This weekend in Barron's online: the case for jumping into commodities now, the inaugural Income Investing Roundtable, as well as the prospects for Caterpillar, Becton Dickinson, Hertz, PICO and more.
Cover Story
"Time to Buy Commodities" by Andrew Bary.
The harsh sell-off in oil, gold and other commodities has begun to look like capitulation, says this week's cover story in Barron's. So now is a good time to add beaten-down commodities back to a core portfolio. See which analysts are calling a bottom and which remain cautious. And see where the opportunities are, as well as how six funds and six exchange traded funds can help investors build a position in this oversold sector.
See also: Berkshire Hathaway Reported To Engage In Its Biggest Deal Ever For Precision Castparts
Feature Stories
In "Income Hunters: Where to Invest When Rates Rise" by Amey Stone, the four members of Barron's inaugural Income Investing Roundtable discuss their strategies for bonds, real estate investment trusts (REITs), master limited partnerships (MLPs), preferreds and dividend-paying stocks.
"The Cat Will Snap Back" by Jack Hough takes a look at how Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) has used the mining and oil drilling downturns to prep for the rebound -- which could begin next year. See why Barron's thinks the shares could reach $90.
Lawrence C. Strauss's "A Bigger Becton Dickinson Looks Like a Buy" suggests that shares of Becton, Dickinson and Co. (NYSE: BDX) could post healthy gains over the next two years, helped by the its acquisition of medical-equipment maker CareFusion.
Litman Gregory has been long known for its ability to choose top-notch money managers to manage portions of its mutual funds, says "Managing the Managers" by Sarah Max. Its newest fund focuses on alternative strategies.
In Leslie P. Norton's "Hertz Shares Could Offer a Nice Ride," see why Uber is no threat as Hertz Global Holdings Inc (NYSE: HTZ) cuts costs, improves fleet management and spins out or sells noncore assets. Could it be worth almost twice its current stock price?
See "PICO Holdings Boasts Lots of Liquid Assets," in which David Englander takes a look at how the sale of the sluggish PICO Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: PICO) canola-processing business is highlighting the attractiveness of the company's other assets.
An army of "zombie funds" are stalking Wall Street, according to Penta article "Private Equity: Beware of Zombie Funds." With private equity valuations again hitting historic peaks, it is time to reflect on the excesses of the last go-around.
"Reforming Medicare and Medicaid" is an editorial commentary by Thomas G. Donlan that says U.S. health care offers unpalatable options: too much government, too much individual responsibility or too much spending.
Follow-up article "Walt Disney's Prospects Are Bright, Despite Cable Weakness" indicates that Walt Disney Co (NYSE: DIS) shares could rise 50 percent after the recent sell-off, but also that a big drop in the share price Zillow Group Inc (NASDAQ: Z) should not tempt buyers.
In Barron's Asia: "ComfortDelGro Has Got Your Ticket to Ride" by Daniel Shane makes the case that Singapore's blue-chip transport stock is just the ticket, with the bus, taxi and car rental company's expansion abroad and its nationalization back home.
See also: The Historical Correlation Between Biotech Stocks And Interest Rates
Columns
Columns in this weekend's Barron's discuss:
- How Donald Trump may be Hillary Clinton's secret weapon
- What the new jobs numbers portend
- Why media stocks got clobbered last week
- The mixed results from big tech breakups
- Why value-oriented fund managers are more optimistic on Europe
- Whether junk bond ETF fears are overblown
- The improving odds that the Fed will hike rates in September
- The dividend hikes in the past week
- New books by Jeremy Siegel and Jason DeSena Trennert
At the time of this writing, the author had no position in the mentioned equities.
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