5 Best Dividend Stocks To Own For 2014

Before the opening bell on Wednesday, a number of big name, dividend paying companies announced their quarterly earnings. Below, we look at these earnings reports and break down the important points for investors.

ADT Beats Estimates; Shares Skyrocket

Shares of ADT Corp (ADT) soared on Wednesday morning after the company beat third quarter estimates. The company reported earnings of $82 million, or 47 cents per share, down from $113 million, or 52 cents per share, last year. Excluding special items related to its Tyco separation, earnings were 55 cents per share, above analysts’ estimate of 47 cents per share.

Best Solar Stocks To Watch For 2015: ConocoPhillips(COP)

ConocoPhillips operates as an integrated energy company worldwide. The company?s Exploration and Production (E&P) segment explores for, produces, transports, and markets crude oil, bitumen, natural gas, liquefied natural gas, and natural gas liquids. Its Midstream segment gathers, processes, and markets natural gas; and fractionates and markets natural gas liquids in the United States and Trinidad. The company?s Refining and Marketing (R&M) segment purchases, refines, markets, and transports crude oil and petroleum products, such as gasolines, distillates, and aviation fuels. Its Chemicals segment manufactures and markets petrochemicals and plastics. This segment offers olefins and polyolefins, including ethylene, propylene, and other olefin products; aromatics products, such as benzene, styrene, paraxylene, and cyclohexane, as well as polystyrene and styrene-butadiene copolymers; and various specialty chemical products comprising organosulfur chemicals, solvents, catalyst s, drilling chemicals, mining chemicals, and engineering plastics and compounds. The company?s Emerging Businesses segment develops new technologies and businesses. It focuses on power generation; and technologies related to conventional and nonconventional hydrocarbon recovery, refining, alternative energy, biofuels, and the environment. This segment also offers E-Gas, a gasification technology producing high-value synthetic gas. ConocoPhillips was founded in 1917 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Claudia Assis]

  Major oil companies also reversed course, with shares of Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) �up 0.8%. Shares of Chevron Corp. (CVX) �advanced 0.8% as well, while shares of ConocoPhillips (COP) �gained 0.4%.

• [By GuruFocus]

  You can easily limit the list to U.S. companies only by clicking on the ��undamental��tab and select ��ountry��for U.S. This leaves 22 companies for you, with Intel (INTC) and ConocoPhilips (COP) on the top. A screenshot is here:

5 Best Dividend Stocks To Own For 2014: First Financial Northwest Inc.(FFNW)

First Financial Northwest, Inc. operates as the holding company for First Savings Bank Northwest that provides community-based savings bank services in Washington. Its deposit products include noninterest bearing accounts, NOW accounts, money market deposit accounts, statement savings accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company?s loan products portfolio comprises one-to-four family residential loans, multifamily loans, commercial real estate loans, construction/land development loans, and business loans, as well as consumer loans, including home equity loans, personal lines of credit, second mortgage loans, and savings account loans. First Financial Northwest, Inc., through another subsidiary, First Financial Diversified, Inc., offers escrow services. The company primarily serves customers in the King, Pierce, Snohomish, and Kitsap counties of Washington through a full-service banking office in Renton, Washington. First Financial Northwest, Inc. was founded in 1923 and is based in Renton, Washington.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jim Royal]

  One of my favorite reasons to reinvest in stocks I already own is when an uncertain, but favorable catalyst occurs, but the stock does little. So my Special Situations portfolio is adding $1,000 to each of the following three stocks: Cincinnati Bell (NYSE: CBB  ) , Bridgepoint Education (NYSE: BPI  ) , and First Financial Northwest (NASDAQ: FFNW  ) . Read on to see why.

5 Best Dividend Stocks To Own For 2014: Lorillard Inc(LO)

Lorillard, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes in the United States. The company offers 43 different product offerings under the Newport, Kent, True, Maverick, and Old Gold brand names. Lorillard, Inc. sells its products primarily to wholesale distributors, who in turn service retail outlets, chain store organizations, and government agencies, including the United States? Armed Forces. The company was founded in 1760 and is headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sean Williams]

  Few domestic tobacco producers are prospering, with the exception of Lorillard (NYSE: LO  ) , which has seen a decade's worth of market share gains thanks in large part to the success of its premium Newport brands and its discount brands such as Maverick. Unfortunately for much of Big Tobacco, what gains these companies do see in the volume of discount cigarette sales, they are losing in their margins, which are often much lower than premium brands, making it much tougher for tobacco companies to simply maintain their profits as the number of smokers slowly dwindles.

5 Best Dividend Stocks To Own For 2014: ITT Industries Inc.(ITT)

ITT Corporation designs, manufactures, and sells a range of engineered products, and provides related services worldwide. Its Defense & Information Solutions segment develops tactical communications equipment, electronic warfare and force protection equipment, radar systems, integrated structures equipment, and imaging and sensor equipment, including night vision goggles, as well as weather, location, surveillance, and other related technologies for military and government agencies. It also provides services comprising air traffic management, information and cyber solutions, large-scale systems engineering, and integration and defense technologies; satellite-based imaging payloads for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance solutions; and high-resolution commercial imaging systems with earth and space science applications, climate and environmental monitoring sensors and systems, and GPS navigation and software applications designed for image and data processing and dissemination. The company?s Fluid Technology segment provides water transport and wastewater treatment systems, pumps and related technologies, and other water and fluid control products with municipal, residential, commercial, and industrial applications. Its Motion & Flow Control segment manufactures shock absorbers and brake friction materials for the transportation industry; switch applications for the industrial and aerospace industries; electrical connectors used in telecommunications, computers, aerospace, medical, and industrial applications; and a range of pumps and tailored products for marine, food and beverage, and general industrial markets. The company was formerly known as ITT Industries, Inc. and changed its name to ITT Corporation in July 2006. ITT Corporation was founded in 1920 and is based in White Plains, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephen Simpson, CFA]

  This is a logical deal for SKF on multiple fronts. For starters, Kaydon will meaningfully expand the company's U.S. presence - something it could have done on its own eventually, but certainly not without spending money. With that, there is the possibility of using Kaydon's existing U.S. footprint to sell more SKF products and further trouble rivals like RBC Bearings (ROLL) and ITT (ITT).

• [By Jeremy Bowman]

  What: Shares of ITT Educational Services (NYSE: ITT  ) were flying higher today, gaining as much 34% after smashing analyst estimates in its quarterly report.