Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Technology Stocks : Texas Instruments - Good buy now or should we wait? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Redhead who wrote (3095)	2/18/1998 3:16:00 PM
From: pat mudge	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 6180

TXN makes top ten: <Tax Dollars REDMOND, Wash., Feb. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Let's say you've been really, really, really financially responsible. You've heeded those pesky ads and the advice of a chorus of financial advisors and, after wading through the confusing detail, set up exactly the right mix of IRAs to take advantage of the new tax rules. You're pretty satisfied with your handiwork too. If you're like most investors right now, the stock market is the only game that seems worth playing. "Who can argue with the 30% returns that the Standard & Poor's 500 stock index has delivered in each of the last two years", say Jim Jubak, senior markets editor at Microsoft Investor. But there're been some pretty scary dips along the way and the global economy doesn't seem to be out of the woods yet. The last thing you want to do is buy at a top and then watch your retirement dollars dwindle. See investor.msn.com Jubak believes this is the perfect time to put together a strategy he calls The Best Stocks in the World. "Thanks to the economic crisis in Asia right now you can buy 10 of the best stocks in the world at prices well below their 52-week highs," he says. "Each of these stocks is ideal for a long-term retirement portfolio; they combine above average safety with the likelihood of above average return." Jubak's strategy involves selecting brand names companies that are cemented into the global economic structure. They have brand names that everyone recognizes, products that control 80% or 90% of a market, a stranglehold on a essential commodity, or a loyal dealer network built up over decades that makes sure that the every potential consumer has a chance to buy the product. "As you'd expect, in general stocks like these aren't cheap. Pfizer, for example, sells at a price that's 48 times earnings per share over the last 12 months," Jubak says. But to the long-term, he says they will produce a better value than Wall Street generally expects. Among stocks selected Jubak are: Applied Materials (AMAT), price $36 on February 11, 52-week high $54. The 600-pound gorilla of semiconductor equipment makers keeps gaining market share, most often by simply folding the jobs once performed by competitors offerings into its new products. Boeing (BA), recent price $49, high $61. Actually the slow down in orders from Asia will help the company get its factories back on schedule. British Airways (BAB), recent price $93, high $125. A stranglehold on London's Heathrow gives British Air the world's best route structure-the pending partnership with American Airlines will just strengthen the airline globally. British Petroleum, (BP), recent price $78, high $93. One of the nimblest oil companies has major new supply coming on line. Caterpillar (CAT), recent price $51, high $61. An incredibly loyal dealer network means Caterpillar will get a big share of growth in the booming agricultural equipment market. Federal Express (FDX), recent price $67, high $85. Federal Express owns important-and unique-routes into Asia's most critical markets, Japan and China. Intel (INTC), recent price $85, high $102. In five years the current dominant maker of processors for personal computers in the world will still dominate that market and will have gained control over the workstation and server market too. Merrill Lynch (MER), recent price $68, high $78. One of the great names in investment management is set to grab a big share in the deregulating financial industry of Japan and other Asian countries. Sony Corp. (SNE), recent price $91, high $104. The global name in the current generation of consumer electronics should be an even stronger presence when the next generation ofproducts fully hits the market. Texas Instruments (TXN), recent price $56, high $71. The company owns 45% of the market for the digital signal processing chips used in everything from cellular phones to computer modems. You can find an expanded list of global all-stars on the Investor website at investor.msn.com in his Feb. 20 column, "The 50 Best Stocks in the World, Revisited.">>>>