![\"Proven](\"http:\/\/www.profitconfidential.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/250713_PC_clark.jpg\" "\\"Proven")
<\/a>Today, a very good business reports its numbers. It\u2019s an old economy play that we looked at back in February, and it\u2019s the kind of company<\/a> that, according to history, you can just tuck away and keep in your portfolio.<\/p>\nThe company is Airgas, Inc. (ARG) out of Radnor, PA. It\u2019s not the most exciting enterprise in the world; it\u2019s unlikely you\u2019ll find it featured on CNBC or other media outlets. But it\u2019s exactly the kind of old economy, reliable business that\u2019s very necessary to the economy.<\/p>\n
Airgas is a seven-billion-dollar company that pays dividends<\/a> (currently yielding 1.9%). It sells propane, oxygen, nitrogen, and a lot of other gases used for industrial and medical purposes.<\/p>\n It\u2019s the kind of business that you never think of but is absolutely necessary for basic infrastructure to be created (welding) and for healthcare to be delivered (oxygen, carbon dioxide, helium).<\/p>\n On the stock market, Airgas has mostly been a powerhouse. The position has been trading range-bound for the last six months, but the company\u2019s long-term track record is very solid.<\/p>\n This kind of business is absolutely worthy of consideration for retirement accounts or long-term savings plans. Yes, there will be quarters when a company like this doesn\u2019t meet expectations, but it\u2019s difficult to imagine the demand for welding and medical gases going down systemically.<\/p>\n Just take a look at the company\u2019s long-term stock chart below:<\/p>\n Chart courtesy of www.StockCharts.com<\/i><\/p>\n Every business experiences tough times. You can see in the above stock chart that shares for Airgas turned downward in 1997 and took almost nine years to recover. But that\u2019s why businesses like this are for long-term investors who like to collect dividends. The company\u2019s normalized stock market trend is consistent.<\/p>\n Investors might not be interested in an old economy stock at its high, but it\u2019s the kind of business that\u2019s worth following in case of a quarterly miss and\/or a major share price retrenchment.<\/p>\n Reporting today, Wall Street doesn\u2019t expect much in the way of growth from this company. Revenues are forecast to grow 1.1% comparatively to $1.27 billion. The average earnings-per-share estimate is $1.15, compared to $1.13 in the same quarter last year.<\/p>\n Clearly, this isn\u2019t a growth story. But I still follow a number of businesses like this, because they are real. They aren\u2019t going away anytime soon and even as mature, old economy stories, many companies like this have actually produced very good long-term returns on the stock market. (See \u201cWhy These Old Economy Stocks Are Absolutely Crucial<\/a>.\u201d)<\/p>\n I like big brand-name companies that pay increasing dividends to shareholders. But I also like esoteric, non-media-hyped businesses that just grind it out every day.<\/p>\n As part of an overall portfolio, I think there\u2019s definitely room for a position like Airgas\u2014an industrial, basic-infrastructure type of company with a proven track record of wealth creation.<\/p>\n It isn\u2019t fancy and it sure isn\u2019t glitzy, but who cares? At the end of the day, it\u2019s the return that counts.<\/p>\n![\"Airgas](\"http:\/\/www.profitconfidential.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/Airgas-Inc-Chart.jpg\" "\\"Airgas")
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