As Stocks Tank, Campbell's Proves Hearty

As investors stampeded to sell stocks as confidence plunged yesterday, lonely cans of Campbell's soup stood supreme. By the time the dust cleared, Campbell's was the only one of 500 firms in the Standard & Poor's index whose stocks rose, Reuters reports. The soup's shares jumped 12 cents. Some analysts believe investors were betting on a consumer rush to stock up on canned goods for hard times ahead.

The company's chunky 14% increase in dividend announced last week likely also contributed to a taste for soup shares. Analysts note that Campbell's has been a star performer in previous troubled times. In the two months following the September 11 attacks, the company's shares rose 10%, while the index as a whole rose just 2.4%.

(More Campbell's Soup stories.)