5 Best Blue Chip Stocks To Own For 2015

Kathy Kristof, of Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine, takes a look at companies sharing the wealth. Below, she highlights three blue chip firms that are buying back stock and boosting their dividends.

Steve Halpern: We're here today with Kathy Kristof of Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine. How are you doing Kathy?

Kathy Kristof: Great! How are you, Steve?

Steve Halpern: Very good. The November issue of Kiplinger's just hit the newsstands, and in the latest issue, you wrote an article entitled Companies That Share the Wealth. Could you explain this trend?

Kathy Kristof: Absolutely. Companies have been building up cash hordes. Honestly, ever since the debacle of 2008-2009, companies got very nervous about having enough capital, and so instead of raising dividends, a lot of them cut dividends and started hording their cash.

Now companies have more cash on their balance sheets than ever before, and the market doesn't look as tenuous, and so they're feeling much more comfortable about giving back some of that cash to shareholders in the form of dividends and share buybacks, and both of those things are obviously very good for shareholders. It just puts a little more cash in your pocket.

5 Best Blue Chip Stocks To Own For 2015: McDonald's Corporation(MCD)

McDonald?s Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a worldwide foodservice retailer. It franchises and operates McDonald?s restaurants that offer various food items, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages. As of December 31, 2009, the company operated 32,478 restaurants in 117 countries, of which 26,216 were operated by franchisees; and 6,262 were operated by the company. McDonald?s Corporation was founded in 1948 and is based in Oak Brook, Illinois.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  Starbucks is hoping to woo thrifty coffee sippers, making this more of an attack on McDonald's (NYSE: MCD  ) , which has gained steam with its McCafe line of flavored but inexpensive coffee drinks. Dunkin' Brands (NASDAQ: DNKN  ) is also a target given the small-box nature of Dunkin' Donuts.

• [By BubbleBustInvesting]

  It is hard to say. What we can say, however, is that Starbucks is a good bet for value investors, as is McDonald's (MCD) which reported Q1 earnings last week, while Panera Bread and Dunkin' Brands are better bets for growth investors.

• [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]

  Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images It's apparently never too early to have a hamburger. While most chains wait until 10 or 11 a.m. to begin offering their signature burgers, early risers will be able to skip straight to lunch at thousands of participating Burger King (BKW) locations. The fast food giant's betting that some morning commuters want more than just a breakfast burrito or a ham and egg sandwich for breakfast. Later this month Burger King is rolling out a "burgers for breakfast" campaign across 5,000 of its restaurants, offering its signature Whopper as well as a few other burgers and chicken sandwiches in the morning. Assuming that you don't want hash browns on the side, fries will also be made available. So will apple pie. Whopper, BK King and Original Fried Chicken sandwiches will be part of the chain's breakfast offerings. Will it confuse diners? Will the move complicate matters for employees manning the prep tables and fryers? Will the great variety stall patrons as they ponder the menu when it's time to order, creating longer wait times for food? The questions won't be answered right away, but Burger King doesn't have much of a choice. Breakfast is big business, and chains have to stand out one way or another. Another Shot in the Battle for Breakfast It isn't easy to make a difference in the morning. Just ask Wendy's (WEN), which has already retreated twice from the national breakfast market over the past decade. The first time it thought that it could set itself apart by offering sausage gravy-soaked biscuits and breakfast versions of its then-popular Frescata sandwiches. More recently it tried to stick closer to the McDonald's (MCD) playbook with oatmeal, breakfast burritos and biscuit sandwiches. That didn't pan out either, and last year it discontinued breakfast at all but less than 10 percent of its restaurants. It's not just the burger flippers hoping to woo diners with caffeinated mornings. Subway -- the world's largest restaur

• [By Chuck Carnevale]

  With this article we��e going to take an in-depth look at McDonald's Corp. (MCD) based on its fundamental value by the numbers. There are two primary reasons for writing this particular article at this particular time, both of which were instigated by reader comments and suggestions.

5 Best Blue Chip Stocks To Own For 2015: Colgate-Palmolive Company(CL)

Colgate-Palmolive Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets consumer products worldwide. It offers oral care products, including toothpaste, toothbrushes, and mouth rinses, as well as dental floss and pharmaceutical products for dentists and other oral health professionals; personal care products, such as liquid hand soap, shower gels, bar soaps, deodorants, antiperspirants, shampoos, and conditioners; and home care products comprising laundry and dishwashing detergents, fabric conditioners, household cleaners, bleaches, dishwashing liquids, and oil soaps. The company offers its oral, personal, and home care products under the Colgate Total, Colgate Max Fresh, Colgate 360 Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Monica Gerson]

  Colgate-Palmolive Co (NYSE: CL) is expected to report its Q3 earnings at $0.73 per share on revenue of $4.46 billion.

  Precision Castparts (NYSE: PCP) is projected to report its Q2 earnings at $2.83 per share on revenue of $2.36 billion.

Best High Dividend Companies To Watch In Right Now: Philip Morris International Inc(PM)

Philip Morris International Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products in markets outside of the United States. Its international product brand line comprises Marlboro, Merit, Parliament, Virginia Slims, L&M, Chesterfield, Bond Street, Lark, Muratti, Next, Philip Morris, and Red & White. The company also offers its products under the A Mild, Dji Sam Soe, and A Hijau in Indonesia; Diana in Italy; Optima and Apollo-Soyuz in the Russian Federation; Morven Gold in Pakistan; Boston in Colombia; Belmont, Canadian Classics, and Number 7 in Canada; Best and Classic in Serbia; f6 in Germany; Delicados in Mexico; Assos in Greece; and Petra in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. It operates primarily in the European Union, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Canada, and Latin America. The company is based in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jonas Elmerraji]

  As the world's second largest tobacco company, Philip Morris International (PM) is the prototypical sin stock. It boasts recognizable brands, a sticky customer base, and a hefty dividend payout -- and the payout looks due for a dividend hike. As I write, Philip Morris International currently pays out a 85 cents each quarter, adding up to a 4.05% yield.

  Philip Morris owns almost 30% of the world's tobacco market. And much of that success is thanks to a single iconic brand: Marlboro. The firm has owned Marlboro (as well as second-tier names such as L&M and Parliament) internationally ever since Altria (MO) split up its international and domestic operations. Between the two markets, PM owns the more attractive franchise by far. After all, the international market is the only one that's actually growing.

  While the U.S. market for tobacco products is rife with regulation and demographic shifts are turning away from smoking, international tobacco sales are up -- especially in emerging markets. Premium positioning in markets like India, China and Indonesia translates into substantial cash flows for PM investors. And while the strength of the dollar has been a challenge post-2008, the potential for a Fed taper could strengthen this stock's payout in 2013.

• [By Rich Duprey]

  Global tobacco giant�Philip Morris International (NYSE: PM  ) announced this morning its second-quarter dividend of $0.85 per share, the same rate it's paid for the past three quarters after raising the payout 10% from $0.77 per share.

• [By Laura Brodbeck]

  Thursday

  Earnings Expected From: UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE: UNH), Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ), PrivateBancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: PVTB), PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE: PPG), Philip Morris International Inc (NYSE: PM), Nokia Corporation (NYSE: NOK), Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE: BTU), Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG), Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) Economic Releases Expected: Chinese GDP, Chinese industrial production, Chinese retail sales, US industrial production, US housing starts, US building permits

  Friday

• [By Rupert Hargreaves]

  After a�record�first half, tobacco stocks are now starting to pull back as the high-yield sector of the market is sold-off. During the first six and a half months of the year, Altria (NYSE: MO  ) matched the S&P 500 with gains of 17.5%, while�Reynolds American (NYSE: RAI  ) �climbed 24% and Philip Morris International (NYSE: PM  ) �advanced�7.3%, all excluding dividends (the S&P 500 gained 18% over the same period). However, since the recent sell-off began, all three companies have wiped out most of their gains so far this year.��

5 Best Blue Chip Stocks To Own For 2015: Chevron Corporation(CVX)

Chevron Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in petroleum, chemicals, mining, power generation, and energy operations worldwide. It operates in two segments, Upstream and Downstream. The Upstream segment involves in the exploration, development, and production of crude oil and natural gas; processing, liquefaction, transportation, and regasification associated with liquefied natural gas; transportation of crude oil through pipelines; and transportation, storage, and marketing of natural gas, as well as holds interest in a gas-to-liquids project. The Downstream segment engages in the refining of crude oil into petroleum products; marketing of crude oil and refined products primarily under the Chevron, Texaco, and Caltex brand names; transportation of crude oil and refined products by pipeline, marine vessel, motor equipment, and rail car; and manufacture and marketing of commodity petrochemicals, plastics for industrial uses, and fuel and lubricant additives. It a lso produces and markets coal and molybdenum; and holds interests in 13 power assets with a total operating capacity of approximately 3,100 megawatts, as well as involves in cash management and debt financing activities, insurance operations, real estate activities, energy services, and alternative fuels and technology business. Chevron Corporation has a joint venture agreement with China National Petroleum Corporation. The company was formerly known as ChevronTexaco Corp. and changed its name to Chevron Corporation in May 2005. Chevron Corporation was founded in 1879 and is based in San Ramon, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Casey Hoerth]

  Chevron's (NYSE: CVX  ) earnings declined by 27% year on year in the past quarter. Time to panic? Wall Street certainly doesn't think so: Shares actually ticked higher on Monday.

• [By Alex Planes]

  [The] beginning, in Saudi Arabia, was in 1933. That's when the Saudi government signed a concession agreement with the Standard Oil Company of California, predecessor of today's Chevron (NYSE: CVX  ) , opening up a large part of the young desert country for hydrocarbon exploration. In March 1938, following three years of frustrating drilling, the first commercially viable oil field was discovered at Dhahran. The kingdom and the company never looked back, in time joining the ranks of the world's greatest producers and exporters of oil and natural gas liquids.

• [By Kelley Wright]

  Based on this criteria, here are our current Timely Ten selections:

  Chevron Corp. (CVX)��ielding 3.3%
  
  CVS Caremark (CVS)��ielding 1.6%
  
  Coca-Cola (KO)��ielding 2.9%
  
  Baxter International (BAX)��ielding 3.0%
  
  Walgreen (WAG)��ielding 2.3%
  
  McDonalds Corp. (MCD)��ielding 3.3%
  
  PepsiCo (PEP)��ielding 2.8%
  
  ExxonMobil (XOM)��ielding 2.9%
  
  Occidental Petroleum (OXY)��ielding 2.7%
  
  Wal-Mart Stores (WMT)��ielding 2.5%
  
  

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• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Finding bargain stocks
  Even if you think the stock market today is overvalued, you can still find individual stocks that look much less expensive. Energy stocks in general carry relatively low multiples, reflecting concerns about future production and oil and gas prices. Yet even while some large oil companies have struggled, Chevron (NYSE: CVX  ) has been more successful than most at finding ways to seek production growth through a combination of aggressive and opportunistic asset purchases along with new discoveries in key areas like Australia and the ultradeep zone of the Gulf of Mexico. Similarly, ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP  ) has identified the Canadian oil sands as well as the U.K. and Norway as being major contributors to production growth in the coming years. Both companies have P/E ratios in the 9 to 11 range.

5 Best Blue Chip Stocks To Own For 2015: Apple Inc.(AAPL)

Apple Inc., together with subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and markets personal computers, mobile communication and media devices, and portable digital music players, as well as sells related software, services, peripherals, networking solutions, and third-party digital content and applications worldwide. The company sells its products worldwide through its online stores, retail stores, direct sales force, third-party wholesalers, resellers, and value-added resellers. In addition, it sells third-party Mac, iPhone, iPad, and iPod compatible products, including application software, printers, storage devices, speakers, headphones, and other accessories and peripherals through its online and retail stores; and digital content and applications through the iTunes Store. The company sells its products to consumer, small and mid-sized business, education, enterprise, government, and creative markets. As of September 25, 2010, it had 317 retail stores, including 233 stores in the United States and 84 stores internationally. The company, formerly known as Apple Computer, Inc., was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Cupertino, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  A year ago, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) and Google (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) had cleared the $500 hurdle, setting fresh long-term sights on the magical $1,000 mark. Google stock was at $570. Apple shares were at $551.

• [By Jared Cummans]

  Consumer favorite Apple (AAPL) is largely expected to roll out lucrative Black Friday deals on 11/29 for its customers.

  Past deals have included up to $100 off of laptops as well as other discounts on iPads and iPods. The sales will be especially crucial after Apple’s most recent quarterly sales of certain devices were not up to snuff for many on The Street. A nice boost in sales buoyed by discounts could help ensure that the firm hits its sales and revenue estimates for its next report.

  Thus far, the event has only been posted to the company’s Australia and New Zealand websites, but with those two nations roughly one day ahead of the U.S., many are expecting a similar announcement for domestic markets to come sometime within the next day.

  Apple shares were up $4.13, or 0.8%, at Monday’s close. The stock is down just over 1.5% on the year.

• [By Tim Brugger]

  But Google CEO Larry Page wasn't fooling anyone; buying Motorola Mobility was a direct means to go after Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) and Samsung in the lucrative U.S. smartphone OEM market. Google's partnership with LG has already produced a Nexus smartphone, and Motorola has some, too, but that's so un-Google. If we've learned anything over the past couple of years, it's that Google isn't afraid to aggressively enter new markets with guns blazing: Google Fiber, the use of white space for wireless connectivity, self-driving cars, Glass -- the list goes on and on.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Over the past month, U.S. lawmakers have focused their attention on the tax-avoidance strategies that Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) has put in place to minimize its U.S. corporate income tax bill. With sophisticated corporate structuring designed to take advantage of various U.S. and foreign tax laws, companies can successfully navigate differences in the way nations handle international taxation to minimize their tax exposure.