Brian Nelson

Apple Hacked! Not Alone.

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By Brian Nelson, CFA It’s difficult to be a business these days. Not only do you have to provide a service that customers are willing to pay for, but your customers have to have the means to pay for it. But more and more, we are seeing that businesses have more obstacles to overcome, and I’m not just talking about increased regulations. I’m talking about hackers, and their work is becoming more and more prevalent. Target (TGT) continues to be distracted from its credit data breach, while eBay (EBAY) recently reported a cyber attack, though of the less-serious variety. This week, reports indicate that Home Depot (HD) has been the target of a massive credit card data breach. Though admitting … Read more

Performance Update: The Valuentum Buying Index

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Note: A more recent analysis of the Valuentum Buying Index rating system can be accessed at the following link: /Value_and_Momentum_Within_Stocks_Too A version of this article was published October 26, 2013. By Brian Nelson, CFA We periodically update the performance results of the Valuentum Buying Index (VBI), the stock-selection methodology that drives idea-generation within the Best Ideas portfolio. The academic studies of the Valuentum Buying Index can be accessed here (white paper) and here (AAII). The latest iteration of the performance, dated September 3, 2014, continues to showcase the strong sorting mechanism embedded within the investing framework, particularly when the index is coupled with qualitative oversight and portfolio management skill. Sorting winners from losers is what the Valuentum Buying Index has been designed to … Read more

The Dividend Dilemma

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One of the core tenets of the Valuentum process not only rests in the all-important price vs. value consideration (see Valuentum’s Brian Nelson talk about that here), but also in “letting winners run.” At first read, these two items appear to be at odds with each other. For example, we preach about getting stocks at a bargain, but yet, we don’t sell holdings when they start to move beyond our estimate of their fair value. What gives? At the Valuentum core, we prefer an entry point that corresponds to the time when shares have substantial valuation and pricing support (i.e. they have high Valuentum Buying Index ratings), and we prefer an exit point when shares have little valuation and pricing … Read more

September Edition of the Dividend Growth Newsletter To Be Released Tomorrow

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Dear Member: Due to Monday being Labor Day, a holiday for US markets, the Dividend Growth Newsletter, typically released on the 1st of each month, will be released tomorrow evening, September 2. The September edition of the Best Ideas Newsletter is still scheduled for release the evening of Monday, September 15, and the October edition of the Dividend Growth Newsletter will be published as originally scheduled on the evening of Wednesday, October 1. Valuentum’s Brian Nelson wanted to make sure that you saw the recent videos posted to the website, both as it relates to the core concept of price vs. value here and his recent interview on CNBC regarding the luxury space here. In case you missed it, Gilead … Read more

This Firm Just Registered a 10 on the Valuentum Buying Index

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Please expect a full write-up and a transaction alert email with additional details soon. The company is being considered for inclusion into the Best Ideas portfolio.  “Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden and senior Finance Committee member Chuck Grassley made public their request for detailed pricing information on Gilead’s (GILD) Sovaldi, a Hepatitis C virus drug. Wyden and Grassley have asked Gilead Sciences for information about Sovaldi, a drug developed to treat and cure HCV, they disclosed, stating, “Given the impact Sovaldi’s cost will have on Medicare, Medicaid and other federal spending, we need a better understanding of how your company arrived at the price for this drug.” — source Please select the image below to download the firm’s 16-page … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week Ending August 29

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Below we provide a list of firms that raised/lowered their dividends during the week ending August 29. 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 Escalade (ESCA): now $0.10 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.09. First Connecticut Bancorp (FBNK): now $0.05 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.04. MB Financial (MBFI): now $0.14 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.12. Old Line Bancshares (OLBK): now $0.05 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.04 Raven Industries (RAVN): now $0.13 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.12. Scotiabank (BNS): now C$0.66 per share quarterly dividend, was C$0.64. Triangle … Read more

Tiffany Dazzles in Second Quarter; Coach Now Yielding ~4%

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Be sure to catch Valuentum’s Brian Nelson discussing Tiffany’s reports on CNBC Asia at 9:30 PM CST today. The video clip will be posted to the website as soon as it is made available. Luxury jewelry maker Tiffany (TIF) reported fantastic second-quarter results Wednesday and raised its bottom-line guidance for the second time this year and in as many quarters. Tiffany has been benefiting from a modernization of its classical jewelry line-up thanks to the ongoing success of its newest ATLAS collection (shown right) and TIFFANY T jewelry collection (shown below). The ATLAS collection is named for the mythic Greek god and showcases Roman numerals in designs symbolic of strength and freedom on pieces ranging from pendants and earrings to … Read more

Price Is Almost Always Different Than Value

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It was January 10, 2000. America Online had just announced that it would acquire Time Warner to create the largest media company. The purchase price amounted to more than $160 billion, and the combined entity was estimated to have a market capitalization of ~$350 billion. The deal was the biggest corporate merger to that date and was expected to launch the next Internet revolution, according to then-CEO of AOL Steve Case. The transaction valued Time Warner at about $108 per share, a huge premium over its price of $64.75 per share the trading session before. AOL’s shares closed at $72 the day of the announcement. Just a couple years later, things were quite different. When it reported full-year 2002 results, … Read more