recent acquisitions

FAIR ISAAC CORP. $390 is a buy, but only for highly aggressive investors. The company (New York symbol FICO; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 28.9 million; Market cap: $11.3 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 9.5; Dividend suspended June 2017; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.fico.com) is best known for its FICO Scores software....

These two industrial giants are aggressively shrinking their operations. That should improve their outlook as investors tend to prefer smaller, easier-to-understand businesses. Even so, we prefer ABB over GE for your new buying.


ABB LTD. ADRs $22 is a buy. The stock (New York symbol ABB; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; ADRs o/s: 2.1 billion; Market cap: $46.2 billion; P.S....

Broadridge was our #1 Aggressive stock for 2019, and it handed investors a sizeable 30% gain. While we decided to go with Alphabet as our top Aggressive pick in 2020, Broadridge is still a strong choice for the Aggressive portion of your portfolio. The company continues to dominate its niche industry and stands to gain from new regulations that require brokers to disclose more information to their clients.


BROADRIDGE FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS INC....

BROADRIDGE FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS INC. $119 is a buy. The stock (New York symbol BR; High-Growth Dividend Payer Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares o/s: 115.7 million; Market cap: $13.8 billion; Divd. yield: 1.8%; Divd. Sustainability Rating: Above Average; www.broadridge.com) lets you tap a company serving the investment industry in three areas: investor communications, securities processing and transaction clearing.


With the October 2019, payment, the company raised its quarterly dividend for investors by 11.3%....

Chances are that in the decades (and possibly centuries) ahead, the world will look back on Google as the key pioneer in web search—the explosive technology of finding what you are looking for on the Internet in a quick and easy manner. Our descendants may look back on Google’s role in web search in much the same way that we look back on, say, Henry Ford’s role in the growth of the auto industry.

Or, they may look on Google as the first of a series of successful businesses launched/owned by Alphabet Inc....

A: Stryker Corporation, $206.97, symbol SYK on New York (Shares outstanding: 373.1 million; Market cap: $76.8 billion; www.stryker.com), is one of the world’s leading medical technology companies....

A: Smartsheet Inc., $44.60, symbol SMAR on New York (Shares outstanding: 87.4 million; Market cap: $5.0 billion; www.smartsheet.com), provides cloud-based software for teams and organizations to plan, capture, manage, automate, and report on their work.

Smartsheet first sold shares to the public in April 2018 at $15 a share.

The company operates in a competitive market and continues to lose money; it will likely report a loss of $0.55 a share in 2020....

A: Crescita Therapeutics, $0.96, symbol CTX on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 21.0 million; Market cap: $20.1 million; www.crescitatherapeutics.com), is a dermatology company with manufacturing capabilities, a portfolio of non-prescription skincare products for the treatment and care of skin conditions and diseases, and prescription drug products for the treatment of pain....

A: Empire Company Ltd., $34.70, symbol EMP.A on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 269.1 million; Market cap: $9.4 billion; www.empireco.ca), is a diversified Canadian-firm based in Stellarton, Nova Scotia....

Supermarket operator Loblaw is still Choice Properties’ largest tenant. While that exposure adds risk to your investment, it also adds stability: Loblaw and Choice share a parent company, George Weston. Still, the REIT’s May 2018 purchase of Canadian REIT has helped it diversify its portfolio, and further protect your investment.


Allied Properties is another REIT we recommend to you....