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Mon, 12 Mar 2007
This guy likes Ruth's Chris among others.
With many restaurant chains, new stores are the only driver for growth. While Ruth's management believes the market could one day accommodate 250 Ruth's Chris Steak Houses, the company is also growing sales in existing locations. In 2006, same-store sales climbed 6.2%, and only 0.7% of that increase was attributable to higher prices. Even in the first quarter, in which most retailers and restaurants were hurt by February's bad weather, the company said traffic has been positive this year, something that many restaurants are struggling to achieve. When looking at consumer stocks, Jim Margard, chief investment officer of the Rainier Small/Mid Cap Equity fund, prefers those that are distinguished from their peers. "That often leads you to companies in the premium space," he says. Other first-class names in his portfolio include Tiffany's (TIF - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr), Sotheby's (BID - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) and Coach (COH - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr).
Posted 21:09

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