Top 5 Mid-Cap Stocks: Landauer, Strayer

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The following five mid-cap companies have market values of $500 million to $10 billion, and receive "buy" recommendations from TheStreet.com Ratings' proprietary quantitative model, which considers more than 60 factors. The stocks are ordered by their potential to appreciate.

Landauer(LDR Quote) offers personnel radiation monitoring to measure the dosage of X-rays, gamma radiation and other penetrating ionizing radiation to which a person has been exposed.

The numbers: Fiscal second-quarter revenue increased 5% to $25 million as net income and earnings per share fell 16% to $5.4 million and 58 cents, respectively. Operating margin declined 14 basis points to 42% and net margin fell 532 basis points to 22%. The company has no debt or interest expenses, and a quick ratio of 1.9 indicates ample liquidity.

The stock: Landauer has fallen 18% in 2009, underperforming the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500. The stock offers a 3.5% dividend yield and trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of about 25.

Strayer Education(STRA Quote) is a for-profit post-secondary education company that offers a variety of academic programs through Strayer University.

The numbers: Fiscal first-quarter revenue increased 28% to $125 million as net income jumped 24% to $29 million and earnings per share improved 26% to $2.07. Operating margin improved 162 basis points to 38% as net margin fell 89 basis points to 23%. Strayer has no debt and a quick ratio of 1.5, indicating an ideal financial position.

The stock: Strayer has fallen 6% in 2009, outperforming the Dow and underperforming the S&P 500. The stock is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 33. A 1% dividend yield sweetens the stock, but is below the S&P 500 average.