Stocks Continue to Outperform Other Investment Options

Current Value of the SOW Portfolio:

$70,215.19

Simple Return: 17.76%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

S & P 500 Value : $68,984.80
Simple Return: 1.74%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

Treasury Bond Value : $66,565.65
Simple Return: 4.07%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

As you can see, our STOCK OF THE WEEK portfolio continues to outperform equal investments in the

S & P 500 index and in the TLT Treasury Bond index fund.

Big performers include airlines stocks (AMR up 46% and CAL up 76% over purchase prices)GME continues to soar at 62% growth and USG at 35%. Be sure to check out Kupsky's review of this weeks Stock of the Week to see if it's a pick you want to include in your portfoio.

Past performance does not guarantee future performance. We make no recommendations!

Please call or write if you have questions about how to make money in stocks, bonds and real estate. You can reach me during office hours at 336-778-0543 or write me

STOCK OF THE WEEK: DILLARDS

Stock of the Week: Dillards: A NICE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE

Dillard's, Inc., located in Little Rock, Arkansas ranks among the nation’s largest fashion apparel and home furnishings retailers. Dillard's stores offer a broad selection of merchandise from wardrobe basics to home furnishings, including products sourced and marketed under Dillard's exclusive brand names. They focus on delivering maximum value to their shoppers, with fairly priced merchandise complemented by exceptional customer service.

The largest nameplate in fashion apparel retailing, the Company comprises 329 stores, spanning 29 states, all operating with one (family) name - Dillard's. They also have an appealing On-Line shopping site

William T. Dillard founded the company in 1938 and took it public on May 9, 1969. Trading on the NYSE (DDS) today (June 23st) at $24.60. Upon his death in 2002, he left a legacy of tremendous success in retailing. Today, a major part of Dillard's marketing philosophy remains based on Mr. Dillard's sound selling methods, keen attention of day-to-day organizational details, alert selection of personnel and hard work.

On March 10, 2005 Dillard's, Inc. announced operating results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ending January 29, 2005. Net income for the 52 weeks ending January 29, 2005 was up 1.6 % over 2004 or $117.6 million

Accomplishments during the 52 weeks ended January 29, 2005 include reduction of debt to $1.64 billion from $2.62 billion (including Guaranteed Preferred Beneficial Interests in the Company's Subordinated Debentures), with cash and cash equivalents at January 29, 2005 of $498.2 million compared to $160.9 million at January 31, 2004.


Dillard's continues to focus on improvement in its merchandise mix as it reiterates management's strong belief that merchandise differentiation with special emphasis on becoming a more upscale retailer is crucial to its future success in the marketplace. The Company seeks to build and maintain customer loyalty by presenting more exciting fashion choices reflective of a younger-focused and more upscale attitude.

The Company provides merchandise from both national and their private label sources. Under-performing lines of product will continue to be eliminated and replaced with more promising brands in the Company's ongoing efforts to improve its merchandise mix. Dillard's will continue to tailor these assortments to the local demographics, reflecting not only each specific market's culture and fashion attitude but also each store's specific sizing and style needs.

Penetration of private brand merchandise as a percentage of sales for the 52 weeks ending January 29, 2005 and January 31, 2004 was 23.1% and 20.9%, respectively.

Fourth Quarter sales in the Company's Eastern region were above trend, exceeding the Company's average sales performance for the period. Sales in the Western region were slightly above trend, and sales in the Central region were below trend. Sales of lingerie and accessories significantly exceeded the Company's average sales trend for the period. However, sales of juniors' apparel, decorative home merchandise and furniture were significantly below trend.

On June 2nd, Dillard's, Inc. announced their sales for the four weeks ending May 28, 2005 were $518,965,000 compared to sales for the four weeks ending May 29, 2004 of $511,413,000. Sales increased 1% for the four-week period.

Retail is the second-largest industry in the United States both in number of establishments and number of employees. The U.S. retail industry generates $3.8 trillion in retail sales annually, approximately $11,690 per capita. The retail sector is also one of the largest worldwide. (retailindustry.about.com/)

Dillard's is a well-known brand with a strong presence in the markets in which it operates.
With Private-label items accounting for around 23% of sales, Dillard's hopes to differentiate itself from the competition while benefiting from the higher profit margins that come with private-label products, which cost less for Dillard's to offer.

Some feel that a turnaround could only be possible for Dillard’s under new or reinvigorated management. Yet, with the same family controlling both senior management and the board, can Dillard's win back customers who prefer to shop at Specialty Retailers and Discounters located off the mall? With fluctuating prices of gas at the pumps, maybe Dillard’s should look outside the “mall” and promote their savvy web-site for shopping On-Line. I’m a Dillard’s shopper and didn’t know I could shop from home.

Blogger: Stock of the Week :: Edit Post ' Stock of the Week '

Blogger: Stock of the Week :: Edit Post ' Stock of the Week '

Our Stock of the Week portfolio is returning 18% more than equal investments in the S & P 500 or Treasury Yields. Climb on, The Bull is moving--

STOCKS WIN AGAIN--ROI AT 20%

Current Value of this Portfolio:

$66,875.50

Simple Return: 20.19%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

S & P 500 Value : $64,600.29
Simple Return: 1.24%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

Treasury Bond Value : $61,171.32
Simple Return: 2.01%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

As you can see, our STOCK OF THE WEEK portfolio has been outperforming equal investments in the

S & P 500 index and in the TLT Treasury Bond index fund.

Past performance does not guarantee future performance. We make no recommendations!

Please call or write if you have questions about how to make money in stocks, bonds and real estate. You can reach me during office hours at 336-778-0543 or write me

.

STOCKS ARE CHEAP RELATIVE TO BONDS AND REAL ESTATE!

MONEY FLOWS TO THE LOWEST PRICED ASSETS!

BUY THE BIG BULL BOOM BUBBLE!

YOU HAVE TWO TO FOUR YEARS TO MAKE SERIOUS MONEY!

STOCK OF THE WEEK: ROCK -TENN

FOR ALL YOUR PACKAGING NEEDS

The Rock-Tenn Company Rock Tenn is one of North America’s leading packaging companies focusing on developing packaging and paperboard products that bring high value to its customers. Founded in 1936, The Company operates manufacturing facilities throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico and Chile, and employs approximately 8,800 people. Headquartered in Norcross, Georgia, Rock-Tenn is listed on the NYSE (RKT).

The Company is set-up into three separate divisions- (1) Packaging products segment consists of facilities that produce folding cartons and solid fiber interior packaging for food, hardware, apparel and other consumer goods. (2) Merchandising displays and corrugated packaging segment consists of facilities that produce temporary and permanent point of purchase displays, corrugated packaging and corrugated sheet stock. (3) Paperboard segment consists of facilities that collect recovered paper and that manufacture 100% recycled clay-coated and specialty paperboard, including gypsum paperboard liner, 100% corrugating medium and laminated paperboard products used in book covers, furniture and automotive components.

Rock-Tenn Company has a diverse portfolio of International, National, Regional and Local customers across a wide range of consumer and industrial products. Production facilities are strategically located to provide the highest level of responsiveness. Their industry-leading structural and graphic design services, specialized manufacturing capabilities and experienced sales team give them the flexibility and resources to provide customers with new, innovative products and services.

Recently at the 2004 Paperboard Packaging Council Awards (PPC), Rock-Tenn received 22 awards. In the 61 year history of PPC this has never been achieved by a company. Some of the Consumer packaging that Rock-Tenn developed and received awards for were Delmonte, Federal Express, Bacardi, Edwards Frozen Foods, Hershey and Kraft Foods.

The research and development team at (Rock-Tenn ), seem to be a key elements in their high performance, quality way of doing business. With many trade mark products, Rock-Tenn seems to have a lead on their competitors. With the steady climb of wine consumption in the U.S. at 232 million cases in 2003 and climbing, Wineguard, their trade mark product, a solid fiber partition for protecting wine bottles during shipping, caught my eye.

Rock-Tenn Company is also one of the largest consumers of scrap paper in the country. Since the 1890’s Rock-Tenn has been handling all grades of recovered paper, including old corrugated containers, office papers, old newspapers and printers' mix. As a valued supplier to their own and outside paper mills, their job is to supply paper—regardless of the market price. That means they are in the business for the long-term and go out of their way to provide dependable paper recovery services to their customers.

On Nov. 2, 2004, Rock-Tenn Company reported financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2004, which ended September 30, 2004. Net sales for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2004 were $417.9 million, up 8.5% from the prior year quarter. The Company reported net income of $6.6 million for the quarter ending September 30, 2004.

Rock-Tenn Company Chairman and Chief Executive Officer James A. Rubright stated, "Fourth quarter sales increased in each of our segments, as we expected, due to strong demand for our products. Aggregate segment income also increased compared to the prior year quarter due to margin from higher sales, significant cost reductions, and some realizations from announced price increases more than offsetting much higher energy and raw material prices.”

The Company reported net sales of $1.6 billion for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2004, a 10.3% increase from the previous year. However, net income was down $17.6 million, for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2004, compared to $29.6 million, in the prior fiscal year.

"Our 10.3% increase in sales for the fiscal year reflects the strong competitive positions we have built in our businesses through investments in cost-reducing technologies, which allowed us to take advantage of strengthening demand for our products. Throughout the year we built our market-share in the folding carton business. We also increased sales of merchandising displays through sales to new customers and growth in our position at other key customers. Our paperboard mills also demonstrated their strong market position, operating at 96% of capacity over the year, taking less than 2% of economic downtime."

After looking at Rock-Tenn’s financial report for 4th quarter and year end you can see why their 52 week high came on 6/29/04 @$17.00. Why, then, did their 52 week low of $9.75 come just a few months ago? (4/28/05). 2nd quarter financial results ending March 31, 2005 were not as welcoming.

Net sales were down slightly. However, their net income dropped 93%. Chairman and CEO James A. Rubright stated, "This quarter's results reflect the impact of higher costs of recycled fiber, purchased paperboard, natural gas, chemicals and freight. We had anticipated a decline in folding carton volume due to the closing of our St. Paul facility in January. However, demand for both folding cartons and clay coated recycled paperboard was much weaker than we anticipated. These cost pressures and weak demand more than offset improvements in operations and our intense cost reduction efforts."

After doing much research on the Rock-Tenn Company, it appears they know how to do their job very well and have a good reputation in their industry. Their stock is on the up swing again closing at $12.00 on June 13th. However, can they anticipate their future of higher material costs and learn how to package themselves successfully?

Hollywood's Swap Meet [Fool.com: Motley Fool Take] June 8, 2005

Hollywood's Swap Meet [Fool.com: Motley Fool Take] June 8, 2005

Gamestop is swapping for profits.

One of our Stock of the Week selections on our companion site, GME, has been swapping games for profits. GME is the biggest retail outlet of computer games. Teens love video games--for a while. When they tire of a couple of old games, the simple solution is to trade them in at GME for another used game or even on a new one.

Since we posted the stock as a Stock of the Week selection, March 15, 2004, the stock is up 63%! USG is up 46% since February 1 and TEAM is up 27% since April 13. For the past several weeks, we have had just too much fun riding the airlines. The airlines were largely responsible for taking our accounts to all time net new highs. Now that these have slowed, it is nice to mention a few of the lessor know stocks that have done well.

The BULL is RUNNING! There is no excitement in the market today but the indexes are inching up. We purchased more FON last week and are enjoying the nice move in our NXTL and FON shares. SRZ

Please visit our Stock of the Weeksite often. We get a chuckle from the constant question of what do we like. We try to post at least one good stock to our Stock of the Week site every week.

We believe:

One should buy good values.
One should own 25 or more stocks.
One should trade infrequently.
One should "weed the garden".
One should avoid high fee brokers.
One should avoid high fee funds.
Stocks are cheap relative to bonds and real estate!

STOCK OF THE WEEK PEAK PERFORMANCE

Current Value of this Portfolio:

$61.308.03

Simple Return: 18.70%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

S & P 500 Value : $60,051.47
Simple Return: .39%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

Treasury Bond Value : $58,540.25
Simple Return: 4.55%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

As you can see, our STOCK OF THE WEEK portfolio has been outperforming equal investments in the

S & P 500 index and in the TLT Treasury Bond index fund.

Past performance does not guarantee future performance. We make no recommendations!

Please call or write if you have questions about how to make money in stocks, bonds and real estate. You can reach me during office hours at 336-778-0543 or write me

.

STOCKS ARE CHEAP RELATIVE TO BONDS AND REAL ESTATE!

MONEY FLOWS TO THE LOWEST PRICED ASSETS!

BUY THE BIG BULL BOOM BUBBLE!

YOU HAVE TWO TO FOUR YEARS TO MAKE SERIOUS MONEY!

STOCK OF THE WEEK: ROLLING ALONG...NN, INC

If you were driving through Johnson City, TN and saw NN, Inc. would you know they were a global company employing 1,715 employees?

Their U.S. manufacturing units include the NN Ball & Roller Division which supplies precision steel balls and cylindrical rollers for various applications including bearings, automotive parts, hydraulic motors, oil drilling and mining. Industrial Molding Corporation provides precision injection molded plastic parts for bearings, the automotive industry and a variety of other applications. Delta Rubber Company supplies rubber sealing solutions for bearings, oil drilling and other industries.

NN, Inc.’s European subsidiary, NN Europe, includes a total of five manufacturing facilities within the European Union. They provide precision steel balls, tapered rollers and stamped steel components for various applications including bearings and automotive parts. Their newest subsidiary, NN Asia is under construction now in Kunshan, Jiangsu Province, China. The first products produced will be precision steel balls available by mid-2005.

The primary customers of NN, Inc. include SKF Bearing Industries, FAG Bearings Corporation, SNR Roulements, and the Torrington Company.

NN, Inc. (NNBR) closed on the NASDAQ Exchange June 7th @ $12.91. Their 52 week high come on 12/22/04 @ $13.50 and their low came on 8/9/04 @ $9.40.

February 28th NN, Inc. reported its financial results for 2004. Net sales for the year 2004 were up 20.0% compared to 2003. Read the complete report on their Website but this is what Roderick R. Baty, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer commented, “Although 2004 was a challenging year, operationally, our businesses continued to perform well.” NN, Inc. did face some one time expenses last year resulting in a difficult year from an earnings perspective.

Mr. Baty continued, “We continued to generate solid cash flow and made significant progress in reducing our debt in 2004. As of December 31, 2004, total debt minus cash was $63.9 million compared to $79.5 million at December 31, 2003, a reduction of $15.6 million.”
Mr. Baty, concluded, “Looking forward into 2005, we face both exciting opportunities and challenges. The start-up of our facilities in Slovakia in 2004 and China in the second half of 2005 will provide us opportunities to both better service our worldwide customers and to realize greater operating efficiencies and additional cost reductions.”

NN, Inc. anticipates total year revenues for 2005 to be approximately 11.0% from 2004 levels. Currency accounts for 4.4%, market share improvements 3.6% and price increases associated with raw material pass through 3.0%.

The report also indicates their plans to invest approximately $17.0 million in capital for 2005. This is an increase of $5.0 million from 2004 levels and is a result of their need to fund approximately $8.0 million of capital for the continuing expansion of their Slovakian facility and the start-up of the facility in China. The remaining $9.0 million is related to the ongoing capital requirements of their existing U.S. and European facilities.

To learn more about the anti-friction bearing industry and the global market I went to Anti Friction and found the following information:

World bearings demand to reach $36 billion in 2007
Worldwide demand for bearings is projected to increase more than five percent per annum to $36 billion in 2007. Gains will exceed the 1997- 2002 pace because of accelerating global economic growth, which will stimulate motor vehicle production and fixed investment activity, two major determinants of bearings demand.

Demand in developing regions to spur growth
The most rapid growth in bearings demand is forecast for the developing areas of Asia/Pacific, Latin America, Eastern Europe and Africa/Mideast. Increasing industrialization in these regions will lead to rising OEM output for bearings-consuming products. While these factors will support growth in the developing nations of the Asia/Pacific region, the region also derives a large share of demand from the mature economy of Japan, where gains for bearings are projected to lag the global average.

I think it is pretty cool that NN, Inc., (formally NN Ball Bearings) located in Johnson City, TN had the foresight to think globally. You never know what might be behind a company just by looking at its headquarters’ location.

STOCK PERFORMANCE

Current Value of this Portfolio:

$61.421.07

Simple Return: 18.92%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

S & P 500 Value : $56,194.45
Simple Return: .58%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

Treasury Bond Value : $54,137.78
Simple Return: 4.13%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

As you can see, our STOCK OF THE WEEK portfolio has been outperforming equal investments in the

S & P 500 index and in the TLT Treasury Bond index fund.

Past performance does not guarantee future performance. We make no recommendations!

Please call or write if you have questions about how to make money in stocks, bonds and real estate. You can reach me during office hours at 336-778-0543 or write me

.

STOCKS ARE CHEAP RELATIVE TO BONDS AND REAL ESTATE!

MONEY FLOWS TO THE LOWEST PRICED ASSETS!

BUY THE BIG BULL BOOM BUBBLE!

YOU HAVE TWO TO FOUR YEARS TO MAKE SERIOUS MONEY!

STOCK OF THE WEEK: SPARTAN STORES

As the BULL market continues, we will buy stocks with lower betas. Our accounts are currently loaded with high beta stocks. This means that when the market goes up 1% our accounts are likely to go up 2%. The past couple of weeks have been fantastic; our main account is now 12% above our previous all time high! This new all time high does not count new money added but is net total profits.

We will continue to ride the high beta stocks but we will add shares in slower moving industries. If Google is added to the S&P 500 and if it goes berserk on the announcement, we will probably sell half of our position. The removal of Google after the addition of lower beta stocks will mark a significant shift in a conservative direction. Please do not miss-read the above comments. We are bullish. We are buying all the stock we can. We hope Google hits 500 well into next year before we make the shift. Never-the-less, we are planning ahead. Spartan Stores offers good value. It is the kind of stock that you and tuck away during the second half of an economic recovery. It will seem sluggish relative to other stocks but it is like not seeing your 12 year old nephew for a year. He didn't grow much on any particular day but he grew a lot in a year or two.

If you're like most shoppers, you love to save! As a progressive leader in the food distribution industry for 80 years, Spartan Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPTN) SPTN based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, owns and operates 54 supermarkets and 21 deep-discount drugstores in Michigan and Ohio under the Family Fare Supermarkets and Glen’s Markets banners. The Company also supplies 40,000 private label and national brand products to over 330 Independent grocery stores.

Spartan Stores offer great prices every week on quality products for the consumer, including, Internet coupons and on-line specials to help the consumer save time and money.

The 330 business partners of Spartan Stores receive services that accelerate retail growth, productivity and profitability. A sound, working knowledge of retail operations by Spartan associates allows them to offer nearly 100 services which extend beyond the supply and delivery of product and into every aspect of a grocer's operation. Spartan Stores fosters innovation to ensure long term success.

On May 4, 2005, Craig Sturken, Spartan's Chairman, President and CEO announced the fifth consecutive quarter sales growth and fiscal 2005 first quarter net earnings of $1.6 million. Consolidated net sales for the 12-weeks increased 2.5 percent to $474.3 million from $462.6 million in the corresponding 12-week period last year.

Operating earnings improved to $4.9 million compared to an operating loss of $(0.9) million in last year's first quarter. This improvement was driven by sales growth and cost containment.

The Company reiterated its expectation for fiscal 2005 consolidated net sales to improve between 1.0 and 3.0 percent with comparable store sales ranging from flat to an increase of 1.5 percent. Consolidated gross margin as a percentage of sales is expected to be slightly higher than fiscal 2004's level by fiscal 2005 year end. Operating expenses in total and as a percentage of sales are expected to be lower than in fiscal 2004. Spartan’s leadership continues to judiciously invest in the company as fiscal 2005's depreciation expense and capital expenditures are expected to be approximately $23 million each.

What prompted this positive financial result? On January 21, 2004 Spartan Stores, Inc., announced that it has undertaken steps to consolidate its retail grocery store banners to streamline retail operations and establish a stronger, more unified retail store brand identity. The Company changed the name of its Ashcraft's Markets, Great Day Food Centers and Prevo's Family Markets stores to either Family Fare Supermarkets or Glen's Markets. The banner consolidation is expected to create a much stronger retail store brand identity among consumers by building on the existing brand equity of its two most recognized retail store names.

As Spartan places more emphasis on expanded services like in-store pharmacies, fuel centers, bakery and deli counters, they will continue to move in on the “big” guys. Their private label dairy products have also shown favorable results. Developing more robust corporate brands should improve margins.

This stock is in an industry with a healthy number of competitors such as IGA, D & W Food Center and Meijer. Spartan is one of the smaller players. However, since going public in August of 2000, Spartan’s stock has done well. Their 52 week high of $12.90 was on 5/23/05 and their 52 week low of $3.05 on 5/24/04, closing on May 31st at $12.90.

Again, these shares will add a defensive position to your portfolio. The best team is composed of a strong offense and a strong defense. Stocks selling at modest valuations sometimes turn out to be great offensive stocks. Sometimes they are bought by larger players and other times they continue to grow during difficult economic times.

Stocks Continue to Outperform Other Investment Options

Current Value of the SOW Portfolio:

$70,215.19

Simple Return: 17.76%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

S & P 500 Value : $68,984.80
Simple Return: 1.74%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

Treasury Bond Value : $66,565.65
Simple Return: 4.07%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

As you can see, our STOCK OF THE WEEK portfolio continues to outperform equal investments in the

S & P 500 index and in the TLT Treasury Bond index fund.

Big performers include airlines stocks (AMR up 46% and CAL up 76% over purchase prices)GME continues to soar at 62% growth and USG at 35%. Be sure to check out Kupsky's review of this weeks Stock of the Week to see if it's a pick you want to include in your portfoio.

Past performance does not guarantee future performance. We make no recommendations!

Please call or write if you have questions about how to make money in stocks, bonds and real estate. You can reach me during office hours at 336-778-0543 or write me

#

STOCK OF THE WEEK: DILLARDS

Stock of the Week: Dillards: A NICE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE

Dillard's, Inc., located in Little Rock, Arkansas ranks among the nation’s largest fashion apparel and home furnishings retailers. Dillard's stores offer a broad selection of merchandise from wardrobe basics to home furnishings, including products sourced and marketed under Dillard's exclusive brand names. They focus on delivering maximum value to their shoppers, with fairly priced merchandise complemented by exceptional customer service.

The largest nameplate in fashion apparel retailing, the Company comprises 329 stores, spanning 29 states, all operating with one (family) name - Dillard's. They also have an appealing On-Line shopping site

William T. Dillard founded the company in 1938 and took it public on May 9, 1969. Trading on the NYSE (DDS) today (June 23st) at $24.60. Upon his death in 2002, he left a legacy of tremendous success in retailing. Today, a major part of Dillard's marketing philosophy remains based on Mr. Dillard's sound selling methods, keen attention of day-to-day organizational details, alert selection of personnel and hard work.

On March 10, 2005 Dillard's, Inc. announced operating results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ending January 29, 2005. Net income for the 52 weeks ending January 29, 2005 was up 1.6 % over 2004 or $117.6 million

Accomplishments during the 52 weeks ended January 29, 2005 include reduction of debt to $1.64 billion from $2.62 billion (including Guaranteed Preferred Beneficial Interests in the Company's Subordinated Debentures), with cash and cash equivalents at January 29, 2005 of $498.2 million compared to $160.9 million at January 31, 2004.


Dillard's continues to focus on improvement in its merchandise mix as it reiterates management's strong belief that merchandise differentiation with special emphasis on becoming a more upscale retailer is crucial to its future success in the marketplace. The Company seeks to build and maintain customer loyalty by presenting more exciting fashion choices reflective of a younger-focused and more upscale attitude.

The Company provides merchandise from both national and their private label sources. Under-performing lines of product will continue to be eliminated and replaced with more promising brands in the Company's ongoing efforts to improve its merchandise mix. Dillard's will continue to tailor these assortments to the local demographics, reflecting not only each specific market's culture and fashion attitude but also each store's specific sizing and style needs.

Penetration of private brand merchandise as a percentage of sales for the 52 weeks ending January 29, 2005 and January 31, 2004 was 23.1% and 20.9%, respectively.

Fourth Quarter sales in the Company's Eastern region were above trend, exceeding the Company's average sales performance for the period. Sales in the Western region were slightly above trend, and sales in the Central region were below trend. Sales of lingerie and accessories significantly exceeded the Company's average sales trend for the period. However, sales of juniors' apparel, decorative home merchandise and furniture were significantly below trend.

On June 2nd, Dillard's, Inc. announced their sales for the four weeks ending May 28, 2005 were $518,965,000 compared to sales for the four weeks ending May 29, 2004 of $511,413,000. Sales increased 1% for the four-week period.

Retail is the second-largest industry in the United States both in number of establishments and number of employees. The U.S. retail industry generates $3.8 trillion in retail sales annually, approximately $11,690 per capita. The retail sector is also one of the largest worldwide. (retailindustry.about.com/)

Dillard's is a well-known brand with a strong presence in the markets in which it operates.
With Private-label items accounting for around 23% of sales, Dillard's hopes to differentiate itself from the competition while benefiting from the higher profit margins that come with private-label products, which cost less for Dillard's to offer.

Some feel that a turnaround could only be possible for Dillard’s under new or reinvigorated management. Yet, with the same family controlling both senior management and the board, can Dillard's win back customers who prefer to shop at Specialty Retailers and Discounters located off the mall? With fluctuating prices of gas at the pumps, maybe Dillard’s should look outside the “mall” and promote their savvy web-site for shopping On-Line. I’m a Dillard’s shopper and didn’t know I could shop from home.

#

Blogger: Stock of the Week :: Edit Post ' Stock of the Week '

Blogger: Stock of the Week :: Edit Post ' Stock of the Week '

Our Stock of the Week portfolio is returning 18% more than equal investments in the S & P 500 or Treasury Yields. Climb on, The Bull is moving--

#

STOCKS WIN AGAIN--ROI AT 20%

Current Value of this Portfolio:

$66,875.50

Simple Return: 20.19%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

S & P 500 Value : $64,600.29
Simple Return: 1.24%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

Treasury Bond Value : $61,171.32
Simple Return: 2.01%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

As you can see, our STOCK OF THE WEEK portfolio has been outperforming equal investments in the

S & P 500 index and in the TLT Treasury Bond index fund.

Past performance does not guarantee future performance. We make no recommendations!

Please call or write if you have questions about how to make money in stocks, bonds and real estate. You can reach me during office hours at 336-778-0543 or write me

.

STOCKS ARE CHEAP RELATIVE TO BONDS AND REAL ESTATE!

MONEY FLOWS TO THE LOWEST PRICED ASSETS!

BUY THE BIG BULL BOOM BUBBLE!

YOU HAVE TWO TO FOUR YEARS TO MAKE SERIOUS MONEY!

#

STOCK OF THE WEEK: ROCK -TENN

FOR ALL YOUR PACKAGING NEEDS

The Rock-Tenn Company Rock Tenn is one of North America’s leading packaging companies focusing on developing packaging and paperboard products that bring high value to its customers. Founded in 1936, The Company operates manufacturing facilities throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico and Chile, and employs approximately 8,800 people. Headquartered in Norcross, Georgia, Rock-Tenn is listed on the NYSE (RKT).

The Company is set-up into three separate divisions- (1) Packaging products segment consists of facilities that produce folding cartons and solid fiber interior packaging for food, hardware, apparel and other consumer goods. (2) Merchandising displays and corrugated packaging segment consists of facilities that produce temporary and permanent point of purchase displays, corrugated packaging and corrugated sheet stock. (3) Paperboard segment consists of facilities that collect recovered paper and that manufacture 100% recycled clay-coated and specialty paperboard, including gypsum paperboard liner, 100% corrugating medium and laminated paperboard products used in book covers, furniture and automotive components.

Rock-Tenn Company has a diverse portfolio of International, National, Regional and Local customers across a wide range of consumer and industrial products. Production facilities are strategically located to provide the highest level of responsiveness. Their industry-leading structural and graphic design services, specialized manufacturing capabilities and experienced sales team give them the flexibility and resources to provide customers with new, innovative products and services.

Recently at the 2004 Paperboard Packaging Council Awards (PPC), Rock-Tenn received 22 awards. In the 61 year history of PPC this has never been achieved by a company. Some of the Consumer packaging that Rock-Tenn developed and received awards for were Delmonte, Federal Express, Bacardi, Edwards Frozen Foods, Hershey and Kraft Foods.

The research and development team at (Rock-Tenn ), seem to be a key elements in their high performance, quality way of doing business. With many trade mark products, Rock-Tenn seems to have a lead on their competitors. With the steady climb of wine consumption in the U.S. at 232 million cases in 2003 and climbing, Wineguard, their trade mark product, a solid fiber partition for protecting wine bottles during shipping, caught my eye.

Rock-Tenn Company is also one of the largest consumers of scrap paper in the country. Since the 1890’s Rock-Tenn has been handling all grades of recovered paper, including old corrugated containers, office papers, old newspapers and printers' mix. As a valued supplier to their own and outside paper mills, their job is to supply paper—regardless of the market price. That means they are in the business for the long-term and go out of their way to provide dependable paper recovery services to their customers.

On Nov. 2, 2004, Rock-Tenn Company reported financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2004, which ended September 30, 2004. Net sales for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2004 were $417.9 million, up 8.5% from the prior year quarter. The Company reported net income of $6.6 million for the quarter ending September 30, 2004.

Rock-Tenn Company Chairman and Chief Executive Officer James A. Rubright stated, "Fourth quarter sales increased in each of our segments, as we expected, due to strong demand for our products. Aggregate segment income also increased compared to the prior year quarter due to margin from higher sales, significant cost reductions, and some realizations from announced price increases more than offsetting much higher energy and raw material prices.”

The Company reported net sales of $1.6 billion for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2004, a 10.3% increase from the previous year. However, net income was down $17.6 million, for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2004, compared to $29.6 million, in the prior fiscal year.

"Our 10.3% increase in sales for the fiscal year reflects the strong competitive positions we have built in our businesses through investments in cost-reducing technologies, which allowed us to take advantage of strengthening demand for our products. Throughout the year we built our market-share in the folding carton business. We also increased sales of merchandising displays through sales to new customers and growth in our position at other key customers. Our paperboard mills also demonstrated their strong market position, operating at 96% of capacity over the year, taking less than 2% of economic downtime."

After looking at Rock-Tenn’s financial report for 4th quarter and year end you can see why their 52 week high came on 6/29/04 @$17.00. Why, then, did their 52 week low of $9.75 come just a few months ago? (4/28/05). 2nd quarter financial results ending March 31, 2005 were not as welcoming.

Net sales were down slightly. However, their net income dropped 93%. Chairman and CEO James A. Rubright stated, "This quarter's results reflect the impact of higher costs of recycled fiber, purchased paperboard, natural gas, chemicals and freight. We had anticipated a decline in folding carton volume due to the closing of our St. Paul facility in January. However, demand for both folding cartons and clay coated recycled paperboard was much weaker than we anticipated. These cost pressures and weak demand more than offset improvements in operations and our intense cost reduction efforts."

After doing much research on the Rock-Tenn Company, it appears they know how to do their job very well and have a good reputation in their industry. Their stock is on the up swing again closing at $12.00 on June 13th. However, can they anticipate their future of higher material costs and learn how to package themselves successfully?

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Hollywood's Swap Meet [Fool.com: Motley Fool Take] June 8, 2005

Hollywood's Swap Meet [Fool.com: Motley Fool Take] June 8, 2005

Gamestop is swapping for profits.

One of our Stock of the Week selections on our companion site, GME, has been swapping games for profits. GME is the biggest retail outlet of computer games. Teens love video games--for a while. When they tire of a couple of old games, the simple solution is to trade them in at GME for another used game or even on a new one.

Since we posted the stock as a Stock of the Week selection, March 15, 2004, the stock is up 63%! USG is up 46% since February 1 and TEAM is up 27% since April 13. For the past several weeks, we have had just too much fun riding the airlines. The airlines were largely responsible for taking our accounts to all time net new highs. Now that these have slowed, it is nice to mention a few of the lessor know stocks that have done well.

The BULL is RUNNING! There is no excitement in the market today but the indexes are inching up. We purchased more FON last week and are enjoying the nice move in our NXTL and FON shares. SRZ

Please visit our Stock of the Weeksite often. We get a chuckle from the constant question of what do we like. We try to post at least one good stock to our Stock of the Week site every week.

We believe:

One should buy good values.
One should own 25 or more stocks.
One should trade infrequently.
One should "weed the garden".
One should avoid high fee brokers.
One should avoid high fee funds.
Stocks are cheap relative to bonds and real estate!

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STOCK OF THE WEEK PEAK PERFORMANCE

Current Value of this Portfolio:

$61.308.03

Simple Return: 18.70%

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S & P 500 Value : $60,051.47
Simple Return: .39%

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Treasury Bond Value : $58,540.25
Simple Return: 4.55%

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As you can see, our STOCK OF THE WEEK portfolio has been outperforming equal investments in the

S & P 500 index and in the TLT Treasury Bond index fund.

Past performance does not guarantee future performance. We make no recommendations!

Please call or write if you have questions about how to make money in stocks, bonds and real estate. You can reach me during office hours at 336-778-0543 or write me

.

STOCKS ARE CHEAP RELATIVE TO BONDS AND REAL ESTATE!

MONEY FLOWS TO THE LOWEST PRICED ASSETS!

BUY THE BIG BULL BOOM BUBBLE!

YOU HAVE TWO TO FOUR YEARS TO MAKE SERIOUS MONEY!

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STOCK OF THE WEEK: ROLLING ALONG...NN, INC

If you were driving through Johnson City, TN and saw NN, Inc. would you know they were a global company employing 1,715 employees?

Their U.S. manufacturing units include the NN Ball & Roller Division which supplies precision steel balls and cylindrical rollers for various applications including bearings, automotive parts, hydraulic motors, oil drilling and mining. Industrial Molding Corporation provides precision injection molded plastic parts for bearings, the automotive industry and a variety of other applications. Delta Rubber Company supplies rubber sealing solutions for bearings, oil drilling and other industries.

NN, Inc.’s European subsidiary, NN Europe, includes a total of five manufacturing facilities within the European Union. They provide precision steel balls, tapered rollers and stamped steel components for various applications including bearings and automotive parts. Their newest subsidiary, NN Asia is under construction now in Kunshan, Jiangsu Province, China. The first products produced will be precision steel balls available by mid-2005.

The primary customers of NN, Inc. include SKF Bearing Industries, FAG Bearings Corporation, SNR Roulements, and the Torrington Company.

NN, Inc. (NNBR) closed on the NASDAQ Exchange June 7th @ $12.91. Their 52 week high come on 12/22/04 @ $13.50 and their low came on 8/9/04 @ $9.40.

February 28th NN, Inc. reported its financial results for 2004. Net sales for the year 2004 were up 20.0% compared to 2003. Read the complete report on their Website but this is what Roderick R. Baty, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer commented, “Although 2004 was a challenging year, operationally, our businesses continued to perform well.” NN, Inc. did face some one time expenses last year resulting in a difficult year from an earnings perspective.

Mr. Baty continued, “We continued to generate solid cash flow and made significant progress in reducing our debt in 2004. As of December 31, 2004, total debt minus cash was $63.9 million compared to $79.5 million at December 31, 2003, a reduction of $15.6 million.”
Mr. Baty, concluded, “Looking forward into 2005, we face both exciting opportunities and challenges. The start-up of our facilities in Slovakia in 2004 and China in the second half of 2005 will provide us opportunities to both better service our worldwide customers and to realize greater operating efficiencies and additional cost reductions.”

NN, Inc. anticipates total year revenues for 2005 to be approximately 11.0% from 2004 levels. Currency accounts for 4.4%, market share improvements 3.6% and price increases associated with raw material pass through 3.0%.

The report also indicates their plans to invest approximately $17.0 million in capital for 2005. This is an increase of $5.0 million from 2004 levels and is a result of their need to fund approximately $8.0 million of capital for the continuing expansion of their Slovakian facility and the start-up of the facility in China. The remaining $9.0 million is related to the ongoing capital requirements of their existing U.S. and European facilities.

To learn more about the anti-friction bearing industry and the global market I went to Anti Friction and found the following information:

World bearings demand to reach $36 billion in 2007
Worldwide demand for bearings is projected to increase more than five percent per annum to $36 billion in 2007. Gains will exceed the 1997- 2002 pace because of accelerating global economic growth, which will stimulate motor vehicle production and fixed investment activity, two major determinants of bearings demand.

Demand in developing regions to spur growth
The most rapid growth in bearings demand is forecast for the developing areas of Asia/Pacific, Latin America, Eastern Europe and Africa/Mideast. Increasing industrialization in these regions will lead to rising OEM output for bearings-consuming products. While these factors will support growth in the developing nations of the Asia/Pacific region, the region also derives a large share of demand from the mature economy of Japan, where gains for bearings are projected to lag the global average.

I think it is pretty cool that NN, Inc., (formally NN Ball Bearings) located in Johnson City, TN had the foresight to think globally. You never know what might be behind a company just by looking at its headquarters’ location.

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STOCK PERFORMANCE

Current Value of this Portfolio:

$61.421.07

Simple Return: 18.92%

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S & P 500 Value : $56,194.45
Simple Return: .58%

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Treasury Bond Value : $54,137.78
Simple Return: 4.13%

~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~>~>~~

As you can see, our STOCK OF THE WEEK portfolio has been outperforming equal investments in the

S & P 500 index and in the TLT Treasury Bond index fund.

Past performance does not guarantee future performance. We make no recommendations!

Please call or write if you have questions about how to make money in stocks, bonds and real estate. You can reach me during office hours at 336-778-0543 or write me

.

STOCKS ARE CHEAP RELATIVE TO BONDS AND REAL ESTATE!

MONEY FLOWS TO THE LOWEST PRICED ASSETS!

BUY THE BIG BULL BOOM BUBBLE!

YOU HAVE TWO TO FOUR YEARS TO MAKE SERIOUS MONEY!

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STOCK OF THE WEEK: SPARTAN STORES

As the BULL market continues, we will buy stocks with lower betas. Our accounts are currently loaded with high beta stocks. This means that when the market goes up 1% our accounts are likely to go up 2%. The past couple of weeks have been fantastic; our main account is now 12% above our previous all time high! This new all time high does not count new money added but is net total profits.

We will continue to ride the high beta stocks but we will add shares in slower moving industries. If Google is added to the S&P 500 and if it goes berserk on the announcement, we will probably sell half of our position. The removal of Google after the addition of lower beta stocks will mark a significant shift in a conservative direction. Please do not miss-read the above comments. We are bullish. We are buying all the stock we can. We hope Google hits 500 well into next year before we make the shift. Never-the-less, we are planning ahead. Spartan Stores offers good value. It is the kind of stock that you and tuck away during the second half of an economic recovery. It will seem sluggish relative to other stocks but it is like not seeing your 12 year old nephew for a year. He didn't grow much on any particular day but he grew a lot in a year or two.

If you're like most shoppers, you love to save! As a progressive leader in the food distribution industry for 80 years, Spartan Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPTN) SPTN based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, owns and operates 54 supermarkets and 21 deep-discount drugstores in Michigan and Ohio under the Family Fare Supermarkets and Glen’s Markets banners. The Company also supplies 40,000 private label and national brand products to over 330 Independent grocery stores.

Spartan Stores offer great prices every week on quality products for the consumer, including, Internet coupons and on-line specials to help the consumer save time and money.

The 330 business partners of Spartan Stores receive services that accelerate retail growth, productivity and profitability. A sound, working knowledge of retail operations by Spartan associates allows them to offer nearly 100 services which extend beyond the supply and delivery of product and into every aspect of a grocer's operation. Spartan Stores fosters innovation to ensure long term success.

On May 4, 2005, Craig Sturken, Spartan's Chairman, President and CEO announced the fifth consecutive quarter sales growth and fiscal 2005 first quarter net earnings of $1.6 million. Consolidated net sales for the 12-weeks increased 2.5 percent to $474.3 million from $462.6 million in the corresponding 12-week period last year.

Operating earnings improved to $4.9 million compared to an operating loss of $(0.9) million in last year's first quarter. This improvement was driven by sales growth and cost containment.

The Company reiterated its expectation for fiscal 2005 consolidated net sales to improve between 1.0 and 3.0 percent with comparable store sales ranging from flat to an increase of 1.5 percent. Consolidated gross margin as a percentage of sales is expected to be slightly higher than fiscal 2004's level by fiscal 2005 year end. Operating expenses in total and as a percentage of sales are expected to be lower than in fiscal 2004. Spartan’s leadership continues to judiciously invest in the company as fiscal 2005's depreciation expense and capital expenditures are expected to be approximately $23 million each.

What prompted this positive financial result? On January 21, 2004 Spartan Stores, Inc., announced that it has undertaken steps to consolidate its retail grocery store banners to streamline retail operations and establish a stronger, more unified retail store brand identity. The Company changed the name of its Ashcraft's Markets, Great Day Food Centers and Prevo's Family Markets stores to either Family Fare Supermarkets or Glen's Markets. The banner consolidation is expected to create a much stronger retail store brand identity among consumers by building on the existing brand equity of its two most recognized retail store names.

As Spartan places more emphasis on expanded services like in-store pharmacies, fuel centers, bakery and deli counters, they will continue to move in on the “big” guys. Their private label dairy products have also shown favorable results. Developing more robust corporate brands should improve margins.

This stock is in an industry with a healthy number of competitors such as IGA, D & W Food Center and Meijer. Spartan is one of the smaller players. However, since going public in August of 2000, Spartan’s stock has done well. Their 52 week high of $12.90 was on 5/23/05 and their 52 week low of $3.05 on 5/24/04, closing on May 31st at $12.90.

Again, these shares will add a defensive position to your portfolio. The best team is composed of a strong offense and a strong defense. Stocks selling at modest valuations sometimes turn out to be great offensive stocks. Sometimes they are bought by larger players and other times they continue to grow during difficult economic times.

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