This month’s pick is about diversification. Before we get to that, I have to be honest and say that General Motors Company (NYSE: GM), technically, earned the top score. If you own GM and want to increase your position, go for it! If for some reason you’ve ignored our past recommendations (it’s risen 9% since we suggested it back in March) and haven’t yet purchased GM, do it now. It’s still a good buy. It’s trading nearly 15% off the 52-week high with a spectacularly low P/E of 4 (in fact, the lowest on the S&P 100 except for Berkshire Hathaway) and strong EPS of 7.8. Not to mention the rock solid 4.8% dividend. Buying this stock is still a good choice.
That said, diversification is also good so this month our recommendation is Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (TSE: CM). One of Canada’s big banks, this stock offers the protection of a highly regulated and stable banking environment. The stock is currently only 3.7% below the 52-week high, which is not much of a sale, but the rest of the numbers are spectacular. At $101 a share, the P/E is in the single digits at 9.86 and the EPS is 10.32. That’s right – the EPS is higher than the P/E! Oh, did we mention the dividend yield of 4.8%?
Those EPS numbers put CIBC at 8th on our watchlist of over 200 stocks! The only companies with stronger earnings include Google, Blackrock, Biogen, and IBM. Of the eight, the next highest dividend return is IBM, offering 3.5% (another of our picks, by the way) and two of the eight offer no dividend at all.
The chart below shows the 5-year performance of CIBC. Notice anything about the dividend? Talk about a dividend growth stock! They’ve raised it every quarter in 2015 and 2016!
Needless to say, regardless of the 52-week high, CIBC is priced VERY well!