Top 5 Mid-Cap Stocks for July 2

Top Five Mid-Cap Stocks: July 2 TSC Ratings TheStreet.com Ratings provides exclusive stock, ETF and mutual fund recommendations using proprietary tools. Our "safety-first" approach aims to reduce risk while achieving performance on a total return basis.

Each business day, we compile a list of the top five stocks in one of five categories -- fast-growth, all-around value, large-cap, mid-cap and small-cap.

Today, mid-cap stocks are in the spotlight. These companies have market capitalizations between $500 million and $10 billion and receive "buy"-ratings from our proprietary quantitative model, which considers more than 60 factors. The stocks are ordered by their potential to appreciate.

Landauer(LDR Quote) offers personnel radiation monitoring to measure the dosage of x-rays, gamma radiation and other penetrating ionizing radiation to which a person has been exposed. We have rated Landauer buy since November 2001.

The company's second fiscal-quarter revenue increased 5% year over year to $25 million as net income and earnings per share fell 16% to $5 million and 58 cents, respectively. Gross, operating and net margin declined 397, 14 and 532 basis points to 72%, 42% and 22%, respectively. Return on assets improved 25 basis points to 19% and return on equity increased 187 basis points to 33%. The company has no debt or interest expenses and a quick ratio of 1.86 indicates ample liquidity.

Shares of Landauer have fallen 15% in 2009, underperforming the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500. But at its current share price, the stock offers a 3.36% dividend yield, which is higher than the S&P 500 average of 3.14%. The stock trades at a price-to-earnings ratio around 25.

Strayer Education(STRA Quote) is a for-profit post-secondary education company that offers a variety of academic programs through Strayer University. We have rated Strayer buy since March 2003.