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Christopher French

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  • ADP: An Excellent Pick in 2012

    By Christopher French - March 1, 2012 | Tickers: ADP, NSP, PAYX, ULTI

    Automatic Data Processing (NASDAQ: ADP), with a market capitalization of about $26.6 billion, is the largest global provider of payroll, human resources, tax filing, data processing, and benefits outsourcing services. The company has a commanding position in the large company segment of the payroll processing industry but also counts small and medium sized business among its more than 570,000 clients.  The company's principal competition comes from Paychex more »

  • Kraft Foods In 2012: Another Great Year

    By Christopher French - March 1, 2012 | Tickers: KRFT, PEP

    Kraft Foods (NASDAQ: KRFT) is one of the most dominant players in the global processed and packaged food market and owns an extensive range of brands that include Countrytime, Handi-Snacks, Oscar Mayer, Planters, Cadbury and Nabisco. It is second only to Nestlé, which is the largest processed food company in the world, but Kraft Foods is poised to expand its market share against Nestlé’s recent drop in profitability. It more »

  • Pepsi’s New Direction: Great For Shareholders

    By Christopher French - February 29, 2012 | Tickers: KO, KRFT, PEP

    PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) has a strong presence in the world beverage market, but unbeknownst to many is the fact that PepsiCo produces roughly half of its revenue each year through its foods division that owns popular brands such as Doritos, Quaker, Frito-Lay and Tostitos. While PepsiCo competes directly with the beverage behemoth Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) and the smaller beverage giant of the Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, it also competes with more »

  • Is General Motors A Buy Right Now?

    By Christopher French - February 29, 2012 | Tickers: F, GM, TM

    Has automaker General Motors (NYSE: GM) finally recovered from its near extinction in the throes of the Great Recession and become a good buy? North American operations have been growing strongly despite the poor economic environment as the public has embraced a new generation of vehicles. Still, GM is a turnaround in progress. I looked at the companies fundamentals as well as its market outlook to see if it is more »

  • Exxon Mobil: Is It Worth A Premium?

    By Christopher French - February 29, 2012 | Tickers: CVX, COP, XOM

    Oil is surging right now, driven wild by fear and inflation.

    The first issue is Iran. The country, which is the world’s third largest exporter, cut off exports to Great Britain and France. These two countries may not account for much of Iran’s revenue in and of themselves, but European countries do account for roughly 18% of the country’s oil exports and there is talk that Iran more »

  • Profit From Cummins Now

    By Christopher French - February 29, 2012 | Tickers: CAT, CMI

    Cummins (NYSE: CMI) shareholders have been riding a crest of a wave since the end of 2008 when shares stood around $18. Now at $122, shareholders have seen a near six fold increase in their investment in little more than three years: a period in which the S&P 500 index has risen by some 50%. This fantastic outperformance has gone hand in hand with growth in sales, and profits more »

  • Now Is Still A Good Time To Buy Green Mountain

    By Christopher French - February 29, 2012 | Tickers: CBOU, DNKN, GMCR, KRFT, SBUX

    The new Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (NASDAQ: GMCR) Vue product just might be the thing they need to maintain or even increase their stock price. In my opinion, past alliances with Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) and Dunkin Donuts (NASDAQ: DNKN), among others, will help consolidate their hold on the coffee market.

    That being said, Dunkin doesn’t seem like it has a lot to offer right now, although that could change more »

  • Why Leap Wireless Will Underperform If Not Acquired

    By Christopher French - February 24, 2012 | Tickers: T, LEAP

    Leap Wireless (NASDAQ: LEAP) offers no contract, fixed rate unlimited access to wireless voice and data communications under the “Cricket” brand.  It engineers its own efficient networks which only cover the areas that potential customers will use.  The geographic targeting allows for a lower cost structure.  It operates in 34 states in the U.S.  The company was founded in 1998 as a spin off from Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM).  Leap more »

  • Don’t Bet the Farm on Groupon

    By Christopher French - February 24, 2012 | Tickers: EBAY, GRPN

    Some say that Groupon (NASDAQ: GRPN) is a sad tale of a media darling that expanded too quickly and can be likened to the troubled youth who straightens his/her self out in the end. Optimistic critics and the CEO, Andrew Mason, say that Groupon’s rocky beginning has (or very soon will be) smoothed out and post-IPO, it has now earned its spot at the ‘grown up table.' I more »

  • Apple & Google: 2 'Must Haves' For Tech Investors

    By Christopher French - February 24, 2012 | Tickers: AMZN, AAPL, GOOG, MMI

    The world of technology is evolving towards cloud based systems which allow users to do more than store and send files, search the Internet or shop without going to a store. The next step is more control over more aspects of consumer lives through smartphones and tablet computers. Soon the TV, radio, music, communications and probably the ice maker in the fridge will be under the control of a hand more »

  • CarMax: An Excellent Opportunity Now

    By Christopher French - February 23, 2012 | Tickers: AN, KMX, PAG, SAH

    The performance of the four largest publicly traded companies in the new and used automotive dealership industry have diverged sharply in the past twelve months as the domestic economy slowly recovers. AutoNation (NYSE: AN), CarMax (NYSE: KMX), Penske Automotive Group (NYSE: PAG), and Sonic Automotive (NYSE: SAH), are very sensitive to economic conditions,  particularly the job and housing markets, which have been the laggards in the recovery.  However, because demand more »

  • The Rise of American Express In 2012

    By Christopher French - February 23, 2012 | Tickers: AXP, DFS, MA, V

    American Express (NYSE: AXP) has made a name for itself as the most successful closed loop credit card providers in the United States, but achieved its success primarily because it was held out of the open loop market until recently. Its recent entry into the open loop credit card market has placed pressure on the credit giants of Visa (NYSE: V) and MasterCard (NYSE: MA) and cost the two giants more »

  • Health Care REIT Running Strong

    By Christopher French - February 21, 2012 | Tickers: HCP, HCN, HR, SNH

    As the first real estate investment trust to focus exclusively on properties used in the healthcare industry, Health Care REIT (NYSE: HCN) was able to select the company name with covers an entire REIT sector. Throughout its long history, Health Care REIT has provided very attractive returns to investors and the company remains on a path of growth which should continue the trend.

    Health Care REIT owns 900 properties in more »

  • Exxon: Still A Good Buy

    By Christopher French - February 21, 2012 | Tickers: BP, CVX, XOM

    Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) has been consistently increasing its dividend for the past several years. Although this dividend maintains an appreciating trend, yields don’t stack up well to those of competitors. Predicting Exxon Mobil’s next dividend depends on several business factors such as commodity prices, cost of production, and, of course, competition. In this article, I will provide information on several factors affecting dividend quality and suggest more »

  • Verizon Will Outperform AT&T This Year

    By Christopher French - February 21, 2012 | Tickers: T, VZ

    Although there is a pretty good-sized bunch of smaller players, the U.S. telecom business – especially for wireless services – is mainly an battle between two $100 billion plus companies, Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) and AT&T (NYSE: T). Verizon trails AT&T in market cap and revenues. The two companies posted very similar adjusted EPS for 2011 and both have dividend yields well over 5%. The Verizon share price outperformed more »

  • Cintas: Buy, Sell, Or Hold?

    By Christopher French - February 21, 2012 | Tickers: CTAS, GK, UNF

    North America's leading supplier of corporate uniforms, Cintas Corp. (NASDAQ: CTAS), with a market capitalization of about $5 billion, is the dominant player in a mature industry where revenue growth is sluggish and competition for profits is fierce.  Cintas operates through four segments: Rental Uniforms and Ancillary Products, which comprise about 71% of revenue; Uniform Direct Sales, which contribute about 11% of revenue; First Aid, Safety and Fire Protection more »

  • Income Investors: An Overview Of 4 Key Utilities

    By Christopher French - February 21, 2012 | Tickers: AVA, PCG, SO, VVC

    Utility companies can present excellent opportunities for income investors. But that does not mean that they make poor choices for other investors. Some utilities are investing wisely in unregulated businesses, while others are undertaking measures to position themselves for growth. The four companies below are all facing similar headwinds such as stiff competition, climate change, and government regulation. However, they are also benefiting from positive drivers such as new construction more »

  • Why AT&T's Dividend Is Safe

    By Christopher French - February 21, 2012 | Tickers: T, QCOM, VZ

    With the dividend yield on the typical blue chip stock in the 2.5% to 3.5% range, investors may see the near 6% yield on AT&T (NYSE: T) and wonder if that big dividend is safe or will the company be forced to reduce its quarterly payout. Another worry point exists when an investor sees the AT&T summary page on the major financial websites and notes earnings more »

  • Buy, Sell, or Hold Colgate-Palmolive?

    By Christopher French - February 21, 2012 | Tickers: CL, PG, CLX

    Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE: CL) reported earnings over the last 12-months of $4.94 per share, and paid a dividend of $2.32. At the current share price of around $91, this represents a dividend yield of 2.50%. The company has increased its dividend for 49 years without a break, and shareholders have seen an average increase of 12.7% per year in the dividend over the last five years. Through more »

  • Hold Costco For Now

    By Christopher French - February 21, 2012 | Tickers: COST, TGT, WMT

    Retail spending, excluding autos, was reported to have increased by 0.7% in January from December as against expectations of a rise of 0.6%. This better than expected result was helped by a cut in the result announced for December to –0.5% from a previously reported –0.2%. The retail environment is still on sticky ground, and firm gasoline prices are not likely to help it in the more »

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