Best Insurance Companies To Invest In 2014

Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-A  ) (NYSE: BRK-B  ) subsidiary Brooks Sports is drawing quite a bit of attention from Buffett devotees these days. The running-shoe maker has sprinted to 34% volume growth in both 2011 and 2012, with U.S. sales growth hitting the tape at 43% by the end of last year.

Our roving reporter Rex Moore caught up with Brooks CEO Jim Weber at the recent Berkshire shareholder meeting in Omaha. In this segment of a multipart series, Rex asks Jim what the company is doing differently to achieve this record growth.

Is Berkshire for you?
Thanks to the savvy of investing legend Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway's book value per share has grown a mind-blowing 586,817% over the past 48 years. But with Buffett aging and Berkshire rapidly evolving, is this insurance conglomerate still a buy today? In The Motley Fool's premium report on the company, Berkshire expert Joe Magyer provides investors with key reasons to buy as well as important risks to watch out for. Click here now for instant access to Joe's take on Berkshire!

Best Insurance Companies To Invest In 2014: Travelzoo Inc(TZOO)

Travelzoo Inc., an Internet media company, together with its subsidiaries, publishes travel and entertainment deals from travel and entertainment companies, and local businesses in North America and Europe. Its publications and products include the Travelzoo Websites, such as travelzoo.com, travelzoo.ca, travelzoo.co.uk, travelzoo.de, www.travelzoo.es, and travelzoo.fr; the Travelzoo Top 20 e-mail newsletter; and the Newsflash e-mail alert service. The company also operates SuperSearch, a pay-per-click travel search tool; Travelzoo Network, a network of third-party Websites that list deals published by Travelzoo; and Fly.com, a travel search engine that allows users to find the best prices on flights from various airlines and online travel agencies. In addition, it provides Local Deals and Getaways services that allow its subscribers to purchase vouchers for deals from local businesses, such as spas, hotels, and restaurants through the Travelzoo Website. As of December 31, 2011, the company?s advertiser base included approximately 2,000 travel companies, entertainment companies, and local businesses, including airlines, hotels, cruise lines, vacations packagers, tour operators, destinations, car rental companies, travel agents, theater and performing arts groups, restaurants, spas, and activity companies. Travelzoo Inc. was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

Best Insurance Companies To Invest In 2014: Idera Pharmaceuticals Inc.(IDRA)

Idera Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biotechnology company, discovers and develops DNA- and RNA-based drug candidates for the treatment of infectious diseases, autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, cancer, and asthma and allergies, and for use as vaccine adjuvants. The company designs and creates proprietary Toll-Like Receptors (TLR) to modulate immune responses, including TLR agonist, a compound that stimulates an immune response through the targeted TLR; and TLR antagonist, a compound that blocks activation of an immune response through the targeted TLR. Its drug candidates include IMO-2125, a TLR9 agonist, which is in Phase 1 clinical trial for hepatitis C virus infection; and TLR7, 8, and 9 agonists that are in research stage for viral diseases. The company also develops IMO-3100, a dual TLR7/TLR9 antagonist, which is in preclinical development stage for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, psoriasis, and colitis. In addition, its drug candidates also comprise TLR7 and TLR8 agonists that are in research stage for solid tumor cancers. The company has a licensing and collaboration agreement with Merck KGaA to research, develop, and commercialize TLR9 agonists for the treatment of cancer, excluding cancer vaccines; a license and research collaboration agreement with Merck & Co., Inc. to research, develop, and commercialize therapeutic and prophylactic vaccine products containing its TLR7, 8, and 9 agonists in the fields of cancer, infectious diseases, and Alzheimer?s disease; and a research collaboration and option agreement, and a license, development, and commercialization agreement with Novartis International Pharmaceutical, Ltd. to discover, develop, and commercialize TLR9 agonists for the treatment of asthma and allergies. The company was founded in 1989 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

5 Best Stocks To Watch Right Now: Hiscox Insurance Fund Ord 75p(HSX.L)

Hiscox Ltd, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the insurance and reinsurance businesses. It offers a range of marine, non-marine, aviation, and whole account reinsurance products for fixed and moveable assets, such as ships and other vessels, cargo in transit, energy platforms and installations, pipelines, subsea assets, satellites, commercial buildings, and industrial plants and machinery. The company also offers home and contents insurance, together with cover for art work, antiques, classic cars, jewelry, collectables, and other assets, as well as insurance for burglary, kidnap and ransom, seizure of assets, acts of vandalism, fires, flooding, and storm damage. In addition, it provides specialty insurance products for contingency, terrorism, bloodstock, specie, personal accident, political risks, aviation, aerospace, and construction; and insurance coverage for professional liabilities, errors and omissions, directors and officers liability, commercial office, p rofessional indemnity, and small and large technology and media E&O. Further, the company offers commercial property, onshore energy, and the U.S.A. homeowners insurance products; and marine and energy insurance products, such as marine hull, energy liability, and upstream and midstream energy insurance. It primarily serves international companies, homeowners, wealthy individuals, and small commercial enterprises, as well as technology and media, aviation and aerospace, and marine and energy sectors. Hiscox Ltd operates primarily in Bermuda, the United Kingdom, Ireland, the United States, Guernsey, France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, and Austria. It offers its products directly, as well as through brokers. The company is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.