5 Best Shipping Stocks To Invest In Right Now

DELAFIELD, Wis. (Stockpickr) -- There isn't a day that goes by on Wall Street when certain stocks trading for $10 a share or less don't experience massive spikes higher. Traders savvy enough to follow the low-priced names and trade them with discipline and sound risk management are banking ridiculous coin on a regular basis.

Just take a look at some of the hot movers in the under-$10 complex from Thursday, including Prospect Global Resources (PGRX), which has skyrocketed by over 30%; Eagle Bulk Shipping (EGLE), which has soared higher by 20%; GigOptix (GIG), which is ripping higher by 18%; and Kandi Technologies (KNDI), which is up by over 15%. You don't even have to catch the entire move in lower-priced stocks such as these to make outsized returns when trading.

One low-priced stock that recently exploded to the upside was development-stage healthcare player Atossa Genetics (ATOS), which I highlighted in Aug. 6's "5 Stocks Setting Up to Break Out" at around $4.90 per share. I mentioned in that piece that shares of ATOS were starting to uptrend over the last month, with shares moving higher form its low of $4.22 to its recent high of $5.08 a share. That move was quickly pushing ATOS within range of triggering a big breakout trade above a key downtrend line that dated back to May. That breakout was set to trigger if ATOS managed to clear $5.08 a share with high volume.

5 Best Tech Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Virginia Heritage Bank (VGBK)

Virginia Heritage Bank is a commercial bank. The Bank serves the greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area with an emphasis on Northern Virginia. It offers a range of banking services. Its services include free business and consumer checking, premium interest-bearing checking, business account analysis, savings, certificates of deposit and other depository services, as well as an array of commercial, real estate and consumer loans. Total deposits were $491.7 million at December 31, 2011. Non-interest bearing deposits totaled $57.3 million or 11.66% of total deposits as of December 31, 2011. The Bank has full service branches in Fairfax, Chantilly, Gainesville, Tysons Corner and Dulles, Virginia, and a mortgage division headquartered in Chantilly, Virginia.

Lending Activities

The Bank�� primary lending focus is real estate finance, as well as making loans to small businesses, professionals and other consumers in its local market area. At December 31, 2011, approximately 49.3% of the total loan portfolio was composed of commercial real estate loans. The Bank�� primary lending activities are principally directed to its market area in the greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area with an emphasis on Northern Virginia. Commercial loans are offered for a variety of business purposes, including government contract receivables, plant and equipment, general working capital, contract administration and acquisition lending. The Bank finances the purchase of commercial real estate properties, such as office buildings and warehouses. A significant portion of the commercial real estate securing the Bank�� commercial real estate loans at December 31, 2011, was owner-occupied. The Bank has a concentration in loans secured by commercial real estate. At December 31, 2011, its loan portfolio consisted of 49.3% respectively, of commercial real estate loans.

The Bank�� real estate construction lending segment of its portfolio is predominately residential in nature and compo! sed of loans with short duration, typically 12 to 24 months. The Bank offers a variety of residential real estate loans both for purchase and refinancing, most of which are sold in the secondary market. It also provides loans to small businesses that may be secured by residential real estate. The Bank�� residential real estate lending products are available through all of its banking facilities and its mortgage division in Chantilly, Virginia. At December 31, 2011, total residential real estate loans amounted to $53.7 million, excluding loans held for sale of $16.9 million, respectively. The Bank offers an array of consumer loans, including automobile loans, term loans, and overdraft protection.

Investments Securities

As of December 31, 2011, the Bank�� investment portfolio was classified as available for sale. As of December 31, 2011, investment securities available for sale amounted to $98.8 million. The investment portfolio contained corporate debt securities amounting to $6.1 million as of December 31, 2011.

Sources of Funds

Deposits are the major source of funding for the Bank. The Bank offers an array of deposit products that include demand, negotiable order of withdrawal (NOW), money market and savings accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By CRWE]

  Today, VGBK remains (0.00%) +0.000 at $16.00 thus far (ref. google finance Delayed: 9:30AM EDT July 31, 2013).

  Virginia Heritage Bank previously reported quarterly earnings of $2.5 million after taxes, or $0.55 per share (basic) and $0.54 per share (diluted), for the period ended June 30, 2013. This is a 29% increase over earnings of $1.9 million after taxes, or $0.44 per share (basic and diluted), from the same period a year ago. On a year-to-date basis, earnings were $4.5 million after taxes, or $1.01 per share (basic) and $0.98 per share (diluted) through June 30, 2013 versus $3.3 million after taxes, or $0.76 per share (basic and diluted) in 2012.

  The Bank�� second quarter results produced an annualized rate of return of 1.25% on average assets and 16.66% on average common equity compared to 1.25% and 15.40%, respectively for the same period a year ago. On a year-to-date basis, the annualized rate of return was 1.15% on average assets and 15.67% on average common equity compared to 1.12% and 13.55%, respectively for 2012.

5 Best Shipping Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Winnebago Industries Inc.(WGO)

Winnebago Industries, Inc. manufactures and sells recreation vehicles primarily for leisure travel and outdoor recreation activities. The company offers motor homes, which are self-propelled mobile dwellings that provide living accommodations for approximately seven persons and include kitchen, dining, sleeping, and bath areas, as well as a lounge; and optional equipment accessories, such as generators, home theater systems, king-size beds, upholstery, and interior equipment. It manufactures motor homes constructed directly on medium- and heavy-duty truck chassis, which include engine and drivetrain components; and on van-type chassis onto which the motor home manufacturer constructs a living area with access to the driver's compartment under the Winnebago and Itasca brand names, as well as panel-type vans with sleeping, kitchen, and/or toilet facilities under the Era brand name. The company also produces original equipment manufacturing parts, including extruded aluminum and other component products for other manufacturers and commercial vehicles. Winnebago Industries markets its motor homes through independent dealers primarily in the United States and Canada. The company was founded in 1958 and is headquartered in Forest City, Iowa.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By David Sterman]

  I took a close look at all of the companies that appeared in the first part of this series, and there were some great companies in the mix. If price were no object, I'd be a huge fan of:

  Oceaneering (NYSE: OII), which is prospering form the ongoing trends toward undersea naval warfare and undersea oil drilling. Oceaneering is poised to grow at a sustained double-digit pace, which is something few other defense contractors can say. Cree (Nasdaq: CREE): LED lighting is a revolutionary game-changer, and Cree's heavy emphasis on R&D is leading the charge towards ever-lower prices for these low-energy light sources that also have remarkable longevity compared to regular bulbs. Still, profit margin gains may be tough in a very competitive environment.  Polaris Industries (NYSE: PII): If Winnebago's (NYSE: WGO) recreational vehicles are suitable for retirees, Polaris has become the go-to name for activity-oriented vehicles. Notably, it has a revenue base that is four times larger than Winnebago as well. If S&P wants to position for future demographic trends, then Polaris is a great choice.

  I love these companies, but I don't love their stock prices, and I'd prefer to wait for some sort of pullback before singing their praises. That said, there are two investment ideas that hold great appeal on their own. If they get added to the S&P 500, then they are also set up for a timely trade.

• [By John Kell and Lauren Pollock var popups = dojo.query(".socialByline .popC"); ]

  Among the companies with shares expected to actively trade in Thursday’s session are Citigroup Inc.(C), GameStop Corp.(GME) and Winnebago Industries Inc.(WGO)

5 Best Shipping Stocks To Invest In Right Now: SPDR S&P Russia ETF (RBL)

SPDR S&P Russia ETF (the Fund) seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the S&P Russia Capped BMI Index (the Index). The Index is a float adjusted market cap index designed to define and measure the investable universe of publicly-traded companies domiciled in Russia. The Index component securities are a subset, based on region, of component securities included in the S&P Global BMI Equity Index. The Global BMI Equity Index is a comprehensive, float-weighted, rules-based benchmark that is readily divisible and customizable. The Fund generally invests substantially all, but at least 80%, of its total assets in the securities comprising the Index or in American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) or Global Depositary Receipts (GDRs) based on securities comprising the Index. The Fund�� investment advisor is SSgA Funds Management, Inc. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Waggoner]

  First up: SPDR S&P Russia (ticker: RBL), which concentrates on Russian stocks. The fund has more than 16% of its assets in Gazprom, and plunged 7.9% in early Monday trading. Following close behind: Market Vectors Russia ETF (RSX), in contrast, has just 7.8% of its assets in Gazprom. It tumbled 6.9% Monday.

• [By Charles Sizemore]

  But what exactly are you buying when you buy Russian stocks? Let�� take a look under the hood at the ETFs that track the Russian market: the Market Vectors Russia ETF (RSX), the iShares MSCI Russia Capped Index (ERUS) and the SPDR S&P Russia (RBL).

• [By Barbara Kollmeyer]

  As for U.S. investor exposure, the pain was there for all to see as the week wound down. Among exchange-traded funds, the iShares MSCI Russia ETF (ERUS) �and the SPDR S&P Russia ETF (RBL) �each fell more than 6% for the week, contrasting with a 0.1% gain for the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (EEM) .

5 Best Shipping Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Transglobe Energy Corp(TGA)

TransGlobe Energy Corporation operates as an exploration and production company with oil interests in the Arab Republic of Egypt and the Republic of Yemen. It has interests in 9 international blocks comprising 5.5 million acres. The company was formerly known as Dusty Mac Mines, Ltd. and changed its name to TransGlobe Energy Corporation in April 1996 as a result of its business focus shift from mineral exploration and extraction to oil and gas business. TransGlobe Energy Corporation was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Leading and Lagging Sectors
  Wednesday morning, the financial sector proved to be a source of strength for the market. Leading the sector was strength from SouFun Holdings (NYSE: SFUN) and E-House (China) Holdings (NYSE: EJ). In trading on Wednesday, energy shares were relative laggards, down on the day by about 0.67 percent. Among the energy stocks, Endeavour International (NYSE: END)was down more than 22 percent, while TransGlobe Energy (NASDAQ: TGA) tumbled around 6 percent.

• [By Seth Jayson]

  TransGlobe Energy (Nasdaq: TGA  ) is expected to report Q1 earnings on May 7. Here's what Wall Street wants to see:

  The 10-second takeaway
  Comparing the upcoming quarter to the prior-year quarter, average analyst estimates predict TransGlobe Energy's revenues will contract -10.7% and EPS will expand 80.0%.

• [By Sean Williams]

  Overseas opportunity
  I can't say I'm someone who particularly likes to push my luck in regions of the world where political upheaval can threaten my investments. One such example where I've bucked that trend is AngloGold Ashanti�in Africa, which dealt with a large labor strike that shut down two its mines for a significant amount of time. This came on top of the higher-than-normal labor costs African metal miners already deal with. The next such name I'd like to add to this short list of exceptions is independent oil and gas driller TransGlobe Energy (NASDAQ: TGA  ) .