For many years before the advent of electronic and computer-driven trading, the Dow Jones industrial average ruled the investing world. Created in 1896 by Charles Dow, it originally consisted of 12 companies, each considered a giant in its sector. The Dow was introduced early in The Wall Street Journal as the first index of stock market activity. While the companies in the venerable index have changed many times since 1912, it is still considered one of the elite indexes in the world of investing.
It is overshadowed this year by the spectacular rise in the Nasdaq, which is up 28.60% as of the close Friday. This is due to the artificial intelligence explosion and the rise of the Magnificent 7. Meanwhile, the Dow is up just 0.83% in 2023.
Three of the Magnificent 7 reside in the venerable index. They are offering investors a very good entry point and have not had the parabolic move higher than Nvidia and Meta Platforms have had this year. All the following stocks come with dependable dividends, and as one would expect all are rated Buy at top Wall Street firms. However, it is important to remember that no single analyst report should be used as a sole basis for any buying or selling decision.
Apple
Despite some exciting new products like the iPhone 15, the stock has lagged dramatically. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) designs, manufactures and markets consumer electronics worldwide, including the iPhone line of smartphones, the Macintosh family of notebook and desktop computers, iPad multi-purpose tablets, and such wearables and accessories as AirPods, Apple TV, Apple Watch, Beats and HomePod.
It also provides AppleCare support and cloud services, and it operates various platforms, including the App Store, that allow customers to discover and download applications and digital content, such as books, music, video, games and podcasts.
Its services include Apple Arcade, a game subscription service; Apple Fitness+, a personalized fitness service; Apple Music, which offers users a curated listening experience with on-demand radio stations; Apple News+, a subscription news and magazine service; Apple TV+, which offers exclusive original content; Apple Card, a co-branded credit card; and Apple Pay, a cashless payment service. Apple also licenses its intellectual property.
The company serves consumers, and small and mid-sized businesses and the education, enterprise and government markets. It distributes third-party applications for its products through the App Store. The company also sells its products through its retail and online stores, and direct sales force, as well as third-party cellular network carriers, wholesalers, retailers and resellers.
Shareholders receive just a 0.55% dividend. Wedbush’s $240 target price on Apple stock is a Wall Street high. The consensus target is $200.11, and shares closed on Friday at $177.49.
Cisco
Investors who are more conservative may want to consider this mega-cap tech leader, which posted outstanding quarterly results earlier this year. Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) designs, manufactures and sells internet protocol (IP) based networking products and services related to the communications and information technology industry worldwide.
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