How You Can Profit From Verizon In 2014 And Beyond

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ), which is a leading player in the US communications industry, has been in the news for its purchase of the 45% stake that Vodafone held in Verizon Wireless. Though widely supported by the street, some investors were worried as to whether the company would be able to cope with the huge amount of debt that had to be issued for the deal, especially since the growth in the telecom sector has not been robust and competitors are engaged in aggressive pricing. 

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However, it should be noted that interest rates are highly favorable for this move, and it should give the company additional firepower to deal with future challenges in the sector. Not only has the company raised its dividend for the 7th year in a row, its growth prospects appear bright, as well. Together, they should dispel any lingering doubts about the wisdom of the Vodafone deal or the company's ability to succeed in the short term.

Why 3M Will Continue To Outperform

3M Co. (NYSE:MMM), which is a, highly diversified company producing industrial products ranging from adhesives and abrasives to electronic circuits and optical films recently stunned the Wall Street by declaring a 35% increase in dividend along with massive share buyback plan. This naturally caused the 3M's stock to grow rapidly. 

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The dividend hike also raised questions as to how the management could have declared such a massive rise on the back of steady but rather modest growth in the first three quarters of 2013. However, as we shall see below, the company's balance sheet and its own guidelines for 2014 provide some justification for management's enthusiasm.

Look to Johnson & Johnson for Dividends In 2014

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), is a leading player in the medical products field, has had a rather rough end to 2013 with growth slowing down and Q4 earnings and earnings estimates not being particularly exciting. This has led some investors to wonder whether following the good run the company has had for the major part of 2013 it is time to pull out on a high. 

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However, the investor with an unfailing memory will recall that while JNJ does not pay its investors handsomely, it does so consistently. For those wondering if the quarterly growth trends will affect its ability to continue raising dividends the answer is as we shall see in the following analysis of the overall growth trends and other vital indices, "not much". These together make the idea of disposing JNJ stock appear quite unimaginative.

Diversification Is Key for PepsiCo in 2014 And Beyond

Pepsico, Inc. (NYSE:PEP), which is generally, known for its soft drinks and snacks businesses has been in the news for tying up with Buffalo Wild Wings (NASDAQ:BWLD) which will allow it to sell its drinks at the 975 outlets that the latter has. Considering the fact that the soft drinks market is in decline due to the changing consumer demands this deal should help the company offset the decline in revenue from falling sales. 

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Not only this, company's highly diversified business means that even as soft drinks sales decline sales of snacks are on the rise. When these factors are considered along with PEP's attempts at expansion abroad, its performance in recent quarters and the perfect dividend history that it has, the company appears to be an excellent choice.

Financial investment what to expect in 2014

Let's start off by concluding that 2013 was a fantastic year for US stocks, with S&P's 500 index rising by close to 30%. So if you were among the majority who chose to invest in stocks, you ended up in the money. Those who chose to invest in commodities ended the year with an average loss of 8%.  So is it time to make a switch?

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The gloomy prophecies of the skeptics that the equity bubble is about to burst have not been fulfilled, and while the fantastic profits of 2013 are just, not on the cards, there appears to be  no justification for a forecast of a change in the bullish market  which looks like continuing indefinitely. So it is inadvisable to put money there.