Best Building Product Companies To Watch For 2014

In partnership with�Glassdoor, our investment analysts are taking a closer look at some of the most popular companies in Glassdoor's career community.

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) is a great company. In fact, the overall quality of Apple's stakeholder relationships puts it squarely among the best companies in America. While the tech giant doesn't do everything perfectly, Apple's overall relationship with customers, employees, investors, and the world at large certainly paint this company as a class act.

Apple retail store. Image source: Apple.

Customer loyalty is off the charts
It's no surprise to see Apple ranked first in the�Forbes' latest World's Most Valuable Brand list. Customers matter deeply to Apple -- and it shows. One of the key reasons Apple has grown the value of its brand so rapidly in the last decade and a half is because the company has both acquired and retained customers�by building products that focus on a top-notch user experience.

Top Media Stocks To Buy Right Now: Tencent Holdings Ltd (TCTZF)

Tencent Holdings Limited is an investment holding company. The Company and its subsidiaries are principally engaged in the provision of Internet value-added services, mobile and telecommunications value-added services and online advertising services to users in the People�� Republic of China. The Company operates in four segments: Internet value-added services, Mobile and telecommunications value-added services, Online advertising, and Others. As of December 31, 2011, its subsidiaries included Tencent Cyber (Tianjin) Company Limited, Tencent Asset Management Limited, Tencent Technology (Beijing) Company Limited, Tencent Cyber (Shenzhen) Company Limited, Tencent Technology (Shanghai) Company Limited and others. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jim Jubak]

  In Asia today, Tencent Holdings ((HK:700) in Hong Kong and (TCTZF) in New York) closed down 5.9% in Hong Kong. The company, know for its WeChat mobile messaging platform (with 355 million average monthly users), made $100 million in revenue in the fourth quarter from games, such as Cross Fire and League of Legends on the WeChat platform. Naver (KS:035420), a Korean company that, like Tencent, combines mobile messaging with games, dropped 3% in Seoul.

• [By Craig Stephen]

  Still, this pilot scheme offers something new to mainland investors. They can now invest in sectors of the economy which were previously off limits, giving more choice outside the old state-owned industries. This will include areas such as Macau gaming and Internet stocks. One of the largest, traded stocks in Hong Kong is Tencent (HK:0700) � (TCTZF) , which is likely to be added to mainland portfolios.

Best Building Product Companies To Watch For 2014: A-Cap Resources Ltd (ACB)

A-Cap Resources Limited is an Australia-based mineral exploration company. The Company�� principal activity during the fiscal year ended June 30, 2012 (fiscal 2012), is exploration of its tenement portfolio in Botswana and the ongoing feasibility studies into the Letlhakane Uranium Project. The Company focuses on investment in Botswana in Southern Africa, where it holds over 5000 square kilometer of exploration licenses. The Company�� projects include Botswana project, Letlhakane project, Mea-Coal project, Bolau-Coal project and Southern Pans project. The Company�� 100% owned Letlhakane Uranium Project is located in northeast Botswana. In July 2012, A-Cap announced the discovery of two new coal projects in Botswana, transforming the Company into a multi-commodity exploration outfit. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Heinzl]

  You'll notice that these numbers don't add up to $1.4988. That's because the 2012 distribution also contained a hefty chunk of return of capital (70.489 cents). ROC isn't taxable immediately; rather, it is subtracted from the adjusted cost base (ACB) of the units, which gives rise to a larger capital gain, or smaller capital loss, when the units are ultimately sold. Many REITs and mutual funds also distribute ROC. ROC can be a bit of a headache for investors. If you hold BIP in a non-registered account, you (or your accountant), will need to track those ROC payments in order to keep your ACB up to date. Knowing the ACB is necessary to calculate your capital gain, or loss, when it comes time to sell.

Best Building Product Companies To Watch For 2014: CPFL Energia S.A.(CPL)

CPFL Energia S.A., through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, distribution, and sale of electricity in Brazil. It generates electricity through hydroelectric, thermal, biomass, and wind power plants. The company also involves in the provision of energy commercialization, consultancy, and advisory services to agents in the energy sector; manufacture, commercialization, rental, and maintenance of electromechanical equipment; and provision of administrative services, as well as telephone answering services. It has an installed generating capacity of 2,309 MW. The company was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Garrett Cook]

  Toward the end of trading Friday, the Dow traded down 0.60 percent to 16,947.43 while the NASDAQ declined 0.75 percent to 4,557.59. The S&P also fell, dropping 0.83 percent to 1,980.97.

  Leading and Lagging Sectors Cyclical consumer goods & services shares fell by just 0.50 percent in trading on Friday. Top gainers in the sector included ULTA Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance NASDAQ: (ULTA), up 17.5 percent, and 1-800-Flowers.com (NASDAQ: FLWS), up 4.5 percent. In trading on Friday, utilities shares were relative laggards, down on the day by about 1.89 percent. Meanwhile, top decliners in the sector included Companhia Energética de Minas Gerais - CEMIG (NYSE: CIG), down 4.7 percent, and CPFL Energia SA (NYSE: CPL), off 4.3 percent. Top Headline Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI) reported better-than-expected fiscal first quarter earnings. The Orlando, Florida-based company reported a quarterly loss of $19.3 million, or $0.14 per share, versus a year-ago profit of $42.2 million, or $0.32 per share. Excluding non-recurring items, the company earned $0.32 per share. Its sales surged to $1.6 billion versus $1.53 billion. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $0.30 per share on revenue of $1.6 billion. Equities Trading UP Conversant (NASDAQ: CNVR) shares shot up 30.25 percent to $34.79 after Alliance Data Systems (NYSE: ADS) announced its plans to buy Conversant for $35 per share. Shares of ULTA Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance (NASDAQ: ULTA) got a boost, shooting up 17.69 percent to $114.72 after the company reported upbeat second-quarter results and raised its outlook. The company also unveiled a five-year plan for impressive growth. Sportsman's Warehouse Holdings (NASDAQ: SPWH) shares were also up, gaining 15.89 percent to $7.00 after the company reported stronger-than-expected fiscal second-quarter results. Equities Trading DOWN Shares of Ruckus Wireless (NASDAQ: RKUS) were down 5.19 percent to $14.35. Buckingham
• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Leading and Lagging Sectors
  Utilities sector surged 0.26%, saw CPFL Energia SA (NYSE: CPL) as the top gainer. Among leading sector stocks, gains came from Consolidated Water Co (NASDAQ: CWCO), Companhia Paranaense de Energia (NYSE: ELP) and Public Service Enterprise Group (NYSE: PEG).

• [By Selena Maranjian]

  Brazilian electricity giant CPFL Energia S.A. (NYSE: CPL  ) sank 20%, and recently yielded 5.9%. Its long-term debt has been rising, largely due to acquisitions, and its free cash flow has been shrinking (and even turning negative�recently). But it has been investing heavily in alternative energies, and it serves a massive and growing market in Brazil. The country's growth has been slower than many would like, but that won't last forever.

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Leading and Lagging Sectors
  Utilities sector gained 1.12 percent, with Companhia Paranaense de Energia (NYSE: ELP) moving up 4.3 percent to gain the top spot. Among leading sector stocks, gains came from Companhia de Saneamento Basico do Estado de Sao Paulo (NYSE: SBS), CPFL Energia SA (NYSE: CPL) and Companhia Energ茅tica de Minas Gerais SA (NYSE: CIG).

Best Building Product Companies To Watch For 2014: ARIAD Pharmaceuticals Inc.(ARIA)

ARIAD Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery, development, and commercialization of small-molecule drugs for the treatment of cancer. The company?s lead cancer product, ridaforolimus is being studied in multiple clinical trials in patients with various types of cancers, including metastatic sarcomas, breast cancer, endometrial cancer, prostate cancer, and non-small cell lung cancer. Its product pipeline also includes ponatinib, a pan BCR-ABL inhibitor in phase 2 clinical trial for applications in various hematological cancers and solid tumors; and AP26113, an anaplastic lymphoma kinase inhibitor in preclinical studies for the treatment of various cancers, including non-small cell lung cancer, lymphoma, and neuroblastoma. In addition, the company focuses on a drug discovery program centered on small-molecule therapies that are molecularly targeted to cell-signaling pathways implicated in cancer. Further, it licenses its ARGENT cell-sign aling regulation technologies to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to develop and commercialize therapeutic products, and to conduct drug discovery research. The company has collaboration and license agreements with Merck & Co., Inc. for the development, manufacture, and commercialization of ridaforolimus; and license agreements with Medinol Ltd. and ICON Medical Corp. to develop and commercialize stents and other medical devices to deliver ridaforolimus to prevent restenosis of injured vessels. ARIAD Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was founded in 1991 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Bryan Murphy]

  I'm exactly 0.0% surprising that Ariad Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARIA) shares are taking off today, to the tune of 25%. The only thing I'm surprised about it that it took this long for the brewing surge from ARIA to materialize.

• [By John Udovich]

  Small cap cancer stock Ariad Pharmaceuticals, Inc (NASDAQ: ARIA) got annihilated yesterday on bad news which seemed to spread like a virus through other biotech stocks, but not all the recent�news surrounding cancer or both large cap and small cap cancer stocks has been�bad as there is good news coming from AstraZeneca plc (NYSE: AZN), Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ: CELG) and MetaStat Inc (OTCMKTS: MTST). Moreover, many investors are distracted by the sideshow going on in Washington DC and may not be paying attention to the following news, good or bad, surrounding the cancer space or cancer stocks:

• [By Brian Orelli]

  Investment opportunity in expanding indications
  Ariad Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ARIA  ) gained FDA approval for its leukemia drug Iclusig�at the end of last year and managed $6.4 million in sales in the first quarter. That's a pretty decent start, and the drug should be launched in Europe next month, accelerating sales further.

• [By Luke Jacobi]

  Ariad Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ARIA) tumbled 40.67 percent to $2.67 after the company announced discontinuation of the Phase 3 EPIC trial of Iclusig.

Best Building Product Companies To Watch For 2014: Amarok Energy Inc (AMR)

Amarok Energy Inc.(Amarok ), formerly Drako Capital Corp. (Drako) is Canada-based company, engaged in oil and natural gas exploration and development in North America and Colombia. The Company operates in Canada, United States and Colombia. On February 27, 2012, Drako announced the completion of the Qualifying Transaction. On August 22, 2012, Drako Capital Corp. acquired Trilateral Energy Ltd. As part of the business acquisition of Trilateral a net carried working interest of 5% in Block LLA-21 for the two oil wells to be drilled on the Block LLA-21 property was acquired. As part of the business acquisition of Trilateral, oil and gas lease rights located in Montana, USA were acquired. 6,204 net acres (6,949 gross acres) of leases have been secured and approximately seven miles of two-dimensional (2D) seismic was acquired. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dimitra DeFotis]

  A more temporary phenomenon beset airline stocks, with passenger revenue affected internationally by World Cup soccer mania. Leading the airline stocks lower were United Continental Holdings�(UAL),�Delta Air Lines (DAL) and American Airlines (AMR).

• [By Holly LaFon]

  Question (From Bill Miller of Legg Mason): The airline industry is plagued with terrible economics. With the pending merger with U.S. Air (LCC) and American (AMR)��the industry has been consistently profitable with double-digit returns. Do you think the industry�� improved economics are likely to improve?