After seeing the interest in yesterday's Serious Money: Five stable stocks for troubled times, I decided to track the stocks on a quarterly basis to see how they hold up over time (otherwise, what would be the purpose of discussing them in the first place?).

I said that all five have shrewd, conservative management teams and have been in the right place, at the right time -- and prepared. The standard for comparison will be the Standard & Poors 500 Index which closed on June 30, 2008 at 1,280.00. Although my original story was published yesterday, I will be using the second quarter end point for my five stocks as well.

1) Johnson and Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) closed at $64.34 and pays a 2.89% dividend yield.

2) Teva Pharmaceuticals ADR (NASDAQ: TEVA) closed at $45.80 and pays a 1% dividend yield.

3) Chubb Corp (NYSE: CB) closed at $49.01 and pays a 2.64% dividend yield.

4) Xcel Energy (NYSE: XEL) closed at $20.07 and pays a 4.81% dividend yield.

5) Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS) closed at $31.20 and pays a 1.11% dividend yield.

I reviewed about 600 stocks before settling on these five. The average yield of the five is 2.49%. That is higher than the average stock fund.

These are not necessarily the stocks I think will appreciate the most in the next twelve months. That list probably would include a few downtrodden names. These are the stocks that I think will hold up well if the stock market continues to be dismal over the next year. Remember the subject was stability. It is not a coincidence that all of them pay a dividend. That is almost always a key factor in long term success.

Sheldon Liber is the CEO of a small private investment company and the principal for design and research at an architecture & planning firm. He writes the columns Chasing Value and Serious Money. DISCLOSURE: I currently own shares of JNJ.

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Six months of 2008 are now behind us and the stock market has not been a friendly place to most investors. Stability that was once found in household names that were industry giants is gone, and they have now been brought to their knees.

Many of them were the stocks we might have looked to in the past for stability, so you can be sure I put forward my five candidates with a little trepidation, but forward I go anyway. First a little review is in order.

Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) dropped from around $53 per share last year to around $30 in January and we can buy it today for around $17. Even at that price Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) has downgraded it to a sell and thinks there is more bad news to come. Citigroup was the largest bank in the world. Not any more.

General Motors (NYSE: GM) was the largest car maker in the world. That was before the stock tumbled from $43 to its current $11 range. A crushing blow to long time investors hoping that someone in the company could stop the ship from sinking.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) itself is down from $250 to a very soft $177 (it's traded as low as $161.21 today) and does not appear to be at risk as much as some of its competitors, companies that do not look as competitive any more. Bear Stearns is gone, Lehman Brothers Holdings (NYSE: LEH) is on the ropes and Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) are teetering.

Reliable software giant Microsoft Inc. (NASDAQ: MSFT) is down from $37.50 to $27 and is so desperate for some traction that it is wasting its time with something called the Zune and made an unsuccessful offer to acquire Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO), which is also down on its luck; 50% down since it rejected the offer.

I do not own any of these stocks, and I could list a thousand stocks to keep them company. Some that I do own as "core holdings" that are down include Huaneng Power Intl ADS (NYSE: HNP) that was trading as high as $57 and is now a more affordable $27 per share. Another one of my favorites, Intuitive Surgical Inc (NASDAQ: ISRG), is down from $360 to $260 and may drop further as hospitals look to conserve capital the rest of the year and into the uncertainty of a new presidential administration and economy. Even that old standby for tough times Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.B) has shown weakness dropping 20% from around $5,000 to $4,000 a share.

I could point to some energy and food stocks that have done well this year but those could lose their footing as well if oil prices do not hold up. There are those that think we are in a short term speculative bubble and they could give back some of the this year's gains.

So where to hide? What if anything has been stable? The following five companies made the grade.

1) Johnson and Johnson (NYSE: JNJ): This one is probably not any surprise. There was no money to be made here but you would not have lost any either. Year to date it has traded between $68 and $64 and that is about where it has been for quite some time. It does pay almost a 3% dividend yield and that's mighty fine these days.

2) Teva Pharmaceuticals ADR (NASDAQ: TEVA): Pharmaceuticals have long been a safe haven in troubled times and the world's largest maker of generic drugs is sitting pretty these days with expanding markets everywhere it looks. This Israeli company has traded roughly between $43 and $47 for quite some time, pays a 1% yield and looks to have plenty of upside going forward.

3) Chubb Corp (NYSE: CB) the conservative insurance company has held up better than most of its peers. Over the past six months and going back two years it has hovered between $49 and $54, all the time paying about a 2.6% yield.

4) Xcel Energy (NYSE: XEL) is a holding company for numerous utilities. Over the course of the past twelve volatile months it has been trading in a 10% range between $20 and $22 while paying a huge yield, which today stands at 4.8%.

5) Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS) may be a great place to hide if you want to forget your troubles, whether you chose the new Pixar hit movie "WALL-E" or Disneyland, or a trip down memory lane renting or downloading any one of its countless hits from its film library. The stock is currently trading in the neighborhood of $30.62, mid-point in its 52 week range. Over the past six months it has spent most of the time drifting between $30 and $33 per share with a few drops and pops here and there. The 1.1% yield is not as generous as the others but it I would be happy to take it.

What do they have in common? They are diversified among their industries, have growth horizons, and of course they all pay dividends. But the standout at this juncture seems to be that they all have shrewd conservative management teams -- and they have been in the right place, at the right time, and prepared.

Sheldon Liber is the CEO of a small private investment company and the principal for design and research at an architecture & planning firm. He writes the columns Chasing Value and Serious Money. DISCLOSURE: I currently own shares of BRK.B, HNP, ISRG, JNJ.

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• Walgreens (NYSE: WAG) to report Q3 earnings; conference call at 8:30am.

• FOMC to hold two-day meeting.
• Jabil Circuits (NYSE: JBL) to report Q3 earnings; conference call at 4:30pm.
• 3Com (NASDAQ: COMS) to report Q4 earnings; conference call at 5:00pm.

• Second day of two-day FOMC meeting; announcement at 2:15pm.
• Thornburg Mortgage (NYSE: TMA) to discuss valuation and accounting for recent financing transaction at 10:00am.
• Nike (NYSE: NKE) to report Q4 earnings; conference call at 5:00pm.
  
• Oracle (NASDAQ: ORCL) to report Q4 earnings; conference call at 5:00pm.
• Research in Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM) to report Q1 earnings; conference call at 5:00pm.

• PDUFA date for Eli Lilly & Co's (NYSE: LLY) and Daiichi Sankyo's new drug application for Prasugrel.
• Palm Inc (NASDAQ: PALM) to report Q4 earnings; conference call at 4:30pm.
• Micron Technology (NYSE: MU) to report Q3 earnings; conference call at 4:30pm.

• PDUFA date for Indevus Pharmaceuticals' (NASDAQ: IDEV) New Drug Application for Nebido for treatment of male hypogonadism.
• PDUFA date for Johnson & Johnson's (NYSE: JNJ) and Eisai Co's (OTC: ESALY) Aciphex.
  

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Alkermes (NASDAQ: ALKS) is a biotechnology company that makes extended-release products for the treatment of chronic diseases. The firm developed and manufactures Vivitrol, a treatment for alcohol dependence that partner Cephalon (NASDAQ: CEPH) markets in the United States. It also makes Risperdal Consta, a long-acting version of Janssen's schizophrenia medication Risperdal. Alkermes' pipeline includes extended-release injectable, pulmonary and oral products for the treatment of central nervous system disorders, addiction and diabetes. Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) are competitors.

The firm pleased investors earlier in the week, when it expanded its stock repurchase program by $40 million. Management also guided FY09 EPS to 11-16 cents and FY09 revenues to $200-$225 million. Analysts had been looking for a 10 cent per share loss and $194.89 million. Fiscal year cash flow from operations was expected to total $25-$30 million, as compared to an original $1-$5 million estimate.

The stock popped on the news and then moved into a bullish "pennant" consolidation pattern. Prices frequently exit pennants moving in the same direction they were traveling on entry. In this case, that would be to the upside.

Brokers recommend the issue with four "strong buys", four "buys", six "holds" and one "underperform". Analysts see a 48% average annual growth rate, through the next five years. The ALKS P/E ratio (7.89), Price to Cash Flow ratio (6.72), Return on Assets (27.26%), Return on Investment (29.80%), Return on Equity (65.64%) and Net Income per Employee ($273.74k) compare favorably with industry, sector and S&P 500 averages. Over the past twelve months, the stock has traded between $10.32 and $18.78. A stop-loss of $11.15 looks good here. Note that the firm is next expected to report quarterly results in late July.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com. He does not hold positions in any of the stocks mentioned above.

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"Our portfolio has been notably light on pharmaceuticals and consumer products; we're rectifying that by buying Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)," says Gregory Dorsey in Leeb's Income Performance Letter.

"Getting a handle on exactly what the 122 year-old company markets is no easy task, given the broad scope of its product line-up. And to say that J&J has been a resounding success on the corporate
stage would be an understatement.

"Through its more than 250 operating businesses, the parent company lays claim to being, among other things: the world's premier consumer health company, the largest medical devices and diagnostics company, the third-largest biologics company and the sixth-largest pharmaceuticals company.

"While acquisitions have played an important role in making the company what it is today, J&J has also achieved these milestones through internal growth. It boasts 75 consecutive years of rising sales.

"This year its revenue should top $64 billion, and sales are likely to increase at a steady 10% annual pace during the next five years.

"Keep in mind that our estimate may prove to be conservative if the company continues to make great strides in rapidly growing emerging economies, such as China and India, which currently account for only about a fifth of the company's overall sales.

"Along with its triple-A rating from S&P, we like the fact that J&J is a favorite of legendary value investor Warren Buffett, who owns nearly 62 million shares via his Berkshire Hathaway, putting us in good company with this stock.

"Of course it certainly doesn't hurt that J&J is trading at low multiples to its earnings and sales relative to its historic norms, and to its peers. We also like the defensive nature of the stock: Come what may
in the global economy, J&J is likely to continue to attract consumers to its product lines.

"As with its steady sales gains, J&J can be relied on to increase its dividend payout year after year. This year marks the 46th consecutive year of dividend hikes from the company. During the past five years, that income stream has risen at a 15% annual rate, a trend we expect will continue for many years to come.

"In the meantime, the stock currently yields an above-average 2.7%, making it an excellent total return vehicle. We're putting the stock in our portfolio and we hope you do the same."

Each day, Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com offers the latest market commentary and favorite investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

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This post is part of a series on some of the most memorable companies that have disappeared.

Back in the heady dot-com days of 1999, any parent who didn't want to brave the holiday season parking lots knew what to do: Get online and buy those Christmas presents at eToys.com. Unlike Toys-R-Us, which had recently gone online itself, eToys seemed to know what it was doing. It offered a vast array of toys at reasonable prices, and it got them to you on time as promised.

But by March 2001, you were back to the Toys-R-Us option -- by then allied with Amazon.com, and doing online retailing the right way. In the end, eToys proved no more durable than the Furby -- much sought-after, priced up by speculators and hype, only to ultimately end up in the backyard, broken and ignored.

eToys went up fast and crashed hard, (not unlike a pogo stick), and in many ways it remains a textbook example of the excesses and "irrational exuberance" of the dot-com era.

When it was launched in 1997 out of then-noted start-up incubator Idealab!, eToys was hyped as the next big thing, the new paradigm if you would, of the retail toy industry. And indeed since it had the competitive advantage of being the first to market, it easily attracted venture capital money. After a successful first Christmas season (relatively-speaking, that is; 1998 is considered the first year e-tailers racked up sales of any significance), it became the darling of the media and technorati. It went public in 1999 and saw its stock price triple, reaching a high of $85 in October of that year, giving it a market cap greater than the then 50-year-old market leader, Toys-R-Us.

The company poured money into inventory and infrastructure. Although the company didn't see as hefty sales as it would have liked its first few Christmas seasons, it's main rival, Toys-R-Us, saw a much bigger flop in its first forays into online retailing.

eToys also saw the bright future of content -- and in particular, parenting content. It bought BabyCenter.com in 1999, with the aim of tapping into that site's huge online community of parents.

There were some high-profile gaffes of its own, however. That same year, after being savaged in the press and online, eToys backed away from its lawsuit against the European artists' site of almost the same name (etoy, all in lowercase). It had sued the art group for its domain name, although the group had held it for years.

But like so many high-flying internet start-ups, eToys was blindsided by realities of retail. It bought much more inventory than it moved. In 2000 it spent some $72 million on advertising and marketing, trying to drum up customers, and although its online sales were growing, they weren't enough to address its tremendous debt. Christmas sales in 2000 were only $120 million, far less than the $210 million it had forcecast. It was hemorrhaging money at that point, and in 2001 it sold Babycenter to Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) for a mere $10 million.

When its arch rival Toys-R-Us hooked up with mighty Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) the writing was on the wall. eToys filed for bankruptcy in March of 2001, citing debt of $247 million.

eToys went dark, but went live again in October, 2001 as a subsidiary of KB Toys. Today, eToys Direct, as it is now called, is owned by hedge fund D.E. Shaw, as part of (aptly-named) Parent Company, a content and e-commerce umbrella group focusing on the parenting market.

Let us know in the comments what you miss about eToys. And be sure to check out other Companies That Have Vanished.

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"You can invest for all the right reasons and still get the wrong result," notes long-standing turnaround stock expert George Putnam, referring to the poor performance of the pharmaceutical sector in recent years.

Here, in his industry-leading The Turnaround Letter, he offers a fascinating review of 10 leading drug stocks which he now believes offer a combination of growth potential at "pretty cheap" valuations. Here is his overview.

"In 2000 and 2001, when the Internet boom was becoming a bust, many smart investors turned away from technology stocks and put their money into drug stocks. How could you go wrong with the big pharmaceutical companies?

"Demand for their products was growing as the population aged. These companies had huge research
and development programs that seemed to keep cranking out new blockbuster drugs. And most of them had great balance sheets, with many paying handsome dividends.

"Much of this reasoning has been borne out in the intervening years. Many large drug manufacturers have rung up substantial revenue gains over the last decade. So what's happened to the big drug stocks? With few exceptions they have gone sideways or down - in some cases down a lot.

"What happened? With the benefit of hindsight, we can see that while they were indeed great companies (and still are), their stocks were overvalued. Investors gradually realized that these companies did face risks - generic competition, shifting regulatory winds and product liability lawsuits, to name a few.

"Now, as often happens, the markets may have gone too far in the other direction, and the big drug stocks look pretty cheap. The growth potential is still there, but the risks are pretty well priced into the stocks.

"Moreover, many of the dividends are even richer today, which gives you some downside protection in case the markets remain volatile. We highlight below ten large pharmaceutical makers whose stocks look particularly attractive to us right now.

"Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) recently reported quarterly results that showed double-digit revenue and earnings gains.

"But the stock has sold off to trade near its lows of the last 16 months and only marginally higher than levels of early 1999! With a forward P/E below 15 and a dividend yield of 2.9%, Abbott is well priced to reward patient investors.

"AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) has gone nowhere for a decade, despite revenues having grown from $5.5 billion to $29.6 billion. The major difference being that investors in 1999 were willing to pay as high as 75x earnings, but now are unwilling to pay even 10x expected earnings for 2008.

"In addition to the industry's general malaise, AstraZeneca has some integration issues from recent acquisitions. But once it sorts those out, the stock should perform well.

"Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) is streamlining. It recently sold its medical-imaging unit and plans to divest half of its 27 manufacturing facilities, cut its work force by 10% and spinoff up to 20% of its nutritionals business.

"Meanwhile, it is also building a pipeline of new products. With the stock recently trading at the same level it did in 1991, it seems that mainstream investors have given up on Bristol-Myers, which provides an opportunity for those willing to go against the crowd.

"Eli Lilly & Company (NYSE: LLY) is generally recognized for having a more diversified drug portfolio and a deeper pipeline than many in the industry. Nevertheless, the stock trades at low multiples right along with its industry peers.

"Management isn't sitting idle. In addition to spending a formidable 18.7% of sales on developing the firm's pipeline, it is also pursuing strategic acquisitions.

"The valley at GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) appears to be about 18 months to two years wide. That's how long it will take, according to the company's CEO, for it to be marketing newer products and for generic competition to erode.

"In the meantime, management is making acquisitions to build out its portfolio and streamlining operations in order to sustain profitability. In case you have to wait a bit for GlaxoSmithKline's stock to rebound, there is an attractive 5.7% dividend yield.

"Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) is seen as a more stable competitor due to a more diverse operating
base. Pharmaceuticals account for about 41% of total sales, with medical/diagnostic products at 35% and consumer personal care products at 24%. The stock has acted better than most, but it has made little net progress in the last six years.

"Merck (NYSE: MRK) has faced formidable headwinds ever since it was forced to pull Vioxx from the market in 2004. More recently, the firm's Vytorin and Zetia have faced challenges to their effectiveness, and Fosamax is facing increasing generic competition.

"Not surprisingly, the stock has taken a hit, falling more than 30% from its January 2008 level. But based on cost-cutting initiatives and sales of its cervical-cancer vaccine, Gardasil, management recently reaffirmed earnings guidance. Maybe the glass is half full.

"Pfizer (NYSE: PFE), the world's largest pharmacglaeutical company, reported disappointing quarterly results that pushed the stock below $20 for the first time since 1997.

"Competition for two of its leading products Norvasc (blood pressure) and Zyrtec (allergy), strict labeling requirements for Chantix (Pfizer's newer antismoking medication) and lackluster sales for Lipitor combined to hurt results. With a forward P/E below 8, it would appear that investors are assuming a pharmaceutical Armageddon.

"The latest quarterly results at Schering-Plough (NYSE: SGP), according to at least one article, 'trounced Wall Street expectations.' And, indeed, the stock has rallied a bit, but only after it had fallen to its lowest price since 1996.

"The results benefited from more rapid assimilation of last year's $14.5 billion acquisition of Organon BioSciences, strength in the U.S. dollar, overseas demand, growth in the firm's animal health segment and revenues from its joint venture with Merck covering Vytorin and Zetia. Despite the good news, the stock is off more than 40% from its level a year ago.

"Wyeth (NYSE: WYE), formerly American Home Products, continues to struggle with product liability issues and generic competition.

"Management is rethinking the company's business model. But there are bright spots in the outlook, including the recent approval of the firm's Pristiq antidepressant drug and a new drug pipeline that offers significant diversity."

Each day, Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com offers the latest market commentary and favorite investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

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Integra LifeSciences Holdings (NASDAQ: IART) is a regenerative medicine specialist. The firm develops, manufactures and markets surgical implants and medical instruments that are used in neurosurgery, extremity reconstruction, orthopedics and general surgery. Its biological implants, grafts, and wound dressings are based on a proprietary collagen matrix that becomes part of a patient's body and help it to generate new bone and tissue to replace damaged areas. The company's surgical instruments include ultrasonic surgical ablation systems and joint fixation devices used in neurosurgery and joint reconstruction. Integra has key strategic alliances with Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ), Wyeth (NYSE: WYE) and Zimmer Holdings (NYSE: ZHM).

The firm pleased investors last week, when it reported fiscal Q4 EPS of 54 cents and revenues of $157.65 million. Analysts had been looking for 49 cents and $153.41 million. Management also guided Q1 EPS to 39-42 cents (40 cent consensus), Q1 revenues to $155 million or more ($151.1M consensus), Q2 EPS to 45-48 cents (45 cent consensus), Q2 revenues to $159-$164 million ($160.10M consensus) and FY08 EPS to $2.00-$2.15 ($2.04 consensus).

The stock popped into a bullish "flag" consolidation pattern on the news. Prices frequently exit flags moving in the same direction they were traveling on entry. In this case, that would be to the upside.

Brokers recommend the issue with one "strong buy", three "buys" and eight "holds". Analysts see a 22% average annual growth rate, through the next five years. The IART Sales Growth rate (25.72%), Operating Margin (12.22%), Net Profit Margin (6.08%), Return on Assets (4.68%), Return on Investment (6.93%) and Return on Equity (12.03%) compare favorably with industry and sector averages. Institutional investors hold about 84% of the outstanding shares. The stock is one of those used to calculate the S&P 600 SmallCap Index. Over the past 52 weeks, it has traded between $39.21 and $52.85. A stop-loss of $36.90 looks good here.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com. He does not hold positions in any of the stocks mentioned above.

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Medtronic (NYSE: MDT) is a medical technology company, specializing in a variety of implantable biomedical devices. Leading products include pacemakers, stents, catheters, glucose monitoring systems and insulin pumps. The firm's Cardiac Surgery segment offers products for the repair and replacement of heart valves, surgical accessories, and surgical ablation products. A Physio-Control unit provides external defibrillation and emergency response systems. Medtronic sells its products to hospitals, clinics, third party healthcare providers and governmental healthcare programs. Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) are major competitors.

Investors were pleased last week, when Medtronic announced fiscal Q4 EPS of 78 cents and revenues of $3.86 billion. Analysts had been expecting 72 cents and $3.72 billion. Management also guided FY09 EPS to $2.94-$3.02 ($2.96 consensus) and FY09 revenues to $15-$15.5 billion ($15.14 consensus). UBS subsequently reiterated its "buy" rating on the shares.

MDT popped on the news and then moved into a bullish "flag" consolidation pattern. Prices frequently exit flags moving in the same direction they were traveling on entry. In this case, that would be to the upside.

Altogether, brokers recommend the issue with eight "strong buys," nine "buys" and eleven "holds." The MDT Price to Free Cash Flow ratio (24.29), Sales Growth rate (17.68%), Operating Margin (21.35%), Net Profit Margin (16.51%), Return on Assets (10.70%), Return on Investment (12.53%) and Return on Equity (19.82%) compare favorably with industry, sector and S&P 500 averages. Institutional investors hold about 77% of the outstanding shares. The stock is one of those used to calculate the S&P 100 and S&P 500 Indexes. Over the past 52 weeks, it has traded between $44.26 and $57.99. A stop-loss of $44.90 looks good here.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com. He does not hold positions in any of the stocks mentioned above.

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This post is part of our Battle of the Brands feature. Let us know which brand you prefer, and check out other Battle of the Brands posts.

Tylenol is probably the most recognizable brand name for the pain reliever acetaminophen. In addition to being a pain reliever, Tylenol also reduces fevers. It was created in 1955 as Tylenol Elixir for children, and was the first aspirin-free pain reliever. It was initially available only by prescription, but became available without a prescription in 1960.

The product is made and marketed by McNeil Consumer Healthcare, a brand owned by Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ). Tylenol falls within the Consumer segment of J&J, which had sales of $14.5 billion in 2007. Over-the-counter pharmaceuticals represented $5.1 billion in sales, or 35% of the segment's sales.

Excedrin is a pain reliever that combines acetaminophen, aspirin, and caffeine. (Caffeine is known to enhance the effectiveness of aspirin and acetaminophen.) It's a product of Novartis (NYSE: NVS), a Switzerland-based company that bought the Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) consumer medicine business in 2005. Novartis produces a variety of consumer health care products, with 2007 revenue of $39.8 billion.

These two products seem to have a loyal customer base with different characteristics. Tylenol appeals more families because of the products for children and because of Tylenol's known fever-reducing properties. Excedrin appeals more to those with severe or chronic pain, as it has been marketed for years as the product the alleviates the worst pains. (I'll take neither, thank you. Give me straight up ibuprofen any day!)

Vote in our poll for Tylenol or Excedrin as your preferred brand, and let us know in the comments why you love it.

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This post is part of our Battle of the Brands feature. Let us know which brand you prefer, and check out other Battle of the Brands posts.

Among the phrases that mystify me is "Too sweet" -- I was born with 28 sweet teeth. The sweetener holder in most restaurants today holds at least two different ersatz sugars; Sweet'N Low and Splenda. Which is better?

Sweet'N Low has the history. It first came on the market back in 1957 when the key ingredient, saccharin was packaged in the same single-serving sleeves used for sugar. It is still owned by the originators, privately held Cumberland Packing Group. Although the intensely sweet saccharin had been around since the start of the century, it took Sweet'N Low marketing and an increasing focus on the nation's waistline to popularize it.

The product's primary advantage is cost; a packet sells for slightly over a penny a serving. Downsides include bitterness that some users distinguish, and the inability to use it in baking and cooking, as it breaks down under heat.

Splenda, owned by a division of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) is the brand name of another sweetener, sucralose, invented in the UK in 1976. It has become popular both for its flavor, which many deem more sugarlike, and its ability to withstand the heat of baking and cooking. Splenda is found not only in single-pack portions, but in a wide variety of prepared foods.

On the downside, Splenda is more than twice as expensive per serving, and some health concerns still remain, primarily about its effect on the thymus.

My take? Although Splenda is more expensive, it is still a reasonably priced alternative to sugar, and to my tongue a much closer flavor. In this battle, I find Splenda just splendid.

Vote in our poll for Splenda or Sweet'N Low as your preferred brand, and let us know in the comments why you love it.

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There were a lot of earnings reports this week -- if you weren't setting up some trades before the reports were released, you're probably digesting the numbers now. I had a look at 3M (NYSE: MMM) this morning. The famous Dow component, which competes with Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) and DuPont (NYSE: DD), reported this past Thursday. Net sales increased 9%, but diluted earnings per share unfortunately took a whopping decline of 25%. However, you need to take a look at what caused this drop -- there was a gain in last year's quarter from the disposition of a European pharmaceutical business, as well as some other items. Excluding these elements, you'll find that earnings per share grew by 8%.

According to the company's release, 3M did rather well in the free-cash-flow department. Last year at this time, free cash flow came in at $276 million. This past quarter saw free cash flow grow to just under $700 million. I liked that; I also liked that most of the company's divisions reported double-digit profit growth. This is a healthy, blue-chip dividend player -- plus, 3M is comfortable with its previously stated forward guidance of at least $5.47 in adjusted earnings per share for 2008 (or, as the release put it, management believes net income will see an increase of "a minimum of 10% over 2007 earnings-per-share of $4.98")