Investing Topics: DRIP Stocks

Only three of the 28 current Conrad’s Utility Investor Portfolio recommendations have yet to report calendar third quarter earnings. That’s plenty of data to identify relevant sector trends, while we assess the health of individual companies.

Since the November issue of Conrad’s Utility Investor went to post, five more portfolio companies have reported calendar third quarter 2013 results. Here are the highlights.

Real industry trends don’t spontaneously occur. They’re forged on the ground by what companies are actually doing. And you spot them by focusing on individual companies’ results, and aggregating your findings.

Forget what you’ve read about iOS7, iPhone 5C, China sales and the rest of the various and sundry device hype. Put your money in AT&T (NYSE: T), not Apple (NSDQ: AAPL).

Dominion Resources (NYSE: D) shares hit an all-time high this week. The catalyst: A proposed spin off of the company’s natural gas assets into a master limited partnership (MLP), with an initial public offering in the second quarter of 2014.

Investors are dumping dividend-paying stocks of strong companies due to misplaced fears about interest rate sensitivity. That’s opening up new opportunities in our favorite stocks, but be patient with prices.

Southern Company (NYSE: SO) currently sits near a new 52-week low. The reason: A combination of investor worries about rising interest rates and concern about its substantial capital spending program.

There weren't any big surprises in our Focus List earnings reports this quarter, which is the way we like it. But there are a lot of bargains in all three portfolios that you can move into now. The story of essential service stocks is just beginning.

Verizon Communications' (NYSE: VZ) second-quarter results demonstrate why its stock trades at a premium, but investors should wait for a pullback before adding to their positions .

Discipline, consistency and hard work don’t always guarantee success. But they're the necessary foundation of every winning investment strategy.