Top 10 Best stock picks for 2012

 top 10 stock picks for 2012

From Apple (AAPL 0.00%) to Caterpillar (CAT 0.00%), the picks rely on stable income stocks that Fortune says are undervalued. "Times are uncertain," the magazine says. "Stocks are moving in lockstep. Reliability and income matter more than ever."

When stocks move in lockstep, it's very difficult to pick ones that can rise above the rest of the action. Did Fortune make the right choices? Let's go through the picks:



1. Apple. Too easy. It's hard to find someone who isn't bullish on Apple these days, particularly after the stock's price-to-earnings ratio has fallen to around 10.

Add to that the company's dominance in the tablet market, its Black Friday performance, its mountain of cash and its sky-high potential in China next year, and there isn't much to criticize. Analysts think 2012 earnings per share will rise 30%, Fortune reports.

2. Caterpillar. Again, China is coming into play here as part of a host of emerging markets needing mining and machinery equipment. CEO Douglas Oberhelman has set his sights on 15% to 20% growth rates through 2015, Fortune reports. And that $29 billion in back orders is nothing to sneeze at.

3. Enbridge Energy Partners (EEP 0.00%). The company is the U.S. branch of Canada's Enbridge, a pipeline company, and is organized as a master limited partnership. Enbridge Energy has a 7% yield, says Fortune, and payouts have risen by 5% a year on average since 1992.

4. Goodyear Tire (GT 0.00%). This one seems a little iffy to me. Goodyear has been up and down all year, and is now coming up from a low of under $10 in October. Fortune acknowledges that demand for tires is cyclical, and you have to time this stock just right. On the plus side, auto sales are starting to get hot again as people replace their aging vehicles.

While Goodyear can rely on replacement-tire business, the economy is too fragile to make a big bet on autos. There's a reason Goodyear Tire is only trading at five times projected earnings.

5. Halliburton (HAL 0.00%). Fortune rightly points out that Halliburton is a good way in to the growing shale gas and oil industry in North America. The oilfield services company is a leader in some of the techniques used in shale gas production, which the U.S. government expects will triple by 2035.

6. Intel (INTC 0.00%). Another iffy one. Fortune says Intel's free cash flow next year should generate dividends and buybacks. But there's no guarantee. Our own Jim Jubak recently pointed out that PC growth is slowing in a stumbling economy and a shift from PCs and laptops to tablets and smartphones.

Intel's price-to-earnings ratio is cheap, Jubak notes, "but with developed economies showing strong signs of slowing, I think the risk in these shares outweighs the reward at this share price."

7. Johnson Controls (JCI 0.00%). I've seen more enthusiasm for Johnson Controls lately than just about any other stock. Fortune points to the company's three prongs of growth: Auto parts, heating and air conditioning systems, and a new battery for "micro-hybrid" cars in Europe and soon in the U.S.

But note that the stock is on a huge decline from over $40 this summer to around $31.53 Thursday. Time to buy? You can read more about Johnson Controls here.

8. Lockheed Martin (LMT 0.00%). A big hang over this stock is the expected cut to the U.S. defense budget. We know it's coming, the question is how much. But Fortune doesn't think the cuts will be that bad in an election year. And the company has a $73 billion order backlog plus expected earnings growth of 2% next year and 10% in 2013.

9. Microsoft (MSFT 0.00%). The price of this stock has gone nowhere for years. Why does Fortune think 2012 will be any different? The magazine thinks the real story here is the dividend payout, not the stock price. With double-digit earnings growth, $57 billion in cash and significant short-term investments, the dividend is poised to increase further. (Microsoft owns and publishes Top Stocks, an MSN Money site.)

10. Royal Bank of Canada (RY 0.00%). A bank stock? Are you serious? Canada's economy has fared better than that of the U.S., with a 2.4% gross domestic product growth rate. The stock has a 5.1% yield, and earnings rose 13% last quarter, Fortune reports.





Bonus Top Stocks for 2012:

1	AAME	Atlantic American Corp	10	10	1.99	0.00	0.00%	0	44.35 Mil	13.30	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Out of favor	Neutral	Neutral	B	A	B	C
2	AMP	Ameriprise Financial Inc	10	10	47.10	0.00	0.00%	0	10.31 Bil	9.60	1.12	2.38%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	C	A	A	B
3	APL	Atlas Pipeline Partners LP	10	10	35.25	0.00	0.00%	0	1.87 Bil	6.90	2.16	6.13%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	A	A	C
4	AUY	Yamana Gold Inc	10	10	16.07	0.00	0.00%	0	11.97 Bil	20.50	0.20	1.24%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	C	A	A	C
5	BMTC	Bryn Mawr Bank Corp	10	10	19.11	0.00	0.00%	20,246	242.11 Mil	11.50	0.60	3.14%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	C	A	C
6	CACC	Credit Acceptance Corp	10	10	91.18	0.00	0.00%	0	2.20 Bil	12.40	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	B	A	A	C
7	CFNL	Cardinal Financial Corp	10	10	10.96	0.00	0.00%	0	308.27 Mil	13.30	0.12	1.09%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	B	B	B
8	CHSP	Chesapeake Lodging Trust	10	10	15.68	0.00	0.00%	0	498.18 Mil	211.70	0.80	5.10%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	B	A		C
9	CMG	Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc	10	10	338.60	0.00	0.00%	0	10.48 Bil	52.10	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	A	A	C
10	CXO	Concho Resources Inc	10	10	100.58	0.00	0.00%	0	10.22 Bil	19.60	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	B	B	C
11	DOV	Dover Corp	10	10	57.20	0.00	0.00%	0	10.33 Bil	12.60	1.26	2.20%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	B	A	B	B
12	EIG	Employers Holdings Inc	10	10	17.84	0.00	0.00%	0	601.30 Mil	13.80	0.24	1.35%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	C	B	A
13	EZPW	Ezcorp Inc	10	10	29.18	0.00	0.00%	0	1.40 Bil	11.50	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	A	C	C
14	HBI	Hanesbrands Inc	10	10	23.50	0.00	0.00%	0	2.22 Bil	8.90	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	B	B	C
15	IMO	Imperial Oil Ltd	10	10	43.44	0.00	0.00%	0	36.66 Bil	11.90	0.43	0.99%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	B	A	B	C
16	KLAC	KLA-Tencor Corp	10	10	49.00	0.00	0.00%	0	8.01 Bil	9.80	1.40	2.86%	15.17%	Neutral	Out of favor	Neutral	B	A	B	C
17	MKTAY	Makita ADR Reptg 1 Ord Shs	10	10	34.52	0.00	0.00%	0	4.80 Bil	11.30	0.82	2.38%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	B	A	B	C
18	MRO	Marathon Oil Corp	10	10	28.33	0.00	0.00%	0	19.25 Bil	10.50	0.60	2.12%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	B	B	C
19	NEU	NewMarket Corp	10	10	199.71	0.00	0.00%	0	2.59 Bil	12.10	3.00	1.50%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	A	B	C
20	NUS	Nu Skin Enterprises Inc	10	10	49.21	0.00	0.00%	0	3.02 Bil	22.20	0.64	1.30%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	B	A	A	C
21	PEB	Pebblebrook Hotel Trust	10	10	18.90	0.00	0.00%	0	933.46 Mil	0.00	0.48	2.54%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	A	B	C
22	PLD	Prologis Inc	10	10	28.70	0.00	0.00%	0	12.80 Bil	0.00	1.12	3.90%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	B	B	C
23	PLL	Pall Corp	10	10	56.66	0.00	0.00%	0	6.05 Bil	19.70	0.70	1.24%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	B	A	B	C
24	QLGC	Qlogic Corp	10	10	15.27	0.00	0.00%	0	1.51 Bil	11.00	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Neutral	Out of favor	Neutral	B	A	B	A
25	RAND	Rand Capital Corp	10	10	2.98	0.00	0.00%	100	20.25 Mil	12.10	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Out of favor	Neutral	Neutral	B	A
26	REX	Rex American Resources Corp	10	10	21.24	0.00	0.00%	0	172.18 Mil	26.70	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	C	A	C
27	RS	Reliance Steel and Aluminum Co	10	10	49.27	0.00	0.00%	0	3.60 Bil	11.40	0.48	0.97%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	B	B	A	C
28	RTIX	Rti Biologics Inc	10	10	4.67	0.00	0.00%	0	241.19 Mil	27.50	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	B	A	C
29	SNDK	SanDisk Corp	10	10	50.39	0.00	0.00%	0	11.99 Bil	10.20	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Neutral	Out of favor	Neutral	B	A	B	C
30	SPSC	SPS Commerce Inc	10	10	24.98	0.00	0.00%	0	294.09 Mil	309.80	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Neutral	Out of favor	Neutral	A	A	A	C
31	TASR	TASER International Inc	10	10	6.33	0.00	0.00%	0	345.71 Mil	0.00	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Neutral	Out of favor	Neutral	B	A	A	C
32	UTHR	United Therapeutics Corp	10	10	42.02	0.00	0.00%	0	2.40 Bil	13.90	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	A	C	A
33	WASH	Washington Trust Bancorp Inc	10	10	23.71	0.00	0.00%	0	375.63 Mil	12.90	0.88	3.71%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	A	C	B
34	WAT	Waters Corp	10	10	74.82	0.00	0.00%	0	6.77 Bil	16.60	0.00	0.00%	15.17%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	A	B	C
35	ANSS	Ansys Inc	10	10	61.98	0.00	0.00%	246,818	5.56 Bil	31.10	0.00	0.00%	13.74%	Neutral	Out of favor	Neutral	A	A	B	C
36	ASR	Grupo Aeroportuario ADR Reptg 10 Ord Shs Series B	10	10	56.63	0.00	0.00%	0	1.59 Bil	15.10	2.55	4.51%	13.74%	Neutral	Out of favor	Neutral	B	A	B	C
37	CA	CA Inc	10	10	21.41	0.00	0.00%	2.90 Mil	10.35 Bil	12.60	0.20	0.93%	13.74%	Neutral	Out of favor	Neutral	A	A	C	C
38	COR	CoreSite Realty Corp	10	10	17.57	0.00	0.00%	0	337.43 Mil	0.00	0.72	4.10%	13.74%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	B	A	C
39	CUBE	CubeSmart Ord Shs	10	10	10.18	0.00	0.00%	0	1.21 Bil	2,600.00	0.32	3.14%	13.74%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A		A
40	DE	Deere and Co	10	10	78.34	0.00	0.00%	0	31.82 Bil	11.60	1.64	2.09%	13.74%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	B	A	B	C
41	DFS	Discover Financial Services	10	10	24.74	0.00	0.00%	0	13.17 Bil	6.40	0.24	0.97%	13.74%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	B	A	B	C
42	HANS	Hansen Natural Corp	10	10	97.14	0.00	0.00%	0	8.30 Bil	32.90	0.00	0.00%	13.74%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	A	B	C
43	LGCY	Legacy Reserves LP	10	10	27.04	0.00	0.00%	0	1.25 Bil	10.40	2.18	8.06%	13.74%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	A	C
44	NDN	99 Cents Only Stores	10	10	21.88	0.00	0.00%	0	1.54 Bil	20.10	0.00	0.00%	13.74%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	A	C	C
45	NVO	Novo-Nordisk ADR repsg 1 B Ord Shs	10	10	114.22	0.00	0.00%	0	54.50 Bil	22.70	1.89	1.65%	13.74%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	C	A	A	C
46	RBCAA	Republic Bancorp Inc	10	10	22.57	0.00	0.00%	0	435.24 Mil	4.70	0.62	2.73%	13.74%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	B	B	C
47	SBNY	Signature Bank	10	10	59.10	0.00	0.00%	239,239	2.62 Bil	17.60	0.00	0.00%	13.74%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	A	A	C
48	SFNC	Simmons First National Corp	10	10	27.25	0.00	0.00%	0	454.30 Mil	12.80	0.76	2.79%	13.74%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	A	C	A	C
49	SNA	SNAP On Inc	10	10	51.41	0.00	0.00%	0	2.92 Bil	11.30	1.36	2.65%	13.74%	Neutral	Out of favor	Neutral	A	A	C	C
50	TCAP	Triangle Capital Corp	10	10	18.93	0.47	2.55%	0	420.68 Mil	6.50	1.88	9.93%	13.74%	Neutral	Neutral	Neutral	B	C	A	A