Stocks managed to shake off the geopolitical concerns last week at the outset, then dipped mid-week on concerns of rising interest rates, after the new Fed Chair hinted that rates may need to head up sooner than most pundits had expected, then recovered a day later, only to finish flat to slightly down on Friday. The end result was that the major averages ended the week slightly above where they started. As for the week’s economic reports, inflation remains tame per the CPI, housing seems to be slowing slightly, and manufacturing activity is more or less steady to slightly improving.

A few more upgrades / downgrades came out on my stocks last week than has recently been the case, with several to report:

Martin Midstream Partners LP (MMLP) was upgraded from Neutral to Buy at UBS.

General Dynamics was downgraded from OverWeight to Equal Weight at Barclays.

Cisco Systems (CSCO) was downgraded from OverWeight to Equal Weight at Barclays.

Pan American Silver (PAAS) was upgraded from UnderPerform to Sector Perform at CIBC.

Enterprise Products Partners LP (EPD) was upgraded from Neutral to OutPerform at Credit Suisse.   

NextEra Energy (NEE) was downgraded from Conviction Buy to Buy at Goldman.

Xcel Energy (XEL) was downgraded from Neutral to Sell at Goldman.

Westar Energy (WR) was downgraded from Buy to Neutral at Goldman.

Williams Partners LP (WPZ) was downgraded from Buy to Hold at Jeffries.

Emerson Electric (EMR) was upgraded from Perform to OutPerform at Oppenheimer.

Westar Energy (WR) was upgraded from Hold to Buy at Argus.

Walgreens(WAG) was downgraded from Hold to Sell at Cantor.

ConAgra Foods (CAG) was downgraded from Buy to Neutral at Goldman.

Stocks on my lists going ex-dividend this week are:

Phillip Morris International (PM), 3/25/2014, yield 4.64%.

American Capital Agency (AGNC), 3/25/2014, yield 11.57%.

MFA Financial (MFA), 3/26/2014, yield 10.13%.

National Health Investment (NHI), 3/27/2014, yield 5.08%.

Nucor (NUE), 3/27/2014, yield 2.89%.

Windstream Holdings (WIN), 3/27/2014, yield 11.90%.

Realty Income (O), 3/28/2014, yield 5.33%. O pays monthly.

Annaly Capital Management (NLY), 3/27/2014, yield 10.45%.

As for earnings, last week three of my stocks reported:

General Mills (GIS) reported FQ3 EPS of $0.62, missing by two cents. Revenue of $4.38B, down 1.1% Y/Y, missed by $50M.

ConAgra Foods (CAG) reported FQ3 EPS of $0.62, beating by two cents. Revenue of $4.38B, up13.8% Y/Y, missed by $20M.

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (DRI) reported FQ3 EPS of $1.02, beating by twenty cents. Revenue of $2.23B, down 1.3% Y/Y, missed by $20M.

Only one of my stocks is scheduled to report this week. Paychex (PAYX) is to report on 3/26/2014, after market hours.

Another week gone, another week with minimal buy opportunities. Stocks are way overdue for a 10% to 15% correction, which occasionally seems to be on the horizon, then quickly disappears before it even gets started. With some discomfort, I am continuing to hold Kinder Morgan Inc (KMI), even as my top-rated advisory publication, the MorningStar Dividend Investor, announced this week that the stock had been sold out of the recommended portfolios, along with the related MLP, Kinder Morgan Energy Partners (KMP). The reason cited was a concern about the distribution coverage, leverage, and also some concern about growth opportunities going forward. While I don’t own the MLP, I do hold a fairly large position (for me, at least) of KMI, the general partner. KMI represents about 3% of my total portfolio. Rich Kinder, the co-founder of the firm(s), has an interesting past – he was once first in line to take over as CEO of Enron from Ken Lay. It didn’t work out, and Rich Kinder left the company, possibly with some disagreement with the strategic direction the company was taking under Lay. One noteworthy anecdote from the book, “The Smartest Guys in the Room, the Story of Enron”, was when a former VP who had retired heard about Kinder leaving, he immediately sold all of his Enron stock. That certainly was a good move, as Enron was riding high at that point. This reflected the confidence the knowledgeable investor had in Rich Kinder, and his lack of confidence in Enron without Rich Kinder on board. The rest is history – when Enron ht the rocks, Rich Kinder and partners scooped up some key assets at a bargain price, forming the original Kinder Morgan group of companies, which then went on to achieve tremendous growth. To this point, at least, no one who has ever invested along with Rich Kinder has ever been unhappy with the results. So I am staying the course. While I have no real insight, having been retired from Coastal Corp / El Paso Energy since 2001, the subsidiary where I spent most of my working career, Colorado Interstate Gas, is now a part of the Kinder Morgan colossus, and was a well-run, successful subsidiary with great assets in place when I was there. Even though selling, the newsletter editor made a point of stating that the recent Hedgeye and Forbes articles panning the Kinder Morgan companies was not the reason, and the charges made were not on target at all. The newsletter also sold out of Energy Transfer Equity LP (ETE) and Energy Transfer Partners LP (ETP). In all of these cases, the reason for selling was some discomfort with the complexities of these firms and the aggressive business strategies being pursued. Possibly the recent Boardwalk Pipeline (BWP) implosion had an effect as well. There is no doubt in my mind that MLP’s are less safe than the typical blue-chip industrial. That is why all of my favored MLPs are on my Tier2 list, and none are on my Tier1 list. I look at the MorningStar newsletter recommendations as the safest of the safe. In my own portfolio, I hold some of these, but also some higher-yielding stocks which the newsletter disdains. I am willing to trade some safety for a higher return. That is my choice. Each investor has to choose the risk level one can accept, and invest accordingly. The key is to realize the risks one is taking, and be prepared for the possible downside. What is to be avoided is to be of the opinion that one is taking no or very little risk, when in fact one is taking on a great deal of risk.   

JT

Stocks declined every day last week, with most days exhibiting a slow, steady grind down, rather than a panic sell off. Thursday was an exception, as the decline on that day exceeded the sum total of the declines on the other days. The end result of the week was that the major averages were all down around 2%. There seems to be a general consensus that stocks are currently overvalued, but not by enough to be characterized as a bubble, with a drastic decline imminent in the near term. Another consensus seems to be developing that the economy is stalling lately, either due to the wintry weather we have experienced, or the economic impact of Obamacare. Recent geopolitical news has not been positive as well.

The stock analysts must have been on a spring break last week along with the students, as upgrades / downgrades on my stocks were the lightest I have seen in one week in a long while:

Hercules Technology Growth Capital (HTGC) was upgraded from Market Perform to OutPerform at Keefe Bruyette.

Nucor (NUE) was downgraded from Neutral to UnderPerform at Credit Suisse.

NuStar Energy LP (NS) was upgraded from Neutral to Buy at Goldman. While it may be premature to declare victory, my decision to stick with NS, and add more when it was selling for less than $40, appears to be working out. NS has maintained the lofty dividend, has shed the faltering asphalt business, and the stock price is now over $50. See my article on NS, available from the Published Articles selection, for details on NS.

Stocks on my list going ex-dividend this week are as follows:

BlackRock Kelso Capital (BKCC), 3/18/2014, yield 11.01%.

Main Street Capital (MAIN), 3/18/2014, yield 5.84%. MAIN pays monthly.

Solar Capital LTD (SLRC), 3/18/2014, yield 7.27%.

PennantPark Investment (PNNT), 3/18/2014, yield 10.06%.

Total S A (TOT), 3/19/2014, yield 4.98%. Note that France imposes a 30% withholding rate on dividends, which is not reflected in the yield. If held in a taxable account, a U.S. holder can claim the withholding as a foreign tax paid. If held in an IRA, there is no recovery possible.

TICC Capital (TICC), 3/21/2014, yield 11.60%.

While none of my stocks reported earnings last week, three are scheduled to report in the week coming up:

General Mills (GIS), 3/19/2014, before market hours. GIS just increased the dividend. The ex-dividend date is 4/8/2014. I plan to start a new position soon if it pulls back under $49.

ConAgra Foods (CAG), 3/20/2014, before market hours.

Darden Restaurants (DRI), 3/21/2014, before market hours.

The week ahead will probably be dominated by the news flow. There will be a few economic releases of note, such as Industrial Production/Capacity Utilization on Monday, and CPI on Tuesday, plus it is a Fed Meeting week, but the events in Ukraine, plus the missing airliner from Malaysia, will likely overshadow the routine economic releases. If the pull back continues, I may be a selective buyer here and there, but this is definitely not a time to go “all in”.

JT

Stocks began the week just ended with a big decline Monday, followed by a rebound on Tuesday, after which there was not much movement for the remainder of the week. The net result was that the major averages all ended the week slightly higher than they ended the prior week. The economic data continues to point to steady progress, but at an extremely slow pace. The key Monthly Jobs Report on Friday was slightly better than expected, even as the Unemployment Rate ticked up slightly, to 6.7%, possibly due to more people trying to find work. It will be a long time before we see an official Unemployment Rate at 5%, as numerous pundits have noted, unless things pick up substantially from the current tepid pace. Of course, the real unemployment rate, considering all available workers, not just those actively looking, is much higher. Any improvement in the economy will likely bring more workers out into the actively-looking pool, thus we will be hard-pressed to see any improvement in the official rate, even if the economy improves.

It was an extremely slow week for upgrades / downgrades on my stocks, with only five that I have noticed:

Coca Cola (KO) was initiated at Neutral at UBS.

Colgate Palmolive (CO) was initiated at Buy at UBS.

DrPepper Snapple (DPS) was initiated at Neutral at UBS.

Pepsico (PEP) was initiated at Neutral at UBS.

Procter & Gamble (PG) was initiated at Neutral at UBS.

Stocks on my lists going ex-dividend this week are as follows:

3/10/2014

Triangle Capital (TCAP), yield 7.91%.

3/11/2014

Newmont Mining (NEM) yield 2.44%. Note that Newmont’s dividend fluctuates with gold prices, per a pre-defined formula.

3/12/2014

Coca Cola (KO), yield 3.16%.

Digital Realty Trust (DLR), yield 6.34%.

Ares Capital (ARCC), yield 8.52%. ARCC also announced an additional, special dividend of five cents, with the same ex-dividend date. The special dividend is not included in the yield.

Fifth Street Finance (FSC), yield 10.53%. FSC pays monthly.

Medical Properties Trust (MPW), yield 6.42%.

3/13/2014

DrPepper Snapple (DPS), yield 3.14%.

Gladstone Investment (GAIN), yield 8.73%. GAIN pays monthly.

3/14/2014

Greif (GEF, GEF.B), yields 3.28% and 4.49%, respectively. The ‘B’ shares trade at extremely low volumes, so be sure to use a limit order when trading.

There are only two stocks on my lists reporting this week:

TICC Capital (TICC), on 3/10/2014, before the open, and Safety Insurance Group (SAFT), on 3/11/2014, no time given.

There were three firms on my lists reporting results last week:

QR Energy LP (QRE) reported Q4 EPS of $0.25, missing by ten cents. Revenue of $119.3M, up 97.41% Y/Y, missed by $9.55M. Also, QR announced it is simplifying its capital structure by acquiring its general partner. The firm stated that the deal is 7% accretive to distributable cash flow per unit in 2014, and will lower its cost of capital, which should enhance competitiveness in the acquisition market.

Memorial Production Partners LP (MEMP) reported Q4 EPS of $0.18, which may not be comparable to consensus of fifty-five cents. Revenue of $92.1M missed by $8.64M.

BlackRock Kelso Capital (BKCC) reported Q4 EPS of $0.22, beating by four cents. Revenue of $32.97M, down 13.0% Y/Y, missed by $1.51M.

None of my stocks are scheduled to report this week.

As the market has recovered from the short-lived pull back, which never developed into enough of a decline to even be labeled a correction, a number of articles warning of a market top have recently come out. Of course, the editors always place other articles adjacent to the “fear” articles which I would label as “greed” articles, postulating that the “bull has more room to run”. So what to do? I say hold on to solid dividend payers for the most part, keep some cash in reserve, and maybe sell selectively any positions which have gone parabolic, with yields at decade lows, or which have stalled out as far as dividend increases are concerned. Just be aware that there are few issues available at the moment at reasonable prices, as far as buys are concerned, so reinvesting the proceeds may need to wait until another pull back occurs. An alternative to selling stock is to sell a covered call, out of the money. If the stock is at an all-time high, and has erupted into the rarified air, a covered call with a price above even a current ridiculously high price can’t be too ill-advised of a strategy. Just be sure it is a stock you are prepared to give up. When the bull is running, stocks can go higher than anyone expects, just as when the bear is growling, they can go lower than anyone expects.

JT

Any lingering doubts as to whether the correction was indeed over were quashed last week, as the major averages posted new highs on Friday, although the developing situation in Ukraine began to put a damper on things by midday Friday. As the crisis there continues to worsen, it will likely result in a setback in the coming week. Plus, an avalanche of economic data will reveal further the state of the economy, which was already looking tired as of last week, and this could also result in a lessening of enthusiasm in the coming days. The Monthly Employment numbers will be coming out on Friday, and another poor reading might finally have an impact on the “what, me worry?” market. .    

It was another slow week for upgrades / downgrades on my stocks, with just a few of note:

Total S A (TOT) was upgraded from Neutral to Buy at UBS.

Pan American Silver (PAAS) was downgraded from Buy to Hold at Deutsche Bank.

Westar Energy (WR) was downgraded from OverWeight to Equal Weight at Barclays.

Linn Energy (LINE) was downgraded from Focus Stock to Sector OutPerform at Howard Weil.

Verizon (VZ) was upgraded from Neutral to OverWeight at JP Morgan.

Washington Real Estate (WRE) was upgraded from Hold to Buy at Stifel.

Pan American Silver (PAAS) was downgraded from Neutral to Sell at Goldman.

Earnings reports from my stocks continued to roll in last week:

2/24/2014

Digital Realty (DLR) reported Q4 FFO of $1.26, beating by twelve cents. Revenue of $380.9M beat by $4.24M.

ONEOK Partners L P (OKS) reported  Q4 EPS of $0.67, beating by a penny.

Frontier Communications (FTR) reported Q4 EPS of $0.07, beating by a penny. Revenue of $1.18B, down 4.1% Y/Y, was in-line.

Greif (GEF, GEF.B) reported Q4 EPS of $0.57, beating by two cents. Revenue of $1.03B, up 2.0% Y/Y, missed by $10M.

2/25/2014

Alliant Energy (LNT) reported Q4 EPS of $0.55, beating by four cents. Revenue of $832.6M, up 10.9% Y/Y, beat by $59.92M.

Exterran Partners L P (EXLP) reported Q4 EPS of $0.23, missing by three cents. Revenue of $118.9M, up 16.2% Y/Y, beat by $0.32M.

Annaly Capital (NLY) reported Q4 EPS of $0.35, beating by nine cents.

Solar Capital (SLRC) reported Q4 EPS of $0.42, beating by two cents.

2/26/2014

Ares Capital (ARCC) reported FQ1 EPS of $0.41, in-line.

Enerplus (ERF) reported Q2 EPS of $0.26, beating by a penny.

Westar Energy (WR) reported Q4 EPS of $0.32, beating by three cents. Revenue of $559.87M, up 6.9% Y/Y, beat by $2.73M.

Triangle Capital (TCAP) reported Q4 NII of $0.48, missing by two cents. Revenue of $22M, down 11.9% Y/Y, missed by $1.6M.

Crestwood Midstream Partners L P (CMLP) reported Q4 GAAP EPS of -$0.50. Revenue of $76M, up 87.7% Y/Y, beat by $4.86M.

Martin Midstream Partners L P (MMLP) reported Q4 EPS of -$1.44.

2/27/2014

Consolidated Communications (CNSL) reported Q4 EPS of $0.23, beating by two cents. Revenue of $148M, down 7.6% Y/Y, missed by $2.13M.

Windstream Holdings (WIN) reported Q4 EPS of $0.09, in-line. Revenue of $1.5B, down 2.6% Y/Y, was in-line.

Breitburn Energy Partners L P (BBEP) reported Q4 EPS of -$0.52, which may not be comparable to consensus of $0.27. Revenue of $177.3M, up 50.8% Y/Y, missed by $31.28M.

Hercules Technology Growth Capital (HTGC) reported Q4 NII of $0.31, in-line. Revenue of $33.2M, up 21.2% Y/Y, missed by $3.95M.

Linn Energy L P (LINE) reported Q4 EPS of $0.19, missing by eight cents.

Main Street Capital (MAIN) reported Q4 net investment income per share of $0.57, gaining 26% from a year ago. Q4 dividends totaled $0.48 per share (plus a special $0.25 payout). Q1 dividends are set to total $0.495. Net asset value of $19.89 per share is up 7% from a year ago, up 11% if excluding special payouts of $0.80 per share throughout the year.

Stocks on my lists going ex-dividend this week, by date, are:

3/03/2014

Enerplus (ERF), yield 5.45%. ERF pays nine cents Canadian, monthly.

3/04/2014

Kellogg (K), yield 3.03%.

3/05/2014

Kimberly Clark (KMB), yield 3.04%.

Public Service Enterprise Group (PEG), yield 4.04%.

Pepsico (PEP), yield 2.84%.

Potlatch (PCH), yield 3.53%.

Ventas (VTR), yield 4.65%.

Frontier Communications (FTR), yield 8.20%.

3/06/2014

Eaton (ETN), yield 2.62%.

SCANA Corp (SCG), yield 4.24%.

Westar Energy (WR), yield 4.09%.

Waste Management (WM), yield 3.61%.

Reynolds American (RAI), yield 5.27%.

Hercules Technology Growth Capital (HTGC), yield 7.88%.

CenturyLink (CTL), yield 6.91%.

3/07/2014

Wal-Mart (WMT), yield 2.57%.

Earnings season is nearly over, with just a couple or three stragglers left to report this week:

QR Energy LP (QRE) will report on 3/03/2014, no time specified.

Memorial Production Partners L P (MEMP) will report on 3/05/2014, no time specified.

BlackRock Kelso (BKCC) will report on 3/06/2014, before market hours.

It will be another busy week, with lots of economic data to digest, along with a new crisis in the Ukraine. Chances are stocks will pull back this week, unless things suddenly break out into the clear, with sunny skies, world peace, and ever-improving economic measurements. Don’t hold your breath, would be my advice.  

JT

The holiday-shortened week ended with the major stock averages about where they were at the end of the previous week. Yes, it was a holiday Monday, the relatively unexciting President’s Day observance. Considering the Presidents we have had lately, it is no wonder that people don’t get into much of a festive mood. The economic readings were likewise none too exciting, indicating that housing is slowing a little, and prices, at least officially, are not rising much. The most noteworthy event of the week was testimony before Congress from Janet Yellen, the new Fed Chief, which seemed to confirm that she is a policy “dove”, at least at the moment.    

It was another slow week for upgrades / downgrades on my stocks, with just a few of note:

JM Smuckers (SJM) was upgraded from Equal Weight to OverWeight at Stephens.

Darden Restaurants (DRI) was upgraded from Market Perform to OutPerform at Raymond James.

Waste Management (WM) was downgraded from Buy to Hold at Wunderlich.

Pan American Silver (PAAS) was upgraded from UnderPerform to Market Perform at BMO Capital.

Wal-Mart (WMT) was downgraded from Buy to Hold at Stifel.

Phillip Morris (PM) was downgraded from OutPerform to Market Perform at First Global.

Public Service Enterprise Group (PEG) was downgraded from Buy to Hold at Jeffries.

Total S A (TOT) was upgraded from Sell to Neutral at Goldman.

Wal-Mart (WMT) was downgraded from But to Neutral at Gifford Securities.

 Earnings reports from my stocks continued to roll in last week:

The Coca-Cola Company (KO) reported Q4 EPS of $0.46, in-line. Revenue of $11.04B, down 3.6% Y/Y, missed by $270M. Forward guidance was also disappointing. The shares dropped after the report, then flat-lined the rest of the week.

Waste Management, Inc. (WM) reported Q4 EPS of $0.56. Revenue of $3.5B, up 2.0% Y/Y, missed by $80M. The stock performed similarly to KO after the report.

Medtronic Inc. (MDT) reported FQ3 EPS of $0.91, in-line. Revenue of $4.16B, up 3.2% Y/Y, beat by $10M. With a sub-2% yield, I may be dropping this firm from my lists soon.

National Health Investors Inc. (NHI) reported Q4 FFO of $0.90, beating by two cents. Revenue of $32.79M, up 22.3% Y/Y, beat by $1.07M.

Nestle's (NSRGF) 2013 net profit dropped slightly, to 10.02B Swiss francs ($11.12B), and missed consensus of 10.69B francs, dragged down by the costs of portfolio restructuring and currency fluctuations. Sales rose 2.7% to 92.2B Swiss francs and undershot forecasts of 93.1B francs, with organic growth up 4.6%. Revenue was kept down by price pressures in Europe. The annual dividend will be coming along in April.

Energy Transfer Equity, L.P. (ETE) reported Q4 EPS of a negative 31 cents. Revenue of $12.6B, up 11.4% Y/Y, beat by $660M.

Energy Transfer Partners, L.P. (ETP) reported Q4 EPS of a negative $1.87. Revenue of $12.03B, up 9.6% Y/Y, beat by $910M.

Neither of the Energy Transfer MLPs declined by much after the reports. The Energy Transfer family continues to become more and more complex, with a new natural-gas focused MLP being proposed, and support of another MLP in the group, Regency Energy Partners (RGP), which is expanding via acquisition of pipeline assets from Eagle Rock (EROC).  

Health Care REIT, Inc. (HCN) reported Q4 FFO of $0.99, beating by two cents. Revenue of $788.57M, up 57.5% Y/Y, missed by $2.58M. How can revenue be up 57% and still miss analysts’ estimates? HCN has rebounded partially from the REIT sell off of the past few months, but is still available at a reasonable price, unlike most stocks at the moment.

Williams Partners (WPZ) reported Q4 EPS of $0.12, missing by twenty-eight cents. WPZ is down a bit from the highs of mid-January, and with a yield over 7%, is a value. The BoardWalk (BWP) implosion, noted in last week’s post, has cast a pall over the midstream energy MLP sector.

Calumet Specialty Products Partners, L.P. (CLMT) reported Q4 EPS of a negative twenty-seven cents. Revenue of $1.24B, up 1.6% Y/Y, missed by $20M. The MLP is down from nearly $40 to $27 and change in the last year. Yielding over 10%, it may be a good time to buy, or maybe not, if the slide continues.

Public Service Enterprise Group (PEG) reported Q4 EPS of $0.49, beating by four cents. Q4 earnings fell 11% on mark-to-market and storm-related impacts, but adjusted profit improved and exceeded expectations.

SCANA Corporation (SCG) reported Q4 EPS of $0.73, missing by four cents. Revenue of $1.12B, flat Y/Y, missed by $80M.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (WMT) reported Q4 EPS of $1.60, beating by a penny. Revenue of $129.7B, up 2.0% Y/Y, still missed by $740M. Management didn't duck discussing the headwinds the firm faces on a variety of fronts during the earnings call. Uneven consumer confidence, higher health care costs, and currency challenges are all immediate factors which will affect Q1 and 2014 results. The net result is that operating income is expected to grow slower than sales. Say it ain’t so, Joe. If WMT is struggling, where does that leave the rest of retail?

Newmont Mining (NEM) dropped 8% premarket on Friday after reporting adjusted Q4 earnings of $0.33/share, eleven cents shy of analyst consensus, and a 12% Y/Y drop in revenues, to $2.17B. Even as the mining sector has been recovering, if only slightly, NEM has faltered. The gold-price pegged dividend, down to $0.15 per quarter from $0.45 a year ago, may be reduced further going forward. I own NEM, and in hindsight, what I thought was an excellent entry point was the first leg of a serious decline. I still believe it will eventually rebound, along with gold, but not soon.

Pan American Silver Corp. (PAAS) reported Q4 EPS of -$1.94. Revenue of $192.4M, down 22.2% Y/Y, missed by $4.08M. In spite of these dismal numbers, PAAS has been seen as weathering the precious metals decline admirable, and the stock has advanced from $10.00 a couple of months ago to over $15 at Friday’s close. PAAS has performed like I thought NEM would. I also bought PAAS at the same time as NEM, but took an early profit, too early, in hindsight.

Stocks on my lists going ex-dividend this week, by date, are:

2/26/2014

NextEra Energy (NEE), yield 3.13%.

Novartis A G (NVS), yield 2.94%. This is an annual dividend.

Molson Coors (TAP), yield 2.61%.

Prospect Capital (PSEC), yield 11.68%. PSEC pays monthly.

2/27/2014

McDonalds (MCD), yield 3.36%.

Northrop Grumman (NOC), yield 2.03%.

Realty Income (O), yield 5.04%. O pays monthly.

Safety Insurance Group (SAFT), yield 4.29%.

Pan American Silver (PAAS), yield 3.30%.

Earnings season continues, with another full plate of earnings reports on tap for stocks on my lists:

2/24/2014

Digital Realty (DLR), ONEOK Partners L P (OKS), and Frontier Communications (FTR), all before the open, and Greif (GEF, GEF.B), after the close. 

2/25/2014

Alliant Energy (LNT), Exterran Partners L P (EXLP), before the open, Annaly Capital (NLY), after the close, and Solar Capital (SLRC), no time specified.

2/26/2014

Ares Capital (ARCC), Enerplus (ERF), before the open, Westar Energy (WR), Triangle Capital (TCAP), after the close, and Crestwood Midstream Partners L P (CMLP), Martin Midstream Partners L P (MMLP), no time specified.

2/27/2014

Consolidated Communications (CNSL), Windstream Holdings (WIN), Breitburn Energy Partners L P (BBEP), before the open, Hercules Technology Growth Capital (HTGC), after the close, Linn Energy L P (LINE), during market hours, and Main Street Capital (MAIN), no time specified.

It will be another busy week, with lots of earnings reporting to digest. Right now, I see very few buy opportunities, as the market continues higher and higher, defying the bears, as well as value investors awaiting a pullback. The market, as always, continues to frustrate mere mortals, attempting to make sense of the endless nonsensical gyrations. Once you accept that reality, then it begins to make sense after all.

JT