Buy and hold FOREVER!

[Dividend Watcher]

(03-20-2014, 10:15 PM)Concasto Wrote: WM/RSG - Waste management companies will always be in demand. These two may be out of business one day due to management mistakes, but the industry will only grow as more and more people enter the middle class and consumption grows.

In theory it makes perfect sense, Concasto. At least around here, Waste Management is a small cog in the trash field. There a hundreds of "family" and small closely-held corporate regional trash companies around not to mention many municipalities still providing trash services. Part of my family has been in the trash field for 3 generations. Often, they'll build the business up, sell out to WM or one of the regionals for a very good price and then a few years later go right back into the business in competition with their previous companies.

WM is dealing with a high debt load, slow growth and a high dividend payout ratio. Couldn't tell you about RSG since I know nothing about it. If you're thinking of investing, I'd make sure you had a good margin of safety.

In addition, many CEOs and analysts have talked about the bifurcation of the income levels with both P&G and KRFT lately specifically talking about the challenges of the barbell consumption patterns. The "middle class" growth has slowed versus high and low income classes for the last few years. I'm sure this can change over time but it may take a long time.

I looked at WM for a while but shied away for now. I wouldn't call it a "forever" stock without some higher growth unless you needed the higher yield but slower growth to boost your income.