Investing blog highlights penny stocks, micro cap stocks and large cap stocks with an emphasis on security analysis with reports and stock picks on a weekly basis. All reports are free and done with care. To receive email updates of new posts enter your email address in Stocklook’s Google groups on the right.
A little off the penny stock topic but we all have wives, girlfriends, mothers or loved ones that need to know they are appreciated. My wife started making hand stamped Jewelry and posting it to Etsy. You can custom order a necklace with a charm and have your own words or phrase hand stamped.
This is a great idea for birthdays, special events and mother's day.
According to a recent study done by the National Coffee Association,
the number of coffee-drinking adults in the U.S. has grown to 83% this
year. This percentage is up from a 2012 level of 78%. The same study
also found that the amount of adults who drink coffee daily rose to 63%
from the 58% level in 2011. With the U.S. leading the world as the
largest coffee consumer, an investment today could see substantial
returns as that number increases domestically and internationally.
Currently, the U.S. is the largest coffee consumer, but in per capita
numbers it ranks 26th in the world at 4.2 kg of coffee consumed per
person per year. The number-one consumer per capita is Finland, with
12.0 kg. That is nearly three times the U.S. This shows that there is
still room for growth in the states. Also, notable countries with less
per capita consumption are Russia with 1.7 kg, Mexico 1.2 kg, and China
and India with less than 0.4 kg. These highly populated countries could
be crucial in the growth of coffee consumption.
Leading brands
Anyone who drinks coffee regularly knows the brand name Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (NASDAQ: GMCR). This
company busted on the scene a few years ago when it purchased Keurig,
the single-cup coffee brewer. Green Mountain's main focus is on
specialty and organic Arabica roasted coffee through three different
brands.
Green Mountain has had substantial revenue growth over the past few
years but has recently seen performance slow and level off mainly due to
weakening demand for its brewers and portion packs. This caused
concerns among many shareholders because they as well as the company
thought the strong growth would continue well into the future. Although
Green Mountain's revenue growth has slowed, it is still rising as can be
seen below from the revenue growth comparison chart.
Future outlook
Green Mountain is anticipating between 11% and 14% net sales growth
for the full-year 2013. If net sales continue to grow at this pace,
investors will see above- average returns. One of the drivers of future
growth will come from Green Mountain's international investments. The
company recently announced through its Green Mountain Canada subsidiary
that it will be investing CAD$55 million in its production facilities in
Montreal over the next three years.
An added bonus came from the government of Quebec, which is
contributing an additional CAD$5 million in non-repayable funds for the
project. By the end of 2014, Green Mountain is anticipating between $300
and $400 million in free cash flow. This will help the stock with
future growth as the company will have more cash on hand to invest.
Dunkin' Brands Group (NASDAQ: DNKN),
mostly known for its franchise Dunkin' Donuts, is a world wide leader
for its quick-service restaurants serving hot and cold coffee along with
baked goods, breakfast sandwiches and hard-serve ice cream through its
Baskin-Robbins brand. There are currently more than 10,400 Dunkin'
Donuts and around 7,000 Baskin-Robbins. Dunkin' Brands also has a
presence in retail-coffee sales with whole beans, ground coffee and
single k-cup coffee.
Ability to adapt and survive in difficult times
One of the factors that impresses me about Dunkin' Brands is its
business sense and resilience. The recession ended its streak of 45
consecutive quarters of store-sales growth with quarterly declines of
-0.8% and -1.3% in 2009.
Since 2009, it has not had another negative quarter of
comparable-store sales growth. Dunkin' Brands also impressed me a few
years ago with its push in cold drinks. During hot summer months, hot
coffee doesn't hold the same appeal. Dunkin' Brands was able to refocus
its strategy during this time to keep customers coming in.
Future outlook
In 2012, Dunkin' Brands opened 291 new restaurants for a net growth
rate of 4%. It is focused on continuing its expansion across the U.S.
and intends to eventually double its U.S. footprint. That factor, along
with increased sales from existing restaurants, will well position this
stock to see above-average returns in the future.
Dunkin' Brands has only been public for a short period but gave
investors returns of more than 35% for 2012. It has already increased
its dividend from $0.15 per quarter to $0.19. Investors can expect this
trend to continue as Dunkin' Brands increases its footprint in the U.S.
and sees increased sales growth.
With Dunkin' Brands' new focus on driving franchise profitability, it
announced 78 net new stores in the U.S. in the first quarter. This was
the best the company has ever seen for this time period. With franchise
sales and new store openings on the rise, Dunkin' Brands will continue
to provide strong returns for shareholders.
It is nearly impossible to hold a discussion on coffee without mentioning this $49 billion market cap company. Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) is
a roaster and retailer of coffee with operations in over 60 countries.
The company roasts and sells specialty coffee drinks as well as pastries
and baked goods at retail locations.
Last year marked Starbucks' best year in its history with $13.3
billion in revenue. It ended the year with 12,903 stores including both
company-operated and licensed stores. A total of 398 net new stores were
opened in 2012. This represents a strong commitment for organic growth.
Starbucks reported that 75% of its revenue came from beverage sales
and only 4% came from packaged coffee sales. That represents an area of
opportunity for growth in the future.
Setting the stage for international brand loyalty
One of the reasons Starbucks had favorable results in 2012 was from a
7% increase in global sales. Starbucks' focus on developing a presence
globally will enable it to begin developing brand awareness and loyalty
as it has in the U.S. Starbucks currently has a total of around 12,903
stores with 2,628 located in the China/Asia Pacific region.
One of the highlights for 2012 was 130 new stores opened in China.
This strategy will enable investors to see around the same returns the
stock has already given over the past 10 years at 18.7% with its new
presence and focus in high- population areas throughout Asia. The
current yield on its dividend is 1.2% on $0.21 per quarter; this is up
from $0.10 in 2010. Investors can also anticipate dividend increases in
the future, which will help with shareholder returns.
Best globally positioned company
An investment in either three of these stocks will give investors a
cut in increasing global coffee consumption. Starbucks and Dunkin'
Brands offer income and dividend investors more than a 1% head start
each year with signs of more increases to come. Green Mountain has been
the most volatile over the past few years.
If I had to pick just one I would throw my money at Starbucks because
of its ability to build brand loyalty and its current strategy in Asia
with a high concentration of new store openings. As Starbucks builds its
brand in Asia, the stock will benefit greatly from this new revenue
stream.
Between 2006 and 2012, the U.S. projected GDP growth was 1.1%,
according to The Conference Board. Emerging and developing economies
growth came in at 6.5%, with the world average at 3.5%. While the U.S.
has been a leader in the past for economic development, U.S. investors
should not ignore the fact that other markets will experience greater
growth going forward. One way investors can invest in emerging and
developing markets without the difficulty of having to research foreign
stocks is by buying U.S. stocks with a strong international presence.
Perhaps you are new to the stock market game or you may be a
seasoned veteran in how trading works. Penny stocks can be a great investment
and a fast way to boost your money which has made them popular, especially in
uncertain times. However, with the upswing in the economy and the stock market
at an all-time high, now is the time to get back into the trading game.
With the world population growing and emerging markets' demand
for meat increasing; the demand for crops has never been higher. With
this increased demand the nutrients in soil year after year are soaked
up and depleted by the crops planted and harvested. This leaves farmers
with no choice but to buy fertilizers to replenish their soil which is
why these three fertilizer stocks will continue to out-perform the
market.
On October 11, 2007 the S&P 500 hit a record high of 1,576 by
the time March 9, 2009 came along the S&P 500 slid all the way to
666. That represents a decline of 57.74%. The stock market crash was
caused by many different variables but the main factor was the financial
crisis. As the S&P 500 approaches its record level again investors
need to begin protecting their returns. Although a financial crisis of
the same altitude is unlikely to occur in the near future due to the
increased regulation and risk aversion from the same financial
corporations. One should still consider positioning their portfolio in a
defensive manner to hedge against likely sell-offs.
With the prime rate currently at 3.25% many bank holding
companies profits have been stretched due to low interest rate margins.
On average the largest portion of revenue for banks comes from interest
revenue. Because of our current low prime rate for an extended period of
time many of the U.S. largest banks are lending less money measured by
their deposits. Because banks are lending less money the economy is
growing at a very slow rate. For the fourth quarter of 2012 the US
economy grew at 0.1%
In the past five years the area I live in has experienced a gold rush
that many residents have never experienced in their life time. The
majority of Pennsylvanians had no idea the land they owned was
stockpiled with Marcellus shale and natural gas. The price of land began
to skyrocket as individuals began leasing their properties to natural
gas exploration companies. I unfortunately was not able to partake in
this sudden fortune but would like to provide one with an option to take
advantage of the natural gas boom in the U.S.
Investment rationale
There are two types of
investments that can be very difficult for the average investor to take
advantage of. One is health care stocks and the other is real estate. I
am proposing a very simple way one can kill two birds with one stone and
if history repeats itself you could see very substantial above average
returns.
With the popularity of using credit cards and debit cards instead of
cash and checks; payment processing companies like Visa, MasterCard and
Discover are seeing more revenue from their payment solutions then ever
before. As the US and world economies are still recovering from the
economic crisis that began in 2008, now is a great time to invest in one
of these three stocks that will see both domestic growth from
increasing consumer spending and international growth as countries
become more developed and begin moving away from paper currency.
