CSX (CSX 0.26%) and Union Pacific (UNP 1.04%) are selections for the real-money Inflation-Protected Income Growth portfolio. In this brief video, portfolio manager Chuck Saletta offers three reasons why he's holding on to the stocks despite the companies' solid price gains since he bought them early this year.

Railroads Move American Freight
Everything has to move from where it's produced to where it's consumed, and railroads are a cost-effective way of getting things from A to B. As we emerge from the Great Recession, many believe that manufacturing will be a key driver of that recovery. Read all about three companies with the potential to be the biggest industry disruptors since the personal computer in "3 Stocks to Own for the New Industrial Revolution." Just click here to learn more.

To follow the iPIG portfolio as buy and sell decisions are made, watch Chuck's article feed by clicking here. To join The Motley Fool's free discussion board dedicated to the iPIG portfolio, simply click here.

To summarize:

  • Valuations -- reasonable and in line with my fair-value estimates.
  • Balance sheet -- healthy, with sufficiently low debt-to-equity ratios that debt rollovers shouldn't be a problem.
  • Dividend -- well covered and growing with room to continue growing.