicals. It's also a major producer of lithium and lithium compounds used in lithium-ion batteries. This battery business has several industrial end users, but is particularly compelling in the development of electronic vehicle (EV) batteries. In fact, the surface treatment business has dominated revenues of late, but the lithium business has been driving the company's EBIT, which is a trend that seems likely to continue. The company is involved in a joint venture, which was announced in December and is still awaiting regulatory approval, with a Chinese company that will position Rockwood to capture approximately half of the globe's lithium supply. We've been building a position in Value Plus for the last nine months. The stock has done all right over the last year, but hasn't taken off in the way I think it can once the potential for its lithium business is better understood.
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