We can make this short and sweet: buying utilities pays off in many ways that other investments do not. Utilities pay regular dividend distributions that are higher than most stocks, bonds, Treasuries, and certificates of deposit. In these volatile times, utility stocks add stability to your portfolio and moderate the wild swings. And, here is the kicker that everyone but day traders will appreciate: long term returns beat all of the major indices over time.

The following charts and stocks will further make the case.

Energizer Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ENR) made two announcements this morning, and as a result its stock is dropping over 5% in morning trading.

Energizer announced the acquisition of the Edge and Skintimate shaving cream business of S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc. for an aggregate purchase price of $275 million. Energizer also announced that it has commenced an offering of 9.5 million shares of common stock.

Starting with the stock offering: Energizer said it would use the net proceeds from the offering to pay for the deal with S.C. Johnson and for general corporate purposes, including the repayment of debt. The offering includes an option for the underwriters to buy up to 1.425 million more shares to cover any over-allotments.

In the first quarter of the year, one of Ford Motor Co.'s (NYSE: F) bright spots was the Ford Edge, a small SUV crossover vehicle with the higher gas mileage of a commuter car but with the looks and utility of a larger vehicle. Crossovers are a hot property as gas prices have risen and all those Ford Expeditions and Chevy Suburbans have become expensive liabilities rather than fun-to-drive hulksters on the road.

Enter the crossover - smaller ones like the Nissan Murano and Ford Edge, and larger ones like the Chrysler Pacifica and Ford Freestyle. These vehicles combine SUV good looks with minivan-like utility (well, to a point) along with decent gas mileage. Ford has hit a home run the with Edge so far, as U.S. and Canadian sales are proving. Even the smaller (and gas efficient) Ford Escape SUV is selling well. Are customers demanding good gas mileage these days? You betcha.

The President and CEO of Ford Canada even said that "outstanding is the word that comes to mind when talking about customer response to the newly re-designed Ford Escape and our hot crossovers." I have to agree with him; Ford's recent financial troubles and its ongoing turnaround are somewhat being overshadowed by the success of the Edge. If Ford can keep up the hot properties, it will make the reinvention of the automaker a much less bumpy rise. In June, Ford Canada saw overall combined sales increase of 0.7%, to 25,485 units. Big increases in the Ford Edge, Lincoln MKZ and the Ford Fusion all were part of the party.