Last week saw the Senate pass a bipartisan infrastructure bill that was probably decades in the making. Not since the 1950's has a package this big ever passed, but of course President Biden's long sought-after bill has a ways to go before becoming law. The size of this bill, if and when it passes, will be a significant number to fix our aged infrastructure.
The haggling and debate over what projects to commence is just about finished, many states will benefit from badly needed construction and repair. No question these projects will take years to finish but our country will be better off for it. In addition, look for most contracts to be filled by U.S. firms, something we can be proud of.
From a market perspective, there are going to be plenty of winners lining up for their share of the riches. More new jobs, purchase of materials and tools and refined delivery systems will all be a positive for the economy. But what specific companies should we be looking toward investing in for the long haul of this soon-to-be law?
There are some obvious names that make the list. The first ones that come to mind are Caterpillar (CAT) and Deere (DE) , large equipment manufacturers and earth movers. Next we have materials, and the best ones here are Marietta Materials (MLM) , Vulcan Materials (VMC) , Eagle (EXP) and BlueLinx (BXC) . Cement could be big as well, US Gypsum and Cemex (CX) are companies to consider. Infrastructure requires specialized equipment and technology, we can see Carrier (CARR) and Otis (OTIS) getting some nice contract work in this area.
On the fringe we have 3M (MMM) and the rails, which include Union Pacific (UNP) , Norfolk Southern (NSC) , and CSX (CSX) . Materials have to be carried to their destination and we should see business coming to these transports for years to come.
Plenty of opportunity here to make investments in high quality companies as we embark on some mammoth infrastructure projects. The last big infrastructure plan some 60+ years ago was the start of some amazing growth for our nation. Let's see it happen again.
(Union Pacific is a holding in Jim Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS member club. Want to be alerted before Jim Cramer buys or sells UNP? Learn more now.)
