by Nkem Iregbulem
Mother’s Day is coming up on May 12th this year in the United States. On this special day, family members honor mothers and motherhood. Mother’s Day is celebrated by over 40 countries around the world in different ways and on various days – particularly in the months of March and May. To display gratitude, family members often shower mothers in gifts such as chocolates, flowers, jewelry, and cards.
The holiday was first created in the United States by Anna Jarvis in 1908 but did not become an official national holiday until 1914. Celebrations of motherhood, however, are centuries old and can be traced back to the ancient Greeks and Romans. The Greeks honored Rhea, their mother of gods, with offerings of honey-cakes, fine drinks, and flowers at dawn. The Romans honored Magna Mater by bringing gifts to the temple they built for her in Rome. During the 1600s, England honored mothers of England with a Christian festival known as “Mothering Sunday.” Since then, the holiday has grown more and more popular around the world.
There are a few stocks that may benefit from the commercialization of Mother’s Day. These include Hershey (HSY), Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Inc. (RMCF), Nestle (NSRGY), 1-800-Flowers.com Inc. (FLWS), and CSS Industries Inc. (CSS). The RMCF and FLWS stocks are traded on the NASDAQ exchange. The HSY and CSS stocks are traded on the New York Stock Exchange, and the NSRGY stock is traded over-the-counter.
One company that could benefit from the annual celebration is The Hershey Co., one of the largest chocolate manufacturers in the world. The Hershey Company, headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania, controls around 45% of the domestic chocolate market. Its products are offered in about 80 countries including the United States, China, Brazil, India, and Mexico. The leading chocolate company sells Mother’s Day favorites such as chocolate and other sweets to its customers.
The company has a market cap of $26.1 billion and pays a dividend yield of 2.31%. With a price-to-sales ratio of 3.36, its stock is slightly overpriced. The stock trades at 22.59 times trailing earnings and at 22.22 times forward earnings. The company’s stock also has a high price-to-book ratio of 18.47. Its revenue has been increasing each fiscal year since 2015, giving Hershey a 3-year revenue growth rate of 1.79%.
A mother might appreciate a sweet gift from Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Inc, a company that manufactures chocolate candies and confectionery products. Founded in 1981 and based in Colorado, it operates in the United States, Japan, Canada, Philippines, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates. The company’s business activity can be divided into a couple segments: Franchising, Manufacturing, Retail Stores, U-Swirl Operations, and Other. Its products include clusters, truffles, caramels, mints, and molded chocolates – all great Mother’s Day gifts.
Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Inc. has a low market cap of $57.98 million and pays a dividend yield of 4.92%. With a negative 3-year growth rate of -2.84%, the company has seen decreasing revenue values each fiscal year since 2015. Its stock has a normal price-to-sales ratio of 1.64 and a price-to-book ratio of 2.82. The stock also trades at 23.85 times trailing earnings.
You might find the perfect Mother’s Day gift at Nestle, a well-known chocolate powerhouse founded in 1866.By sales, the Swiss company is the world’s largest food and beverage company. Brands such as Nestle, Nescafe, Perrier, Pure Life, and Purina are all part of the company’s product portfolio. Under these brands and various other brands, the company offers chocolate and other food products.
The company has a market cap of $284.96 billion and pays dividend yield of 2.57%. With a price-to-sales ratio of 3.22, the company’s stock is slightly overpriced. It trades at 24.32 times trailing earnings and at 22.42 times forward earnings. The stock has a price-to-book ratio of 5.07. Nestle’s revenue has been increasing each fiscal year since 2015, giving the company a 3-year growth rate of 0.99%.
Another company that might benefit from Mother’s Day sales is 1-800-Flowers.com Inc. Based in New York, the company was founded in 1982. 1-800-Flowers.com offers flowers, candy, stuffed animals, gift baskets, and candles – gifts a Mother would love to receive on her special day. Other products include fruits, popcorn, steaks, and cookies. These products are offered under brands such as 1-800-Baskets.com, The Popcorn Factory, and Fannie May.
1-800-Flowers.com Inc. has a market cap of $1.23 billion and does not pay a dividend yield. Its stock trades at 36.23 times trailing earnings and at 37.59 times forward earnings. It has a normal price-to-sales ratio of 1.06 and a price-to-book ratio of 3.46. With a 3-year revenue growth rate of 0.90%, the company has seen its revenue increase each fiscal year from 2010 to 2017 before a slight drop in 2018.
Founded in 1923 and headquartered in Pennsylvania, CSS Industries Inc. (CSS) is another company that offers Mother’s Day related products. The company makes gift wrap and greeting cards for special occasions. CSS Industries also offers products such as classroom exchange Valentines, journals, floral accessories, and scrapbooks. It distributes and sells these products to mass market retailers in the United States and Canada.
CSS Industries has a low market cap of $55.31 million and pays a dividend yield of 12.78%. The stock trades at 20.20 times forward earnings. The company’s stock has an excellent price-to-sales ratio of 0.14 and a low price-to-book ratio of 0.26. CSS Industries’ revenue has been increasing since 2015, giving the company 3-year revenue growth rate of 4.95%.
Happy Mother’s Day!
Disclosure: Author did not own any of the above at the time the article was written.
CSS Industries Inc. (CSS) markets gift wrap, gift bags, boxed greeting cards, gift tags, tissue paper, decorations, and decorative ribbons and bows. The stock trades at 7.8 times forward earnings, and pays a generous forward dividend yield of about 10%.
