There are no safe havens in the stock market. Every stock carries risk. But some less than others. This column features stocks that have shown one or more of the following characteristics: less volatility, better earnings, larger market caps, safe and increasing dividends. In these times of turmoil, our goal is to show readers better opportunities for investing with fewer risks.

April 5, 2010 - Procter & Gamble Co. (PG-NYSE) engages in the manufacture and sale of consumer goods worldwide. The company operates in three global business units (GBUs): Beauty, Health and Well-Being, and Household Care.

The Health and Well-Being GBU provides feminine care, oral care, and personal health care products under Always, Crest, and Oral-B brands; and pet food and snacks under the Iams and Pringles brands.

The Household Care GBU offers air care products, batteries, dish care products, and fabric care and surface care products under the Ariel, Dawn, Downy, Duracell, Gain, and Tide brands; and baby wipes, bath tissues, diapers, facial tissues, and paper towels under the Bounty, Charmin, and Pampers brands. The company sells to mass merchandisers, grocery stores, membership club stores, and drug stores. The Procter & Gamble Company was founded in 1837 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.

In 2009, the U.S. accounted for 39% of total sales, and Wal-Mart did 15% of total revenues. Beauty Care was 33% of sales, Health and Well Being accounted for 46%, and Household products did 21%. Total sales in 2009 were $79.03 billion (fiscal year ends in June), down from $83.5 billion in 2008. This year, 15 analysts see a slight improvement to $79.79 billion.

Management's efforts for improving the bottom line won't take hold this year. It's been focused on new products, lower pricing, cost-savings, and restructuring to help build the bottom line. They take time. And once those are all firing, expect good profit growth out to 2015.

One other factor for profits: sticking to core businesses. Last year PG sold Folger's, the coffee maker and got out of the global pharmaceutical market. It turned attention to creating new products within its core offerings. It also will most likely boost its marketing campaigns this year as the global economy heals, hoping to capitalize on its highly recognizable brand name and quality products as consumers begin to spend more.

In the last year, the overseas markets have been performing better than the U.S., with emerging economies growing the fastest. However, currency volatility and political instability may slow this growth, even stop it in some countries. Also, more competitors have noticed P&G's success in these markets and are ramping their efforts. Look for P&G to fight back with more promotions.

Pricing is another marketing tool. Expect P&G to start lowering prices. Last year, it had to increase some to compensate for higher input costs. But those costs have stopped going up. Some have declined. It can pass those savings on to customers with lower prices, giving consumers better value.

For the last 15 years, the dividend increased. In 1994, it was 31 cents a share. Now it's $1.76, up from $1.72 last year. The dividend takes 48% of earnings to pay so it's relatively safe. Also, the company has a solid balance sheet with debt only 24% of capital. Value Line rates the company as A++ for Financial Strength.

More numbers: P/E is 15. Price to sales ratio is 2.33 while Price to book ratio is 2.73. Book value is $23.18. Operating margin for the last 12 months was 21.22%. Return on equity was 17.61%. Return on assets was 7.67%. Total cash is $4.13 billion or $1.42 per share. Total debt is $30.09 billion. There are 2.9 billion shares outstanding. Institutions own 59% of them.

Conservative investors will like this stock for its solid balance sheet, diverse revenues, and growing dividends. The more they dig, the more they'll discover why this stock held up so well over the last year, even when the rest of the market was getting hammered.

- Company Web site: www.pg.com

- Ted Allrich