With the market continuing to get pummeled, the question is when to start testing the investing waters again and then, which stocks to pick. As any seasoned fisherman can tell you, when you go bottom-fishing you can end up with all kinds of undesirable fish. You need to be careful to try and hook something edible. For all you bottom-fishing investors out there who are chomping at the bit to put some of your spare cash to work early in the week, here are 2 stocks that are sure to be keepers.
Weight Watcher's International Inc. (NYSE: WTW) is the world's leading provider of weight management services. With all the different diet-fad's coming and going, it's Weight Watcher's program that continues to help take off unwanted pounds and add wanted profits. Last week the company beat earnings estimates and said '08 is shaping-up (pardon the pun) to be another good year.
For the third quarter of '07, net revenues increased 18.5% or $52.7 million to $337.5 million, up from $284.8 million in the third quarter of '06. Fully diluted earnings per share were up 19.2% in the third quarter of 2007 to 62 cents versus 52 cents in the prior year period.
Historically, the end of the year and start of the new year has been kind to WTW shareholders as people throughout the world try to make good on their new-years' resolutions to lose weight.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS), the investment bank and asset manager has gotten pulled down with the rest of the financials, but not nearly as much as some of their competitors. They are about 15% off their high, not bad compared to Citigroup (NYSE: C) or Bear Stearns (NYSE: BSC), for example. The stock is trading with a PE of 8.68 and a PEG of 0.66. Now you may ask about their exposure to the CDO market, which has caused big write-downs at Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER) and others. While it's just a hunch, the fact that GS hasn't announced recently and more write-offs, makes me believe that it has done the dirty-work already and cleared the books. Or maybe GS is actually short the CDO market and really cleaning up. I guess we wont know that until it reports. The rest of its business is really doing well, and that should continue.
Happy fishing!
Aaron Katsman is the lead Portfolio Manager and Managing Director of America Israel Investment Associates, LLC. and Senior Editor of IsraelNewsletter.com. Author holds no position in any stock mentioned as of 11/11/07.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-11-2007 @ 1:54PM
Athelstan said...
Goldman Sachs will have some shoes to drop soon just as Wachovia and Merrill Lynch had. The price hasn't stopped falling yet and won't until there is a hell of a lot more clarity from the marketplace.
11-11-2007 @ 5:53PM
Jjjaaazzzyyy said...
Hmmm I thought when you bottom fished you waited for the bottom?
11-12-2007 @ 9:10AM
werner egli said...
Morgan Stanley has much to offer. Total assets (net of debt) are 2 or so hundred $ per share. Even allowing $50/share for further sub-prime writedowns, that still suggests over $100/share value