What's the difference between a fad and a transformational technology? Essentially, that's the question to answer when looking at SodaStream (SODA). The University of Maine Student Investment Club, SPIFFY, and I did a deep dive in this company recently to discuss SODA's earnings prospects. The main question that came up was whether this is a niche product that some casual soda drinkers will try and switch to, or is this the revolutionary technology that will change our soda consumption habits much like what the Keurig (GMCR) did for coffee? In this article, I'll attempt to answer that question with a deep dive of the company financials so that we come to a reasonable entry point based on valuation and technicals.

Overview

SodaStream's vision is to "revolutionize the beverage industry by providing a better alternative and environmentally friendly way for consumers to prepare their own refreshing carbonated beverages." The

Over the past few weeks, colleagues and friends have stopped me and asked what the next article will be about. When I reply, "Luxottica (LUX)", I've been overwhelmingly asked if its related to the pornography industry. Each time I reply, "well, not at all, Luxottica is the worldwide leader in the manufacturing and retail of prescription eyewear and sunglasses. It's a well-run company that has created a vertical monopoly in the eyewear industry, and has poised itself for strong growth over the long-term." Below, I'll demonstrate some solid fundamentals that have it poised for strong long-term returns and scenarios for possible entry points.

While it seems no one in my circle has heard of Luxottica, when the company's businesses, brands and partnerships are mentioned its clear that everyone is very familiar with the company. Luxottica manufactures eyewear for licensed brands that include Anne Klein, Brooks Brothers, Bvlgari, Burberry (BURBY.PK),

One of the investable ideas when one looks at the future is the continued worldwide expansion of cell phones as a prevalent technology. Additionally, smartphone makers that continue to provide increased internet speed and computer-like accessibility should be primed for success. RF Micro Devices (RFMD) "designs, develops, manufactures, and markets radio frequency [RF] components and compound semiconductor technologies primarily in the United States and Asia primarily for cell phones. Its products enable mobility, as well as provide connectivity and support functionality in the mobile devices, wireless infrastructure, wireless local area networks, cable television /broadband, Smart Energy/advanced metering infrastructure, and aerospace and defense markets." This stock looks primed to benefit from 3G/LTE market growth going forward.

According to RFMD's Annual Report on Form 10-K for 2012, "the cellular market is rapidly transitioning to smartphones and tablets based on the High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) and Long Term Evolution

Regal Entertainment Group (RGC) looks fairly compelling on the surface for the average investor: a 6% dividend yield, a 1 year mean analyst target price of $16.67 that represents 21% price upside from its current value, and a technical up trend. In this article, we'll take a look at some of the underlying issues of Regal and whether the in-depth look agrees with the surface assessment.

Revenue

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As seen above, Regal's revenue 5 year growth rate ('07-'11) is 0.79%. One could make the argument that as the movie theatre experience is a discretionary purchase; this number is fairly impressive given the difficult financial status of today's US consumer. Revenue mix has been fairly consistent over this time period, too, with 70% of revenue coming from admissions and the remainder coming from concessions. A key shift has taken place in the industry, especially over the past few