Continue reading Congress does the right thing: Cuts F-22 fighter program

Congress does the right thing: Cuts F-22 fighter program originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 22 Jul 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Rockwell Collins (COL) flying high originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 18 Jul 2008 14:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This morning Raytheon Co. (NYSE: RTN) is reporting in more detail the role it played in last week's interception of a satellite 153 miles over the Pacific Ocean. Raytheon is one of my stock picks for the year and I have been arguing for a long time that the defense sector is one of the 'bulletproof places' to be in a shaky economy. I have also been arguing that RTN is a tech stock of the highest order.

Raytheon makes missile guidance systems among other things. Can you get more high-tech than that? Yes, you can. Why Raytheon itself also designed and built the Sea-Based X-band radar that tracked the satellite prior to the missile engagement and performed the hit assessment afterward. The radar performs the critical functions of cuing, tracking and discriminating a target.

If you want great management, you will find that RTN's is top notch too. If you are looking for a huge moat, think about this: most of the software you use in your personal or business life is pretty well entrenched, but which would you have more angst about changing, your spreadsheet software or your software for missiles? Bingo! I'm sure you got that one right.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Raytheon is both a defense AND tech stock

Chasing Value: Raytheon is both a defense AND tech stock originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 25 Feb 2008 15:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Health care is a very serious matter, and polling indicates that Americans consider it of the utmost importance, rating it right after the economy in general, and above the Iraq war and homeland security.

It is strange to me then that 'television,' while not showing up in national polls, ranks higher then health care as a priority when it comes to household spending. If you believe the numbers in the news, 99% of households own televisions but only 84% have health insurance in any form.

Certainly cost and availability are the screaming issues of the day. However, value judgments also play a roll and I believe that whatever solutions are proposed, individual choice and responsibility should remain of paramount importance and that maintaining competition in the market place remain a principal goal.

Continue reading Big Screen TV or Health Care Insurance?

Big Screen TV or Health Care Insurance? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 08 Feb 2008 16:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Defense stocks should be on your radar screen

Defense stocks should be on your radar screen originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 07 Feb 2008 16:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In searching out investments for 2008 -- what is likely to be a precarious stock market -- I have been touting the defense industry for the last two months as one of the stories for next year in terms of growth and safety. A press release today noted: "The benchmark SPADE Defense Index (AMEX: DXS) currently has a year-to-date gain of 21.5%, nearly 20% better than the widely followed S&P500 broad-market index."

Certainly this might have been expected in the aftermath of the September 11 tragedy, and given that the U.S remains at war in Iraq and Afghanistan. But this is just one aspect of the industry. Some companies like Boeing Co (NYSE: BA) are doing equally well in the private sector selling new planes and replacement parts for aging fleets.

Raytheon Co (NYSE: RTN) is heavily involved not just with airport security, but develops radar and monitoring systems for airport safety. This is of growing concern as the skies become more congested and airports more impacted.

United Technologies (NYSE: UTX) makes military helicopters that are also used for civilian fleets and fire fighting. UTX also is a world leader in the private sector owning Otis Elevator, Carrier Air Conditioning and more.

Continue reading Defense sector rolls over S&P 500 for 8th straight year

Defense sector rolls over S&P 500 for 8th straight year originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 19 Dec 2007 15:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

My fellow Americans...hmm, that's overused....and I am not running for anything. HEY PEOPLE... too rude... To my fellow investors, read carefully: WE ARE NEVER LEAVING IRAQ! There, I said it, it's done.

Don't you wish some of our elected officials could tell it to us straight? We are not going to pull out of Iraq this year, next year, in 10 years or perhaps 100 years. Not unless we are chased out (although some locals are trying). It is true that we may reduce our forces over the next four or five years to a third of what we have there now, but we are not leaving. Since we are not leaving, I would like to see the business plan. Everyone has wanted to see the administration's strategic plan for some time, but a business plan will do.

The United States military never left Korea, Japan, Germany, Italy, and has advisors on every continent, just about every place we have ever gone. The only time we've left is when we were kicked out. The Iraqis will not be kicking us out. They need us to prevent an escalation of the civil war. They need our help rebuilding their infrastructure, (which we bombed), and we want to do that!

Continue reading Iraq, Inc.: How much will it cost us if we never leave?

Iraq, Inc.: How much will it cost us if we never leave? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 12 Dec 2007 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Remember when Boeing was a laughingstock? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 24 Oct 2007 12:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Let me introduce my Yankee Doodle Dandy portfolio, a compilation of red, white and blue stocks for investors to consider as they celebrate our nation's independence.

Regardless of your views on the Iraq war, there's no denying that defense stocks including Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT), Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE: NOC), Raytheon Co. (NYSE: RTN) and General Dynamics Corp. (NYSE: GD) are reasonably valued. This is especially noteworthy considering that defense spending will need to be maintained at pretty high levels for years to come in order to replace equipment that's been worn out from combat. President Bush is proposing to spend a record $439 billion in fiscal 2007 on defense and another $42.7 billion on homeland security.

Lockheed, the maker of the F-16, seems especially cheap, trading at a forward multiple of 14.6. Its shares have only gained 4.6% this year even though the company reported better-than-expected first-quarter results and raised earnings guidance. Missile and defense electronics company Raytheon, up less than 3%, is in the same situation.

Investors often overlook the huge businesses that Lockheed and Raytheon have in areas outside of defense, including computer systems and air-traffic control. The managements of both companies also have vastly improved over the past few years. Northrop and General Dynamics have always been pretty well run.

Boeing Co. (NYSE:BA), notably the second-largest defense contractor, also looks worth snapping up. Its stock is up less than 3% this year, which is surprising considering how well it's rebounded against European rival Airbus. The company trades at a forward multiple of 17.7.

Continue reading My Yankee Doodle Dandy portfolio

My Yankee Doodle Dandy portfolio originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 04 Jul 2007 07:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

I'm fascinated with the list of 2006's 100 top prime contractors released by the Department of Defense. Earlier, I blogged about the top 10, none of which took me by surprise. As I browsed the rest of the list, though, I found a number of companies I hadn't considered as defense contractors. I noted particularly how dependent our military is on petroleum to carry out its mission.

• #26 FedEx Corp. (NYSE:FDX) -- $1.3 billion
• #29 BP PLC (NYSE:BP) -- $1.2 billion
• #30 Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE:XOM) -- $1.1 billion
• #31 N.V. Koninklijke Nederlandsche (Shell) -- $1.1 million
• #34 Kuwait Petroleum -- $1 billion
• #39 Korea Agriculture Cooperative -- $760 million
• #49 Massachusetts Institute of Technology -- $640 million
• #50 Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL) -- $636 million
• #52 Cardinal Health Inc. (NYSE:CAH) -- $635 million
• #58 Government of Canada (EH) -- $542 million
• #60 Johns Hopkins University -- $525 million
• #61 Battelle Memorial Institute -- $519 million
• #66 Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. -- $494 million
• #70 The Bahrain Petroleum Company -- $478 million
• #80 Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE:PG) -- $362 million (including $13 million to Millstone Coffee and $5.6 million to Sunny Delight)
• #91 Tyson Foods Inc. (NYSE:TSN) -- $335 million
• #98 Pepsico Inc. (NYSE:PEP) -- $287 million
• #99 Unicor/Federal Prisons Industries Inc. (DJNT) -- $283 million

I highly recommend checking out the full list. Consider how changes in our war status might effect the prices of your stocks.

More from the 2006 DOD prime contractor's report originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 11 Mar 2007 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Remember several years ago when Boeing Co. (NYSE:BA) could do no right? It was losing ground to Airbus, losing military contracts to rivals and in one corporate mishap after another. Times sure have changed.

Boeing is expected to report a strong fourth quarter on Jan. 31. Analysts expect the company to report profit of 97 cents versus 58 cents a year earlier. The company stampeded past analysts' forecast in the third quarter. The stock is up more than 10 percent in the last six months.

Last year was a great year for Boeing. The Chicago-based company got 1,044 firm orders for commercial aircraft, which likely helped it top Airbus for the first time since 2000. This performance, which was helped by demand for the 787 Dreamliner, stunned analysts, who had expected sales to SLOW DOWN, according to Reuters.

The Dreamliner is a key product for Boeing. In fact, concerns raised by an analyst about possible delays and cost overruns related to the aircraft recently sent Boeing's stock tumbling. Boeing's shares recovered after Wall Street analysts said they thought the development of the aircraft was proceeding on schedule. Deliveries are scheduled to begin next year.

The military side of the business also is humming along. In November, A Boeing-lead team beat Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE:LMT) for a major helicopter contract with the U.S. Air Force

How long the good times will last isn't clear. Douglas McIntyre argues that Airbus may be down, but it's far from out.

Also check out some other earnings reports that we're following, and let us know your thoughts on earnings expectations.

Boeing takes off, but is a bumpy ride ahead? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 25 Jan 2007 09:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.