4 Favorite ‘Favorite’ Stock Picks for 2013

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It’s that time of year again.

No, I don’t mean a time for shopping, decorating, celebrating, snacking and enjoying the holidays … or for looking back at all the highs and lows of 2012 … or for making a laundry-list of New Year’s resolutions to make 2013 even better.

I mean the time where experts across the board bombard the web with lists of the BEST stocks to buy for the coming year. (And yes, we are guilty of it too.)

Some analysts sort by sector, some by size and some just throw picks at you left and right. Heck, by the time you’ve clicked through even a couple of the lists, your head is spinning with an assortment of names. How could you ever decide which is the best for you?

Well, while doing some of your own research is always a good idea, another way to sort through to noise is to see what the experts all agree on. Sure, they each toss out a handful of names, but some must overlap … right?

They sure do. In fact, here are four stocks that are on the 2013 wishlists of more than a few stock pickers. Have a look at the favorite “favorites” for the new year:

Apple

We’ll start with the obvious. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) has been a popular pick thus far, especially in the wake of its recent struggles.

Barron’s: “Apple is still going strong, even as the company’s shares have traded down 23%, to around $540, from a September peak of $705. None of the recent investor concerns — lower margins, supply constraints, management changes, iPad competition, and the iPhone 5 map fiasco — are major. …

Even after implementing a dividend — now providing a 1.9% yield — and a modest buyback program, Apple should build cash at a rate of $40 billion annually. There’s room for a higher dividend and a more aggressive share-repurchase program in 2013.”

TheStreet: “The company’s strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its solid stock price performance, impressive record of earnings per share growth, compelling growth in net income, robust revenue growth and largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures.”

Yahoo! Finance: ‘The way Apple stock is priced right now, current investors are not being rewarded for growth.  However, that means new investors can buy the stock without paying a premium for growth.”

Ford

Ford logoSeveral experts like the valuation in the auto space, and foresee Ford (NYSE:F) racing to the front of the pack in the coming year.

Fortune: “Ford was chosen for great leadership and being the strongest of the auto companies with bright days ahead. At $11.30, its 52-week range is $8.82 to $13.05. There is also an implied upside of almost 30% here if Ford can reach its consensus price target of $14.67 over the next year. Ford has a market cap of $43 billion and a dividend yield of about 1.8%.”

Kiplinger: “Ford still has room to grow. Despite the firm’s achievements, the stock has dropped 40% since early 2011, and the P/E is 8. The P/E is low because investors apparently don’t believe that Ford can sustain those high profits. I think they’re wrong and believe that Ford deserves a higher valuation.”

Bank of America: The automotive company is expected to see over 15% EPS growth in 2013 and has “high foreign sales and a large amount of pent-up demand” in its corner as well.

Comcast

Comcast CMCSAThe next pick that experts think you should tune into in 2013? Good ol’ cable company Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA).

USA Today: “Cable TV stock to flourish thanks to price momentum, ratings gains at NBCUniversal, traction for Xfinity brand, double-digit cash flow and profit growth, as well as dividend hikes and stock buybacks.”

Kiplinger: “Comcast is the nation’s biggest cable operator and the owner of NBCUniversal and its TV, movie and theme-park businesses. As the number of broadband Internet subscribers increases, Comcast is emerging as one of the most adept players on the changing telecom scene. Earnings are expected to rise 16% in 2013; for that kind of growth, the stock’s P/E of 17 is modest.”

Bank of America: “Comcast has been on fire for 2012 and the pick here was based in part on the new revenue streams from NBC. Shares have risen more than 50% from the lows to $36.88 as the 52-week range is $22.37 to $37.96. What stands out here is that Comcast now has a market cap of $98 billion. The cable giant also has a dividend yield of 1.8%.”

Bank of America

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC)Bank stocks like Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) have been going strong lately, and many pundits believe the run is poised to continue. While InvestorPlace editor Jeff Reeves is skeptical on the sector, even he admits that we should all be rooting for them in 2013.

The Motley Fool: “This stock has already had a stellar 2012, with its stock soaring more than 50% as the banking giant stabilizes after its near-brush with disaster during the financial crisis. B of A has taken plenty of steps to try to boost earnings, including its sale of inefficient non-core assets as well as implementing an expense-cutting program that could save the company $8 billion annually.”

Forbes: “The Federal Reserve new quantitative easing program buys a minimum of $2 billion in mortgages every day.  Bank of America is one of the largest mortgage providers in the country.  It will experience higher revenues due to the Fed program and, more importantly, it will see the value of its troubled housing assets rise to the point where they can be sold at profits relative to their book values.”

As of this writing, Alyssa Oursler did not own a position in any of the aforementioned securities.


Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2012/12/4-favorite-favorite-stock-picks-for-2013/.

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