High quality, low p/e

Article Excerpt

NEWELL RUBBERMAID INC. $16 (New York symbol NWL; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 278.2 million; Market cap: $4.5 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.8; Dividend yield: 1.3%; WSSF Rating: Average) makes plastic storage bins and other consumer items. Its top brands include Rubbermaid, Sharpie and Levolor. The company went through a deep setback in sales and earnings in 2008. In response, it closed plants, merged warehouses and sold low-margin businesses, particularly those whose products require large amounts of plastic resins. These resins come from oil, so selling these businesses cuts Newell’s sensitivity to volatile oil prices. Severance and other costs of Newell’s restructuring will total $475 million to $500 million. So far, the company has saved $160 million. In addition, it should cut its annual costs by $200 million by the end of 2010. Newell cut its dividend from $0.84 in 2008 to $0.20 currently. It now yields 1.3%. The company’s per-share profit slumped from $1.82 in 2007 to $1.21 in 2008, but recovered…