Top 5 Rising Companies To Buy For 2014

Margins matter. The more Vitacost.com (Nasdaq: VITC  ) keeps of each buck it earns in revenue, the more money it has to invest in growth, fund new strategic plans, or (gasp!) distribute to shareholders. Healthy margins often separate pretenders from the best stocks in the market. That's why we check up on margins at least once a quarter in this series. I'm looking for the absolute numbers, so I can compare them to current and potential competitors, and any trend that may tell me how strong Vitacost.com's competitive position could be.

Here's the current margin snapshot for Vitacost.com over the trailing 12 months: Gross margin is 23.0%, while operating margin is -5.6% and net margin is -5.8%.

Unfortunately, a look at the most recent numbers doesn't tell us much about where Vitacost.com has been, or where it's going. A company with rising gross and operating margins often fuels its growth by increasing demand for its products. If it sells more units while keeping costs in check, its profitability increases. Conversely, a company with gross margins that inch downward over time is often losing out to competition, and possibly engaging in a race to the bottom on prices. If it can't make up for this problem by cutting costs -- and most companies can't -- then both the business and its shares face a decidedly bleak outlook.

Top 10 Low Price Companies To Buy For 2015: Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BAMXF)

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German holding company and automobile manufacturer that focuses on the automobile and motorcycle markets. It divides its activities into the three main segments: Automobiles, Motorcycles and Financial Services. It owns three brands: BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce. Its BMW automobile range encompasses the 1 Series, including three-door, five-door, coupe and convertible models; the 3 Series, including sedan, touring, coupe and convertible models; the 5 Series, available in sedan and touring models; the 6 Series, available as a coupe or convertible; the 7 Series large sedan; the Z4 roadster and coupe; the sports utility vehicles, X3, X5 and X6 and M models, such as M3, M5 and M6. It also offers cars under the MINI brand and motorcycles under the BMW brand. The Rolls-Royce brand offers three luxury cars, Phantom, Coupe and Ghost. It has producing, assembly, service and sales subsidiaries throughout the world. In January 2013, it sold its Husqvarna brand. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Rosevear]

  Tesla CEO Elon Musk has promised a "mass market" Tesla within a few years, but it sounds like his idea of "mass market" is more like a BMW (NASDAQOTH: BAMXF  ) 3-Series in terms of size and price than it is like a Focus or a Fit.

• [By Alexander MacLennan]

  German automotive website Auto Motor und Sport has been reporting that BMW Group AG (NASDAQOTH: BAMXF  ) will unveil a BMW 9 Series at the upcoming Beijing Auto Show. While automotive enthusiasts are no doubt excited by this report, the potential investment side matters to auto industry investors as well.

Top 5 Rising Companies To Buy For 2014: Sonic Corp.(SONC)

Sonic Corp. operates and franchises a chain of quick-service drive-in restaurants in the United States. As of October 03, 2011, the company operated and franchised approximately 3,500 drive-ins. It also leases signs and real estate. The company was founded in 1953 and is headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]

  Wall Street had another rising day, with the Dow Industrials and the S&P 500 reaching new record highs. But one tech stock tanked and the momentum took a bunch of others in the sector down with it. The Dow Jones industrial average (^DJI) closed 25 points higher, the Nasdaq composite (^IXIC) added 8 points, and the Standard & Poor's 500 index (^GPSC) was up 3 points. One of the top gainers on the S&P 500 was used car giant CarMax (KMX). Its share price zoomed higher by 16.5 percent with revenue and profits hitting record levels. The still lackluster economic recovery is causing many to drive off lots in used cars instead of new vehicles. And the hottest model over the past two years? The Nissan Altima. Automotive retailer AutoNation (AN), which runs new and used dealerships, also got a boost, rising more than 5 percent. It was a different story for software giant Oracle (ORCL), which was one of the S&P 500's biggest losers. Its stock fell 4 percent on sagging earnings. Social media stocks fell too. Pandora (P) was down 1.5 percent as was Groupon (GRPN), LinkedIn (LNKD) lost almost 1 percent and Amazon (AMZN) fell less than 1 percent two days after unveiling its first smartphone. But poor Radioshack (RSH). Its stock hit a new low, trading below a dollar a share for the first time after falling almost 10 percent. Since the beginning of the year the stock is down 64 percent. One analyst has a price target of zero on the stock. Ouch. (We hope you don't have that one in your portfolio.) And Darden's (DRI) earnings weren't very appetizing. Profits came in much lower than expected and guidance was weak. The stock fell 4 percent. It is selling its Red Lobster chain and trying to focus on revamping Olive Garden. Solar stocks had a bright day, though. Shares of SunEdison (SUNE) shone brightly rising 1.5 percent on news it was acquiring some solar farms in Massachusetts. Other solar stocks also basked on the day. Canadian Solar gained 6 percent, and

• [By kcpl]

  However, there are a few restaurants who have managed to brave the headwinds and have come out as winners. Some of these are Buffalo Wild Wings (BWLD), Sonic (SONC), and Domino's Pizza (DPZ) -- which have bucked the industry trend.

• [By Wallace Witkowski]

  Sonic Corp. (SONC) �shares rose 3.4% to $19.90 on moderate volume. The company reported adjusted earnings of 13 cents a share on revenue of $126.7 million. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected a consensus of 13 cents a share on revenue of $127.4 million. The drive-in chain also forecast full-year earnings to rise about 14% to 15%, or about in-line with the analyst consensus of 83 cents a share.

Top 5 Rising Companies To Buy For 2014: Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd (TKPHF.PK)

Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited is a Japan-based company engaged in the pharmaceutical business. The Company operates in three business segments. The Ethical Pharmaceutical segment is engaged in the manufacture and sale of pharmaceutical products, such as therapeutic substances for diabetes, circulatory drugs, anticancer drugs, drugs for central neurological diseases, digestive system drugs, hormonal agents, osteoporosis drugs, antibiotic agents, allergy medications, vitamin drops and vaccines, among others. The Healthcare segment manufactures and sells general drugs and medicines, as well as quasi drugs. The Others segment is involved in the manufacture and sale of reagents, clinical diagnostics and chemical products. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Markus Aarnio]

  Companies working on chemically synthesized siRNAs include Merck (MRK), through its subsidiary Sirna Therapeutics, Inc., Novartis (NVS), Takeda (TKPHF.PK), Kyowa Hakko Kirin, Marina Biotech, Inc., Arrowhead and its subsidiary, Calando, Quark, Silence Therapeutics plc, Tekmira (TKMR), Sylentis and Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

• [By Alpha Exposure]

  The most recent Affymax article states that Takeda withdrew from consideration for European approval "because they were doing the "root cause analysis" they would not be able to complete the investigation because it was still in process and "ongoing" despite the fact that severe reactions were not present at the time of the clinical trials." However, there is no evidence to support this conclusion. The truth is that we showed you an excerpt directly from the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use that stated the CHMP "was of the provisional opinion that Omontys could not have been approved" due to "study results indicating that Omontys may increase the risk of death or heart and circulatory problems." It is clear that the EU application was withdrawn because Takeda (TKPHF.PK) could not get Omontys approved due to its safety profile.

Top 5 Rising Companies To Buy For 2014: Kronos Worldwide Inc (KRO)

Kronos Worldwide, Inc. engages in the production and marketing of titanium dioxide pigments (TiO2) primarily in Europe and North America. It produces TiO2 in two crystalline forms, rutile and anatase to impart whiteness, brightness, opacity, and durability for products, such as coatings, paints, plastics, papers fibers, and ceramics, as well as for various specialty products, including inks, food, and cosmetics. The company also offers ilmenite, a raw material used directly as a feedstock by sulfate-process TiO2 plants; iron-based chemicals, which are co-products and processed co-products of the TiO2 production process and used as treatment and conditioning agents for industrial effluents and municipal wastewater, as well as in the manufacture of iron pigments, cement, and agricultural products; and titanium oxychloride and titanyl sulfate that are side-stream products from the production of TiO2. Its titanium oxychloride is used in the formulation of pearlescent pigments, production of electroceramic capacitors for cell phones, and other electronic devices; and titanyl sulfate is used in pearlescent pigments, natural gas pipe, and other specialty applications. In addition, the company provides technical services. Kronos Worldwide, Inc. sells its products through distributors and agents to paint, plastics, decorative laminate, and paper manufacturers under the Kronos brand name. The company was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Kronos Worldwide, Inc. is a subsidiary of Valhi, Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By GuruFocus]

  Kronos Worldwide Inc. (KRO): Vice Chairman of the Board and CEO Steven L. Watson Bought 14,250 Shares

  Vice Chairman of the Board and CEO of Kronos Worldwide Inc. (KRO) Steven L. Watson bought 14,250 shares during the past week at an average price of $14.81. Kronos Worldwide Inc. is a Delaware Corporation. The company is a global producer and marketer of value-added titanium dioxide pigments (TiO2). Kronos Worldwide Inc. has a market cap of $1.72 billion; its shares were traded at around $14.81 with a P/E ratio of 42.60 and P/S ratio of 0.95. The dividend yield of Kronos Worldwide Inc. stocks is 4.05%. Kronos WorldwideInc. had an annual average earnings growth of 5.4% over the past 10 years.

• [By Laura Brodbeck]

  Notable earnings releases expected on Thursday include:

  Dollar General Corporation (NYSE: DG) is expected to report fourth quarter EPS of $1.02 on revenue of $4.63 billion, compared to last year�� EPS of $0.97 on revenue of $4.21 billion. Kronos Worldwide Inc (NYSE: KRO) is expected to report fourth quarter EPS of $0.01 on revenue of $371.45 million, compared to last year�� loss of $0.12 per share on revenue of $396.80 million. Christopher & Banks Corporation�(NYSE: CBK) is expected to report a fourth quarter loss of $0.03 on revenue of $106.64 million, compared to last year�� loss of $0.11 on revenue of $115.98 million.

  Economics

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Typically, when the chairman of a company dies, its shares drop. That hasn’t been the case for Valhi (VHI), Kronos Worldwide (KRO) and NL Industries (NL), which have all advanced today after Harold Simmons passed away.

• [By John Udovich]

  Dallas billionaire Harold Simmons died over the weekend with investors sending shares of some of his publically traded companies like Valhi, Inc (NYSE: VHI), Kronos Worldwide, Inc (NYSE: KRO), NL Industries, Inc (NYSE: NL) and�CompX International Inc (NYSEMKT: CIX)to higher levels as they anticipate changes���such as asset sales or spin offs. Harold Simmons was the embodiment of the American dream because he was born during the depths of the Great Depression in Golden, Texas to schoolteacher parents and he spent�his early years living without indoor plumbing or electricity. However and by recognizing�underpriced assets and through the use of massive amounts of leverage (e.g. junk bonds),�he built an empire and�ranked #40 on the 2013 Forbes 400 with a fortune estimated to be worth some $10 billion.