Top pick Barrick Mining just raised its dividend a whopping 140% as it generates record earnings and continues its strategic asset reorganization.
Warner Music Group Corp. is well-positioned for higher-margin catalog revenues, added streaming adoption, and new AI monetization opportunities.
ARC Resources keeps returning its cash flow to shareholders through a growing dividend and substantial share buybacks.
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MOTOROLA SOLUTIONS INC. $70 (New York symbol MSI; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 176.7 million; Market cap: $12.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.1; Dividend yield: 2.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.motorolasolutions.com) is buying Airwave, which provides two-way radio and other communications services to over 300 emergency and public service agencies in the U.K. The company will pay $1.2 billion for Airwave when it completes the purchase in the first quarter of 2016. The deal will immediately add to Motorola’s earnings and cut its reliance on North America, which currently supplies 65% of its sales. However, big purchases like this add risk. Motorola Solutions is a hold....
WAL-MART STORES INC. $60 (New York symbol WMT; Conservative Growth Portfolio: Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 3.2 billion; Market cap: $192.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.4; Dividend yield: 3.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.walmart.com) has launched Walmart Pay, an app that lets customers pay for their purchases at Wal-Mart stores with their Apple or Android-powered mobile devices. Users can download the app and link it to their credit cards, debit cards or gift cards. They can then scan their device at the checkout, and the system will email a receipt. The company plans to install the service in all of its U.S. stores by the end of 2016. The app will also let Wal-Mart track users’ shopping habits, which it can then use to create unique discounts and other promotions. Moreover, introducing its own mobile payment system means Wal-Mart doesn’t have to share any processing fees with rival services like Apple Pay....
BROADRIDGE FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS INC. $54 (New York symbol BR; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 118.6 million; Market cap: $6.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.3; Dividend yield: 2.2%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.broadridge.com) serves the investment industry in three main areas: investor communications, securities processing and transaction clearing. The company processes 90% of all proxy votes in the U.S. and Canada. Broadridge was a subsidiary of Automatic Data Processing until April 2007, when ADP spun it off as a separate firm. Acquisitions drive profits higher...
HP INC. $12 (www.hp.com) took its current form on November 1, 2015, when the old Hewlett-Packard Co. split into two firms. HP Inc. focuses on personal computers and printers, while Hewlett-Packard Enterprise (see below) sells computing services and products, like servers and analytics software, to businesses and governments. Hewlett-Packard shareholders received one share of HP Inc. and one share of Hewlett-Packard Enterprise for each old share they held. Demand for printers and ink continues to slow as more people share photos on social media instead of printing them. As well, businesses are still evaluating Microsoft’s new Windows 10 operating system before buying new computers. Hold. HEWLETT-PACKARD ENTERPRISE CO. $15 (www.hpe.com) should benefit as more businesses shift to cloud computing systems. However, this new firm faces strong competition from larger, better-established cloud providers like Amazon Web Services and IBM. Hold.