Best Food Stocks For 2014

In China, economic prosperity has created a new class of affluent consumers with a nearly insatiable appetite for goods and services.

For example, consider the $7.1 billion bid that China's largest meat processor made last week for America's largest hog farmer and pork producer. Shuanghui International Holding is looking to buy Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD) to increase meat imports to China, where domestic production can't keep pace with fast-rising demand.

 

The consumer is at the centerpiece of the emerging market growth story, which is creating expansion opportunities for consumer goods companies such as Smithfield and supporting earnings and dividend gains for income investors. In the past five years, the consumer-oriented sectors of the MSCI Emerging Market index have significantly outperformed the broader index, which in turn has greatly outperformed the S&P 500. From a pre-recession peak in 2008, consumer staples is up 82%, health care is up 66% and consumer discretionary is up 32%.

5 Best New Stocks To Watch For 2015: Etablissementen Fr Colruyt NV (COLR)

Etablissementen Fr Colruyt NV, also known as Colruyt Group, is a Belgian company primarily engaged in retail and wholesale of food products. The Company's retail trade division includes the direct supply of products to retail customers operating through brands Colruyt, DreamBaby, BIO-planet, DreamLand and ColliShop, among others. The Company supplies to wholesalers and affiliated independent merchants in Belgium, France and Luxembourg. It also provides printing solutions (photo Fuji Colruyt). Colruyt Group also has a corporate activities division, which combines support services, processes and systems and central administration, among others. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tom Stoukas]

  Colruyt SA (COLR) fell 4 percent to 42.31 euros. Belgium�� largest discount food retailer forecast full-year net income of about 369 million euros ($498 million) compared with analysts�� estimates of 381.2 million euros.

• [By Corinne Gretler]

  Colruyt (COLR) gained 8.3 percent to 40.08 euros, the largest jump since June 27, 2012. Belgium�� biggest discount food retailer said full-year earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization amounted to 699.8 million euros ($910 million), beating the average 684 million-euro analyst projection in a Bloomberg survey. The company also raised its dividend to 1 euro a share, exceeding the Bloomberg Dividend Forecast of 98 cents.

Best Food Stocks For 2014: Ingredion Inc (INGR)

Ingredion Incorporated (Ingredion), formerly Corn Products International, Inc., incorporated on March 27, 1997, is a global manufacturer and supplier of starch and sweetener ingredients to a range of industries, including packaged food, beverage, brewing and industrial customers. The Company's product line includes starches and sweeteners, animal feed products and edible corn oil.

The Company's starch-based products include both food-grade and industrial starches. The Company's sweetener products include glucose syrups, high maltose syrups, high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), caramel color, dextrose, polyols, maltodextrins and glucose and syrup solids. The Company's products are derived primarily from the processing of corn and other starch-based materials, such as tapioca, potato and rice.

Sweetener Products

The Company's sweetener products represented approximately 44% of the Company's net sales for the year ended December 31, 2012. Glucose syrups are fundamental ingredients used in food products, such as baked goods, snack foods, beverages, canned fruits, condiments, candy and other sweets, dairy products, ice cream, jams and jellies, prepared mixes and table syrups. Glucose syrups offer functionality in addition to sweetness to processed foods. High Maltose Syrup is special type of glucose syrup, which is primarily used as a fermentable sugar in brewing beers. High maltose syrups are also used in the production of confections, canning and some other food processing applications. The Company's high maltose syrups actually speeds the fermentation process, allowing brewers to increase capacity without adding capital.

High fructose corn syrup is used in a variety of consumer products, including soft drinks, fruit-flavored beverages, baked goods, dairy products, confections and other food and beverage products. In addition to sweetness and ease of use, high fructose corn syrup provides body,humectancy and aids in browning, freezing point and crystalliza! tion control.

Dextrose has a range of applications in the food and confection industries, in solutions for intravenous and other pharmaceutical applications, and numerous industrial applications like wallboard, biodegradable surface agents and moisture control agents. Dextrose functionality in foods, beverages and confectionary includes sweetness control; body and viscosity; acts as a bulking, drying and anti-caking agent; serves as a carrier; provides freezing point and crystallization control; and aids in fermentation. Dextrose is also a fermentation agent in the production of light beer. In pharmaceutical applications dextrose is used in IV solutions as well as an excipient suitable for direct compression in tableting.

Polyols products are sugar-free, reduced calorie sweeteners primarily derived from starch or sugar for the food, beverage, confectionery, industrial, personal and oral care, and nutritional supplement markets. In addition to sweetness, polyols inhibit crystallization; provide binding, humectancy and plasticity; add texture; extend shelf life; prevent moisture migration, and are an excipient suitable for tableting.

Maltodextrins and Glucose Syrup Solids products have a multitude of food applications, including formulations where liquid syrups cannot be used. Maltodextrins are resistant to browning, provide solubility, have a low hydroscopicity (do not retain moisture), and are ideal for their carrier/bulking properties. Glucose syrup solids have a bland flavor, remain clear in solution are easy to handle and provide bulking properties.

Starch Products

The Company's starch products represented approximately 37 % of the Company's net sales for 2012. Starches are an important component in a range of processed foods, where they are used for adhesions, clouding, dusting, expansion, fat replacement, freshness, gelling, glazing, mouth feel, stabilization and texture. Starches are also used in paper production to create a smooth s! urface fo! r printed communications and to improve strength in recycled papers. Specialty starches are used for enhanced drainage, fiber retention, oil and grease resistance, improved printability and biochemical oxygen demand control. Industrial starches are used in the production of construction materials, textiles, adhesives, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, as well as in mining, water filtration and oil and gas drilling. Specialty starches are used for biomaterial applications including biodegradable plastics, fabric softeners and detergents, hair and skin care applications, dusting powders for surgical gloves and in the production of glass fiber and insulation.

Co-Products and others

Co-products and others accounted for 19% of the Company's net sales for 2012. Refined corn oil (from germ) is sold to packers of cooking oil and to producers of margarine, salad dressings, shortening, mayonnaise and other foods. Corn gluten feed is sold as animal feed. Corn gluten meal is sold as high protein feed for chickens, pet food and aquaculture.

The Company competes with ADM Corn Processing Division (ADM), Cargill, Inc. and Tate & Lyle Ingredients Americas, Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jeremy Bowman]

  What: Shares of Ingredion (NYSE: INGR  ) were down as much as 10% today after the ingredient seller cut its full-year and current-quarter EPS forecast.

• [By Dividends4Life]

  Memberships and Peers: ADM is a member of the S&P 500, a Dividend Aristocrat, a member of the Broad Dividend Achievers��Index and a Dividend Champion. The company's peer group includes: Bunge Limited (BG) with a 1.6% yield, Ingredion Incorporated (INGR) with a 2.4% yield and Griffin Land & Nurseries Inc. (GRIF) with a 0.7% yield.

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Calling all cash flows
  When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Ingredion (NYSE: INGR  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

Best Food Stocks For 2014: Danone SA (BN)

Danone SA is a France-based food company that primarily produces fresh milk products, baby foods, biscuits, cereal products and medical nutrition products. It also co-produces bottled water. The Company's portfolio of brands and products include Danone, a brand of fresh dairy products; Evian, a brand of bottled still water; Volvic, its international brand of bottled still water, and Aqua, a brand of packaged water in Indonesia. It has presence in the infant food market in France through its subsidiary, Bledina. It has also developed two probiotic dairy product lines known under the names Actimel, and Activia, as well as a line of low-fat products under the names Taillefine, Vitalinea and Ser. The Company operates through numerous subsidiaries in Europe, Asia and Americas. In February 2013 it acquired majority stake in Centrale Laitiere SA. In May 2013, it acquired an equity interest of over 90% in Happy Family, a baby food producer. In August 2013, it acquired YoCrunch. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Namitha Jagadeesh]

  Danone SA (BN) declined 1.6 percent to 56.34 euros after saying baby-nutrition sales will fall in Asia in the third quarter. The company said it had to recall infant-formula products after milk-powder supplier Fonterra Cooperative Group Ltd. warned of a contaminated ingredient.

Best Food Stocks For 2014: Tesco PLC (TSCDY)

Tesco PLC, incorporated on November 27, 1947, is engaged in retailing and associated activities in the United Kingdom, China, the Czech Republic, Hungary, the Republic of Ireland, India, Malaysia, Poland, Slovakia, South Korea, Thailand and Turkey. The Company also provides retail banking and insurance services through its subsidiary, Tesco Bank. The Company�� operations in the United Kingdom is the within the Company, with over 3,000 stores. The Company�� in-store picking model is complemented by a small number of specialized dotcom-only stores, which allow the Company to respond to customer demand. The Company�� Click & Collect service is a part of its multichannel offering and enables customers to pick up their shopping when and where it suits them. It has over 1,500 Click & Collect collection points for general merchandise and over 150 Grocery Drive-thrus in the United Kingdom.

The Company�� operations in India include sourcing and its service centre, as well as a franchise arrangement with Tata Group. The Company�� Hindustan Service Centre (HSC) is the global services arm for Tesco worldwide, providing business services for Tesco operations globally. Tesco HSC is engaged in creating and executing strategic initiatives covering information technology (IT), Financial, Commercial and Property, among others. The Company also provides 80% of the stock sold by Star Bazaar, both food and non-food, sourced through its distribution centre in Mumbai. This distribution centre also provides wholesale products to traditional Indian retailers, kirana stores, restaurants and other businesses, providing small farmers and other suppliers with a way to sell their wares to the local market.

The Company has an online business and 22 of virtual stores in South Korean subways and bus stops, which help time-pressed customers, shop on-the-go using their smartphones. Tesco Lotus is its international business, serving over 11 million customers every week in over 1,400 stores. Tesco Bank! offer a range of simple personal banking products, principally-mortgages, credit cards, personal loans, and savings.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Harvey Jones]

  LONDON -- You won't need telling that these are tough times for Tesco (LSE: TSCO  ) (NASDAQOTH: TSCDY  ) . The big cheese of British supermarkets has found itself in one pickle after another, serving up the U.S. Fresh & Easy debacle, its first profit warning for 20 years, a 25% share price drop, and a dollop of minced horsemeat. It has even been shrinking in Asia, with sales dropping 3.8% in the first quarter, on top of a 1% fall in U.K. sales. Chief executive Philip Clarke has given up the fight to sell electronics, abandoning the field to online giant Amazon.

• [By Chris Nials]

  LONDON -- Tesco� (LSE: TSCO  ) (NASDAQOTH: TSCDY  ) is expected to report a 10% drop in profits, as well as a 1 billion-pound writedown on its U.S. operations, when it reports results tomorrow. Chris Nials and Motley Fool analyst Nate Weisshaar discuss how investors should be thinking about this.

• [By David O��ara]

  LONDON -- Tesco
  After trading as high as 385 pence in May, shares in�Tesco� (LSE: TSCO  ) (NASDAQOTH: TSCDY  ) were today down at 328 pence. That's a 15% fall in just one month. However, Tesco's low price-to-earnings ratio and significant dividend yield will now be attracting value and income investors.

• [By Royston Wild]

  LONDON -- I am backing supermarket leviathan�Tesco� (LSE: TSCO  ) (NASDAQOTH: TSCDY  ) to put the difficulties of the past 12 months behind it and return to growth in the medium term. Shares in the firm have risen 15% since the start of 2013, and I am expecting them to gain traction as its strategy to rebuild its British operations comes to fruition.

Best Food Stocks For 2014: Fairway Group Holdings Corp (FWM)

Fairway Group Holdings Corp., incorporated on September 29, 2006, operates in the retail food industry, selling fresh, natural and organic products, prepared foods, and specialty and gourmet offerings along with a assortment of conventional groceries. The Company focuses on perishable product categories, which include produce, natural and organic, deli, specialty, cheese, butcher, seafood, bakery, coffee and kosher foods. Its non-perishable product categories consist of conventional groceries, as well as specialty foods. It operates two stores on the West Side of Manhattan, New York. As of September 24, 2012, it operated 11 locations in the Greater New York City metropolitan area, three of which include Fairway Wines & Spirits stores.

The Company�� natural and organic product categories include fruits and vegetables, natural and fresh juices, organic OBE beef and organic chicken, fresh organic peanut butter and natural almond butter, fresh roasted coffees and loose teas, dried fruits and nuts, full assortment of natural and organic groceries, cold cuts and cheeses, breads, supplements (homeopathy, vitamins, herbs), nutritional bars and protein powders, health and beauty aids, dairy, including Fairway-branded organic milk, eggs, including Fairway-branded organic eggs, vegetarian dairy alternatives, frozen foods, e gluten-free selections, baby food and baby care items and cleaning products. It offers a classic New York deli counter. It carries smoked salmon prepared using its own recipe and hand-craft its own fresh mozzarella daily.

The Company�� Specialty Imports and Specialty Grocery departments provide shoppers with specialty and gourmet items, such as Lapalisse pure and virgin nut oils; authentic Sicilian foodstuffs; Burgundy's organic La Trinquelinette fruit preserves made in small batches using only unrefined raw cane sugar; ready-to-eat vacuum-packed beets from the Loire Valley; L'Herbier de Milly La Foret verbena, hibiscus, peppermint and linden blossom infusions; L! a Quiberonnaise Vintage Sardines from Brittany, France; Pruneaux d'Agen (stuffed prunes), and Royal Medjool dates, Quercy's soft dried figs and apricots. It carries approximately 115 varieties of specialty olive oil, including numerous imported unfiltered olive oils, and offer all-day, every day tasting of olive oils in each of its stores.

The Company has meat delivered every day and it is cut and packaged at each of its stores within 24 hours of receipt. It also receives daily deliveries of fresh ice-packed chicken. It offers 50 to 80 different selections of fresh fish and seafood in each store every day. It utilizes a combination of on-site and centralized bakeries to produce our baked goods. Its full-service bakery prepares its signature cookies, tarts, cupcakes, baguettes and bagels. It offers over 100 types of artisanal coffee beans sold by the pound, as well as over a dozen varieties of Fair Trade certified and organic coffee.

The Company offers an array of kosher options, including Fairway's branded products, its conventional and specialty groceries, its coffee, as well as its baked goods, dairy, organic, gluten-free, imported and frozen items. It offers a variety of cuts of kosher poultry, red meat and seafood. It carries a range of conventional grocery items. Its grocery aisles are stacked high with the national brand names Tide, Bounty, Kleenex, Charmin, Lysol, Poland Spring, Oreo, Cheerios, Lipton, Hershey's, Coke, Green Giant, and many more. In addition, it offers an array of ethnic groceries that cater to each store's local demographic.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Matt Jarzemsky]

  The group�� worst performer this year is New York City-area grocer Fairway Group Holdings Corp.(FWM), off 58% in 2013. Fairway is also among the farthest from its 52-week high, closing Thursday at $7.57 after trading as high as $28.87 in July.