Discuss: Taxes and the Future of American Business
November 23, 2015
Image Source: Montgomery County Tax inversion deals are back on. And in a big way! Pharma giant Pfizer (PFE) and Allergan (AGN) announced the largest one, creating the biggest drug maker by revenue in the combination, one that will headquarter in Ireland for tax purposes. Do US tax holders truly believe they own the companies? Or are tax inversions a part of American freedom, championed on a global stage? What do you think? Comment below.
Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week Ending November 20
November 23, 2015
Below we provide a list of firms that raised/lowered their dividends during the week ending November 20. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports use the ‘Symbol’ search box in our website header. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week Acme United (ACU): now $0.10 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.09. Agilent (A): now $0.115 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.10. American Equity (AEL): now $0.22 per share annual dividend, was $0.20. American National Bankshares (AMNB): now $0.24 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.23. Bob Evans Farms (BOBE): now $0.34 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.31. Brown-Forman (BF.A): now $0.34 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.315.
Same Stories Prevail at Walmart and Target
November 22, 2015
When consumers think of retail, Walmart (WMT) and Target (TGT) are probably two of the biggest companies that come to mind. After all, the two big box retail giants have taken the US by storm throughout much of the 1990s and 2000s. But the shift to e-commerce with the proliferation of Amazon (AMZN) and eBay (EBAY) coupled with broad-based consumer backlash with respect to worker wages and credit card breaches, respectively, have created a whirlwind of negative public perception at the two giants as of late. Will worker unrest and Target’s failed attempt to expand beyond the borders of the US mark the generational stock price peaks at the two giants, respectively? Are both past their prime? The likelihood of
Home Improvement Remains Strong
November 19, 2015
The story for home improvement retail giants has remained largely unchanged in recent quarters. Demand for home improvement goods has been high, as has general housing demand. This has driven traffic increases for the likes of Home Depot (HD) and Lowe’s (LOW) thus far in 2015. Home Depot reported sales growing 6.4% from the year-ago period to $21.8 billion in its fiscal third quarter of 2015, and comparable store sales increased 5.1% in the quarter. The firm’s number of customer transactions advanced by 4.4% in the period, while its average ticket price grew nearly 1%. The company’s sales per square foot grew by more than 5% in the quarter on a year-over-year basis. Home Depot’s impressive top-line trends were mostly
Mixed Bag at Department Stores
November 19, 2015
Where will consumers keep spending their money? This is a question that investors will always be trying to answer, no matter where we are in the economic cycle (during good times and bad). It is not always easy to predict the spending patterns of any demographic with any sort of precision, but let’s see how things shook out with some of the best-known department stores in the US during the third quarter of 2015. During the latter part of last decade, department store equities had been strong performers; shares of companies such as Macy’s (M), Kohl’s (KSS), and Nordstrom (JWC), for example, more than tripled from their respective bottoms during the Great Recession, but all three have witnessed their share
Cisco Reports Solid Quarter; Shares Still Cheap With Nice Dividend
November 19, 2015
In its first quarter of fiscal 2016, ended October 24, Cisco (CSCO) reported healthy financial performance. The firm grew total revenue 4% to $12.7 billion from the year-ago period, and non-GAAP earnings per share advanced more than 9% to $0.59. Top-line growth was led by emerging markets revenue growth of 11%, driven primarily by Mexico and India. The strong US dollar has impacted performance in countries such as Brazil and Russia to a degree, and we don’t expect this headwind to subside in the near term. Cisco continues to transform its revenue model to a greater recurring mix thanks to a 10% increase in deferred revenue in the fiscal first quarter. Software and subscriptions led the deferred revenue growth, jumping
Financial Statement Analysis Seminar
November 18, 2015
Interested in learning more about financial statements? Please contact us at info@valuentum.com for more details. In this seminar, Valuentum’s President of Investment Research Brian Nelson walks through the in’s and out’s of financial statement analysis. What We Learn: How to assess the operating strength and earnings power of a company (income statement) How to assess the financial health and leverage of a company (balance sheet) How to assess the cash flow generating capacity and capital intensity of a company (cash flow statement) How the Valuentum team predicts dividend cuts and assesses long-term dividend safety The myriad risks of master limited partnerships (MLP) and real estate investment trusts (REITs) How to assess earnings quality and common financial warning signs And more!!! About
Developments in the Iron Ore Market
November 18, 2015
BHP Billiton (BHP) shares have reached their lowest levels since 2008 after reports surfaced November 5 of a mining dam the company owns via a joint venture with Vale (VALE) broke. The dam failure has decimated a rural community, killed at least 8 people, left at least 20 people missing, and potentially contaminated the water source of hundreds of thousands of Brazilians. Samarco, the limited liability company set up to operate the joint venture between BHP and Vale, has been said to be fully responsible for the failure, but the two-year old company may do little to protect its parent companies from hefty fines and cleanup and legal costs. According to an environmental lawyer, if Samarco cannot cover the cleanup
Railroad Merger Talks
November 16, 2015
Canadian Pacific (CP) is back on the hunt for consolidation. After regulators shot down a proposed deal for CSX (CSX) last year, the firm is reportedly in preliminary talks with Norfolk Southern (NSC) concerning a merger that could be worth more than $24 billion. The fact that there are so few railroad operators in the US suggests that a deal will be very difficult to get past regulators, and if a deal does in fact get done, it will likely be the last of its size in the industry. The two companies have complimentary cargo markets and little geographical overlap, in our birds’ eye view of their respective route networks. Norfolk Southern generates 22% of its revenue in intermodal shipments,
Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week Ending November 13
November 14, 2015
Below we provide a list of firms that raised/lowered their dividends during the week ending November 13. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports use the ‘Symbol’ search box in our website header. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week Aaron’s (AAN): now $0.025 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.023. Acadia Realty Trust (AKR): now $0.25 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.24. Automatic Data Processing (ADP): now $0.53 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.49. ClearOne (CLRO): now $0.05 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.035. D.R. Horton, Inc. (DHI): now $0.08 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.0625. DCT Industrial Trust (DCT): now $0.29 per share quarterly dividend,
