"We like stocks. And we like a lot of 'em. We focus on broadly diversified investments in undervalued stocks for their long-term appreciation potential," says value investor John Buckingham.

The money manager and editor of The Prudent Speculator explains, "Each month, we suggest a group of stocks that could help serve as a portfolio foundation. Here's a look at three such portfolio 'foundation' stocks: Kraft Foods (KFT), Verizon Communications (VZ) and Waste Management (WM).

Continue reading 'Foundation' Stocks: Kraft, Verizon and Waste Management

'Foundation' Stocks: Kraft, Verizon and Waste Management originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 14 Mar 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The J.M. Smucker Company (SJM), a food concern in the same category as ConAgra Foods (CAG) and Kraft Foods (KFT), issued its fiscal third-quarter report on Thursday. The document wasn't too thrilling, but it shows that the business is holding its own in the competitive battlefield of the supermarket shelves.

Its adjusted profit of $1.27 per share came in ahead of the overall projection by one penny. Not bad, considering the article highlights the challenges of navigating a volatile environment in terms of ingredient costs.

Continue reading Smucker Reports Q3 Earnings: Is the Stock a Buy?

Smucker Reports Q3 Earnings: Is the Stock a Buy? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 19 Feb 2011 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

With about twenty minutes to go before the end of the trading day, I see a quote of $31.18 for Kraft Foods (KFT). That meant that the stock was basically flat, down a mere penny to be exact.

Boring. I actually used that word to describe this stock back in August. What else do you call a stock that has traded in such a narrow 52-week range? Currently, the low for the year is set at $27.09 while the high is $32.67.

Continue reading Kraft: Boring Peformance, Exciting Yield

Kraft: Boring Peformance, Exciting Yield originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 10 Jan 2011 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Starbucks CEO Outlines Acquisition Plans

Starbucks CEO Outlines Acquisition Plans originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 01 Dec 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The J.M. Smucker Company (SJM) was down almost 1.4% to $62.15 at the close of the day. Volume was quite heavy. The market voted on the food entity's latest earnings report. Should investors listen to this opinion and immediately put in sell orders?

According to Theflyonthewall, the business, whose colleagues include ConAgra Foods, Inc. (CAG) and Kraft Foods Inc. (KFT), made an adjusted $1.38 per share during its fiscal second quarter. That was six solid pennies ahead of the overall projection. Not only was that beat cool to see, but income guidance for fiscal year 2011 saw an improvement.

Continue reading Smucker Falls: Should Investors Worry?

Smucker Falls: Should Investors Worry? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 18 Nov 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

It appears that there is some trouble brewing in the agreement between Starbucks (SBUX) and Kraft (KFT). As part of the agreement, Kraft distributed Starbucks bagged coffee and the Seattle's Best brand in supermarkets and other food retailers. The agreement dates back to 1998 and has grown to $500 million in annual sales (initially the deal net sales of $50 million).

The intentions were made public by Starbucks last night. The latest salvo fired in this java jive is a mere continuation of a fight that has included both companies accusing each other of having "improperly characterized the terms of the pact." According to Kraft, it requires Starbucks to pay the fair-market value of the business along with a premium in "certain instances."

Continue reading Starbucks and Kraft May Part Ways

Starbucks and Kraft May Part Ways originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 05 Nov 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Del Monte Food Company's (DLM) stock wasn't one you wanted to be in today. Especially at a time when the bulls are in charge. The company, whose colleagues include ConAgra Foods, Inc. (CAG) and Kraft Foods Inc. (KFT), was down 2.1% to $12.56 about thirty minutes before the close of the session.

First-quarter data was reported by the business this morning. The market obviously wasn't too pleased. According to an article over at TheStreet.com, profit from continuing operations was 29 cents per share. This figure was two pennies above the estimate generated by the analysts. No matter what the traders are doing to the stock, at least shareholders can be happy about that aspect of the period.

Continue reading Del Monte Falls Despite Market Rally

Del Monte Falls Despite Market Rally originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Kraft Foods (KFT) is a boring stock from one point of view. The 52-week range is rather narrow -- the low for the year is $25.72 while the high is $31.09. The shares were, however, pretty fascinating during Thursday's extended-hours session. Traders sent the foodstuffs price higher by well over 3% at one point.

The market enjoyed the second-quarter results. According to TheFly, adjusted net income of 60 cents per share was eight pennies ahead of the estimate. Management made good use of the company's brand power to drive results.

Continue reading Kraft Earnings Top Estimates

Kraft Earnings Top Estimates originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 06 Aug 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The J.M. Smucker Company (SJM), whose related companies include ConAgra Foods, Inc. (CAG) and Kraft Company Inc. (KFT), is rallying this afternoon following an earnings report. With a little more than three hours to go before the closing bell, shares of the business famous for its jelly products were up over 6% to $61.39. Volume should do well.

The 52-week high on the stock is $63.50, so this is one of those stocks that needs to be examined in light of the recent bearish tone of the markets. Although the chart isn't the best out there, I tend to view the relative stability of the equity as a positive element.

Continue reading Smucker Rises on Q4 News

Smucker Rises on Q4 News originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Walmart (WMT) is a big-cap, blue-chip business in retail, one that competes with Sears Holdings (SHLD) and Target (TGT), among others. It's generally considered one of the safer, although considerably more boring, names in the universe of equities. However, could it be a defensive play in this economy?

Difficult to say for certain. As I've said before, I don't care what stock you hold in your portfolio, it'll go down if the markets become very choppy, defensive reputation or not. And Walmart isn't necessarily the first idea you think of when you think defensive. Usually, you might come up with a Coca-Cola (KO) or a Kraft (KFT) ... something with food involved, something that sells products consumers use and need every single day and can buy at multiple locations, not just at one single shopping source.

Continue reading Could Walmart Be a Defensive Play?

Could Walmart Be a Defensive Play? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 05 Jun 2010 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Good News from Heinz

Good News from Heinz originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 27 May 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Dole Food Company, Inc. (DOLE) is, at the time of this writing, down 76 cents to $9.98. That's a loss in value of 7%. The company had posted its Q1 numbers after the bell on Monday. The market is obviously not infatuated with them today.

According to the press release, adjusted EBITDA dropped to $85 million from $122 million. Net cash from operating activities plunged to $19 million from $39 million. These are not attractive statistics. A bad market environment in Europe and Asia apparently hurt the performance of fresh fruit.

Continue reading Dole Food: Sell After Q1?

Dole Food: Sell After Q1? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 11 May 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Kraft's Q1: Buy the Results?

Kraft's Q1: Buy the Results? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 07 May 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

I'm going to take a quick look at two companies that released earnings on Thursday. First up is Eastman Kodak (EK), but I'll tell you this: EK was anything but up. The stock closed off 16.9% by the end of the session. Volume was exceptionally high. But does this mean Kodak is a buy or a sell?

Back in January, Kodak rallied on its Q4 numbers; at that time, analysts and their projections were destroyed by the strong report. I, however, remained bearish on the company because of its turnaround status, preferring to focus on the risk of the situation instead of the forward-looking potential.

Continue reading Quarterly Earnings: Eastman Kodak and Kellogg

Quarterly Earnings: Eastman Kodak and Kellogg originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 30 Apr 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Hershey (HSY) stock rallied after the company released first-quarter earnings Thursday. By the end of the session, the stock had climbed over 7% to close at $48.08. A new high was reached at one point: $48.23. As can be seen, the market is solidly behind the famous confectioner and its quarterly report.

The top line increased just under 14%. The bottom line, on a GAAP basis, came in at 64 cents per share, nearly 100% better than the 33 cents per share earned in the year-ago period. On an adjusted basis, net income growth was 68% because of some charges added back to that 33-cent profit stat. This was, nevertheless, a great performance: The analysts were only expecting somewhere around 47 cents per share.

Continue reading Hershey Delivers a Sweet First Quarter

Hershey Delivers a Sweet First Quarter originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 23 Apr 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst upgrades

• Deutsche Bank upgraded Sonoco Products (SON) to buy from hold after the company reported Q1 results and raised guidance. The firm upped its target for shares to $38 from $32.
• Baird upgraded Western Digital (WDC) to outperform from neutral following the solid Q3 report and guidance. The firm raised its target to $50 from $48.
• Goldman upgraded Qwest (Q) to neutral from sell. Qwest is being acquired by CenturyLink (CTL).
• Hershey (HSY) was upgraded to neutral from underweight at JPMorgan.
• Principal Financial (PFG) was upgraded to neutral from sell at UBS.
• Monster Worldwide (MWW) was upgraded to market perform from underperform at Wells Fargo.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: WDC, Q, HSY, BWLD, NOK, COP, KFT, VZ ...

Analyst Calls: WDC, Q, HSY, BWLD, NOK, COP, KFT, VZ ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 23 Apr 2010 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

ConAgra Foods (CAG), a company that produces packaged edibles for supermarkets and whose colleagues include Campbell Soup (CPB) and Kraft (KFT), didn't have the kind of quarter you look at and say, "Way to go, management!" It was a boring, steady kind of reporting period.

For the fiscal third quarter, total sales were kind of flat, down a minuscule 0.9%. Earnings from continuing operations on an adjusted basis rose 10% to 44 cents per diluted share. Compared to estimates, that 44-cent stat came in as expected, nothing more, nothing less.

Continue reading ConAgra Produces an Acceptable Quarter

ConAgra Produces an Acceptable Quarter originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 26 Mar 2010 14:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

General Mills (GIS), whose colleagues at the food markets include Kellogg (K), Kraft Foods (KFT), and Campbell Soup (CPB), performed well in the fiscal third quarter. On an adjusted basis, net income increased 23% to 97 cents per diluted share. This beat estimates by four pennies.

General Mills was able to expand the gross margin by keeping an eye on efficiency opportunities and optimizing the overall quality of the inventory mix. Of course, there was a little luck involved, too, as commodity costs weren't as expensive as they previously had been. It's always good when that happens.

Continue reading General Mills Reports Impressive Income Increase in Q3

General Mills Reports Impressive Income Increase in Q3 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 25 Mar 2010 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This afternoon, I'm going to take a look at earnings releases from two companies in the food industry. One is a maker of a very famous ketchup product, and the other is instrumental in supplying consumers with the tools they need to put together a delicious peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich.

Let's start with the company responsible for the crimson condiment. H.J. Heinz Company (HNZ) delivered one heck of a report. The summary (of continuing operations), proudly trumpeted at the top of the Q3 release, is indicative of a business hitting on many, if not all, cylinders. Sales grew nearly 13%. Emerging markets were robust. Earnings came in at 83 cents per share, which was 9% higher than the comparable period's bottom line.

Continue reading Two Quarterly Reports from the Food Sector: Heinz and J.M. Smucker

Two Quarterly Reports from the Food Sector: Heinz and J.M. Smucker originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• Sterne Agee upgraded American Public Education (APEI) to buy from neutral following the Q4 report and guidance. The firm has a $50 target on the stock.
• Jefferies upgraded Lamar Advertising (LAMR) to hold from underperform citing valuation and the improved ad market. The firm raised its target $30 from $22.
• Janney Montgomery upgraded Wilmington Trust (WL) to neutral from sell following the company's $250M stock offering and raised its target price on shares to $13 from $10.
• AeroVironment (AVAV) was upgraded to buy from neutral at SunTrust.
• Scripps Networks (SNI) was upgraded to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.
• TheKnot (KNOT) was raised to buy from hold at ThinkEquity.

Continue reading Analyst Upgrades, Downgrades and Initiations: APEI, CPB, FSLR, GLW, KFT, PALM ...

Analyst Upgrades, Downgrades and Initiations: APEI, CPB, FSLR, GLW, KFT, PALM ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 23 Feb 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.