Flowers Reports on Wednesday

Flowers has been one of my favorite companies for the last several years. The more I learn, the more I become a believer. Management is good and they don't get confused by "high finance" in Thomasville, GA. They consistently grow sale, earnings, and the dividend. A very nice dividend.

On Wednesday they report quarterly earnings. I have no idea if they will exceed analysts' expectations or not, but I'm confident that they won't miss their guidance. Part of my confidence comes from Sara Lee, the bread division, and Tasty. Both reported last week and grew sales and gross profits, benefiting from price increases and ingredient cost decreases. I would expect FLO to benefit from those same trends.

Flowers isn't a home run stock, but it is the kind to own in crummy times. They pay a nice dividend and there is room to move upward in share price, and, the downside, if the market craters, isn't huge. It's a company that allows you to get a return through not only share price appreciation, but a conservative dividend, and a small covered call premium. Now I'm going to eat a donut and contribut to sales revenue.