In the biblical story, Jacob dreams of a ladder connecting heaven and earth. Ever since, boys named Jacob have gravitated toward careers in engineering (anecdotally of course).
That is certainly true in the case of Joseph Jacobs, who founded Jacobs Engineering Group (NYSE: JEC) in 1947. This Jacob did indeed excel in building things.
Now, with the economy in shambles, his engineering firm is poised to benefit from the soon-to-be-approved stimulus spending targeted toward infrastructure and energy projects.
With the goal of creating 2.5 million jobs during the first two years of his administration, President-elect Obama plans on attacking the recession with Legos. That means companies that provide anything to do with construction can be expected to do very well.
The company's profile reads like a blueprint for where a lot of the money from the government will be flowing under the Obama administration. JEC provides technical, professional and construction services to industrial, commercial and governmental customers around the globe.
It is involved in energy, transportation and education projects. The company is in the sweet spot of where an awful lot of spending will take place in the next few years, and investors in JEC stand to benefit.
In the days of trading since the President-elect announced his plan, JEC is up more than 23%. Impressive gains no doubt, but given the selling that took place earlier, JEC shares still offer compelling value.
It's been an interesting year for JEC to say the least. The company had been enjoying the fruit of global economic growth. It traded for more than $100 per share earlier this year, and as recently as late August was at $80.
We all know what happened then. The U.S. economy hit a brick wall and the rest of the world followed us down. Companies that were the beneficiaries of growth now suffer under the weight of a pending global recession. That's what brought JEC to its yearly lows in the mid $20s.
Of course, the flip side of that pain is potential. New investors to JEC have a wonderful opportunity to benefit from the economic recovery that will surely come from these ashes.
Having the President-elect present plans that will benefit the company has to be quite bullish for JEC. Don't wait too long, though, because these discounts won't last.
Louis Navellier's PortfolioGrader Pro rates JEC a C or hold, but a close look at the components of that grade show some positive signs. The grader rates JEC an A with respect to sales growth. And Obama's plan should move it up to an A-plus!
Jamie Dlugosch is a contributor to NavellierGrowth.com.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
12-01-2008 @ 5:33AM
Lisa P said...
Educating everybody is truly an important aspect in the success of a nation. A new administration is about to take over, and education is a topic that’s hovering on the minds of many. Many are really curious of what would be the new government plans and changes that may or may not benefit the people. The question is what wills president-elect Barack Obama do to improve the massive groups of students and teachers in America? In an article at The Apple, Obama’s first step into the development of education is focused on No Child Left Behind. He does not intend to scrap the program, but he does want to reform it, particularly when it comes to standardize testing. He is against preparing students all year to “fill out bubbles.” As long as the performance is up to standard, both Obama and Vice-President Elect Biden will support charter schools. Teachers at charter schools and beyond find Obama's incentives like Teacher Service Scholarships and various pay rewards hopeful. Moreover, a major part of the president-elect’s proposal is to enhance Early Head Start Programs and provide tax credits for college education. Restoring faith in the American educational system via these ideas and more will surely lead to the kind of credit repair the country needs – where the currency is a vibrant workforce that is equipped and ready to lead America into the future. Click to learn more about Credit Repair.