24/7 Wall St.

24/7 Wall St. will name its annual CEO of the Year later this week. The executive will be picked from a field of ten which we will profiled over the last ten days.

The CEOs are chosen on the basis of their company’s stock market and financial performances compared with their own industry groups and all large companies traded on US markets. Only firms with market caps of more than $5 billion were considered. 24/7 reviewed revenue growth, operating margins, balance sheets, return on assets, and return on equity.

Over the last year, shares in Kraft (KFT) have outperformed the DJIA, Coke (KO), Kellogg (K), and Pepsi (PEP).

In the last quarter, Kraft beat Wall St. estimates on both EPS and revenue. The company was able to pass along most of its rising costs to customers. Kraft added to its strong numbers by increasing its dividend and receiving the distinction of replacing AIG (AIG) in the DJIA.

Many investors thought Irene Rosenfeld got off to a slow start as Kraft CEO. She is moving along nicely now. With the cost efficiencies she has built into the company investors should see margin benefits now that commodities prices are falling.

Douglas A. McIntyre