subject: Stock Market 2008 - Safe Growth Stock Investments For An Unpredictable Market [print this page] The stock market investing surroundings is definitely scary to a ton of investors within the short term. With fears of a recession on the horizon, together with problems like the falling price of the U.S. dollar, rising commodity costs, distressed credit ratings and problems with inflation, the thought of pushing new money into the stock market is certainly not a standard idea.
When testing the January lows somewhat successfully, I feel as though the market's conditions may finally be seeing improvement. In my honest opinion, we tend to are oversold. While the market might continue a downtrend, an oversold market isn't any place for shorting... and reaching into the cut price bin in the primary [*fr1] 2008 may be the best move you ever make.
Trying into "safe" areas of the market, our picks are few and far between. Straying far from the favored markets like tobacco and discount foods, I need to spotlight some areas of the stock market where high growth remains a potential... and risk remains somewhat in check. That sub-industries am I talking concerning? Agriculture and Aerospace & Defense in fact! :)
Agriculture
Out of all of the sectors within the stock market, agriculture is an investing hotbed that hasn't very delayed or created negative numbers for 2008. As we watched all of the pillars fall (banks, retailers, restaurants, etc.), agriculture's turn never came! The ag. commodities like wheat, corn and soybeans have showed no signs of stopping their run-up, and therefore the 2008 outlook out of those stellar firms has been nothing however positive. Whats a lot of? Most of those corporations return with low risk, despite high upside... one thing rare in these days's market.
If you wish to play this bull, and I suggest that you do, you would like to keep a keen eye on Deere (NYSE: DE), Monsanto (NYSE: MON), Potash (NYSE: POT) and Mosaic (NYSE: MOS). Let's begin with Deere. I feel that they're the safest method to play this ag boom as a result of they're an industrials sector company by definition. I suggested this company back on February 11th, and my views really haven't changed. You are not going to urge a nice valuation as they nearly continually trade at a premium to the market... however as long as you can catch a dip, I don't see this train slowing down any time soon.
Moving over to Monsanto, this is often a fantastic investment if you'll get in at an engaging worth now. They recently announced an enormous agreement with Becker Underwood and Plant Health Care to produce a new hybrid seed treatment platform. The Dow recently partnered up with Monsanto, and prospects are very sensible for the future.
Potash and Mosaic are extremely sitting on cloud nine right now. Even when we tend to have seen a huge drive into these companies over the past week, I assume there's some house on the market and folks very aren't being as aggressive as they must be. Mosaic is another stock that I suggested, this one back in late January, and their catalysts haven't changed. Their PEG is over 3. Ignore it. These ag. companies do not come back low-cost, however I see them continuing to stride upward.
Aerospace & Defense
Being an Industrials sector buff, you can't help however feel assured within the Aerospace & Defense industry. One factor that typically can not slow in recessionary times is the growth behind military contracting, national defense funding and aerospace development. With the ongoing war over in Iraq, there's a constant driver for most of the big 5 A&D companies, and much of this can be guaranteed for 2008 and beyond. I prefer General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), United Technologies (NYSE: UTX) and Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT).
I wish to recommend Boeing (NYSE: BA), particularly with their currently dirt-low cost valuation versus their historical trading vary, however I simply cannot see through this cloudy future. Personally, I need to have them now, however with the disputes and such after losing a contract to a combined Northrop-Grumman and Airbus EAS team, their future is somewhat uncertain. Instead, I prefer General Dynamics. Not to be cliche, however Jim Cramer recently devoted a whole section to this A&D powerhouse. They're the most important holding within the industrials sector of the Nittany Lion Fund, LLC that I facilitate manage, and we have a tendency to are terribly assured in their future success. If McCain is elected, this is often a superstar. But whether or not he's not, this company remains secure in its fundamentals and is trading at a discount in a bullish industry.
The Aerospace & Defense trade is red hot, safe, and trading at a discount to its historical premiums despite leading the market averages this year. With this in mind, I favor United Technologies and Lockheed Martin in addition to GD. UTX recently created a proposal to amass Diebold, that would position United Tech for a few solid growth opportunities overseas. All future implications remain bullish on the stock, and analysts appear to be loving this, the biggest domestic aerospace & defense company, for the future. Lockheed Martin is your typical flawless company that continues to impress. These of us don't disappoint and have had remarkable fundamentals and money balance for so long as I will remember. LMT is safe and at an enticing value!
As investors, we tend to want to look for safe havens like Agriculture and Aerospace & Defense for predictable growth, stability and recession-proofing measures so as to still grow our portfolios. I wanted to bit on commodity-tied stocks like those tied to Gold, Oil and Natural Gas... however we can be touching on those soon, so we will save the simplest for last. Specialize in the Ag. and defense companies if you, like me, will sense an oversold market with some discount costs up for grabs. Its one thing to catch a falling knife, but these industries really haven't fallen at all... so they are ripe for investment.
