Top Railroad Stocks To Own Right Now

It may be a matter of months before production in the Eagle Ford shale play catches up to its Bakken cousin. According to the latest Baker Hughes rig count, there are more rigs drilling in the South Texas play than in the entire state of North Dakota. Today we're looking at the latest production numbers out of the Eagle Ford, and how it's affecting our investments.

Numbers up
The Texas Railroad Commission said oil production in the Eagle Ford averaged 530,689 barrels per day in April. But this is just a preliminary number. The commission also released its revised numbers for February, lifting that number from 529,874 up to 561,544. That's a 6% pop that results basically from handing paperwork in late. I imagine that two months from now we'll learn that April's production was closer to 570,000 bpd than 530,000 bpd, but only time will tell.

Production results have fueled record numbers for producers big and small, including EOG Resources (NYSE: EOG  ) and Carrizo Oil & Gas (NASDAQ: CRZO  ) . EOG is the largest producer in the play, and production has exceeded management's expectations, reaching 153,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day by the end of the first quarter of this year. Carrizo is a much smaller operation, but its production has also exceeded management's expectations, reaching 9,500 bpd in the second quarter.

Top 10 Building Product Stocks To Invest In 2015: ITT Industries Inc.(ITT)

ITT Corporation designs, manufactures, and sells a range of engineered products, and provides related services worldwide. Its Defense & Information Solutions segment develops tactical communications equipment, electronic warfare and force protection equipment, radar systems, integrated structures equipment, and imaging and sensor equipment, including night vision goggles, as well as weather, location, surveillance, and other related technologies for military and government agencies. It also provides services comprising air traffic management, information and cyber solutions, large-scale systems engineering, and integration and defense technologies; satellite-based imaging payloads for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance solutions; and high-resolution commercial imaging systems with earth and space science applications, climate and environmental monitoring sensors and systems, and GPS navigation and software applications designed for image and data processing and dissemination. The company?s Fluid Technology segment provides water transport and wastewater treatment systems, pumps and related technologies, and other water and fluid control products with municipal, residential, commercial, and industrial applications. Its Motion & Flow Control segment manufactures shock absorbers and brake friction materials for the transportation industry; switch applications for the industrial and aerospace industries; electrical connectors used in telecommunications, computers, aerospace, medical, and industrial applications; and a range of pumps and tailored products for marine, food and beverage, and general industrial markets. The company was formerly known as ITT Industries, Inc. and changed its name to ITT Corporation in July 2006. ITT Corporation was founded in 1920 and is based in White Plains, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Aaron Levitt]

  Spun-off from industrial giant ITT (ITT) a few years ago, Xylem (XYL) could be a great starting point for investors looking at water stocks. Aside from its cool and appropriate name, XYL provides host of equipment — pumps, controllers and filtration devices — for wastewater treatment plants across the globe.

Top Railroad Stocks To Own Right Now: Overstock.com Inc.(OSTK)

Overstock.com, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an online retailer offering discount brand name, non-brand name, and closeout merchandise in the United States and internationally. The company?s merchandise include bed-and-bath goods, furniture, home decor, kitchenware, watches and jewelry, shoes, electronics and computers, sporting goods, apparel, designer accessories, home and garden products, media, music, luggage, health and beauty products, baby products, crafts and sewing products, office products, gifts and flowers, toys and hobbies, and pet products. It also operates online car listing service that allows sellers to list vehicles for sale and allows buyers to review vehicle descriptions; travel shopping site, which offers discount travel packages, flights, rental cars, and other travel-related products and services; and insurance shopping service for auto and home insurance, as well as provides books, magazines, CDs, DVDs, and video games. The comp any markets its products and services through its operating Internet websites, which include overstock.com, o.co, and o.biz. The company was formerly known as D2-Discounts Direct and changed its name to Overstock.com, Inc. in October 1999. Overstock.com, Inc. was founded in 1997 and is based in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Michael Lewis]

  It's been a great� months for investors in e-commerce store Overstock.com (NASDAQ: OSTK  ) , as the stock has rocketed up more than 330%. The momentum didn't stop in last week's earnings release, either, as sales climbed double digits and earnings were up a ridiculous 687%. For six consecutive quarters, the company has increased revenue growth, fueling the bullish speculation behind the stock. With the major turnaround behind it, and other signs of stabilization, the question is whether Overstock still offers growth-hungry investors an attractive investment. Let's take a look at recent earnings and guidance for clues.

• [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 downgrades for both Alcoa (NYSE: AA  ) and Overstock.com (NASDAQ: OSTK  ) . But the news isn't all bad, so before we get to those two, let's first check out why one analyst is...

• [By Ian Kar]

  Overstock.com (NASDAQ: OSTK)- Probably the biggest retailer that accepts Bitcoin, Overstock began accepting Bitcoin in January 2013.

  Virgin Galactic - The Richard Branson-led aviation company started accepting Bitcoin for customers who are interested in flying to space and paying for it using Bitcoin.

Top Railroad Stocks To Own Right Now: ACE Ltd (ACE)

ACE Ltd (ACE) is a holding company of the ACE Group of Companies. ACE is a global insurance and reinsurance organization, serving the needs of customers in more than 170 countries. It offers commercial insurance products and service offerings, such as risk management programs, loss control and engineering and complex claims management. It also provides specialized insurance products ranging from Directors & Officers (D&O) and professional liability to various specialty-casualty and umbrella and excess casualty lines to niche areas, such as aviation and energy. In addition, it supplies personal accident, supplemental health, and life insurance to individuals in select countries. ACE operates in four business segments: Insurance-North American, Insurance-Overseas General, Global Reinsurance, and Life. In December 2011, it acquired Rio Guayas Compania de Seguros y Reaseguros, a general insurance company in Ecuador. On November 30, 2011, it acquired Penn Millers Holding Corporation (PMHC). On April 1, 2011, it acquired the operations of New York Life�� Hong Kong. On February 1, 2011, ACE acquired New York Life�� Korea operations. In September 2012, it acquired 80% of PT Asuransi Jaya Proteksi in Indonesia.

Insurance-North American

ACE�� Insurance-North American segment consists of the operations in the United States, Canada, and Bermuda. This segment includes the operations of ACE USA (including ACE Canada), ACE Bermuda, ACE Commercial Risk Services, ACE Private Risk Services, ACE Westchester, ACE Agriculture, and various run-off operations. During the year ended December 31, 2011, Insurance-North American segment accounted for 45% of its consolidated net premiums earned. During 2011, ACE USA represented approximately 49% of Insurance-North American�� net premiums earned.

ACE USA is the North American retail operating division which provides a broad array of P&C, A&H, and risk management products and services to a diverse group of commercial and non-commercia! l enterprises and consumers. ACE Bermuda provides commercial insurance products on an excess basis mainly to a global client base, covering exposures that are generally low in frequency and high in severity. ACE Commercial Risk Services addresses the insurance needs of small to mid-sized businesses in North America by delivering an array of specialty product solutions for targeted industries. ACE Private Risk Services provides personal lines coverages for high net worth individuals and families in North America.

ACE Westchester specializes in the North American wholesale distribution of excess and surplus P&C, environmental, professional and inland marine products. ACE Agriculture provides Multi-Peril Crop Insurance and crop/hail insurance protection to customers throughout the United States and Canada through Rain and Hail and Agribusiness insurance through Penn Millers Insurance Company. The run-off operations include Brandywine, Commercial Insurance Services, residual market workers��compensation business, pools and syndicates not attributable to a single business group, and other exited lines of business. Run-off operations do not actively sell insurance products, but are responsible for the management of existing policies and settlement of related claims.

Insurance-Overseas General

During 2011, ACE�� Insurance- Overseas General segment accounted for 37% of its consolidated net premiums earned. Insurance-Overseas General segment consists of ACE International, its global retail insurance operations, the wholesale insurance business of ACE Global Markets, and the international A&H and life business of Combined Insurance. ACE International is its retail business serving local companies and insureds to large multinationals outside the United States, Bermuda, and Canada. ACE Global Markets, its London-based excess and surplus lines business, includes Lloyd�� of London (Lloyd��) Syndicate 2488 (Syndicate 2488). ACE provides a fund at Lloyd�� to support und! erwriting! by Syndicate 2488, which is managed by ACE Underwriting Agencies Limited. The reinsurance operation of ACE Global Markets is included in the Global Reinsurance segment.

Property insurance products include traditional commercial fire coverage, as well as energy industry-related, construction, and other technical coverages. Principal casualty products are commercial primary and excess casualty, environmental, marine and general liability. ACE International specialty coverages include D&O professional indemnity, energy, aviation, political risk and specialty personal lines products. The A&H operations primarily offer personal accident and supplemental medical products to meet the insurance needs of individuals and groups outside of United States insurance markets. ACE International�� personal lines operations provide specialty products and services designed to meet the needs of specific target markets and include property damage, auto, homeowners, and personal liability.

Global Reinsurance

During 2011, ACE�� Global Reinsurance segment, which accounted for 7% of its consolidated net premiums earned. Global Reinsurance segment represents ACE�� reinsurance operations comprising ACE Tempest Re Bermuda, ACE Tempest Re USA, ACE Tempest Re International, and ACE Tempest Re Canada. The Global Reinsurance segment also includes ACE Global Markets��reinsurance operations. Global Reinsurance markets its reinsurance products worldwide under the ACE Tempest Re brand name and provides a range of coverage to a diverse array of primary P&C companies. ACE Tempest Re Bermuda principally provides property catastrophe reinsurance, on an excess of loss basis globally to insurers of commercial and personal property. ACE Tempest Re Bermuda underwrites reinsurance principally on an excess of loss basis, meaning that its exposure only arises after the ceding company�� accumulated losses have exceeded the attachment point of the reinsurance policy. ACE Tempest Re Bermuda also writes ! other typ! es of reinsurance on a limited basis for selected clients.

ACE Tempest Re USA writes all lines of traditional and specialty P&C reinsurance for the United States market, principally on a treaty basis, with a focus on writing property per risk and casualty reinsurance. ACE Tempest Re USA underwrites reinsurance on both a proportional and excess of loss basis. ACE Tempest Re International provides P&C treaty reinsurance to insurance companies worldwide. ACE Tempest Re Canada offers an array of traditional and specialty P&C reinsurance to the Canadian market, including casualty, property risk and property catastrophe.

Life

During 2011, ACE�� Life accounted for 11% of 2011 consolidated net premiums earned. Life includes ACE�� international life operations (ACE Life), ACE Tempest Life Re (ACE Life Re), and the North American supplemental A&H and life business of Combined Insurance. ACE Life provides individual life and group insurance, including Egypt, Indonesia, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, the United Arab Emirates, throughout Latin America, selectively in Europe, as well as China through a non-consolidated joint venture insurance company.

ACE Life offers a portfolio of protection and savings products, including whole life, endowment plans, individual term life, group term life, group medical, personal accident, universal life, and unit linked contracts. ACE Life sells to consumers through a range of distribution channels, including agency, bancassurance, brokers, and direct to consumer marketing. ACE Life Re helps clients (ceding companies) manage mortality, morbidity, and lapse risks embedded in their books of business. ACE Life Re�� business is a Bermuda-based operation, which provides reinsurance to primary life insurers, focusing on guarantees included in certain fixed and variable annuity products and also on more traditional mortality reinsurance protection. ACE Life Re is a United States-based traditional life reinsurance operation. Combined I! nsurance ! distributes specialty individual accident and supplemental health and life insurance products targeted to middle income consumers in the United States and Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Damian Illia]

  ACE Limited (ACE) is an insurance and reinsurance organization. The company provides commercial insurance products and service offerings such as risk management programs, loss control and engineering and complex claims management. The company�� segments are: Insurance - North American, Insurance - Overseas General, Global Reinsurance, and Life.

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and American Express (AXP) rose 2% and 2.1%, respectively, as financial stocks gained on speculation that the jobless claims data would spur the Federal Reserve to taper sooner rather than later, while Ace Ltd.�(ACE) rose 3.8%. �General Motors�(GM) gained 1.1% after the US government said it could sell the last of its shares by year-end. On the downside, Target (TGT) fell 3.5% after reporting earnings that missed analyst expectations.

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  For the past several years, Berkshire has contrasted its own cost-free float provided by profitable underwriting against the industry�� (unimpressive) tendency to lose money on underwriting while generating net returns from investment income. So far, so good. Less edifying, though, is the repeated contrast of Berkshire�� track record of profitability to State Farm��…even though, as a mutual company, State Farm�� profitability goals are inherently different from for-profit insurers like Berkshire. It�� true that through year-end 2013, Berkshire�� underwriters have ��ow operated at an underwriting profit for eleven consecutive years,��but so have ACE (ACE), American Financial (AFG),� AmTrust Financial (AFSI), Arch Capital (ACGL), Chubb (CB), HCC (HCC), Progressive (PGR), RLI (RLI), and W.R. Berkley (WRB), any or all of whom provide a more meaningful comparison than contrasting Berkshire�� results to a company that�� not out to produce a profit in the first place.

Top Railroad Stocks To Own Right Now: Prana Biotechnology Ltd (PRAN)

Prana Biotechnology Limited engages in the research and development of therapeutic drugs for the treatment of neurological disorders in Australia. The company primarily focuses on the Alzheimer�s, Parkinson�s, and Huntington�s diseases, as well as various cancer, age-related macular degeneration and cataract, Motor Neuron, and Creutzfeldt-Jakob diseases. Its development stage product line comprises PBT2, a Phase IIb clinical trial product for the treatment of Alzheimer�s disease; and PBT2, a Phase IIa clinical trial product for the treatment of Huntington�s disease. The company was formerly known as Prana Corporation Ltd. and changed its name to Prana Biotechnology Limited in January 2000. Prana Biotechnology Limited was founded in 1997 and is based in Parkville, Australia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By James Brumley]

  SGNT stock is also valued at a palatable trailing P/E of 19.8, and has logged six straight quarterly earnings beats, making it one of the best cheap stocks in the pharmaceutical industry.

  Prana Biotechnology (PRAN)

  It’s a slippery slope when you start placing bets based on a company with no marketable product, and a lead candidate that’s only in Phase 2 trials. But, Prana Biotechnology (PRAN) may be one of those cheap stocks within the drugmaking world that’s worth the risk.