Top International Companies To Own In Right Now

Updated from 8:26 a.m. with analyst commentary throughout.

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Blackstone (BX)-owned Hilton Worldwide has filed a $1.25 billion initial public offering that could return the international luxury hotel chain, one of the biggest private equity takeovers of all-time, to public stock markets.

Hilton's prospective IPO comes amid a rise in revenue the firm generates from each of its hotel rooms, which has helped to push overall profits higher in recent years. The move comes as publicly traded competitors such as Starwood Hotels & Resorts (HOT), Marriott Worldwide (MAR), Hyatt Hotels (H) and Wyndham Worldwide (WYN) test multi-year share price highs.

Top 10 Defense Stocks To Watch For 2015: Bazaarvoice Inc (BV)

Bazaarvoice, Inc., incorporated on May 25, 2005, connects businesses together to amplify the authentic voices of people where they shop. The Company�� solutions, which are primarily provided through Software as a Service (SaaS) platform, enable clients to capture and display online word of mouth about specific products and services, channel content into all the places where it will influence a purchase both within and outside its network, which it refers to as syndication, and use business insights so they can act on what consumers want.

Bazaarvoice Conversations Platform

The Company�� Conversations platform provides capabilities to capture, manage and display online word of mouth. Consumers interact with its solutions as they view or author consumer reviews, questions, photos, videos, long-format narratives and other forms of consumer-generated content. Content that is displayed by its Conversations platform is styled to match its clients��brand, preserving important branding elements of its clients��businesses. Content collected and managed by its Conversations platform is used by its clients in a range of applications, including their online Websites, mobile-optimized Websites, mobile applications, social networks, in-store kiosks, physical in-store displays, printed flyers, email and other forms of online and offline media. The Company�� Conversations platform allows clients to capture, manage and display consumer reviews about their products and services on their Websites and mobile-optimized Websites; allows clients to facilitate question and answer conversations between consumers, or between consumers and brand representatives, on their Websites; allows clients to collect consumer testimonials about their products and services and display these stories on their Websites; enables consumers to read or write reviews, product questions, product answers, or stories on its clients��pages on social networking Websites and easily share this content with the peopl! e they influence the most-their social network friends or followers, and provides third-party developers with tools to build products or extend its platform on behalf of its clients, which enables the Company to expand the use of its platform by leveraging applications built by third-party developers.

Bazaarvoice Connections Solutions

The Company�� Conversations clients are connected through its SaaS platform to form a network. The Company offers network syndication and brand engagement solutions to facilitate the sharing of online word of mouth among its clients and to enable brands to directly interact with consumers on its retail clients��Websites. BrandVoice enables brands to enter into distribution relationships allowing them to display review content from their brand Websites on retail Websites within its network, which it refers to as syndication. BrandAnswers enables brands to interact directly with consumers on retail websites within its network to answer questions and provide suggestions on alternative products that may better meet that consumer�� needs. Brand Response enables brands to interact with consumers by responding to reviews posted on retail Websites within its network.

Bazaarvoice Analytics Solutions

The Company�� Conversations platform includes its Intelligence solution, which is it enhanced analytics solution, and a Workbench Analytics solution, which provides analytics and self-service administration tools. Intelligence allows clients to derive sophisticated market, consumer and product insights in a timely manner from the underlying data it collects on their behalf through its platform. Workbench Analytics provides basic analytics capabilities that allow its clients to generate reports highlighting simple ratings trends, text analysis and product and service issue identification.

Bazaarvoice Media

The Company�� Bazaarvoice Media sells advertising on behalf of retailers, brands and agencie! s, and pr! ovides capabilities that incorporate consumers��authentic opinions in advertising campaigns, creating advertisements that are trusted, relevant and targeted. Bazaarvoice Media sells advertising on retail Websites, utilizing its relationships and knowledge of the intricacies of the retail environment. It develops custom programs for brands to reach consumers while they are in the shopping environment, while also selling to non-retail brands, such as within the automotive and financial industries, that wish to reach the engaged shopper within this channel. Word of Mouth Advertisements provides brands with the ability to increase engagement with their advertising through the inclusion of authentic consumer sentiment. Mobile Advertising enables brands to reach consumers on their mobile devices.

The Company competes with Pluck, Reevoo, Gigya, Viewpoints, Google and Facebook.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Eddie Staley]

  Bazaarvoice (NASDAQ: BV) tumbled 11.52 percent to $7.30 as the US District Court in the Northern District of California ruled against the company's acquisition of PowerReviews. Sears Holdings (NASDAQ: SHLD) was down, falling 13.88 percent to $36.66 after the company reported a 7.4% drop in same-store sales at Kmart and Sears for the nine-week period ended January 6. The department store expected to post a loss for the fourth quarter and full year.

• [By Roberto Pedone]

  Another earnings short-squeeze prospect is Bazaarvoice (BV), a provider of social commerce software solutions, which is set to release numbers on Wednesday after the market close. Wall Street analysts, on average, expect Bazaarvoice to report revenue of $44.12 million on a loss of 8 cents per share.

  The current short interest as a percentage of the float for Bazaarvoice is very high at 14.4%. That means that out of the 41.18 million shares in the tradable float, 6.33 million shares are sold short by the bears. The bears have also been increasing their bets from the last reporting period by 11.6%, or by 656,000 shares. If the bears are caught pressing their bets into a bullish quarter, then shares of BV could rip sharply higher post-earnings as the shorts rush to cover some of their bets.

  From a technical perspective, BV is currently trending above both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, which is bullish. This stock has been trending sideways inside of a consolidation pattern for the last month and change, with shares moving between $10.15 on the downside and $11.50 on the upside. Any high-volume move above the upper-end of its recent range post-earnings could trigger a major breakout trade for shares of BV.

  If you're bullish on BV, then I would wait until after its report and look for long-biased trades if this stock manages to break out above some near-term overhead resistance levels at $11.35 to $11.50 a share with high volume. Look for volume on that move that hits near or above its three-month average action of 661,797 shares. If that breakout triggers, then BV will set up to re-test or possibly take out its next major overhead resistance levels at $13 to $14 a share.

  I would simply avoid BV or look for short-biased trades if after earnings it fails to trigger that breakout and then drops back below its 50-day at $10.34 a share and then below some key near-term support at $10.15 a share with high volume. If we get that m

Top International Companies To Own In Right Now: Johnson Controls Inc.(JCI)

Johnson Controls, Inc. engages in building efficiency, automotive experience, and power solutions businesses worldwide. Its building efficiency business designs, produces, markets, and installs integrated heating, ventilating, and air conditioning systems, as well as building management systems, controls, and security and mechanical equipment. This business also provides technical services, energy management consulting, and operations of real estate portfolios for the non-residential buildings market. In addition, this business offers residential air conditioning and heating systems, and industrial refrigeration products. The company?s automotive experience business designs and manufactures interior products and systems for passenger cars and light trucks, including vans, pick-up trucks, and sport/crossover utility vehicles. It offers seating systems and components; cockpit systems comprising instrument panels and clusters, information displays, and body controllers; overh ead systems, such as headliners and electronic convenience features; floor consoles; and door systems. This business also produces automotive interior systems for original equipment manufacturers. Its power solutions business produces lead-acid automotive batteries serving automotive original equipment manufacturers and the general vehicle battery aftermarket. This business produces lead-acid batteries, as well as offers absorbent glass mat and lithium-ion battery technologies to power hybrid vehicles. The company was formerly known as Johnson Electric Service Company and changed its name to Johnson Controls, Inc. in 1974. Johnson Controls, Inc. was founded in 1885 and is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  The Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) has fallen 1.7% to $58.35 today, the worst among SPDR’s sector ETFs. Big losers today include the Home Depot (HD), which has fallen 2.8% to $75.27, Lowes (LOW), which has dropped 2.3% to $43.98, and Johnson Controls (JCI) which has declined 2.7% to 40.71.

• [By The Part-time Investor]

  Due to the sale of stocks that cut their dividend (and buyouts), and reinvestment of this money into new positions, In January of 2009 the following three new stocks were purchased.

  Dover Corp. (DOV)Johnson Controls (JCI)Medtronics (MDT)

  In January of 2010, again, due to stock sales (and buyouts) a further four new stocks were bought.

Top International Companies To Own In Right Now: NxStage Medical Inc.(NXTM)

NxStage Medical, Inc., a medical device company, develops, manufactures, and markets products for the treatment of kidney failure, fluid overload, and related blood treatments and procedures. Its primary product, the NxStage System One, is a portable hemodialysis system used for home hemodialysis and a range of dialysis therapies for chronic home hemodialysis treatment, and the treatment of acute kidney failure and fluid overload. The NxStage System One comprises components, such as The NxStage Cycler, a compact portable electromechanical device; The NxStage Cartridge, a single-use integrated treatment cartridge; and premixed dialysate for hemodialysis applications. The company also sells a line of extracorporeal disposable products for use primarily for in-center dialysis treatments for patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD); and needles and blood tubing sets primarily to dialysis clinics for the treatment of ESRD. NxStage Medical, Inc. markets its products primaril y to dialysis clinics, nephrologists, and hospitals through distributors and sales representatives in the United States, Mexico, and Europe. The company was formerly known as QB Medical, Inc. and changed its name to NxStage Medical, Inc. NxStage Medical, Inc. founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Lawrence, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

  Small cap dialysis stock Rockwell Medical Inc (NASDAQ: RMTI) looks set to decline when the market opens after Brean Capital initiated coverage with a sell rating and a price target of $4.00, meaning it might be time to take a closer look at what is going on with the stock along with�the performance of large cap dialysis stocks DaVita Healthcare Partners (NYSE: DVA)�and Fresenius Medical Care (NYSE: FMS) along with small cap dialysis stocks NxStage Medical, Inc (NASDAQ: NXTM).�

Top International Companies To Own In Right Now: Singapore Telecommunications Ltd (SGAPY.PK)

Singapore Telecommunications Limited (SingTel) is engaged in the operation and provision of telecommunication systems and services, and investment holding. SingTel operates in three segments: Singapore, which represent the services and products provided by SingTel and its subsidiaries (excluding SingTel Optus Pty Limited (Optus)); Australia, which represents the services and products provided by Optus, a subsidiary of SingTel domiciled in Australia, and Associates & Joint Ventures, which represents the Company�� investments in associated and joint venture companies, which mainly comprise Advanced Info Service Public Company Limited (AIS) in Thailand, Bharti in India, Globe Telecom, Inc. in the Philippines, and PT Telekomunikasi Selular (Telkomsel) in Indonesia. In December 2013, its subsidiary, Amobee Group Pte Ltd incorporated a subsidiary in Australia known as Amobee ANZ Pty Ltd. In December 2013, its subsidiary, SingTel Optus Pty Limited incorporated Optus Digital Life Pty Limited. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By David Hunkar]

  Investors looking to add international dividend stocks can consider some of the options listed below:

  Company: Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. (SGAPY.PK)

  Current Dividend Yield: 4.35%
  Sector: Telecom
  Country: Singapore