7 Expert Stock Picks for September

Recommended by: Louis Navellier[2], editor of Blue Chip Growth
Strategy: Buy-and-hold investing with a focus on fundamentals

Health care provider AmerisourceBergen Corp. (NYSE: ABC[3]) is one of my favorite growth stocks right now. And the numbers show why. ABC recently reported financial results for its fiscal third quarter, showing a sizable surge in both sales and earnings. The company said that its net income was $163.2 million, or $0.57 per share, representing a +37% year-over-year increase. Excluding a one-time benefit, AmerisourceBergen said it earned $0.52 per share, which beat analysts’ earnings per share expectations with a nice +6% surprise. Additionally, sales for the company increased +7% to $19.6 billion from $18.39 billion a year earlier.

As a result, AmerisourceBergen raised its earnings and sales forecasts for the full year. ABC now expects a year-end profit of $2.16 to $2.20 per share and said its sales will increase between +8% and +9%. This is growth you can bank on. After a dip in shares this August, now is a great buying opportunity for ABC stock.

Recommended by: Robert Hsu[4], editor of Asia Edge
Strategy: Active trading to profit from Asia’s economic boom

Founded in 2003, Jiangbo Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: JGBO[5]) is a leader in drug development and manufacturing in China. The acquisition of competitor Hongrui in January 2009 increased Jiangbo’s product portfolio from six to 28, and the company has recently received the final approval for production of its new Felodipine Sustained Release Tablets. The launch of this medication is expected to add +10% to +12% in forward sales. In addition, Jiangbo has three new products in the pipeline awaiting final SFDA approval, giving JGBO a bright future.

As for the company’s financials, Jiangbo has a very healthy balance sheet. As of March 31, the company has almost $108 million cash, $186 million total assets and only $62.6 million total debt. That’s stunning for a biotech firm. Compared to its current market cap of $116 million, the company is trading below its book value. The company grew revenue from $55 million in 2007 to $89.5 million in 2009. Considering the company’s favorable numbers and great product development cycle, Jiangbo Pharmaceuticals is a great buy at current pricing.

Recommended by: Richard Young[6], editor of Intelligence Report
Strategy: Bedrock investments for the long term

A globally diversified conglomerate with interest in aerospace and building systems, United Technologies (NYSE: UTX[7]) is one of my favorite low-risk investments right now. The F135 engine is the newest reason to hang your hat on UTX stock, and will power the Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT[8]) F-35 Lightning II fighter. That’s a great future revenue stream — but the long-term trends of United Technologies are what really matters to buy-and-hold investors. My relative-strength calculations show that United Technologies has performed 45% better than the S&P 500 over the past five years — with an average annualized return of +10% across that period.

Since United Technologies builds jet engines, elevators and HVAC systems, it has a stable core business and isn’t going anywhere. Top it off with a hefty dividend history of payouts since 1936 — with a current yield of 2.6% — and you have a long-term investment you can believe in.

Recommended by: Nancy Zambell[9], editor of Buried Treasures Under $10
Strategy: Low-priced stocks that are great value plays

Education Realty Trust Inc. (NYSE: EDR[10]), created as a REIT in 2004, is one of the largest owners and operators of collegiate student housing in the United States. This makes it a stable but potentially lucrative investment, with 65 properties in 21 states. First, due to SEC regulations for real estate investment trusts, EDR returns a hefty portion of its profits via dividends — a 2.9% yield as of this writing. Secondly, the numbers show a big upside for shares.

According to the U.S. Labor Department, college enrollment hit an all-time high last year, with more than 70% of high school graduates opting for college rather than trying their luck in a recession-heavy economy. But the big upside of Education Realty Trust is that the profits don’t rely on student loans like shady for-profit education stocks that have been in the news in recent months. The majority of the company’s revenues (86.9%) are derived from its student housing leasing. EDR’s preleasing is 3.1% ahead of last year at this time, and net rental rates are 1.9% ahead of last year. Those numbers point to future growth and make this stock a good buy for September as school starts.

Recommended by: Richard Band[11], editor of Profitable Investing
Strategy: Long-term investing that safely outperforms the market

ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM[12]) is one of the stocks I always seem to be talking about, but that’s because I believe it’s one of the highest-potential blue chips out there. The world’s largest oil company came in with blowout Q2 profits of $7.6 billion, almost +10% ahead of analyst estimates. Some pundits worry about XOM’s hefty exposure to natural gas. (The XTO acquisition, now complete, vaulted Exxon into first place among U.S. gas producers.) However, the domestic gas glut may be ebbing, and underground storage is running about -6% below last year’s levels.

Looking forward, high-cost producers are shutting down wells, leaving the field to more-efficient operators like XOM as crude oil prices stay relatively low. Trading at less than 10X estimated year-ahead earnings and holding $13.2 billion of cash (up
$2.4 billion just since the close of 2009), Exxon is a financial fortress with a penny-stock price tag. Sweetening the pot is a current dividend yield of 3%, with increases 28 years in a row.

Recommended by: Bryan Perry[13], editor of Cash Machine
Strategy: Income-oriented investing with mammoth dividends

There’s an ugly rumor going around about how a big dividend must mean there is a tremendous amount of risk attached to a stock. If, by design, a security is structured to pay out most of its profits to shareholders and it can produce 20% profits, then I have no issues with giving management the benefit of the doubt. That’s why I like American Capital Agency (NASDAQ: AGNC[14]) as an aggressive buy for September.

I certainly love the 20% dividend yield, but I also believe there is room for the stock to trade higher. American Capital Agency operates as a real estate investment trust that invests in agency pass-through securities and collateralized mortgages. Assuming the new revised rate of growth for the U.S. GDP is 1%-2% instead of 2%-3%, there is little risk of short-term rates spiking higher and closing the spread in the bond market that makes owning AGNC so attractive. If AGNC can pay out 20% in the current market, then they should be able to maintain it if long-term yields don’t fall much further. Try to pick up this stock at or under $28, and bring some whale-sized yield to your aggressive high-yield holdings.

Recommended by: Hilary Kramer[15], editor of GameChangers
Strategy: Innovative picks that are redefining their sector of the market

Evercore (NYSE: EVR) is a financial stock with big potential. The company is an independent investment advisory firm that specializes in mergers, acquisitions and other “corporate transitions.” In the new world of finance and with the current corporate marketplace still adapting in the wake of the financial crisis and the recession, EVR is helping form the next generation of Wall Street companies — and making a hefty profit doing so.

The right management team is in place, and assets under management are growing — and most of all, M&A activity will pick up seasonally as we head toward the end of the year and as the economy recovers. I continue to target $40 — a nearly 60% gain from current prices.

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