Hot Blue Chip Companies To Own For 2014

After a bizarre mini "flash crash" situation earlier in the day, blue chips rallied back from their 143-point plunge to post big gains. The brief dip, which lasted only a few minutes, was sparked by a phony tweet from the Associated Press Twitter account saying there was an explosion at the White House and the president was injured. When it became clear those rumors were unfounded, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) resumed its upward march, finishing 152 points, or 1.1%, higher to close at 14,719.�

E.I. du Pont de Nemours (NYSE: DD  ) , which added 2.5% yesterday in anticipation of earnings, met and exceeded the market's expectations, ending 4.1% higher. Investors cheered after it announced higher-than-expected profits, bolstered by the strength of its growing agricultural division. It didn't hurt that the company upped its quarterly dividend by 5%, bringing the annual rate to about 3.4%.�

Hot Blue Chip Companies To Own For 2014: Philip Morris International Inc(PM)

Philip Morris International Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products in markets outside of the United States. Its international product brand line comprises Marlboro, Merit, Parliament, Virginia Slims, L&M, Chesterfield, Bond Street, Lark, Muratti, Next, Philip Morris, and Red & White. The company also offers its products under the A Mild, Dji Sam Soe, and A Hijau in Indonesia; Diana in Italy; Optima and Apollo-Soyuz in the Russian Federation; Morven Gold in Pakistan; Boston in Colombia; Belmont, Canadian Classics, and Number 7 in Canada; Best and Classic in Serbia; f6 in Germany; Delicados in Mexico; Assos in Greece; and Petra in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. It operates primarily in the European Union, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Canada, and Latin America. The company is based in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dividend]

  Philip Morris International (PM) has a market capitalization of $135.05 billion. The company employs 87,100 people, generates revenue of $77.393 billion and has a net income of $9.154 billion. Philip Morris International�� earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $14.827 billion. The EBITDA margin is 19.16 percent (the operating margin is 17.89 percent and the net profit margin 11.83 percent).

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Phillip Morris (PM) gained 2.8% to $86.56 after boosting its dividend by 10.6%.

  Restoration Hardware (RH) dropped 12% to $68.04 despite what many considered to be a solid earnings�report. Not Barron’s.

• [By Shauna O'Brien]

  On Wednesday, Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) announced that its board has approved a 10.6% increase to its quarterly dividend.

  PM has increased its dividend from 85 cents to 94 cents per share, or $3.76 annually.

  The dividend will be paid on October 11 to shareholders of record on September 26. The stock will go ex-dividend on September 24.

  Philip Morris shares were mostly flat during pre-market trading Wednesday. The stock has been mostly flat YTD.

Hot Blue Chip Companies To Own For 2014: International Business Machines Corporation(IBM)

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) provides information technology (IT) products and services worldwide. Its Global Technology Services segment provides IT infrastructure and business process services, including strategic outsourcing, process, integrated technology, and maintenance services, as well as technology-based support services. The company?s Global Business Services segment offers consulting and systems integration, and application management services. Its Software segment offers middleware and operating systems software, such as WebSphere software to integrate and manage business processes; information management software for database and enterprise content management, information integration, data warehousing, business analytics and intelligence, performance management, and predictive analytics; Tivoli software for identity management, data security, storage management, and datacenter automation; Lotus software for collaboration, messaging, and so cial networking; rational software to support software development for IT and embedded systems; business intelligence software, which provides querying and forecasting tools; SPSS predictive analytics software to predict outcomes and act on that insight; and operating systems software. Its Systems and Technology segment provides computing and storage solutions, including servers, disk and tape storage systems and software, point-of-sale retail systems, and microelectronics. The company?s Global Financing segment provides lease and loan financing to end users and internal clients; commercial financing to dealers and remarketers of IT products; and remanufacturing and remarketing services. It serves financial services, public, industrial, distribution, communications, and general business sectors. The company was formerly known as Computing-Tabulating-Recording Co. and changed its name to International Business Machines Corporation in 1924. IBM was founded in 1910 and is based in Armonk, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By ]

  IBM is a global technology company that provides essential products and services to companies and consumers worldwide. The company is currently undergoing some measures in order to improve the company. The stock has not done well in recent quarters and is now trading near lows for the year. Over the last four quarters, earnings have been rising while revenues have been declining which has not really pleased investors in the company. Relative to its peers and sector, IBM has been a weak year-to-date performer. WAIT AND SEE what IBM does in coming quarters.

• [By Douglas A. McIntyre]

  What Microsoft could do is what International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM)�did when it reached a critical stage of failure. It brought on a gifted executive who had little to no tech experience. Lou Gerstner was CEO of RJR Nabisco and a top executive at American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP). Before that, he was an executive at McKinsey & Co., a breeding ground for big company CEOs. Gerstner took over at Big Blue in 1993, and by the time he left in 2002 , he returned IBM to its place as one of the most highly regarded technology companies in the world.

Top Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Colgate-Palmolive Company(CL)

Colgate-Palmolive Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets consumer products worldwide. It offers oral care products, including toothpaste, toothbrushes, and mouth rinses, as well as dental floss and pharmaceutical products for dentists and other oral health professionals; personal care products, such as liquid hand soap, shower gels, bar soaps, deodorants, antiperspirants, shampoos, and conditioners; and home care products comprising laundry and dishwashing detergents, fabric conditioners, household cleaners, bleaches, dishwashing liquids, and oil soaps. The company offers its oral, personal, and home care products under the Colgate Total, Colgate Max Fresh, Colgate 360

Hot Blue Chip Companies To Own For 2014: Apple Inc.(AAPL)

Apple Inc., together with subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and markets personal computers, mobile communication and media devices, and portable digital music players, as well as sells related software, services, peripherals, networking solutions, and third-party digital content and applications worldwide. The company sells its products worldwide through its online stores, retail stores, direct sales force, third-party wholesalers, resellers, and value-added resellers. In addition, it sells third-party Mac, iPhone, iPad, and iPod compatible products, including application software, printers, storage devices, speakers, headphones, and other accessories and peripherals through its online and retail stores; and digital content and applications through the iTunes Store. The company sells its products to consumer, small and mid-sized business, education, enterprise, government, and creative markets. As of September 25, 2010, it had 317 retail stores, including 233 stores in the United States and 84 stores internationally. The company, formerly known as Apple Computer, Inc., was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Cupertino, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Nick Taborek]

  The Dow�� price-weighting system has proven a barrier to inclusion for some of America�� most-heavily traded technology stocks. Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Google Inc. (GOOG), which change hands above $500, have been left out. At the same time, the three companies to be removed had the lowest prices in the average.

Hot Blue Chip Companies To Own For 2014: McDonald's Corporation(MCD)

McDonald?s Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a worldwide foodservice retailer. It franchises and operates McDonald?s restaurants that offer various food items, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages. As of December 31, 2009, the company operated 32,478 restaurants in 117 countries, of which 26,216 were operated by franchisees; and 6,262 were operated by the company. McDonald?s Corporation was founded in 1948 and is based in Oak Brook, Illinois.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Marc Bastow]

  The qualifications for being a purple chip are basically a screen for stability and performance: smooth earnings profiles, including seven years of consecutive EPS growth, and market caps north of $1 billion. Not surprisingly, you’ll find Procter & Gamble (PG), McDonald’s (MCD) and IBM (IBM) on Macke’s list of what I’d call the “usual suspects.”

• [By Stoyan Bojinov]

  Fast food bellwether McDonald’s (MCD) announced on Tuesday that it had rolled out a new payment method that it is testing in select cities across the Southwest.Lisa McComb, spokesperson for McDonald’s, commented in an email to Bloomberg that the company has released an application that allows for customers to pay at the register directly from their smartphone. McComb went on to mention that the payment app is currently being tested in restaurant locations across Salt Lake City, Utah and Austin, Texas. McDonald’s also released global monthly sales data on the day; sales in the U.S. improved by 0.2% for the month while Europe saw a 3.3% jump.

  McDonald’s shares traded higher on Tuesday, gaining 0.46% on the day. The stock is up nearly 10% YTD.

• [By David Goodboy]

  I regularly screen the market for pullback trading opportunities, and I recently found a powerful one. I would never buy a stock on the technical picture alone, but when other bullish factors combine with a technical setup, it can paint a compelling picture. The technical pullback setup is in none other than Dow Jones Industrial Average component McDonald's (NYSE: MCD).