Hot Media Stocks To Buy For 2014

With the Big Two presenting, Saturday is sure to be the biggest day of Comic-Con 2014. Credit: SDCC.

Comic-Con 2014 is expected to add $178 million to the San Diego economy. Hollywood has much more than that on the line. Every major studio is here in some form. So is every major comic book publisher and game developer. For all of them, Comic-Con is an annual rite of passage in which publicists hawk new products and projects. If fans get on board, riches could follow.

Of course, the biggest reveals are always reserved for Saturday when Time Warner's (NYSE: TWX  ) DC Entertainment and Walt Disney's (NYSE: DIS  ) Marvel Studios take the stage at Comic-Con's famed 8,000-seat Hall H. What should investors be watching for today? We asked three of our top media and pop culture analysts to weigh in.

Leo Sun: �What will Marvel do with the outcasts?
I'd like to know what Disney and Marvel's long-term plans are for its recently reclaimed characters. Specifically, Daredevil, Blade, Ghost Rider, and Punisher.

Best Media Stocks For 2015: Liberty Global Inc.(LBTYA)

Liberty Global, Inc. provides video, broadband Internet, and telephony services primarily in Europe and Chile. The company offers broadband services over cable distribution systems, including video, broadband Internet, and telephony; and video services through direct-to-home satellite, or through multichannel multipoint distribution systems. Its analog video services comprise basic and expanded basic programming; and digital cable services include basic and premium programming, digital video recorders, and high definition programming, as well as pay-per-view programming, such as video-on-demand and near video-on-demand. In addition, the company offers voice-over-Internet-protocol and circuit-switched telephony services, as well as mobile telephony services using third-party networks. Further, it owns programming networks that provide video programming channels to multi-channel distribution systems owned by the company and the third parties. As of December 31, 2011, the com pany owned and operated networks that passed 33,262,100 homes; and served 18,405,500 video subscribers, 8,159,300 broadband Internet subscribers, and 6,225,300 telephony subscribers. Liberty Global, Inc. was founded in 2004 and is based in Englewood, Colorado.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tim Brugger]

  Upon Liberty Global's (NASDAQ: LBTYA  ) successfully closing its acquisition of Virgin Media (NASDAQ: VMED  ) , Tom Mockridge will assume CEO responsibilities of the U.K. communications firm, Liberty Global announced today.

Hot Media Stocks To Buy For 2014: DIRECTV(DTV)

DIRECTV provides digital television entertainment in the United States and Latin America. The company provides direct-to-home (DTH) digital television services, as well as multi-channel video programming distribution services in the United States. It offers various channels of digital-quality video entertainment and CD-quality audio programming directly to subscribers' homes or businesses, as well as video-on-demand services; and approximately 160 national high-definition television channels and 4 3D channels. The company also provides premium professional and collegiate sports programming, such as the NFL SUNDAY TICKET package, which allows subscribers to view the NFL games. In addition, it offers DTH digital television services in Latin America and the Caribbean, including Puerto Rico. The company provides its local and international programming under the DIRECTV and SKY brand names. As of December 31, 2010, it served approximately 19.2 million subscribers in the United States; and 8.9 million subscribers in Latin America. The company was founded in 1990 and is based in El Segundo, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By James Miller Phd]

  DirecTV (DTV) is engaged in providing digital television entertainment in the U.S. and Latin America. As of Dec. 31, 2012, the company operated two direct-to-home business units: DirecTV U.S. and DirecTV Latin America, which are differentiated by their geographic locations and are engaged in acquiring, promoting, selling and distributing digital entertainment programming primarily via satellite to residential and commercial subscribers.

• [By Steven Russolillo]

  Heard on the Street: Deal-Making Patience May Prove Dish’s Virtue: “AT&T’s offer to buy DirecTV(DTV) seems to narrow options for Dish. But Chairman Charlie Ergen still has cards to play.”

Hot Media Stocks To Buy For 2014: Charter Communications Inc.(CHTR)

Charter Communications, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides entertainment, information, and communications solutions to residential and commercial customers in the United States. The company offers cable video programming services, such as basic and digital video, premium channels, OnDemand, pay-per-view, high definition television, digital video recorder, and online video services; Internet services; Charter.net, which provides multiple e-mail addresses, as well as various entertainment, games, news, and sports content; and telephone services. It also provides broadband communications solutions, such as Internet access, data networking, fiber connectivity to cellular towers and office buildings, video entertainment services, and business telephone services under the Charter Business brand name to business and carrier organizations. As of December 31, 2011, the company served approximately 4.1 million video customers; approximately 3.5 million Internet customers; appr oximately 1.7 million telephone customers; and approximately 476,200 commercial primary service units. Charter Communications, Inc. was founded in 1999 and is based in St. Louis, Missouri.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jayson Derrick]

  Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA) and Charter Communications (NASDAQ: CHTR) are reported to be considering a joint bid for Time Warner Cable�(NYSE: TWC). Comcast gained 4.36 percent, closing at $49.52. Charter Communications gained 6.06 percent, closing at $134.66. Time Warner Cable was the biggest winner of the group, gaining 9.92 percent, closing at $132.85.

Hot Media Stocks To Buy For 2014: DISH Network Corporation(DISH)

DISH Network Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides direct broadcast satellite (DBS) subscription television services in the United States. It offers programming that includes approximately 280 basic video channels, 60 Sirius satellite radio music channels, 30 premium movie channels, 35 regional and specialty sports channels, 2,800 local channels, 250 Latino and international channels, and 55 channels of pay-per-view content. The company also offers local HD channels in approximately 160 markets and 215 national HD channels; and receiver systems, including a small satellite dish, digital set-top receivers, and remote controls. In addition, it provides DISHOnline.com, which enables DISH Network subscribers to watch 150,000 movies, television shows, clips, and trailers; DISH Remote Access that enables subscribers to remotely manage their DVRs using compatible mobile devices, such as smartphones, tablets, and laptops through their broadband-connected receiver; and Go ogle TV that enables DISH Network subscribers to search the Internet, check email, interact with social media, and find additional online programming content while simultaneously watching television. As of March 31, 2011, the company had approximately 14.191 million customers. DISH Network provides receiver systems and programming through direct sales channels; and independent third parties, such as small satellite retailers, direct marketing groups, local and regional consumer electronics stores, nationwide retailers, and telecommunications companies. The company was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Englewood, Colorado.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Chris Hill]

  Shares of Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S  ) rose today on news that DISH Network (NASDAQ: DISH  ) has proposed to buy Sprint for $25.5 billion. What would the deal mean for the competitive landscape? Who would be the big winners? In this installment of Investor Beat, our analysts talk about the future of television.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Until last week, it looked like Sprint would move forward with its deal with Japan's SoftBank, under which the Japanese bidder plans to give the U.S. carrier a massive infusion of capital in exchange for a 70% stake in Sprint. But DISH Network's (NASDAQ: DISH  ) offer last week to make a $25.5 billion bid for the entire company has thrown a wrench into the works, and investors are hoping for higher bids from potential buyers to sweeten the deal.

Hot Media Stocks To Buy For 2014: Gannett Co. Inc. (GCI)

Gannett Co., Inc. operates as a media and marketing solutions company in the United States and internationally. Its Publishing segment publishes 83 U.S. daily newspapers with affiliated online sites, including USA TODAY, a national, general-interest daily newspaper; USATODAY.com; USA WEEKEND, a magazine supplement for newspapers; Clipper Magazine, a direct mail advertising magazine; bi-weekly Nursing Spectrum and NurseWeek periodicals; and military and defense newspapers. This segment also includes 17 paid-for daily newspapers; approximately 200 weekly newspapers, magazines, and trade publications; and approximately 600 non-daily publications, as well as involves in commercial printing, newswire, marketing, and data services operations. The company?s Digital segment owns and operates CareerBuilder, an employment Web site, which offers online recruitment and career advancement services for employers, employees, recruiters, and job seekers; ShopLocal, which provides multicha nnel shopping and advertising services; Planet Discover, which offers hosted search and advertising services; PointRoll, which provides digital marketing services and technology; and Schedule Star, which offers scheduling solution for high school athletic departments. Its Broadcasting segment operates 23 television stations and affiliated Web sites, which produce local programming, such as news, sports, and entertainment programming. This segment also includes Captivate Network, a national news and entertainment network that delivers programming and full-motion video advertising on video screens located in elevators of office towers and select hotel lobbies in North America. The company has strategic business relationships with online affiliates, including Classified Ventures, ShopLocal.com, Topix, and Metromix LLC, as well as strategic marketing agreement with Microsoft. Gannett Co., Inc. was founded in 1906 and is headquartered in McLean, Virginia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Not only did Gannett� (NYSE: GCI  ) shareholders re-elect its board, ratify its public accountants, and approve a say-on-pay measure at the�media conglomerate's annual meeting yesterday, but the board of directors also declared the company's second-quarter dividend of $0.20 per share, the same rate it's paid for the past five quarters.

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Gannett (NYSE: GCI  ) reported earnings on July 22. Here are the numbers you need to know.

  The 10-second takeaway
  For the quarter ended June 30 (Q2), Gannett missed estimates on revenues and missed slightly on earnings per share.

• [By WilliamBriat]

  Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI) is the top newspaper publisher in the U.S.; its flagship paper is USA TODAY. The company also owns 23 television stations and more than 200 papers in the U.K. Gannett Co. provides an annual dividend of 3.3%. During the second quarter, it reported solid broadcasting and digital revenue growth and its fourth consecutive quarter of year-over-year circulation revenue growth.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Gannett (NYSE: GCI  ) will release its quarterly report next Monday, and investors are unusually enthusiastic about the company's prospects. Although a big acquisition raised awareness of Gannett's businesses outside the struggling newspaper industry, it's still unclear how much of a boost it will produce for Gannett earnings growth in the future.