The stock market may have been down today, but things could have been worse. After falling nearly 70 points in early trading, the Dow Jones Industrials (INDEX: ^DJI) recovered to finish down just 17 points, at 12,845.
Despite those losses, though, some stocks managed to post some decent gains. Let's take a closer look at three Dow stocks that saw their share prices rise on Monday.
Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG), up 1.1%
As a leading consumer-products giant, Procter & Gamble has the reputation for being a defensive stock for investors scared of downturns in the market. So it's not surprising to see this stock rise on a down day for the market.
But when you look at the big picture, P&G has been sowing the seeds for long-term prosperity. Last week, the company got a record-low interest rate of 2.3% by issuing $1 billion in 10-year notes, locking in cheap financing for the next decade.
P&G isn't the only company taking advantage of that trend -- IBM also sold $2.5 billion in three-year and five-year notes at very attractive interest rates, cutting its borrowing costs as well. Yet with 24 brands bringing in $1 billion or more, P&G has navigated changing consumer wants for 175 years. That's why so many investors see Procter & Gamble as a good long-term investment as well as a defensively minded stock.
Verizon (NYSE: VZ), up 0.8%
Many people own Verizon for its lucrative dividend. But the company demonstrated that it's still seeking growth as well.
Verizon announced that it's teaming up with Coinstarto provide a video joint venture to go up against Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX). The announcement was light on details, but as Fool analyst Rick Munarriz detailed earlier today, the premium video service is expected to arrive in the second half of 2012. Although a cable-based streaming-delivery system combined with Coinstar's Redbox outlets sounds formidable given that Netflix doesn't have a kiosk option available, the state of the industry is ever-changing. Check back in six months to see whether this combination bears fruit.
Chevron (NYSE: CVX), up 1.1%
Finally, energy stocks did well today. Both Chevron and ExxonMobil posted strong gains even as the price of oil sank further below the $100 per barrel level.
Recent geopolitical events may be the culprit that's pushing up energy shares. With Iran's currency in a tailspin, increasing tension in the Persian Gulf region could result. Whether that would be a net positive for Chevron and its peers depends on whether potentially lost production would outweigh rising profits from oil price gains. Until the situation is resolved, look for continuing volatility from Chevron.
What will tomorrow bring?
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