Top 5 Up And Coming Stocks To Own For 2014

Department of Defense contract officers on Tuesday announced a total of 13 contract awards worth more than $1 billion in aggregate. Notable winners among publicly traded companies included several Army contract awards, including:

Britain's BAE Systems' (NASDAQOTH: BAESY  ) Land and Armaments division won a $28.7 million modification to a previously awarded contract to supply M88A2 heavy equipment recovery combat utility lift and evacuation system vehicles to the U.S. Army. Work on the contract should be complete by March 31, 2014. Raytheon's (NYSE: RTN  ) Thales Raytheon Systems joint venture was awarded a $23.1 million modification to a previously awarded contract to supply Sentinel Mode 5 Identification Friend or Foe kits, and spares, to the Army. Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT  ) , while not ordinarily considered a defense contactor, seems particularly well-suited for the contract it won -- a $10.8 million award to support Army Deployable Universal Combat Earthmover vehicles. Called "DEUCE" for short, these are essentially Army tractors, and so far the Army has ordered $67.1 million of them from Caterpillar under this contract.

In addition to the new awards, the Pentagon also issued contract modifications to both BAE and to General Dynamics (NYSE: GD  ) on a pair of contracts to the effect that both firms are being given an additional six months to develop new prototype ground combat vehicles that the Army is considering as replacements�for its existing armored personnel carrier fleet. The value of GD's development contract on this project is said to have a maximum value of $180.4 million, while BAE's development contract maxes out at $159.5 million.

Top 5 Up And Coming Stocks To Own For 2014: Metalico Inc(MEA)

Metalico, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in scrap metal recycling, platinum group and minor metals recycling, and lead metal products fabrication activities primarily in the United States. Its Scrap Metal Recycling segment collects industrial and obsolete ferrous and non-ferrous scrap metals; processes into reusable forms; and supplies the recycled metals to electric arc furnace mills, integrated steel mills, foundries, secondary smelters, aluminum recyclers, and metal brokers, as well as to exporters and international brokers. This segment offers ferrous products, which include sheared, bundled, and shredded scrap metal and other scrap metals, such as plate and structural, turnings, busheling, and broken cast iron; and sorts, processes, and packages non-ferrous metals, which include aluminum, copper, stainless steel, brass, nickel-based alloys, and high-temperature alloys for resale. The company?s PGM and Minor Metals Recycling segment recycles platinum group me tals, including platinum, palladium, and rhodium, from the substrate material retrieved from catalytic converters. Its Lead Fabricating segment manufactures and sells sheet lead, shot, extruded strip lead, machined lead parts, and cast lead, as well as other lead products, including roof flashings, lead wool, anodes, and babbitt. This segment sells its products to distributors, wholesalers, the plumbing and building trades, equipment manufacturers, and other consumers in various industries, such as roofing, plumbing, radiation shielding for pharmaceutical and power generation, electronic solders, ammunition, and automotive industries, as well as to the Department of Defense contractors. Metalico, Inc. was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Cranford, New Jersey.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sy_Harding]

  Metalico Inc. (AMEX: MEA), recent price $5.53: With prices for everything soaring and raw materials becoming more and more scarce, MEA is well positioned for growth. It recycles scrap metal and makes lead products for use in everything from nuclear shielding to stained-glass windows, plus supplies materials for balance systems in aircraft. The company's margins are good; it had an ROE of 8.48% in 2010 and its most recent earnings were 29 cents a share, giving it a P/E of around 19. The stock traded above $17 in 2008. Analysts are projecting continued earnings growth and a return to at least $10 a share over the next 12 months.

Top 5 Up And Coming Stocks To Own For 2014: First M & F Corporation(FMFC)

First M&F Corporation operates as the holding company for Merchants and Farmers Bank that provides community banking services to middle market and professional businesses in Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, and Florida. It offers various deposit products, including interest and non-interest bearing NOW and money market, savings, and time deposits, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also provides loan products, such as commercial, financial, and agricultural loans; non-residential real estate loans; residential real estate loans; and consumer loans. In addition, it offers various services, such as business checking, treasury management, and secured and unsecured lines of credit; sweep accounts and letters of credit; debit cards, automated teller machine access, and overdraft protection plans. Further, the company provides credit life insurance and general insurance agency services; and real estate property management services, as well as involves in asset-based lending operations. First M&F Corporation operates through its main office and two branches in Kosciusko and its branches within central and north Mississippi. The company was founded in 1890 and is based in Kosciusko, Mississippi.

Hot Undervalued Stocks To Own Right Now: Britton & Koontz Capital Corporation(BKBK)

Britton & Koontz Capital Corporation operates as the holding company for Britton & Koontz Bank, National Association that provides commercial and consumer banking services in Adams and Warren Counties, Mississippi, and East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, as well as in the adjoining counties and parishes in Mississippi and Louisiana. The company offers various deposit products, including personal and commercial checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, savings accounts, non-interest bearing deposits, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, and certificates of deposit. Its loan portfolio comprises commercial, financial, and agricultural loans; real estate construction, residential, and other loans; installment loans; consumer loans; and overdrafts. In addition, the company provides automated clearinghouse services; safe deposit box facilities; brokerage services; automated teller machines; cash management services, including remote deposit, money transfer, direct de posit payroll, and sweep accounts; VISA credit cards; and letters of credit. As of May 17, 2011, it operated three full service offices in Natchez, two in Vicksburg, Mississippi; three in Baton Rouge, Louisiana; and a loan production office in Central, Louisiana. The company was founded in 1866 and is headquartered in Natchez, Mississippi.

Top 5 Up And Coming Stocks To Own For 2014: The First of Long Island Corporation(FLIC)

The First of Long Island Corporation operates as a bank holding company for The First National Bank of Long Island that provides various financial services. It offers various deposit products, including checking, money market, savings, escrow service and interest on lawyer, time deposit, NOW, rent security, holiday club, and individual retirement accounts. The company?s loan portfolio consists of commercial and industrial loans; residential and commercial mortgage loans; home equity loans and lines; multifamily loans; construction loans; consumer loans, such as auto and home improvement loans, personal loans, overdraft checking lines, and credit cards; commercial loans, which include short-term business loans, term and installment loans, revolving credit term loans, and loans secured by marketable securities, general business assets, deposits, and surrender value of life insurance policies; and commercial and standby letters of credit. In addition, it provides account rec onciliation, ATM banking, bank by mail, bill payment, cash management, collection, drive-through banking, personal money orders, Internet and telephone banking, merchant credit card depository, lock box, night depository, payroll, remote deposit, securities transactions, signature guarantee, trust and investment management, wire transfers and foreign cables, and withholding tax depository services, as well as offers controlled disbursement accounts, travelers and counter checks, mutual funds, annuities, life insurance and securities, safe deposit boxes, and the U.S. savings bonds. Further, the company provides pension trust, personal trust, estate, and custody services; and insurance agency services, as well as owns a real estate investment trust. It offers its services to privately owned businesses, professionals, consumers, public bodies, and other organizations through its 34 branches primarily in Long Island and Manhattan. The company was founded in 1927 and is based in Glen Head, New York.

Top 5 Up And Coming Stocks To Own For 2014: Guardian Cap Group Com Npv(GCG.TO)

Guardian Capital Group Limited, through its subsidiaries, operates as a diversified financial services company in Canada. The company provides various institutional investment management services to pension plan sponsors, open and closed-end funds and mutual funds, operating and endowment funds, and wrap programs; and investment and asset management services to high net worth clients, foundations, and endowment funds. It also offers a horizontally integrated financial advisory platform, which includes mutual fund dealer, securities dealer, and insurance managing general agency businesses; and banking, trust, and corporate administration, as well as investment management services to international clients. The company was founded in 1962 and is based in Toronto, Canada.