Billionaire Michael Price’s Long Term Stock Picks Include Citigroup Inc (C)

Becton, Dickinson and Co. (NYSE:BDX) has been another of Price’s long term stock picks; the most recent filing disclosed ownership of about 240,000 shares of the medical device company. There was little change in either sales or net income in its most recent quarterly report compared to the same period in the previous fiscal year; with the stock trading at 16 times forward earnings estimates, that doesn’t seem like attractive financial performance considering Becton, Dickinson and Co. (NYSE:BDX)’s valuation. As a result investors should probably avoid the stock for now.

MFP Investors reported a position of 2.2 million shares in Ruth’s Hospitality Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:RUTH) as of the beginning of April, and the fund has been a long term owner of this stock as well. Ruth’s Hospitality Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:RUTH) owns and franchises table service restaurants including under the Ruth’s Chris Steak House brand. At a market capitalization of about $460 million (there is close to $4 million in daily dollar volume), the stock is valued at 26 times trailing earnings. That’s expensive for a table service restaurant in the current environment, but recent reports do show decent growth numbers.

Still, we would hold off on Ruth’s Hospitality Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:RUTH) until we see high enough earnings to price the stock in line with its peers. The same thesis seems appropriate for GulfMark Offshore, Inc. (NYSE:GLF) and McGraw Hill Financial Inc (NYSE:MHFI)- wait until the company delivers more of these improved earnings that the market is currently pricing in. Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) is worth a look, as the stock is somewhat cheap in book terms, though many other large banks are also trading at P/B ratios of 1 or lower and so investors should also evaluate industry peers.

Disclosure: I own no shares of any stocks mentioned in this article.