John Hancock Tax-Advantage Dvd Incom Fd. (HTD) Earns Media Impact Score of 0.05

News coverage about John Hancock Tax-Advantage Dvd Incom Fd. (NYSE:HTD) has trended somewhat positive recently, according to Accern. Accern rates the sentiment of media coverage by reviewing more than 20 million news and blog sources in real-time. Accern ranks coverage of companies on a scale of -1 to 1, with scores closest to one being the most favorable. John Hancock Tax-Advantage Dvd Incom Fd. earned a news impact score of 0.05 on Accern’s scale. Accern also gave news coverage about the company an impact score of 47.6011591514426 out of 100, indicating that recent media coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an effect on the company’s share price in the next few days.

Shares of John Hancock Tax-Advantage Dvd Incom Fd. traded down $0.06, reaching $23.16, during midday trading on Friday, according to MarketBeat Ratings. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 61,564 shares, compared to its average volume of 119,145. John Hancock Tax-Advantage Dvd Incom Fd. has a fifty-two week low of $21.00 and a fifty-two week high of $26.23.

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The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 12th will be given a $0.138 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 11th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.15%.

About John Hancock Tax-Advantage Dvd Incom Fd.

John Hancock Tax-Advantaged Dividend Income Fund is a closed ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by John Hancock Advisers, LLC. It is co-managed by John Hancock Asset Management and Analytic Investors, LLC. The fund invests in the public equity markets of the United States. It seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors, with an emphasis on the utilities sector.

Featured Story: Understanding Price to Earnings Ratio (PE)

Hot Warren Buffett Stocks For 2019

tags:VGM,CRZO,SCOR,CII,ESNC,

Twenty years ago, consumer-facing companies had one major goal: build a brand worthy of legendary loyalty. That's what made�Coca-Cola one of Warren Buffett's favorite -- and most profitable -- investments: People were willing to pay a little more for a Coke than the alternatives. That brand power not only helped the company charge incrementally more every year, but it also made it very popular in emerging markets.

But that was then, and this is now. With brand-loyal baby boomers heading into retirement -- a stage in life where they'll spend much less on such goods -- and millennials growing up and expanding their buying power, consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies are in for a world of hurt. Millennials, ranging in age from early 20s to late 30s, are expected to outnumber baby boomers by next year and some estimate they already have more buying power than any other age group.

Image source: Getty Images.

Hot Warren Buffett Stocks For 2019: Invesco Trust for Investment Grade Municipals(VGM)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Max Byerly]

  Media headlines about Invesco Van Kmpn Trst Fr Invst Grd Mncpl (NYSE:VGM) have been trending somewhat positive recently, Accern reports. The research group scores the sentiment of press coverage by reviewing more than 20 million news and blog sources in real-time. Accern ranks coverage of companies on a scale of -1 to 1, with scores closest to one being the most favorable. Invesco Van Kmpn Trst Fr Invst Grd Mncpl earned a news impact score of 0.19 on Accern’s scale. Accern also gave headlines about the investment management company an impact score of 46.4657191418091 out of 100, indicating that recent press coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an impact on the company’s share price in the immediate future.

Hot Warren Buffett Stocks For 2019: Carrizo Oil & Gas, Inc.(CRZO)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Carrizo Oil & Gas Inc (NASDAQ:CRZO) – Seaport Global Securities boosted their FY2019 earnings estimates for shares of Carrizo Oil & Gas in a report released on Monday, July 9th. Seaport Global Securities analyst M. Kelly now expects that the oil and gas producer will post earnings per share of $5.12 for the year, up from their prior estimate of $4.57.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Since independent oil and gas producer Carrizo Oil & Gas Inc. (NASDAQ: CRZO) reported fourth-quarter and full-year 2017 results Tuesday morning, shares have taken a beating. Just looking at earnings per share (EPS) and revenues, the punishment seems to be worse than the crime.

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRZO. Sterling Investment Advisors Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Carrizo Oil & Gas in the 4th quarter worth about $128,000. CIBC Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Carrizo Oil & Gas in the 4th quarter worth about $212,000. Quantitative Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Carrizo Oil & Gas in the 4th quarter worth about $235,000. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY purchased a new stake in shares of Carrizo Oil & Gas in the 4th quarter worth about $296,000. Finally, Bowling Portfolio Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Carrizo Oil & Gas in the 4th quarter worth about $306,000.

  ILLEGAL ACTIVITY NOTICE: “Carrizo Oil & Gas, Inc. (CRZO) Receives $27.00 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages” was originally reported by Ticker Report and is the property of of Ticker Report. If you are viewing this news story on another site, it was illegally copied and republished in violation of international copyright law. The legal version of this news story can be viewed at https://www.tickerreport.com/banking-finance/3380380/carrizo-oil-gas-inc-crzo-receives-27-00-consensus-target-price-from-brokerages.html.

  Carrizo Oil & Gas Company Profile

• [By Max Byerly]

  Carmignac Gestion raised its position in shares of Carrizo Oil & Gas Inc (NASDAQ:CRZO) by 122.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,000,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 550,000 shares during the quarter. Carmignac Gestion owned 1.22% of Carrizo Oil & Gas worth $16,000,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

• [By Matthew DiLallo]

  That bullish inventory number, along with the potential for even higher oil prices, sent oil stocks soaring, with several smaller producers spiking more than 10% today. Among that group was EP Energy (NYSE:EPE), Sanchez Energy (NYSE:SN), Denbury Resources (NYSE:DNR), HighPoint Resources (NYSE:HPR), and Carrizo Oil & Gas (NASDAQ:CRZO).

Hot Warren Buffett Stocks For 2019: comScore Inc.(SCOR)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lee Jackson]

  ComScore Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR) was started with a buy rating at Loop Capital with a $32 price target. That compares with the Wall Street consensus target of $22. The stock closed trading on Monday at $23.57.

Hot Warren Buffett Stocks For 2019: Blackrock Capital and Income Strategies Fund Inc(CII)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  News headlines about BlackRock Enhanced Capital and Income Fd (NYSE:CII) have trended positive this week, according to Accern Sentiment Analysis. The research firm identifies positive and negative media coverage by reviewing more than twenty million news and blog sources in real-time. Accern ranks coverage of companies on a scale of negative one to one, with scores closest to one being the most favorable. BlackRock Enhanced Capital and Income Fd earned a news sentiment score of 0.31 on Accern’s scale. Accern also assigned media headlines about the real estate investment trust an impact score of 47.3179811195894 out of 100, indicating that recent media coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an impact on the company’s share price in the immediate future.

Hot Warren Buffett Stocks For 2019: EnSync, Inc.(ESNC)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Here are some of the media stories that may have impacted Accern Sentiment’s analysis:

  Get Molecular Templates alerts: Trading Center: Watching the Levels for Molecular Templates, Inc. (:MTEM): Move of 0.02 Since the Open (stocknewscaller.com) Molecular Templates (MTEM) Announces Clinical Data at 2018 ASCO Meeting (streetinsider.com) Gallbladder Cancer Treatment Sales Market Size by Players, Regions, Type, Application and Forecast to 2025 (exclusivereportage.com) ATR in spotlight EnSync, Inc. (NYSE:ESNC), CDTi Advanced Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:CDTI), Molecular Templates, Inc … (stocksnewspoint.com)

  MTEM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. ValuEngine lowered shares of Molecular Templates from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 1st. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Molecular Templates from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. The company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $5.20.

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  ZBB Energy (NYSEAMERICAN:ESNC) has been given a $2.00 price target by research analysts at HC Wainwright in a report released on Wednesday. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the technology company’s stock. HC Wainwright’s target price suggests a potential upside of 471.43% from the stock’s current price.

• [By Max Byerly]

  Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on EnSync (ESNC)

  For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

Columbus McKinnon Corp. (CMCO) Expected to Post Earnings of $0.60 Per Share

Analysts expect that Columbus McKinnon Corp. (NASDAQ:CMCO) will report earnings of $0.60 per share for the current fiscal quarter, according to Zacks. Two analysts have made estimates for Columbus McKinnon’s earnings, with the lowest EPS estimate coming in at $0.57 and the highest estimate coming in at $0.62. Columbus McKinnon posted earnings per share of $0.55 in the same quarter last year, which suggests a positive year over year growth rate of 9.1%. The firm is scheduled to report its next earnings results before the market opens on Tuesday, July 31st.

On average, analysts expect that Columbus McKinnon will report full year earnings of $2.48 per share for the current year, with EPS estimates ranging from $2.38 to $2.57. For the next fiscal year, analysts expect that the firm will post earnings of $2.97 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $2.96 to $2.97. Zacks Investment Research’s EPS averages are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side research analysts that cover Columbus McKinnon.

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Columbus McKinnon (NASDAQ:CMCO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.02. Columbus McKinnon had a net margin of 2.63% and a return on equity of 12.14%. The business had revenue of $214.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $210.64 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.40 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 16.5% on a year-over-year basis.

CMCO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. TheStreet raised shares of Columbus McKinnon from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 30th. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Columbus McKinnon from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $46.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, June 1st. Craig Hallum initiated coverage on shares of Columbus McKinnon in a research report on Monday, May 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $49.00 target price for the company. Finally, BidaskClub raised shares of Columbus McKinnon from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. The company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $48.75.

In other news, VP Gregory P. Rustowicz sold 3,271 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.13, for a total transaction of $137,807.23. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 45,366 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,911,269.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.27% of the company’s stock.

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CMCO. Cortina Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Columbus McKinnon during the 1st quarter valued at $16,615,000. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Columbus McKinnon by 131.2% during the 1st quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 420,502 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $15,071,000 after acquiring an additional 238,647 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in shares of Columbus McKinnon by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,959,031 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $106,052,000 after acquiring an additional 180,859 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC grew its position in shares of Columbus McKinnon by 40.9% during the 1st quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 558,568 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $20,019,000 after acquiring an additional 162,016 shares during the period. Finally, Phocas Financial Corp. bought a new stake in shares of Columbus McKinnon during the 4th quarter valued at $5,710,000. 91.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NASDAQ:CMCO opened at $41.81 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Columbus McKinnon has a 12 month low of $24.97 and a 12 month high of $45.85. The company has a market capitalization of $960.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.65 and a beta of 1.88.

Columbus McKinnon Company Profile

Columbus McKinnon Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets hoists, actuators, cranes, rigging tools, digital power control systems, and other material handling products for commercial and industrial applications worldwide. It offers various electric chain hoists, electric wire rope hoists, hand-operated hoists, winches, lever tools, and air-powered hoists under the Budgit, Chester, CM, Coffing, Little Mule, Pfaff, Shaw-Box, Yale, STAHL, and other brands; below-the-hook tooling, clamps, and textile strappings; and explosion-protected hoists, as well as supplies hoist trolleys.

Further Reading: Stock Ratings and Recommendations: Understanding Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Columbus McKinnon (CMCO)

For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

Scout24 (G24) Given a €43.00 Price Target at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada set a €43.00 ($50.59) target price on Scout24 (ETR:G24) in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Macquarie set a €49.54 ($58.28) target price on shares of Scout24 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, June 7th. Warburg Research set a €42.00 ($49.41) target price on shares of Scout24 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a €45.00 ($52.94) target price on shares of Scout24 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 6th. Morgan Stanley set a €48.00 ($56.47) target price on shares of Scout24 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 30th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group set a €47.10 ($55.41) target price on shares of Scout24 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, May 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. The company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of €42.18 ($49.62).

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G24 opened at €45.88 ($53.98) on Tuesday. Scout24 has a 1 year low of €29.81 ($35.07) and a 1 year high of €37.60 ($44.24).

About Scout24

Scout24 AG operates digital marketplaces specializing in the real estate and automotive sectors in Germany and other European countries. The company operates through ImmobilienScout24 and AutoScout24segments. The ImmobilienScout24 segment operates real estate classifieds portal for commercial and private customers for the sale and rental of real estate, as well as offers advertising services to third-party suppliers, such as insurance and financial service providers, utilities, or removal companies.

Featured Article: Short Selling Stocks, A Beginner��s Guide

What 112 Emmy Nominations Means for Netflix (NFLX) & Investors

In today’s news of Emmy nominations, Netflix (NFLX ) surpassed HBO’s 108 nominations with 112 of its own, the highest the company has ever seen.

It’s been clear for a while now, but Netflix seems to be the dominating force in television. Here’s a closer look at how Netflix’s dominance has affected the entertainment industry.

HBO Mimicking Netflix?

John Stankey, AT&T’s (T ) head of Warner Media wants to take HBO in a new direction after its merger with Time Warner . He suggested to his employees that HBO should become more of mainstream service that caters to a wide audience, sounding very much so like what Netflix does.

Netflix is a company which invests both in quantity and quality. If HBO is choosing to follow in Netflix’s path, then that could potentially mean the company would have to focus on quantity more heavily.

Netflix’s attitude of creating countless shows for its users and always having new content out is what makes it so popular amongst consumers. On the other hand, HBO will come out with one hit during the year, which stimulates some but is not enough response to keep fans engaged.

NFLX is worth almost $180 billion with its stock currently at $413.50 per share. This compares to traditional media companies like Disney (DIS ) , which is valued at $153 billion. Other tech companies like Amazon (AMZN ) and Hulu are also looking to bolster their streaming services to compete with the likes of Netflix.

How Does Netflix Do It?

In this year’s nominations, Netflix took over a wide breath of genres, with 40 total shows earnings nods. The thing that puzzles other media companies is how they manage to be so popular. Yes, it’s true that Netflix creates an insane amount of content, but the company also uses advertising to its advantage.

According to The New York Times, Netflix opened up a space in May & June in Los Angeles which held many events for crowds that it hoped would include some Emmy voters. Recently, it has also bought some billboards along the Sunset Strip for more advertising award purposes.

Netflix is expected to release its quarterly report this upcoming Monday. According to Zacks Consensus Estimates, the EPS forecast for the quarter is $0.80 per share as opposed to last years $0.15. Currently, investors have high hopes about this company seeing how well it’s been doing. Analysts expect revenue of almost $4 billion, an increase of 41.2% year over year.

Investors can be grateful for these rising numbers due to Netflix’s continued subscriber growth and content creation. Customers are willing to pay the price for this streaming service due to its great content.

Bottom Line

Netflix has, thus far, surpassed expectations in every area that it could. It has left major media companies in the dust and continues to do so, and being the highest Emmy-nominated streaming service proves that further.

The Hottest Tech Mega-Trend of All

Last year, it generated $8 billion in global revenues. By 2020, it's predicted to blast through the roof to $47 billion. Famed investor Mark Cuban says it will produce "the world's first trillionaires," but that should still leave plenty of money for regular investors who make the right trades early.

See Zacks' 3 Best Stocks to Play This Trend >>

Top Low Price Stocks To Invest In Right Now

tags:PBH,MNP,YGE,DRQ,

Citigroup’s Alastair Syme and team argue that the earnings from big oil companies like Chevron (CVX), Total (TOT) and Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) will be bad…real bad. But that won’t stop the stocks from outperforming. They explain why:

Bloomberg News

Negative headlines, positive performance: We expect the majority of Big Oil companies to post negative 1Q16 earnings, a brutal headline, but one that clearly reflects the impact of cyclical oil price lows this quarter. The outlook can improve. Our positive thesis on the Big Oil group reflects a belief that the market still only discounts modest oil recovery �� we think c. $40/bbl is imbedded in valuations �� and a view that the group can drive self-help gains to boost profitability even in a low price environment. Signs of this self-help should be evident in 1Q operating performance: we expect to see the delivery of top-line growth (taking market share versus broader industry) and a continued reduction in operating costs, building on substantial cost-cutting through 2015.

Top Low Price Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Prestige Brand Holdings Inc.(PBH)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lisa Levin] Companies Reporting Before The Bell Nomad Foods Limited (NYSE: NOMD) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $0.36 per share on revenue of $656.43 million. AMC Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: AMCX) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $2.2 per share on revenue of $720.14 million. Magna International Inc. (NYSE: MGA) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $1.7 per share on revenue of $10.11 billion. Univar Inc. (NYSE: UNVR) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $0.36 per share on revenue of $2.12 billion. Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE: DUK) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $1.14 per share on revenue of $5.78 billion. Owens & Minor, Inc. (NYSE: OMI) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $0.47 per share on revenue of $2.40 billion. Prestige Brands Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: PBH) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.61 per share on revenue of $255.60 million. Tribune Media Company (NYSE: TRCO) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $0.06 per share on revenue of $457.67 million. ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCB) is estimated to report quarterly loss at $0.07 per share on revenue of $691.18 million. Genesis Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE: GEN) is projected to report quarterly loss at $0.34 per share on revenue of $1.32 billion. Enbridge Inc. (NYSE: ENB) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.55 per share on revenue of $10.14 billion. Kelly Services, Inc. (NASDAQ: KELYA) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $0.42 per share on revenue of $1.34 billion. NICE Ltd. (NASDAQ: NICE) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $1.01 per share on revenue of $332.93 million. World Acceptance Corporation (NASDAQ: WRLD) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $3.94 per share on revenue of $147.32 million. MAXIMUS, Inc. (NYSE: MMS) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.84 per share on revenue of $616.04 million. Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE: CH
• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Premium Brands Holdings Corp (TSE:PBH) Director Stephen Sposari sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$117.01, for a total transaction of C$351,030.00.

• [By Max Byerly]

  Premium Brands Holdings Corp (TSE:PBH) has earned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the seven analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is C$132.14.

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Shares of Prestige Brands Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:PBH) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the ten brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $73.80.

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in Prestige Brands (NYSE:PBH) by 103.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,597 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,431 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Prestige Brands were worth $560,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

• [By Lisa Levin] Gainers Turtle Beach Corporation (NASDAQ: HEAR) surged 87.1 percent to $12.98 after the company reported Q1 results and raised its FY18 outlook. ARMO BioSciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARMO) shares jumped 66.8 percent to $49.735 after Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) announced plans to acquire ARMO BioSciences for $50 per share. vTv Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: VTVT) gained 34 percent to $2.2920 following announcement that the company will pre-specify new subgroup with the FDA and report Phase 3 Part B results in June. Prestige Brands Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: PBH) climbed 22.3 percent to $34.84 after the company posted upbeat Q4 earnings. Depomed, Inc. (NASDAQ: DEPO) shares jumped 22.2 percent to $7.28 following better-than-expected Q1 earnings. Everspin Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: MRAM) gained 19.8 percent to $8.89 after the company reported strong results for its first quarter. Luxfer Holdings PLC (NYSE: LXFR) surged 19.8 percent to $17.10 following Q1 results. Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (NASDAQ: CLNE) rose 18.3 percent to $2.26 after French company Total announced plans to acquire 25 percent stake in Clean Energy Fuels for $83.4 million. Intelligent Systems Corporation (NYSE: INS) gained 17 percent to $7.116. Green Dot Corporation (NYSE: GDOT) surged 15.3 percent to $73.00 after reporting upbeat Q1 earnings. The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ: CHEF) climbed 15 percent to $28.85. Chefs' Warehouse posted Q1 earnings of $0.03 per share on sales of $318.6 million. Westport Fuel Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: WPRT) rose 14.2 percent to $2.9701. Wright Medical Group N.V. (NASDAQ: WMGI) jumped 13.8 percent to $23.87 after reporting upbeat quarterly earnings. Diplomat Pharmacy, Inc. (NYSE: DPLO) gained 13.4 percent to $22.70. Diplomat named Brian Griffin as Chairman and CEO. Carvana Co. (NYSE: CVNA) shares rose 13 percent to $27.97 after reporting upbeat Q1 sales. Prothena Corporation plc (NASDAQ: PRTA) gained 12 percent to $15.19

Top Low Price Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Western Asset Municipal Partners Fund, Inc.(MNP)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Media stories about Western Asset Municipal Partners Fnd (NYSE:MNP) have been trending positive this week, according to Accern Sentiment. Accern identifies positive and negative news coverage by reviewing more than twenty million news and blog sources. Accern ranks coverage of public companies on a scale of negative one to positive one, with scores nearest to one being the most favorable. Western Asset Municipal Partners Fnd earned a media sentiment score of 0.38 on Accern’s scale. Accern also assigned media headlines about the financial services provider an impact score of 46.9266470312802 out of 100, meaning that recent news coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an impact on the company’s share price in the immediate future.

Top Low Price Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Yingli Green Energy Holding Company Limited(YGE)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Yingli Green Energy Holding Co Ltd (NYSE:YGE) shares reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $1.40 and last traded at $1.53, with a volume of 75280 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1.57.

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Yingli Green Energy (NYSE:YGE) had its target price raised by S&P Equity Research from $0.45 to $0.62 in a research report released on Tuesday morning.

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Yingli Green Energy (NYSE: YGE) and Netlist (NASDAQ:NLST) are both small-cap oils/energy companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, analyst recommendations and earnings.

Top Low Price Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Dril-Quip, Inc.(DRQ)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Gabelli Funds LLC grew its holdings in Dril-Quip, Inc. (NYSE:DRQ) by 4.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 55,500 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,500 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC owned about 0.15% of Dril-Quip worth $2,486,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Dril-Quip (NYSE: DRQ) is one of 14 public companies in the “Oil & gas field machinery” industry, but how does it contrast to its competitors? We will compare Dril-Quip to related companies based on the strength of its risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability, dividends, institutional ownership and earnings.

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Dril-Quip, Inc. (NYSE:DRQ) – Stock analysts at Piper Jaffray issued their Q2 2018 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Dril-Quip in a research note issued on Monday, May 14th. Piper Jaffray analyst I. Macpherson anticipates that the oil and gas company will post earnings per share of ($0.11) for the quarter. Piper Jaffray currently has a “Hold” rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. Piper Jaffray also issued estimates for Dril-Quip’s Q3 2018 earnings at ($0.08) EPS, Q4 2018 earnings at ($0.09) EPS, Q1 2019 earnings at ($0.03) EPS, Q2 2019 earnings at $0.02 EPS, Q3 2019 earnings at $0.08 EPS, Q4 2019 earnings at $0.08 EPS and FY2020 earnings at $0.64 EPS.

Arbutus Biopharma (ABUS) Upgraded at Zacks Investment Research

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) was upgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday. The firm presently has a $10.00 target price on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Zacks Investment Research‘s price target points to a potential upside of 14.03% from the company’s current price.

According to Zacks, “Arbutus Biopharma Corporation is a biopharmaceutical company which is focused on discovering, developing and commercializing a portfolio of drug candidates for chronic hepatitis B infection. The Company’s products include TKM-HBV, Cyclophilin Inhibitor-OCB-030, TLR9 Agonist (CYT-003), Capsid Assembly Inhibitors, Surface Antigen Secretion Inhibitors, STING Agonists, cccDNA Formation Inhibitors, cccDNA Epigenetic Modifiers, TKM-PLK1, GI-NET and ACC, HCC, TKM-Ebola, TKM-Ebola-Guinea, TKM-Marburg, TKM-HTG and TKM-ALDH which are in different clinical trial stage. Arbutus Biopharma Corp, formerly known as Tekmira Pharmaceuticals Corporation, is headquartered in Vancouver, BC. “

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A number of other research firms have also weighed in on ABUS. B. Riley lowered shares of Arbutus Biopharma from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $9.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Friday. BidaskClub upgraded shares of Arbutus Biopharma from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 21st. Chardan Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $8.00 price objective on shares of Arbutus Biopharma in a research report on Monday, May 7th. ValuEngine upgraded shares of Arbutus Biopharma from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 2nd. Finally, Wedbush lowered shares of Arbutus Biopharma from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $9.00 to $6.00 in a research report on Monday, March 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $8.50.

Arbutus Biopharma traded down $0.43, reaching $8.77, during midday trading on Monday, Marketbeat reports. The stock had a trading volume of 22,127 shares, compared to its average volume of 579,784. Arbutus Biopharma has a 12-month low of $3.20 and a 12-month high of $9.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 16.86 and a quick ratio of 16.86. The firm has a market cap of $507.55 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.90 and a beta of 0.98.

Arbutus Biopharma (NASDAQ:ABUS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.36) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.39) by $0.03. Arbutus Biopharma had a negative net margin of 705.09% and a negative return on equity of 61.50%. The firm had revenue of $1.40 million for the quarter. analysts expect that Arbutus Biopharma will post -1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In other Arbutus Biopharma news, insider Michael J. Sofia sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.20, for a total transaction of $164,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,543,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,655,904.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael J. Sofia sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.00, for a total transaction of $80,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,543,403 shares in the company, valued at $12,347,224. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Foresite Capital Management IV LLC boosted its position in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 886.3% during the 1st quarter. Foresite Capital Management IV LLC now owns 1,485,245 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $7,426,000 after purchasing an additional 1,334,653 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 7,615.3% during the 4th quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 751,314 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,794,000 after purchasing an additional 741,576 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 150.7% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 402,573 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,033,000 after buying an additional 241,963 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 25.0% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 222,329 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,112,000 after buying an additional 44,531 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Arbutus Biopharma by 10.9% in the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 167,150 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $836,000 after buying an additional 16,430 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 33.30% of the company’s stock.

About Arbutus Biopharma

Arbutus Biopharma Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the discovery, development, and commercialization of a cure for patients suffering from chronic Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in Canada and the United States. It also develops a pipeline of products based on RNA interference therapeutics (RNAi).

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Top 10 China Stocks To Watch Right Now

tags:SINA,FMCN,NTES,TISA,BIDU,CDTI,SOL, Trump continues pursuing a tough stance on trade on three fronts. Concerns about trade dominate the headlines, but the impact is not decisive An end to the "buy the dip" mentality can change the President's mind.

There is no letting down in US President Donald Trump's trade wars, on three fronts. In North America, the row Trump had with Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau joined stalled NAFTA talks. The European Union is about to impose retaliatory tariffs against the US, and it will not be surprising to see a US counter-retaliation. 

And with China, the world's second-largest economy after the American one, the dispute is getting worse. After slapping China with tariffs worth $50 billion and the angry response, the Administration is now considering adding a 10 percent tariff on no less than $200 billion worth of goods. 

There are growing reports about the damage already done, with the most recent warning coming from Daimler, which directly linked trade to a lower profit margin. Canada is probably suffering more than any other country.

Nevertheless, stock markets are mostly calm. With every new development, equities lose some ground but recover within a few hours. The markets have a short memory for the latest worrying deterioration on the trade front but have a long memory for the "buy the dip" mentality. 

Top 10 China Stocks To Watch Right Now: Sina Corporation(SINA)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Garrett Baldwin]
  While that is happening in the Middle East, trouble is brewing in Washington. In addition to reports that a Russian Oligarch paid Trump's lawyer $500,000, a U.S. telecom giant is now caught up with the same lawyer. AT&T Corporation (NYSE: T) confirmed Tuesday night that it paid Trump lawyer Michael Cohen for information on the administration. AT&T stock is up 0.6% in premarket hours. Four Stocks to Watch Today: TRIP, MTCH, FOXA, DIS Shares of TripAdvisor (Nasdaq: TRIP) popped nearly 20% after the company crushed earnings after the bell. In addition, the CFO Ernst Teunissen projected strong guidance for the rest of the year. The firm reported EPS of $0.30 on top of $378.0 million in revenue. Wall Street expected $0.16 per share on $360.84 million in revenue. Shares of Match Group (Nasdaq: MTCH) popped 3% after the company reported earnings after the bell. The dating site operator reported stronger than expected earnings and revenue figures on Tuesday. Overall, revenue jumped 36% compared to the same period in 2017. The firm also reported stronger than expected guidance. Of course, all anyone is talking about how Facebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB) could impact the dating industry with its new plugin. Shares of 21st Century Fox (NYSE FOXA) are in focus as the firm prepares to report earnings before the bell. However, investors are more likely focused today on the expected bidding war between the Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) and Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA) to purchase key assets of the company. Fox is also tied up in a bidding war with Comcast to purchase British television provider Sky (OTC MKTS: SKYAY). Look for additional earnings reports from Booking Holdings (Nasdaq: BKNG), com International (Nasdaq: CTRP), Sina Corp. (Nasdaq: SINA), Albermarle Corp. (NYSE: ALB), Mylan Inc. (NYSE: MYL), SolarEdge Technologies (Nasdaq: SEDG), Wolverine World Wide (NYSE: WWW), IAC Interactive Corp. (NYSE: IAC), and Cavium Inc. (Nasdaq: CAVM).

  Eight Seconds

• [By Steve Symington]

  Shares of SINA Corp. (NASDAQ:SINA) were down 10.2% as of 3:30 p.m. EDT Wednesday despite strong first-quarter 2018 results from the Chinese internet media company.

• [By Leo Sun]

  Shares of SINA (NASDAQ:SINA) and Weibo (NASDAQ:WB) have both tumbled this year, mainly due to escalating trade tensions between the United States and China. Yet their sell-offs seem overdone, since both tech companies are well insulated from a potential trade war.

Top 10 China Stocks To Watch Right Now: Focus Media Holding Limited(FMCN)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  An issue of Focus Media Holding Limited (NASDAQ:FMCN) debt fell 1.1% against its face value during trading on Tuesday. The debt issue has a 7.5% coupon and is set to mature on April 1, 2025. The debt is now trading at $97.63 and was trading at $98.50 last week. Price changes in a company’s debt in credit markets sometimes anticipate parallel changes in its stock price.

Top 10 China Stocks To Watch Right Now: Netease.com Inc.(NTES)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Anders Bylund]

  Chinese online media giant NetEase Inc. (NASDAQ:NTES) is hardly the talk of the town.�Sporting a $30 billion market cap, NetEase works in a consumer-facing industry, and share prices have bounced between $222 and $378 over the last year. And these are the hallmarks of the market's most-discussed tickers.

• [By Leo Sun]

  That expansion can be hard to keep track of, but investors should recognize the five companies which Tencent could hurt: NetEase (NASDAQ:NTES), Weibo (NASDAQ:WB), Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU), iQiyi (NASDAQ:IQ), and Alibaba (NYSE:BABA).

• [By Paul Ausick]

  NetEase Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES) fell by about 9.7% Thursday to post a new 52-week low of $240.08 after closing at $266.00 on Wednesday. The 52-week high is $377.64. Volume of about 4.4 million was more than 4 times the daily average of about 1 million. The reported a profit that missed expectations last night.

Top 10 China Stocks To Watch Right Now: Top Image Systems Ltd.(TISA)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Top Image Systems (TISA)

  For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

Top 10 China Stocks To Watch Right Now: Baidu Inc.(BIDU)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Brian Stoffel]

  Chinese search giant�Baidu�(NASDAQ:BIDU) went public in 2005. After stumbling out of the IPO gate, it experienced the type of run-up that can create dynastic wealth for patient investors. Between early 2006 and mid-2011, shares of the company advanced 3,000%. In other words, in just five years, you could have turned a $10,000 investment into $300,000!

• [By Motley Fool Staff]

  Danny Vena: Absolutely. iQiyi, which was a spin-off from the Chinese Google, Baidu�(NASDAQ:BIDU), they started off strictly following the Hulu model. They began as a company that used strictly advertising to generate their revenue, get as many subscribers in the door as they could, but these people were not paying anything. And it was fairly successful. But about 2015 or so, Baidu recognized just how successful Netflix was becoming, and as it has been the case with so many Chinese companies, they saw a model that they liked, and they copied it. So, they generated some new exclusive content, they stuck it behind a paywall, they encouraged users to sign up and pay, in their case, about $3 a month, and they've gone from there.

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU) shares gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $243.64, but opened at $253.01. Baidu shares last traded at $243.57, with a volume of 10970198 shares changing hands.

• [By Leo Sun]

  That expansion can be hard to keep track of, but investors should recognize the five companies which Tencent could hurt: NetEase (NASDAQ:NTES), Weibo (NASDAQ:WB), Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU), iQiyi (NASDAQ:IQ), and Alibaba (NYSE:BABA).

Top 10 China Stocks To Watch Right Now: Clean Diesel Technologies Inc.(CDTI)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Here are some of the media stories that may have impacted Accern Sentiment’s analysis:

  Get Molecular Templates alerts: Trading Center: Watching the Levels for Molecular Templates, Inc. (:MTEM): Move of 0.02 Since the Open (stocknewscaller.com) Molecular Templates (MTEM) Announces Clinical Data at 2018 ASCO Meeting (streetinsider.com) Gallbladder Cancer Treatment Sales Market Size by Players, Regions, Type, Application and Forecast to 2025 (exclusivereportage.com) ATR in spotlight EnSync, Inc. (NYSE:ESNC), CDTi Advanced Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:CDTI), Molecular Templates, Inc … (stocksnewspoint.com)

  MTEM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. ValuEngine lowered shares of Molecular Templates from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 1st. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Molecular Templates from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. The company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $5.20.

Top 10 China Stocks To Watch Right Now: Renesola Ltd.(SOL)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  These are some of the media headlines that may have impacted Accern’s scoring:

  Get ReneSola alerts: ReneSola Sells North Carolina Solar Project To Greenbacker (solarindustrymag.com) ReneSola (SOL) Rating Increased to Neutral at Roth Capital (americanbankingnews.com) ReneSola (SOL) Q1 Earnings in Line, Revenues Top Estimates (zacks.com) ReneSola’s (SOL) CEO Xianshou Li on Q1 2018 Results – Earnings Call Transcript (seekingalpha.com) ReneSola (SOL) Releases Earnings Results (americanbankingnews.com)

  Shares of ReneSola traded up $0.08, hitting $2.76, during trading on Friday, Marketbeat.com reports. The stock had a trading volume of 124,969 shares, compared to its average volume of 108,565. The firm has a market capitalization of $102.11 million, a PE ratio of 21.23 and a beta of 2.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. ReneSola has a 12 month low of $2.12 and a 12 month high of $3.79.

Tahoe Resources (TAHO) Given Media Sentiment Score of 0.10

Media headlines about Tahoe Resources (NYSE:TAHO) (TSE:THO) have been trending somewhat positive on Tuesday, according to Accern Sentiment Analysis. The research firm rates the sentiment of media coverage by reviewing more than 20 million blog and news sources. Accern ranks coverage of public companies on a scale of -1 to 1, with scores closest to one being the most favorable. Tahoe Resources earned a coverage optimism score of 0.10 on Accern’s scale. Accern also assigned press coverage about the basic materials company an impact score of 45.5394950251654 out of 100, meaning that recent media coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an impact on the stock’s share price in the next several days.

Here are some of the media headlines that may have effected Accern Sentiment Analysis’s analysis:

Get Tahoe Resources alerts: Non-native satin moths impacting aspen foliage in Lake Tahoe (yubanet.com) Tahoe Resources (TAHO) vs. Corvus Gold (CORVF) Financial Survey (americanbankingnews.com) Critical Contrast: Seabridge Gold (SA) and Tahoe Resources (TAHO) (americanbankingnews.com) Analyzing Tahoe Resources (TAHO) and Endeavour Silver (EXK) (americanbankingnews.com) Fourth of July boat inspections at Lake Tahoe (carsonnow.org)

A number of research firms recently weighed in on TAHO. ValuEngine upgraded Tahoe Resources from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, June 16th. TheStreet downgraded Tahoe Resources from a “c” rating to a “d+” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 22nd. Zacks Investment Research downgraded Tahoe Resources from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 13th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Tahoe Resources in a report on Wednesday, March 28th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. The company has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Tahoe Resources traded up $0.11, reaching $5.13, on Tuesday, according to MarketBeat. The company had a trading volume of 217,583 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,710,953. The company has a market capitalization of $1.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.00, a PEG ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 0.22. Tahoe Resources has a fifty-two week low of $3.76 and a fifty-two week high of $8.51.

Tahoe Resources (NYSE:TAHO) (TSE:THO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 2nd. The basic materials company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the Zacks’ consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $139.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $137.42 million. Tahoe Resources had a net margin of 0.04% and a return on equity of 0.07%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 44.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.24 earnings per share. sell-side analysts anticipate that Tahoe Resources will post 0.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Tahoe Resources Company Profile

Tahoe Resources Inc, together with its subsidiaries, acquires, explores for, develops, and operates mineral properties in the Americas. It explores for silver, gold, lead, zinc, and copper deposits, as well as precious metals assets. The company holds interest in the La Arena gold mine located in the Huamachuco district of northern Peru; Shahuindo mine located in the province of Cajabamba in northern Peru; and La Arena II, a copper-gold porphyry deposit located in Peru.

How Risky Are These Data Storage Stocks?

Historically, the performance of data storage companies has been closely tied to the growth of PC shipments (or lack thereof).�Seagate�Technology�(NASDAQ:STX)�and�Western Digital�(NASDAQ:WDC)�have a near duopoly in the hard disk drive (HDD) market, which has been steadily declining in recent years as fewer PCs are being shipped annually and new storage technology emerges.

These companies are making up for lower PC demand with increased demand from enterprise customers, as cloud providers are accumulating more and more data and buying more HDDs.�Data around the world is growing about 35% annually, according to market intelligence firm IDC. This far outpaces the growth in storage shipped, which only equals about 5% of data created.

But there are other issues Seagate and Western Digital have to deal with, such as declining prices stemming from a very competitive market and declining hard disk shipments. These issues make it very difficult to predict where these companies will stand over the long term.

Image source: Getty Images.

The state of the storage market

In recent years, lower shipments of PCs have translated to lower shipments of HDDs. The big growth opportunity for data storage companies is in solid state drives (SSDs), which are much faster and consume less power than HDDs. Global shipments of HDDs reached their peak in 2010 at 651 million and� declined to 404 million in 2017, according to information gathered by Statista.�Meanwhile, global shipments of SSDs are growing rapidly and are expected to overtake HDD shipments by 2021, as you can see in this table.

Metric *2021 *2020 *2019 *2018 2017 2016 2015

HDD shipments	330	350	360	370	404	424.07	468.73
SSD shipments	360	320	280	235	190	140	105

Amounts in millions. Data gathered by Statista. �*Estimates.

Still, while shipments of HDDs are declining, Seagate and Western are seeing the total capacity shipped increase as data centers are attracted to the higher capacities and cost effectiveness of going with HDDs. Basically, data storage companies are seeing a decline in consumer demand but growing demand from enterprise for HDDs. As a result, IDC estimates that the HDD market will remain flat at $24 billion over the next few years.

But eventually, the advantages that SSDs offer, such as lower power consumption and faster data retrieval, will help them win out over the clunky, slower HDDs.�The SSD market is expected to grow about 15% per year through 2025, according to Grand View Research.

Western Digital is much better positioned in the SSD market than main rival Seagate. In 2016, Western acquired SanDisk, the maker of NAND flash memory (the storage technology used in SSDs) that's No. 3 in market share at 15%. Western derived 52% of its revenue from HDDs in the third quarter, whereas Seagate generates over 90% of its annual revenue from HDDs.�This leaves less than 10% of Seagate's revenue coming from SSDs, which exposes Seagate more than its rival to a declining HDD market.

Seagate management has been content to focus primarily on serving enterprise customers in the HDD market. This is fine for now, since there is healthy HDD demand from data centers. But data centers are also gradually ramping up their buying of SSDs, since they are more efficient.�As SSD technology develops and prices come down, there is a lot of uncertainty longer term as to whether Seagate will be adequately positioned if SSD adoption accelerates.

Pricing uncertainty presents challenges

Western Digital is clearly better positioned for SSD adoption than Seagate, but it won't be clear sailing for Western. SSD growth is a double-edged sword, since advances in flash storage technology will undoubtedly cause selling prices to rapidly decline. Lower selling prices present the biggest risk for these storage drive makers. Some of this pricing pressure stems from deep-pocketed rivals -- like�Intel�and Samsung, just to name two -- vying for position in the storage market.

To give an idea of what investors can expect, let's look at history to see how changes in pricing have impacted Seagate's revenue.

Between 2010 and 2013, Seagate's annual revenue whipsawed as the industry experienced volatile shifts in supply and demand for disk drives.�In 2010, Seagate's revenue spiked 16% from an industrywide supply shortage.�A year later, as companies caught up with demand, there was an oversupply, causing Seagate's revenue to decrease 4%.�Flooding that damaged factories in Thailand in 2012 caused a severe shortage and a spike in selling prices, which sent Seagate's revenue soaring 36%. Over the last five years, Seagate has seen its revenue gradually dwindle, as this table shows.

Metric TTM Through March 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013

Revenue	$10,775	$10,771	$11,160	$13,739	$13,724	$14,351
Earnings per share	$4.55	$4.12	$2.26	$4.57	$5.04	$5.31
Gross margin	29%	29.5%	23.4%	27.8%	28%	27.5%

Amounts in millions except per-share data. Data source: Seagate SEC filings. Years are fiscal years ending in June. EPS data is non-GAAP. TTM = trailing 12 months.

Since 2013, Seagate has blamed price erosion from declining PC sales for its decline in revenue.�This has hit Seagate harder than Western Digital, since Western has been more active in making acquisitions to diversify. Here's how Western Digital has fared over the last five years:

Metric TTM Through March 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013

Revenue	$20,372	$19,093	$12,994	$14,572	$15,130	$15,351
Earnings per share	$14.08	$9.19	$5.79	$7.76	$8.10	$8.51
Gross margin	36.9%	31.8%	26.4%	28.9%	28.9%	28.4%

Amounts in millions except per-share data. Data source: Western Digital SEC filings. Years are fiscal years ending in June. EPS data is non-GAAP. TTM = trailing 12 months.

As the table shows, Western Digital has actually managed to increase gross margin even while dealing with the�same headwinds�on pricing as Seagate. One way Western has been able to control costs is by acquiring component suppliers, giving it more control over more points of the supply chain. There could be more consolidation in the industry as companies seek to offset declining prices by looking for synergies with other companies to reduce costs.

Storage stocks are risky

The growth of data presents a big opportunity for Seagate and Western Digital, but Seagate is simply too dependent on the declining HDD market for me to have confidence it can capitalize on SSD adoption. Western's improving profitability from an effective cost-reducing strategy and�diversification�makes it the far less risky stock.

But I would still tread carefully in the storage industry. There are too many unknowns with respect to competition and its potential impact on pricing trends, making it difficult to predict what these companies' earnings streams will look like over the long term.