Dividend.com: Emerson Electric Juiced

Emerson Electric Delivers Pretty Powerful Earnings

Emerson Electric(EMR Quote), maker of thermostats, electrical motors and uninterruptible power supplies, delivered a decent second-quarter report today, with sales that rose 14% to $6.57 billion. The company cited strong demand from the oil and gas industry as well as sales of its network power systems.

Management is slightly raising the full-year guidance to a range of $3.05 to $3.10 per share, above the previous $3.00 to $3.10 range.

Emerson stock is down about 15% this year, and we are keeping a close eye on any further deterioration. For now, investors may want to hold off adding to the position, even though the stock remains on our "Recommended" list. We'd like to see how the company is able to execute if there is any dropoff in demand from its energy customers. The stock does have a decent 2.51% dividend yield, based on last night's closing stock price of $47.83.

Archer Daniels Midland Profit Decreases on Ethanol Decline

Archer Daniels Midland (ADM Quote) continues to flounder, as the second-quarter results came in 12 cents below expectations. Profit margins are being hit by high corn, energy and transportation costs. ADM shares are hitting a two-year low as the ethanol craze has all but died out.

The company is also seeing grain prices correct, on favorable U.S. crop weather and profit-taking. The bull market in corn is also hurting the stock, eroding ethanol margins and reducing incentives for farmers to produce alternative fuels from crops.

We continue to think ADM is a stock to avoid. ADM had a big run-up three months ago, which was a great time to take profits. The stock has a mediocre dividend yield of 1.90%, based on last night's closing stock price of $27.40.