Most portfolios could benefit from a pharmacy supply play for defensive purposes, and Medco Health Solutions (NYSE: MHS) is worthy of consideration for this role. Medco Health is one of the largest pharmacy benefits managers in United States, with services provided to member health plans offered by unions, HMOs, and corporations, among other organizations.

Analysts like Medco's high account retention, new business wins, economies of scale, and the company's entry into the Medicare Part B segment with its acquisition of PolyMedica. The Reuters F2007/F2008 EPS consensus estimates for MHS are $3.60/$4.38.

The risks? Analysts have their eye on the increased market penetration of generic drugs and some pricing pressure in contract renewals. Also, the stock's PE ratio of 30 is high, even considering MHS's growth prospects, hence the stock is vulnerable to a pull-back. The problem with the 'buy on pull-back' tactic here is that MHS's pull-backs have been mild, so there's no guarantee of a 5% pull-back before a share purchase decision.

For 16 years I worked directly with French and British portfolio managers advising them on their U.S. stock portfolios. I visited Paris and London on more than 225 separate trips during that period. My mother was born and raised in France, her father, a captain in the French army was killed in World War II. My own father was educated at a French medical school and I had the privilege of spending several summers as a youth in Southern France. Through all this, I learned to adore the country and in another, sense feel sorry for it.

The French way of life is truly embodied in the joie de vivre. The work ethic in France has always been "do your job, but no more," and forget overtime work -- its not the money, its the infringement on free time. A person starts a new job and is instantly granted 5-6 weeks of vacation. The French medical and pension system is among the most generous in the world. My own mother worked exactly for three months in a temporary agency in 1954, left for the United States with my dad, a newly minted physician. She became an American citizen, and yet when she turned 65, she was informed that she qualified for a French pension. She was flabbergasted to learn that the French government was depositing $175 per month in her American checking account . She did not earn a cumulative total of $175 in her three-month temp career! When she inquired she was told that "you are entitled! You were born here!" She felt so guilty that her monthly deposit was immediately given to charity.

The months of July and August are renown for the French vacance -- vacation. I dealt with portfolio managers that took five weeks off in a row, which is great work if you can get it, but no one backed up or watched their portfolios. I remember asking several of them what if there was an emergency on one of the stocks they held? The common response was, it will have to wait.

This post is part of our Battle of the Brands feature. Let us know which brand you prefer, and watch out for more Battle of the Brands posts.

A portfolio manager once said, "If a nuclear explosion hit my city and I had to pick one place to hole-up for a couple of years until all was calm, I would want to be at a Costco store. It has everything any human being could ever want or need." Well, I don't know if I could spend a couple of years in a Costco store, but no problem with a couple of hours!

Sam's Club, a division of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) versus Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST): they have collectively changed the way people shop. The differences are profound between the two, yet conceptually they are very similar. Both "warehouse" concepts sell in bulk fashion. If you're looking for a small jar of Grey Poupon mustard, forget either of these two warehouse stores. But, if you want two side-by-side 16-ounce jars of Grey Poupon, enough to satisfy a football team, then you have come to the right place.

As similar as these two are, the differences do exist. Costco offers tremendous prices to its customers (club members) and quality. Costco has figured out the consumer will come in with a set list of items to be purchased, only to be enticed to expand that list as they walk the store. Strategically placed "special" items, or Costco employees serving out free samples of delicious food and drink items not normally found on the customer's list. It's brilliant marketing: on-site demonstrations and/or sampling of the product. "An impulse purchase" is the expression I have used many, many times as I've explained to my wife why I bought this or that.