8. Republic Services Inc. (NYSE: RSG) is often so close in valuation to Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE: WM) that investors may not think there is much of a difference between the two companies.  The business of waste management has many pitfalls, but it also many upsides.  Contracts tend to be long-term and the barriers to entry on a large scale are very high.  These two companies are close to what many investors would consider a duopoly. Republic may have more room for strategic acquisitions, but major deals inside the U.S. are unlikely. Republic is the smaller of the two at a market cap of about $11 billion versus over $16 billion for its rival.  Republic is also cheaper when it comes to forward valuations, although the 2.8% dividend yield has significant room to improve.  When it comes to strategic investors, Republic has become a deep-dive effort for Bill Gates’ Cascades investment vehicle with a seat on the board and with Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A) behind Gates to boot.

9. Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. (NASDAQ: TEVA) has already been a large growth engine while many drug and biotech companies slumped.  The Israel-based company is perhaps the biggest winner when it comes to international expansion and the growth in generic drug sales.  The company recently backed targets out to 2015 when it expects $31 billion in revenue and earn about $6.8 billion.  The company also expects more than $9 billion in its own branded product sales by 2015, and its respiratory product business is expected to grow by about another 150% in the next few years following many new FDA submissions.  Generics will likely remain around 70% of its business and it aims to diversify branded sales away from dependence upon Copaxone for MS with nearly $3 billion in 2009 sales.  Shares are no longer posting gain after gain and the goal of the company is for ongoing and steady growth.

10. The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) is the king for media and entertainment consumers and investors alike.  The company’s holdings include extensive movie library, movie studios, major merchandising, theme parks, vacation destinations, cruises, ESPN, Marvel, Pixar and ABC.  Most units will do well through time and management is stable.  So far in 2010, Disney has yet to recapture its former high share prices of the late 1990’s and in 2000.  Where Disney can improve now is dividends.  Its annualized yield of 0.9% is far too low, and it is an area we expect significant hikes for shareholder payouts over the next decade.

JON C. OGG

Ticker	Price	CY/EPS	1YR/EPS	2YR/EPS	52-WK $Range	Mkt Cap	Dividend
AEP	$37.05	$3.04	$3.16	$3.26	28.26 – 37.94	$17.8 B	4.9%
AWK	$24.55	$1.53	$1.62	$1.72	19.41 – 24.88	$4.3 B	3.5%
CSCO	$24.26	$1.72	$1.98	$2.20	19.82 – 27.74	$139.0 B	N/A
DG	$27.40	$1.79	$2.10	$2.47	21.30 – 31.41	$9.3 B	N/A
XOM	$69.70	$5.82	$6.37	$7.57	55.94 – 76.54	$352.0 B	2.5%
GE	$16.65	$1.12	$1.27	$1.54	13.75 – 19.70	$178.0B	2.9%
KMB	$62.75	$4.65	$5.01	$5.35	58.25 – 67.24	$25.5 B	4.2%
RSG	$28.60	$1.71	$1.97	$2.21	25.15 – 32.95	$11.0 B	2.8%
TEVA	$50.58	$4.55	$5.13	$5.70	46.99 – 64.95	$45.5 B	1.4%
DIS	$37.05	$2.09	$2.39	$2.76	28.23 – 37.98	$71.0 B	0.9%