Top 5 Income Companies To Watch In Right Now

Shares of Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU  ) opened nearly 10% higher today -- hitting a fresh all-time high -- after posting better than expected quarterly results.

The Chinese dot-com speedster showed healthy top-line growth with revenue soaring 59% to $109.9 million. Online advertising grew at a healthy 40% clip, but it was mobile games revenue skyrocketing 119% -- now accounting for 42% of the total revenue -- that really drove the push higher.

The path down the income statement was challenging as expected. Qihoo 360 is investing in the infrastructure, marketing, and personnel to build out its browser, security software, and search businesses, leading net margins to crater. Qihoo 360's adjusted profit of $0.14 a share was short of the $0.21 a share it posted a year earlier but in line with Wall Street expectations.

Top 5 Income Companies To Watch In Right Now: Sandvine Corp Com Npv (SVC.TO)

Sandvine Corporation develops and markets network policy control solutions for broadband Internet service providers in North America, the Caribbean and Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company offers network policy control solutions comprising a hardware platform and proprietary software modules, which provide a system for broadband Internet service providers to identify specific types of traffic across their networks, such as VoIP, online gaming, or video streams; and provides tools to help service providers apply specific network policies that enable the quality of service for their subscribers, mitigate malicious traffic, and manage their network. It also offers consultation, installation, integration, and training services; and support and software maintenance services. The company sells its products and services directly, as well as through network equipment resellers and value-added resellers. Sandvine Corporation was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Waterloo, Canada.

Top 5 Income Companies To Watch In Right Now: Hercules Offshore Inc.(HERO)

Hercules Offshore, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides shallow-water drilling and marine services to the oil and natural gas exploration and production industry in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and internationally. Its services comprise oil and gas exploration and development drilling, well services, platform inspection, and maintenance and decommissioning services in various water provinces. As of May 10, 2011, the company owned and operated a fleet of 50 jackup rigs, 17 barge rigs, 65 liftboats, 3 submersible rigs, and 1 platform rig. It serves national oil and gas companies, integrated energy companies, and independent oil and natural gas operators. The company was founded in 2004 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Karim]

  The moratorium on drilling in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 as a result of the Deepwater Horizon offshore oil spill created all kinds of havoc for key industry players. One company, Seahawk Drilling (Nasdaq:HAWK), suffered so much from its equipment sitting idle that it had to auction off its drilling rigs at fire-sale prices. That was a stroke of luck for Hercules Offshore, which paid about $100 million for an estimated $400 million in assets, including 20 drilling rigs. As an added bonus, Hercules just saw Seahawk, a key rival, drop out of the business, which should help lease rates firm up when shallow water drilling resumes.

  Hercules itself carries far too much debt. If the drilling slowdown continues for an extended period, then shares, currently trading near $4, could re-visit the 52-week low of $2. But thedebt load is actually now more palatable to lenders because there are more assets to put against the borrowings. The transaction may have paved the way for Hercules to avoid more restrictive bank covenants that would have loomed later this year. Book value (a measure of a company's assets) now stands at $8 a shar e, or roughly twice the current stock price. Despite that compelling value, shares may stay range bound until activity in the Gulf picks up. But keep an eye on this one.

Top 10 Oil Stocks To Watch Right Now: Union Pacific Corporation(UNP)

Union Pacific Corporation, through its subsidiary, Union Pacific Railroad Company, provides rail transportation services in North America. It has approximately 31,953 route miles linking Pacific Coast and Gulf Coast ports with the Midwest and eastern United States gateways, and provides several corridors to Mexican gateways. The company offers freight transportation services for agricultural products, including whole grains and related commodities, food, beverage products, corn for ethanol products and its by-products, animal feeds, fruits and vegetables, frozen meat, and poultry products; and automotive products, such as imported and finished vehicles, and automotive parts and materials. It also provides transportation services for chemicals, such as industrial chemicals, plastics, and liquid petroleum products; energy products comprising coal and coke; industrial products, including lumber products, paper and consumer goods, furniture and appliances, and nonferrous and i ndustrial minerals, as well as steel and construction products, such as rock, cement, and roofing materials; and intermodal containers. Union Pacific Corporation was founded in 1862 and is based in Omaha, Nebraska.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Richard Young]

  Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) has paid a dividend on its shares every year for 112 years. On Nov. 17, Union Pacific’s board announced a dividend increase of 26%. That was the second dividend increase of 2011, raising the quarterly dividend to 60 cents a share, up from 38 cents at the beginning of the year. Union Pacific is aiming to pay out more.

   

  Take a look at the long record of outperformance on my relative strength chart for UNP. Over the last five years, UNP has outperformed the S&P by over 150%.

• [By Jonas Elmerraji]

  2013 has been a strong year for shares of Union Pacific (UNP). Shares of the $70 billion railroad stock have rallied almost 19% this year, buoyed by overall strength in the transports sector. UNP is the largest railroad on the continent, with more than 32,000 miles of track that links 23 states, Canada and Mexico. That scale puts the firm in a strong position to grab more freight volume as the economy warms up.

  While oil prices have dipped recently, they're still on the high end of their historic range, and that actually bodes well for railroads. In general, rail shipping costs around one-fourth as much as trucking does per ton shipped, a cost advantage that typically sends customers setting aside the convenience factor of truck freight once fuel prices get past a certain point. The firm's hefty commodity exposure is a little less attractive right now, but that hasn't stopped Union Pacific from posting impressive revenue numbers lately.

  UNP has a deep economic moat. Railroad assets aren't easily copied by rivals – and they're extremely costly to maintain. While that does mean that UNP has some hefty fixed costs to overcome, its scale easily makes up for that drawback. With much better efficiency than the firm had just a couple of years ago, Union Pacific looks well positioned for 2013. We're betting on shares of this Rocket Stock this week.

• [By Robert Holmes]

   Analyst William Greene says Union Pacific is one of the firm's best ideas as it is one of the most compelling stocks in freight transportation.

  "We are bullish on the rail industry's advantage over its truck competitors including lower unit costs for high tonnage freight and greater customer captivity," Greene writes. "Given UNP's particularly favorable exposure to the key themes underpinning our rail thesis, we believe UNP will see secular EPS growth."

  Greene specifically highlights Union Pacific's latent pricing power, its operating leverage to long-term volume growth, and long-term productivity improvement.

  Greene's base case calls for a 26% rise in share price next year, although his most bullish outlook for Union Pacific has the stock up 38% next year. His most bearish scenario has the stock down 12% next year.

Top 5 Income Companies To Watch In Right Now: Dreyfus Municipal Income Inc.(DMF)

Dreyfus Municipal Income, Inc. is a close ended mutual fund launched and managed by The Dreyfus Corporation. It invests in the fixed income markets. It primarily invests in municipal bonds. Dreyfus Municipal Income, Inc. is domiciled in United States.

Top 5 Income Companies To Watch In Right Now: National Interstate Corporation(NATL)

National Interstate Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates as a specialty property and casualty insurance company in the United States, the District of Columbia, and the Cayman Islands. It underwrites and sells traditional and alternative property, and casualty insurance products primarily to the passenger transportation industry and the trucking industry; general commercial insurance to small businesses in Hawaii and Alaska; personal insurance to owners of recreational vehicles and commercial vehicles in the United States; and insurance products for moving and storage transportation companies. The company?s products include truck and passenger transportation alternative risk transfer insurance products, and worker?s compensation coverage; and commercial auto liability, general liability, physical damage, and motor truck cargo and related coverage?s for truck and passenger operators, as well as various coverage?s to the moving and storage industry, including c ommercial auto liability, physical damage, workers? compensation, employers? liability, cargo, commercial umbrella, commercial property, general liability, crime, equipment breakdown, inland marine, and movers and warehousemen?s liability products. Its products also include coverage?s for campsite liability, vehicle replacement coverage, and coverage for trailers, golf carts, and campsite storage facilities; companion personal auto coverage to recreational vehicle policyholders; and commercial vehicle insurance that provides coverage for companies with vehicles used by contractors, artisans, and other small businesses. National Interstate Corporation markets its products through various distribution channels, such as independent agents and brokers, program administrators, affiliated agencies, and agent internet initiatives. The company was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Richfield, Ohio. National Interstate Corporation is a subsidiary of Great American Insurance Company.