Barron's Prefers Campbell Soup (CPB) To Hansen Natural (HANS)

Barron's wrote a bullish piece this weekend on Campbell Soup (NYSE: CPB) and said its staying power makes it a much better value than a company like energy-drink maker Hansen Natural (Nasdaq: HANS). Hansen Natural's shares are up 70% over the last six months, while Campbell Soup's shares have declined 30% over the same period. Hansen's trades 19 times forward EPS estimates versus Campbell Soup only trading 12 times forward earnings.

Barron's likes that CPB has raised its dividend for six straight years, and, at a 3.8% yield its trading at its highest yield in the last two decades.

Campbell continues to forecast long-term sales growth of 3% to 4% and EPS growth of 5% to 7%. On a forward PE basis, Campbell Soup trades at a 12% discount to the group.

Barron's wrote that Hansen's shares looked like they have topped out once again. The paper noted that at the very least, HANS is trading well above the average 12-month target of 37.25 held by analysts. "There's not a lot of margin for error in this market environment with that valuation," Van Winkle says. The analyst also noted that the takeout premium is already likely in the shares, with many speculating that Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) will take out the entire company.

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