In this segment of the Motley Fool Money podcast, host Chris Hill asks Million Dollar Portfolio's Jason Moser and Matt Argersinger and Total Income's Ron Gross about the companies they have their eyes on this week and why: spice giant McCormick (MKC 1.04%), craft brewing giant Boston Beer (SAM 0.77%), and Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com (JD 5.80%).
A full transcript follows the video.
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This video was recorded on Oct. 20, 2017.
Chris Hill: Let's get to the stocks on our radar this week. Ron Gross, what are you looking at?
Ron Gross: I got McCormick, MKC, leading spice and herb company. Controls about 20% of the global spice market. Recently acquired RB Foods, which has Frank's Red Hot Sauce, which is a personal favorite of myself, me --
Hill: Yours truly.
Gross: -- yes, that. They're going to cut $100 million in expenses. That should improve margins. Dividend yield of 1.9%. They've raised it every year for the past 31 years.
Hill: Steve, question about McCormick?
Steve Broido: When do you know when you're supposed to replace your spices? People have cinnamon in there that's been in there since the seventies.
Gross: [laughs] I think that's right, and I think McCormick would like you to replace that more often. I think three months is a good number.
Hill: Jason Moser, what are you looking at this week?
Jason Moser: Taking a look at Boston Beer, ticker SAM. Earnings come out on Thursday, October 27th. It's been on a slow move up since the middle of the year, and actually grew for the year to date. But I was reading some interesting chatter going on at the National Beer Wholesalers Association Convention here recently. I know that's a mouthful.
Gross: You need a hobby, my friend. [laughs]
Moser: But, they're talking about how beer is losing share to wine and spirits, especially with the younger drinkers. I just think that the companies that are first affected by this most are the really small producers, the microbrewers, where the economics are just not working in their favor. So, I can't help but wonder if maybe we're not getting to that point where those multiple start coming down. Maybe we see some consolidation in the space. And really, it shines the light on one of Boston Beer's biggest strengths in the distribution and production on a national level.
Hill: Steve, question about Boston Beer?
Broido: How many Boston Beers do you normally drink before recording the show?
Moser: Uh ... if I answer that, are my superiors going to hear it? Let's talk about that after the show.
Broido: Sounds good.
Hill: Matt Argersinger, what are you looking at?
Matt Argersinger: I'm looking at jd.com, ticker JD. Alibaba (BABA 2.33%) gets all the headlines, but I think if you really want to play the growth of e-commerce in China, I would go to the #2 player, and that's jd.com. Alibaba has taken much more of an eBay-like approach, lite business model, let third-party sellers handle fulfillment and shipping and things like that. jd.com instead has taken the Amazon model. They do all the fulfillment, which I think is hugely important for quality, reliability and, really big in China, fraud. jd.com is my bet. $55 billion company. Revenue is growing 50% annually over the last three years. It's only about an eighth of the size of Alibaba.
Hill: No one at Jack Daniels snapped up jd.com?
Argersinger: For whatever reason, JD got jd.com.
Hill: Steve, question about jd.com?
Broido: Does the delivery model make sense in China, being such a large country with a very diverse terrain?
Argersinger: I hope so. [laughs]
Gross: That's actually a good question.
Argersinger: It is.
Hill: Steve. Boston Beer, McCormick, jd.com. Three very different businesses. Do you got one you want to add to your watchlist?
Broido: I'm feeling spicy, Ron.
Gross: Nice, alright.
Hill: Is there a particular spice in your cabinet that maybe needs to be replaced?
Broido: Probably. I don't use a lot of spices, but I know that they sit there for a while, and they seem to age.
Gross: Montreal steak seasoning. Don't sell short the Montreal steak. Really good stuff.
Hill: You're pro on that?
Gross: I am.
