Newell Rubbermaid took its present form in 1999, when Newell Companies bought Rubbermaid Inc. That doubled the size of the old Newell, which felt it needed to get bigger to improve its negotiating position with big retailers like Wal-Mart. Even now, Wal-Mart still accounts for 12% of the company’s sales. The combined company went on to buy several other businesses over the next few years. These acquisitions included Gillette’s stationery operations, and the maker of Vise-Grip hand tools. However, big purchases like these rarely go as smoothly as expected. That’s been the case with Newell, which continues to streamline its operations. Recently, it closed plants and got out of low-margin businesses, particularly plastic-resin products that expose it to volatile oil prices. The company is also expanding into more-profitable products, such as children’s car seats and strollers....

TUPPERWARE BRANDS CORP. $39 (New York symbol TUP; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 63.1 million; Market cap: $2.5 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.1; Dividend yield: 2.6%; WSSF Rating: Above Average) makes food and beverage containers. It gets 56% of its sales from overseas markets, compared to just 25% for Newell. However, expanding internationally can lead to unforeseen problems. For example, the stock fell 8% on July 19, 2010, even though Tupperware reported stronger quarterly earnings. That’s because of accounting errors at its Russian subsidiary. The company will upgrade the subsidiary’s accounting systems to prevent future problems. The errors cut Tupperware’s earnings by $0.14 in the latest quarter. If you exclude all unusual items, earnings per share would have risen 8.1%, to $0.93 from $0.86. Revenue rose 7.7%, to $565.1 million from $524.7 million, mainly on strong emerging-market demand....

Small-cap stocks, generally thought of as those with a market capitalization under $1 billion, have not performed as well as larger companies during the recent market volatility. Over the past year, the Russell 3000 Index, which has median market cap of $807 million, has gained 5.0%, compared to 7.4% for the Dow Jones Industrial Average. That’s because most investors prefer larger companies with steady earnings and dividends in times of economic uncertainty. Like many small caps, the four industrial stocks below have been volatile lately. However, we feel they are suitable for most portfolios. That’s because all four are leaders in their industries, which gives them a competitive advantage. They are also cutting costs. However, only two are buys right now. TENNANT CORP. $32 (New York symbol TNC; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 19.0 million; Market cap: $608.0 million; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.0; Dividend yield: 1.8%; WSSF Rating: Average) makes industrial floor-cleaning equipment, including scrubbers, sweepers and polishers. It also makes cleaning equipment for garages, stadiums, parking lots and city streets. Tennant’s clients are mainly municipal governments and businesses....

IDEXX LABORATORIES INC. $56 (Nasdaq symbol IDXX; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 57.7 million; Market cap: $3.2 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.0; No dividends paid; WSSF Rating: Average) earned $0.62 a share in the three months ended June 30, 2010. That’s up 12.7% from $0.55 a year earlier. Revenue rose 5.9%, to $281.5 million from $265.7 million. Strong sales of new disease-testing equipment to veterinarians pushed up Idexx’s results. However, the company now expects its revenue for 2010 will range from $1.09 billion to $1.1 billion, down from its prior view of $1.1 billion to $1.12 billion. That’s mainly because the high U.S. dollar is hurting the contribution from sales in overseas markets, which account for 40% of its revenue. As well, the slow economy may prompt pet owners to cut back on routine check-ups. That would give veterinarians less to spend on new equipment. Idexx Laboratories is a hold.

TERADATA CORP. $30 (New York symbol TDC; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 167.3 million; Market cap: $5.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.8; No dividends paid; WSSF Rating: Average) makes computers and software that capture and store large amounts of a business’s data. Analyzing this information helps its clients make better decisions. In the three months ended June 30, 2010, Teradata earned $0.44 a share, up 22.2% from $0.36 a year earlier. Revenue rose 11.6%, to $470 million from $421 million. Teradata is adding to its sales force and spending more on research. That will weigh on its short-term earnings, but should fuel its long-term growth. Teradata is a buy.

Canon and Xerox dominate the office copier and printer market. But both are lowering their exposure to this cyclical business: Canon has expanded into consumer products, such as cameras, while Xerox is focusing on selling supplies and services, which are more profitable than equipment sales. CANON INC. ADRs $41 (New York symbol CAJ; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; ADRs outstanding: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $49.2 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.2; Dividend yield: 2.5%; WSSF Rating: Above Average) makes copiers and printers (58% of revenue), cameras (28%), and optical products, such as chips for specialty lenses for TV sets and medical equipment (14%). The company gets 80% of its revenue from outside Japan. In the three months ended June 30, 2010, Canon earned $768.6 million, or $0.62 per ADR (each American Depositary Receipt represents one Canon common share). That’s big jump from the $162.6 million, or $0.13 per ADR, it earned a year earlier....

WINDSTREAM CORP. $11 (Nasdaq symbol WIN; Income Portfolio, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 483.2 million; Market cap: $5.3 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.7; Dividend yield: 9.1%; WSSF Rating: Average) has agreed to buy privately held Q-Comm Corp., which has two main businesses: its Norlight subsidiary sells communication services to 5,500 businesses in the U.S. Midwest, and Kentucky Data Link operates a fibre-optic network that covers 22 states. Windstream will pay $782 million in cash, stock and assumed debt for Q-Comm when the deal closes later this year. To put that in context, Windstream earned $79 million, or $0.17 a share, in the three months ended June 30, 2010. This is Windstream’s fifth acquisition in the past year. Its purchases have all been high-quality companies, but expanding by acquisition adds risk....

The improving economy is helping more consumers repay their loans on time. That’s pushing down loan losses at J.P. Morgan and Wells Fargo. However, high unemployment is hurting loan demand, and the government is introducing new banking regulations. That will weigh on both banks’ short-term profits. J.P. MORGAN CHASE & CO. $36 (New York symbol JPM; Income Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 4.0 billion; Market cap: $144.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.4; Dividend yield: 0.6%; WSSF Rating: Average) is one of the world’s largest financial-services companies, with over 5,100 branches in the U.S. Aside from retail banking, Morgan offers credit cards, wealth-management and investment-banking services. In the three months ended June 30, 2010, Morgan earned $4.8 billion, or $1.09 a share. The company is setting aside less money to cover bad loans. As a result, loan-loss provisions fell 58.1%, to $3.4 billion from $8.0 billion, including a $1.5-billion reversal of earlier provisions. This one-time item added $0.36 a share to Morgan’s latest earnings, and helped offset a $0.14-a-share charge for new bank taxes in the U.K....

AMERICAN EXPRESS CO. $40 (New York symbol AXP, Conservative Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $48.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.7; Dividend yield: 1.8%; WSSF Rating: Average) is writing off fewer loans, thanks to its tougher lending policies. As well, more of its cardholders are repaying their balances on time. As a result, earnings jumped 833.3% in the quarter ended June 30, 2010, to $0.84 a share from $0.09 a year earlier. Revenue rose 12.6%, to $6.9 billion from $6.1 billion. However, the revenue gain was mainly due to a change in accounting rules. Weak consumer confidence will likely continue to hold back loan demand. American Express is a hold.

BROADRIDGE FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS INC. $20 (New York symbol BR; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 126.7 million; Market cap: $2.5 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.2; Dividend yield: 3.0%; WSSF Rating: Average) has purchased privately held NewRiver Inc., which specializes in electronic forms that make it easier for financial companies to submit data to the Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulators. The $77.0 million price is equal to 34% of the $225.1 million, or $1.62 a share, that Broadridge earned in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2010. NewRiver already supplies electronic forms to Broadridge. This familiarity cuts the risk of an unpleasant surprise. Moreover, the purchase gives Broadridge access to NewRiver’s high-quality clientele, including mutual-fund companies, brokerage firms and pension-plan administrators....