Top 5 Cheapest Companies To Buy For 2014

Recently two of my colleagues each wrote an article looking at two different metrics and found the same company was the best in both. Dan Caplinger wrote about the top four Dow stocks when it comes to returning value to shareholders, while Brian Stoffel wrote about the five cheapest Dow components. The No. 1 company for both lists was ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM  ) , but i believe there are two important lessons we can take from these lists, and I don't�think these No. 1 rankings make Exxon a screaming buy.

Exxon's price-to-earnings ratio, which is what Brian used to determine the cheapest company, was 9.3, while the next lowest P/E ratio for any other Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) component was 9.5, for Chevron (NYSE: CVX  ) and JPMorgan Chase. There are probably a number of reasons the stock is trading at such a deep discount right now, such as a higher future P/E of 11.11, possible problems relating to recent oil spills, and, most importantly, the price of oil. While the short-term oil-spill problems shouldn't change a long-term investor's thesis, it will weigh on the minds of short-sighted traders. When it comes to the price of oil and its volatility, anyone investing in any oil company needs to fully understand that profits and stock prices are likely to fluctuate with the changes to the price of the commodity.

Top 5 Cheapest Companies To Buy For 2014: Winnebago Industries Inc.(WGO)

Winnebago Industries, Inc. manufactures and sells recreation vehicles primarily for leisure travel and outdoor recreation activities. The company offers motor homes, which are self-propelled mobile dwellings that provide living accommodations for approximately seven persons and include kitchen, dining, sleeping, and bath areas, as well as a lounge; and optional equipment accessories, such as generators, home theater systems, king-size beds, upholstery, and interior equipment. It manufactures motor homes constructed directly on medium- and heavy-duty truck chassis, which include engine and drivetrain components; and on van-type chassis onto which the motor home manufacturer constructs a living area with access to the driver's compartment under the Winnebago and Itasca brand names, as well as panel-type vans with sleeping, kitchen, and/or toilet facilities under the Era brand name. The company also produces original equipment manufacturing parts, including extruded aluminum and other component products for other manufacturers and commercial vehicles. Winnebago Industries markets its motor homes through independent dealers primarily in the United States and Canada. The company was founded in 1958 and is headquartered in Forest City, Iowa.

Top 5 Cheapest Companies To Buy For 2014: Copa Holdings SA (CPA)

Copa Holdings, S.A. (Copa Holdings), incorporated on May 06, 1998, is a Latin American provider of airline passenger and cargo service through its two principal operating subsidiaries, Copa Airlines and Copa Colombia. Copa Airlines operates from its position in the Republic of Panama, and Copa Colombia provides service within Colombia and international flights from various cities in Colombia to Panama, Venezuela, Ecuador, Mexico, Cuba, Guatemala and Costa Rica, complemented with service within Colombia. As of December 31, 2012, the Company operated a fleet of 83 aircraft with an average age of 5.13 years; consisting of 57 modern Boeing 737-Next Generation aircraft and 26 Embraer 190 aircraft. . As of December 31, 2012, the Company offers approximately 334 daily scheduled flights among 64 destinations in 29 countries in North, Central and South America and the Caribbean, mainly from its Panama City Hub.

Copa provides passengers with access to flights to more than 150 other destinations through codeshare arrangements with UAL pursuant to which each airline places its name and flight designation code on the other�� flights. As of December 31, 2012, Copa had firm orders, including purchase and lease commitments, for 35 additional Boeing 737-Next Generation aircraft. Copa also has options for an additional 14 Boeing 737-Next Generation aircraft.

The Company competes with Avianca-Taca, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and LAN Group.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Kathy Kristof]

  Headquarters: Panama City, Panama
  
  52-Week High: $85.25
  
  52-Week Low: $57.03
  
  Annual Sales: $1.8 bill.
  
  Projected Earnings Growth: 18% annually over the next five years 
  
  
  U.S. airlines have to scratch and claw for every penny of profit they earn. Not so for Panama City-based Copa Holdings, says Bob McAdoo, airline analyst with Imperial Capital, a Los Angeles investment firm. With a hub in the Southern Hemisphere’s cross-roads, Copa has few direct rivals. That has allowed Copa to charge premium prices for its flights and register operating profit margins of 15% to 20% year after year. As economies in Brazil and the rest of Latin America continue to expand, Copa is likely to benefit because it gives travelers the most convenient way to hop around the hemisphere. 
  
  Copa’s big advantage lies in the setup of Panama City’s airport, explains McAdoo. Panama knows that it’s a crossroads, so it treats connecting passengers as though they’re hopping on a domestic flight – no trip through customs unless you leave the airport. That saves time, and potentially the need to get a visa for a country you’re just passing through, making the airport the ideal hub for business travelers in a hurry.

Top 10 Canadian Companies To Watch In Right Now: Weis Markets Inc.(WMK)

Weis Markets, Inc. engages in the retail sale of food in Pennsylvania and surrounding states. Its retail food stores sell groceries, dairy products, frozen foods, meats, seafood, fresh produce, floral, pharmacy services, deli products, prepared foods, bakery products, beer and wine, fuel and general merchandise items, such as health and beauty care, and household products. The company operates stores primarily under the Weis Markets trade name. As of February 13, 2012, it operated 161 stores in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York, New Jersey, and West Virginia. The company was founded in 1912 and is based in Sunbury, Pennsylvania.

Top 5 Cheapest Companies To Buy For 2014: Raffaele Caruso SpA (YRC)

Raffaele Caruso SpA is an Italy-based company, operating in the apparel sector. It produces tailor-made suits, coats and jackets, for men only. The Company owns three industrial facilities in Soragna and in Ponte dell��glio, Italy. The Company distributes its products worldwide through its own brands Raffaele Caruso and Fluo. The Company also acts as wholesaler for brands of other companies.

Top 5 Cheapest Companies To Buy For 2014: Euromoney Pub(ERM.L)

Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC, a business-to-business media group, provides business information on the finance, law, energy, metals, transport, and commodities sectors in the United Kingdom, North America, and internationally. Its Financial Publishing division offers various titles covering the international capital markets, as well as specialist financial titles, including magazines, newsletters, journals, surveys and research, directories, and books under Euromoney, Institutional Investor, Euroweek, Latin Finance, Asiamoney, Global Investor, Project Finance, Futures and Options World, EuroHedge, InvestHedge, AsiaHedge, and AR brands. The company?s Training division provides public and in-house banking, finance, and legal courses under the Euromoney and DC Gardner brands, as well as various courses for the audit and information security market. Its Business Publishing division produces specialist magazines and other publications covering the metals and mining, le gal, telecoms, and energy sectors under Metal Bulletin, American Metal Market, International Financial Law Review, International Tax Review, Managing Intellectual Property, Capacity, Petroleum Economist, World Oil, and Hydrocarbon Processing brands. The company?s Conferences and Seminars division runs sponsored conferences and seminars for the international financial markets under the Euromoney, Institutional Investor, Metal Bulletin, and IMN brands. Its Research and Data division offer subscription-based research and data services for financial markets; news and data on global emerging markets; time-series macro-economic data for emerging markets; and global capital market databases. The company was founded in 1969 and is based in London, the United Kingdom. Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC is a subsidiary of Daily Mail and General Trust plc.