Will I Ever Stop Writing About Chocolate Stocks?

It seems like every two or three months, a group of researchers or scientists comes up with another health benefit from eating chocolate. So far, I've written about how chocolate can help with the following:

reduce wrinkles

stop coughing

improve brain function

improve visual function

keep you slim

reduce the risk of heart failure in women

fights aging

alternative fuel for a car

good for your liver

Now research was recently released by Cochrane Collaborations showed that based on numerous studies, people who eat dark chocolate every day may have reduced blood pressure. Since chocolate can practically be considered a health food, there are several companies that can take advantage of the demand for this food product. There are over a dozen chocolate and candy stocks listed at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com, and over half a dozen pay dividends.

A perfect example is Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (RMCF), based in Durango, Colorado, makes and markets caramels, creams, mints, and truffles. The company, founded in 1981, has over 300 franchise locations in 40 states, plus Canada and the United Arab Emirates. The stock trades at 20 times forward earnings, and the company pays a delicious yield of 3.7%. For the latest reported quarter, total revenues increased 11.8 percent, and earnings rose by 15.5%.

Did you ever eat Hershey Bars as a kid? Hershey (HSY) is the famous chocolate company, founded in 1894. It is the largest manufacturer of chocolate in North America and one of the largest chocolate and candy companies in the world. It is famous for its Hershey's Kisses which were invented in 1901 and the chocolate chips that were released in 1928. The stock has forward price to earnings ratio of 24.7, with a tasty yield of 2.1%.

Another large chocolate producer is Nestle (NSRGY), which sports a forward P/E of 20.5. This Swiss chocolate manufacturer was founded in 1867. The company pays dividends annually and has increased dividends in ten out of the last eleven years. The current yield is 3.4%.

If you want to see a free list of all the publicly traded chocolate and candy stocks, go to WallStreetNewsNetwork.com. The list, which includes several companies that pay dividends, can be downloaded, updated, and sorted.

Disclosure: Author did not own any of the above at the time the article was written.

By Stockerblog.com