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Orange SA (ADR), $17.06, symbol ORAN on New York (ADRs outstanding: 2.6 billion; Market cap: $45.1 billion, www.orange.com), is a telecommunications company controlled by the French government. It was formerly called France Telecom SA. Now operating in 28 countries—including Poland—Orange has a total client base of over 263 million customers worldwide. This includes 200 million mobile customers and 18 million fixed broadband subscribers. In early April 2016, Orange dropped from $17.40 to as low as $16. The decline came after the company failed to conclude a merger with its smaller rival Bouygues Telecom. The deal would have reduced the number of major French telecom operators from four to three. Orange is number one in the market....
APPLE INC., $93.74, Nasdaq symbol AAPL, gets about two-thirds of its revenue from its iPhone smartphone. The remaining third comes from sales of its Mac computers, iPad tablets, iPod music players and Apple watches as well as the software, movies and music sold through its iTunes online store. The company sold 51.2 million iPhones in its fiscal 2016 second quarter, which ended March 26, 2016. That’s down 16.3% from 61.2 million a year earlier. However, the year-earlier quarter benefited from strong demand for the recently released iPhone 6 model. iPhone sales will likely remain weak until Apple launches the iPhone 7 later this year. Sales of Mac computers and iPads also fell during the quarter. As a result, Apple’s overall sales declined 12.8%, to $50.6 billion from $58.0 billion a year earlier. That missed the consensus forecast of $51.9 billion....
CGI GROUP INC., $57.32, Toronto symbol GIB.A, is Canada’s largest provider of computer-outsourcing services. It helps its clients automate certain routine functions such as accounting and buying supplies. That makes companies more efficient and lets them focus on their main businesses. In its 2016 second quarter, which ended March 31, 2016, CGI earned $268.3 million. That’s a 6.8% increase from the $251.2 million it earned a year earlier. Per-share profits gained 10.3%, to $0.86 from $0.78, on fewer shares outstanding. That missed the consensus estimate of $0.88. In the latest quarter, higher revenue in France, the U.K. and parts of Asia offset declining contributions from CGI’s U.S. defense clients. Revenue improved 5.7%, to $2.75 billion from $2.60 billion. The consensus forecast had been $2.74 billion. The weaker Canadian dollar also helped to lift revenue, contributing an extra $173.7 million....
PROCTER & GAMBLE CO. $80 (New York symbol PG; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 2.7 billion; Market cap: $216.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.0; Dividend yield: 3.4%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.pg.com) is one of the world’s largest makers of household and personal care goods. It began operating in the U.S. in 1837, and now sells its products in over 180 countries. Overseas markets account for 60% of its total sales. The company has five main business lines: fabric and home care products such as Tide laundry detergent (29% of fiscal 2015 sales, 24% of earnings); baby and family care goods, including Pampers diapers (27%, 26%); beauty items such as Olay cosmetics (24%, 23%); grooming products, including Gillette razors (10%, 16%); and health care items such as Crest toothpaste (10%, 11%). Wal-Mart accounts for 14% of the company’s sales. In response to rising competition from generic products, Procter is narrowing its focus from 166 different brands to 65. Of those remaining brands, 21 have annual sales of over $1 billion. Another 11 have annual sales of between $500 million and $1 billion....