10 Best Cheap Stocks To Own For 2014

Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT  ) may be announcing an organizational restructuring as early as Thursday, and All Things D's Kara Swisher is hearing that Ford (NYSE: F  ) CEO Alan Mulally may have helped steer Microsoft's Steve Ballmer through the process.

Don't worry, Ford fans. Mulally isn't trading in hard wears for software. Insiders are merely telling Swisher that Microsoft's CEO consulted with Mulally -- who has experience at turning big companies around -- for ideas on how to restructure the meandering software titan.

It wouldn't be a shock to see Microsoft's organizational chart go under the knife. Things haven't exactly gone the tech bellwether's way lately.

Last year's rollout of Windows 8 was supposed to breathe new life into the PC market. It didn't. The introduction of Windows RT and the Surface RT tablet were supposed to give the software giant some serious skin in the growing realm of cheap computing devices. It didn't. Windows Phone 8 hit the market late last year, and despite Microsoft's proactive approach of paying app developers and at least one major handset manufacturer to champion the mobile operating system, it hasn't made a dent in the iOS and Android stronghold.

Then we had the poorly received introduction -- in the eyes of gamers -- of the Xbox One gaming console during last month's E3 conference. It may not be a coincidence that the Xbox president left the company last week, possibly ahead of Thursday's game of music chairs that will likely leave some executives either demoted or left out.

10 Best Cheap Stocks To Own For 2014: Sirius XM Radio Inc.(SIRI)

Sirius XM Radio Inc. provides satellite radio services in the United States and Canada. It broadcasts a programming lineup of approximately 135 channels of commercial-free music, sports, news and information, talk and entertainment, traffic, and weather on subscription fee basis through two satellite radio systems in the United States; and holds an interest in the satellite radio services offered in Canada. The company also simulcasts music and selected non-music channels over the Internet; and offers applications to allow consumers to access its Internet services on mobile devices. As of December 31, 2010, it had 20,190,964 subscribers. In addition, the company designs, establishes specifications, sources or specifies parts and components, and manages various aspects of the logistics and production of satellite radios; licenses its technology to various electronics manufacturers to develop, manufacture, and distribute radios under various brands; and imports radios distri buted through its Websites. The company?s satellite radios are primarily distributed through automakers, retailers, and its Websites. Further, it provides music services for commercial establishments; a satellite television service to offer music channels as part of certain programming packages on the DISH Network satellite television service; music and comedy channels to mobile phone users through mobile phone carriers; Backseat TV, a service offering television content designed primarily for children in the backseat of vehicles; Travel Link, a suite of data services that include graphical weather, fuel prices, sports schedules and scores, and movie listings; and real-time traffic and weather services. The company was formerly known as Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. and changed its name to Sirius XM Radio Inc. in August 2008. Sirius XM Radio Inc. was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephen Faulkner]

  $4.25 per share. That's Goldman Sachs' new price target on Sirius XM (SIRI), raised up from their previous $3.50 per share. Sound familiar to anyone?

10 Best Cheap Stocks To Own For 2014: Ford Motor Credit Company(F)

Ford Motor Company primarily develops, manufactures, distributes, and services vehicles and parts worldwide. It operates in two sectors, Automotive and Financial Services. The Automotive sector offers vehicles primarily under the Ford and Lincoln brand names. This sector markets cars, trucks, and parts through retail dealers in North America, and through distributors and dealers outside of North America. It also sells cars and trucks to dealers for sale to fleet customers, including daily rental car companies, commercial fleet customers, leasing companies, and governments. In addition, this sector provides retail customers with a range of after-sale vehicle services and products in the areas, such as maintenance and light repair, heavy repair, collision repair, vehicle accessories, and extended service contracts under the Ford Service, Lincoln Service, Ford Custom Accessories, Ford Extended Service Plan, and Motorcraft brand names. The Financial Services sector offers vari ous automotive financing products to and through automotive dealers. It offers retail financing, which includes retail installment contracts for new and used vehicles; direct financing leases; wholesale financing products that comprise loans to dealers to finance the purchase of vehicle inventory; loans to dealers to finance working capital, purchase real estate dealership, and/or make improvements to dealership facilities; and other financing products, as well as provides insurance services. Ford Motor Company was founded in 1903 and is based in Dearborn, Michigan.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Associated Press]

  The declining car market in Europe has been weighing on global carmakers' bottom lines. Last year, four of the biggest automakers based in Europe --�Ford (NYSE: F  ) , PSA Peugeot, Fiat (NASDAQOTH: FIATY  ) , and General Motors (NYSE: GM  ) -- together posted operating losses of 5 billion euros ($7 billion) for the region.

• [By Daniel Miller]

  When Alan Mulally took over as Ford's (NYSE: F  ) CEO in 2006 he knew that he had a big task ahead in turning the Blue Oval around. In the first two years, between 2006 and 2008, the company lost more than $30 billion ��a ridiculous number. Yet, due to Mulally's "One Ford" vision and his executives' teamwork to cut costs and improve vehicle demand with higher-quality vehicles, Ford made a profit in 2009 ��while other automakers were claiming bankruptcy. Ford continued on that path and finds itself in better shape than it's been in a decade. Let's take a look at its recent success and assess how close Ford is to achieving its goal of bringing jobs to its operations in the U.S.

• [By Daniel Miller]

  It's difficult to believe that a few short years after Detroit automakers were specifically known for producing gas-guzzling SUVs that Ford (NYSE: F  ) has designed a hybrid that's dominating the market. It's won numerous awards, ranks atop multiple listings, and impresses more consumers every month. Ford's raving about how consumers are coming to showrooms in markets not known for hybrid sales -- sending sales through the roof. Here are some details regarding all the hype.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  The battle between the Chevy Silverado from General Motors (NYSE: GM  ) and the Ford (NYSE: F  ) F-150 has been heating up lately, with GM trying to challenge Ford's long dominance atop the best-selling vehicle list. But despite some concerns about the Silverado launch, GM recently got some good news that could help give it an edge against Ford and its other competitors.

Best Companies To Buy For 2014: Horizon Lines Inc.(HRZ)

Horizon Lines, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides container shipping and integrated logistics services. It ships a range of consumer and industrial items, such as refrigerated and non-refrigerated foodstuffs, household goods, auto parts, building materials, and other materials used in manufacturing. The company offers container shipping services to ports within the continental United States, Puerto Rico, Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Micronesia. Its integrated logistics services comprise rail, truck brokerage, warehousing, distribution, expedited logistics, and non-vessel operating common carrier operations. Horizon Lines, Inc. also offers terminal services. The company operates terminals in Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico; contracts for terminal services in seven ports in the continental United States; and the ports in Guam, Yantian, and Xiamen, China, as well as Kaohsiung, Taiwan. In addition, it offers inland transportation services. As of Dec ember 20, 2009, the company owned or leased approximately 20 vessels and 18,500 cargo containers. Horizon Lines, Inc. serves consumer and industrial products companies, as well as various agencies of the U.S. government, including the Department of Defense and the U.S. Postal Service. The company was founded in 1956 and is based in Charlotte, North Carolina.

10 Best Cheap Stocks To Own For 2014: Whole Foods Market Inc.(WFM)

Whole Foods Market, Inc. engages in the ownership and operation of natural and organic food supermarkets. The company offers produce, seafood, grocery, meat and poultry, bakery, prepared foods and catering, coffee and tea, nutritional supplements, and vitamins. It also provides specialty products, such as beer, wine, and cheese; body care and educational products, such as books; and floral, pet, and household products. As of February 9, 2011, the company operated 302 stores in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Whole Foods Market, Inc. was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Andrew Marder]

  Yesterday, Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ: WFM  ) announced its second-quarter earnings, stunning investors with a 7% increase in comparable sales and a 19% increase in earnings per share. Margins were strong, with operating margin hitting a historic high of 7.5%. The stock jumped 10% by midday.

• [By David Chulak]

  Haven�� you ever wanted to know whether Warren Buffett shops at Walmart (WMT) and Dollar General (DG) or whether he uses Geico insurance? I know a great new product is coming to the market, but has Bill Gates been using an iPhone? Does Michael Dell use Dell (DELL) products? Does Exxon (XOM) CEO Rex Tillerson wear a ski mask if he�� low on gas and has to pull into a Shell (RDS.A) oil gas station? Does anyone in the Walton family actually shop at Walmart? Do they ever go into a Whole Foods (WFM) or Kroger (KR)? These questions, as slightly humorous as they may be, may actually be more important to know than some of the nonsense that gets delivered to us through Wall Street.

10 Best Cheap Stocks To Own For 2014: AeroVironment Inc.(AVAV)

AeroVironment, Inc. designs, develops, produces, and supports unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), and efficient energy systems for various industries and governmental agencies. Its UAS provide intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, including real-time tactical reconnaissance, tracking, combat assessment, and geographic data to the small tactical unit or individual war fighter. The UAS wirelessly transmit critical live video and other information generated by their payload of electro-optical or infrared sensors directly to a hand-held ground control system, enabling the operator to view and capture images during the day or at night on a hand-held ground control unit. AeroVironment also provides spare equipment, alternative payload modules, batteries, chargers, repair services, and customer support for the UAS. In addition, the company produces industrial productivity and clean transportation solutions for commercial and government customers, develops potential clean t ransportation solutions, and performs contract engineering services; offers PosiCharge electric vehicle charging systems for industrial electric material handling fleets, electric vehicle charging systems for passenger and fleet vehicles, and power cycling and test systems for developers and manufacturers of plug-in electric and hybrid vehicles, as well as battery packs, electric motors, and fuel cells; and supplies power cycling and test systems to research and development organizations that focus on developing electric propulsion systems, electric generation systems, and electricity storage systems. It supplies its UAS primarily to the organizations within the United States department of defense. AeroVironment, Inc. was incorporated in 1971 and is headquartered in Monrovia, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

  California-based AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV  ) continues its relentless march -- or the airborne equivalent of a march -- to raking in every last cent of the $65.5 million the Pentagon has awarded it to produce unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for the U.S. Army.

• [By Brian Pacampara]

  Based on the aggregated intelligence of 180,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, unmanned aerial vehicle specialist AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV  ) has earned a coveted five-star ranking.

• [By Travis Hoium]

  It's not easy being a government supplier these days. Small-drone manufacturer AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV  ) is finding that out ��� terrible fiscal fourth quarter has to give investors pause about the company's growth.

• [By Alex Planes]

  Investors love stocks that consistently beat the Street without getting ahead of their fundamentals and risking a meltdown. The best stocks offer sustainable market-beating gains, with robust and improving financial metrics that support strong price growth. Does AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV  ) fit the bill? Let's look at what its recent results tell us about its potential for future gains.

10 Best Cheap Stocks To Own For 2014: Gold Reserve Inc(GRZ)

Gold Reserve Inc., an exploration stage company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of mining projects. The company was founded in 1956 and is based in Spokane, Washington.

10 Best Cheap Stocks To Own For 2014: Bank of America Corporation(BAC)

Bank of America Corporation, a financial holding company, provides banking and nonbanking financial services and products to individuals, small- and middle-market businesses, large corporations, and governments in the United States and internationally. The company?s Deposits segment generates savings accounts, money market savings accounts, certificate of deposits, and checking accounts; and Global Card Services segment provides the U.S. consumer and business card, consumer lending, international card and debit card services. Its Home Loans & Insurance segment offers consumer real estate products and services, including mortgage loans, reverse mortgages, home equity lines of credit, and home equity loans. It also provides property, disability, and credit insurance. The company?s Global Commercial Banking segment offers lending products, including commercial loans and commitment facilities, real estate lending, leasing, trade finance, short-term credit, asset-based lending, and indirect consumer loans; and capital management and treasury solutions, such as treasury management, foreign exchange, and short-term investing options. Its Global Banking & Markets segment provides financial products, advisory services, settlement, and custody services; debt and equity underwriting and distribution, merger-related advisory services, and risk management products; and integrated working capital management and treasury solutions. The company?s Global Wealth & Investment Management segment offers investment and brokerage services, estate management, financial planning services, fiduciary management, credit and banking expertise, and asset management products. Bank of America Corporation serves customers through a network of approximately 5,900 banking centers and 18,000 automated teller machines. It was formerly known as NationsBank Corporation and changed its name on October 1, 1998. Bank of America Corporation was founded in 1874 and is based in Charlott e, North Carolina.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Brian Pacampara]

  Now what: While today's settlement is certainly good news, MBIA still has plenty of uncertainty surrounding it. "We will continue to focus on resolving our remaining litigation with other parties so that National Public Finance Guarantee Corp., our U.S. muni-only insurer, can resume its role as a leader in the U.S. public finance insurance market," said MBIA CEO Jay Brown. Without a significant settlement from Bank of America (NYSE: BAC  ) , however, several analysts doubt that MBIA will be able to completely pay off the loan balance. ��

10 Best Cheap Stocks To Own For 2014: S&P Smallcap 600(PH)

Parker Hannifin Corporation manufactures fluid power systems, electromechanical controls, and related components worldwide. Its Industrial segment offers pneumatic and electromechanical components, and systems; filters, systems, and instruments to monitor and remove contaminants from fuel, air, oil, water, and other liquids and gases; connectors that control, transmit, and contain fluid; hydraulic components and systems for builders and users of industrial and mobile machinery and equipment; critical flow components for process instrumentation, healthcare, and ultra-high-purity applications; and static and dynamic sealing devices. This segment sells its products to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and their replacement markets in the manufacturing, transportation, and processing industries. The company?s Aerospace segment provides flight control systems and components, including hydraulic, electrohydraulic, electric backup hydraulic, electrohydrostatic, and electro -mechanical components for precise control of aircraft rudders, elevators, ailerons, and other aerodynamic control surfaces. It also provides electronics thermal management heat rejection systems, and single-phase and two-phase heat collection systems for radar, ISAR, and power electronics. This segment markets its products primarily to OEMs in the commercial, military, and general aviation markets, as well as to end users. Its Climate and Industrial Controls segment offers systems and components primarily for use in the mobile and stationary refrigeration, and air conditioning industry; and in fluid control applications in various industries, such as processing, fuel dispensing, beverage dispensing, and mobile emissions. This segment serves OEMs and their replacement markets. Parker-Hannifin Corporation markets its products through direct-sales employees, independent distributors, wholesalers, and sales representatives. The company was founded in 1918 and is headquartered i n Cleveland, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Marc Bastow]

  Motion and control systems manufacturer Parker-Hannifin (PH) raised its quarterly dividend 4.6% to 45 cents per share, payable on Dec. 6 to shareholders of record as of Nov. 8. The increase marks the 57th consecutive annual dividend increase.
  PH Dividend Yield:�1.55%

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  The market in aggregate might have gone nowhere, but that wasn’t for lack of big moves from individual stocks. Parker-Hannifin (PH) gained 2.4% to $115.06 after it was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Baird, while Newmont Mining (NEM) gained 2.2% as gold miners headed higher today.

• [By Charles Mizrahi, President and CEO, Hampton Investors, Inc.]

  Parker Hannifin (PH) generates strong revenue from its aerospace division, while its primary industrial segment is lagging.

  Overall, we like the company's balanced portfolio. PH had solid order rates this past year with backlog of $3.6 billion between its industrial and aerospace segments.

• [By Sue Chang and Ben Eisen]

  Parker-Hannifin Corp. (PH) �shares climbed 5.2% after the motion and control technologies company reported its first-quarter earnings rose to $1.61 a share from $1.57 a share.

10 Best Cheap Stocks To Own For 2014: Hewlett-Packard Company(HPQ)

Hewlett-Packard Company and its subsidiaries provide products, technologies, software, solutions, and services to individual consumers and small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), as well as to the government, health, and education sectors worldwide. Its Personal Systems Group segment offers commercial personal computers (PCs), consumer PCs, workstations, calculators and other related accessories, and software and services for the commercial and consumer markets. The company?s Services segment provides consulting, outsourcing, and technology services to infrastructure, applications, and business process domains. Its Imaging and Printing Group segment provides consumer and commercial printer hardware, supplies, media, and scanning devices, such as inkjet and Web solutions, laser jet and enterprise solutions, managed enterprise solutions, graphics solutions, and printer supplies. The company?s Enterprise Servers, Storage, and Networking segment offers industry standard s ervers, business critical systems, storage platforms, and networking products, including switches, routers, wireless LAN, and TippingPoint network security products. Its HP Software segment provides enterprise IT management software, information management solutions, and security intelligence/risk management solutions. The company?s HP Financial Services segment offers leasing, financing, utility programs, and asset recovery services; and financial asset management services for enterprise customers, as well as specialized financial services to SMBs, and educational and governmental entities. Hewlett-Packard Company also provides business intelligence solutions that enable businesses to standardize on consistent data management schemes, connect and share data across the enterprise, and apply analytics, as well as licenses its specific technology to third parties. The company was founded in 1939 and is headquartered in Palo Alto, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Divine]

  PC maker Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ  ) , up a remarkable 80% this year after a miserable 2012 that saw the stock register as the Dow's worst performer, gained 0.9%, continuing its recent bullish trajectory. Today's advance comes as the company unveils new "Z series" workstations. The line of high-functioning desktops was designed with professionals like engineers, architects, designers, and photographers in mind, as well as other "knowledge workers and specialists" with high demands for image quality and performance, according to HP's press release.

• [By Travis Hoium]

  Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ  ) was up 3.1% this week, although it wasn't the company itself that caused the move. Dell's buyout deal has now come into question after Michael Dell's partner Silver Lake Management refused to put more money into the offer, and it now appears that the $13.65 buyout offer will be voted on by shareholders. Whether the deal goes through or not, it has taken a lot of time and energy away from making Dell a strong PC company, which is a good thing for HP. I'm still leery of HP's falling revenue, but if the PC market turns around, there's a lot of upside for investors, especially if Dell's challenges continue. �

• [By Matt Thalman]

  Although fellow Dow component Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ  ) received a stock rating upgrade, shares are still down 1.8%. Wells Fargo upgraded HP to "outperform" from "market perform" based on the idea that even without sales improving, HP can deliver growth in net income and free cash flow in the future.�

• [By Alex Dumortier, CFA]

  Hewlett-Packard beats the Street
  What a difference a quarter makes. Dow component Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ  ) reported its quarterly results after yesterday's close, and investors seem to like what they see, sending the shares up 13% (in a market that is broadly declining, no less).

10 Best Cheap Stocks To Own For 2014: Progress Software Corporation(PRGS)

Progress Software Corporation operates as an enterprise software company worldwide. Its products include Progress OpenEdge platform, which offers development tools, application servers, application management tools, and an embedded database; Progress Orbix to address enterprise integration problems with standards-based solutions; and Progress ObjectStore, an object data management system to store data faster than relational database management system or file-based storage system. The company?s products also comprise Progress Responsiveness Process Management suite for business users; Progress Control Tower, an interactive business control panel; Progress Sonic, which comprises an enterprise messaging system and the enterprise service buses; Progress Actional that provides operational and business visibility, root cause analysis, and policy-based security and control of services; Progress Apama, which offers tools for creating, testing, and deploying strategies for applicat ions, including algorithmic trading, market aggregation, smart order routing, market surveillance and monitoring, and risk management; Progress Savvion BusinessManager, a business process management software; and Fuse products that provide customers with access to professional open source integration and messaging software. In addition, it offers Progress DataDirect Connect products, which provide data connectivity components; Progress DataDirect Shadow to provide foundation architecture for standards-based mainframe integration; and Progress Data Services product set that offers data integration for distributed applications. Further, the company provides maintenance, consulting, training, and customer support services. Progress Software Corporation sells its products to independent software vendors, original equipment manufacturers, and system integrators through direct sales force and independent distributors. The company was founded in 1981 and is based in Bedford, Massac husetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  Progress Software (NASDAQ: PRGS  ) moved higher after posting better-than-expected quarterly results this week. The provider of developer tools software saw revenue rise by a better-than-expected 10%, and its adjusted net income of $0.27 a share blew past the $0.22 a share that the market was forecasting.�

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Believing it should have a single, cohesive platform for the development of�cloud and mobile application development technologies, Progress Software (NASDAQ: PRGS  ) announced this morning it was selling its�Apama�complex event processing solution to Software AG for an undisclosed sum.