Updating GENUINE PARTS CO. and BRIGGS & STRATTON CORP.

Article Excerpt

GENUINE PARTS CO. $50 (www.genpt.com) has acquired privately held Cobra Wire & Cable, Inc. Based in Pennsylvania, Cobra distributes insulated wires and cables to makers of telecom equipment, batteries and other electrical products, mainly under long-term supply contracts. Genuine Parts did not say how much it paid, but Cobra will add $43 million to Genuine’s annual revenue of $11.9 billion. Buy. BRIGGS & STRATTON CORP. $14 (www.briggsandstratton.com) earned $63.2 million, or $1.25 a share, in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2011. (These figures exclude a $49.5-million writedown of goodwill in the company’s power products division, which makes portable generators and pressure washers.) The 2011 earnings are up 14.4% from $55.3 million, or $1.10 a share, in 2010. Sales rose 4.1%, to $2.1 billion from $2.0 billion. Over the next two years, Briggs plans to buy back $50 million of its shares, or 7% of its market cap. Hold. Hold…