In a special report on investing in China, global expert John Christy looks at New Oriental Education (NYSE: EDU). Here's the latest from The Forbes International Investment Report.

"No discussion of 'traditional Chinese values' can be complete without mentioning the importance of education. The Chinese education ethic intersects with the country's recent embrace of capitalism in New Oriental Education, China's leading private education company.

"Founded in 1993, New Oriental is one of China's great entrepreneurial success stories, making its founder and chief executive Michael Yu a billionaire. The company operates a network of nearly 250 schools and learning centers in 38 cities across China.

"These schools teach English, foreign languages, test preparation and more. Think of it as a cross between Berlitz and Kaplan, but with a much bigger target audience.

"New Oriental sells for 43 times analyst forecasts for fiscal 2009 earnings. While that's not cheap, New Oriental has a dominant position in its market and a history of delivering growth. Earnings are expected to grow 50% next year.

"And thanks to the high priority that many Chinese place on education, New Oriental's services aren't as much of a 'discretionary' purchase as they might seem. Demand for most of New Oriental's courses should hold up well even if China's economy cools."

Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com offers a daily look at the latest market commentary and favorite stock picks and investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

English speaking gains in China originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 30 Oct 2008 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This post is one of six articles on beverage-related stocks. Here are five other investment ideas to sip on.

Each month in The Forbes International Investment Report, editor John Christy interviews top global stock managers. Here, Lou Gerken of Gerken Capital Associates eyes a favorite beverage play from Latin America.

The money manager explains, "Investors should take heart that there are companies they can invest in at very low valuations in emerging markets. And in the particular case of Latin America, many have U.S.-listed ADR's that have plenty of liquidity and are very accessible and cost-effective to buy.

"We think that Mexico is probably the best positioned Latin American country from a risk perspective because, obviously, with 86% exports to the U.S. it's very reliant on the U.S., but it's still seeing very healthy internal growth irrespective of what's going on in the U.S.

"A company that we like there is FEMSA (NYSE: FMX). It produces, markets and distributes Coca-Cola, Dos Equis, Tecate Beer and a lot of other beverages across Latin America. It also operates something that's very comparable to our 7-Eleven stores.

"They're called OXXO convenience stores. Very strong sales and EBITDA growth, despite the presumed slowdown that's been occurring as it relates to the U.S.contagion effect,and valued very attractively at 8 times EBITDA."

Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com offers a daily look at the latest market commentary and favorite stock picks and investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

FEMSA (FMX): South of the border for soda & beer originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 13 Sep 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"In Russia, as in many other emerging markets, a new crop of homegrown companies is on the rise," says global expert John Christy, editor of The Forbes International Investment Report.

He says, "While relatively unknown outside their home markets, these firms have proven to be worthy competitors against much bigger multinationals." Here's a look at Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods (NYSE: WBD).

"In a research report in March, the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) called these emerging companies 'Local Dynamos'. Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods was one of just three Russian companies to qualify for BCG's exclusive list. WBD is Russia's largest food and beverage company.

"It has a whopping 76% market share for dairy products like milk and yogurt.It is the #3 player in beverages,mainly fruit juices,and it has the #1 market share for baby food in Russia.

"In developed markets, selling baby food and fruit juice is a mature,ifnot mundane business.But in Russia,these can still be considered relatively attractive growth opportunities.

Continue reading Wimm-Bill-Dann (WBD): Russia's largest food & beverage bet

Wimm-Bill-Dann (WBD): Russia's largest food & beverage bet originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 01 Aug 2008 11:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Aflac (NYSE: AFL) is a new addition to the "Borderless Portfolio" maintained by global expert John Christy. Here's the latest from his industry-leading Forbes International Investment Report.

"If you own a television, chances are you're quite familiar with the infamous squawking duck in Aflac's commercials. Aflac has also been in the news lately as the first American company to give shareholders a 'say on pay', or the ability to vote on executive compensation.

"Less well known, however, is Aflac's huge presence in the Japanese insurance market. In 2007, roughly
75% of the company's pre-tax operating earnings were generated in Japan.

"Alfac has been doing business in Japan for more than 30 years, and one in four Japanese households has an Aflac insurance policy. In Japan, Aflac sells healthcare policies for certain things that aren't covered by the national healthcare system, as well as life insurance. And, yes, they have a talking duck in their ads over there too.

"At a time when many financial companies are reporting massive write-offs, Aflac reiterated its target of 15% earnings growth this year, and double-digit growth in 2009. Aflac Japan is doing its part to help drive this growth with 19% operating earnings growth in the first quarter of 2008."

Each day, Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com offers the latest market commentary and favorite investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

Forbes expert 'quacks' for Aflac (AFL) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 01 Jul 2008 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"As is the case with most countries in the Middle East, Israel rarely comes up in discussions of global 'safe havens', notes John Christy.

The editor of The Forbes International Investment Report explains, "But so far this year, Israel has been a pretty good place to hide from Wall Street's woes." Here he looks at one Israeli favorite, Cellcom Israel (NYSE: CEL).

"Putting stereotypes about risk aside, Israel offers a lot of interesting opportunities, even for fairly conservative investors. Cellcom Israel is a prime example. The company is Israel's largest mobile phone service provider, with sales of $1.6 billion in 2007.

"Since February 2007, the company has had a dual listing on both the New York and Tel Aviv stock exchanges. Discount Investment Corp. Ltd., one of Israel's largest business groups, owns just over 50% of the company.

"With 3.1 million subscribers, Cellcom has a 34% share of Israel's mobile telecom services market. Roughly three-quarters of Cellcom's subscribers are individuals, and the remaining 25% are corporate customers.

Continue reading Shalom: Forbes expert calls on Cellcom Israel (CEL)

Shalom: Forbes expert calls on Cellcom Israel (CEL) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 19 Jun 2008 10:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

For 25 years, Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, has surveyed the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is one of 100+ ideas in the Best Stocks for 2008 report.

"My favorite speculative ideas for 2008 is Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC)," notes John Christy, editor of The Forbes International Investment Report.

"Indeed, I now see Ericsson in a similar situation with my top pick last year, Nokia (NYSE: NOK), which has risen 67%. I am now seeing an almost identical situation unfolding with Sweden's Ericsson.

"But there are many more similarities than geography and industry affiliation. Let's take a look at some of the things I said about Nokia last year and compare them to Ericsson's situation today. Widespread skepticism among analysts: The knock against Nokia was that cell phones were becoming a saturated market. The skeptics also said Nokia would face competition from cheap upstarts in countries like China.

"The argument was that most folks who can afford phones already have them, and those who don't will probably end up buying cheaper ones than Nokia's models. Ericsson, in a slightly different way, is subject to similar skepticism. For example, analysts argue that Ericsson's telecom gear is more expensive than that of some of its upstart competitors and is therefore vulnerable to competitive pricing pressure.

"This is a valid point, but I can't imagine that the folks at Ericsson's headquarters haven't thought of all this and factored the issue of competition into the company's business plan.

"Meanwhile, Ericsson has a compelling valuation: The stock is trading at 14 times earnings and pays a 2% dividend yield. It is debt-free and consistently generates a healthy 20+% return-on-equity. Like Nokia, Ericsson will continue to benefit from booming global growth in mobile phone usage."

Best Stocks for 2008: Calling on Ericsson (ERIC) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 18 Dec 2007 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"Asia is still the place to be if you are looking for growth," says John Christy in The Forbes International Investment Report. Here, he looks at some favored Asian banking stocks -- in Japan, India and Korea.

"While China tends to get all of the headlines, the rest of Asia is on a solid economic growth trajectory for 2008. According to the latest Economist data, Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore and Malaysia are all expected to deliver 5%+ gross domestic product growth next year. Taiwan isn't far behind at 4.6%.

"Of course, these numbers pale in comparison to forecasts of 10% for China and nearly 8% for India, but they're nothing to be ashamed of. With forecasts for Europe, the U.S. and Japan all hovering around 2%, Asia is still the place to be if you're looking for growth.

"Stock prices reflect much of this, but there are still plenty of pockets of opportunity. Asian financials are a good example. These names have been somewhat unfairly dragged down by the global credit mess and subprime fallout.

"As a result, strong banks like Shinhan Financial (NYSE: SHG) and Woori (NYSE: WF) in Korea, and Japan's Mitsubishi UFJ (NYSE: MTU) are all trading at attractive valuations.

Continue reading Forbes expert banks on Asian financials

Forbes expert banks on Asian financials originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 30 Nov 2007 09:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

I've just returned from the World Money Show, where some 10,000+ investors gathered to learn about global investing. I had a chance to meet with many of the advisors featured at the show, and I will be highlighting some of their favorite investment ideas. To view all of the stocks featured in this special global report, click here.

One of the most popular sectors among advisors at this year's World Money Show was telecom, and John Christy sees long-term opportunity in two leading cell phone makers.

The editor of The Forbes International Investment Report explains, "Fourth quarter earnings for mobile phone maker Finland's Nokia (NYSE:NOK) knocked the cover off the ball. Net income rose nearly 20% to $1.7 billion, beating analyst forecasts.

"And even though the average selling price for its handsets fell, NOK was still able to boost its profit margins. Nokia is also jacking up its dividend by 16%, and is buying back 4 billion euros worth of stock.

"Growth in the Asia-Pacific region topped 60% -- an encouraging sign that the company's strategy of focusing on emerging markets is paying off. Nokia is also planning to roll out a fresh new line of more than 30 handset models in 2007.

"Compare this to Motorola (NYSE:MOT), which has yet to come up with successful replacement for its popular RAZR phone, missed its latest quarter by a country mile, and is now under attack by activist investor Carl Icahn. I'd much rather own NOK.

Continue reading Global gains: Forbes expert sees cell phone profits

Global gains: Forbes expert sees cell phone profits originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 15 Feb 2007 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Each year Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, surveys the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is part of his 24th annual Top Picks Report.

Internet Initiative Japan Inc. (NASDAQ: IIJI) is the top global speculation from John Christy, editor of The Forbes International Investment Report. He notes, "Japanese small caps have been clobbered in 2006 -- down about 50% year-to-date.

"The group got hammered by the Livedoor scandal earlier in the year and never got back on its feet. And with blue chips such as Canon and Toyota delivering double-digit gains, there wasn't much need to bother with smaller companies anyhow.

"This should change in the year ahead. International markets have done extremely well across the board and investors are looking for pockets of opportunity.

"In particular, hedge funds have been sifting through the rubble in Japanese small caps. These companies tend to be more profitable, more entrepreneurial -- and much cheaper -- than their large-cap peers.

"IIJI's net income doubled in its most recent quarter on strong demand for its IT outsourcing services. As Japan Inc. continues to restructure, IIJI's expertise will continue to be in demand. At a recent $9, IIJI sells for less than 20 times earnings.

"The company recently moved to the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, which will boost its visibility with investors. There's still a lot of risk -- IJII has been an extremely volatile stock. But as long as IIJI continues to deliver strong profit growth, there will be plenty of upside."

To see John's favorite conservative international idea for 2007, click here.

Top Picks 2007: Christy goes online for Japan originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 27 Dec 2006 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Each year Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, surveys the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is part of his 24th annual Top Stocks Report.

Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) is the favorite conservative stock pick from global investing expert John Christy. The editor of The Forbes International Investment Report says, "My thesis is that Finnish mobile phone maker Nokia used to be a classic European growth play, but now it represents a contrarian bet.

"A lot of folks are skeptical about the handset market -- market saturation, fierce competition, etc. -- and it's easy for cranky analysts to take potshots at them. That pessimism, however, is already reflected in Nokia's share price: It was only up 12% through early December, versus more than 20% for European stocks as a whole.

"It's also reflected in analysts' consensus estimates -- earnings per share are expected to rise 12% in 2007 and about 8% in 2008. That's nothing to write home about. Analysts are underestimating the strength of the mobile phone replacement and upgrade markets.

"Ten years ago the idea of a camera phone would have seemed nuts. I don't think anybody knows what bells and whistles phones will offer in the next ten years, so I think there's a lot of opportunity to keep driving innovation. Maybe not at the same clip as before, but still respectable.

Continue reading Top Picks 2007: John Christy's contrarian call on Nokia

Top Picks 2007: John Christy's contrarian call on Nokia originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 21 Dec 2006 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.