Some European nations may be trying to keep their heads above
water, but not all is doom and gloom on the continent. Take the
tech sector. Here is a quick look at seven companies with share
prices that are between 13% and 64% higher than at the beginning
of the year despite recent pull backs. They all trade on U.S.
exchanges and are dividend payers as well.
Accenture
's (NYSE:
ACN
) share price has pulled back more than 3% from a recent
mulityear high but is still up almost 20% year to date. The
Dublin-based IT giant just announced completion of its
acquisition of a Madrid-based consulting firm. Accenture, a $44.9
billion market cap company, has a return on equity of 62.7% and a
dividend yield of 2.1%. Over the past six months, the stock has
outperformed IBM (NYSE:
IBM
) but underperformed the broader markets.
See also:
U.S. Department of State Awards Accenture Task
Orders to Improve Procurement Process
ASM International
(NASDAQ:
ASMI
) is up more than 30% year to date but the share price has pulled
back about 3% since the start of April. This Dutch semiconductor
maker has recovered from substantial losses in 2009 and 2010. It
has a return on equity of 34.8% and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Its
market cap is $2.1 billion. The stock has outperformed rivals
such as Applied Materials (NASDAQ:
AMAT
) and Novellus (NASDAQ:
NVLS
) since the beginning of the year.
London-based
BT Group
(NYSE:
BT
) saw its share price rise more than 18% to a multiyear high in
March but it has pulled back more than 7% since then. This
British telecom recently announced a deal that would pay down the
deficit in its staff pension fund. The company's market cap is
$27.4 billion and its dividend yield is 3.4%. The PE ratio is 9.6
and the return on equity is 437.5%. The stock has outperformed
the likes of Vodafone Group (NASDAQ:
VOD
) over the past six months.
SAP
(NYSE:
SAP
) is more than 24% higher than at the beginning of the year but
has dropped more than 5% in the past week. The German company has
announced a new unit, SAP National Security Services, that will
support national security and intelligence agencies. SAP's market
cap is $80.9 billion and the return on equity is 30.6%. The stock
has outperformed larger competitors IBM, Microsoft (NASDAQ:
MSFT
) and Oracle (NASDAQ:
ORCL
) over the past six months.
See also:
SAP to Acquire Syclo, Extends Leadership in
Mobilizing the Enterprise
Seagate Technology
(NASDAQ:
STX
) is more than 63% higher year to date but shares have traded
mostly between $26 and $28 since early February. Third-quarter
results are expected to be stellar when Seagate reports earnings
next week. The Dublin-based device maker has an $11.9 billion
market cap, a long-range EPS growth forecast of 36.3% and a
dividend yield of 3.8%. Over the past six months, the stock has
outperformed competitor Western Digital (NYSE:
WDC
).
See also:
Top Stock Picks of Best Performing Hedge Fund
Managers
Shares of
STMicroelectronics
(NYSE:
STM
) are trading more than 26% higher year to date despite dropping
more than 9% in the past week. The Swiss semiconductor producer
is expected to post a narrow Q1 loss when it reports April 23,
but its long-range EPS growth forecast is 39.2%. It has a market
cap of $6.7 billion and a dividend yield of 5.4%. Year to date,
the stock has outperformed competitors such as Intel (NASDAQ:
INTC
) and Texas Instruments (NASDAQ:
TXN
).
VimpelCom
's (NYSE:
VIP
) share price is up more than 15% year to date despite pulling
back about 9% in the past month. The Amsterdam-based wireless
provider posted a net loss for the fourth quarter due to
acquisition-related costs. The $14.2 billion market cap company
has a dividend yield of 7.3%. Its long-range EPS growth forecast
is 62.6%. But the stock has underperformed competitor Mobile
Telesystems OJSC (NYSE:
MBT
), as well as the broader markets, over the past six months.
ACTION ITEMS:
Bullish:
Investors interested in non-U.S. tech stocks with healthy
dividends may want to consider the following trades:
- Cellcom Israel (NYSE:
CEL
) has a dividend yield of 18.6%.
- Partner Communications (NASDAQ:
PTNR
) has a dividend yield of 16.5%.
- Telefonica (NYSE:
TEF
) has a dividend yield of 13.7%.
- France Telecom (NYSE:
FTE
) has a dividend yield of 13.4%.
Bearish:
Traders may prefer to consider these alternative positions
in U.S. tech stocks:
- CA Technologies (NASDAQ:
CA
) is almost 34% higher year to date.
- Broadcom (NASDAQ:
BRCM
) is almost 26% higher year to date.
- Agilent Technologies (NYSE:
A
) is about 25% higher year to date.
Neither Benzinga nor its staff recommend that you buy,
sell, or hold any security. We do not offer investment advice,
personalized or otherwise. Benzinga recommends that you conduct
your own due diligence and consult a certified financial
professional for personalized advice about your financial
situation.
(c) 2011 Benzinga.com. All rights reserved. This material
may not be published in its entirety or redistributed without
the approval of Benzinga.