Member Articles

Podcast: The ABCs of Investing in Alphabet

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The company formerly known as Google, Alphabet, has a pristine balance sheet and generates a tremendous amount of free cash flow. A paid search powerhouse that is making some big bets in other areas of the future is one of our favorite ideas. The Valuentum analyst team digs in. ~6 minutes Please access the transcript below. Tickerized for Google, Twitter, Facebook, and various Internet ETFs. Brian Nelson, CFA: This is Brian Nelson for Valuentum Securities and welcome to our podcast. Today I have joining me Mr. Kris Rosemann and Mr. Chris Araos. The topic today is going to be on Google, now calling itself Alphabet. Google is a company that we include in our Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio — ticker symbol … Read more

Examining Same-Store Sales in the Restaurant Industry

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Key Takeaways September 2016 marked the fourth consecutive month of same-store restaurant sales declines, but the pressure is not indiscriminant. Millennials account for nearly a quarter of restaurant spending and are anticipated to account for 40% of restaurant purchases by 2020. Their preferences are becoming important considerations for the strategic planning of restaurants. Fast food restaurants with exposure to the coffee and breakfast segments appear to be faring better than those with limited or no exposure to the segments. Experiential dining is becoming increasingly important in the full-service arena as the gap between grocery prices and food away from home prices has widened of late.     By Kris Rosemann The broader restaurant sector (BITE) has been under pressure as of … Read more

Podcast: Markets In Motion

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The Valuentum analyst team covers market moving information that is top of mind from consumer staples valuations, the political election cycle, utility valuations, energy resource pricing, biotech considerations, Brexit uncertainty and beyond. ~8 minutes. Tickerized for several consumer staples entities and ETFs, several companies in the energy sector, emerging market vehicles and more.

Earnings Insight – General Motors

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Let’s cover some ground on General Motors’ (GM) third-quarter results. What management said: “GM delivered strong earnings and achieved several third quarter records that included net income, EBIT-adjusted, EBIT-adjusted margins, EPS diluted-adjusted and adjusted automotive free cash flow. Net income increased 104% to $2.8 billion as net revenue rose 10% to $42.8 billion, which is an all-time record. EBIT-adjusted was up 14% to $3.5 billion. EBIT-adjusted margin was 8.3%, up 0.3 percentage points and EPS diluted-adjusted was up nearly 15% to $1.72. Adjusted automotive free cash flow was $3.5 billion, up from $0.8 billion last year and ROIC adjusted of 30.6% on a trailing four-quarter basis was an all-time record continuing the positive impact of our disciplined capital allocation framework. … Read more

As Expected–MLP StoneMor Partners Slashes Distribution!

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Image: A clipping of Valuentum’s dividend report on StoneMor Partners. We continue to defend the individual investor! StoneMor Partners (STON) is about the most risky entity in all of our coverage universe, and it showed why after the trading session, October 27, by cutting its distribution! Yes, yet another MLP! For those that listened to us about the severe risks of its business model, we salute you. The MLP has been what we call a double whammy–it’s on Valuentum’s most overvalued list here, and it had a Dividend Cushion ratio of 0.1, now -0.7 (anything less than 1 is risky, but close to or below 0 implies significantly heightened risk). Shares are indicated down 25% after the close October 27. … Read more

Earnings Insight – Visa

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Image source: Visa Let’s cover some ground on Visa’s (V) calendar third-quarter report, its fiscal fourth-quarter release. What management said: “We continue to deliver healthy earnings growth in the face of continued, but abating headwinds. We have begun to see the benefits from our acquisition of Visa Europe and strong cost discipline helped our results. At the same time, we are unwavering in our commitment to invest in client partnership opportunities and the further build out of our digital payments capabilities,” said Charlie Scharf, Chief Executive Officer of Visa Inc. “As we enter fiscal 2017, we are positioned well as revenue headwinds will continue to ease, we will continue to see the benefits from Visa Europe in our results, and … Read more

Podcast: Why ETFs and Roasting the Banks

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The Valuentum analyst team talks about why we don’t like the business models of banking entities, why they are currently destroying economic value, but also why the team includes exposure in the Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio. What gives? Find out in this ~9 minute podcast. If you cannot view the video, please view the transcript that follows. Tickerized for holdings in the exchange traded funds, XLF and KBE, and for various financials-oriented ETFs.  Kris Rosemann: Hello and welcome to the Valuentum Securities podcast. My name is Kris Rosemann Associate Investment Analyst at Valuentum. With me is Chris Araos and Brian Nelson President of Equity Research and ETF Analysis at Valuentum. Today, we are going to have a quick discussion over … Read more

Earnings Insight — Apple

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Let’s cover some ground on Apple’s (AAPL) calendar third-quarter report, its fiscal fourth-quarter release. What management said: “Our strong September quarter results cap a very successful fiscal 2016 for Apple,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “We’re thrilled with the customer response to iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus and Apple Watch Series 2, as well as the incredible momentum of our Services business, where revenue grew 24 percent to set another all-time record…We are pleased to have generated $16.1 billion in operating cash flow, a new record for the September quarter,” said Luca Maestri, Apple’s CFO. “We also returned $9.3 billion to investors through dividends and share repurchases during the quarter and have now completed over $186 billion of our capital … Read more

Commodity Price Pressures Dinging Industrial Bellwether Expectations

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By Kris Rosemann Commodity resource prices, while suppressed, are said to be stabilizing, but stabilization at low levels does little good for many operators tied to commodity-based end markets. Such is the case for several industrial giants General Electric (GE), 3M (MMM), and Caterpillar (CAT), all of which have seen their worldwide operations impacted by the effect that a prolonged trough in commodity prices has had on global economic growth, “Industrial Bellwethers Hit by Global Economic Growth Concerns.” We recently highlighted the organic growth pressures industrial bellwether Honeywell (HON) has been experiencing, “Honeywell’s Stock Up 170% Since End of 2009; GE a Better Bet?” and its peers have been echoing its concerns. GE reported third-quarter earnings October 21, and while … Read more

Procter & Gamble Refocused and Ready to Grow?

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By Kris Rosemann Procter & Gamble (PG) has been working through a massive portfolio transformation during the past several years, but with the last major step in the transformation taking place earlier this October, “Analyzing Procter & Gamble’s Exchange Offer,” the firm is preparing to retrain its focus on 10 categories where it holds leading market positions. We continue to hold shares of Procter & Gamble in the Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio, even as we note the company is not what it once was after several years of revenue declines. Reported sales fell 5% in fiscal 2015 and another 8% in fiscal 2016, while both operating income and net earnings from continuing operations remain below fiscal 2014 levels.   We … Read more