Top 5 Mid-Caps for Nov. 27

Looking ahead to fiscal 2009, New Jersey Resources forecasts net financial earnings in the range of $2.30 to $2.40 per basic share. Approximately 30% to 40% of those earnings are expected to come from the company's wholesale energy services subsidiary, NJR Energy Services. The company shows low profit margins, but we feel that its strengths outweigh any potential weakness at this time. Strong earnings growth has helped the stock price rise over the past year, and the stock should see more upside potential unless a broad bear market prevails.

Church & Dwight(CHD Quote) develops, manufactures and markets household, personal care, and specialty products under well-recognized brand names such as Arm & Hammer, Brillo, Kaboom, OxiClean and Trojan. We have rated Church & Dwight a buy since November 2001.

For the third quarter of fiscal 2008, Church & Dwight reported that its earnings declined 5.3% year over year in the third quarter of fiscal 2008, hurt by higher operating expenses. Although net income fell to $48.99 million from $51.72 million in the prior year's quarter, earnings were reported at 73 cents per share excluding restructuring charges related to a plant closing, beating the consensus estimate of 69 cents per share. Net sales grew 8.7% compared to the third quarter of fiscal 2008. Revenue growth was reported across various businesses, including 9.7% growth from the Consumer Domestic segment and 4.3% growth from the Consumer International segment. According to the company, price increases, new products and increased distribution on key brands helped drive organic revenue growth in the quarter.