Illinois Tool Works Outlook for 2016

During its recent investor and analyst day, Illinois Tool Works reiterated its performance goals for 2017. Its management has set its targets as the fruition of a five-year enterprise strategy plan intended to increase margin and revenue growth. Let's look at the analyst day presentation in the context of making a decision to buy the stock or not.

The company's enterprise plan means the stock offers self-help growth opportunities -- not a bad quality in a sluggish economy -- but ultimately its fortunes are still tied to the industrial economy. The question is whether the former is enough to offset any difficulties with the latter in 2016.

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Time to Buy Agricultural Machinery Stocks For 2016?

Titan Machinery, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:TITN) third-quarter results delivered the latest tale of woe for the agricultural machinery sector, and the market promptly reacted by sending the stock down nearly 25% in the days following the earnings report. Titan's troubles matter to the sector because it sells and rents agricultural and industrial equipment to CNH Industrial (NYSE:CNHI). As CNH goes, so do rivals Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) and AGCO Corporation (NYSE:AGCO). That said, let's take a look at Titan's earnings and the outlook for the rest of the sector.

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Is Rockwell Automation ROK a Stock to Buy for 2016?

There's no doubt that the industrial automation sector has had a disappointing 2015. Falling oil prices have pressured capital spending in the upstream oil industry, and slowing industrial growth -- not least in emerging markets -- created caution in industrial capital spending. That said, Rockwell Automation  has notably outperformed peers such as Emerson Electric and ABB Ltd. Let's look at why, and examine whether Rockwell's stock can outperform in 2016.

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5 Key Takeaways From Deere & Company (DE) Earnings

Deere & Company's recent results beat analyst expectations, and the initial uptick in the stock price served notice that despite forecasts for another year of falling sales, Deere still has upside potential. In this context, let's look at five things management wants you to know from its fourth-quarter results.

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Time to Buy Johnson Controls for 2016?

Johnson Controls' (NYSE:JCI) recent strategic review and outlook failed to convince the market, with the stock down around 7% in the two days' trading afterward. The negative issues look stock-specific rather than any kind of warning on its end market, and rivals such as United Technologies (NYSE:UTX) and Ingersoll-Rand Plc (NYSE:IR) shouldn't be unduly worried by what Johnson Controls' management said. However, a deeper dive into the company's guidance suggests management may be taking a rosy view on its prospects in China in 2016. Let's take a closer look.

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General Electric Company (GE) and Alstom

General Electric Company recently updated investors on its acquisition of Alstom's power and grid assets.The deal is an integral part of the company's refocusing on its industrial businesses, and management outlined a number of initiatives that strengthen the case for buying the stock. It's been thought of as a play on cost-cutting, but management outlined a number of growth initiatives as well. Let's take a closer look.

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Winners and Losers From Earnings Season

With the third-quarter earnings season largely over, it's time to analyze which industrial stocks and sectors outperformed or disappointed. In doing so, let's take a look at the key trends and themes in the results of the major industrial companies. Will these investment themes continue to work in 2016?

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Deere & Company Company Analysis

Deere & Company's  recent results were warmly received by a stock market that's hoping the company can engineer a turnaround in fiscal year 2016. However, the earnings beat was more about cost cutting than any improvement in the agriculture machinery market. In reality, Deere still faces declining end markets in 2016. On a brighter note, the stock gives you upside exposure to any increase in crop prices, and for that reason alone it's attractive within a balanced portfolio. Let's look at what you need to know before buying or selling a position.

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Using Behavioral Finance in Investing

Have you ever wondered how you can make money from behavioral finance? It's a much-discussed topic that often leaves investors floundering for something tangible to invest in. Well, wonder no further, because I have three examples of stocks whose prospects are best understood using a simple understanding of the so-called wealth effect. So let's look at why Boeing , Deere & Company , and The Home Depot are interesting for behavioral-finance enthusiasts

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Today's Dividend Candidate: Emerson Electric

For those on the hunt of dividend yield, industrial stalwart Emerson Electric's  nearly 3.9% dividend yield is surely attracting some attention. Unfortunately, investing is rarely as simple as picking out a stock based on yield, so I thought I would discuss some of the pros and cons of buying dividend aristocrat Emerson Electric for its yield.

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When Will Caterpillar Stock Recover?

The eternal question with a company like Caterpillar  is when the cycle will turn in its end markets. As ever with highly cyclical stocks, when the market turns down, its sales fall dramatically, only to rise in similar fashion when conditions improve. In this context, let's look at the underlying sales trends with Caterpillar and what it means for its prospects in 2016.

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What Siemens Results Mean to General Electric Investors

It's always interesting to hear what competitors are saying about end markets and their competitive positioning, and there aren't many more iconic rivals in the industrials space than General Electric Company  and Siemens. Let's look at Siemens' latest earnings and commentary on end markets, and compare where the two companies are headed.

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Advance Auto Parts Looks a Good Value

The investment idea behind buying Advance Auto Parts is based on the belief that the company can play catch-up with rivals such as AutoZone and O'Reilly Automotive. It's an attractive proposition because Advance currently trades at a substantial discount to its peers. In my view, closing the gap could result in a near doubling of the stock price. But can Advance really achieve its aims? Here is what you need to know before buying the stock. 

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Advance Auto Parts: A Value Stock

Advance Auto Parts represents one of the most compelling deep-value stocks in the market. But a deep-value company is rarely one firing on all cylinders, and Advance Auto Parts has challenges ahead, as its management seeks to close the valuation gap with rivals AutoZone and O'Reilly Automotive. Let's take a closer look at the value proposition.

In a nutshell, the case for buying Advance Auto Parts rests on the idea that it can improve its operational metrics to the levels O'Reilly and AutoZone have achieved.

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Is 3M Company a Stock to Buy?

Quality stocks rarely come cheap, and 3M Company is a prime example. The company trades with a P/E in excess of 20 times and has recently cut its full-year 2015 guidance in the face of a weakening industrial economy. However, its underlying performance remains excellent, and management recently announced restructuring and productivity improvement programs designed to increase profitability in the next few years. Let's take a look at the pros and cons of buying 3M stock.

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Emerson Electric's Latest Earnings Call

Emerson Electric's fiscal-year 2015 proved challenging, to say the least. Reductions in energy capital expenditures, adverse currency movements, and emerging-market weakness combined to reduce full-year net sales by 9% and adjusted EPS by 15%. As the company enters its fiscal 2016, investors will be hoping to see some improvement. With this in mind, here are five things that management wants you to know about its future prospects.

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Home Depot, Inc HD Sees Growth in Housing Market

Home Depot, Inc. reported third-quarter results on Nov. 17 and continued its three-quarter run of raising full-year 2015 guidance. Moreover, management discussed the positive trends in its underlying business and outlined how the key drivers of its growth continued to show positive signs. It's time to take a closer look at a good quarter for the retailer.


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AgroFresh Solutions Inc Stock Research

AgroFresh Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ:AGFS) gave its first earnings call as a listed company and immediately introduced followers to the vagaries of the farming market. AgroFresh sells solutions that enable farmers to control the quality of their fruit during storage and transportation as well as pre-harvesting. Its earnings are thus always going to be somewhat subject to crop conditions in any given year. What happened and why?


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Emerson Electric to Recover in 2016?

There is something soothing and therapeutic about a company reaching the fourth-quarter of a difficult fiscal year and looking ahead to a better year. It's not quite that Emerson Electric's (NYSE: EMR) management is expecting a better fiscal 2016, but rather it expects the second half of its 2016 to mark an improvement on the first.Following the current rough patch, investors could be looking at an entirely different story by this time next year.Time to get excited? Let's dive in and see if there is any cause for optimism.


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Is United Technologies Undervalued?

United Technologies isn't the only company whose management believes its stock is intrinsically undervalued, but in this case, there's a sound argument to justify that belief. Furthermore, management is backing up its claim by promising to buy back $16 billion worth of stock in the 2015-2017 period. Let's take a look at what's going on, and why investors in General Electric also have cause for optimism.


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