Report Card: Machinery Industry Group With 5 Components

ByRobinson Roacho:The machinery and tools sector has been in favor since late last year.

By Steven Bauer: The computer integrated systems industry group is composed of the giant International Business Machines (IBM) with many very good peer companies. I have selected five of the largest peer companies for this article. Apple, Inc. (AAPL) is one of my top-five bellwether companies for comparative analytics.

By Takeover Analyst:If you are looking for high-risk investments that appear to be offset by potential rewards, the construction and agricultural machinery industry may be your thing. Businesses within this sector are trading at overly low multiples while the economy is, as a whole, heading in the right direction.

ByBlack Coral Research: Industrial Machinery Stocks Outlook Analysts forecast a healthy outlook for industrial production, but they also expect limited cyclical upside and potential multiple compression risk for construction rental and aerial platform this year. Crane manufacturers, rental companies and wallboard suppliers are significantly earlier in the cycle in U.S. construction.

ByFusion Research:The last six months have been a dream run for Terex Corp (TEX) with positive returns of ~73%.

By Takeover Analyst:With the federal government looking to scale back spending, construction companies will face reduced momentum in infrastructure. Stocks in the sector have nevertheless rallied since the early-2008 with Deere (DE) and Caterpillar (CAT) increasing by around 450% in value.

ByMarshall Hargrave:Economic bellwethers are considered staple stocks when it comes to judging how the over all economy is doing. For the most part, broad based equipment and diversified products companies generally make the best bellwether. When talking about bellwethers, global equipment maker Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) is one of the first companies that comes to mind, but is it really the top bellwether?

By Takeover Analyst:Although many are worried about budget cuts in infrastructure, I still find reasons to be optimistic about construction companies.