Many investors are opting for blue-chip U.S. stocks, as they seek safety from Europe’s financial crisis and the global economic slowdown.
Investors appreciate the solid balance sheets and robust cash flow of those stocks, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Many blue chips also provide dividend yields above 3 percent, a major attraction with 10-year Treasurys yielding only 1.54 percent.
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"Investors want the big caps, the companies that have the largest and best balance sheets. This is where people are hiding out," David Steinberg, managing partner of DLS Capital Management, tells The Journal.
Many blue-chips have surged to 52-week highs in recent days, including AT&T, Coca Cola, Johnson & Johnson, and Wal-Mart.
Believe it or not, the U.S. economy is actually providing support for these shares. While it certainly isn’t going great guns, the economy has been able to maintain its growth path since the Great Recession ended in June 2009.
"The equity market is, at least theoretically, supposed to reflect current and expected business conditions of the country," Barry Knapp, head of U.S. equity strategy at Barclays, tells The Journal.
You might consider a diversified portfolio of blue-chip stocks so that you’re well prepared for whatever economic scenario eventuates.
For example, you can buy defensive stocks, such as Coke; growth stocks, such as Apple; industrial stocks, such as GM; and financial stocks, such as Wells Fargo.
Editor's Note: The Final Turning Predicted for America. See Proof.
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