When April ends in a little more than a week, we will officially be a third of the way through what has been for the most part a very dismal 2022 for investors. The combination of rising interest rates, surging inflation (which is at 40-year highs), continued warfare in Ukraine and a host of additional issues have kept a lid on stock prices. Every move higher seems to be followed by another big leg down, like we saw on Thursday. While we are well off the lows printed in late February and early March, there does not appear to be any near-term catalyst to drive stocks higher in a meaningful way.
It makes sense now to stay clear from the momentum and meme stocks and look to more conservative large-cap stocks that pay dividends. We screened the Dow Jones industrial average looking for the highest yielding companies in sectors that look to benefit in the coming months, those that likely will hold their ground if we get another major move lower.
The following five stocks are rated Buy at major Wall Street firms. It is important to remember that no single analyst report should be used as a sole basis for any buying or selling decision.
Dow
This stock certainly offers investors growth and income potential. Dow Inc. (NYSE: DOW) is a leading materials science company and was formed from the merger of Dow and DuPont in 2017 and the subsequent spin-off 2019. The company is organized into three principal divisions: Performance Materials & Coatings (23% of EBITDA), Industrial Intermediates & Infrastructure (27%) and Packaging & Specialty Plastics (51%).
Dow’s segments include Agricultural Sciences, which is engaged in providing crop protection and seed/plant biotechnology products and technologies, urban pest management solutions and healthy oils. The Consumer Solutions segment consists of Consumer Care, Dow Automotive Systems, Dow Electronic Materials and Consumer Solutions-Silicones businesses.
The Infrastructure Solutions segment consists of Dow Building & Construction, Dow Coating Materials, Energy & Water Solutions, Performance Monomers and Infrastructure Solutions-Silicones businesses. Performance Materials & Chemicals consists of Chlor-Alkali and Vinyl, Industrial Solutions and Polyurethanes businesses. The Performance Plastics unit consists of Dow Elastomers, Dow Electrical and Telecommunications, Dow Packaging and Specialty Plastics, Energy and Hydrocarbons businesses.
Investors Dow stock in receive a 4.15% dividend. Piper Sandler started coverage on the stock earlier this year. Its $78 price objective is well above the $65.43 consensus target. Thursday’s close of $69.51 was up almost 3% in an ugly market.
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