10 Best Oil Service Stocks To Buy For 2014

When the original estimates for capital expenditures for 2013 came out, it looked as though oil services might be the place to be. Based on the recent earnings release from Nabors Industries (NYSE: NBR  ) , though, you might think otherwise. Here's the problem: Nabors is stuck between two emerging trends that could put a big squeeze on the rig company. Let's look at these two trends and Nabors' one hope for a better future.

Not everybody wins with greater efficiency
In�comparison with the rest of the oil and gas industry, horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing are still very young technologies. As exploration and production companies have�become�more�familiar�with the processes, they have also been able to eke out more�efficient�drilling. One major revolution that has brought along big savings is the concept of pad drilling, or drilling multiple wells within a couple of feet of each other to tap different parts of the oil formation below. Thanks to these gains in efficiency, companies have been able to drill more wells while using less drilling rigs.

10 Best Oil Service Stocks To Buy For 2014: Credito Emiliano(EMBI.MI)

Credito Emiliano SpA, together with its subsidiaries, provides regional banking services primarily in Italy. It provides retail banking, corporate banking, wealth management, financing, and investment banking services. The company provides current and savings accounts, certificate of deposits, repurchase agreements, term deposits, demand deposits, loans, personal loans, credit cards, leasing, and factoring services. In addition, it offers domestic clearing services for payments and collections, and insurance services, as well as provides electronic documental storage services and document management services. The company is headquartered in Reggio Emilia, Italy. Credito Emiliano SpA operates as a subsidiary of Credito Emiliano Holding SpA.

10 Best Oil Service Stocks To Buy For 2014: Marathon Petroleum Corp (MPC)

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC), incorporated on November 9, 2009, is a petroleum product refiners, transporters and marketers in the United States. The Company operates in three segments: Refining & Marketing, Speedway and Pipeline Transportation. Marathon Petroleum�� refining, marketing and transportation operations are concentrated in the Midwest, Gulf Coast and Southeast regions of the United States. MPC has two retail brands: Speedway and Marathon. Effective as of June 30, 2011, MPC was separated from Marathon Oil Corporation (Marathon Oil) and became an independent company in a spin-off transaction.

Refining & Marketing

The Company owned and operated six refineries in the Gulf Coast and Midwest regions of the United States with an aggregate crude oil refining capacity of approximately 1.2 million barrels per calendar day as of December 31, 2011. During 2011, its refineries processed 1,177 million barrels per day of crude oil and 181 mbpd of other charge and blend stocks. Its refineries include crude oil atmospheric and vacuum distillation, fluid catalytic cracking, catalytic reforming, desulfurization and sulfur recovery units. The refineries process a range of crude oils and produce numerous refined products, ranging from transportation fuels, such as reformulated gasolines, blend-grade gasolines intended for blending with fuel ethanol and ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel, to heavy fuel oil and asphalt. Additionally, MPC manufacture aromatics, propane, propylene, cumene and sulfur.

The Company�� Garyville, Louisiana refinery is located along the Mississippi River in southeastern Louisiana between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. The Garyville refinery is configured to process heavy sour crude oil into products, such as gasoline, distillates, asphalt, polymer grade propylene, propane, isobutane, sulfur and fuel-grade coke. The Catlettsburg, Kentucky refinery is located in northeastern Kentucky on the western bank of the Big Sandy River, near the confluence! with the Ohio River. The Catlettsburg refinery processes sweet and sour crude oils into products such as gasoline, distillates, asphalt, cumene, petrochemicals, propane and propylene. The Robinson, Illinois refinery is located in southeastern Illinois. The Robinson refinery processes sweet and sour crude oils into products, such as multiple grades of gasoline, distillates, anode-grade coke, propane, butane and propylene.

MPC�� Detroit, Michigan refinery is located near Interstate 75 in southwest Detroit. It is the petroleum refinery operating in Michigan. The Detroit refinery processes light sweet and heavy sour crude oils, including Canadian crude oils, into products, such as gasoline, distillates, asphalt, slurry, propane, and propylene. Its Canton, Ohio refinery is located approximately 60 miles southeast of Cleveland, Ohio. The Canton refinery processes sweet and sour crude oils into products such as gasoline, distillates, asphalt, propane, slurry and roofing flux. Its Texas City, Texas refinery is located on the Texas Gulf Coast approximately 30 miles south of Houston, Texas. The refinery processes sweet crude oil into products such as gasoline, chemical grade propylene, propane, slurry and aromatics.

As of December 31, 2011, the Company owned and operated 62 light product and 21 asphalt terminals. In addition, it distributes through approximately 52 third-party light product and 12 third-party asphalt terminals in its market area. During 2011, marine transportation operations included 15 towboats, as well as 167 owned and 14 leased barges that transport refined products on the Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois rivers and their tributaries, as well as the Intercoastal Waterway. As of December 31, 2011, the Company leased or owned approximately 1,950 railcars of various sizes and capacities for movement and storage of refined products. In addition, it own 124 transport trucks for the movement of refined products.

The Company produces propane at all six of its! refineri! es. Propane is primarily used for home heating and cooking, as a feedstock within the petrochemical industry, for grain drying and as a fuel for trucks and other vehicles. The Company is also a producer and marketer of feedstocks and specialty products. Product availability varies by refinery and includes propylene, cumene, dilute naphthalene oil, molten sulfur, toluene, benzene and xylene. Propane is primarily used for home heating and cooking, as a feedstock within the petrochemical industry, for grain drying and as a fuel for trucks and other vehicles.

Speedway

The Company sells transportation fuels and convenience products in the retail market in the Midwest, primarily through Speedway convenience stores. The Speedway segment sells gasoline and merchandise through convenience stores that the Companu owns and operates, primarily under the Speedway brand. Speedway-branded convenience stores offer a range of merchandise, such as prepared foods, beverages and non-food items, including a number of private-label items. As of December 31, 2011, Speedway had 1,371 convenience stores in seven states.

Pipeline Transportation

The Company transports crude oil and other feedstocks to our refineries and other locations, delivers refined products to wholesale and retail market areas and includes, among other transportation-related assets, a majority interest in LOOP LLC, which is the owner and operator of the United States deepwater oil port. It owns common carrier pipeline systems through Marathon Pipe Line LLC (MPL) and Ohio River Pipe Line LLC (ORPL), both of which are wholly owned subsidiaries. These pipeline systems transport crude oil and refined products, primarily in the Midwest and Gulf Coast regions, to its refineries, its terminals and other pipeline systems. The Company�� MPL and ORPL wholly owned carrier systems consist of 1,707 miles of crude oil lines and 1,825 miles of refined product lines comprising 31 systems located in 11 states, as of Decem! ber 31, 2! 011. In addition, MPL leases and operates 217 miles of common carrier refined product pipelines.

The common carrier refined product pipelines include the owned and operated Cardinal Products Pipeline and the Wabash Pipeline. The Cardinal Products Pipeline delivers refined products from Kenova, West Virginia, to Columbus, Ohio. The Wabash Pipeline system delivers refined products from Robinson, Illinois, to various terminals in the area of Chicago, Illinois. Other refined product pipelines owned and operated by MPL extend from: Robinson, Illinois to Louisville, Kentucky; Robinson, Illinois to Lima, Ohio; Wood River, Illinois to Indianapolis, Indiana; Garyville, Louisiana to Zachary, Louisiana, and Texas City, Texas to Pasadena, Texas.

As of December 31, 2011, the Company had partial ownership interests in the pipeline companies that have approximately 110 miles of crude oil pipelines and 3,600 miles of refined products pipelines, including about 970 miles operated by MPL, which include Centennial Pipeline LLC (Centennial), Explorer Pipeline Company (Explorer), LOCAP LLC (LOCAP), LOOP LLC (LOOP), Muskegon Pipeline LLC (Muskegon) and Wolverine Pipe Line Company (Wolverine).

The Company holds a 50% interest in Centennial, which owns a refined products pipeline system connecting the Gulf Coast region with the Midwest market. The Company holds a 17% interest in Explorer, a refined products pipeline system extending from the Gulf Coast to the Midwest. It holds a 51% interest in LOOP, the owner and operator of the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, which is a deepwater oil port capable of receiving crude oil from large crude carriers, located 18 miles off the coast of Louisiana, and a crude oil pipeline connecting the port facility to storage caverns and tanks at Clovelly, Louisiana. The Company holds a 60% interest in Muskegon, which owns a refined products pipeline extending from Griffith, Indiana to North Muskegon, Michigan. It hold a 6% interest in Wolverine, a refined prod! ucts pipe! line system extending from Chicago, Illinois to Toledo, Ohio.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jim Jubak]

   A river of oil from the oil-shale boom in North Dakota and Texas is gradually making its way to the country's Gulf Coast refineries as pipelines and other infrastructure are built out. The arrival of oil from resources like the Eagle Ford and Bakken shales will mean rising margins at Gulf Coast refineries as they begin their work with cheaper oil.

  Marathon Petroleum (MPC) will get a big hunk of that refining business -- and those higher refining margins -- and it seems determined to gather in even more with its purchase in October of BP's (BP) Texas City refinery. Texas City gives Marathon a refinery close to growing crude production from Eagle Ford and the Permian Basin. What I like about this deal -- and Marathon Petroleum's positioning -- is that as the infrastructure buildout continues, the company will be able to grow margins and earnings by simply substituting cheaper mid-continent oil for more expensive imported oil.

Best Value Companies For 2014: Nash-Finch Company(NAFC)

Nash-Finch Company operates as a wholesale food distributor in the United States. The company?s Military segment distributes grocery products to the United States military commissaries and exchanges in the United States and the District of Columbia, Europe, Puerto Rico, Cuba, the Azores, Egypt, and Bahrain. Its Food Distribution segment sells and distributes various branded and private label grocery products and perishable food products to approximately 1,500 independent retail locations through its 14 distribution centers. This segment also provides various services, including promotional, advertising, and merchandising programs; installation of computerized ordering, receiving, and scanning systems; retail equipment procurement assistance; accounting, budgeting, and payroll contract services; consumer and market research; remodeling and store development services; supply chain through Internet services; and securing existing grocery stores. The company?s Retail segment operates corporate-owned grocery stores under the Sun Mart, Econofoods, AVANZA, Family Thrift Center, Pick ?n Save, Family Fresh Market, Prairie Market, Saver?s Choice, Wally?s Supermarkets, and Wholesale Food Outlet banners primarily in the states of Colorado, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. This segment?s conventional grocery stores offer a range of grocery products and services, such as fresh meat counters, delicatessens, bakeries, eat-in cafes, pharmacies, banks, and floral departments, as well as provide check cashing, fax services, and money transfer services. As of December 31, 2011, the company served 93 retail stores operating under the IGA banner and 50 retail stores under the Food Pride banner; and operated 43 conventional supermarkets, 1 AVANZA grocery store, 1 Wholesale Food Outlet grocery store, and 1 Saver?s Choice store. Nash-Finch Company was founded in 1885 and is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

10 Best Oil Service Stocks To Buy For 2014: China Valves Technology Inc.(CVVT)

China Valves Technology, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in developing, manufacturing, and selling low, medium, and high-pressure metal valves for customers in the electricity, petroleum, chemical, water, gas, nuclear power station, and metal industries in China. The company?s product categories include high pressure and high temperature valves for power station units; valves for long distance petroleum and gas pipelines, and sewage; special valves for chemical lines; and large valves for water supply pipe networks. Its products comprise gate, globe, check, throttle, butterfly, ball, safety, water pressure test, vacuum, and extraction check valves. The company markets its products through regional agents and distributors. China Valves Technology, Inc. has a strategic cooperation frame agreement with Dongfang Electric Corporation for the development of high-end valves. The company was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Kaifeng, the People's Republic of China. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Robert Hsu]

  China Valves Technology (NASDAQ: CVVT) recently announced that its subsidiary, Able Delight Valve,  has been certified as a qualified supplier of China Nuclear Power Engineering. This is CVVT’s second subsidiary to receive this certification.

  This is a nice milestone for the company as CVVT continues to gain market share in the nuclear power industry. The demand for nuclear power applications is growing but the inspection of prospective suppliers is strict — and the company believes that the addition of Able Delight as a qualified supplier will become another catalyst for rapid growth in the near future. CVVT is a buy under $10.50.

10 Best Oil Service Stocks To Buy For 2014: Standard Pacific Corp(SPF)

Standard Pacific Corp. operates as a diversified builder of single-family attached and detached homes in the United States. It constructs homes targeting various homebuyers primarily move-up buyers in metropolitan markets in California, Florida, the Carolinas, Texas, Arizona, Colorado, and Nevada. The company also provides mortgage financing services to its homebuyers; and title examination services to its Texas homebuyers. As of December 31, 2011, it owned or controlled 26,444 homesites and had 166 active selling communities. Standard Pacific Corp. was founded in 1965 and is headquartered in Irvine, California.

10 Best Oil Service Stocks To Buy For 2014: Sourcefire Inc.(FIRE)

Sourcefire, Inc. provides intelligent Cybersecurity technologies to commercial enterprises and government agencies worldwide. The company?s network security products include Sourcefire appliances for detecting, blocking, and analyzing network traffic; Sourcefire IPS to examine network packets for threats; Sourcefire NGIPS to discover the characteristics and vulnerabilities of computing devices communicating on a network; Sourcefire NGIPS with Application Control to provide granular control of applications; Sourcefire NGFW that includes application control and firewall capabilities; and Sourcefire SSL Appliance, which decrypts SSL traffic for inspection by network security appliances. It also offers FireAMP, a malware protection solution that uses data analytics to discover, understand, and block malware outbreaks; and Sourcefire Defense Center that provides application programming interfaces to interoperate third-party systems, such as firewalls, routers, log management, security information event management, trouble ticketing, patch management systems, and other technologies. In addition, the company provides Sourcefire Virtual Appliance, an application to inspect communications between different virtual machines; Sourcefire Virtual Defense Center, which provides central management, event analysis, and reporting services; Snort, a traffic inspection engine used in intrusion prevention system; ClamAV, an open source anti-malware product; and Razorback, an open-source project that addresses threat detection and protection. Further, it provides customer support, professional, and education and certification services. The company serves financial institutions, defense contractors, health care providers, IT companies, telecommunication companies, and retailers, as well as national, state, and local government agencies. Sourcefire, Inc. was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Columbia, Maryland.

10 Best Oil Service Stocks To Buy For 2014: Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation(NTT)

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides telecommunications services to residential and corporate customers in Japan. It offers fixed and mobile voice related services, IP/packet communications services, system integration and network system services, and other telecommunications related services; sells telecommunications equipment; and operates telephone networks. The company provides intra-prefectural and inter-prefectural communications, international communications, mobile telephone services, and related ancillary services; and data communications services, such as strategic planning, systems planning and systems design, and information communications systems and computer networks installation. It also engages in building maintenance, real estate property rental, systems development, leasing, and research and development activities. As of March 31, 2011, the company provided telephone and ISDN services to 34,884 thousand subs cribers; broadband services to 15,059 thousand FLET?S Hikari subscribers and 2,858 thousand FLET?S ADSL subscribers; and mobile phone services to 58,010 thousand subscribers. It also offered Plala Internet connection service to 3,101 thousand subscribers and Open Computer Network service to 8,234 thousand subscribers. Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation was founded in 1952 and is based in Tokyo, Japan.

10 Best Oil Service Stocks To Buy For 2014: BSD Medical Corporation(BSDM)

BSD Medical Corporation develops, manufactures, markets, and services systems to treat cancer and diseases using heat therapy delivered using focused radiofrequency (RF) and microwave energy. The company develops technology and products for thermal ablation and hyperthermia cancer therapy through various techniques, which include thermal ablation that ablates soft tissues at high temperatures through focused microwave energy; superficial hyperthermia, which non-invasively treats cancerous tumors located within a few centimeters of the surface of the body, such as melanoma and recurrent breast cancer; internal or interstitial hyperthermia that treats tumors in combination with internal radiation therapy by inserting tiny microwave antennae, which deliver hyperthermic microwave energy to tumors through the same catheters used to deliver radioactive materials to tumors for radiation therapy; and deep hyperthermia, which non-invasively treats tumors located deep within the bod y. It offers MicroThermX microwave ablation systems for the ablation of soft tissue; BSD-500 Hyperthermia System that delivers superficial or interstitial hyperthermia therapy or both; and BSD-2000 Hyperthermia System, which non-invasively deliver localized therapeutic heating to solid tumors by applying RF energy to certain cancerous tumors, as well as BSD-2000/3D and BSD-2000/3D/MR systems. The company serves clinics, hospitals, and institutes that treat cancer in the United States, Europe, and Asia. BSD Medical Corporation was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Toby]

  Back in January I looked at a trio of high-upside stocks.
  Since then, shares of Biolase Technology (Nasdaq: BLTI) have more than doubled while Research Frontiers (Nasdaq: REFR) is up a solid 20%. Yet it's the third stock in that group, BSD Medical, that is my focus right now. As I noted a month ago, the company's heat-focused cancer-treating technology looks promising. All the company lacks is a clear customer base.

  The wait may be coming to an end. BSD has secured a few recent deals, highlighted by a just-announced contract for the sale of a device to 21st century Oncology, a radiation therapy center with 98 locations. If this first device earns its keep, might 21st Century order more to place in its other centers? I'm keen to listen to the company's next conference call, which will likely come in early April, to see what the sales pipeline looks like.

  Cash of about $19 million looks healthy in the context of a $1 million quarterly cash burn rate, but investors need to see real growth taking shape. That may not come for several more quarters, if at all, but it's hard to deny the very strong clinical data that BSD's devices have shown. The company's current $140 million market value could eventually double or more if BSD starts to generate a rising tide of sales.

10 Best Oil Service Stocks To Buy For 2014: Cost Plus Inc.(CPWM)

Cost Plus, Inc. operates as a specialty retailer of casual home furnishings and entertaining products in the United States. It offers home decorating items that include furniture, rugs, pillows, bath linens, lamps, window coverings, frames, and baskets; and furniture products, which comprise ready-to-assemble living and dining room pieces, handcrafted case goods, occasional pieces, and outdoor furniture made from various materials, such as rattan, hardwood, and metal. The company also provides tabletop and kitchen items, including glassware, ceramics, textiles, and cooking utensils; gift and decorative accessories comprising collectibles, candles, framed art, and holiday and other seasonal items; and jewelry, fashion accessories, and personal care items. In addition, it offers gourmet foods and beverages, including wine, microbrewed and imported beer, coffee, tea, and bottled water. The company operates stores under the names of World Market, Cost Plus World Market, Cost P lus Imports, and World Market Stores. Cost Plus, Inc. also sells its products through its Web site, worldmarket.com. As of May 19, 2011, it operated 259 stores in 30 states. The company was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Oakland, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Keith]

  Cost Plus, Inc. is a specialty retailer of casual home furnishings and entertaining products in the United States. Its EPS forecast for the current year is 0.55 and next year is 0.93. According to consensus estimates, its topline is expected to grow 4.23% current year and grow 3.54% next year. It is trading at a forward P/E of 10.94. One analyst covers the company and has a buy recommendation.

10 Best Oil Service Stocks To Buy For 2014: Riverbed Technology Inc.(RVBD)

Riverbed Technology, Inc. provides solutions to the fundamental problems associated with information technology performance across wide area networks (WANs) in the United States and internationally. It primarily offers Steelhead products, which enable its customers to improve the performance of their applications and access to their data across WANs, as well as supports the riverbed services platform. The company's Steelhead product family includes the Steelhead Mobile client software application that provides mobile workers with LAN-like access to corporate files and applications; Virtual Steelhead appliance to extend the reach of WAN optimization; Cloud Steelhead, a solution that is purpose-built for public cloud computing environments; Central Management Console that provides centralized configuration, monitoring, and control for simplifying the process of deploying and managing Steelhead products distributed across a WAN; and Interceptor appliance, which allows organiz ations to scale their WAN optimization solutions. It sells Steelhead appliances to customers ranging from small office deployments to large headquarters and data center locations. The company also offers Cascade product line, which help organizations manage, secure, and optimize the availability and performance of global applications; Stingray product line, which provides virtual application delivery control; and Whitewater gateways, designed to accelerate, de-duplicate, secure, and store backup data sets in the public cloud. It serves customers in manufacturing, finance, technology, government, architecture, engineering and construction, professional services, utilities, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, media, and retail industries. The company sells its products directly through value-added resellers and distributors, service providers, and systems integrators, as well as through its sales force. Riverbed Technology, Inc. was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in San Fran cisco, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Curtis]

  Riverbed (RVBD) is the current market leader in WAN optimization and the top pick of this market segment. Despite the slowdown of the economy, Riverbed is expected to experience rapid growth and a reduction in cost due to consolidation of data centers and movement of the market towards cloud-based services. Its shares are currently trading at $26.74 and are expected to reach a target of $29. The company has market capitalization of $4.15 billion and its earnings per share of $0.58 are expected to reach $1.26 by the end of 2012. Though, the valuation for stock can come off a bit.