To attract subscribers to its premium services, Value Line offers two important free services. If you go to most large public libraries, you will find the whole Value Line body of research in the reference section, where you can find the info you need but also where you can see the full impact of Value Line's value. And if you go to their web site, you will find free downloads of reports of all 30 components of the Dow Industrial stocks, which include many of the biggest corporations in the world

These 30 Dow reports are published once per quarter year, which means that every Friday there is an average 2.3 new reports (i.e. 30/13 weeks per quarter). Because only the most current report is available, and there are nuances that can be observed from report to report, and when the analysts happen to change, I recommend you print the hardcopy and file it by stock in a binder for reference.

Later today (Jan. 7), Value Line will print two reports: Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) and Home Depot (NYSE: HD). HD is a VL favorite, and I admit I personally should have paid more attention to the VL analyst Carrie Gaudio's opinions.

Investors who have a very long term horizon will note that Value Line number one rated stocks (like HD) include only 170 of the 1700 quality mid-cap and large-cap stocks followed by VL, and that this group far out-performs the S&P 500 index (and hence 80 percent of all mutual funds) over any five-year period.

I have no financial interest whatsoever in Value Line, but I like the service so much I could easily be a pro bono salesperson for them. I guess I am but in future, if and when I root out comparable quality independent and objective free research, I'll discuss it in this Category.

Procter & Gamble VL Report

Home Depot VL Report

BCara@BillCara.com