CLEVELAND, Jan 4, 2002 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- McDonald Investments has chosen 12 stocks that the firm expects to be among the top performers in 2002. Available through the McDonald Investments annual Select Equity Trust, the stocks represent industry sectors that include health care, financial services, media and entertainment, and technology.
Among the top picks for 2002 are BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE: BJ), Estee Lauder Inc. (NYSE: EL), General Electric Company (NYSE: GE), JP Morgan Chase & Company (NYSE: JPM) and Oracle Corporation* (Nasdaq: ORCL). Also on the list are Cardinal Health Inc. (NYSE: CAH), Halliburton Company (NYSE: HAL), Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE: LNC), MBNA Corporation (NYSE: KRB), Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX), Sanmina Corporation* (Nasdaq: SANM) and Viacom (NYSE: VIAB). General Electric and Viacom are repeat performers from McDonald Investments' 2001 list.
"With our stock selections, we concentrate on identifying leading companies with strong or improving balance sheets; solid track records of earnings increases, cash flow and dividends; and strong shareholder orientation," said John A. Caldwell, McDonald Investments' first vice president, director of portfolio strategies. "Additionally this year, we structured the list to participate in the U.S.-led economic recovery by selecting some smaller companies whose businesses are focused domestically."
McDonald Investments announced its 2002 picks during the company's 28th annual Economic Forecast Program series, customer-focused luncheons held in 11 cities nationwide during November and December.
Caldwell commented on the individual stock selections:
BJ's Wholesale Club: "With practically no debt on the balance sheet, an excellent management team, exciting new growth opportunities and a proven business model, BJ's is poised for excellent financial performance over the next year."
Cardinal Health: "Cardinal's pharmaceutical and provider services segment is one of the leading wholesale distributors of pharmaceutical and related health care products ... Cardinal continues to post strong operating results, and its long-term growth prospects remain good."
Estee Lauder: " ... what makes Estee Lauder unique is its product innovation, geographical diversification, channels of distribution and product category balance. The company also pursues strategic acquisitions and licensing agreements to complement these internal growth initiatives."
General Electric: "GE has transformed itself from a manufacturer of industrial equipment to a provider of a broad range of services as well ... Services provide GE with a very predictable stream of revenues and us with a high degree of confidence in our earnings expectations."
Halliburton: " ... one of the largest oilfield services companies in the world ... The recovering economy should help stabilize energy prices next year, and the desire for more domestically produced energy sources bodes well for a market leader like Halliburton."
JP Morgan Chase: " ... earnings prospects look better for 2002 and beyond as the economy, and ultimately the company's business activity, strengthens ... the current $6 billion share repurchase program, an attractive valuation and a dividend yield of 3.5% will add to the stock's performance."
Lincoln National: " ... a holding company with operations in life insurance, annuities and investment management, with a focus on the super- affluent ... With an attractive relative valuation, an excellent niche market, a dividend yield of nearly 2.5%, improving operations and positive industry trends, we feel Lincoln's stock should outperform its peer group."
MBNA: "We expect solid growth as MBNA continues to take market share from traditional credit card issuers. While loan delinquencies are a concern in a slowing economy, the company has great credit quality, and we are confident of MBNA's ability to manage through any tough times."
Oracle: "Core database and application sales are currently sluggish, but the new product opportunities, along with a strong balance sheet, a proven management team, expanding margins and the explosive growth of data, put Oracle in a strong competitive position."
Quest Diagnostics: "Quest is the leader in the $35 billion domestic diagnostic testing market ... (the company) is well positioned to take advantage of further growth opportunities in the health care industry."
Sanmina: "The company is a leading electronics manufacturing services (EMS) company ... We see this company benefiting from any sort of recovery in the technology hardware industry, but also as more companies outsource more of their manufacturing needs to the EMS industry."
Viacom: "(Viacom) should not be hurt dramatically by the current advertising slowdown, given its strong foothold in the network TV, cable TV and radio markets ... the ad spending environment (should) stabilize, if not begin to improve, in 2002. Viacom is well positioned for healthy cash flow gains if this proves to be the case."
In 2001, for only the second time, McDonald Investments' picks posted a negative return, declining 9% but outperforming the market, which fell almost 12%. In the last 12 years, McDonald stock selections have averaged a 16% gain, which compares favorably with the 14% return of the Standard & Poor's 500 during the same time frame.
For more information about the McDonald Investments Select Equity Trust, call 800.533.2240 or visit http://www.key.com/forecast .
McDonald Investments Inc, member NASD/NYSE/SIPC, is a leading full-service investment firm established in 1924 serving individuals, corporations, institutions and governments. The firm's Private Client Group consists of approximately 700 investment consultants spanning a network of 58 offices nationwide. Coupled with Key PrivateBank, which has 35 U.S. offices and 375 financial advisors, the collective team offers banking, estate planning, financial planning, retirement planning, brokerage, trust, individual asset management, insurance advice and services, and charitable giving counsel to high-net-worth clients.
Cleveland-based KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY) is one of the nation's largest bank- based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $84 billion. Key companies provide investment management, retail and commercial banking, retirement, consumer finance, and investment banking products and services to individuals and companies throughout the United States and, for certain businesses, internationally. The company's businesses deliver their products and services through KeyCenters and offices; a network of approximately 2,400 ATMs; telephone banking centers (1.800.KEY2YOU); and a Web site, Key.com(R), that provides account access and financial products 24 hours a day.
mmayr.....I'm on vacation and have not been trading.....i bought before i went away so i'm in a holding pattern...on a personal note i believe HAL will do fine and am not unhappy with my buy at 13.50..however i wish ihad put in a good to cancel at those lows but saw no reason to think it would go that low....the BR rumor was BS....but typical for a bear trap....Aloha and good luck.
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