Best Blue Chip Companies To Buy Right Now

It was a tough week for the markets, with fear hanging in the air over the fate of the Federal Reserve's bond-buying program and over last week's market stumble. Both the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) and the S&P 500 posted their worst weeks of the year, after declining 2.23% and 2.1%, respectively. The blue chip index lost 344 points over the past five days, with the worst single-day slide of 225 points coming on Thursday. The Nasdaq also lost 1.56% this past week, held at a reasonable loss thanks to Apple and the multimillion-dollar Tweet from Carl Icahn.

Before we hit the Dow losers, let's look at this week's best-performing component. Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT  ) , with a gain of 0.77%, was the only Dow stock that rose this past week. As gold, silver, and platinum rise, the value of the mining equipment Caterpillar makes also rises, and if prices can sustain their current levels, we're likely to see increased orders for its machinery as more people try to dig gold out of the ground. �

Best Blue Chip Companies To Buy 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 Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dividends4Life]

  Memberships and Peers: KMB is a member of the S&P 500, a Dividend Aristocrat, a member of the Broad Dividend Achievers��Index and a Dividend Champion. The company's peer group includes: The company's peer group includes: Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) with a 3.1% yield, Colgate-Palmolive Co. (CL) with a 2.3% yield, and Clorox Corporation (CLX) with a 3.4% yield.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Moreover, it's starting to appear that Clorox has weathered a tough part of its business cycle. Throughout the industry, Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG  ) , Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE: CL  ) , and Clorox all had to deal with rising costs for the inputs they needed to make their respective products. The companies responded by implementing price-cutting measures and passing on part of their higher costs to their customers. For its part, Clorox was able to expand its gross margins by a full percentage point, with a worse-than-normal flu season contributing to sales. Now that input-cost inflation is easing, P&G and Clorox expect to see better profitability, with growth starting to approach the faster rates that Colgate has enjoyed.

• [By Monica Gerson]

  Colgate-Palmolive Co (NYSE: CL) is expected to report its Q3 earnings at $0.73 per share on revenue of $4.46 billion.

  Precision Castparts (NYSE: PCP) is projected to report its Q2 earnings at $2.83 per share on revenue of $2.36 billion.

• [By Ong Kang Wei]

  Another example of such a product is Colgate-Palmolive (CL)'s Colgate toothpaste. I do not think I have to elaborate much here. Toothpaste is needed in our everyday life, and we will definitely have to buy more toothpaste after we have finished using a packet of it, ensuring that Colgate gets more and more sales over the years.

Best Blue Chip Companies To Buy Right Now: Visa Inc.(V)

Visa Inc., a payments technology company, engages in the operation of retail electronic payments network worldwide. It facilitates commerce through the transfer of value and information among financial institutions, merchants, consumers, businesses, and government entities. The company owns and operates VisaNet, a global processing platform that provides transaction processing services. It also offers a range of payments platforms, which enable credit, charge, deferred debit, debit, and prepaid payments, as well as cash access for consumers, businesses, and government entities. The company provides its payment platforms under the Visa, Visa Electron, PLUS, and Interlink brand names. In addition, it offers value-added services, including risk management, issuer processing, loyalty, dispute management, value-added information, and CyberSource-branded services. The company is headquartered in San Francisco, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Associated Press]

  NEW YORK (AP) -- The National Retail Federation on Tuesday urged a federal judge to reject a proposed $7.2 billion settlement with Visa (NYSE: V  ) and MasterCard (NYSE: MA  ) over alleged fee-fixing.

• [By Associated Press]

  Prom spending is expected to rise this spring to an average $1,139. That's among families who are planning to spend some money to attend the annual affair, according to a survey of 1,025 parents of prom age teens by payment processor Visa (NYSE: V  ) and research company Gfk. Not included in the average were 12 percent who said they wouldn't spend anything on the prom. A majority of parents with teenagers surveyed were still unsure how much they'd spend.

Top 5 Penny Stocks To Invest In 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 Holly LaFon]

  Company % of Assets Pepsico (PEP) 3.4 Philip Morris (PM) 2.3 Tesco PLC ADR (TSCO) 2.1 Molson Coors Brewing (TAP) 2.1 Microsoft (MSFT) 1.9 Merck (MRK) 1.9 Procter & Gamble (PG) 1.8 Avon Products (AVN) 1.6 Wal��art (WMT) 1.6 Medtronic 1.6 Hospira (HSP) 1.5 BP (BP) 1.4 Medco Health Solutions (MHS) 1.3 Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) 1.3 Unilever NV (UL) 1.3
  Jeff is also optimistic about natural gas and believes the recession in Europe could be setting up "a generational buying opportunity."

• [By Fede Zaldua]

  Imperial trades cheaply and pays a great, sustainable and for-ever-growing 4.5% cash dividend yield. The company's 2014 10.4 times P/E multiple represents a 40% discount to what most European consumer staples sell for. Besides, the owner of brands such as Davidoff and Gauloises, trades at a much more conservative level than its direct tobacco peers. Philip Morris International (PM) and British American Tobacco (BTI) sell for 2014 15 and 14.2 times earnings, respectively.

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE: PM) has experienced more than impressive growth in both its share price and its profits in the past four years. Lately its gains have petered out. The problem is that much of that growth has come from a few countries in Asia, and if one analyst report is accurate, there will be little to no growth from those areas ahead. Nomura Securities is downgrading Philip Morris to a Reduce rating from Neutral, but for all practical purposes it is a Sell rating. The firm’s $76 price target suggests downside of more than $10 ahead.

• [By Sean Williams]

  The end result of these multiple actions has been an ongoing reduction in smoking rates over the past four decades and tougher times for U.S. tobacco producers such as Altria (NYSE: MO  ) and Reynolds American (NYSE: RAI  ) . In fact, a tough domestic sales climate was one reason Altria decided to spin off its overseas operations into Philip Morris International (NYSE: PM  ) in 2008. By separating its business, the hope was that investors would have a better understanding of the fundamental forces driving Altria and Philip Morris.

Best Blue Chip Companies To Buy Right Now: 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 Dan Caplinger]

  One of Accenture's biggest areas of growth has been in technology-related consulting, with the company having become the No. 2 IT consulting company in the world, trailing only rival IBM (NYSE: IBM  ) . Accenture's ability to take advantage of diversity in its employee ranks comes from its lack of a physical corporate headquarters, allowing employees to work in their home countries, and thereby attracting the most talented workers available in a given area. In particular, Accenture has focused much of its attention on India, with more than a quarter of its employees hailing from the subcontinent.

• [By Stoyan Bojinov]

  The New York-based information technology juggernaut, IBM Corp. (IBM), made two announcements on Tuesday that resonated well among shareholders.

  First, the company’s board of directors approved an additional $15 billion to be used for stock repurchases. This brings the total amount designated for share buybacks to over $20 billion, seeing as how there were approximately $5.6 billion left at the end of September 2013 from the prior repurchase authorization. According to company officials, IBM expects to request another repurchase authorization at the October board meeting in 2014.

  The second piece of good news on the day was a declared dividend, adding to the company’s flawless quarterly payout record since 1916. IBM announced a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.95 per share, payable on December 10, 2013 to shareholders on record as of November 8, 2013.

  IBM shares rallied on Tuesday, gaining a solid 2.69% as the trading session drew to a close. The stock is down nearly 5% YTD.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Moreover, there's no guarantee that an employer will continue offering a cash-balance plan even once it's established. For instance, IBM (NYSE: IBM  ) froze its cash-balance plan five years ago.

• [By Lauren Pollock]

  International Business Machines Corp.(IBM) has agreed to acquire privately held analytics software provider The Now Factory, expanding the company’s big data business. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.

Best Blue Chip Companies To Buy Right Now: 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 Valuentum]

  Global fast food giant McDonald's (MCD) announced that it will increase its quarterly cash dividend 5% to $0.81 per share--an annual run-rate of $3.24 per share. This is in-line with our prediction that McDonald's next dividend increase would be 5% to $3.24 per annum. Interestingly, this will be the second consecutive year that McDonald's increased its dividend at a single-digit pace.

• [By Jim Jubak, Senior Markets Editor, MoneyShow.com]

  It looks like McDonald's (MCD) is facing a big price/cost squeeze. The latest evidence is the chain's test of a new Dollar Menu that would include items selling for as much as $5.00 and simmering discontent among franchisees who say that that company is increasing the fees that it charges them, in an effort to bolster the parent company's bottom line.

• [By WALLSTCHEATSHEET.COM]

  McDonald�� is a well-recognized company that fulfills cravings and demand for quick and delicious food choices that many consumers across the globe enjoy. The company continues to adopt new technologies in order to enhance their customer experience. The stock has been rising in recent years but is now pulling back a bit as investors book gains. Over the last four quarters, earnings and revenues have been on the rise, however, investors have expected a little more from the company. Relative to its peers and sector, McDonald’s has been an average year-to-date performer. WAIT AND SEE what McDonald’s does this quarter.

• [By Andrew Marder]

  Starbucks has been pushing for more food income for the past year, and this is just one small step on its long road. The long-term plan for Starbucks is to gain a bigger foothold in the lucrative U.S. food market and help it compete with other cafes like Panera (NASDAQ: PNRA  ) and McDonald's (NYSE: MCD  ) . Based on those goals, things are looking good for the coffee retailer.

Best Blue Chip Companies To Buy Right Now: Chevron Corporation(CVX)

Chevron Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in petroleum, chemicals, mining, power generation, and energy operations worldwide. It operates in two segments, Upstream and Downstream. The Upstream segment involves in the exploration, development, and production of crude oil and natural gas; processing, liquefaction, transportation, and regasification associated with liquefied natural gas; transportation of crude oil through pipelines; and transportation, storage, and marketing of natural gas, as well as holds interest in a gas-to-liquids project. The Downstream segment engages in the refining of crude oil into petroleum products; marketing of crude oil and refined products primarily under the Chevron, Texaco, and Caltex brand names; transportation of crude oil and refined products by pipeline, marine vessel, motor equipment, and rail car; and manufacture and marketing of commodity petrochemicals, plastics for industrial uses, and fuel and lubricant additives. It a lso produces and markets coal and molybdenum; and holds interests in 13 power assets with a total operating capacity of approximately 3,100 megawatts, as well as involves in cash management and debt financing activities, insurance operations, real estate activities, energy services, and alternative fuels and technology business. Chevron Corporation has a joint venture agreement with China National Petroleum Corporation. The company was formerly known as ChevronTexaco Corp. and changed its name to Chevron Corporation in May 2005. Chevron Corporation was founded in 1879 and is based in San Ramon, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tyler Crowe]

  What a Fool believes
  Could a move like this squeeze the profitability of natural gas exports for the U.S.? Potentially, yes, but there are other places around the world that are more likely to suffer from a move like this. Countries like Australia, which has struggled to keep costs under control and doesn't have feedstock as cheap as in the U.S., are more likely to suffer from this. Chevron's (NYSE: CVX  ) massive Gorgon LNG project is more than $15 billion over budget, so cost overruns could make the return on investment for these kinds of projects less lucrative.

• [By Teresa Rivas]

  Chevron (CVX) lost ground on its second-quarter report, as did Alpha Natural Resources (ANR).

  J.C. Penney (JCP) ended lower despite reports that CIT had lifted its credit restrictions, while Weight Watchers (WTW) sank on its disappointing guidance and the departure of its CEO.

• [By David G. Dietze, JD, CFA, CFP]

  Many ETFs are based on a highly specialized index representing a tiny slice of the market. That can make them quite volatile, and often unduly buffeted by the fate of just one or two stocks. For example, the Energy Select Sector Fund ETF (XLE) has over 35% of its assets in just two stocks, Exxon (XOM) and Chevron (CVX). If you like those stocks simply buy them and skip that ETF. And if you don�� like those stocks you won�� want to have an ETF with 35% of its assets in them.
  Bottom line, indexing is a sound strategy, but is best pursued using conventional index funds, not ETFs.

Best Blue Chip Companies To Buy Right Now: 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 Evan Niu, CFA]

  At first glance, Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) iTunes Radio service didn't quite fit the bill of being a "Pandora (NYSE: P  ) killer." The service itself is largely the same, offering users the chance to discover new music based on historical listening habits. iTunes Radio enjoys a pricing advantage, but the $11-per-year difference for paying subscribers isn't breaking anyone's wallet.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) scored a modest victory on Tuesday in a trial related to price-fixing on e-books at its App Store. The same judge who has ruled against Apple on the price-fixing charges gave the company some relief from the penalties proposed by the U.S. Department of Justice.

• [By Tim Beyers]

  So many have weighed in on Siri's flaws that it must be difficult to take Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) voice assistant seriously. But she isn't useless. To the contrary: I think Siri should be the default interface of the next version of Apple TV.

• [By Evan Niu, CFA]

  It's been crunch time in Cupertino. Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) has been scrambling to ink the necessary licensing deals with the major record labels for its presumed "iRadio" service ahead of its Worldwide Developer Conference, or WWDC, which kicks off next week.