DIEBOLD INC. $30 (New York symbol DBD; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 66.3 million; Market cap: $2 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.6; WSSF Rating: Average) is one of the world’s leading makers of automated-teller machines (ATMs). The company also makes safes, vaults, building-security systems and electronic-voting machines.

Banks have been spending less on new ATMs because of the financial crisis. As well, the recession has prompted many retailers to close stores. This has hurt demand for Diebold’s building-security products and services. The company has aggressively cut its costs in response, including moving most of its manufacturing to China and Hungary. It also sold its manufacturing operations in Argentina.

In the three months ended June 30, 2009, Diebold earned $30.4 million, or $0.46 a share. That’s up 11.8% from $27.2 million, or $0.41 a share, a year earlier. If you exclude unusual costs, most of which were in the year-earlier period, earnings per share would have fallen 29.0%, to $0.49 from $0.69. Sales fell 8.9%, to $700.5 million from $768.7 million.

The company’s latest restructuring should lower its costs by $30 million to $35 million in 2009. It aims to bring this up to $100 million a year by the end of 2011. These savings will help it remain profitable until the economy recovers.

Diebold spends 2.5% of its revenue on research, and continues to upgrade its ATM and vault technology. For example, it recently launched a system that can detect counterfeit notes. It has also developed a device that scans fingerprints before allowing access to a safe-deposit box. Innovations like these help banks cut their losses to fraud.

The company holds cash of $350.1 million, or $5.28 a share, and has long-term debt of just $300 million. The stock trades at 16.7 times the $1.80 a share that Diebold should earn this year. The $1.04 dividend yields 3.5%.

Diebold is a buy.