The Ultimate Fear Trade: StreetInsider.com's Guide to Investing for the End of the World
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Overall Analyst Rating:
NEUTRAL (
Up)Dividend Yield: 3.9%
Revenue Growth %: +38.8%
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According to a Reuter's poll this month, 1 in 10 people believe that the world will end in 2012 due to the Mayan prophecy, and 1 in 7 think that it will end in their lifetime. That means there is approximately 1 billion people preparing for an apocalypse of sorts, which, assuming they are incorrect, could translates into plenty of crisp green dollar bills for investors who take the other side of the trade.
The following is a list of stocks that could benefit as doomsayers make preparations for the big day – that's December 21st, for those of you who are unfamiliar in Mayan prophecy.
Firearms:
What kind of apocalypse would it be without a good ol' fashion gun fight. Unfortunately most gun manufactures are not public, but a few are. Sturm, Ruger & Co. Inc. (NYSE: RGR) and Smith and Wesson (NASDAQ: SWHC) are a couple of public gun manufacturers in the U.S.
Water:
Ahhh, crisp, clean, water – it is the essence of life, isn’t it? When you think of bottled water, the first name that probably comes to mind is Evian. Evian is a subsidiary of French firm Danone Group, but Swiss-based Nestle is the real dominating force in the industry. Unfortunately Nestle and Danone are not listed in the US, but they trade as ADRs on the OTC market. Pepsi Bottling Group (NYSE: PBG) and Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) both have a large share of the bottled water market in the U.S.
Food:
Soft commodity ETFs like DB Agriculture (NYSE: DBA) could be a good play, but the better food play is probably Costco Wholesale Corporation (Nasdaq: COST) since it is likely to benefit if people decide to load-up on spam and canned peaches pre-doomsday. Wal-Mart's Sam's Club would also do well.
Other:
Speaking of Wal-Mart, (NYSE: WMT), it should probably be considered a category all by itself. Since its the top retailer in the world, it would benefit from sales of generators, clothes, canned goods, and other miscellaneous items 2012-ers will need as they prepare to hunker down and ride out Armageddon.
The last and final trade is both a pure play and a hedge – I mean, just in case the world goes to hell in a handbasket, it might be a good idea to own a few Twinkies, and a bottle of good scotch probably wouldn't hurt either. Best of Luck!
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The following is a list of stocks that could benefit as doomsayers make preparations for the big day – that's December 21st, for those of you who are unfamiliar in Mayan prophecy.
Firearms:
What kind of apocalypse would it be without a good ol' fashion gun fight. Unfortunately most gun manufactures are not public, but a few are. Sturm, Ruger & Co. Inc. (NYSE: RGR) and Smith and Wesson (NASDAQ: SWHC) are a couple of public gun manufacturers in the U.S.
Water:
Ahhh, crisp, clean, water – it is the essence of life, isn’t it? When you think of bottled water, the first name that probably comes to mind is Evian. Evian is a subsidiary of French firm Danone Group, but Swiss-based Nestle is the real dominating force in the industry. Unfortunately Nestle and Danone are not listed in the US, but they trade as ADRs on the OTC market. Pepsi Bottling Group (NYSE: PBG) and Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) both have a large share of the bottled water market in the U.S.
Food:
Soft commodity ETFs like DB Agriculture (NYSE: DBA) could be a good play, but the better food play is probably Costco Wholesale Corporation (Nasdaq: COST) since it is likely to benefit if people decide to load-up on spam and canned peaches pre-doomsday. Wal-Mart's Sam's Club would also do well.
Other:
Speaking of Wal-Mart, (NYSE: WMT), it should probably be considered a category all by itself. Since its the top retailer in the world, it would benefit from sales of generators, clothes, canned goods, and other miscellaneous items 2012-ers will need as they prepare to hunker down and ride out Armageddon.
The last and final trade is both a pure play and a hedge – I mean, just in case the world goes to hell in a handbasket, it might be a good idea to own a few Twinkies, and a bottle of good scotch probably wouldn't hurt either. Best of Luck!
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