MartyWith the stock market conditions as bad as they’ve been in a number of years and an impending recession on the horizon, these are times to tighten your budgetary belt. It is also a time to start thinking about investing in the stock of good and solid companies at deeply depressed prices. It is those times when everyone is running for the exits that the smart investor goes against the grain and goes shopping for stocks. So many great companies have just been slaughtered recently, it’s hard to pick just five. With that said, here are five stocks that are on my buy list:
Apple Computer (AAPL) is a leading technology company that is famous for designing and selling innovative consumer electronics. Not just a computer company anymore, Apple is the maker of the iPod, the world’s most popular portable media player, the iPhone smart-phone and of course the Macintosh personal computer. Currently Apple is off it’s high of $202 per share and closed today at $110. While Apple does not pay a dividend, it is well positioned to continue leading the way in the areas of mobile computing and digital media; two major technolgy growth areas.
Coca Cola (KO) is a leading soft drink beverage maker and has a global presence in more than 200 countries. The company is involved with over 450 brands of soft drinks, juices, teas, coffees and other specialty drinks. Currently Coca Cola is off a 52 week high of $65 and closed today at $47. It’s also currently paying a 3.2 percent annual dividend. This is a blue chip consumer company with shares drastically marked down and paying a nice dividend to boot.
Home Depot (HD) is a leading home improvement retailer with over 2,200 stores in the United States as well as stores in Canada, Mexico and China. With the depressed real estate market, shares in Home Depot have certainly taken a beating over the past 18 months. Off it’s 52 week high of $34, it closed today at just over $21. Like Coca Cola, Home Depot is a blue chip company paying a 4 per cent annual dividend.
Google (GOOG) is the leading online search company as well as advertiser. It has well over an 80 per cent share of the online search market in the United States and earns most of its revenue from search related targeted advertising. It recently completed an acquisition of online advertising giant DoubleClick which has only helped to bolster it’s dominance in the online advertising space. Not for the risk adverse, Google is trading around $380 per share, well off its high of $747. While depressed market conditions persist, a good strategy would be to “dollar cost average” in to build a position which means to buys shares over an extended period of time to even out any extreme swings in share price.
Frontline Ltd (FRO) is a leading oil tanker shipping company and operates a fleet of 76 vessels. The sudden and dramatic slide in crude oil prices has definitely depressed the share price of Frontline stock. Off it’s 52 week high of $72 occurring just this past June, it is currently trading in the mid $30’s. The big pluses that make this stock a screaming buy: a P/E ratio of 3.61 and a quarterly dividend of $3 per share. That is a 32 percent annual yield at today’s share price.
What are some stocks or other investments you are considering? Are you concerned about the future of the market or are you optimistic and looking for opportunities? I invite your comments.
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