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Campbell Soup CompanyCPBCOMMENTJul 19, 2016Stock price when the opinion was issued
As of Jun 18, 2026. Market Open.
A lot of bond proxies, including staples, have been under pressure. If CPB can rise above its current trend channel, we'd see a new uptrend. That's a concern, because when things go great, then people don't need to buy staples. Also, if he sees CPB move higher and break its downtrend, then it would tell him that something big is happening, that portfolio managers are becoming cautious.
There are 2 key themes in the market. One is people who are betting on low interest rates, low inflation and low growth. In that camp, people are saying they’ll buy a dividend as opposed to a fixed income at record low yields. This is not an exciting company, but a pretty defensible one. People are buying this because it pays a 2% dividend that will slowly grow over time. It is not economically sensitive. If you believe we are in a low growth environment for a long time, these consumer staples, utilities and telcos could trade at significantly higher multiples.