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Monthly Archives: November 2010

10 Retail Stocks for the Holiday Season

November 27, 2010
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Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you’ve been enjoying the festivities surrounded by family and friends (and that you’re over your food coma). You may have even taken part in a little holiday shopping yesterday, the day of all days for retail stores: Black Friday. In honor of that “holiday,” I’m bringing you 10 retail stocks for the holiday season … and beyond. Some are technology stocks benefiting from the easing recession, which has sparked consumers and businesses to purchase personal computers, tablets and the like. Others are clothing companies, most a bit higher end than the ones we were discussing...

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Microsoft and Oracle: Two Great Value Companies

November 26, 2010
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Twice a year, I combine Warren Buffett’s and Ben Graham’s criteria for choosing stocks for a special feature in Cabot Benjamin Graham Value Letter, the publication I edit. To find investment opportunities for you, I looked for stocks with: 1)    Free cash flow of more than $20 million – cash needs include dividends, operating expenses, capital improvements and research. 2)    Net profit margin more than 15% – a good indicator of growth sustainability. 3)    Return on equity more than 15% – a barometer of future appreciation. 4)    Discounted cash flow value higher than current price – Standard & Poor’s...

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A Stock Benefiting from Wind, Natural Gas and the iPhone

November 25, 2010
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I make a concerted effort to focus on the positive of life. Like most folks, I find that’s sometimes easier said than done, but it’s worth working at. Thanksgiving, of course, is an ideal time to reflect on all there is to be thankful for. It’s not hard for me this year: I have two ebullient girls, Lila, nearly 3, and Phoebe, 13-months, and a great wife of 10 years. Now that the weather has turned chilly, Lila can’t stop talking about wanting to go skiing again, while Phoebe just can’t stop talking. One of my brothers beat ampullary...

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How to Invest like Warren Buffett

November 24, 2010
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How to Invest like Warren Buffett

I often write about Benjamin Graham, because he is considered the father of value investing. His clear teachings of how to analyze stocks and bonds using formulas and restrictive conditions make sense to me and are easy to follow. His book, The Intelligent Investor, first published in 1949, provides all of the information needed to become a successful value investor. Benjamin Graham taught investment courses at Columbia University in addition to running his Graham-Newman Partnership, investment advisors, for many years. Many of his students at Columbia became successful investors, including Warren Buffett. Warren Edward Buffett, born 80 years ago...

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Google (GOOG) and Growth

November 23, 2010
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As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, I recently attended a conference in Las Vegas, which featured lots of sessions on Internet-related technologies. I won’t bore you with all the details, except to say that Google was the talk of the conference. Not surprising really, since the company has had a major impact on the way we use computers and the Internet since its founding in 1998. Google dominates the U.S. online search market, but that’s just the tip of what the company does. From email (Gmail) and photo sharing (Picasa) to a mobile phone operating system (Android)...

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