5 Solid Stocks to Buy Now and Hold for the Long Term

With so many distressed stocks and whiffs of a stock market that may be turning around, many speculators think we are close to the bottom of the falling commodities. Which stocks to begin placing your money in is not as speculative a game as you may think. Look at these 5 stocks and see if you don't agree, that they could help your gains over the next few years.

Verizon (VZ) - Verizon has performed pretty good overall in a gloomy 2008 for most companies. They are currently trading at about 20 times earnings at 2.26. Verizon has been very aggressive, purchasing wireless provider Alltel. They increased their dividend to 6.48 percent, while buying back $1.4 billion in shares.

My analysis revealed a 7-year EPS growth rate of 4.4%, which isn't really that impressive, but their recent aggressiveness has shown profits increasing 15% in the fourth quarter of 2008. A continued growth rate of 4.4% will give Verizon's stock price a future value (10 year) of 68.95, creating a current value of around $17. Investment Officer Cliff Hover told Seeking Alpha "He sees Verizon's shares being worth $41-42 over the next couple years". This coupled with a good dividend is a good formula for a long term investment.

Wal-Mart (WMT) - If you are constantly working on a diversified portfolio, then you'll like Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart is a diverse company, offering something for everyone. Their sales performance continues to beat the consistently pessimistic analysts.

My analysis concluded that Wal-Mart is a good long-term investment. Their 10-year EPS growth rate is 10.5%, creating a future value of 130 and a current value of 32.13. Where America's economy is no where near stable, Wal-Mart seems to be that rock everyone can cling to.

BP p.l.c (BP) - Operates two business segments: production and oil. BP is also in the solar business. "The Long Island Power Authority will buy 37 megawatts of solar panels from BP Solar. BP is one of the biggest solar producers in the world and is trying to be one of the early dominant players in CIS and CIGS solar panels," reported by Seeking Alpha's website.

BP also expects a dividend freeze. Where this could be seen as a struggling company trying to adjust to the volatility in the oil markets, one could also analyze it to mean their now more than 9-percent yield would stay. The Financial Times.com reported BP's CEO stated, "The pay-out could be maintained this year and next." BP has the highest yield among the big oil companies.

My analysis shows BP's EPS growth rate at nearly 17-percent, creates a ten year future value of $183 and a current value of $45. Seeking Alpha's Cliff Wachtel rates BP as a buy below $40 and a strong buy below $37.

General Mills (GIS) Jim Cramer reported on this The Street.com video that Kendall Powell is a great manager and in a down economy, this stock is going to thrive. He didn't give a lot of technical information. The average analyst ratings put it at a buy or moderate buy.

My analysis puts its 10-year EPS growth rate at better than 31-percent and its future (10-year) value at more than $750, putting its current value around $94. Trading around $50, this stock looks very tempting. Keep in mind that General Mills is also a candidate for the Dow Jones Industrial Average group, whenever that shakeup happens.

Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (GDX) - "Commodities will lead the recovery," says Matt McCall of the Hard Assets Investor. As far as analysis goes, there isn't much. Last year when gold was selling for $1000 an ounce, the GDX was trading in the 50's now gold is now almost back to that level ($911.98 today), and the GDX is trading at almost $32. So if you believe there is a correction to be made there, GDX may be a good investment.

The other argument relating to commodities and gold is inflation. With the government telling us they are going to spend 3-Trillion dollars over the next few years, inflation is inevitable, which would be good for gold prices.

These are only five stocks of an additional handful of companies that should do well during 2009 and any further recession the U.S. experiences. The additional companies are more speculative and will be featured in future articles. Remember to invest wisely right now. If you are trying to recover losses from the last year, just starting out, or somewhere in the middle, it is very treacherous out there right now. Do your research, read this article before you invest, and buy it like you mean to own it.