Top 10 Most Ridiculous Luxury Items: 2013

The holiday shopping season is here already. The intensity of the shopping started earlier than usual this year with Hanukkah beginning Wednesday night before Thanksgiving.

The drumbeat of hype around Cyber Monday and Black Friday, or maybe its Black Thursday now, began weeks ago. Thought of what to buy this aunt, that brother or mom and dad are enough to drive anyone crazy.

But try being so wealthy that money is no object when it comes to gifts. What would you buy then?

Would an iPhone for cousin Clara be good enough? Or would she expect it to be covered in jewels or even gold.

Even the dog or cat in your life would expect something more extravagant than a rawhide bone or a new blanket.

There’s no need to worry, though. Merchants and designers have you covered with offerings from designer ice to, well, intimate hygiene products.

Whether you have money to burn or are simply curious about how the superwealthy spend their loot, we bet you’ll enjoy window shopping for the Top 10 Most Ridiculous Luxury Items. ThinkAdvisor’s pick for the silliest is No. 1 on the list:

10. Yo Ho Ho

Yachts have long been a favored toy of the superwealthy, but why be miserly when you could own the most expensive yacht in the world? The History Supreme comes with a price tag of $4.5 billion—yes, billion. If that sounds a tad high, remember the outside of this 98-foot boat is covered in more than 220,000 pounds of platinum and gold. Designed by jeweler Stuart Hughes, the favorite bejeweler of the rich and famous, the inside comes with a liquor bottle adorned with an 18-carat diamond, a statue made from the bone of a Tyrannosaurus Rex and various pieces of meteorites. An unnamed Malaysian businessman bought the yacht; we wonder how much his insurance costs.

9. Vroooooom Vroooooom

You can’t head to the polo club or the marina in just any old vehicle. Why not spring for the Lamborghini Veneno Roadster. The special edition car, of which only nine are being built, was created just for the automaker’s 50th anniversary. It tops out at a cool 221 mph and costs $5.3 million. Since time is money, the superwealthy can waste a lot less time getting from here to there.

8. What a Jolt!

Those looking for a jolt to start their day, or perhaps opening their own cafe, might not have to even plug in their Kees van der Westen designed espresso machine. That’s because the cost, $20,000 for the top model, should set the pulse racing. To be fair, the brew is supposed to be good to the last drop.

7. Talk Is Definitely Not Cheap

Anyone can customize an iPhone with a colorful case. But just how many can afford to have their 5s model covered in gold, diamonds and even sapphires? Very few, if the $16 million price tag is any guide. Jeweler Stuart Hughes evidently couldn’t resist adorning the smartphone. If that seems too much, Gold Genies offer a similar luxury iPhone for just $78,000. They even allow you to have the gold and jewels moved when you upgrade your phone.

6. Expensive Pet Items

Many pet owners will do anything for their pets. Sometimes, as in dressing them in costumes or treating them like children, their expressions of love can appear odd to others. So is it any surprise that merchants have taken heed by stocking pet products for the superwealthy? From a Versace Barocco pet bowl for $754 to a Louis XV pet pavilion and a doghouse complete with spa and plasma and TV priced at $410,825, the possibilities seem endless and expensive. We won’t even mention the $3.2 million diamond-encrusted dog collar designed by a jeweler in Los Angeles, well, actually we will—it's pictured above.

5. But Can It Make ‘The Bachelor’ a Better TV Show?

There are a lot of expensive TVs out there and a few years ago Panasonic even offered one encrusted with 160 diamonds for $140,000. That’s a lot of cash for 46 inches of screen real estate. Still no one could top, once again, Stuart Hughes who offers a TV for $2.25 million, called the PrestigeHD Supreme Rose Edition. The 55-inch set has a base and shell made of 18 carat rose gold and the outer frame features 72 diamonds. If that doesn’t sound like enough for your millions, the frame of gold and diamonds surrounds an inner frame made from hand-sewn alligator skin.

4. This Is Not a Big Fish Tale

This lure by MacDaddy is not just something you'd buy for that fishing afficianado friend who watches Bassmaster on ESPN, no, this lure is actually for big game fishing. At just over 12 inches long, it has over 3 pounds of gold and platinum, and is encrusted with 100 carats of diamonds and rubies, and costs more than $1 million. Now, if it only had a way to catch a million-dollar fish...

3. Bon Apetit

The race to make the most expensive hamburger in the world reached absurd heights in 2012 when New York City’s 666 Burger food truck introduced a patty with a $666 price tag. Named the Douche Burger (that alone may stop you from buying it), the burger was created as a joke. Still, at least one has sold. What makes it worth a devil’s price? It’s a Kobe beef patty stuffed with foie gras, covered in gold leaf and smothered in Gruyere cheese melted with Champagne steam. Toppings include lobster, truffles, caviar, and a BBQ sauce made with Kopi Luwak coffee beans run through the intestinal tract of the Asian Palm civet. Yum!

2. Taste the Chill

If you’re going to drink expense liquor, you don’t want to use ice made from plain old tap water, do you? Of course not. Thankfully, Glace Luxury Ice Co. has you covered. Billing itself as the “world’s premium drink-ice brand,” the company guarantees the ice has no impurities or taste. At $40 for five pieces at least they deliver.

Look at the next slide to see our choice for the silliest, overpriced everyday product …

1. Personal Hygiene Is Important, but...

Every woman needs feminine hygiene products, but only someone with way too much money, or a man in her life with seriously strange ideas of gift giving, would pay $1,000 for tampons. The holder and applicator shaped like a lipstick case were designed by artist Andrew Mettler (we guess Stuart Hughes drew the line here).

-- Check out more Top 10 lists at ThinkAdvisor:

Convergent Nabs Goldman Advisor; Aims to Double Its Assets

Convergent Wealth Advisors recruited an ex-Goldman Sachs (GS) wealth advisor on Thursday to help it recruit more clients and partner advisors.

The boutique firm, which caters to ultrahigh-net-worth clients and has some $11 billion in assets, also says it wants to double the level of assets it manages over the next five years by bringing in more partners and clients.

Charles Winn joins the group in New York, where he will support the group’s business development and client relations. The 20-year industry veteran will split his time between New York and Los Angeles.

“There’s nobody else like Charlie, who is joining us at the senior level,” said Convergent President and COO Douglas Wolford, in an interview with ThinkAdvisor. “He will work with us [to attract] other advisors and professionals with certain specialties to join the firm.”

The boutique wealth business is a “different model” in the industry, Wolford explains. “We are required to be and strive to be as conflict-free as we possibly can, and we are not selling any of our [branded] services or products. We are seated on the same side of the table as the client. It’s a big plus.”

“I was drawn to Convergent by the quality of its management, size, entrepreneurial spirit, extreme client focus and vision,” said Winn in an interview. “It’s a perfect fit.”

Most Convergent clients have between $1 million and $1 billion of investable assets. The average level they place with the RIA firm is about $25 million.

“In the wealth world, the secret sauce is knowing as much of the clients’ interests and background as you can,” Wolford says.

If a client is an executive in the telecommunications field, then they want to work with and advisor who knows that industry or has worked in it, he adds, which is how Convergent plans to grow its business.

It’s using new growth initiative, called Catapult, to bring in advisors and other professionals with expertise in biomedicine, health, telecommunications, software and other industries.

“Specialists always beat generalists at the end of the day,” Wolford said, “and that’s the direction we are headed.”

Clients in the ultrahigh-net-worth category, he adds, are looking to work with advisors who can add value that impacts more than just their portfolio.

“The key to working with the wealthy is bringing life experience and history to relationships that go beyond an advisor’s professional background,” Wolford said. “The value add for ultrahigh-net-worth clients in investments is almost marginal compared to the relationship itself and adding value through broader services.”

---

Check out Ex-LPL, Schwab Recruiter Opens Office to Help Advisors Go Indie on ThinkAdvisor.

Can Microsoft Continue to Outperform?

With shares of Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) trading around $37, is MSFT an OUTPERFORM, WAIT AND SEE, or STAY AWAY? Let's analyze the stock with the relevant sections of our CHEAT SHEET investing framework:

T = Trends for a Stock’s Movement

Microsoft is engaged in developing, licensing, and supporting a wide range of software products and services. The company also designs and sells hardware and delivers online advertising to customers. It operates in five segments: Windows and Windows Live, Server and Tools, Online Services Division, Microsoft Business Division, and Entertainment and Devices. As a mature company, Microsoft is also offering a stable dividend, which is currently yielding around 3.32 percent annually.

Microsoft's stock closed at $38.94, a level that the company hasn't seen since 2000. As Dow Jones noted , the last day that Microsoft managed to close above $38.49 was July 18, 2000, when it wrapped up the day's trading at $39.25.

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart Are Strong

Microsoft stock has seen its fair share of volatility in the last couple of years. The stock is currently trading near highs for the year. Analyzing the price trend and its strength can be done using key simple moving averages. What are the key moving averages? The 50-day (pink), 100-day (blue), and 200-day (yellow) simple moving averages. As seen in the daily price chart below, Microsoft is trading above its rising key averages, which signal neutral to bullish price action in the near-term.

(Source: Thinkorswim)

Taking a look at the implied volatility (red) and implied volatility skew levels of Microsoft options may help determine if investors are bullish, neutral, or bearish.

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
Microsoft options	28.63%	96%	94%

What does this mean? This means that investors or traders are buying a very significant amount of call and put options contracts as compared to the last 30 and 90 trading days.

	Put IV Skew	Call IV Skew
December Options	Flat	Average
January Options	Flat	Average

As of today, there is an average demand from call buyers or sellers and low demand by put buyers or high demand by put sellers, all neutral to bullish over the next two months. To summarize, investors are buying a very significant amount of call and put option contracts and are leaning neutral to bullish over the next two months.

On the next page, let’s take a look at the earnings and revenue growth rates and the conclusion.

E = Earnings Are Mixed Quarter-Over-Quarter

Rising stock prices are often strongly correlated with rising earnings and revenue growth rates. Also, the last four quarterly earnings announcement reactions help gauge investor sentiment on Microsoft’s stock. What do the last four quarterly earnings and revenue growth (Y-O-Y) figures for Microsoft look like and more importantly, how did the markets like these numbers?

	2013 Q3	2013 Q2	2013 Q1	2012 Q4
Earnings Growth (Y-O-Y)	-3.08%	11.94%	20.00%	-2.56%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	7.36%	10.17%	17.71%	2.78%
Earnings Reaction	5.96%	-10.85%	3.36%	0.90%

Microsoft has seen mixed earnings and increasing revenue figures over the last four quarters. From these numbers, the markets have been pleased with Microsoft’s recent earnings announcements.

P = Excellent Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has Microsoft stock done relative to its peers, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Oracle (NASDAQ:ORCL), Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), and sector?

	Microsoft	Apple	Oracle	Google	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	40.81%	7.49%	5.01%	49.33%	26.66%

Microsoft has been a relative performance leader, year-to-date.

Conclusion

Microsoft is a technology company that provides valuable software products and services to consumers and companies worldwide. The company’s stock closed at $38.94, a level that the company hasn't seen since 2000. The stock has been moving higher in recent years and is now trading near highs. Over the last four quarters, earnings have been mixed while revenues have been rising which has left investors pleased about the company. Relative to its peers and sector, Microsoft has been a year-to-date performance leader. Look for Microsoft to OUTPERFORM.

Top Insider Trades: AGYS, ANAC, P, GMZ

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By Jonathan Moreland, founder of Insider Insights and author of Profit From Legal Insider Trading.

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- It is a victory for common sense. Tracking the trading behavior of company executives, directors and large shareholders in the stocks of firms they're registered in as "insiders" has proven to be profitable, according to both academic studies and (more importantly) the experience of professional investors.

Below are lists of the top 10 mainly open-market insider purchases and sales filed at the Securities and Exchange Commission Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2013 as ranked by dollar value. Please note, however, that these are only factual lists, not buy and sell recommendations. Dollar value is only one metric to assess the importance of an insider transaction, and, frankly, often not even the most important metric that determines if an insider transaction is significant. At InsiderInsights.com, we find new investment ideas just about every day using these and more intricate insider screens to determine where we should focus our subsequent fundamental and technical analysis. And while stocks don't (or shouldn't) move up or down based on insider activity alone, insiders tend to be good indicators of when real stock-moving events like earnings surprises, corporate actions, and new products may be in the offing. So use these regular Top Insider Trades columns as the initial research tools they are meant to be, and click the links in the tables to analyze a company's or insider's full insider history. Also feel free

5 Best Medical Stocks To Own Right Now

The Motley Fool's health-care show Market Checkup focuses this week on obesity, one of America's largest health-care concerns. Recently classified as a disease, obesity leads to serious health problems including diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. Currently 35% of adults in the U.S. are classified as obese, but more troubling, one out of three children is as well. All told, obesity adds $190 billion in medical costs to the system, but efforts to tackle this growing problem are increasing.

In this video, health-care analysts David Williamson and Max Macaluso discuss Arena Pharmaceuticals, maker of Belviq, the first new obesity drug approved in more than a decade. Arena just launched Belviq after a long period of DEA scheduling, but can it avoid the pitfalls and struggles that have weighed heavily on its chief competitor? Watch and find out.

Rising health-care costs continue to be a hotly debated topic, and even legendary investor Warren Buffett called this trend "the tapeworm that's eating at American competitiveness." To learn more about what's happening to the health-care system -- and how to potentially profit from this trend --�click here�for free, immediate access.

5 Best Medical Stocks To Own Right Now: NeoStem Inc (NBS)

NeoStem, Inc., incorporated on September 18, 1980, operates in cellular therapy industry. Cellular therapy addresses the process by which new cells are introduced into a tissue to prevent or treat disease, or regenerate damaged or aged tissue, and consists of a separate therapeutic technology platform in addition to pharmaceuticals, biologics and medical devices. The Company�� business model includes the development of novel cell therapy products, as well as operating a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) providing services to others in the regenerative medicine industry. Progenitor Cell Therapy, LLC, the Company�� wholly owned subsidiary (PCT), is a CDMO in the cellular therapy industry. PCT has provided pre-clinical and clinical current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) development and manufacturing services to over 100 clients advancing regenerative medicine product candidates through rigorous quality standards all the way through to human testing.

PCT has two cGMP, cell therapy research, development, and manufacturing facilities in New Jersey and California, serving the cell therapy community with integrated and regulatory compliant distribution capabilities. Its core competencies in the cellular therapy industry include manufacturing of cell therapy-based products, product and process development, cell and tissue processing, regulatory support, storage, distribution and delivery and consulting services. The Company�� wholly-owned subsidiary, Amorcyte, LLC (Amorcyte) is developing its own cell therapy, AMR-001, for the treatment of cardiovascular disease. AMR-001 represents its clinically advanced therapeutic product candidate and enrollment for its Phase II PreSERVE clinical trial to investigate AMR-001's safety and efficacy in preserving heart function after a heart attack in a particular type of post Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI) patients.

Through the Company�� subsidiary, Athelos Corporation (Athelos), the Company is collaborating w! ith Becton-Dickinson in early stage clinical development of a therapy utilizing T-cells, collaborating for autoimmune and inflammatory conditions, including but not limited to, graft vs. host disease, type 1 diabetes, steroid resistant asthma, lupus, multiple sclerosis and solid organ transplant rejection. The Company�� pre-clinical assets include its Very Small Embryonic Like (VSEL) Technology platform. The Company has basic research and development capabilities, manufacturing facilities on both the east and west coast of the United States.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Monica Gerson]

  NeoStem (NYSE: NBS) priced an underwritten public offering of 5,000,000 shares of common stock at an offering price of $7.00 per share. NeoStem shares dipped 9.44% to $7.10 in after-hours trading.

• [By John Udovich]

  Summer and the slow news for the market that usually comes with it�is over with and both stem cell researchers or small� cap stem cell stocks like Advanced Cell Technology, Inc (OTCBB: ACTC), Neuralstem, Inc (NYSEMKT: CUR), NeoStem Inc (NASDAQ: NBS), International Stem Cell Corp (OTCMKTS: ISCO)�and BioRestorative Therapies (OTCBB: BRTX) having news for investors and traders alike. Consider the following:

• [By John Udovich]

  From stem cell burgers to earnings reports, the stem cell industry and small cap players in it like NeoStem Inc (NASDAQ: NBS), International Stem Cell Corp (OTCMKTS: ISCO) and BioRestorative Therapies (OTCBB: BRTX) have been producing some news lately that has probably been overlooked by investors and traders alike given its August. Nevertheless, you might want to pay attention to the following stem cell news:

5 Best Medical Stocks To Own Right Now: Paradigm Medical Industries Inc (PDMI)

Paradigm Medical Industries, Inc., incorporated in October 1989, develops, manufactures, markets and sells ophthalmic diagnostic instrumentation and related accessories, including disposable products. The diagnostic products that the Company manufacturers, markets and sells consist of the P60 UBM Ultrasound Biomicroscope, two perimeters - the LD 400 and the TKS 5000, and the Blood Flow Analyzer. The diagnostic products that the Company markets and sells, which are manufactured by its Italian partner, Costruzione Strumenti Oftalmici srl (CSO), are the Paramax, corneal topographers - the Paravue 300 and the Surveyor 500, and the Paracam 1000. The P60 UBM Ultrasound biomicroscope is the third-generation of UBM devices. The CSO product to be distributed and sold by the Company is the Paramax. Other CSO products to be sold by the Company are the Paravue 300, a corneal topographer with the ability to display live images on a computer monitor; the Surveyor 500, a corneal topographer with a rotating Scheimpflug camera with placido disk, and the Paracam 1000, a specular microscope for endothelial cell evaluations.

Diagnostic Eye Care Products

The Company�� diagnostic eye care products include blood flow analyzer, dicon perimeters, P60 UBM ultrasound biomicroscopes, and Paramax and other products manufactured by Costruzione Strumenti Oftalmici srl. The blood flow analyzer device measures not only intraocular pressure but also pulsatile ocular blood flow, the reduction of which may cause nerve fiber bundle death through oxygen deprivation thus resulting in visual field loss associated with glaucoma. The Company's blood flow analyzer is a portable automated in-office system that presents a method for ocular blood flow testing for the ophthalmic and optometric practitioner. The device is a portable desktop system that utilizes an Air Membrane Applanation Probe (AMAP), which can be attached to any model of standard examination slit lamp, which is then placed on the cornea of the patient! 's eye to measure the intraocular pressure within the eye.

Dicon perimeters consist of the LD 400 and the TKS 5000, and software consisting of Field Lin FieldView and Advanced Field View. Perimeters are used to determine retinal sensitivity testing the visual pathway. Perimetry is reimbursable worldwide. The Dicon perimeters feature kinetic fixation and voice synthesis in 27 different languages. The LD 400FT, or Fast Threshold Autoperimeter, is the successor to the LD 400. The device is an autoperimeter used to measure patient visual fields. The LD 400FT is identical in hardware to the LD 400 but it uses new software to enable a threshold test. The P60 biomicroscope represents the third-generation of UBM devices. The Paramax is to be sold in North America on an exclusive basis. The Paramax performs tests for the early screening and follow up of pathologies, such as glaucoma, age related macular degeneration, vascular retinal degeneration, and other optic nerve diseases.

Surgical Products

The Company�� surgical products include Precisionist Thirty Thousand, Ocular Surgery Workstation and Photon Laser System. The Precisionist Thirty Thousand is the Company's core phaco surgical technology. As of December 31, 2009, the Precisionist is not manufactured by the Company. The system features a graphic color display and on board computer and graphic user interface linked to a soft key membrane panel for flexible programmable operation. The system provides real-time on-the-fly adjustment capabilities for each surgical parameter during the surgical procedure for high-volume applications. In addition, the Precisionist provides one hundred pre-programmable surgery setups, with a second level of subprogrammed custom modes within each major surgical screen (ultrasound phaco and

irrigation/aspiration modes).

The Ocular Surgery Workstation comprises the base system of the Precisionist

Thirty Thousand and is the first system, to the Company's knowledge,! which us! es the expansive capabilities of today's advanced computer technology to offer seamless open architecture expandability of the system hardware and software modules. The Workstation utilizes an embedded open architecture computer developed for the Company and controlled by a software system developed by the Company that interfaces with all components of the system. Ultrasound, fluidics (irrigation), aspiration, venting, coagulation and anterior vitrectomy (pneumatic) are all included in the base model.

The Photon laser cataract system is designed to be installed as a seamless plug-in upgrade or add-on to the Company's Precisionist' Ocular Surgery Workstation. The Photon laser utilizes the on board microprocessor computer of the Workstation to generate short pulse laser energy developed through the patented LCP to targeted cataract tissue inside the eye, while simultaneously irrigating the eye and aspirating the diseased cataract tissue from the eye. In addition to the cataract surgery equipment, the Company's surgical systems are designed to utilize accessory instruments and disposables. These include replacement ultrasound tips, sleeves, tubing sets and fluidics packs, instrument drapes and laser cataract probes. The Company focuses on expanding its disposable accessories as it penetrates the cataract surgery market and expands the treatment applications for its Workstation.

The Company competes with Sonomed, Tomey, Nidek, OTI and Quantel.

5 Best Value Stocks To Own Right Now: Quintiles Transnational Holdings Inc (Q)

Quintiles Transnational Holdings Inc. is a provider of biopharmaceutical development services and commercial outsourcing services. The Company operates in two segments: Product Development and Integrated Healthcare Services. The Company�� Product Development segment operates as a contract research organization (CRO) focused primarily on Phase II-IV clinical trials and associated laboratory and analytical activities. The Company�� Integrated Healthcare Services segment is a global commercial pharmaceutical sales and service organizations and Integrated Healthcare Services provides a range of services, including commercial services, such as providing contract pharmaceutical sales forces in geographic markets, as well as healthcare business services for the healthcare sector, such as outcome-based and payer and provider services. In August 2012, it acquired Expression Analysis, Inc.

Product Development

Product Development provides services and that allow biopharmaceutical companies to outsource the clinical development process from first in man trials to post-launch monitoring. The Company�� service offering provides the support and functional necessary at each stage of development, as well as the systems and analytical capabilities. Product Development consists of clinical solutions and services and consulting. Clinical solutions and services provides services necessary to develop biopharmaceutical products, including project management and clinical monitoring functions for conducting multi-site trials (generally Phase II-IV) (core clinical) and clinical trial support services that improve clinical trial decision making and include global laboratories, data management, biostatistical, safety and pharmacovigilance, and early clinical development trials, and strategic planning and design services that improve decisions and performance. Consulting provides strategy and management consulting services based on life science and advanced analytics, as well as regulatory and comp! liance consulting services.

The Company competes with Covance, Inc., Pharmaceutical Product Development, Inc., PAREXEL International Corporation, ICON plc, inVentiv Health, Inc. (inVentive), INC Research and PRA International.

Integrated Healthcare Services

Integrated Healthcare Services provides the healthcare industry with both geographic presence and commercial capabilities. The Company�� commercialization services are designed to accelerate the commercial of biopharmaceutical and other health-related products. Service offerings include commercial services (sales representatives, strategy, marketing communications and other areas related to commercialization), outcome research (drug therapy analysis, real-world research and evidence-based medicine, including research studies to prove a drug�� value) and payer and provider services comparative and cost-effectiveness research capabilities, clinical management analytics, decision support services, medication adherence and health outcome optimization services, and Web-based systems for measuring quality improvement.

The Company competes with inVentiv, PDI, Inc., Publicis Selling Solutions, United Drug plc, EPS Corporation and CMIC HOLDINGS Co., Ltd.

5 Best Medical Stocks To Own Right Now: OncoSec Medical Inc (ONCS)

OncoSec Medical Incorporated, incorporated on February 8, 2008, is an emerging drug-medical device company. The Company focused on designing, developing and commercializing medical approaches for the treatment of solid cancers. In March 2011, the Company acquired from Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Inovio) certain assets related to the use of drug-medical device combination products for the treatment of different cancers.

The Company�� acquired assets relate to certain non-deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) vaccine technology and property relating to selective tumor ablation technologies, which it refers to as the OncoSec Medical System (OMS), a therapy which uses an electroporation device to facilitate delivery of chemotherapy agents, or nucleic acids encoding cytokines, into tumors and/or surrounding tissue for the treatment and diagnosis of various cancers. As of January 24, 2012, the Company had not generated any revenue from operations.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By James E. Brumley]

  If you're looking for the next big biotech breakout stock, then OncoSec Medical Inc. (OTCMKTS:ONCS) deserves a place on your watchlist. This volatile cancer play has been down more than up 2011, but if you look closely at a long-term chart of ONCS, you may find it's already wiggled its way into a new uptrend. And, it may be only a matter of time before the bullish fireworks start to go off.

• [By Bio-Wire]

  Another company that has benefitted from Inovio�� newfound attention is OncoSec Medical (OTC: ONCS) ��a newer ��ffshoot�� company that uses a similar but distinctly different electroporation device known as the OncoSec Medical System (OMS) that is based on Inovio�� technology. The specific amplitude and frequency of the OMS electroporation is calibrated such that plasmid delivery into solid tumor masses is fully optimized, while CELLECTRA electroporation is less specialized and focus more on the vaccination of skin cells. The cross-license agreement made between Inovio and Oncosec also covers the two devices for their distinctly different applications.

5 Best Medical Stocks To Own Right Now: Prima BioMed Ltd (PRR)

Prima BioMed Ltd is a biotechnology company is engaged in the development and commercialization of medical therapies with a focus on oncology. Its product candidates in development include Cvac, an autologous dendritic cell vaccine for ovarian cancer, monoclonal antibodies for multiple tumour types, and an oral formulation for the human papilloma virus (HPV), vaccine. Its product candidate Cvac is a dendritic cell therapy, for which it is conducting a Phase IIb trial for the treatment of ovarian cancer. Cvac is designed to target the tumour antigen mucin-1, which is expressed at high levels on different tumour types. It also has two preclinical product development programs. In May 2011, Prima BioMed GmbH, a 100 % owned subsidiary of Prima BioMed Ltd, was incorporated in Germany. In May 2011, Prima BioMed Middle East FZLLC, a 100 % owned subsidiary of Prima BioMed Ltd, was incorporated in the United Arab Emirates.

The Boomer-Bond Link Explained

Ken Volpert, a portfolio manager and head of Vanguard’s Taxable Bond Group, says that investors shouldn’t hold their breath when it comes to tapering, which is not the end of the world. His postive thinking stems from the convergence of employment, population and bond data.

First, Volpert points out, the percentage of employed adults has been largely flat during the recent recovery, and the reason for the flatness, he says, is “the boomer-rang.”

“If you divide all adults into those age 25 to 55 and those age 55-plus, you will find that 25–55 is historically a much larger cohort,” says the portfolio manager in a recent blog. “Because of our baby boomer friends (those born between 1946 and 1964), me included, the 55-plus cohort has been getting bigger relative to the 25–55 cohort. It’s still much smaller, but it’s gaining on the younger group.”

When it comes to the job market, the growing size of the 55-plus crowd is pulling down the overall job participation rate of the total U.S. population.

Furthermore, though the unemployment rate is dropping, the economy still is not generating “more jobs relative to the number of adults, which is what drives the economy forward,” Volpert notes.

Without this robust job growth, corporations and consumers are increasing their savings and reducing both borrowing and consumption, “thereby reducing upward pressure on interest rates and prices,” the expert says. “For the Fed to raise interest rates, this dynamic needs to reverse, which I don’t see happening any time soon because of structural issues in the job market.”

As some “hardy souls” move out the yield curve, from short-term to intermediate-term bonds, this dynamic may be good news, according to Volpert.

“The feared penalty from rising rates, in my opinion, is not imminent. And the reward is approaching a historical high, relative to short-term investments," he notes.

(This dynamic is shown in the second chart. Yields on short- and intermediate-term corporate bonds and expected inflation are found on the left scale; the gold  line is the difference, shown on the right scale.)

Though yields remain depressed thanks to Fed policy, the gap between short- and intermediate-term is “near the widest point of the last decade,” Volpert says.

 

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Check out PIMCO’s Gross: Fed Playing a ‘Dangerous Game’ on ThinkAdvisor.

Buy Oil Stocks on the Iranian Nuclear Deal

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We may be witnessing history across the Atlantic.

After decades of geopolitical tension in Iran, the situation seems to be getting a bit less tense. Over the weekend, Iran — along with nations in the G6 — signed an agreement to curtail is nuclear ambitions and its enrichment projects. Those controversial programs were thought to be part of a larger nuclear weapons agenda.

To combat those ambitions, the West has brought years of sanctions against Iran. The latest of which hit Tehran right where it hurts: in the "oily" pocketbook. Bans on Iranian crude oil exports have prevented the energy producer from getting its products to key markets in Asia and Europe.

Needless to say, the energy sector didn't take too kindly to the idea that Iran could be finally shipping its crude — to the tune of 2.5 million barrels of oil per day — out to the market. Both international standard Brent and North American benchmark WTI fell hard on the news. Meanwhile, the Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) underperformed its sector ETF peers on the positive news.

However, energy investors shouldn't get too bearish on Iran's decision. In fact, they should be buying oil stocks hand-over-fist.

Still Plenty of Uncertainty

The current drop in energy stocks and oil prices based on the Iranian nuclear deal could be one of the best buying opportunities we've have in months.

The important thing to remember is that the deal doesn't actually lift any ban on crude oil exports. It seems that the market didn't read the entire press report.

Over the next six months, Iran will have to prove itself to the U.N. and G6. Under this probationary period, E.U. crude oil bans will remain in effect and limit Iran to approximately 1 million bpd in crude oil sales. However, analysts at British investment bank Barclays (BCS) estimate that Iran will have trouble ramping up its exports to more than 400,000 barrels as restarting shut-in oil wells will prove nearly impossible.

Sanctions that keep Western oil service firms — like Halliburton (HAL) and Schlumberger (SLB) –- from doing business in Iran remain firmly in place. That’s a huge issue because Iran needs their help in order to get oil flowing and keep it flowing. Like much of the Middle East, Iran is facing the problem of dwindling output from its legacy oil fields and needs some Western-style technology to keep pumping.

In addition, U.S. and E.U. sanctions preventing the sale of refined petroleum products into Iran are also still outstanding. And because it has zero refining infrastructure, Iran needs to imports pretty much all of its diesel and gasoline needs. The irony is that Iran needs these fuels in order to help run the ships and equipment needed to export its bounty.

So realistically, while the deal is great for world peace, it isn't going to significantly add any real volume to crude oil supplies in the near term.

Speaking of that near term, this is Iran we are talking about and let's face facts — it has zero credibility in the face of the world. A lot can happen in six months. Iran can renege on its promises. Israel — who isn't at all happy with the deal — could finally decide they've had enough and pursue a military strategy. Syria, Egypt and Libya are still hot beds of turmoil. The Middle East risk premium is still very much alive.

Meanwhile, Congress here at home has already begun discussing going around the deal and imposing harsher sanctions, if Iran doesn't show any progress.

Snag Energy Stocks

The recent dip in energy stocks make the perfect buying opportunity for long-term investors.

While the previously mentioned XLE is a great fund, the iShares Global Energy (IXC) may be a better bet. The key is the fund's global exposure. The exchange-traded fund (ETF) tracks 91 different oil stocks — with about 48% of its exposure to those energy firms located outside the United States.

While that does include Canada, the bulk of these holdings production is priced according to Brent crude benchmarks. Any "hiccups" in Iran's willingness to comply with rules will benefit these firm's more than, say, shale producer Range Resources (RRC). At the same time, the U.S.-based holdings in IXC represent some of the largest and globally diverse energy firms on the planet. They'll pick-up plenty of Brent crude gains as well. Expenses for IXC run just 0.48% or $48 per $10,000 invested

A second play could be in the crude oil itself.

As we said before, the Iranian deal doesn't actually add any new supplies back into marketplace for quite some time. With oil demand starting to move ahead as the global economy is beginning to return to normalcy, Brent prices should grind their way upwards. That makes the United States Brent Oil (BNO) a prime play.

The ETF tracks futures contracts on the international crude oil benchmark. Due to its close ties with Middle East production, BNO should provide a nice gain once the market returns to its senses and realizes what the agreement actually means. That is, if Iran sticks to the nuclear deal at all. If not, BNO should soar. Expenses for the ETF run 0.75%.

At first blush, the deal with Tehran may seem like terrible news for the energy sector. However, the news isn’t as bearish as it seems. For investors, the time to buy energy stocks is on. Both IXC and BNO are prime picks to play Brent's rebound.

As of this writing, Aaron Levitt did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.

5 Stocks With Bad Cash Flow — KWK STP ATPG EDN AONE

Popular Posts: 8 “Triple A” Stocks to Buy5 Biotechnology Stocks to Buy Now17 Oil and Gas Stocks to Sell Now Recent Posts: 5 Stocks With Crummy Earnings Growth — KWK GNK SOL CRK LM 5 Stocks With Bad Cash Flow — KWK STP ATPG EDN AONE 5 Stocks With Strong Cash Flow — KT XIN ZA MIL GSL View All Posts

This week, these five stocks have the worst ratings in Cash Flow, one of the eight Fundamental Categories on Portfolio Grader.

Quicksilver Resources () is involved in the acquisition, development, exploration, production, and sale of natural gas and crude oil. KWK also gets F’s in Earnings Growth, Earnings Momentum, Operating Margin Growth and Sales Growth. Shares of the stock have declined 14.7% since January 1. This is worse than the S&P 500, which has seen a 12.1% increase over the same period. .

Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. Sponsored ADR () is a solar energy company that designs, develops, manufactures and markets PV cells and molecules. STP gets F’s in Earnings Growth, Equity, Operating Margin Growth and Sales Growth as well. .

ATP Oil & Gas () is engaged in the acquisition, development and production of oil and natural gas properties in the Gulf of Mexico and the U.K. ATPG gets F’s in Analyst Earnings Revisions and Sales Growth as well. .

Edenor SA Sponsored ADR Class B () distributes and sells electricity in the north-eastern region of greater Buenos Aires. EDN gets F’s in Earnings Momentum, Equity and Sales Growth as well. .

A123 Systems () designs, develops, manufactures, and sells rechargeable lithium-ion batteries and energy storage systems worldwide. AONE also gets F’s in Analyst Earnings Revisions, Equity and Sales Growth. .

Louis Navellier’s proprietary Portfolio Grader stock ranking system assesses roughly 5,000 companies every week based on a number of fundamental and quantitative measures. Stocks are given a letter grade based on their results — with A being “strong buy,” and F being “strong sell.” Explore the tool here.

4 Health Care Stocks to Watch

DELAFIELD, Wis. (Stockpickr) -- Professional traders running mutual funds and hedge funds don't just look at a stock's price moves; they also track big changes in volume activity. Often when above-average volume moves into an equity, it precedes a large spike in volatility.

>>5 Stocks Poised for Breakouts

Major moves in volume can signal unusual activity, such as insider buying or selling -- or buying or selling by "superinvestors."

Unusual volume can also be a major signal that hedge funds and momentum traders are piling into a stock ahead of a catalyst. These types of traders like to get in well before a large spike, so it's always a smart move to monitor unusual volume. That said, remember to combine trend and price action with unusual volume. Put them all together to help you decipher the next big trend for any stock.

>>5 Rocket Stocks to Buy in December

With that in mind, let's take a look at several stocks rising on unusual volume today.

Varian Medical Systems

Varian Medical Systems (VAR) is a manufacturer of medical devices and software for treating cancer and other medical conditions with radiotherapy, radiosurgery, proton therapy and brachytherapy. This stock closed up 1.5% at $79.24 in Monday's trading session.

Monday's Volume: 1.53 million

Three-Month Average Volume: 773,698

Volume % Change: 97%

From a technical perspective, VAR jumped modestly higher here with above-average volume. This stock has been uptrending strong for the last month, with shares moving higher from its low of $71.98 to its intraday high of $79.34. During that move, shares of VAR have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action. That move has now pushed shares of VAR within range of triggering a big breakout trade. That trade will hit if VAR manages to take out Monday's high of $79.34 to its 52-week high at $80.66 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in VAR as long as it's trending above some near-term support levels at $77 or at $76 and then once it sustains a move or close above those breakout levels with volume that's near or above 773,698 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then VAR will set up to enter new 52-week-high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that breakout are $85 to $90.

OncoMed Pharmaceuticals

OncoMed Pharmaceuticals (OMED) is engaged in the development of monoclonal antibody drugs that target cancer stem cells. This stock closed up 4% at $14 in Monday's trading session.

Monday's Volume: 184,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 119,606

Volume % Change: 85%

From a technical perspective, OMED spiked sharply higher here with above-average volume. This stock has been downtrending badly for the last four months, with shares moving lower over $30 to its recent low of $12.06. During that downtrend, shares of OMED have been consistently making lower highs and lower lows, which is bearish technical price action. That said, shares of OMED have started to reverse its downtrend and enter a short-term uptrend, with shares moving higher from $12.06 to its intraday high of $14.15. That move has now pushed shares of OMED within range of triggering a near-term breakout trade. That trade will hit if OMED manages to take out its 50-day moving average of $14.32 with high volume.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in OMED as long as it's trending above Monday's low of $13.25 or above $13 and then once it sustains a move or close above $14.32 with volume that's near or above 119,606 shares. If that breakout hits soon, then OMED will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $16 to $17.93. Any high-volume move above $17.93 will then put $19.50 to $20 into range for shares of OMED.

Idexx Laboratories

Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) develops, manufactures and distributes products and provides services for the veterinary, bioresearch, livestock and poultry, water and dairy markets. This stock closed up 0.83% at $105.02 in Monday's trading session.

Monday's Volume: 733,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 292,631

Volume % Change: 124%

From a technical perspective, IDXX bounced modestly higher here back above its 50-day moving average of $104.79 with above-average volume. This stock has been downtrending for the last month, with shares moving lower from its high of $113.11 to its intraday low of $103.11.

During that move, shares of IDXX have been making mostly lower highs and lower lows, which is bearish technical price action. That said, shares of IDXX could now be ready to reverse its downtrend and possibly bounce higher.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in IDXX as long as it's trending above Monday's low of $103.11 and then once it sustains a move or close above Monday's high of $105.48 with volume that's near or above 292,631 shares. If we get that move soon, then IDXX will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $108.82 to $110. Any high-volume move above those levels will then give IDXX a chance to challenge its 52-week high at $113.11.

Acadia Healthcare

Acadia Healthcare (ACHC) develops and operates a network of behavioral health facilities. This stock closed up 4.8% at $48.46 in Monday's trading session.

Monday's Volume: 605,000

Three-Month Average Volume: 228,175

Volume % Change: 145%

From a technical perspective, ACHC spiked sharply higher here right off some near-term support at $46 and into new 52-week-high territory with above-average volume. This stock has been uptrending strong for the last six months, with shares soaring higher from its low of $30.70 to its intraday high of $49.14. During that uptrend, shares of ACHC have been consistently making higher lows and higher highs, which is bullish technical price action.

Traders should now look for long-biased trades in ACHC as long as it's trending above some key near-term support levels at $46 or at $43 and then once it sustains a move or close above its new 52-week high at $49.14 with volume that's near or above 228,175 shares. If we get that move soon, then ACHC will set up to enter new 52-week high territory, which is bullish technical price action. Some possible upside targets off that move are $55 to $60.

To see more stocks rising on unusual volume, check out the Stocks Rising on Unusual Volume portfolio on Stockpickr.

-- Written by Roberto Pedone in Delafield, Wis.

RELATED LINKS:

>>5 Short-Squeeze Stocks Ready to Pop

>>Timing the Fed's Taper

>>5 Stocks With Big Insider Buying

Follow Stockpickr on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

At the time of publication, author had no positions in stocks mentioned.

Roberto Pedone, based out of Delafield, Wis., is an independent trader who focuses on technical analysis for small- and large-cap stocks, options, futures, commodities and currencies. Roberto studied international business at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, and he spent a year overseas studying business in Lubeck, Germany. His work has appeared on financial outlets including

CNBC.com and Forbes.com. You can follow Pedone on Twitter at www.twitter.com/zerosum24 or @zerosum24.

Grab your gains and hold on tight – at least till New Year's

Eleven months of stock market momentum can be a powerful thing, which is why some advisers believe it is more prudent to ride the wave — at least through the final month of the year.

With the S&P 500 up more than 29% from the start of the year, on the heels of a 15% gain last year, it is a safe bet that there are plenty of taxable gains sitting inside client portfolios. But even if you feel the market is getting rich, it might be worth waiting until after Jan. 1 to cash out.

“I certainly see the merit behind waiting until at least January to sell and take some profits,” said Todd Rosenbluth, director of mutual fund research at S&P Capital IQ.

“It's unlikely that 2014 will be as good as 2013 has been, and waiting until January to sell gives you a whole year to find ways to offset the gains.”

(Extreme bull: S&P 500 to top 2,000 by spring)

While some would argue that gains are gains, and taxes are difficult to avoid, the strategy of delaying any sales until the conclusion of a strong year for the markets can be so pervasive that it virtually guarantees a positive December.

That, in turn, becomes another reason to sit tight for the rest of the month.

Including this year, there have been 15 years since 1995 that the S&P has been positive through November. And of those years, only twice did the index register a decline in December.

In 1996, the S&P was up 25.4% during the first 11 months, then declined by 1.9% in December.

The other example is 2007, when the index gained 6.2% through November, and fell by 0.7% in December.

“We believe the December effect, whereby investors choose to defer paying taxes on equity market gains until the following year, will provide additional support to the equity markets as we close out the year,” said Charles Gradante, co-founder of hedge fund advisory firm Hennessee Group.

(As investors buy, managers sock away cash)

Of course, holding stocks for tax purposes doesn't fly with everyone.

“One of the biggest mistakes investors make is judging the merit of an investment based on the tax consequences, rather than treating it as an investment,” said Paul Schatz, president of Heritage Capital.

“Riding something up and down because you don't want to pay taxes on it is ridiculous,” he added. “People do that either out of complacency or they're hoping and praying a stock will come back, but to me, if it's time to sell, I'm getting out.”

Mr. Schatz admits he does a lot! of tax-loss harvesting this time of year, which typically involves registering a loss for tax purposes and then immediately buying a comparable investment to maintain the portfolio allocation.

But if historical performance can be used as any kind of guide, most investors will stick with their winners through at least the end of the year, giving that extra boost to December market performance.

The last time the S&P came into December with such strong performance was 2009, when it had gained more than 24% through November.

That December the index gained just under 2%.

But, as Mr. Rosenbluth pointed out, 2009 was a strong year for stocks on the heels of a 38% drop in 2008, which could have led to more tax-management selling at the end of 2009.

“Coming off back-to-back strong years at this point means investors who were patient are sitting on gains from multiple years,” he said. “There's just less to offset from a tax standpoint.”

Train derailment likely to disrupt commute

Thousands of commuters will have to find another way to work Monday following a derailment on Metro-North's Hudson Line that left four people dead and dozens more injured.

"I think it's fair to say that tomorrow, people who use this line should plan on a long commute or plan on using the Harlem line,'' Gov. Andrew Cuomo said at a news conference Sunday.

Earl Weener, a member of the National Transportation Safety Board, said at the news conference that the agency expects to be investigating at the scene of the derailment for a week to 10 days. After documenting the condition of the cars and other components of the scene, "We will then turn the rail over to Metro North who will then ... get the line back in operation.''

It was unclear when that would be, leaving potentially thousands of commuters to ponder how they would get in and out of New York City at the start of the work week.

STORY: Commuter train derailment kills 4 in NYC

Mark Gausepohl, an architect who lives in Ossining, 20 miles north of the derailment, and works in Manhattan, said that if the wreck isn't cleared by Monday morning, he'll have to drive to another train line to get to work. That would add at least 20 minutes each way to his 45-minute commute to Manhattan's Grand Central Station.

He said Metro-North service is "generally reliable," but he was concerned that there have been two other derailments this year. "It's troubling that Metro-North is having these problems,'' he said. "Either it's a bad coincidence or a sign of a weakening infrastructure."

Mary Kelly, who lives in Peekskill, 30 miles north of the derailment, and works as an office manager in Manhattan, said that if the tracks aren't cleared, her morning commute may be about an hour longer if she can take the train only as far south as Tarrytown, then take a bus to another train line.

"You know, I used to get annoyed when the train was late," she says, "I never thought it would crash and kill people."

The Hudson Line is th! e least busy of the three Metro-North train lines that carry passengers into Grand Central Station. Still, on a weekday, it ferries thousands of passengers, many of whom trek into New York City for work but call the more affordable suburbs to the north home, said Aaron Donovan, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

On Sunday, service on the other two Metro-North Lines that head into midtown Manhattan were not disrupted by the accident.

"The service is normal on both of those lines, and I haven't seen any reports of delays as a result of this derailment,'' Donovan said.

There are reports of four fatalities in the Metro North train derailment near Spuyten Duyvil Station in the Bronx, N.Y. Authorities are also reporting more than 60 injured.  Robert Deutsch, USA TODAYFullscreen Commuters, who were on a train that derailed in the Bronx borough of New York, are seen after being rescued.  Timothy Clary, AFP/Getty ImagesFullscreen The scene of the early-morning Metro North train derailment in the Bronx, N.Y. along the Hudson River.  Robert Deutsch, USA TODAYFullscreen Sephen Geraghty, Chief of Special Operations Command, FDNY boards one of the derailed Metro North cars near Spuyten Duyvil Station in the Bronx.  Robert Deutsch, USA TODAYFullscreen Injured people are treated near the site of the derailment.  Craig Ruttle, APFullscreen First responders work the scene of the Metro North train derailment near Spuyten Duyvil Station, Bronx, N.Y.  Robert Deutsch, USA TODAYFullscreen First responders gather around the derailment of a Metro North passenger train in the Bronx borough of New York City.  Craig Ruttle, APFullscreen First responders gather at the derailment of a Metro North passenger train in the Bronx.  Craig Ruttle, APFullscreen A person is evacuated from the scene of the derailment. The Fire Department of New York says there are "multiple injuries" in the train derailment, and 130 firefighters are on the scene.  Craig Ruttle, APFullscreen A Metro North locomotive lies on its side after derailing in the Bronx. The train derailed on a curved section of track, coming to rest just inches from the water and causing multiple fatalities and dozens of injuries, authorities said. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) ORG XMIT: NYML101  Mark Lennihan, APFullscreen A Metro North passenger train lays on it's side after derailing in the Bronx.  Mark Lennihan, APFullscreen First responders at the scene of the Metro North train derailment.  Rick Hampson, USA TODAYFullscreen Five of the southbound train's seven cars derailed on the train that originated at 6:54 a.m. in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.  Robert Deutsch, USA TODAYFullscreenLike this topic? You may also like these photo galleries:ReplayAutoplayShow ThumbnailsShow CaptionsLast SlideNext Slide

Amtrak, which shares tracks with the crippled Hudson Line, briefly suspended its service between New York City and Albany, but it resumed service shortly after 3 p.m. Sunday afternoon.

"With a lot of people trying to get home after the Thanksgiving holiday, the trains we were scheduled to operate were almost all sold out, so you're talking about thousands of people looking to travel on Amtrak,'' said Amtrak spokesman Clifford Cole.

Metro-North began running bus service on Sunday for stranded passengers, allowing them to take a bus from Tarrytown, on the Hudson Line, to White Plains, where they could pick up a Harlem Line train headed to New York City.

Those who would have caught Hudson trains further down the line, such as near Yankee Stadium, were encouraged to hop on the Harlem Line instead or to use the subway or local bus service to travel into Manhattan.

The train that derailed on Sunday was carrying between 100 and 150 passengers, Donovan said, "people hoping to enjoy the day in the city'' along with those who may have been visiting family in the Hudson Valley for Thanksgiving and were heading back home.

During the week, the Hudson line f! erries su! burban commuters traveling from as far north as Poughkeepsie to their jobs in Manhattan, as well as those doing a reverse commute from New York City to jobs in the Hudson Valley.

"If this had been a work day, if this was in the middle of the week, you would have had hundreds and hundreds of people on that train,'' New York Gov. Cuomo told CNN. "So it could have been much much worse.''

Contributing: Bob Minzesheimer

AOL to shut down Winamp

AOL will stop supporting Winamp as of Dec. 20.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) Winamp, the iTunes predecessor you didn't realize still existed, is alive and kicking -- for one more month.

AOL (AOL) announced Wednesday that it will stop supporting the 15-year-old Winamp software, service and website as of Dec. 20.

Winamp was one of the most popular tools for playing MP3s and digital music in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Its popularity coincided with Napster's explosive growth during that time.

Napster ushered in the digital music era, but the file-sharing program didn't have a feature allowing users to actually play the songs they downloaded. So the feature-rich Winamp became the go-to media player for music downloads, reaching 25 million users in June 2000.

The Winamp software first introduced digital playlists to millions of users, and people could easily customize the software's appearance with downloadable "skins."

Related story: A decade of iTunes singles killed the music industry

One of Winamp's most peculiar features was a demo track that came with the software that exclaimed: "Winamp. It really whips the llama's ass!"

AOL bought Winamp maker Nullsoft for $80 million in 1999.

Winamp's moment in the spotlight faded after Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) released iTunes in 2003. But AOL continued to develop the software, even producing a surprisingly popular Google (GOOG, Fortune 500) Play app for Android phones that has been downloaded more than 10 million times.

Amazon.Com, Inc. (AMZN): Workspaces Negative For Citrix Systems, Inc., Vmware, Inc.

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) announced its entry into the desktop virtualization market. This offering, WorkSpaces, provides secure, cloud-based access to corporate documents & applications via the user's device of choice (laptop, tablet, etc.).

WorkSpaces, considered one of the Amazon's significant product announcements, eliminates the upfront and on-going expenses associated with building out an owned infrastructure (<50% costs versus traditional desktop virtualization infrastructure solutions).

"AWS VPC can support between 16 private IP Addresses to 16,500 private IP addresses, which means that AWS Workspace is suited for both Med-to-Large enterprises," Global Equities Research analyst Trip Chowdhry wrote in a note to clients.

[Related -Amazon.Com, Inc. (AMZN): How I Explain Amazon's Stock Performance]

AWS WorkSpace is negative for Citrix Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CTXS) and VMware, Inc. (NYSE:VMW).

WorkSpace may hurt Citrix's products such as XenApps, XenClient, XenDesktop, which accounts for more than 25 percent of Citrix's revenues. On the other hand, VMware gets about 8 percent of its sales from this space.

"Converged view is that AMZN is getting the same pricing discounts from Microsoft on Windows OS and Office, that a typical large reseller/OEM gets, which is about 30% to 40% discount," Chowdhry noted.

Over the last 6 years, whenever Amazon enters a technology space, the pricing in that specific market collapses, and the same could happen here. The pricing for both Citrix's Xen Offerings, as well as VMWare's View product, may drop significantly, thereby dampening their sales and margins.

[Related -Best Buy (BBY) Is Fighting Back -- But Is It A Buy?]

"Neither VMW nor CTXS has the economies or scale or scope to effectively compete with AMZN AWS WorkSpace, and probably they are better off exiting these businesses, before these businesses end up being the new Blackberry," Chowdhry said.

With a few clicks in the AWS (Amazon Web Ser! vice) Management Console, customers can provision a high-quality desktop experience for their users at less than half the cost of most traditional virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) solutions.

On-premises VDI solutions offer the benefits of centralized desktop management and security at a high cost, requiring companies to invest in their network and storage infrastructure to support the delivery of a high-quality virtual desktop experience.

By migrating enterprise desktops to the cloud, Amazon WorkSpaces eliminates both the up-front investment and the ongoing management of infrastructure while still offering all the security and efficiency of a centralized model. For a low monthly fee, Amazon WorkSpaces provides a complete cloud-based desktop computing service including compute, persistent storage, and software applications.

Customers can select from a range of Amazon WorkSpace bundles that provide a choice of CPU, memory, storage and applications – and launch any number of desktops with a few clicks. Amazon WorkSpaces can integrate with an existing Active Directory to allow end-users to use their existing enterprise credentials to access their Amazon WorkSpace.

Amazon WorkSpaces includes technology components licensed from Teradici and leverages the PCoIP (PC-over-IP) protocol to compress, encrypt and encode the users' desktop computing experience and transmit 'pixels only' across any standard IP network to users' devices.

In addition, the WorkSpaces Sync client lets users sync their documents between their Amazon WorkSpace and other computers so that they always have access to their documents. This client will be downloadable at no charge from the Amazon WorkSpaces client download page, and the Amazon App Store for Android, Google Play and the iTunes App Store.

Beyond the productivity benefits, the enterprises are expected to save over 40 percent of the life cycle cost for desktop services while also gaining additional benefits such as built-in security, telec! ommuting ! flexibility, high availability and simplified operations management.