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A key part of our three-pronged approach to investing is avoiding companies in the media limelight (the other two parts are diversifying your holdings across the five main economic sectors and sticking to well-established companies). A good example is uniform rental firm Cintas, which has soared over 200% in the past five years....
MONDELEZ INTERNATIONAL INC. $74 is a buy. The company (Nasdaq symbol MDLZ; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 1.4 billion; Market cap: $103.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.8; Dividend yield: 2.3%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.mondelezinternational.com) mainly makes snack foods such as cookies, chocolate bars and gum.

Mondelez recently sold its gum businesses in the U.S., Canada and Europe for $1.4 billion....
PHILIPS ELECTRONICS N.V. ADRs $20 is a hold. The company (New York symbol PHG; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing sector; ADRs outstanding: 906.4 million; Market cap: $18.1 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.0; Dividend yield: 4.2%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.philips.com) has stopped selling its sleep apnea and ventilator machines in the U.S....
SONY GROUP CORP. ADRs $87 is a hold. The Japanese conglomerate (New York symbol SONY; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; ADRs outstanding: 1.3 billion; Market cap: $113.1 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.2; Dividend yield: 0.6%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.sony.com) plans to sell shares in its financial services business to the public in October 2025....
These two foodmakers have had to increase their selling prices in the past two years in response to rising costs for ingredients and other inputs. However, those higher prices are prompting consumers to switch to cheaper generic brands. New weight-loss drugs could also cut demand for snack foods.

PEPSICO INC....
MOTOROLA SOLUTIONS INC. $325 is a buy. The maker of two-way radios and high-definition surveillance systems (New York symbol MSI; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 166.1 million; Market cap: $54.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 5.6; Dividend yield: 1.2%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.motorolasolutions.com) tends to fuel its growth with acquisitions....
These two chipmakers are investing heavily in new plants. While these outlays will depress their earnings in 2024, the spending also puts them in a better position to fuel their long-term growth.

INTEL CORP. $43 is a buy. The company (Nasdaq symbol INTC; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 4.1 billion; Market cap: $176.3 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.5; Dividend yield: 1.2%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.intel.com) is the world’s leading maker of computer chips: its products power 65% of all personal computers and 80% of all datacentres.

In the fourth quarter of 2023, Intel’s revenue rose 9.7%, to $15.41 billion from $14.04 billion a year earlier....
APPLE INC. $182 is still a hold. The company (Nasdaq symbol AAPL; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 15.6 billion; Market cap: $2.8 trillion; Price-to-sales ratio: 7.4; Dividend yield: 0.5%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.apple.com) gets about half of its revenue from iPhone sales....
DIAGEO PLC ADR $151 is a hold. The company (New York symbol DEO; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; ADRs outstanding: 562.5 million; Market cap: $84.9 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.6; Dividend yield: 2.6%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.diageo.com) is a leading maker of premium alcoholic beverages.

In the first half of its 2024 fiscal year, ended December 31, 2023, Diageo’s sales fell 1.4%, to $10.96 billion from $11.12 billion a year earlier (Note—the company now reports in U.S....

We continue to recommend investors diversify their Finance sector holdings with non-bank stocks. Here are three stocks that dominate their niche markets and so cut your risk. What’s more, they are incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) technology to improve the performance of their products and services....