Whole Foods Market, Inc. (WFM): Why I Finally Bought This Stock

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What’s more, Whole Foods Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:WFM) management plans to increase the total number of domestic stores to 1,000, or nearly triple the 345 total locations it currently maintains. If that sounds aggressive, consider that grocery giant Safeway Inc. (NYSE:SWY) currently has more than 1,600 locations, and the behemoth SUPERVALU INC. (NYSE:SVU) boasted more than 5,000 stores at the end of last year. Compared to both Safeway and SUPERVALU INC. (NYSE:SVU), at least, Whole Foods has plenty of room to grow — and plenty of market share to grab along the way.

As it stands, Whole Foods is currently building around 10 new units per quarter, so it’s safe to say that today’s investors can still enjoy many years of steady, predictable growth going forward. And thanks to its strong free cash flow and cash and investments of $1.2 billion at the end of last quarter, the company should have no problems financing both its expansion and $0.20-per-share quarterly dividend.

As usual, this is a long-term play for me, so I fully intend to hold Whole Foods Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:WFM) stock in my portfolio for at least the next decade. If you do the same, I’m convinced you’ll be more than satisfied with the end result.

The article Why I Finally Bought Whole Foods Stock originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Steve Symington.

Fool contributor Steve Symington owns shares of Whole Foods Market. The Motley Fool recommends and owns shares of Whole Foods Market. It also owns shares of SUPERVALU.

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