Hot Consumer Companies To Own In Right Now

In its second-quarter earnings report released before markets opened on Wednesday, Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) announced adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.19 on revenues of $17.12 billion, compared with the consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters for EPS of $0.96 on revenues of $17.26 billion. In the same period a year ago, the big-box retailer posted EPS of $1.06 on revenues of $16.78 billion.

When Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) reported results last week, the mega-retailer posted EPS of $1.24 on revenues of $116.2 billion, compared with the consensus estimates of $1.25 on revenues of $118.47.

Walmart chopped its outlook for the third quarter and the full year, and today Target said its full-year EPS would come in at the low-end of its previous guidance of $4.70 to $4.90. Both stores have cited cautious spending by consumers who face tighter budgets going forward.

That is part of the story, but not all of it. Take a look at the results from Lowe�� Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW) and Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD). Both posted nice gains and raised their full-year outlooks. And both stores noted that sales were solid in all departments.

Hot Consumer Companies To Own In Right Now: Constellation Brands Inc (STZ.B)

Constellation Brands, Inc., incorporated on December 4, 1972, is a producer and marketer of beer, wine and spirits with operations in the United States, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand and Italy. The Company�� beer brands include Corona Extra, Corona Light, Modelo Especial, Negra Modelo and Pacifico. Its wine brands consist of Robert Mondavi, Clos du Bois, Kim Crawford, Rex Goliath, Mark West, Franciscan Estate, Ruffino and Jackson-Triggs. The Company�� spirits brands include SVEDKA Vodka and Black Velvet Canadian Whisky. The Company has more than 100 brands in its portfolio, sales in approximately 100 countries and has about 40 facilities.

Beer

The Company imports markets and sells Mexican Beer Brands in all 50 states of the United States, which includes Corona Extra, Corona Light, Modelo Especial, Pacifico, Negra Modelo and Victoria. During the fiscal year ended February 28, 2014 (fiscal 2014), the Company had 15 imported beer brands in the United States. During fiscal 2014, the Company introduced Modelo Especial Chelada, a blend of Modelo Especial with flavors of tomato, salt and lime.

Wine and Spirits

The Company sells a range of wine brands across all categories, such as table wine, sparkling wine and dessert wine in the United States, Canada and New Zealand. Its wine produced in the United States is primarily marketed domestically and in Canada and the United Kingdom. The wine produced in Canada is primarily marketed domestically. Wine produced in New Zealand is primarily marketed in the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom and domestically. Wine produced in Italy is primarily marketed in the United States, Canada and domestically. In addition, it also exports its wine products to other world markets. Its spirits business, Svedka Vodka is imported from Sweden.

The Company sells its wine brands in the United States, which comprise its United States Focus Brands (Focus Brands) includes Arbor Mist, Inniskillin, Rex Go! liath, Black Box, Kim Crawford, Robert Mondavi, Blackstone, Mark West, Ruffino, Clos du Bois, Mount Veeder, Simi, Estancia, Nobilo, Toasted Head, Franciscan Estate, Ravenswood and Wild Horse. Its spirits brands include Black Velvet Canadian Whisky and Svedka Vodka.

Corporate Operations and Other

The Corporate Operations and Other segment includes corporate-related items, including executive management, corporate development, corporate finance, human resources, internal audit, investor relations, legal, public relations and global information technology.

The Company competes with Anheuser-Busch InBev, MillerCoors, Heineken, E&J Gallo Winery, The Wine Group, Trinchero, Treasury Wine Estates, Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits, Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, Kendall-Jackson, Andrew Peller, Kruger, Pernod Ricard, Lion Nathan, Diageo, Beam, Pernod Ricard, Bacardi and Brown-Forman.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By sandyinvestment]

  As the craft beer industry has a considerable measure of room to develop, Boston Beer confronts rivalry from Molson Coors Brewing (TAP) and Constellation Brands (STZ) (STZ.B). Each of the three organizations have had great runs on the Street, however Boston Beer and Constellation Brands have been the greatest outperformers. We should investigate each of them.

Hot Consumer Companies To Own In Right Now: LendingClub Corp (LC)

LendingClub Corporation, incorporated on October 2, 2006, provides online marketplace connecting borrowers and investors. The Company operates an online market that connects borrowers looking for loans with individuals with the money to fund them. It lends money to help consumers pay off credit-card bills, consolidate debt and take vacations. Its platform enables customers in investing in and obtaining personal loans by providing financial data and credit information.

The Company provides search algorithm, credit decisioning, a secondary market, and a choice of loan durations. The Company serves the professional fixed income investors, such as family offices and insurance companies.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rana Pritanjali]

  Lending Club's (NYSE: LC  ) stock is up a stellar 66% since the company went public in December. The peer-to-peer lending specialist offers an alternative to the traditional banking system with an online platform for borrowers and lenders. It has a leading 40% share of the�peer-to-peer lending market, far outstripping No. 2 player�Prosper.com and its 8% market share.�

10 Best Quality Stocks To Own Right Now: Philip Morris International Inc(PM)

Philip Morris International Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products in markets outside of the United States. Its international product brand line comprises Marlboro, Merit, Parliament, Virginia Slims, L&M, Chesterfield, Bond Street, Lark, Muratti, Next, Philip Morris, and Red & White. The company also offers its products under the A Mild, Dji Sam Soe, and A Hijau in Indonesia; Diana in Italy; Optima and Apollo-Soyuz in the Russian Federation; Morven Gold in Pakistan; Boston in Colombia; Belmont, Canadian Classics, and Number 7 in Canada; Best and Classic in Serbia; f6 in Germany; Delicados in Mexico; Assos in Greece; and Petra in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. It operates primarily in the European Union, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Canada, and Latin America. The company is based in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Stocks with low turnover include Philip Morris International (PM), Schlumberger (SLB), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), General Electric (GE) and Automatic Data Processing (ADP).

• [By GuruFocus]

  Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) Reached the 52-Week Low of $80.78

  The prices of Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) shares have declined to close to the 52-week low of $80.78, which is 16.5% off the 52-week high of $96.73. Philip Morris International Inc. is owned by 33 Gurus we are tracking. Among them, 17 have added to their positions during the past quarter. Seven reduced their positions. Philip Morris International Inc. is a Virginia holding company first incorporated in 1987. Philip Morris International Inc. has a market cap of $129.42 billion; its shares were traded at around $80.78 with a P/E ratio of 15.20 and P/S ratio of 1.70. The dividend yield of Philip Morris International Inc. stocks is 4.40%. Philip Morris International Inc. had an annual average earnings growth of 14.50% over the past five years.

• [By Garrett Cook]

  Philip Morris International (NYSE: PM) was down, falling 1.12 percent to $82.76. Analysts at Bank of America downgraded Philip Morris International from Buy to Neutral and lowered the target price to $87.

Hot Consumer Companies To Own In Right Now: Bunge Limited(BG)

Bunge Limited, through its subsidiaries, engages in the agriculture and food businesses worldwide. Its Agribusiness segment is involved in purchasing, storing, transporting, processing, and selling agricultural commodities and commodity products, such as oilseeds and grains, primarily comprising soybeans, rapeseed or canola, sunflower seed, wheat, and corn. This segment serves animal feed manufacturers, wheat and corn millers, third party edible oil processing companies, and other oilseed processors, as well as livestock, poultry, and aquaculture producers. The company?s Sugar and Bioenergy segment produces and sells sugar and ethanol; generates electricity from burning sugarcane bagasse; and trades and merchandises sugar. As of December 31, 2011, this segment had a total installed capacity of approximately 144 megawatts; and sugarcane plantations of approximately 183,000 hectares under cultivation. Its Edible Oil Products segment offers packaged vegetable, including pack aged and bulk oils, shortenings, margarines, mayonnaise, and other products to baked goods companies, snack food producers, restaurant chains, foodservice distributors, and other food manufacturers. The company?s Milling Products segment produces and sells various wheat flours and bakery mixes; corn-based products; corn milling products primarily comprising dry milled corn meals, flours, and grits, as well as soy-fortified corn meal and corn-soy blend; and packaged milled rice. This segment serves industrial, bakery, and foodservice companies; and companies in food processing sector. Its Fertilizer segment produces, blends, and distributes nitrogen, phosphate, and potash formulations used for the cultivation of soybeans, corn, sugarcane, cotton, wheat, and coffee. This segment also produces single super phosphate; and ammonia, urea, and liquid fertilizers for the agriculture industry. Bunge Limited was founded in 1818 and is headquartered in White Plains, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By David Sterman]

  He subsequently closed that position with a nice profit, and he should now check out rival Bunge (NYSE: BG), which in my view, holds better value. (I'll have more to say about Bunge in a separate column in coming weeks). 

• [By Cameron Swinehart]

  A diversified agriculture ETF with holdings in a variety of the largest agribusiness companies globally. Holdings include Bunge (BG), Archer Daniel Midland (AMD), PotashCorp (POT) and Deere (DE).

Hot Consumer Companies To Own In Right Now: World Acceptance Corp (WRLD)

World Acceptance Corporation operates a small-loan consumer finance business in 12 states and Mexico. The Company is engaged in the small-loan consumer finance business, offering short-term small loans, medium-term larger loans, related credit insurance and ancillary products and services to individuals. As of March 31, 2012, the Company offered standardized installment loans through 1,137 offices in South Carolina, Georgia, Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Tennessee, Illinois, Missouri, New Mexico, Kentucky, Alabama, Wisconsin, and Mexico. The Company serves individuals with limited access to consumer credit from banks, credit unions, other consumer finance businesses and credit card lenders. In the United States offices, the Company also offers income tax return preparation services to its customers and others.

During the fiscal year ended March 31, 2012 (fiscal 2012), the Company opened 69 new offices. In each state in which it operates and in Mexico, the Company offers consumer installment loans, which are standardized by amount and maturity. The Company's loans are consumer installment loans, which are payable in fully amortizing monthly installments with terms generally of 4 to 36 months, and all loans are pre-payable at any time without penalty. During fiscal 2012, the Company's average originated gross loan term was approximately 12 months. As of March 31, 2012, the annual percentage rates on loans offered by the Company, which include interest, fees and other charges as calculated for the purposes of the requirements of the federal Truth in Lending Act, ranged from 24% to 204% depending on the loan size, maturity and the state, in which the loan is made. In addition, in certain states, the Company, as agent for an unaffiliated insurance company, sells credit insurance in connection with its loan transactions.

Specific allowable charges vary by state and, consistent with industry practice, the Company generally charges at or close to the maximum rates allowable under app! licable state law in those states that limit loan rates. Statutes in Texas and Oklahoma allow for indexing the maximum loan amounts to the Consumer Price Index. The Company�� loan products are pre-computed loans in which the finance charge is a combination of origination or acquisition fees, account maintenance fees, monthly account handling fee and other charges permitted by the relevant state laws.

The Company, as an agent for an unaffiliated insurance company, markets and sells credit life, credit accident and health, credit property, and unemployment insurance in connection with its loans in selected states where the sale of such insurance is permitted by law. Credit life insurance provides for the payment in full of the borrower's credit obligation to the lender in the event of death. Credit accident and health insurance provides for repayment of loan installments to the lender, which come due during the insured's period of income interruption resulting from disability from illness or injury. Credit property insurance insures payment of the borrower's credit obligation to the lender in the event, which the personal property pledged as security by the borrower is damaged or destroyed by a covered event. Unemployment insurance provides for repayment of loan installments to the lender, which come due during the insured�� period of involuntary unemployment. The Company requires each customer to obtain specific credit insurance in the amount of the loan for all loans originated in Georgia under the Georgia Industrial Loan Act, and encourages customers to obtain credit insurance for all loans originated in South Carolina, Louisiana, Alabama and Kentucky and on a limited basis in Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Texas. Customers in those states obtain such credit insurance through the Company.

In South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana, Kentucky and Alabama, the Company charges its borrowers for its non-file premiums in connection with certain loans in lieu of recording and perfecting the! Company� �s security interest in the loan collateral. The premiums are remitted to a third party insurance company for non-file insurance coverage. The Company also markets automobile club memberships to its borrowers in Georgia, Tennessee, New Mexico, Louisiana, Alabama, Texas, and Kentucky as an agent for an unaffiliated automobile club. Club memberships entitle members to automobile breakdown and towing reimbursement and related services. The Company is paid a commission on each membership sold.

The Company offers income tax return preparation and electronic filing. This program is provided in all but a few of the Company�� the United States offices. During fiscal 2012, the Company prepared 44,000 returns. During fiscal 2012, 93.4% of the Company�� revenues were attributable to the United States customers and 6.6% were attributable to customers in Mexico. During fiscal 2012, approximately 84.7% of the Company's loans were generated through refinancings of outstanding loans and the origination of new loans to previous customers.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Peter Graham]

  Small cap installment loan and consumer finance�stock World Acceptance Corp (NASDAQ: WRLD), a potential peer of small cap Regional Management Corp (NYSE: RM) and�mid cap�Springleaf Holdings Inc (NYSE: LEAF), has elevated short interest of 38.72% according to Highshortinterest.com. However, World Acceptance Corp got on the radar of the shorts when the company disclosed that its being investigated by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau�for its lending practices. ��

Hot Consumer Companies To Own In Right Now: Shiner International Inc.(BEST)

Shiner International, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the research and development, manufacture, sale, and distribution of technology driven advanced packaging film products. Its products include coated films, tobacco films, anti-counterfeit laser holographic films, color printed products, and water-based latex products. The company also offers biaxially-oriented polypropylene (BOPP) films for printing, lamination, and over-wrap packaging; and BOPP tobacco films for packaging appearance, product freshness, and clear optics. In addition, it provides color printing services that consist of surface printing and reverse printing services for consumer goods manufacturers and beverage companies. The company sells its products to companies in the various industries, such as food, tobacco, chemical, agribusiness, medical, pharmaceutical, personal care, electronics, automotive, construction, graphics, music and video publishing, and other consumer goods in China, Asia, A ustralia, Europe, the Middle East, and North America. Shiner International has a strategy alliance with The Treofan Group. The company based in Haikou City, China.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sally Jones]

  Looking through a kaleidoscope of facts about J. Kyle Bass, this guru quickly takes on a colorful and larger-than-life mythos. Hailing from the big-thinking state of Texas, Bass is often described as a big dreamer with a studious and practical streak. His career blossomed almost overnight when he reportedly made around a half a billion dollars betting against subprime CDOs in 2007. Bass comes across as a visionary who asks why not instead of why. He told CNBC that he likes to reduce email time and cut out the noise by learning about world markets through symbiotic relationships with friends like Alan Fournier and other billionaires. Every year Bass invites his notable friends to his ranch in Larue, Texas, for a special event called The Barefoot Economic Summit, Texas (BEST). Bass said he learns more in two days of the summit than in two months of emails.

Hot Consumer Companies To Own In Right Now: Zep Inc.(ZEP)

Zep Inc. produces and markets cleaning and maintenance chemicals, and related products and services for commercial, industrial, institutional and consumer applications. Its products include anti-bacterial and industrial hand care products, cleaners, degreasers, deodorizers, disinfectants, floor finishes, sanitizers, pest- and weed-control products, air-care products and delivery systems, and various automotive maintenance chemicals. The company markets its products and services under various brands, such as Zep, Selig, ArmorAll, Niagara, Enforcer, Zep Commercial, RedMax Pro, Rubbermaid Commercial, Original Bike Spirits, Country Vet, Zep Professional, Microbemax, Misty, TimeMist, i-Chem, TimeWick, and Next Dimension brands, as well as private label and original equipment manufacturer private brands. It serves customers in industrial maintenance, janitorial/sanitation, and automotive markets; transportation, food processing, industrial manufacturing, and food service industr ies; and contractors, small business owners, and homeowners in the United States, Canada, and Europe. The company was founded in 1937 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Calling all cash flows
  When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Zep (NYSE: ZEP  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

Hot Consumer Companies To Own In Right Now: Revlon Inc.(REV)

Revlon, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in manufacturing, marketing, and selling cosmetics, women?s hair color, beauty tools, anti-perspirant deodorants, fragrances, skincare, and other beauty care products worldwide. The company?s cosmetics include face makeup products, including foundation, powder, blush, concealers, bronzers, and finishers; lip makeup products comprising lipsticks, lip glosses, and lip liners; eye makeup products consisting of mascaras, eyeliners, eye shadows, and brow products; nail color and nail care products, such as enamels, treatments, and cuticle preparations; and face and eye makeup removers. Its beauty tools comprise nail, eye, and pedicure grooming tools, such as clippers, scissors, files, tweezers, eye lash curlers, and makeup brushes; and fragrances consist of perfumes, eau de toilettes, colognes, and body sprays. The company markets its products primarily under Revlon, Revlon ColorStay, Revlon Super Lustrous, Revlon Age Defying, A lmay Intense i-Color, Almay Smart Shade, Revlon ColorSilk, Mitchum, Charlie, Jean Nate, Ultima II, and Gatineau names. Revlon, Inc. sells its products through sales representatives and independent distributors to mass volume retailers, chain drug stores, chemist shops, hypermarkets, general merchandise stores, department stores; other specialty stores, such as perfumeries; and to the United States military exchanges and commissaries. It also licenses its brand names to third parties for the manufacture and sale of beauty-related products and accessories. The company was founded in 1932 and is based in New York, New York. Revlon, Inc. is a subsidiary of MacAndrews & Forbes Holdings Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]

  Africa Studio/Shutterstock A recent class-action lawsuit accuses some of the biggest names in the deodorant business of selling deodorants as "unscented" when they really had a fragrance. "Unscented" deodorants are marketed to consumers who have sensitivity to smells and often also note they are hypoallergenic. The companies, the lawsuit alleges, should have known that the products they were selling had distinctive odors and were hardly "unscented" while consumers based their purchasing decisions on misleading labels. Among the brands named in the lawsuit as containing fragrance: Arm & Hammer, Secret, Dry Idea, Ban, Mitchum. The companies named as defendants include Church & Dwight (CHD), Procter & Gamble (PG), Dial, Henkel (HENKY) and Revlon (REV). Ingredients That Smell The lawsuit filed by Philadelphia lawyer Mark L. Rhoades accuses the companies of sealing the products so well that no consumer could tell at the store the deodorants are scented. The labeling, however, states that there is no scent even though the ingredients include chemicals with fragrances, according to the lawsuit. As an example, the lawsuit noted that Secret Outlast includes "fragrance" on its ingredients list. Arm & Hammer Essentials contains "citrus aurantium dulcis (orange) peel oil", "anthemis nobilis (chamomile) flower oil", "coriandrum sativum (coriander) fruit oil" and "pelargonium graveolens geranium) flower oil." That all adds up to an unmistakable citrus odor, the lawsuit alleged. Because each purchase is relatively inexpensive, the lawsuit maintains that individual consumers, for the most part, don't bother going back to a store to seek a refund after realizing their "unscented" deodorants have a scent. So, the lawsuit is being brought on behalf of anyone who has purchased one of these deodorants that claims to be unscented while having a distinct odor. The lawsuit -- Melissa Fogarty v. Church & Dwight et al., case number 3:14-cv-07086 -- was filed i

• [By Vinay Singh]

  Compared to other players like Estee Lauder (EL) and Revlon (REV), Elizabeth Arden definitely lags behind. Elizabeth Arden has been unable to outpace its peers as the chart below indicates:

Hot Consumer Companies To Own In Right Now: Etablissements Delhaize Freres et Cie le Lion SA (DEG)

Delhaize Group is Belgium-based food retailer, which operates in six countries and on three continents. The principal activity of the Company is the operation of food supermarkets in the United States, Belgium and Greece, with operations in Romania and Indonesia. The Company�� retail operations are conducted by its consolidated subsidiary, Delhaize America, LLC (Delhaize America); its businesses in Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (Delhaize Belgium), and the business of Alfa Beta Vassilopoulos S.A. (Alfa Beta) in Greece. On May 12, 2010, Delhaize The Lion Nederland B.V. (Delned) acquired approximately 90.83% interest in Alfa Beta. On July 7, 2009, the Company, through its wholly owned subsidiary, Mega Image closed the acquisition of four supermarkets in Romania previously operated under the Prodas name. On November 23, 2009, the Company, through Alfa Beta acquired the Greek retailer Koryfi, which operated 11 stores and a distribution center in the Northeast of Greece. On January 2, 2009, the Company completed the acquisition of Knauf Center Schmett SA and Knauf Center Pommerlach SA.

The store format consists of retail food supermarkets. The sales network also includes other store formats such as proximity stores and specialty stores. In addition to food retailing, the Company is engaged in food wholesaling and non-food retailing of products, such as pet products and prescription drugs. Delhaize Group SA is the parent company of a number of direct and indirect subsidiaries.

United States

The Company is engaged in one line of business in the United States, the operation of food supermarkets in the southeastern, mid-Atlantic and northeastern regions of the United States under the banners Food Lion, Hannaford, Sweetbay Supermarket, Bloom, Bottom Dollar Food, Reid�� and Harveys. During the year ended December 31, 2009, the Company opened 30 new stores in the United States, closed and relocated seven stores, and decided to close 17 other stores. As of De! cember 31, 2009, the Company operated 1,607 supermarkets in 16 states in the eastern United States. In 2009, it re-opened 53 supermarkets in the United States. It included 35 Food Lion renewals in the Columbia, South Carolina market and five in the Daytona Beach, Florida market.

The Company�� United States-based supermarkets sell a range of groceries, produce, meats, dairy products, seafood, frozen food, deli/bakery products and non-food items, such as prescriptions, health and beauty care and other household and personal products. The stores offered nationally and regionally advertised brand name merchandise as well as products manufactured and packaged under private brands. Food Lion offers between 15,000 and 20,000 stock-keeping units (SKUs) in its supermarkets, Harveys between 15,000 and 20,000 SKUs, Bloom between 21,000 and 25,000 SKUs, Bottom Dollar Food between 6,500 and 8,000 SKUs, Sweetbay between 28,000 and 40,000 SKUs and Hannaford between 31,000 and 45,000 SKUs.

Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg

In Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the sales network consists of several banners, depending on the specialty, the store size and whether the store is company-operated, franchised or affiliated. At December 31, 2009, the sales network consisted of 792 stores in Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. The network included 369 supermarkets under the Delhaize Le Lion, AD Delhaize and Red Market banners, 287 stores primarily under the Proxy Delhaize, Delhaize City and Shop �� Go banners. It also included 136 pet food and products stores operated under the Tom & Co. banner. At December 31, 2009, the Company operated 41 stores in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. In 2009, the Company divested its German operations, which consisted of four stores.

The supermarkets operated by the Company in Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg carry the Delhaize Le Lion banner. At December 31, 2009, there were 144 company-operated supermarket! s of whic! h 14 supermarkets were remodeled. The AD Delhaize supermarkets have an average size of 1,142 square meters and offer approximately 12,000 SKUs.

In 2009, the Company opened the first two Red Market stores. At December 31, 2009, the Company�� network of proximity stores in Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg consisted of 287 stores under the Delhaize City, Proxy Delhaize and Shop �� Go banners. Proxy Delhaize stores have an average selling area of approximately 500 square meters and offer approximately 6,500 SKUs.

Caddy-Home, the food products home delivery banner in Belgium, sells food products to customers for which orders can be placed by the Internet, telephone or fax. As of December 31, 2009, Caddy-Home delivered in 17 cities throughout Belgium, offering approximately 5,500 SKUs to customers. In 2009, Delhaize Belgium launched Delhaize Direct, allowing customers to order their groceries through the Internet and pick them up at their local store.

Tom & Co. is a specialty chain focusing on food and accessories for pets. At December 31, 2009, the stores were operated under franchise agreements with independent operators.

The supermarkets in Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg sell a range of groceries, produce, meats, dairy products, seafood, frozen food, deli/bakery products and nonfood items, such as health and beauty care and other household and personal products. Delhaize Belgium is also selling a basic offering of lottery and postal products in part of its network.

Greece

In 2009, the Company operated a total of 216 stores in Greece. As of December 31, 2009, Alfa Beta directly operated 142 supermarkets under the Alfa Beta banner, 10 cash and carry stores under the ENA banner, 13 AB City stores and served 39 affiliated stores operated under the AB Food Market and AB Shop & Go banners and 10 Koryfi stores.

Rest of the World

As of December 31, 2009, Mega Image operated 51 super! markets i! n Romania. The stores offer private brand ranges, including 365, Care and the house brands available at Delhaize Belgium and Alfa Beta. In 2009, Mega Image introduced a private brand for Romanian products called Gusturi Romanesti. As of December 31, 2009, the Company operated 66 stores in Indonesia.

The Company competes with Wal-Mart, Kroger, Harris Teeter, Bi-Lo, Lowes Food, Save-A-Lot, Supervalu, Price Chopper, DeMoulas, Royal Ahold, Publix, Winn-Dixie, Carrefour, Louis Delhaize-Cora, Aldi, Makro-Metro, Lidl, Intermarche, Colruyt and Mestdagh.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Brian Pacampara]

  What: Shares of Brussels-based supermarket operator Delhaize Group (NYSE: DEG  ) climbed 10% today after its preliminary quarterly results and outlook topped Wall Street expectations.

• [By patokehoe]

  Traditional grocers such as Kroger Co (KR) and Delhaize Group SA (DEG) are having an increasingly hard time dealing with competition from nontraditional grocers. Both of these firms have tried to adapt to the pressure stemming from rival discounters, with varying degrees of success. Whereas Kroger has been able to utilize its scale to leverage fixed costs, Delhaize has struggled to maintain margins, and is being forced to lower prices.
  Fending off competitors Investment gurus John Hussman of Hussman Economtrics Advisors and Joel Greenblatt of Gotham Capital own considerable positions in Kroger, one of the largest retailers in the U.S. The firm currently operates over 2,400 supermarkets, 750 convenience stores, and 325 jewellery stores across 31 states. Shareholders have reason to be optimistic, as the company recently acquired Harris Teeter Supermarkets Inc (HTSI). The $2.44 billion deal means Kroger will be looking at an 8% increase in its store base and a 4% boost in revenue.