Gains ahead for these Consumers

Article Excerpt

Dear client: When investing in Consumer sector stocks, we believe you should stick with market leaders, such as Newell and Tupperware, that sell wellestablished brands. Those products give them steady sales and profits, which protects them from swings in the overall economy. Both stocks have moved up strongly in the past few months, but we feel they are still attractive in light their improving earnings. NEWELL BRANDS INC. $53 (New York symbol NWL; Aggressive Growth and Income Portfolios, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 483.1 million; Market cap: $25.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.7; Dividend yield: 1.7%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.newellbrands. com) makes a variety of household goods. Those include pens (by brands such as Sharpie and Paper Mate), coffee makers (Mr. Coffee) and baby strollers (Graco). It took its current form through the merger of Newell Rubbermaid and Jarden Corp. on April 15, 2016. Newell shareholders now own 55% of the combined firm. Based on pro-forma figures supplied by Newell, the combined company’s sales rose 3.7%,…