Consumer Stocks For A Balanced Portfolio

Article Excerpt

A key part of our approach to investing is spreading your money out among the five economic sectors: Finance; Utilities; Consumer Goods & Services; Resources & Commodities; and Manufacturing & Industry. That way, you avoid overloading yourself with stocks that are about to slump simply because of industry conditions or changes in investor fashion. Generally speaking, stocks in the Resources & Commodities sector and the Manufacturing & Industry sectors are apt to expose you to above-average volatility, while those in the Finance and Utilities sectors involve below-average volatility. Consumer stocks are in the middle. Due to the recent market downturn, investors are now taking a closer look at Consumer stocks. But the Consumer sector is a two-tier market, where some stocks thrive while others stagnate. That’s why it pays to zero in on well-established companies with strong brands that are attractive in relation to current prices, like these three. MAPLE LEAF FOODS INC. $15 (Toronto symbol MFI; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares…