Top 5 Penny Companies To Watch In Right Now

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of Ultratech (NASDAQ: UTEK  ) got ultra crushed today, down by 18% at the low, following a first-quarter earnings release that didn't meet expectations.

So what: Revenue in the first quarter totaled $60.6 million, which didn't stack up favorably to the $65.3 million in sales that investors were hoping for. Ultratech posted net income of $13.7 million, or $0.48 per share, which was just a penny shy of the $0.49 per share profit the Street was modeling for. CEO Arthur W. Zafiropoulo's comments may have also rattled investors.

Now what: Zafiropoulo said that results were in line with expectations, but reiterated that the near-term outlook is uncertain and "will be challenging." However, the executive believes that conditions will improve during the second half of the year from anticipated increases in semiconductor capital equipment spending. For now, investors seem to be moving to the sidelines until things get better.

Top 5 Penny Companies To Watch In Right Now: Overhill Farms Inc.(OFI)

Overhill Farms, Inc. manufactures prepared frozen food products for branded retail, private label, foodservice, and airline customers. Its product line includes entrees, plated meals, bulk-packed meal components, pastas, soups, sauces, poultry, meat and fish specialties, and organic and vegetarian offerings. The company markets its products through its internal sales force, as well as through outside food brokers. Overhill Farms, Inc. was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Vernon, California.

Top 5 Penny Companies To Watch In Right Now: Pericom Semiconductor Corporation(PSEM)

Pericom Semiconductor Corporation designs, develops, manufactures, and markets high performance digital, analog, and mixed-signal integrated circuits (ICs) and frequency control products (FCPs) used in electronic systems worldwide. The company?s products are used for the transfer, routing, and timing of digital and analog signals within and between computer, networking, data communications, and telecommunication systems. It offers SiliconConnect family products, including PCI and PCI-X bridges, PCI Express Bridges and packet switches, drivers, receivers, and transceivers, as well as low-voltage differential signaling products; SiliconSwitch family products comprising application-specific standard product switches, analog switches, and digital switches; SiliconInterface family products consisting of redrivers/signal conditioners, universal level shifters, lower balanced drives, application specific logic functions, 3.3-volt interface logic products, 5-volt FCT logic product s, and gates; and SiliconClock family products, such as clock buffers and zero-delay clock drivers, voltage controlled crystal oscillators, clock frequency synthesizers, and programmable clocks. The company?s FCPs include crystals that resonate at a frequency; and crystal oscillators used in various electronic devices. Its ICs and FCPs are used in various applications, such as notebook computers, servers, network switches and routers, storage area networks, digital TVs, cell phones, GPS, and digital media players. The company markets and distributes its products through a network of independent sales representatives and distributors to original equipment manufacturers and contract manufacturers in the computer, peripherals, networking, and telecommunications markets, as well as to end-user customers. Pericom Semiconductor Corporation was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in San Jose, California.

Top 5 Oil Companies To Watch For 2014: Micron Technology Inc.(MU)

Micron Technology, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and marketing of semiconductor devices worldwide. Its products include dynamic random access memory (DRAM) products that provide data storage and retrieval, which include DDR2 and DDR3; and other specialty DRAM memory products, including DDR, SDRAM, DDR and DDR2 mobile low power DRAM, pseudo-static RAM, and reduced latency DRAM. The company also offers NAND flash memory products, which are electrically re-writeable and non-volatile semiconductor devices that retain content when power is turned off. In addition, it provides NOR flash memory products that are electrically re-writeable and non-volatile semiconductor memory devices; phase change memory products; and image sensor products. Micron Technology?s products are used in a range of electronic applications, including personal computers, workstations, network servers, mobile phones, flash memory cards, USB storage devices, digital still c ameras, MP3/4 players, and in automotive applications. It sells its products to original equipment manufacturers and retailers through internal sales force, independent sales representatives, and distributors, as well as through a Web-based customer direct sales channel. The company was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Boise, Idaho.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Aubrey Pringle]

  Micron Technology Inc. (MU), the largest U.S. maker of memory chips, tumbled 8.6 percent to $16.84 even as the company reported fiscal fourth-quarter sales that exceeded analysts�� estimates. Following the report, Wells Fargo lowered its recommendation on the shares to underperform, or sell, from market perform, or hold, citing valuation. The stock has almost tripled this year.

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU) is due after the close on Thursday. We have seen analysts chasing up expectations here due to problems with a competitor being out of the market for weeks. The consensus estimates have moved up to $0.25 EPS and $2.7 billion in sales. This would be sales growth of more than 37%, but we would caution that Micron is close to multiyear highs. Shares even hit a new year-high of $18.83 on Monday ahead of the report.

Top 5 Penny Companies To Watch In Right Now: BioClinica Inc(BIOC)

BioClinica, Inc. provides integrated clinical research technology solutions to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device companies. It also offers its solutions to other organizations, such as contract research organizations (CROs) engaged in clinical studies worldwide. The company?s products and services include medical image management, electronic data capture, clinical data management, interactive voice and Web response, clinical trial supply forecasting tools, and clinical trial management software solutions. In addition, it provides enterprise-class software, consulting services, and application hosted solutions. The company?s eClinical solutions help pharmaceutical and biotech companies to collect, clean, process, and store data generated in clinical trials; and Imaging Core Laboratory services support the collection and processing of clinical data primarily related to medical images, as well as helps clients with the design and management of the medical imag ing component of clinical trials, and with the analysis and regulatory submission. It offers integrated support for clinical trial outsourcing, including upfront consultation and design, study start-up, initiation data collection, coding, quality control, standards support, and submission. BioClinica operates two regulatory-body-compliant imaging core labs, and supports eClinical and data management services in the United States, Europe, and Asia. The company was formerly known as Bio-Imaging Technologies, Inc. and changed its name to BioClinica, Inc. in July 2009. BioClinica was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Newtown, Pennsylvania.

Top 5 Penny Companies To Watch In Right Now: Air T Inc.(AIRT)

Air T, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides overnight air cargo, ground equipment sales, and ground support services. Its Overnight Air Cargo segment offers small package overnight airfreight delivery services on a contract basis to the air express delivery services industry. The company?s Ground Equipment Sales segment manufactures, sells, and services aircraft ground support and other specialized equipment products, including aircraft deicers, scissor type lifts, military and civilian decontamination units, glycol recovery vehicles, and other special purpose mobile equipment. This segment offers its products to domestic and international passenger and cargo airlines, ground handling companies, the United States Air Force and Navy, airports, and industrial customers. Its Ground Support Services segment provides ground support equipment maintenance and facilities maintenance services to domestic airlines and aviation service providers. As of March 31, 2010, the company operated 80 cargo aircrafts under dry-lease service contracts in the United States and the Caribbean. Air T, Inc. was founded in 1980 and is based in Maiden, North Carolina.