July 23, 2014
Mid-Year Top Picks for 2014
Written By Nancy Zambell
This issue is our Mid-Year Top Picks Update. Many of our contributors’ recommendations returned double-digit gains so far this year. We’ve included sell recommendations on a few picks and six new Top Picks for the remainder of the year.
Since last month’s issue, the Dow Jones Industrial Average hit the milestone of 17,000, and—for the most part—has managed to stay above that benchmark. We are just at the beginning of second-quarter earnings season. So far, 74 companies in the S&P 500 have reported, and 72% have beat estimates—higher than average. Our advisors remain mixed on the market’s near-term future, and our Sentiment Barometer has turned just a bit less bullish.
We have a nice array of Top Picks for you, coming from biotech and healthcare, technology, energy, financial and REITs. Our contributors also offer a new international ETF pick, several sell/holds and some pertinent market advice.
In addition to our Top Picks, our new recommendations include quite a few selections from the recovering biotech/technology and energy sectors, as well as some value picks in the home building and financial arena, a recent IPO, and Pacific and Gold ETFs.