Barron's Picks And Pans: BB&T, Best Buy, Boeing And More

This weekend's Barron's cover story reveals the latest ranking of the most sustainable U.S. companies.

Other featured articles discuss whether a new wave of financial mergers is coming and stocks that are bucking the earnings trend.

Also, the prospects for a railroad equipment maker and a sector that is fertile for income investors.

"The 100 Most Sustainable U.S. Companies" by Leslie P. Norton shows why Best Buy Co Inc BBY and Cisco Systems, Inc. CSCO top this year's list.

In "Time to Board the Wabtec Special," Lawrence C. Strauss makes the case that battered Wabtec Corporation WAB shares look alluring, despite worries about a big merger.

Robert Teitelman's "BB&T and SunTrust: Buy the Deal but Don't Fall for the Trend" asks whether the BB&T Corporation BBT and SunTrust Banks, Inc. STI deal will spark further financial mergers.

Barron's looks at a sector can be fertile for income investors, as Pfizer Inc. PFE and others return capital to shareholders via share buybacks and dividends, according to "4 Health-Care Stocks With Yields Above 2%" by Lawrence C. Strauss.

In Jack Hough's "3 Stocks Bucking the Earnings Slowdown," see how Boeing Co BA and two other companies stand out now by doing more than simply beating earnings estimates.

See also: Barron's On: The Most Sustainable Companies In America

Also in this week's Barron's:

• The most sustainable international companies
• The legacy of Bond King Bill Gross
• Why Washington should stop bashing billionaires
• How millennials could restore American prosperity
• Whether the stock market is ready for a stronger dollar
• How to fix the ETF industry's biggest problem

At the time of this writing, the author had no position in the mentioned equities.

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