Hot Diversified Bank Stocks To Buy Right Now

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- The retail-wholesale sector may be 24.9% overvalued according to www.ValuEngine.com, but this sector of 360 companies has 80% of the stocks rated buy. With an overweight sector rating I decided to profile nine buy-rated stocks in the retail-wholesale sector that are trading below $10 a share.

All nine stocks profiled today are overvalued, six by more than 40%. Only one is lower in price over the last 12 months, while the others are up between 22.4% and 227.7%. Seven of nine are above their 200-day simple moving average, which reflects the risk of reversion to the mean. As you will observe one of the stocks in today's table ended above $10 on Tuesday and was downgraded to hold from buy.

Top 10 Defense Stocks To Own Right Now: Penske Automotive Group Inc.(PAG)

Penske Automotive Group, Inc. operates as an automotive retailer. It sells new and used vehicles of approximately 40 vehicle brands; offers vehicle maintenance and repair services; and engages in the sale and placement of third-party finance and insurance products, third-party extended service contracts, and replacement and aftermarket automotive products. As of December 31, 2011, the company operated 320 retail automotive franchises, of which 166 franchises were located in the United States and 154 franchises are located outside of the United States primarily in the United Kingdom. It also has operations in Puerto Rico and Germany. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  When judging a company's prospects, how quickly it turns cash outflows into cash inflows can be just as important as how much profit it's booking in the accounting fantasy world we call "earnings." This is one of the first metrics I check when I'm hunting for the market's best stocks. Today, we'll see how it applies to Penske Automotive Group (NYSE: PAG  ) .

Hot Diversified Bank Stocks To Buy Right Now: Mechel OAO (MTLR)

Mechel OAO is a Russia-based integrated mining and steel company. The Company focuses on the production of mining products, such as coal, iron ore, nickel, and steel products. Its operations are divided into two segments: Mining and Steel. The Mining segment focuses on the production and sales of coking coal concentrate, iron ore concentrate and coke with assets in the Russian Federation and the United States. The Steel segment comprises production and sale of semi-finished steel products, carbon and specialty long products, stainless flat products, and value-added downstream metal products, including hardware and stampings. The Company has production facilities, located domestically in numerous regions, as well as in the United States, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and Bulgaria. In July 2013, it closed the deal on disposal of 100% of the shares of Toplofikatsia Rousse EAD. In July 2013, the Company sold a 100% stake in Invicta Merchant Bar. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lyubov Pronina]

  The Micex Index slid 1.1 percent to the lowest level since November. Russian growth is forecast to slow to 2.4 percent this year on high interest rates and lower gas exports, Economy Minister Andrei Belousov told reporters today. OAO Mechel (MTLR), a coking coal and steel producer, tumbled 6.3 percent.

Hot Diversified Bank Stocks To Buy Right Now: China Lodging Group Limited (HTHT)

China Lodging Group, Limited, together with its subsidiaries, develops, operates, and manages a chain of hotels in the People?s Republic of China. It operates HanTing Express Hotel that targets knowledge workers and value-conscious travelers; HanTing Seasons Hotel, which targets mid-level corporate managers and owners of small and medium enterprises; and HanTing Hi Inn for budget-constrained travelers. As of March 31, 2011, the company had 473 hotels consisting of 259 leased-and-operated hotels and 214 franchised-and-managed hotels; and 162 hotels under development, including 74 leased-and-operated hotels and 88 franchised-and-managed hotels. China Lodging Group, Limited was incorporated in 2007 and is headquartered in Shanghai, the People?s Republic of China.

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 China Lodging Group (Nasdaq: HTHT  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

Hot Diversified Bank Stocks To Buy Right Now: ITT Educational Services Inc (ESI)

ITT Educational Services, Inc. (ITT/ESI), incorporated in 1946, is a provider of postsecondary degree programs in the United States. As of December 31, 2011, the Company offered master, bachelor and associate degree programs to approximately 73,000 students. As of December 31, 2011, the Company had 144 locations (including 141 campuses and three learning sites) in 39 states. In addition, ITT/ESI offered one or more of its online programs to students who were located in 48 states. The Company designs its education programs, after consultation with employers and other constituents, to help graduates prepare for careers in various fields involving their areas of study. The Company provides career-oriented education programs under the Daniel Webster College (DWC) name. During the year ended December 31, 2011, it began operations at 11 new ITT Technical Institute campuses and discontinued operations at one learning site. As of December 31, 2011, the ITT Technical Institutes offered 55 degree programs in various fields of study across the schools of study, such as information technology (IT); electronics technology; drafting and design; business; criminal justice, and breckinridge school of nursing and health sciences. As of December 31, 2011, the Company had 144 locations (including 141 campuses and three learning sites) in 39 states, which provided postsecondary education to approximately 73,000 students. In 2011, the Company derived approximately 98% of its revenue from tuition and approximately 2% from the sale of tool kits and fees, charged to and paid by, or on behalf of, its students. On August 1, 2013, the Company announced that it has acquired Cable Holdings, LLC.

At most of its campuses, ITT/ESI organizes the academic schedule for programs of study on the basis of four 12-week academic quarters in a calendar year, with new students beginning at the start of each academic quarter. At these campuses, students taking a full-time course load can complete its associate degree programs in ! eight academic quarters, bachelor degree programs in 14 or 15 academic quarters and a master degree program in six or seven academic quarters. ITT/ESI offers classes in residence programs in 3.5- to 5.5-hour sessions three days a week, Monday through Saturday, with all program courses taught entirely or partially in residence; or sessions that are scheduled two to three days a week, Monday through Saturday, with certain program courses taught entirely or partially online over the Internet academic quarters. Depending on student enrollment, class sessions at the most of its campuses are available in the morning, afternoon and evening. The courses that are taught online over the Internet are delivered through an asynchronous learning network and have a prescribed schedule for completion of the coursework. In addition to courses directly related to a student�� program of study, its programs also include general education courses in the humanities, composition, mathematics, the sciences and the social sciences.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [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 a downgrade for ITT Educational (NYSE: ESI  ) , an upgrade for Facebook (NASDAQ: FB  ) , and a much improved price target for tiny iRobot (NASDAQ: IRBT  ) . Let's dive right in, beginning with why one analyst just...

• [By Bill Smith]

  ITT Educational Services (ESI) is a company in the for-profit education services industry, and appears on GuruFocus��Buffett-Munger screener. This screener can be used to find companies with high quality businesses at undervalued, or fairly-valued, prices. Businesses on this screener are able to consistently grow revenue and earnings, maintain and expand profit margins while growing, and incur little debt during growth.

Hot Diversified Bank Stocks To Buy Right Now: Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd (FRFHF)

Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited (Fairfax) is a financial services holding company. The Company, through its subsidiaries, is principally engaged in property and casualty insurance and reinsurance and the associated investment management. The Company�� segments consist of Insurance, Reinsurance, Insurance and Reinsurance Other, Runoff, and Corporate and Other. On December 22, 2011, the Company completed the acquisition of 75% interests in Sporting Life Inc. On August 16, 2011, the Company acquired William Ashley China Corporation. On March 24, 2011, an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Fairfax completed the acquisition of The Pacific Insurance Berhad. On February 9, 2011, an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Fairfax completed the acquisition of First Mercury Financial Corporation. In October 2012, its RiverStone runoff subsidiary acquired all the outstanding shares of Brit Insurance Limited. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Charles Sizemore]

  BlackBerry (BBRY) has been a value trap that has ensnared more than its share of value hunting investors in recent years — yours truly included. Buying BlackBerry stock will also likely go down in history as the single-worst investing mistake in the otherwise illustrious career of Prem Watsa — the chairman of Fairfax Financial (FRFHF) and the man commonly known as the ��arren Buffett of Canada.��/p>

• [By Tim Brugger]

  Citing the letter of intent to be acquired�for $9 a share signed Monday with a consortium led by its largest shareholder, Fairfax Financial (NASDAQOTH: FRFHF  ) , BlackBerry� (NASDAQ: BBRY  ) �has opted to cancel its conference call and webcast following the 7 .a.m EST release of Q2 earnings this Friday, the company announced yesterday.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  That business model has been so successful that other, smaller insurance companies have emulated it. For instance, Fairfax Financial (NASDAQOTH: FRFHF  ) and Markel (NYSE: MKL  ) have used the same investing model to take advantage of their respective core insurance businesses. Both Fairfax and Markel have had substantial success, showing the power of using temporarily available premium reserves to make higher-return investments.

Hot Diversified Bank Stocks To Buy Right Now: Nektar Therapeutics(NKTR)

Nektar Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in developing a pipeline of drug candidates that utilize its PEGylation and polymer conjugate technology platforms. The company?s product pipeline consists of drug candidates across various therapeutic areas, including oncology, pain, anti-infectives, anti-viral, and immunology. Its research and development activities involve small molecule drugs, peptides, and other potential biologic drug candidates. The company?s proprietary drug candidates in clinical development comprise NKTR-118, a peripheral opioid antagonist, which has completed Phase II clinical trail for the treatment of opioid-induced constipation; BAY41-6551 that has completed Phase II clinical trail to treat gram-negative pneumonias; NKTR-102, a topoisomerase I inhibitor-polymer conjugate, which is in Phase II clinical trail for multiple cancer indications, including breast, ovarian, and colorectal; and NKTR-105 that is in Phase I clinica l trail to treat solid tumors. Its preclinical products consists of NKTR-119 (Opioid/NKTR-118 combinations) for the treatment of pain; NKTR-181 (abuse deterrent, tamper-resistant opioid) to treat pain; NKTR-194 (non-scheduled opioid) for the treatment of mild to moderate pain; NKTR-171 (tricyclic antidepressant) to treat neuropathic pain; and NKTR-140 (protease inhibitor candidate) to treat HIV. The company has collaboration with Bayer Healthcare LLC to develop BAY41-6551 (NKTR-061, Amikacin Inhale), which is an inhaled solution of amikacin, an aminoglycoside antibiotic; and a license agreement with AstraZeneca AB for the development and commercialization of Oral NKTR-118 and NKTR-119. In addition, Nektar Therapeutics has various license, manufacturing, and supply agreements for its technology with biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, such as Affymax, Amgen, Baxter, Roche, Merck, Pfizer, and UCB Pharma. The company was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in San Franc isco, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lu Wang]

  Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) tumbled 24 percent, its biggest slide in five years, to $10.54. The company said a study of the slow-release painkiller NKTR-181 showed it failed to meet the primary endpoint of a Phase 2 study, citing an ��nusual lack��of a gain in pain scores for patients taking a placebo.

Hot Diversified Bank Stocks To Buy Right Now: Allegiant Travel Co (ALGT)

Allegiant Travel Company, incorporated on April 4, 2006, is a leisure travel company focused on providing travel services and products to residents of small, underserved cities in the United States. The Company operates a passenger airline marketed primarily to leisure travelers in small cities, allowing it to sell air transportation both on a stand-alone basis and bundled with the sale of air-related and third party services and products. In addition, it provides air transportation under fixed fee flying arrangements. The Company provides scheduled air transportation on limited frequency nonstop flights between small city markets and leisure destinations. As of February 1, 2013, its operating fleet consisted of 58 MD-80 aircraft and six Boeing 757-200 aircraft providing service on 191 routes to 85 cities including 13 leisure destinations and 72 small cities and including cities served seasonally. In January 2012, the Company took ownership of two MD-80 aircraft. In October 2012, the Company announced the formation of Allegiant Systems, a joint venture with AvIntel and Lixar IT.

The Company provides unbundled air-related services and products in conjunction with air transportation for an additional cost to customers. These optional air-related services and products include use of its Website for purchases, use of its call center for purchases, advance seat assignment, baggage fees, priority boarding, its own travel protection product, change fees, food and beverage purchases on board and other air-related services. The Company offers third party travel products, such as hotel rooms, ground transportation (rental cars and hotel shuttle products) and attractions (show tickets) bundled with the purchase of its air transportation.

The Company provides air transportation through fixed fee agreements and charter service on a seasonal and ad-hoc basis for other customers. As of February 1, 2013, its operating aircraft consisted of 58 MD-80 aircraft and six Boeing 757-200 aircraft. D! uring the year ended December 31, 2012, the Company has entered into purchase agreements to acquire seven Airbus A320 aircraft and operating lease agreements for an additional nine Airbus A319 aircraft.

The Company competes with AirTran, Frontier, Spirit, Southwest, US Airways, Alaska Airlines, Horizon Air, Delta, Xtra, United and American.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Of the 8 publicly-traded US airlines that generated a positive [Return on Invested Capital ��Weighted Average Cost of Capital] gap, Allegiant Travel (ALGT) generated both the highest absolute after tax ROIC (16.5%) and the greatest ��pread��(ROIC ��WACC of 10.3 points). Furthermore, Allegiant�� very strong results were an improvement over what it reported in 2012: 15.4% after tax ROIC and ROIC ��WACC spread of 9.0 points.