5 Stocks to Diversify and Weather the Storm

Well, after several rough weeks of volatility traders have been able to settle down and climb back in from the window. The Dow is back up and it seems as though traders are moving back in and letting some money settle. Still lots of trouble related to the mortgage industry and I have friends who are waiting to see if their company will stay alive.

It would be a fantastic time to see the Fed lower the funds rate in an attempt to spur the mortgage industry and reduct the record numbers of foreclosures. We would expect to see a rush to the lenders for refinancing, and it should spur home sales, if only for a short term. I have no idea what the long term effect would be on the economy as a whole, but I would like to see that if only for personal reasons.

Due to the overall state of the economy and stock market, I believe that this is still a great time ot be bullish on the market, and I expect that the market will do very well through the remainder of the year. There are great companies with a lot of momentum selling at a discount right now because of the credit crunch. As this market settles, these companies will take off and we can expect to see enormous growth.

So I have put together a basket of stocks that I think will outperform the market for the rest of the year, and due their broad economic moat, be able to ride the waves of a volatile market.

Which stocks am I talking about?

Here's 5, spread across several industries for diversification purposes:

Foster Wheeler - FWLT - $108.25 - Capital Goods / Construction Services - Infrastructure company with a basis in oil and gas processing, transportation.

Apple Computer - AAPL - $132.51 - Technology / CPU Hardware - Computer company whose recent success is largely influenced by the popularity of the iPod and iPhone.

Stryker Corp - SYK - $67.29 - Healthcare / Medical Equip - Broadly diversified medical supplies and joint replacement supplier. Company has $0 debt, and is in a position for acquisitions.

Southern Copper - PCU - $99.14 - Basic Materials / Metal Mining - Producer of Molybdenum, Copper, Zinc and Silver. Facilities and regfining based in Peru and Mexico.

Automated Data Processing - ADP - $46.96 - Services / Business Services - Provider of computerized transaction processing, data communication and information services.

There are 5 stocks that are broadly diversified across multiple industries, with an international spin, a play on the upcoming holiday season, the associated debit payments, the late year tech boom, and some stability in the safety of a healthcare supplier. Oh yeah, you also get the profitable growth of oil and gas extraction operations.

I like this basket of stocks to make a strong run through the end of the year and have enough diversification to survive some of the pitfalls.
Best Wishes!

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