Below is an introduction to the world of inactive securities. For more articles on this subject, follow links located at the bottom of this page.

Hershey Creamery Company (HRCR) was founded in 1894. Don't make the mistake of confusing this company with Hershey Foods, the well-known chocolate maker. At the end of 2004, Hershey Creamery had a current ratio of 6.2 to 1, no long-term debt, and traded at about $2,300 per share.  On the other hand, Hershey Foods had a current ratio of only 0.92 to 1, a great deal of long-term debt, and it traded for around $62 per share on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

But you've never heard of Hershey Creamery, have you?  That's because this company's stock trades much less frequently, and then trades only in the over-the-counter (OTC) market.  There simply are not enough shares outstanding for Hershey Creamery's stockholders to enjoy a more active market, and so this first-rate company remains quite obscure to the trading public.  A pity.

There are many companies similarly situated in Walker's Manuals, especially in Walker's Manual of Unlisted Stocks. But investors (those who can even afford the $2,500 price tag) are often scared off by stocks like Hershey Creamery. After all, who cares what the performance or financial condition of a company is if you can't realize the true value of their stock?

Good question. But we think that early discovery of companies like Hershey allows for investment before share prices are greatly increased by more active trading. And, by the way, stock prices usually aren't as high as Hershey's is. Let's face it—Hershey is simply a wonderful secret, and it is quite plausible that some event will occur at some point in time that triggers an upward climb in the stock's price. To be sure, Hershey should never be viewed as a short term investment, but the stockholder who holds rock-solid Hershey shares has a gem in their portfolio.

Walker's Manuals are full of companies hovering in the OTC market, and whether any one of them emerges from obscurity or not depends on the company. Here at Walker's Manuals we revisit all of the companies we keep track of every year, and every year we find that every company has  followed one of four possible courses: the company has either been acquired by another firm, listed on a major exchange or on NASDAQ, stayed put on the OTC for the time being, or, in rare cases, gone out of business.