(MONEY Magazine) – Tupperware rolls out a fresh sales style

Is the Tupperware (TUP) party over? It seems that way, since shares in the food storage pioneer trade at around $23, or half their early 1997 level. A slump in overseas sales, competition from the likes of Rubbermaid and the waning popularity of those at-home parties have dented profits.

But Tupperware is now taking several steps to revive its domestic business. In June, it began selling its wares on the Home Shopping Network, and products will be available over the Internet during the third quarter. By Christmas there will be Tupperware kiosks in more than 100 malls nationwide.

And its new items are more elaborate--and more expensive. Take the Fridge-Smart line, designed to double the shelf life of fruits and vegetables. The containers, which sell for $8.50 to $20, come with adjustable vents and a chart that indicates how much different vegetables should "breathe."

Wall Street expects Tupperware earnings to rise 17% in 2000. "There's a lot of unmet demand in the U.S.," says Nancy Dennin, whose Legg Mason Total Return Trust owns 796,000 shares. "Their move into alternative distribution methods in the U.S. has the potential to really drive their top line." --SARAH ROSE

A beaten-down gunmaker

Cigarette stocks have been hit hard by waves of litigation and antismoking sentiment. So it's no surprise that the value of the one publicly traded U.S. gunmaker, Sturm Ruger (RGR), also has fallen as the outcry over gun violence has prompted states, cities and individuals to press legal action against the industry.

Yet the gun business remains healthy, claims Steve Sanetti, general counsel of Connecticut-based Sturm Ruger, which sells to hunters, police forces and the military. "Reports of our death are greatly exaggerated," he says. "I don't think ultimately the lawsuits will affect us, because the law is on our side."

At $10 a share, the stock is off about 50% from a year ago. Besides the controversy over guns, Sturm Ruger has been hurt by weak demand for titanium golf club heads, which had accounted for 30% of its sales. Jean-Marie Eveillard of SoGen International Fund calls the stock "dirt cheap," since the company forecasts higher gun sales that will make up for the golf slowdown.

The stock is trading at 10 times projected 1999 earnings and pays a fat 7.4% dividend. Tim Conder, an analyst at A.G. Edwards & Sons, projects that it can reach $15 within a year. "It's a deep value for the patient investor," he says. --DAVID KUHN

Stride Rite looks to get back on track

When James Eskridge quit as chief executive of Stride Rite (SRR) this summer just seven months into the job, Wall Street reacted with alarm. The footwear maker's shares fell 18% on July 8, to $8.50, as analysts bemoaned the uncertainty. "It's a fashion company without clear leadership," says Marcia Aaron of Deutsche Banc Alex. Brown.

Myles Slosberg, grandson of Stride Rite's founder, has come out of retirement to lead the search for both a new CEO and a new head of the key Keds division. "We're trying to solidify the situation," he says. "The business is very healthy and prospects are looking good."

Although Stride Rite's second-quarter profits rose a mere 1.7%, to $9.8 million, Steven Richter of Tucker Anthony Cleary Gull in Boston expects it to earn 80[cents] a share next year, which could boost the stock into the mid-teens. "There's a credibility issue," he says. "But they have a real franchise and good brands." And Stride Rite could be an acquisition target. "This company is selling for near its liquidation value," notes Philadelphia Corp. money manager Forrest Mervine Jr. --AMY FELDMAN

Spreading the mayo overseas

If you missed the run in emerging markets, here's a way to play it with a U.S. stock: Bestfoods (BFO). The Englewood, N.J. company fills supermarket shelves with such familiar names as Knorr, Hellmann's, Skippy and Mazola. They're favorites overseas too, where Bestfoods gets about 60% of its profits.

But with key markets like Brazil, Argentina and Colombia in economic disarray, Bestfoods shares have fallen 22% from last summer's peak to $47. "It's really cheap here," says Paul Wayne, director of research at Kayne Anderson Investment Management, who credits company executives with adjusting their product lines to match local conditions.

In 1998, Bestfoods started making Skippy peanut butter in China, and Knorr has notched the No. 1 spot for soups in India after just two years there. "During an economic crisis, people might not buy a car or a washer-dryer, but they don't reduce food consumption," says John O'Neill, a PaineWebber analyst who recently began coverage of Bestfoods with a buy and a $59 price target. --PABLO GALARZA

A name behind the tech brand names

In the computer industry, more and more of the actual PC boxes, servers and peripherals are made by outsourcers. The fastest-growing big outsourcer is Celestica (CLS), which projects sales of $10 billion in 2001, up from $4.5 billion this year.

With 24 plants in seven countries, Celestica supplies IBM, Dell, EMC, Sun Microsystems and Hewlett-Packard, among others. The company now has its foot in the door with nine large telecom equipment firms, including Nortel, Ericsson and Siemens. "All the major [telecom] players have declared an outsourcing strategy," says Celestica marketing chief Tom Tropea.

Because Celestica deals with so many PC and telecom companies, investors can use it as a "mutual fund approach to investing in technology," says Keith Dunne of BancBoston Robertson Stephens. --ETHAN JOHNSON