Top 5 All-Around-Value Stocks for Jan. 13

Management was pleased to be able to report solid performance in the third quarter. Despite difficult economic conditions, the company remained on track to meet its previously stated guidance for full-year fiscal 2008. Although the company has relatively poor debt management based on most measures that we evaluated, we feel that the strengths detailed above outweigh any weaknesses at this time.

Verizon Communications(VZ Quote) provides communication services in the U.S. and internationally. We've rated it a buy since May 2008. Our rating is driven by such strengths as the company's growth in revenue, net income, and EPS, as well as its good cash flow from operations and largely solid financial position.

For the third quarter of fiscal 2008, revenue increased slightly, rising 4.1% year over year. EPS improved 34.1% when compared to the third quarter of fiscal 2007, increasing from 44 cents to 59 cents per share. Verizon's net income growth exceeded that of both the S&P 500 and the Diversified Telecommunication Services industry. Net income increased 31.3% in the third quarter. Net operating cash flow also improved slightly, increasing by 8.8% when compared with the same quarter last year. In addition, the company's debt-to-equity ratio is somewhat low at 0.9, implying that there has been a relatively successful effort to manage debt levels.

Management stated that Verizon's strategic investments in recent years continued to drive growth in wireless, enterprise, broadband, and video in the third quarter. The company plans to continue investing for future growth based on its business plan, despite the current economic conditions. Although a very weak quick ratio indicates that the company may face challenges in financing short-term obligations from normal operations, and the stock itself has shown lackluster performance of late, we feel that the strengths detailed above outweigh any weaknesses at this time.