Seven Dividend Investments to Purchase for Profiting Amid Inflation in 2022

Carlson also recommends real estate investment trusts (REITs) for any investor who wants an inflation hedge. Cohen & Steers Realty Shares (CSRSX) is up 7.41% in the last month and 13.46% in the last three months. The commercial properties owned through the fund’s holdings are likely to appreciate with inflation, and rates are expected by forecasters to increase with inflation.

CSRSX also offers a current dividend yield of 1.56%. Its expense ratio is 0.88%, which is below average, according to Morningstar.

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Consumer Staples Fund Makes List of Seven Dividend Investments to Purchase for Profiting Amid Inflation

Investors who want a diversified group of consumer staples companies that historically have had stable demand and pricing power should consider either Consumer Staples Select SPDR (XLP), which follows the S&P 500 Consumer Staples sector, or the iShares U.S. Consumer Staples ETF (IYK), which seeks to track the investment results of the Russell 1000 Consumer Staples sector, Carlson counseled. Returns between the two funds are comparable over both longer and shorter periods.

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XLP has a higher dividend yield of 2.28%, compared to 1.49% for IYK. XLP also has slightly lower expenses than IYK. Both ETFs are fairly concentrated. XLP has 72% of its assets in its 10 largest positions, while 64% of IYK is in its 10 largest holdings.

Consumer Goods ETF Is One of Seven Dividend Investments to Purchase for Profiting Amid Inflation

Consumer goods are needed in all kinds of economies. People will buy certain products whether inflation is on the rise or not. That price elasticity of demand helps funds such as IYK whose holdings seek to mirror the performance of consumer goods stocks. Many investors also have realized it and the share price of IYK has been on the rise since hitting a trough at the start of December.

Borg Warner Gains Seat Among Seven Dividend Investments to Purchase for Profiting Amid Inflation

BofA’s top pick in the consumer discretionary sector is Borg Warner Inc. (NYSE: BWA), a beneficiary of inflation and capital expenditures. The investment firm describes the stock as high quality and fortified by strong free cash flow.

Borg Warner, an Auburn Hill, Michigan-based automotive supplier, employs roughly 50,000 people and has operations in 24 countries. BofA has given Borg Warner a $55 price objective.

However, BofA wrote in a recent research note that its top buys for 2022 should be held through the full calendar year. The catalysts expected to drive the performance of each are not likely to be fleeting.

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Wells Fargo Ranks Among Seven Dividend Investments to Purchase for Profiting Amid Inflation

BofA’s favorite financial stock to buy in 2022 is Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC), a high quality, value purchase that offers positive prospects in the face of inflation, increased GDP and interest rate betas. San Francisco-based Wells Fargo received a $60 price target from BofA, which called the valuation in line with the bank’s peer average.

Risks to attaining the price objective are an economic slowdown, elevated expense trajectory and slower-than-expected resolution of its consent orders with banking regulators. To outperform the price target of BofA for the bank, potential catalysts could include better-than-expected credit quality, i.e., loan losses and material expense management that improves future earnings.

“Our conversations with investors suggest some concern around franchise attrition the longer Wells is required to operate under the asset-cap,” BofA wrote. “The path to stock outperformance is not straightforward, but at the current valuation, we see the risk/reward skewed to the upside.”

Wells Fargo appears better positioned to benefit more from higher rates than other banks, BoA opined.

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Eaton Corp. Earns Place Among Seven Dividend Investments to Purchase for Profiting Amid Inflation

Eaton Corp. Plc (NYSE: ETN), a Dublin, Ireland-based diversified power management company, is BofA’s top-ranked industrials stock for 2022, offering positive inflation, GDP and oil price betas. The stock also is a capital expenditure and manufacturing reshoring beneficiary, BofA noted.

Eaton Corp. gained a buy recommendation from BoA and has been in operation for more than 100 years. Its business units include electrical products, electrical systems and services, aerospace, vehicles and, most recently, e-mobility.

Eaton’s mission is to improve the quality of life and the environment by using power management technologies and services. The company provides sustainable solutions to help its customers effectively manage electrical, hydraulic and mechanical power safely, efficiently and reliably. Eaton sells products to customers in more than 175 countries.

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BofA gave Eaton a $195 price objective based on the investment firm’s 2022 estimates. The valuation of Eaton is at a slight premium to the company’s peer average, but the valuation is warranted due to expected upside from cyclical operating leverage, strong margin performance and Eaton’s less cyclical portfolio mix, BoA added.

Downside risks to BoA’s price target for Eaton are a worse-than-expected global industrial recession, especially in commercial construction, and mergers and acquisitions that require the availability of synergistic targets and the ability to integrate them. Another risk to watch is the trajectory of the recovery in automotive and aerospace end markets.

NRG Energy Gains Berth Among Seven Dividend Investments to Purchase for Profiting Amid Inflation

Houston-based NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NRG) is an energy company that formerly operated as the wholesale arm of Northern States Power Company, a precursor to Xcel Energy. NRG Energy is BofA’s current favorite among utilities with positive inflation and GDP betas. The stock also screens well on the investment firm’s Alpha Surprise and DDM Alpha models.

On Dec. 6, 2021, NRG Energy Inc. closed its previously announced sale of approximately 4,850 MWs of fossil-generating assets from its East and West regions to Generation Bridge, an affiliate of ArcLight Capital Partners. Upon closing, NRG received $620 million of net proceeds, after purchase price adjustments. The transaction is expected to be leverage neutral with $500 million of the net proceeds allocated to deleveraging.

After closing the asset sale, the NRG Board of Directors authorized $1 billion for share repurchases, effective immediately. The program is expected to continue throughout 2022.

“Closing this transaction further advances our strategic priorities of decarbonizing our portfolio while aligning our business with the evolving needs of our customers,” said Mauricio Gutierrez, NRG’s president and chief executive officer. “We remain focused on advancing the strategic priorities we outlined during our June 2021 Investor Day, including executing on our free cash flow per share growth roadmap and maintaining a strong balance sheet to create significant value for our stakeholders.”

Under the share repurchase authorization, repurchases can be made from time to time using a variety of methods, which may include open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions or otherwise, in accordance with the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission and other applicable legal requirements. The timing and amount of any shares of NRG’s common stock that are bought under the share repurchase authorization will be determined by NRG’s management based on market conditions and other factors.

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Non-dividend F5 Does Not Qualify to Join Seven Dividend Investments to Purchase for Profiting from Inflation

Seattle-based F5 Networks (NASDAQ:FFIV) is the preferred information technology stock recommended by BofA for 2022 but its lack of a dividend disqualifies it from joining the seven income-producing investments to purchase to profit from inflation. Nonetheless, ,BofA found that F5 offers positive betas versus inflation, GDP and interest rates.

F5 Networks produced a potent performance in fiscal fourth quarter and the fiscal year ended September 30, 2021. François Locoh-Donou, F5’s president and chief executive officer, said the company’s strong fourth-quarter results cap a year of robust financial strength. With software revenue representing 45% of product revenue in the fourth quarter, and 80% of this software revenue from subscriptions, F5 is achieving milestones in its rapid transformation to a software-led business model, Locoh-Donou said.

“Skyrocketing application usage and heightened security awareness are driving strong demand for F5 solutions on premises, in the cloud and across multiple clouds,” Locoh-Donou said. “Expanded solutions portfolio and vision for enabling Adaptive Applications puts F5 at the intersection of strong and sustainable secular trends and positions the company for continued strong revenue and earnings growth.”

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America Tops 1 Million New Cases for the First Time

The United States topped 1 million new coronavirus cases for the first time on Monday, Jan. 3. The total of roughly 1.08 million people likely was heightened by people delaying testing for the virus amid holiday weekend celebrations.

The new high nearly doubled the previous peak of 591,000 of new COVID-19 cases set Thursday, Dec. 30. The 2021 holiday season marks the second straight year that COVID-19 has interfered with the travel plans of families and their friends seeking to gather. Thousands of flights already have been cancelled due to rising COVID cases, with many workers at airlines, airports and related retailers calling in sick.

Scientists have found that the new Omicron variant of COVID-19 is spreading much faster than the highly infectious Delta variant. However, the severity of the Omicron variant, compared to Delta version, does not seem nearly as severe, according to early studies.

Omicron recently has become the dominant variant of COVID-19 in the United States by far. That version of the coronavirus is blamed for causing Mid-Atlantic areas such as Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia to shatter records for daily cases. Many other regions are reporting new highs for COVID-19 cases, too.

COVID-19 Concerns Mount Along With Cases and Deaths

The Omicron variant of COVID-19 and the Delta version are heightening concerns in the United States and other parts of the world. Public health experts and government leaders advocate increased vaccinations and booster shots, as well as indoor mask wearing.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that the variants are boosting the number of people receiving COVID-19 vaccinations. But nearly 62 million people in the United States remain eligible to become vaccinated but have not done so, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the chief White House medical adviser on COVID-19.

As of Jan 7, 246,050,320 people, or 74.1% of the U.S. population, have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, the CDC reported. People who are fully vaccinated total 207,229,983, or 62.4% of the U.S. population, according to the CDC.

COVID-19 deaths worldwide, as of Jan. 7, topped the 5.4 million mark to hit 5,478,9954, according to Johns Hopkins University. Worldwide COVID-19 cases have zoomed past 302 million, reaching 302,910,416 on that date.

U.S. COVID-19 cases, as of Jan. 7, hit 59,388,528 and caused 836,478 deaths. America has the dubious distinction as the country with the most COVID-19 cases and deaths.

The seven dividend investments to purchase for profiting from inflation in 2022 are recommended to buy and hold for at least the full year, not traded for short-term gains. Investors willing to follow that patient approach may find the strategy nicely profitable.