Latest Report Updates Concentrated in Mining & Chemicals and Healthcare Industries
June 26, 2023
———- In our 16-page equity research reports, we offer a fair value estimate for each company based on a rigorous and transparent discounted cash flow process, assess the attractiveness of a stock based on a firm-specific margin of safety, and provide a relative valuation comparison in the context of the company’s industry and peers. Each report includes detailed pro forma financial statements, explicit fundamental forecasts, and scenario analysis. A cross section of the ValueCreation and ValueRisk ratings provides a financial assessment of a company’s business quality (competitive position), while the ValueTrend and Economic Castle ratings offer insight into the trajectory of a firm’s economic profit creation (ROIC versus WACC). Included in each 16-page report is a company’s rating on the Valuentum Buying Index (VBI), a methodology that combines rigorous financial and valuation analysis
CFA Institute Blog: “Hide-‘Til-Maturity” Accounting
June 26, 2023
The Silicon Valley Bank collapse recalls the tussle over the accounting for financial instruments after the global financial crisis [GFC] in 2009, particularly the debate about whether some financial instruments should be carried at amortized cost (held-to-maturity, HTM) rather than at fair value (available-for-sale, AFS), or what is referred to as the “mixed measurement model.” — Sandy Peters, CPA, CFA To read the article on the CFA Institute Blog >> —– Related: 4 Very Good Reasons Why We Don’t Like Dividends of Banking Stocks Banks & Money Centers: AXP, BAC, BBT, BK, C, DFS, FITB, GS, HBC, JPM, KEY, MS, NTRS, PNC, RF, STI, TFC, USB, WFC Valuentum does not believe the long-term dividend health of any financial institution can be accurately
Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week of June 23
June 23, 2023
Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending June 23. 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 Cadiz Inc. 8.875% DEP PFD A (CDZIP): now $0.56 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.55. Calvin B. Taylor Bankshares (TYCB): now $0.34 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.33. Darden Restaurants (DRI): now $1.31 per share quarterly dividend, was $1.21. Decisive Dividend Corporation (DE:CA): now CAD 0.04 per share monthly dividend, was CAD 0.035. Dream Impact Trust (MPCT.UN:CA): now CAD 0.0533 per share monthly dividend,
Our Reports on Stocks in the Mining & Chemicals Industry
June 21, 2023
Dividend Yield: Estimated on a forward-looking annualized basis. VBI: The Valuentum Buying Index, a timeliness indicator that overlays a price-to-fair-value estimate consideration. Fair Value Estimate: Derived by Valuentum’s enterprise valuation process. Dividend Cushion ratio: A ratio assessing the health of the dividend (the higher, the better). Data as of the date of this article. Individual company reports may have been updated subsequent to the publishing of this article, so please download a company’s stock and dividend report for its latest information and data. Note: The data in the tables of each of the below companies’ respective stock pages is updated the weekend after the publishing of this update. Please click on a company name below to view the corresponding equity
Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week of June 16
June 16, 2023
Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending June 16. 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 Banco Bradesco (BBD): now $0.0039 per share monthly dividend, was $0.0035. Bank First (BFC): now $0.30 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.25. Caterpillar (CAT): now $1.30 per share quarterly dividend, was $1.20. CT Real Estate Investment Trust (UN:CA): now CAD 0.0749 per share monthly dividend, was CAD 0.0723. Essential Properties (EPRT): now $0.28 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.275. Host Hotels & Resorts (HST):
UnitedHealth Group’s Long-Term Story Intact
June 14, 2023
Image: UnitedHealth Group’s shares are facing pressure as the pace of medical procedures normalizes following COVID-19. We still like shares. By Brian Nelson, CFA On June 7, UnitedHealth Group (UNH) raised its quarterly dividend nearly 14%, to $1.88 per share, which reflects a forward estimated dividend yield of 1.65%. The company remains a staple in the Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio and is a new add in the Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio. Recent comments by UNH’s John Rex on June 14 regarding the firm’s healthcare costs during the second quarter have put shares under pressure during the trading session. Discretionary surgeries have picked back up following a lull during most of the COVID-19 pandemic as hospital capacity was largely constrained during
ESG Facing Opposition But Still an Indispensable Component of Investing
June 13, 2023
Image: Shares of Anheuser-Busch Inbev (BUD) and Target (TGT) have fallen 16%+ and 22%+, respectively, since the beginning of April. By Brian Nelson, CFA When it comes to investing, Environmental [E], Social [S], and Governance [G] considerations are an absolute must. If a company pollutes the environment, shareholders suffer as the stock reels from fines and other liabilities. If a company doesn’t treat its workers and customers well, its culture will suffer and so eventually will its service and profits. If the company’s corporate oversight is not at or approaching best practices, wrongdoing at the top becomes much more likely. Whether investors pursue ESG investing outright, or assess such considerations indirectly outside the ESG context, the core components of ESG
Oracle Hits All-Time Highs; Larry Ellison Pumps AI Opportunity
June 13, 2023
Image: Newsletter portfolio holding Oracle surges to all-time highs! “Oracle’s Gen2 Cloud has quickly become the number 1 choice for running Generative AI workloads. Why? Because Oracle has the highest performance, lowest cost GPU cluster technology in the world. NVIDIA (NVDA) themselves are using our clusters, including one with more than 4,000 GPUs, for their AI infrastructure. Our GPU clusters are built using the highest-bandwidth and lowest-latency RDMA network—and scale up to 32,000 GPUs. As a result, cutting edge companies doing LLM development such as Mosaic ML, Adept AI, Cohere plus 30 other AI development companies have recently signed contracts to purchase more than $2 billion of capacity in Oracle’s Gen2 Cloud.” – Chairman and CTO Larry Ellison By Brian
FDA Accepts License Application for Vertex Pharma’s and CRISPR Therapeutics’ Key Investigational Treatment
June 12, 2023
Image: Vertex’s pipeline is impressive. We like its areas of focus and the progress it continues to make with key therapies in CRISPR and pain management. By Brian Nelson, CFA On June 8, it was announced that the Biologics License Applications (BLAs) for the investigational treatment exagamglogene autotemcel (exa-cel) for sickle cell disease (SCD) and transfusion-dependent beta thalassemia (TDT) from two of our favorite speculative biotech entities Vertex Pharma (VRTX) and CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP) have been accepted by the U.S. FDA. The submission received Priority Review for SCD, and exa-cel has the potential to be the first CRISPR gene-editing therapy to be approved. We continue to be huge fans of this technology and Vertex’s risk-adjusted exposure to the potential
