Stock pick for entry-level analysis

Hey Guys-

A female friend of mine is taking an entry-level finance class as part of her masters program. They have been told to pick a publicly traded company which they will have to do a relatively high-level analysis of. Looking at financial statements, recent performance, stock price history etc. Looking to help her come up with some ideas. Apple and Starbucks aren't allowed and Lululemon has been taken. Any ideas of something that would be relatively straightforward and interesting for a 25-year old girl? Thanks everyone!

-Billy Ray

 
TempleOwl:
VeriFone (PAY) Microsoft (MSFT) IBM

These ideas are all good (actually have been looking at the first two for my own portfolio).

BTH (Blyth) might be fun, considering the attention MLMs are getting with Herbalife.

AVP (Avon) could be good for the same reason. They recently got a new CEO, and could be a turnaround/EM growth story.

BIG faces some near term headwinds, but is interesting after their recent pullback.

 

Wtf all text is bold on the site when in this thread! Weird...

Do FB...

Not a lot of history so don't have too much to deal with plus I'm sure some college student girl can be interested in that.

Frank Sinatra - "Alcohol may be man's worst enemy, but the bible says love your enemy."
 

I assume she doesn't have much background on anything at all, so go with something she knows, and obviously consumer discretionary is the only thing she knows. Tiffany (TIF), Ralph Lauren (RL), or VF Corp (VFC) should be fairly easy to grasp for just about anyone on a high enough level.

I hate victims who respect their executioners
 

Michael Kors, like BH said, consumer discretionary is not too hard to analyze.

The difference between successful people and others is largely a habit - a controlled habit of doing every task better, faster and more efficiently.
 
DonVon:
Most sexist thread on WSO.

If this girl looks like Rachel Madow I suppose we should suggest Rockwell Collins (COL), Martin Marietta (MLM), or possibly World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). Come to think of it she might be more comfortable with Harley Davidson (HOG) or Rick's Cabaret (RICK).

Honorable Mentions:

Precision Castparts (PCP) Men's Wearhouse (MW) Kratos Defense (KTOS) Fanuc Corp (FANUY) Taser (TASR)

I hate victims who respect their executioners
 
Something interesting for a 25 year old girl would be to see if she could get some poor guy to do her work for her.

Bam.

And to join in on the sexism, tell her to look into KTCHN, I'd be willing to bet she'd find it interesting

 
JasonLoh:
SirTradesaLot:
DonVon:
Most sexist thread on WSO.

I didn't see it; now I cannot unsee it. Hilarious.

Zargo:
Something interesting for a 25 year old girl would be to see if she could get some poor guy to do her work for her.

Bam.

And to join in on the sexism, tell her to look into KTCHN, I'd be willing to bet she'd find it interesting

Does she look like this consumer analyst? http://talentedblonde.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Bentz-2.jpg

If so, I'd second the Limited Brands recommendation.

 

I would go with Coca-Cola (KO).

“The pleasure of rooting for Goliath is that you can expect to win. The pleasure of rooting for David is that, while you don’t know what to expect, you stand at least a chance of being inspired.” - Michael Lewis
 
The Phantom:
There is some misunderstanding in this thread. Is she looking for stocks to study, or for stock to invest? I would never pick a $10Bn+ company for studying purposes, statements are too vague and not detailed.

If she is looking for stocks to invest, my picks are: CSTR, BIG, KSS, TGI, MIND

Long Kohl's?!

I hate victims who respect their executioners
 
Best Response

I like to buy on several missed earnings.

I'd buy now and sell at $55, but my money is parked in other places, and I'm not a big fan of investing in anything over $10Bn market cap. Plus the management is a bit shady in my book.

 

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