Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Chocolate Lowers Heart Failure Risk for Women


Chocolate has lots of benefits. It reportedly reduces wrinkles and aging according to chocolate maker, Barry Callebaut AG (BYCBF.PK), and it also helps lower blood pressure and reduce the possibility of strokes. It is even good for your liver. Chocolate has even been beneficial for Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A) (BRK-B).

It seems like every month, another benefit turns up. Now it turns out that, according to a Swedish study of about 32,000 women, chocolate can reduce the risk of heart failure in women. There was a finding of a 32% lower heart failure risk for women who ate European chocolate. However, there is a caveat; researchers said that the chocolate should only be eaten in moderation.

Fortunately, there are several investment opportunities with a large exposure to chocolate. Here are a couple that may be worth taking a bite out of.

Hershey (HSY) was founded in 1894. It is the largest manufacturer of chocolate in North America and one of the largest chocolate and candy companies in the world. Hershey's Kisses were invented in 1901 and their chocolate chips were brought out in 1928. The stock has a P/E of 22, a forward PE of 17, with a tasty yield of 2.8%. It sports a PEG ratio of 2.39.

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Inc. (RMCF) is a very low cap stock [and should therefore be considered very speculative], based in Durango, Colorado, which makes and markets caramels, creams, mints, and truffles. The company, which was founded in 1981, has over 300 franchise locations in 40 states, along with Canada and the United Arab Emirates. The P/E is 16, and the company pays a delicious yield of 4.1%.

If you want to see a list of all the publicly traded chocolate stocks, go to WallStreetNewsNetwork.com.

Author does not own any of the above.

By Stockerblog.com

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